Chapter Text
The guildhall buzzed with energy for nothing in particular. Drinks sloshed in members’ hands, cackling with laughter. Lucy bathed in all of it. A drink of her own in hand (alcoholic, courtesy of Cana) and her arms linked with her two new best friends. In the Heartfilia Estate, there was no one Lucy’s age to befriend, let alone anyone to have fun with. And it all changed once she stepped through those worn wooden doors. Levy and Cana stuck to Lucy like glue from the moment she joined. The three of them could never resist a gossip session full of giggling and snickering.
Gossip in Fairy Tail was abundant. Everyone in the guild was quirky and strange, with no exceptions. The fixtures of the guild were always doing something the three of them could snicker about. Not to mention the abundance of stories from their respective adventures to regale.
It wasn’t at all like the gossip that circled nobility circles. All those rumors were whispered in between sips of champagne and with malicious intent. Words were a noble’s weapon of choice, as Lucy had come to know so well. With Levy and Cana, their brand of ‘gossip’ was more along the line of embarrassing stories of their friends spoken with irreverent fondness. Stories were retold and shared with light-hearted laughs in the air, and humor painted their cheeks rosy. And that's what Lucy loved about Fairy Tail. The warmth of the guild permeated every action, every breath, every word.
The three girls pressed up against each other, laughing with the crowd without the context of the joke. Their current entertainment was one of Lucy’s most recent tales of the newly formed team she was a part of. She would never forget the way Master Makarov fought desperately to keep his blood pressure at a manageable level when confronted with the most destructive team Fairy Tail could concoct. Lucy couldn’t even argue against his concern after watching the way Gray, Erza, and Natsu’s unique brands of recklessness combined into a cacophony of destruction during every single mission. Lucy found herself to be the only sane person on the team (that is, ignoring her own penchant for chaos and little respect for property during her own fights).
Cana and Levy loved every second of it. And who wouldn’t love to hear embarrassing stories of their impressive peers? Although any story at Erza’s expense was shared in hushed voices. She might be more of a dork than Lucy initially thought, but all three of them were still very aware of her willingness to whack them over the head for any kind of transgression.
Amidst Lucy’s usual gossip session -- the story this time was about a ridiculous fight between Natsu and Gray, a fight no one was sure who started, but it was very clear who ended it -- a familiar weight settled atop her shoulders. Like clockwork, when a chat with Levy and Cana started to get a little long, someone always interrupted. It was always the same someone.
Natsu draped himself on Lucy, with Happy flopping into her lap. It was as if they had a quota to meet that could only be satiated by Lucy’s sole attention. She was used to their antics enough to remain unfazed and continue chatting with her friends.
“Now imagine we’re in the middle of a fight, completely derailed by your teammates fighting each other. I’m sure you can guess who ended the fight.” Lucy chatted, moving her hands in front of her. Natsu whined on her shoulder, and Happy squirmed in her lap. “Obviously, it was Erza. She hit them so hard I could see stars in their eyes. The idiots fighting us didn’t even know what to do! All of them are ridiculous.”
Natsu groaned again, putting more of his weight on top of Lucy and earning a glare from her.
“I think Lucy’s being stolen from us,” Levy leaned towards Cana with a sly smile. The two snickered.
“I have to agree,” Cana grinned. She took a swig from her drink, “Guess we’ll just have to have our own chat.”
Lucy shoved Cana, though her ability to do so when a grown man was hanging off of her was significantly diminished. The two girls laughed at her, getting up from the table. Lucy liked to chat with them, really she did, but they had a mischievous streak in them. A mischievous streak, Lucy found to be rather common in Fairy Tail. They really loved to bring up the fact that Natsu personally went to retrieve her from home arrest and his very apparent determination to do so. All of which was very embarrassing to be reminded of, considering that the two were friends and nothing more.
“Luce, I’m bored~” Natsu said.
“Lushee, we wanna do something,” Happy joined in on the whining. She lifted the cat to sit on the table in front of her instead of on her lap. Happy stared back at Lucy with pitiful eyes. She wrinkled her nose at him.
“The two of you are insufferable. I can’t have one conversation without you butting in.” Lucy tilted her head back to catch Natsu’s eyes. An impish smile snaked across his face as Lucy narrowed her eyes at him. Natsu laughed into her shoulder, lifting himself off her and sliding onto the chair beside her.
“Come on, let’s do something.” Natsu smiled at her, teeth and all.
Lucy huffed, “You know I was doing something before you crashed the party.”
Natsu snickered, clapping Lucy’s back. Too hard, she might add, Lucy lurched forward. She punched his arm back. “Go fight Gray or something, that keeps you entertained.”
“He’s not around,” Natsu was whining again. He clearly had the same idea, only to inevitably fail due to a lack of accessibility.
“Go fight someone else,” Lucy said. Natsu flopped onto the table top, rather dramatically. He grunted in response, essentially saying ‘no’. She sighed, “You want to talk to me, huh?”
Her two partners grinned in response as if she had said the magic words. It was suddenly clear to Lucy that all the drama of the last few minutes was simply to draw her attention. She was embarrassingly susceptible to their antics. They were the most obnoxious people she had ever met (which was patently false considering the obnoxious rich people she’s encountered). Lucy sighed and flicked both in the forehead. Happy fell over and writhed in mock pain. Natsu stuck his tongue out at Lucy.
And despite their irritating behavior, Lucy wasn’t even the slightest bit upset. Lucy had grown close with most of the guild; they had all laughed over a drink and a meal provided by Mira at some point or another. They naturally grew close over their months of proximity, but no one really compared to Natsu and, by extension Happy. They did everything together. The day Lucy joined Fairy Tail, the Dragon Slayer and the flying cat brought her into their folds and refused to let go. And she was honored. Who wouldn’t be honored to have someone so strong and caring decide you are one of their own? Lucy could only hope to be as strong one day.
If Cana and Levy have been glued to Lucy since her membership, then Natsu and Happy have been surgically attached.
“Alright, alright. You got my attention,” Lucy raised her hands in surrender. She got up from the table and waved to her partners to follow. “Come on, I’ve got grocery shopping to do, and since you’re always at mine, you might as well come with.”
Natsu whooped with excitement, and Happy shot into the air. The two trailed behind Lucy as she listed out the current list. They butted in with their own requests. Happy wanted dried fish -- unsurprising. Natsu wanted some kind of meat snack -- also unsurprising.
They chatted Lucy’s ear off at the market. Natsu had usual complaints about Erza’s iron fist and Gray’s generally annoying existence. Lucy nodded along for the most part, piping up to play ‘devil's advocate’ and poke at Natsu’s buttons. It was very easy to achieve, especially when it came to Gray. When Lucy was in the mood to be particularly taunting, she might allude to a fight Natsu lost to Gray. That always riled up Natsu, and it ended with Natsu ‘fighting’ with Lucy instead. A fight that Lucy could easily win with the threat of no food.
The three of them browsed the open market Lucy frequented. It made sense to buy for them as much as for herself. Natsu had effectively made her apartment a second home, and wherever Natsu went, Happy went. Lucy tried to keep them away at first. They sure as hell weren’t helping her pay that seven thousand jewel rent (they did (in)directly when they took the lead on jobs), and they never listened to her protests. Lucy thought she had met people with selective hearing, but Natsu and Happy took it to a new level.
So she eventually gave up. Lucy left her street-facing window unlocked for them to come and go as they pleased. The dynamic duo once broke the lock to her front door, and she nearly killed them that day. Natsu and Happy walked into the guild that day with welts on their heads that rivaled Erza’s.
Despite their impressive skill to get under Lucy’s skin, she would never dream of earnestly rejecting either of them. Thus, Lucy grabbed a few packs of dried sardines and dried meats off the shelves. Her basket was half her own food, half theirs.
Fairy Tail was good to Lucy. She had never felt like just Lucy; appreciated for her qualities and strength, and maybe a little bit for her beauty. She would never forget how Loke waxed poetic to her within the hour of her guild mark being printed on her hand. That is, until he caught a glimpse of the golden keys on her hips. She had never seen a man back-pedal so fast. But it was all good-natured. Lucy embraced the banter and the teasing. It was thrilling to be in an environment where cutting words weren’t hidden behind layers of falsities and half-truths. Everything was said simply, and never with any malice. Lucy had heard Natsu and Gray threaten to kill each other daily, knowing that they would die for the other at the drop of a hat.
Lucy got to be sloppy and dorky and snort when she laughed, all the things that would have gotten her a scolding and punishment before. She was free to feel joy. Free to feel angry. And free to feel sad. The pink symbol emboldened on her hand invigorated her. Lucy felt like she could do anything and everything. She was surrounded by strong people. So, so strong, and Lucy wanted to be like them. Able to hold herself in a fight and defeat opponents without help. And Lucy was strong. She knew it logically. She knew that her friends would say the same. But Fairy Tail made Lucy want more.
The trio walked into Lucy’s apartment. Natsu walked towards her bed, ready to flop on it.
“Uh-uh,” Lucy stopped the man in his tracks, “outside clothes don’t go on the bed, you know the rules.”
Natsu groaned, redirecting his course to collapse on the floor. He rolled around on her rug in protest. Happy settled on her bed, grinning down at his partner. “How come Happy gets to sit on the bed?!”
“Happy flies everywhere, he isn’t dirty. You are.”
Natsu guffawed, feigning offense. Happy sniggered above him, holding a sardine in hand.
“You know the deal, you’ve got extra clothes here. Go and get ‘em.” Natsu rolled on the floor for a second, reminiscing about a toddler’s tantrum.
“Thief, stealing my clothes.” He grumbled as Natsu stood up and walked over to his designated drawer.
“I can’t be a thief if it’s you who leaves his clothes in my apartment all. the. time.” Lucy argued back. Natsu had an awful habit of leaving clothes around Lucy’s apartment. It’s like her apartment was his second closet. He’d left enough clothes around where Lucy washed what was left and put it away for when Natsu wanted to sleepover (where he was getting these clothes to leave behind was a mystery to Lucy). Which was often. And he never wanted to sleep on her couch. Said it was too cramped, specifically for him and Happy. She tried to let him sleep in her bed, and Lucy on the couch, but that caused Natsu to pitch another fit. So most nights, Lucy lay between Happy and Natsu in her slightly too small bed. As Autumn got colder, it was nice to have a fire dragon demon slayer beside you. A stray, calloused hand would rest on her midsection and set her skin ablaze on occasion. All helpful in the cold, and only the cold. As Lucy would repeatedly tell herself.
Natsu changed as fast as he could and dove onto Lucy’s bed. The force launched Happy into the air, his wings popping out as he caught himself mid-air. The two began bickering. They fought like siblings, and they essentially were. Best friends who grew up together, spending rarely more than a few hours apart. Lucy chuckled to herself as she continued putting away the just-bought groceries. She pulled out the collection of dried meats that she got for Natsu. She grinned to herself.
Natsu’s back was to Lucy as he bickered over who was taking up more space on the bed. The answer was somehow Happy but that was irrelevant. She made eye contact with Happy, held a finger in front of her mouth, and smiled mischievously. Lucy weighed a small piece of salami in her hand before lobbing it at Natsu’s head. She nailed him right where she planned, the salami tumbling to the floor.
Natsu whipped around, eyes darting between Lucy and the fallen salami. Lucy stood with her hands behind her back, holding back the smile itching to curl her lips. His eyes had a playful glint.
“Did ya throw that Luce?” Natsu asked, trying to hide his own grin. Lucy shook her head, tapping her foot on the ground.
“Nope.” Lucy popped the ‘p’ and looked away rather guiltily.
Natsu leapt up from the bed towards Lucy, who yelped in response. She dodged his hands as he tried to grab her waist and put the table between them. Happy cackled above Lucy’s head. Lucy matched his lunges, going right when he did and going left in tandem. She did not account for Natsu’s base feral nature, in which he jumped onto the table. Lucy screamed in delight, darting back from the table. Happy came to her aid, blocking Natsu’s vision.
“Oi, Happy no fair!” Natsu exclaimed, still on top of the table as he swatted at his feline friend. Lucy laughed at the sight. It didn’t deter him long; he shoved Happy out of the way and hopped off the other side of the table. The chase led him back by Lucy’s bed, where he had the brilliant idea to launch a pillow at Lucy’s running figure.
The pillow caught her legs, and the socks on her feet did nothing to help her attempt to catch her balance, as the pillow crushed any possibility for her to regain her footing. Lucy yelped again, more startled this time. She braced for impact with eyes squeezed shut -- she liked the hardwood floors of her apartments, but they weren’t very kind to a stumble.
A steady caught her waist. A familiar gold chain with a sun charm hung in the space above Lucy. The other half of the set rested against Lucy’s collarbone. Natsu supported her weight with one arm, both breathless from their previous antics. His eyes bore into Lucy, a small grin spreading on his lips. Something quippy was so clearly on the tip of his tongue. Lucy’s heart pounded against her ribcage, her hands awkwardly pressed against her chest.
“Clumsy much?” He asked. A blush crept up Lucy’s neck.
Happy erupted in laughter, his wings fluttering in the air as he pointed at Lucy. “Lucy’s clumsy~ Lucy’s clumsy~” the cat sang.
She wiggled out of Natsu's grasp to glare at the flying cat. “And you suck at the whole distracting thing.”
Happy gasped. “Do not!”
“Do too! You are no help, and I’ll remember that the next time Natsu’s grabbing at you.” Lucy huffed before going back to putting food away. She eyed the out of place chairs and disheveled tabletop. She pointed toward the floor salami, “and don’t waste the food I bought you, Natsu.”
“You threw it at me!”
“Don’t waste it!”