When Lucy woke up in the morning she screamed. Why? Because there was someone else lying in her bed and it scared her. Until she realized just who it was, of course and then anger surged through her body as she glared at the sleeping body of Natsu Dragneel. It shouldn't have surprised Lucy that he was in her bed - really, it shouldn't. But it did, and it made her irate. He has his own bed, she thought angrily, so why can't he sleep in it? Why does it always have to be my bed? She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him. But somehow, she didn't have the heart to shove him onto the floor. Even though she should. She really, really, should. But she didn't, because in his sleep Natsu just looked too adorable.

She'd yell him when he woke up.

Lucy huffed as she slid out of the bed, jostling Natsu a little as she shoved him away from her in her haste to get up. Natsu mumbled in his sleep, rolling over onto his back and Lucy froze. Another mumble and then he settled, breathing evenly still, thankfully, asleep. Oh Mavis, I must be crazy, Lucy thought. It shouldn't matter whether I wake him up or not. He's the one trespassing. So why can't I find it in myself to wake him up? Why am I being nice? Lucy sighed as she wandered over to the dresser and grabbed some clothes, before heading into the bathroom. She came out of the bathroom, her pajamas bundled in her hands and her brows rose when she saw Natsu sitting up on her bed looking sleepy but awake.

Should have just woken him up, she thought irritably.

"Hey Luce," Natsu greeted her, smiling warmly. "Why do you look so grumpy?"

"Maybe because someone snuck into my room and more specifically, my bed," she growled narrowing her eyes at him. "Don't you have your own room to go to Natsu?"

"Your bed is more comfy," he explained, smiling impishly when she sighed. "Aw come on, Luce, don't be so grumpy." She just sighed, but didn't verbally answer him. "Lucy," Natsu whined, at her lack of response.

"Get out," she sighed, pointing to the door. "I have homework that I need to do."

"No you don't," Natsu quickly refuted. "We're in most of the same classes, Luce. There's no homework."

"Okay, well maybe I just want some space," Lucy huffed. "I'm tired and I want to sleep, and I'm not in the mood for everyone complaining about what the professors are going to do about the guilds and stuff."

"Same," Natsu shouted. "Everyone is going to be in-insufferable about it." There was a slight stammer as he spoke and Lucy smiled. "But I can't blame 'em. I'm pretty upset about it too."

"They're only trying to protect us," Lucy offered up lamely. "I'm sure they'd feel awful if one of us got hurt, because they weren't being careful enough. It may seem like overkill but they are only trying to protect us."

"Weren't you the one who wanted to know what was going on? What happened to being super nosy, Luce," Natsu asked regarding her suspiciously. "Why are you content to sit back and do nothing?"

"You talked sense into me," Lucy shrugged. "I don't know. It's not like we can change their minds, anyways. They're not going to listen to us."

Natsu scowled and the subject dropped. Lucy was right, though. No matter what they did, there was no way that they would be able to get the professors' decision changed. The professors, upon hearing about Tartarus, had been nervous and they had sounded scared. For Professor Makarov, Bob, and even Jura, to sound nervous and scared didn't bode well for them, and it sent alarm bells ringing in Lucy's head. She still wanted to know what was going on of course, but she couldn't let her greed for knowledge blind her. She needed to keep a levelhead. Besides, she'd find out what was going on eventually.

Blankets rustled on the other side of the room and a head of blue hair popped up from underneath the blankets, brown eyes blinking blearily at Lucy and Natsu. Levy's eyes squinted as she tried to focus before putting on her glasses. Lucy smiled as Levy's eyes grew wide, rapidly flickering between her and Natsu.

"Hey," Levy greeted cautiously, sitting up and drawing the blankets tightly around her. "What are you doing here, Natsu? Lucy, why is Natsu here?"

"I slept in her bed," Natsu answered and Lucy's cheeks flushed as Levy stared at her accusingly. "Why are you so red, Luce?" He leaned close to her, "Are you embarrassed?"

"No," Lucy snapped, jerking away from him and glowering at Levy. "Are all of the students studying abroad coming back today?"

Levy's eyes widened, "Yes!" She jumped out of bed. "Master wanted all of Fairy Tail to be there when Lisanna, Laki, and Max come back. Like a welcome back party. Go! I'll meet you there."

"Okay," Natsu said, grabbing Lucy's wrist and tugging her out of the room as Levy headed to the bathroom to get changed. "C'mon, Luce."

Lucy grumbled obscenities underneath her breath as Natsu dragged her to Fairy Tail. Though she was a member of Fairy Tail, she didn't know Laki, Max, or Lisanna. So, she didn't understand why she absolutely had to be there unless the whole thing was just to show Fairy Tail's camaraderie. But, even still, she didn't see why she had to go - she didn't know the three Fairy Tail members returning. She had only heard of them recently, and because they didn't know her they may not even want her there.

"Don't worry, Luce," Natsu said as if he could read her mind. "Lisanna's going to love you, Luce. She's been so excited to meet you!"

"How does she even know about me?"

"Lisanna and Mira talk to each other often using lacrimas," Natsu informed her. "So, Mira's told her about you, and Lisanna's been waiting to meet you." He nudged Lucy, "There's nothing to worry about."

Lucy only hummed doubtfully. She always grew nervous when it came to meeting new people. She didn't after all, have the best track record. First there had been Bora, who she had been introduced to at a party and he had turned out to be a total creep, and then there had been the overly obsessive Dan Straight, who called her "Lulu" and wouldn't leave her alone. Thankfully, he had transferred schools. Although, upon considering it now, her bad luck with new people seemed to only be with men. Meeting Levy had gone fine, and though the two hadn't hung out a whole lot they had gotten quite close as roomies and even closer when Lucy had joined Fairy Tail. She was fine with Erza, too.

Maybe it was just the guys that she had bad luck with. That figures, she thought wryly. Although Natsu and Gray weren't bad. Maybe she just had sucky luck with guys who were interested in her, when she wasn't interested in them. That must be it, she decided as she and Natsu walked into Fairy Tail's building.

"Is Lisanna back yet," Natsu asked Mira who was standing near the doors.

"No," Mira pouted. She brightened, "She'll be here soon though! Laki and Max are already back if you want to go say 'hi' to them."

"Sure," Natsu said dragging Lucy along as he greeted Laki and Max.

Laki was quiet, but she had a mischievous air to her and she was pretty intelligent too. Max was considerably louder and challenged Natsu to a duel, which had half the guild roaring with laughter since Max had just recently become a B-Ranked mage, and Natsu was preparing for the S-Rank trials. Although, the laughter wasn't meant in a mean-spirited way, and Max laughed along with the guild before saying that there would be a day where'd he would eventually beat Natsu. It seemed a lot of people in Fairy Tail hoped to someday beat Natsu. Was he really that good of a mage, Lucy wondered. He must be. But he certainly didn't look it. Natsu sat at one of the emptier tables, ordering his usual food - several hamburgers, fries, hot sauce, chili macaroni and cheese, and a burrito. Lucy, got a water and grilled chicken with sweet and savory peanut sauce. She wasn't that hungry. Knowing Natsu, he'd order at least ten more things before the afternoon.

"Hi Lu," Levy sang, sitting beside the blonde, and eyeing Natsu as he eagerly bounced in his seat as he waited for his food to come. "Is he hungry?"

"He's always hungry, isn't he," Lucy questioned rhetorically, and Levy nodded. "Is Lisanna on her way?"

"No idea," Levy shrugged. "But since Mira's still standing by the door, I'd wager that yes she's on her way, but it'll probably still be awhile before she gets here." Levy peered around, "Where's Erza? And Gray?"

"Ultear came back this morning, so that's probably where Gray is," Natsu mumbled. "Or he's avoiding Juvia. One of the two."

"And Erza?" Levy pressed. Then her eyes widened, "Crime Sorcière is on campus, right?"

Natsu shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe."

"You're not helpful Natsu," Levy huffed.

"I knew where Gray was!"

Levy just rolled her eyes, and turned back to Lucy. "I guess you wouldn't know either," she muttered. "I guess it doesn't matter."

"Levy," Lucy murmured concerned.

Levy didn't answer, and turned the conversation to Ultear and then eventually Lisanna. Ultear, was Gray's sister, and also Lyon's sister. She had been studying abroad for three and a half years, and according to Levy, the relationship between the two siblings was quite rocky, something Lucy already sort-of knew given how she had seen Gray and Lyon react on the field trip. But a fierce loyalty still existed between the three siblings, and despite all of their differences they were actually quite close. Although they didn't really show it. But Levy emphasized that they were close, which Lucy found a little hard to believe.

Lisanna's relationship with her siblings was a stark contrast to Gray's relationship with his, Levy had informed her. The Strauss siblings were much more affectionate with each other, and it was much easier to see a bond between the three of them. Apparently, when they had been younger, Lisanna had nearly died and that had strengthened the bond between the Strauss siblings.

"How long has Lisanna been studying abroad," Lucy asked curiously, sipping at her water.

"Like two years," Levy answered. "She was studying in Caelum, and Ultear had been studying in Iceberg. Have you heard of them?"

"No," Lucy mumbled. "A country named Iceberg, really?"

Levy laughed, "Yeah we all thought it was pretty unbelievable and silly, too. But according to Ultear, it's actually a pretty nice country. Caelum is an island country, and Lisanna really liked it there. It was apparently pretty idyllic."

"Really? Interesting," Lucy hummed. "I'm sure that she was disappointed to come back then, if Caelum was really that idyllic."

"I think she's glad to be back," Levy commented, bumping her shoulder against Lucy's. "She'd write letters frequently to the guild and her siblings, and Mira made it sound like Lisanna was really wanting to come back because she missed us. So I'm going to guess that her joy over being back is going to outweigh her sorrow over leaving Caelum."

Lucy nodded just smiling. She couldn't really say anything more on the subject since she didn't know Lisanna that well. Natsu paused in inhaling his food, which had arrived only a few minutes ago, his eyes flickering toward the door.

"Lisanna's back," he muttered, just before there was a shriek of excitement.

Lucy twisted around in her seat, her brown eyes staring at the door. Mira was excitedly embracing a shorter girl with white hair styled into a pixie-cut. Muffled sobs could be heard coming from the two sisters, and Lucy saw Mira tighten her arms around the younger girl, who she knew to be Lisanna. The two pulled away from each other, and Lucy held in a gasp at just how blue Lisanna's eyes were. She was gorgeous, Lucy thought. The sisters chatted animatedly for a few moments, before Lisanna was surrounded by a bunch of their other guild members.

Levy nudged Lucy, "I'm going to go say 'hi', I'll be right back."

Then before Lucy could say another word Levy was darting away and joining the crowd that had surrounded Lisanna. Lucy glanced at Natsu.

"Aren't you going to go say 'hi' to Lisanna, too?"

"Nope," Natsu muttered rather nonchalantly. "She'll eventually come over here, won't she? 'Cause she'll want to meet you and that's when I'll say 'hi'. Besides, I don't really want to shove through the crowd." He wrinkled his nose in distaste, "Too many people."

Lucy smiled, but tried to hide it behind her glass of water. She poked slowly at her food, her eyes every now and then flickering up to look at Natsu. The silence surrounding them was comfortable, and she could feel his foot tapping a light rhythm against hers. It wasn't long until Levy rejoined them, her cheeks a little flushed and her eyes glimmering happily. Not long afterward, Lisanna joined them, taking a spot beside Levy and smiling shyly at Natsu and then Lucy. Up close, Lisanna looked even prettier and it made Lucy feel a little inferior. Why couldn't my eyelashes be so long, Lucy wondered.

"Lucy this is Lisanna," Levy introduced them. "Lisanna this is Lucy."

"Nice to meet you," Lisanna said smiling sweetly.

"You too," Lucy answered in return. "How did you like studying abroad?"

"It was a lot of fun," Lisanna replied. "But I missed my guild, so I guess it's a good thing that I came back." She smiled, "Life isn't the same without Fairy Tail."

"Well we missed you too," Levy cooed, grinning at Lisanna. "Didn't we Natsu?"
Natsu nodded, mumbling something through a mouthful of food. As soon as he had finished chewing he said, "Yeah." There was an awkward silence for a moment. "Yeah," he repeated.

Lucy glanced between the two, a little confused before she tried to once more engage Lisanna in conversation. But it was stilted and awkward, as if Lisanna didn't know quite what to say to her. Which was understandable since they had just met. But it made Lucy the slightest bit uncomfortable. It felt as if Lisanna didn't like her, which she guessed wasn't exactly the case, but she couldn't help but feel that way.

But the rest of the guild was happy. Because Lisanna was back.

~8~

"Why were you so awkward with Lisanna," Lucy inquired as she and Natsu wandered around the school. "Things seemed really tense."

Natsu shrugged, "No reason."

"Liar."

He huffed, "She confessed to me before she left for her study abroad." At Lucy's surprised look his eyes narrowed a little in a mock-glare, "Is it impossible to believe that someone might like me in that way?"

"No," Lucy denied. "I'm just surprised that you knew she confessed. You seem kind of oblivious, though. No offense! It's just, you seem like you'd be super oblivious even if a girl confessed to."

"It's hard to be oblivious when the girl says, 'I love you', isn't it?"

Lucy nodded, "I guess. So is that why things are awkward between you two."
"I never answered her back, so probably," Natsu shrugged and stared at Lucy surprised when her affronted stare turned to him and she hit him in the arm. "What?"
"You never responded?"

"No," he sounded like a petulant child.

"Natsu!"

"What," he whined. "I didn't know I had to respond!" He pouted.

"But it probably hurt her feelings," Lucy explained. "Although, probably not that much, since she and Bickslow appeared to be getting along rather well." She huffed, "Never mind."

Natsu grinned triumphantly, bumping his shoulder against Lucy's and cackling when the blonde stumbled and glared at him.

In the days that followed, normality resumed. Once all of the students studying abroad had come back and the novelty of their return had worn off, things were decidedly normal and boring. Classes resumed as usual, although field trips were definitely taboo, and students began preparing for the evaluation exams. Most notably, the S-Rank exam which was coming up soon. Lucy knew for a fact that Natsu was going to participate in it. For the past couple days, it had been all he was able to talk about it and it was simultaneously adorable and annoying. He was so busy preparing, in fact, that she didn't really see him much. No one actually saw him much, save for Erza and Gray. Erza was an S-Ranked mage, and she was helping Natsu and Gray prepare for the exam. Lucy was only a B-Ranked mage, so she wouldn't be much help to either of them. But, she was content with the way that things were going.

Which of course that meant that everything had to suddenly go to hell. Although, looking back on it now, it could have been a lot worse than what it was. Really, it wasn't anything that major either, but it marked a shift in life at Magnolia Academy. Iceberg and Caelum had been attacked, and not just attacked but practically razed to the ground. Of course, that made Lisanna and a lot of the other students, freak out. It was a good thing that the students studying abroad were recalled back then, Lucy had thought, upon learning about the devastating attacks on Iceberg and Caelum. The attacks on Iceberg and Caelum solidified the professors' - and the Ten Wizard Saints' - decision to halt all off-campus events, no matter what they were. That included the S-Rank exams which usually took place on Tenrou Island. "Under no circumstances were any of the students to go off campus", Jura, one of the Ten Wizard Saints, had told them, "and under no circumstances was anyone from off campus, supposed to come on campus." So, the school was effectively on lockdown.

Most of the student body was of the opinion that the professors and the Ten Wizard Saints were being overly dramatic and overprotective. But after Iceberg and Caelum were attacked, Lucy could see why the professors and Ten Wizard Saints were taking such drastic actions. That didn't mean it wasn't annoying, or anything. It was. But she felt like she could understand it a little bit. That didn't mean that the student body still wasn't extremely irritated, and that didn't mean she didn't find it a little frustrating but she could understand it.

"Lucy," Natsu whined. "I'm bored."

And those were the words that started it all.

I'm currently working on Chapter Nine, but it will probably still be awhile before I can get it out. I want to start working ahead on chapters, so that's probably why it'll take a little longer for Chapter Nine to come out. Nonetheless, I hope that you liked this chapter! Let me know what you think!