Modern AU (modern as in with laptops, though everything else is the same)
This story is written to make you laugh, or at least to smile. I hope it does. I don't own Fairy Tail, any of the characters, or the sayings written in here, however I do own the plot.
Lucy Heartfilia, a busty blonde woman with warm brown eyes and hair that reached her shoulders, sat on her plush green couch. Her laptop sat on her lap on a pillow to stop the heat from the battery from burning her leg. Outside thunder clapped, lightning soon following, lighting up the sky in brilliant streaks of blinding light. Lucy sighed, sipping hot tea from her favorite mug with a mermaid figure curling around the handle. A loud clap of thunder shook her decently large apartment; the lights flickering as her screen did. A small plate with soft warm cookies sat on the end table beside the couch's arm, baked a short time earlier by Lucy when she couldn't find anything else to snack on.
Once her screen stopped flickering, the internet rebooted and she resumed her previous search for quotes to make her laugh. Today had been a bit depressing for her, there was no work in the guild; due to a sudden shortage of quests everyone had taken the few quests left before she even arrived. Happy hadn't been very well lately, and Natsu was stuck at home taking care of his blue furred exceed until he got better. Not to mention, she was falling behind in her novel; if she didn't pick up the pace, she wouldn't ever finish it in time to have it published on the date she set for herself. Another sigh escaped her lips and she scrolled through images of quotes.
"I hate it when I'm taking a drink and all the ice attacks my face." her lips twitched up in agreement.
"Dear Cool People, They didn't name a candy after you, did they? Sincerely, Nerds" to this she snorted in amusement.
"Snaughling: Laughing so hard you snort, then laugh because you snorted, then snort because you laughed!" she would have to show Levy this when she got the chance.
"The moment when you are in bed texting with the phone above your head and the phone just decides to attack your face."
"We're all a little weird, and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible to ours, we join up with them and fall into mutual weirdness and call it love." Lucy smiles, she would have to remember this one.
"Money can't buy happiness but it can buy cows, and cows make milk, and milk makes ice cream, and ice cream makes you happy."
"Into each life, some rain must fall. When it falls into yours, I'll bring the Umbrella."
"We do not remember the days... we remember the moments."
"We will be friends until we are old and senile, then we will be new friends."
"Three words, two people, one feeling."
"Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie." Lucy grinned, she would have to tell Happy that the next time he commented on her weight when carrying her.
"When life gives you lemons, make orange juice and leave the world wondering how you did it." she hummed, mulling the idea over in her mind.
"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together."
"Real friends listen with their hearts."
"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."
"Cherish yesterday, Live today, Dream tomorrow."
Feeling a bit better, Lucy began writing another scene to her story, occasionally going back to the page of quotes to re-inspire herself. The last quote she saw before the electricity went out and she flipped, realizing she didn't have a chance to save her work, was "If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
Lucy sighed heavily, rubbing her temples as she closed her laptop and waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She then ate the rest of the cookies on the plate, gulped down the tea, though winced afterwards as the hot liquid burned her throat, and then stood up, bringing the dishes to the sink. A few minutes later, once her nighttime routine was complete, she laid in bed, staring up at her ceiling, watching as it lit up every time lightning struck. The last quote replayed itself in her head and she cursed to herself.
"Damn it, why did the electricity have to go out before I could save?" she murmured, drifting off to sleep slowly.
She replayed her day in her mind. Natsu had walked over to her as she was looking at the board, gawking at the blankness of it. He had seemed pretty down, and Lucy had ignored him, instead choosing to rant to Mirajane about there being no jobs. Sometimes she knew she was a jerk, but she had seen Natsu leave looking even more upset than before and hadn't known what to do about it. She was all up for helping when she could, but sometimes she wasn't quite the best at it. Lucy had then gone and helped Mirajane go shopping for food for the guild, that was the last time she would do it unless absolutely necessary. But, she had gotten paid well for it. When she had returned home, she had found her landlady waiting for her, her eyebrow twitching majorly and Lucy had nearly fled. The landlady had then gone on to 'discuss' with Lucy about why her rent was late, Lucy having forgotten that it was due yesterday. Lucy had freaked and gone into her home, searching for enough money to pay rent, while also coughing up the money she had just earned from helping Mira. After that, her landlady left and Lucy had relaxed on her couch, looking for inspiration for her story when the storm hit.
Soon, Lucy came to the decision that tomorrow, she would help Natsu take care of Happy, that way, she could cheer both of them up, and maybe apologize for ignoring him today. With that thought in mind, she fell asleep.
The next morning, Lucy woke up to birds chirping as the sun rose, giant puddles of water lining the streets of cobblestone, and flooding into the river that ran through Magnolia. Lucy got dressed, brushed her teeth, and ate breakfast before heading off to the store, knowing that Natsu probably didn't have the right kind of medicine for Happy. After buying a few herbs to make tea and a bottle of medicine, Lucy walked swiftly towards Natsu's house. His cottage was located off the main path in the forest, and Lucy walked quickly through it, shuddering at the dead trees that lined the dirt road. However, as she knocked, waiting for him to answer the door, she was flabbergasted that his house looked so... creepy.
Natsu didn't answer, much to her annoyance, but she heard him talking to Happy, so she opened the door, finding it unlocked. He was so careless! Lucy was even more horrified when she walked inside his house, carefully shutting the door behind her. It was filthy! Clothes were strewn across the room, pillows and blankets littered the floor, not to mention all the smelly dishes that were carelessly placed on random surfaces. And... Lucy stepped back in shock, was that a tree growing through their roof? Of all things. Lucy sighed and began making her way through the mess towards an archway which she assumed led to another hall.
"Natsu? Are you home?" Lucy called, stepping over a pile of dirty blankets and barely missed slipping on a wet towel. She shivered.
"Lucy? What are you doing here?" Natsu asked, peering out from the archway. He had smelled her scent as it was coming up the path, but he didn't think she would barge in like he normally would at her place.
She smiled brightly, "I'm here to help you take care of Happy! But, first, I think I might help you clean..."
He sniffed, "Yeah, I guess it is pretty bad..."
Her eyebrow twitched, "You think?" she suddenly recalled the quote and took a deep breath, "I bought these for Happy, I'll start brewing some tea for him and you can give him the medicine I picked up," she handed him the bottle and stepped over his stuff, making her way to the kitchen through the archway, which was just as dirty, if not more so, than the front room.
"Oh... Okay," he nodded and walked back into his room where Happy laid on his hammock, sleeping soundly.
Lucy rummaged through the stacks of dirty dishes, grimacing as her hand grazed a greasy pan and other utensils. As she took in the clutter, she stumbled over a bunched up rug near the sink. Shrieking, she barely managed to stop her fall by grabbing onto the counter near her.
"You okay in there?" Natsu called.
"Yeah!" she huffed.
She began searching for a while until she found a tea kettle, and then filled it with water and put it on the stove. As it heated up, Lucy got to work cleaning the kitchen, washing the dishes with soap she found by hand until about halfway through she found a rag. It would do, and she gratefully noted she no longer got her hands too dirty as she worked. Soon the water was boiling, and she poured a cup then let the herbs she bought steep in the water as she resumed cleaning. Natsu peered into the kitchen, watching her as she worked. When she finally noticed him watching her she shrieked, since she had been walking past him to start cleaning the front room.
"Eheh, sorry Luce. I didn't mean to scare you," Natsu mumbled, rubbing the back of his head with an apologetic smile.
"I-it's okay. Oh right," she bowed deeply, "I'm so sorry for ignoring you yesterday! I didn't really know what to do, and I couldn't find a job to pay rent which really had me stressed out,"
"It's okay Luce! No need to apologize for it,"
Lucy smiled and then went back to cleaning. Suddenly, she remembered the tea and went to get it from the counter. Bringing it into Natsu's room, she gave it to him and watched with a soft smile on her face as Natsu cared for Happy. Her heart warmed at the sight, and she blushed, her thoughts roaming. She made her way into the living room to start cleaning when she tripped over a wooden wagon wheel. She growled, her face flushing in embarrassment though it faltered when she realized he didn't see her fall. She quickly stood up and brushed the dust off her rear, then scoured for a broom and dustpan. Eventually, she asked Natsu for help, and he got up to assist her in the search for a broom. They were unsuccessful.
"Natsu, why is your house such a mess?! This will take forever!" Lucy snapped, throwing another garment into a pile by the archway where she planned to start a load of laundry.
"I'm rarely home, so why would I have to keep my place clean?" Natsu asked, appearing behind her.
Lucy jumped, stifling the startled scream by exhaling, "Maybe so when you get back home, or when you or Happy are sick, then you won't have to worry about having to clean up just to find something,"
He shrugged, "Too much work. I don't have the time to do that,"
Lucy rolled her eyes and continued organizing, occasionally barking orders at Natsu to help her since it was his house, not hers. For the rest of the morning, Lucy and Natsu organized his house, then looked after Happy together, being perfectly content just sitting in the same room together when Lucy wasn't annoyed by the mess. By the middle of the afternoon, Happy was feeling much better, and was surprised when he woke up to a clean house.
"Woah! Lucy, I didn't know you cleaned!" Happy exclaimed.
Lucy's eye twitched, "Say that again, cat,"
Happy looked away with a gleam in his eyes. After a moment he realized something and turned back to her, "Why did you help Natsu take care of me? And why did you clean? I didn't know you knew how to!"
Lucy sighed, letting the comment go, though begrudgingly, "Because, I read a good quote and it made me want to do something nice,"
Happy grinned, "No, you just wanted to hang out with Natsu. You like him!"
Lucy blushed, "I so do not!"
"Do too!"
"Do not!"
"You do,"
Lucy rolled her eyes, her blush dying down slightly, "Whatever. I should go home. It was nice hanging out with you- er, helping you,"
Happy's grin widened, "You do like him!"
Lucy blushed and quickly gathered her things, storming out the door before she allowed herself to harm the blue exceed that she just spent half her day caring for. Happy looked at Natsu and smiled.
"She totally likes you!"
Natsu grinned.