The Training Bet

Chapter 1

Natsu really hated it when Lucy asked him to spar with her.

Well, that wasn't quite true. Hate was too strong a word.

It was more like...the idea made him uncomfortable. For various reasons.

First of which, was his worry that he'd get caught up in the heat of the moment, lose control, and injure her. Combat always hyped him up, and everyone in Fairy Tail knew the fire mage's destructive tendencies tended to flare during the heat of battle. The fear that he might fail to restrain himself at a crucial moment and accidentally hurt the most important person in his life just didn't sit right with Natsu. He usually tried to redirect his girlfriend's thoughts to other things on the rare occasions she brought up the idea.

Like that time they'd gone to Marguerite City looking for Wendy, who'd temporarily joined Lamia Scale. Along the way, the Dragon Slayer had yearned for a fight with roving bandits, or even a wandering monster attack—anything he could pummel into the ground to show off the results of his training from the year he'd spent apart from the guild. He'd itched for a good, ol' rip-roarin' brawl—like he used to have with Gray or Gajeel—but he and Lucy hadn't found them yet. Natsu really wanted to blow off some steam by pounding on someone he knew was durable enough to handle him. Both to expel excess energy from his joy at finding Lucy in Crocus—and maybe ease that pang he felt in his chest whenever he looked at her—but also to work off his confusion and anger at discovering Fairy Tail had disbanded in his absence.

Jokingly, he'd even asked Lucy to fight him, knowing she'd refuse.

Not that she was weak. Never that.

She'd saved them all with her celestial magic too many times for Natsu to think she was anything less than one of the strongest, bravest people he knew. But Lucy didn't enjoy testing her mettle through combat the same way he did. She was far more likely to try diplomacy to resolve conflicts first. But if she had to fight, he knew the celestial mage could certainly do so. Her overall style was more strategic, as she aimed to use her spirits to their best advantage—whether it be for support or battle—as she fought alongside them. She wasn't a brawler by nature like him, or Gray, or even Erza.

So he'd been taken aback when she'd suddenly agreed to spar with him! She'd been training, too, she'd told him, although Lucy readily admitted she wouldn't be able to handle him if he went all out. Her response had shocked the Dragon Slayer and left him with a dilemma, because he knew he wasn't good at holding back, and there was no way in hell he was gonna risk injuring his beautiful partner, especially since he'd just found her again!

So instead, he'd distracted the celestial mage with the timely rescue of a merchant whose wagon had been hijacked by bandits. Just for fun, he'd sent the narrow spiral of flame shooting right between her legs, under her short, white skirt, down the length of the path to knock the three bandits, one-by-one, off of the wagon. She'd shrieked and yelled at him for his brashness, but he'd successfully evaded the topic, which was his main goal anyway, so he'd been satisfied.

A few weeks later, after they'd reformed Fairy Tail in Magnolia, he and Happy had crashed her apartment like they usually did. Lucy'd been in the bath, and when she emerged, wrapped only in a fluffy, pink towel that barely covered her curves, she'd screeched at him for invading her privacy and tried to Lucy-kick him in the face!

It was a nice try, honestly. He knew to be wary of her Lucy-kicks—they hurt like hell when they connected—but he was prepared and caught her foot easily. He'd held her towel-wrapped body upside-down in front of him, suspended by the ankle, as she wriggled and shrieked at him to put her down. He'd laughingly told her she needed way more training to take him on, but then her towel had unraveled, leaving her stark naked and dangling in his grasp! Shocked and blushing—he'd never seen her naked from that angle before and was highly curious—he'd held her just a little too long, staring, until she'd gotten a surge of strength borne of embarrassment and violently forced him to let go.

Grimacing in remembered pain, Natsu rubbed his stomach. The furious blonde's Lucy-punch hurt almost as much as her feared Lucy-kick! He chuckled inwardly. She sure was a firecracker when she wanted to be, his Luce.

These days, with her celestial Star Dresses augmenting her abilities, it wasn't that Natsu worried so much about Lucy holding her own in a sparring contest with him—he knew she could, at least if he wasn't going all out and using his Dragon Slayer magic. It was more that he'd rather be doing other things with her when they had that much close physical contact. Especially in those sexy outfits she wore.

In short, he found her hella distracting.

And that was his second concern. Fighting brought out a lot of primal emotions in Natsu, and while he had no qualms at all about pounding the shit out of Gray or Gajeel—or even Erza, who'd flattened him on more than one occasion—he wasn't entirely sure how those same emotions would translate in combat with Lucy. He'd never want to hurt her, or do anything to her that she didn't want, if he got too into the battle, so he tended to avoid the subject on general principles.

But now, he found himself stuck. He'd lost at poker to the crafty celestial mage, and he couldn't immediately think of a way to duck his "punishment" without welching on the bet they'd made. And that, he didn't want to do.

No gettin' out of it this time, Natsu thought uncomfortably.

When they'd agreed to set the stakes of the game as doing one thing the other person wanted for each of the next three days, the fire mage hadn't given it a second thought. One, because he didn't plan to lose, and two, he figured that on the outside chance he somehow lost, Lucy'd just make him take her shopping or something boring like that. She'd been drooling over the new Heart Kreuz clothing line she'd seen in one of the stores in town for the last week or so.

Oh, how wrong he'd been.

"So, Natsu..." she'd given him a smug look as she'd laid her cards down above his diamond flush. "Guess this means you'll be doing whatever I say, starting tomorrow."

"A full house?! Damn it! Of all the luck..." He pouted. "All right, a bet's a bet. So whaddya want? You gonna drag me to that clothing store ya like so much? Or..." he leaned in close to her and murmured, "maybe you want something a little more...personal?"

Her smile had grown wider. "While those are both fantastic ideas—especially the second one," she purred, "I'll save them for another time. What I'd really like, is for you to spar with me. Just to help me train a little." When he gaped at her, she added, "It's only fair, since you're bound and determined to drag us all off on this crazy one hundred years' quest! I want to get some good practice switching my Star Dresses more quickly during combat."

"Aww...can't you ask Erza to train with you? She uses Requip magic to change armors all the time."

"Are you nuts?! I want to train, not die!" she huffed. "Erza doesn't know how to go easy on someone in a fight."

Natsu shuffled in his seat. "And you think I do? I dunno, Luce... When I get caught up in the moment, I go all out. You know that! You've yelled at me often enough over the years for getting too into it and wrecking everything in sight!"

She pooh-poohed him. "You and Gray fight all the time and manage not to kill each other or destroy the guildhall." She paused to think about that. "Well, mostly." She shook her head. "Anyway...the point is: you're clearly able to restrain yourself to some extent."

When he opened his mouth to object, she cut him off, "Or is the real reason you don't want to spar with me because you think I can't take it?" Her tone revealed her hurt.

Inwardly, he cringed. Shit!

"It's not that, Luce. Never that. I know you're strong..." The look on her face told him his words weren't having the effect he wanted. Sighing in defeat, he asked, "You really want this?"

She bit her lip. "Yeah."

"Okay." He nodded. "But we gotta have some ground rules, or I ain't doin' it."

"That seems reasonable." She thought about it. "How about you limit your fire magic to defensive spells only? And I won't use Aquarius's Star Dress."

"I can live with that. I'll try to keep my attacks to hand-to-hand stuff. You don't have to though. You wanna train, so you should try to use as many of your Star Forms as ya can. I can handle it."

"Sounds good to me. Tomorrow then? Maybe after lunch? Where should we do it?"

"How 'bout in the woods behind my house. No one lives nearby, so we should be able to go all out." Seeing her arched eyebrow, he amended, "Or as 'all out' as I can get without setting things on fire, I mean."

Leaning across the small table, she hooked slender fingers into his scarf, dragging him closer to smile against his lips. "You can go 'all out' right now and 'set some things on fire' if you want."

He grinned, cupping her face in his palms as he nibbled on her lower lip.

"Sounds good to me. I'm all fired up!"

XXX

Standing across the clearing from Natsu, Lucy considered her opening move. She'd been pleasantly surprised he'd agreed to spar with her. She'd been afraid she'd have to resort to serious arm-twisting to get him to do it. The brief look of alarm that had crossed his face when she'd feigned hurt at his initial reluctance made her feel slightly guilty, but not enough to let him out of their agreement.

She knew Natsu worried about accidentally hurting her, so she'd do her best to make absolutely certain that didn't happen! She also knew the fire mage didn't really expect her to challenge him in a physical contest. He'd probably treat this as just another game—one he was sure to win. She couldn't deny that he was probably right about that, but still...she wanted to make him work for it a little at least! She figured he'd be expecting her to come at him, head-on, with all the might of Taurus's Star Dress behind her.

And she would. Eventually.

But first, the celestial mage wanted to catch him off guard if she could. A slow smile crept over her lips as she called out to him.

"Natsu...wanna make another bet?" she asked him cheekily.

He observed her keenly, hand on one hip as he scratched his abdomen. "Sure ya wanna do that, Luce? I'm only gonna hold back so much, ya know."

"Whoever yields first has to do one thing the other one wants each night," she proposed. "It'll make things more fun!"

Natsu chuckled, considering. "Okay. But just so ya know...I'm definitely not gonna lose!"

"We'll see about that!" Her brown eyes gleamed as she held up a key.

"Star Dress—Leo Form!"

As her white miniskirt and blue halter top disappeared, replaced by the black, strapless evening gown of the leader of the Zodiac, Natsu whistled.

"Whippin' out the big guns already? I'm gettin' all fired up!"

He didn't have a chance to say more. The elegantly coiffed blonde's right fist, suffused with golden light, punched out towards him, releasing a powerful blast of magic. The resulting explosion struck the ground right where he'd been standing. The Dragon Slayer leaped toward the forest's edge to avoid it, then found himself dodging continuous bursts of yellow as Lucy tracked his movements along the tree line. Wood cracked and shattered with the blows, splinters just missing the fire mage.

"Nice shots, Luce!" he called, weaving in and out of the foliage. "But not good enough!"

Not bothering to answer him, she shouted, "Star Dress—Cancer Form!"

Summoning a pale blue and white tunic over black, thigh-high leggings, Lucy whipped out the red-hilted twinblades that came with her speedier form. She sprang at Natsu just as he emerged from the trees. He ducked as one of the razor-sharp blades whistled past his head, close enough to trim the tips of his pink locks.

"Hey! Ya tryna kill me?! That was close!"

Spinning with the momentum of her swing, the pigtailed celestial mage danced away from him, trailing arm bringing the other sword around in a wide arc to keep the fire mage from closing with her. If he managed to grab her, she'd be done for.

"Sorry!" She offered him a cheeky smile. "I didn't want you to get bored!" She could tell by his voice and the feral grin on his face that he wasn't angry.

"No chance of that!" he declared, diving forward suddenly. If only he could get inside her guard...

Sensing his intention, Lucy backpedaled quickly, bringing up one of her swords to ward him off. With a wicked grin, he raised his body temperature and stretched out a hand to catch the edge of the blade in his palm. Before she could pull it away, a burst of flame melted the blade into metallic goo that dripped onto the forest floor, useless.

Shit! "Hey, no fair!" she cried, dropping the damaged weapon. She retreated rapidly as he advanced on her.

"All's fair in battle, Lucy," he told her. "C'mon! Show me what else ya got."

Trying to calm her racing heart, the celestial mage shouted, "Star Dress—Capricorn Form!" If it's hand-to-hand he wants, let's see how he handles this!

Donning the sexy purple and black gown, the blonde instantly dropped beneath the wide, looping swing of the charging Dragon Slayer's arm to try to sweep his legs out from under him. The high slits in both sides of the dress allowed for freedom of movement, and the knee-high, black boots gave some oomph to her kick. Unfortunately, Natsu read her move perfectly and merely leaped over her, quickly spinning around to try to grapple the blonde.

Anticipating his action, she hurriedly pushed off the ground, diving into a forward hand spring, long braids flying as she gained distance. Turning to face him once more, she raised her hands in a defensive posture, awaiting his attack. His smile was wide in his face as he appraised her.

"Wow, Luce! Have I seen that Star Dress before?" He took in the black leather choker attached by a silvery chain to another strip of leather that crossed over the bodice of the strapless dress. As far as he could tell, it served no purpose other than to emphasize her already-voluptuous bust. "It's pretty hot. The goat, huh?" He nodded at the large goat horns that decorated her hair on either side of her head.

She thought his eyes flickered. Moss green at the start of their match, the Dragon Slayer's eyes were now a sharp, focused onyx. Unconsciously, he licked his lips and she smiled. It was playing dirty, but maybe she could use this...?

"Natsu..." her voice was as tempting as her smile, and no less dangerous. "Come here," she beckoned, defensive stance at the ready. If she made sure her shapely legs showed to great advantage from the high slits in Capricorn's gown, well, that was just using the "environment" to her benefit, right? He said it himself: all's fair in battle...

He looked her up and down, growling appreciatively, then charged. This time, he led with a left hook, trying to throw her off. Using the martial arts skills of her goat form, Lucy parried effortlessly, using the fire mage's own momentum to force him to travel past her. Before he could reorient himself, she spun and kicked him hard in the behind.

"Yeoww!" he shouted as he rocketed forward, landing in the dirt on his hands and knees.

"Don't take me so lightly!" she called to him, chuckling. "Capricorn's been training me!"

"I can see that," he said, gingerly rubbing his butt as he hopped to his feet. "I'm really gettin' fired up now!" He smacked a fist into his other palm, giving off a burst of flame. His eyes gleamed, and...was he...sniffing her?

She wasn't prepared for his sudden rush.

Ducking under her hastily erected guard, Natsu reached out to snag the chain above her breasts. Yanking the blonde forward roughly, he grinned and planted a hard kiss on her startled mouth before she brought both arms up, breaking his hold. Driving him back with a front kick to his chest—which he just managed to block with both forearms—she touched her lips with two fingers. She was blushing fiercely.

"You jerk! That's definitely not playing fair!"

His lips curved up in a wicked smile, fangs gleaming as he bounced from foot to foot like an over-eager puppy. "I told ya, Luce! I'm all fired up now! Ya better be ready!"

The look in his eyes spoke volumes. Lucy swallowed. She tried to ignore the fluttery feeling in her belly. If she wasn't careful, this training session would end quickly. Very quickly, indeed. She needed a way to keep him at bay.

"Star Dress—Taurus Form!"

As the cow-printed bikini top and armlets wrapped her upper body, she reached for the whip coiled at the side of her one-legged, black jeans.

"Earth Wave!" she shouted, snapping the leather whip into the ground as Natsu raced to close with her. The shockwave forced him to jump back or risk being knocked off his feet.

"Good one!" he called. "But ya missed me!"

Desperately, she lashed the air in front of her, again and again, trying to come up with a strategy—any strategy—to hold him back. Maybe Sagittarius's Star Dress? No, he'd just melt the arrows...

"C'mon, Luce! Gimme your best shot!" Natsu challenged, as he dodged yet another strike of her whip.

Thinking quickly, the celestial mage snapped her weapon sharply down at the earth. The ground rumbled as she unleashed another Earth Wave, but this time, as the fire mage leaped to avoid it, she dove forward, snapping her whip up to wrap around his forearm. With a mighty surge of strength, she heaved him over her head to land with a crash onto the ground behind her. As she rushed over to subdue him, Natsu righted himself and sat up, grabbing the whip still coiled around his wrist. Yanking on it powerfully with both hands, he jerked the celestial mage off her feet and she fell, landing on top of him. Hurriedly, she tried to exert the full might of Taurus's Star Dress to pin him, but couldn't get a proper hold before he snatched her wrist, tensed his abdominal muscles and abruptly flipped their positions.

Finding herself suddenly trapped flat on her back beneath the Dragon Slayer, Lucy scrabbled to push him off of her. He quickly caught her free arm in his other hand, forcing both to the ground beside her head. Breathing heavily, he stared down at her, his weight pinning her lower body in place. She thought his pupils looked slitted rather than round, although it was hard to tell—his eyes were so dark. Her heart was thundering in her chest; she was sure he could hear it!

"Do you yield?" he rasped out, fingers tightening on her wrists.

Heaving with effort, the blonde struggled underneath him. Even with Taurus's enhanced strength, she couldn't budge him at all. He's just too strong...

"I-I yield..." she whispered, as he pressed closer to her, inhaling deeply. The look on his face made her belly tighten in anticipation. Not to mention the feel of his very obvious erection pressing into her thigh.

"Lucy..." He breathed against her lips before claiming them.

The kiss was demanding. Forceful.

A declaration.

In that moment, it was everything she wanted.

When he broke away from her mouth, drifting down to nuzzle the flesh around her cowbell choker, she arched beneath him with a whine.

"Natsu..." She barely recognized her own voice.

He mouthed hungry kisses over her cleavage. "Tell me to stop." His voice was rough. Urgent. Like he was begging her.

Nosing aside the cow-spotted cup of her bikini top, he exposed a breast. A fang grazed her lightly before he closed his lips on her nipple and gave it a powerful suck.

"Ah...! Don't stop...!" she cried.

That was all he needed to hear.

Shifting his grip on her wrists, he pulled her arms above her head, pinning them with one of his own. His other hand roughly pushed her bikini top up to her throat, baring erect nipples to his avid gaze. His mouth descended with a vengeance, sucking, licking, and biting, as he fought to unbuckle her belt and get her out of her one-legged jeans as fast as possible. She writhed under him, shameless, core tingly and aching for his touch. There was just something about being at his mercy while he pleasured her that made Lucy lose all sense.

"Natsu!" she pleaded, wanting to feel him skin-to-skin.

Frustrated by his struggle to undress her one-handed, he released her suddenly and reared back on his haunches, just long enough to tug off the offending boots, pants, and underwear she wore. He shed his own clothing hastily, then returned to her, shoving the blonde's knees apart as he leaned over her.

"Kiss me," he growled, claiming her mouth again as his fingers sought her center.

Her hands, now freed, ran over his shoulders to tangle in his hair. She cried out, holding him to her as he plunged two fingers into her willing body, testing her readiness.

"Gods, Luce," he breathed against her lips, "you're so wet! I've barely touched ya..."

Impatiently, she bucked against his hand, whining into his mouth.

"Natsu...!"

"Yeah, yeah," he groaned, withdrawing his fingers and shifting until he hovered at her entrance. Eagerly, she raised her hips to meet him as he thrust strongly into her. He was too frenzied to be gentle, but at that moment, she didn't care. The wildness he could barely contain was twin to her own.

Powerful.

Primal.

A force of nature.

Their coupling was almost violent as she rolled her hips frantically against his forceful thrusts, the ground at her back hard and rough. Desperately, she clutched him as he leaned his weight onto an arm, snaking his right hand between their bodies to rub her clit with his thumb.

"That's it," he grunted. He could feel her rising urgency in the way her body clamped down around him. "Let go..." He hung his head, struggling to force back his own impending orgasm as he pounded into her fiercely.

Gasping and shuddering, she clawed at his back to pull him even closer. Heavy-lidded chocolate eyes sought his own and her fingers rose to grip his hair, pulling his face toward her.

"Natsu..." she moaned, crashing her lips against his, passionate and wild. He took the opportunity to invade her mouth, mimicking the motions of his body with his tongue. Her legs tightened around his hips, drawing him into her as deep as he could go. Just when she thought she couldn't take any more—that she would explode from sheer need and the wanting—he pulled on her hair, loosened from its dual bindings, exposing her throat. Tearing himself away from her mouth, he latched onto the flesh above her choker and bit down.

The simple, animalistic shock of it threw Lucy headlong into one of the strongest orgasms she'd ever experienced. Crying out, she bucked under him, almost sobbing as her climax ripped through her. Vaguely, she registered Natsu's own cry of ecstasy, as she dragged him over the edge with the violence of her release. Her core throbbed pleasantly for long seconds afterwards as she struggled to recover her breath. Gradually slowing to a shuddering halt, Natsu collapsed onto her chest with a groan. Still sheathed within her, he pillowed his face in the softness of her breasts. It was a long moment before he spoke.

"Did... Did I hurt you?" he asked quietly.

The worry she heard in his voice made her pause.

"No!" She hugged him tightly. "Why would you think that? You'd never hurt me. I wanted it. Wanted you."

Gently, he traced light fingertips over the red marks he'd left on her neck. Fortunately, he hadn't broken the skin with his bite, but Natsu knew he hadn't been completely in control of himself and easily could have. His thoughts flashed back to that awful time when he'd become E.N.D.

He'd thought she had died.

But Lucy had saved him. Her love had saved him.

He never, ever wanted to taste her blood in his mouth again if he could help it.

"Luce—" he began. She cut him off.

"Is this what you've been worried about, sparring with me? All this time?" She cradled his face in her hands as he stared at her. "Tell me."

Closing his eyes, he sighed, letting his cheeks sink into her palms. "Yeah," he admitted simply. "It's like...when I fight, I get so revved up, and half the time, I'm acting on instinct. I wanna do anything to just win. But with you...I dunno..." He took a moment to inhale, nuzzling her with his nose. "It's like my battle instincts are all screwed up. They're telling me to pursue. To dominate." He let out a breath. "To take." He shook his head. "It's powerful, Luce. I'm afraid of what I might do. That's why I've never wanted to risk it. Risk you."

Smiling softly, she caressed his face. "You didn't hurt me, Natsu. I promise. Honestly, I don't think your protective instincts would even allow it." She kissed him. "I trust you. With this. With my life. Always."

He stared at her, absorbing her words. Her brown eyes were warm and sincere. A tension he hadn't been aware he'd been holding onto suddenly eased.

"So...does that mean we don't have to do this anymore?" he asked hopefully.

She snorted. "Not a chance. You still owe me two more days of training. I haven't even gotten through half of my Star Dresses yet."

"But Luuuce..." he whined.

She stopped his complaints with a kiss. "I think we should practice this. You'll be more comfortable if you can control your instincts better. And besides," she chuckled as he withdrew and sat up, "even if you can't, I had fun today. So thanks."

He ran a hand through messy pink locks. "Heh. Don't blame me if you regret it."

Releasing her Star Dress—or what was left of it—Lucy regained her blue halter top and white miniskirt. Brushing herself off as she stood, she smiled down at him.

"I'll never regret you. And that's a promise. Now tell me, since you won our little match today, what shall I do for you tonight?"

He thought about it as he shrugged back into his clothing. He realized his back stung for some reason and he tried to get a look at it over his shoulder before donning his vest. Lucy noticed.

"Oops," she cringed, blushing. "Sorry about that. Looks like I got you pretty good with my nails." She looked at her fingertips. "Huh. They're not even that long. I'll cut and file them down again when we get back to your place. And I'll put some ointment on your back, too." She shrugged sheepishly. "I guess you're not the only one who can't control their baser instincts."

He laughed out loud at that, then took her hand.

"Make me that spicy spaghetti an' meatballs I like so much, 'kay?"

She looked at him. "Is that your wish for today?"

"Yeah. I feel like I'm gonna need to rest up and refuel for tomorrow."

She squeezed his hand. "I'm gonna win one of these, just you watch!"

"Not a chance, Luce," he told her. "Tomorrow, I'm gonna make you wear your maid Star Dress while you clean my room."

"You jerk! I'm definitely not losing then!"

Cackling at her indignation, he led her through the trees and back to his home.

XXX

Damn it! I lost again, Lucy thought as she tightened white, stocking-clad legs around Natsu's waist. His hands cupped her ass underneath the maid skirt of Virgo's Star Dress as he braced her up against the dresser, cock buried deep in her pussy. But with his mouth latched onto her breast and her fingers tensed in his hair, Lucy couldn't really bring herself to care.

She'd known beforehand that bending over to fold the clothes in her boyfriend's bottom dresser drawer just as he entered the room would lead to this. Had been waiting for it, actually. Ever since he'd pinned her underneath him, facedown and helpless, in the woods behind his house that afternoon, she'd known this would happen.

She'd tried to change things up for their match today, even using a special technique she'd been working on that mixed two of her Star Dresses into a more powerful form. She'd engaged him initially in Sagittarius's apple green Star Dress, but had been correct about arrows being ineffective against the Dragon Slayer. His flames just melted them before they got anywhere near him, allowing Natsu to ignore her attempts to shepherd him into one of the spica holes she'd dug with Virgo's Star Dress. He'd quickly closed with her, knocking her golden longbow aside and forcing the celestial mage to don Capricorn's form to fend him off temporarily.

From there, she'd quickly switched to Scorpio's red and black Star Dress leotard for some desperately needed agility to get away from him, but her reprieve had been short-lived. In a last ditch effort to catch him off guard, she'd used her new technique, Star Dress Mix, to combine the powers of two of her more powerful Star Dresses, Leo and Virgo.

The look on Natsu's face had been priceless.

With its low-cut bodice and tightly cinched waist, the black and white outfit had a short, frilly apron-and-miniskirt combo in the front, with a longer, ebony overskirt that fell to her knees in the back. Gold trim ran along the edges of the white, deep "V" neckline and added glittering accents to the skirt and thigh-high white stockings. An elaborate, golden necklace nestled between her breasts, and a white, ruffled head band with gold trim and a jeweled center decorated her hair. Although most of Lucy's blonde locks were pulled back and out of her face, the silky tresses were left to swing freely behind her. Slender, opalescent wings, as delicate as a fairy's, hovered at her shoulders.

As the power of the new form flowed through her, she'd inwardly smiled at the shell-shocked look of awe on her boyfriend's face. He'd been stricken utterly speechless for once.

That moment of distraction had allowed her to cast the powerful spell, Lion Maiden. Golden beams of light sprang up from the ground around Natsu, launching large rocks and clumps of earth into the air like missiles. Dimly, she'd heard him curse, but lost sight of him due to the haze of dust and dirt kicked up by the spell.

Suddenly, out of the cloud, a hand had reached for her. She'd barely managed to avoid his grab attack, shifting from her magic-draining Mixed form into Scorpio's more agile Star Dress. In the quick glance she'd taken before turning to run, she noted the bloody gash along his cheekbone and the dust in his hair.

Unfortunately for her, she'd only gotten a few paces away before his hand shot out to grasp the metal scorpion tail at the base of her spine, halting her forward momentum. He'd leapt on her from behind, forcefully tackling the celestial mage to the ground. Exhausted from using so much magic, she'd struggled briefly, but couldn't hold onto her Star Dress. His breath had been hot against the back of her neck as he'd pressed his body into hers, holding her down. His hands clasped her forearms to the earth.

"Do you yield?" he'd asked, mouth close to her ear as the short skirt and strapless crop top she'd worn that day reasserted itself over her form. His voice sounded unsteady to her ears. Instinctively, she'd squirmed in his grasp, making the fire mage groan.

"Stop moving," he growled raggedly.

She didn't know why, but hearing that tone in his voice had only made her want to move more. She'd tried to gain leverage with her legs, but only succeeded in pressing her ass more firmly against him. He let out a strangled groan, tightening his grip on her wrists.

"Yield, Lucy!" he demanded, urgent now.

The heat in his voice set off a throbbing low in her pelvis. He felt so warm against her back. She'd gasped out his name and squirmed again, feeling his hardness pressing into her. To shatter his control, she'd moaned, "Just take me already!"

His body involuntarily bucked into her and he rasped, "You're really askin' for it, ya know?" Letting go of her with his right hand, he'd stroked down her body, reaching under her short skirt to hook his fingers inside her panties. Ruthlessly, he'd yanked on the thin cotton, tearing them off of her and burning them up with a burst of flames.

"You want this?" The scent of her arousal washed over him and he panted harshly, struggling for control. Mouthing the flesh above her collarbone, he'd teased her clit with his fingers, prodding her entrance lightly.

"Ah...! Please...!" she begged shamelessly, wriggling under him in an attempt to elicit a firmer touch. Desperately, she'd raised her hips, widening her stance as he stroked over slick and willing flesh.

"Then yield," he growled against her throat.

Anxious to feel him possess her, she cried out, "Oh gods... I yield! I yield!"

"Good girl," he breathed, thrusting two fingers into her core, drawing a shuddering moan from his girlfriend's lips. Releasing her other arm to undo the fastenings of his pants, he sighed huskily, "You're gonna be the death of me, Luce, makin' me do these things to ya."

Leaning back, he'd withdrawn his fingers and used both hands on the blonde's hips to jerk her up to her knees. Flipping her short skirt out of the way, he'd plunged into her eagerly, the action pulling groans of pleasure from both of their throats.

He'd taken her hard and fast, fingers reaching around the curve of her hip to stimulate her needy clit. With his free hand, he'd gripped her ponytail, giving Lucy little room to maneuver as he plowed into her. The mewls she was making, and the sweet scent of her arousal slowly began to override his control. Trailing open-mouthed kisses over the smooth skin of her back, he'd tugged on the captured tresses hard enough to pull her head back, exposing the slender line of her throat.

Unable to resist, he'd bitten down on the soft flesh there, groans muffled against her skin as he came. She'd unraveled shortly after that, too affected to even cry out. Whimpering, she'd pulsed around him as she slowly sank to the ground, his fangs latched securely in her throat. Carefully, he'd released her, swiping a warm tongue over the marks he'd left in her skin. Despite their frenzied lovemaking, he hadn't drawn blood, thankfully.

Pulling out of his exhausted-but-satisfied girlfriend, he'd flopped down onto his back, then reached out and dragged her over to him, tucking her limp body into his side. She'd rested her head on his chest, content to simply let him hold her, there on the forest floor. They hadn't felt the need for words.

Eventually, they'd risen and walked, hand-in-hand, back to the house. After cleaning up, they'd eaten leftover spaghetti from the previous day's dinner, taking some time to recover from their exertions before Lucy made good on the day's loss.

Now, with Natsu tensing between her legs and pulling her to him more tightly as she perched on the edge of the dresser, the blonde was glad she'd convinced him to spar with her. Understanding his fears and weaknesses made her feel even closer to him than she already did. As he thrust into her repeatedly, hands digging into her hips, she tugged his face up from the crumpled bodice of her maid's uniform. Sucking his lower lip into her mouth, she bit down, just hard enough to pinch without drawing blood. The unexpected action caused him to grunt, and he released inside her with a shudder.

Sifting her fingers through his hair, she held him as he dropped his face to her shoulder, breathing heavily. She hadn't reached orgasm this time, but she didn't care. This was about him. She'd wanted to do this to show him... Well, that she'd do anything for him, really.

She accepted him. She trusted him. And she wanted him to trust himself.

Lucy knew the last couple of days had been worrisome and stressful for Natsu, and she wanted to ease his mind and take care of him the way he so often took care of her.

After awhile, he pulled back to look at her. "I love you," he said simply.

She traced gentle fingertips over the bandage on his cheek. A rock shard from her Lion Maiden spell had grazed him, drawing blood. "I know you do. And I love you." She kissed him softly. "But I'm definitely going to win tomorrow, just wait and see!" she teased, eyes twinkling.

"That so?" he asked, amused. "And what'll ya make me do then?"

She smiled a secretive smile. "That's for me to know and you to find out."

"Aww...no fair! I told you mine!" he whined.

She chuckled. "Well, with luck, you'll find out tomorrow when I win, won't you?"

He snorted. "Don't think curiosity will make me go easy on ya, Luce."

"I wouldn't dream of it." She smiled. "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go home and take a bath. I've got a couple of things I need to get done, too. See you at the guildhall for lunch tomorrow?"

"I guess so," he replied reluctantly. Happy had gone away with Carla to visit Exceed Village since they weren't sure when they'd have the chance to go again once Team Natsu left to start the hundred years' quest. Natsu hated sleeping alone. But tonight, he was just tired enough that he figured he'd sleep like a rock.

Kissing her again, he pulled away, helping her down from the dresser. Her Star Dress vanished, to be replaced by her skirt and top from earlier—sans underwear. After cleaning up in the bathroom, she made her way to the bedroom door. "You owe me another pair of panties, too. Don't forget," she called back over her shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah." Maybe he'd get that sexy crimson set he'd seen the last time Lucy'd dragged him to the lingerie store. She deserved something special. "See ya tomorrow."

She skipped to the front door and opened it. Turning back to him, she smiled. "Thanks, Natsu. Sleep well."

"You, too," he replied with a grin. "You're gonna need your rest to beat me."

Her laughter drifted in the air behind her as she walked back down the path to town.