The Huntress

■Chapter Seventeen-Loyal Luce■

It had been a few days since Lisanna sent the note and luckily she wasn't very mad at Natsu ditching her. Instead it seemed to entice a totally different reaction from her. She was more determined than ever to get him alone on the roof, causing Lucy to quietly panic whenever Lisanna approached. Lately, she'd been bombarded with love letters and chocolates so she usually spent her lunch time reading their heartfelt letters and writing back. It annoyed Natsu and so he said until she stopped accepting their affection instead of his he would be eating with Gray and his friends. 

Lucy tried not to hint at how that hurt her. She after all never let too much show, but what he said really bothered her. Was her being considerate of other's feelings somehow bothering him? It wasn't like she didn't talk to him during lunch, she just also read and wrote letters. She wasn't neglecting him by paying attention to those who took time out of their days to write to her. Was he just in need of more company? If he was then he should've just came out and told her straight to her face. 

She narrowed her eyes on the target and took a deep breath before releasing her hand holding back the bowstring, rocketing the arrow into the dead center. She expected some feeling of relief to wash over her, or perhaps comfort, but instead she just felt empty. As she left the archery ring, she had the urge to run. Run, run, and run. And run she did. All the way to the equestrian sector of the school. She quickly hopped onto a Peruvian Paso, and rode off into the meadows, where the most beautiful of the school's gardens were hidden. 

As she rode she let her hair loose, wanting to feel free in every way. Her blonde hair bounced as her horse galloped a soft smile spreading across her face. If anyone was around they'd see a valiant ad regal beauty riding to a place of peace and quiet. When she reached the gardens she took the gorgeous horse to the resting stables and fed him a carrot. She pet his hair for a while, kissing his face every once in a while. 

Her eyes trailed down to the horse's neck, wondering it's name. A smile crept up her face when she read their name tag. 

"Hey Poseidon, I'm Lucy." she cooed, kissing his face one more time before heading towards the gardens. 

She finally relaxed from the rosy aroma floating in the air and allowed the brown in her eyes to melt away. Her fingertips brushed against the petals of the flowers scattered all around, a feeling of peace washing over her. She tipped her head back to soak in the sun, wanting this tranquility to last forever. As she skipped around the breathtaking garden she sensed another presence, immediately dipping down low to listen in. 

"They said she went this way..." it was a boy, and he was annoyed from what she could tell. 

She peeked her head up and caught a glimpse of the person's blazer before falling back to her knees. He was in the Saber Tooth house and he was was huge. Could probably be able to fend for himself in the wilderness for a few days and fight bears and crap. She narrowed her eyes and ran to the other side of the garden, using her stealth that she'd picked up from hunting. Her chest rose and fell in tune with her heartbeat as she awaited the boy's departure. 

Why would someone be looking for me from the Saber Tooth house? I have no business with them, not do I have any affiliation with them..... Unless.....Has Minerva infiltrated the Saber Tooth house and ordered the students to come retrieve me for her? If there's even one chance that this could be true, I have to take it was absolute certainty! I can't just stand by, I have to see for myself! 

Lucy jumped up from her hiding spot and scanned the tops of the hedges until she spotted the student. "What do you want?" she asked, well more like demanded. 

The student froze in place before swerving around with a nervous smile. "Dragneel's been lookin' for ya! He's worried sick and isn't thinking straight! He's got a high fever to the point of contact with his skin to burn others! He needs you!" the boy exclaimed.