This idea for a oneshot just popped into my head along with a few others, so I decided to write it.
I've always that the idea of Sting or Rogue having met Lucy at some point before the whole Tenru Island thing and developed a crush on her that persists after the seven years time skip is adorable. I really like it and I've read quite a few really good stories centered around that idea. I mean, heck, I'm writing that in my "The Celestial Princess and Her Suitors" story. So, here is a oneshot based upon that cute little story idea.
Remember Me? (Sting x Lucy)
Sting remembered that day clearly.
It was seven years ago. He was twelve, maybe thirteen. He had been homeless for a few years after he killed Weisslogia. He didn't know what to do. There was no place he could go considering he was an orphan and had been raised by a dragon. He didn't even know much about the civilizations of Earthland besides the few things that his foster father had told him. He traveled the kingdom of Fiore, finding shelter in alleyways and abandoned buildings, and pickpocketing people whenever he needed money. It wasn't something that he was ever proud of, but he was distrustful of other people, as all anybody ever seemed to do was yell at him and call him a “degenerate child,”and had no other options that he could see.
Eventually, he heard about what was called "guilds." Something you could join if you used magic. In a guild, you'd find friends and jobs that paid well. You'd find a purpose. The young Sting wanted to join a guild, but which one? He had managed to find magazines and books that told about each guild in Fiore, quickly coming across one that was very recent: Sabertooth.
It had a really cool name, plus he would be one of the first mages to join, which excited him. He was able to get the location of this new guild and set off for Foxglove Town, the large city just east of Crocus where Sabertooth was located in.
He had been traveling for several days when he arrived in Magnolia Town, the home of Fairy Tail, the most powerful guild in all of Fiore. He knew that it would be expected of him to join the strongest guild, considering how strong he was, but he thought that making a name for himself in a new guild that likely didn't have many strong mages, if any, was a much more attractive option. He could build Sabertooth up to a strong guild that could rival even Fairy Tail. That was his goal.
It was getting late, so he had decided to find a cheap hotel he could stay at for the night. He had managed to swipe a few hundred jewel from some woman a couple of towns ago, so he was sure that he could find someplace that was dirt cheap.
After he had been walking around searching for a few hours, he found that Magnolia was a surprisingly expensive city. Not just that, but nobody wanted to give a room to a boy that wasn't even a teenager yet. The moon was rising in the sky when Sting gave a sigh and decided that he could just sleep in an alleyway, he's done it before so he wasn't bothered.
He was walking along a line of buildings, looking for an alleyway he could hide in, when a gruff voice behind him spoke in a taunting tone, "Hey, kid, what are you doing out here?"
The little dragon slayer stopped in his tracks and whipped around to find three large men stalking toward him. He narrowed his eyes and tried to appear unafraid, despite the very obvious feeling of fear rising in his gut. He was a dragon slayer, and a strong one at that, but he was still a kid, he would admit that, not out loud though. The point is, he had enough sense to know that this situation wasn't exactly in his favor considering he was outnumbered and didn't know anything about his opponents' magic. He could feel their magic energies flowing off of them in waves, so he knew that they were strong. He knew that it wouldn't be a good idea to fight, no matter how much he might have wanted to just to see the looks of regret on these bastards' faces.
He planted his feet on the ground and gave the three men a hard look. "I don't want trouble." He hoped that he had managed to keep the steadily growing fear ot of his voice.
The lead man, a buff-looking guy with unruly, brown hair that reached his shoulders in a mess of curls, chuckled lowly before sneering, "you didn't answer my question."
Sting answered, trying to sound just as intimidating, "I'm passing by. I was just leaving Magnolia."
The lead man took a few steps closer. "Where are you going?" He didn't sound concerned in the least bit, rather, he sounded almost gleeful.
The blonde boy responded sternly, "To join a guild. One that just recently popped up."
The man chuckled again. "Sabertooth. You're talking about Sabertooth."
Sting only nodded. He watched as the man stepped a bit closer, causing him to unconsciously take a couple of steps back. He was preparing himself to run. The man asked another question, "where are your parents?"
When there was no answer, the man observed, "no parents, huh?"
Sting tensed, accidentally letting the man know that he was right. The man chuckled darkly once again, a chilling grin spread across his face. "Alright kid, just stay still and do as we say, and we won't kill you, got it?" The man then reached out towards Sting.
Before he could lay a hand on him, and before the boy could bolt away, a loud snapping sound was heard. The man howled in pain and his two buddies whirled around to face the attacker. The three men and boy looked back to see a young, blonde woman holding a whip. A look of anger was clear on her face. Sting could feel a bit of warmth spreading across his face upon seeing her.
He watched with interest as the woman yelled at the men, "Leave that boy alone! You are a bunch of lowlifes to pick on a child."
The lead man snapped his fingers and in an instant his two friends had launched themselves at the blonde woman, intending to attack her. Sting became filled with panic and worry for his savior. However, his fear and worry for her were quickly proved to be unfounded when the blonde woman took out of her pouch what appeared to be three keys. She called out in a strong voice, "Open! Gates of the Maiden, Lion, and White Ram: Virgo, Loke, and Aries!"
In sudden flashes of sparkling gold, three people appeared. One was a pink-haired and blue-eyed maid, another was a man in a suit and had almost orange hair with what resembled cat-like ears on top of his head, and the other was a pink-haired woman in a white dress that appeared to be made of wool. The blonde woman, obviously a mage, gave out her commands confidently, "Loke! Take the guy on the right! Virgo! Go after the guy on the left! I'll take the leader! Aries! Take the kid to my place!"
The new arrivals did as they were told, the maid and well-dressed man jumping into action right beside the young woman that summoned them. Sting watched in amazement. The blonde was beautiful, fearless, and if her current performance was anything to go by, a strong fighter. What was her name? Was she a part of Fairy Tail or some other guild? What was her magic? How strong was she? He had to know the answers to these questions.
He was brought out of his trance when a soft voice spoke beside him, "excuse me, could you please follow me?"
The boy turned to see the woman dressed in wool, Aries it seemed she was named, holding out her hand and looking away nervously. Sting didn't want to leave the other blonde mage behind but could guess that him being there could be a distraction for her, so he begrudgingly placed his hand in Aries' and allowed her to pull him away.
She had pulled him into a two-story house and then sat him down on a pink-blanketed bed with instructions to not leave until her wizard returned. Sting nodded in response to the command. He was a fan of being told what to do, but he didn't mind it this time since he was planning to stay and meet her. Aries then gave him a kind smile before she disappeared in a flash of golden light and sparkles.
Sting sat on the bed in silence, waiting for the blonde mage to return. After what seemed to him to be a few hours, he began to become worried. Did she get hurt? Was she in danger? Should he go see if she was okay? He was just about to go in search of her when the door opened, revealing the blonde woman. She was scraped up a little and her clothing was minorly torn in a few places, but other than that she seemed to be fine. Nevertheless, he didn't like that she had gotten even a little hurt. He felt a feeling of guilt overtake him, knowing she had gotten injured because of him, because she had protected him.
She gave a sigh before she smiled at Sting and made her way over to him. She took his hand and pulled him to his feet, then she stepped back to examine him, still holding his hand. Sting could feel himself blush at the contact. He looked up at her face. Upon seeing how her deep brown eyes were taking in his ragged appearance with sympathy, he internally cringed. He hated that she was seeing him like this. It was obvious from his worn, unclean clothes, his unruly, unwashed hair, and the dirt that dusted his exposed skin that he wasn't exactly doing well, or even living with anybody.
The blonde gave him another smile. She let go of his hand, causing the boy to slightly frown down at his hand at the loss of warmth. He looked back up to see that the blonde was gone. He concentrated his hearing to listen for her, quickly hearing the sound of running water from behind a nearby door. He walked towards the door and gently pushed it open, peeking in to see the older mage standing over a stone bathtub. He watched as she dipped her hand into the rising water and then turn the faucet off. She turned to him and said sweetly, "take off your clothes and get in. I'll get you a new change of clothes. Do you need help washing?"
Sting, recognizing that she was offering him a bath, shook his head and walked into the bathroom. The blonde walked out and shut the door. Once Sting had taken off all of his clothes, he passed them off to her and climbed into the bathtub, enjoying the feeling of warm water surrounding his small body. Not wanting to take too long, he began to quickly wash every inch of his body and hair. He didn't allow a single speck of dirt to remain.
Once he stepped out of the bathroom in a new change of clothes, he found the other blonde standing in front of a chair with a comb in her hand. She gestured for him to sit down in the chair, which he silently did.
The blonde boy relaxed as the woman combed his hair and ran her fingers through it. He inhaled deeply through his nose, enjoying her lovely scent of vanilla and strawberries. He could honestly stay here with her forever. He was broken out of his thoughts when the woman's pretty voice sounded, "what's your name?"
The boy answered after a slight hesitation, "S-Sting Eucliffe."
The woman giggled a little before saying, "that's an adorable name. Mine's Lucy. Lucy Heartfilia"
Sting said her name thoughtfully, enjoying how it rolled off his own tongue. He liked that name. Pretty and sweet, just like the woman that it belonged to.
Lucy moved her hands away from his hair, much to Sting's dismay. She then walked around to stand in front of him. She smiled down at him and asked, "are you hungry?"
As if she had said the magic word, Sting's stomach growled loudly, answering her question for him. Lucy laughed lightly and took his hand, leading him into a kitchen. There on the table, was an array of food. She must have guessed that he would be famished, which he was. He looked up at her, getting a close-eyes smile and nod before he walked to the table and sat down. Lucy took the seat directly in front of him.
Sting ate all the food that she had set out for him, talking to her in between bites. He had shared with her that he was a White Dragon Slayer and was raised by a dragon. In turn, he learned about her magic, that she was a Fairy Tail mage, and she had a best friend that was a Fire Dragon Slayer. Sting was amazed to learn that last part. She talked the most about Fairy Tail itself. How it was filled with kind mages that treated everyone like family and never judged are held any past offenses against someone, instead, they forgave. It was the kind of guild he wanted to join. The kind of guild he prayed Sabertooth would become.
After he had finished eating, Lucy decided that he would stay the night. Not wanting to leave so soon in the first place, Sting agreed. As he settled into Lucy's bed and she climbed in next to him, she asked, "would you like to join Fairy Tail in the morning? Or do you plan to join another guild?"
Sting shook his head, answering, "I'm on my to join Sabertooth."
Lucy nodded with a smile and the two settled down to sleep. Sting had stayed up longer than he probably should have to watch her sleep. She looked so peaceful and lovely that he couldn't take his eyes off of her. When Lucy had wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer to her, he blushed madly as his heart picked up speed and his stomach was engulfed in a fluttering feeling. He almost wanted to take her up on her offer to join Fairy Tail, but instead, he snuggled up against her and fell asleep, steeling himself in his newfound goal to join Sabertooth.
That morning, he had left before Lucy woke up, leaving a thank you note. He walked all the way to Sabertooth and happily joined, set on his goal to not only see to it that his guild becomes powerful, kind, welcoming, and forgiving, just like Fairy Tail but also to become as strong as he possibly can. He hoped that when he saw Lucy again as an adult, he could impress her with how strong he had gotten, and maybe, just maybe, she would give him a chance to be with her. Until that day came, he would train and dream of the beautiful celestial wizard that he was determined to make his.
He also clearly remembered the day he had heard that about much of Fairy Tail disappearing, along with the entire island they were on. It was a few months after he had met her. He was walking back to Sabertooth after a job when he heard a woman gasp, "those poor Fairies!"
Sting turned stopped walking and turned his attention to the two women that were standing in front of a newspaper stand. He could tell they were talking about Fairy Tail, who else would it be? His mind began to flood with questions.
What happened? Was Fairy Tail alright? Lucy was part of that guild. Was she alright?
He rushed up to the newspaper stand and looked down at the front cover of one. His mouth dropped open in shock and horror. There, in big, bold letters, were the words 'Main Fairy Tail Mages Presumed Dead!' The boy reached into his pocket and fished out some of the jewel he had earned from his job to buy the newspaper. He then raced back to Sabertooth.
Once at his guild, he pushed open the doors, causing them to slam against the walls and earn him a few annoyed stares. He paid no mind, instead, he made his way to the table that his friends sat at. Minerva, the daughter of the Guild Master, Rogue, a fellow Third Generation Dragon Slayer, Rufus, the only child to have a parent in the guild, and Yukino, the newest addition, looked at him with confused looks as he plopped down to read the article of interest.
Rogue raised an eyebrow, teasing with a smirk, "I wasn't even aware you knew how to read, Sting." His voice cracked noticeably on the word 'read.' Minerva, Yukino, and Rufus laughed, more at his changing voice from puberty than at his playful teasing. The black-haired boy blushed and dipped his head, clearly wishing that he could disappear into the shadows, but knowing that he couldn't because Minerva would immediately catch him.
Sting, usually not one to let a chance to tease his already best friend go to waste, didn't give any reaction. Instead, he kept his eyes glued to the newspaper. Tears welled up in his blue eyes. He couldn't believe what he was reading. This had to be a dream, no, a nightmare! They just couldn't be dead! She couldn't be dead!
Apparently, the main Fairy Tail mages had gone to Tenroujima Island for their S-Class Trials. For some unknown reason, the entire island with everyone on it had disappeared. Not a single trance of anybody that had stepped foot on the island. All search parties were called off. Sting's gaze traveled to the list of names, mages that were believed to be dead. He silently prayed that her name would be there.
Juvia Lockser, Gray Fullbuster, Natsu Dragneel, Freed Justine...Lucy Heartfilia. Sting froze at the last name. He threw the newspaper down, jumped to his feet, and ran out of the guild, ignoring his friends' calls for him to wait and explain himself. Holding back tears and chest already hurting, he ran to the place that he enjoyed going to whenever he needed to relax or calm down, a secluded pond on the edge of a large park, surrounded by trees. He sat on the large rock that was on the edge of the water. Pulling his knees to his chest, he sniffed the air and listened to his surroundings. When he was sure that nobody had followed him, the boy began to cry.
He never got to see Lucy again. He never got to talk to her again. He never got to thank her in person for what she had done for him. He never got to impress her with his magical strength. He never got to tell her that he loved her.
He never will get the chance to do any of these things.
And it was apparent from his heartbroken cries.
Fast forward seven years, and everything seemed to change. Sabertooth had drifted from what it was like. Master Jiemma and Minerva were power-hungry and cruel. The mages of Sabertooth didn't care about each other, not truly. Sabertooth wasn't a family. It was a cruel, power-hungry, selfish guild. Sting had also changed. He became an arrogant, selfish, cocky jerk. At least he was able to acknowledge it. Everybody changed, and not for the better.
It was as though Sting had taken a backseat and was watching all of this happen. What happened? What caused him to go back on what he had sworn to do? What caused him to allow his guild to become the exact opposite of Fairy Tail without a fight? What caused everything to go wrong?
Stupid questions. He knew the answers.
Lucy died, and so did his will to achieve the goals he had set because of his meeting her. She was no longer alive, so what was the point? She wouldn't be around to see any of it.
Imagine his surprise when he saw her just shortly before the Grand Magic Games. He was ecstatic. He wanted to launch himself at her and confess his love right there. However, he had to restrain himself and stay in the role he had to play. He hated letting her see who he had become over those seven years, so much so that he couldn't even bring himself to look at her, at least, not for very long. He wasn't even sure if she recognized him. Probably not.
He came to the decision that he would talk to her once he could get her alone. Fairy Tail and Sabertooth were enemies and he couldn't risk Master Jiemma or Minerva founding out, or else he would face extreme consequences. He resigned himself to watching her, being careful to not get caught, of course.
He couldn't believe that she was still alive. She was just as beautiful as he remembered, she didn't seem to have aged a single day. He was confused as to how it was possible that she seemed to still be a teenager and was still alive. His answer quickly came when he learned about what happened to make Tenrou disappear. He considered himself fortunate. He was older than her now, which means he has more of a chance with her than he first thought he did. Age wouldn't be a problem. Now, he just needed to talk to her.
When the first day of the Games came, he was happy to see that Lucy was competing first. He knew that she would win. He just knew she would. When the fighting began, he cheered her on in his head, while being careful to seem as though he was uninterested in what was going on, just as his teammates did.
He was incredibly proud of the blonde woman, she holding her own very well against her opponent. Then that crazy Flare chick started practically torturing Lucy and the blonde wasn't doing anything to defend herself. Why? She could obviously fight back, so what was the deal? Whatever the reason, he was angry. How dare someone harm the woman he was in love with! He had to fight the urge to jump down there and defend her, but a firm hand on his shoulder and a small head shake from his best friend and 'twin' helped him remain in his seat. He continued to watch.
His anger turned to joy when Lucy was finally able to fight back. She summoned one of her spirits, Gemini was their name apparently, and performed a spell that he knew would take Flare out of the fight. He watched in amazement as the spell was performed.
However, when the dust cleared, Flare was unharmed while Lucy was drained. What happened? It was obvious to anybody that had any sense that Raven Tail had cheated by countering the spell. Sting was once again enraged when Flare was declared the winner and the crowd booed Lucy. He once again had to fight the urge to jump to her defense.
It was obvious that Raven Tail cheated! Were those judges blind?!
The Games went on with Sting admiring the celestial wizard of his dreams from afar and waiting for the first chance he could get to talk to her. All the while he kept up his act.
Then, that cursed Naval Battle arrived. Minerva and Lucy became the last two inside the water sphere. Sting doubted that Lucy would be able to win, it was Minerva she was facing after all, but he hoped that she would at least lose without getting too hurt. He was proud of her for lasting this long. He watched as the two women began their fight against each other.
To his horror, Minerva had decided to be her usual cruel self. He watched as she, in no uncertain terms, tortured the woman he loved. He dug his nails into his palms, so much so that he was surprised it didn't draw blood. He just barely managed to keep his perfectly crafted mask on and watched with disgust and rage. He watched with a look of apathy and even glee, while on the inside, he was dying with even second that passed by. He prayed that it would end soon.
When the two torture sessions, both Lucy's and his, he watched as Minerva dropped a beaten and unconscious Lucy out of the water sphere. Sting lurched forward, intending to catch her, but was stopped by his best friend's hand on his shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. He didn't need to look back to know what Rogue was silently saying. 'Don't be stupid. You know what will happen.' Unfortunately, Sting didn't care about the consequences anymore. He needed Lucy. He needed to hear her soft voice, smell her lovely scent, hold her in his arms and promise to her that he would never allow anyone to hurt her like that again.
Throwing all forethought out the window, he grabbed Rogue's wrist and roughly pushed his best friend's hand off of his shoulder. He then launched himself over the short wall they were sitting behind. He caught her in midair, beating the flame-brain best friend of Lucy's. Immediately upon landing on his feet, he raced to the infirmary, Lucy held securely in his arms. He heard the shouts of his teammates and the Fairies, but he didn't pay them any attention. His only concern was Lucy. He would deal with the consequences later.
He sat in a chair next to Lucy's bed, his arms folded on it with his resting on the, as he waited for her to wake. Lector was sleeping on the bed in Lucy's lap. It's been a few hours and he hadn't left her side once. He managed to explain everything to the competing Fairy Tail mages, which earned him permission to stay with her alone, even though Natsu wasn't particularly happy about that. It was Erza that promised him protection from Master Jiemma and Minerva. He appreciated it but knew that if those two wanted to get him, they would, and nobody would be able to stop them.
Movement from the blonde on the bed brought him out of his thoughts. Lucy slowly opened her eyes and looked around. When her entrancing brown eyes fell on him, she began to study him, as if trying to remember him. Sting sat simply sat there and stared back at her nervously, silently willing her to remember him.
After about a minute of tense silence, he saw recognition in her eyes. Sting smiled and whispered, just loud enough for her to hear him, "remember me?"
Lucy nodded, her eyes filling with tears. Sting quickly leaned forward and whipped the tears away. He didn't want to ever see her cry for any reason. The blonde woman gripped his hands and pulled him forward with surprising strength, pulling him into a hug that the dragon slayer happily, but gently returned.
When they pulled away Sting decide to get straight to the point. He cupped Lucy's face in his hands. With a tearful smile he declared, "I love you, Lucy! I've loved you since I first met you! I wanted to tell you when I was older, but then you died, and also didn't! I was heartbroken! I thought I would never see you again and get to tell you how I feel! But now I finally can! Lucy, I love you! Please, give me a chance! Please!"
The celestial wizard placed her hands softly on his as she stared at him with an unreadable expression. After what seemed like hours of silence, she finally spoke in a whisper, "Sting...I never thought about dating you before..." She trailed off.
Sting internally panicked. He hastily begged, "give me a chance, please! Let me take you on one date! If you aren't interested, then we'll go our separate ways...please give me a chance." The last part was whispered, his tone giving away that he was trying to not cry even as he lowered his head to hide his tear-filled eyes from her.
After a few moments of silence, he began to despair. Then, Lucy's hand under his chin raised his head so he would look at her. What he saw caused his breath to hitch and his heartbeat to pick up speed. Lucy was giving him the most breathtaking smile he had ever seen. She nodded her head as she whispered her answer, "yes, Sting. I'll go on a date with you."
Sting grinned, genuinely grinned. How long had it been since he last truly smiled and didn't have to force one? "Can I kiss you?" His question was so quiet that he didn't think she heard him, but he knew that she had heard him when she nodded her head.
Sting leaned forward and pressed a gentle, chaste kiss to her lips. He felt her kiss back, which caused his heart to beat wildly and his stomach to do backflips. He pulled away and took her hand in his, caressing the soft, smooth skin with his thumb.
She was alive. Beaten, but still alive.
And he swore to himself right there that he would protect her. If she decided that she wanted to be with him, he would fight anyone and anything to keep her safe and by his side. Even if he had to fight his own guild.
The pair gazed at each other, happy to have met again after so many years.
