. State of Grace .


"And I never saw you coming,

And I'll never be the same.

~ x~

You come around and the armor falls,

Pierce the room like a cannonball.

We learn to live with the pain,

Mosaic broken hearts,

But this love is brave and wild.

These are the hands of fate.

You're my Achilles heel.

This is the golden age of something good and right and real."

~ "State of Grace~ by Taylor Swift


The familiar jingle of the bell on the front door made Natsu smile to himself as he stepped into the Heartfilia Bakery, feeling much better than he had in a long time. He nearly sprang right back out the door, however, when he felt water soak into his shoes. A squawk left him as he stared down at the several inches of water on the bakery floor. "What the hell?"

"Natsu!" Lucy called in exhausted yet cheerful relief. He followed the sound of her voice with his eyes and found the pretty blonde on her hands and knees with several others in the middle of the bakery. Yukino and Lisanna were both battling the flood with as many rags as they could find while someone that sounded suspiciously like Gray shouted furiously from where he was working behind the counter - likely to stop the flood at the source. "Help!"

"What happened?" he demanded, flinching at the cold wind that sent chills running through all of them. He hastily shut the door and reluctantly waded further in. The water was only an inch or two deep, but it was still enough that it'd likely mean expensive repairs. He frowned at the thought. He hoped she didn't shut the bakery down.

Lucy stood, her clothes soaked, and shoved a bucket full of water at him. It slopped over the sides, earning a half-hearted glare from Natsu. She had several other buckets around her, and he wondered briefly where she'd gotten them all. "A pipe burst," she said with wide eyes. "I wouldn't have called you for help with everything that's been happening, and I know you're tired, but-"

"It's fine," he reassured immediately, flashing her a grin. "I'll help." He'd gotten the call nearly half an hour prior. It was already nearing noon, and he'd slept so deeply - the first time in days - that he'd almost not woken up. He'd practically run the entire way there. "What do you want me to do?"

"Take those buckets over to Juvia," Lucy told him, pointing to a woman that was returning from where she'd been dumping out two. She paused just behind the counter to look at him, and Natsu found himself staring back at her, puzzled by the lurch of recognition. It was like when he'd met Lucy, although not quite as extreme.

The woman blinked her blue eyes curiously at him. She pushed a stray blue strand of hair out of her eyes as she furrowed her brow, cautiously setting the buckets down to fix her ponytail. "Who's this?"

Lucy grinned when there was a loud curse from Gray. "Juvia, this is my friend and a new but regular customary, Natsu Dragneel. Natsu, this is Juvia Lockser, Gray's...friend." Juvia turned a bright red and hissed playfully at Lucy for the comment. "They were hanging out here when the pipe burst, so… Juvia, he's going to help you carry out buckets until Gray fixes the pipe and the professionals finally get here."

"Nice to meet you," Natsu said politely.

"Likewise," Juvia returned, smiling. "Now, let's get to work."

Working with them all was enjoyable despite the fact that by the time people came with machinery to suck out the water. As they were checking Gray's work on the pipe, the group gathered in the back corner with mugs of tea in hand. Lucy took a deep drink of hers, fingers curled delicately around the mug. Natsu eyed the way she'd curled up with her legs tucked neatly on the chair, envious. His legs were too long for that.

Much to Natsu's surprise, Yukino mused, "You don't look as tired as Lucy was telling us you were."

Natsu's eyes briefly rested on Yukino before darting to the suddenly flustered Lucy, narrowing. "You told everyone?"

"No," she said defensively. "Just Lisanna and Yukino, before the pipe burst. I told them that if you came in, you were to get a free extra large coffee because I know you've been having trouble sleeping. And two or three free fresh muffins. That's all."

Natsu scowled, but muttered, "Guess it's okay then...don't go tellin' everyone else though. I don't like people knowing." Lucy promised she wouldn't, guilty, and he showed that he wasn't too annoyed with her by elbowing her gently.

Juvia cocked her head, her mug touching her lips as she said, "Juvia has trouble sleeping most nights." They all looked curiously to her, but Juvia was staring at Natsu and no one else. Even Gray was looking at her, startled. She smiled quietly. "Juvia has odd dreams." She hummed thoughtfully, taking sip of tea before continuing, eyeing the water on the floor. It wasn't as deep as it had been. "Dreams of odd places and odd things...Juvia enjoys them, but sometimes they're painful and keep me from sleeping."

Her odd use of pronouns made Natsu kind of dizzy, but he focused more on what she was saying than anything else. Lucy, shocked, set down her mug, and Gray nearly slammed his down, face white with… Natsu squinted at him, and then blinked in alarm. He was scared. What was he scared of?

No one else seemed to notice, however, so Natsu brushed it off and said, "What do you do? To help you sleep? Got my first full night in a while last night," he admitted.

"Background noise," Juvia informed him. "Generally ocean waves, but sometimes, if it's bad, music or even podcasts." She folded her legs to her chest, wiggling her toes on the chair. "Things with words that you can focus on until you're asleep."

"That's a much better idea than mine," Lucy admitted, grimacing. "I made him read. That's my method when I can't sleep." She reached with her foot to nudge Lisanna, who'd been texting furiously on her phone. "What are you doing over there? Who are you messaging? You better not be messaging Mira, she'll be over in an instant."

Lisanna blushed even as she laughed. "No, no, not Mira. Not Elf, either," she added, grimacing at the thought of bringing her brother into the bakery at the moment. "I'm texting this guy I met. He's friends with the guy Mira's seeing. He asked me on a date, and we're arguing about the best place to go that's not a movie."

"Aw, that's awesome," Lucy praised. "Which reminds me…" She turned her head to look at Yukino, who was pouting a little. "How'd your date go the other day?"

Yukino scowled. "He turned out to be a jerk who yelled at the waiter for taking too long to bring his food. He asked me on a second date and I told him no." She groaned quietly, putting her face in her arms. "I've not had a good date in a very long time."

"You'll find someone," Juvia promised, patting her back. "Just like Juvia. Gray is the first person Juvia's gone on a date with in a very long time, and he's done a very good job so far. You just have to be patient and wait for the right person."

"I guess," Yukino sighed, but giggled when Gray spluttered around his mouth full of tea, glaring half-heartedly at Juvia for her comment. Lucy threw her head back and laughed.

Natsu watched them all with a grin, putting his mug to his mouth with a happy sound. Maybe he didn't know anyone there but Lucy well, but he liked them all enough to not mind.

Even Gray.


The late afternoon found Natsu lowering lifted chairs onto the floor while Lucy finished cleaning up some damp corners, grumbling about having to call people to come and take a look at the building itself. Natsu found himself smirking at her uttered complaints.

Gray and Juvia had long since left, as had Yukino and Lisanna. It was just Natsu and Lucy cleaning up at this point, although Lucy had told Natsu many times that he could go home if he wanted. Natsu didn't mind; he liked the time he was spending with Lucy, and he owed her for the misery he'd caused.

He was exhausted by the time Lucy called it quits, but in a better way than he had recently. He didn't mind this exhaustion. This had come from spending all day with someone he liked. He went to stand beside Lucy as she put her hands on her hips and looked around at the bakery she owned and ran.

"Not too bad," she commented, flashing him a blinding smile. "Thanks for all of your help, Natsu. I appreciate it more than you think."

Natsu fought the urge to grow flustered beneath the happy look she was giving him and then had to force himself not to roll his eyes at his own behavior. He was an idiot, he decided as he reassured her that he didn't mind, that he'd even enjoyed it. It was true; Natsu had honestly loved the work he'd done with her. Lucy was fun to work alongside.

Lucy made him sit down at their normal table and went to grab some dinner from the fridge for them both - sandwiches, she apologized, as it was a bakery that didn't offer much. She brought along a couple cookies to make up for it though.

"Here you go," she was saying, sliding him some hot chocolate and his sandwich when the door opened. They glanced over at the sound of the bell tinkling and both furrowed their brow when Levy ducked in, the familiar sound of her cane clacking on the ground recognizable even if they'd not been able to see her.

What wasn't familiar, Natsu thought, was the pair of people that stepped in after her. He narrowed his eyes at them, a weird tug in his gut reminding him of Juvia. Both were peering thoughtfully around, the woman with the pink hair - Natsu was admittedly pleased at the sight that someone else had the color - beaming at the sight of the display cases.

"Hi, Levy," Lucy said warily, eyeing the people with her friend anxiously. Natsu glanced at her. She didn't recognize either of them.

"Lucy!" Levy said cheerfully and immediately the two were staring at his friend in a way that made Natsu scowl. It clearly made Lucy uncomfortable, and she shifted so that she was leaning against the table she had yet to join him at. It got even worse when both looked at him, too. Levy began to make her way over, and the pair followed. When they had gotten close enough, she gestured to them, clearly not knowing which one was behind her and saying in general, "We're not staying, but I wanted to introduce you to Jellal and Meredy."

"A pleasure to meet you," Lucy said with a slightly forced smile. Natsu said nothing, wondering if she was feeling the same thing he was about these two: something just wasn't right at the same time that it was entirely right. He got the same feeling from Levy whenever he saw her, although he'd not noticed until now. "I'm Lucy Heartfilia, and this is my friend, Natsu Dragneel. You missed out on some drama today, Levy. I had a pipe burst."

Levy's head turned in Lucy's direction a sound of surprise leaving her lips. "You could have called me," she huffed. "I could have come out and helped."

"Nah, it's fine. We got it fixed." Lucy flashed him a smile, and Natsu returned it brightly although he kept his eyes locked in a sudden staring match with the calm yet strangely excited Jellal. There was something about these two that reminded him of Levy, he realized. It took him a moment to figure out what it was.

Levy was like his father, Natsu realized as Lucy began explaining everything to Levy regarding the pipe. Igneel had died years back, but when he'd been alive, Natsu had gotten the feeling that there was something Igneel hadn't been telling him. Of course, he'd never find out what that feeling was about with him gone. Levy was like that, too. She clearly knew something that the rest of them didn't. When she thought no one was looking, he'd see her lips tug into a frown or she'd take a shaken breath when certain subjects were brought up.

It was incredibly concerning for him that these two strangers would show up and give off that same feeling. Natsu's gaze hardened as he broke off the staring contest he was having to look at Lucy when she said, "I'll get you guys some food for the road since you're not staying. I hope sandwiches and what's left of the hot chocolate is okay...I didn't get the chance to make much else!"

Natsu frowned when Lucy left him alone with Levy, Meredy, and Jellal. Grumbling, instead of scarfing down his sandwich as he normally would have done, Natsu sat back with his arms folded. He found he didn't care much for either of the newcomers. They clearly made Lucy uncomfortable.

Meredy flashed him a smile, bright and warm despite the clear lack of interest he had in her. "Are you two together?" she asked, nodding after Lucy.

Natsu was amazed that his face didn't burst into flames, because that's sure as hell what he felt like doing. "No," he said hastily, making sure not to spit the word out too quickly. "We're friends."

Levy's lips twitched, but she said nothing. "Hey, Natsu," she said instead, addressing him. He focused on her. He didn't mind her, she was fine. It was the other two. "How are you feeling? Lucy mentioned that you weren't coming around for some time, and I know Gajeel was annoyed by how often you were out. Are you alright?"

His gaze hardened. He really didn't like that she was bringing this up in front of two virtual strangers. "I'm fine," he said curtly, and then rose to his feet to help Lucy, relieved as she came back, struggling with three to-go cups of hot chocolate and sandwiches. He took the sandwiches and a drink from her and she flashed him a warm look.

"Thanks," she muttered.

"Alright, Levy?" Lucy said cheerfully despite her own discomfort. Natsu glanced at her and winced. Levy's lips were tugged into a frown, her brow furrowed slightly, as if somewhat hurt with the lack of warmth Natsu was giving her. He clamped his mouth shut, promising silently to apologize to her when the other two weren't around, if only to avoid pissing off Gajeel. If Gajeel found out…

Well. His cousin had become quite attached to the short woman despite having only gone on a few dates. Natsu had no doubts that Gajeel would deck him if he found out that Natsu had upset her.

"Yeah," Levy said quickly in response, "I'm fine. Thanks, Lucy." She smiled faintly in the direction of her friend, but before she could move, Jellal suddenly spoke for the first time.

"How did you meet?"

The question was the last one Natsu had expected. Lucy looked just as startled as she exchanged a look with him. After a moment, Lucy said, "I own the Heartfilia Bakery, clearly. He walked in. Something clicked. Here we are."

Such a simple explanation for something that was so oddly detailed, Natsu thought, frowning at her. He'd only met Lucy because of the luck he'd had in having Wendy for a cousin. Had she not gone to school, he'd not have met Levy, and in turn Lucy. "What she said," he said after a moment, not wanting to make it known to the trio that he was so deeply attached to the blonde.

Jellal hummed in thought. "You seem like you're good friends; don't lose that. We all need friends of that caliber." He offered a polite smile. "Thank you for allowing us to invade your space, Miss Heartfilia. We better be off now."

Meredy opened her mouth to protest, but Jellal took her by the shoulders and gently pushed her towards the door. Levy hesitated, turning her head towards where her friends' voices had been, and then let Jellal grip her elbow and pull her forward, murmuring to her.

When the door had closed behind them, Lucy spoke. "That was...that was really, really weird."

"I'd say," Natsu agreed, nodding. He glanced at her. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." She wrapped her arms unhappily around herself. "They just...they made me uncomfortable. Sometimes Levy gives off this feeling, but the three of them together...there's something weird there. There's something going on that they're not saying a thing about. I've never heard of Jellal or Meredy before today. So where the hell did they come from? I'm really, really worried about Levy."

Natsu barely heard her comment about Levy; he was too busy staring at her in shock, unable to believe that she'd recognized the strange feeling. When she looked at him, she arched a brow inquisitively and he hastily turned his attention onto his food, reaching for the hot chocolate without another word.

Sometimes, he thought glancing at Lucy from beneath his lashes as she settled into the seat across from him, he questioned just what kind of fate he had if it had brought Lucy to him.


Didn't feel like the song matched very well, but I couldn't find a better one. Really enjoyed writing the bits with Juvia. ;)

Thanks to reviewers (stranger1999, MagatsuIza, and ThaDesperado64!) as well as those who favorited and followed!