~ Lucy ~

Rabbit is actually pretty damn good when your starving. I know its an adorable little fluffy animal, but skinned and roasted it makes one fine meal. It took some time to get passed my squeamish stomach but hunting is really the only way to survive out here...even if I am sadly lacking in that skill. Luckily my brains make up for my lack of survival skills, and trapping certainly seems to agree with me. Popping another bite into my mouth I sigh in pleasure as the greasy meat melts on my tongue, following through by licking the juices from my fingers with a happy hum of appreciation. The sound nearly drowned out a deeper base growl close by. Nearly. Lowering my hand slowly I watch the flames dance in my little makeshift fire pit while easing the other hand to the hilt of a dagger resting at my hip. The now familiar weight settles easily into my palm and I take just a moment to appreciate the comfort it brings me that I now know how to use the small weapon. My gaze searches the darkness beyond my camp before coming to a screeching halt. Well. Who would have thought. Wolves.

Pursing my lips to hold in the distressed squeak I inch my way off the rotted out log I had been using as a bench, muscles coiling tight as I brace for the inevitable. So much for my dinner...stupid Lucy. I should have known the scent would draw the predators from the darkness, my small fire doing very little to discourage them from breaching the camp. No panicking Lucy. You are strong. Breath. Easier said then done, but I heave air into my frozen lungs and ready myself for the attack I am sure is going to come. Defense is my best option now as keeping myself away from those teeth and claws was top priority. If I could time my movements right I had a chance to do some major damage, or at least that is what I hope. Breathing deeply again to calm her racing heart Lucy stays crouched low to the ground, eyes sharp as the wolf prowls ever closer to her with eyes glowing demon red thanks to the light from the small fire. It had to be one of the largest wolves she had ever seen, fur a dirty rust color as if already stained with some unwitting victims blood and fangs long and menacing in its open maw. Sorry Fido, not happening!

Big talk, at least in her head, but the fear clawing at her gut was all too real as she did her best to shove it back. Faster then she could have imagined possible the creature drops to its haunches, powerful body hugging the ground before muscles contract in a deadly lunge with an accompanying spine chilling snarl. A breathless screech forces past her lips even as she reacts, body moving in an agile spin and a thought flashes through her that those wasted years as an heiress were actally coming in handy. Who knew dancing and fighting would be so alike. At least something from her old life seemed useful. Her right hand pushes upward in a wide arc, she pulls herself back into the present and aims to bury her dagger in the wolfs soft underbelly, only to miss the mark and instead land in its rump. Scrambling to put space between them again Lucy pivots at the same time as hopping backwards, the move carrying her a few precious feet from the quickly recovering and obviously now enraged animal. In her panic she is only dimly aware to a sudden increase in light around her as the beast drops into another crouch and quickly pushes to lunge.

Blinking I stare in utter confusion at the limp and smoking wolf now sprawled on the forest floor before raising my gaze. My breath freezes as my gaze locks onto a pair of gorgeous but terrifying onyx eyes. The knife falls from numb fingers, impaling the earth with a muffled thump I can barely hear over the roaring in my ears. My breath thaws into a whimpered name. "Natsu."

~ Natsu ~

The dragon is roaring in my mind. Mate. My mate. A smoking carcass lay between us, the acrid scent of burning hair tainting every breath I drag into my suddenly starving lungs but I cannot bring myself to care. Holy shit shes here. Right in front of me. Before I can process enough to react melted chocolate eyes snap to meet my own and I lose myself. Fascinated I watch as shock flashes through them then settles into an anguish that steals whatever minuscule amount of air I still had from my lungs. I continue to hold her captive as I work through the pain, knowing she can see the same things reflected in my own dark eyes. I see a flickering of light and realize with only a small amount of surprise that I am a living pyre of fire, brow furrowing as I try my best to rein in the flames. Mild satisfaction runs through me as I feel them absorb back into my skin before my gaze breaks from her own and rakes down the slim form before me.

Where lush curves had once graced her frame sleek muscles now reside, though I note with an almost sick satisfaction that even toned as she was Lucy couldn't get rid of that chest of hers. Moving on I note that the sleek blonde hair that I had always secretly longed to bury myself in had lengthened and lightened to create a cloud of ethereal white blonde reaching nearly her hips that I now almost desperately wanted to tangle my fingers into. The latter having thinned a bit as well, I semi happily note that she still has that perfect figure eight I so adored just in a leaner version with her toner stomach and legs. Dragging my gaze from her body I search her face, the cherub beauty I remember the same but harsher now as thin barely there scars decorate her cheek and chin. She was still my Lucy but...different. Not improved exactly but tougher, stronger. Sexier.

"Natsu..." Her whimper brings me back to reality like a sucker punch and the roar rips from the throat before I can even try to hold it in; and then I'm in motion. Snatching her arm I drag her into my embrace as rage, relief, betrayal, fear and joy battle for supremacy in my muddled mind. The rage coming from months of loneliness. The relief that she was safe. The betrayal of her disappearance and the fear that she would disappear again almost a living thing in his mind. Then the joy of holding her in his arm, breathing in that intoxicating scent so unique to her like it is my favorite drug.

"Lucy." My growl is guttural and possessive and even I slightly cringe at the undertones of barely restrained rage. I don't want to scare her, but holy fuck. My inner dragon rages and burns me from the inside out. Skin heating to almost intolerable levels I panic for a moment, afraid of hurting the precious little infuriating mage before realization stamps it out. I cant hurt Lucy. Not even my brightest flame could ever harm my mate, another little perk our magics granted us. Easing my hold I take a shaky backwards step and my eyes widen as my senses pick up the salt on the air and see the crystalline tracks from her now drowning chocolate eyes. My arm moves almost automatically to brush at them tenderly, the action at odds with the agitated hiss passing my lips.