The Journey

Planned Differently

I slowly picked the note from the bed and sat down.

"Lucy and I decided to have a girls day out with you. I picked this outfit out from my large collection thinking that it would look nice on you. I hope you like it. Meet us at the guild hall at noon. ~Erza"

Wow, Erza really knows how to dress for a casual day out. The outfit consisted of a light blue tank top with tiny pink hearts at the base of the straps. The capris that came with the tank top reached down to the middle of my calves and were folded at the ends. They were the color of the cloudy sky on a bright summer day. The shoes were a pair of pink sandals. I was impressed, all I had to do now was style my hair. I crumpled the note and made an awesome basketball shot towards the trash bin. The crumpled piece of paper landed inside the bin with a swish. I got up, proud of my amazing aim, and swooped the outfit from its position on the bed. Well, time to get ready for the day out.

I finished dressing up and was ready to walk out the door.

"Where are you going?"

Crap, I forgot to tell Mila and Frub. I turned around and found Frub and Mila sitting on the couch. Frub yawned and rubbed his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you." I apologized. I would have gone and sat next to them but I was running late.

"Lucy, Erza and I are going to have a girls day out." I explained. I glanced down at the watch I had put on and realized how late I was.

"I'm sorry. I wish I could explain more but I have to hurry." I pulled the front door open and ran out. I heard the door slam shut with a loud bang. I felt bad, I should have told them before I got ready. But, now is not the time to be freaking out about something like this. I have to hurry and get there or else Lucy and Erza will think I ditched them. My feet became tired as soon as I began to sprint and these shoes weren't helping at all. No no no no! I can't give up now, I'm almost there! I continuously dodged children, parents, shop clerks, wizards, and even more children. After a long run and many obstacles, I finally reached the guild hall entrance. I practically punched the door open even though most of my strength was lost during my many sprints in order to get here. I bent over and placed one hand on my knee while my other hand was still placed on the door. I huffed and puffed in order to catch my breath before trying to search for Lucy and Erza.

My breath finally caught up to its normal speed and I relaxed. I lifted my head up and my eyes met with a bunch of staring faces.

"Haven't you guys ever seen a girl who has just sprinted three miles just to get to a certain place?" I asked in an angry tone. Everyone in the guild flinched at my remark and then continued with what they were doing as if I didn't say a thing. I stood up and looked back and forth around the massive hall of the guild. I spotted Lucy and Erza sitting at a table that was only placed a few feet away from me. I walked towards them, closing the door with a ang as I go. I sat down across from the two girls and threw my arms across the table while burying my face in the burrow of my arms.

"Are you okay?" Lucy asked me after taking a sip of her strawberry milkshake. I looked up at her face and nodded. I removed my arms from the table and sat up with my back straight. I cleared my throat and began to speak.

"Sorry for being half an hour late," My good posture faded into a slouch and a pouty look appeared on my face, "I just got caught up in getting this outfit on and styling my hair." I shook my head in dismay right as Mira walked over to our table.

"I heard through the grapevine that you three are having a girls day out today." She said in a sly voice that kind of scared me. She was carrying a platter with my favorite drink on it, a chocolate milkshake. I nearly fell out of my seat at the sight of chocolate heaven. The chocolate milkshakes here are amazing. Whoever makes them adds the right amount of every ingredient required for a milkshake and pours it into a tall glass perfectly. Once they have poured the milkshake, they place the perfect whipped cream swirl on top of the chocolate shake. Once that has been done, the rarest strawberry (the ones that Erza likes on her strawberry cakes) is placed atop the perfect swirl. Mira placed the shake in front of me and I took a sip. I leaned against the back of the bench and continued sipping the shake.

"We are having a girls day out, and it's going to be fun!" Lucy exclaimed as she pumped her fist into the air. Is it just me, or is she really excited? Lucy placed her hand back onto the cup and took another sip of her strawberry milkshake. Mira's facial expression changed into a happy grin and she walked away with an empty platter. I gave a huge sigh and realized that I finished off my shake. I looked at the empty cup with disappointment and then carefully set it back down onto the table. I looked over at Erza, she seemed a little too quiet. She was just peacefully eating her cake when she realized that I was staring at her. She finished off her last bite of cake and stood up.

"Shall we get going?" She asked us. We both nodded and stood up.

"I like your outfits." I tried to compliment the two. Lucy was wearing a strapless crop top that had horizontal pink and white stripes covering the entire top. Her blue shorts were really short. She had a blue belt that held a blue and white pouch which held her celestial keys. Erza on the other hand was wearing a white, sleeveless top with a vertical ruffle leading down the middle. Tied around the collar was an ocean blue bow, the extra ribbon rested lightly on top of her chest. She was wearing a blue skater skirt that reached down to her middle thigh. She wears this skirt practically everyday. Her boots were a black leather that reached all the way up near her knee. I looked down at my outfit and grinned. Seeing as Erza is the one who picked this out, of course it would look good.

We were ready to head out the door when we were stopped by another wizard. It was Levy. She was holding a small slip of paper in her hand and she looked determined.

"Hey Nalu, I need to talk to you." She said. She grabbed my wrist (this must've been what Frub felt like when he first joined) and pulled me aside.

"What is it?" I asked in curiosity. She held the slip of paper in front of my face. I removed it from her grip and looked at it closely. It was a job flyer. The flyer noted that the job would span up to two months and two weeks and the reward was three million jewels. For a two month and two week job, the client is only offering to pay three million jewel?

"Why do you want me to look at this?" I asked Levy. I handed the flyer back to her.

"I figured that you and Frub could have some time alone."

"The flyer said I have to leave now. It would take me forever just to go get him and then get packed."

"I've already arranged everything." She nodded her head towards the entrance. I looked over her shoulder and saw a shadow standing in the doorway. It was Frub! He was leaning on a pile of what looked like already packed suitcases. I looked over to find Lucy and Erza with a smile on their faces. I finally caught onto what was going on.

"You guys planned this from the beginning!"