A/N: Returning to my preferred genre for a fantasy epic AU filled with drama and angst and romance and adventure and more angst. I'm really excited about the premise, and I hope my writing does it justice.

Rated T for language, violence, and eventual discussion (but not explicit portrayal) of mature topics. I may change the rating to M if I decide to be more graphic in my depictions of things. Content/trigger warnings will be in the author's notes on the chapters they apply to, for anyone who needs them.

With that out of the way, please enjoy!

She was ethereal.

Bathed in the light of the stars, mist swirling at her feet, a great white wolf by her side. Natsu knew immediately whom he was looking at. The Celestial Spirit, they called her, as if she were one of the otherworldly beings she could summon to her aid. The beautiful girl chosen by Canis Minor. A legend among outlaws.

And bad news for a petty criminal like Natsu Dragneel.

"Fuck." He scrambled to his feet. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck."

The Celestial Spirit lifted a hand, pointing a black object at him. Then magic breathed into it, and it took the form of a whip.

Ohhhh shit. Not good.

Natsu turned and ran. As much as he loved a good fight, if the rumors were true, she was not a battle he could win. Beautiful, powerful, and unforgiving toward evildoers. Not that Natsu thought of himself as particularly evil, but apparently stealing from villagers put him in that category.

He sprinted down the street, resisting the urge to use flames to propel his speed. The houses were all made of wood, and the last thing he needed to do was anger her even more by accidentally burning the whole city down.

He took a quick survey of his location. He knew this town well, and nearby there was a mansion belonging to a high government official. Not the kind of place Natsu ever saw himself going, but that man was known for having lavish weekend parties that lasted until morning. The Celestial Spirit wouldn't make a big fuss in front of all those people, right?

He rounded the corner, stumbling to keep from losing his foot, and ran for the mansion gates. The guard was asleep. Perfect.

He ran straight for the gate and leapt at it, hitting it with a loud clang. The guard snapped awake, but it was too late; Natsu had already climbed to the top of the gate and was leaping to the ground on the other side. He ran for the bushes.

"Hey!" the guard shouted. "Stop! Intrud— urk!"

"Virgo!"

"Yes, Princess."

She was following him in. Not good, not good. He had no choice but to run further into the estate toward the glowing lights of the mansion itself.

But he could only run so far before the huge mansion swallowed him, and he found himself cornered against a wall, surrounded on all sides except for the way he came. He thought this was the edge when he rounded the corner, but he'd thought wrong. This mansion was even bigger than he'd predicted.

Fuck.

He turned around, confirming with his eyes the presence of the Celestial Spirit behind him. She was alone now, no spirits in sight, whip in her hand and keys dangling at her hips. Natsu swallowed heavily. He was done for.

"Who's there?" A loud voice called out across the courtyard, and more shouts soon followed. Had Natsu ran by the party? Just his luck. Soon this place would be swarming with dignitaries and guards.

The Celestial Spirit seemed to realize this too, because her head turned toward the voices, alarmed.

"Shit," Natsu muttered, reaching his hand forward. He grabbed the girl's slender wrist and pulled her with him into a thick stand of bushes. He put a finger to his lips. "Shh." She stared back at him wide-eyed. Her whip dissolved back into nothingness.

"Who's there?" the voice repeated, louder. A large group of people came into view, led by the one Natsu recognized as the local government official. The rest he didn't recognize, but judging by their uniforms, they were of even higher rank. He hadn't heard of the military generals and palace officials coming into town. What were they doing here in secret?

"I thought you said there would be high security tonight," said a man who appeared to be a royal councilman.

The host looked nervous. "I assure you, I assigned my best guards on duty…"

Natsu bit back the urge to laugh. The so-called "best guard" on duty at the gate had been napping.

"…so there is an intruder, my men will find them. Animal or human, they will be dead shortly."

"Better safe than sorry," the councilman said. "Men, fan out and search."

"Yes, sir!" His personal guards ran out into the night, thankfully presuming the courtyard already empty. They were safe for now.

"I'll get the guards back in the meeting room on it, too. Can't be too sure."

"Of course, sir."

"Let's go back. My men will be able to take care of any problems."

As the officials retreated back indoors, all muttering to themselves, Natsu glanced around nervously. The local official's guards were negligible, but a royal councilman was likely to have some good men on his side. If they wanted to get out of here…

They. It wasn't him alone out here. He glanced at his companion, who thankfully seemed to have dropped the issue of capturing him. Perhaps it would be an issue once they were both back in safety, but for now, Natsu was glad this woman was no longer running after him.

She was distracted staring after the nobles, so Natsu took the opportunity to observe her. As legend stated, she was indeed a beautiful girl, seemingly around his age. The loose golden hair around her face shifted in the breeze, brushing over her cheek. Her clothing was minimal but decorative, a blue and yellow top and skirt. It was shoulderless, but she still wore sleeves tied to her upper arms. Natsu didn't really see the point, but then again, he wasn't in any place to criticize someone else's style.

She finally noticed him staring, and he realized it probably seemed like he was checking her out. He quickly averted his gaze to avoid meeting hers.

"I'm staying here. You go."

He'd no sooner turned his head away than he turned it right back. "Eh?"

Her eyes were trained on the light that spilled across the lawn, shadows of the noblemen shifting around in it. "I know those men." She stood up to leave their cover, but he grabbed her arm to pull her back."

"Wait," he said.

She sat down impatiently. "What is it? Do you want me to take care of you first? If you're feeling left you, don't be; I was planning to find you again later even if you ran away."

"That's not it," Natsu said. His shoulders tensed. "It's not safe." He just knew those guards would come back around. It was strange that they hadn't seen any besides those few the councilman had sent out. Moving hiding spots would jeopardize whatever luck had kept them hidden so far, and Natsu didn't want to be the one who caused the Celestial Spirit to be captured.

"I'll be fine," she insisted, wrenching herself from his grasp. She stood up, put a hand on her keys, and ran.

Natsu watched her go for a moment, and his feeling of unease only increased. Instinct was already kicking in. He couldn't just not follow her.

"Dammit," he muttered under his breath, sprinting after her.

She was surprised to find him behind her as she leapt onto the low roof that covered a darkened patio. "Why are you following me?" she hissed.

Natsu didn't answer. He didn't know how to answer, honestly. He didn't always think before he acted, and how he was wondering why he'd felt so compelled to follow her. There was probably some subconscious reason. Or maybe it was just his idiocy kicking in. Lisanna had always blamed idiocy for his impulsive actions.

Lisanna. He'd remembered Lisanna again. He swallowed the name like a lump in his throat and hurried on. This was not the time for memories, either.

The Celestial Spirit leapt gracefully onto the roof and he followed after her, sneaking along the tile until they reached a skylight that shown down into the occupied room. Natsu glanced around the roof, but still no sign of any guards. Strange. He had a bad feeling about this.

"It's too quiet," he whispered. "Something's wrong."

She glared at him. "I know. If you're worried, then leave."

"But I'm already here," he said.

She let out an exasperated sigh and pulled out one of her keys. "Open the gate of the crab, Cancer," she whispered, drawing the key through the air. Natsu watched in amazement as a man materialized before them. So this dark man with red cornrows and…were those crab legs sprouting from his back? So this was a celestial spirit. A real one. Natsu had never seen summoning magic before, and it was almost hard to believe that this man had appeared out of thin air, even though he'd seen it with his own eyes.

"Need something?" Cancer asked, ignoring Natsu's presence.

"I know it's a long shot, but is there any way you can cut a hole in the roof somewhere so I can hear what they're saying?"

Cancer looked around and slowly shook his head. "I imagine you do not want to be discovered. Anything I do with these materials will make noise and draw attention."

The woman sighed, pursing her lips.

Natsu leaned forward hesitantly. "I might be able to help," he said.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "How?"

Natsu reached a hand forward toward the skylight. He peered down through the window, eyes scanning over the officials gathered below. They were all paying close attention to whatever muffled voice was speaking. Good. Natsu concentrated his magic onto a small spot at the corner of the glass until it began to melt.

"Cancer, gate closed," the girl hissed, and with another swipe of her key, the man was gone.

After a few more moments of careful heat distribution to make sure none of the melting glass dripped down below, Natsu let his magic cool. Turning to his companion, he whispered, "Be careful, it's still hot."

Seeming not to heed his warning, she leaned down toward the tiny melted hole, bring her ear close. Natsu also perked up his hearing to listen in on the conversation happening below.

"…ese things take time. The king is a very suspicious person."

"Councilman, you're also close to the king. Do you agree?"

"I'm afraid I must concur with his position."

"But he has begun to trust me more fully, so I should be able to speed things along soon."

"That would be much appreciated, sir."

"So we will make progress soon. Seven will be glad to hear."

Wait, Seven? As in, the country of Seven? What was all this talk about the king and other countries? Natsu didn't like the sound of this secret meeting.

"Of course. I have it all under control. But there is one thing I need from your side."

"Which is?"

"It will look suspicious if I get close to the king only to grab for more power. Someone unrelated will need to make the suggestion."

"And you wish for me to do it?"

"You are on the magic council. It would carry the most weight."

"What about Magnolia instead?"

"Magnolia is still too unstable," said a voice Natsu recognized as the ruling magistrate. "It's all I can do to keep the criminal population overrunning the whole town. And all those mages, too. It's a real headache."

Natsu snickered, drawing a glare from his fellow eavesdropper. But he knew exactly whom that man was complaining about with regards to Magnolia. And he was glad to hear they were such a thorn in the magistrate's side.

"Need help with that?"

"I have it under control. But I wouldn't want the king to think I'm focusing on the wrong issues."

"Fine. Then I will make the suggestion. We should discuss the specifics privately. Councilman, you too. You know the royal family best."

"Of course. And one last thing for the local magistrates before we get down to business."

"There's something else?"

"I'm afraid so. You see, our Lord has—"

Natsu was yanked away from the skylight just in time to escape a dark shape that emerged from the darkness. As the girl pulled him across the rooftop, the shape followed them, and more kept appearing. It took a moment for Natsu to realize how he hadn't noticed them earlier; they were shadows.

"Shadow magic," he muttered.

"Hurry," the Celestial Spirit urged. "Unless you want to be killed." She reached for the keys on her belt, but Natsu stopped her.

"I'll take care of it," he said. "They won't know who I am, but you're easy to recognize. And they shouldn't know you were here."

She looked at him for a moment, then nodded once. She released Natsu and he turned to face the shadows. Flames lit around his fists. Ah, the familiar scent of his own singed clothing.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!" he shouted, letting out a pillar of flames from his mouth. The shadows dissipated under his fire's strength. He could feel the flames bursting in his chest, just waiting to be released. "Come out, come out, wherever you are," he taunted.

In response, several figures emerged from the darkness. They were real people this time, he could tell. All of them rushed toward him at once, and Natsu jumped up, letting his fiery energy propel him to great heights.

"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!" Bringing his flaming fists together, he released an explosive inferno that destroyed the roof upon which the shadows stood. The guards fell down into the destroyed piece of the mansion, scrambling to keep from being buried by the rubble.

Returning to the ground, Natsu picked up his companion and ran.

"Hey," she protested, but didn't fight his hold.

"Just bear with it a moment. We gotta get outta here," Natsu said.

"I can run on my own."

"Once we get out of the gate, okay? Don't wanna waste time by stopping to put you down now."

Natsu ran through the gardens, leaving trampled plants in his wake. He knew he as leaving a trail, but there wasn't any time to cover up his tracks. After what felt like a mile or running, they finally reached the edge of the estate, the tall fence towering before them.

"Hold on tight," Natsu said, and the girl's grip dug into his shoulders. Releasing her from his own hold, he leapt at the fence, climbing up the decorative ironwork. At the top, he barely hesitated a moment before jumping to the ground.

"Aries!"

"I'm sorry!"

Natsu braced himself for impact, but instead a soft cushion awaited him at the bottom of the fall. Was this Aries' power? But by the time he put the Celestial Spirit down, the actual celestial spirit had already disappeared back through the gate. The Celestial Spirit put away her key.

"Where to next, Mister Bandit?" she asked, a hint of humor in her voice. Natsu wondered what expression he was wearing for her to sound so amused.

"Name's Natsu," he said. "And it's this way." Magnolia was only a few towns away, and it was their best bet at finding a safe place to hide from royal guards. That meeting had seemed very important and very secretive; they wouldn't let two intruders go easily.

"Natsu the Bandit, huh?"

"Actually it's just Natsu," he grumbled. Yeah, he was a thief, but it's not like he'd planned to make a living out of it.

"Okay. Just Natsu. I'm just Lucy."

Natsu nearly tripped. Had the legendary Celestial Spirit just told him her real name?

"Well, nice to meet'cha," Natsu said.

"Where are we going?" Lucy asked.

"Magnolia." Natsu grabbed for her arm and caught her hand. "Come on, you're too slow. We just burned up a secret meeting with a bunch of government officials up to no good. I thought the great Celestial Spirit would have a better sense of danger than this."

She laughed out loud but didn't protest his comments. She just tightened her grip on his hand and matched his pace. Just like that, the unlikely allies ran for miles and miles into the night.

A/N: And with that, the wheels of fate begin to turn...

*** NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT HARASS ME FOR UPDATES ***

This is going to be a long story and I write everything out of order, so updates are going to be a little slow at times. I'll try to be consistent, but no promises. I do promise this will be continued through to the end, so you don't have to worry about me abandoning it or anything. It just might take a while for me to get there. So yeah, don't beg me to update, because it's more annoying than motivating. Please and thank you.

Thanks for reading!