Longer chapter guys. Seriously. Long.

21

The Wind in the Willows

"He had got down to the bones of it, and they were fine and strong and simple."

― Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

The following morning Lucy stretched as the late morning sunlight filtered through the window. Surprisingly, Natsu was still snoring away on his cot and not prodding her awake or whining about food or any of the other annoying habits he tended to have.

She smiled a little and shook her head as she climbed out of bed. After the mess of the last couple days she figured they'd earned a day off, and thought maybe they could spend the afternoon shopping for a few things.

With that thought in mind she stumbled towards the bathroom, certain Natsu wouldn't hear her over his loud snoring, and climbed into the shower. Maybe when she was done she would surprise him with breakfast.

And surprise him she did.

Natsu groaned softly as the scent of bacon and pancakes cooking tickled his nose and cracked his eyes open blearily. Food?

He glanced around and found Lucy's bed had already been made, which meant the sizzling he heard was her in the kitchen making breakfast.

He blinked a little at that, startled that she was up before him as he rarely let himself relax enough to sleep so deeply around her. Still, it was a pleasant surprise. She hadn't done anything to him, like he would've expected from anyone else, and was making food.

It was enough to pull a grin from him as he hopped up and pulled his clothes on before padding into the cramped space to steal a bacon or five.

"Natsu!" Lucy protested as he snatched up a fistful and crammed it into his mouth without so much as a 'good morning.'

"Whaf?" Natsu asked innocently, his eyes wide and his teeth chomping loudly down on his pilfered treat.

"Don't eat so fast!" Lucy snagged his face between her hands and mushed his puffed out cheeks together in frustration, "You just got done being sick from stuffing your face last night! How are you able to even look at food?"

His head pulled out of her grasp, a little surprised by the brass in her to simply grab his face like that. Natsu gave her a huffy growl, but it was smothered some by his stuffed mouth.

So Lucy just rolled her eyes, unintimidated by him. As usual.

Not that he was even trying to frighten her. She really didn't seem to have the survival instincts to fear him like most people did. And after their little adventure in the snow together, he doubted she ever would.

Natsu had told her more about himself than anyone else. Sure, she understood why he hated the dragons, but it didn't make sense why he was beginning to tolerate her...

Her and the guild.

He had known the guild for a while. Alright, he could almost see his tolerance there. But humans as a whole, whether they were magical or not, weren't to be trusted.

Natsu knew that better than anyone. Especially the ones with magic.

But Lucy was just a stubborn mortal he supposed. Not attacking a sleeping dragon when she had the chance was good.

Perhaps he could afford to relax a little around her.

"What, you really think food can defeat me so easily?" Natsu scoffed and stuck his tongue out with his mouth full. Cackling at Lucy's disgusted expression, he walked over to the cooler and stuck his head in.

"Are we taking a job today?" He asked from within the device.

"Are you kidding?" Lucy asked in exasperation.

"What?" Natsu asked in confusion as he pulled his head out of the fridge, his mouth stuffed full of who knew what else, along with the milk and orange juice.

Well at least he was making himself useful. Assuming he didn't chug them down and not leave her any at least.

She rolled her eyes as she flipped the pancake almost expertly after all her recent practice at it, "Natsu, we just got back from two very hectic days. Let's take the day off and relax a little."

She smiled over her shoulder at him, "Erza and Gray were nice enough to give us most of the reward money for the job, so we have a little extra now. We could do some shopping for a few things we need around here and just relax."

She piled the freshest pancakes on the plate and turned around to hand it to him, she knew better than to waste the time getting the platter dirty by now, "C'mon it'll be fun!"

Natsu snorted a little at that idea as he took the plate, "Yeah, whatever." He huffed, rolling his own eyes, "You just want an excuse to go shopping and be lazy."

He flashed her a cheeky smirk, getting a perverse sort of thrill out of the dangerous look she was shooting him.

Lucy was so much fun to rile up.

"It's not being lazy!" She huffed, "It's relaxing!"

His smirk widened into a rather shark-like grin, "If you say so." He purred and neatly plucked the bit of bacon she threw at him in retaliation out of the air, "Thanks!" He grinned as he popped it into his mouth, cackling at her disgusted sigh.

He actually didn't mind too much. He wasn't really thrilled about the idea of mingling with the townsfolk, but there were probably worse ways to spend the day. And if he whined enough she would stop for food.

That was one thing humans did right. They sure could cook.

Of course that meant Lucy would probably try and get him to hold her bags for her while she went shopping. He wasn't too thrilled about that, especially since he didn't see the point in paying for things when she could just use her magic to take what she wanted.

But she raised a stink whenever he tried and it really wasn't worth the effort in the long run.

So after they both ate and got dressed, Natsu waiting absolutely forever for Lucy to finish doing her hair and make up, they headed down the streets of Magnolia.

Natsu hadn't changed his simple clothes in centuries, and he wasn't about to start now. He liked the way the cobblestones of Magnolia felt against his bare feet or how the warm breeze fluttered around his vest and scarf.

His waist coat was more than enough coverage for him, and he even wore pants.

Really he didn't understand the fuss humans made while getting ready so he was ready to go almost from the moment he woke up.

Of course it did leave for some interesting days when he walked around the apartment in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist when it was time to wash his clothes.

His left ear was still a little numb from Lucy's horrified screaming.

She'd muttered something about borrowing a pair of sweats from Gray for instances like that, but Natsu had threatened to burn them to ash if anything of that bastard even came close to touching his body.

So wash day often saw Natsu banished into a corner like a half-naked, sulky child.

Natsu growled in satisfaction as the heat from the earth made its way through his body, warming his calves and sliding into his chest where he felt his internal flame crackle merrily. "So where to first?"

Lucy grinned as she looked around, "Hmmmm... we could really use some more food, but we can get that later." She smiled brightly as one of the magic shops that sold gate keys whenever they were available came into view, "Oh! Let's see if they've got any new keys!" She exclaimed excitedly and tugged on his arm.

She knew it wasn't good that the spirits were chained to their keys, but that was a problem she had no idea how to even begin to fix, so she left it alone as best she could and allowed herself to be happy that she might get the chance to meet another spirit.

Though... as expensive as the keys were it was debatable if she could afford one even if it was in stock.

Still... she could at least look. And maybe save towards it.

Natsu rolled his eyes dramatically, but gamely followed her in. He had to admit he was kind of interested. He'd only met a few spirits, and he was kind of curious about the ones Lucy might find. Not that he would ever admit that of course.

And so it went. The magic shop was followed by the bookshop. From there she dragged him into that stinky shop that always left him gagging where she bought her soap and stuff from. Then it was into half a dozen other places, some of which she got things in and some she didn't, before he put his foot down.

"C'mon Lucy!" He whined, "It's past lunchtime! I'm hungry! Let's stop and get some food!"

Lucy looked up from where she was peering into another window and cocked her head thoughtfully, "Yeah, I guess I'm getting kinda hungry too." She smiled, "And you've been a pretty good sport. You pick the place we eat okay?"

"Damn right I am," Natsu grumbled, somehow having managed to get saddled with half of Lucy's bags despite his protests and whining threats to set them ablaze.

Still, the idea of charcoal fires and barbecue brightened his spirits and he straightened eagerly, "Come on Lucy!" His stomach let out a hungry snarl and he began to walk down the street with a spring in his heels.

"Natsu! Wait for me!" Lucy called to him and raced after him. However she was nearly choked when something yanked hard on the strap of her purse and caused her to fall flat over onto her rear, "Ow!"

Natsu turned, raising an eyebrow at the sight of Lucy sprawled out on the ground, but his gaze lifted to see someone tugging her purse from her arm.

Lucy had all but abandoned her bags, but her position was a little awkward and she had fallen on her leg strangely when she was initially grabbed, "Get your grubby hands off my purse!" Lucy shrieked at the man.

There was no way she was going to let go. Not when her keys were inside the bag.

Luckily, or unlucky for the would-be mugger...

This interruption was preventing Natsu from a well deserved meal. And with the way Lucy was crumpled on the ground, that meant one thing.

She was hurt.

Raw anger churned through Natsu's blood, his magic burning and sparking just under his skin. Murderous intent rose in him, a small tremor shaking through him as he noticed the people simply backing away and avoiding looking directly at the scene Lucy made.

Cowards.

The dragon marched over to where Lucy was keeping the mugger preoccupied, grabbed the back of the man's head and cracked it into the wall of a nearby business.

Lucy's eyes widened at the sight as she reclaimed her purse and started climbing back onto her feet. A less than delightful idea at the moment as it appeared she'd managed to twist her knee. It hurt just to move, but she had to get back up and quickly.

Natsu was annoyed and beating the crap out of the would be thief. His head was being dragged into the brick wall over and over and over again. The man was just lucky Natsu wasn't using his full strength.

"Natsu!" She called, her voice strained as she struggled to stand, "That's enough! You're going to kill him at this rate!"

And she was not going to allow that.

The growling dragon glanced over at her in disbelief, "Are you serious?" He exclaimed, "He tried to steal from you and you want me to let him go?"

Lucy shot him a half grin as she managed to get back onto her feet, "I didn't say that." She replied, grimacing as she limped towards him, "But there's a difference between holding him until the authorities get here and you killing him over it."

Natsu growled in annoyance, but lowered his fist anyway. It was dumb, but if Lucy wanted to do it the human way he'd play along. This whole thing was interrupting his lunch anyway, and Lucy probably needed some ice for that knee.

"You're wasting your breath girl." The man coughed, his face a mess of blood and bruises, "This monster doesn't give a damn about rules."

Natsu twitched.

"Says the man who tried to snatch my purse." Lucy replied acidly, "You're not exactly a paragon of virtue yourself pal."

"I don't think you get it ya dumb broad," He snapped back at her, not noticing how Natsu's body began to stiffen as he listened, "This is the dragon End, right? He's the same bastard that burned down the Magic Council, or don't you remember that shit storm he caused?"

Natsu rolled his eyes and lightly shook him from left to right, ignoring the man's pained groans or the way he grabbed Natsu's wrist with both hands and tried to pry his hand loose. Natsu's fingers didn't give, in fact the dragon didn't seem to notice his attempts.

But he smiled at the man, something icy to his grin, cold fire darkening his green eyes and remembered hatred and satisfaction coloring his face.

"Oh, yeah. The Magic Council. I remember them," He smirked at the man, his grip tightening on the man, drawing his hand forward to grind his cheek gently into the brick.

"They were bottom feeding humans, sorta like you," Natsu purred, "And I torched them like I'm going to burn you."

To hell with the human way. He was going to teach this insulting bastard a lesson he'd never forget. Assuming he survived learning it.

Fire licked to life around his shoulder, creeping down his arm like a snake, coiling further along.

Natsu could make his flames go fast or slow, but for now he was far more interested in seeing this scum's face as it slowly melted from his body.

At least he would have, had Lucy's hand gripped his forearm, causing the flame to puff out thanks to the bond.

He sighed in frustration and glared at her.

"Let him go Natsu." Lucy ordered, meeting his eyes, her face pale and mouth thin. Natsu scowled, mutinous.

"Lucy..." He growled a warning, but she matched him glare for glare.

"No Natsu," she snapped, her magic flaring to back the words, "You will release him now, and you will not touch him physically or magically unless he attacks us. Is that clear?"

Natsu's scowl deepened as he felt the bond ping, enforcing her orders.

She hadn't done this since Hargeon. She'd said something about how she didn't like using it to force him to do things if she could help it. Natsu felt a traitorous stab of disbelief and betrayal dig in his chest.

Apparently that didn't mean she was above using it when she was pushed too far.

He growled darkly, baring his fangs, and dropped the man, "Happy?" He snarled, his good mood gone.

However, she just nodded gravely, "Yes." She replied, "Though not for the reasons you might think." She met his eyes, and managed a faint half smile, "But if it makes you feel any better I think he peed himself. And I doubt he'll be stealing from anyone else again."

She nodded over to where he was being handcuffed by the local cops, or whatever they were called here, and squeezed his arm gently, "Not all crimes are severe enough to warrant death Natsu." She smirked slightly, "Especially not from criminals stupid enough to try and steal from a couple of Fairy Tail Wizards."

The last was said pointedly to the guy being handcuffed, and she was rewarded with a wince. It brought some satisfaction for her knee anyway.

She turned her attention back to Natsu, "Now, lunch?" She asked and grimaced as she put a little more weight on her hurt knee, "Or maybe a walking stick first."

Natsu gave her a look that was a little on the resentful side, clearly not so eager to forgive her over imposing her will over his that quickly. Still, his eyes flicked down to where her knee looked like it was bruising and he scowled.

"You gotta learn to use your magic to keep yourself from getting so banged up," He snatched her up and over a shoulder, bending down to scoop up all their bags and marched off.

"Argh great!" He complained angrily, "Now I'm stuck carrying everything and you!"

"Natsu, wait!" Lucy protested, but he wasn't listening, instead marching away down the streets and past the staring crowd that had gathered.

"Don't you want to get something to eat?" Lucy asked weakly from where she was dangling over his shoulder.

"Lost my appetite." He grunted back at her, just a hint of a snarl in his voice.

Great. He was mad.

Lucy sighed as they fell into an uncomfortable, heavy silence. She sagged down his muscular back, observing the tail of his grungy scarf.

After more silence dragged the atmosphere down between them and Natsu entered their apartment, clomping up the stairs non-too-gently, he dumped Lucy on the couch with her purse and all their bags.

"Ow! Hey you jerk!" Lucy snapped at him, not enjoying the rough treatment, "I'm not going to apologize for stopping you from killing a man, so stop acting like a brat about it!"

Natsu's eyes flashed towards her and he growled angrily. A muscle in his jaw twitched, and in seconds he had crossed the room and was advancing on Lucy. He bent forward, caging her in against the couch, his gaze intense on her.

"You said not all crimes are severe enough to warrant death, but that man stole from you. And he hurt you." Natsu snarled angrily at her.

"We were on a street crowded with humans, but I was the only one who stopped," He snapped, "Everyone else would have either watched him slam his boot in your face next to steal your purse or pretend they didn't see anything!"

"One crime or the next, it doesn't matter." He said in disgust, "He would have gladly seen you die had your positions been reversed."

"Maybe he would have." Lucy replied quietly, but her eyes met his just as intently, "And maybe everyone else in the street were cowards for letting it happen and not interfering. But that doesn't give us the right to mete out justice as we see fit! That's why laws exist."

Natsu stared at her for a moment and then pulled back a little to let out a bark of harsh laughter, "You think I give a fuck about their stupid laws?" He demanded, crowding back into her space, "I burned their precious magic council to ash!"

"That doesn't give you the right to do whatever you want Natsu!" Lucy retorted, unwilling to be intimidated by his posturing, and sighed, "Look. I don't know what your beef with the magic council was, but you were way out of line back there."

She met his gaze fiercely, "The fact that you stopped him from hurting me more, or actually stealing anything, was good. I didn't even care that you cracked his skull for it. But you had him subdued Natsu! He couldn't fight back, and you kept beating him. You were going to use your fire on him! That's like beating up Asca because she ran into you on accident!"

She pushed on his shoulders to get him out of her face, "I promised myself when I learned about my magic that I would not abuse it." She said fiercely, "And I will not be a party to you doing the same! I appreciate that you got mad because he hurt me. But there are other ways of dealing with things besides death!"

Natsu looked like he had gotten slapped and his eyes narrowed in displeasure, rolling upright and crossing his arms over his chest and sinking down, glaring across the room.

"That's totally different." Natsu's jaw clenched and gave Lucy a somewhat offended look, "I wouldn't hurt Asca. She's practically a baby."

"Subdued or not, he went after you because he thought you were an easy target." He grumbled

"Besides, why are you so certain your human laws will give out proper justice?" Natsu pouted at her, his anger beginning to lower more to a simmer than the blaze it had been.

Lucy made a sound of frustration and smacked the side of his head with a couch cushion, "I don't get why this is so hard for you to understand! Why are you so suspicious of it!"

She suspected in truth, it had something to do with the magic council. Natsu had even looked close to letting the man go before he had made the mistake of bringing them up.

Whatever their connection to him was, it had gotten a rise out of him.

Natsu gave her a stubborn look and she smacked him with the pillow again.

"Fine, don't tell me, but I'm not going to have you run out acting like some masked vigilante because a guy swipes a purse." Lucy sighed, exhausted by the conversation, "Just, will you please get me some ice for my knee? Or call Gray?"

The sound of disgust from Natsu was so profound, Lucy almost laughed. The dragon stood up so quickly to go to their cooler and collect ice it was almost comical. It seemed like he had forgotten how mad he was at her for the moment.

Anything to avoid calling Gray.

He returned a few minutes later with a bag of ice, already perspiring in his hot hands. He lifted her leg gently and wedged the cushion she had been using as a weapon underneath it. Gingerly he positioned the bag of ice on her swollen knee.

He was quiet as he worked, arranging the sagging bag of ice as carefully as he could. Mad though Natsu was, he couldn't really cause her injust pain and his thoughts looked like they were keeping him occupied.

"After the Celestial War, my dad got hurt badly." He said after a moment, "No one in my nest knew how to help him, so I went to a village the Magic Council was visiting for help. I knew they had wizards there, and I thought maybe one of them would have healing similar to that of a sky dragon."

"We used to know one, but she was a traveler, and we hadn't seen her for years." Natsu murmured.

"The council agreed to help me," Natsu met Lucy's eyes, "They seemed happy to do it, and I was so relieved." His lips twitched down in disgust

Lucy's heart clenched tightly in her chest, and a cold chill that had nothing to do with the ice ran down her spine. Surely not? Surely the council hadn't done that? Surely they hadn't killed Igneel?

The very thought was horrifying.

She already knew that Natsu had just been a kid during the war, but had fought in it anyway, and that Igneel had died in it. Surely the magic council hadn't been so cruel as to kill Natsu's father?

However, the look on his face, one part bitterness, one part anger, and two parts grief told her otherwise.

"They didn't..." She whispered, needing to know for sure, and felt tears sting her eyes when he hunched his shoulders, and reluctantly nodded.

"They made him worse." He growled softly, and Lucy thought she could hear a restrained sob in his voice, "I never found out how, but..."

He closed his eyes and Lucy was moving before she realized what she was doing. Her heart cried out for her to do something to soothe this pain. If only a little. So she reached out and pulled him into a tight hug, ignoring both her knee and his startled protest.

"I'm sorry Natsu." She whispered, her own voice thick with emotion and knowing. Knowing of what it was like to lose a parent. Of the pain that never really left you completely.

"I'm so sorry." She buried her face into his scarf, unaware that she was getting it wet, "I don't blame you for hating them. I'd hate them too."

And she couldn't really blame him for hating humanity as a whole either. That didn't make what he did right, but at least she understood his motives now. She tightened her grip, silently grieving for the dragon she'd never met, but couldn't help respecting for what he'd tried so very hard to do for Natsu. And how much he'd obviously loved his son.

Natsu for his part grunted as Lucy held his head awkwardly against her shoulder, his forehead mashed into the back of the couch and his elbows bracing himself on the cushions.

He almost got whiplash trying to follow Lucy's emotional trail, his throat thick with anger and memories, remembered horror and grief causing a coat of sweat to break free.

They went from arguing with one another, to Lucy smacking him with a pillow, to suddenly hugging him.

Igneel had wanted dragons to be able to live alongside the humans. But the magic council hadn't wanted to take the risk. Natsu supposed, in some bitter part of his heart, he could understand their decision as leaders for their people. Not all of them had been in favor either.

Dragons had cooperated to fight in the Celestial War with the humans and spirits out of a common enemy. After Zeref's defeat, there was no need for dragons. Especially when they were too dangerous to even magical humans.

Most dragons saw humans as food.

"But Natsu, you can't attack humans the way you did to that mugger again." Lucy's voice murmured in his ear, disarming him with how sweet it was in his ear.

"Don't give people a reason to call you the monster you seem to think you are." Her fingers squeezed the back of his neck and buried into rosy locks. Natsu jolted a little, torn between the impulse of tearing himself from her hold or staying where he was.

Seeming to sense he was indecisive, Lucy's grip on Natsu tightened. Ignoring the throbbing in her knee, she pressed her cheek into his, "Try?"

Natsu hesitated for a long moment. He was a monster, and he didn't like humans. They'd killed Igneel. The mugger had hurt Lucy and tried to rob her.

"Why shouldn't I?" He asked, his question coming out more confused than angry, "I am a monster. Why shouldn't I be what I am?"

Lucy pulled back to look him in the eye, and he noticed for the first time her eyes were wet. She'd been crying? Was it over what he'd told her about Igneel?

No one except him had ever done that before.

"I don't believe you really are." She replied, but laid a finger over his lips before he could open his mouth to protest, "But I know I could talk until I'm blue in the face and not convince you of that. Just like I know now that I could try and explain my reasons for not hurting people for hours and probably not get very far."

She smiled softly at him, though there was a glint of mischief lurking in her eyes, "So how about you do it for a different reason? How about you do it to spite them?"

Natsu blinked in confusion, "What?"

Lucy's smile turned into a grin, "They expect you to be the terrible monster right? And when you are you're proving them right. You're justifying all the terrible things they can say and do. So why not get back at them by proving them wrong?"

She shrugged, "That's what I did. And they say that the best revenge is a well lived life. So why not try it?"

"Sounds boring," Natsu complained, but his lips twitched traitorously against her fingertips.

"Good thing we get plenty of adventure in the guild," Lucy challenged back, her eyelashes fluttering in amusement.

Natsu reclined backwards, untangling Lucy from him and nudging her back with his knuckles against her shoulders.

"I'll think about it," He gave her a long, hard look.

He huffed and picked up the bag of ice which slipped off Lucy's leg.

"Now quit messin' with that." Natsu ordered, his eyes flashing back down at Lucy.

He rose, making to move off to the kitchen, when his arm was tugged backwards by a gentle hold.

"Natsu?" Lucy asked, her gaze lifting up to his.

"I'm sorry for ordering you, but I'm not sorry for stopping you," She said quietly, "I just regret that I had to at all..."

Natsu blinked, strangely appeased by her words, even while a wave of confusion passed over him.

He stared at her, long and hard enough to make her look away. His body relaxed and he sighed, nodding.

"Try not to do it again." He mumbled and grabbed the throw covering the back of the couch and dragged it down onto Lucy's face, partially covering her body.

He saw the way her body shivered thanks to the cold of the icepack, and even if he would never admit it, he sort of liked Lucy.

"Thanks." Lucy smiled, pulling the blanket off her head.

Seeing as she was apparently forgiven and the air between them relaxed, Lucy settled in on her couch, listening to the sounds of Natsu roaming around the kitchen to eat the remnants in their fridge.

Looks like his appetite returned after all.

Lucy let out a quiet laugh.

As usual our lovelies, we reached the end of another chapter! I hope you all enjoyed this one! It was pretty long! And we have an announcement. We will be posting a side oneshot centered around Gajevy and their initial meeting. We're 11 pages into it right now, so you can expect it pretty soon. You'll be getting a dual update with Parallels and this oneshot whenever it comes out!

Also, the exceeds are coming. Eventually.

SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEW! - DancesWithSeatbelts (Well all your sweet words are carried with us!) - shvartzit (Hahaha, yeah I'm with you. If someone had a book that could just peek into my head? I'd either crawl into a hole or smack them) - KittyCrow12 (Wait and see!) - Twishadowhunter - Snavej (Wise woman to trust us. *A terrible idea, really*) - (Oh yes, the slow build is done brick by brick.) Animallover (Erza would have won even if they hadn't used strawberry cake. And I guess news about the book will have to come into play later on) Little Red (The scarf has its own secrets) OgaxHilda (Trust goes both ways y'know. Can't blame Lucy for being cautious over a guy who has literally tried to kill her) Celestialite - kirby42280 - Avengerika - HalfBlackWolfDemon - Mo0nyMoon - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Sara lovelymusic (Slow burn baby, slow burn!) fanficlove2014 - KirstyKakes - lovelyMali-Chan (glad to be of service!) ThatOneExoticPotato (Oh yes! Well I hope you liked the chapter!) Guest (Muahahahahahaha) CodenameMise - SakuraPetal91 - BakaFangirl - eternalstarrlight (You have a sensor. Admit it. EVERYONE is worried about the book. Hahaha. Trust in usssss. - Princessatj - KaUiA (That will be coming soon. I promise. Hahaha. Who knows how he'd react!) wishyouweremedontya (You are not alone my friend! I don't understand why Lisanna being in the fic would be a problem?) Amelia Loves Anime (Yes we have given Lucy a cheat sheet, haven't we? But the book only updates things which have already happened and provides insight into the past. Not the future. All it gives is an understanding.) equastar (*blows kisses* ) the-clumsy-one - Dark Shining Light