Hello once again, Fairy Tail fans! I hope that you enjoy this cute little story. I'm working on two big stories that will both be premiering in June, but while you wait, I figured throwing some smaller ones in this mix would keep you occupied. So, here we go!

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Chapter One- The Photo Bomb

It had been a mistake, really.

Lucy Heartfilia should have gotten a new phone months before the incident happened. The last one she had was riddled with viruses. But she loved her blackberry, and Lucy was hesitant to give it up. Levy McGarden, her best friend, had tried using logic to convince her that she needed to get an upgrade. Lucy ignored her. Lisanna Strauss, another friend of theirs, had tried to bribe her with a shopping day. Lucy had hesitated, but then turned the girl down. It took Erza Scarlet tossing Lucy's phone out her second story bedroom for Lucy to finally admit defeat. Really, she didn't have a choice when she collected the pieces of her phone from the sidewalk.

The four girls had made an event out of the trip, driving down to the cape in order to get a shopping spree in. The beautiful summer day made the trip much more exciting, the girls enjoying Erza's convertible. Lucy put off buying the new phone as long as she could. But she knew it was inevitable with Erza continuing to remind her about their main task. They stopped at many shops before Lucy finally allowed Lisanna to drag her into the phone store.

That night at dinner, Lucy stared at the brand new device resting on her lap. Really, it looked way too high tech for her liking, but they no longer carried the phone she used to have. Levy had convinced her that change wasn't always bad, and they settled on the smart phone she now possessed. It wasn't expensive after her upgrade, though Lucy wasn't exactly concerned about money regardless. Her father was very wealthy, and gave her an allowance despite being twenty-one. Every week the money he gave her exceeded her needs. Her freshman year of college, Lucy immediately got a job as a coffee barista. Though the money wasn't piling up, she made due. Lucy normally saved her father's money for Christmas or birthdays so she could spoil her friends. Rarely did she go beyond the budget she set for herself. Still, it was nice to have that insurance money if she needed it.

"I can't wait to get my new upgrade!" Levy's excited voice came between her munching on their shared order of mozzarella sticks. After dealing with her antics all day, Lucy offered to take the girls out for dinner at their favorite restaurant. Fairy Tail was a common hangout for college kids in the town of Magnolia. Even with the school year over, the bar was bustling with people. Lucy stirred the straw in her peach sangria, glancing up at the girls across the table.

"I don't even know what half of these buttons do. My old phone was so much easier to use."

"It'll just take some time to get used to," Erza mumbled, glancing down at the menu in front of her. She took a gentle sip of her red wine, Erza's pallet for alcohol much more mature than most.

"I guess you're right." But from Lucy's tone, her friends could tell she was still not sold on this new cell phone.

"I mean, at least they were able to transfer your contacts, right?" At Lisanna's optimistic comment, Lucy nodded.

"Most, but not all. I wanted to invite Juvia to come and meet us, but I realized I don't even have her number." Juvia Lockser was a mutual friend of the group, and shared an apartment with Lisanna. Hearing about her emotional roommate, Lisanna grabbed the new device from Lucy's hand and yanked out her own phone.

"Here, I'll throw her number into the message bar for you. When you send it, your Facebook will recognize her number from your friends list and automatically fill in her information. Bet your old phone didn't do that." The white-haired girl sent Lucy a wink while she punched their friend's number in. Lucy laughed and held her hands up in defeat.

"Alright, you guys win. Maybe having a new phone won't be the worst thing in the world."

"That's the spirit, Lu-chan!" Levy's cheer made Lucy smile. Lisanna tossed the phone back to her, Lucy fumbling to catch it. Levy glanced over her friend's shoulder at the phone's now reflective screen. "You taking a picture message?"

"I guess I am now, though I'm not quite sure how—Ah!" Instantly a flash hit their eyes, a picture popping up on the screen. Lucy's face was a mixture of confusion and frustration, her mouth parted mid sentence. Levy's bright green headband kept most of her hair back, but a lock of it dripped over Lucy's right shoulder. Lucy could see Erza in the background, too occupied with the menu to notice the picture being taken. Lisanna seemed to be the only one who knew what was going to happen. She was behind Lucy, ready for the picture. Her tongue was out, winking toward the camera cutely. Laughing, Lucy decided to keep the picture. Juvia would probably get a smile out of it, right? "What should I put the caption as?"

"Throw something demanding in there; Juvia's going to try to make some excuse about being a bother or too shy to come to the bar if you ask." Lisanna knew her roommate better than anyone else. Juvia always had work and studying on her mind, never her social life. She was a beautiful girl, but her social skills were lacking. Whenever they went out to public places or college parties, it was nearly impossible to get Juvia to come.

"Alright, how about 'Come to Fairy Tail, or we'll punish you'?" Levy's suggestion made Lucy blush.

"We want her to come out, not pass out in embarrassment!"

"I don't see any harm in a little teasing." Erza had now joined back into the conversation, smirking as she pushed her glasses up her nose. "After all, we're all old enough to take a joke, yes?"

"Even you, Erza?" Lucy said, the red head shrugging.

"Then it's settled! Send away, Lu-chan!" Lucy rolled her eyes at Levy's excitement in embarrassing her friend. Really, these three could be demons when they wanted to. They just got away with it because of their good looks. She sent the message, adding a winking face in the hopes that their friend would catch the joke. Juvia had a tendency to let her emotions get the better of her, which made her an easy target to tease. Once the message was sent, Lucy glanced to the message bar. She frowned when Juvia's name didn't pop up.

"Hey, I thought you said this would change?" Lucy showed the phone to Lisanna, who seemed just as confused as Lucy.

"Yeah it should have. And I know Juvia's got her number on her Facebook, because it changed when I put it in my phone." To prove her point, Lisanna pulled her phone back out and compared the two messages. Her blue eyes scanned the two screens, her shoulders suddenly tensing while a look of panic took over. "Uh-oh…"

"What do you mean, 'uh-oh'?" Lucy's voice squeaked towards the end with nerves. Lisanna sent a guilty look to her friend, slowly sliding the new phone back to its owner.

"I may have put in Juvia's old number. And we may have sent that picture to some random person we've never met before. And they may now have your number…"

"How did you manage that?" Levy spoke up when she saw Lucy's stunned face, knowing her blond friend wasn't going to be speaking just yet. Lisanna quickly pressed her hands together in a praying motion while she bowed her head.

"Well I was looking at Lucy when I entered the name; I forgot I never deleted Juvia's old number from my phone. I synced her new one to her Facebook, but the old one was still in there. So I'm not exactly sure who we just texted."

"Lisanna, don't you think you should have been paying more attention when using Lucy's phone?" Erza's disapproving voice made Lisanna whine, quickly nodding her head in the bowed position.

"I really didn't think about it until just now! I'm sorry Lucy, I'll just text the person back and tell them we sent it to the wrong person." Lucy finally shook the shock away, trying to smile while she nervously laughed.

"No, no! I've got it. Really, anyone could have made that mistake." She knew Lisanna hadn't meant to send it to some random person. She waved off Lisanna's apologetic stare while she typed 'sorry, wrong number!' to the mysterious contact. "Besides, most people just ignore texts when they don't know who they are from. I'm sure they'll just think we're weirdos and delete the text."

"I'm really sorry, Lucy," Lisanna apologized again, Lucy holding out her hand.

"How about you just call Juvia, and we'll call it even? I'd say text her, but who knows who you'll contact next." The group laughed while Lisanna blushed, quickly excusing herself to call her roommate. She returned shortly to say Juvia would be there soon, and the conversation of summer plans took over the table. Lucy slid the phone to the side when the waitress came, each girl placing their order for the food they intended to get. Juvia entered just as the waitress had finished taking Erza's order, the blue-haired woman ordering a salad with her Sangria. Lucy moved her chair closer to Levy, allowing Juvia to sit next to her. The quiet girl glanced to the table, blinking.

"Did Lucy get a new phone?" Her soft voice was answered with Lucy's nod.

"Yup, the old phone was sent to phone heaven by Erza. I thought I told you to invite her to come?" Lucy glanced to Lisanna, who sighed.

"I did invite her, but Juvia was too busy putting some thesis paper together to listen to me."

"Juvia is sorry!" The blue-haired girl's remorseful response made Lucy laugh.

"It's no big deal; the three of them were already a handful." Lucy could only imagine what Juvia would do being in such a crowded shopping plaza. Juvia leaned closer to Lucy while peering at the phone.

"May Juvia look at it?"

"Of course," Lucy replied, clicking the power button to put her password in. She stopped when she noticed she had a notification, a text message popping onto her screen. The number wasn't in her phone, and it took a moment for Lucy to realize who it was. "No way..."

"What's wrong, Lu-chan?" Levy's concerned voice went unanswered by Lucy, who hesitated to open up the text. She finally clicked on the notification, surprised to see a picture instead of words. She stayed silent, concerning the others in the group. Levy tried again, placing her hand on Lucy's shoulder. "Lucy?"

"Oh my god!" The laughter that burst from Lucy's mouth filled the table, the blonde trying to muffle her giggles behind her hands. Tears collected in her eyes as she gasped for air, continuing to laugh despite the weird looks the table got from onlookers. If she noticed them she didn't care, continuing to laugh at whatever caught her eye in the photo.

"Is Lucy okay?" Juvia's question was on everyone's mind, Levy slowly sliding the phone over to look at it. She felt herself starting to laugh as she caught sight of the picture message Lucy received. In it sat five boys that Levy had never seen before. The first one had bright pink hair, sitting in the same spot that Lucy had with a confused look on his face. To his right was a very attractive man, an army bandana holding back his long black hair. It seemed almost planned that a lock of his hair rested on the pink haired man's shoulder. His look seemed dumbfounded, but somehow Levy could tell it wasn't his go-to face. From his piercings and wild hair, Levy was sure this man liked to be in control. She swallowed at the warm feeling rising in her chest before she looked to the rest of the picture. Where Erza had sat now was replaced with a man with glasses, his short hair a beautiful blue. The other side of the background was filled with a peculiar man, a black tattoo covering the middle of his face. His tongue was out and he was winking like Lisanna had. The only extra male was the black haired man in the bottom right hand corner of the picture. He seemed uninterested in the picture, a beer pressed to his lips.

Underneath the picture, the text read 'You couldn't handle us, four on five'

"They re-enacted our picture," Levy said, letting herself laugh afterwards. Lisanna was instantly leaning over the table, trying to see. She giggled at the picture, surprised that there was a man comfortable enough to take on the girly pose she had used. Looking at his expression, Lisanna was positive he was the jokester of the group. That tattoo alone proved he didn't take himself too seriously in life. She had always been a fan of men who could make her laugh.

Even Erza was interested, smirking slightly when seeing the handiwork of the unknown men.

"My, they've got some guts," Erza mumbled, pushing her glasses up to see the picture better. She let her eyes linger on the man who 'impersonated' her, silently wondering if the glasses were needed or simply to mimic her. If they were real, she had to admit they suited him. The redhead glanced to Lucy, who had finally managed to get her laughter under control.

"I can't believe they sent this! It's amazing! I've seen people do it online, but I never thought it'd happen to me. This is the best joke ever." Lucy looked at the picture again, smiling at the man in the middle of the whole scheme. He had her look down to a T, committing completely to the picture. She had to admit he made her laugh more than the other four, but maybe she was biased? He did take the role of her own pose, after all!

"So Lucy, what will you do?" Levy's question caught Lucy's attention, dragging her out of her own head.

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked, watching Erza finish her wine before ordering another. It was rare to see the woman have more than one glass, but Erza seemed to be in a good enough mood to push that limit. Maybe she got as much enjoyment out of the picture as Lucy did?

"Are you going to respond?"

"Respond? Why would I respond?"

"Because they're obviously flirting with us!" The one who started this mess tried grabbing for the phone, Lucy instantly yanking it back. Lisanna flopped on the table, her martini almost ending up spilt over. Erza made a quick save of Lisanna's drink though the short-haired woman didn't care. Instead she pouted, making sure her lower lip pushed out. "Come on, it's just some harmless fun. Plus, it's not like any of us are in a relationship."

"We don't even know who these men are; they could be dangerous." Erza's motherly tone made Levy glance back at the picture, a look of longing flickering in her eyes. It was obvious she wanted to side with Lisanna, but her logic leaned toward Erza.

"You really think they'd hurt us?" Lisanna quickly wave her hand, dismissing Levy's fear instantly.

"There's no way! Did you see how much fun they had with it? If they were dangerous, I don't think they'd be willing to show so many witnesses their faces. They look to be our age, too." Juvia had remained silent during the conversation, though Lucy could see her eyes constantly glancing to the picture. She let the other three converse about if Lucy should respond while Lucy nudged her friend with her elbow.

"See something you like, Juvia?" Juvia instantly tensed at the accusation, covering her cheeks with her hands.

"Ju-Juvia just…she…th-this man." She pointed to the man with the beer, her finger lingering for a second before she spoke again. "Juvia finds herself drawn to his face."

The sentence itself shocked Lucy. Juvia was never the type to go after men. If there was one thing Lucy knew, it was that no man had ever caught the interest of Juvia. She had dated on occasion, but Lucy was sure it was because Juvia was too nice to turn people down. Most of the time men only hung around Juvia for a few months, then broke it off when they realized how dedicated she was to her studies and job.

It was hard, being as advanced in her field as she was. Though Juvia was the same age as Lucy, she was extremely intelligent. She worked with marine animals, and had even helped changed some thought processes of marine life. She was a prodigy in her field, and constantly was travelling with the college to conferences and science exhibitions. Though she was still getting her degree, Juvia had already scored a job working under one of the best marine scientist of the world. Being married to her degree meant she had little time for men. That was most likely why she never showed interest in them. But here, while staring at the mystery man in the picture, Lucy could see something changed in Juvia.

And who was she to let that chance slip by?

"Say cheese, Juvia!" The distracted girl glanced up at Lucy's extended arm, her other arm wrapped around Juvia's shoulders. Juvia's face read pure confusion, her eyes showing her discomfort while the picture was snapped. Lucy pulled the phone down to glance at the image, satisfied with the beautiful glow her friend's skin had. Though Lucy knew she looked cute with her wink and perky smile, Juvia would be a pleasant surprise for the guys. Really, Juvia was a knock-out. The slight pout of her lips was shadowed by the pink hue of her cheeks, making her look gorgeous. The long waves of blue that framed her face only enhanced the blue of her eyes. It was a perfect shot to get the mystery boy interested.

"What is Lucy doing with Juvia's picture?" Lucy snickered as she turned away from her friend, typing 'Just evened the score, can your friend handle it?' underneath it. She was being far feistier than she normally would be in real life, but texting brought out the courage in everyone. She sent the text before Juvia could steal the phone, the horrified girl's eyes widening when reading what Lucy had sent. "Juvia does not agree!"

"I just want to see if your interest is mutual. You really do deserve a little romantic spark in your life, Juvia."

"That was awesome, Lucy!" Lisanna's praise made Lucy smile, both girls knowing the struggles of Juvia's love life. They hi-fived over the table, while Juvia bit her lip in trepidation. The response this time was much quicker, Lucy opening the text to another picture.

She assumed the man with pink hair owned the phone, since he followed her lead with a wink and a grin. She was surprised to find herself blushing. From the photo she could clearly see he was fit, his lean body being hugged by a black tank-top. Too caught up in the humor of the first photo, Lucy hadn't actually taken time to admire the boyish face now staring back at her. His teeth were perfect, his smile filling his entire face. As if he could see her, Lucy self-consciously ran her fingers through her hair. Trying to ignore the random spark of warmth in her belly, Lucy glanced to the guy in the picture next to him. He didn't possess the same confused look as Juvia, though his irritated scowl seemed more appropriate for this guy. She assumed he was the 'serious' one of the group. His less-than-willing look didn't stop the sharp intake of breath to Lucy's right. She coyly glanced to Juvia, whose eyes were transfixed on the new picture. Maybe it was because the guy had somehow lost his shirt? Lucy glanced to the parts of his chest she could see, surprised to find this guy was also in shape. Yet her heart didn't skip like the first one—

"What does it say?" Levy's voice interrupted her thought process. Lucy glanced up at her group, jumping slightly when seeing Lisanna and Levy both staring at her. They were too into this!

"Oh, uh…" She had been so preoccupied with analyzing the picture; she hadn't even read the text. Trying to hide that fact, Lucy quickly scanned the text below.

We'll just have to see, huh?

What did that mean? Lucy scowled at the weird response, wondering if she should reply. Though they seemed harmless, Erza could be right. What if these guys got their kicks by killing people? What if they were in a gang? And now they had her number? She knew the probability of them being dangerous was slim, but they were all quite in shape. If they had to fight, the only girl who could really stand up to them would be Erza. And even she would struggle with a 5 on 1 attack. Letting her mind get the best of her, Lucy quickly clicked the power button and returned the screen to black.

"Aw, Lucy! What'd you do that for?" Lisanna asked, frowning at her friend. Lucy didn't want to tell the girls about her random thought process, so she was happy to see their food coming out of the kitchen.

"It's rude to be on your phone when you're eating, right?" Lucy asked, knowing she would get instant backup from a certain redhead.

"Lucy's correct. Everyone, I do not want to see phones out until our meal is over," Erza said, circulating the wine in her glass before taking another sip. She tended to get a little more forceful when drinking, which meant Erza's word was now law. Each girl was quick to follow it in fear of Erza's wrath. Not that they really cared once their food was in front of them. Juvia dove straight into her Sangria, drinking half of it before Lucy could even cut into her steak. The blonde assumed it was Juvia's way of trying to hide her embarrassment from earlier. Everything felt better when you had a buzz going. Lucy sipped on her own drink while jumping into the girls' new conversation. The topic kept changing between Lisanna's experiences in Australia, to Erza's first place in women's Kendo. And as the girls finished up their dinners, the rest of the night went quite smoothly.

Until Lucy heard Juvia's empty glass shatter on the ground.

"Juvia! Are you okay?" Lucy quickly grabbed Juvia's hand, checking to make sure none of the glass had cut her. Juvia didn't respond to Lucy's question, her eyes transfixed on something over Lisanna's head. Confused, Lucy slowly peeked over to where Juvia was looking, shock filling her senses. In the doorway of the bar stood five men, which normally wouldn't catch Lucy's attention. But it was their characteristics flashing in the dim light of the bar that had Lucy's mouth dropping. One unbuttoned shirt (was that even allowed in public?), a black tattoo, a set of reading glasses, one army bandana, and pink hair. It was really hard not to recognize the guys she had been playing phone tag with.

"Oh my—" Lucy couldn't finish her sentence, her eyes unwavering from the cheeky smile she received from her counterpart. Levy was the next to catch on, quick to lean closer to Lucy as if scared.

"How did they find us?" At Levy's quiet whisper, Lisanna and Erza both turned around. Lisanna didn't seem as shocked as the others, taking in the appearance of their 'photo bombers' with an excited wave. Erza, however, didn't seem as humored. She had already risen from her seat, glaring at the men who were casually walking their way.

"Lucy, get ready to call the police."

"The police?!" Levy and Lucy's answer was simultaneous, Lisanna trying to tug Erza back into her seat.

"Why don't we ask them how they found us first? Maybe Lucy's phone gives people her location?" Lucy blinked at Lisanna's suggestion, snapping her fingers. She quickly looked back at the texts exchanged by the two, confirming her intuition.

"The caption of the first picture! I told Juvia where to meet us; they must go to school around here." It made sense, if Lucy thought about it. The man's phone number used to be Juvia's, meaning they lived in the same area. Fairy Tail was a pretty popular place for college kids. It wasn't hard to realize how they knew where the girls were.

"Yo." Lucy looked back up from her phone, jumping at how close the new face was to her. If she moved her head, her nose would brush against the pink-haired man's cheek. He was so close, she could feel his hot breath brushing against her skin. He laughed at her shock, sending her another bright smile. "It's nice to meet you—"

"Too close!" Lucy jammed her hands into his chest, knocking him backwards into a booth. Lucy pressed her hand to her heart, which was beating rapidly from the surprise attack. She pressed her other hand to her cheek, panicking when feeling how hot the skin had gotten. Was her blush noticeable? She peeked over to the group, who were all now staring at her in shock.

"Did you see how far Natsu went? Blondie's got some strength. Bixlow approves of her style!" The man with the face tattoo spoke first, laughing loudly at Lucy's blunder. Quickly she turned away, fanning her face while coughing to clear the air.

"So-Sorry about that!"

"Don't be; Natsu has a tendency to ignore people's personal space." A gruff voice came from the guy's group, the tall man rubbing his temple while he spoke. "He didn't even think to ask if you guys wanted company before dragging us down here."

"The guy's got no manners, Gajeel. What do you expect?" Juvia instantly perked up at the response, her cheeks flushing from the smooth flow of another voice. The now shirtless man glanced over to their group, sending them an apologetic smile that nearly melted Juvia in her seat. "My name's Gray Fullbuster, and I apologize for barging into your dinner, ladies."

"Oh, it's no problem at all. Really, we were just surprised to see you," Lucy replied, waving his apology away. She glanced back to the man they called Natsu, who was stuck between the booth and the table. Feeling pity for him, Lucy moved from her seat to offer him a hand. He took her offering, yanking himself up and nearly toppling the two of them back over. He steadied her with his other hand, his touch warming her arm instantly.

"I never expected someone so feminine to have so much power. You're pretty awesome!" Lucy blushed at his statement, wondering how many people complimented the person who had assaulted them. He must have taken her embarrassment as a good sign, clasping her hand tighter to shake it. "I'm Natsu Dragneel. The guy you sent the message to."

"Lucy Heartfilia. Sorry about the mess up, I just got this phone today." He shrugged at her apology.

"It's okay, we were looking for something fun to do anyways. Before your text, the five of us were planning on binge watching Game of Thrones and taking shots any time someone died."

"You would've been drunk by the first episode!" Levy exclaimed, laughing at Natsu's eager nod.

"You watch Game of Thrones?" Gajeel re-entered the conversation, sending Levy a look that proved he didn't expect that from her.

"Well, I read the Fire and Ice series first," Levy replied, looking down at the thumbs she was twiddling in her lap. Levy was a nerd when Lucy met her freshman year, enjoying Lord of the Rings and things of that nature. While Lucy didn't get it at first, she never judged her friend for it. Years after their friendship grew closer, Lucy found herself watching Fantasy movies with Levy. She even dabbled in some manga of her own. She preferred the romantic comedies, but could watch Harry Potter marathons if Levy asked.

"Those books are pretty gory. You don't seem the type to enjoy death." At Gajeel's statement, Levy nodded but kept her head down.

"I managed." Her shy demeanor made her miss the arched eyebrow of the pierced man, Lucy snickering to herself. When it was just the girls, Levy was very outgoing and adventurous. She could keep conversation with Lisanna, which was saying a lot. But when it came to men, Levy's nerves got the best of her. It wasn't like Juvia, who had no time or desire to meet someone. Levy truly did want a happily ever after; it was just hard for her to get out of her shell when men came around. But even with her lack of eye contact, Levy had seemed to snag the interest of one very tall man in the bar.

"Levy told us how good the books were, and Erza continued to promote the quality of the show. We decided to watch it as a group every Friday. We've only watched the first three episodes, though," Lucy explained. Erza wasn't the bookworm that Levy was, but she was obsessed with the show. Maybe it was all the fighting and unique armors that really caught her interest. Erza always had a thing for pointy swords.

"I like the show, despite reading the books first." For the first time since the group got there, the man with blue hair spoke. "There are some character changes, and the order of some people's deaths are different. But it doesn't take away from the show as a whole. They've done a pretty good job, so far."

"You've got Jellal's nerd radar going off. He's got a fantasy boner." Bixlow snickered at his own joke, Jellal instantly rubbing his neck at the attention. Erza took a step closer to the group, her arms crossed over her chest defensively. Her eyes were fixated on Jellal now, a scowl marring her pretty features. He caught her gaze and straightened his posture, but his eyes showed no true fear of the woman's harsh stare. It was a first, to see someone stand without fear in front of her. Even the other men in Jellal's group seemed to back away at this point.

"They say someone's favorite character can show a lot about who they are. I'd like to know who you find interesting." It was a simple question. Asked by anyone else, Lucy was sure it would mean nothing. And yet when Erza asked it, she knew it was dangerous. Erza was smart, and good at seeing what a person looked like on the inside. It was why she struggled so hard in the dating world; she couldn't stand people who weren't true to themselves.

From her own accord, Erza didn't have many friends in her high school years. She was an outcast because she was honest to anyone who crossed her path. It was lonely, but it was what she felt in her heart was the best path to take. When she came to college, she found Lucy's group. As she had with Jellal, Erza had asked Levy the same question. Levy had answered 'Tyrion Lannister', and it seemed to please Erza enough to join their group. Lucy, Lisanna, Levy, even Juvia loved Erza regardless of her honesty, and welcomed her as their own. Erza became fiercely protective of the girls, almost like a mother to them.

That same affection didn't transfer into Erza's love life. Men would try to woo her with presents and money, neither ideal for capturing the red-head's heart. She asked the same question to every guy, the show being nearly impossible to avoid on their campus. Their answers were 'shallow' or 'self-obsessed' as Erza would put it, and she would send each man packing. They would still try despite her blunt rejection. But when they saw their parlor tricks wouldn't get far with Erza, they gave up. She pretended she was fine with being alone, but Lucy had caught Erza eyeing wedding dresses and engagement rings earlier that day.

She knew that Erza was lonely.

"Pick Drogo! That dude's such a badass. Killing people and riding around like a boss—" Natsu's loud input was cut off when Erza glared over at him. Instantly he hid behind Lucy, who glanced over her shoulder in shock.

"Why are you hiding behind me?!"

"Because your friend is really scary," He whispered, Lucy rolling her eyes and sighing. She looked back to Jellal, whose face showed he took Erza's question seriously. Lucy had to admit she was curious as well. The other four boys seemed to wear their personalities on their sleeves; it was obvious Erza would never waste her time on them. But Jellal was much quieter. He pondered the options for a few moments before glancing back up to her, his mind made up.

"Jon Snow." Surprise flashed through Erza's eyes at his answer but her face remained stoic. Lucy wondered what that meant for Jellal. She hadn't seen much of the show yet, so she wasn't sure if that was a good character or not. From Natsu's loud groan, Lucy assumed the guy wasn't the most destructive character. But to Lucy's surprise, Erza turned away from Jellal, glancing toward her friends at the table.

"It's been decided." Without an explanation for what she meant, Erza returned to the table to sip on her second glass of wine. Though the boys seemed confused by her actions, Lucy instantly knew what this meant. Sending a grin toward the new group, Lucy pointed toward their table.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail, boys. Would you like a drink?"

And there's part one of this story. The boys sure do like to make a scene. Well, what do you think? How will the groups get along? Will Lucy learn something about Natsu that nobody else knows? What fears of her own does she discover? And just what mischief will each couple get into? Find out next time, after you review! And come follow me on Tumblr, Navybluewings0013 !

Chapter Two- The Fear of Change