Pairings: Natsu x Lucy and Romeo x Wendy. Others will be unlocked as we go.
Timeline: After the seven year arc, before Grand Magic Games arc.
Warnings: None other than mild cursing and violence.
Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail
Authors Note: I'm glad everyone understood what happened with Lucy, and why. But yes, she will take quite a while before she gets over it. Enjoy.
XXX
Running up the length of the hill seemed easy enough. That being said, it's not like you had a freaking boulder on your shoulders. I must have been pretty weak, because Natsu was doing the exact same exercise, but he'd been up and down the hill at least four times more than I had. Happy had himself planted at the top of the hill, munching on fish, occasionally yelling out encouraging words.
It would have been easier if there wasn't a forest growing on the side we were running on and if it wasn't like twenty feet high. I was starting to think this was a mountain, not a hill.
About a week has passed since the incident at Myou's manor, and this was the first day of training. Lucy hasn't really spoken to anyone, excluding Natsu, and that was just to tell him she was fine. He'd somehow convinced her to come with us and stay at the resort in the town over, so she could relax in the hot springs. From what I could tell, Lucy hardly ever wore anything less than a t-shirt and jeans.
Wendy stayed behind, opting to not be there with our 'guy' time and she just didn't look forward to it. I think she was still drained from the events previous.
"Stop thinking and just run!" Natsu yelled at me, and I spotted him through the thicket. Sweat rolled down him, and his clothes were plastered to his body. It looked as if someone just emptied the entire contents of a bucket of water on him. Hell, I was sweating, but not that much. Then I saw it. He had his feet engulfed in flames, and had been using magic this whole time. Wow.
I nod and got back to the arduous task of running. We still had hours to go…
XXX
Natsu collapsed on the futon in the resort room, panting. After the running, he told me to fight him. So, both of us half-dead and tired, we launched attack after attack at another and did that for another few hours. I was drained, physically, mentally and magically. But I wanted to get stronger, and if this is how Natsu was going to train me, so be it.
"Be prepared," Natsu says, "that was just the warm up." Shock and horror cross my face.
"W—we were just warming up?!" I exclaim, massaging my tender shoulder muscles.
Natsu nods, "Pretty much." He's on his feet and attentive when Lucy enters the room. She's wearing a long sleeved plum coloured sweater and black jeans, her hair loose and wet. She was just in the hot spring and she's wearing this?
Lucy curls up in the wicker chair in the corner, her brown eyes glazed over. Natsu offers her a water bottle, which she takes silently. He frowns, whispering something in her ear. She just shakes her head.
He purses his lips, and gently touches her shoulder. Lucy flinches, and Natsu draws back immediately.
Happy immediately takes notice of the mood and flies to rest in the chair on the other side of the room. How I wish I could escape that easily. Oh wait…
"Should we use the hot spring, Natsu-nii?" I ask, feeling awkward. Since when has Lucy flinched when Natsu touched her? Had that bastard really affected her this much? Natsu shrugs and I can't miss the hurt that sweeps across his face.
We file from the room, leaving Lucy alone. Her expression never strayed from the blank, faraway look in her eyes. I could tell Natsu had a tremendously difficult time leaving her, but if she couldn't even bare to be with him, he would leave for her sake.
I sank into the blissfully warm liquid, sighing. After a long day of working out, this was a welcomed change. I slide my fingers over the smooth water, and glance up as Natsu plunges head first into the water. Natsu, in light of what happened to Lucy, reserved a room with access to our own personal spring. It was small, but nice.
I arched my eyebrow, and waited. Minutes later Natsu burst from under the water to his feet, gasping a bit, and glared at the dark sky. His pupils were large, burning with rage.
"Dammit!" He screeched, plummeting back down into the water, crossing his legs. Natsu was pouting.
"Natsu-nii, are you worried about Lucy-nee?" I ask, mentally smacking myself. Of course he was worried about Lucy.
He shot me an agitated look, "Why wouldn't I be worried about Lucy?" I internally wince. He deflated, rubbing at his face. "What am I going to do?"
I didn't know how to answer him. Honestly, I didn't know what to do in general when Natsu acted with such a forlorn attitude. It wasn't like him.
Natsu slammed his head against the rock wall behind him, moaning. He pinched his eyes closed. "I just don't know what to do anymore. How can she expect me to protect her after what happened? How can I expect myself to protect her if I couldn't then?"
"It's not your fault?" I offered and it did little to console him. He splashed water towards me in a feeble attempt at a fight. It was almost pathetic how upset he was, not that I'd ever voice these harsh thoughts stirring beneath my sympathy.
He didn't say anything more on the subject and closed his eyes. Natsu's whole disposition reeked of a poor sap. Just what exactly did he feel for Lucy for him to act like this?
I tap my finger against my knee, letting my head fall back to gaze up at the sky. It was dark and cloudless; thousands of tiny stars splattered the backdrop. It sure was relaxing out without Dad breathing down my neck every second of the day, without the craziness of the guild hall. It's really quiet.
In fact, I'm so relaxed and dozing off, I didn't notice Natsu leave until I myself went to go. Gaping at the spot he used to occupy, I wonder when in the hell did he leave?!
Whatever. I figure if Natsu's going to wander off, he's going to wander off. No stopping it. He's just that crazy.
After forcing my aching butt out of the pool of heat, I sluggishly dragged my feet to the room. Each step was a work out of its own account, but I knew whatever the dragon slayer had planned for the next day would probably be a hell of a lot worse.
It was liked I held the freaking world up on my shoulders, as if I were Atlas or something—which thank Mavis I'm not—as I completely collapsed onto my futon. Not even caring about my current surroundings or anything, I let my brain drift me off to sleep.
XXX
I snapped upright, scrubbing my eyes, cursing like a sailor. What the hell was that? There I was, sleeping blissfully away like a lamb, dreaming of steak, and I'm awoken by… screaming? The screams were so horrendous that they sent shivers down my spine. It was scarier than the cackle of a demon.
I crawl across the floor to the source of the noise, despite not really functioning properly or being all that awake. Hell was the floor warped or I was I just drunk?
Peeling back the paper door, I peered into the room with minimal lighting through a small crack. It was pretty bare, a gas lamp next to the futon, some potted plants—oh you don't want to know of the aesthetics room?
Lucy thrashed about in her sheets, shrieking. I could scarcely make out the words she cried, "No… stop…!" Tears streamed down her face, blotting the pillow beneath her head. Although, a lot of it appeared to be sweat rolling down from her hairline. Her face was flushed.
Natsu leapt from his futon over to hers, finally waking from the sound. Wait, he was sleeping in Lucy's room?
He gently, intimately almost, gathered her into his arms. He rocked her back and forth, muttering something I couldn't quite catch over her screams. No, the screams had turned into flat out blubbering.
She calmed down eventually; say ten minutes after the rose coloured haired man sat there holding her. Lucy's brown eyes sprang open and she threw her arms about his neck, sobbing into his chest. He rubbed circles on the small of her back.
I got the feeling I shouldn't be looking. But it was like a train wreck, you were just unable to look away. Lucy pulled back and blindly brought herself to him, pressing her lips to his. That's it, I'm done.
I carefully close the door and slip back into bed. Sleep was irrelevant now, I wouldn't be able to sleep with those images—sounds—in my head.
Lucy… kissed… Natsu… Whether she was conscious of the fact or not, she still did it. It was weird to think about it. Actually… kind of gross.
I rolled over. What did I just see? Ah man, now I my heads all fucked up and they're in the other room sucking face. I need to sleep, or bleach my eyes, whichever came first.
XXX
This time, after unfortunately thrashing about most of the night, I woke rather uneventfully to the sounds of birds. Loud birds who screeched at me from their perches on the rocks. Well, personally I don't think their hate was aimed at me, just the human race in general.
Natsu strolled into the room, a laid back expression on the hard lines of his face. He seemed in a pretty good mood all things considering.
I rub my eyes, yawning, I watch as he wraps his muffler about his neck. "Ready for today?"
So he wasn't going to talk about last night… not that he caught me peeping or anything. "What are we doing, Natsu-nii?"
The man's eyes twinkled, "You'll see." I swallow. I don't like the sounds of that. Lucy's door slides open and she wobbles into the room, finding a seat. Natsu smiles at her without a care in the world and her eyes are puffy.
That's it; I am never growing up if my life is going to turn into whatever theirs is. Can't I stay thirteen forever and still gain magical energy to make me stronger than Natsu?
They stare at each other, as if I weren't here and I clear my throat. I gain only the attention of Lucy, who blinks, remembering my existence. Her face flames and I glance away. She must know I saw last night.
"Okay, Romeo, let's go." Natsu punches my shoulder and is already heading for the door. I curse and stumble out of my sheets, attempting to change and follow at the same time.
I scarcely catch it, as it's a faint whisper, but it sounded like Lucy just giggled. Slowly, painstakingly, she was returning to herself.
Natsu leads me to somewhere far past the mountain that now contained a slightly worn down path from our running. Happy flew past Natsu's head, already anticipating the dragon slayers location.
I allow my thoughts to stray, to wonder about the certain shade of blue a butterfly possessed as it flittered by. Cerulean? Sapphire? Choices…
"We're here," Natsu says as I collide with his back. Gee, thanks for the warning.
"Where is here?" It's an empty clearing, an abandoned ancient sanctuary. Pillars are falling over in decay and vines have wrapped themselves about the stone.
"My secret training place." The dragon slayer turned to face me, grinning. "Well, come at me."
What?
Sorry it's not much a chapter, more like an entire filler. But, I wanted to update, and I wanted to get some more Romeo inner thoughts going. (The last part with the butterfly is to show how Romeo is still growing up himself and that he's easily distracted by anything that will take his mind off the adult world.) Well, Natsu and Lucy kissed, although, pretty sure Lucy was delusional the whole time. So yeah, just some more Romeo's a thirteen year old boy thoughts and some kissing. The next chapter will be more exciting, I promise!
~Emerald~