Thank you all for the positive reviews on chapter 5! I'm glad you are enjoying the story. :) Fair waring, you may not like this chapter, but it needs to be done... XD

I was walking through the darkness, no sound echoed as I made my way aimlessly searching the ever expanding abyss. After a long time I finally heard sound coming from somewhere in the distance, so I picked up the pace, racing towards it. A light came into view after a few minutes and I raced towards it.

Suddenly I was in the palace once again, standing next to the tall men with glowing red eyes. I was frozen in my place watching as the events of my past played out. Natsu called out my name, and I could see the realization on my own face that the dagger was aimed for my heart.

I fell to my knees, tears spilling over my cheeks. I watched as the scene in front of me played out, the shadow dagger flying through the air. Screams echoed off the walls as the blade made impact, and the future version of me fell to the floor bleeding from the chest. I watched as my past and future selves conversed. A smile came to her lips while the tears fell, telling the past Lucy that it was to protect the future. She struggled to tell them all how happy she was to see them again, one last time before she closed her eyes.

Her arm fell limp to her side, and I cried out, trying to run across the space between us.

The scene faded into blackness, and when I opened my eyes again the scene before me made bile roll up my throat. Future Lucy's memories, I was trapped in them again.

I watched as dragons took everything that I held dear to me, destroying any hope of a future for me or anyone else in this world.

Bodies were thrown about me like rag dolls, blood staining the rubble laying all around me. Fairy Tail's mages had been scattered, some in pieces over the battle field, along with our allies. I took a good look at myself, and realized that I had been hit as well.

My arm was heavily damaged, my dominant hand missing. The proof that I belonged to my crazy family was no longer there. My heart clenched in agony as I spotted the missing appendage a few feet away. The sorrow and fear crushed me as I realized that I was completely surrounded by the dragons again.

I could no longer defend myself since my keys had been ripped from me in the last attack. I was so helpless, all I could do was whimper Natsu's name, hoping he was still alive.

It was going to end for me, and he was the last thing that I would think of. It was ridiculous to be worry about anyone else in this situation, but I found that I was never rational where he was concerned.

I became a phantom once again, hoovering over the scene as the attack struck breaking apart the ground where I had been sitting. When the smoke cleared, he was there, Natsu stood between me and danger just like he always had.

I watched as the wounded Lucy reached out with her good hand, calling him back.

He fought as though he wasn't tired, as though this wasn't his last battle. Giving everything he had to protect the now defenseless girl who was bleeding out on the rubble behind him. I wanted to bring him back, to save him, but I was frozen, my voice dieing in my throat.

He took another bad hit, but stood back up to fight once more, he headed straight to his own death, going down in a blaze of glory befitting the man who would never surrender.

"Natsu!"

Fat tears were falling from my closed eyes as I whimpered his name over and over again. I didn't have a sense of where I was anymore, or what was going to happen next. I didn't want to see anymore; I didn't want to feel this pain again. My heart pounded in my ears painfully as my breath hitched. I couldn't get enough oxygen into my lungs through my sobs.

"Is she ok?"

"Its just a nightmare, she'll calm down soon. Go back to sleep."

I could hear voices near me, and my heart nearly stopped, no more please, I don't want to see any more. Words began to flow from my mouth, broken and rasping in my own ears. I didn't listen to the words that came, only wanting the nightmare to leave. I feared opening my eyes, unsure of what other horrors laid in the black abyss of my nightmares.

I felt the room shifting, my body suddenly wrapped in a comforting warmth. I leaned into it, unsure of why I felt the sudden need to be closer. Something wrapped around me even tighter, and my senses were flooded with a scent I was unfamiliar with. I took a sharp breath, surprised at the feeling of arms being wrapped tightly around my shoulders, and what I assumed was a hand gliding through my hair slowly.

"You aren't alone."

My arms moved on their own, wrapping around whomever it was that was attempting to comfort me. I rested my head on a broad firm chest and sighed. The steady pounding fought against my heart's frantic beat, somehow calming it into it's own steady rhythm. I didn't understand what was happening, but I knew that in the moment it was exactly what I needed.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"No."

"Then why are you doing it?"

"I honestly don't know."

There was a long silence, filled only by my ragged breathing and the sounds of my quieting sobs.

"I don't think I've ever seen someone look so broken."

"She'll get past this eventually, she's tougher than they give her credit for."

The soft stroking of my hair slowed nearly to a stop as my breathing finally became even, with the exception of a few sobs here and there.

"We're going to Magnolia aren't we?"

"Yes, I will meet you there."

"Master isn't going to like this."

"Right now, I don't care what he thinks."

"I hope you know what you're doing."

The air around me became silent, the pressure around my shoulders tightening. A fresh wave of the unfamiliar scent assaulted my nose, calming the last of my terror. I finally felt safe enough to let the darkness take me again.

"I don't."

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The next time I opened my eyes, the sun was shining in my face, alerting me to the time. My body was tucked tightly under the covers of my futon, my pillow still wet from all the tears. I could feel the aftermath of my nightmare as my head pounded, the feeling of dried tears making me feel slightly embarrassed.

My eyes closed again, remembering that I wasn't alone in this room through the night. My cheeks flamed with embarrassment, knowing that my two companions had definitely witnessed one of my weakest moments. I wanted to curl into a ball and just vanish, thinking about the looks my companions would have on their faces when I was brave enough to peek my head out from under the blanket (which I had pulled up to hide from the bright sun).

There was nothing I could do about it now, no matter how mortified I felt, so I resolved to play it off like I didn't remember a thing. I pushed back all the feelings that needed to be bottled up again, and pulled the blanket down.

"Are you awake now?" The soft voice came from right above me, and I opened my eyes to see Yukino's smiling face.

"Is it morning already?" I replied groggily, I added a yawn for good measure. So far, so good.

"You're so lazy, it's almost noon!" She covered her mouth as she laughed. I felt a sting in my gut, as I realized my nightmares hadn't returned after I had been wrapped in that unfamiliar presence. I had actually sleep in peace, barley remembering if I had dreamed anything at all. "Come on, I want to go shopping!"

Suddenly I felt a rush of graitude that she wasn't mentioning what had happened the previous night, she must have known that talking about it would make me feel even worse.

"Shopping? That sounds like the best idea I've heard in ages!" I moved to get my bags, when she place a hand on my shoulder.

"You may want to take a minute, the desk clerk brought up some mail for you just a bit ago." She laughed at my gaping mouth when I spotted the pile of letters with my name on the cover.

"What the hell are these?" My mind was blown as I started opening them.

"My guess is that your absence sparked a little worry, I can't say I blame them." She gave me a small shrug before going back to reading a copy of Sorcerer's weekly that was laying beside the bed I had been sleeping in.

I quickly read through the whole pile, saving the one with Erza's tidy script for last. They were filled with worried questions, and hopes for me to return soon, and safely.

Lucy,

I'm not sure what's been going on the past few weeks, but I know that running off to be alone isn't the answer. Come home and we'll work through this, together. Cana won't tell anyone why you stayed behind, but if you are as beat up as she is then I want you home, now. I will see you tonight or I will come to Hosenka and drag you back.

Erza

"I've got to go back to Magnolia, I really don't think it's a good idea to piss Erza off more." I stashed the rest of the letters in my bag taking out a change of clothes for the day. "How bout we do our shopping there, you can stay at my place if you want."

Something dark passed over her face so quickly that I almost missed it, her eyes flashing with something I had never seen before. It was only a moment, I thought maybe I was seeing things.

"I guess that can't be helped." She tried to make it look like she was displeased with the article she was reading, but I could tell it was something else.

"Is everything ok?"

"Of course, it'll be just us girls, we'll have loads of fun." She wouldn't meet my eyes as she spoke, bitterness creeping into her voice.

"What do you mean just the two of us?" I took a moment to look around and realized there was something missing. There was no trace of the dark haired Sabertooth mage, even his bed was already put away. "Where's Rogue?" She visibly flinched, her cheeks slowly becoming a deeper shade of red.

"Something came up, he said he'll meet up with us when he's done."

I wanted to press further, but that look crossed her face again, killing the words in my throat. She went about cleaning up the room as I got my things to head to the bath. I tried not to think to deeply about what was going on as I washed the remnants of tears from my face and hair. I pondered the different reasons my friend might have a look like that on her face as I rinsed and got dressed in my normal clothing. Nothing came to mind, since I couldn't place the emotions behind her eyes.

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I made my way back to the room slightly distracted by my train of thought. I stopped just outside the door as Yukino's voice brought me back.

"I know I shouldn't ... but seeing that look on his face... how could he possibly... it just isn't fair." She was talking to herself, I peaked into the room, and saw her perched on the window ledge. Her brow was drawn together in frustration, a small pout on her lips. I wanted to know what she was talking about, but I knew that it was inappropriate to ask.

I pulled back from the door and made a big deal of my entrance, giving a loud yawn and a deep sigh as I walked past the threshold. She turned to look at me, the glint passing through her eyes again. If I didn't know better I'd say it was a normal version of the look Juvia gave me anytime I got to close to Gray, but that was impossible. Yukino and I had no common ground where men were concerned, we didn't really even know the same people. I shook my head with a small laugh, brushing the idea away as absolutely ridiculous.

"If we hurry we might be able to catch the next train. I'll pay my rent, and give Erza a quick visit, then we can go shopping!" I shouldered my pack, and moved to loop my arm through Yukino's. This seemed to snap her out of whatever mood she had been in. "There is a pair of boot I've been needed for ages!" She laughed at my exaggeration, and I knew I was making progress.

We checked out, and I covered the tab, with Yukino protesting that we should split the bill. I laughed it off and made my way to the train station, picking up a few snacks from the booths of the festival as we made our way across town. I wasn't looking forward to the conversation I was about to have with Erza, but I knew that I couldn't avoid it either.

The ride back to Magnolia was quiet as I sat reading my book, and Yukino scanned through her copy of Sorcerer's Weekly. I tried my best to avoid thinking of all the ways Erza might punish me when I gave her my explanation of why I was leaving the team. I was aware that some people called us Team Natsu, but in reality it was Erza who lead our group. I took a deep breath before marking my page. The train pulled to a stop a moment later, the call for Magnolia station coming from the conductor.

Yukino and I chatted about the issue she had been reading over as we walked down the streets of the city, occasionally stopping to say hello the the merchants along the canal as they called to me. Too quickly I found myself in front of the doors to the Guild hall, having slipped an envelope of money and a note into my land lady's mail slot on the way.

"You can do it, just take a deep breath." Yukino was back to her absolutely cheerful self, her bright smile making me feel at ease.

"I'm back everyone!" I called as I pushed the doors open; I made it two steps before I was tackled to the ground by a blue blur.

"LU-CHAN!" Levy was crying heavily into my chest, refusing to relinquish her grip on my back. "We were so worried!" I patted her head with a soft chuckle, hiding my discomfort as her arm rubbed against the bruise on my side.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you." I assured, giving my best smile as she pulled away to look at me.

"You look like crap Bunny girl." Gajeel had come to my rescue, pulling the now squirming Levy off of me.

"I told you she got beat up, what did you expect her to look like?" Cana growled from the bar, her arms were pinned to her sides, tied in one of Mira's 'special knots' so that she couldn't get away.

"You mean these?" I pointed down to my bruised ribs and leg with a smile. "I've had worse." Gajeel just shook his head with a deep chuckle and patted my shoulder.

"Good to have you back to normal." He said it so that only I could hear, and I was thankful to him for it. I nodded, silently letting him know that I wouldn't be worrying Levy so much anymore.

"LUCY!" I froze when the voice reached me, a small startled sound leaving my lips. Before I could move, Erza had me up on my feet and in a bone crushing hug.

"E-Erza that hurts." It came out as a squeak. Immediately she let me go, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment as she made a quick assessment of my injuries.

"You will tell me everything that has been going on, now." I gulped as she dragged me across the hall to sit on the seat next to Cana. We exchanged worried glances for a moment and I mouthed 'I'm sorry.' to the card mage.

"Erza, I've missed you." I gave her a soft smile and a pat on the shoulder, in an attempt to soften the blow. "I know you want me to tell you everything, but I don't think I can. You see it's rather complicated." She gave me a glare, the kind that made the strongest of men quake in their boots. I sighed, looking back at my hands. "Erza, I messed up. I messed up so bad that I can't see a way to fix it. So I'm going to take responsibility for my actions. What I mean is, well I'm going to be working alone from now on." My sudden declaration caught her off guard, leaving Erza slack jaw as she stared at me.

"Lucy you don't need to do this, Natsu will be back in a few days I promise. You'll work out what ever the problem is and then go back to taking jobs and having fun." Mira was only trying to make me feel better, as she smiled at me softly from behind the bar, but it was no use. Her dreams of a day were Natsu and I were the perfect couple needed to come to an end.

"He may come back, but that won't change anything. Natsu made himself very clear, and I've been doing nothing but soul searching since then." Our eyes met and she could see that I was serious; I had accepted Natsu's answer, and now they needed to respect my decision. "Natsu and I aren't going to take jobs together anymore, because I don't want to be his partner." I could feel the eyes of my guild mates on my back, waiting for me to tell them that this was some elaborate joke. I was sure that someone was going to comment about it soon, so I waited quietly.

"LLUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCYYYYYYYYYYYYY!" The cat wailed as he knocked me off my seat, he must have come in through the window. "You have to help Natsu, we were attacked!" He cried, fat tears soaking my already damp top.

I was about to move when said idiot was thrown through the doors, landing in a heap two feet from me. I could see that he was already injured badly, his left eye swollen and black.

"You will do as I say, or I'll find a way to force you." A deep commanding voice floated in the air, my eyes grew wide as I recognized it. I turned to Yukino who looked just as shocked as I felt.

"You have nothing to do with this, so piss off!" Natsu shoot to his feet, flames licking his hands as he got ready to fight back.

"You're right, I have nothing to do with this." He walked into the guild with a quiet sense of fury as the shadows swirled around his lower body. "But she does." He pointed in my direction, his deep red eyes locking with mine. "Now explain your self."

I sat there motionless, fitting the puzzle pieces together slowly as I watched the two men stalk towards each other.

"You have some nerve telling me what to do." Natsu growled.

"What did she do to deserve that?" Rogue growled back.

I took a deep breath, pushing myself up from my seat and walking right into the heart of the fray. Their fist stopped in mid air as I stood between them, holding back tears.

"Stop it." I smiled at Rogue trying to choke back the pain from my voice. "You don't need to defend my honor, this is my fight, not yours." I watched as he took a step back, folding his arms over his chest. I was happy that he wanted to defend me, but this wasn't the right way.

"I don't need an explanation, or an apology. You've made yourself clear, and I'll respect that." I tired not to look him in the eye as I spoke, afraid that I'd lose my nerve.

Natsu didn't move, but he let his flames die out.

"We are going to pretend nothing happened, and move past this."

He just stood there, eyes narrowed at me like I had done something terrible to him. I suppose I had, the confession and kiss had ruined our friendship beyond repair it seemed. Fine, if that's how it needed to be then I would accept it and move on.

I just wanted to finished my business with Erza and go shopping.

SLAP

The whole room was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"You are the worst sort of coward, Natsu Dragneel." Yukino was by my side gritting her teeth, her hand still hoovering in the air. "Never in a million years could I have imagined how much I despise you right now." She was breathing hard.

"Yukino, don't." I tried to calm her, but she kept going.

"Stop hiding it Lucy-sama! I know this is killing you, you're shaking like a leaf for crying out loud." I hadn't noticed, but I was in fact shaking, with the overwhelming emotions swirling inside me.

"It's ok Yukino, I'll be fine."

SLAP

This time it was Cana who was in front of me, free from her bindings at last.

"You'll pay for her suffering, her nightmares, and her tears whether she wants you to or not." She was going to hit him again, but I got in front of her, crying out as she made impact with the injured portion of my side. "Lucy, your ribs." Her eyes went wide as she heard the cracking.

"T-t-that enough." The area started to throb, and my breaths started to come in short spurts. "He... isn't... worth... it."

I swayed on my feet, the pain making my sight go white. I felt myself falling, but the pain was so intense that I lost my grip on reality.

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"She took a really bad hit when the monster materialized, I couldn't get to her quick enough." That was Cana's voice.

"What the hell was she thinking?" That was Gray.

"She was focused on proving to herself that she can survive without that pin head." Cana scolded, I was sure she had smacked him upside the head.

"She's still weak from the drain on her magic, that's probably why she took that hit so badly." Yukino added.

"Shh, you're waking her up."

My side was throbbing so badly I had a hard time focusing on the voices in the background. The events rushed back to me painfully, and I winced as my fingers ran up to trace my bruised side. I hissed when I felt the separation in the bone.

"Lucy-sama." I looked around letting my eyes adjust. "Cana explained what happened to everyone, so you don't need to talk about it again." I was grateful for that small amount of comfort. I pulled myself up slowly, realizing we were in the infirmary at the back of the guild.

My head was finally clearing and I took the time to study myself.

"Thank you." I looked up at her with a smile, letting the relief I felt shine through. "I wasn't sure I could say it again without being drunk."

"Lu-chan, you should have told me what was going on." Levy moved forward gaining my attention. "I would have had Gajeel beat him up sooner!" I couldn't help but laugh at the way she had whined like a child. It hurt so I stopped, taking a moment to catch my breath.

"I'm sorry Levy-chan, my judgement was clouded at the time."

"Erza isn't happy either." Levy added sadly. "I can't believe all that happened I didn't suspect a thing."

"He handled it poorly Levy, that's all. I've made my peace now." I gave her the same relieved smile that I had directed at Yukino. "I just want to move forward now."

"If that's true then why are you crying again?" I turned my head to see the dark haired man sitting at the foot of the bed, polishing his sword to entertain himself, but he had stopped to look at me. I reached my hand up to check if I was, and I felt the steady stream falling into my lap.

"I don't know..."

There was a long moment of silence as the others in the room looked back and forth between us, unsure of what was he was implying. He looked like he wanted to say something, and for some reason I was eager to hear what it might be.

"It's good to she you awake." Erza was at the door, waiting for my permission to enter.

"Hey, Erza." I wasn't sure what else to say, now that everything was out in the open.

"You don't need to leave the team, we'll kick the flame brain off instead." Gray insisted as Erza came to stand behind him. I smiled at his willingness to stick around but I knew it wasn't the best way for me to move on.

"I'm sure you would, but I don't want that. I'm going to be fine, and working by myself will allow me to make sure I can pay my rent on time." Teasing him would let him see that I really was ok. He understood my meaning right away, and patted my head gently.

"I wish you would have confided in us earlier Lucy, maybe we could have spared you some of your discomfort." Erza leaned heavily on the back of the chair.

"I guess I've never been good at sharing the burden, have I?" I shifted, throwing my legs over the side of my bed. "I've learned a valuable lesson, and I won't make this mistake again." I grabbed my bag from the corner ready to head out again, knowing that if I stayed the pain in my chest might return. I was reaching for the knob when it opened towards me.

"Lucy-san why are you moving around?" Wendy had her most serious face on, as she panted. "I came as fast as I could, your injuries need attention." I was about to protest, but four sets of hands dragged me back to the bed. "Can you all step outside, this may take some time."

"Wendy you really don't..." I trailed off at the look on her face.

"I can see that you have a broken rib just by the way you are breathing, now sit and let me work." I kept silent, realizing that my complaint would fall on deaf ears. "You don't deserve to be in this much pain."

We fell into a comfortable silence as she worked. She took her time making sure that she had fixed everything.

"Two broken ribs, and your cheek had a hair line fracture." She shook her head at me sadly. "Please don't do this again, I hate to see you in this much pain." The girl warped her arms around my waist, pulling me closer. I slowly patted her head, feeling better now that I could breath properly.

"I couldn't stand by and let Cana hurt her friend, no matter what he did to me." I tried to smile, but it wasn't happening. "I don't want to be the reason he gets hurt anymore. So we're going to let this go."

She pulled back with wide eyes. "I don't understand how you can forgive him so easily."

"I never said I forgive him, there's a part of my that will always distrust him now. Even if that is the case I still can't make myself stop loving him." I looked away, feeling the tears coming to the surface again. "I just have to do what's best for me, and that is to put it all behind me."

"I don't think I could do that." Wendy confided.

"I'm not sure if I can either, but I've got to try. After all I can't force someone to return my feeling just so we can be together. That wouldn't make anyone happy." Wendy nodded agreeing with my assessment of the situation.

"You can go now if you want. You won't run into his out there, he was gone when I got here." She let me go, getting up to open the door, revealing five extremely red faced and one annoyed mage in the door way. "Eavesdropping isn't nice." Wendy clicked her tongue as she passed them.

Levy must have taken that as an invitation to run back to my side. "You look all better!"

"I say we go on that shopping spree now." Yukino added as she went to grab my arm.

"I second that!" Erza was still by the door, a look of pride across her face. "I'll treat for dessert after we're done."

"You're going to make me come and carry things aren't you?" Gray groaned.

"Of course I am." Erza patted his shoulder a little to hard.

"Then Juvia will be coming as well!" The blue haired woman popped up behind Erza glaring daggers at me, and mouthing 'Love rival'.

"We'd be happy to have you come along." I couldn't stop the nervous laugh that bubbled up. "I guess it's decided then."