Disclaimer: Fairy Tail does not belong to me, it's the mastermind creation of Hiro Mashima.

There was only so far that I could run before my legs gave out from underneath me. Fairy Tail, my Guild, my only home left- had been destroyed. Nothing remained but a pile of rubble and wood. My friends were scattered to the winds and the one person I had thought that I could rely on to remain had left me behind with nothing but a lousy letter. My best friend had left me and was too much of a coward to say goodbye to my face. I had been putting on a happy mask for the last week but after having everyone leaving me without anything at all somewhat resembling a goodbye had shattered it completely. The pain of the cobblestone against my bare legs was a mere twinge in comparison to the pain in my heart and in my soul. I leant my head against the cold hard metal of the bridge, my tears dripping off the metal poles and onto the stone beneath me.

"Why did you have to leave me too, Natsu? Did I mean nothing to any of you? Was everything a lie?!" I sobbed, burying my face in my hands. I wanted to stop crying, I needed to stop crying so badly but I couldn't hold it in for any longer. My emotional barriers had all but crumbled and I didn't have the strength to rebuild them right now.

There was no one left, what did it matter if I cried anyway? No one would help me. I had been left behind again. Left with nothing but pain and cruel memories. It felt like someone was trying to rake my heart out with a rusted spoon, stabbing at my heart and scraping at my wounds every time I thought nothing else could be any worse than what I felt. Only to prove me wrong. They didn't even have the decency to make the pain quick and sharp. It was like a constant dull ache in my chest. I had been abandoned by my family. Again.

"We should head to Cl-whoa. Cosplayer?" I could faintly make out Bickslow's voice over my harrowing sobs. I tried to stop, but I just couldn't. No matter how many times I wiped my tears away more returned in a second. I managed to get my sobs down to a mild sniffle before I saw four pairs of shoes through my blurred vision.

"Miss Lucy, where on Ishgar are your shoes?" It was rare to hear any difference in inflection in Freed's voice unless it concerned Laxus.

"Mavis, Lucy! You're completely frozen! How long have you been out here? Why are you out here?" I flinched at the feeling of Evergreen's warm palm against my shoulder. I didn't want to have any warmth or kindness just to have it taken away from me again without a moment's notice. I didn't think that I could possibly cope if I was abandoned again. What was the point in letting people into my heart when they just abandoned me or died? It hurt too much and I was always the one left behind.

"I-I don't know." How long had I been sitting on the cold ground? I had no idea. I didn't see any reason why I should get up regardless. All I had left was a lonely apartment in a broken town. I was broken out of my solemn reverie by the feeling of someone suddenly lifting me up into their arms. I startled, taken off guard as I tried brushing the tears and my hair out of my eyes.

"W-What the hell are you doing, Laxus? Put me down!" I shrieked at him, unable to believe just how stupid he was. He had only just come out of a coma, there was no way he should be picking me up!

"No gratitude, Blondie? And here I thought rich kids like you were supposed to have manners." I pushed against his chest, glaring at him as I crossed my arms. My lingering sniffles were all but gone and my sadness had quickly been replaced by a tidal wave of anger. Which was the better emotion, I didn't really care right now. And if he hadn't been so injured, I would have hit him.

"You shouldn't be picking anyone up! You just woke up, you stupid idiot!" I huffed at him.

"Says the one half naked and alone in the middle of the night on a bridge." All of my bluster and bravado disappeared within a second.

"Way to go, Laxus." Evergreen scowled at the lightning mage. He opened his mouth to speak but I put my hand against his chest. His expression was guarded as he stared down at me.

"Please, put me down. You really shouldn't be carrying anyone around in your current condition, Laxus. You're still recovering." I gave him a soft smile as he lowered me to my feet. I shivered lightly at the feeling of the cold stone under my feet.

Maybe it was a bad idea to get him to put me down? Mavis, this is cold. I thought to myself, wriggling my toes against the cobblestone. I looked up when I felt something thick and heavy fall over my shoulders.

"Laxus?" His team seemed just as surprised as I was that he had given it to me.

"If I picked you up you'd just complain about it again. Don't be so fucking stubborn and just accept it, Blondie." He huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. I opened my mouth to argue but I knew that it was pointless. He wasn't wrong.

"Thank you." I couldn't help the small smile that lit up my face even as he grunted at me. I pulled it around me, practically burying my face in the warmth.

"Where is your apartment, Miss Lucy?" I blinked at Freed, my eyes widening when I realised that I had bolted out of my apartment. It was currently unlocked and free for anyone to enter.

Not that having it locked seemed to stop anyone in the first place anyhow. I scowled to myself.

"Lucy?"

"You sure everything's alright, Cosplayer?" It wasn't. And I didn't see how it could be. But they had already seen me breaking down already and I didn't want to hide my feelings from anyone right now.

"It's not, but I'll be okay. It's not that far from here." The Thunder God Tribe shared a look between themselves before I started walking. I could hear them chattering softly behind me, but I was too distracted right now to care.

What am I supposed to do now? I have nowhere to go. And why on Ishgar did Laxus give me his coat? He doesn't let anyone touch it. The only time I've seen him without it is during fights. I glanced up at him, trying to see if he would give anything away. But like usual, his face was expressive as granite.

"We're here." I spoke softly, as if speaking too loudly would shatter some non-verbal agreement we had. He nodded, striding forward.

"The door's open." I looked down, my hands gripping his coat tightly.

"I was in a hurry." He simply nodded at me, gesturing for me to go inside as he waited for his teammates.

"Whoa. Cana wasn't joking. This is nice, Lucy!" I giggled at Evergreen as she inspected my apartment, her enthusiasm chipping away at the loss I felt in my heart and soul. I looked down at Laxus' coat. I didn't need it anymore. I was inside, no longer frozen half to death. But something in me was screaming at me not to give it back to him. It had brought me comfort. He had brought me comfort. Before tonight, my only impression I had of him was that while he was strong, probably one of the strongest wizards out there, he was also an arrogant asshole most of the time. Now, I didn't know what to think.

"Something wrong with my face, Blondie?" He smirked at me as my cheeks reddened with embarrassment. I scowled at him, pulling his coat off my shoulders and throwing it at him.

Mavis, was it heavier than it looked!

"Don't be an ass, Sparky. But thank you." I tried to ignore the absence I felt when I didn't have his coat around me any longer. I didn't want to think about that. There was too much going on in my head already, I couldn't process everything right now. All I wanted was to get through tonight peacefully. I would worry about what I was going to do in the morning.

"Lucy?" I turned my head to see Evergreen holding up Aquarius' broken key. My heart plummeted.

"What's this?"

So much for getting through tonight and worrying about everything in the morning. I all but fell into my chair, pulling my legs up underneath me.

"It's the price I paid to save the ones I love."

Well that was nice and cheery, wasn't it? Hi guys, and welcome to my first story on in a very, very long time. Like probably ten years. God, that makes me feel old.

Anyway, at the moment I have a somewhat vague idea of where I want to take this, how I want to develop Lucy's relationships with our favourite Thunder God and his, "ahem" bodyguards. Lucy will probably be mopey for a couple of chapters but I want to build her self-esteem up and show that she can be a kick ass character whilst still retaining her ability to love people, and love them as intensely as she does. There will probably be a training montage chapter at some stage, but who doesn't love a good training montage? And no, Lucy- you can't slack off in the Celestial Realm for three months and then have some magic spell unlock a Third Origin, or something like that. She will have to work for it, and work hard.

I really hope everyone likes my story because I love Fairy Tail and I think everyone in the fandom kick ass and I look forward to hearing your opinions!