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She was painfully bored. her father was getting more strict with her. She suspected there was some type of engagement plan coming up but he wouldn't tell her anything she she asked, he got furious and shouted at her for wasting his time with useless questions instead.
that was why she was out here in the woods, kicking her feet in the stream, smiling softly. She'd absconded with some more plain clothes from Aed the cook. They were boys clothes but she liked them. She hated the dresses her father made her wear, she never felt like she could really move in them. breathing felt restricted and it was a process to just get into one of them.
it felt better to get out, spend a little time to herself, just enjoying the quietness of nature.
well, that's what she was doing.
now she was staring owlishly at the pink haired boy sitting across the stream from her. She quickly pulled her shoes on.
"Who are you?" she called out, The boy blinking, grinning at her.
"My name's Natsu! got any food? I'm starving." he whined loudly. She couldn't help but crack a smile.
"want some apples?" she offered, far more easily than her father had taught her to be. she was taught to turn her nose up at strangers. he'd of probably preferred to her call the guards on this strange man. She watched as he grinned widely, jumping over the stream to her side. She dug into her small bag, offering him an apple from him.
"You're a life saver." he bit down on the apple. "I'm so lost. My buddies somewhere in these woods but it just rained so I can't find him." he scratched the back of his head as he smiled sheepishly.
"Will your friend be okay?" she asked, a little alarmed at the prospect of someone being lost around here. the woods went on without reaching civilization for a long time. At the very least the boy found her with food.
"Yeah he'll be okay, he had all our food." Natsu huffed, deflating visibly. Lucy relaxed a little.
"I see, I hope you can find him soon." she uttered softly.
"What's your name? you seem really nice." He grinned widely at her.
"ah... Lucy." she smiled, deciding to omit her last name for now. "it's nice to meet you." she added.
"um, do you know where we are by the way?" he asked, glancing around a bit "I smell more people around but I haven't seen anyone."
"There's an estate further to the south with many servants. They're not very welcoming to outsiders though so you should stay away. they'll just call the guards on you." she offered him another apple which he took with a grin.
"not very happy to see people huh." he huffed "You seem nice though, are you not from there?" she hesitated for a moment.
"I am, but... you seem nice. I wouldn't want to get you in trouble." she admitted, trying to keep her answer just vague enough as Natsu processed what she was saying.
"You're a lifesaver! I already exploded something this time so I'll be in big trouble if they know it was me!" he hugged her tightly. Her eyes widened
"You- exploded something!?" she squawked, blushing brightly as she pulled away from the hug quickly. her heart was racing, flustered from the sudden contact. she didn't really see any boys her age so this was really out of the ordinary.
He smiled sheepishly.
"I uh... sorta accidentally, set the forest on fire fighting a monster." she vaguely remembered her maid Spetto mentioning that there was a forest fire they had to deal with and that they were looking for the culprit since it seemed to be caused by magic. her father was apparently very eager to get compensation from whatever fool had set fire to their land.
She sweat dropped as she stared at him.
"Listen they're really mad about it, you better not get caught okay?"
"don't worry, I'll be quiet, like a ninja!" he wrapped his scarf around his head like a ninja's face covering, doing a weird hand sign. Lucy giggled softly, smiling.
"I uh..." she hesitated for a moment, her cheeks warming slightly. "I can bring you some more food here tomorrow, if you'd like." Natsu's expression lit up, grinning widely.
"I'm lucky to run into someone so nice." he grinned widely. "if it won't get you in any trouble I'll take all the food you've got!" She smiled.
"I'll be back tomorrow then, I have to get back now but I'll see you soon!" she left the bag there with him, waving goodbye to him as she left. He waved back, grinning widely at her.
Her heart was racing as she walked back to the estate, she couldn't keep the smile off her face. there was something so interesting about Natsu. he wasn't a maid or a butler or a cook or a guard. he was someone new and she was so excited to meet him. She wondered if he knew what normal town life was like. what it was like to eat street food or go to a restaurant!
she found herself avoiding her father and sneaking about the next morning to grab food for the boy. She loaded up and eagerly went to Aed who gave her the coveted normal clothes she loved and with that she was off to the woods with a smile across her lips.
He was there waiting when she got there, grinning widely the moment he saw her, paying less attention to the food as he did to her.
"so do you work there?" she hesitated for a moment, fiddling with her hands a bit.
"My dad owns it." she admitted, watching his reaction carefully.
"Do you like it there?" he didn't react much, munching down on a pear she'd brought.
"... not really." she admitted quietly under her breath. she almost hoped he wouldn't hear it. He paused though, frowning a little, his focus waning from eating and turning more to her for now.
"why not?" normally she'd probably feel too scared to answer that, but this person was someone entirely separate. Natsu wasn't paid by her father. Natsu didn't owe him honesty if he asked him what she'd said.
"my dad doesn't really like me. it's really lonely there." she kept her explanation short. Natsu didn't prod about the topic of her mother that she'd clearly excluded from the conversation.
"Why not go somewhere else then? join a guild? you smell like a mage." he added in explanation, as if it wasn't still completely baffling to smell being a mage on her. Lucy shook off the oddness of the observation as she frowned.
"I'm not strong enough to do that, besides.....I don't know if I have the courage to leave. I'm scared to." Natsu looked like he was trying to think of something as he frowned. her heart clenched. of course she'd screwed this all up. of course she'd made this one person she wanted to impress upset. She was being incredibly weak after all, she couldn't blame him for being repulsed.
"then you've just gotta train to get stronger. When you're strong enough, then you'll leave this place right?" her eyes widened as he grinned at her, his smile wide as her heart fluttered.
"...yeah. I guess so." she uttered quietly, was it that simple? she just had to get stronger?
"it's getting late, I have to get back quickly I uh..." she hesitated for a moment. She'd given him so much food. he didn't really need her to come tomorrow did he? Did he want her to come if she didn't bring food? what if-
"I'll see you tomorrow." his grin was infectious, she found herself smiling widely back with rosy cheeks.
"I'll see you tomorrow." she echoed softly before running off, patting her red cheeks. what was wrong with her? why was she getting so flustered so easily? had she ever felt like this before? it was so strange.
she got back just in time to be trapped in a dress, greeting her father in his study where he'd summoned her.
"You're very late. You'll do well to heed my calls dutifully from now on." her hands clenched tighter as she curtsied.
"I'm sorry father." she spoke quietly, any trace of the smile she wore before gone now as she held her lips in a tight line. "What did you need to speak with me about father?" she asked hesitantly.
"we've confirmed an engagement with another family. They have a young man around your age, this alliance will benefit our family greatly to combine so I except you'll be on your best behavior." she froze up, her chest going impossibly tight. Her throat felt like it was constricting any words that could possibly escape her mouth as he stood in front of her, looking at her expectantly.
her heart had frozen up, immediately tugging her mind to the boy in the forest named Natsu who she'd known for only a few days. it was like a thrill when she went to meet him. she clung to his every word about ordinary things and he listened attentively when she spoke of her troubles, ooing and awing at all the luxuries she spoke about.
her heart felt light when she was with him, the only person who seemed to think she'd get strong enough to leave this place.
to leave...
leaving sounded so nice, so impossibly nice.
"do you have nothing to say?" she hesitated before opening her mouth to respond, her heart hammering loudly in her chest.
she felt scared, so scared.
"I won't marry a stranger I don't love. I won't marry him." she clenched her jaw, meeting his gaze.
she was glad she did when his hand came harshly down, slapping across her face. She stood there silently. "come back to me when you've come to your senses from this insolence. Guards, make sure she stays in her room for the next two weeks. She should reflect properly." her eyes widened, her heart suddenly sinking, but she didn't protest as she was escorted away and back to her room.
she didn't know why, but she couldn't help but crying when she got back to her room. Spetto held her softly as she cried without demanding any answers, just holding her gently.
"you've been so much happier as of late." Spetto smiled gently. Lucy blushed lightly, hiding her face in her arms for a moment.
"there's....a boy in the woods. he's nice, and he knows all about towns and street food. he likes to eat a lot. he told me about bread shaped like fish. his friend really likes it." she mumbled softly dragging her finger across the floor aimlessly. Spetto chuckled heartily, smiling widely at her.
"oh to be young and in love." Lucy puffed up, going beet red.
"L-Love? I'm not in love with some stranger I met in the woods-" she defended immediately.
"He sounds like a charming fellow, if a little goofy, I wouldn't blame you if you were." Miss Spetto winked lightly at her. "I'll work on a little jailbreak so you can see that boy, I'll try for within a week but no promises alright?" she nodded quickly, a light smile playing across her lips.
the days passed painfully slowly. in the back of her head she worried Natsu wouldn't be there when she was able to go back again. Maybe he thought she'd just decided to not come again.
When eight days had passed and Miss Spetto came with a change of clothes and a pack of food she was practically glowing, following her lead and sneaking out, setting off for the woods as Miss Spetto watched her with a wide smile as she raced off.
She was running quickly, jumping over fallen logs, rushing back to the stream where she'd first met him.
"You came back!" she let out an 'oof' as Natsu tackled her in a hug, a laugh escaping her as she ended up flat on her back in the dirt, grinning up at him.
"Sorry about the wait, I got in a bit of trouble," she admitted, a blush dusting across her cheeks. He blushed brightly suddenly, scrambling off of her as he laughed nervously. she pushed herself up, smiling widely, tossing him an orange. He grinned widely, easily distracted from his earlier embarrassment. he hesitated a bit, fiddling with the orange in his hands, plopping down to sit beside her.
"You seem sad." he glanced at her, pursing his lips softly.
"....yeah." she mumbled quietly, laying back in the dirt, gazing up at the sky as clouds slowly drifted above them. "I don't like living here." she admitted slowly.
"because of your dad?" he asked. She nodded a little.
"I want to go places, do things. but...." her thoughts flickered back to the last conversation she'd had with her father, curling her lip. "....I'm gonna be married off and I don't have a choice in the matter." her chest felt tight. Natsu stiffened up, frowning lightly.
"what if you ran away?" he suggested softly. Lucy paused, as if she'd never even considered the possibility. Natsu looked away in the next moment, trying to hide his blush as he cleared his throat. "I could... show you around. you could join my guild." he smiled widely.
her heart skipped a beat softly, her hesitancy slowly dying away.
she looked at the stream for a while.
"Have you found your friend?"
"A few days ago." Natsu admitted softly. "I wanted to wait to... see you again" he admitted quietly, hesitantly. Lucy rested her head in her knees for a minute. she contemplated what her future might look like at home. the only thing she could think of was her mother's growingly miserable face as she and her father fought as she grew sicker. she imagined herself like that, growing more miserable and angry as time passed.
"what's your guild like?" she asked.
"we're a family. Gramps looks out for all of us. I cause a lot of trouble but he loves me all the same. his magic lets him turn into a giant. there's this ice magic asshole and Erza is really scary but her magic's awesome, you'd like her I think. She wouldn't have many reasons to get mad at you like she does me." he grinned widely. "I grew up there after my dad left." Lucy nodded. right, his dragon dad. She was going to file that way as a concern for later. "I think the moment I got there it felt like home." he added softly. "It felt like I had a family again." she swallowed thickly, her hands clenching tightly into fists as she gazed at him, her stomach in her throat. "anyone's welcome too, so you don't have to worry about that." he grinned lopsidedly at her, still blushing lightly.
"I....want to go there," she spoke hesitantly.
"I'll take you!" Natsu's grin was infectious. "do you need to grab some things? I can wait here again if you need." Lucy opened her bag, her heart melting as she took stock of the contents. her keys sat just beneath the food that was packed, some money situated beside it and clothes packed beneath.
"I'm ready to go." she glanced back towards the estate. she could see the manor from here still. There was this sense of guilt in the pit of her stomach, for leaving behind Miss Spetto, Bero, Aed, and everyone else who had been by her side all this time lifting the burden on her.
but she had Miss Spetto's support, she knew that. Why else would she pack her bag for her like she knew what she might plan?
"Magnolia here we come." Natsu grinned. "Hey happy come back!" he called out into the forest. Happy grinned, zipping out into the clearing, Lucy's eyes widening.
"Aye sir! I'm happy!" Happy grinned, introducing himself. Lucy smiled brightly.
"I'm Lucy, It's nice to meet you. I've uh.. never met a flying cat before." she admitted, a little bewildered.
"I'm one of a kind! anyways we've gotta take a train for most of the way but we've got some walking before then, you know this place the best right? could you get us to the nearest train station?"
“It’ll be to the west but it belongs to my dad so we’d have to sneak on, he’ll be looking for me since I just vanished.” she explained softly, feeling a bit anxious already. She was going off on her own for the first time, and she had two kind people with her. Her first friends outside the estate, outside of the people her father allowed her to meet.
“Ugh can’t we just walk the whole way?” Natsu groaned.
“No Natsu that’d take way too long, he gets bad motion sickness by the way.” Happy explained with a little giggle as Lucy’s smile widened.
“I’m getting sick just thinking about that train.” Natsu winced, already turning a bit green. Lucy smiled with a little bit of pity as he whined as they walked. They ended up setting up camp as it got dark, she felt oddly ecstatic as she stared up at the stars. It was cold of course, but it felt worth it, and Natsu seemed to practically function as a space heater so it wasn’t all bad.
His fire magic was something she’d never seen before. She’d only heard of dragon slayer magic in books and things of the like. It was some ancient lost magic from the age of dragons. It made sense he had it though since his father was a dragon.
She was still kind of grappling with that idea.
She closed her eyes after enjoying the stars to her heart's content, smiling lightly as she drifted off, rolling closer to Natsu, basking in the warmth radiating off him. He cracked an eye open as she rested her head against his back, eyes slipping closed as she clutched the blanket close to her. A blush rose to his cheeks. He contemplated for a moment before carefully shifting to face her, wrapping his arms around her, his chin resting atop her head as he let his own eyes slip closed.
They fell asleep like that, Lucy waking sometime in the morning to the sound of birds chirping loudly. She was enveloped in warmth in a way that didn’t really feel natural to the sunshine or forest. She cracked her eyes open, her vision filled with the pattern she recognized from Natsu’s scarf and she shot up, her cheeks beet red as he groaned softly, cracking one eye open as Happy continued to snore.
He looked up at her, his own cheeks reddening as he took in her flustered appearance, suddenly a little embarrassed he’d decided to just cuddle with her. Normally he didn’t think about these kinds of things, but he seemed hyper-aware of it all now.
She went about packing up the blanket with a heavy blush on her cheeks, Happy watching with a wide sly grin as they went about robotically heading out again towards the train station.
“You’re in lovvveeee.” Happy teased Natsu quietly with that wide grin. Natsu’s cheeks reddened even more, but he kept quiet. Happy paused after a long moment lacking a denial, Watching in shocked silence as Natsu kept his gaze on Lucy as they walked, watching as she took in the scenery with infectious excitement.
She wanted to stop to inspect each new flower or animal she saw but she stifled that desire for the sake of keeping on track to the train. She was sure her father’s guards were already on full alert by now infesting the place. They’d have taken a magic vehicle to spread the news that she’d vanished by the time she’d been found to be gone around dinner time.
“What type of magic do you have?” Natsu eventually broke the silence, still wearing a slight blush.
“Celestial magic! I summon spirits that I have contracts with. They’re my close friends. I have some golden keys and some silver.” she explained excitedly. “My mother taught it to me.” she added, Natsu pausing for a moment, taken back by the way her smile seemed almost radiant.
She seemed to glow in his vision as she dragged him along into the town, using their blanket as a cloak. “My dad owns it so they’ll probably be looking for me here too.” she explained to their questioning looks.
“The signs say this should take us to a town near Magnolia but not all the way this time. We’ll have to walk from there.” Happy noticed as they all crowded around the map of stops for the day.
“How… how long is the ride?” Natsu was already looking wobbly as he winced looking at the train.
“Eight hours.” Lucy checked her pack, counting how much she had. “We’ll pay for one of the private rooms, it’d be bad if I got caught right away.” Happy nodded.
“Good idea, Natsu pay up.” Happy bonked him on the head with his paw, Natsu snapping out of his dazed state.
“I can cover it.” Lucy volunteered as they approached the counter.
“No way, you fed us for a while.” Natsu grinned at her, paying for the ride there with a bit of resigned gloom before they got in line to board. She looked around a bit as they walked. It was just a train station so there wasn't much else but travel centers and the like.
She was excited to see a real town. She couldn't remember how long it had been since she’d been to one. It had to of been with her mother she figured. She didn’t remember going out really at all after that time. She was so excited, so incredibly excited right now.
She boarded the train excitedly, dragging Natsu to the private seating room they’d paid for. It was small and quaint with a couch on either side, Happy sitting across from them as Natsu nervously glanced out the window.
“This is gonna be miserable.” he groaned.
“Is your motion sickness really that bad?” Lucy wondered softly, feeling a bit bad for saying it at all as the train lurched forward and his face turned green, immediately crumpling into himself. He was about to fall forward when she tugged him to the side. He fell into her lap, groaning pitifully as the train began to chug along.
She smiled down at him with pity as he whimpered.
Happy grinned slyly as he watched the two of them, Lucy gently combing her fingers through his hair as he tried to fight off the urge to puke this very second. He closed his eyes after a while, enjoying the way her nails gently scraped against his scalp. He still felt queasy and disoriented of course, but this felt a lot better somehow.
It was a little embarassing though, I mean he was in her lap where he probably should not be resting his head. Happy seemed to be catching that too with that sly teasing grin that had Natsu holding back a huff.
The train ride was painfully long, but eventualy, he seemed lulled to sleep by the soft feeling of fingers running through his hair. He woke up feeling fine, Lucy gently shaking him. “We need to get off quickly or else the train will get going again.” he shot up at that, dread filling him at the idea of an even longer train ride. They got off at the stop into a small trading town.
Lucy looked around with a fascinated eye as they passed through, particularly looking at all the vendors selling their wares, a little disappointed when they made their way out of the town.
“Magnolia will be a lot bigger don’t worry. I’ll show you around when we get there!” Natsu grinned widely at her.
The journey there felt longer than any days she had experienced. She inspected all the plants she’s never seen before when they stopped to rest or set up camp. Happy brought her flowers and he and Natsu would try and guess the names for her.
The happiness of it all put her in a daze. She didn’t entirely know how to react. She had left home, with two people who were practically strangers to her, all to join a guild! She would see a big town and get to join this place Natsu seemed to love with all his heart.
She couldn’t imagine it as anything other than perfect with the way he grinned when he talked about his guild. It had to be Fairy Tail, the guild she had always dreamed of joining. There wasn’t any other guilds in Magnolia after all.
Regardless, they were headed there. She couldn’t stop buzzing with excitement when they could finally see the edges of Magnolia, the road finally bringing them to civilization.
“We’re almost hereeeee! Think of all the great food we can have again now.” Lucy giggled as Happy drooled, Natsu grinning widely.
“Wana walk around before we go to the guild? We’ve got plenty of daylight left.” his cheeks were a little pink as he asked, Lucy’s cheeks flushing a bit as she smiled.
“That sounds nice.” her smile was wide, her excitement leaking through as he led her over to a vendor selling pastries. He returned from the counter with a few sweets as she looked over the asotrment with amazement. They were all so different than any she’d seen before. She gingerly took the offered pastry, Happy wolfing down the one Natsu got for him, drifting a bit further away as he watched him with a sly grin.
They walked beside the canal, Lucy looking over at it with sparkling eyes, Natsu’s gaze locked onto her.
“Guess I gotta do everything.” Happy flew closer, grasping Natsu’s wrist with his paws. Natsu’s eyes widened but before he could react Happy had seamlessly placed his hand grasping Lucy’s and zipped away just before she turned her gaze towards him, her cheeks a bit red. His face flushed.
“S-sorry.” he mumbled a little, pulling away a little. Her blush deepened, gripping his hand lightly. He paused, watching her look away, the tips of her ears turning red.
“It’s fine.” she spoke quietly, so quietly he was sure he was the only one who could have possibly heard her. He hesitated a moment before squeezing her hand back, grinning with red cheeks and similarly tinted ears.
“Do you… wana go out to eat somewhere? Y’know, wafter you sign up at the guild, later- sometime later-” she broke out into a grin, laughing.
“I’d like that.” her smile was lopsided as she looked at him, her eyes crinkling at the edges. His chest fluttered, face beet red as he quickened his pace, looking away a bit so she couldn’t see it.
She smiled as she spied his beet-red ears, her gaze only distracted by the large guildhall before them. It stood tall, but it didn’t feel imposing. Not when Natsu was the one leading her there at least.
“Hey tomato you gonna bring her inside or what?” Happy was in front of them, grinning wide as Natsu glared at him,
They stepped inside together to the sound of her laughter as Happy zipped away, narrowly escaping Natsu’s grasping hands as he huffed out smoke.