BROKEN AND BRUISED

CHAPTER 16

The glass of whiskey was twirling in her hands as she took another breath. This thing was eating her alive. How was she supposed to present to over hundreds of people tomorrow at her new company when she was feeling this jittery?

She took another deep breath and laid back in her chair, she was now the owner of this company and its CEO so she had to pull her shit together… that's what she continued to think to try and ease her mind that everything was going to be alright and that nothing bad will happen tomorrow.

"Glaring at that glass of whiskey is not going to ease your worries." A deep voice resounded in her office making her jump from her seat. She swiveled around and gasped. "Dad? Why are you still awake?"

He entered her office and closed the door behind him. "I could ask you the same thing, you have a presentation at 8 am tomorrow yet it is 3 am at the moment and you're still awake. What's wrong Lucy dear?"

The blonde heaved a sigh and settled back on her chair. "I'm just nervous and worried that I might mess things up. The thought of having people staring at me is giving me anxiety."

Jude sat in front of her and hummed. "Lucy, wherever you go someone is always going to be looking at you, for instance your kids, your family, they are all going to be looking at you. Does that make you nervous?"

Lucy shook her head. "It's my family, and my family won't judge me. Not like strangers."

"Who told you that?" Jude chuckled. "Family judge you the most, but some wish to voice their judgments and others don't, and their judgments aren't always right. But you know right now I will judge you." he cleared his throat and continued. "Lucy, you are one of the smartest kids I have ever known in my life. You are passionate, kind, loving, an amazing daughter and an even more amazing mother and sister. You have worked on this project for so long that I'm sure you know it by heart. So don't think about the negative things that might happen, think about the fact that you covered every aspect of the project, you left no loose end. And tomorrow when you want to present, just tell it to them like you told me, like you tell your family about the things that matter to you. Because it's only then that your eyes shine in a way that is extraordinary. So don't worry about anything, and if it's their stares that are bothering you, just remember that I'll be with you in the room, so look at me and don't worry about them." He kissed her on her forehead and bid her goodnight.

Lucy blinked back this memory, she looked around the room and couldn't catch his face, not like she was able to. Every member of Fairy Tail was staring at her, some with curiosity, some with pain laced in their eyes and others with complete indifference. What hurt her the most were the looks of team Natsu, they all wore an unreadable look and she hated the fact that they weren't showing any emotion on their faces.

Her heart started to beat rapidly and her hands began to sweat. She didn't think this through, now she realized. It was very close to overwhelming her hadn't been for Jellal' supporting hand on her shoulder. A gesture that didn't escape any of the guild member's eyes.

"You okay Lu?" he whispered low enough so that she would only hear him.

She took a deep breath and after a while nodded her head. Her father always told her that if she ever came against something that felt way too big for her, an obstacle that was impossible to pass from her view, to always keep her head high and maybe then she would find the solution.

But this obstacle here, she didn't know what to do with. What will she tell them? There is no answer other than the truth, but will these people understand and accept the truth? This isn't like presenting an idea or a project where a voting would take place to see if everything worked out well, this is a matter that involves her and some members of the guild, it's a matter that changed her life and theirs. No voting would solve this.

"If you keep thinking like this you'll never find the solution that's right in front of you." a voice sounded in her mind.

"Aquarius? What are you talking about?" Lucy replied to her in her consciousness.

"It's simple you brat. The first thing you should be thinking about is whether you want to tell them what happened to you, and everything else would work out after that. So, do you want to tell them or no? It doesn't matter what they think because they have no business in this, it matters what you feel comfortable with."

After that Aquarius didn't say anything, no one did because none knew what to say, what to ask, or how to start the conversation. Even the kids were quiet because they felt the tension in the room.

Lucy thought about what Aquarius said, and concluded that she was right about everything. It is her choice and it doesn't matter whether they accept it or not. She took a deep breath and walked a step further, with a steady voice she began. "I know a lot of you have questions, and I know that all of this is a shock. But before I talk to any of you, I would like to call the magic council about the situation from before and then I would like to speak with master Makarov and Laxus privately."

She turned to the master who was staring at her with worried eyes. "Master, if you have a communication lacrima I can use, that would be wonderful."

The master hopped from his seat. "I do child, it's in the office I suppose. Is that alright with you Macao?"

The man in question just nodded his head and Makarov took the stairs towards the office. Lucy was about to follow when she stopped in her tracks.

"Eric-nii, please watch over them. I-" her words cut off, she swallowed back her gasp, this was starting to overwhelm her.

He heard her thoughts and knew through their connection that her emotions were about to flood open. He looked at the people and they were all still staring at her back, and he was sure she was feeling their gazes on her.

"Oi!" every single head turned to him. "Stop staring at her like that and give her some space will you?" he turned to his sister who still had her back to them. "Sunshine, I got things here. Go and handle yours."

Her shoulders sagged as a breath of relief escaped her. "Thank you." it was only a whisper but he heard it. Lucy took the stairs and followed after the former master of Fairy Tail.

His eyes went back to the members of this guild. He saw one of them was about to speak when a tiny voice beat him to it. "Uncle Coco, why are these people looking at us like that?" Layla asked with tears brimming her eyes. He got down to her level and scooped her up in his arms. "Don't look at them Munchkin, everything is fine. Uncle Coco is here you have nothing to worry about." He calmed her down with a soothing voice that took all the strangers by surprise.

The little girl sniffled and nestled in his arms. Jellal looked over at the boys and saw them in a similar state, Red hiding in Sorano' embrace while Justin was in Meredy'. He sighed and looked back at the other occupants of the room. "I know this is weird and new and shocking, but if you could please stop staring at the kids like that, you are scaring them and making them uncomfortable."

"But… they look so much like-" Mira started softly but Jellal cut her off.

"I know they do, but like Lu said she will tell you all after she is done with Makarov-san. So till then please, can't you see that the kids are crying?"

Their eyes were downcast and each one apologized. To lighten up the mood, Bickslow got closer to one of the boys and nudged them. "Hey little fella, what's your name?"

Blue orbs peeked from Sorano' arms. They widened when they saw the man talking to him. A mask, crazy hair, a tattoo on his tongue, there was no doubt about it. The little boy jumped from Sorano' arms and exclaimed. "Uncle Bicks? You're uncle Bicks right?"

His little joyous outburst caught the attention of the other two. Justin looked at Red and then at Bickslow, he gasped when he saw the mask. "You are uncle Bicks. Mom told us so much about you!"

Bickslow didn't expect to get any of this, not the smiles nor the bright shiny eyes that were staring at him with pure joy. "That sure is me!" he replied happily.

Layla swirled towards him. "Where are your babies, can we see them? Mom said that you sit on them and fly, is that right? Is it true that you can control dolls? Is it true that your babies like to play hide and seek because we like to play too."

"Layla breathe." Macbeth laughed.

She stuck her tongue out at Macbeth and he copied her. The little blonde giggled at her uncle, Eric put her down and turned to the three of them. "Why don't you three introduce yourselves?"

The kids looked at each other skeptically. Eric continued. "You don't know, you might find other people here that mommy told you about."

The little kids' eyes sparkled. "Really? Like uncle Freed?" Justin exclaimed. "Or Auntie Ever?" Layla asked. "Or Uncle Gajeel? Is he here too?!" Red inquired while barely holding his excitement.

The said three were not visible to the kids because they were hidden. "I don't know, and neither would you if you don't introduce yourselves. Do that and they will too." Eric finished.

"Okay!" Red jumped excitedly. He stepped forward and faced everyone, with a bright smile that resembled Lucy', he introduced himself. "Hello! My name is Red Bicks Heartfilia!"

Gajeel and Bickslow looked at each other with wide eyes. Justin came next with the same enthusiasm as his brother. "And I am Justin Green Heartfilia."

Freed and Evergreen' faces were adorned by warm smiles.

Layla came last, her eyes were downcast so Red came and grabbed her hand, Justin held the other. "And this our beautiful little sister, Layla Erika Heartfilia."

She shyly said hello.

"Ah what, you aren't going to do your signature move?" Ultear asked earning smiles from the little trio.

"Of course we are!" they assembled from oldest to youngest, got their hands out and gave a thumbs out while chanting together. "And we are the Heartfilia triplets!"

Their family started clapping and the others started joining soon after, they didn't know what the clapping was for but they deduced it was necessary.

"Now I think we should introduce ourselves…" Mira stepped up. "Hello little angels my name is Mirajane but you can call me Mira."

"Auntie Mira!" the three kids chanted together and ran up to her. "Mommy said you beat Uncle Freed!" "Mommy said that you are a demon! If that's the case you are a beautiful one." "Mommy told us that you make a lot of delicious food! Can we have some?"

"Kids!" Ultear sternly called out to them. One by one they turned to face her, "Yes auntie Ultear?"

"Ask and say what you want, but one by one. Alright?"

"Hai!" the three saluted her then turned back to Mirajane who was cooing over their adorableness.

"Oi! What about the rest of us? Don't you wanna know us too?" a gruff voice said. Three heads simultaneously swiveled towards the sound and all widened their eyes. "UNCLE GAJEEL!"

All three ran up to him and jumped in his arms, he hugged them all then put them down. They surrounded him and started jumping around while telling him about all the stories their mother shared with them. They mentioned all of the Fairy Tail members making each one surprised and touched that Lucy didn't forget about them, but she let their stories live through her kids.

"What was it like when you fought the mean dragon?" Red asked, albeit shyly because he knew it was a sensitive subject, yet his curiosity won at the end and he wanted to know.

The guild hall quietened, Red started sweating, he noticed how the atmosphere turned melancholic.

Freed answered quietly. "It wasn't much, but we did our best." Justin who was in his arms, could sense the hatred Freed felt for that dragon. It was a new feeling for him since he never hated anyone, his mother always says to give chances to people because we never know what they're going through, but she also did remind them that some people are excluded from that thought. Yet he remembers his mother saying she hates one person and one person alone, though she never said who.

Layla who was sitting on Evergreen' lap whispered. "Mommy told us that you were brave, and that you did your best. Which is why when we grow up we wanna be just like you." she smiled brightly at the end.

This smile, that reminded each and every one of Lucy, calmed their hearts and put a smile on their faces.

"You're gonna be braver than us, just you wait." Evergreen gave her a kiss on the forehead and the little girl snuggled in her embrace.

"So tell us, what do you usually do for fun?" Natsu asked pumped for a fight.

"Don't even start Flamebreath!" Gajeel growled. "They're kids."

"So what?" he shrugged then bent down to their level. "Wanna spar?"

Red and Justin leapt from their seats and left behind him, Gajeel looked at Cobra who was smirking.

"You gonna let that happen?" Gajeel asked bewildered that none of them were trying to stop the three little rascals, which he now noticed that Layla joined them as well.

"Please, he'll be begging for mercy soon." Cobra snickered.

Jellal shook his head. "Those three together can be a pain."

Romeo who overheard the conversation butted in. "But they can't beat Natsu-nii right?"

Sawyer laughed. "Of course not kiddo, but they'll mess with him enough." He patted the kid on the head and went after the kids, soon the rest of their family followed outside.

Lucy stared at the communication lacrima in front of her that was ringing, a couple of seconds pass before a familiar face appears.

"Lucy-san?" the man remarks in bewilderment. "How may I help you?" his cheeks tint red which doesn't go unnoticed by the other two men in the room. Laxus was sitting on the chair behind Lucy and far away from her, while Makarov was behind the desk.

"Lahar-san, I actually want to report to you about a situation that happened just now. You see…" While Lucy explained the situation, Laxus couldn't help but stare at her. She was just beautiful, everything a man could ever wish for. She had the brains and a hell of a body to back it up, she was no normal girl he knew that. So how did she become his mate? He felt the bond and knew sure enough when he calmed down that she's his mate. The fact that he waited all these years to finally read about his magic was messed up.

She finished the call and hung up. The air stilled in the room, no one knew how to start, what to say, how to react to this whole ordeal.

Makarov closed his eyes and leaned back. "Why didn't you tell me? I could have helped." His voice turned raspy at the end which broke Lucy' heart.

Her eyes looked downwards as she answered. "You weren't feeling well back then master Makarov, telling you wasn't going to help you."

He held up his hand. "First you can call me gramps." He waited till the blonde nodded before he continued. "Second, no matter how I be feeling, my kids will always be more important to me, and I would do anything for them."

Lucy swallowed the lump in her throat. "Gramps, I know we have a lot to talk about, but can I please talk to Laxus alone first. I- no, we have to clear up some things."

Makarov looked at Laxus who was staring at the ground. "Very well, call me when you two are done."

He got up and left the office. The air became thicker as the silence stretched on. She was about to open her mouth when he started with a hushed voice. "I saw you before I left…"

"Hmm?" Lucy turned to face him.

"Before I left, you were on your window doing the Fairy Tail sign, I saw you." he stopped talking.

The blonde nodded her head slowly. "Oh."

Silence filled the room once again before both started at the same time. "I'm sorry-"

"Oh." Lucy giggled then ushered for him. "You start first."

Laxus took a deep breath in before he began telling her what he wanted to tell her the minute she uttered his name. "I'm sorry." He took another deep breath in. "I know it doesn't fix anything, nor erase anything that I have done. When I saw you back then, my heart squeezed from the pain, yet I couldn't remember what I have done till you uttered my name."

"You have nothing to apologize for Laxus." She whispered.

His head swiveled to face her, his eyes wide. "What do you mean? I-"

"Weren't in control of what happened, at all. Your father controlled you, used you for his own gain, and left a mess behind him for you to clean up, for you to face." Lucy sighed. "Listen up, at first I blamed you a lot for what happened, I used you as something to vent on, to put the blame on. I considered myself the only victim when actually there was two. And for that, I am sorry. But now, I know the truth of what happened, somewhat… which is why I don't feel the least bit of fear with you now."

Her words cut him deeply, because she just told him how much he affected her, how much she hated him, how much she must have gone through just because of him.

"I'm sorry. I know I have a lot to clear up for, will you let me? I will try my hardest to do so." Tears started pooling in the corner of his eyes, he was never one to cry but this whole thing broke him, physically, emotionally, spiritually.

She looked into his eyes and nothing but sincerity was found. She smiled softly to him. "Of course, and you're not alone Laxus, you have me, you have the kids, they said they were going to protect you didn't they?"

He cracked a smile before a tear rolled by on his cheek. "You did an amazing job with them, I don't need to know them for a while to know that fact."

This brightened the smile on her face. "Thank you, I was never alone through any of this which was what helped. So, you won't be too, and that I promise."

His heart fluttered at her words, truly she was a girl that he doesn't deserve at all. But there was still a problem… does she know about them?

He didn't have time to find out about that when a childish scream erupted from the outside, but it was no ordinary scream, it was a chilling scream that left tingles on his spine.

Lucy was quickly on her feet and out the door. He followed her suit and with the way she descended the stairs he knew something was up. They got out of the guild hall and came to the scene of the members surrounding her two boys with Layla wailing in Sorano' arms.

She dashed to the middle of them and saw her two boys sweating while glowing in yellow. She looked at Eric. "What happened?"

He looked panicked. "They were sparring with Natsu to relieve some of their magical power, everything was going well until he activated a second form that has lightning in it. They sucked it up and this happened." He quickly finished explaining before he took a deep breath, his heart was racing out of fear. They couldn't touch the kids, lightning was dancing on them, and when Natsu tried to eat that lightning he couldn't because it was filtering in and out of them.

Cackles filled the garden and Lucy started heaving. She calmed herself before she knelt down, bringing her arms forward to hug her boys she was stopped by Natsu.

"Luce you would get hurt."

"It won't hurt me, they would never hurt me." She saw the black markings reappearing once again on their upper bodies and the way they closed their eyes in pain with their foreheads creased causing her to almost break down. She brought her arms forth and engulfed them in a hug, the lightning started to dance on her body making Natsu' eyes widen, same as Wendy, because they both knew what this meant. It now just dawned on them what all of this means.

"Red, Justin." Lucy started slowly. "I know you two can hear me, I want you both to calm your breathing. Listen to my voice and focus on it only, start counting to three then take a deep breath, hold it in for two seconds then exhale it. Come on you two, I know you can do it, and I'm right here." She calmly instructed her boys.

The two boys tried to follow their mother's advice and after a while it worked, the lightning surrounding them dimmed. "Good job you two, now for the next part, I want you to meditate, we always do that. Expel the magic outside of your body then slowly bring it back in."

The boys followed her every instruction and a couple of minutes later their breathing regulated, the marking began to fade and they stopped sweating like before.

Lucy noticed a thin line being sucked from her boys, it was very small almost unnoticeable but she followed it with her eyes to see it leading back to none other than Laxus, he must be sucking up the extra magic that's seeping from her kids, which was why they got better faster.

She made a mental note in her head to thank him later, she looked back at her kids to see them opening their eyes.

"Mommy~" Red groggily said. The blonde pulled away for a bit and caressed his hair. "I'm here baby, I'm here."

"I'm tired." He replied barely keeping his eyes open.

"It's okay sweetie you can sleep. You don't have to worry about anything." She cooed to her little one.

He closed his eyes once again and fell into a deep slumber, Justin following suit. The other boy was awake but couldn't form any words to say.

Lucy heaved a relieved sigh then looked back at her family who looked concerned. "They're fine, they just need rest."

Each and every one of their faces showed relief at the news, Meredy came and took Justin from Lucy' arms after asking for her permission while Sorano took Red.

"Lu, you go and take care of the things you need to do, we will handle everything here. Sorry about earlier, we had no idea they were going to do that." Macbeth apologized on behalf of the others for not keeping a closer eye on the kids.

"Don't worry about it Mackey, everything's been handled. But you are right I need to go and handle my things. Thank you for the help really!" the blonde smiled at him then walked inside, Makarov following her and Laxus already waiting for them outside the office.

Once inside, they settled back into their former positions.

"Okay Lucy dear, this time I want to know everything that happened, so please if you wish to tell me, then start." Makarov stated then leaned back in his chair, waiting to see what the blonde will decide.

Lucy didn't hesitate, she told him about everything she went through and this time Laxus knew exactly of the hardships she had to face because of him. This caused him to hate himself more.

At the end Lucy was crying, Makarov on the verge of tears and Laxus was holding back his.

"They overcharged as Porly-san said, it was the most horrifying thing I have ever seen." She took a deep breath in. "It took them a while but they got back to normal and everything was good till now when they sucked the lightning. About that…" she turned to Laxus. "Thank you for your help out there."

He kept quiet, he didn't know how to answer so he just nodded his head. Lucy tried to collect her thoughts and emotions, and when she succeeded she turned to the master with the most deadly look the blonde was ever seen in that made the master do a double take of her, he has never seen her looking this furious in his life, it surprised both Dreyars in the room.

"Now onto a more serious note, we need to talk about the cause of this whole situation." Lucy stated seriously.

"Ivan…" Makarov whispered his name. "We need to call in the authorities to catch him, and we need proof of what he has done."

"His name is already with the magic council and they are currently searching for him but have yet to find him." Lucy explained.

"How so?" Laxus asked for the first time during this whole conversation.

"He tried to kidnap my daughter twice, even trespassed my house to do so." Lucy replied, her rage bubbling at the memories of that horrifying man.

"WHAT?!" both Dreyars exclaimed at the same time with a loud voice.

Lucy nodded her head solemnly. "It's been over a year since the last attack, he kept stating that he has the right to see his grandkids."

"Fuck no!" Laxus was on the verge of exploding. He knows how messed up this man is, hell he even controlled his own son to get what he wants. To think that Laxus was so foolish and naïve to believe in his father.

"Laxus calm down. Lucy dear what did you do?" Makarov inquired to the blonde.

"I told him that if I ever see him again I will plant him in dirt. And he better believe it to be true." Her voice turned venomous in the end, sending tingles down the men' spines. This was the definition of momma bear.

Makarov looked out to notice that it was getting dark. He turned back to Lucy and asked her the question that Lucy knew was going to come sooner or later. "Do you want to share this with the guild?"

Lucy swallowed the lump that formed in her throat and looked at Laxus. "I'll do whatever you want to do, this is something that concerns us both."

Laxus looked at the blonde, he looked in her eyes then averted his, he couldn't erase the memory of her screaming for him to stop from his head, and he was sure he would never be able to.

If it was truly up to him, he wouldn't want anyone to know about the mistakes he did. But he promised that he was going to come back and start a new life, and he can't do that with keeping secrets about something major like that. He knows his members really well, and to him they deserve to know as well.

"When Gildarts said that he allows me back into the guild, I promised myself that I would return as a new person, a better one. And I can't be that while keeping this secret. So…"

He didn't need to continue, Lucy already understood what he meant. She got out of her seat and Makarov showed her out, just before she got out she noticed that Laxus was still sitting in the office.

"Are you coming?" she asked softly.

After a few seconds he shook his head. She admired him for his bravery, and she also knew that this whole thing was just thrown over him, so it'd be better to not be there when she tells the guild, for they might blame him again. She sighed then closed the door behind her.

She stood in the middle of the guildhall, everyone looking at her. Her family had taken the kids out to a restaurant to eat to give them the privacy that was needed.

"I know a lot of you have a lot of questions. So ask away." She stated knowing full well that questions were going to start flying her way.

But no one opened his mouth, not a single word was uttered.

The blonde looked around her shocked. She saw their curious eyes yet no one spoke up.

Mira saw the confused state of the blonde and called out to her. "Lucy!" the blonde swiveled her head to face her.

"We know and understand that what you went through must have been something tough and painful, that's why we don't want to ask about that. We don't want details, we just want to know if these are yours and Laxus' kids." Mira smiled sweetly.

Lucy blushed at the warm feeling she was getting from the members of the guild, and she appreciated the thought. But like Laxus said, they can't be who they want to be without letting this thing go. "Thank you Mira-san for this, and yes they are our kids. And about what I went through, I want to share this with you all, I don't want to leave this thing between us, we are a family after all."

So she explained to them about everything that happened, and through it all the members kept quiet till she mentioned the fact that she got raped by Laxus.

"What. The. Fuck?!" was Gray' reaction. He was completely shocked by the whole news, not only he but the whole guild was.

Some were crying, like Levy who thought that the blonde was having an easy life while all along she was the one suffering the most; Erza, who thought of this girl as her little sister even though she didn't know her that long, while others held an enraged look on their faces, such as Natsu and Gray.

"He must be punished! Laxus must be punished!" Erza exclaimed, with half of the guild agreeing with her.

"Wait no!" Lucy put her hands in front of her to stop them from going up. "Listen up, he was a victim like me. His father used magic to control him, he wasn't aware of anything he was doing." Lucy rushed out. The news causing everyone to halt in their places.

"What?" Natsu asked shocked.

Lucy took a deep breath. "His father controlled him with a shadow that was implanted inside of him, he wasn't aware of anything that he did. And when he finally came to, he didn't remember anything until he saw me today."

"Poor Laxus!" Mira gasped, the tears overflowing down her face.

Everyone calmed down, and a feeling of pity filled the air which suffocated the blonde.

"So that's why he broke down…" Macao remarked with a frown on his face.

Romeo approached the blonde. "Lucy-nee, when I saw you at the cemetery, you were pregnant right?"

This picked the interest of others. "Cemetery? What are you talking about Romeo?" Macao asked.

His kid turned to him. "She was the fairy I met back then, and the coat is hers."

Macao widened his eyes at the mention of that time, he was sure he lost his son until he saw him running towards him with a coat that's larger than his whole body. He also remembered the words he said to him that day, words he kept safe in his heart all this time, only for it to be the words of none other than Lucy Heartfilia.

"Lucy-san, for that day thank you." Macao bowed to her.

"Please Macao-san, you don't need to thank me. It was the least I could do." Lucy smiled at him and he reciprocated.

"This is… too much to take in at once." Levy stated.

"I know it is." Lucy commented with a frown on her face, "But please don't hate on Laxus for this."

The members nodded their heads, how could they hate on him for something that he wasn't in control of?

"Are you going to come back to the guild Lucy-nee?" Romeo asked in hope to cheer the mood up.

Lucy laughed and lifted her dress a bit, showing off her mark and the scar she had on her thigh. "I'm already in a guild, but I wanna see if I can join two guilds at once. Is it something doable gramps?"

Makarov looked deep in thought. "I can look into it. But what is this guild you're in, I've never seen it before."

"That's because we work in the shadows." Another voice replied, its owner none other than Jellal.

"Our guild isn't known well, and we prefer it stays that way. Because that way we can do whatever the hell we want!" Sawyer cackled at the end earning a slap on the chest from Meredy.

"It's not because of that, we just don't want trouble from the council." Macbeth explained.

Jellal held the sleeping Layla in his arms, he looked at Lucy and asked. "What do you wanna do Lu?"

Lucy contemplated for a while. "It's late, are there any hotels nearby we can rent in?"

Macao intervenes. "Oi, oi, you can stay here. There is enough space, and you know we are partying for everyone's return, you can't just leave right now."

The rest of the guild agreed, but still Lucy was hesitant. She didn't want to burden them with anything but when she saw the hopeful gaze of her kids she relented.

"Alright then, we'll stay. Thank you Macao-san." He smiles at her and continues drinking his beer.

Lucy sits with her old team and catch up, it has been so long since she has felt this carefree. She got everyone back, everyone that she thought she had missed the opportunity to live with has returned, and her heart almost can't handle the happiness. That's why throughout all this night, the smile never left her face.

Gajeel and Cobra noticed this, and that brought them their own happiness.

"It's nice seeing her like this." Commented Cobra with Gajeel agreeing immediately.

"Now let's get down to business. What did you want to talk to me about?" Gajeel asks Cobra seriously.

The latter sighs. "Let's get out of here first then talk about it."

They take their beers with them and walk out of the guild to be met with the cold and crisp night air. Cobra takes his seat on a tree trunk that was planted in the grass while Gajeel stays standing.

"Do you know what next week is?" Cobra said out of nowhere.

Gajeel thought for a while then shook his head. "Should I?"

Cobra scoffed. "Man those seven years did a number on your brain." Gajeel growled at him and was about to retaliate when he was shut off by the words that Cobra continued with. "Next week starts the dragon mating season."

Gajeel widened his eyes. He almost slapped himself for forgetting such an important week, he needs to prepare himself and most importantly distance himself from Levy or he won't be able to control himself when he's around her.

"Fuck!" he cussed as he racked his brain to find places he can go to. He could try the mountains, find some caves, or-

His thought process was cut short when his eyes met the gaze of the poison dragon slayer. His eyes widened once more, for he completely overlooked the bigger problem… Laxus.

"He definitely knows by now who she is to him." Gajeel started.

"And I don't think either of them are ready for a relationship." Cobra finished.

But will Laxus be able to control his emotions? In this week, the dragon is usually more capable of taking over and Laxus will most probably follow his instincts. The problem is that following his instincts will lead him to Lucy.

"Bunny shouldn't be near him." Cobra nodded his head. "Telling her that it's mating season may be a good idea."

Gajeel shook his head. "Why do I feel that distancing her would only cause trouble? A dragon who found his mate will literally go on a rampage if someone was trying to separate them during mating season, now imagine a dragon has already found his mate and has three kids with her but his mate is not marked yet… this could lead to a fucking disaster."

Cobra took a deep breath, he didn't like this whole situation. And the fact is, everything that Iron head just talked about is nothing but the truth. The worst part is, they wouldn't be able to help her.

"How much time do we still have?" Gajeel asks.

"About 4 days left. We need to hatch a plan and discuss it with the rest of the family." Cobra replied.

Gajeel nodded his head, Cobra took this as a sign that the talk was over and started walking back to the guild but was stopped when Gajeel called out to him.

He looks back to see that Gajeel was looking at him seriously. Gajeel projects his hand forward and Cobra raises an eyebrow in question.

"For everything that you did to Bunny, thank you for not leaving her side." Gajeel states.

Cobra cracks a smirk and shakes the outstretched hand. "What are you talking about? As if I could ever leave Sunshine alone."

Gajeel shakes his head at the poison dragon slayer, but nonetheless he was happy that he stayed next to his sister this whole time and never left her alone. He'll be true with himself, Gajeel felt that he got replaced. But the most amazing thing was, that Bunny was alright, and that to him was more important than anything else.

"You have no idea how much she missed you. She still has all your things, she visited your grave almost every month, she changed the flowers and sometimes cleaned your gravestone, and to this day we arrange camping days in the forest where you let your artistic side flood open. so I can assure you, you were never forgotten. She just didn't approach you much today because she saw you with me and figured I have something to tell."

Gajeel looked baffled at Cobra. He growled as he shouted. "WHO LET YOU IN MY HEAD!?"

Cobra simply shrugged his shoulders. "Who told you to think this loudly? Ain't my fault."

"Erik Heartfilia."

Cobra froze at his name being said and the tone used. He knows who that person is and he knows he's in trouble.

He turned around all smiley and bubbly. "Sunshine how you doing? You enjoying the party?"

She had her arms crossed, her right foot tapping the ground with her eyes not hiding the anger she's feeling at moment. In one of her hands is a paper that has in bold letters the words 'I'M AN ASSHOLE!'.

"What is this?" she asks holding out the paper in front of him.

He laughed nervously, recognizing the hand writing of Layla and knowing it's his fault. "You see here's the thing, I said it one time to Jellal and Layla heard me and asked me what it meant, but I didn't want to tell her what it really means nor did I want to tell her that it's a bad word or she'll look at me differently and after all I'm the great uncle so I can't have my reputation tarnished so…"

"You told her it meant I'm a princess in another language." Lucy finalized his words.

He scratched the back of his head while chucking nervously. "You have to understand Sunshine it was for a great cause."

"Right… not wanting your reputation tarnished. Funny how karma works don't you think? Because just inside when they asked her what she wanted to be when she grows up, she answered ' I want to be an asshole' and when everyone was shocked, she told them that uncle Coco taught it to her, and that it means a princess in another language."

Doom took its shape on Cobra' face but Lucy still continued. "So yeah, I think you can kiss that good reputation of yours goodbye."

"No wait! I must fix this!" he quickly announces.

"You bet your ass you're going to fix this or so help me God I will bury you 7 feet under." She hands him the paper and pushes him inside. She then turns to her brother and heaves a sigh. "I swear to God sometimes he is worse than a child."

She giggles after that and Gajeel smiles at her, it's been a while since he last saw her, let alone heard her giggle. She notices his stare and takes a step closer to him.

"I missed you Gaj-nii." She admits softly. "I missed you so much." Her voice cracks a bit, her eyes well up in tears. "To the point where I am even doubting if this is real."

He brings her in his arms. "I feel the same way."

She holds on to him tightly as her tears run free down her face. "I have so much I want to tell you."

"I can't wait to hear it." He replied as he caresses her head.

Commotion from the inside disrupted their peaceful reunion.

"What the hell did you just call me?!" Lucy heard the sound of Ultear raging.

"Like I said, time warped bi-"she saw Cobra flying from the door and slamming into the ground, then rolling on the dirt till he reached them. Lucy kneeled next to him and slapped him on his chest. "When will you learn to not provoke Ultear?"

"She started… it…" he coughed some dirt from his mouth.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Like I'll believe that."

Cobra grumbled as he stood up then faced the door again. "Ah you attack me from behind, well come at me straight on time woman."

Meredy pops up from the door. "Coco-nii that was a direct hit from the front. Save some face will you?"

Lucy bursts out laughing followed by Gajeel, Cobra becomes red with embarrassment but thanks to his dark skin it wasn't clear. The fact is, he didn't see anything so he assumed he was attacked from behind.

Lucy shakes her head at her brother. "Come on, let's go in." she grabs his hand then Gajeel' and leads them inside.

She saw Ultear' fuming face and sidled next to her. "Good job."

"Thank you."

They fist bumped each other while Cobra looked at his sister like he was witnessing the worse betrayal in history.

The next day at noon, everyone was up and going about their day till the magic council came knocking at the guild' door and leading them was none other than their captain, Lahar.

His eyes scanned the guild hall till he found the blonde he was looking for. Lucy immediately got up once their gaze locked. She was about to blush but forced herself not to, he was here on business and no matter what happened that night they both agreed that it will never happen again.

The rest became aware of the presence of the council and put their guard up which Lahar noticed. He cleared his throat and greeted everyone. "It's quite amazing that you are all safe, and I hope you had a safe return. Now Lucy-san, if I may speak to you outside privately about the matter at hand, I have already prepared a group to follow the other guild, I just need some specific information."

"Of course Lahar-san, this way please." She led him to the outside garden where she told him about all the information he needs.

"Why do they need to go outside to discuss about what happened?" Meredy asked.

"Lahar already felt the tension in the guild, he thought it would be better to discuss such things outside." Ultear explained.

"Still… I have a bad feeling about this." Cobra' eyes drifted to the second floor where eyes of blue grey were glued on the door that is till his grandfather called him to the office.

Laxus got up and walked towards the office. He sat down on a chair and waited for his gramps to explain to him why he called him in.

"I suppose you remember what next week is?" Makarov asked which earned him a confused stare from his grandson.

Makarov shook his head and smacked him on the head with his staff. Laxus narrowed his eyes at his gramps then widened them when he finally remembered.

"Fuck! I need to leave." He mumbled.

"That you do." Makarov agreed. "Go to the mountains, it will give you time to let loose and think about the current situation. And it will also protect her and your kids."

The pained expression on Laxus' face made Makarov aware of what he just said, he brought her up without meaning to, but it was true what he said so he wasn't going to take it back.

"Listen up Laxus my boy, I know that you are facing a lot of problems now, but if there is one person I know who has the biggest heart it's her. So just try your best, and know that if you ever need help I am right here." Makarov made sure to convey to his grandson that he is not alone in all this. "And most importantly Laxus, it's not your fault."

Laxus looked at him with an unreadable expression, his eyes clouded as his mind raced. He shook his head and got up from his seat. "I'll be leaving today at night."

He said before he walked out of the office. His mind repeating the words his gramps said and still not believing the last part. Everyone keeps saying that it wasn't his fault while he keeps drowning in guilt, it just didn't make sense to him because after all, he thought his father was right first. He was vulnerable because he trusted his father, which was why it was easy to control him. In the end it all comes back to him.

He shook his head trying to focus on something else, but instead of his mind giving him a break, it went and reminded him that his mate is alone now with a man that he is sure likes his mate.

Laxus growled as he tried to take a deep breath, but it didn't help his case when he passed next to a window and the whiff of strawberry and vanilla invaded his senses. He knew that the effects of mating season are starting to take effect on him, but he also knew that seeing his mate would lessen that effect so he thought a single look won't hurt.

He looked and god he wished he didn't.

He saw his mate, the one that looks like a goddess, the one he's sure she's better being someone else's mate, the one that is way out of his league… having her eyes wide open as Lahar kisses her on the lips.

A/N:

Hello everyone I am so sorry for being late. I was dealing with some heath issues and then my finals came and now once again I am facing my finals.

I hope everyone is alright and having a good day/night.

Thank you for everyone's support and kindness.

I love you all…

Also I have a lot planned for this story and I hope you stay tuned.

Signing out, KAWAIINECKO.