Erza woke up abruptly thanks to the chill of her sword pressing against her thigh as she rolled over onto her back. It wasn't uncommon for her to wake up that way, in fact, that was how she got up most days. Somehow her blanket would always end up on the right side of her body during her slumber, leaving the weapon exposed to the cold nights' air. The redhead never slept without it. There hadn't been a night that went by since she received it where she didn't sleep next to it. It brought her comfort knowing she had something to protect herself with even when she was at her most vulnerable.
Was it normal for a twenty-one year old to sleep next to a sword every night? Probably not. Did it matter to her whether or not it was normal? No.
Besides, she had proper reasoning to want a sword. Over the last few years of her life she'd made enemies- if that was the proper word for cowardly thugs that wanted to beat her up.
Fights of different kinds used to be the way for her to make money and basically be able to live when she was younger. Due to that little section of her life, people had grown to hate her and her strength. That and the fact she was a woman who could kick middle-aged men's asses. One thing she knew men like that hated most was when a woman "dared" to be better at something than they were.
Long, fight ridden story short, she had a reason to want to sleep next to a sword.
It only takes one incident to learn you can never protect yourself too much.
Erza carefully moved the weapon further to the left, so that it wasn't touching her, and gave a long sigh. Her eyes wandered around the room she'd been living in for years now. Many amazing mostly fight free years. It was located in an apartment that was being rented out to her, she had insisted to pay rent once she actually began working, which was owned by her boss. He'd taken her in, like most of her friends, and given her a real chance to live out what was left of her childhood stress free. There weren't words to describe what the old man had done for her so she planned to live out her days trying to repay him in any way she could. He often told her there was no need, that he hadn't done much, that he only did what any decent person would do, but still she couldn't help but want to do her best for him.
The woman smiled and sat up in her bed, opening her curtains that were directly to her left. The window revealed a sunny morning, with clouds strewn across the blue sky. She looked for a moment longer, rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes and swiftly slid off her bed. Almost instantly she wanted to go back under her sheets, sleeping in only a tank top and her underwear was proving to be a bad choice in the mornings, but instead she quickly ran across her room and grabbed some pants that were hung on her chair.
As soon a she was dressed appropriately to be outside, she tied her hair up, and left the room to begin her usual morning routine. Every day she would wake up all the residents, or attempt to, of the small apartment complex her boss owned, making sure they were up and got a good breakfast, which she and whoever else's turn it was prepared, into their system before the rest of the day started. Her friends weren't too fond of her self-appointed responsibility, but it was good for them so she didn't care.
Erza stepped out of her front door and into the dewy morning air, admiring the way the sun looked behind the clouds as she walked approximately five steps to Levy's door, letting herself in. None of them locked their doors at night for some reason. There was a locked gate at the entrance and no one else lived there besides them so they really didn't see the point.
They all knew how to defend themselves anyhow. They were pretty damn good at it too, thanks to the self-defense lessons given by none other than herself.
"Levy!" Erza called out into the book ridden home as she walked in, shaking her head at the girl who'd fallen asleep on her couch with reading material nestled on her chest, "Levy! How many times have I told you not to fall asleep on your couch like that? This is why you have a sore neck most days."
"Mmm…" The bookworm only mumbled in response.
"Come on. Wake up."
"Don't… wanna…" She mumbled again but this time she tried to move her face away from the woman trying to wake her up, only to have her book fall on the wooden floor with a loud thud that made her jolt upright. "Wha-?!"
Her head swiveled back and forth, making her blue hair, which was more accurately described as a mane at this point, gather around and over her face, "What time is it?!" She asked as she stood up.
"It's seven-thirty. Today's your turn to help me make breakfast." She crossed her arms over her chest and almost wanted to giggle at the in-between state of asleep and awake her friend was in, "It's simple today. Just eggs, bacon and toast. Hurry up to the kitchen and I'll meet you there when I get everyone else up." To clarify, they had a communal eating area. Complete with a kitchen, eating room, TV room, and the like. The boss had the place renovated for them some years ago so that it was more like dorm living and it made it easier for them to actually live together.
"Oh… okay. Geez I thought it was later… That's good…" She began walking toward her bedroom and mumbled something about never reading right before bed again. The teen always promised herself this but both she and Erza knew those were empty words. "I'll go down as soon as I'm dressed."
"Okay." The woman replied and left the home, moving onto Gray's place next.
About half an hour later, Erza had successfully woken up the residents of "Fairy Hills"- that was what the master had decided to call it after the renovation, he had odd taste in names now that she thought about it. She felt accomplished in her duties as she walked down the short flight of stairs and went back inside the building to join Levy in making their breakfast.
"Erza…" Levy groaned as she pulled two cartons of eggs, milk, and bacon out of the fridge, "please, PLEASE, do not ever let me fall asleep like that again…" She rubbed her neck as she put the ingredients down and Erza moved to grab the bread.
"I'll try, but you need to make an effort to do your nightly reading in bed."
"But I can't get a good position in my b- yes, yes you're right! I'll do that." She quickly turned her sentence around when she got one of those signature "Erza" looks and decided it was best to just follow what she said.
"Good." Erza smiled and looked at all the uncooked food before them, noting people were beginning to file in and watch some morning TV, "Shall we get this going?"
Breakfast passed as it always did. Gray came down with only his boxers and was immediately sent back up by Erza, leaving a dazzled Juvia in his wake, the Strauss siblings practically moved as one sleepy body through the morning, Gajeel came down with his cat as did Wendy, and Natsu, despite living some miles away, walked in unannounced and unsurprisingly. Others would file in normally or pass on breakfast in exchange for a few more hours of sleep.
If she had to choose, she'd say that mornings were her favorite part of the day.
After cleaning up the mess in the kitchen and saying "see you later"s to her friends, she grabbed her mail from her box, she had many magazine subscriptions, most of which were armor, weapon, and sweets related, and went back up to her apartment to get ready for the rest of the day.
Her door opened with a creak and she felt a burst of cold air wash past her legs as she walked in, intently looking through the envelopes in her hand and quickly checking her phone right after. Nothing of importance had come.
She sighed and swept her bangs behind her ear as she sat down on her couch.
Truth be told, she was waiting for any kind of word from her old friend Jellal.
Their relationship was the very definition of the word complicated and if she weren't in love with the fool then there was no way she'd still be waiting for him to show up one day or at least send her a letter, a text even. She'd be fine with an "I'm doing ok." on a phone screen as long as he was attempting to contact her. She didn't have his number, didn't know where he was living, and honestly, didn't even know if he still gave a damn about her.
Yet she was still hopelessly and stupidly in love with him.
The two of them had been living in the same orphanage together since they were small children; she'd forgotten how old they actually were. When Jellal had been taken in and introduced to them, they became fast friends. The boy had even given her a last name to live by- it wasn't surprising to her that she was still in love with him. He had done so much for her. Whether it was just making her smile, or physically protecting her from the not-so-kind workers, all of his actions were to be repaid in mountains in her eyes.
It seems, from that short bit of their lives, that there was nothing complicated about them. They were two children, growing up in an orphanage with obvious feelings for one another, obvious to everyone but each other of course, that wanted nothing more than to be with each other for a long time. Innocence at its best, she thought. But then something happened, something in Jellal clicked and he thought of a plan to let them escape that hellish place once and for all.
At the time it seemed like a full proof plan, to a desperate child. The two of them had thought nothing would be able to stand in their way, though in reality there was a lot. Jellal had been so confident in his idea and Erza would've followed him regardless. Unfortunately, some time before the planned day of their escape, three other children had gotten the same idea as them. They tried to hop the fence in the courtyard and long story short, Erza and Jellal saw the consequences of their soon-to-be actions up close. The children came back to them with bruised faces and arms, hardly the end of their punishment. The sight terrified Erza, but only fed Jellal's desire to leave.
They knew what would happen now if they were caught, but in the end they decided to go through with it. His logic had been "We have to at least try… right?" and she agreed.
On the night they planned to leave, many other children warned them not to go. They didn't want to see more friends being punished and some even shed a few tears. It almost made Erza stay. Almost.
Things had been going well for them. They made it out of the building without being caught, and even managed to steal some food on their way out. When they reached the fence, the only way out with a chance of them getting away unnoticed, things got dicey. Without their knowledge, the workers had put an alarm system along the fences ground, set to go off if someone touched it and of course, they did.
The blaring noise sounded without warning and sent Erza into a frenzied panic, looking to Jellal who was still calm but had a face full of urgency.
"Come on!" He had said to her, pulling her toward him so that he could lift her up, "You first!"
She took his help and began climbing the fence, waiting for him at the top before she jumped over. "Hurry! They're coming!" She had whispered urgently to him.
The boy had begun his climb and made to her easily. He'd smiled at her like they accomplished the great feat in the world and just as they jumped her clumsiness got the better of her. She fell back to where they came from just as he landed on the other side of the fence.
"ERZA!" He had screamed her name like she was dying, "ERZA!"
She bounced back up like a coiled spring and looked back at the building, noticing people were now starting to file out of it. It was too late for her, she knew.
She messed up.
"Go!" She had told him through the fence, "You have to go now! They're gonna go over there!"
"No way!" He refused, banging the fence as if it would fall down if he hit it enough times, "You have to come too!"
"No Jellal!" She had begun crying, "You know what'll happen if we both get caught! Just go! Please!"
He had gone silent.
But there wasn't time for silence, "Jellal! Go! Please just go!" She had pleaded with him.
He had banged his fist against the fence one last time, hard enough to break some wood and make his hand bleed, "I'm going to come back for you! I swear!"
Erza had laughed, wiping the snot and tears from her face, "I know."
Immediately after that she was grabbed by a female worker, and Jellal had already begun sprinting away.
Her friend had made it out and that was all that mattered to her.
A year had gone by after that and there had been no word from Jellal. It made her sad, of course, and the "I told you so!"s from the children were like salt in her wounds, but she had grown up a lot in that year. Her body had grown and so had her mind. Running away on her own seemed possible to her now.
And it was.
She escaped easily, the same exact way she tried that year ago. The alarm hadn't gone off and she made it out of there without a single screw up. Her first plan when she got out was to search for Jellal. If she could find him, if she could just find him, she thought everything would work out nicely. They could live together once again and be free to do whatever pleased them.
Only life outside the orphanage, she had no idea, didn't work the way you wanted it to.
Years passed by and Erza had become hardened. It was natural for someone who had to fight for a living. She knew there were other ways to go about making money, but fighting had become the one thing she knew she was good at. That and once she was a known figure in the underworld of illegal fight clubs, some people didn't exactly let her go about waitressing in peace. She tried it once. A fight had broken out in the place she worked and in result she was violently fired.
That was never tried again.
Her childhood/teenage story did have somewhat of a happy ending though. Somewhere along the line she met Makarov, a blessing hidden in a small, elderly man's body. He taught her things and took her under his wing, his wing being Fairy Tail Odd Jobs. She was amazed at the completely different environment he introduced her to. She hadn't thought a place like that was possible for her. It was easily the nicest thing anyone had ever done for her.
Also, something worth mentioning- Erza mentioned this every time someone asked her about Makarov- he had put an end to the abuse at her old orphanage. The second day into knowing him, she pleaded with him to report the workers actions, no one had ever believed her, and he did. He had a friend on the police force in her old town and made damn sure all those people were fired and never given a job with children again.
Life went on.
She was seventeen, years into her life with her new friends, when she ran into Jellal again.
The boss had sent her on a job in another town, and sure enough an unsuspected reunion played out between the two of them. She ran into him on a winding path into the town, she tended to walk instead of drive, and had almost dropped all of her things at the sight of him. The emotions she was feeling at that moment ranged from anger, to happiness, but the most prominent of all was love. It was an overbearing almost heartbreaking love for the man who looked just as shocked as she did.
It was him who made the first move, surprisingly. He ran up to her and pulled her into his chest, which was completely different from before. It wasn't supposed to be something that baffled her, given time will do that to people- she had been well endowed during the years apart herself, but it almost made her want to cry at how different he looked and felt. She didn't hesitate to wrap her arms around him but as she did it seemed like a switch flipped in her friends head and he pulled away.
Their reunion was short and she wished she could say sweet.
From the moment she looked into his eyes, she could tell he wasn't the same person. But neither was she.
By the way he talked to her and averted his eyes she could tell he felt guilty. That was the kind of person he'd always been and Erza didn't expect that to change. The teen didn't bring up their botched escape all those years ago and he didn't ask how she got out. They only spent a few hours together but it was enough for Erza to want to never let him out of her sights again. But it was too good to last, she supposed.
As they were parting she had given him her number, the warehouses address, and the apartments, hoping he would catch on and know she wanted to see him again. She guessed he didn't by how the days passed without word. Maybe he had seen through her façade and saw how desperate she'd been…
The woman gave a dry laugh and got up from her couch. Sitting there all day wasn't going to help and she had a job to get to in an hour so it wasn't like that was an option anyway.
Her past was a rough one and everything she had been and done was left there. The only thing she carried with her from back then was the one thing she wished she could leave behind the most.
She was in love with a fool.
Lucy raised her arms above her head and stretched, trying to get the sleepiness out of her system. It was one in the afternoon, peak heat, and for some reason the girl thought it was a good idea to take Plue out on a walk and explore the town a little- something she still hadn't done despite being there for a good while already. It wasn't the exploring she had a problem with, it was the fact it was extremely hot and she hadn't bought a sunhat yet.
The teen looked down at her companion and he didn't seem to mind it as much as she did, though she would have to stop by the pet store and get him a portable dog bowl for water soon. He just stood next her, they had taken refuge under a parks tree, wagging his tail and panting like the adorable puppy he was. And though he was adorable, Lucy had learned he was going to be pretty difficult to care for once he reached horse-size.
She thought it smart to stop by the local pet store and learn everything there was to know about raising a Great Dane, and man had she gotten an earful. Never had she known taking care of a dog was so much work, thankfully the woman there gave her all the info she needed so she was set on that front. Expense wise was a different story. But she'd deal with it. He was too cute to give away and the teen had already become attached to him so it was too late for that anyhow. The lady had also told her that he was around three and a half months old, so that was nice to know.
Lucy bent down and pet her friend, happy that he was already accustomed to her. For a moment she got lost in her thoughts as she stared into the small pond in the park. It'd already been a few days since she was accepted into Fairy Tail, a week to be exact, and she had spent every single one of them in Natsu's company. Well, not exactly in his company… like, it wasn't on purpose or anything. She had gone to the warehouse and he just happened to be there every day- which she learned a few days before that he normally was.
For once, truthfully, Lucy could say she was having a good time.
"Lucy?"
The teen looked up to see Erza calling out to her and waving as she came closer. She was wearing dark red jeans, a black V-neck undershirt, and a pair of dark combat boots. Her hair was tied up, no doubt due to the scorcher that was the day, and had a sword attached to her hip…
... ... ...
A sword?! Lucy thought, a little panicked. How has she not been arrested?
"If you're worried about my sword don't worry." Erza laughed at the display of concern on her blonde friends face, "I have a permit and the police around here know me quite well. The blade on this one is blunted anyway. No fatal damage, if I'm careful enough, can be done to anyone so fear not."
"O-oh… okay… Wait no, not okay." Lucy had to ask about it now; her curiosity was going to kill her if she didn't, "Why on earth are you carrying a sword around?"
Erza laughed again. It wasn't a question she heard scarcely, "For self-defense and for my jobs. I know how to use it, believe me."
"Oh I don't doubt that." Lucy freely admitted. The woman in front of her seemed like she'd know that kind of thing, "It's just so unusual to see… for me at least." The teen couldn't take her eyes off it. It was big, shiny, and very intricately decorated, she saw.
As Lucy was inspecting the weapon a little closer, Erza noticed Plue was there and immediately asked, "Would you like to trade for a moment?"
"Huh?" Lucy looked around for a second, "Oh! You mean Plue?" She laughed, "Of course! If it's alright with you."
"It seems like an even trade." Erza spoke, eager to get her hands on the cutest puppy she'd ever seen.
"Alright!" Despite being nervous about the weapon 0.054 seconds ago, Lucy was a little excited to hold it.
Erza carefully placed the sword into Lucy's hands and Lucy handed Plue's leash over to the woman, grinning at the way Erza was practically hopping in her spot.
"Hello again." Erza greeted Plue as she sat down in front of him, laughing when the puppy plopped himself down on her lap, "Do you remember me?"
"Man… this must've been expensive…" Lucy thought aloud as she weighed the blade in her hand, trying to experience what people in moves feel when they hold a sword for the first time.
"It was a gift from the boss. I didn't dare ask how much he spent on it." Erza replied, keeping her eyes on the little guy in front of her.
"Hiya!" The blonde couldn't help but swing it very, very, very carefully at least once.
Erza smiled but said nothing as Plue suddenly decided he wanted to go closer to the pond.
"Okay, okay." She sat up and walked with him, "I'm going."
A few minutes passed of them doing their own activities until Lucy suddenly called out to Erza with almost tangible tears in her voice. The woman looked back to her friend and saw that she was about to be handcuffed by an officer.
"Lucy!" Erza stifled a laugh at the teen's distressed expression, "Officer, just a minute!"
She quickly explained the situation and the cop immediately recognized her, looking a little intimidated the moment he did. She tried to give him her permit but he said there was no need and high tailed it out of there.
"Okay… that's enough of that." Lucy let out a deep breath and handed the sword back to its owner.
"You're sure?" She asked and attached the weapon back to her hip.
"Yup. I don't plan to be almost arrested twice in one day thank you." The blonde pushed her hair out of her face and set her hands on her hips, "I need to get back to what I was doing anyway. Would you like to join me?"
Erza was a little surprised at the invitation but accepted nonetheless, "Sure. What were you two doing?"
"I was just going to try and familiarize myself with the town. It'd be nice to have someone who actually knows where they're going along."
"Alright," Erza replied enthusiastically, "I'll show you my favorite bakeries! May I hold onto him a little longer?"
"Of course!" Lucy grinned and wondered to herself if what they were about to do could be considered a "girl's day out". If so, it would be her first and she'd be lying if she said she weren't overly-excited.
The three of them wandered the town, talking about different things as Erza showed her most of her favorite places. First up was her most frequented bakery, the man inside immediately greeted Erza and asked if she wanted the usual to which she replied she be going back later for, then a metal works shop that had quite the intimidating woman behind the counter, and then her favorite clothing store. It was a place that sold a lot of leather but had a wide variety of "cutesy" clothes as well. It was almost as if the store had been tailored to the redhead's exact taste.
Lucy had a wonderful time.
It was now five in the evening and they finally reached the warehouses' doors. There were people outside sitting at tables enjoying the shade the building offered, playing cards, drinking, and reading. The sight once again made Lucy feel at home though her home had been nothing like the place, not even when her mom was there. It was a peculiar thing and Lucy had decided, after hours of contemplation, that she'd never be able to figure out why it made her feel so comfortable.
"I'm sorry if that ended up taking longer than you expected." Erza apologized as they walked inside and took a seat at the bar, "It seems I got a little carried away showing you around."
Lucy shook her head and smiled, "No don't worry about it. It was fun and I got to see a lot of new places! I'm definitely going to go back to that bakery. It smells heavenly in there."
"It does, doesn't it?" Erza agreed with a proud smile on her face. She was glad someone else was praising her favorite bakery.
"What's the usual by the way?" Lucy asked as she waved at Mira who was trying to quickly finish taking an order so she could greet them, "That man seemed to know you well."
"O-Oh… it's just my favorite box of sweets, nothing too extravagant." That was a lie. Her "usual" was five slices of cheesecake and two soufflés- all of that for herself to be stuffed in her fridge later that night and consumed daily until she ran out.
"I see. I wonder if they make peanut butter and banana sandwiches…" Lucy mumbled to herself but discarded the thought knowing it was a bakery and not a café.
"Lucy! Erza!" Mira practically ran over to them after taking her order to the kitchen, "Nice to see you both, as always. Were you two on an outing?"
"Indeed we were." Erza replied and set her sword down on the counter.
"Ah, ah! You know weapons aren't allowed on the counter, Erza." Mira scolded.
"Tch."
"Don't click your tongue at me!" The white haired woman retorted, "It's the boss's rule!"
She didn't reply. She just placed it on the floor next to her so that it was leaning against the counter's base.
Mira nodded in approval and went on, "So? What were you two doing?"
"I accompanied Lucy on a walk around town."
"Oh that's nice." Mira nodded and suddenly got an idea, "We should have a girl's day out soon! That'd loads of fun!"
The blonde now knew her outing with Erza wasn't considered a "girl's day out". Not that she minded. It was fun even without the title, "I love to!" She agreed and her words put a big grin on Mira's face.
"I'll get to planning! Oh it'll be so much fun." She was already mentally scheduling all their activities in her head. "Would you guys like anything? A drink? Some food?"
"I'll take two waters please." She replied and looked down at the little guy who plopped himself down at her feet. It was safe to say they both got a good work out from walking around all day.
" 'Kay, two waters and Erza I assume you want your ususal?"
"Yes. Thank you."
Another usual…? Lucy thought idly to herself as she bent down to rub Plue on his crinkly head.
"Hey, Lucy! Didn't see you come in!" Natsu shouted across the warehouse as he stood up from his table and began jogging over to her. It was a lie. He saw her come in but he didn't know when it was a good time to walk up to her since she seemed to be in a conversation…
Lucy looked up and smiled at the teen as he came over, knowing what his reaction to Plue would be. She urgently whispered to her puppy, "Look, look! Who's that?!" and immediately his little body jumped up and spotted Natsu, barking happily at the sight of him.
"You brought this little death bringer?" Natsu grimaced as he finally approached them. He was teasing of course but a part of him instantly feared for the shoes on his feet.
"Death bringer?" Lucy laughed as he sat down next to her at the bar, picking Plue up and setting him on his lap.
"To all the shoes in the world, yeah." He spoke as if it was common knowledge and Lucy let it go.
Erza smiled fondly at the pair. It was nice seeing them together. Their relationship was already so natural in the short time they knew each other it was almost odd. No, it definitely was odd. A good odd though.
"Oh, Lucy!" Mira spoke as she came out of the kitchen holding a glass and bowl full of water, "I forgot to tell you the boss wanted me to send you up when you came in. Give this to him please Natsu." She handed the bowl over to Natsu and he set the pup down along with the water.
"Do you know what for?" She questioned.
"Ooooh. You've already gotten in trouble, huh?" Natsu spoke like a seven year old that was teasing their classmate for getting in trouble.
She ignored him and waited for Mira's reply.
"I think your ID's ready. I could be mistaken."
"Really?!" Lucy shot up off of her stool, "Natsu watch him for a second will you?" She all but shoved the leash into his chest and quickly abandoned her water in exchange for darting up the stairs to the office.
"Someone's excited." Natsu laughed and rubbed his chest where she practically punched him.
"Can't blame her." Erza smiled. "I remember when I first got mine." She touched her pant pocket where she kept it, "It was very exciting."
"Hell yeah. When I got mine the first thing I did was shove it in that cops face that tried to arrest me for no good reason and didn't believe I was a part of Fairy Tail. Felt damn good." Natsu wore a smug grin as he finished. That'd been a really good day for him.
"Natsu that was rude of you." Mira scolded, "Don't stoop down to their level. Be the bigger person."
"I know, I know." Natsu ceased with that conversation, knowing if he went on he was only going to get a lecture and instead turned his attention to Plue who'd almost finished half his bowl of water.
Mira didn't look convinced but left it alone and went back into the kitchen to check on Erza's order.
Lucy, who had run all the way up the stairs and down the hallway, came to an abrupt stop as she reached the large wooden door she'd only seen once before. She hoped to God it was her ID. The teen wanted nothing more than that piece of plastic that told her she belonged somewhere. It made her cringe with embarrassment when she thought of that reason for wanting it, but it was one-hundred percent true. It would be nice to officially belong.
She gave the door three quick taps with the back of her hand and received a "come in" right after.
"Ah, Lucy." Makarov acknowledged her as he stood on top if his desk, staring intensely at his ceiling, "Good to see you again."
"You… too…" Lucy greeted him and sat down, not bothering to ask what he was doing, "Mira said you wanted to see me?"
"She said correctly." He hopped off his desk and landed with a soft thud, then walked over to his desk and pulled an envelope out of its left drawer. "This is for you."
The old man handed the envelope to her and she took it with eager fingers, "Is this my ID?"
Makarov replied with smile that almost covered his entire face, "Indeed it is!"
The teen, upon hearing his words, practically tore it open and pulled out a plastic card that had her first name, a picture, and bright pink words that read "Fairy Tail Member" on it. Lucy beamed at the sight of it in her hand. A few days earlier she'd been pulled aside by the old man and told he was going to have to at least put her first name on the card, which she was fine with, and also asked what her favorite color was. Lucy guessed the questions' purpose was for the title. Her eyes skimmed the entire thing, admiring the way it looked. Even the picture he had suddenly taken of her on the day of her interview looked nice. The final result was amazing and everything she could have asked for.
"Thank you!" She made her gratitude known and looked up at her, now official, boss.
"No, thank you. It's always my pleasure to welcome someone into the business."
Lucy could only smile at the man. She wanted to really let him know how much it meant to her, but couldn't find the words.
"Now, there are a few rules I have to run by you." He spoke again as he went to sit down on the chair next to her, "They're simple enough and pretty much common sense, so I don't think you'll have trouble following them. One, you mustn't do anything that'll damage our name. In this case I mean illegal things and whatnot. I don't care if you mess up a job, that's your responsibility."
"Reasonable." Lucy agreed.
"Second, you can't take more than thirty jobs a week. I know, I know "who the hell would take more than thirty jobs a week?!"" he added when Lucy's face changed to one of disbelief, "No one does. It's Natsu's fault we had to add that one in. Boy went on a job frenzy one week and thus the rule was born."
Lucy laughed. She felt she should've known it was his because of him.
"Third, you have to take at least two jobs a week. This goes along with the common sense I was talkin' about. You have to work. Of course, you can be excused if you have a good reason."
She nodded.
"Fourth and lastly, you have to enjoy yourself." He finished with his arms crossed over his chest. One of his personal missions was to make sure that everyone who joined had a good time and felt like FT was a good environment for them.
"Got it. I'm already having a good time thanks to everyone." She grinned, "So the fourth, especially, shouldn't be a problem.
Makarov replied, "Well then, I won't keep you any longer. You should expect things to get rowdy when they learn you got your card so be prepared." He laughed knowingly and gestured to the door, walking her out when she got up.
"Thank you again." She said it one last time and left the office with a bubbly smile.
Lucy didn't waste any time in going back downstairs. Her first instinct was to show Natsu the ID the boss had graced her with. It wasn't unusual, she thought, to want to show him first. Right? He was the one who introduced her to the place after all. So she hurried down to rejoin her new friends but stopped at the bottom, feeling a little stunned at what she saw.
In the short time she'd been talking to the boss, which had only been a few short minutes, the warehouse had been filled with at least two times more people than before. It wasn't an unpleasant sight, in fact Lucy liked crowds- made her feel like a small part of something big, if that made sense- but due to the sudden influx of people Lucy couldn't spot her former company.
Plue was the first she found, unsurprisingly- he was being passed around and positively eating up the attention he was getting- but other than that the others she was looking for were nowhere to be found in the sea of people.
Maybe if I just walk through I'll find them… She thought to herself and was immediately proved wrong when she entered the bustling crowd.
After a minute searching, that was futile it turned out, she gave up and sat down at an empty table near the right side of the warehouse and just looked out into the crowd with her chin in her hand. The sight she was looking at was almost identical to the one she saw when she first came. The place was bustling with laughter, drinking, and a small fight between what looked like a body-builder and… Gray? Lucy immediately averted her eyes as the man stripped off his pants. Yup, that was Gray.
She was in the middle of placing a bet on who would win the fight in her head when suddenly Natsu came crashing into her table. His body seemed to have an almost visible buzz to it as he straightened himself out, and Lucy thought for a moment he might've been going into a seizure. But as he stood up and she got a better look at him she realized he was just really, very happy.
It was kinda cute.
"Hey! When did you come down?" Natsu sat across from her and adjusted his scarf, "Sorry about Plue by the way. Once people started comin' in I couldn't keep them off him."
"It's fine." Lucy laughed and looked over at the puppy who was being fed a cracker, "He loves it."
"So? What'd the old man want?" He asked, genuinely curious.
"Oh yeah. Hold on…" She fumbled with her skirt's pocket and pulled the ID out, eagerly laying it in front of him, "I finally got it!"
Natsu beamed at her excitement and picked the card up, inspecting it, "Nice!"
"Mm. I was told the rules and everything." She stated and put her elbows on the table, leaning forward just a little.
"All the rules…?" His mouth slanted into a slight frown.
"Uh-huh. I can't take more than thirty jobs a week." She teased, "How do you even take thirty jobs-?"
"Long story. Don't have time to explain it." He cut her off and stuck her ID in the air, "HEY GUYS! LUCY GOT HER CARD!"
The teen yelled into the crowd, gaining their attention and momentarily cutting off Plue's unending source of affection. Then without warning everyone broke out into cheers, roars, and yells, congratulating Lucy on joining them. The last time they'd done that they thought Natsu had finally gotten a girlfriend, an awkward memory for Lucy, but this time she was more thank welcoming the boisterous voices. So much so she thought she might shed a few tears. She didn't of course.
"So I was right! Congratulations Lucy!" Mira stopped by their table with a tray full of food balanced on her hip and spoke with vigor to the blonde, "It's going to be loads of fun having you around. I have to get these orders going but I'll stop by again later if you're here." She ruffled the girl's hair with a warm smile and was off, effortlessly balancing her tray while dodging the rowdy movements of some half-drunken folk.
"Congratulations." Erza came up behind her with a smile of her own and sat down next to the blonde, "Glad to have you with us."
"Thank you!"
Natsu grinned excitedly as more and more people came up to welcome Lucy into the family/business, with the exception of when Gray showed up wearing nothing but his boxers. The teen, he noticed, looked a little uncomfortable at first, well, not uncomfortable but… overwhelmed? He couldn't think of the right word. Anyway, after a few minutes her shoulders relaxed and her smile, the real one-he could already tell the difference, he was very observant actually-, spread larger across her face.
It made him happy.
Hours of drinking and celebrating passed eventfully. Natsu had introduced Lucy to the sport of barrel surfing, which she did not participate in, games were played among the sober people, clothes were somehow exchanged between the not so sober people, and the boss, who had thrown in the towel working while everyone else was partying, came down and started his usual drinking contest with Cana- plus anyone else that wanted to join in. Now that was around two in the morning and most people had either blacked out or gone home, Lucy stirred in her spot, waking up to the sound of a blender.
"Hmm?" The girl groaned and picked her head up off her table, squinting her eyes at her surroundings. Bodies lay unconscious, strewn across the warehouse and if Lucy hadn't known any better she would've thought she woke up in some human meat locker in a horror movie.
The girl blinked and tried to get a better grasp on reality, letting her dream world float away as she sat up. The warehouse was quiet, save for the few people that were still drinking, and Lucy took that with a grateful head. She wasn't full on drunk, but she did have a strong buzz. The only other time she had gotten drunk was on her seventeenth birthday. She snuck some wine out of their cellar and took it back to her room, practically pouring it down her throat as soon as she got it, a mistake she now knew but it tasted so good at the time. Given how she woke up the next morning, that was the last time she went near an alcoholic beverage. Mira, thankfully, had given her something that wouldn't betray her the next morning when requesting a drink.
She looked at her table which was made up of sleeping bodies, and then pulled her phone out of her pocket to check the time.
Two-thirty, huh…? She thought to herself but had the process interrupted when she felt something move next to her thigh.
The blonde looked down to see Natsu had made himself at home on the bench they were both on, his body curled inward as he slept on his side. Lucy kept quiet as the teen shifted to a more comfortable position, which didn't look comfortable at all- she was actually worried for his neck-, and let a deep breath out as he finally settled for one. The girl put her chin in her hand and got lost in his sleeping face. Rarely did she see him expressionless, so what was happening in front of her seemed almost like a treat.
Without thinking, the blonde stuck her index finger out and poked the teen's cheek, giggling when she saw his brows furrow and his mouth slightly tighten.
It took her three seconds to realize her actions.
Immediately her face reddened and she snatched her hand away, holding it firmly on the table.
Oh my god what am I doing?! You don't just go and touch people's faces while they're sleeping! Let alone someone you've only known for a little over two weeks! Though, it could be his fault that she felt so familiar with him. It was an odd ability he had, she decided six days into knowing him. He made people feel comfortable around him. Oh, don't blame this on him!
As she was about to get lost in her embarrassment and go out back to dig a grave for her fast beating heart, she heard Mira call her name from the bar. Her head shot up and looked over to the white haired woman, noticing she had that body-builder from earlier with her as well as her sister.
Carefully, she got up from her seat and made her way over to them, cautious not to step on any bodies as she did. "Does this happen often?" She asked as she plopped down on a stool, gratefully taking a glass of water Mira had poured for her.
"Oh, almost every night." Mira confessed, not at all fazed by the earlier event it seemed. "Though I think they went a little harder on the booze today."
"Every night?" She questioned, amazed a person could have the stamina to do that.
"Almost. Today's a Friday, or yesterday was, so that gave them a little more incentive to go at it. Including you getting your ID of course." She smiled and threw a wet towel over at the body-builder, "Can you start wiping down the bar for me Elfman?"
"Sure thing, sis." The man replied and went to his new task.
Lucy, for a moment, wanted to comment but left it alone. She figured they probably got the "YOU'RE RELATED?!" thing all the time.
"I should probably be getting home… Have you seen Plue?"
Mira chuckled, "He's dead asleep over by Wendy and Erza." She pointed to the trio, "He dozed off around the same time you did. I tried to get him next to you, but he wouldn't budge. I don't think he'll be waking up anytime soon. If you want I could look after him tonight? We have dog food stocked; we feed strays from time to time. You probably don't have the energy to carry him and he most definitely doesn't have the energy to walk." She laughed and took the empty glass from in front of Lucy, placing it in the sink.
"You'd think the little guy got drunk himself." Lisanna added as she passed by with a tray full of used plates and glasses, "Sis, you want this in the back?"
Mira nodded and Lucy replied, "That would be amazing… Wait… are you three cleaning by yourselves?" She questioned and looked around for others tending to the place, seeing none.
"We are." She confirmed and added, "But don't think about offering to help! You need to go get some sleep. We'll be done in thirty minutes anyway. That time includes sending these folk home."
"Are you sur-"
"Absolutely." She cut Lucy off and with deadly precision, took a used cork and threw it at Natsu's head, waking him up.
"Huh?! WHA-?!" The rosy haired teen sprung up from his sleeping position, almost falling onto the floor, "Wha's goin' on?"
"Natsu!" Mira called to him, "Come take Lucy home!"
"N-No, I'm fine. I can walk home by myself, really." The blonde tried to refuse the company, given she was still embarrassed about poking the guy's cheek, but to no avail.
"I'm sure you can but you're not going to." Mira showed off her iron will with a kind smile and Lucy knew she wasn't getting out of it. "It's late and Natsu's not doing anything anyway."
Well… he was sleeping…
"Okay… hold on," Natsu suddenly appeared next to Lucy, scratching his nose, "what am I being told to do?"
"You don't mind taking Lucy home, do you?" Mira asked and knew the boy wouldn't have a problem with it in the slightest.
"Oh. Sure." He looked down at Lucy to his left, noticing she looked very… focused? on something in front of her and went on, "We leavin' now or…"
"Yea-Yes." She replied and got up, saying a thank you to Mira and petting Plue goodbye before exiting the warehouse with Natsu trailing behind.
The blonde stepped out onto the street, thankful for the breeze that blew onto her still heated face. She knew there was nothing to be so embarrassed over, though one of the reasons it was still affecting her was probably due to the fact that she was still slightly drunk- she could tell by the way she kept on swaying as she walked. It also didn't help that the source of her embarrassment was walking less than a foot behind her and being oddly quiet- which didn't help her runaway thoughts any. God, she just knew that if natural causes didn't kill her one day then her overactive imagination would.
Natsu, who was also a little drunk himself, looked at Lucy's back, wondering what was up with her while also noticing how upright seemed. They'd been celebrating and laughing together not that long ago so he was confused as to why she seemed so reserved. Maybe she was a quiet drunk?
Of course, he just didn't know she was fighting a downhill battle with her head.
"You okay?" He finally asked after six minutes of them walking in silence, not being able to take the quiet anymore.
She turned her head to cast him a sideways glance, "Yeah. I'm fine. Just tired I guess."
Not completely buying it, Natsu sped up a little to match her pace and reach her side, observing her expression, "You sure?"
Lucy was quiet for a moment but then blurted out her next words without thinking, "Sorry…"
He raised a brow, "For what?"
"I yelled at you…" She was bringing up the argument they had the other day. Why now of all times? She thought to herself in frustration. The girl knew alcohol could make people a little loose lipped but never had she experienced it for herself.
"What are you talkin' abou- Oh. You mean when we got your bed?"
She nodded and Natsu couldn't help but laugh a little.
"I thought we settled that? I wasn't mad then and I'm not mad now."
"So?" She replied curtly, "Doesn't mean I can't still feel bad about it."
"It kinda does."
"Does not."
"Does too."
"Does not."
"Does too!"
"Are we really gonna do this?" She cut their five year old style argument short.
"Until you agree with me yeah."
"Fine! I won't feel bad about it anymore. Excuse me for caring about it."
Natsu chuckled at her expression. Her faced had twisted into a somewhat pouty look. "I didn't say you couldn't care about it. Just don't feel bad. That was what… a week ago?" He counted on his fingers.
"Okay, okay." She conceded and rubbed her nose, beginning to really feel the chill.
"Is that what was bothering you?"
Not really… Though it was something that had stuck to the back of her mind. "Yes…"
"Hm. You worry too much."
Understatement of the year… Lucy thought.
The rest of their walk went by slowly. They chatted about trivial things and for some reason had a contest of who could kick a rock they found the farthest. Natsu won. But only because Lucy was wearing a skirt and couldn't use her full strength, she had said. Natsu challenged her to a rematch on a day where she was wearing pants.
Lucy walked the steps up to her house and unlocked the door. She stepped in and Natsu followed behind, not thinking about his actions. They didn't register with Lucy either. She was too preoccupied with not falling over as she took her shoes off to really register she was letting him in.
"I'm gonna crash on your couch." He announced and flopped down on the piece of furniture.
" 'Kay." She replied and suddenly got an idea. The girl went to grab a glass of water, asking Natsu if he wanted some to which she received a "nah." and then exited the house from her backdoor, stepping onto her deck.
Lucy looked up at the sky and smiled.
The stars would always remind her of her mom. Some nights they would lie in her garden and just stargaze. Layla would teach her about all the different constellations, though to Lucy it sounded like her mom was speaking another language, but she didn't mind. The woman would always have the best expression on when looking at the stars. It was like she was constantly being amazed by them despite looking at them all the time. Lucy had once decided that her mom was at her most beautiful when talking about the stars.
Lucy, without taking her eyes off the sky, laid down on her deck and crossed her arms over her stomach, getting lost in the colors.
"What are you doing?" Natsu appeared in the doorway she left open, looking down at the girl with confusion.
"I thought you were going to sleep?" She replied.
"Well I was- oh, and thanks by the way. I just realized I didn't even ask to come in…"
"It's fine. You walked me over here at this hour. It would've been rude of me to send you back so late."
"Back to the question," He stepped onto the deck and walked over to Lucy, "what're you doing?"
"Stargazing." She replied simply.
In response Natsu looked up and noticed how well you could see the stars, "Woah."
"Yeah woah." Lucy was happy about his response. "Care to join me?"
He didn't reply. He just took a spot next to her and stretched his legs and arms out before getting comfortable.
After a few minutes of companionable silence, Lucy felt the need to ask, "Hey Natsu, do you believe magic's real? Not like the cheesy tricks you see on TV but real magic." She didn't know why she asked, only that it felt right to in that moment. Maybe seeing the starts was making her reminiscent of the time she asked her mom about it.
"I do actually." He replied. "My dad told me once that he thought love and stuff like that was magic. He gave me this really long explanation that gave me a headache but it made sense after a while. So yeah. Haven't thought about it in a while though. Why?"
Lucy couldn't respond for second but quickly gathered enough composure to say, "No reason. Just wondering."
She didn't dare say anything for the next four minutes.
The night went on and they fell into their usual banter before finally falling asleep, letting the stars be their blanket.
A/N: whoahoho~ where did that last line come from? so cheesy oh goodness. sorry it was too much for me to erase it. love it.
ANYWAY, sorry again for taking longer than usual. Once I finally got the urge to write I got sick... then when I got to around the middle of this I got sick again. Damn allergies. I'm actually still sick but I felt bad about how long the wait was getting.
I really hope you all liked the Erza/Jellal back story. I'd been thinking about what kind of history they'd have in an AU- gotta carry the angst over somehow- and that was what I came up with. I know it ended up bein' kinda long but I was super happy with it. Now I really wanna write a story with Erza bein' the queen of illegal fight clubs... Also for anyone wondering about where Happy was he was there at the warehouse. I forgot to write that in. I would do it now but my brain is about to shut down. I'll most likely write him into the next chapter. damn i feel a little bad about leaving him out now...
As for Lucy and Natsu :))))))) I wanted to connect them with the whole love is magic thing and have that be something special for Lucy. Also stars are a great bonding time device. Quick question, I know this is fiction and it doesn't really matter I guess, but does it seem off to any of you that they're so comfy with each other already or is it something I'm over thinking? Should I ease off the friendliness a little? I know people can click easily and quickly, but I'd love to know what you think. Your opinions and feedback meant the world :) As always thank you for reading and reviewing. I hope you enjoyed.