There are times where if she thinks too hard about the soreness of her body, she feels the phantom lingering of the sharp splinters of the tree bark pressed into her back. Magnolia has been rebuilt and so has the guild, stronger than ever.

Everyone was in the ending stage of rehabilitation. Those with the more serious injuries were in the final stages of healing.

They had won the war.

And so, it was back to quest accepting and adventuring again.

Ideally, at least.

Levy McGarden stood before the mirror of her clinic room, looking back at her reflection as she took in a rattled deep breath.

Shaken.

It's been half a month and she's still shaken .

Her hand slowly rose from her side, lifting up her shirt where the faint scar of Phantom Lord remained. It was barely noticeable, thanks to the incredible healing capabilities that mages possess. Having a mana core will do that for you, Levy silently thinks to herself as she stares.

A side character.

That's what Levy has come to acknowledge as she's lived her life. And that isn't a bad thing at all. In fact, she preferred it, if she was being honest. Being personally close to the danger, surviving the attack with Phantom Lord, having-having the attention of powerful enemies was never on her to-do list.

Yes, she loves and supports Fairytail with all of her heart. It was that strength that allowed her to stand strong mentally, glaring at the iron dragon slayer man defiantly as he had burned her skin. But she can't say that she's one to actively seek for the fight. Not like Natsu, Gray, Erza does, or even Lu-chan as they go on their quests. In her eyes, they were the main characters of Fairytail, and she was just a side character and she was okay with that.

Supporting them from afar.

A knock on the door pulls her from her thoughts, as Levy called for them to enter the room.

It was Lucy.

"Hi Levy," Lu-chan said quietly as she smiled softly at the bookworm, carrying a small stack of books as she entered the room. Levy shot her a small smile back as she gestured for her to take a seat next to her.

"Here's two copies of the latest sequel to the Barry Jake Lotter series that we requested. Hopefully you haven't looked at the reviews in the latest Bookzilla Magazine, I've heard good things though so I'm excited." Lucy said happily as she placed Levy's copy down next to the mirror. Levy hummed,

"I can't believe it's finally here! That cliffhanger from the last book…"

"Was painful as it was genius." Lucy nodded as she sat back and rested before turning to look at Levy who was just standing there. Looking at her reflection, as if she was unsure of what she wanted to see. Lucy's brow furrowed for a moment as she got up to make sure the door to her clinic room was closed before she took a seat once more.

"...Levy-chan?"

Levy didn't make eye contact with Lucy. "...Yes, Lu-chan?"

"How are you doing?" Lucy opted to ask. Originally, she had almost said "Are you okay?", but considering her recent events, it seemed rather inconsiderate to say. No, she probably wasn't okay. Not after all of that.

"I-I'm doing alright , I suppose." Levy sniffed a bit. "I think I'm just having a bit of a…re-evaluation of my point in life."

"What do you mean?"

"I've never been one to fight, Lucy." Levy sighs softly, looking away from the mirror in order to look her friend in the eye. Lucy inaudibly gasped at the look of confliction in Levy's eyes, because whatever was tormenting the girl was affecting her greatly. Her heart ached for her friend, and Lucy placed her book down in order to show that she was giving her, her undivided attention.

"I-I've never been beaten so b-badly in my entire life." Levy's face scrunched as she let out a small, wet sob as she covered her face with her hands. She backed up to sit on top of the bed, and Lucy silently got up to take a seat next to her, wrapping an arm around her friend. Tears of her own pricked the back of Lucy's eyes as she looked up at the ceiling, allowing Levy to sob quietly against her shoulder.

For how long as she held this in?

And where was Jet and Droy?

"Jet and Droy…?"

Levy took a moment to collect herself before she quietly sighed at the sound her teammate's names. "The moment they were free to leave, they had wanted to track down Gajeel immediately. A revenge quest, no doubt."

"What?"

"I told them not to do it, I mean, look at how he had left us. Was that not enough proof that he was out of our league? It's…a lost cause."

Lucy didn't know what to say to that. Had it been Natsu and Gray, they'd probably go after Gajeel again themselves, just as Jet and Droy had. But it was not realistic to think that Droy and Jet's experience was comparable to the former duo. Team Shadow Gear's missions were not on the same caliber as Team Haluna's. No one talks about it, but the more dangerous missions you take, the more desensitize you were to bloodshed and violence. It was no question as to why Levy was still shaken up, and why Jet and Droy were desperate for vengeance.

It was their first time being in a situation so brutal .

The emotions were running rampant indeed.

"Sometimes the recovery for such a horrific and shocking act is longer than the actual timeframe of the incident." Rushii acknowledged quietly as she watched in a sleepy daze, from her hammock. Levy was always such a loving, soft person and she was happy to know that it hasn't changed in this timeline.

…Why was it always the good ones?

"She has a long road ahead of her."

"How do you cope?" Levy quietly asked.

'Please, help me ' is what Lucy silently heard.

"The first step to be honest, is to allow yourself to panic. To cry. Because you went through something horrific, and you survived . The surivor's shock hasn't fully settled in yet," Lucy answered just as softly. "When we went on that S-Class mission, we- Spirits , I really don't know how we survived. I don't know how Gray is still alive after all of that. I've never said it out loud, but there was one point where I thought his wounds were going to take him down permanently. I had cried in relief at everyone making it out alive on the boat ride back."

"And the nightmares?"

Lucy paused before holding Levy a bit closer. "...it's a work in progress."

She thinks of Gray who had suffered years of insomnia over his past, and now he crashes on her couch from time to time because he feels safe. She thinks of Erza was still relatively newer to the group, but Lucy is sure that it is only a matter of time before her apartment becomes a safe haven for yet another team member (and she is not complaining). She thinks of Natsu, who has confessed that while he manages to go to sleep, he sleeps better with someone next to him. So sometimes, when the thoughts get too loud, he quietly infiltrates through her open window and settles down next to her, on top of her sheets.

And when Lucy wakes up to an empty space with a lingering warmth, she knows who's been there.

And when she enters her kitchen to see Gray passed out on her couch, she quietly makes coffee for two.

Because that's how they cope.

"Together, is the key." Lucy smiles a little at the memory. "You and your team. You three are the only people who can possibly understand the magnitude of what you went through, because you all experienced it together . So you three can help heal each other fully as well, with additional help, of course. Like there's any way I'd let you figure it out alone. Leader to leader, eh?"

Levy let out a small giggle, "I do forget that we are both team leaders."

"I know right?" Lucy let out a laugh in return. The best teams don't truly need a leader constantly though. She is the leader of Team Haluna, but it didn't always feel like she was. Levy was the leader of Team Shadow Gear, but she didn't operate as such. '

"I am not a fighter, Lu-chan." Levy confesses once more, "But I am starting to understand that I may become a liability in the future if things continue like this."

"A liability? What the- No -"

"Hear me out, Lucy."

Lucy frowned at the thought of her friend calling herself a liability but complied with her wishes.

"The… incident has made me realize that just by being a member of Fairytail, there's always a chance for someone to want war. We are famous, we are strong, and word has surely gone out stating that we have beaten Phantom Lord. Maybe that causes guilds who were thinking along the same lines as Phantom Lord to retreat. Or it causes the opposite, and now we have targets on our backs ever more. Like we're the test of someone's strength, if you can beat us, you are powerful ."

Levy continued on with her rant despite her feeling her fears beginning to choke her. "R-Regardless, I've come to the realization that I must get stronger in order to not become a hindrance to you all and to protect myself as well."

Lucy got up and looked at Levy, "Levy-chan, you will never be a hindrance to anyone . Why would you say something like that?"

"Because the weakest members will be used in order to bait the strongest. Just as Phantom Lord did with me and my team ." Levy finally cried out once more, as her voice escalated higher. Slowly, tears began to trek down her face as Lucy looked at her in shock, before she swallowed down the rest of her retort. It didn't matter how you spun it, Levy had a point. It was a classic act of warfare to target the weak in order to lure out the strongest members.

Levy didn't want to be put in a situation like that ever again, and Lucy despite her worries, couldn't take that away from her. Who would want to be in a situation like that anyways?

"But you are not a fighter," Lucy murmured with a newfound understanding of the meaning of the phrase. It was no wonder why Levy was so insistent on the phrase, why she had repeated it. She knew that she had to get stronger for her own sake at the very least, but she was scared. She was not a fighter, so how was she supposed to get stronger?

It is one thing to understand the predicament.

It was another to understand how to solve it.

"You…It's something that you're going to have to want for yourself," Lucy sighs as she sits next to Levy once more. "I understand your reasonings and they do make sense, but the last thing that you want is that to be the sole reason you want to get stronger. Because the more mistakes you make, which is inevitable, the more frustrated you'll get. I think it can very easily turn into something self-destructive."

Especially considering her current fragile state of mind.

"Well said, imouto."

"Take it one step at a time, Levy-chan. There's no rush." Lucy said as she pulled Levy into a tight hug. She gently carded through her short blue hair as she allowed the smaller girl to cry once more in her arms.

"There's no rush at all."

-G-R-

Gajeel Redfox sat next to the window of the safehouse that Makarov had allowed them to stay at, quietly looking out into the distance down below. It was busier on this side of Magnolia. People walked hand in hand with their lovers, children ran throughout the streets chasing after balloons and other flying shit. In the distance, the guild hall stood proud as if it was the pillar for all of this happiness.

As if they were the symbol of peace and love in Magnolia.

To be quite honest, Gajeel didn't like looking at the guild hall for too long. It's been some weeks, and it still feels as if there is a heavy air around the place. There was something inside of him that didn't want him to take another step forwards. It was maddening a little bit, because he couldn't figure out why. Why was he dreading the option to join Fairytail? Why did it make him feel rather anxious, nerves feel as if they were lighted on fire?

Speaking of fire, his burns has healed but they'll leave a scar as he suspected. It didn't matter to Gajeel, who is rather proud of the symbols of worthy opponents on his skin. They were like trophies, showcasing that he wasn't someone to be messed with. Because he was one to follow through to his word and fight .

The topic of burns leads him to thinking about the brand on the blue shrimp however, and suddenly there's a sinking feeling in his chest at the thought.

Makarov had said that it was guilt.

Gajeel swore that he hated that fucking word from that day on.

"Are you sure it's alright?" Juvia asked him from across the room. Gajeel rested his head against the window as he turned ever so slightly to take a look at the water mage. She had managed to heal faster than Gajeel for obvious reasons physically, but she's been able to heal faster mentally as well. There was a part of him that was jealous, that was eager to start this new life that awaited them. Maybe he should've been emotionless for years too, just so that he could have a cleaner slate to start on.

He knows people think of him to be apathetic, but that is not entirely true. He just didn't give a fuck about those he had no interest in and that just happened to be majority of people around him at the time. He still felt feelings though, it's just that the situations that called for such a thing rarely came around.

"I already told ya it was fine," Gajeel grumbled. She would never outwardly say it, it wasn't in her nature to speak up for herself and to look directly at what she wants. Instead Gajeel had to suffer her longing looks outside, and the blunt curiosity in her eyes when they went out to get basic necessities. Juvia was eager to begin in her journey in Fairytail, but she was chained down by Gajeel's presence.

So he decided to let her go while he stayed here.

He doesn't think he's gathered enough of his pride to head towards Fairytail himself anyways.

"Juvia knows what you're thinking," And of-fucking- course she does.

She's become some fucking wizard at being able to read Gajeel's mind nowadays and if he wasn't slowly becoming a different man, he would've pushed her a way a long time ago. They do fight sometimes, getting frustrated at each other.

Gajeel just wants her to go so that she could be able to live her life, and Juvia just wants Gajeel to understand that she wants him in it. That she doesn't want him to disappear after she leaves for Fairytail, because he succumbs to the darkness of his own thoughts and it causes him to make rash decisions.

Since no one would be here for him, except for himself.

If she were to stay at the Fairy Hills or something.

"Please don't leave when Juvia goes," She begs quietly, looking rather small and transparent. Yes, it was true that she wanted to go out and see what Fairytail has to offer. With every passing day, such a curiosity grows and she gets this-this feeling that she knows she's making the correct choice in life. But she refuses to leave Gajeel behind, not after everything they've been through.

"If you leave, it would hurt Juvia badly."

"I don't know what you fucking want from me," Gajeel suddenly snaps, because they've fought over this before. It was an age old argument at this rate and it will only end the same.

"Juvia wants for you to give yourself a chance! What happened to believing in Makarov?"

"He's managed to stay true to his word for now, so I respect the old bastard. But he ain't all of Fairytail, and it's going to be harder to adjust than you fucking think. And when you get there, isolated for yet another reason that was blown out of your fucking control, what then? And if nothing changes in your life after joining Fairytail, will you just revert back to the person you was before?" Gajeel roars. He says it so venemously because they were the villains looking for redemption and it doesn't mean that the heroes have to have bleeding fucking hearts in order to accept them.

"You make good points, but that's not why you hesitate for yourself," Juvia says knowingly.

Gajeel hates this goddamn woman.

"Your pride is still bruised from losing the fight. You are scared of going to this new place to pledge loyalty, but only because you know just as Juvia knows that we can't live in a place like Phantom Lord again, even if you deny it-"

"-I could fucking do it. I don't need to surrender myself to those pansy -"

"-Stop! Just stop! You are still thinking about "enemy this" and "enemy that" but Gajeel , the war is over . It's been over for over two weeks now. Magnolia has been rebuilt in that time, and so has Fairytail. Juvia knows loyalty runs deep within you, but when will you realize that we are no longer Phantom Lord anymore? Gajeel, we have freedom to do as we please now and you don't know how to deal with it." Juvia cuts him off, raising her voice to match his. Gajeel stared at her with a clench jaw as he hissed through his teeth,

"Don't you think I fucking know that? I know . We've spent so long thinking about them as our enemies that it feels wrong in my skin that now I am thinking of entertaining the idea of being their fucking comrade ."

Which is why this "guilt" of injuring someone of the former enemy was making him feel so sick. He doesn't regret a single thing he's done as he has willing fought for what he had thought was right at the time. Where his loyalties (had?) lied, in the idea of true strength. But the more time he thinks about the one incident that geniunely has begun to haunt him, he realizes that she had stared him down till the very end.

Even when she screamed in pain.

There was a unexstinguishable fire that was laced within the blue haired woman when he had pressed the mark of Phantom Lord into her skin, and yet despite her mangled body, she had the willpower to never let Sol have the satisfaction of seeing her spirit broken.

Yet, despite Gajeel being the one to render her and her team into that state, he could no longer tell you who was strongest person in that pavilion on that day.

And that's fucking with his mind, because he thought he knew what true strength meant .

"Go."

Juvia's jaw clenched a bit as she felt a rush of anger at being so casually dismissed after all that's been said. Is this what was awaiting her along the path of-of friendship ? It was so aggravating, she did not want this version.

Where was the never-ending smiles and the laughter?

Wasn't that true friendship?

In fact, why was she so angry at Gajeel in the first place? They had a relatively good relationship for Phantom Lord standards but that was in the past. They do not need each other anymore now. Juvia has made it clear that she wanted to take the path of Fairytail, and Gajeel was too caught up into his own shit to understand the chance they were being given.

And she owed him nothing .

The door slammed so loudly that it echoed through Gajeel's sensitive ears as he held back the wince inside.

He's sure that Makarov will come and pay a visit once he sees that Juvia had gone and joined Fairytail without him.

He'll just…take it one step at a time for now, as if he has a choice. He has loads of free-time nowadays, loads of freedom.

And despite such freedom, what Juvia had failed to realize was that Gajeel had felt as if he had lost his purpose and he didn't know what to do anymore.

That losing his purpose has begun to cost him a fraction of his apatheticness, as he is left alone with his thoughts of inner turmoil.

-L-H-

"Huh…" Lucy blinks in slight disbelief as she takes a look at her bank account. A couple days ago, she could've sworn that she was close to becoming a broke girl, only to find a large sum of money had been transferred to her account as of today. Her brow furrowed because although she had taken some odd jobs to get by these days, she didn't think she made this much money from them.

And yet the letter before her reflected otherwise.

"What's up?" Natsu yawns from her hotel bed as he looks over in a sleepy daze, while Lucy sat at her desk. She looks over towards the pink haired man at his sleepy state and quickly looked away with pink cheeks. Spirits, these days she's been feeling warm and fuzzy whenever she speaks with Natsu. Her heart races a little faster, there's a lingering tingling sensation whenever they touch. It's always been natural to fall into touch with Natsu, but these days…

These days it is beginning to feel like something more, and Lucy is not quite ready to face this new development of feelings just yet.

"I've seem to have more money in my account than I realize…" Lucy mutters before shrugging in the end. Perhaps she had miscalculated how much she's made over the past couple of weeks with the jobs she's taken with Team Haluna. Their most recent quest had led them to taking up leading roles in a play that should've went horribly wrong but ended up becoming a massive success to everyone's surprise. So bad it was good, they said.

She still isn't sure what to think about such a statement but if the people enjoyed it, then who's going to speak up?

Rushii finally fell asleep and has been resting for a while now after she summoned that Interstellar Taurus to everyone's surprise. Lucy briefly wondered if Gajeel Redfox even understood the monumental action that had taken place back then, because she had. It left her with so many questions, so much so that while she respects her Nee-san's resting period, she is rather impatiently waiting for her to wake up so that she can truly ask what she's dying to know.

Was that her Taurus from her universe?

So many questions…

"Is that a bad thing?" Natsu cocked his head as Lucy merely shrugged. Having more money than you realize is never a complaint. It was just a bit unusual considering she was decent at budgeting her money these days.

"Flame-Brain," Gray peeks his head through to Lucy's room as he looked around for Natsu. Natsu grunts from the bed and lifts his head slightly, giving Gray his attention.

"Let's go to the sauna, yeah?"

"You can't go by yourself?" Natsu taunted.

Lucy could feel a growing headache coming. Gray scoffed before he slammed the rest of the door open and pointed rudely at the pink haired boy sprawled on her bed. Natsu just stuck his head out as he propped himself on his arm as he smiled smugly at Gray.

"I was just trying to be fucking nice and invite you, you bastard ."

"That's an odd way of saying you need a babysitter to walk you to the hot springs."

Gray's eye twitched. "One of these days I'm going to-"

"I'd like to see you try you stripper son of a-"

" Boys ." Lucy hisses as she rubs her temples, shooting the two of them dirty looks. They at least had the decency to look abashed at being scolded by Lucy, who looked as if she was tired of their shit. "Please, take this somewhere other than my room."

Natsu was the first to act as he gets up from her bed and grabs one of the towels in the linen closet. He just chuckles as he playfully shoves Gray away from Lucy's room, taunting him in a calmer manner. "Whatever, I guess I'll prove that I can hold my breath longer than you can underwater."

"That's what you think," Gray snarks back as he goes back to grab a towel himself and give Lucy a sheepish half-apology smile. The blonde just rolls her eyes but shoots him a smile in return and gestured for them to get going. It wasn't anything super serious, she wasn't mad at them completely. It was a nice hotel and she just wanted some peace for once, the bickering didn't have to be everywhere they go.

At least to the caliber they tend to take it too.

Boys , Lucy sighs as she shakes her head.

"Princess."

Lucy jumps a bit in surprise as Virgo appears next to her, kneeling as she looks down at the floor. Clutching her chest a bit as she calmed herself down from being startled, she gave Virgo a smile and quickly told her to rise, "Virgo? Hi!"

"Hello, Princess." Virgo smiled minisculely before she steeled her expression and looked around the slightly disfigured room. "Shall I tidy up?"

"If you want to," Lucy shrugs. She's learned long ago that it was fine to give into Virgo's nature sometimes, and while she doesn't let it go too far, it wasn't any harm in letting the spirit do what she enjoyed. If she liked to clean, then so be it. But Lucy never made it her responsibility, she generally took care of her messes, partially to ensure that Virgo didn't feel as if she was just her cleaning maid.

"This isn't your new apartment, is it- ebi ?" A new voice teased.

"Cancer?!" Lucy is surprised once more.

"Don't you ever have a fucking off button, maid?" Someone barked.

"Aquarius?!"

"Don't you ever have a filter? Tends to come with aquatic substances, yes?" Virgo said lightly as she folded her master's bed sheets. Cancer snickered off to the side at the play on words.

"Ha. Ha." Aquarius scoffed before she leaned against Lucy's chair with a sharp smirk. "Well well, Heartfilia. It's been a while."

"What are you guys doing here?" Lucy beamed. It's been a while since she's been able to talk with her spirits casually, normally her main method of communication was because she had called them to battle. It was lovely to feel their magical signatures again, it felt like Home in a way that Fairytail wouldn't be able to replace.

Cancer smiled. "It's been a while, as Aquarius had said- ebi . Taurus sends his regards, but he was in the middle of tracking something down in the spirit world for the Celestial Spirit King."

"Ah, that's right…" Lucy suddenly remembered. Their lives don't stop suddenly in the spirit world. While it doesn't mimic Earth Land, it was still the land of spirits for all celestial beings and more. She remember Cancer owning a salon in the spirit world, and that Taurus was a tracker for all things spirit related.

At the mention of the Spirit King, Aquarius frowns slightly and Lucy knows all too well what the mermaid was thinking. She reassures her immediately, "I'm not mad about what happened on Galuna Island, I still trust you Aquarius, please don't burden yourself."

"Yeah yeah, I wasn't thinking too hard about it either. I've swept you away before in my own free will anyways, it wasn't anything fucking new," Aquarius huffs but there's tension that disappears from her shoulders and her frown quickly disappears much to Lucy's happiness. Lucy was sure that what had happened with Taurus and Aquarius had left the spirits shaken in their own ways, and she was glad to be able to reassure them though.

"At this rate, you're going to be collecting the whole lot of us, eh Heartfilia?"

"Huh?"

"Well you already have The Steak, Crab Legs, Maid, Pony, and myself." Aquarius counted out. Lucy blinked, as she didn't really notice that she's been on quite the streak of collecting Zodiac Spirits lately. It was becoming quite the impressive record.

"Wow, I had no idea."

To that her spirits had smiled. The keys were drawn to her naturally positive energy, and she had no idea that she was on her way in becoming one of the strongest Celestial Spirit mages in history. Most Celestial Spirit mages dream of being in Lucy's position, a position that she doesn't even focus on as she goes on adventures with her friends in Fairytail. A natural selflessness for power.

They had chose well with her as their master.

Cancer walks over and begins chatting quietly with Lucy about switching her hair up with some ideas that he's had in mind as Aquarius silently walks over towards Virgo, who was finishing the last touches of the room off to the side. She stares down at the maid,

"Do you feel him?"

"I do." Virgo confirmed.

Aquarius suddenly wanted to swear violently in the room but she kept it down so that she wouldn't alarm Lucy. She hisses under a low breath, "What the fuck is that stupid cat thinking? He needs to stop being a moron and come home, or else he'll fad-"

"He's always been headstrong, a trait that both of you share." Virgo gave her a knowing look. Aquarius just rolled her eyes,

"There's no use in going back into memory lane. Hell, he'll become a fucking memory if he doesn't get help soon."

"Leo is smart, which means he's not doing this because of some silly crusade. Odds are…"

Aquarius's eyes widened, "You mean you think-"

Virgo's lips pursed as the two sat in shocked silence for a moment. And then she nodded hesitantly, "Odds are, he broke a rule."

" Fuck. " Aquarius's heart sunk a bit. If Virgo's words rang true, then the situation was worse than they all had thought. She had to go begin the preparations immediately, to save a fellow spirit's life. Before Aquarius transitioned back into the spirit world, Virgo grabbed onto Aquarius's arm.

"What?" Aquarius looked at her in confusion.

"Why are you so worked up about this?" Virgo asked. "It's not like it effects you much if the unspeakable were to happen to Leo. We all know of the rules, and the consequences of them. You're not one to really get emotional over such things."

"We all weren't at some point," Aquarius spat, "Don't sit here and make it seem as if I was the only one. We all only cared about ourselves and our masters, but maybe-oh I don't fucking know-it's time to change that. It was us 12 in the beginning with the King, you know. That..counts for something. Even if we haven't talked much in a couple of millenia."

"A change of heart, siren?" Virgo mused.

"A change in everything," Aquarius answered with a seriousness that had rendered Virgo a bit speechless. She wasn't wrong though. Virgo hasn't known Lucy as long as Aquarius has, but something must be within the girl that triggered this aggressive protectiveness that Aquarius has begun to offer to them all. "I'm going to talk with the old man to see if I can get anymore information."

"Good luck to that," Virgo muttered and Aquarius let out a grimace of her own before she disappeared. Getting up soon after, Virgo walked over towards Lucy and Cancer, applauding quietly at the change in hairstyle. She wore her hair in curly pigtails with loose bangs in the front now, and she looked cute.

"You look lovely, Princess."

"Thank you," Lucy said with a small flush before she noticed that someone was missing. "Where did Aquarius go?"

"There was something that she had to attend to at once." Virgo commented without hesitation.

"Is everything okay?"

"We shall see," Virgo hummed before she turned towards Cancer and gave him a subtle nod. Cancer's eyes flashed behind his glasses as he frowned for a moment before he nodded back. Virgo proceeded to say her goodbyes and disappear, changing course to the Spirit King's castle. Aquarius was not in the Spirit King's good books at the moment, so she figured she should give her support with her efforts to get through to him as a neutral party.

Lucy looked at Cancer, "What was that?"

"What was what?" Cancer asked innocently.

"If you guys are planning to play a prank on me like when I was younger…" Lucy warned as she playfully scowled. Cancer let out a genuine chuckle as he raised his hands,

"I am merely an innocent crab- ebi ."

"Uh huh," Lucy snorted before she got up to put on her kimeno in order to head outside. She was getting a little bit bored cooped up in her room, but she didn't feel like she wanted to go to the sauna like the boys had. To her surprise, Erza wasn't in the room either and she briefly wondered where the other girl was before she walked towards the front of her door to her hotel room.

Only to stop right before it and narrow her eyes at the feeling of foreign signatures on the other side.

"...Cancer." Lucy whispered behind her.

Cancer summoned a long scissor blade and stood behind his master in an instant, crunched as he readied in position. "I'm assuming these aren't friends, master?"

"No, they are not!" Lucy exclaimed as she whipped the door open on her opponents. They seemed to have been low-leveled robbers looking to cash in a quick search but they failed to make sure that everyone had vacated the room. She immediately kicked the first intruder in the chest, causing their eyes to go wide at the strength of the woman. Lucy grinned, it seemed like her exercise regime from Taurus was really starting to work out for her!

She quickly ducked as the other masked man had swung at her, and Cancer took care of him quickly as he smashed the hilt of his blade in his face causing the man to cry out. Moving to cup his nose in pain, Cancer punched the wounded man in the stomach as he dry heaved from the impact before rolling against his body to hit the back of his neck with the hilt of his sword, knocking the man out instantly. He had no chance against the seasoned celestial spirit.

Meanwhile Lucy was having fun as she dodged the remaining opponent with ease as they attempted to lay out flimsy punches, before she socked them in the face and then kicked him in the nuts for good measure. The guy sobs as he falls to the ground, convulsing in pain as Lucy flips her hair over her shoulder and turns to look at Cancer who was watching her with amusement on his face as he leaned against the doorframe.

She took a glance at the crooked nose of Cancer's fallen enemy and grimaced, "Damn, he's going to be hurting when he wakes up."

"Humans are a bit more physically weaker in this time period than they were in the past- ebi ." Cancer mused. For the average punk, it took more effort to stop dealing the final blow than it did to actively stop them. The robber had no reason to die , but had no reason to be so weak either. At least the Fairytail guild quests allow the Celestial Spirits to fight mages with more…natural resistance to a punch or two.

"Really?" Lucy asked curiously.

"Mhm. Magic did exist back then, but not as sophisticated as it is now- ebi . I'm sure the others would agree when I say that while the mana cores of the present are stronger than they were in the past, the physical bodies of the people where stronger in the past in return. Increasing magic capabilities is more of the focus in this generation- ebi ."

"Wow, that really is interesting." Lucy blinked in surprise at the words, before their conversation in the space between her hotel room and the hallway was interrupted by another confused voice.

"Lucy?"

Lucy turned to look at who called her name, only to see it was none other than Loke from Fairytail. She was surprised to see him at the hotel and shot him a pleasant smile as she waved at him. "Oh! Hello Loke."

Cancer stood silently with crossed arms as he bored his eyes directly into Loke who flinched minisculely at the sight of the Zodiac Spirit. Lucy didn't notice as she was dragging the other guy out of her room into the hallway so that she could call security later on in order to deal with the guys.

"What," Loke licked his lips anxiously as he avoided eye contact with Cancer, "Err-What happened here?"

"Some idiots thought that my room was empty so that they could rob it or something. Ended up getting their asses kicked, and serves them right," Lucy shook her head as she clapped her hands in finalty. She thanks Cancer for his help and smiled, "This is my spirit, Cancer, by the way. As you can see, I'm a-"

"-celestial spirit mage. Yes, I'm aware." Loke said with a hesitant nod. Lucy took note of his anxiety and immediately felt a bit awkward at the silence that came over the three of them as a result. She doesn't really know Loke well, he seemed like a decent guy but he also tended to get a bit awkward and unsettled by her presence. Lucy hoped she hadn't done anything to upset the guy, but she also knows that she's never met him in her entire life until she had joined Fairytail.

Maybe he just hates blondes or something.

"U-Um, well, I suppose I'll see you around then," Lucy said with a stiff smile as she made her way around Loke. She didn't know where exactly she was going but spirits, anywhere was better than this weird air. Loke looked as if he had wanted to say something more, but Lucy had already nodded politely and walked past him. Cancer had moved to follow his master casually, but whispered as he passed Loke,

"I don't know what plagues you, Leo, but perhaps my master can help- ebi ."

Cancer gives Loke a soft concerned look, noticing the pitiful signs of his close demise. He doesn't have long left to live, and yet he refused to come home to the spirit world. He truly must be in some sort of trouble then, just as Virgo had wordlessly suspected to him. They all had felt Leo's presence close to Lucy and that something was off about it, but being so close to him made Cancer realize how bad it was.

He had a week and a half at most, it felt like.

Loke just looked down at his feet and sighed.

"Lucy, wait."

Lucy paused in surprise, and turned over her shoulder to give Loke a look of interest, "Yes?"

"Can I take you to get some drinks?" Loke gave a small, flirty smirk that he was known for. Lucy saw right through his hesitance though as she rolls her eyes.

"I'll take that drink offer since I have nothing to do, but don't think too much into it. I'm not interested in whatever this is suppose to lead too."

"Woah there, get your mind out of the gutter girl. I wasn't thinking anything like that ." Loke chuckled as he raised his hands in surrender. Lucy was unamused as she was well aware of his playboy status despite her not talking with the ginger much.

"Right…" Lucy drawled before she gestured for him to take the lead. He wiggled his eyebrows as he shoved his hands in his pocket causing Lucy to just shake her head and sigh as they walked side by side towards the bar section. It was still awkward, but now Lucy's interest was piqued a bit so she was able to endure it. Why did Loke invite her out to drink something?

There was something different about the man, anyways.

He seemed to have this resigned look to him, as if he's accepted something.

Spirits, she really hopes that she isn't some sort of rebound for a bad breakup with one of his girlfriends. Lucy would leave immediately if that was the case, she internally swore.

Eventually they found themselves sitting next to each other with their respective drinks in front of them, underneath the slightly extended roof in the outdoors bar. Cancer had already gone back to the spirit world shortly after their arrival. It was night time, so the stars twinkled brightly above as the area was lowly lit in order to give the spotlight to the sky. Lucy swirled her straw in her drink as she took a glance at the twinkling lights before looking over towards Loke.

She inwardly gasped.

It was to no one's surprise that Loke was a handsome man. After all, who's ever heard of a playboy that was ugly? The only scenario that allows such a paradox was if the said "playboy" was rich because money was attractive , and it didn't matter who the person attached to it looked like at that rate. Regardless, it was clear that Loke belonged to the former group of playboys though, as the man's messily perfect orange hair blew gently in the soft breeze.

He looked up to the stars as he leaned back in his stool, against the bar counter where his glasses laid. There was a solemn look to his face that Lucy had saw earlier, but it made him look even more dreamy in a way to the right crowd. Like a book character that she's probably read before; "a troubled male lead who has seen pain in his life and was reminiscing on it."

She didn't know how right she was.

"Why did you call me here?" Lucy quietly asked.

It felt as if she should be speaking lowly, anyways.

There was something within her that told her that something was wrong.

Loke just side eyed her, "A guy can't ask a pretty girl out?"

"I'd believe it was just that, if you hadn't been skittish around me ever since we met. Nevermind this being our first real conversation together." Lucy deadpanned and Loke let out a sharp exhale that could've been a form of laughter at her bluntness.

"I guess that's true."

"You guess ?" Lucy narrowed her eyes. This entire thing is just so confusing, "Loke, I don't know what I've done to you, but I'm sorry. I don't mean for you to be so uncomfortable around me, even if I'm confused."

"You're a Celestial Spirit Mage."

"And that's a problem, how?" Lucy was stunned. Of all things, she had thought that he did look towards her keys in disdain occasionally, but to think that that was the reason behind his dislike for her. She was shocked.

Loke didn't say anything to answer as he looked away, and there's a new found annoyance that was bubbling inside of Lucy at the reaction. How dare he sit there and allude that the reason why he was acting weird around her was because of her magic, and not give a reason? How could he drag her here and waste her time with vague sentences and half-hearted casualness? If he didn't want to speak with her, then that was fine.

There was no reason for her to be here any longer than she had to be then.

Lucy got up with a frustrated huff as she downed the rest of her glass before turning to leave without another word. Loke clenched his fists as he stared down at them. He wouldn't have said much to Lucy, had Cancer not gently nudge his master towards his way. Cancer, who he's known for centuries and trusts. But how could he seek help from the very thing that caused him pain in the first place?

How could he trust another celestial spirit mage after the abuse he had went through with Aries, and the aftermath of it?

He was dying though.

There was no doubt about it.

"What would you do if you didn't have long to live?"

Lucy stops in her tracks at the odd question, turning back towards Loke as she quickly inspected his physical health. While he looked a bit tired and wary, he seemed relatively okay. Perhaps he wasn't talking about himself, but someone that he knows of? "I..don't know. I guess I've never really thought about death."

"Think along the lines of a deadly illness that is never going to get better. What would you do?" Loke asks again, swirling his own glass as he mused.

"Do you know for sure that it's never going to get better, though? Have you exhausted all possible options? Gone to different experts in the field?"

"There aren't many options for something like this in the first place," Loke scoffs dryly, feeling a bit peeved. Why was he even entertaining the woman in the first place? Stupid Cancer, confusing his mind on the verge of his death bed. She doesn't even have any reason to help him in the first place, she didn't know that he was a spirit and even if she did, he was not bounded to her.

And yet, deep down, the lion knows that he is also entertaining it because he is so close to fading away, and he doesn't want to die.

"Then think outside the box, if possible." Lucy said cautiously, "Perhaps there are other resources to use before you make a final decision. If it were me, I wouldn't have much to lose anyways. I would already be…dying."

There's been a weight on Loke's shoulders ever since he began the count down to his end. He had managed to last longer than he had thought for sure, but even stars die after they've run out of energy. And Loke doesn't have much left whether he wanted to or not, for a celestial spirit in the realm of humans was something that wasn't supposed to happen for too long.

"I see," Loke said quietly before flashing her a quick smirk as he downed his own glass finally. He placed it on the counter with a wad of money and proceeded to walk off in the other direction without a second glance back at the blonde, "Well, it was just all hypotheticals anyways. I'll…see you around, Lucy Heartfilia."

Lucy stares at his back as it slowly disappears, mind swirling at the vague questions, the abrupt turns of events, and she wonders if there was a hidden meaning to any of his words that she had missed.

Something big, because as she unconsciously feels for his magical signature, she realized after a moment that for some reason, Loke feels very similar to her own celestial spirits.

And why was his signature so faint ?

[ Loke Arc {1} ]