Archive of Our Own ^beta

Lucy Heartfilia took her 73rd breath of freedom in a crusty magic shop in Hargeon.

Her 1st breath of freedom consisted of trudging through the manor hedges in the dead of night. Her 2nd breath of freedom was a sky full of stars, a chill on the tips of her ears, and the endless road before her. Her 3rd breath of freedom was paying rent. 

Since then, she had learned many new skills (navigating a train station without assistance) and suffered many new regrets (not taking more of her expensive clothes before she ran). And now after all those moments of growth, as she stepped out of a wizard specialty shop, she experienced her 73rd breath of freedom: haggling with a creepy old man through the excessive use of feminine sex appeal. 

All for a mediocre celestial key.

Sometimes freedom sucked.

“The value of seduction sure has gone down these days,” Lucy sighed bitterly, after only getting a fifty percent discount on a highly prized magical tool usable to less than one percent of wizards. 

She indignantly shook her head and sighed, “Men.” 

Around her in the bustling port city of Hargeon, people wandered from shop to shop, catching up with friends, gossiping about the upcoming Sorcerous weekly magazine, whispering about dark guild activity, and going about their weekly grocery shopping. Every once in a while, a train whistle sounded from the north, and the southern winds filled the air with the smell of fresh fish caught from the harbor. Lucy, still muttering to herself about the degradation of beauty standards, walked past two girls throwing concerned glances across the street.

One whispered, “Do they have no self-preservation instinct?”

Lucy was only half aware of the two girls. Instead, she was thinking furiously to herself.

And when the world can no longer appreciate the beauty of a slender waist, a full chest, and a good pair of doe eyes, then what will we have?

“Where’re the guards? “ continued the other.

Utter chaos, I tell you. The fall of civilization as we know it, the reversal of night and —

“That was Salamander, right?” asked the first.

“Yeah,” the other agreed, nodding seriously.

—day and the falling of the… What? Salamander?

“Salamander!?” Lucy suddenly exclaimed, causing the two girls to jump.

“Umm…” The girls paused awkwardly.

Lucy steamrolled them, “ The Salamander? Like, from The Fairy Tail?”

“Ye-yeah, that’s what I saw” answered the second.

“Where?” 

The two girls pointed toward a small plaza with a huge crowd. The cheering people looked young, in their 20s and 30s, and the passerbyers on the street were cautiously curious. A gout of purple fire burst out towards the sky, and thunderous applause broke out from all around. 

Now that's a truly dangerous situation. She felt her heart beat in excitement. I should stay away. I shouldn’t go. That would be stupid. That would be exceedingly crazy. Don’t go near the evil wizards, Lucy. But her feet had already turned in the direction of the crowd.

“Thanks!” Lucy took off in a run.

“What the fuck?” One of the girls whispered furiously, “Why is she running towards them?”

Now, Lucy wasn’t crazy — Lucy was perfectly normal, actually. Anyone in the whole world would’ve gone towards that crowd because the evil wizard was from Fairy Tail, after all! The Fairy Tail, the most infamous dark guild in all of Fiore! They were insane, they were newsworthy, they had magic unimaginable to normal wizards. And Salamander? He was the most insane, newsworthy, and unimaginable of them all. Any young aspiring novelist would want a peek at his face. Any young aspiring wizard would want a glance at his skills. And seeing as Lucy was both young and aspiring, there was only one direction for her feet to go. 

Besides, I’m just here to watch. I’ll get out of the way if things seem dangerous, she promised herself.

She pushed through the crowd. Sounds of:  “Kyaaaa!,”  “He’s so dreamy!,” and a faint “I can fix you, bad boy! ” came from all sides as she ducked and weaved. With each step, her heart beat faster and her face grew more flushed, until at long last, Lucy emerged right at the front of the crowd..

Ruffled purple hair fell boyishly off the side of his face. His half cape was draped gallantly around his manly frame. A tattoo above his right eyebrow framed his eyes, which swept the crowd before falling to look directly at her.

She met his eyes and saw perhaps the most beautiful man she had ever seen in her life. She saw Salamander’s luminous, lilac orbs meeting hers, staring into the depths of her—

She was shoved from behind. 

Just like that, the spell was broken. The most beautiful man she had seen became a sleazy-looking forty-something and, without the compulsion, appeared pathetic as he tried to flirt with whoever had pushed her (a man with pink hair and…a cat on two legs?). 

Actually, getting a better look, the now Sleazy Man seemed somewhat familiar. Before she could figure out why, he cast a magic circle beneath his feet. Purple flames erupted theatrically as they slowly spiraled him into the air.

Salamander blew the crowd a kiss. “You’re all invited to the party on my cruise ship tonight. Don’t keep me waiting, my dears.”

As he turned around and flew off on his flames, a glint from his hand caught Lucy’s eye. A ring with an inscribed heart on his index finger. Fuck , that was a charm spell.

Lucy felt disappointment curdle in her stomach. What was that? What was that?! Where was the real magic, the magic that terrifies the soul, those far reaches of destruction, of dreams, of myth? 

Charm spells? These were common evils. Illegal, but common nevertheless. 

But beneath all the disappointment, Lucy was embarrassed. Having her emotions manipulated like that — it was gross. No wonder that kind of magic was outlawed. She wanted to punch him. She wanted to stick Cancer on him and cut off his stupid, over-groomed hair. She wanted —

Lucy, don’t antagonize a Fairy Tail wizard. Don’t go looking for trouble. She sighed and tried to push her anger aside.

Meanwhile, the man with the pink hair was dusting himself off as he got off the ground. Sometime in the middle of Salamander leaving, the man had been tackled by his charmed fan club and now he lay sprawled out on the road as the crowd dissipated.

He seemed disappointed, too.

Lucy reached out in a handshake. “Thanks for saving me out there!”

“Huh?” The man turned to look at her.

“For when you bumped into me. Let me thank you with something to eat!,”  she smiled. “I’m Lucy.” 

“Natsu,” he smiled back, albeit confusedly.

“Call me Happy!” said the cat.

Lucy balked, “Did your cat just speak!?” 

—

Food was flying everywhere. Natsu and Happy both ate like possessed men. Or rather, men possessed by starving stray dogs. Gravy was probably getting stuck in Lucy’s hair. Ew.

They had moved to the restaurant a little further down the street, a cheap and rowdy place, creatively titled Restaurant . Points for clarity. Natsu and Happy had immediately started inhaling everything on the table, while Lucy had immediately started regaling them with every single horror, injustice, and betrayal she experienced today, ending with the most important slight of them all: that asshole, Salamander.

“ — He was using a charm spell . A spell that has been banned from public use for decades! Like, you literally have to be high-ranking in the military to obtain it! And what does he use it for? Attention?! Ego stroking?! Are you serious?! If he was gonna use that charm ring for something so flippant, he should’ve just given it to me!” 

Natsu finished his 6th plate and grabbed another.

“I could’ve taken a look at it, figured out its mechanisms! Its radius of effect! How it chooses who to affect, how it can be resisted! So much knowledge, all lost to some man with shit fashion sense! Ugh!” 

Natsu nodded along, vigorously eating a sandwich. Some of the sauce spewed across the table as he bit down. Lucy turned her full attention towards him to avoid the airborne projectiles. Suddenly, she remembered something.

“Actually, now that we’re on the subject, why didn’t it affect you?” Lucy asked.

Natsu, mouth full, gave a shrug.

“You talk a lot,” said Happy.

“Hmm, maybe it was set to a specific demographic? The crowd did look somewhat young. I’ve heard that some magic items can be modified through letter magic to imprint certain limitations or conditions to the spell effect. It’s a really expensive and precise project though, and modifying a magic item the size of a ring? Discreetly ? Must cost something in the hundreds of thousands of jewels. There’s also a problem where the magic item would only affect things with lower magical power than the caster. No one usually modifies charm spells for that reason; they’re too unreliable for the amount of money you’re spending. Although, if it's Salamander, I guess he wouldn’t have to worry about that.”

“Regardless, all that matters is that everyone is safe. In a run-in with such a dangerous dark guild, I would say that this was a success!” She flashed a victory sign with her fingers and grinned at them. 

Natsu and Happy gave each other a confused look.

“What do you mean, ‘dark guild?’” Happy asked.

Lucy’s mouth dropped open. “You didn’t know? That man was Salamander!” 

Natsu spewed unintelligible words with a mouth full of his 8th plate.

Lucy blinked.“What?” 

“That wasn’t a salamander,” repeated Natsu, barely swallowing, “He didn’t have any wings or any fire breath or anything. And, he was only five feet tall.”

Happy patted him sympathetically on his back, “We’ll find him one day…”

“What are you talking about? No, not an actual dragon. Obviously. No one has seen a dragon in centuries. They’re like, fake.” She flipped her hair over her shoulder in lieu of rolling her eyes. “I’m talking about The Salamander , you know, from Fairy Tail?”

“Some people have seen dragons,” Natsu said defensively, “They’re real. I was raised by a dragon.”

“And I was raised by mermaids,” Lucy stated flatly.

“Really?”

“No.”

“Fairy Tail’s Salamander…” Happy munched distractedly on a fish, “Where have I heard that before…”

“He’s Fairy Tail’s premiere arsonist wizard!” Lucy exclaimed, “He’s in the news every other month for burning down another city, farm, or something or the other. They’ve been calling him a terrorist! No one knows why, either! He never puts out any demands or political statements. He’s probably just an anarchist freak who likes suffering. Scratch that, he’s an ego-stroking asshole anarchist freak who likes suffering.”

Natsu opened his mouth, “You mean purple guy? Actually, I’ve never seen him in Fai— Mmph—”

Happy shoved his fish into Natsu’s mouth. 

“Try this fish, Natsu. It’s really good," he said sheepishly.

He shifted awkwardly in his seat on the table. “ Natsu was trying to say that we don’t watch the news. Right , Natsu?”

Natsu nodded vigorously and started to shovel more food into his mouth.

“Lucy, you seem to know a lot. Why’s Fairy Tail so important?” Happy rambled.

Lucy sat up straighter and puffed out her chest. “They’re, like, the most infamous dark guild in Fiore right now. There’re tons of stories about how they, like, burn down people’s homes, kidnap women, start revolts all over Fiore, inspire anarchy, evil, and chaos, and the like.”

Natsu started shoveling food faster.

“You should avoid them.” Lucy said hypocritically, “They’re a crazy cult that tattoo themselves as a weird membership ritual.”

Natsu finally swallowed his food, “Why’s tattooing yourself crazy?”

“Why would you tattoo yourself to show allegiance to a guild? Anyone could, like, copy it and conduct fraud.“

Natsu opened his mouth to retort, but then realized he didn’t have an argument to stand on, and he blanched. Lucy could see the food scraps that were stuck in his teeth.

She rolled her eyes, “We use these instead.”

She raised her right hand and pointed upward with her index finger. She gave it a nonchalant wave and cast a small magic circle. A plaque materialized out of the air with a “pop” and Lucy caught it with a practiced flick of her wrist. On the plaque, a blackish-blue silhouette of a face and a lilac background shimmered with unseen sunlight. Silver letters bordered the edge of the design, spelling out ‘Temporary Member’. 

“This is what proves your credibility as a part of a guild. I’m a temporary member of Titan’s Nose. It’s much more legitimate looking than a tattoo, right? Plus you don’t have to take off articles of clothing to like, just prove your membership.” Lucy made another hand motion, and the plaque disappeared. 

“My goal is to become a full member one day. Their plaques hold so much more weight. And you get paid like, fifty percent more. Actually maybe like, a hundred percent more”, she says, pointedly waving around her fork. “You don’t even work harder! I think some of those members work less ! ‘Cause they get a bigger cut of the contract!” 

She sighs wistfully, “And if I’m really lucky, I’ll get famous and show up on a page in the Sorcerer's Weekly . Ah, just imagine having my cute face in the magazine next to a beauty like Mirajane. What a dream.” 

“Did you know, some of the full members in Titan’s Nose were in featured articles? Like Nalshe Mikagura or Bora — ”

Suddenly Lucy’s fork fell out of her hand and clattered onto the table.

“That son of a bitch!” she exclaimed.

Happy and Natsu jumped.

“What?” Happy and Natsu asked simultaneously.

“Bora”. Lucy’s hand was clenched into a fist and she grinded her teeth. 

In her memories, long purple hair covered his face, a cloak floated behind him as he walked, the smell of singed clothes. 

“Who?” asked Natsu.

“I didn’t recognize him because he’s almost never in the guild. Turns out he’s been a filthy Fairy Tail infiltrator this whole time.”

Don’t, said a voice in her head. She ignored it.

“Your cover’s blown, asshole . Charm me, huh? We’ll see who gets the last laugh.” Lucy got up.

“You two can take your time and finish eating. I’ve got a score to settle.” She slammed some cash on the table before marching her way towards the door.

“Wait! You’re paying for us?” cried Natsu.

She turned around, “Huh? Yeah, of course. I said before I was treating you to a meal as thanks for —” 

Lucy’s words trailed off as she saw both Natsu and Happy gaping at her. Natsu began making a wailing noise. It took Lucy a minute to realize he was actually saying words.

“Lucyyyyyyyyy! You’re so niceeeeeee!” He sobbed. 

Um.

“Um” said Lucy, cheeks heating up, “It’s no big deal. I’m just paying you back for helping me.”

“But I wasn’t trying to do that,” cried Natsu, confused.

He screwed up his face in contemplation, then brightened as an idea hit him. “I know! I’ll help you out with something intentionally this time.”

Happy nodded vigorously beside him.

The entire restaurant was staring at them by this point. Amazing . Still, their sincerity made her chest feel warm, and she couldn’t help but smile.

“Seriously, don’t worry about it. I’m off! See ya around.”

She pushed open the restaurant door and gave a wave without looking back. The door closed behind her before she could hear a reply.

Lucy took a deep breath. Okay . Now that that was settled, time to get his ass.

—

“He was a man in his forties, with purple hair and a half cape.” Lucy waved her hands around to pantomime his appearance.

“Uh-huh”. Before her was a group of city guards sitting around a table. They were barely in uniform, appearing as if they shared only one complete suit of armor between all of them; someone had a half-buckled chestplate, and another had a greave or two. The guard who spoke had his feet kicked up on the table and seven cards in his hand. He looked deep in thought, furrowing his brow while he stared at his cards.

One of Lucy’s eyes twitched. “He was using Charm Magic on the crowd. Are you listening? Charm Magic. Highly illegal ?” she emphasized.

“Yep, it’s illegal alright,” said the guard. He finally made a decision and placed his card face down on the table.

“He literally said his name was Salamander. THE Salamander . From Fairy Tail. THE Fairy Tail .” 

“Wow, sounds like a dick,” said the guard. The soldier next to him was choosing a card from his hand and eyeing him suspiciously.

“But Salamander isn’t his true name . I know who he actually is. He’s Bora the—”

“ELEVEN OF CHALICES! I WIN!” shouted the soldier. All the other guards cursed.

“ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?” shouted Lucy.

The guard with his feet up on the table sighed. He tossed his cards aside as the other soldier scooped up his winnings. “Look lady, you’re not the only one who has reported this today. We’re on it . People have been dispatched. Paperwork has been created. Let us do our jobs, and you can go about your day.”

Calm down, said the voice in her head. Y ou’ll get in trouble. Keep your head down. 

But it was too late, she was already yelling back.

“People have reported about the charm ring? What about his real name? His connection to Titan’s Nose? Huh ? Anyone reported that yet?”

The guard let out another deep sigh. He got up and walked over. “I already told you, we’re on it. There’s nothing else you can do here. If you really want to perform your civic duty,” he made quotation marks with his hands when saying ‘civic duty,’ “then leave your name with us and we’ll make sure you get summoned to speak at the trial, okay?”. He handed her a slip of paper and a pen. The second she signed it, he corralled her out and slammed the door.

—

When Lucy was a kid, she used to pretend she was a powerful wizard like her mom. She would imagine running around, saving all kinds of people and fighting all kinds of monsters. 

Open, Gate of the Water Bearer! Aquarius! She would shout, jumping on the bed with a bowl of water. 

Her favorite monster was a ratty stuffed dog that a cousin’s uncle’s niece had sent her for her eighth birthday. She would cup her small hands and dip them into the bowl before theatrically flinging her hand out and splashing the dog.

I’ll create a tidepool and wash you away! She would grab the dog and run in circles, around and around.

Then she would chuck him down a random hallway and dash to her favorite doll. Don’t worry, Michelle! Princess Heartfilia has saved you! Whenever there’s evil, you can rely on me to chase it all away! She would say proudly, putting her fist to her chest.

No matter where, I’ll come protect you!

She had stopped saying all that after Mom died. 

She stopped believing in fairytales, too.

—

Lucy was heroically and righteously kicking a trash can. 

It couldn’t be helped. That trash can just so happened to be the evil mastermind behind all of her life’s problems, and if she went another second without spending all of her energy beating it up, she would do something unforgivable. Like expressing unacceptable and potentially treasonous emotions in public.

Stupid guards. Bam! Probably sexist. Bam! Probably leave their kids' birthday parties to lose at cards with the other deadbeat guards. Bam! Probably wouldn’t even—

“Lucky! I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” cried out a smarmy voice from behind her. Oh no.

Lucy turned around, and there he was in all his melodramatic glory; the man of the ill-begotten hour, midair on his purple flames: that asshole, Bora the Salamander.

She immediately pulled out her celestial keys and shifted into a fighting stance.

“I told the guards about you! If I disappear, they’ll know it was you! Don’t come any closer!” she shouted.

Bora put his hands up. “Don’t be like that, Lucky. I came here to explain.” He drifted down and landed with a flourish.

“It’s Lucy”

“Yes, yes, Lucy, won’t you hear me out? As a fellow guild member.”

“You recognize me?”

“Of course, just because you’re an intern-”

“Temporary member,” Lucy said, testily.

“-doesn’t mean you aren’t part of our big, happy family built on mutual economic interest!”

“Don’t pretend you care about Titan’s Nose,” accused Lucy, “seeing as you’re a Fairy Tail infiltrator”.

Bora shook his head solemnly, or as solemnly as his smug face could. “That’s where you’re wrong, Lucy. See, I was only trying to make you think that.”

“That doesn’t even make any sense.”

“Ah, but it does. See, I was only pretending to be Salamander for a quest.”

“You think I’d believe that?”

“Lucy, Lucy, Lucy,” He tsked, “So quick to doubt the words of your guildmates. That doesn’t bode well for your future career.”

He gave another smug shake of his head. “The wizard council has decided to send wizards from multiple big guilds to go after them. You wouldn’t know because you’re only an intern .” 

Bora crossed his arms as if he was greatly inconvenienced. “I took on this grand responsibility as a personal favor for our prestigious guild master, so now I’m currently hunting them”. He gave a deep sigh of annoyance.

Lucy was silent. She felt a flush climb up her neck.

“I pretended to be Salamander to draw their attention and pull one of those Fairy Tail creeps out from hiding. I’ve been working with the guards, too. I told them my entire plan and everything. You didn’t think that someone shouting about how they’re part of a dark guild–on a wide street, in broad daylight–would be completely ignored by the guards for no reason, right? Come on , use your head.” Bora, the fake-Salamander, continued.

“...But the illegal magic rings?”

“For legitimacy obviously . Plus, it draws a crowd. Those who don’t notice have a good time witnessing my handsome self. No harm done.” He made a pose that he thought was handsome. “And those who do notice, well… I convinced you , right?” He winked.

For the second time that day, Lucy felt deeply embarrassed. 

This is what you get for overreacting. You should’ve kept your head down.

She could feel her heart pounding in her ears. She must’ve responded, but she didn’t know what she said.

“Don’t feel bad, I’m simply too good of an actor. It’s only logical.” he boasted.

“Well,” Lucy couldn’t handle this right now, “Bye.” She turned on her heel and began to walk away.

“Wait, Lucky!” Bora called out after her. “Wait! I didn’t come searching for you just because I wanted to explain myself.”

“What do you want now?”

“One of my team members on this quest fell sick yesterday.”

If Lucy had to work on a job with this man, one of them would be dead by the end of the week, and it wouldn’t be her. “Can’t you find someone else? I’m busy.”

“Don’t be like that, Lucky-”

“ Lucy ”

“-Come on, if you help out, I’ll talk with the guild master about pushing some paperwork. Maybe shorten some of the time and job requirements. For becoming a full member.”

Lucy sucked in a breath. Oh no, he had found her one weakness. 

Bribery.

“I understand if it’s not worth it. After all, full members don’t get that much more than interns—except for free housing and discounts at various associated magic and weaponry stores. Oh yes, and they get priority access to choosing quests, and they get paid ninety percent of the contract rather than fifty. If I really think about it, perhaps they even get connections to all kinds of different fields, a step in the door for most interviews, and the uncontested backing of the entire guild. Need I go on?”

Lucy isn’t a coward. She wouldn’t violate her morals for the opportunity to earn a few more jewels—

Oh, who was she kidding?

Lucy turned around. “Would you really talk to the guildmaster?” she whined, twirling a strand of hair.

“Uh—I mean, of course I will, Darling.”

“You promise ?” She fluttered her eyelashes at him.

—

Ugh , this stupid job was not eyelash-flutter worthy. She shouldn’t have done that. It was already one of her top ten regrets of the day–and considering the day it was, that was impressive.

Lucy had gotten all dressed up in a nice, long, red, evening gown, put on her nice lipstick, pinned up her hair–and for what? To suffer through terrible hors d'oeuvres at a rich party on some cruise ship? Where was the promised dark wizard hunting? Ugh , even the cheese tasted stale.

Nicely dressed guests flitted about here and there, nervous about the reputation of ‘Salamander’ and charmed by the titular man in equal measure. Like actually Charmed by him. 

What even was the point of this stupid dinner? Couldn’t Bora do his luring-out plan in an abandoned warehouse? A well-lit abandoned warehouse. Abandoned for the ambiance and well-lit so she could get a good look at the face of a Fairy Tail wizard. And their moves. And their magic.

The luxury of it all made her skin crawl. She had been to much wealthier parties, of course, but that was before. Now, whenever money was involved, Lucy was always worried she’d run into someone who’d snitch on her to Dad. Tell him that she was wearing out-of-fashion clothing and flaky foundation, speaking informally, shaming the family name, et cetera et cetera. Every rich person knew her dad, so it was a very valid worry.

As the cruise ship slowly took off, Lucy spent the next fifteen minutes sulking at the snack bar and trying not to attract attention. This was very easy because the audience was, again, charmed. Her job was technically to keep an eye on the floor for any suspicious activity and to call in on a magical radio device attached to her bracelet, but she had half the mind to do nothing and watch Bora get jumped. She wouldn’t do that, because the bribe worked, but it was a compelling daydream nevertheless.

A small bit of movement caught her eye from underneath a side table. She squinted and saw that the air from the vent was outlined with a slight magical aura. A young man in a suit nearest to the vent suddenly collapsed. Fuck! Fuck !

“Fuck!” Lucy yelled, before realizing she said that out loud. She clasped a hand over her mouth. And nose. An airborne mass sleeping spell.

Lucy started running for the door. People started dropping like flies as she bolted. Those with higher magical power like herself could resist manipulation spells more effectively than others, but she already felt her eyelids threaten to shut. She had seconds until losing consciousness. She reached her hand out and twisted the door handle and pushed. The door jammed. She pushed again, but it didn’t give. Lungs burning, she tried one more time, throwing her full weight onto her shoulder as she barreled into the door. It broke open with a crack , and Lucy tumbled onto the floor.

Bora was waiting for her, his hands crossed, a smirk on his face. 

Lucy looked up and saw around thirty men putting on masks, getting ready to enter the room behind her. Among them, she recognized the guards at the station she had talked to this afternoon. One of them gave her a condescending wave.

“What’s the meaning of this?” 

“Don’t worry, we’re just making sure no one is in danger by putting them to sleep,” said Bora.

Something fell into place. “You’re kidnapping them.” Lucy felt her heart go cold.

“Aw, you figured it out too late. Poor Lucky was so close to stopping me earlier. Unfortunately, none of the guards listened. Or maybe it wasn’t just your bad fortune.” Bora smiled wider. “They get a big cut of the profits, after all.”

“They told you about me.” She repeated, blankly. “That’s why you showed up right after.”

Bora shrugged, “No hard feelings. You simply knew too much.”

Lucy quickly drew her celestial keys and yelled, “Open! Gate of the bull, Tau-”

The magic radio device on her wrist activated and immediately emitted a large electrical shock down her arm. She yelped, and her keys slipped from her hands. The second they left her fingers, she felt something in her consciousness go cold. 

Bora reached out and caught the keys out of the air.

“You celestial wizard types are so easy to deal with,” Bora gloated, “all your magic, tied to an item”. He opened a window and threw them into the ocean. “ Whoops ”.

Lucy felt her gut drop so violently that her throat froze up. The voice in her head, the one that sounded like her tutors, sounded like her dad, sounded like herself, was trying to say, Don’t antagonize them further! Don’t be impulsive—don’t, don’t, don’t—

But her head was spinning, and she would’ve cried if her ears weren’t so flushed. For the third time that day, she felt unbelievably embarrassed. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, and I’ll-

“—I’ll fucking smash your face into the ground!” 

Lucy tackled Bora, and he yelped as she dragged him onto the floor. She felt her hands close around the sweet, sweet flesh of his neck right as she felt someone behind her grab her shoulders and wrench her off him. 

The last thing she saw was Bora’s stupid, creepy face as he scrambled to get away from her, before something hit her in the back of the neck and everything went dark.

—

Lucy was dreaming. She knew it was a dream because she had had this nightmare many times before as a child. There was a frog standing on two legs. Its feet were slimy, (she hated slimy things back then) and one of its arms beckoned her closer. She got closer to the frog because it was a dream, and dreams did not adhere to stranger danger. 

The frog beckoned some more. Closer. More Closer. It reached its hands into a slimy pouch on its stomach. Its hands wrapped around something and it pulled it out, mucus still sliding off each finger in thin strings.

The frog croaked, “Do you want any drugs?” the frog croaked.

Lucy remembered watching cartoons on a magic projection TV with her dad as a kid. As the anti-drug PSAs came on, her dad had held her close and made her promise not to do drugs, mostly because it would look bad for their family. For the next month, Lucy had nightmares of the frog trying to get her to break her promise.

“Are you sure you don’t want to do drugs? What about eating cake before bed?” the frog continued, “Or not brushing your teeth? Or running in the hallways and drawing on the walls? Or going into Dad’s room when he’s busy? Or giving your dolls a haircut? Come on, you know you want to”.

Lucy shook her head. “No, thank you”.

“Come on—just once,” insisted the frog.

“No,” said Lucy.

“If you don’t do it, who will?” asked the frog.

“If I do it, they’ll hate me.” 

“But you did it anyway.” 

“No, I didn’t.” 

“Didn’t you?”

“I didn’t do drugs!” cried Lucy.

“I’m not talking about drugs,” said the frog.

“Then what are you talking about?” 

The frog shrugged. It hopped forward, and Lucy followed. 

The dream shifted around her. The frog had a mortar and pestle now and was busy grinding some white powder. Lucy turned around, and there was a small coffee table. On it, there was a single sheet of origami paper.

Lucy sat down and tried to fold a fairy. 

She remembered her mom’s fingers, long and nimble. She looked down at her own and saw the same fingers. All celestial wizards had similar-looking hands. Their hands smelled the same, too—faintly of iron. She watched them fold the square sheet of paper. First diagonally, another diagonal, then a straight fold. The fingers paused.

“What’s next, mom?” she asked.

Lucy tried to look at her mother’s face, but whenever she attempted to look up, she would just see arms leading to nimble fingers leading to the origami sheet. She closed her eyes and raised her head, hoping it would break the loop. 

She opened her eyes. It was the same hands, the same sheet of paper, haphazardly folded. She felt her neck bowed and upright at the same time. Frustrated, she tried to make another fold, but she already knew it would be incorrect.

She tried to remember her dad. He had been here that day, before everything happened—still warm, still light. But she couldn’t do it. All she could remember was his face, contorted in annoyed disregard. She didn’t have the courage to ask him how to fold the origami.

She made another fold, equally incorrect.

She tried to remember her butler, Percy, and her maid, Lucinda, but Lucinda followed her fiance when he moved, and Percy retired after his legs hurt too much to climb the stairs. She made another fold and thought of the boy who gave her a single rose once. She didn’t even know his name. She made another fold. She thought of her spirits, Aquarius and Taurus and Lyra and Horologium, but, that’s right, her mom still had the keys at this point. Lucy made another fold, and another, and another, and another. Who else, who else, who else?

She couldn’t think of anyone else.

Something wet fell on the folded sheet before her. Abruptly, she realized she had been crying. Maybe that was what finally did it. The realization. 

She started to sob, chest heaving and origami abandoned. She cried and cried. 

I just need a little help. Just a little, she thought. Just for someone to help me. Just anyone.

But nobody came.

Suddenly, she heard a croak. The frog stood before her silently.

“What do you want now?” Lucy yelled.

The frog didn’t reply. Instead, its hand quickly darted out and snatched up the messily folded paper. Lucy fell back in shock. The frog turned around and bolted.

“Give that back!” She jumped up and chased after him. 

They ran and ran and ran. She felt the vibrations of thumping feet and couldn’t tell if it was the frog’s or hers. They ran past empty forests and quiet city streets. They ran past the stars. She was gaining, step by step, closer and closer still.

At the last moment, she jumped, hands outstretched. Her fingers closed around the frog who let out a yelp. Triumphant, she pulled it close and scrambled up. She raised her hands to her face and peeked inside.

The frog had disappeared. Instead, in the center of her palm, was a neatly folded origami fairy.

—

Lucy woke up to fire. 

A blast of heat hit her in the face, and the smell of singed hair hung in the air. The back of her head hurt, and her hands felt something rough and sharp. She opened her eyes with a groan.

The room was filled with a mess of splintered wood. Large chunks of tables, couches, and doors lay broken and scattered. A rain of sawdust came from a massive hole in the ceiling, from which the stars stared back down at her. Lucy abruptly realized she was lying on the ground. Around her, rows of purple fire streaked through the room as various armed men looked on in equal measures of gloating and fear. Suddenly, she heard the sound of Bora’s laugh behind her.

“You’re challenging me?!” He goaded, amused.

She whipped her head around and was met with pink hair and a white scarf.

“...Natsu? What are you doing here?” Maybe she was still groggy from the head trauma, because why would—

“Lucy!” He turned around, gaze meeting hers, “I came to—” 

Then, he immediately doubled over and started throwing up on her shoes.

This day truly could not get any worse. 

“...you came to throw up on my shoes?” Oops, she said that out loud. 

Before Natsu could answer and Bora could decide whether or not he was ready to burn them alive, Lucy heard a voice from above.

“Lucy!”

“God? Is it finally you? I’m ready to repent my sins right now, if you let me forget about today. And also live.”

“No, it’s Happy! What are you doing here, Lucy?” 

Lucy looked up and saw that Happy had wings. Lucy looked up and did not see that Happy’s tail was extending and trying to wrap itself around her waist.

“Happy? Why do you have wings? I don’t know what’s going on anymoreeeeeeee!” Happy’s tail succeeded in wrapping around Lucy’s waist as he pulled her straight into the air through the hole in the ceiling.

“Don’t let them escape!” she heard Bora frantically yell, before tendrils of purple fire shot out towards her.

Happy started ducking and weaving, meaning that Lucy swung back and forth like a child shaking a pendulum. Ugh, she felt like Natsu on the ship. 

Wait.

“Wait, Happy! You have to go back for Natsu! He’s facing a dark wizard alone!” Lucy called.

“He’ll be fine,” Happy said nonchalantly while dipping to dodge a fire tendril.

“He was literally puking!” 

The ship was getting more and more distant. “Look, Lucy, there’s something we should tell you”.

“What?”

“Natsu is actually a—” 

Suddenly, Lucy felt a tug at her consciousness.

“Wait, stop,” Lucy took a deep breath, “Drop me.”

“Huh?” 

They were currently flying a hundred feet above the ocean.

“Drop me!”

“But—”

Lucy yanked his tail off and fell. 

“Lucyyyyyyyyy” came from far above, but she could barely hear over the wind whooshing past her ears. She felt the tug at her consciousness get stronger and stronger.

Come on, come on, closer.

She hit the water hard. Bubbles flew past her as she bit through the pain and cold. She dived deeper and deeper. Her hands reached out blindly and her feet swung around in opposite directions, and yet she felt herself getting closer and closer. Her lungs burned. 

Every second felt like the last. She was going insane. She was drowning. No—she was finally alive. Her lungs burned, her gut filled with nervous joy. She realized something, but she wasn’t sure what it was. She reached out, and—

Her hands clasped around her keys.

Open, gate of the water bearer! Aquarius!

Deep underwater, Lucy cast a magic circle ten times her size. Water currents began to pick up. From below, a huge underwater wave jettisoned her upwards. Water pressure pushed down on her from all sides. With a gasp, Lucy broke the surface. Her hair was dripping into her eyes, snot and saltwater poured from her nose; she couldn’t stop coughing up water.

Lucy brushed her hair back with her hands and wiped her face. She opened her eyes and saw—

There she was. Her most fickle spirit, Aquarius. 

Her long mermaid tail was curled in annoyance, her brows were pinched in displeasure, and the hand holding her pot was gripping extra hard. Lucy had never been more glad to see her vindictive, bitch face in her life.

“Lucy, if you ever, ever drop my key again, I’ll make sure you truly regret it. Understand?” Aquarius’s voice sounded like underwater sonar off cavern walls and the crashing of twenty-foot waves during a thunderstorm and also like the mother of a spurned ex-girlfriend.

Lucy pleaded halfheartedly, “I won’t, I won’t, promise,” She impatiently paddled her feet to remain afloat. “Wash that ship to shore with a tsunami, quickly.”

Aquarius looked at Lucy, then at the ship, then back to Lucy. 

“Tch, what did you get yourself into this time?” Aquarius mumbled to herself, before clear water overflowed from her pot, gushing into the ocean below.

Lucy blinked, and dark rain clouds filled the sky above the cruise ship, heavy and low. The ocean beneath surged upwards, and both the clouds and waves began twisting into a whirlpool with the ship at its center. The sky descended and merged with the sea, and for a quick second a water tornado snaked from the stars to the earth, arching itself like the tail of a fish.

Then, it imploded and hurricane winds rushed out in every direction. Lucy felt the water beneath her give out as a massive wave formed right on top of her.

“Aquarius! You—” She screamed, before getting a mouthful of water.

The last thing she saw before getting pulled under the waves was the ship, splinted and broken, being violently swept in the direction of the pier.

—

Lucy coughed up sand. Ugh. 

A groan came from next to her as Happy crawled up from the shore and onto his paws. “Those waves were massive, they even hit me in the air!”

Aquarius, floating above where the water met the sand, didn’t even look guilty. 

“You owe me, Lucy. A month's vacation to be exact. With my boyfriend. Don’t call.” She disappeared with the sound of a waterfall and the smell of a creek.

“Wow, do all your spirits hate you?” asked Happy.

“Wow, are you like this all the time?” replied Lucy.

Behind them, people started running out to the beach to see the commotion. The wreckage of the cruise ship, although missing key sections of the hull and walls, was surprisingly intact. Aquarius must’ve been holding back. However, the other ships docked near the beach, after being battered by the waves and winds, were nothing more than scraps of wood.

I’m not even gonna think about that right now

People began crawling out from below the cruise ship wreckage. They were dressed in drenched evening wear and stumbling around weakly. Some were throwing up seawater. Some were running across the sand towards the city. Lucy realized they were the kidnapped guests. 

Lucy’s chest felt strange. She didn’t know what to make of it. 

I did that.

She touched her face and realized she was smiling.

A figure stood up from the top of the capsized ship. Pink hair rustled in the evening breeze. 

Natsu. 

Smoke framed him as it rose up into the night sky.

He’s safe. 

“Oh right, what were you and Natsu doing on the ship anyway?” Lucy asked.

“Natsu said he wanted to pay you back for the food by beating up the guy for you, but we got lost,” Happy replied. “We even took two wrong trains.”

Lucy felt her heart skip a beat. For me. They came for me.

“There were literally no trains involved in this entire situation.” Lucy bitched, instead of acknowledging her emotions.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed Bora climb from the wreckage and turn towards Natsu.

“Natsu, run! He’s behind you!” She yelled, but if he heard her, he didn’t react.

Fuck. She tried to pull herself up onto wobbly feet, but Aquarius used too much of her magic power. Fuck. She tried again anyway.

“I need to—I need to get up. Fight’s not over yet, Lucy. Come on." She slowly managed to stand upright.

“Ah, Lucy—I forgot to tell you earlier, but Natsu is also a wizard,” Happy said, flippantly.

“...what?!” 

I’m gonna kill this cat .

Bora had started getting closer to Natsu. He was red in the face and shouting orders at his followers.

“Do you know who I am? I’m The Salamander . Prepare to feel the wrath of a Fairy Tail wizard!” Bora yelled theatrically, likely for the benefit of the audience slowly gathering at the beach. 

The effect was immediate; the sensible people scattered, while the reckless ran to various defensive structures to watch from.

Bora stretched out his arms, and an intricate magic circle appeared before him. 

Lucy took off in a weak run. “Just ‘cause Natsu’s a wizard doesn’t mean he can fight a Fairy Tail wizard on his own!” Sand scattered behind her as she tried to sprint. She could tell she wasn’t gonna make it in time.

A huge ball of purple fire, angry and swirling, appeared in the air. Heat emanated from it in waves. It lit up the beach with an eerie glow.

“Fairy Tail, huh?” Natsu took off his jacket and threw it into the wind. 

The ball of fire shot out towards Natsu. In the middle of the air, it split into several streaks of purple, all set to converge on him.

“Let me take a good look at your face then!” yelled Natsu, right as all the projectiles impacted him from all directions.

“NATSU!” Lucy screamed.

The fire roared, reaching ten feet in the air. The top of the ship caught fire, flames turning red as they spread across the wood. The only sound in the air was the crackle of embers and the crowd screaming in the distance.

“And that’s that.” Bora wiped his hands and turned around. “Now for the other one.”

Lucy didn’t even look at him. Her eyes were glued to the fire, she couldn’t look away. The flames roared higher and higher, climbing in spiked patterns into the sky. They weren’t growing. In fact, the longer she looked at them, the more they seemed to be fleeing.

Bora heard someone’s voice from behind. 

“Your flames taste like shit.” 

He whipped his head around.

From within the shadows of the fire, a hand appeared. With a claw-like motion, it pulled apart the fire like curtains. 

Who else but Natsu emerged from within. He took a breath, and on the exhale the flames ran away from him. His hands snatched stragglers out from the air, and he threw them into his mouth and swallowed. In the dimming glow, Lucy noticed a red mark on his arm: a tattoo of a fairy, diving feet first. 

Lucy felt her blood run hot with excitement. “How did he—?”

“It’s an ancient magic, taught to him by his father,” Happy’s face was illuminated by the glow.

“I’m Natsu from Fairy Tail, and I’ve never seen you before in my life!” Natsu shouted.

Lucy saw Bora’s face go deathly pale. Immediately, he turned around and ran. He ignited flames below his feet and flew into the sky. His followers below him started to scatter, and Natsu shifted into a crouch.

Happy’s voice continued, proud and dramatic in equal measure. “The magic gives his body the qualities of a dragon. Dragon lungs to breathe fire, dragon skin to endure fire, dragon claws to attack with fire.” 

Lucy watched as reds, oranges, and yellows wreathed Natsu’s fists. His eyes glinted as he leaped twenty feet in the air. His momentum carried him closer and closer to Bora. The flames streaked out behind him in an arc like wings. 

Bora noticed out of the corner of his eyes and threw a pillar of fire out behind his back. Natsu grabbed the fire right out of the air and smashed it into bits under his claws. The shattered flames fell like rain. 

Happy turned to Lucy. “It’s magic originally used to kill dragons. Dragon Slayer Magic.”

Magic that turns you into myth . Lucy’s heart pounded.

Bora screamed. He summoned a shield made of condensed fire, but seconds later, Natsu’s flaming fist crashed right through it. The fist continued its momentum, colliding squarely with Bora’s terrified face. His entire body was flung into the air like a rag doll. It slammed into the clocktower, which rang loud and hard throughout the entire city.

Natsu stood alone on the beach, licks of flame spurting from his nostrils as he breathed in and out. The fire in his hands died down low. Lucy thought she could see something large and beautiful behind him if she squinted, but she wasn’t sure what she was looking at. It stood tall and proud, and the ghost of it took her breath away.

He turned towards her, and the image was gone. 

The air was dry and still slightly warm. The wind smelled like burned salt and the sea. She wanted to ask, “Are you really a Fairy Tail Wizard?” but what came out was—

“Why are you part of a dark guild?”

“Huh?” Natsu gave her a confused look.

“You’re a kind person, so why? Why would you join people who bring violence and chaos to this country?”

Natsu answered simply and without hesitation, “Because it’s the only way to protect my friends.” 

He smiled, and it was the most joyful thing Lucy had ever seen.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” she lied.

Natsu only laughed in response. “Come on, Lucy, we got to go!” He held out his hand.

The bell was still ringing, and many other bells joined in—bells of alarm. The battle had sent fire falling into the town, lighting up the roofs of houses and the leaves of trees. Soon, it might spread to entire neighborhoods. The sounds of metal against metal against stone filled the streets, signaling the coming of city guards. Lucy heard none of that, she was focused on the flap of Happy’s wings and the hand in front of her.

“Come with me. You’re interested in Fairy Tail, right?” asked Natsu.

“You want me to join a dark guild?” Lucy’s heart was in her throat. “I’ll never find proper work again. I’ll be hunted by the law.”

He shrugged, “It’s your choice.”

Lucy thought of Bora and the kidnapped people running on the beach. She thought of the guard with his feet on the table. She thought of her dad. She thought of empty houses and tight dresses. She thought of her mom, and she thought of a child telling stories about heroes. She thought of magic unimaginable.

She took his hand.

Natsu pulled her to him immediately, and they were off on a run.

Shouts from the city guard came from behind them. It sounded like dozens or maybe even hundreds of guards. Lucy didn’t look back. She started to laugh. Natsu laughed too. They couldn’t help it.

They sprinted, feeling the sand beneath their bare feet and the sea breeze blowing their hair. A cat flew behind them. In the background, flames lit up a city.

—

The sounds of pursuit eventually fell away, and they slowed down at the edge of the forest. Lucy laughed and laughed. Her lungs hurt. 

“Oh my god”, she gasped, “This is insane. I’m insane.”

Natsu was barely even out of breath. Unfair.

Suddenly she had a thought, “Wait, wait wait wait, you’re The Salamander aren’t you! That fire magic. It was you all along!”

Natsu looked sheepish, “Sorry for not telling you.”

This brought on a renewed bout of laughter. “Oh my god, this whole time—this whole time Bora was peacocking around in front of the actual Salamander!”

“Wait a minute, he was pretending to be me?” realized Natsu.

 “I can’t believe I treated one of the most wanted arsonists in the country to a meal!” Lucy heaved, “I might even join him!”

“The arson is unintentional!” defended Natsu.

“Mostly,” added Happy.

She gasped with another realization. She pointed at Natsu.  “It’s you! You’re the frog!” she giggled, nonsensically.

“What?” asked Happy and Natsu.

She giggled again, “Sell me your drugs, frog man. I’m ready.”

“Lucy, are you okay?” asked Natsu.

“Lucy, did your brain finally turn to mush?” asked Happy.

But Lucy only redoubled her efforts in bending over and giggling as Natsu and Happy shared concerned looks.

Her laughter eventually died down, and an uneasy stillness fell upon her. She could feel her heart grip in the nervousness of new beginnings. She put her hand on a tree and felt the roughness of its bark. She closed her eyes and tried to memorize the feeling. She looked back at Natsu and Happy.

For the first time, the voice in her head was silent. Every breath hurt like freedom. 

“Shall we?” She turned forward and stepped into the forest. 

Above them, the stars shone quietly in the night.