I'M BACK! And this time I have an actual chapter for y'all. Count this as my apology chapter to y'all for the past few weeks. In my docs this chapter turned out to be close to fifteen pages so I'd say that's pretty damn good, but now I have to go write an apology to Stele, because she had to edit the entire thing. Most likely, though, I'll just end up schmoozing her into forgetting about it and we can go on with our days.

There's more I wanna say but I'm gonna hold out until the end for now let's get a reminder of what happened last week.

Previously on DKQ:

"...competitors, are you ready, or will you bite the bullet?"

Chapter 25

Day 6 Part 2

Erza P.O.V.

A group of wooden pellets flies over my head harmlessly as I duck and roll swiftly to the left. A bright red magic circle flares beneath my feet and I jump up, daggers in hand. I launch forward and my daggers slide through four of the newly placed, coin-sized targets, bringing my total up to fifty.

A ding above me signals that the pellets are picking up speed again. With two lives left and two hours into this game, I can only focus on the targets as they zoom across the ruts.

I feel the magic of a spell surge behind me and take the chance to run full throttle down the middle of the field and requip two long swords along with my flight armor.

The speed boost is enough to drive me up the wall of wood, the tips of my swords dragging along behind me and scoring a path through the targets. Projectiles hit the wood mere seconds behind my feet and I flip backward when I run out of surface to climb.

Overhead, two more bells make themselves known and I feel my lips lift in the beginning of a small smile. Another twenty targets down with that one maneuver, bringing my total to seventy.

My feet barely touch the ground before I'm requipping into my Adamantine armor to avoid two sets of pellets, one right after the other.

Requipping again, I roll to avoid another flying pellet and when I stand up I manage to catch Jellal's eye. He smiles in a quiet cheer and I feel the tips of my ears burn. Thankfully, though, my hair conceals it and I snap my attention back to the targets when I see a fresh line start to form.

A quick glance gives me a rough guess of fifteen and I requip my bow and quiver of arrows. I grab an arrow from the quiver, line up the shot, and let it fly with enough time to requip and bend back, dodging another volley.

The arrow strikes the target at the very top and I glance in enough time to see the lightning lacrima break and trail down the line of targets fast enough for them to explode before they can separate.

The bell rings another two times and my smile widens when I realize that my calculations were correct and that I did indeed hit fifteen, leaving me with only ten targets on the wall.

By now the targets are moving so fast that they're a mere blur on the wall so I have trouble keeping up with them. A red light from the top target grabs my attention. I roll to dodge a barrage from above, making sure to keep an eye on the red light.

As it moves back across the wall it hits a lever, slowing down for only a second or two before speeding up again and I have to move to avoid yet another volley.

That's when it clicks.

There are levers hidden in the wall and every time the target moves across the wall it hits the lever, activating a volley. The fewer targets on the wall, the faster they move and the more often the attacks occur.

Following this line of thought, I back up until my back is against the arena wall and requip a set of knives into my hands. The throwing knives are only five-inches-long but sharp enough to dig into a white oak tree from two-hundred feet.

I keep a sharp eye on the volleys, timing it until there's a lull in the attacks and then spin on my right heel, releasing the knives in my left hand with the knives in my right following only a second behind.

Red blinds me for a second but I manage to dodge in enough time as the satisfying sound of metal hitting wood greets me.

The pellets stop flying, the bell rings loud enough for me to hear over the adrenalin rushing my veins, and I look up at the lacrima to see our team appear just below Gajeel's on the scoreboard.

My smile falls at the sight of the scores already up and I walk down the tunnel as soon as the shield falls to let me through.

Normal P.O.V.

Erza steps onto the balcony just as another bell rings and the knight looks to the lacrima when Lamia Scale takes the spot below Fairy A.

The screen changes from the scores to views of the two remaining competitors taking out their own targets.

The requip mage leans against the balcony and looks over when Lucy steps around Natsu and sets her hands on the railing.

"That was incredible, Erza, I don't think I could've done half as well as you did."

She smiles in return at the compliment but it quickly turns to a frown as she looks at the scores. "I'm afraid I didn't do that well if I got fourth. By the way, who participated for the other teams?"

A familiar bell sounds and they look up to see that Yoake Mae of Stele Cad has taken down her sixtieth target.

"There was Rogue for Sabertooth, Warcry for Quatro Cerberus, Gajeel, and Ichiya for Blue Pegasus."

An explosion from the other side of the arena gathers their attention and they watch as Kagura wields Archenemy in such a way as to deflect some of the pellets from herself and hit the targets.

"What happened to the Blue Pegasus' points if he finished early?"

Gray snorts from her other side. "He was so busy trying to boost his ego that he lost all his lives in the first five minutes. As it is they get no points today."

"I think Warcry did the best, even though Rogue was the first to finish."

Wendy looks away, intimidated by their looks and Lucy sets a hand on her shoulder.

"What do you mean by that, Wendy?"

"His attacks were really powerful, and did you see the way he used his tears to deflect the bullets while also hitting the targets?"

They fall quiet, the only sounds coming from the crowds around them until Gray shrugs.

"He may be strong enough to have placed second but still, his attacks take awhile to charge, leaving him at a disadvantage in most fights."

Natsu snorts, garnering their attention, and turns so that he's leaning with his back against the balcony. "Strong or not, he's in the games because Gold-what's-his-name chose to put him on their team."

Two finishing bells grab their attention and they look at the lacrimas as the places for Mermaid Heel and Stele Cad grab their attention.

"And that, folks, brings an early end to the challenge. Now, if you'll direct your attention to the lacrima screens, the points are being tallied and added to the overall scores."

The scores from today's challenge move over to the appropriate guild's overall score and it blurs as the two are added together. When the number stops everyone stares at the screen in shock as Quatro Cerberus rises from last place to fifth, having gained twenty-three points from today's challenge. Meanwhile, Blue Pegasus drops to last place, having earned no points.

Fairy Tail A—90

Fairy Tail B—88

Sabertooth—81

Lamia Scale—61

Quatro Cerberus—47

Mermaid Heel—37

Stele Cad—30

Blue Pegasus—26

"Even with Erza Scarlet coming in fourth place Fairy Tail A still rides high in first place." Chapati starts out with the explanation and Yajima picks it up.

"But thanks to Gajeel Redfox's quick thinking and even quicker metal attacks that landed Fairy Tail's Team B in third place, they now sit in second place only two points behind Team A."

"Rogue Cheney of Sabertooth may have scored first in today's challenge but sadly it did nothing to help their overall score. Sabertooth follows seven points behind Fairy Tail B. Master Ooba, anything to say?"

"When I get ahold of Jura I'm gonna send him spinning for placing fifth! Fourth place overall? Bah, I'll spin the lot of you!"

Yajima hides his smile at the fact that Ooba is spinning Chapati and moves on. "While Chapati is a little busy with spinning, we have a major upset in the scores. On Day Four they held eighth place but now they hold fifth. It's thanks to Warcry who placed second in today's challenge that Quatro Cerberus is now up to forty-seven points."

Chapati finally stops spinning as Yajima finishes speaking and he fixes his toupee as he leans toward the mic. "While Quatro Cerberus occupies fifth, Mermaid Heel takes sixth place with Kagura Mikazuchi having placed seventh in the challenge."

"In seventh place with an overall score of thirty points, Stele Cad sits low on the totem board, Yoake Mae having been unable to place higher than sixth place in the challenge, and sitting in eighth place Blue Pegasus gained no points today, keeping their score at twenty-six."

As Yajima says this, over on the Blue Pegasus balcony Ichiya bows his head in shame, an unusual reaction for him, while his teammates try to cheer him up.

"And with the rundown done, these are your announcer's Chapati Lola, and Chef Yajima, signing off for Day Six of the games. Master Ooba, any last words?"

"Spin and spin, because more awaits the competitors tomorrow!"

Natsu P.O.V.

After the announcements are done we walk down the tunnels, Erza and Stripper ahead of us, Luce close by my side and myself relaxing with my hands behind my head.

"Oi, Flame Brain, any plans for tonight?"

I arch an eyebrow at the question and frown, my feet stopping as I think it over. "Actually, I don't think we have any plans." Then I look over at Lucy. "Do we?"

She shakes her head and goes to reply but a large blur of gold and white tackles her to the ground and when it settles I see Clare sitting on Lucy in her feline form and holding a paper.

Luce sits up, rubbing the back of her head, and I snort in amusement as Clare practically hums in excitement. Her tail lashes back and forth so fast it's almost a blur and she's rocking on her paws as she unravels the paper and shoves it in Lucy's face.

"Lucy, can we go to Ryuzetsu Land? Please? Please, please, please?!" Her voice goes up an octave and I can't hide my smile as I lean down and pick up the over excited Exceed.

"Isn't Ryuzetsu Land the water park Flame Brain destroyed a few years back?"

I roll my eyes and pulling the paper from Clare's paws, hand it to Luce. "If anyone destroyed the water park, it was you, ya damn icicle."

He goes to retort but Erza smacks him upside his head and I barely manage to duck as Lucy tries to smack me.

"That's enough out of both of you, you both destroyed the water park and we should be grateful that they haven't banned us from it. As for plans tonight, we will be going, not only for Clare to see it, but so that Lucy and I can enjoy ourselves."

Stripper salutes and gives a shaky 'aye, sir' while I bite my tongue. Erza already knows that wherever Lucy goes I'll follow.

Erza nods and walks away, but not before I catch sight of a certain ex-criminal hanging out at the corner of another hallway.

Luce follows my gaze and I see her smile as she wraps an arm around mine. "I'm glad Erza has Jellal, they fit together."

I hum in agreement and we continue walking down the tunnel toward the exit until something crosses my mind and I can't help the small chuckle that escapes me. She looks up at me in confusion and I feel Clare tip her head back, watching me as well.

"What's so funny?"

I shake my head, my smile never fading. She pouts and I give in, explaining, "Just wondering who exactly would wear the pants in that family."

She stops mid step and I turn back to back to watch the array of emotions cross her face until she covers her mouth as she giggles. Shaking my head in amusement, I hold a hand out to her.

"Come on, weirdo, let's go find Happy and see if he wants to go to the water park with us."

She takes my hand and I pull her along, letting Clare fly beside us as we run down to the town.

It takes us an hour to find Happy but after we do we head back to the inn, pick up our swim suits, then walk to the other side of the city where the water park and other attractions sit.

When we enter the building I'm surprised that not only has it doubled in size compared to when the stripper destroyed it, but it also has many more slides, more aquariums, and even a large surfing attraction.

As soon as we reach the main pool, Clare flies off in the direction where I can see Lily sitting on the bar and eating a kiwi. Happy takes off for where Carla and Wendy are playing in a smaller pool, and I grin as I throw Luce over my shoulder and dive into the water.

Before we hit the surface I hear her squeal and I turn when we're under so that I'm looking her in the eye. At first she's mad and she crosses her arms in front of her, looking away so she avoids me.

I grin, swimming closer to her and when she opens her eyes to look at me I throw her up in the air. Even under water I hear her squeal and I surface to watch as she drops back into the water.

Her head breaks the surface and she pulls the hair out of her eyes, her small smile not going unnoticed, or the look of revenge quickly gathering.

She dives under the water and I lose sight of her purple bikini-clad body as she swims lower into the depths. My arm glows for a second but I pay it no mind as I turn around, looking for Lucy.

The water is still, almost nobody in the pool save for a couple of our guild mates, and only then do I become aware of the building current. It's slow at first, but eventually I can see the water as it runs away from me and gathers in the form of a wave on one side.

The wave builds until it's about five-feet-high, and I feel the color drain from my face as I realize what she's doing. Correction, what she and Aquarius are doing. The glow from earlier has me facepalming as I swim backwards, trying to get away from the spirit's troublesome attack.

Finally, the wave collapses.

"Shit!"

It smacks me head-on and the next thing I know I'm lying face down against a wall. Gravity starts pulling me backward; my body peels off the rock wall and I fall back into the water.

I let myself sink under the water, my eyes open, searching for a shock of blonde. She doesn't let me down as she swims up to meet me. She tilts her head and I grin return.

Turning myself so that my head is pointed towards the surface again, I swim forward until I'm right in front of her. She smiles, and tilting her chin up, I kiss her soft and sweet.

She returns it and we forget about the outside world for just a moment. The prophecy falls away, our friends fade from mind, and it's just me and her—fire and stars, warmth and light.

I pull away from the kiss, leaning my forehead against hers.

"I love you, my star, without you my world loses its brightness; without you, I have no reason to live." The words escape me as a whisper, disappearing into the water around us and only being heard by her.

Her mouth opens to reply but the water around us drops by a good thirty degrees and we look up to see the surface freezing over.

We share a look and swimming up, manage to see the stripper skating around on the ice, wearing a smirk as he sometimes kicks the solid water.

I scowl, ready to burn him to ashes, but Luce taps on my shoulder and I turn to watch as she sets both hands against the ice. The temperature drops even more and I look up to see ice spires rising from above us and nearly tripping Ice Princess.

When he finally trips I heat up the water around us enough to melt all the ice, leaving the pool as it was originally.

Luce swims to the edge of the pool and climbs out, the sway of her hips a little too enticing for me to watch so I roll backward, diving back under the water. The dark blue of the deeper water reminds me of training with Aqua and I stop descending when the light from the surface starts to dim.

The pull of the water sitting motionless around me draws my attention, and I grin as I look up to see Ice Prick floating by overhead. My plan hatches quickly and I call out Virgo.

When she appears, she tilts her head in confusion and I quickly explain to her what I want. She nods, disappearing back to the spirit realm for only a minute before she's returning with everything I need.

I nod and she leaves again, leaving me to put on the fin and mask. When they're in place I look up, picking out my target quick enough and ascend slowly.

Lucy P.O.V.

I'm gonna pretend I didn't see Virgo's symbol light up, and I'm gonna ignore the fact that Gray's floating on the surface of the pool, so I do the most plausible thing, I lean back in my chair in between Levy and Erza and sip my drink while the show gets ready to start.

Levy taps me on the arm. "Hey, Lu-chan, what's that on the water?"

I follow her gaze to where something small and gray breaks the surface of the water and grin.

"Just sit back and watch the show, Levy-chan."

She eyes me curiously but shrugs and leans back in her chair. We both watch as the gray tip breaches the surface then sinks below, each time getting closer to Gray. The waves in the wake of the fin finally draws Gray's attention and he turns his head to find the source.

"I have to admit, you and Natsu being able to breathe underwater must come in handy."

I nod at Levy's words and we sit up when the fin breaks the surface in Gray's line of sight. His eyes go wide, the color drains from his face, and he screams like a girl.

"S-s-shark!"

The scream gathers the attention of the rest of our guildmates and we watch slack-jawed as Gray almost runs across the water, trying to get away from the laughing shark. His feet hit the ground but he keeps running until he's climbed up one of the fake trees and watching the water with a scared, but quickly turning angry, expression.

In the water as Natsu sits up I can see him wearing a shark mask and he has a foot-long fin attached to his back. His laughing draws my attention next and I start giggling along.

The others seem to get the idea because laughter soon fills the area around the pool, everyone enjoying a prank well played. Well, everyone but the pranked himself.

The temperature drops a couple degrees and I watch as he leaps from the tree he's clinging to and lands in the water next to Natsu. They start wrestling, trying to hold the other's head underwater, and I get bored watching them so I lay my head back and close my eyes.

A few minutes after Levy gets up to go do something with Gajeel, I hear someone walk up to the chair she was in and sit down.

"I had wondered why the sun was gone from the sky, she's sitting right here in front of me."

I open my eyes at the pick-up line to see a guy with blonde hair greased back over his head, light blue eyes, and an arrogant smirk. Arching an eyebrow, I look at him pointedly.

"I'm sorry, you must be talking to someone else because this sun occupies someone else's sky."

His arrogant expression drops right away and I get up, walking away from him and toward the slides.

Out of the corner of my eye I see him watching me intently, but I ignore it in favor of watching Gray haul Natsu over his shoulder and slam him back into the water. As I climb the steps to the tallest slide I see the water around Gray boil and the ice mage takes off out of the water. He's missing the last piece of his clothing, though, and I hear a woman scream as Juvia runs after him.

I shake my head in amusement and turn up the last set of steps before the opening to the slide.

"It must be crazy having teammates like those two."

I jump at the sound of the voice behind me and turn to see the guy from earlier watching me. I look back down at where Natsu is floating across the water, his eyes on me, and feel my expression soften.

"They're crazy," I admit softly, "but I wouldn't give them up for the world. My teammates are my family, just as much as the rest of my guild is."

He nods. "You have to forgive me for earlier. I'm Jace by the way, you're Lucy Heartfilia of Fairy Tail, right?"

Something about the statement bothers me but I push it back as I move to stand in front of the mouth of the slide. Grabbing the bars, I lift my feet and launch myself down the slide, the speed of moving through the water reminding me of when we would swim with Aqua.

Unfortunately, the slide comes to an end too soon and I'm dropped back into the pool from earlier. When the water surrounds me I open my eyes and am not surprised to find Natsu floating in front of me, his expression unreadable as he grabs my hand and we swim to the surface.

As we reach the surface I hear him growling faintly but when I try to ask him what's wrong he ignores me, instead choosing to climb out the pool. He leads me to another area, the sign reading: Surfer's Paradise

Through the line I can see a large wave curling while someone tries to surf it. The wave crashes and the person ends up washing up on one side of the field.

Natsu's growls increase and I barely make out the word 'mine'. Then I understand what's going through his head and I can't help the smile that spreads across my face.

"Natsu, are you jealous?"

He scoffs and my smile grows bigger as I turn him around and wrap my arms around his neck.

"My dragon is jealous."

When he opens his mouth to deny the fact I take the chance to kiss him. His growling stops and he calms down soon enough. He pulls away, laying his head on my shoulder and runs a hand up my back as he huffs.

"I can't help it, Luce, you're mine and I don't like others playing with my treasure."

I giggle and he wraps an arm around my waist as we move further in the line. "I know, Natsu, but he just wanted to talk, he wasn't flirting or anything. Don't you think I would've told him off earlier if he was?"

He sniffs in indignation and we stop in front of the surfboard booth to get two, then move onto where the single file line waits at the edge of the water.

We watch as each person paddles out to the deeper water, the spell to draw the wave activates, and the wave builds until the person stands up on the board and tries to ride it out. Some manage to ride the wave out completely, but those are few and far between, most just manage to stand on their boards then get flipped when the board gets too wobbly.

Soon it comes to Natsu and I and he goes first. He sets his board in the water, it already being five-foot-deep at the entrance point, and starts to paddle out. When he reaches the starting point the spell picks up the water, causing it to curl and rush toward him. He turns the board around so his back is to it and when the water picks up underneath, climbs to his feet.

The board starts to shake and when it rises in the water he kicks the board up by leaning to his right, going against the wave. The board picks up speed and as the wave starts to crash he disappears into the tunnel the crashing wave creates.

A minute later gasps come from the line as his board bobs up in the waves but he doesn't, until I make out the shock of pink hair moving through the water. He gets almost under the board and comes up just as the lifeguards are starting to panic.

Said lifeguards give him the stink eye and relax back into their chairs as he climbs back onto his board and paddles over to the other side to climb out.

The lifeguard in front of me holds a hand out for my board. He takes it and sets it in the water, allowing me to straddle it before pushing out so I can start paddling.

I copy Natsu's actions and turn my board so that the back faces the wave, and I bite my lip as I watch the wave gradually increasing in size as it sweeps down on me. The water around me swirls and I climb to my feet, the board rocking slightly from the movement. I take a deep breath, the edge of the wave hovering over me and I move.

Leaning to the right, the board turned into the wave, it starts to crash down around me. The sight is both beautiful and terrifying as I ride through the tunnel. An urge strikes me and I reach my hand out to touch the water as I move, a smile gracing my lips as the end of the tunnel comes in sight.

Unfortunately, the wave crashes down, knocking me off the board, and as I turn over to orient myself I feel something wrap around my ankle. I lean back with one hand to see what it is as I hold one hand above the water when I realize that I'm being dragged deeper into the water.

My hand wraps around the rope on my ankle and I try to pull it off, but it only tightens as I'm pulled further under. The worst part is that when I open my mouth to call out I feel my magic disappear at an alarming rate and then I'm fighting for air.

I start to struggle more, trying to worm my way out of the tightening rope even while my mind is working a hundred miles an hour trying to figure out why I can't breathe.

My lungs are burning, my vision starting to darken when I look up and see someone swimming towards me. Their hands reach out for me and I struggle to get away when they grab onto my shoulders.

"Lucy, stop, it's me."

I stop moving when Natsu's words reach me and point at the rope attached to my ankle. He nods and dives down, holding my leg as a lifeline until he's able to burn it away.

Almost as soon as the rope falls away I feel my magic return and my lungs stop burning. He swims back up until he's able to wrap an arm around my waist and starts to swim back to the surface.

We reach the surface and I look up in surprise when he sets me on the surfboard I was using earlier. He pushes me forward in silence and I look around to see a lot of people wearing different expressions. Most are relieved, others are intrigued, then there are others, like the lifeguards and some of our guildmates, that are worried.

The board bumps against the wall and I look up to see Erza and Master standing at the edge. Erza helps me up off the board and I grimace when I look at my foot to see a nasty bruise from the rope already appearing.

"Erza, take Lucy and some of the other girls over to your inn for the night."

Erza nods at the command from Master and I can only follow as she grabs me by the wrist and pulls me away.

Normal P.O.V.

As Erza pulls Lucy away from the onlookers, Makarov turns back to where Natsu stands on the edge of the water, his expression partly hidden by his bangs.

"Natsu, things are coming to a head, you must keep your cool until they reveal themselves."

The temperature drops ten degrees but the tension in Natsu's shoulders does not lessen as he looks at his master.

"Gramps, she couldn't breathe, that rope was stopping her magic."

Even as he hisses the words Makarov pales a shade and runs a hand down his beard. Plans of all kinds already working in multi steps. He sighs, his shoulders slumping, and he seems to gain years to his age.

"I'll talk to the first and see if we can come up with some kind of plan. In the meantime, go find Gray and the others and let off some steam, away from anything that could possibly cost me money if damaged."

Natsu nods stiffly and moves away, his mind more on a certain blonde then on finding his friends to do any kind of brawling.

Meanwhile, in the back of the crowd already dispersing from the attraction, a certain blonde-haired, blue-eyed male stands with two fingers pressed to his temple.

"Boss, the plan to pick up Heartfilia fell through, the dragon saved her before we could pick her up."

The man receiving the message frowns and the glass of whiskey in his hand shatters, sending shards of glass across the desk.

"Damn it, Jace, how the hell did you mess that up?" he growls, and glares at the door on the opposite side of the darkened room until his eyes settle on an embellished piece of paper sitting on one side of his desk. His expression morphs into an evil grin. "No matter, our next chance will come soon. In the meantime, keep an eye on them, and since you decided to introduce yourself, don't let them know you're following them."

"Of course, Sir."

The boss chuckles and the sound echoes throughout the room as it evolves into downright maniacal laughter.

"Oh, those dragons will be ours soon enough. We need only have patience." With only the walls as a witness, his statement goes unnoticed.

Let's get started with:

I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY wanted to do Ryuzetsu Land. I loved it in the manga and I wanted to give it a go. NOTICE: I still did it my way with it being on a different day and different activities.

Now that I have that out of my system we have enemies on the horizon, they're starting to make themselves known and giving NaLu a little bit of trouble. There will be more trouble afoot in the next few chapters. I'm also glad that some people have noticed that a sequel will be in order. As with the threequel for my TOTD universe, it won't be for a little while, as I need to plan out more of a plot and find time to write it, so most likely after I have this story finished and working on updating the next one.

Which, that reminds me, there is a poll on my profile that correlates to the next story on the agenda so I do hope that you'll go over and vote. The poll closes when this story ends so there are a couple months yet until then.

Onto the next point of this rambling A/N:

This story now has 127 reviews and I'm have a sort of deal to make you.

If we can reach over 140 reviews by next Monday I may be motivated enough to drop another one shot that I've had hanging in the closet for about a month now.

Let me reiterate that: If y'all push this story to over 140 reviews total then I give y'all a new one shot. Sound like a deal?

I know y'all can do it, that's just the kind of people you are. :D

Oi, Blue! Happy belated Birthday and I'm glad to know you LOOOOOOOOOOVVVVVVEEEEEE my stories so much. Hehe, had to go with a bit of Happy there. Y'all saw more of the Exceeds this chapter, so I hoped you liked it. I have a lot of fun playing around with them, especially with how Clare acts.

For now I think I've said enough so I will see y'all within the next week, and if you're new make sure you fave and follow for more.

Grizzly out for the night.

P.S. For last week's joke the 'p' is silent for any who didn't get it.