Lucy's POV

We walked along the bumpy unpaved road for hours. The burning red blush I felt on my face faded away too, but not the embarrassment.

I bit my cheek hard. There was more than enough time to let my thoughts run wild in my head, since Natsu wasn't talking to me [in slight humiliation,] and the other four were chatting quietly amongst themselves. I didn't feel like talking to them, since I knew Gray would probably bring up the previous conversation.

When Natsu and Happy brought me to the FairyTail Guild, I was overjoyed, especially because it was weirder and wilder than I'd thought. I chuckled to myself when I recalled the first few minutes. Natsu had [out of the blue] punched a guy, which caused them to fight, people got mad at them because they were throwing things all over the place, Gray, Natsus frienemy, got into a fight with him because... I didn't even remember. The two suddenly got into a fight, Elfman was running around screaming "Man!" Everyone was drunk, [especially Cana,] then Mira-Jane got clocked on the head with a beer bottle. Gray asked me if he could borrow his underwear because Natsu stole it, [HELL NO!] so I kicked him in the face, then Master finally had to intervene.

Eventually, Natsu, Happy, and I became a team of three. [Then I realized that I was tricked into helping them with a mission that required a blonde.] But we still did many missions together afterwards. I was always laughing at Natsus childish antics, even though it was sometimes annoying. The Dragon Slayer, the Exceed, and the Celestial Spirit mage had fun together.

I blinked, walking down memory lane again. I remembered the Duke of Everlue mission, my first job ever. We snuck into the mansion together and stole a book from the cruel man living inside the giant house. Unfortunately, Natsu pushed aside the 2,000,000Js in the job, since we technically didn't finish it. [The job was to destroy the book that the clients' father had written, not willingly. He wanted to get rid of the book that ended his father's life, but the book DAYBREAK had an unexpected twist to it and we gave it back to him.]

Or the time when we chased after the Dark guild Eisenwald. This was my first mission with Gray Fullbuster and Erza Scarlet. We had to chase the guild through a lot of things but we stopped them from using the deadly Death Magic, Lullaby, on the Guild Masters meeting.

Then Galuna Island, where Natsu dragged me along an S-class mission and we eventually broke the curse surrounding the demon villagers who lived there.

Or—

Well, we'd had plenty of adventures together, the five of us, and sometimes just original Team Natsu. I laughed at Erzas social-awkwardness, Grays stripping habit, Happy's obsession with Fish, and Natsus destructiveness. We became close.

But the previous conversation shook me. They actually heard that? I felt my face burn as I recounted it. Last night, I'd thought everyone was asleep while Natsu apologized to me, [and vice versa.]

I continued walking forwards, in a foggy daze, but I didn't notice the cliff until I started tipping over it. "Wah!" I cried, falling forwards but desperately trying to stop myself, snapping out of my thoughts. Suddenly, a strong hand grabbed my arm and pulled me back on safe ground.

I sighed in relief, and then my eyes followed the hand to the arms, then shoulders, then face. I blushed again and pushed him away, startled. "th-thanks." I mumbled. I had been so absorbed in my thoughts that I didn't realize that there was a right angle turn in the road, and I nearly fell to my death, but Natsu [OF ALL PEOPLE!] caught me.

I walked back to the group, Natsu behind me with a confused expression on his face. Gray wolf-whistled and I punched him on the arm, not gently. "Sh-shut up."

He wiped the grin off his face. I was deadly serious, and when that happened all the men knew I was as scary as Erza.

We walked for another few hours, and then it was lunch. We set up camp and ate, me complaining about blistering feet. When we started walking again, Natsu did something unexpected.

We all packed up camp, putting it in our bags and getting out of the bushes to walk some more. Happy was flying next to me, and Natsu was on the other side. I was looking at the scenery, but keeping some of my mind focused so I didn't fall off another cliff.

Suddenly, I felt strong arms wrap around my waist and I was hauled onto somebody's shoulder. I cried out. "Ah!" I punched the person in the face, hoping that it would stun the person enough so I could grab my keys.

He growled at me. "What was that for?" I looked down. The 'kidnapper' was Natsu, looking at me in annoyance.

"Why are you carrying me?" I demanded, [but actually really surprised,] and prepared to swing my bag around if he didn't let go.

"You were complaining that your feet hurt, so I hauled you over my shoulder. I'm helping you, but you punched me in the face. I don't get your logic Lucy." He sighed, and I wanted to yell at him that if he brushed off that punch so easily, then it shouldn't have been a problem.

I glanced at Kura and the others, who were trying hard not to laugh. Gray had his cheeks blown up and was holding his stomach trying so hard. Happy was the same, his wings twitching with each giggle. Kura and Aiko looked mildly amused, but Erza didn't at all.

I blushed on his shoulders. "You don't need to do that Natsu. I mean seriously. Let me go. This is uncomfortable." Physically and emotionally. "I'm fine. I was just complaining cause I could." He let me down, folding his arms behind his head.

I stepped towards Gray and Happy, and grabbed onto both of their ears. I pulled them towards Erza, and their eyes widened. "Nonononononono..! Please Lucy, have Pity!" they both cried.

"Do whatever you want with them." I told Erza smugly. The Knight smiled.

Shortly after, the two were wailing for forgiveness. Gray had been dragged off into the bushes, where we waited for them to return, and Happy's bag [full with fish,] was taken away and put on Erzas belt, in full view. He drooled as we walked, because of his nose twitching, I could tell that the smell was getting to him.

We didn't hear what Gray's punishment was, because it was mostly silent. There as only a flash of Erzas requipping light. No cries for mercy from Gray, and no explosions in the background. Nobody dared to look through and watch though, as all of Erzas punishments were horrible. When they emerged, Gray was red faced and breathing heavily, and sweating, looking shocked. He was physically unscathed. Erza was in her normal clothing, seemingly fine. When I asked what she did to him, Gray would shake his head hard and pale considerably. We left him alone to his own devices after that.

Practically everyone was left to their own devices. Nobody spoke, and everyone's eyes were slightly glazed over. We were all thinking of something. I was thinking about Team Natsus missions together, and how fun it was to be with the two idiots. Even though we were staying to protect Kura and Aiko, I didn't feel like a mission, or a burden. The members of FairyTail made everything fun, I thought, even when it was a very serious situation. I giggled. I remembered when Natsu was acting stupid—

Wait. That was pretty much every second of his life. I scoffed. What was I gonna do with my nakama sometimes? I mean, he could be serious, especially when you threatened his friends, but other than that he was the class clown. [Although he himself didn't get half his jokes.] He showed the childish side of him most, even though he could be caring sometimes. [Emphasis on 'sometimes.' It had to be very simple for him to understand problems, and even then, his usual answer was to punch the problematic persons face in.] He was a crazy lunatic, not understanding the meaning of overdose, or stop; it was simply not in his very small mental dictionary. I would have bet that Natsus first words were probably,

Destroy,

Fight,

And team mate.

It was the first words that he understood. The words,

Stupid,

Childish,

And stop,

On the other hand, were not. I grinned. Even though a lot of money on one of [a lot more than one actually,] our missions was sent back to the client for repair funds, he always got the job done. He was an amazing mage, more than I could ever be [even though he would protest against this, saying that I was smarter than him in other ways. This made me blush furiously that he was being so modest, even though we both knew it wasn't true.]

...

[Okay, maybe I was smarter than him, but I could never even compare to him in a fight.]

But anyways, Team Natsu was a great trio that worked well together, including the additions to Erza and Gray [both more powerful than me.] Luckily, most of the time it was just us three. Both of them were idiots, I was the one with the most sense, but their childish antics never allowed a dull moment. Their sense of logic was twisted sometimes, calling me the weirdo for example. You call a flying, talking blue cat and a crazy flame throwing/eating/headed maniac normal? Compared to them, I was a simple, young, innocent lady. [which I wasn't... totally.] Natsu may be simple on the outside, but sometimes his actions confused me. how could a random childish boy, getting into fights every day, destroying numerous building at a time, jumping up on the tables and dancing to nonexistent music in one moment, become a fierce fighting machine the next?

I shook my head. Natsu was a complex character. I finally settled on the analogy of his mind as a tunnel, mostly straightforward but also with many side tunnels too. I smiled, taking my thoughts away from Team Natsu and thinking about other things.

We continued walking until nightfall, eventually stopping and setting up camp again. "By tomorrow we'll be at the next town, so we should all rest. Whoever takes guard duty will wake either me or Gray or Kura early in the morning so that they can have some sleep."

"I'll stay up." Kura offered. No one disagreed with it, and Aiko joined her, so everyone got into their sleeping bags.

About an hour later, I looked up, wide awake.

"K-Kura? Aiko?" I asked. They looked at me, startled that I was still up.

"mm-hmm?" she looked at me, and I pushed myself onto my elbows, making sure that everybody was firmly asleep.

I was more embarrassed than ever, but there was no one to talk to, and I needed to explain it to somebody before I exploded. "w-well, could I ask you a question?" she looked confused. "A-a private one? Gray would mock me; Natsu's not a good person to talk to in these situations, and Happy and Erza's... Happy and Erza."

They blinked, but scooted over to make some room. "Girl issues?" Kura asked politely. I nodded, hoping my hair would cover my burning face.

"K-Kura? Did you ever have someone you liked, but you were afraid that if you asked him out, you would be afraid that he would say no and completely wreck your friendship? Like it would make it awkward if you ever saw each other again?" Kura nodded. Akio grinned. I knew I couldn't talk to Kura without talking to Aiko, and they both seemed understanding enough.

"I had a best friend, Ren. I told you about him on the train ride, remember?" I thought back to the train.

"you told me he died of a disease." I said.

The sword user ducked her head. Akio looked at her, gaze questioning. When was this? It was her turn to blush. "Not exactly. He died from the explosion I made. He died because of me." she shook her head. "Anyways, we were best friends, that much was true, and he very much reminded me of your friendship with your Dragon Slayer."

I decided to turn the quiet conversation to her. I wanted to know more about her past. "did you... like him? as more than a friend?"

"the three of us, Ren, Aiko, and me, were best friends since childhood, that is correct, but later, much later, only a few months before the Attack, I think I started to realize that I did like him... as more than a friend. It was like my emotions were beginning to bubble up, but I was afraid that the feelings weren't mutual. So I kept quiet, but it was killing me every time we saw each other. I wanted to be known as more than his best friend, but I was too scared to possibly break a crack in our friendship instead."

Aiko lifted her head proudly. "she told me, but I already expected it."

Kura raised an eyebrow at me. "Lucy, answer me honestly, or I know you'll never say it. Do you love Natsu?"

I flinched. Did I? Through all the adventures that we'd been through make me enjoy his company as more than a friend? I mean sure, he was my best friend and companion [along with Levy,] and he made me laugh and cry and helped me pick myself up... but still...

"IthikIvfallnfurthesamonharedidot..." I mumbled. Kura and Aiko leaned in.

"I didn't hear you. What did you say?"

I said it slower, but my tongue didn't seem to obey me anymore. "I-I think..." I swallowed. "Ithinki'vefallenforthesalmonhairedidiot." Kura leaned back, understanding my words.

"I'm not saying that you should tell him now, but the more you suppress it, the more it'll hurt." She glanced at me from the corner of her eyes. "I don't know if you've only just realized it, but no offense, it's obvious. You should tell him eventually. at some point, it may be too late."

My face burned. Did I seriously admit that I liked Natsu, even though I still wasn't sure? But instead of feeling humiliated, I was slightly proud and my feelings started to sort themselves out. [Okay, scratch that, I was feeling a little humiliated.] Even though it was slightly strange, before FairyTail I could have never imagined myself falling for a crazy lunatic nutcase like Natsu, [and his hair was PINK, for god's sake!] it was undeniable.

I fell in love with the king of all idiots.

Kura glanced at me again, smiling coyly at my expression. "Don't be afraid to tell him Lucy. I've only known you for the past week, not even. I've seen the way you two look at each other."

I blushed. "Was I really that obvious? I mean, I knew the FairyTail girls had already 'shipped' us two, but-"

She nodded. "Ohhhhhhhhhhh yeah."

" You guys were open books that everyone else could read, except you two." Aiko added. She seemed more like a dating expert than Kura was.

I muttered a curse under my breath. "I didn't know it was that obvious, even when I didn't know I liked him..."

Kura shrugged. "Well, I wouldn't ask him out now, especially with all the chaos around here, maybe when it's settled down a bit."

I nodded, lying back down and closing my eyes. "Thanks Kura, Aiko."

"Your—" I was so tired that I didn't hear the rest of her sentence.

We woke up in the morning and started to walk again. My feet hurt, and I even asked Gray if he could cover my feet in ice to numb them because they hurt so much. He obliged, but right after he did it, the pink haired Dragon Slayer really did throw me on his shoulders.

"Natsu!" I cried. "I'm perfectly capable to walk on my own!"

He looked up at me but didn't let me down. "Luce, I can smell the blood on your feet, and I can see you wincing when you walk. I'm carrying you."

I opened my mouth to protest, but didn't want to bother him more than I had to, especially because he was carrying me over his shoulders like a pack mule. At his decision. He looked tired, with rings underneath his eyes and looking oddly conflicted about something. He didn't talk, but carried me along like I was a featherweight. To him, I probably was.

Gray looked at me, about to laugh, but then remembered the punishment Erza gave to him last time and shut up, paling again. I wondered, yet again, what it was.

Everyone was silent. Nobody dared speak even though we all wanted someone else to. Finally, reaching the town, marching silently like a funeral parade, we stopped for a bite to eat. Natsu put me down. My feet were still numb from Gray's ice, but I was thankful for the numbness. I was pretty sure if I looked at my feet right now I would have gasped in shock.

We ate at a nearby cafe, deciding to stop and rest for the rest of the day, but this caused a major argument to break out.

Erza took a sip of her coffee, leaning back on her chair with a piece of strawberry cake in front of her. "I think that we should stay here and rest for the rest of the day before walking some more. We can look around and have a breath to relax."

Kura raised her eyebrow. "Erza, isn't there a train station here? We could just ride the train, couldn't we?"

Gray bumped in, eating a deli sandwich. "The train tracks here don't really go that far, and because of the lack of people, it costs too much."

Natsu agreed with him [for once.] "No more transportation!" I smiled at him. The only time he would agree with his frienemy is when it involved not moving on a vehicle. Suddenly, he remembered something. "wait, what about Lucy?"

Erza looked at him curiously. "What about me/her?" we both asked. [Inside, I was debating if I felt any different to Natsu just because I realized my admiration to him. was it wrong to look at him any different now? would he be different now?]

"I mean what about her feet? She can't walk that well."

I felt a bush creep up on my neck [I'd been turning red a lot lately, I noticed.] "Natsu, its fine. I can walk on my own."

He ignored my sentence and turned back to Erza. "Shouldn't we stay here for an extra day to let her feet heal?"

I protested against this. "It's fine Natsu. Seriously, it's okay." Even though my feet did hurt, I could walk and I wouldn't stop the marching band because of it.

He glanced at me from the corner of his eye, his onyx eyes searching mine. "Fine then, if your feet are 'perfectly fine', take off your boots and socks." I was surprised at Natsus thinking. He had me there for once. My feet were probably bloody and blistered and likely very gross. It wouldn't help my case if I showed them the mess.

I waved him off, turning away from the conversation, but still listening. Natsu smiled, [possibly in relief?] The rings under his eyes and the way he was moving, slow and lethargic, unlike his usual movements, told me he was tired and was ready to snap.

Erza blinked slowly. Everyone was tired. "You're right, Natsu."

I stared at her. No way was she agreeing with him! I was hoping that Titania would convince [more like make,] Natsu to walk, but the stubborn boy refused to until tomorrow.

Finally, it was settled. We would stay here for the rest of the day, sleep outside of town, come back, and then leave at noon. It was the only thing Natsu would accept, and even he was skeptical. I protested against this.

"We're on the run from criminals that want to hurt-slash-kidnap-slash-steal away Kura. We can't let me stop you, or we're gonna get caught eventually."

Kura had been oddly silent for the last few minutes, calmly eating her wrap. "Lucy, you need rest. Natsu said he smelled blood on your feet."

Aiko finished for her. "Take it from us, who walked-slash-flew all the way to your guild, with long detours. If your feet start to bleed, it's bad. If it gets worse, then later we won't be able to move in a week. It's a day now or a week later." She quieted down.

I pushed the chair back. "Fine. Whatever. I'm going now." wincing when I took off, I walked quickly back to the deciding point of camp, sheltered from view by some bushes. I sighed, and then took off my boot. I wanted to see how bad it was.

I widened my eyes, and quickly pulled my sock back on. It was bad. [A.N. no detail given.]

I heard water nearby, so I went deeper into the forest and saw the tiny stream. it was no more than a trickle, but I took off my boots again, but not the socks, and let my feet soak in the warm water. I sighed.