Natsu sighed as his eyes continued to glance from Lisanna to the open doors of the guild. It'd been three months since she left and he constantly found his stomach rolling with worry. One month ago he finally gathered enough courage to ask Mira where Lucy was but the former demon could only tell him that master had sent Lucy on a mission with Gajeel and Levy. He knew straight away that was a lie. Levy and Gajeel had left one month after the stellar mage without as much as a good bye.
"Natsu are you thinking about Lucy again?" Lisanna's gentle voice stirred him. Two years he had been waiting to hear that voice again, he loved the way her blue eyes sparkled like the clearest of lakes. A small smile forced his lips upward. "Yeah it's just, it's been three months and it's not like her to take a mission this long without telling us." His voice a low whisper, ever since he had asked the master to go after them and he had been refused Natsu had been watched like a hawk. A comforting smile appeared on her face. "I'm sure she's fine Natsu. Probably just wanted time to think."
"So you don't think she went on a mission with them either?" Natsu leaned forward to watch the girl he loves like a sister think over what he has suggested. They knew that if Makarov had lied he was trying to protect Lucy and the others, but protect them from what? "No, Mira told me that Lucy had taken a solo mission a month before the others left." But Natsu already knew this; he had asked everyone he could about Lucy's whereabouts. It was a new routine for him every time he returned from a mission.
Lucy had been taking a lot of solo missions since they came back from Edolas. He figured that it was because she wanted him to be able to catch up with Lisanna and Natsu didn't complain at the silent arrangement Lucy had taken upon herself to organise between her and the rest of the guild. She kept her distance from everyone but Wendy and Levy, Natsu felt a string of guilt wrap around his heart as he recalled to monotone Lucy had been speaking during the weeks of her isolation. He never meant to ignore her but he had missed Lisanna so much and he was grateful for the distance Lucy had placed between them in order for him to catch up with her.
He had stopped barging into her apartment in silent thanks so she could have the privacy that she always was so violent to demand from him and the rest of the team. The whole time during his conversations with Lisanna he noticed that Lucy was the most common topic they would speak about. She was after all the person he loved most in the guild. It bothered him that it had taken Erza and Gray nearly two months to notice Lucy's absence where it took him two days. It was then he realised just how much distance she had placed between them and he was worried about how it was affecting her.
"We go after her if you're really troubled by her absence Natsu." A smirk came across her face as her eyes held a glint full of mischief. But as appealing as it sounded Natsu shook his head. "We can't, master forbade me from going after her. We don't even know where Lucy was heading." He felt a heart clenching guilt at his words. He should know where she is, he should have gone with her he never should of let herself isolation get this bad. "You don't, but who said I don't? Mira's just as worried as you are. As for master let's take a quick mission then spend the left over time searching." Natsu felt his spirits lifting. There would be no reason master could say no to them heading out on a mission together with the rest of the team. After all searching for Lucy would be easier with more people to cover more ground.
"Happy!" Natsu called the blue exceed over from Carla's table. Happy's wings practically dragged as he floated over to the pink haired man, Happy had been depressed when he noticed that Lucy had gone. "Yes Natsu?" He asked not really caring what he had been called for.
"Go get Erza and the ice freak, tell them we're going on a mission." Natsu said giddy like a child, tossing in a wink to hint that there was more to it than he was telling him. Happy's face lit up at the Natsu's action. "Aye!" He called as he flew to the other side of the room where Erza and Gray were currently wallowing in their guilt. Natsu and Lisanna got up from the table and headed towards the mission board. "So, where are we heading?" Natsu asked the white haired mage the first real smile gracing his face in two months. Lisanna ripped a mission from the board and held it up. "Here, Succotrina."
"Gajeel, it's been three months and there's still no sign of her. We're just going around in circles." Levy said to the iron dragon slayer. Fear creeping into her voice. Three months and not even a hint to where Lucy could possibly be. Gajeel looked up from the map he was currently scanning. "I know, something about this isn't adding up." This was to strange. The clients who put out the mission claimed that Lucy had never arrived. And yet the train conductor swore that he had seen a blonde busty woman get off at Succotrina. A small town in the middle of nowhere next to no one visits. "The request was to escort a man to Clover town. But when we got there the only people there were those two girls. No sign of a man in the house."
Levy was right, the house didn't have the slightest male touch yet the mission was to escort a male. Something about this didn't add up. The house oddly enough stank of disincentive and soap; it was almost as if they were desperately trying to hide something. But the girls had seemed so vulnerable, what could they possibly have to hide? There's something about this that seemed familiar like he's heard of this tale before… "Oh god." Gajeel said, he had just thought Lucy had, had enough of the guilds shit but it this was what he thought… "Levy we have to head back to the village."
So cold. She was so cold. Never had she felt so cold, so numb but she still felt all the pain. From her broken leg to the cut above her eye brow. "Lucy." The voice cooed calling to her from across the stone room. Fear would creep into her, if it hadn't already taken permanent residence within her heart. "It's our third month anniversary, you know what that means." A yellow smile catches Lucy's dull eyes. A clammy rough hand ran down through her grubby hair. A muffled scream escape Lucy's covered lips. "Soon you'll be good enough to eat." Tears began to escape Lucy as the filthy body covered her own.
Thank you guys for reviewing, sorry my grammar and spelling is so bad. I work nights at the moment so I'm pretty tired all the time. This is my first fanfic so please bear with me. You guys are amazing.