Two Hearts, One Wish

by bestangelbaby

When two people from different worlds make the same wish, they are brought together by forces and reasons unknown to them. Watch and see how the addition of this new person will affect Earthland and the lives of the people connected. No pairings as of yet, may change in the future. Will be rated M for language and scenarios in the future.

6. Chapter 6

A/N: Super shocker I know, I'm actually updating more than once every year or two. I do have to apologize for the slow rate. I actually do have the chapters written, I'm currently writing chap 10 now. One, it is because I want the chapter to be perfect so I read it over to revise many times. Two, I have no more proofreaders to help me so I'm more paranoid that I am making things too OOC or confusing. Three, life tends to get in the way of my writing one way or another. So despite the troubles, I feel real guilty not updating faster. So here I am, putting out a new chapter hoping that it will pass muster. Hope you guys enjoy.

---

Previously:

"But you shut the door in my face when I tried to enter." Krysti tells him. His eyes widen in surprise.

"I did?" he rubs the back of his head sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I guess that was a force of habit. I'm not used to having other people here." he ends with a small grin. Krysti just smiles back, happy to know that it was just a simple mistake. He reaches over and grabs her wrist. With a small tug, Natsu leads her back to the house that they are now going to share.

---

I step into the house with Natsu standing in front of me, blocking my view of the interior. He looks at me with a nervous smile while almost bouncing in excitement. I chuckle at his antics as he pulls me out of the entrance hallway and into the house proper. He steps away to reveal, what I actually kind of expected his house to look like.

Ah, hello ex-boyfriend flashbacks. It looks like a tornado went through here. Clothes and other stuff all over the floor, dishes with old food, trash everywhere. Heh, looks just like what a guy's house looks like. If it gets cleaned up, it would look pretty darn nice, even with the tree.

I turn to see an expectant look on Natsu's face, like he is silently hoping that I approve. I smile warmly at him and he starts smiling back at my positive reaction. He is just too cute, acting like such an eager little kid about this.

"It looks really nice, Natsu." I tell him encouragingly as I turn back to study the house more while looking past all the clutter. Solid seeming hardwood floors, yellow brown walls with some cracks here and there. They could use a coat of paint to spruce it up. The windows look nice and clean from here. Hmm, an interesting looking old-fashioned stove. I wonder where the sink is? High ceiling and I see a storage area above. Could be some stairs elsewhere to get up there and that looks like a request board, kind of like the one back at the guild.

I feel my eyebrows shoot up in wonder. Why does he have a French maid outfit on display? That's... odd. I shake my head at this and continue looking about the room. It looks like he sleeps in a hammock. Interesting. So he doesn't have a bed then? Turning back to see his proud face beaming at me, I can't help but smile back at his contagious grin.

"So, do you guys have a bathroom I could use to change in?" I ask. Still grinning, he turns to point at a door at the other end of the house.

"Right over there. Hurry up and finish! I want to start training!" he exclaims excitedly. I laugh at his response as I gingerly make my way through the mess, trying not to trip. I stop to grab the clothes bags that were sitting on the couch I slept on. I breath a sigh of relief when I am able to make it without breaking anything or hurting myself, again. I open the door only to be met with a rank odor. Ye gods! This is a boy's bathroom alright!

Trying not to cough, I take in a deep breath and plunge in while closing the door behind me. A quick glance confirms my suspicions. An unclean toilet and bathtub. With old clothes thrown around and mystery stains everywhere. Why do guys never think to clean these things? Setting down the bags on the cleanest part of the floor I can find, I rummage through them to find what I want to change into.

Double-checking that the door is firmly closed, I begin to change into my new duds. Nothing special about them, just a pair of dark form-fitting shorts, a forest green t-shirt and a very tight sports bra. I slip out of the hiking boots and switch them with the combat boots that were lightly armored.

They are heavier, but I feel good about these boots. It is kinda surprising at how something as simple as clothes can change how you feel. Picking up the bags, I head to the door to get out of the smelly room and almost hit Natsu with the door. He looks at me in surprise and I raise an eyebrow in question at him as he moves to let me out of the bathroom.

"That was fast! Lucy never gets dressed that fast." he states in astonishment. I smirk at this.

"Well, I'm not Lucy now, am I?" I drawl out while putting a hand on my hip. He laughs at this.

"No, I guess you're not!" he agrees. I walk over to place the bags on one of the two couches.

"So what training did you have in mind for us?" I ask him as Happy flies over from wherever he was to land on my shoulder. "Well hello there." I greet the cat.

"Strength training of course!" Natsu shouts out with both arms pumped up and ready for action. He hops down to the floor and starts doing pushups really fast. I laugh at the sight.

"Of course, strength training to get stronger." I chuckle out while rolling my eyes. Before I join him, I first work on stretching out my body. Happy flies over to sit on Natsu's back to add some extra weight to his workout as I begin mine. I start off with my right arm and shoulder by crossing them over my chest as far as I can and counting to ten before switching to my left side. I do this five times each to make sure I'm limbered up then I go to work on my legs. Happy watches me, still on Natsu's back as he continues to do the pushups at a lightning pace. I watch this display with slight awe. How is it possible that he can move so fast? Its like he is a jackhammer!

"What are you doing, Krysti?" Happy asks which shakes me out of my thoughts.

"Stretching out my muscles to warm them up." I reply as I bend down to touch my toes.

"Why?" he asks in a curious tone.

"It helps loosen out the muscles so then you can exercise with less chance of hurting yourself. It's also a good way to make your body more flexible while increasing your muscle coordination. It can also help increase your energy levels." I explain to the blue cat.

"Really? It can do that?" Natsu asks in amazement as he stops his pushups to look at me as I stand up from toe touching.

"If you do it right, then yes. Being flexible can be very handy. And I like the less likely to get hurt part as well." I laugh slightly at the end. I bend back down for another round of toe touching, this time putting both of my palms flat on the ground. I can feel the burn in the back of my thighs, signaling that they are getting stretched correctly.

"So what all stretches do you do?" says a voice to my right. I look over, still bent to see Natsu and Happy copying me. I stand up straight again while rolling my spine to pop it as well. They follow suit while looking at me curiously. I grin at them, delighted that they are joining me.

"Well, first I start on my arms, like this see?"

---

I can't believe it, we spent the whole afternoon just doing a mix of yoga, pilates, and tai chi that I picked up over the years. Shaking my head in light amusement, I watch the guys as they sit calmly trying to put one leg behind their heads. We moved to the clearing outside the house when Natsu and Happy kept getting too competitive about stretching better than the other and was making an even bigger mess inside.

Natsu considered it a challenge when I mentioned that putting my leg behind my head as one pose I have yet to be able to do. And the guy has been working on trying to do it for the last hour. Now that I am more than properly warmed up, I feel up for just about anything. Hmm, I wonder what I could do while they are working on this? I glance around the clearing to see if any idea strikes.

Light bulb. I grin to myself as I figure out what to do. Cracking my neck, I hunch down and start to run. Not the most original idea ever, but hey I need the cardio. Especially if I have any chance of keeping up with these guys on just a day-to-day basis. A moment after I start, I remember the doctor said no exercise. Dammit, that's gunna put a cramp on my training. I abruptly stop my run with a disappointed groan.

My hands go to my hips as bite the inside of my cheek while I think. Ok, what can I do that won't have me sweating and/or possibly reinjure me. Cardio is definitely out, so are most workouts. So no sit-ups, crunches, jumping jacks, push ups. Damn, and I already did a bunch of stretches too. Its kind of a waste to not do anything else after warming up so well. Maybe I could do some wal... A hand landing on my shoulder startles me out of my thoughts. I look up to see Natsu with a questioning look on his face.

"What's wrong?" he asks cautiously. I give him a half-hearted upturn of my lips before I sigh despondently.

"Just remembered the doc said that I gotta stick to very light exercise. So just trying to figure out what I can do besides stretching. I mean stretching is good, it just seems a bit of a waste to not do something else that's worth the stretching." I prop my arm up with my other arm in a thinking pose while biting my lip. "I know that I promised to train, but without any workout equipment, there isn't much I can..." he interrupts me with a grin.

"If its equipment you need, I got some weights in the house." I perk up at this.

"Really?" I ask hopefully. His grin widens.

"Yup." he answers simply. I shoot my fist up in the air.

"Let's pump some iron then!" I say, before letting out a loud 'whoop" to amp me up. I twirl and start jogging towards the house with my fist still in the air. I reach the door and burst in with a big smile on my face that falls as I see the mess inside. Oh yea, its a mess in here. Not going to find anything any time soon. Maybe I can make house cleaning my workout? Just picking up the clothes would be considered its own workout. Not to mention when its time to clean that bathroom. I make a disgusted face at the memory of that smell.

"Now what's wrong?" Natsu's amused voice calls out from behind me as he walks around me to get in. I let my face relax out of the grimace it was in.

"Thinking about how cleaning this place will be its own workout. Specially that bathroom." I make a gagging face. He gives me an offended look.

"Hey! This is clean!" he cries out with a frown. I give him a pitying look.

"Oh sweetie, there is so much that needs to be cleaned." I reach up to pat his shoulder in a consoling way. He pouts at my words.

"You said it looks nice!" he retorts indignantly. I nod slowly.

"Yes, the house looks nice, but it stills needs to be cleaned." I calmly explain to him.

"But it is clean!" he protests.

"Its boy clean, it is not girl clean." I inform him. At this, he looks at me puzzled.

"What's girl clean?" he asks me while slowly calming down. I smirk at him while putting one hand on my hip and the other on his shoulder.

"Let me show you." I simply say while my smirk grows.

---

They spend a good couple of hours picking the clothes, dirty dishes, and trash up off the floor. It went faster when Krysti turned it into a competitive game in who can pick up the most. Happy got into the competition as well, although he had more fun sabotaging the two humans. The clothes were piled onto the unused couch, the dishes near the sink, and the trash was put into bags outside the house.

"Wow! We got a lot done in here. So this is girl clean, huh? It looks so... so bare in here." Natsu comments as he and Krysti flop onto the couch with her bags. He gives her a puzzled look when she starts giggling.

"What's so funny?" he asks with a slight frown. She grins at him, her eyes full of amusement.

Patting his leg gently she says, "Its a good start, but this is not girl clean." His eyes widen and jaw drops at this revelation.

"A good start?! How much more needs to be done for it to be girl clean? I don't remember seeing this place so clean!" he exclaims while waving his arms widely. A thoughtful look crosses Krysti's face and she raises her closed fist as she starts counting out the things left to finish.

"Let's see, there is washing and sorting out the clothes, washing the dishes, sweeping, mopping, dusting, cleaning the walls, organizing our stuff, repainting the walls, plugging up the holes where the branches are, possibly go through the top storage area to see if anything can be done to organize to have more room, and don't get me started on what needs to be done with the bathroom." she lists off. His face has an unreadable expression on it.

"Hehehehe, Natsu's face looks weird." Happy chortles out.

Krysti waves her hand dismissively as she says, "Of course we don't have to do all of that. I was just listing off everything I can think of right now that can be done. I thought that I could clean your place properly to help say thank you for letting me stay. If you don't want me to bother your things, I won't. I can take over the chores for you as well. Cooking, laundry, and other menial things. Oh and I will make sure to brew you the tea everyday. I don't want to be a burden after all." She finishes that with downcast eyes and her voice softer than when she started.

Happy flies up to flop over on Krysti's head as he asks, "Can you cook fish? I'm getting hungry."

"I'll give it a shot, Happy. Not sure what all you guys have here for food, but I'll do what I can." she states while looking up to try to meet the cat's eyes.

"Krysti." Natsu's voice has the woman and cat turn their turn to face him. He looks at the brunette with a serious expression as he says, "You don't have to all of that work. Happy and I did not invite you to live here with the intention of making you do all that. We invited you to live with us, not work for us."

"Speak for yourself!" Happy says haughtily. Krysti giggles at the cat's response. With a warm look in her eyes, she reaches over and grabs onto one of the dragon slayer's hands.

"I know that I don't have to. I want to." she says fondly. She then tilts her head and a crooked grin forms as she continues, "I'm was planning on doing this anyways unless you really don't want me bothering with your stuff." She gives his hand a squeeze as the crooked grin becomes a proper one.

"This is the price you have to pay with living with a woman. We clean. There are very few women who don't start cleaning a guy's place when she moves in. So if you don't want your things messed with and stuff getting rearranged, you better speak now or forever hold your peace." She finishes that with a wider grin and a wink.

"I just have one thing to say to all of that." he says with a serious expression. She raises an eyebrow.

"What would that be?" she asks with a just as serious tone.

A grin forms on his face as he says warmly, "Let's eat." She laughs and nods gently in agreement, not wanting to rude and knock the blue cat off of her head. Together, they stand up, her hands letting go of his. She turns to look towards the sink and doesn't notice his grin slipping into a small pout. Happy does and starts laughing hard at the pink-haired man to the point he falls off of Krysti's head during his outburst. Natsu just gives the cat a deadly glare where he lays on the floor in a giggling mess before brushing past a confused looking brunette to show her where the food is kept.

After they ate some grilled fish, Krysti stands up and announces that she is going to take a bath. She heads to the bags sitting on the couch and rummages through them before grabbing some bottles and extra clothes to change into. The boys move off to do their usual routine of working out after eating with the weights they had uncovered earlier. Krysti gets to the bathroom and silently gags at the smell once the door opens.

Putting down her bathing items, she quickly grabs all of the dirty clothes and tosses them out of the bathroom which catches the attention of the males in the main room. She grabs a bottle of spray deodorant and gives a couple of small spritzes in the air. Not as much as it needs to completely take away the smell, but just enough so she won't be gagging while inside the room. Satisfied for now, she turns on the water in the tub and picks up a rag that she didn't throw out.

Taking a bar of soap, Krysti soaps up the rag and washes it in the tub to clean off the crust that was on it. After deeming it clean enough, the brunette then uses the soap and rag to work on cleaning out the tub. She turns off the water after the tub is filled a few inches. Minutes of hard scrubbing later, she wipes the light sweat off of her brow and admires her work. It's not completely clean, but it's a hell of a lot better than it was before.

The wonders of soap and elbow grease. She thinks to herself proudly with how much better the bathroom looks already. She unplugs the tub and lets the water drain, then starts the water again to get out more of the soapy residue. When satisfied, the woman plugs the tub and lets it fill. Going to the door, Krysti tosses the rag out into the other room to take care of it later. Closing the door firmly she then strips to the nude, but not before removing her iPod, ear buds, and earrings.

She also lets her hair out of the bun that Auntie Vi helped make earlier that day and sets the chopsticks down with the rest of her personal items. She slips her possessions under the clean clothes so they won't get wet. Seeing that the water is now high enough, she turns off the tap and places the toiletries along the edge of the tub. She steps into the warm water with a sigh and sinks until only her head and knees were above water.

She closes her eyes to relax and lets out a 'mmm' of pleasure. Enjoying her first bath in days, she starts humming a wordless song while relaxing into the warmth. Before long Krysti changes from humming to softly singing in la's and da's which then morphs into full song.*

(Sings softly)

I am black, I am white, I am all skins in between

I am young, I am old, I am each age that has been

I am scrawny, I am well fed, I am starving for attention

I am famous, I am cryptic, I am hardly worth the mention

(Sings a little louder)

I am short, I am height, I am any frame or stature

I am smart, I am challenged, I am striving for a future

(Adds more passion and the door quietly opens while going unnoticed)

The color of the sky is blues and grays

The color of the earth is greens and browns

The color of hope is rainbows and purple

And the color of peace is people together

Shades of life

People together

Shades of life

(Picks up volume and opens eyes to stare at the ceiling)

I am able, I am weak, I am some strength, I am none

I am being, I am thought, I am all things said and done

I am born, I am died, I am dust of humble roots

I am grace, I am pain, I am labor of willed fruits

I am slave, I am free, I am bonded to my life

I am rich, I am poor, I am wealth amid strife

(slightly lowers volume)

The color of the sky is blues and grays

The color of the earth is greens and browns

The color of hope is rainbows and purple

And the color of peace is people together

Shades of life

People together

Shades of life

(becomes more passionate and increases volume)

I am shallow, I am glory, I am hiding from my shame

I am hero, I am loser, I am yearning for a name

I am empty, I am proud, I am seeking my tomorrow

I am growing, I am fading, I am hope amid the sorrow

I am certain, I am doubtful, I am desperate for solutions

I am leader, I am student, I am fate and evolutions

I am spirit, I am voice, I am memory not recalled

I am chance, I am cause, I am effort blocked and walled

I am many, I am no one, I am season by each being

I am me, I am you, I am all souls now decreeing

(Sings softer and closes eyes)

The color of the sky is blues and grays

The color of the sky is blues and grays

The color of the earth is greens and browns

I am

The color of hope is rainbows and purple

And the color of peace is people together
Shades of life
I am
People together
Shades of life
I am

People together
Shades of life
I am
People together
Shades of life
I am

(Whispers)
People together
Shades of life
I am

I am
I am
I am
I am
Shades of life
I am

Song finished, Krysti soaks for another minute in silence before she is done with just relaxing and she pushes with her legs to be sitting fully upright in the tub. Still keeping her eyes closed, the sound of a door slamming really hard causes her to shriek and jump in surprise. Blinking in confusion, she looks around to see nothing out of place.

"Natsu, Happy? Is everything ok?" she calls out hesitantly.

"F-fine! Everything is f-fine!" Natsu stutters out an octave higher and suspiciously right near the door. A higher pitched giggle is heard as well. Krysti narrows her eyes as she deduces that the dragon slayer and probably the cat were peeping in at her. She contemplates of whether or not to do something about it and decides against it for now. Finishing her bath is more important than punishing the guy for being a guy.

Eyes softening, she laughs gently at her roommates as she makes a mental note to make sure to lock the door for now on. Grabbing the bottles, she gets to work on cleaning herself up properly. Half an hour later, a cleaner and much more relaxed brunette walks out of the bathroom in damp, clean clothes.

"Ah! Nothing quite like a nice relaxing bath to ease away your pain and stress." she says to no one in particular as she sinks into the couch that has her bags. She looks over to her roommates and a thoughtful expression adorns her face. Natsu begins to get nervous at her gaze and sweats a little. He is hoping she doesn't try to get revenge for peeking earlier. She can be just as scary as Erza, and for a non-mage that's really saying something.

"Hey, Natsu." the sharp tone of her voice causes him to flinch a bit.

"Yea?" he answers back uncertainly.

"Would you mind telling me more stories of you and Igneel? I'm interested in learning more about your father." she asks calmly and with a warm smile. He brightens up visibly, and starts to talk the night away about his foster father.

---

I wake up to the pre-dawn gloom and loud snoring of my roommate. Well, this is a crap-tastic start for my day. Couldn't really sleep due to my nose throbbing, and Natsu's snores are worse than dad's! Ug. Those painkillers were way too weak. Swinging my legs to the floor, I slowly work my way up to a sitting position from where I was laying on my stomach on the couch. I yawn widely as I stretch my arms high in the air.

How the hell was I able to sleep the last two times I was in the same room as him? Guess I was more tired than I thought. I yawn again as I lay on my back to stretch my legs and pop my joints.

After getting a series of satisfying 'pops' I swing my legs to the floor again and stand up. I bite back a sigh as I stare at the mess of clothes piled on the other couch. This is going to take a while to clean, especially those clothes. I wonder if he has a washer/dryer? Wait, do they even have washer/dryers in this world? I scratch my head in confusion. Cleaning this place up could turn out a lot harder than I expected.

I look over to Natsu and Happy as they are almost cocooned in the hammock while Natsu lets out a particularly loud snore. Happy is currently spooning Natsu's head and I let a small giggle out at the sight. How comfortable is that? I don't think I would want to sleep in a hammock. Knowing my luck, I would fall out and mess up my nose for good. I grimace at that thought, feeling the bandages move uncomfortably on my face. I hear chirping of unfamiliar birds and I look out of the biggest window to see an overcast sky.

Hmm, might rain today. If there isn't a washer/dryer here, I'll have to hold off on cleaning the clothes. I could start on the dishes, or maybe see if Natsu is okay with me going through the boxes in that attic-like space. I should get that place taken care of first before I get to the dusting, sweeping, and mopping. And that all should be taken care of before trying to paint anything. Feeling an urge to get out of the house, I carefully pick my way through the mess still on the floor and open the door with a slight squeak.

I slip out and shut the door as quietly as I can before making my way over towards the woods wanting to sit under a big tree to enjoy the serenity of the early morning. I take in the morning air with deep breaths. I relish the feeling of the dewy grass on my bare feet as I'm walking across the clearing. The cool, wet feeling refreshes and invigorates me. It reminds me of when I was younger and would run around like crazy having the tall dew-filled grass drench my legs while giggling the whole while.

I smile at my happy memories as I stop to enjoy breathing in the fresh air again. Oh to hell with it. I giggle and take off running through the grass. I twist and turn, making intricate loops and patterns. I feel my nightgown twirling around me, making me feel like I'm wearing a fancy dress. Soon out of breath, I stop running and turn to admire my handiwork. The grass was darker where I ran through, as the dew gave it a slight silvery shimmer.

Huffing and puffing with a satisfied smile, I move towards the trees I have originally planned on sitting under. I pass by a few trees before I decide to sit at the base of a particularly large one that is still in sight of the house. My breathing eases up as I recover from the impromptu reenactment of my childhood days.

Those days were so simple and full of joy. Mom would be feeding the chickens, I would help her and gather the eggs. We would milk the cows and I would stop and run in the tall grass along the way as we take them back to the pasture. Hehe, the grasshoppers would jump and fly all over the place trying to get away from me.

I sigh as I think of those happy days while I listen to the birds chirp. I wonder what Mom and Dad are doing now? I bet they are worried sick by now. My happiness fades with this. I need to get back, Dad can't handle taking care of Mom and his job. We can't afford to hire someone to look after her. I start to frown in concern. We were barely making it with my income as it is. If I'm not there, we won't be able to pay for her medicine and… and…

I didn't want to complete the thought as tears begin welling up in my eyes. I love my parents so much, especially my mother. She is my closest friend, my big sister, my rival in pranks, the only person I shared all my secrets with. We have such a close bond and when she got diagnosed with a brain tumor and pulmonary fibrosis, it terrified all of us. I choke back the sobs as they form, my throat getting tight making it hard to breathe.

Mom! I have to get back, I have to help her! But how?! I don't even know how I got here or where here even is! Warm liquid trails down my face, the tears now falling freely. I curl up my knees as close to my chest as I can and lay my head down careful not to jostle my nose. I miss my home. I miss my family. And because of me, they'll…she'll… I can't think anymore, the grief overtakes me as I break down crying my eyes out.

My eyes burn from the strain, and my bandages get soaked from my crying. Feeling exhausted from the lack of sleep, and the pain of my emotions, I lay down on the ground and fall asleep. Tears still spilling out onto the ground.

---

With a sleepy yawn, Natsu's head pokes up out of the hammock and he starts to sniff the air greedily.

A quiet "Good morning, sleepyhead." greets his ears and he swivels his head to see food sitting on a cleaner than usual table. The golden glow of the late morning sun shines on the table, like it is purposely highlighting the food. He blinks his eyes to make sure that he is seeing things clearly, and when they don't change a large grin appears. Excitement fills his eyes as he pokes his sleeping friend in the side.

"Hey Happy! Wake up!" he semi-shouts out eagerly.

"Natsuuu, five more minutes…" whines out the blue cat as he struggles to stay asleep. A slight chuckle is heard behind them. Natsu also laughs along as he pokes the cat harder.

"Well then, I guess if you won't get up, Krysti and I are going to have to eat all the delicious fish she cooked." Natsu sing-songs in a teasing manner. Before he can say another word, a small blue whirlwind appears in the house. The sounds of chewing are heard right after the whirlwind dies down to show Happy sitting on the table, munching away on his favorite food. A howl of laughter escapes from the brunette woman and the dragon slayer joins in as he hops out of the hammock.

"Happy sure loves his fish, doesn't he?" Krysti asks, looking at Natsu.

"Aye, sir!" shouts out the cat in agreement before taking another bite out of the fish. This causes another round of laughter between the two humans. Settling themselves down, they enjoy a nice, hot breakfast of rice, baked fish, and ginger tea. Letting out a satisfied burp, the fire mage leans back in his chair feeling content with a full belly after he finishes the last bite of rice.

Krysti laughs quietly at his actions as she starts picking up the plates to clean them. Putting them in the sink with all the other dishes that were found yesterday, she turns on the hot water. Looking around, she notices something is missing.

"Hey, Natsu?" she calls as she starts searching around the sink.

"What is it, Crispy?" he answers in a relaxed tone.

Rolling her eyes at the nickname, she turns to face him before asking, "Where is the dish soap so I can wash the dishes?" He looks at her with a confused look.

"Why do you need dish soap? Regular water is enough." he states casually. The woman looks at him with horrified eyes before looking down at the dishes they ate off of for breakfast and dinner the night before and takes a step back. She shudders and her stomach does a queasy back-flip.

"You don't use dish soap? Like ever?" she gasps out. He slightly tilts his head to the side, curious and slightly worried about her reactions.

"No." he replies slowly while giving her a wary look. She shudders again.

"That's disgusting! Oh dear god, and I ate off those plates." cries out Krysti in disgust as her face pales. She rushes for her bags, jumping over some clutter on the floor. Natsu and Happy are frozen in place as they watch their new housemate rush off into the bathroom with some bottle of liquid in her hands. Gargling noises are soon heard which are followed by spitting and more gargling.

Happy leans towards Natsu and whispers, "Krysti is weird." Natsu nods in agreement. A hacking, choking sound erupts from the bathroom, sending the dragon-slayer on red alert. He hurries over to the bathroom and stands by the doorway to survey what is going on. The brunette in question is hunched over the sink coughing violently and spitting out globs of phlegm.

"Uh, Krysti…" he starts out hesitantly. He clenches and unclenches his hands, not knowing what to do.

"I'll live... tried to go down the wrong tube. Gimme a bit." she pants out, voice straining. This just causes more confusion and he worries more. Happy flies in and takes in the scene with an unreadable expression on his face. She stays hunched over for another minute to make sure she doesn't have another violent coughing fit. She straightens up slowly and the boys are stunned when they see her red face and tears in her eyes in the mirror above the sink.

They start panicking as boys usually do when they see girls cry. Ignoring them, she pushes her hair back behind her ears and starts to gargle again with the mouthwash she brought in. Spitting it out, she turns on the water and sticks her head in the sink to drink up the water to gargle with that as well.

To the boy's relief, she finally finishes with whatever she was doing. They had no idea that she was trying to kill as many food borne illness germs that she can without throwing up. She stands up with a relieved sigh and uses her shirt to wipe her face off, careful to not jostle her nose in the process. Feeling angry at how worried she made him, Natsu walks up and confronts her about it

"What the hell was that all about!? So what we don't have soap, they're still clean!" he shouts out angrily while grabbing onto her shoulders and turning her to face him, more because of how she scared him than actual anger. She looks taken aback at the ferocity of his words before narrowing her eyes at him.

"It does matter if they were cleaned with soap or not! Haven't you heard of food poisoning? There are other diseases as well that can kill you from unclean plates!" she growls out. He takes a step back at the word kill.

"W-what do you mean kill? What does diseases have anything to do with food and dirty dishes?!" he asks, still angry and now confused as well. Krysti then straightens up in sudden realization that this guy in front of her most likely has no idea about food-borne diseases or how they even work. Natsu stares at her as her mood quickly shifts from angry defensive to quiet and thoughtful.

"Well?" he growls. "What are you talking about!?" The brunette looks him over before seeming to come to a decision. Without saying anything, she grabs his wrist and pulls him out of the bathroom. "Hey, wait a minute? Where are we going?" he asks loudly, most of the anger gone from his voice.

Without looking back, Krysti answers him as she leads him through the house, "We are going shopping." Natsu lets out a groan.

"But we shopped yesterday! Why do we need to go again? Can't you shop with Lucy?" he whines while weakly trying to tug his wrist free. At the door, she turns to give him a stern look that causes him to gulp in fear.

"We are shopping for you, not for me. I don't know my way around the town so I need you to guide me. This isn't about clothes, although I do need to talk to you about that at a later time. Lastly, I need to explain to you exactly why it is so important for you to have properly clean dishes and why it is connected to diseases. This might take a while, so it better to talk while we shop." she explains in a calm voice which contrasts with how she is glaring. Happy hangs back as Krysti pulls Natsu along behind her again, not letting go of his wrist despite his protests.

The blue cat laughs quietly to himself as Natsu keeps whining and protesting about going shopping. He doesn't really put up a struggle as he is being dragged towards town even though Natsu could easily break free if he really wanted to. Happy flies a ways behind them, not wanting to get caught up in the lecture that is soon to follow.

---

"So you're saying these tiny invisible grimes…" Natsu says before I cut him off.

"Germs." I patiently correct him as we are walking down the street.

"Germs." he says with a huff before continuing. "are everywhere and are what make people sick?" he finishes. I nod.

"Yes, they invade your body in many ways, from cuts and burns, from eating bad food, or with some, even the air you breath." I inform him.

"So why worry about the plates? They're clean." he asks.

I shake my head in disagreement, "No they aren't. Just because they look clean, doesn't mean that they are. Food leaves behind a residue on the dishes and the germs will eat, live and grow in the residue. So then when you put food on that plate, the germs get on the food and in you." I turn my head to look up him as he scratches his head in puzzlement.

"I don't understand." he states.

"What do you not understand?" I ask him, still in the patient teacher mode.

"What's a residue?" he asks after a bit of thought. I face the front again as I begin to answer him.

"Its what the food leaves behind. Like when you eat a piece of meat and there is the grease and oil left on the plate. It doesn't comes off completely when you wash it with just water. So the germs will eat that grease and oil and grow. That's why we need the soap, because soap with water gets rid of all of the grease as long as you wash it properly. And without the residue, the germs can't grow." He nods his head while looking serious.

"I think… I understand." he says slowly. I let a grin adorn my face. This is great. He's learning. "But how come I never got sick since I don't use soap on those plates?" he asks in a wondering tone. I give it a bit of thought before telling him the most probable answer I can think of for now.

"Most likely because of your fire magic." I state.

"Huh? My magic?" he repeats.

I nod again before clarifying, "Yes, your magic. Its because of your magic that your body is warmer than most people right?" He nods at this and I continue. "Well in their own way, germs are like people. Some like it hot, others like it cold, and there are the ones in the middle. The almost all bad food germs do not like the heat. That's why its important to fully cook your food so it kills the germs. So I think that because of how much warmer it is in your body, they can't survive when you eat them so they just die and you don't get sick."

"I guess that makes sense." he says with a frown on his face. I glance over at him.

"Is something wrong?" I ask. He shakes his head before looking back at me with a wide grin.

"No, I guess it's just a lot to take in. It sounds really farfetched with these invisible things all over the place that make people sick. Are you sure it's just not a curse that people throw around that gets out of hand?" he asks in a curious tone but with a sly grin. This causes me to stop walking as I think seriously about it.

What if he is right? There is magic in this world, so there could be curses as well. But there has to be germs as well in this world, or things just wouldn't work right! Or would it? Magic is a mysterious force. Hmm, I think I need to find a way to get a hold of or make a microscope to find out. Or maybe I should go ask Dr. Shibiwa when I go see him in a few days.

"Hehe. Krysti's face looks weird." laughs out Happy as he flies in front of us. That comment snaps me out of my thoughts and I frown at the cat.

"Well your large eyes freak me out." I retort huffily. This causes tears to well up in the cat's eyes.

"Wah! Natsu, Krysti's being mean!" he cries out as he flies into Natsu's chest to be comforted. I shake my head slowly in amusement as I roll my eyes before walking down the street.

"If you can't handle the heat, then stay out of the kitchen silly cat." I say over my shoulder playfully.

"What does heat have anything to do with you being mean?" Natsu asks while he hugs his best friend before catching up to me. I chuckle at this.

"It's a saying from my world, it means if you can't handle getting insulted even as a joke, then you shouldn't go around insulting others, joking or not." I look directly at Happy when I say this. He just cries even more and I sigh again. He'll learn, sooner or later. I close my eyes as I laugh inwardly at Happy's dramatics.

"Hey, Natsu. Krysti is weird and mean." Happy says in a loud fake whisper, his crying suddenly finished. I open my eyes at this, but decide to not comment.

"Hmm, she sure is." agrees Natsu in the same fake whisper. What are these guys up to?

"You do know that I can hear the both of you clearly." I deadpan. From the corner of my eye, I can see the boys jump away from me in shock like they didn't expect me to hear them even though they are right next to me.

"Crap! She heard us!" Natsu exclaims with his arms and legs up in a weird karate pose.

"Does she have dragon slayer hearing?" Happy asks as he copies Natsu's position like they are some sort of comedy duo. I scoff at this.

"Are y'all really being serious?" I ask while quirking up an eyebrow at them. Their shocked faces stay frozen in place and I can't help but start cracking up at the two.

"You guys are just too much!" I manage to exclaim between laughs. I stopped walking when they froze and I wrap one arm around my middle and I have to reach out to grab Natsu's shoulder for support with the other as I keep laughing. My sides hurt after laughing for a few minutes and when I start calming down I lean up against his warm side to recover my breath.

"Hehe, thank you. I really needed that laugh." I manage to chuckle out between breaths. I really did need that laugh, it helped drive away the cloud of depression I been hiding since this morning. I peek up at Natsu through my hair that has fallen over my face. I gratefully smile up at him and whisper softly, "Thank you." And I meant it from the bottom of my heart.

He gives me that happy grin of his that makes me blush while replying, "No problem, Crispy." An indescribable feeling of warmth spreads through me as I stand there looking at him.

"They lllllike each other!" shouts out Happy with that intense look on his face. I look down at him while he is standing on the ground looking up at us and my mischievous side takes hold.

"Happy!" Natsu cries out in irritation, a frown on his face.

"And what if we do?" I ask the cat matter-of-factly as I wrap my arms around Natsu's waist with a sly smirk on my face.

"She admits it!" Happy shouts out gleefully while waving all his paws in the air as he takes flight.

"Hey! Wait a minute!" Natsu shouts out, trying to get his friend's attention by reaching out to catch him.

Not paying attention, the cat does a back-flip in the air as he says, "I have to tell everyone!" Before another word is uttered, he zooms off leaving us to ourselves. Natsu stomps in place as his temperature rises.

"Dammit, Happy! Get back here!" Natsu roars out and fire spews out of his mouth at the same time. Unconcerned about his fire hurting me despite the way its going everywhere, I calmly stand there holding him still until he gives up and slumps over in defeat. He then straightens up and rounds on me.

"Why do you keep doing that?!" he whines. I snicker at his obvious distress and pink cheeks.

"Because it's fun." I chirp at him. He gives me a look of complete disbelief as his mouth works silently like he is trying to say something. I stand up on my toes so I can lean up closer to his face. His cheeks turn pink as I near. I give him a small smirk before pressing a quick kiss on his cheek. Dropping back down, I spin away from him as I release my grip around his waist. I walk down the street in the direction we were going before and stop after a few steps.

Looking back at him over my shoulder, I call out, "Well? Aren't you coming, Natsu-kuuun?" I purr out the kun part and watch as his face turns bright red. I remember from my talk with Levy that this world uses the same honorifics as the Japanese of my world does. Hence, why I called him kun as part of the teasing.

Without waiting for an answer, I face forwards again as I continue to walk down the street while holdings my hands behind my back. I let a large smile grow on my face as I start to hum with pleasure. Messing with him is so much fun!

---

And so went Krysti's new life for the first week and a half. She would wake up in the pre-dawn gloom and would trek outside to vent out her dwindling hope of ever seeing her parents again. After calming down from crying, she would head back inside to clean up from the night before and make breakfast.

Happy and Natsu would wake up to a hot breakfast made by their new housemate and Krysti made sure Natsu would have a few cups of the special ginger tea to help reduce his motion sickness. Each day that he drank the tea his motion sickness became less noticeable, much to the dragon slayer's delight. He always made sure to thank her profusely for her hard work and kindness to which she received with a small blush.

Happy, of course, would try to embarrass her by calling her out on the blushes, but to no avail which irritated the blue feline. Natsu was surprised the next morning, after coming home from his first two day mission since the older woman moved in, to find a thermos being pushed into his arms just as he was starting to leave for the guild.

"Here." Krysti said gently as she made sure he grabbed the thermos. "This way you won't have to go without your tea and you'll have something to refresh you after riding transportation." Overwhelmed by her thoughtfulness, he looked at his roommate who was warmly smiling at him and did the only thing he could think to do. He hugged her. Her breath whooshes out as she is wrapped up in a crushing hug. Krysti returns the hug as her shock wears off and Natsu's response is to hug her tighter. Happy of course made a cutting remark which made the easily embarrassed dragon slayer riled up and angry. The brunette just closed her eyes and smiled.

After they would eat breakfast, all three of them would head to Fairy Tail. They would laugh, joke, and talk the whole way there. There was rarely a silent moment during their trek. Upon arriving, they would separate to go do their individual activities. Natsu and Happy would meet with their team to go and take on simple missions that wouldn't take more than a day or two.

Krysti on the other hand would either be with Levy, if she wasn't on a mission, Lucy between missions, or Mira for the rest of the time to learn how to read the language of the world and to learn more about it. All four girls bonded to something akin to sisters very quickly with the brunette taking over as the eldest. Although when it came to guild related things, Mira would take the lead.

Krysti would also take lessons from other guild members on how to best bring out her magical ability, if she had any besides her odd fire-resistance. She also learned about how magic was used for everyday tasks to the point that it was considered mundane even by non-mage standards. Even the smallest magical item magic wowed her, much to the enjoyment of the guild.

Her child-like wonder to such simple and commonplace things endeared herself to them. From the pen that can use light to write in the air, to Lacrima, the magical crystals the power almost everything in this world. Krysti literally drooled when she was shown the wind-reading glasses. Being able to read many times faster than normal greatly appealed to the brunette bookworm.

She took to her lessons with an fervor after Levy promised that Krysti could borrow them once she is able to competently read. The three girls were patient teachers for the brunette to which she was thankful. Erza decided to help soon after the lessons started which brought back bad flashbacks to Natsu when she taught him vocabulary while they were children. As the red-head's over-enthusiastic nature takes over and starts outlining an extremely harsh and unrealistic training scenario, Krysti raises up her hand in protest.

Every noise in the guild comes to a sudden standstill. The newest member of the guild was refusing an order given by Erza. The Erza, known as the strongest female in Fairy Tail and lesser known also as the scariest female in Fairy Tail. Everyone but Team Natsu held their breaths, worried what is going to happen to the new girl. Krysti looks defiantly up at Erza, who is standing over her, and tells the armored mage that she refuses to take part in Erza's plan. Everyone held their breath, scared that the new girl was going to die.

Lucy, Gray, Happy and Natsu have a good idea what is going to happen, but even they are still shocked when Erza respectfully accepts the refusal and doesn't try to force her will on the older brunette. Krysti goes back to her reading lesson after professing her thanks and Erza moves off to the bar to get some strawberry cake. The rest of the guild is absolutely stunned. Never has Erza backed off like that when she wants to do something for someone, no matter how much they refuse.

Only a direct order from the Master or someone in the Magic Council could stop the eager red-head when she sets her mind on something. Respect and awe for their newest member soars all the while the object of the guild's wonder is sitting blissfully oblivious with her nose in a children's book. As the day wears on Krysti does notice that more of the guild is engaging her in conversation and offering their help in various matters.

She just pegs it to the fact that they are getting over some sort of shyness and not the fact that she impressed the hell out of them. Krysti would split her time in the guild from learning to read to learning how to access and release her magic. Everyone was in agreement, unless she was in a highly stressful and probably life-threatening situation, meditation was the best way to learn.

Krysti has a hard time meditating as she was told to do to be able to access and draw out her magic. She had no trouble believing in herself, and she does feel something well up inside her during meditation. Yet despite everything she tries, she just can't quite seem to let it out as she is suppose to.

Something keeps blocking the way like there is a giant plug keeping her magic inside and then her imagination would take hold and ruin her concentration. At one point, with her active imagination, she starts singing and dancing to the chorus of 'Let It Go' from the Disney movie Frozen. Krysti cackles like crazy while the rest of the guild looks on in confusion, not sure why the song was so funny for the brunette.

They soon learn to ignore the woman's random giggle fits, and stop trying to understand what is making her laugh from her previous failed attempts at trying to explain her world's pop culture. The explanations only served to make them more confused than before. Krysti doesn't blame them, a lot of times her world's pop culture confused her as well.

She would stay in town until late in the evening practicing drawing out her magic or other such activities while waiting to see whether or not her friends will return from a mission. If they did, she would walk home with Natsu and Happy to go and train with them. After training, they would relax and talk about their day before going to sleep. If the team didn't come back, Krysti would walk to her new home by herself and clean the house before going to bed.

She didn't find any washing machines or dryers in the house much to her chagrin. So she had to use the old fashioned washtub and rub board that was like what her mother used to use. It was hard, but satisfying work. In a way, it helped her feel closer to her mother despite the distance. A few days later, as a way to help her learn her way around town and to put her reading skills to the test between lessons, she started doing small non-magical errands around town.

Mainly doing some shopping for older people who have a hard time going out on their own. Krysti found the additional walking to be real good exercise for herself as well. The money she earned through these small jobs was used to buy more ingredients for dinner and to make tea with. Macao had her take his son, Romeo, during these small missions so he can help her when she needed it when came to reading the grocery lists.

It also served as a way to have someone responsible to baby-sit the young boy as well. Romeo was hesitant as first but soon warmed up to the newest guild member after she helped him with some bullies that wouldn't leave him alone. He looks up to her greatly and before long they were inseparable. They played games, they learned to read together, they learned more about magic, and helped out around town.

Levy, Lucy, and Mira were already quite fond of him and soon he was like a little brother to all of them. Macao would let Romeo stay over with Krysti at Natsu's home on the days that Natsu's team would be gone longer than a day so she wouldn't be lonely. It was pointed out to her that it wasn't completely altruistic on Macao's part. With Romeo out of the house, his father was able to pursue more women in the lame excuse of trying to find him a new 'mother'.

The older woman grew extremely fond of the small boy and was very grateful to Macao for letting Romeo stay with her as much as he is, reasons being pure or not. Having the small, energetic child around helped her not miss her family quite as much. With Romeo in tow, Krysti also went to visit Auntie Vi often.

The older woman adored the boy and would make sure there was plenty of sweets when he came around with the brunette. They talked often, the shopkeeper being extremely helpful when a word that neither Krysti nor Romeo could figure out came up in the lists. She knew her way around Magnolia better than the back of her hand. She even pointed out a very convenient shortcut that ran between the marketplace and Lucy's home. Krysti made note to show it to the blonde if she hasn't already found it.

The talks were greatly beneficial to the brunette and she greatly appreciated Auntie Vi's kindness. A week after her injury, Krysti went to visit the hospital to get her nose checked on. The nurses removed the bandages, and after some painful poking and prodding by the doctor it was declared that her nose was going to be just fine. With most of the swelling down, all was left was the purple-ish bruises across her face. Dr. Shibiwa gave her some ointment that not only conceals the bruises, but helps them heal faster as well. Krysti accepts the ointment with a wide smile and blushing face.

The brunette couldn't help but hug the nurses and the doctor out of relief and happiness when they said she was free to go. Before leaving, she was told to try not to get hit in the nose again for she might not be as fortunate next time. That night, when Krysti's friends returned from their mission, they were greeted by the sight of a happily grinning brunette. The five went and enveloped her in a big group hug when they saw the bandages were removed. Lucy and Happy were the most excited of them all. They wanted to celebrate, which of course got the rest of the guild joining in the celebrations that resulted with the normal brawl.

During this brawl, Lucy was given some news that excited her greatly. Erza deemed it time to give her the Golden Gate Key Sagittarius. She was beyond ecstatic to get the 5th Golden Key and Krysti made her promise not to make a contract with the spirit without her being there. Levy's team soon showed up and Lucy had to go show off her new key to the petite bluenette leaving Krysti behind to watch over them fondly.

Krysti made sure to stay away from the brawl this time, not wanting to risk breaking her nose again while it is still healing. Night falls and most of the partiers have either been knocked out, passed out drunk, or gone home already. With some help from Mirajane, Krysti was able to get Natsu on her shoulders as he slept peacefully. She took him back home and dropped him rather heavily in his hammock before going to bed herself.

It was only 3 days after this when trouble started.

---

The normal group of Natsu, Happy, Gray, Lucy, and Erza were coming back from a two day mission while walking down the streets of their town. They were heading back to the guildhall in high spirits, the mission being a complete success. Natsu and Gray were verbally bickering as usual. Their scuffles calmed down somewhat after the incident of hitting Krysti in the face with her shopping bags. They still feel guilty over that.

As they get closer to the guild, the whispers of the townsfolk catches their attention. Snatches of conversations could be heard as they are stared at and this starts to make the group feel ill at ease. They stop walking once they notice that something is wrong up ahead. The outline of Fairy Tail isn't right. As one they start running towards their home, and stop when they get to the front of the building. A mixture of fear, anger, confusion, sadness can be seen on their faces.

"That's…" gasps out Gray as he surveys the damage.

"What happened here…?" Erza asks breathlessly. Large iron columns are sticking out of the building, making it look like a giant pin cushion.

Lucy, in a state of shock, can only stutter out, "W-what?"

"Our…Our guild has been…" growls out Natsu, the anger clearly seen on his face and in his posture as he looks at his damaged home. Happy and Lucy just stand there in complete shock.

"What in the world happened?" Erza demands angrily.

"Phantom…" calls out a soft, yet sad voice from behind them. All 5 of them turn to see a distraught Mirajane standing there.

"What did you say?" asks Gray, not believing his ears.

Still extremely angry, Natsu asks in a deadly calm voice, "Did you say Phantom?"

"I hate to say it, but they got us." explains Mira, obviously upset over the whole affair. She steps forward and walks past her guild mates to go into the ruined guildhall. They follow behind her silently, some seething in barely contained anger, others in depression. She leads them into the guild and maneuvers around the wreckage to the stairs that lead the way to the basement.

As they walk down the stairs, voices were heard by the new arrivals. At the bottom of the stairs, it opens up to a makeshift beer hall. Even though the beer was flowing as freely as ever, the mood in the guild was somber. Krysti was sitting at a table with Romeo in her lap and next to Levy and her team.

Occupied with their reading lessons she didn't notice when her friends came down the stairs. Mira led them over to far wall where the Master is sitting in front of the temporary request board. He has been drinking heavily by the pink blush that tainted his cheeks.

"Yo! Welcome back!" he calls out heartily, like there is nothing wrong as he extends a hand out in greeting.

"Huh?" is all Lucy says as she is mystified at the Master's much more inebriated than normal state.

"We have returned." Erza returns the Master's greeting in a formal manner.

Angry and confused, Natsu asks in a demanding tone, "Gramps, what're you sittin' around here for?"

"How was it, Lucy? The job go well?" the Master asks, clearly ignoring Natsu which causes him to seethe.

"Yeah…" she answers weakly, unsure what to make of the situation.

"Master, don't you understand the situation we're in?" Erza demandingly asks of the old man.

"They wreaked our guild!" adds in the dragon slayer in a furious growl. Looking completely unworried the Master keeps smiling at the so-called Strongest Team in Fairy Tail.

"Now, now… Calm down. It's not something to get riled up about." the Master says before taking another gulp of his beer. His words stun the group in front of him. "Phantom? This is as far as those idiot's will go." he nonchalantly says between swallows before setting the tankard down again with a satisfied sigh. "Attacking the guild when nobody was here? Who'd take pleasure in that?" he continued in a disbelieving tone.

Surprised, Erza repeats what the Master said, "Nobody was here?" Mira gives them a sad look while standing near the Master's side.

"It seems the attack happened in the middle of the night." she informs them in a softer than usual voice.

Relieved, Erza says, "So that's why no one is injured. I suppose it's one small thing to be thankful for."

"If they can only manage a sneak-attack, we shouldn't even give those bastards the time of day. They aren't worth our time!" the Master declares dismissively. Getting riled up more and more at the Master's uncaring words, Natsu finally lets loose his temper and crashes his fist against a wooden crate which creates a hole where he hit it. The resulting crash catches the guild's attention and startles Krysti out of her studies.

Looking to where the noise came from, she sees her friends standing near the Master. She places Romeo down on the seat she was just in and with a quiet 'stay here' she goes to welcome them back with an eager bounce to her step. She has a relieved look on her face to see that they look uninjured which quickly becomes a concerned frown when she hears Natsu almost yelling at their Master.

"This ain't right, man! I won't be satisfied until we go and crush these guys!" Natsu roars out, feeling pissed off at the Master's easy-going attitude.

"This discussion is over. Until the upstairs is repaired, we'll take work requests from here." the Master states in a tone much more serious than how he looks. By this time Krysti has trotted up between Gray and Lucy, waiting for the right time to greet them without interrupting.

"This isn't time for doing jobs!" Natsu yells out.

"Natsu! I've had enough out of you!" the Master yelled back. A loud smack could be heard across the room.

With a mortified look, Lucy asks weakly, "And you spank me, why?" Hearing her say this, Krysti looks over to see that yes indeed, Lucy is getting spanked by the Master. A low growl escapes her mouth as she narrows her eyes in a fierce glare at the little man. As time went on, Krysti viewed the blonde more and more as a little sister. The brunette's over protectiveness kicks in as her anger flares up at this blatant sexual harassment.

Mira angrily puffs out her cheeks while putting her hands on her hips and directs a mean look towards the Master before saying, "Master, I'll get angry!"

Krysti slaps away the Master's arm and snarls out, "Screw that! I am angry! I don't care if you are the Master, don't you dare lay your hands on Lucy like that again!" His arm immediately retracts as he holds it up in a salute and innocently chuckles. The 6 other mages look back at Krysti in shock, not only for her uncharacteristically angry outburst, but also because they didn't realize she was there.

Ignoring them for the moment, she growls even louder at the old man's attempt to appear innocent. He hops down off of the makeshift table he was sitting on and starts to run off.

"Gramps!" Natsu shouts at him.

"Get back here you perverted old fart and apologize!" Krysti angrily yells out to the retreating form with a upraised fist.

"Just a second…Gotta pee." he laughs out merrily. Krysti continues to growl deeply until he was out of sight. Erza gives the older woman a reproachful look, but doesn't say anything while Lucy quietly thanks her new friend. The brunette lets out a haughty snort before letting the anger melt from her expression as she turns to face her friends.

"Welcome back everyone. I'm so glad that nothing happened to ya'll while on that mission." she says with obvious relief. The others greet her back all except for Natsu who is looking down at the ground sullenly, still upset over the Master's attitude.

"Why're you ok with this, Gramps?" he mutters to himself dejectedly.

"Natsu…" Mira gently calls out to the distressed fire mage. "This is just as hard for the Master, you know? But outright conflict between guilds is forbidden by the Council."

"Well they're the ones who attacked first!" he cries out while stomping his feet in renewed anger. Seeing his distress, Krysti steps towards him and reaches up to put both of her hands on his shoulders in an attempt to calm him down. He suddenly stops in surprise as he looks at her like he just now noticed that she was with them. Mirajane addresses Natsu's concern as he is being calmed down.

"That's not the problem. Fiore cannot afford to have magic guilds get into outright war with each other. The results would be disastrous." she says in a stronger tone of voice than the sad, quiet one she has been using all day. Gray and the others look down in depression over not being able to do anything while Natsu fumes silently. He has calmed down under the brunette's ministrations, but the anger is just under the surface, ready to break free at any given moment like a volcano.

"If that's how the Master feels… There is nothing we can do." says a resigned Erza. The dragon slayer grinds his teeth in annoyance while the others become even more dejected over their situation. Krysti leans over and whispers something in Natsu's ear to which he nods in agreement with. They turn to head up the stairs with Krysti holding onto one of his shoulders in case he tries something rash.

"Come on Happy, we're going home now." Natsu gruffly calls out to his best friend.

Perking up, the cat summons his wings with a loud, "Aye, sir!" before flying over to the duo going up the stairs.

"Bye Levy, Jet, Droy! I'll see'ya tomorrow! Keep studying hard Romeo!" yells out the brunette over her shoulder while waving with her free hand. A faint 'Bye' can be heard in return from more than one voice. Upon reaching the top of the stairs, the dragon slayer narrows his eyes and growls as he sees the damage his guild has suffered. Krysti tightens her grip and pushes his shoulder to turn him to face her.

"Trust in the Master. He is doing what he knows is best for the guild." She then looks down with an angry look and mutters out something softly that Natsu's sensitive ears had no trouble picking up. "Even if he is a perverted old fart." Hearing this, Natsu starts snickering before he busts out in laughter which startles Krysti and confuses Happy as he has no idea what was said.

"Dammit, I forgot about your dragon ears." she grumbles out in chagrin out before laughing with the man next to her. As the laughter calms down, she gets a twinkle in her eye. She lets go of his shoulder as she turns towards the entrance of the guildhall. "Come on, Pinky. I'll race ya." she says with a smirk before taking off.

Natsu stands there frozen for an instant before a matching smirk appears on his face. "I don't think so, Crispy." he says as an answer to the challenge before running after his newest friend with Happy flying right alongside him. He quickly overtakes the brunette and pulls ahead as they run through the streets. Once Natsu and Happy are out of sight, Krysti slows down her pace and lets a real smile appear as a soft look enters her eyes. She is glad that she as able to help put a smile back on the fire mage's face. The soft look turns sad as she thinks of the reason why he was so angry in the first place.

Despite being mad at his perverted tendencies, she does agree which Makarov's decision to not retaliate against Phantom Lord. Fairy Tail has to be the bigger guild and not give in to childish bullying. No one was hurt after all, and it won't take long to repair the building. Mira mentioned with how often the guild gets smashed up due to brawls that most of the guild has gotten quite good with carpentry. So the only real damage was the guild pride, but in the long run its better for the guild's reputation to not retaliate no matter how much it stung.

10 minutes later, she arrives home to find the boys working on some silly training exercises dealing with balancing rocks on their heads. She shakes her head as she chuckles at them fondly, her thoughts over the guild's situation fading away. Leaning up against a tree at the edge of the clearing, she settles down to watch their ridiculous training techniques.

By the time Natsu and Happy are done with training it's already afternoon. They sluggishly makes their way back towards the house when a now familiar scent hits Natsu's nose. He inhales deeply before picking up his pace, a wide grin splitting his face. He bursts in his house with Happy close behind to have the almost intoxicating smell of frying meat overwhelm them.

"I take it you boys are done with your training?" a cheery voice calls out to them as Happy and Natsu enter.

"Yea, I feel much better now." he replies calmly as he rounds the corner to see his housemate by the stove cooking up a late lunch. He walks up behind Krysti and leans up against her back while resting his chin on her shoulder to watch the meat frying. His mouth opens and he starts to drool at the sight of the burger in the pan.

"Jeez, Natsu you're soaked with sweat! Go take a bath and the burgers should be done when you're finished." she slightly scolds him. He makes a small noise of displeasure and she continues, "You know very well that they aren't going to cook any faster or slower with you right here. So go change clothes and take a bath while you wait."

"Fine…" he grumbles out which causes the brunette to chuckle. He reluctantly pushes himself away from the tantalizing food and makes his way to the dresser that has now clean clothes in it for him. Grabbing a random set, he walks easily towards the bathroom in his now much cleaner house. He shakes his head wonderingly as he barely recognizes the place without the mess that he grew used to throughout the years.

"Do you want to join him, Happy? It will be a bit before I'm finished cooking." Krysti says over her shoulder to the blue cat sitting on the table. He crosses his arms with a serious look on his face.

"I don't want to eat burgers today." he states. Krysti raises an eyebrow, knowing where this is going and decides to play along.

"Oh? Well, what do you want to eat?" she asks seriously, but with a playful smile teasing the corner of her lips. Happy closes his eyes like he is deep in thought. "Could you maybe want some chicken?" Happy shakes his head in disagreement.

"How about a nice juicy pork loin?" she continued. Krysti flips the burger she is working on before making a small hmm like she is thinking. She glances back at the cat to see a look of distress on his face. Taking pity, she reaches inside a special basket made just for Happy and turns to face him.

"Hehe. Alright, I know what you want little guy. Here you go." she says warmly before tossing a fish at Happy. Whatever Happy said fell on deaf ears as Krysti froze in place as she glances towards the bathroom while she is turning back to the stove.

Natsu forgot to close the bathroom door and was in the middle of stripping off his pants. She takes in a long admiring look at his well-muscled body as a heavy blush forms on her cheeks. Its not the first time Krysti has admired his physique, it's hard not to when he wears an open vest that shows off his chiseled muscles.

This, however, is the first time she saw so much. Forcefully tearing her eyes away from the sight of her nude, albeit attractive, roommate, she stares at the cooking hamburger as she debates with herself. Taking the burger and flipping it again, she reaches a decision as her cheeks become even more red.

"Hey, dragon-boy! Ya might want to close the door before you strip, unless you're planning on giving us a show. I wouldn't mind it if you do, your ass is pretty cute." she yells in Natsu's direction. She makes sure she is firmly facing the stove to hide her red cheeks from both males in the house. A quick slam of the bathroom door is her answer.

Overcome by mirth at imagining what his expression was like, she cackles to herself for a moment before quieting down soon after to finish cooking. Behind her, Happy is holding both of his paws over his face in an attempt to stifle his laughter at the priceless look on Natsu's face when Krysti talked about his butt. Without much success.

"Bwuahahahaha!" Happy busts out laughing loudly, which causes Krysti to jump slightly in surprise. Quickly taking the well done burger out of the pan and placing it on a plate, the brunette then turns around to look askance at the little blue cat rolling around on the table in mirth. She puts her hands on her hips with a half smile on her slightly pink face as she watches Happy.

"So what got you in stitches over there?" she asks, partly amused herself.

"Natsu's… face … when you… talked about… butt!" Happy was able to wheeze out between laughs before bursting into a renewed fit. He laughs so hard that he falls to the floor as he rolls off the table. Krysti chuckles along as her face reddens again at the mention of her nude roommate.

"I can hear you!" a muffled but clearly miffed voice calls out from the bathroom. This causes the occupants in the kitchen to laugh even louder than before. When her laughter dies down, Krysti turns back to the stove to continue cooking their afternoon meal. As she finishes cooking most of the food, she switches her attention to the tea kettle that she bought and started on making a, hopefully, improved version of the ginger tea. She bought some fenugreek seeds earlier that morning to go with the ginger, lemon, and honey already used in the tea.

What Natsu doesn't know is that she has also been using other herbs in their food that has been said to help with motion sickness. Basil, marjoram, and rosemary mixed in with other spices are added into each meal. Even if they don't help with his motion sickness, at least it helps the food taste better. Krysti also plans on getting a cookbook to help her make more things to eat besides the simple meals she has been able to make so far.

Setting the kettle to boil, she turns back to the stove and begins to prepare a special burger for Natsu. Krysti has been spending the time while Natsu and Happy have been away on how to flambé and tonight she was confident enough in her skills to give it a try. With the patty ready, she busies herself with making a salad for the three of them to eat. Even though all of them hate salad, she is making everyone in the house eat healthier.

Hearing a ruckus coming from the bathroom signals Krysti that Natsu is finishing up and its time to go to work on the special treat for the dragon slayer. She hears the door slam open and looking over she sees him with his scarf wrapped around his forehead, a towel around his neck and a normal shirt with pair of shorts that both look suspiciously like hers. She narrows her eyes at that, but decides against saying anything, for now.

"You were right Krys, I do feel much better now." Natsu comments as he plops into his usual chair. The brunette raises an eyebrow but doesn't turn away from the stove.

"Of course I'm right. So I'm Krys now?" she questions.

"Yup. Lucy is Luce, so you're Krys." he simply states. She laughs heartily at that.

"What about Gray?" she asks him in curiosity between laughs.

"Ice-prick." he shoots back immediately causing another round of laughter with the brunette.

"And Erza?" she continues. An alarmed squeak causes Krysti to look back to see that Natsu is now sitting ramrod straight in the chair and has a terrified look in his eyes.

"Ooo-kay then… No nickname for Erza, at least from you." she says uncertainly. He nods vigorously in response before shivering. The older woman turns back to the last burger and gets ready to finish it up with the fire. Steadying herself, she breathes in deep before making her move. As the flames shot up and stayed in just the pan, she lets out a cheer in victory. This catches both boy's attention and they lean to the side to see what she is doing.

It quickly becomes apparent to them when she turns and presents a hamburger on fire to Natsu. His eyes sparkle in delight for he rarely gets to enjoy food on fire outside the guild. He darts out a hand to scoop up some flame before Krysti can even put the plate down. Smacking his hand for being impatient, she smiles warmly at his obvious enjoyment of the flames. He grins impishly as he sucks down the snatched bit of fire, not caring that he got hit in the process.

She sets out the rest of the food on the table and brings him a cup of the tea that she brewed earlier. Grabbing her own food, the salad, and extra fish for Happy the brunette then goes to sit and eat with the boys. The troubles with the Phantom Lord guild forgotten for now, they settle into their usual routine and enjoy the rest of the day together.

---

The next morning Natsu and Krysti are talking and laughing along the way to the guild while Happy is flying beside them and snacking on a fish. A commotion catches their attention and with look and a nod, they all rush through the town until they reach the Southgate Park.

It was a park smaller than a football field, made in a depression in the ground. A large oak-like tree in the middle that has a path in a circle around it. A group of people have already gathered in the park around the tree. Yet, it wasn't the tree itself that people were looking at.

It's what is on the tree that had people gathering around it.

The trio arrives at the same time as Erza, Gray, and Lucy. Together they push through the crowd, asking to be let through since they are with Fairy Tail. When they reach the front, they are greeted by a horrible sight. 3 people hanging by giant iron bands are suspended on the tree. Bruises and bloody gashes adorn their bodies while their clothes are in blood-smeared tatters. The worst of all is the symbol painted on the stomach of the petite blue-haired girl in the middle.

The symbol of Phantom Lord.

Gasps overtake all 6 mages which quickly turn into almost overwhelming anger at seeing their friends beaten up so. A dark aura starts to overtake the more aggressive members of the group.

"Levy-chan!" calls out the blonde to her best friend.

"Jet! Droy!" Gray shouts out, trying to wake them up. The others just stand there, looking at their friends as their anger starts to turn into rage. Natsu almost bursts into flames from the power of his rage alone. The air becomes unbearably hot to those near him except for the brunette standing next to him. As the townsfolk step back away from the dragon slayer, Krysti shuffles closer to put a hand on his shoulder, not to calm him, but more to calm her.

"Phantom!" He snarls out, his fury evident to everyone. Footsteps can be heard slowly walking up to the 6 Fairy Tail members.

Without taking her eyes off of her injured friends, Erza calls out in a deadly calm voice, "Master…" The little man who is the Master of Fairy Tail, walks in front of the crowd to gaze up at the sight of his children hanging on the tree. His expression is unseen by everyone there who was not spellbound by the sight of the beaten up trio.

After a moment, he calmly starts speaking, "I can stand being reduced to a run-down beer hall…" His voice lowers and becomes more gruff as he continues. "But no parent can stand idle while the blood of his children is spilled!" At this, his grip on his walking stick becomes so strong that it bursts into splinters. Yellow light pours from his body as his magic is unleashed, creating a vortex of wind around him just from the pressure alone.

"To war!" he calls out harshly while his expression screams 'Death'.

"We need to get them down." states Krysti with an uneasy calm around her. Erza nods and uses her magic to summon swords to pry the bands off of their friends. Freed from the shackles, they fall to ground only to be caught by Lucy, Gray, and Happy. Krysti and Erza go to help them carry their injured friends to the hospital with the Master behind them, still leaking out magic.

The crowd, already backing away from the Master from his earlier display of strength, immediately dissipates as soon as they see the rage etched on his face. Natsu stays behind, still staring at the spot where his friends were hanging.

"Phantom. You will pay!" he promises in a near silent whisper, his fury near the boiling point. He stands there for a few more seconds before turning around and stalking off after his teammates. At the hospital, Jet, Droy, and Levy are all put into the same room. It was a brighter and more comfortable room than the one Krysti was in less than 2 weeks ago.

Curtains hung between each member of Team Shadowgear as they laid in the hospital beds, recovering from their ordeal. While in the hallway outside of the room where their injured friends are, a nurse exits the room with a chart listing all of the injuries sustained. Lucy pushes her way past the nurse before she could finish saying how the three were faring. Krysti rushes in after her, equally worried about her friends.

Running into the room, Lucy almost throws herself on the bed that contained Levy, crying out her sorrow. Krysti entering a bit slower, stands silently behind her blonde teammate with tears forming in the corners of her eyes. The anger and fury the brunette first felt washes away at the sight of her injured friends laying there almost lifeless in the hospital beds.

Distress claims her and she silently cries alongside Lucy. Dropping down to her knees, she grabs Lucy for a hug and they both cling to each other as they cry out the tears of the sadness that stabs their hearts. Their tears slow down to a trickle after what feels like forever and the girls slowly, reluctantly let go of their hold onto one another.

They clasp hands and refuse to let go, each the other's anchor to keep from being swept away by grief yet again. They look over their friends in the beds, with tear stained faces and red eyes. As the shadows in the room move in sync with the sun outside, Krysti pushes herself up off the floor and pulls Lucy up with her.

The blonde is still sniffling, and doesn't complain when she is pushed into a chair beside Levy's bed. Taking a deep breath to steel her nerves and control her emotions, the brunette walks out of the room to face the others. Upon exiting, she notices that no one is in the hallway.

Further inspection shows that the lobby is empty as well. Tracking down a nurse, Krysti learns that the others have already left to go to the guild. The brunette heads back to the room containing her friends and informs Lucy of the news.

"I want you to stay here. I'm going back to the guild to see what they are going to do." she tells the younger woman softly. Lucy nods without taking her eyes off of Levy. With a heavy heart, Krysti wretches herself from the sight and marches purposely towards the wreaked guildhall. Minutes later she arrives to find it strangely quiet. Unnerved by the stillness, she quickly enters to find Mirajane to be the only one in the whole guild.

"Where is everyone?" Krysti asks wonderingly. Mira gets a sad, but angry look on her face.

"They went to Phantom Lord. The Master declared war after seeing what happened to Levy and the others. Everyone in the guild is going over there right now." she states in frustration.

"Not everyone. Lucy is still at the hospital. I'm going to head back myself, I don't want to leave her alone for too long. I think she was the most upset out of all of us to see that." Krysti says sadly, grief threatening to take over again.

"Don't stay by yourself if you can help it." Mira cautions. This causes Krysti to pause and raise an eyebrow at the other woman.

"What about you? You were alone when I got here." Krysti asks as she looks around for any possible hidden guild mates.

"Someone has to stay at the guildhall. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. If Phantom comes by, I can do this." replies Mira just before changing her appearance to a kindly old grandmother. Krysti jumps a bit in surprise, forgetting that the younger woman was able to perform magic as well.

"Well, I just hope then that they don't want to hurt little old ladies as well." the brunette retorts as she recovers from her shock. Old lady Mirajane chuckles and waves the older woman on as she changes back to regular Mirajane.

"Alright, alright. I'll get going. Sure you don't want to stay with us?" Krysti asks. The white-haired woman just shakes her head sadly and the brunette turns to exit out of the guild. She pauses partway through and looks sadly back at Mira who is softly smiling at her newest friend.

"Just, please watch yourself, ok? I don't want you to get hurt as well. Phantom may come back to attack again while the guild is gone." the older woman comments in a very serious tone. Mira's smile becomes more warm at the brunette's concern as Krysti heads back to the hospital. Arriving at the building minutes later, she notices Lucy just exiting through the doors. Jogging now, the older woman reaches the blonde mage swiftly.

"Where are the others?" Lucy asks as Krysti got within talking distance.

Panting slightly, Krysti answers, "They all left to fight Phantom Lord, only us and Mirajane are here."

Hearing this, Lucy pouts, "I can't believe they left us behind! We want to fight and get payback for Levy and her team." Krysti nods and takes the younger girl into her arms for a tight hug.

"I understand how you feel, I want to tear them apart for what they did. But we can't go and fight now. Personally I don't even know where to go to even try to follow them. What's done is done." she lets Lucy go and watches the blonde wipe a tear from her eye.

"I need to pick up some food for my apartment, will you come with me? I don't feel like being alone." Lucy says softly. Krysti turns to wrap an arm around Lucy's shoulder.

"Of course I'll stay. I don't want to be alone either right now." Krysti whispers back. The two girls slightly smile at each and link arms before going down to the market place to shop. They each buy a bag of food and start walking towards Lucy's apartment. Remembering about the shortcut that Auntie Vi told her about, Krysti takes Lucy down the series of side streets and alleys that run almost right to the blonde's home.

"I still can't believe that everyone left us behind. Levy-chan and her team need someone to care for them, so I guess that's us." Lucy complains. Before Krysti can respond, rain starts pouring out from a suddenly stormy sky when it was sunny just two seconds ago.

"Crap! A summer shower!" Krysti curses as she and Lucy look disbelieving at the sky. In the mist that formed just as quickly as the rain, a figure approaches. The girls both step back into defensive positions.

"Who is it?" Lucy calls out to the figure.

A soft feminine voice floats out to them, "Drip, drip, drop. Yes. Juvia is the rain-woman. Drip, drip, drop." In the mist the figure shows itself to be a woman in all blue clothes glaring ahead. Even her hair was blue and it was in two large curls on each side of her head. The girls are at unease with this strange woman walking towards them.

Getting close to the two friends, Juvia asks, "Who are you two?" Stepping to the side to let Juvia by, Krysti and Lucy watch as she walks past them.

Lucy decides to asks, "Um, who might you be?"

Juvia only says, "Drip, drip, drop…."

"What?" asks Krysti in puzzlement.

Juvia opens a pink heart umbrella that is shaped like a jellyfish as she replies, "It was a pleasure. Fare thee well." Which causes the other two girls to look at each other in disbelief.

"Like, what the hell?" Krysti mutters out in frustration.

"Non, non, non!" a mysterious male voice calls out from behind all three women. They turn to look for the owner of the voice. "Non, non, non, non, non, non, non!" the voice says again and they see the road rising in front of them, starting to take on some sort of shape.

"Non, non, non, non!" the voice becomes clearer and girls can tell that the voice is coming from the shape in front of them. It becomes a green-haired, brown-suit wearing man with a monocle. He is in a dramatic pose as he says, "With non of 3,3,7,1 I say to you, bonjour!"

"A French dude, seriously?" Krysti mutters again as she looks at the newcomer slightly askance.

"Its another weirdo!" Lucy grumbles out, not believing her bad luck. The weird guy starts rocking side-to-side as he looks ahead to address the woman in blue.

"Juvia-sama, you mustn't abandon your job now." he says in an almost sing-song voice.

"Monsieur Sol." she says in the same soft tone. Monsieur Sol suddenly appears next to Juvia and holds his monocle in one hand.

"My monocle, it whispers to me, yes. It tells me this mademoiselle is our beloved cible." he says in a totally non creepy way as he points to Lucy with his other hand.

"Ah, so it was this girl." Juvia responds in her monotone voice.

"Cible? Target?" Lucy whispers out. Krysti turns to look at her in surprise.

The weird guy bends to the side in front of Juvia and says, "I do apologize for the late introduction. My name is Sol, one of the Element 4. People call me Sol of the Land… Please call me Monsieur Sol."

Lucy takes a step back before saying angrily, "The Element 4? Phantom!" Eyes widening in realization, Krysti steps protectively in front of Lucy while dropping her groceries.

Sol says, "Correct. We two have come to collect you for the great Phantom Lord!"

"Over my dead body!" snarls out Krysti, Sol just ignores her as he continues.

Extending a hand towards Juvia, he says, "And this is the rain-woman of the Element 4. People call her Juvia of the Deep." A clatter is heard as Lucy throws down her groceries as she makes a grab for her keys that essential to her magic.

"Lucy! Run! I'll hold them off!" Krysti shouts as she makes a dash towards the Phantom mages.

"I won't run! How dare you do such a thing to Levy-chan!" Lucy cries out in anger. Krysti goes for a roundhouse punch to Sol and gets knocked backwards and down to the ground easily. She starts to get back up when she notices her arm won't move. Looking back Krysti sees her arm and Lucy is trapped in a bubble of water. With horrified eyes, Krysti struggles to get into the water to get to Lucy.

"Non, non, non! With non of 3, I correct your error! Destroying your guild and attacking Levy-sama was all the work of Gajeel-sama. Well, it is true that all of us in the guild were for the idea, however…" Sol calls out in an almost gleeful manner.

"Let her go you bastards!" Krysti roars out. A feeling of power wells up inside her as she becomes enraged about how they are drowning the girl that she thinks of as a little sister.

"Non, non, non, non! With non of 4, I simply cannot let her go! It is for the great Phantom Lord that we must take her with us." Sol says with a waggling finger. Lucy is pounding against the edge but cannot make a dent in it. Krysti keeps trying to break the bubble with everything she can, her rage at being helpless to save her friend growing.

"What is this? Let me go!" Lucy cries out from inside the water. Krysti roars again and tries to push herself inside to get to the blonde.

"Juvia's water lock cannot be broken." says the rain woman, never changing her tone. Lucy's eyes start to close and her struggles weaken as she runs out of air. Seeing this, Krysti renews her struggles with an almost animalistic frenzy.

"I SWEAR I"LL RIP YOUR HEADS OFF AND SHIT DOWN YOUR NECKS IF YOU HARM HER!" the brunette screams in fury. Everything that is bubbling within her feels like it is about to burst.

"Très bien" Sol says completely unconcerned about the raging woman caught in the water.

"Do not fear. Juvia will not kill her. Because it's Juvia's job to bring back… Lucy Heartfilia." Juvia states.

"I WONT LET YOU HAVE HER! YOU'LL HAVE TO KILL ME FIRST!" screams out Krysti at the top of her lungs.

"Victoire! That can be easily arranged." says Sol in sadistic pleasure.

"We have captured the target. Drip, drip, drop…" says Juvia.

"LUCY!" Krysti cries out, she starts to see everything in red as the rage in her starts to overflow. Monsieur Sol steps close to the two captured women and starts to punch Krysti repeatedly. When he goes for a hit in the face, she lets out an agonized scream. Red vision turns to black as the rain continues to fall.

---

* song I Am- Shades of Life by Billy Gilman