"We're home!" Natsu shouted, kicking the doors in.
"Stop doing that!" Makarov shouted, but it was drowned by the guild's shocked screeches, when Natsu pulled a green haired girl into the guild hall.
"This is my - uh…" His excitement faded into awkward confusion as he rubbed his chin, trying to figure out what to call her. They had been awkwardly dancing around the subject for a while. What exactly were they?
"Natsu brought home a girl?" everyone shouted in shock. How did they - oh, they were holding hands. That's why - oh, this was embarrassing. Natsu pulled his hand away, clearly embarrassed.
"We're not like that, ok?"
"We're just friends," Midori hastily agreed. The others seemed to believe it, but the look on Mira's face said that she knew that they were lying. I'm not lying though… right? Midori thought as Natsu threw a chair - occupant still in it - at Gajeel.
"Oh, it's on, Flamebrain!" Her eye twitched. That was her name for Natsu.
"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" she shouted, punching Gajeel with green flames flashing around her hand.
"Holy crap!" Macao and Wakaba shouted. "Another Natsu!"
"I'm the only one allowed to call him that!" Midori shouted.
"What the - are you crazy?"
"Another Dragon Slayer…" Makarov said gloomily, imagining all the bills he was going to get.
"Oh dear," Mira said, clearly thinking the same thing.
"... Sixty five bottles of beer on the wall, sixty five bottles of beer!" Natsu and Midori sang a couple hours later. To celebrate Natsu finding his long lost friend and a new member, they had thrown a party. Granted, Fairy Tail reacted to everything by throwing a party…
"Take one down, pass it around, sixty four bottles of beer on the wall!" Lucy was just about ready to kill them both.
"They're so cute together," Mira sighed as she cleaned a beer glass. Midori seemed very happy, her new guildmark a vivid green to match her hair just below her left collarbone. "They even have matching tattoos! Not a couple indeed…" Lucy looked closer, and yes, they did have matching tattoos on their wrists. How had she not noticed it before? They looked like a red dragon curled around the wrist.
"Huh," Gajeel said, noticing it at the same time as she did. "Salamander's a player."
"What?"
"I said that - oh never mind, it's a Dragon Slayer thing." He pushed off the bar and walked away in Levy's general direction.
"Sixty three bottles of beer on the wall, sixty three bottles of beer! Take one down, pass it around, sixty two bottles of beer on the wall!"
"Where's Natsu?" Lucy frowned some days later. "I haven't seen him all day. Normally he's stuck to Midori's side."
"He and Happy are going fishing," Lisanna explained. "Poor Happy's been feeling neglected."
"Which means that Midori is all alone," Mira said with a devious look. It reminded Lucy of a hawk zeroing in on its prey. "Sooo, Midori." She looked up from the book she was reading and set her fork down.
"Yes?" she asked suspiciously.
"I don't suppose you'd mind answering a certain question for me, would you?"
"If this is about Natsu," Midori said warningly.
"No, no, of course not," Mira waved, a smile on her face. Midori seemed to relax a little and took a drink. That was what she was waiting for. "I was just wondering about your matching tattoos on your wrists." She spewed out her drink, choking. Oblivious to the greenette's distress, she continued, "They're just so cute, and Gajeel was saying that it was a Dragon Slayer thing…"
Gajeel began to sweat as he felt a murderous gaze on par with Erza's on his head.
"So, what is it?" Mira asked, grinning evilly.
"It's… a maaaaa…" The rest of trailed off into silence as she blushed.
"Hm? I didn't hear you."
"It's a…" Midori was an interesting shade of red. "It's a mating mark, just like the one Gajeel's going to put on Levy!" She shouted. The aforementioned pair's faces were practically steaming. Mira grinned and leaned closer.
"So Natsu, huh?" Poor Midori had no idea what she was getting into…
"N-Not exactly. It's more like a mark that we place on a prospective mate," Midori whispered, still flushing. "It's not permanent until… you know." She coughed and looked away. "Consummation."
"Oh, I see. Thank you!" Mira sauntered away, already planning on what to do with her new found information. Midori felt nothing more than a strong sense that giving Mira that information was a big mistake.
"Midori, are you in he- OH CRAP I'M SORRY!" Natsu yelped as he slammed the door shut. Midori slowly relaxed and dropped the shirt that she snatched up to cover herself, her face burning.
"Knock next time!" she shouted.
"I will, I'm sorry!" Natsu blushed. He had seen her…
This is embarrassing, they both thought as Midori finished changing.
"Sooo," Midori said after sitting down at the table. "What now?"
Natsu scratched his chin as Happy left, muttering something about winning Carla's heart. "Well, I was planning on doing some more training in the morning, and then maybe -"
"No, not that," Midori interrupted, flustered. She waved a hand between them. "I mean… about us. About this." She gestured to the red band on her wrist, hidden by her sleeve.
"Oh." They sat in awkward silence for a bit. "Well… do you still like me?"
"I think so. Do you?"
"Maybe? I don't really know."
"Ok." The silence seemed a bit less oppressive. "You'll tell me if that changes, right?"
"Duh," he grinned. Midori smiled back. She stood and walked behind him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"I missed you, Natsu. Please don't leave me again. I couldn't bear it," she murmured into the crook of his neck.
"I won't," he whispered hoarsely. He knew he couldn't either.