**A/N: Before reading this chapter, keep in mind that Porlyusica is speaking to Natsu through a communications device (ergo, Bluetooth, which will be mentioned). In other words, it's like they're talking through phone. They do not see each other face to face. In this fanfic, Porlyusica is a hacker, who places Natsu in missions for money, and she helps him with her hacker skills.
That is all. Thanks for reading!
Chapter 2: How Far We'll Go for Money
"You know," the old woman commented lazily through the speakers, "you could try to be a little...I don't know...incognito?"
"What do you mean, Porly?" Natsu smirked as he walked into an abandoned parking lot. "No one knows who I am anyways."
"Mhm. How do you explain top headlines referring to CODE NAME DRAGON AGAIN, MR. SUPERHERO?!"
Natsu grimaced as he pulled the screaming device away. Before putting it back on, he made sure the old woman wasn't shouting anymore and sighed, "A little girl was in trouble. Did you want me to stand back and let her be crushed?"
"This is why they call you a superhero! You just randomly help people! But you're forgetting that you're taking on missions of both bad and..!"
While Porlyusica berated him and yapped in the Bluetooth device, the pink lad pulled back a cover, revealing a clothes hanger, to which he pulled and caused a chain reaction of shifting gears. Eventually, a hidden door revealed itself.
"-if one thing leaks from your appearance, the media will dig and eventually find your true identity. All those gangs you've defeated and helped in the past will post bounties on your head!" she shouted.
"Dude, relax Porly. I'm quick at escaping."
"You will slip one day," the woman warned. "Natsu, you can't be careless."
"Yea yea." Natsu shut the door behind him and came in front of another door with a 10x10 combination lock. Patiently plucking each one into its place, another heavy door groaned open.
Porlyusica huffed an impatient sigh, which crackled in the earbud. "You have another mission by the way."
His head perked up. "How much?"
"Eighteen grand. Can be more based on how time-efficient you are," she drawled. "I'm one-hundred percent sure you won't reject this one."
"Wow, one-hundred percent. Alright. What's the time-efficiency offer?" he asked, entering his pad and walking to a refrigerator. Out came frozen spicy buffalo wings, which he microwaved.
"Deadline is a week from now. Each day before deadline is an additional ten grand."
He smiled widely, revealing a set of pearly-white canines. "Oh, you know me so well, Porly."
The blonde quirked an eyebrow up at a passing stranger, who looked weirdly at her. Not that she could blame whoever he was. She was currently dressed in a UPS outfit, holding a strange, brown package, and a sling-bag, which contained her notebook, pen, recorder, and camera. A cap held in her blonde hair as the top covered her rich-chocolate eyes.
Long story short, Lucy was a rookie reporter and needed a hot topic for the gossip column. Just something that could maybe raise her salary and job title was good enough to last a year. Her mouth drooled at the thought, but she quickly wiped it away and readjusted her delivery-boy hat.
Apparently, there was something going on the hottest female celebrity, Minerva Orlando, and top-dog model, Sting Eucliffe. They were known to be a lovey-dovey couple in public: PDA-ing, sweet-talking in interviews, that shit. However, as all love was (in Lucy's view), everything has to come to an end.
Minerva was rumored to be two-timing another top-notch model, Rogue Cheney, who had recently broke up with the nation's sweetheart, Chelia. And now, it was the perfect time to investigate because Sting was currently visiting France. With one piece of evidence of a male's presence inside Minerva's home, Lucy could be looking forward to a salary raise.
She pressed the doorbell, holding a package close to her chest.
"Oh god. Who the hell is at my doorstep today?! Another news reporter?! I've had enough of-!" Minerva was heard stomping over. She yanked the door open but stopped when she saw Lucy.
"Package for...uhm...Ms. Orlando?" she piped up cheerfully and handed Minerva the package.
Minerva looked at her suspiciously. "I didn't order anything," she said coldly.
"Oh well, apparently this is for you. Let's see here..." Lucy fished out a prop notebook and a pen. "It says this is from Mr. Sting Eucliffe. If this is someone you don't know, you can-"
"I take back what I said," the celebrity finished quickly, "My bad. Sorry. Thank you for the package."
"No problem, Ms. Orlando. I need you to sign here though."
The dark-haired woman quickly scribbled through. "Alright. Thanks. Bye."
Action time. Lucy suddenly hunched over, groaning in pain and clutching onto her chest. She had received high A's in musical production and theater and hoped it would be handy in the future. The assets proved useful when Minerva gasped, covering her mouth.
"Oh dear, what's wrong?" she fretted, fearing someone would die in front of her hotel suite.
"I-I'm sorry..." Lucy croaked. "It's...an...occasional...a-attack. C-cardio...v-vascular...s-s-stuff. W-when the systole...and diastole p-pumps...m-malfunction...and affects..." Not being able to think of any medical terms, Lucy began coughing and gagging to cover up.
To her relief, Minerva bought it. "What should I do?!" she cried.
"Water...a-Advil...actually...T-Tylenol b-because...I...didn't eat...y-yet. Some towels...H-honey. I-I need lullaby music blasting...in y-your apartment..." she whispered hoarsely.
"Got it!" Minerva was too worried to question the lullaby music and ran back into the apartment.
Seizing the opportunity, the blonde pulled out a camera and snapped a picture of the suite inside. She opened the door wider, smiling when a large pair of male shoes were at the steps. Two slippers. Taking her chance, she walked deeper into the apartment and gawked when a pair of boxers were stuffed into the corner of the couch. Another bingo.
Lucy took out a small moisturizer spray and covered her face while powdering her skin a tone lighter. After frazzling out her hair and hearing lullaby music play in the background, she walked back outside and leaned against the wall, huffing in dramatic pain.
As if it were cued, Minerva ran back with all the things Lucy asked and stuffed them into her hands. "Anything else?!"
The blonde shook her head and stumbled with fatigue towards the doorstep, gasping, "Thank you Ms. Orlando...I shall..be off." Without waiting for her response, Lucy zipped out into an open elevator and smashed the button to close the doors. She sighed in relief in the elevator while gripping onto her prized camera.
Grinning victoriously, Lucy leaned down to kiss it out of delight.
Dark sunglasses, a large baseball cap, and a black leather jacket.
"So..." Natsu drawled as his eyes flickered to a nearby, fidgeting man. "I have to escort him back to his house?"
"Yep," she cackled through the device. "He had sent me such a desperate email yesterday that I found it sad. At least the reward money can last the both of us for a couple of months."
The pink-haired man licked his lips and stuffed his hands into his pocket. "So why is it in the subway? You already know from last time..."
"Public transportation. It's harder for some gang members to assault him directly in public. If he were to drive in a car, they'd probably have a truck crash into him and call it a car accident. Just suck it up from last time. One life taken is better than multiple lives taken."
The sudden halt had caused passengers to be thrown forward and the said victim to crash his forehead onto one of the train's leaning poles…
"Whatever..." Natsu took in a large breath. He then examined his surroundings and eyed at two guys, who were obviously masking their disinterest in his customer. They were in black suits; one was normal-sized while another was...a bit on the husky side. If they ever were to get into a brawl, Natsu would have to rely on his quick instincts to avoid a staggering blow. He shook out of his dazed state and clucked into the microphone hidden in the folds of his collar, "Hey Porly. Based on the cameras, how many of the gang men are there?"
"Nine," she replied instantly. "You're fine right now. First off, we have to find out who these bastards work for."
"Easier said than done..." the pink-haired man frowned as he watched the husky gang member seat himself comfortably on a bench. "Do you just need some connection to one of their device?"
"Yes. Just call me on one of their phones."
Whistling while walking towards his prey, Natsu deliberately seated himself a couple of cushions away, opening a porn magazine on his phone. The lady to the right of him gasped and walked away, muttering words of disgust, while the husky man's eyes veered over, obviously curious. Natsu grinned at the man, who caught his eye and sheepishly turned away. "You interested, man?"
He nodded, a bit ashamed.
The young male let out a laugh and scooted himself closer to the gang member. "I'll let you take a look for now." While the man was occupied with his phone, Natsu quietly slid his hand, snaking over to his pocket, where he pulled out a key, some change, and finally the man's phone. Praying the man would enjoy the sensual scenes longer, he quickly dialed in Porlyusica's number and afterwards hung up. The man shifted.
"Hey," Natsu said suddenly, bending over to open another issue. "If you liked that, you gotta see this." Again, the man was occupied, muttering 'Thanks' as Natsu concentrated on the phone. Using the time, he opened call history, deleted Porly's number, and slipped it back into the pocket. Natsu then got up and snatched his own phone away from the man, who looked outraged at the interruption. "Sorry man, duty calls."
He strolled away and back into the line of sight of his customer, who was very nervous. The male was in his fifties perhaps, small and frail, and he clutched onto his briefcase like it was his life.
"Did the gang man do anything to my phone, Porly?" he whispered.
"No," she assured him, "I was monitoring. He was only interested in the porn magazine. That was good."
Natsu snorted. "He just looked like a pig. Glad my assumption was right."
"Who's the one with the porn magazine app?" she retorted.
Train stop for Yojeong Street. I repeat, train stop for Yojeong Street.
"You know the procedure, right, Natsu?" Porlyusica continued as he quickly stepped behind his customer, boarding the subway train.
"Yep." Natsu rested his hands on the fifty-year old man, who jumped in fright. "Don't worry, I'm hired by you," he whispered. The man's shoulders relaxed as they stepped in. He was about to turn around until Natsu pushed his face to the front. "Rules apply that clients cannot see my face, got that?"
The man quickly nodded to Natsu's satisfaction. The subway doors all closed and shifted on its move.
"Shit," Natsu cursed as he saw the two hooligans spy them from a distance. The husky man called over some people as five more appeared behind him. "Hey, Porly...will anyone...?"
"The train's not as fast as the last one. No one will die by impact. Even if they did run into a pole," Porlyusica assured through the speakers. "Anyways, I'll track you. Just get away from them for fifteen seconds. Then the plan will initiate-"
"I don't want to die. I don't want to die," the man whimpered, snapping Natsu back to the scene in front of them. The hooligans were inching closer and closer.
"Trust me. I won't let you die." The pink-haired male pushed the man the opposite direction of the gang members. "Go go go," Natsu urged him as the two whipped past people. The goons behind quickened their pace.
"Ten seconds," she drawled into the device. "I'm almost done hacking the system."
"Well, hurry it up," Natsu muttered.
"Well! Why don't you try to hack into the full system of train operations and only-!"
"Okay okay!" he groaned. "Seven seconds?"
"Six."
"Okay." Natsu turned his attention back to the quivering man, who was praying. "On the count of three, this door..." He shifted the middle-aged man to the left door. "...will open, and we both have to jump out. Got it?"
He nodded frantically.
"Good. You can understand me. Even though you look like you're about to pee your pants," he commented, watching the hooligans inch closer. There was one car in between them now. He grabbed onto the leaning pole.
"One...two...THREE!"
The train screeched to a sudden halt, causing uproars of surprise from surrounding people. The man was about to swerve from the force of inertia, but Natsu yanked him back. They both poised, waiting for the door to open. It didn't.
"...Uh...Three!" Natsu commanded.
Nothing happened. The distorted gang members were getting back to their feet.
"...Three!" He tried again. A beep sound followed. However, the door behind them, which faced the wrong way of the tracks, opened instead. "Come on!" he groaned exasperatedly.
"My bad," the old woman chuckled. Finally, the door in front opened, and Natsu and the man leapt outside into the darkness. The men were about to go through as well until the door closed.
"I swear, your timing is perfect," Natsu gasped as he pulled the man to his feet. "Go! Run!"
"I take pride in it," Porlyusica smugly answered.
"I'm taking more than fifty-percent of the reward money," he muttered to the mic and turned to the middle-aged man. "You're paying us right? Or else I'm going to ditch you here."
"Y-yes! Of course! Just save me!" he shrilled, causing Natsu to grimace and Porly to snort into the ear piece. The flashlights brightened the train tunnel behind them.
"They got out that fast?" Natsu asked, amazed.
"Just got the information. They are currently from the Arbaless guild, one of the top HQ's in accepting missions. We are losing to them by a large streak," Porlyusica commented. "But then again, they have three-hundred members while I have only you and Lisanna."
"Fair enough," he muttered and shoved the man behind a wall. "You, stay here. You better not run off, or I won't be saving your sorry-ass." Like always, the man quickly nodded while the pink-haired male ran off into the direction of the gang members.
The first he encountered tried to land a punch. However, Natsu swiftly dodged, swiveled on his feet, and landed a kick to his shin. Then a blow to the face. Another popped up, lightweight, as Natsu easily swung him into another member. He then jumped up from the pile of bodies and drop-kicked someone while deftly swinging his elbow to the right, hitting a man square in the jaws. Another kick, punch, latch.
One by one they fell down.
Until the last one: hefty man.
"What's up, porn buddy?" Natsu called out cheerfully.
The man growled and let out a ferocious yell before bowling Natsu over. He gasped, a large breath of carbon dioxide knocked out as he crashed into the wall. Shaking his head clear, Natsu rolled to the side, a second from being knocked into dreamland. He jumped to his feet, swerving, landing a punch, which rebounded off the man and caused Natsu to stumble back.
"For God's sake," he muttered. "Guess I have to revert to that."
With a snap of his fingers, the butt of the man lit on fire. He howled with heaven-splitting violence, rolling around and not realizing Natsu's power was the cause. Using the wall as a platform, he ran up, somersaulted, and landed a forceful kick to the man's head. Immediately, the pupils of the man rolled back, and as Natsu landed on his feet, the husky man fell forward, crushing Natsu to the floor.
"Son of a turnip!" the pink-haired lad yelled. The unconscious man was pinning him to the train tracks with his weight. And to both of their luck, a nearby train roared in the distance.
"God! I'm not going to die in this stupid tunnel!" he shouted. "Woman, help me!"
"You can do it yourself," Porly snapped in the ear piece. "I'm busy at the moment."
"Well, I'm about to die!" Natsu snapped back. The train closed in.
"Too bad!"
"I swear! I better get AT LEAST seventy percent of this reward!" he yelled and with all his might, he kicked the man out and rolled to the other side, barely missing the train that zoomed by. He gasped for his breath, lying on the hard concrete and pressing a hand over his opened mouth.
"This was definitely...not worth it," he managed to say.
A/N: R&R if you like to! C: To previous readers, yes I have deleted Chapter 2 and rewrote it in a different direction. Lucy and Natsu will be meeting much later compared to what I had originally planned for plot development by the K-drama "Healer."
If you were confused about what happened in this chapter, here's a bit of summary~
First section: Porlyusica, a genius hacker, complains to Natsu about openly helping people because it's a risk to revealing his true identity. He brushes it aside. As Natsu enters his hideout 'house', Porlyusica offers him a new mission by a client, which Natsu accepts because of the large reward money.
Second section: We fly to third POV of Lucy! Yay~ Here, she is a rookie reporter, who's trying to snatch up juicy gossip information for a promotion/salary raise. She disguises herself as a delivery boy and rings on Minerva Orlando's doorbell (because of recent celebrity gossip of her cheating on Sting with Rogue). With sneaky plans, she pretends to be sick and enters Minerva's suite to find traces of Rogue (because Sting is out of country): male shoes and pair of boxers on the couch. And Lucy is successful!
Third Section: We switch back to Natsu, who sees his client: a scaredy-cat, middle-aged man. He also sees gang members who are targeting his client (since his client asked for help in protecting him). Natsu does his business :D
So yea, thanks if you've read until the end! Have a great reading night!