The Demon and The Princess | NaLu

Chapter 20 - Guild In Training

"C'mon, Lucy! You can do it!"

"Shut up!" Lucy shouted. Two days had passed and she had warned the guild about what Adrian had said (leaving out what Happy did). The master was worried at first but decided to have the members work harder in training. So for Lucy's morning training, she was to jog two miles instead of one. She wasn't happy about it, but no one was. Levy was counting Lucy's laps around the guild.

"Just three more laps!" Levy cheered Lucy on. When she finished, the laid out in the grass behind the guild, watching some of the members swim. "Good job, Lucy!" Unable to reply, Lucy raised her middle finger in annoyance. Levy smiled slightly before turning on her heel and heading back into the guild.

The guild was filled with members fighting, training, or doing both. The guild reeked of sweet, blood, and alcohol. It wasn't pleasant, but no one complained. Natsu and Gajeel were trying to see who could lift the most weights near the front of the building. Some members watched the two argue as they trained.

It wasn't much of an argument, really. It was just the two staring each other down and adding on more weight until one gave up. Neither gave up, both fainted at loss of oxygen. The members laughed before helping the mages into the hospital ward.

An hour later, Lucy was sitting in between the two beds they were laying on, her feet up on Natsu's bed. At first the two argued that they were fine but shut themselves up when they were handed plates of food. Lucy was reading Eleanor and Park and listen to a radio in a corner of the room. Pop music was playing through the speakers. It was either that or heavy metal.

"I'm fine! I don't need to stay in here!" Gajeel stated. Lucy rolled her eyes.

"Walk out of the room. I dare you." She said. Gajeel accepted her dare and stood. He took one step and fell to the floor, dizziness taking over. "That's what I thought." Lucy said as Natsu laughed next to her. She stood and helped him back up and into bed.

"Oi, Lucy," Natsu said.

"Yeah?"

"How 'bout I take you on a date?" If there was anything in her mouth, she would've spit it out.

"Wha-why?" She asked, her face turning a dark shade of red.

"Why not?" He asked. Lucy's mind raced, trying to process what he asked. Before Lucy could think of a reply, Mira stepped into the room, cutting into the conversation.

"Lucy, ignore him. He's on a medicine right now and it may make him say things he doesn't mean to say."

"I'm being serious!"

"Natsu, if you are serious, you can ask again later." Mira told him, he mumbled something incoherent and crossed his arms over his chest. Mira walked over and rested her hand on Lucy's shoulder.

"It'll be better when he asks you again later." She said with a smile. She set a pitcher of water on an end table and walked out of the room. Lucy returned her attention back to her book and watched Natsu out of the corner of her eye. He had a book in his hand, he aimed it at the radio and threw it. The radio flew off the table and onto the floor, breaking and cutting off the music.

"There, now I don't have to hear that crap."

***

Aurora was sitting out on her balcony, playing with a stray cat she had found the other day. Her father wasn't pleased with her but didn't stop her from keeping it, she wasn't annoying like her older brother. The cat was a young, calico cat with green eyes. It was skinny too, barely one pound. She kicked her slippers off and rested her feet up on the marble railing. The cat was pawing at her dark, flannel skirt as Adrian stepped out onto the balcony.