(Small note before we start the chapter. In Annalise's reality, her version of the anime Fairy Tail doesn't have the Infinity Clock arc or the, what I like to call, Celestial Rebellion arc. I did this so she wouldn't know immediately what to do in the situations when it was time to write for those arcs. I want to work on her maneuvering in unchartered territory, which would be storylines that she's never seen on Fairy Tail. And on another note, this last sentence is a message from me in the future, I have decided to change the doll's name to Stella. It just fit more to me.)

***

It was another one of those days where Annalise went to sleep as soon as she got home. She had to deal with both her jobs today. Sometimes, she would only have one job, but two parents who she usually babysits for went out for their anniversary so they needed her to watch their kids. These kids were the worst ones she's ever had to babysit. Don't get Annalise wrong. She loves kids... But these kids were a nightmare from hell. They loved to push her buttons and drive her over the edge.

Dealing with those kids after her job at the amusement park, which was a waitress in a very popular cafe, was something she would never want to experience again. She was already so tired and sore from moving around so much and having to socialize with people. It didn't help that she had to keep some kids in line right after.

The dream she had was much like the dream she experienced the other night. They even used the name she was given in the past dream. Annalise Heartfilia. It was weird. Did she want to be in Fairy Tail so bad that she subconsciously made herself dream about it? It was like she took the place of Lucy. Jude and Layla Heartfilia were her parents and she was their child in the dream. Annalise didn't think too much of it though. She just decided to enjoy the dream. Besides, it was just a dream. You never know when you might get to experience it again.

Time worked differently in her dream. One moment she was a baby and the next, which felt like only a few minutes had passed, she was a small child. Annalise wasn't a baby anymore. She stared at her child self in the mirror as her maids got her dressed into a pink dress. Today was apparently her birthday. Annalise always thought it was so cool that she and Lucy had the same birthday, July first.

From what she heard from the maids, her mother, more like Lucy's, was still alive. That was a nice thing for her. It would kill her if she had a dream of when she died. She was technically her daughter in the dream so it would suck. Losing the only mother she ever had. Annalise shook her head wildly at the thought. Come on, it was her birthday! Well, dream birthday... But still! Why worry about something that hasn't happened yet?

Miss Zapeto, if Annalise remembered her name correctly from the show, came over to the small girl with a big smile on her face. She had purple hair that was pulled back in a ponytail and brown eyes. "Come on, Anna. It's time for the party," She reached her hand out for Annalise to take and she gladly took it. From the few dreams she had, Annalise had a very good relationship with most of the staff that worked at the Heartfilia mansion. Miss Zapeto being one of the ones that she's closest to. She started to lead her to the door outside, "Are you excited?"

Annalise was practically jumping up and down, "Yes! Yes! Yes! I can't wait to have cake."

The kind woman chuckled, "What about your presents? Are you excited for those?"

"Well, obviously," The blonde girl nodded. A grin spread across her face, "But I'm more excited for the cake." She rarely ever had cake in her dreams. Her mother always said something about how she couldn't always eat cake. She said that it wasn't healthy and she had to eat other things that were good for the girl. So Annalise treasured the times when she was able to eat cake.

Now was the time for the festivities to begin. Annalise was sitting in front of her parents who were standing right in front of her. Her father was the one who was holding the three-layered, beautiful cake. It had four blue candles, that were lit, some fruits on top of the cake, and a card that said, 'Happy Birthday, Annalise' with a flower. The rest of the staff was gathered all around them with smiles on their faces.

Annalise's mom was also wearing a gorgeous pink dress. She looked so beautiful standing there. Annalise always thought that Lucy's mom was so pretty in the show. Layla Heartfilia was a very stunning woman. She had her long blonde hair tied back in a bun with two pieces framing her face. She stood tall while giving her daughter a close-eyed smile, "Happy Birthday, Annalise!"

"Thank you so much, Mommy, Daddy, and everyone!" Even though Annalise was mentally seventeen, she still couldn't help but use language children would use. She didn't know why. It was like something would come over her and she acted like a child again. Then it came time to blow out the candles. Annalise's father stepped down and held the cake still for the short girl while she thought of her wish.

Annalise closed her eyes tightly and wished with all her might. Please let this dream last a little longer. She just wants to feel this love more. The love she never got to have. The birthday party she never got to have. The family she never got to have. She didn't want this to end. There were cheers from everyone as Annalise blew out the candles.

After eating the delicious cake, it was now time for presents. Annalise was just as excited as she was for the cake. One thing that happened at her orphanage was that birthdays were never celebrated and you never got gifts. She had to work for everything she had now. This would be her first ever time actually receiving a gift from someone. A box with a huge bow was placed in front of her. Annalise practically tore the wrapping and bow to shreds. Everyone was laughing at her excitement. Inside the box was a doll. A doll with blonde hair, a slight blush on her cheeks, and a blue and white dress.

"Annalise," She looked up at her mother. Layla is staring at her daughter with that same smile from before, "Do you like it, Annalise?"

Annalise nodded rapidly, "Absolutely! She's the best present I've ever gotten," Also the only one, "She's gonna be like my little sister," She's always wanted a sibling. A lot of the kids in the orphanage had siblings that were also there, "I'm never going to let her go," She hugged it tightly to her chest with tears building up in her eyes, "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you..." Annalise said it over and over again. The girl's parents came over to hug her and she held onto them tightly. Please don't let this end. She doesn't want to leave this dream.

The girl's mother spoke while she hugged Annalise, "That's great. Be a good friend to her, okay?"

Since the doll was the only present she's ever gotten, Annalise was going to treasure her with her life. The blonde girl jumped up and down while holding her doll out in front of her, "What should I name you?" An idea hit her. "I got it! Your name is now going to be Stella." It was the first name that came to mind. It just seemed like the name of a person who would always be there for you and never leave your side.

The scene slowly shifted into something else. Something much darker than before. What Annalise saw in front of her was a dark a dreary sight. Big tears started rolling down her face. In front of her was a black coffin with a white crest in the middle of it. Jude Heartfilia stood on the opposite side of the coffin from Annalise. He was staring down at the devastating sight with clenched fists. A bouquet of purple flowers laid on the coffin.

It was like the girl's dream knew what she thought before. A while earlier in the dream, she said that she would hate to have to deal with the death of her dream mother, Layla Heartfilia. Then that scene shifted into Annalise kneeling in front of her mother's grave, still crying. The doll she had gotten was no longer in her grasp. She must've tucked it away since looking at it would remind her of her mother. Annalise could feel a painful ache in her chest as she thought of her mother. Why? Layla wasn't her actual mother. Why did she feel so sad? This was just a dream.

The girl eventually fell asleep at the grave of her mother. She had tired herself out by crying. That was when the girl woke up...

***

Annalise shot up in her bed with lightning speed. She was grasping at the fabric of her nightshirt where her heart should be. She still felt that horrible aching pain. Why was this dream affecting her so badly? Was it because it felt so real? It was so vivid. She could actually feel her parents' arms around her when they hugged her. She could feel the slight heat that came off of the candles as they were right in front of her face.

It was like the dream wasn't even a dream, but something that actually happened to her. Could it be that these dreams were more than just dreams? No, that couldn't be it. That would only be stuff in movies or anime. Annalise looked over to see the time. It was only four AM. She still has three hours left of sleep.

Laying back in bed, the girl let out another sigh. She covered up her body with the scratchy blanket all the way up to her chin. If she does end up dreaming again then please let it be a pleasant one.

***

It was like Annalise was asking for too much. This dream was a continuation of the other dreams she had. It was weird. Dreams aren't supposed to relate so closely with one another... But her's did. Anyway, it was probably months after Layla Heartfilia's tragic death. Jude, Annalise's dream father, had drowned himself in his work to forget about his wife's unfortunate passing. The warm and loving household that she got used to in her dream turned cold and distant.

That was why Annalise decided to try something. She wanted to cheer her father up and spend more time with him. She didn't remember a time when he came out of his office. The girl got help from some of the cooks to make a riceball. This scenario seemed familiar to the blonde, but she had no idea why... Oh, well.

Annalise made her way to her father's office with a bright smile on her face. She couldn't wait to give it to him. She hoped that he would enjoy it and start to spend more time with her. She desperately needed it after losing one parent already. The girl quietly crept into the office, trying not to make too much noise that would distract her father from his work.

Stopping in front of the desk, Annalise held out the riceball. It was actually really cute. She had drawn her father's face on it because she wanted him to feel happy that she thought of him. She giggled and said, "Daddy, look. I made a riceball and it has your face on it! I made it for you only because you haven't eaten yet."

The man only hummed while shuffling through the paperwork on his desk, "I'm busy right now," Annalise lowered the riceball a little. The smile on her face slightly fell. He was also so busy lately. Why did he never have time for her? "Come back later."

"Yeah, sure," The girl nodded slowly. She tried to smile to hide her disappointment. "I'll just leave it on your desk in case you ever get hungry," Annalise laid it on his desk. "You do know what day it is, right? It's a very special one!" The staff had reminded her of it this morning when she woke up. Her father wasn't saying anything so she spoke again, "It's my-"

She was cut off by her father yelling loudly. He smashed his hand on his desk, ruining the riceball the girl had made for him. Now Annalise realized why this felt so familiar. The same thing had happened to Lucy. Does this mean that she's living through Lucy's past in her dreams? Why? Annalise watched with wide eyes as her father shouted, "Annalise, don't you ever listen? I told you, I'm busy!"

The girl had shrunken in on herself, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bother you." Annalise felt like she wanted to cry at any minute. She always wanted to cry when someone yelled at her. It made her feel so bad.

Annalise slowly started making her way out of the door. She heard Jude let out a frustrated sigh, "Could you leave faster? You're being a pest," Annalise stopped after hearing the insult that was thrown at her. Her gaze went to the ruined riceball that fell on the floor. Her father must've noticed because he yelled, "I don't want to eat your silly riceball! If I get hungry, I'll call the chef. Now, go study your business lessons and stop hassling me. You hear me? No more interruptions!"

No one has ever left a room faster than Annalise did at that moment. All she wanted to do was make her father feel better and pay attention to her... Even a little bit of attention would've been fine. She didn't mean the negative type of attention though. Besides, today was her birthday. He didn't even realize that it was his own daughter's birthday.

The scene once again shifted. Annalise was riding a bike around the huge front yard they had. The staff had worked together to get her one. The girl was so excited that she hasn't stopped riding it since she got it. It was a little bit difficult for her since her body was so little. It took a little extra strength to use the pedals.

Annalise was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice that she was approaching a wall. She ended up crashing into it and skinning her knee badly. The girl didn't cry. She only winced and held her knee in pain. A lot of blood was coming from it. The workers came over to her as fast as lightning to check on her.

They had to pick the girl up and take her inside to dress her wounded knee. Disinfecting an injury was one of the worst pains in the world. Why did it have to hurt so much? They put a bandage on her knee and she was told to stay in bed so she didn't make it worse. The blonde girl let out a sigh of boredom. What could she do now? Maybe she should just sleep. So Annalise did... Only to hear that god awful sound.

***

That's right. Her alarm went off again. Annalise opened her eyes groggily and reached over to turn off her alarm. After she did, she winced at a sudden pain in her knee. She moved the blanket and was shocked by what she was seeing. The same knee that she hurt in her dream was hurt in real life too. It looked like she skinned it against concrete... Which she did in her dream. The girl was in complete shock.

There was no way that she could've hurt it this bad in her sleep. So that leaves one answer... But that was crazy. There's no way- Maybe it is possible... Everything in her dreams actually happened. They weren't dreams. She was living the same life that Lucy Heartfilia did.

Annalise's mouth dropped open in surprise, "You've got to be kidding me." She had to go through everything Lucy did in her dreams and she couldn't escape it until she went to sleep in that world. What the hell was she supposed to do about this? How was this even possible? Annalise had no idea what to do or think.