Loke sat idly at Lucy's desk, he didn't know if she'd be back soon or not but he missed her admittedly. It had been a few days since her last job and after he went back, he felt almost a distance between the keys and their owner. He was right to be worried too, her keys had been sitting on her desk. If anything happened he didn't know where she was, or if she was ok. It wasn't like Lucy to leave her keys, she had only taken one, the small dog she called Plue. Loke was jealous. He had been hinting his feelings at Lucy for so long, but would she see it? It was true he was a serious lady's man while he hid in the guild but she knew about Karen. He sighed and was about to leave, angry at himself for being too much of a coward to tell her straight out how he felt, the sound of the door knob turning however, caught his attention.

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Lucy opened the door, her mind still swirling with the images Mira had painted, a small smile playing on her lips. She was almost compelled to know what kind of charm he really had that made the ladies swoon over him. As she walked into her room she stopped dead in her tracks, the tall, handsome spirit stood by her desk, a pained look on his face that only held slight relieve.

"Lucy!" His voice was low and gravel-y, just like a lions as he went to scold her, "Lucy, why would you leave your keys? What if something had happened?"

"Loke!" Her cheeks flushed, "I-I was just at the guild, I didn't think you'd notice." She looked down, embarrassed. She had honestly just needed some time to think, she needed to know if she really was ready to open her heart to someone else. "I'm sorr-" she couldn't finish her sentence before he strode across the room and embraced her tightly.

"I only care about protecting you, and it's incredibly hard to do so when you leave me behind," She was too surprised to say anything, "Lucy, we're partners and I want to be there for you when you need me." He held on longer than he was planning to and Lucy didn't mind, he was right, but how could she bring herself to say it?

"Loke.." she said quietly into his shoulder, "I'm sorry." She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him back, he was surprised at this notion and pulled back just slightly.

[[time skip]]

Lucy sat in the bath smiling lazily down at the water, Loke had stayed with her that afternoon, and she had taken Mira's advice to an extent, instead of rejecting his complements and comments, she giggled and blushed. She wasn't embarrassed either, Loke seemed to enjoy it too and she saw a smile play on his lips that had melted her heart just a little bit more than she was expecting. She sunk down into the water until just the top of her head was exposed. She relaxed and let her mind wander

Loke held out his hand to her and she twirled towards him in dance. They were surrounded by thousands of stars and instead of feeling lonely or empty in the great void, she felt safe in his arms. His arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her close so her back was against his chest. The other arm was extended with hers and they swayed to a soft melody. He pulled his arm in, embracing her and leaning down, he pressed his lips against her neck, sending a sweet shiver down her spine.

Lucy was startled out of her daydream by a noise outside. She quickly dried off and dressed in her night clothes before looking out of the window to see what was happening on the street. She couldn't see anything but she kept hearing the strange noise and was beginning to grow rather uneasy. Instinctively she reached for her keys and her fingers wrapped around Loke's key. The lion spirit appeared without persuasion. Looking around outside neither of them could find anything out of the ordinary.

"It could have been some kids looking to spook some folk," Loke shrugged closing her door behind him and locking it firmly. Lucy still felt uneasy.

"Loke, could you stay here tonight?" She blushed a deep red and almost regretted the words. He looked shocked but his smile returned and he nodded. He sat down on the edge of her bed and she crawled under the covers suddenly to tired to really even think straight.

"I'll stay as long as you want me too." He smiled as he leaned down, and planted a small kiss on the top of her head that she only grumbled about. Lucy hadn't minded at all, she wanted him to curl up under the covers with her and hold her close until morning. But he got up and sat at her desk, letting Lucy fall into a deep sleep that involved dreams of her sweet and compassionate spirit.