Hey readers :)

I hope you are all feeling good, great even! Apart from my maybe hay fever/maybe a cold, my day has been very good. So I hope all yours was too! And if not, I hope this chapter lightens it up :)

In the last chapter, I referred to Frosch as a 'she', it is never mentioned what sex Frosch is, so I thought I'd make Frosch a girl (and now I can stop saying Frosch so much, I thought it'd be mean to refer to her as 'it') :3

Now, this chapter is from Lucy's point of view, and another made up lyric (I promise I'll stop making up my crappy lyrics soon!)

As always, enjoy :3

Chapter Ten-

We're meeting in the dark

"Lucy, is that you? Be careful on the edge, you might fall in!"

"Yeah, I will be!"

I call back to the men sitting on a boat as it bobs along the river. My arms spread out from my sides to help me keep my balance. Carefully, I place one foot in front of the other and walk along the cobble stones which line the bank of the canal I live besides. A frivolous activity, but I used to do it often on my lazy days too and from the guild, so why not today?

It has been just under a week since I returned to Magnolia from Fressia Town on my first mission in months. The bruises are merely yellow discolourations on my skin now, but the cuts and burns left on my wrists are still rather prominent. The reason I have decided to wear thick black wrist cuffs since a few days ago. I had noticed a few people staring at me as I walked down the street, whispering and commenting on the markings on my skin, leaving me feeling rather self concious.

As for the payment I received from the mission, I have paid my rent for the month, as well as treating myself to a book. A romance novel. Apparently to Levy. who had recommended it to me months ago, it is about a woman loving a man who left travelling and how she goes about living her life without him. When I was first told about the book, I had little time to read. As well as that, the plot sounded sad, so I decided to pick another read. Now, the plot seems rather fitting to my current place in life, so when I saw its soft blue cover in the book store in town, I bought it.

As I approach where my rented house is along the canal, I hop down from the cobbles and walk towards the familiar large double doors, made from both thick wood and painted black iron. However, as I reach the first of the stone steps leading to the door, I pause.

Looking behind me, I can see the sun barely starting to set behind the horizon, usually causing the houses roofs on the opposite side of the canal to glow. Humming to myself, I run my left hand across my right arm. It isn't cold out tonight either. Biting my lip, I look back to the entrance to my home before turning away from the door and carrying along down the street, past my house and the ones next door.

It has been a while since I had an evening stroll. Staring at the glittering river as I stride along, the sky a soft pinky gold, I suddenly slow my steps.

The last evening walk I took, I was on my way to see Natsu... And he walked me home.

Gulping, I shut my eyes tightly before forcing myself to speed my pace again.

Don't slow down, you can't slow down again.

Raising my chin up a little higher, I carry on walking, pushing down my thoughts of Natsu. Instead, trying to admire the evening and the silence that surrounds it. Just going where my legs carry me, not really worrying about the time or where I am going. Breathing in the air, I begin to feel a smile come onto my lips, letting my eyes flutter closed slightly.

Suddenly, a cracking noise from behind me snaps me from my calmness and causes my reflexes to kick in. Turning my body quickly to face behind me, I stare from where I had just heard the noise come from, my hand resting on my key pouch.

I am met with a dark road, shadows painted across the floor and buildings, only being broken by the light oozing from the light lacrimas which stand at the top of poles acting as street lights. The wind has picked up since when I had started walking, and I only now feel the chill in the air. Shivering slightly from both the chill in the air and the fear slowly pooling in the pit of my stomach as a rustle sounds from behind me, I close my eyes and unclip my key pouch.

I hadn't noticed how dark it had begun to get as I walked, how far from home I had wandered while trying to forget about Natsu for a minute and just enjoy living. Now, I was blocks over from where I started, in the dark and with something lurking around me.

I begin to question how long I have been walking rather than the maybe imminent danger I am in, only stopping my wandering thoughts and coming back to where I am now by digging my finger nails into my palm.

Breathing out, I pull a random key from my pouch and spin around to face where the rustling sound came from, only to be met with another empty street. Furrowing my brow, I stare down the barren road.

It had been nothing.

Laughing a hollow chuckle to myself, I let my shoulders relax and my raised hand, still clutching one of my keys, fall to my side.

"And now I am afraid of the dark? How stupid am I? There's nothing to be scared of here."

"Sure?"

Hearing a deep voice from behind me, I suddenly feel my fear flare within me once more. Spinning around on my heels, I don't even allow a look at the person behind me. I don't recognise the voice, it's dark and I am a woman alone where I doubt anyone would, or care, if I screamed for help.

"Gate of the... Whatever key you are, I open thee!"

In a small poof of golden smoke, a short, stout white creature with a golden horn-like nose appears. Plue, my Nikora. He is shaking nervously, and staring up at the figure before him. I blink before looking down at my hand which is clutching the key. I guess I need to see it to believe what is happening; in my hand is indeed the silver key of the Canis Minor.

Gritting my teeth and internally cursing myself for my stupidity of not looking at which key I had pulled from my pouch, I look up to assess the strength of the person in front of me. A potentially harmful enemy or not, Plue has no notable fighting skills. If anything, Plue is more my pet, making cute noises and gesturing to communicate. I find it adorable, personally. However, against most foes my cute little Nikora is nothing but dead weight.

When my eyes land on the figure before me, I am slightly surprised. Only for a moment, after that, I can feel my fear growing again.

"You."

The Sabertooth mage with messy black hair which obscures his forehead and right eye, is standing before me wrapped in a dark cloak. The man who had, rather surprisingly, saved me from the ice mage who had threatened to rape and kill me. But why are you here again? Are you following me, what do you want?

Before I can voice my questions, the man speaks in the same deep tone that had caught my attention.

"If someone wanted to hurt you, I doubt that," The man gestures to Plue, who is doing an odd dance while still shaking. "would protect you."

I am speechless for a moment, taken off guard by the man. Suddenly, my fighting spirit kicks in and I shake my head of my momentary paralysis. Replacing the silver key for my Fleuve d'étolies which is on my belt, I pull it off and it comes to life. Blue sparks flying off and forming a long, glowing whip.

"Leave me alone! I don't know why you're following me, but I'll never betray Fairy Ta-"

"Rogue."

Stopping my movements, I stare at the dark haired man before me. My Fleuve d'étolies behind me ready to strike the man at a flick of my arm. My words come out like venom as I narrow my eyes, watching the man before me like a hawk watches its prey.

"What?"

"My name is Rogue Cheney." I cock my head to stare at Rogue. Come to think of it, the name does 'fit him', so to speak. I'd heard it before, I think I recall hearing it when he and his counterpart fought Natsu and Gajeel during the Grand Magic Games. Suddenly, as if it was stupid I had let his name slip, it comes back to me. But what is baffling, is why he is introducing himself to me. "And I'm not here to gather information about Fairy Tail."

I laugh dryly, gripping the Fleuve d'étolies handle tighter.

"Then why are you here, Rogue?"

"To ask what your name is."