Chapter X

"Hey, they're back!" someone shouted from up ahead.

The ground thundered with many footsteps hurrying their way, and Lucy was surprised to see how many of them there were. At least three dozen people hurried towards Lucy and the others.

Lucy took a step back as they began to crowd around them, mostly looking at her.

"Stand back," a short, blue-haired girl told them, pushing her way to the front. A man with long, spiky black hair followed, with a flying black cat close by.

"Give her room to breathe!" the short girl said again, turning to Lucy with a smile. "My name is Levy! Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too. I'm Lucy," she replied, looking around at the gathered people. "Who are all of you?"

"Fairy Tail," Natsu answered for them, suddenly beside her. Lucy jumped. "That's our guild name."

He rose both of his arms. "Now let's party!"

"Hold on a minute, Natsu." A small, gray-haired man revealed himself from within the crowd. He was probably in his late 60's or early 70's.

"Gramps," Natsu greeted. "What's up?"

"This is no time for games," he reminded him. "Anna is…"

Everyone went silent, intent on listening to the old man.

"Nevermind. You'll see for yourself." He turned to Lucy. "You must be the girl Mavis spoke of — the one who could help Anna."

"Y-yes," the blonde answered, strangely having respect for this stranger. "Nice to meet you, sir."

He gave her a hearty laugh. "No need for formalities. You are our guest, Miss Lucy. My name is Makarov."

"Who is Mavis?" she asked, a puzzled look on her face.

"She is the first master of Fairy Tail, and also regarded as a great spirit that remains here on Earthland to protect us. At times such as this, she lends us her wisdom."

"Can we get going already?" Natsu asked impatiently, his arms crossed.

"Very well," Makarov replied, turning. "Come along."

Lucy followed, being shadowed by the larger group. Wendy smiled at her, which was reassuring. If she trusted Wendy, she could trust all of these people. I kind of like them, she reflected. Fairy Tail, huh?

The old man led them to a shack, unbefitting of someone with such high respects. It was old and boxy, but in a way, it felt like home.

"Is this where Anna is?" Lucy found herself inquiring.

"You ask a lot of questions." The blonde whipped around, finding herself face-to-face with a flying blue cat. She shrieked. "Yeah, well you're a freak of nature!"

"Hey, Happy!" Natsu greeted, grinning as he gave the cat a high five.

"While you were gone, I caught a fish! It was thiiiiiis big!" He held out his paws to describe its apparent size. "You should have been there."

"Aw, man!" the pink-haired boy played along. "Guess I'll have to go with you next time. I'll catch an even bigger fish!"

"Yes," said Makarov, answering Lucy's question. "This is where Anna made her home."

"It's also the place in which she will die."

All of them whipped around to face the dark mage Zeref, who stood alone as he swallowed up all the light around him.

Then he spoke. "I believe we have business to finish, Natsu."