Homesick

"I think this is finally perfect," Lucy sighed. The armchair she'd been balancing in her hands sat beautifully tucked away in a corner by the window. A perfect reading nook for herself and maybe Levy whenever she got back from her around the world sightseeing. Lucy still wasn't sure what had her rock obsessed friend so travel happy. The only glance she'd gotten into her travels was when Capricorn sent her an urgent message to pass on to the bluenette and the grumpy dragon that followed her everywhere. The blonde only knew that Cepheus was important and to stress the stopping in 15 meters or something bad was going to happen, so she did both things before Gemini abruptly cut off the connection. Apparently her guardians didn't want to give away the surprise. Go figure. So here she was, bored and feeling relatively lonely, organizing her townhouse for the millionth time. With a groan, Lucy picked up the large werewolf skull Natsu had gifted her and placed it on her glass and gold coffee table in the living room. Taking a step back she looked at the skull before turning to look out her window. "Maybe it's time to go open up the shop for a few hours. Want to tag along Plue?" A huff from the rug was her answer. "You could be a little more enthusiastic," Lucy grumbled, while tapping her familiar between his ears. She needed his larger form today, she had a few stones to bring back to display and didn't have enough hands to carry them all safely.

After finally pinning Plue and activating Canis Major, Lucy huffed in annoyance. Of course, her familiar would make a game of her chasing him, not caring about irritating her. The shaggy creature was wagging his tail happily, tongue lulling out around equally large canines. "You aren't cute Plue," Lucy grumbled. She stood glaring at her dog, with her hands on her hips for another minute while she attempted to catch her breath. "Are you going to behave or am I going to have to leave you?" She was bluffing and Plue knew it. He seemed to grin wider, exposing more of his teeth before barking loudly. With a shake of her head, the blonde picked up a large rose quartz tower and an onyx sphere and thrust them into Plue's side. She'd never get used to the sight of his fur sucking in objects; he didn't have a normal structure, his body while sturdy was hollow and could be used as a sort of storage. Lucy used him for heavier objects. She laughed her way through storing ten more items, the fur tickling her knuckles before slipping on her rainboots and opening the door to her townhouse.

oOo

"Plue!" Lucy shrieked, her hands coming up to shield her face from the onslaught of water flying from his fur. The second they'd entered the shop, Plue shook the rain from his fur. Lucy was more nervous about the clinking sounds she heard coming from him than the water on the floor. "Be careful!" an uninterested huff sounded from her familiar before he padded behind the counter and started dry heaving. "PLUE WAIT!" too late. A soft ringing sounded as the quartz clattered against the floor, the onyx sphere not to far behind. The blonde was quick to grab the small decorative pillow from the corner and place it under Plue's open mouth. She waited with a grimace as he slowly hacked his cargo up as she arranged them on the counter after a lengthy inspection. Plue laid down with a heavy sigh and a cough. "Lazy," Lucy laughed while running to grab a rag from the back and clean up the water on the floor, the last thing GEM-N-I needed was an accident lawsuit. She just needed to find the caution wet floor sign they had. Where did Levy place it?

"Are you open?" The sound of the bell above the door brought Lucy out of her musings.

"Ah yes, wel-" a flash of pink hair had the words drying up in her throat; She didn't realize how much she was missing his company until then. Natsu. It's been a little under three weeks since she's seen him around and she couldn't get a hold of him. She'd forgotten to exchange numbers with him after the incident with Gray and Juvia.

"You okay?" the pink haired girl asked tentatively. She was halfway in the shop, staring at Lucy with concern.

"Yes! Welcome! Please watch your step, it's a little wet." Lucy cleared her throat and hoped her face wasn't showing the heat she was feeling in her embarrassment. Not Natsu. of course. She tried to ignore the ache that was slowly building in her chest as she moved back behind the counter and fiddled uninterestedly with the crystals Plue had hacked up. What was this constricting feeling? Like she couldn't breathe. How uncomfortable it was becoming, she hadn't felt like this since her mom passed.

"What a beautiful onyx sphere," a shy voice from in front of the counter, "it's hard to find them that dark and unmarred."

"It is gorgeous isn't it?" Lucy said around a smile, Levy really did have an eye for stones.

"Is….is it for sale?"

"I'm sorry," The blonde was quick to jerk her eyes up, her smile going apologetic. "It's for members only, but I do have some more onyx spheres on the bookshelf in the back. They might not be as large as this one but they're just as beautiful. You should go look." Lucy finished while gently scooping up the dark sphere and turning to place it in the display case behind her. She could mope later, now she had a job to do.

"Ah, thank you!" Pink hair gone in a flash, disappearing down the nearest aisle and beelining for the large bookshelf in the back.

"Please let me know if there's anything I can help you with." Lucy called after the girl before laughing at herself. She quickly found a spot for all the crystals in display cases and excitedly chatted about the girls finds. She'd settled on a smaller onyx sphere and a pyrite cut in the shape of a cube (thanks Gajeel). The bell above the door signaled the departure and left Lucy alone in the shop. It was so quiet, even with Plue's gentle snoring. "Maybe I'll coax Gemini to let me talk to Levy," Lucy mused as she went to lock the front door and head home for the day. She'd realized she was homesick, not for a place, but for two very specific people. She'd continue to count down the days till she could see them again, hoping it would be sooner rather than later.

"What are we going to eat tonight, Plue?" a loud snort was her answer. Right. "How about pizza? My treat."

Author's note: Sorry for the long wait, I've been having to focus on the writing that pays me :( I've been meaning to get back to this fic and I have a few more one shot ideas for Scales, Swords and Sweet surprises...and you'll probably be happy to hear I'm still working on Familiar as well. I've just had to focus on getting my next two books ready for publication and entering a few writing contests. I'm honstly pooped. I hope you've enjoyed my double update and i plan to have the next chapter up tomorrow (hopefully), it'll also hopefully be a little longer than this one. I just wanted to explore Lucy's mundane existence when she doesn't have her people around; she runs a business and hangs with her familiar...what more is a girl to do?