Author's note: New chapter everyone! I do not own Fairy Tail.
MORE THAN FRIENDS
CHAPTER 25
Lucy ran towards the two spirits and hugged them tightly, with a wide smile.
"We did it! We won! You guys were both great!" she yelled excitedly.
"Thank you, Lucy! I'm sorry!" Aries said timidly.
"Why are you apologizing again?" Lucy mumbled, with a slight sweatdrop.
"Congratulations Princess! Is it time for punishment, then?" Virgo said simply, causing Lucy to let out a sigh.
"Just, go back the two of you" she responded, as the two spirits vanished in a golden light, while Lucy made her way down the ring, and moved towards her friends.
"You did it Lucy!" Erza said enthusiastically, as she nearly jumped on Lucy, giving her a tight hug.
"Eh? Um, thanks Erza!" the blond girl stammered with a slight blush, surprised at her partner's unusual, vivid reaction.
"That was unexpected! I don't think I have ever seen Erza react so enthusiastically before. Unless there is cake involved" Cana commented, with an amused expression.
"It's probably due to Lucy's unexpected win! You know that Erza can sometimes be spontaneous with her reactions" Mirajane said simply, with a sweet smile.
"I guess you are right. She does have certain, outbursts, at times. Although, this is usually when she gets mad" Cana nodded in agreement.
"Still, for Kagura-chan to lose… This was really unexpected!" Millianna said, still shocked at the outcome of the match.
"Disappointed, Millianna?" a cool voice was heard behind her.
"Eck! Kagura-chan!" the cat girl gasped, as she nearly jumped from the ground, startled at her friend's sudden appearance.
"Disappointed? Of-Of course not, Kagura-chan! I was just surprised, that's all! I still think you are amazing, though!" she responded hastily, moving around her hands frantically in defense.
"It's okay Millianna! Calm down" Kagura said with a calm expression, while she walked towards Lucy, as Erza released her tight hug.
"I cannot deny that I am somewhat surprised, and perhaps a little upset, that I lost the match. But, I have to admit that you were the better competitor in our bout. You were determined, and had the resourcefulness to use the field to your advantage. Congratulations, Lucy-san!" Kagura said in almost a formal way, as she raised her hand.
"Um, thanks Kagura! You were great too!" Lucy responded with a slightly embarrassed expression, feeling that her response was too simple compared to the smooth talking girl's comments, as she shook her hand. Kagura didn't seem to mind in the least though, instead she gave Lucy a rather warm, even if slightly composed, smile.
"I also think that I owe you an apology, Erza. It seems we won't have our rematch, after all" the dark haired girl said coolly, as she turned towards Erza.
"It's too bad, though. It would be nice to have a friendly spar this time, now that things have become more clear between us" Erza commented, putting her hand on her hip.
"Hmph! Well, excuse me for ruining your dream match then! Sorry, for getting in the way!" Lucy huffed irritated, as she folded her arms stubbornly.
"Come on now Lucy, don't be like that! That's not what we meant!" Erza said apologetically, trying to hold back a small laugh.
"Actually, I am excited to see a match between you two guys" Mirajane said enthusiastically.
"So am I! Besides, a Fairy Tail final has a nice ring to it!" Cana agreed with a grin.
"I am interested to see this match too. Erza certainly has the advantage, but I'm sure that Lucy-san will be able to even the odds with her intelligence" Kagura said coolly, causing Lucy to slightly blush.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence!" she smiled, rubbing the back of her head with some embarrassment.
Lucy and Erza stood in the middle of the ring, facing each other.
"It has finally come down to this, Lucy! Are you ready?" Erza said lightly.
"I sure am!" Lucy said with a confident smile. The main reason that she had taken part in this tournament was to prove, to herself mostly, that she was strong enough to be with Erza, that she could stand beside her without feeling, unequal. And she did it, she managed to walk all the way to the finals. Of course she was still feeling slightly nervous, she was fighting against Erza after all, but she felt like she had achieved her goal. All she had to do now was try her best, and maybe even enjoy the match, no matter the outcome. She had a feeling that they would come out even closer to each other after this, and from the look on Erza's face, Lucy realized that she was felling the same.
"Here I go then!" she said, as she attacked with a swift strike from her magical whip, which Erza, much to Lucy's expectance, was able to dodge with little problem.
"I see that you have gotten quite skilled with this whip, Lucy. Still, you'll have to do better than that!" Erza said, with a smirk.
"You may be able to evade one whip, but what about more? I open the Gate of the Twins, Gemini!" Lucy said, pulling one of her golden keys, which glowed brightly as the two small, blue spirits appeared, and floated beside Lucy, quickly transforming into her.
"We are ready, Lucy!" the transformed spirit smiled, as it held the magical whip, as well. Erza looked between Lucy and the transformed spirit, as a mischievous grin slowly formed on her lips.
"He, heh! Two Lucys!" she snickered.
"What's with that grin? Never mind" Lucy mumbled, as she held her magical whip firmly.
"Come on then Lucy! Show me how you got so far!" Erza said with an encouraging smile, as she summoned two swords, one to her each hand.
"That's what I intended to do! Let's go, Gemini!" Lucy said decisively, as she charged forward, along with the transformed spirit. They moved around Erza, and they both attacked with swift, well-coordinated strikes, as if they were synched with each other. Erza was surprised by their well-coordinated attacks, but was able to dodge again, although not as easily as before, using her swords to block, as well, and counter attacked with a number of strikes of her own, which Lucy was barely able to dodge.
"She's too fast Lucy! We can't get her" Gemini said, as Lucy slightly panted.
"I expected as much. Thanks for your help, Gemini. I'll figure out something else" Lucy said, as Gemini nodded and disappeared in a glow.
"She seems more winded than me. Even with the small break we had between the previous match and this one, Lucy still hasn't recovered" Erza though.
"No reason to get nervous, Lucy! I know you can do better" she said with an encouraging smile, as Lucy simply nodded.
"She may be saying that, but I can't think of any way to get her out of the ring, let alone actually defeating her! And I have already summoned most of my spirits" the blonde girl though, as she moved her hand towards her belt. Suddenly, a golden glow shone, and an orange haired spirit appeared.
"Loke? What are you doing here? I was thinking of summoning you, but I didn't do it yet" Lucy said bewildered.
"I know Lucy. The other spirits told me about this tournament, so I thought I should drop by to check things out. You are indeed, fighting with Erza!" Loke remarked, with an amused expression.
"Well yeah, sort of" Lucy mumbled.
"You don't mind then if I join in, do you? And I suppose you don't mind either, right Erza?" Loke said, as he walked casually towards Erza.
"Not at all! It would be interesting to spar with you" the red haired girl responded with a smile.
"Requip! Robe of Yuen!" she said, as she requiped to a purple kimono, holding a spear firmly.
"Let's do this then! Regulus, give me strength!" Loke said, as he charged forward. The Fairy Tail mages engaged in a quick paced fight, Erza's spear clashing with Loke's glowing fists, while Lucy simply stared.
"Look at them go" she mumbled.
"You are pretty good, Loke. I don't think we have ever actually sparred before" Erza said.
"So it seems. We don't talk much either, lately. Maybe we could fix that, by going out for a cup of coffee or something?" Loke said lightly, after both he and Erza leapt backwards from a strong collision. Erza was about to answer, but blocked a swift strike from Lucy's whip, who jumped between them.
"I may not be as strong as you guys, but I'm taking part in this fight too, damn it! What have you been talking about anyway?" she said with some irritation.
"Nothing really. Loke just asked me out again" Erza said simply.
"He did what?!" Lucy narrowed her eyes at the orange haired spirit, who smiled a little nervously.
"It's not like that! I simply asked her out on a friendly walk. You are free to come too if you want, Lucy" Loke said smoothly.
"Sure, we'll think about your offer! You can go now, I think you guys sparred enough" Lucy puffed her cheeks.
"There's no need to push! Okay, I'll see you guys later then" Loke said simply, as he vanished in a golden light.
"You didn't really have to push him, you know" Erza said lightly.
"Yeah, I know. Let's just finish this" Lucy said with some frustration, as she turned towards Erza.
"I agree. Whoever is left standing in our next move, wins the match" Erza said, raising her spear.
"Fine with me" Lucy said decisively, holding her magical whip firmly, which turned into a staff again. They both stood ready, looking for an opening in each other's stance, and attacked at the same time, as they collided in the middle of the ring. Lucy's strike was well balanced, but not as accurate as Erza's, her legs slowly gave away, and she fell on the ring.
"The winner of the match, and of the tournament, Erza Scarlet! What a contest, though! Give it up for both our amazing competitors!" Max announced enthusiastically, as the crowd applauded and cheered for both of them, while Erza immediately kneeled next to Lucy.
"Are you okay, Lucy? I didn't hit you too hard, did I?" she said with some concern.
"Don't worry, Erza. I'm fine! Congratulations, you won the tournament!" Lucy said with a small smile, as Erza helped her back on her feet.
"We both won, Lucy!" Erza said with a warm expression, as Lucy's smile grew wider. Erza then requiped to her regular armor, before the two of them got down from the ring, while the crowd cheered for both of them, and walked towards their friends.
"Congratulations to both of you!" Mirajane smiled, as they moved closer.
"Thanks Mira! This tournament was pretty tough, though. I could really use a bath right now" Lucy said, rubbing the back of her neck.
"Actually, I think I could use some rest too" Erza nodded in agreement, folding her arms.
"You guys could have a walk around the booths to relax. I should be getting back to the guild" Mirajane said.
"Come on, Mira! We can check around for a while too. Surely, there's no need for you to go back to the guild yet" Cana suggested.
"I suppose, there's no need to rush" Mirajane said lightly.
"So, Er-chan, how about we hang around? We have a lot of catching up to do! We can go wherever you want! It's gonna be so much fun!" Millianna said enthusiastically, as she wrapped her arms around Erza's waist and rubbed her cheek on her shoulder, letting out a purring sound.
"Shouldn't you train Millianna? Don't you remember our deal, if you didn't win at least one match?" Kagura said calmly.
"Eh? Yeah, I remember Kagura-chan, but do I have to do this right away? We are not even at the guild!" Millianna whined, with a pout.
"You could still take a few laps around the park. Maintaining a good physical condition is essential for your training. And since I didn't get to meet Erza in the ring, it's only fair that I get to spend the rest of the day with her" Kagura claimed, as she folded her arms.
"What? How's this fair? Besides, I didn't fight her either!" Millianna shot back.
"Calm down you two. There's no reason for us not to spend the day all together" Erza said simply, raising her hands in defense.
"Hold it right there you two!" Ashley suddenly interfered, putting her hands on her waist.
"Ashley? Is there, something you want?" Erza said with mild wonder.
"I was just wondering, if you could show me around the city. I don't come here very often, and I'm sure that the city will look even better with all the decorations for then festival. And then, maybe, we could go for a cup of coffee or cake, if you want to" Ashley said, trying to avoid Erza's look, with a slight blush, much to Erza's surprise.
"Well, this does sound nice, I suppose" Erza responded, with a small smile. Lucy kept looking between Erza and everyone else, feeling her temper rising, as she puffed her cheeks
"Back off! Erza's mine!" she snapped, grabbing Erza's arm, as everyone looked at her with surprised expressions.
"Oh my! Such temper" Mirajane shook her head with an amused expression, as Cana let out a small laugh.
Lucy let out a long sigh, as she soaked in the hot water, while Erza smiled in content. After taking a small walk around the booths at the festival area, the two girls decided to visit the hot springs to relieve some of the fatigue from the tournament.
"This feels so good!" Lucy let out another sigh, as she sank deeper in the water.
"I agree! This was a great idea Lucy!" Erza said, leaning more comfortably on the lean wall behind her.
"What shall we do later?" Lucy asked, after a while.
"We'll see. Besides, you still owe me a treat, since I won the match" Erza responded lightly.
"Hey, I don't recall actually agreeing to that. And I think it's only fair that you treat me, since you got the prize!" Lucy said pointedly.
"You may have a point. Fine then, have it your way. But you'll have to wait, I don't feel like moving from here, yet" the red haired girl said with a relaxed voice.
"That's my Erza! And don't worry about that, I don't plan on moving from this spot for a while either" Lucy mumbled, as she closed her eyes. Lucy and Erza remained silent for a while, enjoying the steamy pool of water, allowing all the fatigue and tension to simply wash away.
"By the way, what was with that outburst earlier?" Erza said after a while.
"Huh? What are you talking about? What outburst?" Lucy mumbled bewildered, as she slowly opened her eyes.
"You know, when you snapped at Kagura and the others" Erza said, looking towards Lucy.
"I didn't snap! I just talked, in an intense way" Lucy puffed her cheeks.
"Right, that's all you did" Erza said with a smirk.
"Well, I just didn't like the way all these girls were ogling at you! You've had, too much attention" Lucy said, blushing slightly with embarrassment.
"Oh? So, you got a little possessive there, didn't you?" Erza teased, with an amused expression.
"Can you blame me? I mean, you have all this history with Millianna and Kagura, and they are both so good looking! And that Ashley girl was pretty cute too, and she seemed to have a thing for you!" the blonde girl mumbled.
"She did, didn't she? Well, what can I say? I can't help it if I'm popular with the ladies!" Erza said casually as she had gotten up, and run her hands through her long, wet, silky hair.
"Is that so?" Erza heard Lucy's voice behind her and she suddenly let a yelp, as she felt two arms wrap around her trim waist.
"It seems like someone has gotten full of herself! Perhaps, I should take you down a few pegs, don't you think?" Lucy whispered next to her ear.
"Heh, you think you are up for this?" Erza said coyly.
"Hm, I think I can give it a shot" Lucy said with a sweetened voice, as she started trailing light kisses on Erza's bare shoulder, while one of her hands started moving lightly over her tight stomach.
"Mm, you are off to a nice start! But you'll have to do a little better than that" Erza said teasingly.
"Don't worry, I'm just getting started! Just leave your magnificent body in my capable hands!" Lucy said seductively, as she slowly kissed her way towards Erza's nap of neck. She moved up, kissing her cheek and nibbling her earlobe softly, before she moved down her neck again and started sucking on the sweet spot gently, eliciting soft moans from the red haired girl. Her hand continued tracing small circles around Erza's taut stomach, feeling her hints of abs, while her other hand moved upwards, cupping one of Erza's soft breasts.
"Ah! Lucy!" Erza let out a heavier moan, as she leaned against her partner, who grinned mischievously.
"My, my, it seems I am doing better already! Does this feel nice, Erza?" she said with a playful, almost singing voice.
"It does, but it's still missing something. You are getting close, though" Erza said, still maintaining some of her composure.
"How about this then?" Lucy said, as she gently cupped Erza's cheek and turned her head around, staring her deeply into her chocolate brown orbs, before capturing her plush lips in a heated kiss. Erza moaned heavier, as Lucy kissed her intensely, passionately, enjoying her smooth, delectable lips, while she continued massaging the red haired girl's soft bosom. Lucy let the older girl catch her breath for a moment, before she gave her another mind blowing kiss, savouring her sweet taste. She kissed her without restrain, needing more of the red haired beauty who writhed in her arms. She then traced one of her hands downwards, and moved it between her inner thighs, feeling her hotness, causing Erza to brake the kiss, and let out another heavy moan.
"You are so wet down there! I wonder if it's from the pool, or something else" Lucy said with a sly smile.
"Lucy! You are such a tease!" Erza panted with a heavy blush.
"You asked for it you big flirt! I mean, sure, it's okay if other girls flirt with you, but Erza is mine! Only mine, and mine alone!" Lucy said almost in a childish voice, as she held the red haired girl even more firmly.
"Of course, Lucy! I am all yours! You don't ever need to doubt that!" Erza said with a soothing voice, smiling at her partner's antics.
"Good! Now where was I?" Lucy said with a husky voice, as she suddenly pushed Erza against one of the lean, stone walls of the pool, holding both of her arms above her head with one hand and pinning the older girl against it, pressing their heated, wet bodies together as she captured her plush lips in a long, passionate, deep kiss, while her other hand slowly rubbed her firm stomach before it slipped between her toned thighs.
"You still need to be punished, you know!" the blonde whispered teasingly, as she lightly bit down Erza's soft neck, before she started kissing and sucking the sweet spot, while her hand started moving at a quicker pace.
"Haah! Aah! Lucy! Lucy!" Erza panted heavily as she bucked her hips, feeling something building inside her, as she neared her climax. Erza threw her head backwards, her long hair flipping like a crimson wave, she arched her back sharply, letting out a long, heavy moan, and nearly collapsed, feeling completely exhausted, but Lucy held her in her arms.
"Lucy!" Erza whispered again, and Lucy looked at her fondly. She held the older girl's limp body gently, and slowly moved towards one of the stone stairs of the pool. She sat down and put Erza in her lap, holding her gently. Lucy simply stared at the red haired beauty in her arms, as Erza took some slow and heavy breaths with closed eyes, trying to recover. It wasn't long though, before she slowly opened her eyes, and looked at Lucy with a warm smile.
"Hey" she said, with a relaxed, blissful expression.
"Hello, beautiful! How are you feeling?" Lucy said, as she brushed a strand of red hair behind Erza's ear.
"How do you think? If you were that aggressive in our match, I think you may have actually won" Erza said with a small laugh, as Lucy slightly blushed.
"Well, I don't know about that. But I already told you, I can't control myself when I'm around you. It's almost, as if I'm a different person" the blonde mumbled with a sheepish smile.
"Heh, who knew I would have this effect on sweet little Lucy!" Erza chuckled, as she wrapped her arms around Lucy's neck. Lucy pouted and was about to talk back, but here words were cut by a soft kiss on her lips. She didn't mind one bit though, as she held Erza closer, and deepened the kiss. After a few moments, the two girls slowly moved apart, looking each other with tenderness.
"I love you, Erza! I love you, so much!" Lucy whispered softly.
"I love you too, Lucy!" Erza mumbled with a warm smile, as they held each other closer.
Mirajane stretched her arms comfortably, before she took a nearby glass and started wiping it.
"Today has been pretty crowded" Cana commented, as she took a sip from her drink.
"Indeed, it has. It's not really surprising though, with the festival and all" Mirajane said simply.
"That tournament was pretty interesting too. Perhaps you should have taken part after all" Cana said casually.
"You know me, Cana. I'm not that interested in fighting and stuff" Mirajane responded, as she let the clear glass on the counter.
"Which is not what I could say for when you were younger" Cana chuckled, as she took another sip from her drink.
"He, he, you have a point there! What can I say, people sometimes change" Mirajane said with a light smile.
"Maybe, but you haven't change that much. I mean, sure, you are not nearly as rowdy as you used to be. But you have always been an amazing, warm, kind and caring person" Cana said, as Mirajane blinked bewildered.
"Why, thank you Cana! That's really sweet! But, what brought this on?" the white haired girl asked, surprised at her partner's sudden compliments.
"Nothing, I just felt like saying it" Cana responded casually, focusing on her drink again, as Mirajane simply shook her head with a small smile. At one of the tables of the guild, Natsu and Gray were chatting casually.
"Hey, have you seen Lucy and Erza? I haven't seen them since the morning" Natsu said looking around, munching a rather large sandwich.
"I saw them after their match at the tournament. They said they would spend the rest of the day together" Gray responded simply, with a wave of his hand.
"I see. I guess, I shouldn't be that surprised. To think that Lucy would actually get so far, and face Erza! She has surely grown stronger" Natsu grinned.
"She definitely has. It's not only her own determination or our friendship, but her relationship with Erza also pushes her to grow stronger, not only in her magic, but as a character too. And Erza is growing too, in her own way, from their relationship. They certainly are perfect for each other" Gray said thoughtfully, with a small smile.
"They sure are. I get how they want to spend time with each other, but they could drop by to say hi or something" Natsu said, with a small frown.
"Don't pout like that! They are a couple now, so it's only normal if they want their privacy to do, stuff" Gray responded eloquently.
"Right! I am going to get a drink" Natsu said simply, as he got up from his seat.
"I'm getting one too" Gray said, getting up as well, as they both moved towards the bar.
"So, what did you want to talk about, Cana? Why did we have to get out of the guild?" Mirajane asked curiously, as she and Cana stood under the trees, in the backyard of the guild.
"I wanted some privacy, so I can give you this" Cana said, as she took out a small, blue box. She opened it, and took out a small, golden bracelet, with a light blue stone.
"Oh, Cana! It's amazing!" Mirajane gasped, slightly blushing, as Cana put it around her wrist.
"I'm glad you like it! It matches your eyes" the brown haired girl said, as she looked Mirajane deeply into her blue orbs.
"Thank you Cana! I don't want to sound ungrateful but, why a gift? Do we have a special occasion?" Mirajane said.
"Not really! I just wanted to make a gift to my girl! We've known each other ever since we were kids, and I don't exactly know when I fell for you, along the way. But I know, that you make me happier than I could ever dream of! And, I would like to try and make you as happy as I can, too! I love you, Mira!" Cana said softly, as she wrapped her arms around the white haired girl's waist.
"Cana!" Mirajane whispered with a choked voice, blushing even more intensely, as she put her arms around the taller girl's neck and pulled her closer.
"I love you too, Cana! And you don't really need to try, you are already making me happy!" she said with a sweet smile, causing the brown haired girl to grin joyfully. They stared each other for a long moment, before they leaned even closer, capturing each other's lips in a deep, passionate kiss. They moved apart after a while, both of them smiling with flushed faces, and walked back to the guild, holding each other's hand.
"This is a nice scenery, isn't it?" Lucy said, with a smile.
"Indeed, it's beautiful!" Erza nodded in agreement. It was late at noon, and Lucy and Erza had left the hot springs, spending the rest of the day together. They walked casually around the city, visiting the bookstore that Lucy wanted, as well as the pastry shop that Erza chose. After that, they decided to walk around the central park of Magnolia, and visited one of their favorite spots.
"What a wonderful sunset!" Lucy said with a dreamy voice.
"This is truly a lovely spot! Not only you can see the best sunsets, but you can also get a great view of the park and the city" Erza commented, as she looked around.
"It's also where we came for our first date! Do you remember?" Lucy said with a soft voice, holding Erza's hand tenderly.
"Of course I do!" Erza smiled, as she gave Lucy's hand a gentle squeeze, before they both turned around and stared each other. They both wanted to say something, but there was no need for words. Their eyes said the entire story, they reflected each other's emotions and feelings. Lucy moved closer and gave Erza a long, soft kiss, as Erza kissed back tenderly.
"So, what are we doing now?" Lucy asked, after they slowly moved away.
"I was thinking about spending the night at your place, if you don't mind?" Erza suggested lightly.
"This sounds great!" Lucy beamed brightly.
"I figured you would like it. But first, let's go back to the guild. Our friends are still there" Erza said, smiling as well.
"Of course, we are not alone after all. Let's go then, back to Fairy Tail" Lucy said. They kept their hands linked with each other, as they turned around and slowly made their way through the park, back to their guild.
Author's note: This chapter took me a little longer than I expected. I suppose, it could serve like some sort of closure, since I feel like the story seems complete this way. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I would really like to know what you think about it! See you next time, everyone!