#mashima cooks sometimes

[astro-inky]

havent read 100yq in a bit but i saw what happened in the latest chapter.

ALL THOSE LUCY FANFICS ON FFN I READ. THEY WERE RIGHT ALL ALONG.

[nagirambles]

what about your opinions on lisanna in canon? have any headcannons for the strattus family?

Oh dear if you would like to see a rant I've previously had about Lisanna never getting anything in favour of Lucy, here.

I love Lisanna. Her character was so important before Edolas, and genuinely her death and her return are scenes I keep coming back to Fairy Tail for-- because they're beautiful.

But honestly, I hate how she was just discarded after Tenrou. Lisanna had some new developments with the Strauss siblings that were interesting, but after that, she never quite did anything except be in the background. I'm saying this as a Lisanna fan-- there was so much wasted potential that I'm genuinely thinking it was better off Mashima didn't give us hope.

Her character was lined up for so many things. She could have had a heartbreaking moment where she cried, because she knew she had to move on from her love for Natsu. She could have had genuine, sweet interactions with Lucy. Mashima never even expanded on the fact that he set her up as Juvia's partner! Did they just forget about it? Are they friends?? Lisanna genuinely feels like she has no friends, because in canon, her siblings are the only ones she ever has real developments with. Hell-- I'm still waiting on her finally meeting Yukino! What's with that, Mashima?

Alright, that's enough ranting. Headcanons!

They still live in the same house. For the longest time, they were the only ones with a house other than Natsu, so their generation has taken to just dropping by without warning to hang out, have dinner, or crash for the night. (It's where they all got the idea to do it to Lucy) They stopped doing it after Lisanna died to give the family some space, but now that she's back, they do it again. This time, Lucy contributes to the home invasion.

Lisanna and Mirajane occasionally have cooking competitions or cocktail-making speedruns for fun. Elfman always wins.

On Earthland, Lisanna is better at manning the bar and waiting tables, and Mirajane is better at cooking. In Edolas, it's the opposite, but to a crazy degree in which Edo-Mira is completely hopeless at cooking instead of just less skilled. (And Edo-Lis was so clumsy she destroyed every tray she carried.) Lisanna had to desperately improve her cooking skills so people could eat in the bar, but her amazing waitress skills is what made everyone realize that's not their Lisanna.

You would think Lisanna attracts animals like a disney princess, but no, the disney princess in this household is Elfman. Lisanna attracts bears, vulcans, and crocodiles like a danger magnet.

Elfman is colour blind, so Lisanna has labelled everything in the house, especially condiment bottles, with tiny little stickers with writing on them. They still have all of those to this day, even when the papers are yellowed and hardly readable.

Mirajane wears dresses because Lisanna loved to see them on her. Lisanna's clothes are a little tomboyish sometimes, because it's how her beloved big sister used to dress.

[otaku-shipper]

Taichihaya Relationship Headcanons

Chihaya confesses in the club room 30 minutes before their graduation ceremony.

Their first real kiss also happened there right after Chihaya’s confession.

Kana-chan caught them kissing. She, with the rest of the Mizusawa Club members, were stopping by the clubroom as they wait for the ceremony. When she was about to open the door, she saw them and her instinctual flight response was to pull everyone away from the clubroom hallway. Sumire immediately caught on her senpai’s embarrassed face and was about to stomped her way to the clubroom to confirm her gut feeling but Kana-chan was able to restrain her. Somehow.

There is a weird period of time when Taichi and Chihaya constantly run into Suo out of nowhere during their dates and they always end up eating in a sweets shop WITH Suo. Suo and Chihaya always force Taichi to eat their sweets. Taichi puts up with this for a while until he suspects Suo is probably stalking them so he can get free sweets. Suo is offended for how dare his favorite and only disciple accuse him, a “lonely, blind man who only wished to experience the dating world” for stalking? Taichi treats him to a sweets shop in order to placate his dramatics.  AND was forced to eat them. 

Taichi thinks helping Suo how to “date” girls seriously will get him out of his dates with his girlfriend. He believes this to be true for 3 months of not running into Suo during their dates. Not until he and Chihaya find out that Chitose is dating someone “obscure” and that someone turned out to be--Suo! They go on a double date once. Only Chihaya and Suo are happy about it.

“Of all the girls available in Tokyo, you had to choose my girlfriend’s sister? Really?” 

Reiko Mashima asked Chihaya if she had read “Pride and Prejudice”. Chihaya said no. “I see,” was all Reiko said but Chihaya thought she heard her say “You’re dumb”. 

Reiko and Chihaya has a tense relationship throughout the time Chihaya and Taichi are dating. It has something to do with Chihaya’s constant overthinking when it comes to Mrs. Pressure. Taichi learned that there is a dormant sadist residing in his mother and Chihaya had an effortlessly charming way of coaxing it out. They start a casual relationship during the engagement period. With a sprinkle of mother-in-law terrorizing here and there.

Chihaya and Taichi made the Mashima family (Oligoto, Reiko, and Rika) play karuta. Only Oligito finds it fun. He plays in Shiranami and loves Harada-sensei as the opponent. And Harada-sensei loves him for his Sun Tzu quotes in his game commentaries.

Taichi think it’s nice that Chihaya and Rika are getting along closely. It’s really nice until Chihaya becomes Rika’s accomplice in her pranks and the scenarios either end up with a) he helps them get out of it; b) he is mistaken as the culprit; c) he’s the victim. 

Taichi gets random invites from Chieko Ayase for meals. Or Chihaya becomes the errand-girl to send Taichi her mom’s homecooked food. 

“I sometimes think she loves you more than her own children. We only have *any fancy dish* on Christmas but she made this for you without a special occasion. Maybe…she has a crush on you too.” “Your Dad is going to kill me if he finds out.” "No, I think he has a crush on you too."

Chitose immediately made it clear to Taichi that she should to be married first and she doesn’t care if they have to wait 15 years until she can settle with a marriageable boyfriend. “Not all men are as committedly smitten as you, Mashima-kun.” It was non-negotiable.

Chihaya is never jealous of any girl because a) she’s an airhead who hasn’t caught up with how flirting works and b) Taichi ignores any girl who isn’t her or any of their friends. The first time jealousy came to her was when Taichi started as a junior clerk. One time when visiting the hospital, she caught him with a lot of female nurses and his “fellow junior clerks” as what he told her, in the pedia ward during a supposed “break time”. It was proven then and there that Chihaya has a female brain because she quickly came up with a hundred interpretations other than a friendly chit chat between her boyfriend and the members of the fair sex. It might also have something to do with the lesser time she got to spend with Taichi so how dare they have more time with him than her.

She had a crazy idea that in order to reinforce her place in his life above her fellow female species, she just had to cook him dinner. A surprise dinner. “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach,” Sumire once told her. She might have forgotten that math is not her strongest suit and miscalculated her cooking exp. So she decided to cook Taichi’s favorite Turkey dish when her exp range is <<cooking instant food to frying eggs and fish>>. Of course it was a failure and Taichi came home panicking about the strong smell of burnt meat only to find Chihaya splayed on the floor, crying in front of the opened oven and picking at a big mount of charcoaled mater. And cried even more when she saw him. A cleaning lady cleaned up the mess and they ordered take out. It was still one of the best nights for both of them for they ended up sleeping together on the sofa until the next day. And Taichi held her close the entire time. 

It was also the first time she realized the bigger reality of being in a relationship with a (soon to be) doctor.

When they have movie nights together in either of their apartment, Taichi and Chihaya wears a Daddy Bear and Mommy Bear onesie respectively. Tacihi made her swear to secrecy not to tell anyone. Chihaya only agreed because she discovered there’s so much power in being the sole person who has knowledge about it. Her teasing and “blackmailing” (both of them knew there were empty words but it always make Taichi tense just the same) percentage of effectiveness sky-rocketed with this weapon on hand. Besides, she finds it cute and hilarious when he blushes and panics over a Daddy Bear onesie. In Taichi’s defense, the onesie is very comfortable and Chihaya loves it when he wears it. Can you blame him?

Taichi’s internship is somewhere in the province and it is their first time dealing with being apart for months. What’s more, karuta is a forgotten game there after people graduated elementary.

Chihaya makes a surprise visit to the province and on her way to the hospital, she catches sight of a group of high school kids with a single adult man playing soccer in a field near the hospital. She recognizes Taichi who has clearly just gotten out of duty based on the rolled up sleeves of his polo, without a necktie. She silently watches them and is happy to see that Taichi doesn’t look sad or lonely at all. He looked bright, and was laughing and smiling too much...so well-adjusted. Suddenly Chihaya panicks over this because what if...Taichi has abandoned karuta for soccer and decides to stay here forever?

“Have you ever thought that I stole you away from soccer?” she asks him one day. 

“I can’t believe you came to this place and started an affair.” “What makes you think I’m cheating on you?” “Not me--KARUTA! God, it’s like you don’t know me.” 

[frostfireft]

Any thoughts on Gajevy? :D also your headcanons are super fun!!

Awww thank you!

I have mixed thoughts on Gajevy for multiple reasons. 

Canon Gajevy is very meh. Once Gajeel was introduced, Levy became kind of an orbital character where her story only really revolved around him. We know next to nothing about her compared to some of the other characters. Canon Levy is also designed to look almost like a 14-15 year old more so than a petite woman so that kinda unnerves me at points, but that could just be Mashima’s art style(because he tends to draw children with much larger eyes and she’s drawn eerily similar to Wendy). (it’s also why I like to pretend 100yq doesn’t exist. it’s not my Fairy Tail lol) But that’s a whole conversation on Japan’s interest in drawing adults women like children for the sake of fulfilling inapropriate fantasies (note how out of all the ships in FT, Levy was the one to get pregnant. :/), and that would be a very very very long post if I got into that. 

Edit: over time, I realize the above wasn't quite as true as I thought. Mashima's art style changed how she was drawn over time and she went from looking more childlike to looking more like petite woman the more I analyzed. (Excluding her first appearance where she was different all together) she was also consistently acknowledged as an adult even while she looked younger, so I assume he may have just been figuring out how to draw her. I was mostly looking at earlier appearances of Levy and Gajeel for this post as well. It easily could have been much more intentional: if others referred to her as a child (like with Wendy) or if she didn't age (like Mavis or literally every other non-aging "loli" character in anime).

However I'm going to leave my original text in, because removing it would be trying to hide it existed, and what I talked about is so a very real issue even if it's not as relevant to this ship as I believed.

Fanon though? When people actually fix her appearance so that she looks like the petit woman she is? They’re very very cute, and even if they aren’t my favorite ship (I’m fond of making them a poly with Erik because of Gajeel’s spin off, as well as many many other ships because my multishipper heart just wants to give all the characters love). I felt they deserved a lot more development than they got, and if we actually knew more about Levy, she could have been such a good character.

But that’s what fanon is for: Fixing Mashitma’s fuck ups! 

So have some fun headcanons for them: 

-Levy is the big spoon 90% of the time, and Gajeel is indeed a cuddle whore. 

-Gajeel eats the silverware in the guild and Levy is the only person who can get him to stop. 

-Levy always has snacks on hand for him and can make them if she doesn’t. Solid script is very helpful for that after all. 

-Levy will sit and play with Gajeel’s hair for hours on end, and he’ll purr loudly the entire time. 

-Gajeel likes to sleep on metal roofs because he can absorb heat the same way metal does. This means Levy can’t hug him when he first comes inside after several hours in the sun because she’ll get burnt. Luckily the heat disperses after a few minutes.

-Gajeel can barely cook because he never bothered to learn. He used to just eat metal in Phantom. Levy started teaching him about a year after they got together.

-When sleepy Gajeel speaks with a thick dravic accent. Levy struggles to understand soemtimes. it leads to lots of funny inside jokes.

-Levy will sometimes read to him while they cuddle. It’s a comfort activity for them both. 

-Gajeel buys any book he things Levy will like. Sometimes even when she already has it. To be fair she has a whole library and he doesn’t know every book she has by heart.

-Gajeel sings to her any time she lets him. He sounds better when he sings softly too. It’s very soft.

[winterune]

Was supposed to post this on Mamo’s birthday, but ended up saving it on draft, and now 5 months have passed... ^^;; Well anyway, here’s my Top 5 Favorite Mamoru Miyano Roles.

#1: Rintarou Okabe - Steins;Gate

LOLOLOL ok, Okabe’s a dork, and I love him. Mamo as Okabe was one of the most memorable roles I ever had the chance to see, especially his persona, Hououin Kyouma. Okabe in that first few episodes before the story finally kicks in was so embarrassing that when me and my brother started watching this, we wondered if we should just drop it. So glad we didn’t, though, haha. This boy is perfect in his imperfect way. His character is so well-written. Steins;Gate was so well-written. I love him!

#2: Masaomi Kida - Durarara!!

Durarara was just packed with all sorts of cool characters. I don’t think I have one character I really dislike. Kida is one of the earlier Mamo roles I encountered and it was very memorable. I don’t think I ever see any anime with a story like Durarara. A vastly diverse cast of characters with a seemingly unconnected plot points that at one point converge beautifully and left me feeling awed. Ah~ so this is what they were trying to tell. Also, you can’t get enough of all the easter eggs in these anime’s. Sad that the three-part second season wasn’t as awesome as the first season. I wish they’d animate more of Baccano, though (as I heard there are still material to be animated yet), and also Narita Ryogo’s other works. 

#3: Ignis Scientia - Final Fantasy XV

I’m still salty over XV. I was so hyped but the end product didn’t live up to my expectations. The gameplay was fun, but...it still had so many potential. Mind you, i have not played any of the dlcs, but even if i did, i don’t think it could really erase my saltiness that easy. Sometimes, I still wish there are more of the Versus XIII elements that made the end cut, because from the rumors I’d heard, Versus’s premise sounded much more solid than what we get. But, I know this particular title has gone through quite a development hell during its time, so I’ll stop there. Anyway, among the XV cast, Ignis is my best boy. Maybe I’m biased because Mamo voices him, but really, Ignis is the best character in the game! Not only is he cool, but he cooks (lol yeah I guess I’m mentioning that) and he’s a somewhat strategist?, Noctis’s adviser, and I don’t know why but I just believe that he’s the one person that will always stand by Noct. His cool-headedness always helps Noct whenever Noct can’t think straight. Also, there’s that line from the Episode Ignis trailer, where in the Japanese dub he says: saisho kara kimeteita. Nani ga orouto, Noct wa saigo made mamorinaku, which roughly translates as I’ve decided from the very beginning. Whatever happens, I will protect Noct until the end (or something along that line, forgive me if it’s not entirely correct. i’m still learning the language hehe) right before he wears the Ring of Lucii. And hearing Mamo say that still gives me goosebumps. He is very devoted! I love him!

#4: Osamu Dazai - Bungou Stray Dogs

I still have mixed feelings toward BSD, but I still find myself watching every season it releases haha. I was interested in Dazai (because of Mamo), then found myself disappointed. Then fell in love with him in the Dark Era arc or whatitsname (Dazai’s past arc), and fell out love again once we’re back to our daily BSD life. But, he’s still a cool character...sometimes, and Mamo as Dazai is both cool and fun. 

#5: Ryuji Sakamoto - Persona 5

Yeaahhh! Ryuji!!! He’s cute and fun and I love him and he’s the best friend Ren needs! There’s nothing more to say than that :D

Now, for some honorable mentions

HM1: Riku - Kingdom Hearts

Yeah! Riku, my boy! How can I not make this list without mentioning him? Though I have never played KH in Japanese, but from the clips I have seen, I just have to say that Mamo as Riku is AWESOME! His voice sounds sooo cool!!! #eargasm I didn’t like him at first, but he’s that type of character that slowly grows on me. He’s not like your shounen-hero-stereotype Sora. He was taken by darkness, and he used his own power to overcome it. It was a long journey, but he’s learned to keep the darkness at bay, to find the confidence in himself that he’d be okay. The darkness is still there, but he’s embraced it. He’s a cool character!

HM2: Koutarou Tatsumi - Zombieland Saga

God! This anime is stupid. And Tatsumi is stupid. He’s even more embarrassing than Kyouma xD But Mamo is awesome and tbh, Tatsumi kind of reminds me of Mamo himself lmao

HM3: Tamaki Suou - Ouran Koukou Host Club

This pure and precious boy xD Tbh I haven’t finished Ouran (OK, I’ll be watching Ouran after this lmao, and read the manga after that xD) but Tamaki was so memorable. He’s an ikemen. You’d think with how he exudes all that princely aura and how the girls are just fawning over him, he’s not the type to be embarrassed and blush that easily. But he is! Just like Mikorin HAHAHA. He can be stupid sometimes and he doesn’t catch on quickly to most signs. He’s so pure and precious and endearing! (But i kind of shipped Haruhi with Hikaru in the anime haha).

HM4: Shuu Tsukiyama - Tokyo Ghoul

Yeah...mentioning him because Mamo was awesome as Tsukiyama. Another one of that gaudy voices you know and love (but feel embarrassed at the same time and can’t take him seriously no matter what).

HM5: Taichi Mashima - Chihayafuru

Another one of my best boys. He’s just the type of guy and character I love! Earnest and kind in his own way and he’d do anything for the girl he loves. Mamo’s voice was so soft voicing him. I really want them to end up together and I think (based on the two anime seasons) that Taichi suits Chihaya better than Arata. Gaaah this love triangle is killing me! 

[juvian]

A turn of events - Chapter 1

Header cr.

Summary : Korimi Lockser always been one of the best students, but one day when her crush decide to come visit his friends more often, including her sister. She decide do to the dumbest thing she’s done in her life… fake being stupid to get is attention.

Disclaimer : This a fic I wrote 3 years ago, posted on wattpad and redoing it again, so i’m posting it here !  It’s mostly a fun, humorous story which i’m proud of, but it need to be taking lightly ! There’s a lot of swear words so if you aren’t confortable with that you will sadly need to skip it. The main character is also my own oc, which I talk about a lot, so if you don’t like that either you’ll need to skip.

Also Fairy tail belong to Hiro Mashima !

Main characters : Korimi Lockser (Oc), Rogue Cheney, Sting Eucliffe, Juvia Lockser, Lyon Vastia.

Shipping(s) : Oc X Lyon Vastia, Gruvia.

Genre : High school au, modern au, romance and humour.

Words : 1342

Chapters : Masterlist // Chapter 2

Chapter 1

As much as I like school… I can’t wait for this hell to end.

The last month of high school is the worst thing you can ever experience in life. Everybody is stressing out over the simple things and having no more social life. High school is pretty much like hell on earth at this point of the year. Especially for seniors like myself. The last year in high school is the moment when you have to decide what you are going to be for the rest of your life, some already know the path they are going to take and other students… not so much. Me? I always wanted to be a writer, but since I don’t want to live poor for the rest of my life, I decided to become an English teacher and write on the side. I have the best grade someone could hope for, so I am not one of the students stressing out for this last year in hell, in contrary to some of my friends…

“Can we reach the end of the year already?!” one of my best friends said, fake crying into my ear. “The exam starts in only a month and I already feel like dying honestly.”

“Sting can you just shut up for once?” I said, checking if my ear was still intact. “You probably pierce my eardrum.”

“I just said that I was feeling like dying and you don’t care?!” He said, putting his hand on his heart and looking so shock about this no fucking idea why. “What kind of friend are you?”

“The kind that hates you, but is forced to see your stupid ass because you have a cool brother.”

“Rogue cool? Are we talking about the same one?” Sting said, pointing to his step brother that looks extra done with life, which we are probably are the reason why.

“You only have one as I know.” I said, opening my locker.

“You know that this cool dude like you say, wears a pink one piece, which matches with the one he put on his cat and actually cries if he doesn’t know where she is in the house or when she does anything cute…?

“Yes? And? He’s still cooler than you.”

“You kidding me Kori?! I am the coolest guy that ever existed, nobody can resist me!”

“Sting… Shut up.” Rogue finally said to his brother whose face was probably the funniest he ever made today.

I have been friends with Sting and Rogue since we were 12. They were new in the city and while Sting was trying to show how stupid he was to make the most friends possible, his brother alone with a book and it was making me curious, so one day I decided to go talk to him, still the best decision of my life, except that I have to deal with Sting every single day of my life now , which is a real burden. Sting’s dad and Rogue’s mom married when they were five and they became really close, it’s not like they had a choice either.

I took my bag and put everything I needed for my homeworks and studying. I was going to close my locker when I received a text from my cousin.

«Hey Kori, do you think cats talk in every language that exists?! :o »

What the… was she really asking me that? I love my cousin, but she can be really weird sometimes, probably the reason why Sting is in love with her. She’s still more intelligent than Sting, this is probably why she hates him.

«Why are you asking me that??? I don’t know! Probably not »

“Who are you texting to?”  Sting asked, looking at my Phone.

“Do you know what privacy is, idiot?”

“I am your best friend! I have the right to know!”

“Can you two stop? I am getting a headache.” Rogue said, starting to walk away from us.

I closed my locker’s door and followed Rogue, Sting not far from us.

“So did you have news from Elleira lately?”

“Yes, but not for you.”

“Aww… What did I do! I want to see her again!”

“Sting last time you met my cousin you almost finished at the hospital… again.”

“And? She’s still a goddess!” He exclaimed and everybody looked at him like he was on drugs.

“Oh Sting, I didn’t know you were a masochist.”  Rogue said, with a smirk.

“For Elleira I could do anything she wants.” He said, giving us a wink.

“I so didn’t want to know that! God Sting, keep your thoughts for yourself please.”

“We don’t need to know your dirty thoughts Sting.”  Rogue said, opening his locker.

“But!”

“Just shut up and take your bag in your locker please.”

***

“So want to do something tonight?

“Like what study together? Korimi I don’t have your brain, how do you want me to do anything else other than Study?” Sting cried again.

“Do you really study anyway? And I am pretty sure your cat is smarter than you so even if you study, it’s pretty much a waste of time.”

Sting looked at me with a hurt face, but I ignored him, I said the worst in the past. We crossed the road to go to my house, we lived on the same road but mine was closer to school.

‘Actually, we can’t.” Rogue said. “My mom wants to talk to us about something, I think my cousin is returning to town with his fiancé.”

“You mean Gajeel and Levy? Meeeen… it will be hell in the house.”

“Oh yeah I think Juvia told me about it, she was too excited, I didn’t really understand when and why.”

The rest of the way Sting proceeds to cry about the fact that Gajeel was coming on his territory. We can say that they never really loved each other, plus Rogue was ignoring him when his cousin was there. Sting loved having the attention, his brother’s attention even more .

“So I’ll see you guys tomorrow?” I said giving a hug to Rogue and ignoring Sting to make him mad.

“Yes, see you tomorrow.”

“I am not going without my hug!” Sting said, forcing me into a hug and running away from me a second after with a stupid grin on his face. What did I do to deserve to meet this bitch?

Rogue smiled at me and followed his brother who was now two houses away from mine waiting for the darker one to reach him. I walked to the front of my house and saw a car that I didn’t really recognize in my parking lot. I opened the door, I knew my sister was already home, so it wasn’t locked. I put my bag on the floor and called for her.

“Juvia, you’re here?”

“Yes Kori-Chan! Juvia is in the kitchen with Lyon!”

DID SHE SAY LYON?!?!?! I AM GOING TO DIE! You are asking who the fuck is Lyon and why I am going to die? He is my sister’s boyfriend’s brother. Pretty much one of the most handsome man I ever laid eyes on. Also one of the most intelligent men I met too and a future veterinarian. Kind, but also kind of a bitch to some people, but I am not different so who cares.

I walked to my death to see my sister in an apron. Juvia is not the best cook to exist, but she is not bad, but she likes to cook to impress people. desserts are her specialty. Just in front of her, were Lyon seeting on one of the  bench of the kitchen island.

“Kori-Chan! Juvia is so happy to see you, I made some cookies. Do you want some?”

“Yeah why not?” I said shyly when I saw Lyon turning aroun,  smiling at me.

‘Hi Korimi? How was your day?”

“It was good! Thank you, and you?”

“It was good.”

I was really stressing out… Did I say that I had the biggest crush on him?

[petri808]

Imagine If...

Happy Birthday!! 🥳 💜 @yukimcffblog

Short drabble Inspired by this Mashima art

That afternoon, 7-year old Lani was running around the front yard trying to catch her older sister. As Natsu kept an eye on them, he couldn’t help but wonder, if that’s what it would have been like between his brother Zeref and he, had things turned out differently. His eldest daughter Nashi and youngest Lani were five years apart in age, similar to what they had been at the time of the dragon wars. And though Nashi would sometimes act like Lani was an annoying tag-a-long, when push came to shove, she was a fiercely protective older sibling.

He closes his eyes to their peals of laughter and tries to imagine what life may have been like 400 plus years ago. The few memories stirred up while he was unconscious led him to believe they’d been happy, content with their parents, and that Zeref would have taken a role just like Nashi has. Natsu sighs, he may have hated the person Zeref became and the lengths he had gone to that almost destroyed his friends and home, but in the end, he felt bad for the life his brother was dealt.

Grief had driven Zeref to create the brother he lost, ultimately leading to his curse, and that became the driving factor for going down the path of darkness. At the same time, he showed glimpses of the person he was or could have been. A caring man who simply loved too much. Natsu just hoped that his brothers soul had finally found peace somewhere with the one girl he’d truly loved.

A high pitched squeal wakes Natsu from his day dreaming. Lani had tackled the 12-year-old Nashi and had her pinned to the ground. Of course, Natsu knew the older girl was letting her sister win, but it brought a smile to his face nonetheless. He could imagine doing similar things to Zeref and the older boy simply allowing the rambunctious child to crawl all over him.

It would have been so great if he’d been able to change his brothers heart around or found a way to save him from the Anhkselam curse without causing his death. What would Zeref had thought about Natsu and Lucy’s kids? Would he be the quiet but cool uncle who teaches them interesting magic’s? One who could tell bedtime stories gleamed from all his years in this world to ooh and awe them. Those were nice thoughts, Natsu smiles to himself, even if it was all just wishful thinking.

“I’m hungry,” Lani holds her growling stomach.

Natsu sees Nashi take her sisters hand, and lead them back towards the cottage, “I think momma made lunch by now.”

The smell of Lucy’s cooking was making his mouth water too, but he didn’t feel like getting up just yet. ‘What would you think about all of this Zeref?’ Natsu leans back against the tree he’d been sitting next to and closes his eyes. ‘Did you ever imagine me with kids one day?’

If only right? They could have been two brothers just growing old together, bringing up a new generation of Dragneel’s. But that was okay, he’ll make the most of this life for the both of them. Natsu wouldn’t trade any of their experiences for the world. As screwed up as it may have seemed, Zeref giving him life, led him to meeting Lucy, and ultimately having a family of his own. For all of that, Natsu had to thank his brother for sacrificing a normal life in order to give him a chance at a future...

[mdelpin]

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner

AO3 | FF.Net

Summary: Natsu has finally decided, well, been encouraged to move on. He's agreed to go on a date with one of his brother's friends to try to get over the love that he's kept hidden in his heart for years. Everything's all set until Gray shows up at his door.

Disclaimer: All Fairy Tail Characters Belong To Hiro Mashima

Gray was so done with Juvia's bullshit. All he'd said was he wanted some time to himself, and she'd gone off the deep end, screaming about how he was cheating on her.

So Gray had packed all of his stuff into a bag and gotten the hell out. He'd left their apartment and started walking, his muscles relaxing with every step he put between himself and Juvia.

Even now, he knew if he turned around, he'd be able to spot her following him. She wasn't nearly as stealthy as she thought she was, and her blue hair was a dead giveaway.

Juvia was a nice girl, and maybe he'd loved her once, he wasn't even sure of that anymore. She was just too much of a hassle. She had to know what he was doing every minute of the day, became jealous of anyone he talked to for more than a minute. In the two years they'd been together, she'd managed to scare away every single one of his friends, save one. Natsu.

Natsu was the only one of his friends that would put up with her nonsense, although they would invariably clash he was too stubborn to allow himself to be run off. If Gray was honest with himself, Natsu was the one he always ran to, his last remaining haven. Every few months Gray wouldn't be able to put up with Juvia's shit anymore, and he'd go crash with Natsu.

They'd have a great time, ordering ridiculous amounts of takeout and chasing it down with even more beer. They'd play video games or watch movies till all hours, and though they would both pay for it at work the next day, it never stopped them from doing it again the following night. Sometimes they'd even wrestle like they did back when they were in high school. He loved these times. Gray smiled, happiness swelling in his chest as he thought of his best friend.

He saw Natsu’s house in the distance and sped up, already looking forward to the fun they were sure to have.

He knocked on the door, a big smile already on his face, the insult he’d come up with on the way there on the tip of his tongue when the door opened and Zeref, Natsu’s brother, took one look at him and slammed the door in his face.

Well, that was unexpected.

“Who was it, Zeref?” Gray could hear Natsu asking from inside.

“No one,” Zeref replied.

"Why don't I believe you?" Natsu replied dryly, and Gray could almost see Natsu rolling his eyes at his older brother. He heard steps getting closer, and the door opened again, this time it was Natsu.

"Oh hey, Gray" Natsu appeared happy to see him, but Gray could quickly tell something was off by the way Natsu was running his fingers through his hair, something he only did when he was nervous.

“What’s wrong with your brother?” Gray grumbled crankily, “He slammed the door in my face.”

Natsu shrugged, the message clear, It’s Zeref, who the hell knows what goes through his mind.

Gray looked at his friend, something was different. What was it? He was wearing a pair of nice jeans, along with a long sleeved button down shirt underneath an apron, his pink hair was tamed with some sort of hair product,

“Why are you dressed up?” Gray furrowed his brow as he took in the whole look and realized he might be intruding.

“Oh, uhm yeah. We’re having guests for dinner.” Natsu replied noncommittally, “Hey, come in.” He moved out of the way and urged Gray inside.

“I should go, I didn’t mean to impose,” Gray was disappointed, he’d been looking forward to spending time with his friend, but of course he should’ve called first. It was kind of a dick move on his part to just assume that Natsu would have nothing going on.

“Did you have another fight with Juvia?” Natsu eyed him knowingly, giving Gray one of the blinding grins that always went through him like rays of sunshine, leaving him warm and hungry for more.

“Yeah,” Gray agreed sheepishly, “I think this time I’m done though, I can’t take much more.”

“You always say that,” Natsu rolled his eyes, “And you always go back.”

“Not this time.”

“Mhm,” Natsu conceded, “Well you’re welcome to stay, of course. Dinner should be ready in about an hour.”

Once Natsu said that Gray started to pay attention to the smells that were coming out of the kitchen. It smelled heavenly. When did Natsu learn how to cook like that?

"Natsu, can I talk to you for a moment?" Zeref's voice was tight, and he sounded angry, as he called his brother from the kitchen.

"I'll be right there," Natsu's shoulders sagged a bit, but he kept his smile on and told Gray to make himself at home. "I'll be back in a bit."

Gray went upstairs to leave his bag in the room he usually stayed in when he crashed at Natsu’s, wondering why Zeref was acting so uptight with him. It wasn’t just that day either, his behavior towards him had been deteriorating for the last few years.

Gray really wanted to know what Zeref was talking to Natsu about, but he knew better than to eavesdrop. He looked out the window and to his great annoyance noticed Juvia hiding behind the bushes across the street.

He hadn't been kidding, he was done. As far as he was concerned, they were over. He wondered how long it would take for Juvia to give up on him. He groaned before making his way back downstairs.

Gray walked into the living room, turning on the TV and sitting down on Natsu’s sectional. Zeref walked in from the kitchen, an angry glare on his face.

He stopped and scowled at Gray, “If I give you twenty bucks will you go watch a movie or something?”

“When was the last time you went to a movie?” Gray snorted, “That would barely pay for the ticket. Why are you so uptight anyway?”

"Look, tonight is really important, and I don't want you here ruining it." Zeref hissed.

“Dude, chillax,” Gray raised his arms up in surrender, “Juvia is hiding behind your neighbor’s bush, once she gives up and goes home I’ll take off and come back later. Happy?”

Zeref looked like he was about to say something but thought better of it. Instead, he stormed towards the front door, leaving Gray staring after him as he opened it and slammed it shut.

“Where’s Zeref going?” A voice behind him made Gray jump.

“Warn a guy, will ya?” Gray groused, ignoring Natsu’s laughs, “I have no idea, why is he acting so weird anyway?”

Natsu bit his lip but didn’t say anything. His eyes widened as he looked out the window, “What the hell?”

Gray followed Natsu’s gaze only to see Zeref marching towards Juvia, his steps determined. Both of them ran towards the window and shoved their faces against it.

“Holy Shit!” Gray exclaimed as Zeref grabbed Juvia by the arm and dragged her back towards the house. “What’s he doing?”

Juvia struggled, screaming at Zeref to let her go. Natsu’s disbelief turned to amusement as Juvia began to pelt Zeref on the head with the pink umbrella she always carried with her. His laughs came out in deep rumbles that made Gray stop and look at him, a smile playing on his lips as he saw how cute his best friend looked.

“Dude, that’s your girlfriend, aren’t you going to go stop him?” Natsu urged him.

“Ex-girlfriend, “ Gray reminded Natsu as he grabbed the remote and sat back on the sofa to channel surf, “I told you, I’m done for good this time. She got herself in this mess, she can get herself out.”

Natsu continued to watch the spectacle that was happening outside his house, considering Gray’s words carefully. It felt like the universe was sending him a sign, although he already knew what Zeref would say to that.

"Oh crap, Mavis just got here," Natsu reported, and that at least was enough to make Gray curious enough to return to the window.

They watched as Mavis, dressed in a long flowy dress and heels tried to stop Juvia from hitting Zeref, who was still yelling and threatening to call the police on Juvia if she didn’t leave his property immediately. To his great embarrassment, Natsu could see all his neighbors were now outside, watching shamelessly, some even taking videos with their phones.

Mavis gave up and turned to the house, frowning when she noticed the two boys watching from inside. Natsu and Gray glanced at each other quickly before lunging towards the sofa, pretending to watch TV before Mavis came inside. For such a short person, Mavis could be downright terrifying, and she’d known both of them long enough to have no qualms about speaking her mind.

“Don’t even try it you two,” Mavis stood in front of them, all five feet of her glowering at them. “What is going on?”

Natsu and Gray communicated silently, each willing the other to speak but both remaining quiet.

“That’s Juvia out there,” Mavis pointed out, “Gray, explain.”

"Uhm, I broke up with her, and she followed me here."

“You broke up?”

“Yeah, he’s going to crash with me for a while,” Natsu offered his sister-in-law a wan smile and quickly looked away.

Gray couldn't be sure, but he thought that Mavis was looking at Natsu with something akin to pity. What was that about?

“Well, I’m sorry to hear that, I guess?” Mavis remarked, “But could you please get your psychotic girlfriend off Zeref before the police actually do show up?”

"Ex-girlfriend," Gray insisted. Mavis waved him off and pointed him to the door. Gray tried to whine his way out of it, but Mavis fixed him with a glare that had him moving instantly.

Natsu tried to pretend he was interested in the TV, but Mavis wasn't fooled. She grabbed the remote and turned the big screen off.

“Natsu honey, you can’t do this to yourself again,” Mavis started, “We’ve talked about this. This isn’t healthy for you.”

“He broke up with her for good this time,” Natsu pointed out, knowing how hollow the words sounded.

"He says that every single time," Mavis reminded him, "You know that. He might have the best intentions now, but as soon as he gets tired of playing house with you, he'll go back to her."

Natsu felt as if he'd been slapped, he knew what Mavis was saying was right but he hadn't expected her to be quite so blunt about it.

“It’s never going to happen, Natsu,” Mavis insisted, “All you’re doing is opening yourself up to get hurt again.”

“You don’t know that,” Natsu protested.

Natsu’s fists were clenching and unclenching as he tried to keep his emotions under control, but it wasn’t helping. He knew Mavis was only trying to protect him, but what if there was a chance? Gray was the only person he’d ever been in love with, even back when they were younger. What if he gave up right when the only thing he’d ever wanted was just within his reach?

“Yes I do, Natsu” Mavis pressed firmly, “And so do you.”

At those words all the fight went out of him, he wrapped his arms around himself and fought back the tears. He couldn’t be in the house anymore, he needed to get out. Needed to breathe some fresh air and get away from all this. He took his apron off with trembling fingers and threw it on the sofa.

“The roast will be ready in about twenty minutes,” Natsu informed Mavis before turning on his heel and exiting out the back door slamming it shut behind him.

“Natsu! Natsu, I’m sorry,” He could hear Mavis calling after him, he could also hear Gray and Zeref yelling, and Juvia sobbing. He tuned all of it out as best he could and walked briskly, putting as much distance as possible between himself and the chaos.

Natsu had known he was gay since middle school, but back then it wasn't exactly safe to come out, and since he'd only ever been interested in Gray, dating hadn't been something that he'd been overly concerned with.

Over the years he’d watched Gray date several girls. Some didn’t last very long, and some like Juvia, had lasted for years, and even though it did hurt to watch him with others, he couldn’t help but notice that Gray looked the happiest when he was with him. It was both his salvation and his curse.

The thing was, he knew Gray was attracted to him on some level. Every time he stayed with him after one of his fights with Juvia, he was very flirtatious and had even gone as far as holding his hand and cuddling with him on several occasions. But usually, there was alcohol involved.

The way Natsu saw it, the biggest obstacle to them dating was Gray accepting that he might have feelings for a guy. It was the biggest reason why he'd never told Gray he was gay, Natsu thought it would scare him off before he could come to that realization for himself. Natsu wasn't ashamed of who he was, he just didn't want to lose the little he did have.

Zeref and Mavis didn't see it that way, they felt Gray was aware of his feelings and was only playing with him, stringing him along until he got bored. They worried over how it affected Natsu, and he had to admit he did get depressed when Gray invariably returned to Juvia after spending weeks living with him.

Zeref had been nagging him for a long time to step back and give somebody else a chance. He’d planned this whole stupid double date to try to get Natsu to move on from what he considered to be his unhealthy obsession with Gray.

Natsu wanted to give it a chance, but he just wasn't interested in trying to build a relationship with some random person. It wasn't like he was lonely. He had friends and a job he enjoyed that paid reasonably well. He went out and did stuff. It wasn't like he spent his entire life pining and waiting for Gray to come to him, and honestly, he’d rather be alone than with someone just because.

xxx

“But Gray darling, surely you don’t mean it!” Juvia repeated for the umpteenth time as the tears continued to pour out of her blue eyes.

"I told you before I left, Juvia," Gray reminded her, not able to keep the annoyance out of his voice, "It's over, through, finished. You don't trust me, and you're suffocating me, I don't want to live like that anymore."

“Juvia can change for you,” Juvia pleaded, she had moved into a kneeling position her hands clasping his. “We can have fun with Natsu, Juvia’s sorry she accused you of cheating.”

There was something about the way she said Natsu’s name that gave him pause. It almost sounded like Juvia was jealous of Natsu. Literally, the only friend he had left. Yep, he was done with all this bullshit.

“Just go home Juvia, you’re embarrassing yourself.” Gray pulled his hands away roughly, disgusted by her antics. “And no one wants you here.”

He resented that she was trying to force herself into his safe space and he didn’t particularly like to have Natsu and her together. It always worried him that she might somehow drive him away. Gray massaged his temples, already feeling a headache coming on from the stress.

He could feel the weight of Zeref's disapproving stare without even turning around. He wanted to scream in frustration. He knew he sounded cruel but what was he supposed to do? She didn't listen, she never did. If he were any nicer, she'd never leave.

Gray saw a white-haired man, he vaguely recognized as one of Natsu's neighbors, peer at him disapprovingly before walking over to Juvia and offering her a handkerchief. Juvia took it and blew into it thanking the man for his kindness. He offered Juvia some tea, and when she accepted, Gray looked back at Zeref trying to determine whether it was safe to let her go with him. Zeref gave him a nod, and they went back inside in search of Natsu.

Except he was nowhere to be found and Mavis sat in the living room sniffling. Zeref walked over to his wife and put his arms around her comfortingly.

“Mavis, what’s wrong?” Zeref asked with concern, immediately noticing the apron on the sofa. “Where’s Natsu?”

Mavis wiped her eyes, “He - he left.”

“What do you mean he left?” Zeref and Gray asked in unison.

Mavis began to cry again, “Oh Zeref, I was so cruel! I’m so sorry,” she wailed.

“You could never be cruel, “ Zeref murmured softly as he held her close, kissing the top of her head before petting her hair gently, “Do you think you could tell us what happened?”

“I just kept to what we’d talked about,” Mavis told Zeref, “But he was so upset, his face I’ve never seen him look like that before. He just... left.”

Gray watched the couple, he was confused and still annoyed with Mavis for making him deal with Juvia when he didn’t want to. “Can someone please tell me what’s going on?”

Zeref’s eyes narrowed as he glowered at him from above Mavis’ head, “You,” Zeref spat the word out with venom, “This is all your fault.”

“How in the hell is any of this my fault?” Gray snapped, tired of Zeref’s attitude. “I literally just got here less than an hour ago. Are you ever going to tell me what your problem is with me? We used to be friends, man.”

And it was true they had been, and then they weren’t, and Gray had no idea what had changed. He hadn’t done anything differently so why was it that all of a sudden Zeref couldn’t stand him?

“You really want to know?” Zeref roared, “Fine, I’ll tell you.”

“Zeref,” Mavis warned, “Natsu will never forgive you.”

“I don’t care,” Zeref replied, “He deserves better than this fucking half-life he’s been living.”

“You want to know why he was so dressed up?” Zeref snapped, “He was going on a date, his first date. Ever. A date it took me months to talk him into.”

“Well, why didn’t you just tell me he was having a girl over, I would have left and come back later,” Gray answered testily, ignoring the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach that was trying to get his attention. “You didn’t have to be such a goddamned drama queen about it.”

“Girl?” Zeref chuckled mirthlessly, “Girl?! Do you even fucking know my brother, you moron? Natsu’s gay.”

“Natsu’s gay?” Gray repeated slowly, “What are you talking about, he’s dated lots of girls. Let me think...uhm Lucy for sure.”

Zeref shook his head at him, "He never dated Lucy, that was all her. He finally had to tell her, so she didn't make the same mistake he did."

Gray felt like the room was closing in on him as his brain tried to make sense of Zeref's words, applying a new filter to everything he'd ever known about his friend. His tongue dried up, and he desperately wanted some water, but he got up his courage and asked the question that seemed to be the answer to the mystery of Zeref's dislike.

“What mistake was that?”

“Falling in love with someone who was never going to love him back,” Zeref spat as he looked at him markedly and there was no mistaking the meaning behind his words.

That was too much for Gray, he collapsed on the sofa and stared at his hands. His best friend was in love with him.

Natsu was in love with him.

The second time he thought the words they grew concrete in his mind, and he didn't know how to feel. There was a tremendous amount of guilt as he remembered all the times they'd spent together in this house, sometimes for weeks at a time. What had he done?

He would never knowingly hurt Natsu. Sure they fought almost all the time, and they traded insults like other people exchanged greetings, but that's just how they'd always been. They respected each other and knew each other's boundaries, and he was disgusted at himself for not realizing something so important, so intrinsic to who Natsu was. What kind of friend was he?

"How-- how long?" Gray was still shellshocked, but he had to know.

Zeref refused to even look at him, the enormity of betraying Natsu’s trust weighing him down. Mavis was the one to answer his question while looking at both of them worriedly. “About ten years.”

The oven timer went off, and Mavis hurried to the kitchen, returning a few minutes later with two bottles of water. She handed one to Gray, and he accepted it thankfully.

Ten years?! He couldn’t get that thought out of his mind. He really was blind. And suddenly he was consumed with a strange mix of sadness and anger. Why hadn’t Natsu told him?

That thought decided him, he needed to talk to him, to hear the words from his mouth. Gray got up, and Mavis startled at the movement. He made his way to the back door, knowing Natsu had left that way.

“Where are you going?” Mavis asked.

“To find a gay idiot and beat the crap out of him for hiding this from me for so long.”

“Good luck,” Mavis muttered under her breath as the door slammed closed for the second time that evening. She took out her phone and dialed Zeref’s friend to warn him not to come.

xxx

Natsu wasn't sure how long he'd been walking for, but he found he'd once again headed to the stone bridge he and Gray used to play Pooh sticks on when they were little. He smiled remembering how many fights they'd gotten into over the game, each claiming their stick had won. He grabbed a twig from the ground and threw it into the river, waiting for it to appear on the other side of the bridge.

"That's not bad, but I bet I can still beat you, " Natsu heard a voice from behind him, and he instantly recognized it.

He turned to see Gray looking for a good twig amongst the rubble on the bridge.

“Gray?” Natsu blinked in surprise, “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you,” Gray rolled his eyes at his friend, “You always come here when you’re upset.”

Natsu considered that and realized Gray was right.

“Well go on, get a stick. How can I kick your ass if you don’t play?”

Natsu's eyes immediately flashed at the challenge, and he began to inspect the available game pieces, picking a stick he thought had a good chance. He went to throw it in the river when Gray stopped him.

“When I win, I want you to tell me the truth," Gray demanded, still upset that Natsu had chosen to withhold such an essential part of himself from him.

Natsu looked confused by his words, but he nodded in agreement. "Fine, but when I win, you'll have to prank call Erza." He grinned, but Gray could tell it was fake.

Both boys walked over to the spot where they knew from years of experience the river’s current flowed the fastest.

They counted to three together, letting their sticks go at the same time and rushing to the other side to see who won. Gray gloated as his stick floated by first, smirking at Natsu just as he did when they were kids. That’s when he noticed it, the way Natsu’s features visibly softened at the sight of his smile.

How the fuck had he never noticed that before? On his walk over he'd calmed down enough to be able to reason.

“Damn, I had a great prank thought up too!” Natsu complained before asking hopefully, “Best two out of three?”

Gray shook his head, playing Pooh sticks had been an excellent way to get Natsu to relax, but it wasn't the time for games. They had a lot of talking to do.

“Let’s go get some coffee or something,” Gray suggested grabbing Natsu by the arm and nudging him to walk with him. Natsu nodded and followed.

“I’m supposed to be doing the dinner thing, “ Natsu flushed guiltily, remembering how he’d walked out from his promise.

"Things happen, I'm sure you're date will understand," Gray shrugged making sure not to mention any pronouns, "You can always reschedule if you want to."

Natsu had been about to go on a date. Gray was confused to find that bothered him, not because it was with a man but because it was with anyone at all. What did that say about him? Did he want to go on a date with Natsu? While the idea didn't bother him, he was still bewildered about all of this.

He kept thinking as he led them towards the Starbucks they favored. There were a few absolute truths that Gray couldn’t overlook. He hadn’t been happy with Juvia for a long time. He could never be himself when he was with her.

In truth, the times he crashed at Natsu’s were the happiest he’d ever been. It felt like a vacation where he could be himself and know he would be accepted unconditionally. And he’d been in enough relationships to know that was a rare thing.

The only reason he returned to Juvia was that she wore him down, guilting him with her emotions. And he could only endure it for so long before he had to escape to Natsu's to recharge. The time he spent there allowed him to put up with Juvia. To try his best to make her happy by living up to the idea of him she'd dreamed up.

But he wasn’t happy, and that was a fact he couldn’t deny. He was caught in a vicious cycle, and he hadn’t even realized it, sacrificing his happiness for hers and he didn’t want to do it anymore. He deserved to be happy too.

They entered the Starbucks and got in line, remaining quiet as they waited. When it was their turn, Gray ordered their drinks, "Give me a Venti Chile Mocha with an extra shot of pepper and a Venti Espresso Macchiato. Thanks!"

He got his wallet out and paid for their drinks, once they were ready he led them back outside.

“Where are we going?” Natsu puzzled as they walked past the well-lit park and continued walking. He sipped his drink, closing his eyes and moaning childishly at the taste.

Gray tried to conceal his smile behind his own coffee as he replied, “Riverbank.”

Natsu bit his lip but continued to walk towards the place they usually fought. Once they arrived, he sat down and stared out at the water. Gray sat next to him, letting the calming sound of the water steady his nerves.

“Why did you leave?” Gray asked before he could lose his courage.

Natsu turned and looked at him, “Mavis upset me.”

“That’s not really an answer,” Gray pointed out, “And you know it.”

When Natsu remained silent, he prodded, "You promised to tell me the truth."

“Ask me any other question,” Natsu pleaded as he bowed his head, not wanting to meet Gray’s gaze.

“Look, I don’t want to torture you,” Gray leaned back and looked at the moon as he confessed, “Zeref already told me everything.”

He could almost feel Natsu coiling up next to him, and he felt sympathy, he couldn't imagine what it must feel like to be confronted with something you'd been trying to conceal for so long, by the very person you'd been hiding it from.

He was surprised to feel himself tearing up, he wasn’t a sentimental man by nature. “Why? Why would you feel the need to hide something like that from me, Natsu? It’s part of who you are.”

He felt Natsu get up and panicked, thinking his friend was going to run away from him, but Natsu only began to pace, looking at the ground until he found some stones. He started throwing them into the water, watching as they skipped in the moonlight and Gray let him have some space. When the last stone had been hurled he walked back and sat next to Gray again.

"I couldn't risk losing you," Natsu admitted, looking down at the rocky sand, "You're my best friend, even if that's all we're meant to be," He looked up, and Gray saw the tears that shone in his eyes as he declared in a trembling voice, "I need you."

"Idiot! Did you really think you'd get rid of me that easily?" Gray scoffed, wrapping his arms around his friend in a loving embrace. He could feel Natsu tensing up in his arms.

"Easy," Gray mumbled. He wasn't used to giving comfort, but it felt oddly right to be doing this now, he rubbed circles on Natsu's back until he felt him relax.

"I love you, Natsu," Gray added after some hesitation, but he thought it was important for Natsu to know how important he was to him, "I don't know if it's the same way you love me, but I need for you to be a part of my life."

Natsu started to sob at his words, and Gray held him tighter, almost missing the "I'm sorry," that Natsu whispered.

Gray found himself crying a little as well, as he felt the sobs wrack through Natsu's body.

"There's nothing to be sorry about," Gray hushed him, "I mean, I can't blame you, I'm pretty amazing."

He heard Natsu choke on his sob as he started to laugh. “Bastard!”

Gray found himself smiling at Natsu's reaction, and he released Natsu from his embrace. "That's better."

Natsu wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

"How long have you known you were gay?" Gray asked curiously, still bothered that he'd never noticed.

"Sixth-grade gym class," Natsu admitted, refusing to meet his gaze, "You had the locker next to mine."

Gray's face flushed as he realized what Natsu was saying, "Okay, that's definitely going to be weird for a while. Has it really always been me?"

Natsu face matched Gray’s as he nodded.

Gray chuckled, seeing Natsu as embarrassed as he made it seem somehow more comfortable to talk about, "That's kind of sweet, I never pegged you for a romantic."

Natsu punched him in the shoulder and Gray teased him by calling him feisty and blowing him a kiss as Natsu flipped him off. For a few moments things almost felt back to normal.

They sat in peaceful silence until Natsu asked the million dollar question. "Where do we go from here?"

“I don’t know,” Gray’s eyes were wide as he stared off into space, “This is a lot to take in.”

“Nothing has to change,” Natsu spoke in a monotone, “I’d already promised Zeref and Mavis that I’d give up on you. At least now I have my answer.”

"Fuck that! I meant what I said earlier. I'm not going back to Juvia this time, but I'm really mixed up right now." Gray confessed, debating whether to reveal some of the thoughts he'd been having, but one look at Natsu and thinking of how long he'd kept his feelings to himself decided Gray.

"Look, I'll admit, I do have some feelings for you that I'm kind of confused about, but I've never considered being with a man before, and you're too important to me. I don't want to start something unless I 'm sure."

"I understand," Natsu looked frustrated, but he didn't try to change his mind.

"Natsu," Gray sighed discontentedly. He didn't like to see his friend like this, not when he knew it was his fault. He was taken over by an urge, and before he could chicken out, he planted a soft kiss on the corner of Natsu's lips, reveling at the way it made him feel.

"Don't," Natsu yelled as he pushed him away roughly, "Don't play with me!"

"I'm s-s-sorry, you're right," Gray stammered and covered his face with his hands, not believing he'd just done that. "I hate seeing you like this, I just thought if I could feel what it felt like it might speed things along."

Natsu's lips tightened as he considered his answer and Gray found himself following them with his gaze, hypnotized by their movement and already thinking about how much he wanted to kiss them again, this time for real.

He was so confused, he had a lot to think about. Now that he knew how Natsu felt about him he found himself looking back at all their interactions and analyzing why he felt such happiness around Natsu and if it could possibly be love. It was an answer he couldn't possibly come up with in one night.

"We should head back, Mavis was pretty upset, and Zeref wasn't doing much better," Gray informed him as he stood up and shook off his clothes, "Not to mention, that food smelled great. I can't believe you made us get takeout when you could make food like that."

"I have a lot of spare time," Natsu smiled shyly, standing up as well, "I took some classes."

"You're going to make someone a great wife someday," Gray teased, already grinning at the expected response. Natsu was so easy to rile up.

"Fuck you!" Natsu growled in protest, but the melodious sound of Gray's laugh took all the fight out of him.

"Maybe, someday," Gray retorted agreeably, "But for now, let's go home," He grabbed Natsu's hand in his, and they began the long walk back to the house, neither one commenting on the gesture.

Gray's words were simple but full of a promise that Natsu had never quite dared hope for. He was willing to consider a relationship between them, and it was more than Natsu had expected. It wouldn't happen right away, but Natsu let himself hold onto it all the same. Turns out, he was a romantic after all.

A/N: This was sort of an unplanned fic, but it kept nagging at me. demanding to get written so here it is. I hope you like it!