The sun is about to set, and Gray waits for Natsu on the path into the forest from the edge of town. The waitress, who he just learned is named Maya, sits next to him anxiously, nervous about their plan.
Natsu runs up to them, not seeing Maya until the last second, and stops just short of them. His jaw drops, noticing they're too close to each other to still be strangers, and his mouth takes off before his brain can stop it.
"What the hell is going on? Why is the waitress here?! And why are you standing so damn close to her Gray?! She's not supposed to be here at all!" He spews fire from his mouth and flails his arms as he yells, looking so angry it's silly. Gray cracks up, laughing and hugging Maya to him to keep up the charade. Natsu keeps flailing around as Gray and Maya collapse on the ground laughing, making Natsu even more jealous and angry.
"Na-Natsu, stop it! You're killing us!" Gray says between bursts of hysterical laughter.
"WELL EXPLAIN THEN ICE PRICK!" The pinkette screams so loudly his own ears start to drip fire and bits of blood. he doesn't wait for the explanation, instead reaching over to them and pulling Gray off the ground, while rolling Maya away from them with his foot. Natsu pulls his hands away from Gray's, realizing what he's doing and scolding himself for it. 'Stop being so jealous! Oh fucking hell, he definitely knows now... Wait, could that be why she's here?' He freezes, catching on to what Gray's been doing. 'Oh... Well then I guess there are two players in this game now.'He smirks at Gray, whose face turns ash white, then blood red an instant later. He looks furious. Natsu turns around just as Gray yells at him.
"What the hell are you smirking at, Pyro?" He's pissed, afraid Natsu knows what he's trying to do. Natsu starts walking back into town, starting to grin now.
"None of your business Ice Prick, just forgot to pick someone up. I'll be back before dark, don't leave without me." He slowly wanders away from them and turns down the first street, out of sight.
"You were right Gray, this is totally worth it. That was hilarious!" Maya says loudly, her voice squeaking a bit from her excitement, ready to really get into the teasing.
"This was nothing. When he gets back, the games really begin." Gray sounds morbid, his hair shadowing his eyes as he contemplates what he's done, and about to do. 'If i'm wrong, I'm throwing away any chance to actually be friends with him. And if I'm right, but take this too far, I'll ruin the chance for any kind of relationship at all... I've gotta make sure I don't go overboard with this."He sighs and sits back down on the grass, waiting for dark and the return of his friend.
Confusion clouds Gray's face. "Maya, did Natsu say he had to pick up something or someone?" Worry and panic hit him, 'If it's someone, then he either found someone better or he knows what we're doing and he's joining in...'
"Someone, I think. Are you alright Gray? You look like your head's gonna explode." She says cautiously, stepping a few feet away from him. He sits on the grass, now browning and wilting from the cold seeping from his angry body.
"Oh I'll be fine, but it seems Natsu's gotten himself into something he wont be able to get out of. This is war." He says determinedly, and in such a low voice that Maya can barely hear him. She walks over to the nearest tree, away from the cold. 'What in the world have I gotten into?' She thinks as she curls up to get some rest before they leave, already feeling exhausted.
Natsu looks around all the open shops he can find, looking for a girl he can convince to help him make Gray even more jealous than he ever has been. He needs to look quickly, soon everything in the town will be closed for the evening and he will have lost his chance at winning this stupid war Gray has started. 'Why couldn't the bastard just tell me how he felt, instead of teasing me like this?' His thoughts scream in his head, and he passes by an older looking wizard who flinches as he passes. 'Must be a mind reader. Sorry old guy! Didn't mean to give you a headache!' He thinks towards the man in a slightly quieter tone, hoping it helps a bit. He got side tracked by the old man and runs straight into a teen age brunette girl coming around a corner.
"Oh shit!" They both yell, then stare at the other one as they do a comedic miming scene that they always do in movies. Waving one hand up and down to the side, then the other. They both make the same funny face, and burst out laughing immediately. Natsu laughs so hard his eyes tear up and he falls to his right, and when he rolls to get up he's shocked again to see the girl did the same. Tears of laughter stained both of their faces, and while Natsu got a great idea, the girl's face started to get more confused than amused. They had both stopped laughing, and a plan of his own had already formed in Natsu's mind.
"I'm Natsu Dragneel, you wanna help me with something for a few days?" He says with a grin, knowing she'll want to know more. She is, after all, exactly like him.
"Where is he? It's already dark. He should be here by now!" Gray paces back and forth in front of Maya's tree. He had woken her up a few minutes ago with his pacing and mumbling, growing closer and louder the longer Natsu took to get back. Maya's still dead tired, and would still be asleep if it weren't for her worry for Gray. 'He seems like he's genuinely worried for Natsu... He must really love him.' She feels a pang of longing that she hasn't felt in a while, missing someone she lost a long time ago. Gray stops pacing abruptly, turning to Maya and pulling her to her feet.
"Show time babe." His voice is dripping in sweetness and adoration, making Maya wonder how much practice he has with using fake emotion in place of his real feelings. When she can see the silhouette of two people walking towards them, she wraps her arm around Gray's waist as he does the same with his around her shoulders. When she can see faces, her breathing hitches a bit, recognizing the girl immediately. 'What the hell is she doing here? She hasn't even been to town in years, how in the world did Natsu run into her?' She rolls her eyes at herself, realizing that this was her for Chris'sakes 'Oh gosh, they literally ran into each other... of course, and probably outside the old psychic man's store too. Just my luck.' She huffs and turns on her brightest smile, for Gray's sake, pretending she doesn't know the girl hanging off of Natsu's arm.
"You sure took your sweet time, Flame Brain. What took you so long?" Gray sounds irritated but not so much that it would start a fight. The tension between the two mages was so thick that either one of the girls could draw a knife and cut through it in a second. The girl with him stares at Elsie, and Gray notices and stares back at her until she meets his gaze. It's a warning to her.'Stay away, I can tell you've hurt her in some way and I won't let you do it again on my watch.' He thinks with it, and she nods to him, saying she's gotten the message. She drops her gaze to the bags on the ground. Then to her own, realizing she hasn't brought nearly enough for their week long trip into the forest. 'He planned it. She's going to end up wearing his clothes to try to make me jealous.' Gray realizes how Natsu must have thought up a much better plan than he had. 'I'll just have to up my game if he's gonna play dirty like that.'
"Gray, Maya, this is Phoenix. Phoenix, this is Maya and the Ice Prick I was telling you about. You might wanna avoid him for most of the trip, that's what I try to do." They both smirk, and Gray notices their similarities. Same stance, same posture, both use spontaneous movements and he can see that they would also share the same temper. 'Well played, finding the female version of yourself in the town to up the stakes. Now, the games really begin.' he sighs a bit, ready for it to be over already. 'This is gonna be a long trip.' They all think, Maya and Phoenix looking at each other, and Natsu and Gray staring at the other's girl companion with jealous rage filling them up.
Maya is the first one to break the silence after the introduction. Refusing to look Phoenix or Natsu in the eye, she reaches out her hand to shake Phoenix's with her gaze on the ground.
"N-nice to meet you Phoenix." She stutters quietly, and Phoenix seems hurt that she can't even look at her anymore. She reaches out both her hands and firmly grasps Maya's like an old friend.
"Good to see you again Mayabeth." The boys stare at them in shock, both yelling at the same time.
"Mayabeth?! Why didn't you tell me Maya isn't your full name?" Was Gray's response, seeming embarrassed that he didn't know his fake love interest's real name.
"You guys know each other?! Awesome!" Natsu seemed pleased that Maya knew Phoenix, thinking it could help him with his plan. 'This is gonna make things interesting.' They both think, Gray with a tired tone and Natsu with an exited one. The girls stare at each other with pain in their eyes, and back away slowly to be next to their mages' sides. The three whose bags are on the ground go to get them, and they start their trek into the forest. It's going to be a very long week for all of them.
(A/N) Thanks so much to all of you who are following my story and for the great reviews! Let me know if you have any suggestions for this story or another you think I should write.
xxoo Hannah ^-^