A calamity was brewing on Strawberry Street, and unsurprisingly it involved the strongest guild in the Kingdom of Fiore.
"Somehow," said Charle, a stern look gracing her features, "I just know this is your fault." She was sitting on Lucy's bed looking at a befuddled Natsu and Happy.
To a simple passerby, it looked as if Nastu had picked up his exceed friend, and was examining him at arms length. But then, a simple passerby wouldn't know they had just swapped bodies. Upon hearing her comment they both simultaneously turned to her and cried "This is so not our fault!"
Pantherlily scratched his forearm awkwardly and looked down at what used to be himself saying in a disappointed tone, "Am I really that small?"
"Now's not the time to be worrying about that!" Charle shook her head, she couldn't believe these guys. Meanwhile somewhere in a corner of the room Wendy had taken to walking in tight circles, a small dark cloud blooming above her. "Wendy, we'll be alright!" her friend comforted. Wendy twitched her ears in response.
Brazenly leaning against the wall was Gajeel, looking less than pleased as he crossed his front paws over his chest. "Whatever, does anyone know how to get us back to normal?"
"I'm kinda enjoying this!" Natsu grinned, totally ignoring him, trying to fly circles around his former body. "This flying thing will take some getting used to. Hey secretly, I've always wanted to know what it was like to have fur. Maybe I'll do a cat-bath!" He laughed demonically to himself.
"Natsu -" said Happy.
Natsu stopped flying for a moment to hear out his little now-human friend.
"- please don't lick my privates." He tried to put on a serious voice, but ended up giggling nonetheless.
"Aye sir!" Natsu parodied his friends' catchphrase, raising his right hand to a salute. They both started rolling on the floor laughing at their own complicity, hands clutching their stomachs. Happy, not having adapted to his new-found height, rolled on Wendy's tail, who then squealed.
"Ooh, sorry Wendy!" he said, still smiling.
She stared at him for a second, then slowly looked down at herself "I...I'm naked!" Tears of embarrassment started pouring out like mini waterfalls, because indeed, she was only wearing a pink ribbon on the end of her tail.
"Technically you're a cat, so... there is no naked state." Natsu stretched his arms out cheerfully, paws behind his head, boldly sporting nothing but a green backpack. Wendy's gaze travelled over his bare fluff and it made her cry harder.
"You boys have no sensitivity!" Charle scolded, patting Wendy gently on the head, only relaxing when she started purring slightly. Happy, who didn't like being told off, let some poorly mastered fire dragon lava dribble submissively from his mouth. He also mentioned something about wanting to try out the bath.
All this madness had begun not long ago, as they had just come back from a failed mission. The job was to catch an elusive rascal, who got their kicks from filling people's doorsteps with fish every day. Since Happy had a major fish obsession, and the prize money was good, all six of them set off on the adventure. Unfortunately, as they discovered, the perpetrator was an even bigger fish, who had evolved in such a manner that he was somewhat amphibious. The fish was found out to be an endangered species, and the terrorised villagers decided to let him continue out of pity (and the prospect of starting a fish market with all the loot landing on their doorstep); saying things such as poor soul and such a lonely life. Yet never was the ethical question raised of the mass murder this 'poor soul' was committing to fishkind. Either way they went home smelling terrible (much to Happy's delight), and penniless.
It was on the train ride back, just before their arrival, that they swapped bodies. It was totally unexpected, and they stumbled into Magnolia not understanding anything; but tinged with a general sense of déja vu. The stumbling was emphasised on the male dragon slayer's part, much to Happy and Pantherlily's dismay as they cursed motion sickness and its mother. The best plan of action was to get to Lucy's place to hideout, that and figure out a much more viable plan of action. Lucy wasn't home of course, she was out on a job with Gray, despite Juvia's many protestations. But Natsu and Happy were now experts on sneaking into her place, and after some dusty clothes and a few questionable manoeuvres, they had infiltrated her home without a stitch, bringing us back to the current situation.
"We can't stay here forever." Gajeel was itching to be outside, where he could put some distance between him and the noisy fire mages and blue exceeds, even if they swap bodies I can't tell the difference, he thought to himself.
"We should head to the guild," said Pantherlily, tearing his eyes off what he didn't want to believe was his old body, so small... he shook his head to banish the thought.
"And find Makarov to see if he can help, sounds like a plan."said Charle, as she picked up a silent Wendy and put her over one shoulder.
"Fine by me." smiled Natsu with a genuine Cheshire cat smile. "Happy, how about you?" there was silence, "Happy?"
Natsu sniffed around a bit and discovered ironically his nose wasn't as sharp now he was a cat. He was about to call him again when a loud shriek erupted from the bathroom, belonging to the currently missing used-to-be exceed.
"Happy, what's wrong?!" Natsu scrambled to the bathroom where he heard his buddy's cry, half running, half flying shakily, mixed in with a bit of undignified crawling. "Are you alright?!"
Behind the door was Happy, stark naked in front of a steaming bath with a look of complete shock plastered on his fair skinned face. "What? Why did you scream?" Natsu caught his breath and searched the room, he didn't see anything wrong.
"I... I didn't want to see your junk!" Happy's face reddened as he felt he had just crossed a boundary that he could never uncross.
"Then don't undress yourself! I mean, don't undress me! I mean... this is getting complicated." If it were possible, steam would be puffing out of Natsu's pointy exceed ears at that moment.
"Just get dressed you useless cat!" shouted Gajeel, pausing afterwards to ponder over whether it was still correct to call Happy a cat since he now inhabited Natsu. And furthered his thoughts on whether it was an insult to himself since he too, was now a cat. But these frivolous wonderings were all abandoned when he realised he didn't actually give a shit.
And so off they went all together, looking like an incredibly odd bunch, to try and find Master Makarov and figure out what the hell they were meant to do next.