Hello, my Lovelies! How was everyone's weekend? Mine was great but long, I had to do some last-minute Christmas shopping. Anyway here's Chapter Eight of The Star Queen, I hope you enjoy it, I will post one more chapter this week since it's so close to Christmas, so hopefully, that will tide you guys over till then. Now I want to explain something, I have Lucy learning new skills in this chapter, it will be detrimental to the story later on, so I apologize if you guys don't like it. I however need this for later events. So again, I'm sorry if you don't like it.
Remember to R&R!
Love you all!
BlackRose999
The Star Queen
Chapter Eight: Monsters Under My Bed
The couple woke the next morning in their beautifully remade room, the cream-colored bedspread half off the bed and their limbs entangled, and decided they couldn't stand to not touch one another a second longer. Her fingers ghosted over his chest as he traced down her spine, slowly, gently, they eased into a perfectly lazy rhythm. When they were done, Lucy kissed him and got up, her pale pink silk nightgown that stopped at the upper thigh falling just a few inches longer as she stood. She lazily made her way to their walk-in shower, happy to wash the night's sweat off her body.
She slipped into a pair of black yoga pants and a pink tank top, her feet covered by her favorite fluffy slippers and her hair pulled up into a towel. She walked to the mirror to put on her minuscule makeup, using only mascara, eyeliner, and lipgloss. Natsu was up and dressed by the time she was done, and they went down to the kitchen for breakfast. She giggled and played with his hair as they talked, happily enjoying her newly married life.
They walked to the guild together, talking excitedly about taking on a job so they could pay bills when Happy chimed in. "Hey! Would it be ok if we took a job while Lucy's pregnant?" The couple stopped, suddenly unsure of their decision.
"Well… He's got a point, Luce, what if you got hit and lost it?"
Lucy sighed, "We'll talk to the Master about taking a job, if he says no then I'll have to stay behind." His heart broke a little seeing her look so dejected, and he pulled her into a hug.
"You mean 'we' will stay behind. There's no way in hell I'm leaving you alone like that, not when we're newly mated… You could be hurt or worse."
Lucy smiled, kissing him gently. She laid her head on his chest as she held him, listening to the heartbeat that resided in his chiseled frame. They stayed like that for a good minute, just enjoying the touch and smell of the other person, they could have stayed like that forever if not for Gray and Bianca.
"Hey! What's taking so long? The Master wants to talk to us!"
Lucy and Natsu pulled away slowly, sad to be out of the comfort of each other's arms, and walked the final meter to the guildhall. The whole guild was waiting for them, cheers rang up as the couple waltzed through the doors as though they had not a care in the world. They were bombarded with questions, everyone wanted to see her Mark, and everyone wanted to know everything about the ritual. To their dismay, they were not allowed to know unless they were a Mated pair according to Dragon Law.
"Alright, you brats! Listen up and leave the poor couple alone! We have much to discuss!"
A silence fell over the hall, and Makarov stood tall on the balcony above them. He looked at them with a kind of half-smile, as if he'd swallowed something sweetly sour and was trying not to show it.
"First off, Congratulations to the Dragneels and the Redfoxes for their pregnancies, it's always a blessing to bring new life into this world. And I wish them both a safe and speedy delivery."
"AYE SIR!"
Cheers rang up and Lucy felt her hand gravitate once again to her belly, wonder in her heart at the knowledge she held the continuation of Natsu's line of Dragon Slayers. Or perhaps the baby would be a Key Holder, like her. Or maybe both were possible? She'd have to look into it.
"Now onto the real dilemma, Dragon and Demon Slayers, I speak directly to you."
Surprise rang through the guild, this must be something important if it was meant only for the slayers. He never directly addressed anyone, so this was odd.
"We have four Mated pairs, and I know how imperative it is that you defend them as much as possible, so as of today, those with Mate Marks will undergo fierce training to defend themselves should they ever be in a position where their Mates are not present. They will learn types of non-magic training and magic training. Erza and Mirajane will be your trainers, they will switch off depending on what you're learning at the time."
Anticipation scorched through her mark, and she felt her body tighten. She was tired of being unable to fully defend herself when she was alone, so Lucy made a vow to herself then and there, she would work until she dropped, and until she could live up to the name of Natsu's Mate.
"I understand that two of you are with child, so we will impose this rule, if at any time you feel the training will hurt the baby, we will stop immediately and training will resume after delivery."
Nodding, Lucy, and Levy looked at each other, silently coming to an agreement to work together. When the speech was over, the two women followed Erza toward the training grounds, giving a soft smile to the other two Slayer's already present. Erza wasted no time, ordering them to do laps until they couldn't take any more, then she ordered them to take up a weapon from the row behind her. Lucy was already skilled with a whip, so she figured something with a closer range would do fine. Her eyes fell on a set of daggers, and her fingers touched the smooth, cool metal as if they were destined to have them.
"I'll take these…"
Erza looked at her with surprise and nodded enthusiastically. She set up a target some ways away from her and helped her get her footing, stance, and aim right. Within a few weeks, she could hit the target at over ten feet of distance, and she did so with deadly aim. Erza was proud, knowing she practiced even at home to get good with her aim. While she learned throwing knives, Natsu taught her how to use his flames in battle. She could now use a fair alternative to his moves, and finally, she felt worthy enough to call herself his Mate.
One night, as she hurled knives with terrifying precision, Natsu came out and watched her. Leaning against the wooden columns of their back porch, he watched her move and attack as though she was being attacked. Pride sang through the mark, alerting her that he was watching her practice.
"You could come down here and help me you know, I could use a bit of sparring. Erza says my hand-to-hand could use some work."
"And deprive me of this fantastic view? I don't think so, you look downright sexy right now, like a fucking warrior queen."
She giggled, collecting her knives and sheathing them in their holsters on her legs. She sauntered up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck lovingly.
"Do I?"
"Yeah you do, like some kind of goddess on earth."
She giggled, kissing him gently and with all the love and adoration she could muster. He responded by grabbing her waist and lifting her up onto the balcony railing, letting her legs wrap around him. She kissed him greedily, as though he was the air in her lungs. Her mark began to tingle, and she felt his arousal through the bond.
"Mmmm, Natsu… I have to practice…"
"That's not a very convincing excuse…"
She pulled away from his kiss, resting her head on his shoulder lovingly, complete contentment soaring through the mark.
"It's hard to be convincing when you're sending all those marvelous emotions through my mark."
He grinned, leaning in to kiss her once more, and suddenly he shoved her hard off the railing, watching as she landed back and rolled to avoid hurting the baby and her head. She came up with a grin, anticipation burning in her soul.
"You wanna spar, then come here. I'll play with you a bit."
With a crook of his finger, he beckoned her toward him. Lucy wasted no time, she was up and moving by the time he stepped off the back steps.
She threw the first punch, landing a solid hit to his jaw, and she was satisfied to see him flinch. Dancing around him, she kicked the back of his knee and watched him drop before she roundhouse kicked his face. She got an inch away from his face before he grabbed her leg and knocked her away from him, following her down he straddled her and reached for her throat.
"I have you pinned, what will you do? Where can you hit to make me get off you?"
She leaned forward and smashed her forehead to his, smirking as he groaned and leaned back to grab his nose. With her hands freed, she punched his throat. Choking, he dropped backward off her and groaned.
"I give Luce… Jesus…"
Instantly concerned she'd gone too far, she went to him to check his injuries. He sported a bloody nose and a few bruises, but other than that he was fine.
"I'm sorry Natsu, I shouldn't have done that…"
He looked at her, shocked at her despair.
"Oh no, no no no. You go for the throat, always. Doesn't matter if it's me or anyone else, you get the chance you go for the fucking throat."
Pride filled her, and she helped him stand, smirking as he groaned.
"You're getting good Luce, still not strong enough to take me on full force, but damn, you've got skill."
Relieved, she kissed him and helped him stand, happy to see he could walk mostly on his own. They went to bed, exhaustion preventing them from doing anything other than sleeping. Around one in the morning, Lucy woke for seemingly no reason, she put her silk robe on and made her way downstairs. Running her fingers through her hair she walked past the living room, only to stop short when she noticed it wasn't empty. A black mass in the shape of a person sat there, seemingly staring at her. Terrified, she flicked on the light and gasped when the silhouette disappeared.
She hadn't been seeing things, there was a person sitting on her couch not two seconds ago, hadn't there? Shaking her head, she flicked the light to the living room back off and shrieked when the silhouette appeared directly in front of her. Scrambling backward toward the stairs, toward her husband, she shakily looked up at the looming hand reaching out for her. The upstairs light flicked on and the mass vanished, leaving her on the floor shaking. Natsu pounded down the stairs, kneeling before the quivering form of his wife, who was now crying with fear.
"Lucy? Lucy look at me, baby it's me look at me!"
Shaking still, she glanced up at him with terrified eyes, sending fear-helplessness-despair through the mark.
"Someone was here Natsu... someone was in our house…"
Taking the threat to his wife seriously, he had Happy stay with her while he did a perimeter check, finding nothing. Confused, he walked back inside and touched her face, making her look at him. When he explained he found nothing she burst into fresh tears, begging him to believe her that someone had been in the house. Gathering his wife up into his arms, he held her tightly, willing a sense of calm, and security into her through the bond.
"I believe you, baby… I swear."
Shushing her, he lovingly petted her hair, letting her sob on his shoulder. He picked her up and brought her to bed, where he held her until she passed out from sheer exhaustion. The next morning after getting dressed, she made her way downstairs and paused when she hit the living room, looking for the shadow once again. When she found nothing but sunlight on a cream couch, she sighed and made her way into the kitchen.
He kissed her head and handed her her favorite breakfast, strawberries, and a mixed berry smoothie. She ate it with very little enthusiasm and didn't offer much conversation no matter how hard he tried to coax her into it, for her soul sang of fear and concern. Sighing, he took his wife's hand in his, and once again he forced her to look at him.
"Lucy, baby it's ok. We'll figure this out, I don't smell anything different, but maybe they were using a type of magic I'm unfamiliar with. We'll talk to Gramps, or maybe Freed, they might know."
"Okay…"
That was the most he'd gotten out of her all morning, so he took it without complaint. Walking to the guild from their home, they came across Wendy, happily purchasing fruit from a nearby vendor. "Wendy!" Natsu cried out, waving his arm like a lunatic. Lucy gave her a half-hearted smile, her mind still plagued by the way the dark hand had reached for her. Who was it? What in Earthland did they want?
"Hey guys, early start?"
Wendy's question pulled her from her thoughts, and she felt her heart warm as the little Dragon Slayer beamed up at her.
"Yeah, we were gonna take a job, but we have to worry about the baby so we're kinda stumped."
Natsu sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, grinning at her with mirth. She offered a few jobs that seemed easy when they arrived at the guildhall, neither of them noticing that Lucy had vanished to a table by herself. Levy found her like that, staring off into space with a hand on her belly.
"Lu? Are you okay?"
Levy sat beside her, taking her free hand into her own. Something about that touch, the sympathy, and concern made her eyes burn with fresh tears.
"Somebody was in our house last night. They were on the couch and then they were right in front of me, I had no time to react Levy, it was reaching for me when Natsu came downstairs and then it just vanished! I told Natsu what happened but I swear he doesn't believe me! He searched everywhere, he found no new smells and no footprints."
Levy gasped, her concern spiking and drawing Gajeel's attention. Ironhead immediately found himself at her side, and when he noticed the silent tears of the celestial mage he sat on the opposite bench so he could face her.
"What's goin' on? Why's she crying?"
"Somebody broke into their house last night, Lucy was the only one downstairs at the time and she swears it was reaching for her when Natsu came down the stairs. She doesn't think Natsu believes her about it either."
Gajeel ran his fingers through his spiky mane, his red eyes narrow and thoughtful.
"How old is Natsu?"
"Around twenty-three I think, why?"
Gajeel groaned, a smirk forming on his face.
"He's younger than me, I'm at least a year older than him, so his senses are fully developed yet. He may have missed something that he couldn't recognize. Want me to come by and take a look around just in case?"
Lucy looked up at him, surprised. Gajeel wasn't known for doing many favors, so this was a big deal. She nodded fervently, her relief singing through her mark with such potency that Natsu couldn't ignore it. He walked up behind her, placing both hands on her shoulders and allowing her to lean into him. Glancing at Levy and Gajeel, he kissed the top of her head lovingly.
"Everything ok Lucy?"
"Yeah, Gajeel offered to take a look around the house for us, he thinks you may have missed something because your senses may not be fully developed yet."
Nodding, he looked at Gajeel, eyes full of gratitude.
"Thanks Gajeel, do you and Levy mind coming over tonight for dinner? We can do a perimeter check together, and hopefully find out what Lucy was seeing."
Levy looked to Gajeel, knowing his comfort came first, she would do whatever he decided. They had an underlying tone of respect for each other, neither did anything important without the other's approval. Surprisingly, Gajeel immediately agreed.
"As long as we spar later. I wanna see how Bunnygirl has improved."
"Deal." The couple spoke together, relief, calm, and gratitude singing through her mark.
The day went by as normal, and when night fell the four of them made their way to the house, chatting happily. As they neared the house, Lucy became quieter and quieter until she didn't speak at all. She hesitated at the doorway, fear making her quiver.
"Come on baby, it's ok. Nothing is going to hurt us."
Natsu took her hand, leading her inside. He stayed by her side as the girls cooked, making delicious ramen bowls with onigiri and tempura. He sat beside her, and watched as she slowly began to relax. They began to joke and laugh together, calm and security filling her like a wine glass.
"Natsu, it's getting late, let's go."
Lucy quickly grabbed his hand as he stood, her eyes full of fear for him. 'Be careful' She said in his mind, not noticing the gentle kiss Levy gave Gajeel. The two women watched their mates go outside, uncertainty in their hearts. For a moment, things seemed to be going fine, it looked as though nothing was there, but then a shout rang out and the girls bolted outside.
Gajeel was crouching by the edge of the massive forest that ran behind their house, carefully brushing leaves away from a singed spot of the ground. As the trio approached him, he glanced up at Natsu.
"Either of you do this?"
Staring at the ground, the couple shook their heads, racking their brains to justify the spot before them. When they discovered they couldn't, Natsu wrapped his arm around Lucy, trying to will security and trust through the bond in order to help her.
"I hate to say it Flamebrain, but Bunnygirl is right. Somebody was definitely at your house last night."
Whimpering, Lucy buried her face in Natsu's chest, her fears becoming her truth. Glaring at the space on the ground, Gajeel and Natsu both agreed that whomever was there last night would likely come again. But that left only one question.
When?