A/N: Future Lucy's timeline had always been very full of possibilities in my mind. There, Jerza's future was, as everybody else's, tragic. But then, that wonderful chapter, The Golden Plains, came out and it gave me hope. So, when I saw 'Heaven' as one of the prompts for the Jerza Love Fest, my mind immediately went there. I hope you enjoy. This one is pretty tame and deviates a little from my usual Romance/Humor trend. It's more like bittersweet...

Future Lucy's timeline

He couldn't help but find his afterlife rather ironic.

For many, many years, ever since he'd regained the bearings of his life, he'd assumed he would be going to hell. Hell was where murderers went, where slavers went, so that was most definitely where he deserved to go. That was what he'd told himself and it actually made him feel a bit better at times… like when he (ever so rarely) allowed himself to experience fickle moments of happiness. It's okay to feel like this just for a tiny bit, he would tell himself. I may feel happy right now but eternal damnation awaits. I'll be able to balance my debt then.

Of course, he hadn't experienced those moments in a long time. Not since Erza had…

…

The mere thought was unbearable. To know that nowhere in the world was that lively, amazing redhead he loved beyond words yet was never willing to make his, in fear of tainting the purity of her goodness. It hadn't been until her death that he had lamented those actions.

Part of him had wanted to cease fighting… to just let things run their course in that world of dragons where humanity had no hope, ultimately leading to his death. But he hadn't – he didn't have the luxury when he owed the world so much. And, above all things, fighting was what Erza would have wanted him to do – he had no hope of spending his afterlife with her but he needed to know that somewhere she wouldn't be disappointed in him.

So, he'd fought alongside with his guild. And so, as the years passed, they fell, one by one, him being the last, experiencing the pain of seeing each of his comrades die – a fitting punishment. At the end, he was all alone, one moment he'd been leading a group of survivors to a shelter, the other, the Dragon had appeared. Not just any dragon – the king, Acnologia.

Staying back trying to hold him off as the survivors ran, he hadn't stood a chance. He couldn't say his death hadn't been painful, but at least it had been quick… and now, here he was, awakening in the afterlife, awaiting judgment.

He kept his eyes shut, selfishly giving himself a few moments of peace before the inevitable eternal damnation happened. He was, in fact, rather surprised at how peaceful everything felt so far – he had expected immediate pain for one, but instead he was simply lying quite comfortably on what felt like a grassy ground. It didn't even feel dead-dry grass either – just the regular, soft, dewy sort. He wondered if he was in some sort of lobby – the ground simply felt too nice for hell.

But then, he felt a presence… A presence nearby, somebody or something looming over him. He wasn't sure how he could tell it was there, but it was, getting closer and closer, just above him. Something brushed the side of his left leg and then the side of his right one – it was right above him, straddling him. A hellhound? he wondered. One right about to devour him. Yes, of course. Just as it was meant to be.

But then, something tickled his face. It felt soft, like… hair. A gentle touch brushed the skin of his cheek. And a moment later… "Are you planning to just lay there with your eyes closed for all eternity?"

His heart stopped… or it didn't. Had it even been beating in the first place? He was dead, after all. What would he need a beating heart for? But then, a second later, he realized he did feel his heart beating in his chest, actually faster than normal after a brief moment of arrhythmia. He wondered what that was about… beating hearts and, now that he realized it, breathing in the afterlife. Maybe it was just muscle memory?

No, stop, he told himself. Why was he wasting time with those questions? Especially now, after he'd heard it… that voice… That wonderful voice.

"Jellal," it spoke again. And so, he opened his eyes.

There she was: flowing red hair, a whole curtain of it around him, warm brown eyes… so, so beautiful. She was there… and he wondered if she was an illusion. Something sent by the devil itself to torment him, to dangle in front of his face never to let him have it. Erza. His beautiful, beloved Erza.

"I've been waiting for you," she said softly. "For once, I'd been hoping you'd keep me waiting longer."

He kept staring up at her.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" she asked.

For a moment, it felt like he couldn't. There was just no finding his voice. But then, after a few seconds… "Are you real?" he asked faintly.

He did not expect his answer to start with the image of the woman he loved pulling back and shooting a look of annoyance. "That must be the stupidest question you have ever asked me. If I wasn't real, what would there be to stop me from lying? I assume I feel real enough to pull that off."

He blinked. "Erza…" The scolding, the tone, the… everything. It was her. If he had any doubts before, now they were all gone. "You're here…"

The disbelief in his tone and the wetness forming in the corner of his eyes made her take pity in him and step away from her harsher stance. "Of course," she spoke softly, unstraddling him and moving to lie on her side by him, facing him. "Where else would I be when you just got here?"

He turned on his side to face her too and gasped when he took sight of what he'd been lying on. His hand brushed a delicate blade of grass. "It's golden," he spoke in disbelief.

"Yes. We call this area 'the Golden Plains' around here," she informed him.

"The Golden Plains…" he repeated thoughtfully.

"It is just the welcome-room of Heaven," Erza explained. "No place else really is this spectacular – I assume it must be to incite some sort of 'awe' factor into the newcomers…"

He looked at her, positively stunned. "Heaven…" he spoke in wonder. How could he be in Heaven? How was it possible that he…? "How am I in heaven?"

"You died," she spoke sadly.

"But… heaven. How can I be in heaven when I should be in hell?"

Her eyes became hard as she looked at him. "The Universe has cast its judgment," she told him firmly. "What else do you need to show you that you are a good person?"

He actually had no rational argument against that statement. Deep down, it still felt unfair but the universe or whatever it was that ruled the world, far, far above his standing had cast its judgment. Uneasiness aside, how could he presume to question it?

Faced with his silence, Erza kept looking at him with those hard, yet sad eyes. "You kept me waiting for you until the day I died," she said and, strangely, there was no accusation in her voice. Just… a plead. "Please… do not make me keep on waiting now that we may have eternity together," she begged in a whisper.

He could see the anxiety in her eyes as she said so. It was not like her to beg and to know that he had pushed her to such lengths… Tentatively, he reached over with his hand, resting it on the side of her face, his thumb caressing her cheekbone. She closed her eyes, placing her hand above his and taking in the sensation of his touch. "I missed you," he said. "I missed you like half of me had died along with you. I had only regrets once I knew that you were gone." His words didn't directly answer her plead. But it was there, between the lines. The 'yes', 'yes, I will stay with you forever now'.

Erza opened her eyes and, finally, there was a smile gracing her face. She rested her hand on the center of his chest, where memory kept his heart beating, and pushed him back until he was facing up again. Moving to straddle him one more time, she lowered her face to his, stopping just before their lips touched, her hair again draped over him as a curtain of red. "Please don't push me away this time," she whispered.

He closed his eyes and nodded. "Never again," he promised.

And so, he felt it, the final leap being taken, her lips, so soft, brushing against his as they begged for entrance, which he granted, oh so gladly.

She tasted like the sweetest strawberries money could buy – part of him had expected her to (he imagined her heaven would be full of the fruit) – as they kissed lazily for what felt like hours.

Hands wandered over each other's bodies, looking for skin to touch – such was done tentatively at first but quickly grew bolder under the assumption that those touches were long overdue. But, despite the boldness, the caressing never became hurried or desperate – there was no need for that. They had the most literal sort of forever to enjoy each other, after all.

It seemed like days had passed – days covered in kisses and gentle caresses – before her lips reached near his ear and she spoke. "Will you love me now?" she asked.

The answer was immediate. "I already do…"

"Will you show me?" she requested.

His hazel eyes met her warm brown ones. So lustful and yet so shy… so pleading, again unlike her usual stance. He wanted to say yes, desperately, but suddenly, a new concern came to mind. She frowned, recognizing an impending denial. "We're in an open field," he informed her. "Won't others see? There are others here, right?"

And so, the frown returned to a smile. "This is heaven, Jellal. The laws of physics are different here – you only share your heaven with the people you want to share it with," she explained. "And, at the moment, the only person I want to share my heaven with is you. As long as the feeling is mutual, you could assume we are the only two people in this world right now…"

"Oh," he mumbled, mildly surprised. Of course. Another world, another set of rules. "If that's the case…"

Her lips curled further. "Then… will you show me?" she asked again, now that that matter was settled. It would only be him and her in that field of gold for as long as they wanted it.

His right hand reached up and he tucked her red hair behind her ear. "Always."

She was everything he had imagined and much, much more. He worshiped her body like a temple, still marveling at the miracle that was them being together like that after their world had been turned to dust.

As clothes came off, he came to realize that their bodies had no scars, no old injuries, no sign of wear and tear… It was just them, unmarred and back to basics, loving each other, tasting each other, consuming each other… so, so slowly, lovingly and completely.

Afterwards, they just lay there, limbs entwined, Erza's head resting on his shoulder as he looked up at the deep azure sky. Again, he mused about how senseless it was him being there – for so long, he had punished himself while awaiting divine punishment in the cruelest depths of hell. Now, here he lay, blissful in the afterlife, part of him still waiting for the universe to realize its mistake and send him downstairs where he belonged… But, at the same time, for the first time in a long, long time, that part was small. Small and almost completely eclipsed by the part that was set on not going anywhere, even if he had to nail himself to the field for that purpose.

He had tasted heaven and nothing had ever felt so sweet.

"Is it wrong that I feel happier now that I am dead than I did when I was alive?" he found himself asking.

"Yes," she spoke plainly, tiredly. It surprised him for a moment, until she continued. "But that's not your fault you – it's on the cards we were dealt. In another world, we could have been happy while we were alive. We could have been together, shared a home, had a family…"

He mind was slightly startled by her words. "Is that something you wanted? To have a family?"

"If it had been with you, then yes," she replied. "Wouldn't you?"

"Noting would have made me happier in another life with you by my side," he spoke, closing his eyes, bleary. "But it's impossible here, isn't it? With us… dead."

She nodded her head sadly. They were no longer alive, so of course they could not produce life. "Lucy went back in time," she informed him, much to his surprise. The idea to go back hadn't been common knowledge outside of the Fairy Tail flanks, so it was natural he wouldn't know about it. "The plan was already in motion before I died. It was supposed to be the four of us, actually: me, Natsu, Gray and Lucy. But Natsu, Gray and I never did make it and only Lucy remained. She got through a couple of days ago."

"So, she is changing the past?" he asked in disbelief.

Erza nodded, looking at the bright blue sky. "That's the plan."

"So, the world…"

"… can't be saved," she said, killing his hope before it would really take form. "Nothing she does will be able to fix our world – our fate will simply deviate and, from the moment she lands onwards, I will be a new world, alternative to ours. In any case, it is good to know that somewhere, out there, she could be creating a world where we could be together in life. Have all those things we were never able to have."

He sighed. "Yes, it is," he agreed, even though he wasn't sure if that would work out. It depended on how far back she went, how much she changed. He'd had many regrets that had kept him from making Erza his in life – without her death as a catalyst to selfishly want her when he thought he couldn't have her, he wasn't sure what it would take for him to take the leap. But maybe he would in the end… who knew?

The redhead took a breath and snuggled closer to his chest. Under her ear, she could hear the echo of his heartbeat sounded strong (one of many little snippets of life carried into the afterlife despite being no longer essential – a courtesy of the universe just for the purpose of lessening the blow from death). "But this will do. You, me, in this place… this is enough for me," she declared. And then, just to reassure herself, she lifted her head a little just to look him in the eyes. "Is it for you?"

He shot her look that showed only incredulity. "We are together in heaven. How could it not be?"

She smiled and, gleeful, reached forward to place a kiss on his lips. One of many.

They had forever, after all.

The End

A/N2: Sorry if this seems slightly OOC for anyone - dead reunions are invariably mushy on both sides in my mind...