This fic is part of my Fairy Tail From A to Z Challenge fics. I'll be doing them at the same time so once I finish one letter on one fic, I'll do the same letter in the other fics.
The From A to Z fics will also be a like a game. The words I've chosen are, to me, the best words I can think of that relate to this pairing. Reviews will get one point and reviewers will get extra points whether o not they can guess the word for the successivo letter. The winner will get a one-shot dedicated to them on a subject of their choosing with that pairing. So there will be three winners.
The stories in the Fairy Tail From A to Z challenge fics are somewhat interconnected with each other. So if I mention an event in, for instance, a Natsu/Lucy chapter, there is probably a corresponding chapter in Gray/Juvia o Gajeel/Levy one.
The last thing about this fic is that they aren't in chronological order. I just pick a point in time in their relationship that relates to the word I've chosen. So don't look for continuity with this.
With that in mind, I hope you'll enjoy these one shots.
And, of course, Fairy Tail doesn't belong to me. Otherwise, I wouldn't be Scrivere these fanfics.
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A is for Adventure
A life without adventure is likely to be unsatisfying. ~ Bertrand Russell
Ever since Lucy was a little girl, her mother read her many stories before bed. Her preferito stories were those of Heroes and adventures. Her imagination would run wild when she heard them. She could imagine herself traveling with companions on journeys to save kingdoms, defeating monsters and bandits, and setting things right where once they were wrong. These were all good things to Lucy.
She enjoyed the stories her mother told her. In general, she loved her mother. Lucy's father was too engrossed in his work to spend any time with his daughter beyond basic pleasantries and meals.
And then her mother passed away. Lucy was a very sad girl. Her father became più obsessed with his work, leaving Lucy to her own devices.
Lucy's only escape as a child were the stories that her mother read to her and the magic she used to practice. She learned to read so that she could escape the humdrum of her high society life. She learned her Stellar Spirit magic so that she could feel like she was the protagonist of her own story and to be closer to her mother, a fellow Stellar Spirit mage.
It was then that Lucy made a resolution. She decided that one day, when she was older and her magic was stronger, she would leave to go on an adventure.
Lucy told her father this when she was 10. She remembered his reaction very clearly
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Jude Heartfilia had slammed his hands on his desk, frightening the 10 anno old Lucy.
"Lucy, get this ridiculous idea out of your head this instance." He told her in a gruff tone. "You are a Heartfilia, not some commoner. Your duty is to grow up to be a respectable lady, marry into a good family and produce a son to inherit the Heartfilia fortune. Do te understand?"
"But daddy..." She tried to argue.
"Lucy, I will not have my daughter gallivanting around as a mage." He grounded out the word mage like it was a curse. "The only reason te are allowed to practice magic is because I promised your mother so long ago. Now go to your room and prepare for supper."
Lucy ran out of her fathers office in tears. The only time in her life that she cried harder was when her mother died.
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The successivo day, Lucy made a vow to herself. When she got older and her magic was stronger, she would leave and go out on a grand adventure. She never spoke a word about it to anyone. Her father thought that she had been set straight and it was never mentioned again.
At 16, Jude Heartfilia had Lucy engaged to some rich guy whose name she didn't bother to remember. It was then she made a decision that would change her life forever. In the dead of night, Lucy Heartfilia, heir to the Heartfilia fortune, left her comfortable life to go on an adventure.
When Lucy first left the Heartfilia estate to set out on her own, she imagined a life of adventure and she was the protagonist. There would be tales of daring, suspense, intrigue and mystery. And Lucy Heartfilia, the beautiful and powerful heroine, would Ribelle - The Brave dangers and monsters that would fell even the hardiest of adventurers. With her band of loyal Stellar Spirits, there would be nothing that she couldn't handle.
(And maybe there would be a little romance on the side. te know, a handsome traveler who would protect her from the things she couldn't handle herself. And then he'd turn out to be a prince in disguise, sweeping her off her feet. They would get married and live happily ever after. te know the stories I'm talking about, right?)
But a mese of traveling da herself quickly dispelled all of those silly notions.
For one, as an independent mage, she couldn't get a lot of work. The good jobs always went to registered guilds. The traveling itself was a pain in the culo as well. Lucy left the estate with very little money. (She only took whatever she had on her at the time of her departure and was cut off from the rest da her father.) So she couldn't take a carriage o a train most of the time. That meant walking. (Great for exercise, not so great for her energy.) And her spirits defined the word eccentric. Aquarius was truly terrifying and quite disobedient, Taurus was a pervert, Lyra would only come out three times a month, Crux tended to sleep for a while, and Cancer wasn't particularly a battle spirit.
Lucy would have thought that adventuring wasn't fun until she met him.
Natsu Dragneel.
To be honest, Lucy could have never imagined that her life would turn upside so quickly after meeting him.
At first glance, Lucy wasn't impressed da the pink-haired boy and his talking flying cat. To her, Natsu was someone she figured she would see just once in her life and then never again.
But then the Bora incident happened and Natsu showed his true colors. He showed Lucy a life as a mage of Fairy Tail. For as long as she lived, she will never forget the look on his face as he battled Bora. He was pure power. Lucy was enthralled and excited. When she looked at Natsu defeating the fake salamandra (and consequentially destroying half the port in the process), Lucy thought, as she was running away from the authorities, that this was how adventuring should be.
And then Natsu invited her to unisciti his guild, Fairy Tail. The rest, as they say, is history.
When Lucy entered Fairy Tail for the first time, shocked wasn't the first word that came into mind. Not even five minuti since his return to the guild, Natsu started a fight about something. Then this half-naked guy starts fighting with him. Some guy talking about how this and that is manly gets knocked out in one hit and some woman is drinking alcohol out of a barrel. The first word that came into Lucy's head was Pandemonium. But she had to admit that this place was fun.
On Lucy's first adventure with Natsu, she learned that she had to quickly toughen up in order to keep up with the fireball. Natsu had no problem walking around in a vest, scarf and no camicia on a mountain whereas Lucy used Horologium to protect herself from the cold.
Lucy learned very quickly that traveling with Natsu required a certain toughness, a will to do what needed to be done no matter the cost. When she first started her adventure, Lucy never thought that she would possess such traits. But she toughened up very quickly. The missions that Natsu picked always ended up with her having to fight. At times, she wanted to quit and stop her adventuring and life a quiet life.
But one incident would change her mind about this.
When Phantom Lord attacked Fairy Tail to capture her, Lucy was crushed. She always had a feeling that her father would come and get her when he wanted her. It filled her with guilt that she drew her guildmates, her newfound friends, into her business and they were hurt because of it. Levy and Team Shadow Gear were crucified in public view. The master was drained of his magic. It was all at her door.
But Natsu had rescued her from Jose. They fought so fiercely to protect her from Phantom Lord. And not once did they blame her. Not once did they mention to her that it was her fault. Fairy Tail had accepted her, not as Lucy Heartfilia of the Heartfilia fortune, but as Just Lucy. For the first time, she was wanted.
So, it was that after the battle was over and Phantom Lord was defeated, Lucy had to confront the man who was responsible for the attack on Fairy Tail, her father, Jude Heartfilia.
Lucy told her father, in essence, that she was going to continue on her adventure with Fairy Tail and left the Heartfilia house for good.
From then on, Lucy enjoyed her adventures. Erza, for all of her scariness, was like an older sister to Lucy. Gray was a loyal teammate who just happen to have a habit of stripping. Happy, though he teased her often, was less of a pet and più of a friend who helped her out when Natsu wasn't around.
And Natsu?
At this, Lucy would always get stuck. At times, Natsu was like an annoying younger brother who had no sense of decorum. Sometimes he is this battle-hardened warrior who cannot be defeated. He could also be a helpless kitten, especially when it came to transportation. He was also a hero who rescued her whenever she was in a pinch. But his best quality, as far as Lucy was concerned, was his zeal for life and adventure. He loved life and lived it to the fullest. Natsu loved adventuring. No matter the dangers that he faced, he did so with a smile.
Lucy smiled. It is because of Natsu that she loved to adventure.
And that's when it hit her. Perhaps the real reason that she loved adventuring isn't because she can see new things, become stronger and be independent. It was because she was adventuring with people with whom she could trust... especially Natsu.
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Lucy found herself on another adventure with Natsu. The mayor of a town whose name she couldn't remember off the superiore, in alto of her head had requested mages to defeat a bunch of monsters that attacked his village. As they traveled, the Stellar Spirit mage couldn't help but feel unusually happy.
Happy flew within eye range. "Lucy, te are smiling. Why?"
Lucy gave Happy a wide smile. "I am just happy."
The blue Exceed gave Lucy a discerning look and flew to Natsu. "Natsu, Lucy's recitazione strange." He mock-whined.
"Yeah, Lucy's weird like that." Natsu laughed.
Normally, Lucy would get indignant and yell at them. But today, the blonde smiled back at them. "I guess so." She responded simply. "I am just so happy to be adventuring with you."
Natsu and Happy looked at each other for a moment and smiled with her.
"I feel the same way." Natsu smiled.
"Aye." detto the Exceed.
Lucy giggled. "I'm all fired up." She yelled out, slapping her hand into her forearm.
"Hey, that's my line." Natsu huffed.
"Lucy, stop taking Natsu's line." Happy stuck out his tongue.
Lucy then started out into a run. "Last one to the town has to wear Gray's underwear on their head."
Natsu and Happy gave chase. The three of them laughed along the way, enjoying their latest adventure. Lucy had only one thought as she ran.
"I hope my adventuring days with Natsu never end."
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Word count: 1818
And that, my friends, is the letter A.
So what do te think? Like it? Hate it? Have no opinion whatsoever? Leave me a review.
And here's a hint to guess what word I'll use for the letter B.
Lucy never did like celebrating it. The memory of her father forgetting it was painful. But Natsu and all of Fairy Tail would change that.
This one is an easy one. te should have no problem guessing the letter.
Well, until successivo chapter.
