2014 Christmas Special
Happy Painful Merry Christmas
(Part 2)
Natsu had got up and left through the front door unlike his usual escape out the window, Lucy felt a pang of regret but it was quickly over-righted by her annoyance to his silent behavior. Happy flew after him with his ears down and a trail of sadness following behind him.
"Don't blame Nastu, he didn't want to stop looking but we manage to convince him to take a break. He was beating himself up to much to the point where his hands were bleeding." Erza finally looked up to stare straight into Lucy's eyes.
Brown meet brown eyes, a spark of understanding went through the two girls; girl language only girls know. Gray looked back and forth between them two, a confused look expressed through his eyebrows. Lucy suddenly let out a big sigh dragging Gray's eyes to see her reaction, she leaned back crossing her legs.
"It's Christmas, I really don't want to ruin the things I had planned. I guess...I could try to see through a few things." Lucy looked away onto the ground, wondering if all this fighting was worth ruining Christmas.
Erza nodded and then looked at Gray giving him the look that said it was about time they left Lucy to herself. He nodded in return and got himself off the chair he sat on; he picked up his jacket from the backrest and put it on while heading towards the door. Erza joined him and the two waved their goodbye's and said their 'see you later's'; they closed the door behind them.
Lucy watched them leave, once they were gone she twirled the chair around to face her desk, her notes for her novel spread out on it's surface from the last time she worked on it. She looked at a particular line on one of her pages, there meaning striking a cord in her heart.
'If she was to be angry at me, hate me for the rest of time then I rather stay silent and let her release her feelings at me than never be by her side ever again. So let her hate me, let her be forever angry at me; as long as I'm with her I'll be satisfied."
~*O*~
Lucy had just finished making a specially made, extra spicy apple pie for one particular partner she planned to finally apologies to. She placed her hands on her hip to look on at her table full of cooked and fried goods; most of the desserts still in the fridge to keep cold, specifically a certain cake for a certain scarlet hair girl friend of hers. She breathed in a big breath of air and released it through her nose; preparing herself to call her partners over for dinner. Hopefully they'll still be in the mood to com.
She made her way over to her new lacrima and called the guild, Mira answered with a cheery hello.
"Lucy, why hello and Merry Christmas." Her smile almost splitting her face in half, any more she might be looking more creepy than appealing.
Lucy returned with a happy 'Merry Christmas' of her own and then asked if Erza, Gray or Natsu were at the guild at the moment. Mira lost her smile for a moment but it quickly returned and then she nodded her head, leaving the lacrima and Lucy by herself to wait. After a moment went by Gray stepped into the lacrima's view, his face looking a bit gloomy but still all together; fine.
"Hey Lucy, what's up?"
Lucy explained to him that she had a surprise at her place and that she should get Erza, Happy and even Natsu to come; no excuses. In order for him to not ask to many questions, like 'are you still angry?' She hung up the lacima leaving him dumbfounded and no other choice but to do as she said.
Once Lucy was disconnected she immediately starting putting up the remaining Christmas decoration all over her apartment, even the mistletoe. Though she made sure that it was placed over her window so no one would be able to walk underneath it and not forcing her or anyone over to kiss one another. It was the last item to be positioned and when she back to way to see the whole room and it's Christmas spirited glory; the door bell rang.
She rushed to the door and pulled it open to let Team Natsu enter the room, they all looked a bit down but at least Gray and Erza gained some spirit back unlike a certain pinkette. Her heart skipped a beat at how terrible she now felt for saying such harsh words to him and about him, she knew better that any of it wasn't true. It was a fact that Natsu would never give up on anyone he cared about, sometimes he would be so desperate he need someone to calm him down, and that was what Erza had told her a couple of hours before.
Lucy had time to think her own feelings over and about how the other regretting their actions despite them not being completely in the wrong. Only because she was upset at that point, she neglected to see things another way. But Lucy loved Christmas and she didn't want to spend Christmas alone like many other times she has in the past before meeting Fairy Tail, so she thought it over. She was now forgiving and forgetting the pointless ordeal and trying to mend her relationship with her friends again.
"Come in!" Lucy grabbed hold of Nastu's wrist and forcibly dragged him into the house, sense he was the slowest one getting in.
She directed him to a seat at the table and plopped him onto the chair, even after her was officially seating her hands never left his shoulders, her eyes looking at the two other joining her tonight.
"Sorry and Merry Christmas." Lucy forced out of her tight throat.
Her heart was racing and her mind was blank, trying to pick a conversation and trying to make things back to normal before her outburst earlier this morning. Her hands squeezed Natsu's shoulders unconsciously until Natsu starting to squirm under her strength. She let go right away when she realized what she was doing and then went straight to pulling out her own chair and following the others at the table.
"I...I want to spend Christmas with you guys no matter what, so, I made dinner. I hope you can forgive my attitude this morning, I was just a little to angry for my own good." Lucy passed Natsu a glance; to see him looking straight back at her with hopefully eyes almost just about killed her.
Lucy's face flushed as hot as eating chilly peppers straight; the rest she wanted to say came out harder than ever before.
"So. I'm sorry I was being mean. Let's have a Happy Christmas."
Lucy avoided eye contact by quickly changing her glance downwards to the floor then they shifted towards her hands resting on her legs. They were balled up into fists and a bit shaky, she gathered up her remaining courage and looked back up to see them looking right back at her. Their faces neutral and unreadable; Lucy began to worry a little that maybe what she did was unfix-able and started to fidget in her seat.
"Oh Lucy..." Erza finally said, braking the unbearable silence hanging in the air all around her.
"It's not you who should apologies, it's us. And we're sorry, we'll make it up to you." Gray added.
Lucy's corner of her lips started to crack up in a small smile, a little relieved that those to were on the track of recovering there friendship with her. She wanted to look at Natsu to see if he had anything to say as well but her nerves wouldn't let her; she was stuck looking at the center or the table unable to turn any further.
"There's no way in hell I would ever stop looking for you Luce. If you got lost or missing...I wouldn't care if you were stuck in hell or 200 feet under the ground, I would find you." Natsu's voice sounded hoarse, like he hasn't used it for a while.
Her eyes bolted right up to meet his; her fingers dug into her palms as her heart raced inside her chest and pumped in her ears. He was looking straight at her with powerful eyes, the one she always saw when he got serious in a fight against an enemy but this wasn't of determination to beat her, this was a look that screamed 'I'll always find you no matter where you are'.
In the back ground Erza and Gray exchanged knowing looks and got up together, their actions catching Lucy's attentions and a flash of them leaving because they didn't want to be here with here, cross her facial expression. Erza was fast to reassure her that they weren't leaving for good but instead said,
"We forgot the presents at the guild, we'll get them and be right back."
Lucy's face relaxed and smiled at her, their mental girl talk doing the talking and before Gray and Natsu knew it Erza dragged Gray out of there to leave Lucy and Natsu alone together.
Even though Lucy's watched as they left her alone on Christmas with Natsu Dragneel, Natsu's eyes never left looking at her. Finally with much mental debate she turned to return his strong look; nothing was more nerve racking that trying to confront your own beating heart with out ruining the moment.
"Will you stop staring. It's making me uncomfortable." Lucy tried to play it off, waving her hand as if she was trying to clean the air of a smell.
"Luce..."
"I forgave you already, now stop staring." She tried again.
"Merry Christmas." There was movement in Lucy's peripheral vision, unconsciously turned out of curiosity.
There in his hands were two presents, one in each hand and the side of a small box just like the one Virgo gave to her back at the castle ruins. Actually there was one exactly like it in the hand he didn't out stretch towards her; the other one he seemed to be trying to give was rapped in a beautiful gold and blue swirls of sparkles, neatly finished with a red ribbon and a bow on top.
Lucy hesitantly took it out of his hands and looked at it and seeing how it was well wrapped, she knew he wasn't the one to wrap it. She looked up to him with knowing eyes and he told her the truth as he ungracefully destroyed the celestial wrapping to his own gift -from Virgo no doubt.
"I have Levy and Mira pick the and doing of the wrapping, I tried to do it myself but...Mira told me I was 'simply horrible at it'." Her lips went into a scowl from the memory.
Lucy giggle and watched him take out the matching black wrist band with the Fairy Tail symbol stitched on, he straight away put it on just like she did when she opened hers. Lucy smiled and lifted one of her arms up, Natsu looked at her movements until he spotted the same thing on her wrist; the same black band rested comfortably on her slender wrist.
"Virgo wasn't very creative." Lucy lied, when really Virgo purposely made a matching set.
"Open yours." Natsu nodded toward the unwrapped present in her hands.
Lucy internally slapped her face for not opening it right way like he expected. She tried to open it neatly like she did with Virgo's present but Natsu's eyes bore into her to go faster and forget about trying to open it without ruining the wrapping. Her eyebrow twitch to his inpatients and decided to hell with it.
She used her nails to rip the pretty wrapping and gripped a chuck of the gold and blue wrap, yanking of the majority of it. The boxed used was a simple plain white color; Lucy slowly lifted the lid and gasped at what was inside.
There carefully resting on the cushion like bottom of the box was beautiful gold earrings with dangling stars, a moon and a sun symbol joined the stars yet separated to one individual earring. Actually they were the earrings she was looking at the last time they went on a mission together, just the two of them.
Back when the just finished a mission dealing with some petty thieves and were checking out the town before leaving; Lucy's request. She had came across one of the market stalls that sell pretty jewelry, she was drawn in by this very earrings but when she asked the price. It was wait to ridiculous, she tried using her feminine wiles to lower the price but the clerk was a jack ass and didn't fall for it one bit. Lucy bit her lip in frustration upon the memory.
She looked up to Natsu wondering how he got it without her knowing and how ridiculous it was that he spent so much for them. But then when she saw the look on his face she knew right away that he didn't pay for it at it's original price.
"You didn't..." She said in a shocked voice and Natsu just smiled.
"You're evil! You can't threaten people just to lower prices!" Lucy declared, like she was one to talk.
Funny how she knew she was not different when she too tries for discounts using her body as eye candy to male clerks. Natsu knew it too, being with her for so long allowed him to know her little habits and tricks. Her cracked up a smile.
"You like it either way."
Lucy blushed and decided to try them one now instead of later. She put the last one on and then looked at Natsu with a satisfied expression, a huge smile plastered on her lips. She couldn't believe that out of all the people Natsu got the one present she really wanted because she missed out on it before.
"Thanks Natsu!" Without warning Lucy threw herself at him, engulfing him in a big hug.
His body froze on spot; her large chest blocking her from hugging closer, she looked up at him with a smile on her face and said,
"Merry Christmas Natsu!"
When she backed away he had something wrapping around his neck on top of his precious scarf from Ingneel, there wrapped loosely was another scarf. Flames and scales imprinted into it's knitted fibers and a small red Fairy Tail mark -the same color as his tattoo- on one of the corners. He pulled the loose part up to see the patterns better and couldn't help smile at himself.
"Awesome Luce!" He flashed her his famous grin and returned the thank you hug with twice the force she used.
She had to violently pound on his back to let him know he was beginning to suffocate her. He let go, but then there was a look of realization cross his face, Lucy's eyebrows drew closer together in a confused manner.
"What is it Natsu?" She asked worriedly.
Not saying a word her got up off the chair and started heading towards the window, the one with the mistletoe above it, though Lucy had long forgotten she placed it there.
She followed him to her bed and watched him pull the window up to leave, he turned back with a blank face, Lucy was completely confused and didn't understand his actions. Sometimes she wondered why Natsu called her the weird one when really he was.
He signaled her to come closer and so she listened, still not sure what he was up to. She crawled across her pink covered bed to meet him at the window.
"Natsu? I don't understa..."
Lucy got cut off.
Warm lips pressed long and hard against her own, her eyes still open and shocked while the onyx one's she knew so well were closed and enjoying the feeling of the kiss. When the warm feeling left her cold she looked up to the ash colored eyes trying to question his reasons, her mouth open to ask why when Natsu pointed up. Her eyes followed until she saw the green and red plant stuck onto the wall above the window frame; a blush began to spread all over Lucy's body.
She couldn't believe it. Natsu kissed her and because he knew rules of the mistletoe or maybe because he was just using that as an excuse to kiss her. But that thought was quickly diminished, Lucy just didn't think Nastu would ever kiss her for any other reason.
"I forgot to tell Happy I'm here, I'll just go fetch him." Natsu pointed outside, the sign for the general direction to wherever Happy was now.
Lucy still blushing nodded very slowly, her lips pressed together as her feelings battler with each other. One side wanting to believe that he didn't it on purpose while the other felt hurt because she though that the mistletoe was the only reason he'll ever kiss her.
Her eyes went down as the hurt feelings began to overpower the other. Natsu notice that Lucy was looking more down than he though she would, was the kiss really that bad? He wondered to himself, Mira and the other girls keep pocking at him to make sure to meet Lucy under a mistletoe, not sure why they insisted when he was planning to either way.
He cleared his throat to get her attention and she lifted her eyes to look back at hi, he couldn't stop the blush that appeared on his tanned cheeks.
"Umm,"
"..."
"Ah.."
Natsu tried to get the words out, just three little words, words that sounded so lame and cheesy that they would be easy to say right of the bat now not wanting to leave his lips.
His nose picked up the sent of Gray and Ezra heading there way and would be at the door step any moment now, now feeling rushed he did what his body told him to do instead of fretting about words.
He kissed her again.
This time more passionately, his hands went to hold her head steady and when he did so his fingers felt the softness of her golden strands of hair. Her smell growing more potent by the moment, so much so he sucked in a her smell through his nose as his body grew closer towards her.
Her hands went up to rest on his chest, her back arched a bit by his pull; there was no resistance.
At first Lucy was yet again surprise by the kiss but this time she knew that it wasn't the mistletoe's doing, this was a kiss coming from Natsu himself. She closed her eyes to fall more into the passion he was giving her and her hear hammered in her ears, no it wasn't her's it was Natsu's beat she was hearing. His large and calloused hands cupped her ears to hold her head steady, his pulse covered up any other sound around her, including the knocking on her door.
Natsu's lip suddenly left hers and she was stricken with the feeling of wanting more but was knocked back to her sense with him retreating into the night air outside and the two other Team Natsu members walking back in.
Lucy looked the two with a flustered face and surprised written all over her body; Erza and Gray looked at her with equal surprise.
Erza's eyes narrowed to the earrings on Lucy's ears, her little bit messier hair, the pinker lips then before and the glow of a girl in love radiating off of her. She smirked.
"Let's continue dinner shall we?" Erza gave Lucy a knowing look.
Lucy perked and quickly got off the bed and unconsciously straightened out her clothes as if she was doing naughty things earlier.
Gray on the other hand was a bit more clueless than usual, he was confused and unaware of what just happened and of course asked where was Natsu. Lucy's face burst into flames and Erza giggle to her friends reaction.
Gray just didn't realize that his childhood friend was one step a head of him.
Merry Christmas to you all!
I hope you enjoyed the story as much as I did. I know it didn't start with what you would expect, like going straight to the gushy stuff but I wanted to stick to the development of their ever growing closeness *Fangirling!
Sorry that this was posted a little later than I had planned but Christmas is detracting so I didn't really have time to type the last half right away.
SO this is how this Christmas Special ends or is it?
Bonus:
Natsu ran as fast as he could back to his house where Happy was sitting all by himself waiting for Natsu to return home, he felt bad for forgetting to go get him before heading to Lucy's. But in a sad and mean kind of way, he was grateful. If head brought Happy along earlier he would have never gotten that chance to do what he did.
His cheeks were rosy and they weren't like that because of the cold Christmas winter air.
As he rushed back home her recalled how her lips felt on his, the first time it was far to short and far to little to remember it clearly. Though he'll never forget it, it was just one of those kisses with feeling but also just not that memorable.
But the second kiss, though, was a whole different story. He didn't plan it like the first one once he remember Happy and jumped at the opportunity to use the mistletoe to his advantage. Not the last on, the last one was rushed and unexpected but she still accepted it and reacted to it.
Lucy kissed back.
Just the memory of it made his heart race faster than ever before, although he wasn't sure at this point, if it was because he was happy or because his been running at full speed all the way home.
He stood in front of his little shack of a home, frozen in front of the door while breathing heavily and heart pounding. With shaky hands he opened the door and walked in while looking around to see if Happy was anywhere around near by.
"Happy?" He called.
Happy's head popped out from behind something that looked like a rocking chair completely covered in clothes and other stuff that reminded him of past missions. Happy cheered to his best buds return.
"Natsu!"
Happy flew into Natsu's arms and looked up to him.
"Where have you been? I was starting to think you didn't want to spend Christmas with me." Happy's ears lowered sadly.
Natsu gave him the biggest smile and told him that Lucy was having a Christmas dinner at her place and that they were invited, of course he left out the little bit where he and Lucy had exchange a little more than just gifts. But the rest was public knowledge.
Though Happy had his suspicions, his best friend/parent was a little to happy for just present exchanging.
~*O*~
Happy and Natsu returned to Lucy's apartment; Erza and Gray had already started eating without them. The moment Natsu came back in, Erza shot his a knowing look and then glare at him as if she was telling him, 'hurt Lucy and you die', out loud. he gulped down a lump in his throat due to Erza's threat, Happy floated over to Lucy and slammed himself into her soft chest.
"Merry Christmas Lucy!"
"Merry Christmas Happy." Lucy giggled while hugging Happy tighter.
Natsu gulped down another lump down his throat, this time out of jealousy. Oh how he wish he could do the same, Lucy sudden looked up at him with a beautiful smile.
"Welcome back, come on. Let's eat, we've been waiting for you." Lucy said cheerily.
"Not us, only you Lucy." Gray pointed at her with a fork and a mouth full of meat.
Natsu wanted to let the blush rush to his cheeks at the thought that Lucy was waiting to eat specifically for him but he didn't let it happen, all in order to not show the Ice Princess that he would be overjoyed over such a small act.
"I'm starving!" Natsu declared, taking the seat that was empty and beside Lucy.
"I made something special for you Natsu, it's a new recipe that I found in one of the cook books I got from Levy. Though no promises that it'll be any good, I just made it randomly."
Lucy went to the kitchen counter and picked up the extra spice apple pie and placed it beside Natsu, he eyes it with a watering mouth.
"It's extra spice, apparently. I did have to put a lot of hot peppers in it, sooo..." Lucy looked at the others with apologetic eyes.
"Sorry guys that you can't have any, I don't think you'll like it. But! I did make other desserts." She clapped her hands in reassurance.
She eyes Erza in particular and a grin painted her lips, she went to the fridge with a bounce in her step and took out a large and deliciously looking white icing cover cake with strawberries lined up in a row around the cakes top. Erza's eyes started sparkling the moment her eyes laid on it.
"Looks absolutely amazing Lucy!" She said cheerfully, everyone knew Lucy just made this Christmas, Erza's favorite.
~*O*~
Everyone enjoyed their meals and they were now moving onto the desserts that have been torturing them, just sitting there on the counter not far away. Waiting to be devoured but only until they finished the main course. Lucy left Natsu to his own devises since the apple pie could only be eaten by him alone, instead she help cute the strawberry cake and gave everyone else a respectable sized slice.
"Thanks Lucy for the wonderful food and this delicious cake." Erza said her thanks as she stuffed her mouth with the cake.
She was eating it a little quick, probably to worried that something bad will happen and the cake would be wasted. Gray at it slowly savoring the taste, he hummed at how good it tasted and also said thank you for the food. Happy tried saying thank you as well but his mouth was to full of cake, a mess of icing around his mouth made him kind of look like he has rabbis. But that would be rude to mention.
"Don't talk with your mouth full." Lucy used a spear napkin to wipe his fur clean, Happy swallowed and said sorry.
"WAH~!"
Natsu yelled, everyone almost jumped out of their seat in surprise. They looked at him as he just finish downing a bit of the spicy apple pie, his eye clearly sparkling in satisfaction.
"This is so good Luce!"
Everyone's eyes at the table almost bulged out of their eye sockets except for Natsu. His face left Lucy's and he went back to biting down another piece of pie. Lucy's hand went up to her lips that were now tingling due to the amount of hot peppers used in the pie.
Natsu kissed her, and in front of everyone.
Natsu gulped his second bit and then noticed everyone's shocked faces.
"What?"
Gray pointed to Lucy then to him and then repeated the next couple of times until Erza grabbed hold of his hand and brought it back down to his lap. Erza took another folk full of cake and continued eating like it never happened, since of course she knew it was bound to happen sooner or later. Just didn't expect Natsu to do it in front of them so soon.
Silence hung in the air for the exception of the occasionally clinking of Erza's fork going in for another bit. Natsu was silent because of the realization of his action finally clicked in his mind, Lucy lost in the faint kiss and shock of it. And then there was Gray, mouth open and wide eyes, he couldn't believe it.
The moment stayed for another 5 clinks of Erza's fork until Gray finally exploded.
"WHAT!?"
And at last we come to the true ending. Haha, sorry Gray but Natsu beat you to the punch.
