There was a firm knock at Lucy's door, just as she was slipping out of her clothes. She hastily pulled a robe on and went to answer, hoping that a certain Dragon Slayer was waiting on the other side.
She was right - it was a Dragon Slayer. Just not the one she wanted.
"Yes, Natsu?" she asked, trying hard to hide the disappointment in her voice.
"Hungry? We're going to go grab a bite," he said, gesturing over his shoulder. Only then did Lucy notice three more people and a cat standing a few feet behind the pink-haired man.
Lucy's gaze instantly settled on Gajeel. Keeping her eyes locked on him, she responded to Natsu.
"Uh… No, I'm not hungry. You guys go ahead. Maybe bring me back a sandwich or something for later…"
Lucy continued to stare at Gajeel and it wasn't until Natsu waved his hand in front of her face did she snap out of it. With a quick glance towards Erza and Gray to make sure they hadn't noticed anything, Lucy refocused her eyes on Natsu. Erza and Gray remained unbothered by the going ons, caught up in a quiet conversation, so it had only been Natsu who noticed her zoning out.
"You okay, Luce? You look a little spacey. Are you sure you don't wanna come? Maybe some sugar will help," he offered, voice full of concern.
"No, I'm good. Promise. I just need to talk to Gajeel about something the spirit said. I'm sure he'll fill you in while you eat," she lied smoothly, throwing Gajeel a knowing look.
"Want us to wait, Gaj?" Natsu asked.
"Nah, go ahead. I'll be right behind," the Iron Dragon Slayer replied, keeping his eyes trained to Lucy.
With a shake of his head, Natsu walked off, dragging Erza and Gray with him as he mumbled something about the North Woods turning his friends loony. Gajeel stayed rooted to his spot, watching Natsu and gang walk down the hallway. Once his keen ears picked up the sound of the main inn door opening and then closing, Gajeel walked towards Lucy.
"What did the spirit say?" he asked, looking at her inquisitively.
"Don't pretend like you don't know that it was a blatant lie," Lucy snorted. She clutched the front of his shirt and pulled him into her room. She spun around and slammed the door shut with her back, pressing herself against the wood as she yanked Gajeel into her.
"You've been making some big promises. It's time for you to make good on them," Lucy purred. She let go of Gajeel's shirt to undo the fastening on her robe.
Dipping down to kiss her throat, Gajeel whispered huskily in her ear, "So you wanna fuck now? Then I hope you don't have any plans, because we won't be getting out of bed anytime soon. I'm going to take my time, just slowly kissing every inch of your body. And when you're unbelievably wet and begging me to just fuck you, I'll push you up against the wall and slam my dick into you. I have a feeling you'll be pretty loud, won't you?" Gajeel paused to kiss a searing path up her throat. "And then, when Natsu invariably decides to jump into your room through the open window, and he sees me pounding your brains out, we can spend another few hours explaining to him, and Gray, and Erza how exactly my cock ended up inside you," Gajeel finished, smirking.
With a disgusted groan Lucy pushed Gajeel away.
"Way to kill the fucking mood. I don't want to sleep with you anymore now. Get out of here. I need a bath and I need to get rid of some of this pent up sexual frustration, since you're obviously no help. Go eat. Update them. And please, for the love of god, convince Natsu to not show up in my room tonight. Because Gajy, if you play hard to get one more time…" Lucy left her threat hanging in the air.
"I'll figure it out," Gajeel promised. He bent down to kiss Lucy fiercely, briefly allowing a hand to slip into her robe and cup her bare breast. Then, pushing the robe off one shoulder, trailed his lips down her body until they found the hardened pink nub. He sucked it into his mouth, circling his tongue around her sensitive nipple. Lucy dug her fingers into his hair as wanton moans began forming in the back of her throat.
Abruptly, Gajeel stood up. He rearranged Lucy's robe before reaching around her to open the door.
"Now you have something to think about while you… Relieve your sexual tension," Gajeel smirked. With a swift swat to Lucy's pert butt, Gajeel sauntered out of her room, pulling the door shut behind him.
"Can't fucking believe that asshole. That gorgeous fucking asshole…" Lucy muttered under her breath. When she heard Gajeel's distinctive chortle, her cheeks flamed pink and she stomped her foot in frustration before stalking off to the bathroom to treat herself to a long soak.
"Nature spirits?! What the fuck is that?!"
"If you shut your mouth for fifteen seconds, you'd know. Gajeel was just about to tell us."
"Sorry Erza."
"Like I was saying, Nature spirits are-"
"Conduits of nature," Lucy finished Gajeel's sentence, sliding into the bench next to Gray. Natsu was on the other side of the ice mage, with the other two sitting across the table.
"Hey Luce! Thought you weren't hungry," Natsu leaned over Gray who promptly flicked him on his forehead, forcing the pinkette back into his seat.
"Well, it is my mission. Didn't feel right to leave it to Gajeel to give you the rundown," Lucy said with a shrug.
"Hmm. I'd thought you'd have been hungry after all your… Physical activity," Gajeel crooned, his eyes twinkling. Lucy glared hatefully at the man before composing herself.
"Speaking of, Natsu could you maybe not come to my room tonight? I'm exhausted, I need to sleep, and I'd just like to be alone," she begged.
"Plus Lucy ate some funky berries last night and I don't think they've passed through her yet. The tent was quite a nightmare, having to listen to her stomach. And the smell… Whoo!" Gajeel leaned back dramatically.
It took every fibre of Lucy's being to not kick him under the table, but when their eyes locked, she didn't attempt hiding her absolute irritation.
"Well, thankfully, you're not going to have to sleep with it ever again," her voice dripped with implication.
Gajeel rolled his eyes as Natsu launched into a disturbing tirade about various bodily emissions.
The rest of the meal passed without incident, but every time Lucy and Gajeel locked eyes, the blonde wanted to leap across the table and throw herself into his lap. Occasionally, when passing the salt shaker or the water, Lucy's fingers would brush Gajeel's and all she would be able to think about was his calloused hands on her soft skin. Her panties were soon soaked through and Gajeel's sensitive nose picked up the intoxicating scent. When his eyes widened in shock, Lucy immediately caught on and the pair quickly looked at Natsu. There was no way the other Dragon Slayer hadn't also smelled her arousal. Mercifully, Natsu being Natsu, hadn't noticed a thing.
The group were now sitting around the Mayor's living room.
"Nature spirits? I've never heard of such a thing!" he exclaimed in shock.
"Honey, didn't your grandma used to tell all the children stories of the nature spirits?" his wife piped up. She handed Lucy a warm cup of tea as she spoke.
"Yes, but-" the Mayor started before his wife cut him off with a raised finger.
"Honey, dear?" she asked Lucy, who nodded. Mrs Jun stirred in a healthy teaspoon before clicking the silverware against the rim of Lucy's cup, signalling to her husband that she was done.
"As I was saying," the Mayor continued, "Grandma told us many stories. But that's all they were! Stories! As if dragons really walked the Earth," Mayor Jun scoffed.
"Uh, actually…" Natsu began. Then after a moment's contemplation and a Not now! look from Erza, Natsu shook his head. "Doesn't matter. Another time," he mumbled.
"Mayor Jun, my celestial spirits confirmed for me that nature spirits do, in fact, exist," Lucy explained patiently.
"And what? We're supposed to just move because some spirit none of us have ever seen apparently said so? This sounds quite absurd, Ms. Heartfilia…" Mayor Jun began slowly shaking his head.
"Okay, listen up," Gajeel banged his fist on the arm of the chair and stood up. "We've busted ass in those Woods and we have been put through hell. We have been injured, we have bled, we haven't showered, and we've slept poorly at best for nearly a damn week! If you think we did that for fun, just so we could come back into town and fuck with you, I'll personally give you a taste of what we went through," Gajeel growled menacingly. Lucy wrapped a calming hand around his forearm, yanking him back down.
"I apologise for the tone my teammate took, but he's right, Mayor Jun. You can choose to not listen to us, and your people will continue to die. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but at some point, your town will start to collapse again, and if you let that happen, I can guarantee you that no one from Fairy Tail will come help," Lucy threatened. She wasn't actually sure if she could say something like that, so she quickly shot Erza a glance. When the redhead nodded her approval, Lucy turned her gaze back to Mayor Jun, staring him down.
Silence hung in the air for several seconds.
"We'll have the entire village move a few miles south, Ms. Heartfilia. Thank you for everything you and your teammates did," Mrs. Jun smoothly cut through the tension. Suddenly, it was as if the dynamic in the room shifted. The Fairy Tail mages noticed the way Mr. Jun squirmed in his seat, throwing frantic glances at his wife, and they noticed the way Mrs. Jun watched them calmly, and it became all too evident who took the big decisions in the family. Instantly, and almost unconsciously, everyone in the room began directly addressing Mrs. Jun.
"I would, however, appreciate your help over the course of today evening and tomorrow in conveying the message to the townspeople. They are likely to heed the warning of Fairy Tail quite seriously. And of course, you will have the Mayor's and mine public support. If you wouldn't mind spending another two nights here, we can deliver the message and organise a small feast for you tomorrow evening before you take your leave," Mrs. Jun offered.
At the word feast, Natsu's face broke out into an impossible grin. "I'm never turning down a feast, lady. We're all happy to help," he smiled broadly.
With a genial nod, Mrs. Jun escorted the mages out the door.
"Will you pick up your reward at the feast tomorrow, Ms. Heartfilia?" she asked as Lucy stepped out through the door.
"Oh. The reward… Uh, yes, I'll pick it up tomorrow, thank you!" Lucy smiled, hoping she covered her fumble. As she walked away, she began thinking, I never discussed with Gajeel how we're splitting the reward… Obviously 50-50 makes sense. Maybe 60-40 to him? He did do more work… But I needed this to cover rent… Damn it!
"Don't know how you're going to split the reward, huh?" Gray's silky voice cut through her thoughts.
"How did you know?" Lucy pouted.
"You're an open book, what can I say? Okay, tell you what. Go, talk it out with Gajeel. And then shower and get some rest. I'll keep Natsu and Happy out of your room for the night. You and Gaj must be exhausted, and you've earned an evening off. Erza, Natsu, and I will handle talking to the townspeople today evening, and you can join us tomorrow. Okay?" Gray said kindly.
With a deep sigh of gratitude, Lucy nodded and let her head fall onto Gray's shoulder. He gently wrapped his arms around his tired friend, stroking her hair.
"Thanks, Gray. I owe you," she looked up at him with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm keeping Natsu occupied and away from you for an entire evening. Damn right you owe me," the Ice Mage laughed. Lucy got up onto her toes to give Gray a quick kiss on the cheek before freeing herself from his embrace.
"Gajeel, let's go. Gray said they'll handle this. We should get some rest. And we have something to discuss," Lucy called, gesturing for him to follow her. Not waiting for his response, Lucy turned on her heel and walked to the inn, knowing full well Gajeel was ten steps behind her.
"So you and Ice Boy, huh?" Gajeel asked, shutting the door behind him as they entered Lucy's room. "Is it an open relationship kinda thing, or was I just so irresistible that you had to cheat? And, most importantly, how did Juvia react when you guys told her?"
Lucy flopped down onto the bed and threw an arm over her face. "Gajeel. I have no idea what the ever-loving fuck you're talking about? Who did I cheat on? Why are we talking about Juvia?"
"I saw that hug. And that kiss. You make a good couple," Gajeel tried to keep his tone nonchalant, but there was an edge to his voice.
"Gray is my friend. We're allowed to hug our friends. And give them the occasional peck on the cheek when they're being nice. Don't get jealous," Lucy scoffed.
"I'm not jealous. I just…" Gajeel trailed off. He had been jealous, but he sure as hell wasn't going to admit it. "Okay, fine. Sorry I assumed. But now, what is it you wanted to talk about?" he asked. The sensual lilt to his voice caught Lucy's attention and she sat up.
With her eyes glued to him, she watched him slowly pull his shirt over his head. Heat pooled in her stomach as she drank in his glorious abs.
"I… Uh…" Lucy stammered, unable to take her eyes off his perfect form.
When he raised a finger, gently crooking it in a come-hither motion, Lucy felt herself float off the bed and towards him. His eyes had darkened to a deep, wine red, and his full lips were parted as he breathed heavily.
"I hate that you're still wearing clothes," Gajeel growled before hooking his finger in the neck of Lucy's T-shirt. In one fluid stroke, Gajeel ripped the top open, pushing it off Lucy's shoulders.
"I could've just taken it off," Lucy whispered huskily.
"Maybe later. For now, we're doing things my way, and baby, I don't intend to hold back," Gajeel murmured, bringing his lips close to Lucy's.
"Good," she purred back, looping her arms around his neck. They stood like that, arms around one another, lips just barely touching, for a couple seconds. Lucy flicked her tongue out to caress his bottom lip as his hands went to her ass, gently kneading the soft flesh.
Then, with a desperate, soft pant, Lucy moaned, "I want you, Gajeel."
A/N: Okay now I'm starting to feel mean. I've played enough, and you are such gorgeous people who deserve the smut you came here for, so, scout's honour, next chapter! There has been enough foreplay, methinks. Also, I think FFN has resolved its dumb glitch? But anyway, as mentioned, this is being cross-posted on AO3, so if something like that happens again, head on over there!
Can't wait to read your stunning reviews!