"It's almost been a whole month since we got here," Lucy said, clutching a trembling Plue in her hand. "Pun~" Plue mused philosophically. "Sometimes, I really wished I understood you," she shook her head.

"Call us anytime, we'll always be there for you," Leo winked at her flirtatiously. Wendy waved at everyone, crying and reluctant to leave. Carla chided her lightly her for doing so. Lucy still needed some time to get used to the feline's new human form. She was surprised that Carla even learnt Transformation Magic in the first place, but she knew that she shouldn't be, as Panther Lily had done the same thing, somewhat, at least, not to mention that fact that the white Exceed was incredibly smart. Lucy stared at the bracelet on her hand. It was black with nine coloured beads, each representing one of the planets. These beads were the planetary equivalents of Celestial Gate Keys. She still had to rely on the Neptune, Saturn and Jupiter one to transform, but she planned on learning how to transform on her own in the following year. She hadn't fully learnt the Gottfried spell either, but she planned on accomplishing that as soon as possible.

She had contacted with several other Silver Celestial Spirits as well, including the Gate of the Unicorn, Monoceros, and the Gate of the Wolf, Lupus. She got the chance to train with them and learn how to fully utilise them in battle when Capricorn let her off for one of the many days she spent training.

Lucy bade her goodbyes to her spirits, before Virgo opened the portal back to Earthland. Lucy wondered about how her fellow guild mates would've changed in the past six years. Natsu would probably still be as brash and violent as ever, Gray would be as prone to stripping as ever, and Erza would still be trying to break up their fights.

The three of them stepped through the portal. "Oh, Earthland, how I've missed you!" Lucy said, mostly to herself. They were in the forest where they opened the portal 24 days, no, six years ago. "So, are you planning to go back to Fairy Tail?" Carla asked. "No, I still need some time to train my powers. I'm want to face them when I've finished my training," Lucy said. Wendy nodded. "I still need to train my magical stamina," Wendy said.

They made their way to the train station. "So, why Lamia Scale?" Wendy asked. "I mean, it's the most sane guild that I know," Lucy laughed. "Sure, Sherry's in there, but I'd very much rather deal with her than Ichiya or the Trimen every day." They boarded the train bound for Hargeon Town, which passed by the town of Margaret, after buying the tickets and a map. Carla held the rolled up map in her hands as they sat down on the seats in their compartment.

Once the train began to move, Wendy started to feel a little dizzy. "So, how far is Lamia Scale from the train station?" Lucy asked Carla peering at the map in her hands. Carla was about to answer her, but she was interrupted by gagging noises. The two looked over to their companion, only to find her close to puking on the train. "Wendy?!" Lucy exclaimed in surprise. "You have motion sickness now?!" But that's never happened to Wendy before!

Wendy could only silently nod as she gasped and writhed in pain. "G-Grandeeney said... This would be an aftermath... Of learning all those spells... It's because... I've become a true... Dragon Slayer..." Wendy paused between her words to gag, almost passing out from the nausea. "Troia is out of the question for her now. She can't cast it on herself like this," Carla said, patting the girl on the back gently.

Wendy looked close to passing out, panting as she leaned onto the backrest of her seat, making Carla retract her hand. Lucy leaned forward and placed a gentle hand on the sickly girl's shoulder, hoping to at least provide some form of physical comfort.

"To answer your question, Lamia Scale isn't too far of a walk from the train station, and it'll only take us around twenty minutes to get there by foot," Carla answered before they quieted down to give Wendy some peace and quiet, in other words, an atmosphere more conducive for her recuperation. "At least it's only two stations away, I don't think poor Wendy could even survive the journey to Hargeon," Lucy pointed at the final destination of the train.

After thirty minutes, the train came to a full stop, much to Wendy's delight. The bluenette hopped off her seat enthusiastically, readjusting the backpack straps on her shoulder as she quickly got off the train, her feline friend chastising her and telling her to slow down, and the blonde trailing behind them.

It wasn't long before they reached Lamia Scale's Guild Hall. Wendy knocked on the door, waiting for a few seconds before it opened. A little girl, a few years older than Wendy, perhaps, stepped out of the door. She beared a remarkable, to the point of being eerie, resemblance to Sherry, Lucy realised. Her pink hair was tied together into short twin tails with a ribbon, and she was sporting a cute blue dress.

"Hi! How may I help you?" The girl asked cheerfully, smiling sweetly at the three of them. Wendy returned the gesture, and replied, "We'd like to join your guild! Is it okay if we come in?" The pinkette nodded enthusiastically, practically begging them to enter the building. She beckoned them inside, saying, "Come in! Come in!"

They stepped into the building after her, looking around at the interior. The Lamia Scale building was far more neat and tidy compared that of Fairy Tail, and the guild members were far less loud and rowdy as well. The contrast between the two was quite jarring, and Lucy needed some time to get used to it.

"My name's Chelia Blendy! What're your names?" the girl asked. "My name's Lucy!" Lucy waved at her. "Hi! I'm Wendy Marvell, and this is Carla!" The bluenette said, pointing at the white Exceed as she introduced her. "It's nice to meet you!" Wendy added.

"Wendy..." Chelia muttered as she seemingly began to contemplate deeply about something. Wendy tilted her head slightly, wondering what was going on in the girl's head. "Oh! I remember now! Wendy! You're the girl Lyon told me all about!" Chelia quickly ran over to grab Wendy's hand and shake it profusely. "I was so excited to find out that there was someone that used magic similar to mine!" Wendy gasped. "You use Sky Magic too?!" Wendy's face seemed to light up. "Yup! Sky God Slayer Magic!" Chelia nodded. "I've never even heard of that!" Wendy exclaimed in surprise, causing Chelia to giggle.

Chelia stopped for a moment, looking confused. "But I thought you joined Fairy Tail?" Chelia asked. "We left six years ago. We went to the Celestial Spirit World to train, so six years in Earthland only seemed like less than a month to us," Wendy answered, as they made their way to the reception table. "Wow, that's so cool!" Chelia marvelled. "Hey, Wendy, do you think you and I can be friends?" Chelia asked. Wendy seemed a little taken aback by the sudden request. "Um... But do you really want a friend like me?" She asked uncertainly. Lucy sighed. No number of training seemed to be able to help the girl boost her self confidence. "Oh, come on! That's no way to answer my question!" Chelia held up her hand, offering the girl a handshake. "Let's be friends from now on!" Wendy stared at Chelia, then at her outstretched hand, then back at Chelia. "Yeah! I'd love to!" Wendy smiled as she shook her hand. "How touching," Carla commented from the side, Lucy nodding in agreement.

"I heard that a couple of Fairy Tail members had gone missing six years ago as well, hadn't they?" Chelia asked, as they reached the reception table. Before any of the three of them had a chance to voice their confusion at the question, a new voice answered, "Yes, a large number of them, actually, including Natsu, Erza and Gray."

"Oh, Lyon!" Chelia waved at him. "What brings you girls here?" He asked. "Wait, hang on a second, what do you mean? Natsu, Gray and Erza are missing?!" Lucy asked, alarmed. Wendy stood there, wide eyed in shock, tears welling up in her eyes as Carla was left wondering what on Earthland was going on. "Did you not know? But how?" Lyon questioned.

"They left Fairy Tail six years ago. And they were stuck in time or something, so it's no wonder that they didn't know," Chelia realised. "How did it happen...?" Lucy asked. "Apparently, they were on the S-Class trials in Tenrou Island. They suddenly vanished six years ago, without a trace," Lyon responded. "No! That's horrible!" Wendy sobbed, her tears spilling out.

Lyon placed a comforting hand on the bluenette's shoulder. "I'm so sorry for your loss," he said solemnly. Lucy was shaking uncontrollably. She had wanted to see Natsu and Lisanna, leading happy lives without her, but they were gone. "I can't believe it..." Lucy mumbled. She had given up six years of her life for nothing. She had brought Wendy and Carla down with her too. How could she do such a thing to them?! Lucy released her pent up self loathing mentally. "The tomcat is gone...?" Carla muttered in disbelief.

Lyon and Chelia let them have a seat at the bar and gave them some time to cool down. A long time had passed until they had managed to fully calm down, or at least, that was what it seemed like to Lucy. "I'm fine, now," Lucy breathed. She just had to accept reality. She had to live with it. She did all that training, she had to bear with it. "Me too," Wendy nodded, Carla following suit.

"Now then, may I ask you why exactly you three are here?" Lyon questioned.
"They want to join our guild," Chelia replied. "Why our guild?" Lyon raised an eyebrow, sounding amused. "This guild seems like the most sane one out of all the ones I know..." Lucy said awkwardly, averting her eyes away from Lyon. Lyon said nothing more, beckoning for Yuka to come over to give them the insignia.

"Where and what colour do you want it?" Yuka asked. Lucy, Wendy and Carla all wanted theirs on their original spot. "Thanks..." Lucy thanked the blue haired man, staring at the new pink mark on the back of her hand. It reminded her of her old mark, but without the feeling of guilt that accompanied it. "The Grand Magic Games are coming up soon, could that possibly be a factor as to why you decided to join our guild?" Lyon asked, chuckling a little. "The Grand Magic Games?" Lucy repeated. "Was it something that started while we were gone?" Wendy asked. "It's a magic tournament where mages from different guilds compete to win the title of the Number One guild in Fiore. It comes with a monetary prize as well," Chelia explained. "Lamia Scale has been in second place ever since the games ever started. This year, we sent in both Jura and I, but we ended up being bested by Sabertooth, the current title holder," Lyon said. "Master Ooba is very competitive, but we've been thinking of sending in new faces next year," Jura said as he walked towards his new guild members. "Perhaps you three can try out when the time comes?" He suggested amiably.

"I'm afraid I'm not too suited for combat, unfortunately. I use Precognition Magic," Carla said. "You should try out too, Wendy! I'm thinking of joining next year!" Chelia exclaimed. "Of course! I'd love to participate alongside you!" Wendy nodded. "How many people can participate per guild?" Lucy asked. "Five people, however guild masters are forbidden from participating," Jura explained. "Understandably so," Lucy agreed. "How does Fairy Tail usually do?" Wendy asked. "Not as well as we do, I'm afraid. That's why I initially thought you joined us because of the name we've made for ourselves," Lyon replied. "They usually end up dead last as often as we do second."

Lucy's eyes widened. She didn't expect Fairy Tail to be that bad at the games. No, she was surprised that they didn't come first when Lyon mentioned the current champion. Sabertooth, was it? "It's likely because the guild members that had gone missing six years ago were amongst the guild's strongest," Jura said. Lucy's mouth flattened into an unhappy line upon being reminded of that. "Is there anything I need to do to try out?" Lucy asked, trying to divert her own thoughts away from the incident. "We usually judge by your usual behaviour in the guild, but I believe I have a faint idea about your performance. We'll see how much you've grown throughout the next year," Jura said.