THE MOMENT OF TRUTH ARRIVES... Dun Dun Dun Dun Dun Dun Dun Dun DUUUUUUUUUN.. Kettle drums solo.

Annnnndddddddd... (pause, for effect) ACTION!

Lucy jumped as Natsu stirred, temporarily switching her mind back to more pressing issues. She returned the phone to the dock quickly and turned as he sat up, breathing heavily. He must have had a nightmare.

"L-Lucy?" He stammered. "Are you there?" His voice was strained and panicky as he groped the sheets for any sign of her presence. Quickly she rolled to his bedside and heaved herself onto the bed. Placing her hands over his shaky ones she whispered to him softly, "Natsu, I'm here. Shhh, I'm here."

Natsu's shivering ceased instantly as he slammed himself into her chest, grasping her shirt in his fists. His head was buried in her neck, his nose pressed against her collar. Her shirtfront dampened with his tears and Lucy stroked his pink locks slowly and tenderly, whispering soothing words into his hair.

After a moment his sobs slowed and Lucy began to push him back, noting how his eyes matched his hair. "Natsu," She said. He refused to lift his head. "Look at me Natsu." He shook his head childishly.

Eventually he raised his head, his eyes still looking anywhere but at her. "How could I?" He said softly. "How could I look at you, knowing what I did to you?"

Lucy sighed heavily. "Natsu," She said, her voice full of annoyance and frustration. "Why must you blame yourself? It's my fault. I put that mixture together. I was the one that ran away from home. If I had just gone to Saber like my father wanted I would still be able to hear."

Her tone softened. "But I didn't. And I'm glad. So what if I can't hear? Beethoven was deaf for the later part of his carrier, you know." Natsu seemed unimpressed and Lucy sighed. "You know, if you wouldn't have been that stupid pyromaniac that blew up the chemistry lab we wouldn't be here right now. You wouldn't know Wendy, or Gray, or Erza, or Gajeel. I wouldn't know Levy or Juvia."

Natsu still seemed unimpressed. "But you would've made other friends. And I would, too."

"Natsu," Lucy said firmly. "You wouldn't have met me."

"B-but maybe you're better without me. It's my fault you can't hear, it's my fault you're father found you, it's just… all my fault and I can't just accept you letting me off the hook like that."

Groaning Lucy pulled Natsu's hands from her blouse, smoothing the crumpled fabric. She pulled them instead to her shoulders where they immediately found a place behind her head, entwining themselves in her golden locks. She placed her own hands flat on his shoulders.

"Natsu, you can't see me. You can't go a week without a nightmare. You can't go a day without blaming yourself. That is punishment enough." She lifted her thumbs to his cheeks, brushing his flowing tears away.

"I can't bear the fact you can't hear because of me, Lucy." He persisted.

"I can't bear that you cry because of me, Natsu." She countered. "But if you want a punishment, you must do it without objection." He nodded and she smiled. "I want you to stop blaming yourself."

"But, Lucy." He interjected. Lucy held a hand to his mouth. "No buts," She chided. "And I wasn't finished. I want a kiss."

"Just one?" Natsu smiled softly. "I think I can do that."

"Ah, ah, ah." She ticked her finger. "I want a kiss every day. Not just a peck either, and I don't want it to be forced, you have to-"

She was silenced as Natsu kissed her. He wasn't directly on her lips and Lucy had to adjust him, lifting his chin a few centimeters. She rolled her eyes and kissed him back, tilting her head as she did so.

He drew back after a moment of this and his face split in that dazzling smile of his, his cheeks lightly dusted with a hint of blush.

"You've unleashed a monster, you know?" He said playfully. "You really should have set a kiss limit. It's a bit late for one now so don't even try."

Lucy pouted at this and Natsu took her silence as an opportunity to steal a small peck from the corner of her mouth.

"You better be on the lookout."

Lucy smiled, at least he wasn't crying.

"Laxus," Lisanna called. "What would you say if I told you Mira-nee was alive?"

The noise in the kitchen stopped a moment, then returned. "I'd say you were delusional," He finally answered as he continued cooking. "You know as well as I do that Mira couldn't be alive. No more than Elfman."

"Well yeah," She finally agreed. "But what if, by some miracle, she was alive. Or maybe we just didn't look hard enough and she had been the whole time?"

Laxus sighed from the kitchen, the sound carrying to the livingroom where she sat, finishing a paper for school. "That's not possible." He answered. "We looked as hard as we could, remember? There's no way she got out of there without us knowing."

"Yea, but what if she did? They never found the body. It's possible."

Laxus stopped what he was doing and came to lean on the doorway. "What's on your mind, Lisanna?" He said, concern evident in his features and tone. "You haven't spoken like this in years. Why now?"

Lisanna was silent for a moment. "I spoke to her." She said finally. "On the phone, I talked to her."

Laxus's eyes widened, "Th-that's impossible." He said finally. "But that means we..."

Lisanna nodded. "I thought so too at first. But I know I spoke to her on the phone. I know I did. She knew me, and she seemed so surprised to hear from me."

Laxus's eyebrow raised. Lisanna caught this. "You don't believe me, do you?" Laxus shook his head and stepped further into the room, placing a hand on her forehead.

"Well you don't have a fever, so some of what you're saying must not be delisional crazy talk."

Lisanna crossed her arms over her chest and then huffed. "I knew it." Like lightning, she sprung from her seat and grabbed her cellphone. "I'll prove it to you." She punched a number and pulled it to her ear, waiting for the dial tone to cease.

A woman answered, but she wasn't Mira. "Hello, this is Fairy's House for Damaged Teens. My name is Bisca Connell, where can I direct you're call?" The woman spoke with a drawl, characteristic to a southern accent.

Lisanna thought a moment, "May I speak with Mirajane Strauss, please?" Laxus opened his mouth to speak and she silenced him with a hand motion.

"Yes ma'am," The woman responded. "May I ask your name?"

Lisanna froze a moment. "Uh, I'm, uh, is a name neseccary? I'm a friend of Mira's and I don't want her to know it's me calling."

The woman thought for a moment before answering, "Sure, dear, just hold on a moment." The line buzzed and Lisanna quickly pulled the phone from her ear and pressed the speaker-phone button before Mira could pick up.

"Hello, this is Mira speaking. How may I help you?"

Laxus almost fell from his standing position when he heard her voice. "Mirajane?!" He exclaimed. "Mira is that you?!"

"Laxus?!" The line clattered, like she dropped the phone. "Laxus is that you?! Oh god, please don't let this be a dream. Please. Please tell me this isn't a dream. Oh, Lisanna! Is Lisanna there, too?"

Lisanna swiped tears away, "Yea, Mira-nee. I'm here."

"You have to come down here. Get down here, now. I need to see you. I, oh god." Nerve wracking sobs sounded from the phone and Lisanna took that as a cue to end the call.

When she turned around Laxus had his keys in hand, motioning for her tto hurry. "Mira's not going to wait forever!" He exclaimed before the two rushed out.

YAY! I had to kill Elfman. His character is difficult to write. All that Man, Man, MAN! Is irritating and the fewer characters the better.