Lucy had the mission poster in hand before it was even on the board, leaving a blinking Mira behind with barely a shouted "Thanks!" thrown over her shoulder as she dashed away.

She practically skipped through the Guild towards her pink-haired partner, ignoring all the looks she received along the way. She knew she was acting out of character, that she'd yet to show this much energy or enthusiasm around them just yet. But she honestly couldn't help it. She'd been waiting for this for what felt like ages, though it'd only been a few days since they'd returned from the mountain with Macao in tow.

"Natsu!" The dragonslayer turned towards her immediately, patently ignoring whatever Gray had been saying, much to the ice mage's obvious annoyance before he, too, turned away with a huff. Natsu's eyes traveled the length of her, assessing, as if searching for an injury or sign of distress, before landing on the grin that had at some point spread across her face. His own lips twitched in response, not knowing yet what was going on but wanting to smile with her regardless. "Look!"

She thrust the flyer she had been clutching into his face, much too close if his suddenly crossed eyes were any indication. He snatched the paper away to inspect at a much more reasonable distance. As his eyes traveled over it, taking in the information it held, she spread her arms out in a 'ta-da!' type gesture. "I got us a mission!"

A grin spread across his face immediately, easily dwarfing her own, and he began to bounce in place with barely restrained excitement. He looked about ready to burst, honestly, and so she couldn't help but make a noise of utter confusion when he suddenly froze. His grin died away as he once again searched her face.

"Are... are you sure?" He asked hesitantly, quietly, obviously trying as well as he could to keep whatever conversation they were about to have between just the two of them. It was a wasted gesture, of course, seeing as how all around them were members obviously trying not to look like they were eavesdropping and hideously failing, and she could see Happy flying towards them from the direction of the bar. She chose to ignore them for the moment and instead focused on her partner.

"What do you mean, am I sure? Of course I'm sure!" An awkward laugh escaped her, but she was honestly too confused to care. What was he getting at? Since when had Natsu ever hesitated to take a mission? Even ones that were a hundred times more dangerous than this one?

"It's just..." he seemed to mull over his words for a moment, as if wondering just how to say what he wanted to say. Which was another thing. Since when did Natsu think before he spoke? Finally, he let out a breath and seemed to just go for it. "You haven't been sleeping well. Just last night you had that nightmare, and your breathing got all weird when I woke you up!"

"That was a panic attack," Lucy informed him absently, her mind already turning this information over in her mind. So, he was worried for her? Well, that made sense, she supposed. While he wouldn't pass up a mission, no matter how dangerous, for himself he'd definitely do it for a nakama. Though, she hadn't thought he'd do so at this age, honestly. He'd always been protective of his friends, but it had taken him time to realize that just because he was with them didn't automatically mean they were safe; just because he had the utmost faith in their abilities didn't mean they would always win. He had to learn the hard way that sometimes he had to walk away from a battle to protect his friends, rather than fight it. But she really hadn't thought him capable of making such a decision at this age, though the fact that he would, for her, made warmth spread through her chest.

She really did need to stop underestimating him.

"But you really don't have to worry," she informed him seriously as she shook herself out of her thoughts. "I got a lot of sleep last night and I'm one hundred percent ready to go. And besides, this mission is a fairly simple one."

She knew that it wasn't, not really, but it seemed like it was. Break into some guy's house and burn one specific book and get 200,000 Jewels for it. Of course, she knew there was way more to it than that but he didn't.

He still seemed skeptical for a moment, before shrugging and letting it go. As far as he was concerned, if she said she was fine then she was. And it did look like an easy mission.

"Are we going on a mission?!" Happy's excited voice boomed from above as he circled them twice before landing on Natsu's shoulder, peaking down at the paper still held in his grasp.

"Hell yeah, we are!" Natsu yelled while pumping a fist, grin once more firmly in place.

"What do you say we go get our stuff and then meet back here in an hour?" Lucy'd barely finished her question before Natsu was zipping out of the Guild, Happy lifting him up into the air for faster travel as soon as they made it outside. She shook her head at their impatience, but found herself rushing home just as quickly.

She honestly was extremely excited for this mission. Yeah, Everlue was a complete creep, not to mention a horrible person, and yeah they weren't going to get paid for their work. But.

But.

This was where she'd gained Virgo. She wouldn't be given the Key until they were in the middle of the Lullaby fiasco, when Happy finally remembered it, but that was besides the point. She missed Virgo, just as she missed all of the Zodiac Spirits she had yet to collect in this time. So much that it hurt.

Thinking of each of them, knowing that most were trapped under the control of horrid people who in no way deserved them, she wanted to rush out and find them right now. But she knew that she couldn't. Even if she decided to throw caution to the wind, to not care about what changes she inflicted on the timeline by fighting for them so early, she knew she was still too weak to do so. The Stellar Spirit mages were part of their own guilds, dark though they may be, and to attack one would likely result in retaliation from the rest. And it wasn't like she could walk into the guild that, from their perspective, she'd joined just days ago and expect them to attack a random dark guild with her, all so she could take their Keys.

No, she'd have to wait for them to come to her, though she hated herself a bit for doing so. She'd just have to make sure she was ready when they came to her.

And first up was Virgo. Getting her away from the sick man that had her was top on her priority list at the moment. And thinking about the Spirit, and how close they'd grown over the years, to the point that she could be summoned of her own volition upon feeling her Summoners need, only spurned Lucy forward all the faster.

The sooner she got back to the guild, the sooner they left and the sooner she'd gain back one more of her lost nakama.

.

.

Lucy made it back to the guild in a record twenty minutes, having known the mission was coming and being already packed for it far in advance. She knew Natsu and Happy would probably be awhile longer. At this point their house likely still resembled a landfill and finding anything in it was bound to take them some time.

She took a seat at the bar to wait, her nervous energy and anticipation making her fidgety, and had barely been sitting for a minute before Mira was placing her usual soda before her. Lucy looked up to smile her gratitude at the white-haired woman, but faltered upon seeing the serious face the other wore. It was the most serious she'd seen Mira look in this timeline and she felt a thrill of panic surge through her instantly.

"Mira?" Lucy turned in her seat to quickly survey the rest of the guild, looking for injured or missing nakama, before swinging her gaze back towards the Take-Over mage before her. "What's wrong?"

Because obviously something was wrong. Something had to have happened to put that look on Mira's face. Lucy wracked her brain, trying to remember if anything had happened at this time, but she couldn't think of anything. Oh, Mavis, she tensed as a thought occurred to her, her face paling quickly, what if I did something? Changed something? What if I-

"You're going out on a mission with Natsu and Happy," Mira finally spoke, leaning forward and keeping her voice soft, clearly intending for this conversation to be just between the two of them. She continued to watch Lucy's face, likely noting how pale she'd become as she got lost in her own panic. The blonde tried to shake her earlier thoughts away, thrown further into confusion by this odd conversation opener.

"Uh, yeah...?" She didn't understand how this could possibly be the cause of Mira's concern.

"Some of the guild members heard you and Natsu talking," she at least had the decency to look a bit abashed by the blatant guild gossip. She continued onward nonetheless. "They heard you talk about... about not sleeping, and having panic attacks. About Natsu being worried, and almost turning down a mission because of it. Natsu!"

Oh.

Oh.

"So... You're worried... about me?" Lucy couldn't help but sound incredulous, even as her shoulders slumped in relief. She'd really thought that something terrible had happened, that someone was hurt or missing or worse. But this, this she could deal with.

"Of course I'm worried!" Mira looked offended by the question. "I don't know what life was like for you before, and I know you haven't been in the guild for long, but you are a Fairy Tail Mage. You are our guildmate, our Nakama, and when you are hurt, or upset, or in pain, we are, too. So, if you're having nightmares and panic attacks, if even Natsu is worried enough about you that he'd decline a mission for your sake, then of course I'm going to be worried!"

Lucy sat back in her seat, wide-eyed, as Mira panted in front of her at the end of her tirade. Clearly, she felt very strongly about this. And Lucy couldn't blame her. She'd even made the comment to herself, earlier, that Natsu must be really worried to have almost declined her offer of going on a mission. At this point in time it was completely out of character and so of course it would catch their guildmate's attention. And she knew Mira had been watching her these last few days, had likely noted her reactions. Mira knew all about panic, and loss, and the way that it could affect a person. Could change a person. She was bound to recognize it in someone else, especially since Lucy hadn't been doing all that good of a job hiding it.

After a moment of regaining her breath, the white-haired woman's eyes softened, her posture loosening as she leaned forward to capture Lucy's hands in her own.

"Please, just promise me you'll be careful," her voice was strained and there was a haunted look in her eyes. She'd lost her sister. She didn't want to lose anyone else.

"I will," the Spirit Mage didn't hesitate to promise. She couldn't promise that she would come back, or that she wouldn't die. That would be foolish of her, and what's more, it would just be downright cruel. It wouldn't be a promise she could keep. Because even on the simplest missions, even on the one she was about to depart on, something could go wrong. There was no guarantee, even with her future knowledge, that she would escape every situation unscathed. But this, being careful, watching out for herself and doing her best to come back, that she could promise. "I promise you, I will be as careful as I can be."

Mira searched her face for a moment, likely to make sure Lucy meant what she said. Then she let out a deep breath, a smile finally coming onto her face, "I suppose that will have to do."

"Besides," Lucy smiled back as she heard a commotion at the door, signaling that her partners had finally arrived. "I'll be with Natsu and Happy. They'll both look after me, and I'll look after them. That's what partners are for."

"Damn right!"

"Aye!"

Lucy turned to grin at the pink-haired dragonslayer that now stood at her side, blue cat settled comfortably on his shoulder. The smile he gave back nearly split his face in two.

"C'mon, Lucy!" He grabbed her hand, pulling her insistently away from the bar, clearly ready to leave even as he called an absentminded farewell over his shoulder to Mira. The blonde went along willingly enough, though she did cast a longing look back towards the soda that still sat untouched at the bar.

The last thing she saw before they exited onto the street were Mira's eyes, dark with worry and the memories of past pain, as she waved them off with as genuine a smile as she could manage.

.

A/N: Two updates in less than a month? Is this real life?! Yes. Yes, it is. Though there wasn't much to this update, not even a flashback. Sorry about that. But it did get things moving towards the next arc, finally, which I'll probably try to cram into a single chapter. Though, if it takes too long, I might break it up, just so I'll be able to give you something. And then, after that, probably at least one chapter before the Lullaby Arc.

I want to try to get more character interactions in here, and to do that I really need to try to get back in the habit of being able to capture multiple character's personalities and voices all at once. So, I'd really appreciate it if you guys could let me know if you think I'm not getting a character right or if I'm making them OOC or something. This is one of the things I feel I have the most trouble in, writing-wise, and I want the characterizations in this story to be as true to form as I can make them, even with the differences that will come from it being an AU. So, any thoughts, pointers, criticisms or pieces of advice you want to give would seriously be greatly appreciated.

Anyways, as always, a big thank you to all those for favorited, followed and/or reviewed. I love every single one of you!