As always Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima

Chapter 4

Training and Punishment

With a sigh Lucy quietly closed the front door of the house she and Ashley shared. Porlyusica had sent her home early, and her training with Laxus would start tomorrow.

How the hell did I get myself into this mess... She hung her school bag on a hook in the hall and threw her car keys in the bowl on the hall table, then bent down to pick up the mail. All of it was junk except for the thick cream colored envelope addressed to them both. Another letter from father... I'll let Ashley deal with it. With a sigh Lucy made her way through the empty house to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water. As she drank she glanced at the clock. 2:30, Ashley will be home in about an hour, I guess I'll get a shower before she gets home.

Lucy placed her glass down on the counter and made her way down the hall and up the stairs to her room. She stripped off her borrowed clothes and made her way to the adjoining bathroom, happy that she didn't have to share. She got in the shower and turned on the water, and let out a moan as the hot water hit her skin. She stood there for a few minutes, letting the hot water work on relieving her aches and pains from her fights today. She then grabbed her body wash and put some on a bath poof and she began to wash off all the sweat from today, inhaling the light citrus scent.

When she finished her shower Lucy stepped into her room and threw on a shirt and jeans, and just as she was grabbing her comb she heard Ashley enter the house, her twin could never be quite, and heard voices arguing.

"Lucy!" She heard Ashley call out. "I'm home, Sting and Levy are with me!"

"Okay!" She called out. "I'll be down in a minute." She ran the comb through her hair a few times before leaving her room and going downstairs. She walked into the den and found Ashley on the couch with Sting, and Levy in one of the chairs. The girls each had a bowl of fruit salad that was always in the fridge, Sting with an open package of cookies, munching away on them.

Ashley offered her bowl of fruit and Lucy took a half a strawberry and popped it in her mouth, and she snagged a cookie out of Sting's hand before it made it to his mouth as she made her way by to the only open chair. As she chewed the fruit all eyes were on her, making her uncomfortable.

"What?" She asked after she swallowed.

"Is it true?" Levy asked.

"Is what true?"

"Is Laxus going to start training you tomorrow?" Levy squealed and then quickly dodged the cookie Lucy threw at her.

"Who the hell told you!?" Lucy yelled, glaring at the three.

"Natsu." Sting said as he threw another cookie to Lucy. "He practically told the entire school."

"That flame brained idiot! I'm going to kick his ass..." Lucy growled as she bit into the cookie as they laughed.

"So is it true?" Ashley asked as she leaned forward and snagged the remote off of the coffee table, turning the tv on, putting it on a channel that played music videos.

"Yeah, but only because Principal Makarov said if he didn't train me he wouldn't graduate and I wouldn't be able to take any magic classes." Lucy said with an annoyed huff. Ashley gave her a sympathetic nod and leaned forward and grabbed her school bag off the floor.

"So he black mailed you both." Sting stated as he grabbed his books off the end table.

"Yep." Lucy said as she got up and grabbed her school bag from the hallway. As she sat back down Levy handed her an orange notebook.

"Here's the notes you misses. Today was shape shifting magic, really interesting . The homework is on page three hundred and ninety four."

As Lucy and Ashley said their goodbyes to Levy and Sting a few hours later Levy told them about a party being thrown at Gajeel's later that week.

"You will come, won't you?" Levy pleaded with Lucy.

"It all depends on how I'm feeling at the end of the week, if I'm not black and blue I'll try to be there." Levy squealed and gave Lucy a tight hug before running off to her small, bright orange car.

Lucy walked back inside as Ashley finished saying goodnight to Sting, when she came back inside her cheeks were pink and there was a mark forming on her neck. Lucy eyed the mark and grinned.

"Not a word..." Ashley growled. "If you're training with Laxus tomorrow you're going to need all the rest you can get."

"Right..." Lucy muttered and make her way to her room.

At school the next day Lucy swore the entire school was watching her. Some, like the teachers and her magic classmates, looked at her with pity. Others, like the upperclassmen and the non magical students looked at her with amusement, especially Minerva and her two followers Angel and Flare.

At lunch Lucy sat at her usual table and let out an annoyed sigh. "I wish everyone would stop staring at me." She told Ashley, who reached over and patted Lucy's hand.

"It will be fine, by this time next week they'll have something else to talk about."

"I hope you're right." Lucy said with a groan as she began to eat her sandwich, only to choke when something landed on the top of her head. She looked up to see a wooden doll floating above her, a letter attached to it. She took the letter and began to read, turning red with anger when she finished it.

-Blondie

You have ten minutes to meet me in training room one. If you're late you will be punished, so don't be late.

-Laxus

Ashley leaned over and read the letter then glanced over at Lucy, who was staring daggers across the room at a retreating back.

"Leave your books and eat your sandwich on the way there." She said with a sigh and Lucy nodded, grabbed her sandwich and took off.

"Laxus!" Lucy growled as she entered the training room, a large magically contained space off the main training area.

"You're late." Laxus said as he stepped into the center of the space, already in his combat uniform.

Lucy glanced at her watch and glared at him. "Are you really going to punish me for being one minute late?"

"Yep." He said with a cocky grin. "Your punishment will be decided later."

Lucy glared at him and crossed her arms over her chest. His grin only got wider as he too crossed his arms over his chest.

"Your training begins now. There are only two rules. Don't get hit and try any way you can to stop me."

"Stop you fro- What the hell!" Lucy shrieked as she jumped back as lightning struck where she had just been.

"I told you your training has already started, now all you have to do is stop me. Feel free to use any of your magic." He grinned and sent another attack at her, which she barely managed to dodge. Lucy gritted her teeth and reached for the keys on her belt.

~ TS ~ 3 days ~ Friday~

"Nice try, Blondie!" Laxus called out with a laugh as he sidestepped her whip. Lucy was getting better at controlling her magic flow to her whip, but she was still nervous about using her spirits, therefore not utilizing them properly. Today alone she had been hit four times by his lightning, and they had only been training for an hour today.

Suddenly, with a slight pop noise, there was fluffy pink wool everywhere, seconds later Lucy's whip lashed out at him. With a laugh he stepped to the side to dodge it, only to gasp in surprise as he fell into a hole.

Lucy grinned when she saw Laxus fall into one of Virgo's holes, she had Aries use her wool to distract him while she summoned Virgo to dig several holes around him. She didn't think it would have worked, and she jumped with excitement when he fell. I wish I could have seen his face when he fell, that would have been priceless.

Cautiously she walked over to the hole and looked in, only to see the hole empty. Her eyes widened as she looked around for Laxus, only to jump and run when she felt a hand on her shoulder. As she ran from him Aries's wool began to disappear, but not quick enough. Somehow she managed to trip on a small pile before it disappeared and landed face first on the ground, her ass high in the air.

She heard a deep, thundering laugh as Laxus walked over to her and squatted down in front of her. "I'll give you credit for using your spirits together like that, but when your opponent is able to escape pitfalls it's a bit pointless for them. You also need to be more aware of your surroundings so you don't trip." Laxus lectured her as she glared up at him.

Feeling very annoyed at Laxus at the moment, Lucy decided to use a move Ashley had taught her, but first she needed to get a little help.

He stood and looked down at her impatiently as she rolled onto her back and looked up at him, her chest heaving from running.

"Could you help me up?" She asked innocently as she held up a hand to him as he walked past her feet.

"Fine, but just this once." He said after a moment, and he reached down to grab her hand. As he started to lift her off the ground she gave him a wicked grin before she grabbed his hand with both of hers and pulled backwards with all her strength.

Laxus was too surprised to react when Lucy pulled him forward. What the hell is she doing? Instinctively he spun to the side as he fell, not wanting to accidentally crush her if he fell on top of her, and he landed on his back next to her.

After lying on his back for a moment he glanced over at her and saw her trying not to laugh. She finds this amusing huh... Let's see if she finds this amusing. Quicker than Lucy could react Laxus leaned up and rolled over so he was straddling her hips, looking down on her with an annoyed expression.

"What the hell Blondie, you could have been crushed and you find it amusing!?" He growled and leaned down over her so he was only inches from her face, his hands on either side of her face. Lucy looked up at him, irritation in her brown eyes as she let out an annoyed huff and blew a stray strand of hair out of her face.

"You said all I had to do was stop you. Well I stopped you, but when you started to lecture me I got annoyed and... well... I wanted to get you back somehow." Lucy grinned with her words, but her grin faded when Laxus smirked down at her.

"Well..." Laxus drawled the word out slowly, a wicked gleam in his stormy eyes. He heard her heartbeat quicken, felt her chest rise and fall against his. "Now that the first part of your training is done I guess its time for your punishment..."

He leaned forward and he could feel her warm breath tickle his face as it came out in quick puffs. He looked into her warm brown eyes as she got closer to her, and before she could react he covered her lips with his own.

Lucy's heart hammered in her chest as she felt Laxus's lips against hers, and she froze, not knowing what to do. Do I kiss him back? Do I want to kiss him back? Lucy moved her lips to say something, only to have Laxus move his so he gently suck her bottom lip, and she let out an involuntary moan.

He then surprised her by pulling away and looking down at her, and she could see a hungry look in his eyes, he clearly wanted more. With shaking hands she moved her arms and put her palms against his chest and pushed him away, and he didn't try to fight her.

Without a word he got up and helped her to her feet, and she tried not to look at him, she could only wonder how red her face was.

"Ummm... That's going to be it for training to day. To be honest I didn't expect you to be able to stop my attacks within a week." Laxus said as he rubbed the back of his head with a hand, and Lucy could hear a bit of surprise in his voice.

"R-right... I'm going to leave now..." She said in a quite voice and slipped out the door, leaving Laxus standing alone in the room. After she exited she saw that everyone was too busy with their own training to notice her leave the room early, so she slipped into the stands to watche everyone.

After their match with Erza, Erza had been impressed with Ashley's requip and fighting skills and had agreed to train with Ashley. Right now they were fighting each other in the center of the room, each of them had two swords but Lucy could barely hear the swords clang due to most of the students gathered around them cheering them on. Wendy and Chelia were off to the side together, going over the similarities of their magic. Sting and Rouge were sparring in one to the training room, every time they sparred in front of everyone Natsu tended to rush into the fight, uninvited.

"You're out early, did something happen between you and Laxus?" A voice came from beside Lucy, making her jump and turn, only to smile when Levy sat down next to her.

"Nothing much." She said and blushed a bit. "I managed to get through the first part... alive." She added the last part with a nervous laugh, causing Levy to look at her with concern.

"Anything happen besides training?" Levy asked, raising her eyebrows due to the blush on Lucy's face.

"No... well... maybe..." Lucy said as she glanced around, noticing Minerva, Angel and Flare at the top of the stands. "Hand me that notebook real quick."

Levy handed her the notebook and Lucy scrawled a quick note about what had just happened and handed it to her. Levy's eyes quickly scanned the note, and they widened when she had finished and she turned and grinned at Lucy. "He really did that!?" She squealed, dancing a bit in her seat.

"Yes, and could you keep it down?" Lucy said as she saw Laxus across the room, leaning against a wall watching her. I'll get you back, just you wait Laxus...

"Earth to Lucy!" Lucy jumped a bit as Levy yelled and waved her hand in front of Lucy's face.

"What?"

"I asked if you were going to Gajeel's party tomorrow night?"

"Who's all going?" She asked, her hand playing with the hem of her shorts, her eyes straying to Laxus again, watched as he smirked at her.

"Most, if not all of the magic students. Laxus usually shows up at Gajeel's parties." Levy added when she saw where Lucy was looking. "Please go..." She begged Lucy, giving Lucy her best puppy eyes.

"Fine, but you owe me." Lucy said as she saw Laxus's smirk get even cockier before he left to go sit next to Freed and his cousins Bixslow and Evergreen.

"Thank you!" Levy squealed and hugged her, only to flinch as Minerva yelled at her to be quite or else. "Lucy... why didn't you say Minerva was behind us this entire time?" Levy asked in a hushed whisper.

"I didn't think it was a problem." Lucy said calmly, only to notice the worry in her voice.

"Well it is, it's an even bigger problem if it concerns Laxus."

"Why?"

"Because Laxus and Minerva went out months ago and it ended badly between them." Levy started to explain in a hushed whisper. "Minerva still isn't over him and when you started training with him, well... let's say the girls' locker room had to be repaired. If she found out that he kissed you..." Levy's voice faded and Lucy glanced behind her at Minerva, who was glaring down at her and she felt a shiver go up her back. I hope she doesn't find out about me and Laxus before I learn to control my magic better...

Hi everyone! I'm sooooo sorry about the long wait for an update! *I know bad me!* My computer decided to die on me, along with getting a new job and boyfriend I just haven't had much time to write/type. But I'm back and I'm going to try to update more often. I'm also starting another LaLu story *which I'll be leaving a quick tease after this note.* As always read and review, send me a message if you want, I'll try to answer when I'm not too busy. LATERS!

Okay, so my new story is going to be called With My Life, *I'll try to have the first chapters up soon* It takes place after the first Grand Magic Games, kinda instead of the whole Tartarus Arc *I liked that arc I just didn't like the end of it *tears up** Enough rambling and enjoy the tease, just don't hurt me!

"Ivan..." Lucy whispered and Ivan smirked at her.

"Good, you haven't forgotten about me, even though I've never had the pleasure of meeting you before I went to prison, I was afraid that after a year everyone would have forgotten about me.

"Why am I here!" She yelled as she struggled against her restraints.

"Because you're just the bait, Fairy Tail has something I want, and you happened to be the first fairy I ran into. Now let's see how they respond to the bait." Ivan said as he moved to turn on the comm. lacrima.

"Ivan, why do you ask for what I cannot possibly give?" Makarov asked his son in a sad voice, and Laxus saw fury reign in Ivan's eyes.

"Maybe this will change your mind. Haze, why don't you do the honors." As Ivan spoke the hair unwrapped from Lucy's mouth and formed the mark of Raven Tail, it hovered over Lucy before it stopped above her abdomen. Everyone watched with rage filled eyes as it caught fire with black flames, and many people then turned away as it was branded into Lucy, few even covered their ears as her agonized scream pierced the air.

As her scream died down she looked out at everyone, and Laxus couldn't even imagine how she must be feeling, and very faintly he heard her whimper before her eyes closed. "Someone... please... save me..."