Erza returned 2 hours later, carrying with her two big bags of food. Natsu's eyes widened with joy as he drooled at the prospect of home cooked meal. Erza walked past him and made her way to the kitchen, which was surprisingly spacious if the cottage's outside look was any indication. She placed the bags on a small square table and pulled out a few pots and pans from the cupboard. Natsu peeked from behind the wall as he watched Erza remove the ingredients from the bags and place them on the table. He was salivating so much that he could have drowned a small dog.

Eggs, potatoes, noodles, carrots, rice, and lots and lots of meat. She opened the cook book she had purchased and looked for the perfect recipe. Once she had found it, she pulled a light blue ribbon out of her bag and tied her long hair into a pony tail as her body glowed bright.

"Re-Quip"

As the glow faded, Erza was now wearing a pink apron, Gray short shorts which stopped just below her buttocks & a sports bra. She then summoned several kitchen utensils as she began to cook dinner. She mixed the eggs, potatoes, and noodles together in a pan as she stirred them together over the stove fire. Natsu could smell the heavenly aroma and couldn't stop himself from moving from the wall.

He slowly crept up behind Erza. His hand slowly inching towards the pan.

POP! "Stop that Natsu, it will be ready soon."

In one swift motion Erza had hit Natsu in the hand with the ladle she was using to cook, what was more impressive was she accomplished this without even looking at him, although she did smile to herself. "Aw come on Erza, just one small taste?" He pleaded with her. "No." she answered with a stern tone, "The food will be ready soon, why don't you go outside until it's finished?" She continued to stir the ingredients.

Natsu crossed his arms as he leaned against the counter, "Fine." He left the kitchen in a huff, Erza shook her head and smiled as she continued to cook.

Natsu walked outside and breathed in the fresh air that was coming from the lake, the setting sun giving it a vibrant orange color. He walked down the hill and sat at the edge of the lake as he laid down on the ground. He closed his eyes and let his mind wander as he thought of when he and Erza were children.

She was always a bit bossy, but deep down she always tried to help him out. He thought back to when she taught him how to read. She was so frightening back then and he smiled to himself as he wondered how he & Gray managed to survive back in those days. Erza stated once that the three used to take baths together, but whenever Natsu thought of these moments his head hurt, probably because he tried to block those moments out.

As he drifted away, he heard a voice calling to him.

"Natsu! Dinner is ready! Hurry before it gets cold!"

Natsu jumped to his feet and happily ran back to the cottage, the delicious aroma of the food Erza prepared for them called to him. He couldn't help but drool as he walked into the kitchen. Erza was already sitting at the table and as she looked at his face, she couldn't help but giggle. "Natsu, perhaps you clean yourself up before sitting down."

"Huh?" He looked at her confused. He noticed Erza smiling and looking at his shirt, taking the hint he looked down to see that nearly his entire shirt was drenched in drool. Embarrassed he ran to the bathroom, and wiped his face off as he took off his shirt. He then went into the bedroom and found another one, he put it on and went back to the table.

"Sorry about that." He smiled as he scratched his head embarrassed. Erza smiled at him, "Don't worry about it, eat." Natsu's eyes looked over the banquet in front of him. Noodles, curry, potato soup, and smoked as well as fried meat. He once again began to drool, Erza had outdone herself this time. He didn't know where to start. He reached for one of the fried bird's leg and took a bite. He nearly fell out of his chair in pure ecstasy. His eyes lit up as he ate the rest of the food. Each bite he savored more than the last.

Erza sat across the table from him and watched him eat. She couldn't help but smile as she watched him savor the food she had prepared with such love and care.

With all the food in front of him gone, Natsu leaned back in his chair and exhaled happily, his stomach almost as big as the table. He then looked at Erza and smiled, "Thanks for the food Erza, it was delicious." "Well I'm glad you liked it." She gave him a satisfied look as she rose from the table and put the dirty dishes in the sink.

Natsu got up and moved from behind the table. "Hey, Erza let me help you whoa!" He walked towards Erza but his foot caught the table leg, causing him to trip.

Erza turned around, "No that's alright I can…" her eyes widened as she saw Natsu falling towards her. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact but felt nothing. She opened her eyes to see Natsu inches away from her face, he braced himself by placing his hands on the counter.

Erza's face turned bright red and her heart skipped a few beats. Time seem to slow down as the two stared into one another's eyes. She was so close to him that she could feel his breath on her, her knees began to give way, but just before she collapsed Natsu back up, his face also red. "Heh, sorry about that." He pointed outside the kitchen doorway, "I'll just go sit on the couch."

Erza said nothing, she couldn't say anything. All she could manage was a slow nod as Natsu walked out of the kitchen. She then quickly turned around and exhaled deeply as she looked at her right hand, it was shaking. She caught a hold of herself and proceeded to wash the dishes smiling and blushing to herself.

Natsu sat on the couch in the living area and his eyes searched the room, he wasn't looking for anything he just needed to calm himself down. He looked at his hands, they were shaking; but he didn't know why. He thought back to just a few moments ago, and his hands shook even more. His face grew red again. Erza and I were so close, we almost…

"Natsu?"

"Agh!" Natsu nearly jumped out of his seat as he saw Erza looking at him from the other side of the doorway. She looked at him quizzically, "Are you alright?" He nervously nodded his head and smiled weakly, "Yeah…I'm fine heh heh."

"Ok, well I was going to look at the stars for a bit before going to bed, did you want to join me?"

"Huh? Uh, yea sure." He said still nervous. He stood up from the couch and followed Erza outside. They found a soft patch of grass on the hills incline and sat down. Natsu laid back, using his elbows to keep him upright, Erza sat with her legs crossed.

"There sure a lot of them." Erza commented as she looked at the night sky.

"Yea, I wonder how they taste."

"You can't eat stars Natsu."

"I know, but just think I bet eating one would give you some weird kind of magical power."

Erza looked at him then looked back up. "Hmm, I suppose you're right."

"Hey Erza, how do you think everyone in the guild is doing?"

"I'm sure they're all fine. It's not like they need us there to keep running normally."

"I know. I guess I'm just a little worried since I left Happy with Lisanna."

"I'm sure he's fine, Lisanna loves him just as much as you do."

"Yeah." He smiled to himself as he looked in the sky, "You're right."

They sat in silence for a few more moments, admiring the beauty of the sky. Erza slowly moved closer to Natsu, but became startled when he suddenly stood up. "You ready to go back?" He asked as he extended his hand to help her up. She nodded and grabbed his hand, "Yes, let's go."

They walked back into the cottage and Natsu yawned loudly, it was time to go to sleep. He scratched the base of his spine. As he headed to the bedroom, Erza following him. To his surprise…there was only one bed. He didn't notice this before, but his face became red as he thought of it.

Erza walked passed him and made her way to the left side of the bed. He looked at the bed then at Erza, then back at the bed, then back at Erza; his face growing redder each time. "Um Erza, there's only one…" As he was talking Erza had requiped into her bra and panties. They were a light shade of pink, which all but clashed with her gruff exterior. Natsu's face was so red that he could barely talk.

I have to sleep in the same bed…with Erza! He thought to himself. Erza climbed into the bed and looked at Natsu. "Something wrong?" she said giving him an expectant look. He shook his head rapidly, his face still red. "No…no problem. If it's ok with you, I'll go sleep on the couch." He swiftly left the room. Erza's face grew slightly saddened as she turned out the lamp and looked at the ceiling, she smiled thinking of Natsu's shyness as she drifted off to sleep.

The next morning came as Natsu snored on the couch. He rolled over, and not realizing his position fell off.

THUD!

"Ow." The impact woke him up as she rubbed his throbbing head. He had the nagging feeling that he was forgetting something, but that hope was quickly dashed when he smelled the aroma of breakfast. He practically floated to the kitchen and saw Erza was still attending to the stove. She turned around and smiled at him, "Good morning Natsu, you sleep well?"

"Morning Erza." He groaned as he rubbed his aching back. He then sat down and ingested the delicious food before him. He stopped eating and thought to himself. Today was a special day, but the significance of it eluded him. He kept eating but suddenly stopped, his face white with fear at his realization.

Today was Erza's birthday, and he didn't have a present. He noticed Erza was seemingly unaware of what today was, but he just though that it was a ruse. He envisioned Erza turning around and realizing that he was without present, she then proceeded to throttle him. He shook in fear as his imagination ran wild.

He soon snapped himself back into reality and quickly finished his food. He stood up from the table and slowly moved towards the front door. Erza, still unaware of what was going on turned around to address Natsu. He froze as their eyes met. She looked at him confused. "Natsu, is something wrong?" she asked worriedly. Sweat beads of fear dropped down the Dragon slayer's face, as he shook his head rapidly and smiled nervously.

"No…no everything's fine." He continued to back and breathe a sigh of inner relief as he felt the door knob behind his back. He opened the door and quickly moved to the other side, peeking his head from it. "I'm just going to go for a walk, I'll be back soon ok? Haha." He laughed nervously as he closed the door.

"Wait, Natsu!" Erza called to him but it was too late, he had already shut the door a sad look appearing on the knight's face as she looked at the door. I just wanted to spend some time together…for my birthday, she thought with a melancholic look on her face. Did he forget?

Natsu stood on the other side of the door, and breathed a sigh of relief. He then looked at the sky determined, "Alright off to find Erza a birthday present." He then strolled towards town with a smile on his face.

Erza sat down on the couch with a sad look on her face. She thought Natsu had forgotten her birthday and abandoned her, suffice to say it made her quite sad. An hour or so later there was a knock at the door, Erza stood with an angry look on her face and walked towards it; hoping it was Natsu. She opened it prepared to scold him harshly for a leaving her alone, but when she opened the door, she froze. Her eyes opened wide in shock as she looked up at the visitor at her door.

It was Jellal.

…