Hot and Cold

Hungry Again

~*****~

Everything we tried seemed to lead to a dead end. And worse of it all. We were getting hungry. "How bad would the fallout be to eating Natsu's fire magic?" I ask irritably as I rub at my belly.

"About the same as him eating your ice magic," Lucy stated in an obvious tone.

"Man, this stinks!" Natsu complained as the cats came back with no leads. "We came so far!"

"We came in as jail breakers and now we're inmates," Mira giggles.

"It's kinda pathetic," Wendy sighed.

"Jeez, my feet are killing me. How big is this place?" Lucy whined.

"Well, I've only heard rumors from the guards, but, I believe it's centered below the castle, and is roughly ten times larger than all of Crocus." Yukino explained.

"You just had to ask..." I grimace.

"I wish we had the foresight to draw a map of the place while we were looking around," Pantherlily snorted.

"By the way, Natsu, weren't you supposed to be in the tournament today?" Lucy asks.

"I had to come rescue you and Aria, dummy." Natsu retorted irritably.

Happy pushes his paws to his mouth with a giggle. "Natsu was so gung-ho on saving Aria, he wouldn't listen to reason."

"Anyway--" Natsu draws out as a heady flush crawls up his neck.

I snort. "How sweet~" I chirp as I pinch his cheek. "Didn't realize that as soon as I'm the one in trouble, Lucy's gotta fend for herself."

Lucy snorted. "No kidding. He's downright possessive when it comes to you. Kinda makes you wonder what the hell's going through his head most days."

"Probably something dirty," I retort. We lean in close to each other stare at Natsu in suspicion.

"QUIT IT!" Natsu barked, his entire head on fire.

"You know, it's kind of funny," Yukino hums. "Even though we're in a hopeless situation, I feel at ease when I'm around you all."

Mira giggles. "That's what happens when you're with friends. Neat, huh?"

Yukino hummed. "Yes, it is."

"Oh, uh, just so you know, I totally haven't forgotten your name or anything!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Of course you didn't forget Yukino's name," I remind him. "You're just scatterbrained, is all."

"That's it!" Natsu nodded. "Scatterbrained, that's me all right!"

Yukino smiled fondly. "Please, don't worry about it. But if you don't mind... There is something that I've been meaning to thank you for."

"What's that?" Natsu asked.

"The way you stood up for me." Yukino hummed. "Lucy and Aria told me all about it." Natsu glances back at her in confusion. "They said that when you heard why I was kicked out of Sabertooth, you stormed Crocus Gardens and took on the guild all by yourself."

"O-Oh that? It was nothin'! No biggie!" Natsu stammered.

"That's Natsu-ese for I don't remember squat!" Happy chirped.

"Yeah, but he sure as heck remembers the scolding Miss Aria gave him!" Ballad laughed.

"You can't blame me! She gets as scary as Erza when she's upset!" Natsu complains. "Anyway, I'm sorry for draggin' your pal into this mess. Have you known Arm-Crazy-Oh's long?"