A/N: Chapter nine is here, and I wanted to let Natsu have a little fun after all the stress, so hopefully you guys like this chapter :) Also, a little Wendy and Natsu BrOTP ;D

Chapter Nine

"Hey, Wendy," Natsu said, setting his book on his lap to glance over at the small medic, who was working on a crossword puzzle at her desk, her brows furrowed. "What is it, Natsu?" she asked, glancing up at him.

"I was just wondering when I could leave the infirmary."

Wendy put down her pen and focused on him. "Well, it's only been about a week now. Your wounds are scabbing over, so I guess... you can leave..."

Natsu grinned. "Seriously?"

Wendy nodded. "Yeah. Although I don't want you staying by yourself."

"But—" Natsu started to protest, but Wendy cut him off. "No buts. You'll stay with Gray for at least another week, until your cuts develop scar tissue."

Natsu huffed but agreed anyway. It had been a week since he woke up in the infirmary, and so far, Gray had visited him almost every day, when he wasn't busy with other duties. Only one thing had really changed while he was recovering, and that was that Makarov—the leader of the Outpost—had given Natsu a room on the fourth floor. He was giddy with that news, considering it meant that he had a permanent place at the Outpost, and essentially wouldn't be running for his life as much as he used to.

Picking up his book, he started reading again, but he grew distracted and set it aside again, glancing out the window to his left to see a ton of people dragging a large amount of wooden crates towards the center of a sort of makeshift courtyard. "Hey," he said, curious, "what are they doing out there?"

Wendy followed his gaze and smiled. "Oh, that? There's a festival coming up."

"Festival?" Natsu asked, confused. Wendy rose and walked over to sit beside him. "Yeah. Okay, so, do you know the story behind this place?" Natsu shook his head, watching her curiously. Wendy folded her hands in her lap with a smile. "This place used to be a make-shift hospital that the army had set up—that's where we got the electric fence and the courtyard and such; it used to be full of tents and stuff. Anyway, one day there was a breach; a patient was brought in. They thought he just had a fever; maybe sepsis, considering he'd been shot. Anyway, he was bitten, but the bite was on his hip, so they didn't discover it until it was too late.

"He turned, and since there was only doctors around at the time, he bit them all, and soon infection broke out across the hospital. The army abandoned the hospital and left all those zombies locked up tight behind the electric fence, which they assumed no one could get over. But then Makarov showed up. He only had two people with him, but somehow all three of them managed to clear the entire hospital."

"What?" Natsu exclaimed, amazed. "Only three of them? And they did it all by themselves?"

Wendy nodded. "Anyway, once they had burned all the bodies, they decided to make it into a camp. Makarov is a retired sergeant, so he knows how to run thing from a military standpoint, so, as you can imagine, the Outpost did well from the get-go with him in charge."

"Whoa," Natsu said, with a new respect for the old man. "But, the festival?"

"I was getting to that." Wendy cleared her throat. "Anyway, the day the Outpost got up and running was July seventh, so every time July seventh rolls around, we hold a festival. It's kind of like a birthday party for the Outpost. Well, it's also a bit like the fourth of July, which we don't really celebrate, so I guess you could say it's the fourth of July mixes with a birthday party..."

Wendy must've realized she was rambling, because she blushed and cleared her throat again. "Anyway, it's really fun. There's fireworks, and lots of good food we don't normally have, and there's sparklers and a huge bonfire and— and—" She took a deep breath, seeming to collect herself. "It's very fun."

Natsu grinned. "It sounds great. But why are they starting preparations now when it's only July third?"

"There're lots of things to do, like set up the stage, and the cooking fires, and the buffet tables. Lots of stuff."

"The stage?" Natsu asked, raising an eyebrow. Wendy brightened. "Oh, yeah! There's a band for dancing, and it's basically like open mic night, only obviously without the mic. Anyway, anyone can sing or do some special thing, and it's very interesting. This is only the second festival, but last year's was such a success, I can't imagine anything going wrong this time around!"

"Well, I can't wait for it," Natsu said, barely containing his excitement just hearing Wendy go on about it. Wendy nodded, and her face seemed to redden and she got a dreamy look in her eyes. Natsu raised a brow. "Oh, I know that look. Who's the lucky guy?"

"Wha—what?" Wendy stuttered, growing redder. "I don't— I mean, there's no one, but— I—"

Natsu chuckled seeing the girl so flustered. "C'mon. Spill."

Wendy let out a long sigh. "Okay, so there might be this one guy..." Natsu smiled in encouragement, and Wendy took a deep breath. "He played the fiddle at last year's festival. He's got dark hair and lovely eyes and he plays so beautifully..." Wendy sighed happily and stared off into space, making Natsu laugh. "Well, do you think he likes you?"

Blushing an even deeper red, Wendy twisted the hem of her shirt between her fingers. "Oh, I don't know. I mean, he smiles at me a lot, but he could just be being friendly..."

Natsu shook his head. "No. In preteen-speak, smiling is promising."

Wendy perked up immediately. "You think so?"

At Natsu's nod, Wendy grinned so brightly Natsu had to look away to avoid being blinded. "Thanks, Natsu!"

"No problem," he said with a chuckle, watching her run back over and continue her crossword, noticeably more cheerful. Just then Gray walked in, wearing a... sword? Natsu raised an eyebrow as Gray struggled to sit down, eventually unstrapping the thing and tossing it on the floor in disgust.

"Um," Natsu started, amused, "why are you wearing a sword?"

Gray grunted, clearly annoyed. "Don't even bring it up. Lyon is getting on my last nerve."

"So he has something to do with it, I'm guessing?"

With a sigh, Gray answered, "It's for this dumb play our sister is putting on."

"Wait," Natsu said, holding up a hand. "You have a sister, too? Why didn't you tell me?"

Gray shrugged. "Dunno. It never came up. Anyway, she's a real pain."

Sighing, Gray kicked the sword farther away from him. At Natsu's grin he glared and asked, "Got something to say?"

"Nope," Natsu answered, fighting to hold back a smile at the thought of Gray in fancy clothes wearing a sword. He couldn't keep a straight face as he also imagined Lyon in much the same fashion, and he burst out laughing. Gray glared at him, but Natsu was too busy doubling over and trying to catch his breath to care.

"Stop laughing before you kill yourself," he said, whacking Natsu on the back of the head. He groaned in protest and straightened, holding a hand to his head to defend it from further attacks. He smiled at Gray teasingly, earning an eye-roll. "You have way too much energy for an injured person, you know that?"

"Practically recovered person," Natsu corrected, still smiling as he sat back against his pillows.

"Oh. that reminds me," Wendy said from her spot at the desk, glancing over at them. "Gray, Natsu's going to stay with you for a week starting tomorrow."

"What? Why?" Gray asked, not seeming angry, but more curious.

"I don't want him by himself until he's well on his way to being fully healthy again, and he can't stay cooped up here in the infirmary or he'll develop bed sores. So that leaves your place."

Gray shrugged. "Okay. That's fine with me."

"Good," Wendy said, nodding to herself before she turned back to her crossword.

"Well, I'd best be going," Gray said after a while. "Lots of festival preparation to see to."

Natsu nodded. "See you tomorrow, then."

"See you tomorrow."

When he was gone, Natsu tried to go back to his book, but there was still something on his mind. "Wendy," he said, frowning.

"Yes?"

"Who were Makarov's two companions?"

Wendy looked over at him. "It's kind of a secret. They don't like people knowing about it."

Natsu's frown deepened, but he didn't press her. "Oh. That's okay then."

Gray was halfway to the lobby when he realized he'd forgotten his stupid sword. He sighed and continued walking, figuring he'd just grab it when he went to collect Natsu the next day. He stopped at the table Lucy, Lyon, and Makarov were gathered around and rested his elbows on it. "So, what did I miss?"

"Ah, Gray, perfect timing. I was just about to doll out some more orders for these two."

Gray nodded, and Makarov turned to Lucy. "Lucy, I want you to help Erza with the food preparations." The blonde nodded and scurried off, leaving Lyon and Gray alone at the table. "And you two, I need you to go out scavenging for me."

The boys nodded. "What do you need?"

"Scrap wood, plastic tarps, and some other things. I've prepared a list."

He handed Lyon the list and waved them off. "Good luck! Try not to die!"

"How reassuring," Lyon muttered, earning a snicker from Gray.

"C'mon. I want to leave before Ultear spots us and drags us back to practice that ridiculous play."

"Agreed."