AN: So here is the longer story based on the extra chapter of Lucy going into Natsu and Happy's home I promised you last post. This idea was originally thought of with that one cover saying no one has been in Natsu's house yet and was expanded with the extra chapter :) Also my spell check isn't working so sorry if there are more than a normal amount of mistakes (fail I know)


023: Play the Fool

Lucy watched as Natsu's nostrils flared to an almost comical degree. His hands were also placed flat on the round, wooden table that separated them and his nails looked like they were beginning to dig in. His hair even looked on edge, the way it spiked up in every direction. Although, Lucy thought as she tilted her head to regard him again, she supposed his hair was always wild.

"Can you repeat what you just said?" Natsu finally got out through grit teeth.

Lucy blinked and straighened her head. She decided that she really shouldn't laugh, like she wanted to, at the way he was being so uncharacteristically dramatic.

"I went to your house," she said calmly as she crossed her arms over her busty chest.

Natsu was silent for a few more moments, simply staring, although Lucy thought it looked more like glaring (maybe it was just his aggressive face?), before he opened his fiery mouth to speak.

"You've been in my house," he said, repeating her statement yet again.

"Yes," Lucy agreed yet another time. She couldn't resist rolling her eyes before adding, "I was the one who cleaned it!"

Natsu narrowed his eyes at her for a little more before turning to Happy and whispering loudly, "So it wasn't just an amazing fairly like we thought!"

Happy looked up from Lucy to his owner. His frown deepened, causing his whiskers to point down, before he said, "I thought we agreed it was some sort of ghost."

Lucy rested her chin in an upturned palm as she listened to the two bicker for a little about what mythical creature they thought she had been. Apparently it had been miraculous enough to have the house cleaned that they didn't think it could just be a normal, spirit-summoner like herself. Lucy took a step back then - maybe she wasn't as normal as she believed herself to be sometimes.

"Well," Lucy spoke after she'd cleared her throat to get their attention, "I guess I'll just leave you two to figure out that great mystery while I go find us a mission."

"We're not going on a mission anytime soon," Natsu said as he turned back to her, eyes blazing.

It was right then that Lucy realized she might actually have some repercussions for her behavior with Natsu. Which, to her, was entirely unfair as she never punished him for anything annoying or frustrating that affected her. Just the other day he'd eaten her favorite pillow, and did she get angry and snap at him? No!

So now Lucy was feeling her hackles rise up, and while Happy noticed and shrunk away a little, Natsu was entirely oblivious in his own annoyance.

"You totally messed up my whole plan!" the firebreather said as he poked her in the chest.

Lucy stared in horror as his calloused finger prodded her soft skin right before the cut of her shirt. To put it simply: way too close to her cleavage for comfort. So she simply slapped his hand away before standing and putting her hands on her hips.

"What have I screwed up for you? Because I can think of a lot of things you screw up for me."

"But it's true!" Happy said as he jumped onto Lucy's shoulder. He then leaned his head down and whispered, "You totally messed up Natsu's idea he's been working on ever since we built that place."

"And I don't want to build another house, what a pain! And I don't even want to think about how we'd have to haul all our stuff over!" Natsu groaned as he leaned back in his chair and kneaded the palms of his hands over his eyes.

"You did have a lot of stuff," Lucy pointed out. Happy tugged on her side pony-tail, causing her to yelp and turn to him, but the blue cat shook his head and pointed down to the sulking dragon slayer again.

"It was all so perfect!" Natsu whined.

The blond gave out a loud sigh before she sat down. Her supposedly horrid actions were making Natsu seem like a kid who was being denied candy - he never acted like this. He didn't whine or sulk to this amount, even when he was forced to sit next to Gray on a train.

"Natsu," Lucy sighed as she reached over and took his hands away from his abused eyes, "What did I do wrong? You even said you liked it being clean for a little."

"You wouldn't understand, you're a woman!" Happy said in offense.

"Yes. I have boobs, which Natsu has just recently poked," Lucy said in a dead-pan voice that fought against the cat's gender-issues, "But that doesn't mean I won't understand something you do."

Natsu looked up at her, his dark eyes downcast and the corners of his mouth downturned. Lucy sighed herself and ran a hand through her bangs, using the other one to begin rubbing Natsu's back. This seemed to at least physically comfort him, as she knew it would from past traveling experience.

"I'm sorry for intruding uninvited, ok?" she said as she lowered her head closer to his, "But you do it all the time with me. And do I get sulky?"

"No, you just scream," Natsu said softly.

Lucy gave him a few final pats on his broad back before she asked again, "So tell me what I did wrong so I can make up for it."

The fire-breather sighed at this, but he did turn to her. Then he said, "You really can't. What you did was irrefutably definite."

Ignoring how Natsu had just used a five and then a three syllable intellectual words, Lucy said, "What do you mean?"

Natsu took this moment to give a significant look to Happy, who was now lounging on the top of Lucy's golden head. Lucy couldn't see the expression his partner was giving him, but she could feel the feline shrug his shoulders and give a slight nod before he went back down to settle in her locks.

So Natsu turned to Lucy, and the teenager was a little offset by the sudden intensity that had clouded over the misery in his eyes. His mouth was now a set line of determination.

"I wanted my house to be perfect for my bride. To keep it secluded and special and only for her! But now that you've been in it, that can't happen."

Lucy blinked in shock.

"You can't be serious," she finally said at length.

"I am entirely not!" Natsu said with a huff of smoke; "My Pa taught me all about courting the other sex and he said that when you marry, you have to have a special place that can be only for her! Somewhere where she will feel safe and secure and belonging."

Lucy took a shallow breath as she realized dragons really were knowledgeable in every area. And then she took another breath as she realized that Natsu was a little romantic - and in the really old, dying-chivalry sort of way. It was practically extinct, he was a diamond of a guy that women mined for all over the world and whose supply was quickly depleting.

Giving a small smile, Lucy lifted a hand and landed it back on one of his broad shoulders.

"I'm sorry for intruding on a place to be for your future wife-" Lucy broke off and had to pause, wincing as the thought seemed so foreign "-but I haven't ruined it in any way. And besides, you obviously aren't going to settle down anytime soon."

Natsu tilted his head in thought and gave a curt nod.

"And anyway," Lucy continued with a cuff to his arm, "It's not like that place was even suitable for a woman. If I wasn't your best friend I would have run for the hills from all the junk."

"It's not junk!" Natsu refuted hotly, "It holds importance to me and Happy so we keep it. What's so wrong with that?"

Lucy sighed again; he was so touchy about his little shack up the hill.

"You're right. I apologize again for my insensitivity."

Finally Natsu smiled, and brought her close to him in a brief side-hug that allowed Lucy to feel the large amount of heat his body naturally put out.

"Don't worry Lucy, I forgive you," he said as he pulled away, but not before tugging on her pony-tail.

While Lucy frowned light in play, as Happy had just done that not minutes ago, she was glad that Natsu was back to normal.

X - X - X - X - X - X - X

Natsu wasn't back to normal.

Or at least, this was the only rational reason that Lucy had made for the fire-breather. Because if he was entirely sane and back to normal, he wouldn't have banged at her door at three thirty in the morning with a wide grin and gleaming eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Lucy said with a groggy voice tinged with exasperation. She absently ran a hand through her disheveled hair and winced as she found a tangle.

"I had a revelation."

Lucy now rubbed at her forehead and wondered where Natsu had found all these new words to drop into his usually simple vocab. She also wondered on how Happy wasn't with him and so asked, "And where's Happy?"

"I don't need him right now," Natsu said quickly.

Yes, Natsu definitely wasn't back to normal. He didn't go anywhere without Happy; that other-world cat was always needed.

"Natsu, I think you need to go home and get some sleep," Lucy said as pushed against his chest, trying to get him out of the door frame.

"Not without you," he said stubbornly as he enveloped her hands at his chest with his own.

Lucy had been still slightly delirious from lingering sleep, but Natsu suddenly grabbing onto her hands with such a grip made her snap wide awake and realize the situation. She quickly sqirmed her fingers out from under his. Once freed they tightened at her sides.

"Natsu, go home," she repeated.

"No! Not yet!" he argued again, "I need to tell you something!"

She groaned and rubbed at her temples now. It felt like they were just going around in circles with their speech.

"I've decided that since you've been in my house, I suppose you're going to have to be my bride!"

"'Suppose?' You just, suppose because of that one little fact? Well, I guess I am the convenient choice if you want to uphold your lessons," Lucy said. She mentally took back how she thought he'd been romantic, not he was just being naive and idiotic. It was making her own (sometimes hyper inflated) romantic side weep in frustration.

"There are other reasons!" he was quick to state, "Like how you felt comfortable there, right? Didn't you"

She averted her eyes as she admitted, "Yeah. It was alright."

"And we work for each other. We get along great, you and I. Do you see some of the other teams in the Guild bickering?"

"We still bicker. We are right now," Lucy commented.

"But we always resolve things," he said with a shy, boyish smile. And Lucy was disappointed with her heart as it sped up a little.

"Natsu-"

"We get along together, we're compatible," he stressed.

"We're not just two objects who look pretty together," Lucy said with a snarl that had Natsu leaning back; "Just because we get along doesn't mean I can be your bride and you can be my husband and this will work."

Natsu was silent for what seemed like a long time, and Lucy thought that she had him beat. It was almost a little disappointing really; he had come in so ready and had been shot down so easily.

"But I really do love you Lucy," he said softly, so softly she almost missed it in the silence of the night; "Why else would we I want to be partners for so long; why else would I risk my life for yours over and over again?"

Lucy stared dumbly at him now, and she realized this was the moment that would never happen. This was the moment where Natsu wore his heart on his sleeve for another reason other than to convince an enemy to turn, or for a teammate to rise to the challenge. Right now it was just him and her, on her porch late at night, and Lucy could feel the dull throb in her heart she'd read about in too many novels to count.

Finally, she knew she had to speak. But she couldn't think of anything to say. So she simply opted for, "You must be kidding."

By now she knew she was blushing, and that destroyed her words entirely.

"Nope," Natsu said with another of those young smiles, and then he was raising his hand.

Lucy at first jerked back from his hand that moved to cup her cheek, but he kept pressing and soon she could feel the warmth and the callouses on her cheek. She looked up at him with wide, confused brown eyes.

When he began leaning down, her heart jumped in her throat and she pushed him away with all the strength she had.

"Go back home and sleep Natsu," she stated cooly; "Goodnight."

And before he could say anything, before she could see his eyes become downcast like yesterday, and before she made the deadly decision of changing her mind, she slammed the door in his face.

X - X - X - X - X - X - X

If Natsu hadn't been normal before, it was like someone had done a body-transfer now. Lucy barely recognized him the next day as he sat at the bar, nursing a very fruity and curious drink. When Lucy began walking up to join him, she was surprised when she saw Mirajane give her a frown.

"Look Natsu, we need to talk-"

Lucy stopped the half greeting when she tapped him on the shoulder and he suddenly slumped over the bar, his eyes swirling and his tongue lolling out.

"What did you give him?" Lucy asked in exasperation to Mirajane.

"Well, when he began drinking regular alcohol it would simply burst into flames from his hot mouth. So the alcohol was evaporating before it got into his body, so Gray had the bright idea to just make him slushie like drinks so it would be cold enough to get down.

Lucy looked across the bar to Gray and gave him a death glare. The dark-haired ice mage immediately ducked down the bar's edge to escape the scathing look.

"And I can't believe you served a minor at ten in the morning Mirajane!" Lucy said in continued exasperation as she attempted to sit Natsu up right. She looked around to find Happy, only to see him sprawled on the bar alongside Natsu's half-empty glass.

"How many has he had?" Lucy asked.

"Too many to count, how manly!" Elfman laughed, but was quickly quieted by a look from his sister.

"I was not the one who broke his heart," Mirajane said hauntily before leaving, her nose high in the air.

All the days, months and now years that Lucy had been at the Guild, Mirajane had never been angry, even remotely annoyed, with her. Now she was turning up her face and walking away after such a cryptic response-! Lucy sighed and told herself to breathe, it just wasn't a good few days.

"Come on, I'm taking you home," Lucy sighed as she hauled Natsu up into a sitting position. She reached over and grabbed Happy, slinging him over her neck like a furry accessory, before trying to drag Natsu along.

She got three steps before she gave up and summoned Virgo and she carried him to his house. When they got there, Lucy opened the door, but then turned back to Virgo and thought twice. She quickly thanked her before she was dismissed in a puff of smoke.

"If only you were conscious to see how considerate I now am to letting others in your shack of a home," Lucy said with a sigh as she looked at Natsu and sighed in trepidation. He just had to weigh as much as a boulder.

Finally, after a good amount of time and grunting, Lucy had him up in his hammock. Only a few times she almost dropped him and one time where he really did hit the wooden floor with a heavy thunk. She was sure he would wake up, but he only mumbled something unintelligible as his eyes remained closed.

She threw the worn blanket over him before taking Happy off her shoulders, arranging him to curl into the nook of Natsu's neck.

When she gave a smile of victory, it quickly deminished as she looked around and found, yet again, the place looked horrible. Looking at the clock and realizing how much of the day was still left (it wasn't even twelve and he was knocked out!) and then down to a snoring Natsu (had he no shame?) she decide she might as well clean.

X - X - X - X - X - X - X

Natsu felt like Erza was in his head practicing all her swords and armor at once when he awoke. So, naturally, he gave out a near-death moan.

"Natsu? Are you finally awake?"

Even though her voice was soft, it still was booming in his head. But Natsu still recocognized the voice and so forced himself to crack an eye open. It was dark and there was only light from the haphazard candle-chandelier.

"How are you feeling?" she asked in that same gentle voice as she offered him help to sit up. He thought to shake away the aid, but then as he moved to sit up the room began flipping and flopping like he'd never seen before.

"Even in drinking, when you do anything you sure go full-out," Lucy chuckled as he finally sat up. But when he began swinging in the hammock, Natsu was sure he was going to hurl.

So quickly Lucy got him to stand up and move to one of the couches. There she gave him a glass of water before going to fetch Happy.

"What happened?" Natsu asked after he had drunken the water. It didn't help much at all, she he resorted to leaning back and closing his eyes.

"Apparently Gray is good at helping make mixed drinks. I'm pretty sure he's going to create a drink and name it 'Fire Extinguisher' just to prolong the victory of getting you completely shit-faced," Lucy rambled.

Even though Natsu didn't pick up all of what Lucy had said, she was talking to him like she hadn't yesterday, and that made this misery feel at least a little better.

"I made you some soup. Do you want any?" she asked as she came back, holding Happy in her arms while she bottle-fed him some milk. For a moment, Natsu's eyes swayed and he did not see the blue flying cat, but instead an infant with pale orange hair. He quickly closed his eyes again and to distract himself said a quick yes please.

There was silence as Lucy was busy getting it ready. Natsu finally opened his eyes again, and it was then when he finally realized how his house was once again orderly.

"You cleaned again," he said as she brought him the bowl of steaming soup. It was still boiling, and Natsu looked up at her graciously.

"I thought if I'd already done it, what's the harm in a second time," she said with a shrug.

Once he had gulped down a few bowls of body-warming food, Natsu gave a sigh in relief and turned back to Lucy and Happy. The cat was now drowsily awake, but he was curled up against Lucy. To be specific, it was between her chest, a paw blatantly on one of the two large mounds.

"So he can touch you there but I can't?" Natsu asked with a huff as he pointed an accusing finger to the cuddling pair.

"He's a cat Natsu," Lucy sighed.

The fire-breather simply huffed again.

The three soon fell into a lull of silence, and Natsu was afraid he was going to fall back asleep again. But Lucy was in his house, even if it was to take care of his sorry hide, and he really didn't want to miss a moment of it.

"Natsu, how can you always be so sure?" Lucy suddenly asked out in a whisper; "How do you go from thinking of me as a teammate and then suddenly as your future w-wife." Natsu could see, even in the darkless, the sudden flush of red across her cheeks. He liked how it looked like one of his flames.

"I think all things in life are like that. Things suddenly change, and this was just a change," he said with a fanged smile.

Lucy gave a long sigh before moving to sit next to him, leaning her head against his taller shoulder.

She was still so shaky about him suddenly wanting to marry her, actually marry her, that she had ignored him for a good day. And if that resulted in him getting smashed beyond consciousness, she knew she couldn't do that again. And she didn't like being away from either him or Happy for that day either. Even though she had gotten a good deal of writing done, it was not worth it. And if she was going to lose him because of something as stupid as this, that she was sure would pass, she was game. She would play along.

So going on this thought process, she whispered, "If you really want to marry me, you need to get a ring."

X - X - X - X - X - X - X

Lucy had meant this process to prolong and then eventually tire Natsu of the idea of marrying her. To show him that marriage was not something to be triffled with, something suddenly decide on in a whim. But throughout the trials ("Don't trick me, I know that's not a real diamond!" "No you can not wear your normal attire at the alter!" "Fine, Happy can be the ring bearer instead of Plue.") he was doing spectacularly.

Even though the blond did not have many friends who got married, she still knew this was no ordeal that was usually done alone. Yet Natsu was planning it all with gusto to spare.

He had found her a dress (after a good amount of failed attempts) that she had fallen in love with at first sight and cooed over. Of course he had stood there with his chest puffed out in pride and then explained sheepishly how embarassing it was to shop for a wedding dress by his own with only Happy for assistance. Even though it made Lucy laugh, it still made her feel guilty and she almost caved in with helping him. But then she remembered this was their supposed wedding and she was supposed to be tiring him out.

And then after the dress came setting the date. She had been cryptic in her desires, but even then Natsu pulled some of that ever-increasing romance and asked if they could marry the day they had met. Not only was it perfect for the situation, but also in how it was a good eight months away.

After that came the place, which was even less hassle than the date. They were to have it at the Guild; it was the place where Natsu was stubborn on and did not allow Lucy to change it. She had actually argued with him a good deal, but then she had decided to give in just to see his relief and know that she appreciated the place just as much as him.

The Guild was just as enthusiastic to help in the preparations as Natsu was, declaring that they could deal with the entertainment (like the building was even in a lull), the food, and the booze (Cana always had a soft spot for her ever-special Lucy). In preparation for the wedding, the Guild was even going through renovations.

And throughout this entire time Lucy slowly found herself falling in love with Natsu.

Maybe it was how he would haul her to his house to spend the night, not daring past brief kisses and cuddling in the hammock Lucy was convinced would snap the branch it was connected to from their combined weight. Natsu had flippantly agreed one day, saying her boobs would be the downfall. Or maybe it was how he was everywhere at once for her, not even giving a fleeting glance to all the other women in their large town. Maybe it was just how much he seemed to treasure her, like she was the gold his dragon self had been searching for all these years.

Through the time together the days melted into weeks, and the weeks accumulated into months. Eight months to be exact.

It was time for the wedding.

X - X - X - X - X - X - X

It was in a moment much like the one where Natsu realized he loved Lucy and wanted to marry her, when that said person realized this was actually happening and that this wasn't a game at all. Too bad it was at the alter.

How had this happened?

She looked out and saw the entire Guild was sitting in the rows and rows of chairs, a few already seeming a little teary. She looked and saw Gildarts and his scared face in a sublime smile as he quoted the vows Natsu had written for them. They truly were heartfelt, if she could have focused and listened to them over her deafening heartbeat.

Finally she looked at Natsu and how happy he seemed and knew she was going to break his heart.

"I do."

He said it with such confidence, such conviction that he was right and this was what he had always wanted and would continue to always want.

"I...I..."

Lucy looked away from his eyes.

"I can't."

The quiet that was done in respect suddenly seemed eerie, and soon hot whispers began floating through the air.

"But Lucy," Natsu said with his smile wavering, "I did this for you."

Lucy knew she would feel horrible with herself, but she was still not prepared for the shotgun shell of emotion. She took her hands that Erza had been so careful to maicar the previous night and burried her face in them. She felt the soft petals of the bouquet and looked at it with disgust before flinging it away. She remotely heard Juvia's wail of joy and Gray's groan.

"I just can't do this, Natsu, I just can't," Lucy sobbed out, "How did you even do all this? I thought it was impossible."

Lucy truly loved him, and it was because of that that she suddenly felt so scared. What if this incident never worked itself out? She had played along for so long becuase she didn't want to lose their friendship. Yet through the time together she had grown greedy; she didn't want to lose his love for her. But it was all too much, she was still so young and this was almost the exact situation her parents went through, and look how well that worked out-

"It's ok, look at me. Lu, look at me," Natsu sighed as she pulled her face away from her hands and up to him.

She could only stand to look at his downtrodden face a few moments before she leaned into him, and Natsu didn't give a care to how she ruined the expensive rented tux. After a few moments his words finally sunk in and she managed to look up.

"Really?" she asked with raw hope.

"Yes," he laughed before leaning down and kissing her cheek, "I don't mind. I can wait."

Lucy wanted to say how he was the most impatient perseon she knew, but she couldn't as she felt another row of sobs getting ready to burst free.

"Well, me getting certified was a waste of time," Gildarts sighed as he threw his hands up in the air.

"Shut it old man," Erza growled menacingly from behind Lucy.

"I should have known, we were never even technically engaged," Natsu said softly as he petted Lucy's head, being careful not to disrupt the curls Cancer had been so careful to create.

Lucy blinked in shock. She had forgotten the biggest prolonger of all - if she would accept a proposal. Sure Natsu had gotten her a ring and she had worn it because it was a pink diamond and those were rare and he had somehow, amazingly made it especially for her, but he had never truly proposed. One day she had awoken and there was the ring and she had put it on with a smile before going to make breakfast like any other day.

The blond suddenly understood what she wanted to do to recover this. She quickly fumbled her ring off, holding it up to Natsu who looked more dejected than ever.

"Propose to me."

He blinked; "Like right now?"

"Yes, right now!" she urged as she grabbed one of his hands, slapped the ring in his palm, and then pushed him down onto a knee.

He looked up; she raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"Well, shit...um...this is really unnerving," he said as he scratchd the back of his spikey haired head.

Lucy gave a soft smile and put a hand on his shoulder, giving him a large shot of confidence that he really desperately at the moment.

"Lucy... will you marry me?" he asked as he raised the diamond, his voice not as loud as booming as usual.

But Lucy made up for his lack of volume a moment later when she screamed, "Yes! Yes I will marry you, just not right now!"

The crowd was silent, mostly from shock and lingering confusion to the situation at hand, but that changed with a look from erza. The audience exploded into applause.

"Now kiss me you fiery fool," Lucy said with a grin as he stood up, having just finished putting the ring back on where it belonged.

Natsu did just that, and when they parted Lucy truly believed her face might crack from how wide her smile felt.

A few minutes later after walking down a cascade of petals and cheers, they were in a carriage riding back to the little house that had started this unorthodox course of events. Both youths gave a long sigh of relief before looking over at the other, a sudden laugh coming out from both of them as the situation finally settled.

"We never really do things like regular people, do we?" Natsu asked.

"You're one to talk, Mr. I-need-to-marry-you-because-you-entered-my-house."

"Well played Mrs. future Dragneel. Well played."


AN: So let's address the elephant that's as big as my guilt in the room with: I'm sorry for not updating in so long. Stuff just got in the way (school, friends, other hobbies...) so I apologize for the wait and I hope at least some of you stuck around :'D I also realize I've pretty much exhausted the whole marriage theme now, haha!