PhoenixFlight (Under Editing)

Chapter 1 / Prologue

Lucy's POV

It's been nearly a year and half since Lisanna's return to the guild. A year and a half of nothing. The days just seemed to blur together, like a endless cycle of mediocrity. Days to weeks, weeks to months, and from those months a thick fog formed - right before my rose tinted eyes - that washed away the filter that kept me from seeing all there was to see. Thick enough to be storm clouds that could strike me down in an instant, yet gentle, kind, almost sweet as to not destroy all that I was, that I am.

The first month everything was twice as lively as I've ever seen it, never even thought it was possible. But then again, how could it not be when someone so loved comes back from the dead. I can empathize with the elation, if I had the opportunity to even hear my mother's voice letting me know she loves me, that she's there for me, watching over me... heh... It'd be more than I could bare. So it still surprises me that I'd so foolishly believed, 'When everything calms down, things will be even better then before!' That's what I believed at first anyways...

I was as enthusiastic as everyone else, and twice as friendly, thrice as welcoming - unknowingly - backing myself into a position to where not only were boundaries put up, but said boundaries continued to push and keep me out. I could tell they wanted time to reconnect with there lost - long perceived dead friend - family - so I waited till they were ready to introduce me to her, or her to me. It never happened. It wasn't going to happen.

Now don't think I'm just assuming that, that I didn't try to reach out. Gray, Erza, and Happy literally told me that they wanted to help her readjust to the guild and her magic before they introduced her to new people. I should have known that that was total B.S. because we had already met in Edolas, but because they included me a few times it took me longer than it should have to realize. But eventually, they shut me out completely, and the only people I had left were Juvia, Gajeel, Levy, Wendy, Cana, and Gildarts (when he's around). They were my rocks, the foundation that kept me grounded and they helped as a reminder that moping wasn't going to bring my 'friends' back to me. And as the weeks stretched on, the next thing I knew rent was due, So I focused on keeping myself in my home and trained.

Maybe the problem wasn't them, maybe it was me? After our return from Edolas I realized that I have little to no real combat skills what so ever, so I thought that training could be a positive distraction for me. Perhaps Solo missions could get me to a place where I won't have to rely on the support of others just so that I can make it through the day. Because if one mundane day requires all of that support, what would become of me when times are at their darkest? When those who support and lift me up, need me to do the same for them. So I had Grandpa Crux help me research Caster type spells compatible with Celestial magic, and we found a Caster type magic designed specifically for Celestial mages: Crystal magic, which condenses magic into solid Crystal. It sounds pretty basic but it's extremely dangerous for anyone other than a Celestial mages to attempt because of its lack of 'spells'. The formation of the Crystal relies solely on the amount of control one has over their magic in its purest form. At a more advanced level one can take stardust and convert it into Ethernano, which can be absorbed to restore magic levels. It has no real spells, more phrases special to each wizard's preference until the move becomes instinctual, yet the amount of magic it takes to summon one Zodiac spirit is barely enough to make a Crystal the size of my pinkytoe. Thus my training with my spirits began.

Sagittarius coaches me in Archery and all things long range, something I enjoy and excel at immensely. Virgo trains me to use close combat weapons, and upgraded my Fleuve détoiles to not only extend what ever length I require, but it also manifests into any close range weapon I chose. I was going to ask Loke to train me in hand to hand, but then Natsu asked me if I could be his training partner. To be honest I was completely floored - and a little sceptical - but I wasn't going to turn down a good training opportunity. Best decision of my life.

At first I was wary but that wasn't going help me improve, so I focused on the my training. After about a month of intense training, the inklings of suspicion once pushed from my forethought, sprang forth and warped my focus. Conflicted and uncertain, I asked why he was helping me so enthusiastically when he could be helping Lisanna. He told me that at first he was elated at her return and he spent time with her to become reacquainted, but he began to realize that their conversations seemed to become redundant, so he was more than ready to start going on missions again. But everyone seemed to come in everyday like it was her first day back. So he started taking solo jobs without saying anything to anyone, including Happy, because he knew Happy would tell Lisanna and she would want to go with him. Natsu said that if heard her say 'Do you remember when', or 'Remember how we used to' again, or sit through another one of the guilds attempt to get him go on a date with her one more time, he was going to snap. So he's been avoiding the guild, only going there for missions and the occasional meal. After that, we got so much closer, if that's even possible. It didn't take me long to get used to Natsu actually using his brain. He told me that when Erza was "teaching" him to read, he had to be very strategic in order to escape her wrath and after she figured out what he was doing to escape she turned that into a lesson too. He only acts ignorant so he can avoid having to do more work. He's been working on New spells to advance his magic. Ones called: Blazing Steps. It literally makes him a walking matchstick. He can not only eat fire, but he can become fire itself, and it increases his speed tenfold. Though it is still a work in progress. Last week he ended up flashing right into a boulder... then it exploded in his face. We spent an hour plucking rock shards from his body.

Over time we became extremely comfortable with each other's presence, and had been stopped by elderly couples that remarked that we looked just like them when they were young and then proceeded to ask how long we had been married. At first we would deny it and tell them we were just friends but it began happening so much that we just went with, and soon enough it became true. Well, more like dating, but you get the idea. It just felt right. That and I was tired of losing my voice over yelling at him for breaking into my apartment, so much so that just stopped yelling altogether unless necessary. So far we've kept our relationship a secret, worried about how Lisanna and the rest of the guild would react since the others are always trying to get him to go on a date with her. Since they think he's denser than a box of rocks they aren't very subtle about it. At all. But he continues to turn her down - for obvious reasons - but even if he didn't love me, he still wouldn't date her. He always tells me (and her when she asks) that he only thinks of her as a sister and that never ceases to stress her out, and piss almost everyone else off.

Now Lisanna isn't or wasn't... trying to be mean to me per say. It's complicated, but I know what she did didn't come from a place of malicious intent. It was Desperation. I had said before that they had included me a few times in the beginning, and Lisanna and I hit it off really well! It was more of an issue of Natsu.

To everyone in the guild, Natsu is the empty-headed idiot with a short attention span for anything besides food and fighting. So when Natsu would turn his attention away from Lisanna because of food or some stupid fight Gray started, she didn't really mind. It was when Natsu would turn his attention to me and it would stay on me, that she started to become... irritated. But what really sealed the coffin was when Natsu would continue to hold conversations with me during fights, that turned her irritation to Jealousy. She must have said something to them because that was when they started to shut me out intentionally, and started doing their best to keep Natsu's attention away from me.

Recently, Natsu and I started going on missions together but we don't want to cause unwanted attention by leaving together so we both take Solo-Missions that are in close proximity to each other. For me to leave on a solo mission is normal but for Natsu he has to go through a lot of questioning and the rest of the team (Lisanna) wanting to go with him.

Lately we've been feeling that maybe Fairytail just isn't the place for us anymore. We've been taking little odd, yet still well paying, jobs around Magnolia to save up some money and see if we could find some other reason to stay... but we haven't had much luck. So Natsu and I decided that we're leaving the guild. We've been saving money like crazy and after Natsu returns from this last job we'll be good to go. Natsu told Team 'Lisanna' he'd be gone for a week on a mission, but instead of harassing him, like usual, they let it go very easily...too easily. They were almost relieved that he was leaving. That just gives us all the more reason to get out now before things get too complicated. I'm going to miss Fairytail, but it's for the best that we go.

This is gonna be a long week.