Lost and Found

notes: we made it. thanks to everyone who stuck with me. i updated this story much more regularly than i've ever updated anything, LEGIT, so it's a little misleading. i apologize to those of you who decide to follow my later multi-chaptered stories; i can almost guarantee 100% they will each take at least half a year to finish, unless they're short. but ya know. xP anyway, i hope you all enjoyed yourself as much as i did on this journey! in the end, it's more about lucy's self-discovery than the lucy-natsu-lisanna love triangle. i apologize. but don't forget to let me know if you'd like an epilogue! that will definitely be full of fluff.

/found

I arrive early in the morning, because a plane ride from Hargeon to Magnolia takes barely an hour, and I check into Magnolia Hotel again, feeling a mild sense of deja vu and irony. In the end, I still come back here.

I dress in boring colors and wear sunglasses and a baseball cap, my ponytail pulled through the hole in the back. If I stay outside for any length of time, I know someone is bound to recognize me eventually but this will hopefully help extend that time. I want to see everyone, but I also don't. Still, my top priority is to see my father and straighten things out with him.

I walk around and happen to see Virgo exit a shop, bowing at the door. My eyes widen when I see Elfman waving and I quickly hide behind a wall. I wait for Virgo to be a good distance away before running to catch up to her in a very roundabout way so I don't suspiciously zoom past Elfman's store.

"Virgo!" I hiss from a shadowy corner. She stops and looks around. "Virgo, over here!"

Her eyes widen fractionally when she notices me and she hurries over. "Miss Lucy, where have you been? Are you alright? I've been looking for you all week."

"I heard," I say dryly. "My father sent you, correct?"

"Yes, Miss Lucy."

"Did he mention why he wants to see me after disowning me?" I cross my arms over my chest.

She bows her head. "No, Miss Lucy, he did not. Will you punish me?"

"No!" I snap, cheeks turning red even though no one is here. "Why do you always ask that? Anyway, let's go see my father. I have to speak with him too."

We hurry to the manor, ducking around corners and tiptoeing behind buildings. Virgo doesn't ask why we have to be sneaky and I'm thankful I don't have to explain anything to her.

There are a few close calls—if Mira had turned just a split-second earlier, or if Erza hadn't been so immersed in her strawberry cake, or if Gray hadn't bent over to pick up his clothes at right that second—but we make it to the manor unscathed and unnoticed.

Virgo starts walking forward but I call out, "Wait! Just...gimme a sec." She nods and I close my eyes taking a deep breath. Calm down, calm down, you can do this. I open my eyes and nod determinedly at her. "Okay. Let's go."

I step through the large double doors and the first person I see is Spetto, one of my former maids. She freezes at the sight of me for a second before bursting into tears and launching herself at me.

"Oh, Miss Lucy! You're safe! You're back!" She pulls back and looks at me, fretting over my non-designer clothes.

"It's nice to see you too, Spetto," I laugh, brushing her hands away from my skirt.

The commotion brings Bero, Ribbon, Aed, and Capricorn over. They all gasp and run at me with open arms.

I back away nervously. "Um, hold on now—"

"Miss Lucy!" Aries and Taurus cry out as they race down the hall and my eyes widen.

"Now, wait just a min—ARRRGH!"

I'm being squeezed to death in the middle of an enormous and emotional group hug. This is not how I thought I would die.

"Can't—breathe—" I wheeze pitifully and the pressure disappears in an instant. I stagger around, trying to maintain balance as I take in long drags of sweet air.

"Decided to come running back, didja brat?" A harsh voice cuts through to my ears.

I look up and smile. "Aquarius!"

She sneers and stomps over to yank painfully on my ear. "Why'd you come back, you little spoiled brat?"

I yelp in pain as she gives one last powerful tug on my ear before letting go. I quickly attack her with a brief hug and then leap away from she can pummel me for the act of affection. "Heard Father's been looking for me so I thought I should come back and settle things with him."

She snorts and crosses her arms. "Hmph. Finally grew yourself a backbone, didja?"

I beam at her and she curls her lip. "Yup! I've been doing a lot of growing since I left! But where's Father? I want to get this over with as soon as possible."

"I'm sorry, Miss Lucy, but don't you want to clean yourself up first? Sorry!" Aries squeaks, ducking her head.

"Don't apologize," I scold warmly. "But no, I'd rather not be here any longer than I have to be. Is he in the study?"

"You betcha, Miss Luuuuucy!" Taurus crows, ogling my chest. I fold my arms over it and he pouts.

"Thanks. Wish me luck, everyone! Thank you for the warm welcome!" I smile at them all again before walking briskly down the familiar halls to my father's study. It seems to be the only room he actually uses, aside from his bedroom, and I'm not even sure about that one anymore.

Standing before the large oak doors, I gather my composure and put on my cool, calm, and collected mask. When I feel ready, I raise my fist and rap sharply on the door. Knock, knock.

"Who is it?" my father's voice snaps.

"Lucy."

Silence. Then: "Come in."

I open the door and step into the dimly lit room, blinking a little to adjust my eyes before taking in the form of my father, seated majestically in his large chair in front of his desk.

"I see you've finally come to your sense," he says stiffly, glancing at me for only half a second, as if he can't bear to look at me for any longer or he'll catch my rebellious nature. "Good. I've managed to hold off the engagement until you returned, so tomorrow you will—"

"No."

His eyes snap to mine, narrowed and threatening. I struggle to remain emotionless. Don't let him scare you, Lucy. You're different now, stronger. You don't need to yield to him anymore.

"What did you say?" he demands, his voice murderously quiet.

"I said no, Fa—Jude." My voice is firm but not rude, unyielding but not harsh, and yet he recoils in shock. "I'm not going to do what you say any longer. You don't own me. In fact, you disowned me. And I am completely fine with that."

His face is thunderous. "You—you—ungrateful brat! Not only did I disown you, but I also disinherited you! You will not receive any portion of the Heartphilia fortune!"

I shrug. "Fine by me. I wouldn't know what to do with all that money anyway. Freedom has always held much more appeal to me than money. If you were truly my father, you'd know that."

His fists are clenched tightly by his sides. His entire frame is trembling with anger, trying to suppress it to maintain some semblance of dignity but there's no point. I lost respect for him ages ago.

"Get out!" he roars. "Get out, get out, get out! I never want to your face again, you—you—"

I turn and stride to the door, gait steady, back straight, head high. I am proud of who I am without the Heartphilia name. My hand on the doorknob, I'm ready to leave when a thought hits me. My eyes meet Jude's again. "Oh, that's right. You will extend the option of terminating their employment with you to all of my previous personal attendants. That includes Spetto, Bero, Ribbon, Aed, Virgo, Aquarius, Capricorn, Aries, Loke, and Taurus. Should they choose to leave, you will not impede their efforts to find a new position in any way. Is that clear?"

"You have no right to give me orders!" he snarls.

I sigh long-sufferingly. "If you insist on being so stubborn, I will have no choice but to accidentally leak to the media just how much money you have saved in secret funds. I'm not nearly as ignorant as you've always believed." And with that, I turn the knob and sweep out of the door, pleased by my dramatic exit.

I walk confidently down the halls past several doors before making an abrupt turn and collapsing against the wall, chest heaving. "Oh Mavis, I can't believe I just did that. I can't believe I just gave Jude Heartphilia an ultimatum!" My incredulous laughter bounces off the walls.

Being in the manor, and especially dealing with him, always drains the energy out of me. But now that I know everything is truly over, there's a huge sense of relief washing over me as well.

"Princess?"

My head whips up and a smile automatically finds its way across my face. "Loke!"

"Princess!" He sweeps me up and spins me in the air, making me laugh and grip onto him. "It's been so long! How have you been? You look as beautiful as ever!"

"I've been well, Loke. How about you?" He sets me down on my feet but doesn't let me go, like he's afraid I'll disappear again.

"I've been worried about you," he murmurs seriously and I feel the guilt rushing through my veins because Loke is never serious. "When you left...I tried to find you and I heard you became friends with Natsu."

I stare at him in surprise. "You know Natsu?"

He nods. "Yeah, long story. Tell you some other time. He's a good guy and his friends are good people too, so I thought you would be fine. But then I heard you disappeared." His grip on me tightens. "I...I thought the worst had happened—"

"Shh, Loke, it's okay. I'm sorry I worried you." I hug him tightly. "I'm sorry I worried all of you. But don't worry about me, I'm fine. I made lots of great friends." I smile up at him. "I'm happy."

And I realize it's not a lie. Despite the heartache I've been through, I don't regret anything that happened. I'm happy with my life now.

All this time, I thought I was looking for a reason. But I think...I think I was really looking for myself. For the person I can be, now that I'm out of my father's control.

I'm happy with who I am now.

I squeeze Loke around the waist one more before stepping away and grinning at him mischievously. "Say, Loke. Do you still happen to have all the information on my father that I dug up a few years ago?"

He raises his eyebrows behind his sunglasses but nods. "I do. Why?"

My grin widens. "Let's just say the media is gonna have a field day."

I leave the manor soon after tearful goodbyes to everyone and promises to keep in touch and visit soon. I've informed them of the stipulations I gave Jude and told them to let me know as soon as they've settled, whatever their choice may be.

I walk along the edge of the river, arms spread out to my sides for balance, face turned up to enjoy the warmth of the sun. A smile dances on my lips and I feel like I could fly—finally free. I make my way to a secluded area a little ways away from Magnolia and push through the heavy, wrought-iron gates of Magnolia Cemetery.

I wander around until I find it. Dusting off the headstone and laying the wildflowers I picked in front of it, I sit down and hug my knees to my chest, tears blurring my eyes as I look at my mother's grave.

"Hi Mom," I say, and then I break down crying.

It takes a while for me to settle down, but I've got all the time in the world now. So I sniffle and rub my eyes and play with the grass before I finally open my mouth to speak.

"Hi Mom," I start again. "It's been a while since I last came to visit, hasn't it? I'm sorry about that. I swear I didn't forget about you! I've just been...busy, I guess. Busy living away from Father."

My heart cramps dully as I think of the man who used to be my father. "I'm sorry I couldn't save him, Mom. After you left, he buried himself into work and I just...wasn't enough. Maybe I didn't try hard enough."

I shake my head. "Either way, Jude Heartphilia is not the man you loved and married, not anymore. He's not"—my voice wavers and I pinch myself to keep myself from crying again—"he's not Daddy anymore." I can't stop my voice from cracking.

"Was it my fault, Mom? Do you blame me?" The tears are flowing freely now and I choose not to stop them. "I tried but—but he didn't love me enough, I guess. I don't know. Is it bad that I feel like he's already gone? That he died the same day you did? Because that's kind of how I feel."

I watch the breeze weave through the grass and listen to the birds chirp. "Is it okay that I'm happy now? Happier. I met the most amazing people, Mom, you would have loved them. I never would have met them if Father hadn't disowned and disinherited me." I laugh bitterly. "How ironic. I guess I have to thank him."

I lay my head on my knees and close my eyes, ignoring the wetness. "I fell in love too, Mom. Can you believe it? He's got pink hair and the darkest eyes I've ever seen, and he's funny and sweet and thoughtful and reckless and silly and oblivious and I—I love him. I really do. But he has this awesome best friend that he's known for, like, fourteen years, maybe fifteen now, and they have the strongest bond I've ever seen. And shes loves him too—for a lot longer than I have. And I'm pretty sure he loves her back, even if he doesn't know it yet."

I smile at the thought of Natsu and Lisanna. They really are amazing to have known and loved each other for so long. I whisper, "I'm jealous, Mom. I want that with someone. Is it stupid of me to be jealous?"

There's no answer, of course, but a warm breeze sifts through my hair. I sigh. "Maybe this isn't it. Maybe there's still someone waiting for me out there..."

My eyes slip closed again and the wind is so soothing, lovingly blowing around me like my mother's comforting fingers. I fall asleep to the sound of gentle laughter.

I'm shaken awake by something warm nudging me in the side. It pushes me so hard I fall over on my side, flailing weakly as I open my eyes and realize how dark the sky is. I sit up and look for the perpetrator. "What the—Plue! Oh, Plue, I've missed you!" I wrap my arms around the little white dog and snuggle him to my chest tightly. "How have you been?"

He squirms against me and I plant a sloppy kiss on his head before setting him down. "How did you find me? Never mind. We should go, it's late!" I jog out of the cemetery with one last wave at my mother's grave, Plue trotting happily behind me.

I swing my arms as I make my way back to Magnolia's streets, illuminated by the warm glow from the streetlights. I remember that I have yet to say hi to Levy. "Tomorrow," I decide, smiling down at Plue who's rubbing himself against my leg.

Feeling hungry, I look around for somewhere to eat. A flash of pink catches my eye and I dart away on instinct. "Natsu?"

Peeking around the corner, I'm both relieved and disappointed to find that he's not there. Sighing and feeling embarrassingly paranoid, I cross the street to a little eatery. It's quaint and cozy, tucked into a corner, so I've never noticed it before. This also means that I'm not likely to run into anyone I know.

Plue in my arms, I enter the place and greet the waitress. "Good evening—"

I stop. Because there, at a table by the window, is Lisanna. And she's noticed me.

She stares at me for a solid minute, eyes wide, mouth open, body frozen. Then she jumps up and practically lunges at me.

"Lucy! You're—you're here! You're back!" She hugs me and I awkwardly hug her back with one arm, the other still holding Plue. The waitress shuffles around, not sure what to do.

Sorry, I mouth at her. Just a sec.

Pulling away, I giggle and say, "Hey Lisanna! Why are you crying?"

Even sobbing and furiously wiping her eyes, she looks adorably sweet. My chest twinges, but it's bearable. It's a good kind of pain, one that tells me I'm human and selfish even while being happy for my friend.

"Y-you know w-w-why!" she blubbers. "How c-could you j-j-j-just leave like th-that!"

"I sent you a letter, remember?" I rub her back to soothe her.

"It was stupid!"

"You're right," I agree. "It was. But I also called you later."

"But you wouldn't tell me anything!"

I gaze at her as she tries to stop her tears while hiccuping and glaring at the ground. It's a surprise to see her without Natsu. "Where's Natsu?"

She finally looks at me, right in the eyes. "Moping."

I laugh at that and suddenly I know everything is going to be fine. Maybe I won't get the happy ending I want; maybe there's still heartache in store for me, but these are the people who found me and gave me a home. I shouldn't be running from them. I should be here, in Magnolia, spending every possible minute with them.

So I hug her again and say, "Alright. I'll tell you everything."

...and that's a wrap!

© Copyright 2015 by The Siege