Lucy inwardly cringed as she handed over the money for her ticket. "So...much," she weakly bleated--more to herself than the barely-of-age cashier.
"Well, you are buying it last minute, ma'am!" the young man crookedly smiled as he ripped the money from Lucy's sweaty grip. "You could wait a few days, you know...the price would drop substantially."
"I don't have a few days!" she whined. "I have to leave now."
"Then you pay this price," he cooed, counting the money. "Unless..." he glanced up, looking over Lucy appreciatively.
"I'll pay that price!" she snapped, understanding the look in his eyes. She'd seen it before, of course. Any other time, she would play the flattered princess, but right now, she wanted to high tail it out of Fairy Tail before the others found her....especially Erza!
She glanced around, guiltily, as she tapped her fingernails on the counter's hard surface. She could her hear her ticket printing.
"Leaving someone?" the young man behind the counter raised an eyebrow hopefully. No, desperately. Lucy inwardly cringed.
"No! As if it's any of your b-business!" she barked. She was beginning to hate this pimply-faced youth. When the ticket was finally printed, the attendant ripped it from the stub, handing her the longer portion.
She quickly grabbed it from his fingertips, her own barely touching his. His face turned red from the brief contact, "Have a safe trip, ma'am!"
"Hmph!" she grunted. "And don't call me ma'am, I'm eighteen!" She enjoyed scolding the perverted misfit.
"Of course, miss," he bowed slightly, his cheeks turning a deep shade of crimson.
She sent him one last glare before departing with her still-warm ticket. Overhead, the loudspeaker announced various departures and arrivals, as the trains' whistles signaled their presence. After locating its exact position, Lucy headed toward the platform where she would catch her three-thirty train to Wisteria.
*****
*****
Lucy slumped into the fluffy seat of her private room. Hell, if she was going to spend that much money, she would get a private room, at least. Besides, she wanted to sort through her thoughts, and she may need to summon Loki for that. She reached for her keys, realizing that she didn't have them.
"Oh no!" she groaned as she quickly stood. She opened the door to her room, running into one of the ushers.
"Miss, please take your seat, the train is departing!" the elderly attendant barked.
"Yes, sir!" she yelped as she instinctively slid the door shut and plopped back into her seat. She slapped her forehead. How could she forget her keys? Her whip was secured to her hip, but her keys must still be on the table...
"Oh no.." she moaned. "I'm such an idiot!"
"I wouldn't go to extremes, Luce!" came the familiar male voice.
Lucy jumped in her seat; she hadn't heard the door slide open. She stared, open-mouthed, as Natsu, Gray, and Happy stood in the doorway.
"Take your seats!" came the gruff warning. "Train's moving!"
"Aye!" Happy scooted to take the seat next to Lucy.
"Yeah, yeah," Natsu retorted, returning the man's glare.
Gray shrugged, seating himself across from Lucy. Natsu's face turned a slight shade of chartreuse as the train squeaked into motion.
"Oh give it up, ass, you don't get motion sickness anymore," Gray sounded annoyed.
"Aye, Wendy healed you, remember?" Happy chimed in.
Natsu looked at his hands before glancing out the window as the wooden platform began to slowly lurch away. "Oh...yeah," the grin spread across his face as he sprawled out on the floor at Lucy's feet.
Lucy was still in shock at their sudden appearance. "W-what are you guys doing here?"
"You didn't think we'd let you go alone, did ya?" Natsu murmured from his spot on the floor. He pushed his sleeping bag under his head, using it as a pillow.
"Besides, when we heard you were in the library...well, that was a tip off," Gray ran his hand through his black hair.
"And you got away from Juvia for this?" Lucy retorted, slightly angry at their inference.
"Hey, don't bitch, Luce!" Natsu defended the ice mage. "It was out of character, that's all. Besides," he peeked at her through half-closed lids, "we were right, weren't we?"
"Shut up!" she barked back.
"Anyway, you're lucky Erza doesn't know that you left. You'd be in real trouble then," the dragonslayer smirked.
"You wouldn't!" she practically shrieked, her teeth chattering out of fear. She felt her palms become clammy.
"Of course he wouldn't," Gray butt in, "we'd all have to hear it! We are now accomplices, are we not?"
"Yeah, yeah," Natsu grumbled, closing his eyes.
"Aye!" Happy whispered as he leaned back into his seat. He turned to look at the blonde mage.
"Why are you staring at me, cat?" she couldn't ignore his beady eyes any longer.
"Lucy, you owe us an explanation," he replied calmly.
"How dare you demand an explanation from me!" she stared incredulously at the blue cat.
"Cool it, Lucy!" the pink-haired mage defended his friend. Lucy's posture illustrated her defeat. "Well, start from the beginning. And speak slowly...so Gray can keep up!" Natsu mumbled from his bed on the floor.
"Fuck you," Gray retorted, as he attempted to stomp on Natsu's hand.
"Watch it, I may need that hand to save your ass, later!"
"Damn you!" Gray snarled, as the two tussled on the floor of the private car.
"Hey! You two, settle down or I'll kick you out!" Lucy grabbed both men by the back of their necks. "If you want an explanation, you're going to have to settle down! NOW!" she roared.
"Yes, Lucy!" they wailed in unison, quickly returning to their seats. It was rare for her to get this angry, and both men had reason to believe that this was going to be a good explanation.
Lucy gazed out the window at the passing trees as the train picked up speed. "It turns out," she sighed, her forehead falling against the cold smoothness of the glass, "we are dealing with something more powerful than we thought..."
*****
*****
"So you think she's a Stellar Spirit mage?" Gray asked.
Lucy shook her head, "I'm not sure. She wasn't in the log of spirit mages, but the book was over fifty years old, so it may just be that it's not updated."
"But she has a sister?" Natsu asked, an odd twinkle in his eyes.
"Shut up, idiot!" Lucy snapped. "Why do you care so much?"
"For Graaay," he sang, as Lucy punched him in the arm. "Ok, ok, I just wanted to piss you off!" he raised his hands in mock surrender.
"What for?" she growled. She was finding that her patience was wearing thin with the young mage.
"Ok, back to what you were saying before," Happy interrupted. "Do you think this...um...mage that was killed before--"
"Daylon." Lucy interrupted.
"Yeah. Him. How is he related to Adie?" he sucked in his bottom lip, his interest evident on his feline face.
"I'm not sure. I think some sort of relative. At first, I thought maybe a lover," she paused, watching Gray's reaction. "But, Loki ruled that out."
"How come he couldn't tell you anything?" Natsu asked.
"There are some laws that are upheld in the Spirit World, and I think that this information is something relating to the King. The Freya spirit I mentioned is the Queen of the the Stellar Spirits," she tried to explain.
"What happened to her?" Natsu asked.
"I'm not sure, I recognized the name immediately," she twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "But, I haven't heard anything about her, recently."
"Do you think she--this Freya--is related to the murders?" Gray asked carefully omitting of Stellar Mages, for Lucy's sake.
"I'm not sure, but I get the feeling she's important to the story," Lucy nodded.
"But if she's the Queen, isn't she married to the King? Why would she have a human lover?" Happy looked from Natsu to Lucy.
"That was my dilemma, too," Lucy admitted. "I have no clue. That's why this is so frustrating."
"So you are hoping Adie is able to clear this up?" Gray asked, through narrowed lids.
Lucy stared out the window for some time. "No, that's not it. At least not all of it." She sighed, looking at Natsu and Gray. "I feel like something is terribly wrong, and she's trying to fix it!"
"But she tried to kill you!" Natsu blurted.
Lucy shook her head, "But, you see, I don't think she would have been able to do it. From what she said, and just the look...the look in her eyes--she's in a lot of pain, you guys! Something is wrong!" It was all she could say to them. She shook her head, "Shit, I'm no good at explaining this..."
"I saw it too," Gray spoke softly.
"What?" all three said in unison.
Gray's face turned red, as he realized he would have to explain. He nodded solemnly, "I had no idea what had happened, but I ran into her after...well, you know.."
"I get it," Lucy whispered.
"She looked as if she had been crying—or was about to! I asked what was wrong, and she just pushed me aside and took off! I didn't know, or I would have restrained her," he admitted, feeling deflated.
"It's alright, Gray," Natsu put his hand on the ice mage's shoulder. A smile pulled at the corners of his mouth, "We all do strange things for pretty women!"
"That's not it!" Gray growled at Natsu, pushing his hand off of his shoulder. "Just forget I said anything!"
"I understand. I felt it too," Lucy wrung her hands in frustration. "Whatever it is, it's more serious than we thought." Some part of her felt for the young woman. No one could hold such intensity for sorrow in their eyes and not deserve a chance to explain themselves.
"I trust you, Luce," Natsu said, turning toward Lucy.
She looked up, tears in her eyes. She could see Happy and Gray nodding their agreement. "T-thank you guys!" she smiled. Happy patted her hand. She looked at the tattoo that outlined her Fairy Tail origin.
"Besides, you'll need us," Natsu nodded, staring out of the window. "Because," the light reflected off of his eyes, and Lucy saw him clench his fists, "there will inevitably be trouble. And I really need to kick some monster ass!"
*****
*****
The train squealed to a halt, the final movements dragging the four companions from their sleep. Lucy rubbed her dry eyes. She realized that Natsu's head was resting on her feet, and she smiled warmly as she watched him snore.
"He cares about you, too," she heard the groggy voice, realizing that Gray was watching her. Watching her watch Natsu.
"Creep!" she whispered angrily. Gray merely shrugged, smiling at her reaction.
Over the loudspeaker, she could hear the conductor: "We have arrived at the Wisteria Station. You may disembark and pick up your luggage once you are on the platform. Please have your tickets ready to claim your luggage."
Natsu yawned and stretched before pushing himself off of the floor. "We're here already?" his voice was thick with sleep.
"Yup, now get up!" Lucy prodded him with her foot.
"Ok, ok," he gruffly replied as Happy yawned next to him. "I'm hungry!" the dragonslayer groaned, clutching his stomach.
"Well, you guys can get breakfast while I tour the town really quickly."
"Great idea, Luce!" Natsu grinned, his pink hair standing on end.
Lucy rolled her eyes, as she pulled a brush from her bag. "Let me fix your hair at least. Or the townspeople will think you're one of those monsters you want to annihilate!"
"Nooo!" he squirmed as she brushed his hair. "Seriously, let go!" he finally broke free from her grip, as Gray howled with laughter.
"You're next!" Lucy looked at the ice mage, holding her brush menacingly. Before she could act on her promise, both men and cat had departed the small room. She chuckled as she pulled a jacket from her bag. She slipped it on as she met her teammates on the platform.
"I'm going to look around," she peered at the tiny town. It looked similar to Magnolia, with its tiny shops and busy townsfolk. Her eyes fell on the large clock-tower. "We'll meet there in an hour!" she pointed toward the large tower.
"Deal!" Gray replied as Natsu pulled both Happy and Gray away by their collars
"Food!" he growled as smoke hissed from his mouth. Lucy chuckled as she pulled the bag onto her shoulders. She looked at the tiny town as she readied herself to do some exploring.
"Here I come. Ready or not!" she said to herself. She briefly thought of Adie, though she had no idea as to whether she would even run into the mage in this town. But, it was the only thing linking the young woman to...anything.
*****
*****
Lucy wandered the streets for the next thirty minutes. She had almost completed a loop around the quaint borough. She had managed to finagle a map from one of the tourist booths, though she had a feeling this town didn't see many tourists, being that it was as close to the ocean as you could get on the western border of the country. And as far away from other towns and villages...
Lucy inhaled the delicious scent of saltwater. She could hear gulls in the far off distance. Maybe they could go to the beach today, if their search proved fruitful...
Suddenly, the faded sign caught her eye: Daylon's Blacksmithery.
"Huh?" she grunted, her mouth hanging open in surprise. She looked around as the villagers continued with their daily routines. "E-excuse me..," she happily chirped to a nearby stranger.
"Yes, young miss?" the gentle, elderly man replied. He smiled, his remaining teeth crooked.
"T-that, uh, store. Whose is it?"
"Oh, Daylon's? Well, let me think," he scratched his balding head as he removed his hat. "Daylon and his partner...what was his name..?"
"Oh, I don't need names," Lucy laughed cheerfully. "I just wondered if you could tell me who runs it now...Daylon's partner, maybe?"
"Oh no!" the man waved his hands, "he's as old as me—if not older. His younger apprentice is here from time to time. Really, if you need something fixed quick, then you should go to Beard's, which is right down the street. Make a right..," he continued to tell Lucy the direction to the other blacksmith's. "But, if you want something done right, and don't mind the wait, you go to Daylon's."
"Right, thanks," Lucy replied, eyeing the store cautiously.
"Do you have something you need to be repaired?" the ancient man asked, his pale gray eyes looking over Lucy. "You don't look like you're from around here. I would remember such a pretty face.."
"Haha, thanks, mister," Lucy laughed. "But I was just curious. I'm traveling through."
He nodded, "Well, be careful. Word is that the forest surrounding this town is haunted." His tone was serious, and a chill ran through Lucy.
"W-what do you mean?" she was suddenly all ears.
"Well, the old farmer down the lane has been complaining that his cattle have been killed. Something about two holes in their necks and their blood sucked out. I think it's just a stray wolf, but he's set in his ways that it's something else. Something 'un-wordly', as he says. I think he's going batty in his old age," he tugged his beard as he spoke, watching Lucy's reaction.
"Riiight," Lucy replied, half-interested.
"That's all, Little Lady," he smiled. "Enjoy the rest of your stay!"
"I will. And thank you!" Lucy waved as he replaced his hat and scuttled down the street with the help of his cane.
Lucy looked toward the shop. Daylon's. "Well, it couldn't hurt to take a peek, could it?" she asked herself.
She balled her hands into fists, as her feet carried her toward the shoddy store. She turned the doorknob and heard a faint tinkering of chimes as they announced her entrance. She peered around the dark shop. There was no one at the counter, and she could see the faint glow coming from under the door that was behind the long counter. She could hear a grinding sound, telling here that someone was working.
"Hello?" her voice echoed through the store. Her only response was the grinding noise. This time, it was louder.
She approached the counter, looking for a bell to ring, but found nothing. "Hello? Anyone around?" she asked again, her voice more demanding. She stood there for a few more minutes, but grew tired of waiting. She looked at her watch: still fifteen minutes before she needed to meet Gray, Natsu, and Happy.
She squared her shoulders. "How rude!" Lucy hissed as she stepped through the small gate that led her behind the counter. She followed the orange glow as she heard the same grinding noise--the high-pitched whistle of metal on metal. She stood in front of the large wooden door, reaching a shaky hand for the its knob. She took a deep breath and turned it.
The door opened with little resistance. "Hello? Anyone?" she weakly called out as she found the enormous back room. It had high ceilings, and the walls were littered with various armor and weaponry. It was a large garage devoted to mass destruction! Her eyes fell on the hunched over form as he ground out the giant...axe!
"Hey! I've been calling for someone for a few minutes now!" she stomped her foot once the noise settled.
"Sowwy," came the muffled reply. The person stood, and Lucy got a good look at their clothing: dark work pants with standard, steel-toed boots. The outfit was completed by a button-down plaid shirt. Typical blacksmith, she thought. Lucy wanted to snort at the ridiculous--and stereotypical--attire. Over his head, he wore a large pull-down mask that completely covered his face for protection.
The blacksmith set the giant axe on the table next him with ease. Lucy gulped—that was a massive axe, much too massive to be handled with such ease! He reached his gloved hand up to pull the face protection off of his head. When he did so, pale blonde hair tumbled down his back.
"I can't hear very well back here, and this mask if pretty constricting. So sorry about the wait. Did you have something scheduled for pick up?" the blacksmith asked. Lucy realized that he was not a he—it was a she!!
"It's...you?" Lucy gasped. What were the odds?
Suddenly the blacksmith turned, staring at Lucy in wide-eye horror. "W-what are you doing here?"
Lucy replied, her voice cold and calculating, "I should ask you the same thing. Adassandra!"
******
/////
Your reviews have been too kind. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart: both to the readers and to the reviewers.
Do not worry, there will be action soon enough. And Erza will come back into play. Right now, she's the Makarov's right-hand woman, and she's off gathering information. We'll see more of her later! And maybe some other characters as well.
Look forward to growth in Lucy's abilities. It may be subtle at first...
And I do not hate Juvia, but I think having her fawn over Gray only takes away from her kick-ass potential as a mage. I plan on using her later. Her growth will come as well ;)