First Impressions

A Fairy Tail One-Shot

Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima

Summary- Natsu was actually good at reading people... which was why he decided that Lucy would fit right in with the guild.

Natsu Dragneel might seem like your typical guy: brash, a bit reckless... okay, a LOT reckless, had a fiery attitude that matched his magic, and ate as if food and money grew on trees. People often thought that he was just some punky kid who always got into trouble the first chance he got. However, if you got to know him long enough, you'd realize that he actually has something of a sixth sense when it came to reading people.

This was especially when he met a certain blonde-haired Celestial Spirit Wizard during his and Happy's trip to Hargeon. In all honesty, he didn't know what to make of her at first, mostly because he found her in a crowd of women, surrounding some purple-haired jerk who was calling himself "Salamander"... but he'd worry about him, later. At the time, the only thing he could focus on was his empty stomach.

So imagine his surprise when he got treated to lunch. He was instantly sold. Anybody who was willing to pay for his food had to be a nice person!

So, as he scarfed down whatever he could grab and filled his hungry belly, the girl rambled on and on about how she wanted to join the most popular guild in Fiore. Instantly, that rang a bell with Natsu because he was a member of that guild. He just didn't say it at the time because... well, for one, he was still too busy eating, and for another, the girl didn't exactly say it herself.

Lucy... that was a nice name, actually.

Another thing he noticed was how absolutely giddy she got whenever she talked about the guild, even if Happy said it might have been a bit annoying. It actually made Natsu feel pretty good inside, hearing such nice things about it coming from a random stranger. Plus, even though he probably wouldn't admit it... she had a rather cute smile when she talked, too. Normally, he'd hear about how Fairy Tail was a guild of reckless juvenile delinquents... whatever that meant. Maybe when he got back, he could tell Gramps all about her!

So after lunch was had and Happy strolled around town for a bit, he couldn't help overhearing a certain conversation regarding that same "Salamander" from earlier. When he heard the name of Fairy Tail in that sentence, he knew something was up, immediately. He never saw that man before, let alone knew his name, so how did he know about the Fairy Tail Guild?

If there was one thing Natsu couldn't stand, it was a liar... especially when that liar tries to commit crimes under the name of the guild he cherished. As if things weren't bad enough, the moment he dropped down onto that yacht, he found her there, of all people... and though she had a look of shock on her face from his entrance, he could smell the bitter saltiness of her tears.

He knew he heard her voice earlier... yelling at her captors for disgracing the use of magic.

Not only was this girl nice and passionate about the guild she wanted to join... she was righteous about how magic should be used.

Now he was going to teach these punks a lesson... but first, he had to get off that damn boat.

By some miracle, his wish was granted, because the next thing he knew, he was standing on solid ground, his stomach no longer twisting in knots from his motion sickness. What's more, it looked like Happy managed to get Lucy to safety, along with all the other girls that had gotten captured, somehow. Now that they were out of harm's way there was only one thing to do.

Kick bad guy butt.

All it took was a good 2 minutes and that poser was down for the count... and the harbor was also in smolders, but he got the job done at least!

As usual, the army had to be a bunch of party poopers. As they were drawing nearer, Natsu realized that he had come all this way, hoping for a clue as to the whereabouts of the dragon that he called his father, but instead wound up on a cold trail. That's when he glanced over at Lucy.

Well... he wasn't going home, empty-handed.

So, he snatched her up by the wrist and sprinted off as fast as he could, dragging her along with him.

"Where the heck are you taking me?!"

"Just come on! You said you wanted to join the Fairy Tail Guild, didn't ya?!"

As she gaped at him in surprise... he gave her an impish grin.

"So let's go!" he told her... and soon, that same smile appeared on her face.

He knew, right then and there, that she was going to fit right in at Fairy Tail. If he liked her, then he was damn certain that everyone in the guild would, too.

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