"To all passengers, the train will be arriving at Clover Town in twenty minutes. To those seeking passage back south..."

Stirred by the too cheery voice over the train intercom, Lucy opened her eyes to see the barren plateaus that lead into Clover Town. She sat up and straightened her back groaning with content as it popped several times. The celestial mage brushed her hand over Horologium's key and the spirit informed her that it was ten past eight. Lucy wasn't due to meet with the client for her mission until nine which left her with just enough time to stop and grab a small breakfast before getting down to work. She grabbed one of two novels that she'd brought and opened it to where she left off for the remainder of the train ride.

Wearing a pair of comfortable dark jeans tucked into her favorite pair of black combat boots and a cobalt blue halter top under a simple black leather jacket, Lucy stepped off the train and shivered slightly at the odd chill in the air. Summer had just begun in Fiore but she blamed the chill on the storm that the town was expecting to hit in the next day. Her job was simple and she was confident that she'd make it back to town before getting caught in it. Not that she'd mind too much, as the celestial mage felt an odd comfort during thunderstorms and the like. It would just make her job a tad easier if she didn't have to travel on foot in the rain.

Lucy zipped up her jacket and tucked her hands into the pockets as she strolled to a small cafe and picked up a warm crescent roll for breakfast. The buttery and flaky pastry had the blonde smiling and humming in delight. She took note of the name and promised herself to stop by before leaving town to actually sit and enjoy the atmosphere. When she came up to the client's shop Lucy was greeted by kind looking middle aged man with salt and peppered hair named Mathis. With a smile he invited her to the back of the shop for some tea before they started talking about the job.

"How would you like your tea, Miss?"

"It's Lucy, just Lucy please," she smiled, "and I'll have honey in mine please."

The celestial mage eyed the shelves lined with countless jars of herbs, wondering what each one could be used for. She'd spent enough time with Wendy to learn that some plants could be turned into a number of healing ointments and medicines. Lucy always loved to hear the young dragon slayer talk animatedly about some of the things that she learned from Porlyusica and even committed some of those things to her own memory.

Mathis' eyes followed the mage's gaze and placed a cup in front of her. "Do you know much about herbal medicines, Lucy?"

She brought the tea to her nose and smiled when jasmine and honey flooded her senses "I don't," she shook her head, "but a dear friend of mine does. I'm only familiar with the few I've seen her work with or what she's talked about."

"I see. Has she worked with Belladonna Lilies before?"

"Isn't Belladonna also called Deadly Nightshade?"

"That it is and it is also toxic to humans if handled incorrectly," he chuckled at her confusion. "There is a method called decoction that makes the plant safe for me to use. In layman's terms, I mash the roots, or whatever part of the plant I'm using, and then boil them down to make an extract. This extract is a concentrated liquor which I sometimes sell as is or use it to create tinctures."

Lucy had another sip of her tea and leaned closer to Mathis to show her interest in the conversation. No, she didn't plan on becoming an herbalist but much like her mother before her, she was happy to have a chance at learning something unfamiliar to her. "So what is Belladonna used for?" she asked.

Seeing the gleam in the mage's eyes, the herbalist smiled, "Belladonna is most commonly used to alleviate motion sickness, nausea, and menstrual cramps." Lucy's eyes grew wide as she straightened herself before Mathis continued. "By now I'm sure you've gathered that this is the plant I need you to collect for me."

"Is it dangerous to harvest what you need? The reward seems a little high for just collecting a plant."

"The plant is only dangerous if ingested, I assure you. It might seem like I'm offering too much," the man shrugged, "but there are a few things that you need to be aware of before you leave. Do you have a map with you? Your job will be much easier if I can mark where I need you to go."

"Of course," she answered, pulling the folded paper from her pack and offering it to him. Lucy watched him draw the path she would need take from the edge of town through the plateaus to get her to the forest southeast of town, and then mark what she assumed to be the spot where she would find the plant.

"It isn't far into the forest but I must caution you," his voice becoming grave, "there have been sightings of wyverns further south into the forest, closer to Akane. Now, I've heard that there was a job accepted recently to clear them out. I don't want to give you any reason to worry but it is possible that they might have fled north, so please be careful."

Lucy smiled gently, "I promise to take caution. And thank you for the warning."

"Indeed," he nodded. "When you get to the clearing the plants should be lining the edges, underneath the trees, they prefer the shade. I only need the leaves and stems of the plant so you'll have to remove any flowers or berries that if any remain on the plants. You may cut them all the way down to the root but try to only harvest the full grown plants. They'll be about a meter tall."

"Is there anything else I need to know?"

"That's everything I have to tell you," Mathis said shaking his head. He removed the empty teacups and watched the celestial mage.

Lucy took another look at the map and then up a clock on the wall. It was half past nine and gauging the distance on the map it would only take her a couple of hours to reach the clearing, provided she wasn't attacked by anything and the weather held up. She'd aim to be there sometime in the early afternoon. Returning the parchment to her bag and then shouldering it, Lucy told him of her tentative plan.

"If the weather holds up and nothing hinders me into forest, I should be reach the clearing in the early afternoon. I plan to be back in town before dark but if I'm later than that, I'll send one of my spirits to inform you that I am safe and well."

Mathis smiled and nodded, "I'd appreciate that very much. I'd hate if something were to happen while simply collecting the plants for me."

Lucy turned to leave but paused before entering the storefront. "Was there something else Lucy?" She bit her lip and wondered if it would be appropriate at ask him for anything with the reward being so high for the simple task she was to complete.

"Umm, I was wondering if it I could ask you for a tincture. I have several friends who could benefit from it if I had it available. I'm willing to give up some of the reward even-"

"Don't be ridiculous, Lucy," Mathis scoffed. "I'll have one prepared by the time you return, as thanks for sitting with an old man for a short while. Stay safe now, Lucy."

Map in hand, Lucy stopped for a small break before entering of the forest. Another hour or so and she'd reach the clearing. She took a deep breath and looked up to the clouded sky. The noon sun was hidden behind fat grey clouds that seemed ready to burst at a moment's notice and the wind had picked up just slightly. If she didn't dawdle while walking the remaining distance, then she could still at least gather the plants before the storm arrived but her chances looked slim.

Lucy stood and ran her fingers over Pyxis' key. When the spirit assured her that she was facing the right direction she resumed her hike deeper into the forest, her eyes always flicking to the sky and her ears open to any new sounds or lack thereof. She'd spent enough with Natsu to know that you could always hear your surroundings change before you saw them.

While keeping her steady pace, Lucy wondered about what the rest of her team was up to. She was ahead on rent and she had groceries in her apartment. By the time she returned home though, Natsu would have raided her kitchen. With this job at least, Lucy wouldn't have give up any of the reward to cover damage fees. She was giddy at the thought and then immediately the feeling of guilt crept up on her like it had been with every solo mission she'd taken in the past couple months.

The boy was the brother and best friend that would always be there for her. Well, she used to think as much at one time but when he disappeared after the Battle of Tartaros Lucy had been left alone. She still had Erza, Gray and the rest of her Fairy Tail family but the loss of Aquarius followed by the loss of her best friend hit her hard and Lucy mourned in her own way. Tired of being left behind, Lucy found solace in isolation. If she was going to get stronger and do things that she wanted to do in life, then she'd do it herself with her spirits at her side. She invested herself into expanding her magic and even learned a new way to wield it so that she was more capable in a fight. Most of her missions were solo ones that she knew she could handle. She didn't dread fighting as much but did avoid it if it were possible. Just because she wanted to be stronger in a fight didn't mean she was going to be stupid about it.

When Natsu returned, she started going on missions again with her old team. It felt nice to be together with them again but it never quite felt right. Her team even resumed showing up at her place randomly and after a year of catching up on money she owed and then actually getting ahead, it was starting to dwindle after only a few months of her team being together again. Lucy had changed during that year and felt the pull of her team wanting her former self back but the celestial mage could never go back to that time. She didn't want to.

As her thoughts and emotions started to run rampant, a familiar glow appeared beside her and she cocked her head slightly to greet her ever faithful lion. "Hey Loke!" she beamed.

The lion smiled and brought her hand to his lips causing her to roll her eyes. "Something troubling you, Princess?" he laughed.

"Just thinking. I promise."

"About?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

"Nosy lion," Lucy said narrowing her eyes as he shrugged.

"I just know that when you get too lost in thought when you're alone, you doubt yourself." He waited for her to protest but she never did. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to but I'm here, Lucy. I'm here so you won't be alone." She giggled and linked her arm with his.

"I was thinking about how much my life has changed in the past year."

"You've certainly grown stronger."

"It's not just about my magic training," she shook her head. "It's everything, I think. Ugh... there's just a lot and I don't know what's good or bad."

"Listen to me, Lucy. You're amazing at multi-tasking and thinking on your feet but only when you've got your head on straight. Slow down, take a deep breath and just let everything fall into place as it normally is."

Trusting her spirit to guide her and not let her fall on her face, Lucy closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. She envisioned everything that was on her mind falling into categorized piles. Then those piles were moved to labeled filing cabinets so that she could quickly pull things out when she needed to. She'd perfected this way of thinking when training with Capricorn, keeping everything present in her mind and bringing to the forefront when she needed but as was natural when her team was involved, things tended to become a mess.

Loke watched his friend in silence as she sorted through the mess in her mind. He knew that she loved her team, too much sometimes but they were the family that she'd lost as a child. He didn't think that she wanted to leave her team behind, but she also didn't want things to return to how they used to be. The celestial lion and her other spirits had been worried that she would shut them out losing Aquarius but their celestial mage surprised them when she refused to let guilt take over her life. Yes, she'd been heartbroken at the loss of a friend but she worked through it and most importantly, she didn't do it alone. She let him and the others come forward to train her and comfort her when she needed it.

"I need my team to know what I want," she spoke softly, bringing his attention back to her.

"And what would that be, Princess?"

"I don't need to always be with the team. Yes, I missed the adventures we would go on and while I could have continued that with Erza and Gray, I made the choice to isolate myself a bit. Maybe it wasn't the right choice but it was the choice I made. I enjoy the solo missions even the occasional ones with Cana and Levy. Those are always fun," Lucy said thinking about the late nights they had spent gossiping about anything and everything and decided that she wanted to do that again soon. "Besides," she smiled, "I'm never really alone when on a solo mission."

Loke threw his arm over her shoulder and smiled down at her. "That will always be true."

"I'm not leaving the team because I really do still want to go on missions with them. I just feel," she paused trying to find the proper words for her thoughts.

"Like you're suffocating."

"Yeah, that's it," she confirmed. Lucy thought back to when she first joined Fairy Tail. That had been over two years ago now, well two for her and seven for the rest of the world. So much had happened in that first year, too much almost. Before the guild, before Natsu, she was nothing more than a runaway heiress. When he brought her to the guild, she'd found the family she'd lost when her mother had died. Then when that same man left, she found herself. Who she wanted to be and how she wanted to live.

"When I first joined the guild, I was overwhelmed with the presence of family. That love and adoration was something I lost when my mother had passed and getting a taste of it when I walked through those doors that first time was beyond addicting. I let myself get caught up in that and I became dependent on the guild. I was chained, Loke, and it broke when Natsu left."

"Chain?"

"A chain that I unintentionally created and attached to the guild. I used to need the guild in a way that wasn't healthy. I felt that losing any one of my family again would kill me. That's why I always tried so hard in everything I did. I wanted to fight for them and protect them but most importantly, I didn't want to be left behind and left alone. I know now that if by some tragedy the guild was disbanded and I was on my own, I'd be okay in the end. Just like when Natsu left, it hurt, but I'm okay now."

"But your friends want you to be more than just okay, Lucy," he stated firmly.

"I know. That's why I need to tell my team that I'm not okay with things going back to how they were. Why I need to not be afraid of being my father's daughter. A woman, who will always state her desires and wishes clearly and with authority. A woman that force herself to be heard when ignored."

"Are you sure that isn't like your mother?" he joked.

"Oh, my mother was plenty headstrong but she did it with grace. Me, I've been told that her kindness is within me and I feel it. Grace though, that just isn't the Fairy Tail way," she laughed. "Thank you, Loke. I feel much better now."

"It's always my pleasure, Princess. If you'd like, I can help you talk to your team."

She pulled them to a stop and shook her head. "No thanks. I need to do it myself so that they know it's something that I mean."

"I understand. Just remember, we're a name away of you need us." The two stood for and took in the unsettling silence. Lucy looked up but only saw the heavy cover of the trees above. "Let's go, I think that storm is moving in faster. He took her hand started off. She kept up easily stepping precisely over roots and ducking under branches.

"We're not far. A couple hundred meters and we'll reach the clearing." A flash and crash of thunder caused both spirit and mage to falter in their rush. "Loke, that wasn't the storm."

"Definitely a mage, I know. Be careful, Lucy." The two came into the clearing and saw a wyvern standing over an injured Laxus Dreyar with a leg poised ready to come down on him. There was another beast not far from him clearly down for the count.

"Stardress, Taurus!" Lucy unfurled her whip and flicked it around the beast's raised leg. Laxus watched her plant herself and pull the whip taunt, preventing him from being crushed by the beast. "Get out of there, Laxus!" He didn't need to be told twice as he staggered to his feet, a hand bracing his abdomen.

Lucy was pulled forward and off her feet just as Laxus moved away from the wyvern. There wasn't much space between him and it though so it pursued, snapping it's jaws. She flicked out her whip again, this time wrapping it around the creature's neck and planted her weight low to the ground. Laxus was impressed with her strength and how quickly to changed tactics when tripped up.

"Loke, now!" she called. The lion's fist was surrounded in bright light as charged at the beast connecting with it's impact caused the the wyvern to waver and it reared its head. Lucy saw an opportunity and pulled her whip bringing the beast to the ground.

"Blondie, drop you whip!" Lucy looked to question him but just dropped the weapon when the hairs on her neck tingle with his magic. She jumped back toward the edge of the clearing a breath before he unleashed his magic on the creature. It let out a bloodcurdling screech then went quiet and completely still. She stepped from the behind the tree she had ducked behind and felt her stomach sink when she saw Laxus collapse.

"Laxus!" She ran to his side and skidded on her knees placing her hands on either side of Laxus' face to make him look at her. "Shit, Laxus. Open your eyes, please." He could hear her pleading but he just couldn't get his body to listen any longer. He'd spent the better part of the morning tracking the missing wyvern only to discover another one when they ambushed him. He was lucky that Lucy showed up when she did or he'd have been worse off.

"Lucy, I'm out of here. Those wyverns are down and out. Call Virgo." Loke said before closing his gate.

Lucy moved her hands from his face to the top of his shirt and ripped it open popping several buttons. Her eyes immediately went to the gash that stretched from his guild mark to the opposite hip. "Virgo, please. I need you." The spirit appeared opposite of her and immediately took charge in bandaging the lightning slayer.

"Princess, you should try to get him talking, Distract him." Lucy nodded and looked back up to his face and lifted his head so that it rested on her lap.

"Laxus, can you hear me?"Her voice was gentle and he wanted so bad to tell her, to see that smile he always saw when she was at the guild.

Laxus felt his mouth open but heard nothing until he felt the freezing burn of disinfectant on his stomach. "Shit!" he hissed and tried to sit up only to be forced down by Lucy pushing his shoulders. Having control of his body again, he opened his eyes and looked up at her shining brown eyes. "Lucy," he could barely whisper.

"That's right," she chuckled, "I'm here. Just focus on me, okay?" He nodded and when she smiled down at him, his breath hitched. There it was, that smile she shared with everyone, only this time it was all his. He wasn't sure why that made him happy but it did and he didn't dare question it. Instead he closed his eyes again and nuzzled her lap, picking up traces of jasmine and honey mixed with her natural scent of sweet strawberries. He stopped and looked back at her when she started laughing. "Slow down, Sparky. You haven't even taken me on a date yet."

"Aren't you supposed to keep me distracted, blondie?" He hissed with clenched teeth when he felt the spirit touch tender spot.

"You're in no condition for that kind of distraction. And like I said, you haven't taken me out yet." Laxus watched her eyes soften then, "What happened Laxus? My client told me about the wyverns that were in the southern part of the forest but I really didn't expect to see them here."

"My team and I took a job just north of Akane to clear them out and drive them east. There were three but one fled so I left my team with the other two and tracked the one. When I caught up to it there was another one with it."

Smiling at him again she shook her head. "Idiot dragon slayer."

"Princess, can you sit him up? He still needs bandages."

"Thanks Virgo, I'll handle that. Would you bring my pack over here? It should be somewhere around here." Laxus hissed as she pulled him to a sitting position and started to wrap his stomach. He was struggling to hold himself up and the way her slightly calloused hands glided over his skin made it hard for him to focus. "You can lean on me, Laxus. I'll hold you up," she whispered. She shifted after she felt his weight shift and resumed her work. She couldn't see what she was doing anymore but was able to finish wrapping him thanks to the gauze Virgo had applied already.

"Your pack, Princess. Is there anything else you need?"

"That will be all, Virgo. Thank you for your help." Lucy shifted Laxus and moved him back to the ground with his head on her lap again. "Laxus, where is your team now?"

"South. I expect at least Bix and Freed to have followed."

"Okay," she said reaching into her pack, "I'm calling your team."

"Thanks, Lucy."

"You can rest now, Laxus. I'm with you," she whispered and absently ran her hands through his blonde spikes until his breathing evened out. Each time he took a deep breath, he stuttered and Lucy took a mental note to make sure that he took something for the pain when he woke up. Picking up the lacrima and looking to the sky Lucy sent a small pulse of magic into it waiting for an answer.

Freed and Bickslow were following what signs they could find left behind by the missing wyvern that Laxus had gone after ahead of them. After walking for hours the two decided to stop for a small break when Freed felt a familiar buzzing from his coat pocket. He quickly pulled it out and answered it, not expecting to see the face on the other end.

"Miss Lucy?" he asked confusedly.

"Oh good, Freed! Where are you? Is your team with you?"

He looked over at Bickslow who moved closer so that Lucy could see him. "Hey cosplayer. Evergreen is waiting back in Akane for us to call her."

"Hey Bix," she happily greeted, "Well you guys might want to call her so she can get your reward and head home. Long story short, I ran into Laxus and your missing wyvern. We're good here though, the beasts are down and out."

"Beasts? But Laxus only chased after one."

Lucy nodded, "Apparently it found a friend. Laxus had one down when I found him. I'm guessing they got the jump on him, he's pretty beat up. He'll be fine after some rest," she assured his teammates

"I see. Are the two of you safe?"

"Safe enough for now. There's a storm closing though. We're in a clearing just south of the forest's edge closer to Clover Town. That's where I came from. Look for Belladonna plants, they're surrounding the clearing."

"Deadly nightshade?"

"Exactly, Freed. Do you see any near you?"

"I don't."

Lucy huffed thinking of what she could do to help them find her and their teammate easier when an idea came to her. "Freed, how well can you guys see the sky?"

The two men looked up at the grey clouds overhead that they hadn't noticed before. "We have a clear view, Lucy. Why do you ask?"

"I've got an idea. Don't move." The two looked at each other and shrugged, waiting for Lucy to speak again. When they heard her speak again they looked at the lacrima in awe. "Stardress, Sagittarius!" They watched her glow in an ethereal light as a bow appeared in her hands and she aimed at the sky before releasing a single glowing arrow.

"Lucy, hang tight. We're on our way to you now," Freed said excitedly before he and Bickslow started off toward the beacon Lucy had fired.

Lucy cut the connection from the lacrima and returned to the sleeping man. She watched his even breaths and ran her hands through his hair once more, waiting for the storm in the clearing.