twizt312. They are just cuter than a basket of Pomeranian puppies, right?
Unoyoko94. He's trying so hard to be a gentlman about it. She isn't making it easy for him either.
rmadhumita378. Thanks. I love that my work can bring people joy!
SailorTardis498. Don't you worry. The wondering will be unwondered in due time. Laxus noticed. He is just... Well you will see.
Hiro Mashima is the all powerful author of Fairy Tail.
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Lucy's first thought when she started waking up that morning was 'I'm safe.' Not that she was usually in mortal danger first thing in the morning, but this was an extra safe feeling that ran all the way down to her bones. She cast around in her thoughts to better describe the feeling, before settling on one word. Home. That word seemed to bring her physical senses to life
Home was apparently Bickslow. The soft rumble of his breathing. Warm air dancing in her hair when he exhaled. The scent of warm molasses and cedar filled her head when she inhaled, and she was pretty sure her face was tucked against his chest. His strong arms wrapped all the way around her. One of his hands was dangerously close to her breast, and the other had found a way under her shirt and a little under the waist of her pants to the bare skin of her hip. There was no ass groping or boob mauling. He was just holding her.
She could feel his heart beating under her right hand and her fingers twitched with the need to explore the very healthy pectoral muscle they were pressed against. The twitching revealed that the fingers of her other hand were buried in his soft hair. She could feel the blush in her cheeks as she realized that their legs were all sorts of tangled together and she could feel more of the man than she had ever purposefully thought about before.
She spent a few moments trying to decide if it was awkward or not, and then giving a mental shrug. She had a goal of feeling all Bickslow's inches all over her curves anyway. Bickslow was a tall guy. There were a lot of inches to feel. And she was... He had insisted she wasn't fat, so she would go with really curvy. That gave her lots of surface area to feel his inches on. So she chose to embrace the moment and let the slight tension that had crept into her muscles fade away.
She smiled. She sure hoped Bickslow was ready for those kisses once the breathing and thinking period he insisted she needed was over. Breath and think huh? She could do that. She kinda had to breath or she would die, and he had never specified what it was she was supposed to be thinking about while she was breathing. Did she know what he had ment? Yes she did. Was that what was going to happen? Nnnnnope.
She had thought. She knew what she wanted. There wasn't a whole lot of mental exercise needed after someone had willingly bared their soul to you. She knew he was still holding secrets, personal stories that were to painful to visit with her yet. She wasn't stupid. Just because he was choosing to trust her didn't mean he was ready to tear open old wounds, even if they were festering inside him from lack of proper care. That would come with time.
What Lucy didn't want to think about, and really needed to, was the fact that she herself needed to let herself share with him. She couldn't keep asking him to do something she wouldn't. Talking about the 'protect Lucy' thing had been a good start, and Bickslow had managed to show her a side of herself, she had never seen before, during that conversation. Admitting she had nightmares had been a positive next step. She was dreading the talk Bixy had told her would be happening on that topic. Maybe she should offer a peice of herself to him by starting that conversation... later.
For now she was just going to let herself bask in the feeling of safety being in Bickslow's arms gave her. She rubbed her face against his chest and let her fingers play in his hair. His breathing changed, and she hesitated a moment, before she realized it didn't matter if he woke up or not, she still wanted to play in his hair. He let out a happy sounding sigh as her fingers started moving again.
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Bickslow woke to the smell of strawberries and the miracle of his Cosplayer's fingers in his hair. Even as he reminded himself that she wasn't his, he was pulling her closer. How much closer would have been measured in millimeters, if that, considering how close she was in the first place. She just felt so perfect tangled up with him in his bed.
He wanted to stay right there with her forever, but the more awake his body became the harder holding still became. To start with he was becoming very aware that her breasts were pressed against him in a way that was just... delicious, not to mention his thigh wedged between hers and the bare skin he felt where his hand rested on her hip. His body took all those things into account and was all for bed, but screaming to move.
That wasn't what was forcing him awake however. When he had fallen asleep last night there had only been two females in the house. He opened his eyes to look down at the one that was curled up silent in his arms. That was a good thing. The bad thing was that there were not one, not two, but three female voices holding a conversation elsewhere in the house.
"Cosplayer, please tell me Virgo has a best friend or something and Meredy is the only human woman I'm hearing." He felt her tense up in his arms.
"Shit."
"I'll take that as a no. That means Ever is here, and she knows about Meredy. At least tell me that is Virgo and not another guildmember."
"Umm. Yeah. I can feel her magic. Bixy, if Virgo is here then Evergreen knows I'm here." His stomach clenched. Did that bother her? That people knew she was with him? "As in, she knows I'm in your bed. How do you want to handle this? I don't know her well enough to know what she will do to me." He groaned.
"You will be fine. It's what she will do to me that I'm worried about."
"Why?"
"You'll see. We should get up." She made a cute growling sound and tried to burrow deeper into his chest. He laughed. "Come on babe. Either we go out there and face them, or they come in here." She jerked her head back and stared at him. "What?"
"Nothing." She was squeaking. "We can get up I guess." He reluctantly released her as she untangled their limbs and scooted out of bed. The late morning sunlight coming through the window lit up her hair and in that moment she sparkled and glowed and looked every inch the angel Papa had rightly called her. Bickslow wanted so very badly to pull her back into bed and make her sing like one. "Virgo is probably making breakfast. Should I... get dressed before..."
"Don't be silly, Lucy." He threw back the blankets and rolled out of bed. "Ever isn't going to judge you." He stretched out, his long arms almost reaching the ceiling that had been raised especially with him and Laxus in mind. "Even if she did all she could do is be jealous of the fact that you can look that sexy without trying." Lucy was wearing a decidedly dazed expression. He grinned and folded his hands behind his head. "See something you like, Cosplayer?" Her eyes met his and she blinked before speaking softly.
"One of these days, Bixy, I want you to do that again, only while I can reach you, so I can nibble and lick my way up your arms, and across your shoulders, and down your chest, and run my tongue over every single ab I know you are hiding under that shirt." He shuddered. He knew he was blushing as he swallowed hard in an attempt to force words out.
"Umm... ok." Yeah. Real smooth. Years of learning to seduce women wasted. "Breakfast?" She giggled and tucked herself against him, pulling his arm down around her shoulders.
"Breakfast."
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That was how they entered the kitchen. The presence of Meredy and Virgo, and whatever they may or may not have told Evergreen, had obviously not been enough to prepare her for the sight of them. Virgo managed to save the mug from shattering when she dropped it in shock, though a large portion of the coffee that she had been sipping at found its way to the floor. Meredy's evil grin said she had been hoping for just such a response.
Lucy did her best to remember what Bickslow had told her about his only female teammate. She was like Erza. She had no friends outside of her team and whatever she had going with Elfman, but that wasn't because she wanted it that way. Most importantly she repeated to herself the assurance he had given her that Evergreen did not hate her and would not hurt her.
"Morning, Evergreen. I'm sorry we intruded in your home. We are hiding from my team and Bickslow didn't expect you to be here today. I hope the girls didn't startle you when you came home." Lucy separated herself from Bickslow to sit next to the fairy mage and accept her own mug of coffee from Virgo, who physically sat the man in the chair next to her, when it looked like he might try to clean up the coffee mess on the floor.
"Uhhh... so it's true?"
"What is? You have to be specific. I just woke up and I'm still a little groggy." Evergreen started grinning.
"Just woke up in Bickslow's bed. Tell me, Bix, are you having fun playing house with the little neighbor girl?"
"Ugh. I'm not playing house, Ever. If I was though you would make a perfect crotchety old lady to live down the street. The farther the better."
"Oh I forgot. You aren't playing house. You are playing castle. Laxus brought me a gift this morning." Bickslow groaned as she skipped over to the couch to dig in her purse. "Told me 'Don't wake the Dragon, don't let Blondie bite you, and be nice to Bubblegum.' I had no clue what that ment, till I got here and found these lovely ladies in our kitchen." She returned to the kitchen with Bickslow's visor held triumphantly.
Lucy gaped. The shape was right, but everything else was wrong. The peice of metal was now a hot pink color, covered in glitter and sparkles. A variety of plastic gems, such as children used in art projects, were glued all the way around the edge. From one corner pink and purple ribbons trailed from a glittering pink tag reading 'The Disco Princess'. As an art project or a tiara it would have been pretty, however it wasn't exactly Bickslow's usual style.
"Wow." That's all she could say. Bickslow began slamming his head against the table, and didn't stop until Lucy placed her hand in the way.
"Fuck my life. Cosplayer, can we just... not?" She giggled.
"Not what, Bixy?"
"Let's start with not go to the guild today." A shower of golden sparkles and the sound of a doorbell warned them of Leo's arrival.
"What did I tell you, Disco Princess? Embrace it."
"I better not find out you had anything to do with this, Kitty."
"Just because I didn't do it doesn't mean I can't enjoy the results." He leaned over Lucy's shoulder, and as soon as he was close enough she flicked his nose. "Ow! What was that for, Love?"
"Be nice."
"I was being nice."
"Be nice further away from my Cosplayer, Slippery Kitty." Lucy arched a brow as she watched the irritation flicker in Bickslow's eyes. Was he being... possessive?
"Oh. My. Mavis!" Evergreen was sounding an awful lot like Mira. "Your Cosplayer? Lucy tell me you didn't really fall into bed with this goofball. You were just sleeping last night right? You were only in his bed because you didnt want to wake Meredy, right? Laxus was mistaken. You aren't... together are you?" Why did Evergreen sound like she was worried for Lucy? Shouldn't she be protecting Bickslow? Were these people blind to who he really was?
"No. I didn't fall into his bed. I jumped. Yes we only slept last night. Best nights sleep I've had in months I think. He was a perfect gentleman and I chose to sleep in his bed because I wanted to be there. I don't know what Sparkles said but..." she suddenly felt very self conscious. "I'm not really sure what we are."
"Idiots. That's what you are, Tits."
"It's really a shame you can't die from the poison I'm sure Virgo will put in your coffee, Slither Bat."
"No, what's a shame is that you two are still pretending you don't know exactly what you are." He was looking oddly serious. "I am serious, Tits. You want to wait till after She-Thor shows up, fine, do that, but stop lying to each other. Hanging in limbo is bad for your souls. I can hear it. Echo could see it if he would just look. I'm enough of an asshole I can just say it. Stop over thinking it. Your souls sing together. Let them talk. Listen to your instincts. You're best friends are dragon slayers. You know how reliable instincts are. Go out away from people. Talk. Do some soul gazing or star gazing or whatever, and deal with this shit." The silence following Cobra's speach was deafening.
"You must be Cobra. I'm Evergreen. Welcome to the Thunder House. Please have a seat. Virgo, do you have some coffee for Loke and our very grouchy guest?"
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To be continued