A/N: Oh my gosh! I'm glad you guys are enjoying this fic so far. I guess I'm doing okay with this fandom. :) I'm so happy right now. I'm speechless! X3 Well, if there are any mistakes in the story that deal with Fairy Tail, let me know! XD But since this is an AU it's probably fine.(?) Still… let me know if you need me to change anything. I'm completely fine with it. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the next chapter! ;) P.S. I've decided to change the name of the chapter/episode.

Also… Thank you for the Favs and Follows! It means a lot!

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail!

|Chapter 3: Start of Something New|

It was very early in the morning. The sun was making its way up the horizon and the birds of Fiore were chirping, waking up nature with their beautiful tunes. As the sun finally made it to its typical position in the sky, its warm, bright rays touched the blonde's fair skin with its warmth. She stirred awake after realizing that the sun was making it hard for her to continue sleeping. She woke up with a yawn and gave herself a few moments to stretch out her stiff joints.

"Wow," she whispered to herself. "I never thought I would have such a good night sleep on the first night. Man, wasn't I comfortable."

"Yeah you were," said a low, squeaky voice.

Lucy's eyes widened, shocked to hear another voice in the room with her. She didn't hear or see anyone enter her room last night besides Loke, who had helped her move her stuff in, but he left right after. She was surprised that anyone in Fairy Tail would do such a thing. Breaking and entering. Lucy hated it when people broke that rule. Let it be known that Lucy wouldn't allow anyone to leave without a few broken bones after breaking into her private space without permission. The blonde girl slowly turned to where she heard the voice. Her chocolate orbs were burning with fury, but when Lucy saw who was in the room with her she was dumbfounded.

"W-what?! Who are you?! You can talk?!" So many questions she had for this little creature due to nervousness.

Sitting right next to Lucy was a small cat. His fur was blue and he had big round black eyes. His nose was twitching happily and he smiled as he saw the girl panicking about him having the ability to speak.

"Of course I can talk," he laughed. "Haven't you seen a talking cat before?"

It's obvious she hadn't based on how she reacted. Lucy just sighed and studied the blue cat with inquisitiveness while softly poking it. What kind of demon was it?

"Um, cats can't talk so what kind of cat-like creature are you?" Lucy asked.

"Well, I'm an Exceed. It's a type of creature who looks and acts like a cat, but the difference is that we can talk. We also have special abilities that make us all different from one another, well, kind of. Most of us know this type of magic called Aera. Do you know what that is?"

Lucy gave it some thought and then nodded. "It's magic that enables you to fly, correct?"

"Exactly," the Exceed nodded with a smile.

It went silent between them after their small discussion about being an Exceed and performing Aera. That was when Lucy, again, realized that the blue cat had snuck into her room late at night. She frowned at the thought and then looked at the Exceed with eyes that can pierce through one's soul if it were possible.

"Why the hell are you in my room, cat?" She asked bitterly. "You should know that it's rude to break and enter into someone's room like this."

The blue Exceed gave Lucy a cheesy grin and then replied, "I have my reasons, don't worry. Okay, so my best friend Natsu was sleeping restlessly last night. He kept moving around, knocking the pillows over, the sheets over, and then me over three times! I couldn't risk losing sleep so I decided to crash with another student. All of the boys' rooms were locked in our dorm so I had no luck there. Then, I realized that my only option left was the girls' dorm. Everyone but your room was locked so I decided to spend the night with you!"

"Uh-huh…" 'I must have forgotten to lock the door after Loke left. Dammit!' Lucy thought to herself. She continued to examine the creature in front of her. She wanted him out. She stood up and grabbed the blue cat by his green bag he wore around his neck. He began to squirm and kick as she did so.

"I never want to see you enter this damn room again- Ah!"

Standing in front of Lucy was Natsu. His pink hair was very shaggy. Some strands of his hair were pointing one way while some of the others were poking in another direction. What stood out the most was his scaly-looking scarf. How long he was standing there was what the blonde beauty wanted to know.

"Natsu," exclaimed the Exceed. "Thank goodness you're here!"

"There you are, Happy; I was looking all over for you. I noticed you've met our new Fairy."

Natsu noticed that Lucy was holding Happy by his green pouch. He gave the situation some thought and then took Happy away from her grasp. Happy crawled out of his best friend's hands and climbed on top of his head.

"What were you doing with Happy?" He frowned at her. "It looked like something serious happened here."

Lucy sarcastically laughed and then glared at Happy, who was "innocently" smiling at her.

"Your little friend here snuck into my room last night without asking," she started calmly, though she really wanted to burst with agitation. "And I would appreciate it if you keep him away from my room, okay? I'm really strict when it comes to people invading my personal space."

Natsu blankly looked at Lucy and then at Happy. The two friends shrugged and looked back at their new housemate with a smile. Natsu laughed as he gave her a nod, letting Lucy know that he understood her wish.

"Thank you, Natsu," she smiled. She was surprised to remember the pink-haired boy's name in such a short while. Well, he did make a big first impression on her along with Gray because of their constant fighting.

Finally getting her last boot on, Lucy stood up. She walked up to a mirror that came with the room to check her appearance. She wore a white sleeveless button-up shirt with strips of blue outlining the edges and a short blue skirt that was held up by a brown belt. When she liked her selection of clothing, Lucy nodded to herself with a smile. She turned around to grab her handbag. Lucy also saw her keys she put on the nightstand. She was contemplating whether or not to take them with her. After a few minutes of pondering, Lucy took her keys and went for the door.

As the young girl entered the hall she bumped into Gray, recoiling backwards from his strong frame.

"Oh hey, Gray," she greeted with a smile. She then blushed from embarrassment when she realized what she had done. "Sorry for not watching where I was going."

He sighed and gave her a small, reassuring smile. "It's fine. No harm done." He paused for a moment and then asked, "Say, are you heading downstairs for breakfast?"

"Yeah, I am," she laughed. "Oh, and I was thinking about touring around the school a little more after. Do you mind showing me around?"

Gray slightly blushed and smiled once again, flattered that the new girl wanted him to show her around campus. "Sure, Lucy."

Lucy laughed joyfully. Once things were settled, the two groupmates headed downstairs to have their morning meals. As the two Fairies were walking downstairs, a plate dirtied with food flew past Lucy. She suddenly backed up into Gray which resulted with another apology. They looked around to see if the coast was clear, and carefully entered the dining area. What startled Gray and Lucy the most was when they saw the dining area covered in food. It was on the floor, all over the table, on the walls, and on the ceiling. And in the middle of it all was Mirajane, who was cooking breakfast for the house happily, and a few other Fairies.

"Mira," Lucy exclaimed. "What happened in here?"

"Oh! Hey, Lucy and Gray. You just missed a big food fight between Natsu and my brother," she giggled. "It was very intense. You should've been here."

"Thank God I wasn't," Lucy muttered.

"Tell me about it," Gray agreed.

Mirajane laughed once more as she handed two other group members their morning meals.

"Enjoy, Alzack and Bisca."

"Thanks, Mira," they said simultaneously. They looked at each other when they thanked their friend in unison and then blushed while smiling.

Lucy and Gray picked a place to sit at the table. She greeted the two known as Alzack and Bisca and left them alone to commune with each other. The blonde then saw Loke sitting a few seats away from her. She smiled and greeted him, which caused Loke to jump out of his seat abruptly and walk out.

"All of a sudden he's avoiding me. Why?" Lucy asked herself quietly.

A few minutes later, Mirajane came back with three more plates in hand. She gave the two to Lucy and Gray while the other one was saved for Natsu. She placed that plate on the table after she called for the pink-haired boy. When he heard his name, Natsu came running in the dining area with incredible speed along with his Exceed Happy.

"Food!" They both yelled with a dreamy look in their eyes.

"Such pigs," Lucy said with a nervous smile. "Did a dragon raise them?" She joked.

"Actually, yeah," Gray replied. "Natsu's father was a dragon named Igneel. When Igneel supposedly left, Natsu was left alone without knowing where his father went and later came here to continue his education. And the only thing he has left of Igneel is that scarf he wears. There was never a day I saw Natsu not wear it."

Lucy was amazed when she heard Natsu's story. She actually found it to be inspiring because his father, someone he looked up to and loved his whole life, left him without notice. Although Natsu's story showed his bravery, Lucy still felt bad for him. Natsu's father kind of reminded her of her own father. They both left, one physically and the other mentally. For the first time in years, Lucy felt like she wasn't alone. But she began to wonder if Igneel had a reason to leave.

"Wow, I never thought that someone like Natsu would lose someone so dear. He doesn't really seem bothered by it."

"Yeah," Gray nodded. "And I kind of envy that. He can let go of something with no problem."

"Did something happen to you before you joined Magnolia High, Gray?" Lucy asked with a sympathetic look.

Gray wasn't the type who would share his feelings with other people; especially if it came to people he recently just met. He frowned a little and then looked at Lucy, who was smiling sheepishly at him.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it," she quietly laughed.

The black-haired boy looked at Lucy once more and then gave her a slight smile.

"Thanks for not-" Gray's sentence was cut off when his face was smacked by a flying egg. The yellow yolk crawled down his now scowling face. He looked to his left and another egg was thrown at his face.

"Got'cha again, Ice Queen," Natsu winked as he ate the last bits of food. "I can't believe you fell for that twice-"

Smack! Gray punched the pink-haired boy in the face. Lucy, who was left behind a few seats down, covered her mouth with her quivering hands. She was shocked about how fast Gray snapped at Natsu. Will she ever get used to the violence they brought in the house? Only time can answer that. As Lucy was watching, the blue cat from earlier sat on the table next to her. She looked at the one who accompanied her and frowned at him when she realized he had an amused look on his face.

"Please stop them, Happy. They're going to bring the house down if they keep this up."

The blue Exceed shook his head and replied truthfully, "Nothing can stop a fight between Natsu and Gray, unless you're Master Makarov or Erza."

"Then where are they when you need them?" She groaned to herself.

Happy just laughed as the concerned Lucy worriedly looked back at the boys. Lucy was really worried about their current situation. She kept telling herself that the two will be okay with sorting things out later on, but as she saw how the two felt for one another, Natsu and Gray seemed to be an impossible pair for that sort of thing to happen. Lucy was about to stop them, but a green-haired Fairy decided to do so before her.

"Enough, you two! This unnecessary fighting has to stop." It was the one who was known as Bisca Mulan. She was one of Fairy Tail's top students along with her "best friend" Alzack Connell. "I and the rest of the house had enough of your atrocious fighting. Just stop!"

The two students looked at Bisca and then at each other. They both sighed disappointedly as they separated. Gray sat back down next to Lucy as Natsu sat back in his original seat. Happy smiled and sat next to his friend once the fighting was over. Bisca sighed and smiled contently after she was able to cease her friends' repetitive fights.

"That was great, Bisca. Glad you can finally shut them up," Alzack smiled as he had splotches of pink on his face.

"Thanks, hon," she winked at her friend as she finished up her breakfast. "Just happy it's over. This place needs to have peace and quiet every once and awhile."

Lucy and Gray were walking in the school's main yard where they had people sign up for clubs. It seemed like more people enrolled in Magnolia High because the yard was packed with more students. The two housemates had to maneuver through the crowd carefully without bumping into anyone. They were finally able to find a place with less people to worry about. Gray inhaled and then exhaled, grateful that they were able to avoid the busy crowd.

"Where would you like to go, Lucy?"

The blonde thought for a moment and replied, "I really want to see what the Book and Newspaper Club is about."

Gray smiled and nodded, motioning his new friend to follow him. Once again they had to cross the sea of students. The raven-haired boy grabbed Lucy's hand to prevent her from getting lost in the horde of disciples. Of course, Lucy faintly blushed as soon as their hands touched for she never held a boy's hand before. As soon as they found an empty space, Gray let go of Lucy's hand and walked up to a stand. The stand was covered with the school's weekly newspapers and novels of all kinds. Behind the stand was a blue-haired girl reading a book. She wore glasses and a simple orange tank-top with white lace outlining the edges. It took her a few seconds to notice the two Fairies.

"'Ey, Gray! You haven't been waiting long, have ya?" The bluenette asked sheepishly.

"Nah," he laughed. "You're fine, Levy. By the way, Lucy this is Levy McGarden, the club's president, and Levy, this is Lucy Heartfilia, Fairy Tail's new student."

Levy gasped with excitement and jumped up with a big smile. She walked from behind her stand and looked up at Lucy.

"Oh my God, it's nice to meet you, Lucy! Fairy Tail hasn't received new enrollments in a while. It's great to finally have a newcomer."

Lucy laughed and replied, "It's great to be here. I'm sure I will have a great time in Magnolia High."

"You will! The education system is great and the clubs here are worth joining; especially the Book and Newspaper Club. We take pictures for the school's newspaper and we have little meetings I like to call Book Talks. It's where the whole club picks an individual book and later talks about it after reading it. I'm so excited!"

The new student smiled at Levy's excitement for books. It was actually nice for Lucy to find a place where she can express her love for books and writing. She knew she would be happy and feel accepted in a club where she could connect with everyone.

"I guess I will join," Lucy finally decided with a smile. "Sign me right up, Levy!"

"You got it!" She hugged Lucy, who had no time to react, and then went behind the stand again. She bent over to pull out papers and placed them in front of Lucy. "Here you go, Lucy. Just sign here while I go find Gajeel for the club's pamphlets." She asked the two to watch her workspace and then headed off to find her partner.

The girl laughed as she took a pen from the stand to sign up for the club. She liked Levy already. Her enthusiasm boosted up Lucy's confidence and motivation. She knew she'll do fine at Magnolia High. She felt a sense of belonging. The people she acquainted at her guild were generous people who were warm and welcoming. Despite Loke suddenly avoiding her and the fights between Natsu and Gray, she knew it was like home to her. She couldn't ask for more.

After Lucy signed herself up, she turned around to face Gray, who was gazing in the distance. He took notice of her staring at him and faced her. "Oh, you're done?"

"Yeah, and all we need to do is wait for Levy with the information, I guess."

There was a moment of silence between the two after. It was beginning to become awkward so Lucy looked away. She decided it was best to get to know Gray since they were housemates and all. Lucy was kind of curious about what Gray did to become an expelled student.

"Gray?" Lucy said as she got his attention once again. "What did you do to get here?"

It seemed as if Gray's body had stiffened up from Lucy's question. Her question brought back a few memories he had forced himself to forget for the past year. Violent, tragic, and regretful memories were once again being seen. He slowly looked at Lucy and saw that she was beginning to grow uncomfortable from the awkward atmosphere. He had to decide quickly if he was going to answer her or brush her off.

"Well, I-"

"Finally I found you guys. When you left to look around I decided to follow you." It was Natsu and with him was his friend Happy. The pink-haired boy walked up to Gray and Lucy and continued, "I hate registration week. It's so annoying."

Gray agreed with his rival by nodding and then looked away. He was still thinking about the question Lucy had asked him. It had been a while since Gray had last thought about why he was in Magnolia High, for the memory was too painful for him to even want to remember.

"I'm back with the pamphlets, guys!" It was Levy coming back with a stack of papers in her arms, and following behind the bluenette was a tall guy. He had long black hair and his face seemed to wear a gruff expression. To add on, his face was covered with silver piercings. "Oh, and this big guy here is Gajeel."

Lucy smiled and waved at the tall teenager but he just stayed quiet. Levy took a pamphlet and handed it to Lucy with a smile, explaining that the meeting information was all in the pamphlet. The blondie nodded as she took the informative paper and read through it.

"Thanks, Levy! I'll be sure to come to the first meeting," Lucy said as she waved her soon-to-be friend goodbye. She walked up to Gray and smiled at him asking, "Can you show me where the actual school is next? I just want to know where I'm going before the first day of school."

Gray nodded as he began walking forward. Lucy followed him and invited Natsu to go with them. Of course, the bubbly Fairy was obliged and accepted her invitation.

The three students spent an hour touring around Magnolia High. The main building where class hours took place was bigger than Lucy's private school. Lucy asked why and Gray answered that it was because not all students in Magnolia were expelled. Students often enrolled because Magnolia wasn't a school for only the expelled but also accepted those who wanted to become stronger. Stronger? What did he mean by that? Lucy decided to shrug it off and ask about it later.

"Well, that's all I have to show you," Gray said.

"Thanks a lot, Gray. I really appreciated the grand tour," she replied jokingly.

The raven-haired student smiled shyly and then looked away. Unbeknownst to the two, Natsu was grinning at them. He wanted to say something to embarrass both Gray and Lucy but the upbeat boy kept it all to himself. The silence between the three was disturbed by two growling stomachs. Gray turned to look at Natsu and Happy, arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah, we're hungry," Natsu admitted with no shame. "Can we go eat somewhere?"

Lucy smiled and said, "I'll treat you guys to this diner I saw on my way here, if you'd like? I think it was on campus property."

"Oh!" Natsu jumped up. "I know what you're talking about. I love that place so I have no problem." He then turned to Gray and smiled at him with a half-lidded gaze. "Are you in or are you out, droops?"

Before he nodded with approval, Gray smacked Natsu upside the head and took the path that led to the diner. Of course, Natsu was about to go after him, but Lucy prevented him by placing her hand gently on his shoulder.

"It's not worth it," she smiled. She softly continued, "And besides, I enjoy you two more when you're not fighting."

What Lucy said blanked Natsu's mind. He felt the tension go away and the thought of punishing Gray was unnecessary to him. He had no idea why. It just happened. Maybe it was because Lucy didn't scold at him about it like all the others did when it came to his and Grays's fighting.

The pink-haired boy just laughed and grinned at the blonde in front of him. "You're a weird one, Lucy, but I really like ya. You'll definitely fit in with us!"

"Aye!" Happy agreed happily.

"Are you guys coming or not?" Gray asked from afar.

Natsu, Lucy, and Happy looked at the agitated boy and then smiled sheepishly. With a smile on his face, Gray's opposite ran up to him and smacked him upside the head. Gray growled and chased Natsu until they got to the small restaurant. Even though those two constantly fought a lot, Lucy noticed that those boys shared something small. It was faint but she saw it. She also realized that meeting those three was a start of a new friendship. A real and special friendship she never had.