"You've changed."

Natsu had a rather high tolerance for strange things (after all, he had lived with Fairy Tail), but even he was unsure of how to properly communicate with a coatrack. Hell, he was even unsure where to look for eye contact.

"You don't fight anymore, you barely yell—nothing has been destroyed in the last three days!" The coatrack bounced up and down emphatically to prove its point. "What the hell is wrong with you, flame for brains?"

Natsu just shrugged, oddly reminiscent of the time Gildarts had left him unable to say a word at Tenrou.

"I'm gonna call Gramps. This just ain't normal." Gray bounded off, the impact of his little legs echoing down the dank hallway. Although yes, there were moments when Gray wanted to bash Natsu's head in, at times like these—well, he was worried, damn it!

The sound of ominous ticking filled the room only a few minutes later, leaving Natsu cringing at the future lecture to come.

"M'boy, you're lost, aren't you?" Makarov hobbled up onto Natsu's bed, groaning as his joints—err, parts creaked.

"Lost?"

"Perhaps not in the traditional sense, but yes, lost. Mindlessly wandering and unable to properly orient yourself—does that sound like someone you know?"

"I'm not sure I understand…"

Makarov sighed. "You've had the toughest time out of all of us here. Sure, we might have complained once or twice," He added in an afterthought. "but you alone carry the burden of setting all of us free. I apologize on all of the servants' behalf for not recognizing your difficult task."

"But it's my fault anyway, isn't it?" Natsu said bitterly.

Makarov ticked almost angrily. "No! We too turned the enchantress away from our doors, so the blame cannot be solely placed upon your shoulders. You were the strongest of us, you know. Always bringing in hope whenever we felt failure was surely to come…always smiling despite the latest setback. That was you."

Natsu couldn't help but to notice the use of past tense.

"Then that girl came, and for a little while, it seemed that hope had once again entered our halls. But you stopped smiling. Can you tell me why that is?"

A little surprise flickered over Natsu's face.

"You care for the girl."

It was a statement, a simple and complete fact.

"You care enough to want her to have something better. But are you not worthy of the same?"

"Just look at me, Gramps! Do you think I could deserve a girl like her?"

"I do."

Sensing that Gramps was beginning to win the argument, Natsu changed tactics.

"She wouldn't want me anyway."

"Have you taken a chance?" Makarov countered.

"We're only friends! I can't lose her as a friend too!"

"It would be ridiculous if you both didn't travel this far along this path. There was bound to be a change—you can't hide from it!"

"I can!" Natsu said stubbornly. "Just watch, I'll fix everything and make sure everything is back to normal." His resolve set, he sprung up out of the mattress and headed out to look for Lucy.

Makarov sighed. He had thought the talk had been going so well...where did he go wrong?

That poor, poor boy.

After much shrieking and beating (Lucy was still in the middle of getting dressed), Natsu could safely say that this felt just like old times. He had barged into her room with not even a knock, leaving Mira in giggles and Lucy shooting him her scariest glare.

"Let's go! I have something to show you." He tugged her arm, shooting her a boyish grin.

"Is this like that last time you and Happy decided to show me something?" She grumbled, but acquiesced to his pulling.

"You mean you didn't like meeting our pet griffin?" Natsu said innocently.

"It ate my shoes, Natsu! My expensive, limited edition boots that even Jenny from Blue Pegasus didn't own!" She mourned her tragic loss, sighing heavily.

They turned a corner, where the light progressively grew brighter and the hallways became more and more luxurious.

"Where are we even going?"

Natsu just laughed. "It's a surprise! I saw it when Lisanna was giving me a tour—I think you'll like it though!"

Somehow, Lucy doubted that.

"Close your eyes!" He urged.

"Is it bad I don't trust you anymore?" This seemed like the perfect setup for one of Natsu's famous pranks.

"Have a little faith!" Natsu made sure Lucy's eyes were actually closed, and guided her gently up a flight of stairs.

"Can I open them yet?"

"Almost!"

"How about now?"

"Yup, you can open them now!"

A gasp reverberated in the large antechamber. "It's—"

"All yours." Natsu finished, beaming.

It was an author's dream come true—rich oakwood shelves filled with thousands and thousands of books, each one concealing yet another adventure deeply embedded within its crisp pages. Towers tall enough to reach the heavens themselves could have been built by the sheer amount of novels within this antique library. Lucy reached out hesitantly, her fingertips gently gliding across the weathered spines. She wanted to read each and every one, her eyes devouring the titles hungrily.

"One day you'll be in here too." Lucy's excitement was contagious to him, his trademark fanged grin slowly appearing on his face.

Lucy just nodded, entirely overcome.

"Well, what are you waiting for? There's a whole new world out there waiting for you!" Natsu gestured at the numerous shelves. Wasn't that what Lucy had told him when Natsu curiously wondered why she would much rather focus upon her novel instead of him? He settled back, content to watch as Lucy perused for her latest selection.

The time had passed by pleasantly enough, with Lucy occasionally gasping in delight as she discovered yet another one of her favorite classics. Natsu simply just watched her, stymied by her concentration.

"Is it that much fun?" He hated to interrupt her, but curiosity overtook him.

"There's nothing better!" Lucy smiled, growing more serious. "When I was younger, I would try and hide behind the pages of a book, just to escape. That's why I want to write…there's something so poetically just about returning all the wonderful times other authors have given to me. I want to move readers in the same way that so many others before me have done."

"Igneel never really taught me that much about reading, and I guess I don't really count Erza as a teacher either."

"Well, what if I read for you?"

"You? Read for me?" Natsu considered it for a brief second. "I think…that wouldn't be so bad."

"What do you want me to read?" Lucy was a little surprised at how quickly he agreed, but was pleased nonetheless.

"Read me something you wrote. I wanna hear your writing."

Lucy seemed to waver a little, still a little uncomfortable with anyone other than Levy seeing her writing. But this was Natsu, the person she trusted above everyone else! And if words were truly a reflection of the soul, there was no other person she would rather share it with.

"I guess I could tell you about my latest concept. It's only mere fragments of an idea right now, but it's loosely inspired upon all the chaos going on around us." She grabbed a pen, quickly jotting down a few notes.

Natsu leaned closer, eager to hear Lucy's writing.

Her voice was rich and vibrant, like the low, mellow notes of a cello. "Once upon a time, a young beauty stumbled into the lair of a horrendous beast. The beast was gentle and kind to the beauty, but he was a beast nonetheless. Fearing only tragedy and tears, the beast was afraid to love. But the beauty leaned down low and whispered sweetly in his ear to be not afraid." Her voice dropped lower, almost hauntingly. "For she…would become a beast for him."

Lucy stared down at the piece of paper in her hand, slightly unsure of where to look. "It's just something that occurred to me during this story—I know it's not very good, but I've always been fascinated with twisted fairy tales and—"

"It's amazing, Luce." Natsu said simply. He had no talent for words, no true way to express his awe and admiration. But he was almost painfully aware that there was something in those words that hinted at a complexity beyond its surface. What had she been trying to say? Could she be thinking of not only the real story of Beauty and the Beast but also…their story?

"You really thought it was good?" Lucy flushed at his empathetic nodding. "That's really good to hear, you know."

Just as Natsu was about to say more (he was thinking of asking her exactly what she had meant by her story), a cheerful voice boomed out in the otherwise silent library.

"Ladies and gentleman, dinner is ready!" Mrs. Potts announced, little Asuka giggling right behind her.

"Hey, Natsu!" Asuka merrily chirped while serving drinks at dinner. "My Mommy sometimes kisses Daddy when they think I'm not watching."

Bisca blushed, which was a very odd sight to see (a teapot rapidly shifting colors is quite a spectacle).

"Do you and Lucy kiss too?" She giggled.

Natsu spat out his soup in a rather unattractive manner, leaving an extremely annoyed Gajeel to clean it up.

Gray oh so helpfully pounded Lucy on the back as she choked. "Asuka, sweetie, we aren't like Mommies and Daddies."

"Do it anyway! It's an order!" Asuka's pleading eyes grew bigger and bigger.

"N-no way!"

"Well, it's not gonna kill you…" Natsu drawled, playfully leaning closer.

"Y-you're kidding!"

There was a loud smacking noise, and suddenly Natsu was on the ground, moaning in pain. Lucy had defensively grabbed Gray, shoving him at Natsu's puckered lips. And unfortunately, this only incited Juvia's anger at her precious Gray-sama getting violated—in which there is no explanation needed for what happened next.

Lucy giggled at the madness that ensued.

There's never a dull moment in Fairy Tail! She thought happily.

It seemed the laughter would never stop, as each servant performed a dazzling array of tricks and talents (well, unless you count the moment when Gajeel the napkin decided to sing. The smiles were all rather forced after he had finished). Asuka and her sweet voice led Lucy to coo over the adorable little teacup, while Juvia revealed a slightly too intense poem about her beloved Gray. Cana had to be forcibly removed from the scene as she drunkenly tried to convince everyone (including herself) that she was in fact an excellent dancer. Juggling several balls of flame, Lisanna stole the show with her elaborate performance.

But perhaps the performance that caught the most attention featured the unknowing beauty and her beast. Everyone was simply fascinated by this lovable and bright new guest and her ability to bring about the never ending smiles gracing their master's face. Never had the servants felt so optimistic about the curse! They watched Natsu and Lucy out of the corner of their eye, focusing intently on all of their interactions.

And thus, dinner had drawn to a close (with thankfully, only two tables having been destroyed and only one slightly dangerous food fight) to Mirajane's immense satisfaction (although why no one noticed why a dresser was peering through the door is still an unsolved mystery). Her two victims—err, friends? (Yes, perhaps that was the better term) were both grinning from ear to ear, and even grumpy Gajeel had looked pleased at the outcome.

There was only one more part to her brilliant (if she does say so herself, of course) plan, and Mira quivered in excitement. Curious? Well, let's just say Lucy would quickly become the belle of the ball quite soon...

She stared happily at the unaware Lucy, stars glittering in her mischievous eyes. Lucy would thank her later for all trouble, wouldn't she?

She would finally become the godmother of thirty children.

A/N: Thank you all so much for reading and following The Never Ending Adventure! There's a little scene dedicated to all you lovely readers out there, so hopefully you find it! I mean every word that Lucy said about why she writes and who she writes for-there is no one else out there that I would rather share my writing with!