. I Had a Dream .


"I had a dream that we were born,

A generation to behold,

Writing fires with our words,

Instead of useless smoke that blurs."

~ "I Had a Dream" by Kelly Clarkson


The room was beautiful. The warm sunlight streamed in through the gorgeous, stained windows, striking everything within the massive room and turning it a variety of colors. Lucy loved the way the light danced on sets of ancient armor and display cases, watching with awe in her eyes as her lips curved into a faint smile. She loved the museum, and one of her favorite rooms was one on the top floor, where the most valuable pieces were kept. The museum itself was home to many valuable artifacts - some the most valued historical artifacts in the world - and she couldn't even begin to count how many times she'd gone through its archives, seeking information from ancient texts. She could imagine running her fingers over old paper, breathing in the scent of books from centuries ago…

But, Lucy remembered as a familiar clacking filled her ears, she supposed she wasn't here to read.

"Lucy?" a familiar voice called warily, its owner seeking her. Lucy looked over to the doorway that towered a dozen feet above the small woman's head, and Lucy smiled at the sight of her. "Are you here?"

"Of course," Lucy reassured. "Would I miss one of our weekly dinners?" She rustled the paper bag in her lap on purpose. Levy McGarden scowled at her efforts before slowly making her way over. Lucy watched her friend of five years with quiet dark eyes, taking in the sight of the blind woman approaching. She was petite, smaller than most people at the age of twenty-three, but she looked fierce with her fingers loosely gripping her cane and her signature band of cloth wrapped around her eyes to protect her from odd looks. Her blue hair was wild around her head, giving her the impression of a mad scientist.

Levy navigated extremely well despite her blindness. She dropped onto the bench beside her friend when she reached it, setting aside her cane. Lucy smiled warmly at her, proud to call her friend. She knew the museum like the back of her hand and could give tours like any other staff member. Lucy furrowed her brow as she began to divvy up the food. She remembered the days in which Levy had smiled with sparkling hazel eyes, wearing that cloth she used to hide them in her hair to keep it out of her face. Now, it was used to keep the visitors from staring.

"Gimme," Levy said suddenly, holding her hand out. Lucy laughed and slapped a sandwich into her hand, which Levy sank her teeth into without hesitation. "This is delicious, Lucy," she moaned, mouth full. "Just what I need before I finish up my plans for tomorrow."

Curiosity filled the young blonde, who cocked her head as she took a bite of her own sandwich. "What plans? What's going on tomorrow?"

"I'm giving a school group a tour," she explained. She often did so, her extent of knowledge ridiculous in its size. She usually gave lectures at local universities, too, and she loved teaching everyone about history despite needing help navigating newer spaces. "They're doing a research project on the Ishgar Era. Each student has to pick one aspect to focus their attention on, and their research has to include an object from the museum. I hope someone chooses the old quills. And the keys upstairs."

Lucy grinned, thinking of those keys. She was quite fond of looking at them. They were gorgeous, made of solid school with the symbols of the twelve zodiac on them. A thirteenth made of black metal completed the set, and there were so many theories on what they'd been used to unlock, what the symbols atop meant, everything. Lucy personally thought they'd belonged to a group of friends, although she couldn't say where the belief had come from.

"I hope you have fun with those kids," she said, taking another bite of her sandwich.

Levy hummed in response and said, "I'm probably going to cry again. I always cry when I talk about the Ishgar Era."

It was true, too, Lucy knew. She did always cry. Rather than questioning the mournful tilt to Levy's lips, the way her voice filled with longing, she merely hummed and reached for the bottle of water she'd brought with her.


Rewritten as of April 10th, 2018!


Fun with the Levy. Some more detail on the museum.