Overthrow ( Book 2 of Penitentairy )

Chapter 5

We're in front of a small family home, two towns over.

From the corner of my eye, I see Natsu shift uncomfortably.

"Hey, it will be okay. I'm right here with you," I whisper, grasping his hand in mine, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"I know," he mutters, squeezing back. Taking a deep breath he raises his hand gives three quick knocks before stepping back.

A minute or so passes by before the door finally opens. A man as tall as Natsu stands in front of us, his salmon locks in a man bun, stubble covering his jaw, a scar across his right eye with another scar under it. His eyes were locked on Natsu's as both men stared the other down.

Alright, if someone doesn't say something I will! They've been standing in silence for five minutes already.

Clearing my throat, I give Natsu a pointed look before looking up at his father.

"Mr. Dragneel?"

"Hmm?" The man looks down at me in surprise before looking at me and Natsu's intertwined fingers. "I'm sorry. Call me, Igneel. You are?"

"Lucy. I'm your son's girlfriend," I smile.

"You got a girlfriend?!" He looks up at Natsu in shock before shaking his head a bit. "You know what? Come inside." 

He steps aside and lets us in, leading us to the living room after closing the front door.

After settling in, Igneel looks at Natsu again. 

"Nice to see you again, dad," Natsu says after not speaking for so long.

"It's good to see you too, Natsu," the man smiles. "You've grown so much," he chuckles. "Even got yourself a girlfriend too!"

"Yeah," Natsu mutters, looking at me with a small smile which I gladly return. "Hey, are you..."

"Yeah, I am," he says with a tight smile. "But I'm okay. Now, during our call, you said you needed me to sign something?"

Natsu hands over our permission slip for the school.

"We need to have this signed for school," I tell him as he looks over the paper.

"You... you're still in high school?" He asks Natsu in confusion. "But you're-"

"It's for undercover work," Natsu mutters, giving me a side glance.

"I see." Igneel signs both papers before getting up. "Give me a moment. You probably are already gonna hear shit from your superiors. Let me get some paper to give you permission to sign off on your own stuff."

"Thanks, dad."

He gives a small smile, before walking out.

"It's kind of scary how similar the two of you look," I tell Natsu.

He chuckles at the comment. "Yeah, it is but you should meet my brother. Looks like the spitting image of my mother if she were a guy."

"You have a brother?!" I cough, looking up at him in surprise.

"Yeah, I didn't mention this before?"

"Obviously not if that's her reaction, Natsu," Igneel scoffs, coming back in the living area with a blank piece of paper in hand.

"Hey!"

I laugh a little as they bicker.

"Where is that dumb ass anyways," Natsu grumbles as Igneel face falls slightly.

"They took him too," he mutters.

"What?" Natsu whispers, his eyes widening.

"A year after they developed the serum they took him," Igneel whispers. "I'm honestly surprised you don't know. I thought they sent him to the same facility as you."

"No... They didn't," Natsu frowns. "And Gramps would've told me if they took him meaning he didn't know either."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Igneel scoffs. "Anyway, here's the note giving you permission to sign off on your stuff. I made one for each of you just in case they give you shit about it. Dumb ass school board," he mutters in distaste.

I smile as Natsu laughs, agreeing with his father on the statement. 

"We should get going so none of us get in trouble," Natsu sighs. "It was good seeing you again, dad."

A sad smile appears on Igneel's face before pulling Natsu into a hug. "It was good seeing you too, Natsu. Hopefully one day, we can see each other again."

"Hopefully," Natsu mutters before pulling back.

"And you miss Lucy," Igneel turns to me and pulls me into a hug, surprising me. "Take good care of him for me."

"Always," I smile. I sneakily pull back and place a piece of paper into his and whisper. "Read this when you get the chance."

He gives me a slightly confused look before nodding.

We said our final goodbyes before sitting in the truck.

"How do you feel?" I ask after a minute of silence.

"I don't know... Weird? Angry? Happy? Just... a mix of emotions really," he mutters. 

"Let's get to school and I'll text the old man and tell him we're going over after school."

Nodding, he starts up the truck and takes off in the direction of the school as I pull out my phone and text Makarov.

Hey, old man. Natsu and I just left Igneel's house and are on our way to the school. We'll be heading over there once schools out.

I press send and look out the window for a few minutes before feeling my phone vibrate in my hand.

Alright. I already told the higher-ups that you two would be visiting him so no one is in trouble though they weren't too happy about it. But I will see you two soon.

I give a light scowl towards my phone before rolling my eyes.

"So stupid," I grumble.

"What is?" Natsu asks, merging onto the highway.

"Makarov made sure we wouldn't get in trouble by telling those assholes that we'd be going to your dad's house and apparently they weren't too happy about it," I answer. 

A low growl escapes Natsu and I see a flash of red from the corners of my eyes.

Turning towards him, he takes a deep breath trying to calm the rage inside him. His eyes still burn a deep red color as he drives us to school.

"Do you want to head home instead?" I ask but he just shakes his head. 

"No, I'll be fine by the time we reach the school," he answers gruffly, his voice deeper than normal.

I look towards his hands and see his knuckles are white from the grip he has on the wheel. Seeing this, I gently lay my hand over his and slowly feel him loosen his grip.

Taking the hand I covered off the wheel, he laced his fingers with mine. 

With my free hand, I gently trace out shapes onto the back of his hands, making him relax further. 

"Do you feel better?"

He lets out a small hum as the glowing red from his eyes turns back to their original onyx color.

"Thanks, Luce," he mutters.

I just smile and place a kiss on the back of his hand.

"Anything for you."