Standing in the doorway of Lucy's apartment, Laxus saw red. Literally. There was blood everywhere, smeared on the walls, soaking the fabric of her overturned sofa and a puddle of the stuff almost reaching to where he stood. And in the middle of it all was Lucy.

"Shit, Lucy!" Laxus ran towards her, dropping to his knees next to her small frame. Almost every inch of her was covered in cuts, bruises and her own lifeblood, her clothes shredded and only just protecting her modesty. Listening closely, he could barely make out her heartbeat but it was there, incredibly faint and weak, slowly losing its pace, but it was there, and her chest was hardly moving.

"Hey, Blondie, c'mon wake up! Lucy? Can you hear me? Shit, shit, shit!" Laxus glanced around the room, a brief part of him suddenly realised this was the first time he'd been here and how perfectly it seemed to suit her. It was quaint and homely, a bit too much pink for his liking but it was perfect for her. He quickly pushed that thought to the back of his mind as he looked for either something to staunch the flow of blood or a communication lacrima. Seeing nothing, Laxus tore his coat from his shoulders and wrapped Lucy in it as gently as he could, trying not to further damage her arm and legs which were bent at unnatural angles, something he knew meant they were broken. Just as he was about to lift her, he noticed her keys on the ground next to her. He grabbed them and shoved them into his pocket before lifting her from the puddle that had started to congeal beneath her. He briefly considered lightning teleporting them to the hospital but dismissed the idea as he ran from the building. He wasn't sure she could survive travelling with his magic in her condition.

Sprinting through the streets of Magnolia, Laxus pushed down his rising panic and the gnawing pain in his chest, only focusing on getting Lucy some help before it was too late. He turned the last corner and could see the hospital looming ahead when his heart froze. Lifting her slightly as he ran, Laxus listened for the beat of her heart and quickened his pace as he couldn't hear it.

"C'mon, Blondie, stay with me! We're almost there, just hold on a little longer, please!" The doors to the emergency room were only a few steps ahead of them now, "I won't let you give up. C'mon you stupid woman, breathe!" Just as they crossed the threshold, Laxus sent a shock of electricity towards her heart and almost collapsed as he heard the resulting heartbeat, still dangerously slow but it was there. "Help! I need help here!" Almost as soon as he yelled into the empty ER, a gurney was rolled in front of him and a barrage of doctors and nurses were trying to take Lucy from his arms. A low growl built in his throat at the thought of someone taking her from him but the logical part of his brain quickly took action, releasing his grip on the injured woman. In mere seconds, she was out of sight, the double doors across the room slamming shut behind her.

Laxus just stood there. He didn't care that he was covered in blood or that he couldn't quite breathe as panic overtook him. He just kept thinking 'please don't let her die'. It took a few minutes before he realised someone was gently shaking him.

"Sir? Are you okay? Sir, I need you to take deep breaths." He followed the voices instructions and slowly felt himself return to his surroundings. He blinked a few times and turned to see a concerned nurse with her hand on his arm. "That's good, just keep breathing. Come and take a seat over here while I grab you some water." She led him over to a row of uncomfortable plastic chairs and let him drop heavily into one. Through the shock he registered her leaving his side as he plastered his eyes on the door Lucy had been taken through. He jumped slightly as a cup entered his vision and took the offered liquid from the nurse.

"What's-" Laxus cleared his throat and tried again, his voice still shaking and hoarse, "What's going to happen to her?"

The nurse gave him a pitiful smile, "The doctors will do all they can to stabilise her and help her but in the meantime, I'm going to need you to help fill out a few details for me, okay?" Laxus nodded his head and waited for her to pull out a pen. "Firstly, my name is Kerrie. Can you tell me yours?"

Normally Laxus would be angry at being treated like a child but at this moment he couldn't help be thankful for it. Swallowing down his instinct to rush after the blonde, he took a small sip of his water and followed it with another deep breath. "Laxus. Laxus Dreyar." The nurse smiled at him.

"Nice to meet you Laxus. Can you tell me the name of your friend and what happened?"

"Lucy Heartfilia. I don't know what happened. I found her like that in her apartment. She's my guildmate. I was just passing and I smelt the blood." He quickly braced his elbows on his knees and buried his head in his hands, "Oh God, there was just so much blood."

Kerrie gently patted him on his back, "Is there anything we should know for medical reasons? Any allergies or recent illnesses? Is there any family members we can contact?"

Laxus shook his head, "I don't know. She gets injuries from jobs a lot but nothing this bad. I don't know about allergies or anything and she has no family left. Fairy Tail is her family." He sat up and looked at Kerrie. "Have you got a comm' lacrima? Our guildmaster, he has all that sort of information and we have a healer at our guild. She might be able to help." Kerrie left briefly after jotting down some notes on her clipboard and returned with a communication lacrima for him.

"I'll be just over there. Your healer is Wendy Marvell, correct? She already has clearance at this hospital so it shouldn't be a problem for her to come and help." After getting confirmation, Kerrie left him to make his call. Laxus brought his hand up to run through his hair, vaguely noticing they were covered in Lucy's blood. Taking a deep breath, Laxus pushed some magic into the lacrima and waited for an answer.

Suddenly the face of his grandfather appeared, glaring at him. "Laxus, what do you-" His voice cut off as he took in the haggard appearance of his grandson. "My boy, what happened?"

"Jiji, I need you to get Wendy and bring her to the hospital. I found Blondie in her apartment. Gramps, she's in really bad shape. The docs need her medical info and Wendy needs to get here ASAP."

Master Makarov looked shocked at what Laxus had just told him, "Laxus, how bad is she?"

"Damn Gramps, can't this wait, she needs help now!" His grandfather just looked at him until he continued, "Look from what I can tell she lost a lot of blood and most of her limbs were broken. She…she…Jiji, her heart stopped. I had to shock her to get her going again but I don't know if she's going to make it." Something splashed on the lacrima in his hands and Laxus took a moment to realise he was crying, something he hadn't done since Fantasia.

"Okay, son. I'll get Wendy and we'll get there as soon as we can."

"Thanks, Gramps. Can you…can you bring the Raijinshuu with you? Just don't tell her team. They deserve to celebrate a little longer and there's nothing they can do here yet anyway." A quick nod from his grandfather was all he got before the lacrima went dark. Laxus placed it on the chair next to him and leaned back, refocusing on the double doors in front of him, waiting for the Fairy Tail mages to arrive.

"Blondie, you better not die on me."