Minerva and Lucy had met at the guild and were now on their way to one of the famous party planning stores in Fiore. As always, Nagi walked hand in hand with Lucy with Lily and Happy flying near them. Besides the five of them, another guest had accompanied them. It was Loki the Lion.
An hour earlier~
"Minerva, don't tell me you dragged us along so we can carry the bags for you?" Lucy asked.
Minerva smiled. "Of course! Why else would I drag you along?"
Lucy sighed. "I'm fine with tagging along and carrying the bags and all...but it's impossible for one person to carry it all. Besides, I don't want Nagi to carry anything. Happy and Lily can do it but they can't carry it forever."
"You have a point there," Minerva said thoughtfully.
"Is it okay if I summon one of my spirits?" Lucy asked. "They're really helpful in this case. When I went shopping before, I would always call at least one of them out to help me."
"That's fine with me. As long as they can carry it all," Minerva grinned.
Back to present~
As Lucy followed behind Minerva who was happily humming, she regretted ever coming along with her. Knowing her personality, she would probably buy out the whole store. Lucy sighed. They should've bought a carriage with them. Lucy turned around to look at Loki and gave an apologetic look.
"Sorry, Loki. For always making you do this," Lucy said.
Loki shook his head and smiled. "It's a pleasure to be of service to you. Besides, I'm sure Virgo also thinks the same way."
"If you say so," Lucy said as she chuckled. Thinking about how strong Virgo was when she lifted all the boxes and bags that she had bought from a department store. Loki and Lucy had begun chatting happily not realizing that soon, they were in front of the store.
"As expected of a party store, it sure is big," Lucy said in awe.
Loki and Nagi nodded their heads in agreement.
"Come on. We're going in," Minerva said as she waved them in. The staff immediately greeted them as they walked in.
"Welcome to Party Castle, Minerva-sama," they said in unison. Lucy raised an eyebrow at Minerva as she greeted them back with a smile. I guess she visits this place really often. Nagi was now running around, looking at all the goods they had. The place ranged from party hats to balloons to blow-ups like the bouncy castle.
"Mama, mama!" Nagi called out to Lucy happily. "Can I have a really big birthday party with this in it?"
Nagi was jumping on the bouncy castle and Lucy knew that he was indeed excited not only because of his facial expression but also because she new he never saw anything like it before.
"Why not? I'm fine with it. But your birthday is really far away, I'll organize a superb birthday party for you when your birthday comes at the end of the year," Lucy said as she bent down to Nagi's level.
"You promise?" Nagi said, eyes twinkling.
"Of course!" Lucy replied, nodding her head as she smiled.
"Yay!" Nagi yelled in joy as he went to look at the other fun things that the store offered. Lucy stood back up and looked around her.
"This really is a party castle isn't it? It's got everything you can ever think of that's related to a party," Loki said, coming up behind Lucy.
"It sure does, doesn't it?" Lucy answered back.
"By the way, should we go back to the checkout line?" Loki asked, pointing towards the reception desk. "It seems as if she already ordered what she's looking for."
Lucy looked towards where he was pointing and her eyes went wide with shock. In a matter of minutes, Minerva had already checked out everything and though some things were shipped back to the guild because they were impossible to carry, the amount of bags and boxes was huge.
"Minerva, you don't expect us to carry all of that do you?" Lucy asked, quite troubled.
Minerva turned around to face Lucy. "Of course you're going to carry it. What? You want me to carry it? Lucy, you are funny!" Minerva laughed. With a swipe of a card, everything had been bought.
"Nagi, Happy, Lily! We're leaving!" Lucy called out as she took up half of the boxes and bags as Loki took the other half.
"Mama, isn't that heavy?" Nagi said worryingly as he saw how high the boxes had toppled. He couldn't even see his mother's face anymore! "I'll carry some of it, Mama."
"Don't worry, Nagi," Lucy smiled at him. "I can handle this much."
"You sure you're okay, Lucy?" Loki asked, a concerned frown on his face. "If it's too heavy, I don't mind carrying a little more of it."
Lucy shook her head as she readjusted the bags and boxes in her hands. "I'm okay."
Loki and Nagi looked at her with doubt but they soon gave up trying to convince her to hand them bags. They exited the store and no doubt were there surprised looks and bewildered expressions from the pedestrians. Loki and Lucy just looked so out of place.
"You guys can go back to the guild and start preparing for the party," Minerva said. "Besides, you guys look soooooo awkward."
Loki and Lucy looked at each other with a nervous smile. Whose fault is that? they both thought. So Minerva and the others went their separate ways. Minerva going in one direction to buy a suitable gift for her father while Lucy, Loki, Nagi, Happy, and Lily went the opposite direction, back to their guild. As soon as they kicked the guild doors open, the guild members just sat looking at them, dumbfounded. All they could see in front of the doors was a ton of bags and boxes.
"Hey, guys~ Mind helping us out here?" Lucy asked from behind the stack.
Sting and Rogue were the first to respond as they each took from Lucy's pile and sat it down on a nearby table. Next they did the same with Loki's pile.
"I guess Minerva went all out again, huh?" Sting smirked.
"It must've been a lot of work," Rogue said, reminiscing the time where he and Sting had to carry stuff for Minerva.
Loki and Lucy chuckled. "We should start setting up the guild. Master's out right now so we should do this as soon as possible," Lucy said, getting back to work.
"It's the afternoon right now so he'll be back in about five to six hours," Rogue replied.
"I'll be leaving now, Lucy. If you need anything, just summon me. I'm at your service for 24/7," Loki said with a grin before he disappeared into thin air.
"Loki," Lucy said with a nonchalant face. "That just makes me never want to summon you again."
So the guild began getting to work. They started blowing up balloons and hanging up streamers and banners. About an hour later, a truck from Party Castle arrived with the large cakes and flowers. Lucy signed the form and got back to work again. The tables had white cloth over them, plates were stacked, and utensils were sitting next to it. The balloons had all been blown up with a few members causing ruckus here and there. Nagi had helped with making the balloon and flower arc using his levitation magic. In three hours, the preparation had been done and the guild was cleaning up the last specks of dust. Party poppers were ready and all that was left was for the Master to come back. Minerva had just come back from getting a present and much to their surprise, she had picked a rather neat gift.
"Well, I guess that's that," Sting said, proud of his work.
Rogue nodded his head in agreement as the guild gazed at the masterpiece they had created. They even hung a light-up banner outside with the words "Happy Birthday, Master Jiemma!" on it. Good thing it was dark so Jiemma won't notice it when he comes in. Lucy smiled and suddenly, she remembered something.
"I forgot about that!" Lucy suddenly remembered.
"What did you forget?" Sting asked, anxious.
"I'm going back out to get it," Lucy said as she hurriedly threw on a coat.
"Mama, I'm coming with you!" Nagi added, grabbing his coat and following his mother out the doors. The guild just stared on as they wondered to themselves what they had forgotten. Well, at least the sky was still bright outside.
As Lucy ran down the streets down the block with Nagi in tow, she skidded to a halt once she arrived in front of the place.
"Mama," Nagi asked. "Is the order that you placed yesterday related to Master's birthday?"
Lucy nodded as she headed into the store. It was the famous ice cream shop that the two had visited yesterday and while Nagi was licking at his ice cream. Lucy had ordered a massive ice cream cake and luckily, the owner that she was friends with agreed. Even though the sun was beginning to set in the horizon, there was still a large line of people waiting outside. Lucy had entered from the back, the bell rang, announcing her presence.
"Hey~ I'm here to pick up the order that I placed yesterday," Lucy said, her voice the sound of sweet honey.
"Oh, Lucy! Happy to have you back!" the owner exclaimed once he saw her. He was an old man of short stature with bushy white eyebrows and a mustache. His patisserie hat was big compared to his small round head but overall, he looked like a real patisserie. "I'm just putting the finishing touches on the cake and then I'll wrap it up nice and well for you!"
"Thank you very much," Lucy said, bowing.
"If it's for you, I'll gladly do this for you anytime!" the owner laughed with a grin. "And here, Nagi. This is on the house."
The owner gave a glass of ice cream soda to Nagi and Nagi glanced up at him, his eyes sparkling. "Is this really okay?" Nagi asked.
"Yep! This old man here has taken a liking to you! Lucy sure raised you well!" he said.
"Thank you so much!" Nagi exclaimed happily as he began sipping the ice cream soda. Lucy and the owner chuckled to themselves.
"Well, just wait here a little while. I'll call you once I'm done. It'll only take ten minutes," he said as he went back to his station and took up his utensils once again. Lucy smiled and sat next to Nagi, as they both waited. Ten minutes passed by in a flash and the owner came back out with the cake box in on a cart.
"Here you go! The ice cream cake that you had ordered. I put the words 'Happy Birthday, Master Jiemma!' on it just like you said," the owner smiled as he presented his work.
"Thank you. I don't how to repay you for this," Lucy said as she gazed upon the cake. It was a wedding ice cream cake and Lucy had ordered a wedding cake specifically since the guild was pretty huge.
"This is nothing! I'd be glad to take on any of your orders!" the owner said. "Now move along, you have a party to go to, don't you?"
Lucy smiled. "Thank you again. I'll pay at the front."
"Gramps, that was the best ice cream soda!" Nagi said, returning the glass to him. The owner patted his head.
"Anything for you and your mom, little one. Have a nice day, you two!" the owner waved at them.
"You, too!" Lucy and Nagi both replied. They went out the back and to the front with Lucy carrying the large box in her arms, careful not to harm the cake. As they finished paying and turned around, their eyes met with that of another. It was Fairy Tail.
"Lucy..." Lisanna finally said.
Standing in line was Natsu, Gray, Erza, Lisanna, Mirajane, Laxus, Juvia, Gajeel, and Levy. It seemed like it was a day out for them. Mirajane noticed the large wedding cake in her hands and smiled to Lucy.
"Is there a party going on?" Mirajane asked.
Lucy nodded her head. By now, she didn't mind coming face to face with him.
"Where's the party being held a-?" Mirajane stopped as she noticed the guild insignia on Lucy's hand. It was the Sabertooth insignia. It was placed on the exact same place that her Fairy Tail insignia had been.
"You joined Sabertooth, huh?" Natsu said, looking at Lucy. He had finally managed out his words after looking at Lucy for a while. She really did become more beautiful.
"Are you having a good time, there?" Lisanna asked, curious.
"Yeah. Everyone's nice. Today's Master's birthday so we're having a big celebration in his honor," Lucy replied.
"As long as you're enjoying it, that's fine," Laxus said as he came up to her, patting her head.
Nagi glared at him and lightning flickered between the two of them.
"Don't you dare touch Mama," Nagi said angrily.
"What makes you think you can say that to me? I can touch anyone I want," Laxus said. Lightning flickered again between the two of them and they turned away from each other with an angry pout.
"So you joined a weaker guild, huh?" Gray said.
Lucy sighed and frowned at him. "Is that all you have to say every time you see me," Lucy said. "And for your information, Sabertooth is way more powerful. At least they don't play with people as if they're just spare change."
Gray had no words to say at that.
"How'd you get that?" Erza asked, pointing towards the cake. "Doesn't this place not accept personal orders?"
"I have my connections," Lucy simply replied. "If the six of you just came here to pick a fight, I'm leaving. I have better things to do."
As Lucy began walking away with Nagi by her side, Natsu threw fire at them. "Roar of the Fire Dragon!" he screamed.
As the fire disappeared, Lucy was unharmed with Nagi in front of her. The cake was floating in the air, unharmed by the fire just now. Nagi glared at the person in front of him. As for Lucy, she was unhappy beyond imagination. She had completely stopped smiling. Her eyes were now golden colored and her hair was floating a little by her side.
"Honestly, I didn't plan to pick a fight on the behalf of having some of my friends by your side but doing such a thing for no apparent reason," Lucy said, turning around to face them. "Is what angers me."
Fairy Tail backed up a little as Lucy took hold of Natsu and levitated him in the air. He felt a hand wrap around his neck and began clutching at his neck. Lucy wasn't touching him directly but she had used the magic around her to create an invisible hand.
"Natsu Dragneel. When will you ever stop messing with my life?" Lucy stared at him. "Know the difference between your magic and mine. You're a thousand years too early to try to beat me."
Lucy then threw him on the ground with such force and impact, that once he landed, it created a dented hole in the stone paved street. Lucy's eyes stopped glowing and her hair went back to her side. The cake box landed back in her hand. She took Nagi's hand as they began walking away.
"Now if you will excuse me, my guild is waiting for me," Lucy said as she walked through the portal she had opened. Nagi turned around to glare at them before entering it. They then disappeared and the portal vanished. Natsu laid there, sprawled on the ground. The pedestrians were snickering and talking amongst one another as they looked at the hopeless mage. A girl from Sabertooth had just beaten Natsu Dragneel, one of the strongest mages in Fairy Tail, and with such ease, too. Surely this showed that Fairy Tail's position as the strongest guild in Fiore was in danger of losing to Sabertooth.