This chapter will include all the flashbacks about Juliet Lockser.
FLASHBACK 1: Connections, chapter 16
Many years ago...
"Perhaps we should send them a message, they could help." Daniel Lockser told his wife as he was holding tightly onto her hand. They were in a medical clinic located in the center of Crocus as the best healer in the city attempted to save the most precious thing in the world to them.
"No, contacting them is a terrible idea. They won't help." Juliet Lockser replied to her husband as she put her arms over her enlarged stomach.
"You shouldn't be doing this, Juliet. What if something happens to you? Or the baby?" He inquired, clearly worried, before placing a hand on top of hers.
"We'll be fine, my love." She reassured him while gently touching his cheek.
"I know. I just... I can't lose you too." He told her and she frowned.
"Don't say that. We're not going to lose her." She told him firmly and the couple turned their attention back to the pale little girl with blue hair that lay in the hospital bed.
"She's so pale and frail." He whispered, as if scared to wake her up.
"She'll be okay. Juvia's strong, just like us." Juliet said before she approached the bed and lay by her daughter's side, careful not to crush her. "My sweet baby girl. I promise you that I will do everything I can to save you, alright?" The child barely moved, her face becoming even paler. Just then a nurse came into the room and gave the blue haired woman a tight smile.
"It's time." Juliet nodded before kissing the little girl's forehead.
"Never forget that I love you very much. I'll see you soon." After casting her husband one last reassuring look, she left the room, followed closely by the nurse. Barely did any of them know, Juliet wouldn't return and things would never be the same.
FLASHBACK 2: Connections, chapter 17
24 years before...
"Good evening." Silver and Mika greeted as they stopped in front of their friends' house. The door had been opened by Daniel, who smiled at them.
"Come in." He greeted them before stepping aside so they could enter the house. It didn't take long for the couple to notice the woman on the couch holding a little boy in her arms.
"How is he?" Mika worriedly asked and Juliet cast them smiles.
"Sleeping. You're lucky, he's such a wonderful child." She stood up and walked towards them, careful not to walk the baby.
"So you had a good time?" Silver questioned the other man, who chuckled.
"Juliet sure did. I think you've found yourselves a full time babysitter." His wife smiled at him.
"Absolutely. I'd love to spend more time with this little angel." She pressed the six months baby closer and he snuggled against her.
"I can see Gray likes you as well." Mika told her with a bright smile.
"Juliet's a natural, I'm sure she'll be a great mother one day." Silver praised and the blue haired woman gave a tight smile.
"I hope so." Mika glared at her husband and his face quickly changed to apologetic. He knew the subject of children was a tough one, after all, Juliet and Daniel had been trying for quite some time. Their friends knew it had taken its toll on her, speacially after Gray had been born.
"Well, it's a bit late and we're tired, so we'll see you tomorrow." Daniel said after a few moments of awkward silence. Mika and Silver nodded before Juliet reluctantly handed the sleeping child to his mother. He let out a tiny whimper before falling asleep once again.
"Good night." The blue haired woman wished before they exchanged hugs. As it was Silver's turn to embrace her, he stayed a little longer than necessary.
"I'm here for you." He whispered in her ear and she held onto him tighter. Those four simple words meant the world to her and he knew that.
"Thank you." She whispered back.
Once they were gone, Juliet let out a sigh. "So, are we going to talk about it?" Daniel asked and she avoided his eyes.
"I'd rather not." It was his turn to sigh.
"This is important, Juliet." She still didn't look at him. "I know I promised not to mention your family again, but we can't just ignore this." He told her, gently yet firmly.
"Of course we can." She told him and his expression was sad when he spoke next.
"Don't you care? She's your sister." This caused her to give him a disbelieving look.
"Of course I care. I'm not heartless." His face softened.
"I know you aren't, my love. I'm just concerned because I can see you regret pushing them away. They're your family after all." Juliet finally looked into his eyes and he was taken aback by the pain reflected in hers.
"It's too late." She said simply and he cast her a gentle smile while taking both her hands in his and squeezing them.
"It's never too late." He told her determinedly.
"Yes, it is. It's been 4 years, Daniel. I can't just go back there and truthfully, I don't want to." She pulled her hands from his and walked a few steps back. "We must leave the past behind us if we truly wish to move on." Daniel sighed once again. He knew better than to argue with her when her mind was clearly made up.
"Alright, then. Let's get to sleep now, love, you're clearly exhausted." She cast him a thankful smile before walking towards the stairs leading to their bedroom, him following her. Neither cast a glance towards the newspaper that had been resting for the past few hours on the coffee table. In the front page, it clearly read: "Heartfilia Empire secure: Layla Heartfilia confirmed to be pregnant with the future heir".
FLASHBACK 3: Connections, chapter 19
Many years ago…
"I can't believe this." Juliet Heartfilia whispered as she stared at her younger sister. Layla lay in the hospital bed, her right hand wrapped in a bandage while the left one held a package of ice to her swollen cheeks. She looked like she had suffered an attack, which is exactly what Juliet had been told.
"I can't either. I thought he was a nice guy." The blonde girl replied, looking down.
"What?" The bluenette asked, Layla's words having brought her out of her thoughts.
"He took me by surprise, I would've never guessed he would hurt me." A disbelieving look came to Juliet's face.
"He wouldn't." She whispered before giving her sister a firm look. "Why are you saying it was Daniel? Did father put you up to this?"
"Of course not! Do you think I would lie about this?' Layla pressed the package closer to her aching face.
"I don't know!" The older sister exclaimed before crossing her arms and beginning to pace the room.
"I'm so sorry, Juliet. I know you didn't want to believe me and father, but this is who he really is." It was in that moment that Juliet remembered when Daniel had told her those same words, about her father. It was shortly after her mother's death, when her father's true nature and intentions had been revealed to her.
"No, you're wrong." The bluenette whispered, looking down, before turning to her sister."This wasn't Daniel's doing, I know it."
"Juliet, you can't actually…" The blonde was interrupted.
"I believe him." Juliet firmly said before uncrossing her arms.
"So you're calling me a liar?" Layla asked, disbelief clear in her face.
"Yes." Her face was filled with hurt."But I know you didn't come up with this, father surely manipulated you."
"That's not true!" Layla attempted to defend their father, to no avail.
"I know exactly who he is, Layla. He proved it when mom died, when he let her die." Juliet accused, her face filled with anger.
"He just wants what's best for you." The blonde attempted after sighing deeply.
"No, he wants what's best for himself." The bluenette muttered before turning around and walking towards the door.
"Juliet, please." The young girl begged and Juliet looked at her, clearly distressed.
"I have nothing more to say to you. But what you did won't be forgotten and I don't think I could never ever forgive you." Layla began crying.
"I'm sorry. So sorry." Juliet gave her a pained look.
"So am I. Goodbye, Layla." With these last words, she walked out, closing the door behind her, as well as her heart.
FLASHBACKS FROM CHAPTER 21:
March 9th, X760
"I'm so sorry, sir. We did everything we could, but there was no way to save her." A doctor told Henry Heartfilia as he stood by the entrance to his bedchamber, anxiously awaiting news on his wife's condition.
"You incompetent fool! How could you let this happen?" The blue haired man yelled and the doctor cowered in fear.
"Daddy, please." A soft voice called and both turned towards the entrance where two girls had just entered the chamber. The first one had blonde hair and brown eyes just like her deceased mother while the second had inherited her father's light blue hair and the same brown eyes.
"Girls, I told you to stay in your room." Henry told them, voice firm.
"Did you really think we'd stay away from mom?" Juliet asked, arms crossed.
"I want to see mamma. Is she okay?" Layla asked, stepping in front of her older sister.
"Return to your room, I'll talk to you later." Their father ordered, but they didn't move.
"She's gone, isn't she?" Juliet said, dropping her arms. Henry said nothing, so the doctor spoke.
"Yes. I am so sorry, but it wasn't possible to save Mrs. Heartfilia. I tried saving the child as your father asked, but it was far too late. He was already dead and by removing him, your mother was too weakened and didn't survive." While the other man glared at him, Layla gasped.
"This can't be!" She screamed, tears falling.
"I'm sorry, princess." Henry's expression softened as he looked sympathetically towards his younger daughter.
"Why? Why did she leave us?" Her hands went to her face as she began crying hard. Juliet placed a hand on her shoulder before slowly turning her around and embracing her.
"Shh, it's okay." She attempted to calm Layla down.
"You should get her out of here." Henry told the bluenette and she glared at her father, unable to keep her emotions locked in anymore.
"This is your fault." She whispered angrily and his eyes widened.
"Juliet, how could you…" She didn't let him finish.
"You chose to save the baby even when you knew that it could kill her." She accused and he got defensive.
"So you'd prefer that I had let your brother die?" Juliet shook her head.
"Of course not. But that's not the point." She unwrapped her arms from around Layla, bringing her to sit on the couch. "The point is that you didn't do that because you thought that's what mom would want or because you loved our brother."
"Why did I do it then?" He inquired, arms crossed and an eyebrow raised.
"Because of your stupid desire to have a male hair! I always knew that we weren't enough for you, but I never thought you'd go as far as letting mom die in order to fulfill it." Shock crossed his face and the room was silent. Layla had stopped crying and now watched them curiously, as well as the doctor.
"Is that really what you think of me?" Henry asked at last, sighing.
"It doesn't matter what I think. I will never forgive you for this." Juliet told him before turning around and walking away.
June 26th (my birthday), X754
"Juliet, look what you've done!" Six years old Layla Heartfilia screamed.
"Sorry, I guess I used too much strength." The bluenette apologized.
"What now?" The blonde inquired and Juliet laughed.
"Isn't it obvious? We have to cross the fence." Layla shook her head.
"No way! That way we'll ruin our dresses and daddy will kill us." She reminded her older sister, who was barely paying attention as she searched for a good place to climb the fence.
"Forget daddy. Where's your sense of adventure?" Juliet excitedly asked before walking towards the perfect spot.
"You'll get in trouble." The blonde warned.
"I'll be back quick, they won't even know that I was there." The bluenette told her before beginning to climb. Within minutes she was on the other side, blue dress stained with dirt, but she didn't care. She walked around for a while, confused when she didn't spot the ball.
"Hey, who are you?" A voice called and she found a brown haired boy with the biggest blue eyes she had ever seen. In his arms was the exact object she was searching for.
"That's my ball." She told him and he shook his head.
"Not anymore. It's on my property, so it's mine now." Juliet frowned.
"That's not true. It even has my name on it." The boy turned the ball in his arms and sure enough he spotted Juliet Heartfilia written in blue.
"So you're a Heartfilia?" He asked, catching her off guard.
"Yes. And who are you?" She inquired, eyeing him suspiciously.
"My name's Daniel. Daniel Lockser." He proudly told her and she smiled.
"It's nice to meet you, Daniel. I'm Juliet." They shook hands before he handed her the ball.
"So, do you want to take a walk so I can show you my home?" He nervously asked and Juliet didn't hesitate.
"I would love to."
March 14th, X762
"Daniel Lockser? Please tell me you aren't serious." Henry stared at his oldest daughter in shock.
"Of course I'm serious." Juliet replied, arms crossed. She wore an emerald gown that she hated because it had been sent by her would-be-husband as an engagement gift.
"How could you do this to me, Juliet?" Her father yelled, leaving her confused.
"Excuse me?" He got up from his chair and started pacing the room.
"After everything I've done to secure your future, this is how you repay me?" Her eyes narrowed in anger.
"Secure my future? Are you kidding me?" It was his turn to stare at her in anger.
"Watch your tone, young lady." Juliet shook her head, staring at him in disbelief.
"Have you ever considered that this might not be the future I want?" His stare was firm.
"You know very well that, as unfair as it might be, you don't get to chose your future. None of us did." He pointed towards the many paintings on the walll of their ancestors; a large one of Jane Heartfilia was placed behind his desk.
"Maybe it's time to break the tradition." She suggested, giving him a pleading look. "Why can't we chose who we marry simply because we belong to the Heartfilia Household?"
"Even if you could chose, he'd be the last person I'd allow you to marry." Henry said, shaking his head.
"Because he's a Lockser?" Juliet aske, raising a brow.
"Because he's not a good man and certainly not a good match for you." With that said, Henry sat down in his chair. "Now you may go, I have work to do."
"Unbelievable." It was Juliet's turn to shake her head as she turned around and began walking away. When she was halfway through the room, he spoke again.
"Oh, and don't forget that we'll be meeting your fiancée later tonight. We're planning the wedding ceremony for June 26th, just before your birthday, so be sure to end whatever you have with that boy before dinner." She gave him an incredulous look before her face turned to a glare.
"I would rather die than marry someone I don't love." Henry didn't say anything, taking it as the dramatic complaint of a teenager. If only it had been so.
April 10th, X762
"Juliet, it's time to wake up." Layla Heartfilia entered her older sister's bedroom at 10 in the morning. It was far too late for Juliet to still be awake, so their father had sent her there.
"Come on, dad's not happy with you and you're not helping yourself by sleeping late." The blonde girl said while opening the curtains. The body beneath the covers didn't move.
"Seriously?" Layla rolled her eyes. Seeing no other choice, she approached the bed and started shaking her sister.
"Wake up!" Her attention was caught by the small vial on the floor and she picked it up. "What is this?" She examined it carefully, trying to figure out what the potion was.
"Juliet, please!" Layla begged, suddenly feeling that something was wrong. She removed the covers, but Juliet still didn't move.
"No, no, no." The 14 years old denied the realisation she had just made. "God, please no!" She touched her sister's shoulders and immediately removed her hand. "So cold. Come on, Juliet!" A few more minutes of her begging followed, but the body remained unmoving. Cold. Dead.
"Noooo!" A loud scream left her mouth and it called the attention of a very impatient Henry Heartfilia, who was coming towards Juliet's chambers.
"Why are you taking so long?" He asked once he arrived at the door. However, upon seeing Layla historically shaking his oldest daughter, his stomach churned.
"No." A whisper of disbelief.
"She's gone!" Layla's painful scream made the moment even more heartbreaking and for a moment he wondered if this was his fault.
January 8th, X767
"Please, can I have some tomatoes?" Juliet Lockser asked the salesman, who nodded. She wore a dark blue coat and on her right hand was a small bag filled with food.
"I'd like some as well." She turned around to face the unknown woman, who smiled.
"Hi. I don't think I've ever seen you here before." The black haired woman smiled.
"Yes, I'm not from here. My name's Ur." The magic power coming from her was impossible to miss and Juliet was impressed.
"Juliet." They shook hands, both smiling. It wasn't until Ur's face turned to confused that the bluenette a bad feeling.
"Have I seen you before? You look familiar." The water mage quickly shook her head, nervous.
"No, I don't think so." She glanced towards the salesman in panic, wanting to get out of there.
"Juliet!" A shout made her turn around to face her best friend, who was walking her way, arms holding onto his son.
"I have to go. It was nice meeting you, I hope you enjoy the village." Juliet told Ur, giving her a quick smile before disappearing from the woman's point of view. She missed the moment Ur's eyes widened as she realized the truth. She also missed the short moment in which Silver stared towards the black haired woman in shock, eyes widened, before a smile took over his face once Juliet approached him.