"Though Guy!"
"No way! You are!"
"Your ice is cooler."
"Of course your fire trumps my ice any day!"
The Fairy Tail guild hall could only look on in amazement as their resident ice and fire mages engaged in a shouting match. The complete 180 reversal of Natsu and Gray's attitude had taken everyone by surprise.
Lucy leaned over and in a side whisper asked Levy. "What's going on with those two?"
Levy couldn't turn her head away from the arguing pair. "I have no idea." She paused. "Could it be a spell?" She asked no one in particular in a faraway voice, mind completely blown.
"What is going on here?!" Questioned Erza threateningly standing between the two mages with hands on her hips. "You two aren't fighting. ARE YOU?!"
"Erza will you tell this smart guy here that his magic is way cooler than mine." Demanded Gray.
"No way! Erza tell the icicle that ice is way awesomer than fire."
"Uh uh." Erza looked like a statue. If not for the healthy peach color of her skin and the silver and blues of her clothing Lucy would have thought that Evergreen had turned the teen to stone. The requip mage's mouth hung open and she pointed from one teen to the other. "You said... but... he said..."
"Well Erza!?" Natsu and Gray demanded together, looking eager to hear her answer. But the red head was incapable of speech. She just stood there gaping.
"Oh great they broke Erza. Now who's going to stop those two?" Macao asked Wakaba.
"Fish! Erza's a yummy fish!" Happy shouted gleefully. The little cat glided up to Erza preparing to eat her.
"Lucy kick!" Lucy shouted as she kicked Happy through the ceiling until all that could be seen of him was a tiny speck in the distance.
"Well there goes the roof again." Mira commented cheerfully. "Poor Happy."
"That was the manliest kick ever!"
Natsu turned to Gray and took a breath to speak. The guild leaned forward with bated breath. Some place bets on what the dragon slayer was going to say.
"So you want to go find Happy?"
"Yeah sure. Then we're going fishing." Cana was so surprised that Gray would actually want to go fishing with Natsu of all people that she spit out the alcohol she was about to swallow.
"That's it the booze has finally made me hallucinate." She mumbled to herself.
Natsu, ignoring the effect he and Gray were having guild, threw his arm around Gray's shoulders and pulled him to Fairy Tail's entrance. "Let's go buddy!"
"Can't wait Natsu!" Gray said without a hint of sarcasm. Needless to say the entire guild almost fainted in shock.
"What is going on!" Wailed Nab.
Makarov Dreyar was in a good mood. His paperwork for the council was almost done, all of his children were safe and secure on the first floor of the building, and for once nothing threatened the safety of his beloved guild.
So when he heard Erza demanding answers from her two best friends he simply smiled and returned to Sorcerer Weekly's latest magazine. But instead of the usual noise that follows Erza's entrance, Makarov was greeted with silence. That's when he started to worry. The wizard saint carefully placed the magazine on the only clean surface of his otherwise disorderly desk and hopped off his chair. The master of Fairy Tail really had to buy a new shorter chair before he breaks something one of these days.
Quietly so that the brats downstairs wouldn't hear him, Makarov tip toed across the floor of his office to the oak door and placed his ear against it with palms pressed flat on either side. It briefly occurred to Makarov that he was behaving childishly before he shifted his weight unconsciously and a floor board groaned under his weight. Since when did the boards creak so much underfoot? Makarov asked himself.
Shouting and then calmer voices made their way to the old man's ears.
"Hmm. I wonder what could be going on down there." He muttered to himself. The sound of the guild hall's doors slamming shut cut through the chattered that was scattered throughout the guild and stopped the master's musing. After what seemed like an eternity the noise levels resumed their normal levels although the voices heard in the master's office had a questioning tone to them. "Ah well," The master thought to himself. "Probably something Natsu or Gray did. No use in worrying about it." With that said the master walked back across his squeaky floor, hoisted himself up onto his too tall chair and picked up his copy of Sorcerer weekly reverently before opening to a random page and immediately drooling over Mirajane in a revealing two piece swim suit.
~Outside the Guild~
"Okay Natsu. I have to admit this was a pretty good plan. It's amazing that a numb-skull like you came up with it though.
"Gray your clothes are missing." Happy said from his perch on Natsu's head. After Lucy had kicked the blue feline out of the guild hall, he had flown to Natsu, crying about how mean Lucy is. Natsu had pet him and place the cat on his head. Needless to say Happy was quite Happy with the arrangement.
Gray looked down at himself and his eyes comically widened. "Why does this keep happening to me?!"
Natsu just laughed. "Did you see Erza's face!? She couldn't move she was so surprised."
"Yeah. She looked like a yummy fish but meanie Lucy wouldn't let me eat her."
"That's because she's a person dummy." Gray pointed out.
"Natsuuuuuuu! Gray's being mean to me!"
"Don't worry little buddy," Natsu lowered his voice so only Happy could hear. "I'll beat up the stripper later.
"Aye!" Happy felt better and lifted off his best friend's head to fly in between the two mages.
"Anyway, I can't wait until this prank is over so then I can kick your butt once and for all." A fully clothed Gray said with his hands in his pockets.
"What are you talking about ice princess; I always kick your butt! What makes you think you can win when I'm obviously stronger." Natsu and Gray slammed their foreheads together and continued hurling insults at each other as their magic energy began to gather.
The owner of a shop the trio had stopped in front of was an old man. He had white silky hair, a tiny white mustache and side burns to rival those of Galuna Island's chief. He was a kind old man but not stupid. So when two kids with the Fairy Tail guild's mark started fighting in front of his shop he knew that there was going to be property damage.
Staying as far away from the arguing wizards as he could, the old man slowly made his way to the flying blue cat that seemed to be almost bored watching the two teens.
The old man had barely enough time to dodge the young man with black hair before he could fall onto him. The shop keeper looked back to the relative safety of his shop before pushing forward.
After a few words with the weird flying cat, the old man sighed in relief when the two wizards finally calmed down at a few words from the flying cat.
"Thanks cat!" Yelled the man over his shoulder as he walked back to tend to the customers gathered in his store.
"Natsu! Gray! Erza's coming!" Happy yelled to cause the duo to stop fighting. The effect was immediate; the two mages ceased fighting and started acting like best buddies.
"Oh crap we'd better get to the lake!" Natsu yelled in a panic and took off running.
Gray grabbed the fire mage by the collar and yanked him back. "Cool it pyro. Just turn around and pretend we were already at the lake and Happy ate all of the fish we caught."
"Aw, but I want real fish."
"But we haven't even been to the lake. Why would we tell Erza that we were?"
"Idiot." Gray muttered under his breath. The ice mage couldn't wait until their prank was over with so he didn't have to deal with the dense idiot that was Natsu Dragneel. Gray forcefully turned Natsu around just as metallic footsteps could be heard echoing down the street.
"Yikes!" Happy's fur stood on end and he flew to hover behind Natsu's shoulder. "I was just kidding about Erza coming! Save me Natsu!"
"Come on little buddy let's go see what Erza's doing." Natsu said running off.
"Aye sir!" Happy and Gray flew and ran after their pink haired friend to find a very ticked Erza. Though the warrior was hiding it well her two long time friends could tell that she was more impressed than annoyed.
"You are to come back to the guild at once." Erza started sounding cold and commanding. She continued. "I must say," a hint of pride colored her voice. "I am impressed that you two have made it this long without fighting, even if it is for a prank." She threw in smugly.
"How did you..." Croaked Natsu.
"Figure it out?" Erza finished smirking. "Quite simple really. Now, lets go to the guild." The two boys walked side by side behind Erza completely at a loss for words.
When the foursome's short walk came to an abrupt end at the doors of Fairy Tail Erza turned to Natsu and Gray. "I will not speak of our conversation. Continue with your prank."
"You rock Erza!"
"Alright!" The two mages high fived. "Thanks Erza!"
"Yeah we owe you one."
"No thanks necessary. The guild could always use more laughter. I am also curious as to how this endeavor of yours with turn out." With that she opened the doors and walked in, filling the room with her assertive presence. "Master Makarov. I have returned with Natsu and Gray so that you may see for yourself." The entire guild quieted at her words and turned to face the two mages in question who had started talking like normal human beings without so much as an insult traded between them. Gray laughed at a joke and fist bumped Natsu.
"They... they... they're not..." Then the man that would fearlessly stand up to the Apocalypse Dragon, that faced down Jose without cracking a sweat and continuously goes against the magic counsel's orders, fainted from shock. The rest of Fairy Tail was just as dumbstruck; Master Makarov had convinced them that they'd just imagined the unimaginable. Cana dropped her wine casket, Wakaba's pipe fell out of his mouth and Nab actually turned his attention from the request board while everyone else stood as still as Evergreen's statues.
"Hahahahahahaha!" Natsu couldn't hold in his laughter anymore. The abrupt sound broke everyone out of their trances and woke Gramps up from his impromptu nap. Gray smiled.
"Did you get that on the video lacrima Happy?" He called out.
Happy flew down from the rafters holding a glowing lacrima crystal. "Aye! Its been recording the entire day."
"What are you talking about?" Bisca asked.
"You guys should have seen your faces. Oh hahaha!" Gray manages to gasp out before losing himself to laughter.
"What!?"
"Natsu." Erza said calmly, amusement evident in her voice. "Explain to everyone what you and Gray have been doing since this morning."
"Aye sir." Natsu grinned then shouted. "WE PRANKED YOU GUYS BY BEING NICE TO EACH OTHER AND NOT FIGHTING!"
Mira was the only person seemingly unfazed. She came out from behind the bar to stand by Elfman who really was a statue. He had finally got the nerve to ask Evergreen on a date and she turned him to stone in her embarrassment.
"What!?" Yelled everyone unbelieving.
"Wow you guys must be deaf. I SAID-" Natsu was interrupted with a fist to the face knocking him back.
"They heard you flame brain." Natsu retaliated with a flaming side-kick to Gray's stomach. The two mages started fighting all out; bumping into many of the regular participants of the guild's infamous fights but not one joined the brawl. They were too shocked.
"They were faking it the whole time?!"
"How did they do that?"
"Yeah, those guys can't stand each other!"
"Well one thing's for certain," Lucy said, "Those two are the best of friends. Even if they won't admit it." She looked over at Gray and Natsu. Both were grinning ear to ear. "I guess fighting is just their way of bonding." Lucy grinned and sat down to watch the them fight.