Epilogue

A year later…

"-thank you for trying to protect me."

Lucy smiled softly, kissing her palm before placing her hand on the gravestone. She took a deep breath, casting a last look at the flowers she had just placed on top of the grave, before walking down the small pathway leading to the graveyard's exit, her purse dangling from her arm.

It was a new morning, and Lucy truly felt at peace for the first time in years. The air was chilly, and the shiver that went through her frame made her wrap her coat tighter around her curvy frame. The wind made her hair fly around her face, and she pushed the few strands falling in front of her eyes away from her face. She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, and snatched it out. She looked at the caller ID, and smiled.

"Hello," she answered.

"Lu!" screamed her best-friend's voice, and Lucy had to take the phone away from her ear in fear of going deaf.

"What's got you so excited?" she asked, amused. "Did Gajeel finally ask you out?"

"W-what?" sputtered Levy, and Lucy could picture her pale face turn crimson at the mention of the tall pierced man. "Of course not!"

"Then what's up?" she said, starting to walk towards her next destination.

"I just finished reading your book," she squealed, and Lucy winced at her high-pitched voice. "Oh Lucy, it was really a beautiful tale! But it broke my heart when you killed the dragon at the end."

"Yeah," Lucy smiled softly. "Not all stories have a fairy tale's ending."

"Poor Lilly," continued Levy, "I can't believe the knight killed her only friend. I was rooting for them to get together, but I think his sacrifice was the ultimate proof of love!"

"I'm glad you liked the story," giggled Lucy.

"Of course I like the story! It was years in the making," whined Levy. "It was the longest hiatus of my life!"

"Then I'm happy it lived up to your expectations. I wasn't sure you would like the same when I made the knight the villain."

Levy hummed in acknowledgement. "Are you passing by the office later? I have so much more to talk about concerning your story!"

"I will," nodded Lucy. "I'll just grab a bite on my way. I was at the graveyard and didn't have time to eat this morning."

There was a pause on the other line, before Levy spoke up again softly. "Then take your time, I'll see you later."

"Bye Levy," said Lucy, before the line went dead.

She put her phone back in her pocket, and kept walking until she reached her destination. She entered the bakery, the one she made sure to eat at weekly, and smiled at the person at the counter.

"Hi Juvia," she greeted the blue-haired woman.

"Lucy," exclaimed the woman, a smile lighting up her face. Lucy had to stop for a moment to admire her. Juvia was truly a beauty, and she attracted a lot of male customers.

"How are you today?"

"Juvia is great," said the other woman. "It's a slow day, and we didn't receive a lot of requests for sweets today. It feels good to take it easy from time to time."

"I agree," smiled Lucy. "I myself recently finished writing my book!"

"Oh, Juvia is so glad to hear that! Juvia cannot wait to read it!" squealed the young woman happily.

"It's going to be out very soon," explained Lucy. "It just went through its last editing phase."

"Then Juvia will be the first one in line to purchase it," she nodded vehemently to herself. "What does Lucy want to eat today?"

"I'll take the usual," replied the blonde. "But make it double -wait, scratch that. Give me ten of those."

"Is Lucy passing by the office today?" asked Juvia, writing down the order.

"Yes, I promised Levy. She'll have my head if I don't," laughed Lucy. "I know the others will want some as well, and I wouldn't want to disappoint them by only bringing two."

"Then Lucy is lucky, we just took the muffins out of the oven. They're freshly baked!" exclaimed Juvia enthusiastically. "It won't be long. Juvia will just put them in a box and Lucy is good to go!"

"Thank you," said Lucy.

Juvia left for the back, and came back a few minutes later with Lucy's order. The blonde paid -despite Juvia's protests-, and left a hefty sum of money in the tip jar when Juvia had her back turned.

"Have a nice day," she said, leaving the small bakery.

"Goodbye Lucy, say hello to Gray-sama," giggled Juvia, blushing like a schoolgirl.

Lucy smiled to herself at how adorable the owner of the bakery was acting about her relationship with Gray. They had started dating only a few months ago, and yet, she still looked at the agent like he put the stars in the sky.

On her way to the office, she went inside a coffee shop and ordered two cups. She left a few minutes later, struggling to carry both the cups and the box, and walked another five minutes before she could see the tall office building

She went inside, passed through security without difficulty -she was used to coming by-, and greeted Mirajane.

"Hey Mira, how are you?"

"Hi Lucy, it's good to see you today. I wasn't expecting you to come by," smiled the albino woman.

"I have something to drop off," explained Lucy. "Do you want a muffin?"

Mira shook her head. "No thank you. The wedding's getting closer, and I'm trying to keep my figure to fit into my wedding dress."

"Mira," sighed Lucy. "You don't have one gram of fat on your body. I don't think this harmless little muffin would hurt you."

The secretary shrugged it off. "I'm good, but I appreciate the gesture."

"Your loss," said Lucy with a wink. "I'll be on my way!"

Lucy kept walking, before she entered the big office area. She instantly noticed Gajeel's black mane, and made her way towards him.

"Hi Gajeel," she greeted him.

"Bunny-girl," he acknowledged her without taking his eyes off his screen. "What are you doing here today? Are you coming to see shrimp?"

"Yeah," she smiled, noticing the way his eyes imperceptibly lit up when he noticed the box in her hands.

"Are those muffins? And coffee?" he exclaimed in his deep voice, reaching for a cup.

"Hands off," she scolded him, putting it away from his reach. "That's not for you, but you can take a muffin."

The pierced man huffed, but nonetheless opened the box and took one of the muffins, shoving the whole into his mouth. Lucy watched him, a bit impressed, and yet very appalled at the same time.

"It's a shame fire-breath's not with us today," he mumbled, his mouth stuffed with food. "He loves this shit."

"Why are you talking about me like I'm dead?" exclaimed an offended Natsu, appearing at his office door.

"What are you doing here? I thought it was your day off," said Gajeel.

"You thought wrong," said Natsu, before his eyes opened wide with excitement at the sight of the opened muffin box. "Oh, you brought muffins! You're the best, Luce!"

"And coffee too," she mused, raising the cup.

He walked towards her and grabbed it from her hand, taking a muffin at the same time. He took a sip from his beverage, and sighed in content.

"This beats the coffee we drink here everyday," he said. "It tastes like shit."

"Do I get a coffee as well?" asked Gray, who had followed Natsu out of their office.

"No, but you can take a muffin," replied Lucy. "Juvia says hi, by the way."

"Muffins?" Gray raised an eyebrow, taking one from the box. "Wouldn't donuts be more fitting?"

"That's rather stereotypical," said Gajeel.

They laughed, and Lucy watched as the three men devoured the food she brought.

"Did you just come by to bring food?" asked Natsu.

"No," Lucy shook her head. "But I knew that you would wake up late and not have time to eat, so I passed by the bakery to get you some."

"Then why are you here?"

"I have something to show you," she smiled at the pink haired agent.

Natsu raised an eyebrow, intrigued by her secretive smile, and nodded. "Alright, let's go inside the office."

Lucy followed him, unaware of the knowing looks the two other men shared, and stood next to his desk as he closed the door behind him.

"How was your day?" he asked, leaning against the door and crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Uneventful," she replied. "Something I never thought I would say a year ago. I went to father's grave this morning. It had been quite some time since I visited."

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked. "I told you that I wanted to go see him with you."

"I'm sorry, it slipped my mind. But why do you want to see his grave so bad?" she frowned.

"To thank him. We wouldn't have stopped Hades without him. You know that he was found guilty a week ago, and I've never been happier about closing a case in my entire life."

Lucy smiled softly at him. "I'm glad it's all over. I'll take you with me next time."

"Don't you dare forget," he scolded mockingly. "So, what do you have for me?"

Lucy jumped lightly, suddenly remembering what she was there for. She quickly opened her bag and rummaged through it, before taking out a book. "This."

"A book?" said Natsu, confused. "You know I don't read, Luce."

She rolled her eyes and huffed in annoyance, placing a hand provocatively on her hip. "This is my book, you ass! I brought you a copy to read before it's out. Weren't you the one who insisted on reading it before it's published?"

Natsu grinned widely, walking away from the door and snatching it from her hands. "Well, it was about time you finished!"

"Hey!" exclaimed an offended Lucy. "Do you know how hard it is to come up with a plot that makes sense and how long it takes to edit the story? You should be happy to get an early sneak peak!"

Lucy pouted, crossing her arms under her voluptuous chest. Natsu looked at her with amusement, and snickered at her offended expression, tapping his fingers against the book.

"You're such a weirdo," he finally said. "Thanks for the coffee, by the way. You always know what I need," he added, raising the cup, and winking at her.

Lucy's cheeks reddened, and she fought the urge to place her hands on her face to hide her blush. "It's nothing."

"Well," said Natsu, walking towards his desk, "if that's going to be all, I'm going to sit and start reading this. Now get your fat ass out of my office."

"My ass is not fat!" she exclaimed, outraged by his comment. She looked hesitantly at her backside, and patted it lightly.

Noticing her action, Natsu grinned. "Don't worry, I like it that way."

Her cheeks scorched with embarrassment, and she let out a high-pitched squeal. "Natsu! Stop teasing me, you pervert, or I'll send you to the hospital again!"

Natsu's playful expression quickly morphed into a grimace, and he set the cup of coffee he was holding on the desk, its taste suddenly bitter in his mouth.

"Please no, I spent enough time there," he moaned out.

"Stop complaining, at least you're alive," she chastised him.

"Yeah," he muttered, looking at her with an unreadable expression, "at least I'm alive."

Lucy frowned at his tone, and turned away from him to look around the room. "So, how's the investigation going?" she asked, changing the topic.

"We have nothing on Minerva so far," he replied. "There were a few sighting around the world, but nothing concrete. Now she's off the map as far as we know, she vanished completely."

"You'll get her," she said confidently. "She doesn't have anywhere or anyone to go to, she's bound to come back to Magnolia someday. At least she's not a threat anymore."

"Nice pep-talk," laughed Natsu. "But you're right, she can't do much alone."

"Yeah, whatever. Go back to work, hotshot," she told him, turning around and waving him off with her hand. "I'm going to see Levy. I promised her to pass by the archive room."

"You haven't called me that is a long time," said Natsu, his tone mysterious.

Lucy turned around, and quirked an eyebrow, wondering what he was talking about.

"You haven't called me hotshot in a long time," he explained.

"I didn't have a reason to," she shrugged, confused by his insistence.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I was just flirting with you to get you off my trail back when I did."

"It didn't really work out, did it? You're still stuck with me," he grinned lopsidedly. "Do you have a reason now?"

"No," she said carefully, narrowing her eyes at him in frustration. She had a feeling he was toying with her. "It just slipped."

"So you weren't flirting with me?" he asked.

The agent got up from his seat to approach her predatorily. Lucy gulped noticeably, her eyes looking for an escape, but didn't move from her spot. She had to admit that the look on his face excited her, and ignited a multitude of feelings she had repressed for the past year in fear of jeopardizing their relationship.

"N-no," she stuttered out. "What makes you think I was?"

"Nothing, really," he shrugged, now a mere few centimeters away from her, "maybe I'm just imagining things, or maybe it's wistful thinking."

Lucy looked up, astonished by his rather forward confession. After what happened a year ago, and the mystery around her had finally crumbled, she hadn't expected him to still be entranced by her, or even remotely interested. Wasn't he the one who said that he was captivated by her because she was a mystery to him? Why would he still be thinking about her as more than a friend if she had been 'solved'?

She must have spoken her thoughts out loud, become he frowned down at her, his eyes flashing with anger. "Do you think so low of yourself?"

Lucy panicked slightly, swallowing the lump in her throat. "No, that's not-"

"You're an amazing woman," he interrupted her, palming her cheek. "You're smart, sharp, and ridiculously beautiful. If I were only interested in you because you're some sort of mystery I have to solve, then I wouldn't have stayed your friend after we caught Hades."

"But-"

"And if you think that I don't want to be more than friends," he continued, "then you must be the blindest woman I've ever met. We slept together, for God's sake!"

"Then why didn't you say anything after you caught him?" she asked in a small voice, looking at him through her lashes, a hint of a blush on her cheeks.

Natsu scoffed, rolling his eyes. "No matter how much I wanted to, we were both busy with Hades' trial, and with you being a witness and everything. You had just discovered that Aquarius is dead, and I was resting at the hospital. I'm not insensitive enough to put a move on you while you were mourning because my dick wanted some Lucy time."

Lucy's faint redness turned into a full blown blush, and she gasped at his crudeness, wondering what the hell was Lucy time.

"What the fuck Natsu," she exclaimed, pushing him away. "We were having a moment there, and you just ruined it!"

Natsu laughed, clutching his stomach, tears threatening to fall from his eyes. "Oh come on, I've said worse things to you. Don't tell me you forgot how turned on you were by it!"

Lucy squealed, turning around to grab the door handle. "I'm not talking to you about this anymore. You're a complete ass!"

"Wait Luce," he stopped her, grabbing her arm to turn her around. "I'm sorry, you know that I was just playing with you. You're so easy and fun to tease, it's so different from the way you acted when we first met."

"Yeah well," she grumbled, "I had to put on an act. I couldn't risk being found out. I'm sorry if you prefer the way I was before."

"I don't!" he declared loudly, too fast for his own liking. "I prefer you this way. You were almost unattainable back then, and you were so cold. I'm glad the walls built around you crumbled, you're much more real the way you are right now, and I like embarrassing you," he added with a smile.

"I like the way I am right now a lot more as well," she smiled shyly, looking at the hand around her wrist. "I was too proud and too independent, and I'm glad I found a friend in you. You showed me that there's more to life than running, and you reunited me with Levy."

It was Natsu's turn to be embarrassed, touched by her words.

"It's nothing," he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm glad I was able to help you-"

"I'm sorry you got shot," she suddenly added, looking up at him. Despite not being a very tall man compared to the other men in their lives, she felt so small around him. "I thought you wouldn't want to see me anymore after you woke up."

"Lucy," he sighed, his hand slipping from her wrist to hold her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers, "We already went through this. Stop apologizing, we're both here and alive, and you shouldn't blame yourself. If anyone's at fault, it would be me. I'm the agent here, and I should have stopped you from going after Hades from the start! It put you in danger and I don't know what would have happened if we didn't find you that night."

"It's not your fault," she countered angrily. "You were just doing your job and looking after me! I was the one who was too proud for my own good. I let my ego get to my head! I don't know what I would have done if I had lost you that night. I already lost so many people, and I wouldn't have survived seeing you go as well. You're-you're very important to me."

Lucy had whispered the last part, and Natsu had to focus very hard on her voice to hear her words. She had looked down when she said them, and stared at their hands, her thumb caressing the back of his hand.

"You're very important to me as well," he replied softly, lifting her head by her chin with his unoccupied hand to stare into her eyes. "Why do you think I didn't bring you here when I found you lying in a pool of blood in your kitchen? And why do you think I didn't mention to anyone that you had stayed with me for weeks? I'm a selfish guy when it comes to you. I act like a child most of the time, but you bring out the man in me."

Lucy bit her lips at his admission, and he could see her eyes pulsing with foreign emotions.

"What are you trying to say?" she whispered.

"Goddammit Lucy," he groaned, heat crawling up his neck to rest on his cheeks, "you're so dense."

She furrowed her eyebrow, and backed away from him. "Dense? I'm not-"

"I'm crazy about you," he let out, and Lucy froze in place, looking at him with her mouth slightly agape. He flushed under her stare, but nonetheless gathered all his courage and continued. "Everyone knows it, and everyone teases me about it. You crashed into my life unexpectedly, and I didn't realize that I wanted you so bad until you left that key around Happy's neck."

"Natsu-"

"Wait, please let me finish my tirade, I've never sounded so smart in my whole life," he laughed nervously, releasing her chin and running a hand through his hair. "What I'm trying to say is that I can't picture my life without you. It's-it's not just physical. I want all of it, I want you by my side, all the time."

"Me too," replied Lucy, her grip tightening around his hand.

Natsu blinked, before his face broke into a wide grin. "Yeah?"

"Yeah, I want you too," she nodded, a shy smile on her lips. She rubbed her face with her other hand, laughing lightly. "God, this sounds so stupid. I'm the writer here but you're the one who gave a speech straight out of a best-selling romance novel."

"You can't always be smartest, leave the spotlight to the rest of us sometimes," he teased, and Lucy giggled.

There was a heavy silent after their declaration, and Lucy looked down at her feet, feeling shy. "So, what now?"

"I don't know where this takes us, but I really want to kiss you," he replied, giving her a heated stare.

"Me too," she said, breathless.

"Is that all you know how to say?"

"Shut up," she groaned.

She grabbed his by his scarf and tugged at it, bringing his head down to her level to plant her lips firmly on his. Natsu leaned into the kiss, untangling his hand from hers and grabbing her by the waist to bring her body closer to his. Lucy brought a hand to lay her fingertips on his face, caressing his cheeks and moving her lips against his slowly. Her other hand dug into his side, and she momentarily thought back to the X shaped scar underneath his dress-shirt he acquired after the bullet was removed.

Her heart constricted inside her chest, remembering how she had almost lost him. When the ambulance had arrived at the club, Natsu had lost so much blood, and was on the verge of death had the paramedics not stopped the bleeding. The surgeon had to remove the bullet because it had been at a compromising place, and would move at any moment had it been left inside of him. He had stayed in the operating room for hours, and all Lucy could remember from it was a mix of anxiety and fear, and an overall feeling of panic at the thought of him dying on the operating table.

"God," whispered Natsu, ending the kiss and leaning his forehead against hers, "you don't know how long I've wanted to do this."

"Me too," replied Lucy before she could stop herself.

Natsu looked at her for a few seconds in complete seriousness, before they both burst into laughter, wide smiles on their faces and both hearts hammering inside their chests. Natsu brought a hand to her hair, and tangled his fingers in her locks.

"I'm so happy you let your hair grow, I missed it," he told her. "Not that you didn't look good with your shorter hair or anything."

"You're such a dork," she giggled. "I missed my hair too,"

Natsu grinned at her, and leaned again to capture her lips, kissing her more deeply, and causing her to moan into the kiss. He placed his hands underneath her butt, and lifted her up, wrapping her legs around his waist. He walked towards the nearest desk, and put her down on it to stand between her legs. Lucy sighed against his lips, wrapping her arms around his neck and arching into him. Natsu leaned forwards and placed his hands on the desk on either side of her, caging her with his arms. He lightly bit her lower lip, and she moaned, opening her mouth to give him access, and he instantly stroke his tongue inside.

"Um, guys," muttered a voice from the door.

Natsu tore his mouth from Lucy's, and looked at the entrance to his office to see an amused and all-knowing Gray standing there. They must have been too wrapped up in each other to hear the door.

"This is some nice development and all, but could you please not go at it on my desk?" he continued, raising an eyebrow. "I don't want to picture this every time I sit down to work."

"Uh, yeah, sorry about that," replied Lucy, jumping off his desk, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

Natsu rubbed the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly at his partner, before rearranging his scarf.

"What are you doing here?"

"This is my office too," said Gray, "and you were taking too long. I have some work to do."

"Well, I'll be leaving then," said Lucy, looking at Natsu through the corner of her eye and fighting off a smile. "I'll let you work. I have to see Levy."

"Not yet," declared Gray, turning around to walk out of the office. "I have to tell Mira what I just saw before you leave."

"Don't do that, stripper!" shouted a panicked Natsu.

He knew how the white-haired woman would react to what just happened. He could already picture her babbling on and about weddings and babies, and he shuddered at the prospect of it.

"Wait Natsu," stopped him Lucy before he could run out to chase his partner.

"What is it?"

Lucy didn't reply, but simply stood on her toes to plant a firm and yet dizzying kiss on his lips. When she detached herself from him, she smiled coyly, and tucked a wild strand of hair behind her ear.

"There. Now you can go and chase after him," she said.

Natsu stuttered something unintelligible, and hastily walked out of the room. A few seconds later, he peeked back inside. "Let's go out tonight."

"I would love that," she told him.

"Great! It's a date then!" he grinned excitedly, leaving the room for good.

Lucy giggled to herself, and grabbed the handbag she had placed on his desk. Her gaze caught her book, and she struck her hand out to flip the front page and caress the words she wrote on the first page.

She had never thought that she would taste freedom ever again, let alone finish writing the book she had abandoned after her guardian had disappeared. But in the end, no matter how much heartache and suffering she went through, everything had turned out alright.

In loving memory of Aquarius, who taught me that dragons were the fiercest protectors.

Hello everyone, how are you all doing?

Well, I guess this is it!

I honestly debated really hard with myself and almost killed off Natsu, it would have suited the story really well, but then I realized that today was Nalu day and I wanted to smile when I read the chapter once I was done. So happy Nalu day to everyone! (Even though I'm two hours into the next day). So I'm leaving the tragedy for another story. So for those who follow me be ready ;)

It was really fun to read your comments on the last chapter. Seeing you guys panic at the thought of Natsu being dead almost made me kill him. There was so much feedback, and it was a pleasure to read all of it!

I'm feeling very nostalgic, and I might have shed a tear or two as I wrote that last sentence. I really can't believe this story is over, it really was a wild ride! This story is my baby, and I love it so much. I love being original in my writing, and I always like to take the story in unexpected directions that leave the readers gripped, and it was my goal with this one, and I'm really hoping I succeeded in surprising you all.

Thanks to everyone for following me on this journey, on a story I never thought would be so long and become as popular as it is. But it's time now to change the status to complete! I am aware that the story has many mistakes in it, and it's simply due to the fact that I have a hard time editing once I'm done writing a chapter because I get too excited to put it out. I will go over it in the near future and correct my mistakes to make the read more pleasant for future readers and for anyone who reads the story again.

I am not excluding the possibility of a sequel for this. It would be shorter than this story, but it will not be out soon, as I would like to focus on other stories and on different plots. I will be putting out an author's note in this story if I ever come around to it.

Thanks again to lkityan for the incredible art she drew for the story, and for the cover. You're an amazing artist!

For the last time, thanks for reading, and leave a review to tell me what you thought about the development of the story and the ending! Reviews are like rewards, and it's never too late to leave one!

Thanks to TaylorNReed, Lollilollicandypop, FairyLover, Stavroula99, , NaLuFTfanatic, FairyDemonDust, bloodrayne766, FlameDragonHime, BlessYourStar21, DreamLoveAndLive, Crimsonlink310, Aishitaoru, lkityan, Kauia, ToastedWeirdBrain, Nalu Lover, OTP Trash, Brannasaurus Rex, Yomi14, sthokatrina, cookie panda-roo, Oi, Raindoll28, and MarSofTheGalaxies for reviewing last chapter. You guys rock!