A/N: Was playing around with this idea for a while. Cliche, true, but the idea of Lucy joining Fairy Tail early is actually rather exploitable. Add in some cool but not OP magic, non-OOC evil bitch Lisanna and slow-burn notgonnatellyouthepairing, makes for a good fic. Enjoy~

O

Makarov

~Sing, sweet nightingale~

O

Her lungs ached and her limbs were heavy. She knew she wasn't going to last much longer, but she had to, simply had to find him. She had no choice.

"Natsu! Natsu!"

Her voice reverberated, bouncing off the walls of the cavern and reflecting her desperate cries. Where was he? She couldn't find him. She couldn't. Gray, Erza, they were gone. She was alone, all alone and she didn't know what to do. The heat was almost unbearable, and sweat trickled down her forehead as a result.

"Natsu…"

Her voice was giving out. Was she going to make it? She can't ever remember feeling so tired.

"Natsu?"

A hot hand pressed down on her shoulder. She collapsed.

"Natsu."

He gathered her into his arms and pressed their foreheads together.

'Natsu…'

His eyes were blank. No trace of the smiling boy from before. The boy she had always known.

"I'm sorry Luce."

Lucy smiled.

"It's okay Natsu. I forgive you."

The world went dark.

She was tired. So very, very tired.

Lucy pressed herself closer to the wall, the cold surface slightly slippery from something she didn't want to think about. She looked like the average street urchin; a ragged, torn dress in a colour that blended in with the darkness between buildings; shoes just barely keeping themselves together and so covered in mud that whatever colour it had been was now totally indistinguishable; a pitiful expression that gave off the impression of hungers and desperation. The only thing that was significant about her was her bright, sunny yellow hair, tied up in two lopsided pigtails. (They had been straight, once upon a time, but that was before a tumble that nearly sent her off the side of a cliff.) Loud footsteps came closer to her hiding place and then stopped abruptly. Harsh whispers broke out, almost frenzied.

"Do you think we lost 'er?"

"I don't know! She'll fetch us a good buck on the market if we can catch 'er though, so hurry up and find 'er! I'll go back - we might have missed 'er. You keep going this way."

"Yeah yeah, I'm going!"

Lucy shivered as the footsteps faded away once again. The moon was invisible that night, leaving the young mage only a blanket of stars for guidance. Usually that would calm her. That night however, it only left shadows in less definition. It left her alone, in the dark, with no hope of ever getting home.

She cursed her own stupidity. How could she have thought - even for a moment - that she would be able to survive out in the world on her own? She was cold and hungry. She couldn't even remember the last time she had had something decent to eat. She missed home. And there was nothing – absolutely nothing – she could do about it. She had been running for so long that it was all she knew how to do anymore.

Lucy wrapped her arms around her knees and cried. She was silent in her tears, as they ran down her face in rivulets. She didn't think she'd be able to get away from those bad men if they found her again. She had lost her way, all of her careful plans thrown out of the window. She'd been quite confident when she'd snuck away three weeks ago; packing her doll, a few dresses and a whole bag of cookies. She'd pilfered quite a large sum of jewels from her father - at least, it was a large sum by her standards - but that money had long since been used up for things like transportation costs and the occasional meal.

Now she was broke, her dresses torn and colourless, and her cookie bag long since finished. She'd lost her precious doll along the way and her shoes were all but falling apart at the seams. She had never felt so unsafe – so vulnerable before. A harsh gust of wind tore through the alleyway, blowing Lucy's hair into her eyes. The air was cool against her heated cheeks. A shadow - one darker and more sinister than those of the alley - covered her as she pushed the blonde strands from her vision. Lucy curled in on herself, not daring to look up for fear of whom - or what - she might find.

Instead of the harsh tone she expected, a warm and slightly worried one greeted her instead. "Are you lost little girl?" The voice asked. Lucy looked up fearfully, using the back of her hand to wipe away her tears. A man (or, perhaps an elf?) was standing before her. His clothing was strange and almost otherworldly. Lucy thought him quite peculiar, but didn't voice her thoughts for fear of seeming rude.

"Yes," she said hesitantly, "I am. Are you friends with the bad men?" He only smiled and held out a hand to Lucy. She took it and stood up, now standing taller than the man-elf.

"I am Makarov, guild master of Fairy Tail. You look like you could use a home, child." Makarov said. Lucy puffed up her cheeks. She hated being called a child, but she wasn't about to argue. Anything that had the name 'home' tacked on sounded lovely at the moment. She could almost picture it. A warm bed, a nice bath. She would have jumped at the opportunity - had her mother not taught her better.

"How can I trust you?" Lucy asked - a measure of caution in her tone. Makarov raised an eyebrow at the little girl and laughed. Lucy glared at him. How dare he laugh at her as if she were such a silly child. She huffed and turned away, gathering up her meagre possessions. "Fine! I'll just go then!" Lucy said not another word and stormed off.

She walked for a long time, and the weird man-elf didn't follow her. It was early evening, and the streets were fairly full of people. Hargeon was a pretty place that time of year. People seemed to look over her entirely as she passed storefronts. The people inside the restaurants seemed so happy. It made her wish for her mother's company once again. She ended up near the sea, and sat down on the edge of a pier. "I wonder what happened to Mr Man-elf. Maybe he went back home to his fairy-tale." Lucy swung her legs and hummed a tune, oblivious to the presence behind her.

"Oh, so this is where you were hiding kid. Can't run away from us now, can ya?" An eerie voice spoke. Lucy froze and refused to turn. Maybe I'm dreaming. Yes, and I'll be back in my bed at home as soon as I wake up. A clammy hand clamped down on Lucy's shoulder forcing her to turn. "Ah," the man said, "You're a pretty one. Definitely worth the cha-"

Before Lucy could even blink, a giant hand wrapped around the man, making him choke. Lucy gasped, the hand lifting up and chucking the kidnapper into the bay. His scream was silenced by a loud splash, followed by an almost inaudible gurgle. He didn't resurface for a while and Lucy almost thought he had died. When the kidnapper did come up again he came spluttering, loud and indignant. Lucy let out a small sound of relief. The hand retracted and she followed its course to see it attached to Mr Man-elf at the end.

"You should be more careful, child." He said, once again offering a hand to Lucy. She accepted it once more, heart still racing from the terrifying encounter. The Man-elf was a mage then. Just like- Just like mom. "So, would you like to reconsider my offer?" Makarov asked. Lucy bit her lip.

Did he perhaps know her mother? Could he help her? Lucy didn't know if it was safe to trust this man, but maybe, just maybe, she could give it a shot. Who knew? Perhaps in time she too would learn magic, just as her mother had always wanted her to. Lucy put on a brave smile and nodded.

"Yes please." She whispered.

"Well then," Makarov smiled, "On to Fairy Tail."

The train ride to Magnolia was not a long one, but it gave Makarov time to think on his decision. The trees outside of the train cart passed by in an indistinguishable blur, simple darkness to his eyes. They had left Hargeon immediately after Lucy had agreed to come to Fairy Tail, and the poor girl had fallen asleep on the train ride, her head in Makarov's lap.

Makarov could almost see Layla's smile in his mind, just how bright a girl she had been. He had been surprised to see just how alike Layla and Lucy had looked. It had only made his job of tracking her down that much easier, but still. It was remarkable. His promise to make sure Lucy made it to Fairy Tail weighed heavy in Makarov's heart. True, Layla had never made him promise to protect the girl, nor to train her so that she could protect herself, but the hidden message had been clear enough. Layla had faith in her little girl, and that much was obvious.

He could feel the golden key in his pocket become heavier at his thoughts. Only one of Layla's three zodiac keys had found its way into Makarov's possession. The other two would make themselves known in time, as per Layla's instructions. Makarov had never met Aquarius in person, but he knew that Layla Heartfilia had a way of making people loyal to her. No doubt that ability had passed on to her daughter.

Idly, Makarov wondered how young Natsu would react to meeting Lucy. He was currently the youngest in Fairy Tail itself, and now he would have a playmate, at the very least. Hopefully it would be friendship and not rivalry. Goodness knew they had far too much of that. Natsu and Gray's 'friendship' was proof enough.

As the train pulled in to Magnolia station Makarov roused the girl. It was late at night, but Fairy Tail had a habit of being up when no one else was. Makarov had no doubt that there would be people awake to greet the young Heartfilia. Lucy rubbed her eyes sleepily and yawned as she looked up at Makarov, a tiny smile on her face.

Makarov didn't know how the guild would react, but their newest member was sure to be an interesting one.

"Well Lucy, welcome home."

O

Next Chapter: Natsu