Fairy Tail 1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**UPDATE 6/06/2015:  
Kay so chapter 1 and 2 have been re-done, I haven't rewritten them or anything I just remembered thanks a guest reviewer that I had forgotten to fix up the spacing within the paragraphs for these two chapters :P Hope it makes it easier to read now!**

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**All characters belong to Hiro Mashima**

Standing in front of her mirror she smiled at herself.

"Today's the day, I have to tell him."

She had planned to tell him for a while now and it terrified her beyond belief but she had to do it, it was too complicated trying to work with him while feeling what she was, unable to tell anyone. It had been little over two months now since she'd realized her feelings for the Dragon Slayer and it had driven her mad, she loved everything about him, the way he broke in everyday, the way he gave her that boyish smile when he got to see her, even the way he sometimes burnt half her apartment down when trying to cook for her and happy. She had talked around to a few people, asking them if they thought Mirajane was right about her and Natsu, lying she told them it was her way of trying to prove Mira wrong when really she had wanted more than anything for her to be right. Walking over to her bedside table she retrieved her keys and whip before glancing at her appearance once more, walking out of her apartment she locked the door behind her and set off to the guild, to find her man. Her walk down the streets of Magnolia was a pleasant one, the sun was shining, the birds were singing and she was glowing, every step she took had a bounce in it and as she pushed the doors of the guild open her heart fluttered at the sight of him, of Natsu.

He looked over to where she stood immediately and a slight blush tinted her cheeks, not long after she saw him turn her way did she the bundle of blue fur flying through the air towards her.

"LUCY!"

The exceed cried happily at the sight of his nakama and she laughed, pulling him into a hug before letting him go as he hovered in the air before her.

"Natsu and I were just about to come get you! He has some news he needs to tell everyone but he said he couldn't do it without you next to him."

The blonde beamed at Happy's words, unknowing of what it was he intended to say but secretly hoping it was what she had come to tell him. Walking over to her pink haired friend she rested her arm on his shoulder

"So what's this news you need to tell everyone?"

Looking at the blonde he stood up, pulled her into a hug, causing her face to redden further, and gave her that beaming smile he always carried with him.

"I have news but I couldn't tell everyone without you, you're a big part of it!"

Shifting slightly in his arms she had know idea how to react, nodding he stood up on the table and gave a small, or at least small to him, roar to gain everyone's attention. All eyes were on him as he spoke, placing a hand on his teammates head beside him, sucking in a deep breath he began to speak.

"A lot has changed lately and believe or not I've started to like someone. This girl means more to me than anyone could possibly imagine, she is strong, smart, beautiful and funny. She is the best possible friend I could ever ask for and I hope that she accepts what I am about to ask"

Looking down at the blonde he grinned as he whispered something in her ear causing her to freeze in her place, taking no notice he continued to speak.

"I know that this is the right choice to make, I've thought about this for a while and finally have the guts to speak up." Looking over at the girl he held out his hand. "Lisanna Strauss, will you be my girlfriend?"

Taking his hand the white-haired Mage stood up on the table with him, he pulled her into a kiss that lasted far too long but he wasn't done. Still beaming he looked down at his team, who were all standing there shocked, Lucy unable to meet his eye.

"I have also decided to combine my new and old team, meaning that Happy, Lucy, Erza, Gray, Lisanna and I will now be a team!"

The entire guild cheered at the occasion as the blonde stood there dying inside. No one noticed her departure, or so she thought, she burst through the back door and began to run; a pain ran through her body from her head to her feet that wouldn't stop. She ran as far as her legs would take her, taking no notice of how long had passed; collapsing to the ground in tears she began to clench her fists. Her whole body shook in agony, she was absolutely empty, not knowing what to do she began to punch the ground, over and over until her knuckles bled but she didn't care, this pain was nothing compared to the hole that now occupied her hollowed chest.

* * *

He had made no attempt to follow the blonde, assuming she was have gone home to have a cry about her feelings, walking to her apartment he knocked on the door with no answer. Smelling around it he could tell she wasn't there, where else would she be though? Sighing, he made his way back to the guild, the two new love birds had made him want to hurl but if he wanted to find Lucy then he had to track her from there. Walking inside he sniffed the air, following her familiar scent of Vanilla to the backdoor and out into the forest, it didn't take long to track her but something was wrong. She had been gone for over two hours now and he was beginning to pick up odd sounds, he continued along until something caught his attention; blood. He rushed through the trees tracking her scent more frantically than before, only to find her abusing the ground beside her as she sobbed, apparently unable to feel pain. She raised her fist ready to smash it back into the solid earth and he extended his arm, blocking her easily.

"What the hell do ya think you're doing Bunny Girl?"

She looked up at him through clouded tears and snarled, "What does it matter to you _Gajeel?_"

His name was hissed through her teeth, pouring as much anger as she could into it and he growled as she picked up her other fist and attempted to punch the ground. He blocked that as easily as the first one, crouching beside her he held her hands gently, he couldn't see any skin just blood and dirt.

"Why would you do this over that dickhead?"

She ignored him as she tried to pull out of his grip, "Stop it you moron. He's not worth it."

This time when she looked up her eyes were full of sadness and she spoke as soft as a mouse, "How did you know?"

He scoffed at her before remembering that he had to try to be sensitive, "It doesn't take a genius to figure it out… Besides, I heard ya heart beat pick up as he spoke."

She shook her head in frustration and pulled herself from his grip, clearly she didn't care about the fact had he not loosened his grip her wrists would've probably snapped, and threw herself at the ground screaming. Watching her hysterics he tried not to laugh, he had never thought Bunny Girl was this ferocious. Picking her up he put her over his shoulder, not caring about the blows or scratches she was dealing to his back, and made his way back to the guild.

"PUT ME DOWN YOU BIG BRUTE! WHY DO YOU EVEN CARE!?" he pulled her off his shoulder but didn't put her down so she was just hovering in the air in front of him.

"No one should have that kind of power over you and the Shrimp would never have forgiven me if I didn't come get you, okay?" Too shocked at his words she simply nodded before he put her back over his shoulder and carried her to the last place she wanted to go.

* * *

Still reeling from what he'd just said to her she hadn't realized where they were and as he kicked open the guild doors she squirmed. Subtlety wasn't exactly his forte but this was ridiculous, now everyone was going to see her in this state, she just wanted to kick him really hard. Refusing to place her down, despite her yelling he walked over to Wendy and whispered something in her ear, nodding she followed them into an empty room.

He all but threw her down onto a chair and glared at her, "you make one move to run and you'll be out cold before you can even blink."

A grimace grew on her face before she noticed the Sky Dragon Slayer standing in the doorway unsure of what was going on in front of her. Gajeel looked at her gently, with a gentleness the blonde had never seen him show anyone before.

"Her hands are badly hurt."

Nodding, worry evident all over her face the bluenette rushed to her side and gasped taking in the sight before her, she could tell these were self-inflicted and when she began to ask Gajeel simply shook his head at Dragon Slayer. It took longer than she expected for Wendy to heal her, she must have really hurt herself, looking up at her tears began to spill down the Dragon Slayers cheeks.

"Please take better care of yourself Lucy..." Unable to do anything else she nodded at her friend, giving her a small smile.

"If you're done playing hostage I'd like to get the hell out of here."

She glared at the Iron Dragon, he clearly didn't like someone standing up to him and crossed his arms with a deadly look in your eye. "Not yet, someone needs to speak to ya."

She froze as the words left his mouth and he realized what she was thinking, he was about to explain when a little old man opened the door, looking between the two Mages. Walking over to the blonde he put his hand on top of her.

"My child, what has happened to you?"

She let out a breath she had no idea she was holding and looked at Gramps.

"I uh, I don't know Master… I just, I lost it. It was all my own doing, I'm sorry."

At this his face saddened and he turned to Gajeel raising an eyebrow, his presence had not gone unnoticed "and what was your part in this?"

Gajeel scoffed "Well someone had to bring the Bunny Girl back." Nodding he dismissed the Dragon Slayer and turned back to Lucy "What brought this on? What is troubling that bright mind of yours?"

She knew he had good intentions but it was too soon to voice her pain, she shook her head and he nodded at her, understanding that she was too broken to verbalise her words. Leaving the room she heard him order everyone to leave her be, thankful for the time alone he had just given her.

She sat for nearly a whole hour thinking about everything and decided that she couldn't face him, not now, not ever. Her first instinct was to run home and hide under her covers forever but that wouldn't work he would just barge in through her window, her next option was to leave the guild but that seemed a little dramatic and she'd miss her friends. That left her with only one other option, she had to leave the team. Standing up she silently agreed with her thoughts, she would do solo jobs and not have to face Natsu and Lisanna making out all day. Checking her reflection in the mirror she approved and exited the room, she could feel so many eyes on her as she approached the request board, picking up the first job she liked she smiled. It was a difficult job that required her to travel to clover and deal with a mercenary guild that was causing havoc to the town at night, the reward set at 210,000 Jewel which was enough to pay her rent for three months. Walking up to Mira the Mage smiled at her as she handed over the flyer.

"Ooh! Is this new Team Natsu's first job?" the blonde shook her head, "Uh no, that's just for me." The Takeover Mage stared at her blankly before calling over the Master, who simply nodded in approval at Lucy's request for a solo job. Mira looked to the blonde and was about to protest her decision when Master Makarov stamped the page for her, gawking at them both she sighed.

"Be careful Lucy." She nodded at her friend before walking towards the large double doors of the guild, two figures stopped her in her path staring down at her.

"Gray, Erza." She acknowledge before pushing passed them leaving the guild. They burst out behind her with a million questions, them talking too fast for her to even answer one and before they knew it the three were at the door to her apartment. Unlocking the door she heard the deadbolt slide back and pushed it open, she let a sigh escape her.

"Well come on, if you want answers it's going to be a long night."

Walking into her apartment she went to turn the kettle on whilst her friends sat on her couch nervously, she returned to them minutes later with tea and some biscuits, the two thanked her and waited for her to begin. Letting out another sigh she began to speak.

"So for the past couple of months now, I've um, I've been in love with Natsu. In fact I had intended to come to the guild today and tell him of my feelings but…"

"… but then that flame idiot went and asked Lisanna out." Gray finished her sentence for her and she nodded.

"I freaked out, I was honestly stupid enough to stand there and think he could feel that way about _me. _He called her his best friend, the best he'd ever had and decided that I just wasn't even worth that status anymore. The worst part of it all though is he thanked me, my presence beside him is what gave him the courage to admit it."

Her voice caught in her throat as she spoke and the tears began to spill down her face once more, the redhead moved beside her and pulled her into a hug as Gray yelled off profanities at the Dragon Slayer before asking the question she truly didn't want to give them the answer for because she knew what would follow.

"So, what happened with Gajeel then…?" she bit down hard on her lip as Erza squeezed her shoulder to comfort her. "After I found out I lost it, I ran into the forest and began to punch the ground. When Gajeel had found me I had three broken knuckles and one of them was missing skin, he dragged me back here kicking and screaming so Wendy could heal me and then you guys saw me leave."

The two nodded at her story, they both owed Gajeel for taking care of her like that, and then the question she feared came up.

"So what are you going to do now?" Saying nothing she handed them the job she had take.

"We're going on a job?" the armored mage asked, shaking her head Lucy corrected her.

"**I'm** going on a job… I've decided to leave the team." At that the two looked like they were going to cry, they were her best friends and she was leaving them to work alone so she didn't have to face her feelings about Natsu.

Gray stood up and walked over to Lucy, nodding at Erza he hugged her. "We'll come with you."

She smiled at the thought but shook her head, the hurt looks on her friends faces made her cringe guiltily.

"I'm sorry you guys but I need to work on my own for a while. Not forever but for now I need to know I can do this without relying on you guys to save me all the time."

They nodded at her, smiling softly, as they accepted her explanation as they both pulled her into a hug. Hearing a knock at the door made the three jump and Gray went over to answer it, standing there half-naked he opened the door to see the pink haired moron standing on the other side. He slammed the door in his face as the Dragon Slayer began to yell, Lucy sucked in her breath at the sound of his voice and turned to Gray.

"Let him in, I need to tell him what's happening and I'd rather get it done sooner than later but you guys have to stay." He nodded opening the door with a scowl and Natsu barged in, pushing him aside.

"What's your deal man?" her turned smiling at his best friend who all but nearly hid behind Erza, speaking up in her normal formal tone the redhead addressed Natsu.

"Lucy has something to tell you, she has already told us and just like we have, you need to respect her wishes."

He scoffed at the redhead and went to sit down next to Lucy but Gray stepped in. "No, over there."

He said pointing to the couch opposite them. The Dragon Slayer sat down wearily, even he knew something was up with these three, Lucy met his eyes and flinched.

"Natsu… I'm leaving the team."

His face turned sad within an instant as he stared at her in disbelief.

"What?! Luce, no!" She nodded at him to say that it was definitely happening and he stood up with tears in his eyes.

"NO!" he yelled at the three opposite him and Gray stood up, putting himself between Natsu and Lucy.

"Natsu, I am no longer a part of the team, I already told Master and he agreed to it." His fists began to flame and his eyes darkened, the anger bubbling up in his chest.

"Fine, like I need you anyway! Lisanna and I will go on missions because she knows how to be a best friend. I always knew you were weak but I didn't take ya for a coward too." Erza now too stood up as Lucy clutched at her chest, wheezing from the panic attack she was having.

"That's enough Natsu!" He pushed past the redhead and glared at the three of them, "You're all assholes," he glared at Lucy "but you're the worst of them, good thing you were only a replacement."

* * *

He left the apartment slamming the door shut, leaving a crack in the middle, he made all the way back to his house before he realized what he had said to Lucy. His resolve broke and the tears came flooding out, he hadn't meant _**any** _of it but he wanted her to hurt just as much as him.

**_NB: Please review, I love constructive criticism!_**  
**_I know Laxus isn't in this chapter but I didn't want to just throw him in randomly, I promise he makes an appearance soon!_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

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**All characters belong to Hiro Mashima**

_**So someone has accused me of copying this story, I understand the beginning is cliché, as people have already told me, but what else do you expect? She had to be hurt in order for her circumstances to change. Laxus and Lucy dislike each other to say the least; it would be illogical to make them fall in love randomly. I can assure everyone this is my story because I'm writing based off experience, the same thing happened to me, boyfriends ex left him to go overseas, she came back and suddenly I meant nothing, so I left the group. So yes this is my story, yes the beginning is cliché but hopefully you'll all soon be able to see that this is not copied**_

The blonde plunged her face into her hands as the tears streamed down her face, her friends sat beside her trying to soothe her to no avail, all she heard was mumbling words that she couldn't comprehend. Looking up at her now cracked door, she clutched at her chest further, she had thought the events earlier in the day had broken her but she was wrong, there was still something left to shatter and now he had. Her whole body went numb and she didn't notice when Gray exited the apartment, apologizing to the two women. She didn't notice Erza leaving the couch and entering the bathroom, emerging minutes later, she barely even noticed when the Mage picked her up and helped her undress before putting her in the bath. He had destroyed her, nothing else mattered now and even if it did, she didn't have the energy to care.

* * *

"That stupid idiot!" he fumed as he stalked through the streets of Magnolia.

"How could he have done something so cruel to her? Oh if I get my hands on that pretty little head of his…" the Ice Mage continued to verbalize his anger out loud until he reached the guild, pushing the doors open he marched over to where the group of Exceeds were seated.

"Where's the flame dickhead?" he asked a little too harshly to the unsuspecting Exceed.

"N-atsu? He's at Lucy's." the cat gave him a weary smile, knowing not to mess with Gray in this mood.

"Not anymore he isn't. Would he be at home?"

The Exceed shrugged as the doors to the guild were kicked open by the idiot himself. The Ice Mage flung himself at the Dragon Slayer, putting a lot more force than usual into his hits. Startled Natsu was delayed in his response, meeting his blows with less force than his opponent, unable to really hurt him. After an immense amount of damage was caused to the guild a bolt of lightning hit both the Mages, stopping them in their tracks, the Lightning Dragon Slayer known as Laxus appeared before them with an angry look on his face.

"What the hell do you two think you're doing? This is a guild not a fighting arena; piss off outta here if you want to do that." Taking in the Ice Mage's expression, being a rather hateful one rather than annoyed, he decided to question them further.

"What brought this on?" Natsu looked down at the floor, apparently not going to answer but Gray looked the man dead in the eye.

"Why don't you ask the one who just destroyed one of his nakama, looks like she should've been trying to protect herself from him rather than Dark Guilds."

He glared at between Natsu and Laxus before walking out of the guild hall, still angry beyond belief. Turning to the pink haired boy, the Dragon Slayer also began to spark up with anger.

"Natsu, what did he mean by that?" the Mage ignored his words and kicked his foot along the ground. Walking over to him, he grabbed him by his vest.

"What did you do?" Natsu finally met the blond's eyes and gulped.

"Lucy left the team and I said some things that I shouldn't have…" a cackle left his mouth, that's all? The bimbo blonde got her feelings hurt. Nodding at Natsu he put him on the ground "Go home and come back when you decide to treat your nakama right." He may not give a damn about the blonde's feelings but if he was going to be guild master then he had to try and discipline the fool somehow.

* * *

The next morning she woke up in her bed, her friend passed out on the couch, she was fully dressed and clean, she couldn't express it but she was grateful for having such an amazing friend as Erza, she was like her older sibling. Sitting up slowly the events of the day before came flooding back and that emptiness in her stomach grew larger, groaning she got out of bed to get some water thankful that she could at least function today. The redhead must've heard her wake and not long after was standing beside her with a reassuring hand placed on her shoulder.

"Thank you for, well everything Erza. I don't know what I would've done without you last night."

Her friend smiled and she tried her best to return it, failing miserably. Sighing she walked to her bedroom and put on the first things her hands met with, which turned out to be a pair of black jeans and a purple tank top, two items she could not recall even buying. She tied up her hair messily and went to join her friend at the breakfast table, where fresh toast and cereal were placed. She ate her breakfast slowly, Erza glaring at her slightly every time she took too long between bites, she knew her friend was only making sure she took care of herself but it was getting kind of annoying.

"Erza, you don't have to babysit me. I promise I'll be okay."

The now armoured Mage shook her head at her, "I will leave you to take care of yourself after we go to the guild."

The blonde dropped her toast on the table "T-he gu—ild? Why?!"

A soft look crossed her friends face, knowing her fears, but she had to go.

"You need to tell the Master that you have officially withdrawn from the team." She sighed as the redhead explained, of course she was right but she still didn't want to go. Nodding at her she went to pack her bag and retrieve her Whip and Keys, turning to Erza she gave the biggest smile she could manage, which was quite small.

"Let's go then, I'd rather get it over and done with." Standing from her place her friend nodded and they set off to the guild, in search of gramps.

Reaching the guild she hovered behind Erza nervously as the doors were pushed open, the redhead looked around the guild before smiling and nodding at the blonde.

"He's not here Lucy but the master is."

She released her breath and walked into the guild behind Erza; everyone noticed their entrance but looked away as Erza met their eyes. The two walked up to the Master and the redhead nudged the blonde forward, urging her to tell him.

"Um, Master?" Master Makarov looked up from his paperwork with a stern look on his face.

"What is it child?" she began to fiddle with the handle of her whip before she finally had enough courage to speak up.

"I've left Team Natsu; I'll be taking on solo jobs from now on. I might do some jobs with Levy or Cana here and there but mainly they will be solo."

The master nodded at her statement, Laxus having already filled him in on what he knew of the situation, "If that is what you really wish then okay, you will need to take on training in between jobs though. Being a solo Mage can be rather dangerous so you need to make sure your skills are properly honed."

For the first time that day she truly smiled, she had gotten exactly what she needed with no disputes, she knew it would be a lot of work but it was necessary. Her spirits had been slightly uplifted thanks to masters blessing and she grabbed her bag off the stool beside where she stood, ready to head out on her mission. Opening the doors she ran into a familiar body, the second she smelt his scent, a mixture of forest and cinnamon, she scrambled back away from him and turned on her heels, ready to run out the backdoor; it was too late though.

"Luce, I have to talk to you."

Turning around she faced the man who had once held her heart before he shattered it, anger bubbled inside her at the sight of him and raising her hand she brought it across his face, a red print left in its place as she let her hand fall.

"No. You don't. You said enough last night, good thing I'm only a replacement right?" she hissed his words back at him as he stood there shocked at the fact his best friend had purposely struck him.

"It's my turn to talk. I understand that we're part of the same guild, I understand that our paths will cross but if you **ever** speak to me again I will make sure you regret it!" with that she pushed passed him and out of the guild, not caring that everyone had heard and seen their encounter.

* * *

Everyone in the guild froze as Lucy slapped him, sure the guild fought daily but they never wanted to hurt each other before, and Natsu was apparently too shocked to speak and watched the blonde as she left. Lisanna rushed over to her boyfriend's side, kissing where she had slapped him and whispered something only he or other Dragons slayers would've been able to hear.

_"It's not worth talking to her now Natsu. Eventually she'll talk to you, just leave her be." _A low growl bubbled in his chest as he heard the white haired Mages words, his guild was dividing fast and it was not something he could tolerate. Calling out from the balcony he startled him.

"Natsu, can I see you for a moment?" He saw him roll his eyes and groan at the request before begrudgingly walking up the stairs, turning to face him he began to speak but the blond held up a finger silencing him.

"Look, I don't care what's going on with you and blondie but you and your little girlfriend best keep any negative feelings about her to yourself, just as I will be asking her to do the same about you. Fairy Tail needs to keep up its strength and the only way we can do that is by keeping our bonds strong."

Nodding his head, he turned and walked back downstairs. A shadow appeared behind the Dragon Slayer.

"What was that all about?" the familiar Seith Mage asked curiously.

He let out a sigh, "If I'm going to be guild master someday I have to make sure those idiots don't kill each other and from the looks of it, he'll soon have more than just Gray and Blondie attacking him."

He heard Bixlow cackle behind him as his babies copied in unison, this guild was going to kill him before he even had the chance to become master.

* * *

She muttered angrily under her breath all the way to the train station when she felt the Lacrima phone in her pocket buzzing, she answered it snapping at the unknowing person on the other end.

"What?" a low chuckle on the other end of the line confused her, why was Laxus calling her?

"Look blondie, I've given these same orders to Natsu so don't go throwing a fit. If you don't want to be in his team anymore whatever but don't bring your issues to the guild, I'm not saying don't deal with them but if you two are fighting the guild will divide fast."

She nodded silently at his words before remembering he couldn't see her "Yeah, fine."

She heard the call disconnect and sighed as she walked over to buy her train ticket, hoping the trip to Clover wouldn't take too long. Boarding the train she quickly dozed off, happy for the peace and quiet in the carriage, and before she knew it an employee was waking her three hours later to inform her of their arrival. She exited the train and made her way to the clients' office; a legal clerk had sent the request after the mayor had failed in resolving the problem, Clover hadn't changed much since the last time she had been there aside from the new meeting hall. Arriving at the office she pushed open the door and walked inside.

"Hello?"

The office was empty aside from an envelope labelled 'Fairy Tail', picking it up she opened it cautiously. A projection of a rather large man appeared out of the envelope and began to speak.

_"I haven't much time to inform you of the details, at first I thought it was a guild causing the distress but it turns out it is one Dark Mage with immense power, I am afraid this person is after me as we speak. I have informed my brother, Shira, of the situation and if I do not return alive you must go to him to collect your reward for stopping the attacks."_

With that the projection vanished leaving the blonde standing there nervously. She sighed and decided to search the office for any evidence of a struggle, the outer area appeared untouched however when she walked into the clients office she couldn't help but gasp, everything was upturned and papers were strewn across the room. She began to pick the papers up, scanning each one to see if it was relevant to the job, as she was about to leave she saw something metallic behind the edge of a painting, pushing the painting aside a safe was revealed.

"Open Gate of the Lion! Leo!"

Loke appeared before her and taking in their surroundings immediately thought she was injured, shaking her head at him she pointed to the safe.

"Do you think you could get the open for me?" he gave her a confused look and she elaborated.

"The client I'm working for has vanished, I need to look for clues on who did this so I need to make sure nothing is in there."

Her spirit nodded at her before blasting it with his magic, the door to the safe swung open revealing a thick purple folder containing newspaper clippings and photos of the Mage disrupting the town, he wore the same outfit in every photo but his face and body were different, clearly he was gifted in Take Over magic. Turning to her spirit she thanked him, he began to ask where her team was before she cut him off .

"I'll explain after the job, you can go back now."

With that he blew her a kiss and vanished back to the spirit world. Stuffing the folder into her bag she exited through the backdoor and made her way to the hotel she was staying at, it was a quaint little establishment and her room was lovely. The first thing she did when entering was lock away her things in the safe and make sure everything was locked properly before going to shower, twenty minutes later she emerged feeling fresh and ready to get down to work, returning to the safe she retrieved the folder and sprawled it out on the bed. She sifted through the information for over an hour before she finally put the pieces together, this man wasn't targeting random people; he was working his way up from the poor to the rich. She groaned as she looked down at her watch, it was 4PM and she hadn't eaten anything since breakfast, calling down to the front desk she ordered up a salad and some pretzels before continuing to read the information. Not long after she hung up the phone did her room service arrive, she thanked the employee tipping them generously before returning to her bed, she ate her food slowly as she devised a plan for tonight. She would wear the dress she had packed, it looked elegant enough for her to be at least upper middle class, which was the Dark Mages next target if she was correct, her keys would be kept in a thigh sheath Erza had forced her to bring along on every mission for exactly this purpose. Her whip would be disguised in the dark as a purse, the Fleuve d'étoiles had come in handy on more than one occasion and she refused to leave the house without it, she would then fight off the attacker and force him to show her where her client was before handing him over to the authorities. Noticing the pink of the sky she quickly finished her meal before returning the folder to the safe and retrieving her supplies, entering the bathroom she began to get ready making sure she looked the part perfectly before leaving the hotel as night fell.

The streets were dark and a little creepy, what streetlights were on didn't exactly help either as they cast off an eerie green glow, a light breeze blew through the streets and she shivered, seconds later a hand was on her shoulder and she jumped slightly, willing herself not to attack. Turning around she saw the outfit she was looking for and smiled sweetly at the man.

"Oh, hello Sir. Is something the matter?" she spoke the way her teachers had told her to, being a Heartfilia gave her certain responsibilities back then that she was now grateful for. A charming smile returned hers and he spoke using the same manner as her.

"My apologies, I didn't mean to startle you. It's not safe to wander alone at night; you never know _who_ might be watching."

She tried to hide the frown that was attempting to cross her face and grasped her whip tighter "Thank you for your concern but I do believe I will be fine, I'm off to my father's estate as we speak so no need to be alarmed so close to home."

A sick grin crossed his face as his grip tightened on her shoulder, making her wince slightly, "Unfortunately, you won't be returning home."

His other fist came down on the back of her neck causing her to fall and a cynical laugh bellowed in his stomach, as he brought his foot up to her head she wrapped her whip around his foot, jerking him to the ground beside her.

"Sorry buddy, this is one girl you won't be claiming."

The man scrambled into a standing position and began to recall her training with Erza as she too stood up, he hissed profanities as he ran towards her, moving to the side he went straight passed but not before his fist connected with her shoulder, she heard a crack as she let out a scream of pain before turning to him, the same cynical smile plastered on his face. Putting her hands up in front of her she took the defensive stance she knew and winced as her shoulder ached; a tear ran down her face before she shook her head.

"What's the matter _sir?_ Never had someone fight back before?"

Her words dripped with venom as she spoke and the smile on the man's face faded briefly before he moved closer to her, his fist connecting with her face as his legs swept hers out from under her. She fell to the ground, hitting it hard, her vision blurred slightly but she didn't care, this was the most she'd felt since Natsu had hurt her and she wasn't about to let scum like this win, she returned his sick smile with one of her own, spitting blood out of her mouth as she stood up.

"Persistent little one aren't you?" he laughed as she swayed from side to side, looking like she'd fall over on her own.

"Open Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!"

The perverted spirit of hers appeared before them and began to instantly leer at her, looking at her state he grew angry and turned to the very stunned Take Over Mage before swinging his enormous axe at him. She could feel herself slipping in and out of consciousness as she stood there.

"Open Gate of the Lion! Leo! Open Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!" she fell to her knees as she summoned two more of her spirits.

"We need to take care of him and fast, I can't." she slumped slightly as fatigue began to take over and Loke returned to the spirit world, returning seconds later on his own magic with a herb to restore her magic power, usually it would be presented mixed into food but there was no time.

Forcing his master to eat the herb she began to look more revived, still weak but able to stay conscious enough, before joining his friends to take care of the now unconscious attacker. The three stood in front of the blonde, worrying about their master before Loke turned to his friends telling them to return. Lucy began to stand, feeling a lot better than before and turned to hug Loke, letting out a groan as she lifted her now broken shoulder.

"Could you help me? I need to find out information about where he has taken my client."

Nodding he walked over to the unconscious Mage and slapped him awake, getting the answers he needed he looked over at the blonde who was staring out at the forest entrance close to where they stood.

"Lucy, where do I dispose of him?" turning she smiled at her friend, grateful he was here on his own magic.

"If you wouldn't mind taking him to the prison, then you can return to your world." He began to protest once more but she shook her head.

"I'm fine, really." Nodding, not wanting to disobey her, he walked up and handed her a piece of paper with the information about her client and walked off dragging the now yelling Dark Mage too the prison. Smiling at his back she heard the rustling she had earlier, certain that it wasn't her imagination she walked over to the bushes and felt her whip come to life as she saw a dark shadow beginning to run, raising her damaged shoulder she let out a scream as she brought the whip down, wrapping it around the shadow. She heard someone groan.

"Could you release me Lucy?" She did as he asked, too shocked by the familiar voice

"Freed..?" a grimace crossed her face as he came into view. "What the hell are you doing here?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

**All characters belong to Hiro Mashima.**

The Rune Mage stood in front of the blonde nervously, shifting his weight from one for to the other. He had seen the entire fight and there was no doubt that she was destined to be a Fairy Tail Mage, she fought with perseverance and raw power. Looking at the girl interrogating him, he smiled.

"I'm sorry I startled you Lucy." Looking down at his feet he continued, "Laxus urged me to follow you and make sure you didn't come into any danger, a precaution necessary for your first solo mission."

Looking at her he nudged his head forward, indicating to her battered physique. "I can see that you can handle yourself though, you may need some more physical training though."

At this the blonde looked somewhat stunned before giving him a slight smile, he was about to turn on his heels and return to Magnolia but he remembered something he was supposed to tell her.

"Oh, Mirajane would like me to inform you of the upcoming masquerade ball. I assume you'll return tomorrow, it'll take place the night after."

He saw her face light up at the mention of a ball, her face clearly going to the many choices of outfits she could wear. Her hands moved to clap together and a look of intense pain crossed her face, clutching her shoulder she bit back a groan.

"Lucy! What's wrong?"

* * *

Her vision blurred slightly from the pain now shooting through her body, her shoulder had to be broken. Looking at Freed she held back the tears threatening to break through her surface and groaned.

"That stupid asshole got my shoulder, I think it's broken.

The green haired man nodded and ushered her back to the hotel, when he proceeded to enter she began to protest but he simply shook his head and stated that if she wanted to be able to wear anything _'cute'_ to the ball he had better get a look at her shoulder. She begrudgingly allowed him to as she pushed the sleeves of her dress off her arms, leaving her uninjured arm to hold up the front. His surprisingly gentle touch made her yelp, a feather could land on her and it would hurt. After ten minutes of poking and prodding he decided to use his Magic.

"Lucy, do I have permission to use my Magic on you?" She looked at him dumbfounded, no idea what he could possibly do to help with his magic.

"I can use my magic to add electromagnetic radiation to glass." Seeing her expression he added "I'll be able to see your bones to see if it's broken"

Nodding at him he moved to the wall, retrieving glass from a photo frame, he began to write on it and soon, it was an x-ray. He held the glass up to her shoulder and studied it; there was no visible break, not even hairline fracture, which meant that it was dislocated. Looking at the blonde he frowned slightly, knowing what happened next would be painful for her.

"Your shoulder has been dislocated, there's no break in the bone, which means the only option is to put it back in its place and Wendy can make sure you're healed properly when you return."

She froze at his words, 'put it back in its place' meant he had to push her shoulder back in... A gulp ran down her throat and her hands shook slightly before nodding at him, he shot her an apologetic look before making her sit in a low back chair, handing her a towel she looked at him confused.

"Bite down on it as I do this, any yelling will be muffled and you won't hurt yourself when your jaw clenches."

Clearly he had done this before, which didn't exactly surprise her, holding the towel up to her mouth she bit down and she felt his hands on either side of her shoulder. In one fluid motion he had pushed her shoulder back into its place and an overwhelming pain went through her body, tears streamed down her face as she screamed into the towel. Her hands had turned white from holding onto the chair arms too tightly and as Freed moved away from her, expecting to be hit, she let her head fall. She noticed him leave the room, with her key, and returned ten minutes later, allowing her enough time to calm herself. When he returned he was carrying a bandage, making a sling out of it he motioned to her shoulder.

"Try not to move it too much until you see Wendy, okay?"

He turned to leave as her other arm shot out, grabbing his hand. Startled he stopped and turned to her curiously.

"Are you returning to Magnolia tonight?"

He nodded at her question, "I intend to catch the last train in 40 minutes. Would you prefer if I stayed with you?"

"If you wouldn't mind... I don't think I'll be able to take all my stuff comfortably, now that I know where my client is I can retrieve him and tomorrow morning once I get my reward, I'll be leaving."

Suddenly she was grateful that the Lightning Dragon Slayer had forced him to watch her, if it weren't for Freed she would still have a dislocated shoulder. Grasping the keys at her thigh she found Virgo's key once again,

"Open Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

"Punishment time, Hime?" Lucy rolled her eyes at the spirit in front of her and shook her head smiling, walking over to the bed she picked up the piece of paper Loke had given her.

"Virgo, do you think you'd be able to go retrieve my client? I can come with you but it'll be faster if you just went, I can summon Scorpio so that you have back up if anyone attacks."

"I will complete your request on my own and return him to you Hime." Nodding at the blonde she left the hotel and setting off to find the client, she felt bad about sending her alone but she was in no shape to go out.

Turning to Freed she noticed a confused look on his face, "What's wrong?" A blush tinted his cheeks as he covered his face with his hand.

"There's only one bed."

At this the Blonde laughed out loud, he was so innocent, and wanting to make it easier on him she made a suggestion.

"How about you sleep now while I wait for Virgo to return and I talk to my client. When I've spoken with him I can wake you and we can switch, or I can take the couch." His mood seemed to brighten at her words and he nodded at her.

"I'll sleep now, wake me when you're ready and I will take the couch so you can have a comfortable sleep."

Two hours passed before Virgo returned with a seemingly untouched client, apparently he had been tied up in a shack and was waiting for his attacked to come back and torture him, instead Virgo showed up. Delighted he thanked the Blonde for her all her hard work and left, promising to return within 10 minutes, clearly scared Lucy asked Virgo to escort him. When they returned the man handed her the reward and gave her a gorgeous Ruby pendant hung on a silver chain and an extra 100,000 jewel for helping find him. The man left, incredibly grateful for her help, and she once again sent Virgo to ensure he got home safely and informed her that once she was sure the man was safe she could return home. She buzzed around the room excited as she packed her things, making sure they could leave at first light, forgetting all about Freed she got in bed and went to sleep.

* * *

The next morning the two woke with a start, Freed had been stroking Lucy's hair in his sleep while Lucy had draped one of her legs over his, the two cuddled into each other before remembering who was beside them and they both sat straight up red-faced.

"I am so sorry Freed! I was so tired I forgot you were in the bed..."

She was still recovering from the embarrassment of finding herself in bed with the guy Mira had no doubt been crushing on for years. Nothing had happened though; there were absolutely no intentions of pursuing anything with him other than friendship. Not long after the two were laughing at their sleeping arrangement and joking in a way the blonde never imagined she could with Freed. Ecstatic at her new friendship they ate breakfast together before setting off for the train station.

Three and a half hours later the two walked into the guild hall laughing about their fondest memories of the guild, causing Mira to raise an eyebrow at her suspiciously, knowing the two had never been close. Looking at the green hair man beside her she thanked him for all his help, offering to give him some of her reward money; he declined her before she had an idea.

"Do you have a date for the ball Freed?"

A sad look crossed his face as she noticed him quickly glance at Mira. Smiling at him she put a hand on his shoulder "now you do."

The Rune Mage looked startled at her boldness before she let out a laugh "I don't mean me. I know a girl, who likes you and I'm positive you will like her."

With that he nodded at her blushing as she walked over to Mira, wanting to divulge her plan.

* * *

The whited haired Mage looked up as the guild doors opened, shocked as two unlikely members walked in laughing with each other. Jealousy flared in her chest before she remembered who the Rune Mage was with, Lucy knew about her feelings and would never hurt her. A doubt crossed her for a second as she saw him blushing at the blonde's words, shaking her head she smiled as the Celestial Mage made her way over to greet her.

"What was that about?" She wiggled her eyebrows at the blonde, just as she did whenever Lucy was with a guy, attempting to hide her jealousy. The blonde laughed at her antics and swatted her arm.

"Don't even go there. I was actually just asking him to the ball." Pain shot across the girls face, the blonde realized and shook her head.

"I was asking him for you Mira. I told him I know a girl who likes him and if he was willing to go then I knew he'd hit it off with her."

The Take Over Mages face lit up as she flew across the bar to hug her friend tightly, feeling slightly guilty for ever doubting her intentions. She placed kisses all over the blondes face as her friend gagged jokingly at her; pulling away she looked into the blondes eyes.

"Thank you so much Lucy! I have a present for you by the way."

She cocked an eyebrow at Mira, hoping her present wasn't a date as well; instead the Mage pulled her into a room as Kinana took over for her.

"I have had this for years; it was in my mother's things." The blonde took the object, in awe of her friend's gift.

"It's not forever, just for the ball" she nodded at her friend and looked at the small object curiously, it looked like an everyday broach but she could feel it humming with power.

"Mira, what does it do?" Her friend smiled at her, knowing it wouldn't take long for her to figure out it was magical and she took the brooch out of her hand.  
"The whole idea of the ball is disguise, most people just wear masks **BUT** this is Fairy Tail, we all have our ways of changing our appearance." The blonde just observed as her friend pressed her brooch between her fingers and all of a sudden Mira was no more, her appearance had changed completely, down to her scent. The only thing that told her it was Mira was the clothing. Her mouth gaped at the Take Over Mage before she clapped her hands, wincing slightly at her shoulder that she had taken out of its sling when they reached Magnolia.

"Thank you so much Mira!" She hugged the Mage with her uninjured arm and Mira looked at her curiously.

"What happened to your arm?"

"I dislocated it, Freed popped out back in but I have to see Wendy when she comes in." The Mage nodded at her smiling and handed her the instructions.

"Wendy is at her usual spot with the Exceeds and you're welcome." She kissed the blonde on the cheek before exiting the room, Lucy not far behind her, off to gain Wendy's help.

* * *

Not long after Wendy had healed her she made her way over to where Erza and Gray sat, they both took in her unharmed body and sighed; clearly they'd been worried for her. She smiled at her friends and slipped her arm around Gray's shoulder.

"So who is coming shopping with me?"

He sunk down in his chair slightly at the thought of shopping with them two again, the last time they dragged him out he ended up carrying around fifteen shopping bags and they made him buy clothes that would be difficult to take off. Erza perked up across the table at the mention of shopping and grinned.

"What are we shopping for exactly Lucy?" she giggled at her friend, how could she not already know that it was for the ball?

"Well I was hoping to buy something amazing for the ball tomorrow night, do either of you guys have things to wear already?" They both shook their heads, even Gray seemed to perk up slightly at the mention of the ball.

"Let's go then!"

She grabbed her friend's arms as they stood up, walking out of the guild hall, ignoring the eyes of a certain pinkette as they did. Entering the most expensive store in town they were overwhelmed by the most extravagant dresses, after nearly two hours of searching for the right clothes they all exited the dressing room wearing their chosen outfits. Lucy had on a strapless white dress made of chiffon, with a sweetheart neckline and a revealing leg split, her attire made Gray's jaw drop and Erza blush slightly at how much the dress revealed her bust. Erza was wearing a black evening gown, a sheer single shoulder strap that also had a leg split, where Lucy looked sexy, Erza looked elegant, both however being absolutely stunning. Gray had emerged in a black Tuxedo, wearing a dark blue dress shirt. They all looked at each other in awe; they looked terrific and knowing what they'd be able to talk freely to each other, even if they looked completely unlike themselves.

Having finished with their shopping, they all already had shoes that would match their outfits, they returned to the guild with their outfits in clothing bags. Walking into the guild happily they all went their separate ways, Erza to use the Lacrima in her office to call Jellal, Gray to ask Juvia to the ball and Lucy to Freed's side. Slight murmurs went through the guild as she whispered in his ear, requesting she see him in private as the two walked off she shot a wink at Mira who blushed. Once they were in an empty room she turned around and unzipped her bag.

"This is what I'll be wearing the night of the ball, remember it. Find me before everyone goes in and say 'wiggle'. I'll take you to your girl."

She winked at the now blushing Rune Mage and added "Don't go telling people what I'll be wearing either, I'd prefer to stay anonymous."

She giggled at her friend before running off to tell Mira the same thing. After her successful matchmaking she decided it was time to head home and practice changing her appearance for the ball. Once at home she read the instructions, all she had to do was hold the brooch between her fingers and think of the appearance that she wanted, she had no idea how she wanted to look but not too different; just enough to not be recognized. She decided that she would keep her body but change her face and her hair. Slowly she pressed the brooch between her fingers and closed her eyes, picturing herself as she was now but with bright blue eyes, when she opened her eyes she looked in the mirror and let out a delighted squeal, her eyes were blue. Next she made her grow longer and change colour, she went through a range of different hair colours and styles, before finally landing on one she liked. Her hair was long and dark purple, her eyes were now a deep blue and her skin pale and blemish free. Looking in the mirror she almost didn't recognize herself, she did love her new look though and made she too memorize the details before setting the brooch down on the table next to her. She watched as her disguise faded away, a condition on keeping the disguise was that it was on at all times, meaning it had to be pinned to her clothes or she had to be holding it. Smiling she went to her desk and began to write to her mother about everything.

_Dear mum,_

_I tried to tell him the other day but I never got a proper chance, he had already made up his mind and chose the other girl. I couldn't handle it, I was so hurt that everything turned numb and then I couldn't feel a thing. I ran out of the guild so fast that I didn't have time to process anything and next thing I knew I was destroying the ground beneath me with my fists, actually my hands got more hurt than the ground did, but I didn't feel any of it, my heart hurt but nothing else. Gajeel found me and brought me back, making Wendy heal me, then I had to explain everything to Erza and Gray. The worst thing though is that he came by, to see where I had been and so I told him that I had to leave the team that it's something I needed to do, he wouldn't have it though and he said that, that I was just her replacement. The man I am in love with was literally just using me while his precious girlfriend was, dead, away. I was so hurt, I couldn't do anything but Erza helped me, she was like a big sister and she gave me the courage to continue._

_Not long after I went on a job, on my own. I guess I was pretty reckless about how I went about doing everything but it was worth it in the end, I did things that I never thought I would though. I laughed at the pain he caused me because I wanted to feel it; I needed to feel it, to feel anything and I encouraged it. In fact I was happy that for once someone was treating me like a princess, even if it was a bad guy, he saw me as an actual threat and didn't hold back. That idiot Natsu has turned me into a masochist, finding pleasure in anything that makes me feel emotions, even if it is pain. Ugh. Anyway Freed came to check on me and I made an unlikely friend, he helped me with my injuries and then kept me company for the train ride home, as a thank you I offered to get him a date for the ball tomorrow night. Mira will be going with him; those two have had a crush on each other for so long that everyone knows it but them. Mira also gave me a gift, only for the ball, it changes the wearer's appearance. Then Erza, Gray and I went shopping for clothes for the ball, I found one that's nearly exactly the same as your wedding dress! It's not as puffy but it's made from the same material and the bodice is very similar, I felt so close to you when I tried it on._

_I miss you so much; I need you now more than ever._

_Love,  
Lucy_.

**NB: I was laughing like a moron when they woke up, biggest possible BROTP right there!  
Anyway, next chapter should be up soon hopefully! Thank you to all the lovely reviews so far, they inspire me to write faster  
Apologies for this chapter being somewhat choppy, I just didn't have enough ideas in my head to make them flow together properly.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

**All characters by Hiro Mashima**

She woke the next morning with a smile on her face, much to her surprise, excited for the ball tonight. Rushing around her apartment she quickly got ready before heading to the guild, when she entered Mira came up and handed her one of her famous Milkshakes. Thanking her friend she went to join Levy, who was scolding Gajeel for something. Sliding onto the chair opposite them she laughed as the Bluenette whacked her Dragon Slayer on the head.

"Hey you two. Excited for the ball tonight?"

Gajeel tsked at her question but Levy began to bounce excitedly, telling the blonde all about her disguise. After pretending to be asleep for 15 minutes Gajeel finally spoke, as his girlfriend had finally stopped.

"So who you going with Bunny?" Both her and Levy frowned at the question.

"I don't have a date actually."

It was the first time shed even thought about having one, Mira and Freed, Levy and Gajeel, Erza and Jellal, Gray and Juvia, Elfman and Evergreen. Seemed like nearly everyone had a date, maybe she could ask Na-, oh right he has Lisanna. Putting her head in her hands she sighed.

"Maybe I shouldn't go." Both she and Gajeel received a whack at that, causing them both to frown at the Script Mage.

"None of that Lu-chan, you'll be there and you'll have fun. Gajeel and I can be your date." Gajeel's frown deepened and she made a gagging noise.

"I love you but I don't think I could stand all the mushiness. I'd rather take some alcohol as my date." It was Levy's turn to frown as the blonde stood up from the table.

"You better be there tonight!" The bluenette called as she waved behind her.

Exiting the guild, her good mood deflated, she frowned all the way home. It was only 10AM, the ball started at 6 and she had to be there when it started for Mira and Freed. That left her with 8 hours 1 for hair, 1 for makeup and another for getting dressed and making sure everything was perfect. So what was she going to do for the other 5 hours? Having just got home she was surprised to see a very nervous Rune Mage at her door.

"Is everything alright, Freed?" She opened her door wider, gesturing for him to come in and he did, looking at her his eyes almost pleaded without any words.

"I thought I had appropriate formal attire but it's gone and I haven't the best fashion sense. Can you please help me? I don't want to look bad for my date."

The blonde laughed lightly before nodding at him, glad she now had something to fill the time. Sitting him down she asked for his preferences as she looked at a map of Magnolia, his price range would buy him a good suit but ruled or several overpriced stores and his style left them with seven possible stores. Standing from their chairs, they exited her apartment and set off for Freed's new formal wear.

She let out another sigh as he rejected what seemed like the 200th suit. It was now 12PM and they'd only been in two stores. She was about to yell at him to stop being so picky when a Tuxedo caught her eye, walking off she picked it up carefully and handed it to him, his eyes widened clearly loving the design. Exiting the dressing room he frowned at her.

"Don't you think this is a bit much? I'll stand out." Walking up to him she adjusted his collar and bow tie before taking a step back, he looked amazing.

"So? You'll be in disguise, besides you look great in it. Trust me, she'll love it."

He beamed at the blonde's words before going to purchase his clothes, turning to face him she smiled. "will you need help getting ready as well? 'Cause you're welcome to do that at my house."

He declined her offer, having all his necessary things at his house but wanted to thank he somehow.

"Thank you for everything, Lucy. I wish I could do something for you..." The blonde smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"Just treat my friend well and save me a dance before the night is over."

The two parted ways there, looking down at her watch it read 12:30, by the time she got home it was 1 and she now had five hours till she left.

She ate a small lunch before having a bath, emerging 30 minutes later sparkly clean. She pulled her hair up into a bun as she pulled on her matching white strapless bra and thong. Turning to the mirror, she began to apply golden eye shadow with hints of red to blend with her new necklace that she wanted to wear. Looking at her watch it now read 2:30, three and a half hours left, finishing up with her makeup she quickly dried her hair, not worrying about it too much as the brooch would change it. Stepping out of her bathroom she walked over to the dress laid on her bed, on top of the dress was a small box with a card on top.

"Thought you might like this Hime - Virgo"

She opened the box to find a beautiful white Venetian mask that covered her eyes, looking at the back she saw no string to tie it too her and cautiously lifted it too her face. She felt the mask change form slightly as it molded to her, letting go of it she faced the ground to see if off would fall off. Putting her hand against the corner she gently took it off and hugged it to her chest, silently thanking Virgo. Slipping into her dress she went to observe appearance before she put on her disguise, she looked amazing! Taking in how she looked she smiled before pinning the small brooch to the inside of her dress, she gently pressed her thumb over it and closed her eyes, imagining the same look as before. Opening her eyes she frowned at her appearance, her hair was not a good colour with this outfit; once again she closed her eyes and imagined long golden hair flowing down her back. When she opened her eyes again she was stunned, she looked like her mother. That was it, she didn't care if people realized it was her, she couldn't bear to change her hair now. By the time she had finished, making everything perfect, she put on the Ruby necklace she received in her reward and her mother's shall that her father had left her and once again loomed at the clock that now read 5PM. Sighing she walked to her kitchen and retrieved a bottle of vodka and a glass, pouting a small amount she sipped at it tentatively until the clock read 5:30 and she was ready to leave.

Exiting her apartment the blonde took her time walking to the guild, many of those who passed her complimented her and she even hear some people assuming she was royal. When she reached the gold at 6:05 she found her Green Haired friend waiting nervously by the door, he smiled as he saw her and nodded at her appearance as she twirled, laughing. Hooking her arm through his she smiled; let's go find your girl. Entering the guild they were both taken back by the sight in front of them, they had sure gone all out. Walking through the crowd, the blonde finally felt a tap on the shoulder as the woman before her whispered the code word into her ear. Smiling she hugged Mira before turning to Freed, both of their disguises looked nothing like them.

"Freed this lovely woman will be your date tonight."

With that she smiled and waved at her friends as she walked towards the bar, itching for a drink. She quickly ordered a vodka tonic as she heard the doors opening loudly, her heart sank, the couple walking in had a little blue Exceed next to them and she realized who it was. The sudden need for air overwhelmed her; she downed her drink like it was a shot before walking up the stairs to find the balcony. Finally finding a room that was unlocked, not taking in her surroundings, she walked straight to the glass double doors and let out a sigh at the breeze hitting her face, she looked over the edge of the balcony when a somewhat familiar voice startled her.

"You're not gonna jump are ya, blondie?" Rolling her eyes she automatically spoke as she turned around.

"You're blond too Laxus." The man gave her an amused grin, he looked nothing like Laxus but she could tell.

"Guess my disguise wasn't good enough."

She let out a laugh at his words; if it weren't for his mannerisms she would've had no clue.

"Guess not." Walking over he stood behind her, reaching forward he placed an arm on the balcony either side of her, she could feel his chest against her back, every muscle and groove, she heard his steady breathing and when she turned around his disguise was gone, he leaned into her ear and whispered something that made her jump.

"So you and Freed, huh?"

She took a step back, hitting her body against the railing as he stood in front of her laughing, attempting to slap his arm she gasped as he caught hers, in a vice like grip.

"Freed and I are just Friends. Even if I did like him, which I don't, no one is stupid enough to like me."

At this the Dragon Slayer sighed, was she always so whiney? Releasing her he turned to walk away and she cleared her throat.

"Laxus, your disguise." Turning his head he smirked at her "What makes you think I'll be going downstairs? I only came so the old man would stop hassling me." She rolled her eyes and pushed passed him heading to the door, shocked when he phased in front of it.

"What do you want Laxus?" Her mood was deteriorating even more so than when she saw Natsu, her heart hurt at the thought of his name, you'd think this guy would over being a jackass.

"Who said you were allowed to leave?" Apparently not. She put as much anger as she could into her words and when she spoke the words came out a hiss.

"What makes you think you have ANY power over me? Stop trying to toy with me Laxus, enough people have hurt me lately and if you add to that I promise you'll wish you hadn't."

Shocked by her words she took this moment to push past him, half running she began to make her way downstairs. As she took the same seat as before at the bar a young man came up to her side, she knew who it was and immediately smiled.

"May I have this dance miss?"

A smirk grew across his face as the Celestial Mage pushed past him, for someone so tiny she had guts, some of the strongest members wouldn't dare say such things to him. Phasing to the other side of the top floor he watched as she sat at the bar, looking lonely until some twerp came and asked her to dance. It could only be Romeo, unless Levy or Wendy was disguised as boys, there was no else as short as him. From the looks of it the kid had no idea what he was doing, so she was leading, looks like the princess lives up to her family name. Looking across the crowd he matched the familiar pairings by their scents and was shocked to find Freed and Mira dancing together, a genuine smile, free of arrogance, grew on his face at the idea of his friend's happiness. Listening in slightly he heard them talking about blondie and how much they owed her for bringing them together. A frown crossed his face, she's setting people up so they're happy but she's sitting at the bar waiting for teenagers to dance? Her dance with the brat was now over and he saw her down something like it was water, that couldn't end well. Walking down the stairs, his disguise completely forgotten he walked up to the blonde, who just glared at him. Not speaking he placed a hand around hers; urging her to stand up, not knowing how to react to his gentle behaviour she followed him to the dance floor with a confused look on her face.

"You know you forgot your disguise right?"

Internally he cursed at himself but his face showed no signs, looking at her his arrogant smirk returned "What's the matter blondie? Too ashamed to be seen with a man like me?"

She took a step back from him, a slight look of hurt changing his features for a brief moment before she spoke. "No, I don't care what other people think. Just be nice to me..."

Looking down at the floor he could see how truly sad she was and he placed a hand under her chin "I'll be nice but can I be looking at the real you?"

She nodded slightly before moving her hand to her shoulder and closing her eyes, she was her normal self again, although she kept the hair she had.

He placed a hand on her waist as she placed an arm around his neck, their other hands joined together. The music changed and they began to Waltz, their bodies moving perfectly in sync with each other. She looked up at the man in front of her curiously, why was he doing this, did he pity her? It was probably his form of a joke. She ignored the fact that literally everyone in the guild had cleared the dance floor, obviously more interested in them.

Looking down he met her eyes "How familiar are you with this dance?"

Her mouth twitched nervously, she had perfected this dance when she was 11 as he father had demanded, and she smiled lightly.

"I've been doing this since I was 11, I'd say I know it well enough."

He smiled, a genuine smile, and she felt like she was going to fall over from shock, their bodies began to blur together beautifully and all of a sudden he started to mix different dances in, it didn't matter too much because as long as he lead her properly she would always know what to do, she smiled up at her dance partner, curiosity overflowing as to what other secrets he held. The music began to slow and the song came to an end, the two blondes separated and bowed to each other before leaving the dance floor, the entire guild cheering as they went. Returning to her seat at the bar, with Laxus beside her, she turned to him, her face beaming.

"Where did you learn to dance like that?!"

He shrugged nonchalantly clearly not going to share and she frowned before speaking up once more "Thank you."

At this he turned to stare at her "for what exactly?"

Looking at the bartender she quickly ordered another drink and turned to face the blond once more.

"It was only one dance but so far it was the most fun I've had tonight."

She smiled at him and he just shrugged at her once more, clearly whatever side of him he'd showed her on the dance floor was now behind a mask. A light tap on her shoulder snapped her out of her thoughts and she turned to see the familiar suit she had chosen for the Rune Mage. Clearing his throat, he held out a hand looking nervously at Laxus.

"Miss Heartfilia, may I have this dance?" She giggled at how formal he was being and took his hand.

"Why you may kind sir."

She teased his words, earning a chuckle from the Dragon Slayer and a blush from the man now escorting her to the dance floor. The two danced for one song, she enjoyed dancing with Freed it wasn't as intense as it was with Laxus so she could be a little silly. He laughed at her antics and she made him do a weird dance too, soon the song ended though and she was sad to see him leave but delighted as she saw him kiss Mira's hand. The song changed to a song that you wouldn't have expected to hear at a ball and she began to sway her hips to the beat, looking over at the bar she saw Laxus's eyes were trained on her she held up a finger beckoning him over, surprised he stood up and walked over to her side, she could've sworn she saw him blush but that thought quickly faded when he saw the cocky grin.

"So you can dance when there are specific moves but what about when you just let loose?" he scoffed at her and was about to turn and walk away but she gripped his arm with a surprising amount of strength.

"What's the matter _blondie_? Scared of doing something you can't control?"

She mimicked his cocky voice and the man just stared at her, his mouth agape at her bold words, and in all honesty had she not have been drinking for the past 2 hours then she would've been shocked too.

He smirked at her before leaning into her ear "You couldn't handle me when I'm out of control"

He nipped at her ear before walking away and she felt the need to hold onto something. Damn it why did she have to test the arrogant son of a -. She shook her head at his words, clearly he just wanted to rile her and she turned to continue dancing on her own, a drunken Cana soon joining her. The two women danced the night away, some of the other girls joining them at points, when finally their feet hurt too much to continue, so at around 11PM the went to the bar and ordered some more drinks, whilst they took their shoes off. Looking around the room she spotted a certain Dragon Slayer eyeing her, she smiled at him and he looked away, continuing to look around the room she noticed most the couples had hid themselves away at their tables and saw the familiar pinkette staring at Laxus, anger in his eyes, looking back at Laxus she saw that he was giving Natsu the same glare. Had she been on good enough terms with either of them she would've told them to stop it but at this point it would be entertaining to see Laxus rough Natsu up some, not so he got hurt but just a little bit of pain; unfortunately the two did not have an confrontation that night. It didn't seem like long before the night came to an end and everyone began to make their way home, Mira and Freed came up to the blonde still sitting at the bar and thanked her for pushing them together. She laughed lightly at their words and hugged them both before going off; she saw Levy trying to sneak past her with Gajeel and cleared her throat.

"And where have you been? I distinctly remember you saying that you both would be my date tonight…" She put on a hurt look and Levy blushed a deep crimson and she laughed, only imagining what those two got up too.

"It's alright Levy-chan, I forgive you but only after you give me details tomorrow."

Shooting a wink at the bluenette she saw Gajeel snort at her words, apparently he didn't think 'innocent' little Levy would tell, if only he knew. Waving goodbye to the couple she soon realized that she was one of the few people left at the guild, looking around she saw Erza and Jellal talking quietly in a corner before heading for the back exit, Bixlow and his babies asleep on a couch and Natsu and Lisanna giggling at something she couldn't hear. Looking away quickly she felt her eyes sting, tonight had been wonderful that was no doubt but she couldn't help the overwhelming feeling of how alone she was, standing up she walked out of the guild, thanking the staff for the night as she went.

It incredibly dark outside and as she was making her way home a shiver ran up her spine, freezing she wished she had brought a coat. A noise startled her, snapping her out of her thoughts and she turned to see what it was, seeing nothing she shrugged and continued walking, or tried to, as she stepped forward she ran into the chest of someone and let out a slight scream.

"Sorry sir!" looking up she saw it was Laxus and she placed her hands on her hips "Oh it's you."

His face pulled into a frown at her words and she took a step away from him "Did you want something?"

Looking at her he shrugged his signature coat of, placing it around her shivering body, "I just came to walk you home, no one should be walking around on their own after drinking as much as you have…"

The blonde blushed at his words and she met his eyes, stuttering, "Th-aank y-ou."

The two walked to her apartment in uncomfortable silence, glancing over at him she began to wonder at his gentle side once again before she got a gust of cold air and his coat nearly flew of her shoulders. She grabbed it quickly before it could and saw him look at her curiously.

"You're an odd one blondie."

Frowning at his words she replied in a monotone voice "What's with your moods? They're giving me whiplash."

Simply grunting at her in response they continued the walk in silence until they reached her doorway, "Well this is me."

Shrugging it off, she gingerly handed back his coat and smiled "Thanks for walking me home."

Nodding at her he took the coat and bent down, lightly kissing her cheek.

"Thanks for making the evening bearable."

With that he walked off leaving an incredibly red and confused girl looking after him, _what had just happened._

_**NB: Yay chapter finally, these two were absolute cuties. Laxus needs to stop being so grouchy though ._.  
Anyway please R&amp;R, I love hearing what you guys think about my story.**_


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm so sorry for the long wait; I've barely had time to sleep these past weeks thanks to uni.  
Anyway, I will be writing the next chapter but I wouldn't expect anything for 2 weeks because I have exams coming up...  
After that though I'm on break for 3 months! I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

**All characters belong to Hiro Mashima**

She watched as he left, still unable to understand what had just happened... Did he really just kiss her cheek? Shaking her head she was about to chase after him but her stomach began to churn, running into her apartment she unlocked her door in record time and ran to her bathroom. Emerging 20 minutes later with a now empty stomach, she got herself a glass of water and set it on her bedside table as she climbed into bed. It didn't take her long to finally doze off, mind full of thoughts about a certain blonde male.

* * *

Turning he left without saying anything more, her face had said it all, clearly that was not okay. Why the hell did he kiss her anyway? He didn't even like her that much, there were still some feelings of guilt for hurting her in the past but that shouldn't result in him kissing her, even if it was only on the cheek! The Dragon Slayer argued with himself the entire trip, having his house situated at the edge of town annoyed him when he got this much alone time to think. Entering the well-furnished house he stripped off his clothes as he walked to the bathroom, slamming the door a little too hard as he went, wincing as he heard it crack. Oh for the love of... He let out a sigh as he muttered under his breath, proceeding to get into the shower, he turned the water on and let it stream over his body as he leant his forehead against the wall. Any chance he had at befriending the girl who had so easily made him laugh disappeared from his head and he felt the need to punch something. He had wanted to make amends for everything he had done in the past but like that would ever happen now.

* * *

The next morning she woke up with a horrendous hangover, she couldn't exactly say she was surprised but it wasn't exactly pleasant. As her feet swung over the side of the bed she sat up slowly holding her head in her hands, slowly opening her eyes she let out a scream as she began to hurl pillows at the figure standing in front of her.

"Would you cut it out?"

The familiar voice ceased her throwing but the offended look on her face stayed as she eyed the blond standing in front of her. What was Laxus doing in her apartment so damn early and why was he in her bedroom?! Looking down at herself she let out a startled squeak and covered herself with the blanket, she was in nothing but her bra and underwear. A blush now staining her cheeks she puffed out her cheeks and groaned.

"Why are you here Laxus?"

She saw his shoulders move as he let out an irritated sigh, it seemed like he didn't want to be in her apartment any more than she did but no one could make Laxus do anything, so why was he here?

"I came to make sure you were okay, actually to check you were still alive... You drank more than Cana last night."

She groaned as he spoke, his deep voice was too harsh on her ears and head. Glaring at him for being so loud she grimaced.

"At this point I'd prefer to not be alive."

"Don't brush shit like that off so casually... Some people actually think that way." Looking at the girl he scoffed as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Go take a shower and I'll make you a hangover remedy."

Standing shakily she walked over to her bathroom ignoring her guest, she was in no mood to entertain and the sooner he left the better. She took as long as possible, hoping that by the time she emerged Laxus would be gone but her hopes were quickly dimmed as she saw the Dragon Slayer sitting on her couch reading something. Wait, was that her novel? Storming over she snatched the papers out of his hands and glared at him in a way that put the phrase "if looks could kill" to shame.

"Does NO ONE in this damn guild have any manners? Who gave you the right to go reading through my stuff?!"

"I don't know why you're so pissy, it's actually pretty good."

At that she stopped, a slight blush dusting her cheeks, he thought it was good? Laxus Dreyar, all mighty Dragon Slayer and S Class Mage actually gave her a compliment... She scoffed internally and eyed the blond curiously before speaking.

"Is there a reason you're still here?" Her words came out harsher than intended and she saw his mouth pull down at the corners.

"I just mean, don't you have better things to be doing?"

"Of course I have better things to be doing but I felt obligated to make sure you were alive, considering I was the last one to see you last night."

The light blush returned to the blonde's cheeks as he spoke, recalling the kiss he had placed on her cheek the night before. Her memory may have been a little foggy for certain parts of the night but that had stuck in her mind. Walking over she sat in the couch beside him and began to sip the drink he'd made her.

"Thanks for th-" as she took a sip of the drink she began to shake her head, swallowing it she let out a gasp of air. "What in Mavis' name was that? I thought you were making me a remedy not poison..."

A scoff was directed her way by a rather lazy looking blond, she didn't like the look he was giving her and went back to drinking her 'remedy' until it was finished. Sitting in uncomfortable silence for at least 10 minutes she slowly was beginning to feel better and finally regained eye contact with the man next to her, her face pulling into a frown as she saw his signature grin. Oh how she wanted to wipe the arrogant look off his face, biting back her temper she glared at him.

"What?"

"You feel better, don't you?" Her frown deepened at his words before begrudgingly muttered a reply.

"Maybe." Looking down to her hands she felt the need to end this little encounter. "Look I'm alive, thanks for the really bad tasting remedy but I'll be heading off to the guild soon so you should go."

It was his turn to frown and as he stood a nod directed his understanding to the girl, walking to the door her paused, turning to face her before leaving. "Glad to see you're okay." and then he was gone.

Standing from her place she felt a twinge of guilt for being so rude to him, he was after all only looking out for her, shaking her head she chastised herself. She wasn't going to be coddled like a child any longer; she had every right to treat him that way. Walking over to her drawers she packed some training clothes and a towel before setting off to the guild, jackass or not his remedy had done wonders, in fact she felt better than ever. It was a short walk to the guild, her usual friends yelled out for her to be careful by the canal and the remainder of her walk she was too consumed in her thoughts to notice where she was until she pushed open the large double doors. On a mission she walked over to where Gajeel sat, Levy by his side, and hovered not wanting to sit down.

"Whadda ya want Bunny?"

"I need your help." At that the Dragon Slayer almost fell off his chair and the small girl beside him giggled.

"Oi shut up you." Poking his girlfriend in her side he refocused his attention on the blonde "What kind of help?"

"I need to know how to train, like a workout regime. It'd be nice to have a trainer but I'm capable of following instructions without one."

The raven haired man cocked an eyebrow at her words and brought a hand to his mouth as he thought about his answer. "Sorry Bunny but I can't, I have crap to do. Why don't ya ask Erza or Laxus?"

A grimace crossed her face and she bit back the wince threatening to expose her fear of Erza. Not only did she not want to be manhandled but she already burdened her team, ex-team, enough, she didn't need to burden Erza further. Wait, was he serious? Laxus, train her... Like he would but even if he did, she couldn't bear the constant criticism he would give her.

"I'll take the instructions."

"Alright then, but don't come nagging me if you can't figure out how ta do it. I ain't no teacher."

Nodding she waited patiently as he wrote the instructions on a sheet of paper Levy had given him out of her bag, leaning down he wrinkled his nose as he realized it was scented causing the girls to laugh before he handed it to her. Thanking him she walked off to the training rooms, smelling the strawberry scented paper as she went.

As she entered she noticed it was empty and thanked Mavis for the alone time, quickly changing into her gym clothes she began looking over her instructions. The first part was easy, stretch. Sitting on the floor she made a v shape with her legs and began to stretch, just as she extended her arms to touch her right foot the door slid open and in walked the familiar Seith Mage. He stopped to regard her position before walking over to the weights with a smirk on his face. Ignoring his presence she continued to stretch and looked at her list, first up was the weight machine. Standing shakily she walked over and examined it, it looked rather intimidating. Taking a seat on the contraption she grasped onto the handles either side of her and attempted to pull, but they didn't budge, an amused Bixlow watched her efforts out the corner of his eye until he noticed her wince on the third try. Walking over he plucked the pin from the weights and replaced it under a smaller amount, lightening the load she'd be lifting. With a chuckle he came into the blondes view.

"You alright baby? Y'know you shouldn't be tryna lift such a heavy weight on the first go..." Usually she'd have scowled at him but his concern looked genuine. Rubbing her shoulder she nodded.

"I've never used this thing before and Gajeel's instructions didn't say to change the weight." The Mage smiled at her words and tilted his head to the side.

"Want some help then?" At that she raised an eyebrow, she hadn't thought to ask Bixlow but she didn't really want to turn down his offer.

"If you wouldn't mind, the most training I've done is carrying Natsu around after he gets motion sickness, so this is all brand new to me." His smile only grew at her words and she shifted uncomfortably either he was silently mocking her or thinking of all the ways to torture her but all he did was nod.

"Well for starters, you put your feet behind here. If you want your legs to get a work out too then you can push it forward, otherwise just use the hand grips. Got it baby?"

Rolling her eyes at his final words she experimentally pushed on the foot pump, feeling it lift the weights behind her, smiling she pulled on the hand grips and waited for the same. Slowly she began to fall into a rhythm and Bixlow looked at her satisfied with his advice. Around twenty minutes later he walked over to her, surprise evident on his face.

"I think you've done enough on that today... If you keep going you won't be able to move tomorrow." Reluctantly she slowed to a stop and slowly stood up, stretching her limbs as she did, looking to Bixlow he pointed to the exercise bike and she bit back a snort.

"If I wanted to ride a bike I'd go outside..."

"Suit yourself baby but right here" placing his hand on her torso he applied some pressure "is the main area it will focus on if you do it right. You need to build up your core strength too."

Her body tensed under his touch before she considered his words, she'd read enough books to know training your core was necessary. Letting out a sigh she nodded before mounting the bike, slowly building up a steady pace she began to smile at how well she was doing, as the words entered her mind though the bike malfunctioned, the left pedal span out of control and she felt it drag her foot under, a loud snap was heard as Lucy screamed out in pain. As she did two ferocious looking Dragon Slayers bust into the room and everything went black.

* * *

He had seen Lucy enter and couldn't help but listen in on her conversation with Gajeel, feeling somewhat hurt over her discontent to the thought of him training her. He was very much so tempted to confront her about it when he noticed Bixlow enter the same training room she had, he'd never get a chance to talk to her now, not there at least. He still didn't know why he wanted to help her, she was nothing more than his nakama and he wasn't exactly leaping out of his chair to go train anyone else. With clenched fists he listened in as he tried to sort out his feelings, he had just come to the conclusion that he wanted to be her friend, that he wanted to understand how everyone around her was always so happy, like she was contagious. A distinct snapping sound cut off his thoughts and as he heard her scream he was already half way through the training room doors, surprised to find the pink haired moron beside him. Ignoring his presence he directed his attention the blonde currently being nursed in Bixlow's arms, he growled at his team member before grabbing him by the collar.

"What happened?"

"Boss, I don't know... One minute she was fine, smiling, but the next she was like this. The machine it, it malfunctioned and her ankle." The Seith Mage was rarely one to show fear but the blonds eyes had turned to golden slits as he spoke and sparks flew around the room in a frenzy. Hearing Natsu approach he released his friend and moved in front of Lucy, giving him a look that said 'one more step and you won't have feet', he barked a command to get Wendy before turning his attention back to Lucy.

"I'm sorry; I know it wasn't your fault." Patting his friend on the shoulder apologetically he felt the Seith Mage release the tension in his muscles.

"This was no accident." At that the blond looked up.

"What?"

"Look at the machine, it's in pieces... A piece of gym equipment, especially one that just got checked over, couldn't cause that. Someone planned this."

It was all too much; if someone planned it then they couldn't have been after Lucy... Before today she'd never set foot in the training room, they would have had to just hope that anyone of us got on it. As if reading his mind Bixlow spoke up next to the blond with as much as venom in his voice as the Dragon Slayer felt coursing through his body.

"Their magic wasn't targeting the bike, it was targeting her."

* * *

**NB: I know this was shorter than normal but I wanted to get _something_ up for you guys!  
Also I tried breaking up the dialogue like people had recommended I do. So please tell me if you like it better this way ^ ^**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG TO GET TO YOU GUYS!  
This story is still on hold due to the fact I have no idea when I'll be able to update it next, life is so busy right now and I lost motivation for a good while._

**All characters belong to Hiro Mashima**

* * *

_**Lucy POV**_

When she awoke later that day to find she was laid out on a sofa, wrapped in Laxus' coat, looking around she began to wonder where she was and how exactly she had gotten there. The room was in fact an office and as her attention was drawn towards a large desk she instantly knew where she was, this was Laxus' office on the second floor, his Soundpod had given it away, but why would she be here? Suddenly, the memories came flooding back of her encounter with Gajeel, Bixlow helping her with the machines, the bike, Laxus AND Natsu bursting in and lastly, the fact her ankle had quite literally snapped. With a wince she remembered the immense amount of pain that had caused her to faint and tentatively moved her left foot, there was still pain in it but no more than a twisted ankle, Wendy must have healed her. Turning slightly she looked out the window to see the sun shining high in the sky; she must have been out a while if it was already noon. Leaning forward she slowly swung her legs around and placed them on the floor, experimenting with the amount of pressure she could supply to her ankle for a few minutes before deciding to stand, holding onto the sofa for support she slowly stood and put her foot forward. Too preoccupied with what she was doing she hadn't heard someone entering the room and as she smiled triumphantly at her accomplishment she heard a chuckle come from behind her, startled by the sudden noise she found herself tripping as she put too much pressure on her ankle and as she fell sideways strong arms collided with her body. Looking up she found her eyes meeting cerulean hues and a slight blush coloured her cheeks, of course he'd have to be here when she makes an idiot of herself, looking at his face though she found no sign of amusement and as he helped her upright she could've sworn something changed in his features before changing back.

"Are you alright Blondie?"

"Oh uh, yeah I guess... The stupid bike must have been faulty." Flashing a smile at him, one that he didn't return, she sighed before taking a step back; as grateful as she was for everything he had done their current proximity made her uncomfortable. His hands stayed around her as she moved though and she shot him an irritated look, what was he up to?

"What's wrong?" His expression or lack thereof wasn't uncommon for the blond to have but considering his arms were still around her she had begun to worry.

"We should get you home."

"We..?" As the words left her lips she felt her body being lifted into the air, only to be held against Laxus' chest. Her face reddened further and as he walked towards the door she began to protest.

"LAXUS! I can walk fine, ugh, put me down! I'm perfectly capable of getting myself home..."

_**Laxus POV**_

She had been out for nearly half the day now and he was yet to find any answers as to who would dare target anyone in Fairy Tail, let alone Lucy. The celestial mage had begun to grow on him, something he had far from expected but it was difficult not to be drawn to the girl the entire guild seemed to adore, so the thought of someone targeting her of all people only increased his current anger. Turning to his Green Haired friend he threw his arms in the air out of frustration.

"When is she going to wake up?! I thought Wendy said a couple of hours not four..." Hearing a low laugh emit from beside him he glared at Freed, the two may be old friends but he should know better than to laugh at a time like this. Looking around to distract himself from the smug expression Freed wore he noticed that the other members of the Raijinshuu were nowhere to be seen.

"Where'd Bixlow and Evergreen run off to?"

"To investigate, he feels guilty for letting her get hurt and wants to make amends..."

"She won't blame him but it's good he's out trying to help." Beside him he noted Freed cocking an eyebrow in his direction before yes another small smirk stretched his lips.

"Oh? And you would know this how..? Is there something between the two of you that I'm unaware of?" Leave it to Freed to push all the wrong buttons right now, a growl rumbled in his chest before he spoke, a prominent frown changing his features.

"Not that it's any of your business but no, I just know she won't. She's too nice, too trusting, to believe that Bixlow would have had anything to do with it…"

His green haired friend had given what would no doubt be a witty remark to his words but his attention was long gone, a small but noticeable sound rustled from the room beside where they sat and he was out of his chair before Freed could even question his actions. Hand on the doorknob he waited to hear her shift more, she was definitely awake, he could hear it in the way her breathing had increased just as her heart rate had, the vibrations of feet being placed on the ground were enough for him to be assured it was okay to enter so slowly and quietly he did just that. Closing the door quietly behind him as he entered he watched the other with amusement, her movements resembled that of a child learning to walk and he couldn't help but let a chuckle escape him. As the noise filed the room however he felt the vibrations in the floor shift and within a second his arms were around her, preventing her body from falling to the ground. A smile returning to his lips he helped her right herself, their bodies had been so close that he was sure he'd smelt something unpleasant, something familiar but he couldn't tell what, mouth turning down slightly at the corners he quickly wiped his face of emotion; hoping Lucy didn't see.

"Are you alright Blondie?"

Her words, followed by her retreat, brought back the memories of what had occurred downstairs not so long ago and he found himself unable to remove his hands from her. His instincts were telling him to be cautious, that getting any closer to her would not end well but then there was that unsettling feeling, the one that told him to not leave her alone for one second, and as the old man's hopeful successor and Lucy's nakama he had an obligation to protect her, to make sure that none of his family got hurt and that is exactly what he would do. So when he noticed her expression change he once more felt obligated to inquire, she no longer had a team, sure she had friends but no one would be constantly breaking into her house anymore and that meant he was the one who had to get close to her, he had to earn her trust if to do nothing more than result in her allowing him to stay without any questions. He had to break his own rules of not straying from the Raijinshuu in order to fulfill this task, normally such an action would be over thought to no end but it was necessary right now, not breaking it would only increase his workload. So staring down at her he sighed lightly before speaking.

"What's wrong?" When no response was given by the woman still he still had his arms around he decided that it was best to just let it go for now. Rather than stand there any further in an uncomfortable silence he did what he knew best, he made up his mind and expected her to follow, no bitching allowed.

"We should get you home." He did nothing but smirk at her question as he lifted her off the ground and proceeded to carry her bridal style out of the office, completely ignoring the protests coming from her. Naturally the entire guild stopped everything and watched as the Dragon Slayer carried her down the stairs and out the door, giving a quick nod to the Master as he went as the now somewhat calmer Lucy tried to hide her face from the onlookers. He personally couldn't give a damn what anyone thought about his actions, especially not the idiots in town and so he found himself in a slight dilemma. Without caring about what people thought he ended up having to carry the blonde in absolute silence, which was fine aside from the fact his head was screaming with questions, questions he couldn't ask without scaring her.

Seeing her apartment he let out a sigh of relief, at least if they were sitting in her apartment she would feel slightly comforted or so he hoped, unknowingly walking faster he hadn't noticed the fact she was staring at him and had been for the past five minutes. Within the same minute of seeing her apartment was he at her door, his long legs taking no time to close the distance, and he finally looked down at the small blonde in his arms for her to unlock it. Entering the apartment he immediately walked over and placed her down on the sofa before sitting on the arm chair across from her, his face taking on a much softer appearance than normal as he stared at her contemplating how best to question her. There was no easy way to just ask her, he'd heard of how stubborn she was in situations like this and to say it had shocked him was an understatement, she certainly was no damsel in distress, she took whatever was handed her way like a soldier who had been trained to ignore pain and yet she'd grown up as nothing more than a socialite, so getting information out of her that regarded her safety was not something easily done but _then _he had an idea.

_**Lucy POV**_

She said nothing the entire time they were walking, well the entire time he was walking; her mind had been rather blank in his presence to which she mainly blamed the fact she was still waking up and the other being that she hadn't the faintest idea what it was they could talk about. It wasn't until she was in her apartment, snuggled up on her couch with a cushion pulled up that she was finally able to speak up, a _simple _question leaving her lips as she stared up at his large figure standing awkwardly in her tiny apartment.

"Did you want something to eat or drink?"

An eyebrow raised in her direction all she heard was his grunt of disapproval as he eyed her ankle, her instant response being to roll her eyes as she reached down to her hip and grabbed Virgo's key and quickly summon her, asking _her _if it wasn't too much trouble to make some tea and some food. Her lips stretching into a satisfied smirk at his rather dumbstruck expression, it was rare that someone actually managed to surprise Laxus Dreyar and apparently it made him compliant in drinking the tea that was soon placed on the table in front of them. Both blondes now sitting across from each other, Lucy with her knees pulled up to her chest, her chin resting on top of them as she thanked Virgo for the tea. Her eyes grazing over her guest as he appeared to be _smelling _the beverage as if it were poison before shrugging and taking a sip, still having yet to say a word since their arrival.

"Laxus… What exactly is going on? A couple of weeks ago you barely even said a word to me and now, well now you're carrying me home because I have a sore ankle…"

Unsurprisingly she was given no immediate response, his expression actually looking somewhat nervous as appeared to be determining the best way to approach the question, the whole situation made her want to giggle. Laxus didn't get nervous and if he did, he certainly didn't show it, but yet here he was sitting on her lounge chair like an overgrown teddy bear. She resisted the urge though and simply sat there in silence, waiting for him to speak up and give her an explanation. A low groan had her head snapping up as she bit back a grin, his head dropping down before being raised once more to meet hers, a deadly serious expression on his face.

"Look Blon- _Lucy_, I can't give you a lot of answers right now, I don't really have many myself but I'm gonna be keep an eye on ya from now on, got that?"

Casting her gaze down to her feet she felt a lump in her throat, naturally the only reason Laxus had paying attention to her was to keep an eye on her, he apparently had no interest in being her friend like she had suspected up until now. Eyes flicking back up to his she couldn't help but feel hurt, they were nakama and while Laxus had good intentions, she was absolutely sick to death of people having to look out for her like she were some child that would get kidnapped at any second, she was through with playing the role of damsel in distress and he could simply go find some other person to act concerned about. So standing to her feet she walked over to the door and opened it, turning back to him with a glare that he dare not challenge.

"Well you can do that somewhere _else_, thanks for the consideration and everything but I won't be needing your protection Laxus, in fact you should go find someone that actually needs your help because my spirits and I are quite capable of protecting my well being. So if that's all for today, please leave."

She knew that her words were harsher than necessary, she was actually being downright rude to someone that had only wanted to help her but she was sick of it. She despised feeling helpless and being treated like nothing more than a charity case her family needed to protect, she just wanted to be treated as an equal for once. So opening the door even wider she narrowed her eyes when he didn't stand and let out a huff of annoyance.

"Laxus, I asked you to _leave._"

He still sat there, the same look of disbelief on his face as she stood there requesting that he leave before finally standing up and moving towards the door but instead of walking through it, he slammed it shut and pushed her none too gently against the wall behind her.

"Listen here Blondie, I have no doubt that you can take care of yourself, you're as capable as any other member of Fairy Tail but do not mistake me for some pawn that you can order around. I am not doing this because I doubt you, I am doing this because I will lose sleep if anything happens and I _knew _about it beforehand! I'm not that kind of man anymore, so sit your ass back down and do as you're told!"

She honestly couldn't believe the words that came out of his mouth, the last part coming out in a raised voice as she felt her blood boiling in anger. Whether his intentions were good or not, this was _her _house, it was _her _life and if he was going to treat her like a child then by all means she would act like one if it meant she got her way. Who the hell did he think he was acting as if he knew what was best for her? Fists clenching as she stared up at him with narrowed eyes and pushed on his chest with all the force she could muster up which surprisingly was enough to nudge him backwards and off of her. She really didn't want to fight with him but two stubborn blondes with a struggle for power rarely ended in a mutual manner.

"I don't care! If _anything _happens to me then I am the only responsible for preventing it, don't go doing me any favours that I don't need or want okay? Seriously, what on earthland could possibly happen? There has been absolutely no threats regarding me or the guild in so long that I've just started to feel comfortable again and now you're making up this crap? You don't need to _act _like my friend anymore, I get it, just looking out for helpless Lucy Heartfilia but I don't want it so _please_ just leave."

Visibly flinching at her accusations of acting like her friend due to her inability to look after herself the blonde did something that he ever rarely allowed anyone to witness, he hesitated. Standing there looking at the girl he was just pinning to the wall a brief flash of emotion crossed his eyes before it vanished and the cold wall he normally held went back up in its place, an indignant huff leaving him as he crossed his arms across his wide chest. Everything about Laxus screamed intimidating and the hesitant she'd thought was there seconds ago had caused her to stop in her tracks and place her hands on her hips, an eyebrow raised as she forgot all about asking him to leave.

"There is no reason for me believe that I'm actually being targeted by someone, is there Laxus?"

A fear rose up her throat as she noticed her blanched openly at her question, taking far too long to respond for him to be telling any truth had he answered her with a 'no.' Annoyance soon accompanied said fear as she thought about how yet another creep wanted her for some untold reason, was her nightmare ever going to end? Much to her surprise, he still hasn't answered her, apparently preferring to stay silent instead of lie but that didn't stop her questions leaving her slightly parted lips, approaching him with a tone that one would use to get a small child to open up about thwir feelings and this time he responded, no lie being present in his words.

"Who is it this time?"

'I don't know... And for the record, I never _acted_ like anything, I don't have time for that bullshit."

_**Bixlow's POV**_

On the outskirts of Magnolia, not far from the guild, a certain Seith Mage and Fairy Queen were searching for any form of clues regarding the most recent attack on their resident Celestial Mage, having found nothing for the past three hours Bixlow studiously ignored Evergreen as she complained about the dirt getting on her dress, her irritated voice barely bothering him as his guilt slowly ate away at him. He had been there in the room and not seen a thing, hadn't even sensed a magical presence as he heard the snap of her ankle, after that he'd reacted instantly, his legs quickly carrying himself over to the blonde to wrap his arms protectively around her as the hair on his neck stood on end, having no explanation for the pair of Dragon Slayers who burst into the room like rabid animals. After depositing the Cosplayer to his friend and superior he had quickly excused himself, dragging Evergreen behind him to search for any sign of a presence near the guild. Looking around the clearing for the fifth time he let out a sigh and was about to turn back to Ever when he heard her screaming angrily, spinning around on his feet he didn't even need to tell them as his babies lifted him and they shot through the air to where Evergreen was being restrained by a hooded figure.

"BIXLOW!"

"Let her go you bastard!"

A maniacal laugh filled the clearing as their arms visibly tightened around his partner before a man stepped forward, leveling a glare at Bixlow before turning to the man holding Evergreen and shook his head, the man still not letting go before a growl sounded through the clearing that shocked himself, even though it had come through his mouth and one of his babies flew forward as he now stood with his visor thrown to the ground and a green glow surrounding his body as his figure eyes active. The gasps of everyone below, their eyes gazing up at him gave Evergreen the opportunity to pull away from the idiot holding her and lowered her glasses, turning him to stone as everyone else around her made a run for it but not before the leader turned around and glared in his direction.

"Mark my words, the blonde will be taken by the next full moon." and with that he disappeared into a puff of smoke as Evergreen dove at the now empty space.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

I hope you guys enjoy this chapter; we'll get to see more action type stuff in the next one!

**All characters belong to Hiro Mashima**

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_**Lucy's POV **_

She stared at him with narrowed eyes, a clever retort quickly about to leave her mouth when the Lacrima on her desk lit up and she forgot all about their conversation for the time being, an irritated huff passing through her lips as she stalked over to where the Lacrima was still buzzing and she let out a breath to compose herself before answering it with a smile that quickly fell from her face. Bixlow was standing in front of it, his visor off and eyes bearing just the faintest glow of green, his face contorted into a mixture of anger and concern before relief seemed to wash over him and he gave her his signature grin with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. Everything that happened in just that brief few seconds had her confused beyond belief, why would Bixlow be so worried like that? Looking over to Laxus she pleaded with him silently and he apparently caught it because he was standing next to her within seconds staring at the Lacrima with an equally confused look before his expression appeared to mirror Bixlow's earlier one.

"Oh thank Mavis, good to see ya alright Cosplayer! Oh, hey boss, what're you doing there?"

"What'd you find out?" Laxus grunted out at his teammate, ignoring his friends' words completely.

"Not a lot _yet, _we were attacked, they were strong fucks too but Ever managed to turn one to stone. My babies helped carry the scum back to the guild but I had to check on Cosplayer first. Boss they said they were coming for her."

Staring up at him she noticed how Laxus' face paled slightly before she pushed him aside, she had no idea why he was suddenly catatonic but she couldn't find the capacity to care in that moment. All she could focus on was the fact that yet _again _someone was after her with the intent of kidnapping her and on top of that, her nakama could have very well been hurt. She had every confidence of course that Evergreen and Bixlow could handle themselves, they were part of the strongest team in Fairy Tail but had any harm come to them she would have never forgiven herself. So looking into the Lacrima, her face full of fear, she couldn't help but get slightly choked up over putting them in a dangerous situation.

"Are you two okay?! No one got hurt right?" Watching him intently she noticed his grin widen.

"Awww you worried about us Cosplayer?"

A roll of the eyes was given in his response and she was about to scold him for his words when Laxus seemed to come back down to earthland and push her out of the way, leaving her to glare at his back while he and Bixlow went over whatever had happened. She ignored them, part of her not really wanting to hear it and the other part of her knowing that she should hear it repeated in full soon enough from the annoying jackass beside her. So for once instead of letting the worry and fear control her she simply went and sat cross legged on her bed, her mind clearing of all thoughts as she felt her senses dull and a sense of weightlessness overwhelm her. The only thing she was now aware of was the even beating of her heart, _thump .. thump .. thump,_ and the slow intake and outake of air into her lungs. She had been training with her Spirits regularly, not physically like earlier that day but emotionally, the most important part of her strength was held in her Magic Power and if she could master control over every inch of Magic that flowed through her then she could learn to take in more.

It was a very simple process that Capricorn had shown her, her only task was to meditate as she always did and when she felt as though she had been weightless long enough she slowly but surely had to reach out and access her Magic Power. At first she hadn't been able to do it at all and had actually thrown up from over exerting herself but over time as she did it each night before sleeping she felt her even reaching down into her secondary storage. The whole thing unkowingly caused her to glow a brilliant gold, the weightless feeling coming from the fact her power pushed her up into the air as the room lit up like sunlight had hit it as the morning sun rose. All of this however was only the first half and so far all she could achieve, today seemed to be looking up though because as she felt her magic coursing through veins she began to push it back down, pressing it like you would a blanket into box that you were trying to fit too many things into, before gradually absorbing energy and Magic from her surroundings. This is how her power grew, how her spirits grew stronger through the magic that she allowed to pass through them so they could fight along side her.

The physical aspect was coming on too late, of course she knew how to defend herself well enough but actually fighting was a different story if her whip wasn't involved. She felt ashamed to call herself a Celestial Mage, the one that everyone admored for fighting with her spirits instead of using them as shields. She never would have used them like that, she knea that and she did always do her best to ensure she never sent her spirits out without having some form of plan for her own skills but the fact after all this time she still didn't know how to fight suddenly had her full of rage. How could she expect her spirits to fight with her if she was such an easy target?

Allowing the new magic, plus her normal amount, to pushout from her body she felt a rush of air surrounding her like a protective bubble protecting both her and her spirits from harm before it popped and snapped back into her like a rubber band. Leaving the blonde to heave over on her bed before running to the bathroom the second she managed to catch her footing, stumbling some as she put pressure on her sore ankle and leaving a stunned Laxus in her wake.

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_**Laxus' POV**_

He couldn't help but feel a white hot fury run through him upon seeing Bixlow on the Lacrima, how dare someone try and hurt his friends? How dare they come for his nakama? He was Laxus Dreyar and he'd be damned if he'd allow any member of his guild come to harm from these amateurs. Apparently his shock gave blondie enough time to ask Bix a question before he nudged her out the way to take control over the situation once more, ordering him to repeat the entire day to him while briefly registering Lucy walking away.

"Can't say ya had much luck other than the statue then, make sure that Ever doesn't turn him back till I get there."

With that the call cut off and he turned to speak to Lucy, instead of speaking though he simply stood there in awe of her. He'd been so consumed in the call with Bixlow that he'd ignored the increase in Magic Power he felt, instantly recognizing it as the blondes but finding no reason to react due to the dull hum that her heart produced. There was no threat, that he was positive of but what he was completely unaware of was the levitating blonde now bathed in golden light that appeared to be muttering something to herself, something not even his dragon hearing could hear as he noticed a sphere forming around her. It settled there for a few moments, spinning constantly while she remained still until it quickly withdrew back into her body and the next thing he knew she was in the bathroom, bringing up her breakfast.

He'd dealt with many situations before and he'd found that out of all them there were two things he couldn't handle, when someone cried and when someone decided to hurl up their stomach contents, it was like his brain decided to switch off and leave him standing there like a bumbling idiot, trying to figure out the appropriate way to act in the dark. Right now however he was very aware that she had slammed the door as she ran in there and couldn't have been more thankful, holding her hair back wasn't something that'd be on his todo list anytime soon. Still, he walked over and knocked lightly on the door, he may not plan on helping her whil she was in the middle of it but it was courteous to make sure she was okay.

"Oi blondie, you alright in there?"

The sounds he could hear coming from the bathroom were ugly, to say the least, and he found himself placing on the spare pair of headphones he always carried in his jacket. He'd left his soundpod in his office while attempting to get Lucy to cooperate and now he wished he'd remembered to grab them because not even they were able to block out the sounds of the blonde. While he'd never admit it, he was quite concerned for her, not just the fact that she was under attack but she seemed to be pushing herself harder than he'd ever seen anyone push, besides himself that is, even her old team knew wIhen to stop and yet here she was exerting herself to the point of illness and her current inability to answer him only made it triple. In fact he was about to burst in there and attempt to ignore the situation when the door to the bathroom opened, revealing a sheepish blonde looking up at him apologetically and physically unharmed.

"Sorry about that, Capricorn told me that might happen the first few times... I'm fine though."

Cocking an eyebrow he eyed her quizically, from memory Capricorn was the Goat Spirit Lucy held a contract with, he remembered Freed and Bixlow ranting and raving about her Spirits when he'd been allowed back into the guild after their return from Tenrou Island.. Of course he hadnt paid much attention to what they were saying, he'd always thought Celestial Mage's were weak just like his father had said but each day he found people were changing the views that had been forced into his mind. He still didn't understand what she was doing though, all he knew was that she was floating around and glowing like she had 50 spotlights on her, kind of like a star.

"The first few times you do what exactly?"

"Oh, epand my magic power."

She acted as if his question was the simplest in the world, a small shrug of her shoulders being given as she responded to him without a second thought, while he stood there in utter shock at what he was hearing. How was that even possible? He knew that people expanded their magic power by using it, that in order to grow you had to train but in his experience your body needed to grow in strength so that it could hold the power, it needed to adapt to it while being used in combat situations. The idea that she could do it by the simple task of meditation had him utterly dumbfounded, that's not how it worked, you didn't just accumulate power by meditating. She apparently caught onto the little stupor of his as her hand was now being waved in front of his face, a cheeky grin stretching her lips as she laughed at her next words.

"Earth to Laxus... Is everything okay in there?"

He barely even registered her question and instead simply replied with one of his own.

"How?"

"How what..?"

"How can you just expand your Magic Power like that?!"

He was now standing with his hands on her shoulders, a deadly serious yet entirely shocked expression on his face as he thought of how she could do it. Meditation only had two uses in his eyes, the first being to alleviate stress and the second to hone your senses. If it were as simple as meditating then he and everyone else he knew would be capable of doing it.

"What do you mean how? Laxus everyone can do it..."

"No, no they can't."

Did she really have no idea that she was doing something that was completely out of his and everyone else's reach? Why would he even ask if it were something everyone could do?

"What..? Then, why can I..?"

He shook his head in disbelief, she had no idea of the potential she held. The only way to get answers though would be to ask and out of everyone he knew there were three people that could give them answers and they were Freed, Levy and Mavis, the first master.

"Come on let's go, you can ask Freed about it at the guild while I try and get some information on these idiots trying to grab ya."

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**General POV**

Only an hour had passed since they witnessed a shocking sight, Laxus Dreyar was carrying a yelling Celestial Mage out of the guild, the silence that broke instantly afterwards making it seem as though the most exciting news all year had just been reported. A giddy Mirajane was wiping down the bar with hearts still in her eyes, Freed sitting in front of her with a smirk on his face as he heard her mumbling about beautiful babies, while an enraged Dragon Slayer sat in the corner of the guild ignoring everyone.

No one really understood Natsu's behaviour, he and Lisanna had been immensely happy but after his fight with Gray, which people still didn't fully understand, he seemed like an entirely different person. Unknown to everyone but his girlfriend, his guilt was eating away at him, he'd been so upset about Lucy leaving the team that he had spoken harshly about things he didn't even mean but he didn't realize just how much he'd hurt her until she slapped him. Lucy never wanted to cause anyone physical pain and yet she'd purposely struck him, Lisanna had instantly tried to comfort him, explaining that it wasn't worth going after her yet and that she needed time to heal so he listened for once, if anyone knew how to fix it, it was Lisanna.

Looking up he smelt his blonde friend returning to the guild and perked up, he had to see if she was okay, but a scowl quickly made its way to his face when he saw her once more with Laxus and he bit back a growl, Lucy was his best friend, not Laxus'. He didn't get a chance to act though as Lis had placed a hand on his shoulder and a kiss to his cheek, instantly calming his rage.

"Let me go talk to her okay?"

Shocked he nodded at her with a grin and gave her a quick kiss before all but pushing her towards Lucy, who was walking towards Freed when she intercepted her. A small smile on her face as she stared at the girl.

"Hey Lucy, mind if we talk for a minute alone?"

"Oh, uh, yeah sure..."

Of course Lucy had no issue with Lisanna, the pair had become quite good friends, but it still hurt to see her so soon, knowing she was with Natsu. Still she followed her down the hall to an empty office on the guilds ground floor, quickly taking a seat on the edge of the desk as she smiled weakly at the white haired girl.

"So, what's up?"

"I just wanted to apologize to you Lucy..."

Looking up in surprise the blonde blinked in confusion, why was Lisanna apologizing? She had done nothing wrong that Lucy could recall and the idea that she'd done something she wasn't aware of made her nervous

"F-or what exactly?"

At that the young Take Over Mage rubbed the back of her head nervously, her gaze being cast downwards as she looked on the verge of tears. The sight made Lucy's heart ache, what had she done that couls make her feel this terfible?

"Lisanna..?"

"Natsu told me what he said to you, he didn't mean it but I'm sorry that he ever made you feel like you were just a replacement for me and I'm sorry if I'm the reason that you left Team Natsu. I never wanted any trouble, I really just want to be friends Lucy. Please forgive me."

She sat there stunned for a few minutes at the youngest Strauss' outburst, her eyes blinking rapidly as she tried to figure out what just happened, when she moved to wrap her arms around Lisanna. Causing her to be the one who was now shocked, Lucy's words making the tears she'd been holding back fall freely.

"None of that was your fault Lisanna... I know that Natsu made a mistake but he hurt me a lot so I'm not ready to forgive him yet. As for my leaving the team, it was not your fault, I need to go on my own for a while and sort things out. Hopefully I can grow stronger and maybe later on we could take a mission or two, just you and I..? I would love to be friends with you too but, well before that can happen there are things you need to know."

Giving a shakey breath Lisanna nodded her head and the girls moved to sit on a couch against the wall, Lucy didn't really feel like telling Natsu's current girlfriend about her feelings or the other reason she'd left the team but the girl deserved an explanation and she really did want to be friends with her.

"Okay... So, for a while now I have had feelings for Natsu, don't worry I don't plan on acting on them. Well I did, actually the same day he asked you out, I was going to ask him the same thing. Seeing you both together though broke my heart, I dont blame either of you, in fact I'm happy that you are both so happy together but right now it really hurts to see you as a couple. So for now I need space, not from you, just the couple side of things which doesn't really matter considering how angry I am at Natsu so I dont exactly want to be around him. Please believe me when I say that I have no intention of telling Natsu of my feelings or 'stealing' him from you, I just thought that if we're going to be friends then you need to know. I'll get over it eventually and I hope that it won't stop us from being friends."

The news didn't appear to shock the girl too much, Lisanna had always thought Natsu may have held feelings for the blonde and she could see why he would but in the end she'd managed to snag up the man she'd been pining over since the first time she'd met him. She also knew that Lucy held feelings for Natsu, she wasn't blind and she could definitely see the appeal but it did make her slightly uneasy, not over the Celestial Mages intentions but the fact that on some level she had competition, hypothetical or not.

"It's okay, I trust you Lucy! I'll try my best to not accidentally shove it in your face, I'm really sorry that you're hurting over everything…"

She could see why Natsu liked Lisanna so much, it felt as though Lucy hadn't really gotten the chance to speak to her before and now with everything dying down, well they had been until yet another jerk put a bounty over her head but it was nice to be able to talk to her like this and feel as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Finally they both stood, wiping away the tears that lingered in their eyes before giving each other a hug and leaving the room, Lisanna going to sit with Natsu while she walked over to the job board, her earlier plan of talking to Freed about her meditation completely forgotten. She was all healed now and just _itching _to go on a job, a few morons trying to capture her wasn't going to stop her from living her life and she needed the experience. She'd prefer to be forced into a fight than sitting at home like the pretty little _victim _she had been forced to do every other time, no this time she'd be on the front lines, defending herself like the strong and capable Mage she knew she was deep down.

It wasn't until someone growled that she even noticed the dead silence that had surrounded the guild, looking around nervously she followed the direction that people were looking if it weren't at her and was surprised to see Laxus glaring at her with small sparks of lightning rolling over him like a wave causing her stomach to drop, why was he so angry with her? Apparently she'd be finding that out sooner than later as he stomped down the stairs, some of the guild members thinking they were going to break under the force moved out the way and everyone allowed him a path directly to her and she cursed under her breath. Backing up slightly, not feeling comfortable with the glare he was sending her way, she looked around nervously before smiling softly and looking up to create eye contact with him. From memory she'd done nothing wrong so the best thing to do was act just like that, she couldn't help but want to run in the other direction though.

"And what do you think you are doing _blondie?_"

His words came out an overly possessive growl that made her cringe, why was he so mad at her for wanting to go on a job? Surely he didn't want her to do the opposite of what she'd just decided on, it was like he was reading her mind and purposely enforcing the opposite just to piss her off. Taking a haughty stance, her hands resting on her hips as she stared up at him defiantly she smiled even sweeter than before however this time she was surrounded by a dark aura similar that he dare not threaten.

"What does it look like _Laxus? _I'm going on a job."

By now people had begun to back away from them while somehow forming a circle around the two blondes at the same time, the only people who spoke to Laxus like that were either stupid or had a death wish, training to become the next guild master while also being an S-Class Mage had pretty much given him the title of being second in command and from the look on his face, he planned to use that in stature in this instance."

"Like hell you are! You need back up and last I checked, you don't have a team."

She grit her teeth together, like she needed a reminder that she was now a solo Mage, it hurt her enough to think about the fact she'd no longer have anyone to keep her company, regardless of how excited she was to be working on her own. She chose to ignore him, earning her another growl as she turned to examine the job board once more before taking the perfect one and moving straight passed him to an unsuspecting Bixlow. Finally she turned back in his direction with a grin as she linked arms with the Seith Mage, who had frozen when he realized the blonde was dragging him into her plan.

"You're right, I do need back up, which is exactly why Bixlow said he'd go with me! Didn't you Bix?"

Everyone in the guild seemed to get their voices back then, all sharing an equally shared mix of confusion and shock with Laxus and Bixlow, the only people who didn't seem phased by it was Freed who had an amused smirk on his face and the Celestial Mage who was testing Laxus in every way she could possibly find. If her father couldn't control her then she'd like to see him try, nudging Bixlow with her elbow when he didn't respond he stared into her pleading eyes before looking towards his boss' entirely enraged ones and audibly gulped before a sheepish grin appeared on his face and he rubbed the back of his head.

"Ah yeah I did say that, she'll be alright with me boss."

They all knew that was a lie, Lucy had been with Laxus ever since she woke up and he could hear their every word before that but no one commented as Laxus narrowed his eyes and walked over to snatch the job request from her and read it quickly before roughly handing it back to her and she knew she'd won this time, he wouldn't insult a team member and say they were incapable of working together safely and he probably knew she'd pitch a fit if he forced her to stay.

"Fine, but BOTH of you are taking a communications Lacrima and you need to check in daily, if you don't I'll be coming myself to get you."

She felt like a child who now had a curfew but didn't argue, nodding her head curtly as everyone went back to being shocked, Laxus rarely, if ever, gave into someone whose views differed from his but they had all seen it with their own eyes. Taking this chance she quickly grabbed Bixlow's arm before anyone could change their mind and ran out of the guild, dragging the poor guy behind her.

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_**N.B: Don't worry the guy turned into a statue hasn't been forgotten, he'll be in it next chapter!**_


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