Rose Coloured

Chapter 71- Happy Tears

"Are you excited?" Lucy cooed at the pets in her lap, and then turned to Plue, "You've never been to Granny's house!"

"Please don't let my mom hear you refer to her like that," Natsu chuckled as they pulled into the driveway, "And… prepare yourself, she cooked a lot."

"I can't wait to try it! I've actually never eaten Indian cuisine before." 

"I hope you like it, Mom's a great cook." Once they were out of the car, Natsu used his spare key to unlock and hold the door open for her. As soon as she walked inside, a wonderful smell filled Lucy's nose, but she was quickly overwhelmed when so many wonderful smells hit at once.

"They're here!" Wendy shouted as she rushed up to them, and she passed Natsu to give Lucy a big hug, "I missed you guys!"

"Aw, it's so good to see you, Wendy!" Lucy set Happy and Plue down so she could return the hug, squeezing and lifting her slightly up from the ground.

Natsu grumbled from beside them, his face in an exaggerated pout, "So you're just gonna ignore me like that..?"

Peeking up from where she was engulfed in Lucy's chest, Wendy blew a raspberry, "Yup."

"Alright, c'mere ya little brat!"

"Ah!" 

Lucy smiled as she watched Natsu chase his little sister through the living room. She picked Plue back up again and went to the kitchen to greet Grandine, but the sight she walked in on had her holding her tongue. 

"Get from behind me, dammit!" Grandine whacked Igneel's hands away with her spoon, "Don't make me kick you."

"Aw, I just wanna help…" Igneel grinned, subtly setting his hand on the curve of her butt again, "You've been working real hard…"

"No, you just wanna distract me."

"Well… that's just a bonus."

Lucy couldn't help but giggle, which caught their attention. They stared at her in an awkward silence for a good minute while Grandine's face gradually grew red, but Igneel was better at playing it off, "Hey, I was wonderin' when you would show up!"

"Ah, yes, it's good to see you," Lucy hugged him when he walked up to her, and decided to pretend that she hadn't overheard them just now.

"The food's pretty much ready, go sit at the table," Grandine didn't look up at her, pretending to stir at something, "And I hope the table is set, or else someone's not getting dessert."

Igneel rolled his eyes once he caught onto what she was referring to, "Yeah, yeah. I know you're bluffing, you'd hate to miss out on 'dessert' too."

"That is not what I meant, pervert!"

He let her freak out in the kitchen to go and lead Lucy to the dining room, pulling out a chair for her to sit. Though it was sloppy, the table was set, and Natsu eventually stopped tormenting Wendy so they could all sit down together and wait for the meal. 

"I hope you're hungry," Igneel grinned just as Grandine came in with a pan of food, "I don't think even I could eat this all."

"You're not supposed to, this is for everyone. There'll be a lot of leftovers," Grandine set the pan down, "Here, we start with samosa." 

Everyone turned to Lucy, considering she was the only one who's never had it before. "Oh, uh…" She blushed, and grabbed herself a serving. Her eyes widened when she took a bite, and after making sure she swallowed her mouthful, she smiled, "Wow, that's really good…"