It took Lucy nearly as long, if not a little longer, than the events surrounding the Pergrande Kingdom to wake up after what took place with the Nuckelavee. It was torturesome, if Natsu was being honest. He couldn't go retrieve Gemini's key without her, and he couldn't say he liked seeing her lay around as she was. Yukino reassured him that Lucy's body merely needed to recover from the strain of holding open a Portal as long as she had. And, Yukino had ensured he knew, Lucy had gotten very little sleep before she'd had to do so. Natsu, in a temper after the Dullahan's visit, had to bite his tongue.

Of course, he wasn't too good at keeping his irritation under control. Within three days, Sting had offered him some work to help with Sabertooth's overload. Natsu had taken all that was offered and completed it, albeit a little sloppier than he normally would. It helped relieve some of the tension, however, and he went searching for more, finding even the slightest trouble in Crocus to keep him busy as he impatiently waited for Lucy to wake up.

On the bright side, when Natsu had come back from his visit to the Dullahan, Cobra and Angel had disappeared into the night. They'd not come back, either, telling him that they were worried about being so close to the house of the Magic Council. When they'd gone, Yukino had admitted to feeling that Angel had been rather familiar and that she'd not missed how Angel stubbornly refused to acknowledge her. Natsu hadn't been able to give her an answer there. Angel had clearly known Yukino, even if Yukino didn't know her in turn. It was a mystery Natsu was fairly sure they'd never have an answer for.

Rogue was well on his way to mending, too, which Natsu was admittedly pleased about. He'd not be up and fighting for a long time, but he was healed enough to tell Natsu he'd be available to help when it came time to defend the Eclipse Gate from falling. Such a thought had made him sick, and he'd been quick to move on from it.

At his worst moments, he couldn't think about any of that without wanting to burn the city now.

Perhaps, he'd thought on more than one occasion, destroying it now would save Lucy later.

Loke had visited just once on his own power to talk with Natsu. It had taken everything in Natsu's power to keep his mouth shut. He wanted nothing to do with the stars who demanded so much of Lucy without caring that she'd be gone by the end of the year. Lucy might have been claimed as their Keeper, but he no longer wanted to be Guardian to a bunch of stars that would likely do nothing to help her.

It wasn't long after that Yukino informed him Makarav needed to scry with him. She led him to the massive dish that she and her Guardians used for scrying, and Natsu eyed the dish warily when he saw his concerned guildmaster in the water's reflection. Shooing Yukino away, he planted his hands on his hips and scowled. "What?"

Makarov's eyebrows lifted at Natsu's snarl. But he didn't comment on Natsu's attitude. He never did. "I merely wished to check in and see if everything was going alright. Sting contacted us a few weeks ago to inform us you were staying with Yukino."

Natsu narrowed his eyes a fraction, wary. He didn't necessarily know what he wanted to tell Makarov. Did he tell him the truth? That the Dullahan had told him he'd lose Lucy within the year? He wished Lucy would just wake up, so he could talk it over with her. But then...who even knew what kind of conversation they'd have. She needed to recover, and before that was the entire reason she'd been in the situation with the Nuckelavee.

"Lucy's still out," he rumbled. "Nothing else to tell."

Makarov was thoughtful. "Mm, it seems like that isn't the case though. What troubles you?"

Natsu's jaw clenched and he huffed at the intuitive old man. "None of your business. It's between me and Lucy." Maybe, he thought childishly, if he didn't talk about it, it'd just go away. He knew better, of course. Such things didn't just go away.

But he could wish for something, couldn't he?

Makarov opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, a sound behind him caught Natsu's attention. Natsu snapped his head around when it was accompanied by a familiar, reassuring tug in his gut. Natsu didn't hesitate to abandon the conversation he'd been having with Makarov. He heard Makarov call his name, but Natsu ignored him as a voice he knew well called, "Natsu…?"

Lucy. She was sitting up in the bed Yukino had given up so she could rest properly after her ordeal, which Rogue had told his Marked One and Sting about. Her eyes had black smudges beneath them, and her hair was a mess, but he found he didn't really care about any of that. The uncertainty returned full-force, clashing with what might have been relief as he rumbled, "We're at Yukino's."

She nodded blearily, rubbing at an eye and touching Happy's spine with her free hand. Her face was carefully neutral, and she didn't even try to touch her soul to his. Maybe he wasn't going to burn her to nothing for trying anything, but she clearly didn't want to risk it, and Natsu couldn't figure out if that hurt or not. A lot of things hurt right now.

Like the way she wouldn't look at him, though Natsu suspected that had to do with the fear radiating throughout her the more awake she became. She was scared, and he didn't like it one bit. But he found he couldn't do anything about it, because he was the source of that fear. That made everything worse, and he snapped, "I'm not gonna hurt you."

Her eyes darted to him finally, but they were wary. Now that they were out of danger, the determination to find one another set aside...Natsu found he really didn't like the change that had taken place. Once, she'd have smiled at him. Now she looked as if she didn't know whether she wanted to or not. She said nothing about that, but Natsu didn't miss how her fingers brushed over lingering scars and felt his stomach twist when he recognized them. They were burns - burns he'd put on her skin in his fit of rage.

He opened his mouth to apologize, but faltered, and his own hesitance only upset him further.

He didn't like this. He didn't like not knowing what to do or say. It had never been a problem for him; he just did and said what he wanted. But now he had to worry about what Lucy thought, and it frustrated him. It was only made worse by the fact that he had been warned by the Dullahan that she'd be gone.

Uncomfortable silence reigned over them for a short few moments before Lucy murmured, "Gray?"

"Fine." His jaw clenched. "And Jellal and Erza. Erza was already recovering when I left."

Lucy breathed a soft sigh of relief. "Good," she whispered. She ran her fingers through her mussed golden hair and wrinkled her nose in disgust at the greasiness of it. She said nothing, though Natsu knew precisely what had bothered her. He watched her for another awkwardly silent few moments and finally huffed, losing his patience. They didn't have time for this; Lucy would be gone.

So, he bluntly stated, "You lied to me. About everything."

She flinched, as if he'd struck her. "Not everything-"

"Everything important."

"No," she argued. Her eyes flashed. "Crocus, yes. Nothing else." He glared at her, annoyed that she was cutting him off when he was trying to say something, and to his surprise, she glared right back. There was still guilt in her face, she said, "I didn't tell you, Natsu, because I knew you'd react exactly as you did. I knew you would turn around and hate me for it. And call me selfish, but I liked you too much to let that happen."

He bared his teeth, furious for a moment. Excuses. She was making excuses-

"I know it was wrong," she continued bitterly. "I shouldn't have done it. I should have told you the second I realized who you were, years ago. But who the hell wants to tell the person they care about most that history remembers them as becoming what they desperately try to avoid being? I was hoping to fix it before it was a problem, so you'd never have to worry about it." Her eyes were lined with silver, and Natsu could feel the misery that had flooded her soul for so long returning. He found his skin crawling because of it. He didn't like when she felt like this.

Actually, he didn't like a lot of things in general as of late.

Natsu stared harshly at her for a few moments, the feeling only growing worse when she took a shaken breath. Not knowing what else to do, he forced himself to puff out a breath, exhaling smoke. It didn't help, but he still made himself say, "I wanted to hate you for it. I tried to hate you." She gave a dry, rueful smile, as if she knew as much, and wiped tears from her eyes, fingers tangling in her lap. His mouth pressed into a hard line. "But I can't." His voice grew hoarse, full of frustration. "I tried and tried, but I can't, and I don't get it. I should be able to. So why can't I hate you?"

She flinched again, her face pale. After a few moments of silence, she murmured, "Love is complicated." His heart tightened in his chest; he couldn't figure out if it was hers or his. "It doesn't always make sense. And when you love someone, it makes pain all that much worse."

Natsu furrowed his brow. Did he love Lucy? He didn't know. He'd thought he might have once or twice, when that searing heat that even now simmered low in her chest had flooded through him. When he'd desperately tried to get to her before Cobra and Angel's group had. He hadn't known for sure, and Lucy had never addressed it, but he'd been fairly confident that the heat was love. And he knew that most people didn't kiss each other like they had unless they were closer than most. He'd certainly never turned around and done that with anyone else.

He supposed that the answer was maybe. At the very least, he was sure he'd once loved her, before he'd found out that she'd lied to him. But as she'd said, love was complicated, and as he'd told her…

He had tried time and time again to hate her, but couldn't.

Knowing she could feel the uncertainty that had risen again in his chest, he rasped, "Juvia...Juvia said that you were trying to change history for me. Not to be nice, not for the guild, no for anyone else, but for me." Lucy didn't respond. She only nodded to confirm it, her lips trembling, the tears rolling down her cheeks. Natsu's stomach churned. He hated when she cried, too. Even when he'd burned her apartment with her in it, he'd found it hard to see the tears on her face. "Then she asked if I'd do the same."

"And?" she murmured. "What did you tell her?"

Lucy Heartfilia will be lost within the year.

Ugly black rage bubbled to life. He didn't miss how Lucy's wary nervousness shot through him in response, as if she thought it was towards her. It only made it worse. He couldn't stand the idea that she was scared of him now. She'd always been the one person who wasn't. Who didn't care what he was.

Eyes burning, he rumbled, "I'm going to change it." Her eyes snapped to his. She was clearly confused. For just a moment, he considered not telling her - letting her feel the same agony he had when he later revealed what he knew. But the idea was tiresome, and a waste of time. They had less than a year to figure out what to do, and that wasn't much time, even for someone who was considered immortal.

"The Dullahan showed up while you were out," he told her, jaw working as he figured out how to word it. "And it said that you'd be lost within the year."

"Lost?" The word was a whisper. "What does 'lost' mean?"

He shrugged, not sure himself. There were a multitude of ways that "lost" could be meant, whether it be death or simply disappearing as easily as she'd shown up in his time. He could lose her to Acnologia, or to someone else. He could lose her to the Eclipse Gate or the spirits she cherished.

But Lucy would be lost unless they did their damn hardest to stop it, and he refused to become like Igneel because he'd been too stupid to step up and prevent anything from happening to his Marked One. Like it or not, Lucy was his friend. Maybe she wasn't someone he trusted all that much at the moment, but she was a friend nonetheless.

Lucy was quiet as she stroked Happy's spine, her fingers trembling as she breathed, "I'm sorry, Natsu." He couldn't figure out if he hated the way she said his name. It was the same way she'd always said it; it was as if she treasured it. "I know you don't think I am, but...I'm truly sorry."

His jaw worked furiously. He didn't think he'd ever be able to forgive her for not telling him the truth, nor would it be something he could ever forget. But he got the feeling Lucy didn't expect that from him. She merely wanted to pick up the pieces and continue as best as they could - remaining at least friends.

Natsu didn't know if that was possible either, but he supposed he was willing to give it a shot.

"Yeah, well," he grumbled, not sure of what else needed to be said, "Don't do it again."

She gave a choked laugh and buried her fingers in Happy's fur. The happy feline purred and blinked up at her kindly. Happy was clearly ecstatic to be back with Lucy; Natsu couldn't blame him. Despite all of the frustrations, and uncertainty, and confusion, and misery…

He was admittedly happy to be by Lucy again, too.

"What do we do now?" Lucy asked Natsu hesitantly as they ate a peaceful dinner with Yukino and Rogue. Sting had gone to check on the Sabertooth guild, ensuring everything was running smoothly. "Besides going to fetch Gemini, I mean. We've completed all of the tests. Mostly. Loke's isn't truly feasible anymore, I suppose…"

Aware that Yukino and Rogue were watching them with rather nosey expressions, Natsu shrugged. "Dunno. Gotta figure out how to stop Acnologia. Right?"

"Easier said than done," commented Yukino gently. She smiled faintly at them, and there was a hint of unhappiness that flickered over her face. "He's quite powerful if he was capable of destroying a portion of the Archives and coming away unscathed…"

"I don't think," said Lucy quietly, "that he came away quite as unscathed as he wants us to think. He's had plenty of chances to grab me, hasn't he? In the Pergrande Kingdom, in the village...every time we've come across him since the situation with the Archives, he's not truly come after me. If he wanted me as badly as we think he does and he had the ability, he'd have gotten me a long time ago. Especially what happened recently. He went after Tenrou, too. He took an island full of powerful dragons out. I think both attacks tired him more than he lets on."

Rogue slowly nodded, setting aside his meal. He'd not eaten a lot recently, Natsu had noticed, and he wondered if the shadow dragon's leg was bothering him. "That certainly is possible. Even a dragon like him would have limits...definitely limits that surpass our own, but limits nonetheless. And if he has reached those limits, he'll be reserving what he has left for his plans."

"So...what?" Natsu scowled. "He was just having fun and scaring the hell out of everyone?"

"More of a reminder, I think, that he's still more than capable of getting what he wants." Rogue's eyes flickered warily, gaze sliding to his Marked One. Yukino was nodding to herself, thoughtful. Worry raced over his face - and guilt as he said, "I think...perhaps, you should leave, Lucy."

Lucy dropped her empty plate. Yukino's guilt was evident as she fidgeted with her fingers. "What? Why?" Lucy demanded.

"My apologies. I don't mean to be rude, nor am I unhappy to see that you're doing well after everything that happened," Rogue said with a bit more gentleness than normal. "But I'm not blind to what's occurred to the Archives and Tenrou. I've made the connections. You were present at both, and Acnologia is clearly seeking you. Your mere presence provides danger for Yukino, and for the Eclipse Gate, especially given what we know about the end of this year."

He wasn't unkind; merely honest and firm. He wanted them - for Natsu and Happy were a part of Lucy in every way possible - to leave. Yukino looked bothered by the decision, but said nothing, seeming to agree with what Rogue was saying. "If something were to happen," she admitted, "and we willingly let you stay...if Acnologia showed up and destroyed the Eclipse Gate...it's very possible the old magic would kill us, too, Lucy."

Natsu gave a thunderous sound from low in his throat, glowering viciously at them as pain splintered through Lucy's already weary heart. While content to be around him again, she was still exhausted and recovering from everything that had taken place over the last few months. But Lucy showed no sign of emotion as she nodded. "I understand," she said softly. "We'll leave first thing in the morning." She faltered. "I'm sorry. I should have thought of that sooner. We are putting you in danger. It seems to be that way no matter what we do."

"It's not you, Lucy," Yukino was quick to reassure, her voice firm. "It's merely your luck and when this year ends, hopefully without the destruction of our Gate and everything else as we know it...I will be the first to invite you back with open arms."

Lucy offered her a faint, relieved smile, but it did nothing to remove the pain that was so clearly written there.

SOMEDAY I will update on time. Have the next chapter! Lucy and Natsu finally interacted and we're having conversations~ Oof, wait 'til their big one.

On another note, updating will be off/weird between the dates of March 21st- April 1stish? Not sure about that second date. I'll be heading off to retrieve my things from college at long last (literally a year after my school kicked us off campus due to COVID). :)

Thanks to reviewers (XxCelestialAssassin, AthomeinFairytail, madaraswife, LucyDragneel2009, Kaisha00, Sele de la Luna, Meow Orbit, Uchida Akira, valerioux, BeautifulSamurai, Guest #1, SistershOk, Surfy, guest #2, Bookwork129, stranger1999, Lissuin, SheWhoLeavesCrappyReviews, TigerArrowgirl, GoldenPadfoot148, brandyj0611, itsxoi, PersephoneQOTU, and Guest #3!) as well as those who favorited and followed!