And I'm sort of back! I've noticed these chapters of the present are mostly Natsu's p.o.v and im sorry to say it will be for this chapter too. Yet I wasn't sure if people wanted me to do Lucy's p.o.v for the next one or shall I go with the flow of things? I am running on 4 hours sleep per day and then spending the rest doing some sort of work, so I apologise if the distance between chapters are long. Thanks for reading and have a good day~

To 21hauptman: I'm happy that you're happy! Thank you for reading my stories if anything and leaving reviews, I can only hope this chapter meets your standards~

Chapter 11

Time: 5:35pm Date: 1st June **** (present) Place: The Dragoneel household/ Lucy's house

Perspective: 3rd person/Natsu Dragoneel

Bubbling noises drowned the room, while the air was steamed over, both clouding Natsu's senses. If it wasn't such a vibrant room, filled with lively people, then maybe it would be a place where someone would be kidnapped.

His mother gently tapped her foot to the food, estimating the time of what would be on a clock to the sound of it tapping off the floor. Her once vibrant cyan hair now had streaks of grey running through, giving away her true age. Despite her appearance, Natsu had always thought of his mother to be a young adult; mature enough to live by herself and help others while still being childish and being a klutz.

His father sat across the table from him, pretending to be reading a paper. Discreetly (or from what he thought was) he would peer over to his mother, watching her figure and allow a gentle curve of a smile to flow on his lips. He, himself, also had greys running though his hair, instead of blending in like his mothers had, the contrast was too strong against the red. His papers would falter and start to slip from his grasp, by this time he would realise and go back to 'reading' them.

Natsu shook his head. The images were gone.

The lively room was dull. The steam came from a mixture of cigarettes and the noodles boiling in the pan. There was only his brother, Mavis and Wendy sitting at the table. No papers, no imitation. This was the real world.

The others had already eaten, it wasn't unexpected, they didn't agree with each other's tastes. Besides, no one would cook a homemade meal, not after their mother.

Turning the noodles to a low temperature, Natsu took a seat at the table and peered up at Mavis. She was staring straight at him, no hesitation or nervousness. It was comforting to him, to know that there was no fight to be dominant. He then turned his gaze to Zeref, who just like Mavis, held no threat. Instead he merely stretched out, rewarding him with a satisfying click before giving out a sigh of content.

"So you've heard?" Zeref questioned, he was forward and didn't like taking a subtler root.

"About our new neighbour?" Natsu knew where this could be heading, but it only depended on how he worded things.

"Of course. I heard that she's a lovely young girl, your age-"

His jaw clenched and fixed together.

"Long blonde hair, yes, just like that girl you used to be friends with, huh? Now if I'm correct-"

His hands clenched and un-clenched at a steady pace, trying to calm his heart.

"Her name was Luc-"

"Zeref, you know exactly who she is. Be direct with me, I'm pained enough with your torture, what do you want?"

Zeref sighed once more, but this time in boredom. "I want you to go introduce yourself as her neighbour." Startled, Natsu stood up. He couldn't question it, but something about being forced to speak with her didn't sit well. He had seen how she had reacted earlier that day so to pester her at her door, would surely raise some awareness.

"Why would I do that? You know how she's been ignoring me, she knows damn well I live here, why introduce myself again?" Walking to his noodles he rinsed the excess water out into the sink before placing them in a bowl.

"The thought is that she would have to talk to you. Isn't that interesting?" He leaned onto Mavis, both reflecting the others facial expressions, understanding what was happening, Zeref continued. "She's the one giving you the reason."

"She wouldn't think like that, moving next door to have a reason to speak to me but ignore me at school, yeah I'm sure that's why she lives next door." Natsu snapped back, bitter memories were arising and he didn't like talking to his family in such a manor.

"Wouldn't she?" Zeref tone, just like how his father would hold papers and peer to his mother, pretended not to know. The same was those papers weren't read, the tone was fake.

It was something about that which hung in Natsu's mind. Why did Lucy move next door? What was her intentions and why did she want to get involved again?

Setting his bowl on the table. Food untouched, he silently reached for his coat before closing the door with a click. The image of his siblings sitting at the table, half shadows due to the steam, with mocking smirks across their lips told him that it was inevitable not to go around Lucy's. If he was lucky the walk would be two minutes long, long enough to sort out his mind and put on a front.

Stepping up, he was greeted by the old oak door, and repeated the greeting by placing three gentle knocks upon it. After a minute of silence, he debated his actions before deciding that he would prefer to be at home than to be ignored. When the door creaked open.

Her smile was gentle, and he was having a hard time processing how genuine it actually was.

Her voice had a hint of sarcasm, and a slight purr (that is if you knew her voice so well and even then it was hard to pick up on).

"Hello Natsu."

This tone of writing will lighten up, I'm just implying the ways of how people live in this town ~ reviews are always accepted and I will always reply!