The winds of fate seemed to have changed. Not only has Dark Emperor gained most of the miraculous, but things are changing for Natsu and Lucy as well. As Natsu was walking, he spotted Lucy and Yukino with Lucy dropping Yukino off. The weird thing was that Natsu stared at Lucy like he was in awe. Just as Lucy was leaving, Yukino spotted Natsu just staring at her and continued to do so as she left.

"Hi, Natsu." Yukino said.

"Hey, Yukino. Where's Lucy going?" Natsu questioned.

"She's meeting up with some other friends she promised to help them with something." Yukino said. She was starting to get the feeling something was off with Natsu. "Hey, can I get your opinion about some photos I have?"

"Uh... Sure." Natsu said. Yukino pulled out her phone and showed photos of her and Lucy, but Natsu seemed more focused on Lucy. "Wow... She looks great..." He said, but realized what he said. "I meant the photos look great." He claimed, but Yukino could see what was going on. She took her phone and had Lucy's number ready.

"Call, Lucy." Yukino said.

"Huh?" Natsu questioned.

"You're looking at her the way I wished you looked at me. You're starting to have feelings for her." Yukino said.

"What?! No I'm not!" Natsu denied. "Am I?" He said as he wasn't quite sure himself now.

"I think you do." Yukino said. "You're starting to develop feelings for her. If you're really not sure, call her and ask her out to find out what you're feeling." Natsu wasn't sure what to do. He is starting to see her a little differently, but he isn't sure what it is. Could it be Natsu is actually starting to fall for Lucy?

...

Gajeel's Boat

Lucy was meeting up with some of her other friends like Yukino said. Sting and his band were there and Lucy had a few things to help.

"Hey, guys!" Lucy greeted. "I got them done! Band stickers!" She said as she actually made stickers for the band and all of them loved it. "I got one with the company logo and one without it."

"Awesome, Lucy, but we shouldn't use the ones with the logo." Sting said. "We still never got a contract to make our band official."

"I'm starting to think we'll never get it." Gajeel complained.

"Don't say that, Gajeel." Lisanna said. "I'm sure we'll get some record company to listen to our music." It seemed like things were going good and Lucy was glad her friends were real pleased. Just then, her phone went off and she was surprised to see it was Natsu.

"Natsu?!" Lucy said as she was anxious and fumbled around with her phone, but she got her act together seeing her friends staring at her. "Uh... It's Natsu... Better see what he wants." She claimed and actually answered the phone. "Going how's Natsu it?" She said and suddenly felt like an idiot.

"Uh... Fine." Natsu said with Yukino listening in on the talk. "Listen, Lucy. I'm really confused about something. It's got something to do with you. It feels like something changed, but I'm not sure what it is. I was hoping we could meet and talk."

"Meet? Talk? About me? Something with you has changed?" Lucy said as she felt like her heart was going to explode with her friends getting interested in this. "Uh... Okay... Where?"

"Maybe...the Grevin Museum?" Natsu offered.

"The Grevin Museum? Sure. I'll see you then." Lucy and ended the call. Once that happened, all of her friends cheered.

"Natsu and Lucy are finally going on a date!" Lisanna cheered, but Lucy feels she's about to fall apart.

...

Natsu

"The Grevin Museum? Out of all the romantic places in Paris, why go there?" Yukino said as she didn't like how Natsu was thinking.

"Well, something happened between us when we were there once." Natsu said as he remembered she nearly kissed him. "I think it all started there, so it seems like a good place to sort all of this out." Little did he know the truth. He clearly didn't get it.

...

Gajeel's Houseboat

Everyone was happy and excited for Lucy that she's finally going on a date with Natsu, but she wasn't as happy as she thought she would be. Between everything else, she isn't sure about this anymore. Sting appeared to be the only one that noticed and went over to talk to her.

"You okay?" Sting asked.

"Yeah. Just trying out the stickers." Lucy said as she planted stickers all over a case, but Sting wasn't fooled. "Sting, I don't know what's wrong with me. I can't be in love with Natsu because it just makes a mess of things. Every time I think I get out, I'm pulled back in. Me being in love with Natsu just causes problems. Not that long ago, I lost something important because of my feelings for him."

"Lucy, you can't let one mistake you made hold you back." Sting said. "You sound like you're confused and scared, but maybe spending time with Natsu will help."

"But I can't go to the Grevin Museum. Something embarrassing happened." Lucy said as she remembered that other time as well.

"But isn't this what you wanted for a long time now?" Sting questioned.

"Yeah, but now I don't know. Whenever I try to get closer to him, it all ended miserably." Lucy said. "Nothing went the way I planned. I've imagined scenarios plenty of times, but there's nothing in real life. I'm starting to think I don't really know Natsu. What if it was all just fantasy? What if I've been fooling myself the entire time? I should be happy now, but the truth is...I'm not. I'm not sure how I feel about this now."

"It sounds like you're confused between Dream Natsu and Real Natsu, but that's why you should go." Sting said. "Maybe it will help clear things up for you."

"But I don't know if I can handle being alone with him." Lucy said as she's really scared. Sting felt like he had to do something.

"What if I go with you?" Sting offered. That would make Lucy feel better.

...

The Grevin Museum

Natsu and Yukino waited outside the museum for Lucy to show. When she finally did, they noticed that Sting was with her.

"Why did Lucy bring Sting? Is she back together with him?" Natsu questioned as it made him uncomfortable.

"You sound jealous." Yukino said, but Natsu wasn't sure if he really was. As for Lucy, she looked ahead and felt relaxed when she saw Yukino was with Natsu.

"Oh! That's what Natsu meant! He must be back with Yukino!" Lucy said.

"You really need to stop jumping to conclusions." Sting said as the four of them met up.

"Hey, Lucy. I didn't know Sting was coming. Are you two together?" Natsu questioned.

"Well, yeah. We did came here together." Lucy said with Natsu a little sad to hear that.

"Lucy, you're giving him the wrong idea." Sting said with Lucy realizing the truth.

"Oh! No! I mean we just came together! I thought it be okay to invite Sting!" Lucy defended. "Anyway, I'm glad to see the two of you are back together. I knew you two were right for each other."

"We're not back together, Lucy. Natsu and I are still just friends." Yukino claimed.

"Well, I think we should leave you two alone." Sting said as he tried leaving, but Lucy couldn't handle this.

"No, Sting!" Lucy whispered as she grabbed him by the arm. "Please don't leave me alone. I need you." Sting wasn't sure about this, but he couldn't really say no to her.

"Thanks for this, Yukino." Natsu said.

"You're welcome, but I'm staying. I have a feeling you're going to need my help." Yukino said. Since Sting and Yukino are sticking around, the four of them went inside the Grevin Museum together. Once inside, The four of them were soon met with the director: Kamika.

"Natsu?!" Kamika said as she was surprised to see him. "I didn't know you were coming. Is there a problem?"

"No, Kamika. We're just paying a visit today." Natsu said.

"Oh! In that case, here." Kamika said as she handed each of them a flyer for an upcoming exhibit for Celestria and all miraculous holders. "We have a new exhibit coming for Celestria and Salamondra. It's not opened yet, but I'm sure it will be great."

"Kamika, your appointment with Mayor Allard is in five minutes." Her alliance ring alerted her.

"You all have a look around and enjoy yourselves." Kamika said and let them do as they please.

"Since we're here, let's check out my own statue." Natsu said as he lead the way. All of them went down into the hall of famous people, and Natsu's statue was the first one they saw. "Lucy, do you remember that little incident from before."

"Uh... Yeah! I remember it so well that's there no need to talk about it!" Lucy said out of embarrassment.

"You almost kissed me." Natsu said with Lucy getting embarrassed again.

"That's because I thought you were a statue! Not that I did it because of that!" Lucy said. "Besides, I didn't go through with it! It wasn't a kiss at all!" She was rambling on about excuses for what happened that day, but that allowed Sting and Yukino to separate themselves from the group and appeared to be on the same page.

"Natsu doesn't seem to get that his feelings for Lucy is love now." Yukino said.

"I think that's because he's a kind and caring person." Sting said. "He loves everyone and everyone seems to love him. He just can't tell the difference. Lucy's problem is the opposite. She knows how she feels, but she won't do anything about it. It's like she's too scared of failing, so she doesn't take a chance." They both seem to be aware of their problems, but what can they do about it?

"Look, can we please just stop bringing the whole thing up?!" Lucy said.

"I'm sorry if it upsets you. I just thought it was something we could laugh about." Natsu said. "It was just surprising, but I think that's when things..." Lucy couldn't take it and just took off. Her fear got the better of her and just took off with her pulling Sting with her.

"I'm not sure I can take much more! I feel like my heart is about to burst!" Lucy said. "What if we're just simply not right for each other! He's practically perfect and I'm not!"

"I think you and Natsu have more in common than you think. You just need to trust yourself." Sting said, but Lucy just can't seem to do that. Knowing their little secret, Sting got an idea that might help. "Lucy, maybe you're only seeing what you want to see, but that's not a bad thing for it has potential to become a reality. Take Celestria and Salamondra for example." He said as he handed the flyer for the upcoming exhibit. "Everyone thinks their perfect for each other."

"But they're not a couple, Sting." Lucy said.

"I know it's only what people think, but there's a reason for it. It's not just because they're a great pair." Sting said. "It's obvious Salamondra has feelings for Celestria, but she doesn't return them. Despite that, people see what they want to see because they see what those two can't."

"What do you mean?" Lucy questioned.

"Despite everything, Salamondra never left Celestria's side." Sting claimed. "He's always there when she needs him. Plus, they got a lot in common. Sure, Celestria might seem more serious than Salamondra, but he probably deals with the same kind of problems she faces. She just doesn't know it because she's too focused on the mission. Maybe Salamondra acting like a clown helps him deal with his problems."

"You think?" Lucy said as she began to wonder about that. "It's just that he always seemed so carefree."

"Maybe because his problems are more in his normal life than his hero life." Sting claimed. "He might seem carefree, but that could be because he has his own problems to deal with. Those two might have more in common than even they might think and that's why people think they're great together. Think about it, who understands what Celestria goes through than a fellow superhero."

"I... I never thought of it like that before..." Lucy said staring down at the picture of Salamondra as Sting helped her realize something. As for Natsu and Yukino, Natsu could see how close those two were and it made him uneasy.

"Feeling jealous?" Yukino asked.

"I'm not sure... All I know is that I would like to be in Sting's place." Natsu said.

...

Kamika

Meanwhile, something was going on with Kamika over some issues the mayor has for her new exhibit for all the miraculous heroes.

"I can't allow you to display this exhibit, Kamika." Aiden said. "The people could get etheriouize because it reminds them of all that we loss. Celestria was supposed to be guarding the miraculous and she failed, and now all these heroes are gone. That will lead to even more disasters."

"But Mayor Allard, this exhibit could give people hope and lift their spirits. I'm sure Celestria will triumph in the end." Kamika claimed.

"What if she doesn't? What if she fails again?" Aiden claimed. "Politics are about dealing with the current situations, and that means we can't give people hope when there isn't any."

"You're wrong! There is hope, and I will show this display!" Kamika said.

"Not if I shut this place down due to hygiene problems." Aiden said.

"That's ridiculous!" Kamika said. "You can't do that!"

"I can as long as you show this display. No hero statues, no hygiene problems. It's the status quo." Aiden said as he made it clear this exhibit will not be displayed and just walked out of there. Just like that, he shatter Kamika's hopes to give hope to others.

...

Lucy's Group

"Lucy, are you okay? You've been staring at that flyer for a while." Natsu asked as Lucy just kept starring at Salamondra. When Sting said what he said, it had a different affect. He meant to help Lucy see there's nothing to worry about, but it might have had a different affect.

"They're never going to make it at this rate." Yukino complained.

"Not without a little fate." Sting said as he had something in mind. Lucy just kept thinking about Salamondra, but got spooked when she felt Natsu place his hand on her.

"Sorry. You excited for the exhibit or something?" Natsu asked.

"I..." Lucy wasn't sure how to answer until she saw Sting and Yukino running for it. "Hey! Where are those two going?! They... They could get lost! We could get lost!"

"But we have each other!" Natsu said.

"Exactly, which is why we need to stay together!" Lucy said and chased after Sting and Yukino. Lucy followed after those two and ended up down in the unfinished exhibit. She looked around for them and spotted them, but she saw what they were trying to do. Once Natsu showed up, Sting flipped a switch and metal doors came down and trapped the two of them...alone. Might have been sneaky, but those two are glad what they did.

...

Dark Emperor

Meanwhile, Kamika was devastated her exhibit won't be displayed. She actually cried. A person feeling despair fills Dark Emperor with hope.

"I wouldn't mind the return of heroes, as long as it works for me! Christina! Unify!" Dark Emperor took her power and infused his own power to an etherious to become a mega etherious. "Voyage, my mega etherious!" He unleashed the etherious and it made its way to Kamika.

...

Kamika

As Kamika cried over the news she had, the mega etherious flew over to her and entered the series of flyers she had in her hand and connected her to Dark Emperor

"Shinigami, I'm Dark Emperor. You desire the heroes to return? I can help with that, but they will be under your command."

"Why should I listen to you when it's your fault they're gone?" Kamika questioned as she tried to resist.

"Only because Celestria failed to protect them." Dark Emperor said. "Once I get what I desire from the miraculous, I won't need them anymore. With the power I'm giving you, you can bring heroes to life. You can be the one that brings hope to all. Isn't that what you desire?"

"It is." Kamika said as she accepted her power. Kamika now became Shinigami with her wearing a purple kimono-like attire with sandals. The flyers she had became black paper with spiritual power flowing through them.

"Finn! Unify!" Dark Emperor added Finn's power to his. "Transfer!" The power of the shark were now transferred over to Shinigami. "To aid you, I am giving you the powers of the shark miraculous. With your body made out of water, they won't be able to harm you." It would seem the heroes might actually return, but under Dark Emperor's command.

...

Lucy

"It won't open!" Lucy groaned as she tried to get the door to open, but there's nothing. "Now what am I going to do?!"

"It's okay, Lucy. I'm here." Natsu said to comfort her.

"Exactly! You're here! That's the problem!" Lucy claimed.

"I'm the problem?" Natsu questioned.

"No! It's just..." Lucy wasn't sure what to say. When she saw the statues of Celestria and Salamondra to remind her of her failure. "I just make a mess of things whenever I'm around you!"

"No you don't. You almost kissed me, but you didn't know it was me." Natsu said.

"That's not it!" Lucy said as she just couldn't take it anymore. "I just can't tell you anything!"

"Of course you can." Natsu said, but she can't. That's when she realized the only person she could talk to about her problems was...Salamondra. However, she didn't have time for either. They heard the other door bust down. When they heard that, the two of them quickly hid with Shinigami making her way in. Using her new power, she placed the flyers on each of the statues like they were talismans, and they actually brought the statues of all the miraculous heroes to actual life. The heroes have returned, but they now serve Dark Emperor. While she was doing that, Lucy saw the way out.

"Now's our chance to get out of here." Lucy said as she made a run for the exit, but Natsu stayed behind since this gave him the chance to transform.

"Let's moveout!" Shinigami said as her new team hurried out of the museum.

...

Celestria

Once Lucy was away from Natsu, she was free to transform. Natsu did the same thing. Once Celestria transformed, she hurried out the museum and was soon met with Salamondra.

"Hey, Celestria. Looks like the whole team is back together." Salamondra said.

"Just not the way I hoped." Celestria said. They chased after Shinigami's team.

"Celestria and Salamondra, I welcome you." Shinigami said. "You'll be proud to see the superheroes are back, but with new management. Dark Emperor promised that if you give me your miraculous, he'll stop his attacks. All he wants is the miraculous for one thing and it will all end."

"Kamika?" Salamondra questioned.

"Not anymore. I'm the new miraculous leader: Shinigami. With my powers, you don't need to be heroes anymore."

"You mean powers that Dark Emperor gave you." Celestria said. "Nothing good will come if he gets his hands on the miraculous."

"He's manipulating you just to get what he wants." Dark Emperor said.

"Well, if he doesn't keep his word, my heroes will take care of him." Shinigami said.

"With the powers that he can easily take back." Salamondra said. "The moment you turn against him, he can just take those powers back." He brought up a point and had Shinigami thinking.

"Don't listen to them! Remember what you're fighting for!" Dark Emperor claimed.

"You don't have the superheroes anymore to help you. You failed to protect the miraculous, but I won't fail." Shinigami said. Those words got to Celestria as she looked around and see reminders of her failure.

"She's right! They're gone because of me!" Celestria blamed herself. "I've lost my team and everything!"

"You haven't lost me." Salamondra assured. "As long he doesn't have our miraculous, he hasn't won yet." Celestria felt reassured knowing Salamondra is still with her.

"Well, you've lost." Shingami said as she snapped her fingers. That was when the statues of Titania and Frostbite tried to attack them, but Celestria and Salamondra out maneuvered them and sliced them in half. "Scatter!" Shinigami and the rest of her statues scattered into the city.

"At least we know where the etherious is." Celestria said as took the papers on the two they defeated and tore them in half, but dark dust flew out instead.

"What the heck is that?!" Salamondra said.

"The etherious must have been divided into the strips." Celestria said as she used her whip and caught the dust. "We'll have to capture all of them."

"Let's get to work." Salamondra said as they had a lot of ground to cover. They might think Shinigami gave them the slip, but she just simply hid until they passed.

"My heroes should keep them busy. Just enough time for the mayor to rethink his decision." Shinigami claimed as she now can get what she wants.

...

City Hall

With Celestria and Salamondra off her back, Shinigami went straight to City Hall. She busted right into his office and got his attention.

"Mayor Allard, you will let me show my heroes display whether you like it or not!" Shinigami said with the mayor almost convinced out of fear.

"Daddy, no!" Taylor called for it seemed like she had a part in this, and he was siding with her again.

"Can't control your own daughter? You're unfit to be mayor." Shinigami said with her Asterion stepping in. "You said I should deal with current situations, and that's what I'm doing." She claimed as Asterion moved closer to them and scared both of them pretty good.

...

Celestria and Salamondra

Meanwhile, Celestria and Salamondra were fighting all the wax statues. Shinigami thought it would be difficult for them, but she underestimated them. The two of them fought rather well and was able to defeat each one of the fakes. For each one of they defeated, they ripped a piece of the strips that kept the statues alive and managed to get a piece of the etherious. During the battle, Celestria was actually impressed with Salamondra.

"You seem to be in great shape today." Celestria complimented.

"Got to stay on our toes." Salamondra said, but Celestria felt like there was something different. They were able to defeat all the fakes they could until only three of them were left, and they were down in City Hall. The real heroes moved as fast as they could and smashed through the entrance. Once there, they were met with the fakes of themselves.

"Dragon Fire!"

"Open the Celestial Gate!" They're fakes even copied their powers with the fake Celestria getting a giant sword and the fake Salamondra having his destructive power ready.

"They're just like us!" Celestria said.

"But there's no beating the original!" Salamondra said as he charged right in. The fake Celestria tried to slice him in half, but he moved faster and sliced her in half. Before his fake could attack him, Celestria tangled him up with her whip and held him down.

"Please don't. It's me, my little star." The fake claimed as he sounded like the real thing...and it actually affected her. For a brief moment, she thought it was the real Salamondra and loosened her grip on him. It was just enough for it to break free and tried to attack. She fell back as the fake was about to use his Dragon Fire on her, but the real one sliced him in two and was able to save her.

"Celestria!" Salamondra called as he hurried over to her. "Are you okay?" He asked as he held out his hand, but Celestria felt like she was seeing him in a whole new light. She took his hand and stood back up, but she felt like she was in a daze. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Uh... Yeah." Celestria said as she needed to snap out of it and get back to work. "Open the Celestial Gate!" She called on her own powers and ended up getting a Gemini toaster. Weird, but they'll have to keep going. Soon, the two of them reached the mayor's office with them seeing the fake Asterion holding the mayor and Taylor hostage. "Let them go!"

"This whole thing is the mayor's fault for trying to ruin my heroes exhibit." Shinigami claimed.

"Why would you do that?" Celestria questioned.

"Taylor, maybe it wasn't the best idea." Aidan claimed and finally showed who was really behind it.

"All of this is because you were lame, Celestria!" Taylor accused with her words hitting hard. "You lost the miraculous! Why should that exhibit be used to honor you?! If you had given one to me in the first place, none of this would be happening! And now you're getting what you deserve, you useless superhero. Now, you have no choice to protect me! So, who is the lamest of them all?" She said as she felt Celestria really did deserve all of this. Celestria was offended, but Salamondra wasn't going to let her take that.

"If you ask me, it's you!" Salamondra claimed with Taylor and Celestria shocked he said that. "We never gave you a miraculous because you never did anything to deserve it! It wouldn't have made that much of a difference in the first place! Half of the villains we fought were etherouized because of you! You only thought about yourself! Even now, you're trying to ruin something for everyone for your own petty reasons! Keep in mind, we don't HAVE to save you, but we will because we're simply kinder people than you!" Celestria was amazed with how Salamondra stood up for her like that. "Dragon Fire!" He used his powers and was aiming to use it right on the papers Shinigami had.

"Nice try. Water!" Shinigami used her miraculous powers and Salamondra ended up passing through her and destroying the mayor's desk instead. "Can't work on what you can't touch." Salamondra turned to fight her, but the fake Asterion grabbed a hold of him and kept him down. "It's over, Celestria. You can't defeat me without harming me. I'm invincible! I shall bring hope to all of Paris when you couldn't, Celestria!" It was looking bad until Celestria realized Shinigami was made of water and she was holding a toaster.

"Not as much as you think." Celestria said. She threw the toaster and Shinigami found herself getting electrocuted. It caused her to drop all the remaining flyers. Celestria grabbed them and ripped them all apart. That allowed the last of the etherious to fly out and for her to capture it. "Gotcha! Bye-Bye, little guy." She said as the etherious was whole and purified. "Miraculous Starlight!" She tossed the toaster in the air and the magic stars restored everything to how it was before. When Shinigami returned to Kamika, Celestria made another charm with it being purple with a small ghost on it. "Here, Kamika. Keep this to remind you that there is always hope. Speaking of which, Mayor Allard, you must let the exhibit happen. It can provide the hope we all need." It was then he saw how wrong he was to do such a thing.

"You're right, Celestria. It will go on." Aidan claimed with Taylor frustrated.

"Pound it." The heroes celebrated. Now that it was all over, the two heroes were on their way, but there was still something Celestria had to say.

"Salamondra, wait!" Celestria said as she grabbed his tail. "Thank you. I was hesitant against your copy because...I think something has changed. Something feels different."

"I know what you mean." Salamondra said. "I think it's because my feelings are different. I think I might have found someone who sees the real me, and really understands me. Someone who I thought was a good friend, but I now see is much more." He claimed with no idea he's talking about her and vice versa. Hearing his own feelings might be different actually hurt Celestria. "I need to go."

"So soon?" Celestria asked.

"We're about to change back anyway. I'll see you later." Salamondra said and left with Celestria actually feeling heartbroken.

...

The Grevin Museum

"Lucy! Lucy!" Natsu called. Once he got back, he went looking for Lucy as Sting and Yukino regrouped with him. Lucy was the last one to arrive, but she looked a little upset. "Lucy!" He called and actually hugged her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah... I'm fine..." Lucy said. "It's been a hectic day, so I think I'm going to head home. Sting, thanks for earlier. I think you helped me realized something I should have a long time ago." Sting had a feeling on what that was with Lucy showing herself out.

"So, have you figured out how you feel?" Yukino asked.

"Yeah... I think I AM in love with Lucy." Natsu said as he was lovestruck. As for Lucy, she walked home with dark clouds hanging over her. When she was alone, she couldn't stop herself from crying.

"Are you okay, Lucy?" Stella asked.

"No, Stella. I think I'm in love with Salamondra!" Lucy claimed. It would seem that their situations are now reversed.