WILL CONTAIN MINOR SPOILERS IN REGARDS TO CHAPTERS 416 AND 417! I'm warning you! Enjoy reading!

Natsu Dragneel x Lucy Heartfilia
Reunion

It had been a bit more than a year now, 372 days to be exact.

She knew. She had kept count. She hadn't seen him for 372 days.

The frozen river and the snow decorating the streets of Magnolia announced that winter would stick around for just a bit longer, and that news pleaed a lot of the younger inhabitants of Magnolia. As a small group of children played in the snow, a stray snowball hit a young lady that was just walking by. Her hood fell off, and she looked at the young kids surprised, brushing the snow out of her blond locks. She smiled as she bend down to make eye contact with the young boy. His hair was a disheveled mess, reminding her of a friend of hers. She ruffled his hair and told him it was okay, silencing his endless apologies.

As the blond lady continued her way to her little appartement, she looked up at the sky. She watched how the sky had turned dark and realised it was getting close to night. Her gaze lingered on the stars and she smiled a sad smile.

Do you look up at the sky and think about us too? About me?

She shook her head, not wanting to spend any more time in the cold, thinking, and went on her way to reach her appartement, and in particular the warmth of her bathtub. She pulled her hood back up, tightened her skarf a bit tighter, trying to block out all of the cold air and fastened her step.

As she reached the front door, she let out a sad sigh. She closed her brown eyes, and made a wish, a simple wish. One she made every time she was about to open the door.

Please be there..!

She turned the key and was greeted by silence. No cheerful chattering, no laughter, no 'welcome home!'. Nothing. As she should've have known, he wasn't here. She would've known if he was here. The girl took off her jacket and skarf, tossing them into the corner of the room. She'd pick them up later, first she needed to get to her bath. She wriggled her boots off, tossing them into the same direction. She slid across the room on her socks. Once she reached the bathroom, she did her wish again, hoping someone would be there. Without a lot of faith in her own wish, the girl entered her bathroom, to find it empty, like the rest of her home. She sighed as she turned the water on, watching how it filled up the tub. She sat down on the side and dipped her fingers into the rising liquid, testing the temperature. As she decided it was warm enough, she slipped off the remaining pieces of her attire and slipped into the steaming water.

She sighed in bliss as she felt the warmth of the water replace the cold of the winter air outside. She closed her eyes as she let herself slip even deeper into the water, leaving only her nose and eyes dry. She watched as she blew bubbles into the warm water, smiling ever so slightly. The celestial spirit mage hadn't genuinely smiled in a long time. After he left, everyone had been saddened, but they had managed to pick up their lives. Many were out themselves, going to faraway places to either train or to stay there until they would regain their home. She raised her right hand to look at the mark. The mark of family, the mark that had given her so much pride. She touched it with her other hand, stroking the outline, smiling as she recalled many, many memories.

Without her realising, her vision had been clouded by tears and she sniffed. She didn't like crying. It was something she had come to see as a weakness, something that had defined her. She did not want to be regarded as the weak, crying Celestial spirit mage of Fairy Tail. She wanted to be seen as a strong individual, who was worthy of carrying the name of the guild. She shook her head and a familiar face popped up in her head. She smiled ever so slightly, imagining him speaking to her, motivating her, giving her confidence.

Where are you?

Her tears were dried as she tried to focus on the face she imagined and she nodded to herself. ''No more crying!'' she said to herself. She finished cleaning up and got out of the tub. She covered herself with a robe and then made her way to her bedroom, where she picked out her favourite pair of pajamas.

As she tightened the strings on the light blue shorts, she looked over at her desk, noticing the unfinished letter to her mother. A sigh slipped past her lips as she shook her head. Today didn't feel like a good day to write either. She had been trying to write her mother for a few days now, trying to tell her about her feelings, her thoughts, her every day experiences, but she couldn't. Despite being a writer, she couldn't figure out the words she needed to express herself. And it upset her. She had always felt most comfortable writing her mother, but something stopped her this time. She couldn't figure herself out, and that bothered her.

Shaking her head once more, she decided to call it a day. She turned all the lights off and slipped into her bed. She pulled the covers up and closed her eyes, awaiting the moment she'd fall asleep and forget her worries. She turned around, resting on her left side. She opened her eyes and watched the moon slip past her curtains and illuminate the floor. It was a silver light that stretched all across the room and she couldn't help but follow it with her eyes. She turned to the right side of her body, not wanting to watch the silver light any longer and closed her tired brown orbs again. But it did not take very long for her to open them again. She laid down on her back again, looking up at the ceiling before closing her eyes again, hoping to fall asleep now.

This continued for about an hour, which felt a lot longer to the blonde. She sat up with a loud groan. The celestial mage kicked off the blankets and marched to her closet. She pulled on loose fitting skirt and a simple sweater. She slipped on some shoes before grabbing her coat off the floor on her way to the door. She went out, making sure she had her keys, and marched through the empty, quiet, lonely streets as she made way for someone else's home.

Something she had been doing for six months now.

She pulled the hood over her head as the wind started playing with her blonde locks and shivered ever so slightly. She fastened her step as she reached the ends of the town and got closer to the outskirts of town. She soon smiled softly as she saw the board and made way for the little house.

She opened the door, flinching as she heard it screech and quickly closed it behind her. She glanced over the room and then nodded to herself. She took off her coat and dumped it next to the bed. She wriggled her shoes off, as well as her extra layer of clothing. She slipped into the bed and despite spending a number of nights here, it still held the scent of a certain pink haired male. It was a scent that calmed her down and soon she drifted off to sleep.

.
.

It was the first rays of sunshine that waked the blonde up. She sat up and stretched slightly, yawning loudly. She looked around and smiled. She saw different items that reminded her of the different quests she had worked on with her trusted friends. This place calmed her down. She changed into her skirt and sweater and pulled on her shoes again. She looked across the room and smiled. She had been keeping it clean for the last couple of months, hoping that when he would come back, his home would be clean. She made way to the kitchen, well, where she had the opportunity to create a meal.

After this simple meal, she decided to clean up some more. She dusted the floor, wiping carefully around the treasure corner, making sure she wouldn't destroy any of the ornaments. She cleaned the windows, did the dishes, and then let herself fall on the bed. She closed her eyes and soon fatigue took over and she fell into a deep slumber.

.

As the blonde celestial mage rested on the unmade bed, the door opened, though it did not wake her. She merely stirred in her sleep, her lips slightly apart, muttering the occasional name. The intruder closed the door after his companion entered as well. As his eyes scanned the house, they widened surprised by the cleanliness.

''Is it me, or does it look like it's been cleaned?'' He asked his companion who nodded in agreement.

''It's cleaner than when we left!'' he added and the intruder laughed to himself.

He dropped his bag on the floor and stepped further into the little cottage. His eyes fell on the sleeping blonde and he couldn't control his lips as they curled up.

''It's -

The intruder quickly placed his hand over his friend's mouth and placed his own finger to his own lips. ''She's sleeping. We have to be quiet.'' he whispered. The companion smiled, first a genuine smile and then a sneaky smirk.

''Ah, I'll just leave then!'' he said, his voice cheery. He seemed to be in the best of spirits. He quickly left, watching his partner as he walked over to the sleeping blonde from the window. ''He llllllikes her.'' he giggled before he covered his mouth with his own hands.

The introduder sat down on the floor and watched the blonde's face. He pulled his right leg up, hugging the knee as he looked at her as if he had never seen her before. He technically had not seen her with her new look before. Her blonde hair had gotten longer, reaching down to her mid back, as opposed to just past her shoulders. Her face was different too, though he could not figure out what had changed.

It had been a bit more than a year now, 372 days to be exact.

He knew. He had kept count. He hadn't seen her for 372 days.

He moved his hand to her face, and it was then he noticed he was shaking. He looked at his own hand with surprise, why was he shaking? He still reached for her cheek and stroked it gently. He moved his hand to her hair, taking a strand in his hand, winding it around his fingers. His lips curled up as hers did as well. She was still asleep, her eyes lightly closed, her lips just inches apart. As he released her hair and watched her for a few more moments, he heard her whisper a word. He couldn't make it out, or rather, he didn't trust his own ears. He listened more intensely and watched how she frowned slightly and then whispered it again.

''...Natsu.''

When she whispered it for the third time, Natsu looked away, a slight blush adorning his cheeks. He coughed softly and then turned to the blonde. ''I am here, Lucy, I am here.''

As if she heard him call for her, she frowned again, before opening her eyes slowly. Natsu kept watching her as her eyes went wide. He remained silent as Lucy rubbed her eyes. When she moved her hands down again, and their eyes met once more, her mouth opened to a small 'o'.

Lucy took in his new appearance; his pink hair was longer, he was more muscular, he had gained a few scars, but his face was the same. His smile was still his own. He was still Natsu.

With the realisation of this Lucy's eyes filled with tears, which made Natsu panic. ''Ah, Luce, I can explain! I really can explain! You see, Lucy,it's like this. Listen to me! Please don't-

Natsu was silenced as Lucy threw herself at him, her arms was locked around his neck and as she cried into his shoulder, they both tumbled down onto the floor. Natsu let out a reassured sigh as he hugged her back, stroking her hair as moved them back into sitting position on the floor.

''You stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid..''

Lucy kept muttering into his shoulder, being cut off by her own sobs and Natsu smiled to himself. He moved his head to her ear and whispered, ''I missed you too Lucy.''

A blanket of red covered Lucy's cheeks as she broke the hug and looked at him in the eye. ''I missed you, you idiot!'' she exclaimed and Natsu smiled at her, which absorbed all of her anger. Her tears started flowing again as she looked at him. ''I was so lonely..'' she whispered, and she looked away. She looked at the ground, fumbling with her shirt. Natsu scratched the back of his head and then remembered what he had been told by Gildarts on his journey.

''Lucy?'' He called her name and when she didn't respond, he put his hand underneath her chin and forced her to look at him. ''I'm sorry.'' he sounded sincere and Lucy blushed furiously. A small blush covered his own cheeks, and that's why he smiled extra widely at her.

''Lucy, I'm home!''
''Welcome home, Natsu, welcome home.''

It had been a bit more than a year now, 372 days to be exact.

They knew. They had kept count. They hadn't seen each other for 372 days.
They were finally reunited.

The End.