Not Happily Ever After

Who Met In The Forest

Natsu began to relax as soon as he got on his horse, Happy. He'd raised the chocolate mare since it was born. The stable master, Gildarts, had said he wasn't going to make it, but he defeated all the odds and survived. Natsu had named him Happy because the prince couldn't stop laughing at the look on the old man's face when he saw the little horse running around.

Happy knew exactly what his owner needed, and he started off at a full gallop as soon as the prince climbed on. He vaguely heard Gray and Gajeel's cries of outrage, but they were carried away by the sound of the wind. Eventually Happy slowed down, allowing Rave and Lily to catch up.

The ride into the forest was calming. Natsu enjoyed the sense of freedom Happy gave him and let his worries slide away. For as long as he was within the line of trees, thoughts of marriage and kings were beyond him. It was his own little slice of paradise, although he knew he couldn't stay there forever.

The scent of greenery and pine trees filled his nose. Natsu breathed it in deeply, cherishing the fresh breath of air.

Gray sighed beside him, smiling. "Nothing like the forest to cool you off, huh Hothead?"

"Trees are calming," Natsu replied, smirking. "I want to go fishing, too."

"Sure, Salamander. Whatever ya want," Gajeel agreed, chuckling at the prince's childishness. Despite being jerks most of the time, Natsu really cared for his guards. He considered them friends first, and they always knew what he needed. They weren't afraid to push his buttons, which was fine by him, but they knew how to soothe him as well.

They ended up swimming in the stream, not fishing. Well, really Natsu got bored when no fish bit his line so he decided to tempt them by putting something shiny in the water—AKA Gajeel. The metal head hadn't been very happy at his surprise bath and decided to take revenge by throwing water at the prince. Unfortunately he missed and hit Gray, causing a full on war. Eventually Gray and Gajeel teamed up against Natsu and picked him up, tossing him deep into the river. The prince was thoroughly soaked by the time the sky was dark.

Gray created a campfire for his royal highness to dry off while Gajeel cleared a small area of sticks and branches. When his pants were dry enough, Natsu decided to ditch the shirt and crawl into his blankets. Gajeel followed suit. Gray chose to stay and relax in the cold. What a freak. 

Sitting around the warm campfire, Natsu was reminded of his younger days. He was surprised by how much his mind was turning back. He wasn't much of a man of the past, so it was curious that so many memories had been plaguing his mind.

This memory was nice, though. He remembered a time before Gray and Gajeel, when Natsu would ride into the forest behind his father on his trusty steed Atlas Flame. They would go deeper than the trio was now, to the densest parts of the forest. There they would fish and swim, hunt and gather for their food. They would even lay on the forest floor, no blankets, and gaze up at the stars. His dad would name all of them for him, although Natsu couldn't remember them for the life of him. He was surprised his dad knew so much, but when he asked, the king told him that an old friend of his had been obsessed with them.

Natsu looked up now, but he couldn't see a bit of sky through the leaves. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine them, picturing the white dots decorating a dark sky with light. His imagination took it a step farther, creating pictures with them and making them dance before his eyes. He saw horses and lions, birds and flowers. He even thought he saw two people dancing.

"You asleep, Salamander?" Gajeel wondered. Natsu opened his eyes, ripped from his revere.

"I was," he said sarcastically, but his voice was soft, still filled with wonder. Gajeel only laughed, which made the prince smile. "I wonder what Wendy's doing," Natsu mused into the silence. His sister hadn't been thrilled at the idea of him riding away from his problems, but she didn't stop him. She even promised to cover for him if his dad came looking. "I hope she's not in trouble."