It's been a while, and I'm sorry about that you guys. I lost my account for a while and only recently managed to recover it. Anyway, so apparently Jacin x Lucy is called Jucy, which is completely unintentional but I like it and I completely support you guys calling it that.

So, I'll try and keep it at least a little romancy, but I felt like their relationship is in need of a little mixing up and I decided to build the plot around that feeling. So you guys will just have to wait and see what happens. :) Enjoy, you guys! I love you for sticking with it despite how annoying I am about updates and about editing...which I again didn't do because I'm lazy.

~Lucy~

It felt like just yesterday that Jacin and I had been in this very bed, right after he'd been hurt. At that time, though, the world seemed so perfect. It was sad to think about how brief the period in which we were worriless was. Jacin mouthed silent words in his sleep, the corner of his lip turning up into an almost unnoticeable smile. It was good that he was getting some sleep.

I shifted in his arms, pulling the blankets down off of my shoulder and turning onto my side so that I could look at him better. I stared at him, a full-on creeper stare. I wanted to burn this moment into my memory. I needed to, because it would help stave off the fear lurking in the back of my head.

I reached up and slid my fingers along the very edge of his face, my pinky barely touching his ear. I smiled as his nose twitched a little. It was cute. I sighed and let my head rest on his chest, listened to the slow beating of his heart, and synchronized my breathing with his. It was calm and peaceful, so different from what we'd just experienced. I tucked my foot a little under his, entangling our limbs.

I moved my hand slowly down his chest. I had to look for a peace of mind, to do away with the fear that would weaken me as Jacin and I faced our newest obstacle together. I slowly lifted up the hem of his shirt and slipped my hand underneath, my fingers sliding along his muscles. I found it easily enough; it was impossible not to know exactly where Jacin's scar was. The images of it were constantly behind my eyes.

I traced my fingers across his scar over and over, closing my eyes and feeling the different textures of his skin. I pressed my palm flat against his scar as if covering it up with my hand, hiding it from the world, would change everything. And then I just took my hand away. I had to accept that it was there, that it wasn't going away, and that we were just going to have to endure whatever came next together. It wasn't the end of the world.

"Lucy, you're a pervert," Jacin mumbled. At first I thought he was dreaming about me, but when I looked at him I saw that his eyes were lazily open, little slivers of blue reminding me that I'd just been caressing his abs while he slept. Full-on creep mode if you didn't know what I was really doing.

"That was so not what it looked like," I said, defending my rep.

He smirked and sat up a little so that he looked down on me without fully getting up. His arm snaked around my waste and pulled me closer, "You won't hear any complaints here." He tucked a piece of my hair behind my ear and gently left a lingering kiss right on the spot he'd uncovered. I turned my head and returned the favor. He relaxed back into the bed and curled his arms tighter around me, hugging me just tight enough for me to wish he wouldn't let go.

I closed my eyes again and Jacin rested his chin on top of my head, running his hand along my arm. He took a deep breath and then whispered to me, "Keep your eyes closed." I had no intention of denying that request.

I waited, expecting a kiss, but instead felt the tip of his finger tracing the lines of my face: my jaw, my cheekbones, my nose, my eyes, and my lips. "I don't like seeing it either. Even less now," he whispered.

I opened my eyes suddenly. So he did know why I'd been touching him. "I said keep your eyes shut," he said, smiling a little. I stared at him for a moment as he looked down at me, his eyes shining a little from underneath his lashes.

I shut them again and his fingers continued to glide along my face. It had a calming effect on me, simultaneously making me sleepy again and sending little sensations down my neck. After a little while, those little tingles began to build up in my chest. Jacin spoke again, barely managing to distract me from the growing feeling in my chest, "Before you found out about it, I was constantly afraid. I guess I still sort of am, but it doesn't seem like its impossible to overcome anymore."

I smiled, "It never was."

"But it seemed like it," he replied, a little sadness in his voice. His finger moved down my jawline, falling off of my chin and landing on my chest. He traced little circles and I bit my lip, the feeling in my chest began to spread.

"All I needed was a few words from you and I knew I could win, beat whatever it is that's inside of me, in my head and in my scar." The circles spread out and then became the symbol for infinity along my collarbone. I licked my lips because they suddenly felt a little dry.

"You said that I was strong, and maybe I am…but a large part of that is because of you. I want to make sure that you know that." He was whispering in my ear now, his lips barely touching the side of my face. His hand paused for a moment and I furrowed my brow. I felt a little gust of air and realized that he'd just silently laughed a little…then his had slowly moved down farther and farther.

I fought to keep my eyes closed as Jacin, one by one, undid the buttons on my shirt. He started to mark kisses on my face, leaving tiny damp marks wherever he went. His movements were slow, but full of intent…like he knew exactly what he was doing and exactly how it was making me feel.

"Jacin," I said, but it came out as barely a whisper, the sensations that had gradually built up making it harder to speak.

I heard him take in a sharp breath and then, finally, got to feel his mouth on mine. Apparently he'd been feeling the same as me, because he didn't hesitate to let me taste him to the fullest. And then he was above me, his hands holding my face gently but his lips crushing roughly against mine. His hand quickly slid along my side, tucked beneath my back, and grasped my ass tightly; it moved down along my thigh, lifting my leg up. I wrapped it around him, pulling him even closer to me, and then mirrored the motion with my other leg.

His hand moved back down my leg, this time slipping underneath my skirt. His kisses moved to my jaw and slowly worked their way down to my chest. "Jacin," I gasped as his fingers slowly got closer and closer. I weaved my fingertips in his hair, grasping the back of his neck as the sensations, the tingling, the heat, the throbbing, threatened to explode. Then the guilt hit me like a hundred ton weight.

I didn't want to stop it. More than anything, I wanted to keep going…but I had to tell him. My conscious made me. "Jacin, wait," I said quickly, out of breath and secretly wishing he wouldn't hear me. At least that way I could tell my guilty conscious that I'd tried. But he did hear me, and froze, looking up at me. His warm, quick breath sent shivers throughout my body as it cascaded across my chest. It was clear in his eyes that he was conflicted, maybe even hurting a little. I understood that. My entire body told me to tell him to forget it, to finally get that feeling that only Jacin had ever given me. I really…really wanted that, but I couldn't.

I sat up and he followed suit, concern in his eyes. I leaned against him, pressing my forehead against his. I clung to his shirt tightly, still breathing hard. "What's wrong?" he asked, tilting my head up so that he could look directly into my eyes. The fact that he wasn't angry made me smile…I had just sort of killed what could have been amazing.

"Before we…even if I really," I begged him with my eyes to understand just how much I meant my words, "Really want to, I can't until you talk to Abigail."

Jacin closed his eyes for a moment as if he were thinking hard and then opened them again, nodding, "I understand."

"I know that it's stupid and not fair, and I know that door is closed, but I need it to be locked before we continue this."

Jacin laughed and took my hand, resting the other on my neck. He smiled and stroked my cheek with his thumb, "The only stupid thing was that weird door metaphor, but I get what you're saying. I'll do it."

I smiled and rested the tips of my fingers on his chin, giving him a lingering kiss. "Don't worry too much about it, Jacin. We've got other priorities."

He looked down, smiling a little, "Not much tops this."

I laughed, "All in due time."

I started to stand up, but he pulled me back down, stealing another kiss from me. He stared at me for a moment and smiled. "I'm glad you're alright," he said.

"Same to you," I said, then stood. I headed towards the door. I had to talk to the Master. If I showed him the letter from the Spirit King, Makarov might know where this Metzger guy lived and we'd at least have something to go on. I wanted to help Jacin as soon as I could, to free him of this horrible pain he was in. After experienced it for myself, I understood a little better. It was the worst pain I'd ever been in, and I couldn't bear to let him just endure it.

I reached for the knob, but Jacin called out to me from where he remained on the bed, "Lucy."

I paused and turned to look at him with a questioning look. He smirked and tapped his chest, "Might want to fix that before you walk around the guild hall. Natsu would kill me if he saw."

I looked down and blushed, realizing my shirt was gaping open. I shot him a grateful look and he seemed amused. I quickly buttoned up and opened the door. I looked back at him to see that he was still staring at me. I smiled at him, leaning my head against the cool doorframe, "Hey, you know I love you, right?"

He let out a quick puff of a laugh and nodded, "I love you, too. I'll talk to Abigail."

With that I nodded and headed out the door, Jacin calling after me, "I'll talk to her soon, Lucy!"

I laughed and headed in the direction of Makarov's office, hoping I'd find him there. I fanned my face, feeling a little hot still. I guess I wasn't used to this yet, to having an actual relationship with Jacin. I wondered if what we had would ever be normal or it there would always be something to complicate everything. I shook that thought away. It didn't matter, as long as we stuck together.

~Lucy~

I paused outside of the Master's office for a moment, some part of me a little afraid to face him. I wasn't sure why, but the thought of walking in seemed intimidating to me. I shook off those thoughts, though. It was just the Master, and there was no way he would be anything other than his usual self.

I opened the door, sticking my head in. "Master?" I called. The usual piles of books and paperwork was scattered around the floor, piled especially high near his desk. Unfortunately for me, it didn't seem like he was in there. I turned to leave and froze when I heard something moving.

I turned around and narrowed my eyes, wondering if it had just been my imagination. "Master?" I asked, questioning my sanity.

I flinched when the Master's head popped out of a pile of papers, sending forms and bills and statements flying around the room. I watched a piece of paper float to the ground and then looked at the Master.

"Lucy, why aren't you resting? You've been through an ordeal," he said, struggling to escape the paperwork. When he finally stumbled out of it he didn't say anything, just looked up at me with worried eyes like what had just happened was normal. I shook my head, realizing that this was probably just a normal Tuesday for him and answered him.

"I feel surprisingly fine," I said, "Actually, I'm pretty well rested."

"Truly? Well I suppose since you were only under the effects for a short while that makes sense," he said, stroking his chin. "So, what did you need? I imagine it has something to do with Jacin."

I nodded, walking over to a pile of books and sitting down. I stuck my hand into my pocket and fished around for a moment, "I've actually got something I want to show you."

He waited until I finally found the semi-crumpled piece of paper and then took it from me. "I got it from Mustache when we visited him," I explained, "And I was wondering if you know who Johanne Metzger is."

Makarov's eyes skimmed the letter a few times and he grumbled to himself for a little bit before looking up at me. "I do," he said.

I waited and then asked, "And?"

"He was a member of the council, but I'm afraid you'll have trouble speaking with him now," the Master said, striding over to his desk.

"Why is that? I'll go anywhere. He's the only lead we have and I can't just let Jacin be. Metzger is our best option, despite how cryptic Mustache was."

"I didn't expect you to let Jacin be. Jacin is a member of Fairy Tail, and we protect our own."

I smiled. "Then what's the problem?"

"Johanne Metzger did not willingly leave the council," said Makarov, "He was forcibly removed. He was a good council member, well-suited the job and clearly capable of handling the responsibility, but after only a few years of service he changed. He went insane and attempted to murder Crawford Seam, the former Chairman."

I blinked. I hadn't been expecting that. "Mustache wants me to go visit a murderer?" I asked, confused.

"Well, he's not technically a murder. He failed his murder attempt and was apprehended soon after. He's currently in a high security prison."

I rubbed my temples. I couldn't shake the feeling that I needed to talk with this man, despite how dangerous it might be. Despite his unclear words, I trusted the Spirit King. I looked up at the Master, "I need to speak with him. If there's even a slight chance it could help Jacin, I have to do it. Is there any way you could get me an audience with him?"

Makarov stared at me for a moment and then chuckled, "I'll speak with the current council members. It's possible. I assure you, Lucy, I will do my utmost to help Jacin. In the meantime, watch over him and make sure Roawin is with him at all times."

I nodded, reassured by his words. The master was a powerful man, and when he said he would do his utmost it was most likely that he was going to accomplish his goal. Now that I knew I was going to be able to talk to Metzger, I had to ask my next question. "Master, do you know what happened to us? What's happening to him?"

The Master sighed and shook his head, "I don't completely understand anything about Jacin's condition, but I'm fairly certain his condition is linked to blood magic. It seems the only temporary fix is through contact with another member of the family. If you had any doubts about your relationship to Abigail before, you shouldn't now. If she wasn't really your sister you would be dead right now."

I blinked. "That's reassuring."

"The problem with Jacin is clearly internal. It all began after his near-death experience, so it's possible that Drau managed to inject a spell of some type into Jacin's bloodstream. It's also possible that this is solely psychological, that Jacin's own magic is rebelling against him in his confused state. Honestly, Lucy, there are so many possibilities that there's no way of telling what's really wrong with him."

"But you think there's some sort of magic at work?" I asked.

"Yes, this is a magical issue. Unfortunately, all I can tell you is that it's partially blood magic. Other than that, I'm unfamiliar with the type of spell inside of him."

"If you're unfamiliar with it I doubt I'll be able to find anything out about it in the library," I said, my shoulders sinking. That was the rest of my plan, to see if I could unearth anything to help Jacin.

The Master scoffed, "There are books in that library that are older than Fairy Tail. You overestimate me, Lucy. I'm sure the knowledge in that library supersedes my own."

"I guess that's my next stop, then," I said, my hopes rising once again. "Anything else?" I asked him.

"Just…remember to keep Roawin and Jacin together. I hate to say it, but despite how young he is Roawin is going to have to take on a lot of responsibility for his brother's sake."

My heart tightened a little, "Roawin is stronger than you think."

A gentle look filled the Master's eyes, "I know he's strong, but I'm afraid his childhood may just have come to a premature end."

I turned to walk out the door and paused to look back at the Master, "Roawin's already a little man; he's been looking out for his brother for longer than Jacin even knows."

And with that I walked out the door, thanking the Master on my way to go find the two brothers and metaphorically duck tape them together.

So you've found out a little bit more about Jacin's condition after that traumatic chapter, but it's still pretty much a mystery. I actually do know what it is, which is unusual for me. Normally I just wing it and it somehow ends up making sense in the end. That's what I did with Drau's story and it what I'm going to do with this upcoming mini-arc. Anyway, leave me a review and I'll probably update faster that way. Hope you guys liked it and I'll see you next time.