Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or the characters
So this next chapter will have friendship moments along with Levy and Lucy's first meeting 3 Hope you guys enjoy this chapter.
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Lucy didn't know what she'd expected when she returned to the guild after her meeting with Jin. But she definitely did not expect to almost get hit with a bar stool the moment she opened the doors. It was only because of her quick reflexes that she managed to duck in time. Straightening up, she glanced at the now broken stool behind her before turning back to look into the building. They were brawling just like how they were the day she joined. Despite the fact that she was annoyed by nearly getting smacked into by a bar stool she was also a little amused.
"Lucy!" The sound of Mira calling for her drew Lucy's attention.
Seeing the woman waving to her on the other side of the guild she started weaving through the crowd. It took a few minutes as she had to randomly dodge blows from the brawling mages. Only when she was next to the barmaid did she finally allow her body to relax. From her peripheral vision she saw noticed a rather short woman standing on the other side of Mira. She was definitely under five foot. A cute little bluenette with brown eyes, wearing a pair of capris and a yellow bikini top. Noticing eyes on her, the girl turned and smiled up at Lucy.
"I'm Levy McGarden!" She greeted cheerfully.
The blonde smiled and responded. "I'm the new guild member, Lucy Heartfilia!"
"Can I call you Lu-chan?" Levy asked excitedly.
Laughing, the blonde answered. "Sure!"
As soon as the word left her mouth, a loud crash brought their attention back to the brawl. In the middle of the floor was Natsu and Gray going at it in the middle of the guild hall. From Mira and Levy's worried muttering Lucy gathered that the fights between Natsu and Gray were always destructive. Moving around the counter, she snuck up behind Natsu and grabbed him by his scarf and hair. Slamming his forehead down into the nearest table, Lucy grabbed both his arms and pulled them behind his back where she leaned one knee over them. Using her right hand, she pulled her whip from her hip and flicked it towards Gray. It connected with his left shoulder and knocked him back into the table a few feet behind him. All fighting ceased as the rest of the Fairy Tail mages gawked at the display.
"S-She stopped them?!" One member stuttered.
Another mage gasped and asked. "Who is she?!"
"Luce! Let me up!" Natsu whined as he struggled against the blonde's hold.
Gray groaned as he got up. "Damn it Lucy! That hurt!"
"Well the two of you were going to make a mess that I'm sure master doesn't want to deal with." Lucy replied, moving away from them. "So I took care of it."
Ignoring all the looks directed at her, Lucy made her way back to where Mira and Levy were standing. Both Gray and Natsu followed after the blonde with equal pouty expressions. The three sat down at the bar, on what was left of the barstools, and sat in silence. Lucy snorted in amusement when she saw the looks that the boys were giving her. Levy and Mira shared a look then turned back to grin at the blonde.
"I've never seen the two of them get taken down by anyone other than Erza or Laxus!" Levy sounded impressed.
Hearing Laxus' name caused the blonde to grit her teeth and in a steady voice she asked. "Laxus? Who's Laxus?"
"Laxus is master's grandson and one of our S-class mages." Mira said, drying a glass. "He's the leader of a team called the Thunder God Tribe. We don't see them in the guild often so you probably won't meet them for awhile."
The blonde leaned onto her palm and stared at the barmaid. "Why is that?"
"I'm not quite sure actually." She answered thoughtfully. "All of them are loners, don't really interact with anyone except each other. They weren't always like that but after the relationship between master and Laxus started to sour they all became distant."
Lucy didn't like to pry but she found herself asking. "What happened between master and Laxus?"
"No one really knows but it probably has something to do with Laxus's father and master's son." The barmaid answered sadly. "He was exiled from the guild for hurting Laxus. Gave him this lightning shaped scar through his eye. I remember the day we all came in and saw him sitting at one ot the tables with his eye wrapped in bandages. No one knew what happened until that evening when master told everyone that he'd exiled Ivan. Ever since then master has been his guardian but I think he might've resented him a little for doing that."
Lucy's eyes turned sad as she processed what Mira had just told her. It occurred to her that maybe her and Laxus weren't as different as she first thought but she wasn't ready to forgive him yet. Looking over her shoulder, she noticed that a good amount of the guild was still staring at her. While she was used to this it also made her very uncomfortable. Gray and Natsu both slinked off towards the mission board alongside Levy. Sighing, Lucy asked Mira for a strawberry milkshake.
"Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed Lucy?" Mira asked as she placed the drink in front of the blonde.
Lucy gave a small laugh. "Maybe a little."
"Luce!" "Lucy!" "Lu-chan!" Three different voices shouted.
Turning, three different mission sheets came into her field of vision. And holding them were Natsu,Gray,and Levy. Each were giving the blonde wide grins and shooting disapproving looks to each other. Sighing, she swiped them from their grasps and started reviewing them. The first, which was Natsu's, was defeating a group of bandits that were causing trouble. The second, and the one that Gray had been holding, was to locate a rare item in a rocky labyrinth. Finally, Levy's job request, was to translate ancient runes. Each had their own appeals and looking at the rewards she knew she had a clear winner.
"I think I'm going to accompany Gray this time around." Lucy stated with a smile.
The ice make mage grinned victoriously. "Then let's get going!"
"First...Gray your clothes." She sweatdropped as she watched the raven search for his discarded clothing. "Levy-chan, next time I'll go on a job with you!"
Levy's face brightened. "Okay! I'll be looking forward to it."
"What about me, Luce?" Natsu shouted, pouting.
She placed her index finger on her chin in thought. "Well we can go on another job after I get finished with Levy-chan."
"Yosh! I'm all fired up!" Natsu hollered as he ran out the door, Happy right on his heels.
Gray, having found his clothes once more, walked back up to Lucy and asked her if she was ready to go. As the two walked to the train station, Lucy couldn't help but think back on what Mira has told her about Laxus. Having a horrible father doesn't excuse behavior but she understood how it might warp his feelings a little bit. She'd been hurt once by her father too.
Flashback:
A young old Lucy happily ran down the hall towards her father's study. Today was the day that she was going to cheer him up. He'd been very distant since her mother's passing and while she was also very sad she wanted him to feel better. They needed to get through their grief together! Pushing open his door, she ran in and stood in front of his desk. Jude slowly lifted his head and leveled his gaze at his daughter.
"Daddy! Let's eat dinner together like we used to!" Lucy exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "We can talk about our day and maybe you can tuck me into bed like you used to do with mom!"
The blonde was so focused on this ideal image of how the night would go in her head, she didn't notice the way her father was gritting his teeth or the bulging vein in his forehead. Reaching over, Jude grabbed the handle of the antique cane that a business associate had given him and swung it at Lucy. It connected with her right cheek and sent her to the floor. The area that he'd hit was already starting to bruise as the girl's brown eyes filled with tears. Her eyes met her father's and she could see the shock in them. He'd done that in a fit of rage and before he could say anything the blonde had gotten up and ran out the door. She didn't stop running until she was outside in front of Layla's grave.
Laying her head down in front of it she started to sob. "Why? Why does daddy hate me now? WHY?!"
End of Flashback
Reaching her hand up, Lucy brushed her fingertips along the spot on her right cheek where she'd been struck that day. The bruises had faded but the fear she'd felt towards her father had never subsided. It was one of the reasons she'd left home without even trying to reason with him. In the back of her mind she'd always been afraid of him retaliated like he did that day. Even now she'd never heard a word of apology or an explanation for his actions. And while she did not hate him for what he did, she could never forgive him either.
"Lucy? Oi Lucy!" Hearing Gray calling her name, she snapped back to attention. "You alright?"
She nodded and smiled sadly. "Yeah, I just remembered something from a long time ago."
Gray didn't press her for information which greatly relieved the blonde. There was no way she'd ever tell anyone in Fairy Tail what had happened to her as a child. They'd probably storm the Heartfilia mansion to teach her father a lesson! While she wasn't entirely opposed to that she also knew what kind of connections her father had and what kind of hell he could bring down upon them if they moved against him.
"You know it's been awhile since I took a job with someone." Gray stated offhandedly.
Tilting her head, she asked. "Why is that?"
"Don't know. Guess I never really felt that I could rely on anyone but myself." He answered while rubbing the back of his neck. "But you seem cool and you're better than flame brain."
'Flame brain? Oh! He must mean Natsu.' Lucy thought then stated. "I've been on my own for a little more than a year now so these last couple of days have been really different."
"What have you been doing for a year?" He asked incredulously.
The blonde didn't miss a beat as she replied. "Training mostly. That and searching for the other zodiac keys."
"Zodiac?" The raven seemed really curious. "Oh you mean like the constellations right?"
"Yup. The zodiac are the strongest keys in the celestial spirit world and they're incredibly hard to find. My mother had some of them and passed them onto me when she died." Lucy bit her lip lightly at the mention of her mother. "The rest are scattered along the globe and my goal is to find them."
The ice make mage looked a little lost. "So how are you supposed to find them if they are scattered?"
"I have a friend who has been looking into them for a long time." Lucy answered vaguely. "He has friends all over Fiore so he's having them search too."
Gray looked impressed. "I'd like to meet this friend someday."
"Anyway, what kind of rare artifact are we looking for?" Lucy asked, deflecting the conversation away from Gin.
The ice make mage looked down at the request sheet in his hand. "Um...some kind of book I guess."
Sighing, Lucy prepared herself for the frustration that she was no doubt going to experience on this job. Maybe even more than what she experienced with Natsu on the last one. The two arrived at the entrance to the cave where they'd be searching and peered inside. It was damp and the whole thing resembled the caves described in horror stories but the two steeled their resolves and walked in. What neither noticed was the dark shadow that moved from the mouth of the cave and into the narrow crack farther down the cave. Or the way it grew the farther they got inside. They would eventually but by then it'd be too late.
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Yeah so this chapter was kind of short and rushed but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless. Review!