The curtains fluttered, speckles of moonlight shimmering down onto the pink bed spread beneath the window. A small part of it rose into a hump, with blonde hair spilling out onto a pillow near the headboard and the figure in the window's shadow fell over the woman's nestled body. With a scowl, the person slowly lowered himself to the mattress, his unique hair color dull in the moon's silver light. The bed's inhabitant did not move, and for a moment fear struck in the man's chest.
Then, he caught sight of the comforter moving up and down.
'She's breathing, and alive, Natsu. Not dead, just asleep. Pull yourself together, man.' he thought roughly.
Natsu's scowl deepened. He knew that Lucy was fine, safe at home in her comfortable bed. Yet, when he had woken up an hour earlier, he had a burning desire to see her. To check on her. Being a man of action, he had left without a second thought, Happy following him silently. The cat had learned quickly that if Natsu wanted to see Lucy, he would go and see Lucy. Not that he was complaining. He didn't want to be away from the temperamental blonde either.
Before their adventure in Crocus the duo had just been afraid that someone was going to want Lucy as a hostage. The events with Phantom Lord had been mild really, so Natsu and Happy used it as an excuse to sleep in her bed. Natsu figured that it worked on both ends. Lucy had someone to watch her back and he had a nice comfortable place to sleep. Her home was the only place he hadn't dreamt of Igneel's abandonment, or Lisanna's death. He didn't receive those dreams every night, but they weren't pleasant when they came about.
Still, he couldn't just tell Lucy that. Whenever he would try to, he would freeze, quickly changing the subject. It was slightly embarrassing. He didn't think that Erza or Gray had nightmares, and he didn't want to be vulnerable in front of Lucy. Natsu had to appear strong to her, to be her stablizer. Which was another reason why he couldn't just tell her. She would flip, telling him she could be leaned on as well and that she was strong in her own ways. He knew she would be right, but he still couldn't bring himself to let her bear the weight of his fears. At least, not while she was conscious.
Slipping his shoes off, Natsu let them fall to the carpeted floor. Happy regarded him with a warning gaze. If Lucy were to wake up and kick them out, the cat wasn't quite positive he could make it back to their little hut. Natsu simply rolled his eyes and grinned at the blue feline. With practiced movements, he crawled to Lucy's side, slipping under the covers to press his chest against her back. His nose found her hair, inhaling the unique scent of the female. He's never been able to describe it. All he knew was that it comforted him, relaxing him in a gentle spiral. Happy purred in content, rolling over so that he could press his face into Lucy's stomach. Natsu could feel his little cheek against his hand that splayed across it and smiled. These moments, in the dark of her room were the most memorable for him. Natsu was not someone who could sit quietly with someone. He always needed to be doing something or saying something. Yet here he found that he wanted to stay still. If he moved or whispered to Happy, he wouldn't be able to hear Lucy's heart beat, or feel the warmth and comfort of her rising chest.
"Uh oh."
Natsu's eyes snapped open, glancing down to find Happy staring at Lucy's face. Before he could question why, the woman reached out, grabbing the cat. Natsu wanted to groan. He'd almost gotten away with it.
However, instead of kicking him out of the bed, and proceeding to chuck Happy into his arms, the blonde shifted. Her torso turned over taking the exeed with her. The celestial maiden's nose brushed against his neck where his scarf had moved a bit. Muscles tensing, he tried to let out a deep breath and calm himself. That one touch had made his stomach burn, almost as if he had just finished a good fire meal.
Seeming to not question it, Happy snuggled back into her stomach. Natsu however, stared wide eyed at the girl. Brown eyes glanced up at him showing no anger. His body tensed a second time, waiting for her to make a move.
"You know," Lucy murmured, "if you can't sleep at home why not just tell me?"
"What?"
He blinked at her, sliding his arms away from her back to the mattress as he propped himself up. She sent a small glare as she flopped down herself. The boy grinned down at her, sharp dragon like canines glinting in the dim light. She had to blink to keep from staring. The boy's expression was then replaced with a confused look, his eyebrows furrowing deeply. Now it was her turn to be amused. She giggled gently at him, before reaching up to smooth the crease in between his eyes.
"Before I left the guild," she began, "I heard you muttering in your sleep. Things like Igneel, Lisanna, even my name. It doesn't take a genius to figure out you were having a nightmare. That's why I woke you up. Not to tell you I was heading home."
He stared down at her, and for a moment Lucy thought she had been wrong. For all she knew he was dreaming about fire chicken and fighting Igneel for it or something while trying to get Lisanna and her to help him. It seemed a typical Natsu dream to her.
Then, his face contorted. She was immediately taken aback. What got her moving, was when Natsu leapt from the bed, grabbing his shoes and bolting for the door. Her keys practically flew into her hands, and within moments there was a new guest to the trios little sleepover.
Loke stood at the door, arms crossed while glaring at Natsu. Lucy let out a sigh behind them, and he could hear Happy moan in disapproval. The bright light that Loke emitted had no doubt woken him up. Like himself looked like he had just been asleep. The leader of the zodiacs hair was a mess, and his wardrobe consisted of a normal T-shirt and basketball shorts.. His face nearly heated with embarrassment at his own actions, but he managed to fight off his blush. Instead, he let his chest fill with frustration. He didn't want to hurt Loke, because it would upset Lucy and he was willing to bet she had used him for that exact reason.
"Running when a lady asks a question isn't exactly chivalrous, Natsu." Loke commented, leaning against the door. He simply shot the lion spirit a glare,
"What the hell Natsu?" Lucy snapped. No longer was her voice tinged with sleep. Now it was sharp and fierce, demanding that he tell her why he ran. It was a well known fact that Natsu Dragneel did not run from anything. So just where was this coming from?
"Be honest with her," Loke said, eyes directed onto Natsu's own. "We've all had them Natsu. It isn't something to be ashamed of."
Surprised that his partners spirit knew, Natsu growled, "How the fuck do you know, bastard?" He hadn't told anyone. Only Happy knew and he couldn't say without mentioning himself.
"Cana mentioned it to me one time you got drunk and passed out," Loke shrugged. "Only reason no one else found out was because there was a huge brawl. Remember?"
Natsu huffed. Oh yes he remembered. He'd been so drunk he'd lost consciousness, missed one of the best Fairy Tail brawls yet and had to endure countless nightmares. It had been a sucky night. Cana would be the only one awake to hear his mutterings.
"I'll be back if this jerk doesn't explain, Lucy," Loke said, looking past Natsu towards the girl. When she replied, he jumped spinning around. When had she gotten so close?
"Alright, thanks Loke, and sorry for waking you up," she said, a hand coming down to rest on Natsu's bicep. He pursed his lips, watching as Loke glowed, fading back into his own world.
"Natsu," Lucy said with a soft tone.
He sighed, turning around to face her head on. This was the confrontation he had wanted to avoid so horribly. Making her mad wasn't something he liked to do. Sleeping in her bed, eating her food, reading her novel all annoyed her. The girl would act like a raging demon, but she was never truly angry with him. This conversation however lead down a path covered in flashing warning signs.
Fuck it, he thought angrily.
With a jerk, Lucy was turned on her heel and straight into Natsu's chest. Confusion seeped into her body at the boys strange behavior. Even in the dark she could see his eyes when she glanced up to peer at him in curiosity. Just what was going on with the slayer tonight?
"I need to sleep with you, becuase if I don't I will get nightmares about Igneel, and Lisanna and then you." he rushed, gripping onto the girl's shoulders to steady himself. "I didn't want to tell you becuase I knew you would remind me that I can lean on you, but that basically goes against everything I aim for."
Lucy stared at him. His words came out rushed, jumbling together in a whirl of anxiety. With a swallow, the blonde began to process the boy's words. This was why for years her companions had intruded on her privacy and all this time Natsu had been worried that by telling her he would seem weak? The idea alone seemed impossible. Natsu wasn't afraid of anything.
Then again, the dragon slayer always strived to prove himself the strongest. In a sense, that could also apply to the way he held up under emotional situations. She knew that countless mages had nightmares, it was a part of their life. Especially anyone who fought the dragons on July seventh. Did Natsu know that though? In his mind, the mages he constantly fought for in friendly competition to be stronger than, probably never leaned on anyone for measly images conjured up while they slept. If they did, and he didn't then that meant he was stronger.
She sighed. It didn't matter what the reasoning was, Natsu still came out and told her at least and now she finally knew exactly why the fiery mage chose to invade her house so often. She had never before considered that he needed her comfort. He had hidden it so well, and that added another reasoning to her theory. For right now, the girl was extremely tired, and did not feel like discussing in detail.
"It's alright, Natsu." she said, giving him a reassuring smile. "You told me, that's what matters. We can talk about this more tomorrow, when I'll be awake enough to be angry."
His eyes went wide at her last words and she laughed.
"I'm kidding. I'm just glad you told me. Hell, you know I wouldn't have Lucy kicked you so much if you had?"
Natsu laughed, nodding his head. Each word she spoke caressed his muscles, allowing them to relax in relief. With another smile, Lucy grabbed his hand and lead him back to her bed. Happy had moved to the pillow so that when whoever came back wouldn't move him. Lucy climbed in, gesturing a astonished Natsu to do that same. With a relieved smile, he followed suit.
While Lucy had been expecting him to get into the bed with her, she hadn't thought he would wrap his arms around her again. A blush heated the mage's face, and she was thankful that she had her back to his chest. Still, her heart rate didn't jolt. In fact she felt content in her current position. The warmth the slayer admitted left her drowsy, and slowly her eyes began to droop.
The girl's breathing slowed meaning she had fallen asleep. Natsu marveled in the feel of her against him, and the way he could actually feel her body heat. Usually his blood ran too warm to be able to quite feel someone else's warmth.
He was glad she hadn't wanted an explanation tonight. It would be difficult to get through in the morning, but for now the slayer was comfortably relaxed. He didn't need to talk about his problems, and she had seemed to understand that. In a small conversation she had been convinced that Natsu simply needed her presence and her touch to be comforted.
Slowly, sleep began to fall upon the dragon slayer. The moon shone onto the trio as they slept, pink, blonde, and blue all mixing together in the silver light from the girls window. He smiled. He could definitely get used this.