I can't even begin to describe the rage that boiled inside of me. I'd gone to see Lucy at her house that day, but she wasn't there. That's when I'd found the ransom note in her room. I brought it to her father and we'd gotten the message from her kidnapper. Lucy had looked so terrified. She was shaking and crying. Seeing her like that had only made me angrier. It was never a good idea to make me angry, and this man had just provoked me in the worst of ways.

As soon as the sobbing Lucy disappeared from my vision I turned to her father, seething out of anger, "I'm going now."

"You'll need money," he said, "I have that."

"I don't need money." With that I left the room and charged into the night. I was running as fast as I could towards the Dark Castle. I was going to save Lucy, even if it was the last thing I would ever do.

The Next Morning

I was breathing hard, my lungs burning. I didn't care. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about my own pain, especially not when I imagined what Lucy was going through right now. The anger rose in me again and I ran towards the castle. I'd found it. It wasn't called the Dark Castle for nothing. Its stones were practically black and a strange magical aura surrounded it. I climbed a giant flight of dark stairs and kicked the massive door open. It swung open effortlessly with a loud creak.

I stepped into the castle and looked around. It was strangely quiet. My footsteps echoed as I walked down the hallways, searching for Lucy. I rushed down hallways, yanking door open and moving on when I didn't see Lucy waiting for me inside. I started to get angrier and angrier with each door I slammed open. "Looking for something?"

I turned and saw the man who I had seen with Lucy leering at me. I didn't even know is name…and I didn't need to. I narrowed my eyes to slits and clenched my fists tight, "I think you know what I'm looking for." I let out a low growl without realizing it.

"I know very well, boy, but I won't give it to you until I get my money!"

"I don't have your money."

"Tsk-tsk. That's no good, now is it? You thought you'd try to be the great, big hero and come and rescue the princess? Well, I won't let you," he snarled. Dark shadows began to emanate from him. A purely ominous feeling engulfed me as the shadows spread around the room. I braced myself as the man raised his arm. The shadows seemed to converge at his palm. They shot towards me and I was barely able to dodge. I felt the intense and dark magical power narrowly miss my head. I fell to the floor, but soon I was back at my feet. I felt my energy draining and I discerned that this darkness was sapping my magic.

The man started to gather more shadows, preparing for a major spell. I had to stop him; otherwise, I was certain that his spell would destroy me. I took a deep breath and tilted back my head. I let you a loud roar, fire spilling from my mouth, dripping off of my tongue and curling up into the shadow-filled air. The light of my fire pierced through the darkness, slicing the shadows as it crossed the room. I barreled towards the man and his eyes went wide. He held up his fists to protect himself, but it was too late. Brilliant flames engulfed him, singing his clothes and biting at his skin. When I ran out of breath, I ceased my spell. The man was on his knees; smoke swirling up from where he knelt. I smiled and walked up to him. I raised my first and brought it down on his face. There was no magic…only anger. I put all of my pent up rage into that single strike, channeling it into my strength. I heard a cracking sound as the man collapsed onto the floor. The moment I'd found out that he kidnapped Lucy was the moment that my anger started to build up. Ever since then I'd been containing it, but no more. All of it had gone into the blow to his face. I looked down at him, satisfied, and turned to find Lucy. She was somewhere in this castle and I was going to find her.

A Bit Later

I was walking down a dark corridor, trying not to slip in the puddles. I heard water drip into them and saw ripples disrupt their calm surfaces. My footsteps echoed down the hallway, bouncing off of the walls and returning to me. I growled. This was taking longer than I thought. I figured I would be able to use my sense of smell, but this entire castle smelled rank and I couldn't smell anything other than rat droppings and mold. I grimaced at the thought.

Suddenly, I stopped short. I heard sobbing echo through the hallway. There was no doubt…it was Lucy. "Luce!" I yelled. Other than my own voice returning to me, I heard nothing. The sobbing had stopped.

"Oh great, now I'm hallucinating," said Lucy, "Wonderful."

"You're not hallucinating, Lucy. Where are you?"

"I don't know!" she called back. I couldn't discern where her voice was coming from. I dashed down the hallway, peering through the darkness, "Lucy, keep talking to me. I need to hear your voice!"

"That sounded really weird!" she called back. That was Lucy for you, joking in times like this.

"I meant that it would help me find you! Just keep talking!"

"What do you want me to say?"

"I don't care!" I was getting closer to her. Her voice was getting louder.

"Alright then…but I can't think of anything now that I need to say something! What do I say?"

"Lucy, I love you…I'll find you, I promise!" I called to her, listening hard and running down the hallway.

"I love you, too!" I heard her call. That was it. I'd found her. She was directly above me. I spotted a crack in the ceiling and grinned.

"Lucy, I'm coming up!" I yelled. "Wait, what are you t—" she began before I sent a giant column of fire up above me. It blasted a hole in the ceiling and I leapt up onto the floor above me. When the smoke cleared I was able to make out Lucy. She was tied up and lying on the floor. Tears stained her face, but she was smiling now. I ran to her and untied her bindings. Her wrists and ankles were bright red and raw. She rubbed them gently and then flew into my arms. I held her tight and pressed her against me. I smiled into her hair, "I told you I'd find you."

She nodded, "Yeah, you did…hey, Natsu."

"What?"

"It seems we've been on an adventure." I pulled away from her, "This is not even close to what I meant, Luce."

She grinned, "I know, but I'll always remember this." She leaned forward and kissed me. I kissed her back. She was right…I'd always remember this.

A/N: Hey, everyone. So, yeah...glad you read this and all that stuff. :) As requested, I've written a one-shot sequel to this story. It's called Remembrance. Check it out!