Dreams Aflame

Summary: Natsu and Happy accidentally set Lucy's manuscript on fire.

"My manuscript! How could you?!" Tears began falling down her face as she sat pathetically on the floor sifting through the ashes of her novel.

"This was my only copy," she murmured as a handful of charred pages and dust slipped through her fingers. A year's worth of hard work had been reduced to ash.

"I'm sorry Lucy it was an accident I swear." Natsu felt his heart clench at the sight of her crying. Sure, he was an idiot, but even he should have known how precious her novel was to her. She was most definitely, absolutely going to kill him. He felt sick thinking about the pain that was to come.

"Really Lucy!" Happy pleaded, "We were just playing and..." Happy started to tear up unable to deal with Lucy crying.

"Just go." Lucy swept up the ashes into a neat pile with her hands, taking her time to say goodbye, then stood to get the broom from the kitchen.

Natsu kept his distance, but followed her, "Please, you have to know I would never do something like this on purpose."

She ignored him, taking care in sweeping up the remains of what felt like her life. Natsu and Happy shared a sad look not knowing what to do. Natsu felt compelled to reach out and touch her shoulder, and did so despite Happy frantically shaking his head and crossing his arms in front of his body to form an "X". Just as Natsu's hand was about to land on her shoulder, she dropped the broom handle and ash flew everywhere.

Natsu and Happy squeaked.

Lucy snapped her head around to look Natsu dead in the eye. She noticed him flinch like he expected her to take a swing at him. She didn't. "I'm asking you to leave before I say something that we won't recover from." Natsu looked confused by the statement, and almost asked what she meant by that, but Happy pulled him by his hair towards the door. "We're sorry Lucy." The cat sniffled and lead Natsu out of the apartment.

The door softly clicked shut and Lucy ran to her bed. She clutched her pillow to her chest and stopped holding her emotions back. She had been slaving over her novel for an entire year. It was almost complete, almost perfect, but in the time she opened her door and saw Natsu playing with fire, her stack of loose leaf papers lit up in an instant. The two had grabbed at it and tried to put it out, but it crumbled through their hands and floated to the floor still glowing red. Lucy had run towards them and shoved them so hard they smashed into a wall at the end of the room. She dove to the ground looking for any piece of paper she could salvage, but the flames were too hot and incinerated the entire stack in seconds. Lucy heard their apologies, but she didn't pay attention. All she could think about was having to start over.

Lucy gave herself the next two hours to feel sorry for herself then she picked her head off her pillow to look out the window. She peaked her head out to look at the street and confirmed her suspicions when she spotted Natsu sitting on the apartment steps with his head in his hands. Happy was pacing back and forth in front of him with a downtrodden look.

At that time she was so close to telling Natsu to leave her alone for good, that she hated how he didn't care about what she held dear, that he managed to make her life absolutely miserable on a daily basis, that she hated him, but she found it within her to hold her tongue. In the torrent of emotions she was feeling at the time all those statements seemed justified, but now she knew that none of them were true. He made her boring life full of excitement and he cared about her more than anyone, other than her mother, ever had. Lucy frowned when she remembered the genuine heartbroken expression on his face as he tried to apologize. It really wasn't all his fault. After all, she could have hidden her manuscript better. Lucy began to make her way out of her apartment. She could start over. She was a much better writer now than when she started the novel all that time ago.

She needed to apologize for kicking them out and getting so angry. Long ago she had signed up for them barging into her life and destroying her personal property. The two were simply fulfilling their job description. She imagined Natsu beating himself up to an extreme like always, and Happy still crying even though it wasn't his fault. Thinking about those two fools made her quicken her pace down stairs.

"You two going to sulk there all night?"

"Lucy!" They said simultaneously and Natsu hopped off the steps. They got on their knees and bowed their heads to the ground.

"We're sorry. Please forgive us!" they shouted in unison.

"Beat up Natsu as much as you want until you feel better," Happy added quickly.

Natsu growled and turned his head, still pressed to the ground, to face the cat, "That's not what we agreed to say!" He said in a hushed tone though Lucy could hear him anyway.

"But everyone always says they feel better after they've punched you in the face."

"Who the hell said that? It was that stripper wasn't it!"

"Well yeah Gray, but others said it too, let's see Erza, Loki, Gajeel, Elfman..."

"Damn, I get it already!" Natsu huffed and they looked back towards the ground. They resumed their silence, awaiting punishment.

Lucy smiled at the little argument and sat on her knees in front of them. She gently rested one hand on Natsu's shoulder and the other atop Happy's head.

"Accidents happen. I'm sorry for getting so emotional. It was a lot to take in, but can just start something new. Don't worry!" She knew she had done the right thing when she watched the pure relief wash over their guilt ridden faces.

"Now get off the ground before someone see you, this is embarrassing." Lucy tried to stand up, but was tackled to the ground in a fierce hug. "Thank you! It won't happen again, we promise."

Lucy eventually detangled herself from a pair of strong arms and a pair of blue paws. "Alright already! Get off." She picked herself up and Happy flew into her arms. "Lucy, can I be your main character in the story this time?"

"If anyone should be the main character it should be me!" Natsu jumped off the ground and followed Lucy back into the apartment building.

"Sorry you two, I've got a much cooler character already."

"Just what are you tryin' to say Lucy?" Lucy looked back to see Natsu with a fierce glare and fists ablaze.

"Yeah!" Happy chimed in.

"That you're not cool," Lucy stuck out her tongue.

Natsu's brilliant flames went out instantly and he looked as if he had turned to stone. Happy started sobbing and drawing circles on the floor, "You're so mean!"

Lucy shook her head. She shouldn't write another story with them as main characters, or should she?

"Move guys, you're blocking the hallway for other people."

Natsu and Happy followed her without another word, but as they neared her apartment door Lucy heard them start to mumble. "How can she think I'm not cool? She has no idea what she's talking about," Natsu said entirely miffed. "Forget about that Natsu, doooo iiiiiit," she heard Happy whisper excitedly.

"Hey, Luce!" Lucy turned around and saw Natsu hold up a thick stack of pages with a goofy grin.

"Got'cha," they said in unison for the last time.

Time would have it, in fact, that the two would never say anything again, much less say something in unison.