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Hiro Mashima owns Fairytail.
"Lucy… Lucy… LUCY!"
Natsu, Gray, Gajeel, and Laxus… ran through alleyways and streets.. desperately making their way towards Lucy..
Laxus was so frustrated.. everything was wet and so he couldn't activate his lightning body mode…
"DAMMIT!"
Stomping through the town, Laxus was desperately trying to maintain his composure and not shock people to death.
Gray punched the ground of the street he was on… freezing the street solid. He ran onto the ice and slid faster down the streets. The ice made the recently released civilians freeze.. they began to shiver as their wet clothes froze on them..
"Oopps! Sorry!" Gray yelled as he slid past.
Flaming red, Natsu was rocketing through the streets. Luckily, everything was wet and so as Natsu ran through, he acted as a super dryer. The civilians he passed were left with fluffy dry hair and completely dry clothes.
Gajeel… had already arrived. Using the speed of his iron shadow dragon mode, it took no time at all to locate her. He had seen Virgo yell out to her master… Loke running desperately towards her… and in mid-run, Loke's body began to light up.. so did Virgos.. and they both disappeared. Gajeel dashed and caught Lucy before her head touched the floor.
"I got you bunny girl…. I got you…"
He was so mad.. they had hiked a icy mountain up to a small village sitting at the very top of the mountain peak.. There had been sightings of a dragon by some of the inhabitants of the village.. however when he, Happy and Lisanna had arrived…
Only huge disappointment awaited them..
"Blizzardvern… it was just a blizzardvern…AAAHHHHHHH! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT WASN'T IGNEEEL!"
"aww Natsu.. I'm sorry…" Lisanna said patting his back. "You'll find him someday.. I know it!"
"Yea Natsu… We'll never give up! At least we get to eat all this food!"
"I really wonder how they get all this food up here. You can't grow anything up here." Lisanna watched the villagers bring plates upon plates to the banquet table.
"I DON'T CARE! IGGNEELLL WHERE ARE YOU!" Natsu fumed.
Lisanna giggled. "Oh Natsu…" she watched him and his childish antics. It was truly amazing how little he had changed. It was as if she hadn't gone to Edolas at all. But then she began to feel a little guilty.. she knew deep inside… that that was foolish thinking. That as much as she wished that nothing had really changed with Natsu… a certain someone was living proof that Natsu was changing.. Natsu was always a boy strengthened by his emotions. And one certain emotion, the overwhelming urge to protect, was his greatest weapon to getting stronger and closer with the very person he wanted to protect.
And right now… he was protecting Lucy. He was stuck on Lucy. What hurt Lisanna the most since she came back… was that he had done just fine with her. She had always worried how Natsu would fare with her disappearance…. She found that she worried for nothing… But now.. Lisanna wanted Natsu back… she wanted HER best friend back..
She was going to take him back. All she needed to do was switch Natsu's protective urge over from Lucy… to her.
"Sorry Lucy…. He was mine first." Lisanna thought to herself as she smiled at Natsu. "I saw him first."
Her body felt heavy.. sore.. stinging pain began to increase as she woke up..
"Mm…." Lucy groaned..
"Luce…you're awake! How you feeling?" she heard a familiar voice speak softly.
"mm… Natsu?" she fluttered her eyes open.
"Hey there sleepy head" He smiled warmly at her.
"what… what happened?" she tried to get up.
A large hand gently pressed her back down…
"Not so fast blondie… you still need to rest."
"Laxus..?" She looked towards the left side of her bed. Laxus was sitting right next to her. Natsu was on the right side. Laxus looked at her with a blank face… but his eyes gave himself away… they were soft eyes… they betrayed him by showing how worried he was.
"You gave us quite a scare there Lucy…" Gray sat on the bed near her feet. He gently gave a squeeze to her foot.
"You beat that witch.. bunny… I'm proud of you…" Gajeel stood at the foot of her bed with his arms crossed against his chest. He did not look happy. He looked very concerned and serious.
"I did beat her..didn't i. hehe. If you're so proud why do you look so angry?"
"Because I am angry with you!" Gajeel yelled at her.
"Dude! Not now!" Gray yelled at Gajeel.
"No.. I'm fureikn pissed off right now so you piss off ice prick."
"what… why?" Lucy stared back at Gajeel with shock.
"You rusting pile of crap. Leave her alone. She needs to rest!" Gray yelled back.
Gajeel ignored Gray and leaned in towards Lucy..
"When your partner tells you to run… you fureikn run.. don't argue back. We have our reasons for asking you to run. Don't tell me it hurts your pride or some bull crap excuse for why you don't want to run. When we say run… you run your sexy butt out of there… got it?" Gajeel growled..
Lucy just stared back in shock at Gajeel.. She looked at Natsu, Gray, and Laxus… they were all looking away with frowns on their faces… she had hoped to see them fight on behalf of her.. side with her that what she did was the right thing… but the looks on their faces..
Her eyes began to sting.. she gently brought her bandaged hands up to the top of her blanket and pulled it up to cover her face.. tears spilled down the sides of her face.. she was so hurt.. so angry..
"Luce.. it's not that we aren't happy you saved us… it's just that… we were so worried.."
Lucy kept her face covered.. letting the blanket soak up some of her tears.
"Look Blondie… what we mean is that….. sigh…" Laxus ran his hand through his hair.. frustrated at how things turned out. "We know you're strong… but a mage needs to know when to pick battles and when not to. You could've died.. that woman was strong.. we couldn't even fight against her magic… and we are all S-class mages.."
"I can fight… I'm a fairytail mage… I didn't want to lose you all… I just.."
"We know you're strong…. we just don't want anything to happen to you.. ok bunny. So just please…just listen to us from now on." Gajeel rubbed his hands down his face.
Lucy peered through her blanket.. They all looked at her with concern.. she nodded slowly.
"Good.. I'm really proud of you though Lucy. You were so smart and amazing!" Natsu said happily. "But.. don't ever do that again." He looked at her with a frown now with wide eyes.
"O..okay… " she hid herself in her blankets again.
"Try to get more sleep Lucy… we'll leave once you feel ready to." Gray said smiling gently.
She closed her eyes and let the heaviness overtake her.. soon she was off into dreamland.
.
.
.
Meanwhile, the men watched Lucy sleep. Laxus gently brushed her bangs away from her face… they all watched her sleep peacefully.
Natsu held Lucy's hand with both of his. He brought her hand close to his mouth and he kissed her hand. His bangs covered his eyes.
Laxus looked at her keys that were on top of the table along with her belt and whip. He was lost in thought.
Gajeel watched Natsu hold onto Lucy's wrapped up hands. Her whole body was practically wrapped up. It was too heartbreaking for him. He had found her all cut up and bloody… he had found her on the verge of magic depletion.. She wasn't supposed to protect them and in the process almost die… they were supposed to protect her. They… had been careles… She was the one who needed protecting…. He walked out of the room determined to do something about it.
Gray also needed fresh air.. it was too close… too close….. he questioned himself whether they were doing the right thing… interfering in her life.. were they changing the future for better… or for worse…. How would they survive this.. how would they return home and be the same ever again…
"It was never going to be easy…"
He was enjoying a beer in a pub with Lily… Levy and her team Shadowgear were back in the hotel they were staying at.. probably sleeping to prepare for their mission tomorrow.
"Man.. did you hear?"
"What?"
"Remember that cursed town at the base of Mount Goyang?"
"Yea? What a bout it?"
Gajeel and Lily eyed each other. "Mount Goyang huh…" Gajeel thought to himself.
"Remember how all the mages that went to lift the curse never came back. Well turns out.. a Fairy mage went and just lifted the curse just yesterday."
"What really? From Fairytail? Must've been Laxus or Gildarts. Those Fairytail mages sure are strong. No wonder they are number one."
"Actually.. it was a female mage."
"Really? Titania?"
"Nope."
Gajeel shifted his head towards the two men conversing behind him.
"It was the celestial mage."
Gajeel and Lily's eyes widened.. "Bunnygirl?! No way…" he thought to himself.
"no… Lucy Heartfilia?! This girl right?!" one man took out the latest issue of Sorcerer.
"YEA! Her! I know right! She's hot and powerful. Those fairytail girls sure are the real deal. There's Titania.. and Mira.. ohhh Mira…"
"Wow… single handedly?"
"Yup.. single handedly."
"How do you know this?"
"One of our S-class mages that went a few months ago never came back… but just a few hours ago.. he communicated with our guild master through a communication lacrima. It's real man… she did it."
"Wow… lucky man whoever this is." The man pointed at the man in the picture standing next to Lucy.
"I know… lucky prick.. I would do anything to go on a date with her."
"If only I could find a woman like her. I'd settle down."
"haha. Someday.."
The two men stood up from their seats and said their goodbyes and left.
Gajeel stood up and chugged his beer down. He went over to their table and lifted up the Sorcerer magazine.
He raised an eyebrow at the front cover… and flipped through the magazine… Lily was perched on Gajeel shoulder and was looking through the magazine as well with him.
"Do you believe them?" Lily asked.
"Tch… bunnygirl ain't that strong. I'm sure they're exaggerating."
"Hm… I don't know Gajeel…. Lucy can be strong when she puts her heart into it…"
Gajeel remained silent as he roughly flipped through the pages of the magazine.. quickly glancing through the pictures of Lucy and her mysterious companion.
"Where's Natsu in these? I always thought Lucy and Natsu had a thing for each other… Do you know that man?"
Gajeel frowned at the pictures.. the man looked familiar… yet he couldn't put his finger on it. And it was definitely odd that Lucy wasn't with Natsu… had something happened between them?
Was there really nothing between them…?
"Gihi…. Well…. This just means I can go hunting now… right?"
"Hunting?" Lily asked.
"Bunny hunting.." Gajeel smirked
Lily gave a "WTH" look to Gajeel… "you…. you…. It was Lucy?!"
"Gihi… let's go cat."
"What about levy?!"
"Who says I can't have both?"
"You're terrible Gajeel!"
"Tch… I'm kidding."
"You better be…I refuse to believe that you'd be so heartless to lead two respectable ladies on.."
"Or am I?"
"GAJEEL!"
"Gihi…"