Notes: So I've actually planned on writing and publishing fanfiction for a while. Lets see how this goes!

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, Fairy Tail isn't mine.

Act i.

In which Lucy Heartfilia is a hostage, or, how Lucy found out Natsu is not a very good kisser.

There were lots of great things about Natsu Dragneel.

He loved sports, he loved food and whenever Lucy saw him in the school halls or in class, she noticed that he was always wearing a smile. Plus, he had muscles and a brilliant figure which was, frankly, swoon worthy. And the pink hair… Lucy had been convinced Natsu had dyed it, but soon learned that it didn't matter because it suited him and anything that made him more beautiful was good in her books.

Also, Lucy was sure that he was some sort of superhero, because he was always getting into fights and walking out of them unscathed. Or rather… the bruises faded really quickly. He healed so quickly that sometimes Lucy doubted he was even human.

He played with fire – impressively, might she add – and most importantly, he had introduced her to the only home she'd ever known: Fairy Tail. Well… he hadn't really introduced her into it himself, they hadn't ever spoken before, but she'd followed him there once and met most of her friends!

… Anyway… Lucy knew that there were a lot of great things about Natsu Dragneel, she didn't doubt it for a second.

It was just… she was pretty sure that this was not one of his… best moments. After all, he was currently handcuffed to the counter of Fairy Tail's bar. He was slumped forward, unconscious, but Lucy was certain that he'd wake up soon enough, he always did.

"That really wasn't a smart idea Natsu…" She mumbled under her breath, straining her arm as she reached for the first aid kit on the floor. She too was chained to the bar, the only difference being that her ankle was chained, not her wrist. As soon as she reached the first aid box, she pulled it towards her, rummaging through it for an antiseptic wipe.

Ripping it open, she shuffled towards Natsu, noticing that he had woken slightly. He looked at her as she neared him, but his gaze wasn't focused. His eyes were dilated, his face pale, and Lucy worried that he might throw up on her if she got too close.

She'd have to deal with it if he did.

"Don't touch it!" Lucy cried when she spotted Natsu groggily raising his hand to his forehead. Grabbing onto his arm, she pried it away from his forehead, using her other hand to lift up the antiseptic wipe, "You'll only make it worse."

Natsu sent her a confused look as she let go of his arm. "I… Who're you again?"

Lucy didn't expect him to know her, but still it made her feel a little disappointed that he didn't recognise her from their shared classes. She lifted the wipe to his head, dabbing away at dried blood.

"I'm Lucy," she said, quietly. When Natsu winced, she made a face, "Oh, level up, the pain's not that bad."

"Level up?" Natsu blinked. He was starting to regain some colour in his face, "are you some sort of weirdo, Luigi?"

"Lucy… it's… Lucy…" She said, frowning. "And no, it's just, well… I find it better than saying 'man up', you know? Whatever… What were you thinking back there?"

"Back where?" Natsu asked, cocking his head slightly. "What'd I do? I can't… actually remember. Why am I cuffed to the counter? Is this a joke?"

Lucy shook her head. "Does this look like a joke to you?"

She pointed to the rest of the room. Fairy Tail was technically classed as a youth club to the city council, but Lucy was pretty sure most people her age considered it a bar. Tables around the room had been flung onto their side and some chairs had been thrown out of the window. Glass littered the floor – it looked like there had been a riot.

Numbly, Natsu shook his head. No, this did not look like a joke. This was the exact opposite of a joke.

"You really don't remember anything?" Lucy asked, placing the wipe on the floor and ripping open another. "These guys came marching in about two hours ago, taking everyone hostage."

She pointed towards the men. Natsu saw that there were five men lounging on the only remaining chairs. Each held a gun – a pistol – in their hands.

"And you," Lucy continued, her voice trembling, "decided that the threat of getting shot wasn't that big. You and two other guys tried to jump them. They knocked the three of you out. The other two got hit in the back of the head, so hopefully they're not too injured, but you got thrown against the counter. You got cut on the forehead, but I don't think it's too bad."

She tossed the wipe next to the first, turning to find some gauze in the first aid box. A bandage too, she reminded herself. Neither of them spoke to one another as she leaned forwards to patch him up.

Now that was certainly something Lucy hadn't ever expected she'd do – patch up Natsu Dragneel. Natsu of all people!

She couldn't wait to tell Levy!

Fear ran down her spine. "… Oh God," she mumbled, "…Levy… she didn't show up today did she…?"

Natsu continued to stare at her in confusion. Lucy supposed he probably had a concussion, because he'd been serious since he'd woken up. Maybe the rumours weren't true and he actually did know how to read the situation… Lucy wasn't sure…

"You okay Luigi?"

She couldn't look at him. It was embarrassing how she was on the brink of tears when he was sat next to her injured. Lucy sniffed, nodding her head. "Just… scared I guess… and worried…"

Lucy shivered – why she'd thought it was a good idea to wear a mini skirt with a simple t-shirt she'd never know – and wrapped her hands around her. She should have worn a jacket or something, but then again it hadn't really crossed her mind. It wasn't like she'd left the house and thought: I might be taken hostage today, and it might get cold so I should bring a jacket.

Although, she was certain that if she ever got out of this mess, it would certainly join her checklist of necessary items.

"Sure, it's pretty scary." Natsu said, and when Lucy turned to him, she realised that he was grinning. "But you know what? At least you've got me to help you through it, 'kay Luigi?"

Lucy bit her lip, trying to smile. "I told you my name's Luigi."

She was sure that Natsu would smile for the both of them, "yeah, I know."

Were she not a hostage currently chained to the bar, Lucy was sure she'd be blushing. Instead, she opted for a weak smile, watching Natsu as he turned to survey the room.

"How far does that chain of yours go?" He turned back to her after a moment, pointing down to the chain around Lucy's ankle. She looked down, trying not to wince. While she'd been tending to Natsu's wound she'd been able to ignore the metal digging into bone, but now she felt the effects of it rubbing her skin raw.

"Not that far," she mumbled. Fear flooded through her as she pulled on the chain. Would it ever come off? "It was difficult getting over here to bandage you up, I'd say about three foot at the longest?"

Natsu nodded. "Uh… where are the other two guys?"

Lucy pointed to two points in the room. One of the boys had raven black hair and was slumped on the floor, his hands cuffed behind his back. The other had white hair and was in a similar position to the first.

"Grey and Elfman…" Natsu said, grinning. "Of course they'd back me up!"

Lucy did not get the impression that Natsu regretted fighting those who had taken them hostage. In fact, if he weren't cuffed to the bar, Lucy was sure he'd start fighting again.

"Listen," Lucy whispered, "While you were out, I came up with a plan to get out of here… I… I think I need your help to do it though."

She was expecting Natsu to refuse, or ask for the details before agreeing, but instead he nodded, "tell me what to do and I'll do it."

Reaching into her hair, she pulled loose a bobby pin, breaking it in half. "They threw the other hostages into the storage room. One of us needs to let them out of the back door. The other one of us will need to get these two out of the room…"

Natsu grinned. "I can do that! I'm all fired up!"

Lucy smiled, shaking her head slightly. "I think you should get the hostages out, they think of you as more of a threat then me… so if they find out you've gone, they'll search for you while I get these two out…?"

He raised an eyebrow, but after a moment, Natsu nodded. "Okay, but give me a while to get everyone out first, okay?"

Lucy smiled. "Yeah, okay, I'm going to unlock your cuffs okay?"

Grinning, Natsu turned his hand so Lucy could see the lock. She lifted the two halves of the pin to the handcuff, jiggling them into the lock until she felt a click. As quietly as possible, she unlatched the cuff from the counter and passed it to Natsu.

"I'll give you as long as I can," Lucy whispered, trying to ignore the fearful tears in her eyes. "So get as many people as you can out, and then get out yourself, okay?"

Natsu nodded, "Sure thing, but you get out as well Luigi?"

Lucy nodded, and for a moment neither of them moved. Then she reached her hand up to Natsu's cheek, pressing her lips against his. Natsu responded to the kiss, before the two of them pulled away.

Natsu's cheeks were dusted with pink flecks. "I'll uh… meet you at the park to make sure you're okay, alright?"

Lucy nodded, a blush on her own face. Later she'd think back over the kiss and realise that it was not the best – Natsu's lips were too dry and he didn't really compare to her last boyfriend – but for now, she was content with what had just occurred.

In the time it took for her to blink, Natsu was gone. Terror ran through her as she realised that she'd put him into unnecessary danger. They could have waited until a ransom was paid…

"It's too late now…" Lucy whispered to herself, taking a shaky breath. "We're doing this…"

Her heart started to settle again after a few minutes. She watched the clock for five minutes before letting out a loud cry to gather the attention of her captors. The tallest one, a blue haired man wearing a stupid ring with a heart on it, turned to her with a glare.

"I've told you to keep quiet, bitch!" He yelled, his contorting into a glare.

"B-but…" Lucy let out a small cry, "that boy! The one who was unconscious, he just left for the offices!"

Either her captor was gullible, or really, really stupid, because he took the bait. Quickly he rounded up two of his men, the three of them rushing up to the stairs to try and find Natsu.

Lucy tried her hardest not to smirk as the two men left behind let out a sigh. They sat leaning back in their chairs, not moving. She was sure that one of them was drunk, probably because she'd seen him helping himself to the beer from the counter, but she didn't know what to do about the other man.

Quickly, she broke the lock to her own chains, crawling unnoticed to the other side of the bar. Once behind it, she picked up one of the bottles, hoping it would be heavy enough to knock someone out.

She stood, tip-toeing across the room until she stood behind the two men. Knowing that she had to get rid of the biggest threat first, Lucy raised the bottle and crashed it down onto her sober captor.

He slumped forwards into his seat, unconscious.

Lucy was surprised to find that unlike in movies, bottles did not shatter upon hitting someone. The drunk captor turned, as she lifted the bottle up to take him out, raising his pistol. Closing her eyes, Lucy brought the bottle down onto his head.

The pistol let out a loud bang.

Lucy opened her eyes. In front of her were the unconscious bodies of her captors, which was good. For a moment, she wondered whether she'd been shot, but she couldn't feel any pain yet, so if she had, it wasn't major.

She raced over to one of the boys, - the white haired one - shaking him awake. He was groggy as he opened his eyes, but after a moment he focused on her.

"You need to get up," Lucy whispered, as she helped him up. "Go out through that window, quickly, okay?"

"Sure," he mumbled, not even questioning her. Maybe he thought that questioning someone when in handcuffs wasn't very smart. She watched for a moment as he stumbled towards the window, climbing out with some difficulty.

Maybe I should have unlocked the cuffs first… Lucy thought, before shaking her head. No, the other guys must have heard the shot and should be getting back at any moment.

Thinking that they could be back, Lucy raced over to the other boy. His eyes were open, and Lucy was certain that he'd woken when he'd heard the gun shot. Quickly, she helped him up, pulling him towards the window with her.

She let him jump out first, mainly because he didn't have the hands to climb with. After she was sure he was okay, she turned around to make sure no one had entered the room.

Footsteps warned her to get out. She turned, lifting herself up so that she was sat on the window. The drop wouldn't be that far, but still she felt a trickle of fear in her – if she landed the wrong way, she'd only be dragged back in.

There was a shout, and then another gun shot.

Lucy jumped, landing awkwardly on her shoulder. She noticed the boys had waited for her, and grabbing onto both of their arms, started racing down the street.

.

They met up with Natsu and the other hostages in the park. Lucy watched as he paced, backwards and forwards, waiting for them to arrive. When they all noticed Lucy and the two boys, they let out sighs of relief.

"Lucy!" Natsu shouted, as he raced forwards, "You're here!"

Shakily, Lucy nodded, taking a few steps forwards. Now that she was away from her captors, she let herself break down. Her shoulders shook, and tears started to roll down her cheeks. As she let out a sob, her legs gave way.

Lucy's best friend, Levy came running up as well. "Oh God, Lucy, I was so worried!"

Unable to control her sobs, Lucy reached a hand out to grab onto Levy's shirt. The bluenette let out a cry of her own, as she threw her arms around Lucy.

"I was so scared," Levy cried, "I thought that you were hurt, or dead. I thought I might never see you again."

Lucy looked at her slightly through her tears, "I… I think I am hurt…"

At this, Natsu raced forwards. "Lucy – Luce, where are you hurt?"

Opening her mouth, Lucy tried to speak, but her voice came out slurred. "I… my… side. It hurts."

Lucy reached down to her side, pressing down on her shirt a bit. Her shirt, was bloody. Lucy let out a humourless laugh, "guess, I'm gonna need… a new shirt…"

"Lucy!" Levy cried.

"Hey," Natsu shouted, "Don't close your–"

Additional Notes: Here's hoping you enjoyed the chapter. Please leave a review or something, telling me what you think and whether I should continue. Until next time, Laters!

~ D.D.