Sweat dripped down my face as I ran, my feet pounding on the ground and my stride lengthening to try to outrun the man behind me. My legs burned from the effort, but I knew it was almost over; just a little longer and I would be home free. I could see my goal fast approaching, the urge to look behind me to see my pursuer almost too much to take, but I resisted and kept pushing myself. When I reached the steps of Igneel's building, I knew I was done and allowed myself to drop to my knees, panting for breath as I finally looked back.
Taurus had slowed to a walk at the edge of the park, his arms stretched above his head as he strode towards me and a wide smile on his face.
"Good job, Miss Lucy," he said with pride in his voice as he helped me back up.
"I had plenty of motivation to push myself faster this time," I replied as I began my own stretching to keep my limbs from cramping. "The threat of you making me run another five miles if I didn't make it back first is not one to be taken lightly."
We both laughed at this, since he'd made me do it before. This was the first time I was able to keep ahead of him, and I took pride in knowing that I was much faster than when this all began.
Virgo stepped out of the lobby with water for both of us, a small smile on her usually placid face at my victory.
"You need to get inside and clean up if you don't want to be late for work, Princess."
"Thanks, Virgo." I had asked both her and Loke not to call me that, but they seem determined to ignore my wishes, so I've stopped correcting them.
Twelve weeks have passed since I woke up to an empty apartment. Eleven weeks, four days, and twelve hours since I last spoke with Natsu. Every morning I wake hoping to find he has returned home during the night, only to be disappointed again when I find the apartment empty. I only allow myself a few minutes to dwell on his absence before I force myself to move on with my day, otherwise I know I will fall into a deeper cycle of worry that I cannot afford.
Getting ready seems to fly by and, much to my dismay, I'm at work before I know it. Things have been slow in the department for the past couple of weeks, which makes the days drag by. And I have my weekly lunch meeting today that I am not looking forward to; in spite of the fact I'm fond of seeing Makarov and Laxus, my instinct is telling me something is wrong.
As expected, the morning went by more slowly than a herd of turtles, and the meeting was shaping up to be equally exciting. I couldn't help taking a glance at my nails, painted a soft pink, and let out a wistful sigh. Brunch has expanded to bring Juvia into the fold, and after our meal was over this past Sunday, we returned to the penthouse for a day of watching bad movies and giving each other manicures. Knowing how much I've been missing Natsu, Juvia had gone out of her way to find a shade that matched the color of his hair.
"Lucy, are you listening?"
"Hm?" I looked up from my nails to see the others in the room staring at me expectantly. Shit. Honesty is best with this crowd, and I look at my uncle to give him my answer. "No, I really wasn't. I'm sorry, Uncle."
Grumbling filled the room with my statement, and I deserved it. I should not let my mind wander when there are important things to discuss.
"Shall I start again?" He asked in his gravelly voice.
"Oh, hell no!" The words were practically growled out in frustration as Laxus stood from his seat next to Makarov.
"Calm down, Laxus," Makarov said in a placating manner, urging the man back into his chair. "Lucy?"
"No," I've already inconvenienced everyone enough, and I know I can have someone fill in the blanks later. "Please continue, I promise I'm listening."
Laxus huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest, practically pouting from the interruption. To keep some semblance of peace between him and I, I forced myself to focus on what my uncle was saying.
"Another meeting request was submitted by the Phantom Lord Group yesterday. Jose is quite interested in the international expansion that is set to be completed next summer. He claims that he can increase PLG and Heartfilia profits by one hundred percent or more if we were to allow him to use the railways for the importing of goods from Pergrande and the surrounding countries." As much as he tries to be professional when stating the request, the sneer on his face shows his feelings about Jose and his company. Not that everyone at the table doesn't share them, but some are better at hiding it.
"I'm surprised he waited so long to submit another request, to be honest." My skin crawls just hearing that name, but I try my best to keep a level head about the shitstorm that always seems to accompany that wretched family. "Draft another letter politely declining the offer. We are not negotiating contracts until the project is closer to completion."
"There's more to it than that this time, Blondie." I send a glare towards Laxus at the nickname, but don't call him out just yet. "We heard he's already planning on sending a representative out to the estate this weekend to make a social call."
Thank goodness I'm already sitting, because I can feel my legs get weak as I realize that Jose is trying to force a meeting with my father. Which can't really happen, since he's not exactly alive to take visitors at the moment. The thought of sending that asshole to the afterlife for his damned social call flitters through my mind for just a moment before it is ultimately crushed. That's not something I can do…at least, I don't think it's something I can do.
The voices of my family and my security team continue on around me as a plan starts to come together in my mind. I look around at the people I have come to trust with my life before adding my voice to the noise in the room, my question cutting off all other discussion.
"How many of you is Jose familiar with?"
All eyes are on me again, but it is Loke who speaks up.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, does he know the faces of those on my security team? Does he know your names? Do any of his people know your faces or names?"
They all look at each other before setting their sights on Crux. He's sleeping again, or at least seems to be, and it takes a moment to get an answer from him.
"There are no photographs of this team that could be associated with the Zodiac code names. I set up a bot years ago to look for and destroy everything that was uploaded to the internet, as well as all personal and private databases that are attached in any way to an active connection. Unless he's met any of us in person, our identities remain hidden." His moustache puffed out and he began snoring softly almost as soon as the last word left his lips.
I turned back to Loke, looking at him expectantly.
"Aquarius, Cancer, Taurus, Virgo, and Saggitarius have all been compromised in that respect. To the best of my knowledge, the rest of us have remained out of the spotlight enough that no one from PLG knows our faces, only our codenames."
Checking the time on my phone, I see there are several hours left before the work day ends, even with the extended lunch for this meeting. Good. There is a lot I have to think about, and too much to do before the weekend arrives.
"If there's nothing else, Uncle, I have much to consider," I glanced at him as he shook his head. "Thank you so much for coming here to meet with me. I'll call you or Laxus tomorrow with details on how I wish to handle Jose."
Everyone stood as I did, following me out of the room and going their separate ways, Loke and Capricorn close on my heels as I headed for Natsu's office instead of back down to the IT Department.
"What are you up to?" Loke asked as we walked.
"What makes you think I'm up to something?" I deflect in lieu of giving a straight answer.
"I believe," Capricorn answered instead, "that it has something to do with the determination on your face, and the fact that you're headed to a private office instead of back downstairs, Miss Lucy."
While part of me curses both of the men in the room with me for being too observant, another part is relieved that they know I'm working on a plan already. Stepping behind Natsu's desk, I opened the drawer with his private stash of bourbon and poured myself a glass before texting Gray to meet me in the office.
"Would either of you like a splash?" Both shook their heads as I made myself comfortable in Natsu's chair. Most likely both men knew the burn that awaited if they partook in the spicy beverage; it feels like a lifetime ago that I had my first sip.
"Lucy," Gray said as he stepped into the room with us. "What's going on?"
I motioned for him to come closer and close the door, downing the contents of my glass before answering. The liquid burned all the way to my stomach and gave me the precious seconds I would need to bolster my resolve.
"I'm resigning from my position at Dragon Imports, effective at the end of the work day today."
All three men stare at me with dumbfounded expressions.
"Come again?"
"Gray, I can't keep doing this."
"Doing what, exactly? I thought you liked your job?" Gray looked completely out of his element as he spoke. He doesn't understand yet, but he will.
"I love my job, but I cannot keep shirking my responsibilities. I need to resign here so that I can properly take over my father's company instead of leaving the work to my uncle and cousin. There are things they cannot do for me, so I need to take responsibility and become the face of Heartfilia Enterprises."
"Are you insane?" Gray practically hissed at me. "You have a family of fucking psychopaths just waiting to kidnap you again, and you want to walk away from one of the safest places you could possibly be? I thought you wanted to fight, not hand yourself over on a silver fucking platter!"
Loke and Capricorn have backed away from Gray and I, both knowing that it's better to stay out of our way in moments like this.
"I'm fairly certain Bora is a sociopath, actually," I remarked flippantly, then watched an angry red flare up Gray's neck and spread across his face. "Did you lecture Natsu like this when he left three months ago?"
"Hell no. That flaming idiot knows…" There was a pause, Gray stopping himself from finishing his sentence as his lips pressed into a thin line.
"He knows what, Gray?" I asked, my hands clenched into fists under the desk. The panicked expression that crossed his face as he glanced at the other men in the room for help told me all I needed to know. "Is it that he knows how to handle himself? Is it that he's stronger than me? Or is it that you see me as some whiney little princess who needs to be rescued?
"Whatever your reasoning," I pressed on without giving him a chance to answer, "I want you to know that I am aware of my shortcomings. I know what I am, and what I'm not. And something that I frequently find myself being, is underestimated."
Understanding flashed in Gray's eyes, as well as Capricorn and Loke's. All three knew I was right, though out of them, only one saw me for what I was and treated me as such.
"You have a plan, then, Miss Lucy?"
"Yeah, I do." I let the appreciation I have for Capricorn filter through my words.
"Well," Loke said, "what is it?"
"The most basic plan there is when trying to catch a predator," I paused for a moment, not for dramatic effect, but to prepare myself for the hell I was about to unleash from the men before me. "We're going to set a trap with live bait."
I was not fully prepared for the shitstorm that came after I said those words. Loke called the rest of the team into Natsu's office with us, and it took over an hour to get everyone on board with my plan. Gray was the most difficult to convince, continuously saying that Natsu would not like us planning this behind his back.
"Well Natsu isn't fucking here, Gray!" I finally screamed out in frustration. The pain of that statement felt like a knife twisting in my heart, and I almost lost the strength to continue. "Unless you think he will show up out of the blue in the next two days and can help figure this shit out?" My question was met with silence. "Yeah, I didn't think so. I need you with me on this, Gray. Please."
"Damnit! Fine, I'm in. But," he added, "if you get hurt doing this…"
"Yeah, yeah, I know the drill." I waved my hand dismissively at him and he sent me a half-hearted glare before we started working out the details of my grand scheme.
Since it was a drama-packed day, Capricorn decided to give me a break and allow me to forego my evening training. Damn good thing, too, since I will need to pack for my trip to the estate this weekend. I still have a difficult time believing that it is mine, and though the staff is still working keeping everything nice, no one has really lived there since father died. Thoughts of my family consume me as I continue my task, slowing but not stopping my work.
My packing is nearly finished when I am distracted from my thoughts by a change in the music that has been filtering in from the living room since I arrived home. I'm familiar with the song, but I don't remember it being on this playlist. Curious, I stand from my closet to investigate.
As soon as I am close to the living room, I am frozen in place. Hot tears fill my eyes and I let them fall as I stare at what I know must be a hallucination - until it speaks.
"Hey, Lucy. I woulda called, but…" A small, dark object was tossed from his hand towards the coffee table, several shards of glass sparkling in the light and illustrating the sad state of his phone.
"Natsu." His name left my mouth as a whisper and I was able to move again, practically sprinting to him.
Natsu held out his arms, wrapping me in a hug as he stumbled backwards onto the couch from the force of me slamming into him. Every ounce of worry that had filled me up over the long weeks faded in an instant, but that didn't stop my tears from wetting the collar of his shirt as I buried my face against his neck. We stayed unmoving for several minutes, neither saying a thing as we fed off the comfort we found in each other's arms.
Finally I decided it was time to move, and I pulled back enough I could take in his appearance. My hands slid down his arms feeling for injuries before moving up to slide through his hair, tilting his head as I continued my search, still hardly believing that Natsu was home again.
"You're home," I sniffled.
"Yeah, I'm home. Sorry I took so long getting back." His left arm stayed wrapped around me as he brought his right hand up to wipe the remaining tears from my cheeks.
"I missed you," I said as my eyes found his; they shined with unshed tears just as mine did, and that longing that I'd nearly forgotten about.
The three months we were apart seemed to disappear, my mind finding its way back to the night that I told Natsu about my seventeenth birthday party. The night I found out that he was the man I was supposed to be engaged to; the man I had been wanting to find, but was too afraid to even look for after all that had happened to me - after all, who would ever want someone so broken. I know he doesn't see me that way, though. So unlike that night that feels like a lifetime ago, I don't hesitate this time.
"I mis-" I know what he's going to say, but I stop his words with my lips against his. Only a sliver of a moment passes before I am pulled against Natsu's chest again as he kisses me back. Every thought is wiped from my mind, and for a time the only things that exist are my hands in his hair, his arms holding me close, and our lips moving against each other.
Heat fills my entire body the longer we kiss, and I find myself breathless, but not minding at all. If this is how I go, then this is how I go, and I know I would die a happy woman.
A soft whimper forms in my throat when Natsu pulls away, both of us panting for breath as he leans towards me until our foreheads are touching.
"If I had known the warm welcome I was coming home to, I would have rushed the job so I could get back sooner," he tells me as he graces me with a smile.
"If you had rushed the job," a voice interrupts from the front door, "people could have died. Hello, Lucy. I see you're doing well."
My face flushes when Igneel walks into the living room. It's only at that moment I remember that I'm still straddling Natsu's lap, since that's how we landed on the couch. As has become custom, I hide my face against Natsu's neck, which pulls twin chuckles from the two men who just got home.
"So," Igneel continued, his voice laced with amusement, "would you two like to join me for dinner out, or are you just going to make out on the couch this evening?"
"As much as I'd like the second option, it's been far too long since I had a decent meal," Natsu replied. His next sentence was whispered into my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. "Though I wouldn't mind picking up where we left off after dinner."
I pinched the back of his arm for his comment, causing him to yelp.
"Dinner sounds great. I've got some things to discuss…I guess with both of you, but not in public."
"I know just the place," Igneel replied. "Dress nice."
One hour later, the three of us were comfortably seated in a private room of an upscale restaurant downtown. After our food orders were placed and drinks delivered, I decided to just bite the bullet and let them know what was going on.
"I resigned my position at Dragon Imports today, effective immediately. And tomorrow I'll be making a trip to my father's estate to handle some business that's come up."
Neither man said anything, but both looked at me with owlish eyes. As it appeared they were waiting for an explanation before responding, I continued.
"Jose has sent several requests for a contract to ship goods via the new railway expansion that will be completed next year," I stopped long enough to take a long drink from my glass, savoring the sweet burn as the honey whiskey slid down my throat. "My uncle let me know another arrived earlier this week, and my cousin heard that Jose is planning on sending a representative to the estate this weekend under the guise of making a social call to force a meeting with my father."
"Lucy," Igneel spoke up, "please tell me you're not going out there to meet with whoever he sends alone."
"No," I scoffed at the notion. "I won't be alone. I have a team in place that I've heard is the best; they're coming with me. And…" I paused, turning to Natsu. "I didn't know when you'd be back. It was supposed to be Loke…I know you just got home, and I know it's a lot to ask, but I'd feel much more comfortable with you in the room during the meeting. You don't have to, it's just…"
"Damn, I thought I was the only one who did that babbling thing when nervous," Natsu laughed, taking my hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Of course I'll be there. I made a promise; we're in this together."
"Natsu," his father hissed at him, "are you insane? You've been on that man's shit list for years, you can't just waltz into a meeting with someone who works for him; they know your name…they know your face. And that goes double for you, Lucy. What makes you think they won't just kidnap you directly from the estate when they find out it's you they're dealing with instead of Jude?"
"It's not like he can plan to take something he doesn't know will be there," I shrugged. "It's not public knowledge that dad is…" I allowed my words to trail off and took several slow breaths. "No one knows about it, and it'll stay that way just a little longer. This meeting is just baiting the trap."
"With you as bait?"
"Yeah."
Natsu's hand tightened on mine again. I can tell from the look in his eyes that he's already not a fan of whatever I'm working on, but unlike Igneel, Natsu looks determined to at least let me try. He trusts me to be as smart and safe as I can, and the feelings that have been growing for months got just a bit stronger. I squeezed his hand in return before turning my gaze back to his father.
"Igneel, how long have you all been trying to take this," I was about to say 'man,' until I realized that was insulting to men everywhere, "greasy pile of crap down? If I understand correctly, I would guess at least six years?"
"Getting close to seven," Natsu replied when it was obvious Igneel wasn't going to answer me.
"That means I've been a part of this almost from the beginning, whether any of us knew it or not, and I am going to help in any way I can."
The door to our room was opened to admit a pair of waiters, one carrying a tray loaded with food, the other with a fresh round of drinks. I waited to continue what I was saying until after they had left.
"Besides," I said, sliding my fork into the bowl of pasta in front of me and giving it a twirl, "I already told you what could be done to keep me from helping. As well as the consequences of doing it."
With a resigned sign, Igneel stabbed the steak in front of him, slicing off a sizable chunk before pointing it in my direction.
"You are not the first stubborn woman I've had to deal with," he said before looking at Natsu. "She's worse than your sister-in-law."
"I know," Natsu said, looking at me with a wide smile and his eyes sparkling with mirth at his dad's comment.
"Well, I guess my only option is to go with it. I never fucking win with stubborn women," he grumbled before shoving the chunk of steak into his mouth.
Silently, we agreed to enjoy our dinner before getting down to the plan I had for the next few days.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!
Thank you to all who decided to fave/follow my story. Big thanks to my reviewers: Copperreign 12, and galactiaconstella.
I'm taking the week off to let my mind rest, but I'm hoping to have another chapter out shortly after the new year.
TTFN, Lovelies!