Hey guys! Thanks so much for giving this story a chance! It's my fairytail baby. Bear with my author's note, will you please?

I know, I know, I haven't been updating my other stories. Thing is, I've been really really busy of late. Well, that's not entirely true… OKAY! I HAVE NO INSPIRATION TO WRITE, OKAY? And you all know what happened the last time I had no inspiration. The chapter turned out horrible and had to be replaced. I promise you, I will try my best to get some inspiration soon, alright?

And regarding my other fairytail story… I honestly have no idea how to continue. I am so sorry. I'm still thinking things through. I will definitely continue it, because your reviews have really really encouraged me and I am going to do this for you guys!

Anyway, for NEW READERS, hi there! I have to say, I'm not a professional writer, and I know my writing's not perfect, so I'm apologising here. Please bear with me. I hope you'll enjoy my story though! It'll get better!

If I have to disclaim anything, I disclaim it now. This is a fanfic so obviously… you get the point (I hope)!

Right, for this story, I'm trying out this new writing style I've only done with one of my dramione stories. I'm not totally happy about it right now, but I figure I'll improve as the story progresses. As usual, I don't plan my stories, but I've done some research on the characters and stuff for this story (something I never do) so I hope it has a little more depth to it. Feel free to point out anything you think I can improve on, but please don't be too harsh on me (thank you)!

I'm just going to jump into the story so I hope you guys are familiar with the characters and stuff. A few minor changes here. The beginning may be a little slow though, because I'm trying to lay out the setting in as un-wishy-washy a way as possible.

Okay! Enjoy!


Preface

The days blur. Here, there is no telling what the date is, nor how many days have passed. The sun is merciless, and sometimes, I'd wish for rain, but without proper drainage, the rain would the area, destroying our camps and threatening to drown or tear us apart. This I know from experience.

It is all debris here. We are trudging through debris- the remnants of what used to be a bustling town.

I keep telling myself it's all but a horrid nightmare, and I'd wake up in a bit to find myself in my room, with food and sweet drinks in my fridge, and clean water in my bathroom. I'd put on my white blouse and blue skirt, grab my keys and leave for the guild where I'd see them all- Mira behind the bar counter, Cana drinking on the table, Master and a few other boys eyeing the girls and Erza arm-wrestling the men while eating a strawberry cheesecake with her other hand.

No, I'll never wake up from this.

"Water." Natsu croaks from beside me, his throat parched, voice rusty from disuse.

I look up questioningly, and see that his head has perked up instead of the hanging down.

"I smell water." He says again, and points ahead of us slightly to the left. "There."

"Are you sure?" I ask.

He nods, and we pick up our pace, both excited at the prospect of water. There is no vegetation in these parts, so water is very hard to come by.

Several minutes later, I see what he has been talking about. The ceiling of an underground cave has caved in, leaving a hole Natsu's broad shoulders barely fit through as he dives in feet first with a whoop.

There's a soft thud, and his voice calls out to me, telling me to hurry.

I sit at the edge of the hole, hoping it won't cave in further, and push myself in.

He catches me, his warm strong arms wrapping themselves tightly around me, before putting me down.

"Look." He whispers, and I look.

It is an underground reservoir.

Without another word, we're both running to the edge, lapping greedily at the water and not caring if it is actually potable. Eventually, we end up going into the water altogether, splashing ourselves and at each other, laughing. His pink hair has grown out and stuck to his face, the ends of them just touching his shoulders. I've not seen him this happy since… I don't know when.

It is with shock that I notice a bright light glowing from deep in the water. It's a blue glacier-like orb. Only, it's about the size of my head.

"What's that?" I point out.

He submerges himself fully, and comes back out of the water with a strange look in his eyes.

"Well, what is it?"

"It seems to be a block of ice or something like that."

"Ice floats." I say. This thing was at the bottom of the pool.

"I know. Weird thing is, there's something trapped inside. I think it's a person." He says unsurely, looking at me for an answer as to what we should do.

I bite my lip and think.

"Well, if it is a person, I say we rescue him. If not, we run. I don't think I have enough energy to open any of the celestial gates."

"Alright. You refill the bottles," He replies, handing me his make-shift bottle which I had crafted out of several thick waxy leaves when we'd walked through a forest. "I'll try to bring that thing up."

Before I can tell him to be careful, he dives, this time to the depths of the pool, and my gaze follow his head of pink hair, counting, in my head.

Quickly, I pull myself ashore and begin to refill the five bottles we have.

Sixty seconds have passed, I think, and he is still at the bottom.

"Natsu!" I shout, although I doubt he can hear me. "Just come back up!"

Suddenly, I see that the water's surface is beginning to ripple. The ground beneath me starts to tremble, and there is a growing rumble from deep underground.

"Natsu!" I shout again, starting to panic.

Hang on, are my eyes playing tricks on me, or is that glowing blue orb growing?!

I blink and splash some water onto my face.

It is growing! No! It's moving upward! And it's taking Natsu with it!

I watch, frozen, as it gets bigger and bigger, and then with the sound of water cascading from its top, it surfaces, with Natsu sitting atop.

The rumbling and trembling has stopped. It is, indeed, made of ice, and there is the silhouette of a human inside.

"Look what I found, Lucy!" Natsu cries gleefully, "Underwear-boy!"

I look carefully at the figure inside, and as my eyes become accustomed to the glow of the ice from underwater, I make out a long, lithe body with a shock of dark blue hair. Gray. And he is in nothing but his underwear.


Chapter 1

There's a rustling from the bush nearby.

I leave the fire and hurry to the mouth of the cave behind the bush as Natsu and Rogue appear.

"Anything?" I ask, although I can tell what their answers are from the downcast look on their faces.

They shake their heads and we fall silent.

"Smells good." Natsu finally says, "Is it ready?"

I know he's desperately trying to escape the sadness and anxiety of the situation, so I put on a smile on my face.

"It is." I say proudly. "I even flavoured it the way Rogue taught me to. It's… fish, though. I couldn't catch anything."

Their plastered smiles falter for a moment, but they put it back on again. They hate fish, because it reminds them of their missing Exceed.

"I'm sorry, I'll try harder next time-"

"It's alright, Lucy." Natsu cuts me off, and moves off, accompanied by Rogue who gives me another assuring smile.

I know it's not alright.

This is our camp. The terrain has been sculpted by the four boys, under my supervision, of course- I did get an A for geography. Ever since the day the dragons attacked and destroyed the country, we've been on the run, mainly from the invasion of Ragastine, a neighbouring country. They are trying to get their hands on anything they can get, and I suspect that would include Dragon Slayers as well. Anyway, our camp is but a small piece of land surrounded by hills. Half of it is covered by a cave and the other half left exposed so the smoke from our fires doesn't get trapped. There is also a drainage system designed and built by Gray himself. The only way out of here is via the cave behind the bushes which winds its way through the hills in what would seem like a labyrinth to outsiders. We've left enough ghostly rumours in the town nearby for us to be left alone, and there are several forests nearby from which we tap our resources. This is the edge of what used to be the Kingdom of Fiore, and from the town onward, it is Ragastine.

I begin to climb my way up the rough steps one of the boys had cut out in the side of a hill, and carefully balance myself on the top of the hill, although the tops of the hills are relatively flat and broad. The hills are impossible to climb from the other side because of rocky outcrops we've left on purpose, so if I fall, it would probably be the end.

He's sitting there, huddled into himself, at the very edge of the top of the hill, his blonde hair gathered at the base of his neck in a ponytail.

"Dinner's ready." I say quietly, but there's no response.

I walk behind him so that I am now on his left, and when he makes no move to cover the spot next to him, I take a seat beside him, crossing my legs.

He always comes up here when I cook fish.

"Is it Lector?" I ask. He never answers, though.

Tonight, he tilts his head a little towards the sky, so that the sword-like metal earring his has attached to his left ear glints in the light of the full moon, as does the glossy sheen of unshed tears in his dark eyes.

"You know," He says out of the blue, his voice hoarse, "Minerva said he was alive. He could be out there, somewhere, just waiting for me to save him." He pauses to collect himself. "Thing is, I don't know where to start or what to do to find him."

I don't know what to say, so I touch his arm lightly, and I find that it's cold.

He looks up at my touch, his eyes boring into mine, troubled; wounded. His eyes are fascinating. They are both dark, but this close to him and under the light of the moon, I can see that his right eye is a deep, rich purple, and his left eye is a blue a shade darker than sapphire.

I rub his arm and try to warm him up, but the wind up here is strong, and the fur of his jacket is thinning.

"We'll find him together, the five of us, when Gray comes back."

He looks down where his hands are hanging limply from where his elbows are resting on his knees.

"That is, if he comes back."

I frown.

"He will. Gray always comes back." This, I truly believe.

He gives me a sad smile, unconvinced, and makes to stand up.

"Where are you going?" I ask, to which he answers, "Dinner's ready, isn't it?"

Watching him walk away so strongly and knowing he's writhing in pain on the inside is hurting me as much as it's hurting him, and before I know it, I've run up and hugged him from behind.

He stiffens, then eases, and I feel his cool, muscled arms over mine.

"Thank you, Lucy." He says, and when I let him go, he offers me a hand down the stairway where Rogue and Natsu have already finished their meal and are eyeing our portions.


I wake up.

Opening my eyes, I see that it's still dark outside. I sleep furthest into the cave- something about the most vulnerable member being the least exposed. I roll my eyes.

In front of me are the sleeping figures are Natsu, Sting and Rogue. I wonder when Gray'll come back. He's been missing for a week now, I think. I've only been to the town a few times because it's not safe to be there, and during those times, I'd gotten the date. It's been about five months since the dragons attacked. Natsu and I found Gray about a month later, I'm guessing, and Sting and Rogue found us another few days later. We had been travelling towards the boarder since then, and we've been camping here for 2 months already, settling down and gathering information; waiting for a sign to move and for a purpose in life. So much we treasured was taken away from us so suddenly. We don't really know what to do now.

I tread my way through the sleeping bodies. Natsu sleeps on his back with his arms splayed out. Today, his mouth is wide open and there's a silly grin on his face. Sting's sleeping like a log-literally, except, he's on his side and not back. Rogue, on the other hand, curls into a ball when he sleeps, and he has to have his back to a wall. It's a little funny seeing his raven hair all over the place, because he's the vainest of us all, and he's hair is always neat and styled. He has even brought along his comb because it had been in his pocket when the dragons attacked.

I crawl through the tunnels leading out of camp with a knapsack, and make my way through the debris, towards the nearest forest. It's not a thick forest and it's brimming with life. There's a spring in which I go to.

I strip down and summon Aquarius, who is more than happy to stir the water up- with me in it. The force of the water washes my body, but I wonder if she's actually trying to kill me.

I end up at the edge of the spring gasping for air.

"And that'll teach you to treat me as a bath-servant. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll just be going back to my- boyfriend. Have you a boyfriend yet, Lucy?" Here, she bursts into giggles. "Why, how silly of me. Of course you don't."

And with that, she disappears before I can recover from the whirlpool she'd set me in.

I'm about to get out of the water when I hear the breaking of twigs some distance away.

"W- Who's there?" I cry, willing my voice not to tremble, then slap my forehead. I just had to announce my presence.

"Lucy?"

I breathe a sigh of relief.

"Natsu! You scared me!"

More breaking of twigs, and I can tell he's sprinting here.

"Wait! Natsu, stop-"

And he bursts through the bushes into the clearing with the spring I'm in.

The spring's deep enough to cover my chest, but the water's as clear as day, and there is this stunned, awkward moment of silence.

"I'll just turn around." He says quickly, his face turning red, just like my face, and he turns and plops himself on the ground.

Hurriedly, I change, facing him so I'd know if he's peeking. He doesn't peek.

"I'm dressed." I finally say, and he turns around sheepishly.

Natsu has changed. He would laugh and make fun of me in the past in such a situation, but the attack and the invasion has changed him, just like it has changed us all. I can't see him as a boy now, despite some of the childish antiques he still likes to retain. No, he's a… man. Besides, his physique has changed too. He has grown a head taller than me, and his shoulders are broader now.

"What are you doing here so early?" I ask.

"I… had a dream."

"A good dream, or a bad one?"

He exhales, and breathes in deeply again.

"A good one. Of the guild. When we were rebuilding the guild."

Ah, the problem with good dreams was the waking up.

He turns his face sharply to the left, and pretends to look at something, but I know he's trying to hide his tears- the few drops of them, which come out only from his left eye nowadays.

I step forward and take him in a hug, although he's so much taller than me now it doesn't really feel as maternal-ish as it used to be.

He hugs me back and leans into me slightly, and I feel two hot drops of water splash onto the top of my head. I rub his back soothingly, and say softly to him, "You still have me, Natsu. And all of us back at camp."

We stay like this for a while, each taking comfort from the other.

He sniffs the air and pulls back, and I let him. He's looking anywhere but at me, though.

"Lucy, you… your…"

"What?"

"I can smell… that. Thing. Every month…" He trails off.

"Oh." That time of the month. "WHAT?! You collect some fruits for breakfast! I'll be back at camp soon!"

I dash off back to camp, where Rogue and Sting are already awake and resolutely not looking at me (their sense of smell is really annoying!) and fetch the bandages before going back into the forest to- uh- take care of the problem.

When I come back, the three of them are already halfway through their share of breakfast. We've collected breakfast for Gray as usual, in case he comes back, but the three of them eat it after some time because they don't want an extra reminder of Gray's absence.

It's chilly in the morning, and I stick to Natsu for warmth.

"I'll go hunting today. Sting, you guard camp. You two go scouting." Rogue says when the sun begins to rise.

It must be a Friday today. Fridays are always busy for the town nearby, although it's just a small one because it's so far from the capital, so I'm put to good use working at the bar and gathering information.

At seven, Natsu and I leave the camp for the town. The plan was for me to find a job at one of the restaurants and for him to do the groceries, deliver them to camp then come back for me.

The day passes and nothing much happens except for a couple of guys who tried to ask me out, all the while keeping their eyes below my face. Towards the end of the day, however, a few burly men I haven't seen around before appeared in the bar. Soldiers, by their uniforms.

"Hey you!" One of them hollers at me, "Over here!"

Obediently, I go towards them, ready to ask them for their order.

"Beer!" They demand, looking at my chest, and I try to hide myself.

"What's your name?" One of them leers, and puts his arm around my waist, his hands on my hip.

"Tink." I say, wriggling out of his grasp and staying away from it.

"Hang on, I haven't seen you around these parts."

"I- I don't come out much."

"A traveller?"

I nod, meeting his eyes meekly.

The suspicion in his eyes gradually melts away, and I'm not too sure I like what's replacing it.

"Why don't you stay the night with us?"

"S- Sorry, sir, but I have to return to work."

"Come on, just one night! We'll give you a good time. And we'll pay! Don't you know who we are?"

"Tink!" The boss calls out. He's a very nice man.

"Sorry, but I've got to go back to work." I say again, and scurry off before they can call me back.

Strange. Soldiers? This far from the capital? It's not normal for Ragastine to be guarding its borders. It's a country that cares only for its capital.

And then, I hear something that makes me freeze.

"He escaped from the capital but we caught him here. I caught him." One of the soliders say.

"Bullocks!" Another scoffs, "You did nothing but put his hands behind his back and lead him to the cell!"

"Hey I-"

"How did he escape the capital's dungeons?!" The third asks before the first can deliver a retort.

The first bites back his retort, and restores his all-important air.

"They put him in one of those ordinary prisons, you know? Thought he was a common-boy trying to steal from the soldiers for the rebels. Turns out he was a wizard! An ice-make wizard to boot. He made a key of ice and broke himself out. In the town prison now, waiting to be sent back to the capital. I'm just glad I'm not one of those wizard-guards watching over him all night."

"Must be here for a purpose. Do you suppose there's something here that could get us a promotion?"

"Quiet! You don't want others hearing you! Let's discuss this somewhere else."

And with that, they changed the topic of their conversation.

An ice-make wizard…

I excuse myself from the bar and pretend I'm going to the public toilet nearby.

"Nat!" I whisper. "Nat, where are you?"

"Here!" A voice says from in an alley, and he sticks his face out into the light momentarily for me to see him.

Checking that there's no one around, I hurry towards the pitch darkness of the alley, and a pair of arms pull me in to rest against a toned, hot body.

He's looking down at me, and as my eyes adjust to the lack of light, I can barely make out his features. His eyes, however, burn through the darkness, bold and intense. His eyes are normally black, but in this darkness, they are an eerie, transparent green. They are so clear I feel as if I can look right into his heart just staring into them. It's a trait that helps him see better in the dark.

"You're cold." He says, and heat begins to exude from his arms and hands, which are wrapped around me.

I sigh contentedly, and resist the urge to close my eyes and let my head lean against his shoulder.

"They've got Gray. The soldiers."

The green eyes blink once, and burn brighter than ever.

"Then we'll get him back."

There we go- the beginning. I'm working on chapter 2 already.

As usual, I'd like to say reviews encourage me. I've already started with the next chapter and I'll try to finish it up soon. Of course, only review if you feel this story deserves a review. I would like to hear from you- what you think of the story, if I should continue and where you'd like the story to go… stuff like that.

NOTE: Lucy with Natsu, Gray, Sting and Rogue. I haven't decided on the pairing and I think I'll be deciding via votes. That's right. In one of the chapters, I'll ask you guys to vote for one of the guys! This is all tentative, of course, because if anyone manages to convince me now, I'll probably just decide on it without the voting. There's still another mystery character I hope you'll all love! He'll be appearing in chapter 2, hopefully. There, I gave you guys a hint. A very, very subtle hint (;

Alright! I shall talk no more! I hope to hear from you and I'll keep my author's notes in the next chapters short and succinct!

Thanks again, everyone!