A/N Hello everyone! I am here with another chapter. Yay! Thank you to Coolanime14, Dyeni, Darkwarrior1010, Guardian of Heaven, Bentears, Ebon fire Red waters, and FairyTail123 For reviewing! It means a lot to me!

One last thing, I have been asked by a friend to write a Fairy Tail and Ghost Hunt crossover. Since I was already going to be writing it, I was curious to see if people wanted to read it. I have a poll set up on my profile to see if I should post it in this site or not. Please let me know what you all think. Thank you!

Chapter Five: Home

Lucy woke up when the train came to a stop in Magnolia station. If woke up was the right term. It was more like she was startled by the not so gentile shaking that Orga gave her. When she felt it, her body went into overdrive and she had aimed her 'Lucy Kick' at him. Only his reflexes were much better than Sting's, so he easily deflected it.

"Maybe I should go home before the guild. I could use a bath," Lucy nervously mused as she started to turn away from the guild. She also wanted to change out of the ball gown. It was attracting a lot of attention, and she didn't need that at the moment.

But as fate would have it, one impatient lightning god slayer was not going to let her do that. "No, you go to the guild so that we get to go home faster." He grunted at her as he took her arm and none too gently pushed her along the path that lead to the guild hall.

Lucy groaned and sagged, her shoulders slumping as she leaned a little too far down than what was deemed appropriate for that type of strapless gown. Not that she cared. She was raised in gowns such as the one she had on, if she wanted to, she could have exhibited pristine posture with ease. It was just because she was rebelling against the god slayer ahead of her that she slumped the way she did. It was also helping the hide the nervousness that she felt.

She had no idea how the guild was going to react. She knew that Levy would hug her so hard her lungs wouldn't be able to bring in oxygen, Natsu and Gray would also hug her but not as hard, Erza would smash her head into her armored chest, and that would hurt a lot, and Mira would welcome her back with a smile and a strawberry shake. Just the thought of those guys made her smile. But she didn't know how the guild as a whole would react. They could be really hard to predict at the best of times.

As if sensing her distress, a small poof of sparkles happened and Lucy felt a comfortable weight on her shoulders. Draco had finally decided to come out.

"I just want to let you know that I talked with that lion of yours, and he suggested that I not be there right away. Something about dragon slayers and their tendency to over react at anything dragon related." He reported in a lazy voice.

Lucy laughed a little at that. It was one way her nervousness could start to dissipate, and the dragon spirit knew that she need a good laugh. "Then maybe you should come out tomorrow after they get used to me being back. I'm sure that they will love to meet you, Wendy especially." She said.

With a nod and a toothy grin, the dragon shimmered back into the spirit realm. His words had helped greatly, but she was still very nervous. They had been without her for three months; they were bound to over react in some way.

Within a few minutes she was standing in front of her guild doors with the two Sabertooth mages flanking her. They both planned on going in too. Orga was hungry, so he figured that the least Fairy Tail could do to repay him for escorting Lucy back was feed him. Yukino rather liked Fairy Tail, and so she wanted to socialize a bit.

Standing straight, Lucy fixed her dress before she reached out and opened the door. She expected to see the guild in its usual brawl, but what was actually there drove her to tears.

Loke had told the guild she was on her way back, and so they had gone into party readying mode. Across the beams on the ceiling they had hung a banner that read 'Welcome Home Lucy' and everyone was silent when she entered, no doubt the dragon slayers had smelled her coming, and had cheered the moment they saw her.

Sure enough, after taking two steps into the guild, a blue and orange streak bombarded her and hugged her with so much emotion that not only could she not breathe, but she was forced to the floor. Not that Lucy cared; she wrapped her own arms around the shorter girl and hugged back just as tightly, deciding that she would live without air for a minute or two.

"Let her breathe shrimp," an all too familiar voice said gruffly. Levy untangled herself from Lucy and shot a glare at the iron dragon slayer.

When the spirit mage looked over to him to nod thanks, she could see the amusement in his eyes. But he returned her nod with one that welcomed her back. Not that anyone could tell that was what it meant but her. He had kept his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

Lucy almost didn't catch the blue blur that rammed into her breasts screaming incomprehensibly about fish and crying his eyes out. She stood up while she cuddled with the exceed, happy that she could do something for him. After a few more seconds he left to tell Carla how happy he was that Lucy was back, even if the white exceed had been there the entire time.

And next up was her team. Natsu and Gray were literally tripping over themselves to get to her. Much to the amusement of everyone, they both got to her and hugged her at the same time.

Tears of happiness were flowing down Lucy's cheeks as she accepted the warm and cold embraces. More than anything, even if she hadn't known she was gone for three months, she could feel the love radiating from everyone in the guild. It was a love that touched her deeply, and seemed to lighten her soul.

Natsu and Gray were suddenly and violently pounded to the ground as the Titania of Fairy Tail crushed Lucy's head into her armor. Lucy had the foresight to close her eyes right before impact. With a smile she thought that so far everything had happened just as she thought it would.

Pulling away from the Erza, Lucy continued to walk in. Something in the back of her throat had seemed to stop her from making any other sound besides a laugh here and there.

Nodding to everyone who greeted her, and ignoring the various nicknames given to her (Blondie, Bunny Girl, Cos-player) she made her way to the bar. Her face lit up anew when she saw Mira standing there, a strawberry shake sitting on the counter.

"Welcome back, Lucy," the bar maid smiled.

Lucy stopped at the bar and looked at everyone once over. She then saw Master Makarov was standing right next to her. Looking at his silly grin and that stupid hat that he always wore, Lucy managed to clear her throat of the offending lump.

"I'm home," She said solemnly, her eyes radiating warmth.

There was a burst of cheering, and the party started in full swing. Yukino and Orga had the sense to stay at the bar with Lucy and away from the side where Cana had started a drinking game. The rest of Fairy Tail could care less that there happened to be two tigers in there with them. But Makarov had done the right thing in thanking them for bringing Lucy home.

Orga was pleased when Mira gave him enough food to satisfy a slayer of any kind before he had to ask. Even if he liked the food back at Sabertooth, he did admit that Mira's cooking wasn't half bad. Mira took the praise with a radiant smile as always.

Team Natsu, and Wendy who was now staying as close to Lucy as possible, had surrounded the celestial spirit mage, and were now going to get some answers. The master, who was sitting on the bar, was also close enough to where he could ask questions as well.

"Lucy, where have you been? We looked everywhere!" Natsu started the questions with a pout. Now that he was no longer scared that she was in danger, he was depressed that it had to have been Sting and Rogue that found her. They would probably hold it under his nose the next time he saw them. Which, thinking about it, should be at the next GMG that was coming up in a month.

"Sorry," Lucy said as she rubbed the back of her neck, "it really has only been a day for me."

This time, the mages around her caught the deeper meaning in the words she spoke. They all seemed to breathe in at that and lean back as they waited for the rest of what they knew would be an interesting explanation. The reaction only worked to intensify the confusion and curiosity in the Sabertooth mages. They both really wanted to know why that little fact happened, and why the other fairies seemed to know what she meant when she said that. Also why it seamed o be so important to everyone there.

"That would have been your third meeting with the Spirit King, right?" Gray asked. Of course he went straight for the million jewel question.

Yukino gasped, forgetting that she was drinking at the time, and found herself choking on her drink. She just couldn't believe what was just said.

Orga, being the insensitive brute that he was, zapped his fellow guild mate with his black lightning to stop the choking. The sad thing is that it worked. And so Yukino looked up at him with a grateful look in her eyes that he simply grunted at. That was enough for the white haired mage to know he cared.

Turning to Lucy, who had been watching her with some concern, she asked "You have met with the Celestial Spirit King?"

Laughing nervously and scratching the back of her head, Lucy replied "Well, I kind of met him when I saved Loke. He had been banished from the celestial realm, and I somehow managed to convince him to give him another chance! And then after the seven year skip, he and the rest of my spirits invited us over to the spirit world. That was when we learned that a day in the spirit world equals three months here."

By the time she was finished explaining, she was rendered uncomfortable by the look that Yukino was giving her. It was a mix of awe and admiration that made her understand how Gray sometimes had to deal with Juvia. She didn't really like being looked t in awe. Not when she saw herself on equal footing with the other mage.

Thinking that she still wanted out of the dress she was in, and wanting to go home to her bed, Lucy suddenly had a realization. "Oh my God! What about my apartment? I haven't paid rent for three months!" She practically yelled as she stood up quickly.

Mira and Master laughed at her. Then Erza said "Lucy, we have taken care of it! Consider it a welcome home present from us to you."

Lucy was moved. They did all of that for her? Wiping her eyes before any tears had the chance to come out, she murmured her thanks before leaving the guild.

She didn't know that the Sabertooth mages were still at the guild.

The two powerful lightning mages (Laxus and Orga) were drinking together and talking about when they could have a real fight between them to see who was the stronger one. Even ig Laxus won last time, Orga thought that now that he knew how strong the dragon slayer was, he could win. Both also seemed to be blissfully unaware of the gigantic fight that Natsu had started in the guild that was now getting even rowdier.

Master Makarov smiled at the chaos that ensued before him. He knew that he would be lecturing them later about the destruction they were causing, but for now he was just relieved that the guild seemed to be back to normal. And just that thought made him smile even wider.

Yukino had been scribbling on a piece of paper since she came back from a quick walk that she took just a second ago. No one really paid any attention to her, and she was fine with that. With her heart feeling both heavier and lighter, she handed the note over to Mira in the think envelope and asked "Could you give this to Lucy-san tomorrow? I think that it is about time we left."

Mira nodded with a smile. Smiling herself, Yukino grabbed Orga and both of the Sabertooth mages went back to the station so that they could go home.

Back at her apartment, Lucy had just gotten out of the nice long bath she had prepared for herself. She sighed as she got herself ready for bed. Though it had not seemed like it at the time, it had been a really long day for her.

Right before she snuggled into her blankets, she felt a small weight on her bed next to her. Peeking through one eye told her that it was her newest dragon spirit. All of that known, Lucy fell sleep with a bright smile on her face. She felt loved and protected as the nothingness of sleep claimed her.

In the mountains outside of Fiore:

A loud rumble could be felt on the mountain side. An avalanche bombarded the top of the mountain as the stone walls of the prison finally crumbled away. The groan and shuttering of the mountain rocked though to the summit. It would have disturbed any humans living nearby, however, a deep seated instinct that lived within the people of this region kept them away from the mountain for some reason.

Pale eyes that had been trapped in the darkness for almost a thousand years blinked at the light. It hurt to look into the brightness of day. Lungs expanded to take in the first real breath of fresh air that it had gotten for the longest time. Ears listened to the howling of the wind and the far away sounds of birds.

Pale skin stretched as a sharp toothy smile come onto its face. It had been three months ago that he had felt the first pulse. He waited patiently for the second. He knew if he had felt it, that it would be time. And he was rewarded.

Knowing it was finally time to rid himself of the long rusted chains that used to hold him immobile, he had begun his desecration of the prison that woman had put him into so long ago. After a day of work, he was finally freed of the cavern. His magic once again replenishing, he now just needed to wait until his body adapted to the world outside once again.

"Little Lucy Heartfilia, so it is you. I can feel your magic. It is about time that I come for you, wouldn't you say?" He smirked at the thought. "Time to come out of your nightmares and into your waking life," he cackled.

Pure evil and malice dripped off of him as he sat in the sun. Pale and sensitive skin was only just getting used to the warmth that it brought. Now was not the time to get to the precious little mage. He knew that he had to plan out his attack.

He knew that he would need her alive at the very least, but only for a little while.

The Celestial Spirit Realm:

The king paced in his quarters. He knew the gamble that he had been taking when he offered Lucy the chance at the two silver keys. He also knew that it was better for it to be her than any of the other mages that shared the same type of magic. This way, the advantage was in his hands. It wasn't as if she wasn't going to reach this same level with the addition of a few other keys anyway.

He had given her the drink that was supposedly a test, but honestly, the test had truly been the barrier that had blocked the cave entrance. The liquid was simply water that was brought down from the spirit realm. The barrier had been what had caused her increase in magic. It was designed that only those with love in their pure hearts and celestial magic running through their veins could enter, and if deemed fit by the king, they would leave to gain in strength and power.

The occupants of the spirit realm were not made aware of where the barrier was, so as not to give a mage an unfair advantage. That was why Leo had reacted adversely to the increase in power. It had been far too long since the king had found a human with the right heart and the right magic. It had been when she had risked her own safety for that of the leader of the zodiacs that he had taken a keen interest in her.

He didn't doubt that she would be a strong ally when the need arose.

When he felt the very walls of their realm tremble, he knew that the prison had finally failed. It had lasted so long that it didn't surprise the king when it did fall. He was surprised that it had taken almost an entire day for the walls to fail and for the monster within to be released.

Before him stood a few of the spirits that had made contracts with the blond human girl. They knew what was being forced onto their master, and they were worried for her well being. But at the same time, there was a sense of pride in knowing that their master was deemed worthy enough by the king for this situation.

"You must prepare her for the coming fight." He announced. As the others nodded and it looked as if they wanted to say something he added "But, you must not tell the human girl what she is being prepared for."

Shock greeted him as the spirits digested his words. They all hated keeping things from Lucy. But they would obey the king.

A/N thank you all for reading. Please review, fav, and follow! And please vote in the poll if you are interested. Thanks for reading, until next time, Snowleopard314

Also, this is the last of my rough draft chapters that I had almost prepared. So my updating might be a bit longer from now on. Just giving you guys a heads up!