Wheels of Fire

A Timid Switch

(This fanfic was originally published in 2012 and may not match the current canon.)

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"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

A battle between Team Natsu and the bandits of the Misty Hills raged through a deserted village, destroying abandoned buildings where the bandits had taken up shelter. Erza was busy with a katana wielder, Gray teamed up with Lucy to take on a dozen weaker enemies, while Natsu hurled himself headlong into a battle with the bandit leader. So far, it looked like it would be a quick mission without much serious trouble.

Natsu laughed wildly as the bandit leader swung at him with a massive baseball bat that could have knocked a full-grown cow out of a ballpark for a home run. "Too slow," the Dragon Slayer taunted. "Did you really defeat wizards from Twilight Ogre with swings like that? Then again, they're not much."

"Ack, you shtoopid wizards," the man said with a strong accent to his words. "I show you who eez not much. Runes Magic: Drain!"

Runes lit up under Natsu's feet. Although he felt his energy weaken slightly, it was not much. "Is that it? Sheesh, Freed's runes could have left me sick with magic deprivation and too tired to move for days. This is boring. Mind if I finish it off fast so we can eat?"

"Don't be gettink cocky, leetle lizard," shouted the bandit. He pulled out a cannonball from a massive pack on his back, tossed it into the air, and hit it with the baseball bat. A crack like thunder made Lucy shriek, but Natsu easily leaped out of the way. The cannonball hit a building and leveled it.

"Those are getting annoying," Natsu grumbled. "And you're scaring Lucy."

"You mean ze purty blondie gurly?" The bandit chuckled. "She looks tasty. Runes Magic: Gather." The runes grabbed hold of Lucy and yanked her backwards.

"Lucy!" Gray shouted, grabbing for her hand, but she was pulled away.

The bandit caught her and held her tightly in his arms. "Sorry fer gettink a leetle rough, gurly," he said with an oily smile.

"You jerk, that hurt!" Lucy struggled to get free, but the man's massive arms held her tightly.

"Mmm, you schmell goot," the man moaned. "After I keel zee rest of you, I tink mebbe I vill make dees purty gurly mah woman."

"What?" Lucy shrieked.

"Let her go!" Natsu bellowed in outrage.

The man grinned hungrily at Lucy. "A strong gurly wizard like you vould give me nice sons."

He gave her cheek a long, drooling lick. Lucy cringed back and tried to shove herself away from him, but it was no use. She was completely powerless against his huge arms. She could not even reach her keys because her arms could not stretch around the girth of his tree-trunk-like limbs.

The flames on Natsu's body surged in fury. "You perverted scum. Don't you dare touch Lucy."

"Hoy?" he asked in amusement. "Iz dees doll precious to you? Iz she yur gurly-friend, mebbe?"

"Who'd want to date her?" snapped Natsu. Lucy huffed at such an insult. "She's my teammate, and no one messes with my friends."

"If she iz just a friend, zen vhat do you care if I do dees?" He grabbed Lucy's breast. She gasped in shock, then screamed and pounded his hand as hard as she could. The bandit merely laughed at her vain attempts. "You iz cute vhen you iz angry, but doze teeny fists hurt a leetle. Runes Magic: Drain."