Author's Notes: As I expected, the last chapter wasn't the best received. But thank you all for your honest (and really kind) reviews! I guess it's the bane of writers working alone; it always seems to make sense in your head, and you just can't be as critical about your own work as others can. I'm not sure how I can edit last chapter to make it better though...I knew I shouldn't have ploughed on to canon without reviewing it further :(

I did some minor changes in response to the guest review I had, so Naruto stops being the blushing/innocent archetype. I might try to revamp the chapter once I can get a solid feel of what's needed, but that could be a long way away. I'm very distracted by the Oración Seis arc that I'm building towards, so you guys may have to live with that crappy chapter for a while yet, maybe even forever.

This chapter has a huge chunk taken from the manga, as will chapters 9, 10 and 11 (10 is the worst offender in this aspect). That's because firstly, I didn't see the need to create new stuff; everything should run as canon did, with minor exceptions. Secondly, well, I was in a weird place when I did these few chapters. Frankly, it's shameful of me as a writer to lift from the manga wholesale, but I promise I will have original content near the end of the Phantom arc. Sorry for being such a disappointment :(:(:(

To those concerned about the weak romance: Yeeeaaa, it's not my forte. I shouldn't use it as an excuse though. But in any case, the chapter was more to tell everyone that Mira has a crush on Naruto, just like Cana (and other girls) had crushes on Macao before. It's a girl thing, to crush on older, mature males in your life. Normally, that sort of thing fades quickly when the girl gets into a relationship. But in this case, because Naruto saves her and then connects with her off-screen (between X782-X784), they get closer. They don't actually get together at this point; it'll be past Phantom Lord before they hook up for real.

It's the reason why the story skips 2 years from X782 to X784 (and into canon); I have no confidence and inspiration to write some sappy romantic scenes for them. Guh, maybe I should have left the romance out of this story...

The romance was supposed to go like this: they're drawn to each other because of similar loss and mutual understanding. As a result of Mira's initial childish crush, it becomes a full-blown crush. From Naruto's side, yeesh, that's even weaker. But I guess it's Mira being the first chick to be close to him in a truly romantic way. Cana's the little sister, while Ikaruga's merely flirting (to him at least). His prior experiences don't help either. He's never had any in Earthland, and back in the Elemental Countries, the only girl that really liked him was Hinata, and we all know how canon Naruto is blithely ignoring that.

To the Guest: I initially did an Innocent!Naruto because it had more room for personal amusement when writing. But I get where you're coming from. I gave your review a long consideration, and decided to take out all the instances of an Innocent!Naruto, to give him a more...mature feel. It's nothing major, just a few slight modifications here and there. Hopefully it'll look better.

Junky: I have a chapter dedicated to explaining just why Naruto did all the things he did pre-canon, including the false name. It's a mega cop-out chapter, a lot like the Unohana/Kenpachi thing that just ended in Bleach, explaining Kenpachi's inconsistent power levels. It was bloody awkward to write that chapter too, but it made sense in my head, and I hope it will make sense (and not induce rage-quit) to you guys too.

GaijinSamurai: Gildarts is slightly stronger than Bluenote. Hades is stronger than Bluenote. And I class Zero on Hades' level. Note that this Zero I'm talking about is not Brain, but the suppressed side of him. The Jura I mentioned refers to X784 Jura, the one who claims he's the weakest of the Wizard Saints. Looking at his battle with Hoteye, can you expect him to beat Jose? So he's a notch below Naruto. Everyone is a notch below Zeref (until canon Natsu inevitably eats some magical substance, goes into Dragon Force and beats the crap out of him...)

WutWut: Zeref kills everything he touches, literally. I don't see how Naruto can combat that. The best answer I have is fūinjutsu, but he'll have to create one from scratch, and that's after he's fought Zeref and analysed his powers a little. So no way of Naruto beating Zeref until past Tenrō arc, when the guy actually appears.

Fuyuriku: Don't worry, you haven't offended me or anything. I'm well aware of my limitations :P I hope my future sappy stuff (chapters 14/15/16) doesn't crash and burn like chapter 7 did. Hell, I'm even worried for chapter 13. I'm pretty sure the way the action unfolded in that chapter is contrived, but my brain was fixated on writing it that way, and now I have no clue how to fix it :(

rexkaiden: There's a deeper reason for the casual way he revealed secrets, but that won't come until chapter 14. As for being suspicious, why wouldn't they? Gildarts sees him defeat a ton of dark mages alone when he's supposed to be a B-class mage. Hothead Mira sees him in a shady tavern talking about dark guilds. It's an exaggeration, I admit, but which person from a legal guild wouldn't be suspicious of such activities? The legal guilds never involve themselves in such things. It's abhorrent to them. To see someone from their guild do it will obviously prompt paranoia...that's my explanation anyway. And the name change thing, well, it's going to be explained eventually.

Alter Avans: Haha, I'm not sure if I should feel complimented or disheartened at being compared to professional mangaka :P As explained above, it's supposed to be a shallow attraction in X782. It gets deeper after Naruto saves her pretty butt, talks to her, and connects with her all the way to canon. But yea, I'm just trying not to hold my knees and sob in a corner at how terrible that chapter turned out, and how I could even contemplate uploading it.

There is something far deeper that's serving as Naruto's motivations, governing ALL his actions, but I don't think that excuses the poor quality of the romance/suspense/drama. Nor does my writing style; as a writer, there should be coherence across the whole story. But hey, everyone's gotta fall down to learn to pick themselves up again, right? As long as I improve, I think it's all good ;)

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Fairy Tail.


Chapter 8: Lucy (X784)

"Woah…" Lucy Heartfilia exclaimed, as she shielded her eyes to look at the Fairy Tail guild headquarters from bottom to top. "It's huge."

"Welcome to Fairy Tail," Happy squeaked, waving his tiny hands.

As Lucy stepped into the massive hall of Fairy Tail, she watched in awe as everyone went about their daily routines. It was a lively atmosphere, with everyone happily chatting and drinking with each other. A few mages hovered around a wooden board with various pieces of paper pinned to it, citing requests for missions and their rewards. Waitresses flitted around the tables, serving drinks to everyone. One of the guild members called out for a waitress. "Mira-chan!"

"Yes, yes, what is it?" the ivory-haired waitress made her way over to the straw-haired man, smoking a pipe.

He removed the pipe from his lips, blowing out a string of smoke that formed a heart. "Forget Ráfaga, let's go on a date next time!"

His friend growled good-naturedly. "Ah! Hey, don't be sneaky, or Ráfaga's going to use his shibari techniques on you."

"Sigh…" the one named Mira-chan shook her head, sweeping the smoke away with her hands, before changing forms into a plump woman, with blushing cheeks. "You have a wife, don't you?"

"DWAAH!" the man cried in fear, waving his hands at the transformed girl. "Don't transform into my wife!"

As the one dubbed Mira-chan morphed back to her usual beautiful looks, she noticed the doors were opened, with two people (and a cat) walking through. "Ah…Natsu, welcome back."

"We're home!" Natsu yelled, while Happy waved at his guild mates. "Home…"

Accompanied by Lucy, the pink-haired man stopped as he glared at a certain individual. The man laughed at Natsu as he began to speak. "Hahaha, you overdid it again! I read about the incident in Hargeon Town in the newspaper-"

Krov sweated profusely as his words were cut off, his face about to meet the sole of one angry dragon slayer. Natsu's wrathful foot sent the mage careening across the room, knocking a few teeth loose. Little wisps of flames emanated from his mouth as he screamed at Krov in his rage. "Bastard! That info you gave me about 'Salamander' was fake!"

"My…now that Natsu is back, the place might be torn apart soon, ufufufu," Mira-chan chuckled, watching the scene with fond exasperation.

The man who just flirted with her was less amused, his dismay at the violence quite visible on his expressive features. "It's already being torn apart!"

As everyone started to brawl rather wildly, furniture getting tossed and fists getting thrown here and there, Lucy stood before the scene, still in awe that she just stepped into the strongest guild in all of Fiore. Hand clasping the handle of her luggage bag tightly, she stared wide-eyed at the degenerating violence before her innocent eyes. "I really…came to Fairy Tail…"

"Did you say Natsu is back?" a raven-haired man shouted, standing up from his position near Lucy. "Hey…let's settle our fight from the other time! Punk!"

"Gray…have you been walking around like that?" a woman seated in an undignified position on the table nearby smirked. That was when the black-haired mage named Gray realised he was down to his striped boxers. Alarm filled his face as he finally noticed his state of undress. "Hack! Shit!"

"Tch…another one of those undignified guys…that I really hate," the half-inebriated woman mumbled, unimpressed by her guild mate's antics. Lucy watched gob-smacked as the dark-haired woman tipped a whole barrel of what smelled like alcohol to her lips. "You guys are pathetic. Can't you be more like Ráfa-nii?"

The one named Gray ignored the drinking woman's words, having long been distracted at the sight of Natsu, as he declared a challenge to the pink-haired fire-breathing mage. He was promptly turned down on account of his lack of clothes. As Lucy tried to make sense of the growing madness that was supposed to be Fairy Tail, a huge shadow loomed over her. Startled, she turned back to see a huge, white-haired man with a stitched scar running down his right eye. "What rubbish…yapping in the middle of the day…you're not little kids you know…"

"So fight with fists to show your manhood!" the man roared, gesturing passionately at the brawling mages before him. Lucy felt rather let down by the man's words, her abject disappointment clearly visible on her pretty features. "So it all comes down to fighting after all…"

"Get out of the way!" Gray and Natsu yelled in tandem, smashing them fists into the large man, sending him flying away. Lucy sweat-dropped at the concerted attack.

Suddenly, another man spoke up amongst the chaos. Turning her head to see the mage who opened his mouth, Lucy gasped loudly, star struck. "Ahh! Loke, the top ranked 'Mage you want to have as your boyfriend'!"

"I'll go join their fight~" the man wriggled his eyebrows at the two beautiful girls clinging onto his sides, his eyes filled with unbridled perverseness. The girls, hearts in their eyes, cheered their man on, making sure to press their sizeable assets against his body. Lucy collapsed to the ground in defeat. And his image is officially corrupted!

"What's with this place…none of them are normal…" Lucy lamented, unable to accept that the greatest guild in Fiore was such a crazy place.

A sweet voice then rang from beside her ear. "My, a newcomer?"

Alarmed, Lucy looked up, hastily scrambling to a better position to stare at the beautiful ivory-haired woman before her. She clutched her flaming cheeks coyly as she regarded her greatest female mage idol of all time, Fairy Tail's poster girl. "Mi-Mirajane! Kyaah…the real one~~~"

Her attention was once more caught by the rowdy battle that raged in the now completely wrecked lunch hall of Fairy Tail. Gesturing at the brawling mages anxiously, she stared wide-eyed at the unperturbedly smiling woman before her. "D-Don't you have to stop them?"

"It happens all the time. You don't have to worry about it~~" Mirajane smiled fondly at the mess her guild was still making, completely at ease with the destruction.

Lucy scratched the back of her head, still finding it difficult to wrap her mind around the chaos that enveloped the guild. A bottle suddenly flew out of nowhere, smashing against Mirajane's head. Lucy screeched, fearing for Mirajane's health as the woman dropped to the ground like a stone. "Kyaah! Mirajane-san!"

"And besides, isn't it fun this way?" Mirajane ended her interrupted sentence as she stood up, blood trickling from her hairline as she continued to smile. Lucy's eyes bulged out at her nonchalance. It's scary!

At that exact moment, Gray landed safely in a crouch beside Lucy, scaring the wits out of her. Lucy screamed as elsewhere, Natsu grinned smugly, waving a very familiar piece of undergarment in his hand. Gray stood up, his front facing Lucy as he stared at his uncovered crotch, exclaiming. "AHHH! My underwear!"

"Don't face this way!" Lucy squealed, scrambling backwards in disgust and discomfort.

"Lady, if you don't mind, please lend me your under…" Gray began, only to receive a punch to his face from an embarrassed Lucy.

"No way I'd do that!"

Before she could stomp the stripping man into oblivion, she suddenly found herself scooped up by strong arms, held aloft in Loke's arms. The shades-wearing man smiled disarmingly at the girl, his hands squeezing a bit too much to be considered friendly. "Ah geez…people with no elegance are really troublesome, don't you agree? By the way, which modelling agency do you belong to?"

"Men should fight with their fists!" the white-haired man from before declared.

An annoyed Natsu immediately socked him in the jaw. "I said you're getting in our way."

"Ahhh…so noisy," the raven-haired woman who was drinking earlier complained, dropping her empty barrel of liquor on the ground as bottles flew across the air above her head. She drew an intricate card from her bag, her forehead twitching in irritation. "I can't even drink peacefully. Guys, it's time…to end this…"

"I've had it!" Gray shouted in agreement, slamming his hands together as a whitish-blue glow surrounded them.

"NUUUOOOHH!" the white-haired man roared, a layer of what resembled scales appearing on his right forearm.

"What a troublesome bunch…" Loke moaned, as he dropped Lucy unceremoniously to the ground and slipped a glowing ring on his finger.

"Come and get me!" Natsu cheered, fire coalescing on his fists.

"Magic?!" Lucy gaped in disbelief.

"This is getting a little too intense…" Mirajane giggled amusedly, placing a finger on her chin in thought.

"That's enough," a loud voice boomed, as a huge shadow loomed over the entire guild hall. "Cut it out, you fools!"

"He's humongous!" Lucy shrieked in fear.

Everyone stopped as ordered, looking at each other with fright evident in their eyes. Only Mirajane seemed unaffected by the fear-inducing giant in the middle of their guild. "My…you were here, Master?"

"Master?" Lucy squeaked, staring at the giant man.

Everyone quickly turned back to their prior activities, unwilling to risk the wrath of their humongous leader, except for Natsu, who grinned in triumph. "Dahahahaha! You all got so scared! This match is my win!"

He was promptly squashed beneath a huge foot, to Lucy's horror. The man then turned his gaze at Lucy and Mirajane. "Oh…a newcomer?"

"Yes…" Lucy stammered fearfully, trembling in the face of the huge man.

"Fuuuuu…" the man grimaced, as Lucy screeched in fear that the gigantic guild master of Fairy Tail would squash her flat. Instead, he shrunk in size until he was a quarter Lucy's height, to the blonde girl's complete incredulity. The little old man waved casually at the girl, image completely at odds with his previously massive size. "Nice to meet you."

Then, he performed a miraculous triple somersault upwards. Instead of landing on the railing of the second floor, however, he smashed face first into the railings, prompting a bout of laughter from everyone present in the guild. Embarrassed, the man shuffled quickly to recover, standing on the edge of the railings as he waved a thick stack of papers about. Clearing his throat, he adopted a stern tone as he began speaking. "You've done it again, fools. Look at these documents I've received from the Council…"

"First…Gray. Good job on sweeping out the smuggling organisation, but you walked around naked in town afterwards. And ran away after stealing underwear that was being dried," the diminutive guild master read, to Gray's confusion.

"But…wouldn't it be worse if I stayed naked?"

"Then don't be naked in the first place…" the silver-haired man muttered, not impressed.

He was next on the list though, as the guild master continued naming people. "Elfman! You had a mission to escort a VIP, but you assaulted him during the mission."

"He said, men are all about education, so…" the one named Elfman looked sheepish, scratching his chin.

The master shook his head as he went on. "Cana Alberona, drinking fifteen big barrels of alcohol and charging it to the Council…Loke, flirting with Council member Elder Reiji's granddaughter. A certain talent agency charged us for damage compensation too. And Natsu…you defeated the Devon family thief, but also destroyed seven other houses that belong to the townspeople…levelling a historical tower in Tully Village, burning down a church in Freesia, damaging parts of Lupinus Castle…Nazuna Ravine Conservatory collapsed and thus stopped its operations…destroying half of Hargeon Town's port…"

Most of the articles on Fairy Tail's destructive tendencies covered in Sorcerer Magazine were done by Natsu, huh…Lucy thought in mild horror. The guild master sighed. "Alzack, Levy, Krov, Reedus, Warren, Bisca, etc…guys, the Council members are angry at me all the time…"

"But…forget about the Council members," the man burned the papers in his hand with a fierce expression on his face, as he tossed the papers down for Natsu to gobble up happily.

Lucy's eyes widened in stupefaction as she considered the guild master's words. "Eh?"

"Listen up," the man said, his eyes burning with passion. "The power to overcome reasoning is born from reasoning. Magic is not a miracle. When the spirit flow within us and the spirit flow in nature connects, they will form an embodiment for the first time. You will need a strong mentality and a lot of concentration for that. I mean, pouring all of your soul into whatever you do is the magic. If you keep worrying about the watchful eyes of the higher-ups, your magic won't improve. Do not fear the fools of the Council."

"Do whatever you think is right!" the man declared, a wide grin on his features. "That's the way of Fairy Tail mages!"

The cheers that echoed throughout the guild hall were resounding.

Lucy couldn't help but feel absolutely at home in the warmth and friendliness of the guild that is Fairy Tail.

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The celebrations of a new guild member lasted into the night. Lucy didn't think they were celebrating her arrival after the first minute or so, but it was nice to think of it that way. She found herself seated at the bar with Mirajane behind it, asking questions about members and watching in morbid fascination as Natsu stuffed himself with flaming pieces of food and even a drink that was clearly on fire. Lucy was rather wary of the fire-conjuring mage's choice of sustenance, lest she got her clothes burnt off and turned her into another Gray, who was currently dressed in his boxers…and only his boxers. He was still blissfully unaware of that little factoid, however, and Lucy decided not to point it out. It seemed too natural a habit to be something she could change that easily.

Then, a man strolled into the hall, mumbling a few greetings to various people as he walked past their tables. He waved at the smoker named Wakaba, before he sat himself down beside Lucy. The blonde girl was a bit intimidated by the man with similar hair colour to her. He was dressed in an unusual getup, and that was in comparison with all the weirdoes already present in Fairy Tail.

The first thing she noticed about his wardrobe was his long red coat, decorated with a black flame motif along the bottom hem. He also wore a graphite, form-fitting cuirass over a black turtleneck t-shirt and pants. His feet were adorned with dark leather boots that look worn from age. His coat was short-sleeved, and it exposed the slate grey arm bracers tied around the long sleeves of his shirt, as well as fingerless gloves that had a metal plate fixed to the back of the hand. A strip of cloth was tied loosely around his neck, with another metal plate protecting his neck. Finally, a black cloth mask covered him from neck to the bridge of the nose, exposing only his azure blue eyes. His spiky hair reached the nape of his neck, and two long bangs framed his face.

The man sighed as he collapsed across the bar, his arms outstretched. He was holding out an envelope, which the bargirl took from his hands and handed over to the guild master seated on the bar top a distance away. Mirajane smiled sweetly at the man as she went to the back of the bar. She returned, hauling a big barrel of alcohol. The man seemed to perk up a little, as the ivory-haired girl moved the undoubtedly heavy barrel with great ease, belying her slender build. The man uttered a word of thanks, before raising the barrel and guzzling down the beer faster than Lucy had seen anyone drink before, even the woman named Cana. On cue, said raven-haired drunkard stumbled over, slapping the crimson-coated man on the back.

"Yo, Ráfa-nii," Cana slurred out her salutations, ordering Mirajane to get her a barrel too. The girl cheerfully complied, and as she disappeared into the back, Cana smirked coyly. "Aren't you going to greet our new member that's sitting beside you? Or are you going to spend all your time gawking at your Mira-chan, hmm?"

"New member?' the blond man asked curiously, smacking his lips as he finished the barrel and tossed it behind him casually, incidentally knocking it into Natsu and Gray, who then got into a fight over who deserved to fight the man who threw the barrel in the first place. The blond man's eyes shut into little happy crescents as he stuck a hand out to shake Lucy's. "Welcome to Fairy Tail. I'm Ráfaga Remolino. I hope those kids behind you didn't scare you too much."

"It's nice to meet you, Ráfaga-san," Lucy smiled in relief, glad to see someone who seemed at least a bit normal around the place. "I'm Lucy Heartfilia."

"Heartfilia, huh…" the man murmured thoughtfully. Shaking his head, he thanked Mirajane as the woman brought out two barrels, obviously knowing the man's wishes quite well.

As Cana challenged the blond man to a drinking contest he boasted that he would crush the girl at, Lucy decided to ask Mirajane about the member. "Who's he?"

"Oh, he's a more senior member of Fairy Tail. He's a bit younger than Wakaba over there, but older than my generation. He's Cana's adoptive older brother, and we're all like his little siblings," Mirajane explained, smiling fondly at the imbibing man. "He's a bit of a pervert like the rest of them, but at least he's not as bad as Master. Though I still think his use of chains are a bit too kinky…"

Chains? Kinky? Lucy shuddered, inching away from the man who just trounced Cana at her drinking contest.

Mirajane laughed merrily, as someone went into the storeroom to grab the barrels while the rest of the guild began egging the two on for a second round of drinking. "Don't worry, that's just his preferred magic. He has good morals, and won't use it for shibari on unsuspecting young girls like you."

"Keep pretending you don't want him to wrap you up and take you to bed, Mira!" Cana hollered in an uncouth fashion, as she put down her third (empty) barrel of beer for the night. A round of laughter ensued as everyone started teasing the blushing Mirajane about her crush on Ráfaga. The man only looked resigned, as if the ribbing was a common occurrence (though how he pulled off that look without his face even visible was questionable), while Lucy regarded him with different eyes now that that piece of information was revealed to her. To attract the eyes of the beautiful Mirajane-san…he must be quite the mage!

The crowd easily distracted by Ráfaga's imminent fight with Natsu, who had won his little tussle with Gray (by pointing out the humiliated dark-haired mage's lack of clothes), Lucy decided to question Mirajane further. "Hey, do you really like Ráfaga-san? Or are they all just making fun of you?"

"He's been a great help to me personally, and an invaluable part of our guild," Mirajane answered vaguely, though a light blush still stained her cheeks. "I won't say anymore because it's too embarrassing, but he's definitely a good man."

To draw out such praise from Mirajane-san…I wonder why he hasn't featured in the weekly magazine yet? Lucy mused, her womanly intuition telling her that Mirajane was indeed smitten with Ráfaga. "If he's so amazing, why isn't he on Sorcerer Magazine? Surely Mirajane-san's boyfriend will be heavily featured, right?"

"Oh no, he's not my boyfriend," Mirajane waved her hand in front of her face as if to swipe away the thoughts, her blush deepening. "And the reason why he doesn't feature is because he's usually not around for photos. And he doesn't wreck Fairy Tail's image like some of our rowdier members tend to do."

Lucy was provided proof not a second later, as Natsu flew over her head and into Mirajane. The two mages were about to topple into the shelves of alcohol behind the bar, when chains wrapped around the two, keeping them from smashing up all the liquor. Lucy watched with an awestruck gaze as Ráfaga's outstretched hand pulled on the metallic chains that materialised from his palms, righting Mirajane on her feet while tossing Natsu across the bar top once more, smashing into a broken table. Mirajane, breathless from the near fall, thanked her hero as he winked at her and Lucy, before diving into combat once more. Suddenly, Lucy recalled the poll she was reading about most desirable mages.

"Wait…Ráfaga Remolino…he's ninth on the list of most wanted mages for boyfriends!" Lucy exclaimed. "How did I miss that?"

"Because they can never get recent photos of me," Ráfaga answered from beside her suddenly, causing Lucy to jump four feet off her chair in fright. Turning her head back to look at the massive brawl that was growing every minute, she wondered how he got out of that bedlam unscathed. The blond man chuckled throatily, his pleasant baritone warm and inviting. "I dropped down the list from fifth to ninth thanks to a few pretty boys from Blue Pegasus, and the fact that even girls get tired of mysteries that don't get solved. That's Mira-chan's explanation for my fallen ranking anyway."

"Your mysterious looks will garner you votes," Lucy nodded slowly, stroking her chin as she tried to look knowledgeable. "But your hidden face makes me think you're trying to hide something ugly."

"Haha, no, I'm not hiding anything ugly," the man laughed merrily. "Mira-chan's seen my face before, she can vouch for me."

Mirajane nodded cheerily. "He's a very handsome man. More attractive than you, Master, so don't be jealous of all the female attention he gets and you don't!"

Lucy squealed as her bum was pinched from behind. She slapped the offender, only to squeal in fright again, as the red imprint of her hand was found on none other than the guild master's sorry-looking face. Ráfaga laughed uproariously as the perverted old man shuffled onto the bar top in front of Ráfaga, knocking the man on the head with his pipe. "Fool! Why do you never teach me how you pick up chicks?!"

"I told you, I don't pick up chicks, old man!" Ráfaga cut his laughter abruptly, his eyes narrowing in anger. "You should have asked Gildarts before he left, you senile old coot! He's the player, not me! And stop spreading lies to other guilds about my Chain Magic during guild master meetings, you decrepit old fool! Now Mermaid Heel members all run from me like crazy when they see me!"

As the insults flew without pause, and words that even sailors would be hesitant to think were thrown out, Lucy poked an amused Mirajane tentatively, blushing as a particularly naughty insult was said. "Erm…isn't the arguing a bit too…overboard? I mean, words can cut deeper than fists…"

Mirajane giggled in commiseration as she patted Lucy on the hand, before retrieving what looked like an ink stamp. "Don't worry, it's their little ritual. Ráfaga and the Master have a very close relationship, almost bordering on father and son, and their insults to each other are a form of affection between them. Now, where would you like your guild stamp, and what colour will it be?"

"Oh, on the back of my right hand, and in pink please!" Lucy thought for a quick moment, before holding out the hand. Mirajane took the stamp, and pressed it against the smooth skin. The stamp glowed at the point of contact, and when Mirajane removed it, the guild emblem of Fairy Tail was imprinted painlessly on her hand in bright pink. Marvelling at the stamp, she bounced over to Natsu, who was busy trying to rip off Gray's boxers once more. She flashed him the stamp happily, a big smile on her face. "Natsu, look! I got the mark of Fairy Tail!"

"Good for you, Luigi," Natsu said seriously, too engrossed in his fight. Lucy fumed. "It's LUCY!"

As the fighting slowly died down, Natsu got away and walked towards the request board, mumbling about having no money. Lucy, curious, watched as he peered at the mission requests, before grabbing a piece of paper off of it. "Hundred and sixty thousand jewels for exterminating thieves! That's it."

Then, a young boy approached the group situated at the bar. He went to Makarov, tears gathering at the edge of his eyes. "Is my daddy back yet?"

"You're annoying, Romeo. If you are the son of a mage, trust your father, be a good boy and wait for him at home," Makarov chastised in irritation.

Romeo didn't give up though, lips trembling as he continued to address the tiny guild master. "He said he'd come back in three days…but it's been a week since then…"

"Macao's job is at Mt. Hakobe, isn't it?" Ráfaga added, leaning his elbows on the bar as he cradled his face with his hands.

"It's not that far either!" Romeo shouted, his anxiety bubbling away. "Please look for him! I'm worried about him!"

"No way! Your dad is a mage!" Makarov glowered, glaring at the young boy. "We have no mage here that can't take care of himself! Go home and drink milk or something!"

Romeo sniffled, struggling to hold back his tears before he jumped off the ground, smashing a fist into Makarov's face. The old man toppled over and fell behind the bar, as Romeo shouted angrily at Makarov before running out of the guild, crying loudly. Lucy stared at the small back of the child. "It's very strict in here, isn't it?"

"Master's like that, but he's definitely worried about Macao too," Mirajane prodded the prone guild master beside her foot, before she stepped over him to grab some washed beer mugs. She proceeded to wipe them with a clean rag in an absentminded fashion. "Right, Master?"

The man declined to reply, only moaning to himself about his apparently shattered hipbone. Then, a loud crash was heard. Jumping off her seat in fright once more, Lucy watched as Natsu stalked away from the mission request board, his eyes full of some quality Lucy couldn't identify. The previous request he was holding on to was smashed into the board, cracking the wood. The man who was standing beside Natsu pointed at the board as he stared at the dragon slayer's back. "Hey! Natsu! Don't break the request board!"

The pink-haired mage didn't reply, only grabbing his travelling items as he stomped out of the guild. The tribal-looking man then addressed the guild master, who had climbed back to the bar top and was staring at Natsu's back as well. "Master…Natsu's gonna do something bad…he…I bet he's going to help Macao."

"Stupid kid…if he does that, he'll only hurt Macao's pride," Makarov shook his head, before grinning in exasperation. "No one can decide what he should do. Just leave him alone."

"What happened to him…all of a sudden…" Lucy mumbled to herself, shocked at the drastic change in demeanour from the happy-go-lucky guy she had pegged him to be.

"The same thing happened to Natsu…" Mirajane spoke softly, almost too soft for Lucy to catch. "Maybe he saw himself in Romeo-kun. Natsu's father hasn't come back ever since he left. Though, by father I meant a foster parent. And he's a dragon."

"A dragon?!" Lucy exclaimed in unbridled shock, falling off her seat. "Natsu was raised by a dragon?! How could I believe that?!"

"Right?" Mirajane smiled morosely, concurring with Lucy's initial thoughts. "He was found by that dragon in a forest when he was little, and learned words, cultures, and magic from him. But one day, the dragon disappeared from Natsu's side. That's Igneel, Natsu's father."

"I see…" Lucy murmured, clambering back on her seat.

"Natsu is…looking forward to seeing Igneel one day," Mirajane leaned over the bar top, smiling warmly at Lucy. "Isn't he cute?"

"Mages of Fairy Tail all carry something," Ráfaga butted into the conversation, his words somber. "Wounds, pain, suffering…everyone has their own story, and not every story is a happy one. But we're Fairy Tail, and even if the first chapters of our story are tearjerkers, we'll always end our journey happy, as a family. Right, Mira-chan?"

"That's right…" Mirajane smiled tenderly at Ráfaga, the two seemingly lost in their own world.

I feel like a third wheel here, Lucy thought, as she gazed at the open doors that Natsu left through. I wonder if he needs some help?

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"That Natsu…making a mess of things as usual," Makarov shook his head, as he sat in the basement of the Fairy Tail guild building. "Erza's gone to retrieve them, so it shouldn't be too long before they're back. They are, as Mira-chan says, probably the strongest team in Fairy Tail right now."

"I'm not concerned about them now, I'm concerned about what's going to come soon," Naruto shot back, balancing his wooden chair on two legs. "You know our newest member, Lucy Heartfilia right?"

"She's fitting in quite well, isn't she?" Makarov smiled, a hint of his perverted nature shining through his words.

"Yes, she is, but that's not the point," Naruto groaned at his guild master's antics. "Pay attention, will you. They've been ready for a while now. They have been ever since Gildarts left on the hundred-year mission, in fact. They've just been waiting for the right opportunity, the right motivation, the right moment to launch an attack. And thanks to our new member, it's coming."

"You mean…" Makarov drifted off, his eyes bulging from the news.

Naruto nodded gravely. "He's sent off the Ace already. Expect some nasty things to happen in a few days' time. He's one cruel son of a bitch, so get ready for some heartache and some righteous rage too. Of course, it's all bait for Fairy Tail to chomp at, bait he knows we will chomp at. I've been instructed to neutralise Fairy Tail's greatest threat when the ambush happens. It's a trap I don't recommend you spring, because honestly, that'll just reaffirm his stupid decision, and egg him on. You remember my briefing about his supposed trump cards, don't you?"

"What do you foresee happening then?" Makarov sighed, feeling his age more than ever.

"Victory for us, but plenty of damage to both sides. We need a bit of time to take out their various subdivisions, but Mystogan is already en route," Naruto answered honestly. "But no matter what, he's still just one person. He'll need time to take them out. And they'll be gunning for Lucy the moment Fairy Tail leaves home to retaliate, which means we'll need to stage a rescue attempt for her. That'll mean throwing ourselves at them again, thus ceding territorial advantage to them. I can surprise him, but you got to give me the order now."

"No…if you do that, you'll be one man against hundreds of hostiles and him," the Fairy Tail guild master shook his head. "I won't let anyone in my family do something so suicidal. Let them come. Being victims will strengthen our position in any case. You were the one to tell me to have faith in our youngsters, weren't you?"

"You're the master, it's your choice," Naruto shrugged, standing up smoothly. "You gotta go brush up on your acting skills then, old man."

"Tch. You're a million years too young to be giving me orders, fool," Makarov scoffed.