A/N: No worries, exposition is almost out of the way! Last chapter had Natsu and Lucy chatting about their backgrounds after getting an assignment from Makarov. Now they have their team and...?


"Can you at least try to bring a reasonable amount of stuff this time?"

"Are you saying what I usually bring is unreasonable?"

"No, no, of course not! I'm just saying that you should try to limit yourself this time. Think of it as a challenge."

"Just let her pack a second bag or something," Lucy said, trying to mediate the tense conversation between Gray and Erza. It was their usual strained dynamic, Erza threatening and Gray both annoyed and frightened.

Gray just sighed and rolled his eyes. "If she only brought two suitcases, it'd be a miracle," he said.

Natsu laughed at Lucy's confusion. She'd learn eventually. It was only her second day at Fairy Tail, so she was still figuring out all of the guildmembers' quirks. She did seem to have a pretty good handle on their personalities, though; she knew just how to pander to Erza's uptight sensibilities, and the right smile to put Wendy at ease, and how to stop Gray before he finished absentmindedly removing some article of clothing. Natsu thought she would be socially stunted, someone like her who spent all their time avoiding people, but she was actually very sociable and good with crowds and strangers. Though, Natsu supposed, that might be because of her high-class upbringing.

Honestly, he was envious. He got along with Fairy Tail just because he'd been around them since he was a kid, but he knew his social etiquette was completely shot. Meeting new people always ended in failure for Natsu. Well, Lucy was an exception, but she was a special circumstance.

"Lucy, do you have everything you need to travel?" Levy asked. "You could always borrow from us if you need to."

"I always bring extras of everything," Erza added, smiling proudly.

"Please bring less extras," Gray mumbled.

"I've never needed much," Lucy said. "I use Plue to sleep, and I hunt for food. There's not much else I need."

"You…use Plue? To sleep?" Levy said.

Lucy nodded. "He's very comfortable. I slept on him last night, in fact."

"And why didn't you sleep on a proper bed?" Levy asked, leveling a pointed look at Natsu.

"She said she wanted to," he said defensively. Granted he would've kicked her out of his hammock anyway, but still, she volunteered first.

"You can't let a lady sleep on the ground," Erza said.

"Really, guys, it's fine," Lucy said. "Plue's comfortable."

"Plue is your wolf, right?" Gray said.

"He's a doggie," Lucy corrected, "but yes."

"He's a little wolf-like to be a dog," Natsu said. "What makes him a dog instead of a wolf?"

"Because he just is."

"So it's not a wolf, but a dog," Wendy marveled, nodding her head as if she finally understood some great secret of the universe.

"Don't listen to her. It's a wolf," Natsu said. There was no way he was accepting that thing as a dog. It was definitely a wolf. It looked exactly like any wolf Natsu had ever seen, just albino or something. Plue was a wolf.

"I think you are all getting off-topic," Charle said, crossing her arms. "We are meeting now to talk about preparations, remember?"

"Right," Erza said. "Thank you, Charle. Now. The place we are going, according to Makarov, is in the far north. Has anyone been there before?"

"I have," Wendy said, raising her hand. "That's where I lived before I came to Fairy Tail."

"So you know the area."

"Well…not really. That was a long time ago. Maybe if I see somewhere I've been I'll recognize it, but I can't picture it in my mind."

"Anyone else?"

Natsu looked around. Everyone else was shaking their heads, including him. Even Lucy hadn't been up there, apparently, which surprised him. He would've thought that the Celestial Spirit would have been everywhere by now. It sure seemed that way.

"Not even you, Lucy?" Levy said, probably thinking along the same lines as Natsu.

"There aren't many villages there," Lucy said, "and no trade routes. It's all just wilderness. I was in the southern portion for a short time to hide, but there was no need to go any farther north."

"Can't catch bad guys where there aren't any," Gray remarked.

"Though it would seem that there are bad guys there that I just didn't know about," Lucy said.

"None of us knew about it," Erza said. "Makarov sure keeps a lot more secrets than I suspected."

"I'm sure he keeps a lot more than this," Gray said. "Back to the topic. If nobody knows the area, we'll just have to rely on maps to get us around."

"Hey, isn't Phantom Lord in that area?" Levy said.

Natsu scowled. "They're still a thing?"

"What's Phantom Lord?" Lucy asked.

"Our rivals," Erza said. "Or, they were back when guilds were legal. After the ban, they went underground like the rest of us, but they went really underground. They've become pretty shady; one might even classify them as a dark guild at this point."

"Hey, then we can ask Juvia and Gajeel for directions," Wendy exclaimed.

Levy nodded. "That's what I was thinking. They might even know where the Oración Seis are located."

"I don't know," Gray said. "To risk blowing their cover for something so trivial…"

Levy sighed. "Yeah, you're right."

Natsu had been wondering where Juvia and Gajeel were, and that answered that question. He assumed they went on some mission together, but he wouldn't have guessed their mission was to join Phantom Lord as spies. What was Makarov's motivation in sending them to a place like that? He'd have to ask later.

He jumped up. "So? When do we get going?"

"Tomorrow," Erza said promptly.

Natsu sat back down, disappointed. "Aw. I wanted to leave sooner."

"This job is a lot farther away than most. We need to pack strategically."

"I'm already packed," Natsu said, indicating the bags rest on the floor behind him.

"You're always packed," Gray said. "Would it really kill you to stay here one more day?"

Natsu squirmed. They all knew why he didn't like being in Magnolia for too long, and they all thought he should just get over it already. As for him, he thought they should all mind their own damn business.

Mira came over and placed drinks down on the table. Natsu pulled his mug toward him and sipped the beer's bitter foam.

"Yeah, Natsu, why don't you stay around a while?" Mira said, pulling the empty tray to her chest. "It's been a long time since you were home."

"We do have to leave tomorrow, Mira," Levy said.

"That's only two days of being back," Mira said. She looked at Natsu with those kind eyes of hers, and he couldn't meet them. "Do you really hate it here that much?"

"Course not," Natsu said.

Mira smiled. "Then rest for one more day. Okay?"

Natsu stuck out his lower lip. "Yeah, whatever," he muttered, eliciting an amused giggle from Mira as she walked away. He could feel Lucy's eyes on him, curious, but he wasn't about to explain anything. And he knew the rest would keep their mouths shut, too; they might not approve, but they respected his right to keep a secret.

"So we leave at 7am tomorrow," Erza said.

Levy clapped her hands together. "Everyone go home and pack. This job is going to take a while, so prepare accordingly."

"Aye, sir," Happy cheered, jumping into Natsu's arms. Well, if Happy was excited, the least he could do was smile for his friend's sake. And so he did.


Natsu let Happy go hang out with Charle and Wendy for the day while he and Lucy stayed at the guild. It was only a matter of time before the magistrate returned to Magnolia, so it was best to enjoy the peace while it lasted.

He entertained himself by watching the girls as Lucy befriended Mira.

"So this place works as a regular tavern, too?" Lucy said.

"Of course," Mira said. "How else can we stay in business when being a guild is illegal? Everyone knows we accept jobs, but the government hasn't been able to catch us doing anything but serving our customers." She winked conspiratorially.

"Are you a mage too?" Lucy asked.

Mira smiled. "I was, but I'm retired now." She looked down at the glass she was polishing, her tied-up bangs flopping toward her forehead.

"Oh. But you're so young!"

"The life of a mage isn't for me, I'm afraid. I used the ban as an excuse to quit magic, and now I just work as a barmaid here. People try to pity me, but I love what I do and I chose it for myself."

"Doesn't it get lonely?"

Mira laughed. "Of course not! How could one ever get lonely in a place like Fairy Tail?"

"I mean, do you miss your magic?"

"If I start to miss it, I'll come out of retirement," Mira said. "But enough about me. Why are you here?"

"It just sort of ended up this way," Lucy said, looking at Natsu.

"Don't look at me," Natsu said. "I brought you here, but you were the one who decided to stay."

"Ohoho, is there any particular reason you're staying?"

"We have a common goal," Lucy said. "And in a situation like this, I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to look for allies. Makarov is a great source of information that even I wasn't aware of."

"So it's not because of Natsu?"

Lucy blinked. "Eh?"

Cana leaned over. "Mira's boyfriends are out of town, so she's been meddling in everyone else's love lives instead. Ignore her; she's just lonely."

"Just because you don't care for romance doesn't mean you can make fun of me for loving it," Mira said.

"Not dissing hopeless romantics," Cana said. "Just stating the real reason behind your aggressive gossiping."

"Cana's mean," Mira cried, burying her face in her hands in an exaggerated show of distress.

"Tell me about your boyfriend, Mira," Lucy said.

"Boyfriends," Mira corrected, blushing. "You've probably heard of them before; they're still publically active as mages, so they're pretty famous criminals. There's Laxus of course, and Freed is one of the Raijinshuu."

Lucy's eyes lit up with recognition. "Laxus and the Raijinshuu. I have heard of them. They're strong."

"Yes," Mira said. She clasped her hands together by her heart. "And they're so adorable, too. You should see the way Freed looks at Laxus like he's the most beautiful thing in the world. Besides me, of course." She giggled. "Just kidding. But they're both gorgeous and strong and such great people. Just thinking about how much I miss them, I want to kiss them both to pieces."

"Haven't you already?" Cana quipped. "I seem to recall quite a few hickies on all three of you last time they came around…"

That last remark earned Cana a smack on the head and her beer mug swiped from her hand by a red-faced Mira. Natsu grinned. Watching the girls talk was loads of fun. Almost as fun as beating up his best frenemy. He'd have to find a way to get out of Erza's sights so he and Gray could have a sparring match.

The sounds of shouts from outside interrupted the playful banter happening at the bar. Shouting from inside Fairy Tail was common at night, but from outside at this time of day? Combined with the telltale clink of armor, Natsu realized the soldiers had finally arrived.

"Took them long enough," he said, standing up and shouldering his pack. He held his hand out to Lucy. "Come on. Let's get out of here before they bust in."

"They found us already?" she said, confused but obedient.

"Natsu was a pretty famous troublemaker back in the day," Mira said, opening the door to the back room. "It couldn't have been hard for them to know it was him. Good luck, you two. Natsu, tell the others goodbye and good luck for me."

"Sure thing," he said. He pulled Lucy through the door, maneuvering around piles of boxes and alcohol kegs. There were probably soldiers at the back door too, but there was a secret exit that even the local militia didn't know about.

Natsu pulled up a floorboard to reveal a dark underground tunnel. Lucy didn't even hesitate to jump down. Grinning at her gumption, Natsu followed after her.

"Where does this go?" she asked as she followed him through the tunnel.

"Just a block down," Natsu said. "The Strausses' house."

"The Strausses?"

"Mira, Elf, and— Mirajane and Elfman Strauss. You didn't see Elfman, but he's Mira's younger brother."

"Why is there a secret tunnel from the tavern to their house?"

Natsu shrugged. "It's always been here, ever since Fairy Tail was a guild. The place used to be empty, but the Strausses moved in when they came to Magnolia."

At the end of the tunnel, Natsu lifted the floorboards and climbed into the Strausses' large linen closet. He looked to the left and saw a dusty photo frame sitting on a shelf. It was an old picture of the Strauss siblings, all three of them smiling in a row with their white hair up in pigtails, even Elfman. It was a fond memory.

Natsu looked down and Lucy was already halfway out of the hole. He helped her the rest of the way. He brought her to the front door, following a familiar path through the familiar house. They exited the Strauss home, casually walking away from the crowd of soldiers at the end of the block.

"Now what?" Lucy said.

"Now we go find Happy at Wendy's place."

"Will we be safe until we leave tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow?" He laughed. As if. "No. We're leaving today."


A/N: Because this is the first chapter I explicitly show characters' orientations and I've gotten some off-putting reviews in the past:

No hatred for MOGAI people around here! Representation is important! This goes for all characters throughout the story, of course. Those who've read Not Normal should find things mostly the same as what I did there (I stick to my headcanons haha), but I still feel like I need to be clear about this. If you don't like it, don't tell me; I don't care. Make a bigoted comment and you basically ruin my week, so please don't. Thanks.