Chapter 8

…

Laxus currently gave a mountain backpack smaller than his own to the celestial Mage.

"Here's the part that you are going to carry all the way." Laxus threw the backpack sharply to Lucy, who barely managed to catch it.

When Lucy did it, she almost fell to the ground by the weight of the big backpack.

"But what the heck is in this backpack?" The blonde Mage complained.

"What? Can't you carry it, Blondie?" Laxus sneer, "Just letting you know, you're carrying the smallest one. You're weak."

"Yeah, laugh," She says sarcastically, "-strength doesn't always have to be physical, excuse you muscle man." She said making the effort to carry the mountain-like backpack on her back.

"And now you're going to talk about that bullshit of values, will and inner strength. I don't like that shit. It's not worthy during a battle. The law of the strongest always is what counts." He was glad that at least she thought about his great muscles. Laxus broke out in one of those endorsed and arrogant laughs that drew Lucy crazy.

'Damn arrogant man.' She groans.

The two Mages were carrying everything that they needed to cross the mountains.

Lucy was wearing a coat in the snow, which color was pink, some black pants and a pair of boots also with the same black color. She also had a pair of gloves that allowed her to not only protect her from cold, but also to hide the brand of the guild that she had in the back of her right hand in pink. For her that guild mark meant a lot. The mark symbolized the ties with the Fairytale family, her love to her comrades and the pride to belong to a place that she could really call home. Fairy Tail was her will, her strength, her place... and nothing more could express how she felt that this pink guild mark.

However, in this mission she had to be quite careful. It was an SS-Class mission, and Lucy knew from experience that they were not easy. 'Natsu, the idiot I have for a friend, stole an SS-Class mission that was about to undo the curse that the inhabitants of the Galuna Island were suffering.

There, Gray was found with the worst enemy of his childhood called Deliora, which was defeated by his teacher Ur losing her live in the process. Afterwards, a sect wanted to revive it with the power of the moon, but we managed to defeat them.´ Lucy recalls the SS-Class mission that her team did together.

"Are you ready?" The blond asks when Lucy reaches for the backpack and tied a few ropes around her waist.

"Of course, I'm ready." The celestial Mage said and she followed the SS-Class mage who started walking in the direction of the snowy and icy mountains.

They walked through the narrow streets of stone of Shirotsume, until they reached the outskirts of the city. The wind lifted the snow that covered the meadows of the crop fields, on the outskirts of Shirotsume.

Anticipating the weather, the celestial Mage covered herself a little with a white scarf, to avoid the snow to enter into her eyes. Her nose was reddened by the cold and her hands were shivering a little.

Laxus engulfs himself with his usual coat over his shoulders and he put a single hand to restrain his backpack that was over his back. Despite being hard to be noticed, Lucy could see Laxus's lips badly bruised by the coldness, although she'd never openly admitted it.

Laxus looked at the highest mountains, but was unable to see the top of them because of the low clouds that covering them.

"It's not easy to pass thru it." The blond male mumbles.

Lucy asked a little uncomfortable, "WHAT?" Just seeing all that snow, she started to shiver from head to toe.

"We are going to have to climb." Laxus simply said.

"What?" Lucy's eyes widened, "-can't we just take a shortcut or surround the mountains? Now that I see all this snow, I think it's impossible to cross that." She tried to resonate.

"Blondie, you'll be fine. It can't be that hard." Laxus sneers.

If it was his way to lit up the mood, but the celestial Mage feel really pathetic by panicking over such thing, so she followed him walking up to the trees that began at the skirt of the mountain.

'Yeah, it will be easier for you'. Lucy silently objected.

Laxus continued his walk, laughing at the pout the celestial Mage was sporting all the way. Each footstep left deep traces in the soft snow of the mountains.

And the cold increased and made Lucy to sneak between her clothes to warm up. She walked behind Laxus, with the look on her feet, because she didn't want to slip off. She had made enough to seem like a burden in front of one of the strongest mages she even didn't know. She internally wanted to prove to the lightning mage that she was a trustworthy Nakama and a strong wizard.

The backpack she was carrying was heavy as hell and her pace began to slow down. Her back was aching.

'A damsel shouldn't carry such a heavy backpack. Laxus! You bastard.' The celestial Mage complained.

Lucy kept walking a few meters behind the older Mage when he realizes she couldn't keep up with him.

"If you are going to walk like a turtle, I'd have left you in the town, woman." Laxus said glaring annoyingly at Lucy.

"Then why haven't you left me behind already? Is not like you care, jerk. This backpack is killing me." Lucy complained.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair in exasperation. That woman was stubborn as hell.

"Never mind. I just want you to stay next to me in case these Vulcans can attack us." Laxus deadpanned and walked away looking a surprised look in those brown-eyes.

That wasn't what Lucy was expecting, at all! Maybe an arrogant comment or a mocking one, but not concern. Thus, she averts her eyes form Laxus's blue-green ones. A tiny blush appeared in Lucy's cheeks after hearing him.

She wasn't sure what he really meant, but she was very surprised. Lucy's heart shrank at the idea of Laxus's being nice to her. Suddenly, Lucy stops her walk thinking about a couple of things.

'Perhaps Laxus is not as bad as it seems. Maybe his past is harsher than what his grandfather told me. He's suffered and it was his father's fault. Just like me,' Lucy sighed at the memento Makarov had said to her, '-now, I really want to get to know him better.'

But there was always a reason to take back her words.

"Can I ask you, why do you have that smile on your face? It's making me sick." Laxus asked in annoyance.

Lucy didn't know Laxus was a tad away from her when he spoke. She just felt that he was being an idiot. He could've asked anything.

'You had to spoil this, don't you? I seriously don't know what to do with you.' The celestial Mage thought frustrated.

Lucy huffs looking at the blond Mage square in the eyes.

"I'm fine, really." She cut him off.

"Of course is nothing to worry about if you're smiling. I'm not stupid you know." Laxus hisses.

'You think that I'm that idiot, Blondie?'

Lucy groaned before starting to take her leave. He had his moments, she knew it. But, when he was rude and an arrogant pervert, he was hard to handle. Laxus put and arm behind her back, when she walked him over.

"You don't smile so often around me; you should do it more often." He mumbles before letting her go.

'Well, I can't have her by force. That wouldn't be fun. This weakly blonde has something especial. I won't shatter her. I have better things to do.'

Again, Lucy stopped in her tracks with her heart bumping out of her chest. He had said that her smile was making him sick. Then, why he wanted her to smile more? She blushed for no reason and tried to hide it. This was so confusing for her; she didn't know how to react.

Despite her blush, Lucy started to walk close to the blond Mag. Not because she was fond of him, but because she didn't want to be Vulcan's breakfast.

Her white scarf and her furry white coat didn't cover so much and the celestial Mage was getting cold. Lucy breathed between her hands while walking, rubbing them frantically trying to warm them up.

"Are you cold?" Laxus asks not daring to look at her.

Lucy didn't reply; she didn't want to be exposed as weakling before Laxus's eyes.

Laxus growls at the sight of being ignored.

"Hey, I asked you a question..." the blond said rolling his eyes.

"I heard you." Lucy said with a soft voice, "Thank you for your concern, it's okay."

Laxus lift a brow at the quivering celestial Mage.

'Why she is so damn stubborn?' He pulled a hand from under his coat and passes it behind her waist, helping her to keep her balance on the ice. He didn't want her to slip through the ice.

"Hey...¿What the hell are you doing, you pervert?" Lucy shrieks trying to pull herself out of his grip, hitting him with her fists on the chest. Though, she didn't dislike his body's warmth.

"If you keep quivering like that, you'd probably get a cold. And stop punching me like the annoying girl you are!" He growls trying to keep calm, "If I were a perv, I would've raped you long time ago." He huffs.

Lucy stiffens immediately, realizing Laxus was talking about Plue. If Laxus thought that everybody was weaker that him, why he knew about Plue? And he had a point. If he were a pervert, a REAL one, he would've done terrible things to her long ago. However, he already had kissed out of the blue and she wouldn't forget about it.

"Better? Good. Keep walking." Laxus said with an exasperated voice.

She didn't have time to object, she let him to warm her up with his body heat. Lucy also found that his warmth made her feel protected and safe.

Laxus seemed immune to the big icy wind blowing against their reddened faces. When Lucy took a look at his face, all she could think about was how she could shatter Laxus.

'He's like a beast. He doesn't seem annoyed by the cold.' She thought. 'He's extremely strong. Natsu couldn't have tolerated such weather. Well, he is a fire Mage after all.' She grins.

Then, for a strange reason a hand halts her.

"Laxus...?" She asks.

She was silenced by the hand on her backpack, she was a tad scared because of the sudden action, but when she saw it was Laxus she relaxes.

"Oh, it's you". Lucy sighed in relief. Laxus looked at her with a raised eyebrow, a cocky smile on his face.

"Who else would it be, Blondie? The Yeti? Come on. I thought you were smarter, Chikie." He laughed at the naive Mage. He spoke with a serious tone. "Though, wearing the backpack like this is going to hurt your back." Laxus said losing one of the straps of the backpack.

Lucy thanked Laxus for helping her and looked again where they were going, still pouting at Laxus for make fun of her. There was a faraway wooden cabin at the top of one of the mountains. The celestial Mage wished that it wasn't their destination.

Laxus, attention was somewhere else. He still had his arm wrapped at Blondie's waist. He liked the feel of her smooth skin under the winter fabric she was wearing. He unconsciously rubs it with a thump, enjoying being the feeling.

'Not even Salamander would be this close to her.' He thought with a smirk.

Never, he admitted, had he gone too far for a sexy woman. Maybe Chikie was something else to him? 'No. That's forbidden for someone like me. I'm just playing with her, that's it.' He justified his earlier thoughts.

Lucy realizes Laxus was carelessly fondling her waist, she felt hot on her cheeks, '¿What is he doing? ¿What is he thinking?'

She got distracted in her own thoughts; she didn't know that Laxus' caress moved lower. Couldn't even keep the backpack in it's spot because Laxus wasn't helping her anymore with it.

Every five steps she had to stop and rest at the effort she was doing. Laxus looked at her and sighs, 'This woman sure knows how to piss someone.'

He swivels his head in order to observe the blonde, "If we stop every five steps we will waste our energy. You had to find a pace you can handle. We have all day before getting there."

'How come he had become so wise in just a day? Had He been always like this?' Lucy thought incredulously. 'Is he acting nicely to gain my trust?'

"But I can't, and we have to get there as soon as possible, before night." Lucy pointed.

"And you think you are going to be helpful if you get there completely spent?" He wondered ironically and a cocky smirk on his lips.

Lucy huffs continuing her walk, now with a quieter step and steadier one.

Laxus make sure she walked next to him. Being too close of one of the most gorgeous woman was a thing he couldn't let escape so easily. They continued walking despite the fact that Lucy had some doubts that it could withstand any journey, and in addition, the road seemed never-ending. It seemed that the wooden cabin was at the same distance from the beginning.

"Laxus, are we going in circles?" She asks.

"What make you think that?" He growled, now the blonde had planted the doubt in him.

'Who do you think I am? I am very different from those stupid companions you have.' He fumed.

"I have only asked you a question..." She said angrily, the cold wasn't helping.

"We are in the good way." Laxus interrupts her grumpily.

"No need to be rude, Geez. It seems that we are where we started." Lucy pressed.

"Oy, Blondie, shut up and keep walking or you're going to freeze in this snow." Laxus urged her.

...

After four hours of walking in the snowy mountains the celestial Mage feels sore and tired. Laxus wasn't showing that he also was a little tired in such a frozen weather.

"Laxus, are we near the cabin?" Lucy gasped tiredly.

"We're almost there. Why? Are you already tired?" He quips.

"I am exhausted." She emphaticized the last word, "And this backpack doesn't help me. How do you do it, yours is bigger than mine."

He leans in close to the blonde's ear, whispering in a hoarse voice, "If you have to know, my body is pure muscle, hadn't you notice it yet?" He said snickering.

The celestial Mage groaned in frustration, "Yeah, you keep saying that every fucking time."

Laxus looked at her amused, "I didn't know an aristocrat girl could have such a big mouth."

"I'm not an aristocrat."

Laxus raises a brow, "How come? The Heartfilia railroads are very powerful in the kingdom of Fiore."

"I don't want to talk about it." She averts her eyes sadly.

'Well, that was weird.' He admitted. 'And why do I care? But that look is pissing me off. Sure, I do love annoys her and embarrassing her, that's just different.'

"Look at me when I'm talking to you. What happened?" Laxus growled angrily.

Lucy looked at Laxus with teary eyes, "What do you want to know? You wouldn't even give me a hand to help at Phantom Lord's if I wouldn't become your woman."

Laxus was a little surprised with the sudden change of mood, "Blondie..."

Lucy wiped the tears away averting her eyes, "You don't care about your Nakama. I won't open up to you if you don't make the effort to truly care about your comrades." Lucy said in a quiet voice.

'Don't care about them?' Laxus thought angrily. "What did you come to think that?" He growls, "D'you know how much paperwork; your team produces? Your destructive team is lucky to have Gramps as their master. If it was up to me, Team Natsu would've been banished for the guild, much for everyone's sake."

"What...are you talking about? Team Natsu banished?"

"You're not the smartest apple, are you? The council would've closed Fairy Tail if it wasn't for me and Gramps help. Grandfather is kind and he's always trying to protect his guild. But if it were under my watch, there wouldn't be so much I can do for you guys."

"And why are you saying that?" Lucy asks with curiosity.

"For starters, I'd demand to the members to become stronger, so they can handle the hardest missions. They are a bunch of weaklings. There are only a short amount of SS-Class members, guild can't earn enough money to pay the destructions of YOUR TEAM." He put some venom in his voice in the last part.

"Hey. I'm not so destructive..." Lucy pouts.

"Well, you aren't." He admitted. "But I can't say the same of Flamebrain, Stripping boy and Titania."

"And what did you contribute with to your guild?" Lucy asked quirking a brow. He was criticizing the others rather than himself. "And don't call my friends with your ugly nicknames."

"What do you mean?" He growls, he was the best and strongest Mage at Fairy Tail, "I am so strong, that I took the hardest SS-Class missions. And I'll use the money to solve the disorder your team causes to Fairy Tail."

'He's a complete ass.' She thought.

"Leave it." Lucy crossed her arms in front of her chest and she step ahead of Laxus, walking grumpy.

"Oi Blondie!" He shouted at the girl's sudden change of mood.

He mutters to himself with irritation, "Damn and stupid stubborn girl. She is treating me as if I was not nothing more than a vulgar jerk. What the fuck can I do to win her? Do I have to act like the idiots she calls her friends?"

'There is no way I'm going to be like those fools who call themselves worthy mages of my guild.' He thought angrily as Lucy kept walking.

'Why can he be friendlier, and a careful person, like Master Makarov?' She thought irritated, 'They can be related, but they act so differently...'

The two Mages kept thinking in silence whilst walking through the frozen weather.

Laxus sent a glimpse towards the blonde Mage, who was walking right in front of him swaging her hips. He couldn't resist smirking at the thought of running his hand up and down those perfect assets.

"Well, at least now I have a beautiful view of your ass." He smirks looking up at the beautiful blonde Mage.

Lucy turned her head back and was found with a pair of blue-green eyes ogling her up and down.

"Hey, perv!" She shouts, trying to get far away from his glare, "Stop looking at my bum!" The girl demands with a flushed face.

Her childish behavior made Laxus to burst into laughter.

"You...BAKA!" The girl became angry at the lightning Mage attitude. She turned her head to look forward and started to walk faster, keeping some distance between them both.

Laxus took her reaction as a sign of victory, watching at Lucy huffing and strolling faster away from him. He didn't let her go too far away from him, after all, they didn't want to encounter and fight the Vulcans.

The blond Mage will let her pout and throw those small temper tantrums if that means she will keep humor him with those stupid and childish reactions.

'Well, it's her fault after all. If she hadn't swayed those hips that way we could've saved this argument.' Laxus smirks at his thought.

A few meters away from Laxus, Lucy was mumbling to herself in a very annoyed way.

"I would never try to seduce someone like him." She clenches her fists and jaw at the thought unaware that Laxus could hear her.

She was mumbling, but in a not too careful way.

'Seduce someone like me?' Laxus looked at the blonde confused. 'She normally wears that Cosplay clothes at the guild. If she doesn't want to seduce a man, why does she dress like a whore?'

He didn't actually though she tried to be a whore. Then, the only other reason was: She was trying to attract the attention of some other guy at the Guild.

Laxus unconsciously clenched his fists. He will be the one to taste her first. And she will be the one to come to him asking for it.

'God damned. What's into Me.' Rubbing his forehead, he sighs, 'What does Lucy have, that the other women I'd spent a night with don't have?'

"Blondie, don't go away. There are Vulcans in these mountains." He remembers her.

Despite his warning she ignored him and kept walking.

"Damn Blondie." He said to himself watching her walk. "How dare she to ignore me?"

After walking a mile they stopped in front of a tall cliff. It was a very high climb.

"Oh no," Lucy stomped her foot into the frozen ground irritated, "We are trapped!" She shouted frustrated.

"You are way too easy to piss off, girl." Laxus said stopping next to her.

"It's impossible to climb that!" Lucy stubbornly shouts. Maybe that was a twenty meter cliff.

"Well, there's no nother way we can go through Wass Forest." Laxus shrugged and sat cross-legged on the snowy ground.

Wide eyed, Lucy looked at him. She couldn't believe the SS-Class mage was giving up.

"That's it? We just give up?"

"I didn't say that, Blondie. You did." Laxus closed his eyes silently.

Lucy found out Laxus was indeed right.

"You usually are optimistic. We don't know if it's impossible if we don't try." The lightning Mage took Lucy out of her thoughts.

Lucy gulps. Well, she was always an optimistic person. But, because of the tiredness of the past few days, she had become a bit pessimistic. And to make things worse, with her was Laxus Dreyar, the arrogant and selfish and strongest SS-Class Mage of Fairy Tail.

"You're right. Sorry." She apologized. The difference between them was that she could recognize when it was the right time to be sorry for, "What do we do now?" She asks ashamed.

Said Mage open his eyes and stood up on the frozen ground. He gave Lucy a rope to put onto her waist, smirking when the woman tried to tie it tight to her tiny waist.

"You were easy to convince." Laxus said in a hoarse voice and Lucy narrowed her eyes at him. She's got used to at his pervert behavior. She knew that at the hotel room he could have had every woman he wants. But, she rather sent her thoughts away, focusing on the mission.

"I don't know if I can handle the entire cliff." Lucy whispers.

She didn't want Laxus to hear her, she felt pretty sure that Laxus' opinion of her was low enough without knowing that, so she decided to just say that to herself.

"Hold onto my back. I know that you are too weak to climb all of it, we're out of choices." He deadpanned.

"Hey!" Lucy complained because he called her weak again.

'What kind of woman could climb that cliff?' She exclaimed into her mind frustrated. Erza was the only woman she could think of.

Laxus shrugs, letting a pouting Lucy to climb on his back.

"I usually would use my magic to move us to the top, but I don't want to cause an avalanche." He jests.

'Nice joke to say at a snowy mountain.' She rolls her eyes at the older Mage, letting him grab her by the thighs securely onto his back.

With a rope wrapped around Lucy's waist, it was almost impossible to Laxus to carry the blonde and their bag packs.

The celestial Mage was the only person who could handle the weight of their bags. So she decided she was the one who'd carry them for him.

The celestial Mage wrapped, hesitating, her arms over the muscular neck of the lightning Mage.

The blonde woman noticed Laxus's body close to hers and she began to get a bit frustrated. His back was very well toned. She could notice his skin over the winter fabric.

Even if she could, she couldn't say that he wasn't an attractive man.

The blond wasn't unaware of the fidgeting woman ogling his body. 'Uh, so she likes what she sees. I knew it!' Just thinking about Lucy's soft hand running down his bare back was exhilarating. He could barely hold himself down.

He keeps moving rock after rock, careful to hold into the girl in his arms and walking in a steady foot.

"Do you like how my hot body, it feels, Blondie?" Laxus asks with a smirk, while he continues climbing.

He was glad that Blondie's attention was on him. He was proud of his body, and he knew how many women wanted him.

She almost moved off Laxus when he said that.

"I'm not going to amuse you!" She was a person not an object. She couldn't let him see her too low.

She thought he was a gentleman. But his pervert and jerk behavior told her the opposite.

"Hold tight, Blondie." He grunted tightening his grip on her thighs to secure the blonde woman on his back again.

'Then, don't say those things to me!' She thought angrily.

Laxus continued his climbing, starting to sweat due to the effort. But in no time he will arrive to the top. He wouldn't let Blondie to think that he was the same pathetic weakling as her friends.

The cold wind at the edge of the cliff, make difficult to Laxus to keep walking. When he arrived to the top and raised the last stretch of the ascension, he stared at the blonde turning his head back with a smirk on his lips.

"You can open your eyes, Chikie." He said lowering Lucy down onto the frozen ground.

Said Mage opened her brown-eyes, sighing tiredly.

"I made all the effort. You can't be tired." The lightning Mage jabbed.

"Maybe," She shrugs, causing Laxus to arch a brow, "-but I had to handle the weight of our bags".

"And you were on my back, so I carried all that weight." Laxus arrogantly pointed out.

Lucy stood huffing at the annoying older Mage and started to walk away. However, she was stopped by an arm.

"Hey, where are you going?" Laxus caressed Lucy's arm, causing her to blush. "It's the other way around." He pointed in the other direction.

"Y-Yeah, I knew that." She corrects herself ashamed.

'I'm so stupid.' Lucy thought with a flushed face that make the older Mage to laugh again.

…

Laxus and Lucy continued their planned route towards the wooden cabin where they could spend the night. The next day they were going to Wass Forest.

Of course, the lightning Mage continued to tease the blonde, because he liked her childish frustration. Besides, he didn´t another way to entertain himself while walking through such a cursed weather.

Truth to be told, Lucy was angry thus, as stubborn as she usually was, she kept her distance with the man.

Walking, not knowing where exactly she was going to, Lucy bumped into something. She thought that it was Laxus's furred jacket, stepping in front of her. But she lifts her gaze she found out that icy blue eyes were staring back at her…

A Vulcan of the snowy mountains.

'Fuck.' Lucy thought, heartbeat increased as a sudden wave panic embraces her; she started to tremble from head to toe. Frozen on the spot. 'Why... didn't I see that Vulcan?' She panicked.

Laxus, a few meters behind the girl, saw in awe when the celestial mage bumped to a Vulcan and without thinking twice she threw a punch at him. But the Vulcan, in a quick motion, was holding onto Lucy's throat, lifting her off the ground.

"Someone…please…help..." She manages to hiss.

In a heartbeat, Laxus made his fist to connect with the Vulcan's jaw.

The punched guys flew away from Lucy. Then he got up pointing at Lucy saying: "My woman."

Laxus smirked, "What made you think she's yours?"

The blonde Mage took his battle stance in front of Lucy. She was safe now, but he was pissed at herself for not seeing that monster.

"What, are you so stupid? If I hadn't come with you, you could have died!" Laxus hisses at her in a serious tone.

'Fucking hell, what if she got killed?'

Lucy looked at him, eyes filled with tears, and Laxus felt a little sad. He could have been a tad less harsh. In fact, he was partially guilty of what had happened, because if he haven't been pissed her...

'Uhm... crying women. Why do you have to cry now? Tsk.' He averts his gaze from teary brown eyes. For some strange reason the blonde made him feel sad. 'Why do I feel that it would feel good to have her in my arms? Damn it!'

"TSK. Stay away from this woman!" Laxus demanded and blocks the Vulcan's attacks that had started.

The celestial Mage felt protected by the older Mage, but she didn't want for Laxus to fight the battle alone. She was not a coward, not a damsel in distress. She was a proud Fairy Tail Mage. She wiped her last tear and grabbed her whip. She knew it was very risky to use Magic, but she could try to use her weapon against the Vulcan.

The Vulcan lashed out again against the blond Mage and he dodged the attack by locking it with his arms in a cross position. He was propelled backwards by the impact of the onslaught of that monster.

"That girl is going to be my wife," The Vulcan said, smiling wickedly, throwing fists against the lightning Mage.

Lucy grimaced hearing those words coming from the ugly Vulcan.

"Over my dead body!" Laxus grunted at the Vulcan. He punched even harder after saying those words. Knocking the monster finally out.

'What the heck?' Lucy thought, blushing, 'He had made me stop in my tracks again. Maybe he likes me, but he is too proud to recognize it?' The celestial Mage couldn't believe that. 'No, it's impossible that he could have laid his eyes on me. And why am thinking that? I don't like him that way… Or do I?' She was thinking very confused.

Laxus cleaned the blood run from his knuckles looking away from the unconscious monster towards to the blonde, checking if she was alright.

Or maybe he wanted to show her how strong he was.

Suddenly, twenty more Vulcans appeared, waiting to have the blonde for themselves as well.

"L-Laxus... we are outnumbered." Lucy whispers shifting her gaze from their enemies towards the blond.

The lightning Mage gazed over the uneasy celestial Mage smirking.

"TSK. They aren't going to last." Laxus said sure of himself.

"You are aware that you can't use Magic, aren't you?" Lucy asked him with a raised eyebrow watching him nod. 'Why's he so sure of himself?'

"I'm not stupid. Besides, my lightning isn't like your Magic. Your Magic is a hold-on type, isn't it?"

Lucy's eyes widened.

"Isn't it?" He repeated. "Figures, your magic can't cause mountain slides."

"But, that old man said..." Lucy adds hurriedly.

Laxus cracked his knuckles in a battle position.

"You mustn't believe the information someone gave you. And, what if the old man was plotting along with the dark Guild we are going to fight?"

The older Mage ogled suspiciously at the celestial Mage.

Lucy tensed when twenty Vulcans begin to attack them.

Nevertheless, she managed to avoid the blades and slapped her whiplash into one of them making the face of him bleed.

The lightning Mage stood still, too surprised to see her fighting in such a way. Lucy had graced him with her fighting style, she was sending back or blocking most of the Vulcan's attacks.

'Where did she get all those movements? I had assumed that she usually hides behind her spirits.' Laxus though in awe whilst blocking and fighting back his fair share of enemies.

The two blonds continued to fight shoulder by shoulder, against all the Vulcans, the battle seemed not to end anytime soon.

Lucy notices her movements became heavier and slower by the second, it was probably due to the exhaustion of walking with a backpack for a full day. Panting, she looked over Laxus, and saw him confronting four Vulcans. When he was about to be punched by one of them, and probably got seriously injured, Lucy threw her long whip towards them in order to distract the Vulcans away from the older Mage.

"On your left, Laxus!" Lucy yelled out, but at the same time was slapped by another Vulcan with a punch, sending flying backwards.

Laxus saw Lucy's whip just in time to duck.

"Oy Blondie! If I was a little slower..." He didn't have time to tease her, because he saw a Vulcan punching Lucy's jaw, sending her far away at the ice, "BLONDIE!" He shouts in panic.

'Why did you have to help?' Laxus thought angrily to himself. He tried to get close to Lucy to help her. 'Now you can't defend yourself!' Laxus looked at the black whip that was lying far away from the blonde woman's grasp.

Lucy could hardly get up after the brutal punch she even spat blood into the white snow beneath her.

"Curse." Lucy muttered, when she saw the same Vulcan that had punched her, sporting a wicked grin on his ugly gorilla face.

"My wife." The Vulcan said, walking towards the blonde Mage.

Laxus, on the other side, was fighting some more Vulcans. She had lost her weapon trying to help him, though it was stupid from her, the blond Mage couldn't deny she had lost her weapon trying to help him: The most powerful wizard in Fairy Tail.

'Cursed Chikie!' Laxus shouted inwardly, trying to get to the celestial Mage.

Suddenly, a crack was heard, like broken ice. Laxus and Lucy froze in their spots for a moment without knowing what to do and the Vulcans seized the moment increasing their attack.

Lucy hadn't realized that she was sprawled into thin ice, it was a frozen lake. And the situation got worse when the big monster started walking towards the celestial Mage.

The crack echoed, and below the blonde woman was the shattering ice could be felt.

'Oh, no.' Lucy thought before falling through the shattered ice into the water.

At first, her breath stopped because of the change of temperature. Her mind struggled to keep working, trying to swim out of there. She tried to move her limbs, but the sudden soreness that was engulfing her was too strong to fight back.

"Laxus!" Lucy shouted his name for help.

She felt the cold water entering into her lungs when she tried to gasp for air. Unfortunately, with that frozen water was impossible to her to move without pain. Every movement was a sharp needle like a pinch on her skin and muscles.

Laxus barely heard the frightened screams despite the punches and clashing of blades against the Vulcans. He snapped his head back and saw Lucy struggling to get out the cold water.

"¡LUCYYY!" Laxus cried in desperation.

'Damn it, if don't pull her out of there right now she's going to die!'

With a force taken out of nowhere, Laxus got rid of the Vulcans that were punching him. He ran and ran; trying to reach up to Lucy as fast as his legs allows him.

'I hope it's not too late!' Laxus thought running.

He was frightened that someone in the Guild would die, even if he always considered the other members beneath him. He could see the blonde struggling for her life in the cold water holding into the very thin edge of the frozen lake.

'If only I could use my lightning to reach her quickly!' He blamed himself for it. Her agonizing face, she gasping for air, reminded him of his painful past.

"Hold on, Blondie!" He shouts.

Every time Lucy made the effort to move out of that frozen water, she felt as some needles were piercing her muscles and lungs and slides back into the cold water. And then, her limbs became heavier to carry or even move.

The Vulcan that had shattered the ice didn't try to get near her. He didn't want to end up like Lucy, fighting for her life.

Little by little, she felt herself sink into the lake. The fatigue of the desperate arms and legs were tired her. Her body was almost rigid under the cold water. Then, in spite of the fact that she was sinking, she began to hyperventilate and more water came into her lungs. The celestial Mage's mind started to get fuzzy with desperation.

'I could swear Laxus had just called my actual name. Why now? It's because I'm going to die?' Lucy blamed herself to thought that thing. 'No! I'm going to live and keep fighting for my Nakama. I'm not going to give up.' Her head was about to explode thanks to the pain the cold temperature had caused at her brain.

Suddenly, a bright light was shining over her head. Lucy attempted to open her eyes under the water to see what it was.

"Lucy, be strong." Her mother's voice echoes in her mind.

'Mother.' Lucy thought almost unconscious.

Then, she saw that the light was one of her most powerful golden keys: Aquarius.

She was a sea mermaid, with whom she had made her first contract. And the mermaid used to be also a Layla's Heartfilia spirit.

"Aquarius," Lucy thought, before giving up into unconsciousness, collapsing completely under the iced water under the snowy mountain.

Laxus saw as Lucy began to sink beneath the water.

'Fuck! Lucy, hold on!' Laxus shouted while he was getting to the edge of the lake.

He was about to reach the celestial woman's body, when, a bright light lit up the surface of the lake. A beautiful mermaid with blue hair adorned with different shells and a fish tail, also with the same color, came out of the frozen lake with an unconscious Lucy in her arms.

The mermaid looked at the god-build like blond before saying, "Are you her boyfriend?" The celestial spirit asked. That question, made Laxus to gasp.

"Ok. I don't care if you are her boyfriend or not. Just please save her. She might be sometimes a bit annoying and a crying brat, a stubborn girl. But, she has a kind heart and helps others. I don't want her to end up like this." Aquarius said with a wistful look after placing Lucy in Laxu's arms before disappearing towards the celestial world.

Laxus tightened his grip on the celestial Mage against is body in order to share a bit of his body heat. Without thinking it twice, he teleported them with his lightning to the wooden cabin they were looking for.

The sound thunder was rough enough to make the mountain tremble and to cause an avalanche. The Vulcans tried to move out the way as the mountain slides. Fortunately, they weren't quickly enough and got buried under a few meters of fresh snow.

As soon as Laxus appeared inside the wooden cabin, he places Lucy above a makeshift bed, and began to remove the wet clothes, bolstering her with different blankets to warm her up.

'Damn. Think. I have to take out her clothes.' Laxus thought nervously. That chick was a pain in the neck.

Despite of bolstering her as much as he could, Lucy didn't make a sign of life and Laxus started to fear the worst. But he could feel her heart was still beat.

An idea came to his mind as he started a campfire at the fireplace of the hut, burning logs with the power of his rays. He was sure that now was safe to use his powers.

"That's why I didn't want to be with weak people. It's for the Guilds safety. That's enough. Look at your child, Gramps." He sat down near Lucy, sending a hand through his blonde hair exasperated.

The blonde was still unconscious and her skin was almost blue.

"Fucking hell!' He slammed his fist on the floor with rage. 'You could have kept an eye on your fight, but you had to help the most powerful Mage at Fairy Tail. Stupid, Blondie!"

The realization came to his mind when he thought about that he even didn't deserve to beat at good health. The celestial Mage, even know it, he could handle the battle have put his life as a priority. Something he never had done for anyone.

'Fuck, I wanted to know her better. I was joking when I said I wanted her to be mine. Well I wanted her. But, will she want me?' He looked at the tiny celestial mage under the blankets.

"Maybe you're still a newbie as a Mage. But you aren't the same weak person I thought you were, not after that fight style you have!"

He grabbed Lucy and pulled her near him to warm her with his body in a close embrace.

"Stay alive, Blondie." He whispered, keeping an eye on the girl's vitals whilst catching some sleep for himself.

::TBC::