010 : Surprise Surprise

Chapter 1

Lucy sighed as she ran a hand through her bright blond hair, choosing to lean back in her stool a little so that the back two legs supported all her weight while still managing to balance. Her tired hazel eyes moved from the half full glass in her other delicate hand to the ticking clock on the wall to find it already half past five.

Groaning once again in annoyance, she allowed all the legs of the chair to hit the ground once again and for her head to rest on the slightly cool counter, the striking sunset light that was filtering though the windows of the newly built guild and warming her back doing nothing to lift her soured mood. She had come to the guild bright and early this morning, seven o'clock sharp, in hopes of catching a nice, fat mission with lots of pay to actually pay the rent on time but it just seemed that today wasn't her day. Even the interesting book that she'd been reading had suddenly gone into a horrid plot twist that had made her want to chuck it to the other side of the guild or ask Natsu to burn it for her.

Speaking of the idiot, Lucy looked out the corner of her left eye to the sleeping teenager who was slouched over next to her, mouth wide open to reveal sharp teeth and a still fiery tongue as he snored. He had recently had a fight with Gray not a few hours ago that had turned a little too heated when Gray brought something up that Lucy hadn't been able to hear, but had made Natsu go into a fit of annoyed rage. It if wasn't for Lucy interveining midway, she wouldn't have doubted if they had to build the guild yet again.

The guild...Lucy allowed a ghost of a smile to adorn her pretty face as she fully turned her down head to look at him, thinking of how that seemingly meaningless first meeting with him, which seemed now so far away, had caused her to join this guild and for such a drastic change to happen in her life.

Letting her smile grow a little more in chagrin, she finally realized how she never really did thank him for all that he'd done for her, welcoming her into his guild with open arms and a wide smile that she'd never really experienced before rather then her blurry memories of her mother long past.

But her thoughts of long overdue thank-you's was interrupted as Natsu gave a sudden snort, that made Lucy slightly jump, and he woke with a start with dark eyes blinking fast as he saw Lucy's face close to his.

"What's up weirdo?" He asked with a careless, lopsided smile that made Lucy roll her eyes.

Screw saying thank-you to him now.

"Nothing, idiot. I was just thinking about going back to my apartment since I don't think there's going to be anyone coming in with an awesome mission today."

"Hn...I guess you're right." Natsu yawned his approval as he scratched his mass of rosy colored hair.

"So I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?" Lucy asked as she got up, not forgetting to give a still sleeping Happy (having fallen asleep from eating too many fish) who was sprawled out in on the counter in front of the pair, the blue animal unconciously starting to purr as Lucy stroked him.

"You bet." Natsu voiced as he gave her a wide smile that she eagerly returned, giving a final farewell wave before she walked out of her home and to her apartment.

As she unlocked and opened her apartment door, she was surprised as she saw a letter had been slipped through the crack of her door and was now politely sitting at her feet.

Crouching down after closing the door, she picked it up and her eyebrows immideatly furrowed as she flipped it over and saw her family's red wax seal.

She put the letter on her small coffee table in front of her couch before marching over to her small fireplace and starting to put wood in it before finding yesterday's paper and her matches, lighting a page of the newspaper and putting it on the logs so that they'd start burning. After a few minutes, the fire was now a good size and Lucy could feel the warmth it radiated, yet that wasn't the reason she had started it.

Turning back to the letter, the swiped it up and walked back to the fire, ready to throw it in.

But just as her fingers was about to let go and chuck it in to burn away, she hesitated. Bringing her arm back, she allowed her brown eyes to stare at the seemingly innocent white envelope before cursing and ripping it open with a finger. Her curiosity always did manage to get the better of her.

Folding out the paper inside, she felt like her eyes were going to pop out in surprise as she started reading the document.

Or should she say flamboyant party invitation.

A/N: Alright, in this drabble series I'm actually gonna try something new and am gonna intermingle a 10 chapter story with the themes 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 90, and finally 100 in those chapter spots. So the next chapter will be in chapter 20 (so after another nine unconnected drabbles) so stay tuned! and future chapters will be at least a little bit longer, so don't worry ;) As always, thanks for reading and feeback of any kind is well appreciated