A/N: Hey! Thank you so much for the wonderful response guys! Like seriously, the alerts, the faves... and most importantly, the reviews! You guys rock!
Remember when I said this might be a three chaptered story? I guess plans change.
I'd like to give a huge shout out to:
Sara lovelymusic, BloodyBullets648, Guest (I'm so glad you thought it was nice ^^), BerberMantis, Dark Shining Light, alexandryte (I already sent a reply to your account :D ), hitokori midnight, diviarockstar, Mrs Limited Edition, ArouraJean (I'm so happy this caught your interest. I hope you stay tuned for more!) and FairyTailF.T.
(Anonymous reviews receive responses here while the review replies for those with accounts were sent by PM ^^ )
Once again, thanks! Since I don't want to keep you guys any longer, let's just get on with the story...
Summary: "Why am I the only one who can see you?" Languidly, his lips stretch into a humorless smile. His dark eyes lock on hers, his gaze deep and filled with sorrow. "Because, you're the only one who can break my curse." NaLu Modern AU
Warnings: Language, Romance, Supernatural, Humor, Adventure, Modern AU, NaLu, Ghost!Natsu, BAMF!Natsu, Fluff, mentions of JudeXLayla.
Disclaimers: Currently, no. I don't own Fairy Tail. But just you wait...
After essentially living with Natsu for three weeks straight, Lucy has come to realize that having a ghost constantly hovering over her shoulder isn't as scary as one would think. Well, there is the fact that she can't tell anyone else about him since they might think she's crazy; and of course there's also the tiny little detail where she can't ever remove the necklace – you won't be able to see me when you take it off, Lucy – which is completely annoying but still manageable. In fact, after wearing it for almost a month nonstop, the jewelry's presence has become barely noticeable.
Those things aside, everything else is great. Sure, he can be a little annoying at times; like when he makes inappropriate comments- he'd called her pet, Plue, a freakish mutant dog-thing that first time she'd shown her puppy to him. But if she's honest, his vice isn't all bad since his comments sometimes make her laugh.
And even when they don't, he always redeems himself one way or another.
A good example would be when she's in the bathroom, relieving herself, or taking a bath. He never follows her or walks in on her at those private times, even when she forgets to tell him not to enter. She hasn't gone up to him and outright said it, but she's certainly glad that he's respectful of her boundaries.
Another one of his attributes worthy of praise includes his willingness to help her. No matter the time, he'll always stop what he's doing so as to assist her with her studies. He may have a snarky, idiotic comment on the tip of his tongue every single second, but at least he helps her out with the things pertaining to school. Sometimes, he even goes as far as reading through her class notes, as well as doing her homework with her.
Speaking of homework.
"Hey, what kind of policies had King Toma implemented during his reign?" Lucy asks, hurriedly jotting down the few answers she can think up from her head. After all the time they've spent together, she has come to realize that her resident ghost is exceptionally good in history. "And what effects did his decisions have on the citizens of the kingdom of Fiore?"
Natsu, who is watching a movie about dragons and wizards and magical kingdoms, doesn't shift his attention from what he's doing either. "Why the heck are you asking me? You have three text books with you. Read them."
"I will, later. I just want to hear it from you first. After all, your points are always so much better." Though she's thrown in the complement just to draw him to her aid, she mentally admits it's true. His versions, which may be a little too crude for her tastes at times, are always more interesting than the information written in her books.
"You do realize that complementing me so I can help you with your homework is some form of manipulation right?" Despite saying this, he walks up to her desk and takes a look at her notes from over her shoulder. A small smile plays on his lips as he peruses through the answers. "Animal cruelty abolition. Good. Irrigation systems. Yeah. Tax reduction. Yes. Supporting women rights. Sounds about right since he was the first in his line to appoint a female heir."
He pauses, reading through her paper once more. "You know, this is a pretty good essay. Though you kind of forgot to mention the part where the good for nothing bastard–" Oh, God, Lucy thinks, isn't he talking about a king? "–ordered the death of over 500 girls in the kingdom because he suspected they were witches."
Lucy gasps. "Really?"
"Nah, he just screwed my father over during a bet." He scans her notes one last time. "Oh, and while you're at it, say something about his gambling problem. I'm sure airing his dirty secret for all the world to see will have him rolling in his grave." He pauses, as if an idea has just occurred to him, "Speaking of graves, what do you say we go toilet paper his tomb. Or raid it. Or egg the place- I'm not really sure right now but I'm open for suggestions." The smile on his face is nothing short of pure evil.
'You're a monster,' she wants to say, but like the good little girl she's been raised to be, she opts for something a little safer. "You knew the king?"
He shrugs. "Something like that."
"Wait, are you serious?"
He shrugs again in response and turns around, probably having lost interest in the discussion already. "It's not really that important anyway. The monarchy is gone. Whether or not I knew the man doesn't matter." He then heads back to his 'zone' – that's what he has, for some unfathomable reason, decided to name the area of her room where both the sofa and television are located – and continues with his movie, Lucy and her homework having been long since forgotten.
Oh well, at least the television keeps him busy when she's at school.
Focusing back on her work, Lucy opens up one of her text books and begins to highlight the points she considers important. She's already on the fifth paragraph when she is hit by a very startling realization; King Toma E. Fiore had started his rule during the latter half of the sixteenth century, all the way into the early decades of the seventeenth.
If Natsu had truly known him as he claims he had, then he has to be at least 400 years old.
One day, when she's older, Lucy will look back at this moment and really feel sorry for the ghost, the implications of the curse finally dawning on her. But for now, all she does is grin.
Living for four hundred years?
That's definitely cool.
"It's not as bad as you might think."
"No."
"It's gonna be fun."
"No."
"But-"
"No."
"Natsu." Lucy is well aware that later, once this whole situation has passed, she'll sincerely come to regret how desperate she sounds. Talk about whining.
"Seriously," the frustration in his voice is almost palpable. "What part of no don't you understand?"
His harsh tone doesn't deter her at all.
"Come on, man up. It's just a camping trip." She tries to pull him up from his position on the couch. However, her efforts don't really bear much fruit. "Besides, you were the one complaining about being bored yesterday."
She remembers how shocked she'd been when she'd come home only to find an angry ghost ranting and raving about a crazy maid who'd entered her room and turned off the television while he'd been watching a very touching movie about hitmen and drug dealers.
The choice of movie aside, she truly feels sorry for him.
Unlike her, he can't simply grab the remote since his hands just pass through anything and anyone that isn't Lucy, or on Lucy at that given moment. If he wants to watch something, someone else has to be the one to operate the devices.
Not being able to touch anything or anyone? Ouch.
"Yes, I was." He nods in agreement to her statement, and Lucy is forced to come back to the present. "But just because I was bored does not mean I'll happily waste away seven days of my afterlife in a forest surrounded by snotnosed brats. God knows I can barely tolerate being around them at your school. Why the hell do you think I stay here rather than go to school with you during weekdays?"
Lucy opens her mouth, about to tell him that camping can be a fun and wondrous experience when a knock sounds on her door. Once she calls out a quick 'Come in,' Spetto enters her room and informs her that she's not to see her mother that morning, even if it's to tell her goodbye.
Those are her father's orders.
Though a little disappointed, she fakes a smile and sends the maid off with the words, 'It's okay. I'll just talk to her when she's better.'
When she hears the door click shut, she releases the deep breath she's been holding.
She's just been informed that she's not supposed to disturb - though the maid had been kind enough to use the words 'see' and 'say goodbye'- her mother that day since the medications the doctors have given her are a little too strong, and she really has no idea how she should react to that.
She really hates it when adults treat her like a child. Sure, she is ten, but that does not mean that she doesn't understand what's going on. He mother is sick- terribly so at that, and for some reason, nothing the doctors ever do can completely cure her, but so what?
Her mother is the strongest woman she knows. There's no way she'd let a measly illness beat her without putting up a fight.
Yes. That's it.
That's definitely it.
But still, she falters. Saying it to herself and believing it are two separate things. What she needs now is oral confirmation, preferably from someone else.
Gnawing at her bottom lip, she faces the ghost. "Natsu, do you.." Much to her consternation, her voice is barely above a whisper, but she's glad it hasn't cracked. The last thing she needs to do right now is cry. "Do you think my mom's going to be okay?"
He doesn't answer her right away, preferring to scrutinize her instead. And normally, she would be fidgeting, but with the sudden heaviness in her chest, she can't bother herself to worry about anything else, let alone his gaze.
Without warning, he stands up. His hand drops to her head and he ruffles her hair, not seeming to care about messing up the sunny strands. "What's the matter? Don't you have faith in your mum?"
Lucy's eyes widen. "Of course I do!"
"Then quite your worrying." He smiles encouragingly at her. A second later, his face scrunches up as if he's warring with himself over something. Then finally, he beams. "So, how long did you say this trip was going to be?"
With his words, Lucy's mood instantly brightens.
She doesn't even realize that he has completely dodged her question.
The camping trip, if it can even be called that, is nothing but a disaster. Whoever has managed to convince the school to combine students from three separate grades in one compound seriously needs to have his psyche evaluated.
The bus ride alone has been hell. And judging by the number of fights that have broken out, it is a miracle no one's been critically injured.
Lucy wonders how students who clearly hate each other so much could have signed up for the same camping trip. Is there some higher force using them all as a form of amusement?
"What the heck is wrong with you?!"
"I'm older, so I clearly need the most space."
"Like hell you do! We were here first!"
Excellent. Just when she thinks she'll finally garner a moment of peace at the campsite, another fight has to start.
Trying her level best to quell her anger and frustration, she sighs.
She's been trying to tune out the argument between the three students for the past fifteen minutes to no avail. She's friends with two of them, Gray and Loki, but she can't say the same for the third, Karen. All she knows about her is that the girl thinks she can boss them around just because she's a year older than them.
However, at this point, she really can't pick any sides. She's just so mad that she isn't quite sure who she's supposed to be supporting anymore. All she wants is for the fight to end.
Where's an adult when you need one?
"Oh, you were totally right Lucy. This is so much fun." Natsu looks bored out of his mind. She is not sure if it's his harsh glare or sarcastic tone that annoys her the most. And as if his negativity isn't enough, he growls at her in frustration. "I wish those damn kids would at least draw some blood. This stopped being funny hours ago."
She doesn't respond, despite how much she wants to tell him to shut up, to remain quiet if he has nothing positive to say. There are too many people around, and yelling at what would appear to be thin air in their eyes is not really something she's looking forward to.
There's no need for her to be known as the freaky blonde that talks to ghosts.
"Hey, wanna ditch these idiots?" A rowdy brunette asks, casually slinging an arm around her shoulders. Lucy is glad for the distraction. She has been waiting for something to pull her attention away from the fight as well as the brooding ghost glaring daggers at her bickering peers.
One quick look behind her classmate assures her that the rest of their friends, Levy and Lisanna, are not far behind.
"We're not supposed to wander off, Cana." Lucy's attempt at refusing is halfhearted at best. She already knows she's going to say yes anyway. "We'd be in huge trouble if we got caught."
Cana smirks. "Who says we're gonna get caught? Besides, her sister," she jabs a finger at Lisanna's direction, "and Erza, will be back any minute now. If any of us want to live, we better get out of here fast. Those two won't care if we were actively involved in this fight or not."
Lisanna nods vigorously, her cropped, silver locks bouncing along to keep up with her movement. "Mira-nee won't show us mercy." She's the youngest of the group, being one year behind them, but at that moment, no one can refute the truth of those words.
Lucy, who is in pretty good terms with Erza, thinks of trying to defending her classmate's compassion. Before she can say anything however, two familiar, very furious voices cut into the clearing in unison.
"What the heck is going on here?"
Lucy will be eternally grateful for the speed at which her friends had pulled her into the bushes.
Distantly, she hears Natsu yell something not being able to stay there anymore. She doesn't pay him much thought.
She'll just ask him about it once she comes back.
Night has fallen.
Twinkling stars dot the dark, velvet sky, and there's not a single cloud in sight. Had Lucy not been seething in rage, she might have even enjoyed the beauty and purity of it all. The reason for her anger?
Natsu.
She's returned from hiding not so long ago only to find him gone.
Her chest hurts, pain and disappointment welling up inside her. It could be her naïveté talking but she really hadn't expected him to ditch her just like that.
He's promised – well, not exactly, but still – to stay around for the whole trip so obviously, she is well within her rights to conclude that his sudden departure is the worst thing he's ever done to her.
But can she really blame him? He has always been quite open about his distaste for her peers and their childish antics- which is a pretty huge surprise all on its own since he acts like a child ninety percent of the time anyway.
"What are you grouchy about?" Gray asks, pulling her out of her thoughts. He sits next to her on the log she's acquired, and he's probably not even aware that he's unbuttoning his shirt. Normally, Lucy would just brush him off, saying that it's nothing serious, but he looks more concerned than usual. This alone makes her feel worse than she had before. They are best friends, but lately, she hasn't been acting like one, and they both know it. She's just lucky he hasn't called her out on it.
"You know, if it's about your mom then don't worry. Aunt Layla's gonna be fine." Gray is unfastening his pants now, his shirt having long been tossed into the shrubbery behind them.
Lucy doesn't even bat an eye at his behavior.
She does realize however that her friend has undoubtedly confused her anger at Natsu with sadness for her mother. Since she doesn't feel the need to correct him, or yell at him to put his clothes on, she simply nods back. In a way, she really is thankful for the reassurance.
Gray then tosses his pants over his head. They land on a tree branch but she doesn't think he notices. "You'll see her up and about in no time- and when she is, you'll feel stupid for worrying over it."
Lucy chokes back a sob. Gray has no idea how much she needed to hear that, and as a matter of fact, neither did she.
Shuffling closer to him so that their arms are brushing side by side, she flashes him a small smile and he gives her hand a quick squeeze before letting go.
There is no need for anymore words.
Smiling, they both turn back to their fellow campers.
Lucy proceeds to listens to Levy with half an ear as she narrates what appears to be a scary story.
"-and when she walked into the kitchen, she screamed. For standing next to the counter, gripping the very same knife she'd used to behead him, was the ghost of her husband." Levy has quite the talent with words, if the look of terror on the other children's faces is anything to go by.
Lucy is mildly disappointed that she doesn't feel scared as well. She will forever blame Natsu, with his brusque personality and general happy-go-lucky attitude for ruining her fear of ghosts.
"You're all a bunch of sissies." Karen snarks all of a sudden. It can't be a coincidence that she has chosen to speak only after the adults have entered their respective tents.
She has a slight bruise on her left cheek, and Lucy is left to wonder if it came from Erza and Mira – who miraculously aren't present there either – or Gray and Loki. After all, their heated fight from earlier hadn't looked like it had been destined to end peacefully. "This little pipsqueak here clearly doesn't have her facts straight."
From her left, Gray narrows his eyes. "Keep your opinions to yourself."
Lucy is sure his anger is due to his immense dislike of the green-haired bully, and not because of his friendship with Levy, who looks like she's trying so hard to blend into the background.
Karen says something venomous, but Lucy doesn't pay her any mind. Her attention is fixed on Gray, who's trying to calm himself. He takes in a deep breath before exhaling slowly. "It's not your turn Karen. Take a hike."
As if to spite him, Karen doesn't even glance in his direction. Basking in the crowd's undivided attention, she then continues, "It's pretty much common knowledge that ghosts are the weakest supernatural creatures. Next time, if you want to tell a better story, use something stronger, like a werewolf or a vampire." She snickers. "Or a leprechaun."
Lucy doesn't know what happens to her, but one minute she's sitting next to Gray and the next she's slapping Karen on the face, hard.
"What's you problem?!" The outraged cry from her victim is what snaps her out of her rage induced blindness.
At a loss for words, Lucy stares at Karen, then the rest of the camp. There are looks of approval from a majority of them, but the remaining few either shake their heads, like they expected more from her, or glower at her for being so disrespectful to an upperclassman.
"I..." What can she say? Even she has no idea what has possessed her to act like that. Karen hasn't said anything particularly wrong. All she knows is that a few minutes ago, she had been enraged beyond reason and nothing else had been more important than shutting the girl up. Did her anger have something to do with Karen's comment about ghosts? "I've gotta go."
She doesn't wait for any acknowledgement before making a run for it. Rushing past the campsite, she darts into the trees, not really aware of the danger in her actions.
"Lucy, wait!" Gray stands up to chase after her. "Shit, what happened to my clothes?!"
"Lucy!" Cana isn't so far behind either.
A part of her registers their panicked voices, and the frantic footsteps coming towards her, but she can't bring herself to care. She just wants to be alone. She's too angry, too embarrassed, too confused to face anyone right now.
Increasing her speed, she weaves into the trees, zigzagging further into the darkness until she's completely sure she has lost them.
Eventually, she slows to a halt, listening to any telltale signs that she's still being followed. When all that greets her is quiet, she sighs in relief. Finally.
Abruptly, a sob bursts from her and she collapses onto the ground; fat, angry tears streaming down her face. She doesn't really notice the bugs crawling up her legs, or the dirt now caking her trousers. There is a possibility that she could be overreacting, but she knows that without releasing all her bottled up emotions, outbursts like the one at camp will be more than just a onetime thing.
Her mother is dying.
Her father is distancing himself from her- she can't remember the last time they'd spoken face to face since her birthday.
She's pulling away from her best friend only to replace him with a four hundred year old ghost who's only reason for tolerating her company is because they're stuck together.
And now, she's hitting people for indirectly offending said ghost?
Maybe she's the drama queen, not Karen.
Lucy is unaware of how long she sits there on the forest floor, crying her eyes out, but once her sniveling starts to quiet down, she hears the sound of crunching twigs from behind the trees.
Her blood instantly runs cold. "Gray?"
Another crunch.
She gulps. "Cana?"
There's still no response.
"Who's there?" She tries to sound confident, brave even. The only things that betray her are the near-painful hammering in her chest and her rapid breathing.
And when Lucy hears a growl, all the confidence she's tried so hard to fake disappears.
The whole world falls away, fading into the back as the wolf responsible for the noise slowly advances towards her from the shadows. It's too dark, the only source of illumination being the moon, but she can still make out the wolf's demeanor.
It's sharp fangs are barred, and it's body is poised, ready to strike at a moments notice. But the burning hunger gleaming in the wolf's golden eyes is what terrifies her the most, freezing her in her tracks. Beads of sweat trickle down her icy, ashen skin. She trembles, and her heart thrums erratically in her chest as the creature draws nearer. She can hardly bring herself to move, let alone stand up and run.
There's no way she is going to make it out of this alive.
Oh God, what was she thinking running into the woods at this time of night?
The wolf growls once more, eyeing her with the same hungry, predatory gaze she's seen lions sport in animal documentaries. It is sizing her up, she can tell. Waiting for the perfect moment to go in for the kill. After a few moments, the beast decides it's time and lunges at her.
Frozen in shock, all Lucy can do is close her eyes and wish for a quick death.
All of a sudden, another roar; more carnal, more feral, resonates from in front of her.
Upon registering no pain, she opens her eyes and is shocked to find Natsu standing in front of her, shielding her from the wolf. Not paying her any mind, he roars once more and the creature is scurries back to where it came from.
His back is to her so she can't see his face, but she does notice the rigidity in his stance. With the threat gone, he turns to her and inspects her, studying her from head to toe.
"Are you okay?" He asks, crouching down to her level.
Lucy doesn't answer right away because she is too busy gawking at his face. Though they are steadily receding, the skin-colored scales around his eyes give off an aura of mysticism. She can also sense a strange energy emanating from him, pulsing and cackling around him despite being hidden to the naked eye. That fact both mesmerizes and terrifies her. No wonder the wolf ran.
Once she snaps out of her trance, she nods weakly, still not capable of any form of coherent speech. She's shivering, the fear of the whole ordeal not quite out of her system just yet.
"Good." He nods, giving their surroundings a cursory glance. "Now, can you tell me what the hell you're doing out here?"
She can't. But she has to.
Maybe telling someone else about how she feels, what she thinks, will help her cope with everything currently happening in her life.
So, with that in mind, she tells him about every single thing going on in her mind- even about how she thinks him being with her leans more towards tolerance and convenience rather than any actual friendship. She doesn't go very far with that accusation though because he cuts her off immediately. "Is that what you think?"
The shock on his face is almost enough to make Lucy want to take back her words.
"I don't know." She murmurs. She sticks with honesty seeing as that's definitely what Natsu expects from her after such a confession. "Isn't it true though?"
The broad grin that splits Natsu's face is absolutely not what she's expecting.
"Nope." He says, standing up. He holds a hand out to her. "C'mon, let's get you back to camp. I can hear them all the way from over here. It's a total mess back there. Your little stunt pretty much gave your counselors heart attacks."
Lucy doesn't grab onto the proffered hand. Until he gives her a proper answer, she is resigned to not trusting him.
Noticing her reluctance, he pulls her up himself. "You've already been gone for a while now. I need to take you back." And to prove he's not ruling her complaints out, he turns his back to her and crouches to the ground. "Come on, I'll give you a piggyback ride to camp. We can talk about this on the way."
Although she's tempted not to accept his offer, the prospect of a being carried back all the way to camp is enough to temporarily override her anger towards him.
"Fine." She agrees, climbing onto his back rather reluctantly. "But I'm still mad at you."
"Yeah, yeah. I know." He smiles, staring at her from over his shoulder. "Now, come on! I can hear your camp councilors swearing, and seriously, if he keeps this up, I just might-"
"You can hear them all the way from over here?" Lucy queries, effectively cutting him off before he says something she's not supposed to hear. "You can you do that?"
"Yeah. Can't you?" He pauses, then as if something has just occurred to him, he chuckles. "Oh, right. Sorry, ghost powers. I kinda forgot about that."
Lucy really shouldn't be surprised at the level of his stupidity. Only he would forget such a thing.
"What kind of ghost has super hearing?" She tightens her grip around his neck. She hopes Natsu doesn't notice her tone because the incredulity lacing it almost sounds offensive.
"Me." From her position, she can't see his face, but somehow, she knows that he's grinning cheekily. "Besides, I already told you before, I'm cursed. I'm not exactly a normal ghost–" Lucy splutters, wondering just how on earth a ghost can be normal, "–so obviously, I do have one or two powers."
She wants to ask what kind of powers he's talking about, but Natsu redirects the focus of their conversation back to her. "Now, could you please tell me why you think I'm not really your friend?"
Lucy winces.
She has been hoping he'd forget about their earlier conversation.
For a few seconds, she pretends to be busy struggling to find the perfect position on his back. She even clutches onto his shoulders tightly in hopes of appearing convincing but sadly, Natsu doesn't buy into her little act one bit.
"Take your time kid." He almost sounds exasperated. "Just know that once you're done, you have a lot of explaining to do. You're not dodging this that easily."
At a loss of what to say to that, Lucy settles on the first thing that comes through her mind. "You left."
When the words are out, Lucy wants to take them back. She is certain he will scoff at her, tease her and call her a big baby. After all, the answer she's provided isn't a point strong enough to warranty the end of their friendship.
"I didn't think you'd be that bummed about it." Natsu says at last. He even has the decency to sound guilty.
To say Lucy is shocked he hasn't laughed at her will be the understatement of the decade. Steeling herself, she continues, "It's not just that," she feels a blush creeping up her cheeks, and she is immensely glad that Natsu isn't facing her at that time. "I wanted you to come because I thought we could have fun here, together. But all this time, you didn't even look like you wanted to be here and I felt that maybe you'd like camp more after we started actually doing stuff–" Why the heck is her voice cracking? "–and then you just disappeared and I figured I wasn't going to see you again until next week and then I thought that maybe you left 'cause you didn't want to spend time with me and-"
She is barely aware of the fact that she is crying now.
"Whoa. Breathe, Lucy."
Oddly, she doesn't notice Natsu stop.
She doesn't even notice her feet hitting the ground.
She doesn't even notice the steady fingers wiping away her tears.
Only after muscled arms wrap around her, pulling her closer to a strong, hard chest does she snap back to reality.
Great, Natsu probably thinks she's a crybaby now.
"I'm sorry. I don't even know why I'm crying." She mumbles, burying her nose into his scale scarf. Surprisingly, he smells of smoke and pine, with a hint of something else she can't quite identify. Why has this night been nothing but a string of embarrassments for her?
Natsu chuckles, the faint rumble in his chest reverberating all the way through her. "If anyone should be apologizing it's me." He lets go of her, but still remains close enough to pull her in for another hug if need be. "When I left, I didn't think about how you'd feel, and for that, I'm really sorry."
Despite his apology, Lucy still can't directly look into his eyes.
"Lucy? Hey Luce, come on, look at me." He gently lifts her chin so that she's staring at him directly in the eye. "I'm having a really hard time here okay? I can't even remember the last time I had to apologize. Back in my day, I used to settle things with my fists." He smiles, and Lucy finds herself mirroring that simple action. "What I'm saying is, I guess I've been alone for so long that I've forgotten how to care about other people's feelings. I really should have thought about what you would think."
"It's okay."
"No, it's not. Tell you what, we'll head back to camp, and this time, I promise not to complain when your friends do something stupid, no matter how annoying it is."
"Really?"
He huffs out a laugh. "Yeah, yeah. Now let's go before I change my mind."
It's now Lucy's turn to laugh. She bounds up to him, stretching out her arms for a piggyback ride when she remembers something. "Hey, how did you find me anyway?"
"We're bonded." He grins at her, smile wide, eyes closed. Lucy can't help but think that he looks so carefree and young like that. "I'll always find you."
A/N: I guess that's it for today. I hope you all liked it :)
A few things I thought I should clear up just in case:
Natsu's English is modern despite him being 400 years old because he's watched the world change. There was no point in having him stick with an older speaking style when he can just adapt. You know, kinda like how vampires do it ^^
I tried to make Natsu as little OOC as possible considering his circumstances but I know there are times where he sounds a little more mature than cannon, but that's just due to:
1. He's been a ghost for over 400 years.
2. Lucy being very young. Since this fic is in her POV, she obviously sees him as responsible - with a heavy dose of stupid, of course - at her age. I'm not sure how she'll see him once she's older though ;P
Okay, there wasn't much talk on the curse in this chapter since I wanted to put in a little focus on some NaLu bonding, so that once the time skip rolls around (hopefully in the next chapter), their relationship will have a somewhat rich history.
And yeah, since Lucy is still a kid, and I so don't want to venture into pedophilia, I guess we should all just chalk off her interactions with Natsu (for now) as him being friendly/brotherly. So yeah, no lovey-dovey stuff until after the time skip (yes, time skip. That's not a spoiler 'cause we all see it coming).
Anyways, until next time!
Please don't forget to leave a review before you go :) (Believe it or not, they actually motivate me to get off my bum and write hahahah)