#e.n.d. x lucy | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

burstingdragons · 2 years

Text

Protecting the Future [NaLu]

Those once bright brown eyes grew wide as everything around her turned white in a flash. Ten thousand dragons ravaged the land as she could hear the castle behind her crumbling. The crimson sky and the charred lands was all that was left of the once lively and mighty Fiore kingdom. Ancient beasts from the past, now flying freely in the future, laying waste to her home.

One fiery behemoth took notice and took it upon itself to be her executioner. Bruised and battered, those same tearful filled eyes saw the rain of fire coming down as she simply glanced outward to a discarded arm. One with a hand that had a pink guild emblem on the back of it. Her very own.

Accepting that death had finally come to take her, she shut her eyes one last time trying to remember all her friends and adventures she had gotten to go on in this life. The temperature sky rocketed around her as the ferocious ball of fire landed on its target...only to be weakened as its size grew weaker. The fire around her was bright as it flew from all sides and was greedily absorbed. There, standing before her, was somebody she never thought she would see again after becoming separated. Void of all hope at this point, suddenly that spark became reignited after one glimpse. The spiky pink hair, the scaly checkered scarf, the mark on the side of his right shoulder. She couldn't believe it!

"Sorry to keep ya waiting Lucy...cocky lizards."

Not knowing it was still possible, a small smile graced itself upon her lips. Natsu...

The dragon, now filled with curiosity at this newcomer who managed to swallow his fire, touched down sending shock waves through the earth.

"Listen up ugly!" Natsu began pointing at the dragon who watched on, tilting its head amused. "You just picked a fight with the wrong guy!" He shouted directing the beast's crimson eyes to his shoulder which proudly displayed a red insignia.

"I'm Natsu Dragneel of the Fairy Tail guild!" Lucy's teary filled orbs couldn't help but look up to his shoulder where the guild mark lay.

"I'm a dragon slayer!" He revealed punching a fist into his palm. Growling dangerously he declared, "and I'm here to do just that!"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

"They would still end up stopping Eclipse, fate has stolen that choice from them. Their future is set in stone. The one who closed the gate before will always do the same." He closed his eyes. "As long as they are alive, it is bound to happen again."

"I don't have a clue what you're going on about pal. Spill it, who's this person you're after anyway?" Natsu asked nonchalantly, but couldn't help wonder why everything seemed so off about the man.

The eerie chuckles coming from the future Rogue caught the group off-guard as they awaited a response to Natsu's question. Abruptly, his singular visible red eye opened as dark black shadows warped around his fist in a spiral.

"It's you! Lucy Heartfilia!" He shouted as he stepped forth and threw the magic blade full of dark magic towards his target. Taken back by the sudden motion, Natsu watched as the shadow dagger raced out of Rogue's hand and towards his blonde haired partner.

"Lucy!" Natsu called out in worry, finally snapping himself out of his trance, as he leaped towards the blade and tried to snatch it. By just inches, his hand missed the tip as he fell through the shadows.

Frozen in her own trance-like state, Lucy was trapped in place as she rapidly watched the blade speed towards her. Eyes as wide as saucers, she waited for the inevitable strike through her body. To her surprise, and horror, a blur of blonde hair in a black cloak jumped in front of her and took the dagger fully. Dark red spew out sloppily in front of her as Lucy watched her future self land painfully against the palace floor.

Rogue looked at the scene confused while Natsu caught his fall and turned sharply around to stare back at his friend. Wendy was in shock alongside Happy, Carla, Pantherlily, and Loke.

The crash was one of the loudest things they had ever heard, besides the black dragon Acnologia's own roar, as Lucy of the future began feeling the consequences of what she had done.

"Oh no are you okay!" Lucy yelled out, free from her daze, as she rushed to the blonde's aid.

"No!" Happy added as he began running towards the two as fast as he could. Natsu's arm hung limply at his side as his mind was trying to process everything that had happened. His face completely blank of all emotion as his figure trembled, visibly shaken at the ordeal.

"What? There are two of them? How could this be?" Rogue asked bewildered.

Lucy and Happy both reached her at the same time, as black smoke began billowing out of the wound. Lucy used her arm to prop her future self forward. "Just hang on!"

"I didn't do it. I didn't close the gate." Future Lucy stated. "I would never do that..."

"I know you didn't!" Lucy eagerly said trying to support her future self as she looked at her with worry. "I promise, I won't either no matter what! But, why? Why didn't you protect yourself!" Lucy chastised not understanding why the girl sacrificed herself.

Future Lucy smiled weakly at her present self. "You're part of my past. If you were to die, then I would die too." She explained. "In a way, dying is the only way I could live."

"Lucy..." Happy mumbled sadly as he tried to fight back the tears.

"It's so strange...I never thought I would die in my own arms you know? It's kind of comforting."

"Stop! Stop talking like that! You're gonna be okay, you're going to make it! I promise, I won't let you die!"

The stunned group really began to take notice of the situation at hand. Wendy began lightly crying as she knew that future Lucy would die.

"Can't we save her?" Pantherlily asked. "We can use healing magic!"

"I'm afraid that wound is to severe. There is nothing we can do." Carla answered dejectedly.

Future Lucy, despite the excruciating pain in her side, continued to be strong. "Don't cry, it's okay. I thought that I would never get to see my friends again, but I did one last time and that's enough to make up for the hell I've been through."

"Lucy..." Happy reached over the end of her cloak and placed his paws over her concealed arm. "Just try to hang in there, we need you." She couldn't help but smile lovingly down at him, as a mother would towards her child.

"I'm not the Lucy you know, I'm from a different time. A whole other world, there is no reason for you to cry." She reached her lone hand out, placing it on the side of his cheek. Happy grabbed it as if it were a lifeline and began sobbing against it. "The me that lives in this time, she gets to keep on living with her friends, so you don't need to be sad."

"But we are sad!" Happy's voice began growing louder as his emotions poured out of his small little body. "We don't care what world you come from, because no matter what anybody says you're still our Lucy!" Tears ran down his face, as the temperature around them began to gradually increase. "You're our friend and we love you! We don't ever want to lose you, so of course we're sad how could we not be!" He finished as he fully enveloped her arm with his paws while future Lucy consoled him as best as she could. Behind them, Natsu's fidgets became less and less from shock, and more from anger. His bangs shadowed his eyes as he stood there like a statue.

"Hey, could you let me see your guild mark?" Lucy looked down at her dying future self and was surprised at the request. Bringing her hand in front of her eyes, she showed off the pink Fairy Tail emblem. Future Lucy's own hand came up, placing her fingers on it as a forever ago memory resurfaced before her. The thought causing waterworks to begin themselves uncontrollably.

"Where's yours? What happen?" Lucy asked with her own tears ready to fall as she tried imagining what had happened to her future self in her own time. In a cruel twist of fate, simultaneously Lucy, future Lucy, and Natsu all experienced the exact same memory.

"Hey Natsu, look!" A much younger looking Lucy Heartfilia excitedly called out to her friend. "Mirajane just put the official Fairy Tail mark on my hand!"

Eyes still hidden from view, the increasing built up temperature was beginning to leak out as the fire dragon slayer was about to blow. Holding her comfortably in her arms, Lucy could only look at her own self in shock.

"I just wish..." Future Lucy's lessening voice expressed before she lost all feeling and her head rolled off to the side. Finally, those unshed tears Lucy had been holding back burst through the gate as they continued to fall endlessly. As if signifying the end of a challenging journey, future Lucy's hand slipped to the floor, still.

Both Lucy and Happy wailed over her body as Wendy hugged Carla and Pantherlily, while Loke stood angrily. Her final words continued to repeat itself within all of them.

"Please...protect the future."

The grieving duo continued on, while Wendy and Loke turned and watched their, now adversary, closely.

"How could she have forgotten she closed the gate?" Rogue questioned aloud incredulously.

"I don't care about your gate!" Lucy denied looking up. "I would never shut it, but you still, how could you!" She accused, her own anger revealing itself.

"You say that now, but you will. You have done it before and I know you will do it again." Rogue countered.

"I'm not going to shut the damn gate! Why do you keep accusing me? Cut it out, I haven't done anything to you!" Lucy shouted trying to defend her self.

"The gate will be closed, there is no way to prevent it! Not while you are still alive!"

"You heard my future self say that she did no such thing! Tell me, why would I lie to myself?"

Fed up with her existence, Rogue lashed out. "Her delusions are irrelvant! Every choice you think you have has been decided by fate!" Summoning the same shadowy blade that took her future self's life, he prepared to throw it, aiming to end the Heartfilia line in its tracks.

Reaching his boiling point, Natsu spun around in fury. "And I'm going to turn fate, into a pile of ashes!" Darting like a bolt of lightning, Natsu lit his fist ablaze and slammed it into Rogue. The power of the flames so intense that it forced the corrupted dragon slayer to slide backwards down the hall.

"I ain't letting anybody steal Lucy's future...not while I'm alive!" Natsu declared enraged. He couldn't help but shed a tear for his lost friend as he remembered her final statement.

Please...protect the future.

"I will, I promise!" He swore as he put himself fully between his friends and Rogue. His bangs overshadowing his right eye that began glowing a bright red, promising revenge.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

As if sensing the threat, the airborne beasts began circling around and towards the fire dragon slayer. Flying wing to wing, three dragons opened their mouths and fired jet streams of flames down at Natsu. He simply smirked. Taking flight, courtesy of a rock that exploded beneath him, he jumped up while lighting himself on fire. He began shooting off different spells in his arsenal.

FIRE DRAGON's BRILLIANT FLAME! He slammed the double spheres of fire into the first dragon, doing massive damage and sending it plummeting into the earth below.

ROAR! He responded with his own breath attack just narrowly missing the second dragon. His next mark landed, however.

FIRE DRAGON's CRUSHING FANG! Coming down right on top of him, the dragon opened its jaws wide prepared to consume the pest only for Natsu to right himself mid-air, and in perfect timing, as he delivered a crushing blow that sent it flying away. He continued to duke it out, dragon after dragon, as Lucy watched on helplessly, the only sign of her friend being the explosive wakes of fire left in his path.

"Natsu! It's no use!" She called out despairingly. "Please, stop!"

Hearing her with his enhanced dragon slayer hearing abilities, he chuckled to himself after completely taking down another monster. "I ain't giving up that easily Luce! You know me better then anyone else."

Eyes tracking another dragon, Natsu was fired on from behind and engulfed in a large fireball that caught him by surprise, sending him careening into the destroyed land. "Ahh!"

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted trying to find her friend's location.

"I ain't quitting." She heard the determination written clearly in his voice. The strength and power of the Fairy Tail guild. The refusal to back down, the never ending hope. "I refuse." He picked himself up as the wind settled back down fully revealing himself. The same dragon that had nearly killed his friend and looked down on him as if he were an insect was soaring high above, then it began to charge down at him. He accepted the challenge.

"I won't run." He stated while fully standing up, glaring up at the monstrosity before him. "And I won't turn back."

Something was telling him this was it as he lit his fist ablaze. Something he had done so simply whether it was dealing with a dark mage on a job or taking down a dark guild master himself. This was the end. The ferocious roar of the fire dragon king, Igneel, could be faintly heard as Natsu set himself fully on fire. Using his flames as a boost, he once again fired himself into the sky one last time.

"Do you hear me? You're done for bastard!"

FIRE DRAGON's...

"NATSU!" Lucy cried out, tears in the corner of her eyes, as she reached out for the one closest to her despite him feeling so far away. Shining like a star in front of her, she watched in horror as the golden ball of fire disappeared in all its glory. The dragon chomped down on the heart of Fairy Tail, before it too exploded from the inside leaving neither combatant the victor.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Growling, Natsu watched Rogue shoot backwards giving him the opening he needed. Turning his head lightly to the side he glanced back at Lucy and the rest of his friends. "Lucy, get out of here right now." He demanded.

Lucy looked at him sadly. "I can't." She looked down at her future self's body, no longer moving. She was truly gone.

Knowing she needed support, Loke came up behind her offering his hand to her. "Natsu's got this, let's go." She continued to battle herself, before Loke decided for her and grabbed her hand taking her with him. Seeing Happy, Wendy and the rest of their gang departing, Lucy and Loke followed them leaving Natsu to face off against Rogue alone.

Gathering his bearings, Rogue marched off after them. "You're not going anywhere!" He ordered. Once more he was met with a fiery punch from a hateful Natsu who slammed into him head on, sending Rogue into the floor.

"Natsu Dragneel-" Rogue was unable to finish his speech as once again the fire dragon slayer's fists rammed through him catching on fire as they slid further back. His full intentions, were to gain ground between them and the rest of their group. The decreasing distance he saw of Lucy and the rest caused him to lightly smile.

Looking back to their former location, Lucy whimpered for both her deceased future self and lively fiery comrade. Please, be safe Natsu.

Natsu's smirk widened as he held his fists out in front of him wanting to pound the murder in. He hurt Lucy, and for that he is going to pay!

"I never once doubted you'd try to stop me." An echoey voice spoke, which quickly revealed itself to be Rogue's. Rising back up, now lit entirely with shadows around him, he shrugged. "Oh well. It doesn't really matter, because your fate is already sealed." Turning completely into a shadow, he shot towards the palace wall and begin using the ceiling as his pathway to get by Natsu.

"Even if you manage to defeat me, the dragons will still kill you." He ominously added as his shadow passed above Natsu.

"Bastard, I didn't pay you for a butcher." He stated as he watched the shadow switch to the side of the wall.

"Time changes a person." Rogue revealed as he shot off the wall and was behind Natsu back in his human flesh. "Unfortunately for you...time is limited!"

Shadows began surrounding Natsu who crossed his arms and forced his stance up, as he began fueling off all the rage inside of him. The shadows vanished as he stared at the floor. "Your mistake Rogue...was taking something very precious to me...right before my eyes."

"What?" Rogue asked uncertain still surrounded in his own shadows. Natsu continued looking down, the wrath in his voice increasing by every word.

"I don't like the way you do things. I promised her. I'm going to protect the future." He finally looked up, glaring the man down. "And I'll do it my way!" Natsu proclaimed as fire shot off him.

"A duel between dragon slayers, what is this round two? It doesn't matter I am sure to win!" Rogue smirked evilly.

"Just shut up and fight." Natsu growled.

Fire and shadows clashed, one led by rage, and the other guided by determination. Both dragon slayers were sent backwards, neither one able to become the dominant force. Flaring up with his shadow powers, Rogue disappeared back into the floor, before shooting back up the wall and onto the ceiling. Natsu looked around trying to pinpoint where Rogue would pop out from, only to be shocked as underneath him became a cloak of darkness. He tried to shield himself like earlier, but the point black range was proving too much for even him to fight off. Laughing to himself, Rogue sent a shadow attack and blasted the dragon slayer backwards giving him a little taste of his own medicine.

"Question for ya...did you really come here to save the future?" Natsu gasped out while on his knees trying to recover his magical power. Rogue flinched back on instinct at the man's smile. He stood back up. "My nose is telling me you're nothing but evil!" Rogue responded with a grin of his own, this one being more sinister.

The ground began rumbling as parts of the walls and ceiling began collapsing in on itself. "What's that sound?" Natsu asked looking around trying to figure out what causing such a massive commotion.

"The Eclipse...." Rogue began darkly laughing in front of him. "IT IS FINALLY OPENING!" Righting his mind, Natsu watched as Rogue flashed at him in a spiral. "Even without killing Lucy Heartfilia, time moves forward!"

Quickly raising his arms to block, Natsu summoned enough fire to shield most of himself from the attack. However, it wasn't enough to dispel it, forcing him to have to try and withstand it.

"But still, she will get in the way of things without fail!" With added fire, Natsu finally broke the barrier and sent them both away from one another. "She will close the gate! It's set in stone!" Rogue, now in his own anger, sent bullet like projectiles made of his shadows directly at the dragon slayer.

"No way she would ever do something like that! I know Lucy, a hell of a lot better then you! I know she would never destroy our future!" Lighting his hands on fire again, he blocked the shadow bullets and went after Rogue.

"Move aside!" Rogue ordered, flaring up a shadow like shuriken in his palm before launching it at his opponent. With no where to dodge, Natsu was forced to take it in full force as he roared in pain. "I will end her life, and you can't stop me!" He smugly grinned.

Breaking out, Natsu back flipped himself onto the ceiling before throwing himself off it and back onto Rogue. "No you won't touch her!" Spreading his arms wide, suddenly both fire and lightning began bursting off the dragon slayer. "Change mode..."

LIGHTNING FIRE DRAGON! Exploding in both fire and sparks, Natsu bolted right towards Rogue harshly. The dragon inside...it was wanting out. Backed by a swirling amount of flames, a bolt of lightning electrocuted Rogue as if it were a missile. Only, using his forearm to block it...Rogue was unscathed!

"Is this the power you have hidden from me all those years ago?" He questioned amazed as his right shoulder sleeve was torn completely off. Seeing Natsu's other hand about to deliver a devastating blow, his revealed eye began glowing a dark bluish black. Natsu jumped back sensing the change in power, as half of Rogue's black hair turned white.

WHITE SHADOW DRAGON! Natsu's eyes went wide at the familiarly of that spell. He didn't have much time to think on how Rogue had ability to use that type of power, however as he took a shot to the chest from the future man in his new form.

"At last...light and dark working together as one." The new and improved Rogue spread his own arms wide mimicking Natsu's former movements as he shot fourth his hand.

WHITE SHADOW DRAGON's SILK! Thin projectiles of light and darkness bombarded the dragon slayer who had no time to avoid and roared out from the hits. Pieces of the wall and ceiling began being destroyed by the velocity of the spell as Natsu continued to take blow after blow. He was finally thrown back as he landed with a small thud against the palace floor.

"White...shadow?" Natsu asked fighting through the pain. His adrenaline was all over the place and he could barely think straight.

Rogue darkly chuckled as he rose his now blackened right arm. "I took Sting's powers when I ended his life." He ignored the glare he was receiving in that moment. "It wasn't easy, but it was absolutely necessary. In retrospect, I should of honestly done it sooner."

"Amazing, I knew you were all about darkness, but I had no idea you cared so little about life!" Natsu accused as he began feeling some of his fire rekindling before it snuffed itself forcefully. Another powerful combined light and shadow attack had him on the verge of unconsciousness as he fought to stay awake. It was a losing battle, as he slowly started losing his vision, the last of his sight being a smug looking Rogue.

"Well, now you know...and you can take that with you to the grave!" Rogue evilly revealed his plan as he once more lit himself up in his white-shadow mode. Only, his eyes began to grow wider as he realized some sort of new transformation taking place and his mode access had been closed off.

"Sorry pal, I just got word you've already received a free trip there. I'm just the one who is going to aid you and help make it happen!" Natsu's figure became engulfed in an inferno of crimson flames as Rogue listened to the fire dragon slayer's voice change. Not a change in tone, but more, personality.

"Who the hell are you!" Rogue shouted keeping himself on high alert at the extraordinary boost of power.

"Just somebody trying to keep my vessel alive. I want to thank you personally by the way." Natsu's new form stated as he walked out of the dying inferno and now had bright red eyes and two small horns sticking out of his spiky pink hair.

"Thank me for what?" Rogue asked slowly dropping his guard.

"For bringing him so close to death, that I could take control and end your life myself." They replied as in a flash of fire, Rogue was sent hurdling into the castle walls brutally. Not even giving the white-shadow mage time to recover, they once again buried him in a sphere of fire as Rogue had to put everything into his magic to not be burnt into a crisp.

"See how bad you're struggling?" They darkly chuckled. "This isn't even a fourth of my power, human."

Rogue took notice of that jab and fired back with his own. "Human?" He laughed at the insult. "Are you implying that you aren't human? What are you then?"

"That's none of your concern."

"That must be why Natsu Dragneel is so strong then, he's not even human!" Rogue greedily began speaking to himself aloud. "We're close in magical strength, I would even say I am stronger then him now. If I can beat you and kill him, then I can control both of your powers!"

Before he could comprehend it, the full might of whatever was controlling the former fire dragon slayer, had him by the throat with a fire sword in his hand. "How dare you compare yourself to us. You dare believe you can kill me and take my power, mortal?"

Despite the increasing amount of doom, Rogue hastily nodded. "I know I can, nothing in this world is unbeatable! Natsu Dragneel has proven that! I will discard you and him and-"

"Then I will end your fantasies here and now!"

Raising the flaming sword for the fatal strike, the mysterious power that held command over the dragon slayer began wavering.

"What's happening?" Rogue asked curiously.

"She draws near..." The monster holding him growled before throwing Rogue through the castle wall as he went flying into the night sky. "You lucked out human...you better hope I don't gain control again against you." The dark voice lessened before it finally succumbed into its dormant state as Natsu fell onto his back unmoving.

The castle was caving in on itself, but she didn't care. She had to reach him! Reaching the corridor they had ran away from, she returned to it determined to make sure her friend was alright. She refused to lose both of them!

"NATSU!" Lucy called out as she spotted him still in the center of the blast zone. Dodging falling debris, she and Loke dragged him away to safety. Certain it was okay, they propped him against the wall as Lucy tended to him. She began straining herself as she fought to urge to fall asleep. Loke easily noticed it and planted a hand on her shoulder in support.

"Let me head back Lucy so you can regain some of your power." Lucy wanted to shake her head disapprovingly, but knew she needed him to go back to the Celestial Spirit realm. "Fix him up then meet with the rest of us at the gate. We don't know what to expect at this point and hopefully Princess Hisui and Arcadios will listen to us this time."

"Alright." Lucy agreed, although stubbornly. "See you soon."

"Be safe Lucy."

"I will." With a flash, Loke disappeared leaving her alone with the battle beaten fire dragon slayer. As she tended to his bruised face, she couldn't help but notice two small horns protruding from his hair. She blinked her eyes, and when she looked at that same spot, the two horns had vanished.

Did I imagine that?

Lucy continued patching her boneheaded friend up as she tried healing his chest wound. It would leave a big scar, but she was sure he wouldn't mind to much. He had plenty of them and she was certain he would continue to gather them as if they were his own personal collection. It corresponded rather well with his room full of memorabilia to be honest. "What did you go through back there Natsu?" She asked sadly while wrapping the bandage around him.

"Nothing to worry about." A raspy voice caught her attention as she looked up and was shocking to see bright onyx orbs staring back at her. "I'm glad you're alright Lucy." Unable to prevent it, Lucy tightly wrapped her arms around his torso as she squeezed him, making sure she was gentle with his injuries.

"Thank you..." She whispered against him before pulling away and seeing his conflicted state.

"I thought I told you to run away though?" He looked at her quizzically. "Lucy..."

"I couldn't help it okay! Future me's death gave me crazy thoughts and so I came back to make sure you were alright dummy!" She pouted in protest smacking him on top of his head.

"Well I'm as good as new now, thanks to you!" He cheered causing her to smile.

"So, did you beat him?" Lucy asked wondering if he had been successful or not. She was a little put off as Natsu seemed to look at her distantly. "Natsu?"

"Well...not exactly. In truth, I don't really know where he went." Or how the fight ended for that matter.

"WHAT?" Lucy asked standing up and then looking down at him accusingly. "Natsu what did you do with him!"

"Nothing-I swear, at least I don't think I did anything?" He jumped up and countered her stare with one of his own. A few seconds passed and the duo burst into laughter despite the uncertainty building around them and their future.

"I think we should get back with the others." Lucy stated before she began to lightly blush at the intense stare the dragon slayer was giving her. "W-What Natsu?"

His expression lightened as he gave her his signature grin and chuckled. "I want you to know that I meant what I said back there. Every single word." Shocked, she allowed him to draw her close as she rest her head against his shoulder. "As long as I am alive, not a single thing will be stealing your future before it can be completed. Kind of like that story you've been trying to write, ya know?"

Lucy wondered if the dragon slayer had more to say, the tension between them was so tight...

"Well, let's go regroup with the others!" Natsu cheerily decided as he grabbed her hand and dragged her along with him. Lucy whined in frustration as she cutely pouted.

Why do you always play with my heart like you do, but at the same time...I don't mind. I'm just so glad you're still here with me. I can't imagine having to go through a future without you, Natsu.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Her eyes slowly opened, as if they had been closed for an eternity. The golden grasslands, much brighter then her blonde hair, expanded in every direction and went out to almost anywhere. The sky was blue, vastly different then the blood red she had been forced to endure. She slowly rose up, realizing she had been resting on a hill.

"What was that?" She wondered to herself surprised. "A dream?"

She finally took notice of her right hand as she instantly brought it close towards her. She turned it around and saw the pink insignia of the Fairy Tail guild stamped on it and lovingly cherished it once more as she closed her eyes. Taking a few breaths, she reopened them expecting to be in another nightmare, only to be astonished as she continued seeing the golden fields around her and the beautiful blue sky above. Standing up, she looked around at the vast open area around her and could only wonder where she was. She took a few steps looking for a place to a go, when a voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Hey, Lucy!" They called out to her. She turned around wondering who had said her name and noticed the many silhouettes before her. "Would you get over here already?"

"Everyone's been waiting on you!" Another voice cheered happily as Lucy continued looking back at them. Suddenly, she took notice of their appearance as she gasped. Tears began to build themselves in the corner of her eyes as she couldn't believe what she was seeing. With a chuckle, Natsu in his full colorful glory ran down the hill and held out his hand to her.

"Come on, we still have adventures to go on!" He explained as his scarf flew behind him mightily in the wind. Lucy finally blinked her eyes as long tearful nights and hellish nightmares were finally over. She was free.

"Yea!" Lucy dazedly nodded, continuing to cry at seeing her lovable dragon slayer, the one from her timeline, alive and well. She grabbed his hand and he took it as if she were a princess, his princess, pulling her behind him and smiling back at her all the way. Happy flew next to them as the original gang had formed back together and they ran up to an awaiting and lively Fairy Tail.

42 notes · View notes

jmoart214 · 1 year

Text

E.N.D X LUCY

Commission by @misskrystaldragneel on Instagram

#fairy tail #art #lucy heartfilia #lucyheartfilia #fairy tail nalu #natsudragneel #nalufairytail #fairytail lucy #nalu #lucy #endxlucy #etherious natsu dragneel #commission #digital commisions #commisionwork #art comissions

369 notes · View notes

tokkias · 1 year

Text

reminders (that i love you) ship: natsu dragneel x lucy heartfilia summary: Sometimes Natsu needs a reminder that some scars are worth the sacrifice. ao3

The scars from rewriting the Book of E.N.D. run down her face, through her chest, and down her right arm, reaching the very tips of her fingers. It’s unlike any other scar that marks her body. They don’t look like burns or cuts; they're an entirely different type of battle wound. It looks as though a river of lava flows deep within her skin.

They’re ugly and unsightly.

Lucy notices the way that the men who would once ogle at her now avert their gaze in horror, disgust, and fear.

What they don’t know is that the way they look now is nowhere near as gruesome and dastardly as they looked that day, when they etched themselves into her person. They’ve faded over time, not by themselves, of course; had Gray not been with her, they may have continued to spread even further, and neither of them liked to think of what may have become of Lucy had that happened. Wendy had offered her help in healing the scar tissue, and while she had helped reduce the dastardly redness, the marks still hold their grip on her body.

She hears the snide comments about how the presence of those scars ruin what is otherwise a gorgeous woman, with her long golden hair, sultry chocolate eyes, and a figure to die for. But she pays little mind to what strangers might think of her appearance, much less ones who know nothing about how she got those scars in the first place.

When things went back to normal (or perhaps as normal as it could go, given the circumstances), sometimes her guildmates would wince and grimace, sending Lucy a look of pity over her newfound appearance. Over time, everyone seemed to become used to it. This is just a part of Lucy now; it's simply a scar, just like so many others in the guild had, though only a little more obvious and perhaps with a more unique story.

Well, everyone except one.

The feeling of Natsu’s calloused thumb gently brushing against the soft skin of her undereye is almost enough to distract her from the way he’s looking at her.

Because he’s giving her that goddamned look again.

The one that’s filled with guilt and shame.

And she hates it.

In all the time that had passed since Alvarez, a lot had changed between the two, but the one thing that had stayed consistent through it all was the way he acted as he traced his fingers up and down her body. He’d become quiet as he connected each scar to the next, lost deep in thought as he recalled all the pain that she must have gone through in getting them and that it was all done for his sake.

He worries that she doesn’t feel beautiful anymore or that she misses the attention she got before the incident. He doesn’t express these feelings to her; he doesn’t want to burden her with his guilt and fears, but she can tell when he’s feeling that way when his lips brush against her neck and he murmurs into her ear, telling her that she’s the prettiest girl in the world.

Usually he could ignore the feeling, suppress it deep down in the depths of his mind, letting himself be distracted with food or fighting, but when all he had in front of him was her, her gorgeous brown eyes, and her dreadful scars, he can’t help the way the guilt and shame claw their way to the surface.

Normally he was quick to move on from even the most traumatic events, but it was becoming increasingly clear that this wasn’t something he could just shake off that easily. Dealing with issues of emotion was not his forte; perhaps in the heat of the moment, all his thoughts and feelings could spill, but his problem solver was his fists, not his heart. This was a problem that only his words could solve, but saying those words made the problem real; it meant that it existed in a space outside of his head.

But it’s not something that bothers Lucy anymore. Really, she only cares what he thinks, and he’s made it clear that he thinks the world of her, scars or no scars.

She hates when he gets like this because this is not her Natsu. The Natsu that she knows, the one she had spent years with at his side, and the one she had fallen so deeply for, would never dwell on the past like this. Her Natsu was always living in the here and now, looking forwards to the future. This just seemed like something he could never move past because something that was once part of him had hurt her. Lucy never saw it that way. She made that choice, knowing the risk she was taking on, and she persevered when those risks made themselves known.

"Stop that."

The sudden scolding surprises him enough that he snaps out of it for a moment, the look in his eyes replaced with confusion as he replies, "Stop what?"

"Looking at me like that."

His hand drops from her face, and he averts his gaze.

It’s a constant reminder of the sacrifice she made for him, woven into her skin.

But she had seemingly moved past it, so it just made it all the more painful that he couldn’t. It wasn’t something he ever thought he could talk to her about, what was he even supposed to say?

Hey Lucy, you know those scars ya got while you were saving my life? Yeah, well, they’re a constant reminder of the pain and suffering that I put you through, and if I look at them too long, I’m filled with guilt at the thought that I ever hurt you, as if he were the damn victim here.

As if she hadn’t held his life in her hands and chosen to make a dire sacrifice, just for a chance that he would make it out alive.

"What’s wrong?"

He wants to deny it, to not talk about it, to talk about quite possibly anything else, but he’s trapped under her gaze, and he’s been running away from it for so long that there is simply nowhere else for him to go.

"Dunno." The word comes out so quietly that, if not for their close proximity, Lucy might not have heard it at all. "Guess I just… feel bad."

As soon as he says it, Natsu begins to mentally kick himself. It doesn’t even come close to expressing everything he’s feeling in that moment, but he’s simply not as eloquent as his partner, so he struggles to find the right words to say just how he feels.

Though, judging by the way her expression softens, just a little, when he says it, he understands that he doesn’t have to, because she knows him, perhaps even better than he knows himself.

"You would have done the same for me," she states as though it’s a fact, because it is, because he truly, genuinely, would do anything for her if it meant that she was safe.

"Yeah, but-" he begins in protest, but he’s swiftly cut off by her.

"No buts." Her hand comes up to rest gently on his cheek before trailing down his neck, where she runs her thumb along the scar that decorates it. "It’s just a scar, Natsu."

"This one is different," he says, adamant in his conviction.

"What makes this one any different?"

"Because everyone can…" He trails off slightly, wondering if maybe it’s insensitive of him to say it, but she’s looking at him with expectant eyes, waiting for him to finish his thought. "Everyone can see it."

"Do you think I care about that?" She simply replies.

At her words, he pauses for a moment to let them sink into his brain. He had spent so long trapped in his own head about it, letting it eat away at him from the inside, that he had never stopped to consider how she felt about all of it. They’d never talked about it; he didn’t ask, and she didn’t tell, so all he had to go on were assumptions he’d made.

Her appearance was something Lucy had always prided herself on, something she had used as a bargaining chip to get whatever she wanted. To her, her looks were a badge of honour to be admired, but now the sight of her made people shift their gazes in discomfort. In rewriting his book, she had sacrificed her pretty privilege for his life.

Not that he doesn’t think she’s still pretty.

To him, she’s the prettiest girl he’s ever seen, and he’s doubtful that anyone else could even come close. Her scars make her look badass, in his opinion, and he can’t understand why it seems that no one else can see that.

He worries that she can’t see it either.

"Do you?" He asks, not sure exactly what he thinks, with his mind completely muddled with his own thoughts and feelings.

"Why should I?" She replies as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

He’s left in a stunned silence at her reply as his brain tries to process her reply. Sure, he never expected her to be upset with him about it, but it catches him off guard at how little she seems to care about it.

Maybe he’s just stuck on the person she used to be when they met all those years ago.

Maybe he should just know her better by now.

In response to his silence, she offers out her hand to him, all rough and red with the residual burn marks, but her guild mark still as vivid as the day she first got it. He takes it in his own, running his thumb over the back of it. That guild mark held a promise that she would do anything in her power to protect her guild mates, to protect him, and she had followed through on that promise every step of the way.

His eyes flick back up to meet hers, and she smiles. It goes all the way up to her eyes, and they practically shimmer with love and adoration. It makes his heart race in his chest and twist his stomach into knots, and he feels as though he’s falling in love with her all over again.

She’s perfect.

She’s so, so perfect.

Scars and all.

And he’s so, so lucky to have her.

He drops her hand and suddenly pulls her into his arms, which is met with a light squeak before she eases into his embrace, her own snaking around his back as she rests her forehead against his shoulder.

Their hearts beat in sync, and he hears it so clearly. Part of him wonders if it’s the book’s doing or if it's the result of the bond they have. Whatever it is, it doesn’t really matter. It’s merely indicative of the connection shared between them.

Together, they are one, bound together by the little red string of fate, the one that has seemed to weave its way across her skin. It is not pain that flows through her veins any longer. It’s love.

It doesn’t seem that bad when he thinks of it like that.

He thinks he understands now. She would do it all over again if it meant that he would be safe.

They sit on her skin like constellations against the backdrop of the night sky. They tell a story of the way she writhed in pain, her quill in hand, as she felt his fire spread throughout her body. On its surface, it sounds like a story of misery and torture, but that simply isn’t true. Between the lines, one might find that it’s a story of all of the love and devotion she holds for Natsu, one that is part of her forever. One that she never wants to let go.

She has two things to show for that day. The scars on her body and the boy in her arms.

And she wouldn’t trade either for the world.

#nalu #fairy tail #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #fanfiction #fan fiction #mya writes things

120 notes · View notes

beargyufairy · 5 months

Text

In a world of boys, he’s a gentleman

Credit to artist

#nalu #fairy tail #lucy heartfilia #natsu dragneel #natsu x lucy #e.n.d. x lucy #endlu #fairy tail fanfiction #nalu fanfiction #etherious natsu dragneel #in a world of boys he’s a gentleman

629 notes · View notes

fairytail-whathesays · 6 months

Note

I love your headcanons! could I request some Stingtsu (Natsu x Sting) headcanons? SFW and NSFW, whichever you want, or both

🤍🤍🤍

Sting's magic, holy and purifying in nature, is particularly devastating to Natsu, who is technically an Etherious demon. Before having the book of E.N.D.'s connection to him severed, even being near him hurt. This has lessened as his body has started to reconstruct itself along human morphology lines once both seeds were destroyed. Trying to love Sting is kind of like being Icarus, burned by the sun, and still flying towards it instead of retreating.

Sting is similar to Natsu in many ways, but only on the surface level. Sting is more prone to doubts, has a more centralized pride in himself, and is constantly measuring himself for weakness, as opposed to Natsu who constantly measures himself for strength. In a way, being together brings out traits in themselves that they actually identify with each other--around Natsu, Sting becomes boisterous and childishly high-energy, while around Sting, Natsu becomes calmer and more thoughtful.

Natsu, short of attention span as he is, takes a dumbfounding amount of time to realize Sting is down bad. Everyone else can see Sting's general raging rainbow, bisexual king vibes, emanating from a country away. Natsu is the only one who doesn't pick up on it. Sting once ran into him covered in glitter, hickeys, and smudged glow-in-the-dark body paint, and was stammering defenses and alibis, and Natsu was like 'neat'.

Lector and Happy actually get along really well! It's the major catalyst that pushes Sting to ask Natsu out, realizing oh hey, maybe that's not such a far-fetched fantasy after all...! Happy, after Lector loses some of his bad attitude, actually becomes sort of a mentor for what little magic he knows to Lector.

As out of pocket as Sting often is, Natsu simply has him beat for spontaneity and short attention span. Keeping up with him and his emotions can be a challenge, and Sting has on occasion sought out Lucy's help for trying to translate Natsu's latest hare-brained venture into sense. Somehow, they became the pair of down-to-earth blondes trying to reign in the ball of pink hair and fire that is Natsu.

Secret special headcanon: Lucy/Loke and Natsu/Sting double date frequently.

NS.FW:

I'm gonna be real with you--I think these two have more sex overall than possibly any other Fairy Tail relationship. They both have a high libido, actively enjoy sex, are committed to the other's pleasure, and are verse kings.

Sting is very flexible physically and in bed and Natsu very quickly learns to exploit this.

Natsu is natural talent; Sting is experience and skill. Sex is the one thing Natsu might be good at, but Sting is definitively better at and can actually teach his hero something about it. Natsu discovers a lot about himself and his desires when naked in the sheets with Sting.

Sting looks ridiculously good naked. Even Natsu, whose focus on sex rarely controls him, has difficulty not getting distracted if Sting starts shedding clothes.

Jealousy? A little. More playful than anything, they love each other too much to be threatened by outside forces. They just like the attention their lovers spend on them and pout if it's on someone else. One threatens to withhold sex if the other is caught looking at another guy--and the other laughs out loud.

#stingtsu #sting eucliffe #natsu dragneel #headcanons #shipping #stingsu

22 notes · View notes

classysassy9791 · 1 year

Note

Gray and lucy need more appreciation and love as a couple! Gruvia doesn't exist In my eyes

Hello, fellow GrayLu fan!

Personally, I don't necessarily like Gray x Juvia as a pairing. The way Juvia is depicted in canon in regards to her feelings for Gray is just not my cup of tea. To be fair, though, I think that was Mashima's fault. Juvia x Gray had so much beautiful potential! Their magic abilities are stunning together. However, Juvia consistently oversteps Gray's boundaries and forces her affection on him, which in my eyes is seen as toxic. And on the other side of that coin, after Fairy Tail disbanded, Gray left Juvia alone by herself in an abandoned village. He brought the rain back. That in itself is so inherently tragic, and once Gray & Juvia are reunited, its as if that never happened. Juvia deserves so much better than that, regardless of Gray's reasoning behind it. They had some cute moments, but all the other actions leading up to those moments are just not okay.

Gray x Lucy, however, are underappreciated in my opinion. They start out as friends, first and foremost. And we obviously see that Gray is attracted to Lucy during the Oracion Seis arc in which Gemini copies Gray. He easily flirts with her, and helps her save Natsu from E.N.D. He protects her - during the Grand Magic Games when she's severely injured by Minerva; during the Edolas Arc when he frees her from her bindings and helps her to save Natsu & Wendy, as well as when he covers her during a blast from Hughes in E-Land.

They both have a lot of loss and grief between them, which I feel like they have a common ground on, love to gossip about others, and overall have a very companionable relationship. In essence, I love them your honor <3

#fairy tail #gray fullbuster #juvia lockser #lucy heartfilia #graylu #anti gruvia #asks #sassy stays classy

16 notes · View notes

isabellafoster13 · 1 year

Note

Lucy x Levy; Levy listening to Lucy's heartbeat as she rewrites the Book of E.N.D, E.N.D marking spreading to Lucy's heart as she does so.

This is a oneshot that takes place when Lucy is rewriting the Book of E.N.D. and instead of Gray being there, it's Levy. This is also if Lucy wasn't actually fine in the end.

WARNING: DEATH!

This is the END (Levy x Lucy)

Levy sat next to her girlfriend, watching with widened eyes as blood-red runes surrounded them, struggling to make out what they said. She noticed Lucy moving next to her and looked over to see that she had picked up the feathered quill and was holding it up. The blue-haired woman muttered, "what are you doing?"

Before she could get an answer, she watched as Lucy whimpered, her eyes seeming to be fixed on something in front of her that only she could see. What appeared to be flowing lava overtook her hand and ran down the blonde's arm, like veins, reaching her neck and the side of her face.

Happy, from his place beside Levy, spoke, "something's...happening to her."

Just then Lucy's body began trembling and her whimpers turned into pained gasps. Levy hesitantly reached for her girlfriend, her heart twisting within her chest at the obvious pain the blonde was in. Just before her fingers could even ghost her girlfriend's skin, Lucy dropped the quill and doubled over, her arms wrapped around herself. Levy and Happy both gasped in horror as the celestial wizard began screaming in agony, tears trickling down her face.

"Lucy!" Levy and Happy both exclaimed.

Levy reached for her girlfriend's shoulder, muttering, "Lucy? Are you okay?" It was a stupid question. Clearly, she wasn't okay, but it was the only thing that she could think of to say.

The blue-haired woman retracted her hand the instant it made contact with the other woman's shoulder, reflexively yelping, "ow!"

After several moments of pained gasps and trembling, Lucy uttered, "something inside me...is burning." She then choked on a cry.

Levy felt tears burn her eyes at the sight, however, she quickly wiped them away. She wasn't going to cry. Not when her girlfriend was seeming to be burning alive. Crying won't do any good, she told herself.

It was Happy who spoke next, "Natsu's fire..."

Levy finished the thought, "his fire as a demon..."

She watched as Lucy moved her infected hand to rest over one eye as she struggled to sit straight and managed to say, "but I can use this...as a clue..." The blonde then looked back at the red runes, which seemed to have smoke rising off of them. Levy looked too, but quickly moved her gaze back to her girlfriend when she heard her continue, "if I follow this magic power..." Her gaze dropped as she gasped out, "I might..."

Happy took up so that she wouldn't have to finish, "you might be able to rewrite the demon inside Natsu."

Levy gasped at that. Tears welled up in her eyes again. She felt the urge to try and convince her girlfriend to not do it, however, she was able to hold herself back, if just barely. She knew that she couldn't convince Lucy to not do something that she had already decided to do, especially at a time like this, when Natsu's own life was on the line.

Happy finished, "but if you do that, you'll..."

Lucy murmured, "I'll be fine..."

That was a lie, Levy knew that it was. Her stomach turned and she felt nauseous and her chest ached, feeling as though she had been stabbed through the heart, and yet was somehow still alive and capable of feeling everything. Her dark eyes burned with tears that were now falling freely. The blue-haired woman watched, feeling helpless, as her girlfriend somehow managed to push through the pain and picked up the quill again before raising it once more and beginning to write.

Levy felt frozen, her body refusing to do anything, although, that might have been a good thing since there seemed to be very little that she could do. Her dark, tear-filled eyes were locked on Lucy's trembling body. She felt helpless and her mind was jumbled with thoughts that she was unable to make sense of, and wasn't able to even begin to make sense of them. Racing through her mind were worries about what was to happen to her girlfriend, as well as pained thoughts about how much pain her girlfriend was in.

Feeling like she was on autopilot, the blue-haired woman crawled around Lucy to sit in front of her before she leaned forward to rest her ear against the blonde's chest. The side of her face burned painfully, nonetheless, she remained, sharing in at least a fraction of the pain that her girlfriend was feeling. She closed her eyes as she let the sound of Lucy's heartbeat reach her searing ear.

Before this conflict with Zeref and his henchmen began, she and Lucy would spend night after night cuddled together. It was Lucy's steady heartbeat that would lull Levy to sleep every night, her head resting on the blonde's chest just like now. Tears flowed down her face at an increased rate as Levy noticed that her girlfriend's heartbeat was no longer steady and serene, but instead was slowing at an alarming speed as the minutes passed. She knew that the curse was inching closer to the blonde's heart.

The blue-haired woman pressed the side of her face into her girlfriend's chest even more, silently urging her heart to pick up speed and return to normal. A hopeless wish, she knew. She remembered the many dates that they had gone on, not caring about any past events and not thinking that anything could come along and ruin their lives. She mourned the dates that they hadn't been able to go on and the wedding that they both desperately wanted to have.

But most of all, she mourned the woman who she was going to lose.

She didn't move, or even open her eyes, until she felt Lucy lean against her. She opened her eyes, but didn't pull away. Then, hesitantly, she raised a hand to touch Lucy's bare skin, quickly noticing that her girlfriend wasn't as burning hot as she was before.

Levy instantly pulled away and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. Looking at Lucy's face, she found that her eyelids were nearly closed and she wasn't moving. The blue-haired woman gently laid Lucy on her back and stared down at her, one hand under her head and the other resting on her stomach.

She silently stared down at her seemingly lifeless girlfriend, begging her to wake up and be okay. She whispered, "Lucy?" Her tears dripped off of her face onto Lucy's, making it appear that Lucy too was crying. Levy brought her hand up from Lucy's stomach to wipe the tears away from her girlfriend's pale face. She unconsciously held her breath as she waited for any indication that the blonde in her arms was still alive.

After several moments, Lucy groaned as she opened her eyes with some difficulty. The blonde's brown eyes quickly found Levy's own dark ones. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out except for almost inaudible sounds. Levy quickly shushed her, whispering, "you don't have to say anything." Her tears became heavier as she realized that she was facing her girlfriend's death. She turned her head away as a choked sob escaped her.

A hand then weakly rose and rested on her cheek, bringing her eyes back to the blonde who was laying on the ground. Lucy smiled at her. She then opened her mouth again, this time managing to say, if with some struggle, "p-please stop...crying...I-I'm s-sorry that...we c-couldn't get m-married." She then took a deep breath before she finished, "I-I love you...Levy."

With that, Lucy's eyes closed and her hand dropped to the ground. Panicked and desperate, Levy cupped her girlfriend's face as she screamed, "don't go! Don't you dare leave me! Lucy! You can't die! You can't leave us! You can't leave me!"

When she felt a small, furry paw rest on her side, she looked over to see Happy next to her. His eyes were locked on Lucy's lifeless body as tears streamed down his face and he muttered, "she's gone." It sounded as though he couldn't believe it himself.

Levy looked back down at Lucy. She wrapped her arms around the dead blonde and pulled her to her chest. She took a deep, raspy breath before she began to wail, screaming out in agony before she quickly quieted and sobbed to herself, her face buried in Lucy's blonde hair.

#fairy tail #lucy heartfilia #levy mcgarden #levy x lucy #lucy x levy #lelu #luvy #happy #death #angst #crying #rewriting the book of end #major character death

3 notes · View notes