All rights reserved for Hiro Mashima. I only own this work.

The town was in shambles. Fairy Tail's guild hall had quickly been demolished long ago, nothing left but a few support beams and all of the rubble surrounding it. The cute little bakery on the corner was unrecognizable, and there was no bookstore anymore. Every member of the guild was fighting for his or her life and for the lives of each other; they were not just fighting to win anymore. Frequent blasts of magic, varying in color, exploded from all around, followed by the occasional shout of friends and foes.

In the midst of it all stood a blonde mage, doubled over with her hands braced on her knees. She was fighting back tears, desperately wanting to find her courage. Once again, Magnolia – her home – had been reduced to debris and dirt…

…while she was in the bathtub with Lady Brandish.

Against all odds, Lucy did not lose to one of the Spriggan Twelve. Given, Brandish did not lose to her either, but that was all due to the fact that they had never really had a serious battle. Instead, Brandish drawled on with talking rather cryptically. She discussed her disinterest for petty matters (such as the ongoing battle, which, to Lucy, was not petty), her boredom, and what really piqued Lucy's interest was the mention of Layla Heartfilia.

The woman did not touch much on that subject, though. It bothered Lucy, because Brandish seemed to know something about Lucy's mother that Lucy did not, and she purposely withholding that information – but she was not stupid enough to complain.

You're different. Brandish's words rang loud and clear throughout the confines of her mind.Unfortunately, you have to power to win this. Use it.

"I can't give up," she huffed, straightening her back. An expression of pure determination masked her face (effectively concealing the fear that would have had her knees trembling) and she held her clenched fist to her chest. The pink Fairy Tail insignia stood out above all else – a beacon of hope. "The others are fighting! I need to help!"

Before Warren's telepathy had cut out during the demolition of Fairy Tail, Lucy knew that they were losing. Nobody was willing to admit it, but they were struggling with the excessive number of opponents. Gray and Juvia were having trouble standing their ground against Badd Mann; the Strauss siblings took on a great portion of the Southern Fleet from Alvarez; Bisca and Alzack needed reinforcements to battle the Eastern Fleet, and even then, Lucy was unsure if they could handle it; even Team Flying Dragon was having difficulty, though Natsu had departed from them in an attempt to track down Zeref. It was all terrifying.

Lucy's senses perked up at the sound of approaching footsteps. They did not belong to one person, but a collective group of people, walking almost perfectly in sync. Immediately, she knew it must be the enemy, because no few members in Fairy Tail could walk so systematically. "There's another wizard!"

"The emperor said to take them all down!"

"Ready yourselves, men and women!"

Lucy was swiping a golden key through the air before they even finished talking. "Open! Gate of the Ram, Aries!" she shouted, and soon enough, the humble spirit appeared. "Aries, take these guys out!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Aries nodded, sounding almost ashamed.

"I'm counting on you!" Then once again, Lucy was sprinting through the streets, bounding over potholes and leaping over piles of wreckage.

I've got telepathy back up, everybody! Warren's words filled her mind and it sent relief coursing through her veins.

"Warren!" she breathed happily. "What's the situation like?"

Not good, he admitted. We're completely surrounded and Zeref's lurking around somewhere.

I'm gonna find that bastard, Natsu snarled, startling her. I got dibs. You here that, Gajeel?!

Shut up, Salamander. Dibs don't count now, Gajeel snorted. Lucy could envision him rolling his eyes and acting too cool.

I want first go at him, and I'm gonna get it! Natsu exclaimed.

Lucy smiled in spite of herself. At least, even throughout everything that was happening to them, there was a sense of normalcy in the childish bickering between the two. It was comforting.

The master's not looking too good, either, Warren informed. He took most of the hit from the blast to the guild hall. We're still here, but we can't keep them at bay for much longer.

Does the First have a plan? Cana asked impatiently.

No.

A moment of silence lapsed between all of the guild members, true astonishment finally settling in. Mavis Vermillion, the Fairy Tactician, had no feasible strategy for them to win. If that was not a clear sign of doom, then Lucy had no idea what would be.

"I'm heading your way, Warren!" Lucy called, pivoting around a corner and taking a shortcut to the guild hall (or what was left of it, anyway). "Who's there with you?"

We've got me and the master,and Levy, and Wakaba, Macao, Jet, Droy, and Max.

"Good to know," Lucy nodded, more to herself in an act of reassurance than anything else. "I'll be bringing in the big guns!"

Don't get cocky, Lucy, Gray joked, though his voice sounded strained. No doubt that it was, as he was in the middle of a battle with Badd Mann.

Temporarily she ignored her surroundings, not allowing herself to get distracted by her emotions until she made it to what she assumed had been the guild hall beforehand. The squadron of soldiers blocking her path was confirmation enough.

"Open! Gate of the Lion, Leo!" she called, her key held proudly in the air.

"Your prince has arrived," Loke greeted casually.

Lucy pointed at the soldiers who had just started to notice her. "Clear a path!" she demanded, glaring fiercely at the men and women who dared to attack her guild. They were standing in such a compact group that it was impossible for Lucy to barge through without brute force.

"You got it, beautiful." Loke rolled his sleeves up before swinging his fist into one of the soldier's faces, promptly hurtling him into his teammates. "You heard the lady!"

Lucy beckoned her Sagittarius Stardress, readying herself to battle alongside her spirit. As she prepared to fire a batch of arrows, she heard a jokingly indignant scoff from Loke: "What, is mine not good enough for you?"

"Stop pouting and fight!" she instructed, launching her arrows. They struck the entire front line of the enemy, and then, with a quick finish from Loke, she was able to maneuver through the army and join her friends. Any time one of the soldiers made a move to stop her, her bow would collide with their nose, or her chivalrous spirit would take care of him for her.

"Lu! You made it!" Levy breathed a sigh of relief, glancing over at her friend for only a moment. She was preoccupied with fending off their attackers, rapid-firing solid script spells at them alongside her guildmates. "I'm glad you're okay! And Loke too!"

"Nice to see you guys again, even though the circumstances aren't great," Loke chuckled, although there was little humor in his words.

"What happened to the First?" Lucy inquired, glancing around when she was unable to locate the petite master.

Warren's hand dropped to his side as he looked at Lucy, an array of negative emotions displaying themselves on his face. "She's gone. One minute, she was here, and the next, gone. She left," he explained. "That was right before the guild hall exploded."

"She wouldn't just leave us!" Lucy argued. She had no doubt in her mind that Mavis would always be faithful to the guild, no matter if she was alive or dead. It was obvious that she loved Fairy Tail just as much as Lucy did, and anybody who felt that way was definitely not going to betray everybody like that; it was not something Mavis would do. "There has to be a reason…"

"The number of soldiers around here keeps growing!" Max grunted, extending his hand with a shout: "Sand Wave!"

Lucy watched him for a moment before nodding, pulling another golden key from her pack. "Open! Gate of the Scorpion, Scorpio!"

"Wicked!" the spirit grinned as he appeared. "Long time, no see, Lucy."

"It has been a while, huh," she mused, before pointing a finger in Max's direction. "I want you to fight next to Max. Combine your sand attacks, all right?"

"That's a wicked idea," Scorpio agreed, obeying her request.

Lucy drew back another set of arrows, releasing them into the sky so that they rained down all over the battlefield. "Warren! What's the situation with the others?!"

"I'll patch you through." Two of his fingers pressed to his temple, concentrating his power on her and the others scattered across Magnolia. "Guys! How's it looking out there?"

Not too good, Juvia heaved. Gray is badly hurt. The Spriggan Twelve are stronger than we imagined. Elfman is trying to help, but…

Gajeel and I are doing our best! Wendy apprised. They just keep coming, though!

Ajeel is wounded. I just… need a few more minutes. Erza's voice was breathy, and Lucy could picture the woman panting, probably nearly as damaged as her opponent.

They just keep coming! I don't think… Lisanna failed to finish her sentence, probably to kick some soldier ass.

Zeref ain't around here, Natsu sneered. He's probably hiding somewhere, the coward. His soldiers are crawling all over town.

Lucy's jaw clenched as she fired around set, tears pooling in her eyes. They were losing. Fairy Tail was being overpowered by the Alvarez Empire, but none of them were willing to admit it. All of them were still fighting because they believed in themselves and their friends, and that was the same reason she kept pushing forward. They had to win. They always did.

Brandish… What did you mean? Her voice echoed desperately in her head, as if the answer would miraculously occur to her. In the back of her mind, she had been attempting to decode Brandish's words the entire time, but it was to no avail.

There's a ship inside Freed's barrier! Cana reported, panicked. It's heading straight for the guild hall! Guys, get out of there!

There was no way out. Every exit was blocked by hordes of Alvarez soldiers, who, apparently, had no idea that one of their ships was overhead.

"Everybody get down!" Max shouted. "Sand Wall!" Following his words, a wall of sand blocked their view of the sky, acting as a barrier. Scorpio helped him without an order from Lucy, for which she was extremely grateful.

"Close! Gate of the Lion!" Lucy called, swiping Loke's key through the air. A second key was wedged in between her middle two fingers, and with a shout, she beckoned Aries forward once again. "Open! Gate of the Ram, Aries!"

Her spirits really did know her well, because almost immediately Aries erected a wool barrier behind the sand one, guarding the guild members even more efficiently. "I hope this works, ma'am!"

"Me too," Lucy mumbled, sweating.

Luck was not on their side. The magical blast directed at them penetrated both barriers and exploded upon impact with the ground. Before she felt the power reach her, she was able to see the brilliant white light of it all – so pure, contrasting with its purpose. Then she was thrown back with the force, thankfully crashing into some soldiers rather than a pile of debris; they worked well for cushioning her fall.

After a few moments of intense heat, the pain began to settle in. It radiated from the outside of her body all the way to her bones, an aching sore that made the idea of getting up abhorrent, and Lucy was surprised that she was able to maintain consciousness – then again, she was on the outer edge of the immediate blast after it had been weakened by the sand and wool.

She lay there for a few minutes, seeing spots in her vision. Her limbs were spread out randomly and her normal clothes had returned to her, looking starkly clean against her bruised and battered skin. Every inch of her body hurt, but she needed to suck it up and fight.

With shaky knees and ragged breaths, she forced herself to rise to her feet, swaying a bit as the zoned in on her surroundings. The remains of the hall had been ground practically into dust, and its members were unconscious – although, the master was missing.

Did he get thrown in the blast? she wondered, eyebrows furrowing. Worry spread throughout every crevice of her body, and she was unwilling to show the underlying fear that shook her.

Everybody was unconscious. There was blood, too. Levy was shielded by Droy and Jet, but that did not leave her unscathed – and her companions ended up with their fair share of injuries. Wakaba and Macao were where Makarov had previously been, with Warren squished beneath them, all three bleeding, and Max was a little ways away from Lucy herself, out cold, though his arm looked to be twisted the wrong way. That was Fairy Tail.

Lucy's hands covered her mouth, hot tears rolling down her cheeks in hefty streams, and her shoulders tremored slightly with small and silent sobs. This can't be happening, she thought. Brandish said we could win! Parts of her fought for dominance: the hopeful part that believed there was still a chance; the hopeless part that knew they were doomed; and the scared part, the one that wanted to hide and cry for her guild.

A weird sensation overcame it, but it was gone as soon as it appeared. Her eyes widened. It felt like a wave of immense power, in a way, but not quite a magic spell. Not only did it come from her surroundings, but from her chest – her heart – as well.

And then it happened again.

Her feet began moving automatically, her mind drawing into a slow buzz. Something was attracting her, luring her in, and she was going to let it – because either it was something good that could help her, or something awful that would kill her. At that moment, though, it did not matter, because she neededsomething. She needed to find the source of the energy.

The feeling grew stronger once she began descending a familiar staircase.

It can't be.

Each step she took resounded off the walls, echoing back into her ears and sending shivers up her spine.

No way.

Her feet touched the ground after the bottom step, an awed expression literally glowing on her face. The luminescence from beyond the doors left ajar was brilliant and beautiful, temporarily suppressing any thoughts swimming through her mind. Then, there was that strange feeling again, so strong this time that Lucy felt it remain within her chest.

The Lumen Histoire… It's… pulsing?

Her name being called forced her to drag her eyes away from the crystal and instead to Master Makarov, who lay slumped against one of the open doors. "What are you doing down here?"

"Didn't you feel that?" she questioned, disbelief on her face. There was no way she was imagining something that left such a warm feeling inside of her.

"Feel what? Lucy, you need to leave–"

"I can't!" Tears flooded her eyes again. "Not while everybody else…"

She could hear them: her friends. Everybody's voice was loud in clear in her head, their emotions igniting a fire within her. They were all fighting so hard to save the town, to save their home, and she would be giving up on them if she gave up herself. She would let them down, and that was something she refused to do.

Wendy, behind you! Gah!

Gajeel!

Where are you, Zeref? Show yourself, you bastard!

Guys! We need to get to the guild hall and help the others!

I won't let you take anything else away from Fairy Tail!

Mira! Keep fighting!

I'm okay!

We have to fall back! We're losing!

Gray, hang in there!

Juvia…

Lucy could hear all of them, and again, she was crying. They were all suffering, and she wanted to fix it. She needed to fix it. Before she knew it, she was sprinting towards the Lumen Histoire, planting her palms flat against it. Another pulse sent her sliding across the ground; it was much, much stronger up close –

– but she got right back up and pushed against the invisible magic barrier, forcing it to gradually give way.

"What are you doing, brat?! Are you insane?!" Makarov shouted, a mixture of concern and shock on his face.

Lucy let out a wordless shout of struggle, her hands shaking before she could plant her palms against the crystal again. "I don't have a choice!" she yelled, one eye closed as the magic power whipped wind at her. "I have to save my family!"

"That's a limitless amount of magic power! You can't absorb it! It'll kill you!"

"Mavis!" she cried, spreading her feet to enable herself to stand her ground. The longer she stood there, the more force built up that tried to knock her away. "Mavis, please! I know you love Fairy Tail! I do too! Please, lend me your strength to save it!"

The Lumen Histoire began to burn her palms with the raw power, but she paid it no mind. It could not have been random that only she felt it – and that Brandish told her she had the power to win the battle.

Lucy's head ducked down, her eyes squeezing shut as she gave a final shout: "Master Mavis, I'm begging you!"

Everything stopped. There were no more galls of ferocious wind, no more surging power trying to throw her bag like a rag doll, no more burning sensation. It was completely silent, causing Lucy to peek one eye open, and then the other, realizing that the Lumen Histoire looked normal – nothing unusual.

Nothing happened? No. It can't – Something should've happened! There has to be a reason for –

Before she finished her thoughts, all of the light from the Lumen Histoire began pouring into her chest. A scream tore itself from her mouth, scratching her throat and causing her head to throb, though soon enough, she could not even hear herself. The absolute pain that enveloped her was nearly unbearable, forcing herself to support herself against the Lumen Histoire. Her chest hurt the most, burning and freezing and just aching all at once, feeling like an influx of pure, unadulterated magic power was trying to fill her to her capacity – but her capacity burst long ago.

Slowly, it began to teeter off, the pain become more minimal with every passing moment. Lucy was left panting and sweating, her forehead touching the crystal and her legs barely able to hold her up.

Lucy. It was Mavis's voice in her head, and all she could do was listen. Now you have limitless power, like the Lumen Histoire did. You have the strength to use it, and only you, because you have a true fairy heart. It felt like a small hand touched her shoulder, but she knew that if she turned around, nobody would be there. Please save our guild.

"I will," she gasped, standing up straight, turning around. "I promise."

Makarov's jaw was slack, unable to formulate any coherent thoughts. The swell of magic emanating from Lucy was unlike any magic he had encountered before; it was pure, full of love, and hope, and determination, and stronger than anything with which he had come into contact. He could probably have sensed it from a mile away, and he had no doubts about the people above feeling the shift in power, either.

Lucy felt the power pulsating within her, charging at her fingertips and ready to fire with the slightest twitch. Her whole body felt energized, as if super-charged by a mega magic battery, and she was going to use it to her advantage. As she began to walk, she only stopped when Makarov stood in her way.

"What are you doing?" he asked simply.

She kept eye contact with him for a few moments before returning her attention to the staircase. "Don't worry, Master. I'm gonna save Fairy Tail."

With that said, she quickly ascended the stairs, reentering the chaos of the ongoing war above. Every step she took sent a ripple of magic over the town.

Her heart felt comfortably hot. Lifting her hand, she placed it against her chest, halting in her stride to look up at the sky. The stars glowed and some of them winked at her, and she even caught a sudden glimpse of a shooting star. A ghost of a smile graced her lips, her eyes closing peacefully as she allowed herself to truly feel every ounce of magic that had been poured into her body. There was hope.

Natsu let out a snarl at the man standing before him. He had at last encountered Zeref, but the black wizard was immortal – in other words, he was not easy to kill. They had been throwing hits back and forth, but neither of them was really injured at all.

"All right, bastard. Stop playing and fight me!" Natsu growled, his fists combusting.

"As you wish," Zeref acquiesced, charging a ball of black magic in his hand and then releasing it.

Natsu barely dodged it by a hair's length, sliding on his feet and stopping himself with his fingertips. "Is that the best you've got?" the dragon slayer smirked. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" A pillar of fire was directed towards Zeref, but he jumped out of the way with practiced ease.

Another orb of magic grew in his palm, but before he released it, Zeref's face was crossed with a look of astonishment.

He obviously felt the same thing Natsu had felt. An immense supply of magic powering was making a beeline for them, and, judging by Zeref's expression, the source did not happen to be on his side – which meant that whoever it was must be on Natsu's side.

Maybe Gildarts is back, Natsu snickered in his head despite the seriousness of the situation. Or maybe Mira got really pissed.

Whoever he had assumed it to be, the actual person was not who he was expecting. "Earth Wave!" shouted an all too familiar voice. Seconds later, a whip struck the ground, crumbling it to pieces and promptly causing Zeref (and Natsu, but apparently that was unimportant) to fly backwards into a brick wall.

"Lucy?!" Natsu asked unsurely. It was definitely her – there was no way it could not be – but the colossal amount of power threw him off. Where did it come from?

As if reading his mind, Zeref sat up, eyes wide in horror. "You accessed the Lumen Histoire? And youbrought its power to me?"

"I did," Lucy nodded, clenching her fist around the handle of her weapon. She was dressed in her Taurus Stardress, her whip clutched tightly in the fist held to her chest. "And I'm going to use it to defeat you!"

"Hey–!" Natsu cut in, jumping to his feet and pointing an accusatory finger at Lucy. "I called dibs!"

"You called dibs on first shot, actually," she pointed out, hands falling to her hips. "Either way, it doesn't matter. We need to beat him as soon as possible."

"All right," he nodded, a smirk winding onto his lips. "I guess that's fair."

"Stardress! Leo form!" As her body glowed with the appearance of a new outfit, her hand extended towards the air, two keys in its clutches. "Open! Gate of the Lion, Leo! Gate of the Golden Bull, Taurus!"

Her brown eyes flickered to Natsu, who was eyeing her with a grin, and then to her spirits, both seeming prepared to battle to their limit and beyond. "Let's go!" she shouted, and all four of them lunged forward.

Zeref suffered a barrage of attacks, from Natsu's flaming fists and Lucy's Regulus kicks to Taurus's axe and Loke's light powers. Every so often, he dished out one of his own, but they were all evenly matched – courtesy of Lucy's surplus of power.

"Regulus Lucy Punch!" Lucy shouted, her fist, concealed within a ball of yellow light, soaring toward's Zeref's face. He met her halfway, though, with his hand swirling in black magic, and the collision of their magic threw both of them backwards.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Natsu, once again, releasing an angry bout of fire that directly hit Zeref in midair.

Lucy pushed herself up from her spot on the ground, allowing Leo to help her to her feet – not that she really needed it.

Zeref's head snapped up as he stood, his eyes now a blazing red – contrasting greatly with the dark hue they had been before. "The Lumen Histoire belongs to me," he snarled. An orb of dark magic began to surround him, flickering with streaks of energy, and before Lucy could even blink, it was barreling towards her.

Natsu lurched forward, his hand clamping down on her shoulder so that he could push her behind him, but the contact burned his hand. Not like fire, but it burned like an overdose of energy – there was too much magic power. "Lucy!" he yelled as Zeref's magic made contact with them, his eyes wide.

They widened even further when she swiped an arm through the air, effectively dispersing the magic that was sent towards her. When it all disappeared, she was glowing, akin to the way the Lumen Histoire did. "It belongs to Fairy Tail!" she responded fiercely. "And to Master Mavis."

Her pink-haired companion was beyond stunned – not because of Lucy, but because of Zeref. He may have been wrong, but for a few moments, he could have sworn that an intense fear crossed the black mage's face before it was replaced by anger. "You are out of your place."

"You invaded our home. Know your place!" Lucy's hands lifted at her sides, her eyes drifting shut as she began speaking the familiar incantation. "Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens… All the stars, far and wide… Show me thy appearance… With such shine. Oh Tetrabiblos… I am the ruler of the stars… Aspect become complete… Open thy malevolent gate. Oh 88 Stars of the heaven… Shine!" Her eyes snapped open, glowing a brilliant gold. "Urano Metria!" The planets swooped through the air, colliding with Zeref again and again until he was forced onto the ground.

Natsu half-expected Lucy to slump over, even slightly, but her posture remained perfectly straight and the energy sparking at her fingertips was visible. He had no idea what exactly when down with the Lumen Histoire, but it was almost as if the power had entirely transferred to Lucy – making her an endless suppy of magic.

The air around them was completely still. Taurus and Loke hung back, doubtful of the idea that even Urano Metria had managed to take down the great black wizard. Their suspicions were proven right when the male, with a little bit of struggle, clambered back onto his feet, seething.

And then without warning, an explosion of magic projected from his core, knocking Lucy completely off her feet and back into Natsu. In that moment, he had gained the upper hand, because he was able to fire attack after attack after attack at both Fairy Tail wizards.

Natsu released a strangled yell and it was the push Lucy needed to raise her hand and blast a ball of pure energy at Zeref, forcing him to relent in his merciless attacks. "Natsu!" Lucy called, jogging over to him. Both of their bodies were laced with bruises and cuts from before and after their encounter with Zeref, but neither of them cared enough to even notice them.

He accepted the hand she extended and pulled himself to his feet, practically snarling at Zeref. "We need to beat him," he muttered.

"I know." Her nod was curt and firm, expressing her obvious agreement. Her gaze slid to meet his, and when their eyes clashed she knew her felt it as well: their magic, mingling together, whirling into one big pool. It was trying to combine, in essence, and Lucy was not opposed to letting it. "Natsu."

Without speaking, he nodded, his fingers intertwining with hers. It burned his hand like before, but he ignored it, focusing all of his magic energy into their combined grasp.

"A Unison Raid?" Zeref mused, seconds before they actually released the attack.

"Unison Raid!" they both shouted. A beam of red, gold winding around it, hit their enemy head-on. Natsu felt his magic power deplete; even if it was stronger than a year before, he had willed himself to pour every ounce of energy into that one attack. Lucy, however, barely even appeared fazed.

A cloud of dust and smoke screened the area, and almost immediately Natsu jumped away from Lucy. Her magic had singed his skin again, and when he looked at her, he knew something was very wrong. Yellow sparks jumped all across her body and to the air around it, appearing and disappearing like tiny lightning bolts of magic energy. With every passing second they grew stronger, reaching further away from her body.

"That's too much magic for you to handle." Zeref's statement pulled Natsu from his trance. The black-haired male appeared from the smoke, his clothes torn and blood seeping from various lacerations decorating his skin. "You won't last much longer."

"I don't need to," Lucy replied, her feet spreading. The lifting of her right hand brought Zeref to a halt, and he almost flinched when her open palm faced him. Lucy kept her glare focused on him, her free hand wrapped around her right elbow to brace herself for the attack. The sparks crawled over her skin towards her hand until her entire arm was sparking almost violently.

Mavis, she thought calmly. You love him, or loved him, right?

I did. I do. I'm not…

Then please, let me use your feelings to set him free.

"Lucy!" Natsu shouted from his spot next to her. "It's too much magic power! It's gonna kill you!"

All he earned in response was an almost sad smile. "It's okay." As quickly as it came to be, it was gone, replaced with the same intent expression as her stare refocused on Zeref. "A family's job is to protect each other, so that's what I'm gonna do!"

"Fairy…" Lucy began, her voice building in strength with each moment. Her eyes began to glow gold and a white and yellow orb of magic grew in her palm.

"It won't work!" Zeref denied, his glare burning holes into her.

Natsu scrambled forward, holding himself up with his palms flat against the ground. "Lucy, don't do it!"

"HEART!"

Natsu felt her name die in his throat as she disposed every bit of magic she had into the one attack. It illuminated the entire town and struck Zeref directly – along with stretch of land over one mile long behind him. The light reflected off Lucy, surrounding her entirely, and before he was temporarily blinded by the brightness, Natsu had one thought.

She looked amazing.

The battle was over.

When two colossal explosions shook the town to what was left of its foundation, the Alvarez soldiers began to retreat. It was one massive horde exiting the town and boarding the ships in a flurry of panic. Nobody in the residential guild knew what was going on until one of the men screeched about the great emperor's defeat.

Still, they did not celebrate.

Instead, everybody dragged themselves solemnly to the mess they used to call a guild hall. There was a headcount done by Erza, and by the end, she realized that they were missing two extremely vital people (not that anyone was less vital, but they were some of the loudest and liveliest). Everyone noticed, but nobody said anything about it after Wendy claimed, "They'll be back soon!"

Bandages were distributed and the members of Fairy Tail helped to patch one another up, while Wendy performed emergency medical treatment on anybody who needed it.

Over an hour later, they were all mulling about, unwilling to admit what they were all thinking: Natsu and Lucy still failed to return. Thirty minutes prior, Happy had left to go search for them and nobody tried to stop him. Nobody had the energy to even attempt it.

"All right, listen up!" Erza shouted, centering the attention on herself. She was bandaged from neck-to-toe, favoring one leg over the other, but her back was still straight and her sangfroid in place. "Natsu and Lucy are still missing. We're going to organize search parties to find them."

"The idiots probably got lost," Gray snickered, but he was just trying to deceive himself and the others. Everybody felt that cold tremble of doubt in his or her chest.

"Gray and Wendy, you're with me. We're going to find the source of the blast. Mira, Elfman, Lisanna, and Master will take the eastern part of town…" Erza continued to assign areas of Magnolia to groups in the guild, a sharp edge of determination clear in her voice. "We head out in ten!"

"What's the point?" muttered Droy, though in the silence, everybody could hear him. "We all know Natsu and Lucy would've been back by now if they were still…"

Jet grabbed Droy by the collar, getting in his face. "What is wrong with you?! We don't–! We don't know that…" His voice trailed off and he looked down, a pained expression on his face. "They can't be…"

"Lucy and Natsu are probably injured," Erza spoke again, cool and collected in spite of the turmoil raging within her. "Everybody should be prepared with bandages and other necessities to give them immediate medical attention."

Dubiety crossed the faces of almost everybody.

"Cheer up!" Romeo yelled angrily, jumping onto a pile of rocks so that the whole guild could see him. "We all know Natsu wouldn't give up, and he would never let anything happen to Lucy, either! They always make it out! They… They have to…" His lower lip trembled and tears threatened to spill, but he refused to let them fall.

Wendy cried for him.

Before they knew it, half of the guild had burst into a fit of tears and sniffles, mourning the loss of two fallen friends. It's not fair, was a thought that commonly crossed the minds of many.

Makarov stood, thinking hard, his hands clasped together behind his back. There was no doubt that the explosion is ascribed to Lucy and the Fairy Heart, he pondered darkly, eyebrows creasing. Not even the strongest of our guild could have survived the intake of so much magical power.

Levy's cries were silent, tears streaming down her cheeks with no intent to stop any time soon. Jet and Droy were hugging each other behind her, and Gajeel was standing next to her, his arms crossed and eyes closed.

Her eyes widened, hands lifting to cover her mouth in shock.

A blob of shadows was growing larger in the smoke, and she could eventually make out the form of a flying creature and a human. The smog in the air was so thick that the figures were unidentifiable until they were a short distance away from the crowd of mages, and everybody looked upon them in astonishment.

"Guys!" Lucy beamed, lifting a hand to wave excitedly. She was clad in Natsu's shirt, her hair falling freely over her shoulders – and Natsu's, as he was carrying her on his back. Both of them were considerably injured, streaked with bruises and soot and blood, but the smiles they wore took all attention away from their physical conditions.

Happy was soaring cheerfully alongside them, doing occasional flips in the air. He was unable to contain his joy.

"Yo, what's up?" Natsu grinned. When they neared the group, though, his expression fell, replaced with alarm. "Hey?! Why're you all crying?"

There was no noise for a few beats.

"Natsu! Lucy!" wailed Levy, practically tackling the pair in a hug. "I'm sorry we doubted you!" Her sudden shout had caused the entire guild to erupt into cheers.

"We're so glad you're okay!"

"We were so worried!"

"Don't make me so worried ever again!"

Natsu allowed Lucy stand up by herself, eyeing her carefully – and he kept his attention partially on her. Even though she was laughing and hugging everybody, he could tell from her eyes how weary she had become. He felt the same way.

"But… how?" Makarov gaped, his eyes trained on Lucy. "How did you survive that magic?!"

"Yeah, you chumps better start explainin' what the hell happened out there," Gajeel snorted, crossing his arms almost indignantly. Even so, he was relieved that "Blondie and the Salamander" were alive.

Lucy did exactly that. She and Natsu sat down and gave a step-by-step account of their encounter with Zeref (Natsu was more enthusiastic about going into details of the battle, ensuring that he rubbed it in Gajeel's face that he beat Zeref – to which Gajeel responded with that it was Lucy who beat Zeref). Lucy, however, did not care much for the little things, elaborating only about how she released all of her power into her final move.

"…We both woke up and Zeref was gone. Not gone, as in disappeared, but we watched him… fade." Lucy's lips pulled together in a tight line, her gaze flickering to meet Natsu's. Neither one of them wished to share their final conversation with the black wizard. "I guess that the Lumen Histoire's magic was temporarily transferred. Then we fell unconscious, I guess. We were really drained."

A hand came down on either of their heads, commending and affectionate, and both Natsu and Lucy stared in awe at Laxus. "You two did pretty good," he complimented with a smirk. "We're all proud of you."

Everybody nodded in agreement, and as Lucy looked around, her heart melted. Every member of her family was smiling kindly and hollering out their words of praise. Lucy was pulled to her feet by Cana, who threw her hands in the air and shouted, "It's time to celebrate!"

Among the demolished town, the Fairy Tail members danced, drank, laughed, and cried even after the sun began peeking over the horizon. Some people passed out, but others, like Cana and Juvia, managed to stay awake.

Lucy sat on a rock, basking in the warmth of the sun's rays and almost drifting to sleep where she sat. Her dozing was interrupted when someone sat next to her, heat radiating off his body. "You should sleep," she mumbled to Natsu, nudging his knee with her own.

"You look like you're gonna keel over and sleep for a week," he pointed out bluntly.

"Mm," she nodded, resting her head on his shoulder. Her eyes remained open, though half-lidded, and she felt comforted by the array of colors from the sunrise. "Hey, Natsu… we won."

"Thanks to you." This time, he nudged her.

"No." She shook her head. "It was thanks to all of us. We really can do anything when we work together."

He did not reply. They sat there until the son rose completely over the horizon, and it was then that they drifted off into a deep and well-deserved slumber. Lucy allowed herself to lose consciousness with the canvas of the sky etched permanently into her memory, only one thought on her mind: there would always be hope.

And thus, Fairy Tail survived another one of its perilous battles. Against all odds, they had managed to gather to strength and power they needed to win, and they used it. By fighting for their right to live and to protect each other, they had gained themselves another tomorrow.

Another tomorrow was all they needed for now.

Aha, hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading! :)