It's been one month since the war with tartaros. Magnolia has been busy rebuilding and with help from the generous amount of jewel the king has given to all those affected, almost a quarter of the town has been rebuilt.
The guild on the other hand was rebuilt in under five days thanks to the insane workload Erza forced on everyone. The craziest thing wasn't even that. The master thought of disbanding the guild, the idea almost gave me a heart attack, But I'm glad Master changed his mind after he realized how sad everyone would be if that happened.
Everyone seems to be going back to their daily routines but some wounds are too deep to heal. It's just not the same even now. But I'm sure things will get better soon.
I love you mama. I will talk again soon.
Lucy then put the finishing touches on the letter and put it away for safekeeping inside one of her top cabinets opposite her bed.
After having a nice warm shower Lucy was having a hard time deciding what to wear.
"I know, He can help me. Open! Gate of the little dog! Plue!" Lucy chanted as she pointed her key in the air.
In a puff of smoke what looked like to be a short, carrot nosed dog puffed into existence.
"Hmm. I haven't worn this one in a long time, what do you think Plue?" She asked her little celestial spirit. The small little creature walked over to over a dozen outfits sitting on her bed and pointed to a blue and white outfit.
Lucy looked at the outfit Plue had chosen and gave him a big hug saying; "I knew you could help me. Thank you Plue." Shortly after in another puff of smoke the spirit was gone.
Lucy was walking down the road to the newly rebuilt guild hall wearing a blue shirt, a short, white skirt, long brown leggings and a black sleeve with her hair tied into a long ponytail.
Before she knew it Lucy was already at the guild hall. She pushed the doors open to find the usual scenes. People drinking merrily, some checking the request board and fiends chatting.
Lucy went to sit down at an empty table right near the entrance. She smiled at all the commotion around her. Thinking of better times.
"Oh Lucy! It's so nice to see you at the guild again. You haven't been here for weeks." Mirajane said as she walked over to lucy's table.
"Yeah, it's good to be back." Lucy murmured looking down at the table.
"Is there anything I can order for you, Lucy?" Mirajane asked.
Lucy murmured "No thanks, mira."
"Well, if you need anything just call." Mirajane said as she walked off to serve another person.
Lucy looked around the guild for Natsu and Happy hoping that they could go on a mission together.
"It's just been so long." She said to herself. Suddenly, something caught her attention in the corner of her eye.
"Erza! We've been waiting 30 minutes for our beer and it's still not here! You're a worse waitress than Kinana!" Wakaba shouted in a semi drunken state.
"Uh, bud I don't think that's a good idea." Macao replied to his long-time friend.
Just hearing the remarks by Wakaba, Erza rushed over to the table where he was seated, and like a tiger killing its prey Erza instantly jumped Wakaba.
"If it's alcohol you want then it's alcohol you'll get!" Erza said as she started to force down a whole barrel of alcohol down his throat.
Lucy watched on in confusion and worry, glad to be sitting a few tables back.
"Erza being a waitress is a pretty scary thing." Lucy nervously thought to herself.
Getting tired of sitting around Lucy got up from her seat and walked over to the request board.
"Even if I can't go on missions with Natsu and Happy, I still need to pay rent."
Lucy scanned the request board looking for a job suitable for both herself and her spirits. Unfortunately, she could only find dangerous jobs that would require a three-person team.
Suddenly a familiar flying, blue cat flew into the guild hall and grabbed a handful of flyers.
Lucy looked up above in surprise. "Happy it's you! I haven't seen you and Natsu in ages. How has he been?"
Happy looked down to see Lucy staring up at him. "I can't talk now, Lucy! Got work to do!"
Lucy murmured, looking at the floor. "Of course, you do."
Hours later, Lucy was working on the finishing touches on another two pages of her novel. Feeling tired, she stretched her arms and decided it was time to go to bed.
Lucy signed, lying in bed. "I spent a whole day at the guild and I didn't even get a single job, and Rent is coming up soon too. Maybe tomorrow I might find something."
As Lucy slept in her bed, a dream started to form in her mind.
"Puny human, no mortal can stand up to the might of the four Celestial Gods."
"I don't care! I need to do this so I can save my family."
"Draco! Deal with this pest for me."
"Yes, my lord."
A hulking monster appeared as if out of nowhere, standing down Natsu.
"So, you're the Celestial god everyone's been talking about, huh?" Natsu said in a sarcastic tone.
"Natsu! Get away, you'll die!" Lucy screamed at the top of her lungs.
The creature simply attacked, paying no attention to Lucy's words.
"Celestial God Dragon… Roar!"
In a split second a wave of fire that felt as hot as the sun engulfed Natsu, and a split second later there was nothing left but ash.
Suddenly Lucy shot awake, she looked around, realizing she was safe in her own bed.
"It was just a dream, then?"
Lucy realized her body was shaking in fear, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Natsu…"
Lucy was sitting by the bar, drinking a coffee to try to keep herself awake. She didn't get much sleep after she awoke from her nightmare.
"Oi Lucy! Watcha doing?" Natsu said as he draped his arm around lucy's neck and chest, a little too close for comfort.
Lucy turned around and saw Natsu. "Natsu, it's been so long. What have you been doing?"
Natsu looked Lucy in her eyes and said; "Oh nothing! Just missions and stuff. I need to get stronger and stronger!"
Lucy's face lit up, and an idea popped into her head. "Since you're here, how about we go on a mission together?"
"Sounds like a good idea."
"Happy! Find a flyer for Lucy and us." Natsu yelled at the top of his lungs.
"Aye sir!" Happy replied.
A large shard of ice suddenly shot through the air and hit Natsu in the head.
"What the hell was that?" Natsu yelled.
"Hey, flame brain! Leave a few jobs for the rest of us will ya!" Gray yelled.
"Huh?" Natsu grunted.
"You're taking all the damn jobs in the guild, soon enough there won't be any left." Gray replied.
Natsu jumped up from his seat and yelled; "Ya got a problem with that, popsicle man!"
Gray was starting to get visibly annoyed at Natsu's ignorance. "You know I do, weren't you listening, dumbass."
Natsu then suddenly punched Gray and the force of the impact destroyed a table.
"Oh, it's on now, Natsu!" Gray yelled.
Soon enough the entire guild was their battleground, getting other wizards caught up in their brawl.
Lucy looked at them both and murmured; "They never learn, do they?"
"I feel so tired." Lucy said as she started to yawn. "I think I'll just rest here for a bit, Mira."
"Don't sleep too long." Mira replied.
Lucy started to drift off to sleep, the guild's noise acting as a lullaby to her.
Lucy suddenly found herself in a very familiar place. It was her father's old mansion. She started to stroll through the lovely garden out front when suddenly she was pulled away and dragged into a terrible memory.
It was raining.
Everyone was dressed in black.
Suddenly, Lucy knew what the memory was.
It was her mother's funeral. When Lucy looked around, she realized she was her child like self again. Small and defenseless. The wails of pain and agony were a chorus of tears Lucy wished she never had to remember again.
Then, suddenly, the dream changed. Lucy was standing in shallow water, now an adult again.
"Fix the keys… the land of the spirits."
Lucy heard a familiar voice.
"Who are you? Why do you sound like my…"?
A figure appeared in the distance. Lucy ran to it. It was Layla.
"Mum?" Lucy murmured.
The figure turned its head to reveal a half rotting corpse, a small smile etched on its face.
"AAAHHH!"
Lucy suddenly shot awake and her scream stopped the guild, as if everyone was frozen.
Natsu and Gray stopped fighting, Erza stopped eating her cake, all to look at Lucy.
Natsu ran over to Lucy as fast as he could, with Happy flying behind him, he ran over to the stool Lucy was sitting on.
"Mama?" Lucy said as she looked at Natsu, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"Oi Lucy! Are you alright?" Natsu asked, shocked at her scream.
Lucy looked at Natsu and Happy.
She murmured; "I'm fine, I just… had a dream.
"You had us all worried sick. Are you sure you'll alright?" Natsu questioned.
"I'm fine, really I am." Lucy said.
Happy was floating above Lucy's head. "Was it about tasty fish?"
Lucy slightly laughed. "No happy, it's not about tasty fish."
"Oh! I betcha it was about Fighting." Natsu yelled.
"No, fish!" happy replied.
"Fighting!"
"Fish!"
Lucy walked over to master, who was sitting on one of the tables nearby.
"I'm sorry master. I'm sorry everyone. I didn't mean to worry you all." Lucy said sadly.
Makarov looked at Lucy with a worried look.
"There's no need to worry, my child. We all have bad days, but the important thing is to always remember that tomorrow will be better. So, keep your head held high, for that is the Fairy Tail way." Makarov said.
Lucy looked at the ground, not able to look master in the face. Whether that was out of shame or cowardice she didn't know.
Moments after Makarov's talk the guild started to liven up again, becoming its old rowdy self.
"I think I need to go home." Lucy said.
Makarov watched Lucy walk out of the guild with concern plastered on his face. Lucy looked like she was in a haze.
Lucy barely made it home to her apartment. Walking home in a daze.
As soon Lucy entered her home, she started to undress.
"I need a hot shower… I'll fell bet…"
She suddenly collapsed on the floor.
Lucy awoke in the same void of shallow water as before. She saw the same thing parading around as her mother.
"Who are you? Answer me! Lucy shouted nervously at the figure.
The figure moved and as it turned its head, Lucy anticipated the horrific figure from earlier. But it never came. All she saw was the beautiful face of her mother.
"Lucy, I have not seen you in years. You have grown so much since I last saw you." Layla said.
"I don't understand any of this, what's going on?" Lucy asked her mother.
Layla looked at Lucy with sadness on her face.
I have been trying to contact you, I have a mission for you, a way to save Aquarius.
Lucy was shocked, she couldn't believe what she heard.
"Let me explain, my daughter." Layla said.
"In the northern continent, in ancient times a meteor hit and devastated the landscape, however since that day, that place has become a wellspring of power for celestial spirit wizards. Go to the celestial steppe and you will find a blacksmith that can fix any key, even celestial keys." Layla Stated.
Lucy tried to run closer to her mother but no matter how close she got Layla would always be out of reach. "How do you know all this? Can I even trust you?"
Layla looked at her daughter with sad eyes.
"Of course, you can trust me, I'm your mother. All will be explained soon, just know that I love you, lucky Lucy." Layla smiled and then disappeared.
Lucy woke up from her dream, determined to make it a reality.
"I'll be with you soon, Aquarius. Just hold on a little more." Said Lucy.
The next day Happy and Natsu were standing by the request board in the guild. They had found the perfect job for Lucy.
"I'm sure Lucy would loooove this one!" Happy yelled, with the flyer in his paws.
"I wouldn't miss seeing Lucy looking like that for the world." Natsu said as he grinned mischievously.
Natsu ran out the guild's doors as fast as he could with Happy flying not far too behind.
"Hey Lucy! Me and Happy found a job that you'd really like. It pays well." Natsu Yelled outside Lucy's apartment window. The flyer moving in the wind.
There was a silence for a moment.
"Is Lucy not home?" happy asked.
"Nah, she's just ignoring me. Watch." Natsu said as he jumped from the ground to the window sill outside Lucy's window.
Natsu pulled the wooden frame up and hoped inside, with happy flying in after him.
"She's not here." Said Happy, looking around.
"Well, she's gotta be. Let's have a look around." Natsu told Happy.
"She's not in here." Happy said as he lifted up the lid for a cookie jar.
Natsu grinned. "I know where you are. I'm coming in!" Natsu ripped the shower curtain off its rod expecting to see a naked Lucy.
"Huh, she's not even here?"
Happy flew right into Natsu's arms with tears in his eyes. "I looked around everywhere and Lucy isn't here. Is she okay?"
"I dunno, bud." Natsu replied. "But something is wrong."
"Master!"
Natsu burst through the guild hall as loud as a bull and ran up to Makarov, who was sitting on the bar top.
"What is it my boy." Makarov asked.
Everyone looked at Natsu in confusion. Breathing heavily from running to the guild, Natsu and Happy were trying to regain their breath. "It's…Lucy…she's… gone!"
"Hmm, what do you mean by that Natsu." Makarov said.
"Lucy was here and then she was gone and I can't find her anywhere." Natsu said quickly, panicking.
"Calm down first Natsu." Erza replied, who was standing to the right of Makarov.
After waiting a minute for Natsu to catch his breath, he finally spoke;
"I went to Lucy's place to tell her me and Happy had a job for her to do, But I couldn't find her anywhere. Then we looked around Magnola hoping to find her scent, but nothing. It's like she just disappeared."
"Well, this is troubling." The master said.
"This is not like Lucy at all. She can be clumsy but she wouldn't just leave like that." Erza said.
"Could this be an enemy targeting, Lucy?" Juvia chimed in.
"It's a possibility. After what we went through fighting Tartaros I wouldn't be shocked if someone wanted revenge." Gray pondered.
For a moment Makarov closed his eyes and meditated on the news.
"We'll send out a search party to look for Lucy. Natsu, Gray, Erza, Juvia and Wendy, you all will form a search party and look for Lucy. Also, we will use your telepathy, Warren to try and locate her as well." Master Makarov announced.
Natsu was grinding his teeth and had his fists clenched, an aura of anger surrounding him.
"Don't worry Lucy, we'll get you back for sure. You can count on it."
It was one whole week after Lucy disappeared and everyone was low on spirits. The guild was as busy as ever, but it had a tinge of sadness in the air.
One whole week of searching all over Fiore and nothing showed up, not even a single hint.
Suddenly a strange, fat woman walked in the guild hall wearing Lucy's old outfits with a wagon filled with boxes of clothes and other items.
"Isn't that the landlady Lucy rented from?" Gray asked, pointing to the guild's doors.
"The Landlady, why would she be here? Erza questioned.
"Is this the place where Lucy Heartfilia works?" The woman yelled.
"Yes, why?" Gray Asked.
"That brat went up and left, not even paying the rent she owes me, she left all her crap at my apartment too, So I'm dumping it here." The woman ranted.
Natsu walked up to the landlady, looking at her with disgust. "Lucy always paid her rent on time. She always panicked about getting kicked out. This isn't like her."
"Well, your friend doesn't give a crap anymore, that's for sure." The landlady said as she pushed all of Lucy's belongings off the wagon and onto the floor.
Natsu stood there, clenching his fists in anger.
As the landlady started to walk out the door, she threw a letter on the ground.
"Oh, and she left this too."
"A letter?" Natsu said as he picked it up and opened it.
Natsu couldn't believe what he read. His hands started to shake.
"Natsu, please read aloud the letter, for all of us." Erza said.
Dear Natsu.
"It saddens me to say this but, I'm leaving on a journey, one that is more important to me than you could ever imagine. I don't know how long I will be gone; it could be a month or it could be a year or two.
I wish I could have stayed in the guild longer, but don't worry, I will always be in your hearts and I will always be a member of Fairy Tail.
If you're reading this, Natsu, then it means that I have already crossed the borders of Fiore. I will be sending this letter to my apartment, so if you ever break in be sure to read it.
Sincerely,
Lucy.
A horse drawn carriage pulled up to a stop on near the edge of a mountain. The driver rubbing his cold hands together to try to heat them.
"I'm sorry miss, but this is as far as I can take you. The blizzard is just too strong."
A slender, young woman jumped out of the carriage and said; "It's okay, thank you for taking me this far." She threw a bag filled with jewel to the driver.
"Nice doing business with ya!" The driver said as he directed his horse the way they came.
Lucy fixed her scarf closer to her neck for warmth. She looked off over into the distance, everything was a flurry of white.
"I've finally made it to the northern continent. It looks like my journey starts now."