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virtualpiratementality · 5 years ago

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Avoiding Death is my Specialty

Hi guys! So the blog @incorrectfairytailquotesx on Tumblr has inspired a number of one shots from me. This is one that came to me from a quote they posted from the Percy Jackson series. I’m not too happy with the ending and may post an edited version, but for now, enjoy! :)

5/6/20 update- was going through old stories and wanted to update this one. Can be read separately, or as a prequel to ‘Flowers’ and then ‘Starry Date’. Will also be posted on ff.net

If you like it please share or leave a comment, constructive criticism welcome :)

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“Avoiding death is my specialty.”

Natsu Dragneel(Percy Jackson)

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“Come onn, Natsu,” I groaned, pulling the pink haired boy by the rest of the way off of the train. He collapsed onto the ground and I huffed, crossing my arms. “This is our first S-class mission. Well, officially. We can’t be late!” I said anxiously.

“Relax, Lucy” the puddle that was Natsu groaned. “The guy doesn’t live that far away,” he said before finally starting to push himself off of the ground. “And besides–when have we ever been on time?” He said, his attempt to grin cheekily at me ruined by the still green tint on his cheeks. I rolled my eyes before letting out a calming breath. Natsu was right about him not living too far away, at least.

“Aye!” Happy cried, flying around our heads. He stopped and clung onto me, “please can we eat first!? I haven’t eaten since breakfast!” He pleaded.

I glanced quickly at my watch, we did still have a little less than an hour before we needed to be at the requester’s house. “Yess,” I groaned. “Quickly, though, go fly ahead and find somewhere! We don’t have too long” I warned him.

“Thanks, Lucy!” He chirped before flying off towards the busier looking roads.

“I wish Gray or Erza could have come along with us,” I told Natsu as we slowly followed after, frowning.

“Why would you want Ice brains here!? And I’m just as strong as Erza!” He said, letting out a puff of fire.

“Of course you are,” I said, letting out a light laugh. “But this is our first S class mission, and it would make me more comfortable if we had more people…” I fretted.

“We’re a team!” Natsu exclaimed. “ And you know what that means?” I arched my eyebrow in an invitation. “That we’ll get through it together, Luce. Always.” He finished adamantly.

“You’re right!” I replied, sending him a soft smile. “We’ll finish this mission up and be back home in no time!”

“And anyways, it’s not our first S class quest!” He said, and I rolled my eyes already knowing what he was going to say. “The first was Galuna Island!”

“Yeah, and look at how well that turned out,” I said, letting out an unladylike snort. “Erza and Gray had to come help!”

“Well they did, but we could have done it without them!” He persisted.

“You’re right, of course we could have,” I said in a placating tone.

“NATSU! LUCY!” We looked towards the right where we could hear Happy’s voice and saw him hovering in front of a restaurant decorated with fishing nets and traps and lures. I scrunched up my nose and Natsu laughed at me.

“Are you regretting letting him pick the spot?” He teased, nudging my arm.

“Maybe a little bit…”

Lunch was, as always, a noisy and messy affair. We ended up getting to the contacts house on time, if not slightly out of breath. “See?” Natsu beamed. “Told ya we’d be fine!” I glared at him, gasping, as he knocked on the door.

“Jeez, Luce,” Happy started. “I think you need to get in better shape when we get home!” My growl was cut off as the door opened. I straightened up to greet the man at the door.

“Hello! Are you Jiro?” I questioned with a friendly smile on my face.

“Yes! Are you the team from Fairy Tail I was told would be coming?” He asked politely.

“Sure am!” Natsu replied enthusiastically, both of us presenting our guild marks. “And we’re ready to kick some bandit ass!” My polite smile became strained as Natsu spoke and I did a mental slap to my forehead. Jiro, however, thankfully just laughed and invited us into his house.

“I’m happy you made it here safely,” he said, face grave. “From what I understand they increased the difficulty of my request.” He said, before continuing on to explain at the nods of our head that we were aware of this. “Just a few days ago, I discovered that there were far more bandits than I first believed making their home on my land. It’s far too dangerous for me to go out there anymore, which is a problem for my family. I use that land to feed them, we have a large garden and when there is need, we hunt. With the recent bandit problem, however…” He trailed off.

“You haven’t been able to feed your family,” I responded gently. “We understand. We’ll take care of this problem so you won’t have to worry anymore,” I said assuredly.

“Thank you!” He said gratefully. “Please, go when you are ready and be careful. They’re scattered on the land throughout the day.” We nodded in understanding before heading out the door.

“You ready to get started!?” Natsu asked. “Got your keys, whip?”

“Of course I do,” I responded, scoffing. “Let’s go! I’d like to be done today or tomorrow to head back.” I added, and Natsu nodded, agreeing before we headed towards where Jiro had directed us.

We didn’t talk as we wandered our way through the land, making our way through the wooded area, listening intently to the sounds that surrounded us. We sent Happy ahead to scout, and he came back about ten minutes later beckoning us to follow him. We followed along stealthily, stopping at every twig crack and bush rustle. Soon we found ourselves crouching outside of a huge clearing with a garden in the middle and a large number of tents set up in the fields surrounding the garden.

I felt Natsu’s breath on my ear, and held in a squeak of surprise. “Luce,” he barely whispered, and I felt an involuntary shiver go through me at the feel of his breath on my ear. “I think it would be better to split up right now, go around to the right while I go left, we’ll do a head count and meet up on the other side.” I nodded in agreement.

It’s common for people to think that Natsu isn’t exactly a planner. Normally they would be correct, his impulsivity and love of just jumping in when we’re with our whole team is often the cause of too many of our troubles, but with how many of us there are with the full team, especially with how strong everyone is, it allows for more freedom.

However, when just us, Natsu tended to be much more careful, following a checklist and making a plan, even if he doesn’t always follow it. I used to think that it was because I wasn’t the best fighter, however I had been training with our team for quite some time now and had been getting stronger. I wasn’t going to complain however, I always enjoyed having a plan.

“Sounds good,” I replied. “just please be careful!” He gave me a ‘who, me?’ look that made me roll my eyes before we went our separate ways.

I unhooked my whip as I crept around the edge of the camp, careful for any leaves or twigs that may be on the ground. I was about halfway around with a head count of 14 when I heard heavy footsteps accompanied by a branch snap. I whirled around, crouching lower to the ground, one leg bent under me, the other stretched out. He hadn’t seen me yet and I took the opportunity to hide better as he wandered out of the camp.

I bit my lip, wondering if I should try to take him down now. If I could do it quietly, it would be one less person. If I took too long, it could alert the camp someone was here…I worried my lip between my teeth. Then again, if he woke up before Natsu and I had finished with a plan he could warn the camp and they would be more prepared…I let out a frustrated scream in my mind before pouting and waited for him to leave. Too many ‘what ifs’ for now.

It didn’t take me long to finish my circuit and meet Natsu at the other end. In total, we had a count of about thirty.

“I can cause a distraction on the other side and while their backs are turned we can jump em!” He whispered enthusiastically. I laughed and nodded.

“Seems like the best way to go, hopefully we’ll take a few down before they realize we’re even here!” I agreed. He grinned maniacally and with a barely noticeable flick of the wrist, called a ball of fire to his hand. Taking aim, he shot the fireball towards one of the tents in the middle. The man sitting in front shot up and frantically tried to put his tent out while the others near him started laughing and jeering. Until the fire spread and another tent caught on fire. Then another. More and more people were migrating over to frantically try and help put them out before it continued to spread.

Natsu glanced over and I grinned, giving him a thumbs up. I had equipped my Taurus Star Dress at this point and was ready to go! I felt the familiar feeling of my heartbeat picking up, and the excitement starting to build right before a fight. At my thumbs up, Natsu jumped into the clearing, incapacitating people left and right.

I jumped into the fray, cracking my whip and bringing people down, focusing on trying to keep anyone from sneaking up to Natsu or overwhelming him. My whip wrapped around ankles, wrists and necks, dragging them to the ground. Taurus’ Dress was the best for situations like this, increasing my strength when it was needed. Soon enough, however, the bandits understood what was going on and turned their attention from the burning tents to us and I knew the real thing would help a great deal. Grabbing for my keys, I called Taurus to come help us fight.

I had a few people coming just for me, but it seemed most of the bandits had deemed Natsu as the main threat, which only made things all the more easier for us. Natsu was enjoying himself a bit too much, cackling as he took people out with his flaming fists. Shaking my head and smiling, I kept fighting. We quickly fell into a pattern, me dragging someone away from Natsu when I could and Taurus knocking them out. Things were looking good for us!

Funny how it only takes a split second for things to change.

Out of nowhere, I felt something grab my legs. Looking down, I noticed vines and roots had clung to them and they were firmly holding me in place. I gave a few experimental tugs, but they were quickly climbing up my body, making it impossible to move. Taurus noticed what was happening and stopped swinging at the bandits, turning to help me before being entrapped in his own roots. “Luuuucy!” He called, hacking at his own restraints.

“I’m fine, Taurus! Go back!” I commanded. He looked at me hesitantly. “Go! I can call you again if I need you!” I said urgently, watching the vines quickly wrap up him. He grudgingly nodded.

“Yes, Luuucy. Stay safe!” He said before disappearing, the roots still molded in the position of his legs.

What was this!? No one had reported there being mages in with the bandits! I thought furiously. I couldn’t take the time to dwell on it, however. They were here, and we had to deal with them. I quickly began scanning for them as I switched outfits.

“Star Dress-Cancer!” I called, glancing over to check on Natsu. Natsu also had roots starting to reach towards him. He was throwing fire at his own restraints as well as other people, trying to keep them at bay. Happy was pulling on the back of his vest as he attacked the roots, trying to pull him free.

“Natsuuuu!” He cried.

I unsheathed the swords that came with the Cancer form and started to try and cut the roots away. It didn’t seem to matter how quickly I cut, and the roots were too thick to cut through in a single stroke and when I did manage to cut one more vine, two more seemed to pop up in its place.

Looking around frantically I tried to pinpoint the magic user. The roots were already up to my waist and reaching out to try and grab my wrists. “Natsu!” I cried desperately, pointing to the man who I had found to be controlling the roots. His hands palm down, back against the trees and eyes closed. His long dark hair loosely tied up and he seemed to almost meld with the tree behind him.

He paused his onslaught of fire to look in the direction, giving me a sharp nod. He pulled his arm back and gathered up a ball of fire. I went back to fighting the roots, trying to cut the ones grabbing my hands away. The ones around me were up to my chest now and had immobilized me. They drew around my shoulders before working back down, drawing my arms close to my body and squeezing tight, leaving it much harder for me to breathe as I struggled fruitlessly to get out.

I looked up at a burst of raw red power coming from the opposite direction, and screamed as it headed towards Natsu. Although the roots hadn’t immobilized the top half of his body, he still couldn’t move out of the way. It hit him in the back like an arrow and I watched in horror as his eyes went wide. As his flames died out. The roots quickly disintegrated away as he fell, allowing him to hit the ground, face forward. I saw the blood pouring from the wound in his back. He struggled to his knees but was hit by the magic - formed arrow again. And again and again and again. I couldn’t see anything else as I looked into his eyes and saw the pain there. I didn’t even notice Happy collapsing a few feet away, staring at Natsu in shock.

“NATSU!” I yelled, trying to fight back the tears. “STOP IT!” I screamed desperately at the man who was coming up behind him. His red eyes-the same color as that awful magic-had a strange glow and his face held a manic smile. Not like the one Natsu wore when excited - no this was a twisted manic, eyes holding no passion or warmth. His dark hair was cut short, flying every which way. He stood tall over Natsu, looking down on him. I lost the battle, and tears broke through, also coming from an angry desperation to get to him. He looked up towards me. “Natsu…” I whispered, my voice breaking as I saw the fire start to die out of his eyes, his eyelids slowly closing.

“Natsu!” I cried louder. “Wake up, Natsu, there are still asses to kick!” I yelled desperately, tears continuing to spill. Nothing. There was no movement at all. His back looked like a pincushion and I couldn’t see any of his skin. His blood was dripping down his body, soaking into the dirt on the ground. His eyes, which had just been alight with excitement and determination…then pain, were closed now. “NATSU!” I screamed in agony.

“Awh, how sad,” The red eyed man cooed. “But don’t worry, you’ll soon be joining him.”

“I will get out of here,” I growled to the stranger . “I will and I swear to Mavis it doesn’t matter if you’re gone I’m going to destroy you”

“Oh please,” He sneered. “Do you know how many times I've heard declarations of revenge?” He asked, eyes seeming to grow more wild, a dangerous aura beginning to surround him. “And do you know how many failed? Well...I’m still here, aren’t I?” He asked with a nasty smirk. “Do you even know who I am?” He asked gleefully.

“I don’t need to know who you are!” I spat back. “I don’t give a shit who you are! I’m not them, and I swear you will regret hurting Natsu!” I declared forcefully.

“I guess I’d better just dispose of you as well then,” he sneered, bringing his arm back. I stared defiantly at him even as an arrow formed in between his thumb and first two fingers.

“WAAAAAAAHHHHHHH” it was then that I came back to my senses and noticed Happy dive bombing the red-eyed man. Tears were running down his face and Happy dodged the man’s swats faster than I’d ever seen him move.

“HAPPY! HAPPY GO FIND HELP!” I screamed. “GO GET A DOCTOR! I’ll have them gone by the time you get back.” He seemed to snap out of the red haze he was in and flew up high. He nodded at me and turned to fly off. Before I could even blink he was gone.

The red eyed man made his way towards the mage restraining me and laughed. “My roots aren’t nothin to mess with, girlie.” He smirked at me.

“It’s a good thing I’m not either,” I said, smirking right back. Closing my eyes I took a deep breath as I let my anger, my hatred for these two men who were trying to rip away the heart of Fairy Tail. Rip away the soul of the man who had shown me an adventure I didn’t even know I needed.

In that moment, I felt it. The bright, gentle magic that lived inside of me. I breathed in, concentrating, and funneled my adrenaline, anger and hurt into that well. I then breathed out, relaxing. “Star Dress-Leo” I whispered and the magic took hold. My magic grew, and I felt more powerful. I opened my eyes, staring at them before saying in a louder, clearer voice. “Regulas burst!” My magic burst out in a nova, disintegrating the ties and allowing me to move again. Before they could utter a word I grabbed three keys, slashing them through the air.

“Open! Gates of the Earth! Capricorn, Taurus, Virgo!”

A bright light flashed in the clearing, leaving behind the three spirits.

For the first time, I saw fear entering the eyes of the mages. “Th-three spirits?” A nasty grin spread across my face, and I felt a pang of panic at first about how much I was enjoying their fear.

Capricorn and Taurus immediately attacked the men, striking so fast they didn’t even have time to draw their power. They were hit with an onslaught of fists and feet, giving Virgo time to dig a trap behind them. Already I could feel my adrenaline - fueled power start to recede. I clung on desperately as Taurus and Capricorn fought and tried to knock the men back into the trap. Gripping my whip I joined the fray. With the three of us physically attacking, the red-eyed man and the root manipulator were soon overwhelmed and even with them fighting back, It didn’t take long before the two men were knocked out.

My vision became blurry and I fell to my knees, keeping hold of my magic as my spirits pulled the men into the dirt hole that Virgo had created. They sealed them there, the only things above ground being their heads.

“Virgo, Taurus, go back. I will stay here with Lady Lucy until Happy comes with help. I will use my own power to stay here” Capricorn instructed. They nodded to him, understanding that it had taken a lot of magic to open and keep open the three celestial gates. I didn’t hear much else as the spots went blurry and my vision darkened. I felt the pull on my power lessen and finally relaxed.

When I woke up it was to a room that I didn’t recognize. I could hear murmuring in the background, along with the crackling of a fire. My head pounded and I felt week. I wracked my brain, trying to remember what happened. I slowly opened my eyes, and was thankfully met with dim and took in my surroundings.

I turned to my right and gasped, seeing Natsu on another cot. His eyes were blurry light. I rapidly blinked, trying to rid myself of the blurriness. Another throb of pain hit my head and I groaned, using an insane amount of strength just to bring my heavy arms up to my head.

“...Lucy?” I sucked in a breath and my heart stuttered as I heard the voice and everything came rushing back. Pushing aside my own pain, I looked up to see a sight that filled my heart with warmth.

Natsu was sitting in a bed next to me, Happy clinging to him and crying. Natsu was petting him as he hugged him back.

“Natsu?” I whispered. He looked up and gave me a huge grin, but I could see the relief in his eyes.

“Lucy! Welcome back to the land of the living!” He said teasingly.

“What happened!? I thought you were dead!” I said tearfully, sitting up slowly to assess any damage. I swung my legs off the bed to face him, planting my feet on the floor.

“Oh, Natsu!” I exclaimed, relieved. I flung myself at him, stumbling between the beds and wrapping my arms around him, squishing Happy between us. He hissed and threw one arm back against his bed to brace us, while the other came up around my waist to hug me to him. Tears of relief were making their way down my face as I clung to him.

“Hey!” Happy protested, squished between us.

“And you!” I exclaimed. “I ended up passing out I guess,” I said sheepishly. “what happened?”

Wiggling out from between us, Happy started to explain. “I came back to town to find Jiro and told him to get a doctor and go find you guys in the clearing with the farm. Then I flew as fast as I could to get Wendy and brought her and Carla here! I knew Natsu would need her help. Your goat-man said that you had just fainted from using too much magic. And now Wendy’s sleeping in the other room cuz Carla said she used too much of her magic.” He said. I grabbed him and hugged him tight to my chest, where I was still against Natsu.

“You’re a hero, Happy! Without you we’d probably still be out there, and Natsu could’ve been…” I trailed off, not even wanting to finish the sentence. “Oh, Natsu…” I said, turning back to him. “I was so worried. I thought I’d lost you, and…and I don’t know what I would’ve done. You…you have no idea what that would’ve done to me, “ I choked out, trying to hold back even more tears.

“Oh Luce, didn’t you know?” I looked at him quizzically. Didn’t I know what? Was there some kind of dragon slayer thing he hadn’t told me about? “Avoiding death is my specialty!” He finished cheekily.

I groaned and smacked my forehead onto his chest. I could feel him laugh as he tightened his arm around my waist, his other hand coming up to run through my hair.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Luce. I don’t know what happened out there and you’ll have to fill me in, but i’m just so happy that you’re okay.” He said, voice strained. I froze as I felt him place a kiss on the top of my head. My heart raced and warred with my mind.

He doesn’t think of you like that, he’s just happy you’re okay!

But who kisses their friends!? I’ve been in trouble plenty of times and Gray’s never kissed me!

My thoughts were cut short as the door banged open, and I shot back and quickly stood, blocking Natsu from whoever had burst in. I took a defensive stance, one hand flitting around my waist attempting to find my whip, before remembering my injuries. I swayed on my feet as I fought through a dizzy spell, and tried to focus on who had come through.

“Lucy! Natsu!” A commanding voice rang through the room and I relaxed as I felt Natsu put his feet on the ground and put one arm around my waist, and another grabbing my wrist to steady me.

“I am here to help!” Erza declared, hands on hips and requipped into a nurses outfit. I snorted as she walked over to me, and helped me over to my bed. “Doctor’s orders, you are both to stay in bed until tomorrow.” She lectured strictly.

She was followed in by Gray, “I knew we should have gone with you, flame for brains.” He scoffed, but I could see the underlying worry and rolled my eyes.

“WHAT!?” Natsu yelled. “We handled it just fine, and when I was down Lucy kicked ass! We didn’t need you!” He shot back and I blushed, ducking my head.

“NO FIGHTING” Erza roared, and both boys shrunk away meekly.

I shook my head in exasperation and looked towards Natsu. We shared a smile before I sunk back into my bend, lending half an ear to Erza’s continued lecture as I started to sink back into a sleep.

Even if Natsu doesn’t think of me that way, at least he cares. And as long as I’m with Fairy Tail I'm surrounded by my family and that’s all that matters.

That was my last thought before I gave in to sleep.

#fairytail #nalu #ft nalu

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