Thank you Marina Rose, Senbei x Cup Ramen, Footster26, and an anonymous reviewer for your reviews! I'm glad you all seem to like it so far, I really appreciate your taking the time to review. I have another quick question for anyone interested in giving your opinion. How do you feel about inserting a song in the story? I have one in mind that I am considering using, but I don't know how people feel about songs in fanfics in general. Just wanted some input in case people are interested, I don't know how I feel about it just yet. I own nothing and thank you for reading!
~~~Fairy Tail~~~
-Lucy-
I gaped at the figure floating above me. She was chuckling at something, oblivious to the remaining occupants in the room.
"Yes, yes," Bjorn flicked his ear in annoyance. He rolled his eyes at the female spirit who now snorting with laughter. "Your joke was amusing. Now how long are you going to-"
"Joke?" Kisa frowned. "What joke?"
"L-Long… Time!" She guffawed, gasping for breath. I took a closer look at the strange spirit. She floated in the air as though she were sitting on the ground, legs crossed as she held her bare stomach in laughter. Unlike Bjorn, she resembled a human for the most part with dark skin and long black hair braided over her left shoulder. The spirit was dressed in puffy pink leggings and a small red vest that barely covered her… rather large breasts. Bigger than mine even I had to admit…
"But she is definitely not human," I thought with certainty. "Even without the floating, she would never pass for a human." Despite laughing so hard, her eyes were wide open and she had not blinked once while we waited for the giggling to die down. Her voice was strange as well. It echoed with itself, as though she had many voices saying the same thing at small intervals. But the most concrete evidence to her identity as non-human was her eyes. Containing every color of the rainbow, much like the aurora that had announced her presence, they flashed and sparkled blindingly. I could not bring myself to look at her eyes for more than a few seconds.
I turned my attention to Bjorn as a distraction. "How did Moon Drip tip you off that she was here anyway?"
"Because of the nature of that spell," He stated dryly. "It takes power from the moon and any magic of the surrounding area, in this case residue from Chrona's presence. Since her domain is time, this concentration of power had the ability to move forward a spell's time. When the spell has been given enough time in the form of magic, it breaks apart as it would from centuries of sitting around. The more powerful the spell, the more Moon Drip must be invoked to accelerate the spell."
I nodded, it made sense after all. And the serious conversation finally seemed to get Chrona's attention.
She finally quieted and looked over at me, eyebrows raised. "So you're the one I called. Why didn't you answer the first time?"
"She couldn't Chrona," Bjorn interrupted my response. "She was under the influence of a seal until a short while ago. The first time she visited this island, she could never have felt your presence."
"You called me when I was here before?" I asked her incredulously. I hadn't felt anything like I did when we stood outside the ruins.
"Yes, but luckily I'm patient!" She grinned widely at Bjorn's snort of amusement.
"Stop kidding around," He shot at her, though a small smile adorned his face. "You can't be patient. You just appear in the present when something interesting happens. Until then, you're either looking at the past for something entertaining or lazing around."
"So that's why it was a joke!" Kisa exclaimed. I must have looked as confused as I felt for Bjorn laughed as he turned to look at us. She looked at me apologetically before explaining, "She… Chrona has no actual sense of time, but just appears when she feels like it. So when she said 'long time' she was joking because to her it has been no time at all."
Chrona sent her a surprised look at her deduction. "And who are you?" She asked after a moment of contemplation.
"Um… I'm Lucy's friend," She shuffled nervously under the spirit's intense gaze. "My name is Kisa."
Chrona nodded before shifting to look at me. I looked away uncomfortably as her eyes scanned my face. "You must be Lucy after all…" Her echoed voice trailed off sadly. "I'm sorry for your mother, she was a wonderful person."
I was stunned at her admission. "You knew my mother?" I blurted out.
"Ah-ah-ah," Chrona shook her head. "I mustn't say any more. I promised."
I swallowed as a knot formed in my throat. Mama was connected to these spirits. There was no way I wasn't going to find the other sanctum stellar spirits now!
"That's rather unfair…" Kisa mumbled, looking at my tortured expression with worry. I smiled gratefully, but decided to drop the subject. I hadn't gotten any information from Bjorn about my mother so I assumed Chrona wouldn't tell me either.
"So, would you like to form a contract?" I asked Chrona carefully. I assumed she did since she sought me out but I had to be sure.
"Yes," The spirit affirmed, immediately handing me her key from the pedestal. It was as white as Bjorn's but in place of his symbol, a green twisted tree, a multicolored aurora was stamped on the handle. It resembled a stained glass window mounted in a cathedral and was just as beautiful. I took it shakily, not expecting the jolt of power that flowed from me to my new spirit. Black spots danced in my vision and I stumbled forward in exhaustion.
"Chrona!" Bjorn yelled angrily. "She can't deal with two of us out at once in addition to making a new contract! What were you thinking?" He turned hurriedly to me. "Quick! Close my gate! Talk with her a bit," He commanded as Kisa rushed to my side. My friend placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder and I took a deep breath to steady myself. I complied with his order and immediately felt better as he faded from view. Shaking more from shock than exhaustion now, I got back up on my feet to face my new spirit.
"So…" I started carefully. I wasn't sure how to deal with Chrona yet so I decided to be cautious. "It's nice to meet you. Chrona the Temporal Witch was it?"
"That's my full title, yes. Just call me Chrona," She eyed me in amusement.
"You know…" Kisa started. "That was a rather underwhelming way to form a contract."
"Just because it isn't flashy doesn't mean it's not a powerful, binding contract," Chrona retorted simply. "Simple is sometimes better."
"If that was so simple, why did you have such a dramatic appearance? The flashy lightshow?" Kisa asked in disbelief.
"Because it's fun," The spirit cackled, her dark face caught in a bright smile. Kisa rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"Well, what power do you have anyway?" I asked, trying to relieve the tension between the two. "Is it the same as when we weren't contracted? Time travel and stuff?"
"No, it's not. I'm impressed you knew to ask that," Chrona stated in surprise. "It's slightly different from when I was a free spirit." She chuckled again at the small joke.
We waited while the spirit crossed her legs again to form a sitting position in the air. "She still hasn't blinked once since she appeared." I noticed before bringing my thoughts back to the situation at hand.
"I can stop or slow down time for you and any person you are in physical contact with," She continued when she was comfortable. "It's extremely tiring for you and the effects only last as long as you channel magic towards me. I wouldn't recommend trying it just now since you seem a bit tired, but you'll have to find out the conditions yourself."
"How?" I gaped at my newest spirit. That seemed really cool!
"Practice makes perfect…" Chrona trailed off.
"What about the secondary ability?" I continued, wanting to know. Chrona yawned, eyes beginning to close for the first time. Something strange was happening with her now.
"It's the ability… to see… a…" She managed to mutter before her eyes closed and she let out a huge snore.
I looked at her snoozing in disbelief. "Did she really just fall asleep mid sentence?"
"Hey!" Kisa called to her, shaking the floating person's shoulder a bit. "Wake up!"
I tried too but it didn't make any difference. Chrona was completely dead asleep. "Why are all my spirits weird?" I moaned. "Natsu and Happy must be right. I must be a weirdo for attracting all these weird spirits…"
"I wonder where Alan is…" Kisa whispered, slightly leaning against my shoulder while we stood in front of the sleeping Chrona. I nearly winced at the desperate, longing tone she had while she talked about the man she missed so much.
But now I was really curious. Chrona was still summoned even though she was asleep. Should I try and invoke my ability to test it out? "What harm could it do?" I thought brightly before using my magic in the same manner as when I wanted to speak to beasts.
Light immediately exploded all around. I couldn't see anything and by the yelp I heard from Kisa, I assumed the same had happened to her. The only sensation I had was the slight pressure of Kisa against my shoulder as I watched the world seem to dissolve before my eyes. "Maybe that wasn't such a good idea," As soon as that thought crossed my mind, images seemed to coalesce back into the physical world around us.
"W-What happened?" Kisa gasped as the bright light faded to where we could again see each other and our surroundings.
"S-Sorry!" I panted back, still shocked at the experience. "I used my ability without thinking it through! I wanted to know what it… was..." I couldn't believe what I was seeing.
We were standing in Hargeon town, the familiar port town where I had first met Natsu and Happy as well as the same port we used to sail to Galuna Island the first time. I recognized the buildings and the docks we stood near, most still looked brand new from the repairs following Natsu's destruction of half the town. A sigh sounded right beside the two of us I turned to look at the source of the sound.
"A-Alan?" Kisa choked out, her grip on my arm painfully tightening.
I looked at the person Kisa was staring at in disbelief. He hadn't seemed to hear her as he continued to stare at the sunset falling into the sea longingly. He was of average height and build from what I could see. Long, dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail that seemed much neater than the man's messy bangs. A strange red glint flashed from his eyes, though they were brown when I looked again at his tanned face. He wore well-worn travel clothes and a small pack was slung over his shoulder. He sighed again and closed his eyes.
"Where is she?" He whispered and Kisa jolted next to me.
"Right here!" Kisa yelled happily, too excited to care about the strange circumstances. She reached out a hand to touch his shoulder-
And the hand passed right through Alan's shoulder without him even blinking. He couldn't see or hear us.
Kisa let out an agonized moan, grasping even more tightly to me. I was starting to think I may have bruises later but it didn't matter. This was ridiculous! She could finally see him but he didn't know we were right here!
"Guess I'll leave Hargeon town tomorrow morning… She obviously isn't here," The oblivious man mumbled despondently. "She's been gone seven months… Where could you be, Kisa?" He sounded as sad as the sobbing girl next to me.
Wait a second. Hargeon town? Seven months?
"Kisa!" I yelled in realization. She looked up at me only slightly curious, still looking crestfallen with tears running down her face. "This is Hargeon! The port city only a short boat ride from Galuna Island! If what we're seeing is happening right now, we can catch him before he leaves!"
"Then Chrona's ability might be to show things happening far away and responded to what I said before?" I nodded enthusiastically as her face lit up with anticipation. "So we can find him!" She cried, energized at the hope we might catch up with him.
"Yes!" I danced a little in happiness as Kisa laughed. "Now how do we stop this vision? I haven't been using magic since we found out we might find-"
I was abruptly cut off as the vision of the quaint port town split and crashed around us. This was completely different from before and it didn't seem like my magic was doing this. Screaming filled my ears and I grasped for Kisa's hand as a strange roaring blocked out any other noise. Red light splintered around us and Hargeon disappeared completely, replaced by that of a town I was achingly familiar with. But something was terribly wrong.
Magnolia town was burning. I gasped in shock as that registered. My home was on fire. "Wait… My home!"
I whirled around, knowing by heart where the Fairy Tail guild rose above the entire town. As soon as I laid eyes on my beloved guild, my heart broke and a wrenching sob escaped my throat. It was demolished, torn apart by some incredible force.
"Why…" A sorrowful voice asked softly, as though the owners' heart was breaking.
It was Mirajane. She was looking with wide eyes at a motionless corpse, red fluid staining the ground crimson as numerous lacerations bled freely from both her and the body she was hunched over. The lifeless body was bruised and broken; I could even see a shiny white bone peeking out from the person's thigh. I noticed with horror that the right arm was completely torn off, muscle and bone visible at the end of the bleeding stump protruding from the shoulder. Terrified, not wanting to but needing to, I let my gaze drift up the familiar torso to the battered face.
"E-Elfman!" I sobbed, confirming he was dead as soon as I saw the vacant stare. I ran as Mirajane wailed in pure agony, dragging Kisa along with me as I looked for a way out. This was not happening, it couldn't be!
As I ran, I could see the Master in his giant form, carting normal citizens away from the carnage. I dragged Kisa through the familiar streets and tried not to look at the bodies that adorned the once beautiful town. The sheer number of dead was overwhelming. The familiar magic of my friends could be seen at work on the rampant flames. Rain doused one house while the flames consuming another were consumed themselves, disappearing quickly with a swallowing sound. "Natsu and Juvia are safe…" I thought with relief. But where were the others? As I rounded another corner, I tripped over a hard object that made a loud clang as my foot made contact. "I could touch something?" I thought, bewildered. Then this was different from the previous vision somehow. Sprawled on the sooty street, Kisa still in tow, I looked back at what I had tripped over.
Nothing could have prepared me for the sight that met my eyes. Erza, my friend, the Titania was dead. I had tripped over her armored foot, her body impaled through with some sort of giant claw as large as I was. A poisonous mist rose from the hole in her stomach, causing flesh and armor alike to melt. Dried blood caked the side of her face, blending with her stunning red hair. She was covered with wounds, indicating she had been fighting for a long time. I tasted bile as I saw the source of the dried blood: her ear was completely severed.
I retched, emptying the contents of my stomach on the pavement. Kisa tore her horrified gaze from the body to me, unsure of what to do or say.
"AHHHHH!" I howled in anguish. What had happened? Who did this? Who dared to do this? Who else had I lost?
"See what happens?" A smooth, masculine voice echoed throughout the town. I decided I despised that voice, I wanted to murder whoever it belonged to. He did this whoever he was and he was going to pay. It continued, oblivious to my newfound determination and bloodlust. "If you two had just listened to me, this wouldn't have happened. It really is your fault for having that magic."
Kisa gasped as we looked up and saw an enormous floating fortress blocked out the sky. It looked like a mountain sculpted into a castle, jagged spires rising to form evil towers. Dark rock made it seem even blacker than the night sky as it moved to obstruct the sun.
"Now, I need you two to come up here. Now," It commanded. I realized the voice was projected from the floating monstrosity. "Or more casualties will result from your stubbornness. I need both of your special forms of magic and I will have them! Now I will tell you Fairy Tail insects one last time: Give me Kisa and Lucy!" The last statement was hissed with such venom that I shuddered despite trying my best not to. Whoever this person was that wanted us, I was terrified to ever meet him.
"Never!" I heard a fiery voice bellow behind me. My head turned so fast I was dizzy but I didn't care.
"Natsu…" I whispered. Thousands of emotions flowed through me as I saw his defiant form glare up at the sky; happiness, relief, shock, terror, pain, remorse, and more shooting through me like electricity. He was battered like… like… Tears stung my eyes as I remembered Erza and Elfman. His arm was definitely broken, the rest of him bleeding and bruised all over. He looked so hurt…
"They just came back from Enca a year ago and you want us to give them to you?" He spat. "Absolutely fucking not! Just because Lucy uses the sanctum keys and Kisa uses elemental forms does not make them yours once you hear about it!"
"Lucy!" Kisa croaked. "This isn't real! It hasn't happened! This is something in the future that-"
She was cut off as light consumed us, blocking out the terrible visions of the future we had been witness to. Again, all I could hear was a roaring sound, all I could see was white light, all I could feel was Kisa's arm in my hand as I grasped her desperately. The light faded as we were gently deposited on the floor of the ruins, Chrona still sleeping peacefully as though nothing had happened.
Kisa and I gasped for breath. What I had seen was too much… It was too much to comprehend in such a short amount of time. Everyone injured or dead, Magnolia demolished, the guild destroyed, some jackass threatening us to get us to come with him…
"W-w-w-we c-c-can't…" Kisa sobbed uncontrollably as she moved over to hug me, both of us in need of comfort. I was incapable of speaking as tears flowed from my eyes; I was unable to stop no matter how much I wanted to. "W-w-we won't! We w-won't let that happen!" She declared, her voice strengthening with newfound determination.
"No… We cannot let that happen," I said as soon as I composed myself to speak without stuttering. "We won't."
"But how?" Kisa had managed to stop crying before me. She pulled away from me as I stopped clinging and composed myself.
I grimaced. "Close the gate!" I was relieved when Chrona faded from sight but I wasn't going to call Bjorn yet. I had to talk to Kisa alone and I wasn't going to take the chance that Chrona was faking being asleep. "I think you might already know."
She winced, but looked at me in resolve. I knew then that she knew exactly what I had been thinking, guaranteeing that we would be best friends after all this shit we went through together. "We need to keep our magic a secret."
I nodded. "That guy wanted our 'special form' of magic. This means my sanctum spirits and your…"
"That Natsu guy called it elemental forms…" Kisa said quietly. "But yes, we need to keep them both a secret. We have to… But what do we use for magic then?" Kisa frowned at this.
"I already have an idea for that," I grinned a little, despite the shock of the vision. "Just use your cat forms, say it's animal soul takeover like Lisanna. I'll just use my zodiac keys like I had before."
"But you shouldn't tell anyone about the complete contracts or secondary abilities…" Kisa frowned more. "This may be a bit difficult."
"But we have to do this…" I winced again at the memory. "I promise I won't let that happen. I won't use my sanctum keys or secondary abilities unless we really need to."
"I promise too," Kisa declared. We shared a grim look. "I will only talk about my true magic in your presence alone. We can't afford for whoever that was to hear about whatever he wants from us."
"Yes," I stated grimly. "You do realize we're in this together, right?"
She sent me a small smile. "I told you I wouldn't leave you behind." She referenced to our first meeting in a dingy cell.
"I'm just… I'm so happy we aren't alone," I started crying a little again, though more from relief.
"Me too," Kisa admitted. "I just hope that Alan-" Her eyes widened. "Alan! He's leaving in the morning!" She looked around frantically. "The sun's not down yet! We can still find him before morning!"
I was forcefully dragged to the entrance by the very anxious woman. It was true, the sun still peeked out from the horizon but it was nearly nightfall.
"Argh! What are we going to do?" Kisa was nearly hysterical, and I realized we couldn't fly to Hargeon town. We couldn't let anyone know, and an Ohju would be a very obvious way to reveal our new secrets…
"Bobo!" I exclaimed. Kisa turned to look at me, confused. "Bobo has a boat! He can take up to the port where we saw Alan!"
And with that, we were off. "Please let us not be too late," I thought as we trampled through the jungle back to the demon town. "To find Alan or to make that vision never come true."
-Kisa-
I could finally see the port. We had been sailing for hours now, sailing as fast as we could toward the seaside town. Lucy lay at the floor of the boat, sleeping fitfully. She had been tired after using magic to show us those visions, so after our mad dash to find a boat she had been completely exhausted. As I shook Lucy awake, I couldn't help but worry. "What if that wasn't really a vision of where Alan is but an illusion?" But that meant the second vision was only an illusion too. I would be perfectly happy if that never came to pass, in fact I would try everything in my power to prevent that from ever happening.
"Thank you Bobo!" I called over my shoulder as we docked. I felt bad about being so rude, but I was hell-bent on finding Alan as soon as possible.
"Be careful you two!" The demon in human guise called after us before turning his boat around to head home. He had been extremely kind upon finding us at his doorstep, asking for a ride. Asking no questions, he had simply packed for the overnight trip and met us on the beach. I would have to thank him again next time we met.
"Kisa! Wait for just a second!" Lucy called, stumbling sleepily behind me. I turned, fidgeting, wanting to run and find the man I missed so much these past few months.
"I'll look too, don't worry. I saw what he looked like in the vision and I'll help. Just wanted to say let's meet back at the docks at sunrise in case one of us finds him," She said hurriedly. I nodded gratefully, turned, and sped up a road looking for my… Alan.
For the next couple hours, I ran around town when I could. As soon as I was too exhausted to run, I resorted to walk, gasping for breath and calling Alan's name. I met Lucy twice during our search, but she had no luck either. I was starting to panic, the sky becoming lighter with each passing minute reminding me he was leaving soon if he was here at all.
"No…" My eyes felt hot with the tears I tried to hold back. Crying would not find Alan. "Please let Lucy have found him," was my only thought as I turned around to find the docks again. As I neared the shore, hope flickered in my heart. "Maybe I couldn't find him because he was here with Lucy?"
I began to run again, ignoring the burning in my lungs and the stitch in my chest. I had never been good at running long distances and it was showing. But I had to know, is Alan waiting there around the corner? Would I see him in the flesh for the first time in months? Could I actually touch him? Would he be happy to see me?
My heart sank. Lucy was standing there by herself, looking as remorseful as she could. I could almost feel my heart twist in disappointment. This time I didn't hold back my tears.
"Ahhh…." I mourned in anguish. I quickly lost control, loud sobs wracking my body with no signs of stopping. I had been so sure I would see him again… This realization left me more depressed than I had ever felt in my life. I cried, howled in despair. I barely registered the stunned look Lucy was giving me and just wailed in anguish again.
"…sa" A soft, faraway sound. "…isa… Kisa…" This time, I could recognize my name in the echoing call. And it sounded hauntingly familiar.
Immediately, my crying stopped and I looked around wildly. That was Alan's voice! Where is he? As I became convinced I had finally gone crazy, I spotted a small figure next to the town's lighthouse on top of a cliff. It was him. I finally spotted him, waving down from his perch on the cliff.
"Hold on! I'll be right down!" He called wildly, running down a path leading from the lighthouse to the docks below. He stumbled a couple times, not looking where he was going as he kept his face directed toward me, as though afraid I would disappear if he looked away.
I laughed and cried in relief. But there was no way I was waiting for him to come down to me. I grinned and sprinted toward him as he ran towards me, joy filling my heart. I would almost believe I had swallowed a jar of butterflies, I felt so light and fluttery. We were on the same dirt path now, I could vaguely hear Lucy running behind me and trying to catch up.
But Alan was only fifty feet away now.
Twenty feet. I could see the pure elation on his face, most likely mirroring my own.
Ten feet away. I hope I don't look as goofy as he does, a wide grin nearly splitting his face in half.
I couldn't take it anymore. Not slowing down like he was starting to, I barreled straight toward him full speed. Tackling him in a tight embrace, we fell and rolled on the ground twice. "Oomph!" His breath rushed out to tickle my face. I just laughed, holding onto him tightly. If it were any other situation I would have moved, but I was just too overjoyed to see him to care. He was on his back, blushing and gasping for breath. I was sprawled on top of him, my face tucked into his neck and arms being crushed underneath him. I didn't care. He gave up his small protests almost at once and we just held each other, dusty and sweaty on the dirt road. I had never been happier and more content than I felt at this moment.
He was so warm under me; in fact he was nearly burning up. Worried he might be sick, I looked up at his face and immediately laughed. He was blushing completely crimson now, his face, neck, and ears a pleasant cherry hue. I had nearly forgotten how fun it was to tease him, especially when it came to his shyness at physical contact. He had a happy grin, dampened only slightly by his embarrassment. I inhaled deeply and snuggled against him a little, again realizing just how comfortable I felt in his presence.
"K-Kisa," He stuttered. Oh yeah, he was embarrassed. I should probably get up…
I lifted myself reluctantly from my comfortable position, moving to sit next to him as he rose to sit as well. I smiled at him, waiting for him to say something. He was blushing even more furiously now for some reason. "I wonder what's up?" I barely had time to think before I was pulled into another hug, the first time Alan had ever instigated a hug himself.
"I missed you so much…" He whispered in my ear, his head next to mine. I actually blushed a little, knowing how shy he usually was with things like this.
He quickly released me as Lucy cleared her throat behind us. Damn, now I missed his warmth. But I was relieved to finally have found Alan again. Seeing his happy face, still sporting that goofy grin and fantastic blush, let me know he felt the same. "I'm home."
-Lucy-
"I like this guy," was my first thought, seeing him blush and release Kisa the moment I revealed my presence. I hadn't wanted to interrupt the adorable scene, but I doubted they would notice me otherwise. I honestly had never expected Kisa to lose her head like that and tackle the boy. I looked at him again. He seemed to wear his heart on his sleeve and it was completely obvious he likes Kisa. A lot. "Oh, he's going to be so fun to tease."
"Hey, you two… Mind me butting in a little?" I asked with a smirk. Kisa grinned happily and Alan blushed again at my comment. I knelt down next to the pair and held out my hand. "Lucy Heartfilia, but just call me Lucy. You must be Alan?" I asked jovially. He looked me in the eye, and then took my hand in a firm but not uncomfortable grip. I noticed his scarred, calloused palms and knew he had been through a lot to find Kisa.
"Yes, that's right. Pleased to meet you Lucy," He nodded respectfully and released my hand. I noticed he wasn't blushing at all now. Oh, yes… The man had a crush on my best friend it seemed.
"Let's go sit somewhere more comfortable," I declared. "I'm sure you want to know where Kisa has been?" He nodded, glancing at Kisa who was chewing her bottom lip nervously.
"Yeah," She agreed a moment later. All of us got up, I noticed Kisa had a tight grip on the edge of Alan's shirt. As we walked over to a tree to sit in the shade, she kept a hold on him. I knew why too… She was afraid. Afraid he would be insubstantial the next time she touched him and her hand would pass through him like in the vision. I wasn't the only one that noticed her small gesture.
"It's okay," Alan said soothingly. "I'm not going anywhere without you. And I'm not letting anyone take you away from me ever again." He seemed to realize what he said a second after he said it, ears turning red again. But he didn't take it back and Kisa looked up at him gratefully. "S-So why don't you tell me what happened?"
Kisa began to tell him and my thoughts drifted back to the port. "How did she do that?" I couldn't figure it out. When Kisa had cried, she had sounded animalistic, non-human. "Like an Ohju…" But she had never made that noise as an Ohju before, a keening desperate howl. I was sure Alan had noticed it too; he had noticed us from the lighthouse after all. I looked toward him again. "He definitely forgot." He was looking at Kisa with horror as she recounted our adventure although with some… changes. We had agreed that in place of what truly happened, we would say we stowed away on ships to get back home but had to walk across the country of Mins after getting caught. It was a plausible excuse for the relatively short time it took us to return.
Kisa was really pulling off the lie well. I wouldn't be able to tell she was being dishonest if I were an outsider; there was no stuttering, flushing, or fidgeting to indicate she was telling anything but the truth. Despite this, Alan was looking at her suspiciously by the end of the tale. I couldn't figure out what had tipped him off, I couldn't see anything wrong with how she explained things. Kisa was good at lying… Possibly a little too good.
"Why don't you look at me?" Alan whispered quietly. "You haven't looked me in the eye this entire time… You're hiding something, aren't you?"
"It's nothing," Kisa responded firmly. Turning away from him so she couldn't see the worried look he was directing at her. "Don't worry about it." A long, uncomfortable pause ensued.
Alan finally sighed. "You don't have to tell me… I just," He frowned, trying to find the right words. "I'm here for you, you know?" He looked at her shyly. "If you want to talk, you always have me."
Kisa flinched slightly at the hurt in his voice, but turned to face him. "I know that… Now what have you been doing while I've been gone? Where's Polly?" She quickly changed the subject.
Alan sighed again at her not so subtle hint to drop the issue. "I've been looking for you all over the place. Polly stayed home in case you made your way back there…"
"Thanks… I was really happy when you called me you know? I missed you…" Kisa sighed remorsefully.
"I-I missed you too." He stuttered before frowning slightly. "Why were you crying anyway?"
"I couldn't find you… I looked everywhere around town and you weren't…" Kisa trailed off before her eyes widened.
"Wait, how'd you know I was in Hargeon?" He asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Kisa started to look panicked so it was Lucy to the rescue.
Crap. I gulped, trying to find a plausible excuse. "We… Uh- We heard someone talking about you. Kisa recognized your description and went berserk trying to find you." I hoped he would buy it. He still looked doubtful but decided to not press the issue.
I groaned. This guy was sharp, he obviously knew something was up. I just had to thank our lucky stars he seemed to trust Kisa enough to let us have our secrets. They really seemed to know each other well for there to be that much trust after being separated for so long. Speaking of which…
"I miss Fairy Tail…" I sighed wistfully. Kisa gave me a startled look, jumping to her feet.
"Of course! We have to get you back as soon as possible!" She exclaimed. "How should we get there?"
"Fairy Tail?" Alan mused. "That's a long walk… Could you take a train?"
"We don't have money…" I sighed. A thought occurred to me. "Hey, Alan? Do you… I mean I'd pay you back, but do you-"
He held up his hands. "I'm really sorry, I'm pretty much broke now. I don't even have enough Jewels for a meal let alone a train ticket. I'm really sorry..." He hung his head apologetically.
"Could you fly us there? As an Ohju?" Kisa asked after a moment's consideration.
"How did you know that form was called an Ohju?" Alan asked incredulously. "And how'd you know it could fly?" He looked stunned at her admission. She gaped at him for a second before quickly recovering.
"I-It was in a book!" She squeaked. "I saw it when we were looking for a map in a library!"
"It's true!" I supplied, digging through my belonging for the map. Thrusting it in his hands, I hoped he would accept it as a reasonable excuse.
He groaned, giving a sharp look towards Kisa. "You have a lot of explaining to do someday."
She fidgeted under his gaze. "I know, but can you help Lucy? She misses her guild as much as I missed you."
He sighed and turned toward me. "I wish I could, I really do… But I kinda… can't…" He trailed off, wincing uncomfortably.
"Why not?" Kisa blanched, looking confused.
Guiltily, he looked at his feet. "I've been…. I kinda used that form to get around while I was looking for you," He glanced at Kisa. Kicking a small stick, he continued. "I accidentally… destroyed some buildings…" He winced. "Actually, a lot of buildings. I fell on them and pretty much demolished them. Now there are hunters looking for me in that form because there's a big reward out for it."
Kisa and I burst out laughing at his sheepish expression. He would make an excellent addition to Fairy Tail, we all had a slight affinity to unintended destruction. "I should ask them… Both of them."
"Well, we can take the train in any case," Kisa waved at us to follow her as she walked in the direction of Hargeon town again. What was she thinking?
"Wait!" I called, still laughing at Alan. "I thought we didn't have money!"
"We don't," She winked at me. "But we're exceptional stowaways, right?"
The train pulled into the Magnolia Station in the late afternoon that day. We had ended up riding on the roof of the caboose, climbing aboard quickly as it left the station in Hargeon. Jumping off discretely near the back of the train, we ran from the railroad before anyone could question the three of us.
"I can't believe we did that," Alan said weakly. "It was that easy to get a ride this entire time?"
"Yup," Kisa giggled at his flustered expression. "You just need to think outside the box sometimes." They followed me as I purposefully walked toward the towering building in the distance.
"Wow…" Alan stared in awe at the huge structure we were facing. "That's Fairy Tail? It's huge!"
"Yup!" I chirped proudly, nearly bursting with excitement at seeing my home. And it wasn't demolished, consumed with destruction and death. It was perfect, just like I remembered. I suddenly remembered my earlier musings and turned to face my companions. "Would you two like to join?"
Kisa's face lit up with excitement while Alan looked at her intensely. "Can we? I mean," She looked at Alan. "I want to, I can't speak on your behalf."
"I'll go where you go," He affirmed quietly. She grinned at his light blush.
"That would be a yes!" She exclaimed excitedly. "What do we need to do anyway?"
"Huh?" I mumbled, thoughts focused on walking as fast as I possibly could. "Oh, nothing really. Just Master has to accept you. He usually does…"
They left me to my thoughts, perhaps sensing my anxiety. "How is everyone? Will they remember me?" I shook my head. Of course they would. They were my friends, my companions. But how would they react? I had gone over so many possible circumstances in the last few months, I wasn't sure what to expect anymore.
We were standing at the monstrous doors to my guild, my beloved home. My hands were finally on the door, Kisa and Alan waiting patiently a couple feet behind me. Suddenly nervous, I hesitated. "What should I say? How should I greet everyone?" I couldn't bring myself to open the doors just yet, I had to compose myself!
"C'mon Lucy…" I berated myself for feeling so nervous and giddy. I was finally here. After all this time, I was finally home. Ignoring the nervous back flips my stomach seemed to be performing, I glared at the door, ready to finally push them open.
Before I could however, the doors swung open wildly. "W-w-wait a second! I'm not ready after all!" In the widening gap, a figure stood rigidly. My thoughts and courage left me, leaving me gaping at the figure in the door. Dark amber eyes looked over me in shock, pink hair standing straight up in front, just like I remembered.
"What is it Natsu? Why'd you suddenly get up?" A voice called from inside the main hall.
"…Lucy?" Natsu whispered hoarsely.
"N-N-Natsu!"
~~~Fairy Tail~~~
Haha, a small cliffhanger here. I hope it wasn't too dark or anything… I'd love to hear what you guys think. This is more of the pace I'll be writing chapters at rather than the first ones. One chapter every weekend, maybe two if I'm not too busy. I hope you liked it and thank you for reading!
