Sunlight broke through the curtains early that next morning, waking the Lightning Dragon Slayer. He refused to open his eyes at first, the sun was hitting him nearly right in the face. The sweet scent of Lucy filled his nostrils, causing him to smile and pull her slightly closer to him. Nuzzling his nose into those soft, blonde curls instantly relaxed him. For a moment, he wondered what time it was because their alarm hasn't gone off yet.

As much as he hated that he once again barely got any sleep, Laxus couldn't be happier with how this trip has gone. She's my mate, mine forever… Laxus let his fingers graze over Lucy's soft skin as his eyes slowly opened. Something shining on her skin caught his eye and once his eyes were fully open, he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Patches of bright yellow scales were scattered across her body. But what might have been most amazing was the tattoo that covered her entire back. It was a tribal style dragon, instead of the traditional black, the galaxies were painted inside of the Dragon, along with the same bright yellow scale pattern that was on the rest of her. The head started on the bottom of her neck, the teeth lining up with the mating mark that was given to her and it expanded all the way down to her tailbone, where a heart key was being held securely by the dragon's tail. It was one of the most gorgeous tattoos that he had ever seen.

It was then that he also noticed that there were new tattoos on him as well. Slowly getting out of bed, Laxus makes his way to the full length mirror. The Dragon Slayer was nearly unable to contain his excitement as he looked at the new ink that he was sporting. It looked like a more detailed version of the paint that Virgo had placed on him, along with the yellow scales that lined his arms that matched his mate's. Taking a look at his neck, he sees the puncture wound in his neck from where the tattoo originated.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

The sound of the alarm was enough to startle both of the wizards in the room. Lucy stretched and reached for her phone without opening her eyes just yet. Lucy was trying her best to wake up. At least she didn't feel like she had been hit by a truck like the last few times. Although there was a small throbbing feeling between her neck and shoulder. Once she opened her eyes and looked down, she noticed that her dragon slayer wasn't in bed with her.

Looking around, she finally noticed him on the other side of the room walking towards her. The tattoos along Laxus' chest took her breath away. I bet this happened last night after we mated… I can't believe how intricate and sexy it looks. It looks even better than the painting Virgo did yesterday.

"If you think mine look hot as hell, take a look at yourself princess."

For a moment that he could figure out what she was thinking. Looking down at her arms, her heart nearly stopped as she noticed the golden scales along her body. The way that the morning light made them shimmer was breathtaking. "Unbelievable… It looks so cool!"

That's not all Princess, come over here and take a look.

The sudden intrusion inside her head surprised her. So… I can just answer you like this?

She heard him chuckle as he pulled her close, picking her up and taking her towards the bathroom. Yes you can, Gajeel tells me that this is how a lot of couples communicate. He told me that most couples can carry on regular conversations outside of their minds with others while they're also talking to their mate.

Wow… This is freaky, but so cool! Lucy was trying to not let all of this information overwhelm her, but it was a lot to take in at once.

Feeling the cold marble of the bathroom counter on the back of her legs startled Lucy. She watched as her boyfriend grabbed a small mirror and held it up, allowing her to see the single most amazing tattoo in her life. All she could do was gasp and stare in awe at the dragon on her back. Is… Is this what happened because we mated?

It must be, I wasn't aware that this would happen either, but it seems to make the most sense. Do you remember seeing Levy yesterday? She had all of those new piercings on her face from mating with Gajeel. Every Dragon Slayer has their own special kind of mark that they leave on their mates, mine just happened to be the sickest tattoo I've ever seen.

Unable to hide the blush on her face and the excitement that she felt, Lucy runs her hands up her mate's chest and up into his hair. All of this is very exciting and cool… But we have to meet with Dorothy in less than an hour… Then we can go home and relax before going to the guild tomorrow. I'm not so sure that I'm ready for all of the attention that we're going to get.

A small chuckle broke through the Dragon Slayer's lips as he leaned down and kissed Lucy's forehead, lifting her up once again and taking her over to the shower. That sounds like a great plan. I wonder how your team is going to handle this news.

I could say the same about yours, I feel like they're going to take it worse than my team will. Not only them, what about the rest of the guild? They're never going to leave us alone! The hot water was soothing as it ran over her tired muscles. Grabbing her shampoo, she quickly starts to lather up. Her fingertips were quickly replaced with her mates as a wave of calm washed over her. She didn't realize she was feeling nervous about going home until he had stepped in.

You're forgetting that you're mated to one of the strongest mages in the world, I think that I can take care of any one that gets on your nerves sweetheart. They're all going to be excited for us and you know that as much as I do. As much as he was trying to play it cool for Lucy, the Dragon Slayer couldn't help but feel a little apprehension for going home as well.

Lucy couldn't help but smile feeling the small bit of nervousness coming from her partner. You always know what to say… Even when you're nervous too. Her smile widened as she watched him try to hide his true feelings with no avail. I know… It's kind of strange that there's one person that you can't hide ANYTHING from. Even if you wanted to, I'm not sure if we could.

Lathering up the washcloth, Laxus began to wash his mate as he thought about what she said. I mean, It may seem inconvenient at sometimes, but when it comes down to it I'm glad that you're here to keep me grounded. To me, it's like I've finally found a reason to be so strong and to keep getting stronger.

Lucy smiled as the wave of pride and compassion rolled off of her mate. "I love that you always know what to say." She says before taking the washcloth away from him, giving his body the same loving treatment that he had given hers.

Once the two wizards were sparkling clean, they quickly dried off and made their way into the other room. Lucy picks out a black pair of shorts and purple tank top with black lace. Looking in the mirror, she carefully braids her hair in what Levy called a fishtail. Once she was ready, she quickly threw her stuff in her bag and threw it over her shoulder.

"I'll teleport you to Dorothy's real quick and then come back for you whenever you call me. Gajeel wanted to go and do some training again. He wants to see how much stronger I've gotten since last night." Lucy could feel the excitement radiating from him at the thought of a good fight. It was interesting how excited he got just to spar with another person.

"Sounds perfect." Lucy took his hand in hers and watched as they teleported out of the room, landing them back in front of Dorothy's house. Handing Laxus her bag, Lucy smiled and kissed his cheek. I'll see you after a while, have fun with Gajeel! Lucy blows her mate a kiss before turning back around to walk toward the house.

Lucy gave three knocks on the door and waited patiently, listening to Dorothy make her way to the door. Wow...Even my sense of hearing has been magnified.. Listening closely, Lucy could hear the crisp leaves waving in the wind, some on the verge of breaking free because of the strong gust. Even the smallest sounds were fascinating her.

Dorothy was rocking in her chair, knitting a lovely scarf for the little kids in town. She could sense a couple of wizards teleport in front of her home. Oh! Lucy must be back with my books! But it doesn't feel like their magic signature that I felt yesterday... Very strange. Dorothy slowly put her needles and yarn back in her basket before getting out of her chair. "Well well, who is this strikingly beautiful woman at my doorstep." She says with a chuckle as she opens the door wider for her to come in. "I love the tattoo! Did you get them done at the Starlight Festival last night? And look at the size of that rock on your necklace! Your boyfriend must really know how to spoil his ladies!"

Lucy's cheeks reddened as she looked down, pulling the three books out of her purse for Dorothy. "I didn't get them at the festival, but it was because of the festival that I got them." She says as she looks away from the older woman. "My boyfriend and I completed the mating ritual last night. The tattoos are a result of the ritual. The necklace combines our magic powers and helps us to know if the other is in danger." She says with a smile.

"I knew I sensed something different about you! Congratulations Miss Lucy! I'm so happy for you, and thank you very much for the books that you've brought me." Dorothy takes the books from the young wizard and sets them on her coffee table. "Follow me in here darling, I have some things that I want to give to you and show you."

Lucy followed the older woman into a small room with books lining three of the walls. The fourth wall had panels of glass, letting in the natural light from outside. Looking around in fascination, Lucy began to wonder why Dorothy needed to go to the library in the first place with all of these books around her. This personal collection rival's Levy's, I can't believe how many books she has.

After a few minutes of rummaging, Dorothy pulls out a few loosely bound books. The books looked as if they'd been bound together while in the wild. The paper looked very old and worn, the pages looked like they had gotten a little wet at some point as well. She wondered why in the world she was showing her this. "What are these Dorothy?" She asks before opening up the first book, immediately recognizing her mother's handwriting. Scanning the first few pages, she noticed that it was one of her mother's nature journals. She used to pick flowers and keep them in books at home on occasion.

"I have many journals of people that I used to help train. Mainly their journals would be about their magic and how to improve. But your mother was a very free spirit, she would keep just about everything in these journals that I assigned her. They were almost like her own personal Journals. She talks a lot about the different spirits that she had encountered and the different lands that she had visited. I really have no use for them anymore and I'm sure that they would mean much more to you than they would to me." Dorothy pulled out the last of the books and put them into a box. "We can go through these if you like, I have so many stories that I could tell you about your mother."

"I'd love that!" Lucy could hardly contain her excitement as she looked at the numerous journals that Dorothy pulled out. "There was so much about my mother that I didn't really know, anything that you can tell me would be appreciated."

Several hours and cups of tea later, Lucy was packing away the last book back into its box. The afternoon with Dorothy had opened her eyes to who her mother was. "Thank you so much for your time Dorothy, it has really been great talking to you." She says with a smile.

"Please, the pleasure was all mine! It was almost like I'd stepped into a time machine with all of the reminiscing that I did today." Dorothy walks over to the cupboard and pulls out a small envelope. "Now this is part of your reward for the mission you took for me. There's some Jewels in here to compensate working in that boring library, and a little note from a little girl you may know." She says with a mischevious smile.

Looking at Dorothy curiously, Lucy takes the envelope from her and opens it. Pulling out the piece of paper, Lucy immediately recognized the handwriting and she had to fight the laugh that threatened to bubble from her lips. "I can't believe that sneaky little sprite got one over on me..."

Lu-chan,

Surprise! I'm sure that you've probably figured out already that this was no ordinary mission,

yes I devised a little plan to get you and that Dragon Slayer together! Since you were given this

envelope it means that the plan was a success! We have so much to talk about when you get home!

Levy

Dorothy chuckles "That little Levy is definitely something else."

Lucy couldn't keep the smile off of her face as she folds up the note from her best friend. "She definitely is, but she knows what's best for me even when I might not know it. She's the best."

A knock on the door startled both of the wizards. "That must be that nice hunk of man that I saw you here with yesterday." Dorothy smiles at the redness on Lucy's cheeks, "It must take a lot of getting used to... all of that sexiness is too much for most women to take in." She says with uncontrollable laughter before hollering at the door, telling the person on the other side to come in.

"Oh you have no idea..." Lucy placed her cold hands on her cheeks, hoping to help some of the redness. Her efforts were futile however, because as soon as her Dragon Slayer walked through the door in his torn clothing, she knew that there was no saving her red face. "Did Gajeel get the better of you today?"

"That damn lightning rod won't know what hit him next time!" Laxus gave her a half smirk before looking at his mate, walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her tightly. "Did you have fun?"

Lucy smiled and looked at Dorothy, who was grinning from ear to ear looking at the couple. "We did have a lot of fun, I got to hear tons of stories about my mom, and she even had some of her old journals that she's giving me." Lucy takes the box in her arms and smiles at the older wizard once more. "Thank you so much for the wonderful day Dorothy."

"Please don't be a stranger you two, I always have more books that need collecting and so many more stories to tell." Dorothy walked them to the door and waved them goodbye. The two wizards waved back before Dorothy shut the door, leaving the two of them outside of her home.

Laxus leaned down, leaning his forehead against his mate's I'm ready for a long shower and a nap, how about we go home?

Lucy smiled and gently kissed the Dragon Slayer's nose while one of her hands played with his hair. There's no place I'd rather go.