Lucy smiled softly as she walked into the room that was currently serving as the guild of Fairy Tail. It only had two walls, and one of those was still technically in construction, but tables were set up, as was a bar, which Mirajane manned dutifully. It made her sad to see tangible proof of the damage done, evidence of the harm caused by Phantom. They had destroyed the guildhall, but nothing and no one could ever destroy Fairy Tail, she thought. What made Fairy Tail the guild it was is the people, and the bonds of friendship and family that linked them. It made the guild a home. And that had been what she was looking for, back before she had had that fateful encounter with the pink haired dragon slayer. She had been looking for a home, for a family, and she had found one. She was now truly happy.
And Fairytail would live on. Everyone was helping rebuild. Well, at the moment, most were taking a break from all the hard work. Lucy had been excused from helping since she had been injured by Gajeel, and she had taken the opportunity to go home and warn her father to stay away from her guild. She still wasn't a hundred percent sure why she had gone home. For many reasons, she supposed. To ease her own guilt over running away, never telling her father where she would be. Unlikely as it was, maybe he had worried about her. Panicked a little when she hadn't answered to his summons. Felt his heart sink as he realised that this wasn't just some childish prank, or some fleeting fancy. She was gone.
She was trying to protect her guild as best she could as well. After all, maybe next time he would have hired a dark guild, maybe a powerful one. Maybe they would have struck while Fairy Tail was still reeling from the latest attack. As they were right now, there was no way they could repeat what they just pulled off. A lot of the members were drained of magic and energy. Just too tired, mentally and physically, to pull of the impossible yet again. Not just yet.
Maybe she had also gone back, simply because deny it as she might, on some level she did miss the place. It was where she had spent her entire life. Her memories, both good and bad, were all of that estate, until finally she joined Fairy Tail. She missed being able to sit by her mother's grave. She missed her friends there. And this was a good chance to see them all again. Though she had often felt like a princess from an actual fairy tale when she had lived there – locked away in her room, too delicate and precious and useless to do anything but study books about business all day, even though the best she could hope for was to be married to a nice man who would take over her family's business for her, and eventually produce a son- it was all she had known. And you tend to miss the things like that, no matter how unsatisfying they were.
She had to laugh, when she thought about one of her father's comments. Something about how she never could have been like the other wizards, because she had come from a completely different lifestyle than them. What a joke. That was part of what made Fairy Tail the greatest: no matter what, everyone was accepted. And really, her rich-girl upbringing wasn't that extraordinary. After all, Gray was an orphan from a town destroyed by a demon who had been raised on a mountain and taught that stripping all the time is a good thing. Erza was a slave who was only just learning that opening your heart to others can help you, and Natsu- well, Natsu was raised by a dragon. That pretty much covers it. One heiress thrown into the mix wasn't going to rock the boat. It would only bring more fun and laughter to the party that was taking place on the boat.
Speaking of Natsu, she couldn't see him anywhere. She scowled a little. She had been overwhelmed with happiness when her friends had come calling for her after finding her note. She now realised that it had been a little unclear, perhaps even misleading. But they really cared. They had cared enough to charge after her, without a second thought. It gave her the warm fuzzies. But then as soon as they were off the train, Natsu had disappeared without another word. He had been acting oddly during the trip too. He had always been touching her somehow. Not in a pervy way, just knees bumping, or elbows touching, or his hand right next to hers. It had been strange, but no one had commented, so Lucy had kept quiet as well. And now he was gone, and she wanted to talk to him about work. Spotting Erza, she decided to ask the redhead is she knew where to find the dragonslayer.
"Hey Erza! She called, waving as she walked over. Erza had re-quipped out of her builder's outfit into her typical armour for a quick break. She looked up Lucy approached.
"Lucy. Can I help you?" She asked calmly. Lucy sat down next to her.
"I was looking for Natsu. I checked my place and here, and I don't know where else he goes." She explained sheepishly. To Lucy's surprise, the re-quip mage's gaze seemed to darken slightly.
"Lucy," she started, looking the younger wizard in the eye. "You know that though Natsu is annoying, childish, stubborn, and in general seems able to get on my nerves on a daily basis," She paused here, allowing Lucy to nod. After all this was old news. "Despite this, he is like a little brother to me, and therefore it pains me to see him hurt."
Lucy's eyes widened. This was new. Erza never spoke like this. But the other mage looked deadly serious, and also slightly angry. Lucy became worried, both for her personal safety, and for Natsu. What did Erza think she had done?
"Why are you telling me this?" The celestial wizard asked quietly. Erza sat back.
"Because, Lucy, Natsu has some issues that he doesn't like to acknowledge, but that are still there. And you decided to leave, without a word of warning. Without saying goodbye." She said slowly, each word hitting Lucy like a weight.
Because the older girl was right. Natsu had abandonment issues, and Lucy had left him. However unintentionally, no matter how temporary, she had left him. That had been the reason for his odd behaviour on the train. He had been making sure she was still there, even when he couldn't see her because he was too busy trying not to puke. He was ensuring that she couldn't leave without him knowing.
She had done almost exactly what Igneel had done to him years ago. She had vanished when he least expected it, without letting him prepare or get ready. Suddenly she felt terrible.
"Where can I find him?" She asked, standing up. Erza observed her with a small smile. You really do care bout him. Not romantically, but as a family would. He chose well, Lucy. He truly did. Lucy started.
"He has a house?" She asked, a little surprised. She had never actually given any thought to where Natsu lived. If she had, she probably would have assumed that he lived at Fairy Hills with some of the other Fairy Tail members. Not that he had his own house somewhere. Erza nodded.
"When he first joined he was adamant about having his own space. I think he may have found the city a little stifling at first. After all, he was raised alone, by a dragon. It's understandable that suddenly being surrounded by people would throw him off. He found a little cottage that had been abandoned. The inside was a wreck, but the building was structurally sound, so he settled in. Now he lives there with Happy." She explained, eyes softening at the memories.
Lucy smiled too. "Can you give me directions?"
Erza obliged, even writing them down, then drawing a small map, complete with a detailed legend. "You can't miss it." She said. "There's a sign."
So Lucy set out to find it. It was some distance away, and she was quite tired by the time she finally saw it. It was exactly how Erza had described it. It was old, small and crumbling slightly, but it also looked cosy and warm and welcoming. Or maybe she just thought that because she knew who lived there. She chuckled slightly when she spotted the sign. Natsu and Happy indeed. Shaking her head in amusement, she walked over and knocked on the door. After a few moments it was opened by a suspicious Happy. His expression morphed into a grin when he recognized Lucy.
"Lucy!" He cried, letting her in. She took a moment to examine her surroundings. No bed, just a hammock. One room. A fireplace- no surprise there- and quite a lot of mess. She grinned.
"Hey Lucy, you got any fish?" Happy asked hopefully. Lucy shook her head.
"Sorry Happy. Say, do you know where Natsu is? I need to talk to him." She said. Happy's ears drooped slightly and his eyes became downcast.
"Sorry Lucy, I think you should just leave him alone for now." He said quietly. Lucy's lips set in a line.
"No. This is my fault, right?" She snapped. Happy nodded. She resisted the urge to scream at the cat, and continued. "That's why I want to do something to fix it. Please Happy, he's my teammate. My nakama." She pleaded. The cat looked unconvinced. "I you don't help me I'll just go and find him anyway. It'd be quicker with your help though.
Happy sighed. "Okay, I'll sniff him out. But I still don't think this is a good idea." With that, the feline created its wings and set off. Lucy jogged after him. After about half an hour uphill, they came near a rocky outcrop. Happy stopped.
"He's over there." The flying cat mouthed, before silently moving away. As he passed Lucy, he whispered a quick "be careful." Lucy doubted it was her the cat was worried about. With a sigh, she set off again. She had to climb over several rocks to finally spot Natsu. He was sitting, legs drawn up, on the highest spot possible, and was looking down on the woods below him. Except, she realised, he wasn't looking at the forest. He was holding his scarf in his hands, and was gazing at that. Lucy felt her chest tighten, and she slowly climbed over to him. She wasn't worried about startling him, since he had probably been able to either smell or hear her from a good distance away. She sat down next to him. He didn't move an inch. He didn't even look at her.
"Hey, Lucy." He said tonelessly, still not shifting. His face was blank, which was in itself worrying. The dragon slayer was very expressive, it was either all anger or all joy, but whatever it was it could be read on his face. He would be terrible at poker.
"Natsu…" Lucy started. Then she decided to just say what she came to say. No beating around the bush. It never worked with Natsu anyway. She swore the word subtle didn't even figure in his dictionary. Scratch that, he probably thought it was food.
"Natsu you know I would never leave you." She blurted. Surprised, Natsu finally turned to face her. She kept going, hoping to say as much as she could before her courage ran dry.
"I wasn't trying to leave, I just needed to go home to say goodbye. And the note I left, I wasn't being purposefully vague, I just scribbled something down and left on impulse. I didn't think anything through. If I had, I might have chickened out. But I'm so sorry. I should have at least told you. But I want you to know that Fairytail is my home, and I never want to leave. And the guild members, all of them but especially you, are my family. I mean, we're a team, right? I would never leave that behind willingly. You're my nakama. I'm not going anywhere." She said in a rush. She watched as expressions flitted across his face. Surprise, joy and relief mostly. Finally he dropped his gaze to the floor and turned away. Lucy fiddled with her skirt as she waited for him to respond.
"It's okay, Lucy." He said softly. He met her eyes, his own gaze soft. "I know you didn't mean to worry us, and I know you don't want to leave." He smiled slightly. "And for the record, you're my nakama too." His hands tightened around the scarf. "It's just that…" He trailed off. Lucy noticed the slight movement and her gaze was drawn to the piece of fabric. A gift from Igneel. She closed her eyes.
"It's just that my vanishing like that brought back bad memories of when Igneel disappeared." She whispered. Natsu tensed, and Lucy knew she was right. She hesitantly placed a hand over Natsu's. He tensed further, but didn't push her away.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to remind you of that." She said, meaning it. And she hadn't. All she had done was make a decision in the spur of the moment, and hadn't foreseen this particular outcome. Natsu hugged his knees without letting go of the scarf.
"I looked everywhere for him." Natsu admitted quietly. Lucy's eyes widened. He rarely spoke about how he lost Igneel. "I searched for days. I didn't want him to be gone. I waited as well. In case he was coming back. But…" His voice broke and he cut himself off, hands clenching.
"But he never did." Lucy murmured. Natsu looked at her then, unshed tears in his eyes.
"I just want my dad to come back." He whispered brokenly. He looked so much like a little kid then, eyes shining, trembling, clutching to the one thing he had left, and wanting his father to come home. Lucy felt her heart break for the dragon slayer, and without hesitation she wrapped her arms around him. He leaned his head on her shoulder. Neither made a sound. And they stayed like that for a long time, neither willing to move.
Finally, Natsu pulled away. Lucy scooted a little so she could use him as a cushion. He didn't seem to mind.
"You will find him, you know." She said firmly.
"It's been seven years." He said, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with her.
"True, but you'll still find him. He's out there somewhere, and it's not like you'll ever give up." She insisted. He chuckled bleakly, before sobering again.
"And I have new information now." He muttered. Lucy tilted her head in question.
"You see," He explained, "Gajeel told me that his dragon, Metalicana, disappeared on the same day as Igneel. That's too weird to be a coincidence. It means that-" He broke off, took a deep breath, and continued. "It means that the dragons all left for a reason. Maybe they didn't have a choice." Maybe Igneel didn't choose to leave me remained unspoken, but Lucy heard it nonetheless. For once, Natsu looked and sounded hopeful. It warmed her heart, because she hated seeing the usually bubbly and cheerful wizard so sad.
She smiled and nodded. "You see? As long as you never forget him, I'm sure that one day, you'll find him" She said happily.
"How could I ever forget him, when I use his magic every day?" He replied. Lucy grinned and nudged him playfully.
"Exactly. And all of Fairytail will help as much as they can. We'll find that salamander and I'll give him a piece of my mind."
Natsu laughed a little. Apparently the very idea of Lucy shaking her finger at the huge fire dragon was amusing to him. Despite the implied insult, Lucy grinned. Natsu looked back down at the scarf, before wrapping it around his neck again. He stood up.
"Wanna head back to Fairy Tail? We could find a job!" He suggested. Lucy grinned and got to her feet.
"Sure! Wouldn't hurt to pay rent in advance for once! Or, I suppose if I have extra money, I could get those shoes that I wanted…" She trailed off when she realised that Natsu was giving her a funny look.
"What? They were calling to me!" She pouted, following him as he nimbly danced over rocks, leaving her to struggle and climb slowly.
"Sure, Lucy. Sure!" He called over his shoulder, clearly doubtful. Lucy grinned. He wasn't back to his normal self, but he seemed to be out of his funk of depression. She shrieked as her foot slipped and she fell, but out of nowhere Natsu's hand appeared, grabbing her arm and steadying her. She smiled in thanks. He wouldn't help her or offer to carry her, trusting her and knowing her well enough to know she wouldn't want to be coddled, but if she was in trouble he would be there. He knew her so well, it baffled Lucy sometimes.
Then again, didn't she know him just as well? She knew to come and find him, she knew how to cheer him up and how to help him. They were nakama: teammates, friends, family. And while Lucy was no replacement for Igneel, being around her made Natsu feel just like he had around his father. Loved and wanted. He would give anything and everything for his guildmates, but that went double for Lucy. She was special, she was important to him, and he would die before letting harm come to her. The problem was, she would do the same for him. That's just how they were.
When they got back to Natsu's house, Happy burst out the door and threw himself at Natsu, tears pouring down his cheeks, and cries of "I tried to stop her, but she was too strong" could be heard. Lucy growled threateningly, but Natsu just laughed. The sound of his best friend laughing cheered Happy up instantly, and in moments he was perched contentedly on Natsu's head.
Natsu grinned his infamously adorable grin at Lucy and shrugged. She just sighed, cat instantly forgiven thanks to the pink haired dragon slayer. They headed down into town, laughing and joking, like the best friends that they were. Lucy's old life flashed before her eyes, and she knew then that she would never regret the choices she had made. After all, if she hadn't made them, who would have been there for the dragon slayer today?
When they finally reached the guildhall, Natsu made a beeline for the mission board, looking for something that wasn't too strenuous, on account of Lucy still wasn't back to full strength. Lucy went to sit down, and was joined by Erza.
"I see he's happy again. Well done." She said shortly, nodding at Natsu. Lucy glanced at her curiously.
"If you knew he was upset, why didn't you go to talk to him?" She asked, not being mean, just wanting to know. Erza sighed.
"I… lack experience in dealing with such matters. I fear I would make it worse instead of better. If you needed someone to attack him, then I would be perfect." She said, causing Lucy to sweat drop. "Also, he sees me as a rival. He tries not to show weakness around me. There is no way he would want me to see him so vulnerable." She explained. Lucy considered this, and nodded. It made sense.
"So…" Lucy started, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Natsu's like your little brother, huh?"
To her amusement, Erza's cheeks coloured slightly. "Please don't bring that up around him, ever." She said. Lucy laughed.
"So what does that make Gray?"
Erza considered this. "Also a younger brother." She decided. "But he would be older than Natsu."
After a brief moment's hesitation, Lucy went for it. "What about me?" She asked shyly. Era met her gaze.
"You would be Natsu's twin. As much trouble as each other. And inseparable." She replied, lips twitching upwards. Lucy beamed, and struggled with the urge to attack the re-quip mage with a hug. Luckily Natsu bounded over.
"How about this one?" He asked, shoving a paper under Lucy's nose. "It sounds really boring, it's not dangerous, the pay's alright and it involves old stuff! We should take it before Levy sees it." He said with a grin. Lucy's heart melted when she realised he had picked a job with her in mind.
"Let's do it!" She said with a cheer. Natsu raised a fist in victory. "All right!" He yelled, before racing over to Mira to tell her that they were taking the job. "They're called antiques!" Lucy yelled after him as he went. Erza glanced at Lucy.
"If you are in need of extra protection, I would be happy to lend my sword." She offered. Lucy turned to look at her pink haired team mate, her first one, the one who had introduced her to this life, the one she owed everything to.
"I think this one should be just me and Natsu." She said apologetically. Erza smiled and nodded in understanding. Natsu came back over.
"We're good to go! It's in the town over, so we should leave tomorrow morning." Natsu said happily. Lucy smiled. Gray came wandering over, without his shirt of course.
"We taking a job?" He asked. Lucy winced, not wanting to turn down yet another friend. Luckily for her, Erza intervened. Surrounded by a dark aura, she faced Gray.
"I won't lose all my construction workers at once, you hear? Lucy is permitted to leave because she must pay rent, and Natsu may accompany her as protection. You on the other hand, have no excuse!" She shouted, drawing her sword and pointing it at Gray. "You will help at the guild. That is final!"
With a small shriek, Gray ran away, losing his trousers along the way somewhere. Natsu watched in confused amusement, while Lucy appreciated what Erza was trying to do for her. While the older girl may not be good with children, or people who were upset, or with handling other such situations, but she did what she could for her family. Lucy smiled. Her life couldn't get any better.
"Well," she said, stifling a yawn. "I'm beat. I'll meet you at the train tomorrow, Natsu?" She said, getting ready to leave. Natsu leapt up as well.
"I'll come with you." He said, following her. Lucy shrugged, not bothered enough to object.
"Night Erza! Night Mira! Night everybody!" She called, as she left. She heard a chorus of "nights" as she stepped outside into the cool evening air. She and Natsu walked in comfortable silence until she reached her place.
"Ok, well night." She said as she stepped inside. Natsu didn't reply. Lucy thought that was a little odd until she made it to her flat, only to find Natsu already inside. She screamed and kicked him.
"What are you doing here? Why do you keep breaking in? You could have just used the door like I did!" She screeched, horrified. Natsu rubbed his head sheepishly.
"I just wanted to come in." He said quietly. Suddenly Lucy stopped, and was reminded that he was probably still thinking about Igneel. She looked into his eyes and saw an odd vulnerability there. With a start, she realised that he probably just didn't want to be alone. It made sense, he never usually insisted on walking her home. She sighed.
"Well, I'm going to sleep. Stay as long as you want. You can use the couch if you want to crash here for the night." She said, pretending not to notice the hope in his eyes and the way he cheered up when she said that. She quickly went to the bathroom and got ready for bed. Finally, she was able to go to sleep. The walk to and from Natsu's had exhausted her, especially so soon after her altercation with the Phantom guild and Gajeel. Just as she was going to sleep, she heard the door open. Natsu… She growled in her mind. However, all she heard after that was the sound of his settling down on the floor in her room. She sighed. Eventually, she decided to let him. She could always kick him in the morning.
And so the two closest members of the strongest team in Fairy Tail went to sleep, comforted by each other's presence, even if neither were willing to admit it. They needed each other. Though they were not the only members in their team, there was something special about their connection. Words couldn't describe it, but it was there. They were nakama, they were family. Not the family that you born with, but the one that that chose you, because it saw you and saw something in you. They were the other needed, and they would always be there to protect each other. From enemies, from nightmares, from personal demons, from fears… There was nothing they couldn't defeat, together.