Hey guys! Merry (late) Christmas! And Happy New Year! I know, I'm late again. This fan fiction has been beta-read by . A shout of thanks to her! Enjoy the new chapter!
CHAPTER TEN
M.M.M
Previously:
After a bit of voting, Fairy Tail was selected the winner anyways. When they exited the auditorium, Natsu streched and said, "Am I the only one who wants a break from all this mess?"
"Nope. Guys, any ideas?" Lucy asked.
"Drinking competition!" Cana exclaimed.
"Cana, we're underage!" Lucy exclaimed.
"Barbie doll shopping!" Wendy and Erza squealed.
"Are you fucking serious?" Gajeel and Gray screamed.
"Trip to the library?" Levy asked timidly.
"Maybe we'll do that later." Jellal said timidly.
"Swimming?" Juvia said absent-mindedly.
"Hell yeah!" Natsu yelled.
"How can you have so much energy for that?" Lucy commented.
"LET'S GO SWIMMING!" The rest of the group except Levy, Lucy and Jellal yelled.
Soon, they were left in the dust. They sweat dropped. "So, does that mean we are the only sane ones in this group?" They together said.
X.X
A DAY BEFORE CHRISTMAS:
(Midnight)
A seventeen year old girl crept up to her older sister and tapped gently on her shoulder while she slept in her sleeping bag.
"Hey sis? This is important." She whispered.
Mira groaned and turned. "Not now, Lisa. I need my sleep."
Lissana made an impatient noise. "Sis, it's regarding N-A-L-U."
Mira's eyes shot open.
X.X
AFTERNOON:
"For the last time, Erza, we're not having that in the house!" Lucy cried loudly, as she tried her best (with help from Wendy and Juvia) to pull her cousin away from an enormous strawberry cake, (a lawn ornament) to keep as a Christmas decoration.
People were giving them incredulous looks, as they passed by them with bags of shopping towards their rooms. Lucy felt like Disapparating into thin air, only to remember that this was Fiore, not Harry Potter universe.
"Erza, look! There's a 50% discount on strawberry cakes in that bakery!" Cana tactfully said, pointing at some random cake shop. Within minutes, Erza Scarlet was nowhere to be seen.
Lucy sat down with her bags of decorations near the ornament. "Whew! Thanks a ton, Cana!" Cana gave a wink. "Anytime, girl!"
"So, what's left to be bought?" Juvia asked, consulting the list that Mirajane had given her while she and Lissana had disappeared to do some secret business.
The girls had offered to do the Christmas shopping, while the boys had offered to clean the house and prepare the snacks (all on Elfman and Natsu). The elders were delighted to hear this, and had gone to the beach, as a break from the youngsters.
Mirajane had made a list of what to buy, and then according to plan, the girls would split up and buy presents. Then, they would head to the beach house, and while the boys would head to buy their presents, while the girls decked up the house. By evening, the adults would head home and then, the celebrations would begin.
"Hm…it's time to split up." Juvia said, after consulting the list. "Wendy and Juvia are heading to do our shopping together." Saying so, she placed an arm around the little girl and headed towards their destination.
"Levy?" Lucy asked. Levy shook her head.
"Sorry Lucy. I promised I would go shopping with Cana." Levy said. "I hope you don't mind." She added quickly.
Lucy shook her head. "Nah…it is fine. Maybe I'll bump into Erza while shopping." She said, and laughed.
Cana cackled. "Well, see you later D-cups."
X.X.
"Ugh…why is it so tough shopping for guys?!" Lucy cried out of the blue, startling some other customers.
She was on a floor dedicated to discount-related stuff. So far, she had bought key chains for some of the girls: A blue-cat shaped one for Wendy, a red-rimmed glasses for Levy, a cake for Erza and a key chain shaped like a pack of cards for Cana.
For Lisanna and Mirajane, she had bought t-shirts which said 'More than one shade of ME!' (A.N: Hope you get the joke!)
While for Juvia, she had bought a set of nail-paints, all in the shade of blue.
All these items were bought with discounts all above 20%. Now, she was finding difficulty buying something for the guys, because whatever they liked, were the ones without any discount. She sighed and ran her hand through her hair as she thought of some gift ideas. She almost on the verge of 'Googling' it, when an idea struck her like a thunderbolt.
X.X
Lucy glanced at the jewelry shop first after she opened her eyes after one minute of intense thinking. Her plan was to buy something from the shop on which she laid her eyes first on after opening them. Then, she would enter the shop and whatever section caught her eye, she would buy something from that. And whoever she thought of first in there, would get whatever she bought from that particular shop.
She entered it, and looked around. She saw the imitation accessories first. She went there, and thought who the heck she would buy something from here. Then out of nowhere she thought of Gajeel.
"No, not him! He already has enough piercings!" Inner Lucy cried.
"Piercings?" Lucy said to herself.
She grinned broadly.
X.X
"I can't believe I found myself here." Lucy sighed. It was a clothes shop.
"Clothes? Who do you want to buy that for? Gray?"Inner Lucy chuckled.
"Curse you!" Lucy yelled, and gained not just a present for Gray, but also quite some bewildered looks.
X.X
"Hm…what the heck am I supposed to buy from here?" Lucy mentally yelled.
She had found herself in a hair-care and hair-dye store. She looked around and her eyes landed on a bright colorful pot which said, 'Try the dazzling rose for girls today!'
"Wait a second…" She grinned broadly, and didn't need the help of her inner self either.
X.X
"A book store? Now who's going to like books other than me and Levy?" Lucy thought.
"I don't know. Maybe that Je…Jelly someone." Inner Lucy said thoughtfully.
"You know that's not a bad idea." Lucy agreed, and absently picked up a book and headed for the door.
"Excuse me, ma'am? You have to pay for comics too." The cashier called out to her.
X.X
It was 6:00 pm. Lucy rushed with her many parcels and reached at the meeting spot.
"Lucy! You're late by fifteen minutes! We were supposed to reach home by six!" Erza scolded.
"How were you…how were you able to buy all that in just half an hour?" Lucy panted, and pointed at Erza, who had about a dozen bags dangling from each arm.
"Oh these? It took no time at all. Well, the parcels on my right are all for me, while the ones of my left are for you guys! Christmas is the joy of getting!" She said happily.
"Giving." Wendy and Levy replied automatically.
Mirajane had a really suspicious bulge in her jacket pockets. So did Lisanna. Cana raised her eyebrows at them, but said nothing. She was the only one who noticed.
"Whatever. Let's head home." Juvia said. "Gray-sama must be waiting for Juvia."
Lucy and Wendy sighed.
X.X
EVENING:
"Merry Christmas!" All the residents of the beach house raised their glasses of champagne, except the teenagers, who held smoothies or juices, cheered and clinked their glasses together.
"Come here, Lucy!" Erza yelled happily, and squeezed Lucy into a bone-crushing hug.
"Ugh…get of me, ERZA!" Lucy yelled, and tried to get Erza off her.
The older women laughed at the two.
"Layla, isn't that just like how you and Eileen were? She was always protective of you, and always hugging you for every reason!" Mika laughed and said. Suddenly, something distracted them from watching Erza and Lucy.
"And take that, you icy bastard!" Natsu yelled, and gave Gray a blow.
"And what was that for, you stupid fireball?" Gray growled, and rubbed the back of his head.
"Merry Christmas blow!" He said, and laughed.
"What the f…." Gray began, but saw Mika's glare and Wendy's innocent and curious face. "Falalalalalalala! 'Tis the season to be joyful, fa la la la la la la la!"
"And that reminds me of you and Grandeeney!" Jennifer said with a laugh. "Why, the two of you were as good as boys! I wonder how your daughter didn't inherit your boyish traits, Grandee!"
"No, Gray is just like his dad!" Mika insisted.
"Yeah! And Natsu's as dumb as Igneel!" Grandeeney protested.
"Honey…" Igneel said, and cleared his throat.
Meanwhile, Wendy and Juvia just looked at their parents and smiled.
"It turned out quite fine, didn't it?" Metallicana said with a smile from behind, starling the two.
"Oh, that's true Uncle Metal-san!" Wendy said with a smile.
"After all we did put in a lot of efforts! I'm just glad the adults liked it!" Lisanna piped in.
And indeed, the house looked like a treat. The little chili lights around the windows, the streamers decorating the hall and stairs, made it really look like Christmas Eve. They were outside, under the beautiful night sky, and near the dark blue sea.
"That's right Lisanna. By the way, where's Mira?" Juvia asked.
"Oh, she's…gone to the bathroom." Lisanna said after a moment's hesitation.
"You're lying." Jellal called out, who had been getting the cake, and had missed some of the conversation, but come back just in time to hear Juvia.
"Not." Lisanna said firmly.
"You hesitated. Didn't she, Cana?" Jellal looked at the brunette, who nodded.
"You and Mira have been acting fishy all day. Don't pretend that you don't know." Cana said sharply. "What have you guys been doing?"
"Err…" Lisanna started, but was interrupted by Gajeel.
"Jellal, can you help me with the music system? The adults wanted to walk to the beach after dinner, so we guys have the house to ourselves. Natsu and I thought of a Christmas karaoke, so what say?" Gajeel asked.
"That's perfect! We could even have some songs to dance on!" Lisanna chirped, glad to be rescued by the unsuspecting Gajeel.
"Uh…" Gajeel said with a sweat drop, but was pushed aside by Lisanna who shouted really loud to the girls, "PARTY DANCE AFTER DINNER!" And the girls cheered while Gajeel groaned.
"Now no one will listen to the song I wanted to sing…" Gajeel sighed looking at Levy.
X.X
NIGHT:
The party of the night began for real. The teenagers went quite crazy, having secret pleasures like having alcohol without their parents' supervision. Natsu mesmerized all with his guitar, while Gajeel's Classic turned all to stone except Levy. Wendy was all dizzy, knocked out by a careless dose of the booze.
Juvia was clapping while Mira and Lisanna sang and danced to IDGAF. Gray looked at her curiously. She looked at him and smiled widely, and pulled him there and made him dance with him. Gray hesitated at first, but then grinned and joined her as well. Their extremely cute interaction made Mira and Lisanna swoon.
Jellal and Erza were holding hands and looking into each other's eyes, something they hadn't been able to do with the adults around who were sure to tease them. Cana was having the time of her life by having her favorite booze, and competing with Elfman for the best drinker award. It didn't matter that they were all below the eligible age for drinking; they were after all enjoying their freedom without their parents.
Lucy meanwhile was torn between closing her ears to Gajeel's horrendous singing, or singing with Mira and Lisanna, or helping Wendy up (who was beyond help) or yelling at Cana and Elfman (after all Lucy was the President) or cheering the cute couple holding hands.
Noticing her confusion, Natsu smiled and walked up to her.
"Wanna come along and sing?" He asked.
She put her hand to her ear, and shouted, "I can't hear you!"
Natsu repeated his question to her loudly this time. She grinned widely and nodded.
Natsu grabbed the mike from Gajeel ("What the hell, man!") and tapped on it to shut up everyone. Mira-Lisanna stopped squealing, Gray and Juvia stopped dancing, Levy stopped having hearts instead of pupils in her eyes, Jellal-Erza stopped looking into each other's eyes, Elfman and Cana stopped yelling "More Booze!" or "Man!" at each other, and Wendy woke up.
"We have a-something to present." Natsu said, winking at Lucy.
X.X
While the teens were partying, the adults were walking in the sand and reminiscing their past memories. The wind swept Layla's hair on her face and she pushed it behind. Igneel caught up with her, as she was quite ahead of them.
"Not lonely are you?" He asked with concern.
"Nope." She replied with a smile and looked up at the night sky. It was beautiful to behold.
"Missing him, are you?" Igneel asked. Layla nodded with a sad smile.
"Hm…but I have to move on. That's what Jude would have wanted, and so would have Lucy." Layla said, and after a deep breath, smiled brightly at him. Igneel grinned back.
"I know how you feel. Even though he was the tsundere in our group, forever in his books and shooting me glares for goodness knows why, he truly loved you. By the way, why would he glare at me so much?" Igneel asked.
"That's because he thought that you were dating Layla." Grandeeney said, finally catching up with them. Layla laughed, while Igneel shook his head with suppressed laughter.
"Don't laugh! He did, and so did I! You two were so close; you were mistaken by many to be a couple!" Grandeeney said indignantly.
"Uh huh." Mika agreed, and ran to keep pace with the three.
"Well, I knew the truth that they were best friends, and also that Mika was dating Silver since second year of high school." Jennifer said with a sly grin.
"WHAT!" Grandeeney, Layla and Igneel turned and gaped at Mika.
Mika smiled nervously and shot a death glare at the smirking Jennifer. While she was being interrogated by the three, Metallic Ana sidled up to Jennifer and bumped fists with her.
"Good one." He said with a fanged grin.
"Thanks." Jennifer smirked.
X.X
All turned to look at Natsu and Lucy and asked in one chorus, "What?"
"It's a game between me and Lucy. Simple rules: Sing whatever your heart says, or reply to the song. You guys can help us by suggesting songs. Want me to start?" Natsu asked Lucy. She nodded nervously.
Gajeel grinned when he thought of a song and whispered it Natsu, who grinned in turn.
He strummed his guitar, and started playing.
Oh-oh, ooh
You've been running' round, running' round, running' round throwing' that dirt all on my name
'Cause you knew that I, knew that I, knew that I'd call you up
You've been going round, going round, going round every party in L.A.
'Cause you knew that I, knew that I, knew that I'd be at one, oh
I know that dress is karma, perfume regret
You got me thinking 'bout when you were mine, oh
And now I'm all up on ya, what you expect?
But you're not coming home with me tonight
You just want attention, you don't want my heart
Maybe you just hate the thought of me with someone new
Yeah, you just want attention, I knew from the start
You're just making sure I'm never getting' over you
Lucy blushed a deep red, but then grinned, just when he reached the right pitch, she started singing. Natsu grinned when she sang the song, and strummed its notes.
F-R-I-E-N-D-S
That's how you f****** spell "friends"
F-R-I-E-N-D-S
Get that shit inside your head
No, no, yeah, uh, ah
F-R-I-E-N-D-S
We're just friends
So don't go look at me with that look in your eye
You really ain't going nowhere without a fight
You can't be reasoned with, I'm done being polite
I've told you one, two, three, four, five, six thousand times
Haven't I made it obvious? (Have I not made it obvious?)
Haven't I made it clear? (I made it very clear)
Want me to spell it out for you? (Yeah)
F-R-I-EN-D-S (I said F-R-I-EN-D-S)
Haven't I made it obvious? (I made it very obvious)
Haven't I made it clear? (I made it very clear)
Want me to spell it out for you?
F-R-I-EN-D-S
F-R-I-EN-D-S
Natsu grinned and started playing one of his favorites which got catcalls from the audience. Jellal smirked and put his arm around Erza's waist. She squeaked, blushed but smiled in the end.
Ooh, don't we look good together?
There's a reason why they watch all night long
Yeah, know we'll turn heads forever
So tonight I'm gonna show you off
When I'm walkin' with you
I watch the whole room change
Baby, that's what you do
No, my baby, don't play
Blame it on my confidence
Oh, blame it on your measurements
Shut that shit down on sight
That's right
We out here drippin' in finesse
It don't make no sense
Out here drippin' in finesse
You know it, you know it
We out here drippin' in finesse
It don't make no sense
Out here drippin' in finesse
You know it, you know it
Lucy blushed, walked away, but Natsu didn't stop playing. Having enough of his flirting, she sang:
Girls, we do, whatever it will take
'Cause girls don't want, we don't want our hearts to break in two
So it's better to be fake, can't risk losing
In love again, ba-abe
This is how to be a heartbreaker
Boys they like a little danger
We'll get him falling for a stranger
A player, singing I lo-lo-love you
How to be a heartbreaker
Boys they like the look of danger
We'll get him falling for a stranger
A player, singing I lo-lo-love you
'Cause I lo-lo-lo-love you
At least I think I do
Natsu sighed and sang with his eyes gleaming with sincerity:
But you're my everything, (you're my)
Everything (you're my)
I'm sorry
I love you
I'm sorry
I need you girl, why do I fall in love and say goodbye alone?
I need you girl, why do I need you again although I know I'm gonna be hurt?
I need you girl, you're beautiful
I need you girl, you're so cold,
I need you girl, (I need you girl),
I need you girl
They were no quite close, and Lucy was almost backed up against a wall. She looked away from his onyx eyes which were looking at nothing except her own brown ones. The entire room had gone quite. Erza didn't storm as she usually did, because this time, she was with Natsu. Jellal smiled proudly at how Natsu had admitted his feelings to Lucy. Mira and Lisanna were waiting with bated breath, while Wendy was redder than a tomato. Gray and Gajeel looked at each other, wondering what would happen. Cana was saying in an audible range, "The booze must have released Natsu's hidden side!" Elfman who wasn't so drunk yet, shushed her. Juvia's mouth was open, and she was quite happy that Lucy wasn't her love rival anymore.
"Look at me." Natsu said quietly.
Hesitating, Lucy looked at those eyes which she had adored.
"Why? Why me?" She whispered. "Am I not your type?"
Natsu shook his head, and said, "You never had to be something called my type. You were always close to my heart. I was just too stupid not to realize it."
This extremely emotional conversation was spoken in such a low volume, that the others had crane their necks to hear them, which they couldn't anyway.
Lucy blushed, if possible, redder. She somehow escaped Natsu's presence and ran somewhere.
Erza called out to her, but she didn't listen. After that, there was utter chaos. Wendy tripped over Juvia's boots and caused Gray to fall over Juvia. Gajeel tried to catch Wendy, but ended landing his butt on Elfman's head. Levy tried to catch her best friend, but ended up falling flat on her face due to one of Cana's rolling bottles. Jellal tried to keep him and his girlfriend safe, but tripped over the cord of the mike and landed his face on the dinner table somehow. Erza tried to hunt for Lucy but in vain, was covered in head to toe in streamers. Cana looked at the mess, and started laughing loudly and collapsed on the big couch. Mira had quiet long ago been crushed under Elfman.
Only two persons survived the chaos. One of them was a pinkette desperately searching for the love of his life, while the other was a matchmaker desperate to see two friends end up together.
Meanwhile, a certain blonde was hiding beneath the kitchen table. Suddenly, she heard footsteps coming closer and closer by the second. She quickly drew her legs closer. But her platform heels made it impossible for her to hide, as their heels were so long. The pink glimmer of it was so noticeable.
She closed her eyes, preparing for the worst when a familiar voice made her open her eyes and sigh with relief.
"Here you are!" Lisanna whispered with relief. She had crouched down and was peeking
"Thank goodness! I thought you were Natsu for a moment." Lucy sighed.
"I'm not, but why did you run away from him?" She asked.
"I'm…I'm not ready for…" She started, but looked away. Lisanna sighed.
"Anyways, where you are hiding is very noticeable. I have a perfect place for you to hide." Lisanna said.
"Where?" Lucy asked.
"Just follow me." Saying so, Lisanna got up, and pulled Lucy along with her. Lucy didn't resist, trusting her. Deep down, she wanted Natsu's feelings, but somehow, she felt that she didn't deserve his feelings. He was too kind when she got to know him better, and cursed herself for thinking that he was just a pigheaded delinquent. He deserved someone who was worth his love, not her, she decided with a sinking feeling in her heart.
"Here we are!" Lisanna said, showing a corner in the hall which was quite secluded, and Lucy didn't know it existed until now.
"Thanks." Lucy whispered, and Lisanna gave her a smile.
While walking away from the hiding place, she sighed and said to herself, "What a fool…"
X.X
Natsu, meanwhile, looked everywhere for Lucy. She was nowhere to be found. Not in the girls' room, nor in the kitchen, nor in the storage room where they both had practiced for the ISCDC.
"Where are you?" He whispered.
Still nowhere. He sat down on the ground and traced the part of the floor where Lucy had sat on whenever they took a break.
Was she disgusted by him? Well, he didn't blame her. She was a girl in a million, while he was just a fool in love. He had nothing to offer her except his heart. They had few similarities, but they had such different opinions.
Maybe he didn't deserve her love. After all, he had treated her so badly. How could she just forget it all and accept his love? He didn't blame her. She was of a different level altogether, and she would definitely fall for someone more intelligent or more mature.
Just then, someone interrupted him from his thoughts.
"There you are! You don't know how worried all of us were!" Lisanna cried, and pulled Natsu out of the room as well as his thoughts.
They were back in the hall, and Natsu saw that everyone was finally coming back to their senses. Still, there was no sign of Lucy. Disappointment filled his eyes, and he sat down.
Wendy felt sorry for him and sat down next to him. She patted his back. He smiled at his sister, and gave her a side hug. Everyone, including Cana, was feelings sober now, and there was an air of gloom.
A gentle tap on his shoulder made him turn around. While everyone else started looking for Lucy, Natsu looked at the girl who found him in the storage room and gave a curious look. Wendy got up, and started looking for Lucy too.
A fair finger on her lips and movement beckoning Natsu to follow her, Lisanna led Natsu to a corner far away from the dinner table. She left him alone there, and went back to her sister with a sneaky grin.
Natsu curiously looked around. Why had Lisanna got him here? All of his queries were solved when; he saw a streak of golden, behind the side of a cupboard.
Lucy, meanwhile, was wondering why Lisanna had brought her here. True, it was a very good hiding place, but it prevented her from knowing what the heck was happening outside.
Suddenly, the cupboard shifted, and she saw a pair of onyx eyes. She squeaked, and tried to escape, but Natsu blocked the way, and she was forced to look into his eyes again. This was the first time after the ISCDC, that they had come so close. Both were blushing madly.
"Caught ya." Natsu whispered with a heartwarming grin that made Lucy's heart melt.
"Ah-HA! Mistletoe alert, lovebirds!" Mira and Lisanna cried.
Both looked up, and sure enough, there was the wretched green plant hanging above them.
"Merry Mistletoe Magic, the two of you! My X'mas present to you!" Lisanna hollered, and giggled. The rest of the residents gathered, and stared at them. All waited with bated breath.
Lucy looked at Natsu again. Those lovely eyes which she had adored, The emotion in them were so true, she felt like such a fool again.
And with the quickness of a Seeker, his lips met hers.
"You're such a fool, Lucy Heartifilia."
"I know. And you're a disaster."
And that's a wrap! OMG, that took forever to write. I have been writng this chapter since Christmas, and it has taken so much time! Once again, I would like to thank for her help, and lots of love to her!
Anyways, I hope you liked it, 'cause I loved writing this! Besides, I loved adding the HP quirks in here, because I'm also such a big HP fan!
Songs in this fic:
Attention – Charlie Puth (Natsu)
FRIENDS – Marshemello, Anne-Marie (Lucy)
Finesse – Bruno Mars (Natsu)
Heartbreaker – Marina and the Diamonds (Lucy)
I NEED U – BTS (Natsu)
Also about the mention of 'fools' in this fic so many time in the end, it was based of the cover of BTS of Fools. I wrote that part listening to that part!
Anyways, this is where I leave the fic for the time-being! Thanks to for beta-reading it, and you lovely people for reading it!
Give it a fav if you liked it; follow it if you want an epilogue or two and review if you loved it! Also tell me what you felt about this chapter.
Lots of love,
~Tia
P.S: Let's reach 50 reviews!