A/N: What you've all been waiting for! I hope you enjoy~
Epilogue
"Move out of my way!" Natsu shouted, unconsciously scaring a few Crocus citizens as they parted to let the Fire Dragon Slayer through—He was on a mission… They all were.
"Flame-brain, where the hell are you going?! The hotel is this—"
"I know where I'm going," Natsu said, no hesitation as he walked the invisible path that was opposite of the hotel. It seemed that was enough for Gray, the ice mage shutting his mouth almost instantly and following Natsu into the forest with complete trust… His nose was NEVER wrong.
After nearly tripping over shrubs and a run-in with a few forest Vulcans, Erza forced everybody to skid to an immediate halt. Her face was stern, body on high-alert and sword summoned.
"Don't move…" Erza warned—She may not have magical sensory like Lucy, but she couldn't be the only one that felt an enormous power nearby. Makarov, however, showed no signs of concern. "Natsu," Erza hissed, expecting the fire dragon to stop. Though, he simply shook his head and dismissed the sword that threatened to pin him to the tree.
"Lucy…"
The simple exhalation of one word had the Requip-mage frozen in time—Lucy?
That's when they all heard it.
It was faint—competing against the wild-life of the forest—but it was there… Lucy's cries of pain.
However, before anyone could confront their precious blonde, startled squeals were let out when Natsu jumped backward out of pure instinct (almost knocking into Gray and Gajeel)—Soon enough, a fist was slammed down in the exact spot Natsu was once standing on. The impact cracking the Earth's ground.
"The hell—"
"You-Will-Not-Come-Near-My-Master," Loke growled.
The guild took a step back in surprise… Loke's eyes were wild, their comrade staring as if THEY were the enemy. Although, now that they've thought about it, they don't remember seeing Loke at all during this month after being reinstated.
Bisca took a stand in front of Asuka, acting as a shield for her daughter in case drastic measures were taken. Macao did the same, Romeo attempted to shrug off the protection with the belief he could handle himself. But one look was all it took for the boy to keep still and listen to his father.
"Alzack, maybe you should take our sharp-shooter to the hotel… I have a feeling this isn't something she'd outta be here for," Bisca said sternly, Alzack nodded and carried a fussing Asuka—who wanted to stay and see "Lulu".
Loke's eyes never left them—not once did he blink—like a predator to their prey. However, Loke was still Loke, their friend and guild member. He wasn't dangerous to them, but it was still a good idea to leave this conversation with only a few.
"That's a great idea… The rest of you should leave too," Makarov nodded, leaving no room for argument.
Not that they put up too much of a fight anyways… Loke was able to kick most of the guildmember's asses at his weakest point in life before Lucy—Now? They couldn't imagine the power the celestial spirit held at full strength, especially when he wasn't going easy or holding back. Not to mention, it's been a year, and they knew well enough from Lucy that a spirit's strength and power increases with their holder too.
Soon, only Team Natsu, the Thunder-Legion, Strauss siblings, Team Shadow-Gear, Gajeel, Juvia, Bisca, Wakaba, Macao, Cana, and Master Makarov were left.
"Loke. I want you to move aside please," Makarov was calm, he showed no intention he'll fight his way through like Natsu did at the moment.
It's been so long, the sight of Fairy Tail's master had Loke flattering and lost in thought. Until a crash was heard from behind him, tensing once more—It was like a switch for the zodiac leader, a rush of emotion that wasn't his own was felt inside that angered him. Activating his lion-mode if you will; Loke roared, "I do not take orders from you!"
"Besides, what right do you all even possess to see our Princess?"
Another presence had caused most to jump, Virgo blocking the forest exit—She stood emotionless, but her tongue was quick and sharp, a noticeable edge in her tone.
Makarov raised an eyebrow, not taking offense to their hostile behavior. It was natural for them to be protective while Lucy was hurt, either physically or emotionally. "I cannot stand here while one of my children suffers alone and in pain."
"Alone… in pain…" Virgo mumbled to herself, eyes turning dull for a moment, "I apologize but that sounds oddly amusing to hear those words—yet this is important to you, yes? To all of you, to make sure Lucy is not alone…?"
"Why wouldn't it be?" Erza went on the defensive, fist clenched and hesitant to raise her sword and fight her way until she saw and heard Lucy—Natsu looked to be conflicted on the idea as well… He knew Lucy wouldn't ever forgive him if he PURPOSELY harmed one of her Spirits—now so more than ever—and they seemed to know that too.
They used it to their advantage, even Loke seemed to relish and take pride in the power they were considered "untouchable" to the strongest guild in Fiore—A forbidden fruit, if you will.
"You seemed to be fine letting your child, or comrade as you say, suffer this pain and loneliness for a year, hm?" Virgo tilted her head in an innocent fashion, "What about you Master Natsu? I can't seem to remember—a year is such a long time after all—on why I should allow YOU to see my Princess?"
Natsu's eye twitched at the implication, while everyone seemed to be shot with their own personal arrow.
"You can't just—" Cana shouted; her fist raised in a shaky-threatening manner that caused Loke to take a protective step forward. He would've intervened if it was for a hand raised to stop him, an all too familiar face seen as Cana's eyes widen, "Lucy…"
"Lushiee!" Happy cried, wings spread and just about to fly into the celestial wizard's bosom. But a single arm held out prevented the blue Exceed from heading further. In fact, it prevented all of the guild members from running straight to her.
"Don't," Natsu said sternly.
"Natsu?" Lucy frowned, brown doe-eyes twinkling in concern, but one step had Natsu growling. "W-What's wrong?"
"The heck is wrong with you lizard-breath?!"
"Natsu, I demand you to move aside at once."
"Why is Natsu-san glaring at love-rival?"
"Natsu…?" Happy questions, floating in mid-air—Natsu never looked at Lucy like that… His eyes were narrowed, mouth practically leaking fire as if a dragon roar was about to be released and burn this forest to the ground.
Happy's ears flattened, backing away instantly and into what was considered a "safe-zone" behind Natsu… There was only ONE reason for his partner's odd behavior.
"That's not Lucy."
This seemed to gain the guild's attention—Lucy's eyes watered, bangs casting a shadow over her delicate face and body trembling. Erza and Gray softened at the sight, all willingly to comfort their friend… That is until Lucy's body went completely still—A slow smirk spread; it was unnerving to say the least when Lucy gazed at them with cold-beady eyes.
"Piri-Piri~" An eerie voice of two was spoken, but Lucy's lips didn't move—It almost sounded like they were in your head.
Levy gasped, eyes widening and unconsciously backing into the safety-net of a certain dragon slayer—She knew which spirit this was… She remembered Lucy once telling her that Gemini took the personality of their master but sometimes the twins couldn't help but cause mischief. Especially when given the chance, preferring to play, rather than fight.
Yet their playtime was… downright scary.
"Gemini, what brought you out?" Loke asked, a grin upon his face. He wasn't actually bothered by the interruption of a new presence, almost like he expected it.
"I couldn't let you have all the fun~" Gemini giggled, still in Lucy's form. However, everyone shivered when their cheerful demeanor dropped, Lucy's beautiful smile gone… It didn't help that the sky grew to be dark, the forest appearing creepier than usual.
"Now, Virgo was onto something… What right do you have to see our Master? Do you even deserve that honor—or maybe you do…" Gemini trailed in thought, "Maybe you do have the deserving right to see how much pain you've all caused… It'll break you, definitely. Perhaps you'll even drown in your own misery too at the sight of 'you're friend' choking on her own tears with a sour attempt to even breathe in the same presence as yours."
"Shut up…" Gray murmured; body shaking, and fist clenched.
"Gray-sama," Juvia gazed at her beloved in concern.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Gemini grinned, leaning forward with a hand up to their ear.
"I said, shut up… SHUT UP! You don't know a damn thing about Lucy!" Gray shouted, the air grew to be colder, "She loves us… and goddamn, we probably—no—we definitely DON'T deserve her. Lucy is too good for this rotten guild and us, but we'll be dead before even thinking about letting her go!"
Gemini's face was unreadable as the rest nodded with cheers of agreement all around—The Zodiac spirit took a step closer, Loke placing a hand on their shoulder with a silent warning. Virgo and he agreed that Gemini was able to come out if they didn't take it too far… Gemini shrugged off Loke's touch and disappeared.
"Interesting—You've accomplished a great deal this past year…," Gray's eyes widened, swiftly turning to see an exact replica of himself, leaning against a tree—Juvia swooned, completely forgetting the situation at hand from the sight of two Gray's.
"I hate to admit how right you are," Gemini said, everyone but Natsu perking up. Though the next words had them deflate once more, Gemini scoffed, "You don't deserve Lucy—I've searched throughout the memories you hold… There was nothing after you ran off with the water-woman. Not even a proper good-bye or farewell. There doesn't seem to be a single thought of Lucy's health or whereabouts while you were gone—Tch, not even a mental pat-on-the-back or congratulations when you saw, for the first time ever, Lucy's name upon an article that she wrote personally."
No one stopped Gemini or intervened as they walked to the ice-mage. A grin upon their new-face to see Gray so silent, his bangs covering what he truly felt, but Gemini knew… The twins felt it. A part of Gray breaking as their torments kept coming. Honestly, they weren't quite worried about the possibility of Juvia drowning them. From the sight of heart-eyes and constant mumbling, she was out of commission to function properly for a while.
"Tell me Gray… How does it feel to know that she's broken because she believed in you—believed in all of you—to stay?" Gemini whispered, finger tilting Gray's chin upward to gaze into eyes that shined with tears. However, the Zodiac spirit froze to feel the coldness and point of a sword against their neck.
"That is enough," Erza hissed, eyes narrowed in a death-stare that had everyone shivering in their spot, "I will not allow you to invade my comrades mind like this to tear them down."
Gemini locked eyes with Erza in a heated stare and the requip-mage didn't flinch when suddenly she was faced with herself. It was amazing how fast Gemini was able to change from person-to-person, but what took the cake that had Erza backtracking was when her own weapon vanished from her hands and into the awaiting grasp of Gemini's.
"How did you—"
"Simple," Gemini snickered, standing tall in her new armor while twirling the sword lazily, "I called for it."
"You… I… Gemini shouldn't be able to transform into Erza at all!" Levy cried, mouth open in disbelief and drawing the attention of the two, "They're only able to transform into people that are at equal or lower than their master's magic and Lucy—"
"… is stronger than you think—You don't have any idea what my master can do!" Gemini hissed, sword drawn and ready if it wasn't for a clash between Erza—the scarlet haired woman having been able to summon another sword just in the nick of time.
"The Great Titania and so-called Queen of the Fairies… Miss Erza Scarlet," Gemini teased, sword being pushed harder that it nearly caused sparks, but Erza didn't budge. "Oh? What's this? Ran off to join the criminals, eh? Still chasing the wanted felon who gave you that last name."
"W-Wha—NO! I-It's not like that… I mean Jellal is… W-We're friends, n-nothing else!" Erza shouted, completely flustered and not at all expecting Jellal to be brought into conversation—Honestly, everyone was quite surprised to see Gemini use that moment of weakness to their advantage, the spirit able to pin Erza to the ground.
"Oh, I know Scarlet~ No matter how much you wish for the opposite," Gemini smiled, twirling a piece of Erza's hair between their fingers. It was an innocent action, yet, for some reason, the requip-mage still winced. "For someone that claims Lucy as a sister-figure… She, sure, didn't even cross your mind for this 'special' mission of yours. Obviously, Gray was a correct choice to infiltrate such a cult because he was able to blend in, thanks to that new power of his that is tainted with darkness—but Lucy never has been one-dimensional, has she?"
Gemini frowned, eyes darkening, "She could've helped with the planning. Come up with a certain strategy… In fact, Lucy was able to break into the fortress without detection in just mere seconds, if it wasn't for her dimwit partner that caused a riot." A sword appeared, thrown inches away from beheading Natsu. The fire dragon slayer attempted to sneak away.
Erza clenched her fist, and it was clear Gemini had more to say if it wasn't for a tap on the shoulder—Gemini raised an eyebrow to see a flustered Wendy, who tried to appear calm and collected.
"P-Please leave Erza-san alone and let us see Lucy-san," Wendy bowed, tears sliding down her cheek. The sight had Gemini softening, the Zodiac getting off of Erza to kneel in front of the young dragon slayer. Gemini, funny-enough, wasn't upset at Wendy.
The little girl was just as lost and lonely as Lucy when her home disappeared for the second time. But… at least she wrote—Wendy wrote a letter to Lucy every day, until one day… they just stopped.
"Gemini," Loke said.
It was one word, but Gemini knew what Loke was saying and honestly, the twins were considering letting them see lucy—Yet, a rustle caught the attention of them all, Yukino bursting out from a bush and breathing heavily. She awed at the sight of Loke, Virgo, and who she assumed was Gemini.
"Three gates open at once…" Yukino mumbled, Sting and Rogue following closely behind.
"You," Gemini's eyes widened before darkening, which had Yukino surprised to see the spirit look so hostile, "You…! I can't believe… You… I… You've heard about Fairy tail's disbandment and yet—You didn't bother to make sure Lucy was doing alright. She does everything for you, would do anything to help and you couldn't even bother to be a friend even ONCE for her to use your shoulder to cry on."
Gemini trembled, walking to the other known celestial-mage as Sting straightened and stood in front of Yukino, "Y-You hold two golden keys, our friends… our family… and you DARE shun Lucy because what? She was no longer in a guild?! –Dammit, a guild shouldn't be the only thing that keeps everyone together! At least Sting sent a letter occasionally to update her on the whereabouts of everybody if he heard any information!"
Everyone raised an eyebrow at Sting, quite curious on the relationship between him and their Lucy—They don't remember the two being so close, even Natsu was confused on the matter. Though Sting didn't let the stares bother him… His current focus was protecting Yukino, who was frozen to the ground in horror.
Gemini didn't notice when Erza's form faded back into Lucy… but Loke did. The Zodiac leader decided enough was enough, not liking how much emotional-stress it was causing the twins from digging into other's souls for answers.
"Gemi, Mini… Go home," Loke sighed.
"No…"
"That's an order, Gemini," Loke glared, wishing for the spirit to take a rest.
"NO!" Gemini screamed, tears falling, "T-They deserve to know how Lucy felt… How she still feels after she—I… I will not leave until they break just as much as SHE did!" The celestial spirit swiftly turned on their heel… Their next target set on a calm-lookin' Natsu as they rushed toward him with an outstretched hand. Loke's eyes widened, as well as Virgo, they knew exactly what the twins were trying to do.
"Don't! The Princess doesn't have that much power to give you to be able to transform into Master Natsu!" Virgo shouted, rushing to stop the connection but it was too late… A simple touch was all it took.
"THEN I'LL USE MYOWN POWER DAMMIT!" Gemini screamed, dismissing the connection to Lucy's power to access the Celestial World instead. A large magical-circle appeared underneath Gemini and Natsu's feet as it burned into the ground. Everyone had to shield their eyes from the intense light it brought—Gemini refused to give in, they wanted… No, they needed to see why the hell the ONLY person they trusted to protect their master, would abandon her when she needed him the most.
"Gemini!" Loke shouted, worried.
… A bell was heard throughout the forest before the light faded—Lucy didn't have enough power for Gemini to transform into Natsu, but that didn't mean Gemini wasn't able to cheat a little by using their own magical energy. So it was definitely a sight to see the infamous Salamander on their knees in a curled-up manner, with the real Natsu gazing down with an unreadable expression.
The twins felt like they couldn't breathe in Natsu's body, tears streaming freely and nails digging into the dirt—There was so much pain in here… so much guilt… and so much Love for their Master.
It was too much, and it had Gemini vanishing back to the Celestial world for a needed rest, nothing else said—Loke sighed, pushing his glasses up and stepping aside, "Go."
Natsu nodded, walking through the final pathway to Lucy… "Not you," Loke said sternly, immediately putting a stop to the rest of the guild, "Not right now at least."
The Fire Dragon felt cold for the first time, walking slowed to a halt—Lucy sat unmoving by a pool of water. It was silent, except for the waterfall that flowed freely, hitting the rocks below with a splash. His eyes softened and there was a heaviness upon his heart, yet… he couldn't help but let out a tiny snort to see pieces of broken boulders around the area—It seemed Lucy picked up some destructive habits after all.
Natsu sighed—he's been dodging this for a while now.
Lucy didn't acknowledge Natsu when he sat down next to her, his legs crossed and leaning forward to gaze at the reflection in the water.
The two stayed in silence… and it was a comfortable silence—it was like they weren't separated at all, and it nearly made Lucy tear-up again.
"I'm sorry…"
… Virgo was long-gone—The only one that stayed was Loke, on his own power. He eyed the guild with an odd look in his eye. Some members were either crying in their corner, in deep-thought, or frozen from the trauma Gemini caused them.
"I…" Gray's voice cracked, breaking the silence that had everyone turning to him, "I can't… Gemini was right, ya know."
Loke raised an eyebrow, arms crossed as he leaned up against a tree, "About?"
"I wasn't proud of Lucy when I first saw that article she wrote…" Gray mumbled, the Zodiac's eyes narrowed but didn't do anything. Loke knew that Gray had his reasons and he let him explain. Others around the guild gasped and Juvia placed a comforting hand upon Gray's shoulder.
"What do you mean?" Makarov questioned, letting the ice-mage take his time to compose himself.
"I meant what I said… I wasn't proud of Lucy," Gray sighed, "I wasn't proud of Lucy because that article was the first time I realized that she was alone, and it was too late to change that—DAMMIT! I thought she would've been with that flaming-shit!" Gray stood, accidentally brushing off Juvia before punching the floor in anger at himself for not knowing. "I thought… I thought that Natsu would have been with her. That's why I didn't worry! I knew that idiot would never let anything happen to her so I just… I didn't bother. MAVIS, why the HELL didn't I realize sooner!?"
"Gray-sama…" Juvia's eyes softened, falling on the ground too as Gray buried himself into her embrace. His tears were hard to hide.
"I have a confession to make as well…" Erza stood from her spot, fist shaking, "I didn't give Lucy a second thought for the mission, but it wasn't because I didn't trust her abilities—I figured Natsu was with her as well and if he heard about the mission Gray was scheduled to take, he would've become reckless like usual. The very reason Juvia wasn't alerted as well, her emotions… I knew she wouldn't be able to control them if things went south that involved Gray."
Juvia blushed in embarrassment but understood completely—She would've been constantly worried about her beloved that Juvia wasn't sure she'd be able to control herself to make the skies clear. Not to mention… What if there was a possible love-rival?! Juvia… Juvia was glad she was left in the dark.
"I-I knew exactly where Lu-chan was… and I knew she was alone. G-Gajeel even said that Natsu's scent was faded on Lucy, but I d-didn't bother to stop by—Every time we we're in C-Crocus, something always came up," Levy cried, shaking her head—She felt like a horrible best friend… Maybe she should've tried harder, wrote a letter like Wendy did.
"It's not your fault Shrimp and I'm sure Bunny-girl understands that… I think she was more upset that Natsu ditched her than anything," Gajeel grunted, placing a hand upon Levy's head and tilting it upward to wipe her tears.
"But… But Gemini was right," Yukino sobbed, "A guild shouldn't be the only thing that keeps everyone together—I should've looked for Lucy the moment I heard about Fairy tail's disbandment."
Lector was about to speak but Sting shook his head, the maroon Exceed keeping quiet for now. In fact, all the Exceeds seemed to be lost in their own thoughts. Except Frosch who was sad, sitting in Rogue's lap for comfort.
"Speaking of which," Laxus said, eyes directed to the light dragon slayer, "What's your relationship with Lucy?"
"Huh?" Sting said, nose scrunching at the question, "She's a friend?"
"Is that a question or a statement," Evergreen huffed, fan out, despite the forest growing colder. "How did you even grow to interact with Lucy?"
Sting tilted his head, frowning in thought before smiling at the memory, "Aw, yeah! Lector and I ran into Lucy during a mission… She was the one that told me about the guild disbanding." The light dragon's smile turned upside down, scratching the back of his neck nervously, "but she was sad—In fact, I kinda panicked when she suddenly burst into tears."
"Yeah, you should've seen Sting-kun trying to make her laugh… It was terrible. Lucy actually kicked him across town," Lector snickered, the others smiling softly at the thought. They definitely could imagine that.
"Yeah, blondie has a hella' strong kick," Sting laughed, "I guess that's when we kept in touch? I always told her new information if I caught a whiff about you guys… Though I never mentioned Natsu whenever we talked. Her scent gave way that it was something that shouldn't be brought up."
Master Makarov nodded, as did everyone else—The master felt he was partially to blame for all this… He thought it was a good thing to disband, he didn't know that his children would actually become strangers. But, it's not like he could change the past now.
"Why are you sorry?" Natsu blinked, quite baffled that Lucy's first words were an apology—He honestly expected a scolding, tears—Hell—even screams and punches… but not an apology.
"I-I'm just so sorry Natsu," Lucy cried, attempting to wipe away the tears that fell at a rapid pace, "I… I can't believe how selfish I've been."
"Selfish?" Natsu frowned, "Lucy, what are you talking about?"
"I… I was SO mad at you and Happy… So mad at you," Lucy hissed. Something in the water bubbled, Natsu wearily kept an eye on it before focusing back on Lucy again. The celestial mage was shaking her head, trying to rid of the anger she felt—She knew that if her emotions got the better of her, she'd actually drown Natsu… Aquarius power was still hard to control sometimes. "It wasn't fair… I mean, h-how could you just run up and ditch me like that, I thought?!"
"I didn't ditch you, Luce… I left a Will behind," Natsu said—Ditch her? No, never. He could never do such a thing.
"A note Natsu… You left a note behind, not a Will," Lucy sighed, anger vanishing as Natsu blinked stupidly—It was the same thing, no? Both were paper, he was pretty sure of it.
"Even so… I—I tried hating you for it." Natsu tensed, mouth opening but Lucy shook her head and continued, "I wanted to hate you for abandoning me, but the more I kept repeating that to myself… T-The more I missed you," She mumbled.
"Lucy, I—"
"I waited for you; you know… You and Happy, I waited—I waited for about two months before deciding you guys weren't coming back after all… That no one was coming back," Lucy said, eyes dulling at the remembrance of all the times she spent waiting for someone to show… For him to show—Lucy couldn't count the multiple times she caught a cold because she left the window cracked open with the hope that Natsu would one day jump through it. Or all the times she'd wake in a cold sweat because she had another nightmare about Aquarius and Natsu wasn't there to reassure her that everything would be fine.
"Lu—"
Suddenly, Lucy stood, interrupting Natsu as she paced back and forth, "A-And when you told me about how you didn't know the guild disbanded… How you thought I would have been with our friends—I-I felt so angry… Angry at myself for thinking…" Lucy huffed; the water bubbled once more. "I… and then, I felt selfish. I-I wasn't the only one that lost something precious that day… I mean, Natsu, you lost—Oh mavis, I can't even begin to say it…"
"Lucy!" Natsu shouted, gaining her attention instantly as he placed both hands upon the side of Lucy's face to keep her still. There were fresh tears streaming down her rosy-pale cheeks and the fire dragon softened at the sight before yanking her into a hug. "I'm sorry… I'm so, so, sorry that I wasn't strong enough to protect you. That I wasn't strong to keep you from sacrificing your mother's spirit… I'm supposed to be—I-I… D-Dammit, I'm sorry that your dragon failed you, Luce!"
Lucy stilled, eyes widening to feel Natsu's body trembling—Hot tears fell upon her bare-shoulder and Natsu's grip tightened. Lucy was sure that he was close to breaking her in two from how hard he was squishing her but right now… She didn't care, her arms snaking around Natsu's neck as he pulled her closer, Lucy on her tippy-toes to be able to bury herself in his scaled-scarf.
"My dragon didn't fail me…" Lucy muttered, "…because he came back." Natsu chuckled, a hiccup escaping as he buried his nose in Lucy's neck, inhaling her scent—It had such a calming effect on him.
"I never got to tell you, but thank you," Natsu said, nuzzling further in Lucy's embrace as the blonde scrunched in confusion on what in Earthland he was talking about. "Thank you for saving us that day…"
"I think we should all be thanking you."
The new presence caused Lucy to screech, attempting to shove Natsu off her but the fire dragon slayer wouldn't budge. A few snickers being heard as Natsu grunted before yanking Lucy back to his chest. "M-Master!" Lucy stuttered.
"I've never been prouder of you Lucy," Makarov stated, a small smile upon his face as Lucy froze, "I must apologize on my behalf… The cost it took from you to save the guild was a hefty one, and I'm sure it must've felt like a slap to the face with salt poured into the wounds when I ripped what you fought so hard to keep, from underneath your feet." Lucy's eyes softened to see Fairy Tail's master wiping a fresh tear from his eye.
"However, one thing I can say is that I'm honored to stand with you—It took such a noble and selfless decision to do what you had done. For certainty, I can say that the right choice isn't always the easy choice… Sometimes you need to sacrifice your own happiness and choose to do what is right because not everything that makes you happy is right—You have more courage and power in your little finger than most people gained in their entire life."
"That's not true… I'm not strong," Lucy said, eyes saddening at the thought, "I—M-My power is still too weak compared to others."
"You, Lucy Heartfilia, are anything BUT weak," Makarov sternly stated, the rest of the guild nodding in agreement. Even Laxus was showing a proud smirk, "It took bravery and strength to stand and fight like you did when all hope seemed lost… You pushed the limits of a normal Celestial Wizard and did things that will forever go down in the history books—You befriended the Celestial Spirit King and summoned three spirits at once. Even more, you wiped your tears and stood to fight again because you knew what needed to be done—THAT is true strength and power, great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice and is never the result of selfishness."
Erza walked calmly over to their precious blonde, a stern expression upon her face and Lucy winced when the scarlet mage summoned a sword out of thin air. Screeching in alarm before Erza slammed the sword down into the ground and kneeled… In fact, everyone that was there followed Erza's lead and fell to the ground with a respectable bow.
The sight had Lucy's eyes widening.
"Lucy of Fairy tail… We're undeserving to be in your presence, but that doesn't mean we won't fight by your side to make you proud of us, as we are to you," Erza stated. Lucy sobbed, hand coming to her mouth before she fell to her knees and cried. Happy flying into her as he shared her sorrow.
In fact, everyone got up and fell in a giant group hug full of comfort and security as they shed tears together under the full moon.
This…
This was her family.