When Lucy peeked a curious eye over where she sat on Natsu's head, she was surprised to see how far up they were.
Nervously, she clutched onto one of his horns, admiring the rough texture against her hands for a moment before she wonders out loud, "my father is going to throw a fit when he realizes I'm gone." She giggled at the thought.
"Too bad," Natsu snorted, a puff of smoke emitting from his snout in a ring before disappearing into the wind. She hummed at the pleasant campfire smell. "You're mine now. Your old man can't take you away from me."
"Erm," Lucy said, face suspiciously warm from his statement. Geeze, he was kind of an idiot, but it still flustered her whenever he reminded her of his apparent claim over her. "Yeah, I guess. I just hope he doesn't try to find me."
Lucy let out a huff of air. "Well, either way, I don't care. I'm not going back." She laid down tentatively, humming at the warmth of his scales and tracing a finger carefully into the grooves of his horns. Little scratches and other imperfections adorned them, little dips here and there indicating that some parts had been chipped away. She thought they were still beautiful.
"Natsu," she said, and she patted the scales underneath her appreciatively. "Thank you."
She curled up, finding comfort in the heat that surrounded her, and just before she went to sleep, she thought she felt the rumble of a purr.
XxXxXxXxXxX
" - y god you fucking idiot, did you actually kidnap someone?"
"What! No! And get away from her, ice bastard!"
"The hell you just call me, flame brain?"
"Ice princess!"
"Lizard ass!"
The first thing that Lucy thought of when she woke up was that whoever was yelling sure had awful insults. Like seriously, they were all something little kids would yell at each other, and she let out a small giggle at the thought.
The second thing that came to her mind was that she was so comfortable. She stretched lazily like a cat, rolling over onto her side to cuddle even more into the soft comfiness of whatever she was laying on, only to come in contact with something a lot harder and warm.
She groped at it groggily, still refusing to open her eyes, not when it was this comfortable. Eventually, she just ended up rolling towards it until she was right up against the hard and heated thing, humming drowsily in pleasure.
"Shut up, Gray!" One of the voices from before whispered harshly. "You're gonna wake her up!"
Meanwhile, the other voice (Gray, apparently) was laughing loudly, and he choked out, "holy shit! Holy shit, flame ass, look at you, you're fucking cuddling!"
"Gray - !"
"Why," Lucy moaned, finally unable to keep pretending that she couldn't hear the two idiots arguing. She cracked open an eye, and came face to face with a pale-skinned man with dark hair leaning over her, squinting at her expression of surprise. His bare shoulders and torso also greeted her, and just as she was about to say something (like what the hell are you doing), only to be cut off before she could start as there was a ruffling sound, and in only a matter of seconds, his pants came off and chucked somewhere carelessly.
She screamed.
"GRAY, PUT ON YOUR DAMN CLOTHES!" Someone roared from behind her. As in literally roared. The sound was deep and animalistic, loud as heck, and also caused the scaled thing behind her to rumble with the deep noise.
She froze. Scaled?
"Aw, hell! When'd I lose them?" Gray whined, and scurried away in a hurry to find the aforementioned clothes.
"What a damn pervert," Natsu huffed, his pupils slits and his nostrils puffing a good amount of deep gray smoke. He shook his head and snorted, causing the final tendrils of smoke to disappear before he leaned down, snout nudging Lucy's shoulder carefully. "You okay, Luce?"
"Y-Yeah," she squeaked, having finally realized that she was pressed up tightly to Natsu's chest, and she cleared her throat to try and take attention away from the fact that she was so flustered. "He just startled me, that's all."
Carefully, she reached out and stroked his snout, finding the smooth yet at the same time rough texture of his scales fascinating. Natsu's eyes half-closed, and he let out a rumble, the one that Lucy now recognized as a purr. She continued to stroke him, rubbing her thumb over any scratches or little bits of scales that were gone, and even scratching him a little underneath the chin.
"Wow, you're like a cat, Natsu," she said in wonder.
"'M a dragon," he merely said, voice heavy with both his purr and drowsiness. "Weirdo."
She giggled, and was about to reply, but was interrupted as once again Gray approached them, this time with clothes on. Thank god.
"Natsu?" Gray repeated, eyes curious as he watched the tender moment between the two.
Face red, Lucy snatched her hand away from the dragon.
"What?" Natsu spat, eyes now snapping wide open as he glared at the dark haired man, evidently irritated by the fact that Lucy had stopped.
Gray frowned. "You're Natsu?"
"Well, duh!"
Gray crossed his arms and said, "idiot. You didn't even have a name when you left! We just all kept calling you dragon boy. What the hell, man?"
At this, Natsu grinned proudly, and once again prodded Lucy in the shoulder with his snout once more. "Lucy named me! Because we met on the last night of summer, and Natsu means summer. Right, Luce?"
"Right," she muttered, and gave into his poking and continued stroking his snout.
"Huh," was all Gray would say on the matter. He shoved his hands into his pockets, and said, "well, whatever. C'mon, flame ass. Erza wants to meet Lucy. Oh, uh - I haven't really introduced myself, huh?"
His hand, which had then been rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, reached out to her in a way of welcoming a handshake. "Gray Fullbuster, prince of - "
"The snow fairies!" Natsu said a little too gleefully.
Gray gritted his teeth but tried to continue, and Lucy grabbed onto his hand with a wide grin on her face. "Prince of the Northern - "
"Ice princess," Natsu whispered, chest rumbling with giggles and his smile wide enough to showcase his many gleaming teeth.
"It's prince of the Northern Mountains you freaking prick!" Gray shouted, having finally snapped as he whipped his head to glare frostily at the dragon.
Natsu merely sneered back, and huffed out a ring of black smoke before growling, "same difference to me! And get your perverted hand off of Lucy!"
"What the hell did you just say?"
"Come at me, snow bastard!"
Lucy's eyes widened as Gray made a sort of stance with his fist over his other open hand - the temperature dropped drastically, and she shivered, now remembering that she was still wearing only her simple (and now rather rumpled) under dress, and scooted closer to Natsu for warmth. She also gathered the many blankets surrounding them - she had apparently been sleeping on a huge pile of them and pillows - and huddled into them, teeth nearly chattering.
Natsu, seeing this, only got more enraged, and he shrieked, "look what you've done, snow freak! You're making her cold! CUT IT OUT!"
Natsu roared, shaking the ground with the mere sound of it, his own temperature suddenly spiking up until Lucy was trapped between being freezing her butt off or getting a good few first degree burns.
"Why me," she wailed to herself, but neither male even looked at her, too wrapped up in their evidently way too high testosterone levels.
Gray, not at all unfazed by both Natsu's roar or the increase in heat, merely grunted, and the icy fog emitting from his hands increased ten-fold. "I'm gonna kick your ass, flame brain!"
"I'd like to see you try, ice princess!"
"Why you little - "
"Dragon, Gray."
The voice that suddenly spoke was dark and low, and was also heard clearly over Natsu's loud growls and Gray's equally loud shouting. Lucy scooted back away from Natsu, taking her blankets with her as she observed an incredibly pretty red-haired woman with the most dangerous eyes enter the room. Just her expression alone made Lucy shiver in fear. Her armor, detailed and gleaming brightly in the sunlight that streamed through the large window of the room, only added to the feeling of incredible strength that waved off of her.
"E-Erza," Gray choked out as the temperatures, which had been fighting with blasts of hot and cold, suddenly evened out and it was the same as before.
"It's the demon!" Natsu squeaked quietly, too quietly for this Erza lady to hear, and Lucy herself had to hold back a squeak. Demon? Like, an actual demon? Oh my god. She was going to die, and it was all Natsu and Gray's fault! When she gets her hands on them…
"Were you two fighting?" Erza thundered, voice booming powerfully.
"EEK!" Natsu and Gray screamed, and the man and dragon scrambled together, Natsu's snout pushing next to Gray's shoulder as the man flung his arm around the said snout.
"N-No! We're best friends!" They both shouted in absolute synchronization.
They became twins, Lucy thought to herself, a little horrified at the rather pitiful display, but she was having a hard time not doubling over and laughing her heart out.
For a moment, Erza looked like she didn't believe them, squinting at them both with narrow and sharp eyes. They both sweated nervously, until finally she nodded and said in a serious voice, "ah, I see. You are doing well in keeping your relationship so close and bonded. After all, friendship should be held highly."
"Bastard," Gray snarled quietly, pushing against Natsu's snout and Erza's passionate words flying right over of his head.
"Asshole," Natsu hissed back, his voice just as low.
Lucy, who could hear them both, couldn't help but laugh. It was ridiculous, really - just yesterday, she had been the princess of Fiore, on her way to meet her betrothed so she could successfully take over her father's throne and rule the kingdom. Now, she was here, watching a dragon and a man argue against each other while trying not to let a woman overhear them. It was too amusing for her to not laugh at.
"You are Lucy?"
Lucy's laughter trailed off, and she looked up to see the (rather terrifying) presence of Erza above her, legs apart and her arms crossed, the stance only adding to her look of power. She squeaked. "Y-Yes! I'm Lucy!"
Erza nodded. "I am Erza Scarlet, the knight of this castle. We will be great friends, you and I. Come!"
Lucy squawked as Erza's metal-clad arm suddenly shot out and wrapped around Lucy's neck, and her head crashed into Erza's chest-plate, the impact giving her a good few seconds of dizziness as the red-haired woman turned to look at a steadily getting louder Gray and Natsu, still holding onto Lucy.
"Dragon! Gray!"
The dragon stopped in the midst of biting at Gray, while the man barely managed to stop himself from punching him in the snout.
"My name's Natsu!" Natsu whined, and his claw tapped nervously on the stone floor as he eyed Lucy in Erza's grasp with both fear and worry. "Luce named me."
Sensing that he wanted to intervene but also didn't want to be pummeled by Erza (seriously, Lucy only just met her but she bet the other woman could kick down a good few mountains without breaking a sweat), Lucy managed a smile somehow and a weak thumbs-up.
"Natsu," Erza tested, the name rolling off of her tongue. She nodded seriously once more. "That is sufficient. Indeed, you and Lucy have a strong bond. I commend you on your friendship!"
Natsu shrieked when Erza slapped him on the wrist as a sign of congratulations, the 'friendly' tap feeling more like a punch.
"Now, hurry up!" She barked, her sparkly and motherly tone immediately giving away to something that reminded Lucy of a general or other commanding force. "The others are eager to meet our new friend. Gray, PUT YOUR CLOTHES ON! How dare you besmirch dear Lucy's innocent virtue? I will tear you to pieces!"
"STOP BEING A PERVERT TO LUCY, YOU BASTARD!" Natsu roared.
"A-Aye!" Gray screamed, his skin even paler than normal as he frantically looked around for his shirt and pants, both of which had been lost at some point in time.
"Oh god," Lucy whispered into Erza's chestplate, as the side of her face was still smooshed into the metal. "You guys are weird."
But she eyed them with fondness, and she couldn't help herself as her gaze lingered on Natsu. She smiled, and thought of the warmth of his scales pressed against her, his cheery voice, and how protective her was over her. God, they met not even twenty-four hours ago, and she already thought of him as someone precious to her.
Maybe even Gray and Erza as well, she mused.
They were all strange in their own right - Natsu was literally a giant pink dragon who could talk, Gray's stripping habit was evidently a problem, and Erza was… was quite terrifying, actually.
But she was here. She was there, standing in a ruffled under dress, her hair mussed and her face probably even more so, but they didn't even look at her twice because they liked her. They didn't see her as the princess or anything, because she was just Lucy.
It was goddamn amazing.
"NATSU! GRAY!" Erza shouted, her patience (which was quite short to begin with) snapping as she gently - she even patted Lucy's head - set Lucy down to the side. Out of nowhere, swords appeared in both of her hands, and she charged at the two. "I SAID NO FIGHTING!"
"EEK!"
"LUCE! HELP!"
Lucy laughed, chortling so hard that she nearly choked, and oh my god, she thought, they were crazy. They were crazy and weird and she loved it, because she was crazy and weird too for loving them because of it.
"There," Erza stated, dusting her hands in satisfaction as she observed the bruised masses of a naked (holy god, Lucy was definitely not innocent anymore, why) man and an equally bruised pink dragon beside him.
"Silly Natsu," Lucy hummed, and she walked forward to gently stroke his snout. "You shouldn't have fought with Gray."
Weakly, he began to purr, and little puffs of light grey smoke poured from his nostrils, evidently pleased by her affection. "I'm the strongest. Ice princess can't beat me, right, Luce? Did ya see me? I was roasting his pasty ass."
"Why you…" Gray groaned from beside them. He raised a shaky hand and flipped off Natsu, causing Lucy to snort with laughter. "I'm gonna get you for that you lizard bastard. Just you wait."
Natsu's purr only grew louder as he ignored Gray, and he nudged his snout closer to Lucy, and she giggled before petting him more heavily, stroking along the lines of his scales and finding them to be utterly mesmerizing. She knew dragons were supposed to be beastly, and Natsu definitely was - she could still hear that earth-shattering roar of his, and there was definitely nothing human about his body.
But he was still so beautiful. His scales were glossy and gleamed in the light, and gis eyes danced with his inner fire as they looked at her with dilated pupils. Once again, she could see the flecks of gold within the darkness of them, and they spoke of mischievousness and also genuinity.
Her face went pink at the thought.
(Secretly, she already liked him a lot better than any man her father had ever forced her to meet.)
"I like my name," Natsu said softly, and his jaw just barely unhinged to say this.
His voice was uncharacteristically soft, and she smoothed her small hand across her snout one last time before saying, "me too. Thank you for bringing me here, Natsu."
The dragon grinned.
"Hey, where're my pets!" Gray demanded. "I fought Erza too!"
"What was that, ice prick? I'm not letting your perverted self go anywhere near her!"
"You little - ! Come at me, dragon breath!"
"Watch me as I pummel this guy, Luce - "
"I WILL HACK YOU TWO TO PIECES!"
"AAACK!"
"WAH! ERZA'S GONNA EAT ME! SAVE ME, LUCE!"
XxXxXxXxXxX
The castle, as it turned out, was far more grand than Lucy would have imagined. Its bricks were sturdy but worn, ivy crawling up the sides and some even blooming little flowers in the sunlight. It was falling apart in some places, like the room with no roof that Natsu claimed to be his favorite spot since it gave him so much space to move around in, and in other places, the walls were reinforced and rebuilt so many times that they were crooked and obviously made of a different material than the original build.
It was also full to the brim with noise.
"OI! SO YOU THINK YOU CAN TAKE ME, SALAMANDER?"
"I'M GONNA WIPE THE FLOOR WITH YOUR ASS, METALHEAD! LUCY! LUCY COME WATCH ME BEAT THIS GUY UP!"
"Wow," said the petite blue-haired girl that sat beside a gobsmacked Lucy as she watched the chaos around her. The bluenette didn't even seem bothered, not reacting to the action as she grinned up at Lucy. "Dragon really likes you, huh, Lucy? I mean he always fights but he's blatantly showing off for you."
"O-Oh!" Lucy, caught off guard, fumbled for her words with a pink face. She fidgeted with the fabric of her under dress. "Thank you? I mean, he's been really sweet so far. I really like him. Also, his name's Natsu now - he said I should name him, so - "
"Wow!" The bluenette repeated, this time her face positively beaming. Lucy blinked as she realized that the girl's hair was literally glowing blue by this point. "You got to name him! Natsu… Oh, I see! Yesterday was the last day of summer, which he said was when you guys met. Oh, Lucy! How romantic!"
"No, not romantic!" Lucy hissed, eyes wide and face definitely red by now. Quickly, she tried to find a way out of the conversation, so she said, "you hair's glowing!"
"Ugh, I hate it when it does that," the bluenette groaned, combing her small and dainty hand through the strands of luminescent blue. "Whenever I get too emotional it always lights up. And also, I just remembered, but I never really introduced myself!"
The bluenette smiled once more, the color of her hair lighting up even brighter. "I'm Levy McGarden, a pixie! I mean I guess you can guess with my height and everything, being this short is definitely not a blessing. Since you're new here, I'll point to people and let you know their names and what they are. Look, over there is Gray, who you already met. He's actually a snow nymph, even though nymphs are usually women."
"Ah, I see." Lucy nodded thoughtfully. In truth, she still couldn't wrap her head around the thought that pixies and nymphs existed, but then again dragons were real, so why not? "Oh god, where'd his shirt go?"
"He always does that, though I'm not sure why," Levy pondered. "Over there fighting Natsu is Gajeel, another dragon. He actually can't breathe fire, because he's an iron dragon - I think classified as Draconicus metalina. Anyway, he seems grumpy at first, but he's a big softy on the inside."
Levy patted Lucy's knee before continuing. "That's Erza, who you also already met. She's an odd one, even in this bunch - she's half-demon and half-fairy. She loves strawberry cake, by the way, so if you ever need to get on her good side just give her a slice and she'll forget everything else. Comes from her fairy side, has a massive sugar tooth because of it."
So on and on Levy continued, giving a detailed explanation of who and what everyone was. It was utterly fascinating to Lucy, who clung onto every word and continuously asked numerous questions on everything. Why is that blue cat talking? Who's that pretty girl with white hair? Is Gajeel eating that frying pan?
Levy was completely patient with her, her hair even glowing with enthusiasm at all of Lucy's questions.
"We don't come in contact with too many people outside of home," Levy said as a reply to Lucy as to why she was so excited by the interrogation. "And not a lot of people are willing to understand us, so we don't bother leaving. Natsu's really the only one who goes out to see humans. He claims that he likes scaring them, though honestly I think he finds them interesting."
"Huh," Lucy pondered, staring as the pink dragon once again roared a blast of fire at Gajeel, who merely blocked it with a shiny looking wing and then blasted his own roar of metal back. The table shook from the force of the blows, yet no one seemed to notice or even care. "I have another question, Levy."
"Of course, Lucy!" Levy smiled. "What is it?"
"Is something wrong with Natsu?" She asked. She raked her eyes over Natsu's face, at his slits for pupils and the fierce grin that showed his fangs. His tail, powerful with muscles, slammed at Gajeel's legs, who only let out a rough "gihi" before whacking his own tail at the other dragon. "I mean, not like that! He's wonderful, really. He's so sweet and kind, and…"
Lucy trailed off at Levy's smug smirk and at the heat rushing to her cheeks. She coughed, and continued. "Anyway. Isn't he too human? I've heard so many stories about dragons killing humans, or kidnapping them to demand for gold. I know physically he's definitely a dragon, but…"
Lucy's gaze trailed up to admire Natsu's face, at his fiery determination, but also the barks of goofy laughter from the occasional hit Gajeel landed on him. "His eyes and his emotions, aren't they too humane?"
There was silence.
Then the rustle of someone shifting in their seat, and a sigh.
"Oh, Lucy… you really are smart," Levy chided gently, but her lips were tugging down in a slight frown, and she too stared as the two dragons wrestled for dominance against the castle grounds, dusting up quite a bit of dirt. "Yes, you're right. You know, we have another dragon too, and her name's Wendy. She, Gajeel, and Natsu… they all share the same fate."
"Same - ?"
"A curse, Lucy." Levy's frown deepened, and she shook her head in sympathy.
"They're cursed to be dragons forever."
XxXxXxXxXxX
It says that this little dinky dink of a story has 27 favorites and 46 follows. I nearly died.
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