Okay, so maybe this isn't an AU. I'm still trying to sort out this story in my head – so many bunnies are bouncing in my head, it's driving me insane! Also, I'm sorry for the super-long wait, I've been so uninspired and busy with school. But I got this chapter done, so yay! :D I hope you enjoy it, and please drop me a review or a PM to let me know what you think! :D
Disclaimer: I do not, unfortunately, own Fairy Tail. If I did, Lucy would have A LOT of boyfriends. Just saying. xD
-x-
The corridors were endless, twisting and twining in every direction. On the first day of freedom, Lucy navigated her way around the outside layer of corridors. Hundreds of deserted rooms, identical to hers, were scattered along the corridors. The few that Lucy had entered reeked of an unknown foul substance, preventing Lucy from entering any of the others. On some occasions, Lucy spotted dried stains of blood along the walls. Although this was scary, Lucy could not bring herself to lock herself back into her room. The extended periods of walking hurt her legs, which were unused to so much motion. Barely a week after the power had gone out, the battery backups for the doors to the outside world had trickled off, leaving Lucy in absolute darkness.
A waft of clean air drifted across Lucy's face, and she was surprised to note that she'd made a full circle back to her room. She knew it was her room, because it was the only one that didn't smell putrid and vile. Lucy took a few sheets of paper from her room, in addition to a blunt pencil. Once again, Lucy made her way around the corridors, counting each step and sketching a rectangle on her paper to scale. She marked every other room with a small dark X, in order to keep record of the rooms in the hospital. According to her map, there were around 200 rooms on this floor – and each room was rather large and well-furnished. Lucy assumed that this hospital had undergone a serious disaster – but what?
-x-
The next day, Lucy became slightly more adventurous. A meal had been left in the open doorway of her room, where she had spent the night. She ate her food and picked up her map and pencil, deciding to explore some more. This time, Lucy braced herself and opened every single door she came across, certain that not all of them were bedrooms. Sure enough, on the opposite side of the building to where her room was, she found a door that led to a steep flight of stairs. She walked carefully along the stairs, ignoring the panic growing in her chest at the darkness – it appeared that there were no lights in this stairway. Lucy raised her foot to take another step, and almost fell when the step wasn't there. She had evidently reached the top of the stairs. Feeling her way across the wall until she found a door, Lucy walked cautiously. As she opened the door, the sudden brightness almost blinded her. It was sunlight from a huge wall of glass opposite the door, too large to simply be called a window. Lucy frowned as she considered that this sunlight was warmer and brighter than the sunlight outside where she had been allowed to go every day. Shaking her head, Lucy grabbed another sheet of paper from her small pile and traced the rectangle from the previous page. Lucy looked left and right – each corridor appeared to stretch out equal distances, although the left appeared to contain less doors. Lucy squared her shoulders and strode towards the first door. Opening it tentatively, Lucy prepared herself for the vile scent she had become accustomed to, but it didn't come. Lucy threw the door open and stood amazed in the doorway: a gigantic kitchen, stocked with every variety of machine and lacrima imaginable. She spotted ovens, fridges, freezers, cupboards and even bread-making machines. Lucy noted this in her head and decided that the hospital must have provided its own food, hence the many machines.
She opened each fridge and scanned the contents: fresh fruit, vegetables, dairy and drinks. Fresh bread in the cupboards, huge varieties of cereal, sauces, pastas and even bottled water. Lucy grabbed a plastic bag from a pile in one cupboard and stuffed some food into it, as well as a few bottles of water. She placed her spare paper into the packet as well, and headed out of the room to the next one. This was a dining room, with a magnificent oak table and chairs. The next few rooms were mostly sitting rooms with opulent couches and lavish decorations. However, the next room Lucy came upon appeared to be very interesting: a library with shelves stretching up to the ceiling, overflowing with books. Lucy grinned and hurried through the doorway, examining the thousands of books in the shelves. She marked this door on her map with a small star so that she'd be able to find it again, before taking some interesting books off the shelves and placing them in her plastic bag. Lucy left the room, glad that she would have something to read when she got bored. She had always loved reading, even as a small child. One of her happiest memories was when she found the library at her dad's mansion. She had spent an entire day reading every book she could reach (which wasn't much, as she was very short then). She had read about… Something. Lucy's head suddenly flared up with pain and she dropped to the floor, clutching her head in her hands. Tears streaked down her cheeks and she stopped thinking about her past, trying to get her head to stop hurting. As quickly as it came, the pain dissipated. Lucy frowned and tentatively tried to remember what she'd been reading about. Again the pain struck her, worse this time. Lucy let out a yell and focused her mind on something, anything other than her past. The pain disappeared again, and Lucy let out a breathy sigh of relief. She opened up a bottle of water and took a quick swig before continuing her journey round the corridors.
There were not many interesting rooms. Most had nothing but a couch and a desk in, so Lucy decided to skip the exploration of those rooms. As she again approached the door that led to the stairs back down to her floor, Lucy entered the last room. This room was completely different to the other rooms on this level: where the other rooms had been pristine and well-furnished, this room was basic with papers scattered around the floor. A simple wooden desk stood in the furthest corner from the door, stacked high with papers. Lucy ventured into the room and scanned the papers on the floor. She picked up those that looked interesting, but she left the majority untouched. Lucy walked over to the desk and shuffled through the papers there. One thick brown folder of paper caught her eye: her name and photo were printed on the front. She swiped the folder up and shoved it into her plastic bag. The food in the bag had been eaten on her explorations, but the space was now completely taken over by books and papers. Lucy glanced around the room for anything of interest, and seeing nothing, walked out and closed the door behind her. She inched her way slowly down the pitch-black flight of stairs and returned to her room. In the bright artificial light, Lucy began to read the books she had chosen. She was almost certain that one of the books was identical to one she'd read as a child, and she wanted to experience the safe feeling of her past again. The thin red book, "Magic and Miracles", had at first grabbed her attention because of the image of a shining golden key on the front. She cracked open the book and began to devour the literary genius of the author, Yamato Kurosawa. As she read, her eyebrows sunk deeper and deeper into a frown. The book was discussing "mages" and "spirits" as if they were alive and real. Moreover, the book was saying that "mages" were actually in groups called "guilds". How could that be? Lucy had been taught, from the moment she entered this hospital, that magic was a lie, and that mages who wielded magic did not exist. This time, the pain came out of nowhere, forcing its way into Lucy's skull and driving sharp needles of pure agony into her brain. Thick swirls of black overcame Lucy's vision, and she felt herself drifting into unconsciousness.
-x-
"Lucy, this is your new mother. You will treat her with respect. Any disobedience or rudeness will not be tolerated." Jude Heartfilia glared sternly at his 5 year old daughter. Her chocolate eyes, so similar to Layla's, sent a piercing ache into his heart. Lucy glanced up at the tall black-haired woman next to him. As Lucy attempted a curtsy, she said timidly, "It's nice to meet you, miss." The strange woman stared down at Lucy and smiled broadly. "Hello, Lucy. My name is Mei Nikko. Well, actually it's Mei Heartfilia now. You may call me Mei." Lucy grinned up at Mei, pleased to see a smile on her face. "I'm going to my office. You will find me there if you require anything, Mei. Lucy – behave." The instant Jude had closed the door to his office behind him, the smile fell like acid from Mei's face. "Listen, brat. Your father and his money are mine now. You will obey me. If you do not, I will personally see to it that your life is a misery." Mei's harsh tone shocked Lucy, and she stood staring at Mei's icy eyes. Mei smirked and turned, heading up the stairs. Lucy stared after her, sadly wondering what she had done to offend Mei.
Dinner that night was awkward and uncomfortable. Lucy sat beside Mei, picking at her food. She avoided Mei's and her father's gaze throughout the meal, glancing up only when she was ordered to go to bed. As Lucy left the room, she overheard Mei saying sadly, "I don't know why she doesn't like me. I tried to be nice, but she just ignored me." Loud sobs echoed through the corridors as Lucy made her way to her room. As Lucy lay in bed thinking about Mei and her father, her bedroom door creaked open. Jude's imposing figure was framed by the passage light, making him appear scary. Lucy sat up and said softly, "Daddy?" Jude strode briskly into her room and pulled the covers away from her. He rolled her onto her stomach and raised his hand, bringing it hard down onto Lucy's bottom. Lucy screamed and tried to wriggle away, but his grip on her arm was hard and bruising. He hit her for a solid ten minutes, ignoring her shrieks of agony. He eventually let her go and walked back to the corridor. He turned in the doorway and glared at Lucy. "She is your new mother. You will not upset her like that ever again. Do you understand me, Lucy?" Lucy's eyes met his, betrayal and anger reflected in them. She glared back at him and nodded, whispering, "Yes, daddy. I understand perfectly."
-x-
Lucy bolted upright in her bed, horrified at the dream. That man with the mustache again… He looked so familiar. The lady too… Lucy shook her head, confused as to where these dreams were coming from. She must have seen those people at one stage in her life, because the human brain can't create faces – but where? And why were they manifesting themselves in her dreams now?
Lucy finished reading the last of the books she'd taken before heading back to the library. It was still early in the morning, according to the clock in her room. She walked quietly, still unsure about the hospital's deserted state. As her stomach grumbled, she stopped in a panic. If the hospital was deserted… who was leaving food for her in the mornings and evenings?! Lucy raced back to her room and hid in the bathroom, peeking around the corner occasionally to check for the mystery person. Time crawled by slowly, inching towards 8 'o' clock, the usual time Lucy woke up. Sure enough, she heard heavy footsteps pounding down the corridor. A male, Lucy assumed, because the steps were too heavy to be a woman. She peeked around the corner and waited.
Suddenly, a huge shadowed figure appeared in her doorway. It crouched down and placed a plate of steaming hot food on the floor in the doorway, then stood up and entered the room. Lucy hid behind the bathroom door and watched the man from the crack by the hinges. He also had the customary white clothes of hospital patients on, but that was about all Lucy could see of him. Spiky blonde hair, a large muscular build and white clothes. Lucy's eyes followed him as he whirled around in her bedroom, looking for her. Lucy's nose tickled from the dust that had gathered behind the bathroom door. She prayed silently to every god out there that it wouldn't happen, but it did. A dainty sneeze burst out of her mouth, and she clapped her hands to her face hoping that the man hadn't heard it. She peeked through the crack again and was relieved to see that the man had disappeared. Until a stormy blue eye appeared in the crack, right in front of her face. The man turned on his heel and ran into the corridor.
Lucy burst out of her room and raced after him, willing her legs to move faster and faster. She caught up to the man, which was surprising as he was almost as fast as lightning. She gently grabbed hold of his shirt and panted, "Please, stop. I just want to talk to you." The man stopped as suddenly as he'd started running. Lucy crashed into his broad back, knocking her head on the hard muscles cushioning his shoulder blades. He turned around and stared down at her – her head barely reached his shoulders. Lucy let go of his shirt and put her hands on her knees, panting from the exertion of chasing him. After a few seconds, the man said gruffly, "What do you want?"
Lucy looked up at him and smiled. "You're the one who's been bringing me food every day, and I bet you're the one who let me out of my room too. I just wanted to thank you." He stared down at her, confusion written all over his face. He muttered, "Okay, you're welcome. Can I go now?" Lucy stared up at him in shock. Why didn't he want to talk to her? "Well… are you and I the only ones left in this hospital?" He rolled his eyes and replied, "Do you see anyone else around here, Blondie?" She glared at him and retorted, "You're blonde too. If we're the only ones here, then why don't we be friends?" The man glared back and asked, "Why would you want to be friends with me?" Lucy mimicked him and rolled her eyes, saying, "Because I want a friend, and if we're stuck in this place together the least we can do is be civil." The man let out a sigh, ran his hand through his short spikes of blonde hair and said, "Fine, let's be civil. Who are you?" Lucy grinned at him, stuck her hand out and said, "I'm Lucy Heartfilia. And you are?" The man shook her hand quickly and replied in an exasperated voice.
"I'm Laxus Dreyar."
-x-
So, another chapter done after a super long wait! Yeah, I know the whole "Blondie""You're blonde too" thing is kinda cliché but I had to say it! Also, kudos to anyone who knows Yamato Kurosawa! ;) Please drop me a review and tell me what you think! :D