If Time Permits

Chapter Three

Disclaimer: Don't own fairy tail and co.

A hacking, chest rattling cough cut through the heavy silence of the darkened room. The sound was gut wrenching in the way it reverberated through the room and caused all those within hearing distance to wince in sympathy and shift uncomfortably.

As the coughing faded into the sounds of heavy, wheezy breathing, Lucy stepped forward, her young face solemn and her eyes looking older than her thirteen years. Slowly she approached the bedside, as if afraid that any sudden movements might send the occupant into another coughing fit.

"Mama," Lucy murmured, sinking wearily into the chair to her mother's left, her eyes staying on her mother's pained features instead of the outline of her now emaciated body.

At her soft call, her mother stirred, her eyelashes fluttering open, revealing her dark brown eyes. Lucy bit her lip as her mother's bloodless lips twitched up into a ghost of a smile, her pale features gaunt with illness and distant pain.

"Lucy," she rasped, the blankets moving at her side until her small, porcelain hand emerged and fluttered weakly toward her. Lucy reached up and clasped her mother's hand gently in her own, swallowing a jolt of fear at just how cold her hand was, how fragile. "How are you, sweetie? You're not giving your father too hard a time, are you?"

At the mention of her father, Lucy's face darkened and she scowled, looking away from her mother's gentle gaze. Her grip on her mother's hand tightened a fraction. "Not like he would notice," she muttered insolently. "He's hardly even home anymore. I haven't seen him in days."

"Don't be hard on him, dear," her mother whispered, her smile gentle. "He's just dealing with this the only way he knows how."

"By ignoring us?" Lucy cried, her eyes swinging to her mother's face. Anger made her eyes darken and her eyebrows slam together. "He hasn't even come by to see you in weeks! What kind of husband-"

"Lucy." She stopped at the reprimand in her mother's weak voice. "Stop it. He loves us, and you know it. He's just…lost."

Lucy's lips trembled and she fought against the bitter sting of tears in her eyes. "Mama…How can you be so calm about…about everything?"

Her mother closed her eyes briefly before opening them once more, her gaze resigned and content at the same time. "Sometimes, Lucy, we face changes in our life that we have no control over. We have the choice to either fight the changes in our lives or to accept them and enjoy the moments that arise as much we can. While the moments of sadness seem to be difficult even impossible to get past…it is the moments of happiness that make those sad moments bearable. You and your father are my world, Lucy. Why should I spend my last moments being angry or bitter when I can spend it with you two and being happy?"

Lucy stifled a sob as she pressed her mother's hand against her cheek. Against her will, tears broke through the barrier of her lashes and slid down her flushed cheeks. "Mama," she whispered brokenly. "Mama, I love you so much!"

Please don't leave me!

She wanted to scream it, to yell and fight until her mother got better. But she knew it would be useless and a waste of time. She had figured that out after she had learned of her mother's fatal condition.

What will I do without you, Mama? How will I go on?

Her mother smiled softly, a sad angle to it, turning her hand in her daughter's grasp to cup Lucy's cheek, her thumb wiping away her tears. "I love you too, sweetie. And I always will. You're braver than you think you are. Just remember that I will be with you. Always."

Lucy took a deep breath, her hand on the strap to her purse tightening until her knuckles turned white. Before her, looming almost ominously, stood the office building of her father's lawyer. It bore over her like a threatening giant and she found herself swallowing a lump in her throat.

What exactly was it that she was nervous about anyway?

Was it because the woman that she was to meet, this Mirajane Drayer, was the last connection she had to her father? Was it because she was afraid of the state of his life that he might have left behind for her? Or was it because she knew almost nothing about settling the estate of an almost business tycoon?

All Lucy knew was that she had never been so intimidated by a building before in her life and it took almost all her strength to make her feet move toward the glass doors.

Get a hold of yourself! She thought viciously, her lips turning down in a frown. You have dealt with countless lawyers before, so why would this one be any different?

Because it was different. This time she wasn't negotiating with the lawyer of one of her clients, this time she was consulting a lawyer for herself. She had never truly liked the lawyers she had been forced to interact with and the thought of dealing with another one made her already dark mood become even worse.

But it wasn't something she could avoid. The sooner she got this done, the sooner she could return to Dan and her life in America.

Twenty minutes and a very confusing trip through a maze of corridors later, Lucy found herself seated in a very quiet, very clean waiting room. She sat at the very edge of her chair, her knees pressed tightly together and her hands folded in a tangled mess in her lap. Her brown eyes slowly scanned the room, falling briefly on the bright, joyful face of the receptionist, who flashed her a brief smile, before flitting away again. She was just about to get up and start pacing when she heard the sound of a door opening and a feminine voice call out.

"Miss Heartphilia?"

Lucy looked up and caught the gaze of a pair of stunning blue eyes. The woman stood a polite distance from Lucy's chair, her eyes never leaving Lucy's own, her beautiful face set into a look of polite inquiry. Getting to her feet, Lucy offered the woman a strained smile.

"Yes, that's me."

The shorter woman took a step forward, offering her a cleanly manicured hand. "I'm Mirajane Drayer, your father's lawyer. I'm sorry to meet you under these circumstances."

Shaking the woman's hand, Lucy was surprised at the strength behind her grip, nodding absently. Mirajane turned on her heel, gesturing with one hand for Lucy to follow as they made their way into a nearby room.

They settled in their respective places, Lucy in a high backed chair much like the ones in the waiting room and Mirajane behind her desk, before Mirajane cut into the silence gently.

"I'm very sorry to hear about your father, Miss Hearphilia. He was a wonderful man."

Lucy nodded, her smile strained. "Please, call me Lucy. How long did you know my father?"

Mirajane's smile was flawless. "Then I must insist you call me Mira. I've known your father ever since I've been out of law school. He and my father were business partners."

"Ah," Lucy nodded. "I see. So…" she trailed off awkwardly, her eyes falling to her hands in her lap. "What exactly do I have to do to settle my fathers…affairs?"

Another wave of a dainty hand. "Oh, nothing much. Most of the legal aspects have already been taken care of. The reason I've called you here is to give you something your father left to you in his will."

Lucy's head snapped up, her brown eyes wide. "Will? My father had a will?"

"Oh, yes. He had one even before he became my client; since your mother's death, I believe. It's customary for businessmen like your father to have such wills so their estates are taken care of in the case of their deaths."

Lucy nodded and watched as Mira reached behind her desk for something. Her eyes widened when she caught sight of what lay in Mira's hands and felt her breath leave her lungs. She chanced a look up at the other woman's face, her eyes dark with longing. When Mira nodded, she reached forward with trembling hands to grasp it.

"My mother's jewelry box," Lucy murmured, her eyes roaming lovingly over the gleaming wood. She brushed her fingertips over the symbols engraved at the very top. Layla Heartphilia. "I thought he threw it out with the rest of my mother's things when she passed away."

Clutching the box to her chest, Lucy felt her eyes burn as she caught the faint scent of her mother's perfume that still lingered in the wood.

Mama…

Blinking her eyes to clear them of the tears, she caught sight of Mira's tender smile. "Is this all?"Her voice was husky with suppressed emotion. She wasn't sure just how much longer she could keep her composure in front of this stranger.

"Just one more thing. A letter." She offered Lucy a manila envelope with her name scrawled neatly at the top in her father's handwriting. Reaching forward hesitantly, Lucy stared at it for a moment.

Her father's last words to her…She wondered if they would even be kind words. She had left her father without a word ten years ago, hadn't called or even inquired to see how he was doing since. If it hadn't been for Levy, it was likely she never would have known he had died. What kind of daughter was she? Could she really blame him if his last words were ones of condemnation and anger? Would she ever be able to feel anything but bitter regret and guilt when thinking of her father? Would she ever be able to look back on the moments when they had been a family before her mother died without being haunted by the sad years that followed?

She tucked the envelope into her purse, her jaw set. Now wasn't the time to read it. She wasn't sure she would be able to handle it at the moment with her emotions as confusing and fragile as they were. When she was ready…then she would read it...but only then.

(AN: Wow, I'm so sorry for this crappy chapter. I really don't know why this chapter was such a struggle to get through, but I finally did it. Classes are starting to get a little stressful so I'm sorry for the erratic updates, but I promise I haven't given up on this or Strength! Thank you to those of you that reviewed, I adore you all!)

Jane