Prologue
Their last job had been a nightmare. That was the general consensus of Natsu's entire team as they dragged their tired and still healing bodies home. The dark guild they'd set out to eradicate had proven to be much stronger than anticipated and they'd met with a resistance that almost wiped them out.
In fact, Lucy had just barely gotten out alive.
Natsu still didn't know why, but the second they'd found out that she was a celestial mage, the dark wizards had been all over her. Natsu, Loke and Capricorn had fought them off as best as they could but in the end they'd been overwhelmed and Lucy had gotten kidnapped.
That hadn't gone over well with neither Natsu nor the rest of their team and they'd quickly gotten rid of their opponents and given chase. By the time they'd found their lair, it had been almost too late.
They'd needed exactly 2 and a half hours to find the dark guild's lair. By that time Lucy had been through hell and back. When they finally arrived they'd just barely made it in time to stop her from being sacrificed at some sort of altar. All around were signs of massive destruction. Arrows imbedded in walls, marks of a heavy sword or axe left on every surface in the room, sand everywhere. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Lucy had called upon Sagittarius, Taurus and Scorpio and that all three of them had fought with everything they had to protect their wizard. They'd also all lost.
Oh, they'd dealt their share of pain, that's for sure. The altar room was riddled with bodies. Lucy's spirits hadn't pulled their punches, instead they'd gone straight for the kill, so Natsu didn't understand how they'd lost. Sure, Loke and Capricorn were stronger, and Lucy had dropped their keys back at the abduction site, but Taurus and Scorpio were nothing to sneeze at, and Sagittarius always hit bulls eye. So how the hell have Lucy and her spirits lost?
They had no answer to that question because Lucy wasn't talking. She wasn't coping with her abduction and the fact that she couldn't save herself, that she couldn't even protect herself. The doctors at the hospital they'd taken her to had suggested that she see a therapist, she was obviously traumatised by whatever had happened and was locking it all inside. Natsu could understand it, at least partially. Every visible inch of her was riddled with bruises, cuts and scratches. Hell, the bastards had even gone as far as to cut her hair off.
When Natsu had seen his partner's bloody and beaten form he'd lost control completely. In a matter of seconds he'd managed to take out the majority of the members of the dark guild. Only the need to get Lucy to safety and to a doctor had snapped him out of his rage.
They spent a week in Hargeon where Lucy drifted in and out of consciousness in the hospital and Natsu almost climbed the walls in his helplessness. When she'd finally been released they set off for Magnolia, Natsu full of nervous energy, Gray, Wendy and Erza dead tired and Lucy still in pain and barely talking.
In fact the only things she'd said since she was saved had been muttered complaints about how weak she was. She wasn't listening to Natsu's assurances, didn't pay heed to whatever Gray and Erza were saying and just seemed to sink into depression more and more.
When they got to Magnolia she'd only shortly said goodbye and went straight home. Natsu also went home, but only to put away his luggage and take a shower, there was no way in hell he was leaving Lucy alone in her state.
By the time Natsu had cleaned up and seen Happy to Fairy Hills where the Exceed planned to stay the night with Wendy and Carla, undoubtedly to give Natsu and Lucy some privacy, it was pretty late. He wasn't surprised when he pushed the window to Lucy's room open and found her already fast asleep. He just smiled to himself while quietly taking of his outerwear, she needed the rest, and in the morning he'd sit her down and force her to talk to him. There wasn't a single thing Lucy couldn't tell him. He'd always listen to her, no matter what it was. So he's gonna get her to talk and get her to listen to him. He'd make her see that she wasn't weak, nowhere near it in fact. She was one of the strongest people he'd ever met. He just had to get her to realize that once and for all.
With that resolution firm in his mind, he slipped under the comforter and joined his partner in bed. In a couple of seconds he'd plastered his front to Lucy's back and buried his face in her fragrant blonde hair. Damn but she felt good, and she smelled even better. Natsu liked nothing better than his partner's scent. He could easily spend days wrapped around her soft form, breathing in that sweet intoxicating aroma of vanilla and mango.
Lucy murmured something in her sleep and wriggled closer to his warmth, before settling into a deeper slumber. Natsu didn't need much longer to follow suit, succumbing to the siren's call of dreamland.
After what felt like five minutes, but was in reality hours, Natsu was startled awake by a flash of light. Always ready to fight if it meant keeping Lucy safe, he sat up and looked around the room for any signs of intruders. But he realized quickly that Lucy was still the only other living being in the room with him and that she was giving off the light.
He watched for a few seconds as if mesmerised as Lucy seemed to glow brighter and brighter. It wasn't until her form rose up in the air that he snapped out of it. But it was too late. With another flash of blinding light, Lucy vanished.
For the longest time Natsu seemed frozen in shock, just almost vacantly staring at the empty, still warm indention in the sheets where the person he held most precious in his life had been peacefully sleeping just moments ago.
And now she was gone. He could no longer feel her magic anywhere. That bright spark of energy that had become as familiar to him as his own power left a cold, dark void in his mind and he came to with a snap.
Long, calloused fingers reached out to caress the quickly cooling sheets as he whispered her name. When nothing happened something in him broke and Natsu threw his head back, roaring in shock and anguish.
"LUCY!!!!!"
The enraged and devastated dragon slayer sat on the empty bed shivering in the aftermath of his worst nightmare coming true. She was gone. Lucy was gone. His partner, his best friend, the very air he breathed and she simply disappeared before his own eyes. He couldn't protect her. He'd failed her. Again. Twice now in less than a week he'd failed to protect Lucy… And now, now she'd vanished somewhere he didn't know where, didn't know how to follow.
For the very first time in his life Natsu Dragneel felt the bitter taste of hopelessness gather in his mouth. His chin dropped to his chest, eyes screwed shut to keep the wet in them from leaking out, he clenched his fingers into her pink comforter holding with all he was to the last dregs of his control. He couldn't lose it. There was no time. Lucy couldn't afford him to lose control.
She needed him.
In the end it was that thought that allowed him to pull himself together enough to get dressed and get out of her room.
He couldn't do anything alone. He needed help. He needed his nakama.
Running along the sleepy streets of Magnolia he knew that he had to hurry. Whatever had taken Lucy couldn't be allowed to keep her for long. He was going to get her back and when he did he would tear apart whoever had dared to touch her.
Suddenly a smirk appeared on his shadowed face and he stopped to look at the dark building that housed his guild's female wizards. If there was one person besides him who would stop at nothing to get Lucy back, it would be Titania Erza.
Those stupid enough to touch Erza's nakama wouldn't get to revel in their stupidity for long. The red headed Queen of Fairies would reduce them to dust in a matter of seconds.
And so it starts. Next chapter will unveil what exactly happened to Lucy, so stay tuned. Please let me know what you think of this beginning on a hopefully unforgettable journey for Natsu, Lucy and the rest of Fairy Tail.