AN: Hello again everyone! I have a short, filler type chapter for you all today! Don't worry, after this is when it gets going! I hope you enjoy :D

Chapter 14

The group of now six- thanks to the fact that Lucy was taken- was now running back towards the scene of confrontation. Their bodies ached and their magical power still had not been completely refilled, but they ran with all of their might. It was now or never. If they didn't make it in time, both Lucy and Lucas would be killed, and they definitely couldn't allow that to happen.

However, despite their earlier conversation, they were unable to make any real battle strategy. After all, there was no other option other than to fight. The only thing they could decide was the opponents. Erza would take both Michiko and the fast mage, Gray would handle the mage that slowed things down, and Natsu would deal with their leader while Happy would stay put with the clients. Erza argued she should take on their leader considering Natsu's injuries were far worse than hers, but the pink-haired mage refused to let anyone else battle him. He was too determined to be the one to bring Lucy back.

It was nearing 11 o'clock at night when they finally reached their destination. There was a chilly breeze in the air, but none seemed to notice. In fact, they couldn't even feel it thanks to the heat that had been radiating off of a certain dragon slayer since they started their journey. Natsu stood with his feet firmly planted into the soil, waiting for the enemies to arrive. He knew it would be best to keep his temper under control, but damn was it hard. Who knew his love for Lucy would get him this fired up?

Suddenly, a bright light flashed in front of the group. All of them took their battle stances, Natsu already raring to attack. Finally, the light dimmed and they found that it was Loke instead of the enemy. After all, they did have about an hour longer until they were supposed to arrive.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be helping Lucy!?" Natsu asked, wanting to pounce at the spirit.

"Take it easy, Natsu," Loke replied, putting his hands in front of him in surrender. "She told me to come here."

"Lucy did?" Erza asked. "Since you're here, she must be close by!"

The lion spirit sighed as he shook his head. "Sadly, that is not the case. Lucy's grown a lot stronger over the past year and a half. While before I was only able to summon myself near her, I am now allowed to roam a much greater distance."

"So she's not anywhere near us?"

"Not at all. That portal guy really does have some impressive magic."

"Can you take us to her?"

"You would never reach them in time if I did."

"Why did Lucy send you here then?" Gray inquired. It seemed he had already lost most of his clothes on the journey there.

"To tell you of their plan and to help you fight, of course. She already figured you would all come back to this spot at midnight, but apparently their leader confirmed her suspicions."

"What do they want with Lucy?" Natsu finally asked. His fists were clenched so tightly, the others feared his palms would start bleeding soon. There was also the undying heat. Taking a closer look, they could even see that his eyes were slit and there was something akin to… scales growing on his skin. Though they were much different than his Dragon Force. These were bright red and it made them aware he was out for blood.

Loke took note of his appearance, yet continued with his nonchalant manner. "His plan is actually not that bright. Just world domination. While his ultimate plan is highly unlikely, the fact remains that Lucy and the child are in danger. He plans on blackmailing you into giving all of your money, then killing all of you."

"As we expected," Amber spoke up. The older woman's body was shaking.

"Well, they aren't getting anything from us," Natsu began, "but we are getting Lucy back."

Loke gave the pink-haired boy a knowing smile. While he knew Natsu cared deeply for all of the members of Fairy Tail, it was always clear to everyone that Lucy was more important. Now only seemed to further prove that. Loke had never seen the dragon slayer so angry.

"I guess I'll entrust my owner with him," Loke thought. "Anyways, I would have helped her escape the cell she is being held captive in, but the truth remains that we can't defeat all four of them on our own while protecting the kid."

"You think you would be able to if Lucas wasn't there?" Gray asked, smirking at Loke's confidence.

Loke pushed his shades further up in annoyance at their doubt of his master's ability. "As a matter of fact, I do believe Lucy could. You don't know the amount of training she did with all of her spirits. She and Yukino have actually been training on the most absolute celestial spell known to man. While Yukino is no doubt strong, only she was able to master it. In fact, she is the second human that possesses the capability of the spell."

Gray whistled and asked, "What kind of spell is it?"

"That is a secret. Anyways, even if we weren't protecting the child, Lucy still would've made me come here to tell you everything."

Erza smiled and replied, "She is truly a stubborn woman."

"No doubt about that."

"Alright," Natsu finally began, "then we'll just have to beat these guys for her. Loke, you stay with her and make sure nothing happens."

The lion spirit nodded, and with a bow he vanished with a bright light into the spirit world. The remaining mages were glad to hear that their dear friend was alright, and now they had the motivation to fight with all they had to save her. After all, Lucy wasn't the only one to learn new tricks.

"Once we get Lucy back, I'm going to make her show me her new spell," Gray announced with an eager smirk.

"Yes, it must be a rather strong spell with how Loke was talking about it and even keeping it a secret," Erza replied. "Perhaps I shall train with her."

"You won't get the chance to because I'm going to fight her when we get back," Natsu announced with a mischievous grin. He was feeling much better knowing Lucy was alright. "For now, we wait."

Loke materialized with another bright glow in front of his master. The remainder of his magical power was quickly seeping away as he had been using much of it to warn the others, though the lion spirit continued to trudge forward. He took in the appearance of his master. Her blonde hair was matted against her skin and there was dry blood all over her body. She was curling up against Lucas, probably so as to comfort the child and keep him warm.

Gently prodding the sleeping blonde to awaken her, Loke gently whispered, "Don't you think it's a little irresponsible to be sleeping in the enemy's den?"

Lucy groaned as she sat up, careful as to not wake up Lucas as she answered, "I guess you're right. Did you tell the others?"

"Of course I did. Don't you think it's time to get out of this cell now?"

Lucy sighed as she stood up and stretched. She winced at the pain she was feeling in her side from being stabbed by Michiko's nails, but could only hope that it wouldn't get infected despite the fact that she had no bandages or rubbing alcohol and was trapped in a grimy cell.

"Not yet," the celestial mage finally answered in a hushed tone so that her captors couldn't hear her. "Not with Lucas here and the four of them still here. I can't put him in danger and the only way I could beat all four of them at once is to use that spell, and even then I don't know if I can fully control it without hurting Lucas too. Besides, you told me not to use it unless I absolutely have to like the situation with Tartaros. We just have to wait."

"Wait for what exactly?"

"For them to go to Natsu and the others at midnight."

Loke sighed and ran his fingers through his orange locks. "How do you know they aren't going to bring you too?"

"Doesn't matter either way. I have a feeling they won't bring me, though. After all, they didn't bring Lucas when we first encountered them. Even if they did, it just gives me a greater chance to fight with the others."

"That is a great plan, Princess. However, my magical power is running out and I'm not sure if I can help you escape later."

"Then go now and rest. I will need your help."

Loke smiled as he ruffled the blonde's hair, earning a pout from the girl. Their plan had many holes in it, but it was their only option after all. Thus, with a salute, the leader of the zodiac went through his gate and back into the celestial spirit world to regain some of his missing strength.

Lucy was left alone once again. She would be lying if she said she wasn't afraid at the moment. How could she not be? She was trapped in a cell, losing a lot of blood, and was responsible for a child she had no means of protecting. All she could do was hope her friends were alright and were hopefully having a better time at coming up with a plan than she was.

Natsu was leaning against an oak tree when he heard footsteps approaching from behind. Luckily, his strong nose informed him that it wasn't the enemy coming early and was in fact one of his allies and despite what he normally said, one of his closest friends.

"Still worried about Lucy?" Gray asked as he plopped on the space next to the dragon slayer.

"Are you not worried about her?" the pink-haired boy asked in return, not sparing the ice mage a glance.

"Alright, I guess it was a stupid thing to ask. But you know, sitting here and moping ain't gonna fix it."

"Shut up, Ice Prick."

"Make me."

"Too lazy."

Gray chuckled as he let himself lean back against the tree as well. Having lost his shirt, he felt the bare bark against his back. "You're probably more screwed up about this considering you love her and all."

Natsu choked on his spit while his face turned into a bright pink. He then sputtered, "W-What the hell are you talking about!? Me!? Like Lucy!? I'm Natsu the great dragon slayer! I don't like anyone!"

"Not like. Love. Just admit it already. It's annoying watching you play dumb. You're already dumb enough as it is."

It took everything Natsu had not to start throwing punches at the boy sitting next to him. Instead, he asked, "Why does it matter to you anyways?"

"Because Lucy is my friend and you two are a part of the team. Just hurry up and tell her."

The pink-haired boy sighed and began to pick grass by the blade. "It's not that simple, idiot. We're best friends and partners. Telling her could ruin everything. Besides, I already know who she loves anyways."

Gray's eyes widened as he raised a brow. "You do? Doesn't that just make it easier then?"

Natsu looked at the ice mage with the same look of confusion and asked, "How does knowing Lucy loves Nab make it easier telling her that I love her?"

A second of silence passed by, quickly followed by another. Gray's face of confusion instantly contorted to one of cackling, his laughter echoing throughout the night. Tears even managed to escape his dark eyes just thinking about Lucy and Nab being in a relationship. Once his laughter finally died down, Gray sighed and stood up, brushing his jeans as he did so.

"You two dense idiots are hopeless," he finally said as he walked back towards Erza and the others.

Natsu watched Gray's retreating figure vanish as he thought about their conversation. What did he mean by that? Everything seemed to be confusing him these days. Love truly was a complicated subject.

"I hate when Gray tells me what to do," the dragon slayer thought as he began to pick at more grass. "I hate admitting that he's right even more. Maybe I should tell her when we get her back. Then I could threaten Nab! Yeah, that would work!"

Natsu laughed to himself as he started to feel a bit better. Even though he would never admit it to himself or say the words aloud, that talk with Gray truly did help cheer him up in the slightest. Now, he was determined. Not only was he going to get the love of his life back, but he was also going to tell her just how he felt. He could only hope she would feel the same.

AN: I promise no more fillers after this one haha! :D In case anyone is wondering when this job arc is going to end, the last chapter for this arc is chapter 16 (which is my favorite so far). So just bear with me until then! After that will be less drama and more nalu :D Anyways, please leave a wonderful review as always! :D

FireShifter: Yes he is a creep! Thank you for the review! :D

MirrorFlame: Hmm... I wouldn't consider them uncle and niece considering they aren't blood related and Gray and Lyon were never actually legally adopted were they? :O I actually never thought of those two together tbh! I guess I focus on nalu so much I never really notice the smaller ships! D: But they would be cute together! I also think Lyon and Kagura would be cute haha! :D

Alexa: Thank you so much! Part of my next couple of chapters are inspired by you, so stick around! :D I'm excited for your reaction!

12Rayne: Omg you're right I can't believe I forgot all about that line when it was my favorite part of the whole chapter haha! Thank you for the review :D

J.C: Chapter 12: Hello again! :D And thank you, I thought it was pretty funny too making him believe she loved Nab haha! Chapter 13: Thank you so much haha! I was worried it would be a little too dramatic but you all reassured me :) Thanks again for the continued support!