Chapter 3

Her New Normal

A week passed and Lucy's limp was slowly improving. Wendy's healing fixed it well enough, but the muscles were still pretty stiff and there was going to be a rather nasty scar. Not that it mattered. Lucy didn't like it, but she had accepted it. It was just another thing for her to be self-conscious about… Oh, well…

Lucy was sitting at the bar, quietly enjoying her usual smoothie and a good book when Erza, Gray, and Natsu all approached her to demand she go on a job with them.

"Come on a mission with us, Lucy!" Natsu exclaimed with a goofy grin on his face.

Lucy hesitated. "I don't know, Natsu…"

"Aw, come on! You haven't been on a job with us in forever!"

"Yeah," Gray agreed. "It's been too long, Lucy. Come with us."

"I want to, but-"

"Lucy," Erza cut in with a tone of finality. "You are an important member of our team. We need you."

Lucy sighed. "I know, but my leg is still pretty useless. I don't want to slow you guys down or put you at risk because I can't keep up right now."

Gray frowned. "Your leg's still not one-hundred percent? But it's been a week since Wendy healed you. You must've been hurt pretty bad if you still aren't back to yourself… Why did you go on that job on your own, anyway?"

"Yes, I've been wondering that myself," Erza said with a raised eyebrow and crossed arms. "Well? What made you take such a mission in the first place?"

Lucy froze and shifted uncomfortably. Most of the guild was now listening in as her teammates had unknowingly caught everyone's attention with their rather loud questioning.

"I – uh – no special reason," Lucy muttered as she continued to fidget. "Just needed some along time is all."

"I don't buy that for a second, Lu," came Cana's voice from down the bar a little way. All attention turned to the card mage as she painted an accusing finger at Lucy, a doubtful look on her face. "You went off on your own out of nowhere. No warning, no nothing. You wouldn't let anyone go with you. You just came up from the basement after losing that bet, grabbed a job and disappeared. And now you've been acting strange ever since you got back. What the hell happened in that basement, Lu?"

The majority of the guild muttered their agreement and quickly fell silent, waiting for Lucy to answer. "I – I – I – nnnothing happened – " she stuttered.

"Stop lying, Bunny," Gajeel practically growled from his corner of the guild. "I don't understand why you're trying to cover for them. They said some awful shit about you. If you ask me, they don't really deserve your protection."

"Gajeel!" Lucy exclaimed with a flinch. "Please, I don't want to cause any trouble – "

"Cut the crap! Those jerks hurt you and they deserve whatever the guild dishes out."

Lucy's eyes welled up and she looked down, trying hard not to let a single tear fall. "I'm fine, Gajeel," she muttered as she stood from her barstool. "I don't want to talk about it. But if you do, go ahead. You were there, too. You probably know more of what was said than I do."

With that, Lucy left the guild for the day. Gajeel huffed and ended up spilling the beans to the rest of the guild. Which, of course, resulted in an angry guild brawl and several injuries. Lucy's team, as well as everyone else, was furious with those involved. Needless to say, they were strongly reprimanded and all felt even more terrible.

They next day, Lucy entered the guild and went straight for the job request board. She didn't care if her leg was still stiff and sore, she had to get away. She wasn't in the mood to deal with people and she was quite annoyed with Gajeel for outing her like that. She was just looking for a small job and she would be on her way. Unfortunately, it didn't look like she was going to get away without having to talk to anyone.

"Hey, Lu," Levy said cautiously as she approached her. "I wanted to – "

Lucy sighed and her shoulders slumped as she continued to look at the jobs before her. "No offense, Levy, but I really don't want to talk about it, okay?" she said gently but firmly. "What happened, happened. And I don't want to keep reliving it. So, please, don't bring it up again. I'll get over it eventually, but for now, I just want to be left alone."

Everyone was quiet but Lucy could see a few people nod their heads. She had just grabbed a solo job when she felt Levy's tiny arms wrap around her in a tight embrace. "Whenever you're ready," she whispered in Lucy's ear. "I'll be here to listen, Lu."

Lucy smiled sadly and nodded. It would take time, but Lucy knew she would confide in Levy eventually. She couldn't be more grateful for her friends' understanding.

Another month passed and things seemed to go back to normal at the guild. Well, for the most part, anyway. Lucy was fully healed now and going on jobs with her team again. Although, she was still fairly quiet and reserved, and as a result, she was mainly going on solo missions now. She still generally preferred to keep Gajeel as her main source of companionship. And no one dared mention what had become known as 'the basement incident'.

It wasn't until Levy stumbled across Lucy in the guild library, silently crying by herself, that Levy finally had enough and threw caution to the wind to confront Lucy with her concerns.

"Lucy, you can't keep going like this," she said gently. "Please, Lu, you haven't been yourself in ages. I'm worried about you. You have to move on. You can't let what those idiots said control you."

"… it's not that easy, Levy," Lucy whispered.

"Why not?" Levy demanded. "You've never let other's opinions bother you before."

"That's just it… is it really just an opinion if everyone thinks it? You weren't there, Levy. You didn't hear them. The things they all said… only Gajeel seemed to disagree. And then there was his comment… Mavis! I'm so stupid! How could I let myself fall for a guy I knew would never like me back? And to make matters worse, he just had to compare me to the girl he does like… he compared me to you. I feel like such an idiot for even hoping that he might someday just SEE me, when I know that no one compares to you in his eyes. Then I feel awful for being jealous of you – my best friend – because some dumb boy makes me feel like I'm three inches tall! It's just – I-I – I'm tired of feeling insignificant, invisible, and useless. But I don't know what to do or how to forget everything they said when it all feels so, so true. I'm just…done. I give up."

"Oh, Lucy!" Levy said as she flung herself at the girl's neck. They sat there for hours just hugging each other as Lucy cried and Levy silently plotted the death of every male Fairy Tail member. Neither of them noticed the quiet retreat taken by their Speed mage guildmate.

Jet soon found himself slumped against a tree in Magnolia Park, mind racing from what he had just overheard in the guild library. He wasn't an idiot. He remembered exactly what he had said about Lucy that day in the guild's basement. She'll never be as smart and classy as Levy! She never said his name specifically, but he knew she was talking about him when she spilled all her feelings to Levy. But… did she really mean it when she said she had fallen for him? Surely he had misheard her… Why on Earthland would she like him? He wasn't anything special. He wasn't crazy strong like Natsu or Laxus. He wasn't overly handsome like Gray or Freed. He was just… Jet. He was generally pretty quiet, kept to himself or his small team, and – for the most part – he was just an ordinary guy. So why did Lucy – one of Fairy Tail's most talented, outgoing, and beautiful wizards – think he was the guy to fall for? Surely, she had better prospects than him… She could probably have her pick of any guy in Magnolia! Why would she take notice of him, of all people?

Then it hit him. Dear, sweet Mavis, what the hell have I done? He had made one of the guild's most precious members feel worthless. Made her question her own value and think herself unworthy. He practically destroyed her! Levy was right, Lucy hadn't been herself in weeks. Everyone could see it and they were all worried. Ever since she came back from her solo mission, she had practically been a different person. She was quiet and meek. She continued to wear really conservative clothing despite the summer heat and her healed leg. Jet had even noticed her self-consciously adjust her clothes several times – as if she was trying to hide herself away… What worried everyone the most, was that she mostly went on solo missions now. This was so unlike her that everyone was worried.

Jet sat at the park for hours before he resolved himself to return to the guild. He had decided. Even if he couldn't return her feelings, he would apologize. It was the least he could do, really. He knew she deserved more than a measly apology, but for now, that was all he could think to do.

Unfortunately, his apology would have to wait. By the time he got back to the guild, Lucy had already left for the day. Also unfortunately, Levy had not left yet. When Jet spotted the tiny bluenette, his heart dropped. She was giving him a death glare and stomping across the guild toward him. He had no idea what she had in store for him, but he knew it wasn't good. He was in trouble and he knew he deserved it.

Whatever he had expected Levy to do, he had not expected her to slap him across the face. The sound was so sharp it seemed to echo across the entire room. All heads turned to stare at them, many with wide eyes and slack jaws.

"This is all your fault, Jet!" Levy practically growled at him as frustrated tears threatened to spill from her eyes. "Do you have any idea what you've done to Lucy? Do any of you?" she shouted as she glared at several of the guild's men. "You've broken her! All you morons who couldn't be bothered to say one genuinely nice thing about her. Instead, you all thought it was okay to voice your most vulgar and degrading thoughts like she isn't the most important part of our guild! Our family! Thanks to you guys, she can't even look at herself in the mirror! Lucy is the heart and soul of Fairy Tail and you guys treated her like she was something disposable. Something to be ashamed of. Worst of all, she's actually started to believe it!"

The guild was quiet as the grave as the majority had the decency to look ashamed. But Levy wasn't done yet. At this point, she was practically screaming and her angry tears were flowing freely now.

"And you, Jet!" she continued in a low hiss. "You did the worst thing possible. You compared her to me as if I'm some ridiculous golden standard that she could never be! I don't know why you hold me up on such a high pedestal but I've said it before and I'll say it again; as much as I care for you, I am not interested in you like that. Lucy deserves better than that. And she deserves better than someone who can't recognize her worth."

Without realizing it, Jet's eyes had gone blank as tears silently spilled down his cheeks. In an effort to hide this, he ducked his head. Levy stood before him, her chest heaving from her heated speech. No one moved, too stunned to do anything but gawk.

"You're right," Jet all but whispered. "She deserves much better than me. Better than all of us…"

Without looking anyone in the eye, Jet left the guild for the rest of the night. Several people followed suit.

The next day, Jet was first to arrive at the guild at nearly 7am. Quickly, he scanned the job board, looking for the one that had caught his attention the day before. In the blink of an eye, he'd gotten it approved by Mira and was off to the town next door to complete his solo mission. It was a simple job with very little pay, but that didn't matter to him. It was the second part of the reward that he was after.

The client was rather picky so the job took much longer than anticipated and by the time Jet found himself outside the Fairy Tail guild hall again, it was nearly dinner time and he was covered in sweat and dirt. Jet took one final breath before entering. His eyes quickly scanned the room, searching for the precious Celestial wizard. Of course, he spotted her at a table with Levy and Gajeel. Steeling his nerves, Jet marched across the guild with determination, painfully aware of all the eyes on him.

The sudden quiet caught Lucy's attention and she looked up, confused. When she spotted Jet walking toward her, she couldn't help but catch her breath a little. It froze her in her seat for a moment.

The closer her got the more nervous Jet became, but he was determined – absolutely determined – to officially apologize to Lucy. He needed to. All of a sudden, Jet found himself stopped before Lucy, looking down at her intensely. His heart was pounding wildly and he was certain he'd never been this nervous in his life. Still, he forced himself to speak.

"Lucy," he said firmly. Lucy shrank slightly and shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Internally, Jet flinched at her reaction to him. This is his fault.

"Yes?" she said softly. "What is it, Jet?"

Jet cleared his throat. "Lucy," he started again. "I wanted to talk to you."

Levy snorted from next to Gajeel. "Oh, you actually want to talk to her instead of about her?"

Jet flinched but otherwise ignored Levy's comment. Looking Lucy in the eyes, he continued. "I owe you an apology. Well, I owe you a lot more than that… but for now, that's really all I can do. So… I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything I said that day. I'm sorry for ever suggesting you were less than Levy. I'm sorry for comparing you to your best friend. I'm sorry for participating in the conversation instead of stopping the other from saying those things about you. And most of all, I'm sorry for destroying your self-confidence. I never meant to hurt you like that. You're an amazing, strong, talented, and beautiful woman and you didn't deserve what we did to you.

I can't speak for anyone else, but I know I regret what I said that day. And I want you to know that I'll never do it again. I know nothing I can do will change what I said then, but I promise I'll do my best to be a better person – a better guildmate." Jet paused and looked down in his shame. The guild was so silent you could almost hear Lucy's tears as they fell. She looked at Jet with shocked, wide eyes as he pulled a little box from his pocket. He took a tentative step closer to Lucy and placed the box in her hand gently.

"I know this doesn't make up for anything, but I want you to have this. It's part of my apology. I am so sorry, Lucy."

Jet bowed low to her before he turned to Levy. "If you don't mind, Levy," he announced. "I'll be taking a break from Team Shadow Gear for a little while."

With that, Jet walked out of the guild to go home. Everyone was quiet for a long while. Then, slowly, things went back to normal. One by one, all the guilty men came forward and apologized to Lucy. Through her tears, Lucy smiled at them all and forgave them as best as she could. She knew it would take a little while longer to forgive them completely, but at least now she could move on knowing they were all truly remorseful.

Finally, after everyone had returned to their evening activities, Lucy turned her attention to the tiny box in her lap. Carefully, Lucy lifted the lid and let out a soft gasp at its contents.

"What is it, Lu?" Levy asked. She was now somewhat ashamed of how she had snapped at Jet. "What did he give you?"

Lucy held up the small object to show her. "A new key," she whispered.

Levy looked shocked for a moment. "Wow… what spirit does it belong to?"

"It's Columba," Lucy said in awe. "The dove."

A/N: Hey guys! Me again. I just want to say I'm soooooo sorry that I took this long to post a chapter to any of my stories. It was never my intention to go this long without posting. There's been a lot going on and I just haven't had the time to really write until recently. When I started this story, I was pregnant with my first child. Things didn't exactly go as planned at delivery and we had quite the scare with my little girl's health. Thankfully, she is now a year and a half old and officially got the all clear a couple months ago. Now that I've got a little less to worry about on my plate, I hope to be able to write a lot more often! I promise, I have not and will not abandon my stories. I hope you can forgive me for the long delays in updates.

Anyway, hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Have a nice day!

XOXO

Andromeda

P.S. If there are any errors, I apologize. I write my stories long-handed before typing them and sometimes I type too fast to catch mistakes. Also, it's currently 3am and I'm tired. And also working my online job.