TRIGGER WARNINGS: Description of wounds

Hiya! Here's 19, on schedule!

Last chapter got so many reviews! It warms my heart that you guys get excited about new chapters coming out! It blows my mind that you're following my story and actually want to read it! I love it! I love every review, faves and follows. It means a lot!

Happy reading!

Mavis had left her at the door, returning to Zeref's side to give the two teenagers some privacy. Lucy should have known what to expect. Mavis had painted a pretty clear picture of Natsu's injuries. She had seen them on the picture earlier. Yet, she still forgot how to breathe when she saw him. Couldn't help the tears that flowed down her cheeks despite the grin he gave her.

"Hey, don't cry," he said softly, hissing with pain when he tried to sit up.

"Don't move!" she yelped. "You're hurt!"

"Well, come closer, then," he replied, half extending his arm to her. Lucy moved closer to take his hand, tears flowing. He was wearing a hospital gown, and bandages were wrapped around his wrists. His right eye was blackened, and swollen half shut, and a cut ran down his brow. His lip was split, and one side of his jaw swollen.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"You don't have to be sorry," he argued, squeezing her hand despite the pain that shot up his arm. "It's not your fault, Luce. I'm just glad you're okay."

"But you're not!"

"I'm fine," he dismissed her, trying and failing to wave it off. "Mavis said I'll have a scar, but no permanent damage."

"How can you be so nonchalant about it?" she asked. Natsu's eyes darkened a bit.

"I'm pretty pissed, actually," he groaned, "but I won't take it out on you. It's not your fault."

"It is," she whispered. "I can't prove it, but I know it was my father." Seeing Natsu's puzzled look, she explained her theory to him and told him about their call. By the end of it, Natsu seemed like he was ready to storm the Heartfilia mansion.

"Even if that's true," he replied in a cold voice, "it's his fault. Not yours." She looked at him. Looked at the spot on his left side where she knew was a nasty cut.

"He went too far," she argued. "I can't let him get away with it."

"I'll beat him up real good as soon as I'm outta here," Natsu promised with a conspirator grin.

"No," Lucy stopped him, gently squeezing his hand. "No, I'm going to this right. I'm going to press charge and take him to court."

"I thought you couldn't prove it?" Natsu asked, confused.

"I can't prove that he had anything to do with abducting you," she agreed.

"So what's the point of pressing charge if you can't prove anything?"

"I won't be pressing charge for what he did to you," she explained. "I'll do it for what he did to me." Natsu understood what she meant in a heartbeat.

"You don't have to do it for me."

"I'm doing it for me, too," she assured him. Natsu looked at her carefully.

"Are you ready to talk about it?" he asked.

"Can't say I'll ever be," she admitted. "But that's the only way to stop him." Natsu struggled a bit to move off to the side.

"Sit with me, Luce," he beckoned her. She did, but he didn't let go of her hand, and she didn't ask him to. "Whatever you chose to do, just know that I'll be there for you through it. Whatever you need, whatever you want. I'm here for you." Some more tears spilled on Lucy's cheeks and Natsu pushed himself up despite of the pain wrap his arms around her.

There was a knock on the door and they both looked up at Gildarts. "I can come back later," he offered. Natsu considered telling him to do just that, but instead he released Lucy and laid back down.

"No, let's get it over with now," Natsu decided. He nodded, turning his eyes to Lucy.

"I'm sorry, Lucy, but I will have to ask you to leave. One of my colleagues is waiting for you with Zeref to take your statement."

"Okay," she agreed and stood up, taking Natsu's hand in hers for a moment. "I'll come back as soon as I can," she assured him.

"I'll be here," he replied, squeezing her hand before letting her go. She paused to thank Gildarts and left the room. "Chives, right?" Natsu asked. "I'm Natsu Dragneel."

"Clive," Gildarts corrected. "And I know who you are. Cana's been talking about you." He remembered very well that Cana had said her father was a cop. "I'm gonna have to record this." Natsu made a face but nodded anyway and Gildarts started the recording. He made him state his name, fate of birth and consent before getting into it. "Let's start from the beginning."

So Natsu told him about walking home and hearing a cry for help, and how five people had dropped on him, and then the person he thought he was helping had struck him down. He told him about the dark room he was kept in, the sounds and smells, the people he saw and the voices he heard. Then he answered all of Gildarts questions. The process took over an hour.

"We have arrested five men at the scene," Gildarts said.

"The sixth one is a woman," Natsu informed him without hesitation.

"It seems Lucy guessed right. Could you identify her?"

"Err… I honestly didn't notice her much. I could recognize her voice, though."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"What about the men? What can you tell me about them?"

"They all wore masks. One of them has a broken nose. Another one should have a pretty mean black eye." Two of the men indeed had those injuries. "Err… One of them was really tall and big and kept talking about money. One was tall and slim. The other two were average. I haven't seen their boss much, but he sounded older than the rest. They had code names. The taller one was Hoteye. The skinnier one was Racer. The other two were Cobra and… Midnight. They called their boss Brain. The girl was Angel."

"Could you identify them by voice too?"

"Definitely." Mavis knocked on the door at that moment.

"I'm sorry to interrupt again, but Natsu should really get his rest now." It was the third time she came by.

"Alright. Sorry to keep you so long, Natsu. I'll be in touch if we need more info."

"Do you have my phone?" Natsu asked him.

"We need to hold it as evidence for now," he told him, "but my tech guy duplicated your SIM card on this one for you to use in the meantime." Natsu took the other phone.

"Thanks."

"Let me walk you out, Lieutenant," Mavis offered. "Natsu, try to sleep a bit."

"Can you ask Zeref to bring me some food?" he asked with a innocent grin. "I can't sleep if I'm starving."

"You haven't slept in almost two days," Mavis reminded him.

"I'm used to that, but I've never gone more than twelve hours without food," he grinned. She shook her head with a sigh.

"Fine, but only if you're going to stop being difficult after."

"I'll stop until I wake up," Natsu replied with a mischievous smile. Knowing she wouldn't get more out of him, Mavis nodded and led Gildarts out.

"He doesn't seem too traumatized," he pointed out when they were out of earshot.

"I wouldn't expect him to be," Mavis admitted. "Not when he's the only one who got hurt."

"You think?"

"I know. He would have endured even more to keep Lucy safe."

"He must really love her." Mavis laughed softly.

"And they're the only two who can't see it."

"Teenagers…" Gildarts chuckled. They made it back to the waiting room, where Cana, Lucy and Zeref were sitting together with a woman that Mavis didn't know. "Detective," Gildarts called, and she stood up. "This is Dr. Mavis Vermillion. Doctor, this is Detective Kinana Cuberios. She'll be the lead agent on the case."

"I thought you would be," Mavis admitted with surprise.

"It was decided that because of Cana's friendship with Natsu, it would be best if I wasn't in charge."

"So why interrogate him?"

"Because I'm already part of it, and I couldn't interrogate Lucy because I personally know her. Also, I was pretty curious to meet the kid. There," he added, handing the recording device to his colleague. "Cana, you ready to come home?"

Cana glanced at Lucy, uncertain. "You go," she assured. "You're gonna have a heart attack if you keep drinking coffee. I'll be fine."

"Call me if you need anything," Cana bargained. She was exhausted. "Levy should be swinging by later. I'm sure she can give you a ride home."

"Thanks for calling them," Lucy smiled, hugging her tight. "I'll keep you updated."

"Thanks. See you later, girl." She and Gildarts left with Kinana. Mavis sat next to Zeref and Lucy, rubbing her eyes. Lucy realized she was probably exhausted too.

"Natsu wants us to send some food his way," Mavis told Zeref.

"I'll go grab him something," Lucy volunteered. "You guys go home; you need to rest."

"Are you sure?" Mavis asked. Lucy nodded and they soon parted way after Zeref gave her some money for Natsu, even if she insisted that she could pay for it. She went to the food court, quickly established nothing there would appeal to Natsu, found the closest fast-food and walked there and back as fast as she could. The nurse seemed reticent to let her bring outside food, but Natsu was ecstatic when Lucy finally came back with it.

He scarfed it down fast enough that Lucy actually worried he would get sick. She ate too, mostly because she hadn't had anything since dinner last night and was also famished, but at a much more reasonable pace.

"This is the best food I've ever had," Natsu moaned when he was done. Lucy laughed. It was regular fast-food – nothing really good nor really bad, but she was so hungry it still tasted amazing.

"Say, Natsu?"

"Yeah?"

"Did Mavis said when you could come home?" Natsu made a face.

"She wants me to stay the night, at least, but I'm gonna try to get out of here pretty soon."

"I'll stay with you," she offered.

"What? No way. I won't make you stay here for me."

"Zeref told me you hated hospitals," she confessed, "but you still stayed with me until I woke up. It's the least I can do."

"But I'm already awake," Natsu argued.

"Natsu, please. Mavis stayed up all night, and she still has to work later. Just spend the night. I'll stay with you."

"You haven't had any sleep either, have you?" Lucy shook her head. She had maybe had three hours through the night, but she didn't get good rest. "You should go home and rest. I'll stay." Lucy couldn't help but laugh at the way he phrased it, like he was trying to compromise. As if he wasn't supposed to stay here in the first place.

"I won't be able to relax at home until you're there," she admitted.

"Then let's just leave now!" Lucy had to stand to stop him from getting up, but she didn't have to force him. Her hands on his shoulders were enough for him to lay back down, though he still scowled for good measure. "Seriously, Luce. You look exhausted. Can you go spend the night at one of your friends' place?"

"I just want to stay with you for now." Natsu blinked twice, wondering if he was dreaming the slight blush on her cheeks.

"Okay," he finally agreed. "Let me just…" He struggled to move to the edge of the bed.

"What are you doing?"

"Making room for you," he replied as though it was obvious. "You can't sleep on a chair."

"But… You're hurt."

"My right side is fine," he grinned.

"Your eye is still swollen," she pointed out.

"My right side, excluding my face," he corrected with a laugh that made him wince in pain.

"Are you sure it's okay?" she asked.

"If you're good with it, so am I," he grinned, and she shook her head. It's not what she had meant. But she decided she didn't care and carefully climbed in next to him. He shifted his right arm under the pillow to make a bit of extra room and smiled at her.

The nurse wasn't too pleased about it when she walked in to check in on him, but since they were both sleeping, she walked out without a sound.

...

Mavis was surprised when she came to work at 10PM and was informed that Natsu hadn't tried to leave yet. She did recommend that he'd spend the night, but she never expected him to. She went to check in on him before her shift and couldn't help a smile when she found Lucy laying by his side. She went to get them another blanket and carefully laid it over them.

...

"It's good to be home!" Natsu exclaimed when he walked inside the apartment. "Hey there, little buddy!" He had to get down to his knees to pet Happy, bending over still causing more pain than he had admitted to Mavis. Lucy helped him back to his feet, steadying him.

"Are you sure you should be back yet?" she asked him.

"I wouldn't stay another day, even for five hundred thousand dollars," he laughed, wincing in pain.

"Oh, that is way too soon, Natsu!" Lucy scolded, even if she had to bite her lips to keep from chuckling.

"I'm the one who got kidnapped, I get to decide when I can joke about it," he chuckled. "Alright, I'm gonna have a shower. Think you can help me with the bandages after?"

"That's why Mavis showed me how to do it, is it not?"

"You're the best!" he grinned and grabbed some clothes before going in the bathroom.

"Don't you fall in there, Natsu!" she called out.

"I won't!" She smiled. The bruising was looking worse than it had the day before, but the swelling had gone down. He had argued with Mavis half the ride home about being able to work, and Lucy had had to remind him he looked like he had been pummeled in a boxing match before he agreed to take at least the week off like Mavis told him to, and then go back on light duty. She, however, still had to go to work the next day. She called Loke while Natsu showered to let him know Natsu would have to miss on work and that she would bring in the doctor's note the next day.

"Did you say a week?" Loke asked, baffled. "What happened?"

"He got… uh…" Natsu had already decided he didn't want to cover it up, but it still felt as though she shouldn't be the one saying it. "He got roughed up pretty bad," she simplified instead – that much was true, even if the context was missing. "He's got a few bruised ribs and… well, he's covered in bruises too. We left the hospital this morning." Loke swore.

"Can I talk to him?" Loke was the only one at work who knew they lived together.

"He's in the shower, but I can tell him to call back."

"Don't worry about it. Thanks for letting me know, Lucy, I'll fix the schedule." And he hung up. Lucy sighed and stood, moving to the bathroom door.

"You still good in there?" she called.

"All good!" Natsu replied. He was in there for longer than usual, but Lucy assumed he just moved slower with his injuries.

The shower had finally stopped, but he still was in the bathroom, when there was a knock at the door. Lucy checked her phone, but no one had texted to say they were coming over. She quietly slid the chain on before cracking the door open.

"Loke?" she said in surprise. "Aren't you supposed to be working?" She closed the door to remove the chain, letting him in.

"I was worried," Loke admitted, strolling inside. "Natsu's been working with me for a while, and he's never called in sick before. He's a good friend… Is he still in the shower?"

"No, he should be almost out. He's just a little slower."

"I heard that!" Natsu called from the bathroom.

"Well, he sounds fine," Loke laughed.

"Loke?" Natsu called out. "What are you doing here?" He opened the door, only wearing his favourite sweatpants.

"Holy shit!" Loke exclaimed before he could stop himself. Lucy hadn't been kidding when she said bruises everywhere, but she hadn't said anything about the cut in his side. Though it was clean, the X shape wound still looked nasty, especially with the stitching. "What happened to you?"

"Buncha losers tried to get money out of Luce," Natsu explained, moving to sit on one of the stools. He grabbed the tin of ointment Mavis had given it and applied it to his side. He sat still while Lucy wrapped the bandage around his chest and waist, telling Loke about everything that had happened. Lucy chipped in with a few details from her side, but left Natsu to do most of the talking.

"Do you need some time off work too, Lucy?" Loke asked her when Natsu was done

"Me? Nothing happened to me."

"You're a sensible person. It would have been traumatic for you to have to handle saving your friend like that."

"Why does it sound like you're insulting me?" Natsu asked.

"Plus," Loke continued without acknowledging him, "Natsu is a lot of thing, but sensible isn't one of them. I'd feel better knowing someone with brains is watching over him."

"Alright, you wanna fight, is that what it is?" Natsu growled. Lucy held him down on the chair with a firm hand on his shoulder.

"You're just proving that he's right," she scolded him. "You're in no shape to pick a fight."

"I'm fine," he argued, but couldn't hold back a yelp of pain when Loke poked his chest lightly. "What d'you do that for ya jerk?"

"Stay home tomorrow, Lucy," Loke decided, standing up. "I'll call you in the evening to check up, we'll take it by the day for now."

"No way, man!" Natsu growled. "We still got bills to pay!"

"You've got a fair bit of vacation pay put aside, so you'll be fine," Loke waved him off. "As for Lucy, you won't need to miss as much work as him, so don't worry. But please, do take tomorrow to watch over him."

"Alright," she agreed before Natsu could argue anymore.

"I gotta go back now," he declared. "You take care of yourself, Natsu."

"Yeah, sure," he mumbled. Loke opened the door and paused.

"Sergeant! It's been a while!"

"It's Lieutenant now," Gildarts corrected.

"Good for you! And who may this lovely be?"

"Detective Kinana Cuberios," she introduced herself flatly. "We need to speak with Natsu."

"Yeah, I'm here," Natsu called. "I'll keep you posted, Loke," he added for his friend, "I want to get back to work as soon as I can."

"Of course, you do, but I'll listen to your doctor first this time."

"Argh, come on, don't be a jerk!"

"I'll see you later, Natsu," he chuckled. "Lucy, Lieutenant, Detective," he added for them before leaving.

"You guys wanna come in?" Natsu asked.

"Actually, we need you to come with us."

"What? Why?"

"To identify the suspects," the detective replied. "We tried to grab you at the hospital this morning, but you had already left."

"Fine," Natsu mumbled. "Let's go."

"You should get a shirt first, kid," Gildarts stopped him.

"Should I come with?" Lucy asked when Natsu went to his room.

"It's probably best if you don't," Gildarts hesitated. "Your father is representing the suspects."

"Of course, he is," she sighed. "If it's okay, I'd like to come to stay with Natsu."

"Only if he's okay with it."

"Of course, I am," he agreed, coming out of his room. "Let's get this over with."

So that's 19! Anyone suspected the Oracion Seis were behind Natsu's kidnapping? Anyone excited for them to see Jude again? I feel like Natsu took the ordeal pretty lightly, but he gets beat up and abducted plenty in the anime and doesn't ever seem to care, as long as his friends are okay, so I went for that. I personally loved Natsu just having Lucy sleeping in his hospital bed with him. He missed her and wanted to keep her close. How sweet is that? But if I had to sit through over 300 episode only to see Natsu bail on his confession, I can make you wait longer for it, eh? *evil laughter* It will happen, though, but let's keep in mind Lucy was assaulted like four months ago. She still need to work on herself for now.

SailingNotSelling: Jude indeed *eye roll*

CodenameMise: I'm glad you see it as a highlight of the week! Or two! That's neat!

Copperreign12: I love how exciting the last chapter was to you! Hope this one meets your expectation too!

Valerioux: I hope this was up to your expectation! Of course Natsu would go down swinging. It's Natsu lol

Bookwork129: We all know Natsu wouldn't take it easy unless literally everyone makes him haha. Lucy will be keeping a close eye on him, not to worry ;)

KJacket: I honestly didn't know what to name the story at first, but I already had a document titled FT Fanfic, so I needed to name this one haha Healing was supposed to be a temporary title, but I haven't found anything better, so I decided to roll with it lol