Pairing: Jellal(Siegrain)/Lucy, with minor mentions of Jellal/Erza; and other ships to come
Rating: T for cursing, violence and slight suggestive theme, might turn into M for sexual content in the future
Warning: Might derive from canon! Since most of the events won't happen the way they were supposed to originally, some details might appear in different places. (Concerning Lucy's keys that she won't be able to obtain in canon because she doesn't join Fairy Tail.)
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail in any way, shape or form. All rights go to Hiro Mashima.
A/N: This pairing needs so much love, like, pronto! There isn't a single piece of fanart I have witnessed with this pairing and it makes me so sad. Behold the power of Jerza and Nalu overshadowing the wonders of crack shipping. So, that is why I decided to write a fanfiction with these two cuties. Takes place a few months or so before Episode/Chapter 1 of Fairy Tail.
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/As•trum/
Noun – Latin
a fixed luminous point in the night sky which is a large, remote incandescent body like the sun.
Mars
Energy; Vigor; Initiative
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The warm, foggy air cakes her face like a mask.
She sits upon a cushion placed in the middle of the spacious room, with all the grace a lady like her carries. Watching the maids prepare her bath with keen eyes, she makes light talk as the steaming water continues to flow into the massive tub, filled with plump and luscious bubbles.
It is one of the few joys she could spend for herself in these lonely halls.
Glancing around the fancy décor of her own private baths, she wonders how her life would be if she didn't have all these luxuries.
As days went on, alien thoughts kept clouding her mind more often than she cares to admit.
Selfish thoughts; the kind that might ruin all that her father has ever worked on.
She shakes her head lightly, trying to get rid of the traitorous, yet inviting scenarios that occupies her mind more often than not. She fumbles with her keys that she hides in one of the long sleeves of her expensive gown. The slight shimmering of the different metal keys never fail to give her a good sense of comfort when she was anxious about nothing and everything.
A light knock on the heavy oak door indicates yet another worker in the huge Heartfilia Manor coming into her private chambers.
A short, elderly woman, one with purple strands tied behind her head, rushes into the room. Lucy gives her a smile, a smile which quickly turns into a frown when Spetto doesn't spare her a single glance. She whispers hurriedly to another maid, voice hushed and muffled by the heated waters. Her eyes widen at the elder maid's words and, with a horrified and morbid curl to her lip, the two of them rushed out from the room.
"Stay right where you are, Lucy-sama!"
Lucy bites her lower lip, feeling the scrap of her teeth on her skin, wondering as to what had happened for her personal maids to be acting so secretive around her.
They usually never keep anything from her, unless it was an emergency.
The blonde stands up from her place on the cushion, grabbing the hem of her beautifully detailed gown that she longs to take off for the day. She lifts the skirts from the ground and, with knitted golden eyebrows, slowly walks towards the large doors leading to her room, only to swallow down a yelp as somebody – quite rudely – barges into the bathroom.
She heaves a sigh of relief when she realizes that it is the residential librarian, who, most certainly, was not supposed to be here in the first place.
Narrowing her chocolate eyes, Lucy crouches down to level herself with the seemingly distressed man. He looks to be in a state of panic that unnerves her greatly. She places a soft and gentle hand on his tiny shoulder and fives him a warm smile laced with reassurance.
''Ribbon-san, what's wro—"
''Lucy-sama, we must hurry!''
Without another word muttered from the servant, he grasps her larger hand in his, leading – almost dragging – her from her room and into the hall. Once her heeled feet meet the rich carpet of her corridor, Lucy's eyes widen drastically once her gaze lands on the smoke-filled front yard. Rooting her heels into the ground, she observes the view, and the drastic change of scenery makes her pulse echo and echo and echo in her skull.
The little librarian's voice doesn't reach her after that, not quite.
''Lucy-sama!'' A voice calls from the other side of the hall as an elderly, short man emerges from around the corner.
''Bero-san, what in the world is happening?'' The blonde asks her Magic teacher with a quivering voice. The old man rushes to her side, ushering her to move forward with the other servant in tow.
''She is coming for you! You must go to your father, hurry! I'll hold her off as best as I can.''
''Bero-san...''
''Please.'' Lucy looks tearfully at the man. Never being one to question the authority of her mentors, she allows the small, blue-haired librarian to lead her to her father's office. Lucy, feeling anxious and panicked and downright suffocated, takes hold of her metal key ring for safety measures.
Nibbling her lower lip yet again in habit, she wonders just who would dare to infiltrate one of the wealthiest families in all Fiore without the fear of consequences.
Sure, the Heartfilia Konzern isn't all that well-protected; only a handful of people knew how to defend themselves from a weak-leveled mage at best.
Or maybe it's yet another one of those 'kidnap the heiress for money' scenario she has been warned about since birth.
It wouldn't be the first and certainly not the last time it was attempted, she is sure of that.
But something makes Lucy pause for a second.
It is a woman who is after her.
Clanking marble, and the stomp of tiny feet are the last things heard before the huge wooden doors bolts shut.
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His fingers go taut around one another with each and every step his daughter paces. The blonde celestial mage walks around his luxurious office, jumping at every muffled sound made outside the safety of his study. He knows that there is nothing left to do but to wait for the Rune Knights to arrive.
Jude Heartfilia turns in his chair, staring at his fortune that continues to turn to ash with every bush that burnt off.
He wants the culprit punished.
This is obviously the work of a mage, which unnerves and nags at him to no end. He knows—knows—he should have hired more mages for his households' safety but now isn't the time to drown in past regrets when there are more of them to come.
His beautiful, young daughter, who looks so much like his beloved Layla, is targeted.
He doesn't like that.
He doesn't like that one bit.
For whatever reason this is happening – be it his money or his lands, hell, even his rails – he'll have the culprit punished, even if it's the last thing he does.
The noises outside are meek at first, but with each passing second, they grow louder and closer to the polished door of his office that separated them from the rest of the manor. He can faintly make out his daughter's sigh as she slumps against the wall. Jude wants to yell at her for acting so unladylike but deep down he knows that this is certainly not the time to complain about such trivial things.
Suddenly, all three heads shoot up as a shrill scream erupts from down the hall. Lucy's eyes steel over when she recognizes the voice belonging to her maid Spetto. Without a second thought, she whips out her keys and heads for the door, only to receive a crude yell from her father.
''Lucy Heartfilia, do not dare to take another step, you hear me!?''
But the harsh demand is met by a gust of wind as the blonde heiress slips out of the heavy door. The hall rings with the sound of fabric tearing and two light bangs as heeled shoes hit the marble ground. Lucy rushes down the hall where the screams had died down long ago. Turning a corner, she gasps at the sight of two frail legs resting behind a bush. She kneels down next to her purple-haired maid, who seemed to have lost consciousness. A deep gash runs through her hand and the blonde knows her top priority is to stop the bleeding.
Tearing the rest of her remaining skirt off, the once gorgeous gown is reduced to scraps of expensive fabric. A light, cream under-dress is the only thing left to fend her body from the world, but Lucy is just glad to gain some kind of movement. Taking Spetto's upper hand gently, Lucy wraps the velvet material around the wound firmly. Heaving a sigh, the young heiress decides that this is the best she can do for now without calling out one of her spirits to aid her.
Suddenly, the old maid's eyes shoot open. The typically warm, dark hues are reduced to white, while the whites of her eyes are black. Lucy crawls back as an almost sinister smile that she had never witnessed before settles across Spetto's face.
A puff of smoke surrounds her body, and Lucy's gaze turn round as a reflection of her appears right before her eyes.
Same torn up clothes, same facial structure, same golden hair pulled up into a bun.
But the expression is off.
Very off.
''Oh, so you have 4 golden keys, huh?'' Her clone speaks with a dark drawl, voice unrecognizable and familiar to her ears simultaneously. Lucy shoots to her feet in defense, settling herself into a combat position that Bero has drilled into her brain.
Bero.
She wonders where he is now.
The blonde bears her teeth as her clone stands up with all the grace she possesses as well.
Whatever that thing is, she has to stop it.
''This must be my lucky day then, blondie,'' The doppelgänger tone is pleased and frightening.
The real Lucy quickly pulls out a key from the key ring attached to her hipbone, jaw clenched and nostrils flared.
Is was not going to let anyone take away her spirits away—even if her life is at dire risk.
''Gate of the Bull, I open thee! Taurus!'' A shining, gold magic circle appears in the space between them, and a moment later a loud roar rips through the silence. A bull-like man comes into sight, wielding a battle ax, tall and menacing. Butt the lookalike shows not an ounce of fear; actually, Lucy is unnerved by the smug curvature of her lips.
''Moo! Lucy-san's nice body duplicated!'' Lucy gulps, the saliva gathered in her mouth forcing down her esophagus at her spirit's perverseness.
Now is really not the time for this.
''Taurus, attack that lookalike!'' The blonde points at what seems like her own reflection. The lookalike, unfazed, just stands there with a peculiar expression on her face; the glint in her eyes tells Lucy she knows something that she does not.
''Oh, Taurus.'' The tone of the clone sickens the blonde, making a disgusted shiver run through her spine. ''Why don't you attack the other Lucy and I'll give you a treat.'' To make a point, the lookalike grabs the hem of her corset, and Lucy is struck with realization and apprehension.
This is not good.
The bull-like man freezes before turning on the blonde, making the celestial mage's eyes widen in fright.
Would he really strike her?
His hands starts to shake as he lifts the ax up in the air.
''F-Forgive me, L-Lucy-san. I can't c-control my b-body,'' he stammers out as the real Celestial mage closes her eyes, waiting for the unavoidable impact. Taurus tries to lower down his weapon, but the attempt just seems to make it worse as the razor falls onto Lucy's head. Thankfully, the bull spirit manages to rotate the the ax horizontally just in time for it to collide with the blonde's head.
Lucy grabs at her forehead in white pain.
The damage her head receives from the blunt side of the weapon nearly shuts her brain off. She can feel red hot liquid running down between her face and fingers, the interior of her halls becoming hazier by the second. Standing up with a bit of stumble, the Celestial mage scatters away from the pair as far as possible. Retrieving the golden key from her side, she closes the gate to the bull man, uttering a light ''it's alright' to her beloved spirit.
The hammering pulse in her ears is hypnotic; it makes Lucy hallucinate that the laughter coming from the clone duplicates.
But no.
She hears footsteps, loud and refined, and an imposing hand comes into her vision.
''I'll be taking these—''
''No!'' Lucy gathers her strength and slaps the other woman's hand away. Her doppelgänger is gone by the time she manages to stumble into a nearby room in a meager attempt to get away from the white-haired invader, who seems to be the one who has caused chaos to erupt inside her small little world.
''Look at you,'' the infiltrator drawls. ''So weak and pathetic—you don't deserve your spirits.'' The last bit comes out as a growl that leaves Lucy shivering in cold fear.
Not fear for herself but, rather, for her spirits.
If this hag were to take them away from her...
Lucy refocuses her vision to locate just exactly where she is at and, conveniently for her, it is her own bedroom.
But Lucy is almost drowned out; she's not able to notice the incoming kick directed straight at her. The heiress groans out in pain as the other's foot collides with her abdomen, making the blonde's knees connect with the hard, wooden floor once more. Looking down, she notices her once cream-colored under-dress splashed with maroon, and the light wood she lays upon adapts the same coloring.
''Now, give me the keys or I'll have to take them by force." Angel hovers above her with a victorious glint in her eyes, but Lucy is not finished.
''You can take my life but not my spirits!'' She spits at the older woman who seems to be more than compliant to bring life to her statement. She crouches to her level, placing her gloved hand on the blonde's shoulder, making the latter flinch away,
''Oh, don't worry,'' she coo'ed to Lucy, ''I'm planning on it.''
Suddenly, a hand snakes into her golden locks, accompanied by a very rough tug. Lucy lets out a shriek as Angel pulls her up to her feet by her hair. Her already pained head throbs even more; her mind clears of any and all strategies she has planned. She feels another tug at her strands, making her hands shoot up on their own accord to wrap around the base of her roots to lessen the pain, even if it has little to no effect at that point.
They are going somewhere, Lucy could tell, but the only thing her mind is able to register is the pain exploding in her scalp. However, the steamy, thick air is a more than fair indicator of where she is, and that knowledge tugs a smile smile on her bloody face.
Perfect.
''Let's see how well you can swim, girlie." Angel places Lucy above her bathtub; the warmth radiating from the water and the sweet, sweet scent makes her mind relax and throb and slack. The thick droplets of blood plop into the now clear surface, coloring the body of water a brilliant red. Lucy knows what is about to happen, so, with her lungs now full of air to last her a trip underwater, she prepares to be dunked into that sweet, warm water.
And as her wounded flesh breaks the surface, Lucy knows—knows!—she has won.
As subtly as she is able in her current predicament, Lucy withdraws the water bearer's key, already knowing full well that the white-haired woman isn't aware of which keys she has in her possession, otherwise, she wouldn't have made such a foolishly blatant mistake such as this.
She makes a sluggish unlocking motion with her key underwater, praying that just this one, one, time, the stubborn spirit would cooperate with her without a fight.
Angel's eyes widen in alert as a familiar golden glow shines from the depths of the tub she hovers above. Her brows knit together in shock and anger at her own foolishness, for she could have asked Gemini of which keys the blonde possessed beforehand.
A huge, blue tail springs out from the surface, hitting the woman's shoulder with a start. Angel gasps in pain on impact, releasing the blonde's hair in the process.
''I told you a million times not to bring me out whe—'' The blue-haired spirit cuts herself off when she sees the state her master is in. The usual gown she wears is no more, replaced by a bloody under-dress. Her hair is a mangled mess and her single opened eye is drenched in her own blood, just like the rest of her face. The mermaid feels rage consume her at the sight of the damage done to Lucy as she turns her attention to the seething Celestial mage.
Upon seeing Aquarius, Angel whips out a key that she knows could stop the mermaid without much of a fight.
''Sorry, blondie, but you should have studied up on your spirits' relationships better.'' A golden glow shoots from the tip of the key, and another spirit appears in the spacious bathroom. Lucy's eyes widen when she recognizes the newcomer to be Scorpio, Aquarius' boyfriend that she's been gushing about for so many years.
''We are, yeah! Aquarius, baby, what's cooking?'' He greets his beloved, and the blonde's stellar spirit freezes, feeling torn. However, the sight of Lucy's frail form barely able to lean against the marble tub for support, she knows if she is to leave now, she can kiss their contract goodbye, forever.
The mixed-haired spirit gives Aquarius a wink; a wink that sets her mind at ease because, even if she does tend to deny it, she knows that Scorpio understands just how precious the blonde mage is to her.
So, with a raise of her urn up in the air, she locks eyes with the shocked white-haired woman.
''You think so low of us that you thought a cheap trick like that would work?! You scum, take this!'' She screams out, summoning her magic in the vase-like weapon. Not a moment later, a giant wave emerges from the urn, washing away her lover and her enemy alike, and for the first time in her life, the blonde was left dry.
Just this once.
A scream rips out from Angel's throat as the huge body of water collides with her body with a loud slap. She drops her keys into the small tsunami-like current, and a small tentacle of clear, bluish water grabs hold of the key ring belonging to the Oracion Seis' member.
It takes only a handful of seconds for the whole mansion floor to overflow with water, which isn't such a rare occurrence, in all honesty. As the huge wave rips through her bathroom's door, washing the two opponents into the next room, the bluenette helps the wonder-filled, dizzy blonde up to her feet, examining her face. The spirit can clearly see the gaping gash on her forehead, wet and sticky from the mixed up liquids sputtering from the wound.
Aquarius can't help but wonder how the girl is still conscious to begin with.
''Aquarius-san," Lucy mutters weakly as her strongest spirit washes her face just a bit. Without a word, Aquarius turns around to face her master's room. The room looks disastrous; every nook and cranny is splashed and drenched in water. She spots the dark Mage leaning against Lucy's bedpost, panting as she does so.
She is surprised and, admittedly, impressed that the woman can still sit up after experiencing the full force of her wave. Grabbing Lucy's hand to support her, she leads her steadily to her room, where the other pair of master and spirit resided in. Seeing as how Aquarius looks at her boyfriend with pure regret, the blonde gently tugs at the floating mermaid's hand and points at the enraged, yet tired white-haired woman.
Scorpio, who is drenched from head to toe, shakes his head to remove the droplets of water from his hair, winking again at his blue-haired girlfriend with a grin.
''Aquasweetie, I'm gonna see ya later, 'kay?'' Without waiting for a reply, the spirit of the scorpion disappears in a golden glow.
''I'll make up to you!'' The bluenette's sugar-coated answer resounds throughout the room before Angel's raged-filled curses drown Aquarius out.
''Scorpio! How dare you leave me! I'm going to kill you, you hear me!'' She yells at the empty space besides her where the man previously laid next to her. Lucy, hearing the words leave the infiltrators mouth, pulls away from the water bearer as if her hand has been burnt. Rubbing around her injured head with her fingers gently, she prays silently that the dark Mage will still be alive after this.
She can't save her now.
''Did you just threaten my boyfriend?'' Lucy could swear she has never heard a darker tone from the mermaid. A whip appears in Aquarius' hand as she draws nearer to the now seemingly afraid Mage.
Without her keys, she is truly done for.
''Prepare to pay.''
The shrill scream that escapes from the white-haired Mage-s mouth might have been heard by the Rune Knights that are marching into the Heartfilia Konzern.
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When Jude Heartfilia steps to his daughter's room, he expected to see the worst.
To his utter surprise, the pastel pink room is a bit darker, seemingly drenched with water—even the dolls that stood on the highest shelves. The next thing he notices is the giant, floating aquarium-like bubble that is surrounded by dozens of Rune Knights.
The military arrived at the last minute, much to the man's discontent.
Gazing inside, he could see a white-haired woman floating around the water cage, unconscious. Her whole body, from head to toe, is covered with whip marks and gashes. He feels a cold dread fill his being when he couldn't spot Lucy anywhere in the room.
A sigh of relief leaves through his mouth as Lucy exits from the attached bathroom with two Rune Knights on either sides, dressed in their traditional military uniforms. Jude sees the bandage wrapped around her head and feels enraged when he notices that her dress – or what is left of it – is drenched in maroon liquid.
It better not be her blood, for everyone's sake.
A pink-haired maid is at his daughter's heel with a medical supply kit in hand. Jude recognizes her to be the Celestial Spirit he had bought off Duke Everlue a couple months back for his daughter.
''Lucy,'' he breathes out as he cradles the girl in his outstretched arms. Said girl looks at the empty space in front of her, surprised at her father's affection. With much hesitance, she returns the brief hug. Closing his eyes, the tall blond-haired man rests his chin on her head, smelling the metallic scent of blood, which makes him tighten his grip more.
''I demand to know who did this.'' He looks at the two men who escorted his daughter in question. The slightly taller of the two speaks up, his posture fit for a man of his status.
''You've already seen the culprit," he stated matter-of-factly, pointing his chin in the direction of the makeshift prison cell. Jude realizes that he must have meant the woman in the water bubble. Looking at the white-haired girl once more, resentment fills his eyes as he speaks, anger lacing his tone, to the two military men.
''I'd like to attend her trial, see that she gets a proper punishment for her crimes." It doesn't even come out as a request; it is more of a statement than anything else. The two men whisper to each other before nodding.
Jude Heartfilia has enough influence to get the both of them fired, so they have to comply without much more thought.
Lucy stands there, enveloped in her father's arms after such a long time.
It almost feels alien to her now.
Gripping the slightly heavier key ring in her long slender fingers, she smiles contently.
She has to make five more contracts before she can go to Era – the current location of the Magic Council.
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