A/N: Hi, guys! Well. Here we are. The final chapter. The epilogue. I've been sitting on this idea for a while now. One night, while my boi, my dude and I were talking on the Snapchats, we kind of brainstormed this little delight in a roundabout way. So, enjoy the fruits of our labor. But before we do that, last week…
Larissa, I fully agree with you. Paul is the weirdo breathing outside Lucy's window every night, fogging it over, drawing little hearts. I just gagged a little in all honesty.
And to the guest appropriately named Guest. This chapter is full of good, old-fashioned NaLu fluff that we all know and love. There are parts that will make you smile, parts that will make you aww, parts that will make you shake your head in exasperation and I hope it's up to your standards. Thank you for sticking around for the ride. It's been wonderful having you. All of you, in fact. But we'll save my gushing for another AN, k? Enjoy!
Things seemed so much simpler these days. Wake up, go to the guild hall, find a job, do said job, go home, cuddle my boyfriend and do it all again in the morning. Sometimes, our jobs would last a few days before we could go home, though. This time around, Natsu, Happy, and I had a cursed object to find and get rid of. The catacombs under the house were pretty extensive. Two days of dust and cobwebs for ninety thousand. Not bad for a couple days of hard work. On our way back home, it started getting dark, so we found a clearing and set up camp. And in our setting up of camp is where our story begins.
Before it got pitch dark, I went down to the stream to get some water. Happy was on berry detail while Natsu had gone fishing. All of our canteens were hanging off my wrist. Once in a while, the water would splash off the rocks and onto my bare feet. This was nice. A quiet, peaceful night. Only one thing would make this better. And I knew just the celestial spirit for the job. I twiddled through my keys, looking for Lyra's key. Then, off in the distance, a soft melody drifted through the air. It sounded so pretty. Where was that coming from? I could've sworn the three of us were alone out here.
I followed the song up the stream. Whoever you are, please be friendly. I'm exhausted and fresh off a job. Not to mention, I've been kidnapped before and I'm kind of over it. And I don't want to put the guild through that again. they don't deserve that. Off on a rock right next to the stream, I found the source of the music. And I didn't want to interrupt him. Honestly, I didn't want it to end. When the song came to a close, I walked up behind him.
"That sounded really nice," I praised, taking a seat on the rock, "I didn't know you played, Natsu."
"You like it?" Natsu put an arm around me, his instrument in hand.
"Yeah," I looked at the round piece of holey, beige ceramic laying in his lap, "What is it?"
"A transverse ocarina," he showed it off, "Pretty neat, huh?"
"A what?" I gave him a look. He might as well be speaking in tongues.
"It's like a small flute," Natsu elaborated, "I dabble a little in my spare time."
"You're really good," I gushed, resting my head on his shoulder. It was getting late and I was kind of hungry, but I've never felt so completely at peace, "I like it."
"Hey," he gave me a little nudge, "I'll play for you anytime, Lucy. We should be heading back to camp, though. I'm starving."
"Ok," I got up from the rock and followed the stream back to camp. Happy was already back with a bag full of berries.
"Where did you two run off to?" Happy asked, stretched out in front of the fire, "I've been all by myself for the last half hour."
"We weren't gone that long," Natsu jabbed, "You were alright."
"What if there was a bear?" he whined, "It would've eaten me."
"And we could eat the bear," I shrugged, "A noble sacrifice. Thank you, Happy. Your hypothetical death will not be in vain."
"So mean!" Happy cried, "We should've gotten rid of her when we had the chance."
"I love you, Lucy," Natsu giggled in my shoulder blade.
"I love you, too," I smiled, "What was that for?"
"Wow," Happy pouted, "Thanks for the solidarity, Natsu."
"Don't be such a baby," Natsu picked him up, "You know I wouldn't let you get eaten by a bear."
These two could be a bit much at times, but what can I say. They're on my team and I love them both. Natsu and Happy are my new family. And I wouldn't trade either one of them for the world. Even something as simple as the three of us having dinner around our campfire was enough for me. This felt more like home than the mansion ever did. I'm sure you understand, Mom.
A few days later, we had been back in town long enough to put in our report and get settled back in. In no time, I'm sure we'll find a new adventure for us to tackle head-on. When I woke up, I could've sworn Natsu was still home. But no. Just Happy and me.
"Morning, Lucy," Happy yawned, laying on the back of the couch.
"Good morning," I poured my first cup of coffee, "Where's Natsu?"
"He already left," he got up, "He said something about the pastry truck coming by."
Leave it to Natsu to be thinking with his stomach. Why am I not surprised? Honestly, it's one of the reasons I love him. He's a simple creature with simple desires. But then, out of nowhere, the ground shook and a loud crashing came from outside. Please don't be who I think it is. Please don't be who I think it is. Please prove me wrong.
"Come on, Happy," i grabbed my keys off the kitchen counter.
"What do you think that noise was?" Happy worried, riding on my shoulder, "Phantom Lord wouldn't attack the guild hall again, would they?"
"No," I settled him, "Gajeel had a talk with their guild master. Fairy Tail is protected from Phantom Lord. Although, I doubt that Fairy Tail is protected from itself."
Oh, Natsu...Please don't be the cause of this. I love you, but don't be the one responsible for this.
Unbelievable. Brand new guild hall and there's already a hole in the wall. Then again, it is the Fairy Tail guild hall. Home to the rowdiest bunch of wizards Fiore has ever seen. I'm more surprised it lasted this long. As long as my boyfriend isn't responsible, we'll be fine. Maybe that's just wishful thinking. I've known Natsu long enough to know he always has some sort of fire in his belly, waiting to come out.
"YOU TOOK THE LAST ONE, YOU JERK!" And Gray went flying across the room...Yep. I don't know why I thought things would be any different. Like I said. Wishful thinking.
"I told you..." Gray got up from the hole in the floor. Only for his frozen fist to put Natsu in the same position, "I NEVER TOUCHED THE LAST ONE, YOU IDIOT!"
I swear...I pulled up a seat next to Gajeel, who sat back and watched this ridiculousness unfold, "What happened? Who started it? Is Master Makarov here to stop it?"
"Master Makarov said he had to go bail an old acquaintance out of jail," Gajeel reported, "Something about breeding some kind of penguins illegally. I don't know the specifics. He left Erza in charge and she's not here yet."
"Clearly," I cringed as my two favorite morons kept trying to kill each other, "What are they even fighting over?"
"Natsu thinks Gray took the last blueberry muffin from the pastry truck," he filled me in, "They're top notch from what I understand. And because Natsu's got an itchy trigger finger, he won't hesitate to almost burn the guild hall down. If there's anything I've come to notice about Salamander since my time here, it's that Gray is his punching bag. And Natsu is his. Any time those two need to blow off steam, they'll find each other. Ten minutes or so later, they're the best of pals again. It's kind of endearing, really."
"In a sadomasochistic way, I guess," I shrugged, "So, do you know who's to blame for taking the last blueberry muffin?"
"See the wrapper on the table?" Gajeel pointed to the crumbled-up paper next to his feet. Yet again, why am I not surprised?
"And you couldn't have been bothered to tell them?" I rolled my eyes.
"This is more fun," he grinned. Alright. This has gone on long enough. I liked the new guild hall and I didn't want it reduced to rubble.
Shatter...
Uh-oh.
"LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE NOW!" Natsu growled, broken ceramic all over the floor.
"How was I supposed to know what was in your pockets?" Gray defended, "Maybe you should check them before you go picking fights."
"I'M THE ONE WHO..."
"Natsu!" I stopped him, grabbing him by the ear. Unbelievable.
"Ow!" he writhed, "Lucy! Let me go!"
"I will when you stop being stupid," I dragged him outside.
"What did I do?" Natsu squealed, "Gray started it! He knew I would want...!"
"Gajeel took it," I groaned, "He's new to the guild. He's not going to know you have dibs on the blueberry muffins."
"And now," he started to settle down, "My ocarina's busted. I guess I have myself to blame for that."
"And the guild hall's a mess," I took his hand, "How bad is it?"
"It's gone," Natsu pulled the last few pieces out of his pocket, "We should give it a proper sendoff."
"Really?" I gave him a look, "Did it have any sentimental value?"
"Picked it up at a secondhand shop on a job a few years ago," he told me, "It was a couple hours from here. No real sentimentality.
Unbelievable.
"Go home," I ordered, "Don't burn the place down. I'll find us a job."
"Ok," Natsu knew better than to fight me when he's already angry. That would lead to things he'd horribly regret. It's like Gajeel said. Gray is Natsu's designated punching bag. He'd never even think about doing something like that with me.
I left Natsu and Happy at home and headed back to the guild. The floor was already fixed and things have calmed down. I didn't even care about what job I was grabbing. The first flyer I grabbed was our next job. I wanted to get in and out before I had to answer for Natsu's idiocy. Didn't look too difficult. A lost pendant. Magical charm attached. A hundred thousand. Not bad.
Instead of going home right away, I decided to talk a walk around Magnolia with Plue for a while. This really was a pretty town. And peaceful when a certain guild can behave itself. The little shops and cafes and houses along the street made it so picturesque. It made for such a nice backdrop of the guild hall. As I passed a group of shops, one had caught my eye. I peeked into the window and saw a man at the counter. There's no way I could pass this up.
"What do you think, Plue?" I asked, "Should we take a look around?"
One squeak of approval was all I needed. The bell over the door greeted us. That sounded promising. What were the chances that hiding in this music shop in the heart of Magnolia, I'd find what I'm looking for? So many beautifully crafted instruments lined the walls of this shop. Both magical and non-magical alike. Please have what I need. Natsu looked so bummed when I left him.
"Hello!" the shopkeeper chimed, "Can I help you find something?"
"Actually, yes," I nodded, "I'm looking for an ocarina. My boyfriend's recently broke."
"Pardon me for asking," he excused himself, "But is that a celestial spirit?"
"He is," I scooped Plue up in my arms and he snuggled into my shoulder, "Why?"
"And he's yours, I'm guessing?"
"That's right."
"It's been a long time since I came across a celestial wizard," he smiled, "And going by the sigil on your hand, you're not just any wizard."
"Nope," I beamed, "I have a guild to call home."
"Fairy Tail..." the shopkeeper figured, "I've known a few Fairy Tail wizards in my time. Now, you said you were looking for an ocarina."
"Yes, sir," I confirmed.
"Magical or non-magical?" he asked, looking through the cases.
"What do your magical ones do?" I wondered, curious as to what Natsu's gotten me into.
"Some of them work as teleportation keys," the shopkeeper explained, "Some of them have healing properties. It all depends on what song you play."
Interesting, "Do you know if the teleportation would affect someone with motion sickness?"
"Even if you don't have motion sickness," he chuckled, "Throwing up upon landing is almost certain."
"Oh." Looks like that one's out of the question, "Then, a non-magical one please."
"Boyfriend has motion sickness, does he?" the shopkeeper assumed, "No matter. Do you know what kind his old one was?"
"A transverse, I think," I remembered Natsu saying something like that by the stream. One of the ocarinas in the case piqued my interest. It was black and red and gray and looked like marble. It's beautiful, "What's this one?"
"Ooh," he sang, "This one's special. It's one of my favorites. This one's called a dragon's tooth. It was made with…"
"I'll take it," I said without hesitation, "How much?"
"Thirty thousand and it's yours."
"It's mine," I dug in my bag for some money and threw it on the counter.
"Would you like it gift wrapped?" he offered.
"No, thank you," I took the bag off the counter. A dragon's tooth ocarina for my favorite dragon slayer. A little cheeky, but I like it. And I'd love to hear Natsu play again. I hope it sounds just as pretty as the old one. With a smile on my face and Plue by my side, I hid the bag in my bag and we started heading back home. Natsu and Happy were busy screwing around in the living room where I'm pretty sure the couch wasn't flipped over when I left. What is my life?
"Hey, Luce," Natsu greeted me, hiding under the flipped over couch, "Welcome home. Did you find us a job?"
"Why?" I shut my eyes for a moment, trying to pretend that my couch wasn't flipped over and my living room wasn't in ruin.
"We needed a fort!" Happy chimed from the other side, "It's cozy in here, Lucy."
"It's cozier when it's not flipped over and goes with the rest of the living room," I grumbled, "Hey, Happy, can I ask you something?"
"Sure," he climbed on top of their alleged fort, "What's up?"
"Are you going to be ok by yourself tonight?" I asked.
"Why…?" Happy looked at me skeptically.
"Where are we going to be?" Natsu shared his sentiment.
"You're not busy tonight, are you?" I batted my eyelashes at him.
"No." And he's butter.
"Awesome!" I pulled him off the floor, "You two are going to put my couch back and we're going to go out tonight. Say, thirty minutes?"
"Sure," Natsu gave me a quick kiss and sent me off.
This is going to kill him.
By the time we left home, I found another clearing just outside of Magnolia. Somewhere calm and quiet just like the other night. We were the exact amount of removed from the world for this to take full effect. I could see it all over Natsu's face. He was totally lost. Always causing me such mental anguish. It's about time I paid it forward.
"Hey, Lucy," Natsu took a quick look around. A habit he's picked up since my almost wedding, "Not that this isn't a nice spot, but why are we here?"
"Well," I bit my lip, "I was out in town today…"
"I remember. Gray took my muffin and I flipped your couch over."
"Gajeel took your…" I stopped myself, lacking the energy to deal with that mess again, "Never mind. But when I was out and about today, I was walking by a shop and I got you a present."
"You didn't have to do that, Lucy," Natsu pulled me into his lap on the ground, "But uh…what'd you get me?"
"It's kind of silly," I took the bag from the music shop out of my bag, "But I couldn't stand to see you so sad."
"What is it?" he groaned, "The suspense is killing me."
"Here," I got out of his lap and gave him his present, "Like I said, it's kind of silly."
Anxiously, Natsu pulled the bag off and held a new piece of ceramic in his hands. He completely froze, "Lucy…You got me a new ocarina?"
"It's called a dragon's tooth," I smiled, "I saw it and when the guy said it was a dragon's tooth, I couldn't help my…"
Out of nowhere, my boyfriend tackle hugged me, holding me tight against his chest, "It's perfect, Lucy. Thank you."
"You're welcome," I curled into his shoulder, "You know, I did have an ulterior motive for getting that."
"Did you?" Natsu kissed the top of my head, "And what's that?"
"I was hoping," I looked up at my boyfriend, "Would you play for me?"
A familiar smile stretched across Natsu's face. One that only he was ever capable of doing. One that made me fall in love with him in the first place ever since it popped up in my tower. I may be mad at my father for many, many unforgivable things. But I had to give him this. If it weren't for him, I would never have seen that smile, "Always."
A/N: I love this chapter. I love this chapter more than life itself. That ending…That ending has made me a puddle. The original headcanon was that Natsu played flute (because my dude is biased). And because I'm a nerd, I do actually play ocarina and I'm quite good at it. Is it because of Zelda? Yes. And I'm not ashamed of it. However, fun fact! The earliest ocarinas were found in…anyone? Anyone know? Germany! Weirdly enough, my last name is very German. But anyway, I decided to take the original and add a little something, something to it. When I saw flute, my first thought was ocarina. When I think Natsu and ocarina in the same stream of consciousness, it goes right to a dragon's tooth. They're so pretty and I want one so bad, but they're soooooooooooooooooooooooooo expensive…:P But onto the more serious stuff.
Thank you, guys. It's been so great hanging out with you every Monday. I'm not sure what I'm going to do after this. I don't know if I'm going to reboot something or go with a different fandom. I'm always open to suggestion. I don't really have any plans for a Monday story next week. I'm thinking of just taking next Monday off, but you know how I am. Heaven forbid I take a day, you know? That's very true, Ms. Olivier. You're going to work yourself into the ground. I know, but it pays off. These guys get their update. I get the dribble out of my brain. It works. But it won't kill you to take a break. Hey, Janet? I'm working on my outro here. You think you could give me a second? Of course…Wait…You called me Janet. Uh…Yeah. That's your name. But…You've never called me Janet before. There's a first time for everything. Is there anything you want to say to the kids at home? Oh, no…I couldn't. Go ahead. Well…I don't have too much to say. I hope we can have your continued support on our future endeavors and even on the past ones as well. Of course they do. Hey, you know that project we talked about for the YouTube channel? The GaLe project? The very one. What of it, ma'am? When can we get started on that? As soon as we have the proper costuming and the proper cast. We'll need at least six people. Boo. I don't know many other cosplayers. It looks like you're going to have to start networking. Booooooooooooooooooo. Who knows? Might meet neat people. Wait…What are you all still doing here? Forget everything you just heard. It's all lies. It was a mirage. But in all seriousness, guys, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. You've been my number one story every week. You've been my favorite start of my week. And give yourselves a pat on the back. Or a hug. Either or. And I don't have much else to say here except…See you later. xx