"When you go, will you even turn to say 'I don't love you like I did yesterday'" -I Don't Love You, My Chemical Romance
The evening chill was barely starting to sink in down through Magnolia as most of the shops closed, the lacrima-powered street lights flickered on, and the various wizards throughout the city left their guild halls for the comfort of their respective homes. Two mages in particular were walking together in silence, unsure of how to break the silence that seemed to crop up between them whenever there was no one else around.
"Um, so congrats, Natsu. The whole guild has been waiting for you and Lucy to go out practically forever."
The pink-haired dragon slayer grinned sheepishly at his white haired friend. The pair had found themselves walking in the same general direction after eating dinner at the guild hall, and so ended up keeping each other company through the dimly lit streets of Magnolia. "Yeah, thanks Lisanna."
The pair walked a few steps in an uncomfortable silence, the unresolved tension between them hanging thick in the air.
"So," Natsu started awkwardly, "How have you been lately?"
"I've been fine, thanks."
Again, an awkward silence settled in. Lisanna couldn't stand it anymore.
"Well, it was nice catching up." She clasped her hands together, nodding slightly at him. "I'm actually just going to help Mira at the guild."
Lisanna walked away quickly, regretfully wondering how their relationship seemed so strained, when they once were inseparable.
"Lisanna, wait." She turned around, watching the Dragon Slayer jog to catch up with her. "Listen, I- I really think that we should talk, you know."
Despite the little voice in her head telling her to flee, to save herself from the looming confrontation, Lisanna nodded, feeling as though a talk was in order. They walked to a little park, sitting on a bench that bordered the river, before they began to speak.
"Lisanna, I-"
"Listen, Natsu, it's-"
They stopped, smiling uncomfortably at each other.
"You can go first," Lisanna conceded, fiddling with the fabric of her skirt.
"No, it's fine. What were you going to say?"
She glanced at the river, watching the way the light reflected off the waves. "It's fine that you are with Lucy. Really. I don't expect anything from you. You know that, right?" With her question, she lifted her gaze to him.
Natsu played with the fringe at the end of his scarf, avoiding her gaze. "Yeah, I know that."
Lisanna smoothened out her skirt. She hadn't even realized that it was bunched up in her hands.
"It's just that." Natsu finally looked at her. He smiled a little upside-down smile. "It's just that, well, we had history, once."
Lisanna clenched the bench with both hands. She glanced at the pebbles that lined the river, and the leaves that fell into the water.
Natsu continued. "I just- I don't want you to be hurt or anything."
Lisanna laughed cynically, once. She couldn't help it any more than she could help the tears that she felt weigh heavy from the back of her throat.
"Hurt, yeah. Natsu, you don't understand. I was your best friend, but you were the love of my life. I was sure that we were going to get married and live in that house on the hill. We were going to set out together in search of Igneel, and he would give us his blessing. Happy was going to help us raise children of our own, the next generation of Fairy Tail wizards."
She raised her eyes, ignoring how the corner of her vision was getting blurry. "And then we were separated. I ended up in Edolas and you were here."
"At first, I thought you would come find me, like you promised."
"Lisanna I-"
"Let me finish, Natsu. Please."
He fell silent, looking as though those words slammed into his face.
"I know, you all thought I was dead. I disappeared in a burst of stars. I tried to tell myself that it was impossible for anyone to figure out that I had somehow been ripped from our world to another. And, after I couldn't find a way back, I just stopped looking."
She sighed, hugging herself tightly. "I gave up on getting back to this world, almost. But there was a part of me that held onto that promise you made me, despite the fact that every day that passed was a day further from our once-inevitable future."
Lisanna trailed off, clenching her jaw tightly. A few stray tears fell down her cheek.
Natsu wiped them away. "I'm really sorry, Lisanna. I wanted to always be there to protect you, but I couldn't. And I never wanted to hurt you. You have to know that."
"I do. I do. I guess, when you ended up in Edolas, that tiny part of me that never stopped holding out hope that we would find our way together again suddenly turned out to be right, and, I thought it was- well, fate. I thought it was our second chance."
"It was. Just, not in that way. You don't understand. When we thought you had died, it completely broke us, all of us. Your sister lost her fire, her heart, and stopped being the She-Devil, and your brother couldn't do a complete transformation anymore. And I- I just couldn't stop blaming myself. If I had been there, with you guys, I could have protected you. It was driving me crazy. It got so bad that I couldn't even face Happy anymore, knowing that I let him down, that I let you down."
"I couldn't live like that. I started breaking down. During missions, I would pick fights with anyone, get myself into trouble, almost get myself killed. It took Gramps, Mira, and half the guild to knock some sense into me. I- I had to move on. I thought you were dead."
"But, I didn't move on. Not really, not until I ended up in Hargeon, chasing down a lead on Igneel, and I met this seemingly useless wizard that was shockingly kind to me. And then I kept running into her, and she bought Happy and I a meal and she, she just talked. About how much she wanted to be a part of Fairy Tail. About her magic. About whatever. She just glowed with life."
"So I brought her to the guild. I thought, maybe, she would find a partner eventually, but, I don't know. I wanted her to be my partner. Her trivial comments and her silly face when she was angry, it made me happy, and I wanted to make her happy. Before I knew it, all the demons in my mind had been replaced with this idea, this future that I could make happen."
Lisanna sighed, deeply and sadly, looking at the raw emotion splashed on Natsu's face. "I understand, Natsu. I do. If I were truly dead, I would want you to move on. I did want you to move on. I'm glad you did. Lucy, she's a really sweet girl. You two make sense together."
"And if I'm honest with myself, I have moved on, too. In Edolas, the other Natsu, he must have had something with their Lisanna, but, I just couldn't continue it. It felt wrong, to fool him into thinking I was someone else, someone he had loved. He started showing interest in their Lucy, so I figured that it must be fate for you two to be together."
Lisanna straightened herself, wiping her face with her hands. "Anyways, thank you, Natsu. I feel a lot better now."
Natsu nodded, smiling at her. "I just thought that, we have been through so much together, it would be wrong to let things go on without a proper ending."
The silence was tense, but not painful as it had been earlier. Natsu made to leave, but Lisanna stopped him, grabbing his arm as he turned away.
"Do you think, I wasn't stuck in Edolas and you in Earthland, we could have…?" She trailed off helplessly, dropping the hand that held him in place.
Natsu turned back to his best friend. He took it in, her small, brave stance, the tears hidden in her eyes, the melancholic tone in her voice. "Yeah. I think that were meant for each other, once. In another world we still are."
Lisanna smiled up at him. It was a sad, hurt smile, yes, but, it didn't waver. "I'll bet you're right."
/
In another world, a different time and space, a young girl stirred, rubbing sleep from her eyes. She glanced at the clock; it read 6:30 am. Strange. Usually, she would still be asleep for another half-hour before her body woke her up.
Looking around the room groggily in the dim light, Lisanna made a mental account of her situation. Across the room in the single bed, one of her roommates snored softly into the night, although Lisanna had no idea what time she had gotten in. Rich, beautiful, and popular, on weekend nights Lucy Heartfillia rarely saw the inside of her dorm room until well after curfew.
Above her on the top bunk, the bed shifted. Levy McGarden, Lisanna soon realized, was a restless sleeper, shifting around during the night. The shy bookworm usually had normal sleeping habits, like Lisanna herself, but lately she had been spending time in the library, late into the night. Lisanna made a mental note to bring that up with her in the morning- she had been in a suspiciously good mood in the mornings, humming to herself and smiling to herself when she thought no one was watching. Could it be that there was something going on?
Snuggling back under the blankets, Lisanna closed her eyes, figuring it was nothing in particular that had awaken her.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Her eyes flew open. Lisanna looked at the door. Nothing. Then, she looked at the window.
She shot up. Shivering in the rising sun, a familiar figure waved at her. He grinned, happy to have finally gotten her attention.
Lisanna padded over quickly, opening the window. "You know that Magnolia Academy has really strict rules on dormitories. Specifically, that boys aren't allowed in the girl's dorms! What are you doing here?"
"Come!" he whispered, jerkily beckoning her outside.
"What? No. It's like, five in the morning. And freezing."
Natsu smirked at her. "Come. Or I'll shout. Then we'll both be in trouble."
"You wouldn't."
"Try me."
A tense staredown commenced. Natsu's mischievous grin pulled up the corners of Lisanna's smile, much as she tried to stop it.
Meow.
"And you brought Happy?! What happens if we get caught?"
Natsu pulled out the tiny Russian Blue cat from the pocket of his hoodie, nuzzling it softly.
"If you don't want us to get caught, you're gonna have to come with us before we shout. Isn't that right, Happy?"
"Fine. Fine. Fine." Lisanna huffed. She pulled on her shoes, grateful that she had washed her warmest pajamas the day before, the fluffy pink top with black bottoms. Accepting Natsu's outstretched hand, Lisanna hopped outside gracefully. She then snatched the cat from his other hand, clutching it closer and shooting a glare at its irresponsible father.
The pair walked together in silence for a minute, waiting to be away from the dormitories in case a stray window was left open and they would be discovered. Natsu led them to the edge of the tiny river that bordered one side of the Academy's dorm rooms. It was a popular place for students to hang out, even in the early spring when the river had not yet been filled with the snowmelt of the nearby mountains, so the school had commissioned for there to be sitting benches every few feet along the river.
"So, what's up, Natsu?"
"Happy and I wanted to be the first to wish you a happy birthday."
He pulled her into a hug.
"Thank you," she said, her voice muffled in his hoodie.
"I know that we haven't had much time with each other, what with school and practice and whatever, but today is special. I'm, well, I'm really happy that you were born."
They broke apart, and took a seat on the bench closest to them, Lisanna hugging their cat close to her, missing the warmth of his embrace already.
"Thanks. I'm glad I was born, too. And, it's not your fault that we haven't had time to hang out. It's just the way things are here."
Which was true. At Magnolia Academy, the students were taught based on which pathway they chose; because Lisanna had always wanted to become a veterinarian, she was part of the pathway of medicine, whereas Natsu's ever-abundant source of energy ensured that he was accepted in the athletic pathway. That wasn't to say that they only studied topics that would lead to their pathway. Natsu's favorite class, in fact, was chemistry (although Lisanna suspected it was mainly because the teacher often had labs that could result in spectacular explosions), and Lisanna was modestly proud of her track skills.
They continued to talk about inconsequential things, enjoying each other's company. Lisanna told him about her sister's eternal rival with another girl in her grade, and Natsu brought up his own rival with Grey, one of his roommates.
"And his habit of stripping is just so weird, I mean who-
Achoo.
"Bless you. Who just takes off clothes without-"
Achoo. Achoo.
"Bless you. Without warning like that."
Lisanna smiled at him, wrapping her arms around herself. "Yeah, that is just- achoo, achoo, achoo. Crazy."
Natsu scrutinized the girl beside him. "Hey, Lisanna, you okay."
"Yeah," she replied, "I'm just a bit cold. These pyjamas probably weren't meant for sitting outside in the early spring before the sun has come up yet."
"Sorry about that," Natsu grinned sheepishly. "Here, take my hoodie." Ignoring her protests, he pulled off his sweater, and handed it to her.
"Thanks." She put on the hoodie, snuggling into the warmth. As Lisanna shoved her hands into the pocket, she felt something else in there.
Meow, Happy meowed.
"Right, buddy." Natsu replied. "That's for you."
Lisanna drew out the object from the pocket, eyeing it suspiciously. It was a tiny box, black with a white ribbon tied into a bow.
"It's a birthday present from Happy and me," he explained. "Gajeel helped me make it."
Lisanna fingered the ribbon on the box. "You really didn't have to, Natsu," she said, although the tone in her voice wasn't convincing; clearly she was touched that he had made her something.
"It was no problem. I enjoyed making it." Natsu ran his fingers through his hair. "Well, what are you waiting for? Open it."
Lisanna pulled one end of the bow, undoing the tie. She took off the lid, and gasped. Inside of the box was a thin silver necklace with a charm- a little symbol set into a silver backing.
She looked up at Natsu, her eyes shining. "That's- that's." Lisanna trailed off, overcome with emotion.
"The tail of a fairy," Natsu finished. His eyes shone with the same warmth as they had when they were kids, building a treehouse and making an 'exclusive' club, the Fairy Tail. The name, and the symbol painted over the doorway, was Lisanna's idea ("Well, how do you even know if fairies have tails" "Of course they do. Why else would they have those dresses." "Okay, then how do you know that this is what the tail looks like." "How else would a fairy's tail look?")
Lisanna gently pulled the necklace from the box, holding it up to her eyes. The fairy tail symbol was carved from a sparkling white stone, smoothed and set into a silver plate about the size of a quarter.
"How long did it take you to make this?" She asked, marveling at the tiny piece of art.
"Like three months," Natsu muttered with embarrassed smile. "But only cause Gajeel, that idiot, kept on distracting me and messing up my work. I could have done it in less than a week without him barking in my face."
"I'm glad that you put through with his barking. It must have been very rough," Lisanna replied jokingly, making Natsu laugh.
"Here, let me put it on you." At her nod, Natsu took the silver chain. Lisanna turned her back to him, and he strung the necklace around her neck, clasping the ends together with the clasp.
Lisanna touched the charm, suppressing the rush of adrenaline as Natsu's fingers ghosted across the back of her neck. She half-turned to Natsu. His hands lingered on her shoulder.
A blush blossomed on her cheeks. "Natsu?" she murmured.
He cupped her cheek with one hand, guiding her closer. The space between them stretched for miles. Lisanna felt as though they were impossibly close. Her heart hammered in her chest as he leaned in.
Lisanna couldn't take it, the tension in her heart. She pulled away, looking to the grassy floor. She didn't see the hurt look flash across Natsu's face.
"What are you doing?" she whispered. "Don't you like my roommate?"
"Levy?" Natsu asked, taken aback. "She's nice, but I wouldn't be able to stand being around so many books. Who knows if I would accidentally learn something. Besides, I think Gajeel has a thing for her."
Lisanna laughed softly at the crack on his intelligence, and Natsu grinned at her. But, her smile slipped away again.
"I meant Lucy."
"Heartfillia?" Natsu looked at the expression of his oldest friend. He could read her like a book, usually, but that didn't mean he knew how her mind worked all the time. "Yeah, Lucy is pretty. And rich. And popular. A guy would have to be out of his mind not to like her."
Lisanna felt a dull pain in her chest at those words, clutching Happy closer to her to try and block out the ache. She stood up to leave, wanting to be alone in case her tears betrayed her by escaping her eyelids.
Natsu caught her hand, swinging her to face him. He closed the distance between them, lifting her face, although she kept her eyes lowered. "But I have always been crazy. Crazy for you."
She looked up into his eyes. Did he just say...?
Natsu smiled softly. He brushed back a lock of hair that had flown into her face.
"Wha-"
Lisanna's question was cut short at the gentle pressure of Natsu's lips against hers. She stood there for a moment, stunned, before she responded, kissing him back.
Meow, Happy yowled, unhappy with his current position, squished between the couple. Natsu stepped back reluctantly, smiling down at her.
They sat back down, Lisanna leaning into Natsu's chest, and his arm around her. Between them, Happy the cat stretched out, spreading out on both of their laps.
"You know that that was probably the cheesiest line anyone has ever used, right."
Natsu scratched the back of his neck with his free hand, grinning sheepishly. "But it worked, didn't it?"
Happy meowed his agreement, and the three of them watched as the sun rose on this new day.
AN: Let me know what you thought about it. Loved it? Hated it? Wanted to print it out so you can read it every night before you went to bed? Wanted to print it out so that you could burn it? I'll never know unless you tell me. Honestly, I deserve to be yelled at (punished :/) because I still haven't finished the 30 day challenge I started over two months ago so ...