When Lucy awoke, the room around her was answer enough as to where she'd ended up upon crossing through the Eclipse Gate. She hated the sight of the bright white walls, the incredibly loud beeping of the machinery that surrounded her. It was so loud, so bright after three years of quiet and natural light. It didn't help that the window in her hospital room revealed a beautiful grandiose view of the city outside, lit up like a beacon in the dark of night. She could hear sirens and cars roaring by, and she flinched when the bellow of a plane suddenly roared overhead.
So, so noisy. How had she ever lived here?
She didn't notice him until he began snickering.
Immediately, she glanced up and did a double-take. Someone was seated in the chair at the side of her bed: a smug man, leaning back comfortably in the chair with his arms draping over the arm rests with ease. A coat with a fur-lined hood was pulled over a black T-shirt, the hood thrown off of his head to reveal the easy blond hair that topped his head. Blue eyes with strangely slitted pupils blinked at her with amusement, and his lips peeled back in a wide grin that displayed shockingly sharp canines.
"Well, well, well," purred Sting Eucliffe. "Look who finally showed up."
Lucy's heart skipped a beat as she stared at the dragon in complete and utter shock. "Sting?" she said hoarsely, sitting up.
"Make sure you find me first when you're ready," he'd told her when she'd last seen him in this time and world. As if he'd known what kind of world she'd soon be stepping into. His eyes were underlined with heavy shadows that said he'd been awake too long, but held a knowing gleam that made her want to punch him again.
Sting rocked forward in his chair. He seemed impatient. His reasoning was given a moment later as he said, "I'm the only one here. Rogue took Yukino back to our place to get some rest." Something about that irked him a little, Lucy noted. She guessed that he'd missed the silver-haired woman immensely, too, but had forced himself to make way for Rogue, seeing as she'd been his Marked One.
But… "Yukino's dead."
Sting's lips curved into a grin. "We thought so, too. Apparently the celestial spirits were grateful that she did her best to help them; they gave her a place among the stars. Which she fell from to catch you, something she apparently planned with Mavis."
The question was so loud in her head that she almost asked it. Almost pleaded with Sting to tell her where Natsu was. But she didn't. She couldn't bear to hear what had happened to ensure that she felt the void that refused to leave her alone. Had he been simply sleeping, or sealed away as history had promised, there wouldn't have been a void; rather, there would have been that familiar film. There was only silent emptiness. Instead, she said hoarsely, "I didn't know she became a star."
Sting snorted. "Neither did we," he admitted. "Guess we should have realized something was up. We've had hints, here and there. Someone told us a lady with silver hair wanted us to know to look at the stars. And then there was last year, when Rogue claimed he could feel her again, which made no sense."
Lucy hummed tiredly, resting her head back against the wall she'd scooted back to lean against. Her fingers twisted in the blanket covering her lap again. "Did it work?" she finally asked. "The Eclipse Gate and Acnologia?"
Sting lost his hint of a smile and sighed heavily, rubbing his chest and grimacing. "Yeah. All of it. Acnologia was killed by the Eclipse Gate's magic. Which almost killed Rogue and I, too, by the way," he added with a scolding tone. "You could have warned us what you were going to do. Anyways, I guess it decided Yukino's death was enough punishment for allowing you to ruin the Gate. So it left us alone. And the Gate supposedly did shut after you disappeared. We weren't sure that it was you who closed it though; no one knew where you went."
"It was me," Lucy confirmed. She took a shaken breath. "I shut the Gate by going through it."
"Huh. Would have been nice to know." Sting cracked a large yawn. "Look, I gotta get going. I want to check in with Yukino and I gotta get some sleep. I was up all night and I still have work to do." His hand brushed lightly over the cuff on his arm, sadness flickering briefly over his face. "I can stop by later. If you're up for it."
Lucy considered telling him she wasn't. Considered telling him she just wanted to curl up in a ball and sleep forever, seeing as the one she wanted most wasn't there anymore. But she couldn't bring herself to tell him she wasn't. Not when he looked so concerned and stressed about everything and anything. "Sure," she finally said softly.
He looked pleased. He rose to his feet and brushed himself off, then faltered. "I'm sorry," he said suddenly, guilty. "About what happened. I know it's been a long time for us, but it doesn't look like it's been very long for you. I regret what I did regarding Acnologia and Yukino. I should have known better, and I never should have done what I did to someone who considered me a friend."
Lucy blinked at him, unprepared. After a long moment, she said, softening, "Thank you, Sting, but there's nothing to apologize for. Yukino was in danger. I would have done the same thing had it been someone I loved he was threatening."
Sting offered a crooked smile. "I have to go," he said suddenly, looking relieved. "But when you're out of the hospital…like I told you when we saw each other last year, find me when you're ready."
A chill raced down her spine and Lucy merely nodded. She knew what he meant by that, and she most certainly was not ready for what information he likely held. Lucy wasn't sure she'd ever be ready. Sting gave a final playful salute, and then ducked out of the hospital room, closing the door firmly shut behind him.
Lucy let out a loud breath as soon as he was gone and rubbed her hands down her face. A muffled sound of despair left her. She'd made it to the time she'd originally come from, and it could have been worse. She knew this time and world, could survive far easier in it than any other. But it was missing someone vital, and Lucy found breath choking in her chest as she fought the urge to simply scream.
She wanted Natsu, and Natsu was clearly not there.
Lucy gave herself a day to mope and pity herself. When that day had ended, she pieced what she could back together and convinced the hospital staff to let her leave. She grimaced as she ducked from the building, wondering how the hell she was going to pay her hospital bill when she didn't have a job. At least Sting had left some clothes for her, though they were nothing fancy. Some sweatpants and a T-shirt. She found she didn't care for them. She missed her old clothes.
She paused just outside the entrance to look around, taking in a world she'd not seen in three years. She winced. It was still as loud and bright as she'd thought the day before. People bustled this way and that, most typing or talking on phones. Lucy's fingers twitched at the idea of the phone she'd once had. She wondered what had happened to all of her possessions - her apartment.
Lucy swallowed thickly, rubbing her temples. She missed the quiet, easy-going friendliness of the Crocus she'd left behind. Thirteen hundred years ago, she'd walked through these streets with Natsu, Happy trailing along at her heels. Well, a different Crocus, but Crocus nonetheless.
She quickly shook her head. No. She'd not think of Natsu. She couldn't.
First things first, Lucy decided as she turned and started down the street. She needed to find out if she had a place to stay or not. If she did, she'd reacquaint herself with the area for a few days and then decide what to do. If not...well, she'd have nothing else to do but track down Sting again. She wasn't entirely sure what she was supposed to do now. After all that time having a goal in mind...she wasn't sure what to do next. Before she'd gone back in time, she'd had historical work she was occasionally paid extremely well for, but now...it paled in comparison to the work she'd done with Natsu. She'd saved lives.
But historical work was important, she reasoned as she meandered down the street, fighting the urge to flinch as a car roared down the street right past her. She shivered, hating the sound. She'd have to move out of the city, she decided. When she had the money, she'd purchase a place out in the middle of nowhere. It would be much quieter and lovelier than the city.
It took her a shocking amount to figure out where to go. She was supposed to know Crocus, but she found it was entirely different now that she'd seen Old Crocus. She would find herself walking down one street and ending up in an entirely different part of the city than she'd planned.
After what seemed like ages, Lucy found her apartment building. Frustration filled her when she realized she couldn't get close to the apartment. She didn't have the card that would let her swipe into the building, let alone a key to let her into her old home. Regardless, she doubted she'd have ever gotten in anyways. When she looked up at the window, there were lights on, meaning someone else lived there now.
Lucy sucked in a shaken breath, frustrated. Why had she thought otherwise? Sting had mentioned seeing her the previous year, meaning it had been long enough for people to think she was dead. Of course they'd move her out and likely sell or get rid of her things. It did leave her homeless, which wasn't good. And Lucy didn't know where to even start looking for Sting, Rogue, and Yukino.
Even worse, when she reached to touch her metal arm bands for comfort, she realized both her Keeper and Fairy Tail bands were gone, leaving pale strips of skin behind with nothing to show for it.
Hissing at her own stupidity under her breath, Lucy turned and stormed down the street. She knew without a doubt the Archives existed, she told herself. She could find her way there. But that was days away even at a steady pace on a horse or something similar. It'd be far too long of a journey without supplies on foot.
She was helpless, she realized, fighting the urge to just scream her frustration.
She took to wandering the streets again. Late afternoon was turning to evening as she crossed a fairly busy street in downtown Crocus, her fingers trembling as she realized she'd have to figure out where to sleep for the night. Sleeping outside wouldn't have bothered her, but she had no weaponry. Even her whip was gone, likely taken by hospital staff and not given back to her. Natsu wasn't there to scare them off, and she couldn't spew fire like he could. She could create Portals, sure, but she couldn't at the moment. She was far too tired and hungry to do so without causing damage to herself.
Lucy grumbled as she stopped in front of a familiar building, her brow furrowing. This was the last place she'd visited before she'd gone to the Eclipse Gate. She'd eaten here and read the book that had started it all. Actually, if she remembered correctly, she'd been kicked out of the place for lingering too long.
A smile tugged at her lips and Lucy found herself wishing she'd had some money to go in and order something, simply for the hell of it. Maybe if she ate there, history would repeat itself and she'd end up going home, back to the time she desperately wished to return to. But now...there was no Eclipse Gate, let alone the keys she'd need. She felt her stomach churn. She wondered what had happened to those she'd vowed to protect. She hoped she'd not failed them.
Lucy kicked her heel, scuffing it on the pavement with a heavy sigh. Oh, well. She'd find somewhere to stay for the night, and then she supposed that she'd be left with no choice but to track down Sting the next morning, though she had no desire whatsoever to do so…
A soft sound caught her ears, and instinctively, knowing better after three years of always looking over her shoulder, Lucy looked back.
Every thought eddied from her head and her lips parted in surprise at the sight of the blue-furred feline that watched from the shadows at the corner of the building. He was sprawled comfortably on the cement, his tail flicking back and forth, eyes slitted as he watched her. When he had her full attention, he gave an extraordinarily loud purr.
"Happy?" whispered Lucy, unable to believe what she was seeing.
He heaved himself to his feet and sauntered over as if he could care less about the swearing people that had to step around him as they hurried home from work. He stopped at her feet, blinking cheerfully up at her, and Lucy nearly collapsed to her knees, her arms outstretched. He purred loudly again as he hopped right into them.
"Happy!" laughed Lucy, burying her face in his soft fur. He nuzzled against her in turn, weaseling his way onto her shoulder, where he settled with his cheek pressed to hers and his tail around her throat. She grunted softly. "You're a little heavier," she muttered playfully, and Happy sniffed, insulted by the comment. Lucy scratched his chin, choking on the sob that wanted to escape her.
At least she wasn't alone now. It grounded her, that familiar weight on her shoulder. She'd have thought herself insane without him, seeing as everything she'd ever had from that time had disappeared before her eyes. It was reassuring to have the familiar at her hip again, reassuring her that everything that had happened wasn't the result of hallucinations or something similar.
"I don't know what to do now," she admitted to him. She ignored the people that gave her strange looks as she talked to the cat. They were blind to the world around them, and had no idea what really existed and lived among them.
Happy chirped in response, hopping down from her shoulder. Lucy rose to her feet as he trotted forward a few steps and then paused to wait for her, clearly indicating she should follow. Lucy willingly did so, trusting him.
Happy guided her through Crocus, weaving expertly in and out of alleyways and streets. Lucy blinked as she realized they were heading for a rather nice portion of the city, where those with a bit more money tended to live in actual houses rather than apartments. They were small houses, with equally small yards, but nice nonetheless. She'd gone to an open house just once, curious, and had known she'd never be able to afford one in the city.
She grew uneasy when he turned up the path to one particular house that stood on the corner of one of the streets at the back of the neighborhood. It was dark now, and night had fallen. At least the stars were out - not that the view was all that good in this era. Light pollution really prevented one from having a good view of the celestial heavens above.
"I don't know about this," she told Happy as he suddenly seated himself before the front door, purring. He lashed his tail once and gave her a look that told her to watch. Lucy held her hands up, a smile tugging at her lips even as she hung back, not wanting to be involved if this turned out to be a bad idea.
She jumped when Happy threw his head back and suddenly yowled as loudly as he could. She winced, hastily looking over her shoulder. No one in the neighborhood could approve of such noise, she couldn't help but think. There was no way this was going to end well. Yet, Happy continued to yowl, loud as could be, until at long last the door snapped open.
Lucy's jaw almost fell open at the sight of the person who opened the door.
"What the hell, Happy?" snapped Gray Fullbuster, rubbing the back of his head with a rather confused and annoyed expression. "Seriously? What are you screaming at my door for? Go home already. Wendy's been worried about you. She's at the hotel."
Unnoticed, Lucy took the chance to study him, suddenly nervous. Gray was older now, though not too much. Mythics aged, after all, albeit far slower than humans did. Yet, he couldn't have been more than a few years older in appearance. A few new scars she'd never seen dotted what she could see of him, which was admittedly a little more than she was prepared for. Apparently, he'd forgotten to don a shirt upon coming to answer the door. But it was clearly Gray, and Lucy nearly burst into tears then and there.
Sting's company had been appreciated, and she couldn't blame him for what he'd done, but he'd still betrayed them the last time she'd seen him. Gray, on the other hand, was someone she'd trust with her life, even if he'd not seen her in over a thousand years. He was an ally, a member of the family she'd created in her time with the guild, and she knew without a doubt she was safe with him.
Happy snorted derisively and promptly looked over his shoulder, flicking the end of his tail. Lucy shifted her weight nervously as, tussling his hair irritably, Gray looked in her direction. He froze, mouth opening in shock. "Lucy?"
"Um," Lucy whispered, "hi." Nervous uncertainty twisted her gut in knots. She wasn't sure what to do here. This was Gray, yes, but a Gray who'd had a thousand years to change and become someone entirely different from what she remembered.
Yet...all she could see was her friend, the Gray she knew, when he offered her a friendly, easy-going smile. "Want to come in?"
Back into it! :D And look who Lucy found. ;) Not Natsu, but we're getting there.
Happy is the gatekeeper to important interactions apparently. It's a realization I've had only today.
Thanks to reviewers (Bmv0315, SmallRedhead, nerdalertwarning, Skibblez, XxCelestialAssassinxX, guest #1, AthomeinFairytail, lcr0718, Guest #2, llendais, Kaisha00, thelemonroll, SayaoftheWillows, Guest #3, Guest #4, PrincessAndromeda56, Lodemai04, Goku275, itsxoi, SistershoOk, Guest #5, Summerguest, valerioux, LayLay lives, zizi08, moonluver92, and Eyriegirl!) as well as those who favorited and followed!