"Okay, let's see what's up here…"

Mrs. Hirugashi came in, holding a cardboard box with a pricing of 10 zenny. Her objective was to collect a few possessions in Ken's collection that her son felt he had no use for them, or at least what she thought were useless, as he was too old to play with them. She reached under the bed, where the bottom half of Erza's body peeked out. Even though she was frozen, the crimson-haired toy panicked in her mind; she dreaded the thought of being taken away, never to see her friends again. Her worries turned out to be for nothing, however, when Mrs. Hirugashi pulled out an old roller skate and put it into her box.

Next, she walked over to Wendy and picked her up, the Sky Priestess doll's eyes secretly twitching, to grab an old board game she stood on. The woman then reached the top of the shelf, grabbing a Lucas Tower, one of Ken's old baby toys, and a book, the same book Mavis hid behind. Unseen to Mrs. Hirugashi, Natsu's eyes darted to Mavis as she was grabbed to be put in the box. Mrs. Hirugashi squeezed the toy's belly, letting out a wheezed out message from her mouth, "Bye, Natsu."

Natsu crawled along the edge to watch the hapless Mavis carried out to the door, his mouth agape. It's obvious she wasn't at her best, but she was still one of Ken's toys, a valuable member of the family. He couldn't just let her get sold, or worse… thrown away.

"Mavis!" Natsu cried. He tapped his head, trying to come up with a plan, "C'mon, think. Think, Natsu. Think, think, think… Oh!" He then lifted his fingers to his mouth and tried to whistle, but he only made a raspberry. Groaning agitatedly, Natsu used his functioning left hand to lift his torn right hand to his mouth, this time successfully letting out a whistle. Kagutsuchi immediately came running into the room, barking excitedly and looking around for the source of the noise.

Natsu called from the shelf, waving his hand, "Hey, here, boy! Here, Kagu! Up here!" He began to climb down, but of course, due to the torn arm's lack of strength, he was forced to slip off. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, WHOA!"

Fortunately, Natsu landed right onto Kagutsuchi's back. Pulling himself up, he instructed, "Okay, boy! To the yard sale! Hyah!" Kagutsuchi obediently ran out the door, and the other toys came out of their hiding places, shocked and horrified that their friend was apparently giving himself up.

Gajeel blurted out, "What's goin' on?!"

Mirajane called in concern, "Natsu!"

Laxus exclaimed, "He's nuts! He's sellin' himself to the yard sale!"

Elfman shouted, "This is crazy! Only a real man could survive that yard sale!"

Lisanna worried, "He's still upset over that broken arm!"

Kinana stated, "That rip in his arm must've gotten into his head."

Laki mused, "He's gone over the cuckoo clock!"

Erza cried incredulously, "How could he have been so foolish?! Going alone to a yard sale would be suicide!"

Evergreen exclaimed, "He sold himself out…"

Bickslow added, "…over a torn arm?"

Freed Justine pitied, "What a shame."

Alzack shrugged, "What's his deal?"

Bisca agreed, "His arm ain't that bad."

Happy and Wendy took it the hardest. They screamed in unison, "DON'T DO IT, NATSU! WE LOVE YOU!"

Lucy rubbed her chin in thought, "I'm having a feeling Natsu left with Kagutsuchi out the door for a reason."

Gray replied, "This is something we're gonna have to find out." He turned to Alzack, "Alzack, you have your Cowboy Binoculars?"

Alzack raised his thumb, "You got it!"

Gray turned to his fellow toys, "Everyone, to the window!"

Outside, Kagutsuchi led Natsu down the stairs. "Careful on the steps now…" Of course, the dog didn't listen, and the pull-string Dragon Slayer had to hold on tight with his functioning hand as he bounced along with each step taken. "W-W-W-W-W-Whoa!" They reached the bottom of the steps, and Kagutsuchi skidded into the wall, flinging Natsu against it. The salmon-haired recovered slightly, holding his head in pain. He groaned, "Well, that was a clean getaway."

Kagutsuchi walked over to the door, which had been left ajar, and Natsu was able to open it just a crack more to peek outside. Mrs. Hirugashi had set up some stands for the yard sale, and put the 10 zenny cardboard box she brought in on a table. "Hi, can I help you?" she walked off to tend to a buyer, and Natsu saw his chance.

He whispered to Kagutsuchi, "Okay, boy. Let's go. And keep it casual." The dog pulled himself up, waltzing out the door and into the sidewalk. Natsu held onto his side, easily able to hide thanks to the dog's huge size and thick brown fur. Kagutsuchi looked at the pull-string Dragon Slayer, as if asking for approval. "Not that casual." The dog trotted over to the table, making sure to keep Natsu from been seen.

Meanwhile, Gray, Lucy, and their friends gathered at the window, watching Natsu's progress.

Gajeel announced, "Gangway, Black Steel Gajeel, comin' through!"

Happy cried, "C'mon, I wanna see! I wanna see!"

Wendy wondered, "Is he out there?"

Mirajane asked, "Can you see him?"

Lucy eased, "Calm down, guys. We don't know what's happening yet. Well, Gray?"

Through the Cowboy Binoculars given to him by Alzack, Gray spied Natsu on Kagutsuchi approaching where the 10 zenny cardboard box stood. "There he is!"

Natsu jumped up, hiding behind the leg of an overturned stool from a customer who walked by with a whistle. Once he was out of reach, he left his hiding place and climbed into the box where Mavis was, much to his friends' horror.

Wendy panicked, "He's getting in the box!"

Laxus exclaimed, "What the heck does he think he's doin'?!"

Gajeel answered, "Isn't it obvious? He's sellin' himself for 10 zenny!"

Happy argued, "No! My best friend would never sell out like that!"

Carla nodded, "Happy's right. Natsu is worth a lot more."

Erza stated, "Natsu is the symbol and role model of our toy family. Without him, our morale would decrease, and Ken would be utterly disappointed."

Cana frowned, "Why would he do something so reckless? It kinda reminds me of Lucy saving a helpless toy from Zeke."

Lucy nodded, "That's what I'm saying. Maybe the reason why Natsu left the house is because he thought someone's in trouble."

Gray interrupted, "Hold on, hold on." Every toy paused to hear what the space toy was confirming. "He's got something." As they watched, Natsu popped back out of the box, holding Mavis in his arms. "Suffering subplots! It's our old squeaky friend, Mavis Vermillion the Fairy Tactician!"

Everyone exclaimed shockingly, "MAVIS?!"

Cana cried at the top of her voice, "MAVIS?! MY BEST FRIEND?!" She then began jumping up and down excitedly, "She's okay! I get to see her again!"

Wendy beamed happily, "Me too! Mavis and I used to play together!"

Mirajane stated, "Mavis is the best strategist in our toy family, next to Natsu. When Ken was five, she came up with a brilliant plan for Mest and the M.C. Troops to inform us of the unwrapping of Ken's Christmas presents. It's the biggest mission success ever."

Lisanna wondered, "Wait a sec… I thought Mom took her to fix her squeaker months ago."

Laxus guessed, "Maybe Mom told Ken that she's gonna fix the squeaker, only to calm him down. The next day, she hid her away, and was never heard since."

Erza breathed, "My goodness! Natsu's bold action wasn't suicidal after all!"

Kinana nodded, "It's a rescue mission!"

Laki added, "Now it makes sense."

Happy cheered, "That's Natsu for ya!"

Lucy smiled proudly, "He's learned from the bravest toy in the Toy Underworld! I'm so proud of you, Nat!" She giggled to herself, "I hope he hears this."

Natsu dropped Mavis to the ground, where Kagutsuchi used his nose to shove him under the table. The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll jumped down with them, "Good boy, Kagu. Now hold still…" He shoved Mavis under the dog's collar, so she would have a way to get back inside the house. "Here you go, Mavis."

Mavis smiled appreciatively, "Bless you, Natsu." She somehow knew that her salmon-haired friend wouldn't abandon her.

Natsu grinned, "Anything for a friend in the Fairy Tail Room family." He climbed onto Kagutsuchi's back, "All right, now. Back to Ken's room. Hyah!" The dog trotted off to the house, and the other toys cheered and praised Natsu's heroism.

Gray smirked, "Way to go, Pyro!"

Lucy cried happily, "Yeah, you rock! That's my man!"

Happy suggested, "Somebody's gotta take a picture of this!"

Suddenly, Mavis found herself sliding from under Kagutsuchi's collar. She yelped, "Natsu! I-I'm slipping!" He shoved her back in just in time.

But by a stroke of bad luck, Natsu fell off when Kagutsuchi jumped over one of Ken's old baby toys. When he got up, he saw the dog going back inside with Mavis. He didn't have time to follow them, however, as he was forced to play dead when a little girl came by and saw him. This was going to be harder than he thought.

"Mommy! Mommy, look! Look at this!" the girl cheered, picking him up. "Mommy, look! It's a pink hair dolly!"

The other toys observed the scene with complete dismay and anger. Happy protested, "Hey, that's not her toy!"

Gray complained, "No, no, no, no, no!"

Lucy snarled, "That's my man you're holding! Go get your own!"

Cana narrowed her eyes, "Does that little gal have any idea what she's doin'?"

Wendy worried, "He's taking an interest in Natsu. And she wants to buy him!"

The little girl ran over to show Natsu to her mother. She pleaded, "Mommy, Mommy, can we get it, please? Mommy, please?"

"Oh, honey. You don't want that toy. It's broken," the mother responded. To indicate, she picked Natsu up by his pull-string and tossed him aside. He landed on a table with his scarf falling next to him, his voice box speaking a recorded message, "I've got a fire in my belly!"

The voice box caught the attention of a customer, an elderly man who had been looking at a jack-in-the-box. Gasping, he hurried to the source of the recorded cry. He gasped again, his voice laced with total surprise, as if he had found an essential item on his list. The man saw Natsu lying on the table and picked him up, studying him.

"Original hand-painted face, natural dyed, blanket-stitched, buttoned-up one-sleeved waistcoat!" He noticed the tear in Natsu's right arm, "Hmm, little rip. Fixable. Now, if only you had your hand-stitched, polyvinyl…" The customer moved his hand, and let out a high-pitched squeal when he saw Natsu's scarf lying on the table below him. "SCARF! I FOUND HIM! I FOUND HIM! I FOUND HIM!" He wore the scarf around the salmon-haired toy and hugged him, crying out excitedly.

By some twist of fate, Natsu found himself at the hands of Gouma Konishi, the owner of Konishi's Toy Barn that was last seen in the commercial. For years, the toy collector had searched far and wide for rare toys to collect and sell to the highest bidder. Now that he had found Natsu Dragneel, the last toy to add to his collection, his journey came to an end. Brimming with anticipation, he would carry out his well-laid plan. Coincidentally, Mrs. Hirugashi walked over amidst Kagutsuchi's barking.

"Kagutsuchi! Quiet down!" she shouted at the dog. As she approached, Konishi grabbed some more stuff off the table in an attempt to hide Natsu. "Excuse me, can I help you?"

Unknown to the two, they were being watched by the rest of Ken's toys, and they were displeased. Happy narrowed his eyes at Konishi, "Yeah! You can help him take his paws off my pal!"

"I'll give you 15 zenny for all this junk," Konishi offered.

"Hmm?" Mrs. Hirugashi paused, noticing Natsu underneath the junk in Konishi's arms. "Wait a minute. How did this get down here?" She tried to reach for the pull-string Dragon Slayer, but Konishi stepped back.

"Just hand her the Dragon Slayer. Nice and easy," Gray said quietly.

"Very well, how about this? I'll give you 50 zenny," Konishi bargained, thinking the woman wanted a bigger price.

"I'm sorry, it's an old family toy," Mrs. Hirugashi refused. She knew Natsu was Ken's favorite toy; if she were to sell him, her son would be heartbroken. With that said, she took the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll and walked away. Konishi reached for the toy, and groaned out of frustration for his rejected offer.

Gray insisted, "Now just walk away."

Konishi held up his hand to stop Mrs. Hirugashi, "Wait!"

Gray added, "The other way."

Desperate to purchase Natsu, Konishi decided to raise the price, "I'll give you 200 zenny for him!"

Cana snorted, "Where'd that fat bozo get a lotta money, anyway? I mean, look at him. He smells like raw fish."

"It's not for sale," Mrs. Hirugashi said sternly. She placed Natsu inside a toolbox where she kept the money she received from the customers, closed the hatch, and locked it with a key.

"Everything's for sale!" Konishi objected. "We'll… We'll trade! Do you like my watch?" He showed Mrs. Hirugashi her watch, but she wasn't interested.

"Sorry," her tone made it obvious that the debate was settled. Selling Natsu to the greedy toy collector was a no-show.

Gray issued the good news to his fellow toys, "He's safe."

Lucy sighed in relief, "That was a close one."

Happy smiled, "Way to go, Ken's mom!"

Wendy clapped her hands, "You did it, Ken's mom!"

Cana smirked, "You sure showed him, lady."

Mirajane breathed, "We almost lost him."

Erza stated, "A mother would never crush her child's heart by selling something money can't buy. She would never betray Ken's trust."

Alzack laughed, "A pretty lady lookin' over her sweet baby!"

Bisca approved, "I'd give 'er full marks for that."

"Maka? Don't touch that, sweetie," Mrs. Hirugashi walked over to her two-year old daughter, who looked up from the old books she was going to sell. Konishi grumbled angrily, upset that he wasn't able to take Natsu.

Gajeel said smugly, "Yeah, go home, Mr. Fancy Car."

The toy collector was about to walk off… or he would have if he hadn't almost slipped from the skateboard beneath his foot. A sneaky expression crossed his face, indicating he had an idea. Through the Cowboy Binoculars, Gray took notice. "Hold on…"

Gajeel questioned, "What's up?"

Wendy asked, "What is it, Gray?"

"Maka, I'll be right here, sweetie…" As Mrs. Hirugashi was still tending to Maka, Konishi kicked the skateboard backwards, causing it to crash into another table. "Oh! What now?" With Mrs. Hirugashi distracted, the greedy toy collector went back to where Natsu was, breaking the lock and opening the toolbox to get him out.

Lucy asked, "What's happening down there?"

Cana questioned, "What's going on?"

Erza demanded, "What on earth is he doing?"

Wendy muttered, "I have a bad feeling about this…"

Just then, Gray gasped shockingly, realizing the situation.

"He's stealing Natsu!"

True enough, Gouma Konishi sneaked off with the pull-string Dragon Slayer, the Hirugashi family completely unaware of this dastardly deed. Chuckling to himself, he put Natsu in his large bag.

"WHAT?!" All of the toys screamed in horror. "HE'S STEALING NATSU?!"

Erza yelled furiously, "How dare that vile man!"

Wendy protested, "He can't do that! It's bad to steal!"

Elfman shouted, "Stealing is against the law! It doesn't fit a real man!"

Happy panicked, "Where is he going?! Somebody do something!"

While the toys chorused with shouts of worry and alarm, Gray passed the Cowboy Binoculars back to Alzack and turned to Lucy. "Lucy, c'mon!"

"Right!" Lucy affirmed. The two jumped out the window, grabbing the shower drain to slide down.

"Lucy! Gray!" Mirajane cried out.

Once they hit the ground, Gray and Lucy immediately ran off.

"Get 'em, guys," Lisanna encouraged. All they had to do was to wait for the two to come back with Natsu, if they could.

As the two toys pursued Konishi, Lucy said hastily, "This reminds me of the time we chased the moving van all the way down the road. Only this time, we have to save someone."

Gray asked, "Does it also remind you of the rescues you've pulled off back at Takeshi's room?"

Lucy insisted, "Save the reminiscing for later! We gotta catch him! I can't let that that jerk take my boyfriend!"

Gray agreed, "I hear ya. Natsu saved our lives before. Now it's our turn!"

The Celestial Treasure Hunter and the Space Hero ran amongst the boxes, flattening themselves against one as a customer walked by. Upon reaching the mailbox, they caught a glimpse of Konishi putting his bag in the car trunk before closing it. Lucy urged, "Let's go!"

By the time Gray and Lucy sprinted behind a table leg, Konishi started up the car and drove off. Taking running stances, the two toys ran as fast as they could until they jumped and landed on the edge of the trunk. They bent down and struggled to pull it open with little success.

"How is this thing sealed tight?!" Gray grunted.

"It's locked, but don't worry! My Flueve d'étoiles also serves as a key!" Lucy brandished her toy whip and mixed the plastic rope, forming it into a key. She inserted it into the trunk's keyhole.

"A whip serves as a key?" Gray raised his eyebrow. "Never thought about that before."

"The Flueve d'étoiles's plastic rope can be formatted like clay into keys to unlock doors, closets, and other stuff," Lucy pointed out. "That's funny, because kids occasionally use Lucy Heartfilia: Celestial Treasure Hunter Flueve d'étoiles Whips to unlock things. Trust me, I saw it on YouTube. Now help me up!"

The Space Hero and the Celestial Treasure Hunter proceeded to twist the key-shaped whip, and CLICK went the lock. The trunk door was open, and Lucy and Gray were about to get in, but the car hit a speed bump, causing them to fly off and bounce along the road, some of Gray's multi-phrase voice simulation buttons pressed and letting out randomized voice samples, until they stopped.

Gray asked, "Are you okay? Your parts still working?"

Lucy responded, "It's a good thing there's no traffic. If there was, we'd turn into road—" She paused when she stared at the vehicle's license plate number, titled "KNSH-TY-DJ." With the car speeding off to who-knows-where, Natsu still trapped inside, a stream of salmon feathers fluttered from the open door of the trunk until some of them landed in front of Lucy and Gray.

"Feathers…" Gray analyzed, taking a sample. "No, they're scales. Scales of a fish. Who on Planet Tenrou would have scales fall out of the trunk, unless someone stuffed a fish in there?"

"I've memorized the license plate number," Lucy stated, standing up. "It's KNSH-TY-DJ. Does that ring any bells?"

"None, but we've got some clues. Let's go back to Ken's room," Gray suggested, standing up as well. "We might be able to figure out where he took Natsu."

"Natsu…" Lucy muttered sadly. "I was almost there… I was there when he needed me, but now he's gone. We lost him… We lost Natsu…" Overcome with regret for not being able to save Natsu, her sorrowful eyes looked down on the hard cement. The sorrow was then replaced with anger, and her body shaking, she kicked one of the scattered fish scales in frustration. "Darn it! We were so close! Why would someone steal Natsu?! When does he get the gall to take him away from us?! It feels so… wrong!"

Gray grabbed her shoulder, "Lucy, calm down."

Lucy ignored him and continued her rant, "That fat man with the fish scales made a big mistake when he toynapped my boyfriend! He's messin' with the wrong girl! He's gonna pay for this…!"

Up on the windowsill, the other toys watched in stunned silence. Mirajane asked the question they were all thinking, one no one had an answer to.

"Why would someone steal Natsu…?"

It didn't take Natsu long to realize that he was in a tight spot. He was in the trunk of a car with a money-obsessed businessman, being driven miles and miles away from hom and into the big city. Natsu snapped back, looking at the bag zipper. If only his arm wasn't torn up, he would've reached the zipper and escaped effortlessly.

As soon as the ride seemed to start, it was over. Konishi stopped the car, climbed up, and seized the bag. Natsu tried to get out, easier said than done, since the man kept bouncing him along. Nonetheless, he was able to peek out at the toy-napper who stole him, as well as the entrance of a large apartment, with a sign that read: No Children Allowed.

Natsu gulped, anxious of the impending fate that awaited him.