Haiiiiiii! I'm back after a short(ish) break. LaLu now for all you fans, personally I think this is a great ship - their personalities compliment each other perfectly, and their pasts are so similar.

Note: I know Lucy's parents' graves are in Acalypha, and Laxus' house is probably in Magnolia, so well just ignore that little technicality. And any others.

Thanks to all who favourited, followed and reviewed.

Disclaimer: saaaaaad, I still don't own Fairy Tail...maybe someday...

Raindrops fell from the sky, shattering like tiny diamonds as they hit the ground. The steady stream of ice-cold water mingled with the hot, salty tears on the woman's face. She sat on the damp grass, knees pulled up to her chest and cried silently. Her eyes were open, unblinking, and she didn't move a single muscle. No noise, not a sob or even a whimper escaped her throat as she sat there, staring at the twin gravestones in front of her. Eventually, the blonde lifted her head. She opened her mouth, and then, in a hoarse, broken voice, she began to sing.

I can see you there

Right by my side as always

You've never left or let me down, my friend

I can feel you there

Close to my heart as always

Your soul and mine share a bond made of love

So as the sky turns grey

And the clouds gather above

Trying to fight back your tears

Feeling so lost and alone

I am the star that burns for you

Shining through the night

Just follow me

I will guide you home

And when you're feeling lost at sea

Listen for my song

Calling you back

To the shore.

Her voice cracked completely at the end, and her shoulders began to shake as violent sobs seized her body. She made a choking sound in the back of her throat and her shoulders slumped impossibly further.

The blonde man standing in the gateway of the small graveyard hesitated, a limp, forgotten bouquet of flowers in one hand.

He walked towards a beautiful white grave-marker and set the lilies down in front of it before kneeling and resting his forehead against the cool stone.

"I miss you, Ma." He whispered in a tight voice. "Everyday."

Having completed his task, he hesitantly walked over to the girl and draped his coat over her shoulders. He didn't recognise her, but due to her bedraggled appearance she could have been Princess Hisui and he probably wouldn't have recognised her.

He helped her to her feet, but when she tried to stand she almost toppled over. He caught her before she hit the ground and cursed as his hand made contact with her feverish skin. "Shit! You've been out here too long, girly. You've got a fever, and possibly something worse!" He said to her, trying to draw some kind of a response, but got nothing and began to panic when he looked down and realised she was unconscious.

"Crap!" He said through gritted teeth. He could take her to the guild hall...but that was too far away, and he wouldn't dare to teleport there with her in this condition, plus it was raining. The rain always wreaked havoc on his lightning transportation.

He scowled at her unconscious form as he realised the only option was to take her to his place - it was only a 5 minute walk or so from there. He started to jog carefully but quickly through the forest - he couldn't risk the girl being out in the rain much longer. It might have already been too late.

Swearing repeatedly under his breath, he picked up the pace, and swung the girl through the front doors before laying her down on the couch. He slammed the door shut and hurried into the kitchen to fetch his medical supplies. He soaked a cold cloth in water and lay it over the girl's forehead before checking her temperature and swearing yet again. 40°c. He grabbed the diagnosis lacrima from his kit and waved it over her body, as per the instructions, and saw that she had a touch of pneumonia - just as he'd thought.

He glanced at her soaking clothes and grimaced. Normally he'd just lay her in front of the fire or something, but with her high temperature that would be too much of a risk. Blushing, he sighed in resignation, and, seeing no way around it, he grabbed a shirt from his room, along with a few towels and a hairbrush of Evergreen's. Back downstairs he changed her as quickly as possible, just hoping to god that she didn't wake up, and letting out a breath he hadn't realised he was holding when he was done.

With her clothes hanging in front of the fire to dry, he draped his coat over her once again, and started to dry her hair, carefully brushing the knots out of it as well. Making sure not to pull on her scalp, he found that the repetitive motion was actually quite soothing, and he was soon lulled into a dreamlike state. After a while, he broke himself out by snorting at the ridiculousness of the situation - who would've thought that the great Laxus Dreyer would enjoy brushing a girl's hair.

He glanced down at said girl, and realised with a jolt that he did in fact know her. Now that her hair was dry, it no longer looked mud-brown, but golden-blonde. It was Lucy Heartfilia, Fairy Tail's resident celestial mage. His brow creased as he wondered what she had been doing out in the rain before the pieces clicked in his mind.

Lucy Heartfilia, the young heiress who had lost her mother as a little girl, and then found out her father had died whilst they were sealed on Tenrou Island.

Crap, he thought. The twin gravestones... how did no-one notice something was wrong with her?

Taking another look at the sleeping blonde, he made another disturbing connection. This time last year, right after they had won the Grand Magic Games, Lucy had disappeared for a month, and had refused to say anything once she had returned. What if...what if she had been doing what she had done today. Crying in front of her parents' graves, mourning for them, and inadvertently making herself sick...

Laxus rubbed his temples with a groan and, with a glance at the clock, gathered the girl in his arms. He carried her upstairs and tucked her into the master bed before settling down on a couch in the same room with a blanket over him.

He watched her through eyes that were heavy with tiredness, and decided that he could rely on his instincts to wake him if anything was wrong. As he was about to drift off, he noticed Lucy whimpering and shivering, and realised that, even with the duvet and several blankets, she was still cold.

He hesitantly climbed into bed next to her and wrapped her in his arms, careful not to wake her, because he had no intention of getting a Lucy-kick to the face.

Her grimace melted into a smile, and Laxus felt her tensed muscles relax. He smiled into her hair, and drifted off amongst a haze of vanilla and strawberries.

Lucy Heartfilia woke to the sound of birds chirping. Slowly opening her eyes, she took in her surroundings. Well, she thought, I'm definitely not at my place. So where am I?

The walls were a neutral cream, and the furniture polished oak. The curtains, duvet and rugs were all black and white, and the whole place smelt of ozone and rain.

Lucy swung her legs over the side of the bed, and attempted to stand - failing miserably and falling to the floor with a dull thud. Wincing, Lucy used to bed to draw herself up, and hoped that the other occupant of the house hadn't heard her fall. Unfortunately for her, Laxus was a dragon-slayer, with extra sensitive hearing.

He abandoned breakfast and ran upstairs, before throwing the bedroom door open.

Lucy let out a squeak of surprise - of all the people to have rescued her, she never expected it would be Laxus!

Realising that Lucy was ok, and hadn't injured herself, Laxus' cheeks went slightly pink when he took in her rumpled attire, and he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"I see you're awake." He said, brilliantly. "Are you...are you ok?"

Lucy was shocked. She expected a jibe of some sort, or a lecture about being irresponsible. Or maybe both. Not this, not his sympathy. Her lip curled in disgust at the thought.

"I'm perfectly fine, thank you." She replied stiffly.

"Right. I, ah, I'll head back downstairs and finish breakfast, then. Is there anything in particular you want?" He asked somewhat awkwardly.

Lucy's eyes softened. He may be a grade-A jerk, but that was because he was more socially awkward than anyone she'd ever met, and she understood that he didn't mean to be rude - he just...didn't know how to be nice, exactly.

"If you have any cereal, that would be nice, thanks." She said.

"Ok, come down when you're ready. Feel free to take a shower, the ensuite's just through there." He pointed at a door next to the bed. "Your clothes are on the chair." He finished and hurried away.

Lucy's brain was still foggy with sleep, and it took her a good few moments to realise that if her clothes weren't on her body...somebody must have changed them. She turned bright red, and the anger that had only just dissipated returned in full force.

"LAXUUUUUUUS!" She screamed, and the dragon-slayer in question covered his ears, wincing.

Lucy was about to storm downstairs and confront him, when she looked down to see what the pervert had put her in, and nearly fainted from shock. It was one of his t-shirts - and it was massive on her, but not anywhere near big enough to be considered appropriate.

Holy shit, she thought. That must have been why he was blushing earlier...oh my god!

Shaking her head as if to clear the embarrassing thoughts from her mind, she picked up her clothes and went into the ensuite.

Meanwhile, downstairs, Laxus was understandably on edge. He had heard, and laughed at, tales from Natsu and Gray about Lucy's temper, and her infamous 'Lucy kick'. He did not want to be on the receiving end...

Whilst his hands were busy chopping mushrooms and tomatoes, his mind was going through all possible excuses he could give the blonde,

What about 'hey, Lucy, I know what you're thinking but I swear I didn't touch you like that - it was Evergreen who changed your clothes'. He mused silently. Nah she'd just ask Ever whether it was true, and no matter how loyal my team are, women stick together. That and Ever already thinks I'm a huge pervert. Maybe I could just tell her the truth? Or would just get me killed?

"God! Bloody freaking hell! I don't know..." He growled, much to the amusement of Lucy, who was standing in the doorway.

"Finished with your temper tantrum?" She asked playfully, smirking at his scowl.

"Lucy." He said in greeting, steering her towards a chair and putting a heaping plate of eggs, bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms down in front of her before sitting down himself. "So, care to explain what you were doing freezing to death in a graveyard? No pun intended." He said with a serious face, leaning forward slightly.

Lucy's expression became guarded, her eyes sad, and he sighed. "I think I have a pretty good idea, but I wanted you to confirm it first so I don't make a complete fool of myself if its wrong. I think you were mourning for your parents. I think you were planning on staying out there, in the rain, and making yourself ill, before crawling back home to recuperate for a month. Correct me if I'm wrong about any of that, but judging from your expression, I don't think I am, am I?" He finished.

She just looked at him for a minute before speaking. "You are...correct. Mostly. I didn't want to make myself sick, I was just planning on spending all day with them. It's not my fault the human body isn't built for freezing temperatures and icy rain. And what about you? What were you doing there?" She rushed out.

Laxus blinked - all the surprise he'd show. "I was also visiting the grave of a relative. My mother is buried there. She died giving birth to me." He averted his eyes, not wanting to see the sympathy in hers. When he eventually looked at the other blonde, he was surprised again. Instead of sympathy, there was...understanding? What?

"I know how you feel." She said softly. "When my mum died, it broke me. I was only 10. Everyone was always telling me how 'sorry they were for my loss' and things like that. I figured out pretty early on that I hate sympathy, and I guess you do too. It was just a guess, but I thought so."

Laxus' features softened almost imperceptibly. "Yeah, I get what you mean. After my old man up and left, Natsu and the rest of the guild - even Gramps - would look at me with these big sad eyes. It just made me so angry, I mean, it wasn't like he was much of a father anyway, and I never had a mother so I didn't know what it was like to miss one. But every time I tried to explain it, they would just look at me with pity, and tell me it was 'okay to cry'. I hated them for it."

Lucy looked at him with her big brown eyes, and for some reason his breath caught in his throat.

"It's strange, isn't it." She said. "They say these things to try and...help you. Make you feel better. It never works - but it's nice to know that someone understands how it makes me feel, Laxus."

His cheeks turned pink again, and Lucy wondered if her skirt was too short, or her top was too low-cut.

"Yeah, I know what you mean, Blondie. Lucy." He called her by her name for once.

Lucy smiled brightly, before wrapping her arms around him. After he'd recovered from the shock, Laxus returned the embrace. She murmured something indecipherable into his shirt before blushing tomato-red.

"What was that, Lucy?" He asked, genuinely curious. Even with his advanced hearing, he didn't know what she'd said.

"N-nothing!" She squeaked, her face still flushed.

He tilted her chin up to him, and said something that shocked her.

"I usually hate physical contact of any kind, unless it's in a fight, but I don't seem to mind with you. Isn't that strange?" He whispered, staring into her eyes.

Lucy's heart began to beat faster. Maybe he likes me! Maybe it wasn't just wishful thinking! She thought.

Before she could stop herself, Lucy blurted out "I love you!"

Laxus' expression was shocked, and Lucy began to back away.

"I-I'm so..." She spun round to run upstair, but a warm hand on her shoulder stopped her.

Laxus spun her round so she was facing him, and looked straight into her eyes.

"Do you mean it?" He asked in a low voice. Having lost the ability to speak, Lucy just nodded.

Without hesitation, he crushed his lips onto hers. After he broke away, he gathered her in his arms and sat her down on the couch.

They talked about anything and everything for hours and hours, and it was only when the sun dipped below the horizon, and the moon rose that they paused.

"Lucy, I think you should go to bed. It's pretty late, and you still haven't completely recovered." He said softly to the blonde. She muttered unintelligibly, and burrowed her face further into his shirt. He chuckled, and lifted her in his arms before carrying her upstairs and laying her on the bed.

"Go to sleep, my angel." He whispered, and kissed her forehead, before moving to settle down on the couch.

"Don't go." She said sleepily, clutching his wrist. "Stay." She pulled him towards her, and Laxus' weak resolve cracked.

He pulled the covers over himself and the girl he had come to love. Then the two lovebirds fell asleep, holding one another close and smiling.