#faity tail

Lucy honestly shouldn’t be surprised to hear clamoring bangs, resounding crashes, and vulgar swears bleeding through the grand wooden doors of the guildhall first thing in the morning. Yet here she was, her mouth twisting as it struggled to form an expression that would capture the level of annoyance she was feeling. It was eight in the morning, for crying out loud! What on Earth could they have to fight about? Lucy almost debated on turning around and going home, but she decided against it. Rent would be due soon, and she needed at least one more job to be in the clear. 

With a heavy sigh, she pushed open the doors, trying her best to mentally and physically prepare herself for the chaos. 

A flagon of milk slammed into the door beside her head, causing her to jump nearly a foot in the air with a loud screech. She was too busy trying to keep her heart from pounding out of her chest to notice that the milk had splattered over her upper arm. After that, her attention was captured by the pure and utter carnage ripping apart the guildhall. 

All the tables had been upended and their contents spilled onto the floor, forming a mush of breakfast foods, fruit juices, and wood splinters. Food and plates and cups were flying left and right—some smashed against the wall, while others smashed into people, whether it be those perpetuating this early-morning brawl or those trying their best to hide behind the overturned furniture. Master Makarov was sitting on the bar sipping at some orange juice, his weary not changing the slightest when he shifted left or right to dodge an errant bagel or muffin lobbed his way. 

Lucy just slumped in the doorway and groaned, “What could have possibly started all this?” 

“Natsu said waffles were better than pancakes, and Gray got offended,” Levy quipped from where she was ducked behind an overturned table. No doubt Gajeel was deep in the scrap; he probably had no opinion on breakfast foods, he just liked to throw hands as much as the rest of them. 

“Of course those two are at the heart of this,” Lucy sighed while running a hand over her face. Well, there was nothing for it. She would have to do what she always did—go into the thick of the fight to drag Natsu out by his ear kicking and screaming before he burned the guild hall to the ground. There were soot marks all over, and poor Juvia was doing her best to put out a fire burning on the remains of a fern that simply refused to die. Lucy rolled up her metaphorical sleeves, then stomped into the fray. 

“Natsu? Natsu, where are you?” she shouted above the cacophonic din. “Natsu, you’d better—whoa!” she cried and swiftly ducked a plate that sailed over her head, the fried egg on it flipping in mid-air before landing back on the plate as it sped away. “Ugh, I don’t get paid enough for this. NATSU!” 

“Hey, Lucy!” he cried as he appeared in front of her, his fists flaming and his grin broad. He punched away a muffin as it came sailing at its head, setting it on fire to instantly burn it into a rock-hard lump of what used to be muffin. “I got a question for ya. Which is better—pancakes or waffles?” 

“Don’t drag her into this, moron!” Gray shouted as he vaulted over a table and fell upon Natsu in a fury. Lucy just watched, her soul draining out the soles of her feet, as the two of them scrapped like a couple of toddlers—punches and kicks everywhere. “Besides, Lucy definitely thinks pancakes are better!” 

“What was all that about not dragging her into this, huh?” Natsu growled back. “And no she doesn’t! She likes waffles!” 

Lucy’s eye twitched in annoyance. She liked them equally as much, but she doubted she could tell the hot-headed boys that. Instead, when Gray and Natsu sprang apart to stick out their tongues at one another, Lucy stomped up to Natsu. 

“Natsu, that’s enough! How many times have I told you not to start fights in the—Aiiieeeeeee!” 

She reached out for his shoulder right as Natsu blasted a column of fire at Gray. The flickering flames enveloped her hand, instantly searing her skin. Though she reflexively wrenched her hand back as soon as it hit her skin, just the milliseconds of contact was enough; her skin was bright pink and blistering, clear fluid leaking all over as they burst. Lucy fell to her knees, throwing back her head in an agonized sob. Everything froze around her, everyone halted in the middle of beating one another up with their owlish gazes fixed on Lucy. Not that she realized. 

It hurt, it hurt so bad, she had never felt anything like this. She tenderly held her wrist just underneath the border of burned skin, but that didn’t stop the tendrils of pain from zipping up and down her arm. It felt like snakes of fire were searing through her nerves, burning her from the inside out. She just howled and sobbed, thick tears pouring down her cheeks like the blister fluid sticking to her hand, because she couldn’t think about anything but the pain. 

“Oh, no! Oh, Lucy, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry!” Natsu cried. He fluttered around her, hands flapping around her body like he wanted to help but was too terrified to touch her. “Shit, shit, shit—what do I do, what do I do?” 

“Get the hell back, moron!” Gray snarled and yanked Natsu back by his scarf. “Haven’t you done enough?” 

As Mirajane and the Master rushed to her side, Lucy opened her watery eyes. Everything was a blur around her, but somehow, she could see Natsu clearly. She had never seen such an agonized look on his face; he looked like his soul had been crushed, all the life drained from his eyes as he regarded Lucy’s burned hand like it was Death itself. 

And then he hung his head, two thin rivers of tears rolling down his cheeks. Lucy lost track of him as the guild members crowded around her, all clamoring to get her medical help. And Lucy reached out to the place where he had been with a quiet whimper of his name… 

~~~

“Hey, Lucy! It’s time to change your bandages.”

Lucy looked up from her book at the sound of Mirajane’s voice. She used her good hand to close the book and set it on the barrel that was serving as her nightstand, while Mirajane pulled up a stool to sit at her bedside. It had been several hours; lunch would be starting soon. Lucy could smell some simmering stew wafting in from the kitchen, which was not far from the back room of the guild in which she was currently resting. 

Mirajane gently took Lucy’s hand and inspected the bandages. It was saturated with burn cream, antibiotics, and fluid from Lucy’s blisters, making them a sticky, tan-colored mess. Mirajane began to unwind them, and though she was doing her utmost to be gentle, Lucy still winced and whined as little jolts of pain assaulted her nerves. Clumps of sloughed skin clung to bandages, and as it peeled away from her flesh, it felt like she was being seared all over again. 

“Sorry,” Mirajane smiled apologetically at her. 

“It’s okay,” Lucy breathed through clenched teeth. “It’s not your fault.” 

“Tch, you’re right. It’s Natsu’s,” she grumbled. Lucy quirked an eyebrow, shocked to see Mirajane slip so easily into her dark persona. She immediately switched back, closing her eyes and smiling awkwardly. “Ah, I shouldn’t say that… He didn’t mean to, and he’s been tearing himself up over it all day.” 

“He has?” The conversation was distracting. Lucy hadn’t even noticed that Mirajane was slathering burn cream all over her hand. Lucy relaxed into the pillows with a quiet sigh; it sure felt good, so cold and soothing. 

“Sure has. I’ve never seen him mope like this. Though maybe it’s good for him. Maybe this’ll finally teach him to be more careful with his flames,” she tutted with a click of her tongue. 

Maybe that’s what everyone else thought, but the idea of the normally boisterous, happy-go-lucky Natsu trudging around in a hyper-depressed state made Lucy’s belly twist. It was just an accident. She didn’t want Natsu to blame himself… 

“Mirajane? Will you send Natsu to come see me?” Lucy asked petulantly. She just couldn’t stand the idea of Natsu being sad. If she could do something, say something… 

Mirajane looked at her questioningly for a moment. Her expression was blank, at first, but it slowly softened into a smile. She took Lucy’s hand and gave it a firm pat, then held it tenderly for a moment. 

“Sure, I’ll send him in. Don’t be too hard on him, okay? He’s already heard it from me and Erza.” 

“I’m not going to be hard on him at all,” Lucy reassured with a wan smile. 

As Mirajane rose, Lucy cast her gaze down to her lap. No, she wasn’t going to be hard on Natsu at all. Even though Erza’s and Mirajane’s lectures were both legendary, there was no one in this entire guildhall that could be harder on Natsu than himself right now. And she could tell that by the way he was hovering just outside the door right now, thinking she couldn’t see him. But she could. She could see him trying to hide in the shadows, but nothing could hide the tension in his body, the faint gleam of his green eyes brimming with regret. 

Lucy’s heart shattered when he finally crept into a room—hesitant, like an animal expecting to be scolded and tensing to take off at the slightest provocation. His expression was absolutely crestfallen. She’d never seen him so crushed. The sadness was so pervasive in his expression that he didn’t even look like the same person. It brought tears to her eyes, and Natsu, who was keenly studying every inch of her, instantly shrunk away. 

“You’re hurting.” His voice was hoarse, like a ghost of the happy-go-lucky cry of joy she was so used to. “I… I hurt you, Lucy.” 

“Natsu,” she sighed and reached out her hand to him—her uninjured hand. If she offered the one swatched in bandages, he’d probably collapse right there. 

Natsu reluctantly crept forward. When he slowly, ever-so-slowly slipped his fingers into hers, they were violently trembling. Lucy crooned soothingly and gave his fingers a squeeze; it enticed him to sit on the edge of the bed. However, though his body relaxed just barely, his expression remained broken. Slowly, his gaze fell to her injured hand resting atop her thigh. 

“I… I burned you.” He fixated on her hand like he couldn’t look away, but his expression also grew more pained the longer he looked at it. “It’s because of my recklessness that you got hurt.” He tore his gaze away from her hand, and his mouth twisted into a self-deprecating scowl. “Lucy… I’m too dangerous to be around you.”

“Natsu, stop, please.” She was so desperate to banish that agonized look off his face that she cupped his cheek with her injured hand. He recoiled from the scratchy bandages with a groan, but she didn’t let him flee; she pressed her hand to his cheek again, and this time, he allowed her to gently turn his face back to her. “Please,” she repeated in a voice just as pained as his own. “You hurt me so much more blaming yourself than you ever could with your flames.” 

“Really?” He looked so pitiful, as if he were afraid to even hope. 

“Yes,” Lucy nodded. “It was an accident. Nothing more.” 

“B-but—” 

“No ‘buts,’” she asserted, poking her lips out in a firm pout. “I could have just as easily been hurt by anyone else in the guild. These things happen sometimes.” Her pout curled into a smile, one of amusement and fondness. “That’s what being in Fairy Tail is all about, right? Chaos and mayhem and craziness. Sure, someone may end up with a bump or a bruise or a burn every now and again, but I wouldn’t trade that for the world.” 

Her smile broadened, and when she leaned forward to touch her forehead to Natsu’s, he drew in a quiet breath. 

“More than that, I wouldn’t change my partner for the world.” 

He looked down at his lap. He fiddled nervously with the cloth of her blanket, then slowly reached up to peel her hand away from his cheek. He looked down at it while idly tracing circles over the bandages with both his thumbs. 

“Even if I burn you, huh?” he sniffed, and Lucy melted a little in relief when she detected a little chuckle in his tone. 

“Hey, you gotta be at least a little bit reckless to be a part of Fairy Tail, right?” she joked. “Guess my reckless bit is being with the most reckless knucklehead there is.” She nudged him with her forehead, prompting his uncertain gaze to flick up to her eyes. “But you know what? So what if he’s reckless? He cares so much that he’d worry himself sick over me. That’s still the best partner in the world, in my book.” 

Natsu blinked, and then a bashful smile bloomed on his face. He eagerly pressed his forehead into hers, then came a little closer to bump the tips of their noses together. It was such a tender and touching moment, one of so many that she had the privilege to share with Natsu. Still, she couldn’t deny that he was owed at least a little repayment for her injury. 

“Ow!” he yelped when she pinched the meat of his arm, hard. He jerked back, his green eyes wide, and Lucy stuck out her tongue playfully at him. 

“There. Now we’re even.” 

It took him a minute to register what had just happened. Then, he snorted in laughter and shook his head.

“Man. You sure are something else.” His shoulders sagged as he heaved a sigh—like he were finally letting out all that tension he was holding on to. He practically fell onto Lucy, dragging her back down into the bed. He snuggled up next to her, hooking one leg over hers, and buried his face into her tresses of blonde hair. He’d always said he loved what she smelled like—like strawberry-lemon, whatever that meant. 

“I wouldn’t trade you for the world either, Lucy,” he mumbled softly against her scalp. Lucy hummed, idly tracing abstract patterns into his arm as he hugged her around her middle. “So I’m gonna take better care of you from now on, ‘kay?”