Chapter One:

"Bye Mira!" Lucy called, waving as the eldest Takeover sibling boarded the train. "I'll be here when you come back."

"Bye Lucy! Take care of yourself!"

Lucy stayed at the platform until the train was out of sight, not willing to admit to herself that she was all alone in Magnolia. Sure, the townsfolk were all there, but the last remaining Fairy Tail member, other than Lucy, had left. It had been three weeks since the close of their battle with Tartarus, and two weeks since the guild had been disbanded. Slowly, not believing at first, the members of Fairy Tail had left Magnolia. Some went on training journeys, others joined other guilds, and a few just disappeared. In the past three weeks, Lucy had said goodbye to more people than she had wanted to.

Her hand brushed across her keys, and her heart ached as she felt the broken key. Nobody knew about Aquarius; things had happened too quickly for her to say anything. Calling out Plue, she tried to smile as she walked along the canal back to the site of the destroyed guild.

A few hastily constructed benches remained, made from the wreckage as those who stayed behind gathered to talk about what they would do now. They had talked about restarting the guild, with a new master, but nobody could be found. The obvious choice was Laxus, but he had been one of the ones who had disappeared. Erza, after hearing about the guild's dissolution had also vanished, but Lucy had a sneaking suspicion that Titania had gone after Jellal. Someone had reported seeing Mystogun somewhere in town, along with a group of dark robed followers.

Mira had refused the position, as had Macao and Wakaba. The remaining guild members were too young, too old, or just unwilling to take up the mantle. So they had packed their bags, said their goodbyes, and left, leaving Lucy behind. She had agreed to stay and send word as soon as she heard anything about the guild. For a little bit, she had considered joining another guild, but she couldn't bring herself to. Training by herself was out of the question as well. Despite being on one of Fairy Tail's strongest teams, she knew that she was the weakest link, and Natsu often was responsible for keeping her alive.

Part of her reluctance to leave had to do with Aquarius, she admitted, watching Plue balance shakily on the benches like a balance beam. The grief felt so raw that she didn't want to leave the town that had become her home. So it was easy for her to speak up when they asked for a volunteer to stay and look after the destroyed guild hall and keep track of everyone who had gone their separate ways.

Sitting there on the benches, she sighed. While the decision to stay had been made almost instantly, she hadn't figured out how she would manage her rent problem. Lucy knew that she had a bit saved up that she could dig into, but it would run out soon enough. Perhaps she would move to a smaller apartment. She would have to get a job somewhere in Magnolia, or perhaps she could finish her book and find a publisher to help bring in money…

Her musings were interrupted by a group of official looking people, headed by a man who she recognized as the mayor. Stopping at what had once been the entrance to the guild's courtyard, he glared at her. "You are trespassing on town property. Remove yourself, and your…pet."

"Plue's not my pet," she snapped, gathering him in her arms as he shivered. "He's a Celestial Spirit. And this is Fairy Tail's land."

"It was Fairy Tail's," the mayor said. "But given that your guild no longer exists and the considerable damage that was done to the town because of your guild, we are confiscating the property as payment."

"That wasn't our fault!" Lucy cried, dismissing Plue. "And Fairy Tail will re-form in the future! Please, don't take our guild hall from us again!"

His glare got worse. "Ms. Heartfilia, you have no rights in this situation. Unless you can purchase this property from us, we will take it."

Lucy clenched her fist. "I don't have the money," she admitted softly. "But I'll make you a deal."

"What kind of deal could you offer that would be worth this property?" the mayor asked, scanning her with disdain. "Your performance in the Grand Magic Games was…uninspiring to say the least."

Cheeks burning, Lucy said. "Fairy Tail used to do jobs for you, right? I'll do those jobs for you. Let Fairy Tail keep the property and rebuild the guild hall so the guild has a place to return to, and you will have me. Any task you need me to do, whether it's running errands or something you would normally send out to a guild, you have me to do. Assign a cash value to the property and the rebuilding. Whatever you would normally pay for the jobs if you were hiring them out to someone, take that off the debt owed by the guild when I repay it by doing a task. I'll need to have a budget for food, but that's it."

"Why would I want to enter into this deal? I could easily give this space to another guild and not have to bother with the rebuilding."

"Because you don't have to find anyone else," she said firmly, drawing on her education as her father's heir. "I'm right here, and you have me for as long as it takes for me to pay off the debt. And in the end, you'll get Fairy Tail back. All for the low price of a new guild building and my upkeep."

"Your upkeep would be added to your debt," the mayor said. "If I were to take you up on this deal though, I would need it in writing, and something in collateral."

"Have your people draw it up, and I'll be over to sign it tomorrow," Lucy said immediately. "And as collateral…the most valuable things I have are my keys."

"They will do," the mayor said icily. "You do know that a single failure to report when summoned will result in the forfeiture of both your keys and the guild property. Are you willing to face those consequences?"

"For Fairy Tail? I'll take those odds." Lucy knew that she was taking a risk in binding her keys in the contract, but she knew that above all else, she would protect her keys with every fiber of her being. If the mayor thought that requiring them as collateral would make her back down…he doesn't realize that for me, putting my keys at risk is just as powerful a motivator as threatening a member of Fairy Tail. She knew she wasn't as physically strong as Natsu and Erza, but like all Fairy Tail members, her desire to protect her family made her stronger than anything she faced when she was fighting for them. If her keys were on the line, then anyone who tried to take them for her would pay dearly. Even if it was the mayor himself.

He looked at her oddly, but moved away, saying: "Be at my office at nine tomorrow morning. As soon as you sign the contract, reconstruction will begin and your contract starts. All the shopkeepers in Magnolia will be instructed to bill your purchases to your debt with the town. Payment of your personal debt will be separate from the guild's debt. At the moment the guild master appears, you are relieved from the guild's debt and are responsible for your personal debt. In the meantime, you are not allowed to take any other jobs beside the ones given by the town. Are you still willing to sign this contract?"

"Fairy Tail went to war for me, I will do whatever I can for my guild." Lucy said firmly. "I'll be there at eight fifty-nine."

"I look forward to working with you, Ms. Heartfilia."

"As do I."

***Okay, so I lied. I'm sorry. I was going to not post until the 27th, but I'm too impatient. So here it is, the first chapter of the new story. This one is dark, so be prepared for lots of angst. Some of you may be angry/confused about what Lucy's doing, but I promise you, she's got this. Just hang in there, more will be explained soon. I would love to hear whatever you guys have to say about this, so feel free to let me know. Second chapter will be out Monday, April 20th.***