Soul Ties

My Idiot

"We're here Natsu!" Lucy yelled shaking him awake. The train ride had been long and exhausting for the both of them but Natstu's motion sickness became so unbearable he had passed out. "Fin...finally." He pushed out in amongst winces and heaves.

The job was a simple one, all they had to do was take down some local bandits, Lucy had thought this most appropriate since it was her first official job after coming back to the guild. Happy had decided to stay and take a job with Wendy and Carla instead.

"Looks like we're gonna have some time to kill." The blonde stretched stepping off the train. "Ooh! I wanna try that!" The pink haired dragon slayer cried out eagerly, pointing to a market of stalls filled to the brim with all kinds of foods. Lucy giggled watching him run towards them, scoffing down the samples.

A small stall holding books caught her eye. *The Tale of the Princess and the Dragon" she smiled at the irony of the title. "How much for this?" She inquired to the little old lady standing behind the till. "That'll be 500 jewel." The woman smiled up at Lucy as the mage felt around in her bag for her purse, eventually handing the money over to her placing the book in the brown, leathery shoulder bag.

"Look! That guy said he was going to bungee jump off the tallest bridge!"
"Are you serious? But he's not even wearing a harness!"
"He's crazy!" Voices called from around her. "What an idiot" She giggled to herself under her breath.

"Look there he goes!" Lucy's expression changed to concern
her eyes wide, and her mouth hung agape. "Wait. THATS MY IDIOT!" She yelled aloud, pushing past people toward the bride. "NATSU WHAT DO YOU RHINK YOUR DOING?" She called up to him.

"Luce! Watch me!" He called back, leaping off the bridge side crashing down into the water. She watched as if in slow motion as the water flew upwards like a wall and then in the blink of an eye, fell directly on top of her along with her pink haired friend.

He burst into laughter, his whole body dripping from the murky river water. Lucy on the other hand was nine too impressed and sulked the whole way to the inn that they had booked to stay in. She slumped down onto the creaky bed, turning her body to face the wall. Still very much upset at how her afternoon had ended.

Natsu, noticing this began to feel an ache in his gut. Was she ignoring him? He hasn't meant for her to get soaked, he was just trying to have fun. But now he was reconsidering, did he take it a step too far?

He followed his instincts and lay down beside her, pulling her into a warm hug. He was using his increased body heat to warm and dry her. At this, she became flustered. She grabbed his hand, still quite forcefully and pulled his arm around her, clinging onto it.

"Jerk." She whispered, smiling to herself. "I'm sorry." He muttered in reply. Her smile widened as she closed her eyes and strengthened her grip on his arm. His cheeks turned pink at this as he himself closed his eyes, allowing himself to rest.

The next morning the two headed out to catch the so called bandits as it read on the request sheet. "This better be easy, I really don't have the energy for a big brawl." Lucy complained as she stretched her arms, cracking her knuckles. "It's us Luce, of course it'll be easy!" Natsu replied grinning broadly.

She smiled back as they arrived at the location marked on their map. It was a small forest, with one large tree taking over the centre. The sun shone through the leaves in rays upon the pair's faces, and sitting atop the tree was a large wooden hut, slightly leaning towards the left. "Hey losers! Get your asses down here so I can beat em' to a pulp!!" Natsu yelled upwards cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify the sound.

After a few moments, a thin face peered around the door of the treehouse glaring down at them. "Wizards huh?" He muttered to himself, rolling his eyes. All of a sudden the man jumped down, landing oddly lightly on his feet. "Come on then, let's get this over with." He continued begrudgingly, setting into a fighting stance.

It was amidst the battle. The thin man had been accompanied by two other bandits, these ones much beefier and larger than the first. Natsu had managed to take down the henchman however the head was clearly using some kind of protection magic. "You're stronger than the others, I'll give you that. However I doubt you'll defeat me, so let's have so,e fun shall we?" He said in a menacing tone, allowing a smirk to creep across his face.

The man thrust his hand in Lucy's direction, lifting her off the ground. "LUCY" Natsu yelled as he watched her cry out in pain, scratching at her neck. "YOU BASTARD." The fire wizard lit his fist and started beating at the forceful but it was hopeless. "PUT HER DOWN!" Natsu continued to yell desperately.

"Ahh, so this girl is your weakness I see.." He mumbled. He flung his arm to the side throwing Lucy at the tree. She screamed in pain as she was slightly impaired by a sharp branch. Weakly, she lifted her hand, holding out a golden key as she whispered hoarsely, "Open, gate of the Lion, Loke!" Immediately, the flame haired man appeared in front of Lucy, protecting her with an arm. "Natsu, I'll take Lucy to a safe place, hurry up and get rid of this geezer." He said rushing to pick up the blonde.

After running to a more sheltered area of the green, Lucy heard distant loud grunts and shouts, alongside bangs and the sound of fists upon skin. Loke was tending to her wound, he had removed his silk crimson tie and was wrapping it around her waist. "Thanks Loke." She said, her voice still shaking but her face smiling in adoration. "Anything for you gorgeous." His expression was serious but the way he had said it was the same flirtatious reaction she was used to. He gently laid his warm blazer over her as he picked her up again.

"Sounds like Natsu's done. Let's head back." Lucy nodded, resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes. "IS SHE OK?!" Natsu cried, tears in his eyes as he saw her looking so weak and helpless. "She's fine, she just needs rest." He said simply, "Wow you really let him have it" Loke chuckled at the sight of the lean man, laying roughed up against a tree, his face swollen and purple with bruises. The pinkette lifted her out of his arms, taking her into his own. His heart ached as he stared down at her lovingly but with sadness blurring his eyes.

As soon as he did this, Loke disappeared with the sound of a bell and Natsu rushed back to the station, placing her onto a cushioned seat inside the train.