Hello, and welcome to chapter two of my rewritten version of Lucy's Light! I apologize for the wait, I'm terrible, I know. I'm really excited for this story though and I assure you all, I am not going to abandon it! Also just so no one is confused, this story takes place after GMG but before the Tartaros arc. Let me know what you think or if you have any questions. I truly can't thank you enough for reading my story and supporting me! Reading your reviews never fails to fuel me to write more for you guys, so please feel free to leave one

XOXO, neko

Lucy's breathing was ragged as her footsteps echoed through the night, pounding almost to the same rhythm of her heart. She followed slivers of moonlight that forced its way into the otherwise shadowed alleyway. She slowed her pace to a walk when the familiar train station was in sight.

"Wow, I really need to run more. That was barely 8 blocks and I'm already out of it." She groaned. The blonde quickly purchased a train ticket and boarded the uncharacteristically empty train. Plopping down into her seat, Lucy pulled a rather aged looking piece of paper from her pocket, which looked to be a flyer of sorts that was advertising for the Sabertooth guild.

*.*

"Here Lucy, I know you've got a family with Fairy Tail, but if you ever decide you're looking for something new, why don't you stop by. I saw how you fought. You've got a lot of potential, and with the help of Sabertooth, you could go far." Sting grinned and handed her a brightly colored flyer.

"Oh Sting; I don't know what to say. Thank you, that's a very generous offer, but I've built a life with Fairy Tail and I don't think I can leave it all behind." Lucy gave him a sad smile and tried to hand the flyer back to him.

"I understand, just consider the offer and let me know if you change your mind." Sting pushed the flyer back into her hands. "And keep this. You might decide you want it someday." He gave her a sly wink before turning and pushing through the doors, returning to the rowdy celebration inside the palace.

*.*

It had been a while since she'd thought about this piece of paper that had been stuffed in the back of her writing desk, but now she was ready to take him up on his offer. She needed to do this to be stronger. For herself and for the people she loved. She clenched it tightly in her fist and leaned against the window, sleep slowly pulling her into its depth

The trains sharp halt jolted Lucy awake. Where am I? She wondered sleepily. She peeked out the window to see the Sabertooth guild hall in the distance towering over the surrounding town. All of the sudden, memories of the previous night came flooding back to her. Packing up her remaining belongings and sending them to the spirit world with Virgo, writing her goodbye to the members of her guild. Former guild, She thought sadly. As soon as she joined the Sabertooth guild, the light pink mark that she wore with pride would fade away without a trace. The celestial mage swallowed dryly and made her way off of the train. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon to welcome her, so she decided to take a detour and grab some breakfast before going to the guild.

The brisk morning hair quickly woke her up as she walked through the cobbled streets. She didn't know her way around the city yet, so she decided to let her nose do the leading. She followed the strong aroma of sausage and coffee and found herself outside of a rundown looking diner. Still, the food smelled amazing and she hadn't realized she was so hungry. Little bells chimed a welcome when Lucy pushed the door open. A small stout woman greeted her.

"Welcome miss, would you like a menu?" Her eyes crinkled sweetly.

"Thank you, I'd love one." Lucy smiled back. The friendly woman handed her a menu and Lucy decided to take a seat in the back near a window. She had barely opened her menu when a grizzled looking old man plopped himself into a chair at the table next to her. He looked over at her, glaring her up and down with haunted gray eyes. He grunted a hello to her and turned to sip a dark cup of coffee. They sat in silence for a few moments and Lucy, having decided to order the strawberry pancakes, set her menu onto the table.

"That's quite the collection of keys yeh have there." The stranger nodded towards the ring attached to her belt. "My guess is yer a celestial mage then?"

"Oh- um yes, I am." Lucy said hesitantly. "My mother was a wizard too; she's the one who gave me my first keys."

"Ahh so it runs in the family then." He nodded once more. "Tell me, what's a Fairy Tail wizard like yerself doing around these parts?" he asked, glancing suspiciously at the guild mark still on her hand.

"I actually was planning on joining the Sabertooth guild today." she admitted sheepishly.

"And why's that?"

"I need to get stronger and I know Sabertooth can help me with that," She sighed. "Fairy Tail is my family, but I need to be able to take care of myself. I'm just sick of having to be protected… I want to be the one protecting others for a change. Even if that means doing something as selfish as leaving my family."

"I see… so yer lookin to be strong, eh?" He grunted.

"Yes. I want it more than anything, and I won't go back to Fairy Tail until I can take care of myself." Her voice grew determinedly.

"Well then, I might have just the answer for yeh." He reached into the grimy pocket of his jacket and pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper. He quickly scrawled a note on it before pressing it into her hand. "Go to this address if you really want to be strong. There are people there that can give you exactly what you desire."

Lucy glanced down at the barely legible writing. It was definitely an address, but it she didn't recognize it at all. "Thank you, but what do you mean? Who are these people and how can they help me?" she asked.

"I'm sure you're familiar with the highly sought after power and ancient magic that dragon slayers hold." he grinned knowingly. "And as for the people… let's just say they're very skilled at what they do." His grin widened and his eyes darkened mysteriously as he tossed a few jewels on the table. He pushed his chair back, groaning with the effort of standing up again. He grabbed a twisted looking walking stick and hobbled towards the door.

Lucy froze in shock for a moment trying to process what he had just told her. "Wait!" she called, dashing outside after him. "Come back, how do I-"she stopped and looked around. There was no sign of him. It was like he had just disappeared into thin air. She sighed in defeat and walked towards the guild. There was no point going back into the diner, a strange feeling had settled in her stomach leaving her feeling too nauseous to eat anything. That guy was seriously creepy, and something didn't seem quite right about that encounter… what did all that stuff about dragon slayers mean? The blonde mage decided to just forget about it for now and focus on her original plan: joining Sabertooth.

She pushed the feeling of uneasiness deep down into her gut, where it paced back and forth like a caged animal waiting to be fed. So many unanswered questions kept creeping into her mind, but she refused to indulge them. There was no time for dwelling on a wild goose chase. she had a task at hand.

Half an hour later, Lucy had arrived at the center of the bustling city. The tall mahogany doors stood proudly in front of her. The celestial wizard raised a trembling hand to knock when the doors suddenly banged open and an energetic wizard crashed into her, knocking both of them to the ground.

"Oof!" the male clambered back to his feet and dusted himself off. "Watch where you're going next t-"he stopped suddenly when he saw just who he had run into. "Oh Lucy, I didn't see ya there! "

"It's ok Sting," Lucy said, "I'm quite alright." She stood up and smiled at him.

"That's good to hear," Sting grinned. "So, what are the odds I'd run into you here?" he asked, looking pleased at the joke he'd made.

"I actually came to speak to you," Lucy answered, "about joining the Sabertooth guild- that is, if you'll still have me of course." She bit her lip nervously.

"Well in that case, let's step into my office." Sting's tone grew serious as he ushered her through the doors. "I was about to head out and fill out some paperwork at the city hall, but this is much more important."

"O-oh I don't mean to interrupt," Lucy stammered awkwardly "if you'd rather do this later I can wait."

"Nah, I'd rather have the paperwork wait then keep you waiting." He replied.

"Alright, if you insist." Lucy answered awkwardly.

Sting quickly pulled her into his large airy office and sat behind his desk. "Take a seat." He commanded gesturing to the chair across from him.

"Oh, thank you." Lucy sat down meekly and crossed her legs.

"So," Sting leaned forward, "you're looking to join Sabertooth, are you?"

"That's my plan," said Lucy, "if you'll let me, of course,"

"You're always welcome here." Sting replied. "But I need you to answer some questions." He reached into a drawer and pulled out a few important looking documents. "First, I'd like to know why you've decided to leave Fairy Tail behind."

"I need to become stronger, and that means distancing myself from my family." Lucy answered firmly."I don't feel like I belong there and I know that I won't feel that way until I can protect myself."

"I understand." Sting nodded. "How long will you be staying with us then?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but I know I won't go back until I feel confident in my strength and abilities. My guess is 6 months to a year before I'll be ready to return to Fairy Tail."

"Here in the Sabertooth guild, our wizards our expected to be the best in Fiore. We don't take things lightly around here. Are you ready to work harder than you've ever worked before?"

"I am."

"Good. Then get ready to be pushed past your breaking point."

Lucy stared into the mirror and lightly traced a finger over her new guild mark. She had chosen to have it placed right below her left collarbone and this time it was a deep scarlet instead of pink. She liked to think of it as a symbol of how she was changing. Because now, she had to take her magic more seriously than anything else. The mage gazed down at her hands. She felt a strange twist in her throat when returning the stare, was the lack of her previous guild mark. No matter, there was no changing her mind now. She was set on her decision and she was determined to stick with it.

"Okay then, time to get to work." She said and briskly turned away from her reflection. "Open, gate of the maiden, Virgo!" a burst of light filled the room and her trusty spirit appeared before her.

"Hello princess, how may I be of service?" Virgo bowed.

"Hey Virgo." Lucy greeted. "Could you bring me my stuff from the spirit world? This is where I'm going to be living from now on."

"As you wish, Princess." Virgo bowed once more before vanishing back into the spirit world. A few moments later she appeared again, this time with Lucy's few remaining belongings in her arms.

"Thanks so much for your help, Virgo. You can go back now." Lucy thanked her. Virgo gave a nod and faded away yet again.

Lucy quickly got to work unpacking her few things and putting them away in her new dorm room. This building was well known as the Sabertooth guild's housing and it was only a few minutes' walk from the guild hall. Finally, she had put her belongings into place. She smoothed her bedspread and decided to head back to the guild to see about finding a mission to take.

It was time to get focused.

The sun had just risen and was spreading its warmth over the city of magnolia. Gray basked in the sunlight while he walked to the guild hall. This was going to be a good day. He was determined to talk to Lucy and work hard to make it up to her. He made it to the guild and plopped down in a bar-stool. The ice wizard scanned the room for a familiar head of blonde hair, but didn't see Lucy.

That's strange. She's usually one of the first to get here…

"Hey Mira," Gray called "have you seen Lucy at all this morning? I really gotta talk to her."

"No, she hasn't stopped by yet." Mira replied. "Do you think something happened?"

"No nothing like that." Gray responded hastily. "Just let me know if you see her, alright?"

"Of course, Gray," Mira flashed her signature smile and returned to her bar-tending duties.

An hour had passed and still, no sign of Lucy. Gray was starting to worry that maybe something had happened to her, when the guild doors slammed open to reveal a breathless Natsu. Everyone turned to stare at Natsu, wondering what he could possibly be up to now.

"Hey Natsu, what's goin on?" yelled Makou.

"It's Lucy, she's missing!" Natsu panted.

Gray shot to his feet and the guild hall erupted with chatter; questions were being shouted from all around the room.

"Children! Quiet down and let Natsu tell his story!" master Makarov's voice rumbled, silencing all of the members. "Now, Natsu, tell us what has happened." Master said gently.

"It's Lucy, I went to her house this morning to try and apologize to her and-and she was just gone! None of her stuff was there and there wasn't even a note or anything!" Natsu spilled out. "I'm tellin you gramps, she's missing!"

"It's alright Natsu, I believe you." The old master sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"We've got to go find her, she could be in trouble!" Natsu rushed towards the door

"Now, child, don't go running off just yet. We have to do this carefully." Makarov grabbed Natsu's shirt, stopping him in his tracks. "Tell me, is there anything she could have been upset about that perhaps caused her to run away?"

"Well, err… maybe…" Natsu scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Me and Gray sorta maybe wrecked her house up pretty bad… but it was an accident I swear! It was Gra-"

"That's enough Natsu." Master said sternly. "It does not matter who's fault it is. What matters is that we find her and make sure she's alright. Does anyone have any more information that could be of use?"

A small hand reached meekly out of the crowd and Levy stepped forward. "Yes master, Lucy was pretty upset yesterday before she left to go home. She was talking about how she didn't feel strong enough to be in Fairy Tail."

"Ahh I see. So this could be a bit more complicated than just anger towards these two troublemakers." the wizard saint muttered. "If we do find her, we must respect her decision to return with us or not. She may need some to time to herself."

The guild members nodded and chattered quietly among themselves.

"Now, let's go and make sure our family is not in any danger!"

A cheer rose up and the members split into teams, eagerly running out the doors to search for their beloved celestial mage.

Lucy stared up at the request board and considered her options. She wanted to try something that was enough to challenge her, but also not more than she could handle. She was going back and forth between two interesting missions that involved taking down bandits, when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Lucy flipped around to find herself looking up at Sting.

"You already plannin on taking a mission?" Sting asked.

"Yeah, I thought I could take a small one to start." Lucy said.

"How about you train with me a little bit first?" the blonde slayer asked, "we can work on some hand-to-hand combat techniques and a workout plan to start."

"Really? You want to train me?" Lucy's eyes widened.

"Why not? Gotta make sure my guild members represent Sabertooth well." Sting grinned. "Meet me out at the training grounds in ten minutes and we can get started."

"Copy that, I'll go get ready!" Lucy replied eagerly. She quickly ran back to her dorm, tied her hair back into a ponytail, and then changed into some spandex shorts and a sports bra. She made it into the training area with a few minutes to spare so she decided to do some stretching to warm up.

Sting walked out onto the grassy training field and was greeted by the sight of a curvy celestial mage bending neatly in half touching her toes, perfectly displaying her perky, spandex covered ass, . Sting swallowed and enjoyed the view for a moment, but it was over all too fast.

Still bent over, Lucy let out a squeak when she opened her eyes saw Sting blatantly checking her out. The blonde quickly snapped back up, her entire face flushed.

"Hey Sting, I um, didn't know you were standing there." Lucy stammered, trying to play it cool.

"I thought I would let you finish your stretching before we got started," Sting grinned, "wouldn't want you to pull a muscle or anything."

"Oh right." Lucy said, her face flaming.

"Okay then, let's get to work." Stings tone turned serious. "You're gonna need to start doing some intense training. from what I saw at the grand magic games, you've got to work on your hand-to-hand combat, physical strength, and definitely expanding your magic."

Sting pushed her to her absolute limit. He made her drag fifty pounds of weight behind her while she sprinted laps around the track. Then, he made her cycle through push-ups, squats, and hanging sit-ups until she could barely stand. And finally, he taught her how to throw a punch, drilling her until she could block a right hook in her sleep. By the end of the training session, Lucy was ready to collapse and not move for a week.

"Nice work. Tomorrow we can practice kicking." Sting grabbed Lucy's hand and pulled her to her feet.

"Tomorrow?" Lucy groaned, "I don't think I'm gonna be able to walk in the morning."

"Being strong isn't easy. You've got to remember that." Sting handed her a bottle of water. "Now go home, take a shower, and get some rest. You're gonna need it."

"You got it, boss." Lucy gave a weak salute and drained the water bottle in three gulps before wiping her sweaty brow with the back of her hand. She was heading out the doors when sting ran over to her and grabbed her shoulder.

"I'm really glad you came here, Lucy." Sting's blue eyes locked with the chocolate ones staring back it him. "You're gonna do great at Sabertooth."

"Thanks Sting." Lucy said, a rosy tinge dusting her cheeks. "I really appreciate you helping me."

Sting looked at her intensely for a moment and then suddenly turned away from her with a light blush. "Yeah it's no problem. I'm happy to be of service to a lady in need." He grinned widely. "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, see ya later." Lucy turned away and tried suppress the smile that kept creeping onto her face. All of this felt so new, yet so right.

I can't wait to prove to Fairy Tail how strong I can be. I can already feel myself changing… and I think I really like it.

So there we have it, chapter two! I hope you guys enjoyed it, and I apologize once again for the ridiculously long wait, I have no excuse other than lack of motivation and laziness. Please leave a review and tell me what you think! It always encourages me to write more if I know you readers like what I'm giving you.
XOXO, neko