"The book!" Gray shouted, though his voice was lost in the fray of battle, "I'll get it!"

"Ice Make: Lance!" Dozens of icy spears shot towards the book of END, one of them piercing right through the center of it.

Zeref, despite being locked in battle with the mages of Fairy Tail, noticed, "And with that, you've all just signed your death warrants." He said with his usual pensive smile. "I've had enough fun for one day. Until we meet again, little fairies."

The black mage vanished into thin air, leaving everyone in a shocked and confused silence.

"We destroyed it!" Lucy cheered, breaking the silence. "We destroyed the book of END! We did it!"

"No!" Screamed Happy.

"Happy? What's-" Lucy's words caught in her throat as she turned and saw Happy beside Natsu, who was pressing his hands against a huge, bleeding wound in his gut.

Everyone sprinted to crowd around Natsu, some of them screaming, most of them in stunned silence.

Only Lucy remained unmoving. She couldn't move. All thought, all feeling, all sense had been shoved out of her body and replaced with one piece of knowledge,

Natsu was going to die.

That couldn't be true though. It wasn't true. There was no way. He was Natsu. There was no way Natsu could die.

"I-I can't heal him!" Wendy shrieked. "Why?!"

"What happened." Gray asked with a choked voice. "Did he get injured in-?"

"He's END!" Happy cried in anguish. "He's END… if the books gets hurt… he feels it."

"Oh god," Gray stumbled back, a horrified expression on his face. "No…."

Natsu spoke, "Don't be… an idiot… not… your fault."

"Natsu." Happy begged. "Don't talk. Save your strength."

Natsu ignored that, "Lucy…?"

That brought Lucy back to Earth, She stumbled forward and the crowd of her friends parted for her. She collapsed to her knees beside him.

"Lucy…" Blood dripped down Natsu's chin and gushed from his wound. "I have to… tell you… something."

"You can." Lucy said as tears streamed down her face. "When we get home. Both of us."

"Have to…" Natsu gasped, pain written all over his face "Now…

"Natsu…" Lucy shook with suppressed sobs. "Don't talk like you're going to die… it freaks me out."

"Lucy… I love you."

Lucy couldn't take in anymore, she started bawling.

"Don't die!" She wailed. "Please don't die! I love you so much and I don't want you to die!"

"Like I would… if I could control it… weirdo." Natsu laughed weakly, coughing up blood in the process, "Remember… all the adventures we had, Lucy? Happy? They were fun… I don't want… them to become sad memories… okay?"

"They never will." Lucy promised.

"A-Aye. Happy sobbed.

"Kick Zeref's ass… for me."

The mages all gave collective noises of assent.

Natsu smiled, "I'm all fired up…"

The shadow of that smile still lingered on Natsu's face, and a bawling Lucy was reflected in his eyes that no longer saw.

Happy Nalu Day! ;)

Please review!

With love and cute fluff (because that's totally what this fic was),

Dolly