Disclaimer! I don't own fairy tail! i only own this plot!

AN: I hate people who read every chapter and comment on how stupid it is, if you don't like the story from chapter 1 then don't go unto chapter 2

AN2: I have one word to say for my LATE update "EXAMS" all my stories have been suffering from late updates and i am so sorry. Especially to a 'Guest' reviewer who asked me to update for their birthday...i didn't see it until 3 days after...sorry...

AN3: Thank you everyone who has reviewed and favourited this story! and those of you who actually spent the time to read it! :)

An4: I am the only one loving the new look for the site?

AN5: Read and Review

Chapter 3 Captain's and Misinterpretations

Lucy looked into the familiar black eyes, fighting the urge to wrap him in a tight hug as her mind screamed at her that 'her' Natsu was dead and that 'this' Natsu didn't even know who she was.

"Answer me! Who are you?" Natsu growled, his eyes flashing

"Please don't hurt Lucy!" Wendy shouted, jumping from her spot to stand in front of Natsu "We just wanted to get away from those pirates! They were horrid and the only place we could go was here…"

Natsu seemed to calm down and lowered Lucy to the floor "Oh, well how'd you get over here?" he asked crossing his arms and staring at them.

Lucy found herself at a momentary loss of words as she examined Natsu's clothes. It looked exactly like what he wore when they entered the Grand Magic tournament with the exception of the white borders being red and the Fairy Tail symbol being absent. She also noticed that he didn't have the Fairy Tail tattoo and around his waist was a sword; it was plain and didn't really catch her attention.

She blinked away the pain she felt at seeing him in the exact same outfit she saw him die in and promptly lifted Charlie out of Wendy's arms "We'll tell you how but you have to promise that no one will find out" she knew he wouldn't tell a soul because if her presumptions were correct then he was still a dragon slayer and knew what it was like to be hunted because those of his kind were put to death upon capture.

Like Lucy predicted, Natsu nodded in agreement.

Charlie jumped into the air and spread her wings "I can fly" she said haughtily, crossing her arms and staring down at him as if she expected him to bow down and worship her.

"Wow!" Natsu shouted "You're just like Happy!"

That statement made Lucy and Wendy aware that most if not everyone from their dimension was probably on this ship.

"So" Natsu said after staring at Charlie for a few seconds "Where should we drop you off? The closest Island is a day away"

"Drop-off?" Lucy asked in confusion

"Well yeah!" Natsu said crossing his arms behind his head "I'm assuming you girls have somewhere to go…we looted the ship so your things are probably up-top, I'll give them back to you"

Lucy didn't really want to get separated from her friends after just meeting them "We aren't headed for the next island" she said swiftly

"Well, the next island after that is 2 days away; "

Lucy shook her head

"The one after that is 4 days"

Lucy once more shook her head

"Um…the one after that one is a week, but that's as far as I can take you"

"Yes! That's where we're headed" Lucy shouted, deciding that in the one week she would somehow find a way to convince Natsu to make them stay.

"Oi Natsu!" a very familiar voice shouted from the deck, stopping Natsu from saying anything else "Where'd you go! Erza's mad and I'm not taking any of your beating!"

The sound of footsteps walking by echoed and once it was gone Lucy and Wendy turned their gaze on Natsu "Are you Natsu?" Wendy forced herself to ask "If you are then someone is looking for you"

Natsu shrugged "That person is far from important, it's just stupid Gray"

"Is this Erza person the captain of the ship? He must be really strong" Lucy said in fake awe, feeling more than a bit stupid that she had just called Erza a man.

Natsu was silent for a few seconds before he fell to the ground in laughter "Hahaha! Erza! A man!" he slammed his fist repeatedly into the ground as he rolled around, tears leaking from his eyes "So appropriate!"

His voice was so loud that Lucy doubted the people on board hadn't heard him. Her assumption was confirmed when the sound of the hatch bagging open was heard and seconds later none other than Gray Fullbuster was standing directly next Wendy.

He was, thankfully, fully clothed. Like Natsu his clothing was similar to the Gray from her time, the only difference was that his clothing wasn't that from the Grand Magic Tournament, instead it was the same suit he wore when they got back from Tenrou Island; he also had a sword strapped ground his waist.

"Who the hell are you?" He questioned, crossing his arms and staring down at Wendy "Are you two the reason Natsu ran off?"

"Oi Gray!" Natsu shouted, regaining control of his body and rising to his feet "Leave them alone, they escaped from those idiotic fools we just robbed silly, we're dropping them off at Methril Island"

Gray rolled his eyes "I don't really care, but you're the one who has to explain it to Erza" Gray turned and disappeared back up the hatch.

"Maybe we should go too, it isn't really comfortable down here" Lucy whispered, rubbing her arms to keep warm.

"Alright, follow me, I have to introduce you to Erza first" Natsu went up the hatch first then Wendy and Lucy. Charlie flew out afterwards.

To Lucy it was like she was seeing the ship for the first time. The last time, which was mere minutes ago she had been in such a hurry to hide that she hadn't really examined it properly. It wasn't extravagant, far from it. The main sail was black and had Fairy Tail's symbol boldly imprinted on it with gold embroidery lining its rims.

To the total opposite of the main sail she spotted what was most likely to be the Captains cabin, everything was commonplace aboard a pirate ship. Some people she had never seen before were wiping the deck while others were manning the sails. There were even some simply standing idly by chattering.

None of them seemed to notice her or Wendy as they followed Natsu inside the Captains cabin where they saw Erza sitting idly around a small table pilled with maps sipping tea. She was in her usual suit of armor with her hair fanning out behind her.

"Are they the reason you ran off from my very important conversation?" Erza asked, taking a sip from her tea "They are stowaways I presume, most likely from that ship"

Natsu chuckled and waltzed in to plop down on a small bed in the corner of the small cabin. A small circular window and a small closet was everything else the room held.

Lucy wondered if Natsu should really be walking all around Erza's cabin like this because obviously Erza was the Captain.

"They need their stuff back, it's probably in the loot, I promised to get them to Methril Island so that's where we're headed"

Erza growled and Lucy feared for Natsu's life "We already have a set course Natsu!"

Natsu returned the fierce glare Erza wore "Well I'm Captain and I say we're changing course and heading for Methril Island!"

Lucy suppressed a gasp…Natsu…was the CAPTAIN?!

Erza sighed "Fine…but they are not staying…we won't have a repeat of last time" she stood and left sparing Lucy and Wendy only a moment's glance.

Lucy let out a shaky breath; Erza seemed as scary as usual. A smile threatened to appear on her face when she realized she had her family back.

"I'm Wendy Marvel and this is Charlie" Wendy said, giving a small bow, the little girl chose to take the initiative to officially introduce herself "Thank you for your assistance Natsu-san"

Natsu grinned "It was nothing…though I guess I should apologize to Lucy for roughing her up a bit"

Lucy smiled "It's alright…so…you're the Captain"

"Is that a problem?"

"Oh, No! I was just a bit surprised; you don't really strike me as the Captain type"

Natsu's eyes seemed to darken at her words and Lucy wondered if maybe she had said something wrong "Natsu?" she asked timidly, walking up to rest her hand on his shoulder "Are you alright?"

He shrugged off her touch "Its nothing…you just reminded me of someone" he stayed silent for a few seconds as he plastered back on his fake smile. Lucy knew from experience that the dragon slayer was hurting from something personal but she chose to leave him be, with their current relationship he would not open up.

Wendy watched the small exchange before speaking "Where will we sleep Natsu-san, the men's quarters are most likely below the deck…is there a female quarters also?"

Natsu scratched behind his head "Well…no, we used to though…but not anymore"

Wendy was puzzled "So where does Erza-san sleep"

"She's not considered female"

The blunt answer made Lucy laughed; Wendy on the other hand was not "So where will we sleep?" The young dragon slayer asked "Methril Island is a week away? You aren't going to make us sleep on deck like the other pirates are you?"

Natsu looked offended "Of course not! Wendy, you'll be sleeping with Erza, her bed is large enough to hold you, after all you're very small…but you Lucy…you'll have to sleep with me"

Lucy, to Natsu's surprise, made no protest. She was quite used to Natsu falling asleep in her bed or waking up with him beside her to be fazed by sleeping with him. To her it was commonplace. A small shuffle under Natsu's sheets garnered everyone's attention. They all stared until a blue furry tail appeared followed by a furry body and lastly a head.

"Happy?" Lucy whispered

Natsu's sharp beady eyes turned on her "How did you know his name" his glare shook her to the core, usually it wasn't targeted at her "Answer me"

Wendy came to the rescue "You told us Natsu-san, remember? When Charlie flew, you said she was just like 'Happy' so we assumed that cat was Happy"

He seemed to stop and ponder, as if scanning his mind for that particular conversation. "Oh" he chuckled nervously when he finally remembered "Sorry again Lucy…so how about we go get your things?"

Natsu snuggled into the sheets, it was so warm…and soft and it smelled like a mixture of honey and jasmine…was nice combination. He gripped these odd sheets even tighter, determined to keep them as close to him as possible; maybe they were the reason he had no nightmares tonight, for that alone he was grateful.

Wow, these pillows were so squishy and warm; they even had the same scent as the sheets…they were oddly shaped though. He snuggled his head even closer to their warmth only to be awarded with an odd squeak and an enraged shout of his name…could pillows talk? He put the question to the back of his mind and instead once more tried to snuggle into the odd pillows.

A loud shriek was followed pain exploding in the side of his head and his handing on the cold floor. He snapped his eyes open, enraged at whoever had separated him from his comfort zone. His eyes landed on a flushed Lucy, she looked to be trying her best to keep her anger under control as she made a fist with one hand. She was clad in the blue pajama's she had worn to bed.

Natsu didn't notice the way she was using her other hand to try and cover her breast even though they practically already were covered. Instead he was trying to figure out why she had punched him, the light brushing on her soft hand showed that she had been the assailant.

"Why did you hit me?!" He growled, standing to his feet and pointing an accusing finger in her face "I do the humble thing and offer you a place in my bed and you punch me?!"

"Natsu" she said, sounding as if she was trying to placate her rage "You were on the ground when I woke up a few hours ago-"

He didn't let her finish her sentence "That's because I knew no girl would feel comfortable sleeping with a man she doesn't know!" He paused for a second in his rant "Wait…how did I get in the bed?"

Lucy continued as if she hadn't been interrupted "And I though, what a nice guy you are, trying to make me feel comfortable…so I moved you onto the bed…"

"If you're the one who put me their then why did you punch me off?!"

Lucy's face took on an even brighter shade of red "Shut up!" she snarled, taking Natsu by complete surprise since he thought Lucy was a kind sweet girl, poor Natsu.

"Imagine my surprise when I wake up to find your arms wrapped so tightly around my waist I could barely move?! Plus you were only in your boxers!" She swatted away his pointed finger which had by now slowly lowered "That wasn't even the worst part! I let you get away with holding my waist but when you started fondling my BREAST it was NOT acceptable!"

Natsu stared at Lucy like she was a new species of protozoan "I- I never touched you! I was-" he paused mid-speech when that sweet honey jasmine scent reached his nose, now that he was awake he realized what or who exactly it was coming from.

A look of horror consumed Natsu's face and if possible he flushed darker than Lucy "O-Oh…I-I'm so sorry Luce!" The nickname simply rolled off his lips in his fluster.

Lucy's anger seemed to dissipate when she heard the familiar nickname. This Natsu was so similar to hers but at the same time he wasn't 'her Natsu'. She had loved her Natsu, but her Natsu was dead and she was still beginning to come to terms with that. She liked this Natsu…but she didn't love him, at least not yet…it was like she was slowly falling in love all over again.

"Luce?" Natsu whispered in worry, he had expected her to go into a full rant about injustice; but instead she had gone completely silent "are you alright? I didn't mean it, I swear"

Lucy slipped from the bed "I'm going out for a bit" she said before leaving his cabin and stepping out into the cold night air.

Natsu stood where he was for a bit, completely puzzled. With a sigh he slipped on his pants and shoes then grabbed Lucy's slippers and left the Cabin. He didn't even have to look for her. She was in the centre of the deck twirling around on her feet.

She looked sad, Natsu concluded and even her dance screamed her sorrow. He could smell the tears that were falling from her face. He started to feel guilty, had what he done really made her so depressed?

She stopped and her body seemed to lose all its energy. Her legs gave out and he moved forward to catch her. She gripped his shirt for support "Natsu" she whispered in a trembling voice.

"I'm so sorry Luce, I didn't mean it, really" The nickname seemed to have stuck

Lucy sniveled "Its not you…" that was the understatement of the year "It not you…" those words seemed to echo in her head. He wasn't the one she loved…he was dead. She would come to love this Natsu, that she knew but at this moment she was just so depressed because he was not 'her Natsu'.

Natsu almost sighed in relief when he heard he wasn't the one at fault. He didn't ask her why she was crying, it was an unspoken rule on the ship that whatever you didn't want to share would not be pushed out of you.

"Come on Lucy, its cold outside, let's get you back in bed" he picked her up bridal style and brought her back inside the warm cabin. He laid her on the bed and tucked her in.

She caught his hand before he could move away. He looked at her in confusion "Its cold on the floor so I'll let you sleep next to me"

"I-I don't know Luce, I don't really like being punched awake"

Lucy rolled her eyes before tugging him down next to her "Just don't fondle me, okay?" she gave him a small smile before turning her back to him.

Natsu lay tensely next to her until he was positive her breath had evened out and she had fallen asleep. Only then did he relax, after all what if she had suddenly changed her mind and punched him again?

Lucy sighed as she watched the ship tear rip through the ocean. It was rather boring. Gray was off somewhere doing whatever; he had been with her for a total of 30 minutes simply trying to find out who she was and how she got into this situation. He also wanted to know if Natsu had 'done unseemly things' to her. Wendy had decided to act as the ships temporary doctor and had been in the medical bay since. The use of her powers were irrelevant since she proved to have memories of various illnesses and their cures, no doubt from her counterpart.

Erza had been the one to wake her up this morning and drag her outside. The red head had then proceeded to inform her that whatever was seen or done was never to leave the ship. By passing this rule would result in death.

With a sigh she stared up at the sky. It was truly boring.

"Lucy!"

She looked around at the sound of her name and spotted Natsu running over to her. He was carrying a torn shirt and trousers.

"You look bored so I decided to give you work!" he said as if his plan was the best thing since sliced cheese "Can you patch these up? I ripped them some time ago but...no one here can sew"

Lucy sighed "Sure, I have nothing better to do now do I? I think I have some thread and stuff in my trunk…Are you coming are not?"

She entered 'Their cabin' as she had begun to term it and went over to the small trunk that was in the corner of the room. Natsu threw down the clothes on the bed before beginning his search for Happy. The blue talking cat was usually curled up on the bed asleep but he was nowhere to be found.

"Kyaaa!"

Natsu swiveled on his feet, his hand already wrapped around the hilt of his sword "What is it Lucy?" he asked as he looked around for danger "Are you hurt?"

It wasn't Lucy who answered "Natsu! Save me! A blon-blonde Witch is trying to eat me!"

Natsu watched in confusion as Lucy turned to him, her hand wrapped securely around Happy's neck "Neh Natsu" She whispered softly, fixing him with a heated glare "Do you mind explaining to me why Happy was sleeping in my trunk?"

Immediately Natsu's hands were up in surrender "I did nothing Luce" he said as he slowly backed away.

"Natsu!" Happy cried out, large balls of tears leaking from his eyes "Don't leave me!"

Natsu glanced at the door then back at the she-devil that he now knew was Lucy. His life or Happy's. Well that was an easy decision to make.

Wendy finally decided to take a break. She had been at it since dawn, the amount of illnesses on the ship was tantamount…then again this was Fairy Tail. Natsu had gotten her a small cabin under the deck that was filled with various items. When she had asked who had been the doctor before her she was met with silence which drew her to the conclusion that whoever that doctor was he/she had left an impact on Natsu.

Charlie had gone off with Erza to god knows where so Wendy was all by herself as she made her way to the Captain's cabin. Lucy was most likely there; she felt terrible for leaving Lucy by herself so she was going to try and cheer her up…or beg for forgiveness

Wendy stilled when she saw the large crowd outside of the Cabin. She walked up and became completely red in the face when she heard what everyone had been listening to so intently.

A soft groan was heard the Lucy's voice "N-Natsu! S-Stop"

"No! I'm staying on top until you give me what I want Lucy"

There was a thud then a groan "Aha! Now I'm on top"

Wendy started to shake when she heard a squeal then another thud and a soft moan, no doubt from Lucy "And now I'm on top again"

Erza…who just so happened to pass by at that moment went as stiff as a stone and as red as a tomato "O-Oi" she managed to say "G-Give them s-some privacy!"

The men grumbled as they shuffled away. Gray, who was at the forefront of it all, was starting to formulate plans of blackmail for Natsu once he had the chance.

Wendy looked at Erza and nearly fumbled when she saw the tears of joy running down her face "Finally" she whispered "Finally you're getting over Lisanna…oh Kami I thank you"

2 Minutes before Wendy arrived

Lucy had gone off on a lecture of personal space and 'animal fur' where it was not wanted. She wasn't half as fast or as strong as Natsu which was why when he pounced on her, sending them both to the floor. He attacked her sides with his fingers trying his best to get her to loosen her gold on Happy.

Lucy bit her lip, she refused to admit defeat. She groaned as she struggled to keep herself under control, adamantly keeping Happy firmly squished in her bosom "N-Natsu! S-Stop!"

"No! I'm staying on top until you give me what I want Lucy" To prove his point he straddled her waist, refusing to cease his ministrations.

She would not lose, she decided and with a show of flexibility she managed to twirl her feet around him and throw him over. He groaned when his head connected with the ground "Aha! Now I'm on top." Her moment only lasted a few seconds as Natsu's hands shot back to her sides. She squealed and lost her concentration in trying to keep him pinned to the floor; he threw her over. She moaned in pain when her head once again connected with the floor. Damn it that hurt!

"And now I'm on top again" The pain made her blurry for a few seconds and in those few seconds Happy managed to pull himself free.

"Natsu!" the blue Exceed cried in happiness "You saved me!"

Natsu caught the blue fur ball and removed himself from atop Lucy "A battle well fought Luce" he told her as he offered his hand.

With a sigh Lucy took the offered assistance "Next-time you won't be so lucky…now come on, let me fix those torn patches you call clothes"

Neither Lucy nor Natsu could explain why everyone kept congratulating them when they left the cabin a few minutes later. Erza went into a rambling mess when Natsu asked what was going on and Gray merely mumbled 'blackmail' when they asked him.

Finally Lucy found Wendy and decided to ask her. Natsu had gone off somewhere to try and batter the information out of someone else.

When the question was posed Wendy went red in the face but answered all the same "Well…you see…"

….

"WHAT?!"

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