Well, here we are! Sorry for the sudden delay, had some stuff come up. Then I got lazy. All in all, let's just say I hope the rest of this year turns out better than the beginning.
By the way, I apologize if this seems a little rushed. I just started a new job, so chapters might be less frequent. Well, more frequent that this latest time, but I'll try to shoot for at least a chapter a week. So sorry for those of you dying!
Enough babbling from me. Hope you enjoy the first chapter of the new year!
Natsu and Lucy sat on a bench, enjoying some ice cream. Sweat stains dotted their clothes, just barely damp from the constant motion. "Man. That gives you a rush!" Natsu said, breathing erratic.
"Tell me about it. With all the commotion last time, I never went on a single ride." Lucy licked her cone, the frozen treat cooling her insides.
"If I didn't get motion sick all the time, I'm sure a lot of things would be pretty awesome!" Natsu pulled his shirt in and out, sending the air whooshing on his skin, cooling him down.
"Be sure to thank Wendy again. And Master Makarov, the next time you see them. Without this potion, you would've blew chunks all over those kids!"
Natsu let a comforting laugh. "Speaking of Wendy, I wonder where she ran off to. Eh, doesn't matter. This is me and you time." Natsu scooted closer, putting his arm over Lucy's shoulder. "This beats working any day!"
Lucy glanced up at her companion. The way he put his arm around her so casually made it look like they really were dating. To even more surprise, she wasn't blushing. She moved a bit closer, continuing to eat her ice cream. "What do you want to do after this?" she asked, a content smile on her face.
"I don't know. There's a ton of rides we haven't been on yet. I say we leave those for tomorrow." Natsu took a bite, taking off the top of his neatly swirled cone. "Ah! Brain freeze!"
Lucy giggled. "Who takes bites of ice cream? Weirdos like you, that's who." Lucy slurped up the last bit of ice cream, crunching down the waffle cone shortly after. "Do you still have that pamphlet?"
"You mean the map thing? Yeah, right here." Natsu took out the pamphlet, handing it Lucy. "You think it'll give us some ideas?"
"Sure it will. Let me see here." Lucy checked the table of contents, looking for any information. She then turned to a page marked 'Popular Attractions.' "Says here they have an astronomy tower."
"Agronomy tower?"
"No, you big dork. Astronomy. You know, the study of stars and planets?"
Natsu was utterly confused. "So what they do is look at stars all the time?" he asked, clearly clueless.
"Yes and no. Not just look at them, but study them. Some work on mapping the sky, finding new constellations or search for strange phenomena." Lucy's eyes beamed with curiosity.
"You're using too many big words here." Natsu scarfed down the remaining portion of his ice cream, cone and all.
"Whoa! It even has dates for meteor showers!"
"What's a meteor?" Natsu questioned, evidently still lost.
"Seriously? A meteor is a fancy word for falling star. A meteor shower is when there's a bunch of falling stars, all passing by at the same time. Read a book for once."
"Oh, I get it. That actually sounds pretty cool. You want to check it out?"
Lucy's eyes went big, like a child receiving a new toy. "You mean it?"
"Sure. With all the running around we were doing, I didn't realize how close it was to nighttime."
Lucy's excitement grew. Even though she already kissed Natsu a couple times, neither one felt truly satisfying. To have their first real kiss under a meteor shower seemed like any girl's romantic fantasy. "It just so happens there's a meteor shower tonight! Only a small one, but get this. On my birthday, theirs supposed to be a complete meteor shower!"
Natsu snickered at Lucy's enthusiasm. "You really like this stuff, huh?" He stood and brushed himself off. "How much time until it's supposed to start?"
"We have about an hour and a half. Until then, you want try some of those slot machines? I'm feeling lucky!"
"You can if you want to." Natsu sniffed himself. "I reek. I'm gonna go up to the room and take a shower. You're welcome to come. Just make sure we don't have another incident like earlier."
Even though she resisted blushing earlier, it mattered little. Her face was increasing in color, her normal paleness a canvas for emotions. "Oh... If you say so. I didn't get to take one earlier either." The thought of ending up in the bathtub with Natsu again gave her chills. "I guess I need to finish what I started."
Lucy wasn't the only one thinking back to the scene. Natsu couldn't bring himself to forget what happened. The fear Erza cemented in him mixed with all the signals Lucy threw his way made it memorable as could be. "Well... I guess we better get going."
"Sounds good." Lucy grabbed her purse, trying to hide her trembling. Why did she keep feeling like this? These nerves shouldn't be that bad. They were closer than ever, yet even now she was shaking worse than a leaf in the wind.
Natsu had a thought cross his mind. "Not trying to kill the mood here, but what was Gray talking about earlier? I know you said it was between you and Erza, but I can't help wondering."
Lucy clenched her fists, determined to quit shaking. "Oh... Nothing that serious. She just wanted to know what happened. Like how we ended up in the tub together."
"Is that it? Gray was making a fool out of himself for nothing then. That guy needs to practice anger management."
Lucy let a shaky giggle. "You should take your own advice. I imagine your stress level is through the roof."
Natsu scratched the back of his head. "Not really," he lied. The truth was he was stressed to the max. But not in the typical sense. With the new feelings resurfacing constantly, it's a wonder he could still function normally. Hopefully Lucy didn't see through his act.
"Well, just so you know, if you ever need to vent, I'm here. Everyone gets stressed once in a while," she said.
Natsu gave a smile in return. "Thanks, Luce." He turned away, walking in step.
The two wizards continued on in comfortable silence, the awkwardness from moments ago a distant memory. Natsu kept sneaking glances towards his female counterpart, unknowing she was doing the same.
"There you two are!"
They stopped and face the voice. It was Delilah, followed by a few younger ladies wearing dresses equally as nice. "Oh, hey there, Delilah," Natsu said casually.
"These are two wondrous people are two famed wizards from Fairy Tail!" Delilah told the posse of girls behind her.
Immediately after, the group swarmed them with questions and comments.
"HUH! Are you Natsu Dragneel?"
"That has to be him!"
"He's a lot shorter than I imagined."
"Who cares? He's such a hunk!"
The swooning and yammering continued. Lucy's jealous rage was surging towards the top. She raised her hand, about to silence them. Before she could utter a word, they switched their attention to her.
"This has to be Lucy!"
"Who else would it be? These two never go anywhere without each other!"
"Are they dating or something?"
"I hope not! I wanted a shot with Natsu!"
"Girls, girls. Settle down," Delilah commanded. "You'll have every opportunity to talk with them later."
"But Ms. Delilah? You know we wanted to meet him!"
"Yeah, can't we talk to them for a little bit?"
"At another time. It's obvious they were going somewhere. It would be rude to interrupt them. They are here to relax and have a nice time. Just like all of you. Now move along. We still have much to see and night is fast approaching. Heavens, it's already getting dark outside!" The girls walked on, heads low, faces smug. "Sorry about that. They can be quite a handful."
Lucy was clenching her fist, her nails getting close to breaking the skin. "Who were they?" she said, disdain evident in her voice.
"Daughters of wealthy dukes and lords. They came to stay for a few days. Their fathers come here once a month to gamble and get away from their troubles. Not to mention their wives and daughters. Unfortunately for them, they were forced to bring the girls. Their wives are having their own getaway. I find it funny!" Delilah smiled at Natsu.
"They seem a little young," he stated confused.
"Not as young as you think. Only a year or two younger the both of you! Anyway, I'm glad I caught you." Delilah took out an envelope, neat cursive lettering on the front.
Lucy took it, pushing her anger back down. "What's this?" she asked.
"Obviously it's an invitation. It says it right there."
"I can read, dummy. I mean, an invitation to what exactly?"
Delilah clapped her hands excitedly. "That is a formal invitation to my grand banquet!"
Natsu scratched his ear. "Oh yeah? You having a party or something?"
"Not just a party. A glorious celebration! Since all of my renovations went smoothly, I felt the desire to mark this momentous occasion with a gathering to rival all others!"
Lucy's grimace turned into a smile. "That's so thoughtful of you. Thank you for inviting us," she said, genuine sincerity in her voice.
"No need for thanks. You are esteemed guests! To have such honorable wizards at my banquet would be the crowning achievement." Delilah glanced at Natsu, shivers going up her spine. "Before you ask, all the details are on the invitation itself. Be sure to dress nice!" She walked off, but not before blowing a kiss Natsu's way.
"What is with all the girls on this trip?" he questioned.
Lucy was back up to crimson rage. "I'm about one step away from crushing the next girl that talks to you!" Lucy yelled.
"Is that so?" Erza said, walking up behind the pair.
Lucy shrieked, flinching behind Natsu. "I'm sorry, Erza!"
Erza laughed. "Relax. I'm not here to cause trouble."
Lucy let out a sigh of relief. "That's good to hear. I was so frustrated, I didn't even hear you walk up."
"Let me guess. You met the set of rich girls."
Natsu yawned, getting bored of the situation. "Yeah. Real annoying, if you ask me." Natsu noticed Lucy was still holding on to him. Not that he was complaining.
"Besides them, what was it you wanted?" Lucy asked kindly.
Erza glanced at Natsu. "Would you excuse for a moment?" she asked the Dragon Slayer.
"Sure. Beats standing around here. When you're done, meet up in the room, Lucy. I'm gonna take that shower before you get there." Natsu felt a stab of fear. He quickly switched to Erza. "I mean, yeah. Of course! Why wouldn't I shower when you're away? I have manners! I definitely don't want to see you naked again or anything..."
"You're just embarrassing yourself. Get out of here already!" Lucy pushed off, Natsu sprinting away, just in case Erza were to give chase.
"He's still traumatized. How cute." Erza scoffed to herself. "Walk with me?"
"Alright, but I'm not in trouble, am I?"
"You'll see," said Erza, enjoying the look of apprehension on Lucy's face.
The female wizards strolled for a few steps before Erza began again.
"How are you and Natsu doing?"
Lucy let out yet another relief-filled sigh. "Honestly, I think it's going good." 'Is Erza actually trying girl talk with me?' she thought to herself.
"That's good to hear. I was worried his stubbornness would get the best of you. But I will say this. You're the only one with patience enough to connect with him on a personal level."
Lucy was slightly stunned. Not so long ago, Erza was about to kill them, metaphorically and literally. Now, here she was, giving her compliments and gossiping like nothing ever happened. It was amazing how Erza's mood could switch so quickly. Flattery aside, Lucy was still a little cautious. "Sorry for sounding rude, but when did you start caring?" Lucy risked a question.
"A good question. Being honest here, I'm a bit overprotective of Natsu, as well as most of the others too. I saw how close he got with Lisanna. We all that she was gone for good. He would never admit it, but I could tell he was taking it the worst. Natsu's not the type to talk about his feelings. His pride gets in the way. That's what I believe anyway."
"I think I can see where you're going with this. When Lisanna was gone, it broke his heart..."
"Exactly. I don't know if I've ever seen him cry that much out of sadness. Anger, yes, but despair? It's rare, that's for sure."
Erza led Lucy to an empty poker table, sitting down on one of the stools. "I can only imagine how that must've felt. To have the person you love go away on a mission... And just never come back." Lucy sat next to her, tears starting to form.
Erza put a hand on Lucy's shoulder. "No need for tears. Lisanna is back and Natsu is happy again." Lucy let a few tear drops fall. "If you ask me, I think he's found someone else. If circumstances had been different, perhaps Lisanna and Natsu would've wound up together. But that's not how fate works. Someone else filled that void. Not just that. Filled his entire being. Someone you know very well."
Lucy rubbed her eyes. She looked up at the older wizard, a new light of hope in her eyes. "You're right. As usual." She sniffled and started to crack up. "I want Natsu to love me back. I really do. But I don't want to force it on him."
"It's a bit late for that. With all of the shenanigans that keep happening, it's a wonder he hasn't noticed. Then again, it is Natsu we're talking about."
Lucy giggled. "I have an idea. Maybe I can get him to open up to me. We're going to see the meteor shower tonight. Maybe I can get him to tell me then."
"Be careful. There's no telling how he'll react. He's never talked to anyone about those things. Well, maybe Happy. But not another person that I know of."
Lucy stood suddenly. "Then I'll have to be the first. I'm determined now."
Erza nodded. "Like you said a minute ago. Don't force it on him. If he doesn't want to, just leave it be. He'll tell you when he's ready."
"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Erza." The older girl stood up. Immediately after, Lucy squeezed her with a hug.
Erza returned it. "You're welcome. And remember. Don't ever stop chasing."
Lucy beamed. She let go and walked off towards the room.
Meanwhile, Natsu took a chance with the elevator. A decision he'd come to regret. Wendy's Troia potion wore off a little while ago, meaning Natsu's motion sickness would return. To make matters worse, he was forced to ride it to the very top.
"I'm gonna... hurl..." he complained. The elevator dinged, signaling he reached his destined floor. Crawling on all fours, he dragged himself out, holding his mouth shut. "Torture..."
After a moments rest, he got to his feet. "Never doing that again." He walked towards his room, his mind still focused on the events beforehand. What did Erza want to talk to Lucy for? Hopefully, it wasn't something bad. He dreaded the thought of another shish-kebab attempt. She didn't seem pissed off, so that was a good sign.
He opened the door to his room, kicking it shut behind him. He gathered up a clean set of clothes, tucking them under his arm. The door to the bathroom had been repaired, a smooth, new doorknob waiting to be touched. Natsu walked in, this time taking in the bathroom for what it was.
"Whoa. This is one badass bathroom." He set his clothes by the sink. Afterwards, he undressed, stepping into the fancy shower. It had all sorts of knobs and buttons. Luckily for him, they were labeled. He did not want another run in with those creepy robot arms.
Natsu pushed and flipped a few switches, the water switching between different settings and temperatures. When he found his ideal setting, he proceeded to wash his hair and body. The warmth of the water made his tense muscles relax.
In the middle of lathering his hair with shampoo, a thought popped into his head. Lucy would get to the room pretty soon. What if she had similar thoughts like he did? Would she try to peak? Grinning mischievously, he wrapped up his shower, stepping out. He grabbed a towel and put around himself, walking over to the mirror. "She's gonna freak!" he said to himself.
Natsu heard the door to the room shut. Excitement creeping up, he grabbed the edges of his towel. "That you, Luce?" he called out.
"Yeah. You almost done in there?" she answered back.
"Just finished. You can come in if you want." Natsu prepared himself.
Lucy opened the door, caught completely off guard. Natsu whipped his towel off, letting his business out for viewing pleasure. "Natsu! Oh my god, your... thing is showing!" Lucy screamed, covering her eyes.
"Huh? What was that?" Natsu said, taunting the poor, blushing Lucy. "Are you embarrassed by seeing me naked?" He began to slowly walk towards her.
"What do you think? I didn't expect to walk in and see that flopping around! Put some clothes, you moron!"
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you want to look." Natsu was getting gradually closer.
"Don't be ridiculous! You're the one that likes to peak." Lucy felt her fingers twitch. The truth was the thought of seeing Natsu's bare flesh was enough to drive her insane. His toned, muscular body without clothes. All she had to do was take her hands down.
Natsu stood a step away. He reached for Lucy's hands. "What do you think you're doing?" she retorted.
"Just relax." He removed her hands. They locked eyes. Lucy's face was flushed. Her eyes stayed focused on Natsu's. Any sudden movements might trigger an involuntary action and she really would get an eyeful. Natsu began to move in closer, much to Lucy's panic. His lips were a fingertip away from touching hers. Before contact, he moved to her ear. "It's really awkward seeing your best friend naked, isn't it? And you wanted to look. You're such a pervert, Luce." Natsu's tone was soft, but filled with sarcasm.
He let out a hearty laugh and shut the door. He threw his clothes on and went back to the door, opening it up again. Lucy was stiff as a board, red in the face, knees slightly shaking. "Um..."
"The shower's all yours." Natsu scooched passed, pinching Lucy's side to snap her out of it. "Hurry up, slow poke. We got a meteor shower to see."
"Oh! Uh... yeah. I'll hurry up." Lucy walked in and slammed the door shut, leaning against the frame. 'What was that all about? That isn't like Natsu at all.'
Shaking away her thoughts, Lucy began a similar routine to Natsu's. Although, her head was filled with a manner of risque images and more extravagant thoughts. She had to admit to herself. Even though she managed to wind up naked a bit more than most of her team, Gray being the only exception, seeing Natsu without clothes was a sight to behold.
After a short while, Natsu and Lucy were ready.
"It's about time. I was about to barge in there after you," Natsu joked.
"Please, I didn't even take that long. You just wanted another look at me, didn't you?"
"You wanna go there? I think I've spent too much time around Gray. These pants feel really uncomfortable now." Natsu stuck his thumbs on his waist band.
"No no no, please no!" Lucy stammered. 'If I saw him like that again... I'm not sure what I'd do.'
Natsu snickered. "That's what I thought. Come on, Luce. It's going to start any minute now!"
"Yeah. I don't want to miss it!"
The two wizards hurried out the door, Lucy grabbing her purse on the way out. They got to the elevator, Lucy reaching for the potion. "Here, take a sip."
"Oh yeah. Almost forgot." Natsu did as he was told, taking a quick gulp. "I hope this stuff will keep working. It's a lifesaver."
Lucy capped the bottle, tucking back in her purse. "If you use it too much, your body will become tolerant to it. Just like with the normal Troia spell. It doesn't even affect you anymore."
The elevator reached their floor. They climbed on, pressed the button for the ground floor and started their descent down. The potion hadn't fully taken affect. Natsu grabbed Lucy's shoulder. "Oh man... I forgot it takes a minute... I'm gonna be sick..."
"You better not barf on my clean shirt!"
The elevator dinged to a halt, the two wizards getting off. It was already dark outside, perfect weather for star gazing. The lobby and casino areas were still bustling, customers scurrying by with handfuls of money and prize chips. "Alright, I think I'm fine now. Where do we need to go exactly?" Natsu questioned.
Lucy took out the pamphlet. "Let's see. Says here the West Courtyard is the place. We only have like ten minutes to get there so hurry it up!"
"Alright! In that case, come one!" Natsu toted Lucy on his shoulder and ran westward.
"Excuse me! I can walk, you know?"
"Don't trouble yourself! You're too slow. With me carrying you, we'll make it with plenty of time!"
Lucy was about to object further, but ultimately let it happen. Giving her aching feet a rest wasn't such a bad thing. If Natsu wanted to wear himself out, she wasn't going to stop him.
Natsu swerved in and out of throngs of people, narrowly missing a person each time. After he made it outside, he sprinted forward, grinning like a mad man. "Natsu, slow down! My skirt is going crazy!"
"Relax, no one's looking. We're almost there already!"
Actually, someone was looking. Gray and Juvia were walking in the same direction. Gray turned at the right opportunity to catch an eyeful of Lucy's lacy undergarments. "Uh... where are they going?"
"You shouldn't concern yourself with that blonde bimbo! It's just you and me! Besides, who wears such questionable underwear normally?"
Natsu put Lucy down in front of the walkway, Lucy's hair sticking up in random spots. "Told you we'd make it."
Lucy stood on jelly legs, grabbing Natsu's arm to keep from falling over. "Next time, warn me before you do that again."
Natsu giggled, walking forward. "Nice hairdo."
"What?" Lucy freaked, taking out a brush. In a few seconds, her rat's nest was back to perfection. "There. Better?"
"Doesn't matter to me. I think you're beautiful no matter how your hair looks."
Without realizing his comment, Natsu grabbed Lucy's hand and began walking down the path. It was lined with tall, low-light posts and fragrant flowers of different colors. A small fountain off to the right spewed fresh water that trickled down into a rocky waterfall. Various species of goldfish swam in the shallow pond, lights shining and alternating hues flickered in the water.
The light turned a deep red. Almost as red as Lucy's face. 'Natsu... called me beautiful.' Her heart was beating a million beats a minute. Even though she'd been called pretty all her life, hearing it from Natsu was different. On a second thought, he used a greater word. Beautiful. Without warning, a vine of fear snagged her hope. What if Natsu only noticed her because of how she looked? It wouldn't be so hard to believe upon deeper inspection. He had seen her baring it all before. Hoping she didn't come off as vain, she realized how proud of herself she was. Face and body, eyes and curves, legs and feet. Then again, she did attract some unwanted attention from scumbags. If Natsu was just another guy looking for an attractive piece of eye candy, could she really see herself with someone like that?
"Hey, Natsu to Lucy. We're here," Natsu said, snapping her out of her inward rambling. "It's really dark out. You can see all the stars you want!"
Lucy was too distracted by her doubts to notice how mesmerizing the sky looked. Clusters upon clusters of stars twinkled, the constellations clearly visible to those who knew them. "Whoa. The sky looks amazing."
"Let's go sit down. I think I see an empty bench over there."
Before he could take a step, Lucy grabbed his arm. "Hold on. Let's sit up on the hill over there," she said, pointing to a large hill off to the back.
"If that's what you want." Natsu walked over to the grassy knoll, Lucy close behind, her head still stuck on her previous inner rambling. "I don't get it. How can it be this dark over here? The resort is just like right over there."
Lucy gazed up at the sky, taking in the sight. She'd seen the night sky plenty of times, but tonight felt different. She was too busy doubting to remember how anxious she was. A meteor shower with the guy she liked. Talk about the perfect scenario. "They probably have a magic barrier or something. Wouldn't surprise me."
"Makes sense to me. I forget how smart you can be, Luce." He smiled at her and leaned back on the partially steep slant. "Don't just stand there. Sit down."
"Oh. Right." She sat next to the fire wizard, taking a moment to calm her thoughts. Natsu wasn't the type that looked at appearance as anything special. Erza's been naked in front of him before. Didn't seem to phase him that much. But still, a bit of reassurance never hurt.
Natsu tried keep his attention focused on the stars, but the girl beside him seemed to rival the sky's beauty. "Wow," he accidentally whispered out.
Lucy heard him and looked over. When the two locked eyes, Lucy's heart accelerated. "Uh... Something wrong, Natsu?" she asked shyly.
"Oh, uh... I don't know. It's just. You look amazing." No matter what happened now, Natsu would be satisfied simply by looking at the blonde.
Lucy's face instantly flushed. Her already escalating heartbeat would surely crack a rib. That was the second time Natsu had complimented her. "Th-thank you." She was at a loss for words.
The two remained caught in each other's gaze for the next few minutes. Lucy kept glancing around, but ultimately shot back to Natsu's glassy orbs. Lucy was a few seconds away from cracking under the tension when a light flashed in the sky.
"Did you see that?" Lucy asked. "I think it's starting."
Natsu looked to the sky. What he saw next put him in a state of awe. Little strings of light flew across the sky. Nothing super spectacular, but just enough to keep the average person interested. A blue light passed, moving slower than the others. It was bigger than the rest, which meant more light.
Lucy's frustration peaked. She looked over at Natsu, about to empty her feelings. Before she could, Natsu enveloped her in a warm embrace. She was shocked at first, but that didn't last long. She returned the hug, her eyes on the verge of watering.
"Lucy, I... "
"Wait. Don't say anything." Lucy pulled away, her fingers trembling. "I have to know."
Natsu scrunched his eyebrows. "Know what?"
Lucy's anxiety reached its breaking point. "Damn it, Natsu. I have to know what is you're after. I thought of something earlier and it makes too much sense to just pass up. What is it you see in me?"
Natsu felt a sudden burst of panic. "Uh, wait a minute. I'm sorry if I did anything! I was only teasing, I swear."
"What? What do you mean only teasing?"
"About the whole naked thing. I was only trying to tease you. Honestly I was."
Lucy felt her heart tighten up. Maybe she had heard him wrong. "Let me get this straight. The whole time since you saw me naked, you were teasing me?"
"Wait, what? No, that's not it all. I meant when I kept acting like I was going to strip and stuff! I would never tease you if you were naked! Well, unless you wanted that, I don't know."
Lucy's determination turned to rage. "Are you freaking serious right now? I ask you to tell me what you're thinking and you say something like that? Man, I must really be stupid to think you were any different than all the other guys. And honestly, yeah, I fell for you. I must really be a naive little girl." Lucy got up and stomped off, leaving Natsu heartbroken.
"But... I didn't even get to tell you my feelings..." Natsu whispered back.