let me be your haven

4. celebration and realizations

Natsu and Gray didn't see Sting and Rogue again for nearly six months.

The morning after the ball, they headed back to Sabertooth's inn, but everyone was gone. The entire team had disappeared overnight, heading back to their mysterious guild hall that Natsu couldn't find, no matter how hard he looked. They'd spent weeks after the games searching for it, but either nobody knew where it was, or nobody was willing to say.

Natsu and Gray refused to give up, though, and started taking jobs that were further and further from Magnolia, stopping in every unfamiliar town with the hope of finding the guild. Natsu wasn't sure what he was planning to do once he found Sabertooth, but everything in him told him that he had to try.

~

"Where are we?" Natsu asked as they walked through the towering gates of the latest unfamiliar city. He tipped his head back as he stared up at the enormous marble statues that lined the street. Each of them showed a mage in battle-stance, hands raised to the sky.

"Ciralto," Lucy said, frowning at the map in her hands. "I think. Either that or Therea. That storm really threw us off track."

Natsu hummed in agreement as he looked around. Their latest quest had taken them further from Magnolia than any of them had been before, and the trip there had lasted nearly two weeks. They'd completed everything successfully and had been halfway back to Magnolia when a massive storm had derailed their train.

That had been two days ago. They'd decided to walk for a while – it was spring, and once the storm cleared, it was nice enough to make camp in the woods. They'd failed to take into consideration how far west they'd gone, though, and now none of them had any idea where they were.

"If we find an inn, I'm sure they can help us out," Erza suggested. Her luggage clattered along the cobblestones behind them. She turned to Natsu and raised her eyebrow knowingly, adding, "Or perhaps there's a guild here?"

Natsu nodded, avoiding her questioning gaze as he continued to take in their surroundings. The road from the front gate lead down a wide street that was flanked on either side by tall apartments. Eventually it opened into a market, with roads branching off in every direction. A large building sat at the far end of the town, with a statue on the roof that Natsu couldn't quite make out.

"We can ask around at the market," Lucy said, folding the map and tucking it into her pocket. She hefted the bag on her shoulder and yawned, rubbing her eyes. "I need a bath and a nap."

"You are smelling pretty—"

"Natsu Dragneel, don't you dare finish that sentence."

Natsu laughed, dancing out of the way of Lucy's half-hearted smack to his shoulder. He drifted toward Gray, brushing the back of his hand and waiting for Gray to slide their fingers together. He could see the slight pink flush on Gray's cheeks – even after six months together, Natsu knew that Gray still felt shy and uncertain about their relationship sometimes.

"C'mon," Natsu said, giving Gray a small smile and tugging on his hand. "Let's go find Lucy her bath."

The market was packed. Vendors shouted from all around them, advertising everything from magic trinkets to exotic cheeses. People from all across Fiore were milling about, talking and eating and shopping.

"Maybe that way," Erza suggested, pointing down one of the roads that looked like it led to an area with pubs and restaurants.

"Wait a sec," Lucy interrupted, shading her eyes from the sun as she peered through the crowd. "I think that's Yukino."