A Walk in the Woods

Chapter 1

The razor sharp claws tore through Natsu's flesh as he lunged to block the oncoming attack. It was a direct hit -a critical hit, Lucy was certain. All she could do was blink dumbly at the backs of Natsu's heaving shoulders as he stood in front of her, feet planted like roots, his body a shield.

"Natsu, why did you-" She croaked, staring wide eye'd at the blood stains arcing across the forest floor. A puddle was already forming at Natsu's feet, little red rivers running down his waist and ankles to feed the growing pool. She could hear the pitter patter of droplets on the earth as Natsu shifted. He reminded her of a guard dog the way he growled at the foe before them. The fifteen foot tall jungle cat bared its teeth in return, tail flicking back and forth like a whip, its hackles all sharp and bristled.

The two opponents were still for only an instant before Natsu and the demon cat sprang at one another. They were a deadly flurry of black fur and pink locks. Natsu dodged a left swipe before tackling the thing's flank, digging blistering hot fingers into its haunches. The demon cat howled, twisting and writhing, but just like that, it was over. Natsu had found the opening he needed.

He absolutely tore the creature apart.

Lucy cringed, but she wouldn't look away. She knew the thing had to die. It had been in the job description, after all. Hunt down the demon jungle cat and slay it. It had murdered more women and children than one village should ever have to bear. Still, watching the cat be dismantled limb by limb was sickening. Natsu more than killed it. He butchered it. Lucy had never seen him so brutally slaughter an opponent.

The cat's body was nearly unrecognizable by the time Natsu was finished. It was a mangled site, Natsu standing crooked amongst the pile of gore. He seemed to realize himself after a moment, shaking the excess blood from his hands and stumbling away from the carcass of the beast. He made his way back towards her, only pausing to gather Lucy's little brown pouch from the ground before fully closing the gap between them. He handed her the familiar leather pocket, celestial keys tucked safely within.

"Natsu," Lucy said, realizing she was still frozen in the spot where her life would have ended if not for the dragon slayer. She took the keys in her hand, clutching them to her breast as she stared at her partner with bright, fearful eyes.

His face was slicked with blood and sweat and his vest hung off him in dangling tatters that only served to mat the wounds spanning his torso. Three jagged gouges ran diagonally from the hollow of Natsu's throat to the bottom of his ribs. They were not shallow cuts. In some places, Lucy was sure she could see white bone. Blood was flowing freely down Natsu's front, a lazy current of red that soaked into his belt line.

She gripped her keys tighter, feeling sick to her stomach.

Those wounds should have been hers, not Natsu's.

"Lucy?" The sound of Natsu's voice snapped her into motion.

"Why are you just stand there?! You're going to bleed to death!" She tucked her keys away and frantically wriggled out of her cardigan. "Here, you've got to apply pressure. Use this- press it against your chest,"

"Lucy, I-" Natsu said hoarsely, but he winced as Lucy shoved her sweater against him.

"Not now, Natsu! Hurry! The river we passed earlier is over this way. If we go there, I can clean your wounds and close them before you lose any more blood!"

Natsu's backpack had been discarded only a few yards away from the battle scene. She stooped to shoulder it before taking Natsu's free hand and dragging him towards the sound of the creek.

"Sit down and take off your vest," Lucy said once they'd reached the water. She guided Natsu onto the mossy river bank and helped him out of his ragged shirt before settling him against the trunk of tree. She fished through their pack until she found the first aid kit they'd brought. She needed to be quick. Cleanse the wounds, suture the skin, stop the bleeding. She repeated the list over and over in her head, frantically grasping at any first aid experience she could remember. She tried to recall which ointment was best to apply to an open wound and how to properly tie a suture but Natsu's voice derailed her thoughts.

"Lucy, are you okay? You're not hurt are you?"

She paused to look him in the face. The question caught her off guard.

"You're asking if I'm okay!? Of course I am! You should be worrying about yourself, not me! I'm not sure if you noticed, but you've got three craters in your chest the size of Magnolia Vally,"

Natsu didn't seem bothered by her frustration. He sagged in relief. "Good. I'm glad you're not hurt,"

She shook her head in exasperation and gently detangled his hand from the sweater before peeling it away from the wounds. She grimaced at the site of those gaping claw marks. They were terrible, but it could have been even worse. She looked to the unscathed coulomb of his neck and the soft skin of his belly. Any higher and the cat would have torn out Natsu's throat. Any lower and his abdomen would have been turned to ribbons. She shuddered at the thought as she began to cleanse the cuts, dipping a clothe into the river aside them. Natsu hardly reacted as she worked over the area. He just stared at her with a gaze so heavy, it was near tangible.

"Listen, Lucy, about back there -I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...lose it."

Lucy frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the way I killed that thing," Natsu said, grimacing. "It was wrong to do it like that,"

"Don't be stupid. You shouldn't be apologizing. You might have gone a bit overboard but you always do that. You didn't do anything wrong. You were just completing the job,"

"But Luce, I went way overboard. I just saw what that thing almost did to you and I thought of all those kids it killed and I got so angry,"

"Natsu, it's okay. You didn't let that thing lay a finger on me,"

"It was too close a call. I almost didn't make it in time and if that cat had hit you, you would have di-" The last word caught in Natsu's throat. He swallowed hard before continuing. "Look, I knew I could take the blow. I just don't want you to think I'm a monster for what I did,"

"Why are you getting so worked up?" Lucy asked softly, "I've watched you demolish entire towns with less regret,"

Natsu's expression stayed grave. He blinked at her with unreadable onyx orbs. "This was different than that. This was a life. And I was worried-"

"Natsu, stop. I don't think you're a monster and I shouldn't have to tell you that. You saved my life, so how could I ever think that?" Her hands were stained red and shaking as she dabbed at Natsu's front and suddenly it all overwhelmed her. Her vision went blurry as a wave of tears welled in her eyes. She tried to reign her emotions but a few tears spilled against her will.

"Hey- Why are you crying?" Natsu asked, his spine stiffening in response.

"Because you look terrible, you idiot," -and it's all my fault. If I hadn't lost my keys in the beginning of the fight or been quicker, you wouldn't be hurt. None of this would have happened. She tried to scrub at her eyes with the heel of her palm but still managed to smudge blood on her cheek.

"Luce, this is just a scratch, I'm gonna be fine. You know I will!" Natsu said frantically.

"Just stop talking and let me take care of you," Lucy said tearfully, pressing a bit too hard against Natsu's wounds with the clothe. He hissed in pain before she realized what she'd done and lightened her touch.

"I'm sorry," She sniffed.

"It's alright," Natsu said. They remained awkwardly silent as Lucy finished cleaning the wounds and began working to close them.

The suturing process was difficult. The lacerations were not neat and the continuously oozing blood made it difficult to see what she was doing. Natsu resigned himself to closing his eyes and leaning his head back into the tree. His brow remained furrowed and he grit his teeth every so often but he hardly flinched as she worked the needle through his skin over and over again until the three gaping wounds were finally sewn. They weren't pretty, but they were closed.

"The worst part's over," Lucy said, breaking the silence as she reached for a stack of bandages and tape to cover the area.

Natsu cracked an eye open and gave her a half hearted grin. She suddenly realized how ashen his skin had become and the way his lips were tinged purple. His eyes were bruised and hollow with the same unsettling mauve. It made her wonder just how much blood he'd managed to lose. She worried her lip as she covered his chest in gauze.

"Thanks, Luce," Natsu mumbled. "I feel better already. Now it's time for a nap," His words trailed off and his eyes fell shut.

"Hey, don't pass out! You've got to stay awake. Here, I want you to drink some of this," She startled him back to awareness by guiding a bottle of restorative potion into his hands. It took all her effort to coax him into taking a few mouthfuls.

"I just need some sleep," Natsu said waving Lucy's hands away as she tried to give him another drink.

Lucy frowned. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you go to sleep. We need to start moving so we can get you back to the guild as soon as possible. Your wounds need real medical attention by someone who actually knows what they're doing,"

"Mmm maybe later.." Natsu said, head lolling towards his chest.

"Hey, I wasn't kidding!" Lucy sighed as Natsu made no effort to move. Taking matters into her own hands, she grasped Natsu's less affected arm and gave it a gentle tug, forcing him to stand with her. Natsu groaned in objection.

"Come on, Natsu! Help me out! Man, you're heavier than you look,"

"I don't want to.." Natsu whined as they began to walk. Ignoring his protests, Lucy slung Natsu's arm over her shoulder and dragged him onward.

Lucy frowned as they limped along slowly. They would eventually reach Magnolia if they followed the river, but it had taken them almost two days to get as far as they had. It would likely take even longer to get back with Natsu's injuries. Lucy's frown deepened as the minutes passed and each step became a more difficult battle. It took all of Lucy's effort not to stumble with Natsu's dragging feet.

"Lucy...I know you want to get back to the guild and all...but...I don't feel too great," Natsu panted, his speech slurred and sloppy.

She looked to Natsu's pasty white features which were so close to her own. His head was nearly resting on her shoulder and his hot panting breaths puffed against the side of her face. If the situation hadn't been so serious, she would have balked at their proximity.

"Just try to hang in there," Lucy said, shifting to support even more of his weight.

Just keep moving. Get back to the guild. Get Natsu help. She thought with determination, though even she was starting to tire. Just one foot in front of the other. We can do this.

"Ah-Natsu!" Lucy cried out in surprise as the entirety of Natsu's weight suddenly dropped down upon her. Gravity dragged them both into a crumpled heap on the ground. Lucy frantically slid out from beneath Natsu's body and looked down upon his slack features. "No, no, no! Come on Natsu, you can't do this to me," She snapped her fingers in front of his face and shook his shoulders but nothing she did would wake him. Natsu was out cold. His breaths were coming in shallow, rapid bursts and his coloring had grown even worse. He was white as marble.

"This can't be happening," She was starting to panic. Natsu needed real medical attention. They had to keep moving.

"Open, Gate of the Goat: Capricorn!" She yelled, pulling the correct key from her belt without hesitation.

"Well, hello Miss Lucy. What service may I provide you with today?" Capricorn asked properly as the magical smoke cleared away to reveal the tall figure of the celestial goat.

"I need you to help me carry Natsu. He's hurt and I need to get him back to Fairy Tail pronto!"

"Oh my, he does look worse for wear," Capricorn's eyebrows raised above his black tinted glasses as he looked down upon them. "And it appears we are quite far from civilization and proper medical aid,"

"That's why I need you. Please," Lucy said.

"Of course Miss Lucy, just lead the way" Capricorn scooped Natsu bridal style into his muscled arms, gingerly minding the now blood streaked bandages that covered his chest. The two set off briskly, the river as their guide and the noon time sun hanging hot in the sky.

"Miss Lucy?" Capricorn said, his tone dripping with concern. The sun was low in the sky, cleaved by the tree line and hewing the forest with little spills of orange. They'd been walking for hours, their progress unrelenting.

"What?" Lucy snapped. Her legs were quaking beneath her and she'd begun to stumble every other step. She had to grasp each tree she passed to keep her feet beneath her.

"I hate to point this out, but your magic reservoir is dangerously low. You have been keeping me present for nearly six earth-land hours. How you've managed to accomplish this is outstanding, I might add-"

"It doesn't matter, we need to keep moving," Lucy said, but Capricorn was right. She could feel her body beginning to fail. As if to prove him right, Lucy's legs wobbled against her control. She fell heavily onto her hands and knees as she lost her balance.

"Miss Lucy! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I just tripped is all," She lied, tears springing to her eyes as she realized the truth.

She just wasn't strong enough.

"I am so sorry, Miss Lucy, but if I do not set the young fire wizard down I'm afraid he will fall from my height once your magic is depleted."

"No, you can't leave! Natsu's hurt and I need to get him home!" Lucy cried.

"You cannot help Natsu if you become injured yourself, Miss Lucy." Capricorn knelt and gently placed Natsu onto the soft grass beside her. "His breathing has leveled and he is stable, please you must rest," Capricorn said. "If you don't, you'll undoubtable fall victim to magic depletion syndrome!"

Lucy was aware of the daunting possibility but she didn't want to let go. She was scared that Natsu would die.

It would be all her fault.

"Miss Lucy, can you hear me?" Capricorn's frantic voice echoed in her head but she was unable to form a response. In a strange daze, Lucy watched the ground rush up to meet her as she collapsed forward. She heard Capricorn curse before his gate closed with a snap, no longer bound to earth as her magic tanked to zero.

"I'm so sorry, Natsu.." Lucy used the last of her strength to tilt her chin towards the fire mage laying aside her. She reached out and grasped his hand in her own before her vision went black.