Natsu was fifteen, but he could pass for older if he wanted. He was tall enough, strong enough. Like a lot of lanky guys, he walked with stooped shoulders to make himself look smaller.

His hair used to be black, and his eyes hazel, before he altered both. His skin was honey brown—that he left alone. He had a softly accented voice and a raspy, quiet laugh, which he rarely ever used. Unable to keep still, he tapped his fingers or his feet often to imaginary music. He had pretty bad ADHD.

Natsu liked rock music and Kool-aid and oranges and pretty girls.

But he was a smart boy. Practical. With parents who divorced when he was eleven years old.

Too clever to believe in a fairy tale love.

It was before the bell when he received the first attack.

Lucy Heartfilia, resident weirdo, stomped into his classroom without any explanation. A little blue-haired pixie girl chased after her on legs short as sticks. The pixie was sort of beautiful, sweet-faced and wide-eyed. Her baby blue hair was wild, but the dye suited. Natsu would know. No one felt hair like he could.

And—well.

He did really like Lucy Heartfilia's hair.

Maybe her eyes were all right, too. Decent teeth. She had the right lady bits. Not exactly a hag, was she?

Pity she was so annoying.

"See, Levy?" She planted in front of him, gesturing to parts of his face like a museum tour guide. "Observe the cotton candy hair. Note the guy-liner. Appreciate the lizardiness of the specimen's contacts."

"A specimen," Natsu repeated. Pixie shrugged; her face conveyed loud and clear that she wasn't a willing participant in this.

"If you take a look at the mouth...mmm. Nice mouth, actually. But inside the mouth, if you're lucky, you'll see bits of orange peels in the teeth. And he probably has very orange-y breath." Lucy made eye contact for the first time. "Natsu. Breathe in Levy's face."

"I'd prefer you don't," Pixie chimed. She had a pretty voice, too. "If it doesn't hurt your feelings."

"Not at all." He fixed Lucy with narrowed eyes. "And I'm not a specimen of anything. Unless it's of...like...perfect hotness or something."

His response seemed to delight her; she scoffed and cuffed his head gently with her hand. "Hot? You? Yeah right. No offense, Natsu—I'm not a bully, and I know you're probably nice and funny—but you're more like an example of perfect gothness."

Honestly. How rude.

"You're stereotyping again," he told her.

"Well, this morning you did call me...what was it? Oh yeah...a busty bozo with a Twinkie for a brain."

"Because you asked me if I was a vampire."

"Because you're wearing makeup!"

"So?! You are, too!"

"I'm allowed to!"

"Says who?" he challenged, arms crossed.

For once, she fell silent. Stumped. Her brow furrowed into a million lines, and she squinted at him with her weirdly pretty, doe-brown eyes. Which were lined, incidentally, with makeup. Like every sophomore girl's.

"I dunno, Natsu. The world...society. God. Whoever makes the rules."

He shrugged. "I just think the rules are stupid."

"I think you're both stupid," Levy pointed out. "But by all means. Carry on."

Lucy ignored her, too busy forming an argument about the undeniable oddness of Natsu Dragneel. Finally, her eyes lit up with a new argument. "Okay, but I wear makeup because I want to be pretty."

"Wouldn't you want guys to be pretty, too?"

"But..." Lucy sputtered. "Guys are pretty. Without it. It's not like they need it, not the way girls do."

"That's a terrible argument," he huffed. "Our bus driver ain't wearing makeup, and he's so gross you can't look at him straight on. Plus you're a girl, and you'd still be pretty without all the stuff you have on."

Pretty? Lucy flushed. It wasn't like she cared—that much—what he thought of her. But, still: Natsu thought she was pretty. Levy McGarden was beautiful; but Lucy could still look appealing to him, even next to her fairy of a best friend.

"But then why do you wear it, goth boy?" Her voice held no sting, only sincere curiosity.

Sincere curiosity was okay.

"'Cause I think it looks good on me," he said casually. "Sounds vain, but ain't everything we do to this exterior part vain? It makes you look prettier, and it makes me look prettier, too. 'Cause I feel more comfortable in it than out. 'Cause it's more...me-ish. 'Cause all sorts of reasons, Lucy Heartfilia. It reflects my insides. Just like the contacts, and the hair, and the black clothes, and everything else." He shrugged again. "I guess I'm just...goth?"

Lucy considered for a moment, before nodding. He guessed it made enough sense.

Natsu exhaled deeply with relief. Jesus—so many questions. She probably bothered poor little Pixie girl halfway to hell.

"She does think you're hot, by the way," Levy piped up. "I think the exact description was...'so unsexy I want to eat him'. Or something like that." Her face, moon-pale and lovely, was mischievous. It made her look even more like a fairy.

Lucy didn't even deny it. She was, always, weirdly earnest. It kinda freaked him out.

"We'll speak again, goth-boy," she said. "Gotta go. Come on, you evil thing." She scooped up Levy like a puppy and carried her away, easy as air.

Natsu just sort of stared at her retreating back. Blankly. What was a normal reaction to a weird creature like her, anyway? Ugh. Damn him.

Already, he almost missed her.

notes: hope you enjoyed!