My apologies if anyone's confused. I noticed that there was HTML text in the doc I originally uploaded, at least that's how it showed up for me. Anyways, enjoy. This was a fun chapter to write.
"Have any of you heard anything about a raid coming up?" Natsu asked. "Erza heard it from Kagura, but have any of you heard anything else?"
"It's not happening in Hargeon," Lyon said with utter certainty.
"How do you know?" Gray fired back. An arrogant smile spread on Lyon's face.
"Ultear told me."
"Does that mean it's Grimoire Heart?" Chelia asked, ignoring the sudden animosity between Gray and Lyon. Lucy watched the two cousins argue with mild interest as she tried to remember why the name Ultear sounded familiar.
"Not Grimoire Heart themselves," Lyon corrected. "One of their thug groups."
"And Ultear told you that too?" Gray snarked.
"She did," came the smug reply.
"Why did she tell you and not me?"
"Thank you for the information, Lyon," Erza interrupted. "I'm sure Gray thanks you too." Gray stared straight at the table and refused to make eye contact with either of them. "If the information is given by Ultear, then Jellal must have confirmed it. Information from Jellal is always accurate." Erza's glare said that she wouldn't hear any disagreement. Lyon seemed to glow although Erza's next words shot him down. "You shouldn't have tried to make it into a competition," she lectured. "This is a serious conversation." Lyon settled back with the same sort of pout that Gray had. It actually made Lucy crack a smile. She noticed that Natsu rolled his eyes at the two even though she had seen Natsu argue with Gajeel and Gray like that many times before.
"Maybe we should talk to Jellal anyway?" Wendy asked, looking to Erza.
"I haven't spoken to him in weeks," Erza mused, with a heavy sigh that sounded sad. "If he doesn't want to be found, no one will get in touch with him; but I can try."
"If it's you, he's going to have to pick up," Chelia said with a giggle as she and Wendy grinned at each other. Erza rolled her eyes but it looked like she was blushing. She tapped something into the screen in front of her and a video stream showed up on the wall in front of them. The three blinking dots on the screen froze before giving way to a face that Lucy had seen plastered on wanted posters and in the news. For whatever reason, she hadn't made the connection that the Jellal they were referring to was Jellal Fernandez. The blue hair and red tattoo under his eye couldn't be mistaken for anyone else. He had landed himself in jail and had somehow escaped every time. The method for how he escaped was never disclosed. Lucy had heard her father rage about him and, she resisted the urge to hit her head against the desk in front of her. She should have made the connection sooner. Who else could have broken him out except Fairy Tail?
"Jellal, your girlfriend is calling!" a girl's voice called out off-screen.
"Meredy, she's not my girlfriend," Jellal sighed. Apparently, this was a reoccurring topic because he seemed exasperated already. Gray and Natsu snickered as they fist-bumped, mischievous grins on their faces.
"Ultear heard that the raid coming up isn't in Hargeon?" Natsu asked before Erza could say anything.
"I did," a woman a few years older than them stepped into view. She had long, dark hair and wine-red eyes. "Officially, Meredy and I are on a scouting trip to gather intel and report back to Hades." Lucy's eyebrows furrowed and Wendy, who was sitting next to her whispered, "Ultear and Meredy are double agents."
"That being said," Ultear continued, "we should send a small group to Hargeon anyway so to avoid rousing suspicion. Only Grimoire Heart knows that Hargeon isn't going to be targeted and Hades is smart enough to put two and two together if a group isn't sent to Hargeon, who else could have known?" Natsu was nodding along with Hibiki and Erza.
"Lamia Scale can send two groups," Jura spoke up. "Our primary team will be sent to Acalypha and a secondary team will be sent to Hargeon."
"I can send a team to Crocus," Jellal offered, "only if Sabertooth covers Era. I have no desire to be behind bars again."
"Yeah, I'm tired of busting your ass out of jail," Natsu said in a whiny tone. Erza glared and pulled on his hair in retaliation. "What? I ain't lying!" Wendy and Chelia were hiding smiles behind their hands and Gray was fighting back a smile. Apparently Natsu's sentiment was shared, although no one else seemed willing to admit it. Erza huffed, closed her eyes, and crossed her arms. Jellal gave a small but warm smile in the camera.
"Is that all you needed me for?" Jellal asked.
"I believe so, thank you Jellal," Erza replied.
"Always a pleasure, Erza," he said. Gray and Lyon yelled goodbye to Ultear before the call was disconnected.
"We should send him a new VPN," Lyon said. "It never hurts to have more than one." He stared pointedly at Hibiki.
"I'll send him two or three in a few days," Hibiki shrugged.
"Thank you Hibiki," Erza thanked although the very notion of thanking him made her look sick.
"Anything for Sir Ichiya's girlfriend."
"I'm not his girlfriend," she yelled before drawing a knife from somewhere and threw it in Hibiki's direction. Lucy winced when she saw a thin line of blood formed on Hibiki's cheek.
"So are we decided on who's going to be going where?" Natsu asked, bringing everyone's attention back to the matter at hand.
"We can cover Acalypha," Ichiya decided.
"Now that that's decided can you four perverts get out of here before Erza kills all of you?" Natsu asked with something like a panicked smile.
"Until next time Erza," Ichiya said with a flourish of his hand. Erza's eyebrow twitched before she punched him again.
"You stay far away from me!" she yelled as he careened into the door. Natsu just threw his head back and laughed. The four delegates from Blue Pegasus left the room with Ichiya sporting a dark bruise that was blossoming on his cheek.
"That's going to hurt in the morning," was all Wendy commented.
"He never learns," Erza answered with a shrug.
"Do you remember when we were all at Tenrou Island and the four of them had snuck into our beach house?" Gray reminded and Erza covered her face with her hand.
"Don't remind me. They're all awful." Lucy could only imagine. "You'll find out in a few months when you come with us Lucy." As if she needed a reminder that she had signed her life away. From one prison to another.
"If you mess up his face enough he might need plastic surgery," Gray pointed out.
"Don't tempt me," Erza muttered, pinching her nose between her fingers. Natsu and Sting laughed. Wendy and Chelia looked at each other and giggled. Something about seeing the two of them in this meeting made Lucy nervous. She couldn't believe that two girls several years younger than her were caught up in vigilante work. They were too young to be involved in this, to be getting into firefights. But they had grown up into this life, Lucy reminded herself. They had grown up supported by friends that had become family. They had most likely never been left alone in dangerous situations while they had grown up. Having relationships like that from such a young age made something in Lucy's heart hurt. It almost made her wish she had grown up in Fairy Tail.
"How do you and Lyon know Ultear?" Lucy asked Gray now that all the serious conversations had ended.
"She's our cousin," Lyon rushed to answer instead of Gray. "We lived with her and her mother. Our aunt trained the three of us together until she died."
"Oh," Lucy said. "I'm sorry." She didn't know what else to say.
"She made them strippers," Natsu interrupted.
"She did not make us strippers Natsu," Gray yelled. "You know that."
"You just called yourselves strippers!" Natsu crowed.
"Natsu," Erza glared at him, and he quieted down.
Wendy and Chelia gave each other big hugs, promising to keep in touch and meet up again soon. Gray and Lyon gave a tense handshake before the delegates from Lamia Scale filed into the elevator.
"Yo Sting, Rogue, do you want to hang out for a little bit now?" Natsu asked.
"For a little bit," Sting shrugged.
"Where are Lector and Frosch?" Wendy asked.
"Down with Charle, Happy, and Lily," Rogue replied. "They said coming up with us would be too boring."
"When did you and Rogue join Sabertooth?" Lucy asked. She had to take it upon herself to find out information since Natsu refused to tell her anything. That and Sting seemed more relaxed than Natsu. And she found Rogue slightly intimidating.
"The same time Natsu and Wendy joined Fairy Tail: after our fathers disappeared and three years before-"
"Sting," Natsu growled with a look that meant shut up or you'll regret it. "She doesn't need to know that."
"What if I want to know?" Lucy demanded. "You're not telling me anything about your past, but you seem to know everything about mine. How is that fair?"
"It's not about being fair, it's about being kept safe. The less people know about me the better, especially since there's a two million jewel reward on my head!"
"Everybody else in Fairy Tail seems to know about you!"
"Yeah, because most of them were here when I came!" Everyone else remaining in the room was silent as the two argued. Natsu's cousins, Gray, and Erza hadn't seen him this angry since the last false alarm they had had about Evelyn being located.
"So what you're saying is—" Lucy started but Natsu had run out of patience.
"Lucy just shut up!" he roared. "I'm not talking about this anymore! Go find Mirajane and Levy and talk with them instead." Lucy understood that was meant as an order. With tears gathering in her eyes she ran out of the room and found her way back to the elevator. Just before the door to the room had closed she heard Erza start to yell but Lucy was in no state of mind to enjoy her yelling at Natsu.
"Natsu that wasn't nice," Wendy chided. "Lucy was just being curious, you should go apologize to her." Natsu just huffed and turned his head. "You haven't been answering any of her questions, of course she's going to be curious. You can't blame her for that."
"I don't have to do anything," Natsu retorted. "She'll get over it soon."
In the quiet of the elevator Lucy saw her tears fall in the mirror on the back wall. She dashed her hand across her face in an attempt to scrub away the liquid shining on her face. The anger and frustration in Natsu's voice was all too similar to her father's tone whenever he had yelled at her. At least there hadn't been any of that disdain, Lucy thought in an attempt to comfort herself. Whenever Jude Heartfilia had looked at her that was always this look like he couldn't believe he was wasting time talking to her. There hadn't been any of that in Natsu's face, just genuine impatience and frustration.
When the elevator doors open Lucy quickly walked to the bar where Mira, Lisanna, and Levy were. As soon as Lucy slid into her seat and placed her head on the bar counter.
"What did Natsu do?" Levy asked with a sad expression.
"Why is he defensive about his past?" The question seemed to take the three girls by surprise.
"Honestly there are still things I'm sure he's not telling us, but he has experienced a lot," Mira confided. "It is a really sensitive spot. If he snapped at you, which I'm guessing he did, it's just because it's hard for him to open up to new people. Is that it?"
"Not necessarily what he said, but more of how he said it. It reminded me of how my father talked to me after my mother died." Lucy stopped talking and fell silent. Lucy was pretty sure everyone in Fairy Tail knew about her father and how her mother had died but talking about it, talking about how her father treated her, still felt too personal. Ironically enough, the person who knew the most about her was Natsu. Which still felt unfair considering he hadn't told her anything besides that his father had disappeared.
"I'll make a milkshake," Lisanna volunteered.
"Thanks Lisanna," Lucy said with a grateful smile.
While Lisanna was making the milkshake and as Lucy was calming down, the elevator doors opened again and Natsu, his cousins, Gray, and Erza practically came tumbling out. "Yo Gajeel," Natsu yelled. "Rogue is ready to fight you!"
"Hell yeah!" Gajeel yelled. "Hey Shrimp, come referee!"
"Stop calling me that!" Levy called back but she got up nonetheless. A small circle had formed between the tables as Gajeel and Rogue faced each other.
"How should we do this?" Gajeel asked.
"We'll need to make this fast," Rogue said, glancing at the time on the smart wall. "Person who has the most hits in five minutes wins?"
"Sounds good to me," Gajeel agreed, cracking his knuckles. Levy rolled her eyes but put a timer on the smart wall. Lucy tuned out the action: the yells, the cheers, the laughter.
"What else is wrong?" Lisanna asked as she slid Lucy her strawberry milkshake.
"I don't feel like I belong," she admitted as she sipped her milkshake. "Everyone here is so close and then there's me."
"Believe it or not Lucy, everybody started out that way when they first joined." Mirajane leaned closer across the counter. "Even Natsu did. I remember when he first met Gray." Mira sounded almost fond. "Gray had been here first and as soon as he and Natsu met they had decided they hated each other. It took them two years to become best friends. Wendy had an even harder time because she was so shy. It might take a while, but this will feel like home eventually." Lucy gave Mira a grateful smile just as a roar went up from the gathering of people behind them.
"Rogue wins!" Levy announced.
"What do you mean he won?" Gajeel basically screamed in Levy's face.
"Only by two hits," Levy consoled. She patted Gajeel's arm. Gajeel looked crestfallen. Sting was laughing hysterically and Natsu was snickering.
"I wouldn't have lost," Natsu bragged.
"Shut the fuck up Salamander!" Sting was laughing too and slapped Rogue on the back in a congratulatory way. "Don't you two idiots have to leave?" Sting held up his hands. They high fived with Natsu and each gave Wendy a big hug which she happily returned. Again, that familiar envy flared up in Lucy's chest. As much as the five cousins all argued and fought with each other, there was this pure, untouchable love. Lucy ached to feel something that genuine.
After everyone had left, Lucy had gone down with Levy to the bookstore. She was happy to see that there were still physical books interspersed with screens where people could download books or magazines to tablets, computers, or phones. There was even a small display with muffins and scones, baked each morning by Mirajane or Kinana, and an electric kettle for boiling water for tea. Several hours had gone by before Levy's cell phone buzzed. "Natsu wants to talk to you," she read. "Something about preparing for tonight." Lucy's good mood vanished immediately.
"I really don't want to," Lucy groaned.
"Unfortunately, you don't have a choice," Natsu's voice called from the elevator. Lucy turned around to find him leaning on the wall the elevators were in. "Come on, I want to get you your weapon." Levy gave Lucy an encouraging smile and a hug.
"You'll be fine, Lu," Levy reassured her. "Everyone will take care of you."
"She'll be with me," Natsu told Levy, "She'll be as safe as she could be. Come on Lucy." Lucy shot one more glance back at Levy before joining Natsu in the elevator. The music did not nothing to ease the tension in the air. The argument they had had was still heavy in her mind and Natsu didn't seem inclined to talk about it. So as they waited in silence, Lucy rocked back and forth on her heels. Natsu was simply leaning against the back wall of the elevator with his arms crossed. The most awkward elevator ride Lucy had ever experienced stopped at the 24th floor.
The doors opened onto what she supposed was a training room. Two of the walls were dedicated to weapons. One wall had guns ranging from small handheld guns to guns that were as tall as Lucy. Drawers were built into the far right and left sides of the wall holding guns. The wall opposite that had a collection of knives and daggers. Panels of menus extended to the right and left of the elevator, what they controlled, Lucy had no idea. Cubicles were scattered throughout the room, designated with glass walls that extended up to the ceiling. Lucy noted the only natural light source were thin windows at the very top of the walls, which made sense. It was designed to not only keep weapons from going astray but also to prevent outsiders from looking in.
"Welcome to the training room." Room was putting it mildly. The entire floor was dedicated to training. "The stations in the room are for training simulations. Most of the guns are for Alzack and Bisca, the best shooters I've ever soon." Lucy simply nodded; she had no interest in talking with Natsu. If he apologized, she'd consider it. Natsu walked over to the wall with guns and pulled a small one off a hook. "This is the gun you'll be using," he said. Natsu flipped it in the air before catching it again like it was no big deal. "This is a beginner's ray gun. It uses rays instead of bullets so you don't need to worry about reloading. Just press the trigger and it'll shoot. Don't ask me how it works because I have no idea." If Lucy wasn't furious with him, she would have laughed.
Lucy didn't comment as she plucked the gun from Natsu's hand. If he had noticed her behavior, she ignored it. He just grabbed a target off of a wall and held it up to her. "Shoot." Before Lucy could even fire it Natsu was shaking his head and let the target drop to the ground. "No, you're holding it wrong." Natsu strode over and with more gentleness than Lucy thought he was capable of moved her hands around. "Holding a gun with both hands is fine, but you're going to want to hold it by the grip." Despite the fact that Lucy was still angry with him, she couldn't help but blush at their proximity. Natsu's hands were rough, but they were warm. A shiver inadvertently went down her spine at his touch. "There." Natsu stepped back and gave her a grin. Lucy felt her face warm and she clung desperately to the anger she had felt before. No way in hell was she going to let Natsu get away with yelling at her like that.
He picked the target back up and held it out for her. Lucy felt her hands shaking as pulled the trigger. The laser beam that was emitted scratched the edge. Natsu put the target down again with a frown and went to the wall the guns were on. He pulled a drawer open and rummaged through it before pulling something out. "Give me the gun." Lucy handed it back to him and Natsu attached whatever he had grabbed onto the top. "If you just look through that lens it will automatically identify targets, so you don't have to think about it." Another nod. "After this mission I'll set you up withactual training. Consider this job an assessment." Natsu grabbed the target again off the floor and held it up again. "Shoot."
Lucy squinted an eye through the scope Natsu had attached to her gun. A moving bullseye had settled over the center of the target Natsu was holding. Trusting Natsu's word that she didn't need to actively focus on the target, Lucy pressed the trigger. A jet of green light shot out of the gun and collided with the center of the target. Natsu opened his mouth to say something, but his phone started ringing.
"Yeah," was how he answered it. "We'll be down in a minute. Get the car ready." Natsu ended the call even though Lucy could still hear Gray talking. "Stripper king says it's time to go. Take the gun with you." Lucy complied and entered the elevator holding it at her side, trying to get used to the feeling. The elevator ride down was silent until Natsu said "you're mad at me."
Lucy resolutely stared at the doors, wishing the elevator could move just a little bit faster. "Come on Lucy, what are you mad about?" A bite of frustration had entered Natsu's voice. Lucy glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and saw he had narrowed his eyes at her. "Lucy!" Mercifully that was when the elevator doors opened, and Lucy exited without a word. She felt Natsu's eyes like the laser she had shot out of her gun.
A black car was idling in front of the elevator and Natsu held the door open for Lucy. The inside of the car was almost like a limousine. Plush, black leather seats spanned the walls, and a large screen was at the front of the car. There was an actual steering wheel off to the side but Erza ignored it as she tapped in the destination on the front screen.
Wendy giggled at Lucy's look of wonder as she took everything in and said "you should see some of our other cars if you think this is fancy."
"Say what you want about him, but Gramps does get us the coolest things money can buy," Gray said as he rapped a finger against the tinted window.
"When everyone was situated inside, Erza nodded approvingly at Lucy. "Natsu gave you a good weapon," she noted, "and the scope will make it less stressful on you."
"It's a lot easier to use than I thought it would be," Lucy agreed.
"Natsu may be an idiot, but he knows his weapons," Gray admitted.
"Why are you talking to everyone but me?" Lucy just sniffed and turned her head away.
"How far away is Clover, Erza?" Lucy asked, pointedly ignoring the teenager sitting across from her.
"Only 30 minutes or so," she responded. "In the meantime," Erza trailed off as she bent down to open a compartment under the seats. Lucy felt a drift of cool air as Erza pulled out something in a plastic container and a fork. Once she shut the door she peeled off the plastic lid and dove in to eat strawberry cake.
"The drawers are refrigerated so we can keep food and drinks in here. Some of our other cars actually have smoothie machines and microwaves," Natsu informed. "Lucy—"
"Natsu take a hint! Just emshut up/em!" Lucy yelled. The car fell silent at her outburst.
I'm in the process of working on Chapter 6, I still need to do 7 and 8. I'm still aiming for three chapters a month. R&R
Until next time!
~Red