"What if I am?" Having heard enough, Macow , Wacoba and Romeo stood in front of him. "You are truly stupid in the head, you just accused Lucy of lying. Have you not listened to anything when we told you about them. They are called the dragons and strongest team for a damn reason!" "You really think she would lie about those scars she has, you saw them. You imbecile" exclaimed Romeo. He couldn't believe that the man who had been a hero in his eyes and someone he wanted to grow up to be like was standing in front of him completely different. "We really thought you were gone Natsu..what happened to you guys" he thought to himself. "The ones you told me about were nothing like these two standing in front of us" he said pointing to the angry couple. "The people you all described were full of joy, happy and they trusted you guys like family"
"I don't trust anyone, got it. The only ones I trust in this place are Lucy, Happy and my child" Nashi remained quiet in the corner standing with Happy with her hood up unsure of what to do. "Not even your guild mates?" asked Mccoy. "No, not even them..not yet" Natsu answered quietly. "I told you the people we were before,…THEY ARE GONE!" declared Lucy speaking up. She grabbed her brass knuckles putting them on her right hand and got into a fighting stance shocking everyone as Natsu did the same beside her.
"The worst thing you could have done Mccoy was it.. was piss the two of us off" the chill and coldness in voice caused everyone to skip a beat for they felt no warmth or mercy in his tone. His body flamed up with an intensity the guild had never seen. "STOP GUYS, PLEASE!" "NATSU, LUCY" they begged seeing no sign of the two of them stopping. "Stand down now" Erza commanded walking through the guild members. They both growled at her who held an arm out stopping Gray. " Leave this to me" Understanding, he stepped back. Erza spoke in a very clear voice and said " let him go now. He is a member of this guild and as master , I'm telling you two to let him go now or I will have no choice but to declare you enemies of Fairy Tail"
"Erza!" "Would she really do that" "Those are her old teammates" Her guild mates looked at her face and saw that she was not backing down.
Natsu and Lucy stood there pondering the thought as everyone waited for what they would do. They decided to stand down releasing their fists and relaxed their arms. "Master" "Shut it Mccoy" she sniped sharply. "What are you doing now you damn idiot" Gray snapped at Natsu. "Shut up Gray" he barked at him as Lucy grabbed his hand calming him. "You guys have no idea what it was like, we all.. thought you guys were dead!"
Flashback
(A year ago)
"Hey Mira, are you sure that was they did?, like they didn't say they wanted to wait for me and Erza or anything" "No Gray, sorry. It was just a simple mission they took and they took Nashi with them so they likely just wanted to give her a chance to use her magic without her life being threatened" "That makes sense but here's the conundrum I'm having however. Mira, you said they took it around dawn right?, with how simple that mission was, they should have been back by now. … so why aren't they" "Erza, do you think something happened to them?" "That's highly unlikely, knowing the two of them. This job request was child's play" Standing up, Gray started walking to the door.
"Come on Erza, let's go check their house. Knowing flame for brains, he could be sound asleep at his house and the girls are just lounging waiting for the bone head to wake up" Chuckling some, Erza and Mira both nodded their heads. "I'll keep an eye out here incase they all show up" "Thank you Mira" the two wizards both spoke. Leaving the guild, It wasn't long before they reached their teammates house. Knocking on the door, they waited a few moments before entering. "Heyyy dumbass, you awake in here?"
"Lucy, Happy, Nashi?. Are you here?" The silence was deafening to them while they stood in the empty house. "Erza, look at this" motioned Gray looking in their room. "Their clothes are all over the place, You know Lucy would never let this happen. Their drawers and everything are open" "Let's not jump to conclusions Gray, They could've just been in a hurry. They do have a child remember" "Yeah I know but still, something is off..making my hair stand on end, I don't like this feeling" "Let's get back to the guild Gray and just wait for them there"
Nodding, they walked back where Mira gave a slight breath of disappointment when she saw them come back alone. " "No luck at all?" "No, they weren't there but something felt off when we went to go look. They had clothes on their floor everywhere" "You know now that I think about it, before they left Lucy handed me a box. She wouldn't say what it was before they left. I'll go grab it" Releasing a breath of tension, Gray clenched his fists when Erza put a hand to his shoulder. "Here it is" said Mira unwrapping the box from the protective paper it was in. Lifting the lid, all three of them went cold when they saw what was inside the box.
"Ppplease..tell mme.. those aren't what I think they are. Please" Mira pleaded while Gray was too shocked to speak getting everyone's attention causing them to come over. Not wanting it to be real, Erza grabbed one of the keys out of the box" "Those are Lucy's celestial keys!" "What the hell happened!" "Where did the two of them goo" "She wouldn't have left them..if she wasn't expecting something to happen" the requip and ice wizard both thought making their eyes widen and hands shake" Weeks went by while they asked everyone they knew if they had seen any sign of the Dragneels to no avail. The guild had gone quiet without the fire dragon slayer to start a fight and hearing all of team Natsu come back from a successful job request"
present
"In a sense we were, You all should have just given up. It wasn't just him Gray, I was ready to attack him too" the ice wizard was stunned at how mean she sounded. " Is this really her, the woman I see as a sister.. Lucy" he thought to himself. " What?, nothing for me?, did you forget I was here , are you only going to yell at Natsu?, I'm just as much at fault" Gray still couldn't say anything. Lucy feeling extremely insulted and fumed with anger.
"Im frankly pissed that you can't even give me the same respect" Clearing her throat, she continued "since you two weren't here earlier.. let me tell you right now that Natsu and I are not the same people you knew. ..They are gone. I am not going to say it again!" she yelled. "Lucy" she grunted as Natsu gave her a look saying enough. "Cool it" he waved a hand down at her. Before she protested any further, he turned towards her instantly shutting her up.
Everyone saw Natsu wasn't going to turn back around until he was satisfied. She finally eased her tension and relaxed her shoulders. Seeing her release a breath, he turned back around to Erza and Gray. Standing up, Mccoy started "See." "SHUT UP MCCOY!" the guild shouted at him cutting him off. Nervous, he sank back down wanting to hide from the glares and eyes he was getting from the others.
"So not only did she get his cockiness but she got his temper too. Well shit" muttered Gray. "Watch it Gray" he warned eyeing Lucy behind who looked ready to pounce. " I know how to calm her" he said smirking a wicked smirk freaking everyone out when he said "but I can only hold her back for so long" "Natsu" Erza said threateningly.
Removing the smirk and turning his eyes away from Lucy, his face became cold once more. "Look the only reason we came here was to talk to you guys and then that got interrupted." He glared at Mccoy. "I think it's best we leave, come on Happy, Iggy, time to go" Happy was waiting when Nashi ran to Natsu grabbing his hand and Natsu put a hand around Lucy's waist. Pulling her hard, she walked with him. Erza and Gray stepped aside as they walked past. The sound of a pin drop could be heard for nobody wanted to move or even breathe. There was an unsaid pain in the air. Some of them didn't want them to go including their former team mates. "What caused you guys so much pain that you couldn't come to us.. What scared you so bad Natsu…" the questions rang in Erza's mind but she knew this was not the time to ask.
Natsu had almost gotten them out the door when they heard Mccoy whisper "wench" Sighing, "son of a bitch" he thought rolling his eyes putting a hand to his face as Lucy with her clenched teeth showing turned right around screaming " THAT'S IT!" Stomping over, she lifted Mccoy up off the ground by the collar of his shirt and punched him right in the face sending him across the guild hall. "Wooahhh" expressed the guild members. " I didn't realize she had gotten that strong" "You don't remember her Lucy kick?"
"Dumb idiot pissed Lucy off and with how she is now, I don't want to be her enemy or piss her off" Before she could go running after him, Natsu grabbed Lucy's arms. "Ohh no you don't" he said wrenching her arms behind her. Holding onto both of her arms with one hand, she struggled to get free. "Yeahhh.., definitely time to go" he stated.
He started to walk backwards when she yelled "let me goo baby! I'm so sick of him insulting us!" Knowing he would get nowhere if this kept going, he pulled her back towards him. Putting an arm across her, he whispered into her ear calmly "settle" Hearing his tone, he felt her start to stop resisting him. "Not here, this is not the place" he whispered again as she let out a breath. Glaring, she turned on her heels and hmped him. "Natsu , get her out of here" ordered Erza.
Nobody moved an inch hearing their guild master give her old team mate an command.(Fairy Tail soundtrack vol.3 Pantherlily) The rabid look in his eyes matched his hostility looking straight at Erza. "Don't think that just because you're the new guild master that you can order me. I am not one of your lackeys. Also as you were told, I've changed"
Putting more emphasis in his voice, he said "don't fool yourself into thinking Lucy is the only one whose grown. She's not the dangerous one here and I'm not afraid to knock you down a peg Erza and don't think I can't." Turning back towards the door, in a low, dark voice said "I won't hold back next time"
He grabbed Nashi's hand again leading the girls and him out with Happy holding Nashi's other hand" "Were you really going to call them an enemy of Fairy Tail?" Gray asked once the Dragneels were out of sight. "At first, never but I'm not so sure now" she answered. "It's still Natsu and Lucy though Erza" Gray protested. "Can you be so certain of that?, you heard them, they could very well become a threat Gray"
Seeing them head out the guild, everyone started to let out a breath. "Wait! Guys" Before Macow could stop him, Romeo ran past him. "Natsu, Lucy! Please stop" he yelled stopping them in their tracks, but they didn't turn their heads.
"Did you guys really feel nothing back there?, We thought we lost you guys. I know what you guys have gone through must have been hard. Natsu..you are my hero. When I heard you were gone, I couldn't…I just couldn't.." Natsu balled his left hand into a fist shaking it. "Romeo…" "Have you guys really forgotten who we are?, I mean your guild marks?! You removed them. " Biting her lip, Lucy remained with her back to Romeo hearing his voice start to crack.
"Mommy?" Nashi cried softly pulling Lucy's hand trying to get her to turn around while Natsu could see the hurt in Happy's face. Turning his head to side, he could see Romeo pleading for an answer and could tell he would keep standing there until he was given an answer.
"Romeo.. do you think that I or any of us wanted to go? This was my home. For the safety of my daughter and wife, I had no choice. Leaving Fairy Tail was the hardest decision that we ever had to do." Romeo gasped when he saw small tears in the corner's of Natsu's eyes. Letting go of Nashi's hand, Lucy removed her glove rubbing a hand over it.
"I thought about all of you guys since we left. We haven't forgotten any of you" Romeo unable to move or speak felt his lips curl into a smile. They turned to leave and before he could say anything else, Natsu, Lucy , Nashi and Happy put their hands in the air doing the Fairy Tail sign showing their emblem's and walked off. Wiping the tears that were in the corners of his eyes, Romeo went back inside the guild
Getting back to their old house, they stopped looking it up and down for vines and leaves had grown over all it. "Well better then we have lived in" said Natsu and Lucy. Ripping the vines off the front door, Natsu said "Happy, take Nashi inside, Lucy and I need to have a match" Understanding, he led Nashi inside who also understood what Natsu said. "Alright Luce, come on" He smiled getting into a fighting stance" Taking her jacket off, she got into a similar one as well. "Loose the brass" he pointed as she took them off and threw them with attitude. Putting his hands out in front of him, he motioned her to come at him. Letting out a yell of frustration, she went for him as he blocked her upper cut punch.
Trying again, she went for his stomach. Blinded by her emotions, she didn't see his foot. Kicking her feet from under her, she fell to the ground. Quickly he stood over her and in a serious tone said " did you forget everything I taught you already" Sliding out from under him and jumping to her feet. "NO, I haven't forgotten a god damn thing" She came at him aggressively.
"What are you still angry at?, this is more then just at the guild" he said through blocking and avoiding her punches. "I'm sick..of.. this shit" she spat through attacks. "One of the first things I taught you was don't attack in rage..and also, protect your most vulnerable part"
Catching her completely off guard, he landed a hard kick in her stomach moving her back a couple inches. Groaning in pain, she grabbed her stomach and knelt to the ground . "I'm pissed that anyone thinks that they can walk over us…and that they think we're the same and." "And? I know there's more. So come on. Out with it" said Natsu. "What are you mad at Lucy, tell me!" he yelled.
"I HATE THAT WE CAME BACK" She attempted to get back up but Natsu knocked her back down. "We're done" he said blunt to her face.
"But Natsu" "NO, I said we are done and besides I kicked your stomach hard" he said with finality reaching a hand down to her stomach and pressed gently making her let a yelp of pain. "Exactly my point, we are done" She turned her head defiantly as he grabbed her chin and made her look at him. "I'm still your teacher damn it" he told her in a gritty tone. Frustrated, she put her head down. Letting out a breath, he knelt down and gently lifted her head back up towards him.
"Luce..you know that we didn't have a choice baby. If we stayed there, they could have killed us" He saw her lip tremble shocking him since It had been so long since he saw her crying making his heart clench for a moment seeing tears come to her eyes. Putting a hand to her cheek, he rubbed it with his thumb. "Aw Luce" she rubbed her head against his hand while he wiped her sweat off her head with his other hand.
Feeling the tears come down her face, she put her head into his lap as she cried. "I just want our fffammily safe Natsu, that'sss aall" he could her crying grow while she laid there. "I know Lucy" 'I don't care about anyone else, I just want us, Nashi and Happy safe. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR" she screamed.
After a few more minutes, she sat herself up and wiped her tears. "'I'm sorry" she apologized sullenly. "For what?" Natsu questioned cocking his head. "For earlier at the guild hall, I lost my temper and if you weren't there, I wouldn't have stopped." "Tch, oh that, psh, Luce your fine. That asshole deserved it for questioning you and calling you a liar"
A small smile came to her face as Natsu said "one thing is for sure, you've got my temper, you need to learn to control that" he emphasized in a calm voice. "Yeah, like that's helped you in the past" the sarcasm dripping from her words. "Exactly my point, It's why you need to learn to control it, are you ashamed of getting some of my traits?" Shocked by the question, It took her a minute before she could answer but she answered with confidence "absolutely not Natsu, you are the reason we have survived this long. I would never be ashamed to be like you." He put a hand behind his head feeling his cheeks heat up and turn pink.
"Besides" he looked up at her seeing Lucy wasn't finished. "I'm your wife, the wife of a dragon. It shouldn't surprise you that I've picked up your attitude" he started blushing hard as she kissed his cheek and stood up. "Come on, we have to try to find Nashi food" she said holding a hand out. Grabbing it, she helped Natsu up. "I love you my dragon" "I love you too my soul."