Lucy eyed Salutem, Iracundior - the name given to Natsu's - and a third stag Lucy had never seen, admitting that Gray had been right in thinking it more sensible to take the stags. She casually rolled her shoulder and winced when a stab of pain ran through it. The serpent hadn't gone straight through, but it sure as hell had left a nice-sized wound for her to deal with.
"Stop that," Natsu suddenly snapped, working to make sure the stags were situated with Gray. A rare occurrence, Lisanna had told Lucy before heading inside with a frowning Juvia. Juvia hadn't look too pleased that Lucy was going and she wasn't.
"Stop what?" Gray snapped right back at him, annoyed that Natsu couldn't seem to shut up.
"I wasn't talking to you, but I wouldn't mind if you stopped breathing," Natsu muttered before shooting Lucy a sharp look. "I feel it when you do that, and I don't like it. Cut it out."
"Someone's in a bad mood… Sorry that I was attacked by a snake," Lucy said somewhat sarcastically. "From here on out, I promise to not be attacked by anything else that might exist in this period of time." Gray snickered at her words, and Natsu glowered at them both, still not happy that Gray was tagging along.
"Natsu!" cried a voice behind them quite suddenly. Natsu paused to look back, and found another guild member hurrying out, frowning. "Mirajane said to let you know that Sting's given permission for you to enter Crocus."
Natsu waved him off and the man went back inside. "Like he wouldn't," muttered the agitated dragon, tugging on Salutem's saddle to make sure it was secure. Salutem snorted in his face, as if he'd thought the action unnecessary. Gray grinned and Lucy laughed, earning a scowl from Natsu.
He was really getting annoyed with this little friendship that was starting to form between his Marked One and Gray. Of all the people Lucy could become friendly with, why did she have to choose him?
"What's wrong, Natsu?" Lucy said with a fearless grin as she sauntered over, resting her fingers over Salutem's neck. She'd not seen the stag since they'd gone to Hargeon, and she still felt a little nervous about riding him, but it made her feel better when he seemed to recognize her immediately. Salutem made a happy snuffle and lowered his nose to nibble at her hair. "Jealous that Gray thought of this before you did?"
Natsu stopped what he was doing to look at her, his mouth open. He stared at her in bewilderment. "Why would I be jealous?" he said, and Lucy was caught off guard by the genuine confusion – as well as how he suddenly just grabbed her and threw her onto Salutem's back with ease, earning a squawk from the unprepared blonde. Happy meowed as he was more gently placed in the basket on Salutem's hindquarters.
"Don't bother, Lucy," Gray called, heaving himself up onto the stag Lucy didn't recognize. Shiria, Gray had called him. "There's no point, that bastard wouldn't know what feeling like a normal person is like if it hit in the face."
Lucy frowned a little as Natsu threw a look at the half-demon before hopping onto Iracundior with ease. Lucy twisted the reins in her hand, letting herself simply feel the anger that Natsu felt towards Gray's comment. He didn't like when people said such things, and she couldn't say she approved entirely either. There was far more to him than Gray seemed aware of.
But she said nothing, only turned Salutem to follow Gray and Natsu as they started forward. If he was stuck with her, Lucy had no doubt that Natsu would be figuring out new emotions pretty damn quickly. She just hadn't run into any situations in particular that would draw out things like jealousy – and she hoped to be gone before that kind of situation came out.
She had no wish to find herself jealous of anyone, because if she did, she doubted she'd ever be leaving.
"Hey Lucy," Gray called over his shoulder as they reached the outskirts of Magnolia a short time later. A mischievous gleam in his eyes made her eye him suspiciously. "How fast have you gone on the stags?"
"Not very," Lucy admitted warily. "Why?" Her anxiety over what was about to happen grew when Natsu suddenly drew Iracundior back to walk beside Salutem, passing the reins into one of his hands to leave one free. Despite his aggravation with Gray, he was grinning, and it made her even more nervous. That and the anticipation in her dragon companion. "Whatever you two are doing, please don't-"
Before she could finish, Gray gave a shrill whistle and Shiria sprung forward. Iracundior sprung after him, and Salutem's large antlered head shot up before he, too, was bounding after the other two stags. Lucy squealed in surprise, trying to keep a hold of the reins at the same time that she clung to the sleek, soft hair that covered Salutem's neck. Happy yowled happily in the basket behind her.
Lucy heard someone laugh, although she couldn't distinguish which of them it was. It took her a few minutes to get used to all of it. When she did, instinct from teachings she didn't remember settled her into a position that made it easier on her. The fear faded away, and she found herself smiling as Salutem bellowed, taking a particularly large leap into the air.
"This is going to be fun," Natsu had commented when she'd first appeared in this period of time, and despite her concerns about the magic in the world and how she might ruin history, Lucy couldn't help but admit that it was turning out to be just that: fun.
"You know, most Marked Ones have scales."
The comment came out of nowhere, Lucy thought as she turned to look at Natsu, and it was very similar to one Wendy had made when Lucy had drilled her for what little information she had on Marks. They'd found a small village near the base of the first mountain they'd come to after almost three and a half weeks of traveling. Lucy could barely walk without collapsing, her legs hurt so badly from riding Salutem non-stop. When she'd asked, Gray had admitted they still had at least two weeks of travel, maybe more, and that was if the weather allowed, as Natsu had said.
They'd agreed to stay the night there, so the stags could rest, and they could relax in a room at a tavern for a very low price so long as they took care of problem-causing haunting in the village's hospital-home. Gray had agreed to deal with it on his own when he'd seen the look on Lucy's face, leaving her and Natsu alone to relax for the time being in a nice, warm common dining room that others resided in, eyeing the Fairy Tail members with interest.
They'd chosen a table in the corner, and it was warm enough that Lucy had dared to shed her protective vest, displaying her shoulders and the beginnings of the heavy scars that resided upon her back. The supposed dragon was comfortably half-sprawled on the table, his arms outstretched on the wood. His chin rested on the hard surface, and he leaned his head comfortably against the purring feline curled up beside it. His eyes were predatory, however, in the manner they studied her, judging her reactions.
"What do you mean?" Lucy asked, reaching for the mug of tea. It didn't taste nearly as good as Mira's, but it would do for the time being.
"You'll see when you meet Yukino," Natsu said, wrinkling his nose and starting to sit up. "But Marked Ones take on a dragon's scales if they're not dragon already. Yukino's got some of Rogue's on her shoulders, and the iron freak's Marked One has an entire arm of 'em."
"Maybe it's because you're not a full dragon?" Lucy suggested. "You've got something you're not telling me. Maybe it has to do with that." She'd still not puzzled that out. And it drove her crazy.
"Maybe. But you have Marks, right?" He squinted at her. "You've gotta have something. Magic like that leaves physical marks."
Lucy considered that as Happy suddenly rose and came to rub against her offered hand. The cat wasn't so bad, she'd decided over the past few weeks. She rubbed his head thoughtfully for a moment, and then looked up when he said, "You said you had scars-"
She stopped him before he got any further. "Those were there before I came here."
"Exactly," Natsu said. "Where'd you get 'em?"
Lucy opened her mouth to say that it was none of his business and then stopped, realizing that she didn't even know. "I was little," she said defensively. "You can't expect me to remember anything from when I was little."
And she didn't have an idea of what had happened. She had flickers. Red, shimmering beautifully before her eyes. Agonizing pain that had her sobbing. Not much more…her guardian had certainly never told her anything when she'd come to her crying about the hideous scars she'd been mocked for, been questioned about mercilessly by adults and children alike.
Self-conscious, Lucy reached up and touched the edges peeking out of her tank top, fingers brushing over the groove. It was deep, just like the rest of them, enough so that her fingers dipped in and brushed rough, gruesome skin before returning to the soft skin that covered the rest of her. Her fingers lingered briefly. It wasn't nearly as rough as it had once been, and it seemed to practically radiate an odd amount of heat…she'd probably have to get it checked out for an infection if she ever got home.
"Are you saying," she said quietly, knowing from experience that had come from fights between Gray and Natsu over the last near-month of travel that she was about to upset him, "that you're considering that you might have somehow taken a little girl and carved up her back badly enough to scar her for life, Natsu? Without taking the time difference into account, of course."
He reacted as she expected. Fury slammed through her and Natsu snapped upright, baring his teeth. "I don't do that. I'm not a monster."
It was something she'd learned he hated more than anything. He took more offense to the accusation than any other. Lucy had learned it the hard way when Gray had gone a bit too far and Natsu had seriously tried to incinerate him where he stood, lunging from his mount's back and knocking Gray off of his.
Natsu might not have cared about people.
But he cared just a sliver. Just enough to not want to be a monster that killed for no reason.
Soothingly, Lucy said, "I never said you were, Natsu." She offered him a faint smile. "But that's what I mean. There's no way you did it. For one, you're you, and I trust you when you say you'd never do something like that. For another, I'm from the future. Remember? We were thirteen hundred years apart. There's no way you did it to me."
Natsu said nothing for a few moments before he said gruffly, "What about future me?" She looked to him, waiting for further explanation. "You wouldn't remember me. What if I Marked you in the future? I've lived for centuries. And just 'cause you didn't see any magic didn't mean we weren't around."
Lucy considered that. "You know what?" she murmured. "Maybe that's what happened. Maybe the future you did it, and I just don't remember. But that doesn't make you a monster, Natsu. Not the you I know now. I think you're fairly nice, to be honest. A little odd, and I think you could use a little bit of extra humanity so you understand everyone else a bit better, but you seem fine enough to me. You help those who need it, and you're certainly smarter than you let the others think you are, but there's nothing wrong with you that I can see."
It was what hurt her more than anything else when thinking about the future, especially after learning his defensiveness about being called a monster.
She really, really couldn't see this odd person she'd been stuck with turning around and destroying the entirety of Old Crocus, killing hundreds in the process. She couldn't see him taking his time to carve a stone to some Lost Star, who she had yet to understand, and then maliciously murder the old and young and everyone between.
Natsu stared at her, startled. "You don't think I'm stupid like everyone else?"
She stared at him, exasperated. Did the guy have some self-confidence issues she'd not known about? "Natsu, if you were half as clueless as you make yourself out to be to the others, then I think you'd still be at the top of my graduating class." She felt his downright confusion and laughed, catching his attention again. "No, Natsu. I think you're a lot cleverer than you make people think you are, just like I said."
Natsu studied her in a new light now, caught unprepared. He worked very hard to keep up that image, so people wouldn't expect too much of him, but Lucy had seen right past it all, much to his amazement. Impressive. He'd worked for centuries to perfect that role he played in the Fairy Tail guild and that which he'd played in the dragons' nest.
He liked Lucy, he decided.
She was worth all of the work and frustration he'd had to put up with so far.
"Hey," Gray said, interrupting their conversation and sliding into the seat beside Lucy. She looked to him, and Happy blinked sleepily at the newcomer, twitching his tail this way and that. Natsu pouted, not pleased he'd come back unscathed. "So I talked to the owner of the place I helped out and he said that we should take the pass through the mountains. I think we should do it."
Natsu blanched. "Are you insane? That's a stupid idea. Lucy will freeze to death, and then we came all this way for nothing."
"Thank you, Natsu. I think," Lucy muttered, frowning. "Why should we take the mountain route?"
"For one, it's quicker. It'll cut the trip by a week or so," Gray said. Lucy perked up at that idea. "But like you said, it'll be too cold for Lucy. And Happy." For once, she realized, he wasn't trying to pick a constant fight with Natsu, nor was Natsu trying to pick a fight with him. They were simply trying to puzzle out what to do. "And it won't be a day thing. It'll take us a while to get through the mountains, even with the stags…"
"Okay," Lucy said. "But I doubt they suggested we cut our trip short by one week and didn't say anything else. So, what's up with going around the mountains?"
Gray took on a grim look. "They think a wendigo's made its home there."
"Wendigo?" Lucy questioned, looking to Natsu for an explanation. His expression darkened at the mention of the creature. "Natsu, what's a wendigo?"
Natsu scowled, sitting up entirely. "Even the dragons avoid 'em. This one probably started out as a human who got lost in the forest there and got a little too hungry when he came across a traveler or something."
Still confused, she looked at Gray, and he explained, "Wendigos are created when someone reverts to cannibalism on a piece of cursed land. Over time, they begin to look less human and more…well, you don't wanna see one. They're hard to deal with even for the dragons."
"Quick little bastards who figure out a dragon's weak points and take advantage of it," Natsu said curling a lip. "We can handle 'em, but it takes a lot of work. What I wanna know is why Sabertooth hasn't dealt with it yet. Orga, Sting, or Rogue should be enough to deal with it. What the hell are they doing?"
"Good thing we're going there then," Lucy said fearlessly, "we can ask them ourselves. So, let's cross the mountain pass." She supposed neither of the two men with her would be too affected. Gray's demon half came from a demon who manipulated ice and Natsu was…well, Natsu was Natsu, plain and simple.
"You can ride with Natsu on Salutem," Gray said slowly, frowning at her in thought. "And Happy can be zipped up into your coat. We'll go around and get you some heavier clothing. Snow's started falling already, so we'll need to bring extra supplies, just in case something happens, and we get stuck… This would be a hell of a lot easier if you'd just fly us there, pyro."
Natsu gave him a smug expression, although there was a flicker that Lucy couldn't read in his eyes. "Why the hell would I let myself be used like a common pack animal?" he purred. An excuse, she recognized immediately. Natsu didn't have a form like that. But Gray didn't apparently know that. "It'll be fun as long as Lucy doesn't freeze."
"No pressure," Lucy sighed. "I'm not human or anything, right?"
Natsu snickered. "Lighten up, Luce," said the happy dragon, bouncing in his seat a little. "This is gonna be fun!"
She shook her head. "This is going to be cold," she muttered, hoping that the snow wouldn't be too bad.
Into the mountains! And I might do a later chapter with a wendigo confrontation. They scare me more than most other mythical creatures, but I absolutely think they're fascinating.
By the way, I was thinking...they're going to need little breaks here and there, doing work. Got any particular mythical creatures you're interested in seeing? ;)
AlaskaHolmes90786, regarding Gray's age...I knew this would come up, so hang with me on this confusing as hell explanation. So most mythics in ODAS age normally until their appearance matches the amount of power they hold. The world is a bit more dangerous for mythics. They're more likely to be targeted than humans, and it's actually harder for mythics to have children, so they tend to grow alongside humans before eventually stopping their aging all together. This goes away with time if the blood of mythics combines with that of humans (half-dragons, half-demons,etc.). This does not apply, however, to the more powerful mythics, like dragons and demons and gods. Gods are created looking the way they are, or given immortality at whatever age they stopped at. Dragons, as somewhat mentioned, age slowly (Wendy's like over 100 years old at this point). Demons, like gods, are created as they appear, excluding Natsu. Natsu's situation will be explained later. ;) So to sum it up: Gray is a fair deal younger than Natsu and will age slowly, but like three generations from now, if his great grand-kids were to keep having children with humans, their life spans will be shorter.
Thanks to reviewers (PinkFireandGoldenStars, stranger1999, Guest #1, Anna-Mae1242, Forbidden-Hanyou, nerdalertwaring, Lodemai04, Blood and Angst Lover, LePengwen, Inky-Paws, Morenoel, Guest #2, Alera33, Treblemkr, xHallowedFangirlx, FairyTailxFanGirl, and AlaskaHolmes90786!) as well as those who favorited or followed!