As always, thanks for all the love and happy reading!


Natsu practically flung himself out the door as he took a deep breath of the crisp air. "I don't understand how you guys can stand to be in there for so long." He continued to walk a ways from the door, stopping near a bench that sat under one of the parking lot's lights.

"Our noses aren't as sensitive as yours are," Lucy answered, moving to sit next to where he stopped. Even with the door shut, she could still hear the band play as she watched Natsu start to pace. "Are you going to be okay?"

He waved off her concern. "Yeah, just not used to sitting still so much. And that smell." As if to help make his point, he loudly breathed in another lungful. "Even the air out here is tainted. While the air isn't exactly pure in my world, the worst smell there is brimstone and smoke. Occasionally burnt flesh."

Lucy filed away a question about the last portion of his statement for later as she asked, "What do you mean tainted?"

"I can smell chemicals. Everywhere. The smog that accumulates in your cities is terrible, too." At her raised eyebrow, he said, "Internet."

"Just how much time have you been spending on my computer?" she asked wryly.

"A lot. I don't need as much sleep as you do, so I've been trying to research at night. It gives me something to do that isn't too noisy."

She blinked at him. "That's really thoughtful. Thank you."

"Why do you sound so surprised?" he asked with a frown.

She shrugged. "You told me so yourself that you're really only obligated to fulfill your half of the contract, which means you don't have to be nice to me or anything."

Lucy was surprised when he gave her a rather hurt look. "Have I not been nice to you?"

"Of course you have. I'm just…" She glanced around to make sure no one was close before continuing. "Look. You're a demon, and in my world, despite them not being real-" she held her hands up as he rolled his eyes, "- to most people, the lore surrounding them isn't pretty. Plus, from what you've told me about demons, they don't sound particularly nice."

"Most of them aren't," he agreed brusquely, "but I'm half dragon. I was raised by a dragon, and while they don't generally like other beings, I was still raised to be polite. Plus, I like you," he said with a shrug as he paused to stand in front of her. "You're nice, nicer than a lot of humans I've interacted with. You've known since the first night that you could send Happy back and you haven't, despite the fact that it would probably be easier on you to not have two demons in your home.

"Even after he destroyed your kitchen, the only thing you did was ask that we clean up the mess. Most humans would have sent him back by now. While I appreciate it, I really don't understand why you bother."

She tilted her head as she considered him. Just as he was beginning to grow uncomfortable under her scrutiny, she finally spoke again. "You said something about demons liking to exploit loopholes in their contracts, which makes me think that they're generally good at plugging any on their end of one." She paused again to study him, making him fidgety. "I get the feeling you didn't try very hard with ours. Why?"

Before he could answer, the side door of the bar was flung open and Levy called Lucy's name. "You guys coming back or what? Cana's getting some ideas in her head you probably don't want there."

Lucy groaned as she stood, glancing at him as she started to walk back. "You okay to go back inside?"

He studied her a moment, his eyebrows drawn together as he stared at her with a mixture of concern and confusion. "Yeah, I can probably handle another hour or so."

"Good. The band should be done after a few more songs and then I'll be able to visit with Gray again before we leave. Come on," she said tugging on the sleeve of his shirt. As they headed back, she looked over her shoulder with a small smile. "Thanks, by the way."

"For what?" he asked, confused again. He was beginning to wonder if that would be a permanent state for him for a while.

"For trusting me." He didn't say anything as he followed her back into the overheated building.

Was that what had happened? Was that the reason he hadn't worded his conditions better? He hadn't thought about the contract much since they'd made it, but she was right. He hadn't been as thorough with his terms as he usually was. With just a cursory thought, he could easily find several loopholes that he usually would have filled in. Had he somehow managed to trust Lucy, after knowing her for so short a time, that he'd been so sloppy with his end of the deal?

No. Natsu shrugged the thoughts off. He'd been a fool, yes, but it had been because he was so desperate to leave his realm. Leaving his conditions more open had created an opportunity for her to leave hers looser as well, so he could use them to his advantage later if he must. However, as he watched Lucy follow Levy back to the table, he had a strong feeling that wouldn't be necessary.

"Where did you two wander off to?" Cana asked with a grin when they returned.

"Just getting some air," Lucy said, taking the seat next to Levy. She looked towards the band, picking out the new member easily. "So, is the new guy any good?"

"Really good," Cana answered when Levy didn't acknowledge her question. "I think he's distracting her," she told Lucy in a stage whisper. When Levy continued to not listen, both women laughed, finally startling the smaller woman.

"What are you two laughing at?"

"You, I think," Natsu answered for them.

Levy glared at her friends, making them laugh harder. "Why are you two laughing at me?!"

"She's turning red," Cana said.

"You're right." Lucy tipped her head as she studied the blush on Levy's cheeks. "I think she knows exactly why we're laughing."

"He is attractive, in a rugged, kinda scary way," Cana acknowledged as she looked at the stage.

"What?" Levy's entire face reddened at her words. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh," Natsu suddenly shouted, earning glares from a few people sitting nearby. "I get it! You think she has romantic feelings for the new guy, right?"

Levy covered her face with her hands as she groaned, and Cana burst out laughing, earning their table more glares. Lucy smiled, but leaned his way, explaining why he was both right and wrong.

Levy continued to whine at Cana to leave her alone until the band finally finished their set and Gray made his way towards their table, where Juvia had conveniently returned in time. The blue haired woman watched him like a hawk as he weaved through the crowd with ease until he stopped at their table. "Hey guys. Didn't expect to see you here," he said, sarcasm heavy in his tone as he slid into the empty space at their table.

The girls all greeted him as Natsu gave him a suspicious look. "Aren't there rules about wearing shirts in public?" he asked.

Gray glanced down at himself, blushing as he rubbed his chest. "Yeah, well, it got warm on stage." Glaring back, he asked, "Who the hell are you?"

"Friend of Lucy's."

Lucy interrupted before they could start bickering. "Gray, this is Natsu. Natsu, Gray. He's an old friend of mine. He's in town visiting so you'll probably see him around a lot in the near future."

"Huh. Whatever." He turned away as Natsu continued to watch him. "So, what did you guys think of the new guy?"

Lucy and Cana both gave Levy wide grins, making the smaller woman glare in response. "He was… interesting."

Lucy smirked at Cana's assessment. "Yeah, he was… intriguing."

"Guys…" Levy put her face in her hands as she whined. "Please stop."

Natsu snickered, causing Gray to make a face. Lucy smiled at him, taking pity on her poor friend. "He was good, Gray. I think he was a good choice, even if he doesn't quite fit the aesthetic."

Gray shrugged. "We don't really have an aesthetic, so it's fine. Lyon was the one that found him, and even though he and Jet seem to have some issues to work out, it's working so far."

"Glad to hear it," Lucy said. "Does that mean you guys will be playing here more often, now that you have a guitarist again?" Gray could play guitar as well, but he'd informed them that he preferred to focus on one or the other on stage.

"Juvia, what did you think?" Cana interrupted, looking around Lucy at their silently staring friend.

When Gray gave her a small smile, she practically melted into a puddle as her eyes widened, cheeks becoming even more red. "Well, uh, he was fine. I liked him." Her eyes widened even more. "Not that Juvia likes him like that! I only meant that he played really well- not that Gray doesn't! I mean, not that Juvia's heard him play, but I'm sure you're great!" She gaped at them for a moment before excusing herself.

Gray blinked a few times before giving the laughing Cana a frown. "What was that about?"

"Nothing," Lucy said, shooting Natsu a warning look. "Don't mind her. What's the new guy's name?"

The answer came in the form of a rough voice just behind her and Levy. "Gajeel, Blondie. Don't you forget it."

Levy and Lucy both jumped as Cana spit out some of her drink. Gray smiled a little, but said, "You probably shouldn't walk around scaring people like that."

Gajeel barked out a laugh as he put an elbow on each Levy and Lucy's heads. "Where's the fun in that?" Lucy moved his arm off her, but Levy couldn't seem to shake him off as he put more weight on her. "You friends with Blondie and the Shrimp?" He glanced at Cana who was smiling at Levy. "And the drunk?"

Cana grinned at him. "You're just jealous you can't keep up."

The piercings on his face glinted in the light as his grin widened. "Don't tempt me, lady."

Gray sighed loudly, "Gajeel, can you just be nice? Get off Levy." When he finally lifted his weight off the petite female, she turned in her seat to kick him in the shin, making him grunt. "Serves you right," Gray said when Gajeel cussed. "I met these guys a few weeks ago. They were the first to welcome me to the town and offer help if I needed it."

"We could help you out, too, if you need it," Lucy offered, despite the glare Levy gave her.

"Well I'm not helping him," Levy said, fixing her headband. "Not if he's going to be a dink."

Gajeel looked surprised. "Did you just call me a dink?"

Levy stuck her nose in the air as she looked at Lucy while Gray laughed. "Are we still doing dinner tomorrow?"

"Who the hell calls someone a dink?" Gajeel asked, still being ignored.

"Absolutely," Lucy answered, glancing at Natsu. "Perhaps I can convince Natsu to cook for us. He's trying to practice."

Natsu stopped watching the men for a moment as he looked at her. "What's happening tomorrow?"

"Hey, I'm still talking here," Gajeel said. Gray sighed as he stood and gestured for the other man to join him, then headed for the stage after waving to the others.

Cana smirked at the pierced man as she answered Natsu. "At least once a month the women folk get together at Lucy's place for dinner and girl talk."

Natsu wrinkled his nose. "I don't think I'd enjoy that."

Gajeel growled as he finally stalked away towards the stage. Natsu watched him as Lucy assured him he didn't need to join them for the conversation. "However, if you're serious about your cooking, you could make something for us and you'd get more opinions about how to improve. I'm not very picky, and while Cana isn't either, except for alcohol, I think Levy would be able to give you some good feedback, as well as Juvia."

He smiled as he regarded the trio in front of him. "I suppose I can do that." Suddenly, he sprang to his feet. "Can we go now? I need to look up new recipes to try."

"Sure," Lucy answered, draining her glass. "Just let me say goodbye… wait a minute," she looked around. "Where did Loke go?"

Cana jerked a thumb over her shoulder. "Bar. Hitting on someone."

Lucy sighed as she saw Loke leaning against the bar next to a woman with pink hair. "He's never going to learn is he?"

Cana shrugged. "Who knows. Go ahead, I'll let him know you said goodbye."

"Thanks." Lucy looked up at the stage in time to catch Gray's attention and wave a goodbye to him as well. "I'll see you guys tomorrow. Have a good night."

As she waved to them, Natsu led the way out of the bar, easily making a path for them through the crowd of bodies. Before they made it to the door, an older man with a pipe bumped into her, nearly knocking her into a table. He apologized to Lucy as he caught her arm to steady her, but quickly left without saying anything else as Natsu gave him a dark look.

Lucy squinted at her companion as they left and started walking towards her apartment. Natsu had been nothing but friendly to her girlfriends, but the longer she thought about it, the more she realized he'd been more skeptical about the men who had been around her, especially the man who had bumped her.

"Natsu," she said, once they were away from the crowd and walking along the empty sidewalk. "Are you okay?"

He cocked a brow at her. "Of course. Why do you ask?"

"You just seemed… I don't know. I got the feeling that you weren't feeling exactly friendly towards Gray and Gajeel, or that man that bumped into me before we left. You were okay with Loke when you first met him, and you didn't seem to have a problem with Cana, Levy or Juvia."

He seemed to mull over his answer before he spoke. "It's kind of a dragon thing. I got a bit of the residual feelings you have for your friends when I first read you, and when I did it tonight. You've known them for a while and you trust them, so I don't feel like I need to worry where they're concerned.

"Gray and Gajeel are new, so there's no way to know yet if they're trustworthy. Plus, they're males, and in my realm, the males can be particularly cruel, so we tend to be protective of the females. I doubt I'll be able to feel comfortable around them for a while, at least until I'm sure they're safe for you to be around on your own."

"Sounds like you're being awfully protective for a demon."

He shrugged. "Like I said, it's the dragon half of me. We're very cautious when it comes to those we care about or are in charge of." Lucy felt strangely warm at his words, but before she could figure out what emotion exactly she was feeling, Natsu gave her a big grin. "Plus, if you die, I'll get sent back home and I'm not ready to go back yet."

Not sure how to respond, Lucy didn't say anything else as they walked home.


Edited 6/12/20