157Hello everyone! Welcome to my next multichapter fic! AN at the end, for now enjoy!
At first it was wonderful. She was home! Having never thought to see her family again-her real one, that is-every moment was magical. Mira smothered her in hugs and delicious food. Elfman threw her up in the air as high as he could, her wings allowing her to float back to the ground. And her friends, oh, her friends! She never thought she could miss them so much. Sure, they'd been in Edolas, but it hadn't really been them. The guild welcomed her home with open arms and she'd glowed.
And, of course, there was him.
Her very best friend, her confident, her protector. They wandered the forest together, reminiscing. She laughed as he and Happy ate boatloads of food and got into ever more ridiculous contests to make her laugh. He'd sit down by her at the bar and order a firewhiskey and they'd swap stories of the past few years. He'd grown over the years they'd been apart, but when he smiled at her it was like nothing had ever changed.
Except it had.
It was slow at first, the bitterness. It crept up when she wasn't looking. A joke about an adventure she hadn't been present for, a new face that to everyone else was familiar. The realization that faces that might be familiar to her did not hold the same personalities as in the other world. She'd cracked a joke to Juvia about Grey in both worlds having the same stupid bedhead after awakening under a guild table post party-and instead of a dry chuckle from the cool headed woman like she'd been expecting, Lisanna had spent the next hour cleaning up the flood caused by the over-emotional water mage. And then spent the whole day protesting that yes, of course Grey's bedhead was the most handsome thing ever, but of course she meant it in the most platonic way possible! She learned quickly not to be labeled 'love-rival.' By the end of it she was exhausted and irritated. Similar episodes with other members of the guild, both new and old, as she occasionally mixed up personalities or forgot quirks left her more and more convinced that the guild laughed behind her back despite all evidence to the contrary.
Mira smothering her with love became suffocating instead of warm. She no longer felt like floating when Elfman threw her into the sky. Instead, she mired herself in an ugly river of resentment for what she'd lost, unwilling or unable to see that she needed only to stretch out a hand for an entire family to pull her out of the muck.
Eventually few things really brought her joy. One was running through the paths of the forest, blood pumping, heart pounding, through the familiar trails. Mira's cooking in any world could make the most wretched soul feel content. And, of course, Natsu. His grin burned away the darkness she felt surrounded her, his flames brought light and warmth back. She wanted to always share in the happiness he carried with him like his own personal sun. Remembering their declarations as children, she thought that maybe it could be real and she could always share in his happiness. Weeks went by and the quiet hope she nurtured in her heart grew ever stronger.
Whenever she envisioned it though, a real house instead of a straw hut, white haired children with green eyes, a shadow seemed to get in the way. A blonde, large breasted shadow.
She knew that Edolas Lucy and Natsu had been in love. But everything there had been different. They'd been polar opposites and Lucy Ashley had beat Natsu up on the daily, for pete's sake! This Lucy and Natsu were friends, relaxed, always hanging out together. If everything was different, they couldn't be in love, could they? She held onto that thread, held it tight as she could, latched onto any declaration Lucy made about them not being a couple, and kept on soaking up Natsu's warmth as the rest of the world slowly turned cold.
The fact remained, though, that Natsu and Lucy were inseparable. And every time he walked away from her to spend the day with Lucy it felt a little darker. A little sadder. Lucy was nice, sure. But she took Natsu from Lisanna, and for that Lisanna ached. So when opportunity knocked, she answered. How could she not?
Ok, everyone! Hope you liked the teaser prologue to this story. FYI, this is a NaLu all the way. It is, however, a slow burn. Also, I adore Lisanna in canon; who doesn't? But I've always thought that her transition back from Edolas could not have been as easy as it appeared. It wouldn't be hard to slip down a darker path, and I want to explore that with her while we continue our journey through this story.
I'm hoping to update weekly on Tuesdays. Huge, massive shoutout to Lady Lutka, my beta! Everyone should go check out her work.
Next chapter is significantly longer and we'll actually get to start the plot, so see you then!