Hey, guys! I know I'm back sooner than I should be, and I know I should probably update everything else, but I decided that my plate will be emptier if I finish this completely so then I can focus on updating Torn only, and work at my own pace on my Naruhina fanfic, and my original book. So sorry to everyone who reads Torn, and expects a chapter. Hopefully I'll finish this pretty soon, so please hang on a bit longer. Sorry! :3 Anyway, without further ado--

Mira: Hey! You almost didn't let me talk!!

Meena: Oh, sorry, Mira! Go ahead!

Mira: I cannot believe you almost did the announcement instead of me! 

Meena: I said I'm sorry, Mira!

Mira: Tch, anyway, without further ado, here is chapter 46... I guess...

            "Do you have it memorized completely?" Layla asked, eyeing her worriedly.

            "Yes," Lucy said grimly, going over the words of the spell in her head.

            "And you understand how to channel your magic?" she asked.

            "Yes," Lucy said.

            Layla had explained how it worked and what Lucy was supposed to feel as she channeled her magic as quickly as possible. Of course, since Lucy had never done magic before, and it was also mostly based on feeling, she had her doubts about it, but she was confident she could do it. She had to.

            Layla gripped Lucy's shoulders tightly, and stared at her, the worry lines that usually didn't appear creased her forehead, visibly marking that she was indeed older than Lucy.

           "I'll be fine, Mama. I can do it," Lucy said, attempting to reassure her, though she too had butterflies in her stomach. "Plus, I'm not alone."

            Layla cracked a smile at this and nodded her affirmation.

            "No, you're not. You've made some great friends over the years, I've been watching. And that ryu, Natsu, he seems like a very good person. You chose him well. I could not be prouder of the person you've become."

            Lucy's throat constricted as tears threatened to spill. She had never thought she would be able to hear those words come from her mother's mouth. Layla pulled her into a hug, and she kissed her forehead as Lucy cried, taking in her mother for what was probably the last time.

            Layla finally pulled away, and wiped away Lucy's tears, her own eyes glistening.

           "Will I be able to see you again?" Lucy asked despite knowing the answer.

            Layla smiled sadly, and caressed her cheek.

            "No. Unfortunately, I only stored enough magic in you to see you once, but never doubt that I will always be watching over you. Now, go show me who you've become Princess Lucy Heartfilia of Fiore."

            For once, Lucy didn't hate the title of princess associated to her name. Instead, coming out of her mother's mouth, pride filled her. She was Princess Lucy Heartfilia of Fiore, and for the first time, she was proud to be the princess of her kingdom.

             She nodded, grinning at her mother.

             "That's my girl," Layla said softly. She leaned her forehead against Lucy's, and whispered, "Goodbye, my star."

             A bright light blinded Lucy before she was struck by pain again. She sat up gasping; her abdomen feeling like it was on fire with that sole movement. Her surroundings were hazy for a moment. She closed her eyes, trying to beat back the pain in order to concentrate on where she was. She took deep breaths, and opened her eyes once again. This time, she could clearly see everything. Craggy rocks surrounded her, and off in the distance, she could hear the now familiar sound of cannon fire. She looked down, the weight on her legs registering. A pink head of hair identified the limp body lying over her legs. Panic seized her as she realized Natsu wasn't moving. She forced herself up, gritting her teeth, and tried to nudge Natsu on to his back. After a couple tries, she managed, and Natsu flopped over on to his back. Blood was still streaming down his face, and his breathing seemed to be labored. She pushed his pink hair back, and saw a nasty cut on his forehead. She was sure he had a concussion as well as suffering from blood loss. If he did indeed have a concussion, he should not be asleep right now.

            She slapped his face hard, calling his name. The first couple times, it didn't work, but by the fifth slap when his cheek was really getting red, his eyes slowly opened.

            "Lu...cy," he rasped.

            "Yes, that's me. Come on, Natsu, stay with me," she said, caressing his cheek.

            His eyelids fluttered as he tried to focus on reality, and Lucy started talking to him, hoping her voice would help him concentrate.

           "Natsu, I need you to wake up. I know it's hard for you right now, but I have a way to defeat Acnologia—no, to kill him, for good."

            This seemed to pull Natsu out of his confused stupor as his eyes snapped fully open, and they focused entirely on her.

            "Did I hear that correctly or was I dreaming?" he asked, hope creeping into his voice.

            Lucy cracked a smile despite the pain in her abdomen, and nodded.

           "I have a way to kill Acnologia, but I need you to fly me back over there, okay? Can you do that for me?"

           He struggled to sit up, and put a hand to his head. He glanced at her nonetheless, and smirked.

          "Of course, Luce."

            The familiar nickname sent pleasant chills down her spine, and she grinned, holding her arms out towards him. He wrapped his scaly tail around her waist as she wrapped her arms around his neck, and stood up uneasily; shaking out his wings in the small space they had taken refuge in. He rested his head in the crook of her neck, breathing heavily.

            "Would you please grab my horns? It'll help me concentrate," he breathed.

           His warm breath on her neck whipped her mind into a frenzy, but she grabbed his horns nonetheless and they immediately started to vibrate against her skin. His eyes darkened to onyx as he raised his head to look at her. She swallowed hard as she watched his Adam's apple bob up and down. With great effort, she ripped her eyes away, and gestured to the opening, not trusting her voice at the moment. He got the message and cleared his throat, launching both of them out of the small shelter he'd hidden them in.

            Natsu had apparently managed to fly them a good distance away from the battle before collapsing because they were well out of harm's way. They didn't speak to each other as they got closer and closer to the raging battle between Acnologia, the ryus, the army that Erza had brought with her, and Fairy Tail. It seemed they were managing to keep him somewhat at bay, but Lucy knew he wasn't attacking because he was too busy looking for her. Well, he was going to get her.

            She ran her tongue along the inside of her lip as she remembered her mother's instructions.

            "You have to concentrate on the life around you, the energy humming through every fiber of your being, connecting you to the world around you. You then draw off that energy, and infuse it into the words of the spell.

            "Remember, this spell is a spell connected directly to the heavens, which also means that you'll be liberating the celestial spirits that have been shackled to the Earth. This will require a lot of energy, but I'm sure you can do it."

           Lucy nodded, watching as Layla bit the inside of her lip, seeming nervous to tell her something.

            "What is it, Mama?" Lucy asked, concerned.

            "Just, if at all possible... I know this will probably make you uncomfortable, but I really need him to hear this! Please tell Acnologia that I really did love him, and I forgive him."

            Lucy tried not to gag at the notion of her mother loving Acnologia, and instead focused on her surprise that her mother was basically forgiving Acnologia for murdering her.

            "Why would you forgive him?"

            Layla smiled sadly at her.

           "Because despite everything he's done, somewhere deep down is the boy who asked me to play with him that fateful day."

            Lucy was somewhat confused by her mother's answer, but nodded anyway.

            Lucy blinked as she realized how close they were already, and as Acnologia's blue slits settled on her, Natsu growled against her.

            "It's ok," she whispered into his ear, rubbing his horns soothingly.

            Acnologia roared, and shook out his wings, effectively ridding the immediate area around him of their comrades as everyone was blown away. Lucy's hair whipped into her face as the gust reached their position, and Natsu seemed to be struggling to keep them from flying away.

            "Alright, Nats," Lucy said as soon as they stabilized. "I need you to drop me."

            Natsu's head swiveled towards her so fast she was pretty sure she heard his neck snap.

            "You want me to what?" he snarled.

            "You need to drop me," she repeated.

            "I heard you the first time! But there is no way in hell I am dropping you!" he yelled, the tips of his hair bursting into flame.

            "You have to trust me! You need to do this for my plan to work!" she yelled back, her patience wearing thin.

            He shut up, and stared at her, though they didn't have much time as Acnologia was already making his way towards them.

            "You said you believed in me earlier," she said softly. "Believe in me now."

            His gaze wavered as he scanned her face, and he sighed, glancing towards Acnologia who was fast approaching.

            "Come back to me," he said seriously.

            Lucy smiled as she stared into the green and onyx eyes she loved so much, and she leaned forward to place her lips against his. It was a chaste kiss, but she knew both of them understood the other perfectly.

             "I promise," she said as she pulled away.

            He scanned over her face one more time, as if trying to memorize her features, before his warm tail was no longer around her waist, and his horns were no longer vibrating against the skin of her palms. She was rapidly dropping in the sky, and rather than be scared, she swiveled her body so that she was looking directly down at Acnologia who had launched off the ground and up towards her. She closed her eyes and concentrated, trying to focus only on herself. All the sounds from outside slowly disappeared, and all she could hear was her own heartbeat. She zoned in on that until her heartbeat was practically roaring in her ears, and then she felt it, like a current of energy connecting every part of her, mind and body, to everything around her. It crackled against her skin, the sensation completely new to her. She could feel Natsu's energy quickly dropping away from her and the energy coursing through the earth rapidly approaching and last but not least, Acnologia's giant mass of energy closing in on her.

            Acnologia's energy was different than the rest, like it was thick and muddy, not running as smoothly as everyone else's. It seemed tainted, and she could detect strong waves of sadness and anger radiating from it. Lucy frowned as she tried to dig deeper, vaguely aware that Acnologia now had her clasped in his talons. There! Something that shone pure. She reached out to touch it, their energies entangling. She suddenly found herself in a grassy field standing in front of weeping willow. Nearby was a small stone cottage with smoke floating out from the chimney, the smell of baking bread in the air. She heard laughter, and looked to the weeping willow to see a boy who looked to be round ten years old with tan skin, dark blue spiky hair that was down to his shoulders, blue marks on his skin, and sparkling blue eyes that looked exactly like Acnologia's except that there was no trace of the coldness his usually held. Instead they shone with mirth and life.

            They boy was sitting under the tree, laughing as he poked a girl in the ribs, tickling her. The girls shrieked with laughter, her blonde hair whipping around her face messily as she twisted and turned to avoid the boy's fingers. As soon as Lucy saw the girl's brown eyes, she realized with a start that that was her mother, Layla, when she was younger, which meant that the boy was indeed Acnologia.

             "Acno! Stop!" Ten-year-old Layla shrieked as she writhed on the ground.

            "Never!" Acnologia laughed, but despite saying that, he stopped and grinned as he watched Layla struggle to calm down.

            "Why'd you suddenly tickle me out of nowhere?" Layla pouted once she'd regained her breath.

            "Because I like hearing your laugh," Acnologia grinned.

            Layla's cheeks darkened and she turned away quickly, trying to hide the smile on her face.

            "Why are you hiding your face, weirdo?" he laughed, poking her cheek.

            Lucy's breath caught in her throat as Natsu's voice echoed in her head calling her weirdo.

            "I-I am not!" she protested, twisting away from him.

            "Are too!" he said, grinning as he sidled closer to her.

            "Am not!" she protested weakly, grinning along with him.

           "Are—"

            "Layla! Acnologia! Come and eat a bite!" a voice yelled, and Lucy turned to see a woman with blue hair poking her head out of the cottage window.

            "Coming, Mom! Come on let's go!" Acnologia said, grabbing Layla's hand and running towards the cottage, both of them laughing the whole way.

            Lucy walked slowly to the window of the house, and looked into the dining room. Layla and Acnologia were sitting side by side on one of the wooden benches, eating their hearts out with three other children around the table, a girl and two boys all with blue hair similar to Acnologia's. A man walked into the kitchen, the same blue markings that Acnologia had apparent against his own tan skin. He walked around the table to wrap an arm around his wife's waist, and kiss her cheek, laughing heartily as he watched all his children and Layla eating like pigs.

            So this was—or had been—Acnologia's family. This was what her mother's life with him had been like. She was starting to see what Layla meant when she said that she knew somewhere deep down was the boy who had asked her to play, because through the little time she had watched him, he had reminded her enormously of Natsu. This was why her mother had never thought of using the spell she'd acquired to kill Acnologia. She couldn't, she had all their good memories, hoping for the person he used to be, this happy-go-lucky kid whose grin could melt anyone's heart. But she knew that although this Acnologia was preserved in a memory, the present day Acnologia was irredeemable.

            Suddenly, she felt as if someone was pulling her from her belly button, and she found herself in an entirely different scene. It was the same cottage, but it was half destroyed, the grass burned and brown, the weeping willow under which Layla and Acnologia had played was aflame, and worst of all, scattered on the ground were five bloody and burnt corpses Lucy recognized as Acnologia's parents and his three younger siblings by their charred blue hair. A strangled sob was heard, and Lucy turned to the right to see a now older Layla, looking around sixteen, fall to her knees. Next to her, an older blonde with stern features, and wrinkles around her eyes stood stonily, brown eyes full of sorrow. It was Lucy's grandmother.

            Layla's eyes widened and she struggled quickly to her feet. "Acnologia," she choked out. Lucy swiveled to the left to see an equally much older Acnologia panting as he stood in front of the carnage, eyes wide and disbelieving. His spiky blue hair was now down to his waist, and his muscles and jaw line were clearly defined now. Gone was the skinny ten-year-old, and instead here stood a man, but a man that was about to be broken.

            He stepped slowly towards the nearest corpse, his only sister, completely oblivious to Layla apparently, and his knees buckled beneath him. He took her delicately in his arms, her head lolling back. Tears glistened in his eyes as he took in her open lifeless blue eyes, and Lucy could feel all the sadness and anger radiating off of him, probably because she was in his consciousness at the moment. His emotions were so overwhelming, she felt like seven foot waves were crashing against her repeatedly.

            Acnologia threw back his head, and screamed his heart out. It was long and sorrowful, like a wolf's when they were mourning. It was heart wrenching, and Layla's sobs only increased as she repeated his name over and over. Lucy couldn't bear it anymore, and severed the connection, detangling her flow of energy from Acnologia's. She opened her eyes to meet Acnologia's blue ones as she was clutched in his talons. Her cheeks were wet, and she knew she had been crying. The dragon's eyes were no longer cold, but sorrowful and distraught. A low whine emitted from his throat, and he shook his large head, as if he was also stuck in the memories. Lucy shook her own head, trying to rid her head of the memories and re-concentrate on the task at hand. No matter what had happened in the past, she had to kill him.

            She would not make her mother's mistake.

            Taking advantage of Acnologia's confusion, she reconnected with all the flows of energy excluding his. It was easier now that she'd done it once. The words floated into her mind, and she wasn't quite sure if she was speaking aloud or not.

"Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens...

All the stars, far and wide...

Show me they appearance...

With such shine.

Oh Tetrabiblos...

I am the ruler of the stars...

Aspect become complete...

Open thy malevolent gate.

Oh 88 Stars of the heaven... Shine!

URANO METRIA!"

            She felt power coursing threw her, her veins burning. She didn't realize Acnologia had let her go, or that she was floating in the sky. The only thing she was aware of was how connected she felt to the universe around her. She felt at one with the world and the heavens. Planets jumped into being beside her, and shot towards Acnologia with incredible force, one after the other seeming unrelenting. A golden halo created from the energy flowing into her emitted from her body, blinding Acnologia who was trying in vain to fight back; his regeneration couldn't keep up with the assault, the glowing blue fading into nothingness.

            The Earth shook violently, and suddenly twelve golden orbs shot towards her, forming a circle around her as the beings came into view. She recognized Aquarius amongst them, now sporting a blue scaled tail, Scorpio with a scorpion's tail, Loki now with animal ears sticking up from his hair, Aries with ram horns on either side of her head, and Virgo who was for some reason still in her maid costume. She didn't recognize the rest, but she knew that they were the twelve Zodiacs, the golden celestial spirits.

            A thirteenth orb, much larger in size than the others had been, came to a stop above her, and an imposing being came forth. He was a giant man with blue skin and armor crossing his arms over his chest plate and he had an extremely long mustache shooting down from either nostril. On his head sat a golden crown adorned with jewels resembling stars: the Celestial Spirit King.

            All the celestial spirits thus assembled smiled at her, and connected their energy with hers, empowering her attacks, and driving Acnologia further back, the planets piercing his tough hide and exposing meat and bone.

            Just when Lucy felt as if she could not take another second of the overwhelming power burning its way through her and into the spell, Acnologia let out one last blood curdling cry before his giant body fell to the floor with a loud thud. Unable to take it anymore, Lucy cut off the flow of magic, closing her body and mind off from the world. She only had a moment to relish the magnitude of the feat she'd just pulled off before exhaustion took over, and she fell into darkness. 

Meena: Well, what did you guys think? Did you like the chapter? What are your thoughts? I'd really like to know since this book will be coming to a close soon. I'll also be doing a special chapter at the end of this as a thank you probably from Natsu, so think and tell me what scenario you guys would want. And if it's something completely different, like a scene with their kids only, let me know! I'll be happy to do it!

Mira: Did you say children??? Aaaaahhh!! Fangirl overload! Oh, the Nalu children will be so cute!!

Meena: Haha, that's true. But yours too, Mira. 

Mira: *blushes intensely* S-Say what??

Meena: Yup! Hehe, I took a lot of time trying to figure out all the kids and their ages, but apparently I still screwed up... I'll do it over again.

Mira: *has heart eyes* Waaah! I can't wait!

Meena: Hehe, Me neither, which is why I also want to solely focus on this for a bit! Now, it's pretty late so I should go to sleep. Mira, would you do the honors?

Mira: *still daydreaming* A-Ah yes! Of course! I wasn't at all thinking of Laxus and I's kids!

Meena: Uh, okay...? Whatever.

Mira: Please vote, comment, and share! Meena-chan works really hard on this fanfic so it would be much appreciated! Please leave your feedback so Meena can grow as a writer! 

Both: Bye and see you later! Ja ne!