Chapter 1 ~ 1 Way to Return to Fairy Tail

Rien Lobelia stretched her arms above her head as she walked back to the Fairy Tail. Unlike most of the women in the guild, Rien was neither busty nor 'a sexy shade of beautiful' as Sorcerer Weekly had once called them. Rien only stood at about 5'2, and her cup size was maybe pushing a C. The girl had burgundy eyes and freckles on her cheeks that still seemed to carry some baby fat despite the fact she was seventeen years old, as well as brown hair styled into a wavy bob with a variety of shades highlighted through it. The girl wore a round-neck dark red top under a red corset, which used a darker color to create a flower-esque pattern in the silk. In addition, it had a false zipper above her left breast, revealing a ribbed design. The corset was tucked into a pair of wine red, smock-belted high waist shorts. Her legs were covered with tights that were partially see through at the thighs to expose a cross design, and she wore burgundy timberland boots on her feet. Her only accessory was the pair of brass steampunk goggles on her head.

The girl's eyebrows furrowed as she finally reached the guild hall. It was… much larger than she remembered it being, although she shouldn't be so surprised considering it was Fairy Tail. Rien stopped just outside the door, taking a few deep breaths. She had hoped after being away for fifteen months her anxiety would settle but apparently not. It felt as though her heart was doing its best to beat straight out of her chest and blood rushed to her face. For weeks, she had dreamed of bursting into the guild like so many before her and announcing loudly that she had discovered something unbelievable, and that anyone interested should follow. Then the whole guild would rush after her to a sight they could only dream about and praise her for her work. No way was that going to happen now.

Instead of the grand entrance she had fantasized, Rien slipped through the doors quietly and slunk off to the side. Fairy Tail was locked into another one of their daily brawls, meaning not a single member had acknowledged her arrival. She noticed a gift shop off to the side or, more specifically, that there was absolutely nothing of her in it. There were, however, a few mages she didn't recognize, and she wondered if any of them had heard of her before. Probably not.

Finally, she spotted Mirajane at the bar and made a beeline towards her. Before anything else, she had to tell the older girl she was back and that her mission had been successful. Without doing so, she would never be able to take another job.

Not to mention, Mirajane really was her only friend in the entire guild.

As she approached, she noticed that the white-haired women was happily talking to a blonde girl sitting at one of the barstool. She was very pretty with her silky hair, warm brown eyes, curvy figure, and a generous bust. Rien almost lost her nerves as she walked towards them. Just when they finally whittled away and she resolved to turn around and come back at a less busy time, Mirajane spotted her. Her eyes widened comically, and her lips twisted up into a sweet smile.

"Rien, you're back! How was your mission?"

The brunette opened her mouth to speak, but upon gaining the attention of the newer member found her mouth had snapped shut without her consent.

The blonde turned towards her, tilting her head curiously as she studied her figure.

"I don't think we've met before. My name is Lucy." She greeted, holding out her hand. Rien gulped, flushing as she gently gripped her hand in return.

"I-I'm R-Rien. Rien Lobelia. Ummmm, N-nice to meet you?"

Mirajane giggled, patting the smaller girl's head. "You see Lucy, Rien struggles with talking to girls that she thinks are prettier than herself. It's really cute, don't you think?"

"Yeah!" Lucy grinned, glowing from the idea that Rien thought she was pretty. The poor girl shifted awkwardly.

"Don't worry Rien, Lucy is really nice." Mirajane supported. "So why don't you tell us both about your last quest?"

Rien nodded hesitantly and decided to start from the beginning. The girl tripped over her words as she described to Lucy the job request that had taken her fifteen months to complete; creating an updated map of the Tillman forest located between two mountains in western Fiore. The more she spoke the more comfortable she grew, and before she really knew what was happening she had taken out her own copy of the map she had poured her heart and soul into to show to the women as she explained. The area she covered was about thirty-four miles or so, not much for a mage passing through but a lot for a single mage to make an extremely detailed map of all on their own, including rivers, hills, dense sections of forest, and the different kinds of plant and animal life as well as where to find them. Due to the unknown, it had been important to the people hiring that a wide range of magic wasn't used to analyze the area- you never knew what it might stimulate. When she finally finished, she rolled up the map and nervously waited for one of the girls to say something.

"Wow. That's incredible! I can't believe you did that all on your own. You really are a Fairy Tail mage, huh?" Lucy asked in awe.

Rien blushed. She couldn't remember a single time she had been given such high regard before.

"I-it was nothing really. I happened to have a good magic for the job."

As Mirajane watched the two talk, she silently moved away with a smile on her face. If any woman in the guild could get Rien to be less shy around them, she had full confidence that Lucy was it.

"Eh?! What kind of magic do you use?"

"I-it's called Probability Magic." Rien began, relaxing a bit. She was horrible at talking to others, especially females, but her magic was one subject she was always happy to discuss. "It allows me to determine the probability of certain outcomes, and then format the variables in order to ensure the desired outcome I choose. In addition, I can see a variety of different outcomes and in a situation where there are many, and extinguish the possibility of certain outcomes through variable manipulation. So, for example, if I was on a rocky mountain path, I could use my magic to help determine my chance of survival and ways to improve it. I would analyze all my steps before taking them and determine which rocks would be secure in holding my body weight before moving, significantly increasing my chance of making it across. This whole process can take anywhere from five seconds to several minutes depending on the number of different outcomes. Oh, and I can give good luck or bad luck depending on the situation."

Lucy's jaw dropped, silent as she comprehended everything she had just been told. Finally, after several minutes, she found her voice.

"So, you can essentially see the future?"

"Erm, not quite…" Rien mumbled, shuffling her feet. "I can increase or decrease the chance of a possible future, but there's no way for me to tell if I'll actually be successful or not."

"That's...that's so…." Lucy stuttered for a moment, then her eyes grew wide and glittery and she grabbed Rien's hands with her own. "If I was walking home, and I was balancing on the edge of the river, could you make it so that I wouldn't fall in?"

Rien's eyebrows furrowed. Lucy watched, entranced as her burgundy eyes glowed red for a moment, and her pupils dilated as she stared at something Lucy couldn't see. When they faded back to their normal color, Rien smiled nervously.

"Currently, you seem to have a 23.81% chance of falling in. However, if you cast a simple balancing spell, such as statera, you could decrease the probability to around 3.94%. The spell doesn't account for a sudden force being exerted on you, but it will help you stabilize your center of gravity and return you to equilibrium if you find yourself slipping. I used it all the time while I was out in the wilderness. I ah, I could teach you if you'd like?"

The blonde squealed, clapping her hands in excitement. "Do you know how much laundry money that would save me? Rien, you're incredible! How come the others haven't told me about you before?"

Rien swallowed, lowering her gaze to the ground, while Mira looked at her with a sympathetic look on her face. Lucy frowned. "Am I missing something?"

"The other guild members haven't tried to get to know Rien, Lu-chan." The bartender explained. Lucy's eyebrows furrowed.

"Maybe you just haven't been here long enough! I know it took me a while to get to know everyone, but I've never met a more accepting group."

"Lucy-" Mira warned. Rien cut her off with a watery smile.

"I-I've been a part of the guild for 4 years now. Mira's the only one that really talks to me."

Lucy gasped. That didn't sound like her Fairy Tail at all.

"That can't be…" She murmured.

"Hey, Lu-chan, what are you doing over there? Natsu's challenging Gajeel to an eating challenge. Fire vs. Iron. It should be interesting, don't you think? Oh, Mira! You should come too." Levy invited warmly. Lucy was shocked. Levy was one of the nicest people she knew, so why hadn't she invited Rien?

"LUCY, C'MON, AND BRING MIRA WITH YOU. I WANT THE WHOLE GUILD TO WATCH ME WIPE THE FLOOR WITH IRON-ASS OVER HERE!" Natsu bellowed. There was a distinct growl as Gajeel fired something back, but Lucy wasn't listening.

"The whole guild?" She repeated, knowing Natsu would hear her with his dragon-slayer hearing. "If Mira and I go over there, that makes the entire guild?"

"Well, yeah! It's the first time no one's on a mission, so we just need the two of you and then we can get this challenge started!" Natsu answered cheerfully.

"Not that there'll be much of a challenge." Gray scoffed.

"Oh yeah, you wanna be next?"

"Bring it on, fire princess!"

"Hurry up bunny-girl, I got a match to win!" Gajeel guffawed. Lucy's hands clenched into fists and began to tremble, a motion that steadily grew stronger as the guild continually called for two girls and not three. She turned in her seat, looking at Rien who appeared to be holding back tears as she stared at the floor. Never had she seen someone look so small or so alone. Not in Fairy Tail.

"ENOUGH!" Lucy screamed, standing on her chair. She pointed at the crowd accusingly, hand still trembling as she did so. "WHAT ABOUT RIEN, HUH? HOW COME NO ONE ASKED ABOUT RIEN?!"

…

…

…

"Who?" Natsu asked, in absolute confusion. Lucy couldn't believe what she was seeing. The entire guild. THE ENTIRE GUILD. Every single one of them looked genuinely confused, as though they truly didn't know another member existed. They began to question one another, wondering if 'this Rien chick' was a new member. As the confusion continued, Lucy felt angry tears well in her eyes. This whole time, Rien was out in the wilderness, creating the most detailed map Lucy had ever seen, pouring her magic, pride, and love into it, spending countless hours alone in the woods, all in the name of Fairy Tail, and the guild didn't even know who. she. was.

Lucy had always idolized the guild. She loved them like no other. They were her family, her Nakama.

But not right now.

Right now, Lucy didn't know who she was looking at. All the stuff they had spouted about family, about how they would never leave anyone behind. And here was Rien, a hard-working member of 4 years, and no one even knew her name.

Lucy jumped off the stool and grabbed Rien's hand, pulling her up as well.

"L-Lucy?!" Rien stuttered in shock. Lucy roughly wiped away her tears and held out her hand.

"Mira, give us a mission."

"Lucy, what about your team?" Mira wondered, holding back a smile. It was about time someone stood up for Rien. She just wished she could have been a part of it as well. What Lucy was doing now, she should have done a long time ago.

"Until they remember what the meaning of Nakama is, until they bother to learn Rien's name, they're no team of mine." Then she turned to the other girl, shooting her a dazzling smile. " It's just us for now. Okay, Rien?" The brunette blushed, red overtaking her face as she nodded. Mira grabbed a paper off the wall next to them and showed it to the girls.

"This one seems fine. It's a mission a few towns south from here, in Hygem. Someone's been breaking into the regional archives at the same time every night, bypassing security. They've even had guards standing in the room, but no one sees a thing and nothing gets taken. The only reason they know someone was there is because the papers have been removed and scattered like someone was rifling through them, looking for information."

"We'll take it." Lucy decided, snatching the paper. She shot Mira a beaming smile. "We'll be back soon Mira. I expect a warm welcome!" She glanced over to Rien quickly before returning her gaze to Mira, who nodded subtly. She planned to talk to the master about finally addressing the Rien issue as soon as the girls were gone.

"I just have to stop by my house and grab my passport and some Jewel before we leave. Is that alright?" Lucy asked, tugging Rien out of the guild. She ignored the cries from Team Natsu, asking her where she was going and with who, and why she was taking a mission without them. She wasn't a little girl; she could do as she pleased.

Rien and Lucy made quick time through the streets of Magnolia. Rien, being too shy to ask Lucy about why she was standing up for her as she had, instead taught Lucy the balancing spell. The blonde managed it easily, strutting with confidence on the ledge next to the river. As they walked, Rien bit her lip in thought. Before, she had been so ready to expose her discovery to the guild, but now she wasn't so sure. Still, maybe she could show Lucy? Lucy seemed very trustworthy, not to mention the guild clearly cared for her a lot based on their eagerness to get her to watch the match and the nicknames she'd been given. She supposed if Mira trusted the girl, then she could too.

"Umm, Lucy? You shouldn't need your passport, but if you want to grab some money I won't stop you."

Lucy paused. "What do you mean? We aren't taking the train?" She asked in confusion.

The blonde saw a small smile curl across Rien's lips. "No, I have a better way. Faster too. You'll see."

Between Lucy pestering Rien on how they were going to get to Hygem and the excitement of realizing that Rien occupied the apartment below hers, the two girls had plenty to talk about. Rien found herself laughing at Lucy's expressions along with her methods of trying to get Rien to talk. Between that, she told Rien about how she was a celestial spirit mage, explaining her different keys and what each one did. The brunette was fascinated by the information. She'd heard of celestial spirit mages before but had never had the honor of meeting one. The conversation was relaxed and flowed easily, strengthening Rien's confidence in her decision to show Lucy her discovery. She also wondered if the two were becoming friends, which excited her immensely. Mira was her friend, and she had a few back homes, but it would be nice to actually make friends with the people in her guild.

"Okay." Rien decided, once they were in a field quite a bit away from Magnolia. "This is as good a place as any."

"Oh! Are we teleporting?" Lucy asked, eyes sparkling. Rien giggled.

"No! Why would we come all the way out here to teleport?"

"I don't know, maybe you wanted to keep it hidden!" Lucy argued, smile still on her face. "C'mon then, tell me!"

A full grin broke out on Rien's face. Fingers shaking with anticipation, she raised the brass whistle that hung around her neck up to her lips, inhaled deeply, and blew into it with as much force as she could muster. Lucy blinked, rubbing at her ears. For some strange reason, she couldn't hear anything. Finally, after ten seconds, Rien stopped. She huffed, still smiling as she got her breath back.

"Umm, Rien? I think the whistle is broken. I didn't hear- OH MY GOD!"

Seemingly out of nowhere, a large shadow covered their bodies. Lucy looked up, taking in the sight before her. The creature was probably about 20 feet long, with scaly green skin, large wings that spanned almost the same length as its body, huge claws on each of its two feet, and a long tail with spikes protruding from the end.

"DR-DR-DRAGON!" Lucy screeched, pointing at the creature. "TH-THAT'S A DRAGON!"

The creature landed in front of Rien, licking her face and nuzzling against her affectionately. Peals of laughter were coming from the brunette as she scratched its face, causing its tail to thump against the ground in excitement. It flopped over onto its side, exposing its belly for Rien to scratch there too. Lucy stared on in shock, barely registering the saddle that was attached to the creatures back or the bags resting on its side.

"Lucy, this is Wynn. He's a Wyvern. They're kind of like dragons in their overall biology and ability to use magic, but they're a lot smaller and not nearly as strong. You'll also notice that unlike dragons, he only has two hind legs as opposed to four total. His wings are attached to his arms if you could even call them that. Wynn's magic gives him control over wood and plant life, isn't that right sweetie?" Rien cooed. Wynn's tail thumped again against the ground, causing it to shake. Lucy stumbled forward, though she didn't fall due to the balancing spell, it was enough to knock her out of her shocked state.

"And you found him how?" The blonde asked weakly. What else could she say? She had never seen a wyvern. She assumed they must have been nearly extinct.

"Wynn lived in the forest I was mapping. You see, wyverns are extremely rare. In fact, it's predicted there are only four packs left, hidden in different parts of the world. Wynn was sick, which is presumably why he was abandoned by his pack. I took care of him until he was back in good health, and I guess he imprinted on me because he's been with me since." Rien finally stopped petting the creature, allowing him to return into a standing position. The brunette smiled warmly, taking an apple out of her bag which she passed to Lucy.

"Here, you can feed this to him. I promise he won't bite. Wynn loves fruits and vegetables."

Lucy's hand trembled as she took the apple, staring up in awe. Wynn was looking back at her, curious and slightly guarded. The blonde smiled. Rien really was incredible; hopefully, Fairy Tail would soon see that too. She could only imagine the look on Natsu's face when he saw Wynn for the first time. Feeling more relaxed, Lucy held up the apple. Wynn sniffed for a moment before gently taking it between his jaw. Then he stepped back and snapped his head up, tossing the apple into the air. Rien laughed.

"He's showing off for you." She explained, scratching his side as he happily munched on the apple. Lucy giggled.

"Aww, what a good boy." She cooed, holding out her palm. Wynn whined happily and rubbed his cheek against her hand, causing Lucy to laugh with delight as she scratched his face. The wyvern moved closer, nudging his forehead against hers.

"Oh wow," Rien said with aww, barely containing her grin. "He really likes you, Lucy. In fact, I think he's just accepted you into our pack."

"Pack?" The blonde echoed in confusion. Wynn seemed to purr as he lifted his head, letting Lucy scratch under his chin.

"Yes. Like I said before, wyverns travel in packs and there's an estimated four left in the world. It's in their nature to form groups because it makes travel safer since they can look out for one another. Wynn and I travel together now, and we look after each other. As far as Wynn is concerned, that makes us a pack. Now you're apart of it too. Congrats, you just got yourself a guardian wyvern." She rattled. Lucy beamed at her, causing Rien's heart to warm.

Yes. Lucy was definitely a new friend.

"Oi, Mira, where'd Lucy go? If you tell us now, we'll still have time to catch up with her." Natsu asked casually, trying to hide his confusion. It'd been a long time since Lucy had gone on a mission without him. Sometimes they'd go without Gray or Erza, but she'd never left without him.

The dragon slayer was surprised at the hardened look that had come over Mira's face. "I'm sorry Natsu, but Lucy and Rien are going on a mission together, just the two of them."

"Who is this 'Rain' girl you guys keep mentioning?!" He growled in frustration, throwing up his hands. Natsu had been a member of Fairy Tail for years, and he'd never seen a 'Ren' around the guild, or whatever her name was. He was confident in the fact that if she was a member, he'd know about it.

"Excuse me," Mira said stoically, moving from behind the bar. She walked by Natsu without a passing glance, Natsu following after her. He knew better than to grab her because she'd probably use her demon strength to throw him into a wall, and he'd rarely ever seen her so serious. Instead, he decided to trail after her.

"Mira, C'mon, answer me dammit! Who are you talking about, and where is Lucy?!"

The white-haired barmaid marched straight into the master's office and slammed the door in his face.

End of Chapter

A/N: That's the end of chapter one! I know the timeline doesn't match up, so I suppose you can consider this an AU? I'm just trying to have fun with the story and the characters without worrying about what happened in the episodes, you know? Anyway, more to come with Rien's magic later. It's pretty confusing, I'll admit, but I think it's fun. Also, Rien's name is pronounced (Ree-en) Enough of this though, See you next time!