Sweet Starry Shadows

Her New Home

Sweet Starry Shadows

Chapter 6: Her New Home

Walking through the thick vegetation which seemed to be slowly pulling away to provide a hidden path for the group, Lucy watched as Ace and Yuuto occasionally point out a particular tree that was leading the way for them. The air around them fresh and crisp, she knew that she would love this new home of hers. There wasn't anything scary or daunting about it. In fact, it was alluring and calming - It was like as if it was recognizing her as its new owner rather than an enemy entering its territory.

Not knowing that she was smiling for the entire walk, she gasped when Sakura, Ace and Yuuto moved out of the way to reveal a clearing. There in front of her was a large open field with a small cottage sitting right in the middle in front of a waterfall. The grass lush and fairly tall in height, she didn't care that it was wild and untamed. With the grass looking like it has a life of its own, she knew that she would never trim them like what Master Makarov would do at the training fields.

Around the house, scattered and beautiful, were flowers blooming in an array of colours and sizes. It was beautiful to think that some place like this was hidden from the world and society itself.

This new place that she would soon call home was picture perfect. The waterfall has a gentle call, inviting her to relax in it. Surrounding the house was a forest that had secrets hiding within it. Maybe fairies with tails were inhabiting this place since it was just so perfect - No matter what may be hiding within those forbidden places, maybe they would be revealed once they grow accustomed to her stay.

"So, what do you think Lucy? Spectacular isn't it?" Sakura questioned, snapping her out of her thoughts to only nod in silence. Not trusting her voice, she listened to Sakura chuckle. "This place is where I call it Heaven's Field. A place untainted and forbidden from human corruption..." she explained. "You're free to call it your home -"

Snapping her head over to Ace, she turned to look at Sakura in confusion. "What do you mean?" she questioned before walking over to stand near the crimson. "Isn't this where you live to train?" she pressed on where the three looked at each other before looking at her with a smile.

"Lucy, while that may be true, we have another place here in this forest that we call home. That other place is where I share my life with my special one. We're always busy, so we don't often come to Heaven's Field. Please accept this as my gift," Sakura replied before pulling out a crystal rose keychain from her sleeve. "Take this. With this rose, this forest will open to you whenever you return home from visiting another place..." she added on, placing it on top of Lucy's open hand.

The girl taking a step back, she nodded to the blonde that was speechless.  "Please take care of this very special place for me," she whispered before turning to walk towards the path that they had just taken to get here.

Lucy reaching out, Sakura stopped. "Can you please train me?" she requested out of nowhere to which the two men widened their eyes to the sudden question.

The crimson frozen, she slowly looked over her shoulder to give Lucy a bewildered look. "Lucy, I can't do that," she whispered where the blonde looked at her in confusion for the girl's facial expression.

"Why so?" she whispered, watching Sakura's face pale. "I can't control my magic as well as you think," she replied.

The blonde feeling the slight shiver given by the crimson, she pressed on. "You're an S-Class mage, right? How about you train me a little bit before you leave?" she asked once again, hearing movement coming from the side where Ace was seen standing beside her.

The black-haired knight slowly removing her hand away from Sakura's shocked figure, Yuuto pulled his master to his chest. "Sakura can't control her power with the other elements. She may be an Elemental Dragon Slayer, she can’t merge them altogether into one to fight but rather uses them separately where water is her strongest and the others being her weakest," he explained which made Lucy look at Sakura with an unknown expression.

"Are you afraid that you would hurt me?" she questioned.

Sakura sighing, she turned to look at Lucy directly in the eyes. "I wouldn't say hurt, but rather kill. I have something called Blood Lust, and if I go beyond my control, I could potentially enter that state and go wild. Lucy, I am an untamed Dragon Slayer," she stated before holding Lucy's hand with such gentleness.

Slowly pulling them up to rest them against her forehead, she whispered. "I don't want to hurt you in any manner. You're important to me..." she continued before looking up to force herself to smile at her. "Please understand my situation. I may be strong, but I am flawed."

The blonde shaking her head, she pulled back her hands away from the crimson. "I need to get stronger Sakura. Please, even it's just physical training."

Sighing, the crimson tried to reason with the blonde. "Lucy-" Ace began where understanding the eagerness that Lucy was portraying, the crimson raised her hand up in front of her spirit that was going to reason in her place. "I understand then," Sakura said, interrupting Ace from rejecting Lucy's pleas.

The wolves looking at their master in confusion, they watched her smile to the girl so earnestly. Sighing, they both had no other choice but to agree. "We'll return back to our world then," Yuuto said before the two disappeared back into their gates.

Lucy smiling, she pulled the girl into an embrace. "Thank you so much Sakura..." she said as she snuggled into Sakura's neck. Listening to Sakura's chuckles, she pulled back and thanked the heavens for giving her such a good friend that was willing to help her even though she herself, was going through so many things such as her magic not being fully under control.

"How about you go and change into some proper training clothes. Within these seven months, I shall train you into becoming a lethal fighter using weapons and your own strength..." Sakura said.

"Aren't you busy with your mission?" she asked, watching the girl give out a long stretch. "Master could always wait for my reports. I cannot be tamed by them, I only listen to him," Sakura replied, walking towards the cottage.

Raising her brow, Lucy jogged after Sakura and began to walk at the same pace with her. "Who is him?" she questioned.

Her eyes on Sakura's smile, she looked at to Sakura's loving eyes. "He's someone that's very important and special in my life," she confessed before opening the door. "Welcome home Lucy," Sakura then said, changing the subject right away.

Lucy smiling, she walked into the wooden building and warmly smiled with tears in her eyes. "I'm home..." she whispered before walking around to look at the comforting home that was now hers to own and live in.

With a cottage that has two rooms, a study, and a large bathroom along with a huge kitchen. Now this place was indeed the perfect place for someone like her.

Jogging upstairs to enter her bedroom, she found out that her spirits were unpacked her stuff while she was outside talking to the others.

Feeling relieved, she walked over to her closet and pulled out a pair of shorts and a sports top. Quickly changing as Sakura waited for her downstairs, she jogged down to see Sakura nibbling on a sandwich. "Eat this before we head out," she said, holding out a plate with the other half sitting on it.

"Thank you."

Sakura began to chuckle, watching Lucy bite into her sandwich in confusion. "You don't always have to say thank you to me, you know?" she informed.

Shaking her head, she smiled down to her sandwich. "I can't do that. You're doing everything to help me adjust into this new life," she replied. She knew that Sakura was indeed busy with her job, but look at her, she was willing to stay just for her sake for seven months!

Thankful that Sakura was focusing on her body strength than rather her magic, she knew that the girl was taking Lisanna's words into consideration. She knew that Sakura was eager to make Lisanna swallow back her insults. She too knew that Sakura hated Lisanna's guts for insulting a nakama right in public.

Continuing to eat, Lucy glanced over to Sakura who was too busy looking down to her open hands. Her eyes watching Sakura's every facial expression, she knew that with her interactions with the girl, she too would help her feel confident about her flaws.

"No matter what... We're all not perfect with our magic," she whispered where Sakura snapped her head up. "Did you say something?" Sakura asked.

The blonde chuckling, she shook her head. "No, just reminding myself that I'll soon be a new person," she replied.