So, I was gone for a while again and come back with bad news for me at least: my friend has all but dropped this story, even though I plan on continuing. That means that there may be minor writing changes, as well as some struggling on my part because it's much harder to write on your own than with someone. I bear her no ill will; she is ten times busier than me. Therefore, I will do my best and rely on you guys to keep me on track. Thank you for your support!

Natsu laid Lucy down in the inn bed, very tired and grateful he didn't have to argue with the innkeeper as to the reasons he was carrying a sleeping girl that had a few injuries. Given the hour of night it was and his attire (still only swim shorts), there could have been a whole lot more trouble. He pushed some hair out of Lucy's face, fingers tracing a scratch on her left cheek leftover from the fight. He couldn't help but mentally kick himself for not being more careful on the boat. He had known there were people after them, and he'd let his guard down. He wandered over to the dresser, hoping with little actual hope that there would be some extra clothes stashed in a drawer. Surprisingly, there was. He managed to find a tank top and some cargo shorts that fit him, so he threw them on after grabbing a quick shower. Lucy was still knocked out cold on the bed, now cuddled up in the blankets and shivering slightly. It WAS a little cold in here.

"Oh, Lucy. Just remember that I did this for you, not me."

Natsu eased himself onto the bed and pulled Lucy closer. He slightly raised his body temperature, and he felt her body rest. He really hoped she wouldn't kick him in the morning.

Erza and Gray managed to track Natsu and Lucy down around ten in the morning after going shopping for some methods to change their appearance. Both mages now sported blonde hair and matching outfits, passing off as twins to the onlookers. There was only inn in the town, so they checked there first. Upon approaching the door, they paused for a minute, hearing the sounds of crashing and breaking glass. Erza opened the door slowly, completely shocked at the sight before her. Lucy was chucking everything she could get her hands at a terrified Natsu. Natsu strayed into Lucy's arm range, a big mistake as Erza and Gray knew it.

"LUCY KICK!"

Natsu found himself painfully planted in the wall, groaning in pain. Gray snickered; even Erza chuckled at Natsu's misfortune. Lucy, however, was seething.

"I WAKE UP IN THE MORNING AFTER A SHITTY NIGHT ONLY TO FIND THAT YOU'VE CRAWLED IN THE BED AND HAVE YOUR HANDS EVERYWHERE! YOU'RE DEAD, NATSU!"

"Um, Lucy, I think you already killed him. I'm not going to ask, but maybe we should set that aside and get to matters of importance. Natsu needs to be in one piece if we're going to make it to your father. You also need to change your appearances."

Lucy looked up, having just noticed Erza and Gray. She shrieked, grabbing for her keys on the dresser. Natsu moved quicker out of his place in the wall, though, and threw her over his shoulder.

"Chill, Lucy, it's Erza and Gray. You're strung awful tight today, aren't you?"

"Shut up, Natsu. It's not my fault I had a very rude awakening. So, we need to alter our appearances, huh? I have a spirit that can do that. Natsu, you want a hair change?"

"No!"

"Too bad. Gate of the crab, I open thee! CANCER!"

Natsu stared in shock and disbelief as a giant crab-man holding a pair of scissors appeared in the room, eyes covered by sunglasses. Did all of Lucy's spirits wear sunglasses? Lucy grinned at who Natsu assumed to be Cancer, fingers already piecing out her hair.

"Cancer, I need a boy's haircut, black with some fringe. Natsu needs one as well; I'll let you decide."

Without another word, the crab-man set to work superhumanly on Lucy's hair. When he was done about twenty seconds later (Natsu counted), Natsu barely recognized Lucy. Instead, all he could see was the boy he had first met with black hair versus blonde. The change brought around mixed feelings, as Natsu couldn't help but wish the change wasn't permanent. Lucy had to laugh when Cancer advanced on a clearly distracted Natsu and began fixing his hair. All it took was a bit of black dye and Natsu looked NOTHING like his normal self. Lucy sorted through the drawers of the dresser, glad to find clothes that were her size.

"I'm going back to my boy disguise. My father is looking for a blonde teenage girl; from now on, I'm Natsu's younger brother Hayate. Erza, you should be Gray's older sister. Come up with your own names so it sounds more natural."

Natsu racked his brain; names were not his forte. In fact, anything creative really wasn't his thing. Food always helped him think, so he sauntered out the door to check out the lobby. Lucy ducked into the bathroom, wrapping up her torso, throwing the clothes on, and fixing up a hat. Staring in the mirror, she realized she was far too comfortable dressing herself as a boy. Maybe after this adventure, she could stay at the guild and do some missions as a girl. A bang accompanied by loud voices startled her, but she paid it no attention. More than likely, Gray and Natsu had started arguing.

"Don't move, boy, or I'll blow your head off. I want you to listen to me very carefully. I'm searching for a group of kids a little older than you that consist of the following: one red-haired girl, one black-haired, most likely naked boy, another boy with pink hair, and a busty blonde. Have you seen them?"

Lucy swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to figure out how to get out of this one. The man had a gun pointed at her head, and she could tell from the location of the gun he was shooting to kill. She didn't recognize his voice, nor could she understand this approach to finding them. He could not know that they were the people he was looking for.

"Listen, mister, I'm going to turn around and face you, because I really don't feel like talking to the mirror. I don't want any trouble."

The man held the gun in its place as Lucy slowly rotated to face her captor. He had a shock of messy blonde hair that could rival Natsu's, a scar over his right eye, dark blue eyes, and an earring hanging from his left ear. He appeared to be about her age, but was clearly a mage despite the gun. Lucy had known enough Dragon Slayers to be able to recognize the sharp canines, cocky smile, and excessive magical aura.

"I saw people like the ones your describing running through the streets last night from my window, but I saw nothing of them further nor do I know where they were headed. That's all I know."

The boy sighed and holstered the gun, eyes losing some of their previous excitement. He stared intently at Lucy, studying her with a ferocious gaze that made her shudder slightly. There was something wild, even feral about this boy she assumed was sent by her father. She was glad that so far, she had not had to fight him.

"Rogue, come on out and take care of this kid. He's too small to waste a bullet on."

Lucy watched in horror as the shadows in the room bended and melted into a human form holding a sword. She fumbled for her keys, but cursed when she realized they were inside the room. Kicking herself for finding herself in this situation, she decided on the last course of action she had: she screamed at the top of her lungs.

"HELP!"

"ICE MAKE CANNON!"

Lucy shrieked when an icy cannon blast blew both the men in the bathroom and the wall of the hotel away. Instantly, arms were pulling her away from the edge.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, Gray. Those guys were after us, and now they know what magic you do. I don't doubt they already knew, but now they can confirm our identities. We have to go!"

Gray let go of Lucy, pushing her out the door. Erza followed, already requipped into armor. Lucy ran as fast as she could, taking the stairs two at a time and leaping the last four. She prayed they could find Natsu in time, granted he didn't already know what was going on. His heightened hearing could not have failed to miss the massive explosion upstairs. Sure enough, a flaming Natsu greeted their sights when they reached the front doors, eyes furious.

"What the hell happened?!"

Erza cast a silencing glance, grabbing Lucy around the middle and tossing her to Natsu.

"Take her and RUN!"

"WHY ME?!"

"BECAUSE YOU'RE THE FASTEST!"

No more explanation required. Natsu threw Lucy over his shoulder, sprinting as fast as he could and trying to ignore the sounds of battle behind him. Every instinct he had said to turn around, but the girl over his shoulder needed protecting. Not that he was against protecting her.

"Hey, Natsu, just hand me over, okay?"

The words were so quiet he almost missed them, but they were unmistakably there. He didn't stop running, just wondered in shock her reasoning.

"The hell, Lucy? Like we'd ever hand you over! They want you dead, remember?!"

"Yeah, but if I died or submitted to my father, then all this would be over and you guys could go back to the guild and live your lives happily. I'm not worth all this."

Natsu took a turn behind a building and pushed a now-standing Lucy into the wall, barely containing his anger.

"You listen to me, Lucy Heartphilia, and you listen good. Do you know where I would be if you were dead? I would be at home sitting on my ass wondering why I was alive. Do you know what would happen if I let you turn yourself in and we never saw you again? Gray would lose his baby sister, Erza would lose her best friend, and I would lose the best thing that's ever happened to me. Do any of those lives sound very happy to you? I really doubt it. So before you go saying stupid things like 'let me die', you should think about how fucked we would all be without you. You're worth the world to us, Lucy, and without it, the world isn't worth it."

Without waiting to hear her response, he threw her on his back piggy-back style and continued the sprint. At this rate, he could be out of the town and into the forest very quickly, giving them a better chance to think out a plan. They couldn't keep flying by the seat of their pants like this.

"Hey, Natsu."

"What?"

"Thanks."

His face turned bright red when he felt her press a kiss to the back of his head. He was very grateful she couldn't see his face, or he'd have a lot of explaining to do. With the forest line close, Natsu double-timed it. The further they could get, the safer they were.

The girl held on. Everything could be falling apart, but no one would let her even crack. Why couldn't they just let her go? Didn't they understand that she was a lost cause? This girl held on to false hope, and she knew it. The girl held on a little tighter.

So guys, I'm feeling really uninspired after graduation and shit. If any of you has suggestions or motivational words, I would be oh-so-grateful. I'm also wondering what you think of the italics story told on the tops and bottoms of all my chapters. Any guesses? I won't confirm anything, but I love discussions. Thank you again!