Lucy still hadn't said anything to him about the object he'd thrown around his throat when they reached the beach. She didn't know what to say, what it's importance was. All she knew was that the scarf was made of scales, soft and sleek like those of a dragon's belly, and that it was old. No, not old. Just…Natsu's.
She didn't want to even consider the idea that the scarf was centuries older than she was.
Lucy didn't expect for the fear to hit, but it did when she caught sight of the larger ship some distance away from the shore, waiting for them to come back. Happy wove among their ankles, purring, and Natsu cocked his head as he stared at her. "The hell are you so scared about?" he demanded.
The ship was different from Grimoire Heart's. It was wooden, for one. There was no magic emanating from it. No hum that was never ending. It would never soar through the air. But the simple shape of it made her want to turn and go back to the center of Tenrou, where there would be no boats.
Swallowing thickly, Lucy turned her gaze on the smaller boat. "You came here in a boat? Motion sickness and all?"
"Wendy helped with that one, but the rest of the time kind of sucked," he admitted simply and then growled as he clambered into the small boat. Lucy scooped up Happy and reluctantly climbed in herself, her heart skipping a beat in surprise when Natsu tipped his head back and puffed out a ball of flame before settling in deeply. A nasty scowl appeared on his face when the water surged around them.
"Juvia's helping," he muttered when the boat began to slide in the direction of the ship, rocking with the waves. Lucy felt her own stomach begin to churn and her lips quirked a little as she remembered all of the time in the countless weeks she'd been stuck that she'd been floored enough by sickness to simply lie there and pray it ended.
They'd barely left the coast when a sound hit her ears, loud enough to make her flinch in surprise. Happy flattened his ears from where he was perched, curling a lip in distaste. "What is that?"
Natsu had glared at the ship. "Wendy. She's trying to get Grandeeney to say hello." He faltered, touching the scaled scarf that he'd thrown around his neck, so at odds with his outfit but seeming to fit in nonetheless. "We didn't actually know who'd lived." Lucy looked confused as he retched for a moment. When the roiling feeling had ended, he said hoarsely, "We've not been on the island since the fighting started. We didn't know who'd survived. For all we knew, none of them had lived."
"None of you knew?" Lucy breathed, startled.
"It's the law. You leave the nest against the orders of Igneel, you don't go back, and you don't contact anyone who's currently in the nest." Natsu made a face, leaning against the side of the boat when it rocked. "We didn't fully know what was going on until Gajeel came after us."
Lucy quieted, her stomach churning for an entirely different reason. The dragons were a brutal species, she realized, although they were fiercely loyal and cared for one another. No wonder Wendy hadn't wanted to leave.
"Lucy!" a voice to her left suddenly cried, and Lucy jumped, rocking the boat and earning a growl from her companion. She snapped her head around to look and found herself smiling broadly – and staring at Juvia, who hoisted herself halfway out of the water by the boat. A long, scaled tail flicked in the water, reminding Lucy of Aquarius. "You're okay!"
"It's good to see you, too, Juvia," Lucy said with a wide smile, pleased. She'd missed Natsu the most, although she'd not tell him that at the risk of seeing him proudly looking out at anyone else who came to say hi. But she'd missed everyone else, too. They were all her friends now – family, even.
Juvia's blue eyes sparkled as she eyed Natsu. But before she could speak, an incredibly loud screaming cry came from the island. Lucy looked back along with Juvia. Neither saw anything, but Lucy knew precisely who it was by the trilling that echoed back from the ship. Grandeeney had been able to say hello in return – and reassure her daughter that she was alright.
When they reached the ship, it was loud, and Lucy admitted was taken aback by the surge of people eagerly leaning over the side to see if Natsu had been successful. She was startled to see a grinning Gray beside a silver-haired man she'd never seen before. Chelia was beside the stranger, and at her side was Wendy, beaming up a storm. Several strangers littered the ship, making her ill at ease, but Juvia reassured as Natsu scrambled up as soon as he could, "They're all Lamia Scale."
In other words…allies who were trusted.
Natsu scaled the side of the ship and made his way on board with a groan of irritation that had Lucy rolling her eyes. She passed up Happy, stretching on her tiptoes with Juvia holding the small boat steady, and then began to climb up the rope ladder herself. Almost immediately, hands were pulling her up and she beamed as she realized it was Gray who'd hoisted her up the last few inches.
"Long time no see, Lucy," he said playfully, a relieved glint in his eyes.
Lucy responded with a faint smile, glad to see he was okay. She'd not seen him since the fake Natsu had separated them with annoying ease, sending him off to join Erza and the real Natsu – only a short while before Grimoire Heart had made its appearance.
Wendy tackled her in a hug a moment later, and Lucy happily hugged her back, her heart aching with the sheer amount of happiness that flooded through her. Through Natsu's illness, she could feel his reluctant amusement with the responses she was getting.
Juvia climbed up a few minutes later and a few Lamia Scale members went to work on getting the boat onto the ship. She shook water from her skin, wringing it from her hair as she said warmly, "Now we can go home. Fairy Tail's going to have quite the party after everything that's happened lately."
Lucy wrinkled her nose a little at the thought, not sure what that meant. She'd seen Fairy Tail and the determination the guild had to experience parties at every twist and turn. She disliked the idea of one being thrown for her. She was distracted when the silver-haired man appeared beside Gray, looking curiously at her with near black eyes. Chelia was perched beside him, waving in greeting.
"This is who we were helping?" he asked, eyeing Lucy with a frown. "You look familiar."
Lucy fought the urge to grimace, wondering if he'd somehow seen Layla before her death. "I can't say the same," she said simply, offering a hand. He politely took it, giving it a firm shake. "I'm Lucy."
"As I've heard," he said with a broad grin, losing the frown in favor of a playfully flirty look. Gray snorted loudly when Natsu gave Lyon a dirty look that neither he nor Lucy noticed. "Lyon Vastia. Gray and I were taken in by the same woman – Ur."
"Ah," she hummed. "I've heard of you. A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Vastia." She turned away from him as voices filled the air, the ship preparing to set sail and head back for Fiore. She caught sight of Wendy, who'd withdrawn to the side of the ship, looking out at Tenrou longingly. She decided against approaching the miserable dragoness. She'd talk to her later, and tell her how well Grandeeney was doing. Well, as capable as a dragon could do while isolated with her nestmates on an island.
Lucy turned back to Gray when he suddenly spoke to her, gently elbowing her in the ribs. "You look like you could use a room to clean up in…we don't have any private rooms outside of the captain's quarters, which Juvia, Wendy, and Chelia claimed, but we brought some supplies for you if you want. No room for baths, but there's some stuff to clean up with – soap included."
Lucy hopefully looked at him. "Fresh clothes?" she breathed, and Gray eyed her ragged, torn clothing with pity.
"Fresh clothes," he promised. "Juvia, could you –"
Juvia had already grabbed Lucy by the elbow and began steering her towards a flight of stairs. "This way, Lucy," she hummed. "Juvia will help you get cleaned up." Lucy beamed at her in delight and Happy trotted after them, eager to accompany Lucy wherever she went for the time being. She paused only to pick him up, humming soothingly to him.
A lump swelled in her throat as she paused to check and see where Natsu had gone. He'd disappeared, although he'd not gone far. She still felt ill, which meant he was ill. She wondered if he just didn't want to be around so many people. Determined, Lucy turned and followed Juvia.
She'd find him later.
Even if all Lucy wanted to do was sit with him and simply revel in the fact that he was nearby.
Natsu watched it all from up high, preferring the highest point of the ship to the chaos below. He'd been perched there for hours, his only company Wendy for a matter of minutes when she cast a spell for Lucy's sake. She'd been gone as quickly as she'd come, eager to get back to the blonde. Natsu hadn't minded.
Not after that look Wendy had given him. The twisted look of complete and utter shock as she'd seen the scarf he'd donned upon leaving the island. She'd said nothing before scampering down, but Natsu didn't care about the reaction. He'd merely sat there in silence afterwards and rubbed the material between his fingers, thinking.
He'd drawn back, not liking the crowds as Lucy was welcomed back by those who knew her and introduced to those who didn't. She'd not minded, although he'd not missed the frustration and tight feeling in his chest when they got too close. He didn't like that tightness – that feeling in which she was overwhelmed to the point of distress. But he'd not stopped it. Better to get it over with. At least some of their guild would help defer the explosive greeting Fairy Tail was prone to giving normal members.
Night had fallen and the moon was high before Lucy finally tracked him down. She was clearly exhausted after all the excitement, and it was for that reason that when she tipped her head back and stared long and hard up at him, debating how to climb up, that he simply clambered down, dropping the last dozen or so feet and landing harshly beside her. She didn't need to hurt herself trying to get to a place that even he was wary of climbing up.
Immediately, there was a spark of joy. Entirely hers. As if seeing him was the best part of her evening. Natsu paused to consider that and found himself once again puzzled by just how much she liked his company – especially after finding out how many dragons had been ready to back Acnologia, simply so that his existence would cease to dwell within the world.
And he was even further confused by the fact that some of that joy was his. Completely and utterly his own joy over the fact that Lucy was safe and where he could watch her. He skimmed his gaze over her, subconsciously looking for injuries, and came up with the discovery that there were various new scars that hadn't been there before. A jagged one, resting just beneath her Fairy Tail cuff, one that he barely remembered. Various smaller ones scattered around her body, from who knew what.
She looked much happier now though. Cleaned up, with her golden hair carefully plaited out of her face and gleaming like soft white gold in the light of the moon. Her favored, ruined outfit had been removed, replaced with a simple blue shirt and a leather vest tied overtop. The top was tucked securely into a pair of soft, white pants, which were in turn tucked into new, but worn leather boots. Someone had found her things where he'd left them, and the whip given to her by Aquarius was at her hip, her black knife strapped to her thigh.
Dark eyes gleaming despite her exhaustion, Lucy smiled brightly at him, as if he was the only person in the world. "I've been looking for you."
"I know." He feigned a large yawn, trying to put her off. He was uncomfortable with the sudden swell of strange emotions flooding him – and knew that she recognized it immediately from the quirk of her lips.
She didn't bother trying to change anything, but she did decide against bringing it up. Lucy got the feeling that this wasn't a good time to push him on such matters. Instead, Lucy asked, "Are you hungry? There's some leftovers from dinner I saved for you."
It was only then that Natsu realized she'd been holding a plate, and that she was now offering it to him. He blinked at the variety of foods that had been placed upon it – and the sheer amount of food waiting to be eaten. She knew him well – knew that he was inclined to eat quite a bit of food.
"Thanks," muttered Natsu, taking the plate with a grimace. He needed to eat; it only made the illness that would come again easier. He dropped to the wooden deck with grace and dug right in. Lucy settled down beside him, neatly tucking her knees behind her.
"Oh!" he suddenly grunted, shoving a hand into his pocket. He offered something to her. She held her hand out and blinked at what he gently placed in it. Her fingers curled around the heated golden keys, which nearly seared at her fingers. A soft sound of surprise escaped her, and she smiled broadly at the sight of the celestial spirits' keys.
"You kept them safe," she breathed, as if she couldn't believe all of the keys they'd acquired were safe. Even Gemini's resided on the ring. Aquarius's was practically vibrating, and Lucy grimaced at the idea of summoning her. She'd kill Lucy as soon as look at her for what had happened. "Thank you, Natsu."
He grunted, mouth full of food. "Like I wouldn't. Trying to be Guardian, remember? Might as well be a better one than Igneel was."
She cradled the keys for a few minutes longer, smiling at them, and then added Capricorn's to it. "I got another," she said, showing it to him. "Capricorn. He supports our attempt at becoming Keeper and Guardian, but…I'm sorry. He doesn't support us regarding Leo."
Natsu thought it over, taking another bite. He wasn't as annoyed as he'd been over Scorpio's refusal. He didn't know why. They had seven out of twelve keys in under a year, five of which agreed to support his bid to speak with Leo. As it had been described to them, they had the majority so far.
Plus…Lucy was here. Right beside him.
"I still need to speak with Gemini," said Lucy thoughtfully. "I made a contract with Capricorn, but I don't know if that's what Gemini wants." She took a deep breath, yawning loudly. "But when I have a bit more energy. It still drains me a lot."
A peaceful silence encompassed them. Natsu studied her out of the corner of his eye for a while before he suddenly asked, feeling the beginnings of Wendy's spell starting to wear off, "What happened? On the ship?" Maybe it would help distract him from the illness that would inevitably return.
Lucy fell quiet and Natsu glanced at her, watching every response with narrowed eyes. They'd not physically hurt her. He knew that from the lack of pain in his own body for the last few weeks. But he'd felt her misery, her loneliness, and he'd hated it. So he wanted to know. He wanted to know just how badly they'd gone after her with words.
"Not much," Lucy said after a thoughtful silence, her dark eyes lifting to study the beautiful stars overhead. "I was locked in a room or I was out on deck where they could watch me. There wasn't much to do until they could figure out what to do with me. I'm glad I left the keys with you. It's what they were after – almost more so than me. They wanted to open the Eclipse Gate."
Natsu tensed. "For what reason?" he demanded, not liking the idea at all.
"I never really found out," Lucy admitted, biting her lip. "But…" She suddenly looked upset, and Natsu didn't like the twist in his gut when she said, "They weren't all that bad. Well, most of them were. Zancrow scared the hell out of me. But Meredy and Ultear were…maybe not quite friends, but friendly. Meredy said they were –"
"–friends of Jellal," Natsu finished, nodding. "He mentioned that he had some people he knew aboard the ship. Do you know if they lived or not? When Metalicana took it down?"
Lucy eyed him. So he'd been listening to the stories she'd told the others throughout the afternoon then. "No," she said softly, touching the wrist that had hurt like hell upon waking up. "I don't think they did. Metalicana looked like he was hunting everyone down until he came to me." She remembered Zancrow's fate and shuddered. "It wasn't a good day."
Quiet fell again and Natsu found himself relaxing further as they simply sat together. It lasted for some time, that quiet, interrupted only when Happy came to join them. He settled between them and purred loudly to display his content, and it was after a few minutes of stroking Happy's back that Lucy said hoarsely, her voice shaking, "I'm so happy that you're okay."
Natsu glanced at her, caught off guard. Tears lined her eyes – again. She seemed to be crying a lot recently, and he couldn't say that he liked it. "Luce," he muttered, "I told you I couldn't die."
"It doesn't matter what you said. It looked like it." She'd had the taste of his blood in her mouth for days afterwards, and still did when she woke up from the nightmares that sometimes plagued her. "You've got to have felt and seen something like that at some point. Maybe even if it was before Zeref altered you into what you are."
Natsu thought back, brow furrowed, and landed on a memory that he'd nearly forgotten. "My parents…" he murmured, and Lucy glanced at him in surprise, not expecting him to speak about them. He couldn't remember if he'd actually mentioned them to Lucy all that much – if at all. "They were murdered. It's what started Zeref on his downward spiral to black magic. I crept into bed with them that night, because I was scared of some nightmare I'd had. I don't know if I was just hidden in the blankets, but when I woke up…
"Zeref came in because he was worried. Normally they were up at a certain time, eager to get a move on with the day. He found me covered in their blood." He pressed his lips into a hard line, clenching his jaw. "He'd tried to wake them, so when I finally woke up…all I saw was him covered in it, too. "
It was a memory that had haunted them both until the day that Zeref's execution had happened and Natsu's fear had become a reality.
He'd been there for it. He'd watched the sword flash in the midday light as it careened towards Zeref's neck. Natsu would never forget the sound of it striking Zeref's neck – and the thud that followed. It hadn't mattered – that he was an emperor who'd delved so deeply into demons and black magic. That he'd tormented him and turned him into a monster whose name was barely whispered out of fear nearly eight hundred years later.
Zeref had been his big brother, and Natsu had loved him. It had been the only time after becoming the Demon King that Natsu had cried.
Lost in his thoughts and the memory of that sickening thud, Natsu didn't notice for a moment that Lucy had done it. Disoriented, but frowning, Natsu glanced at her when he realized she'd taken his hand and tightly wound her fingers through his, resting their clasped hands on his folded knee. It eased the pain that always came with the memories, the betrayal that had flooded him when Zeref had forced him down onto that table to experiment on him and the horror that accompanied realizing his mother and father were dead on either side of him.
"I missed you," she said softly, her voice even again. She didn't look at him as she said it. "More than anyone else in the guild."
He blinked. "You did?" he said incredulously.
She rolled her eyes with a soft laugh, muttering fondly, "Idiot. Of course I did. You're my best friend."
That warmth he'd not felt in her absence suddenly sweltered to a near suffocating amount. He didn't tell her the same three words. Didn't say anything at all after that, even when she began to doze off beside him, refusing to go to bed.
Silently, however, Natsu admitted he'd missed her, too.
Some cute stuff and more reunions! :D
Thanks to reviewers (aquarius592, Eyriegirl, stranger1999, Uchida Akira, itsxoi, Meow Orbit, Lodemai04, LePengwen, FairyTailxFanGirl, Rachel Maddison, GoldenPadfoot148, Forbidden-Hanyou, and Lissuin!) as well as those who favorited and followed.