Lucy's POV

Glancing around at the familiar forest, surrounded by the sounds of night animals, I could hardly believe we were almost home. Saying goodbye to Phaedra had been hard, although I was sure it was hardest for Wendy and Shararu. Even so, before I had boarded the large boat that would take us across the graveyard sea and back towards Ishgar, Phaedra had pulled me aside for a moment. I had been shocked at the sadness in her expression as she thanked me for coming to help her and for being willing to accept me as her friend.

Sighing lightly, I bounced my chin against my folded arms propped up by my knees as I looked around our campfire. Gajeel, Levy, and Lily were all laying a few feet away from the campfire, looking up at the night sky through the gaps in the large trees surrounding our campsite. Laxus was nowhere to be seen, and I briefly wondered why he had been wandering off so much during our trek back home. Mest and Wendy were sitting on the opposite side of the fire from me, and although I couldn't hear them, it looked like they were having a serious conversation.

Surprisingly, Erza and Gray were sparring a ways away, and I could hear the echoing thuds of Erza's sword against Gray's ice counterpart. I was unsure where Shararu and Happy had run off to, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if Happy had gone night fishing at the river a little ways from camp and I figured Shararu might have gone with him since Mest and Wendy were having their conversation. That left Mirajane and Freed, of course, who both had turned in early for the night and were sleeping peacefully, cuddled up next to each other beside me.

It seemed strange to me, that we had gone through such an ordeal to go save Phaedra, and yet she had chosen to stay. But I would be the first to say that I was ecstatic to be on our way home. That desert of a nation had made my skin crawl, especially after seeing the terrible shape the people were in and how poorly they were treated. But I hoped that with Phaedra staying behind, she would be able to help Prekt become a good place to live someday.

Frowning slightly, I glanced around again, wondering where Natsu had run off to. To my complete frustration, absolutely nothing had seemed to change from when he had kissed me so unexpectedly when I had woken up from my injuries. I knew that part of it was probably my fault. With my concern for Levy and then the trial and then our sudden departure from Prekt, there hadn't seemed to be a time where I could sit down and really think about it. Let alone discuss it with someone as easily distracted as Natsu. And then of course on the boat ride, Natsu had been so ill that he could barely see in front of him. But my frustration was getting to the point where I felt like I was going to burst if one more day went by without me confronting Natsu about it.

Does he like me or not? I asked myself almost every hour as I watched him dopily keeping himself entertained and making fun of Gray at every chance he got while we had made our way home.

My frustration was making my limbs quiver and I propelled myself to my feet, turning my back on my group of friends and walking into the forest. I had just reached to my hip to remove one of my keys to get in a bit of late-night training when I heard a loud snap come from somewhere behind me. Whirling around, I blinked in surprise when I realized that I had traveled further than I had thought and found myself completely boxed in by silent trees.

"Who's there?" I called out, resting my hand on my key pouch and bending my knees slightly, preparing myself to move quickly if need be. For a second, only a rustling of leaves sounded out around me, even the crickets seemed to have quieted down as an eery silence descended around me like an invisible fog.

"Hello?" I called out, hating that my voice quivered slightly.

Suddenly, another large snapping sound came from above me and I whipped my head around to see a dark mass flinging itself from the treetop down towards me. With a gasp, I threw myself to the side, narrowly avoiding the shadowy figure before it collided with me. Anger boiled inside of me when the figure turned and a beam of moonlight lit up his pink hair.

"NATSU!" I yelled, feeling all the fear and frustration that I had been experiencing fan the flames of my anger. "What the heck do you think you're..."

"Fight me, Lucy!" Natsu called out. Completely ignoring my angry outburst.

I squeaked in shock and dove to the side as a large funnel of fire came barrelling towards me. To my relief, the flames didn't catch any of the trees on fire, but Natsu was running towards me with the manic glee he got on his face whenever he was excited about a fight.

"Knock it off, Natsu! I don't want to fight you," I growled, whipping out one of my celestial keys and tapping it against my chest.

"Star Dress: Scorpio!" I called out, and I felt my clothing transform and power rushing through me. With the boost of added power, I leaped into the air, creating a controlled sandstorm that allowed me free movement in the air as Natsu hurled attacks towards me. I dodged most of his attacks thanks to the ability of the Scorpio Star Dress, but my anger was building up to a raging inferno as Natsu continued to attack me without abandon.

"Would you stop it already?!" I screamed at him, narrowly managing to slide underneath another of his Fire Dragon Roars at the last second.

"Come on, Luce!" Natsu called out in an excited voice, grinning like an absolute idiot. All of my anger, confusion, and bitterness all meshed into a seething mass of emotion that turned my vision temporarily red and I grabbed at another star key.

"Star Dress: Leo!" I called out. Instantly my previous ninja outfit melted away to be replaced with a black slitted dress and long black stockings. Natsu was racing towards me and I stood my ground, planting my feet squarely in the ground as Loke had taught me before concentrating my power into my back foot.

"Lucy.... Kick!" I cried out, whipping out my leg which was glowing with light that showed the added strength that was flowing in it and aimed directly for Natsu's stupid face. Just when I was about to connect though, Natsu grabbed my foot into the palm of his hand. With a tug that seemed so easy to him I wanted to scream, he yanked me up so that I was dangling upside down less than an inch from the ground.

"Man, you've got some cool powers now, Lucy! That kick actually hurt!" Natsu said with a grin, staring down at me as he continued to dangle me upside down by my foot.

"Put me down, you idiot!" I growled, kicking out with my free foot. Natsu laughed, dodging my awkward kick easily but then he did let me down, albeit not super gently.

As I slid onto my knees my star dress faded away, leaving me in my previous travel clothes and I was shocked to find that all of my anger had seemed to evaporate, leaving my body cold and drained of all energy. Mortified, I realized that the strange wetness I was feeling on my cheeks were tears and I gripped the grass underneath my hands into my fists as I tried desperately to bring back the anger I had been feeling. That was way better than this awful disappointment that seemed to be sucking the life out of me.

"Oi, Lucy. What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Natsu asked, sounding genuinely shocked as he squatted down, leaning over to try and look at my face. I turned my face away from him, not wanting him to see my tears that I still hadn't been able to stop as I rocked back to sit on my bottom and turn my back to Natsu.

"I'm fine, just leave me alone," I tried to snap, but it sounded more like an exhausted whine. Wiping at my cheeks I waited to hear Natsu stand and walk away, but of course, he could never do as he was told. Instead, Natsu crawled over, peering over my shoulder to try and see me as I continued to turn away from him.

"What's the matter, Luce? Didn't you have fun?" Natsu asked, sounding thoroughly confused. A spark of anger re-entered my body and I turned to glare into his almost pouting expression.

"Fun?! Being attacked without warning by my friend is supposed to be fun?" I retorted with disbelief and Natsu frowned heavily.

"Sure. Fighting strong people is the best!" Natsu said, grinning in his care-free Natsu way and I could feel my chest tighten.

"Is that the only thing you ever think of? Your next battle? Why the heck did you waste your time kissing me if that's all you cared about then!" As soon as the words came out of my mouth I immediately regretted them and I quickly turned away from Natsu's shocked expression.

This is NOT how I wanted this conversation to come about, I exclaimed frustratedly in my mind. This is your own fault for falling in love with a guy like Natsu. You knew what you were getting into when you realized your feelings, Lucy. I scolded myself angrily, but it did nothing to ease the pain in my heart.

I stiffened when a rough hand fell on my shoulder, but I only half attempted to resist when Natsu turned me around. Keeping my head turned down, I was grateful that my irrational tears had come to a stop, but I was confused by Natsu's silence. He removed his hand from my shoulder and an awkward silence stretched between us until I couldn't help but look up at him. To my surprise, Natsu was frowning heavily, the moonlight causing deep shadows to cross his face and making him look a little ghost-like.

"Did you not like the kiss?" Natsu asked, sounding more serious than I could ever recall him being in a normal conversation.

"Didn't like... that's not the problem here!" I said, feeling heat race into my cheeks as I glared at who I was sure was the densest boy on planet earth. "I don't like that you acted like the kiss never happened! What am I supposed to do if you kiss me... like that... and then go back to acting like we're just best buds?"

Natsu was still frowning and I could see confusion etched into every single one of his facial features as he scratched his head.

"But we are best friends. Why would I treat you like you're not?" he said, his brow furrowing so much it looked like his eyebrows were trying to overtake his nose. My chest continued to ache horridly as his words circled through my mind.

"You don't make out with just a friend, Natsu!" I winced when I heard the desperation in my own words, but I had already taken the plunge so I kept going. "The way you kissed me... that's something you do with someone you like more than a friend. A kiss like that should MEAN something..."

Natsu lowered his hand from his head and leaned closer to me, still looking completely confused. I met his confused gaze for a few seconds but then I couldn't take it anymore. He obviously didn't understand anything about love or relationships, so I wasn't going to get anywhere with this conversation.

"Just forget it," I said sadly, feeling a lump of emotion begin to build up in my throat. Turning away from his clueless expression, I stood up and began marching past him.

I was trying to figure out which way was back to the campfire when a strong hand clamped around my wrist and tugged me back, surprising a grunt of shock out of me. I stopped myself inches before I slammed into Natsu's chest, which was only covered by his usual vest and scarf combo, and I took a step back. Glaring up at him, I froze suddenly when I saw that his face no longer looked confused. Instead, he looked deadly serious as he stared right into my eyes.

"Where are you going?" Natsu asked, his voice unusually hard and I almost winced when his grip tightened on my wrist.

"Back to camp," I responded, feeling confused and a little intimidated. What the heck is wrong with Natsu today?

"I want you to stay with me." My eyes widened and I felt my jaw slacken at Natsu's bold declaration. It took all of my self-control to calm my racing heart and tell myself to stop getting excited over nothing.

"Then... come back with me..." I started to say but Natsu took a step closer to me, looking down directly into my eyes and cutting off my train of thought.

"No, I'm talking about forever," Natsu said, as calm and cool as anything I had ever seen. I could feel heat exploding up my neck and into my entire face as I opened and closed my mouth like a fish for several seconds.

"What...?" I choked out, not following this conversation at all right now. Is this... a confession? I thought in an unbelieving daze.

"Before you came I always did jobs with Happy," Natsu said, not taking his hand from my wrist and his face still remaining weirdly serious. "Then we met you and you became our friend. Now we do lots of jobs together. If they're really big then we have Gray, Erza, and Wendy go out with us, but if it's just a normal job then it's always me, Happy, and Lucy."

My excitement crashed down as I felt like a bucket of water had just dropped onto my head. I sighed and nodded, telling myself that I shouldn't be surprised.

"Yes, I know. We're best friends and we'll always go on jobs together. Can I go back to the others now?" I asked, not bothering to hide the tiredness and disappointment from my voice. A squeak of fright escaped me as Natsu suddenly tugged on my arm, whirling me around and pushing me up against a thick tree trunk.

"What are you...?" My words were suddenly cut off as Natsu forcefully pressed his lips against my own. All of my muscles stiffened at once as an inner turmoil raged inside of me. Confusion and pain warred against my desire and wish for this kiss to mean something, but I wasn't going to let myself fall for someone who didn't even understand what love was. I beat against Natsu's chest as one of his large hands wrapped around the back of my neck and pulled me closer to him, effectively deepening the kiss.

"Nats..." My body was trembling from trying to push him off me while half of me just wanted to pull him closer. Natsu released my wrist, propping his arm against the trunk right next to my head as he suddenly broke off the kiss, breathing hard. I slumped against the trunk, using its solid structure as support even as my knees jiggled dangerously. Natsu's hand was still clamped around my neck and he had trapped me against the trunk with his other arm, but even if he hadn't there was no way I was going anywhere until I had a proper answer from him.

"Why.... did you do that?" I gasped out, winded after our struggling. Natsu let out a long breath, sounding almost animalistic and I was reminded that he had been raised by a dragon by that growling sigh. But when Natsu raised his head to meet my eyes I was surprised to see something like hesitancy in his normally confident eyes.

"Because... I want you to be mine, Lucy." I inhaled sharply at this vulnerable but bold statement and my legs felt like they were turning to jelly.

"But... do you... even like me in that way?" I asked, trying to put together everything that he had ever said. I couldn't understand why he was suddenly saying something like this when it had been weeks since he last kissed me and nothing had changed.

Natsu tilted his head, looking at me with some confusion, but with a determined set to his lips. He swiped his thumb against my cheek, which startled a shiver down my spine.

"I like fighting, Lucy. I'm always trying to get stronger so my dad will be proud of me when I finally found him. But when I do find Dad, I want you to be there with me. You are just as important to me Lucy. And there is no one else that I would want to be with."

Shock, relief, and indescribable happiness rushed through me and slow tears began to leak out of my eyes. Natsu blinked in shock at my reaction and I quickly shook my head, reaching up to wipe away the tears.

"I'm sorry... I'm just... really happy," I gasped out as I tried to stop my tears. Natsu sighed with obvious relief and I was surprised when he pulled me gently away from the tree trunk and against his chest. I wrapped my arms around his back, snuggling against his chest as I tried to process this unbelievable turn of events. Sure, it wasn't exactly the swoon-worthy confession that I may have dreamed of as a kid, but this was more than I ever expected to receive from Natsu.

"Will you stay with Happy and me, then? Always?" Natsu asked quietly into my ear. I let out a watery chuckle and nodded my head.

"Yes, Natsu. I'll always stay with you and Happy," I promised, feeling like I was soaring in the sky from the amount of happiness floating around in my mind and body.

"Good," Natsu said, crushing me tightly against him and surprising a laugh out of me. He pulled back from me and I looked up, surprised to see a strange gleam in his eyes. "I've never tried kissing someone before, I always thought it sounded gross. But...."

Instead of finishing his thought, he leaned down and once again pressed his lips against mine. This time I didn't resist. Instead, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, deepening the kiss. We finally broke apart to breath and I felt a strange thrill go through me as Natsu smiled down at me with a slightly wolfish look in his eyes.

"I had no idea how great it felt," Natsu said with a grin. "We'll have to do it more often."

"Oh, Natsu," I breathed out, feeling myself blush at that comment. Natsu's grin changed into his care-free normal smile as he bent down and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead.

"Well, should we go find Happy? I don't know where he got to," Natsu commented, releasing my waist but grabbing a hold of one of my hands. I nodded silently, squeezing his rough hand firmly as I followed after him into the forest that no longer seemed even remotely frightening.