Chapter 9

Lady Katherine

I sat nervously in a private room in the guild. I hadn't even noticed such a room existed on the second floor of the guild. Judging from the various crates and books that lay scattered about the room collecting dust; this room wasn't used often and was masquerading as a storage room. Katherine sat on the other end of the plain wooden desk, her deep green eyes daring me to start talking without permission. The flame-haired woman was extremely intimidating, and held such authority that I dared not step out of place. I gulped.

"So, Lucy, I take it you recognise me?" Katherine said, smiling like she found the entire situation quite amusing.

I nodded unsurely, nervousness preventing me from giving her any verbal answers.

"Use your words, girl," she said more sternly.

"Y-yes. I do. You were on the train to Haven," I finally answered.

She nodded with satisfaction. "Indeed, you did. I seem to recall you being blown out of the side of the train. How did you manage to recover?" She questioned sceptically.

"Um, well I was a bit sore when I woke up on the ground. Dusk apologised, and then suggested we part ways. I agreed, then walked to the nearest train station. Now, here I am," I replied, still unsure.

Katherine eyed me with discontent. "Yes, Dusk. What is your connection to him?" She asked me, clearly very suspicious.

I had no idea why I was lying. For some reason, I felt in debt to the strange man, and had a very strong urge to protect him. I shouldn't, he was obviously a massive criminal and would cause me nothing but trouble. But a part of me, a very small part of me, somehow knew that Dusk was important. For what, I didn't know. Why I felt this way, I also didn't know. But, my gut knew myself better than my brain did, and for that reason alone, I put all my trust in Dusk.

I shuffled uncomfortably, "No connection. He just happened to come and share the carriage I was in."

She raised her head slightly, as if she was trying to get a better view of me. I felt very small next to the large woman. I saw tattoo's creep on her body from her breast onto her neck, intimidating me further.

"Well, I don't think your lying, anyway, which is good," Katherine finally said. "You don't want to be around me when you're a liar."

I gulped. I shouldn't have lied. I should have just told her the truth and be done with it. Why wasn't I? I owed Dusk nothing. He was probably a horrific criminal and Katherine was just a noble warrior that wanted to take him Justice. But yet, my warned me against it. I rolled my eyes in annoyance. First my instincts told me not to trust Dusk, but now they wanted me to protect him? I really wish they'd make up their mind.

My thoughts were interrupted by a cough from Katherine, who stared at me frowning.

"Are we done with your little inner monologue?" She asked, clearly insulted that my full attention wasn't on her.

I nodded meekly. I didn't want to get on her bad side.

"Good. Since it's obvious you know very little on Dusk, I suppose we cannot explore that route any longer. However, I do have one more question. Did Dusk mention at all where he was going?" The flame-haired woman asked.

"No, he didn't," I said calmly. If I had lied so much thus far, what was the point of telling the truth now?

She made a satisfied grunt and stood up from her armchair, indicating for me to stand up with her.

Shaking hands, I stared at her. I still had no idea what magic she utilized, or who she even works for. She was almost as strange as Dusk in that regard. They were both clearly interconnected, in more ways that I could ever know. It seemed to me that Katherine was following more than just duty when seeking Dusk. She had a vendetta against the man, I could sense it. It wasn't a matter of if she was going to find him, it was a matter of when.

"Well, I thank you for your cooperation. Your assistance to Forge is greatly appreciated," Katherine bowed.

The powerful woman left the room. I stayed there for a while, until her booming steps were no longer heard. I sat back down, confused.

Forge.

The foreign word confused me. A small voice in the back of my mind screamed the answer, but I couldn't concentrate on it, no matter how hard I tried.

"Better add that one to the list of stuff I have no idea about," I laughed bitterly.

"Talking to yourself again Lucy?" A mocking voice said behind me.

I jumped with shock, completely unsuspecting an intrusion. Turning around, I was met with a petite man wearing orange.

"Master!" I exclaimed.

Makarov grinned in amusement, obviously getting a kick out of shocking me. I scowled in frustration.

"How did your chat go?" He asked cunningly. "She's a scary lady."

I shivered, "Well, it went alright. She was very intimidating though."

Makarov nodded. "Yes, it's only to be expected that the Captain of Squadron One is intimidating."

I looked at him in confusion. Then suddenly recalled Katherine's mention of something called Forge.

"Master, what's Forge?" I inquired.

He frowned at me, shocked at my ignorance.

"What? You don't know?" He questioned me.

He grasped his chin, eager to ponder this seemingly startling revelation. Moments later, he seemed to come to a conclusion.

"I keep on forgetting that not everyone knows the inner-workings of the magic council!" He chuckled lightly to himself.

It was my time to frown. How does one just forget that they know top-secret information that no one else does? The very thought of it was bizarre. Letting it go, I urged him to continue.

"Forge is an elite society dedicated to investigating threats to current magical society," Makarov finally answered.

My mouth dropped open. Forge was hunting Dusk for some unknown reason. Could that reason be that he was a massive threat?

"Indeed. The reason they questioned you must be very important, they rarely contact the public. That's why so few people even know of the organisation's existence," Makarov said.

"Wait… if they investigate massive threats, why hasn't the guild had much to do with them? We basically face catastrophe on a daily basis," I asked him, sceptical.

He shrugged. "That, I can't answer for sure. However, I suspect perhaps that they were always watching from a distance, and handled things from the background. As I said, they rarely actually interact with the public."

I furrowed my eyebrows in thought. If they didn't usually engage with people, why had they suddenly shown up at the guild wanting to question me? Something was very off about the situation.

"Well, I had better get going, then. See you later, Brat," Makarov said with a wave.

I hurriedly glanced at the retreating figure of Makarov. I had completely forgotten by reason for coming to the guild in the first place today.

"Master, wait!" I screamed after him.

His face reappeared at the doorway, appearing quite startled.
"What is it, my child?" He asked, startled.

"Oh… sorry Master. I didn't mean to alarm you. I just had a very important question," I asked him.

"Of course. What is it?" He replied.

"I-i…" I attempted to say.

I awkwardly paused, looking at the master. His face was worried, clearly anxious about what I had to say. Didn't I really want to leave Fairy Tail? It wasn't like I was leaving for good, it was just temporary. Until I figure out what the hell was going on, and figured out a way to fix it. I was leaving because it was the smart thing to do. Right? I shook my head, inner-conflict pulsating through my head. This was the right thing. I believe it.

"I request a leave of absence from the Guild," I asked.

Makarov's eyes widened as he turned behind him and closed the door. His attention returned to him, his face dead serious.

"Lucy, I hope this isn't because of the Lady. Whatever she has threatened you with, don't listen to her. She legally can't do anything," Makarov said.

I stepped back in surprise at his sudden stern face.

"No, no! It wasn't because of Katherine. I was thinking about it before I even came to the guild this morning, "I said raising my hands in defence.

Makarov sighed. "Then I must ask why, child?"

He was clearly disappointed. However, he didn't resist as much as I originally anticipated.

"I… just need some time to explore myself, Master. I want to separate myself from everyone and anything... and just really get to discover who I am. Of late, I feel like I'm losing myself," I whispered solemnly.

Makarova smiled sadly, his deep eyes saying thousands of unspoken words.

"You're young, Lucy. You have so much time to discover that. Is now the right time? And this way?" He asked me softly.

I nodded, determined. "Yes, Master. I have thought about it, but I need this. Natsu, Erza, Gray and even little Wendy, they all have some closure. Some sort of solid identity. Mine isn't as intact as I'd like it to be… and I think I'll get stronger as a result. With so much darkness around lately, I need this," I answered him.

"Well, it seems you have heavily considered it. Very well, I will grant you temporary leave. Remember Lucy, there is no rush to find yourself," Makarov mused.

I smiled in response. Makarov was a really good master. I waved him farewell as I left the room, and subsequently the guild hall. I wouldn't leave for a few days, but at least the goodbye was done for now. I just hoped that Makarov would properly explain to Natsu. I didn't want to be around for that conversation.

(A/N): Hey fam! Yes, chapter 9 is here! If you hadn't noticed, my profile now states that i have a schedule! Yes, I know, incredible. I'll be trying to stick to it, but you never know. This fic in particular updates every Monday! (My other story The Lady Loss updates on Wednesday, while Ring & Arrow updates Friday)! I know this is a big commitment and it'll probably change soon, but as for now that's it. Anyway, thanks for reading, please review, favourite, follow and PM me pls, support motivates me to write more chapters & improve my writing! Bye for now

- StingIsNotHere