Some months later, in the city of Crocus. The main capital city of Fiore remains as peaceful and lively as it can be.
BOOM!
Mostly peaceful and lively as it can be.
An explosion had occurred at one of the downtown district area of the city as there is a group of black mask men who are running away from the city's royal guards as they are thieves who are making a getaway.
"stop right there! Stop in the name of the law!" the captain of the guards shouted loudly as he and his troops run as fast as they could to get the thieves. "stop!"
"like hell we are going to stop just because you say so!" one of the thieves exclaimed as they just keep on running away from the guards.
The citizens stood away from the action as they didn't want to interfere with a possibly dangerous scene.
"stop right there!" the captain of the guards shouted loudly as he raise his spear. "stop!"
The thieves just run before arrows came flying down from the air and a few of the thieves got pinned down by the flying projectiles that pierce through their clothing and the ground to where they are now stuck.
"what the heck!? What happened!?" the leader of the thieves shouted as he and his comrades saw what happened to a few of their members.
Before they could think of an answer, a rope was pulled across the road and it made a few thieves at front fall face first to the ground.
"a trap?!" the leader with the rest of his group stopped in time as they look at their fallen members who were soon captured by a net thrown over them. "since when was the royal guard this good!?"
"boss! Above!" a random thief shouted as the group looks up and sees a large fireball coming down on them.
"a-a fireball?!" the thief boss screamed before he and his group got caught in an explosion that blew them all away. "aaahh~!"
The guards arrived to the scene as they look surprised to what they see.
"what just..?" the captain of the troops spoke out softly before he made a surprised noise when he sees a group of people coming by. "you guys are!"
Natsu and his team came into the scene as the group had intercepted and apprehended the thieves.
"they are all yours, captain." Said Natsu as he nudged his head towards Clay and the others who are dragging the thieves who are now caught in a big net. "make sure that you keep a good eye on them."
"y-yes! Thank you very much for your assistances, Salamanders!" the captain of the guard exclaimed as he saluted to Natsu and the others, his troops quickly following in action.
"it's nothing." Said the salmon haired man who soon turns around and gets hit by a pink blur. "guh!?"
"Puruuu~!" Puru appears as the pink furball is sticking onto Natsu's face but he was soon ripped off by the salmon haired man. "puru!"
"why you little furball!" Natsu growls angrily as Puru cried in fear before making a getaway from the man who quickly give chase. "come back here so that I can make a rug out of ya!"
Natsu chased after Puru as the two instantly got attention to the nearby citizens passing by.
"looks like Puru-chan still likes to latch onto the captain, huh?" said Dan with a laugh.
"it's more like he likes to hit his face sort of…." Rookie muttered out while Tim chuckled.
"hey, Clay! Me and the others will be heading back first!" said Dan. "you handle any little report, alright?!"
"aren't I the only one who has been doing it?" said Clay with a tired sigh while Dan laughs in return.
Dan and the others soon leaves as the group heads off to wherever they want to go.
"is everything alright?" the captain of the guards asked Clay who takes off his glasses.
"it is alright." Said Clay as he cleans his glasses and then puts them back on. "things are as normal as they can be."
"y-yes…?" the guard captain replied with a slow nod.
Puru hops while crying out in fear as the furball is still being chased by an infuriated Natsu
"come back here!" Natsu shouted angrily as he chase after Puru no matter where the little animal jumps away to.
"Puru~!" Puru cries out as the pink furball keeps on jumping before it saw someone that made it jump faster. "Puru~!"
Puru jumps high before he came down and landed into a pair of bossoms that belongs to Cosmos.
"ah, Puru! There you are~!" Cosmos spoke out with a smile as she hugs Puru and caresses his back a few times. "geez~! Just don't go hopping away~!"
"Pururu~!" Puru let out a pleased cry as the little furball nuzzles close to Cosmos who giggles while caressing its back.
After the whole event with Puru and his home forest, Natsu and the others have returned to Crocus where they have been doing their daily lives as usual but at the addition of the salmon haired man going out with Cosmos who takes care of Puru like a pet cat.
"come back here, you little fuzzball!" Natsu came into the scene as he growls angrily at Puru who shrieks in fright and instantly jumps into Cosmos' hair where it hides in an instant.
"Natsu! No more!" Cosmos exclaimed as she extends her hands to the side and made Natsu stop his angry charge. "no more! You're scaring Puru!"
"that little furball has this coming!" Natsu growls while pointing a finger to his face. "he hit my face for the 100th time! You think I'm letting this slide!?"
"you are supposed to let it slide!" said Cosmos while huffing. "Puru just did such a thing because he likes you! You can't get mad at that!"
"I can very well get mad at that because that furball always do it by flinging itself at my face!" Natsu retorted. "give me that furball so that I can make a rug out of him!"
"no! no more hurting Puru!" Cosmos cried out before her face made a big pout at Natsu. "if you hurt him, I won't forgive you!"
"give me that furball!" Natsu exclaimed
The nearby citizens look awkwardly at the two pink haired people who are now bickering with one another.
About an hour later, Natsu and Cosmos are at a park as both sat on a bench and are having ice cream together.
"yum~! Sour plum flavored ice cream is the best~!" Cosmos moans in delight as she licks her double scooped ice cream with a happy face. She then holds her dessert towards Natsu. "hey, Natsu! Try it~!"
"hmm?" Natsu looks at the ice cream while he is in the middle of licking his chocolate flavored ice cream. He leans close and took a lick of Cosmos' ice cream before puckering his lips once. "so damn sour!"
"right! It tastes so good, right~!?" said Cosmos with a glee.
"how can you even call that good?" Natsu retorted as he looks at Cosmos like she is weird. "that is way too sour, not even lemons are that sour."
"really? It's just sour like lemons though?" said Cosmos with a smile as she looks to the shoulder as Puru came out of her hair and looks at the dessert curiously. "hey, Puru. What do you think? Is it too sour?"
"Puru?" Puru looks at Cosmos before to her ice cream which she holds close. The little furball sniffs the dessert a few times before it took a lick and its fur stands up. "PURU!?"
"how is it? Good?" Cosmos asked with a smile as Puru just stays silent while its fur had all stand up. The pink haired woman then looks confused. "Puru?"
"I think it's dead…" said Natsu with a sweatdrop as he had been learning about the Purun's biology and he learned that they only like things that taste sweet and anything else won't do good. His words were then proven true when the furball fell off Cosmos' shoulder and on the bench where it didn't move and just turn white "you just killed Puru."
"eh~!? Puru~!? Puru~!?" Cosmos cried out in horror as she hands her ice cream to Natsu and now holds Puru who she tries desperately to revive. "PURU~?!"
"like I said, it's too sour." Said Natsu with a sweatdrop as he watches Cosmos cry while hugging Puru.
While the little event is going on between Natsu and Cosmos; Kama and the rest of the Garou Knights' members can be seen nearby as they are watching their friends on the date that they are having.
"they were bickering a moment ago, and then they are eating ice cream together…" Neppa spoke out as he watches how Cosmos cries to Natsu and ask him to help her revive Puru to which he did after sighing tiredly. The large man then looks at Kama and the others. "are they really going out or what?"
"well….there's that thing called….opposites match, right?" said Kamika as she looks skeptical to the two pink haired people. "well….i think the two are opposites.."
"they are only opposites in personality-tai, anything else; they match perfectly-tai." Uosuke stated with his usual funny looking face.
"that's not what she meant." Said Kama in retort to Uosuke, the mask wearing purple haired man soon sighs as he watches back Natsu who is shaking Puru very rapidly and somehow revived the furball from death to which made Cosmos look all happy and hug the salmon haired man who she gives a kiss on the cheek. "well….i guess they are opposites in some way or another."
The next few days pass by. Natsu can be found and seen walking in the many hallways of the Mercurius. The salmon haired man is currently on duty with his team, but he is currently going straight for Arcadios' office to get briefed on the mission that they are assigned to.
Natsu walks down the hallway as he was about to turn a corner when he stops in an instant because he nearly had bumped into Bash who came from the other way.
"hey, kid." Bash greeted Natsu. "you on your way to meet Arcadios for a mission?"
"yeah." Natsu nods. "the old man got a few missions that me and my team needs to go and complete" he then crosses his arms. "the same with you, old man?"
"not really." Bash replies as he reaches to his back and holds out a paper towards Natsu. "I just talked to Arcadios and he got a very interesting stuff about a sighting."
"a sighting?" Natsu asks as he takes the paper and reads it. "of what?"
Natsu checks the content written and his eyes widen because it is a reported sighting of a large reptilian creature that has been seen roaming at a mountain a few hundred kilometers from where Crocus is.
"I'm gonna stop you right there, kid." Said Bash as he takes the paper back from Natsu. "Arcadios told me that this is just a sighting and the mountain where this sighting is located is filled with large reptile creatures that might be mistaken for a dragon." He placed the paper away before he takes out a cigar and light it before smoking out a puff. "I'm just going to go and check to see if this is legitimate or not."
"but have you read how big that thing's track is?" said Natsu with a rather anxious face. "it was said to be nearly 40-50 feet and it's track is deep! It has to be a dragon!"
"it can be a dragon, or it might be a wyvern like the last time." Bash replied as he sucks in some smoke before puffing it out as a stream from his nose. "look kid, you and I have been going on this road for what? 6 or 7 years? We only got one major good lead and just one." He then place a hand to Natsu's shoulder and patted it a few times. "let me go and check first like I always do. You don't want to waste time on a wild goose chase like last time, right?"
"that's…!" Natsu spoke out to retort but he bit his bottom lips and looks down.
There was a time when the young man had joined Bash on his search for his dragon father, they went on multiple trips to several places in Fiore which had a sighting or a rumor of a dragon, but each time they find nothing but a false lead.
"just wait until I can confirm if this lead is true, alright?" said Bash as he patted Natsu's shoulder once. "if I find your dragon dad there, I'll come back quick to get ya. So don't go running off like crazy." The cowboy man soon puffs out some smoke before smiling. "besides, while you wait. You can prepare the things you want to yell at your dragon dad for leaving you behind those years ago." He then walks pass the young man. "might as well thrown in the fact that you got yourself a girlfriend."
Natsu turns and watches Bash walk away.
"hey Bash" Natsu calls out to the cowboy who stops walking and turns his head to look at the young man. "you better come back safe and sound like you always do."
"who do you think you're talking to, kid?" said Bash as he smirks while adjusting his hat. "I'm Bash Dash for crying out loud." The cowboy man then walks again as he waves a hand to the side. "behave yourself while I'm away, kid!"
Natsu smiles a bit to hear Bash's reply as he chuckles once before he begins walking and heads for Arcadios' office.
In the next three days. After getting briefed about the missions from Arcadios, Natsu and his team have geared up and prepared themselves for a month duration of a travel because their missions involves going to 7 places in just one month.
Garou, Cosmos, and the Salamanders' team members are all gathered at the front of Bash's candy store as they are waiting on Natsu who is locking up the home.
"that should do it." Said Natsu as he clapped his hands in satisfaction while looking at the closed store that has locks and chains everywhere. "this should keep all the candy inside safe and sound from the furball."
"did you really had to add in the traps around the whole house?" said Kama with a sweatdrop as he and the others look at the spiky and jagged fences built around the store. "you guys will only be gone for a week, not a whole year."
"tell that to the furball who can empty the whole candy supply in just a day." Natsu stated before he glares with a growl at Puru who cried in fear before hiding into Cosmos' hair.
"Puru said that he's sorry already, Natsu~!" Cosmos yelled with a puffing pout. "don't hold a grudge after that!"
"I won't hold a grudge when that furball can pay back for all the stinking trouble it got me and Kama into." Said Natsu as he walks away from the candy store and hands a key to Kama. "there is no way I'm letting what happened back then, happen again."
"That would be an understatement." Kama stated.
"captain, it's almost time for our departure." Clay stated while adjusting his glasses. "our horses and carriage should be ready at the gate by now."
"yeah, I got it." Said Natsu with a nod before he turns to look at Kama. "mind the store, Bash will be back in a few more days or so. Also, if that furball tries to go near. Shred its fur for all I care."
"noted." Said Kama before Cosmos came and slap Natsu's back once.
"Puru won't do it again! So don't shred his fur!" Cosmos yelled. "I just gave him a good grooming yesterday!"
"like I care about that." Said Natsu with an uncaring look. "and besides, he can grow it back in a month or so."
"don't be so mean to Puru!" Cosmos yelled as she begins hitting Natsu's chest several times, the salmon haired man looking unbothered by her actions.
"hahahaha! The Captain and Cosmos sure are a good match for one another!" said Dan with a laugh.
"i-is that so?" said Rookie with a sweatdrop.
"Love has a strange way to appear between lovers after all." Tim stated with a nod.
"indeed." Said Clay while adjusting his glasses.
While continuously getting hit by Cosmos, Natsu just stands unbothered before he hears something falling inside the candy store.
"what was that?" said Kama, hearing the same sound as Natsu did.
"let me check." Natsu stated while holding Cosmos' hands and stopping her from hitting him. The man then went back to the candy store as he checks through a window and sees the inside. "I don't see anything."
"probably a fallen broom or something, captain." Said Dan while lifting his hands and shrugging his shoulders. "I mean, the broom inside the store always falls when we come and visit, right?"
"probably…" said Natsu as he shrugs his shoulders because he couldn't see anything that might have caused the noise. "probably." He then moves away from the window and back to the group. "anyway, we better get going now." The salmon haired man looks at Cosmos who is still pouting angrily at him and that made the man sigh tiredly. "alright, the furball is okay so don't get pouty with me."
Cosmos huffs before she turns around and begins walking away but Natsu stops her and turns her so that he could lean down and give her a kiss on the lips, nose, and forehead.
"there. better?" said Natsu with a raised eyebrow at Cosmos who no longer has her pout and now has a smile.
"better~!" said Cosmos as she hugs Natsu with a happy smile. "have a safe trip!"
"thanks, I'll be going." Natsu replied while hugging her back.
'seriously, how are these two a good match for each other?' Kama and the others thought in unison from seeing how Cosmos' mood keep on changing yet Natsu could handle her with just a few words and action.
A few seconds later, Kama and Cosmos sees Natsu and the others off as the Salamanders heads off for their mission.
"I wonder what their missions will be..?" said Cosmos in curiosity before she looks at her right shoulder because Puru came out and cried out to her then nuzzles to her face which made her smile and giggle.
"the usual, I suppose." Said Kama before he looks to the closed candy store. "but I'm more curious on what fell inside the store."
Kama looks at the store curiosly as unbeknownst to him and the others, the object that fell and made the loud noise was actually a wooden picture frame on the second floor.
The picture frame lies front on the floor as it had the photo of Natsu with Bash, both are grinning together but the glass frame that covers the photo is cracked and shattered around the cowboy's image.
Somewhere at a mountain, a few kilometers from Crocus.
It is a desolate land that has no life of any kind roaming in the area, but at one part of the mountain, there is destruction as flames burns everywhere in the area.
a loud creature's roar soon rang out and a large shadow can be seen flying in the dark cloudy sky that blocks the light of the sun.
At one part of the desolate yet burning land, Bash's cowboy hat can be seen lying on the ground as it is covered in black smudges and dirt before it flew away by a strong breeze that came by.
That's a wrap!
Bye bye