Summary: It really sucks when your (male) best friend is prettier than you are. Lacey really wished she could have inherited her mother's petite curvaceousness instead of her father's height and... muscles...

This is a story about being comfortable in your own skin. I've noticed that there is an expectation of a certain body-type for heroines in shounen. While that is part of the appeal of shounen, I think sometimes it detracts from the storyline and the character's personalities. Fairy Tail in particular has a plethora of busty babes, with only a couple of very petite girls thrown in good measure. So I'm offering a different definition of beauty here.

There may be some themes in here difficult or uncomfortable to read about, as it's the tale of a young woman's journey to accepting who she is. Not just her, but a lot of members of Fairy Tail's newest generation will have to redefine what it means to be beautiful and strong, and happy with themselves.

This is a drabble fic, mostly Lacey-centric. Updates will likely be extremely sporadic. Also, there will be crack-pairings galore. I haven't decided on most of them, yet, though.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.


Fairy Tail – Lacey mused – has, ever since its inception over a hundred years prior, always been renowned not only for the strength of its mages, for the familial bonds they share, and for their wholly-terrifying destructive tendencies, but also for the sheer number of beautiful women who either flock to its members or are its members. In fact, the female mages had more female fans than the males did.

Lacey Dreyar, however, did not consider herself beautiful.

Not by any stretch of the imagination.

She loved her parents more than anything in the world, and to her they were hands down the most attractive couple she'd ever seen. Her mother was gorgeous, and had somehow retained her killer figure despite the toll of motherhood. Lacey thought there was no one in the world that could compare to her mother, with Lucy's large chocolate eyes, shining golden hair, and quite frankly incredible body. There was also no one kinder than Lucy, and even now she still held the title of The Light of Fairy Tail – much beloved by all in the guild.

Lacey deeply admired her father, too. She had looked up to his strength her whole life; not just his physical abilities (which sometimes bordered on monstrous), but also for the depth of his love for his family. Both of his families – Dreyar and Fairy Tail – never lacked for his affection, even if it was often gruff and ill-expressed. Her father sometimes still had issues communicating with people, though Lacey thought that only made him an even better role model. Still a handsome man, he had eyes only for her mother and someday Lacey wanted that for herself as well.

Jean-Luc, her best friend, had once joked that as the daughter of Fairy Tail's Guild Master and The Light of Fairy Tail that made Lacey the Princess of Fairy Tail.

Yeah, warrior princess, maybe. Because there was nothing delicate about her.

Lacey despised the way she looked.

She really wished she could have inherited her mother's radiant, petite curvaceousness. Instead, she got her father's intimidating height and... muscles.

Most people found her towering height frightening and off-putting. Lacey easily dwarfed all of the other women in the guild, and most of the men, too. In fact, only Titanus Strauss was obviously larger.

As if all that wasn't bad enough, Lacey hadn't a chest to speak of. Where most other young women of nineteen possessed bouncy, soft mounds, Lacey sported rippling pectoral muscles.

Laxus had decided early on in Lacey's childhood that his daughter would be able to defend herself properly. So he put his young child through a truly hellish training regimen to toughen her up. Not that she'd really needed it, as she'd been a tomboy to begin with – one that already liked to pound boys her age and even a little older into the ground. She'd loved it, though, despite the rigorous exercises and relentlessness of her drill-sergeant of a father.

The result of that being that Lacey developed into a very strong, buff individual. Combined with her height and square jaw, that made her the opposite of feminine beauty as far as she was concerned.

However, Lacey did love her eyes, and her hair. Her mother's luxurious, glowing golden locks had been passed down to her along with her father's stormy blue-gray eyes.

So there was that.

And she did rather like the feeling of power and strength that coursed throughout her body. Being able to hold her own against Titanus was always a bonus. So was being able to fend off the annoying gnats that flocked to Jean-Luc.

Speaking of which.

Lacey's internal monologue was cut short as she spotted her favorite greenette leaning against the side of a market stall. About to call out a greeting to her best friend, she paused upon discovery of the large number of men surrounding her friend.

This was not good.

Jean-Luc was widely regarded the most beautiful member of Fairy Tail's younger generation, with gorgeous light green locks and a face that was the epitome of femininity. Lacey often felt rushes of jealousy for her best friend's naturally good looks.

Because Jean-Luc was male.

Genetics are a bitch sometimes.

Then again, the beautiful young man often had to suffer from the unwanted affections of perverts much like the female population of the guild. Like right now, it seemed.

Rushing to her friend's side, Lacey wasted little time rescuing him. "Lacey Kick!" she announced, booting the sleazy men away from Jean-Luc. To her deep satisfaction, they flew across the square into the fountain.

"Jean, are you alright?" she asked, turning to her best friend.

He looked up at her with deep amusement. "Thank you for coming to my rescue, as always."

She grinned at him. "No problem!"

And it had been a rescue, but not from the men. In truth, by breaking their jaws Lacey had been doing those creeps a favor.

See, genetics had not been so nearly one-sided with Jean-Luc Justine. He was literally the perfect blend of both his parents. He'd received a double dose of delicate, feminine features, with long flowing light green hair, his eyes a breathtaking aquamarine, and an adorable beauty mark beneath his left eye.

He was, in truth, fully capable of taking care of himself against perverts like these, as he'd also received both Mirajane and Freed Justine's rather frightening magics.

Unfortunately, he had also inherited his parents' split-personality issues.

So really, Lacey was not rescuing him from the unwanted attentions of other men, but from being arrested for murder.

As the odd pair made their way to the guild, they chatted amicably about taking their team on a mission later.

And though they didn't realize it themselves, everyone they came across thought them to be the most handsome couple they'd ever seen.


And there's the first chapter. Please review and let me know what you think.