Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or its characters; that right belongs to Hiro Mashima. Nor do I own the Pradesh boys/family; that right belongs to Desna (who permitted me after asking them) to use them for my story.

Author's Notes: I have finally decided how many chapters this story will have. And I will not state the number here, but this will be on the shorter side for me. So, if you know the regular number of chapters I usually write, you have a rough guess. Now on to messing with fictional characters for my own self-gratification.

A week. It had been a whole week. Lucy was happy to be back. Though she felt like half of herself was missing without her keys.

She'd explained (in great detail) what and where she'd been and through. However, Lucy had skimmed over her engagement to the otherworld's version of Vander Pradesh. Lucy honestly did not need her team's bullshit on that matter.

Of course, Lucy had also apologized to Bickslow's younger brother for 'randomly' popping him one. He had accepted it gracefully and with a heavy dose of flirting.

There were many similarities between the two Vander's and obvious differences. And frankly, Lucy preferred Earthland's version of Vander even if she found her current situation with him a bit vexing.

After passing out, it was noted that her marriage mark was the same as Vander's new sleeve tattoo. Which he claimed came to him in a dream. Lucy could believe it.

But when they were separated by more than thirty feet, Lucy became physically weak and ill. It let her know her bond had, in some form, transferred over.

It made Lucy realize that she'd probably go back to that other world, so she had taken to sponge baths, washed her hair in the sink or let a professional do it since she couldn't call cancer.

The fact that no one commented or blamed her was fantastic.

"Lucy, the bathroom is all yours."

Lifting her head, Lucy looked at Earthland's Vander. Seeing the cocky grin on his face as he posed, Lucy shook her head. Lucy grabbed the back T-shirt he'd given her to use and slid from the bed. It was time to bathe herself.

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Vander watched as his 'temporary' roommate bounced into the bathroom. She was friendly, highly intelligent, and as stubborn as all his sisters combined.

He enjoyed her company considering his face still hurt from their first meeting. Lucy Heartfilia had a nasty left hook. However, the sight of her nude was worth the pain.

But after hearing her story of what happened after she vanished. Yeah, he'd admit to feeling skeptical. At least until Lucy submitted to Kaleb, searching her memory. He confirmed her story while complimenting Lucy on her mental shields. High praise indeed made him feel a bit irritated at his elder brother's interest in Lucy.

Then there were their matching sleeve tattoos. Lucy refused to speak about it other than say it was done magically. Yet Vander felt it was a bit more, especially since it was a perfect match to his, and he was sure of the other world Vander. Not to mention the distance issue of her becoming physically weak and ill and the severe vertigo he felt.

"Fuck! No, stop! I don't wanna!"

Starting, Vander spun and ran to the bathroom. Throwing the door open, he felt his jaw go slack. The way a freshly washed Lucy(in one of his borrowed back T-shirts) was three-fourths of the way through his full-length mirror was horrifyingly shocking.

Moving toward her, he tried to grab the arm, not in the mirror, only to feel a solid air barrier between them. A faint, familiar laugh echoed in his head as Lucy's panicked, fear-filled eyes met his as she slipped through the mirror the rest of the way.

Giving a loud curse, Vander mentally screamed for Kaleb as he felt the barrier vanish. Vander reached out to the mirror only to touch the smooth, immovable cold surface under his hand.

"Vander, what's wrong?"

At Kaleb's voice in his head, Vander sneered at his reflection as he replied, "Lucy vanished through my bathroom mirror."

The stunned silence from Kaleb and the wave of nausea that swelled from the pit of his stomach were unpleasant. When(and if) he saw Lucy again, he'd get some damn answers out of her.

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"High Priest, here's the towel you requested."

Concentric ringed eyes turned to look at the small acolyte currently serving them.

The small child glinted with intelligence in the depth of mahogany eyes. He enjoyed the company they'd provided.

"High Priest, is that person arriving today?"

Before he could reply, a chime resounded in the stone chamber as the reflecting pool rose like a geyser. The acolyte's answer was provided by fate itself.

Shifting, the High Priest smiled widely as he reached out a hand and grabbed the flailing arm that thrust from that geyser's center.

With a hard tug, a wet, crying blond fell into his open arms. A smile split his face when he looked down into red-tinted brown eyes.

"Bickslow?"

The choked cry as an arm wrapped around his waist had a wry chuckle escaping his lips. Already he could feel the shift in the shadows. His brother was coming, so his time would be cut short with the bridge.

"High Priest, Bickslow?"

The way the woman in his arms stiffened had him theatrically rolling his eyes. He was well aware of the differences between his other self and himself.

"I'd love to explain a bit more, lil missy. But you've got a visitor," High Priest Bickslow said. His eyes lifted to meet the red gaze of his youngest brother.

It was humorous to see jealousy written all over Vander's proud visage.

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Arms wrapped around his fiancee(apparently in shock) had the wrongness of the past week vanishing. The sense of comfort was masked by the fact he'd seen his brother holding Lucy in his arms in an overly friendly manner. A look of child-like glee on Bickslow's face.

Add-on that Lucy was wearing nothing more than a man's black T-shirt; her ass cheeks half-shown had made Vander angry.

There was no way he was jealous, as Bickslow claimed. His unintentional fiancee was a menace to him. She had no idea how serious he was about their situation. And that all the servants who'd graved his bed had purposefully given her a wrong impression of him(even if it is slightly warranted).

It was why he'd followed her to the bath. Vander tightened his hold as he recalled the pain, fear, and horror of seeing Lucy vanish before his eyes as he was helpless and unable to stop. He knew that it would keep happening didn't help at all.

"Vander, she's unable to breathe."

Lowering his head, Vander saw he was squeezing Lucy too tightly. Loosening his arms, he pouted.

"Seriously, you're too cute when you're jealous, Vanny," Bickslow teased.

"I don't need you acting like a child, Bicks," he complained.

"Aww, don't be like that, Vanny. I was bound to meet her. I did not expect her to pop in through God's reflecting pool," Bickslow said, waving a hand casually. The smile disappeared from his face. "And since you're here now, has the pain abated? Is it easier to breathe?"

Vander nodded his head in answer. His gaze looked into Lucy's now confused-filled eyes.

"That's good," Bickslow said. "Now, Miss Lucy, what medium did you use to return to our world?"

Feeling Lucy squirm, Vander fought both a groan for his body's natural reaction and to tighten his arms again. But he, too, was curious.

"A full-length mirror in a - bathroom."

Vander frowned at how Lucy had hesitated before using the word bathroom. He knew she was wearing a man's shirt.

"Ah, and while you were in your world, you did not suffer illness while separated, did you?"

At his brother's question, Vander snorted. Of course, she did. It was part of the marriage bond until they consummated their relationship.

"No."

Vander went into shock, his arms letting go of Lucy as Bickslow cackled.

"So, you were with your world's version of Vander then. Hence the reason you are wearing a man's black T-shirt. So no cheating ...technically."

Physically twitching, Vander glared at his Elder brother. He hated when Bickslow did this shit. But it also bothered him; his other self had been with Lucy. And she was wearing his other self's clothes, not his!

TBC!