WARNING: Rated M for Explicit Graphic Depictions of Violence, Graphic Depiction of Rape/Non-Consensual Sex, Graphic Sex, Graphic Physical and Mental Abuse, and Mental Instability. Please read at your own discretion.

I do not own Fairy Tail; All major characters depicted in this fan-created fiction story belong to Hiro Mashima.

This chapter is Beta-read by the awesome YungVodkaDikost, if you haven't read any of her stories, you should go check them out!

CHAPTER 12

The soft morning light of the rising sun had intensified while it rose higher into the sky, only to later be replaced with the golden hues of the coming evening as both Lucy and Yukino sat on the bed with the two blue-haired mages from Fairy Tail.

The blonde mage of Fairy Tail had been so enthralled with listening to Levy and Wendy talk about what had been going on at the guild since she'd left- that she hadn't even taken notice of the passing time. It was only when her stomach started to grumble that she realized how long they had been talking and catching up.

Lucy was lying on the infirmary bed while Wendy continued to work on the blonde's body, healing it until she was almost at least completely healed. The celestial fairy watched the small girl move from one side of the bed to the other as she tried to keep her focus on Levy while she talked about Natsu.

The blonde couldn't say she was surprised to hear that the flaming dragon slayer had been moping around and causing more trouble than usual since she had left on her missions almost a week ago.

After all, the salmon haired male had practically begged her to let him go with her when she was trying to leave. The celestial maiden couldn't help but roll her eyes at the memory. Though she would admit, if she would have let him come she wouldn't be in the situation she was in now.

Lucy had felt guilty for not telling her friends what was going on with her, and the guilt ate at her even more so when she thought of her pink haired best friend. Maybe if she would have just broken down, and finally came clean about her traumatic nightmares, maybe together they would have been able to come up with a solution and she wouldn't have been in the position she was in.

Though of course, that probably wouldn't have made a big difference since her problem turned out to be more of some sort of curse than just emotional trauma, still the fact remained that she wouldn't have been hurt in the ways that she had.

From what the two blue-haired fairies had told Lucy, the dragon slayers behavior only worsened when the guild was informed of her attack, causing him to literally burst into flames while he unsuccessfully tried to keep from burning down the guild.

Levy had voiced that she had a hunch that Natsu blamed himself for not being there to protect his blonde best friend, and because he hadn't been able to stop the attack- that he was grieving through guilt.

The only person that was able to calm the fire dragon slayer was the white-haired younger Strauss sibling, which again, didn't surprise Lucy either. The blonde had always liked the idea of the dragon slayer and Lisanna together. It was just something about how the two childhood friends interacted with one another that made Lucy just want to smash their faces together because of how adorable they were.

So, needless to say, when Levy mentioned something about seeing the two mages together blushing and finally starting to realize their feelings, Lucy almost jumped from the bed in joy, which of course didn't go over so well with any of the other women. Yukino pushed her back down on to the bed while the sky dragon slayer scolded her and continued to finish up with her work.

"Okay, Lucy! You are about 95% healed, but I want you to take it easy for the next couple of days and I also don't want you walking up and down all those stairs just yet." Chocolate colored eyes watched as the little dragon slayer used her sleeve to wipe sweat from her brow before she backed away from the bed.

The celestial mage took a moment to assess the young dragon slayers work as she looked down at her abdomen. The once gnarly red and angry puckered stitched wound was now just a scarred reminder of her brutal abuse at the hands of a malice bandit.

Lucy felt dread as she traced her finger down the length of the large fresh pink scar causing a small amount of anxiety to push its way into her head. The blonde fairy quickly tugged her shirt down to cover her scarred flesh, making a point to force a smile onto her lips to keep any bad memories from rushing back.

"Thank you so much, Wendy. I don't know what I would do without you!" Lucy gave the tired slayer a smile before she tossed her legs to the side of the infirmary mattress. She was so eager to get out of bed that excitement had all but replaced anxiety as the blonde pressed her feet to the ground.

Besides a little soreness from being laid up in bed, Lucy couldn't feel any immediate pain overwhelm her when she took a deep breath while she twisted her body around a little. She took an experimental step away from the bed while pushing her arms up and overhead as she stretched her sore muscles. Just a few minor dull aches which were nothing she wouldn't naturally heal from in just a couple of days, other than that she felt completely fine.

"So, since you can't walk down the stairs yet, maybe I should go get you some food, is there anything that sounds good to you?" The blonde looked behind her to see the smiling Sabertooth woman getting up from the bed. In that moment Lucy felt blessed beyond her means. She was surrounded by people who not only took time out of their day, but also genuinely wanted to help her recover and she couldn't be more grateful.

"Not really, surprise me! Thank you, Yukino. For everything, I will never be able to express just how thankful I am to you." Lucy hugged the silver-haired mage as she approached her.

"Oh, it's nothing, really. I'm just glad you are feeling better! Now you don't have to stay in the infirmary anymore!" Yukino unraveled herself from the excited fairy's embrace before she started to walk to the door. The silver-haired stopped before turning to look at the occupants of the infirmary.

"I'm going to stop by Sting's office first to let him know that you can be released from the infirmary and put in a regular room now, hopefully, you will be put on my floor!" and with that, Yukino slipped out of the room.

The Fairy Tail celestial maiden looked back over to Levy who was still sitting on the bed with a small smile on her face as she kicked her legs back and forth, she pushed her finger to her lips while pointing over to another infirmary bed where an already sleeping Wendy lay on her side.

The worn-out slayer had curled up on one of the other infirmary beds, no doubt exhausted from using so much magic just to heal Lucy. The blonde walked over to cover the sleeping girl with the blankets off her own bed, taking special care to securely tuck her in. Lucy leaned down to push a stray hair from Wendy's face as she thanked her one more time.

"So, Lu, what's it like being here with the Saber's?" Lucy turned to look at the over-exuberant bluenette that was whispering across the room. Lucy sighed as she walked over to sit on the bed once more.

"Very hectic. I've caused them so much trouble, and I will be forever in their debt. If it wasn't for Rogue finding me in the first place… I mean, I would have died, Levy." Lucy looked at her knees as she dangled her feet off the side of the bed, much like the shorter solid script mage. Lucy thought of all the anxiety and panic attacks and not to mention the night terrors that the Sabertooth members had been forced to put up with in just the short time she had staying here. It was amazing that they didn't just send her back to Fairy Tail with the master after all the drama she has caused.

Lucy's thoughts slowly drifted to the ebony haired dragon slayer that had found her. Even though Lucy was still a little intimidated by the male for obvious reasons, she knew she had so much to thank him for.

Not only had he saved her life multiple times, but he was taking time out of his life to make sure she was okay. Though he didn't know her and everything that was happening to her wasn't his fault, he was still taking it upon himself to try and save her from the magic that was forcefully placed in her.

And even though he didn't know it, he had indirectly given her a gift. He had given her the gift of hope that her sanity is still intact in the form of just one peaceful night sleep, something she hadn't had in so long.

Lucy couldn't keep the blush from rising to her face as she recalled the dream she had woken from earlier that day. Though she was relieved she hadn't been confined in her unconscious with his future counterpart, she couldn't see a reason as to why she would have such a provocative dream of herself and Rogue.

Of course, Lucy couldn't deny the fact that the slayer was attractive and had a mysterious charm about him that in any other situation would have made her curious about him, but that wasn't the case. Lucy was still painfully uncomfortable and nervous around him, something that she didn't know if she would ever be able to overcome no matter how much her life was indebted to him.

Lucy brought her fingers up to her lips as she recalled the taste of his kiss, even in her dreams, the blonde had never been kissed with such longing and gentleness.

Lucy had been so lost in thought that she didn't even try to hide her blush from the curious solid script mage that was sitting next to her. If only she would have been paying attention, Lucy would have seen how Levy's face went from innocent curiosity to the bluenette's mouth curving into a devious smirk after a few moments.

"So, what happened in your dream Lu? We were interrupted earlier, and I have been waiting to ask you about it again and now's a perfect time, so spill it!" Lucy's head shot up to look at the devious mage while she slapped her hand back down from her lips as she became painfully aware of her red face. Lucy tried to move away as she frantically waved her hands out in front of her while Levy crawled closer to the nervous blonde while her smirk grew.

"There's really nothing to tell, it was just a dream! You wouldn't believe how amazing it was to finally have an actual dream instead of a nightmare, last night was the first time I had a full night of rest without waking up or being anchored to a dark corner of my mind." Lucy tried to explain to the woman that had tried to corner her on the bed. Lucy watched as Levy's face dropped before she sat back a little to lean her head back to stare at the ceiling.

"Why didn't you tell us, Lucy? Even though we didn't know about the shadow magic thing at that time, we still could have tried to help you. I'm sure I would have been able to find a book or something that could have helped even a little bit…" Lucy's eyes grew as the petite mage lost her playful voice to adopt a serious tone that was laced with hurt and betrayal.

The celestial mage grabbed Levy's hand, making sure to lace their fingers together while she looked up at the ceiling as well. Lucy knew her choices hurt the people that were closest to her, and it seemed the more she realized that fact, the less she could defend her own reasoning.

"I just didn't think it was important enough to bother everyone with." And it was the truth. At the time, the broken fairy really didn't see the point in bothering people with her problems. Lucy looked at Levy taking notice of the tear that trailed down the bluenette's cheek before the blonde threw her arms around Levy's shoulders.

She felt like such a self-centered jerk, how could Lucy not see that her own suffering was not only affecting her, but the people that cared about her as well.

"I promise I won't leave you or anyone else out again." Lucy laid her head on Levy's shoulder as she felt the petite mage wrap her arms around the blonde to return the embrace. They sat like that for a while before Lucy heard Levy let out a small sigh as she sniffled a bit.

"I'm glad you said that, so does that mean you will tell me what happened the day you were attacked? I just feel like Loke was leaving something important out when he was telling the guild what had happened, like a big chunk of the story was missing..." Levy let her sentence trail off as Lucy stiffened a little before she unraveled herself from their embrace.

Yes, Loke had left something extremely important out, and for a good reason. Lucy didn't want anyone to know about what else had happened to her, but the blonde knew that she couldn't keep it hidden for much longer

Lucy felt shame burn her throat in the form of bile as she struggled within herself at the thought of telling her best friend just how soiled and defiled she was. The blonde felt a sharp jab at her heart as she remembered the way she had lost her first kiss and her innocence, something that was supposed to be a magical monumental moment to a young woman, but she had that memory stolen from her.

The physical and emotional damage was still there, even though Lucy put on a great front. The blonde tried her best to keep from screaming or panicking when a male would get to close to her, just like when Master Makarov got a little too close to her. But Lucy was still uncomfortable and hesitant and that was something she felt she would have to cope with for the rest of her life.

The celestial mage feared that she would end up pushing away the important males in her life even though she didn't want to.

"Loke did leave something out because it wasn't his place to tell the guild the other part of what had actually happened to me." Lucy confirmed her best friend's suspicion while she turned her head to avoid the curious honey brown eyes of her best friend. The blonde felt her bangs fall into her eyes as she took comfort in knowing Levy couldn't see her holding back her tears.

It wasn't that Lucy didn't want to tell Levy, of all the people she could think of, Lucy knew that Levy would keep her secret and try to help bare the blonde's burden with her, which Lucy felt upset about.

She did not want to be pitied.

Questions filled Lucy's head as she tried to force the words to leave her mouth, but they just kept catching in the back of her throat. What would Levy think of her?

Would she pity her? Would she be angry at her? Would Levy think that Lucy was too weak and incapable of protecting herself?

Lucy noticed the azure haired woman waiting patiently for her to continue but the blonde just couldn't seem to form a sentence, every time she opened her mouth she would shut it almost immediately.

How was she supposed to tell someone she was raped without sounding like a pathetic person in search of pity? Lucy took a deep shaky breath as she tried to keep her mouth from quivering.

"I… I... He... That disgusting man... He did something awful to me... and I feel too ashamed and pathetic to even say it out loud…" Lucy felt a tear slip down her cheek before she threw her hand up to violently wipe away her eyes. She will not let Levy pity her, she didn't want anyone's pity.

Lucy put a hand over her mouth as she kept in her silent sobs. Though she wanted to be strong in the face of her pain, the blonde just couldn't seem to do it. Lucy couldn't bring herself to say it out loud because if she did, she would be admitting that it did happen, and even though she still felt the dull throbbing deep into her core and even remembered watching the blood trail down her legs while walking back to the bandit's camp, she just couldn't bring herself to admit it.

Lucy felt like something within her would burst as if the barrier she had built would break once more for her to relive the horrors she had endured once again. The blonde mage could feel the surge of dark magic push its way through her as it reacted to the rapid beating of her heart from being upset.

Honey brown eyes widened as the petite solid script mage put all the pieces together.

Lucy avoided the small woman's eyes at all cost, trying to keep Levy from seeing just how broken and fragile she really was. The mantra the blonde was repeating in her head had started to wan as more and more of her resolve faded. She could feel the shadow magic within her slowly push through her body as she slipped ever so slowly into the darkness of her own doubt and fear.

I am strong, not weak. I will not cry over something that cannot be changed.

I will stay strong…. I will not cry…

"Lucy…were... were you... you were… raped…? " Lucy flinched as Levy's words stabbed her, breaking the last of the barrier she had built to shield her from the pain and the memories.

She could no longer hold in her sobs anymore, the pain was too much, the blonde's heart ached for the happy young woman she was before everything had happened, before the grand magic games, before she was turned into something that she had never wanted to be. The celestial mage could feel the shadows trying to force their way to the surface the more she tried to hold back her pain.

Lucy couldn't put together a coherent sentence, so she let her actions speak for her by slowly tilting her head forward and down into an even deeper nod, giving Levy all the confirmation, she needed. The celestial maiden waited for what felt like an eternity with the withering of the magic inside of her ready to burst, she wanted to hear Levy say something.

The dread that built up inside Lucy as she sat on the bed waiting for the blue-haired woman to say something, anything was almost too much for the blonde to bare. The silence was only causing a horrible burning sensation to slip across her skin as the shadows tried to push their way out making her feel nauseous.

"Are you kidding me? He did such awful things to you, and we are just going to let him sit in the council jail? No. He deserves worse than a prison cell, Lucy! How can we just sit here? I feel like we need to do something about this." Lucy's head snapped up at the sound of anger in Levy's trembling voice. Even with tears glazing her eyes, Lucy watched as the shorter woman jumped from the bed to pace back and forth through the room.

The blonde was having a hard time understanding what the solid script mage meant. After all, that horrible excuse of a man was in jail and would never be able to harm an innocent woman again, and that was all that mattered to Lucy.

The blonde woman had no desire to seek out any more revenge than she already had. Her main goal was to make sure that man would rue the day he ever crossed her, and even though she had been scared to face him not even a couple of hours after her assault, she had at least accomplished that minute goal.

"Levy, it's…" The blonde was cut off as Levy whipped her head around to glare at the celestial mage. The rage in those honey brown eyes caused Lucy to finch away from the intensity of the blue haired mage's glare. Lucy had never seen Levy so enraged as she was now, and it was causing a fire to start burning deep within the blonde.

"Don't you dare say it, Lucy. Don't you dare say that it's fine! Nothing about what he did to you is fine. He beat you and left you for dead, but on top of that, he RAPED you! He stole something extremely valuable from you, Lucy! Now I know why you flinched away from Master when he was close to you! How do you expect to face Natsu or Gray? Or in fact, any male member of the guild? They are going to find out, and they are going to feel the same damn way as me!" Lucy watched as Levy started to pace the floor once more, the blonde fairy was completely thrown off by Levy's heated reaction, she had never expected Levy to be so adamant on revenge even though Lucy had already completed that part of the grieving process.

Levy didn't pity Lucy or think she was weak, those were the farthest thoughts from her mind, she was being angry for the blonde when Lucy felt she didn't deserve to be anymore.

"I already took my revenge on the man that did this to me, and I am relieved that he is in jail, even if it isn't for what he did to me. I feel that justice had been served in the best way possible, so please don't think anything else about it, and as far as dealing with the guys of our guild… I just don't know, Levy. I know that Natsu and Gray will be here in a few days after you leave, and I also know that Natsu will automatically be able to sense something is different about me… I honestly don't know how he is going to react and it scares me, Levy…" Lucy admitted to the solid-script mage.

The blonde fairy bit the inside of her lip as she continued to feel the vibration of the shadows flowing so freely through her body while the stress weighed down on her. Though it still felt foreign to her, for some reason it felt less malice then it did the last time she experienced it while awake, the horrible ripping and burning sensation that had been excruciatingly painful had now dulled to just light pinpricks, almost as if her body was falling asleep even though she was still awake

It didn't hurt, but it was still very different to her and uncomfortable. The blonde felt her head start to spin as she felt faint from the overexertion of magic as it began to pour from her body.

"Lucy, your arms!" Lucy could hear Levy's voice, but it sounded so far away, as if her ears were clogged with water and the sound was almost mute. Sluggishly the blonde forced her head down to look at both her arms to see black tendrils rising from her skin, they circled around her arms and up to her shoulders, leaving black markings as they slid over her flesh. The celestial mage couldn't help the horrified shriek that left her as she shook her arms to rid herself of the dark magic encircling her.

"What the hell is happening to me!?" Lucy screamed as she stood from the bed trying to shake the shadows off her skin, which was proving useless as they just continued to wrap around her body. The blonde's head was spinning while vertigo caught up with her fast movement as her eyes started to have a hard time focusing. Through her blurred and unfocused vision, the blonde watched as Wendy sat up on the bed, being startled from her sleep by Lucy's frantic cries of terror.

"Lucy!" Lucy watched as the small girl leaped from the bed to stand in front of her trying to figure out what she could do to help, but the blonde just backed away from her, she couldn't control this magic and she didn't want anyone to get hurt if something was to go wrong. Even though the magic felt different and wasn't hurting her now, the celestial mage still didn't trust it or was even comfortable with it at all.

"Wendy, Levy. Stay away from me, I don't know what is happening, but I do know that I can't control it, and I don't want either of you to get hurt." Lucy felt an overwhelming pull on her magic as it tried to will her out of the infirmary. Lucy had no idea where the magic was trying to take her, but the unknown desire pushed her to take a step closer to the door. The blonde clutched the side of her head as the shadows dancing around her, covering her whole body and blurring her already impaired vision as they swallowed her within their darkness.

The pin pricking sensation had started to feel like jabs of the end of a dull blade making her want to rip her hair out as the constant tug became more forceful. The Fairy Tail mage closed her eyes as she felt the rhythmic humming under her skin turn to a violent pulse as the shadows thrashed chaotically around her.

Lucy couldn't control herself anymore as she opened her eyes once again to look at the two shocked bluenette's standing just a few feet from her and the raging darkness. The door was so close, and she couldn't stop herself from taking a step forward, finally deciding to give in to its will. She looked at her two guildmates before she took another step forward.

"Lucy, your eyes... They're red!" Lucy flung herself into the door, fumbling with the handle as she ripped it open, the powerful force causing it to slam into the wall. The blonde didn't hesitate as she stumbled into the hallway then took off into a full sprint, paying no mind to the two shocked girls calling her name. She could only hope that she didn't run into anything or anyone since her vision was still messed up.

"Rogue, are we going to go see Miss Fairy again soon!? Will we be staying with her again?" Rogue watched the little exceed as he sat on the windowsill of Sting's office while staring out into the darkening sky as night approached. The ebony haired slayer pushed off the wall he had been leaning on while listening to the white dragon slayer and the master of Fairy Tail talk. The dark-haired slayer had been awake for a few hours now but hadn't considered going to see Lucy until it was closer to night time.

Plus, ever since he pushed some of his own magic into her, he could sense when and if she was in distress based on how his magic reacted to her own emotions, something Rogue learned not even an hour after he had done it. The crimson eyed slayer sighed as he realized what a drawback that was.

The blonde was a walking ball of random emotions right now and he knew just from everything she had experienced that it was likely for anything to set her into a spiraling wind of anxiety or stress. Her emotions would most likely end up weighing down on him in the long run if he wasn't able to remove not only his own, but his counterpart's shadows from her as well.

"I see, so you really do intend on staying with my child every night until this whole ordeal is solved?" Rogue looked away from his bored feline to look back at the other two men in the room. His ruby gaze landed on the small form of master Makarov as he addressed him.

"Stress and anxiety seem to trigger the shadows from my future counterpart. I'm starting to believe I will need to be with her all the time, rather than just at night." Rogue sighed as he let that information setting between the other two men. Surely the Fairy Tail master must know just how much anxiety and stress the girl was under, and therefore understand just how serious this situation was. Lucy would need him as a constant babysitter.

"That is a very big weight to be put on one man's shoulders. Are you sure you are able to carry Lucy's burdens along with your own?" Rogue forced his gaze back to the old master. What did he mean? Obviously, the shadow mage didn't have a choice in this situation; it was either help Lucy or watch her slowly lose herself even more than she already has. Her fate was in his hands and he was not about to let an innocent woman be consumed by his magic whether it was his future self or not.

"I have no other choice. I will not let the magic from a part of me destroy her." The ebony haired slayer turned to look out the window once more, he had heard small snores start up a few minutes ago and had only assumed that Frosch had fallen asleep once again. He pets the cat on the head while he watched the sun fall deeper beyond the horizon. Soon it would be night, and Rogue would need to make his way to the infirmary.

A soft knock at the door rung throughout the room before the door slipped open to reveal the small form of Yukino, she smiled and waved while she walked into the office.

"Wendy says Lucy is mostly healed so she can be moved to an actual room now!" The silver-haired mage's excitement didn't go unnoticed as Rogue watched a grin spread out on master Makarov and Sting's faces. Good, that meant that Rogue didn't have to go near that room anymore. The smell of alcohol and antiseptics were always too much for his nose to handle.

"That's great news, Yukino! Rogue, do you want her to be on your floor? Or just put her on Yukino's?" The shadow dragon slayer watched as a frown formed on Yukino's face. Obviously, the silver-haired woman wanted the blonde to be put in a room on her floor, but Rogue couldn't let Yukino have this one. Lucy needed to be a little bit closer to him, so he had better access to her just in case she ends up having another magic meltdown.

Even though Yukino wanted to help her, she can't calm her the way that his magic could. How odd was it that, just Rogue's presence can put stress on her, causing her to have an anxiety attack, yet he was also the one to stop it. How ironic.

"She needs to be put on the 4th floor so I can efficiently access her if she becomes out of control." Rogue laughed inwardly as Yukino huffed a bit while their blonde guild master just nodded with a sly grin. Yeah, Rogue will definitely end up getting harassed for his choice, by both Sting and Yukino. The ebony haired mage rolled his eyes, he could never win no matter what he does.

"Alright, it might be a little odd for Lucy, since the 4th floor is part of the men's dormitory, but we can make an exception. Let me find a key to an empty room that is closest to you." Rogue watched as Sting fumbled around in his desk before producing a book which Rogue could only assume was the room log. After watching Sting flip through a few pages and saying, 'Ah ha!' a few times, Sting finally fished out a key from his desk drawer and handed it to Yukino.

"Okay, looks like Lucy will be just down the hall from you, Rogue. Yukino, why don't you go ahead and take Lucy up to the room and help her get settled in." Yukino hesitantly took the key from Sting while sighing a bit. Rogue couldn't help the amusement that showed on his face, surely Yukino couldn't really be that upset about it, could she?

"Okay, I will after I get her food. Wendy doesn't want Lucy taking the stairs for a few days, so I'm not exactly sure how to get her up there." Rogue watched as the silver-haired woman slumped to the door, her shoulders drooping down in disappointment. The dark-haired slayer looked back to Sting to see him looking back at him only to shrug his shoulders with a small grin. Obviously, Sting thought Yukino's display of emotions was just as amusing as Rogue did.

Rogue's smirk dropped while he stood up straight, as soon as Yukino opened the door his muscles tensed when he felt the usual pulling on his magic increase as the blonde's scent drifted through the open door. It wasn't just her intoxicating aroma that had practically set Rogue into a full-on sprint as much as it was the fear along with the pressure of his magic that had worried him the most. The smell of salt was heavy in the air as it mixed with her unique scent, letting the slayer know that Lucy was also crying. He could feel his magic push against his skin as the shadows tried to break away from his body to help him move fast toward his destination.

Rogue tossed a glance over his shoulder as he tore through the hallway, Yukino, Sting and the Fairy Tail master followed close behind him. Rogue had no doubt that Sting had filled the other two in on exactly what was going on since the other slayer could also feel the magical power along with Lucy's scent. Rogue moved his line of sight back to the hallway in front of him just in time to see a mass of shadows around the corner to his right. He couldn't help his step from faltering as he skidded to a halt in the middle of the hall.

"Lucy! Stop! You shouldn't be moving around so much!" Rogue moved his eyes from the massive wall of mixed shadows to see both blue haired girls from Fairy Tail come to a halt at the corner of the hall. Rogue heard both a feminine and masculine gasp be exhaled from just behind him as he watched the shadows start to fade more and more until the silhouette of a person was just visible beneath the swirling of magic.

Rogue could feel the gravitational pull that was forcing him to put one foot in front of the other as he slowly made his way to the figure that was none other than Lucy. The closer he got to her, the more the shadows started to intertwine around her body making it harder for him to control his own magic. It was almost as if she was a catalyst that forced his magic into an uncontrollable frenzy to the point of it actually hurting to hold it in.

The ebony haired dragon slayer watched mesmerized as Lucy's messy blonde hair whipped at her face while it flew around her shoulders as the shadows diminished to only long black wisps that danced around her body. His own magic that was housed in her body called out to him as they pulled him to move closer.

Rogue could only stare into the dark red irises that mirrored his own crimson gaze, they held so much terror and helplessness that the shadow mage felt a stab in his chest as he watched tears slide down her rosy cheeks. The ink black markings that wrapped around her body in a harsh, yet beautiful contrast to her pale skin elated him.

She bared the markings of a shadow dragon slayer even though she wasn't one, and that had his emotions in a frenzy as they tried to decide exactly how he felt about the way she looked positively alluring to him.

When Rogue first saw Lucy walking down the hallway with his shadow slayer markings and the same red irises that he had, he felt something stir deep within him, something he had never really felt before and it made him uneasy. When the confused slayer realized that what he was feeling was actually desire and possessiveness toward the blonde-haired mage, he had felt ashamed of himself.

The overwhelming heat that had flooded his body made him feel despicable when he noticed just how terrified and disoriented she truly was. Rogue had no right to feel the way he did, especially when the reason he desired her, was the same reason she was suffering.

The crimson eyed slayer stepped even closer to the chaotic and frightened woman until he was just out of reach from her. The shadows twisting around her body reached out to him, trying to wrap their way around his body as well. Rogue could feel that the shadows were now a strange mix of his future self's magic along with his own, and the feeling made his skin tingle as he took one more step closer while bringing his hand up to wipe a stray tear that had traveled down the celestial mage's cheek.

Rogue felt his heart drop as his lungs constrict when he heard a soft whimper escape the blonde's pink lips when she leaned into his touch. Rogue felt slightly awkward as he rubbed his thumb under her large crimson eye. While it seemed, Rogue had a way of calming the shadows in Lucy, she had the opposite effect on him. His magic was buzzing under his fingertips as he caressed the blonde mage's face once more before bringing his hand back down to his side. When Rogue realized how close he was to her, he slowly tried to step back out her personal space. However, he was taken by surprise when he felt her body collide into his own.

"Lucy?!" Rogue's gasped as he felt her hands curl into the front of his kimono, not seeming to mind the bite of his chest armor when she buried her head the best she could into his chest. Rogue looked at the small celestial woman, then all around to the other people who had gathered to watch the display between the two. Rogue knew Sting was going to have a hell of a time messing with him about this later.

What was he supposed to do? Lucy was supposed to be scared of men, and not to mention, scared of him! So why exactly was she clinging on to him like he was her lifeline? The slayer looked down again to see soft brown eyes staring back at him.

Lucy opened her eyes once again, only this time she could see clearly, as if she was back to her own self. When the shadow dragon slayer had touched her cheek she'd felt calm, almost tranquil when she felt his cool hands ghost over the skin just below her eyes.

In all honesty, the blonde hadn't been ready for Rogue to move away from her, so she did the only thing she could think of. She collided with his body, making sure to wrap her hands into his kimono so he wouldn't try to move away from her again. The still slightly disoriented blonde needed some type of support to keep her grounded as she came back to reality from what she could assume was a terrifying anxiety attack.

The celestial mage could feel her heart pounding in her chest while she tried to unravel the aching pain that had been coiling inside her while she searched for the source of the irritating pull that had possessed her to run out of the infirmary.

It would seem that the pull from the magic had lead Lucy straight into the dragon slayer that they were supposed to belong to, and the blonde couldn't deny while she felt slightly uneasy, that just being close to him had made the foreign magic within her settle back down.

The realization that the closer Rogue got to her, the more the pain started to dissipate, so of course it was only natural that she wanted to keep him close. At least, that is what she was telling herself as she still clung to the shadow dragon slayer.

She breathed in the smell of his clothes as she the foreign magic calm even more. The overwhelming shadows had slunk back into the depths of her body as the pinprick like tingling stopped. Though her body may have been returning to normal, her mind was going haywire with a thousand different emotions as she realized just exactly who she was clinging to.

She shouldn't have grabbed him, she was obviously still uncomfortable around the crimson eyed man, so why did she feel so relieved to be near him?

Why did being pressed up next to his body feel so right yet so wrong all at the same time?

Being pressed up next to the ebony haired male made Lucy's thoughts divert in a whole different direction. The celestial spirit key holder couldn't help the heat that flooded her cheeks as she remembered the scandalous dream she had had earlier that morning while she slept peacefully for the first time in so long.

She had spurts of the dream flash into her mind as she tried to push her face awkwardly into his armored chest to keep anyone from seeing just how red-faced she was. It was then that Lucy could hear the hushed questions that were being whispered around them, making her even more aware of just how odd she and the slayer must look pressed up against one another. Lucy took a chance to peek up to look at Rogue, praying to Mavis that he didn't look down at the same time.

If Lucy didn't feel embarrassed enough as it was, she was sure her face had to have matched the color of Erza's hair when she met Rogue's shocked gaze head-on while she looked up from her hiding place in his chest. The blonde wanted to move away from him, but his shocked and lost expression had her feet rooted to the ground.

Great, she had practically thrown herself onto the guy that was trying his hardest to help her, as if things weren't awkward enough with just her trauma with the future Rogue, and the sexual dream she had, now she can add being a complete freaking moron to the list as well.

Lucy bent her head down again as she felt tears fill her eyes again. She couldn't take it; all the emotions were just too much for her right now. She was about to step back away from Rogue and make a run for it down the hall, even though she was sure she didn't know where the infirmary was anymore.

But before the embarrassed woman could even move away, she felt Rogue put his hand on her arm, the blonde quickly forced her head up just as he addressed the hallway full of spectators.

"I'm going to go ahead and take Lucy to her room since she isn't supposed to be taking the stairs. Yukino, give me the key. Sting, wipe that ridiculous grin off your face, and Wendy, please go with Yukino to get anything Lucy might have left in the infirmary." Lucy watched in shock as the shadow mage reached back to take the key that her silver-haired friend had extended out to him, while Sting scowled bitterly at the back of Rogue's head.

Lucy thought it was pretty funny how much the twin slayers really did act like siblings. The blonde's thoughts were cut off when she let out a small yelp as Rogue bent to pick her up like some sort of bride, not even taking a moment to let her adjust before he took off down the hallway and to the staircase.

"Hold on." Lucy looked up to see his crimson eyes narrow down the path in front of him. Lucy was about to ask why she needs to hold on, but instead, a shriek come out of her mouth when she felt Rogue's shadows burst around them. They wrapped around the two as they helped carry the dragon slayer at a fast speed up the stairs until he was at another landing for a different floor Lucy had never been on.

"After that little display, you are definitely staying close to me." The blonde's eyes widened when she heard him whisper to her while he walked down the hallway until they came to a door. Lucy watched Rogue use her legs to point to it before continuing down the hall some more.

"That was my room. And this room right here, is yours." Lucy lifted her head to look at the brown wooden door that the shadow mage had set her down in front of.

So, she wasn't on Yukino's floor, after all, it would seem. Lucy blushed as she backed away from the tall male, so he could unlock the door for her before he pushed it open to let her inside.

"Th.. Thank you, Rogue." Lucy stammered as she realized just how awkward things were going to be between them now. She was growing more accustom to him, and it was becoming easier for her to distinguish the differences between the future Rogue and the present Rogue now.

It was odd how she didn't really shy away from him like other males, even though she would think the shadow mage would be the one male that she would avoid the most, but it would seem the mysterious dragon slayer was the one she needed the most.

Guest- Yep, it probably won't. lol XD

NinjaKitten93- Yep, Levy definitely is protective when it comes to Lucy. lol I think the dream is definitely going to have a big impact on Lucy.

CoSmO333- I think Lucy is coming to terms with everything now! I hope you had a great Valentine's day as well! :D