More of an extra . . . nothing much happens. 3,038 words!

Well then, enjoy!

Lucy, along with her friends, watched as the ship went farther and farther away until it completely disappeared from their sight. But despite that, Lucy still didn't want to leave and just continued to stare at the direction where they headed to.

"Lucy . . ." Addei rested an arm on her shoulder. "Let's go."

"Yeah . . ." Hyosuke added. "We're gonna have to find a place to stay at for the time being . . ."

Lucy remained silent for a moment before nodding. "Okay . . ."

"Guys . . ." Aeschylus spoke. "Artemis said that the fire in the castle has already gone out. Everything's gone down to ashes, but it looks like the basement wasn't that much damaged. We could stay there . . ."

"Got it." Addei nodded before grabbing Lucy's hand tightly. "Let's go, Lucy."

Although the blonde wanted to stay there a bit longer, she didn't resist when she was pulled away from the spot where she stood. But she kept looking back and only relied on Addei to guide her through the forest as she didn't seem to care where they went. Her thoughts were preoccupied with her friends and how they were going to handle things.

Because she had a feeling that that may have been the last time she'll ever see them, even though there was a voice at the back of her head that told her not to lose hope.

"So . . ." Hyosuke said to Kazuki. They were walking far ahead of the group, so the others would probably not hear whatever it was they were talking about. They wouldn't be interested in it, anyway, considering the situation they were in. "I guess you did care."

"What are you babbling about now?" Kazuki glared at him with his tone containing a hint of annoyance.

"I'm talking about Natsu, dumbass." Hyosuke scoffed. "You know, Lucy's unofficial boyfriend."

"Are you trying to tell me something or are you purposely trying to annoy me?" he clenched his fist and started walking ahead of Hyosuke.

"You know what I'm talking about!" the transformation mage easily caught up and started glaring back at him. "Look, when that guy was about to give his life for Lucy, you stopped him."

"Yeah, so? I told you didn't I? It's too late. The prince is already dead." Kazuki scoffed.

"Don't give me that bullshit! You and I both know how this whole ceremony works, along with Aeschylus and his shadow. We were the only ones who bothered to try to figure it out, and that's why the others didn't know about it."

"What's your point?"

"My point is that it wasn't too late! Hidenori's magic was already mixed with Lucy's which changed the curse in the first place. Now, it doesn't matter if he's dead, he's already played his part. All that's left is to sacrifice Natsu and then we'll all be out of here! So then, why? Why did you stop him?"

Kazuki was unable to reply, so Hyosuke continued on.

"You know just as much as I do that he was the one who caused all of this. It was all his fault. And the fact that Lucy forgave him so easily just makes you angrier, doesn't it? All these years we've spent serving the king gave us a cold heart. If we wanted to kill someone, then we can freely do so without getting into trouble. For us, killing was as natural as breathing and we killed anyone that did as much as annoy us. So if this were any other situation, that guy would have been dead already."

"That's just how we are, after all . . ." Kazuki sighed. "But even if we killed a lot of people, we never felt an ounce of guilt. So we never hesitate on killing again . . ."

"Yeah. But unfortunately, Natsu's a different case. Even if you wanted to kill him, you couldn't. Because Lucy would never forgive you if you did." Hyosuke stated coldly, which made his body tense. "So that time when he stepped in to give up his life for us . . . in a way, that was your chance wasn't it? You don't really care if he dies. In fact, you think he's better off dead, don't you?"

"Fine . . ." Kazuki muttered, sighing. "I admit it, you're right about everything.

"Of course I am." he smirked.

"But . . . you know. It's just that . . ." the air mage sighed. "Geez, I think I'm getting soft."

"Oh?"

"Well, it's just that . . . Lucy cares so much about that guy, you know? So if he dies . . . won't she get really sad?" Kazuki asked. "But of course, there's no way people like us could ever understand."

"Won't she just be able to get over it in the end?" Hyosuke asked. "In fact, you like her don't you? With Natsu out of the picture, you'll have a better chance with her."

"Look . . . I just couldn't, okay?" Kazuki snapped, but luckily his voice wasn't loud enough to catch the others' attention. "He just makes Lucy happy, and if he dies she'll be the one that's going to be really affected by it. She's already been through enough, you know? And . . . I just can't bring myself to just stand there knowing that I could do something to stop that from happening."

Hyosuke just stared at him with his eyes wide before sighing.

"It's almost as if you've already accepted the fact that Lucy will never be yours."

"Yeah, I already do." Kazuki said and started walking faster, leaving Hyosuke behind, standing there in shock. But he soon snapped out of it and quickly caught up with him.

"Seriously?! You're not even going to fight for it? You're just going to accept it, just like that?"

"What do you want me to do? She likes him and he likes her back. They went through hell in this place and it didn't do anything to keep them further apart. Hell, it brought them closer together! The guy was even willing to die for her. How can I even compete with that?"

"I don't know, but you seriously can't give up so easily!"

"Oh yeah? Watch me." Kazuki scoffed before walking faster in an attempt to leave Hyosuke behind again. But the transformation mage seemed to have anticipated this.

"But- wait! What about our deal? You remember that, don't you?"

"We agreed that I'll confess after you do, right?" Kazuki raised an eyebrow at him, making the other man flinch.

"Oh yeah, that's right."

"In any case, I don't plan on keeping our promise."

"WHAT?! Dude, you can't do that!" Hyosuke yelled, catching the others' attention.

"I wonder what those two are talking about . . ." Mia muttered.

"I have no idea. But I am wondering why they're walking so fast. They're already so far ahead of us." Addei scoffed.

Back to the two men . . .

"Dude, you have to confess even if it kills you!" Hyosuke said, keeping his voice down.

"And why do I have to do that?"

"Because you promised, man! We had a deal! Breaking a promise isn't right!"

"Hyosuke, we killed people for a living. Only now do you want to talk about what's right?"

" . . . oh yeah. But still!"

"I made up my mind Hyosuke. And believe me when I say that it was a tough decision for me, but it couldn't be helped."

"Like hell it was!"

"Look man, Lucy's going through too much stress right now. So it's better if I don't become one of them. Besides, I decided to leave once I confess, remember? I can't leave her now with all hell breaking lose for her."

"Well . . . I guess you have a point." Hyosuke sighed. "But if that's what you're going to do, then I'm going to delay my confession to Kiyomi."

"Whatever, man. It's your life."

And that was the end of their conversation. But what they didn't know was that there was a certain nosy shadow who managed to listen to their entire conversation without them noticing. Artemis then returned to Aeschylus' side, sighing.

"Idiots . . ."

"Hm? Did you say something?" Aeschylus asked.

"No. Never mind. Is Lucy okay?"

"Yeah. I think so . . ."

"Geez . . ." Mia muttered t herself, but Kiyomi heard her. "Why did all of this have to happen?"

"It's getting in the way of your goal, right?" she asked, startling the younger girl a bit.

"Oh, well. Yeah . . ."

"I wonder . . . is there really nothing we can do?"

"Lucy. What do you plan on doing?" Galan suddenly asked, catching them all off-guard.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Well, your friends aren't gonna be coming back anytime soon, that's for sure."

"Oi! Can you be more insensitive?!" Mia cried out. "Don't say that so bluntly!"

"Yeah." Kiyomi nodded, while Addei's grip on the blonde's hand only tightened.

"Well . . . I'm not sure." Lucy replied, looking down. "I just . . . I wish they'll come back for me soon."

This caused an uncomfortable silence to befall them as they all stared at her in pity. Until Addei stopped walking and placed both of her hands on Lucy's shoulders.

"Don't worry, Lucy." she told her. "Everything will work out somehow. I'm sure of it."

Lucy only nodded and forced a smile. For now, she had all her friends who were there for her no matter what happens. She was in their care for now, since she decided that even though all odds were against her, there still might be a chance that she'll be able to go back home to her friends. So she'll be waiting patiently for them, not giving up. Because she knew that they won't either.

Seven months later . . .

Lucy sat down on the dirt as her mind wandered off to her friends. It had already been months since she last saw them. Right now, she was standing at the very same spot where she saw them off that night and staring at the very same direction where she last saw them heading off to. It became a habit of hers to just sit and spend the whole day there since that night. And she often thought that beyond her line of sight, right ahead of her was the kingdom she grew up in. The place she yearned for and where the people she cared about were currently at. She thought about her friends.

Erza's probably searching high and low for some way to get her back, with Gray and Natsu helping her out. But she's starting to wonder if they're still looking for a way right now. There's a chance that they've already given up. That's what Galan had told her, with his usual cold tone. This, of course, caused Kiyomi and Mia to get mad at him. But it was already too late. She had already considered the thought, but she hadn't completely given up. In any case, it was nice just sitting there and thinking about her life before all of this happened. And after a few weeks of thinking about it, she thought that even if she had the chance to change the past, she'll never do it. Because that whole incident was the reason why she met such nice people (in her opinion). And she just couldn't imagine what would've happened to them right now if she never came into the lives of the SSS.

But that doesn't mean that she's not concerned if she won't be able to leave this place. No, she was always wishing that she'll be able to get out of here already. That's what she prayed for every night. She missed her friends, even though most of them probably still think she's dead. Addei had told Erza to make sure of that, after all. It made her wonder how people were coping with her 'death'. Wow, this must've been what Lisanna felt back then.

Well, everybody probably misses her . . . or maybe they've probably gotten over her death and were acting like they normally did. For some reason, this thought caused a slight pang in her heart. But she supposed it was for the best. And once again, she found herself wondering if she should move on as well. They're not going to be arriving anytime soon. And she doubt that they'll be coming at all. Like they say, you shouldn't expect anything because it's better to be surprised than disappointed. So she probably shouldn't raise her hopes. But then, what would her friends think if they found out that she had lost faith in them. The thought of it made her frown. She didn't know what to do anymore.

"Adora-chan!" Kiyomi called out. "It's time for dinner!"

"Okay!" she called back, getting up and wiping the dust away from her clothes. They had already decided to call her Adora once again. She didn't really knew why, but she didn't mind that much.

Right now, they stayed at the place where the castle of Visna once stood. Hyosuke and Kazuki had managed to build them a small house, which in her opinion, was pretty impressive considering the fact that they had never built anything before. The only thing they've done related to something like it were repairing since the two men had often destroyed a few walls, windows or doors in the past and had been forced to fix it themselves. But it wasn't really the type of home a person would prefer. It was made entirely of wood that they got from chopping a few trees using their magic. Luckily, there were some supplies left in the basement that they were able to use in building. But the house was only enough to fit half of them, so they took turns and the other half had to sleep in the basement. There wasn't really much of a difference in sleeping on either one, but it made sure that they weren't cramped in such a small dark room anymore.

As for their food supply, they had found some in the basement that lasted them a couple of months. So it's all gone now. They're only source of food were the animals they get from their daily hunting and the fruits they pick from the trees. This must've made Kazuki really upset because of the lack of things to cook. He was always used to cooking them delicious and high-class food. But now, he had no kitchen, proper ingredients and spices. She always thought that that was the reason why he was so upset. He hadn't spent so much time with her lately like he used to. But she decided to just give her time to cope with the way things are like now. It was better to leave him alone. She knew, because that was how she always felt.

In any case, Mia had always compared their way of life now to be similar to Tarzan's or some civilization in the past that lived in a forest. It must be hard for them, after leading a life of luxury, to suddenly have to live a life like this. So Lucy had suggested that they go leave and find some sort of town where they could stay at. But they had strongly declined, for some reason. She thought that they probably couldn't face any of Visna's people after what they had done. But deep inside, she was glad. If they ever did move away from that place, she wouldn't be able to stay at her usual spot near the border. She already had to walk a long way to get there everyday. She was fine with the hard life, as long as she's able to stay at that place. Because she could always find some comfort in staying there and it helps clear her mind and make her relax.

"I'm back!" she yelled, arriving at their make-shift home.

"Adora-chan, I've been thinking . . ." Addei said, immediately approaching her before she even got inside. "You've been working hard lately, so why not spend a little time off? Hyosuke said that there's a village nearby, you can go there."

"We need some supplies anyway. I'm sick of eating meat all the time." Mia gagged.

"Oh, okay . . ." Lucy nodded, thinking of it as more of an errand than a time off. She was kind of nervous because the day after tomorrow was a very special day, she only hoped that they wouldn't forget. "When do you want me to go?"

"Tomorrow." Galan stated.

"Okay."

"You should be gone for a whole day. We found some spare coins hidden at the basement, it was probably the royal family's savings or something because there was a lot. It should be enough for you." Kiyomi told her.

"Okay then, I'll go get ready." Lucy nodded and went inside the house. The SSS stayed outside for a while so they can talk about what they were planning.

"She took the bait." Galan stated.

"Are we seriously gonna do this . . ?" Aeschylus asked, feeling a bit hesitant.

"We agreed, didn't we? In any case, we've already been preparing for this for what? Three months?" Mia told him.

"But still . . . planning is different from actually doing it." Hyosuke sighed.

"I feel kind of guilty for tricking Adora-chan like that." Kiyomi muttered.

"Well, it can't be helped I guess." Kazuki sighed. "In any case, I hope you're all prepared for this."

"Of course." they all nodded in determination.

"Well then, good luck to all of us. And let's hope that things will turn out for the best."

Well, that's that! Wonder what the SSS could be planning . . . BTW, I prefer to keep calling them the SSS. Old habits are hard to break.

OMG, something really embarrassing happened to me yesterday! Well, it's probably not embarrassing to you guys, but it was to me! It was the first time something like that happened to me. This sort of thing has probably happened to you guys at least once. So I posted a chapter to Fairy's Guardian Angel before going to bed. And then morning came so I went to check my account in this website. It's a morning drill. I check fanfiction, facebook, and snafu. So I was a bit surprised when I saw that there were at least 10 reviews to Fairy's Guardian Angel since there were usually only five or less. But I ignored it and went to moderate some reviews since I decided not to look at reviews until I posted a chapter in another one of my storied. I was a bit surprised to see that one of the reviews that needed to be moderated said that I posted the wrong thing! I checked if it was true, and it was! I posted a chapter from this story instead! All those reviews were probably concerning that mistake. And it seriously took me a some time before I found the acutal file! Well, I name my files 'sdfbnh' or something like that after all. So I fixed that.

But seriously, does it take making a stupid mistake like that for an author to get many reviews? If so, I should do it more often XD

Anyway, Please review ~ !

~ RnR ~ !

~ RnR ~ !