Chapter 12 is here! Yay! It feels like it took me a while to get to this one, I'm sorry! It's been a long work week:(

But anyways, here's another long chapter for the wait!:D although it's not as happy and silly as the others! But, alas, they can't all be, right?


The rest of the morning went by peacefully, aside from Natsu and Lucy's bickering every now and again. Most of the guild members were nursing headaches, so no one wanted to cause much of a commotion like usual. However, there were a few unfortunate souls that decided to poke fun at Natsu and Lucy for their drunken antics the night before. These unlucky few had no idea of the wrath that they'd just brought down upon themselves. They each quickly flew out of the guild with fear after facing said wrath, momentarily bringing the peace and quiet back to the hall once more. It wasn't until sometime later in the afternoon, after Natsu and Lucy had sworn off liquor for good, that everyone began to feel slightly normal again.

Lucy sighed in relief as she massaged her temples blissfully. "Thank heavens, my headache is finally going away."

Natsu, on the other hand, was currently shoveling down plate after plate of food as if eating would completely rid his body of the evil liquor. So far, it seemed to be working; when he turned to Lucy now, he had a huge grin on his face (along with specs of food adorning his cheeks), all previous arguments seemingly forgotten as he beamed at her. Lucy rolled her eyes, but returned his smile hesitantly.

She opened her mouth to make amends with him and apologize for their quarreling, but he was already speaking cheerfully. "Ahh, I feel so much better now that my belly's all full!" He began as he pat his stomach happily. "I'm never touchin' that stuff again, I don't care how good it tastes!" He groaned at the very thought of being drunk and, as if on cue, his skin turned a sickly shade of green.

Lucy laughed at the sight of him. "Don't make yourself sick just thinking about it! We're finally feeling better." She teased.

His eyes lit up and his complexion returned to normal as he remembered what he was going to say. "Oh yeah! Speakin' of feelin' better, whatcha wanna do today?" His sharp canines were revealed when his grin plastered itself back on his face.

Lucy, for a moment, was floored. She had kind of been sulking prior to this conversation, worried that Natsu might be mad at her. She felt a little guilty for being so irrational that morning. She had let her emotions get the best of her and had had some pretty crazy mood swings, resulting in a handful of arguments with Natsu. She knew that she had probably just been feeling the after effects of a night of drinking, but she still felt bad for how she had acted towards him. Natsu had helped her so much, and her mother definitely raised her to act better than she had this morning. There was just something about Natsu that brought out a side of herself that she had never felt before -an irrational, over-sensitive, adventurous side- and she wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

But as she looked at him smiling without a care in the world, she realized that this was probably how it always was in Fairy Tail. People argued, sure, but they got over it within minutes, no apologies necessary. They didn't need them because they knew there wasn't really anything wrong. They were a reckless and rambunctious family. They protected each other with a burning passion and they fought each other with just as much. And Lucy absolutely loved it.

She returned Natsu's grin. "I'm up for anything. Master said that he was still waiting for replies to the letters he sent about my key, so there's not really much I can about it right now but wait." She tapped her chin in thought, then added. "You should come up with the plans though, I still don't know enough about Fiore to decide what to do."

Natsu eyes widened. "Oh yeah." He mumbled. "I almost forgot you were an alien."

Lucy rolled her eyes, but secretly felt warmed by his comment. If he'd forgotten that she was from somewhere else, then that must mean he felt like she fit in with them, right?

"I guess you also forgot that I'm not actually an alien. I'm originally from this planet, dork." She jokingly said with a smirk.

His jaw dropped and his eyes widened even further as he gave her a look that said he had completely forgotten that as well.

"Oh, geez." Lucy pinched the bridge of her nose, over exaggerating her exhasperation.

Natsu then smacked his fist into the palm of his other hand and exclaimed, "I just remembered something!"

She chuckled before dramtically rolling her eyes at him. "Good for you, Natsu. There's a first time for everything!"

He pointed a finger at her and continued as if she hadn't spoken. "If you're not an alien, then that can't be the excuse for you being a weirdo!"

"So you're admitting I'm not a weirdo, then?" She asked with a quirked brow.

He gazed at her very seriously and responded with, "No. Now I'm sayin' that you're just weird 'cause you're Lucy."

Before she could retaliate with a long, detailed list of reasons about how he was the weird one, he pulled her to her feet.

"Now c'mon, weirdo! I'm takin' you on an adventure today!" He then called over his shoulder towards the rest of the guild. "Happy, let's pick out a job!"

"Aye, sir!" was heard from somewhere in the distance and the little blue cat flew over to them as they made their way over to the giant bulletin board on the wall.

Lucy had noticed it before but hadn't had a chance to ask what it was. Natsu, seemingly already knowing what she was about to ask, explained to her. "This is where all the jobs we have are posted. There are all kinds of 'em; I told ya about a few of 'em last night, I think. Anyways, the best way for you to get to know the area better is to explore it out on a job!" He finished with a grin and his hands on his hips, looking proud of himself for his explanation.

Lucy looked up at him skeptically. "I highly doubt I can do all the stuff you do when you're on jobs."

He scoffed. "Well duh, but that's just 'cause I'm awesome. There are other jobs, ya weirdo. Look through 'em and pick out one ya want."

Lucy rolled her eyes but turned her attention back to the board. There were fliers seeking help for all sorts of things, ranging from performing in a play, to helping the Royal army infiltrate various bandit hideouts. Her eyes scanned the board, taking note of a few jobs that didn't sound too hard, but she was soon distracted by a flier tacked up in the far corner when she noticed it was a 'missing' ad.

She felt her body move closer, almost subconsciously, until she stood face to face with the paper portrait. The boy looking back at her was handsome, with his red hair, sunglasses, and sly smile. But it wasn't his looks that had completely captured her attention. It was her sudden overwhelming feeling of sadness.

"Who's this?" She choked out.

Natsu peered at her from the corner of his eye, then followed her gaze, a job flier forgotten in his hand as he walked towards her. "Oh, that's Loke. He's part of our guild." He examined the missing ad as he continued. "Went on a job a couple of weeks ago and hasn't come back yet, so one of his little girlfriends posted these all around Magnolia. We tried to tell her it's pretty common for people to be gone for awhile on jobs, but she wouldn't leave 'til we pinned that up here. Crazy chick." He shrugged nonchalantly, and raised the job flier in his hand to show it to Lucy but stopped dead in his tracks, hand frozen in the air.

"Luce?" He questioned uncertainly, giving her a weird look.

Lucy didn't answer him, instead just kept staring at the picture of the boy named Loke. Something deep inside of her ached as she looked at the image and she realized absentmindedly that a few tears had escaped her eyes, but she was too busy trying to figure out why she felt so terribly sad all of a sudden to brush them away. She was certain she had never seen this boy before in her life.

Lucy shook her head, hoping it would chase away the sudden sorrow in her heart. What with her crazy dreams, the insane world she was now in, and her random bouts of depression, she had to be losing her mind. She couldn't find any other explanation for the combination of strange things happening to her. She started to feel a little bit scared. How would she even know if she was going crazy?

"H-hey, what's wrong?" Natsu murmured as he lifted a hand to presumably wipe away her tears.

Before she could muster out a response, the doors to the guildhall burst open and a short little blue haired wizard ran inside. Natsu's blazing fingertips froze in place, just barely grazing the tearstained skin on Lucy's cheek.

"Lucy!" Levy exclaimed with wild eyes searching the hall. She bee lined for the job board when she saw Lucy standing there.

Natsu's hand retracted quickly to his side and Lucy blinked her tears away before forcing a smile onto her face to greet the out-of-breath girl in front of them.

"Lu! I found-the book. I knew-I read something-somewhere." Levy gasped out in between breaths.

Lucy's eyes widened. Levy had found something about her key? Already? Her heart beat painfully with a different kind of sadness that she didn't quite understand. Her mind began moving too fast, each thought adding to her current confusion and her melancholic mentality. She was already muddled with doubts about her sanity, she couldn't handle anymore confusing emotions messing with her unstable mindset.

She glanced at Natsu, who had frozen in place. He seemed to sense her focus on him and slowly moved his head to return her gaze. His eyes darted down to his fingertips, which were still damp with her tears, then back up to her face. She watched as he straightened up and turned away from her to face Levy with a look of complete indifference. However, he didn't wipe his face clean of emotion fast enough; Not fast enough for Lucy to miss the lost and confused look in his eyes before they became vacant.

She flushed. So he was just going to pretend nothing was wrong? Was anything even wrong? She didn't know anymore, but she decided she would follow his lead; she can remove herself from her feelings just as easily as Natsu can, after all. It actually seemed like a pretty good idea. How else was she going to be able to protect her already fragile state?

So she forced her mind to go blank and she became an empty slate, free of emotions or feelings. She cut herself off from her inner conscious, cut herself off from her sadness, and cut herself off from her fondness of Earthland. It was the only way she'd be able to move forward without having a panic attack from all of her overwhelming reactions. This world was Wonderland, and she was Alice. And it was time for Alice to return home.

"Show me." Lucy said with resignation, keeping her tone void of emotion. She didn't let herself worry about whether that came out sounding rude or not; she didn't let herself worry about anything at all.

Levy raised an eyebrow at her, but didn't question Lucy's statement. She still seemed too excited over her find to process much of anything else. "Of course!" Levy exclaimed, reaching her hands down to her side where they grasped nothing but air. "It's in my-oh crap! I must have left in such a hurry, I forgot my bag at home!" Levy huffed in anger at herself, then grasped ahold of Lucy's wrist. "Come on, Lu! We can go back to my place, I'll show you there!"

Lucy, unable to hold every emotion at bay, felt her eyes widen with shock as she was suddenly yanked forward. She wasn't given a chance to respond since she was already quickly being pulled away from the wall, towards the open entrance of the guild. Levy was almost running, dragging Lucy along behind her.

Just as they reached the archway, Lucy turned her head back, her eyes searching for Natsu. He hadn't moved from his spot by the job board, but he was no longer looking up at them. As a matter of fact, he wasn't even looking their way at all. Instead, he was looking down, apparently more interested in the flier he held in his hands than anything else at the moment.

That was the last she saw of the pink-haired dragon slayer before the giant wooden doors were closed, cutting off any view she had of inside the hall. Levy continued to drag her along, away from the guild. Lucy felt a tiny pang of sadness. Or was it betrayal? Natsu had been so eager to help her, always with a giant, crooked grin on his face. He'd been beside her the whole time she had been on Earthland, so why wasn't he by her side now?

Lucy sucked in a breath and tried to force herself away from those negative emotions. Who was she to be upset about something like that? Natsu didn't owe her anything. And she definitely didn't know him well enough, or long enough, to expect anything from him. Besides, he'd already done plenty for Lucy. She didn't deserve any more kindness from him. He had found her, kept her sane (somewhat, at least), kept her safe, and brought her to Fairy Tail, where he had known there would be someone who'd surely figure out how to get her home. Maybe I'm just not his problem anymore now that Levy's figured it out, she thought bitterly.

Lucy then flinched at her own selfishness. She seemed to be letting her emotions run wild again, so she tried to reign in her thoughts and calm herself down enough to bring about that blank, empty state again. She shouldn't let her feelings be hurt. Natsu was a kind person for helping her out, and she should appreciate that. But she didn't want to disillusion herself any longer with this whimsical fantasy she had of friendship and belonging. Everyone she met has been kind enough to her, but wasn't that just so that they could help her get home? Their own Master had even told her that 'Fairy's Tails number one mission is to help people.'

So Natsu had helped her. Mission accomplished. Now he would be on to the next job, which he seemed to be already looking into, and she would be on her way home; home to her mother, who was surely worried sick about her; home to a place full of certainty, and facts, and normal everyday routines; home to a place that she now knew wasn't actually her home at all, just some borrowed planet hidden away across the universe, buried in a lie.

With that last dark thought, Lucy closed herself up again, limply trailing behind the blue haired Mage that was dragging her towards a giant dormitory. Each step bringing her closer to the room where Alice's way back up the rabbit hole had been discovered.

OoOoOoO

Natsu hated seeing any of his friends upset, but he especially hated it when they cried. He couldn't stand how helpless it made him feel, knowing that there usually wasn't anything that he could say or do to make them feel better. He didn't exactly have a way with words, nor was he very familiar with the best ways to comfort a friend. He was someone that was much better talking with their fists rather than their vocabulary. Therefore, in this current situation with Lucy standing before him suddenly looking so terribly sad, he couldn't contain the feeling of helplessness that washed over him.

But this was Lucy. The weird and funny alien that he had found, that he had sworn to protect and help in any way. Natsu decided right then that he wouldn't be continue to be helpless. He knew using brute strength wouldn't fix this, whatever this even was. He had no idea what had suddenly made her look so broken. There was no one around that he could fight in order to bring the smile back onto Lucy's face, but oh, how he wished it was that easy. No, violence wasn't the answer here, he definitely knew that. So instead, he had to attempt something he had never really done before. He had to try to be gentle, and soft, and comforting; all things that Natsu knew he typically failed miserably at. But again, this was Lucy...So he had to try, right?

He reached out to her, his hand lifted hesitantly, unsure of exactly what it was supposed to do that could comfort the girl before him. His eyes flashed to her cheeks, where tears steadily streamed down, leaving shining trails in their wake. The salty aroma filled his nose, reminding him of the sea, and he dully thought that he would never look at the ocean the same if it reminded him of Lucy crying.

And that's when he knew what his hand was supposed to do. It was supposed to get rid of that strange, sad liquid. Because if the tears were gone, then Lucy would go back to normal. She would smile again. Right?

Now that it knew it's purpose, his hand moved slowly but surely, until his fingertips had just barely connected with her skin. Although it was just the very tips of his fingers that had made contact, he remembered noticing how smooth her skin was.

And then everything went crazy. Again. Seriously, was there ever a calm, quiet moment in Fairy Tail? Natsu decided that no, there wasn't, and he quickly pulled his hand back down to his side as Levy had raced her way towards them.

The blue haired girl seemed excited, her eyes wildly lit up as she explained to Lucy about her discovery, all the while trying to catch her breath. The solid script Mage seemed oblivious to the way Natsu and Lucy had both grown rigidly still.

Natsu stared at Levy somewhat with disbelief. Couldn't she see that Lucy was upset right now? Why wasn't she doing anything to make Lucy feel better again? Girls were way better at this whole comforting thing than guys so why wasn't Levy hugging Lucy, or asking her what was wrong or doing something other than look completely unaware? And better yet, why was Natsu the one noticing all of these things? He was rather confused, thinking all of those questions to himself, when he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, the kind of tingling you felt when you knew there was someone watching you.

He turned his head to peer into Lucy's big, brown eyes. They were wide with, what, fear? Or maybe confusion; perhaps the same confusion that was showing on his face too. What if he looked worried and it caused her to feel even more worried? He glanced down at the tear trails on her cheeks and then back into her trusting eyes.

Pull it together, Dragneel, he silently growled to himself as he tried to make his face completely blank. Showing no emotion was better than showing bad emotion, he decided. Bad emotion could potentially scare Lucy even more right now. He had to keep a clear head. Especially if Levy had just discovered the way home for Lucy. That was what Lucy wanted, and he had to empty his mind and focus on what was in front of him in order to help Lucy get home, like he had promised.

Hoping that he had wiped his face clear of all of his concerns, he turned his attention back to Levy, ready to hear whatever it was that the girl had come to say. He waited silently for Levy to continue, but his attention was violently snapped back to Lucy as soon as he heard her mutter the words, "show me."

He stared at her, hoping to get a read on what she was thinking, but her tone and her face seemed to match each other perfectly; they were completely empty. His hands unwillingly clenched into fists, reminding him of the job flier that he still firmly held onto.

He looked down at it oddly now. Had he really been about to go with Happy and Lucy on a job? It was strange how things could change so drastically in an instant. He peered down at the words, trying to make sense of what they said. But right now they looked like a completely foreign language, so he gave up on trying to focus on the letters. Instead, he thought back on what he had read when he'd first seen the flier.

'50,000 jewel reward for the safe return of the runaway daughter of the Harlem Family. She was last spotted near the base of Mount Hakobe, close to a suspected bandit hideout location. Special Reward: If the wizard whom takes this job should return the daughter safely to the Harlem Family and take down the bandits, they shall receive a celestial gate key as a reward, along with the 50,000 j.'

Natsu was still staring blindly down at the paper when he heard the doors to the guild slam shut. He looked up to see both Lucy and Levy missing, and Happy hovering worriedly in front of him.

"Natsu, are we gonna go with them to Levy's?" Happy asked quietly. "Lucy looked really upset." He added even softer than before. The blue cat's eyes drew down sadly.

Natsu's hand clenched around the flier again, crinkling it up into a ball. "No. Levy can help with that." He declared in a monotone as he started walking towards the exit, a newfound objective in mind.

Levy, surely, would eventually figure out that Lucy was upset. And Levy would know how to give Lucy the comfort she needed. She would know what to say and what to do, and before long, Lucy would be happy again. Natsu, on the other hand, had already come to the conclusion that he was much better at talking with his fists. He now had a reason to do so. "We're going on a job, Happy."

"Aye, sir!" The exceed flew over to land on Natsu's shoulders, latching on so that he was able to peer over the head full of pink hair.

Natsu's fist caught aflame, turning the flier into nothing but ash, irradiating the chance of anyone else taking the job he was now setting out on. He and Happy exited the guild without another word to anyone. Natsu stayed surprisingly silent as they quickly made their way home in order to pack their bags for the job.

Lucy might be leaving soon, and that was okay. Or at least, Natsu told himself that it was okay. It was what she wanted, and he would help her obtain that goal. But she was also a celestial wizard and she had specifically expressed to Natsu, multiple times, that she wanted to learn more about herself in that aspect. So Natsu would make damn sure that he would at least help her with that too, before she was gone.

He had a job to do, and he was all fired up.


Don't you just hate big misunderstandings? D: I certainly do! Poor Naluuuu.

But hey, there's something big coming up, can you guys feel it yet?;p

I feel like this chapter was sad, and it always makes me sad too when I write sad things! So what are your thoughts? What do you think is going to happen next? Let me know, I love hearing from you guys!:D

Thank you all so much for the reviews and the new follows!:D

Demedichi: First of all, thank you so much for reading!:D Ahh, it makes me thrilled that you're liking the story so far! Writing the character dialogue and action is absolutely my favorite part about this story, so I'm really happy to hear that you think they're staying in character pretty well!:D I'm glad that you pointed out the 'blunette' mistake, I actually meant to spell it as 'bluenette' to be a play on words for Levys hair. Now I can go back and fix that!:) also, this chapter probably answered your question about special plans for Leo!:D the tower of heaven is an awesome guess about Lucy's dream! We'll find out soon enough, so I hope you continue to read and enjoy!:D thank you soooo much for your kind words, they mean the world to me!

arcadea333: thank you so so much!:D that makes me so happy! And I live to please, so I promise to update quickly and often to bring you more!:D Lucy will definitely be encountering keys soon enough, as I'm sure you figured out by the end of this chapter! And yukino will for sure make an appearance eventually as well!:D I hope you continue to enjoy! Thank you a million times!

SunFlowerChrysalis: ahh, I'm sorry! I don't really like writing perverted scenes (they make me feel weird!) so I promise it won't be a continual thing! I can just see the fairy tail boys being a little pervy when they're drunk:p ah, I love all the Nalu! Even in this chapter, although it was filled with more angst than usual! You're always on the right track with your guesses, you were pretty spot on with Lucy's dreams! Now we just have to find out some more!:D as always, thank you so much for your review! I love them, they make me so happy!

Thank you all so much for reading! Let me know what you think:) and have a wonderful day!

xoxo