Chapter 11

Panting hard, he turned and saw everyone looking at him. "WHAT!" he shouted as everyone backed up as he started up on another. "Natsu" Lucy said worried but he was punching so hard and blocking everything out, he didn't hear her. "That bastard, he wont!" Natsu thought angrily as he swung his arm back and hit the bag directly in the center. "He won't touch her again. I'm going to keep them both safe damn it.!. Lucy was surprised when she saw Erza walking in with Gray and Jellal. Walking over to them, Erza turned and was surprised. "Lucy? Why are you here?" All she did was point her head and everyone understood as they saw Natsu raging on the bag. Jellal walked and saw the large one broken and on the floor. "Did he?" he turned to Lucy as she shook her head. The three of them looked with fear ,not of him but of what he was thinking as he was punching that bag. "AHHHHHHHHHHHH" he screamed as he punched the bag a final time before going to the floor. Lucy moved to go to him when Jellal stopped her. He shook his head as they both looked forward at him. Getting to his hands and knees, he dropped his head to the floor for a few seconds as he came back up. Taking the gloves off his hands, he got to his feet and stood up but stumbled as he took a step forward.

Not waiting, Lucy ran past Jellal as she helped Natsu regain his balance. "I'm a sweaty mess baby" he said lightly as Lucy put his arm over shoulder. "I don't care" she said firmly. Taking a couple steps forward, he stopped walking as Lucy looked at him. "Let me go Luce" "What, why?" "Because I'm not risking you ripping that wound again helping me" "Natsu, I can do it" "No Lucy, I'm not risking you..not again" he said desperately. "Natsu" "Just listen to her Natsu" urged Erza. Hearing her, he glared at her as her and the other two came walking over. "You don't have a right to tell me that" said Natsu. Looking like she was going to say something, Jellal stepped in front of her. Looking Erza and Gray directly in the face, he said "we need to talk now. We're going to the main base." He waited for them to go as he followed behind them. Grabbing his shirt, Natsu said " let's go Lucy" he saw her arms were crossed as they walked to the car. "Luce?" he asked but she didn't answer as they got in the car. "What's up with her?" he thought driving them home. She remained quiet as they reached their house. Slipping his shirt back on, he unlocked the door letting them inside. "Mommy, daddy!" Layla cried happily as she ran to them

"Hi baby girl" said Lucy as she crouched down letting Layla give her a hug. Lucy wrapped her arms around her as she picked her up. " I love you baby girl so much" she said sweetly. "Love you too mommy" she replied as she put her head up and said "hi daddy" "Hey baby dragon" "She was a great student" said Wendy as they saw her coming over. "That's wonderful" said Lucy. "Come see, come see!" Layla said eagerly as she got down from Lucy's arms and pulled both her and Natsu to the counter. She hopped up and put a paper behind her back with a grin on her face. "Close your eyes" she told them as they both did. "Surprise!" she yelled as they opened their eyes to see a stick figure painting of the three of them with a house, clouds, grass, trees and the sun. "Layla, this is beautiful baby" said Lucy. "Look Natsu" "I see and I know the perfect spot to put it, may I?" he asked as Lucy handed to him. He went over and stuck it right to the middle of the fridge. "Perfect" he said with glee.

"Thank you baby" Lucy said. "I'm gonna go for the day. I'll see you guys later" said Wendy. "Thank you" said Natsu and Lucy in unison. "You want to tell me what's wrong now?" he said once Wendy left. "What are you talking about?" "Really?. Your going to try lying to me Luce? Since when has that ever worked" he said cocky. Getting irritated, she walked up the stairs. "Layla, stay here!" she said frustrated. "Okay mommy" she said as she flipped the tv on till she saw what she wanted. "Lucy!" he called after her walking up with her. She walked up the stairs and into the bedroom and stopped in the middle of it. "Lucy.." She turned , her face full of mixed emotions. "Am I your partner?" she asked. "Wha..of course you are" he said immediately. "Why would you ask me that?" "Because for weeks!, you have treated me like anything but. "The hell you talking about. I have spent every moment I could with you" "YOU HAVE PUSHED ME AWAY NATSU!" He took a step back stunned. 'You want to protect me, I know, and I love you for that but you have gotten too paranoid. You haven't included me in anything, let alone in the mafia. Every time I've tried..you.." "Lucy" he took a step. "NO, let me finish damn it. I have tried to be included but you are so scared of me getting hurt, you keep me away". Putting his head down, his bangs hung down. "Would you rather I didn't? he said lowly.

"What?" asked Lucy. "WOULD YOU RATHER I NOT PROTECT YOU?, LUCY ALL I WANT TO DO IS KEEP YOU SAFE!" "YOU ARE DOING IT THE WRONG WAY NATSU!, I AM YOUR WIFE, NOT ONE OF YOUR PEOPLE YOU ORDER" "I KNOOOOOW THAT, you think I would protect anyone else like that?...damn it Lucy. I just want to keep you safe." He said regretfully as he went to his knees and looked up at her. "I am so so sorry for pushing you away. I swear I didn't mean too." Walking up to him, she didn't look satisfied yet as he still on his knees took her hands and put them to his face. "Please baby, what can I do for you to forgive me?" he pleaded. "He's on his knees, he wouldn't do that unless he was really serious" She grabbed his face gently as she was shocked at what she saw. "Tears..he's crying" she thought sadly as she watched tears flow down his cheeks. "Please Lucy" Softening her face, she said "start including me in things. I may get scared but include me anyway. I don't care what it is. We are partners..in everything". "I promise" he said as she kissed his forehead and smiled wiping away his tears. "Stand up you goof" she said amusingly as he stood straight up and grabbed her pulling her into a passion filled kiss. She wrapped her arms around him as he bent her backwards holding her for a few moments as they gave each other a longing they both desired. Releasing her mouth, filled with passion and love he said "I love you Lucy..my soulmate" "I love you too Natsu..my soulmate." Standing her back up, he grabbed her hands and said "let's go spend time with Layla and then tomorrow, I swear I will tell you everything you want to know" "sounds good" she said filled with joy as she jumped on his back throwing him off guard but made him laugh as he walked them downstairs.

Meanwhile Jellal was driving him and the other two to the mafia. Neither of them said anything to him as they saw the serious expression he had on his face. Once they got there, to the other members, he said "clear out, all of you" "You giving commands Jellal?" one of them questioned as Jellal turned his head towards them with an intimidating face making the other members nervous as they began to walk to another part of the building. "You really going to challenge me?" he stood there waiting for an answer when one of the members grabbed the one causing trouble. "Come on you idiot, he could take you down in three seconds and not think twice" "alright, alright I'm going" "Ha , I guess going to the gym and getting back to work has earned you quite the reputation hasn't it?" said Gray. Sharply turning back, he still had the same expression. "Jeeze relax man. Wasn't trying to piss you off" "No, you're just pissing off our boss, both of you and it needs to stop" "Jellal, why did you bring us here?" Erza asked suspiciously. "Because both of you need to cut your shit out or more specifically you Erza." She crossed her arms in defiance. "You can't tell me you don't know what I mean because I know you do" said Jellal as Erza's face told she knew exactly what he meant. He began to pace slowly back and fourth. "You two chose him as our leader didn't you?" They nodded. "Then why do you keep questioning every freaking move he makes?" Gray noticed he wasn't looking at him but directly at Erza who glared at him.

"Gray…I know you know the time and place not to say anything." Sighing but not breaking eye contact with Erza ,he said " do you trust him?" "Yes, he's my brother" said Gray. "Then trust he knows what he's doing. Don't make me have to talk to you like this again" "Yes sir" "Erza, honey" " I do trust him" "Then damn it Erza, you need to stop questioning him. You're his second in command Erza. That says something right there but if you keep doing your shit, he is going to take it away. Do you want that?" "No b" "No ,no buts Erza!, you need to start respecting him instead of fearing him and the decisions he makes" "Lucy" Shaking his head he said "Lucy is not our decision, that is completely his to deal with. She's his wife and that's a separate thing from the mafia. We are not interfering with that. Erza, I know you have a good heart and I love you for that, but you need to stop. You can't keep hiding shit from him. You've already done it a few times and he's let you off easy. He won't be able to keep doing that." Erza's face turned to one of guilt as Jellal walked over and lifted her face up " let me ask you again, you chose him as our leader didn't you?" "Yes I did" "why?" "Because..he's shown he has the heart to be one and I trust him and respect him" "Then you need to show him that Erza..instead of questioning. Just respect him like you have been and work with him. He's done enough to more then earn our respect for him, that goes for you both of you" he said looking at Gray. "I won't disagree with you on that" said Gray. Turning back to Erza he said "are you done?" He didn't need to finish as Erza knew exactly what he was talking about. "Yes" she answered firmly. "Good because we still need to talk to him because right now, you two are on outs and you guys are going to fix that" They nodded as Jellal said "we'll call him here tomorrow. After seeing him today at the gym, he needs to cool off. Pretty sure, seeing you two would just infuriate him more. Let's get going. Gray, I'll drop you off at your house." "Thanks" replied Gray as they all left to get into the car.

The next day after Wendy came over for a few hours as Natsu and Lucy said goodbye and left. "Where are we going?" Lucy asked. "Jellal called and said he wanted to talk at the base, so we're headed there." "Jellal huh?" Lucy said amused. "What?, he hasn't questioned or done anything wrong so he's got my trust fully" "And Erza?" she saw his fingers tighten around the wheel. "Natsu" "She's got a little more work to do" he answered quietly. "You know she trust's you Natsu" "Yeah but she's got a shitty way of showing it" he replied. "Well your not exactly easy going" she teased. "Lucy!, I'm hurt" he said dramatically. "no your not, it would take a lot more than that to hurt you" she joked. Shaking his head, he grinned as they arrived. Grabbing his trench coat, he slipped it on as he put an arm over Lucy's shoulder. "Ready?" he asked. "Yup" she answered as they went in. Everyone stopped what they were doing when they saw them. He saw Jellal and the other two were already there. Lucy felt his body tense up as he kept his face straight as he could. "Natsuuu, easy" she cautioned rubbing his arm. Looking at the members staring, she yelled "What the hell you all looking at?" They all diverged their attention once she said that. "Damn Lucy" he said with a smirk impressed. "What?. I'm the mafia leader's wife. I gotta have some command" "True" he said as he looked back at the other three. "Follow me" he said darkly as they all followed behind him to a separate room. A room with a center chair for the boss with tables and bar. Natsu took a seat in the chair while Lucy grabbed a chair and pulled it next to him. "When you said you wanted to talk Jellal" said Natsu. "Yes Natsu, that part was true but it's also true that these two need to talk to you as well" said Jellal looking at the other two.

He glared at them as Erza and Gray kept straight faces but he could see the guilt they felt in their eyes. "You two..I trust you two above everybody else here but lately all you've done is question my decisions." Said Natsu. They remained silent as he looked at them. "Gray" sighed Natsu. "You haven't always gone along with Erza. For that, I can forgive your past actions and let them slide." Said Natsu plainly as Gray nodded. "Step back" he said as Gray obeyed and stepped back with Jellal. "Erza" he said angrily. "You are my second in command but lately I'm starting to wonder If I made the right decision" Erza looked at him with a questioning glance as he said "that look right there!. That's what got me second guessing. What do you think I'm wrong?" "Natsu I did what I felt I was doing ri" "Don't you dare finish that sentence. You kept shit from me Erza. Three damn times you have pulled crap. You fucking looked into Zeref..without so much as a word to me mentioning anything about it. Then if it wasn't bad enough already, you and the others found out he was coming to Magnolia and still! Told me nothing. AND BECAUSE OF THAT.." he growled as Lucy looked down. They all knew what he wasn't saying. "Then you just couldn't fucking help yourself could you. You tried to use my daughter to go up and tell Lucy about Zeref being at her school after I specifically said to leave her out of it!" His anger was boiling as he thought about her using Layla. " I won't make excuses for myself Natsu." "Do you respect me?" "Yes" she replied. "I'm not asking as a friend. I'm asking as your leader. Do you respect me? I want an honest answer." Thinking back to the conversation with Jellal, letting out a breath she looked at him directly and said in a clear voice "yes Natsu I respect you as our leader and our friend" "I'm giving you one more chance Erza. If you slip up again or try to go behind my back, I'm removing you from my second in command." "understood" she said firmly.

"Don't make me do that Erza, between all of us in this room, you guys are my family and I respect you way too damn much to let that be fucked with …so don't make me regret my chance I'm giving you." "I won't…I apologize for my actions" replied Erza. "Are you alright now Natsu?" asked Lucy. "Yeah, I think I'm good" he replied calmly. "you guys? He asked his friends. "yeah" "Good." "No worries man" " Well then let's head on out of this room, see what these people have been up too while I've been gone" said Natsu as he led them out of the room. Stepping back into the main base, he motioned for them to follow him and Lucy up the stairs as they walked up. "This is different" said Lucy surprised. Sitting down in a chair, Natsu said "you and me are the only ones up here Luce and those we allow." "Really?" "yes this level is for the leaders and who they choose only" informed Gray. Natsu nodded as he patted the seat next to him. "Come sit down baby" he said nicely as she went and sat down where they looked over the balcony.

"Is this what it's like to be a leader?" "I told you it's boring Luce. Now you see" said Natsu. "You did good Erza" Jellal whispered to her. "Thanks…just hope it was enough" she replied. "It was..think about it, if he had any real doubts about you, you wouldn't still be here and you sure as hell wouldn't be upstairs" Erza smiled knowing he was telling the truth. "Is there anything going on that I need to know" asked Lucy. "Other then Zeref, there isn't anything else" Lucy looked disappointed as he grabbed her hand. "Baby, that's not a bad thing. If we can focus just on Zeref, it's a good thing. I still need to find out how the hell he found us..and more importantly you. Now way am I letting that slide" he said bitterly as he squeezed her hand. "I'll help however I can" she said softly. Entangling his fingers into hers, he kissed her hand and said, "I know" They sat there for about twenty minutes before Lucy wanted to try something. Standing up, she shocked Natsu as she walked towards the balcony. "What's she about to do?" Natsu thought interested as he watched her take a firm stand.

Putting her hands on the balcony, in a commanding voice said "someone tell me what you have on Zeref." Nobody said anything for a minute as the members below stared at her. "Are you all deaf or did I stutter?" she said agitated. Natsu sat there silently daring someone to say something and what Lucy would do. "She's the mafia queen. She needs to know she can give orders just like I do" he thought. Below, everyone looked at each other. "Answer me" ordered Lucy as her face started to show her anger. "Who are you to give orders?" somebody asked. "How dare he" snapped Erza as she went to take a step but Gray held his arm out stopping her. "Don't Erza" he said as he tilted his head towards Natsu. She saw Natsu look at her signaling her to stand down with his hand. "She needs to do this on her own..without me or the others" he thought. Erza stepped back and waited as Natsu turned his attention back to Lucy. "Me? I'm the one giving an order" snapped Lucy sharply. "Really?" he said in disgust. Erza saw Natsu keep his face calm but she knew he wouldn't keep it for long as she saw his knuckles turning white. "This guy is screwed" all thought Erza, Gray and Jellal. "Yes, I know, I haven't been here so you don't know who I am. But that doesn't fucking matter. I gave you an order and I expect you to follow it."

Lucy narrowed her eyes at the guy who feeling confident in himself said " you and what army because you are just one woman." Lucy smirked at him as she put her hand back and pointed her thumb behind her at Natsu. "I don't need an army, I have him" He could see Natsu's cold stare through the bars of the balcony. "That's right" she said quietly as she saw realization hit each of the members brains as they looked at her. Having heard enough, Natsu got up and walked to stand beside Lucy. In a very authoritative voice he said "listen up you bastards, Lucy is my wife therefore your other leader. I expect all of you to show her respect. Any order she gives, you all follow. Do I make myself clear?" They all nodded immediately. "Anyone questions or has an Issue .." he narrowed his eyes at the one who questioned Lucy. "will have me to deal with" They all nodded respectfully as the guy tched with his mouth.

Everyone's faces turned to fear as they watched Natsu jump down from the balcony, his trench coat flying behind him as he landed on his feet. Erza and the others stood with Lucy watching. "This is the power of the mafia leader Lucy" said Erza. "If I wasn't his wife, I would be terrified" thought Lucy . "that talk changed something, her voice had complete respect in what she just told me" They watched as Natsu rose from the floor and his jacket came down. His face was hard as he walked forward. Everyone backed away to the side. "Do you have an issue with Lucy? Because the last guy that did and failed to do what he was ordered, I threw him out. I won't hesitate to do the same to you" said Natsu threateningly. Everyone stared at the guy waiting to see what he would say. "She walked in here and started barking orders like she owned the place." "She does" Natsu said blunt. "My father was one of the major leaders, I am his son and in charge of the Magnolia mafia. She is my wife so like it or not you piece of shit, she does own this place and I WILL NOT! Stand for anyone disrespecting her, no matter who it is" "I won't have a girl" Before he could finish, he was punched across the room. Furious , he walked fast over to him picking him up by his sleeves.

"Wrong answer" he said eerily as he threw him out the doors. "ANYONE ELSE!?" he shouted. They all stood there silent. "The next person who questions me or Lucy will end up just like him" said Natsu. They saw the wild eyed expression in his face and knew he wasn't making an idle threat. Coming down the stairs with Jellal and the others, Lucy quickly went up to Natsu. Putting her hands on his chest, she looked up at him as he breathed heavily. "Natsu….breathe my down" she said soothingly. He put an arm around her bringing her to his chest as he rested his chin on her shoulder. "Breathe" she whispered as he closed his eyes and let out a deep breath. "Alright everyone, clear out now!" Erza ordered. They all looked at Natsu and Lucy for assurance. "You heard her!" snapped Natsu and Lucy. Everyone immediately started walking out. "Are you alright now?" "Yes, thanks Luce" he answered. " Lucy, you were amazing baby" he said complimenting. Blushing she said "thank you." "If I didn't know any better , I'd say you were the one in charge here not me" "I wouldn't have been half as convincing if you weren't there" "Luce, I was there on standby, you did all that yourself" he said with a grin.

"Guys, am I wrong?" he said to the others. "No" they replied happily. "We didn't do anything either Lucy, you commanded that respect yourself" said Erza. "It's exactly what we need in a mafia queen and I could not be happier or more proud of you if I tried" said Jellal with a warm , loving smile. " Thank you" said Lucy getting teary eyed as she hugged him. "My queen" said Natsu smiling at her. "Who want's to have a party?" she said cheerfully. "A party?" they all responded confused. "Yes, you guys drive over to our house and we'll have a party" "That sounds great Lucy, I'll bring Layla over to Levy's" said Erza. "Wonderful, alright come on Natsu" she encouraged pulling him by surprise to the car. "Meet us at the house guys" said Natsu. "we'll do" Getting into the car, Natsu chuckled as Lucy was giddy as a kid in a candy store. "We gotta run by the store first" "Whhhhy?" he asked very skeptical. "Because …we're gonna need some drinks" she said as she slowly lowered her head. "Luuuuce, baby you know your tolerance sucks" he said raising his eyebrows. "Pleeeeeeaase" she begged like a little kid doing puppy eyes with her hands together. Lightly rolling his eyes, he said "somebody help me….yes Lucy, let's go get some beer" "YIPPEEEE!" she squealed loudly throwing her arms over him making him laugh. "Lucy, I gotta drive if you want to go to the store" "Okay" she answered happily getting back into her seat and buckled up. "You are so cute" he said as he started up the car.