I apologize for the long wait, but it is here! I hope you guys enjoy this it's quite the chapter.

Enjoy!


Lucy's POV

Slamming the tea cup to the coffee table beside me, I begin, "Once I become strong enough, I'm going to crush those two for the torture they are giving us.." Levy, who is laid across the pale grey patterned carpet, laughs exhaustively.

"Not in a million years, Lu-chan. You saw them how they showed us our workout like a piece of cake! Those two didn't even break a sweat! And if you manage to become strong enough, God knows how, hit me up so I can be there to watch it all uncover.

"Besides, if you are complaining the two weeks of our training, the chances of you beating them senseless is very small." I raise my head from the blue camelback sofa and stare at Levy challengingly.

"You don't think I can do it, Levy-chan?"

"I believe you can do so many things, Lu-chan. My only concern is you making it out alive from those two's wrath. They are dragons, for pete's sake-"

"That can transform into humans-" I was suddenly cut off when the cottage began to shake violently.

"LUCY! LEVY! YOUR 15 MINUTE BREAK IS OVER! GET OUT!" Roared an evil celestial dragon. This occurs every break of the day. Once the 15 minute break is over, that extra second she ends up at our place, shaking the house to get our butts moving again. Groaning, I roll my eyes and throw myself back down to the sofa.

"1 more minute!"

"I believe that we do not have time to give you an extra minute to relax, Princess. Time is ticking and if you want to beat us sometime in the future, then I suggest we get moving." I was then caught off guard by the calming yet stern voice calling me out that leads to where Levy was at. I shot my upper body up and turn it around to find a young man with dark blue hair up to his shoulders. Some of his smooth yet messy hair from the sides are tied up in the back in a ponytail. His elegant silver eyes could dig into my soul and know every single thing about me within seconds. He wore an amethyst long sleeve running sweater revealing some of his muscled body with black joggers and sneakers the same hue that matched his hair color. When I first saw him, I thought he wasn't near being as strong as Natsu or Gray, but when he challenged the Celestial Dragon and took off his top, it was a whole different story. If both guys were up against him, those two would have been crushed into the abyss of space.

"Gael!" Gasped Levy, straightening herself before him. She managed to tie her short hair back into a ponytail and stand up straight in front of him, the expression of a soldier but the hue of her face betraying seriousness. Her face was beet red.

"Are you ready to begin your training once again, Levy?" He said in a formal and calming tone. Facing her, he stretched his hand out to her and she took it, smiling, as if used to his formality. I question to why he continues to treat Levy-chan with so much care and kindness.

"PRINCESS! GET OUT OF THERE OR I WILL PERSONALLY ESCORT YOU OUT WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!" I left my train of thought from the shouting dragon and realized that both Gael and Levy were gone. Holy crap. Tying my running shoes along the way, I jumped out of the sofa and sprinted to the open front door. I closed the door and ran to the lake in front where Astra was flying to. Gael and Levy must be there too.

"How come Astra doesn't escort me like how Gael does it to Levy-chan? On second thought, I might have chosen someone else as my trainer…" I mumble as I make a run for it to the lake.

"Alright ladies! Today is the day! The day we play the game!" Shouts a beautiful cheerful woman spreading her arms wide. She had long celestial colored curls reaching up to her waist that is now tied into a rather large, messy bun. She wore a lavender tank top and golden athletic shorts matching her captivating golden eyes. As for her shoes, she had celestial colored sneakers that matched her pretty smooth hair. She was overall beautiful. She could even win a challenge against Mirajane for the most prepossessing woman in all of Fiore. The only thing that made her even more unique in her appearance was a halo of 13 miniaturized planets differentiating in color and size floating above her head. It fascinates me how she can be beautiful and horrifying at the same time.

"I hope you ladies are ready. Astra and I have trained you in speed and stamina for almost 2 weeks now. This game will show how well you have improved." Beside Astra was Gael, his arms crossed staring at both Levy and I intensely. I have feared this day would ever come. Even with both dragons turned into their human forms, they can still out win us within seconds.

I sighed deeply before shaking it off. I can do this, I thought to myself. You've sweated, literally gave your blood, and cried through this training. No pain, no gain. If this is what I need to move on then I'd do it over and over.

"Rules are simple." Said Gael looking behind us. We both turned around to see the forest. "We will give you a thirty second head start. You will run into that forest and use your primitive skills to get away from us. Remember either of us can catch you. Avoid getting 'tagged,' if you will within the time limit. This game will only last for 30 minutes. No magic allowed." 30 minutes?!

Levy raised her hand. "Um, may we work in teams or is this solo?" She asked with curiosity.

Gael was speechless and looked at Astra who was thinking about it. "I guess you could work in teams, however, don't get used to it. You'll be on your own, so you'll have times where independency is a greater factor. But because it's your first time, we'll allow it. If you get caught once as a group then you have to go solo. Deal?" Said Astra with a grin.

That did not seem like a bad deal. Levy looked at me as I looked back at her. No words were spoken but we know each other's response. "Deal." We said in unison.

The dragons, now humans, nodded their heads before turning around and giving us the signal. No need to begin their counting, we sprinted off. A second wasted would be an extra lap we might be running. I ran through the forest as fast as I could.

Without missing a bit, I counted knowing to know when those two would get here. "Ne. Lu-chan, how do we shake off two dragons?" Said Levy from my right.

A grin slowly formed my face. "The same way I lose Natsu." I said remembering all those times that I needed to get away from Natsu, but he'd always seem to find me. Now, I have to place those skills here. However, Natsu is a lot more dense and an idiot. These two aren't. This will be tricky.

30, I thought to myself. I never stopped running with Levy following along from the side. "Lu-chan." Levy whispered wanting to know the plan. Slowing down my pace, I whisked her off into a tree as we climbed it.

"I just bought of some time…" She whispered quietly.

"How?"

The wind blew strongly pushing my hair away. "The wind will spread out scent throwing off the dragons. However, they will be able to hear us. We need to be able to keep quiet. Calm our heartbeats and our breathing while remaining as still as we can." I said as I quiet down signalling Levy to remain quiet.

Looking at me questioningly, I pointed down where I knew the dragon duo was below us. Thank god the leaves provided us with cover for the mean time.

Breathing in softly, I calm down my heart rate and stay still. As I see Levy do the same.

"Gael, looks like they are using their brains for once." Said a voice I came to recognize. Damn that Astra, I will get her back for that.

"Hm. It seems they have figured out that they will need both to beat us. Lucy and Levy are genuineness in this sort of criteria." Responded a gruff voice.

"That they are." She said with pride evident in her voice, "Strange. There scent has scattered."

A moment of silence. I knew he was trying to pinpoint where we were, but I held my breath along with Levy. "You are right. Odd." He said confusingly.

"I can't sense their presence either" Said Astra whining.

If they stay any longer they'll sense us. Crap! Think, think. I looked around and saw an almost broke branch. It looked real heavy, well not as much. But, we don't have options. I crouched slowly on my branch and wobbled my way closer slightly. Once I am near the thick ending of the branch, I sit down, legs on either side of the branch, and lay down. My hands reach out to the branch below us. I bit my lip. I am still not there.

I sat back up frustrated. What can I do? I look up to Levy and see her biting her lip in worry. I glanced at my long legs, and at the tree branch below. Swinging my legs to one side, I dipped backwards and held out my arms towards the finger touching branch. Releasing the tension from legs, I let myself reach lower and break the branch clean.

I crouch back up with the branch before standing in front of Levy and take a deep breath. I swing the branch as far as I can which was pretty impressive falling away at least a good 150 to 200 feet away.

I grab Levy's hand as the branch makes all that ruckus and jump from tree to tree building up that space between us. We were going at a fast pace but when we landed I noticed the forest got eerily still. I froze before hearing something behind us. I turn around and see the dragon duo catching up.

"Oh shit. Let's go!" I shouted and gave Levy a piggy back ride before jumping down the branches like if I was in the uneven bars.

As soon as I touched the ground, placing Levy on to her feet, we ran off. We could hear their pounding feet behind us and as they continued to gain ground.

"Give it up!" Astra shouted in excitement.

"Not yet, Demon!" I shouted back before I lost my footing down into a pretty steep drop pulling Levy with me.

We rolled down hitting multiple of bushes and smaller trees. I grunted when a particular tree hit a soft spot on my back. When we came to a stop, we both got up and looked up trying to see where the other two were.

They couldn't jump off without slipping through all that mud which would delay them as we get away. Not wise of them.

I notice Astra narrowing her eyes before shouting at us, "You got lucky this time. Next time we pick it up a notch." She grinned evilly.

I grinned back at her. "I am Lucky Lucy Heartfilia for a reason, ya know!" I said as I limped towards Levy. "You okay?"

"Dandy. Next time, warn me before you decide to go flying." She said sarcastically.

"It's not like I planned to fall on purpose. I just realized that if we fall we can place a huge gap between us, so might as well drag you to hell with me." I said with an innocent smile.

Levy grumbled before getting up. "Ugh, now I have mud all over my hair and clothes." She whined before I noticed the pile of mud behind her.

Wait a minute, I thought to myself as I pushed Levy to mud. A couple seconds later, she sits up gasping while removing the mud out of her eyes, nose, and mouth. "What the hell, Lucy?!" She screeched.

It may have not been long since I've been training, but my senses have risen a bit. I took a small whiff of her scent. She smells like the earth and nothing like her unique scent, I smirked.

"You lost your scent." I said.

"What about my scent?"

"You have a unique scent, but once you fell in, you lost it. You smell like Earth, pine and wood. Nothing like your scent." I explained as her eyes widen.

"Your saying our scent has been masked by mud?" She asked with wide eyes.

I nodded. "It seems I learned something new." I said before I cannonball into the mud.

Standing next to Levy, I noticed a pair of birds fly up near us. "They are here." I said before running with Levy behind me.

Our scent is masked so we all have to do i stay hidden. But where? Never faltering a step, I scanned the area with my enhanced eyes.

I hear steps behind me come to a stop. "Levy, what's wrong?"

"That tree." She said quietly pointing towards a tree who had roots coming from the ground.

I turned my head towards the direction that Levy had pointed. It was true. I follow Levy towards the tree as she bend down to pull on them. "They are sturdy." She whispered while looking at the forest floor. Laying down with her belly on the ground, she used her elbows to crawl in between the roots before I heard a thump. "Levy-chan?"

"Lu-chan. Come down. Hurry." She whispered loudly.

Shrugging my shoulders, I followed Levy's lead in how to get in, however, I struggled a bit since I have excessive parts in certain areas that made it hard for me to get in. But, I managed to squeeze myself in with a 'thump.'

"I need a bath after this." I muttered before looking around. "What is this?" I asked before looking at the hole cave.

"Not sure. Some sort of tunnel, maybe? Do we follow it?"

"But, what about the game? Aren't we in the middle of it?" Asked Levy with worried as she stared off at the hole from above. I shrugged my shoulder, "What they don't know won't kill them." I said as I walked into it. To say I was surprised was an understatement.

Laxus' POV

Stood on the round top apartment door was a sign wrote in bold, sending vibes of anger, stating "LUCY! YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO ENTER THIS APARTMENT UNTIL YOU PAY OFF YOUR DEBTS! YOU ARE 3 MONTHS BEHIND ON YOUR BILLS!" with the 2 crossed out and 3 drawn furiously over it. It pisses me off that our guild can't find any damn clues to this after Bolt's discovery. We were able to find out more information about Lucy's mother, a diamond key, the portal that led to the dragons, and Layla's relationship with the dragons. It was not enough, though. Without the bookworm's help on investigating this with her clever ways, it was useless.

Annoyed, I ripped the paper before me and broke the door handle into the room. I walked right into her bedroom and sniffed the air. Nearly 2 months have passed since her disappearance and her fragrance was still here, but very faint. It's almost too fragile to be sniffed into my lungs or it will forever be gone. I don't want to risk losing this scent and walk out, knowing damn well that I have searched this place every single damn day, not finding one single clue. I slam the door shut as I make my way outside while I hear the old hag, screaming at me for not closing the door properly.

As I am walking down the street, I find someone familiar come out of a library, bags of books in hand and stop. The moment I notice who it is, I see a tall, hourglassed, woman with long light purple hair running after him and pats him on the shoulder to give him a couple of books he must have left inside. Gajeel smiles tiredly and thanks her. He takes the books and walks away, while the woman stands still, looking at him leave until he is not in sight. She seems to sigh and enters the library disappointedly. I guess Gajeel went to the library to find help on the situation regarding to the two missing girls.

When I start walking ahead I hear someone call my name. Knowing who it is, I start walking faster, ignoring her voice. I'm not in the mood to be with her today. Her strong hands instantly grab onto my shoulder, turning me to face her.

"Hey, Laxus-kun!" She calls out happily. Not affected by her honey-like poison, I click my tongue and try to shake off her hand from my shoulder.

"Back off, demon. I'm not in the mood to be hanging out with you today." I snap at her. She freezes for a moment, and loosens a her grip, giving me a chance to shove her hand away successfully. I then sense the people around us watching the commotion we are giving off.

"Are you alright, Laxus?" She asks with a tone of concern. I sigh and turn my back to her, desiring to leave the situation. I don't want to talk about it. Not today.

"Is this still about Lucy?" I freeze on my tracks. With no need to face her, she receives her confirmation and sighs. "So it is.

"You know, I miss her too, Laxus. Without her in the guild, life is fading away slowly. Natsu's team tends to be gone way more often than usual. Gray and Nii-san try their best to lighten up the mood with their usual fights, but it's not the same. Lucy would snap, yelling at the guys to stop or even ignore it and hang around the bar with Levy." She chuckles softly, as if remembering those good ol' days.

After a moment of utter silence, she suddenly asks me, "Do you have feelings for her, Laxus?" Feeling my throat becoming dry, I turn my head and glare at her. What the hell does she know about my feelings for her?

"I was suspicious back when we had our sleepover party at Levy's place. After the game of '7 minutes of Heaven', both you and Lucy had a different atmosphere when you gazed into each other's eyes. I have never seen you stare at someone like that before, and somehow I felt a tingling pain inside me. Now that she is gone, you have-"

"If you don't shut the hell up, I will tear you into shreds." I warn with a menacing stare.

Before things could turn out any worse, the Thunder Legion along with the She Devil's siblings arrive. Lisanna, clinging onto Bixlow's back, let's go and drags Mira towards the group.

"Big Sis! I have amazing news for you!" She happily cheers. She quickly glances at me and winks, as she grabs her wrists and takes her to the group. I silently thank her for doing so as I walk up to them as well. I am greeted by everyone with excited faces.

"Guess what happened, sis!" Lisanna asks her, pressing her back against Bixlow. Through his mask, I am able to tell he is happy himself and embarrassed at the same time. He places his hand on her shoulder gently and looks at her softly. I widen my eyes to this.

I then hear the devil herself gasp, apparently understanding the situation and points at both of them shakingly. Both of them looks at each other and smile from ear to ear.

"We are officially going out!" Everyone cheered for their happiness. I sighed and laughed, not believing that he was able to find a girl. This world is full of surprises. There was then a moment of silence from everyone. I glanced at Mira's back and she stayed still like a statue. Everyone waited for the demon's answer.

Keeping her happy face on check as she blinks a couple of times, she stutters, "W-What?"