Hello everyone! For those of you following my KnT story, I have a bit of writer's block and this was just dying to be wrote- it's been nagging at the back of my head for ages! Anyway, here's a twoshot NaLu fic, full of fluffy goodness! XD Enjoy! Oh yeah, I know Lucy's mum died on the 7th, but for the sake of the story, she died on the 3rd of July and Igneel disappears on the 7th. i know it's not correct, just pretend it is for this fic please ^.^ I don't own anything, but I wish I did ;)

Lucy opened her bleary eyes to see her apartment illuminated by the sunlight seeping out from behind her blinds. She smiled groggily, happy to start the day peacefully- or rather, without an unwanted intruder in her bed-for once. She woke up nearly every morning curled up next to the pink haired idiot. Honestly, he has his own apartment, why not sleep there? Did Natsu know nothing about personal space? Her mental rant abruptly ended as she remembered what day it was, and immediately a depressed aura surrounded the now disheartened girl. Today was the 2nd of July. To anyone else, this day might not hold much significance, but to Lucy it meant the world- because tomorrow would be the anniversary of her mother's death. After pondering her choices for a moment, she decided that tomorrow she wouldn't go to the guild as she didn't want to worry any of her new-found family members, and definitely not Gray, Erza, Wendy or Natsu. Speaking of Natsu... the celestial mage knew that her relationship with the dragon slayer had been a bit off recently. Whenever she was near him, she felt the need to get closer, and his toothy grin warmed her heart to no end. Yes, Lucy had finally admitted to herself that she was head-over-heels for her best friend- but she was too afraid to ruin their friendship to confess. Saving the even more depressing thoughts for a time when she was at least slightly happier than she was now, the blonde tried to get out of her bed to get ready. Note the word tried. As soon as she moved her foot, it connected with a snoring lump beside her- apparently her earlier assumption of being alone wasn't entirely correct. Her unintended kick woke the sleeping mage next to her, and as he opened his eyes, Natsu smiled at her.
"Morning, Luce! Did you sleep well?"
On any other occasion, Lucy would have kicked the dragon slayer off her bed, yelling at him to leave her alone and go back to his apartment. But today she didn't have the energy- she just wanted to curl up and cry. But she wouldn't- she was stronger than that. he didn't know what tomorrow would bring, but today she refused to cry a single tear. So, she simply sighed and sat up.
"Natsu, please leave. I need to get ready."
She hoped she sounded convincing, and as the pink-haired boy didn't protest as she got up and started to walk away in the direction of her bathroom, she was quite content that she had. That is, until a callused hand closed around her wrist, making her turn around to face him. His intense gaze was full of concern and worry was etched onto his face, his brow furrowed. She felt her heart pang as it was her who had made him look

like that in the first place.
"Luce, what's wrong? Why are you acting so sad?"
Ah. So he had noticed. Was she really that obvious? She managed to pull off a shallow smile, as she reassured the fire mage.
"I'm fine, Natsu. What made you think that I wasn't? Now, can you please let go of me, I really need to get ready."
Frowning as he did so, it was clear that Natsu wasn't convinced, bit he let the matter drop and climbed out of her window to go and pick up Happy then set off for the guild. As Lucy climbed into the bathtub, she wondered how she was going to pull off being 'happy' all day...

When Natsu reached his apartment, he flopped onto the couch and thought. There was definitely something wrong with Lucy. His brow furrowed in concentration as Happy flew up to him, worried for his best friend.
"Ne, Natsu, why are you so sad? Did Lucy kick you out again?"
The said mage sighed and turned to face his blue companion.
"No, it's not that. In fact, she was really nice to me this morning. But somthing's upsetting her and she won't tell me what. If anyone's hurt her, I swear, I'm going to beat them up!"
He announced, slamming him flaming fist into his palm at his last statement. Happy smirked, seeing an opportunity to tease his partner.
"You lllllllllllllllllllllllllike her!"
Immediately, a rose colour blossomed on his face, leaving his face a slightly darker shade than his hair- then he said it.
"So what if I do?"
Happy reeled in shock. He was well aware of the fact that Natsu was in love with Lucy, and vice versa, but he'd never got him to openly admit it. He was proud of his friend. He smiled at the still scowling, red-faced dragon slayer, and for some reason, he thought that things were going to get interesting from here on. As they both began their walk to the guild, Happy let out a malicious smile, yes, things were going to get very good.

Lucy had already reached the Fairy Tail whilst the two were having their conversation, and was currently sprawled across the counter, staring at the ice cubes bobbing up and down in her lemonade. Well, that's what it looked like she was doing. The blonde was immersed in thought, recalling countless memories from her happy childhood, the part of her life when her mother was still around. Mira, Cana, Erza, Gray and Wendy stared at her from across the room. All five had attempted to cheer up the girl, or tried to coax out what the problem was, but she answered each one in exactly the same way, stating that nothing was wrong and that she was just tired. Lucy had stayed in the same position throughout, simply smiling at anyone who approached her- but it didn't even take an idiot to see that the smile was skin-deep.
"What are we going to do?"
asked Wendy desperately, as Cana took another swig from her barrel and answered
"Well, I don't know about helping, but I always find that a bit of alcohol lightens me up!"
Everyone sweat-dropped.
"I'm pretty sure that's only you, Cana..."
Gray retaliated, stripping himself in the process.
"I do believe that we have veered off topic- only minutes ago we were attempting to find the reason that has caused Lucy so much distress. And Gray, get some clothes on."
"EH?"
exclaimed the said ice mage in surprise, before realising Wendy's presence and hunting for his lost clothes.
"Ne, ne, do you think that Natsu and Lucy had a lovers' spat?"
Asked Mira excitedly.
"No."
Everyone deadpanned, causing Mira to giggle guiltily and edging away from the group and resuming her post behind the bar. It was at this point that Natsu decided to walk in, still deep in thought. However, the guild doors seemed to have a magical effect on him, because as soon has he walked through them he grinned and greeted everyone.
"Yo!"
He shouted, eyes scanning the room for a particular person- he spotted her, and for the third time that morning his brow furrowed. Well, almost anyone would, seeing the girl they were in love with face-to-face with the mahogany counter. He made a beeline for Lucy, and Happy made his way over to Charle. Grabbing the stool next to her, Natsu collapsed onto it. He stared at that face he loved so much, the face which always had a caring smile plastered on it- but was now clouded with sadness. It made him want to cry. All this while, Lucy hadn't noticed the dragon slayer's arrival, so when he grabbed both her shoulders and forced her to face him, it came as a surprise. Despite herself, the celestial mage felt a blush rising on her cheeks and she fought to keep it at bay as the salmon haired boy gazed intently into her eyes, scrutinising her as if her eyes would tell him why his partner was so downcast. Finally deciding on simply asking, Natsu pulled an extremely serious face and started
"Lucy. Don't try and lie to me that nothing is wrong- I know you too well for that, in fact, it's so obvious to me that something- or someone- has upset you that it might as well be written across your face in neon letters. Now, can you please tell me what's wrong? I can't have one of my... nakama upset and keeping it to themselves- we're family remember?"
Natsu paused half way through his speech, trying to decide on what work to use before finally settling on 'nakama'- even though the miniskirt clad blonde meant much more to him than a simple friend. Lucy was touched by the honesty of his words and how much he cared, but she refused to let herself think that she meant anything more than a nakama to him, for that would surely only cause pain. She was at a loss for words, struggling to answer Natsu without worrying him.
"E..eh..ano...y-you see..."
She fought against the chaos in her mind, trying to come up with a reasonable answer. All the while, the dragon slayer's expression was getting more and more worried- what was so bad that Lucy couldn't even tell him what was the matter? It must be really upestting...'if it's someone's fault, I swear, they won't see tomorrow' thought the pink haired boy. He could feel anger boiling away within him, about to explode outwards any second. The celestial mage his stare was directed at still hadn't answered him, and a blush was forming due to the awkward situation. She felt so helpless. That's when Gray showed up, having once again lost his clothes and noticing the distressed blonde.
"Oi, Pinky! Whatever you're saying's making things worse for Luce! Give it a rest!"
That was it. His anger erupted, turning into orange flames as he turned to face the ice mage.
"You wanna go, ice princess? I'm trying to help, unlike you who's just walking around in boxers!"
The pair were now forehead to forehead, each giving off contrasting auras- Natsu's a firey red and gray's an icy blue. Whilst the two brawled, Lucy managed to sneak out unnoticed, unnoticed to everyone but Erza, that is. The scarlet haired warrior immediately pulled the childish duo apart and adressed Natsu, saying
"Natsu. Lucy has just left, undoubtedly heading towards her apartment. Go to her. You're the one she needs right now."
Nodding, all anger gone, the dragon slayer set off towards his beloved mage's apartment. 'Please be okay, Lucy' he thought as he turned onto Strawberry Street.

When Natsu reached Lucy's apartment, the said blonde was just coming in through the door. He was about to climb in, when he felt something tug him back down so he was hanging from the windowsill by his fingers. Turning to see what it was, his face lit up with a grin when he saw Happy flying next to him.
"Hap-mmpphh!"
"Sssshh Natsu, be quiet!"
Happy had clamped his paw over Natsu's mouth in order to stop him from speaking.
"Now, listen. If you just go in, Lucy will react the same way as she did in the guild- she'll never tell you what's wrong. But if we spy on her from out here, we might be able to figure out what's bothering her!"
Explained the exceed as he slowly removed his paw from his father-figure's mouth. The boy's face was lit with understanding.
"Ah, I see, but what if Lucy sees us?"
Asked the dragon slayer, careful to whisper as to not alert Lucy.
"Natsu. It's now ten 'o' clock at night and it's pitch black out. She doesn't have night vision like me or superior sight like you- she'll never see us!"
"Ooooooh. Wait, you have NIGHT VISION?"
"Of course- I'm a cat."
Stated Happy proudly. As this exchange of words was going on, Lucy had changed into her pajamas, and was now seated at her desk. Natsu peered through the window, now sure that he wouldn't be found, to see her stroking a picture of a woman. A woman who looked strangely like Lucy. Brushing it off as a coincidence, the boy listened closer as the blonde began to speak.
"I miss you, you know. I really do. But I can't let that get to me. I can't tell anyone, I don't want them to worry for me."
Natsu frowned. What was she saying? They were a family, they were meant to worry for each other. And then, Lucy said exactly that.
"I can almost hear them you know? If they heard me right now, they'd say 'we're a family, Lucy. Worrying for each other is what we do.' but I can't let them. It doesn't feel right. This morning, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't cry today- that went up in smoke, didn't it?"
Lucy smiled sadly as tears began to run down her face. Natsu felt the need to bolt through the window and wrap his arms around the blonde. Why was she crying all alone? It wasn't right. As he watched, his beloved slowly stopped weeping and clambered into bed, sound asleep in a matter of seconds. The pink haired mage turned to speak to Happy, but the blue cat was gone. He smiled to himself. The poor thing must have been tired. He decided that he would stay with Lucy for the night and confront her in the morning. Climbing in through the window, Natsu got into bed with the girl he loved and wrapped his arms around her waist, before falling into a fitful sleep.

Lucy awoke in the middle of the night, curled into a snug ball and feeling warmer than usual. It was as if the object beside her radiated heat. With her still half-asleep state, she snuggled closer to the object, thinking that she must have placed a hot water bottle in bed before falling asleep. That reminded her... why was she awake at about 3 'o' clock in the morning? With a pang she remembered her dream- it was more of a memory in the shape of a dream - a memory of the day her mother had died and left a vulnerable six year old Lucy behind to fend for herself, with a cold-hearted father as her only family. She missed her. She missed her so much, that she would give anything to see her just one more time. Anything. But that was impossible. Even if she gave half her body, sold her soul to the devil, it wouldn't bring her back. She knew that. That's why it hurt- she knew that she couldn't do anything about it. It made her feel so pathetic. And now, in the safety of her bed, she broke the dams. Her tears began to flow freely down her face, her expression twisting in pain as she curled up tighter. Confident that no one could hear her, Lucy Heartfilia began to sob. Her breath hitched and her cries echoed throughout the apartment, the rebounding sounds proof of her misery. As her weeps escalated in volume, She was oblivious of Natsu starting to stir beside her. He woke to the sound of a girl crying, and instantly knew that it was Lucy. He wrapped his muscular arms around her and pulled her closer to his chest, stroking her hair and whispering soothing words into her ear. Apparently, the 'hot water bottle' was actually Natsu himself, as the celestial mage found out via the hug. She stiffened at first, but when he began to pet her head and whisper in her ear, she buried her head in his chest and mourned. They remained in that position, of Lucy in a ball and Natsu curled protectively around her, for nearly an hour until the blonde's sobs subsided. When he noticed that she had calmed down, Natsu pulled away from her, but kept his comforting hands on her shoulders. By his expression, the Fairy Tail mage knew that the game was up- Natsu was going to make her tell him what happened.
"Lucy. Listen to me. Something is obviously bothering you, so much that you actually started crying. I thought something was off all week, but this just proved it. Please, just tell me what's wrong, I can't bear to see you reduced to such a state. I won't tell anyone else if that's what you want, just please... please, Lucy... I don't think I'll be able to last much longer..."
The said blonde was shocked to see that her best friend was on the verge of tears. Determination in her glazed over eyes, she took on of the dragon slayer's hands off her shoulder and gripped it tight. The boy looked up in surprise, about to ask what was wrong, but when he saw her sad, determined eyes, the words died in his mouth. He knew what this was about. He was finally going to know what was bothering Lucy, and by he'd be damned if he couldn't do everything humanely possible to help- even if that meant punching a few people's faces in. On second thought, he'd happily do that anyway. Deciding to stop thinking and just listen, Natsu turned his attention to Lucy as she began to speak.
"O-okay. I'll tell you, just please don't laugh."
He nodded in agreement before signalling for her to carry on. Taking a deep breath, she started.
"This week is probably the most significant in the year for me. Today especially is very important to me, more so than my birthday and Christmas. Because today, on the 3rd of July 777, m-my mother passed away..."
Lucy began to tear up halfway through the explanation, and by the end of it tears were once again rolling down her face. She used her hair to cover her face as best she could, but the golden locks were not enough to completely conceal her crumbling form from the concerned eyes of the fire breather, who was now wide-eyed at the sudden revelation. 'Of course!' he thought, putting the pieces together. It all made sense now. The picture of the woman that looked exactly like her was her mother and she missed her because she passed away. Feeling the need to comfort the poor girl in front of him, Natsu once again pulled Lucy into a hug, draping his arms around her trembling body and pulling her close. The girl immediately latched onto him, grabbing him by the waist as she let out all of her sorrow, all of the feelings cooped up inside her.
"How could I ever laugh at you for that?"
The dragon slayer murmured as the girl he loved whimpered into his toned chest. Natsu felt a strange deja vu about the whole situation, before realising that after Igneel left, he would be in a similar state on the anniversary of his disappearance. Certain that this would cheer up the lamenting girl, he began to tell his tale.
"Lucy, it's okay- well, I know that it's not, and that your mother passing away wasn't a good thing, so it isn't really okay but... errm... wow, I messed up big time!"
He stuttered, unable to find his footing in order to start telling Lucy his feelings, but in the process of searching for it he ended up insulting her instead! Woah, he really failed. Now Lucy would never believe him. He began to feel more and more depressed, until the girl tightened her grip and snuggled her head into his chest, signalling that it was okay and that she didn't take offence. Sighing in relief, the fire mage carried on.
"Phew, I thought I'd really done it that time! Anyway, back to what I was trying to say. What I mean is, I understand what you're going through- the pain is like when I lost Igneel. It's like a part of you is missing, and you get this hollow feeling in your stomach and your chest cramps up so you can't breathe because of the pain that is inflicted on your heart, am I right?"
Lucy, amazed at his accuracy, lifted her tear-stained face from his chest and looked up into his eyes with bitter tears still leaking out from her eyes. At the sight of the gentle, caring expression he wore, she almost wanted to cry all over again, but she refused to let them spill. She pulled away from the boy, but kept skin contact via her arms, which were still holding the other mage, refusing to let go of their only source of comfort. She sniffed, before whispering in a voice barely audible to anyone but Natsu,
"T-thank you. Having you here by my side has really helped, and for the first time ever, I think I might even be slightly happy on the 3rd of July"
At the end of her thanks, the girl gave a soft smile at the boy that over the year that she'd known him, she'd fallen for- hard. She just hoped that he felt the same way. Whilst she was reflecting, a smirk had grown on Natsu's face. Now was the perfect chance.
"Hey, Lucy, I think I know how I could make you even happier. Would you like me to give it a go?"
Lucy, innocently oblivious to what the dragon slayer had in mind, blinked before answering
"Sure, if you want to"
His grin growing wider, he pulled an unsuspecting Lucy into another hug, this one tighter, with her whole body pressed against his by the hand that was pushing at the small of her back. She let out a squeak, alarmed by the sudden action. Feeling a blush rise to his cheeks, Natsu took a deep breath before whispering the words meant only for her to hear.
"I like you, Lucy."
The girl froze within his hold, her heart thundering like a trapped bull within her chest. Was this really happening?
"W-whaaa?"
She stuttered, face dyed a strawberry red colour, bright enough to rival that of Natsu's hair. The said boy giggled nervously at her reaction before repeating himself.
"I said, I like you. L-Lucy... d-do you like me too?"
His confidence rapidly deteriorating as he spoke, hence the stuttering at the end of his speech. What if she didn't like him too? Had he ruined their friendship? Suddenly, he wished that he could burn himself a hole to hide in. However, his spirits lifted almost immediately as the blushing blonde whispered something in his ear, something that he had wanted to hear from the moment they met.
"I-I like you too, Natsu."

After their confession, neither of the pair could sleep, so they simply lay in each other's arms until 7, before walking to the guild hand in hand. As the new couple reached the doors of Fairy Tail, Natsu had a sudden idea, a delicious, juicy, incredible idea. You see, the boy loved how Lucy looked with a blush dusting her face, and he'd just thought of something that would make her blush and everyone aware of the situation. Grinning, Natsu swept the shrieking blonde off her feet, carrying her bridal style before opening the doors to the guild.
"Natsu! Put me down! Natsuuuu!"
The laughing boy looked down at the squealing girl in his arms as the entire guild looked questioningly at the pair. Putting the last phase of his plan into action, the dragon slayer called
"YO! EVERYONE, LISTEN UP!"
"WE WERE ALREADY, DUMBO! Now, what's up with you carrying Lucy? She hurt or something?"
answered a bare-chested Gray, whilst Lucy continued to shout out protests. Grinning once more, the pink-haired boy replied
"Nope! I just need to announce something. This girl right here"
He started, motioning to the struggling Lucy,
"Is hereby my girl. Hear that suckers? Hands off, Lucy's taken."
He swiftly removed one hand from behind the girl, repositioning her so that she wouldn't fall, and pointed his thumb at himself.
"We're a couple now. Lucy's my girlfriend. So quit staring at her."
"Natsuuuuuuuuuuu!"
Wailed Lucy, blushing harder and burying her head in his chest trying to hide, unwittingly making the pair look even cuter. The guild members were silent for a moment, before erupting into cheers.
"Good on, Natsu!"
"Kyaaaa, they're so cuuuutee!"
"Luuu-chaaaan, congrats!"
"Took ya long enough, flame brain!"
At this last comment, contributed by Gray, the one and only, Natsu put Lucy down gently and went to pick a fight with the ice mage, before he felt a tug on his vest. Looking back at Lucy, he saw a smug smile on her lips. At this, the guild ceased their celebrations and turned they're attention back to the couple, and more importantly, Lucy.
"If I'm your girl, then you are my boy, Natsu."
giggled the blonde, poking the said mage on his nose in the process, which earned her a blush from the normally confident fire mage.
"Sh-shut up, Luce!"
This cute display earned the couple more 'awwws' as they walked hand in hand down to the bar, where Mira assaulted them with questions. For the most part, they were happy to answer, smiling at each other as they did, that is until one particular question came up.
"So, how was your first kiss?"
The couple blushed at the question, looking away from each other, leaving Mira quite baffled.
"What? What is it?"
The pair blushed harder before Lucy answered,
"W-we haven't k-kissed yet, Mira..."
The barmaid pouted
"What? Not even a peck on the cheek?"
At this, the pair both turned towards the silverette and started explaining, with Lucy starting.
"Mira! The furthest we've got..."
"...Is a hug, or me carrying Lucy..."
"...And even that makes us..."
"...Blush!"
Finished Natsu, the pair unknowingly completing each other's sentences, which caused coos and awws to fill the guild's hall. The pair were still blushing, but after they looked at each other, it took but minutes for them to be giggling together, each hanging onto the other for dear life. The pair then joined in the celebrations under Makarov's watchful eyes, Natsu always keeping checking on Lucy from wherever he happened to be standing, getting teases from the other male mages in the room. Halfway through the party, Levy pulled Lucy over to a corner, where they proceeded to talk, and Natsu, with his superior hearing, listened in to their conversation.
"Lu-chan, I've been meaning to ask, today's your mother's... right?"
"Y-yeah..."
"Are you feeling okay?"
"W-well, I'm better then I usually am, but..."
A single tear trickled down her cheek, and it was as if that droplet of water was a catalyst for an emotion explosion within Natsu. In a flash, he was behind his girlfriend with his arms wrapped around her waist. The girl jumped, not knowing who it was behind her, before Natsu, who had drawn the attention of the entire guild, began to speak.
"No buts, Lucy. Remember, you can't cry alone now. You shouldn't have before, but now you really can't. When you smile, I smile, when you laugh, I laugh and when you cry, I'll cry along with you."
He said, and as if to prove his point, tears began to glimmer on his cheeks. The girl immediately turned around and hugged him back, looking up into his sad eyes and smiling.
"Fine, Mr. Worrywart, I get it. I won't cry alone again. Instead, why not make you cry with me? Woah, that's a wonderful idea, why hadn't I thought of that in the first place? Two birds with one stone!"
She said jokingly, using the pad of her thumb to wipe away any stray tears on his face. The pair stayed like that for a while, completely oblivious to everything surrounding them, until a particular blue cat ruined the moment.
"You lllllllllllllllllike her!"
"Nope, I don't Happy."
announced Natsu, making everyone freeze in shock. The whole guile watched in nail-biting anticipation. Was it all a joke? Did Natsu just say that he liked her to make her feel better about herself, and cheer her up on her mother's death anniversary? That was all that went through Lucy's head as she slowly lifted her eyes, which had strayed to his chest, back to his eyes, her brown orbs filled with despair. However, as soon as she saw the soft smile on the dragon slayer's lips and heard his quiet chuckle, she relaxed. Lucy knew that he'd never do anything like that to her. But then, what did he mean? As if reading her mind, the pink-haired mage said in a low, almost embarrased voice
"I don't like her. I llllllllllove her!"
Before moving his head down and kissing her softly on the cheek. The guild members were shouting their praises at Natsu, whereas both members of the newly-formed couple were blushing at Natsu's sudden action. The fire mage pulled his beloved closer and they shared another moment, hugging amongst the people that they had began to think of as family. Once they had pulled apart, Natsu smiled softly at her and told her to enjoy the celebrations, before moving towards the general direction of the bathroom. But before he could reach his destination, he was intercepted by a blushing Lucy. The boy momentarily wondered what had caused the sudden redness, before the blonde reached up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck, before giving him a soft kiss on the forehead. Blushing as they parted, the boy forgot all about his previous idea about washing his face to clear his nerves, and decided that with this girl, there was nothing to be nervous about- they both felt exactly the same way. Grinning down at her, Natsu asked
"Hey, Luce, you wanna go on out first mission as a couple together now?"

Aaaaand, that's chapter one! I realised that the quality slipped towards the end, so for that I apologise. Anyone who can think of I can improve please review, and please tell me if you enjoyed it :3 The more reviews, the faster chapter 2 comes out because I'll be all spurred on and stuff ;) Anyways, hope you enjoyed, look out for chapter 2!