Summary: It just occurred to me that Igneel had been living in Natsu this whole time…..so he would know everything, right?

Pairings: Natsu/Lucy, implied parental Igneel/Natsu, Igneel/Lucy friendship, and implied one-sided Loke/Lucy.

YouTube Prompt: Either a tribute to Natsu and Lucy or Lucy and Aquarius (or a mix of both) to 'Ghost' by Ella Henderson.

There was a crystal cave hidden in the depths of Fiore that was a spiritual goldmine. In between the heartbreak of losing everything, the stress of finding a job, any job, and the desperate loneliness, Lucy needed some peace and a little help to reconnect with the spiritual world.

Perhaps, if she was lucky, she could speak to Aquarius one last time….

So that was why Lucy was meditating in the middle of a crystal cave when a large, scaly, ghost appeared in front of her.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Lucy!" the Dragon boomed over Lucy's screams as she tried to scramble away from him as fast possible. "Lucy!" Lucy took a shoe off and threw it at the ghostly apparition…..it immediately fell through and caused the ghost to raise an eyebrow. "Lucy, calm down. I'm just hear to speak to you, you weirdo."

Lucy blinked. The deep, booming, voice was incredibly familiar, and she recognised those red scales. "Igneel?!" she cried out disbelievingly.

"Yo!" Igneel grinned. Was it possible for Natsu to inherit a dragon's grin? It seemed possible. Anything impossible was possible for Natsu. "I saw you meditating and thought I'd talk to you."

"Oh erm….." Lucy said suddenly flustered. "You know that Natsu isn't with me, right?"

"Of course," Igneel nodded, "I watch over my stupid son all the time. And then I watch over you as well-"

"What?" Lucy interrupted bewildered. "Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?"

Lucy shook her head.

"You're Natsu's girlfriend, I would be remiss in my fatherly duty to not look after my son's girlfriend while he's away."

"W-w-what?!" Lucy stuttered, her cheeks burning, "I-I-I'm not Natsu's girlfriend. I'm nothing like the sort. He doesn't see me like that. Nowhere near to that."

"Lucy," Igneel sighed, "I lived inside Natsu for eight years. I saw everything he saw. More than that I heard everything he thought."

Lucy's eyes widened at that. "Everything?"

"Everything," Igneel stressed. "And let me tell you. My son? Totally smitten with you."

"Smitten?!

"Oh yeah," Igneel smirked. "He totally fancies you, has done so since the beginning. Your kindness and warmth touched him more than anyone else. You bawled him over with your maid uniform, you wowed him with your serene beauty when you revealed the truth about that Zelon book, you continued to awe him with your inner strength and beauty, and before he knew it he was in love with you."

"W-w-what?"

"You have completely dazzled him," Igneel said smugly, "as Happy would say – he liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiikes you. So trust me, Lucy," Igneel-s teasing tone instantly switched to a more solemn one. "He hasn't left you really. He is coming back. And more importantly, he is coming back for you."

"B-b-but-"

"And let me tell you," Igneel suddenly changed his tone again. It was now an exasperated and annoyed tone. Lucy swears that this was also where Natsu's got his changeable nature and rapid mood swaps. "It wasn't easy living inside a besotted, hormonal, teenage boy. I didn't just see how much you meant to him, I lived through it, he had far too many cold showers just thinking about you."

"WHAT?!" Lucy shrieked, mortified that a great ancient being saw that sort of thing about her. "Are you telling me you watched him wank himself off?!"

"Over you," Igneel said cheerfully, "I know everything. All his secret desires…..so if you want any tips for your reunion with him, I'd be happy to tell you-"

"GET OUT YOU DIRTY DRAGON!"

"But I want my grandchildren!" Igneel whined. "Until you I never thought Natsu could give me any, too stupid to know what sex is, so if you could just wear your maid outfit and-"

"I SAID GET OUT!" Lucy roared furiously. "OR DO YOU WANT A LUCY KICK?!"

Igneel must have remembered how hard Lucy kicked, having obviously experienced everything from Natsu's perspective, because he instantly flew out terrified (and forgetful that he was no longer corporal and Lucy can't kick him).

It took several long, deep breaths before Lucy was able to collect herself. With her cheeks still bright red from embarrassment, she sat back down in a cross-legged position, and went back to meditating.

"Lucy, my love!" Loke bellowed as he appeared out of nowhere. Lucy let out a 'Kyah' and clutched her chest out of shock. "I heard your rejection of Natsu via Igneel, and I want to tell you, if you'd like that is, I'd be happy to go through my favourite positions and we can-"

"YOU GET OUT AS WELL YOU PERVERTED LION!"

It was needless to say that not a lot of meditating got done that day.

And Lucy really struggled to focus on anything for days afterwards as Igneel's words kept haunting her.

Just what the hell did Natsu fantasise about?

(Months later, Natsu returns in his usual dramatic flair, and once Lucy gets over her surprise, and happiness, and her heart stops beating so fast that for a moment she thought it would beat out of her chest, she realises Natsu had melted her shirt off….Igneel's words come back to her, and she had sudden suspicion that half of Natsu's fantasies involve her clothes falling off of her... that and she's certain he did that deliberately.)