* I do not own Fairy Tail, no matter how much I wish I did.

Lucy was surprised when Master Makarov called her to his office. She hadn't been on any missions with Team Natsu, so she couldn't be in trouble for property damage. She wasn't the type to pick fights in the guild or do anything else that would get her in trouble. So what could be wrong?

When she walked in, he was sitting at his desk and scowling at the papers her was looking at.

"Is everything okay, Master?" She asked as she sat down.

He shook his head in disgust. "More notices from the Magic Council. How I wish they would get a hobby that didn't involve us. But these can wait," he shoved the papers to the side. "I was contacted today by a Lord Sebastian Whitmore. I believe you know his daughter, Lady Arabella?"

"Yes," Lucy's face lite up. "Lord Whitmore and my father worked together from time to time when we were young. He would bring Bell over when he came to work and my father would take me when we went to their estate. She was one of my few friends while growing up."

"Then you'll be happy to hear that she has an engagement party coming up in four days…"

She let out a girly squeal without meaning to. All Bell had been able to talk about when they were younger was finding someone to fall in love with and marry. Just knowing that her childhood friend was getting her wish, it meant so much to her. "That's wonderful, Master."

"Yes; unfortunately, her father fears that there may be trouble at the party. There is a suitor that she turned down that has become something of a stalker, but Lady Arabella refuses protection. When he heard that you were here, the Lord contacted me to request your discreet services."

"So he wants me to come to the party as a childhood friend who just happens to be a guild wizard," she said, quickly figuring what the job required of her. It was the perfect job. She could see her childhood friend, protect her from whatever jerk was bothering her, and get money for rent since she knew Lord Whitmore would insist on paying her. "I'd be glad to help! Did he say who it is that's stalking her?"

The master nodded. "The Lord said it was a Duke named Sawarr Junelle."

Lucy felt her body shiver and then go still. That was a name she'd hoped to never hear again. It had been years since she had seen the man, but the memory of his nasally voice, creep face and too touchy-feely hands was still fresh in her mind. He was the man her father had betrothed her to for a short time. He was part of the reason why he father had paid the Phantom Lord guild to kidnap her.

Makarov noticed the change in her demeanor and became concerned. Her eyes had gone wide, her hands fisted in her lap, and all the color drained from her face. It wasn't often he saw a person terrified at the mention of a name. "Do you know the Duke, child?"

Her eyes dropped in shame. She had never told anyone the reason why her father had tried to force her home, it was too embarrassing. What she wouldn't give to not have to keep this to herself for the rest of her life, but she couldn't avoid it anymore. "He… I… We were engaged for a short while!" She said in a rush. When she saw how shocked Makarov was she kept going. "It wasn't my choice. It was an arranged marriage that my father set up to further the Heartfilia family business. That's why my father hired Phantom Lord to kidnap me, so I could get married."

He sat there silently for a moment. He didn't seem angry, just sad. "Why did you never tell me about this?"

Lucy couldn't help but fidget under his gaze. "I was ashamed and really embarrassed. Not only had my father hurt the guild because of me, but to act like that for that reason… I hated him for that. He saw me as nothing but property to be sold or traded for what was most profitable for him. Then after he lost the business, I didn't really think about it anymore."

They were silent after that for a while. Lucy knew she should have told him about this a long time ago, but she hadn't had the courage. Now, she felt even more ashamed of herself.

"That being the case, you are the best choice for this job. Not only do you know the victim, you know the stalker, so you will be able to predict their movements much easier." Makarov concluded.

"I don't think I can," she said nervously. "If he's anything like I remember, it doesn't surprise me that he's stalking Bell. He gets obsessive and believes he's entitled to everything he sees because of who his father is. I want to protect Bell, but I'm worried that he might come after me if I go. I won't be able to concentrate on protecting her because I'll have to protect myself. Even though I never accepted his proposal, my father did; so I could still be engaged to him. He could try to force me to marry him and no one would have the legal means to go against him."

A flash of anger crossed his face; not at her, but at the idea of someone forcing her into a marriage she didn't want. "What would it take to get you there and keep you safe so you would be able to keep Lady Arabella safe?"

Scrubbing her face in her hands, she gave it some serious thought. Due to Sawarr's father's power and influence in the country, there were very few things he couldn't get if he forced the issue. To keep her from being forced into an unwanted marriage to someone like him…

"I would need to already be engaged or married to someone of equal status or power. Then Junelle wouldn't be able to question it and I could concentrate on protecting Bell from that entitled jerk." Lucy meant it. She wanted to protect Bell, but not at the expense of her own freedom. But where would they get someone like that in four days?

Nodding, Makarov walked from his office, leaving her there. She wasn't sure if the meeting was done or not so she stayed in her seat and thought of some other options. She could try to fake it and say that someone from the guild was a noble or land owner… No, Lucy knew the type of people she was going to have to deal with and they wouldn't be fooled by something like that. She could just claim to already be married to someone at the guild and hope that no one looks to deep… No, no one would believe that either. And even if they did, that creepy Duke had the power to override a "commoners" marriage if it was for the betterment of his estate. If she went, she had to go with a noble or a wealthy enough land owner that no one would question it.

Just then, she heard two sets of footsteps approaching the office. She turned to see Makarov followed by Fried Justine of the Thunder God Tribe entering the room.

Miss Lucy, pleasure to see you," he said as he sat in the chair next to her.

"And you," she replied before turning a questioning look to the master.

"Fried, Lucy has been requested to perform a mission to protect an old friend of hers from a stalker. Unfortunately, Lucy also has a history with the stalker and due to his family's power; this could put her own freedom in danger."

"What do you require of me, Master?" He asked in a calm voice.

"That you escort her on her mission, posing as her fiancé and protecting her from this stalker."

"But… um… Master, I'm not sure if this will work." She knew Fried presented himself properly and acted like a gentleman which would let him blend in with the crowd. Plus, his magic was very powerful so he would be able to protect her from Junelle without breaking a sweat. But without a title of millions of jewels to back it up, she was screwed.

"Of course it will work," Makarov said with a knowing smile. "Fried doesn't like to flaunt this, but he is the second eldest son of Lord Ferdinand Justine."

Lucy couldn't help but gasp. Of course, she had heard of Lord Justine and his family when she had still been living at home with her father. They were known for their power and influence just as Duke Junelle's family, but where the Junelles flaunted their power, the Justines used theirs discreetly. Now, she just felt embarrassed. "Justine" was a common enough name, but she should have made the connection earlier.

Casting a glance over to him, she saw that he was looking away and his cheeks were slightly pink. The only other time she had seen him blush was during the S-class exam when she and Cana had been literally throwing scantily dresses women at him. Now, in a sense, she was doing it again.

"Y-you don't have to accept if you don't want to. I'm sure we can think of another way to…"

"I do not doubt your intelligence or resourcefulness, Miss Lucy," Fried interrupted her, his cheeks still rosy pink. "However, given the limited time frame available, I am the best option to guarantee your safety and success for this mission."

"But will you be comfortable acting like we're engaged?" She asked bluntly. "I have no problem with it because I hardly have any ties to my old life. You still have your family and I'm sure that if you go to the Whitmore party, claiming to be engaged, it will get back to them."

He gave her a small, humorless laugh. "Knowing my family, they would be thrilled to hear that I'm engaged. My father has been attempting to bring me home so that I may marry for many years now, he cares not to whom. If he were to hear about this, he would only be upset that I had not introduced you to him before making a spectacle of ourselves at this upcoming gala."

She was surprised by his words. From the way he described it, by pretending to be engaged, it may help him even more than her.

"It's settled then," declared Makarov. "Lord Whitmore expects you to arrive at his estate the day before the engagement party. I suggest that you use the time between now and then to get to know each other and come up with a believable story about your relationship."

"Of course, Master." Fried said as he stood and extended his hand to her. "Shall we adjourn to lunch so we may speak more privately?"

Lucy did her best not to let her nervousness show as she took his hand so he could help her out of her chair. He placed her hand in the crook of his arm in a courtly manner and they left the office. As they walked through the guild, they received more than a few surprised looks but no one had the guts to come up and ask what was going on. At least, that is, until Natsu saw her and Fried leaving the guild and blocked their exit.

"What the hell, Luce! Since when are you and Fried so buddy-buddy?" He said as he gave the green haired mage a peevish look.

"She is not required to answer that. Now if you'll excuse us," Fried said in an annoyed tone as he attempted to walk around the fire dragon slayer.

This pissed Natsu off and he pushed Fried, causing them to stumble apart. "I'm her partner! I have a right to…" His rant was cut short as Lucy slapped him hard across the face. When he saw the look on the blonde's face, he shrank back in fear.

"Natsu, it's because you're my partner that I'm not going to beat you to a pulp. But don't you dare go around acting like you have a say in who I'm friends with." The guild watched in amazement as the boy paled in fear from her dark and dangerous tone. "Now, Fried and I need to prepare for a mission. You are going to leave me alone until I get back from that mission or else you won't be allowed in my apartment anymore. Understood?" Without looking her in the eye, Natsu nodded. Her face suddenly went cheerful as she smiled at him. "Good, I'll make you dinner when I get back."

Natsu shivered again, her sing-song voice was almost as scary as her dark one. He hated when Lucy got like this. It was like a mix between scary Erza and cheery Mira. He knew she only got like this when she was really angry, so there must have been something to do with this mission that had put her in a bad mood. Best thing for him to do was back away from the blonde slowly and do as she said.

Fried watched the situation unfold in front of him, barely hiding his amazement behind his usual stoic mask. He knew from experience that the young dragon slayer had a volatile temper at times, but he had not believed he would be so forward as to forcefully push Lucy away from him. He had been fully prepared to put the boy in his place, but hadn't gotten the chance. Who would have guessed that the celestial mage had a dark side?

When she turned to him with a bright smile on her face, he almost flinched as he prepared himself for her wrath. "Let's go, Fried. We have a lot to talk about if we're going to make this mission work."

Though he wasn't one to smile often, he couldn't help but give her a small smile as he offered his arm to her. She again placed her hand in the crook of his arm and they walked around Natsu, who was still cowering before his blonde teammate. When they were a little ways from the guild, he couldn't help but comment. "I had no idea that you had such a dark side to you."

"I normally don't," she said shyly. "It reminds me too much of how my father was with me, so I hate acting like that."

Sensing that this was a subject for a later date, Fried led her to a nearby café that he frequently visited when he was in Magnolia. Though he would never have admitted it out loud; from the few interactions he'd had with the celestial mage, he found her to be an interesting creature. He was looking forward to the opportunity of working together and getting to know her.

On the other hand, he was going to have to put a lot of effort in keeping himself hidden from her. Many people knew that he had a dark side, but only Laxus, Bixlow and Evergreen knew how dark it really was. When they were seated at the restaurant, she gave him a cute, genuine smile. The simple action affected him in a way that made him realize how difficult it was going to be to keep the beauty at a distance.

What sort of mess have I gotten myself into?

A/N: I don't know why I thought to write this story about Lucy and Fried, but after I started it, it just kept flowing. They seem like they would be a good couple so I wanted to give them a chance. More chapters will be posted soon! What do you think so far? Please review!