Alright everyone! Another chapter to Golem awaits you! I hope you guys are pleased with this one! And if you've missed it, Kytrin and I have another fic going on which is totally finished. It's a short one and it posts the day after Golem, so you can expect it tomorrow! That one is called Sandcastles!
Anyway, I won't hold you guys up from your chapter! You all had such interesting theories, and I think you'll like what is coming next!
THIS FIC UPDATES ONCE EVERY THREE DAYS: Post, Break, Break, Post!
CHAPTER 17
Pegasus
From his birth to his death, Pegasus remained a mysterious creature capable of everything, symbolizing the divine inspiration or the journey to heaven, since riding him was synonymous to "flying" to the heavens.
Lucy groaned softly as she felt consciousness slowly returning to her. She was snuggled up against something firm and comfortably warm, and she didn't really want to wake up, but her stomach was wrapped around her spine and wouldn't let her stay asleep.
She blearily blinked as she lifted her head and opened her eyes only to widen them when she realized she was snuggled up quite intimately with a snoring Natsu.
It wasn't really an odd thing by itself. Natsu had curled up with her back before he'd awoken, and had only done so even more now that he was awake. However, she wasn't used to being pressed against him like they were in a post coital nap.
As soon as the thought crossed her mind she instantly blushed brightly, and suddenly became acutely aware of a hundred little things. Like the feel of his muscles pressing against her chest, or the way he had one leg slipped carelessly between her thighs.
No! This was bad! She and Natsu were barely friends, and he was bound to her! She should not be thinking of stuff like this around him!
Her blush deepened as she tried to figure out a way to escape only to sigh softly in relief when he flopped onto his back with a snort and let go of her as he started snoring.
It gave her enough room to wriggle away without waking him and dash off to the bathroom to start getting ready. They had a lot to do if they were going to get out of Magnolia to get started on the mission Gajeel had told them about.
Though she kind of wondered when and how they'd wound up back at their safe house. The last thing she remembered was drunkenly talking about books with Levy at the bar.
As she closed the door she never noticed one of Natsu's eyes pop open to watch her go.
Natsu grumbled sleepily as he pushed himself up in the bed that was suddenly too empty for him to feel comfortable in.
Propping his weight up on his elbows, Natsu curved his spine and let out a soft groan. There wasn't any point in staying in bed if Lucy was off doing other things.
He had been awake for a while, bonelessly draped over Lucy. Simply enjoying the scent of her hair pressing into his nose soothed something inside him. They fit together so comfortably, Natsu hadn't been able to bring himself to move.
His knee had made itself a home between her curvy thighs, her leg spilling over his as he held a warm waist.
It had been nice. Natsu pouted at the memory of Lucy slowly stirring and suddenly stiffening in his hold. It was like she had turned into a statue for some reason.
That wasn't any fun, so Natsu rolled off and let her scamper away. He hid a smirk as he climbed out of the bed, let Lucy think she was stealthy.
It reminded him of the previous night, where Lucy had gotten so unbelievably wrecked by the amount of alcohol she consumed. His mistress had staggered about with a bottle in one hand and a madly giggling Levy in the other.
After Cana - of all people - cut the party short stating that lightweights needed to go to bed early, Natsu guided an oddly affectionate Lucy home.
She wasn't much of a nuzzler normally, but drunken Lucy had been unable to keep her hands to herself.
He'd had half a mind to let Lucy stumble around the apartment drunkenly for another half an hour of entertainment, but decided to have mercy on his mistress and put her to bed.
But only, apparently, if he accompanied her.
He sighed and flopped back on the bed for a moment. He didn't want to go back to sleep now that he was awake and Lucy was gone, though part of him was still feeling lazy, so he sat up fully and hopped out of bed. He might as well make Lucy some coffee. She would probably really want some once she was done with that shower.
At least she hadn't appeared to have a hangover when she'd woken up earlier. He guessed Cana's advice about making her eat and drink water, however difficult that had been with her giggling and in his lap, had worked.
He went through the motions that were steadily becoming more familiar, pleased that at least Lucy would have her coffee waiting on her when she emerged. He knew she didn't really understand, but no matter what else he liked making her happy.
Sure, part of it was the bond, but he suspected part of it was Lucy herself. He would want to make her happy even if he wasn't bonded to her.
He shook his head, not really interested in thinking about the complexities of their bonds so early, and settled back to watch the coffee pot percolate. It never failed to fascinate him.
It, unfortunately, didn't take too long to do, but he didn't mind since about the time it was done he heard the water shut off in the bathroom, which meant Lucy was done too. And by the time she shuffled into the kitchen he was waiting with a broad grin and a cup at her place.
"Morning Lucy!" He greeted cheerfully, something in him just happy to see her again.
"Natsu?" Lucy blinked a little, and looked at the coffee in surprise, "Did I wake you earlier?"
Natsu shrugged, "I heard the water running."
The perfect truth. Just not the whole truth, but his conscience didn't even ping at it. This wasn't something that would harm Lucy in any way, and her smile as she sat down and took a sip made it worth it.
He was glad she seemed like she was in a good mood. Considering how heavy she drank the previous night, Natsu had halfway expected hissing or angry grunts to his morning smiles.
Lucy was the very definition of a night owl to his morning bird personality.
Hell, she sometimes hissed at him when she wasn't hungover. This was positively amazing. Natsu had to remember to take notes next time Cana gave him advice.
His stomach felt all warm as he watched her sink into her mug. Pride spread through his chest and expanded through his lungs.
"Do you want some?" Lucy asked in a hushed voice. The morning air was still very muted around them.
Natsu shook his head. He didn't need the caffeine. Whenever he woke up in the morning, he was always alert.
Lucy claimed he never slept. Which was untrue. Natsu slept perhaps two or three hours a night. He didn't know what was wrong with him precisely. It could have been a demon thing for all he knew.
But he didn't dream.
And whenever he woke up whenever he slept away from his mistress, his body would feel stiff and rigid.
It was hard to describe, but he always awoke feeling wired and a little uneasy.
Caffeine was the last thing he needed.
Lucy sighed happily as the caffeine hit her system, and closed her eyes in bliss. After a few moments it eventually dawned on her that she should have a pounding head and be snarling more than was usual first thing in the morning. Instead, she felt pretty good, if a little slow on the uptake.
Had Natsu done something after everything had gone fuzzy?
She mentally shrugged and decided it wasn't worth investigating at the moment. She was just happy that whatever it was had worked.
After she drained the cup she gave him a small smile, "Anything in particular you want for breakfast?" She asked.
This had become practically a ritual first thing in the morning. Natsu would eat just about anything, a fact they both knew, but she kept asking him in the hopes that one day when he expressed a preference it would be an actual preference.
She could always tell when he was randomly picking something.
To her immense surprise though, when he scrunched up his face at the question he appeared to be genuinely thinking about it.
"Could we.." He hesitated, "Could we have something with bacon?"
Okay, not quite the demand for a preference she'd been hoping for, but it was better than nothing, and a massive step up from his previous responses.
Her smile widened as she got up, knowing better by now than to trust Natsu to cook anything that didn't require char broiling. Except drinks.
"I think we can swing that." She told him and began rummaging around in the fridge.
Natsu's expression lit up in degrees as he sprang to his feet to help. He was always eager to nose around to try and help her even if he added to the difficulty curve.
Lucy guided him through the motions, showing him the proper height the flame should be at on the stove. They would have to hurry since they would be meeting Gajeel soon.
They had quite the trip laid out before them, and Lucy would be lying if she denied being nervous over her first, and extremely important job.
She was no fool either. They were deliberately being moved because they were being targeted by more than one group of people. Erza had told her as much when they were approached with the job.
Lucy appreciated her candidness. It was the smart play at this stage if everything was escalating as it seemed.
After the quick breakfast, made faster by Natsu practically inhaling his food, they got up to finish packing.
Natsu over packed for her, so half of what he decided was absolutely critical for her, she had to take out and put in his bag.
He had packed a single toothbrush for himself, almost as an afterthought.
"Natsu you're going to need more than a toothbrush on this trip." Lucy sighed in exasperation, "We went to all that trouble of getting you magical clothes. You should at least bring a few spares. And a hair brush."
She poked at the excess from her packing in amusement, "I'm pretty sure I can get by without needing ten changes of clothes. I can take five and you can have space for some of your own."
"But Lucy!" Natsu protested, slightly horrified at the thought of her going without anything, "What if you need this stuff?"
Lucy shook her head, "Natsu, I appreciate it, but I'm a big girl." She smiled, "I've lived with less before. I'll be fine." She nudged him towards the dresser, "Now, grab the stuff you need. We need to hurry."
Natsu huffed and reluctantly moved over to the dresser to do as she'd asked. It wasn't technically an order, he could tell, but he also knew she wouldn't let go of it if he didn't obey her. Lucy was weird like that.
Lucy was careful not to let her triumph show as they quickly got re-packed and headed out. As much as she sometimes enjoyed needling Natsu now wasn't the time.
Fortunately, it turned out they weren't the only ones running slightly behind as they got there at the same time Levy did.
"You're coming too Levy?" Lucy asked in surprise, more concerned that Levy was well enough to travel after the debacle with Phantom.
Levy blushed a bit, but nodded, "Yeah. Porlyusica gave me some medicine, but things are just as hot for me as you guys right now. Erza thinks some time away would do me good." She grinned a little, "Besides, I can magically create any element. That's bound to come in handy with an iron eater and a fire eater."
"There's no denying that!" Lucy agreed, feeling somewhat relieved they wouldn't have to scavenge for supplies like that. She was a little confused over the kind of magic Gajeel used, but apparently it was a kind which made him uniquely qualified to serve as their guide.
She settled as Natsu huffed out a breath beside her, his lips spreading out into a wide grin. "Thanks Levy!"
"Of course!" The small woman smiled at him happily. It seemed his eager response to her joining them has made her excited.
"Just try not to strain yourself Lev, the last thing we need is for you to hurt yourself and we gotta make a detour," Gajeel grumbled. Levy's cheeks warmed at his comment, a happy rush flooding her cheeks.
The fact that Gajeel cared was so painful, it was almost hilarious.
And at the knowing look Lucy kept giving him, Gajeel's face burned red and he jolted upright.
"What the hell are ya lookin' at? Let's roll out!"
But before they could get so much as a couple of steps, a couple of figures blocking their path stood before them.
"Not so fast," the figures came into focus, a handful of Fairy Tail members blocking the way out of the city.
"You didn't really expect to leave without saying goodbye first?" Gray demanded of Lucy with a grin.
Cana waved a card between her fingers and swayed over to Lucy, "And I had to check to see if my favorite light weight lush was doing okay to travel!"
She reached forward and tucked the card into Lucy's cleavage, "for Luck " She winked.
Lucy flushed brightly at that, "Uhm, do I want to know why I'm suddenly your favorite?" She asked nervously, unwilling to retrieve the card in front of everyone, and a little afraid of what it was.
She and Cana had mostly moved past the episode from the council building, mainly because Lucy had finally been told just why they'd suddenly attacked like that, but she hadn't really thought of Cana as a friend.
Not that she'd had a chance to think of most of the folks there as friends yet...
"Not even a little!" Cana replied cheerfully, "But it was the best entertainment I've seen in years! Getting you and Levy drunk was fun!"
Lucy and Levy glanced at each other nervously, both trying to remember just what could've entertained Cana so much.
"Uh... that's great Cana." Levy replied nervously, "I think."
"Aw! You are so cute!" Cana exclaimed, prompting Gray to sigh and shake his head as he stepped forward.
"You hang in there alright?" He told Lucy, his concern obvious, "And stay safe. I'm not interested in losing any more family."
Lucy smiled at him, touched by his concern, and nodded, "You got it."
"Juvia will miss Lucy!" Juvia sobbed as she flung herself around Lucy's neck in the hug Gray wouldn't give her before moving on to Levy, "And Levy!"
Lucy was starting to wonder if this was normal for Fairy Tail when folks went out on long term jobs. If so, it was both touching beyond belief, and a little terrifying.
"What am I? Chopped liver?" Gajeel grunted, but promptly found himself with an armful of Juvia hugging him hard enough Lucy thought his head would pop off.
"Alright, that's enough," Erza clapped for attention and smiled at Lucy, "Levy already knows to stay safe with Gajeel. I hope you do the same and come to us soon."
"You keep yourself and Natsu safe, you're both part of our family now," Erza embraced Lucy.
It would have been a very sweet gesture had it not nearly bludgeoned Lucy in the process.
"I think we should be ready then," Lucy spoke up after all the rounds were finished being made. Natsu looked like he was starting to get antsy just waiting around.
"May the first master, Mavis, watch over you," Erza wished them well as they began to sneak from the city.
It was curious though, because at Erza's last words, Lucy thought she saw a shadow cross Natsu's face for a second.
It was gone a moment later though, and Lucy had to wonder if she'd seen it at all.
She didn't have a chance to ask though because Gajeel took that as the final farewell and started leading them out. Being wanted they, of course, could not go out one of the official gates available but like everything else, Fairy Tail had found a way around the system.
It was ironic to her in the extreme that what would've made her angry six months ago she now found relief in. It was truly amazing how quickly one's life could change.
"So how long do you think it will take us to find the dragons?" She asked once they were outside the city and had been on the road for about an hour.
"Hard to say." Gajeel shrugged lazily, apparently not wanting to disturb the surprisingly pleasant morning more than he had to, "You an' Levy ain't dragonslayers, or demons. Which means you ain't as tough, an' we'll probably make slower time."
He eyed them, "I'd guess maybe a month or so if we travel on foot. If we're lucky."
Lucy's eyes widened, "A month? Seriously?"
Gajeel shrugged, "You're lucky it's that close blondie." He snorted, "Dragons ain't fond of most humans. Igneel especially."
Lucy groaned, "What if we got some transportation?" She asked hopefully, "That would help right?"
Gajeel stiffened at the question, a distinctly green color coming to his cheeks, and Lucy looked at Levy in confusion, "What did I say?"
"Gajeel doesn't do transportation," Levy snorted in amusement as she ignored the poisonous glare he sent her way.
"It's his one true weakness, any kind of moving surface he stands on that's not animal in nature, he becomes a ball of jelly," She giggled.
Gajeel made a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat, muttering about how dragons didn't have a need for such a thing.
And by extension, neither did dragonslayers.
"Unfortunately even if we could get transportation at this point, we shouldn't take it. A magic mobile couldn't make the trip over the rough terrain against the monsters while the council will be watching the roads."
Lucy sagged at the explanation, but Natsu seemed to brighten over the news.
He couldn't quite explain it himself, but for some reason he really was not too broken up about the car not working out.
He wasn't a huge fan of the strange contraption after the one or two vague times he remembered climbing into one. He thought it upset his stomach...
Seeing as how Gajeel was busy grumbling over the teasing, Natsu held his tongue though.
Besides, a month on the road with Lucy couldn't possibly be bad.
Alright guys, admittedly a bit of a slow chapter, but don't worry! Things are kicking into high gear since this is a start of a new adventure! I hope you all stick with us! It's going to be fun and I'm SUPER EXCITED ABOUT WHAT COMES NEXT.
You guys are seriously awesome though, thanks for being so nice and letting us know what you think. It really is more fun to write an adventure when you've got company to join you!
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"Lucy…" He hesitated for a moment and frowned, "Lucy, what have we, I, done to them to make it this bad?"
Lucy grimaced, "That's a broad question Natsu." She replied, "This is a war that's gone on for four hundred years. A lot of atrocities have been committed over the centuries, and every one leaves a bad taste in the mouth."
She shook her head, "My dad was killed when a demon named Deliora attacked the town he was visiting. He leveled the entire town in one night. Over twenty thousand people dead, and only a few survivors."
Natsu's throat felt like sandpaper at the news, "And that was one attack?" He managed.
Lucy nodded, "Deliora is one of the few powerful demons around, and attacks from them are rarer. No one knows why exactly, but some think it's because they're devoting their energy to searching for their creator, Zeref. Which is just as well considering what they're capable of."
Natsu swallowed thickly and sat down across from her, "Please Lucy." He pleaded, "Tell me everything. I need to know."
