"I'm going to burn everyone here," snarled a voice in Lucy's ear. Lucy thought she was going to jump right out of her skin, a squawk escaping her as she snapped around to glare at her disgruntled partner. His eyes were blazing with rage, and smoke curled around his face in a way that had her losing her annoyance and instead frowning in concern.

"What happened now?" sighed Lucy, sending Salutem off to graze a safe distance away from Thanatos. Thanatos looked rather disappointed, eyeing the friendly stag longingly. Lucy decided Natsu hadn't fed him just yet.

Natsu bared his teeth, glaring over his shoulder. When Lucy glanced over, she found that the husband of the woman that kept flirting with him was glaring just as viciously at him. They looked as if they were going to rip each other apart if something wasn't done to fix the situation, and Lucy knew for a fact that Natsu would win. Waving smoke from her face, she left him where he was and went to go and address the man herself.

"Hi," she said with a forced smile, grimacing when the glower turned on her. She immediately threw a warning look over her shoulder when something dark and nasty curled in her chest - a similar warning from her partner. Natsu was daring the man to be rude to her. While normally she would have found it touching, she kind of wished he wouldn't do such things right now. "Is everything alright? I know my partner can be troublesome-"

"Lucy-" shouted Natsu in protest.

"-but he tends to mean well, so I thought I'd find out what had happened."

"Mean well?" barked the man, his entire face one of downright fury. "He's been flirting with my wife."

Lucy sighed heavily, having expected as such, even as Natsu shouted back, "I was not!"

"I can promise you that he was doing nothing of the sort, seeing as how he's a dragon and I'm his Marked One," Lucy said drily, not at all amused with the situation. While it had been funny in the first day or two, it was quickly becoming annoying as hell. "I know precisely what he's been up to over the last few days, and I can promise you that's not the case. I don't think he even knows how to flirt with a woman."

"Lucy!"

Her lips quirked as the man before her curled a lip in frustration. Natsu's fury had turned to exasperated frustration, as if he wanted to shake sense into her. She could practically hear him complaining that now wasn't the time for her to be commenting on things she didn't think he knew, regardless of whether or not he actually knew them.

Her words worked, however, and the man nodded thoughtfully to himself. The anger faded slightly and he huffed to himself. "Oh, fine, but please keep your dragon away from my wife," he added sharply and Lucy nodded with a promise to do so to the best of her abilities if he promised to do his best to keep his wife away from her dragon. She made sure to sharpen her own words there in warning. She wasn't too excited that Natsu was being pestered in such a way. She knew from experience that it wasn't enjoyable at all. That done, Lucy left the man to grumble under his breath and made her way back over to Natsu. Her eyes glowed with amusement when she saw him frowning at her, that exasperation written across his face.

"You don't have to make it sound like I'm clueless," he rumbled, and Lucy patted his shoulder.

"Better clueless," she said firmly, "then have him complaining about us to the Council, or even trying to do something in turn for your supposed flirting, Natsu."

Natsu considered that for a few moments before giving a reluctant nod. "I guess." He reached up and fondly scratched Happy's chin, looking thoughtful. Happy flicked his tail happily, perfectly content where he crouched.

Together, they went to sit at the fire that had been built, just as they did every other night they'd been traveling with the group. While Natsu flopped down and managed to miraculously not dump Happy onto the ground in the process, Lucy did so a little slower. She winced at the small zingers of pain that raced up where Natsu had purposely struck the ground - retaliation for the minutes prior, Lucy supposed. Natsu stretched out comfortably.

Happy waited until Lucy was comfortable to slink into her lap, rubbing his head against her chin with a proud, contented purr. Lucy shook her head and told him, "You're extremely laid back and happy for a cat who is helping us try to save the world, Happy."

Happy blinked owlishly at her, his head tipping curiously as if he had no idea what she meant. Lucy knew better; the cat was far too intelligent and capable of understanding them. Still, she kissed his head and pulled him to her chest, earning another purr for her actions. She stroked his fur lovingly, remembering when she'd sincerely hated the cat. Now, she found herself pressing her face into his fur in gratitude. If she'd not tripped over him, she'd have never found what she had now…

"Would...would you like some supper?"

Lucy glanced up when the youngest of the group they were escorting spoke. Her eyes were wary and wide, distress flickering across her face. Lucy wondered what had happened to her now to create such a nervous look. She knew Natsu had noticed, too, when she slid a look at him. Natsu was watching the girl with one eye cracked open, interest written there.

"Sure," Lucy answered with a brilliant, encouraging smile. "That would be lovely. Thank you." The girl faltered, frustration creeping over her face. Lucy furrowed her brow lightly, glancing at Natsu again as he rocked upright, and then added, "Is everything okay?"

"Y-yes." She hurried away, her fingers curled into fists at her side, and Lucy jumped again when Natsu rocked upright and leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"Something's weird," he mumbled. Lucy glanced at him curiously. "She's lying. And there's a weird smell in the air. I don't know what it is." Natsu's eyes narrowed as they followed the girl.

Lucy opened her mouth to tell him that she thought it would be fine, but thought better of it and closed her mouth. She'd learned time and time again to trust Natsu's instincts, and if he said something was wrong then something was wrong. She leaned in and spoke quietly into his ear. "Should we say something?"

Natsu shook his head and tipped his head, inhaling deeply again. "Not yet. We'll just keep doing what we've been doing."

"Okay." Lucy agreed without hesitation, gathering Happy a little tighter to her. The blue-furred feline purred and then glanced at Natsu when he murmured Happy's name. His ears pricked and he squirmed free of Lucy's arms to clamber into Natsu's lap. Lucy watched quietly as Natsu ducked his head to murmur some instructions to his familiar. Happy cocked his head as he listened, and then meowed in agreement. Within seconds, he was bounding into the dark, tail high.

"What's he doing?" Lucy asked softly, watching after him.

"He's gonna go look around where they won't notice," Natsu replied in her ear. His shoulder pressed into hers as he casually leaned into her, trying not to look suspicious. Lucy didn't mind one bit, even enjoying it. "He'll signal if something's off."

They remained that way for some time, occasionally chatting about something small and unimportant to keep up the casual appearance. Happy still hadn't come back when the youngest daughter came back with their food, frowning. She offered it to them with careful hands, and Lucy thanked her with a warm smile, taking hers. Natsu eyed his bowl cautiously as he took it, waiting until the girl had left to sniff at it. He wrinkled his nose.

"Natsu?" muttered Lucy.

"I think they put something weird in it." He sniffed at it again, inhaling deeply to try and figure it out. His gaze slid around the small camp. "It smells different from the last few nights."

"Then we won't eat it," said Lucy firmly, keeping her voice low. She sighed heavily, faking a small sip of the broth that filled the bowl to ensure that they weren't too suspicious looking. "This sucks," she complained under her breath. "All that traveling and we can't even eat."

Natsu only grunted, looking as unhappy as she felt. He set his bowl aside, sneezing, and gave the bowl a look of nasty annoyance. "My nose itches now," he grumbled before flopping onto his back. He whistled softly, and Happy finally reappeared a few moments later. Happy glanced at Natsu, and then, seeming to understand what he wanted, he crouched beside the bowl and playfully batted at it until it spilled onto the ground. Natsu didn't bother to react, merely throwing a mock glare at his familiar as if agitated with him. Happy merely purred, seeing right through it.

"Why would they try and put something weird in the food?" asked Lucy quietly, thinking it over carefully.

"Dunno. Guess we'll figure it out." Natsu's eyes slid shut, and Lucy would have thought him to be dozing off had she not known - and felt - otherwise. He was as alert as he'd been in the southwestern mountains, his senses searching for anything that could be new and dangerous.

Lucy grumbled, not liking his attitude or how he'd decided to handle the situation, but focused when the youngest child came hurrying over. She faltered when she saw the spilled bowl beside Natsu. "Oh! Would...would you like me to-"

"That's okay," said Lucy with a false smile, reaching over to grab Natsu's bowl. She passed them both back to the girl, who looked more distressed than the last time Lucy had spoken with her. "Natsu wasn't feeling too well to begin with, so…" She smiled encouragingly at the girl. "Are you sure that you're alright?"

She got the feeling that the girl was the one to push and pry at for answers. This girl, who had looked at her mother in such disdain and disapproved of the rest of her family's actions over the last few days. As it was, she looked over her shoulder and opened her mouth hesitantly, flustered. But a sharp call of her name had her snapping her mouth shut and mumbling that she was fine. Without a second look, she hurried away.

"She knows," muttered Lucy.

Natsu only grunted his agreement.


Lucy must have dozed off, because the next thing she knew, something was prodding her in the face. She groaned softly, trying to return to sleep as a dull headache throbbed at the base of her skull, but the prodding intensified until she scowled and pried her eyes open. Happy was staring down at her, eyes gleaming in the dim light of a dying fire. He purred softly in relief.

"Happy?" slurred Lucy, realizing that her body felt heavy. "What's going on?" She rolled over with care, trying to push her arms beneath her, but found that she couldn't without some effort. When she glanced over, she was relieved to see Natsu still there. He was sound asleep, much to her surprise. He'd not slept at all over the course of the last week as he'd been watching out for danger, so why would he be sleeping now?

Happy growled softly, prodding at Natsu's face now with no success. Lucy, realizing that something was off - Natsu never slept through such things. She blearily dragged herself over, gathering his head into her lap and touching his cheek anxiously. He felt normal in her head, but his cheek was abnormally cold for someone who practically exuded fire.

"Natsu?" Lucy mumbled, patting his cheek forcefully. He didn't stir even a bit. So, she swallowed thickly, drowsily looking around. The campsite was abnormally quiet, no one else in sight, and it made her nervous enough that she patted her hip, searching for her keys.

"You need to be better aware of your surroundings, princess," muttered a voice in her ear. She gasped, jerking, and the owner of said voice swore quietly when she cracked her head against their chin. Her head snapped around. Loke was crouching beside her, looking annoyed as he rubbed his chin. "You just proved my point," he complained.

Lucy didn't bother to apologize. "What's wrong with Natsu?" she demanded, stroking her fingers through his pink hair. Natsu remained asleep, breathing soft and even.

"Your food was drugged, wasn't it?" pointed out the celestial spirit, peering down at the unconscious hybrid.

"But we didn't eat it," murmured Lucy, thinking back over the evening. Her gaze darted around the area, seeking danger. "Happy, go and see if you can figure out where the rest of them are." Happy hesitated, and then sprinted away, tail high. Lucy clenched her jaw, protectively hunching over Natsu's head. Logically, she knew that he'd be fine. He'd told her - had proven - that so long as his book was safe with Jellal, he couldn't be killed. Still, it didn't sit well with her that he'd been drugged somehow.

"You don't always have to eat a drug to be affected by it," Loke said gently.

Lucy thought about that and then blinked. "He breathed it in more than I did." He'd taken a good long whiff of the food. She sighed heavily, blinking when Happy came barreling over with a low growl, hurling himself to safety. He huddled against Natsu's side, fur bristling.

Lucy bit her lip, not sure what to do. Her fingers instinctively reached for her whip when she heard low voices nearby. "Loke," she breathed, and he pressed a ringed finger to his lips before vanishing into the night. Lucy knew he was nearby; she could feel it. And it comforted her as she curled herself protectively over him, her hand tightening around the hilt of her whip.

It wasn't long before the culprits appeared, and when they did, Lucy felt sick to her stomach.

The mistress of the house, her husband, and their daughters stood before her, looking startled to see her awake. No longer did they look entirely human, though Lucy couldn't put her finger on what had actually changed - outside of the blood staining their clothes. They held themselves differently - more slouched and slumped, their faces sharpened with hunger. Only the youngest looked a little sad, though her fingers trembled as she lifted them to her lips, looking so starved for whatever it was they wanted that she was drooling.

Mythics. How had they disguised themselves so well? Hidden themselves from Natsu?

Happy growled as one girl dropped to her knees with a moan and reached for them, only to scream when Lucy's whip cracked. Lucy felt a little ill when it parted flesh from bone and even removed a delicate digit with shocking ease.

She forced herself to ignore that guilt that rocked through her, setting her face in one of deadly determination. She would defend Natsu, regardless of the others. She slid her fingers through his hair one last time and rose to her feet, calling Loke back with a soft voice. The spirit practically materialized beside her, his gaze calculating and cold. "What are they?" she asked, cursing her nervous voice when it shook.

"Ghouls, from the looks of it. And clever ones, too." Loke cocked his head. "I've never heard of ghouls who were capable of figuring out how to knock out someone like Natsu...ah, they must not be full ghouls just yet." He wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Ghouls?" echoed Lucy anxiously.

Loke flicked his fingers, and a flare of light sent one girl who'd crept too close skittering back with a hiss. "Quite sad, actually. Ghouls are the ghosts of those who've starved to death. These must not be dead yet, but are too close to death to be capable of being saved. They may have been capable of maintaining their human selves until now."

Lucy's heart filled with dread and grief when she glanced at the youngest, who was staring back at her with tears in her hungry eyes. She'd not wanted this, but...it appeared she'd gone along with it anyways. "We can't kill them," she whispered, horrified with the idea of killing a mere girl. But when she looked at Loke, his expression was cold, unsympathetic.

"This is not your world, princess," he told her. "You've been here long enough to understand-" He cut off with a snarl when one of the ghouls - the girl only a few years older than the youngest - suddenly lunged. He threw out a hand, light exploding from his fingers, and she vanished with a scream of agony. Lucy stared in horror, and the ghouls took advantage of that.

All but one lunged, moaning in hunger, and Lucy screamed in surprise. Loke swore loudly as he was slammed into the ground, light flaring to life, and Lucy let her whip swirl around her in a wild manner, slicing and snapping at anything that came close. Happy seethed beneath her, crouched on Natsu's chest. The demon was beginning to stir, whatever the drug was finally starting to wear off, and Lucy felt something nasty gathering low in her gut. She bit her lip until it bled, even as she swirled to lash out at the mistress of the house when she barreled in from behind. Lucy swore when her whip missed its mark.

The ghoul slammed into her at full force, and Lucy hit the ground with barely a moment to breathe before the ghoul was upon her, teeth gnashing. Lucy was distantly reminded of the necromancer as she shoved her hands up, yelping when rotten teeth snapped a finger mindlessly. Pain splintered through her hand. Fear bubbled up when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye, the youngest wavering nearby, moaning and biting her fingers in the attempt to stop her hunger from overwhelming her like it had the others.

Lucy kicked, swallowing thickly as that black feeling suddenly sparked into something worse. Natsu was waking up. She could feel it: he knew something was off, and he was anything but pleased. "Loke," she gasped, lifting her voice to a shout as she realized he wasn't going to care who he incinerated within the next few seconds, as red-tinted eyes pried open and registered the fear and pain snaking through his own body, "Loke, go!"

The world splintered around them in smoke and ash and blood.


Some excitement! We get even better drama next chapter. ;)

Thanks to reviewers (Meow Orbit, stranger1999, madaraswife, Bookwork129, Uchida Akira, Lissuin, moonluver92, itsxoi, 52dreamer52, valerioux, Sele de la Luna, helloimsandy, nkukurichan, polinar, lcr0718, LucyDragneel2009, rao hyuga 18, FairyTailxFanGirl, Sydneste, Guest #1, and MayTylers!) as well as those who favorited and followed!