"Where are they Happy?!" "They should be here soon Nashi. It'll be okay" he said quickly trying to reassure her as he rubbed her back. "I'm getting cccoldd" she stuttered shivering. "Just hang for a little more Nah,,there they are. Lucy, Natsu!" he called out happy but shivered once he saw their faces.
"Guys?..what happened?" he asked but was afraid of the answer. "They wouldn't lay off so we had to handle it" "Nashi, are you alright baby girl?" Lucy asked noticing she hadn't run over interrupting Happy and Natsu. "I'm cccolld mmmommy" Going over to Nashi, she brought her close to give her some body heat. "Natsu, we need to warm her" Sighing he said "we're going to have to do it here. Lousy people outed us so there's no way we can stay in town now. Sorry Luce, your going to have to change your hair here" Scoffing, she grabbed Nashi, picking her up and sat on a log.
Gently she cradled Nashi rocking back and forth. "There you go baby. Feel a little better?" She heard Nashi's teeth chattering while she nodded her head. Grabbing what materials he could as fast as he could manage, Natsu started to make the fire before Lucy snapped "Natsu, just use your fire. Damn it. She's freezing. I know what you said and we will worry about that tomorrow, just right now she's freezing and we don't have a blanket"
Annoyed, he submitted and used his dragon fire forming a blazing fire that began to warm Nashi up immediately. "Thank you" Lucy said gently. " Your welcome. About tomorrow" "What about it?" she asked cutting him off. " Let me finish and you'll see" he retorted sarcastically.
Rolling her eyes slightly, she motioned with her hand letting him continue. "As I was saying, tomorrow, I don't think we should use our names anymore. We'll cover our guild marks, then once you dye your hair Lucy, we'll go and grab Nashi a blanket"
I understand everything, and I agree but just one thing. What the hell do you want us to change our names too. I mean do you have an idea?" she asked trying to understand. "Yes, actually. Lucy, if you're alright with it, we can call you Layla." Her heart skipped a beat but she quickly shook it off. "its alright" she said with a smile. "way to honor mom and Nashi's grandmother"
"Nashi, I pretty much call you this anyway but now it's going to be every day. We're going to call you Iggy" " What about you?, you haven't told us your new name yet" Looking at the blue feline, he took a deep breath then looked at him with a focused expression. "My name's going to be Igneel" hearing all of them gasp, he gave them a raised eyebrow.
"What? His name is the best one for me. How many people around here would know the name excluding the guild. Nobody outside Fairy Tail and dragon slayers would even know Igneel's name. Besides, you're using your mom's name. It's only fair I do the same right? He argued persuasively enough to where Lucy casually tightened her lips nodding her head. "We're really doing this aren't we? Going on the run" Happy said sullenly.
Nashi was curled up by the fire not paying attention to anything that was being said. One look at his family's faces told him the answer. "It's too dark for me to do my hair now so I'll do it when the sun comes up" "Don't forget to change your clothes, we can get some more tomorrow when we go. How much more money do we have anyway?"
Pulling the bag over, Lucy looked inside and counted the cash. "Hmph, this will maybe last the next few days then after that, well. I don't think I need to continue" "Nope. Okay Iggy, time to get some sleep" Yawning, Nashi stretched her arms out then pulled out her sleeping cot and laid on it between Natsu and Lucy as he covered the best he could with his red blanket while Happy laid at the end buried under it.
"Sorry, I know it's not much. This blanket wasn't really meant for three people" ""It's alright Natsu, we'll get another one tomorrow" "Aye" "Mommy, do you think the guild misses us?" "Baby..we cant..we can't think about them right now..but yes..I do think they probably miss us" she answered with a hard gulp. " Come on, let's go to sleep. We're going to be on the move tomorrow" he told them hoping to change the subject.
Lucy squeezed his hand giving a silent thank you. Blinking a few times, it wasn't long before Nashi was out and her parent's followed soon after. The next morning, Lucy was up before everyone. Grabbing her hair dye , she went down to the lake and sat at it's edge. "Well here's to starting a new. Goodbye Lucy , and hello Layla." She said out loud. "Hopefully I'll be able to come back one day" she thought ripping open the box and beginning the process.
Waking up to birds chirping, Natsu rubbed his eyes laying there. "Nice morning at least" the thought made him smile when he heard smiling. Getting up, he walked over to where he heard the splashing and his heart raced looking down. Shining in the sunshine, Lucy whipped her head revealing her shiny golden brown hair. "God, if you weren't my wife already, I'd be nervous as hell to ask you out."
Blushing, she walked up to him putting a hand to his cheek.. "And here I thought you loved blondes" she teased. "I will love whatever form you take. Blonde, brown, whatever. I'll always love whatever you look like" "Come on, we have to get moving right?" she reminded giving him a kiss on the cheek making his face go red. "Ye..yeah" he muttered as she walked away. She put a hand to her mouth chuckling seeing his face red. "Even now..after all this time. I can still make the man weak in the knees and red in the face. I still got it"
Getting himself together, he joined Lucy at the top as she nudged Nashi and Happy awake.
"Come on you two, sorry, I know your still sleepy but we need to go. Nashi, come get your shoes on sweetheart" In a daze, she followed Lucy making her chuckle as she watched the mini dragon slayer. "Is she still sleeping?" Natsu whispered watching her. "No, I don't think she's fully awake yet, that's all. Last night was probably a lot for her to absorb on top of everything else that has been happening"
"Well I can't disagree with you on that, woah hey baby dragon, I think brushed enough" he said holding back a laugh seeing Nashi mindlessly brushing herself having no clear point. "IIIgggy" he called out slowly as he started to pull at the scarf. Suddenly her eyes widened as she yelled "no!" pulling back the scarf. "Hey easy there, I'm not taking it Iggy. But I am going to suggest putting it, well actually never mind. Your fine Iggy" she titled her head confused.
Waving his hand, he said "don't worry about it sweetheart. You ready?" "Yup yup" "What about you Happy?" "AYE" he answered fully awake and ready. "Then let's get going. Lucy, can you put out the fire?" "Got it covered" Grabbing a bucket of water, she poured it onto the fire extinguishing it. "Natsu, hold on a minute, let me see your back" she said dropping the bucket , she walked over. Carefully she lifted his jacket when she heard heavy breathing.
"Quit tensing up. That will just bring more pain" Barely laying a touch on him, she ran her hand over his back for a minute then put his shirt and jacket back down. "So how bad?" "It's getting there, sadly it looks like it's going to be a hell of a scar" "Hey, at least you wont be the only one burned now" " Let's get started ..oh and she can't resist screaming so keep that in mind when you hit her" "LUUUUCYY!" he screamed as his fire fist landed on her back burning her on impact. "I'm so sorry Lucy, just hang on" "Na" the memory infuriated him.
Following Lucy's signal, Happy quietly took Nashi and went on ahead as Lucy gently grabbed Natsu's fists and kissed them calming him. "Natsu..that wasn't your fault back then and still isn't. That was because of Lilyanna. My love, you can let go of that guilt." Leaning in, she gave him a deep kiss. Closing his eyes, he gave in pulling her close.
Closing his hand around the back of her neck, he growled in bliss. Deepening it, his tongue explored her mouth causing Lucy to moan. Enjoying the moment, he reluctantly pushed her off breaking the kiss. "Thank you Luce" "Feel better?" "Yeah. Thanks" he said softly as she gave him a loving smile. "How's your leg?" "Still hurts like hell but it will heal eventually."
Clearing his throat, he grabbed her hand and walked forward. "Let's go meet Happy and Iggy. They shouldn't be alone that long right now" "Sounds good. Hey Natsu, did you know that jacket you bought. There's flames on it" "Oh really? Well hey, what do you know? Guess I musta just seen the red color and that was it for me." He said laughing at himself. "My pyro manic" "You know it" she blushed giggling.
"Something funny?" Happy asked as they came upon them. "No Happy. Natsu's just being himself but we can't afford to keep standing around so let's get moving" "Aye" replied Happy and Nashi. "Wait" he said suddenly stopping them.
"We need to cover the guild marks" Putting his pack down, he pulled out a bottle as Happy and Nashi turned their faces away. "I'm sorry guys.. this is the way it has to be" he said objectively. "Is it really that easy for him to just erase our marks? I was born there and Nashi was born in Fairy Tail. ..but he was right, we can't think about the guild anymore. Our priority now is surviving" Taking off his pack, he turned around showing Natsu his back.
Tears stung their eyes as Natsu covered his and Nashi's marks. "There, all done guys" Sullenly with tears flowing down their faces, they walked past Natsu and Lucy without saying a word. Feeling their pain, Lucy watched Natsu put the potion on his emblem.
It faded as if it never had been there to begin with. Seeing the doleful look in his eyes, she took a step towards him but stopped when she saw his face change to a blank expression. "Natsu?" she said confused. " You don't have to worry about me. The pain I feel for this will go away. Don't have a choice." "Your right" she admitted but couldn't help feeling pain inside looking at his blank arm. (Rittakidou. Hiroyuki Sawano Attack on Titan original soundtrack) Taking the potion, she put some on her hand and watched her emblem disappear. " The pain will subside"
Putting his jacket back on, in a serious tone said "let's go Layla" "Right Igneel" she turned swiftly on her heels and walked beside him. Depressed, , Happy and Nashi plodded in circles waiting for the other two. "Happy, are we going to forget Fairy Tail?" "No, never. I promise Iggy, we won't forget the guild. Ever" Taking her hand, he looked her in the face.
"That's a promise" Nodding her head, she turned her head away. Hearing sticks and leaves crumbling, Happy looked but was completely at a loss for words seeing their faces when they went by them. Their faces were hard, uncaring, while their eyes showed no warmth or empathy. Putting an arm around Nashi, he comforted her as she laid her head on his shoulder. "Let's move you two" he said sternly keeping his back to them. (End song) Ushering Nashi to keep quiet about the emblems, they moved with Natsu and Lucy through the woods until they reached the next town.
Stepping through the woods, they walked , turning their heads until Natsu tapped Lucy letting her know there was a place to eat. "Come on Iggy, let's get you something to eat" . Hearing the kindness in her voice, Happy subtly smirked. "Thank Mavis, they do still care. …. Seeing them earlier, It looked as they completely shut down any feeling they had"
Breathing a tiny breath of relief, he chuckled hearing his stomach growling. "Fish here I come!" he cheered running forward and though he didn't see, made Lucy and Natsu smile. Taking a seat, they sat down when they heard a shuffling sound.
Alarmed Natsu and Lucy stood up with their fists ready. "Guys, it's nothing, just the kitchen. See?" Looking, they saw something had just spilled. "Relax guys, the cult isn't here..and your making people stare" Getting that he was right, they observed the staring eyes. Taking a seat, they went back to looking at the menu as Lucy saw the customers had gone back to ignoring them.
Hmph, mind your own damn business people" "Daddy, can I get nuggets?" "Yes Iggy. Nuggets are good. Happy?" "Ha, you already know what I'm getting!" "Fish" they all answered amused. Once the waitress had brought them their drinks and taken their order, Lucy asked "you think we're safe here?"
"Lucy, I don't think safe is a word we can use anymore but to answer your question, we stopped any lead from escaping that town. Having said that, we shouldn't be here any longer than a day at most." "Agreed. Oh food's here. I say after this, after we do our supply run ,we find a cheap place to stay. What do you two think?" she asked the other two as the waitress set the food down. "Sounds good" they said mowing down. "Natsu?" "Should be fine" Taking the little moment of peace they had, they enjoyed their food, and each other.
Playing with her nuggets, Nashi accidentally flung one at Natsu where it hit his cheek, sliding down, it left a ketchup trail. Lucy and Happy broke out in laughter making Natsu as well. "Yay! I made you guys smile" Nashi cheered. "Oh baby, you always make us smile. No matter what, that will never change" Lucy reassured. "But your faces before..they weren't smiling" Giving each other a knowingly look, they put a hand around each of Nashi's shoulder.
"Na, Iggy, listen to me sweetheart. Whatever your father and I are feeling, that doesn't reflect what we feel inside about you. That goes for Happy too." she said perking his ears up. "We love you two with all our hearts and will continue to do so." "Your mother's right Iggy. We do what we have too to protect you guys. If that means your mom and I must change, we will do that. However, we will always love you" he ended sweetly giving her a kiss on the head.
"Well, are we all done now?" "Yep" "Aye" "I'm full" "Check please" Once they had paid and were out the door, Lucy directed them to a store. "We should get some food while we're here." "Okay, but no meats. I don't want that smell in our bags" he said making a gag face. "Oooh. good idea. Okay canned goods it is. Not like we have a fridge to keep things cold"
"Hmph , now that would be a bitch to carry while we are the run" he snickered as Nashi grabbed his arm and pulled him to the clothes section. "What is it Iggy?" "Daddy, can we get this for me?" she asked eagerly pointing to dark colored shirts and comfy pants. "Ehh, hell why not. Looks easy to move in" Picking up a shirt and pants, he stretched them testing them. "Elastic is good. Here Iggy, hold onto them sweetheart"
"Thank you daddy!" she said joyfully giving his heart joy. "Oh and good, theres a blanket and sweater for you" he said pointing to a flame red blanket and a green sleeping bag. "It's like yours daddy!" "Why yes, it is" he answered adoring how cute she was. "Now..question is where is your mother?..oh, should have known that" he said shaking his head highly amused spotting her and Happy. Grabbing Nashi, they walked over as Lucy was taking off a leather jacket. " Soooo, watcha got there Layla?" he teased surprising her from behind making her jump.
Turning her head, she gave him a pleading look. "Really Layla?" "Yesssss" she pleaded. "You look sexy in it and it's leather, so I say go ahead." "Great then I'll get these to go with it" she said grabbing a pair of combat boots. "ooh" his eyes widened in pleasure.
"There's a men's size too" she informed him raising her eyebrows. Grabbing a pair, he saw a set of black shirts and pants he liked and grabbed them. Walking to the front counter, Natsu turned and saw Lucy had gone and come back holding a small pair of black boots. Rolling his eyes, he said "really?" "Hey, there's nothing wrong with getting her a pair of boots" "Oh god, just get your butt up here and let's pay for the stuff." Rushing up, she happily paid for her stuff and then waited for Natsu as he paid for his and Nashi's stuff.
"I'm afraid to ask. But how does that leave us?" asked Natsu dreading the answer. Shyly she said "tomorrow, then it's gone" "Fuck" he muttered. "We knew it wouldn't last us for long Natsu..we also didn't expect to be on the run" "I know, I know, just sucks" "Come on, let's go find somewhere to stay for the night. We shouldn't be walking around too much" Lucy advised. Perching himself on Natsu's head, Happy agreed. Each taking Nashi's hand, they walked until they found a small inn owned by a sweet old couple who had a room available. As simple as they could, they accepted it and paid their fee and walked into their room.
"Could you guys have been just a little nicer?" "Happy, we can't afford to trust anyone right now. And hey, we smiled" "Psh, uh huh, if you call it that." "Happy" they sniped. "You know we're right." Looking away, he knew inside that they were indeed speaking the truth. It didn't make it easier for him to accept.
"Hey, you know we trust you right?" "yes" "Is that enough?" Taking a moment to answer, he looked at them and strongly said "yes" "Thank you Happy" "I'm hopping into the shower, Natsu, can you?" "Already got it covered" he finished for her taking a seat looking out the window, on guard like a hawk.
The sun set a few hours later and soon it was bedtime for Nashi. "Aww, I thought I didn't have a bedtime anymore" she whined as Natsu and Lucy tucked her in and sat on opposite sides of her. "Oh no no little one, you still need your sleep." Leaning forward, she tapped Nashi's nose making her giggle.
"I love you my little dragon. Sweet dreams" she cooed getting up with Natsu. Happy jumped snuggling next to her making the other two smile. 'You should get some sleep too Luce" he advised once they sat back down. "It's Layla and no chance. If you aren't sleeping, I'm not either" she corrected. "There's no chance in hell that's happening, not with those people out there hunting us down" she could see by his stone expression he meant it.
Crossing her arms, she said " if these assholes are after us so bad then I want to know why they haven't just attacked us directly. What's with them sending troops" "If this were any other enemy with their usual tactics, I could easily answer that but with this group, I have no clue" he answered shaking his head in confusion and wonder.
"They blame me for something but whatever it is, it's enough to make them to want to destroy you and Iggy as well. That right there is enough for me not to take chances" "Natsu, how long are we going to keep running? We can't keep putting her through this" Breathing in, he released slowly. "Once we find a far enough place where's there no way they can reach us. We will lay low until the threat has passed.." he paused looking at Lucy with concern.
"What is it Natsu?" she asked directly dismissing the disguise. He completely turned himself around and grabbed Lucy's hand entwining his fingers into hers. "You're scaring me, what is it Natsu?" she asked again getting worried (Kizuna Fairy Tail soundtrack vol. 2)
Candid , he said "Baby, when I say we have to wait until the threat passes. That could be for the next forty years. Maybe even the rest of our lives. I wish I could give you a better answer. Are you willing to give everything, your old life up?. If not, I swear on my life that I will fight until your happy again" Expecting to wait a few minutes or more for an answer, he was surprised when she squeezed hard to his fingers and looked at him with a very focused and unwavering face as she said "Natsu, I don't have to think. I don't care how long it takes. We can spend the rest of our lives in hiding for all I care. You, our little girl and Happy are my everything. Anything else can be let go" "And Fairy Tail?" "It will be sad for a time but that will pass…After all, we aren't part of the guild anymore right?" "Right"
Realization hit them as they looked into each other's eyes and what they had fully accepted. The orange, yellow beams of the sun hit their faces making them glow. Snuggling into each other, they looked out onto the sunset. Cupping her cheek, in a quiet voice he said "You guys are my everything too. I love you Lucy" "I love you too Natsu." (End song)