Hot and Cold

Unprovoked Attack

~*****~

To say Natsu was thrilled when he and Happy met Ballad was an understatement. He burned my couch to a crisp in his excitement. Ballad was less than enthused, which I didn't blame. The poor thing remained in my arms, peering out cautiously before she even introduced herself.

Lucy and I decided to go on a mission over the next few days to show Ballad the ropes. With Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Happy tagging along, the mission went well, and the small cat was opening up around them and enjoying life. That sad look in her eye seemed to disappear over the few days and she seemed extremely happy to be around people.

"Was that an awesome job, or what?" Natsu cheered through his laughter.

"Well, the client sure seemed to think so!" Happy agreed.

"Face it, you guys are just lucky that I decided to come along." Gray commented.

"We're lucky that you begged to come with us?" Natsu scoffed. "How do you figure?"

"Because you were about as helpful as one of Erza's suitcases." Gray snaps.

"You better watch your mouth, or I'll pack you like a suitcase, pal!" Natsu growled as he got into Gray's face.

"That doesn't make any sense." Gray snapped back.

"That's enough, boys!" Erza snapped. "Now please get dressed."

"For crying out loud!" Gray exclaimed as he looked down at himself. "Why does this keep happening to me?!"

"A bit of advice here, Gray, never get in a fight in your underwear," Happy comments.

"Hey, sorry to interrupt your conversation, but..." Lucy trailed off. "When Aria and I took this job, we were originally thinking that we could show Ballad how one of the missions worked, now that she's gonna be Aria's partner and all."

"Yeah, why'd you guys have to come along?" I ask irritably.

"Aw, come on, isn't it obvious?" Natsu asked.

Ballad snorted. "If it were obvious, we wouldn't be asking," She mentioned lightly, her little paws pressing against her face.

"We're Fairy Tail's strongest team, so we got to stick together!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Aye, sir!" Happy shouted.

"And don't you forget it," Gray nodded.

Lucy just beamed. "Yeah, we are!" She chirped.

"No job is too tough, not for me, Happy, Erza, Aria, Ballad, and old droopy drawers here." Natsu continued cheerfully.

"Don't call me that," Gray hummed.

Erza nods. "We are quite a capable bunch."

"True that!" Happy hummed.

"You forgot about me!" Lucy shouted.

I snorted irritably and gazed down at Ballad, who looked just as annoyed. "Lighten up." Natsu laughed. "I'm just messing with you, Loopy!"

"Well, I don't appreciate it. And that's not my name!" Lucy snapped.

"Please forgive me," Erza starts. "I truly didn't mean to upset you. I let myself get carried away. It will not happen again. If you would like, you may strike me now."

"That's okay, I really don't think it's in my best interest." Lucy murmurs.

"Smart move," Everyone comments.

Ballad gave a sharp inhale before turning in my arms and burrowing in my overcoat. "Why is everyone staring at us?" Gray comments as I gaze around.

"It's not the good kind of staring," Happy murmurs.