Flames boomed and stars shone as Natsu and Lucy punched their way through the horde of bandits.
Natsu halted as he came to a large and ornate looking tent.
"Must be in here." Natsu stated as he looked over his shoulder at her.
She nodded, her grip on her stars tightening.
They both burst inside the tent….
...to find it empty.
What? Then where the hell is the leader?
Purple flashed around them.
A trap? She thought as the runes flashed into existence.
There was a boom and suddenly everything was heavy. Her arms felt like they weighed double what they normally did.
Gravity Magic.
Things got heavier and heavier as they both thudded to the ground.
Lucy had trouble even keeping her head up.
The weight grew and grew, pressing on her head until She saw black.
Lucy's awareness grew.
Awake.
Keep eyes closed, keep breathing slowly.
Body- hurting, hands bound behind me, something is supporting me, round, wood. I'm tied to a post.
Magic? no, nullifiers in the rope.
Great. captured again.
Lucy tried to listen to things around her.
"Boss, we can't keep holding him like this."
"What the hell is he?"
She felt the cold metal of a knife against her skin, tracing along her arm.
"Boy, I suggest you quit making a fuss. She'll look prettier with all her blood still inside her. Get me?"
She heard Natsu growl.
"Now Little lady, I know you are awake."
Lucy opened her eyes to see the bandit leader.
Pale skin, draped in a red fur that matched his red trousers.
He looked at her piercingly.
He must be 'Hot Dog.'
"My months of careful planning. Ruined thanks to a bunch of snotty little teenagers." He uttered smoothly.
Lucy just kept looking around casualy. Natsu was surrounded by four mages who were keeping him on the ground with Gravity Magic.
"All three of my camps, the supply and weapons Cache gone. My reputation, gone! My men all beaten or ran away!"
His voice rose and rose until he was yelling in her face.
She didn't even give him an indication she heard him.
She didn't even look at him.
Hir face furious, he plunged his knife into her arm.
"LUCY!"
I'm glad pain doesn't affect me like it used to.
Her arm stung and throbbed as the metal moved inside her, but it was just an annoyance.
"How does that feel?"
She just smiled sweetly at him.
"What? Cat got your tongue?"
She childishly stuck her tongue out and made a farting sound.
"You think Its funny? To ruin me and not have the decency to talk to me? To look down on me like I'm some sort of trash?"
He punched her in the gut, leaving her coughing.
"Not so tough now are you? Not so strong huh?"
Lucy thought about it as she heaved in air.
She started to chuckle, then Laugh.
Hot Dog just stepped back, looking at her as if she was some kind of monster.
I've never been strong. I'v always been scared. She glared back at him with a defiant smirk.
"You evil little….you Inhuman bitch!" Hot Dog yelled as he started beating Lucy.
His fists pounding every inch of her body.
"No! LUCY!"
Natsu watched in horror as the Bandit Leader beat Lucy.
Nothing showed on her face as she received fist after fist.
He couldn't do Anything, his Limbs were still heavy.
The four bandits around him still had their hands out, their power keeping the gravity magic spell working.
I'm supposed to be protecting you!
The Man in red stopped and stood back, a look of horror in his face.
Lucy was smiling again.
The man said something, and drew a rusty and nicked cleaver from his belt.
"Die!" He yelled as he raised the blade over his head.
Time slowed down for Natsu.
He's going to Kill her?
Dead?
In his mind all he saw was a gravestone on an ocean cliff, overlooking the sunset.
I can't Lose her too.
I WON'T LOSE HER TOO!
That's right, swing your cleaver you moron, I may get a little bloody, but my ropes will be cut.
Suddenly heat billowed, blasting everything like a shockwave.
An inhuman growl filled the air
Natsu?
Her eyes fell on the boy….
...the dragon.
Slitted green eyes gleamed out of the scaly reptilian body.
It was the first time Lucy had seen Natsu's dragon form in the sunlight.
Reddish pink scales, a shade darker than his hair. Leathery wings on his back. Gleaming white teeth and talons. Tail swishing angrily behind him. His maw billowing smoke.
"What the Fuck?!" Hot dog Screamed.
Natsu broke free of the gravity spell easily and spun his tail, smacking the four wizards trying to keep him restrained.
He leaped over to Hot dog and gave him a flaming dragon punch in his gut, sending him flying into a section of the Log wall.
Hearing the scream, bandits started flooding in, charging the Dragon.
Lucy watched as Natsu swatted bandits away left and right, as if they were flies.
She picked up the Bandit Leader's blade with her feet and struggled to get it into her hands.
His roar echoed through the camp as Bandits flew through the air.
Fire billowed out of his mouth, setting tents and log walls ablaze.
Natsu's eyes met hers as she finished cutting her bindings and stood up.
He plodded over to her and his eyes glinted at her.
It was an animal that looked her over.
The dragon's head butted her shoulder.
She put a hand on his head as he breathed heavily.
His breath was slowing, he was calming.
He pulled back and she looked into his eyes.
They softened in recognition.
"Lucy?"
Back to his old self.
Lucy ran her hands over Natsu's scales as she hummed in response, and he let out what sounded like a chuckle.
"That tickles." He rumbled.
Lucy felt an evil grin grow on her face.
Payback time.
"Ok, what's the grin fo…" Natsu started as she jumped on his back.
Lucy started digging in and wiggling her fingers into any sensitive looking area.
"Hey, what arrra, hehehehhe."
She slipped a hand under the scales near his neck and tickled.
"Noohaaahahha, Lucy! nooah, not there! Hahahaha!"
Natsu laughed hysterically as he wriggled around.
With a slight jerk and turning his back, he sent Lucy rolling off him.
The boy turned Dragon had an amused look on his face as he stood over her, looking down on her.
His grin grew as he lowered his head to her.
What is he doing?
He opened his mouth and his tongue flopped out.
Oh dear no.
With a giant slurp Natsu licked all the way up her face.
Oh, eewww.
Lucy felt dragon saliva dribble down her face as Natsu giggled Maniacally.
She quickly wiped her face on the bottom of her cloak.
"Thanks for the scratch."
Her hand reached out and smacked Natsu's snout as she got up.
Lucy surveyed her surroundings.
Everything on fire. She still had her keys, but her dagger and both their bags were on a bench behind a curtain of flame.
And here I was tickling a dragon.
She reached for her pouch, Empty. No light pen.
Shit.
Lucy pointed to the fire separating them from their bags and made an eating motion.
"Eat the fire?"
She nodded.
He sucked in and the flames danced and flowed, streaming into Natsu's waiting mouth.
She rushed over to the bags and looked them over.
The bags were undamaged, but her dagger was a bit blackened, and her light pen was charred and melted.
"We good to go?" Natsu asked. "I can fly you up to the mountain before you change me back if you want."
Lucy showed Natsu the melted pen.
"Well that's not good."
She crouched down to the dirt and wrote.
-Can you eat all this fire? We don't need another forest fire.-
"You sure we'll be ok without your pen?"
-We'll manage.-
Natsu nodded. "Alright. Hop on."
Lucy slung both backpacks over her shoulders and clambered onto Natsu's back.
"Ready?" Natsu asked, his neck snaking over his shoulder to look back at her.
Lucy nodded and found places in his scales where she could hang on.
His wings unfurled and started beating.
He took a leap into the air, his wings still flapping- taking to the air.
Wheeling around, he sucked in, the fire streaming into his Maw.
His feet brushed the treetops as he slurped and munched the inferno.
"Tasty." Natsu rumbled before banking lazily and making towards Mt Hakabe.
Lucy just watched as the ground below her racing by.
It was peaceful up in the air. Well, apart from the wind and the cold.
She giggled as she raised her hand, the air pushing against it.
"Hey Luce." Natsu chuckled as he glanced over his shoulder at her. "Hold on"
She wrapped her hands around the base of his neck, looking at him questioningly.
Then he began tilting.
She held into him with a death grip as he kept turning until he was upside down.
Lucy cried out in alarm, keeping her arm tight around him, her palm slapping his neck.
Natsu continued his rotation until he was upright again.
As soon as he stopped rotating she smacked his neck.
He flashed a toothy dragonic smile over his shoulder, seeing her unhappy expression.
"Fine, fine. We can save the fun stuff for another time." He huffed.
The horizon turned white as they soared over snow.
Winds were starting to howl around them, gripping the snow and sending it into the sky.
Natsu's wingbeats were more forced.
They were being buffeted around by the storm.
Lucy slapped on Natsu's neck to get his attention.
When he glanced back at her, she frantically motioned 'down'
He nodded and started to descend.
"I see a house, there's nobody home. I'm going there." Natsu boomed.
Lucy could hardly see anything in the storm now.
Her stomach backflipped as they suddenly dropped straight down.
The wind left her as Natsu jarringly thumped the ground.
She barely saw the cabin in front of them, the snowstorm was so thick.
Her teeth chattering, she jumped off natsu and tried the door.
Locked.
She drew her dagger and slid it in the tiny gap between door and wall.
Little wiggle to loosen it, then jerk upwards and push door.
The door creaked open and Lucy stepped inside.
Natsu squeezed through carefully.
Lucy had to push the small dining table aside so Natsu could sit in the room.
As he sat down and curled up like a cat, she struggled to find a pen and paper.
When she got it she went and settled down, leaning on Natsu's belly in the middle of his curl.
"You ok? you seem a bit jumpy."
-I hate feeling really cold. I love winter and snow, but being too cold and numb...It reminds me of death.-
"Death?"
-It brings up unpleasant memories.-
Natsu said nothing, but if she wasn't imagining things, he got warmer.
-Anyway, give me a minute to rest, then I'll try heal you.-
"That's fine. I'm going to take a nap."
Lucy nodded as she put the pen and paper aside and closed her eyes, feeling the familiar warmth at her back.