The next day, they made it back to the guild around noon. It had been an uneventful end to their trip. Nothing exploded. A small portion of the forest was burnt down, there was a new ice skating rink a few miles outside of Magnolia, and you could probably outfit an entire army with the weapons Erza left behind, but hey, this was all normal for them.

As they approached the guild, Loke felt his senses start to pick up on danger. Immediately he stepped in front of Lucy. It was a better defensive position. Erza noticed the change. Lucy was too distracted by breaking up the fight between Natsu and Gray.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"I don't know." And he didn't. He just felt as if he were being watched. The feeling left his stomach rolling. It wasn't a friend.

He looked at Lucy, to see if she had noticed anything strange. Ever since that link had been formed between them**, Loke wasn't sure of which feelings he could call his own and which were Lucy's. They both felt the same. If this feeling of being watched was Lucy's, then this was an entirely different ball game.

Lucy looked annoyed, frustrated and exhausted. However she didn't look nervous, wary or suspicious, like she would have had she noticed someone watching her. This feeling was not hers.

At this, Loke breathed a sigh of relief. Whoever was watching wasn't targeting Lucy. This was a good thing.

"Lucy is safe?" Erza asked quietly. It was a little nerve wracking to know that the knight knew him so well.

He nodded. "I'm being watched."

She blinked at this and looked down at her feet. A less experienced warrior would have taken this as a lack of focus, but Loke could tell. Erza was letting her senses range out. She was trying to pinpoint whoever was watching them (well, him) without her target's knowledge. Also, by looking down, she minimized the amount of information coming from her eyes. Instead, Erza was letting her other senses take over, as they were more effective, especially when adding magic into the equation.

Soon, Erza looked up and then to Loke and, almost imperceptively, shook her head. Loke nodded in understanding. Erza wasn't able to find the culprit with just her senses. That meant that they were using magic to watch them, as Erza's senses were able to pick up anything within the range of sight. They were dealing with a wizard, which made their situation all the more complicated.

Loke could see the wheels in Erza's brain turning. She was probably thinking along the same lines that he was. In all probability, whoever was watching them was also responsible for the attack on the train.

"We need to get to the guild." He said. She nodded.

"Natsu! Gray!" She shouted. The two boys immediately stopped what they were doing and stared at her. "Stop this. We are going to the guild."

Gray and Natsu looked at each other, weighed the pros and cons of doing as Erza said, turned slightly green, and followed Erza. Lucy let out an exasperated sigh.

"Why didn't she do that before?" She muttered under her breath. Loke couldn't help but agree. The stupid fights between the other two male members of the team were annoying.

In no time, they were stepping across the threshold of the guild. Many greeted them, but Erza and Loke had a mission. They were going to inform Markarov of the events that had taken place on the train.

Lucy followed him. Apparently she had noticed that Loke wasn't resting, now that they were back, but headed toward the master. Natsu and Gray both stayed behind. That was alright. Three was more than enough to inform the master of what was going on.

Markarov was drinking when they found him. It wasn't much of a surprise. Erza spoke first.

"Master, we need to speak with you." She said. Loke noticed the slight reverence in her voice.

"Yes Yes, speak your mind," He slurred.

"We would have been here yesterday, but we were attacked on the train." She said.

Markarov sobered a little at this. "Really? By who?"

"Not a who, more like a what." Loke spoke this time. Markarov looked at him as if just realizing he was there.

"Loke." He said, an observation. "Or Leo. What was your name again?"

"Call me whichever, it's not the issue now," he said quickly, impatience getting the better of him. Whatever was happening was putting Lucy in danger, and he wasn't having that. "We were attacked by some flying…spike things." He finished lamely, not really sure how to describe them.

"Spike things eh? Well that's specific." Markarov said sarcastically.

Lucy spoke now, "They were black, and looked as if they were made of stone. The must have flown by magic, because they didn't have wings or propellers to help them fly. They were about this long," Lucy held her hands about two and a half feet apart, "and they were targeting something."

Loke's eyes widened and he looked down at Lucy, who looked at the floor. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Erza do the same thing.

"What do you mean Lucy?" Erza asked, surprised. She was probably wondering how she could have missed something so important.

"When I looked at the wreckage, I noticed something." She said slowly. She quickly looked at Loke before she continued, as if she were afraid of how he would react. "They were all pointed at me and Loke."

Erza looked disturbed. Loke didn't know how to react. Lucy wasn't finished yet though. "The ones that Erza dealt with, they were all pointed in the same direction. So were the ones that Gray finished off. I couldn't tell with Natsu's but If they followed pattern, they were all pointed toward where Loke and I were, not to mention that the one that went after us actually changed directions in midair. They were targeting one of us, and something tells me that it was me they were going after."

Loke stiffened, "What makes you think that?" He asked. What she said made sense, and the more he thought about it, the more he realized that it was probably true. Though that last bit was conjecture, the first spike that he had seen had been headed directly for Lucy.

"Well, you're a celestial spirit. You can't die, so there would be no point in trying to kill you. If you were dealt a fatal wound, you would just be sent back to the spirit world."

Oh. Well there was that reason.

"I asked Natsu if he could remember which direction the spikes had been headed in when he got them. He didn't remember exactly, but he felt as if they were pointed towards where we were."

Markarov stroked his chin. "Hmm…this is interesting indeed."

"And there's more." Erza put in. "Today, when we were about ten minutes away from the guild, Loke sensed someone watching us. I tried to find them, but he was outside my range. He must have been using magic to watch us."

A thought came to Loke "I protected Lucy when those spikes attacked us. It would make sense that I would be next on this wizard's hit list if they were trying to get to her."

Loke saw Lucy looking up at him wide eyed with fear. He wasn't sure if that fear was for herself or for him. He hoped it was for herself. He didn't want her to be worried about him.

"But why would they target Lucy?" Asked Erza. It was a question that Loke had been wondering about himself.

Lucy frowned, "I suppose it could be my father. He lost all of his fortunes, but maybe he owed someone a debt and now they're trying to get it back by threatening me."

Markarov shook his head. "No child, I believe this is a different problem. If it was a debt collector doing this, they would know that your father had lost all of his money."

Lucy still didn't look entirely convinced, but Loke saw a bit of tension in her shoulders disappear, so he supposed that was enough.

Markarov looked at Loke for a long time. So long that Loke began to get uncomfortable and shifted his weight. It was like he was studying him, like he was deciding on something important.

Finally he spoke, "Well, Loke, how long do you intend to stay in this world?"

For as long as it takes to make sure that Lucy is no longer suffering and in pain over Natsu, "For a while sir."

Markarov nodded, as if he expected that.

"Well, then can I assume you're staying with Lucy?" Loke and Lucy both nodded, "That's good. Then you will be in charge of protection detail." Loke nodded, acknowledging the order.

Lucy though, would have none of it.

"What? Protection detail? No. Not happening. Loke was staying with me anyways, so I don't mind that, but I'm not letting him get hurt for my sake. I-"

Loke cut her off, not able to stand it anymore, "Lucy, It's the spirits' job to protect their masters. I would be doing this anyways, and it's not like I can die anyways, as you pointed out earlier."

He could tell that she wanted to object further, but apparently something about him stopped her because she looked at Loke for one long second and then turned to Markarov.

"We still don't know why they're targeting Lucy." Erza pointed out.

Markarov sighed at this, "We won't without more information. We will need to wait for the opponent to make his move."

Loke felt a wave of anger rush over him. This wasn't a freaking chess game. Lucy's life was at stake here, and Markarov was willing to let the other guy come after her just to learn why he was targeting her? That was the same as using her as bait, and that wasn't okay.

However, Loke didn't say anything. It wasn't like he had any better ideas, and also, there was no way the attacker was going to get anywhere near her so long as he could breathe.

Later, when they had finished informing Markarov of the recent attack, all three of them walked over to a table and joined Natsu and Gray. Loke hated that he was bringing Lucy over here. Natsu, being the clueless buffoon that he was, would surely say something about Lisanna or Lucy that would be hurtful to the latter girl.

Apparently though, he didn't have to worry. Almost as soon as they sat down, Levey came over, grabbed Lucy's arm and dragged her back to wherever it was that she had been sitting babbling about ancient runes that were in some long forgotten language. Lucy looked surprised, but soon started smiling and nodding, trying her very best to understand what on earth her friend was talking about. Loke smiled as he watched, grateful to Levey for taking Lucy away from her source of pain.

After a while, Lucy's attention was pulled in another direction. Cana wanted to talk to her right now. Then Romeo, then Mirajane…

He watched Lucy intently. If the others asked, it was because he was making sure she was safe. He was the head of protection detail after all. It would make sense to them.

However, he wanted to watch her peers interact with her. The lens was designed to only watch the user's master. It didn't show the others around them.

And boy, was he missing a big part of the picture.

The demeanor of the people around her visibly changed. Suddenly they weren't so sad or tired, or whatever it was they had been feeling. They were much more cheerful. Relaxing a bit, or even smiling and laughing with her. As she walked up to Mirajane, the bartender suddenly had a little more pep in her step, more energy to do her tiring job. Romeo stopped crying. Loke assumed that his father had been sent on another mission. She was like a breath of fresh air. She was like sunshine.

That's what most people seemed to think here. She walked around, completely ignorant to the lightening atmosphere of her guild, and even more oblivious to the fact that it was due to her mere presence. She received admiring gazes from the men, but there was no lust in them. Just awe for the woman who stood before them. The women and children looked upon her gratefully, as she took a towel and started to wipe down the counter, much to Mirajane's protests. No one else in the guild had this kind of beauty. No one had such a warm, loving personality that they affected those around them in such a way.

It was then that Loke realized something. The love he felt for Lucy was selfless and deeper than he could fathom. It was the first time he had ever felt this way. He just wanted to give his whole heart to Lucy, but of course there were problems with that. He remembered questioning how Lucy could give so much of her heart away, to so many people. Everyone she met, it seemed, got some portion of her heart. Some portion of her love. He hadn't understood how she could keep going. Surly her love was limited in some way. How could she keep giving like this?

Finally, he knew.

Lucy loved everyone as deeply as he loved her. Not in the same way, she loved them all as her friends, but she loved in the emotion's purest and most unadulterated form. That was why she gave herself to those around her. She wanted to give them her heart.

Loke smiled at that. It was like she was giving her heart away for safe keeping. She wanted to care for everyone, and she wanted them to care for her, if it was ever necessary.

He couldn't think of anything more beautiful.

All the people of this guild…all the people she had ever met…they all held some part of her, and she gave it to them willingly. It was like she was wrapping them in her love, and showing them how to love as she did.

And that was when Loke realized that Lucy had taught him how to love her, just by loving him in her own special way.

This girl, she was a central part of the guild now. Her fellow wizards counted on her to lift their spirits, to give them a reason to keep going. They trusted her with this role, and she just kept giving and giving. She did it so selflessly, so passionately, and so unknowingly.

And so, Loke watched the afternoon pass in that fashion. Lucy stayed away from their table, away from Natsu, away from her own pain. Instead she lifted the pain of others. And she continued to do so until it was about closing time for the guild. Everyone had left by then. Everyone except Lucy, Mirajane and Loke, that is. Lucy looked exhausted. She hadn't had a chance to rest in days. She never slept well on jobs, and she had been an emotional wreck only three days ago.

Loke was waiting for her, so that they could walk home together. He didn't want her hurt on the way back, and with what was going on, he wasn't about to let her out of his sight.

She talked with Mirajane for hours. Occasionally the bartender would glance over at Loke, but was soon drawn back to the conversation with Lucy.

The two women seemed to be catching up on the events of the past few days. Finally, Lucy could take no more and fell asleep on the counter. Mirajane smiled and took the glass of water from her hand.

Loke was up in an instant and gathered Lucy in his arms for the walk to her house. Mirajane smiled at him.

"You're staying with her?" She asked. He nodded.

"Then I hope you will behave yourself mister." She said this with an evil grin on her face.

Loke rolled his eyes, "Please. I'm not that kind of guy anymore Mira. Never was really."

The woman smiled sweetly, "I know, but still…" she looked fondly at Lucy and then her expression grew more serious, "I must ask you to be careful with her. She has suffered quite a bit in the last few days."

Why did they all suspect that he would hurt her? Didn't they know that he could never do that?

But then he thought of that afternoon. How important the girl currently resting in his arms was to her friends. They needed her as much as he did.

"I know. Don't worry, I won't hurt her."

Mirajane smiled, "I didn't think so. Have a good night."

Loke set the sleeping girl down on her bed and tucked her in. He doubted she would appreciate waking up only to realize that he had changed her clothes in her sleep, so he left that particular part of this process untouched.

After she was safely situated, he laid out blankets on the floor. Tomorrow he would drag the couch in here, but for now, he was content with the blankets. He placed his makeshift bed in between the door and the window of her room. This way no one could get in without his knowledge. No one was going to touch this girl.

And that's how he fell asleep. He was staring out the window, watching as the moon rose over the city. It looked as if some invisible force held it in place over the sky. A glowing silver orb, watching over the city of Magnolia. Beautiful.

And that was the last thing he thought about as he fell asleep. The moon watched over everyone at night, much like Lucy did during the day. They were similar in many ways.

When Loke woke the next morning, it was to the smell of pancakes.

He hadn't realized he was so hungry. Immediately he was alert, so he scrambled out of the tangle of blankets that had entrapped him during the night. He had been restless in his sleep. Oh well, that was sort of normal for him. He was the lion spirit. It was to be expected.

He walked into Lucy's kitchen and was greeted by a warm scene. Lucy was staring intently at the food that she was apparently putting so much effort into cooking. She was still in the clothes she had worn yesterday, and her hair was tangled. Her cheeks were a little pink from standing over the oven for so long, and there was a stack of golden brown flapjacks piled high on a plate next to the oven. Lucy looked beautiful, at least in Loke's eyes. He could imagine getting used to this. Waking up, greeting Lucy, watching her cook for him, cooking for her…

"Morning." He said quietly. He had to shake these thoughts away. Even if Lucy shared his feelings, which he wasn't sure of at this point, she deserved a better husband than he could be. She deserved someone constant, someone who could always be with her, every day of her life. Loke could not.

She turned around, surprised. "Morning!" She said cheerily. He smiled. Contrary to popular belief, Lucy really was a morning person. She just didn't appreciate waking to find Natsu sleeping next to her. Not that Loke could really criticize the boy for it at this point. Hadn't he done almost the same exact thing just a few nights ago?

"So how are you today, master?" He asked. She seemed pretty okay, like she didn't need anyone at all times. If she weren't under a death threat, he would feel alright about leaving her to her own devices now.

She frowned at him. "You know, you don't need to call me that."

He shrugged, "Princess?"

She rolled her eyes, "I can see that you aren't going to budge on this. Just know that I prefer Lucy, and I'm fine thank you."

He grinned at her. Lucy's normal tolerance level for his teasing was back.

She turned back to her cooking, "Sit, I'm almost done and then I'm going to change and we can go." She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "And speaking of clothes, do you actually own another suit? If not, then I'm taking you shopping today."

He shook his head. The truth was, he really only owned one set of clothing. In the spirit world, hygiene wasn't really an issue. Spirits were immortal beings after all. They were frozen at the state of which they had been created. They were restored every time they returned to the spirit world, which meant that after a few days in the human world he probably looked a little grungy.

"Good. I love an excuse to shop." She said with a smile, and placed the plate of pancakes in front of him.

"Save some for me!" She shouted over her shoulder.

He smiled, "No promises!"

She shut the door.

And then it happened.

Just as he was about to take his first bite, he heard a yelp come from the other room.

He was up in a flash and burst through the door. What he saw there would haunt him for a long time to come.

Lucy was standing there, with a knife on her throat and pinned against the wall. She glared at the intruder, but Loke saw fear in her eyes. Anger coursed through him.

The attacker turned to look at Loke. The spirit felt his stomach drop. He recognized this man.

"Hello Leo. It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

a/n Alright don't shoot me. I didn't particularly enjoy writing this chapter, and most likely this entire chapter will go under revision. It was supposed to be more of a transitory chapter and I suck at writing those. This will almost definitely go under revision. For some reason it seems like I can only write this story at one and two in the morning. Fun right? Anyways, thanks to all who review and I'm sorry for the wait!

**This was described in chapter 2 during Loke's conversation with Crux