Of Fire and Ice

C.49

Three days later, it was Christmas, and Lucy, Plue, Ari, and I were putting finishing touches on the decorations everywhere.

Everyone's presents were under the tree that I organised into neat little piles. Soon, everyone was knocking at the door, and Lucy went to open it as I stirred eggnog and arranged liquors and booze for the hundredth time.

I reached out to add more rum to the eggnog, but a pair of arms wrapped around me, lifting me up and spinning me around. I squealed and kicked and heard Grey laughing in my ear. He finally set me down and I smiled up at him as he pushed some hair behind my ear. "Merry Christmas, beautiful." He whispered before kissing me deeply. "Merry Christmas, handsome. Now shoo, I'm still making the eggnog." I said, getting him out of the kitchen despite his protests.

"Too cute." Erza said, leaning up against the wall. "Grey? Yeah, he is." I nodded, pouring rum into the mixture. "No, I meant you two." She said and stepped closer to me. "I want to be a bridesmaid in your wedding." She said and I laughed. "You can be a bridesmaid in our wedding." I nodded.

"Wait, you and Grey are getting married?" Natsu poked his head in and shouted. "We're getting married?!" Grey shouted from the living room and I exploded in laughter.

"Hey Erza, taste this for me, will you?" I said and she sipped the eggnog I put on a spoon. "That's... delicious. Wow." She nodded and I smiled. "Yay! I can make something right!" I cheered. She helped me pour it into cups and we passed it out.

"A toast." I said and held up my glass. Everyone copied me. "To our first Christmas together as one big, happy, dysfunctional family." I grinned and we drank to it.

"You look good." Grey complimented me as I sat down next to him. I was wearing a little black dress that was backless. "Thanks." I smiled and kissed his jaw. "Aw." Lucy snickered and I held my middle finger up to her.

"Let's open presents!" Natsu cheered and each person got their own pile. For some reason, I didn't really want to open mine, so I watched everyone else open theirs.

I got Erza lingerie, "Because you're always looking through mine and Lucy's." I explained when she gave me a look. I got Lucy some dirtier lingerie, "Because you're soft core and I'm hard core." I said and she laughed as Natsu blushed. For Natsu, I got him a huge box of condoms and looked at Lucy when he stared, flabbergasted, at me. I got Harley a silver locket with a small picture of us inside. Her eyes filled with tears and she hugged me tightly. For Happy, a gift card to a seafood restaurant. "You're the best!" He cried and hugged me around my neck. I didn't really know what to get Ari, so I found a dog collar rat could probably fit around her wrist that said BITCH on it.

Grey gave me a look when he saw that none of his presents were from me. "And where's mine?" He asked with a smirk. "Your present is not for the public eye." I said off handedly. "Oh, and mine was?" Natsu said. "What did she get you?" Grey asked him. "Condoms! A whole box full of condoms!" He said and Grey burst out in laughter. "They're also for Lucy." I said and she bushed bright pink. "I'm the best wing woman ever, and you fucking know it." I whispered to Lucy, who was either so embarrassed she had to hide her face, or laughing and crying at the same time. I couldn't tell.

"Open yours." Grey nudged me, so I started. Erza, Lucy, Harley, and Happy all got me underwear, hard core type. Natsu stared open-mouthed and scoffed as I opened his. Lots and lots of chocolate assortments. "You must be insane to think I was going to buy you underwear. Grey would kill me." Natsu said and I smiled. Ari got me this bracelet with silver pendants that looked like flames. There was also a box that contained some platform pumps made of iron.

"Wow. These are nice. Who got this?" I asked and no one answered. I shrugged and moved onto Grey's gift, a small ring.

My mouth fell open as I saw it. "It's platinum gold with the prettiest fucking diamond I could find." He said and I turned and kissed him. When I pulled back, I put it on my left ring finger and my gazed at it. "Grey, you shouldn't have. Now I feel horrible for not actually getting you anything." I frowned. "Oh, no. I'm sure my present will make up for it later." He said, sitting back and tracing down my bare spine.

"Do you have to do that here?" Natsu groaned. "It is my house, partly." I shrugged, remembering Lucy lived here first.

After a lot of eating, talking, and slightly buzzed singing, Erza left, and Natsu dragged Lucy home with him. Ari stayed to keep the egg warm, but told us not to make too much sound. So Grey and I disappeared upstairs and I dressed in the outfit I bought him, white and light blue and very sparkly to resemble ice.

When we were done, all Grey could say was, "yeah, that definitely made it up."