Natsu stood in shock for a moment. Lucy, his Lucy, was gone. No could survive that blast, not even the most precious girl in the world. The scales that had been forming along the side of his face took over completely, his anger fueling his magic. His eyes, slits before, now widened as they turned golden red. Without waiting for the dust and debris to settle, without even looking in Lucy's direction, Natsu launched himself at Zeref, ready to kill the mage that had killed the woman they both loved.

Lucy stood stock still for a moment before slowly opening her eyes. Golden light surrounded her, causing the debris in the light to hang in suspension, slowly floating around her. She lowered her arms, allowing the last of the debris to fall as the light faded. She looked around for Natsu and Zeref as she turned in a circle, finally spotting them as they fought a few feet away. Zeref appeared to be losing under Natsu's final form.

Natsu glared down at Zeref as he readied his final blow. He had trusted the ancient mage, had allowed him to steal Lucy's heart. Now Lucy was gone, forever, and Zeref had to pay for that mistake.

Zeref knelt before Natsu, lowering his head in acceptance.

"I'm ready, Natsu," Zeref whispered. "I'm sorry about Lucy."

"Me, too," Natsu replied raising his arm.

"NATSU!"

The two boys' hearts stopped at the voice that rang out with fear. Natsu stopped mid-swing his eyes widening in shock while Zeref stared at the ground, shaking in fear and surprise before lifting his head up. They slowly turned their heads in unison, Natsu lowering his arm as he watched Lucy glide over to them, the golden light still faintly surrounding her.

"Natsu," She said again, softer this time. "You can't kill him."

"Why not?"

"Because I love him."

"And he tried to kill you."

Lucy smiled as she shakily lifted a hand to Natsu's face, "It's okay. Don't kill him, Natsu. He didn't mean it. He loves us too much to actually want us dead."

"He loves you anyway," Natsu said, his scales starting to fade.

She shook her head, "You can't kill him, Natsu. He's your brother."

The silence that followed that statement was absolute. Natsu's eyes returned to their normal color while the scales completely faded from him as he stared at the blonde smiling gently at him. Lucy turned from him to offer a hand to Zeref, who took it in his own trembling one. She pulled him up gently, kissing him on the cheek once he was standing.

"Please, come home with us. Enough of this madness," She whispered.

Zeref nodded his consent, still staring at the woman he'd fallen in love with.

"Wait a moment," Natsu finally said. "What do you mean he's my brother?"

Lucy smiled as she started to walk away, "I'll let Zeref explain all of that. Come find me when you're ready to go home."

Home. Zeref smiled at the word. How long had it been since he'd had a place he could actually call home? He turned back to Natsu, who was staring at him with a raised eyebrow, and sighed.

"Well, you might as well sit," Zeref said. "This is a long story."

Hours later the two walked out of the building, Zeref feeling strangely relieved while Natsu was still confused by the whole situation. The girl he'd fallen in love with was dating the brother he'd never known he'd had and, supposedly, he was over four hundred years old.

Natsu's head reeled with this new information as he tried to process it all. Lucy smiled brightly at the two as they exited the building and Natsu grinned back, knowing that for her he could do anything, even believe that he was brother to this strange man.

"Are you ready to go home, my family?" She asked brightly, linking arms with the two of them.

The brothers smiled down at the girl in between them. For her, they would go wherever she would lead. Besides, home, family, Those words didn't really seem so bad in the long run.

-Years Later-

Zeref was never charged with anything. Only the two he called family, and Levy, knew what happened in the abandoned warehouse and none of them would talk about it. He dropped his studies into sustaining life and enjoyed the time he spent with his family. He married Lucy two years later. A year after that they had their first child, a little girl they called Embry Mavis Dragneel.

Natsu, after finally accepting that he had a brother, became an almost permanent fixture around the household. He bonded with Zeref quickly after their fight, and the two seemed almost inseparable for a time. He adores his niece and often you can hear her yelling "Uncle Natsu" as he chases the dark-haired child around the house, causing everyone to laugh in amusement.

Lucy was content. She had her two favorite boys and a beautiful daughter. Life couldn't be anymore perfect. She smiled as she watched her brother-in-law chase her little girl, resting back into Zeref's arms. He grinned down at his wife, gently laying a hand on her pregnant stomach.

"What do you think?" He whispered in her ear. "Boy or girl?"

She grinned up at him, "Boy, but we still have two months until we find out if I'm right."

He grinned, "I waited four hundred years to find you, I can wait a few more months to find out what my second child will be."

She laughed and kissed him gently, "Yes, Mr. Dragneel, you can."

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Dragneel."

"Uncle Natsu, mommy and daddy are kissing again."

The couple laughed as Natsu and Embry made matching faces of disgust.

Fin

AN: OMG. I finished! *cries* I hope you all enjoyed it. I couldn't bring myself to allow Lucy to die, you worry-warts. She's the life of this story after all ;)

I would like to thank the following people for making this story possible:

- MikuRikaChan for giving me the idea and the pairing. :) Without him this story would have never been written.

- Kurohana806 for sticking with me from the beginning and helping me with grammar and spelling.

- Gothazon, ilft. natsu , tsuki-suna for their reviews that cracked me up and gave me the courage to keep writing even when I was feeling burnt out on the story and a little lost as to where I was going next.

- EVERYONE ELSE! Anyone I've missed, all my reviewers that I didn't mention, and anyone else who's been reading this without reviewing. I appreciate your support!