HAPPY LUCY DAY!
So, I saw what day it is today and I wanted to present you guys this one shot to celebrate it! It's one of my draft one-shots which I just finished writing today!
Oh, check out Hiro Mashima's Lucy Heartfilia art on his YouTube channel! Lucy is so pretty!
Anyway, here it is!
SUMMARY: Lucy wanted to take a mission by herself! How will Natsu react to this? Read to find out!
COMPROMISE
"I said I can take care of myself!" The stellar mage exclaimed, glaring at the determined face of the Dragon Slayer.
"I know you can Luce! And I'm not saying this because I think otherwise! I'm just worried–"
"Of what?! That's the same thing Natsu! You don't think I can take care of myself! That I'm not strong enough to take a solo mission! You think I'm weak!"
"Stop putting words into my mouth, Lucy! I know you're strong but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't worry about you!"
Lucy's face burned a bright red color as her temper decreased, contradicting the increasing beat of her heart. "T–Then pray tell! What are you worried about?" She stammered, now having a hard time looking at her partner's eyes.
She heard a sigh, before feeling a weight at the top of her head. She turned in confusion and reluctance only to widen her eyes at their close proximity.
Natsu stared back at her, eyes serious as if to convey he meant the words he was going to say.
His hand at the top of her head started caressing her golden tresses and for a moment, he stopped to stare at the breathtaking golden strands his hand is touching. He was in awe but was brought back by the topic at hand at the gasp released by the blonde in front of him.
"Natsu?" Her voice, soft and uncertain, called out to him. She raised her hand and grasped his hand, causing it to stop moving.
He used that time and studied her face.
Her eyes were wide, and Natsu can almost see his reflection in those chocolate brown orbs staring back at him. Her face is flushed, plump lips were parted. At this distance, he can feel her soft skin pressed against him, smell the ink—from the quill she used to write another chapter of her well kept and hidden (She thinks) book of hers—and her natural sweet vanilla scent that is so much like Lucy.
The window in her apartment is open, the morning breeze passing through cools the apartment of the effects the summer season has on it. This, however, made him remember how they got into this argument in the first place.
A little bit of a flashback to Natsu's morning
He remembered waking up early, groaning quietly at the need to get out of the comfort of her bed and her embrace, to avoid one of her Lucy Kicks. From below her, Natsu carried the still sleeping form of Happy, before tiptoeing around the apartment until he reached her window. He opened it, looking back at the still sleeping blonde on her bed—chuckling softly at her nonsense murmuring—before jumping down the building.
He was quiet on his journey to the guild, arms crossed after placing the slumbering feline on top of his head.
A whimper caught his attention before noticing that it was just the blue exceed waking up. A grin covered his face as he saw his destination, before running towards it. Happy yawned, activating his Aera to avoid being dragged by his partner.
The fire dragon slayer kicked the double doors to the Fairy Tail guild open, eliciting a loud smack all over the guild. Some early risers voiced out their 'Good mornings' to which Natsu just waved at before settling himself on the bar, calling out for Mira to prepare his and Happy's usual breakfast. The said feline only cheered, before rummaging on his green back for a little 'snack' before his meal, which is once again, a fish.
The barmaid just smiled at the duo before turning to prepare their meal.
Another batch of orders after, Natsu stilled at the familiar scent coming from outside the guild. He swallowed the food he was currently chewing before turning from his chair to face the now opening guild doors.
The door opened, and Lucy was there smiling and waving her good morning greetings at anyone she sees.
Her smile widened when she met the gaze of the staring dragon slayer. She jug towards them, taking a seat beside him before ordering a chocolate milkshake—saying she already ate a sandwich she made for herself earlier, to which Natsu and Happy responded with "No fair!" despite the food in front of them—from Kinana since Mira is still busy tending other orders.
Their morning began like usual, them bickering back and forth and mysteriously laughing together for no reason in particular. Suddenly, the Celestial Mage heard of Wendy, who joined them, reminiscing to Charle about her first solo job when she overheard Asuka convincing her parents to let her tag along to Romeo's job.
Natsu's grin melted off at the sudden frown and thinking face Lucy had adorned. He bumped her shoulder to get her attention only to tilt his head in confusion when he saw a determined glint on her face.
Without a word, the blonde darted off her stool and made her way to the mission board. Natsu, intrigued and confused on how she was acting, quickly ate his remaining meal before standing up and following her to the board.
When he got there, he saw that she was already holding one of the missions. Excited at the prospect of what is it about, he snatched it from her hold, ignoring the protests coming from the Celestial Mage. With his face hidden by the mission, a smirk formed at the huff Lucy made as she gave in.
A patient and determined Mage wanted! Preferably a Celestial Spirit Mage!
A mage terrorizing the town of Belmont caused theft and infrastructure destruction. She's not alone as she was accompanied by two men! It has already been happening for a week so I'm sending this to ask for help catching her!
Magic Type: The woman is a Celestial Mage, while the other two are mercenaries.
Reward: 200,000 Jewels
Sender: Mayor George Belmont
"A Celestial Mage huh?! Seems like a strong opponent based on what is written on this! I'm all fired up!" Natsu exclaimed.
A tap on his shoulder got his attention.
"Uhh–no. This is just for me to take Natsu..." Lucy stated, casting the slayer a wary smile, readying herself for his reaction.
"Huh? What'd ya mean by that?"
"What I mean is, I'm taking this mission alone," Lucy said, watching Natsu's face for any changes.
"No..."The blonde gaped at what he said.
Her brows furrowed, "And what do you mean by that?"
"I just–Look, we're partners, right? Doesn't that mean we get to take missions together? Hell, if you want we can even take Ice princess and that red-haired demon in this quest!"
Lucy sighed, expecting this reaction. "I get what you mean by that, I understand it. But I just realized from what Wendy had mentioned that I haven't gone into a single mission by myself despite all this time! Not that I don't enjoy taking one with you guys, but I just want to try and say, "I did it". That I can. You understand me right?" She looked as if she wanted to cry, her eyes searching her partner's face for any understanding.
Being focused on their conversation, they didn't notice the sudden silence emanating around them. Their friends were watching them, each having their own opinion of their situation.
They understood where Lucy is coming from but they cringed a bit, knowing that the fire dragon slayer's over-protectiveness toward the blonde would get in the way of him understanding where the Stellar mage is coming from.
"No, I don't." Natsu frowned as Lucy's eyes watered. "I don't understand why you have to prove yourself. You're strong Luce, don't sell yourself short..." The blonde offered a small smile, before sighing.
"Thanks, Natsu but seriously, I need this for myself..."
"But can't I come? Promise I won't do anything!" Natsu argued. Lucy pouted, once again expecting this.
"No."
"You won't even see me! I'll just follow you around and-"
"That's creepy Natsu! No!"
A 'Gihee' was exclaimed from somewhere in the guild before a thump of what it seems like a book and a pained 'Ow!' followed. Snickering, a certain raven-haired mage was about to comment on what he heard but stiffened at the menacing aura of the redhead beside him as if daring him to talk. From below him, a bluenette sat on the wooden floor, clutching a pair of pants and shirt from a certain ice make mage to her chest tightly. Juvia smiled at the prominent smell of Gray on the cloth, softly squealing and uttering 'Gray-samas'.
"If not me then, you can bring Happy and–"
"No."
The mentioned exceed Aye'd but it was unheard by both of his partners. His eyes watered before he flew right in front of Charle and complain about being ignored.
The dragon slayer looked down for a second before grinning at what he thought.
"Then I can–" He was cut off by a sigh. His eyes widen at the pained look on Lucy's face.
"Don't you trust me, Natsu?"
"I do it's just that–"
"You do? Because from what you are doing, you clearly don't trust that I can do this..."
"That's not what I–"
"Save it, Natsu."
"But I–"
"Enough! I'm taking this mission whether you like it or not!" She glared at him before running towards a concerned Mira to approve her quest.
After being approved, the blonde glanced at her still stunned partner.
"Out of all people, you're that one person who I hope to support me on this. I guess wrong huh, Natsu?" She gave him a fake smile before running out of the guild.
Something inside him clenched at what she said, waking him up from his stillness.
No, that's not what I meant Luce...
You know that I'm not really good at words but I just don't want to–
Natsu shrugged all those thoughts off before running after the blonde, all comments from the guild went unheard as he focused on reaching the only place he's sure Lucy would go.
Her apartment.
He suddenly went back to the present time when she loosened her hold on his hand.
He opened his mouth to talk but was not able to when he saw her shake her head.
Both of her hands then moved to push him back but he only tightened his hold, with just enough force not to hurt her.
"Natsu, let go! I don't want to hear any of this!"
"Just hear me out okay?!" The blonde stopped struggling against his hold and instead looked down to avoid looking at Natsu's face.
"You know I'm not good with words and I'm sorry if all I'm blabbering about from earlier made it seem like I don't trust that you can do it cause' I do! I really do Lucy! I trust you, heck even with my own life!" From her place, Lucy widened her eyes at what he said, at how he sounded so sincere and serious. Her hand moved to clench his coat by his chest.
He continued. "I'm seriously not used to things like this y'know? You're asking me to tell you what I'm worried about?" He moved, hands trailing upward the Lucy's arms before reaching back to envelop the blonde with his embrace.
"I'm worried–no, I'm afraid of losing you, Lucy..." He then whispered. Both were unaware of it but at that very moment, both of their heartbeats synchronized with one another.
Unconsciously, both suddenly reminisced all those times Lucy was on the verge of death, Natsu's hold on her only tightening.
"Natsu..." Lucy called, leaning back to look at him.
"How about we compromise?" She smiled at the confused look the Dragon Slayer has.
"Compromise?"
"Yup! I promise to be careful and not to be reckless. The moment I saw that I'm in danger with no means of escape, I will run despite still wanting to fight. I really need to do this, not to prove myself to anyone else, but for myself..."
"But we can't take chances! What if–"
"Natsu!" She stated firmly. Her eyes soften knowing he's only doing this out of concern for her, "I promise this as a Celestial Spirit Wizard. You know how I value and make it a point not to break any of my promises right?"
"Yeah, I remember the time you told me that..."
"Oh, that time when you tricked me to form a team with you and Happy just because I'm blonde?!" Natsu gave her a sheepish smile at the sudden memory.
"Hey! That wasn't just because you're blonde! I already told you that!"
"I remember..."She giggled.
"But seriously Natsu, trust me and I will definitely keep my promise to you..."
He was about to say something when Lucy suddenly raised her pointer finger in between them.
"But..."
"But what?"
"In return, you do the same! After all, you're not the only one worrying about this kind of thing...
"I worry about you too you know? Especially on how reckless you are. You're quick to act on your instincts without thinking things through!" She exclaimed to which Natsu just chuckled.
"Yeah, alright. I promise..." Natsu grinned when he felt the blonde's lips curl into a smile.
The atmosphere between them is not awkward. Despite not having any labels defining the increasing closeness between them, they were content with the way things are.
Natsu move backwards until he was able to sit on Lucy's bed, without breaking the contact between them. Not suppressing herself, the stellar mage moved so that she could seat on the slayer's lap.
They stayed like that for a while, not minding how intimate their position is. They were just enjoying the feeling of being that close to one another.
After a while, Natsu broke the silence between the two of them.
"Luce?" He called out earning a short -eep from the mage at the sudden disruption of the silence. He chuckled, earning himself a smack to his chest.
"Sorry, it wasn't intentional. I swear!" He laughed harder at the pissed noises coming from the blonde in his embrace.
"You still surprised me! You cheeky dork! Stop laughing or I'll rain you down with some Lucy Kick!" Natsu held his breath to stop the once again forming laugh at what she said.
"Good. Glad to know you understood, Dragneel..." The salmon haired just grinned at this, closing his eyes momentarily to feel the moment.
Despite what everyone says, he is not oblivious or dense. Sure, he can act stupid at times and there are just some things that he finds confusing, but it's just that. It just takes him a while before he can process and understand some things, but that doesn't mean that he wouldn't understand at all.
And romance? Yeah, he's definitely aware of it and the only person who he is considering with regards to this matter is the blonde he's currently embracing.
He will do anything to keep her from harm, thus, the reason why they even reach this point.
Natsu Dragneel is an action type of a guy and mulling over these are so out of character of him.
Oh, screw it!
"You're special to me..." Natsu Dragneel suddenly blurted out, fingers brushing the strand of hair behind her ear.
He felt Lucy stiffen before relaxing when she only tightened her hold on him.
"You're special to me too..."Lucy responded, her fingers intertwining with one another, which is still wrapped around the Slayer's waist.
"Lucy?"He called out after widening his eyes as he remembered what he read before in one of those romance novels Lucy loves to read.
"Hmmm?"
"Is this that part where we kiss?" A choked sound can be heard from the room. Natsu grasped Lucy's shoulders, leaning back to look at her in worry.
"What happened?! Are you alright Lucy?"
"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed, fingers flexing from their place.
"What?" Dumbfounded at the implication of what he just said, he looked down at the blonde on his lap.
Lucy groaned internally.
"Oh, forget it! Come here!" She pulled Natsu closer before leaning upwards to press her lips to his.
Despite being startled, Natsu just closed his eyes before leaning closer.
Lucy's entangled hands parted as it move upwards to wrap around Natsu's shoulders, to which he responded with his hands clenching on either side of her waist.
Lucy smiled, movement felt by Natsu. The latter opened his eyes, lips also curling.
It was just an innocent kiss but to the both of them, it meant much more.
Natsu groaned out of boredom, body slumped into the bar's counter.
Mira, who was wiping the counter, gave him a small smile when their eyes met.
"Something wrong Natsu?" She asked, stopping what she was doing to give her attention to the Fire Dragon Slayer.
"Yeah, I'm just bored..."
"Are you sure? Or are you just missing a certain Stellar mage?" Mira teased, chuckling at the sudden change in the younger's expression.
"Darn it! Why did no one told me it's gonna be a week-long mission, Mira! I knew I should've come with her!" He grumbled out, still obviously sulking at the fact that Lucy didn't allow him to accompany her.
For a moment, the day they argued in her apartment flashed through his mind. He blushed, looking away, grumbling to himself.
Mira raised an eyebrow, interested at the blush coating his cheeks when he suddenly perked up, moving fast to turn and look at the guild doors.
There, opening it, is Lucy Heartfilia, smiling brightly despite the bandages wrapped on her arm and leg.
Natsu quickly dart off his seat, frantically assessing her bruises. "Lucy! What hap-"
He was cut off by Lucy jumping up to envelope him with a hug. "I did it, Natsu! And I even rescued and gained some new friends! Plue and the others will surely love to meet all of them when I formed a contract! The townspeople even thanked me profusely at a job well done! Oh, don't even get me started at the full reward! I'm not going to be homeless for the next month! We should really visit Belmont some other time! There were just too kind and the mayor--" It's as if the slayer can't register anything she's saying other than the wide bright smile plastered on her face.
He just stared back at her, happiness radiating off her.
Even with some bandages covering her arm and leg, Natsu was definitely proud at what she accomplished and at that, his gaze softens, worry forgotten in exchange for her happiness.
"Congrats Luce!" He exclaimed, hugging her back as the blonde continued telling him stories to which Natsu just nod at, attention solely focused on her.
All of their friends just smiled at the scene as they all internally scream to themselves,
"Just get together already!"
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Hope you like it!
So basically, they don't have a label since in this story, they were just content with being with each other. Though, they confessed that they are special for each other! And for them, for now, they're content with that.
About the kiss, I just wanted it to be innocent and sweet so I made it that way.
Once again, HAPPY LUCY DAY!
Read and review!
I'm not really sure of it myself but if it's well liked by you guys, I will make a two-shot!
Oh, for those waiting for me to update my other stories, I'm back with overdue chapters this time! I will surely update~
Though I would like to read some stories for a while. The semester just ended and I'm currently on my long break!
