Natsu groaned as the door to his room thudded. "Come on, kid! Fight in five!"
"Ah, shit," Natsu mumbled. He pushed himself off the mattress and stumbled to the door, figuring a few shots would help clear his head. He sunk into a seat next to a few regulars that weren't as scared of him as other patrons and signaled Don for his fire whiskey.
"How many you want, kid?" Don asked, wiping down the counter in front of him. Natsu looked up at the ring, barely glancing at his opponent. It was an older man, shirtless and stumbling drunk. A pretty blonde hung off his arm, whispering something in his ear that made him laugh. He looked happy.
Natsu scowled. "Seven."
Don raised an eyebrow. "Damn, Salamander. You tryna fall back into your old habits?" Natsu flicked his gaze to Don, who immediately scurried to the other side of the bar to mix his drinks. A small, familiar part of him shriveled at the fear in Don's eyes, but he couldn't find it in himself to truly care anymore. As long as one person wasn't afraid of him, he didn't care about anyone else.
The clink of glasses brought him out of his thoughts. Red-brown liquor stared up at him from the counter, and he caught his reflection on the table. If he downed all seven, he knew he might cause some serious damage. Like Don said, he'd be falling back into old habits. And if Lucy came back…
Natsu clenched his jaw. She hadn't come back yet, and he had no reason to think she would today. It would be good for him to blow off some steam now, anyways, before she came back. He downed the seventh one just as Don rang the bell for the show to start. Natsu stood up, laughing a bit as he stumbled. 'I forgot how quickly it worked.'
Don's voice became a steady drone in his ears as he shuffled up into the ring. He stared down the man across from him, feeling his muscles relax and his heart rate pulse throughout his entire body. His opponent, who Don announced as Chip the Ripped, was flexing his muscles and winking at the crowd. Natsu popped his knuckle at the ridiculous display. 'It's not as if it'll do him any good,' a voice whispered in Natsu's head. His lips twitched; the Salamander was back.
The bell rang, and Natsu was flying forward before he could process it. His fist smashed into Chip's jaw before he could even try to block, sending the man toppling to ground. Natsu jumped back to his corner, and watched as Chip struggled to stand. As he swayed, Natsu jumped back and forth on the balls of his feet. He felt light as a feather. It had been months since he'd felt like this. He didn't have to worry about holding back, or impressing anyone. When Lucy was there, he always wanted to end the fight as quickly as possible, to go back to her.
But she wasn't here. So the Salamander could play.
As he dragged the fight on, he felt the effects of his whiskey more and more. Every hit made his head fuzzier, every block his laughter louder. The fear that was ever present in his opponents' eyes shone in Chip's like flashlights, and Natsu relished in it. As he dealt the finishing blow, and the crowd roared, he allowed himself to be the Salamander, back in his element.
He looked to Don, who was pointedly avoiding eye contact. "Good job, Salamander." His doughy face was full of fearful respect, the closest thing to pride Natsu had ever known. "You came back, even with your girl here. I'm impressed."
At those words, Natsu's pride hit a dead end. He knew he should feel something about Lucy's being here, but he couldn't remember what it was. An itch spread over his skin, making his skin burn.
When he found her, her back was to the ring as she talked to some new guy. He felt his muscles bunch up at the sight of this stranger: who was he, and why did Lucy know him? He glanced at her again, and saw she had cleared the table next to her, conveniently just outside the ring. He frowned; she needed his help.
He stepped over his twitching opponent and vaulted over the ropes to land on the table top. He fisted his hand in her hair, sizing up the stranger. He was obviously new, with beer stains sloshed over him and lip smears over his face. He looked beyond angry, and Natsu didn't like how he was looking at Lucy like that.
His taunt at Lucy's blending in at the pub registered at that moment. "Yeah, well," he slurred, stretching his fingers. "Knowing me gives you some kind of status 'round here." He sized him up again, making sure he noticed. "Who're you?" Lucy's hands snaked around his arm, and he felt her tensing against him. His eyes flickered to her, and he felt his temper boil over. His vision swam as he turned back to Lucy's problem. What had he done?
The guy kept his stare, so Natsu tried again. "I said, who are you?" He pushed up off the table and walked over to him, getting as close as he could without actually making contact. He heard his name start to float around the crowd, echoes of "Salamander" pushing him closer and closer to snapping. The itch to fight was growing.
The idiot in front of him finally decided to speak. "You—You're the Salamander?" Natsu growled, his fear making his temper flare even more.
"Yeah, so what? Who. Are. You?" Natsu shifted his footing, and the guy swallowed. The itch was almost unbearable now; the Salamander wanted to be let out again. And depending on this guy's response, Natsu was going to let him out.
"I'm…Jacob Cobeson. I was assigned to guard Lucy Heartfilia from…you."
Natsu blinked at those words, taking a step back in surprise. He knew that name, Cobeson. He tried to remember, but the name wasn't coming to the surface. He only knew that it was not a good name. Then the second part of Cobeson's answer registered, and felt his blood freeze. Guard Lucy? From him? His gaze flickered back to her for a split second before turning back. As if this weak boy could stand up to the Salamander. Natsu's knuckles popped, finally ready to put this nobody in his place. He didn't get to walk onto the Salamander's turf with—
"Natsu?" Her voice was only a whisper among the cheers of the crowd, but it brought him back down from the angry high. He let go a breath; he had almost sent her running. He gave Cobeson one more look before he was suddenly with Lucy, his vision blurry and head pounding. 'Seven was a bad idea.' He could still feel his temper raging against his flimsy control. Lucy was talking to him, but he couldn't hear her over the roar of his blood in his ears. He needed to get back to his room, before he did something he would regret—
His face collided with the hard wooden floorboards. He groaned and rolled over, two Cobesons standing over him. Natsu felt the room shrink, his vision narrowing to only the fresh meat standing over him. If the newbie wanted a fight, he'd get the fight of his lifetime. Natsu clambered up to his feet and into the ring. "If we're doing this, we're getting in the ring. Let's go, Pretty Boy."
Natsu threw his shirt to the side as he waited. There was no sound except his and Cobeson's breathing. He threw a signal to Don at the bell station, and watched as the fresh meat moved as slowly as he could. But it wouldn't deter the Salamander. Natsu could see nothing aside from Cobeson, hear nothing but the pounding of his head.
After an eternity, the bell rang, and Natsu flew forward. He punched Cobeson clear out of the ring, and the bell rang for victory. But the Salamander wasn't done, not by a long shot. He couldn't remember what he'd done, but this opponent deserved than just one punch. His vision blacked out, and the next thing he knew Natsu was standing over Cobeson. He grabbed him and hauled him to his feet, readying his fist for the finishing blow that would leave him out of the count for—
"Natsu! Stop!"
Natsu froze, his fist hovering just above Cobeson's jaw. He looked up, seeing the patrons standing above him with horror in their eyes. 'Wait, why are they in the ring?' Natsu looked around some more, and saw that, instead of ropes and blood stains, he was surrounded by tables and people. People who were shaking at his proximity.
A soft pressure pushed his fist down, and Cobeson was tugged out of his loosened grip. After a minute, he stood and looked at Cobeson, supported by a blonde girl that was looking at him in awe. Natsu felt something breaking inside him, the look she was giving him like so many others. Asking the same question.
"What are you?"
