Author's Note:

Hey all! It's Sunday! And time for a new chapter!

Hahaha *laughs slightly uncomfortably* Whoopsy! Looks like I'm still a bit off my usual regimen. But hey! Three-ish weeks is still a whole lot better than a few months! So I'm calling that a success!

Also, I want to give a HUGE thanks to all my wonderful reviewers out there! Big hugs and kisses to: Natsulover89, SistershoOk, Copperreign12, Jcat007, Moon'n'Tide, Byrd3-13, sakshishetty3003, stranger1999, Summerguest, MillennialStargazer, Cino2K, Melga92, Lucinda, Ninja-Turtle Charlie, valerioux, Anastasiya359, Bookwork129, Blueupdate, Idontwanttologin, and Starstruck-MJ. You guys are all amazing!

Alrighty! On with the show! Sorry this chapter is a little short, I promise the next one will be longer. ;D

A few days later, Natsu and Lucy went on their second date… this time, fishing at the huge lake behind the Fairy Tail guildhall.

It was a very new and different sort of experience for her, since she hadn't ever gone fishing before, but it was something she'd always been curious about and had wanted to try. That was probably because it came up in her books sometimes – usually when the characters were on some sort of adventure or expedition out in the wilderness – and she'd always wondered what it was really like.

So, of course, when Natsu offered an opportunity to experience a 'taste of the wild' first-hand, she was very excited to accept.

They'd headed out early this morning and packed a breakfast to take with them – which ended up being a nice extra element to their date, since they ate it as a picnic on the lakeshore before starting on their fishing endeavor. It hadn't actually taken them long to get there, thanks to a series of passageways underneath the Fairy Tail guildhall, but the trip had still definitely been enough to spark their appetites.

However, after that, the date took a less pleasant turn when it came time for Natsu to show her all the ins and outs of fishing… how to bait a hook, how to use the fishing rod, how to throw a line and reel it in, and so forth.

The bait was surprisingly nasty, the rod was complicated to learn, and she was terrified of accidentally hooking herself whenever she sent out her line. Then, on top of all of that, once she finally managed to do everything correctly, it was only to discover that fishing was otherwise fairly boring and basically just consisted of sitting in one place for a long time while holding a stick and looking at the water.

Still though… somehow she had a lot of fun.

They laughed and joked the whole time, and Natsu teased her about being squeamish over the bait – which she got back at him for by splashing him with water later. Of course, that inevitably led to a small water-fight and ended with them both soaked from head to toe… but thankfully, they didn't have to stay wet for long. Natsu was able to quickly dry them off and warm them up with his fire magic, so they didn't have to abandon their date outside in the chilly weather.

And she continued to have a good time even after things calmed down, and there wasn't anything else to do but sit and visit with each other. Chatting with Natsu was always fun…. He was such a nut and never failed to make her laugh.

In fact, they were still having a blast, laughing and joking and generally enjoying each other's company, when they returned to the guildhall later that afternoon.

The fishing had been a success, and Natsu had cleaned their catch and cooked it up with his flames for their lunch – which had been absolutely delicious and very gratifying. It definitely helped her to better understand why so many people liked the fishing experience. Not only was fresh fish amazingly tasty, but it was also extremely satisfying to have all of her hard work pay off.

Unfortunately, their good mood didn't last for long.

They'd decided to return home by hiking up a trail through the woods instead of using the underground Fairy Tail passages again, and as soon as they walked through the front doors, Cana flagged them down with a serious expression on her face. She was manning the storefront as usual and had apparently been waiting for them.

"Yo! What's up, Cana?" Natsu asked when they got to the bar.

"Here, this is for you," she replied somberly, handing him a letter. "Lisanna asked me to give it to you about half an hour ago…"

Lisanna's Letter

Lucy's first instinct was to ask how Lisanna had looked when she'd given Cana the letter – whether she had seemed upset or not. However, a second or two later, Lucy changed her mind and decided to hold off, because she was worried that Cana's answer might make Natsu feel even worse than he already did. It was very difficult to tell that he was disturbed, but she knew him well enough by now to notice the way his posture stiffened and how his eyes tightened.

The biggest red flag by far though, was the fact that he opened the letter without saying a word.

There was a long, tense silence as he read whatever was written inside, and his expression only grew stonier and stonier as the seconds passed. Then, he folded it up and shoved it in his pocket.

"Thanks, Cana. I ow ya one," he said, sounding almost normal… but Lucy could tell that his smile was fake and that his voice was just a little too monotone.

"Yeah, well, I'll pass. I'm not too interested in getting a letter from any of my exes. But if you wanna pay me back by buying me a drink, I won't turn you down."

"Huh?" he asked with a more genuine expression of confusion, obviously not understanding Cana's joke at first. A moment later though, his face cleared, and he snorted with amusement as he figured it out.

"Okay. It's a deal."

Meanwhile, Lucy held her tongue – feeling uneasy and unsure about how to act in this particular situation. Naturally, she was dying to know what Lisanna had written to Natsu, but there was absolutely no way that she could ask him without being wildly inappropriate and overstepping her boundaries. It wasn't any of her business what his ex-girlfriend had written to him and questioning him about it might not only come off as insensitive, but possibly even suspicious and untrusting.

However, Cana obviously didn't have those same misgivings.

"So, what'd it say?"

Natsu's jaw clenched, and Lucy honestly expected him to say, 'none of your business.' So, she was shocked when he actually answered.

"She's, uh… going on a long trip… and basically just wanted to say, 'bye.'"

He shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal, but Lucy could read between the lines. She would bet anything that Lisanna was going on this trip to help her get over Natsu and recover from her broken heart… and Lucy just hoped that the other woman's farewell letter hadn't been overly accusatory or hurtful. Thankfully, from the little that she'd heard about Natsu's ex, Lisanna seemed too nice for something like that, and her message had probably genuinely wished for Natsu's happiness.

Still, it had to have hurt both of them (her to write and him to read), and a sharp pang of sympathy speared Lucy – making her cringe with guilt for her own part in it.

She felt even worse when Natsu forced another smile and 'cheerfully' said, "Well anyway… I'm gonna head on home. See ya later, Luce!"

He waved and headed back out the way they'd just come, leaving his friend and girlfriend behind at the bar without another word.

Lucy almost ran after him, but indecisiveness held her back. If he wanted to be alone right now, then it would be incredibly rude for her to force herself on him… especially since her company in particular might make him feel worse. There was a chance that guilt played a part in his emotions right now, and being around the woman that had helped him break Lisanna's heart probably wouldn't make him feel any better.

"Hey, aren't you going to follow him?" Cana asked after a minute or two of thick quiet, making her wince and question herself.

"I… don't think that's a good idea. If he wants to be alone right now, I should probably respect that."

The bartender raised her eyebrows, and her expression clearly said, 'Are you sure about that?'

Cana obviously didn't plan to let it go, and Lucy quickly muttered the first excuse that came to mind and escaped downstairs before the brunette could shake her resolve any further. However, once in the main guildhall, she encountered a new problem…. She wasn't really sure what to do with herself.

One option was to go to the gym and train… but that idea didn't appeal to her at all. At the moment, she was too worried and worked up from what'd just happened, and her energy levels were all over the place – making her feel both exhausted and over-caffeinated at the same time, in a very unpleasant way.

Of course, she could go to her room instead and practice with her harp or work on some starcharts. That wouldn't use nearly as much energy as going to the gym… but then she would end up by herself for a long period of time, and she knew full well that it would only result in her stewing and worrying until she'd gone crazy.

So, in the end, she decided the best course of action was option number three… distract herself by chatting with friends.

With that in mind, she immediately started looking around for a likely candidate and spied Levy sitting at the bar reading her latest book.

"Hey, Levy!" she greeted as she sat down next to the bluenette.

"Hi, Lu! Back from your date?"

"Yep!"

Lucy did her very best to keep her voice and face straight, but something must have clued Levy in to the fact that not everything was fantastic. Her eyebrows scrunched a little, and she suddenly looked a tad concerned.

"Uh-oh, did something happen?"

"Um… no! Nothing much…" Lucy said, and then bit her lip, wishing that she could lie better. It'd been so much easier to be Lady Luck and lie to everyone in town, but lying straight to a friend's face hadn't ever been one of her strong suits – especially when she was emotionally shaken up.

"Are you sure? Because you don't look very happy for having just come back from a date…. Did Natsu do something stupid?"

"No! It wasn't him; he didn't do anything wrong. We had a great date, and everything was perfect…."

"… But?"

After a moment, she gave in with a deep sigh. "As soon as we got back, Cana gave him a letter from Lisanna. Apparently, she's going on a 'long trip' and wanted to say goodbye."

"Ooh, ouch."

Levy winced at first, but after a moment her expression smoothed out into one that was a little more contemplative.

"Maybe… this is a good thing though. I know if I'd just broken up with my boyfriend, I would want to get away for a little while. Some space might help her feel a bit better about it all."

"That's what I think too. Actually, I'm the one who suggested it," said a new voice from right next to them, and Lucy nearly fell off her stool in surprise.

"Mira! Um… hi! So… you heard us talking?"

"Yep!" the cook said in that cheerful way of hers, but she definitely seemed more solemn than usual. "And don't worry Lucy, I still don't blame you for any of what's happened. You really can relax, you know."

Lucy winced a little. "Thanks, Mira. I can't tell you how grateful I am… to both you and Elfman for not being angry with me. But… I just can't help feeling terrible about it all, and I hate that I'm partially to blame for causing Lisanna and Natsu so much pain."

"I know, and that's a big part of why I'm not angry with you. Besides…."

Mira sighed and leaned against the counter of the kitchen bar. "Honestly, it was obvious that their relationship was rocky from the start. Of course, I always hoped for the best, for Lisanna's sake, but… you know. Ultimately, I think Natsu made the only right choice. For both of them."

That shocked Lucy into silence for a long moment, and she shared a slightly wide-eyed glance with Levy before risking a reply.

"Um… but you and Elfman…"

"Beat him up," Levy finished for her when she trailed off, and Lucy nodded her thanks.

"Well of course! But that was just obligatory," the white-haired woman said with a dismissive wave.

"Obligatory?"

"Right! He hurt our little sister, so we had to pulverize him. That's just the way things are. But it's all water under the bridge now."

Lucy blinked at Mira a few times, thinking to herself that the other woman was certainly very scary sometimes – even when she wasn't using her special terrifying transformation magic.

"Oh…. Uh, right. Yeah, that makes sense…"

Her voice wobbled a little despite her best efforts to keep it level, but thankfully, it didn't seem as though Mira noticed – or cared – because the other woman just smiled and hummed, "Mm-hm," in cheerful agreement.

Of course, in the long run, none of this particular conversation really helped Lucy with her current problem.

Ironically, even though she'd come over here to distract herself, they'd just ended up talking about Natsu – which only made her think about him more and did nothing to lessen her urge to run after him. Soon, she unintentionally tuned out of the conversation somewhat as she wrestled with herself over it, mentally repeating (once again), 'It would be rude and insensitive to follow him. I have to respect his desire to be alone right now.'

Unfortunately though, no matter how many times she told herself that, the impulse to try to find and comfort him just kept growing inside her chest, making it tight and hot and painful. She knew how much he had to be hurting and desperately wanted to help him somehow…. His dark, flat eyes and forced smile kept flashing back through her mind's eye, breaking her heart each time.

After a while, the destructive train of thought was thankfully derailed by a hand waving in her face, and she jerked with surprise – not having realized that she'd zoned out that much.

"Wha-?! Oh… sorry. Did you say something, Levy?"

The bluenette's eyes were worried as she asked, "Are you okay, Lu?

"Um… yeah, I'm alright. I just…" Lucy paused to sigh and gather her thoughts before continuing. "I keep thinking that I shouldn't go after Natsu. He probably just wants some space right now, and I know I should respect that. But…"

"But you want to go to him anyways, right?" Levy surmised.

"… Yeah…"

"I figured you might," Mira said as she reappeared after tending to a few other people's food needs.

She laid a piece of paper on the bar – which she quickly started scribbling on – and a few seconds later, what looked like a crude map took shape.

As soon as Lucy realized what Mira was doing, she started protesting, "Oh, no… I…" but the other woman was already done by then and successfully interrupted her by shoving the map into her hands with a smile.

Before Lucy could say anything else, the whitehaired cook was being hailed from the other side of the kitchen bar again, and she shot a cheerful, "Good luck!" over her shoulder as she went to take care of it.

That left Lucy holding the means to find Natsu's house, and she stared at it for a long moment… her head feeling numb and her thoughts confused. She honestly didn't know what to do anymore. This map was just another piece of heavy ammunition against her better intentions, and now her willpower had been stretched to a bare thread – especially since everyone else seemed to think that she should follow Natsu.

The last straw came when Levy hesitantly asked, "Sooo… are you going?"

It almost felt like getting hit by lightning… the impulse to go finally overwhelmed her misgivings, and it drove her out of her seat with a sharp, abrupt move that obviously startled her bluenette friend.

"Yeah… I think I will…" Lucy managed to say as way of explanation, and Levy's surprised expression settled into a supportive smile.

"Go for it!"

Lucy waved her thanks as she rushed out of the guildhall.

When she barreled back past Cana, the brunette called, "Change your mind?" and she simply said, "Yep!" without slowing down.

However, once in the streets, she did pause and shifted the map around, trying to get her bearings. It wasn't the easiest map to read – drawing obviously wasn't one of Mira's many talents – but somehow, she eventually managed to make enough sense out of it to determine which way Natsu's house was.

She immediately took off in that direction at a quick trot, feeling eagerness and urgency bubbling up in her – alongside a good dose of nerves. This still didn't seem like the best idea, all things considered, but she couldn't stop herself anymore.

The map led to a small forest path at the edge of town that Lucy passed up at least three times before finding… and it was only after she stopped to investigate a subtle break in the tree-line that she finally spotted the small sign on one of the trunks. A wooden arrow pointed down the dirt path and clearly said, "Natsu's Place" – making her snort and roll her eyes with irritation for missing it.

Of course, being so narrow meant that almost as soon as she started onto it, the forest completely surrounded her, dimming the light and making the evening air even cooler than it had been before. By now, the sun had started to set, and Lucy was beginning to think that maybe this had been a bad idea for more than just one reason. Winter nights came early and fast in Magnolia – which meant that she had a very frosty return trip to look forward to after this was all over.

It was a relief when she reached the end of the trail, and her unpleasant thoughts about the cold switched over to excitement at finally arriving.

Natsu's house was very pretty: small, with cream plaster walls, cobblestone corners and assets, a large stone chimney, and wooden shingles on the roof. The picturesque cottage was rustic, foresty, and extremely scenic… but there was one odd thing that Lucy immediately noticed about it. From what she could tell, it looked like a very large tree was growing directly out of the roof, and its leafy branches dangled inches over the shingles – which overall gave it the impression of being a treehouse, despite its location on the ground.

She blinked at the strange sight, then shook her head and focused on the door in front of her. Oddities aside, she wasn't here to sight-see. Her goal was simple (try to help Natsu in any way she could), and that wasn't accomplishable if she stayed loitering outside admiring his abode.

With her priorities straightened once again, she promptly marched up the last bit of walkway to his front door with renewed purpose. Almost automatically, her hand rose to knock… but her knuckles hesitated just a second before they touched the wood.

This was her last chance to back out. She could leave now, and he would never know that she'd visited.

Nerves built up inside her again at the thought, and all of a sudden, her newly rejuvenated determination leaked away with alarming speed – causing her to stall and start chewing on her bottom lip as she considered her options. All her previous misgivings came back to her in bulk at first, reminding her sharply of how he hadn't acted like he wanted to talk or have much in the way of social interaction. By showing up uninvited like this, she could be putting him in a very uncomfortable position – which was the exact opposite of what she wanted.

However, on the other hand, if she did choose to give up now, she knew that the rest of her night would be spent miserably worrying about him. Besides, backing out at the last minute after coming all this way didn't sit well with her, and even though there was a chance that this whole thing was misguided or even selfish on her part, she firmed her resolve and decided to go for it anyways.

So, with a deep breath, she knocked on his door.

Sneak Peek:

Most've what he'd been feeling before (all the guilt and stuff) had gone away. Sure, he still felt bad for Lisanna, and he still wished she could be happy, but Lucy had reminded him that he was happy. He had her, and he loved her, and he'd made the right choices for the right reasons. So, for right now, suddenly all he wanted to do was just lose himself in her and forget about all the other painful, depressing stuff.

A chunk of hair had slid down over her shoulder and was dangling by his forehead. Kinda tickled actually… and he reached up and grabbed it, playing with it a little. Her hair sure was soft… silky and nice between his fingers as he wrapped it around them. And after a couple minutes of that, he tightened up his grip and gave a light tug.

She made a curious sound and leaned down towards him a little – which brought her just close enough that he could get nose to nose with her by shoving his elbow into the couch.

"Hey… I kinda wanna kiss you now… is that okay?"

Post Note:

Well... okay, so yeah, that was a teensy bit of a cliffy. Sorry guys! I promise next chapter will make up for it!