Lucy craddled the key in her hand. Watching it. She didn't want to part with it in fear she might never get it back. "Are you ready Ana?" The man said leaning down to level with his daughter. Lucy looked uneasily at her. Taking a deep breath she clenched the key holding it close to her.
The man held out his hand ready to obtain the silver key. "I want to do it..." Lucy mummbled. The man looked shocked at her. "Lucy that wasn't part of the job. We were told to get the key for him." Natsu explained as if she didn't remember.
"Her case...Its sever right?" Lucy asked, ignoring Natsu. Ana looked up at Lucy but only for a moment before digging her face back into her book. The man nodded. "How many keys do you have. If you don't mind me asking."
"I have two." The man stated pulling to keys from a near by drawer. Lucy knew one was The little doggie, Nikora, and she wasn't sure about the other one on first glance. She lifted her ring of keys from her belt to display nearly 17 keys. "I don't mean to be rude but I feel if I contract with her, her magic might have a greater effect on Ana." Lucy stated but she felt wronge as she said it. She didn't want to make him seem weak, she only wanted to help the little girl. But deep down Lucy knew that, for her own selfish reason, she wanted to contract with her so she would have an excuse to leave with her key on Lucy's hip.
The man sigh and he knew Lucy was right. He couldn't be selfish, if there was even the slightest possiblity that he wasn't strong enough...
His thoughts raced and he just looked from Lucy and at his daughter. He nodded as if to okay her request. Natsu stepped back from Lucy. She held the key out infront of her, gripping it tightly as she began to chant. As she did a golden glow appeared around her and she seemed to be engolfed in a worlpool of magical energy.
"Now, Spirit, I command that you hear my call, pass through the gate!" Lucy tossed the key up and as it spun she grabbed it, slashing it through the air. "Open, gate of the Wilting Aid, Heribus!"
The young girl in the blue dress appeared before them and she had excitment plastered across her face. She looked up and her face fell into a puzzled expression. "Lucy?"
"Yea...I kinda owe you an explanation." Lucy rubbed her arm uncomfortably. "My name is Lucy Heartfelia. I was trying to trick Wayli and I apoligize for lying to you." As she said this her cheeks grew red with embaresment. "It okay miss but if you don't mind me saying..." She looked down at her innocently pigon toed stance before continuing. "Its just I knew you had to be Heartfelia because Leo has always told me how beautiful you are and well...Your to pretty to have a an ugly name like 'Dragneel'" Heribus said shyly.
Natsu ran up to the girl yelling at her about how rude she was. "Natsu!" Lucy yelled to be heard over him. He turned to her but she could tell if she didn't speak quickly he would just continue his rampage. "Your making her cry!" She stated gesturing to the little girl wailing into her hands. She ran to Lucy, digging her face into her stomach. She came up to about thathight on Lucy and her small child like hands clung to the soft fabric of Lucy shirt. She ran her fingers through her dark hair and pulled her off of her.
"He didn't mean to scare you he's just a little energetic today." She said to calm xher down. "Look..." Lucy took a deep breath leaning down and leveling with her. She placed a hand on each of her shoulders so she would look her in the eye.
"We really need your help right now. Do you think you could help us?" The girl wiped her tears and nodded with a sniffle. Lucy leaned in a began whispering into her ear. Natsu and the man watched the girls for a seconds unsure what to do next. Natsu looked at Ana who giggled at her book as she turned a page. He sat down on the floor next to her, folding his legs under him.
"What are you reading?" She looked up from her book and closed it.
"It's a story about a man who has really bad luck and he meets a girl with such a good memory that she has alot of books memerized by heart." She explaind with excitment.
Before he could reply Lucy began to speak. "Are you ready Ana?" She nodded and stood up. She straightened out her dress and walked next to the little spirit. Heribus lifted her hands, gently placing each on Ana's temples. She add slight presure and shut her eyes slowly.
All the enhabitants of the room were quite as they watched the points of contact between the two glow. Ana's eyes had been open as she watched nervusly at the spirits actions, but soon she shut them tight and her small, delicate hands were balled into tight fists.
Natsu stepped forward. First one then another. slowly inching his way through the tension in the room. Soon he found him self only feet away from the scene and unable to take his eyes off of them. Before he took another step he felt something cold on his arm.
Turning to see what had touched him he saw Lucy. He could almost read her thoughts inscriped in her big hazle eyes. He knew she was scared,and he was to, but in a another way. He was afraid that this wouldn't work. That this could hurt her and it angered him, the not knowing.
But he could tell Lucy's worries lyed somewhere else. Like him she was afraid of the process failing but she largest fear was what came after. She knew this man loved his daughter greatly and wanted her not to suffer but Lucy couldn't bair the thought of him harming Ana. Natsu pulled his foot back a step and grabbed her hand from his arm. She squeezed his hand as to thank him. They stood there anxusly, holding one anothers hand, fingers intertwined, pray for Ana's saftey and for Heribus' success.
Its when Natsu's grip tighted around Lucys delicate hold that she knew somthing was wrong. Ana had Heterochromatic Synapse Displacement which caused her to have a left eye a gold yellow color almost as a bird does. While she had a right eye a beep blue. Both colors so strong as they inched open to asses the situation. Heribus had been silently holding Ana's head. She seemed to be almost meditating as the blue shined from her fingers. Ana had her eyes wide open again. stairing at the spirit in confuson. Her hands were not in fist and she looked like she did when she had been impressed by Natsu's forgieness.
Lucy relized what had made Natsu a little uneasy. Ana's right eye started to shift. The irus that had once been like water was now a lite gray. The dark specks from before had streched long and thing, growing white.
Her puple seemed undecided as it shifed between round and an abstracted blob. Finally it rounded out and began growing. Just before the puple reached the rim of Ana's irus it shot down to normal size. Her irus was once again filed with color and the specks where as dark and short as before.
Lucy craned her neck back at her father whos dark blue eyes stared in shock at his little girl. Soon the light faded away and Heribus dropped her hands from Ana. Her painting alarmed Lucy and she rushed next to the little spirt.
She sat her on the couch, smiling wide at her as she told her that she did great. "I don't know if it worked. I tryed I promise its just I've never tryed somthing so big before." She said shyly.
"How do you feel Ana?" The man asked as he hugged her, petting her hair nerviously. "I don't feel different really. My head started to hurt but then it just stopped."
"Thank god your okay!" He continued paying no attention to her reply.
Natsu sat cross legged on the ground next to Happy watching the people in the room. He was thinking about alot at once. About Lucy's condition now that she was up and about was she going to be okay? Also about Ana and what just happened infront of him. The biggest thing that surged through his thick skull was the strangness he felt in his hand. He couldn't explain it. Ever since Lucy had dropped his hand it didn't feel right. He couldn't decided if it was cold without hers or simply one peice in a set that had been seperated.
His thoughts were cut short when Ana whipped around and ran to him. He assesed her over, this new Ana was no different from the one before except for the matching eye colors. When she was being healed he had thought Ana's yellow eye would be the one changed to match her fathers but instead the blue one had shifted its shade identical to the bird like qualoty's that possed her left eye.
She talked to Natsu, asking him question after question about his adventures and what and if anything scared him. He answered all her questions and sent her back to her father. He was set on twidaling his thumbs to pass the time when he saw the little girl next to Lucy disapate and relized what time it was.
"Lucy do you think its about time to head back to the guild?" He asked hopefully. She nodded and attempted to stand. Through trial and error she eventally made it up off the couch and near the door. They said their good beys and walked out.
Lucy stumbled every couple of steps and would stop, take a deep breath, subside the pain, and continue on. "Are you sure your alright?"
"Yea im fine..." She said unconvincingly.
Natsu walked next to her and wrapped an arm around her back just under her arms. She was reluctant at first but she gave in and excepted his help. It was when her lifted her in his arms, craddaling her in his chest, that she protested. "Natsu you don't have to carry me, im fine!"
"Stop it and just lit me help you. Stop being so stuborn." She shut her eyes with a sigh and sank into his chest. He knew she had fallen asleep not to soon after. Him and Happy got three tickets back to magnolia and grabbed the first train.
Lucy woke up about half way home and sat up straight. Happty lye asleep across from her and next to her sat a pink haired boy who looked to be near death. She carfully lifted his head and placed it in her lap. She brushed the hair from his face and ran her fingers along his scalp. She couldn't wait till they stopped and Natsu was him self again. She hated seeing him in pain like this.
Her eyes felt heavy and she quickly driffted back into another world of dreams, nightmares, and scenes of recent events she hopes shel soon forget.
"Oh my god Lucy are you okay?" Makoto ask franticly. He had syopped by to see how Lucy's job had gone and ask to take her to lunch. When he saw how injured she was he went into alert mode running around her apartment looking for pillows, ice packs, anything to help her get better soon.
"How did this happen?" He asked placing an ice pack on her shoulder. She winced as he did. She furrowed her brow submisivly and he could tell it was her best effoer at shrugging.
"Wasn't Natsu Dragneel with you? How could he let you get hurt?"
"He wasn't with me when I got hurt and its no big deal really. It dosn't even hurt that bad." She sat up, smiling to mask to pain just below her calm surface. "You shouldn't move to much untill it heals." Makoto put up a hand as to stop her movements.
She sighed loudly. "Your just about the 5th person to say that to me."
"Well anyway I want to know how your trip was," he smiled widly, "tell me how this happened."
She told the story the best she could. Skipping over the disgusting makeout and also making it sound as thoe she wasn't in as much danger as she was. He thought since it all already happened there wasn't any point in worrying him.
"Why don't you have that Heribus spirit jeal you? If she could heal that little girl then healing your wounds would be easy right?"
"I thought about that but im to weak right now to get her out." She admitted shamfully.
"Nonsence! Your one of the strongest girls I know!" He saw her keys on her writting desk. He walked them over to her. "Here, you can do it!"
She took the keys and sifted through them until she reached the silver key. "Open, gate og the wilting aid. Heribus!" She said with her best powerful voice she could muster. The little pigon toed fille from before apeared infront of them.
"Lucy!" Heribus shouted excitedly. Before when Lucy had seen her be sumuned she had been upset but now she was exstatic to see her. Lucy giggled at her enthusiasm.
"Can you heal her?" Makoto asked hopefully. She looked at him confused and turned to Lucy. She relized she was injured and her small face fell into a pout. She placed her hands on her wounds and shut her eyes tight.
A blue glow resinated from her injeries. Lucy was reminded of wendy. It looked identical to hers and that confused Lucy. Wendy used sky dragon slayer magic and there was no way it was the same thing. She could feel it. When Wendy healed it was graceful and soothing but this was almost itchy and unconfortable.
When she was done Lucy gave her a hug and sent her back. She stood up stetching. "Do you feel better?"
"Alot actully." She smiled widly and grabbed her shoes. "Lets go to that lunch, what do you say?" Makoto smiled and took her arm walking her out the door.
After theyd walked for a while they stopped and Makoto reached behind a bush. It shocked Lucy to see him pull a basket out of the shrubb. Natsu had been on his way to the guild when he saw Lucy on a picnic with someone. He couldn't tell what they were saying but he could tell they were having a good time. Irotated he trudged by somehow unnoticed.
Looking over his shoulder at the pair seemed to piss him off. But soon his irratence became ceriousity when he saw Lucy stand up and point her finger strenly at the man. She was yelling and he could hear the sound of her voice but couldn' t make out the words.
Tears feel down her cheeks, dripping from her chin. She wipped her eyes but salty droplets still fell.
The man stood up and started yelling too. Lucy was quiet and seemed shocked by something he had said. Natsu had had enough.
"Lucy are you okay?" Lucy looked up from her hands and saw Natsu running to her.
The man stood and stomped away. "Who was that?"
"Makoto..." She continued to cry as she blubed out her words. Natsu pulled her hands from her face and wipped a tear from her cheek. "Comon I'll walk you home."
"No if I go home he'll come back to apoligize. Thats how he is...and if im not there he'll go to the guild."
Natsu thought for a moment looking Lucy up and down. "Are you still hurt?" She shook her head whiping her eyes. "I had Heribus heal me so I could go on a lunch with Makoto."
"Oh...and what happened just now?" He asked. He didn't like the idea of Lucy doing anything for this guy. "What about my place?" Natsu asked cautiusly. She looked at him for a moment before knoding. He grabbed her hand and yanked her down the street.