[Re-edited 09-30-22]

Hola!

It's Wednesday and I'm still on schedule! (Pretty psyched about that).
Lots of fluff, a little humour and a couple loose strings getting tied ahead. (I know you're all probably curious about Jellal, all in good time my friends).
I hope you all enjoy a break from the big battles and action-packed chapters. Let's go enjoy the Harvest Festival!

~Onward!

19

-New Developments-

"What's got your attention child?" Carla asked as she wandered across the deck toward Wendy.

The Sky Slayer sat on a lounge chair with her legs folded under her, her attention transfixed on her guildmates. The white cat bounced up to the cushion, landing directly in front of her and placed her paws on her hips as she fixed an amused look Wendy's way.

Wendy flicked her gaze down to her friend for a brief moment before returning her attention back to the subjects of her fascination, just over the cat's head. Her fellow dragon slayers were sitting across from each other and exchanging bullets of fire and water with a lazy level of enthusiasm. "Eh, it's nothing really," Wendy replied dismissively.

Despite her dismissive statement, she remained stunned. She'd barely believed her eyes when the guys both stumbled up from below deck and promptly collapsed into adjacent chairs. Casting Troia on them earlier had only been to help them recover without the nausea induced by dragon-heightened senses messing with their equilibrium. She certainly hadn't expected them to actually be able to move around for the duration of the trip, and if the fact that the guys were conscious at all wasn't bewildering enough, they hadn't remained idle for long either. Natsu had gotten bored quickly and started spitting bullets of fire at Haru, who answered with his own bullets without a second thought. They'd been at it for at least twenty minutes now. Wendy couldn't believe the pair were capable of standing, let alone wielding their magic, even if the spells required very little of their magic...

The more she considered it though, she realized she shouldn't be that surprised, given what she'd seen them pull off against Zero. Still, that didn't stop her from chewing her lip and wondering at the power gap they held over her. Would she be capable of the same one day? They were all dragon slayers after all, so that should mean she held the same untapped potential...

Erza stomping down the stairs from the upper deck derailed her thoughts and her attention snapped over to the requip mage in time to see her smack her gauntleted fist off the top of Natsu's head. The Fire Slayer's hands flew up to massage the offended spot and Wendy cringed too, absently rubbing the top of her own head as though she were the one struck.

"Oi! What the hell was that for?!" Natsu demanded, fixing the redhead with a glare over his shoulder.

"You're being reckless... again!" she exclaimed, "If you burn this ship down, I will drown you myself!"

"Haru wouldn't miss," Natsu countered, pointing at his partner without breaking from Erza's challenging stare. Haru rested his chin in the palm of one hand, watching their interaction with a blank expression, though the faint blue glow of his magic still coated his other hand. He held that hand with two fingers extended in idle readiness, knowing Natsu would blatantly ignore the redhead's warning at some point. Erza's calculating look shifted to the water mage slowly, lips pursed in irritation, but he only smiled back, pointing his fingers her way and winked.

Erza rolled her eyes. "Miss, and I drown you along with him," she threatened, peeling a loud bark of laughter from him in response.

"Drowning a water dragon slayer would be quite the feat, even for you, Erza," he said amusedly.

The knight clicked her tongue and retreated up to the helm to rejoin Makarov and Laxus where she resumed leaning on the railing to watch over the guys suspiciously. Erza's fast recovery was just as shocking, aside from some bruises, Wendy wouldn't know Erza had been injured at all, had she not been the one to heal those injuries. The requip mage's stamina and recovery abilities rivalled the guys', and Erza didn't have the dragon enhancements to explain it. Erza was just... well, Erza.

The guys had already returned to trading magic bullets as though the minor interruption had never occurred.

"Those two are impossible," Carla grumbled, having caught the subject of her interest. Giggling, Wendy agreed with the sentiment as she continued to trail her eyes over her guildmates who were spread around the ship's deck. Lucy was sitting crosslegged on a long lounge chair across from Leo, apparent leader of the Zodiac. The lion spirit still seemed a little suspicious of the blonde as he rolled his key between his fingers, as though he thought the stellar mage might swipe it back just as he dropped his guard.

"I suppose... I may have been wrong about you..." Leo admitted quietly, his eyes fixed on his key in a trance-like fascination.

Wendy felt a little guilty for eavesdropping, but she was just so curious about Lucy's magic and in her defence, it was hard not to overhear things with enhanced hearing…

"Virgo told me what happened… I'm ashamed, I hurt my brethren..." Leo shook his head and his fist clenched around his key briefly. "I warned you not to put them in harm's way and then in the end, it was you trying to protect them from me… Dammit! How could I be so weak?!"

Lucy covered his hand over his key and Leo tensed, dragging his eyes back up to hers hesitantly. "You're not weak Leo, you were being manipulated by my father. I am truly sorry that you were forced into that position, but I also know that none of the Zodiac hold that against you, nor do I."

Leo's jaw relaxed as he watched the genuine kindness in her eyes and offered a soft thanks. "I still didn't trust humans," the lion stated bluntly, "humans are selfish, they have despicable motives, lusting after power by any means." Lucy flinched, visibly hurt by his words as if she were somehow responsible for all humans. She patted the spirit's hand as her lips parted to reply but Leo continued before she could. "Not finished," he murmured, tapping his key against the palm of his other hand now, "you are different, Lucy Heartfilia. I get the feeling I can trust you, as my fellow Zodiac do."

Sunlight glinted off the stylized mane at the head of the key every time he flicked it absently. Lucy sat frozen, whether numbed into surprise by his words or just waiting patiently for where he was going with them. Then the lion nodded to himself, twirling his key between his fingertips one more time before pressing it into the blonde's palm. "Call me, anytime you need. As far as I am concerned, I owe you my life."

"Leo, thank you for trusting me as I trust in you, I'm glad to have your friendship," Lucy told him with a brilliant smile that stunned him completely.

"Friendship, with a human..." Leo chuckled, "what a twist of fate." He returned the stellar mage's bright smile before vanishing in a shower of gold.

Meanwhile, their idiot dragon slayers had found rhythm in their game again and Natsu had apparently decided to up the challenge. Pursing his lips, he shot off a trio of fiery bullets which Haru responded to reflexively. He dowsed the first two easily, but failed to account for Mira's mischief. The white-haired beauty swooped around the side of his chair and dropped gracefully into his lap before he knew what was happening. Crossing her legs at the knee, she leaned back into his chest causing him to gasp in surprise and miss his third shot.

Mira took a long sip of her drink, and even around the straw, the smugness on her face was very obvious. Even Wendy could tell she really enjoyed teasing him, possibly as much as teasing Lucy. Mira smiled sweetly and innocently at the Water Slayer as he gaped back before finding his voice. "Mira?! W-what are you doing?" he asked in a rush of words.

Thanks to the curvy distraction now occupying his lap, the third ember shot by his chair unchecked. Wendy immediately hid behind her own hands, peeking between her fingers. She wasn't sure she'd ever get used to the crazy antics of her Fairy Tail guildmates, especially when Dragon Soul was involved...

The last flame landed on the wood deck of the ship, catching almost immediately. "Oh shit!" Natsu gasped, all subsequent words were reduced to frantic sputtering until Gray walked up and ground the heel of a bare foot into the ember. The ice mage lifted it from the smouldering ash that remained as he rounded on Natsu who was too busy checking to see if Erza had seen the close call.

"Hey Mouth-Breather! Can your dumbass grasp the concept that burning our ship down means we all swim home?!"

"Say what?!" Natsu bit out as he leapt up. He ran at Gray despite the obvious fatigue that had him swaying on his feet. Smirking, the ice mage easily sidestepped and hammered a fist down into his head, sending him sprawling flat on his stomach with a groan.

"You also still have no strength… Idiot." Gray grabbed him by his scarf, dragged him across the deck and tossed him back into his chair unceremoniously. Gray looked pretty pleased with himself, likely taking joy in being able to incapacitate and manhandle his rival so easily for a change.

Lucy joined them, leaning over the back of Natsu's chair and raised an eyebrow at the ice mage. "Do try to be nice Gray, beating up on Natsu isn't even worth it right now," she scolded him. Natsu's eye twitched at her implications, before she dealt another blow to his ego. "Even Happy could beat him in his current state." Lucy laughed as Natsu squawked out an indignant rebuttal and the blue cat grinned widely, planting his paws on his hips as he turned toward Carla.

"Did you hear that, Carla? I'm stronger than Natsu! What do you think of me now?"

"Still the same delusional Tom Cat," she drawled.

Wendy watched all her friends, the corner of her lip twitching in a half smile as they continued squabbling and chatting animatedly around the upper deck. Tearing her eyes away from their activities, she peered up at the sky. It was cloudier than normal, but still allowed the sun to warm them on the fall morning. Makarov had relayed that they'd be docking at Hargeon port before noon and Wendy was excitedly anticipating a nice quiet evening at Fairy Hills.

She already loved her Fairy Tail family more than she could express, but sometimes she needed peace, and that wasn't a concept easily understood by her rowdy guildmates. Leaning back in her chair again, she sighed in contentment.

A week later

Lucy chased through the crowd, following the tips of spiked pink hair that she could see bouncing over the heads of the townspeople. Natsu's excitement was as difficult to keep up with as it was contagious. The Harvest Festival was in full swing, music filled the streets, and the town square was lined with rows of colourful tents with tables of artisan crafts, fresh produce, baking and other treats.

Lucy took a moment to wave back at a group of locals calling to her, relaying how excited they were for the Guild's Fantasia Parade set to begin in the late afternoon. Their parade was always the most eagerly anticipated event of the Harvest Festival. She had only paused briefly enough to acknowledge their excitement… It had been less than a minute before she turned her attention back, but that was all it had taken to lose track of the boisterous dragon slayer again.

A snap of irritation had Lucy's eyebrow twitching as she stared at the throng of people ahead. This wouldn't he happening if Haru hadn't ditched them to run off with Mira. There was something going on there, Lucy was sure of it. It was common knowledge that Mira let her mischievous and flirtatious side show with quite a few of the males of Fairy Tail, she took a certain enjoyment in flustering them. Hell, Lucy had even seen her successfully her get under Natsu's skin a time or two. But she definitely focused her attentions on Haru the most. She had heard some of her guildmates refer to their friendly barmaid as the 'She-Devil,' and wondered if that was earned by some of her more mischievous tendencies. It seemed likely, given that it was the Fairy Tail men who used the nickname most frequently.

Lucy stopped in her tracks, planting her hand on a cocked hip as she tore her musings from her friends and returned to scanning the bustling activity around her. How hard could it possibly be to find Natsu? He was hard to miss, and it wasn't just the pink hair… His personality was larger than life. If Happy were with her, she could have him fly over the crowd to track down the fire breathing idiot, but the cat had flown off to attempt to convince Carla to play the mini fishing game that was set up.

Just as she stuck her bottom lip out in an annoyed pout, Natsu came bounding up out of nowhere and looped his arm through hers. "Luce, we gotta check out this booth up here! Come on!"

"Hey!" Lucy dug her heels in as he attempted to drag her forward, and she fixed him with narrowed eyes when he turned back to meet her gaze. "Would you stop running around like an idiot?! You're impossible to keep up with sometimes!" she whined.

He simply tilted his head with a lopsided grin, flashing that hint of fang that seemed to be doing a great job of trying to stop her heart lately. She groaned inwardly. Stupid feelings. This was Natsu, her best friend in the world, she could NOT let herself crush on him. Of course, she'd been telling herself that for months now, and to no avail. Being absorbed in her own internal conversation, she missed all the ramblings of her pink-haired companion. Lucy resolved to find Haru and Mira right away, she clearly could not trust herself alone with the fire mage.

She opened her eyes again to find Natsu inches from her face. "Hey, Lucy, you in there?" he asked poking her in a reddening cheek.

Her cheeks flushed even further upon finding him suddenly sharing her breathing space. "T-to close!" she stuttered, "what have I told you about personal space?!"

Natsu shrugged dismissively, sliding the arm he had looped through hers down to her hand and tugged her forward. "I was saying… I just won't let go of your hand for the rest of the day, then we won't get separated!"

He said it like it was the simplest solution in the world, clearly unaware of Lucy's internal plight and another glimpse of his brilliant smile had her sagging in defeat. "Great, that's just great," she muttered through clenched teeth, finally allowed herself to be pulled along the street.

She had to shift her shoulders and pivot her body to avoid colliding with the other people that were milling about energetically, but it wasn't long before Natsu was stopping in front of a game booth. Lucy's eyes raked over the booth hosted by the largest apple orchard owners, they had it decorated in vibrant greens, occasionally slashed by red. A variety of large bowls of apples and plates of slices drizzled with various sweets like chocolate and caramel lined the table.

"Do you want to play?" the woman behind the booth asked.

Like many of the townspeople, she was dressed in an elaborately printed kimono in greens and pinks. Standing nearby, her husband was slicing apples and sprinkling them with cinnamon. Natsu was already grinning wildly, he bounced with minimally controlled enthusiasm, "Yeah! Let's do it Luce, we're gonna kick this games butt!"

Lucy rolled her eyes and refrained from pointing out that games did not have butts to kick. "Umm, how do you play?" she asked instead.

"Oh, it's quite simple," the woman replied, turning toward her partner who had taken a seat and was presently wrapping a blind fold around his eyes. She took the end of the spoon in her mouth and eased a slice of apple onto the utensil, then she turned and fed the treat to her husband. After the self-explanatory demonstration she turned back to Lucy with a smile, further elaborating, "Whoever manages to feed their partner the most apples by the end of the day, without dropping a slice, will win passes to Hosenka Resort."

Lucy's eyes bulged out of her head. 'No, no way, not happening! This is way too embarrassing!'

Before she could even respond with any number of the excuses blooming in her mind, Natsu had leapt onto one of the free stools. "Yeah! Looks like fun!" he cheered, "and you love Hosenka Resort Luce, let's win this!"

Leave it to Natsu to pick a game involving food…

The orchard owners chuckled and the man handed him a strip of cloth to act as a blindfold, both men completely oblivious to Lucy's discomfort.

. . .

A short distance away, spying on their friends, Haru and Mira watched the developing scene. Haru leaned against the pole of a food stall with his legs crossed at the ankle, eyes flicking toward Mira as she passed him the candy apple she was holding. Accepting the treat wordlessly, Haru traded her the caramel apple he was holding and returned to watching Lucy gingerly approach the blindfolded fire mage. He could see Lucy's shaky movements even at this distance. Not likely they'd be winning the prize, given how nervous and clumsy her movements were at the moment.

Beside him, Mira bit into the apple and drew her tongue over the excess caramel on her lips. "We could beat them," she announced cockily, regaining Haru's attention. He quirked an eyebrow at her mid bite, and said nothing to deter her.

Across the street, Lucy was just fitting another slice of apple into Natsu's mouth. Mira clasped her hands together, giggling as the pink-haired man swallowed and cheered at the successful addition of another point to their score. Unaware with his eyes covered, Natsu couldn't see the derisive stare his blonde companion was giving him, or the vivid pink on her cheeks as she turned away and maneuvered another slice onto her spoon, but Haru certainly could. He was already looking forward to teasing her about this later...

"Looks like they've found a rhythm, Lucy's loosening up, they might actually pull it off," Haru said absently. Mira leaned over and tipped the candy apple in his hand toward her to steal another bite, her eyes on him with a coy grin.

Haru blinked down at her, "Such a tease," he retorted before popping the remainder of the apple in his mouth. "Come on, how about we go find some games to play as well." With a bright smile, Mira's mouth opened to respond, and Haru held a finger to her lips stopping her. "Not the apple game."

. . .

"Wow you two are doing so well," the woman gushed, "aren't they honey?"

The man agreed quickly, "Yes, you must be very close!" he praised their relationship and Lucy shifted uncomfortably under the attention. In front of her, Natsu's face was split in his usual wide grin as he waited with a surprising level of patience. Lucy brought her hand up to his jaw to steady his face and watched as he parted his lips, the tip of his tongue flicking out for the next apple slice. She swallowed thickly when his lips sealed around the spoon to draw yet another apple slice into his mouth.

Lucy was already moving the next bite to Natsu, when Mira's voice sang out. "The blindfold is a good look on him, wouldn't you say, Lucy?"

The stellar mage's eyes bulged, and her mouth dropped open to protest, inadvertently losing grip on the spoon. She chomped comically at the air trying to catch its handle again, but the spoon dropped to the ground. Just like that, their streak had ended.

Picking up on Lucy's distress, Natsu pushed the cloth up over one eye with the heel of his hand and peeked out. He took in the bright pink blush coating the blonde's cheeks and then Haru and Mira standing to his side looking very amused.

"So… did we lose then?" Natsu asked dejectedly.

Haru slapped a hand over Natsu's back and laughed as he and Mira continued down the street without another word. Lucy gave the Fire Slayer a sheepish look, "Sorry Natsu, I lost focus," she admitted.

He was unfazed though, simply jumping off the stool to throw his arm around her shoulders again. "S'okay Luce! I had fun!"

"Your score is currently far higher than the next closest couple, so you stand a very good chance of winning the prize!" the couple informed them as the woman skimmed the current results. Lucy couldn't stop herself from flinching at the use of the word 'couple,' where they could have used 'team,' but she didn't bother to correct them as Natsu was already cheering prematurely for their inevitable win.

Rolling her eyes, she turned and rapped her knuckles gently off the back of his head, "We haven't won yet, idiot, dial back your crazy..."

"Oh goodness, you two are just adorable, you can really see the love between you," the woman chirped unknowingly. This time both Natsu and Lucy blushed vividly as they glanced at each other before tearing their eyes away.

"Uh yes, well thank you, this game was a lot of fun…" Natsu trailed off, scratching the back of his head.

"You both have fun at the rest of the festival, we're looking forward to the Fantasia Parade later! And you'll be contacted if you win!"

Natsu hesitated briefly before taking Lucy's hand and led her down the street again, waving back at the couple one last time. Normally he just instinctually grabbed for her hand or wrapped an arm around her shoulders, he'd been doing it for months... Lucy wondered at the hesitation this time. Was it having the word 'love' thrown out to describe their connection so haphazardly? If so, did it make him uncomfortable because he didn't feel that way? Or was it possible he was struggling with the same feelings she was trying to keep hidden?

Dammit. Why was Natsu so hard to read sometimes?

Natsu stopped suddenly, growling loudly as he dragged both hands through his hair and over his face in irritation. Lucy placed an unsure hand on his shoulder, still trying to figure out which direction his feelings ran in and quietly asked if he was alright. Eyeing her through a curtain of pink bangs, Natsu assured her, "Yeah sorry, I'm good. Let's go try some of the food."

. . .

The pair continued zigzagging between booths, indulging in different treats and as quickly as the awkward tension had surfaced between them, it was gone. Lucy took a large bite off her cone of vibrant pink cotton candy before tilting it over to Natsu who inhaled an even bigger bite without a second thought. She laughed when she noticed the whisper of pink candy decorating his trademark smile. Something about that look sent a deep want coursing through her and before she realized where her thoughts were headed, she imagined leaning into to lick the excess floss from the corner of his mouth.

Where the hell did that come from?!

Then he was running his own tongue across his lips and gave her a playful wink before pulling her to the next booth to continue their explorations. Hunger satisfied, they went back to playing the wide variety of games, though Lucy made sure they stuck with the traditional festival games, after what she would refer to as the 'Apple Slice Incident.'

As they left a basic target toss game, Lucy abruptly snagged Natsu's wrist and pulled him back harshly behind one of the tents. His eyes went wide in surprise, apparently trying to figure out her motives for the sudden action. She trapped him between her and a tent pole as she peeked around his body at something. "Natsu, look…" she whispered urgently at him.

He craned his neck, getting a look behind to catch sight of their friends playing another target game, wielding water guns and elbowing each other to try to throw off their shots. Natsu huffed irritably, for what reason Lucy wasn't sure, but she didn't bother to check. This scene might hold potential revenge for the fun the pair had enjoyed earlier, at her expense. The pink-haired man groaned, moving behind her and dropped his chin to her shoulder to join in watching Haru nail a series of four targets in quick succession. Mira rounded on the water mage, smacking at his chest and seemed to be complaining about her loss.

Lucy looked back at Natsu expectedly, hoping his dragon hearing could provide the missing context. He released a long exhale, still obviously irritated for some reason. "Mira accused him of cheating... Haru said he's just the better shot..." he relayed obediently.

"What'd he win?"

"Dunno... But Mira says he has to take her..."

Natsu still sounded beyond bored in playing her speaker, but Lucy was elated by new evidence. She squealed happily and spun on her toe, coming face to face with him, just a breath away. Natsu arched a brow as she flinched back a little upon noticing their proximity. Her jaw worked briefly before she cleared her throat, "I, uh… Something is going on between them…" she declared, jabbing a thumb behind her.

"Nah, you're crazy. Haru would have said something to me, and besides, their scents aren't mixed…"

"So they're not sleeping together… that doesn't mean there isn't something starting."

"Nope, you're crazy," Natsu reiterated.

Without thinking, Lucy countered, "We aren't sleeping together, but somethi—" she cut her words off abruptly, eyes shooting wide as they raked over the surprise blooming on his face.

"But what, Lucy?" he prompted, voice suddenly a little huskier than normal as he took a step closer, trapping her against the pole this time.

"Uhh, but…" she began, searching for an escape to halt the increasingly heated look in his dark eyes. That look was burning her alive and she wasn't entirely sure she wanted it to stop, even as she desperately sought a suitable response. "Something in our friendship, certainly makes Haru and Mira suspicious of us… Why shouldn't I be suspicious of theirs?" she settled on.

Natsu's eyes narrowed as he hummed out a disbelieving 'mmmmhm' and took her chin in his hand. She swallowed thickly as the fire mage started to lean in closer, his eyes on her lips. Lucy didn't move to push him back or slip away from the pole, she just held her breath breath, cheeks on fire.

Was he going to...

"Hey, Natsu! Lucy! Fantasia Parade is up soon, let's get going, it's time meet up with the Guild."

"Oh, for fuck's sake." Lucy heard Natsu curse in a growl under his breath. Then he released her jaw as the offenders approached and stalked over to join them. He threw an arm over the other man's shoulders, and the Twin Dragons left in the direction of the guild, not checking to see if the girls were following yet. Lucy was left blinking dumbly at Natsu's retreating form, her heart pounding in her chest.

"Luuucy," Mira sang, breaking her from her racing thoughts, "what did we just interrupt, hmm?"

The blonde whirled on the other girl with a brow twitching. "Nothing!" she barked a little sharper than she'd meant to. That emotional slip up only earned her a knowing look from her companion as she looped her arm through Lucy's and tugged her along to two follow after the boys.

. . .

The Fantasia Parade went off without a hitch.

Lucy wore a gold dress that hugged her form to mid-thigh, accentuated with wide strips of iridescent fabric around her hips and shoulders that would ripple around her as she moved. She'd performed her part with Mira and Bisca, dressed similarly in tones of deep blue and emerald green respectively. The colours had melded together as the girls had twirled seamlessly around one another, and flickers of flame glowed off the sheen of their costumes adding more depth to their enchanting display. Natsu of course, was the source, spinning batons of fire on the float just ahead of Lucy's. He manipulated his flames into loops and vortexes that he moved with effortlessly. The agility and grace he displayed made Lucy suspicious that his frequent bouts of accidentally crashing into her weren't entirely purposeful. Behind them, Haru and Juvia manifested airborne rivers to flow alongside the parade, eventually whipping them together into intricate spirals that Gray would freeze. The icy spirals shattered after the crowd's sounds of awe began to quiet and filled the skies with shimmering ice crystals to further dazzle them. Erza had also choreographed a dance to show off her magic, spinning about in a showy crimson costume with iron plated details that would be far from functional in a fight. Equally decorative blades flew all around her in perfect precision.

Though the citizens seemed equally fascinated by every display, Fairy Tail was most proud of their little Sky Slayer who had spent the days leading up to the parade fretting about her part. Wearing an adorable dress with elaborate fairy wings and a long thin tail, Wendy succeeded in dancing gracefully through her entire piece on the float second from the front, despite her nerves.

The parade had just ended its loop through Magnolia, arriving back at the guildhall where the largest group of citizens had gathered to see the town's beloved mages. Master Makarov grinned widely, bouncing back and forth around the first float as he waved enthusiastically at the crowd. He tossed handfuls of candy to the children, while some of the Fairy Tail mages, Lucy included (much to her welcome surprise), signed autographs on copies of Sorcerer Weekly and the like.

Happy and Carla continued to sporadically fire off lacrima fireworks until finally the Master politely shushed the crowd. "Fairy Tail would like to thank all of you for coming out to join us for the Fantasia Parade today, and for putting up with us, the rest of the year!" he shouted, gaining a round of laughter and cheers. "We are lucky to call the best town in Fiore home and that is thanks to all of you!"

The townspeople cheered their hearts out more as the Master continued his speech. "Now, everyone, let us all regroup to Magnolia Park for the firework display to properly conclude this year's Harvest Festival!" The energy was electric and with the crowd starting to dissipate to allow Fairy Tail organize themselves and reconvene over at the park, the mages began throwing themselves into group hugs, celebrating the wildly successful Harvest Festival.

"Listen up brats! It's time to party!" Makarov had praised from his now titan form to catch all their attentions, "grab your booze and some blankets and get moving!"

Much more fun and drunken dancing in the park had followed until the sun had properly set, leaving a blanket of black pierced with gold above. Now Lucy found herself laying on a blanket watching the night sky. She was curled comfortably into Natsu's side, relishing in his natural heat as the cool air embraced them all.

Lucy had not expected today to turn out like this, not that she was the slightest bit disappointed. The complete opposite actually.

Her guildmates had all told her how much fun the Harvest Festival was, and she'd been anticipating it with barely contained excitement since the beginning of the month. That said, this day had been even better than she'd hoped. With the firework display just seconds away now, Lucy rested her head on the arm Natsu had around her shoulders as usual. Haru and Mira were to her right, Erza and Gray were to her left and Happy was tucked in the crook of her arm. The rest of her Fairy Tail family and the citizens of Magnolia were spread all around and as the first array of fireworks lit up the night sky in brilliant colours, she could honestly say she couldn't be happier.

When she'd run away from home earlier that year, she'd had no real dreams for her future. She certainly wouldn't have dared to dream she'd be surrounded by a new family that accepted her so unconditionally. She couldn't have guessed that she'd finally be rid of her father's shadow that had hung over her constantly…

She wouldn't have guessed that she'd have… whatever it was, that she had with Natsu. She snuck a peek at the fire mage next to her, watching the skies with a child-like glee, his usual toothy grin firmly in place.

So, there she was, a member of Fiore's undisputed strongest guild, going on adventures and experiencing the world with her best friends, finally free from her Father and the pressure the Heartfilia name brought with it. The gratitude of it all had swelled in her chest. She hugged Happy closer, ignoring his protests that she was choking him, and nuzzled herself farther into Natsu's warmth.

'What an unforgettable day.'

Lucy's Apartment

As usual, Natsu invited himself over to her place for a drink or two, and she hadn't thought anything of it.

She hadn't thought anything of it, until she was pinned firmly to the wall with his vest in her fists, and his hands gripping her hips as he kissed her passionately. Nope, she had definitely not seen that coming. She wasn't even sure who had instigated the first contact.

His tongue flicked along her lower lip before pressing between her answering lips, he approached her with the same passion he approached most things with, and it stole her breath. His fingertips skimmed along the waistband of her skirt, finding the small of her back to pull her closer.

Lucy tugged on his vest once more, before pushing the fabric back over his shoulders, forcing him to relinquish his grip on her to shrug it off. He paused a moment, staring at her with curiosity that quickly darkened to a lustful gaze as he removed his scarf. Lucy reached up, fingertips ghosting over a scar on his rarely naked neck. Shivering, he caught her hand and her gaze with a rather intense stare before returning to his fervent explorations of her body. She let her eyes drift closed as he kissed along her jawline, distantly wondering how they'd gotten here, pent up feelings and sexual attraction in full control over every action now.

Her ponderings on how they'd gotten here, dissolved into the recesses of her mind.

She decided, she didn't care.

Fixing him with a lustful smile, she leaned forward, latching her mouth onto his collarbone, and let her fingers do their own exploring. Natsu sighed contently, grazing his hands up her sides, drawing her shirt with them. Pausing in her efforts to trail open mouthed kisses down the hard muscles of his chest, Lucy impatiently pulled her shirt over her head. Then she skimmed her hands up his torso, brushing her thumb over the sensitive flesh of a nipple before looping her arm around his neck and pulled him back in for a rough kiss.

With a low growl, Natsu took a handful of her generous ass, prompting her to jump and wrap her legs around his hips as they continued the heated kiss. He ground his hips into hers and shifted his grip to support her weight with one arm, allowing him to snake his free hand down between them. The pads of his fingers rubbed over the lace covering her core, creating delicious friction, and she rolled her hips in search of more.

Breaking their kiss, her head dropped back against the wall, "Oh, Gods… Natsu…", she moaned, earning another growl of approval. He locked his arm tightly around her hips, and spun them off the wall, moving toward her bed as smoothly as he could, with the addition of her weight.

As soon as her back met the soft bedding, Natsu was removing her skirt and licking a fiery trail down her inner thigh as he did so. Feeling bold, Lucy held his eyes as she sat up, unlatched his belt, and pushed his pants and boxers down in one go, allowing his erection to spring up to meet her. She sucked in a breath at the prideful look on her lover's face and once again tried to ignore the question of how they'd gotten here.

She was a lady. A badass mage of Fairy Tail, but a lady nonetheless. And ladies certainly didn't jump into bed with a man before a first date. But this was the man who'd given her a home. The man who'd believed in her unconditionally and given her the confidence to move on from her past and stand up to her father with her own power. She dimly considered the voice that had been telling her she might be falling in love the boisterous fire breather.

Natsu wasn't just any man.

Had anyone insinuated this would happen earlier; she'd have dismissed the slightest possibility outright, but she certainly wasn't complaining.
She'd been attempting to ignore her growing feelings for the fire mage for months… If Natsu had been harbouring the same feelings, then she supposed the question of how they'd ended up in bed, wasn't such a mystery.

Pressing a hand to his hip she guided him down to his back and he watched her closely, eyes burning intensely as he waited for her next move. She moved back up his body, fitting her mouth back over his as she took his length in her hand and revelled in the groan that vibrated between their joined lips. Increasing the pressure of her grip, she stroked him as his hands found the clasp of her bra to release her breasts to his waiting hands. His patience didn't last much longer, diminished by the teasing ministrations of her hand and her soft flesh against his. Without warning he was rolling them to reclaim his place above her.

Lucy met his eyes, nervously chewing on her bottom lip as she starting pushing the skimpy fabric of her panties down her legs. Natsu finished the task for her and returned to latch his mouth over her pulse point. Shifting above her, he took himself in his hand and dragged his dick over her entrance, she widened her legs in silent consent. Eyes locked on hers to watch for any sign of hesitancy, Natsu slowly pressed forward to fill her.

When he was fully buried inside her she simply clung to him, taking in a couple breaths to adjust. She knew it was cliché, she knew it was probably over romanticized, but being with him like this… She felt complete. Lucy dropped her head back onto the pillow, releasing a long moan to join his when he gave her one long tentative pump of his hips. He seemed to take encouragement from the sounds that fell, unabashed from her lips and increased his speed steadily.

Tangling one hand in his hair, Lucy brought the other to brace at his lower back and marvelled at the way his muscles contracted beneath her fingers as he thrust into her. A warm hand swept up her belly to palm her breast, massaging the pad of a calloused thumb over her nipple and his name tumbled from her lips again. A devious smile, bearing the undertones of pride crossed his face instantly, he clearly liked the new breathless quality she'd said his name with. So she whispered his name again, in another sultry tone and was rewarded when he cursed and growled her name, punctuating the words with a particularly strong thrust.

Natsu settled his forehead against hers, eyes falling shut, and then his hand left her breast to trail down her side, over the swell of her ass to hike her leg further up over his hip, driving him deeper. She lost it, pleasure washing over her with an intensity that had her lips parting in a silent rapturous call of his name. He drove into her with a couple more sporadic strokes before he found his own release.

"Fuck… Luce, you're incredible…" he trailed off, collapsing onto his back beside her. Lucy watched his chest rise and fall as he wrestled his breathing back under control. His head rolled to catch her gaze, and with a peaceful smile, he reached out to pull her to him. Cuddling into his side, she laid her head on his chest and absentmindedly traced patterns on his pec, as he combed his fingers through her tangled hair.

Neither said anything more, no words were required. They just settled into a comfortable silence and enjoyed the simplicity of each other's company.

. . .

Natsu woke to the morning light filtering through the curtains, he was stretched across the bed with one arm hanging off the edge. The sound of the shower running reached his ears. Rolling over, he buried his face in the pillow and dragged the quilt up over his head to block the light. He sighed contently as he listened to the taps turn off in the bathroom and Lucy's soft humming through the door.

Shortly after, Lucy emerged from the bathroom and made her way over to the side of the bed. She pulled the quilt back and tapped him on the back of his head. "Time to get up Natsu, the day is calling."

He turned his head in her direction but made no effort to get up yet. Cracking one eye open, he found her standing in front of him with a hand on her hip. She was already dressed (much to his disappointment) and her damp hair fell in cascades over her shoulders.

Natsu smiled lazily at her, propping himself up on an elbow and reached out to twirl a strand of her golden hair between his fingers. "You're beautiful," he declared. Smile widening at the blush that spread over her cheeks, he tossed back the blankets and climbed out of bed, shamelessly naked and casually waltzed passed her to jump in the shower.

She gaped at his bold attitude, not that that his behaviour was entirely new… It's not like he'd ever been shy, but this was certainly a new level of familiarity. Lucy shook her head and moved toward the kitchen to make some tea. She didn't want to make breakfast, and they'd already slept in too late; soon enough their guildmates would start wondering at their absence. To avoid drawing attention by being more late, Lucy decided they could just get breakfast at the guild, as they often did when he slept over. No unwanted gossip.

As the kettle boiled, she marvelled at how easy this new development seemed. When she'd woken in the morning, she didn't find herself worried that that their friendship would be jeopardized, or that the ease of their partnership might turn awkward, she was just happy.

She supposed this had been building for a while. When she thought about it, she realized Natsu's eyes were on her more often than not, and though she thought she was more subtle, she found herself appreciating his physique when he wasn't paying attention, too. They had both seemed to find excuses to touch each other more often, and those seemingly innocent touches tended to linger longer than what would be strictly necessary. Why she hadn't noticed prior to him pinning her to a wall and kissing her senseless, she couldn't decide. Quick to read everyone else's emotional state, but oblivious to anything that involved her?

Whatever.

Now she knew the signs had been there, even if she'd been denying them for awhile. Though, she lamented, when their guildmates inevitably found out how they got together, they were sure to give them a hard time... Sex before a first date, or even a first stolen kiss? Well, she and Natsu had never really fit the usual mould anyway.

She smiled to herself as she poured her tea into a travel mug, turning when she heard the bathroom door. Natsu padded into the kitchen, running heated fingers through his damp hair, spiking it up as he went. He paused to pull his boots on, and she leaned into the counter behind her, a smile stretched across her face.

"Ready to go?" she asked him.

He walked up to her, dropped a hand to her hip and leaned in to press his lips to hers. He drew back just as she went to deepen the kiss though, his eyes dancing with mischief. "Now I am," he said, chuckling at the indignant expression she knew was likely plastered to her face. "Come on Luce, adventure awaits!" He moved toward the door and Lucy smacked the back of her hand against his chest playfully as she passed by.

. . .

As they made their way to the guild, they mutually agreed to keep the change in their relationship between them for now. Their evolving relationship was shiny and new, and they wanted to explore and keep it all to themselves for now. When they entered the guild, a chorus of 'good mornings' greeted them, the hall was already bustling with activity due to their late-morning arrival. Lucy offered to grab breakfast for them while Natsu wandered over to join Erza, Gray and Juvia, who had joined Fairy Tail after the Council corruption came to light and the Element Four was disbanded.

Waving Mira over as she approached the bar, Lucy placed hers and Natsu's usual breakfast orders. "Sure thing, Lucy!" Mira chirped, hustling away to get their food started. Lucy took up a stool and absently drummed her fingers across the bar top until Haru leaned in next to her ear and quietly teased, "Fun night Lucy?"

She froze, robotically turning toward him with comically wide eyes. She had forgotten about those cursed dragon-slayer noses.

Haru looked way too amused for her liking and her surprised expression turned just a little dangerous as she hooked a finger in the front of his shirt and drew him to her. He had the audacity to look even more amused.

"Listen close dragon boy," she hissed under her breath, he quirked an eyebrow in response, "you say one word, and I will end you."

Haru burst out laughing so hard he doubled over a bit and she scowled at him. Though punctuated by giggles, he managed to assure her. "You have nothing to worry about Lucy, I would never break your trust." She stared back with narrowed eyes as Mira rejoined them with the plates of food, glancing between them.

"What's happening here?" Mira asked, curiosity brimming in her eyes. Forever the guild gossip.

"Nothing. Thanks for the food Mira." Lucy answered shortly as she accepted the plates and turned toward the table where their friends sat chatting loudly.

Haru followed beside her, "Seriously though, I'm happy for you two," he said quietly, ensuring no one overheard in the busy hall. Lucy eyed him suspiciously before a small smile pulled at her lips. She muttered a thanks, deciding Haru was too loyal to tell anyone, until she and Natsu were ready.

It was a relief to know he wouldn't tell Mira… That relief faded a little when she sat down at the table next to Erza and handed Natsu his plate. Sitting a few tables away with Levy and both cats, was Wendy, directly in her line of vision. The younger girl's face was already a bright red that went even darker when she locked eyes with Lucy. Wendy ducked her head, suddenly finding the tabletop to be incredibly interesting.

'And now we've scarred Wendy…' Lucy thought sarcastically. Well, at least she knew she wouldn't have to worry about the young dragon slayer spilling their secret.

A/N. Damnnn.So that happened… Natsu and Lucy always seemed a little on the impulsive side to me, Natsu for sure. I imagine it would be likely they'd end up in bed together before the usual 'relationship steps.'

**On a related note, I went back and forth with deciding whether to leave a warning for this chapter but ended up deciding against it because I personally don't like the spoiler. Buuut let me know what all your thoughts are if you want warnings in the future or not.

One more pre-arc chapter, and then diving back into the action. Predictions on the next arc? (I feel like this is an easy guess this time, but I promise lots of twists).

See you all Saturday!

R&R

~Loka Muse