"We are so gonna get caught," Lucy said under her breath as she followed Natsu to the edge of the grass.
"Mayyyyybe," Natsu drawled, "But you gotta admit, it's gonna be fun in the meantime...plus, it's practice for tomorrow's tournament."
"What if someone hears us?"
Nastu chuckled, "So what? They're all at the clubhouse getting shit-faced, then they'll go back to the campground in the other direction. Gajeel doesn't hear nothin' when he's sleepin'. Nobody will hear us if we keep quiet."
Lucy grinned, worries set aside.
"Go first," he prompted, handing her a club.
Lucy stumbled as she placed her tee in the ground, "First hole is which way?"
Natsu scanned the vast darkness, pointing over the ledge to the open plain below, "Do you see it? The white flag marks it."
Lucy put her golf ball onto the tee, "You're gonna lose, Natsu. I belonged to a country club right up until I left my father's mansion. I've perfected my game."
Natsu snickered, "Don't count on it, Luce. You forget I'm a Dragon Slayer...I've got skills too!"
Lucy raised an eyebrow, "Is that so? I would like to know more about these skills! If that's the case, GAME ON!"
"Wait! Wait!" Natsu interrupted as she was about to drive the golf ball.
Lucy stumbled, falling into Natsu's arms. They both laughed as he helped her upright, all thoughts of staying quiet dissolved.
" 'Member the rules?"
"I know, I know. I'm looking forward to taking you down…piece by piece."
She bent her knees, gripping the club as she searched out the white flag in the darkness. Natsu stood back, clearly amused as she tested her swing, fell completely over, jumped back up, then pulled her club back for the real thing.
It was a perfect shot, even by Lucy's standards - and despite the fact that she only had the light of the moon. Not only did her ball leave the platform, but it bounced onto the green below, mere yards from the hole.
Natsu gawked for a minute, catching himself when Lucy turned with a triumphant grin.
"Tell me again why we're doing this again?" Natsu asked, "Why me and not the stripper?"
She brushed her breasts quite purposely on his arm as they switched positions so that Natsu could take his turn, his hand brushing her ass perhaps a little less purposely.
"Because 'the stripper' doesn't keep my bed warm at night," Lucy said sultrily, "I wouldn't want to be here with anyone else but you...plus, we're really, really drunk."
Natsu shrugged, "Okay - good enough for me."
He assumed the position, bending his knees like he'd seen Lucy do. He wasn't drunk. The few drinks they'd had at dinner barely make him tipsy. He was pretty sure Lucy had been a little more drunk that he'd been, but he couldn't smell the alcohol on her as strongly as before. She wasn't wavering on her feet and her pupils weren't dilated anymore. Her stumbles may have been the remnants of her stupor, but his blood tingled as he realized she was definitely mostly sober...and yet they had both made a conscious decision to play this game anyway.
'Drunk Lucy' was much more flirtatious...and 'drunk Natsu' liked it. There was more than one game going on here.
"FORRRRREEEE!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, swinging the club.
He missed the ball completely, making Lucy keel over laughing.
"Whatever! I'll get it this time," he determined.
"FIIIIIIIIIIVVVEEEE!"
Natsu whacked the ball, Lucy joining him at the edge of the cliff to see where it would land.
"I don't see it," Lucy declared, "There's my ball, but I don't see yours."
"Let's go find it!" Natsu agreed, grabbing her hand to pull her toward the golf cart they'd hotwired.
Lucy didn't care that his palms were sweaty...or that he steered the cart with one hand so he wouldn't have to let go of hers. She teetered in the seat next to him, then used his body for support as he drove them down the hill. It occurred to her that he wasn't complaining about being motion sick, but she didn't want to question why. Tonight had been the most magical night of her life. Depending on the outcome of their game, she hoped it would be the start of something magical for a lot longer than that.
They tumbled out of the cart, laughing uproariously. It crossed Lucy's mind that if there was a night guard on the course, they would be busted for sure, but she honestly didn't care. She and Natsu had never been so blatantly…
"MY BALL IS CLOSER!" Natsu sing-songed as they approached the hole, "Yup - definitely mine!"
"They're both white!" Lucy complained, "How can you tell?"
Natsu pointed to his nose, "You know the rule, Luce...you lost the hole."
Lucy sighed, dramatically reaching for the edge of her jacket, "I'll give you this hole, Dragneel...but it's the last one you're getting."
"Just strip it," Natsu urged.
Lucy pulled her jacket off, flinging it toward the cart, "Okay, where's the next hole?"
Natsu pointed, grinning ear-to-ear.
Lucy picked her ball up, putting a pink dot on it with a highlighter from her purse, "So that there's no more cheating."
"Cheating!" Natsu yelled, "My ball was closer!"
"Maybe," Lucy conceded with a wink, "But now we'll know for sure."
The next hole, there was no doubt about it. Lucy's ball was closer by several hundred yards. Natsu pulled off his jacket, adding it to Lucy's in the cart.
The hole after that, Lucy lost again. She grinned, reaching for the bottom of her halter top when the sprinklers came on.
Natsu's eyes bulged out of his head as the water cascaded over Lucy's wet body. She slid her top over her head, her bra now fully exposed to him.
"Luce…" he whispered.
She stretched her arms above her head, giving him the best view possible as she tossed the garment toward the cart, "The water feels good, Natsu! Too bad you're fully dressed!"
Their eyes locked as she turned to face him.
He wasn't expecting her to lunge toward him, pushing him into the sprinkler's path so that he'd get soaked too. He yelped at the temperature of it, then dived for her, taking her down to the ground with him. They rolled on the grassy field as he launched a full tickle attack. Lucy shrieked, trying to counter attack, but suffered from a severe case of the giggles instead. She wrapped her arms around his neck, lulling him into laying down in the grass beside her.
Lucy propped her head in his arm against his chest. Despite the fact that the sprinkler still rained down upon them, neither were in a hurry to move.
"Look at the stars!" Lucy gasped, "Natsu, it's so clear out here!"
Natsu nodded, as she took his hand, using hers to help him point to a constellation.
"That's Leo," she said softly, "And over there is Virgo."
"They sure look different in their star forms," Natsu commented.
Lucy felt her keys warm, Loke desperately fighting to open his gate. She blocked him, warning him sternly not to use his own power to come either. She was in no danger...his presence was not wanted nor needed.
"Cancer is to the right of Leo," she pointed, "Do you see him?"
Natsu strained his eyes. He couldn't see any of the formations or how they represented her spirits...but far be it from him to interrupt the moment.
"No wonder you feel safe out in the open in the middle of the night," Natsu said thoughtfully, "Your spirits are watching you all the time."
She nodded, a warm smile on her face, "Right...that's the only reason."
Natsu watched her, his heart pounding. He wondered if she knew just how amazing she was. His hand reached out, moving her bangs back from her eyes.
"We spend almost all of our time together," she lamented, allowing herself to get lost in his stare, "Why don't we have more moments like this?"
Natsu bit his lower lip, unsure how to answer that question, "I thought most of our moments were like this."
She giggled, tracing the outline of his cheekbones, "I think we both know something has changed tonight. I'm not drunk, Natsu. I'm flirting with you because I want to."
Natsu froze, propping himself up on one elbow, "I guess I knew that. I'm not drunk either...but it makes me happy that you're admitting it out loud."
They rested their heads together, both completely contented.
"So what do we do now?" Natsu asked.
He meant about their newfound flirting. Natsu was the first to admit that he didn't really know how to flirt. He knew that his skin sizzled with every contact. He knew that no other girl made him react like Lucy did. Beyond that, he had no idea how to handle these new feelings.
"We do what we always do," Lucy replied lightly, "Nothing has changed...we're just realizing that we're more than friends. We don't have to be uncomfortable. Let's just...let it happen."
He propped himself up on one elbow, cradling her cheek, "I'm a moron, Luce. I don't know how to let it happen."
Lucy stared at his lips as they grew closer. He pressed his forehead to hers, closing his eyes. Every muscle in her body tensed as she waited for it.
"We still have more holes to play!" he exclaimed, jumping to his feet, "You're not naked yet!"
Lucy was torn between laughing and sighing heavily. It wasn't quite the answer she'd hoped for. For a moment there, she was pretty sure he was going to kiss her.
However, Natsu was being Natsu...and that's why she liked him.
She hopped to her feet, running to the cart behind him.
Six holes later, Lucy had lost her shirt and skirt. Natsu had lost his jacket, pants, shirt and scarf.
"It's sort of cold out here," Lucy murmured as they drove to the next hole. Her eyes were getting heavy.
"A little," Natsu agreed, "But I'm in my boxers and you're in your bra and panties...whatdoya expect?"
Lucy hummed, her eyes fluttering shut, "What time does the tournament start tomorrow?"
"8:00 am," Natsu pulled the cart to a stop, wrapping his arms around her, "And it's 4:00 am now. Is that better? Still cold?"
"So cold," she whispered.
Natsu leaned forward, hesitantly taking her in his arms. Normally he'd receive a Lucy Kick for his boldness, but he didn't think she'd kick him this time. She seemed to like the contact, pushing herself against him. His body heat warmed her almost instantly.
She lifted her face, staring into his deep emerald eyes, then rose to her tiptoes, brushing her lips gently against his. They froze, staring at each other.
"We still have 2 more holes to play," Lucy reminded him as she stepped back.
"We can quit," Natsu murmured.
"We could," Lucy replied, holding him at arm's length, "But aren't you curious what will happen if we both lose another hole? Wasn't this what we've been driving at all night?"
Natsu grinned his trademark shit eating grin, hurrying after her as she raced to steal the driver's seat of the golf cart.
The serenity of the vast green space was enough to calm anyone's nerves. The raw, natural beauty of the golf course enamored its patrons. Tall, century old trees grew sporadically throughout, small pools of water dotting the entire course. There was nothing that could compare in all of Magnolia...no other haven came close...
...unless it the day of the Fairy Tail Annual Golf Tournament.
On this day, the manager had to close the course to regular patrons. It just wasn't...safe...to allow regular folk to play while the destructive mages of Fairy Tail took over. Yet, the mayor of Magnolia paid the course handsomely for the once-a-year reward to the guild that kept them all safe. It was the least the manager could do.
"FOREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Someone bellowed.
A golf ball blazed in front of his face, smashing into the wall of the club house next to him...and embedded into the wall. The manager retreated indoors. He wasn't guaranteed safety there either, but at least he wouldn't be in the direct line of fire.
"Great shot, Iron Head!" Gray cracked up laughing as they came over the top of the hill, noting the golf ball's final resting place, "That's the 4th ball you've destroyed - and we're only on the 1st hole!"
"Shut up, Icicle," Gajeel muttered, examining the hole in the wall to see if the ball could be salvaged.
He groaned. It was toast. He nodded gratefully to Juvia when she shot a small water beam to put out any lingering hot spots around the ball.
"It wasn't even in the right direction!" Gray cackled, "You were supposed to land it in the green over there."
"Let's see you do better!" Gajeel growled.
The ice mage grinned cockily, putting his tee to the ground.
Juvia offered him the golf bag to select a club, but Gray waved her away, "Thanks...but I prefer to use my own. ICE MAKE - GOLF CLUB!"
"Where are Natsu and Lucy?" Levy asked, glancing around at the other Fairy Tail mages, heading out to their assigned holes to start the tournament.
"Who cares?" Gray growled as he put the tee in the ground. He located his target down on the greens below, testing his swing before preparing to make his shot for real, "Knowing Natsu, he's probably sawing logs in Lucy's bed. They both had a lot to drink last night."
"Come to think of it," Levy said thoughtfully, "I do think I saw them leave together."
"Whatever," Gajeel grunted, stepping up to take his turn, "They snooze, they lose. That dinner prize is gonna be ours."
Levy took her club, preparing to place it back into its bag, frowning slightly as she spotted a something on the ground, just inside the bushes.
"SHRIMP!" Gajeel snapped impatiently, as she bent to pick it up, "Let's go!"
Levy sighed, "I'm coming, Gajeel. Keep your pants on!"
She glanced back to the bushes, wondering who hadn't kept their pants on. That was a belt. She was sure she'd seen that style somewhere before…
Levy shook her head. It couldn't be Lucy's. What on earthland would it be doing out here?
With all four of their turns completed, the group got in their golf carts to drive to the next hole, passing the bushes where a golf cart hid safely behind its branches. Two new lovers spooned in the back seat, Natsu's jacket tossed overtop of them to conceal their nakedness.
A/N: AGH! Forgot to post the A/N at the end!
WELCOME TO NALU WEEK! One of my Favourite times of the year!
As you can see, I did something a little different than everyone else's, considering most people will drive in an actual car. Instead, Natsu and Lucy are driving balls (maybe/maybe not literally).
Anyway, I'm looking forward to another week of fun entries! If you're bored in the meantime, Nalu weeks 2016 and 2017 are posted on my wall as well as Nalu Week Random Prompts.
See you on the 18th!
~Shana~