I honestly don't know how long it's been. Little man is in the middle of a clingy phase and feels the need to help me anytime I have my laptop out so it's been slow going for me.
As always, thanks for the love and happy reading!
"Okay, so I have a question." Lucy paused, fork inches from her mouth. "Well, actually, I have a couple questions."
Natsu didn't respond, merely gestured at her to continue as he continued to eat his ribs. Lucy was glad to see that he was remembering to leave his bones behind this time. "This might not be the best time to bring it up, but I'll forget if I don't ask now. Do you get sick in all forms of transportation?"
Natsu froze as his face paled. He audibly choked down the last of the food in his mouth, hand held in front of his face as he tried not to gag. "Is now really when you," he gagged, "you need to know?"
"No, but I've been curious, and I keep forgetting to ask. Do you know that there are medicines you could try that help people with motion sickness? Have you tried them?"
As he continued to focus on the table, Natsu had to swallow several times before he could speak again. "I did not know, but they are made for humans and probably wouldn't work for me. No, I have not tried them."
Lucy cocked her head. "Even the thought of transportation makes you sick, right?" He nodded, both hands now held in front of his mouth. "Just one more question then. How were you able to use the car piece when we played Monopoly?"
Natsu took a drink of his water as he worked on settling his stomach. Lucy ate three more bites before he spoke again, his face not nearly as pale as it had been. "I've never ridden in a car before. Since I have no experience with them, I don't have the same negative association as I do with carriages and planes. And bikes. Ugh, bikes…" Natsu laid his head down on the table, groaning quietly. "Can we change the subject now? Please?"
"Sure, sorry, I was just really curious." She chewed another bite of her pasta, waiting for him to resume eating so she knew he was okay, before speaking again. "Wanna talk about what happened with Happy this morning?"
Natsu cleaned the meat off another rib, using the action to stall as he tried to figure out what to say. His interaction with the Exceed had been on his mind most of the day.
"I still don't understand, little buddy."
Happy continued to clean up his corner of the room as he answered. "I just don't want to go on this trip. I'm going to ask Lucy to send me home so I can spend time with Carla and Wendy. You guys can summon me back here again once you're back."
Natsu frowned. "You've already said that, and it's not the part that I'm confused about. Just last month you were crying to Carla about all the traveling you were going to miss out on if Lucy sent you back and now you're telling me that you're going to ask Lucy to send you back right before our trip. What's the deal?"
The Exceed shrugged. "I just don't want to go along."
"I don't believe that for a second." Natsu stopped Happy as he tried to fly past him out of the room. "Happy, you've been acting weird lately, and I want to know what's going on."
Happy crossed his arms as he floated in front of Natsu. After a little while, he finally said, "I think it would be better for you and Lucy to go alone."
"Why?"
"I just think it'll be better for you."
"Happy, does this have something to do with what happened with Erza?"
The Exceed expression didn't change, but Natsu could feel the change in the air. "No," Happy said. "I've just been away from Carla longer than I like."
Natsu watched Happy for a while before he eventually sighed. "I can tell you're lying, Happy. I don't know why, but if you don't want to tell me, I won't make you. I just wish you would be honest with me."
"Like you were with Erza when you said you wouldn't share your scarf with Lucy anymore?"
Natsu froze. His eyes flickered away from Happy as his cheeks heated. "I thought you were sleeping."
"I heard the door close when you left." Happy frowned. "I'm worried about you."
"And yet, you're leaving me alone with her," Natsu countered. "Why are you running away if you're so worried?" Before Happy could respond, the half dragon spoke again. "For the record, the problem was that I was leaving my scarf with Lucy all night and going without it. I stayed in her room last night and kept part of it wrapped around my wrist. I'm not going to go berserk again, so there's no need to go tattling to Erza. I know what I'm doing."
"But Natsu-"
"But nothing." Natsu turned away, annoyed. "Go talk to Lucy. We'll be leaving soon, and if you're going to go home, you should do it before we leave for the airport." He didn't turn back and he didn't respond as Happy said goodbye and shut the door behind him.
Natsu swallowed. "I don't know, Happy said he missed Carla. It was his choice to miss out on the trip to go visit her. I'm not sure what you want me to say about it."
"You just seemed upset. I thought maybe there had been more to it than what you told me." Lucy took a sip of her drink. "Not that you have to tell me if there is. It's just odd to see you so unhappy."
Natsu smiled. "It's nothing, really. My stomach is just still working on settling down. I'll be fine."
"Alright." They continued their meal in silence. Occasionally the waiter would stop to ask if they needed anything, but other than that, neither spoke. Lucy watched Natsu as he continued to stare down at his food, a neutral expression on his face. Lucy remained quiet, allowing him to sort through whatever thoughts he needed to as she looked around them.
The flight had been fairly painless, outside of Natsu's motion sickness. They'd had the three seats to themselves, since Happy didn't join them, so she'd let Natsu stretch out a little between them as he worked on keeping his stomach under control. The hotel he'd chosen for them had been beautiful. Halfway up the mountain and overlooking a cliff, it had incredible views from the east side of the building. Each room had large glass doors that opened up onto a beautiful balcony. From out there, it was easy to see multiple mountaintops and slopes of the closest mountains.
Her favorite part by far, and the part specially chosen for her, Natsu claimed, was the bathroom. One wall was entirely dominated by crystal clear glass, with a tub large enough to seat four adults. It was situated against the glass wall, allowing for a spectacular view of the outside while taking a bath. She knew the curtains were currently drawn, but she had every intention of opening them up and taking a nice long soak once they returned to the room, so she could watch the colors from the sunset paint the mountainside.
Natsu's sigh broke Lucy out of her thoughts. She looked up in time to see him give her an apologetic look before looking away again. "I'm sorry. I'm being a downer, aren't I?"
Lucy shook her head. "You're obviously worried about Happy, and I can understand that. I just feel bad that I don't know how to help make you feel better. Some friend I am."
Natsu gave her a small smile. "I've seen you with your friends. You're a great friend. Just because you don't know how to make a demon of all beings feel better doesn't mean you aren't."
Lucy frowned. "Well I don't feel like I am right now. Is there anything I can do? We could go up to our room and I could summon him again, if you wanna talk to him."
"Nah, leave him be," Natsu said. "I don't want to interfere with his time with Carla. I can wait. Thanks though."
The waiter arrived with dessert menus before Lucy could respond. He went through the specials as they looked. After giving the waiter their choices, he left with a smile. "So, I assume we're waiting until tomorrow to go skiing, correct?"
"I thought that would be best. It'll give us a chance to relax tonight." Natsu rubbed at his neck, a blush spreading across his nose. "I, uh, also have a little more research I need to do before we go."
Lucy cocked her head, intrigued by the bashful look on his face. "What about?" she asked.
"It's nothing really. I just, uh, haven't…" He mumbled under his breath as he avoided her gaze.
"What was that?"
He sighed. "I haven't figured out how to ski yet."
To Natsu's surprise, Lucy burst out laughing. Quickly, she folded her hands over her mouth to stifle the noises coming out of her, but they only muffled her laughter slightly. He watched as her eyes watered and her face and neck flushed from her mirth. His stomach stirred a little as he met her eyes, the color lighter than he'd ever seen it before.
When she finally calmed down, shortly after the waiter dropped off their treats, she took several deep breaths, avoiding looking at him until she was sure she had herself under control. "Let me get this straight." Lucy put a fist in front of her mouth as she caught his gaze once more. A laugh pushed its way past her lips, but she stopped the others that tried to follow. "You decided to go skiing." Her eyes closed as her shoulders shook. Her breathing became audible as she forced more laughter back. "But you have no idea how to ski?"
Natsu nodded. He was smiling slightly, unable to remain unaffected in the face of so much joy.
Lucy covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes bright as she let out a breath. "Oh my sweet summer child. How would you survive in this world without me?"
"Excuse me, but I'm the whole reason you're on this trip. Give me some credit." He finally took a bite of his desert, moaning as the flavors hit his tongue. "This stuff is a amazing. I don't remember what I got, but I have to have it again before we leave."
"I think that was the molten chocolate lava cake." Lucy took a bit of her creme brulee and hummed her own appreciation. "Don't forget to get some of the ice cream with your bite."
He did as she said, sliding back in his seat as he threw his hands up. "You humans have no idea how lucky you are. There is nothing like this in the demon realms."
"You wanna try mine?" she asked. Natsu eyed her dessert before nodding. As she readied her fork, he took a drink of his water to clear his taste buds. When she finally held out his bite, he carefully took the food in his teeth without slobbering all over the utensil. He wasn't sure what cooties she thought he had, but she'd been nice enough to inform him that swapping spit was not something done between people who were not in relationships. Although, the deal they had was a type of relationship, so her explanation still confused him.
Suddenly he didn't care about his mental state as the taste on his tongue robbed his brain of all thought. Her desert was spectacular. He moaned as he slid farther into his seat. "Can I just take one of you home with me?" he asked. "Just one human, that's all I want. One that can cook. Is that too much to ask for?"
Lucy was staring at him blankly, her eyes unfocused and lips parted as her fork remained hovering over plate. Even his exceptional hearing could not decipher the noise that came out of her mouth as she slowly came back to herself. When her eyes finally focused back onto his, her face reddened and she cleared her throat. "I- I'm glad you liked it." She lowered her eyes to her desert and began to eat it in earnest.
"Do you want some of mine?" he asked as he pointed at his plate with his spoon. "It would be fair, since I tried yours."
Her face darkened even more as she quickly shook her head. "No, that's fine. I'm fine. You can finish yours, I'm alright."
Natsu frowned. "Are you okay?"
"Perfect!" She smiled at him as she took another bite.
"Alright, you just seem a little… weird."
"It's nothing. Nothing at all." Lucy quickly swallowed. "So, uh, is that something that your kind do? Bring humans to your world?"
Natsu became thoughtful as he chewed his food. "Not really. There are no rules against bringing them over there, but I don't know that I've ever heard of a demon doing so before. Not like any of you could last long over there. It gets really hot, too hot for a human's body to handle."
"Is that why dragons are over there?"
"Not all dragons like the hot climate. Some just like to visit because they can get things down there that they can't get in this world."
Lucy cocked her head. "Like what?"
"Well, uh…" Natsu glanced up at Lucy and then away as he stuttered a little. "Well, dragons are, uh, rather large, and, uh, secretive, and you know, can't be around humans. So when they, uh, need, well, help with, uh, you know…" He gestured vaguely. "Certain things, they go to the demon realm. Demons can shift their size to a certain degree, so they can be good partners, when a dragon can't find another of their species when they, you know, need one."
Even though the explanation did nothing to ease Lucy's confusion, the fact that Natsu's cheeks were the same color as his hair filled the answer well enough for her. "Oh. Gotcha." She cleared her throat before continuing with her food. More questions surfaced as they cleared their plates. She tried to forget about them as they both worked on ignoring the tension that had sprouted up between them, but they refused to be silenced.
After Natsu returned from speaking with the waiter and began leading her from the restaurant, she spoke again, her curiosity refusing to be squashed. "So is that only a dragon thing, or do demons go through it, too? And are demon-dragons the only hybrids that are made?"
"Are you asking for a lesson on dragon and demon sex?" he asked, a grin on his face despite the color topping his cheeks.
"No, not really. Just curious about the possible hybrids."
Natsu sighed as they stopped in the line at the elevator. After looking around, he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the stairs. Alone in the staircase, he began to answer her. "Demons will do it with just about anyone that's willing, while dragons have to be picky because of their size. Generally, they'll only mate with demons when they're sure they won't produce any offspring. A dragon in heat can usually only be sated by mating, so sometimes, if they're not careful, they could end up not preparing properly and be forced to lay with a demon anyway."
"Animals that go into heat in our world mate to produce offspring. Even women sometimes, well, do something similar when they're ovulating. Is is different for demons and dragons?"
"They're both a little different. Male dragons and demons respond to a female's heat, but they can choose how they satisfy the female. Male dragons are able to satisfy a female demon without impregnating them, but when they satisfy a female dragon, they can't hold back from creating a young. The same works in reverse for demon males.
"And then sometimes, for both male dragons and demons, they can enter a heat if they've gone too long without mating. In that kind of heat, they would impregnate any being they slept with that was fertile. They can't hold back while in heat, and they're generally pretty brutal. Our bodies aren't meant to go so long without that kind of activity." Natsu waved his hand. "I say so long, but in human years, we can go quite a long time. Dragons are only fertile about every ten human years, and the males could go several cycles without having to satisfy that urge before they have to worry. Plus, that whole cycle changes for dragons once they're mated."
Lucy swallowed. "So it really is only dragons and demons in your world?"
"Oh no, there are many other magical races that come through, but they don't have the same kinds of biological needs that we do. And demon-dragon hybrids aren't the only kinds made, but they're the only kinds that generally live very long. The other races refuse to have any contact of that sort with demons, and while many of them would be open to that kind of union with dragons, they're just physically unable to."
Lucy went over that information as she followed him down the hall towards their room. He popped his card into the door and held it open for her. She thanked him as she entered before him, sitting on her bed as Natsu closed the door behind him and then moved to sit on his own bed. "Do you have any more questions? About that or anything else in my world?"
"Many," she said with a small smile, "but only one before I want to go take advantage of that tub."
Natsu grinned. "Then ask away."
"Well, you have a humanoid form, so obviously you don't have the same restrictions as most demons and dragons. Do you… have you… how does that sort of thing work for you? Would you be able to, you know," she said, blush burning in her cheeks, "satisfy your… urges with someone that wasn't a demon or dragon?"
"I suppose so. I'm actually a little weird since I'm both demon and dragon. I'm not sure if I'm broken or not, but I've never actually gone through a heat. I've never been interested in that kind of thing at all, to be honest."
"Oh." Her tone was strange as she answered, so Natsu leaned forward to read Lucy's expression, but her face was completely neutral as she focused outside the window. Before he could say anything else, she turned and smiled up at him. "Well, since you were nice enough to get that big tub for me, I think I should go take advantage of it."
"Sounds good," he said. "I'll stay out here." Natsu rubbed his head where he'd learned the first time she'd had a bath around him that it was not okay to bother her while she was in the tub. "Holler if you need me."
Lucy laughed lightly but she looked vaguely uncomfortable as she turned away. "Just stay out here, you perv. I'll be okay." Once she closed the door, Natsu raised his hands and created a barrier around the doorway that would alert him if she took a step out of the room. Once he was done, he searched the room for her phone. Grabbing it, he went out onto the balcony to make a call.
