A/N: Fairy Tail does not belong to me in any way, shape, or form. Thank you.

Loke smiled, gazing across the hall where Virgo was dancing (if you could call it that), Aries shyly moving along with her, cheeks a brilliant scarlet—

Beautiful hair, the color of crimson, but the aura of a demon…

—and quietly begging the pink-haired maid to stop, it was so embarrassing. Taurus was cheering them on, hearts in his eyes. Loke was glad they were having such fun. He knew Aries was enjoying herself, she just wasn't used to the attention.

Capricorn was at the table with him, Libra in a seat next to him. While the goat was reading through a novel, Libra watched her fellow spirits dancing around. He thought he could almost make out a smile behind the cloth that covered the bottom of her face.

"Aaahh~! You're so clever, Scorpio!"

"Yeah, baby!"

He had to roll his eyes, honestly. Those two were ridiculous, but they were happy.

"Natsu, you idiot!"

"Aahaha! Sorry, Luce!"

He rested his elbow on the table, chin in his palm as he gazed around him, driving back the memories. He wasn't in the mood to deal with them today, not now. It was a good day for once, he didn't want to ruin in.

"Onii-san."

"Hm?" He blinked, noticing Virgo before him. Ever expressionless, she gazed back at him. "Is something wrong?"

"Dance with us."

There was no hesitation on his part as he smiled. "No way." Behind her, Aries' bottom lip trembled. If they didn't find someone else, she'd be trapped, stuck dancing with the maid… "Aquarius, you like—" The glare she sent him silenced him as he saw the dark aura—

The woman's eyes narrowed to slits, scarlet hair lit as flames seemed to dance around her…

—and he quickly looked away. "Taurus, wouldn't you—"

"Oh yeah!" He pumped a fist in the air, striding close to Aries, grinning—leering—down at her.

Well, one problem solved as another sprouted up, but that too was easily dealt with as the timid ram hurried over to their leader, sitting in the chair beside him as she left the bull with the maid. "Taurus, you should put on some clothes," the maid informed him blankly.

"Hah? What's wrong with what I'm wearing?!"

"Gray, your clothes?"

"Huh? Shit, when did that happen?!"

"Stupid Stripper! There are kids present!"

"What was that, you retarded Flame Bastard?!"

"You heard me!"

"You wanna go!?"

"You bet! Come at me, Ice Princess!"

"Boys, are you fighting?"

"N-no, Erza!"

He shook his head, a faint smile playing on his lips.

The memories weren't going to leave him alone today, huh? Honestly… why was all this happening today? It was supposed to be a good day too… "L-Leo?" He glanced over, seeing Aries gazing up at him with concern in her brown eyes—

Warmth and love overflowed in those chocolate eyes, something he never tired of seeing…

—but he nodded, reassuring her. "I'm fine, Aries."

"I-If you say so…" She poked her fingers together, not quite ready to let it go, but realizing he didn't wish to speak about it.

"Excuse me, I'm going for a walk," he rose, brushing down his jacket as he did so. She nodded and from further down the table, Capricorn looked up. Loke smiled lightly, pushing up blue-tinted glasses.

"I'll join you, Leo." From the goat's tone and expression, he wouldn't get it out of it. Loke held back his sigh, nodding his consent.

Some distance from the hall, out of earshot of those present, the old goat finally spoke: "You seem distracted today."

A snort and a rueful smile was his answer.

Capricorn understood immediately. "There is nothing wrong with grieving. We all feel the way you do. You should know that. Think of Aquarius." Loke winced at the mention of the mermaid.

She had taken it the worst, that was obvious. After knowing her for so long and then…

No. He didn't want to think about it, so he wasn't going to. That was final.

"I see." Capricorn didn't need to say anything more because he knew—they all knew.

They had all loved Lucy Heartfilia, especially their leader, who owed his life to her. She was the one who saved him from disappearing, helped him to rejoin his friends and retake his place. She had risked her own life to save him, risked the Spirit King's wrath all for him.

But Lucy Heartfilia was dead.

"Loke!" the child shrieked at his appearance and he smiled, immediately lifting up the little pinkette with bright green eyes.

"Why, hello Princess!" she giggled, bracing her hands against her lips to hide her smile. "And how are you today, hm? Are you behaving for your Papa?" From across the room, where he was sprawled on the couch, Natsu mumbled something rude to the lion. "Very good, Little One," he praised, reveling in Natsu's muttered curse as he groaned.

"Loke, Loke! I wanna play with Aquarius!" It was no secret the mermaid loved Lucy's children, but the little girl, a copy of her mother save for her coloring, was her favorite. The volatile spirit had once mentioned that she wasn't a brat, like her mother had been. Loke, however, knew she was just happy she could see Lucy once again, see her continue to grow and have a family of her own.

"You wound me, My Lady! Aren't I enough for you?" He cried, bracing a hand against his chest dramatically.

The girl seemed to realize her mistake and immediately set out to fix it, wrapping her arms tight around her mother's spirit. "No, no I'll play with you, Loke! I love you too!" She cried, obviously devastated that she hurt his feelings. She kissed his cheek repeatedly to make up for it.

Loke loved it. Her children were adorable—even if they were Natsu's children as well—and he relished his time with them. Sure, he could always wait to be summoned by Lucy, but he liked popping in without being called. He liked surprising the kids. "I'm honored, Princess," he kissed her forehead and she heaved out a sigh of relief, glad he wasn't mad at her. Again, Natsu grumbled out something intelligible. "And where's your beautiful Mama, Princess?"

"Mama? Oh, she went—"

"Hey, hey, you get to play with Celiane, don't go bothering Luce on her day off, ya pervy lion…"

"Oh? Jealous are we? Afraid I'll sweep Lucy off her feet?" Dark onyx eyes opened, pinning him with a glare. Long used to it, however, Loke merely smiled charmingly. "And where's your son?" Confusion came over the Slayer before Loke saw the lightbulb.

"Igneel's out with—"

"Aidan," the Zodiac corrected, as he did every time.

"—the Stripper's kid. I can't believe the two of them actually get along…" And Natsu ignored him, like he did every time. "Seriously, how can he stand—"

"They are friends, why don't you want your son to have friends?" was Loke's calm argument. He knew that ticked off the Slayer more than anything.

"Of-course I want him to have friends! Just not with that Popsicle's stuck-up—" Loke lifted Celiane into the air, the girl shrieking with joy as he walked away. "Hey, don't just walk away from me! Get back here, you stupid lion!"

"Come, Princess! Let's go to the park!" The six-year-old screamed her joy, aggravating her father's headache further before the door closed.

Natsu heaved out a sigh of relief and decided that the spirit could babysit their daughter if it meant he got to take a nap. Sure, Lucy might be ticked when she got back, but it would just be because he passed off the job to the lion. No harm, no foul.

He found himself in the massive library, fingers trailing over the spines as he moved. A small smile worked its way onto his lips.

Lucy would have loved this library, so would Levy, but as if Natsu and Gajeel would let their perspective mates leave their side for the three months they would spend in here. Totally out of the question, but he would have loved to see the frantic looks on their faces when he popped in to see how everyone was doing while the girls were away. Would have been worth anything they could throw at him.

But that wasn't an option anymore, not that it ever was.

"Onii-san." He was long used to Virgo's quiet ways of sneaking up on people, despite the chains that dangled from her wrists. "Are you alright?"

"Of-course. Is something wrong?" he pushed up his glasses, peering back at the pinkette. Still as blank as expression as ever, but he thought he saw something in her eyes…

"No. You've been quiet lately."

Ah. So he wasn't as subtle as he thought he was. "I'm fine, thank you."

"You miss Hime." It wasn't a question, no, she knew better. It was a statement, a fact. It just applied to all of them.

"Virgo, that's hardly—" he broke off abruptly, seeing the tears pooling in her eyes, despite the thin line she had pressed her lips into. "V-virgo?" He can't remember ever seeing her cry before. Had he really been ignoring everyone else so much? Losing touch with them all that he couldn't even see their pain, too consumed with his own? "Virgo, what's wrong?" It was so… so wrong seeing her cry like this, tears sliding down her cheeks.

"We won't be summoned by Hime again. Ever again."

Something broke in his chest.

There it was. That was what he had been avoiding. Not the memories (well, yes, those too) but that. They would never see her again.

They've all had Masters in the past, some good, some bad, but Lucy… Few could say they ever had a partner quite like her, only Capricorn, Aquarius, and Cancer could boats such a thing of her mother, Layla. Lucy had cared for them all, she pushed herself to her very limits for her friends, and she refused to use her Spirits as shields, like many did. Just because they couldn't be killed didn't mean they couldn't feel pain. They could feel it quite clearly, thank you, but Lucy… It was almost as if she could feel that pain, know how they hurt.

She would never summon him again to help on a job or to babysit or to break up a fight between Natsu and Gray (those were his favorites as she would praise him and he could just see the idiot getting jealous before he disappeared back into his world) but most of all, he could never summon himself to her side, for whatever reason he felt that day.

He especially liked when she just got out of the shower, though Natsu made it very clear that such a thing was frowned upon.

"I just…" he focused, looking back at Virgo, who had bowed her head. He reached out, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and leading her towards a table, easing her down and sitting next to her, holding tight to one of her hands. She squeezed back. "Neither Chiisana Hime or Oji-sama learned Celestial magic," she murmured, head still bent. Loke swallowed, knowing where she was going with this. "And… Hime never… gave them away."

She meant their keys. Lucy had never passed them on. Neither Aiden—Igneel, a quiet voice murmured—or Celiane learned their mother's magic and their pretty master couldn't bear to part with them, couldn't bear to put them through the cruelty of another dark master. People could change and she remembered Zoldeo and what he put Capricorn through. She told him once than maybe her grandkids would learn, could they bear with that? Her grandchildren? She was sure they would be kind—she would make sure of it—and for them, it really wouldn't be too long.

They didn't care, they just didn't want her to stop needing them, to give them up. Layla had been ill and the magic was a strain on her, but Lucy was fine, would be fine, so they could stay with her. Right?

Right. So they did. Up until the blonde couldn't.

It had been years now, how many? Loke wasn't sure. He stopped counting the days, but he knew it was probably long enough for both children to have some of their own. He remembered the first grandchild, a girl, Kira. Brown hair and blue eyes, from her mother. Aidan's first child. Did he have more? He thought there had been a son… No, it was Celiane who had the son. Mavis, he couldn't even remember that?

"O-onii-san?"

"Sorry, Virgo, I was thinking." She looked up at him, pain still etched in her features. "I'm sure Celiane or Aidan passed them on."

"If Natsu-san didn't lose them."

…damn it. He forgot about that mess of a man. How could he have forgotten? Natsu Dragneel, packrat extraordinaire. Not only could he make a mess of his house, but also Lucy's former apartment. And when they moved to accommodate the children, he managed to make that house a safety hazard as well. He still kept that shack in the woods, where he lived… now? Was the mage even still alive? Curse it all, that would just make this whole thing even better. The demon Natsu Dragneel finally passing of his broken heart (poetic, isn't it? The demon that loved the Princess) and lost the keys in that mess of a house.

"I doubt he would lose something so important," he finally ground out, trying to reassure himself rather than the woman seated beside him.

"Hm. You're probably right. But he is fairly forgetful."

Stars help him if that idiot lost their keys. Loke wouldn't hold back, not even on an old man.

He felt the faint twinkle of power, as did the other spirits. Silence descended as they held their breaths, hearts pounding as they felt the weak pulses.

Long ago, Celestial Mages were in large number, but now, only few were known—and by few, they mean Queen Hisui's son and granddaughter, and Yukino's daughter and granddaughter, possibly great-grandson as well, if Libra's excitement was anything to go on. So, five.

"Onii-san, do you think…?" Virgo and Aries looked over at him and he could only shrug. He didn't know any more than they did, but Mavis he hoped it was true. Finally, a Heartfilia would once again control the heavens.

"Puun!" He jerked, glancing down at the small Nikola waving up at him, disappearing into gold. Plue. Lucy's Nikola had been summoned.

A sob from Aquarius had Scorpio quickly consoling her, arms wrapped around her as she openly cried.

One of the children finally learned their master's magic.

"I call upon thee, Open! Gate of Lion, Leo!" He almost choked at the small voice calling to him. The magic was so familiar, so very familiar. Like Aquarius did only hours ago, he too almost cried in relief. Already they summoned not only Plue, but he as well? The voice told him it was a child, a little girl, and he hoped to God that it was Lucy's grand or great-grandchild and that someone else hadn't just found their keys in some box.

He sent a warm smile to the other spirits who watched him with hope welling in their eyes. A single nod and the pull tugged him towards the human realm. The magic wasn't strong enough to sustain him long, so he used his own, negating the strain that would be placed on the child and substituting his own. He closed his eyes, almost afraid to open them, to see what he would find.

A warm voice spoke gruffly, "Ya gonna open your eyes or what, ya pervy lion?"

White hair and dark onyx eyes gazed back at him when he looked through blue tinted lenses. A smile grew on his lips, recognizing the haphazard spikes. "Ah, still have your hair, do you, Natsu?"

The Fire Dragon Slayer grinned back, looking surprisingly good for his age (at-least eighty, right? Makarov hadn't looked near as good) and crossed his arms. Not doubled over or feeble with age, Loke was ashamed of himself for even thinking such of the wizard. Of-course Natsu would still be a pain in the ass, even at his advanced age.

"Pap!" Natsu's clothes fluttered and both men looked down at the child by his leg.

Loke's heart stopped.

She pouted up at him, chocolate brown eyes upset and blonde hair down up in lopsided pigtails—probably Natsu's work. A little pink dress with a ribbon in the front and small, white mary-janes. The ribbons in her hair somehow matched the pink of her dress. "Pap!"

"What?" Natsu crouched down and the girl crossed her arms, pout deepening. "Well? I can't help if you don't talk, munchkin." Her eyes flicked to the lion and he offered her a small, strained smile. She gazed back up at the former pinkette. "You wanna say 'hi'?" A stubborn nod and Natsu hunched a little more. "Then go on," he pushed her away and closer to the ginger. He stayed crouched as the girl paused, blinking up at the leader of the Zodiac.

Loke smiled, kneeling down before her. "Hello, Princess."

It was only right, after-all. Being able to even attempt his gate at a young age was enough for them, but after finding out who she was?

"Hi. Pap told me 'bout you." Natsu looked too proud of himself so Loke ignored him.

"Did he? What did your grandpa tell you about me?"

The child smiled brightly up at him and he almost fell back. Stars above, it was like Lucy all over again.

"That you were Grammy's friend!" Loke offered her a brighter smile, choking back his own tears at the memory of the beautiful blonde who was their friend. "Would you be my friend? Pap said I had to make a contract… But I can't write yet…" she looked down, almost as if ashamed of that.

He couldn't help himself. He reached out, bringing her close to set her on his knee, smiling down at her. She looked up at him with wide eyes. "Of-course I'll be your friend." A wave of his hand brought a notepad and pen sparkling with golden light. Her eyes lights up at the glitter and he held her as he wrote down his end of the deal. "Whenever you need me, Princess, you just call me and I'll be there, okay? No matter what, I'll always come for you. Just like I did with your grandmother." He signed at the bottom, a flourish of the wrist, before showing it to her. "See? Can you write you name, at-least?" she looked about six, she should know that much, right?

"Mhm!" She nodded obviously excited about the whole process. She took the paper and he looked over at Natsu, who had risen by now and was wiping furiously at his eyes, trying to hide the fact that he missed his wife. "See?" He glanced down and once more he felt himself unable to breathe.

In a child's scrawl, but legible, 'Lucy' was written.

"My name's Lucy Roberts! I'm glad you're my friend, Leo!" she chirped, pleased with herself. He smiled back, finally letting the tears go.

"Loke," he murmured. "Call me Loke, Lucy. That's what you're grandmother called me. She saved my life, you know?" he breathed out and watched as her eyes widened.

"Really? Grandma did that? Did you get hurt? Is that why you're crying?" she reached up, patting at his cheeks while Natsu excused himself, breathing heavily in the other room, trying not to sob.

"No, Princess, I'm just glad to meet you. And I miss your grandmother very much." She patted a little more before tilting her head lightly, pouting a bit.

"What was grandma like? I never met her." It was said with a child's innocence of the world, but he felt himself losing it. Finally, after so long, they met a child of their master—former master for him—and she's an exact copy of her, even has the same name.

"Lucy…" he trailed off, trying to control himself. "Your grandmother was an amazing wizard and she cared for her friends, all of them. Will you do the same?"

The same determination burned in the child's eyes then and Loke knew they would follow her like they followed the woman before her.

"Of-course! You're my friend! I want my friends to be happy!" He cupped her face, smiling down at her. "Can I meet them? Can I? Pap told me about a pretty mermaid! I want to meet her too! Please? I wanted to meet her first, but Pap wanted to see you!"

Of-course she would want to meet Aquarius first thing. She really was Lucy.

"Of-course you can, Princess. Can you give me a minute? You're not strong enough yet to summon her." The child immediately pouted, anger in her eyes. He wondered what he had said.

"I can too! Pap said I could make friends! I can too summon Aqu—Aquar—the mermaid!" Well, the bluenette wouldn't be happy she couldn't pronounce her name… She pulled away and squatted close to the ground, pulling out another key from the worn box. He saw that same determined glint in her eye as she looked around. When she started towards the fishbowl, Loke immediately paled.

This child was not about to make a very good first impression.

"Open! Gate of the Water Bearer, Aquarius!" he choked. Had that been his Lucy he just heard?!

The familiar doorbell sounded in the air as Natsu reappeared, eyes wide and blinking as he gazed at his granddaughter in wonder. Aquarius appeared in a shower of golden glitter and gazed down at the child silently. Lucy squealed in joy, immediately rushing forwards and hugging her around the tail.

"See, see? Pap, Pap, Pap, Loke, Loke! I can too!" the child was so happy and Loke couldn't help but shed another tear. The little blonde smiled up at Aquarius and Loke saw her falter, saw that she immediately recognized the young girl she had played with in this new child. She looked to Loke questioningly and he nodded. She bit her lip, crouched down to be closer to the child. Who immediately hugged her once again. "You're so pretty!"

If Aquarius had realized she'd been summoned from a fishbowl, it would be long forgiven at this point. "Thank you, you're quite cute yourself, Little One." Aquarius held her at arms' length, smiling gently. "Would you like to make a contract with me as well?"

"Yes please!" Loke handed over the notepad and Aquarius wrote down her own rules—the same ones as Loke. "Can I call you all the time?"

"I suppose," she mused, more to seem cool than actually give away her joy. She signed her own name and turned it to the girl, who gripped the pencil and scribbled out her name. "Now you can use my key as well. I am Aquarius."

"I'm Lucy!" The bluenette froze, tears rising and escaping unbidden. "W-why're you crying? Don't you want to be my friend?" the blonde looked about ready to start sobbing herself, so Aquarius did the only thing she always wanted to do.

She held the child, liked she wished she could have done more often with Lucy. "No, I'm just… I'm just so happy, Lu-lucy. I'm so happy we're f-friends now!"

Natsu openly sobbed now, an arm held against his eyes. Loke too looked away, hoping that their Lucy was watching, wherever she was.

He knew she would be happy too, happy they found someone who would call them friend and never allow to be alone.

I meant this as kinda a companion piece to 'River of Time' but I did not mean to cry myself whilst writing this!

I hope you like it as much as I do, and I hope I was able to pull the same emotions I felt from you!

Until the next time, thank you so much for reading!