A/N: reading week has begun for me and I am ready to mcfucking crash, but have an update before I go into a food coma.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail, Hiro Mashima does. I own the plot to this fic.
The only good thing to have come from Natsu moving in with her is the fact that Lucy has rediscovered her love for the library. Spacious, quiet, and with secluded corners perfect for studying and accidentally falling asleep in.
"This is starting to get unhealthy," Juvia comments one day. "Have you considered asking Natsu to find someplace else to sleep?"
Lucy pulls her fluffy blanket over her head and sinks into the beanbag she has occupied for the past two nights. "Yeah, that would tide over well. Where the hell is a...uh...you-know-what supposed to find a house? He has horns, Juvia. And weird scales. And pink hair. Very not normal things that are going to draw in attention. We don't need attention. We need, like, God."
"What if you ripped up the contract?" Juvia suggests. "Would that render it void? So you can go back to your room in peace. Hang on...Mest!" Juvia shouts, waving at the man in question. "Mest! Juvia has a question!"
Mest Gryder, a third year law student and friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend, takes off his reading glasses and waves back. "Yeah?"
"Hypothetically, if someone has signed a contract is it still valid if it's been ripped?" Juvia asks.
"Yes. Contracts are binding documents, so if someone hypothetically ripped theirs to invalidate it then the second party can sue the first on grounds that the contract hasn't been fulfilled and was breached. If both parties decide to tear their contracts, that probably implies that there was a mutual agreement reached, so that would render it null," Mest explains in a clinical tone. He pauses and adds, "Hypothetically, of course. Why? I mean, why was this hypothetical question...posed?"
"Hypothetically, a friend of Juvia's entered a contract while drunk and has no idea what s-they exchanged."
Mest rolls his eyes. "Then, hypothetically, if you can prove the person was intoxicated beyond belief, the contract is voidable. To make a contract both parties need to agree to the terms and the consequences, and there also needs to be an exchange of goods. If you're drunk, you violent the first clause of contract law." He slips his glasses back on and turns to his textbook once more. "But this is entirely hypothetical because this never actually happened, right?"
"Very hypothetical." Juvia nods gravely. "So hypothetical, in fact, that this conversation never happened."
"We were having a conversation? I was just telling you to stop yelling in the library."
By the time Juvia turns to Lucy, the blonde has her bag slung over one shoulder and her fluffy blanket wrapped around her like a cape. "Let's go, we have a contract to void!"
Lucy returns to find Natsu lounging on her bed and flipping through her most expensive textbook from last semester with cheeto stained fingers (claws?). She picks up the closest hardcover - the DSM-5 - and whips it at his head so hard she's amazed it doesn't crack his skull in half when it collides. Natsu yelps and yanks at the page he's touching, causing it to tear clean in half. If her blood pressure wasn't high enough before, Lucy is almost certain she's just hit red-zone levels. Her face is so hot she swears the air around her is starting to warm.
"We need to void this contract," Lucy snaps. "Preferably before I kill you."
"I'm immortal, but give it a shot," he says cheekily. "What do you mean by 'void the contract'?"
"I asked a friend and he says that if neither of us want to be in this contract then we can both agree to void it and just...walk away." Natsu laughs and snaps her book shut. He's the very picture of ease as he stretches out and wags one of his claws (fingers?). "If we both agree. I still have a stake in this, yeah? You owe me something and I always collect. The only one who wants out is you."
Lucy can barely hear Juvia's protests over the blood pounding in her ears. She wants to walk over and rip off every last black scale that decorates his smug little face until all there is is a pattern of bloody flames licking up his jaw and neck and the corners of his eyes. God, she hates the fucking smile on his face; the desire to punch his lips until they're unrecognizable settles under her skin like an itch that can never be scratched. Her body shakes violently and she can feel her nails break the skin of her palms.
"If you can prove the person was intoxicated beyond belief, the contract is voidable. To make a contract both parties need to agree to the terms and the consequences, and there also needs to be an exchange of goods. If you're drunk, you violent the first clause of contract law."
"The contract was illegal!" Lucy blurts out. Natsu raises an eyebrow and his grin slips a little. Ice cold victory flushes through her veins and replaces her fury with what can only be described as satisfaction. She has a trump card and he cannot walk out of this one. "I was drunk. To make a contract I need to have been of sound mind because the first rule of making a contract is having both parties consent to it and agree to the terms. You may have but I did not."
Take that, you smug son of a bitch, she adds silently. Behind her, Juvia cheers.
Natsu laughs again. The sound sends a shiver down her back and not in a good way. He slips off the bed and walks over, shaking his head the whole while. Lucy's stomach flips with every step he takes towards her.
The demon looms over her, casting her in his shadow. He lifts his arm and tilts her head up with one claw, meeting her wary gaze with amusement. Every survival instinct Lucy has is screaming at her to run but she's frozen in place. Every attempt at movement is met with resistance from her muscles. Lucy tries to open her mouth but all that escapes is a choked little gasp that squashes her earlier confidence. Is this him? Is his presence doing this to her?
"Do you think Hell cares about your petty human laws?" he purrs, leaning in close so she can smell the junk food on his breath. "If we had to revoke every contract made over some stupid mistake made by demons and humans alike, we would be out of business. The point is, Lucy, that drunk or not, you signed a contract and I was the one selected to carry it out. No matter what you say or do, your soul is mine."
For one second, all she sees is white and then her hand is burning. It takes a minute before her eyes focus and the first thing she sees is Natsu's stunned expression. She's semi-aware that the hand that is burning is crossed over her chest, as if she had just -
Oh.
Oh.
"You slapped me," Natsu states in disbelief. "You slapped me." He repeats it as if saying it again will make the situation more real for him. Lucy revels in the bright red mark she's left on his cheek. Deep down, she prays it bruises.
"That hurt, Lucy," Natsu whines. The rate at which he can switch from petulant five year old to smug demon and back is alarming. "Why are you so violent today? First that book, now this slap...can I ask this friend of yours if it's ok to sue you for abuse?" He's teasing her. The little bastard is teasing her after crushing her very being and effectively killing her chance at freedom.
"I hate you," Lucy spits out as venomously as she can. "I cannot wait to talk to Professor Geer tomorrow so we can figure this out and I never have to see you ever again so long as I am on this Earth."
Natsu laughs again. It has every hair on her body rising; God she hates that sound now.
"Ok, Lucy." He smiles at her in the same way that a best friend might after revealing good news. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."
A/N: Demons are not nice people and Natsu is no exception. He'll mellow out later, and Lucy will gradually come to terms with this mess but for now have some drama. I had way too much fun researching contract law.
Hit that holy triad of review, follow, favourite!
-Eien