We were entwined in red rings

Of blood and loneliness before

The first snows fell

Before muddy rivers seeded clouds

Above a virgin forest, and

Men ran naked, blue and black

Skinned into the warm embraces

Of Sheba, Eve and Lilith.

I was your sister.


Lucy stared at the hole in the ice for only a few seconds in stark disbelief, before she dove in after Gajeel. The below freezing waters froze her right to the bone and she grit her teeth as she swam after the dark shape she now recognized as the Iron Dragon Slayer. Above, she could vaguely make out the muffled voices of her nakama. The bitter waters clung to her, dragging her further under as her thick clothing weighed her down- which would've been a good thing since it was bringing her closer to Gajeel, but the pressure was making it hard for her to breath.

Please let me get to him, She prayed as she swam further down, her lungs burning with their need for oxygen, black spots appearing in the corner of her vision. Please… Gajeel

A bright light caught her off guard and she paused her movement, hissing and releasing air bubbles as she struggled to push back her coat, discarding her gloves, and watch in horrifying fascination as her Aquarius mark shined brightly. She gasped and clutched her throat in panic as more air bubbles escaped her, only to pull her hand back and stare at it in confusion. She brushed against the side of her neck again, her eyes widening as she felt the small gills that had formed on the sides of her throat, right below her ears. A rush of panicked relief filled her, along with a new found sense of determination as she activated her water powers.

Closing her eyes, she reached down and pulled at the waters around her, sweeping Gajeel up in a current and bringing him to her. She opened her eyes and almost cried when she saw his pale body limp from shock and cold. She gripped him hard and pressed her lips to his, breathing fresh air into him. Again and again, until she felt him move very faintly against her lips and she pulled back from him to meet barely opened red eyes. Gajeel's heart felt soft and slow below her fingertips and she grimaced, but breathed in a large breath to calm herself. Using Aquarius' magic, she pushed herself and Gajeel back up through the hole where he'd fallen in.

Landing roughly on snow covered ice, Lucy gasped harshly, her breath coming out in large plumes of hot air as she slowly slipped into unconsciousness. Her head lolled to the side as her vision faded in and out and her ears were ringing loudly, her skull hammering a staccato rhythm as she tried her best to stay awake and to try and make out what her friends were saying.

Finally, when exhaustion won out, the last thing that registered in Lucy's mind… was a woman running towards them. Her sight went dark after that.


"...She's….hasn't.."

"...Looking for…"

"I...Help you…"

"Hold on… she's coming…."

"...Ucy! Come...Wake Up!"

Lucy gasped harshly as she sat up, her breath shuddering in her lungs as she looked around with wild eyes. Her senses were overwhelmed and firing off, telling her to run and fight and run again. Closing her eyes again, she took a deep breath and held it until her heartbeat calmed down and her mind became more focused.

"You okay there, lil sis?" Laxus asked, carding a hand through her hair as he knelt down next to her. She looked at him tiredly and nodded.

"Just a bit overwhelmed after almost dying, it's fine." She joked, nudging him away from her so she could look around properly. They were in a cave, furs and other animal biproducts decorated the makeshift home, shelves filled with jars and books lined one side and preserved food lined the other.

A woman crouched near the fire that caused Lucy to gasp softly at the sight of. She was tall, even when sitting, with long dark blue tresses that shifted and moved like water and even darker eyes that looked exactly like her mother's, save for the color. Most importantly, the woman had markings that matched Lucy's, scrawling across her collarbone and shoulders.

"River."


You left me to force strangers

Into brother molds, exacting

Taxations they never

Owed or could ever pay.

You fought to die, thinking

In destruction lies the seed

Of birth. You may be right.


The name was whispered, but it echoed throughout the cave as Lucy stared in awe at the daughter of her pseudo-mother. The woman, in kind, stared back in aloof curiosity.

"Lucy Heartfilia." She stated, tilting her head as she assessed the mage.

"We.. I've been looking for you." Lucy blurted as she pushed herself up to her feet by using Laxus as her crutch. The woman grimaced and gazed back at the fire.

"So, I've heard." River replied, tone filled with distaste. "I don't know how I can help you. I haven't had contact with my birth mother in over a decade. I don't even know if I want to help you either."

Lucy frowned, but moved to sit across from her anyway. She sighed heavily and leveled River with her gaze.

"If it's because of Tartarus, I understand. I wouldn't help me either, in your situation." Lucy began softly. "But, your mother… she was all I had and sacrificing her…." Lucy paused, taking another shuddering breath, her eyes stinging with unshed tears.

"It's… it's not that." River started and winced when Lucy jerked her head towards her in surprise. The woman snorted and shook her head. "I know that Aquarius would do anything to save and help her key holder. That's the point though. I'm her daughter and I can never see her because the Spirit King will cause a hissy fit. I'm a taboo child. I shouldn't even exist. I can't even see the Spirit Realm because I'm also part human. I still age like a mortal, but slow enough that I can't interact with the public without getting questioned. I can't join her when I die. I'm destined to be alone because I am Aquarius' daughter. Do you understand?"

Lucy choked back a sob at the heartbroken expression on her face. "I do."

"Well, I fucking don't." Cobra said, sneering at the cry fest that was about to happen. "So what if you can't see your mom? Fucking destiny my ass!"

"Erik!" Lucy called out in sharp surprise.

Corba shook his head at the blonde woman and looked at them in disgust.

"You can't expect me to sit here and listen to this bullshit about being destined to be alone! This is like fucking Twat Waffle and the Monster Bitch all over again, except it's with this bitch and her mommy issues. Join a fucking guild if you're so lonely! No one, but yourself is stopping you." He replied angrily. "Ain't nobody but yourself can make your own path. It's your life."

River gaped at him. Realistically, she knew he was right. Emotionally, she had over twenty years of grief and abandonment issues to deal with.

Bixslow nodded and stepped up beside him. "He's right. We all have dealt with what you are dealing with, save for having a baddass, but overall complicated parental status. We've been the outsiders, the weird ones, the ones who've rebelled until we've isolated ourselves. We've fought because we thought it was what we were supposed to do, but we know that we can make our lives our own and do what we want within reason. You're not the only one with weird parentage either, not in this cave and not in the world."

A groan jarred them out of their discussion and they all turned towards Gajeel, who had moved to glare at them.

"If you think having an immortal star for a parent is weird, let me tell you," He grinned all shark-like. "You've got nothing on having an actual dragon as a father."

"Or a wraith as a grandparent." Bixslow added cheekily.

"My cousin is a gorgon." Evergreen said, pushing her glasses up on her face.

"And I'm pretty sure that Freed's got a little bit of demon blood mixed in there somewhere." Laxus said, nudging the green haired man's shoulder. The Rune Mage just rolled his eyes. "But, the point is, instead of sulking about it and sitting in your little cave forever, you need to fight for what you want. You should travel and experience the world a bit more before you start spouting some jaded fuckery. Help us find your mom and let Lucy deal with the Spirit King when the time comes, 'cause if anyone can wrangle that giant fuckwad of a king, it's my little sister right there." He gestured to the blonde mage in front of River. Lucy made eye contact with her as she thought about what they said.

She broke her gaze away and looked at the group of strong individuals with a new sense of self.

Laughing and wiping the tears off of her face, River nodded.

"How do I start?"


I know how random this seems, but I feel like River wouldn't be too keen on helping Lucy because she's partially jealous that Lucy could do all of these things without the same repercussions as herself. She can break all the rules and get a slap on the wrist, but if she were to do the same, her livelihood would be compromised. She, also, has lived a very sheltered life do to the fear of people finding out her parentage and wanting to use her or experiment on her.