7 Reasons Why

An AU where Natsu is not present with Lucy when she discovers Jude has died prior to their return from Tenrou. He finds out a different way. And this time, has a different reaction. Written as a tribute for someone in my life & for the milestone of writing on FanFiction for 7 years now. Think of 7RW as a gift from me to you all for reading and supporting my various works. Enjoy! :)

He noticed his blonde companion slip away hours ago. The sudden decision to leave right at the party's peak bummed him exponentially. Lucy wasn't one to be involved with their constant brawls or drunken games, but even she usually stuck around for these special types of moments. Not today it seemed. What was special today? Well, Fairy Tail was in total jubilation due to their most recent discovery. After being presumed dead as a result of Acnologia's ferocious roar upon Tenrou Island… the x784 Tenrou team had finally made it back home.

But it wasn't all highs. Unbeknownst to even Natsu's attentiveness, Lucy had suffered a major blow that pulled desperately on her heartstrings. At the guild's highest of highs, his intelligent partner was dealing with the lowest of lows. Everyone present knew it wasn't x784 anymore, but none of the S-Class Trial recipients expected to find out, just hours in their eyes after defeating the dark guild Grimoire Heart in fierce solo or team spars and surviving a major blow from the Black Dragon, that they had been basically comatosed for over half a decade. Seven years had actually gone by with their physical states untouched. They were the same age, the same height, the same magic level… they were the same person! The entire world had kept turning while they unknowingly awaited Mavis' protection spell to fizzle.

Being younger than most was not as positively accepted to the universe as it was by the individuals themselves. A ticking clock meant that while their bodies and minds had been suspended in time, the rest of the world had been forced to change. That included those they loved. Fairy Tail had a new Guildmaster. Members that were once weak were now strong. People had come and gone.

Natsu tried to keep his mind focused but a lunge from his rival Gray caused him to backpedal as he crashed into the wooden table. That hit left him partially dazed and the black-haired ice user relented his swings as Elfman joined the fray, casually spewing about how fighting made someone a 'real' man.

He shook his head to the side, ignoring how a few tiny shards of glass pricked his skin. Mira was surely going to kill him for destroying another one of her good shot glasses. Or maybe she wouldn't. The She-Devil sometimes could become unpredictable when it came to her duties at the bar. Her temper was a lot like Lucy's. And that too sometimes scared him.

Lucy.

That recall helped get his head back in the game. No one in their tight family bunch had noticed the woman exit. She had quite literally gone undetected outside of his, and potentially the other dragon slayer's perceptive gifts. It was obvious he was concerned for her and so Natsu did what he did occasionally when he got impatient. He acted. The slayer had prepared to go chase after her, to see what next adventure awaited them, but another brawl abruptly started. Evidently though, Natsu's appetite for conflict caused him to lose sight of his best friend's whereabouts and he allowed himself to be dragged into the melee, going in flames ablazing.

Hours later, after he'd tracked her scent to a familiar location, the pinkette remained unmoving on the window sill. It felt wrong to just silently watch a distraught woman, a close friend nonetheless, cry her eyes out in her safe haven but… that was just how their friendship worked. She talked and he listened. That was one thing outside of food and fighting that he could excel at. Allowing people to express their emotions openly without judging them for it.

Spent from the waterworks show, Lucy lazily flung herself across her neatly made bed. She turned over onto her side. Puffy, red eyes watched him intently. He wasn't sure what to say or do. He wanted to know why she was so upset and yet he didn't want to push her buttons trying to accomplish that. Natsu understood he had to be patient. But that was the problem. Patience wasn't in his blood. All this had started to confuse him but what confused him even more was when his partner suddenly laughed.

"So, are you going to just sit there and stare at me or are you actually going to come in and stay for a while?"

Even when she was undoubtedly troubled about something meaningful to her the blonde always managed to show off her own fiery side. He knew it was her valiant attempt to put up a facade in order to hide her true feelings from others. She didn't want to appear weak. She wanted to be strong. Yet like him, Lucy wore her heart on her sleeve. It was one of the better qualities that Natsu favored in a person. Something he favored when it came specifically to Lucy. Whereas his emotions fueled him to push onward, Lucy's caused her to take a step back. He liked to use his fire to paint a new picture while she preferred to examine it in its entirety before coming to a decision. A risk taker versus a planner. What was his greatest strength was ultimately her greatest weakness. But he'd never viewed it that way. He wouldn't let her do so either.

"I'm not sure." His voice traveled smoothly across the room. Many men in the guild, who had been excluded from the S-Class Trials, had matured tones to their name. Natsu's vocal cords kept that boyish charm marking his place as one of the reunited members. "The window is a pretty peaceful spot. Maybe I need to be here when you start one of your infamous tirades." He quipped.

The slayer hoped that remark would get a rise out of his friend. A sliver of a smile tried to piece itself together over her hesitant features but it never fully made its way to the surface.

"Come on… it's getting chilly outside."

Natsu frowned. He didn't want to aggravate her at this specific time, but he also didn't want to intrude. He knew she was suffering tremendously inside right now. For once in his life though, he realized he couldn't just beat the answers out of something already in existence. And for once in his life, Natsu didn't have the answer to restore someone's damaged spirit. She scooted over, allowing him available space to have a seat on the other side of her. Seeing his questioning gaze, she huffed at his obviousness and patted the space next to her.

"Here. Now."

Fearing for his life, specifically at the way her mood had done a complete one-eighty, Natsu fulfilled her request and patiently awaited whatever she had in mind next. He didn't need to wait long.

"Can you tell me about your dad?" She unexpectedly asked as she laid down on her back. Once again registering his confusion, Lucy added, "Uh–sorry, I meant about Igneel."

Like a little kid entering a candy store, Natsu opened up the floodgates as he began to retell countless tales of himself and the mysteriously vanished King of the Fire Dragons. Their adventures, their training, their bond… by the time he had realized he was rambling the woman laying next to him was once more shedding tears.

"Ah, Luce!" He grimaced. "Don't do that. You know what power crying has over me."

"I know…" She tried to hide her teary eyes behind her arm. "I hate crying too. I-I just can't help it, okay?" Lucy expressed somberly. "I miss him, Natsu. I really do."

Jude Heartfilia was dead. There was no easy way to put it. From what he had gathered in between the shared tales of their lead caretakers, Lucy's tyrannical father had passed away a month before their return from the island. She had only just found out the previous day and kept her emotions bottled up inside for as long as she could. Her efforts were short-lived. Today had been the day that glass shattered and all the anguish from losing her remaining parent came rushing out. It was up to Natsu to pick up those broken shards and repair what was lost.

He couldn't fix this type of dilemma though. As far as he knew, and he was positive he was just a human with special dragon slaying abilities, he couldn't cheat death. Natsu Dragneel didn't have the power to bring back the dead or restore an extinguished soul. Jude was gone. There was no amending this situation. He could only ease the pain by simply being there for her.

"I know you do." The fire mage smiled down at her. She looked so fragile. As if she would break upon being touched. That wasn't Lucy. She was passionate and always focused on the future, always thinking about her next goal. He had to get her mind out of the past.

"We still weren't on the best of terms the last time I saw him… at least I don't think." Her pitched voice expressed painfully as she recounted the events of her besting the dark guild known as Naked Mummy. "I did find out embarrassingly that my name comes from a defected neon sign."

Natsu desperately tried to stifle the chuckle that escaped him. Obviously he failed.

"Yeah, yeah laugh it up mister." Her features remained impassive. "Dragneel, Igneel, seems kind of identical wouldn't you say?"

His eyes widened. "I can assure you Lucky Lucy that my last name does not come from Igneel."

"How do you know?" She pressed.

"Because he told me."

Now it was Lucy's turn to be amused by a simple answer.

"So gullible."

"Hey!" Natsu glared at her playfully and almost followed through with those intrusive thoughts of pushing her off the bed. But he decided against it at the last second. Seeing that healing process begin was worth the loss of some ego points.

Natsu's dark irises located a spot on her ceiling. He heard a dragon's roar from within. It was like receiving a reminder about his own past. He had been so determined to find the crimson dragon who ditched him at such a young age… but as his time at Fairy Tail extended, Igneel had slowly become more and more of an afterthought. It wasn't that his feelings towards the Fire Dragon King had changed. If anything he held more respect for Igneel than ever before. It leaned more towards the fact that he had something to look after. Something to actually fight for.

"I know your relationship with your dad was much different and painful than what I had with Igneel… but maybe some good can still come from this, Luce." He tried to explain his thought process to the woman next to him.

Her raised eyebrow helped him conclude that he was doing a rather terrible job. "Losing my dad was a good thing?"

"N-No!" He immediately shouted, almost surprising himself at his own nervousness. "What I meant is that losing any family is hard. Though we grow stronger as we overcome obstacles."

Lucy studied him in disbelief. "I'm having a hard time believing you're Natsu. How can I be sure you're not Levy using one of Mira's transformation spells?

Natsu groaned. "Seriously?"

"I mean… you're almost making too much sense here. I'm just a little surprised by your thoughtfulness. That's all, Natsu."

Okay now she was beginning to push his buttons. "That's it. I'm going to give you seven reasons why this could be helpful in the long run."

"Oh, really?" She replied with a smirk and folded her arms. "Let's hear them." Her brown eyes became illuminated as he began to count the points on his fingers in his head. "Oh, you're practicing. Then this should be good." Lucy spoke giddily as she sat up on the bed.

With his thoughts sorted out and his intentions set, despite her persistent teasing, Natsu jumped right into the fire.

"Seven reasons why you should be happy, not sad. By Natsu Dragneel."

Lucy snickered at the name. "Had to author it, huh?"

"Number one: Your dad and your mom are finally reunited." He spoke with such a tranquil approach that she was instantly floored by the words. "I don't mean that in a bad way either, I just hope that can help you find some peace through it all. They both are hopefully where Igneel is. Perhaps they're even friends." He smiled at that thought. Lucy smiled too. Neither voiced an opinion about whether or not Igneel was actually deceased. That was just based on acceptance after having gone absent for so long.

"Number two: You will always have important memories with him. No matter how big or small, good or bad, they're there. For you to look back on and remember the fun times you and your dad had. Those times before you joined up with us."

"Number three: I brought you to Fairy Tail because you didn't want to be 'Lucky' anymore. You wanted to be–"

"Just Lucy." She interrupted and looked the opposite away. He wasn't sure if she was angry or growing sad again, so he continued, although with a much softer tone to push the meaning.

"Yeah, Luce. You're free. He no longer can turn into what he once was and rule over you. You're free to just be you." He faintly noticed those new tears but ignored it. He had to finish. It would only help, not hurt her. "Now, number four: This ties back into the last one but mainly because your dad changed. You're allowed to be happy about that. Whether you made an impact on him or not towards the end of his life… your dad saw reason through his faults in some way and tried to amend what he could. That sounds like a loving father to me."

Her sobs grew louder and he looked over at her, chest burning inside. He knew the pain of regret. That feeling when you think you've lost the only parental figure you had left in the world. It wasn't fun. But death wasn't supposed to be fun. It changed you. And Natsu was determined to change Lucy's stance regarding death.

"Number five: Within your departure you proved you could take care of yourself. Without him involved. You relieved him of a burden that I'm sure even Igneel felt as he tried to teach me the ways of this world. I'm sure your dad was grateful to know he raised you up right enough that you could cover your own hide even when he was unable to do such a thing for himself anymore."

She had choked up and faced him again. "You–"

He held up a hand, as she often did to him whenever he was supposed to stay quiet about a certain subject. "I'm almost finished. Number six: Without your dad, there is no you, Luce. You can be joyful in knowing that you will always have a soft spot in each of your parents' hearts. I'm positive they were grateful for you."

"Natsu…"

"Number seven: He cared. Your dad left small gifts and continued to pay for this apartment even when he knew you might never get the chance to open them or walk through those doors. A struggling father believed in his daughter to the very end. Even when the rest of the world had given up on us, given up on you—Jude didn't."

Natsu's speech, so simple and yet so powerful, helped elevate the weight on her shoulders. He knew she felt guilt regarding her past actions and the way she rebuked her father countless times in their late stages. But her last impression on him had been impactful. He was sure of that. Even though he barely knew her father the once corrupt tyrant stature had certainly been left behind. The man responsible for bringing his best friend into the world had moved on to greater things. In a strange way, Natsu felt some appreciation for him.

Thanks for helping me find her.

Lost in his thoughts about his own feelings toward Jude, Natsu let his guard down for just a millisecond. That was all the time she needed. Lucy blasted the door down in her own special way as she pounced and sent them both tumbling onto the floor. By the time he had recovered, a shadow blocked the surroundings around him as he stared into an endless pool of chocolate instead of white drywall.

"Luce?" He questioned. The impact with the floor made it seem like his bell had gotten rung. "Why'd you do that…?"

Instead of answering him, Lucy shushed his lips with an unblemished finger as she smiled. The blonde leaned down and applied a light pressure against his cheek. Mentally his mind burst aflame. Then she pulled away and the unsettling feeling in his chest dispersed.

"What… What was that?!"

Lucy shook her head and giggled at his innocence. "That was my way of saying thank you, Natsu." She lifted herself off of him and held out an open palm for him to take. "Now come on, I want to show you something he left behind…"

He took the blonde's hand, but her words faltered off at the same time Natsu's soul left his body. Standing there, in his traditional black suit and stylish shades, was none other than the leader of the Zodiac.

"Good evening, Princess." He greeted the blonde sweetly before a sharp glare was projected towards the tense pink-haired dragon slayer. "Hi, Natsu." That authoritative voice was sickly sweet.

Even as Loke's fist lit up in that mighty golden hue and sent him flying into another dimension, ignoring Lucy's own fits in protest of course, Natsu's smile remained. Although the duration was short. He soon paled, realizing he had been unceremoniously thrusted into the Celestial World, as that serene smile vanished from fright.

I might be dead soon too.

Liked it? Feel free to review, but don't feel pressured! Thanks for stopping by. More Dragon Rage coming soon!