A 23-year-old, blond haired woman stood in front of a grave, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks, landing in the messy, pink hair of the 3-year-old child she held tightly in her arms. Said child looked up at the woman with worried brown eyes,

"Mamma? You 'kay?" The child asked quietly, her mother looked at her, a small, sad smile on her face,

"Yes, Haru. Mother is fine. Just sad." Haru didn't look convinced, but she didn't push the matter, insted, she turned his gaze back to the grave. The woman looked at the child in her arms, then back at the grave as her mind recalled that fateful night three years ago...

(Flashback)

Lucy dropped to her knees, panting as the man she was fighting was sent flying by her spirit, Leo. Said spirit sent his master a worried look before vanishing in a poof of smoke. Lucy looked around her at where her fellow Fairy Tail mages were fighting fiercely. None of them had expected the attack. It had happened in the middle of the night, they had been attacked by a group of mages that called themselves 'Fairy Slayer'. She watched as the man she loved burst into flames and attacked the closest Fairy Slayer mages, sending them all flying through the air. Lucy's vision blurred, the magic exhaustion was getting to her.

"LUCY!" He head snapped up at her name, and suddenly her vision was obscured my blood and a black vest. Lucy's eyes widened as her vision cleared, she had a perfect view of Natsu's back, and the large blade that was impaled through his chest and that had burst out his back, splattering the 20-year-old woman with a bright crimson liquid. Lucy was shaking badly. Suddenly the man holding the sword burst into flames and turned to ash. Natsu stood standing for a few moments before he let out a raspy cough and pulled out the sword. He tossed it away and fell to his knees, coughing up a large amount of blood as he did so, even more spilling from his chest. The movement snapped Lucy from her daze and she crawled forward. Natsu slipped to the right and hit the blood-stained ground with a thud.

"Natsu!" She muttered, pulling the 19-year-old's head on her lap. He was staring up at her with dulling onyx eyes.

"Lu-ce..." He rasped.

"Shh! Don't speak! Wendy will heal you!" She looked around, "WENDY!" She screamed.

"No! Too... late..." Lucy's head snapped down to him,

"No! Don't say that Natsu!" She felt tears streaming down her face, "W-Wendy will stop the bleeding!" Natsu just smiled softly at her, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. "Don`t die Natsu." She whispered. She felt his hand touch her cheek, and she looked at his smiling face.

"Lucy... I love you..." Lucy's eyes widened and she started panicking as his eyes slid closed.

"Natsu... Natsu! I love you too, please don't leave me!" Her head whipped around wildly, "WENDY! WENDY HELP!" Lucy didn't even register it when the Fairy Slayer mages ran, she was just crying for the Sky Dragon Slayer, gripping Natsu tightly. She felt herself being pulled away, by someone and she struggled.

"Lucy..." She looked up to see Erza's face. Even the red-haired woman was crying.

"Damn Flame-Brain." Grey growled from where he knelt beside the limp Natsu. "Going and dying like that." The ice mage choked back tears. Wendy was across from him, her hands buried in her hands as she sobbed, all the other Fairy Tail member were either in tears or had a pained look on their faces as they stared at the pink-haired dragon slayer.

"Natsu!" Happy was tapping his best friend's face, trying to get him to wake up, "Natsu, wake up." The blue cat was crying. Lucy's body was shaking, covered in Natsu's blood and her own tears.

"He-he saved my life." Lucy sobbed, Erza pulled the younger woman into a tight hug as she cried. Macrov stared down at the young man,

"Natsu, he died the way he lived-" The small old man said, causing everyone to turn to him and he made his way to the dead fire mage. "-with a smile on his face and protecting his loved ones." Natsu's last words came to Lucy's mind. Lucy... I love you...

(Flashback End)

Lucy blinked away tears. She had to be strong, for Natsu, for their daughter... "Haru... Say hello to your father." She said quietly. Haru looked at her mother,

"My father? Where is he?" Lucy smiled softly and tapped the girl's chest, right over her heart.

"He's in here. Protecting you, like he protected me." Haru held a hand over her heart,

"In... Here?"

"Yes. He's watching over us. He may not be here, but as long as you keep him close, he'll never ever leave you." Haru blinked, "You'll understand when you're older."

"Does daddy love me?"

"Yes, your daddy loves you very much."

"Then why isn't he here?" The child asked, looking up at her mother with teary eyes. Lucy smiled softly,

"Your daddy had to go away."

"Why?"

"Because he wanted to protect us." Lucy whispered. Haru nodded slowly and looked back at the grave. "Haru, it's time to go. Say bye to daddy."

"Bye daddy. I'll come back with Mamma later." The little pink-haired girl said, waving good-bye. Lucy turned and the two left the cemetery. Lucy knew that when Natsu had died, she had shattered into millions of little pieces. But she was slowly putting herself back together, not for herself. But for her little girl.

END

I got the idea for this one shot from listening to Shattered by Trading Yesterday, Pieces by Red, and Hymn for the Missing by Red