Lucy was more than surprised to be alive. She and her friends had fought hard against the Alvarez empire and Acnologia, but as she had come to realize they had failed. Now all she could do was stare down at her feet as the Celestial Spirit King's booming voice informed her of the situation solemnly.

"Old friend, in a last second effort to save you Horologium was instructed to transport you here to the Celestial Spirit world. It seems your world has come to an end. It pains me that we had to meet again under these circumstances," he sighed deeply. Her eyes kept glued to the floor as she fought back tears. Her world as she knew it was now a memory, and everyone in it sent away to new worlds to continue their lives. She had only some time before she, too, would find herself in a world she's never known. She found some solace in her heart knowing that all of her friends would live on, even if she'd never be able to see them again. Her heart ached at the thought of it. Next to the King were all of her celestial spirits, who were her only family left. All of their expressions were striken with grim looks.

The King continued, "I am allowing you to keep all of your current spirits to accompany you to your new world. You will not be alone. As for any other keys, I'm afraid you will not be able to find them scattered about like you once did. However, I will make sure that as you improve and work on your magic power you will receive more. Including Aquarius." That made her snap her eyes meet his own. She was scared to be alone. The blonde couldn't possibly imagine how much misery she'd carry if she was striped of her spirits and magic as well. Upon hearing his graciousness and the opportunity to still get back her long lost friend, a soft smile laced her lips.

"Thank you so much, Mustache Face. I couldn't thank you enough." Lucy said gratefully, and took a long look at her spirits. Almost immediately, a few tears began to prick the edge of her eyes. How lucky she was to be able to keep them by her side.

"Do not thank me, old friend. It was the least I could do. You will soon be summoned to your new world. Remember that if you ever need help, we are still here to support you." He flashed her his signature, large grin and she couldn't help but bubble in small giggles. Her spirits walked closer to her, all each taking turns to embrace her in hugs and wishes before she was sent off into the unknown.

Lucy was falling. She was consumed by a bright, golden light before falling down a dull, kaleidescape space; all the while screaming her head off. In a matter of seconds, she landed and hit solid, cold ground. She sobbed, sitting up to rub her head and look over her surroundings. In front of her were a group of what seemed to be cloaked mages judging by the bright teal magic circle that was underneath her. But by the looks of it, they were shocked at her sudden appearance. It's not everyday you see a girl fall from the sky. Directly behind her were four men who looked just as new as she did and wielding different gear. Her eyes momentarily locked with the green eyes of the shield wielder before her attention was torn to a concerned voice ahead of her.

"Who are you? We didn't intend to summon you!" One of the mages gawked, pointing an accusing finger at her. The entire room had their eyes on her. She blushed, embarrassed. Sheepishly, she got up and patted herself down of any dust and such.

"I'm Lucy Heartfilia. You all don't look too happy to see me, so I'll be going now, thanks!" Before she could dart out the door, she was stopped by one of the mages who threw himself in her path.

"Please wait. You five must all speak with our king. Cardinal heroes," he motioned to the four men, "please take this maiden with you for your hearing with our king. There has to be some explanation for this." He concluded, which earned him nods from the proclaimed cardinal heroes.

"We really are in a new world, huh?" The bow hero mused. Lucy looked at the luminous landscape outside the little window of the spiral staircase. It certainly looked like Earthland. The boys also seemed to recognize it as similar to their world. As they explained to her on their climb, they were summoned from alternate worlds as the four cardinal heroes. They were also new, and burdened with the task of saving this world. Lucy's summoning was a compleye mystery to them all.

After a bit more travel, they found themselves in the throne room. At the throne sat an aged man, with close to white hair and a crown atop his head. The four heroes aligned themselves in a straight line to showcase themselves, while Lucy was stuck behind them. Why did she always get the short end of the stick? She sighed, seeing as how she had become essentially invisible and thought about how she'd go about this. Meeting a king wasn't her expectation of an introduction to her new world, but seemingly she popped up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Figures. Relishing on her current misfortunes, she barely noticed the king was calling her forward until the shield hero lightly flicked her forehead with a suggestive look. She pouted at his methods and was sure she'd give him an earful later for it, but the stellar mage had more pressing matters.

"And who might you be?" The king questioned, staring at her sternly as she slipped past the four men who looked at her expectedly. The shield hero suppressed his laughter as he watched her try to compose herself after being caught spacing out.

"I'm Lucy Heartfilia. I'm a celestial wizard." Sweet and short. Not that anyone in the room understood the last bit. The shield hero stepped up to introduce himself next— it seemed to Lucy that they were all taking turns— before the king cut him off and he was forced into confused silence. Lucy found it odd, since theoretically he should matter more than her, but the king's gaze never left her figure.

"You are not meant to be here. Tell me how it came to fruition that you happened to appear in my kingdom? And what is this "celestial wizard" occupation that you speak about?" He questioned. She felt like she was being interrogated and shivered.

"How am I supposed to know? I was going to leave, but I wasn't allowed to. As for what I meant, I can use my magic to summon spirits from another world." While explaining, she got her rings of keys from her pocket and showed them to him. The old man mulled over her words with closed eyes. He somewhat reminded her of Grandpa Crux.

"While you are not supposed to be here, you wield powerful abilities and seem like a good soul. Please, join the effort in saving our world." His eyes were pleading even though his face was still stern. Taken aback by his request— she was honestly expecting jail time— the Heartfilia girl plunged into thought. It she agreed, she would fight for good just as she did before. And she could redeem herself. She may have failed to save her own world, but if she managed to save this one she could free herself of the guilt and grief she was pushing back deep into her heart. These people needed her help. She could make things right.

"I'll help you!" She said confidently, radiating a smile that lit up the entire room. Behind her, the cardinal heroes all smiled themselves at her resolve and upbeat nature; even the neglected shield hero.

"Very well then. You will be known as the Key Hero." After that declaration, the king explained to them the country's state and their expectation to fight off "waves," and only then would they be allowed to return to their homes. Lucy reviled at the irony; how unlike them she had no home to return to. She would have to stay in this world until her last breath. The boys were all given their stauses naturally, while Lucy was escorted after their lecture to access hers via a dragon hourglass. It was one of the most grand objects she had ever seen.

Later that day, she and the other heroes— who she got to meet by name— were lounging around their own private room in the castle awaiting the next day.

"You mean you really don't know anything about this?" Itsuki, the bow hero, asked Naofumi, the shield hero. Everyone seemed surprised, minus the blonde and the questioned Naofumi. Apparently, every official cardinal hero was summoned to this world with perquisite knowledge of their task, the geography, and such. Something that Lucy and Naofumi dearly lacked. The shield wielder shook his head, utterly confused about what any of the other men were speaking of. Including that, hearing that his weapon, if you could even call it that, was the worst of the bunch took an extra hit at his confidence in their ordeal. The blonde girl noticed his distress, and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder and offered him a supportive smile. He looked at her, eyes full of something she could not read, but after a second he, too, melted into a smile. The other heroes took grave note of this exchange.

"I also don't know anything about this world, guys, so don't be too harsh on him." She defended him, to which the others sighed.

"Not to be rude, Lucy, but you also aren't supposed to be here. You also come from a place called Fiore. We all originate in alternate versions of a country called Japan." Ren, the sword hero, reasoned, earning him a nod from Itsuki and Motoyasu— the remaining and spear hero. Motoyasu sat down next to her, snaking his arm around her shoulder and drawing her in closer to him an attempt to rip her away from Naofumi, tje inferior hero in his eyes. It worked, and she looked up to the fellow blonde with a mix of a confused and annoyed expression. Beside her, the expression was mirrored.

"Don't worry, Lulu, I can show you around if you want, so no need to worry! Say, since you aren't technically a hero, do you think you also need me to protect you as well?" He boasted. 'Cocky,' Lucy thought. Itsuki and Naofumi both looked disgusted at the spear hero's terrible flirting, while Ren also showed his disapproval with a mild head shake. Huffing and pushing away from the much too full of himself man, Lucy stood up and wagged her finger no.

"I am more than capable of taking care of myself, Motoyasu. And don't call me that!" She commanded firmly, making him sob at her harshness. Ren cleared his throat, catching the attention of all.

"Well, if we're done with the chit chat and the sorry attempts at flirting, I believe we should all head to bed now. We have another long day ahead of us." Motoyasu darted back up to defend his skills in flirting midway, but stopped when he realized that it was in fact late and was better if he dropped it. And so, all heroes left the room and began to head their separate ways. Naofumi sighed as he walked his own way, head full of his misfortunes. Not only was he dejectedly ignored by the king all day, but he was also seemingly the worst hero of the four cardinals. Not only did he utilize a measly shield, which was only good for defense, but he also didn't the first thing about this new world unlike the other men. He felt completely and utterly useless thus far. His mind was clouded with these thoughts as he walked head down through the halls to his sleeping quarters until again, he felt her touch. Lucy was going to head to her room as well, until last second she decided to chase him down. But he didn't seem to hear her behind him, so to try to get his attention more effectively she grabbed his wrist.

"Naofumi!" He stopped, all thoughts escaping him for the time being, and turned to face her.

"Oh, Lucy, sorry. I didn't notice you. What's up?" He said, flustered at his carelessness. Judging by her soft pants, she was probably yelling and running after him for quite a while. Glad that she finally succeeded, Lucy sighed in relief and then flicked him with her free hand.

"That's what you get for earlier today." She smirked playfully, finally getting her revenge. Naofumi blinked. Was that really the only reason she decided to follow him? He chuckled at her determination, and rubbed the back of his head with the hand she wasn't latched on.

"You totally got me, Lucy." He sweatdropped. She looked a little more proud than she should be over a simple head flick. She let him go, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Also, I just wanted to say don't listen to those other guys, I'm sure your shield will come in handy. Me and you are one in the same, so I don't think it's fair you got all the berating just because of this pan place or whatever." She reassured him, and he softened. He admired her good heart and empathetic nature; only though he had only known her a day she seemed well. He pat her head, and her lips laced into a small smile of her own.

"Thank you, Lucy."

A/N: Thank you to everyone who read all the way through! :)

I haven't written or published in FFN in years, so I'm not sure if I'm doing anything wrong or not. Please let me know in reviews if I am! Also, I am an anime only watcher for Shield Hero, and have watched season 1 and 2. So if something in the series comes up that makes this fanfiction not work, I will deal with the consequences and find a way to make it work LOL. Anways, enjoy this rare crossover between FT and SH! Let me know any questions you have in reviews. :D

HUGE story inspo go to thatoneswordsman's "Drifting Star" and Tricksterverse's "Fairy Tail of the Shield Hero"!