Late one Saturday afternoon, Natsu Dragneel was on his way to the home of a certain female wizard.

Natsu had been in love with Lucy Heartfilia from the fateful day they had met in Hargeon. And he had been trying to tell her how he felt ever since she had joined the Fairy Tail guild.

He reached Lucy's apartment at nearly two in the afternoon, but paused just outside her front door. However, something wasn't right.

Natsu looked up and saw that all her lights were out, despite it being so late in the day. So, instead of announcing his arrival, Natsu decided to just climb in through the bedroom windows like always.

But, as soon as he was inside, Natsu realized that Lucy was still fast asleep. So, he just smiled lovingly as he pulled the thick comforter back over her shoulders. Finally, he placed a soft kiss against Lucy's forehead before climbing into bed next to her.

And about ten minutes later, Lucy Heartfilia awoke to her bedroom being quite a bit warmer than usual.

She sat up in confusion, looking around the room carefully before throwing off her heavy comforter. That's when she felt a rough material brush against her hand.

Lucy turned her head, only to see her team mate and secret crush, Natsu Dragneel, was fast asleep next to her.

After taking few deep breaths to calm herself down, Lucy began to shake Natsu as hard as she could to wake him up.

"NATSU DRAGNEEL! You get up right now and tell me what the hell you think you're doing in my room!"

"Huh? Lucy? What's with all the noise?" Natsu asked groggily as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"NOISE? You answer me right this minute! What the hell are you doing in my bed?" Lucy yelled, all the while, trying to ignore the little voice in her head telling her to kiss the worried frown from Natsu's lips.

"Well, I got here at two. But, when I saw your lights were out, I thought something might be wrong. So, I just...let myself in through the window." he finished meekly.

Natsu took one glance at the annoyed look on Lucy's face before throwing his hands up in defense.

"I...I only came in to make sure you were all right! Like I said, it was two in the afternoon and your place was completely dark. I was worried you might be sick or even hurt. I just needed to be sure because I..." But, Natsu suddenly stopped before he finished his sentence.

Lucy just stared at Natsu in confusion, noticing that a light pink blush had formed on his tan cheeks. She then gave a heavy sigh before beginning to speak again.

"It's...It's all right, Natsu. Just promise me the next time you're worried about me, you'll, at the very least, tell me you're coming in. Deal?"

"Sure thing, Lucy. But, I really didn't mean to scare you. Sorry." Natsu said as he rubbed the back of his head in shame.

Lucy gave Natsu a soft smile that deepened the pink color on his cheeks.

"I told you, it's no problem. It's really just nice to know you care. But, seriously... just knock next time, okay?"

"Got it." Natsu said with a wide grin.

"So, how 'bout we head on to the guild? I owe the Ice Princess a major butt-kickin'!" Natsu said, jumping up from the bed.

"Sure, Natsu." Lucy laughed. "But, I still need to shower and get dressed. It should only take about twenty minutes. Think you can wait that long?" she finished with a slight smirk.

"Nah. I'll just wait at the guild. But... I do need a small favor."

"Really? What's that, Natsu?"

"I just need to talk to Loke about...something. You think you can call him for me when you get to the guild hall?"

"That's fine. But, can I ask what's so important?" Lucy asked with an air of genuine interest.

"Oh...uh, it's just... you know. Guy stuff." Natsu muttered, not meeting Lucy's eye.

She stared at Natsu for a few minutes, but decided against prying into his private business.

So, after a quick wave good-bye, Lucy entered her bathroom to shower and Natsu jumped back out the window to wait at the guild hall.

***TIME SKIP***

About thirty minutes later, Lucy was walking down the main street of Magnolia that led directly to the Fairy Tail guild. However, she was still curious to know why Natsu would want to talk to Loke so badly.

"I mean, I know Loke used to be a member of Fairy Tail long before I joined up with the guild." Lucy mused out loud to herself. "But, ever since I learned he was actually Leo the Lion and he joined me as one of my Spirits, I don't think they've really seen all that much of each other. So, just what could Natsu want with him?"

Lucy pondered over this in her head as she continued to get closer to Fairy Tail's guild hall.

After a few more minutes of walking, Lucy could see the pink-haired form of Natsu Dragneel waiting outside the open front doors of the guild hall. So, with a bright smile on her face, Lucy ran up to Natsu with Loke's key in hand.

"Hey Lucy!" he said with an excited smile. "Thanks for doin' this, Luce. And I promise this'll all make sense real soon."

"Well then, let's do this. Stand back a bit, 'kay" Lucy said, waving her hand in a shooing motion.

Natsu nodded as Lucy took a deep breath before beginning the summoning of a Celestial Spirit.

"OPEN! GATE OF THE LION PALACE, LOKE!" A loud gong sounded from nowhere as Loke rose from his gate.

"Hey there, Loke." Lucy said before gesturing towards Natsu, who was standing a few feet behind her with a strange look on his face. "Natsu here says he needs to talk to you about something. That okay?"

Loke, however, just smiled seductively at Lucy as he answered her.

"Wouldn't you rather join me for a nice romantic dinner?" he said, placing an arm around her shoulders. "Maybe a trip to the beach? I bet your dynamite body could easily rock a bikini. We could even go shopping for a new one if you want. Find something that pleases us both."

Suddenly, Natsu placed a firm hand on Loke's shoulder with a dark shadow clouding his face.

"Oh...yeah. Hey, Natsu? I'm kinda busy right now. Can we talk later?" Loke said before turning his focus back to an uncomfortable- looking Lucy.

But, listening to Loke flirt with his crush any longer was more than Natsu's short temper could take.

"STOP FLIRTING WITH HER, YOU OBNOXIOUS, WHORING BASTARD!" Natsu yelled before punching Loke in the face with all his strength.

He was so surprised by this, that when Natsu's fist made contact, Loke's entire body was thrown to the ground in a heap.

"What the hell, man? What was that for?" Loke asked angrily as he rubbed his now-reddening cheek. But, Natsu just stood over Loke's body with a dark glint in his eyes as he cracked his knuckles menacingly.

"I will not allow you to flirt with Lucy anymore, you disgusting manwhore! I will not give her to you or anyone else! Do you hear me, you perverted ass? She...is...MINE! So, why don't you just head on back to your world and stay away from my girl!"

Natsu and Loke gave each other an angry glare as the Lion Spirit disappeared back through his gate.

"Did...Did you really mean that, Natsu?"

These gentle words caused Natsu to give a quick start before slowly turning around to see Lucy staring at him in confusion and hope.

"Well, actually...yes. Yes, I do mean it, Lucy. Listen, Lucy. I know that I can be a bit reckless and stubborn. I also know that I pretty much destroy entire towns when we go on jobs. But, I've loved you from the day we met. And I firmly believe that I'm the only one who can possibly protect you from anyone or anything that would try and hurt you. And...there's something I've wanted to ask you for awhile now."

All Lucy could do was stare as Natsu took both her hands in his own.

"Lucy Heartfilia...would you be my girl?

Lucy, however, was still processing what she had just heard.

Natsu...loved her?

As she continued to stare at her small, pale hands in Natsu's rougher, tan ones, Lucy felt her eyes begin to fill with tears.

"Lucy? Are you okay? Why're you crying?" Natsu looked at Lucy with pure concern shining in his eyes.

Lucy just laughed through her tears as she wiped them away with the back of her hand.

"I'm fine. It's just...I'm so happy. You have no idea how long I've waited to hear those words. To know that you love me...just like I love you. Oh, Natsu!"

Lucy could no longer control herself and finally did something she had wanted to do for so long. She threw her whole body into his strong arms as she wrapped her own around his neck in a tight hug.

Natsu and Lucy laughed joyfully as he spun her around in his arms for a few seconds before he placed a light kiss against her soft, pink lips. They continued to stare into each other's eyes until a loud laugh echoed from behind them, causing the new couple to break apart in surprise.

"Well. It's about time you two got together.

Natsu and Luy turned towards the guild hall's front doors, only to see Gray Fullbuster was leaning in the door frame with a small smirk on his face.

When he saw who it was, Natsu felt his face heat up in anger and embarrassment.

"What the hell is your problem, Frostbite? Don't you know anything about privacy?"

But, all Gray did to answer him was enlarge his smug smile.

"If you wanted privacy, you probably shouldn't confess in front of the entire guild."

This caused Natsu's face to turn a deeper shade of red as Gray's smirk just continued to grow.

"Yeah, well...Shut up, perv-sicle! And you know what I think? I bet you're just jealous I had the balls to ask out my LuLu while you were still figuring out your feelings for the Stalker Bitch!"

Natsu then turned in a huff to walk back over to Lucy, who was now seated at their usual table, surrounded by their friends, Levy McGarden, Erza Scarlet, and Juvia Lockser.

However, before he could reach the tables to sit down, Natsu's sensitive dragon ears picked up the sounds of a young child's crying from somewhere in Magnolia.

"Who is that?"

On a sudden impulse, Natsu spun on his heels and ran back out the guild's front doors, knocking Gray over in the process.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Pyro?" Gray yelled after Natsu as he picked himself up off the ground.

"I'll be right back! There's something I need to check out!" Natsu shouted over his shoulder as he picked up speed to find the source of the crying.

Because, for some strange reason, he could feel every one of his dragon instincts telling him to protect and comfort the child, whoever they were.

Gray, however, was lost as to what had just happened.

Uncertain of what else to do, he began to chase Natsu through the streets of Magnolia.

"The flaming idiot's gona get himself hurt if he's not careful." Gray thought to himself.

So, he followed Natsu as close as he could without being seen.

***TIME SKIP***

After what seemed like a useless search through many different smells and sounds, Natsu finally stopped outside a small alleyway. For the moment he had reached the alley's entrance, the light scent of campfires and honey filled his nostrils. He followed the oddly familiar scent deeper into the darkness of the alley until he arrived at a pair of aluminum trash cans. And as soon as he looked behind the cans, Natsu noticed a small girl with long pink hair pulled into twin ponytails, cowering in the corner.

"Hey there." he said in a gentle tone as he crouch down to her level. "Are you all right, sweetie? Why are you crying back here all by yourself?"

As he said this, Natsu gently petted her head until the girl was staring up at him with a pair of big brown eyes exactly like Lucy's.

Just then, a spark of realization appeared in her eyes, causing the little girl to jump into his arms with tears still flowing down her cheeks.

When she did this, Natsu's dragon instincts had him hugging her protectively to try and calm her down. And if that wasn't surprising enough, the young child said something that would change Natsu's life forever.

"Daddy! Tell Unca Gray and Auntie Juvia to talk to Storm! He keeps picking on me and saying I'm a weak wizard. Please...MAKE HIM STOP!"

At these words, Gray stepped out from his hiding place just outside the alley's entrance.

"Natsu? What the hell's goin' on here? You never told us you had a kid!"

But, Natsu was just as surprised at the girl's words as he was. So, Gray gave a heavy sigh before reaching out a hand to help him off the ground.

"Come on, flame brain. Let's just get you back to the guild."

And a few minutes later, Natsu and Gray were walking back to Fairy Tail with the little girl's arms wrapped tightly around Natsu's neck. Oddly enough, he could still feel his instincts telling him to protect the small child.

When they had finally reached the guild hall, Lucy was standing by the bar with Mirajane Strauss, waiting for Natsu to return. However, the moment she saw the pink-haired child in Natsu's arms, Lucy stormed up to him in a fit of rage and hurt. And before he got a chance to explain himself, the little girl jumped from Natsu's arms and ran into Lucy's.

"Mama! You're back from Gramma and Grampa's grave. Did you bring me a present like you promised?"

The entire guild turned their heads at the young girl's words and was now watching the peculiar scene taking place in the middle of the Fairy Tail guild hall.

From what the crowd could gather, a pink-haired, brown-eyed little girl was calling Lucy "Mama". And a few wizards around the guild were saying they'd heard the same girl calling Natsu "Daddy".

"Oh, this was going to be fun." Gray thought to himself, watching Lucy turn a bright cherry red as she and the girl were quickly surrounded by Levy, Erza, Juvia, Mirajane, and Cana Alberona, all of whom were squealing excitedly and gushing over the small child.

Meanwhile, Gray was still trying to make sense of what was happening. But, that didn't mean he wasn't going to have some fun at his friends's expense.