Chapter One:
Pain.
That was the first thing the man noticed as he opened his eyes.
Pain, all over his body. Stiffness. Like he'd been tied to a board and forced to lie perfectly still for days on end. Well, he had in a way. Though he hadn't litteraly been tied down.
Wind. A cold breeze on his cheek. Had someone opened a window. He tried to move to see, and felt grass beneath him.
Wait, where was his bed?
Come to think of it where was HE exactly?
He opened his eyes and found himself staring up at a blue sky. Slowly he forced himself to sit up. A field? Why was he in the middle of a giant field of flowers? How had he gotten here? Where was everyone? No, this didn't make sense. Someone must have moved him here, that much was certain...but why?
Why here?
And where was here exactly? This was certainly no place he was familiar with. Slowly he brought himself to his feet. He could stand. That was good. At least he'd regained some of his stregnth. Perhaps his illness was finally fading.
He looked around. Nothing but grass and flowers as far as the eye could see. He let out a sigh, picked a direction, and started walking. Well, more like shuffling, honestly. As much as he hated to admit it he was getting old, and whatever happened to cause him to pop up here was not making things easier on his aging body. Still, it didn't really matter. He had a mission to complete. A puzzle to solve. And one, maybe two, young ladies to find.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Lucy could only stare at the scratch paper in front of her. She'd done it. She'd actually done it!
….Kind of.
She still didn't have enough money to buy back the entire Heartfelia Estate. At this point she was starting to wonder if she'd ever earn enough for that. Still, the money she'd made off her book was more than enough to buy back the mansion and some of the surrounding ground. This was perfect! She was finally going to be able to restore her childhood home!
Maybe.
There was still one hurdle she had to overcome, and that was her husband of 8 months, Natsu. She set both elbows on her desk and leaned her chin into her palms. How to convince Natsu that buying the mansion back was a good idea? And how to convince him to spend the money on than rather than food or something stupid like that. They may be adults now, but that didn't mean Natsu didn't still have his, well, quirks to put it politely.
This might not even be an issue, though. He might be all gun-ho for it. It would be just like him to think of buying the mansion as another grand adventure. Then again it would also be just like him to think buying it back was stupid. Lucy sighed. Yes, she could see her husband taking either of those routes. If there was one thing that could always be predicted about Natsu it was his unpredictability.
Speaking of which…
"EEK!"
Lucy immediately broke out of her train of thought when something cold and wet slithered down her back.
"Ha! Gotcha!"
"Natsu, I'm gonna kill you!" Lucy shrieked as she squirmed about to get the ice cube out of her shirt. "And Gray too! I know you had to have gotten this from him!"
"No, actually, I got it out of the freezer."
"Our freezer doesn't have an ice maker, idiot!"
Natsu sighed. "I told Gray that excuse wouldn't wor-HEY!"
The dragon slayer tumbled back as a pillow hit him smack in the face. He pulled the fluffy cushion off his face to see his rather annoyed wife standing over him with her arms crossed.
"Weren't you supposed to be getting us a job?"
"I tried, but there weren't any good ones available."
"Weren't any good ones, or weren't any S class ones because you let Erza, Galjeel, Levy, Gray, Laxus, and Cana get to all of them before you did?"
"Love, the S class quests ARE the good ones."
Lucy pinched the bridge of her nose. "You do realize that just because you are an S class wizard now it doesn't mean you can't go on regular old missions!"
"C'mon, I went throught that trial three times! I using my S class title for everything it's worth!"
"Or you're just trying to show up Gray because he made S class before you did."
"THAT SORRY ICE BRAIN CHEATED, I TELL YOU!" Natsu immediately calmed down as he sat back up. "Besides, it's not like we need the money with your book and all."
"You trying to freeload off my accomplishments." Lucy sat cross-leged in front of him.
"Not at all, but aren't quests just for fun at this point?"
"And weren't you complaining about being bored this morning?"
"Yeah, but I'm not gonna take some crappy job just because I'm bored. I've got a reputation to uphold."
"Sure…" Lucy just shook her head as he scooted closer to her and leaned his forehead, their signature gesture. Though many things had changed over the years, Natsu was still Natsu. He was infuriating sometimes, but she still loved him with all her heart. She smiled and nuzzled her forehead against his.
"Actually, I'm glad you're back early, there's something I want to talk to you about."
"S'up?" Natsu leaned backed a bit so they could see each other.
Lucy drew her knees to her chest as she continued. "So, um, you know I published a book a while back."
"Well, yeah, it's been the talk of the town for months. Even got a positive review in Sorceror's Weekly. By the way, I have told you how proud I am of you for that, right?"
Lucy smiled. "More than once."
"Well, guess you'll have to stand hearing it again," Natsu gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "Proud of you."
"Thanks," Lucy blushed slightly. "Well, anyways, I've been going through the money accounts to see how much I've actually made and…"
Natsu arched an eyebrow when she didn't continue. "...And?"
Lucy sighed. "And, I have enough to buy my childhood house back."
Natsu blinked and arched an eyebrow. "Okay, why do you want to do that?"
Lucy sighed. So this was the route he was taking. Couldn't he have gone the other way? Nope. That would be too easy. Natsu was always complicated. A good thing she loved a challenge...most of the time.
"Well," she tried to find the words to explain. "It's where I grew up. It's what my mother and father worked their whole lives for. It's where my parents graves are. It's where I first started learning magic. It's where a lot of my good memories are. I don't like the idea of someone else owning it. It just...it just wouldn't feel right."
"I can understand that," Natsu nodded. "Wut what will we do with it once we buy it? It's kind of a far away from the guild hall. Besides it's a bit too big for just the two of us to live there."
"Won't Happy and Carla come along?" Lucy asked.
"Nah, Carla wouldn't want to be that far from Wendy."
"Well, doesn't Happy get a say?"
"You kidding? Lil'buddy's so whipped it's pathetic."
"I'm sure he says the same thing about you."
"Hey, now," Natsu narrowed his eyes at her. She giggled, then lowered her head in embarassement."
"I guess I haven't thought that far ahead," Lucy answered. "You're right, though. It would be pretty silly to buy something that expensive and do nothing with it."
"'You're right?'" Natsu arched an eyebrow with a mischivious grin on his face. "How did those words taste coming out of your mouth?"
"Shut it, flame boy," Lucy tossed a pillow at him again. This time he caught it, though, and threw it back at her, lightly hitting her in the side of the face.
"Hey!"
"You threw it first."
"Ergh! You're so infuriating sometimes."
"Oh, really? If that's the case," Natsu held up his hand and pointed to the ring on his finger. "Why'd you marry me?"
"Because I love you. Now shut up before I get really mad at you."
"Sounds like you're already there."
"So why are you still provoking me?!"
"Becasue you're cute when your mad."
"Oh, you!" Lucy went to swat at him, but he caught he wrist and used it to pin her to the floor on her back.
"Nats-UMPH!"
He interrupted her with a small kiss to her lips.
"Oh come on. You can't just pick on me then kiss me!" Lucy whined.
"Sure I can, I'm your husband aren't I?"
"Hmph!" Lucy crossed her arms (or arm, as Natsu still had one hand pinned above her head).
"Aw, c'mon, Luce, don't that way."
"IF YOU DIDN'T WANT ME MAD AT YOU THAN YOU SHOULDN'T HAV-UMPH!"
He kissed her again.
"Nats-umph!"
He kissed her yet again. By this point he was doing push-ups over her, planting a small peck on her lips everytime he lowered himself down over her.
"Will-you-quit-trying-to-distract-me-" she asked inbetween kisses.
"I'm not trying to distract you," Natsu answered as he stopped doing push-ups, and instead lied ontop of her and nuzzled his face into her neck.
"Then what are you trying to do?" Lucy asked impatiently.
Natsu shrugged. "I dunno. Kiss my wife I guess."
"You guess?"
"Okay, fine, I know. Hey, can you blame me? I'm married to the most amazing woman in the world, why wouldn't I kiss on you any chance I got?" He he planted a small on her neck, causing her to smile as she began running the fingers of one of her hands through his hair, her other hand tracing line along his face. He hummed deep in his throat as he wrapped his arms around her waist. Her fingers eventually found there way to the scar on his cheek. It was one of many he had. The biggest of them was on his side. The one he'd gotten fighting future Rogue. The one he'd gotten avegning her. She still shuddered when she thought about that night. Not only because she watched herself die, but because how badly hurt he'd been. And yet he kept fighting for her. Still, it would have been good if he could have-
"Oh! I got it!" Lucy snapped her fingers.
"Hm?" Natsu asked.
"What if we turned the mansion into a recovery center?"
"A re-what?"
"A recovery center. Y'know, a place where wizards can go after they've been hurt real bad to heal."
"So, like, a vacation house for sick or hurt people?"
Lucy sighed in slight annoyance. "Yeah, a vacation house for sick or hurt people."
"What happened to it not feeling right if anyone other than you lived there?"
"First of all, I said 'own' not 'live.' Secondly, you know my guild mates are like my family. I wouldn't mind them staying at my childhood home to recover."
"Yeah, sure," Natsu shrugged.
"Huh?"
"Sounds good to me."
"Yeah, you think so?"
"Yeah. I mean the guild hall isn't exactly a great place to take it easy. Always booze and fighting going on there."
"So...you're okay with this?"
Natsu shrugged. "Sure, why not."
"So...I can buy the mansion now?"
"Yup."
"Eeeee!" She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
"You're-eugh-welcome. Please don't strangle me!"
Lucy released him and kissed the top of his head. "Really, thank you."
"No problem," Natsu answered, his face still nuzzled into her neck.
"Um...Natsu?"
"Hm?"
"I can't go buy anything with you still ontop of me."
"But you're so comfortable…" Natsu whined.
"C'mon, hop up," Lucy tapped on his shoulder.
"Ugh, okay, fine!"
Natsu rolled over to let his wife up. Lucy hopped to her feet and raced towards her closet to pick out a pair of shoes so she could go to the relator office to pick up the proper paperwork. As she put on a pair of high-heel sandals she noticed Natsu was still laying in the floor.
"Aren't you going to get up?"
"Nah, I like to view from here."
Lucy arched an eyebrow, wondering what he meant, until she remembered she was wearing a miniskirt. She screeched and pulled out a pair of socks from her a drawer in the wardrobe and threw them at him. "Jerk!"
"What, I've already seen it all."
"Shut up! I'm going to get the paperwork."
"Alright, cutie, see you when you get back."
"No, because you're going to go pick out a quest so you'll stop driving me crazy complaining about being bored."
Lucy closed the door behind her and headed to the closest realator's office. It didn't take her as long to pick up the paperwork. Looking at the massive pile that was all but dumped into her arms, though, she could tell that actually filling it out would take much longer.
"I have to fill out all of this!?"
"Yes," the woman at the desk nodded. "It is a big house so it requires a thick stack."
"I guess that makes sense," Lucy groaned as she picked the stack up and headed home. It was so heavy that her arms started aching.
"I should have brought a bag or something," she grumbled to herself.
"I can carry that for you, Princess," a familiar voice called from behind her.
"Oh, Virgo!" Lucy smiled. "How'd you get here."
"I sensed you needed assistance so I came with my own power. Was I wrong? Do I need-"
"Don't finish that thought," Lucy grumbled. "And, yeah, I could use help carrying this back to my hou-oh, you didn't have to take all of it. It's pretty heavy."
"It's alright, Princess. I don't mind pain."
"I'm sure you don't," Lucy sighed as she and her spirit began walking back to her apartment.
"Princess, may I ask you a question? I am curious about something," Virgo asked after a moment of silence.
"Sure," Lucy answered.
"When is my princess going to tell her prince she is expecting?"
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