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tokkias · 9 months

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good intentions ship: natsu dragneel x lucy heartfilia summary: Repressing any lingering feelings he might have for Lucy should have been smooth sailing for Natsu. He’s been doing it successfully for years, that is, until one night where he’s given just a taste of what a relationship with her could be like. Suddenly, seeing other men make their move makes his heart hurt in a way that feels a little too much like loss. ao3

written for @vikingpoteto as part of the @allaboutnalu gift exchange! all of your prompts were sooo bangin but i ended up latching onto jealous natsu and sprinkled in a little bit of fake dating in there too! i hope you enjoy it! (i wasn't able to shoehorn bonvoyage in there but i did listen to it on repeat for like a month because of your though, so i hope that counts for something) thank you to @kaleighkarma for beta reading :]

Natsu never really liked stuffy parties like these. He never liked the dress codes that made him wear shirts with too-tight collars and jackets that restricted his arm movement. This was much more Lucy’s vibe, which was how he ended up here in the first place.

When her turn to choose their job rolled around, she had picked out something low-stakes—something hopefully not even he could screw up. They had been hired as security for some fancy charity gala, should trouble arise. Natsu knew from experience that these types of jobs never came with much action; it was simply a precautionary measure.

That’s why Lucy loved these jobs—they were low-risk but high-reward. Natsu, on the other hand, didn’t care so much about the reward so long as he got to kick some ass, which was never guaranteed on jobs like this one.

They’d been promised free food—something Natsu had taken full advantage of—but the guy manning the buffet had cut him off long ago, and now he was left to his own devices, roaming around the floor in hopes that something interesting might happen.

He wasn’t left waiting much longer before that something came in the form of someone grabbing his wrist, having him immediately turn on his foot with the intention of fighting off whoever was dumb enough to pick a fight with him. He was entirely ready to snatch his arm away and throw a punch, but he stopped in his tracks as he came face-to-face with Lucy. She didn’t give him any time to question as to why she had grabbed him, quickly pulling him to her side and into what seemed like a conversation between her and some party guest that he didn’t recognise.

“This is my boyfriend, Natsu,” she introduced, to his immediate confusion.

The B-word was not one Lucy ever threw around lightly. It was one Natsu heard frequently as a result of misunderstandings—some people would simply see him and Lucy together and come to their own conclusions. Though it wasn’t ever something he cared about, Lucy had always adamantly corrected them over it.

Natsu never really got why.

He didn’t care what other people thought of their relationship, much less strangers they might never meet again. Though many thought him oblivious, he was well aware of the whispers that followed them around the guild, speculating on the nature of their relationship. To be honest, he didn’t really care what they thought about it either. People could speculate all they wanted, but at the end of the day, his relationship with Lucy—whether they were friends or something more—was between them and no one else.

He could smell the alcohol on his breath, and he could see the way his gaze trailed down the low-cut dress that exposed her ample cleavage. His skeevy behaviour and the way that Lucy clung to his side hinted towards something a little different than a sudden change of heart on her behalf.

Tossing an arm around her shoulder, Natsu pulled her into his side, a gesture she eagerly accepted by slipping her arm around him and resting her head gently on his chest.

“Hey,” Natsu greeted, an air of politeness only thinly veiling the venom that seeped into his voice.

If Lucy’s plan was to have him intimidate this guy, it was clearly working. His gaze had moved away from Lucy, now frantically looking anywhere but her. Natsu wasn’t the biggest guy, but that didn’t matter when he knew how to carry himself in a way that tended to intimidate people who weren’t down for a fight.

He puffed his chest and glared down at him as if to say, she’s mine, and I don’t like to share.

Based on the look of fear in his eyes, her plan was working.

“I, uh-” the man stuttered, “It’s uh, good to meet you.”

He was almost tempted to growl at the poor sod, but he felt bad enough as is.

“I gotta go,” he mumbled, all interest in Lucy suddenly fizzling away. “I’ll maybe see you later…”

He didn’t wait for a reply before he was scurrying off with his tail between his legs.

“Thanks,” she murmured. “Sorry for springing that on you, he was just creeping me out, and I thought maybe if he knew I was with you, he’d leave me alone.”

“It’s no problem,” he assured with a shrug, and really, it wasn’t.

Natsu had always promised to protect her; it didn’t matter if that was from the imminent threat of death or just some creepy guy at a party. Even as the creep scurred well away from them, Lucy didn’t detach herself from his side, instead dropping her arm from around him while still sticking close to him.

“Sorry,” she murmured. “Can you stay?”

She didn’t have to elaborate on why—he already knew—not that he needed a reason anyway. He’d never complain about sticking with Lucy.

“Yeah, ‘course,” he said. “You don’t hafta ask.”

“Thank you.”

She flashed him a sweet smile that made his heart throb in his chest, and that was thanks enough for him.

Though he had gone into this job hoping—practically praying—for something interesting to happen, itching for a fight, Natsu couldn’t find it in himself to be mad when the rest of the night ran smoothly.

Lucy spent the whole night by his side, practically attached to his arm. No man tried to bother her the rest of the night as she stayed by his side, holding onto his arm in a way that didn’t seem entirely platonic to any onlookers. When they found themselves in a lull, she would gently rest her head against his shoulder in soft rest.

He liked that soft, casual intimacy with her. He wished they got to do it more.

For once, he felt himself getting his ego boosted by something that wasn’t winning a fight. One might say it was from having a pretty girl on his arm, but he would say it was from having Lucy on his arm.

There was something nice about protecting Lucy, about knowing that everyone in this venue looked at her and knew who she belonged to. Not because he owned her, but because she chose him. She was the one who wanted to cling to his arm, to hold his hand, to stay by his side.

She was his, and he was hers.

Having Lucy at his side made even the most terribly boring conversations they found themselves dragged into bearable.

Lucy was always such a natural in environments like these. She was charming and charismatic, she knew all the right things to say to the types of people who attended charity galas. He felt almost invisible to anyone but her as she charmed them, which he found himself more than okay with. It gave him adequate time to zone out with his gaze in her direction.

At some point, she brought her hand up to rest on his chest as she let out a laugh, and he thought for a second that his heart might stop altogether.

He couldn’t quite remember when Lucy’s touch began to make him feel this way, but it was beginning to feel like a running theme these days. Just the brush of her skin against his own was enough to set the butterflies in his stomach on fire.

Maybe it had always been like that, and he just hadn’t noticed until now.

It was a good tingle—one that made him feel as though he could take on the world.

He found that was a common theme when it came to Lucy.

In an attempt to seek out more of that feeling, his hand slipped around her back, resting on her waist and pulling her even closer into his side. She did not protest; in fact, she leaned into it, and if it meant she would stay like that forever, Natsu wished the night would never end.

Maybe any other night he might have found himself whinging and complaining about the lack of action. He’d probably try to pick a fight with Gray or Erza afterward in an attempt to burn off some of that excess energy he’d come into the job with, but tonight he didn’t really feel like it—not when that meant having Lucy leave his arm.

The night had to end inevitably, and it finally did when they stepped out into the moonlight. Lucy’s arm left his now that they were safely solitary, and he had to stop himself from letting out a soft whine or reaching out for her again.

Though he had begun their job paying close attention to the time, he had stopped paying it any mind about halfway through the night. Judging by the way the moon was hung high up in the sky and the streets had been long dead to the night, it had to have been past midnight by now. They had stayed well past when everyone else had left, waiting out any stragglers who might be cause for trouble if they left too early.

When the last guest had left, their employer had graciously sent them on their way, leaving them free to enter the night and leave for home.

She took in a deep breath of air, her arms stretched out as she dropped her ladylike façade and returned back to the carefree Lucy he always knew, happy to bask out beneath the stars in which she was born from.

It wasn’t until she had sufficiently filled her lungs with the soft spring air that she finally turned back around to meet his gaze. Her brows furrowed together slightly, as though there were something wrong with his appearance. He didn’t think there was. He feared maybe he was staring too intently, and she had finally noticed.

He’d been doing that a lot lately.

“Are you okay? You’re looking a little bit red,” she observed.

She stepped towards him, and her hand came up to rest on his cheek, cradling his jaw. The tingly feeling was coming back in full force, which he was certain did not help with the redness she was noting.

He probably wouldn’t have realised he was blushing so hard had she not pointed it out to him.

“Uh, yeah, just, uh, hot?” He tried to brush off.

It wasn’t his finest excuse, but he simply pulled from the list of ones Cana used when her drunken flush got a little too obvious to those she was trying to convince she was sober.

Lucy, seemingly unconvinced, raised her eyebrows in mild surprise.

“You get hot?”

An understandable question given his general heatproof body and the way he made fun of her any time the temperature in Magnolia rose more than two degrees.

“It was stuffy in there,” he corrected.

Thankfully, Lucy didn’t seem to question his little slip-up, and her attention turned back to the stars.

“Then the fresh air will do you some good,” she mused.

He had a feeling that fresh air would not help his predicament so long as she lingered near. He just hoped that she wouldn’t notice, lest he have to try to find the words to verbalise his current predicament.

A request specifically for their team had brought them a fair ways out of Magnolia for the weekend. Though the job had been quick, finished before evening fell, the distance from their hometown meant they would find themselves staying the night in

The small size of the tavern they had found themselves in didn’t lend itself well to brawling (not that that had ever stopped them before), but seeing as Natsu had exhausted his energy on the job today, he was content to kick ass in pool instead.

He leaned over the table, his gaze intensely focused on the cue ball at the end of his stick. With a swift pull-back, Natsu thrust his stick against the cueball and sent it flying across the table, where it met another with a loud clack before it rolled into one of the corner pockets.

“Yes!” Natsu cheered, pumping his fist in the air to celebrate his victory.

Gray was decidedly less impressed.

“That was my ball, dipshit,” he jeered. “I’m solid, you’re stripes.”

“Who cares? I got the ball in the pocket, didn’t I?” Natsu shrugged.

“I’m starting to think you don’t know how to play pool.”

“The point of the game is to get the white ball into the hole—all the other balls are just obstacles,” Erza declared.

“What? That’s not how you play the game at all.”

Whatever fight was about to break out between them was cut short on Natsu’s end as his attention was drawn away by the sight of Lucy sitting at the bar. She had opted not to join them because she claimed they were “too competitive” and “didn’t know the rules.”.

When they had left to play, Lucy had been on her own, but now it seemed as though someone else had made themselves comfortable on the seat that he had occupied not so long ago. There was a drink in her hand that she definitely hadn’t had before, most likely ordered and paid for by the man sitting next to her.

Her fingers played with the straw in her drink as she listened idly to whatever it was that he was saying to her. She smiled politely but otherwise didn’t seem terribly interested in what he had to say.

He couldn’t make their conversation out over the rest of the idle noise in the bar, but if he wanted to, he could tune his ears in. Not that he had to; he already had a pretty keen idea of what was going on based on the way his hand came to rest on her thigh.

He was getting much too close for Natsu’s liking.

Placing his stick back on the table, he left Gray and Erza to finish the game without him and made his way over to Lucy, prowling like a predator stalking his prey.

He tossed his arm around Lucy’s shoulder as casually as he always had and plastered a grin across his face as genuinely as he could, given the weird feeling that was bubbling up in his stomach.

“Hey Lucy!” He greeted with all the familiarity in the world.

“Natsu?”

She looked up at him with surprise, evidently taken off guard by his sudden action. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by the man sitting beside her.

“Who are you?”

He was hoping that he’d quickly get the hint and quietly stalk away, leaving Natsu to not have to fend for her attention. That was fine. He knew exactly what to say that would get him to leave.

“I’m her boyfriend,” he declared, and Lucy seemed to cringe at his words.

“You didn’t mention you had a boyfriend,” the other man said, as though Natsu’s introduction threw a wrench in his plan.

Based on the way Lucy stuttered to save face, it had seemingly thrown one in hers too.

“I- I don’t- he’s not-!”

Lucy scrambled for the words to try and convince the stranger otherwise, but by then it was too late.

The way he retreated after finding out about her so-called “boyfriend” confirmed what Natsu already knew. He was very clearly chatting her up with some sort of romantic or sexual intent.

A look of glowing pride overtook Natsu as he watched the man leave, a sentiment that Lucy did not share.

The night out didn’t last much longer after that, with Lucy declaring that she wanted to go back to their motel and the rest of the group following suit.

Lucy trailed a few feet behind them, an air of bad energy radiating off of her, which Natsu quickly picked up on. He hung back, waiting for Lucy to catch up as Gray and Erza moved on. Even as her steps moved in tandem with his, she didn’t look at him; her gaze trained at the path ahead of them, making it obvious she was deliberately avoiding looking at him.

“What? Why are you mad?”

“Because you interrupted my conversation and you scared that nice man off,” she huffed.

The two had stopped walking, the others leaving them behind as they stood on the side of the street, lit by nothing more than moonlight and flickering lamp posts. In that moment, all Natsu could do was blankly stare at her in surprise.

“I can stand up for myself, you know,” Lucy said, arms crossed over her chest in disdain. “I only need your help with drunk or creepy guys.”

“He was creepy,” Natsu defended.

Any guy who got that close to her who wasn’t him was a creep.

“If I want your help, I’ll get it on my own terms,” she huffed. “You can’t just make decisions for me based on what you think is best. That’s not fair.”

It didn’t really matter. They were a few hours out of Magnolia; she’d probably never see the poor sod again; there was no potential there for a relationship anyway. That’s what she was looking for—a serious relationship, someone to settle down with—or at least, that’s what she told him. That guy didn’t seem like the committed relationship type, so he was justified in scaring him off, right?

“His hand was on your thigh,” he said, as though that absolved him of any wrongdoing in that moment.

"Well, maybe I like it when some men give me attention,” she said. “Maybe I don’t like it when my friend makes me look like a cheater.”

He did feel a little guilty in that regard. He didn’t want to make others think poorly of Lucy, but sometimes you have to make tough decisions to protect those you love, right?

He didn’t get it. She didn’t seem interested, but she wasn’t turning him down either. She claimed she liked the attention, but he could give her plenty of attention if that’s what she wanted.

Why did she want his help then but not now?

Lucy had already walked off, leaving him behind as she caught up with the others while he was left behind to try and put the pieces back together.

Drinks flowed freely, and music pumped through the air as a rowdy crowd gathered in the guild to celebrate… something. A birthday? A guild milestone? Natsu wasn’t quite sure, nor did he care much—a sentiment that was surely shared by almost everyone else taking the night to party.

Guild parties like this weren’t often open to non-members, but Cana had plenty of drinking buddies from out town who would often swing by for a night of . Though none of them were much for letting in outsiders, Cana’s guests tended to behave themselves—or perhaps more accurately, behaved better than the guild regulars. They were there to drink and party; any property damage was usually done by those who already had a reputation for such.

It didn’t take long for a fight to break out in one part of the guild. Gajeel’s fist hit Natsu’s cheek, sending him flying to the ground, breaking a chair or two in the process. With a grin overtaking his expression, Natsu scrambled to his feet and pulled back his fist, ready to retaliate, but the fight was promptly cut short by an unimpressed Erza, who held Natsu back by the collar of his shirt. He was practically tossed to the side with an angry glare as a warning, leaving him to scurry off with a dejected huff.

If he couldn’t get his energy out, he would at least take this chance for a drink and some good company, but there was one person in particular he wanted to be with tonight.

Lucy. He wanted Lucy.

A quick scan of the bar made it clear she was not there, so Natsu clambered up onto an empty table to give him a better vantage point as he scanned the dancefloor. It didn’t take long for him to spot her blonde hair, given away by the familiar blue bow that tied her hair to the side. He found her dancing with one of Cana’s so-called drinking buddies.

Their bodies were close—much too close for Natsu’s liking. While maybe he could have put their close proximity down to the crowd of people that cluttered the dance floor, what he couldn’t seem to justify was the way his hands made their way onto her hips, trailing up to her waist, where they came to rest. Lucy did not protest—in fact, her arms came to rest over his shoulders, pulling him closer, their chests resting against one another.

If he had a drink in his hand, he was certain the glass would have shattered right then and there.

Instinctually, he wanted to go over there to make his presence known, to watch that boy and every other man in the room scatter, to make them avoid so much as looking at Lucy wrong for the rest of the night. It would be so easy to start another fight, to “accidentally” let him get caught up in it, to singe off every hair on his head and leave him trailing off with his tail between his legs. Just as he was about to put his plan into action, he hesitated for a moment as Lucy’s words rang in the back of his head.

“You can’t just make decisions for me based on what you think is best. That’s not fair.”

He remembered how angry she had been the last time he had chosen to interfere. Though it had dissipated quickly, the bitterness lasting no longer than the night they spent out of town, he still didn’t enjoy having that sentiment directed towards him. That night, she had hardly been interested when he stepped in, but tonight she seemed to be actively enjoying herself.

It made him feel nauseous, but he couldn’t place his finger on why.

He felt some sort of urge or desire to be there with her, to be him. He didn’t know why. He hated dancing; he only came to these parties for fights, booze, and food, but somehow he thought maybe dancing would suck less if he was doing it with Lucy.

It didn’t matter if it did or didn’t. He wouldn’t be finding out tonight, considering she had found herself rather preoccupied at the moment. She could have her fun, and he wouldn’t stop her, but he knew that if he stayed any longer, he would either get sick or get violent; neither option appealing at the moment.

He would have preferred to leave without much confrontation, but he was unable to slip past Gray on his way out.

“Hey, where are you going?” He called out.

“Home,” Natsu simply replied.

“What? You can’t leave without Lucy.”

Can’t was a strong word. He usually wouldn’t. Most other nights, he’d walk her home to her apartment (or, on nights where she’d had a bit much to drink, carry her to her apartment). There was no spoken obligation; it was more just a ritual they did, which had apparently been picked up by those around them. Gray clearly knew of their unspoken agreement, but he didn’t stop him on his way out.

Lucy was mad. This was not information he had obtained firsthand, but rather had been relayed to him by many, many sources. Pretty much everyone at the guild knew what happened that night and were more than happy to let him know that he was being a dick. He didn’t care much about their opinions. This was not the first time his guildmates had held that thought of him, and it would not be the last either.

He couldn’t intervene; he couldn’t fight the guy, but he couldn’t leave quietly without being labelled the bad guy. Was he supposed to just sit there and take it? To watch it and let his feelings get hurt?

The confrontation was inevitable. He knew he couldn’t avoid Lucy forever, but that sure wasn’t going to stop him from trying. He probably could have drawn the chase out longer had his wallet not begun to run dry of food money. Natsu was perfectly content to stay in his little space in the woods, to keep to himself, to train, to eat, but he still had to come to the guild to take a job, and it was at that very job board that he found himself cornered.

“Are you done giving me the silent treatment?” Came her voice from behind him.

Natsu didn’t turn around to face her as he replied, his gaze still fixated on the request he had in his hand.

“I’m not giving you the silent treatment.”

It wasn’t technically a lie—he couldn’t be giving her the silent treatment if he was just avoiding her altogether.

“Okay, then what do you have to say for yourself?”

For the first time since her arrival, Natsu looked up from his job request and at her. She was looking at him with a stern expression, her arms crossed over her chest.

He was still so mad. He wasn’t really sure who or what he was mad at. He certainly wasn’t mad at her. The guy at the party maybe, but not Lucy—never Lucy.

He was mad at the situation. He was mad that other guys had the audacity to look, to touch, to flirt.

There was still something simmering below the surface—some feeling of resentment that still lingered. He was never good at regulating his emotions, much less his anger. Part of him wanted to lash out at someone, something—anything really—but he feared what would happen if he gave in to those thoughts.

Lucy was already upset with him enough; if he let his resentful thoughts slip, he might have a bigger issue on his hands, so instead he met her with a single-word answer.

“Nothing.”

“Nothing? Seriously?” She exclaimed. “You can’t just leave me alone at a party, ignore me for a week, and then say nothing.”

“I don’t have anything to say,” he shrugged.

“Not even a sorry?”

“Okay, I’m sorry.”

He was sorry. Sort of. He didn’t like making Lucy upset; he certainly didn’t like making her upset with him, but there was a certain amount of self-preservation that led to his decision.

His feelings for Lucy were no longer platonic—they probably hadn’t been for a while now.

He wanted a relationship with her. It was something he’d wanted subconsciously for maybe years now, but he hadn’t really actively considered it until he was given the chance to play pretend for one night when he realised how easy loving Lucy came to him.

Now that the idea had been planted in his mind, he couldn’t stop thinking about it. His brain was plagued with thoughts of cheesy shit, like taking her on dates and holding her hand—all the dumb stuff he swore up and down that he would never care about. It made his chest tighten with a feeling that he could only describe as yearning.

He wanted that with her, wanted to shower her in the affections and attentions that she desired, to make her laugh and smile, and to know that he was the reason for her joy.

There weren’t many things that Natsu was afraid of, but he was afraid of change. Because what if change meant they could never go back to the way things were? He liked what they had—their friendship, their easy companionship. If any of that were to be put at risk by taking a step in a new direction, then he would gladly let things stay just the way they were.

And yet, watching other guys have the courage to do what he was too afraid to hurt in a way that felt a little too much like loss.

Lucy let out a dissatisfied huff at his apology.

“What is up with you? You’ve been avoiding me all week and now you won’t even look me in the eye to apologise.”

Though he would have loved to steer clear of this topic entirely, Lucy was looking up at him with an expectant gaze, waiting to hear some sort of justification or explanation. Natsu, on the other hand, was unfortunately acutely aware of everyone else in the guild hall. This wasn’t where he wanted to have this conversation, if they had to have it at all.

If he got his feelings rejected by Lucy just like he foresaw, he didn’t want it to be in front of all the people he knew would use that as ammunition against him. Gray would never let him live it down.

“Can we talk about this later?”

“What? Why?”

It clearly had not occurred to her that there were people watching until now, when she followed his gaze that flicked behind her. The moment Lucy looked behind her, everyone who had been watching seemed to scatter, trying their best to look busy as though they had never been watching in the first place.

“Oh,” she let out, her conviction dropping just a little.

At the very least, it seemed as though she didn’t want to cause a scene in the middle of the guild hall.

“Okay,” she conceded. “We can talk at my apartment if you want.”

“No,” Natsu shook his head.

Lucy’s apartment had always been such a place of comfort for him, something of a second home. While maybe comfort would be something he would need after the fact, he knew their conversation would forever linger in the air, etched into the wallpaper, coming back to haunt him every time he stepped foot into that room.

He needed them to be on some even playing field, a space that he knew wouldn’t be tainted by whatever may transpire today. Lucky for him, he felt as though he knew the exact right place.

“Can you meet me by the river?” He softly suggested.

“The one by your house?” She asked, an air of reluctance lingering over her.

“Yeah.”

A beat of silence fell upon them as she met him with a look of contemplation. The silence didn’t last for much longer before Lucy finally yielded.

“Okay,” she agreed and Natsu was happy to take at least one small victory before the trajectory of their relationship changed entirely.

The gentle rush of the river soothed Natsu as he sat on the bank, his arms perched on his knees as he looked out at the water. He’d been sitting there for a while before the time they had agreed to meet, taking a few moments to gather his thoughts.

He’d been trying his best to spend the last week thinking of practically anything other than Lucy, pushing away any and all thoughts about her, the bar, the party, the other men who looked at her with desire in their eyes. He could have gone on much longer repressing those thoughts, pushing them deep down into the deepest depths of his mind, somewhere they wouldn’t be found, even by him. He was rather good at avoiding things like that, but he knew all that would serve to do was delay the inevitable revelation.

The fact that he had put off truly considering his feelings for Lucy this long was almost a miracle but now that they had risen to the surface he couldn’t ignore them any longer. Especially not when they made it hard to look at his best friend the same way.

He tried to relax himself, to not tense up in his shoulders when he heard her approaching from behind. He could tell it was her by the pace of her footsteps, differentiating herself from the animals that scurried past and emphasised by the comforting waft of her scent lingering in the air.

He didn’t look up to meet her eyes when he asked, “Are you still mad at me?”

“Yes,” she bluntly replied.

Though Lucy tended to be easy to forgive, she was also a little stubborn from time to time. He liked that about her, even if right now it was coming back to bite him in the ass.

“But I’m not as mad,” she reassured as she sat down next to him.

Her words were reaffirmed when he glanced over at her and found that, despite her earlier anger and frustration, she still smiled at him. The sight of her lips quirking up in the corners made his heart tighten in his chest, as it had been known to do around Lucy as of late.

She was so cute that it almost hurt to look for too long, so he had to pull his gaze away.

“You wanted to talk?”

Lucy wasn’t stupid—quite the opposite, actually. She was rather perceptive when it came to people’s emotions, and she had obviously picked up that whatever was bothering him went deeper than merely walking out on her that night. Whether she had figured out why exactly it bothered him so much, he wasn’t entirely sure yet.

Her words were met with silence once more as he looked out to the river, not exactly sure where to start.

“Come on, Natsu, what’s bothering you?”

She reached out to his hand, taking it in her own in a gentle attempt to soothe him. Their fingers intertwined, and he got to feel the comforting weight of her hand and the soft skin of her palm against his own. Somehow, even in the middle of such turmoil between them, she found it in herself to feel compassion and concern for him.

"Please, Natsu, I don’t like it when we fight.”

He didn’t like it when they fought either, although they never usually reached this point. They tended to argue about petty, trivial things, of which they would resolve without much hassle. Even after the night at the bar, when she had been so furious at him, things had blown over quickly. Their fights were never over dumb things like romance or feelings. He was hardly able to navigate difficult feelings like this on his own; the fact that they concerned Lucy only served to make it that much harder.

He was treading a fine line between trying to express what he was feeling and not irrevocably ruining his relationship with her forever.

He opened his mouth to speak, but whatever words he could manage to conjure up got caught in his throat. He had to pull his gaze away from Lucy if he wanted even a chance to pull himself together.

“It’s just that… I don’t like it when other guys flirt with you,” he managed to get out.

If there had been some expectation she had of what he was going to say to her, it was clear from the expression on her face that it was not that.

"I don’t think I understand,” she said. “You don’t like it when guys flirt with me?” She repeated, looking at him for assurance.

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

It was a simple question that should have had a simple answer, but like all of this stupid feeling stuff, what was going on inside of him was a lot more complicated than that.

“Because I want to do that with you,” he said in all but a murmur.

Lucy looked at him with blank expression as she tried to process what he had just told her, her head cocked slightly to the side.

“You want to flirt with me?”

“No, well, yeah, but-” He struggled to find the right words to convey how he felt.

Did he want to flirt with her? People seemed to perceive their banter as flirting all the time, but it wasn’t anything like the flirty looks and playful touches that other men gave her. That wasn’t what he wanted; he liked what they had. Maybe what he wanted was just more of what they already had, but he struggled to put that into words.

“I dunno,” he shrugged. “It’s stupid.”

“It’s not stupid,” she softly said, running her thumb along the back of his hand.

She seemed to be taking this whole confessing-his-love-for-her thing in stride, not pulling away even as he haphazardly fumbled together his thoughts.

She regarded him with a kind smile, an entire juxtaposition to the way she had been looking at him earlier in the day. Of course she did. She was Lucy, kind, compassionate, ever-forgiving, even when he was being a bit of a sook. For a long time, he had considered these to be reasons why no man would ever be good enough for her. Now he wondered if he was good enough for her either.

“Natsu?” She said, her soft voice pulling him away from his own thoughts. “Can I try something?”

He wordlessly nodded at her, and before he could even begin to guess what she was about to do, she leaned in and closed the distance between them, her lips pressing against his own. It was only for a brief moment, little more than a few seconds—but he didn’t need any more than that to know that the way she felt against him made it feel like lava flowed through his veins.

It reminded him of the way he felt when her hand came to softly rest on his chest that night on the job.

That was what he wanted.

More of that.

Only he couldn’t seem to articulate that thought and instead sat there gaping at her, looking like a goddamned fool.

“I’m sorry, I thought that’s what you wanted,” she bashfully said, averting her eyes, cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

His heart was thrumming so loudly that he could hear it in his ears; her words almost drowned out by the thump, thump, thumping that was ringing around him. It took all of his strength and focus to make out what she was saying, and even more so to conjure up a response.

“It is.”

Well, he hadn’t exactly known that’s what he wanted—not until she had done it, but now that she had, he wanted it again, and again, and again. He wanted to have her, to hold her, to keep her on his arm, safe and away from harm or perverted eyes. He wanted to live out the fantasy that had begun the night she had called him her "boyfriend.”.

Finally, he was beginning to feel that fantasy in real time as her hands came to rest on his cheeks and their lips melded against each other once more.

#nalu #fairy tail #natsu x lucy #fan fiction #mya writes things #nalu gift exchange 2023

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dutifullylazybread · 7 months

Link

MINORS DNI

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Baldur's Gate (Video Games) Additional Tags: Tail Sex, Vaginal Sex, Oral Sex, Morning Sex, Morning Kisses, Lazy Mornings, Cunnilingus Series: Part 2 of Deeply and Immovably So

Tav and Rolan are busy with research.

And they get busy with one another.

OR: Rolan uses his tail in a fun, new, very sexual way.

As promised--here is a short smut fic with a generous helping of tailplay.

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tokkiasficlets · 7 months

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The feeling of her bare feet against the cool grass is a pleasant sensation—something that would have never been allowed at the estate back home. But she’s not at the estate and that’s not home anymore. This is her home now and she can walk barefoot in the grass of the courtyard if she wants to, so she does.

It’s a little overgrown now with no gardener to tend to it, but neither of the residents seem to mind that. It suits the feel of the rest of the property with greenery making its home in the cracks of the stone walls, ivy running up and down the cobblestone. It looks like it came straight out of a children’s picture book right down to the centrepiece of the yard who is currently sprawled out across the grass, wings draped comfortably over his back as he basks in the sun.

His stature is massive and intimidating but the size of the castle makes him look measly in comparison. Still, the presence of a dragon laying in the middle of ones’ property would be enough to have any one cowering regardless of size, but Lucy knows better.

She has no issue approaching and subsequently, she has no issue reprimanding him to rouse him from his slumber.

“Are you going to do anything today, or are you just going to sleep in the courtyard all day, you lazy dragon?”

Natsu doesn’t say anything but he slowly opens his eyes and lets out a huff that subsequently wakes the little Russian Blue stretched out in the grass beside him. Lucy is still standing before him, hands on her hips, expecting an answer out of him but instead, all she gets is his snout nuzzled into her stomach in a sign of his affection.

She stumbles back slightly from the force but quickly regains her bearings and clutches onto him. When she is fully balanced, Lucy rests her forehead against the top of his snout and nuzzles her nose against the warm scales that line it. It’s maybe a strange, unconventional show of affection, but they have a strange, unconventional relationship, so it just feels right.

#nalu #natsu x lucy #fan fiction #fairy tail #mya writes things

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shadails · 2 months

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I know I already asked a question, but what do Sonic's and Amy's relationship with Tails and Shadow's kids like?

Incredibly late response, I am very sorry!!

but Amy & Sonic are basically the kiddos' aunt & uncle. They babysit sometimes... though Tails & Shadow's kids tend to be a handful...

(3 extra kiddos + your own rambunctious kid = a little chaos)

As for your first question...

Pretty much, yeah lol. a little genetic engineering and fantasy world magic. Tails' speciality has always been mechanical, but i think he'd get into more biological stuff when he's older cuz he's a curious and inventive bastard... So, why not grow your own lab kids i guess.

Well, Razor's situation was a little different from his siblings, but it's a bit much to get into, and I haven't bothered to hash all the details out yet anyway...

#shadails #shadow the hedgehog #miles tails prower #shadtails #myart #askbox #foxtalks #sonic the hedgehog #amy rose #fan kids #gareaf #while i dont endorse growing tube babies in real life it is fun in fiction lol

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ragingphantom666 · 7 months

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Sonic World: Sonic the Hedgehog (volume 1)

I just finished the second story in my Sonic World fan fiction universe. It is volume 1 of possibly 3. I'm glad I finished it. I won't be working on volume 2 immediately because I love exploring the world of Sonic and this helps set up several spin-offs.

You can read the story through the link below:

#sonic #sonic fanfiction #sonic world #sonic the hedgehog #fan fiction #sonic au #knuckles #knuckles the echidna #amy rose #tails the fox #miles tails prower #miles prower #metal sonic #metal tails #doctor starline #howler the wolf #master emerald

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shelbyshoe · 7 months

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Me writing my faves going through harrowing trauma:

vid source

#aeon #ada x leon #resident evil #fairy tail #nalu #fan fiction #zoyori #one piece #writerblr #ao3

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animatejournal · 1 year

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Sonic Boom Director: Natalys Raut-Sieuzac Studio: Technicolor Animation | USA/France, 2016

#Sonic the Hedgehog #Sonic Boom #Fan #Chris Chan #Animation #CGI #Misery #Parody #Fan Boy #Stalker #Tails #Knuckles #Amy Rose #SEGA #Sonamy #Fanfic #Fan Fiction

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kakashis-formal-simp · 1 year

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hii i hope you are doing well and taking care of yourself!! I had a request for Erza scarlet if that’s okay, fem reader is being hit on by someone else in the guild and Erza gets jealous about it, also i apologise in advance if you see me a lot requesting for Erza I just rarely see any fics for her 😭

~ 🌷

It’s no problem at all, I love writing for her and she needs more fanfics ❤️❤️🙏🏻🙏🏻

Also, I’m working on my other requests rn too, so if anyone requested, don’t worry they will be coming ❤️❤️🥰🥰

Erza Scarlet x reader

Sitting in your normal seat in the guild hall you did what you always did. Stare at Erza in all her beauty. She and Team Natsu just got back from a quest and you watched as she told Levy all about it, though, you assume her version of how the quest went is different than Lucy’s judging by the face she was making. Well, you were lost in thought and you failed to notice the man approaching you.

“Hey, Y/n, you’re looking as good as always.” glancing at the man talking, you had seen him around the guild but had yet to learn his name. “Thanks” you mumble toward him. “I’ve heard you’re pretty strong,” he says while he moves his body closer to you. “I am,” you say simply, you continue to talk to him while he flirts poorly with you. The whole conversation was rather one-sided as you have no interest in the man.

“Excuse you, can you not see that Y/n is clearly not interested in you?” Erza’s voice booms. “What are you talking about, why wouldn’t she be interested? We are having a pleasant conversation, aren’t we Y/n?” he looks at you as he finishes. “Please, Y/n can do way better than you,” Erza says as she grabs his collar and tosses him out of the booth.

“Wow, do you mind grabbing me like that?” you jokingly ask her. Erza’s face quickly flushes red. “I-i, you want..” laughing, you cut her off. “It was only a joke Erza, but… I am curious. Why did you stop that man from flirting with me?” Erza’s face stays red as she responds “Well, you were clearly uninterested in him, so…” She looks down. “Is there another reason you stopped him?” Erza looked up quickly, then looked around. “Actually, there is something I have been meaning to talk to you about,” smiling at her “Well, you have my undivided attention,” you answer simply. Erza’s face reddens more, “Uhm, could we step out of the guild hall," she asks nervously, without responding you stand up from the booth.

The walk outside was quick, which was good because your nerves were consuming. Trying to appear calm on the outside, “So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about?” Erza sighs, “I… well,” she sighs again, trying to gain her composure. You can’t remember a time you’ve seen her like this. “I like you Y/n” she blurts out, finally looking up at you, “ I like you a lot, Y/n, you’re funny, smart, and undeniably attractive. Everything about you is amazing and I would love for a chance to call you mine,” Erza looks at you with her pleading brown eyes. “How could I ever say no to you? I would love nothing more than to be your woman Erza,” you watch the excitement radiate off of Erza’s face, “really? Can we get strawberry cake?” she asks excitedly. You smile at her, “Of course, I can even make you some if you would like,” Erza smiles, pulling you into a hug, your head hitting her armor with a loud clunk. Although it didn’t feel nice, you wouldn’t change this for the world.

I wasn’t sure if you wanted an established relationship or not so I wrote it as if they aren’t yet together

Feel free to request as much as you like ❤️❤️

#erza scarlet x reader #erza scarlet #fairy tail #erza x reader #erza fairy tail #ft erza #fanfic #natsu x reader #gray x reader #erza knightwalker #fan fiction

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fics-n-stuff-n-stuff · 4 months

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Natsu Dragneel/Lucy Heartfilia Gray Fullbuster/Juvia Lockser Levy McGarden/Gajeel Redfox

all fairy tail characters basically - CharacterAlternate Universe - Modern with Magic Follows Fairy tail but with my own twists set in modern day Fluff and Angst Romance Friendship developing feelings

Summary

Lucy is thrown into a world she didn’t know existed. Join her as she unravels this new world full of magic that brings adventure, romance and destruction along with it.

———

Just a modern re-telling of Fairy tail following its arcs with a few twists and turns along the way💞

You can also read it here:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49084309/chapters/123834469

—————————————————

Chapter 22

Feeling more drained than he can remember being in a long time, Natsu moved as if on autopilot.

Picking up Lucy from the bed and carrying her out of the infirmary, he started walking toward his favorite spare room in the guild.

There was a lot of noise coming from downstairs where Mira and Wendy were probably filing everyone in about what they knew, but he didn't have the strength or concentration to try and make out their words.

With how tired he felt, he didn't care what they were saying.

It was just noise at this point.

They can all wait till tomorrow.

When he walked into the room Natsu moved to the bed and carefully unfurled the covers with one hand, before laying Lucy gently on the bed and tucking her in.

As he took a step back he couldn't help but notice how unnaturally still she was as she slept, it was not the usual tossing and turning he could hear when sleeping over at her place, and something about her stillness bothered him.

Because it reminded Natsu that she wasn't just sleeping, she was unconscious. Her stillness remained him that Lucy had almost died; her body and magic were working to restore themselves.

Shaking off those thoughts before he could spiral again, and pushing down the emotions that accompanied them, Natsu moved back from the bed and walked towards the dresser.

There should be some clothes here that were his, and Wendy was right, he did need a shower.

This room was the one he used often when he was too tired to go back home after a particularly long job, but that was before meeting Lucy and deciding that her couch was much better, so some of his stuff should still be here.

Unless Gramps had someone clean it out, but they would have told him, probably.

There were a few shirts, underwear, and a pair of pants left in a drawer, and Natsu took them before moving into the bathroom, but not without looking back at the sleeping blonde one more time before closing the door.

As he moved to look at himself in the mirror, Natsu saw how bad he looked.

No wonder Wendy and Mira looked so worried back in the infirmary, and even Erza seemed to feel bad for pushing him so hard.

His skin was paler than normal, and the bags under his eyes were more prominent than ever, his hair was disheveled, and he felt like he was a few seconds away from falling over.

Natsu sighed as he moved away from his reflection and towards the shower. No use in brooding over how bad he looked, better to get clean and try to get some sleep.

He stayed under the spray of water for a long time.

Now Natsu isn't the type to spend hours in a bath as Lucy could, usually, he was in and out in ten minutes, but in this moment, with the water coming down on him,

It felt nice.

It helped him relax and clear his head.

They were home, they were safe.

Lucy was going to be okay.

Natsu was eternally grateful to Wendy and Mira for stepping in with Erza and Gray the way they did.

Being forced into telling their misadventure again, and having to tell all of the story with Lucy lying there unconscious... it was too much for him at the moment. Most of the past 48 hours still didn't feel real to him, more like a series of hazy moments and a lot of panic.

Probably because of the exhaustion.

Heaving out a sigh, Natsu turned off the shower and moved to put on his clothes, feeling more sluggish with every move he made.

All he wanted to do was sleep.

Walking back into the room, he was only half surprised to see Happy sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting for him.

Lucy was still in the same position he left her in, tucked into the bed, lying on her back, and he could see the steady rise and fall of her chest.

"I just wanted to see if we're going home." The exceed asked as he saw Natsu exit the bathroom.

"I was planning on sleepin' in the chair. I have to be here when she wakes up." He told the blue fur ball as he made his way to the bed.

They had a lot to talk about, and Natsu had to be there the moment she opened her eyes. He needed to be there, in part to assure himself that she was, in fact okay, and because they had a lot to talk about.

The unspoken bond that has been growing between them since they met, the link he has somehow managed to create in a desperate move to save her life, and most importantly how she's never allowed to scare him like that ever again.

Happy looked at him for a moment before nodding his head. "Okay, we stay here till Lushi wakes up." The exceed said with a smile and Natsu smiled back at him.

He was glad that his little buddy would be here with them. "That's the plan, how's everything downstairs?" Natsu asked as he sat in the chair next to the bed.

It wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world, but it wasn't even close to the most uncomfortable place Natsu had slept in, so it would do.

Happy settled near Lucy's legs, folding himself in like the cat that he was before speaking. "Everyone is confused and worried, and Gray is beyond pissed that Erza let you off the hook!" He snickered as he told him about the ice prick, and it brought a smile to Natsu's face.

"Well, I'm always glad to annoy him, even when I'm not there." He said in a teasing tone as he moved to rest his head on the bed next to Lucy's hand.

"Was it scary?" Happy's asked after a beat of silence. "You looked really panicked when you got to the guild." His voice was small as he spoke, and Natsu thought about his answer for a long moment.

"It all happened so quickly." He mirrored what he said to Mira when they talked on the phone because in his mind it all happened in a flash. "And I didn't realize till it was too late."

He didn't really answer the exceeds questions, but Natsu had no more strength left in him and found himself slipping into slumber.

* ********* ********** ********** ********* *

As Natsu slowly woke up, the world around him felt foggy and distant, his head was pounding, and having to reel in all the sensations surrounding him was a major pain at the moment.

Adjusting his heightened senses to his surroundings after he pushed his body to the limit was worse than the usual practice.

And even though it was more his mind that was pushed than the body, it was a pain all the same.

Natsu wasn't sure how long he was asleep and was only about fifty percent sure where he was, but he knew with absolute certainty who he was with.

There were two heartbeats in the room apart from his own, and he could smell lavender with a hint of sage and fish.

Lucy and Happy.

The more he stirred awake, the more aware he became.

The ticking of the clock in the room, his friend's steady breathing patterns, the birds chirping outside, the fridges buzzing downstairs.

As Natsu focused on all the sensations surrounding him, he started to slowly reel them in, and as he was sorting through all his senses, Natsu realized with a start that there was a light, almost tingly feeling that was flowing through him, making him feel bright like he was basking in the sunshine.

It feels like when he's close to Lucy while she's using her magic.

It took him a few tries to open his eyes and when he did, he stretched out like a cat, letting out a small noise as his stiff muscles moved and cracked after being in such an uncomfortable position for so long.

As he sat up straight in his chair, Natsu looked around at his surroundings.

He was in a spare guild room, Lucy and Happy were sleeping on the bed, when he went to check the clock on the bedside table he saw that it was half past six in the morning.

Too early for anyone to be at the guild yet.

He sighed as he moved his hands through his hair, hoping to tame the ends that were sticking out in the wrong direction.

He really should've done this last night while it was wet.

After a few attempts, the stubborn hairs were fixed and Natsu turned to look at his sleeping partner.

Lucy was still in the same position he placed her in last night, it didn't look like she moved a muscle.

The only thing indicating that she was alive was the steady rise and fall of her chest and the bright tingling of her magic he could feel flowing through him.

Porlyusica said she needed rest.

But how long will she be asleep? He could feel her magic more intensely now than yesterday, and it gave him hope that maybe Lucy would be awake soon.

He needed her to wake up soon.

Moving his hand to hold hers was not a conscious act, it was driven by the usual need to touch her in any way he could.

Natsu was shocked by a spark that jolted through him as he threaded his fingers with hers, and he let out an involuntary gasp at the unexpected sensation.

Would it always be like that from now on?

Natsu wondered as he looked at their intertwined hands. Would she feel the same spark when they touched, or would it be something else?

The bigger question was how this bridge will affect them in the long run.

The old witch said to contact her as soon as Lucy was awake and Natsu had a feeling that she knew more than she let on.

Looking at the sleeping blonde he wondered what her reaction would be when she found out how exactly she was still alive.

They don't know the consequences of this new link between them, this bridge that he's managed to make in order to save her life, but he couldn't find it in himself to regret his decision.

He would do it all over again.

As long as she was still breathing, any consequences would be worth it.

Natsu started to feel a headache forming from all the questions and thoughts that wouldn't seem to slow down. He felt like he was going around in circles in his head. There were too many things that he didn't understand.

He couldn't help but notice that Lucy's hand was colder than her usual body temperature as he tenderly stroked her hand with his thumb, and he was sure that it would stay that way until her magic was back in full.

Another reminder of how close he was to losing her.

Shaking his head to get rid of his thoughts Natsu let out a sigh and bowed his head.

It was too early for this much thinking, and he needed to eat before he could do any more. Mira should be coming in in the next fifteen minutes or so, and after that, he was sure with everything that happened yesterday, everyone would be coming in early today.

He had to tell them today, he knew that.

Natsu would have to be the one to relay to the whole guild what had happened to them in Sakuramori Village and the surrounding forest.

That is not going to be a fun conversation, for anyone.

The previous two days were still somewhat a blur for the fire drakon, but at the same time, it felt like he could never forget what happened in that forest, and he especially didn't want to relive it by telling the whole guild.

Sighing out loud, Natsu lifted his head to look at the peacefully sleeping exceed on the bed and smiled at his furry friend.

'At least Happy will be there to support me. Mira and Wendy too, hopefully.'

There was no getting out of it. He knew that the guild needed to know. Natsu had a feeling that he still hadn't fully grasped the magnitude of what happened with Lucy in that clearing.

The power she radiated, and the fact that she was able to mend a broken key. He still doesn't think he understands what that means, but the fact that the King of the Spirits appeared when it happened?

They didn't even know there was a king for her spirits! They barely know anything about the spirit world.

This was a big thing.

The magical power that she radiated while mending the key was bound to be felt by mages of all kinds.

They might not know much about Lucy's magic, but they do know that Zeref was the one responsible for eradicating the Spirit Summoners, and one of his demons was possessing a poor woman trying to get to a broken spirit key.

They have met a few of the dark mages' creations in the past few months, and Natsu didn't think it was a coincidence.

What would they do to get someone who can use the keys? Natsu had a feeling that this would only bring them trouble, one way or another.

His dark train of thought was cut off by a flash of light that enveloped the room suddenly and Natsu was startled for a moment, blinking a few times so his eyes could adjust to the sudden light, only to see Leo standing in the middle of the room, without a word or glance at the fire drakon, the spirit moved closer to Lucy's bed.

"Are you crazy?" Natsu let go of Lucy's hand as he shot up from his chair, making sure to keep his voice from rising so he wouldn't wake Happy. "She's still recovering from exhausting herself, almost dying so she could help you! And you being here isn't gonna help her magic replenish!"

Leo looked away from Lucy's sleeping body to Natsu, the spirit's face shifting from concerned to the same unimpressed gaze as last time. "Tch, I'm not stupid. I came here using my own magic." The spirit shot back at him and Natsu felt his fire bubbling with anger.

How the hell was he supposed to know that? And what was the spirit's problem, it was starting to piss him off.

"Why are you here then?" He decided to ask instead of picking a fight with the spirit.

Natsu had a feeling that Lucy wouldn't like that, even if the lion deserved it.

What did Natsu ever do to him?

"I came here to check on my new holder; as you said she has freed me from my curse and has hurt herself by doing it."

Leo said in a matter-of-fact tone, his gaze softening slightly as he looked back at the sleeping blonde before turning back to Natsu, his eyes hard and piercing. "I am also here to warn you Natsu Dragneel. There is danger coming her way, and no gods will help us if they succeed in their mission."

"You cannot let them get her."

The spirit's tone was grave, but that didn't mean he didn't make his distaste towards Natsu clear.

Leo crossed his hands and looked him up and down before continuing. "I cannot believe that I'm saying this, but you actually might be her only hope." There was a deprecating laugh that followed those words and Natsu was confused by this whole conversation.

What was with Lucy's spirits always speaking in riddles? It was beyond annoying and he's getting a bit pissed off at that too.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, you're not making any sense." Natsu said before the lion could go on spouting more confusing and frustrating warnings or worse, snarky comments.

He didn't understand why this spirit hated him so blatantly, he didn't do anything to him. All of Lucy's other spirits were fun and weird, just like her.

And while Natsu wasn't close with most of them, he was sure that a few liked him enough to call him a friend.

Virgo, for sure, maybe even Cancer. Not even Aquarius, with how mean and scary she is, actually hated him. At least he didn't think.

To have this supposed leader of the Zodiac hate him without having known him prior confused Natsu, but he didn't care about any of that at the moment.

"Look I don't know what you're talking about or what you have against me." Natsu said as he moved so that he was standing in front of the spirit, his eyes glaring at the orange-haired man.

He really has had enough of the spirit's attitude, Natsu was not known for his patience, being a fire mage and all, but he stuck it out for Lucy as long as he could.

But the lion needed to know where they stood. "I don't know what your stupid riddles mean or even what you're getting at when you say that some kind of danger might be coming her way. But we have to get one thing straight between us."

The spirit was taller than him by a few centimeters but that didn't stop Natsu from coming off as intimidating. Leo was under the impression that something or someone was coming for Lucy, and he's had a knot in his gut that left him on edge since their run-in with Phantom Lord, feeling like something was coming.

Maybe it was the same threat and maybe it wasn't, but either way something in Natsu's gut told him that things wouldn't be peaceful in Fairy Tail for a while.

His posture was rigid, gaze intensified as he glared at the zodiac leader, needing to make sure he understood how serious Natsu was.

"I would burn this world down into ashes if it meant keeping her safe." It was a resolute and unwavering statement that made Leo frown, and there was a look in his eye after the words sunk in that just pissed Natsu off.

"That's the problem, isn't it?" His voice was quiet, but nothing is quiet for a drakon and Natsu heard it anyway. "I hope, for all of our sakes that it will never come that." And then the bastard was gone in a flash of golden light, leaving Natsu confused, angry, and with even more questions bubbling in his head.

He let out a string of curses and raked a hand through his hair as he paced the few steps back to the chair.

'What the hell was that? Stupid overgrown cat with his stupid riddles!' Cursing the spirit in his head Natsu settled back into the chair.

"Natsu?" Happy's groggy voice brought him out of his thoughts and Natsu looked up. "Good morning bud, did I wake you?" He asked as he watched the exceed stretch.

"I heard voices, were you talking to yourself again?" The cat snickered as he asked, making Natsu throw his head back, barely suppressing a groan.

"No, one of Lucy's spirits wanted to check on her." He decided to leave it vague and shook off his anger towards the ginger spirit.

"How'd ya sleep?" Natsu deflected instead, hoping that if he kept the conversation going he could avoid questions from the exceed for now.

He really doesn't want to re-tell the story more than once.

"It was good, I had a dream I was a lord of the seas and people would bring me fish as offerings!" There was a glazed look in the cat's eyes as he talked about how many fish there were in his dream and it honestly made Natsu feel lighter.

The simplicity of it made him pretend for a moment that Lucy was still sleeping from a rowdy night at the guild and Happy and Natsu were causally waiting for her to wake up.

And it worked, for about forty seconds, and then he heard commotion coming from the kitchen and it brought him back to reality. Mira must have come in while he was talking with Leo.

And it seems that the spirit pissed him off enough for him not to realize she arrived while they were having their standoff.

But the smell of coffee and food cooking was undeniable.

"That sounds like one hell of a dream buddy! How about we go downstairs and see if Mira has a fish for you?" He asked as he stood up and his words made Happy jump into the air, white wings appearing in a flash as he made his way out the door while excitedly chanting 'Fish'.

Natsu was shaking his head and chuckling at the exceed's antics as moved to look back at Lucy.

Her skin didn't have its usual warm glow about it and he knew it would be cold to the touch. He didn't want to leave her here alone, but he also knew that if he didn't the whole guild would find their way into the room one way or another, or even worse, Erza would come to drag him out of it.

Violently.

Shuddering at the thought, Natsu spared a final glance at the sleeping blonde and resisted the urge to kiss her forehead before walking out of the room and closing the door behind him.

He could see from the balcony that Mira was behind the bar, with Happy sitting at one of the stools chatting away and munching on a fish.

With a deep breath, Natsu moved down the stairs "Morning Mira." He called as he pulled up on a stool - Lucy's stool - and sat at the bar.

"Good morning Natsu, did you manage to get some sleep?" The white-haired mage turned to smile warmly at him and he smiled back.

"Yeah, I, uh, took Wendy's advice and showered before passing out on the chair next to the bed." He ran a hand through his hair as he looked up to the second floor. "I think Luce would kill me if I stunk up the room." He scrunched his nose at the thought of her shrieking at him about proper hygiene.

"Good call." Mira said with a laugh as she put a plate of food in front of him.

It took him half a second to process that the food was for him (he hadn't ordered anything, but then again there was no one else but them here) and after that, it took about a half minute to process that she'd made his favorite breakfast.

And not the usual he would order nowadays. No, Mira had made him the breakfast he used to order as a kid, especially when he was sad and missing Igneel.

Natsu had almost forgotten about it. There was bacon and scrambled eggs slathered in Mira's special homemade hot sauce, a giant stack of pancakes topped with syrup, the same hot sauce, and a few bacon strips that made a smiley face on top of the stack.

There was a tug in his heart at the realization that Mirajane had remembered his favorite comfort breakfast after all these years when he forgot about it. But it shouldn't be that surprising if he thinks about it.

Mira had always been a big sister to not just her siblings, but everyone in the guild that was around their age. Even Erza, after they got over their rivalry.

And Natsu might not have always been as receptive to her sisterly love, but he always appreciated it.

Especially yesterday and at this moment.

He realized that both Mira and Happy were looking at him with weird and worried expressions and it took him a second to realize a few tears were streaming down his face.

Gods he was a mess.

"I.. thanks for the food, Mira. It's been a while since I had this. Though maybe you forgot about it." Natsu deflected his feelings once again. There was so much going on that he wasn't ready to delve into it right now.

The smile Mira offered him in return only made his heart clench. She's been a little weird since yesterday, and it made him wonder what happened to prompt this sudden shift.

Not that she hasn't always cared for him. Everyone in Fairy Tail is family. And the younger bunch basically grew up together so they were even closer.

But Natsu always put himself on the sideline. He was there and not at the same time. It wasn't till Lucy got to the guild that he really started spending proper time with them.

Not just the occasional brawl with some of the members *cough* Gray, or the more often scolding from the Master, Erza, or even Mirajane.

It was honestly a little weird for Natsu to think about a time before Lucy was in Fairy Tail.

"You're never around long enough for me to make you some. Always coming for lunch or dinner these days." She shrugged it off with a smile and pulled out a plate for herself.

Natsu shoved some of the eggs and bacon in his mouth, savoring the taste. "Well, I'm usually having breakfast at Luce's apartment when we're not out on jobs." He tells her through a mouthful of food.

"Yeah, Lushii makes the best breakfast! She even made me fish pancakes." Happy added to their conversation with a nod.

"Well, I can't be mad if that's the case." Mira said as she started eating, and there was a gleam in her eyes that Natsu didn't like one bit.

* ********* ********** ********** ********* *

It took about an hour and a half for every guild member not currently out on a job to come in. That was probably some kind of record for them, but Natsu doesn't feel like mentioning it right now.

He doesn't feel like talking at all, really. The moment people started trickling in he felt a pit in his stomach, and it's been growing steadily since.

Wendy went to check on Lucy the moment she arrived, but Natsu didn't follow behind her. He wouldn't go back to the room until he talked to the guild.

If he went back up, he wasn't coming down till she was awake.

Now Natsu has never disliked being the center of people's attention, good or bad, but they say there's a first time for everything right?

And sitting on a bar stool as all eyes in the guild were trained on him made him feel more than a little uncomfortable.

"Now that everyone has arrived and settled, how about you tell us what the hell happened Natsu?" Erza prompted as she took a seat between Wendy and Gray at the front.

Most of the members were scattered around the tables in the room and all eyes were trained on him, with Mira and Happy sitting on either side of the bar, and Natsu was grateful for their support.

"Luce and I, we, went on a job to Sakuramori Village." He stopped as soon as he started, he didn't know what Mira and Wendy told them yesterday, but he was going to start from the beginning.

Seems like the best option.

"We were supposed to get this magical item that was displayed accidentally in a museum. But when we got there, the woman that was possessed, she's like the manager of the museum, when we talked to her she seemed unaware of our world." Natsu couldn't smell any magic on the woman that morning and wondered how or when the demon possessed her.

Leo said it's been weeks if not months, so why couldn't he smell the magic on her?

"We called Mira to double-check the job details, and while waiting for her to call us back, Luce wanted to see some of the exhibits." There was a slight quirk on his lips as he remembered how excited she was to look around the museum.

"That's when we saw the key." If it was possible to hate an inanimate object with a burning passion, Natsu was definitely succeeding.

He was kinda starting to hate the spirit attached to it too.

"It was a broken spirit key, just displayed there for all to see. Lucy recognized the constellation, and she could feel magic coming off of it so we came up with a plan to remove it from the museum. Mira helped us with a part of it." Natsu turned to glance at the white-haired mage for a second before continuing. "We managed to swap the key with a fake after the museum closed, and that's when everything started going downhill, I guess."

Natsu paused the story there for a second, taking a deep breath. "The key, it was- it had this pull on Lucy the moment she touched it." He could see several confused eyes looking at him as he said that and tried to explain it better.

"There was magic coming from the key, and it was pulling her somewhere, or more accurately, towards something. And we decided to follow it." He shook his head at the thought, there was nothing that could've stopped Lucy from following that damn key piece.

"We trekked through the forest for hours following it before coming into that clearing." The walking had felt endless, and Natsu wondered more than once if they were being led to a trap.

He was half right.

"There was a waterfall, with this rock right at the edge of it, and we found the second half of the key buried there beneath the earth in a gold box." He paused for a second to collect his thoughts before continuing, it was a wonder no one had interrupted him so far, but everyone seemed focused on his story.

"We were about to head back into town and get some sleep when I finally caught a whiff of two people coming our way." And that seemed to be what pushed Erza and a few others over the edge.

"Two people?" The redhead asked with other members backing her question.

"Yeah, I could smell what we assumed was a woman based on her perfume, and someone gravely injured and dying coming after us so we decided to stay in the clearing and wait them out instead of going back into the village and risking them following us."

Not to mention that the council won't fault them for destroying some trees, but buildings and memory-erase spells were a different thing entirely.

And when Fairy Tail is fighting, buildings are definitely going down.

"Lucy was having trouble with her spirits all day. None of them wanted to come out when she called for them and she was left with only her defensive shield spirit, so I took point, and when the Museum lady showed up it was easy to see she was possessed."

A shiver ran up Natsu's spine as he remembered the voice that addressed Lucy. "The demon knew who Lucy was and wanted her to hand the key over. I managed to knock her out and subdue her without much damage and then we were left waiting for the second person following us."

Natsu remembered the hobbling figure that approached them through the tree line looking like he could collapse at any moment.

"He appeared looking like death himself. Tattered clothes and half dead. He introduced himself as Loke and claimed that he was the one who sent the fake job to the guild hoping Lucy would come and find the key." The frown on Natsu's face deepened with the reminder of the Lion spirit, he had felt bad for the man at first.

"Loke seemed to know a lot of things, like which demon was possessing the Museum lady, and who Lucy was, said he heard a rumor of a spirit summoner in Fairy Tail and hoped they would come to collect the broken key so it wouldn't fall into the wrong hands." He shook his head and wondered if it would've been better if they just left the key where it was.

The thought was gone as quickly as it appeared and Natsu shook his head for a moment, clearing his mind. He knew that Lucy could never, would never do such a thing and there was a pang in his chest for even thinking it.

"There was a lot of bullshit said, a lot of riddles and half-truths from the man. But Lucy was having none of it. And she got him to confess the truth pretty quickly. Loke was Leo." He paused for dramatic effect, but the blank stares he got in return made him realize he never mentioned what key they found in the Museum.

"Leo's key was the one that was broken, and the spirit had been cursed for killing his previous master." That caused gasps all around the guild, and he could hear several members mumbling to themselves.

"The actual story turned out to be somehow, worse." Natsu continued speaking, thinking about how it must've been for Lucy to learn the real reason behind her mother's illness and death. Even if it is a small part of it.

"How could it be worse?" Lisanna's voice carried through the crowd of mages.

"Because the mage in question was Lucy's mom." The words seemed to have stunned the guild into silence, which is a very hard thing to do, but Natsu didn't feel good about it.

He didn't feel good about any of this. It felt wrong. He shouldn't be telling them all of this, it wasn't his story to tell. It wasn't even Lucy's, but at least it was about her mother and their spirits.

Natsu resisted the urge to look up at the second floor, to the room where he knew the blonde was peacefully resting.

Unfortunately, he had no choice in the matter.

The shocked and sad looks from the Fairy Tail mages made his heart clench uncomfortably. "But it wasn't really like that. There was some kind of spell that needed to be cast, I don't really remember the details, and Lucy's mom had to cast it but, it was a forbidden spell."

The atmosphere was tense as he spoke those words, it had been tense since the first few members started coming in, but now everyone seemed on edge.

Forbidden spells were forbidden for good reasons.

"Leo helped her cast it, and if he hadn't Lucy's mom would have died on the spot. Instead, she got sick and died a few years later. But Leo's key was broken and he was left to slowly wither away and die."

There was sadness at the thought of Leo spending years slowly dying and blaming himself for something that wasn't his fault.

Natsu could relate to half of it.

"When Lucy heard the whole story, she was pretty pissed." He took a deep breath to help steady himself. "She was furious, screaming that it was unfair and wrong to punish Leo for that, demanded to know who made such a decision in the first place and she said she refused to let him die."

There was a barely noticeable shake to his voice as he continued the story, wanting to get through with it as quickly as possible.

"She, she started pooling her magic, unknowingly at first, I think. And it was like nothing I've ever seen or felt before. The power she radiated.." Natsu stopped for a moment and it was like he could feel the magnitude of it in the room.

And it was, but not in the room, it was under his skin. He could feel the gentle hum of her magic, it was a little stronger than when he woke up this morning and it gave him a little hope that Lucy would wake up soon.

Ignoring the new sensation and pushing those thoughts away, Natsu went back to talking. "All of her spirits appeared around her the more magic she channeled and she started concentrating her magic into the key, trying to fix it." The sight of it was almost too much for Natsu to watch.

It felt like staring into the sun.

"Leo was on his knees by that point, begging her to just let him die and I just stood there."

He felt like his feet were sunken into the soil and he couldn't move. Didn't know what he could do if he did. Lucy was determined to fix Leo's key and there was nothing that was going to stop her.

So he chose to support her instead.

"She managed to do it, there was a shockwave as the key mended together and I managed to catch her before she could fall, and she looked fine. A little tired maybe, but.. she was fine." The shakiness in his voice was more noticeable this time around, and Natsu didn't know if he was trying to convince them or himself.

"And then out of nowhere time literally stops, and this huge crack appears in the sky with a giant mustache man glaring at us." The words come out a little jumbled as he says them, knowing how insane it sounds, even to a group of mages.

"A giant mustache man?" Cana slurred the question slightly.

"A crack in the sky? Natsu are you sure you got enough sleep?" Macao asked that one with several members mumbling their agreements. "Did anyone check his head when they came in yesterday?" Wakaba provided that jab, and Natsu rolled his eyes at them.

"I slept just fine! And there is nothing wrong with my head." He glared at Gray who opened his mouth to comment, but Erza's elbow was in his ribs before he could get a word out.

"The King of the Spirits didn't like Lucy badmouthing and questioning his decision so he decided to come and talk to her." He snapped at them before anyone could say anything else, his fuse was short on a good day, and in these past two days, he has been rattled more than ever. It was a wonder he's managed to keep talking this long.

It was a good thing that they weren't interrupting him often.

"King? The spirits have a king?" Levy asked curiously.

"I guess yeah, and he was kind of pissed at first and then he said some stuff about how no one had managed to make a key since the first summoner and he let Leo stay with Lucy." The Spirit King turned out to be a cool dude, even with everything that happened, and this was more information they'd gotten about Lucy and her magic since she arrived at the guild.

"And I'm sure Luce can fill you in on all of it a lot better when she wakes up." He stopped for a second to catch his breath.

"Wow, so, Lucy's like, really powerful then? If she managed to do something that badass, and stand up to the King of the spirits." Happy chirped in for the first time since he started telling the story.

"Yeah bud, Luce is super powerful." Natsu said as he turned to pat Happy on the head, the exceed immediately leaning into his touch.

"So what happened next?" Gray asked, the ice mage had been surprisingly quiet the whole morning and the sound of his voice made the corner of Natsu's right eye twitch.

He took a steadying breath and forced himself to look back at the crowd and finish his tale. "It all happened so fast, but somehow it felt like I was in slow motion."

Natsu didn't know if his words made sense, that's how it felt. "One second everything was frozen and the next the crack in the sky was gone and the spirit king was nowhere to be seen. Before he left, he said something. He called me the son of Fire Dragon King Igneel."

The were several gasps and mummers around the guild at his words and Natsu decided to keep talking instead of giving them a chance to ask questions.

"I was shocked by everything that happened, and hearing him say that... I asked Leo what they knew about the dragons, and it wasn't even half a second." His breath hitched at the last word and he let his gaze fall to the floor, he couldn't look at them.

Not when he didn't know what his reaction would be to retelling them how Lucy almost died in his arms.

"Half a second and she was down. Collapsed right into my arms. I didn't even know what was happening. She was pale, so unnaturally pale. And I- I could barely feel her magic, it was fading so fucking fast." He stopped himself to catch his breath and without him noticing the movement, he felt Mira's hand cover his own shaky ones and give him a supportive squeeze.

"She was dying." He gasped out, not really crying, more like choking on his breath. Then image of Lucy pale in his arms made him feel cold.

"And, I- I didn't know what to do, so I just tried to give her my magic." He kept going, taking ragged breaths between sentences, not caring if they made sense.

It was a little cruel of them to make him do this. Not even 24 hours after it happened.

"I cradled her in my arms and willed my magic to work with her fading one and I don't know how long we were connected like that, but in the end, I could feel her magic and mine together helping her recharge."

The silence somehow enhanced the other sounds in the room and the refrigerators buzzing were almost making him dizzy for a moment. Natsu could tell half the guild was holding their breath at his words, while the other half seemed shocked and breathing heavily.

It was five seconds of silence before everyone exploded as if they all registered his words at the same time like some sort of hive mind.

"What do you mean she was dying? She's sleeping right upstairs? That shouldn't be possible!" Gray exclaimed as he jumped to stand, his shirt was lost sometime during his little retelling and now he was fumbling with his jeans.

"Gray! Your clothes!" Mira yelled at him and the ice mage scrambled to find his shirt, pants half unbuckled.

"You managed to jump-start her magic with yours?" Levy asked, sounding astonished at the mere thought of such a thing.

"I guess, I don't know what happened. It, it's..." Natsu stumbled over the words, not knowing how to explain that he knew it would work because he could somehow always feel Lucy near. Her presence, or magic, that he can tell when she's in danger.

It was weird. He knew that. And they haven't talked about it, so telling everyone without her felt wrong.

"I was desperate." Natsu settled on following Leo's steps and telling half-truths. He was desperate. "And I didn't know what else to do, I can't do healing magic. So I just, willed my magic to work the way I wanted it to." He finished with a half-shrug, gazing back to the floor.

"So, what does that mean exactly?" Erza asked.

"I feel like Wendy could explain that part better. She is the healer." He felt like he was throwing the young sky drakon under the bus in a way, but a glance at the girl told him that she was more than happy to help.

"I'm going to go upstairs." Natsu said in a final tone as he went to stand. There wasn't anything else that he could tell them that Wendy or even Mira couldn't.

And he was done talking.

His hands were still covered by Mira's and he turned to look at the white haired mage. She squeezed his hands before releasing them and offering him a small smile. "I'll bring you some food later." She whispered as he stood from the chair.

"You can't just drop a bomb like that on us and then leave." Gray yelled at him and Natsu turned to look back at his Nakama.

Maybe it was unfair, they are just as worried about Lucy as he is. But Natsu didn't care, he was drained and this conversation was over.

"There's nothing more I can tell you that Mira or Wendy don't know." He said as he made his way up the stairs. No one made any more comments his way and Natsu practically ran for Lucy's room.

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xanvasofxords · 7 months

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“If anything, you’re the biggest pervert here!”

“Me?!” Natsu snaps, smashing his forehead against Gray’s. “How am I a pervert when you’re the one getting naked all the damn time?!” The ice mage tackles him backwards with double force. The temperature around them simultaneously rising and falling because of the polar opposite magics clashing together.

Lucy assumes it’ll take her thousand years more to get used to them. Just when she thinks ignoring them is the ultimate solution, not even a feet away, a chair crashes into the floor so loudly that she drops her book with a yelp. A vein pops on her head.

“Cut it you two!”

The blonde complains, picking the book up and closing it to glare at them. There’s absolutely no way she can finish the novel like this. She hasn’t had the chance to read it in peace at home- thanks to Natsu and Happy messing around with her all morning. And now the two of them are trying to kill her!

Unfortunately, the boys don’t even spare a look at her as they continue with their fight.

“Oh yeah? Better than looking up a girl’s skirt,” Gray shouts while giving sideways glance to Lucy. “Or shoving a hand down her cleavage!” Both Natsu and Lucy turn their heads at the remark and for the first time in his life, the pinkette doesn’t seem to have any proper response to the raven haired mage’s insult.

Gray takes it as a sign of his victory and takes off his underwear with a shrug, standing completely naked. But nobody complains because the other two people are too embarassed to speak. There’s a long pause before Lucy clears her throat. Gray smirks at the pair.

#this was the start of a oneshot i had planned to do lmao i forgot #though im not a fan of pervy natsu its fun writing him at times #will do the oneshot some other time #maybe #fairy tail #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #nalu #natsu x lucy #fairy tail nalu #ft nalu #fairy tail 100 years quest #nalu fanfic #nalu fanfiction #nalu fan fic #nalu fan fiction

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beargyufairy · 5 months

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Just a little something I wrote…

Dull light and a soft morning breeze seeped into the stifled apartment as Lucy arose from a restless slumber. She remained motionless, covered in blankets that lacked warmth, staring absentmindedly at the ceiling. It was serene yet devoid of comfort for the blonde mage. The mellow light cast false aspirations, mocking her empty state.

Despite year passing by without contact from her guildmates, Lucy held onto hope of waking from the nightmare. She unconsciously glanced over at the door, desiring her friends to burst through and whisk her away back to the place she knew as home.

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she pushed the thoughts away. A feeble attempt at burying it in the back of her mind. There was no need for another day of hopelessness. She recalled how the hours turned into weeks of impatiently waiting for their return. Time slipped away from her, like a river running dry. She wished it had taken the lingering emotions pounding rapidly in her chest with it.

Impulsively, Lucy packed her belongings and fled to Crocus. After being offered a modeling job, she worked day and night, keeping her focus solely on the task. It prevented her mind from wandering into the depths of her memories. Her efforts paid off, earning her the position of journalist. A lifetime ago, Lucy would’ve been ecstatic. Now, she had a glimpse of a different reality she couldn’t shake off. Like a second skin, haunting her every step.

The blaring screech of the halting train grabbed her attention, making her aware of her surroundings. A white scarf fluttered in front of her. Eyes widened, a small smile blooming as she reached forward. Her arms stopped midway, her fingers clenched into a fist. Disappointed loomed as she realized her reality was intertwined with a faint mockery of desperation. She laughed at her misery in an attempt to keep tears at bay as she walked onward.

The stadium was brimming with hundreds of people, eagerly awaiting the events to unfold. She, too, was filled with the enthusiasm, a slight hope to find a familiar face among the crowd of strangers. She was met with everlasting loneliness in its place. A heavy weight pulled her further into its empty embrace.

But today was different. An intruder entered the stadium. A sudden burst of excitement pooled in her stomach as she grabbed her pouch, a habit formed by her dreamlike past. Since moving to the capital, she has rarely used magic. It served as a reminder of who she was meant to be. It felt natural. The golden keys were cool to the touch. However, her actions were quickly shut down. Her body on autopilot as heat rose in the stadium. A familiar feeling she yearned for. Only one person could make her feel safe in the midst of grief. A faint smile betrayed her shock as she recognized the pink-haired mage grinning softly at her. An urgent sense of relief and warmth flared in her chest. Everything would be okay after all.

** @blazingorchid thanks for your help 🫶

#fairy tail #lucy heartfilia #nalu #natsu dragneel #natsu x lucy #writers on tumblr #lucy x natsu #fairy tail fanfiction #writerscommunity #just me and my thoughts #thank you for coming to my ted talk #nalu headcanon #fanfic #fan fiction #i would give up forever just to see you #allaboutnalu #take my hand take my whole life too

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tokkias · 5 months

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cherry blossom boy ship: natsu dragneel x lucy heartfilia summary: Despite sporting it for most of his childhood, black had never really been Natsu's colour. He had spent almost all of his adult life cycling through new hair colours but none had ever really felt like his. With his new roots growing in and decision paralysis striking, who better than to pick his next one than Lucy? ao3

Glancing up at his reflection in the mirror, Natsu dragged his hand through his hair as he made note of his appearance. It had been a while since he’d last done anything with his hair, and it certainly showed with the length and regrowth at the scalp. The black roots were a stark contrast to the vivid red of the rest of his hair.

He’d never really liked the black, hence the need to bleach it out every few months. It never felt like his colour. Many a time, he had been compared to his brother because of the fact, even though Natsu couldn’t see the similarities otherwise. Though certainly not his favourite, being compared to Zeref was tolerable enough that he sported the jet black for a fair few years of his life. No, it wasn’t until he was forced to share with Gray that he had decided that black simply wasn’t for him. Someone had once told them they looked like brothers, and Natsu had bleached his hair in the bathroom that very same night. He’d fried it to a crisp, but he’d never looked back since then.

Thankfully, his hair had since recovered from that incident, no doubt thanks to Lucy’s offer of help (and forbidding him from doing it himself since then out of fear of giving himself a chemical burn). It had been years since then, and Lucy had been bleaching and dying his hair over the bathroom sink ever since.

Though he couldn’t recall when was the last time they had done his roots, based on the regrowth, it had been two, maybe three months since then. That was longer than they typically go, but that was entirely down to his indecision as to what colour he would be going next.

He had thought the bright red would be fitting to his fiery personality, but the novelty had quickly worn off when he had been compared to Erza, ever known for her scarlet locks. He had tried orange prior, but one comment from Loke about how flattered he was that Natsu was trying to imitate him was enough for him to abstain from the colour for the rest of his life. Cool colours never quite seemed to suit his warmer complexion, so he had been at a complete loss for what to go for this time.

For a moment, he contemplated simply letting it grow out and defaulting back to black for the first time in his adult life. That thought left as soon as it came, however, in favour of doing what he tended to do best in these sorts of situations—ignore the problem and pretend it doesn’t exist in hopes maybe it would go away.

Upon entering the kitchen, he noticed Lucy was already pouring them each a mug of steaming hot coffee.

“Good morning,” she greeted, her voice soft and sunny, just like she was.

He regarded her with a tired grunt in response as he approached before resting his forehead on her shoulder. Her hand came up to tangle in his hair, lightly grazing her fingernails across his scalp before dragging her fingers through to the tips of his hair.

“It’s probably about time we do your roots again,” she mused as though she had plucked the thought straight from his head. “Have you decided on what we’re doing with it yet?”

Pulling his head off of her shoulder and picking up the mug before him, he shook his head.

He never usually left it this long—he would always make sure to keep up with his roots or get bored with whatever colour he had going on before they could grow out this much. In all the years Lucy had been doing his hair, there were probably only a handful of times where she had been the one to bring it up.

“Not going to stay with red?” Lucy asked, to which Natsu shook his head again.

Though it had certainly been one of the better colours he’d cycled through so far, something about it never seemed right. Vibrant reds had always been so synonymous with Erza that he almost felt bad about going red himself, even though it was his favourite colour. Though he liked it, red, much like every other colour he had tried, never felt like his.

All the options that never felt quite right had left him with a decision fatigue that had had him putting it off entirely.

“Why don’t you pick for me?” He finally suggested, having tired of weeks of indecision.

“Me?” Lucy asked, pointing at herself in mild bewilderment.

“Yeah,” he shrugged.

She looked a little sceptical about his suggestion. He’d never left it up to her before—he’d always been the one to pick out the colour; she was simply in charge of putting it in for him.

“Are you sure?” She followed up, uncertainty laced in her voice.

Lucy was his ride-or-die, his best friend, his emergency contact. There were more dire things that he had left in her hands before now, so letting her pick his hair colour felt trivial in comparison.

“Yeah, ‘course,” he replied, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Still, she regarded him with a sceptical expression.

“What? You don’t wanna?” He said.

“No, it’s not that; I’m just surprised you asked,” she replied, her tone turning more teasing. “I thought if you hadn’t asked me by now, then you just never would.”

A mischievous look spread across her features, as if he had handed her a golden opportunity to get back at him for every time he had been a pain in the ass to her.

“I could do anything; I could make it green, I could make it black, I could shave it all off if I wanted to,” she added, with a poke in the chest for emphasis.

He knew she was just messing with him, but even still, he wasn’t about to let that slip past him.

“Like hell you will!” He shouted back, eliciting a laugh from Lucy.

Her empty threats weren’t enough to make him take the offer back, but it was enough to make him question whether or not he would still have a full head of hair after this.

There was a giddy smile across Lucy’s face when she arrived home, carrying a bag holding all of her supplies in it. Any apprehension she may have held about being put in charge had since fizzled away. With a raised brow, Natsu moved to look inside, but Lucy was quicker than he was and slipped it out of his grasp before he could catch a glimpse.

“Nah-ah,” she scolded. “It’s a surprise.”

Natsu was never a fan of surprises. He really didn’t like change, much less change that was out of his hands, but somehow this didn’t seem so bad. He trusted Lucy more than anyone—he’d put his life in her hands if he had to, so committing to a colour of her choice he could simply bleach out or cut off if he didn’t like it was really no big deal.

That, of course, did not stop him from trying to grab the bag out of her hands, if only to commit to his life-long goal of being a pain in Lucy’s ass.

“Hey! Stop it!” She yelped, running right out of his reach. “Get off!”

Unfortunately for him, Lucy was much more agile than he was and was able to slip away into the bathroom, bringing the hair dye with her. He grabbed the knob, but Lucy, knowing him better than anyone, had already locked it from the inside, leaving him to rattle the door, knowing his efforts were futile.

“Let me iiiinnn,” he whined, flopping his entire body weight against the door with a thud.

“No way!” She shot back. “You get to have your fun, and now I get to have mine!”

She was right—no one had been subjected to more of his pranks and shenanigans than her (sans perhaps Gray), but that still didn’t stop him from pawing at the door like a cat locked out, howling to be let in. She didn’t cave, however, long since used to Natsu’s bullshit, and he couldn’t do anything more than rap at the locked door in an attempt to at the very least be a bother while she prepped his new colour.

Much to his dismay, Lucy had locked the colour away in the medicine cabinet by the time she let him in for the bleaching, and he was left pouting in the chair she had dragged in from the kitchen.

With her brush, Lucy mixed the lightener and developer together with enough confidence and expertise that one could be convinced that she was trained to do it. Though she was certainly no professional, they both knew she was leagues better than Natsu, and having someone who had full view of his head certainly made things easier too. With an experienced eye, she began to apply it to the roots of his hair. The coolness of the bleach mixture, though familiar, still came with a slight sting.

“Is everything okay? Doesn’t hurt, does it?” She asked.

She knew the answer to that already, but it had simply become routine at this point. Sure, it stung a little, as was the nature of putting chemicals on your head, but Lucy was careful and Natsu was used to it, so it was never that bad.

He merely hummed out an affirmation, and that seemed to be good enough for Lucy.

The process of washing out the bleach was always Natsu’s favourite part. He tried his best not to doze off, soothed by the feeling of the pads of her fingers massaging his scalp, though the uncomfortable position she had him in, hunched over the bathtub, kept him awake. He could very well do this part on his own, but he enjoyed the small intimacy that came with her doing it for him. He liked how she was gentle when she knew she didn’t have to be, even when he would have been more rough and careless—not because she thought he couldn’t handle it, but just because she cared. He appreciated how she always checked with him to make sure the water wasn’t too hot or the blow dryer too loud. Even though they had been doing it for years now and she had long since perfected the right temperature to set the water and the right setting to have the blow dryer at, she still always made sure to check in with him every step of the way.

Her checking up on him was just as part of the routine as all of the rest of it was.

Had he been more sound of mind, he might have tried to use this as a chance to sneak a look at the colour as she applied it to his hair, but she had him putty in her hands, his mind hazed over, too preoccupied in his contentment to bother sneaking a peek. Even as the colour ran down the side of the tub in rivers of vividly stained water, his eyes remained shut.

“You ready?” Lucy asked once she was finally satisfied with her work.

Natsu only replied with a vigourous nod of his head. He wasn’t sure he had ever been held in eager anticipation for anything so long in his life. He hadn’t a clue what colour she might have gone with, but what he did know was that there had been a self-satisfied smile plastered across her face throughout the whole process. Whatever it was she had chosen, she seemed rather proud of herself for it and clearly excited for him to see it too.

Turning around to face himself in the bathroom mirror, for the first time today, he saw the colour that Lucy had picked out for him.

It was pink. Bright pink.

It wasn’t as though she had tried to tone it down, disguise it, make it any more palatable to someone who wasn’t a fan of the girlish connotations of the colour. No, this was pink, pink.

Pink like cherry blossoms, pink like the sheets on her bed.

Pink. Lucy’s favourite colour.

He leaned in closer to the mirror as if to get a better look and dragged his fingers through his hair from root to ends. This was not a colour he would ever have chosen for himself, but seeing himself in it now, he couldn’t describe it in any other way than just feeling... right.

He was quiet as he took it all in, his thoughts not showing through on his face.

She looked up at him with shining eyes, looking warm and ever hopeful, but she couldn’t hide from him the tinge of nervousness that lingered deep within them.

“Do you like it?” She asked.

“I love it,” he grinned.

Lucy clapped her hands together in a mixture of delight and relief. If there had been a twinge of nervousness lingering within her, she had done a good job of hiding it, given that he only really noticed when she let the façade drop.

There was a glimmer of pride flickering in her eye and a self-satisfied smile on her lips. He couldn’t help the way pride prickled in his heart too and the wide grin that still donned his own lips. He slung his arms around her, pulling her into his side in a crushing hug that had her squealing and trying to wiggle her way out. It didn’t stop him though—it only served to make him hold on tighter, and when she finally gave into the fact that he would not be letting go, she wrapped her own around him.

He nestled his nose in the crown of her head, his heart full with the knowledge that he would forever carry with him the love of his best friend in her favourite colour, adorning his hair.

#nalu #natsu x lucy #fairy tail #nalu fanfiction #fan fiction #nalu fanfic #mya writes things

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