I am SO sorry guys! I did NOT mean to suddenly disappear. My son got sick and he was sick for a few weeks and I've been exhausted (He's all better now! And luckily my daughter didn't get sick either!) I did have some issues with this chapter as well. I actually ended up rewriting it a few times, so that was a pain. I will try my best to keep posting on time if I can! I will try to mention in an author note next time if I plan to be absent for a while. Shout out to my one and only lovely beta Kat! Love you girl! And thank you for all your favorites, follows, and reviews! 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

Chapter 9

Since their paths have crossed, Laxus has been acting differently. More on edge. I've noticed this change from the first day she walked into the guild. I was going to ask Laxus what he thought about the job I accepted for us, but when I stepped back onto the second floor, Laxus had his eyes trained on something... or rather someone. I was never bothered by my friend's constant one night stands, but this seemed more than just another "target". He was looking at her as if he was poisoned and she was the cure. Strange.

I rolled my eyes as Bickslow mentioned the girls curvy physique. As Bickslow and Ever argued, Laxus stood up abruptly and actually appeared to be livid at the suggestive remark Bix had said. He looked as if he were about to lunge over the table and strangle him. Now THAT was different. He tried to hide his reaction and quickly sat down. I looked down at the girl and wondered if they knew each other. Why would Laxus act that way about a random girl. There must be more that I don't know. After finishing the discussion with my team, I got up, said I needed to get ready for the trip and started my way down the stairs towards the exit. I stopped and took one last glance to this girl who seemed of some importance to our leader and nodded to myself thinking that I should get to know this girl.

Since then, I've been paying closer attention to Laxus. I haven't had the chance to really speak with Lucy yet but I have heard about her from others in the guild. After all, it's not everyday that a celestial wizard comes around. From what I've heard, she's a nice girl who complains about money problems. She has a few golden zodiac keys, which is really exciting. I'd love to talk with her on that subject and learn what I can about her celestial spirits.

But I'm worried about Laxus. The more time passes, the more agitated he seems. He's become more aggressive on jobs, to finish them quickly. I assume it's because he wants to go back to the guild to see Lucy. And the strangest part is that he hasn't had a 'lady friend' stay the night in a long time... If at all since Lucy joined Fairy Tail. He'd just go out with Bickslow like he usually does, but instead of flirting with the women that approach him, he brushes them off and just finishes his drink and heads back to his room at the inn, alone. That, to me, proved that this may be something more than I thought at first. Laxus must be very serious about Lucy. I wonder if she feels the same. I sincerely hope she does.

We were just finishing up a job in the mountains near Clover Town. Remnants of a dark guild were causing issues. I knew it wouldn't be an issue for our team but Laxus had taken care of all of them single handedly. It was obvious that he was irritated, but to see him zip around and electrocute all of them so quickly... I figured it was time to bring it up.

I glanced at the clock at the train station as we waited for the next train to take us back home. Bickslow and Ever were arguing over something of course. I turned my gaze back at Laxus and sighed.

"Are you alright? You seem irritated..." I questioned carefully, knowing that Laxus is not one to speak up about his issues.. Or emotions...

"I'm fine, Freed. I just want to get back to Magnolia." He replied gruffly, shifting his gaze to the clock.

"Ah... So you can get back to Lucy?" Laxus's head snapped up at the mention of her name. He shifted on his feet and put his mask of indifference on.

"Who? Is that the new blonde chick?" Laxus quietly replied, carefully avoiding my gaze.

"You know who I'm talking about Laxus... I'm not blind... I've seen how you act when she's nearby." I paused and sighed thinking Laxus wasn't going to answer. "I'm here if you need me, Laxus." I said quietly. He kept his eyes on something in the distance and then he heaved a sigh and stepped over to a bench and sat heavily onto it. He slumped forward and rubbed the back of his neck.

"I'm... I think I'm in love with Lucy." He said quietly. I gaped at him, stunned. I was certainly not prepared for that to come out of his mouth. I quickly shut my mouth and took a seat next to him.

"Did you know her before she came to the guild?" Laxus shook his head.

"No. Well, we met briefly once before she came to the guild but..." I waited patiently for him to go on.

"Gods, it's so ridiculous! I barely know her and I can't help but want to stay at her side at all times and what's worse is that I think it's all happening because I'm a dragon slayer. I mean, you know how I am, but ever since I ran into Lucy... I can't even stomach being with another woman! I mean this voice in my head keeps yelling at me about being with Lucy and it's driving me insane!"

Laxus sighed and wiped a hand over his face. He looked at his hands and mumbled softly. "But... any time I hear her voice, it makes my heart race. Her scent... it's the most fragrant smell of strawberries and vanilla. And when she smiles... Gods listen to me... I sound like such a fucking love-sick idiot." He groaned burying his face in his hands.

He really loves her... Shaking my head, I focused on the more concerning part of his confession. "This voice... What is it like?"

"It feels as if the voice is booming and growling inside my head. It always tells me things like 'Lucy is mine', 'No other but Lucy', 'Claim her'-"

"'Claim her?!' What does it mean by that?" I asked bewildered.

"Uh well... I think it actually means sex. Or more specifically when I bite her during sex... Actually that's another thing... When me and Lucy were having sex my magic kinda got a little wild and I couldn't control it."

"You SHOCKED HER?!" I gasped, horrified.

"NO! Well... I wouldn't say it shocked her... More like seeped into her or maybe even absorbed by her."

"Amazing... How do you know that she had absorbed it? It didn't affect her at all, your lightning?" I immediately regretted asking that because Laxus grew a big smirk.

"Oh it affected her alright. She actually got off on it! It really freaked me out at the time but I think she really likes it... But the reason I know she absorbed it is because she now has a lightning-like mark on her forearm. It actually moves and you can see the lightning crackling under her skin. It's pretty amazing."

"Wow... I'd like to take a look at it once we get back! To think someone could absorb magic that way... Hmm did anything else happen?"

"Well I did bite her... It felt kinda instinctual actually, like I couldn't stop myself and then in the morning I think I bit her again in the same place on her neck-"

"You stayed the night?" I asked incredulously.

Laxus rubbed the back of his neck, blushing. "Uh yeah... It was nice." My jaw dropped. "Uh anyway I was saying that when I went to Galuna Island to bring her back home she showed me the mark on her forearm as well as the bite mark and the bite mark turned into... more of a yellow dragon tattoo.. But the strange thing is that it doesn't really look like ink but it's scales... Like dragon scales. Which is why I think it has to do with me being a dragon slayer..."

That's definitely something I'll have to research. If only there were more books on dragon slayer magics. Sigh.

My thoughts were interrupted as Laxus's communication lacrima went off. Groaning Laxus reached for it and answered the call. Mira and Cana appeared and I sat up straighter, concern etched on my face as I saw the somber and haggard faces they both expressed.

"What is it?" Laxus asked, bored. They briefly explained that Phantom had come to attack Fairy Tail.

"Laxus! The master is seriously hurt and we can't locate Mystogan... You're our only hope now..." Mira said gravely.

"Huh?!" Laxus exclaimed.

"Please come back. Fairy Tail is in trouble."

"Man, that old geezer's pathetic! It's not my problem. Deal with it yourselves." Laxus sneered.

"Hold on, Laxus!" Cana shouted angrily.

"It's true, though. The geezer started it. Why should we have to clean up his mess?" I could tell Laxus was about to hang up on them but then Mira mentioned...

"They're going after Lucy! One of us!" Mira pleaded. Laxus snapped to attention, nearly dropping the lacrimacom.

"Lucy?! Why? Is she okay?!" Laxus asked with worry. Mira looked back in confusion, Cana's face went from anger to surprise to a sly grin, and I looked at him with a knowing smile. Laxus ignored our looks and pressed for answers. "Mira! Is. Lucy. Okay?"

"Uh yeah she's ok for now but the entire Phantom guild is after her." He breathed a sigh of relief.

"Then how do you know they are after Lucy?" Laxus asked.

"Because she was captured not too long ago..." Cana spoke up from behind Mira.

"What?!" He shot up from the bench, worry and anger warring on his face.

"But Natsu saved her." I could see his expression darkening and heard the low growl Laxus let out when Natsu was mentioned. Is Laxus jealous? I wonder if...

"What's the matter Laxus? Have a crush on our girl Lucy?" Cana teased, her grin growing as Laxus sent a death glare her way.

"Shut up Cana!" Laxus snapped.

"Lucy? You and Lucy? Are... you dating Lucy, Laxus?" Mira asked.

"... Lucy is fine right? We're leaving as soon as the train pulls into the station. Just... keep her safe until I get there." Before they could respond, Laxus hung up. I had never seen such worry take over his features.

"Laxus, Lucy will be ok. We'll get back to town and she'll be safe. Besides, Phantom is no match for Fairy Tail." I said trying to ease Laxus's mind. Laxus stayed quiet. I sighed and walked over to Ever and Bix to let them know about Phantom's attack. I left out the details about Lucy. I'm sure Laxus would like more time to figure out what is going on befor-

My head snapped around and my eyes trained on Laxus. I could feel the static in the air and knew something wasn't right.

"Laxus?" I asked, taking a small step towards him.

"Something's not right..." He stood there for a moment before suddenly screaming in pain. He hunched over as sparks started to dance across his body.

"Laxus!" We shouted with concern for our leader. None of us could get close enough to help him due to his magic. It looked as if he had been hit. I scanned the area for any assailants that could have been nearby to cause Laxus that kind of pain but I couldn't see anyone. I turned my attention back to Laxus and he was gasping for air.

He glanced at me and quietly said "It's Lucy."

My heart nearly broke for my friend and leader. He could feel her pain? Then she must have been captured again or at the very least in battle.

"Go to her Laxus. We'll take the train back. We should be there in a few hours." I said with certainty. He nodded and carefully stood up. He tossed his bag towards me and I caught it. With a flash of light, he was gone.

"Freed! What happened? What's wrong with Laxus?" Ever questioned with concern.

"Yeah! Why did Bossman suddenly leave? Is he going to be ok?" Bix frowned. I sighed.

"I'm not sure what's going on... But we need to be there to back him up." I said with determination as the train pulled into the station. We collected our things and boarded the train.

With Laxus...

Fuck I haven't used that much magic teleporting in a long time. He sighed looking over Magnolia. He was on the outskirts of town, when he heard it.

"AAHHH!"

No... NO! NOO! He roared, lightning striking across the sky.

With Lucy...

Lucy crumbed to the ground after being thrown against the wall.

"The master's mean making me guard the girl while he gets to stamp out those pests..." He turned his arm into a steel beam.

"Stop! If the master finds out, you'll get in serious trouble-" The Phantom guild member was cut off when a steel beam smashed into his face.

"Be quiet. I don't care whose daughter this is. She's Fairy scum to me. Plus, being a girl doesn't change the fact she's a wizard. She knew what she was getting into when she joined her guild." Gajeel said.

As the guild members expressed their concerns with Gajeel beating on Lucy, she smiled slowly standing up, using the wall as support.

"You guys really are stupid... I pity you so much it brings tears to my eyes..." Lucy spoke up.

"Oh?" Gajeel turned to her, his arm returning back to normal and crossed his arms.

"W-What is she thinking?!"

"She's provoking Gajeel...!"

"Phantom Lord... Ruler of the spirits, huh? Talk about ridiculous! You're not scary one bit!" She smirked.

"Oh, you don't say?" She was suddenly smashed back into the wall, his metal arm crushing her chest. "You've got real guts, trying to act tough in this situation. I like that."

She clutched at the metal beam pressing into her and felt something surge through her. She looked into his eyes as she glared and let loose a surge of lightning, traveling up his arm to his body. He screamed in pain and let her go. She gasped, collapsing to the ground. Both her and Gajeel had shock written on their faces.

"W-What the fuck was that?!" He grunted, eyes searching over her for some kind of weapon. She's a celestial wizard... Where the hell did that electricity come from? What- Wait... He sniffed the air and smirked. That's interesting... "Where is your mate, huh? Gihehe! He'll certainly come for you... Finally some fun! I guess I better make sure he gets the message." He casually made his way back over to her as she got up onto her hands and knees and looked up at him in defiance.

"Careful what you wish for. He's the strongest wizard in Fairy Tail." She gasped as Gajeel kicked her across the room.

He chuckled and was about to land another blow to Lucy when light filled the room. Gajeel jumped back and smirked as he saw a huge, seething, blonde man with scales on his arms.

ROOOAAARRR!

Lucy, seeing lightning arc around the room, smiled as her vision went black and she lost consciousness.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

I'm so sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up! I hope you at least liked the new chapter! I will try to get the next one out ASAP! As always I really enjoy what you guys think about my chapters so please review! Let me know if you like this chapter. Thanks for reading!

BugBite