Father's Day was always a weird time at the guild. There were the ones who had dads that they would celebrate with, and then you had the guild mates that didn't have that paternal figure around who would disappear for the day, and then you had people like Laxus, who would celebrate with his grandpa. Lucy had actually forgotten what today was until she got to the guild. It wasn't until she walked into the guild and she saw Cana with Gildarts drinking in the corner, and Romeo showing Macao his latest flames that she realized what holiday it was. A sad smile crossed her face when she came to this conclusion due to the fact that she was now counted among the guild members who didn't have a father. Hell, she was now among the guild members who were orphans. She didn't quite know how to handle that. Part of her wanted to cry, and part of her felt like she didn't have the right to cry. The others had lost their parents at a much younger age than she. Shouldn't she be glad that she had been able to have her dad for as long as she did? Lucy shook her head at herself as she sat down at the bar and surveyed the guild. Today was going to be a long day.

"Come on, old man, you haven't drunken yourself under the table yet. Mira, another round for me and my old man!" Cana shouted as she clinked her glass against her dad's.

"Sweetie, are you sure you want to drink that stuff? We could maybe go out for dinner or do something special," Gildarts suggested.

"Why the hell would I want to do that?" Cana asked.

"Well, because it's our first real father's day together. I figured we should do something nice, just the two of us," Gildarts said as he squished her into a hug. Cana sighed and pushed him back to arm's length.

"Look, I told you that you didn't have to treat me any differently."

"I know, but you're my daughter! I missed out on so much time," Gildarts said as he gave her a slightly teary look and ruffled her hair.

"Woah, don't go crying on me," she deadpanned as she slightly moved away a bit.

"Tears aren't manly," Elfman said as he walked by.

"What he said," Cana told him as Mira placed more alcohol in front of the duo.

"Thanks, Mira," Gildarts told her.

"Cheers!" Cana yelled as they resumed their drinking.

"Dad, look what I can do!" Romeo excitedly told Macao as his hand engulfed in a familiar dark flame.

"Wow, son, that looks exactly like mine," Macao told him as he manifested the same flame on his hand.

"I can help you out on missions now! One of you is great, but the two of us, we'd be unstoppable!" Romeo said with a smile.

"Yeah, that would be fun. Plus it'd be nice to go on a trip without that old coot over there," Macao said as he pointed his thumb at Wakaba.

"Hey! I'm not that bad!" Wakaba said indignantly.

"Dad, be nice to Uncle Wakaba," Romeo chastised. Macao just laughed and patted his son's head.

"I'm sure I've said worse over the years," Macao teased.

"Daaaaad!"

"Hey, Gramps, you feel like going out later?" Laxus asked.

"Would I have to pay?" Makarov replied from his spot on the bar top.

"No, I've got it this time," Laxus told him.

"Will there be hot girls there?" Makarov questioned.

"You old perv. But, sure. I'm sure we can go some place like that if you want," Laxus smirked.

"Count me in."

Lucy sighed. She needed to get out of there. She put some money down on the bar top to pay for her drink and left. She walked aimlessly, absorbed in her own thoughts, not really paying attention to where she was going. When she came out of her stupor, she found that she was standing in front of Natsu and Happy's cottage. She decided to knock on the door when she saw a sign on the door that read: "Gone fishing." Lucy smirked and headed off to the duo's favorite place to fish.

Natsu was staring intently at the body of water in front of him. Fishing was more fun when Happy was there with him. However, Happy had gone back to visit his parents. Natsu didn't blame him for leaving. He would want to spend father's day with Igneel if he were around, but he wasn't. Natsu didn't feel like spending it at the guild. He already knew what it'd be like since he made the mistake of going to the guild on Father's Day once before. He didn't want to put himself through that pain again. Natsu sighed as he watched his line bob up and down in the current.

"Natsu! I've been looking all over for you," a voice called from behind him. Natsu smiled as he recognized the voice instantly.

"Hey, Luce, what were ya lookin' for me for?"

"I just needed to be with someone who understands," Lucy sighed as she sat down next to him.

"You went to the guild hall," Natsu simply stated. Lucy nodded.

"Well, Luce, they don't mean to make ya feel bad. Not a lot of them really know what it's like to lose their parents," Natsu explained.

"I know, I'm not mad at them. I guess I'm just…"

"Jealous?"

"Yeah. I would give anything for just one more day with my dad," Lucy said with a frown.

"I know. What would you do if he were here?" Natsu asked.

"I'd probably take him out to lunch and spend the rest of the day swapping stories from when I was little while we drank tea at my house," Lucy mused, "What would you do if you could spend it with Igneel?"

"I would probably have a roaring contest with him. Maybe fight for a bit. Then I'd tell him about all my adventures," Natsu said with a small smile, "and about you."

"Why me?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Because you're a weirdo. That's why."

"That makes no sense."

"Never said it did," Natsu smirked.

"Fine," Lucy sighed as she leaned her head on his shoulder. Natsu absentmindedly ran his hand over her hair. They sat in silence for a few moments.

"I have an idea!" Lucy suddenly said as she sat up straight.

"What?"

"How about every Father's Day you and I spend the day together swapping memories about our dads? We can end the day by writing a letter to our dads and tying them to the ends of a balloon and releasing them," Lucy suggested.

"Sounds like a great idea to me," Natsu smiled at her. He reeled in his fishing line and stood up before offering her his hand. Lucy smiled as she took his hand before running off with him. Natsu always knew how to salvage her mood. Maybe Father's Day without her father wouldn't be as bad as she thought after all.