Natsu: Katie, you are so dead!

Katie: *gulps and hides behind Erza* I'm sorry; Natsu, but I wanted more drama.

Lucy: You didn't have to kill me!

Katie: You're not dead! Natsu's an idiot, remember? He didn't feel your neck to get a pulse! He felt your wrist… in the wrong spot.

Lucy: *sighs in relief* I'm glad it was just Natsu being the idiot we all know and love.

Katie: Especially you!

Lucy: *blushes*

Katie: Jason Julierne, in case I haven't mentioned it before, is a pure evil OC I created for one reason: to be evil, and an antagonist when I need one. His first name was inspired by Jason Voorhees from the Friday the Thirteenth movies, since he's just as whacked-up, psychotic, and murderous, at least from what I've read about him; I haven't actually seen the movies yet. The Julierne thing is based on something Lucy's dad told her when she came home briefly at the end of the Phantom Lord arc. He said he had arranged a marriage for her with the Julierne heir. Now, on with the story. To quote Corpse Bride, "Sounds creepy! This is gonna be good!"

Rage. He had never felt this much rage. Not when Gajeel had been beating Lucy… not when Gray beat him in a fight… not when Jellal made Erza cry… and not when Lucy had been about to be executed. Pure, unfathomable anger was all he felt toward this murderer.

"Are you ready to die for killing her?" he growled.

"Oh, you can't be serious!" Jason cackled. "A simple, law-abiding wizard like you can't even begin to defeat me and my pure, limitless power!" A flaming blow to the gut was Natsu's response to the taunt.

"At least I have a heart! You killed Lucy because of some stupid grudge against her! Some crap that no-one cares about! Say your prayers, because this is going to be the last fight you ever have!"

He and Jason were now locked in intense combat. Neither opponent noticed Erza, Wendy, and Gray run in. Wendy stifled a cry of sorrow when she saw Lucy's body, but felt her neck for a pulse. There was one, but it was very faint. The Sky Dragon Slayer began to heal her long-lost friend, while Erza stood guard and Gray ran to tell his nakama.

"FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu screamed. Jason was running out of power. The crimson flames coursed toward the Shadow mage, making contact. A screech of pain caused all the Dragon Slayers in the building to cover their ears in pain. Wendy, however, quickly recovered and continued to heal the injured Celestial mage.

"Y-you b-beat m-me…" Jason marveled.

"Get out," Natsu hissed. "I'll let you live for now, but if you ever come near Fairy Tail or my children, I won't hesitate to murder you." Jason let out a frightened whimper and ran like a dog with its tail between its legs. Wendy had finally healed Lucy to the point where she could move.

"N-Natsu…" Lucy's voice made him turn.

"Luce!" He ran and hugged her. "I'm so sorry! I never meant to hurt you like that! If I had known about the twins…"

"You wouldn't have left me." He got a really good look at her for the first time in years. Her blonde hair now reached her waist, her eyes were still as chocolate brown and warm as ever, and her beauty seemed to have only heightened with time. How big of an idiot was he not to have kept her all that time?

"Ashiteru… Tadaima…" Her eyes teared up and she threw her arms around him. "I'm an idiot, an absolute idiot."

"But you're my idiot." She blushed. "Oh, are you still with Lisanna?"

"No. She didn't want me. After she turned me down, I went to get you back, but you were gone. I searched for you everywhere I went. We all did. We had no clues as to what had happened to you."

"Until Ember and Iggy showed up," she finished. "I thought you didn't l-love me anymore."

"I never stopped." He pressed his lips against hers, surprising her, but she responded with as much enthusiasm. When they finally pulled apart, Gray was grinning at the couple, the others were smiling, and Mira… well, she did what you expected her to: she began crying her eyes out with tears of joy.

"Blecch!" Iggy gagged. Ember kicked him in the shin.

"Don't ruin it!" she hissed to her brother. He was an idiot, too.

"It's funny…" Lucy commented as they all left. "First I loved you, then I hated you, and now I love you again."

"It's a Love-Hate-Love Thing!" joked Mira, still dabbing at her tears of joy.

***one year later***

"I now pronounce you man and wife," the old priest said. "You may kiss the—" He didn't finish before the pink-haired man grabbed the blonde and kissed her passionately in a dip. A loud cheer came up, both from the mages and Fiore's high society members attending the long-awaited ceremony. Iggy gagged again; this time, Jellal and Erza's nine-year-old daughter, Joy, drove her high-heeled shoe into his toe. He grinned at her in a way that made her groan at his idiocy.

At the reception, many happy couples danced together. Storm watched in amusement as his mother, Juvia, practically melted in his father's arms. She could be so embarrassing sometimes. Iggy was bugging Joy, who had to whack him with her small purse to get him to stop. Ember was dancing to her own beat in the corner. The young water mage had to admit she was admirable. She had as much power as he did, though she had less control. Her pink hair made her look like a little princess today, the way it curled around her face. Was this how his mother had felt looking at his father for the first time? It didn't matter.

"Hey, Flamebreath!" he teased.

"Come for another butt-kicking? You'll have to wait, at least until Mama and Papa leave."

"You wanna dance?"

"Excuse me?"

"Do you wanna dance? I'm not going to ask again."

"Sure. I've got nothin' better to do."

Natsu felt like burning Storm to a crisp as he watched him dance with his daughter.

"Natsu, I know what you're thinking," Lucy told him. "Don't you dare! She doesn't even like him that way."

"Thanks, Luce."

"Besides, she's his rival."

"You're right."

Ember smiled as Storm whirled her around. She'd never admit it, but one of the many reasons she fought with him was to get his attention. He was cute—no, hot—and seemed to like her back. He was her first crush, and she knew her dad would quite literally crush him if he ever made a move on her. Not to mention her overprotective brother, but he was suffering through his first crush as well. It made her happy to know her brother was still a blithering idiot. As for her and Storm, well…

It's a Love-Hate-Love thing, after all.

Gray: My kid's a real Casanova here, huh?

Lucy: Aww! It's so cute here!

Natsu: Yeah, I'm totally going to do the kiss that way at our wedding.

Katie: Is there something you haven't told us, Natsu?

Natsu: No!

Lucy: He proposed last week.

Katie: *squeals in excitement*

Erza: We are finished with this story. Read and review and check out Katie's profile for more Fairy Tail fluff and polls.