Chapter 4
AN: People have asked why I wrote their relationship as being so centered on each other and not worrying about their guild mates. Like Lucy not wanting to see them. Here's my reason- Natsu technically heard Lucy die and there was nothing he could do to save her. When I wrote this story at the beginning when Zeref is winning and Natsu's spirit is broken. He honestly believed that he had lost the love of his life. I think that gives me reason to keep them secreted away from the guild and him wanting to marry her immediately. He already lost her once he doesn't want it to happen again.
Lucy needs time to come to terms with the fact that her friends don't know her anymore and will look at her like a stranger. They both just need some time and I need them to do something while the timeline catches up to the beginning of the anime timeline.
"Now where are we going?" asked Happy as they boarded the train with Natsu grumbling about death machines and how this was cruelty and that Lucy should have mercy on him. He stood in front of the train and glared at it before pouting in Lucy's direction and almost begging her with his eyes to just let them walk back to the manor.
Lucy rolled her eyes at his complaining and flashed her signet ring once more allowing them to board the train for free. They needed to go back and see what her father wanted to speak to them about before they went back to the guild. Her home was a pretty secure place for the two of them to plan their next move without anyone overhearing their plans. Natsu would just have to deal with the train because it was a six hour train ride and a two day trip if they walked and there was no way she was going to walk.
Lucy glanced outside the window and noticed that the sun was high in the sky and she could already feel sweat beading her neck. There was no way that she was going to spend two days walking in this heat when they could ride the train for free. She pulled Natsu down so that he could lay his head in her lap. It would all be over in a couple of hours she said mostly to herself since Natsu had his head buried in her lap. Lucy settled herself in the seat, handed a fish to Happy to keep him busy and pulled out the book that she bought on requip magic.
The Strauss siblings had already left the town wanting to get away from everything that happened. They also needed to report to the Master. They had left a couple hours after Mira had seen a healer. Lisanna tried to insist that they wait and check on Natsu however since he was unhurt Elfman agreed with Mira, They needed to leave and Natsu was looking after someone. Lisanna gave in knowing that she would be able to speak to him at the guild.
"We're going to visit my father Happy and then we're going to the guild. I always dreamed of joining Fairy Tail and now I finally get the chance to do so." Replied Lucy.
She had nearly forgotten to answer Happy as she got lost in her own thoughts. Natsu turned green and the train started moving. She ran her fingers through his hair fondly and rolled her eyes. She still couldn't believe that his weakness was a moving vehicle, honestly it was just so ridiculous.
She glanced down at her bare hand and almost frowned. It was odd to her to see her hand unmarked with a guild mark. She missed it more than either of them knew. For so long the mark had been a constant reminder of her family and the life that she had created despite everything that she had been through. She found a home in Fairy Tail and now it was like that had been stripped from her.
Her friends wouldn't even remember her and it pained her to think of herself as a stranger to them. Lucy wasn't sure that she could face them just yet. To her it had been just yesterday that everyone had known her, fought beside her and now she would have to start from the beginning. However she couldn't help but be grateful for the second chance that she had with her father.
She had for a long time tried so desperately to make sure that no one recognized her as Jude Heartifila's daughter. She ignored parts of who she was because she didn't want to associate any part of herself with him and the upbringing that he gave her. It was petty in a way but at the same time she had been desperate to carve out a name for herself, to make her own identity.
This was the only time in her life that she had made peace with the parts of her personality that came from him like her stubbornness and her intelligence. She no longer felt like she had to try and change herself into someone completely different to create distance between them now. She was at peace with the parts of her parents that she could recognize in herself and the woman that she had become. This realization gave her a sense of freedom that she never realized she had before.
"We'll talk when we have more privacy and you can contribute to the plans Natsu." She whispered in his ear as he groaned in pain as his stomach lurched very painfully.
As much as they needed to make some plans about what was happening they couldn't afford to talk in front of Happy. As crazy as the damned cat made her she knew he didn't really mean any harm but he couldn't keep a secret to save his damned life. They could only talk about this when no one was around so she watched the trees pass as they travelled. Before she knew it she passed out, ignoring the book on the seat beside even though she really wanted to start reading the basics of the magic.
Lucy was still so tired from pooling all her magic into her arms and legs so that she could catch Elfmans arm. Her magic power was back to normal but her bruises had bruises and her muscles were aching. He was just so much stronger that he had managed to rattle her all the way down to her bones. She took a well-deserved nap for the next six hours, promising herself that as soon as she was done talking to her father and planning with Natsu she would start working on her magic.
She woke up when the train came to a stop and she dragged Natsu off the train and towards her home. Happy and Natsu were wowed by the extravagance of her home just like the last time. They didn't have long to admire the huge house because as soon as she entered they were both separated by her maids and sent to their own rooms with orders to bathe and dress in the clothes provided and then meet her father in his office. Lucy smiled at their attentiveness and their excitement. She had a feeling that they already knew why her father had sent for her.
Lucy sighed as they dolled her up in the fancy dress and twisted her hair into a complicated hairstyle. She knew that it meant a lot to her father to see her dressed as a Lady of her status even if it was just for the time that she spent in the Manor and it did help to keep up appearances for their family. Her father had not been wrong in the previous time line when he said that she had been uncaring of the consequences of her selfishness.
Lucy running away had many consequences on her father and their family business. It was something that she never thought would happen. Then again she had been very foolish and naïve when she first ran away. The consequences of her decisions never really crossed her mind. Looking back there were so many situations that she could have and should have handled differently.
She had been young and still learning, now she was a little older and wiser. Now she had the experience to know the consequences of all her decisions. She hoped that she would do better this time, not just by her father but to all of Fairy Tail as well. She had caused them a lot of trouble but they loved her anyway. She would always be grateful for their fierce love of their nakama.
When she had run away the first time, Jude kept it quiet so that he wouldn't draw attention to the fact that his daughter had decided to run away. No one knew she was traveling the world as an unmarried mage which was probably why no one recognized her.
When the people of upper society realized what she had abandoned her lavish lifestyle for the life of a mage she had been seen as a 'ruined' woman. No rich family who knew what she had done would have accepted her and when her father had run into money troubles everyone turned their backs on him.
At the time, she hadn't cared what they thought of her or whether or not they accepted her for a match for their sons. She knew when she left that no one from the upper society would take her as their wife and that she would never be the 'Lady of the Manor' ever again. She had made peace with those facts. She had never wanted that life in the first place, to her it had been a good riddance.
She had chosen to walk the path of a mage and she never had any intention of going to back to this lifestyle. She didn't really care if her reputation had been ruined or not. The women of upper society had been held to such ridiculous standards that she didn't even care what type of behavior that they thought was scandalous. She just wanted out, to be free to make her own choices and forge her own path in life and Fairy Tail had given her that opportunity.
When they refused to help her father, again she didn't care. She had been so sure that the only thing that he ever cared for was his money that she had been glad that it was gone. All it ever brought her was misery. She hadn't even known that he was losing everything until he showed up asking for money and once it was gone there was no getting it back. Neither of them belonged to the upper society anymore and she had felt relieved that it was all gone.
While Lucy was all dressed up in her fancy dress with frills and lace Natsu was in a suit. She bit her lip when she saw him to hide her moan because he looked so damn fine in that suit. He didn't bother putting the tie on.
Natsu actually had no idea how to wear one and he left the collar open but he put on the jacket and went to meet Lucy. There had been a maid waiting for him outside his door to guide him through the halls of the large manor and Natsu couldn't help but frown. It was easy to see how Lucy had been lonely in this place. The manor had a sense of emptiness that you could feel in your bones.
Lucy was never really happy in this life but there was a time when she had been happy here. In this house that she had shared with her mama and papa, she had many good memories. Jude knew that she honestly didn't mind running the business.
Lucy had been taught from a young age to be able to manage the family estate. If he left the empire to her, she wouldn't need to expand it any more. The business was large and extremely profitable. She could just rake in the profits and continue her life as a mage until she found someone who had a passion for business and actually wanted to take over the company. She loved her father and even if things hadn't been great between them, it was definitely better now and she wanted to make him proud.
"You look so pretty." Said Natsu as he took in her pretty pink dress and the blush on her cheeks and Lucy couldn't help but respond with her own compliment, "You look very handsome all dressed up."
Natsu ruffled his hair nervously because he thought he looked odd. He only wore something like this once during that party that the Princess threw after the Eclipse Gate thing. Lucy however said he looked nice and he knew that wouldn't lie to him. He could feel himself blush at her words.
Natsu caught a glance at them in the mirror and he couldn't help but smile. They made a really good couple and now that they were all dressed up he couldn't help but think that they looked like the Lord and Lady of the Manor. He also knew that he definitely didn't know how to play that role. Happy had been laughing at his new look as soon as he put the pants on. Natsu threw a pillow at him and went to find Lucy.
They both entered the study and Lucy kissed her Fathers cheek in greeting. He shook hands with Natsu and gestured for them both to sit down. This was not going to be an easy conversation for him or for Lucy. He had promised that he wouldn't meddle in her life but the truth was that he really didn't see many other options here. He really did want her to be happy and he hoped that this would bring her great happiness.
"I know you're both wondering why I asked for you both to return here before going to the guild. The truth is that Lucy you're probably not going to like what I'm going to say. I believe that since you both love each other so this would naturally be the next step in your relationship."
Lucy's eyes narrowed and she stopped smiling, what was he going to ask her to do that was not going to make her happy and why did it involve Natsu?
"I would like for you both to get married." Said Jude and Lucy's jaw dropped.
Natsu well he didn't move, his expression didn't change either so no one had any idea what he was thinking. On the inside though once he processed the words he did a little happy dance in his head because he had absolutely no problem with this. It was sooner than he thought it would be because he assumed it would take him longer to convince her to make such a permanent decision. He already knew what he wanted and he didn't see any reason not to put a ring on her now.
"Father why would you ask for something so big so soon?" cried Lucy and Jude tried to smile reassuringly at her and calm her ire and unsurprisingly he failed.
"Lucy, you are still my heiress even if you do not intend to live here or marry for more money. I have already made preparations in the event of my death. There are several people that I trust to run the company with minimal work for you to do. If one of your children wishes then you can pass on the company to them when the time comes."
He stopped for a moment, looking outside his study and into the garden where his beloved once spent all her time. There were days when he glanced down and would see his wife with their little daughter in her arms. They would both smile and wave in happiness while he looked down on them. It had been so long since he had seen that bright smile on his daughters face. He had a long way to go and many mistakes to make up for and he knew it.
"This company wasn't just built using my money. It was your mothers as well but it is a family owned business. Once I make the statement that the company will be passed to whoever you choose to succeed it, you will once again be harassed into signing a betrothal. Not to mention your reputation has to be protected."
Lucy made a face that the word 'reputation' but she did understand that doing things the right way meant that she couldn't completely cut this part of her life out.
Jude continued his explanation unaware of his daughters thoughts, "The road you have chosen will lessen the social obligations but your reputation is a powerful thing. Once tarnished it cannot ever again shine. You cannot allow yourself to come under question. There will be enough talk about your chosen profession."
Jude waved away Natsu's protests as he continued to speak, "You can defend yourself but you will not have a leg to stand on if you are unmarried, travelling the world with your male friends. They will not care for the truth or how you see it and we both know that."
He knew Lucy understood even if she didn't like what he had to say. Lucy knew that the first time she had run away her father kept it quiet. However after the whole Phantom Lord thing happened everyone knew that she refused to marry Jurnelle and that she had become a mage.
When they came after him for retribution no one was willing to help him out. She had inadvertently destroyed the business by shaming him and disgracing the Heartfilia family in upper society and the fact that she became a mage was somehow even worse. Mages never had the best reputations in upper society and a high borne lady becoming one of them had been one of the biggest insults.
Jude passed over a contract to Lucy while she digested what he said. He knew that she would need some time to talk to Natsu and come to terms with everything that he was asking her to do.
Before she could try to refuse he carried on speaking, "Then there is your reputation to think about. If you want to become a mage that's fine I've made my peace with it. However running off with a random mage is different from standing beside your husband."
The look he gave her reminded her of her old governess who taught her all her responsibilities, "You becoming a mage can be dealt with but if your character comes into question you will have no peace from these vultures. The two of you have been through so much together already and with a war coming you both should seize the opportunity for happiness at every opportunity. Think about it, talk it over and we'll talk again in the morning."
Lucy had to admit that he had a good point. In this society the only thing a woman was good for was marrying and birthing an heir. However if she pursued the life of a mage with her husband then no one could accuse her of living immorally.
Her father leaving the business in his bloodline would only make sense. She would be marrying a man of 'lesser status' but no one could accuse her of doing anything wrong even though she didn't care what they thought of her life choices.
Natsu followed Lucy in a zombie like state and he couldn't help but be excited. Marrying Lucy would make her his for the rest of their lives and that was something that he had been dreaming of for far too long but she didn't seem happy and that made him even more worried. Was it because she didn't want to marry him?
He had been planning on having Lucy living with him instead of getting separate places but living together was the next best thing to being married. He wanted her by his side for the rest of his life but she didn't seem to want the same thing as him.
She had been refusing ever since her father had brought it up. He knew that it was supposed to be more romantic than this but did it really matter? He supposed that it was sort of out of the blue but after everything they had been through, he just didn't want to lose her again.
"Are you not happy Lucy?" he asked and she looked at him like he was insane.
Lucy was pretty sure that Natsu had lost his bloody mind. If you forget the fact that they didn't even have a plan for the war that was coming in the next few years. The fact that they didn't have any idea what the effects their changes would have on the timeline. It was still an insane idea without the insanity of the usual craziness that they dealt with.
Then there was the more pressing issue of the fact that they never actually spoke about their relationship and their feelings for each other. They had shared two kisses and held hands and complimented each other. When she thought back about it they were acting like they were dating ever since they arrived in the past but that didn't mean that they were on the same page.
Then again Natsu was not a person for words and long conversations. He liked to keep things simple. He wanted what he wanted and then he did his best to protect and keep those things. It didn't matter if they were talking about people or possessions. Natsu was someone who always knew what he wanted so if he kissed her once then it probably meant that he wanted her forever because he didn't bother with playing games but she still couldn't wrap her head around it.
"Why aren't you mad about this? He basically said that if I left without marrying you people would think I was a whore. That if I wanted to go with you then we would have to get married." She replied and Natsu growled when she called herself a whore. He didn't like anyone even Lucy herself degrading herself.
"Isn't that what happened when you ran away the first time? All your rich friends acted like they didn't know you or you brought shame on him or something like that."
Natsu remembered that after her father lost all her money she told him that the reason why he couldn't get any of his rich friends to help was because she ran away and broke his promise to the other family. The other rich people felt like he wasn't worth helping. The family name had been dragged through the mud basically and no one was willing to associate themselves with him anymore.
The upper society was a pit of vipers and as soon as someone put one step out of line they would be cut from society. It didn't matter who they once were or had. Those people were only out looking for themselves. They were only too happy to see a family as wealthy as the Heartifila's fall from grace because it gave them the opportunity to rise in station.
Lucy had to admit that he had a point because some of the few friends of her family all told her that what she had done was shameful but she couldn't find it in herself to care. She had found what she had been looking for so long and now that things were better between them she didn't want her actions to impact negatively on him. Back then she had felt guilt but in the end she had just been so angry at her father for all his short comings that she just didn't care what happened to him.
"Are you fine with getting married for a reason like this?" asked Lucy confused about why he was so calm about this.
She could understand that he knew that she didn't want her father to suffer because of her choices but this was a big step and they hadn't had much time as a couple. Shouldn't he want more time to spend as a couple so that they could be sure that they worked as one? Then again they were never very normal and they had spent all their time together. They were partners and best friends and she remembered once she read somewhere that explained love as a friendship set on fire.
Their relationship was strong enough to survive everything that had been thrown at it and now they were together did it really matter so much when they decided to get married?
Natsu just shrugged, "I don't care about why he wants us to get married but being able to call you my wife is something that I have waited to be able to do for so long. If you were my wife that would also make you my family. It wouldn't be like the rest of the guild but you were my partner for so long so being my life partner doesn't really seem to be such a big difference. I want you forever and being my wife means that we'll be together forever."
Lucy didn't know what to say to that. She thought that he was thinking about it in a too simplistic type of way, "We haven't even dated Natsu not really. We don't truly know if work together as a couple and marriage is supposed to be about love."
Natsu just shrugged and rolled his eyes. Lucy was over thinking everything and she wasn't listening to her heart. Everything that he did, every choice that he made were based of his instincts and they never led him wrong. Everything in him was telling him that Lucy was meant to be his wife.
"Do we really have to date for years and years to know that you love someone? I can't imagine my life without you and I don't want too. We already do everything together. I would die for you Luce and I know you would do the same, if that isn't love then what is?"
Lucy just stared at him. She didn't know how to answer that and at the same time she knew that he was right. Natsu suddenly became very focused and very serious, "I love you Lucy. I've been in love with you ever since you jumped out of that tower calling my name. I only understood what it meant months later but I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you and knowing what we know about the future? I want to tie myself to you in every way possible so will you marry me?"
Natsu never confessed to her, not like this. They shared some stolen moments that were mostly ruined. There were some misunderstandings and then when they got thrown into the past he had kissed her. He didn't confess like this before, no one had ever looked at her in this way. This was him telling her exactly what he felt and what he wanted from her and what he saw for their future.
She had never tried to put her feelings into words before because that would have changed their relationship. If it changed then there was the possibility that they would crash and burn and she hadn't been willing to risk losing him. Then they got tossed into the past and he kissed her and it was as easy breathing and his arms felt like she was home. He was her home and no matter where he went she knew that she follow, they were two parts of one whole.
When they came back, things might not have changed for anyone else but their history came back with them. It didn't matter if anyone else didn't know what they shared or went through. The fact was that they remembered. They had lived it and there were several lifetimes in the adventures that they had survived together.
Natsu was standing here in her home with her fathers blessing asking her to go on a whole new adventure with him and there was no way that she could say no. They could figure it out later but a piece of paper wouldn't really change anything between them because the bond that they shared it was forever. They had already seen the end of the world and this time they didn't want any more lost chances and misunderstandings.
Natsu knew that this probably was moving fast but he had seen and heard her die. It wasn't something that he was willing to ever go through again. If he really thought about it then he had technically lost her twice. Future Lucy had died and he was pretty sure she was nearly dead before Zeref hit them with that spell. He just refused to lose her again before he ever had the chance to be with her.
The next morning they signed their marriage license and Jude gave them both a pair of rings. A simple gold band for Natsu and for Lucy he got her a simple gold ring with a pink diamond set in a the infinity symbol of white diamonds. It was elegant and simple and more than enough. They exchanged rings in her fathers study and he simply said, "Send me an invite when the two of you decide to have a real ceremony."
Lucy kissed her fathers in a heartfelt goodbye and he gave Natsu a hard glare and then he nodded his head, "Take care of my daughter, son."
Natsu shook the older mans hand and gave him his famous fanged grin and replied, "I promise, Father."
Lucy giggled at the look of shock on her fathers face and the smug grin on Natsu's face. She knew that he was going to enjoy riling him up and getting under his skin. They waved goodbye and finally started their journey towards their home.
They were on the train back to Fairy Tail within the next two hours. They already had planned their next move, it had been an extremely productive night in the end. It was decided that Lucy was not going to join the guild until at least next year when they would reform team Natsu. The reason for that was because once she was introduced to the guild they would never get a moments peace from anyone and then they wouldn't get a chance to train either.
Lucy also had a more personal reason for wanting to keep some distance from the guild. She didn't think that she was ready to look at her friends, people that she had fought beside and nearly died for and have them not know her. None of them remembered her and it would take a long time to recraft their relationships. Lucy just wasn't ready to be a stranger to those that she thought of as family.
Natsu was going to teach Lucy how to use her weapons. Then they would both do some magical strength training and he would a way to force Ezra, Gray, Mira, Lisanna and Elfman to join him. He didn't want to use such a disaster of a mission against them.
It was sort of a low blow but he knew that if challenged Mira and pointed out all the ways her siblings could have taken out the monster if they had worked as a team she would get competitive. Then she would set out to train and probably take her siblings along with her. Ezra would probably get involved since it was Mira they were talking about and he could probably pull Gray into it as well.
His goal was to force everyone to take a short break from going on missions all the time and focus on their magic and their training. He was sure that with the promise of a fight which would determine who was the strongest when they all returned would get their blood pumping. He wasn't sure how successful his plan would be but he was hoping that they would all just go ahead with his plan.
Lucy took the idea further and decided that while they were all occupied. Natsu could talk to Mystogan and determine what he wanted to do about the whole anima thing. Depending on his answers they could figure out what to do with their Jellal and how to make sure the whole Tower of Heaven thing never happens. There was no way in hell that they were going to let Ezra go through that drama.
To be honest in the end their main priority was getting as many people as possible to train as hard as they could. Fairy Tail had many powerful mages but compared to the twelve bastards that they would end up facing they were pathetically out of their league.
Lucy wasn't sure if she wanted to lose those seven years on Tenrou but she couldn't help but imagine the amount of changes that would take place if they weren't sealed away. Then again she had a feeling that some things just wouldn't be able to be changed.
Lucy had been researching time magic as much as possible but most of the books only spoke about theories. There was supposedly no one powerful enough to change time in such a drastic manner. All the books said the same things, while smaller events could be changed there would always be fixed points in history. Some things just had to happen and no matter what a person did those events would always come to pass even if they didn't happen in the exact same way.
They weren't Gods and no matter what they did it was possible that some things would happen no matter how hard they tried to stop it. Lucy hated the fact that she wasn't sure what those fixed events would even be and she had no way to find out.
There were several demons and creations of Zeref that Team Natsu had faced before the war. The lullaby flute, R-system in the Tower of Heaven, Nirvana, Grimoire Heart, Acnologia and Tartaros were all linked directly or indirectly linked to Zeref.
That meant that those were probably things that they wouldn't be able to avoid even if the battles turned out easier. They stepped up their game it wouldn't change the fact that nothing would happen in the same exact way. Which meant that while they could try and protect the guild from as much as possible they wouldn't be able to stop everything bad that happened.
"Gildarts will show up in a few days and then he'll take that hundred year quest were he loses pieces of his body." Said Natsu as Lucy looked around the new house and smiled to herself.
"Do you want to stop him from facing Acnologia?" asked Lucy and Natsu nodded his head.
"I think I should tell him that Cana is his daughter. They carry the same scent, I just didn't really know what it meant so I never said anything but they smell like father and daughter."
Lucy bit her lip, it meant a lot to Cana to introduce herself to the man as his daughter and she didn't want to take that from her but at the same time it would lessen a lot of pain it he just knew already.
"He might stick around and train her. The last time he found out that she was his daughter they went on jobs together and Cana really upped her game with his help. I know you don't want to get involved and ruin the father and daughter moment but we need to think about the training everyone needs. Cana could join him on a shorter less dangerous mission and learn a couple tricks."
Lucy couldn't deny the fact that he was right about that. Then there was the whole Laxus issue and she really didn't know what they were going to do about him. He was just being an asshole but he really did love the guild. In a twisted way he was really just trying to help the guild.
The only problem was that he couldn't understand what the guild meant to people. Maybe they could get Mystogan to drag his ass off and beat some sense into him with Natsu's help. She sighed, a lot of their plans included Mystogan and she couldn't help but wince at that thought. They didn't really know him very well but she hoped that he would be willing to stick around and help them.
Natsu kissed her cheek and reminded her that they really needed to get started on her training. For now the couple decided to stop making plans since they could only deal with so much at one time. Natsu dragged her off into the forest to teach her how to use her new weapons.
She was good enough with that whip so she didn't need his help there but she did need help with martial arts since she didn't know anything more than the basics of that. He set up a balancing beam and told her to stretch so he didn't hurt her permanently.