A/N: Fairy Tail does not belong to me in any way, shape, or form. Thank you.

OH MY CHRIST, HAVE YOU READ THE LATEST CHAPTER?! FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT'S HOLY! JEEZ, I'M FREAKIN' OUT MAN! I MEAN, WE KNEW BEFOREHAND CUZ ZEREF SAID, BUT LIKE—GOD, DID I MENTION I'M, LIKE, SO THROWN?! Still curious why Brandish hates Layla, but I'm sure we'll learn about it. BUT SERIOUSLY. THAT CHAPTER. MASHIMA, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

Continuing on~ Don't know where this came from, but I'll run with it~

"Ne ne, Old Lady!" Lucy twitched, brown eyes flicking to the child leaning on her fence.

"Watch it brat, I'm not that old!" The child blinked rapidly before his face split into a wide grin and he laughed. She rolled her eyes, letting out a soft breath before returning her gaze back to her small garden.

"Hey, hey, lady~!" The blonde cast her eyes heavenward, asking for patience, before glancing back at the boy.

"Yes? What is it?" He peeked through the wood slats. She didn't recognize him, but that wasn't unusual. So many people were moving out of the neighborhood and young families were taking their place. She didn't know her neighbors anymore. All her friends were busy with their own families—children!—and she was left behind.

"Can I come in and help? Please?" She turned more, eyeing the boy. Pink hair spiked up in every direction, eyes a dark green, and a white, scaly scarf was wrapped around his neck. Red shorts, a cheery yellow tshirt, and tennis shoes. "I wanna help! I'll be good, promise!"

"Where's your mother, hmm?" The boy's bright look immediately faded and he pulled away from the fence, scuffing the toe of his shoe into the sidewalk. "Does she know where you are, boy?"

"She doesn't care…"

Lucy recognized that look on his face. Oh yes, she knew that look well. She rose, dusting off the dirt from her pants before moving towards the gate and leaning over it a bit, looking down at the boy. He pouted and the look was so familiar she had to pause. "Point out where you live." He glanced up at her before pointing to a white two-story a few houses down. "And where's your Daddy?"

"At work."

"Hm. Well, I suppose," she unlocked the gate, tugging it open. The boy cheered, rushing in and immediately hopping towards her garden. "Now now, see here! No pulling up my flowers!" He sang out an 'okay!' and she closed the gate, locking it once again. The boy looked right at home in the dirt, plucking the flowers from the box and burying their roots into the holes she had dug, packing the dirt over and around them. "Well, what's your name then, huh?"

"Natsu! Natsu Dragion!"

She kneeled down slowly beside him, sitting in the grass and watching his progress. He seemed happy at-least. "And how old are you, Natsu?"

"I'm seven! How old are you?" She smacked him lightly on the back of the head and he yelped, hands immediately holding at the spot and scowling up at her. "Hey!"

"Never ask a lady her age, young man. It's rude."

"You asked first! It's only fair!" She smiled lightly at his logic.

"And how do you ask for things, Natsu?" He groaned, form sagging. "Well, you won't get anything that way, now will you?"

"Fiiiine. Please?"

"Better. And I'm thirty-five."

"Jeez, you are old!" She cast him a dark glare and he paled, inching away. "I-I'm sorry!" She lightened up but he still eyed her suspiciously. "What's your name?"

"I'm Lucy." She held out a hand and he immediately grabbed it, shaking it enthusiastically.

"That's a pretty name! Nice to meetcha, Luigi!"

"Oi, it's Lucy, get it right, brat!" Natsu pulled away to return to the flowers and Lucy leaned back on her hands, watching. "Did you just move in?"

"Uh-huh. Me and my dad. His name's Igneel. I think he's old like yo—your age! I think he's your age!" he corrected quickly and Lucy's smile was vicious. "Dad said I'd like it here in Magnolia, but I dunno. I don't got any friends yet and there's this idiot in the house next to me, his name's Gray."

"And what's wrong with him, huh?" Lucy knew Gray, nice boy. Maybe nine or ten? Odd boy though. In winter he was positively layered and even in the summer the boy ran around in jeans, a hoodie and a jacket. She swore he's even wore a hat a few times. Gray Surge was one of those new children in her neighborhood. One of many, actually.

"Him? I dunno, he's just weird!" There was a fire in his eyes and Lucy deduced he secretly wanted friends but just didn't know how to go about making them. He was a cheerful boy, it shouldn't be too hard.

"Oh? Weird how?"

"I duuno! Just is! Stupid popsicle…" Lucy tugged on his cheek, frowning. "Oi! Let go, Lucy!"

"You can't say things like that. It's mean, Natsu. You don't know him. What if he's sick and that's why he always wears jackets, huh? What if he gets really cold easily, ever think of that?" Natsu's green eyes filled and she let go. "Think about that. You shouldn't judge people."

"S-sorry… Is… is he sick?" his voice was a whisper and she had the strongest urge to hug the boy.

"No. But you didn't know that, did you?" He shook his head slowly. "It's not nice to judge people, alright?" He nodded. "Good. Now, that flower's lacking as opposed to the others. Little more dirt, okay?" He immediately set back to piling dirt onto her flowers.

Well, it beat doing it herself, that's for sure. Helped out her back.

Honestly, she shouldn't feel this old but she supposed it happened to everyone.

"This this really scary girl down the street…" he murmured. "Her name's Erza…"

"Ah, I know her." His eyes lit up.

"Isn't she scary? When we first moved in, she came over with her mom and she wrestled with me! I thought she was cool until she wouldn't let go! I couldn't breathe, Lucy, but she wouldn't let go! Dad and her mom finally got her to let go and she said she had a lot of fun playing with me! Dad says I have to hang out with her now! It's not fair! I don't want to hang out with her!" Lucy merely let him rant, smiling lightly.

She didn't realize how lonely she had been until that point.

For the next hour, Natsu talked about his old house, his dad, his new house, his cat, Erza, Gray, some of the other kids he had seen (she supplied their names for him) and how he didn't want to go to school in a few months. He didn't want to start at a new school, he liked his old one, but he supposed it would've been okay if his dad was home to play with him in the summer ("He works real late and he doesn't have time to play when he gets home! He just sleeps a lot!" "Ah.") and the fact that Igneel only took a few days off when they moved before going to his new job.

Natsu, she learned, was home on his own all day. Igneel allowed him free reign over their portion of the street, but would prefer if he just either stayed in the house or their yard. That was boring to a child, but as he didn't know any of the kids, he had done just that so far this summer. Her heart went out to him, really it did. It was like her own childhood but while she had been isolated with no kids, he just didn't know how to approach the others who had grown up together thus far.

"Lucy, I'm hungry!" she glanced at her watch. Just a little after twelve. Wow. Boy had a good sense of time.

"Well, what do you want me to do about it, hm?" He pouted up at her, cheeks puffed up.

"I want lunch!" Her smile widened and he immediately scrambled back. "Pl-please!"

This was an odd situation for her. Here she was, never married or had kids, and all the sudden a child shows up in her yard, makes nice, and now wants her to feed him. What would his father say? If she's going off what he told her, Igneel wouldn't be back until late(whether that was just Natsu's perception of time or the truth, she wasn't sure, but if he was home alone all day, even six would seem late to him) but at the same time, she hardly wanted to send him back across the street to fend for himself… Decisions decisions. What's the worst that could happen?

She could be arrested for kidnapping.

"Go on home then and get some lunch then, Natsu. I'll be here when you're done." The look on his face was one she recognized once again.

He didn't want to go back to that house and eat alone. He didn't want to be alone. She knew the feeling.

"Tell you what, okay?" She didn't know why she was doing this, but she didn't want a child to go through her past if she could help it. "You go get your lunch and bring it over, okay? And I'll talk to your dad tonight, huh?"

Panic flashed across his face. "W-why're you gonna talk to Dad? Did I do something wrong? I'm sorry! I won't do it again, I promise!" As tears threatened to fall, Lucy realized her mistake.

"No no, you're not in trouble!" she waved her hands, cupping his face and smiling down at him. "Don't you cry on me, Natsu Dragion, you're seven, remember?" He gave a short, stubborn nod, bottom lip jutting out as he wiped at his eyes. "I was thinking maybe you could hang out with me during the day. Would you like that?" He blinked. "See, I gotta talk to your dad, make sure he's okay with it. Since you helped me with my garden, maybe you'd like to keep helping me. It's a big job, you know, planting them and watering them. Think you can handle it?" He puffed up his chest.

"Of-course! That's easy! Even Wendy could do it!" That was a new name. "I've never been to daycare 'fore. I was always just at home."

"Well, this is hardly daycare. I don't need to teach you your colors or numbers, do I?"

"No way!"

"Exactly. This is just two friends hanging out, see?"

He tilted his head and she let go of his face, settling back in the grass and watching him. "Friends? We're friends?"

"Oh? Do you not want to be friends with me? Fine, I see how it is. Just go on home and I'll work on my garden by myself then." He shook his head quickly and she hid a soft smile.

"No! That's not fair! No, we're friends!" and he hopped forward, hugging her around the neck. "You're my first friend in Magnolia!" She swallowed, suddenly aware that a child was hugging her. She laughed, smiled, and wrapped her own arms around him. He relaxed, heaving out a breath. "I want you to meet Happy!" he pulled away abruptly and raced towards the gate, pushing up the lock and bolting towards the street. She leaped to her feet.

"NATSU DRAGION!" He skidded to a halt, looking back at her fearfully. "Don't you run across the street like that! Look both ways!" He swallowed, nodding, fear still in his eyes. "Go on. Look both ways. Are there cars?" She was at the fence now, stepping out and onto the sidewalk to stand behind him. He obeyed, looking both ways before looking back up at her. "Look again, you might have missed one when you looked away." He looked once more and then back up at her. "Good. Always remember to look before you cross the street, Natsu. I'm sure your Dad wouldn't want you to get hurt." He looked away. She let out a soft breath.

"Are you coming with me?"

"Not today. It's not nice to walk into people's houses uninvited. I'll watch from here. You go get your lunch, okay?"

"Kay." And he hurried across the street, ducking around the front of the house to slip into the backyard where she assumed the patio door was unlocked for him. Moments later, the front curtains fluttered and the boy poked his head past them, grinning at her and waving. She waved back and he disappeared. She was tempted to retreat inside for her own lunch, but decided against it. Given his feelings already, if he peeked out again and she was gone, who knows what he's think.

"Oh, Ms. Ashley!" She glanced to her left, smiling at the dark haired woman. Mika Surge, Gray's mother. "Are you watching Natsu for Igneel? My, how nice of you!" The woman was pretty and just barely thirty-four. Petite, dark navy hair, dark blue eyes, a pretty smile. "I was wondering how he was doing. I never see him outside. Gray's been wondering if he was lonely."

That stupid idea of her's returned, but it grew. "Has he? Natsu did say he'd been meaning to make some friends, but he's a little shy, see?" Mika giggled, nodding. "Is Gray home? Maybe he'd like to join us?" Mika's eyes lit up at the thought. "It's nothing much, but it'd let you run any errands you need."

"Oh, if it's not a bother! I've been needing to run to the store to pick up some things! I won't be gone for more than a few hours! Three at the most!" She looked giddy and Lucy wondered if she had been about to ask her to watch the boy when she came out to say hello.

"It's no problem. Natsu tells me he's home all day. I hate seeing kids inside just watching TV. I'm planning on talking with Mr. Dragion, see if he'll allow Natsu to come over here. Just safer, you know? Accidents happen all the time." Mika nodded along to her words, looking solemn.

"Yes, poor boy… Igneel tells me he lost his mother when he was just a toddler. I can't imagine it's been easy for him, moving around all over the place… That's very sweet of you, Ms. Ashley."

"Please, we've been neighbors for years now. Lucy's fine." Mika seemed to glow.

"Lucy, I got Poptarts!" She looked over at the boy prancing back through the yard, the box held aloft.

"Natsu, that is not lunch! Now go back inside and put the Poptarts away!" The boy pouted and looked about ready to argue, but she leveled him with a dark look and he turned abruptly, marching back inside. A giggle alerted her that Mika found the whole thing cute. "So," Lucy turned back to the mother. "Whenever you'd like to go, I'd be happy to take Gray for a bit."

Fifteen minutes later found Lucy in her kitchen, Gray seated on one chair, Natsu in the one next to him, and a blue cat winding through her legs as she made grilled cheese.

Her newest charge had been at a lost as to what constituted a 'good' lunch and when Mika had suggested grilled cheese, the two boys immediately agreed, glancing at each other as they both answered simultaneously. Mika had returned to their house only to reappear with a can of soup, a bag of bread, and a few slices of cheese. Kissing her son's forehead (he immediately wiped it away) and telling him to behave, she was off, leaving her with two boys instead of one.

"So. Gray. How old are you?"

"Eight." Natsu eyed him and Gray glanced back at him. "What?"

"I'm seven." Lucy flipped the sandwich, grinning at the golden brown side now face up. "So are you gonna play here at Lucy's too?" Gray blinked at the idea. "Are you?"

"Can I?" Natsu nodded and Gray smiled, the first one Lucy had seen so far. "Really?"

"Yeah, Lucy's cool!" Natsu leaned forward, cupping his hand around the other boy's ear. Gray leaned towards him. "She's old, but she's alright!" Lucy didn't bother informing him that her hearing was just fine. Natsu pulled away. "Lucy's gonna talk to my Dad and then I can come over to her house every day!" The blonde had not been aware of that plan.

"Every day?"

"Uh-huh! I gotta help you with your garden!" She hummed, returning her attention to the stove. "Lucy's got a real big yard! I bet it'd be great to play Dragons!"

"Dragons?" Gray sounded interested.

"Yeah, it's a game my dad taught me! I'm a Fire Dragon and I breathe fire! I used to play it with my friends back at my old house, but I bet I can teach you!"

"What kind of dragon can I be?" When Lucy glanced back, Natsu looked deep in thought, eyeing his new friend.

"Hmm… You get cold, so, an Ice Dragon!"

"What can an Ice Dragon do, huh?" Lucy questioned him, sliding the first sandwich onto a plate and cutting it in half. Two bowls of soup were slid in front of the boys and plates followed.

"Duh! Make it snow and stuff! Shoot ice shards from your mouth! Jeez, Lucy." Natsu bit into his sandwich before realizing he hadn't dipped it into his soup first. He quickly spooned some into his mouth.

"Yeah, Ms. Ashley. Obviously." Gray dunked his sandwich then bit into it. Lucy raised a brow and he swallowed quickly. "I-I mean, um…"

"It's alright Gray. And you can just call me Lucy if you want." He looked amazed at that and she figured it was the first time an adult would let him call them by their first name. He looked down, taking another bite before looking up.

"Could I come over too?"

"We'll talk to your mom when she gets back, kay?" He nodded and then turned to Natsu, grinning. The two immediately began discussing the rules to 'Dragons'.

When the Surge's car drove past, Gray and Natsu were playing a game of hide-n-seek-tag with Lucy, who was currently counting. She waved to the woman, who grinned back. "Gray, your mom's back." The boy popped up from behind the bush he was hiding in, pouting at the car. Natsu peered out from the adjacent bush. "You wanna talk to her, right?" Both boys leaped out, scrambling for the gate, pushing and shoving each other to reach her first. Mika didn't expect the boys to tumble out of the gate, calling out for her before she was even three feet away from her car.

"Mom!"

"Gray's mom!"

"Mom, mom! Can I play more?!"

"Can Gray play with us?!" They eventually reached her, talking over each other to explain the situation.

"Boys, is that how we ask for something~?" the low voice of their new friend drawled behind them. Both immediately froze, refusing to glance back. Mika looked impressed. "Mika," the dark haired woman held in her squeal, "Seems Natsu might get a little lonely stuck with me all day. I know you've been talking about how you wanted to go back to work," Lucy began casually. She might not be best friends with everyone, but every so often she would join in on some of the neighbor's chats, catch up on the neighborhood gossip. "If it's alright with you, I could watch him while you're at work."

"Would you? Really?" Her eyes were glowing and she looked ecstatic. "Oh, oh, Lucy, would you really? I've missed working at the hospital!" Ah, Lucy had forgotten she was a nurse. "But, is that what you want, Honey?" she crouched down to her son's height. "Mommy won't be home all day with you."

"But I wanna hang out with Lucy and Natsu!" he almost whined. Almost, as he was sure Lucy might do something if he did.

"It doesn't have to be immediate," Lucy soothed. "You could start picking up shifts again and Gray could come over for those few hours until Silver gets home." Mika looked like she wanted to jump at the chance, but after being home with her son all day for so long, Lucy was sure it'd be a difficult transition. "Trial run?" the blonde offered. "Few hours a day for you to shop or relax."

"Well…" Both Gray and Natsu looked up at her with hopeful eyes. "I suppose… We'll have to talk to your father when he gets home, Gray." The boy nodded and then turned to his friend, the two fist-bumping and laughing. "But I'm glad you made friends, Honey~! Tell you what, okay? If you behave for Lucy, you can stay and play with Natsu until Daddy gets home, alright?"

"Yes!" The two immediately sped away, laughing and giggling as they made an impromptu game of tag, Happy dancing around them.

Mika squeaked, lunging for Lucy and hugging her tightly. "Oh, oh Lucy! Thank you so much! I was so worried about him, but look! He's smiling so much!" She pulled back, tears in her eyes. "How much do I owe you?"

"Oh, no, you don't owe me any—"

"No! I need to pay you back for this! He made a friend! I'm so happy and I have you to thank!" Lucy held her hands up, inching away from the look in her eyes.

"N-not necessary, really, Mika! You brought over lunch and they've just been playing out in the yard. I don't need anything, honestly!" The woman eyed her and suddenly Lucy was afraid of what she was planning. "Really! What's it between friends? A few hours here and there is nothing! It was nice, watching the boys. My house has been too quiet." The mother's smile softened. "Really, I don't mind."

"Well, if you'll be watching him for the summer, I need to pay you something! Silver will agree, I'm sure he will. Ah!" she suddenly smacked her fist into her palm. "I know! Think of it as expenses! I'm assuming you'd be watching them over lunch, so the money will go to that! Just think of it as the money we would be spending for his lunches, but instead we're essentially paying you to shop!"

Lucy would admit it was a sneaky way of thinking, but not wrong. "Al-alright. For their lunches then. And snacks," she added, recalling the crackers they had scarfed down only half an hour ago.

"Lunch and snacks! Agreed! Gray, Honey!" He slid to a stop, Natsu running into his back. "Mommy's going back home to put away the groceries! Behave for Lucy!" she waved and he waved back before bolting away from the pinkette, the two shrieking and yelling. "Thank you so much for watching him, Lucy! You don't know how happy I am!"

Lucy had a good idea, considering the woman was crying. "It's really no problem!" she waved her off and Mika clasped her hands once more before retreating back to her car and driving the short distance to the Surge house and pulling into the garage.

The blonde faced the two boys, now sprawled on the grass and wheezing with laughter. She smiled.

Her summer was about to get interesting.

Okay. So, um… alternate world Fairy Tail, but modern. So, apparently this is going to be a few chapters, considering I'm already at like eight pages and I didn't even get close to where I wanted to! I'm using their Edolas names for a reason!

And here I told myself I wasn't going to start another story… darn it…

Just two more days and then I'm done with finals and onto my break~! I'll be off until mid-way through January so that means I can quite literally work on my stories every waking minute! I mean, I won't because like how boring is that? But it means I'll have more time to work on them. I will finish Cinderella's Twist, Fall From Grace, and possibly Houseguests during my break, in addition to continuing this and starting the story that wins in my poll!

I would have put this as an option, but I just didn't want to wait I guess~

So! Tell me what you think! It really means a lot to me!

Until the next time, ciao~!