Chapter 7

Lucy P.O.V

Author Note: DISCONTINUING! Sorry to say but there has been a reason for me dropping off the face of the earth. In short my health has deteriorated and doctors suspect I have some sort of chronic pain disorder or autoimmune condition, they really haven't told me much so I'm in a lot of pain and haven't been in a state to do much at all. I can't continue this story, not that I've been doing much with it but honestly if anybody wants to adopt the fic or adapt the premises please feel free to do so. Here is the majority of a chapter that I haven't quite finished because I'm already in agony from typing this much. I'm sorry to disappoint but thank you for reading. I may write other fics in the future when I'm given more heavy duty pain killers and I'm on better meds. Xoxo

After I woke up due to an obnoxiously loud announcement over the intercom we all clambered out of the train one by one, some of us greener than others. I was beginning to notice how often I fell asleep on trains, it wasn't a great decision to leave yourself so vunerable in a public or open area, but the gentle mention of the vehicle paired with the overwhelming exhaustion I felt whenever I got on one, normally due to having just completed a mission or taking part in any other ridiculous activities that resulted in a large amount of physical exertion.

I looked around the station, it was a lot more welcoming and colourful than the one back at home. Flowers hung in baskets from the ceiling, swinging gently from side to side, everything was coated with unchipped paint in bright colours, it felt like so long since I'd been exposed to such vivid colours, I felt like the brightness should have been a nauseating attack on me but instead I found it just about bearable because all the colours went together and it wasn't a contrasting colours fest. The breeze was warm and lazy, it wrapped around me in a blanket, bringing with it the scent of summer flowers and freshly baked bread, which caused my mouth to start to water.

Stood beside me, Juvia was glowing. Her eyes even when she was happy, never had shone as much as they did in that moment. I followed her gaze, on the horizon was the resort we were to stay at. An immense wooden building, left its mark on the skyline, I could just about make out its general shape and the beauty of it. Below the cliffs it proudly stood upon, a twisting stretch of golden sand lay, shimmering water grazing its edge, turquoise, sapphire and aquamarine melted into each other. I strained my eyes to try and make out more of what Juvia was looking at but eventually gave up.

Juvia looked ready to break into a run towards the resort so I elbowed her in the ribs, as lightly as I could manage, I was probably going to have to try and be the level headed, polite and mature one for the mission, I thought, so fun was out of the question. I was trying to calculate exactly how I was going to carry the mission out. I must have been spacing out for a while because I felt a familiar hand punch the top of my head.

Gajeel looked like he was trying really hard not to laugh at me and my most probably very pissed off expression. I really wanted to punch him back and fight, but I then realised Fairy Tail was standing a few feet from us, arguing over directions and making a scene of their own.

I momentarily forgot my anger and let a small laugh escape from me, they were almost as bad as the three of us. Juvia had appeared to have stopped staring intently at the resort as she too was laughing at the antics of Fairy Tail, they were truly a raucous guild. Even Gajeel, as I glanced up was smiling a slight amount.

A moment passed and I pulled my eyes from the commotion and grabbed Gajeel and Juvia's hands dragging them towards the path that I saw leading to the resort.

However I felt a tug on my wrist as Juvia glared at me and pointed to a different path.

"Lucy, it's that way," Juvia hissed out.

"I can see the path, it's clearly that way!" I growled.

"Really? What happened the last time we tried to follow your directions!?"

"Come on, I thought you were over that!"

Gajeel began to laugh behind us, he always seemed to enjoy our fights.

"Oh don't you start again!" Juvia said menacingly.

I groaned softly, knowing that people would start staring if I didn't end this.

"Fine Juvia, we'll go your way and when it's wrong we'll come back and go mine," I said. Juvia's only reply was a sweet smile before she started to walk off with a spring in her step. Gajeel and I followed Juvia.

Fifteen minutes later we arrived in front of the resort...Juvia looked very smug and I was very embarrassed, I had been so sure I was right as well.

The resort up close was less grand than what I had been expecting, it was enormous, indeed, and seemed to be made of very beautiful wood, it was smooth in most areas except for the accents which were rough, unsanded logs and it had a rooftop garden with many exotic plants that I couldn't name, yet the lack of jewel encrusted windowsills, gorgeous sculptures, paintings and lavish silk draperies that I had become so accustomed to through the 'holidays' I took with my father, meant the resort couldn't meet my impossibly high expectations. For that I resented myself slightly, that I expected from my holidays everything I had chosen to leave behind, showed that part of me still wanted that, that part of me still clung to that, and I loathed it.

A hand waving in front of my face brought me back to reality.

"It's pretty cool, isn't it?" Gajeel said with a smile, "Rain woman is still zoned out over it," he nodded towards a bemused Juvia, who was trying to take it all in at once, eyes flitting from place to place across the building and landscape.

"Yeah it is," I said, trying to enthuse myself, while pushing my more negative thoughts to the back of my mind. My half assed response didn't seem to convince Gajeel and I was sure I was going to be pressed further as soon as we got to our room but Gajeel's focus shifted to the more immediate problem of Juvia. Who was still entranced in the shadow of the building and so Gajeel began to try and drag her inside before she started to become an issue for people trying to get in and out of the building.

As we entered I immediately caught sight of a brightly coloured and in my opinion, slightly tacky, reception desk with an equally bright and happy looking receptionist, seated behind it to match.

Juvia began to come to her senses and flushed in embarrassment at having behaved in such an odd way. I simply giggled in response, our small fight having been all but forgotten, that was how things normally worked between the three of us, anything said or done in anger was normally forgiven and forgotten as we were more important to each other, at the end of the day, than the petty things we enjoyed arguing about.

I plastered on a smile, that I could only hope reached my eyes, and approached the desk. The blonde haired receptionist beamed at me as it became apparent that I was intending to check in, something about the way she looked seemed familiar though I couldn't quite place it. Quickly glancing behind me, I said that Gajeel and Juvia had no intention of following me. I desperately tried to make eye contact with them but they seemed to be very engaged in conversation about the weather. In that moment I wished that I hadn't told them how to ignore people without seeming rude, what had seemed like a piece of information that would be fun to share at that time was now being thrown back in my face.

"How may I help you? Have you booked a room? Can I check you in?" Questions were thrown at me like projectiles by the chirpy woman, upon closer inspection she seemed very tired yet an aggressively pleasant aura continued to radiate from her, I made a note that I never wanted to end up like that. Then it dawned on me, Bubbles, blonde bunches, enormous blue eyes and a blue mini dress, the receptionist was definitely Bubbles.

"Room 142 is booked for me and my siblings I believe, under the name..." I paused for a split second trying to remember the name we had booked a room under, "Lores,"

We'd been very specific with the choosing of our room, we were a few doors down from the main bulk of Fairy Tail but had a balcony close enough to be able to listen to them and possibly search their rooms if we felt it necessary.

"Yep, right there," Bubbles said, her finger hovering above the name on a list next to her. She reached out grabbing the key for the room and pausing for a moment. She looked as though she wanted to interrogate me some more but her exhaustion seemed to prompt her against that.

The silver key was deposited with a clunk onto the yellow hued wood of the desk. Bubbles motioned for me to take it, before turning to the next group of people with a beam. Picking the key up a shiver coarsed through me at how unfamiliar the cold metal felt, I'd grown so used to the warmth of my spirits, that the key to our room felt dead in comparison. My spirits pulsed comfortingly from a small leather satchel at my hip where I'd hidden them. I couldn't bear to have them off of my person so putting them in a satchel was the most hidden they probably would ever be.

The bright orange feathers of the reception desks' decor brushed my leg making me start slightly and grimace as I looked back at the atrocious colour coordination of the desk. Gajeel and Juvia seemed to have noticed as well because Gajeel was making a range of gestures to describe it and Juvia was giggling softly while watching. I walked over them quickly, hoping to sort everything out as soon as possible so I'd at least have a bit of time to sunbathe.

"Bubbles checked us in so we can get settled into our room," I said, noting the confusion that flitted across their faces.

My hand closed around the rough fabric handle of my bag, before I hoisted it up onto my shoulder, I felt slightly sorry for Gajeel who seemed to have dragged all our luggage to the resort while Juvia and I bickered. Gajeel and Juvia did the same before we all headed towards the stairs labelled 120-170. Thank God for the signs, I could finally lead the way and not end up getting us all lost.

The hallways were straight, well lit and labelled well so we promptly arrived at our room. A silver handled white door greeted us, into which our key fitted and it swung open, silently.

Looking into the room, I thanked the designers that the rooms were well coordinated and contained more neutral tones to balance everything out. Gajeel pushed me inside while dragging Juvia in behind him.

I flopped back onto the bed closest to the balcony and its large glass doors, claiming it. Each of the beds had soft, white bedsheets with matching silk pillowcases and grey blue blankets folded at their feet. As well as being so much comfier than any of ours at home. Blowing all our money on this wasn't turning out to be so bad after all.

After a moment, I heard two more thumps from the other beds being claimed and a sigh from Juvia. We lay there in silence until I realised that we were actually on a mission and weren't just supposed to be enjoying ourselves.

"How do we want to start then?" I said softly.

"Start what?" Gajeel groaned, rolling over onto his side.

"Our mission," I stated. Juvia wiggled up into a sitting position and I followed suit.

"Should we really be talking about it here, with..." Juvia gestured to the rooms near us.

"They aren't here yet so what does it matter," Juvia quirked an eyebrow at my words.

"We were ahead of them coming here and we would've heard them arriving," I said. Juvia seemed to see the logic in my words and started to help map out our plans.

"We've already started to gain their trust haven't we?" Juvia said. I nodded in response, "We need to try and build it up more, however," She continued.