I'm gonna spare everyone my grovelling and instead present you with the news that this story is finished so daily updates will be a thing. I don't feel like making anyone wait any longer.

I know I've read this at least 50 times but there will probably be mistakes. If anyone is currently looking for a job, please make sure you take into account the effect it will take on your social life, your grades, and your ability to read/write/spell/grammar properly.

oh ps like 50 things happened in the manga that messed with my storyline (angel & silver & minerva gdamnit) so lets just say everything takes place circa anime. (when i started planning this fic future!lucy hadn't even been introduced yet! how time passes)

VI.

A Whole New World

That Monday, for the first time in twelve years, Lucy Heartfilia did not go to school.

In the space of the weekend, she got out of bed once. Just once, because she realized she had left her friends at the Halloween dance with no way of getting home, and a surge of guilt overwhelmed any other feeling. She had scrambled out of bed Saturday afternoon, and quickly dialled Erza's number. Once the other confirmed they'd all gotten various rides from Jellal, Sting, and others, Lucy relaxed. She hung up the phone, knowing Erza would have questions, and those were questions Lucy didn't want to answer.

After that, she curled up on her mattress and pulled the blankets over her head. She didn't eat anything, spending the hours sleeping or thinking. When she slept, her dreams were more like nightmares. She was a princess with glass slippers, on a ship with a pirate captain, and they were kissing; then a storm hit, and she was thrown overboard and drowned in the icy black waters.

Being awake wasn't much better. Instead of drowning she was suffocating in blankets, and her mind buzzed from lack of food and energy. Her thoughts tumbled around in a mix of self-pity and self-loathing.

She had been an idiot. Why did she ever think that it could work out? Lucy wasn't a regular girl. She was practically a servant. A slave.

Gemma, upon returning home, had not made a single notice of the clean house. He hadn't bothered to check on her. She heard Minerva's voice through the floorboards, as she fought and screamed with Flare. She came up to Lucy's room once to ask about her homework. Lucy had been crying, and covered up her red eyes and stuffed nose by saying she was sick. Minerva promptly left the attic and hadn't returned since.

Sunday evening, Lucy pulled herself into a sitting position and curled her arms around her knees. "Is that how much my family cares for me?" She asked herself thickly. Out of all the things she'd done the past weekend, talking to herself wasn't the craziest.

But calling them a family didn't seem right. Gemma wasn't her father any more than Minerva and Flare were her sisters. In a sudden fit of emotion, Lucy wondered if she should run away. All she needed to do was throw a few things in her suitcase.

Then she deflated. Running away wouldn't accomplish anything. If anything, it would only make things worse by hurting her chances of being accepted to Hargeon.

Sighing, Lucy buried her face into the HU sweater. It smelled like a mix between cheap laundry detergent and stale bread. Lucy wondered if that was how bad she smelled. It was a miracle Salamander wanted anything to do with her.

Salamander.

Just thinking about him made a white-hot lump of pain appear in Lucy's chest. He had been so warm, so wonderful. A little crazy, with a smile that could banish demons and a kiss that could melt the North Pole. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about him, or how good it felt to be with him, and that only made the pain harder to bear.

Sometime during her exile, Lucy had come to the decision that she didn't want to be with him. No, that wasn't right. Lucy wanted to be with him more terribly than she had ever wanted anything in her life. Lucy had decided that she didn't deserve to be with him. He was a great guy. She couldn't taint him with her horrible life.

Slowly, Lucy reached across the floor and picked up her phone. Her fingers were shaking, and white. She hadn't opened her emails since Friday. Now she saw her inbox had reached its limit, and every single message was from Salamander.

She swallowed. Two different sides of her began warring with each other. One begged her to send Salamander a message with her name, address and a plea to take her away from this awful place. The other side demanded she delete all messages instantly, and after that, delete Salamander from her memory.

Lucy ended up somewhere in between. She opened up the last message, nausea roiling in her stomach.

xXSalamanderXx: Look, I had a really great time, and i thought you did too. But if you didn't, that's fine. It was nice talking to you. Maybe I'll see you at Hargeon.

Barely any mistakes, Lucy thought. It looked like he had struggled over what to say a hundred times, reading and re-reading. It was certainly what Lucy would have done.

The nausea left her stomach. Lucy felt strangely light, albeit because she felt rather empty. Salamander had given her a way out, a goodbye. Now she didn't have to keep warring with herself. It was over.

She pressed the delete button before she lost the nerve. Immediately her inbox cleared, leaving nothing. Lucy sighed, rubbing her face several times, until her skin felt raw and blotchy. Then he phone rang, scaring her out of her wits.

She didn't have any caller ID. It could have been anyone. Lucy swallowed back her nerves, picking up. "Hello?"

"Lucy? Is that you?"

It was Yukino. Relief and disappointment flooded Lucy's system, and she deflated. "Yeah."

"Where have you been? Erza says you hung up on her yesterday, and no one's heard from you since. What's going on?"

"Nothing." Lucy shook her head. She didn't want to talk to anyone. "I'm fine."

"Like hell you are." Yukino's tone was scathing, but she didn't sound angry at Lucy. "What did Minerva do to you this time?"

"Nothing," Lucy said again. It was almost the truth. "She didn't do anything, I just..."

Yukino waited.

"I'm sick," Lucy said finally. "I must have picked up a bug at the dance. I won't be in at school tomorrow, either."

"Lucy..." Yukino spoke in a warning voice. "What are you hiding?"

"Nothing, okay?" Lucy's temper began rising. "I said nothing's wrong. I have a cold."

Yukino sounded like she could have strangled Lucy through the phone, but refrained. "Fine. We'll see you when you feel better."

"Yeah, you too." Lucy hung up, not wanting to talk a minute longer. Yukino had every right to be angry with her, and this only made Lucy feel worse for getting so defensive. But she was defensive. She was angry and resentful and heartbroken.

Lucy tossed the phone away from her. She'd have to retrieve it tomorrow morning, and call the school, informing them she'd be missing the day. She'd cover her face with her sweater and pretend to be Gemma. It was the kind of thing kids usually did for fun. Lucy would be doing it out of necessity, since Gemma would never actually call for her.

There came a knock on her floor. Lucy ignored it, thinking Minerva had finally gotten over her fear of contamination to ask about her homework again. She heard the sound of the ladder being unrolled, and then the trapdoor opened. To her surprise, it was not Minerva, but Flare. And she had a tray of food in her hands.

"Here," she said shortly. Lucy raised her eyebrows.

"Is that for me?" She asked, incredulous. Flare made a face.

"You've gotta eat or you'll die up here, Blondie," she snapped. "And none of us want to clean up your mess."

Coming from Flare, that was one heck of a kindness. "Thanks," Lucy said, but she didn't really mean it. Flare turned up her nose, and climbed back down the ladder.

Lucy got out of bed to close the door. She picked up the tin tray. There wasn't too much on it, just a few bagels, a bottle of Gatorade, and a bowl of cold Spaghetti-O's. Lucy's stomach growled, and she remembered she hadn't eaten in almost 48 hours. She settled down cross-legged on the floor, and began to munch away.

Monday morning came and, like promised, Lucy disguised her voice as Gemma's to get out of school. As the school had never actually heard him before, and since no one expected an honours student like Lucy to skip, they bought it.

Lucy curled up in a ball and began to chant to herself. "One more year," she promised herself. "One more year. One more year. One more year."

"Yo, Natsu. Can you like, lean away? Your breath stinks like jalapeno."

Barely acknowledging Gray's insult, Natsu leaned back on his chair. They were in the back of their English class, sitting beside each other as per usual. But instead of razzing each other and throwing spitballs, like usual, Natsu was completely silent.

He had hunched over in his chair, staring blankly at the floor. Gray had been talking at his face all day, but he wasn't really getting much of what the other was saying.

"...been like this all weekend," Gray was complaining. "Something happened at that dance."

Yes, Natsu thought, something certainly had happened.

He hadn't told any of them about his adventures with the Princess. He didn't want anyone knowing. Talking about her hurt, just like thinking about her. Natsu wasn't really one for melodramatics, but he had a feeling he was about to start understanding Shakespeare a lot better. He felt like someone had stuck a needle in his skin and started pumping his blood with carbon monoxide, turning him into dry ice.

His weekend had literally been spent sending emails to her phone. He must have sent over two hundred. At some point he'd cracked, and spilled everything – who he was, his address, phone number, everything. She never replied. Eventually he sent an angry message that basically said, 'have a nice life.' He regretted it a second later, of course, but there was no turning back after something like that.

She must hate him. She must have decided she hated him during the dance, or she wouldn't have run out like that. Maybe he was too much of a troublemaker. Maybe she found him boring and dull. Maybe his breath really did stink like jalapeno.

Last night, he spent all night clearing a space on his dresser where he could put her shoe. He was keeping it for...well, he didn't know what. The day she returned? Yeah. Not likely.

Apart from Gray, his friends had barely noticed. They were caught up in their own lives. Or, actually, in their girlfriends. It made Natsu's blood boil, and if he hadn't been so sad, he probably would have duct-taped their mouths shut hours ago.

"Can you believe Sting won the freaking costume contest, though?" Gray asked, shaking his head. "He had the dumbest costume out of everyone." He waited, clearly baiting Natsu. Normally, Natsu loved insulting Sting. But his heart just wasn't there.

Gray grumbled to himself. "Whatever. You can just go be moody by yourself."

Thank you, I will, Natsu almost answered. Instead, he slouched lower in his seat, bringing his knees up and pressing them against the wood of his desk.

A blaringly loud ringtone jolted Natsu out of his thoughts. It was Phil Collins, although he only knew that because he was Gray's favourite singer and therefore Natsu hated him by association. He frowned at the girl, who quickly pulled out her phone and closed it. She smiled sheepishly at the rest of the class and tried to look inconspicuous, but it was too late.

Not that she could be inconspicuous if she tried, Natsu thought. She must have been new here, because Natsu didn't recognize her at all. She had blue hair, held back with a shining pink headband. She wore a cherry red leather jacket, with black shorts over black tights and magenta ballet flats. It wasn't just Natsu who noticed, either. Half the males in the class were craning their necks to get a better look.

"Who is that?" Natsu asked. That should've gotten Gray's attention, but he was too busy staring at the new girl.

"I know her," he said vaguely. "That's Juvia Loxar."

"She goes here?"

"Yeah." Gray leaned his chin on his palm. "I didn't know she liked Phil Collins."

Natsu rolled his eyes, and went back to his brooding. Juvia caught Gray's eye, and sent him a small wave before sliding into her seat. A few guys turned back to glare at him. Gray didn't notice, still looking a little shell shocked.

For the first time in years, Natsu and Gray were quiet during class.

Yukino stared at her phone.

She had half a mind to call Lucy again. After that strange conversation yesterday, she had half a mind to storm over there and make sure the poor thing wasn't dead. She sounded horrible, like an echo of herself.

From beside her, Sting reached out and tentatively touched her shoulder. "Hey. You okay?"

"Hm? Oh, yes." Yukino looked up. She must have spent the entire day in a trance, because Sting looked awfully worried. It was a cute look for him, much better than that arrogant smirk he used to have. She pushed thoughts of Lucy away, turning towards her new boyfriend. "Just enjoying the scenery."

The park was lovely. Small children ran back and forth across the grass. Pigeons flitted around them, looking for crumbs and other food bits. She sat beside Sting on one of the park benches, enjoying the feel of the sun on her face and the brisk November air.

She turned on the bench, crossing her legs. "Have you heard from Minerva yet?"

Sting looked out across the park, eyes troubled. "No. She didn't talk to me in class at all today."

Minerva had shown up to class that morning with smudged eyeshadow, rumpled clothes, and tangles in her hair. Any other person might have thought she spent the weekend crying. Yukino knew better – Minerva Orland had spent the weekend plotting.

Yukino didn't want to admit it, but she was scared. She'd come to class prepared for a confrontation. Instead, Minerva sat in her chair and said nothing. She looked at her once, with a look so dark and scathing, it made Yukino want to shrivel up in her chair and die.

Almost as if he sensed her distress, Sting turned in the bench to face her. He crossed his legs as well, and his knees brushed against hers. "You're worried she's going to do something."

"Minerva's vengeful," Yukino said. "When she does get her revenge, it won't just be on me. The whole school will suffer."

Sting laced his fingers together, resting his chin. "But what do you suppose we do? We can't just kill her off."

Yukino raised an eyebrow playfully, and Sting laughed, pushing her gently. "Seriously! What're you going to do about it?"

"Seriously?" Yukino had been thinking about this all day. As she said the words out loud, they felt right. "I'm going to stop her."

Sting blinked. "That's ominous."

"Not like that!" Now it was Yukino's turn to push him. "She has the school under her thumb because of her image, right? People don't see a person, the see an idea – Minerva Orland, Queen Bee."

"So if you could trample that image..." Sting continued. "People wouldn't be scared of her anymore. She'd lose her power."

"It's worth a shot," Yukino insisted.

Sting sighed. "How exactly do you plan on doing that? Minerva's image is water-tight."

"Not anymore. There are cracks." Yukino poked him in the cheek. "She lost you. And to me, no less, the very person she tried to get out of her way."

Sting started grinning, and Yukino realized she probably sounded like someone straight out of Game of Thrones. A small blush crept across her cheeks, and she avoided Sting's eyes. They were entirely too blue, she decided, and awfully unsettling-

Sting kissed her. He'd only kissed her twice since Halloween, and every time seemed better than the last. Some people thought she was rushing headlong into a relationship with him. Those people had never kissed him before.

"You're crazy," he said, breaking off. "But I'm with you."

Yukino smiled, biting her lips. She still felt a little dazed, but managed to gather her thoughts together. "I have an idea," she said, "to completely topple Minerva's image, and I'll need your help to do it." Sting nodded. "She's won Homecoming Queen three years in a row, right?"

Sting caught on quickly. "If she doesn't this year, it'll destroy the face she puts on for everyone."

"There's a month until the Homecoming dance," Yukino said. "I'm going to win it from her."

"What?" Sting's eyes widened. "That's a pretty lofty goal, Yukino. I mean, no offense, but until last Friday hardly anyone knew who you were."

"That's where you come in. They know me because I'm dating you. It's up to you to make people see me."

Sting shook his head. "Are you only using me to further your popularity?" He teased. Yukino pulled a face at him.

"You're the king of Mag High, Sting," she said. "If anyone can do it, you can."

Sting heaved a dramatic sigh. "I guess I could," he agreed. Yukino grinned and pulled him in for another kiss, still smiling as she did.

Then her phone rang, and she quickly pulled away from Sting to pick it up. He gave a little whine, but she ignored him. "Hello?"

When she hung up, Sting had a pouty face. He looked like a toddler, and Yukino covered a laugh with her hand. "Good news," she said, waving her phone. "My car's ready to be picked up!"

"And I suppose you'll be asking for a ride out to the shop?' Sting asked loftily. He crossed his arms.

Yukino pulled her best puppy dog eyes. Sting looked away pointedly, turning up his nose. "Nope! Nuh-uh, I am not wasting that much gas."

"We could have a street race back to my house," Yukino said pleasantly. Sting closed his eyes. Yukino began poking his cheek. "There's nobody at my house," she added for extra measure.

Sting cracked one eye open. Yukino winked.

"Fine!" Sting jumped to his feet, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Let's go."

"Thank you!" Yukino chirped, running up behind him and lacing her arm through his.

"Yeah, yeah," Sting grumbled. "You're too pretty."

Juvia brushed some of her hair behind her ear as she left the school building. Today she had gotten more looks and sideways glances than her previous three years of school – not that she was keeping a mental tally, or anything. And not that she was particularly gloating, or anything. She just felt, well, pretty good.

She knew it was shallow of herself to be acting like this, getting all worked up because she felt pretty. But Juvia couldn't help but think – if these people noticed her, then surely Gray would.

He'd looked at her today. She'd seen it. The call hadn't been planned, but Juvia wanted to praise her parents for calling. The ringtone had gotten his attention. He'd seen her. He'd recognized her. If only her ringtone hadn't been so infuriatingly embarrassing. Juvia usually listened to heavy rock; Phil Collins was her guilty pleasure. She made a mental note to change it immediately.

"Hey!"

The voice came from across the parking lot. It was unmistakeable. Juvia froze. She almost couldn't face him. Slowly she turned on her heel, knees creaking.

Gray was jogging towards her. Even in gym shorts and a T-shirt riddled with grass-stains, he looked handsome. His soccer cleats, slung over his shoulder, bumped against each other. He slowed to a stop in front of her, bushing a hand through his dark bangs. "Hey, Juvia."

Once again, her throat constricted. Juvia clutched the strap of her (borrowed) designer handbag. She managed a weak smile, and a wave.

If Gray was weirded out by her silence, he didn't show it. "I didn't know you were in my English class," he continued. "Have you been there this whole time?"

Juvia felt a small surge of...well, not satisfaction. More like, validation that she had always been a total wallflower, and her makeover was completely necessary. She nodded.

Gray chuckled. "Jeez, I'm blind. Can't believe I had no idea. Well, I guess that's what you get for sitting beside a dumbass like Natsu, right? His idiocy is probably contagious."

Juvia giggled behind her hand. For a second, the smile on Gray's face wavered and his cheeks went pink. He cleared his throat, and hurried on, rubbing the back of his neck. "So, ah, you planning to study for that test next week?"

Juvia wanted to say that she had never studied for an English test in her life, especially not for a Shakespeare play. She had read Hamlet three times by the time she was thirteen. But once again, her voice died out, and she settled for a shrug.

"Well, none of the guys really want to, since they don't care about their education." Gray hooked his thumbs into the waistband of his shorts. Juvia tried not to drool. "And I know you're pretty smart, so, would you mind maybe studying with me?"

It took all of her willpower and concentration not to fall over on the spot. Gray...wanted to study...with her? Spend time with her? Was this...could this almost be a date?

She could feel her face turning redder by the second. Her fingers tightened on the strap, knuckles going white. She swallowed, and tried to say something, but at the last second the words died. They were going to get nowhere if she couldn't even say yes.

Juvia nodded. Gray's face cleared, and he smiled. "Cool. You free today?"

Her heart ached to say yes, but she had a shift at Club Phantom. She internally cursed her manager, and unconsciously the words "I'm busy," slipped out.

Her eyes widened as she realized she'd just said something, to Gray, out loud. She waited for the trumpets and fanfares and fireworks, but nothing happened. Gray simply shrugged and said, "Alright, cool. Another time, then?"

Apparently, two words were Juvia's quota for the day. She nodded, and he grinned. "Cool. I'll see you in class tomorrow."

He started walking out towards the parking lot, but stopped short. "Wait, where's Sting's car?"

Juvia realized that, in fact, it was gone. Because of Lucy's disappearance she had bussed to school that morning, and so wasn't graced with the usual morning parking frenzy. But now that Gray mentioned it, the lot seemed empty without the blinding white Chrysler.

"Sting took off with his new girlfriend," came a voice from behind them. Juvia jumped. Rogue, followed by Natsu and Jellal, had materialized behind them. Erza stood by Jellal. She looked surprised to see Juvia, and smiled.

"What do you mean, took off?" Gray snapped irritably. "How are we getting home?"

"Catching the bus," Rogue said mildly. When Gray made a face, he smirked. "You look like the idea of public transit viciously offends you."

"I hate buses," Gray complained. "Too many people."

"Well, tough luck." Rogue breezed part. Natsu followed. He looked oddly sad and quiet, not at all like how Juvia was used to seeing him. She wondered what was wrong. Erza gave her a wave as she passed.

Gray looked at her in surprise. "You know Erza?"

Juvia nodded again. She was getting quite good at communicating non-verbally. Gray shook his head, looking baffled but amused. "Well, I learn a new thing every day."

"Come on, man, you'll miss the bus!" Rogue called.

Gray saluted to Juvia. "Later, then!" She waved as he turned and dashed off the catch up with his friends. Juvia watched him go until they rounded the corner, heading down to the bus stop.

It was only then that she realized she was missing the feeling in both her legs. She let out her breath in one long whoosh, nearly falling over. Talking to Gray was one thousand times more stressful than she'd ever imagined. Sighing heavily, she turned on wobbly legs and began making her way towards the downtown shuttle bus.