Here's the "Revenge on Mirajane" epilogue I promised... 2 years late. *begs on knees for forgiveness*
The sunlight woke her up. Lucy felt it pierce through her closed eyelids, and she moaned sleepily in response. Was it morning already? It felt like she went to sleep only awhile ago. Her mind felt like it was stuffed with cotton and her body was numb from the neck down.
It would be so easy to fall back asleep, but she had this nagging feeling at the back of her mind that she was supposed to be awake for something.
But what was it?
She hadn't planned on taking any jobs today, nor did she plan on starting that new chapter of her novel yet; she couldn't do anymore shopping otherwise her rent would be at stake, and it was still too cold for Natsu and Happy to try and drag her out for fishing (she didn't understand what was so enjoyable about dangling worms in water).
But more importantly, she couldn't think of any reason why she shouldn't stay in bed. In fact, she already had two reasons why she should. That is, one: It was warm in her bed; and two: It was cold outside her bed. And she didn't have carpeted flooring.
That's it, she was sleeping in.
Sighing happily, Lucy snuggled further into her blanket, relishing the warmth that had trapped within the sheets. Even though winter should already be coming to an end, the chill hadn't totally left yet. And with the state that her rent money was in, she couldn't afford to get her heater properly fixed.
At times like these, she thought, a sudden smile coming onto her face, it's useful to have a dragon slayer around.
The one in question shifted in the spot next to her, a hand reaching out to scratch his neck before it fell back limply against his side. His loud snores caused the bed to vibrate at measured intervals. Lucy remembered how many hours of sleep it had cost her to get used to it, but now she couldn't sleep peacefully without it.
Tenderly, Lucy reached out and wound her arms around the sleeping figure next to her. She let out a sigh of content as her cheek made contact with his back. It's so warm, she thought drowsily. His body heat spread to where they were touching, spreading across her face and gently pushing her eyelids close. She vaguely registered herself losing consciousness, until…
"Lucy, are you awake?" His voice was thick with sleep, his question asked quietly so as to not wake up the mass of blue fur that was curled up next to him.
Despite herself, Lucy felt her mind awaken for the second time that morning. Refusing to answer, she simply snuggled closer to him.
"Lu-ucy, I know you're awake." he said, his voice louder this time. Slowly, he began to turn around until Lucy found herself facing his chest instead of his back. She quickly shut her eyes, her heart beginning to thump in excitement.
"Aww, I thought you were awake already." he muttered. She had to bite onto her inner lip to stop herself from giggling. "Hmm, I guess there's no helping it… I'll just have to tickle you until you wake up!" he suddenly exclaimed.
Lucy's eyes jolted open, but she was too late. He had already begun attacking all her weak points; her waist, armpits, the bottom of her feet, behind her ankles, her neck… She burst into hysterical laughter, interrupted only by her frantic gasps for air. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes as she wiggled and waved her hands about, attempting to stop his relentless torture.
"N-natsu – hahahahahaha – sto – hahaha – stop it!" she exclaimed in-between giggles.
"Stop what, Lucy?" He teased, a wicked grin on his face.
"St – hahaha – stop tickling me!" Lucy managed to get it all out in one go.
"Not until you say 'I love you, Natsu'" he said, continuing to tickle her sides.
"Not now – hahahahahaha – don't be ridiculous – hahaha – Natsu!"
"If you don't say it, I'm going to keep tickling you!"
"Pleas – hahaha – Natsu—" Lucy burst into another series of uncontrollable giggles.
"Ugh, do you two really have to do this in the morning?" A voice piped up among the sound of laughter and, much to Lucy's relief, caused Natsu to draw back his nimble fingers.
"Good morning, Happy!" he said cheerfully while Lucy gripped the bed sheets, panting heavily.
Instead of greeting his 'father' in his usual cheerful fashion, the Exceed pouted. "You're so mean, Natsu! You interrupted my dream of fish and I got pushed off the bed." Happy complained.
"Darn, I'm sorry buddy." Natsu reached out and patted him on the head fondly. Having caught her breath, Lucy propped herself up using her elbows and stared at the two.
"Hey, where's my apology?" she demanded, poking Natsu in the side sharply.
There was a slight pause before Natsu let out a deep chuckle. "You want an apology, Lucy? Roger that." He turned to her with a mischievous glint in his eyes. Lucy gulped nervously. She didn't like the sound of that.
In one swift moment, she found herself pinned under his muscular arms. Flashing a cheeky grin, he began to dot her face with kisses. Lucy giggled as he nipped her neck, her nose, her forehead, her cheek.
At the same time, Happy let out another groan, mumbling something about 'inappropriate' and 'finding Charle' before flying out the door.
As the bedroom door slammed close, Natsu's face began to take on a more needy expression. With one finger, he began to trace her lips, moving further down to her neck and stopping before her chest, where he looked up to meet her eyes.
Lucy gulped nervously. "Wh-what are you doing, Natsu?" she stamered, but was quickly hushed by a single finger on her lips.
"Well, Happy is gone now…" he whispered, before leaning in to peck her on the lips.
He traced her lips slowly with his tongue until she relented. Lucy found herself moaning unabashedly as his tongue explored the insides of her mouth, his hands travelling down the sides of her body hungrily.
The way Natsu kissed, she could feel her mind going blank. It was like he was drowning and she was his only source of air. It was hungry and selfish, passionate and consuming. "Mmngh, Natsu. It's too early…" She moaned, but was instantly silenced by another kiss.
Fine, two can play at this game, she thought deviously. With one solid shove, Lucy became the one that was looking down at Natsu who, if anything, looked even more turned on than before. "Lucy…" he groaned, playing with the waist band of her pyjama bottoms.
Suddenly, she smelt something burning. When she looked down, Lucy yelped. "Natsu! What did I say about burning my clothes?!" she shrieked.
Natsu reached up to nip her ear. "Don't worry, you know I won't burn you." he said huskily, moving to grope her behind as her shorts slowly disintegrated.
"That's not what I meant—mmhh." she moaned as Natsu dragged her in for another kiss.
This went on for awhile, Lucy pushing and Natsu pulling, until a loud beeping noise pierced the air. They jumped apart in shock, both of them breathing heavily.
"What is that?" Natsu asked loudly.
"It's just my alarm clock." Lucy responded. "Let me turn it off—" her voice halted mid-sentence. Her eyes began to widen as it took in the sight before her.
"What's wrong? Just turn it off already and we can continue." Natsu piped up from behind her, his hand already moving up her back.
Ignoring his touches, she quickly shut the alarm and rushed into the toilet, slamming the door behind her.
"Hey, what gives—" Natsu began, interrupted by the sight of a note stuck on the face of her alarm clock. "Meeting… Levy… 10am…?" he read out loud.
At that moment, Lucy rushed out of the toilet already fully dressed. Without a pause, she grabbed her bag and began to head towards her front door.
"Luuucy, but we were just—" Natsu rushed after her, whining.
She paused at the door and looked back at him. "Sorry, Natsu. We'll continue this later—"
"Tonight" he interjected seriously. Lucy couldn't help but crack a smile.
"Fine then. Tonight." she smirked. She turned back around and began descending the stairs, two at a time. "Remember to lock up behind you!" she called back.
"I'll be waiting!" he replied, his voice lowered in the tone he knew she liked.
Lucy felt her heart jump. "Mm!"
Levy arrived at the book café, a quaint wooden structure set in the back lanes of Magnolia town. She and Lucy had found it by chance after a long day of shopping and instantly fell in love with it.
Besides stocking an impressive book collection, it was quiet and peaceful. Its regular clientele was made up of readers, writers and artists, and the noise level never went further beyond quiet conversation. It was the complete opposite of the guild hall, which is why they were meeting here today.
A serene smile appeared on Levy's face as she walked into the café. She inhaled deeply, the aroma of coffee and baked goods quickly invading her senses. It didn't take long for her to order her usual and sit down at their spot, but not before doing a quick survey of the café.
As usual, she was the only Fairy Tail mage here. Perfect, now all I have to do is wait for—
At that exact moment, Lucy walked through the café doors. A gust of cold air followed, and Levy watched as her best friend welcomed the café's warmth with glee. She continued to watch, amusedly, as the blonde's face transitioned into a peaceful smile, not unlike the one she wore earlier.
This place certainly had an effect on them.
After placing her order, Lucy turned to where the blunette was sitting. "Sorry, Levy-chan! Am I late?" she asked, hurriedly sitting opposite her.
Levy waved her hand casually. "No, I just arrived."
Lucy sighed in relief. "That's great," she said, digging around in her purse. "Can you believe I almost forgot about our meeting?" She pulled out a hair tie and began tying her signature ponytail.
"If it's because of Natsu again, I understand." Levy teased.
The blonde released the hair tie with a snap, her cheeks turning red from reasons other than the cold.
"Spot on, eh?" she smirked.
"You're talking as if you've never been late because of Gajeel before." Lucy retorted.
Levy coughed. "Anyway, Lu-chan, I managed to find that book I was telling you about—"
"Don't even attempt to change the topic, McGarden" her friend began, a sly grin appearing on her face.
As they continued to banter, their orders arrived; an éclair and latte for her, and a slice of chocolate cake and mocha for Lucy. The two stopped for awhile to take a sip of their drinks, shuddering happily as the warmth spread across their bodies.
"Mmm, this never gets old." Lucy sighed contently. Seemingly appeased by the hot drink, she looked up at Levy. "You brought the book today?" she asked.
"Yep, let me just…", she reached into her bag to pull out the thick book. It had taken her over an hour to locate it, which probably wasn't surprising considering her book-filled room. But what was surprising was where she eventually found it; locked up and at the bottom of a chest. She couldn't for the life of her remember why she kept it there, but she definitely had a bad feeling about it.
Before Lucy could take it away, Levy placed both hands on the book cover. It was purple and decorated with black ivy, with a velvety touch to it. She looked at her friend seriously.
"Lu-chan, before I show you what's inside this book, are you sure you want to go through with this?" she questioned. "I found it in a really weird location, and I'm not sure if—"
Lucy interrupted her. "I thought we decided she deserved a taste of her own medicine." she chided.
"I still think you should be thankingher instead of cursing her. After all, she did get you and Natsu together."
"This is Mira we're talking about, right? Remember what she did to you and Gajeel a few months ago?" Lucy leaned forward.
Levy grimaced. She would never forget how humiliating it was to have her clothes spontaneously begin disintegrating right in the middle of the guild. Jet and Droy had fainted, and those old geezers didn't lose any time in gawking at her.
Luckily, Gajeel had come to her rescue; sweeping her up into his arms faster than she thought was possible and after that… Levy blushed. Well, what happened after that didn't matter.
What mattered is that it was embarrassing, and that it wouldn't have happened if Mira hadn't 'accidentally' spilled that concoction all over her clothes. She covered her rapidly flaming cheeks at the memory of it as Lucy looked on smugly.
"J-just to get this straight – we're doing this for the greater good, right?" she sputtered.
Lucy pointed a finger gun at her. "Exactly. Even though I hate to admit this, Mira did help us in the long run but she also caused us a lot of embarrassment, so it's time to return the 'favour'." She cackled evilly.
Levy sighed, thinking that her friend seemed to be taking on some of her boyfriend's eccentric tendencies. "Well, fine. I did do the research for it anyway." she consented.
"You're the best, Levy-chan!" Lucy cheered.
Opening the book's cover, she ran her finger down the index until she found the thing that she was looking for. Page 394… there we go. She turned the book so that it was facing the celestial mage.
"Here it is. One spritz of this and the person will be unable to resist the urge to kiss the person that they love. The ingredients are relatively easy to find as well." She explained. "You know, I'm kind of glad alchemy is not Mira's forte, some of the things in this book are really terrible…" she added, although Lucy seemed to have stopped listening at that point.
"This is perfect! When can we begin?" Lucy exclaimed.
Levy paused for awhile in contemplation. "We could easily prepare it now, but I was thinking that we should aim for the Valentine's Day party next week. Increase our chances of the 'right person' being there, you know?" She said, a cheeky smile coming onto her otherwise innocent face. Well, maybe she could get used to this revenge thing.
"I was thinking the same thing! And I got just the plan to carry it out. Listen…" Lucy leaned closer to her, and the two began discussing the sequence of events that would happen in 7 days.
However, they were so deep in discussion that they didn't notice a figure eavesdropping on them from behind a pillar, a table away. Shrouded in the shadows the figure chuckled. This was going to be too easy.
That potion would be hers.
Author's Note: I can't believe it's been a whole year since I updated this fic! And believe me, I had every intention to never visit this again. But a review recently came in reminding me about the epilogue, and I just couldn't leave it behind. The funny thing is, I had written a draft one year ago that contained almost the full story. I had scrapped it at the time for some reasons, like it being too long and draggy. But for this chapter, I kept some of the writing from that time, even though my writing style has changed a bit since last year. I wonder if the differences are obvious? Anyway, as it is mentioned in the story, I hope to get the second half of the epilogue done by Valentine's Day. Yes, 14 February 2016. Don't worry, I have no intention of delaying it by another year ;)
My thanks, also, to everyone whom has favourited, followed and reviewed this story even though it was obviously inactive. Your feedback is the ink to my metaphorical pen! Til the next chapter (hearts)