All rights to Fairy Tail belong to Hiro Mashima.

A bell chimed in the door, alerting everyone in the facility that someone had entered the building. The two people, a young couple by the look of it, stood next to the receptionist's desk while she sent one of the workers to check if there were any empty seats. It was a particularly busy Friday afternoon, mostly because the local high school had their day off today and it was their favorite place to go. Despite the big rush, the kitchen staff, which consisted of the owner and her most trusted friend, still managed to get all of their dishes out on time. The blonde owner worked like a professional, even though it was only her first year owning the restaurant.

Lucy's Japanese Bistro was a restaurant whose food was a delicacy and didn't come too overpriced. Though Lucy herself was not Japanese, she was born and raised there for eleven years before she and her family moved back to Fiore, where her family was originally from, so her father could pursue his business. Now, the 26-year-old owned the small establishment by herself, making it her life goal to give her customers gourmet food for a low price. It didn't only have good food, but it was also a beautiful sight. While it wasn't a very big area, the restaurant screamed traditional with beautiful pastel-colored screens of cherry blossoms and nature, ebony floorboards, hard wood kotatsus (low Japanese tables) and decorated golden pillows, and murals depicting folklore from both Fiore and Japan.

"Yellowtail Sashimi Special!" She yelled and put the dish on top of the glass counter in the kitchen for one of her few waiters to take. Her doe brown eyes closed as she breathed a heavy sigh before getting to work on the next dish.

"Lucy, please calm down. You will end up being sick again from how much you're overworking yourself." The silver-haired beauty said from beside her, finishing up on the seasoning of some unagi. Lucy looked over towards her.

"Don't worry about me Yukino, I'm fine." The woman, referred to as Yukino, pouted. She was, in Lucy's opinion, the sweetest girl to ever walk the Earth. When she was being cantankerous and moody, Yukino sat through all of that, giving her a much needed pep talk or just listening to what she had to say. Even though Yukino was three years younger than her, she was still her best friend, which is why Lucy trusts her to manage the kitchen beside her. However, because Yukino was five months pregnant now, she had to be extra careful with what she did.

"If anything," Lucy started smartly. "I should be telling you to calm down. You don't want to put too much stress on yourself. For both your and my sake." Lucy joked. It was true, not only would it be bad for Yukino's baby, but her husband, Rogue, would surely come after her head if anything happened to his wife.

"If anything happened to you, Rogue would have to take it up with your brother." Yukino said as she finished up her dish and rung for the waiter to pick it up.

There were lots of words to describe Lucy's brother- loud, short-tempered, sporty, and most definitely protective. Sting Eucliffe Heartfilia was her younger adopted brother and had been her inspiration to do what she loved. It was Sting who convinced their father that she would not like business (while also indirectly insulting her by saying that she wouldn't be any good at it), so she owes him a lot. She did end up opening a business, but that also required the skill of a chef, which he pushed her to become. No, literally. He pushed her out the door of their house and didn't let her come back inside until she was registered in culinary school.

Sting was also Rogue's best friend. But regardless, if something happened to Lucy on Rogue's accord, her younger brother would see to it that Rogue was disposed of.

Lucy just shrugged at Yukino's statement, looking over at the time. "Yuki, it's two o'clock. You can go on lunch break now. I'll finish up the rest of the dishes."

"It's fine Lucy, I can hel-" A loud stomach growl erupted in the room, making Yukino's face turn a bright red and Lucy's eyebrow raise. "On second thought, I think you're right." Lucy just smiled and nodded.

It was around nine pm when they closed, and their last customer just paid their check before exiting into the cold autumn night. Lucy, Yukino, and their fur waiters wiped down the tables and cleaned up all of the plates. Before Lucy knew it, she and Yukino were the only two left. Yukino was waiting for Rogue to pick her up, and he must have been running a little late because it was raining outside.

Rogue entered just as Lucy finished washing her last plate, shaking off his water-drenched umbrella before looking up and smiling at his wife and leaning down to plant a kiss on her cheek. Rogue was at least a half foot taller than both Lucy and Yukino, with neck-length dark hair and a bang covering one of his vibrant red eyes. His fair skin tone matched Yukino's, but instead of giving him a pleasant vibe like it did her, it gave him a cold one, which also reflected his personality. Rogue was stoic, wasn't much of a talker, and rarely smiles if Sting or Yukino aren't in his presence. But still, he is a kind soul with just not much to say.

Rogue then turned to face her. "I trust that you're keeping her from working too hard." He said, and Lucy nodded. Yukino pouted and attempted to hit his chest, but he caught it and put both of their hands on her stomach. "Come on, the rain will only get worse." He told her, and she nodded, opening his umbrella. He turned back to face her. "Have a good night Lucy." He said.

Lucy gave a slight wave of her hand. "Likewise." And then they were out the door.

Lucy went to the back of the restaurant, which had a large wooden door that had the words 'AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY' one a large yellow sign on the door. Lucy took out her key from the sleeve of her yukata and unlocked the door, pushing it opened and locking it behind her. Behind this door was a small hallway that led to a living room, and also led to her bedroom a little further down. This was her favorite part of working where she did, her house was built into it!

Her living area was simple, yet cozy. The wooden floors were of the same material as in the restaurant, the walls were painted different neutral colors including grays, beiges, and whites. In her living room, there were two cream-colored couches face opposite to each other with a glass coffee table in the middle. The rug beneath them was one her mother had knitted her. It was round and had two swirls, one being black and one being white to represent Yin and Yang, without showing the actual symbol. In the corner of the room, near a second door that led outside, was a beautifully potted white orchid.

Her bedroom was also small, but it was able to fit her bed, a desk, a thin bookshelf, and a dresser, so she was content with it. Contrasting with the rest of her house, her room walls were colored a dark teal, and her bedding ranged between almost all of the shades of green. The desk was wooden and painted white with a cushioned chair next to it and a chandelier-like lamp on it. Her bookshelf held everything from different types of cookbooks to fantasy. It wasn't much, but she loved it. If anything, Lucy didn't need anything extravagant like what her father and brother owned to be happy. This simple life of hers was exactly how she wanted to live.

However, Lucy was about to find out that her life won't be so simple anymore.

Lucy woke up to the sound of chirping birds outside of her window and the sunlight streaming in. Unlike the girls in the movies or books, she did not stretch gracefully and welcome the new day. She groaned and messily threw the pillow over her head to try to go back to sleep. Some time last night, since she was so tired and she couldn't remember when, she had changed out of her cotton yukata into some old shorts that she probably stole from her brother and an oversized baby pink t-shirt.

The blonde peaked one eye opened and looked at her electronic clock, and seeing that it was almost eight, she decided to get up. Lucy rotated her neck a couple of times before she heard a satisfying crack. She lazily slipped out of her bed and made her way over to the bathroom, where she quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face before making her way over to the front of the restaurant to set the tables. If anyone looked through the transparent front door, they could see her in her night clothes, but she didn't care considering that the bistro does not open until 11:45 and the door wasn't facing a street. In fact, the building is actually a little secluded. It was neighbors with a road that traveled north on one side, but the closest building to hers was the high school which was about a quarter mile away.

Lucy set all of the tables, double moped the floor, washed the dishes once more, and then checked to see if she had all the ingredients she needed for the day. It then occurred to her that she was running out of the special herb that she uses to season all of her dishes. What that herb is was kept a secret from everyone, even Yukino who just uses it blindly without asking what it is. It's what makes the sushi and sashimi taste so good.

Luckily for her, there was an abundance of it in the forest near the restaurant. While the road next to her was on one side of the restaurant, Magnolia's signature forest was on the other. Stretching out over 3,000 acres, Magnolia Forest is home to some of the most beautiful plants and animals, and an often sought out camping spot for a lot of families. For Lucy, it was herb paradise.

Lucy quickly changed into some more appropriate clothes, put on her hiking boots and went out the door with her basket in hand. Once she reached the interior of the forest, her feet took her to her destination like autopilot, knowing exactly where to turn and what stream to follow. She crossed one of the thing logs that overlooked a small creek, where the water was barely flowing hard enough to be harmful if she had to cross it straightforward.

She finally reached the location she needed to and didn't waste any time to harvest all of the good plants. She would have to start buying the herb from the local apothecary now, since winter was rolling around in another month. But these herbs could luckily be preserved, so they would last her a long time.

Once Lucy had finished with her gathering, she made her way back to the creek so that she could go back home and prepare to open.

Snap!

The sound of a snapping branch alerted her that she wasn't alone. True, it could be just some harmless rabbit and there have been no attacks of people in these forests for decades, but she really couldn't be sure. She willed her body to turn around, ready to drop her basket and run if needed. But what she saw was different than what she thought she would.

There was man with pink hair, his clothes tattered and his face pale. He had a streak of blood running from his forehead to his chin and he was breathing heavily. The one hand that was supporting him on the tree fell to the ground, leaving the stranger face down on the floor of leaves as his breathing slowed.

Lucy breathed an audible gasp before rushing over to the man, her basket forgotten. When she got over to him, she slowly flipped him over, examining any wounds that he may have had. It seemed that other than the slight cut on his head, he didn't look too physically harmed. However, he looked completely exhausted.

"Hey, stay with me, okay?" She asked as she tried to keep him awake. The man peered through his heavy lidded eyes at her before groaning and closing them again. Lucy quickly took off her jacket and wrapped the sleeve around the cut on his head to the best of her ability. She tried her hardest to ignore the biting cold since she had a person to take care of. "Don't worry, alright? I'll make sure you're okay." She knew the man couldn't hear her, since he was already unconscious.

She tried to lift his bigger body up, but it was proven to be difficult because he weighed more than her. While trying to lift him up, she felt his toned muscles under the odd clothing that he was wearing, making her blush. Stupid Lucy! You have a person dying in your damn arms! She screamed at herself. She pushed herself to bring him back, and though it proved difficult, she eventually made it out of the forest.

However, this encounter was only the beginning.

So yes, I have started a new story because I was just so happy that I had finally got the SATs over with so I wanted to write something special. This is an idea I was harboring even when I was writing Ship of Lost Souls, so I decided to write it down since it seems like you guys like it when I write all of my ideas down. And I might or might not write an epilogue for SOLS, but we shall see.

Also, I just wanted to point out that Natsu is NOT a samurai or ninja. He is meant to resemble one, but because I myself am not Japanese, I don't want to say anything that might offend one's culture, and therefore I am just making him the "Ancient Fiorian Warrior".

It would be amazing if you could tell me what you thought in the comments section because I would love to hear feedback from you. Do you guys want me to continue this story or do you want me to scrap it?

I hope that everyone is having a beautiful winter day wherever they are! And of course, HAPPY HOLIDAYS!