Lucy's "Birthday" (Part 2)

"I never thought Fairy Tail had mandatory events—and it's a long-distance run, the thing I'm worst at... Ahhh~~"

With her complaint trailing on, Golden Softie casually tossed down her bag and headed for the bathroom.

"Splash."

Letting the warm steam wash over her face, Lucy looked at Plue in the mirror and softly said, "Don't you think?"

"Pupu!"

"Whew~"

Shedding her bath towel, she leaped into the tub as quickly as she could. The slightly scalding water filled every cell of the Queen of Complaints with comfort.

"Ah... I finally feel alive again!"

"Pupu!"

"Hehe... It's fine. Just stay here with me. You don't need to come in!"

Nodding, the adorable little white dog somehow produced two enormous lollipops. It stuffed one into its own mouth and handed the other to Golden Softie.

"So you like these? I'll find you some new flavors tomorrow!"

"Pupu!"

Resting her head against the edge of the tub, the Queen of Complaints' thoughts began to wander uncontrollably.

"I wonder where the 24-Hour Endurance Road Race Championship will be held. Will it be dangerous?"

"Uh... Even if an event planned by Senior Sordil isn't dangerous, it probably won't be comfortable, right?"

"Pupu!"

"You're right. There's no point worrying about that now. It's safer to use the time to prepare."

"Compared to that... the Cherry Blossom Festival is much more worth looking forward to!"

"Of course! If there weren't punishment games, the 24-Hour Endurance Road Race Championship would be a pretty good event too."

"Pupu! (Plue nodded in agreement.)"

As they carried on this conversation that was practically Lucy talking to herself, time slipped by without a sound. In the blink of an eye, two hours had passed.

"Oh my... Oh my, I accidentally fell asleep. Honestly!"

"Splash."

The cooling water slid down her soft skin.