AN: Hey there! Boy it's been awhile since i've updated anything here! Now as you can probably already tell from the title, this will be a compilation of all my one-shots that i've written on my tumblr page (which btw is the same as my username here) re-uploaded here for ease of reading!You can also head there for more crazy (ahem*sinful*ahem) content as well as some requested stories that i'll probably not upload here.

Ah i'm rambling again, so without further ado, enjoy!

Summary : With the newly awoken E.N.D inside of him, he knew he had to keep the demon away from his nakama at all cost. But what he didn't know, was that he's not the only who would be loosing something irreplaceable to them that day. Nalu.

Ash Like Gold

" Natsu!"

The anguished cry ripped past Lucy's chapped lips, screaming her partner's name till her throat was hoarse. Her captor's arms straining with effort as she continued to struggle desperately against the firm grasp around her waist.

" Let me go! I have to help him, Erza!" She cried, her eyes fixated on the lone figure struggling against himself in the distance, " Let me go!"

" Get a hold of yourself!" The scarlet haired mage snapped, twisting her body and Lucy's sharply to the side to avoid yet another wave of flame. " Leave this to Gray, Lucy."

" I made a promise to my dad that i'll be the one to destroy E.N.D." His jaw tensed up as he looked determinedly at the said person.

Lucy's eyed widened in shock, her trembling hands coming up to cover her mouth as tears threatened to fall from her eyes, " But the only way to destroy E.N.D is to…"

Gray nodded, but his voice was filled with pain when he spoke, " Kill Natsu. The only way is to kill Etherious Natsu Dragneel."

" You can't!" The celestial mage screamed, " I won't allow you to!"

" Oh for god sake look around you Lucy!" His hands flung out to gesture at his surroundings, " How do you think Natsu would feel if he knew that thing in him did all this to his beloved city?!"

" That thing destroyed half the city and put most the guild members in critical condition, and some of them have families to go back to! Think about Asuka! I'm sure you know very well what she is feeling in this exact moment she's sitting by her mother's bedside!" He finished with a bitter note, immediately regretting the words he just said when the blond flinch back as if she's been physically hurt.

" I'm sorry you had to hear that Lucy, it it is the truth." Erza said softly." We have no choice, every second we waste here, E.N.D comes closer and closer to taking over Natsu's body. We've got to end this before that happens, i'm sure Natsu would prefer to still be in control himself when the time comes for him."

Her voice came out in short, pained gasps as she clenched at the singed material above her chest, shaking her head in denial, " But there has got to be some other way! There's got to be some other way for you to kill E.N.D without k-killing Natsu-"

" Then what do you propose we do then?!" Gray retorted sharply, turning back to look at her with cold, hardened eyes, " Do you think i want to kill him?! He is my friend, Lucy! My closest friend!"

" And i love him!"

Her head snapped up and Gray took several steps back at the look of pure hurt in her eyes, but it also burned with a fiery resolve, the blond took the chance to scramble quickly away from the two of them when Erza's arms went slack in shock at her confession, placing a hand on her hip where her key pouch hung from her belt.

" And it's because i love him," She said, her face set in a hard determined look, " that i cannot allow you to kill him."

Lucy turned to look at Erza, and she smiled, the hard expression melting away to reveal a smile so bright and hopeful, it sent a jolt of fear through Erza, feeling as if she was trying to tell her something.

The said woman took a warning step forward, her voice apprehensive, " W-What are you-"

The blond simply replied in a soft voice, " I'm going to get my Natsu back."

" Lucy!" They both cried when she bolted form her spot, running away from them faster than they've ever seen her run before.

But before the two could chase after her, a torrent of flame slammed right into the structure beside them and the building fell, smoking debris and various smoldering building supports came crashing down in front of their path.

Erza and Gray managed to catch a last glimpse of the blond's back as she dashed towards the rings of fire from behind their ice shield before the last slab of concrete slammed down in front of them with an ominous thump.

Natsu howled out in pain, falling to his knees and hugging himself when yet another spiked scale ripped past sinew and popped out from his back with a sickening squelch, blood splurting from his mouth when he coughed out violently.

" G-Get…the fuck… o-out of my body!"

" Stop resisting me, Etherious Natsu Dragneel, relinquish your body to me and revert to your true form "

" S-Stop calling… me that- ARGH!"

Flames exploded out violently from his body, wave after wave of sweltering white-hot fire spilled forth from him, scorching and singeing every thing in sight, the flames he unknowingly created forming a pulsing, blazing barrier around him in a wide radius.

" Surrender to me, Slayer."

" Like hell i will!" He spat out.

" You will, its only a matter of time, you can't deny your true nature."

As if on cue, he grit his teeth and suppressed a scream when a curved horn poked out from his head and pushed its way out, a steady stream of blood dripped down the right side of his face with every inch the horn grew out from his head.

" I'll start by breaking your will."

Natsu managed a grin, " Good luck with that!"

" And i have someone who'll help me with that."

" -uuuuu!"

Natsu's head snapped up in alarm, turning his head to look around him with quick jerky movements, praying that for once, his ears were playing tricks on him.

They were not.

" Natsuuu!" The shout came again, from the lips of the only person he desperately hoped wouldn't see him in this state.

As if reacting to his raging, panicked emotions when he saw the long blond hair popping up from the distance , the fire around him burned brighter and hotter, casting up walls of flame so intense, it lit up the dark skies.

" Lucy?" He breathed out, shaking his head disbelievingly, his voice increasing in volume with every word," What are you doing?"

The said blond took a shuddering, steeling breath just before she stepped into the blazing inferno, the edges of her hair and what's left of her clothes catching on fire but she quickly patted them out as she continued on through the fire.

" No, go back!" He screamed at her in alarm the moment he caught a whiff of her blood, " Lucy, stop!"

She ignored him, pressing on barefooted with gritted teeth when her shoes burned off, her entire body screaming in protest, with every step she took it became harder and harder to ignore the pain blooming out all over her skin went they started to blister and burn.

" I wonder, how much would i have to hurt that blond mate of yours, till you finally break into a million pieces?"

" Stop it…" Natsu covered his ears, seething, but the voice continued to ring mockingly in his head.

" Burning her limb by limb, slowly carving lines into that smooth skin of hers…"

" Stop it…"

" Killing her?"

He finally snapped, " STOP IT!"

" Oh just imagine it!" The voice of the demon in him crackled with amusement, " The light fading out from her eyes right in front of you, would you grieve, Slayer? Knowing that it was you who caused her death?"

He let out another straggled gasp just as claws erupted from his right hand, " Get away from me Lucy!"

" I can't possibly do that." Her voice whispered to him from behind, his shocked onyx-green eyes locking with her brown ones when he turned to look back sharply, the guilt he felt increased by a hundredfold when he took notice of the multiple burns of laceration that were scattered all over her body, all cause by him. " You've always been the one to save me Natsu.'

She crumbled to her knees in front of him, reaching out to cup his face and smiling up brightly at him," Now its time for the princess to save her dragon."

" N-No Lucy-" He gasped, desperately trying to push her hands away when he felt the tell-tale pulse in his back of another incoming transformation, " Get away from me, don't look at me-"

" How can i do that when you're suffering right in front of me!" She looked fiercely into his eyes.

" I don't want to hurt you- GAH!"

Much to his horror, instead of pushing away, Lucy hugged him tight, but his words were drowned out by the gurgling of blood that spilled from his lips when a set of wings tore through his back, splattering the ground with a crimson trail when they unfurled.

Lucy only held him closer, her tears wetting his bare shoulders, sobbing angrily, " The only way you'd be hurting me is by leaving me alone, you idiot!"

" The time in nigh, Slayer, its only a matter of time before i have full control of your body…" The malicious voice said in his head, the hidden implications behind his words only made him all the more panicked.

The pulsing feeling returned, and Natsu looked up in alarm when the walls of flame started closed up around him, grabbing at her hands, he tried to pry her from him," You have to get away from me now, Lucy, please."

He choked out, face twisting up in an expression of utter sorrow, he cried out desperately," Please! I don't want to hurt you anymore than i've already done, please just get away from me!"

" No!" She screamed, " I refuse to leave you!"

The wind around of them whirled violently just as a huge pillar of light burst forth from Lucy, piercing the sky and clearing the clouds, revealing a sky full of minuscule glowing stars as she poured her magic into him.

" If that demon is that of darkness, i'll purify it then!"

Natsu opened his mouth, but the words uttered were not his, neither was the malevolent grin that spread across his cheeks, " Such weak magic, is that all you can do, mortal?"

Lucy looked up startled, but her eyes met crimson red irises instead of the olive green that she knew, " N-Natsu?"

" Wrong answer, mortal." The uncharacteristic grin on Natsu's face widened, " Now watch, Slayer…"

Lucy gasped sharply, slowly looking down at the dripping claws that stabbed right through her stomach with wide disbelieving eyes.

" …as i end her life with your hands."

The demon retracted his hands with a jerk, and immediately the blood pooled around the slightly charred fabric around and ran down her legs.

" Nooooooo!" Natsu roared, smashing his body against the mental restrains that E.N.D trapped him in, watching everything through the demon's eyes that once belonged to him.

The blond coughed out blood, but her resolve never faltered, her grip on Natsu's body simply tightened, " I will get rid of you E.N.D, if it the last thing i do!"

" You, a mere mortal, think you can defeat me - Zeref's greatest demon?"

" With One Magic!" Her eyes burned bright, as if there were a million stars glittering in those deep brown eyes, " With love!"

The demon laughed mockingly, " Let's put that love to the test then!"

Fire and pure celestial magic clashed as the two remained in a fierce embrace, both fighting for control, the slightest shift in their concentration could mean possible death for either party.

The demon frowned when he felt a shift in energy, and his eyes twitch in mild annoyance, a mere mortal was overpowering him? It was gradual, but he could feel the increasingly intensifying golden energy pulsing off the woman's body.

Deciding he had enough fun playing with the human, as well as having his full of his vessel's screams of outrage and desperation, E.N.D growled, " I grow weary of this pointless waste of magic, this ends now, mortal."

At once, she was enveloped in a dome of blackish-crimson flames, and she screamed.

If walking through the rings of fire was bad, what she felt now was purgatory.

Every lick of the flame felt like a thousand knifes piercing into her skin, it was so hot that the wound in her stomach immediately cauterized when the fire touched it, she could only scream.

" Stop that incessant screeching of yours, Slayer, it's giving me a headache."

Natsu didn't know he could bleed in his own mind, his fists beaten raw to the point where he could catch the barest glimpse of ivory, but he couldn't care less, not when his precious person was bring burnt alive right before his eyes.

All he saw was red.

Her blood.

So much blood.

" Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!" He screamed repeatedly almost in a mantra, fighting with a berserker's rage against the fog that blocked him from taking back his body," Give me back my fucking body!"

" Stop fighting back."

Flames licked around his body, the shadow casted behind him billowing up to almost that of his father's, scales pushing out from the skin around his eyes and his eyes turned reptilian.

" Stop fighting back!"

With a snap, white-hot flames burst forth from him, and he roared, " DON'T LAY ANOTHER FUCKING HAND ON MY MATE!"

Despite the flames that slowly burned her skin away, she held tight to Natsu's body, but when she felt something trickle down legs, her eyes looked downwards and widened in horror.

A single droplet of gold glinted back at her.

A trail of gold with the barest hint of silver followed the path of her blood that flowed down her leg. With a single hand, she grab her key pouch and ripped the cover open.

Her world came to a screeching halt.

For there was nothing left but a tiny pool of molten metal left inside, and swimming in the middle of it was the remains of a certain broken key.

Her hand shook when she fished it out, everything around her muted itself out, nothing else mattered anymore, Lucy didn't even know if her heart was still beating.

The golden light flickered as her resolve faltered, but her arms remained clasped around Natsu's neck, her breadth coming out in sharp, body jarring gasps, tears falling freely from her cheeks.

" Crying tears of regret, mortal? From the start, you never were strong to defeat me anyway!" The demon sneered triumphantly, " Love? One Magic? Such is the wishful thinking of men! Those things never existed in the first place!"

" What are you still sniveling about girl?! Was my sacrifice for you in vain?!"

Lucy's head jolted up in shock, whispering, " Aquarius…?"

At that moment, the molten keys evaporated from the ground and her pouch into a shimmering curtain of gold and silver particles that surrounded her, enveloping her in a warm, embrace.

" Lucy-san, i'll miss your nice boooooody!"

" Puun puun!"

" I wanted to be lots more helpful to you, Lucy!"

" Taurus, Plue, Lyra…" The blond whimpered, as three particularly large orbs flew in front of her before sinking into her skin, their respective signs imprinting themselves into the skin of her right arm, lower left belly and the side of her left thigh.

" Take care of your hair, ebi."

" Moshi moshi, please take care of yourself, Lucy-dono."

" May the knowledge of the stars be forever with you, along with a final gift."

The blond wept, feeling their warmth as their orbs entered her body, Sagittarius's sign appearing on her left forearm, Cancer's on the side of her right thigh and Crux's on the right side of her neck, and she commenced the spell that downloaded into her brain, supported by the magic of her spirits that fused together with her,

" S-Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens…"

Three more orbs floated in front of her eyes, and their words made Lucy laugh, but her tears fell even harder then before, touching her arms as their signs appeared one by one on both her shoulders, on her left arm and on her right wrist.

" All the stars, far and wide… Show me thy appearance…"

" " Piri piri, we'll miss your boobs Lucy~" They say."

" Eep! I'm sorry i can't be by your side anymore, Miss Lucy. Gemini, please stop fondling Miss Lucy's breasts while inside Horologium, i'm so sorry!"

" We are! Aquarius will kill me for saying this but, nice boobs Lucy!"

The next two orbs drifted next to her face, and her heart ached so badly, she almost couldn't breath, and she choked during her spell, resisting the urge to scream out their names,

" W-With such shine….Oh Tetrabiblos…"

" It's been a pleasure to serve you, Princess. Is it finally time for punishment?"

" I'm glad it was you who saved me from myself that day Lucy, and I, along with all the other spirits, thank you for being such an amazing master to us. We'll all miss you terribly, Lucy."

As Virgo's sign settled down on her upper right arm and Loke's on the right of her chest, the next sign spoke,

" If Layla could see you now, Miss Lucy, she would be very proud of you. Let yourself be consumed by your love for that dragon slayer, continue to believe in yourself, and to believe in the power of the One Magic. And if fate would have it, may we meet again in another life, another timeline."

All these happened in a matter of seconds, and she could feel the power and warmth from all her spirits surging out from within her when Capricorn's sign appeared on the flat of her stomach, its effects reflected at the golden pillar that surrounded her.

" I am the ruler of the stars…Aspect become complete… "

E.N.D did not react all that well to the surge of magic that the pesky human emitted, roaring furiously, the fire intensified around him," You...human! How do you know this magic?!"

" I refuse to be sealed a second time!"

Just as he was around to blast the mortal into a thousand smoldering pieces, his own hands disobeyed him, " Don't you dare lay another hand on Lucy!", the words seethed past his mouth.

" Stop this, Slayer!"

At that moment, the voice of her long lost friend spoke into Lucy's head with an annoyed tone, " An entire year, and not one boyfriend? Those assets are wasted on you, girl."

" Aquarius!" She half-cried in her head.

" Listen to me, this is your only chance of getting your man back you hear me? So don't you dare let our sacrifices be in vain!"

Without further ado, the blond gasped out the last few sentences,

" Open thy malevolent gate…"

" And… as much as i hate to admit it, i- i missed you girl."

The blond sobbed at this, " O-Oh 88 Stars of the heaven…

" But you have to continue walking forwards towards your future, and even if we may not be with you, we'll all watch over you from the stars of the Celestial Realm…"

" So now go get back your man, Lucy!"

Her eyes flipped wide open, and a intricate golden magic circle formed in her deep brown eyes still streaming with tears as she grabbed Natsu's face with both her hands and screamed,

" Urano Metria! "

The entire area was immediately transformed, and all 88 constellations surround them.

" Release me, Slayer!"

The blond shouted at the demon, and at the person stuck inside the body, " Come back to me, Natsu!"

Smashing her lips to his, she let herself be consumed by her magic, by the love she felt for him and pouring it all into that one gesture, just as she releases the energy gathered into a tremendous attack.

The demon shrieked, bombarded by a relentless assault of pure, unadulterated magic, from both inside and outside, he was driven out from his vessel, evaporating out from the body in the form of a black mist, all the demonic attributes immediately reversed, and Natsu regained control of his body.

The first thing Natsu noticed, was something soft pressing down insistently on his lips, and the next was that he was back in his body.

But that moment didn't last long, for when the purifying light went out along with the screeching of the demon, Lucy fell.

By instinct, he caught her by her waist, looking down alarmed at her unresponsive state, " Lucy! Lucy!"

" N-Natsu…?" If not for his enhanced hearing, he probably wouldn't be able to hear her, " Is t-that really you…?"

" I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" He gasped out, his hand covering hers that came up to cup his cheek as the tears continued to fall from both their eyes.

" It really is you…" She gasped out, her eyes looking hazily up, " Natsu, where are you…?"

Natsu let out a shuddering gasp, " I'm right here, Luce, right here!"

" That's why i never liked mortals, so fragile. So weak."

" Fuck off!" The fire dragon howled, scales forming at the sides of his face and his eyes slitting. " If not for you-"

" Save your words, Slayer. For i have been defeated already. " The black mist shriveled with every word, " I may be gone, but remember, you can't change who you are, Etherious Natsu Dragneel, you still carry the burden of ending Zeref's legacy."

Once the demon fizzled out, Natsu fell to his knees, cradling Lucy's body in his and surrounding her head with a knee, " Lucy can you hear me?"

" I can't see you, why can't i see you?" Her panicked voice raised slightly in volume.

Natsu choked on his own words, " I'm right here, Luce."

It was then Lucy came to a realization, and she merely smiled, " Ah i see…"

" I'm dying aren't i, Natsu?"

Natsu shook his head vehemently, his entire body shaking as he rambled in desperation, " No! I won't allow you to! Wendy, yes Wendy! She should be nearby, she can fix you Lucy! You'll be as good as new-"

" Shh, Natsu," She hushed him, tracing his cheeks with the hand that's on his cheek and wiping away the tears she felt with her thumb, looking in his general direction, " It's no use, i can feel it."

She chuckled weakly, " Looks like this is it eh?"

" No no! It's not! Stop talking like that!" He snapped, before forcing a smile, " We still have so many adventures to go on, many places left to visit, things to destroy-"

" I'm sorry i can't be with you every step of the way though."

Her soft voice broke him, and he sobbed, " I promised. I promised you i'd protect your future."

" You can't just leave me Lucy! I haven't even- I've yet to-"

" Ah, my vision's cleared. Aren't the stars beautiful today, Natsu?" She said, looking up blankly at the skies as Natsu felt her body getting colder and heavier.

" Y-Yes, they are." He managed to say, looking at anything but the sky, " So beautiful."

" Say… Natsu? Can you do something for me?"

" Anything, Luce, anything!"

" Will you promise me that you'd remember me?"

" How can i possibly forget you!" He cried, his voice trembling, leaning downward, his forehead at her chest as he grabbed both her hands, " You're- you're- you're my mate!"

He choked out painfully," I love you Lucy, i love you so freaking much."

Natsu's head jerked up when a strong smell of salt assaulted his nose, and he would never forget that face for as long as he lived.

Lucy's practically beamed up back him whilst thick, fat tears rolled down her cheeks, her voice filled with so much feeling, so much love, it made his chest ache painfully, " I love you too, Natsu."

" And because i love you, i ask that you please, please continue living."

She cut him off before he spoke, " I don't think i can rest peacefully knowing that you died because of me, instead, treat every day like a gem, an irreplaceable gem."

" Continue going on those adventures for me would ya?" She smiled through her tears as she wiped away him, " And when the time finally comes for you to go, i'll be waiting to hear them all."

His voice thick with emotion, he said fiercely, straining to keep his signature smile on his face," I p-promise you, Lucy, i will fulfill your wish with all my might."

" That's my Natsu, now come here…"

With a surprising amount of strength, she yanked at his scarf and pulled him down, and kissed him again.

Natsu pushed back desperately, bringing his hand to support her head as he deepened the kiss, pouring every thing he was feeling at that very moment into that one kiss - hurt, despair, happiness, love, only stopping to breath before diving down again to capture her lips with his, savoring every single micro-moment and engraving them into his head.

When they finally separated, she placed a final kiss on his cheek, before leaning in and whispering into his ear, " I will always love you, my dragon."

And she fell back limply into his arms, a small smile still on her lips just as a final tear slipped from her shut eyes, the zodiac marks fading away from her skin and disappearing into the breeze like golden ash.

" Lucy!" He shouted in alarm, shaking her, " No no no! Lucy!"

The dam broke, and cradling his mate in his arms, the dragon cried, howling his pain into the starry skies.

.

.

.

.

.

.

When Erza and Gray finally arrived at the scene, they froze, mouths opening up in horror at the scene of despair in front of them.

Natsu looked up at them with hollow eyes, his voice hoarse from screaming, and whispered.

" She's gone."