369 Lucy's Arrival

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Mermaid Heel Headquarters.

June 2, x785.

"So, I heard you had a pretty shitty day." Anko said, approaching Alfonzo's table in the Mermaid Heel guild hall after Tsunade and Ritsu heard his explanation of why he was gone all afternoon.

"Why do all of you have to use such foul language around Wendy?" Carla asked in an irritated tone.

"Carla! Stop treating me like a little kid!" Wendy shouted, finally getting fed up with Carla's coddling. "I'm older than you, remember?"

Surprised at Wendy raising her voice, everyone turned their attention to her with shocked expressions on their faces. In response to all the attention, Wendy could not help but blush fiercely.

"Anyway, I don't need you to baby me, Carla." Wendy said as she stood up from the table before running out of the guild hall.

Meanwhile, Carla could only stare at Wendy's retreating back with a dumbfounded expression on her face.

"Wow!" Anko exclaimed in surprise. "I really didn't think she had it in her. She's usually so quiet and polite."

"Well, she's at that age, after all." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. Then, he turned his attention to Carla, who was still stunned into silence. "But she's right, you know. Wendy's old enough to work as a wizard. So, that means she's old enough to not need anyone to hold her hand all the time."

"But she's only thirteen..." Carla muttered.

"Yeah, and you're only seven." Alfonzo said, reminding Carla of her own age. "Sure, you're quite mature for your age. But you can't always hold her hand. Except for when it comes to picking up Ur and Master Tsunade's bad habits."

Hearing that, Anko could not help but start laughing. Meanwhile, Carla looked at Alfonzo with a lost expression.

Before Carla could ask any questions, however, a waitress arrived with Alfonzo's dinner, a salmon fillet glazed with a peach sauce, steamed rice, and mixed vegetables.

"Damn, that looks good." Anko said while staring at Alfonzo's dinner. "I've tried everything on the guild's menu, and I've never seen anything like that before."

"Well, that's because I introduced this recipe to Erina yesterday." Alfonzo replied as he cut into his salmon fillet. It's one of Lici's favorite dishes. So, I taught it to her. I plan on hiring her to cook the food for my wedding, after all."

Hearing that, Anko was surprised. She had heard from Yoruichi that Elicia was Alfonzo's fiancée, but Yoruichi never said anything about when they would be getting married. That news was even enough to bring Carla to come out of her stupor, for a moment, at least.

"Damn, Yoruichi's gonna be pissed when she finds out about this." Anko muttered as she continued to stare at Alfonzo's plate.

"Yeah, I know." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. "We were planning to send out invitations after I was done with this job. But I never expected her to go back home just like that."

*Vroom~~~~!*

Before the conversation could continue any further, loud engine sounds could be heard from outside, gaining the attention of everyone currently in the guild hall.

"Looks like Lucy is here." Alfonzo muttered as he put down his cutlery. "Come on, Carla. Let's go greet our guild mate."

"Okay." Carla replied absent-mindedly as she stood up to follow Alfonzo to the guild hall's entrance.

Curious about what kind of magic vehicle could make such a loud noise, Anko also stood up to follow.

A few moments later, Alfonzo, Carla, and Anko opened the guild hall's doors and saw Lucy climbing down from a large magic vehicle resembling a Dodge Ram 1500 painted in a metallic hot pink.

"What the hell is that?" Anko asked, having never seen such a large magic vehicle. "It's so big..."

"That's what she said." Alfonzo said casually.

"... and pink." Anko said as she turned to stare at Alfonzo incredulously. A moment later, however, she began laughing uproariously.

"Hey, Alfonzo, I'm finally here." Lucy said, sounding a little exhausted. "This is the first time I've ever driven for that long in one stretch. I really don't know how you and Lici do it so often."

"You get used to it." Alfonzo replied with a smile while shrugging his shoulders. "Anyway, you didn't run into any problems on the way, did you?"

"No." Lucy replied while shaking her head. "The weather was nice, and the roads were clear. It would be nice if there was someone to talk to, though. The silence was almost deafening."

'Hmm... I guess I should come up with a way to make radio stations, too.' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'Then, again, that can be done when I made the internet. But maybe it would be easier to do if the old-fashioned way. I can do a lot with radio waves, after all.'

"I'll find a way to do something about that." Alfonzo said as he stepped forward and wrapped Lucy in a hug. "Either way, it's good to see you."

"You, too." Lucy replied with a smile as she returned the hug.

"So, are you gonna introduce us?" Anko said in a mischievous tone. "Or did you forget about your new friend now that your girlfriend showed up."

Hearing that, Alfonzo only rolled his eyes in response. Meanwhile, Lucy tilted her head to look around Alfonzo to the source of the voice. And when she saw Anko, she glanced back at Alfonzo with skepticism in her gaze.

"Don't look at me like that." Alfonzo said in reply to Lucy's stare. "I didn't get a new one."

"For now, anyway." Anko said with a smirk.

In response, Lucy's glare grew in intensity. Meanwhile, Alfonzo only rolled his eyes again.

"Anyway, did you wanna grab a bite here and introduce yourself to the ladies of Mermaid Heel?" Alfonzo asked. "Or did you wanna get settled at the house and do that tomorrow?"

"You're no fun." Anko muttered.

"That depends, if I get settled at home, will you cook dinner for me?" Lucy asked, expectation shining in her eyes.

"Of course, I will." Alfonzo replied with a smile.

"Hey, let me come over, too!" Anko shouted after hearing that Alfonzo would cook.

Once again, Lucy looked at Alfonzo suspiciously.

"Seriously, stop looking at me like that." Alfonzo said with a wry smile.

"Then, why is she so eager?" Lucy asked.

"You can blame Marin, Wendy, and Carla for that." Alfonzo replied.

That statement was enough to finally get Carla out of her stupor for good.

"What do you mean it's our fault?" Carla asked while putting her paws on her hips. "If you hadn't cooked for the guild on our first night here, none of this would have happened."

"Yeah, but if you and Wendy hadn't asked me to cook, and Marin hadn't bragged about how good I was, none of it would have happened either."

"You could have just said, no." Carla argued.

"Yeah, I could have." Alfonzo agreed easily. But then I would have had to see you and Wendy's puppy-dog eyes. And I would have ended up agreeing anyway."

"I don't make puppy-dog eyes!" Carla shouted in protest.

While Alfonzo and Carla continued to bicker, Lucy and Anko simply watched from the side.

"It looks like he really dotes on those two." Anko said with a smile. Though, unlike her usual mischievous smile, this one was quite gentle.

"Yeah, he does." Lucy replied with a similar smile on her face. "It's not just them, though. He dotes on all the younger members of the guild, actually. Everyone except for happy, that is."

"Happy?" Anko asked in a curious tone.

"He's another talking cat." Lucy replied. "But he's a lot more... playful than the others."

"I see." Anko replied while focusing on Alfonzo once again.

'Now I see what Yoruichi was talking about.' Anko thought to herself. 'I've only known him for a few days, but I can already see a lot of good points. If I'm not careful, I'll be wrapped around his little finger instead of the other way around.'

"Anyway, let's go, Lucy." Alfonzo said, ending his bickering with Carla. "Let's go back and have dinner. I'll introduce you to the members of Mermaid Heel tomorrow."

"Hey, I wasn't done yet!" Carla shouted in protest.

"Then, you can order dinner from the guild hall." Alfonzo replied with a cheeky smile.

"Hmph!" Carla snorted in reply while turning her head away.

However, she did not insist on continuing the argument. Instead, she cast her [Aera Magic] and spread her wings, before flying towards Lucy's vehicle.

In response, Alfonzo smiled at Carla's actions. Then, he approached the Escalade and carefully wrapped it with his magic power.

"Okay, you can follow me to the house, Lucy." Alfonzo said as he began levitating the vehicle.

"Wait, why aren't you driving?" Lucy asked in confusion.

"*Sigh* It's a long story." Alfonzo replied in a tired tone. "I'll tell you about it over dinner."

"Oh, okay." Lucy replied. Then, she turned towards her truck. A moment later, however, she turned to Anko. "Oh, and it was nice to meet you. I'm Lucy Heartfilia."

Hearing the name Heartfilia, Anko raised an eyebrow. Like most people, she had heard of the Heartfilia Kanzen. And like most people, she had heard about its fall. However, since neither Alfonzo nor Lucy seemed to mind about that, she decided not to say anything.

"Nice to meet you, too." Anko replied with a smile. "I'm Anko Mitarashi."

"Then, I'll see you tomorrow, I guess." Lucy said as she turned back to her truck.

"See you tomorrow, Anko." Alfonzo said, as well.

Naturally, Anko was dumbfounded.

"Hey, wait a second." Anko said. "You're seriously not gonna invite me over for dinner?"

"Nope." Alfonzo replied with a friendly smile. "It's been a long day, and we just want to relax. Anyway, see ya."

With that, Alfonzo, along with his Escalade, began flying towards the house that served as the Fairy Tail wizards lodgings. At the same time, Lucy started the engine to her truck and followed closely.

"Damn, he's not making this easy." Anko muttered as she turned around and returned to the guild hall.

A few minutes later, Alfonzo, Lucy, and Carla arrived at the house. When they did, Alfonzo parked the Escalade outside the house. Then, he covered it in an adamantine barrier for safety's sake. After that, he helped Lucy bring her luggage in the house from her truck.

When the trio entered the house, they immediately saw Wendy sitting in the living room. And they could see that she looked a little down. Most likely because she had shouted at Carla not long ago.

"Go talk to her." Alfonzo said while reaching down to pat Carla on the back. "And remember, she really isn't a little kid anymore."

Glancing up at Alfonzo, Carla eventually made her way over to Wendy. Meanwhile, Alfonzo and Lucy headed upstairs to put Lucy's luggage in the room Marin had been using to store her belongings until she left earlier in the day.

"Well, this is it." Alfonzo said as he put down Lucy's luggage on the floor.

"Thanks for the help." Lucy said with a smile.

"Don't mention it." Alfonzo replied with a smile of his own. "Anyway, while you start unpacking, I'll go get dinner started."

"Okay, just let me know when it's ready.' Lucy replied happily as she waved at Alfonzo as he left the room.

A moment later, after hearing Alfonzo's footsteps climbing down the stairs, Lucy quietly closed the door to the bedroom. Then she opened a certain bag and pulled out a sheer, lacy, white night gown before holding it against her chest.

"Tonight's the night." Lucy said with determination burning in her eyes.

A moment later, Lucy laid the night gown on the bed. Then, she pulled out a pair of matching stockings and a rather risqué t-back thong to complete her ensemble for tonight's battle. After that, she started putting the rest of her things away.

About forty minutes later, Alfonzo called everyone for dinner, and they all talked about how their days went. On top of that, Alfonzo and Lucy noticed that Wendy and Carla seemed to be doing a little better after having a heart-to-heart. Though, Carla still seemed to be a little awkward.

After dinner, Lucy took it upon herself to do the dishes. That was part of the reason she was here, after all. Then, she returned to her bedroom.

"Seriously, I can't believe that girl broke out of prison again." Lucy said as she prepared a change of clothes. "And to think she was targeting Alfonzo. It's really a good thing that his instincts are so sharp. *Sigh* I don't think I would have noticed her before it was too late."

After saying that, Lucy's eyes began to burn with resolve.

"I'll just have to get stronger." Lucy said as she left her room with a towel and her change of clothes.

Forty-five minutes, or so, later, Lucy was done with her shower. Then, she made her way to Alfonzo's bedroom door with nervous steps.

'Okay, Lucy, calm down.' Lucy said to herself. 'It's not weird if I come to his room at night, right?" I mean, I'm one of his girlfriends, too. Besides, it's not like I've never been present to see what I'm about to do. But man, it's a lot more nerve wracking when I think I'll be doing it rather than just watching.'

*Smack!*

At that point, Lucy smacked her hands on her cheeks to psych herself up.

'No, there's nothing to be nervous about.' Lucy told herself. 'Alfonzo would never do anything to hurt me. So, I'll be just fine. *Sigh* Okay, here goes nothing.'

*Knock!* *Knock!*

"Alfonzo, are you still awake?" Lucy asked in a slightly nervous tone.