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At first, all she wanted was to fall asleep.
To finally be able to experience that feeling again. The feeling of peace and tranquility. Being able to dream about beautiful things. Like a serene river stream, calmly swishing this way and that, following the patterns that the wind directs it in. Or the little songbirds who sing their peaceful melody’s, catching the eyes of the grass that blissfully dances in tune. The sun, sprinkling small bushes and trees with its cheerful yellow rays.
Her own garden with bright pink flowers in full bloom.
Yes, all she really wanted to do was sleep. Disappear from the cold heartbreaking truth that was reality. The reality that she was forced to live in. Without a mother, without a father, without a family.
She hated everything about it.
So when she ran away she thought that maybe… maybe her dream world was waiting for her outside of the lifeless mansion that she refused to call home. She had thought that somewhere out there, in a world full of magic instead of business, and love instead of acquaintanceship, she had a place to belong. And with that naive thinking, she stupidly dropped from her 3rd story bedroom window, using bedsheets in place of a rope… and she ran away.
In hope that she could grow flowers.
Her hope and excitement wavered on only the first 3 days. The town she had visited was beautiful, truly it looked like a thing out of a fairy tale. Chipper people hopping from cart to stand, singing together. Dancing, laughing, children running around like it was the best day of their lives. She was so entranced by how everyone looked so incredibly… Happy. A smile lit up on her face, questions and ideas running through her mind.
Then she was robbed. Right in the middle of town. Different questions swirled through her head. One’s less happy; confused. How crazy could this person be? Obviously, someone would help her since it’s in the middle of town. The girl struggled with all her might and when she finally felt as if she would lose, she took a chance and called out for help.
But no one answered. People still hopped from place to place... as if no one were in trouble. Children still sang and laughed...as if nothing were the matter. One man… one man glanced her way for a quick second but continued by, as if the terrified blond girl weren’t even there at all. He looked down at his child who was pointing towards a cart full of food. And then...he laughed.
And Lucy wanted to give up. The flowers that she had dreamed of, barely larger than a bean sprout, began to wilt, ever so slightly.
A month after she was robbed of all of her personal belongings (except for her keys of course), she found herself stationed in the woods. Feeding on small berries and mushrooms, bathing in nice spring water. It may have been hard at first, but the girl was finally starting to feel like things were looking up. And they were… until they weren't.
Her metaphorical dreams suddenly turned dark. The once serene river rushed past at ungodly speeds, sweeping away the limp grass with it. Birds' nests tipped over with the trees as the breeze sent them flying. And the flowers…The flowers were hardening, turned crisp. But they continued to stand.
Two months after she was once again robbed and threatened out of her small forest home, she had gotten herself a job. It was small but paid well. She rented out a hotel room, asking around for anyone who knows good jobs for wizards. In a small bar beside the hotel is where she first heard of the name Fairy tail.
One week after that, she found herself practicing more with her magic. She had managed to snag a magazine with Fairy Tail on the front cover. She read the article of them, learning of each member's different skills, assets, and likes.
Another month passed and Lucy had miraculously stumbled upon another celestial spirit. She had been sent to deliver hay to a local farm and came across a very interesting sight. A small stable girl around the age of 13 was chasing around a large horse, begging it to stop with tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Lucy had intended to jump over the fence, use her horse riding knowledge to calm it down, and then leave the girl with a reassuring smile. Instead, she left with the Gate of the Giant (perverted) Bull: Taurus.
Three weeks later, the girl was able to hold open a golden gate for more than 10 minutes. She had quit her job in pursuit of a new career, at Fairy Tail. Kind women at bars provided her the information that she needed. The Fairy Tail guild was somewhere near Hergeon port.
The wind in her garden had calmed down.
And the flowers began to regain their color.
4 months after she started asking more questions, so did the people she asked. They wanted to know more about her life, more about her travels… more about her past. But the girls' trust in people waned thin, ever since she first ran away… One man, no older than 30 maybe, had said that he recognized her from somewhere and she began to feel paranoid.
One more month was all it took for her to finally reach Hargeon. She had planned to explore; walk around the new environment and gain a feel of what life in Hargeon was like. She rented a hotel room and came across a small shop that she hoped to possess magical items. She was lucky enough to find Plue but unlucky enough to blow past most of the money that she had saved up.
A couple of sour minutes passed and she came across the scene of plenty of girls swarming around a boastful man dressed in purple and covered in jewelry.
One second later, her heart had skipped a beat.
Two seconds later, her face heated up.
Three seconds later, she realized something felt off.
Four… Five, Six, Seven, Eight- Her chest refused to calm down and all she could hear were the muffled cries of other bewitched teenage girls. Her eyes followed this man's every movement, darting from his hands to his wonderful cloak. She blushed a bright pink as he laid his own dark orbs set their sights on her. She gasped at the intense emotions swirling from deep within her, pushing past everyone else and reaching her hand out to grasp his own-
Until someone else beat her to it. A short tan boy, dressed in a detailed red coat, head brimming with pink hair, and a strange blue cat sat on the sizable pack occupying his back. The boy grinned wide at the man in front of him, eyes large and sparkling with hope. That was until it seemed like he suddenly assessed the situation. He frowned deeply, ridding his face of its most wonderful feature and creasing his brow. He glanced at Lucy for a split second before turning his confused stare on the so-called ‘Salamander.’
“Who are you?”
She would have never guessed that after spending the last of her jewel on his endless stomach, the boy would somehow find her again and save her from a situation she feared to find herself in once more.
As she stared at his tense form, surrounded by fire and leftover debris, she felt something rise from deep within her chest.
One second later, her heart had skipped a beat...
Two seconds later, her face heated up...
Three, Four, Five- all the way to Nine, she realized that something felt right.
Ten seconds was all it took for her heart to skip another beat. And she fell in love.
Lucy had never seen a garden quite as beautiful as his.