Hey guys! I remembered mslead's credentials so I could log in and get this posted! I don't have anything specific for this A/N save a point I brought up on my tumblr post earlier...
We got a few mentions about last chapter being a bit fast paced and not entirely realistic. In looking back, I can kinda see where you guys are coming from, but I'm also not sure how we would go about fixing it without adding at least a chapter or two. And there's also the fact that Lucy's reaction isn't entirely done yet. I won't give away spoilers, but a large part of her is still processing. If it still seems rushed to you I am sorry for that. We may need a bit more practice with pacing on shorter stories. Regardless, I hope you enjoy this chapter and the rest of the story! :)
THIS FIC UPDATES ONCE EVERY THREE DAYS: Post, Break, Break, Post!
CHAPTER 4
Swell
A slow, regular movement of the sea in rolling waves that do not break.
Gajeel was exactly where Lucy had predicted he would be, and from the sounds of metal screeching against metal he was working on something. Hardly a surprise really. Natsu winced a little at the sound as they headed inside, which she could not blame him for one bit, and they paused warily at the studio entrance.
Lucy had never really been down here before, there wasn't much reason for a creative writing and journalism major to need to wander into the sculpture studio, and for a moment she felt like she'd entered an alien world. How did one get Gajeel's attention in this noise? Hell, how did one even navigate this mess?
There was stuff lying around she couldn't identify in the slightest, and was afraid of getting close to in case it proved to be one of those things you don't touch. Ever. Like the kiln in the corner she was positive was watching her narrowly.
Of course she wasn't given a choice when, after a moment of grimacing in pain, Natsu waded into the room with all the careless recklessness only he could show.
"HEY GAJEEL!" He bellowed at the top of his lungs, "YOU GOT A SEC?"
Lucy watched as Gajeel's shoulders tensed, a sure sign he'd heard the shout, and a moment later he was turning off whatever thing he'd been holding, and removing his protective gear so he could turn around and stare incredulously at the person able to actually shout over the noise. Judging by the look on his face Lucy guessed normal people had a different method. Though she couldn't imagine what it might be.
Gajeel ripped off his face shield, his thick, dirty gloves yanked from his hands and tossed onto his workbench. He rose, brushing off metal shards from his apron with a good whack with the heel of his hand.
"What d'ya want?" He asked, somewhat crossly.
Natsu crossed through the shop and eyed the lump of metal Gajeel was working with. He snorted in amusement and nodded towards Lucy, "Heard you've been making some neat stuff."
"It drove off a golem pretty well from Lucy earlier today," Natsu jumped right into the conversation without preamble or build up.
Gajeel froze, his expression going somewhere between fascination and grumpy disbelief. His red eyes narrowed dangerously, muscular arms crossing over his chest.
"You come to make fun?" Gajeel growled, "Gonna have to try harder than that."
"Please, look at your face, I don't need to make fun of you when you do it yourself so well," Natsu snorted and jabbed a finger at the studs decorating Gajeel's face, "I was being serious."
Gajeel slapped Natsu's hand away, his expression unmoving even when Lucy put a hand on Natsu's bicep to pull him back.
"He's being honest," Lucy interrupted their male posturing, wedging herself between the two and bumping Natsu back with a quick hip-check.
"Today, I don't know if you heard about it not or yet with how often you submerge yourself into your work, but there was this ... thing that smashed into the grocery store," Lucy murmured.
"It was a car," Natsu supplied with a wide grin.
"I meant the thing that threw the car," Lucy growled at Natsu.
Gajeel raised an eyebrow at them and leaned back against a nearby bench, "Alright. You two start makin' sense." He growled, "Or you can go ahead and get out. I don't have time for stupid games."
Lucy shot Natsu a warning look and took a deep breath, "Okay, this is going to sound completely insane, but earlier I was shopping with a friend of mine, Levy, when this thing made of stone hurled a car through the shop window." She met his eyes fiercely, "It was an actual stone golem like you hear about in stories. The thing picked me up and was going to do who knows what when the charm you gave me scared it off."
Gajeel's eyebrows rose to his hairline, "Say what?"
Lucy nodded, "It's been insane ever since. I don't even know where to begin." She rubbed her temples, the stress of the day starting to catch up to her, "I've been attacked by a golem, my boyfriend turns out to be a dragon, and my best friend is an honest to god fairy."
She waved her hands a little, "Magic really does exist, and the reason we've had so much insanity going on is because a bunch of jerks decided to desecrate Igneel's tomb!" She sucked in a breath, "And now we have to find them..."
Gajeel held up his hand as Lucy got more distraught, "Alright Blondie. Don't go bawlin' or anything. I'm listenin'." He glanced between her and Natsu warily, "You ain't the type to make somethin' like that up just for a prank. Though I'm not convinced you haven't just hit your head real good either."
Natsu snorted a bit at the offended look on Lucy's face, but he held his fist up as he did earlier. Fire swelled within his palm, blooming through his fingers as it engulfed his hand.
Gajeel's expression, even despite being a believer, was something Lucy personally wished she could have captured on camera, and she could understand why Natsu seemed to be taking humor out of the whole situation. It was comical to say the least. And a welcome sight all things considered.
"I'm the dragon Salamander, and I need help finding the remains of my father," Natsu eyed Gajeel, "Lucy says you know a lot. Even though I always took you as a bit of an idiot for falling face first into a tacklebox."
"This is what my face normally looks like," Gajeel growled at Natsu.
The dragon turned and looked at Lucy in surprise, "Wait he did that to himself on purpose?!" He exclaimed.
"Missing the point here," Lucy tugged at the back of Natsu's shirt, sighing deeply at the somewhat irritated glare Gajeel was giving Natsu. No doubt, he was a little disappointed that the local legend of Salamander was an undignified surfer with a somewhat salty attitude.
Gajeel just grunted, nodding after a long moment, "anyone holding onto a dragon's remains isn't going to want to give it up, but if they've been hitting up grocery stores in the area during the day, they'll be getting bolder."
He jerked his head for them to follow him, stomping his way to the garage door and wrapping a large fist around the sliding door, "I think I know where to look. The beach on the south side has suddenly gotten some pretty big attention in the partying scale. Lots of booze, music and drugs. Some local boys have been hosting it and charging the mainlanders a fee to party. But shop wasn't set up until about a month ago."
"That would fit," Lucy blinked, glancing over at Natsu, "It's been going on for about six weeks now, and the only places hit so far are the shops on main street. Nothing too high end, but plenty of fun for some kids to make some petty cash on the side."
"Lets just hope that's all they've discovered Igneel's bones can do," Natsu growled.
"Agreed." Lucy replied fervently, "But I'm not sure just going over there and asking for them back would do anything except start a fight. And that could draw attention you don't want."
"And you goin' over there to pretend to party won't work either." Gajeel rumbled, "They'll get suspicious as soon as you start askin' questions if you're not careful. An' no offense to Blondie here, but she ain't real good at subtle."
Lucy grimaced, "I'm not good at getting drunk either."
Natsu grinned broadly, "Then it's a good thing I've got a couple of pirates around."
"Pirates?" Lucy asked in surprise, "As in actual, rum drinking, pirates?"
Natsu cocked his head, "Well sure. What other kind would there be? They got turned into mermaids after drowning at sea in a big fight not far from here, and decided they liked it here."
Lucy just stared at him for a long moment before sighing, "Of course. Because why wouldn't it work like that? Do I know them?"
"I hope so!" Natsu laughed, "You work for one, and the other's Cana's boyfriend!"
Lucy whined softly in the back of her throat, "I'm not sure how many more of these revelations I can take..."
Natsu studied her, his warm hand sliding into hers and a sunny grin lifting the corners of his lips. Her thoughts and conflicted feelings about suddenly being thrust into this unknown world evaporated when he closed the distance, mouth slanting against hers.
His lips were warm, somewhat chapped but gentle against hers. Smoke lingered over the kiss, and what had been a spontaneous peck, softened into something much more. His hand lifted, cupping the curve of her cheek while his thumb traced a slow circle against her skin.
Her fears melted into him, the slow, unhurried kiss steadying her in new ways.
She could feel Natsu's hand settle at her waist, grounding her down despite the insanity that had suddenly turned into her life. Her heart calmed, lips curling into a smile against his grinning mouth.
His mission accomplished, Natsu pulled away with a brilliant smile. Lucy snorted at him, her cheeks red from a dusting of blush.
"Is it safe to assume that everyone you know is a mythical being of some sort?" Lucy asked him after a moment.
Natsu rolled his shoulders but his smile never wavered, his fingers twined more closely together with Lucy's, "yep!"
It made Lucy wonder what exactly she had gotten involved in, but found it really didn't matter in the long run. She had made her decision, and so far not knowing about Natsu was a worse alternative.
"If you've two have quit makin' out in my shop, lets get some pirates ready to crash a party," Gajeel grunted. The expression of disgust he gave them was almost funny, had he not also made a few gagging noises behind his hand.
A strange noise came from Natsu at Gajeel's mockery, and Lucy almost didn't hear it at first.
A growl. Like a low rumbling thunder echoing in his chest. Lucy was tempted to press her ear against his shirt to get a better listen, but before she could even take a step forward, it was already gone.
Instead Natsu was now giving her a look, like she was the weird one all of a sudden.
A blush dusted her cheeks, "What?" She asked defensively, shooting him a pout in return, "I've never heard a dragon growl before. It was interesting!"
Natsu's expression morphed into a devilish smirk. The kind that showed all his teeth, and told her instantly that her boyfriend had scented some kind of fresh blood and was up to something. And she was the target.
He said nothing though as he turned back to Gajeel, "C'mon metalhead. I'll introduce you."
Gajeel scowled at him over the nickname, but nodded, "You comin' too Blondie?"
Lucy rolled her eyes a little and glanced at Natsu, "Actually, I don't know if I would do any good if I came along. Since I'm not going..."
That and she was starting to feel the effects of the day. Getting attacked and then finding out everything she had was pretty draining. At least Gajeel hadn't had a car and a pile of rock try to kill him.
Natsu eyed her for a moment and nodded, "Yeah you look pretty tired. Why don't we walk you over to Mira's? I'm not sure I want you alone after what happened earlier. Those punks might've worked out you did something to their golem and try something else."
Lucy grimaced at that, "Thanks, I didn't need that thought in my head." She grumbled, but sighed, "Alright, you have a point. I'll hang out at Mira's until you get back"
Natsu smiled and squeezed her fingers gently in silent thanks.
Gajeel's patience for detours only could stretch too far, and it seemed that even despite his acquaintance with Salamander, he was reluctant to go into the dragon's personal territory even with an invitation.
Lucy supposed she didn't blame him for his suspicion. This was all new for her too. So neither said anything when Gajeel chose to wait for Natsu a distance away instead of making the full hike up to his shop.
The Strauss family was a bit unique in their own way. After Natsu explained what was going on, Lucy discovered they were a family of shifters, capable of harnessing a form and learning from it.
Sweet Mirajane could summon the spirit of a demon to take over and control.
Lucy took one look at her innocent smile, and believed it instantly.
Despite what Natsu said though, and her own agreement, Lucy wasn't really in the mood to be babysat by Mira and her siblings. So after a while, she excused herself to the porch to have some time alone to think.
If she was honest with herself, this was all still very scary in a lot of ways, and though she had no intention of backing out on what she and Natsu had, she didn't think her fear over what she'd experienced in the past few hours was unjustified.
There was no doubt in her mind that magic could be amazing, but at the moment she was seeing the darker side of it in action. The side that involved destroyed property and possibly lives destroyed. Not that she figured Natsu would let their lives stay destroyed for long. Despite his casual attitude he struck her as the type to take the lives of the people he was protecting very seriously.
Still... just the fact he was worried enough to want to keep her near his people sent shivers up her spine. She hated the idea she was helpless against his father's stolen magic, and hated that she'd only gotten away clean before by purest chance.
She'd worked so hard to prove herself strong and capable and independent that the fact she could no longer look after herself was somewhat galling.
It wasn't her fault she knew. It wasn't like magic was common or anything anymore. But if she was really going to stick this out and stay with Natsu for the long haul then they would have to do something about this. If a bunch of drunken frat boys could gain magic power to destroy then surely they could do something for her to protect herself.
Natsu had called her his partner, and she would be damned if she allowed herself to play the damsel in distress every time something supernatural happened. Maybe she would never equal a dragon's power, but she refused to be anything less than as equal to him as possible.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she never noticed Natsu come back until he lightly touched her shoulder, making her jump a mile.
"You scared me half to death Natsu!" She gasped, trying to slow her racing heart, and he cocked his head quizzically at her.
"What's wrong?" He asked, "You looked like you were trying to solve world hunger or something."
Lucy hesitated for a moment, not sure how to say what she'd been thinking about.
"Lucy?" Natsu asked, and this time Lucy could hear the underlying worry and even fear in his voice. No doubt he was afraid she'd changed her mind in the time she'd spent thinking.
"I want to learn magic!" She blurted before he could think the worst, and flushed, "I mean... right now I'm pretty useless in a fight involving magic. So if it's possible, I want to learn something that will let me protect myself. I got lucky today, but that's all, and if I'm going to be your partner I want to be as equal to you as I can be."
Natsu stared at her in surprise, his mouth coming together into a hard line.
He squinted at her, head tilting from one side to the other in such a way Lucy began to feel self-conscious for having thrown that at him at the first opportunity.
"Are you afraid Luce?" Natsu asked, seemingly not understanding wholly what she was getting at. He touched her arm again, "You know we're equal no matter if you have magic or not. You know you don't have anything to prove."
Lucy pulled away from his grasp, not letting herself be coaxed into his warm embrace. It would comfort her and drive away her fears. And as much as she loved feeling safe in his arms, that wasn't what she needed right now.
She needed to be a little aware, because that was what was going to keep her moving forward.
"I'm not going to hide behind you every time there's a fight," Lucy protested hotly, "That's not how this is going to work. If we're really partners, then that means I'm going to be right there with you."
Natsu looked surprised, his mouth dropping open and he even cowered a bit back. His hands rose defensively, eyes rounding out.
"Right, yes I get it. You are very scary Lucy," Natsu gave her a sly smile meant to disarm her. She put her hands on her hips, which caused it to falter a bit.
He huffed out a sigh and squinted at her again, arms crossing over his chest, "You can learn magic if you want, but humans aren't really equipped to really harness it anymore. It's not about whether or not I teach you, it's if you even can."
Lucy watched his eyes slide away from her, hedging from looking directly at her. His words rang with truth, but...
"There's a way, isn't there?" Lucy's intuition flared. She grasped onto what she knew with both hands already, taking a wide step towards Natsu.
"Gajeel's charm by itself was enough to repel the golem right? And there was nothing inherently magical about him, was there?" Lucy's eyes narrowed, "The object had magic!"
Natsu grumbled under his breath.
"You're a little too damn clever," He said sourly.
He ran his fingers through his hair, and seemed to come to a decision as he took her hand, "Come with me." He told her quietly, "This isn't something we should talk about here, and I need to show you something."
Lucy's eyes widened, and she wondered just what she'd gotten herself into now as she nodded.
Natsu led her off the balcony and down to the basement. A basement that was both enormous and impossible.
It clearly took up all the space between both his shop and Mira's restaurant, but it wasn't used for any kind of storage. What was down there instead was a forest glade. Complete with flowers, grass, and trees. Her eyes widened as she spotted a large toadstool ring and she suddenly realized what this was.
"A fairy circle?" She breathed, a hint of fear in her voice. She'd heard legends since she was a child about fairy circles and what could happen if you crossed over them uninvited.
Natsu paused and looked at her, "Yeah. Don't worry, you're invited. Nothing will harm you where we're going."
"And just where are we going?" Lucy asked, excitement and apprehension rising up in her in equal amounts despite the seriousness of the conversation.
Natsu actually flashed her a half grin as he tugged her along, "My place."
Lucy barely had time to process that before he'd pulled her into the center and suddenly they weren't in a basement at all. She blinked in startled confusion, a little disoriented by the completely seamless transition, and looked around only for her jaw to drop in shock at the sight that greeted her.
If the basement had been large and impossible, this place was even more so.
She was standing on a hill at one end of a garden that she was certain would put Eden to shame. There were tropical trees and plants of every description with meadows of the softest, most luxurious, looking grass she'd ever seen running throughout in a way that was somehow both completely natural and planned. She could even hear the soft calls of animals and birds in the trees and undergrowth.
But the thing that had her attention riveted was what was outside the garden borders.
Because out there she could clearly see the molten flow of lava, and the stone walls of the sides of the volcano.
Somehow they were inside the volcano.
Lucy's eyes went wide, and the ground they stood on, while lush and filled with all sorts of life, seemed to move with the stream of lava surrounding them. Natsu balanced on the ground, unaffected by the strangeness of it all. Lucy, despite her brave words earlier, decided she was going to stick very close to her boyfriend after all.
She hadn't signed up to stand in the middle of a semi-active volcano.
"This is where you live?" Lucy whispered in shock.
Natsu raised an eyebrow at her, a smirk pushing against his lips, "Didn't you read about the Salamander in your books? It says right there in all your fancy texts that I live in the volcano, not a firework shop."
Lucy huffed and waved a distracted hand, somehow being in this place making it all the more real for her.
"Yes, but-" she protested, "You have a room! And a bed! And...!"
Natsu threw his head back and laughed with such volume, she was certain Mira would be able to hear it in her restaurant.
"Sure, I've got lots of stuff in my shop, and it's pretty comfortable there, but I'm a dragon," Natsu's smile widened to show his sharp teeth, "I often sleep with my hoard."
He released Lucy's hand and crossed over to the edge of the garden. It was only when Natsu reached over side to dip a hand in the lava, did Lucy feel a brief wave of sweltering heat. The area within the garden appeared as though it were magically protected. Lucy could believe it too. The plants within all seemed to thrive and grow with an unnatural sort of health.
His eyes closed with bliss, his hand dipped in the lava as if it were helping him somehow. Lucy thought for a dragon, it must be a lot like what sinking into a hot bath was for her. With Natsu's back turned, Lucy's eyes roamed over the thick plant life.
There was a clear pool of water in the center of the garden, but it looked to have no bottom. Suddenly, Lucy felt extremely thirsty, surrounded by lava and fire as they were. It was an oasis in an impossible place.
Without realizing it, she knelt next to it and reached out a curious hand.
There was movement behind her, and a tan hand closed around her wrist before her fingers could break the water's surface.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Natsu's voice was light, but he guided her hand away with a firmness she couldn't resist.
Lucy blinked, shaking her head as sense seemed to wash back over her.
"Sorry, I forgot for a second the call the water seems to have over mortals," Natsu said apologetically, "You're the first human to ever set foot here under my watch."
"I... don't understand." Lucy admitted, and Natsu sighed as he led her safely over to a small grove of fruit trees and sat her down under them, well out of the reach of his strange water.
"I need you to listen to me carefully Lucy." He told her with complete seriousness, "Magic, any magic, has a price. The prices are different for each of us, but there's always one that has to be paid. For someone like me, it's something I was born with. It saturated my egg and when I hatched it was already part of my very being. It defines me in ways I can't explain, and if I ever lost it I would die."
Lucy nodded, her eyes a little wide at the intensity coming from him. This was probably the most important thing he'd told her after the fact he loved her.
He reached out and stroked his thumb across her cheek, "But you, on the other hand, are human. We don't know why, but humans have mostly lost their magic. It began sometime around the end of the age of heroes, but wasn't really noticeable until the end of the pirate age. Humans just lost the ability to use magic, and so lost their belief in it. Without belief most can't even see it unless we make an effort to be seen."
He met her eyes, "I don't know if you can do magic... but if you can there's going to be a price."
"What price?" Lucy whispered, doubt starting to eat at her.
"Your life energy at the very least." Natsu replied quietly, "Unless you're born and grow up in a magical environment your body has a hard time coping with channeling it. It wears the body out, and eats away years off your life. And there might be other effects depending on the magic you use."
"There's only one way around it." Natsu nodded at the cool and inviting looking pool, "And that's it. The Fountain of Youth. It's my job to protect it. Just like it was Igneel's before me. It'll restore you, but if you drink it you'll become dependent on it. Forever."
He looked at her seriously, "That's not a decision to be made lightly Lucy. As much as I want you with me forever I don't want that at the expense of your happiness. Or your freedom."
He leaned forward and pressed their foreheads together, "I get why you want to fight, but you don't need to. And no one, especially me, will think less of you if you don't."
Lucy hesitated as she looked at the pool of water. The Fountain of Youth. She didn't know something like that had been on the same island as her this whole time. To think Natsu, her boyfriend, guarded it was almost hilarious - but the unbelievable was quickly becoming her reality.
The fact that he was even showing it to her was profound all on its own. She had a feeling this was only a tenth of what he actually kept safe. There were no doubt he had hundreds of artifacts and treasures that could cause unspeakable damage if they fell into the wrong hands.
That was when she noticed something glimmering in his other hand. She stared at it, her expression suspicious as she took stock of it. Keys. They looked relatively harmless compared to the ring of lava and Fountain of Youth. They were old and tarnished, but large as if they opened the doors to antique doors.
She frowned, "What are those?" she asked softly.
Natsu looked down at his hand, which still had some remnants of cooling lava clinging to his skin. He turned away from Lucy and flicked the globs away with an annoyed wrinkle of his nose.
Had he pulled those keys from under the magama?
It seemed he had.
He held them up to her, jingling them as he did it, "These are celestial keys."
The hesitance in his voice was clear, but Lucy appreciated that whatever he was thinking, he wasn't planning on stopping her. No doubt he knew if he tried, Lucy would find a way around him anyway. At least this way he'd be able to control the way events were unfolding.
"What do they do?" Lucy asked, interested despite the potential danger they would pose to her.
He huffed out a sigh and ran a thumb across the smooth metal.
"They serve as magical conduits to the stars," Natsu gestured for her hand. When she gave him it, he slid the keyring in her palm. She expected the keys to be hot, having just been under a bed of lava, but they were actually cool against her fingers, "It's holder magic, so a human should be able to use them. Only if you want to."
"The spirits within will fight for you, and it's the safest way for you too channel magic," Natsu gave her a grumpy look, "But you better believe all those side effects I told you will about will still happen. Just if you use these keys, you won't be cursed with infertility, random bad luck, or something worse."
Lucy felt a bit of a chill over what he was hinting at.
He parted with a piece of his treasure, his eyes lingering over them, "Keep them safe, they're friends."
Lucy wasn't sure what that meant, but she nodded and curled her fingers around the precious item.
He had given her so much to think about. A possibility to use magic, even if she didn't know ultimately what it would do to her.
Special thanks to our many reviewers! I can't thank you all enough for your encouraging words and especially the well wishes! I am feeling MUCH better now. You guys rock! Do enjoy your preview!
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"Is it..." Lucy hesitated, wondering if she would appear weak if she didn't make her decision immediately, "Would it be okay if I thought about this for a while?" She ducked her head, "I didn't know there was so much involved earlier, and..."
Natsu's arms wrapped warmly around her, and he pulled her to his chest, "Take all the time you want Lucy." He murmured, giving her a soft kiss on the temple, "I've got your back no matter what you decide."
Lucy smiled at that. He may not have wanted her to start using magic, but at least he wouldn't interfere with her right to decide that for herself.
She looked up at him with a smile, "I love you."
Natsu's eyes widened a little at her words, but his surprise quickly morphed into a return smile, "I love you too princess."
His weight shifted a little, and for a moment Lucy thought he might kiss her, but suddenly she was being lifted into the air. She squawked a little in surprise, and he flashed her a wicked grin, "C'mon Luce! Let's go have a movie night!"
