A/N: This was a gift-fic for lucyheartfila2016 on tumblr for the "we're a Guild, we're a family" day exchange, but I figured I'd upload this here as well because we can all do with more NaLu in our lives, can't we? This is my first time attempting present-tense, but it was the only style that actually fit, so tell me what you think! Inspired by the many "boyfriend does my makeup tag" videos you find on YouTube, which never cease to provide me with gales of laughter.
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail does not belong to me in any shape, way, or form. That honour belongs solely to Hiro Mashima. The plot of this fanfic, does, however, belong to me.
"Natsu, I need you to do me a favour," Lucy's face is bright red as she stands in front of the Fire Slayer's table at the Guild. Behind her, Cana has a positively gleeful expression on, and Mira is giggling with Levy by the bar.
"Eh? Sure, Luce, what's up? Short on rent? We can go on this mission I saw for 70,000-" Natsu is cut off as Lucy waves her hands back and forth awkwardly.
"Er, no, see...uh, do you know what the...the, uh..." Lucy stutters, twiddling her fingers together, "Y-you know what? N-never mind..."
"You sure you wanna do that, Lucy?" Cana grins salaciously, "You know what the punishment is if you don't..."
Lucy inhales deeply to steel herself, and straightens her posture. It's now or never.
"Natsu, will you do my makeup for me?"
Above them on the second landing, Laxus chokes on his beer, dropping the mug, and the contents spill out over the rail on to the ground floor. Cana cackles madly, and Gajeel is howling with laughter at his fellow Slayer.
"Eh? Why do you want me to do that?" Natsu tilts his head curiously, and Lucy wants nothing more than to turn into a puddle of goo and melt into the floorboards.
"It's a sort of a challenge Mira gave Cana and I," Lucy begins, and licks her dry lips before continuing, "The 'boyfriend does my makeup' challenge."
"Oh my fucking God," Laxus is wheezing with the sheer force of his laughter as he leans over the rail to stare at the blonde, "Lucy, are you serious?"
"Shut up, Laxus!" Lucy barks at her brother-figure, snapping her attention back to Natsu, "And since I don't have a boyfriend and you're one of the closest guys to me, I need you to do it instead. Please?"
"So I have to put makeup on you? What happens if I don't?" Natsu asks, and Freed clears his throat from his barstool.
"Lucy will then have to file the Guild taxes for the rest of the year," Natsu blanches and quickly grabs his partner's hand. He may not appear to be the most intelligent of people, but he is very aware of the kind of hell it is filing the taxes for Fairy Tail, having been forced to do his fair share as punishment for destroying the house of the Mayor of Shirotsume several years ago.
"Let's get a move on, Luce! I'm all fired up!" and with that, Natsu drags Lucy out of the Guild with little protest.
"Taxes, Freed?" Mira raises a delicate eyebrow at her boyfriend, "That's not even remotely close to the original punishment."
"Nothing scares Natsu more than taxes," Freed smiles in return, "He wouldn't wish that kind of hell on his most precious person, would he now?"
"Oi, Cana, who the hell is doing your makeup?" Bixlow's tongue wags out as he slurs his words together. Cana smirks and points at the large doors of the Guild.
"He should be here in three...two...one!"
"Hey, nee-san...what's this I'm hearing about me doin' yer makeup?" Bacchus swaggers in, a bottle of beer ever present in his hand. Mira squeals from her spot, visions of adorable little purple eyed, brunette babies dancing around her head. Gildartz, present for once, looks horrified as the Palm Mage kisses his only daughter loudly on the lips, and nearly faints when he sees the other man tug at her bikini top.
"OW! Natsu! Watch where you're poking that thing!" Lucy squeezes her eye shut as Natsu presses her (very pointy) eyeliner pencil a little too hard into her tear duct.
"Dammit, Lucy, hold still, I'm gonna end up stabbing your eye!" Natsu scowls as he tugs the skin near the outer part of her eye to create a smooth surface, "How the hell do you do this everyday?"
"Well, I typically use liquiliner, it's much neater to apply, but way more tricky. Pencils are easier to maneuver," Lucy flinches as the pencil dips too closely to her lash line, and Natsu rolls his eyes.
"Whatever, you weirdo," He drops the pencil and smiles triumphantly, "There, done!"
"Natsu, there's a lot more to do," his face falls as she procures a gigantic palette of eyeshadows and several brushes of varying sizes, "Luce, what the hell? How do you mix this stuff?"
"You...shit, I can't tell you. Look, just...just do what you think looks right, I'm not supposed to look all fancy in the end anyway," Lucy closes her eyes and listens as Natsu fidgets with the brushes and palette for a moment, before the ticklish feeling of a brush sweeps over her lids.
"Then what's the point of this?"
"Hell if I know, just some kind of cute couple-y thing," Lucy shrugs, and Natsu continues collecting more eyeshadow with his brush before continuing.
"Well, why do you even put on makeup? You look pretty enough as is without it," Lucy flushes so brightly she's sure she will have no use for the blush Natsu will have to apply later. "S-stupid! You can't just say stuff like that with no warning!"
"I'm just stating the facts, Lucy, you look really pretty," Natsu declares again, and Lucy wonders if it's possible to pass out from sheer embarrassment.
"Thank you, Natsu. I guess I like putting it on because it feels almost ritualistic. It's nice to have a routine in the morning," Lucy smiles as she reflects on her early morning schedule. Bath-time and makeup time are the only points of the day that she can pamper herself, and she laments days when she misses out.
"So how do you typically work in the mornings?"
"Huh? Oh, well after my bath and facial cleansing, I'll apply my base to my face, then my-oh no you don't, you sneaky Salamander!" Lucy exclaims, pointing in his direction, "I am not telling you how to apply this stuff! That detracts from all the fun!"
"But Luce," Natsu whines, "This is hard!"
"Suck it up! I saw Mira's makeup after Freed was done with her, she looked angelic! If he can do it, so can you!" Lucy knows it's a low blow, but what she says next seals the deal, "Gajeel managed to make Levy look amazing."
"What?!" Natsu snarls, "Pincushion did this too? Then there's no way I'm losing to him! Alright, Luce, I'm gonna make you look so pretty that Sorcerer's will be lining up at your front door to get you in for a photo shoot!"
Lucy giggles as Natsu determinedly reaches for the palette again and dips the brush into one of the powder wells, collecting the fine glittery substance and dusting off the excess. The look of concentration on his face as he applies the makeup is so adorable that Lucy regrets not having a camera with her to capture the moment.
"Ughh...done! Now, where's that foundation stuff?" as Natsu digs around her makeup kit for the bottle of foundation, Lucy winces and eyes her base, silently apologizing for the hell she is about to impart on her skin. Natsu squeezes out a healthy dollop on his palm and rubs his hands together, slathering the foundation together like lotion, and reaches for her face, cupping her cheeks.
Lucy is torn between sobbing at the sheer incorrectness of his application technique, and passing out because the heat being exuded from her partner's plans is doing little to help her already extreme blush. Natsu rubs the cream into her skin thoroughly, carefully avoiding her eyeshadow. Lucy gulps thickly as his hands pass by her overly dry lips, and her tongue darts out to wet them, catching the tip of Natsu's thumb as it traces her cupids bow.
"Let's see, what else do I do...?" Natsu pulls away, and Lucy lets out a relieved breath. Her not-so secret crush on her partner is managing to slowly creep out of the box she had shoved it in, and she curses Mirajane to the depths of hell for forcing her to undergo this. The eldest Strauss sibling is very much aware of Lucy's predicament, and has a nasty habit of trying to get the Celestial Spirit Mage and the Fire Dragon Slayer in compromising situations as a way of trying to officiate them.
"Ah ha!" Natsu pulls out a little compact of blush from her bag and lets his fingers drift over several of her large brushes, searching for the right one. Lucy sighs with relief when he picks up her regular blush brush, and looks baffled when he sniffs it.
"Yup, this smells like this powder! You use it for your blush, don't you?" Natsu gives a cheeky grin and quickly collects the red blush on the soft bristles, and Lucy's jaw drops in surprise. Natsu is far more clever than she gives him credit for. The salmon-haired man presses the hairs against her cheek, sweeping sideways suddenly. The dust floats up to her eyes and she blinks furiously as she tries to get it out.
"Sorry, Luce," Natsu apologizes, making circular motions with the brush before moving to her other cheek. Lucy shakes her head minutely, "It's fine, Natsu. Thanks for doing this."
"Anything for you," Natsu says seriously. Lucy is certain she is as red as his flames at this point. Why did he have to be so unintentionally sweet? Had this been anyone else, she would have been certain that he was flirting with her, but this is Natsu. Dense Natsu, who can never understand why Lucy kicks him out of her bed when she awakens to their limbs tangled and their faces mere inches apart, who never realizes just how much of an affect him walking around in his unbuttoned vest has on her, how his accidental compliments keep her up at night, and how half her stories are based off their non-existent romance.
"Hmm...what next," Natsu bites his lip in concentration and Lucy nearly moans in frustration. How she wishes it were her lips biting his, then soothing them with soft kisses before picking up pace again and-she shakes her head so suddenly she gets whiplash. Where were these thoughts coming from?
"Oooh, this looks nice! Wait, Luce, one has a stick and the other is just a sticky clumping, which do I use?" Natsu holds up a tube of lip-gloss in one hand and an freshly opened tube of lipstick in the other. Lucy sighs and rubs her forehead, wincing as her hand comes back with traces of foundation on the fingers.
"Just...do whatever," Natsu nods and up-caps the lipstick, fiddling with it for a moment and moving forward to smear it on her lips with a gentleness Lucy rarely sees from him. After, he grabs the lip-gloss and wields the wand with a flourish. He slathers her lips with the strawberry flavoured shimmery substance, and Lucy winces at the amount present on her lips. There is far too much.
"Dammit, where's the tissues..." Natsu looks around, and lets out a sharp exhale when he can't find any, "Sorry 'bout the gloss stuff, didn't think that much would make it all messy..."
"It's okay," Lucy gags as the gloss enters her mouth when she speaks. The strawberry tastes overwhelming and more like vaseline than anything. Natsu grasps her shoulders and pulls her forward, "I know how to fix it!"
"Nat-" Lucy is cut off when Natsu covers her lips firmly with his. She squeaks when his lips pull her lower one into his mouth, and his tongue races out to slide across the surface, picking up the gloss, before repeating the process on her upper lip. He pulls back slowly, pecking her gently, and grins.
"Done!" Lucy is breathing harshly at this point, and makes unintelligible noises as she points at him, "Natsu!"
"What?"
"You can't just do that to a girl! Especially with no reason!" Lucy exclaims, "Kisses aren't something to be taken lightly, Natsu, you can't just give them out for no reason!"
"There was a reason, I needed to fix your lips!" Natsu protests.
"That's not a valid or appropriate reason!" Lucy yells, "Kisses should only be exchanged between couples, Natsu, we're not!"
"Well, I like kissing you," Natsu snaps suddenly, his eyes narrowing, "I like you Luce, and we do couple-y things already, so why don't we just make it official?"
"W-what?! Are you-do you even know what you're talking about?" Lucy feels her stomach flutter and chest constrict. Her heart is pounding a mile a minute, and her head spins with the direction their conversation is taking.
"I'm not an idiot, Lucy, I know what you're talking about," Natsu deadpans, "You like me in a non-platonic way, as do I. If we become a couple, it wouldn't make a difference to our regular routine, if anything, all that happens is I get to kiss you more, and later we can have s-"
"Shut up!" Lucy screeches in embarrassment, planting her palm firmly on his forehead, "Don't finish that!"
"Wait," a light bulb goes off over her head, "You like me in a non-platonic way?"
"No shit," Natsu states, "I've liked you since the Phantom Lord incident."
"That was years ago," Lucy whispers.
"Well, yeah," Natsu shrugs as if it's the most normal thing in the world.
"Why didn't you tell me any sooner?" Lucy presses. Does the boy not understand how much heartbreak he could've saved her from if he had come clean earlier?"
"I didn't think you liked me that way," Natsu confesses, "I didn't wanna ruin our friendship and make things awkward."
"Natsu, you moron," Lucy sniffs, her eyes welling, "I've had a crush on you since Fantasia."
"What?!" Natsu yelps, his eyes widening in surprise, "I only realized you had a thing for me during Tenrou! Shit-Luce don't cry, you're gonna mess up your makeup and then I have to put it on again..."
Lucy rams into Natsu with the force of a freight train, clinging to him tightly, "You stupid, stupid Slayer..."
She pulls back abruptly, and stares at him firmly in the eye, "Natsu, I want you to be my boyfriend!"
"Hey!" Natsu yells, "Isn't the guy supposed to ask? Dammit Luce, stop being such a weirdo and messing with the natural order of things!"
"Answer me!"
"Do you even have to ask?" Natsu sighs, smiling broadly, "Of course I'll be your boyfriend, you dummy."
Lucy, emboldened by the events that have transpired, surges forward to catch Natsu's lips with her own. This kiss is slow, soft, and gentle, but heated and full of the years of longing she has held for him. She nibbles on his lower lip, and presses herself against his rock hard body, waves of pleasure rocking through her as he reciprocates eagerly, running his hands up and down her sides. He pulls back and pants heavily, his eyes hooded and dark with lust.
"Fuck, Luce, quit making my heart beat so fast, I'm gonna have a stroke if you keep doin' this..." Lucy smacks him on the chest, and laughs when he snaps his teeth at her playfully. She hasn't felt this light in years, and is certain she will burst with the joy running through her. She makes a mental note to thank Mira for the challenge, for she is certain this would not have happened if it hadn't occurred.
"C'mon, lemme fix your makeup, then we can go and show you off to the Guild!" Natsu grabs the lip-gloss again and smears a far lesser amount on her kiss swollen lips, nodding when he is done, "Perfection! Remind me to buy you more of this gloss shit, it tastes amazing...anyway, mirror, mirror, where the hell are you...?"
Natsu finds her hand-held mirror and brandishes it in front of her. Lucy's jaw drops when she catches her reflection. Her face is an entire two shades darker than her neck due to the foundation, and her blush has been childishly put on in two very prominent circles, much like a cartoon character. Her eyeliner is decently applied, although the wings as pointing up awkwardly. The eyeshadow is a messy blend of glittery blues and pinks, and looks more like a bruise than the starry night Natsu was aiming for. Her lip-gloss is the only part of her that looks normal, and she bites the corner of her lip, staring at his expectant face.
"It's wonderful, Natsu," Lucy lies, and Natsu's face brightens like the sun in response, "I love the eyeliner, the wings are very...on point."
"Great! C'mon, I wanna tell the Guild!" and with that, Natsu grabs her hand again and tugs her out of her apartment.
"Oh my God," is all that is uttered from Mira as the pink and yellow duo enter the Guild. There is a thick silence blanketing the hall before Gajeel breaks into a vicious gale of laughter, "What the fuck have you done, Salamander? She looks like a fuckin' clown!"
"More like you dunked her face in a pile of powder," Laxus rolls his eyes, giving his fellow blonde a sympathetic glance. Cana is taking a hundred pictures a minute, getting Lucy's face from all angles, "Sorcerer's is gonna have a field day!"
"What?!" Lucy screeches, and Bacchus raises an eyebrow, "Ya didn't know, sugar? Sorcerer's is runnin' a special edition for this, we gotta submit all the photos. Guess we'll hafta make a side note that you and pyrotechnics aren't actually datin'…"
"Nope! We are, Lucy asked me out!" Natsu yells victoriously from where he has Gajeel in a headlock. Laxus chokes on his beer yet again, and Mira screams from her spot by Freed, falling over in bliss. Her green-haired boyfriend shouts in surprise, and shakes her in a panic, trying to get her to rise again. Gajeel freezes in surprise, allowing Natsu to get a solid punch in. Gray looks utterly horrified, trying to make sense of it all as Juvia clings to him, demanding that he too does the challenge with her. Wendy puts down her LacriComm, hanging up on whoever was on the opposite end with a shy wave and a blush, before wheeling on her sister-figure with several other women in the Guild. Sting and Rogue, visiting for the day, have twin looks of surprise on their faces, and Rufus is retaining the events to his memory. In the midst of the chaos, Cana is at the center of it all, collecting bet money and marking off numbers and dates in her bet-book.
"Natsu!" Lucy screeches again, and her newly-dubbed boyfriend winks, "Love ya, Luce!"
Mira, recently revived, screams again and passes out, much to Freed's evident frustration. Natsu, euphoric with the blush he manages to incite on his beautiful girlfriend's face, locks up when he senses several glares boring into his back. He slowly turns around and is met with the dark faces of Laxus, Gajeel, Sting, Rogue, Gray and Erza. He kicks himself internally when he remembers just how many people have accepted Lucy as a sister to them, most of whom are very dangerous S-Class Mages and very overprotective of her.
"Lucy! Save me!"
"Oh hell no, I've got my own army to fend off!"
"Lucy, how am I supposed to kiss you if I'm dead?"
"Natsu, you moron!"
A/N: Hope you enjoyed! I haven't written anything for NaLu as of yet, shame on me, they're one of my biggest OTP's! Anyway, please review and tell me what you think!
I'm off to be shipper trash and work on my StiCy...
-Touko
Sergeant Sarcasm of the Parody Platoon of the Crack Fiction Liberation Army.