WARNING: Rated M for Explicit Graphic Depictions of Violence, Graphic Depiction of Rape/Non-Consensual Sex, Graphic Sex, Graphic Physical and Mental Abuse, and Mental Instability. Please read at your own discretion.
I do not own Fairy Tail; All major characters depicted in this fan-created fiction story belong to Hiro Mashima.
CHAPTER 26
"Hell yeah! I'm all fired up!" The fire dragon slayer yelled, causing billows of black smoke and fire to seep from the open pinkette's mouth, the swirl of red and orange flames almost catching the wooden rafters ablaze from his excitement.
"Natsu, there are restrictions; this job request is simply a trial period for Lucy to see if she can handle going on missions." The tiny guild master regarded the exuberant slayer with a sweat drop while waving his now enlarged hand around to keep the flames from reaching other parts of the guild.
"Yeah, yeah, gramps. I get it." The oblivious salmon-haired male danced around with an equally excited blue-furred exceed who flew in circles above the mage's heads while they spoke. The fire mage was beyond thrilled that his blonde partner would be able to join a mission with everyone once again. After all, it had been such a long time since the celestial mage was a part of Team Natsu.
"Rogue, Sting and Yukino will also be accompanying you, as well as Lisanna." The salmon-haired mage froze while looking at the still flailing master - who had finally succeeded in batting away the dragon slayer's fire.
"Eh? Why are they all comin' too?" Confusion was apparent on the fire welder's face when the old titan stopped to regard the younger male with a pointed and incredulous look, how the boy didn't understand why was a mystery to the guild master.
"Rogue to keep Lucy in line and Lisanna to keep you in line, my child. Sting and Yukino because it is a guild collaboration mission and they are already here, after all." The Fairy Tail master observed as the young mage geared up to put up some type of protest at allowing another guild to join their mission, but was stopped when a slender pale hand touched his shoulder. The snowy-haired female in question had walked up to the two arguing men, seemingly hearing her name mentioned by their small master.
All fight miraculously vanished from the once raring to go salamander when he turned to look into the woman's crystal sapphire eyes.
"Don't worry, Natsu. It's going to be fun!" The fire mage only nodded, a dumbfounded expression masking the slayer's features when the snowy-haired woman moved a little closer to him causing her cloth covered breast to press against his bare arm when she wrapped her arms around the male.
Crimson flushed to the usually oblivious male's cheeks while he quickly averted his gaze anywhere but the beautiful woman beside him.
"Yeah. I guess you're right. Hey, Lis. I need to ask a favor, can you come with me for a second?" And just like that, the wild and usually flamboyant fire dragon slayer had been tamed; all thoughts of complaining or arguing were washed away by the cool blue tides of the snowy-haired takeover mage's shining eyes.
The Fairy Tail guild master looked on at the two children that he had watched grow into the young adults walk away from him. Makarov stared at the two retreating mages with wide unblinking eyes while his jaw unhinged to smack loudly against the table he was currently sitting against. A low disgruntled noise leaving the old man's lips as he witnessed the display of affection between the two young wizards.
In all the years that the master had looked over the dragon slayer from when he was just a small boy to the young man standing before him today, the tiny titan had never seen the fire dragon slayer blush and look so positively smitten.
The sight of the blushing slayer that currently was averting his eyes while holding on with what looked to be an extremely tight grip to the elbow farthest from the young Strauss mage made the master's face turn white while he felt his very soul leave his body.
The boy has finally noticed a woman, and not just any woman!
Natsu likes Lisanna!
Makarov heard the worried voice of Fairy Tail's bar maiden, but he couldn't even form a coherent sentence to answer her worried pleas to let her know he was alright. The old man brought one of his hands up to his chest to cover the cloth that lay just above his now rapidly beating heart.
The old titan could still hear the worried voices of not only Mira, but other members of the guild as he finally let out one breathy sentence that actually made sense enough for the white-haired woman to hear.
"My bet was on Lucy.. I owe that damn Macao 100,000 jewel." The concerned take-over mage let her hands fall from the old man's shoulder before turning back to the bar with an annoyed huff, he really had her worried for a moment there.
The two wizards in question watched their guild master slump from his bar stool to trudge over to the table Wakaba and Macao were sitting at. Lisanna only giggled at the old titan's slow and reluctant steps while the fire dragon slayer chanced a glance at the snowy-haired woman before looking elsewhere.
Seeming to remember that the pinkette had brought her over to the corner for a reason, the sapphire-eyed wizard looked back to see Natsu staring off into space, a faraway look in his deep dark orbs.
"What's the favor you needed to ask me, Natsu?" The salmon-haired male regained his focus just as Lisanna leaned against the empty table, her playful demeanor calming his nerves just a little. What he was about to ask of the white-haired woman was important and he knew without a doubt he could get through anything with the youngest takeover mage by his side.
"I was kinda wonderin' if you would come with me to Luce's, I really messed up, and I have some things I need to say to both her and Rogue." Natsu knew he made a mistake with Lucy and he needed to fix it as soon as possible. He had unintentionally burned the blonde, scared her and pushed her way past her boundaries even when Levy had gone out of her way to warn him.
Natsu rubbed the back of his neck when he remembered the way the guys had verbally attacked him in the hot spring, and they were right. The pinkette was hurting the people he cared about most, all because he was too blinded by his own emotions to care about how they each felt.
The snowy-haired beauty gave the fire mage a genuine smile while tilting her head with a little giggle, causing the male's heart to quicken.
"I think that is a great idea, Natsu! I'd love to come." Natsu grinned before slinging his arm around the woman's neck, a crimson blush working its way back on his face when he instinctually let his nostrils flare to inhale the beautiful wizard's unique scent.
"Glad to hear it!" Before releasing Lisanna, Natsu glanced around the guild- catching the eyes of a certain she-devil who was currently fanning her face with the rag she usually used to clean the bar. Hearts were bulging out of the oldest takeover mage's eyes while she squealed in delight.
"Maybe we should go now?" Lisanna offered when she noticed the number of glances the two wizards were receiving now that her older sister had caught the two younger wizards over in the corner alone, close together.
"Yeah, let's go! Come on, Happy!" Natsu grabbed his hopefully soon to be mate's hand while dragging her out of the guild and away from their Nakama's curious eyes, the blue exceed flying close behind the two wizards as they set off for one particular faded red brick building on Strawberry Street.
"Thank you so much, Rogue! I don't think you understand just how much this means to me. You are the absolute best!" The ebony-haired slayer felt his heart swell while he held the blushing blonde within his arms, her head leaning on his chest as if listening to his steadily beating heart.
"Fro thinks so too!" The smiling green exceed exclaimed from his spot on the back of Lucy's sofa, the little feline was too busy watching some silly cartoon to actually understand what the blonde was talking about. However, Frosch didn't miss a beat when his ears picked up the mention of Rogue. The little feline was quick to agree when praise of his dragon slayer partner was uttered by the kind woman.
"Honestly, Lucy. It was nothing, really. I just brought it up to Sting earlier this morning, and he and Makarov took care of the rest. If anyone deserves your thanks it should be them." The dark-haired mage was finally able to stop the blush from showing on his face when the blonde finally released her hold to step away from him. Rogue frowned at the loss of contact of the warm body that had been pressed against him.
The ebony haired slayer was glad that the blonde remembered that she told him that she wanted to go on a mission while in her intoxicated haze of sleep. Part of Sabertooth mage wanted to put off asking Sting until she had woken from her sleep this morning, but seeing the blonde woman beam at him with happiness made him glad that he hadn't.
Luckily for himself and Lucy, the two guild masters were able to easily approve a guild collaboration between Fairy Tail and Sabertooth for a relatively small mission request. The only catch was that not only would he be coming along, but Sting, Yukino, and the youngest snowy haired takeover wizard would be accompanying Team Natsu.
The large group wasn't really necessary for the mission request that was chosen, but the extra members would act more as a safety blanket for the blonde in case she needed to dip out for some reason before the mission was completed.
It also helped that Lisanna- the hopefully soon to be mate of Natsu- would be tagging along to help keep the unpredictable pyro under control and most of Fairy Tail's dragon slayer's focus away from his own hopefully soon to be mate. Rogue's frown deepened at the thought of the salmon haired man. He wanted this job request to go smoothly for Lucy, but having Natsu around was just asking for a disaster.
"Oh, just hush and take the compliment already. I'll call Virgo out as soon as we are done packing so she can store everything away in the spirit world. I am so excited. Kind of nervous- but excited mostly!" Lucy gave Rogue a smile before shuffling off in pursuit of dragging out one of her favorite suitcases from under her bed.
The shadow mage just shook his head while his lips tilted into a small smirk when the bubbly blonde all but skipped to her bed, her emotions a symphony of excitement, joy, and peacefulness that melted together to seep into his body through their bond causing the crimson eye's mage to shudder from the pleasant feeling, all thoughts of the other slayer, gone.
The Sabertooth wizard leaned against the wall, taking in the sight of the excited woman while she dug her hands underneath her bed, a blush flushing to his cheeks when he observed the short skirt she had on as the thin fabric rose up dangerously high to cover only the firm roundness of her ass, leaving the backs of her creamy pale thighs exposed to his view.
The ebony haired slayer knew he should look away from the delectable woman in front of him, but he just couldn't avert his gaze from the celestial mage. Hungry ruby eyes raked over the blonde's bent form, greedily taking in the way her body moved back and forth while she reached her hands around under the bed in search of her suitcase.
The naive action by the crouched woman caused Rogue's mind to wander into not so innocent territory. Thoughts of her bent form pressing up against his front filtered through his mind. The ebony haired slayer repressed a throaty groan while he tried his hardest to resist the urge to run his hands over the blonde's raised rear and the rest of her body.
Though no matter how hard the man tried, the erotic spectacle before him roused the sleeping dragon within him. His body felt immersed with power while his shadow dragon slayer magic practically roared at the sight of the celestial fairy in such a provocative position on the floor. Lewd fantasies of running his hand's through Lucy's blonde tresses as he dominated her form slammed into Rogue, causing him to pant from the overwhelming need.
The ebony haired male didn't know how much longer he would be able to keep his dragon instincts at bay from the positively delectable vision of his blonde angel in front of him. It was almost like she was presenting herself to him, and she was ready for the taking.
Gods, was she trying to taunt the raging beast within him? Or was she just that oblivious to the fact that she was basically waving her ass in the air like some type of aphrodisiac offering?
The dragon slayer's resolve dissolved into a distant memory when Lucy's large honey-brown doe eyes peeked at him curiously through her lashes while looking over her shoulder. The blonde wizard must have felt his longing and lasciviousness through their bond, at least that's what he would like to believe.
The slayer observed as her chocolate eyes widened when they took in the feral gleam in his own crimson stare causing a heat to pool deep within her core at just how voracious the male looked peering down at her from his position against the wall.
Rogue sniffed, his nostrils flaring when her heady scent wafted throughout the room causing him to let out a low groan in response to her feminine arousal.
Oh, how he wished he was buried deep between her thighs again.
Sudden flashes of the time they'd spent in the charging room at the hot springs just yesterday flipped like a picture book through the crimson-eyed male's mind, disappointed that he hadn't been able to taste her sweet nectar then, either.
Memories of the blonde's delicate palm gliding up and down his throbbing manhood while his fingers pistoned within her tight wet heat practically left the slayer a slave to his primal desires for the gorgeous woman currently situated on her hands and knees before him.
The slayer moved his eyes to his small exceed still situated on the couch, too absorbed in what looked to be a children's show on the small lacrima TV. Surely the feline wouldn't even notice if the dragon slayer snatched up the blonde fairy and made a break for the bathroom.
But, would he really do it?
"Rogue.." The blonde's voice, thick with want beckoned the male closer when she let the slayer's name tumble from her cherry pink lips. Rogue was suddenly aware of just how constricting his clothes felt when his length twitched in response to the fairy's wanton tone.
The answer is yes, he will.
It took the slayer driven solely by his dragon instinct all of five seconds to push his body away from the wall before he was on the still curved blonde, causing Lucy to gasp when she felt his stiff erection rub against her scarcely covered backside.
Lucy's small moan was like a soft melody to the slayer's ears as he nipped at the nape of her neck with his sharp canines, a cavernous growl rumbled within his chest in response when the blonde moved her head to the side, baring her neck in an almost submissive fashion.
He could feel her desire through their connection and smell her profound arousal when he moved to wrap his arms around the celestial mage before letting his magic slip out to coon the two in the dark wisps of shadows.
It took the slayer another four seconds to displace their bodies from their previous position by Lucy's bed to the more private enclosed space of the blonde's bathroom.
The slayer wasted no time in turning and locking the door before moving to pin the still disoriented blonde to her bathroom counter.
Obviously, the ebony haired male would like to eventually show the blonde his affections in an actual bed, but it would seem that locking themselves in her bathroom would have to suffice for now since privacy is a luxury that neither wizard seemed to have lately.
"Sweet Lucy, you should never bend over like that unless you want me to pin you down to something." Rogue's haughty whisper ghosted over the shell of the woman's ear while the slayer nibbled at the tender flesh before moving to kiss her cheek- which earned him a small suppliant whimper from the angel pinned against him.
"What would you like me to do?" The male's voice came out in a husky groan when the blonde fingers moved to tug on his hair, successfully freeing the ebony locks from their place tied atop his head. Her head moved to place light kisses on his neck before moving up to his jawline where the skin received much the same treatment.
A breathy gasp met his ears when the male squeezed the pale flesh of her inner thighs, the action causing the blonde to open her legs a little wider- letting the smell of her sweet arousal strike his acute sense of smell once again.
"Touc… Touch me, Rogue..?" The blonde murmured timidly against the slayer's neck, the heat of her humid breath tickling the hair on the back of the male's skin while he moved the blonde to sit further on the counter.
"As you wish, love." Rogue's practically growled while Lucy's fingertips massaged across his scalp. The slayer's hands slipped up her already ascended skirt to stroke against the blonde's clothed entrance, a pleased grunt leaving his lips when she moved against his fingers, eager for more of his touch.
The slayer could feel his magic while it hummed just beneath his fingertips, begging to be set free. The dragon slayer smirked against Lucy's porcelain skin when an idea so devious slipped into his mind, he just had to give it a try.
A small controlled tendril of black shadow slipped from the male's fingertip to ghost over the woman's body as if to stroke the heated flesh of the blonde before him.
Rogue observed as the tiny wisp of magic moved from circling her inner thigh to move against her swollen clothed clit in slow circles. A sharp intake of breath met the slayer's ears before the blonde to let out a lengthy moan from the almost phantom sensation of his magic caressing her body.
Rogue moved down, pulling her body back to the edge of the counter before moving her panties to the side so his lips could meet her dripping core. The slayer moved to his knees while he licked between her engorged lips before sending more of his magic out to trail up her arched body beneath her clothes to circle around her perky breasts.
Honestly, the ebony haired male had never thought his magic would be able to bring the blonde this type of physical pleasure. The thought caused a smirk to tilt his lips while his sweet future mate let his name slip from her mouth like a prayer. Rogue swelled with pride while her intoxicating scent enveloped him in his own cocoon of want.
Her thighs quivered around his head as both he and his shadows worked in unison to bring the blonde to the brink of unimaginable bliss. Her back arched further off the counter while her hands buried deep within his ebony locks, a silent gesture to keep him between her legs while she came undone against both his magic and lips.
Her juices flowed onto his tongue, causing the dragon slayer to groan from the sweet and heady taste that was undeniably his Lucy.
The blonde squirmed when he latched onto her swollen and sensitive bud to languidly suck ever so gently as he let her ride out her orgasm on his face.
The ebony haired male couldn't help but wonder when he had become such a ravenous fiend when it came to sex. The thought of pleasuring a woman had never crossed his mind until the blonde came into his life. Rogue couldn't help but think that it must have something to do with the mating courtship between the two wizards that was still left unfinished.
Maybe something about the mark being incomplete made him eager to win the affections of his mate, though if going by what Sting had told him yesterday, he doubted it.
The blonde woman just brought out the beast within him. He was just positively enamored by her.
Rogue moved to stand at his full height so he could take in the beautiful sight of the pleasured blonde before him. Her usual gorgeous brown orbs were replaced by that of his own eye color while she stared up at him.
Rogue stilled while he felt for their shared bond. There was no ill feelings, no type of anxiety or animosity that would cause the sudden change to her appearance. From what the ebony haired male could tell, the blonde was in pure bliss.
So, why had her eye's changed colors?
"L.. Lucy?" The celestial wizard's eyes widened as she let a smirk cross her blushing face when her own unique shadow magic slipped from her body making her golden locks float around her while the ends faded into black tendrils of shadows.
Desire.
That was what the ebony haired male could feel deep within his being as their shared union crashed into him. Her emotions were a whirlwind of lust, desire, and affection. The shadow mage was so overwhelmed with the mix of emotions that he was in complete shock when a black blur had him on his back. His body pressed against the clean floor of Lucy's bathroom.
The celestial-gone-shadow wizard stood above him while the dark magic engulfed her body, causing the black markings to reappear and spread across her creamy pale skin.
"Now it's my turn to satisfy you." Rogue felt the blonde's body come to sit on his hips, a groan releasing from his mouth while he his head fell back to meet the floor when she ground herself onto his covered erection.
Rogue had never seen his usual sweet blonde like this before. In all honesty, he never expected this petite woman to be the type to take control in the bedroom-well in this case, bathroom.
Rogue fought against his dragon instinct that told him he needed to switch their positions, that he needed to be in charge to show this female who was the dominant of the two, but the male just couldn't bring himself to move the celestial mage from her current position of grinding on top of him. She was positively breathtaking as shadow magic licked at her skin while her deep ruby eyes gaze down at him.
The blonde she let her body bounce and grind against the slayer beneath her. The unique shadow magic enveloping the two in their own little cocoon, away from reality.
Rogue's crimson eyes watched with their own feral shine as Lucy raised her arms up to caress her own body while she dry humped the male below her, causing a deep-throated groan to reverberate within the slayer's chest. If she didn't stop soon, he would surely release in his clothes, without even being touched.
Never in his life had he witnessed such surreal beauty such as the woman atop him.
The blonde, now covered with the marks of the shadow dragon slayer- the same markings he bore in his dragon force form- moved her head down to roughly bite at his exposed neck.
The bite caused something within the dragon slayer's very core instincts to roar within him, sending signals to Rogue's body to hurriedly move to sit up in an attempt to switch their positions immediately, but he was pushed back down by one of her shadow covered hands while she brought the other up to wag a finger at him in reprimand.
The shadow dragon slayer reluctantly relented with a displeased growl, his instincts still screaming to take back dominance from the petite woman straddling his waist. As if understanding the slayer's dilemma, his shadow covered blonde reached down to grip at his throbbing and swollen cock through his clothes.
The worked up slayer released a low hiss while throwing his head back from the contact, his now elongated canines bared for her to see.
"Let me take care of this for you, love." His aching manhood twitched at her demanding tone while the male could only watch through half hooded eyes as she slipped down the length of his body until her head was flush with his covered cock.
"Lu.. Lucy, you don't have to.." As if realizing what she had in mind, the slayer tired to move the shadow covered blonde up, but was forced back down once again while her own challenging growl met his acute hearing.
Despite his earlier protest, he submitted to the woman now making quick work of the sash that adorned his waist before slipping down his lose pants, the rapid action allowing his cock to spring forth from the restraints that had been containing it.
The blonde eyed his manhood while wrapping her hand around its girth giving it a good pump, no doubt taking delight in the way the man below her clenched his teeth while the feeling of absolute yearning touched her heart through their bond.
Lucy let her tongue slip out from between her cherry pink lips before licking the bulbous head of the shadow mage, a long breathy groan vibrated throughout the small bathroom when the blonde courageously engulfed as much of him as she could into her wet warm cavern.
Rogue was in pure bliss; after all, he had never known the touch of a woman before Lucy. She had been the first female to touch him so intimately, and right now, the ebony haired male couldn't help but feel he had made the right decision in staying untouched by women, even though some had tried to gain his attention with sexual advances in the past.
Nothing- no one- could compare to the blonde that was currently bobbing up and down on his pulsing manhood.
Pleasure coursed through the slayer's body while the blonde worked him with her superb mouth, her tongue snaking out every so often to slide against his now slick cock before sucking him in all over again.
Lick.
Suck.
Repeat.
She set a steady pace as she took him in and out of her warm mouth.
Not wanting to be the only one receiving, the male lets some of his magic that was currently humming from the pleasant sensations within his body slip out to rub against her still clothed body.
The slayer felt her mouth falter against him when the shadows reached their destination between her still dripping thighs.
A deep moan from the blonde caused the slayer to growl when the sound released from her throat caused vibrations against his manhood that was still sheathed deep within her throat.
"Lucy.. Love.. If you keep this up, I'm going to cum in that delectable little mouth of yours." The slayer could smell the effect his throaty moan had on the blonde above him. Her scent was growing as his shadows coaxed her own arousal to bloom along with his own.
"It's okay, I want to taste you, too." Rogue's eyes widened when her muffled whimper met his ears. He was sure the blonde would want to know so she could avoid being choked by his essence.
The slayer felt his instincts take over from her words while his hips moved to meet her mouth, causing him to reach new depths within her precious cavern and down her throat.
If the blonde minded, she didn't show any indication.
Her breathing quickened when he willed his magic to rub around her swollen clit, trying to ready her to reach their climaxes together when he felt his impending release building up within him.
The blonde rocked her hips back and forth while her lover's magic rubbed against her, her orgasm was just on the brink of rocketing through her. The blonde willed her own shadow magic within her possession to slip from her fingertips and into the shadow slayer's pants to gentle slid against his still covered family jewels.
The action caused the male to let out a roar while his seed unexpectedly erupted down the blonde's throat, the blonde herself spread her thighs apart while she felt her orgasm ripple through her own body, fluid dripped from her spasming core to slid down the length of her trembling thighs.
She greedily sucked down the heady essence of her dragon slayer. He didn't taste bad, salty if anything, but something about her cumming with him had the blonde swallowing up his seed while gently sucking the now flaccid appendage for more.
The male's hips unconsciously convulsed as he rocked back and forth in slow weak movements into the blonde's mouth as she lapped up his release.
He was drained, and shocked.
Never had he expected the blonde to release some of her own shadow magic to fondle his family jewels. The action had caused him to cum unexpectedly into Lucy's waiting mouth.
Gods, this woman's an angel.
His shadow clad angel.
The ebony haired male- still shocked by the force of his orgasm- groaned. Rogue knew without a doubt that he loved the blushing blonde now lying against his chest. The shadows surrounding the two had dissipated into the air while Lucy's appearance slowly returned to normal once again, causing questions to rise that the male just wasn't yet ready to ponder.
Those questions could wait until another day.
First, the two content wizards needed to peel themselves off the blonde's bathroom floor. The male moved to sit up, bringing the flushed and content woman with him before standing and setting her on the counter.
Rogue moved to stand over by the celestial mage's tub, pulling the curtains out of the way before leaning over to turn on the water. The shadow mage sighed when the streaming liquid reached the perfect warmth. Still holding up his loose pants to keep them from dropping to the floor, the ebony haired male moved to turn back to the dazed blonde.
"Let's clean ourselves up, shall we?"
Natsu walked down the familiar cobblestone of Strawberry Street, it had been awhile since he visited Lucy's place and to be honest, he was more than a little nervous. The salmon haired slayer knew that both the celestial spirit mage and Rogue had every right to turn him away after what he'd done the blonde at the guild hall. Afterall, Natsu hadn't even let the blonde walk fully into the guild before flying off the handle when she first returned.
Though the fire-breather was hopeful the two wizards would hear him out, he wouldn't blame them one bit if they turned him away without so much as him getting an apology out. Even so, he needed to hear what Lucy had to say about all of this, and he also wanted to talk to Rogue and know his intentions with his best friend- even if Gray had already beaten him to the 'big brother' talk.
Natsu sighed when he and Lisanna finally came to stand in front of the faded red building. Usually, he would just jump up onto the windowsill and pry it open, but he knew that definitely wouldn't be the right way to go about starting an apology. Well, that and Lisanna had been kind enough to tag along to act as his moral support as well.
"Well, what are ya' waitin' for Natsu?" Onyx eyes lifted up to watch the flying blue feline while the cat slowly descended from the sky to perch on the white-haired woman's shoulder. Natsu gave his little buddy a firm nod before opening the building door, letting the female takeover wizard walk up the stairs first.
Lisanna moved over when she finally reached the top of the stairs, making room for the fire wielder to knock on the door, even though the pinkette had asked her to tag along for support; this was his still battle to face- his mess to clean up.
Natsu grimaced the moment Lucy's apartment door opened, the smell of arousal hung thick in the air causing the male's nose to scrunch up from the thought of what the two wizards occupying the apartment might have just finished doing not too long ago for the scent to be this heavy.
An uneasy feeling settled within the slayers gut when he came face to face with surprised crimson eyes.
Well, he looked different.
Natsu had never seen Rogue with wet ebony hair pushed back out of his face before, and the sight of his full features shocked the fire breather. Well, that and the fact that the male was only wearing plaid flannel lounge pants low on his hips.
A low growl formed in the back of ebony haired male's throat, meant to be both a threat and question directed towards the stunned salmon-haired young man still standing in the doorway. Natsu opened his mouth to say something but was cut off before the two males could start to have some type of alpha male growl off.
"Hi, Rogue! I know this is a little sudden, but Natsu here wanted to talk to both you and Lucy before we set out on the mission." The smiling white-haired woman defused the situation by squeezing in between both males, taking special care not to touch the ebony haired slayer.
The young woman has personally witnessed a dragon slayer's wrath when their mate had been touch by another. She knew how possessive Laxus could get when another male touched her older sister and saw how Rogue reacted when Natsu had grabbed Lucy. So if what Natsu told her the other night was true about her being his mate, then the young takeover mage didn't want to take any chances by accidentally leaning into the other slayer.
After all, Natsu was there for the sole purpose of making things right between he, Lucy, and Rogue. It would be counterproductive to start a fight when they just arrived.
"Hi, Frosch!" Happy zipped past the wizards before perching on the couch beside the other little exceed. Rogue removed his glare from the salmon haired slayer to look back where the two exceeds were now talking away.
The ebony haired shadow mage sighed, then reluctantly relented before moving back to walk into the apartment while shrugging on the shirt he had been holding in his hand.
"Before you even try to get close to Lucy, you can talk to me first." The shadow mage didn't wait for the salmon haired slayer to respond before the slayer was out the front door and down the stairs. Natsu threw a questioning look at Lisanna. The white-haired woman nodded her head with an encouraging smile on the takeover mage's face before she sat down on the love seat with the two exceeds.
Natsu followed the slayer's scent into the alley beside Lucy's apartment, where the ebony haired mage was waiting, leaning against the faded red brick.
Natsu gulped, though he wasn't afraid of the Sabertooth wizard, he knew that Lucy cared for him. If she didn't, the dark-haired man wouldn't be staying in the blonde's apartment. Lucy would have definitely kicked him out by now.
"Now's your chance to say what you want to say." Rogue crossed his arms over his chest, waiting for the salmon haired male to say something, anything. But Natsu just continued to stare at the Sabertooth mage, everything he wanted to say to the dark haired male stuck in his throat.
The fire mage's emotions were all over the place, he was irritated at the smell of the blonde's apartment, he felt pain and guilt for the way he had treated Lucy and while he knew he should be apologizing the salmon haired man couldn't stop the anger from flowing from his mouth while moving to stand directly in front of the ebony haired slayer.
"I should have been there for Lucy. Not you. I should have been the one to save her. I promised to protect her future, I told her that I wouldn't let the Rogue from the future decide her fate." Natsu's onyx orbs flashed as he let the words tumble from his mouth. He never let anyone know just how much anguish he kept inside when he thought of the promise he made to the blonde of the future, right before she passed.
"and… I failed." The salmon haired slayer tilted his head down, he knew it to be true. While he was so busy caught up in trying to keep everything the same and ignorant to the fact that Lucy's life had in fact changed, he had let keeping that promise slip right from his grasp to fall into the hands of present shadow dragon slayer. The fire wizard's salmon hair fell to cover his eyes as he continued.
"That bastard- Future Rogue- was already taking away the present Lucy's future before I even knew it was happening. I should have known something was off with her the moment we came back from Crocus, but I didn't. I failed Luce. I wanted so bad for her to be the same girl I brought to Fairy Tail and I wanted everything to stay the same, but then you came into the picture. I was angry. Upset that I couldn't do anything but sit at the guild while my best friend was being saved by someone else. A job that was mine, a promise that I swore to keep. Saving Lucy was my responsibility!" Rogue didn't say a word, he knew that the salmon haired slayer wasn't yet finished.
Natsu's body shook while he clenched his fits by his sides, keeping the flames from bursting atop his flesh as he continued on.
"I promised her and I couldn't keep it! You protected her from things I would have never been able to, you saved her when no one else could see that she was in pain. Thank you, Rogue for succeeding in where I've failed." Natsu moved back so that he could bow low to the shadow mage.
Natsu knew that Rogue deserved this apology; the fire mage had wrongfully accused him of forcing Lucy into becoming his mate and was too blinded by his anger to notice that Lucy obviously cared for the sabertooth wizard. Rogue had taken care of her, helped her when Natsu couldn't and continued to do so even though Rogue really had no obligation to the blonde.
Rogue definitely deserved this apology.
Natsu stood up once again, the black-haired tiger's crimson eyes were wide, too stunned by the fire dragon slayer's heartfelt and serious confession/apology to make words so he opted for a nod of his head.
An awkward silence fell between the two men before the salmon haired slayer voiced an even more discomfited question, though Rogue had known it had been coming. It was only a matter of time until the fire mage's curiosity would spur the question to either he or Lucy.
"She's your mate?" Natsu felt his chest constrict while waiting for the ebony haired male to recover from his obvious shock to answer him. There was a long pause and silence once again fell between the two as the shadow mage sighed, reluctant to answer. The only sound being water as it sloshed around in the nearby canal while small boats passed by.
"I want her to be." Rogue said barely above a whisper, but Natsu with his enhanced hearing heard the male's voice perfectly clear, causing the confession to linger between the two slayers.
Natsu glances at the shadow mage with a perplexed expression.
Wants her to be?
While most people thought the salmon haired wizard to be clueless, there were things that a slayer could pick up on that a regular person couldn't. Feminine virtue was one of those perks. Natsu thought back to the moment the blonde's different scent assaulted his acute sense of smell, comparing it to that of which to when she'd departed those few months ago.
He had not been mistaken.
The blonde's new scent was now void of that asset. He was one-hundred percent positive that when the blonde left it was still very much intact.
"You.. haven't mated her?.. Then.. why?" Onyx eyes grew when the shadow mage just looked away with sorrowful eyes down the alley out to the brightly lit canal. Natsu didn't understand. He knew that he was young when Igneel had vanished but Laxus had explained –in detail- how the mating process worked and since Lucy's been… deflowered.. And Rogue's magic has been placed within her, then she should undoubtedly be his life mate.
"Despite what you said in the guild hall, I wasn't the one that forced myself on Lucy." Distressed crimson eyes met wide onyx when the pieces of the puzzle fell into place the way the shadow mage worded it left the salmon haired male to believe that even though he hadn't forced himself on her, someone had.
"No.. No. Gods. No." Natsu backed away from the broken look in the Sabertooth mage's eyes only to have his back meet with the other side of the alley. The pinkette felt himself slid down the wall, ignoring the pain that scraped along his back from the brick exterior until his rear was firmly placed on to the cobblestoned ground. Flames licked at his skin as both rage and guilt set deep within the male's heart
"Rogue? Natsu?" Both males jerked their heads up to look in the direction of the quiet voice at the beginning of the of the alleyway. The smell of salt assaulted both male's dragon slayer senses before they noticed the tears that threatened to spill from wide honey brown eyes. How the two didn't perceive her presence sooner, they didn't know, but it was evident that the blonde had heard enough to know that Natsu know knew her secret.
"Lucy.." Rogue started but the blonde just shook her head, effectively cutting the slayer off while holding her hands close to her chest as if she had just taken a painful blow to her heart. The ebony haired dragon slayer could feel the bitter sting of betrayal through his and the blonde's bond.
He had deceived her trust.
"Can you give me a moment alone with Natsu, please?" The blonde didn't even look at the ebony haired male as he slowly merged within the shadows to disappear, leaving the celestial maiden and fire dragon slayer alone for the first time in months.