Author's Note- Hey guys here is the next chapter. I am very pleased to tell you guys that I am actually TWO chapters ahead T-T (tears of joy). You know what that means right? Yes, regular updates!

No smut, sorry guys. I have a reason for that, which you will find out in the next chapter (13).

Unless you guys really want it? I can put something.


Natsu burst into the guild hall as usual, and instantly made beeline for the bar. He was a man on a mission, but there was an issue in his plan. Lucy was missing.

He had already broken into her house, well he had tried. Lucy had locked down everything, there was no opening left save for having the keys to her apartment. But there was no movement inside, and he couldn't smell her as well, so he just assumed she was in the guild.

She wasn't.

He huffed, defeated, and slid into a barstool. "Yo Mira, any idea where is Lu-" he couldn't complete his question because his nose picked up an offensive scent near him. He growled and turned to see blonde hair. "What are you doing here?"

"Heh, I just came to meet Blondie. She wasn't home, so I thought to check here." Suddenly Levy materialised behind Sting, looking curiously at Natsu. Before he could say anything, Natsu was once again interrupted, but this time by Erza. "What were you doing at her place? Did you maim her honour?!" Levy's eyes flashed dangerously. "Oh, so Natsu breaking in is fine, but Sting isn't? Erza, what logic is that?" Erza looked shocked. "Levy, Natsu is her friend. And why are you defending Sting?"

"You just justified Natsu, so why are you defending him? Yes, I have the same reason." Levy was smirking, her usual innocent expression gone. "So, this is how it is? Well, Natsu is her best friend." Erza advanced to Levy, but the tiny mage didn't falter. "And Sting can be too. I know Lu-chan better than you." Erza scowled.

"You both, calm down. Arguing is really futile." The voice came from behind the bar. Mira's usually warm blue eyes were icy. "Natsu, to answer your question. Lucy is currently on a job with Laxus, just the two of them." Natsu and Sting stared at the barmaid in shock, while Levy audibly gasped. Erza's fist clenched. "Luce? With Laxus?" Mira giggled. "Yes Natsu. While you all were arguing amongst yourselves I was helping Laxus. So, you guys should really give up." Her expression was dark, but the females behind Natsu remained unfazed.

"Why don't we have a bet? The one who helps the winning party gets the others to be her slave for a day." It was Levy who gave the idea, and Erza and Mira nodded simultaneously.

Natsu tried to retreat from the deadly women surrounding him, but instantly Erza grabbed his collar. "Come Natsu, we need to practice." On the other side Levy pulled Sting away by his ear, "Sting, let's go."

Their cries of help echoed through the whole guild, but nobody dared to interfere.


Lucy sighed as she slipped into her cotton shorts and stretched her body, relieving it of some of the exertion of the day. Content when a few bones popped, she placed her new silver key on her dresser, and picked up her pen. She wanted to write a little before turning in.

Their employer had offered them a place to stay the night, but both Laxus and Lucy agreed that they wanted to sleep in their own bed and instantly went to the train station. They were in luck that the last train to Magnolia was starting in five minutes from when they reached. It was quarter past eight then. Both of them were tired and Laxus instantly collapsed on her lap. Soon, even she dosed off, and was shaken awake by the conductor of the train, telling them they had reached their destination. It was eleven.

Lucy decided to simply go to her apartment, and report the job in the guild tomorrow, and Laxus agreed. He even walked her to her place, and like a proper gentleman, and bade her goodnight at her door instead of entering and demanding food.

Lucy almost drooled at him as he turned his back at her, ogling the muscles visible.

Instead of writing about how the princess was once again saved by her knight, Lucy instead wrote how the arrogant general of the castle finally noticed the princess, and talked to her.

Finally finished, she shut her manuscript and turned off the lamp on her table. Climbing into her bed, she shut her eyes to sleep.

But it never came.

Her eyelids were heavy, and her body tired. But her mind was refusing to shut down. The events of the day kept flashing by her eyelids. Laxus sleeping on her lap. Her whip in the air. Capricorn saying she looked like her mother. And again and again, Laxus kissing her.

She was finally sober during a kiss, and that fact was not lost on her mind. She kept reliving the moment, noticing tiny details like how chapped his lips were, how her waist seemed tiny in his large hands. Sighing, she got up and grabbed a key. "Gate of the Lyre I open thee, Lyra!"

"Lucy! It's been so long! You never summon me!" After reassured with promises to call her more often, she asked, "Lucy, what do you want me to play?" Again Lucy sighed. "I don't know, just play whatever you want. I can't sleep, so I thought you might be able to help me."

"Sure thing Lucy! Why can't you sleep though? Is it about the dragonslayers?" Lucy stared at her spirit in shock. "How do you know?" Lyra looked at master sheepishly. Lucy sighed once again. "Let me guess, Loke spread the news across the whole of Spirit World."

"Well, I don't know about that. But he did tell all of your spirits." Lucy clenched her fist. "Just wait till I get my hands on that idiotic feline. Oh Lyra, what will I do?" Lyra looked at her master curiously. "What do you mean?" Lucy placed her head on her hands. "I mean, today was really nice. Laxus was really nice. But how do I know whether it was Laxus or was it the mark on me? Whatever will I do Lyra? What have I done? Lyra, what do you think I should do?"

Lyra ran her fingers over her harp, and Lucy calmed down at the music. "Lucy, if he seemed natural, then it was him. And as for doing something, there really is no right or wrong here, and your spirits are behind you in any choice you take. Now hush and get in you bed, I'll sing you to sleep." Lucy was back in her covers, and she went off to sleep thanks to the music produced by Lyra, into a dreamless sleep.


"Open your door!" Laxus stared at the source of the sound, his door.

Who was at his door in the dead of the night?

Laxus opened it to find Satan standing there. Sighing, he let her in. "What is it Mira? I am really tired. I just came back from the job." That is when his brain asked a very important question- how had Mira known he had arrived? Looking at her expression, he decided against asking.

"I know Laxus. I just came here for one thing, to ask how was the job?" Laxus looked at her suspiciously, and carefully answered. "It went fine. The client knew Lucy so he invited us to the ball. Some mages attacked and we rounded them up. We came back. That's it."

"Oh come on, nothing else happened? Well fine, how did Lucy look in a ball gown?" Before he could stop his mouth, it betrayed him. "Beautiful." Mira's sicky sweet smile was out. "Good, of course she did. I am sure you kissed her?" Laxus stopped himself this time. "Woman, that is none of your business." He could feel her magical aura tingle on his skin. "Laxus," she growled, "you came to me for my help. If you don't tell me anything, I won't be able to help you. Now, tell me, DID YOU DO ANYTHING?"

What was with this day and scary women?

He swiftly nodded and once again that bone he couldn't locate, popped. "Ah great! You are making progress! That is all I had wanted to know really. Goodnight!" Her voice was sweet and airy, totally in contrast to her growl of few seconds ago. And she left Laxus's house, with him shivering. Why did he have to ask for her help?

Laxus wanted to punch his past self for going to Mirajane fucking Stratuss with his problems.


Natsu was tired. He was also hungry.

Very hungry.

Erza had given him constellations to memorise with the threat of no food till he learnt all of them. The entire day had gone by him without any food, and he was about to faint. He crawled over to Erza to recite the constellations.

"Good, you have finally learnt them. I have left the fish on your table." Erza was sprawled out on his bed, cleaning her weapons. His bed stinked of polish, and Natsu decided to sleep on the floor later.

When he reached the table, he cried tears of happiness to see a plate with food in it. He jumped at the fish and shoved the whole thing in his mouth in one go. And then something hit his head and the last thing he saw was red hair and a stern expression before he knew no more.

"The idiot. He was eating like a barbarian. Is this how he is planning to eat with Lucy?"

"You know Flamebrain, it's useless trying to tame his eating habits."


Sting's mind was swimming. The sheer amount of books were overwhelming him, and then reading was whole another pain altogether. It took him hours to get through a quarter of the book in his hand, and Levy had told him that it was the easiest of the lot.

He didn't even realise the whole day had gone, his mind was just so saturated.

Levy's idea was to impress Lucy on his date. The actual date had been finalised, thankfully. Levy had made the reservations this morning, and he had called Yukino to send his suit in Sabertooth by Saturday. He still remembered the conversation awkwardly.

He had actually asked her whether she had slept with Rogue or not, and she had promptly cut the call after blushing furiously. He had also got to know that Rufus was taking care of all the guild paperwork till he came back, so that was a relief.

Yeah, as if he had even remembered he was a guild master now.

Suddenly something hit his head and he looked up to see Levy hovering over him. "Read! Don't daydream!" Sting muttered profanities under his breath.

"You know, you should just grab that metal freak. You need to get laid."

All he heard was a shriek before he lost consciousness.


Rogue couldn't sleep. He kept tossing and turning in his sleep, his mind wandering to the fact that Lucy was on a job with Laxus. What if they stayed together overnight? During the day, Laxus may be able to control himself, but the night with Lucy by his side, his instincts might overpower him.

At that thought he jumped off his bed and left for her place, after making sure Frosh was asleep. He didn't want to worry her. He instantly went in shadow drive, he was desperate. He needed to know whether or not Lucy had reached home or not.

He had avoided the guild after talking to Lisanna, not wanting to meet the other dragonslayers, and had spent the entire day with Frosh. But it had backfired on Rogue, because he didn't know whether or not Lucy had returned or not.

A sweet scent alerted him that he was near her apartment. Her scent was intoxicating to him, and he wanted to taste her, badly. He couldn't place the fruity component of it, but it reminded him of exotic fruits. Her scent was thick in the air, and he looked up with relief.

Her room was lighted. So she must be in. He thought about meeting her, but decided against it. It was pretty late in the night, she wouldn't like it. Just then the light shut off, and he strained his ears to hear her get into her bed.

As he turned to leave, he heard her summon a spirit. Why was she doing that? Was she in danger? He melted into the shadows and peered inside her window. She was standing, with a spirit with a harp by her side. He heard Lucy speak.

"I don't know, just play whatever you want. I can't sleep, so I thought you might be able to help me."

"Sure thing Lucy! Why can't you sleep though? Is it about the dragonslayers?"

What? She couldn't sleep? Because of us? Did something happen on her mission today? Rage coursed through his veins at that thought. At that moment had Laxus appeared, Rogue would have flayed him. He focused on the conversation again.

"I mean, today was really nice. Laxus was really nice. But how do I know whether it was Laxus or was it the mark on me? Whatever will I do Lyra? What have I done? Lyra, what do you think I should do?"

The spirit ran her fingers over her harp, and all of Rogue's anger vanished. "Lucy, if he seemed natural, then it was him. And as for doing something, there really is no right or wrong here, and your spirits are behind you in any choice you take. Now hush and get in you bed, I'll sing you to sleep."

As the spirit started playing the harp and singing, Rogue felt his eyelids droop. He quickly went out of earshot of the heavenly music, because he couldn't very well fall asleep on her window, could he? But while going back Lucy's words echoed in his ears.


So, I really think if there ever was a filler chapter, this was it.

Not really though, I did want to establish the bet there. And Rogue overhearing Lucy was important, right?

Yeah, I'm trying to console myself.

Spiritual_Sister- Hey, I see you like RoLu! Yay. I hope? And as for the Jesus Christ, well, I am a Hindu? Sorry? It's just that, I have a God for everything, so I don't really need Mr. Christ in my life. I totally appreciate the sentiment though, totally. You go girl!

jhdavis1103- A wimpy Lucy is not my type of Lucy. I like Lucy to be badass to say in the least. FLUFF. That is partially what I live for. Laxus is a dork. Enough said. Thanks seriously, your reviews always make my day.

QueenoftheMermaids- Ah, thank you! And sorry for the lack of smut, it's just that I have a plan. Smut is not part of the plan, NOW. Later, sure *wink*. Oh, the others will have to work to even reach Laxus's standard, forget upping him.

Thanks to everyone who followed and favourited Marked! I love you guys!

Fizz out.