Lucy loved flying.
She loved the feel of air whipping through her hair, of the strain on her back muscles as she rose herself high enough to find a current she could rest on, the crisp scent of pure oxygen that swirled above the clouds.
He favourite part of flying, however, had less to do with the act itself and more with the company.
"Bet I could reach that cloud that looks like an upside down cat first!" Natsu called, wings beating steady and strong as he held his position beside her. His wings were coloured like flames, yellows and oranges shimmering in the down of his feathers and close to the arch of bone that structured them, reds a rich jewel tone at the tips of his feathers with blacks and greys scattered along the outer layers like hidden shadows in the forest they played in.
"And what do I get if I win?" Lucy asked, grinning at her best friend's challenge. While Natsu may be fast, Lucy was faster, not weighed down by a seven-foot wingspan and coiled muscles. Lucy's wings were much more modest in length, only six feet across, but she knew they were beautiful in a way that was unmatched in her hometown. They were pure white with a soft golden undertone from the down feathers, silver tips of her outer feathers reflecting light and creating a glow that surrounded her like a halo in the moonlight.
Or at least that's what Natsu had told her that one night they had stolen a bottle of strawberry mead from the guild kitchen and had picnicked along the edge of the lake under the light of the stars.
"I'll fix all damaged boards and doors in your roost, but when I win you hafta cook for me for a week!" Natsu crowed, circling Lucy in an effort to expel his growing restless energy.
"My roost is damaged because you keep crash landing in it," Lucy pointed out sourly, following Natsu's movements as she kept her face towards him as she talked. "I mean I leave the window open every night, how you keep overestimating your landing is beyond me."
"So you do leave it open for me," Natsu leered, rising slightly so he could look down at Lucy. She felt heat crawl along her neck and she pouted at being caught. Stupid boy.
"Go!" Lucy shouted instead, allowing herself to drop slightly into the current below them and get a quick boost as she shot towards the cloud Natsu had pointed at.
"Cheater!" Natsu howled, following quickly on her heels. Lucy kept her arms close to her sides, laughing as Natsu cursed her loudly, voice barely carrying through the air rushing past them, words lost to the wind. Time blurred as they raced, Lucy's heart pounding and sweat starting to bead on her temples and hairline, whipped away before she could fully register their creation. Lucy saw Natsu start to crawl into her peripheral, his eyes glinting with competitive joy and challenge. She swore under her breath, pushing herself to beat harder and cut through the air before her, weaving through different air currents and timing her beats of her wings for the most energy gained, every decision made in a millisecond through reflex alone.
With a triumphant cry Lucy burst through the cloud top, water particles clinging to her skin and feathers as she did back flips in front of Natsu. Both panted hard and grinned at each other with flush faces, cool air a relief on their skin, not so much on Lucy's lungs as she dragged in deep breaths.
"You only won 'cus you got that head start," Natsu grumbled. It didn't teach his eyes though, deep onyx glittering with flecks of green as rich as pine needles breaking through the dark colour in the bare light of the sun.
"But I won, and you have to fix my roost," Lucy cooed. She spread her arms as she allowed herself to fall backwards through the cloud, grinning up at Natsu. Her sight was overtaken by the condensed water for several seconds, grey monotonous save for the locks of her hair that danced beside her face as she fell. She broke through, clear blue of the sky quickly surrounding their cloud, its shape ruined by their playing.
Lucy laughed when she saw Natsu disperse more of the cloud, wings tucked tight against him and grin bright as he dove towards her. She shrieked when Natsu caught her around her middle, bare skin of his arms pressed tight to her back where her halter style top left her bare. Which was considerably low, as the dark blue coloured fabric revealed the dimples on her back. Natsu's forehead pressed to hers as he laughed, the pair tumbling through the air and Lucy tucking her own wings in to stop any chance of injury, knowing Natsu would snap his open before they got too low.
Lucy never feared falling when Natsu was around.
Natsu stopped their tumble, holding Lucy tight to his chest as he opened his wings. They jolted as air filled under him, Lucy grinning as she watched the concentration on his face as he steadied them. Lucy pushed away from him and fell into sync with him as they neared the clearing they had left their bags into. The grass was soft as Lucy and Natsu landed, the sound of them returning to the earth muffled by the thick blades and rain-softened dirt.
"If it makes you feel better I packed your favourite cookies," Lucy teased, poking Natsu's face as he resumed pouting about his loss.
"I already ate those," he whined, dropping his weight on Lucy's back when she turned to the pack she had hidden behind a tree. He wiggled between her wings until he was cocooned by them, chin resting on her shoulder as he watched try and maneuver the pack in her hands. "Lushi, I'm hungry!"
"You sound like Happy," Lucy snorted, chirping happily when she found the package she had been looking for, tucked into a hidden inner pocket. She let the canvas bag fall back to the ground, unwinding the string she had wrapped around the pink cotton in her hands. Lucy felt Natsu perk up behind her, leaning more heavily on her as he sniffed the air. Unfolding the final triangle Lucy revealed several chocolate and hazelnut cookies, rested neatly in her palm. Natsu cheered happily, stealing the bundle of cloth from under Lucy's hands and ducking away, munching on one already as he stepped away from any potential swats. Lucy's lip curled when he grinned at her, crumbs falling from his chocolate covered lips.
Lucy dragged the blanket down from the branch Nasu had thrown it on, laying it out on the edge of the lake a few dozen feet away from the tree line of their clearing. She smiled when Natsu placed the basket down in the center, following suite as he dropped to crossed knees, last cookie caught between his teeth.
"You should thank Juvia for the water hazelnuts that you just polished off," Lucy teased, settling into a spot beside him. She stretched her wings out, enjoying the way her back muscles pulled and the points in her wings cracked.
"Pretty sure Aquarius has her on cave arrest for the next week for being caught with Frost Tips," Natsu sniggered, pouting at Lucy when she slapped his hand away from the food satchel. "At least that's what Levy said. She and Gajeel better be careful or Aquarius will scale her tail for sure."
Lucy giggled with Natsu as she thought of her friend's and Natsu's cousin's budding romance. The raven winged giant that was Gajeel didn't look like he'd be the type to cross the water-air divide, and yet it was him who struck a friendship with the mermaid Juvia first. The close bond they had formed had led to the tentative treaty between their groups, and the following interactions between Juvia and Gray, and Gajeel and Levy. If Lucy were honest, the peace between them was beneficial in their struggles with the Night Flyers.
"C'mon Luce, if we keep talking about Stripper and Metal Mouth I'm gonna lose my appetite," Natsu complained, trying to sneak a hand into the bag and snatching it back when Lucy slapped his hand.
"Gajeel only has the two piercings in his lip and a few in his eyebrow," Lucy chastised gently, handing a deer steak sandwich to Natsu and taking a pine butter and cherry jam one for herself. "It's quite light considering the colony he hails from. Your uncle's face has so many more rings and studs!"
"Do you think I'm a stud?" Natsu asked, waggling his eyebrows at her suggestively. Lucy choked on her bite with a laugh, shoving his shoulder playfully. "C'mon, Lushi, tell me! Am I studly enough for ya?" he crowed, putting down his sandwich to crowd Lucy, who placed her food to the side as well.
Lucy tried to crawl away when Natsu reached his hands to her, but she was too slow as he gripped her waist and pulled her back to him, squealing. His clever fingers ran along her sides and the base of her wings, tickling her relentlessly. She extended her right wing in his face, escaping as he spat out feathers and fell back onto his butt. Lucy launched into attack then, tackling Natsu to the ground as she tickled him, access easy at his bare chest and sides by his vest, wings pulled through their loose holes to maintain a full range of movement. Natsu howled under her, tears streaming down his face and finally relenting as he grabbed her hands. Lucy beamed down at him, allowing her hands to rest but not pulling away from Natsu's touch and instead leaving them trapped his in hold. She looked over his face, studying him as he caught his breath. Freckles danced over his rich brown skin, colour darkening in the summer months spent in the sun. They coated his nose and cheeks, a patch of three or four just under his lip on the left side of his face.
Before she could stop herself her hand was brushing his bangs from his face, pink colouring natural and stark against his deeper skin tone. And beautiful, Lucy had found herself thinking a few too many times to be considered friendly.
"You got a weird look on your face," Natsu commented, grip tightening fractionally around the wrist he still held. Lucy huffed a laugh, drawing away slightly. She was stopped from moving off his hips by a tentative hand on her thigh, pads of his fingers warm through her tight pants. "I didn't say it was bad," he mumbled, eyes darting away before finding hers again, shyness new to them and making Lucy's heart skip in her chest.
"Natsu," Lucy breathed, biting her lip as he gaze flickered to his. She wet them when she looked back at his eyes, slanted shape widened as he stared at her. Lucy took in a depth inhale, releasing it shakily as she fixed his quilted scarf, pillowy and cool under her fingertips, a signature of his. Lucy didn't think she could ever imagine him without it, like the pale scar that crept over the right side of his neck that it hid. "Why did you want to have a picnic today?"
Lucy shifted back as Natsu sat up, both his hands resting on the tops of her thighs as they settled, Lucy straddling him and Natsu keeping his grip on her to ensure she wouldn't move. She blushed at the position but made no move to leave it. Lucy looked at him when he said her name gently, blush growing on her cheeks and ears when he lifted a hand to the base of her wing, soft fingers firm but cautious as he applied pressure along the top of her wing, encouraging her to spread them for him. Lucy followed his silent request, stretching them to their fullest on either side and slightly above her, the midday sun causing no shadow to cross his face but still catching in her feathers and down so that the light danced in the air around them, following each shift of her feathers that the wind carried in their small clearing.
"You're so beautiful," Natsu said, voice low as his eyes traced the sections of her wings and from there her body. He reached out a hand, hesitating just before his fingers brushed her feathers, eyes flicking to hers and lighting at her small nod. Lucy hummed softly when Natsu ran his hand through her plumage, touch gently as he stroked her. His touches grew bolder and Lucy bit her lip as her head tilted back, basking in the heat of the summer day and low and heavy pleasure that radiated from her wings. It felt like when her mother used to brush her hair but comforting feelings focused into a sharper pleasure, relaxing like a massage but gentler in that the soothing heat spread through all her body rather than just points of it. Lucy knew that this was an intimate thing, to allow someone else to stroke and clean your wings, the trust higher due to the fragility their wings held compared to any other kind of touch.
His skin was warm where Lucy cupped his face, opening her eyes and looking at him through her lashes. "Why did you bring me here, Natsu?" Lucy asked again, leaning forward slightly.
Silence surrounded them, Natsu leaning forward to match her. Both continued to inch into the shared space, nerves making Lucy fidget and run her thumbs along Natsu's jaw line. Natsu dropped on hand to rest on the small of her back, guiding her closer. Lucy's lips parted, desperate to close the gap but nervous about what it would mean. What it would mean for their unit, for their friendship, for Lucy. Their noses bumped and Lucy's breath caught, Natsu nudging her to the side slightly, angling so her could come closer to her. His eyes flickered to hers from where they had stayed trained on her lips, darkened with some intense emotion that stole Lucy's breath and made her mouth dry. Natsu's lips brushed Lucy's lower one, Lucy pulling back half a hair at the touch before finally closing the distance herself.
The kiss was clumsy at first, their lips not quite lining up and their noses bumping into one another again. Natsu chuckled against her lower lip, pressing a chaste kiss there as they fell into it. Lucy smiled and nibbled at his, running her hands through his wild and spiky hair, rose coloured strands soft under her touch and pulling a purr from Natsu. Lucy sighed when Natsu deepened the kiss, his tongue curious and light as it spied at the seam of her lips, unsure as he pressed past her when she let them fall open for him. Lucy smiled before taking the lead, guiding his tongue into her mouth with her own, sliding along his and teasing him playfully. She pushed back into his mouth, confidence growing at his low sounds caught in his chest as she raked her nails along his scalp with rougher strokes, pressing onto her knees more for leverage as she tasted Natsu's mouth. Shade fell around them when Natsu extended his wings while they caught their breath, Natsu chasing her mouth and swallowing her laugh as he copied Lucy's motions and swiped his tongue along her teeth, sucking on her tongue roughly in retaliation for her laugh.
Lucy wrapped her wings around them too, a gentle dome made just for them as their feathers brushed and mixed, sealing them from the rest of the world.
Lucy giggled when she pulled back, panting for breath. She bumped her nose into Natsu's when he chased after her again, his eyes finally opening to stare at her in breathless awe. His lips were kiss-swollen and his pupils were blown wide, Lucy sure she looked no different.
"I love you."
A/N; Heyo! So this was written for snogfairy on tumblr for her birthday, and bcus I am horrible has two endings! The next chapter will be angst, with the fluff as the third!
I really love this au actually, the flying was really interesting to write :D
Let me know what you guys think of the first part