2nd March – 9:00 AM

"Thank you for guarding the ship." Captain Barlow held his Captain's cap over his heart and bowed gratefully to the four Jaegers as they stood on the dock beside the RMS Jade Queen. "I hope we can get you all contracted on in the future."

"When Natsumi gets the urge to see her sister and brother-in-law again, we'll keep an eye out for a contract." Lucy replied as she returned the man's bow with a small but graceful one of her own.

"If those pirates cause any more trouble, just send a message to me at Fairy Tail and I'll fly out to make good on that promise I made to them." Natsu followed up, crossing his arms as he looked up from the dark elf to the ship behind him. "I'll wipe their little pirate cove off the map."

"Make sure you take me along so you don't tank your reserves this time." Natsumi advised with a faint growl as she gazed up at the man. "Especially since you'd have to fly out there. I'd rather you don't plumet into the sea and have to swim back while low on energy."

"If it happens, we'll send out a call and hopefully it'll get passed along, even it if it passes through the Fiorian Navy."

"We'd better head out then." Lucy gave the man a small smile. "We've got a car waiting for us and will need to make a report once we're back at our guild. I hope your next voyage goes smoother, Captain."

"Thank you, Lady Heartfilia. Have a safe trip back to Magnolia." The dark elf placed his cap back on his head and made his way over to the disembarking passengers, pipe in hand.

"I hope the sisters have handled my duties while I was gone." Lelyanna murmured softly as they walked down the dock. "Though, I probably have a backlog of house calls to attend to…"

"Did you at least enjoy going overseas?" Natsumi asked curiously, eyeing the woman with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yes. It was a nice vacation, even if it was technically a job."

"Mr Natsu!" A voice called out to the group and a mauve-winged woman sped around to the front of the man and hovered in front of him. Megan's brown hair rippled in the wind as she gave the man a brief smile. "I'm going to stop by the bank here before heading to the train station, do you think I should make an account too?"

"I wouldn't worry about that until you're in Magnolia since Iris will help set up an account and have the business account put your pay directly into it." Natsu replied quickly. "Just convert enough cash to cover your expenses for about a month plus a bit and that'll give you the leeway to settle in and convert the rest later."

"Okay." Megan nodded quickly and glanced around, a slightly ashamed blush reddening her pointed ears. "Um, I'm sorry to have to ask this, but could I borrow some money for a map? I don't exactly know my way around…"

"I'll do you one better." Natsu gave the woman a reassuring smile as a map book appeared in his hand and he held it out to the succubus. "Use this to find your way around, you can hand it back at the train station either here in Hargeon or in Magnolia."

"Thank you, Mr Natsu." The succubus held the book to her chest and bowed deeply. She turned in the air and shot off into the skies, leaving the Jaegers behind.

"What are you, the Saviour of Succubi or something?" Natsumi cackled softly as she smirked up at the man. "First you take those sisters under your wing and now you've taken on an Alvarezian succubus too."

"It didn't feel right to leave her there. I could tell that she was depressed and struggling with her natural urges, something she'd been repressing for a long time. Iris had told me before we left that they're unexpectedly popular and have found themselves understaffed and since Megan's skills will come in handy with the back end of the business, I decided to make the offer and put her in contact with the Bardot sisters."

"Don't get me wrong, I know there's a good reason behind it." Natsumi laughed playfully. "But you're starting to make a habit out of collecting sexy women."

"Yeah, yeah." Natsu murmured with a soft chuckle. He looked ahead of them and spotted a car in the distance with a familiar man stood beside it, patiently waiting for his clients. Like before, he was dressed in a crisp suit and his sandy-blonde hair was neatly tucked under his chauffeur's cap.

"Lady Heartfilia." Jules Monroe called out to the stunningly beautiful blonde who always stood out in the crowd no matter where she went and he gave the woman a quick wave. Once the group had reached him, he bowed politely to both the noblewoman and the archbishop and gave the two pinkettes a quick nod. "How was the job?"

"We had a little bit of trouble on the trip over – pirates and sea monsters – but the way back was rather uneventful." Lucy replied in a naturally formal tone as she returned the man's bow with the utmost dignity. "You'll be driving us back to the train station, Mister Monroe?"

"Yes Ma'am." The man scanned his emerald green eyes across the group and stepped aside as he opened the rear left door. "Please, hop in."

Lucy led the way into the car and sat in the middle with Natsu beside her, Natsumi and Lelyanna quickly slid into the car and sat facing them. Once they were underway, the blonde leaned to the side and rested up against Natsu's arm with a content smile. "I can't wait for the Fairy Festival."

"Anything I should be keeping an eye on?" Natsu asked curiously.

"I think you might like the talent show." The blonde replied with a hint of playfulness as she looked up at him and winked. "But of course, there are other events which I'm sure you'd enjoy for a different reason too. We have an obstacle course and a shooting competition – Erza and Bisca recommended those."

"Well, those would be right up your alley, Natsu." Lelyanna flashed the man a gentle smile from under her veiled hood.

"How come he gets the super-secret details and I don't?" Natsumi whined in mock annoyance as she glared at her best friend but she only got a tongue poked out at her in response. "Well, that obstacle course sounds like fun anyway."

"I think Erza wanted to take charge of the construction of the course. So I guess the amount of fun depends on just how 'Erza' she is feeling."

"So, in other words…" Natsumi shifted her gaze to her counterpart and flashed him a grin. "Expect it to be difficult, though I guess you'd probably be pretty good at it anyway."

"Anything physical will be my bread and butter. Whether it's agility, strength or endurance, it doesn't matter, I'll do well at it due to my body."

"Speaking of your body." Natsumi leaned in and grinned wildly at the man. "Bet you won't do a strip tease for the talent show."

"Fucking watch me." Natsu laughed. "I'll make all the panties soaked. Though that'll probably make the Mermaids want to kill me."

"Just bludgeon them with the weapon dangling between your legs. Slap them across the face with it."

"I'd rather not have it chopped off."

"Actually, yeah, that'd be bad for everyone." Natsumi snickered.

Their trip back to the station took a little longer than before but once they arrived, Jules opened the door with a bow of his head. "I hope you have a safe trip back to Magnolia."

"Thank you, Mister Monroe." Lucy paid the man for his service and led the group into the train terminal where she bought tickets for each of them.

Natsu glanced at a nearby newspaper stall and narrowed his eyes at the headlines. He spared a quick look at the girls then stepped away and leaned down to read the headline. His eyes narrowed and he snarled as he straightened up and addressed the young man behind the counter. "I'll have one of today's The Fiorian newspaper, please."

"One-fifty Jewels, Sir." The young man replied as he took a neatly folded newspaper from a nearby stack and placed it atop the counter.

"Here." Natsu placed the coins into the man's hand and collected up the newspaper. He read through the headlining article as he returned to the women, a scowl permanently stuck on his face.

"Did something happen while we were gone?" Lelyanna asked quietly as she looked up at the man's dark expression.

"Apparently Bosco and Seven are at war with each other, and both of those countries share Fiore's only land border and connection to the rest of Ishgar. Apparently, our forces are moving to fortify the border just in case the fighting tries to spill over into our land. There is also a section from Hisui asking for companies to put forth prototypes for testing in the upcoming weeks, these include weapons both man-portable and otherwise, ground vehicles, and aircraft too, surprisingly. I guess she wants a big stick to ward off any unwanted intruders."

"Here you go." Lucy said as she handed over a ticked each to Natsu and Lelyanna.

"Do you think you'll put in more than just your rifles?" Lelyanna asked curiously as she followed Lucy and Natsumi out onto the platform so they could wait for the train.

"Anything else would require larger facilities, so I'd need to get the infrastructure started first, particularly the metalworks so I can get all the different materials needed for it to be readily available. Even if I can't produce them myself, if I can submit a design, construction brief, and a working prototype then I'm sure Hisui would organise production."

"But would you do it?"

"Probably. I'm finding it fun; making things, even if it's not particularly handmade once the process has been sorted out."

"But your automated processes allow for mass production, and the machines you use consistently produce high quality products anyway so I don't think there should be any qualms about it."

"It'd still piss off those die-hard traditionalists." Natsu chuckled softly as they stopped beside the tracks and Lucy rested her back up against his chest. He snaked his arms around the blonde's waist and looked over his shoulder before turning his attention back to the priestess beside him. "I can't blame them though, who'd think automatons could replace craftsmen."

Lelyanna giggled softly behind her hand. "If only they knew, right?"

"Heh, yeah."

The rapid slapping of sandals against polished stone tiles raced toward them and drew their attention to a slightly out of breath succubus who came to a stop behind the salmon-haired man, a book held to her chest. "Sorry for the wait."

"Did you get a train ticket?" Natsu half-turned to the woman and placed a finger on the book, taking it back into his Requip dimension.

"Yes." Megan nodded quickly and she straightened out her clothes. She felt a little self-conscious since most of the people around her were dressed far more conservatively than herself but she it gave her pride a boost thank to having all the eyes on her. "I saw a train approaching when I was flying over from the bank so I rushed to beat it here." The brunette glanced at the woman in the man's arms and blinked before looking up at Natsu. "Oh, is this the lady you were buying flowers for back on Valentine's Day?"

"Yes." Natsu answered instantly and he grinned down at the blonde who was bashfully blushing with a gentle smile. "This cutie is Lucy, the adorable priestess is Lelyanna, and the sexually aggressive one is Natsumi."

"Who are you calling sexually aggressive?" Natsumi barked playfully but she quickly laughed. "I mean, you're right but still."

"It's a pleasure to m-" Megan was cut off by a loud whistle coming from the incoming steam train. Moments later, the billowing clouds blew against the glass ceiling as the train rolled to a stop by the platform.

"Would you like to join us in a cabin, Megan?" Lucy asked kindly as she stepped out of Natsu's arms.

"I don't want to intrude but since you're offering, I'd gladly accept."

As the number of passengers departing the train thinned, Natsu stepped forward, acting as a protective wall for the women as he made his way to an empty cabin in the frontmost car. Once the conductor had checked their tickets, they settled in for the trip back to Magnolia.

Natsu took his eyes off the countryside and looked down at the woman cuddled up to his left side. "Lucy, do you have Hisui in your phone?"

"I do. Did you need to call her?" Lucy looked up at the man as she reached into a pouch attached to her belt and pulled out the Lacrima Mobile.

"Yeah."

"Alright." Lucy smiled and quickly called up the monarch. She placed the phone to her ear and waited for the call to go through. It took a few moments but she was quickly greeted by the woman.

"Lucy, I'm sorry but I don't have much time to talk right now. Is something wrong or do you just want to chat?"

"Natsu asked me to call you, he is the one who needed to talk to you."

"Okay, I can spare some time. Put him on."

Lucy handed the phone over Natsu and he brought it to his ear. "Hisui, had I been in the country I would've called you sooner. I noticed the news, what's the chances of it coming down here?"

"I think that depends on how greedy Bosco is feeling. I want to be ready for them just in case."

Natsu glanced down at the blonde in his arm and lowered his voice. "Can these things connect to Fiore's landlines?"

"Yeah, that got sorted out last year." Lucy whispered back. "Currently, Fiore is the only one with the infrastructure in place. Hisui funded it."

"Hisui, give me one second to check in with Henrietta. I'll give you a report on those prototypes."

"Alright, I'll stay on the line."

Natsu placed the phone onto his lap and pulled out his own one from his waistcoat's left breast pocket. He quickly dialled the number for his manor and brought it to his ear.

"Báleygr Manor. I'm sorry but…" The songbird-like voice of Henrietta's clockwork bodies came through the handset but was quickly cut off by Natsu.

"Rita, I need a report on the guns."

The phone clicked and the automaton's voice was replaced by the one belonging to her biosynthetic body. "Good morning, Master. All the guns have been fully assembled and I've taken the liberty of testing them myself at the Connell's range. After running five-hundred rounds through each platform, I have determined that all are functioning perfectly. I have cleaned and inspected each weapon and have placed them into boxes for transport along with sufficient ammunition for the trials."

"Good. We're on the train home so we'll be there later today."

"I'll see you then, Master."

Natsu hung up and placed the phone back into his pocket then picked up Lucy's phone. "Guns are done. Henrietta tested them while I was overseas and she said that they're ready to go."

"Perfect. We've organised an arms exhibition and trial for the 26th of March, held at the Rosenfort Proving Grounds outside of Crocus. Do you have any requests?"

"I need your best soldiers to be there."

"Does that mean you're accepting my offer?"

"While I had wished to live a quiet life, circumstances have changed. I'll be happy to offer my services providing you respect my wishes."

"I'll ensure that you stay off the front lines. But if war comes calling and things are looking bad, I may need you."

"If it comes to that, I'll see to it that Fiore's enemies regret trespassing into our land."

"Very well, Commander. Send me your plan for Fiore's Special Operations Division and I'll make it happen."

"I've got some other things that I can work on to help the military. But these will be things that I can't manufacture unless facilities are made, and those firearms are currently taking precedent. I can make the designs and a prototype to test if they work but you'll have to find someone to produce them."

"That can be arranged rather easily. Is there anything else?"

"Just one more thing. Alakitasia is using a fuel created by refining Lacrima into a powerful combustible liquid. The energy potential is far greater and far more consistent than the solid-state power cells currently used in Fiorian vehicles and it would handle shots and impacts far better than a power cell. I recommend investigating it as it would prove beneficial for both military and civilian vehicles."

"And you have things tucked away in your mind that could benefit from those liquid fuels?"

"Exactly, but I'll need samples to figure out how it works and what types of engines it would be compatible with, among other things."

"Understood. I'll make a request for some of that fuel for research purposes and divert some to you for testing."

"Thank you. That's everything I have to say right now."

"I'll be in Magnolia soon for the Fairy Festival, so I'll stop by and provide you with a new set of dog-tags then. I also have a particular request for you relating a particular place."

"Then we'll discuss that in person. Goodbye, Ma'am."

"Until then, Commander."

Natsu ended the call and handed the phone back to Lucy with a gentle sigh. He glanced down at the newspaper beside him and grunted. "Seems like I can't escape that life no matter what I do but at least I'm diving back in willingly."

"You took the Queen up on her offer then, Natsu?" Lelyanna asked curiously.

"Yeah. She's re-enlisting me and putting me at the head of the Fiorian Special Forces Group. I'll be able to mould it however I see fit, which is why I asked for her best soldiers. It's more of an administrative and training role though, so that's something."

Natsumi narrowed her eyes slightly at the man. "But won't that just make you even more publicly known?"

"Not really, no. They won't be the kind of group that makes headlines unless something big happens and the members themselves won't be identified. I'd be more likely to make headlines due to my weapons than what goes on with them." Natsu let out another gentle sigh and he lowered his left arm down to Lucy's waist and gave her a one-armed hug. He grabbed the newspaper and laid it across their laps so he could read through it properly.

"Luce, wanna watch one of Natsu's movies when we get back?" Natsumi asked, shifting her gaze to the blonde cuddled up to Natsu.

"Sure, but afterwards I want to watch some more episodes of Star Crossing Lovers."

"Don't tell me you're actually enjoying that?" Natsu looked down at the woman with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yes?" Lucy looked up curiously. "What's wrong with it?"

"How far in are you?"

"Maybe twelve episodes, I think."

"Not to spoil it, but there's a space orgy in episode twenty-three."

"Whelp." Natsumi chuckled and leaned in with a grin. "Looks like we're going to be having a binge night!"

"It's that raunchy?" Lucy asked, her eyes widening slightly.

"More than you can imagine." Natsu grinned at the surprised blonde. "That isn't even the last one, just wait until the hot alien chicks come in. They're a bit like Succubi except extra-terrestrial."

"And extra-sexual, I hope." Natsumi butted in, her grin growing. "You know what, I think I should pay more attention to that show."

"Do you have any plans for when we get to Magnolia, Natsu?" Lelyanna asked curiously.

"I want to stop by the house first and grab my bike, then take Megan to the Bardot sisters and check in with them. Afterwards, I'm heading to the guild to give an after-action report."

"So, I'll be coming with you after we get off the train?" Megan asked softly, slowly looking over to the two Jaegers who were cuddled up to each other.

"Yeah. While Iris is the manager of the business, I'm the owner and since I recruited you then I should at least be there to introduce you to Iris and her sisters."

"Alright."

"Just get settled in, we've got a few hours on the rail but we should be there by lunch."

"Come sit over here." Lelyanna shifted across a little and patted the spot right next to the window. "The scenery is nice this time of year; the farms' crops are coming into season and it looks pretty."

"Okay." Megan rose from her seat and moved over to the priestess, sitting beside the window and joining the small woman in enjoying the world pass by them.

Since he had time to put his thoughts to paper, Natsu handed off the newspaper to Lucy and took out a notebook. Flicking through it until he found the next blank page, he began to write down his ideas as well as sketch out potential designs that he could prototype once his metalworks facility was operational, as well as materials and alloys to be made by the facility.

As they drew closer to Magnolia, the scenery slowly changed as farmland gave way to sparsely built houses and became more built-up as the minutes rolled by. The train began to slow and sounded the whistle as they drew closer to the station.

"Welcome to Magnolia." Natsu said, grinning softly at the succubus sat across from him.

"It looks a lot different than Alvarez." Megan noted, looking away from the window and to the man. "A lot more gothic than I was expecting."

"The people make up for the drab architecture, though you definitely should be careful where you go. But being a succubus, you'll likely be stronger than most people trying their luck, plus you can just fly away from them." Natsu rose to his feet as the train stopped by the platform. "Alright, let's get a move on."

As they disembarked and stepped out onto the platform, they came across the two youngest of the Strauss Siblings. Lisanna and Elfman offered their guildmates warm smiles as the young woman spoke up, "Hey guys, how'd the job go?"

"Smooth enough." Lucy replied quickly, returning the siblings' smiles with one of her own. "Had some trouble on the way over but that got sorted out easily enough."

"Are you heading out on a job?" Natsumi asked quickly, looking back and forth from Lisanna to Elfman. "The festival is next week."

"It's a quick and easy one." Elfman replied gruffly. "Just dealing with some small-time bandits a few towns over. We're taking the train to cut down on travel time and ensure we can get back in time for the festival while still making sure we clear out the camp properly."

"If it looks like you'll need back-up, then call it in before attacking the bandits." Natsu advised. "Better yet, call me. I have the phone that Lucy was sorting out for me, so anyone can contact me at any time if I'm inside Fiore. If things are looking worse than expected or you're in danger of being captured, call. Don't fuck around and try to be macho and shit, call me and I'll come and help."

"We're thankful for the offer but we wouldn't want to-" Elfman started to politely push the offer away but he was interrupted by a gentle, melodic voice.

"Elfman." Lelyanna softly called out to the hulking, muscular man. "Having seen what Natsu can do to regular people first-hand and up close and personal, take the offer. Remember what he used to do, what he's capable of. If things look bad, do as he suggested and he will come and help you. He will not ask anything of you in return. That was the case on Christmas when a nobleman – who had coveted me to the point of stalking me and trying to force himself on me on many occasions – tried to kidnap me with over forty thugs. They faced the wrath of a man-made monster; it was a massacre."

"We'll scout it out properly," Lisanna spoke up, taking her eyes off the shorter woman and looking up into Natsu's dark onyx eyes. "If things look like they'll be too much to handle, or getting close to it. Then we'll give you a call and ask for your support. But if we can hand it on our own then we'll do just that. Elf may be big and burly, but he has takeovers that allow him to be stealthy too, and a lot of my big cat takeovers allow that too."

"Alright. Have a safe trip and a successful mission." Natsu offered the two white-haired siblings a quick nod and let them board the train while he led his group out of the station. A quick tram trip and a short hike later, and they walked through the wrought-iron gates of Natsu's estate and were quickly greeted by Henrietta at the doors.

"Welcome home, Master." The ashen-haired maid bowed to the pinkette and looked at the unfamiliar woman accompanying her guildmates. "Will the guest be staying long?"

"No," Natsu shook his head as Lucy, Natsumi, and Lelyanna walked past the android and headed up to their respective bedrooms to unpack their bags. "I'm just dropping some stuff off and grabbing Nightingale. I'll be back again later."

"Of course, Master. When you get back, I'll give you the full report on those weapons as well as for Báleygr Arms. But before you go, could I make a quick request?"

"Sure."

"We could use a vehicle that is better suited for moving product. Like a truck for large-scale transport or a coupe-utility vehicle for smaller hauls. It was difficult for me to take wares over to Pierce the Veil while you were away and I had to borrow a truck from the guild."

"Yeah, the thought had already crossed my mind." Natsu patted the android woman's shoulder as he passed by her on his way to his own bedroom. "I'll be buying a truck soon but, in the meantime, just keep borrowing a truck from the guild when you need to and tell them that I'm willing to pay for the hire of it."

"Alright."

"I'll be back down in a second, Megan." Natsu looked back over his shoulder as he climbed the stairs. "Feel free to relax while you wait."

"Okay, I'll wait where I am."

Natsu quickly ducked into the bedroom and placed his bag down at the foot of the bed. He'd come back and deal with it later, if Henrietta doesn't beat him to it, of course. He grabbed his leather motorcycle jacket from his wardrobe and switched out his coat for it. On the way out of his bedroom, he walked into Lucy and almost knocked her to the floor but she steadied herself by throwing her arms around his neck. He was about to apologies to the beautiful blonde but his words were blocked by a pair of lips crashing against his mouth.

"That jacket suits you." Lucy remarked playfully as she looked down at the man's chest.

"That reminds me…" Natsu glanced down at his body then looked to Lucy's, slowly dragging his eyes back up to her face. "I've had Ceres bring over the gear from my house. They should fit you but you should go and test it to be sure."

"Considering she had tits that were full of milk and would be larger than mine, it might be a little loose around my chest."

"Well, if it doesn't fit then there are ways to make it fit." Natsu flashed the blonde a playful smile and earned a quiet giggle.

"And I'm guessing that involves making me lactate too?" Lucy smiled up at the man and she gave him another quick kiss. "I'll check the gear later, is it in the garage?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. I'll let you know how it goes, and maybe we could go for a ride together at some point." Lucy slid her hands down to the man's chest and turned him around, gently pushing him toward the stairs. "I'll see you when you get back."

"Well, I'm probably going to take the bike to this military arms expo that Hisui was talking about, so you could come along then if you want."

"Maybe I will." Lucy giggled softly. "It would let me see a side of you I haven't seen yet."

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm not planning on going all 'drill-sergeant' on those poor bastards." Natsu laughed softly but he started to jog down the stairs, throwing some quick parting words over his shoulder, "I'll see you later, Babe." As he reached Megan, he waved for the succubus to follow him and made his way out to the detached garage. "Hopefully, they aren't overly busy."

Megan eyed the bike with shock and glanced up at the man as he took a seat on the machine. "I've never seen any motorbike like that before…"

"I'm not surprised, there isn't any other like it." Refusing to elaborate any further, Natsu patted the seat behind him, gesturing for the woman to get on. Once the woman was seated behind him, he put on his salmon-pink-tinted sunglasses and glanced over his shoulder. "Make sure you're either holding onto my waist or putting your arms around it. I'm not going to be going fast but just make sure you move your body with mine."

"Alright." Megan replied lightly as she scooted forward on the seat and hugged the man's waist.

The bike let out a quiet whir as it took off and Natsu cruised through the estate and out on to the street. He noticed heads turn and follow him as he passed by but he paid the little more attention than that, preferring to watch for people or vehicles coming out in front of him. Though thankfully, since the vehicles ran on magic pulse engines and were as silent or even quieter than his bike, people actually looked out for incoming traffic before stepping out or entering an intersection.

When they reached the business, Natsu looked up at a brand-new sign that hung above the door with Sweet Ecstasy written in flowing script and with a stylised heart-tipped succubus tail coming from the bottom of the 'y' and underlining both words which were bordered by succubus wings at the start and end of the name.

"Heh, that's kinda cool." Natsu chuckled quietly. He looked over his shoulder at Megan and pointed up at the three-story building. "This is the place I sorted out for Iris, Anabelle, and Cynthia Bardot. The first two floor are dedicated to the business and the third floor is their private residence that I completely renovated to make it into a better living space for the three of them."

"Let's go in." Megan rose from the bike and hurried up the short path to the row house but she faltered at the door and turned back to Natsu as he came up behind her. Pointing to a sign on the door, she said, "It says they're closed for 'team building'."

"They know I was due to return today so probably closed up for that reason." Natsu replied. He checked the doorknob then unlocked it and let himself in while placing his sunglasses into a pocket in his jacket. The lights were off but he could sense people up on the third floor. Surprisingly, he could sense five people instead of three and the other two felt like females. "Hm, they must've also hired those two women they were telling me about."

Before he could even take two more steps toward the stairs, one of the women above them bolted for the stairs and raced down them. "Think Quick!"

Instead of moving out of the way or stopping the playful succubus, Natsu let the woman collide with his body and wrap her arms and legs around him. "Hello Cynthia."

"Hello Ma-" Cynthia quickly cut herself off as she saw a foreign-looking woman behind the man. "Ahem-Natsu. How did the job go?"

"Smooth enough." Natsu grabbed the woman's hips and gently pried her off him, letting her hang in mid-air as he turned to the nervous woman behind him. "Megan, this is the youngest of the Bardot sisters; Cynthia Bardot. Cynthia, this is Megan Hart."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Cynthia floated down to the floor and walked over to the brunette before wrapping her up in a friendly hug. "Is it alright if I call you 'Meg'?"

"Yes, that's fine." Megan replied. The embrace calmed her nerves and she quickly returned it, giving her fellow succubi a quick squeeze with her arms to show her thanks.

"Let's go up, we were waiting for you two." Cynthia took flight once again and gently pulled on Megan's hand, smiling when the Alvarezian succubus brought out her mauve wings and heart-tipped tail and floated up after her. She turned to Natsu and grinned. "Sorry, you've got to take the long way~."

"Jokes on you, I have wings too." Natsu chuckled softly, and to the shock of both succubi, fire blasted from his back and formed into a pair of large maroon wings which filled the entrance with a reddish glow. He floated into the air with a large grin and gestured to the stairwell with a wave of his hand, letting them go up first.

"Try not to burn our home down." Cynthia giggled and she shot up the stairwell, pulling Megan along with her. She landed outside the door to the private living space and led the way inside. "Meg, could you please leave your sandals by the door."

"Alright." Megan crouched down and quickly unbuckled her sandals. She glanced up when Natsu stepped beside her and took off his jacket through his wings as if they weren't even there. They were made from his fire, so it kind of made sense. The brunette placed her footwear onto the wooden shelf beside the coatrack and waited for the pinkette to remove his boots and socks before following the purple-haired succubus into the loungeroom where two more purple-haired women sat, accompanied by a blonde woman with rich ruby-red eyes and a greenette with dazzling topaz-yellow eyes, both just as stunning as the other women in the room. The succubus' nerves started to come back and she gave the women an awkward bow. "H-hello, my name is Megan Hart. It's a pleasure to meet you all."

"Hi Megan, I'm Iris." Iris introduced herself with a warm smile as she rose from the couch. "You've already met my younger sister, but this is my older sister, Anabelle." The succubus waved her hand to the woman sat beside her who gave the brunette a small wave.

Natsu's eyes drifted over to the women sat on the couch opposite to the succubus sisters and he snuffed out his wings. "These must be the women you were telling me about before I left for my job."

"Yes. Rose, Jade, this is Natsu, our boss." Iris turned to the women and waved her hand to the pinkette as he took a seat on a chair at the end of the coffee table. "Natsu, this is Rose Mercier who is our new receptionist, and Jade Durand who is our new cook." The purplette pointed out the blonde and greenette respectively. "They joined us on the 16th, just a little after you called us about Megan."

"It's a pleasure to meet you two." Natsu reached out and gently shook the hands of both the women, offering them a small smile. "I'm Natsu Dragneel, I'm a Jaeger from Fairy Tail."

"Like Natsumi Dragneel?" Rose asked curiously. She was a Magnolian her entire life so she was very familiar with the rambunctious guild.

"Kinda but we're not related." Natsu took a quick breath in through his nose and released it as he quickly decided to open up a little to the women since the news would reach them soon enough when word got around. "I'm actually another version of her from a different world. Similar to Edolas, which is an inverted version of this world. We're similar but different at the same time, and that doesn't stop at being man and woman. I had lost everyone in my own world and was brought here to start over."

"Hm… You'll have to forgive me for being a little sceptical." Jade said. She had a hint of a Midian accent and her features were different to the Fiorian Succubi, Iris, Cynthia, Anabelle, and Rose, but not as much as the Alvarezian Succubus, Megan. "Would you permit me to take a peek into your memories and share them with the other girls?"

"Go ahead, but be warned; it's not pretty."

"I will not pry too deeply, just enough to confirm your words." Jade rose to her feet and walked around to the man, sitting down on the coffee table in front of him. She reached out and placed the tips of her fingers against Natsu's temples. "Look into my eyes, Monsieur Natsu."

As Natsu kept his eyes locked onto the yellow eyes in front of him, flashes of his recent past sped past his vision and caused various spikes of emotion. It was like a film being skipped through in reverse. First it was the Christmas Massacre, then snippets of his trips back to his world lingered momentarily, as did his stay within Ceres' divine realm. When it reached the month he spent alone in the wasteland, the memories slowed down and he could see the women recoil at the sheer devastation being shared with them as well as the incredible sense of loneliness and sorrow. A few skips later and he witnessed the death of his team, one by one. It was painful but it didn't tear a hole in him anymore thanks to the efforts of the women in his life and the friendliness of Fairy Tail.

Jade couldn't tear her eyes away from the memory and she could feel her heart breaking as she watched the man bury his comrades. But as he stood over the graves, she could feel something snap and the man's eyes turned a vicious crimson in front of her as a vengeful rage exploded within the memory and a phantom roar assaulted their minds. All six succubi shook like leaves in a hurricane at the raw fury, the insatiable desire to slaughter those who had killed this man's family. They watched in terror as Natsu descended into the depths of the earth and mercilessly killed everyone but the Pergrandian King like a man possessed, with absolutely no resistance possible.

"That's enough." Natsu said calmly as he gently reached up and took the woman's hands away from his head. He glanced over to the Bardot sisters and gave them a soft smile. "Like I said when I first met you girls; I'm more of a monster than you can ever be. This is why. I'm a weapon created for war; I had my humanity ripped from me. And when I lost the few things that I had left, I snapped and slaughtered those cunts like the pigs they were. I earned the epitaph Fiore's Devil on the battlefield. You saw those fuckers, felt their fear. Yeah, there's a reason for that."

"Y-yeah, um… I guess you definitely are who you say you are." Jade murmured shakily and she returned to her seat on the couch.

Natsu slowly sat back in his seat and cross his legs as he stared at the six women with his blood-red eyes. "Now you know the real me. What now?"

"I… I feel safer." Iris replied quietly and she lifted her gaze to look at the man. "I had no doubts that you could protect us. But seeing what you're capable of from your own memories… If someone tried to kill us, we have somewhere safe to flee to and you would make sure that they wouldn't be able to hurt us."

"I'd slaughter whoever tried." Natsu stated firmly, baring his fangs. "You girls are under my protection now. That was the agreement for taking you in. I give you a safe place to live freely as succubi and make sure you're safe, and in return, you girls give this job your all."

"Thankfully, Magnolia isn't as bad as other places." Rose spoke up after shaking off her nerves. She let out a soft sigh and slumped back into the couch. "But still, having a place where I can be myself certain feels great."

"It can't be any worse than Alvarez." Megan added as she took a seat beside the blonde succubus. "I was afraid to even sleep with someone because if word got out that I was a succubus, I would've been hunted down. I haven't been able to indulge myself for a painfully long time."

"You won't have to worry about that here." Iris' lips slowly pulled back into a soft smile. "We'll train you up on Natsu's techniques and you'll be allowed to quench your thirst on customers who choose a special massage. Just don't go overboard on the sudden rush of pleasure after your long drought."

"She'll need a place to stay." Natsu informed the succubus sisters. "I don't mind providing her a room in my place but if it's at all possible, could she stay with you girls?"

"We can take her in until she's settled into living in Fiore." Anabelle replied kindly, offering the brunette a cheerful smile. "And don't think we'll be making you sleep on the couches. You can either share a bed with one of us, or we can let you have one of our bedrooms."

"Um… I'm fine with sharing the bed." Megan said softly. "I'd probably feel better that way too, especially since I'd be in the company of my own kind."

Natsu smiled warmly and his eyes started to shift back to their normal dark onyx. "Well, that settles that. She'll need to sort out her bank account and convert her money over to Jewels and for her pay to be sorted out."

"I'll deal with that in a few days, I want her to settle into life here first." Iris nodded quickly.

"I do have some Jewels that I converted back in Hargeon at his suggestion, so I can pay my own way for a bit over a month. But I would definitely like to sort that out quickly."

"That's good."

"Natsu?" Rose drew the man's attention to herself. "Fairy Tail is holding the Fairy Festival soon, right? Do you think you'll need extra help around the guild?"

"I'm not the best person to ask about that." Natsu replied. "If you can get in touch with Mirajane Strauss, she'd be the one to talk to about that."

"She's actually one of our patrons." Anabelle spoke up quickly. "She usually comes a few times a week for a massage, so we'll be able to ask her next time she's in."

"Considering that she's on her feet all day, I'm not surprised that she comes for a massage often." Natsu chuckled softly. "Her feet and back must kill her."

"Yes, she does complain about that a lot." Iris giggled softly. "We told her that we work for you and she seemed really happy about it."

"Definitely bring it up with her when you see her next. But I'll be heading to the guild after this so I'll make sure to mention it to her."

"Would you like to stay for lunch, Natsu?" Anabelle offered with a polite smile. "We had a feeling that you would've came straight here with Megan so we wanted to wait a little bit to have lunch."

"I would take you up on that, but I really need to give my report to the guild." Natsu replied apologetically as he rose from the chair. "Maybe next time." Offering the succubi a quick smile, he made his way over to the door and put his socks, boots and jacket back on. With a wave goodbye, he jogged down the stairs and made his way outside, locking the door behind him. Once he was on Nightingale, he took off toward the guild hall.

With the festival less than a week away, the guild's grounds were abuzz with people putting up stalls or moving goods from trucks into the hall. Natsu slowed down as he pulled into the guild's carpark and let a few people carrying crates pass by. He spotted Mira directing the guild staff with a brass tablet braced on her left arm, she was standing beside and empty spot so he swung his bike into it and looked up at the white-haired beauty.

"Hey Mira. Things are pretty busy here, huh?" Natsu looked the woman up and down, she wasn't wearing her usual costume and had instead donned a white tank-top that exposed her stomach and a black pleated leather miniskirt which was held up by a belt and suspenders. She had black leather gloves that extended up to her upper arms with metal plates on the back of the hands and shielding her knuckles and red and black vambraces protecting her forearms and elbows. Matching the vambraces, she had red leather boots and short black socks.

"Oh, hey Natsu." Mira looked over her shoulder and turned to him with a smile. "I didn't realise you got back. Nice bike."

"Heh, thanks." Natsu chuckled softly. He deployed the stand and swung his leg over so he sat facing the beautiful woman. "And I reached Magnolia at twelve-ish, but I had something to take care of before I came here."

"Ah, so you really haven't been back for long then… Hm, you probably bumped into Lis and Elf at the station, right?"

"Yeah. I told them that they're free to call me for help if they run into trouble."

"That's kind of you." Mira gave the man a thankful smile and she sat down on the bike's extended seat, happy to get off her feet for a little bit. "But I know they'll be fine."

"Yeah, you're most likely right. I just wanted to be sure." Natsu glanced at the woman then looked out at the busy guild members. "You look good in that."

"Heh, thank you." Mira giggled quietly. "I decided that it was time to change up the costume. Where are the girls?"

"Lucy and Natsumi are watching a raunchy show in my home cinema and Lelyanna most likely went back to the cathedral to see how much of her work has built up while she was gone."

"I see, we could've used the extra hands but I know they would like to relax a little since you all just got back." Mira checked the hologram projected by the brass tablet and looked at the crates coming out of the trucks. After calling out to some of the members and diverting them to a different part of the guild, she leaned back with a sigh. "You seem happier than you left. Did something happy, like having sex with Lucy, for example?"

"Yes." Natsu replied bluntly. "Actually, it was exactly that."

"Oh?" The woman purred with a playfully curious smile. "And how was it?"

"Fucking amazing. Though, I had forgotten just how tight she was when we she gave me her first time years ago. She almost popped me like a sausage when she clamped down around me."

"Well, I'm sure you've made a lot of men incredibly envious of you now, Natsu." Mira laughed and she flashed him a quick smile. "So many people pine for her but she wouldn't give them the time of day. And then you come along and capture her heart instantly. She has fallen head over heels for you, even if she hasn't said it out loud."

"Yeah, I know she has." Natsu smiled warmly at the white-haired woman. "And I don't need her to say it, considering I can sense it. Sometimes I wonder how I managed to survive without her between the death of my world and meeting up with the guild here."

"You know, I'm curious; since you two had almost a full month to yourselves – well almost – did she end up giving you that Miniature Lacrima Communicator? Well, I guess you did tell Lis and Elf to call you…"

"Yeah, she gave me the phone." Natsu reached under his jacket and pulled the Lacrima from his waistcoat breast pocket to show the woman. "If anyone needs to contact me, it'll be best to use this since it'll always be on me."

"I'll let people know." Mira nodded slowly.

"Well, I better go and give my mission report to the old man." Natsu murmured as he placed the phone back into his pocket and rose to his feet. "Do you know where I could find him."

"Oh. You'll need to report to Laxus now. He officially took over from Makarov last week." Mira replied quickly as she shot up off the bike. She looked around and spotted the burly man in the distance and she pointed him out to Natsu. "He's over there."

"Thanks Mira." Natsu took two steps away from the woman before quickly turning back to her. "Oh, I almost forgot. You know the girls at Sweet Ecstasy?"

"The ones who work for you?" Mira asked before nodding. "Yeah, I go there for massages."

"They offered to help with the festival if you needed more staff. They've got six people on staff now but you'll have to see if they're all going to pitch in."

"Right. I'll go and talk to them tomorrow. Thanks!"

"No worries." Natsu turned back to where Laxus was standing, overseeing the construction of an obstacle course out behind the Guild Hall. He jogged over to the man but covered the last few metres at a brisk walk with his hands in his jacket pocket. "I just heard the news, congrats on becoming the Guild Master."

"Shit!" The man swore suddenly as he jumped in shock at the man's sudden appearance. "Bloody hell, I forgot that you walk like a ghost. How the hell do you even hide yourself from a Dragon Slayer's ears?"

"Practice. Lots of it. Plus, it doesn't hurt that I've got a curse that allows me to enhance things as I see fit." Natsu chuckled quietly and he lightly slapped the taller man on the back a few times. "Is this for the festival?"

"Yeah." Laxus turned back to the construction effort and barked out a few quick orders before addressing the pinkette once more. "Thinking about running in it?"

"It could be fun, but I'd likely be too good at it and ruin everyone else's fun."

"We'll just run it in two separate categories; one for fun and one as a timed competition."

"Then sure, I'll run it." Natsu shrugged his shoulders. "Like I said, it'll be fun to fuck around on an obstacle course and see how quickly I can beat it."

"Since I can tell you're not here to shoot the shit, what do you need?"

"Just to give you my report for the job. I'll try to keep it short."

"Alright, let's duck away for a moment." Laxus replied and he led Natsu over to a nearby table. He sat down side-on and rested his feet on the bench while leaning against the table on his elbow, his eyes still glued to the work being done not far from them. Once Natsu was seated, he said, "Fire away."

"We arrived on the night of the fifth to get acquainted with the ship and her crew. Left on the morning of the sixth but didn't see any trouble until the night of the seventh. At about eight-ish, we came into contact with pirates under Charlotte Kilmore's Flag that were operating out of the Capilian Archipelago. Initial contacts were a dozen motorboats sent to board us and slow us down for two warships, destroyers. I engaged the boats the moment they entered my range using my anti-materiel rifle, wiping all of them out. Lucy, Natsumi, and Lelyanna were tasked with protecting the liner while I flew out to the warships. Upon engaging them, I took out their forward batteries so they couldn't shoot the ship and knock out propulsion, from there I worked my way to the boiler room of the first ship and destroyed the boilers. I made the decision to prime the ship's magazine with my Bomb Curse with a detonation set for midnight. As I flew to the second ship, Natsumi engaged another cluster of motorboat from the skies. After killing the captain of the second ship, I convinced the new captain to tow the first ship back to port and leave the liner alone. We didn't stick around to see the bomb go off but when we passed by on the return leg, there were substantially less ships and a lot of damage to the pirate's port."

"Right." Laxus nodded slowly, taking in the man's words. "Did you run into any more trouble?"

"Not from the pirates. But on the tenth at mid-day, we ran into an entire pack of Baomola. Three adolescents approached us first, gunning for the ship. Natsumi and I took care of them quickly but it prompted the rest of the pack to surface about five K's off the bow, their numbers quickly passed a hundred and we were running out of ways to engage them safely without them diving back down into the water to evade our attacks and Natsumi said that nothing she had would work. So, I pulled out a spell from my old playbook, one called Demon Core which used both my magic and curses to create a powerful, explosive fireball. I detonated the spell above the heads of the Baomola and vaporised the entire pack before they could enter their attack range. We had to restrain the resulting tidal wave but Lucy handled that perfectly through the use of her Aquarius Star Dress."

"And did you have any trouble on the way back?"

"No. That was smooth sailing, forgive the pun." Natsu chuckled quietly. "The only thing to note was the damage to the pirate cove. I told the captain of the liner that if the pirates try something then he should pass a message through to Fairy Tail and I'll come out and wipe them out, like I threatened the pirates of that second ship."

"Alright, give me a second." Laxus took a brass panel out from his jacket and activated it, projecting a hologram which he tapped on a few times then scrawled a signature on. "I've signed off on the completion of the job, and it seems like the client has already done it on their end too. You and the girls should see your pay come into your accounts…" He checked his watch quickly before continuing, "Hopefully by this afternoon, I've just cleared the payment but the bank might take until tomorrow to process it."

"Alright. I'm sure the girls would be happy about that." Natsu replied as he started to rise from the bench but he was stopped by Laxus.

"Wait a moment. Since I've got you here, there is something I want to talk to you about." Laxus quickly informed the pinkette as he swung his legs off the bench and faced Natsu. "It involves your identity and how you would like to handle it given that we're going to be the host of a lot of guilds, public figures, and civilians."

"Yes, I've been giving this some thought myself." Natsu sighed as he sat back down and folded his arms atop the table. "I've been talking with Zeref, Mavis, and Natsumi about it and they think I shouldn't worry about it. I'm starting to agree with them. The more I live here, the less I really care about not standing out. I just want to be me."

"Would you like me to contact our allied guilds and give them a brief rundown about you?"

"Sure, why not."

"Then what can and can't I tell them?"

"Hm," Natsu sat back slowly and looked up at the cloudy sky. "You can tell them that I was a soldier who had been fighting in a war that spanned a decade but it was destroyed by that war and that I'm the only survivor. That I was part of Fiore's special forces as a Commander but don't tell them about my chemical enhancements as I'd prefer to keep that a secret. They would've already put two and two together at this point after seeing my home but you can also say that my world was more advanced then your own, I've gotten to the point where I'm not really fussed about hiding this anymore since I'm the only one with access to the knowledge from my world – well, Levy has some trinkets from DARL but I vetted them first to ensure they wouldn't be dangerous. And that if they have questions, then I'll answer them as best as I can depending on the question."

"Alright. Anything is free game with the exception of your enhancements, easy enough." Laxus replied as he rose from the table and looked over at the obstacle course. "I've got to get back to supervising this lot."

"One more thing;" It was Natsu's turn to bring the other man's attention back to him. He rose to his feet and stepped around to the side of the table as he put his hands into his jacket pockets. "When you talk to Blue Pegasus, could you let them know that I want to talk to Hibiki about learning Archive from him."

"Yeah, I can do that." Laxus quickly wrote the request down on a notepad and placed it back into his pocket. "I'll call the guilds up later today. They generally start filtering in a few days before the festival starts so you'll probably start getting pestered in a couple of days."

"That's fine. It's high time I addressed it, anyway. I'm going to head back home and relax, probably use my gym since it's been a while." Natsu waved as he walked past the blonde and started to head back to Nightingale. "I'll see you around, Master Laxus."

"Just Laxus is fine, you bastard!" Laxus called out with a grunt and he shook his head at the familiar cackle that came from the man which sounded oh so similar to a certain sensual pinkette. He let out a sigh and walked back over to the obstacle course, returning to the task of guiding his guildmates.


That's where I'm going to leave it for this one. I hope you have enjoyed the chapter.

I've been thinking over the idea of where the plot thread with Hisui's offer would go and what would prompt Natsu into taking specific paths and I settled on the fact that since he loves and fought for his country then his desire to see it safe and secure would influence his choice. Yes, he would've liked a quiet life and this was respected by Hisui, but now he can pass on his training to others who will go and protect his country in his stead. Since Bosco and Seven share a land border with Fiore, his priority and desire would shift to protecting his new lifestyle, even if it means returning to his old lifestyle albeit partially.

With the Succubi, their looks differ depending on where they come from. Iris, Cynthia, Anabelle, and Rose are all Fiorian born and bred so their features align with those of a Fiorian, like having large round eyes as noted by Dimaria when she had captured Lucy. Jade is from Midi, which I've put as an analogue for France since southern France is colloquially known as le Midi. As such, Jade has very elegant and refined features and is incredibly beautiful even by Succubi standards. Finally, Megan is from Alvarez and so her eyes are more narrow and sharper than the other Succubi, with features reminiscent of Brandish and Dimaria with her skin being a light tan colour like Dimaria's.

Mira's new costume is Tifa Lockheart's but a mixture of Remake (Gloves and Skirt) and Advent Children (Top, belt and suspenders, and her boots). She also eased up on the playful manner of speaking that Moxxi has due to changing to a different costume.

I think that's everything. Again, I hope you've enjoyed the chapter, I'll see you in the next one.