Chapter Seven

She was in the middle of a white clearing.

That was Lucy's only thought as she stared at her surroundings. All she could see was that weird whiteness. There were no shadows, only this white, vastness. It was almost light, but not quite. It was too pure to be light. If anything, Lucy would've thought she was blind. But that wasn't possible, unless using Unison Raid had rendered her incapable of using her sight. But then what about Natsu? Would she be able to hear him? ...unless she had lost the ability to hear as well. But then, what about feeling him?

Lucy took a deep breath and closed her eyes tight. To her relief, she could see that red in her eyelids, where the light wasn't able to get through. She opened her eyes again, holding her hands in front of her. With a sigh of relief, she realized she had all her keys at her hip. At least they were safe.

Now, she had to find Natsu.

She looked down at her feet, perhaps on instinct or some other feeling (a sixth sense?) and frowned. Why did it look like a gray fog was on the ground? Or... was she sinking?

She looked up again and nearly gasped. In front of her was a large door-even bigger than the ones her childhood home had. It was suspended in the air by seemingly nothing and they seemed to go on into the sky, higher and higher, never ending...

Lucy took a step closer to it, utterly captivated by it. She reached a hand out, as if to touch it. And she was planning on touching it.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Lucy."

Her breath caught in the back of her throat and she stopped dead. Lucy stared at the doors with wide eyes, wondering if they were talking with... her voice. She dug her fingers into her palm, just to stop the tears from forming into her eyes and gritted her teeth together.

"Can you read me this?"

A smile. A flash of blond hair. Her legs hanging over the side of her parent's bed, unable to touch the ground.

" 妈妈 ! 妈妈 ! (Mama! Mama!)Teach me how to summon the star people! Please!"

Laughter.

And, suddenly, she wrapped her arms around herself.

"No, Lucy..." she whispered to herself and shook her head. "It's possible. Your mother is dead."

"And I'm sorry about that."

Something wet trailed down her cheek and Lucy brushed it away with her hand roughly. No. This was just a dream. Just a horribly wonderful dream and she would wake up from it in a few moments. Yes. All these months had been a dream-she would wake up in her bed back on Strawberry Street, and Natsu would be in her bed with her. She would kick him out of her bed and he and Happy (who had been sitting at the base of it) would look at her and grumble about how she was a weirdo. Then Lucy would tell them about this dream and they all would laugh about it and go to Fairy Tail for their next adventure, whether that be dodging flying tables or fighting monsters.

There was a hand on her shoulder suddenly, so warm and so solid. But Lucy had to shake it off. She spun around and there was her mother. Standing there. Right in front of her. Real. And solid.

Lucy's breath caught in her throat again and her eyes blurred. There was a door behind Layla, just like the former. But Lucy didn't care.

"What... mama? Is that really you?"

She smiled, and Lucy noticed that her hair was out of its customary bun and flowing down her shoulders. She was wearing a plain white dress too, that swept the 'floor' that was neither hot nor cold.

"It is, Lucy."

"But, you're dead."

"Oh yes." She replied matter-of-factly.

"Does this mean I am dead too?"

Lucy wrapped her arms around herself again. She didn't want to be dead, not really. Sure, she missed her parents, but she had all of Fairy Tail and she loved them. Levy with her book obsession, Gajeel with the way he sang horrible songs for her and called her nicknames. Erza and her love of cake. Wendy and the way she would smile at her and agree to help. Gray and his annoying stripping habit. Mira and her matchmaking attempts, Lisanna and her gentle reassurances, Elfman yelling 'man', Warren scaring the heck out of her with his telepathic messages. Even Juvia always mistaking her for being her rival in love. And little Asuka and Laki. She missed Lily, and Charle, and Happy, and Vakoo and Nab and... everyone.

And she couldn't even begin to describe everything she loved about Natsu.

"No," Layla finally answered.

Lucy frowned. "But how? You're standing here in front of me."

"I don't know."

"Well then... where are we?"

Layla looked up and Lucy copied her motions. It was more of a bright mist, if anything. As if they were standing outside of the realm of time itself. And they probably were.

"We are in the flat between life and death, I suppose. We are everywhere and nowhere. We are time and yet we exist outside of time."

Lucy let her arms hang down by her sides as she frowned. "That's... confusing."

"It is, isn't it?" Layla laughed slightly.

They fell silent for what seemed to be a long time. Just standing there, looking at each other. No words needed to be said, at least, not for the moment.

"How am I here, then?" she finally asked. Layla tapped her finger against her lips, clearing thinking about the question hard.

"I believe when you and Natsu did that Unison Raid, you triggered one of your magic seals locking your magic. Zeref sensed this, and panicked. He inevertedly sent you here."

Lucy's eyebrows funnelled together. "Magic seals? And how do you know about Natsu?" She understood the last part of Layla's answer though. It made sense.

"You're far more powerful than you realize, Lucy." Layla said, looking at her solemnly. Lucy tilted her head a little, confused despite herself. "I don't think any of us know even a fathom of your true power, and we won't until you discover it within yourself."

"But I've always been so weak compared to the others..." Lucy looked down.

A hand tilted her head up and Layla smiled. Lucy wondered if Layla ever smiled this much back down on Earthland.

"You're not weak, Lucy. You are far from it. Your strength lies in strategy and cunning-your mind. You're not a powerhouse like Erza, or Gray, or Natsu. You're the support behind the group, like Wendy." Layla's smile suddenly changed, and a devious sparkle lit her eyes that reminded Lucy a little too much of Happy. "And I know about Natsu because I've watched over you. I have to say, you two do make a cute couple..."

Lucy managed a weak splutter of denial, but it even to her ears, it sounded half-hearted. Too much had happened between her and Natsu for them to be considered 'just friends' anymore. Her feelings for him ran too deep, and she was sure it was the same for him. She just knew somehow. But she didn't push him. She had waited for eight, almost nine, years now. Lucy could wait a little longer.

She sighed and bit her bottom lip, looking at her mother thoughtfully. "July 7, 777. You died and the dragons disappeared. That can't be a coincidence."

"No," Layla sighed and tapped her fingers against her upper arm. "It wasn't. Tell me Lucy, do you believe in fate? Or destiny?'

She tilted her head, "I'm open about it."

"Well, since the dawn of time, it has been, fated, if you will, for me to die on July seventh. For Igneel and the rest to disappear. It's been fated that Acnologia and Zeref will rise..." Layla chewed her bottom lip, as if she was debating about something to herself. "And, there's something else we can't see, Lucy. I don't know what it is. It's shrouded from our vision."

Lucy smiled at Layla and took a step closer. "It's alright, mum," she said. "We will deal with it when the time comes-Natsu taught me that sometimes, it's better to just worry about the present and the foreseeable."

Layla smiled sadly and brushed a hand through Lucy's hair. "How did you become so brave, Lucy? I remember the days when you were still scared of thunderstorms and hid under your father's desk."

Lucy grinned and showed her Fairy Tail's mark on her hand. "My friends give me courage."

She beamed. And Lucy remembered a very important question. "If I'm not dead, then can I go back to the land of the living?"

Her mother's beam softened into a smile. "It is all up to you, Lucy."

Lucy let out a sigh as she stared at the two imposing doors, towering over her small figure. But she already missed being alive. She missed Happy, and Natsu. And she wanted to get a chance at... whatever they had. She wanted to live.

She and Layla looked into each other's faces for a long moment. And then Layla stepped aside, clearing the way to the door behind her, where, somehow, Lucy knew that would lead her to life. She walked over to it, not exactly feeling. She didn't feel sad, but she didn't feel happy. She only felt, content?

Lucy suddenly spun around, and stared at the realm. There was nothing here, other than the doors, the eerie white mist and her mother. In fact, now that she thought about it, they reminded her of the doors to the Eclipse Project.

And, a single question popped into her mind, one that she knew she wouldn't be able to look up in a book.

"Tell me one last thing," Lucy said, and for some reason, she felt she didn't need to shout. "Is this real, or is this happening in my head?"

Layla beamed at her, and her voice sounded loud and strong in Lucy's ears even though the bright mist was descending, obscuring her figure and the doors.

"Of course this is happening in your head, Lucy, but why should that mean it is not real?"