Wanted: One very nice, intelligent, cleaning fanatic to take care of one cranky, orderly, and work obsessed man in a wheelchair. Free room and board, 5,000 Jewels a week. Contact Mest for interview, 456-555-8898

"That's the ad?" the plump lady behind the window said and Mest nodded.

"That's pretty much it, does it need a little pizzazz?" he asked, grinning at her and hoping to maybe make this sour puss smile a little. She rolled her eyes and stamped the little blue card before asking him for the printing fee. He dug through his Rune Knight uniform and found his wallet, carefully pulling out the few bills and pausing for a second to look at the little picture behind the clear plastic.

It was a picture of Lahar and himself, they were in their dress uniforms, holding the rolled diplomas and both grinning in front of the Rune Knight Academy building. One of the last times Lahar had a real smile on his face, he'd trade that in for a scowl. The scowl only deepened when he became the youngest Captain ever appointed to the Enforcement Squad. Yet through everything, Mest could only see the young and smiling man in the slightly faded picture.

Mest paid the woman and turned to leave the building, it was the only personal stop he had to make today before the grocery store and then heading back to Lahar's house.

Era survived the events six months ago with new buildings replacing old ones and citizens now carrying on with their normal lives. The skyline was forever changed when the demons of Tartaros had blown up the Magic Council building before they started their vicious plans against magic and the people of Fiore.

Kids were back to playing in parks, people went to work and families were reunited. Life in Era was calm again and even the sun was shining over the bustling city. It was as if nothing had happened, that was life.

The only thing in Era that hadn't gone back to a normal daily life was Captain Lahar. He was in the building when it had exploded and though he lived through it, nothing was the same. The Captain was now confined to a wheelchair, stuck on permanent desk duty, and doing physical therapy three times a week.

Mages with healing magic tried to repair the damage but the Captain could still not walk. They blamed it on the fact that the damage was caused by something called Curse and magical damage was much more difficult to repair than normal injuries. The doctors said the surgeries were successful and his inability to walk was due to spinal trauma and that would take a while to heal but therapy would help. Though one doctor questioned Lahar's mental state and that had turned into a screaming match that left Lahar quiet and his pride hurting for days.

Mest was tired of all of it, he wanted his friend back. He could see Lahar drown in his own misery a little more every day. Every time Lahar looked up at the stairs to the Rune Knight Headquarters, he would sigh before wheeling himself to the new ramp they had to install. Rune Knights still whispered behind his back, and Mest knew that Lahar had heard them all. Even the people who kept calling him a headcase.

Fine, maybe Lahar was a headcase, but that wasn't any of their business. They weren't there when the Captain woke up screaming from nightmares of reliving the incident. They weren't there every time he gritted his teeth and tried for one more step with the therapist. They weren't there when he would sit in a dark living room and drink himself to blotto before crying into his hands. Fuck those people.

Mest walked by a group of young men who were laughing and enjoying the sunshine while trading stories of hot girls. Even something as simple as taking a walk with Lahar, was now impossible. People stared at him, his wheelchair would get stuck on something or stairs would be in their way. The more people pitied the Captain, the more he withdrew into himself.

"Lahar would kill me," he whispered as he walked into the small grocery store to pick up a few items he remembered. He knew his best friend would kill him for throwing another mental pity party for him. Lahar just wanted his life back and so did Mest.

He was just tired of taking care of Lahar. It didn't mean he no longer cared about his best friend, just that he wanted his own life back. Didn't want to get up early in the morning to be there if Lahar needed help. Didn't want to be trapped in the office till late at night or to see his friend lose it a little more each day. Lahar needed a caretaker and Mest was not the right guy for it. Not anymore. Not since he had to come clean about who he really is.

He stayed on with the Rune Knights instead of heading back to Fairy Tail because of Lahar. He owed the man so much and just could not give up, but he was at his wits end. Mest picked up the eggs, milk, cereal and bread before stopping and deciding on a bottle of whiskey. Perhaps he could hide this one from the Captain.

Deciding to hurry up and get back, Mest teleported back to the small light grey single story house. He saw the newspaper on the door step and grabbed it before checking the black iron mail box that was now too high for Lahar to reach. He should move that down, perhaps tomorrow.

As he entered the house, he saw Lahar sitting on the couch, with his navy blanket over his legs and reading a book. His wheelchair was tipped over and Mest said nothing as he walked over and lifted it back up, careful to lock the wheels so Lahar could get into it easier.

"Hey Lahar, how was your day?" he asked.

"Uneventful, did you receive my text message?" He asked as his amethyst eyes didn't move off the book he was reading.

"Heh," Mest shrugged as he walked into the brown, white and copper kitchen. He put the bags and mail on the counter before he pulled out his personal device. There was a text reminder from Lahar about picking up eggs and to not buy the kids cereal. Mest chuckled as he looked at the brightly colored box of Fruit Loops.

"Well too bad, guess you're stuck with Fruit Loops, it was on sale," he said to no response. Mest put away the groceries, looking at the almost empty fridge and realizing he should have done a bigger shopping trip. After that he sorted through the mail and hid the whiskey in one of the cabinets above the empty sink.

"You remembered to get whiskey at least," Lahar said as he turned the page before putting the red ribbon back in the book and setting it down. The Captain removed the blanket and reached for the wheelchair.

Mest watched and waited, he knew if Lahar wanted help he would ask. One thing he knew for certain was that he should not just up and do things for Lahar. That would only make him crankier and set the usually stoic and quiet man off. Lahar managed to get himself in the wheelchair without assistance and Mest took a seat in the recliner, making sure to put the sorted mail on the wooden coffee table.

Now all he had to do was spend the next week, answering phone calls and finding the right caretaker. Though as he heard Lahar grumble about something, he knew it was going to be a very long week and he should probably start by telling Lahar about the ad.

Lucy needed a steady job; the freelance gig was pretty much hit or miss. When she could sell an article, she was doing okay but when she couldn't, she was barely scraping by. Her novel was still being written, re-written, edited, and written again. She just couldn't concentrate on writing a love story when her own love life was non-existent.

It had been six months since Fairy Tail disbanded and everyone went their own directions. Freed tried to convince her to join Blue Pegasus, but Lucy was not ready to give up on her guild. Yukino wanted her to join Sabertooth but Lucy declined for the same reasons she gave to Freed. She wanted to follow Natsu but he needed the time to heal from Igneel's death and find his strength again. Though she wished he could at least write to her, just something so she knew he was okay.

Instead she applied as a freelance reporter for Sorcerer's Weekly and would take a random job from the Rune Knight Bounty Board. That only lasted a short while when the last bounty had turned into a total disaster and she was banned from the agency. Now all she could do was check in with Jason and practically beg him for anything, even fluff pieces on celebrity mages.

Well she hadn't gone as far as to pose for one of the pin-ups but as she looked at her bank account, she was considering it. Instead she sat on her living room floor and looked over the wanted ads. Lucy needed something soon, because her new landlord was stricter than her previous one. Living in Era was a pain in the butt, but this is where she was closest to her job and she needed to get out of Magnolia.

As she looked through the ads, with her pink highlighter hanging out of her mouth, she saw a bolded one and couldn't believe her eyes. Free room and board? 5,000 Jewels a week and all she had to do was take care of a guy in a wheelchair? Lucy could easily do that and have time during the day to work on her novel or doing writing for Jason. She could save some serious Jewels.

She got up from the dense white carpet and massaged her sore ass while making her way to the phone. Lucy dialed the number and almost dropped the phone when she heard the voice at the end of it.

"This is Mest, are you calling about the ad?" he asked, his voice a bit rushed with a little annoyance to it.

"Doranbolt?" she asked.

"Who is this?"

Lucy smiled, "Lucy Heartfilia."

She could hear a whistle at the other end of the line, "I remember you, can you come by, like right now?" He sounded a bit more cheerful, which she considered was a good sign.

"Where are you?"

"Rune Knight Headquarters, ask for Mest Gryder."

Lucy wrote down the location on the wanted ads in big pink loopy letters. "Huh?"

"Long story, Lucy but I can fill you in on the details later," he hung up and Lucy set down the phone. That conversation was odd, and she had no idea what the hell was going on. Though if he had a job for her, she'd call him King of Fiore for all she cared.

Lucy pulled herself together, keeping her makeup light and her outfit a simple pink summer dress with matching sandals. She had been sporting her hair down recently, but Era was like Hell's oven, so she tied it up with a big red bow. Figuring she looked respectful enough, she grabbed her keys and purse and with a spring in her step hoped to find a new job.

It took about twenty minutes at a decent move speed to make it to the headquarters, the large building a bit imposing. She saw Rune Knights and random people walk in and out, some with smiles and some in tears. One couple she passed were crying their hearts out over the loss of some personal items taken in a robbery. Lucy knew what that felt like and her heart sympathized with them. She ignored a couple whistles by a few passing Rune Knights and walked straight into the cooler building.

The main lobby was busy with the beautiful white marble floor, scuffed up in dirt tracks. Large high desks in dark wood sat against the far wall as three Rune Knights were busy handling the lines of citizens. She went for the desk to the far left; the line looked a little shorter.

As she stood there, trying to ignore the guy behind her who seemed to not understand hygiene or personal space, she heard a voice call her name.

"Lucy!" She turned and looked, seeing Doranbolt – Mest – waving and smiling at her. He was in his blue Rune Knight uniform with his raven black hair a bit longer than before, a tired smile on his lips and green eyes sparkling in probably too much caffeine.

"Excuse me," she whispered as she ducked out of the line and headed over to the man. Lucy held out her hand to him, "it's been a while, how are you?"

"Better, oh thank my lucky stars you answered the ad. I couldn't deal with any more interviews." He grinned at her and quickly snatched her hand before pulling her down a long corridor.

"Hey, hang on," she said with a light giggle. She'd never seen him quite so enthusiastic. Then again, she had only met him a small handful of times, but at least he was a familiar face.

"No time, come on, I have got to get this settled. I would like to have a date tonight," he looked over his shoulder and grinned at her. Lucy rolled her eyes and quickened her steps to keep up.

They stopped in front of a frosted glass and wood door and Mest whirled around on her. He eyed her for a moment and then smiled, "perfect. Okay so be your lovable self but take no shit from him."

"Wait, what if I don't like him?" she asked.

Mest ran a hand through his hair, his expression darkening. "Lahar is a good guy…"

"Wait! Lahar. Captain Lahar? Pain in my ass, trying to get my team thrown into prison, Lahar?" She said as she took two steps back and crossed her arms over her chest. There was no way in hell she was dealing with that pretentious and stupidly good-looking Rune Knight.

Lahar had been nice to her precisely once and that was after she almost died. Though with the shock and the pain meds she didn't completely recall the night he spent with her in the hospital. Just that he talked to her for a while and when she woke up the next day, he had fallen asleep by her bed and she had his cloak draped over her. Though one moment of being nice doesn't make up for all the times he yelled at or threatened her team with jail time.

"Lucy, please, just five minutes. If you don't like what I have to say, then you can go."

She eyed him wearily, "five minutes and you're giving me cab fare back to my apartment?" at the very least she could get a few Jewels out of wasting her time today. She had a real job to find.

Mest let out a breath, "okay deal. Look, Lahar was hurt in the Magic Council building explosion. He can't walk, we've tried everything. I've been taking care of him for months now and…" He paused, pursed his lips and his shoulders drooped a little, "I can't anymore. Lahar needs someone who isn't me. The doctors or healers don't think this is just a physical thing any more. He's dying inside, Lucy and I can't save my best friend."

Her heart broke, she knew that pain he was feeling. She felt the same way about Natsu, she couldn't be there to help him when he needed her most. When it's someone you love, it's harder to see them down a dark path and know that you can only go so far, if you get to go at all. Mest was barely holding it together, she could see that now and here she was a somewhat familiar face he felt he could trust with his best friend. Lucy knew her list of people she would trust to take care of Natsu if anything happened to her, would also be small.

Lucy took his hand and looked up into his eyes. She noticed the heavy dark circles under them and the lines on his forehead that come when brows knit together too often in worry. "Alright, I'll try. That's all I can do."

Mest pulled her into a hug, he kept whispering "thank you," as he damn near crushed her against his chest. Lucy returned the affection and slowly rubbed his back as she tried to reassure him that it was going to be okay. What he was going through and dealing with was not easy on anyone, and though she had barely a fraction of the story, all the pain was written on his face and heard in every word he spoke.

It took a few minutes for Mest to compose himself before he gave her a big grin and led her into the office.

"Mest, where have you been?" a stern and sharp voice said.

"Hey, good news Lahar. I found someone to help you around the house. She can cook, is very intelligent and one of the nicest people in Fiore." Mest stepped to the side and gently took Lucy's bare arm, making her step forward.

The office was stuffy but clean, everything was in its place and she could tell where the cleaning stopped by the lines of dust on the cherry wood bookcases. The walls were mostly a bare, a basic bitch cream color only broken up by a couple framed accommodations. Lahar's desk was almost in the dead center of the room and as he came around the solid wood structure, she understood why. Least he had room to navigate in the black and silver wheelchair.

"Excuse me?" He asked as he looked right at Mest, Lucy was feeling completely ignored and that might be okay. She had the impression that Mest may have forgotten to let Lahar know about putting out an ad for a caretaker.

"Crap," he mumbled, "hey Lucy can you give us a moment?"

"Sure," she said, using her best smile and trying to not upset the applecart any further. Lucy ducked out of the room and gently pulled the door shut before she leaned up against it and let out a breath.

"Do you have any idea who that was?" Lahar asked as he pushed up his glasses. He was agitated by the sudden intrusion, let alone the knowledge that his so-called best friend had decided to find him a caretaker.

He did not need a caretaker, only needed someone to help him with things he could not physically manage on his own. Lahar was in a wheelchair, not a complete invalid and he detested being thought of as weak. Let alone, someone from the most destructive team of legal mages in all of Fiore. Was Mest trying to have him murdered? Wasn't the explosion and this infernal contraption enough for one life time?

"Lucy Heartfilia," Mest replied as he took a seat on the edge of his desk. Lahar opened his mouth when Mest put a gloved hand up and let out a very audible sigh. "You need someone to help you. I can't do it all the time Lahar. I am your friend, but I need my own life too."

Lahar gripped the wheels of his chair, his arms trembling slightly in his ratcheting anxiety. "You should have said something, not just shown up with one of the most destructive people in Fiore."

"Her team was, but remember Lucy always went out of her way to try and control collateral damage or get people to safety. Remember when you met her at the Grand Magic Games?"

Lahar blinked and let go of the wheels as he put his hands in his lap. He studied his white gloved fingers for a moment, trying to remember what Mest was talking about. This could take a few seconds or a few minutes, his memory had a few problems since the explosion.

"Does this help? You talked to her after Minerva tried to kill her in the Naval battle. When she was in the hospital."

He searched his memory for that and could see bits of it. Lahar remembered the smell of the hospital, the way her hair was in knots against the white pillow. How she smiled at him and tried to talk to him, though it was clear that each breath was painful for her. He remembered holding a brush and sitting on the edge of the bed.

"You can sleep, I'll keep you safe," he whispered.

Mest nodded, "I was outside the door, the whole night. I heard everything Lahar. You two talked, you laughed with her. You brushed her hair, called her beautiful, and then yeah, you didn't move from her side the whole night."

"I barely remember, I bet she hardly remembers either. They had her on some very strong painkillers," as he said the word, Lahar looked away. He remembered the feel of her lips, the taste of the strawberry jello and how her large brown eyes glittered even under horrible fluorescent lighting.

"Yeah, I knew about that too." Mest said and Lahar was grateful that he had not said the last little fragment out loud. "She lost everyone dear to her, Fairy Tail disbanded and her team is scattered to the wind. Even if it's just holes in both your memories, maybe this is fate setting things right again."

"I was only doing my job, that night Mest. You're reading into things," he said as he studied a non-existent spot on the simple light grey linoleum floor.

Mest got off his desk and walked over to him, he leaned down and put his hands on the black armrests. Their noses were almost touching, "your job was to get a statement. You had her statement in precisely ten minutes. You and me by proxy, stayed for seven hours. Don't rewrite your own fucking history because it's inconvenient to the present."

The faux leather creaked under the grip of his friend and Lahar slid his head back as he looked into stern and tired emerald eyes. This close Lahar could see details he had been over looking for these last few months. Every line and crease on Mest's face were all telling the same story. He was tired, he was scared, and above all he cared.

Lahar's life wasn't the only one put on hold by the events of Tartaros. Mest had his memories back and knew who he was. Mest had been completely wrapped up in helping Lahar, that he didn't get a chance to discover or rediscover his old and new life. Lahar covered his friend's hand with his own and gave a reassuring squeeze.

"You're right. Show her in and then I am ordering you to take a two-week vacation."

"Thank you," Mest whispered before he rose to his usual height and turned to open the door. Lahar moved back behind his desk and waited as Mest spoke with Lucy.

How could he forget her so easily? Why was she here? What the hell did Mest write in the ad and how much was this going to cost him? The questions circled around in his mind before he noticed the door opening again and Mest leading a slightly distraught Miss Heartfilia back into the office.

"Hi again," she said, her voice a little shaky.

"Hello, I apologize Miss Heartfilia. It was not my intention to be rude." He replied, keeping his gaze on her eyes and not trying to look over her immaculate female form in a short pink dress. He always loved a woman with a perfect hourglass and Lucy's was one of the finest he had seen.

"Mest explained it to me. He felt pretty horrible over forgetting to tell you about the wanted ad. I just hope you two are okay."

Mest smiled at her, "we are good, right boss?"

"Yes, now Mest. Get on that vacation." Lahar ordered with a bit of a sly smile. Mest saluted him and using his spatial magic, teleported himself out of the room as if his hair was on fire. Lucy giggled and shut the door.

"So, do you mind if I start with some dusting? Looks like a few shelves need some work," she said as she hung her purse on the hook where Mest's cloak should go instead of draped wherever he felt like.

Lahar couldn't stop the smile that crept across his features, "Miss Heatfilia…"

"Lucy, please, Miss Heartfilia makes it sound like you are going to slap me in cuffs." She giggled and Lahar blinked, right before he had the most delicious vision of seeing her in cuffs. Lucy laid out on his bed with her hands cuffed to the walnut and iron open slat headboard and a piece of fine red silk over her eyes. Her body glistening in a light sheen of sweat from the pleasure he could inflict upon her under his careful mercy.

He cleared his throat, "Lucy, I would be delighted. Then when you are finished, some tea would be nice and then I have a few files I need assistance with."

She gave him a heart stopping smile before she nodded slightly, "yes, Captain."

For the first time in many months, Lahar felt his cock twitch, he looked down for a moment before taking a deep breath. As she started to move around the room, he forced his eyes to stay on the paperwork on his desk. Taking her home tonight was going to be interesting, after he had his therapy.

Normally when I write Lahar, he's a gentleman Dom and it'll be the same in this story. That's just the way I see him.

This will probably be like 2 - 3 chapters, so it'll be short. My muse loves Mard, but sometimes I need a break LOL

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