A/N: This chapter features the song Blackbird off of The Beatle's White Album. You can listen to the song at any time, but I recommend listening to it when it is being played in the story. It won't line up perfectly with where the lyrics are placed, but it will give you the feeling I am trying to create in the scene.
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy!
Blackbird
After Lucy had finished her meal at the bar that first day, Gray called up his landlady and the two of them went to meet her at the property, with Natsu of course. He clearly had a problem with leaving the blonde alone with his rival, and he wasn't the only one. The tall bluenette, a watercolor artist named Juvia, strongly protested against Lucy and Gray spending any time together. This is how Lucy gained the nickname "Love Rival".
The apartment was on the first level, as Gray had mentioned. It was kind of small, but good enough for one person. Natural wood decorated the interior, giving the whole place a cottage-like feel. This was a drastic change from the asylum-esque wing that had trapped her in her father's mansion for the past ten years. There were only two rooms. Upon first entry to the apartment there was a small living area and kitchen, a door next to the refrigerator led into the bedroom, which in turn connected to the suite's only bathroom. The fact that the apartment included furniture was enough to seal the deal. Paying the security deposit and first month's rent out of the stash of inheritance she kept hidden on her person, the blonde agreed to move in that night.
Yet, Lucy found herself hesitating upon the actual signing of the lease. Unlike all of the introductions she had experienced so far, this legal document required a last name. Being a Heartfilia was something she sorely wished to leave behind. In fact, if the landlady saw the name she may recognize it's significance and raise her rent, or worse- leak her whereabouts. Trying to appear casual in front of her new friends, she quickly scribbled the name Lucy Ashley without another thought. If any consequences came along, they certainly couldn't be worse than revealing her family name.
Making a mental note to go shopping for furnishings the next day, Lucy ushered her new guildmates out of her new home. All in all, it was hard to believe it had still been less than 24 hours since she had met Natsu. Lucy was exhausted. Though she wouldn't admit it to her savior, the amber eyed woman had not slept since the incident. She never could sleep when something like that happened. Trying to sleep only increased its chances of happening again. Sometimes she was up for days before her body was finally exhausted enough to sleep soundly, undisturbed by the secret motives of her mind.
But this? This huge change- the adventure she was embarking upon- exhausted her. Although it had been mere hours, body and mind withered under a weight that felt like days. Home free from guests, strangers, and interruptions, the weary artist fell into her mattress. As she drifted off to dreamland, the moment from the train replayed itself within the theater of her thoughts. Natsu's steady sighs settled her into dreamless sleep.
Three sleepless nights had passed since that first siesta in her own bed. In this time, Lucy settled into her life in Magnolia. She visited the Magnolia Marketplace to buy food, household items, and various things to make her small apartment more "homey". This included a new music collection to replace the one she had left at the Heartfilia estate. Levy had come over at the blonde's request to help her put up some bookshelves. Naturally, this was a terrible task for the two to carry out on their own, what with Levy's height and Lucy's lack of home-improvement experience. Luckily Levy came as a package deal with her partners Jet and Droy, who were more than willing to do anything the tiny woman asked.
Levy then filled one of the shelves with books from her own collection, insisting her new friend accept the items as housewarming gifts. Lucy was overwhelmed by the small girl's kindness. Inviting Levy over was a huge step, one Lucy had almost backed out of a number of times before the trio arrived at her door. Although she could tell Levy was an understanding person who clearly wanted to form a friendship, Lucy hesitated. Her nerve cells bounced through her body uncontrollably at the thought of not being alone anymore. Yet, after spending the wee hours of the morning by herself, overwhelming loneliness reasserted just how important friendship could be.
Oddly, she had not heard from Natsu during this time. She had been to the guild many times for meals, deciding that was a good way to ease her way into their world, but the pinkette was nowhere to be found. Lucy desperately had to thank him, if not for saving her life, for inviting her into his. For bringing her to Fairy Tail. While in the market she had stumbled upon a small gift she felt was the perfect way to express her gratitude. A refillable lighter covered in faux, red alligator skin. To her, it looked almost like dragonhide.
I sealed the weakness up with something much stronger: dragon scales.
The third day she had gone to find him, she ended up getting her guildmark. This was when she first met the guild master, Makarov. Lucy knew he had a reputation for his loud, booming voice, yet it still caught her off guard the first time she heard it in person. However, this did not compare to the shock of finally seeing him. Makarov Dreyer was a small man, clearly of advanced age. Despite his tiny 4' 9" height, he was anything but frail. It was as if the life that exuded from the guild itself kept him strong.
Surprisingly, the man asked her no questions about her past, but merely inquired after her passions. "In Fairy Tail," he had said, "We don't care about the life you have lived, only that, from this day on, you live each day as if it's your last." With that remark he pressed the stamp to Lucy's right hand, leaving behind the image of the Fairy Tail crest to mark her as an official member.
Lucy sat at her desk, absent-mindedly admiring the light pink symbol that graced her hand, when she heard a strange noise coming from the next room. Abandoning her open laptop, displaying the latest chapter of her novel, Lucy rose to investigate. Today she wore a dark gray shirt sporting an image of a full moon and a light pink skirt, chosen to match the symbol on her hand. Her hair was held half up and to the side by a light pink ribbon. The black combat boots on her feet completed her look.
Another noise was heard, this time clearly marking the kitchen as the intruder's location. The blonde leaned into her bedroom door, opening it just a crack to peer into the kitchen. Brown eyes widened as she saw an interloping figure make it's way closer to her bedroom door. Fight or flight was kicking in. While she learned towards the latter, there was really nowhere to flee to, and she was not climbing out a window. This left only one option.
Flinging the door open, the blonde squeezed her eyes shut as she released the fury of her grand battement.
"AGH! What the hell, Luce!?"
"Natsu?" Lucy's eyes flew open in horror of what she had just done to the one person she had wanted to thank. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry!" She reached a hand out to where the pinkette had landed on the hardwood floor, helping him back to his feet. "What are you doing here?"
"I came by to see how you were settling in. But then you go and pull some crazy martial arts on me. What the heck was that?" Natsu was rubbing his assaulted thigh through his black jeans, hoping her kick wouldn't bruise.
"Ballet..." Lucy nervously closed the few feet separating her from the freezer, grabbing a handful of ice and wrapping it in a stray kitchen towel. "How did you get in here?"
"Window was open." He answered as he reached to take the makeshift cold press from his reluctant host.
"No it wasn't." Lucy eyed him with doubt before glancing over at the now-open window. I may be crazy, but I would remember opening that. The blonde shivered at the cold October breeze pouring into her apartment.
"Oh. Right. Well..." Natsu pulled a seat from the small dining table, sitting to allow him better access to his throbbing injury. "The window opens from the outside. Now you know, huh?" Guilty as charged, a hand lifted to rub the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Why didn't you just knock at the front door?" A vein popped in the blonde's forehead. Maybe she didn't want to be alone anymore, but a normal amount of privacy would be nice.
"It was more fun this way!" Then he smiled. Oh God, he smiled. That same genuine smile from the diner. Lucy forgot all her anger as she felt her body ache to move independent of her mind once more. Her fingers itched to trace the curve of that smile.
Luckily, she maintained control of said urges. "Well, I'm sorry for kicking you, but next time use the door, okay?"
His only response was a smirk and soft whine before the pair was interrupted by the vision of a small boy climbing through her open window.
"Natsu! What's taking you so long!?" Lucy was taken aback at the sight of a small boy, probably around ten years old, standing in her kitchen. He was rather short and wore baggy dark blue jeans, skater sneakers, and an oversized, blue pullover sweatshirt with the face of a cartoon cat plastered on the front. One hand rested in the large pocket of the sweater, while the other moved to push messy azure locks out of his baby-blues. "What's with your leg?"
"She kicked me!" Natsu's tone feigned victimization.
"What a meanie!" was the child's reply.
"Excuse me?" Lucy didn't know if she was using this expression out of offense or shock. Probably both, with a bit of agitation mixed in. "Who are you?"
The boy stared at Natsu incredulously. "You didn't tell her about me!? You're just as mean as she is." Lucy scoffed at this statement. Damn kids.
"What! You never came up!" The pinkette yelled in defense before turning back to include the blonde in the conversation. "This is my little brother, Happy!"
The young child smiled brightly at his introduction. Lucy remained in shock. Half because no one had mentioned Natsu had a little brother, and half because she had no idea how to act in front of children, especially rude children.
"Oh, it's nice to meet you... Happy?" Is that even a name? The little guy giggled at her hesitation.
"My real name isn't Happy, everyone just calls me that!" Happy's face pulled together in earnest before his un-pocketed hand jutted a thumb out towards Natsu. "And this loser isn't really my older brother. He's my best friend!"
That made more sense to the female as the two boys looked absolutely nothing alike. Natsu was tan and rugged with bright hair while Happy was pale with icy blue doe-eyes and hair the color of a clear sky. Their features differed drastically as Happy appeared more like an adorable elf than something close to the athleticism of Natsu's build.
"Well, technically, we met because of one of those Big Brother, Little Brother programs. That means you gotta listen to me, kid!" Natsu abandoned the ice pack and seat, walking over to tossel the younger boy's hair. Lucy couldn't help but think about how endearing the action was.
"Whatever." Happy crossed his arms in anger. "I'm hungry! Let's go get some fish!"
"Now you're talking, buddy!" A mischievous smile slithered onto Natsu's lips as his All-Stars instinctively led the way to the fridge. "Oi, Luigi! Got any grub?" For some reason Natsu felt the need to stuff his head completely into the ice box, sniffing at the items chilling inside.
"I told you already, my name is LUCY! And get out of my fridge! I just moved in, I'm not ready for guests." Lucy wanted to jump in front of her fridge and push the two boys out of her home, but she wasn't really ready for such physical contact. Yelling would have to do.
However, Natsu simply ignored her request. "Jeez, all you have is frozen meals, don't you know how to cook?" No.
"Shut the hell up! Do you even know how to cook?" The blonde did not understand what was going on. Why was be being so rude to her? But he was being nice at the same time? Now he's laughing. Great.
"Natsu! Luigi said a curse! She really is mean! Why did you want me to meet her?" Happy thought this was the perfect opportunity to join the fun.
"MY NAME IS NOT LUIGI!" Lucy's typically emotionless face was now glowing red. Red with embarrassment, frustration, annoyance, and don't forget utter confusion.
"She looks like she is going to explode!" Natsu couldn't contain his laughter, his own face was going crimson from lack of breath.
"She looks like a luftballon!" Happy was giggling with one hand on his mouth, the other extending his pointer finger directly at her face. The boys started dancing and singing the famous Nena song, much to Lucy's torment. That's it. She was done. They can raid her fridge and eat her out of house and home for all she cared. She was not going to stand there for one more minute. Natsu had been so caught up in the fun that he almost didn't notice her leave. The dramatic slamming of the her bedroom door snapped them out of their antics.
For a moment they froze, exchanging glances as they tried to gather what had made her so mad. With a sigh, Natsu resigned himself to apologize. Maybe sneaking into someone's house and insulting them wasn't the smartest thing. He removed his phone and wallet from the pocket of his jacket, handing them to his partner in crime.
"Order some pizza, Happy. I think we owe her that much." Natsu then turned in the direction of the door, ready to eat crow.
"Aye, Sir!"
Natsu stood in front of the door for a moment, unsure of what to say. Honestly, that's just how he and Happy always were. Goofing off, having a good time. Maybe sometimes it was at another's expense, but it didn't really mean anything. Although they had just met, the pinkette was comfortable around the brown-eyed girl. He almost forgot that she barely knew him, and maybe she didn't know it was a joke. Honestly, she's so weird. He knocked on the wooden door.
"Luce? You okay?" She didn't answer. What did he expect, really? He knocked again. "Come on out, we're ordering pizza!" Maybe food could get her attention, it always got his. But the bribe failed. "Fine, if you're not coming out, I'm coming in!" Without further warning he turned the knob to reveal a pouting Lucy on her bed.
The vision affected him much more than he expected. Lucy was lying on her bed covers, facing the wall opposite the door. He couldn't help but freeze for a moment as his eyes traced the curves of her body and the pale flesh of her long legs. From there he noticed the perfect way in which that light pink skirt hugged her hips, and the way the fabric of her heather gray shirt rode up, revealing the tail of another constellation tattoo on the small of her back. Her right shoulder blade poked out towards him, compensating for the bend in her arm as it wrapped around a fluffy pillow. The static of her golden tendrils stuck to any available fabric, wisping in all directions.
The blonde turned on the bed to face him, yet he still stared. From this side he could see her small navel peaking out from under her top. Damn. His mouth was open, as he had planned to say something. He couldn't for the life of him remember what it was. Lucy sat up on the bed, pulling her top down to cover any exposed skin. This action brought our hero back to reality.
"Can I help you?" Lucy was clearly still peeved.
Oh yeah, I was gonna apologize! Natsu grinned sheepishly, again. How many times was she gonna make me do that? "Sorry 'bout that, Luce! Happy and I can get carried away in the fun sometimes."
She just replied with a confused look. Fun?
"Anyways, I know you said you didn't want guests, but we ordered some pizza for dinner. Figured I would make it up to you with a meal." The crescent on his face widened, transitioning from sheepish to genuine again.
The blonde lowered her eyes to look at the floor. If that's how they are, maybe I'm just overreacting. "You didn't have to make it up to me, Natsu." She paused, looking him in the eyes before continuing. It was his turn to be puzzled. "You already saved my life." She reminded him.
"Pizza's on the way!" Happy nonchalantly ran into her bedroom, joining the two adults. "COOL! You have a Martin Vintage Series HD-28V Dreadnought Acoustic!" His eyes locked on the guitar stand by her bathroom door. He hurried over to it, lightly caressing it's body while his fingers ghosted over the strings. Lucy couldn't help but laugh at his excitement and the care with which he handled her prized instrument.
"That's a Platinum Martin Vintage Series HD-28V Dreadnought Acoustic to you, mister!" Lucy couldn't help but smirk as she bragged about her possession. She had majorly splurged to buy this guitar, but she couldn't help it. It was so fucking beautiful. She shelled out extra benjamins for customization, dyeing the mahogany face a dark navy blue before adding a the "aging" toner. The pickguard was hand-painted to resemble the star-dense cluster NGC-884, while the rosette was styled after the zodiac wheel. The most expensive customization by far was the replacement of the traditional ivory tuning pegs with golden keys. This guitar was by far the most precious thing she owned.
She stood from her bed and crossed the room to pick the guitar up from it's stand. Balancing the instrument on her knee, she strummed her way through basic scales to show off the incredible sound.
Natsu was almost lost in the sight of the blonde handling the guitar in arabesque. Her bangs fell over her eyes as she craned her neck to supervise her own fingers moving against the strings, making special care not to drop the instrument's fragile base. His own fingers itched to pull those soft, sunny tendrils from her face.
"Wanna try it?" Lucy held her precious guitar out towards Happy.
"What!? Really?" He hesitated. " I don't think I am skilled enough to handle this baby."
The two adults couldn't help but laugh at the expression used by the ten-year-old as he reached to take the object from Lucy's hands. Happy adjusted the strap and lifted it over his head. The guitar was about half his size, but it was worth the smile threatening to split his face in two. His fingers danced on the frets, playing a few simple beginner's songs. Surprisingly, he lifted the strap from his shoulder, pushing the guitar at Natsu.
"Let's show Lucy what we've been working on!" Happy was all fired up.
"Aye, sir!" Natsu lengthened the strap, squirming to settle it over his body before strumming a bit and checking the tuning.
"Wait a second," Lucy remembered something that brought her pause. "Didn't you destroy your first guitar! I don't know if I want you touching my baby!" Lucy had her hands on her hips, looking at Natsu with what she figured was her best "mom" look. Natsu just smirked.
"Don't worry, Luce. I'll be gentle with her, I promise!" Natsu removed a pick from the attached holder, deciding to show his skill with a string-picking solo.
The brown-eyed heiress raised a brow in surprise. Sure, she knew he was Fairy Tail's Salamander, but she had never heard him play before.
"Natsu! Let's do Blackbird." Happy was impatient to show some of his own skills to the blonde. As Natsu began the opening chords, Happy moved over to the desk where he started drumming against the surface.
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise
The melody escaping the pinkette's lips rang pleasantly in the painter's ears. His voice was smooth and inviting, but somehow still rough. There was a slight accent to his song that was truly unique. The sound lapped at her like a flame, intense and warm. Something within the center of her chest expanded at the sound. When the chorus was finally reached, Happy joined his tiny vocals with Natsu's burning chants, making the sound resonate through the bedroom. As the music went on, Happy turned instead to whistle, mimicking the twittering of a bird that was used on the original track of the White Album. Lucy couldn't help but smile at the duo.
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these sunken eyes and learn to see
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to be free
Natsu's fingers jumped and twisted upon the frets, eyes flashing between Lucy and Happy. A famous smile graced his lips as he gauged the blonde's reaction. The newest Fairy Tail guild member did not smile easily. It had been rare so far to see any emotion on her face, save for the anger he had caused just moments ago. He decided a grin suited her much better.
Blackbird fly
Blackbird fly
Into the light of the dark black night
When the performance ended and the pizza arrived, the reluctant hostess seemingly abandoned her previous desire for her guests to leave. The trio sat around her small kitchen table, enjoying the spicy sausage and anchovy pies along with Natsu's crazy story telling abilities. The two boys made themselves comfortable in her home, creating a mess everywhere as they ate.
Blackbird fly
Blackbird fly
Into the light of the dark black night
As evening transition to night, Natsu suggested they all play a game. Naturally, Lucy didn't have any games, but had managed to sneak a deck of playing cards out of one of the hotels she had stayed in. Strange, considering she'd never played any card games. This appalled the pinkette, who insisted he teach the blonde poker. She failed to pick it up after a couple of hands, resigning the group to the simplicity of Go Fish. This, of course, was a game Happy excelled at.
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise
Eight O'Clock rolled around, and the street-artist's lack of sleep caught up with her. She was just about to call it a night when Happy demanded they watch a movie. She didn't have many of those, but there was no way in hell she would have left the mansion without her prized Star Wars Blu Ray boxset. She flipped a lid upon finding out Natsu had failed his mentee by never exposing him to the beauty of the Lucas Films production. She didn't know much about people, but she had figured everyone had seen Star Wars by Happy's age.
Popping in A New Hope, Lucy took a seat besides Natsu on her tiny sofa. Happy exemplified his true childish spirit by sitting cross-legged on the floor, directly in front of the screen. Lucy tried to push past her exhaustion for the sake of making it through her favorite of the trilogy. Natsu watched her face intently, examining the way it would light up as new characters were introduced, or how she would mouth the lines in between yawns. As the night had progressed, Lucy continually failed to keep her guard up. Quickly, she grew comfortable having the two boys around.
You were only waiting for this moment to arise
As Happy was watching the four heroes rush to escape the deadly trash compactor, Lucy cuddled up under a blanket on the loveseat. Brown eyes grew heavy, refusing to let in anymore light. Pink brows rose in surprise as Lucy's body teetered onto the onyx-eyed man, a small blonde head resting upon his shoulder. "Luce?" His whisper was met only with the response of small mewling breaths escaping through relaxed lips. Instead of waking her, Natsu encompassed an arm around her frail body, telling himself she would wake with a crick in her neck, otherwise.
The film ended, signaling time for the boys to head home and hit the hay. Happy turned the television off as Natsu lifted a sleeping Lucy off to her bed. After placing the slumbering form beneath star-covered sheets, the pinkette stood by the bed for a moment, watching as her chest rose and fell peacefully. Giving in to his previous desires, his fingers moved to place stray strands behind her ear, knuckles trailing down a soft, crimson cheek as his touch receded.
You were only waiting for this moment to arise
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave me a review to let me know what you think! For the record, I do not own Fairy Tail, Blackbird or Star Wars.