Natsu really wasn't the kind of guy that was aware of his surroundings most of the time. He didn't pay attention to anything but his immediate vicinity and even then he would be hard pressed to tell you what Lucy and Gray were talking about yesterday at lunch even though he sat between them and they talked over his head.

Oh, he was aware of Lucy at any time, but inside the guild, surrounded by friends there was nothing that posed any danger to her so he felt safe in paying a little less attention to her than usual.

This backfired one day when he decided to pay more attention to his scuffle with Gray and less to Lucy even though there were strangers in the guild-hall. Guests from other guilds and army officials crawling around as the date drew near to celebrate Fairy Tail's birthday and Master Makarov decided to invite everyone and their mother to the festivities in an attempt to 'strengthen alliances'.

That just had Natsu curling his lip in disgust. The Master was only trying to soothe feathers his children would undoubtedly ruffle at any given opportunity. Natsu thought the whole affair pointless and annoying, but nobody bothered to ask his opinion, so he kept it to himself, not caring either way.

In order to forget the circus around him Natsu had goaded Gray into a fight, taking advantage of the fact that Erza was off to parts unknown, trying to find Jellal who was also invited to the birthday celebration. Natsu liked Jellal, he really did, but did the guy have to be such a slippery fish? He should be happy to stay at Erza's side now that he was pardoned, but nooo…

If Natsu had to choose between wandering aimlessly or staying by Lucy's side, he'd always choose Lucy. That one year he spent wandering around without her was more than enough for him. He disliked being separated from his best friend, hated it even. So he really didn't understand Jellal.

When Mira finally managed to stop him and Gray from nearly tearing the guild apart Natsu was starving. So he headed for the bar where he intended to order a feast for himself. All thoughts of food fled from his mind however, when he spotted Lucy. Lucy, and the decorated something or the other from the army pressing his slimy lips to her fingers.

Lucy was a beautiful girl, Natsu wasn't blind or stupid, he knew exactly how desirable his partner was. He just wasn't used to guys having the balls to approach her. Everyone who knew Lucy also knew that she came with Natsu, they were a package deal. That was enough deterrent for most guys, only a small fraction of those interested in Lucy being brave or stupid enough to risk the Salamander's wrath.

So seeing someone make moves on his Lucy so brazenly had Natsu at a loss for a moment. But soon enough blazing jealousy rose up within him and he stalked up behind his partner, wrapped his arms around her waist and proceeded to glare at the official.

The other man backed off the second he realized just who was giving him the stare of death and slinked off with a mumbled excuse. Lucy only heaved a sigh before turning around to scold her partner for scaring off yet another potential suitor. But if she was entirely honest with herself, she found Natsu's bouts of jealousy and possessiveness endearing. And besides, she preferred him over any other guy she's met, so when he staked his claim Lucy scolded him on the outside, only her eyes telling him that she was in fact pleased.

Natsu really didn't care if she minded his possessive tendencies, Lucy was his and that was it. Those around them would learn it soon enough, till that happened he'll just continue scaring off anyone dumb enough to approach her.

AN: So, this is gonna be the new home of my ever growing drabble collection. Every chapter is a stand-alone story (I'll announce before-hand if I make a series like What Fairy Thinks of NaLu), with less than 1k words. Rating is gonna be T for now, could change in the future. I'm also open to suggestions what theme to write next, so if you wanna read some specific theme, drop a line and I'll probably write it. Thanks again to everyone who has read, reviewed, followed and favorited my stories so far. You all guys rock and I can't express enough how happy it makes me that people actually read what I write.