Mermaid Tail by Cryptic_Eyes, All Rights Reserved, © 2015

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Disclaimer: These characters will be as close to the personalities of the original characters, but some moments will be OOC, to fit the story. I hope you enjoy!

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As I promised in the same night, here is the next chapter just three hours later! Woohoo! This chapter is dedicated to Mollyluvsbooks. I really appreciate all her comments; they really made me feel so happy! Thanks so much! Song is "My Escape" by Ravenscode...LISTEN TO THIS WHEN THEY DANCE. THAT IS ALL I AM GOING TO SAY BECAUSE UGH MY FEELS. Please comment and vote to support, I love to hear what you guys think! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed! Please enjoy, everyone!

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Natsu had helped her into the hammock and left her to herself, and the blonde had fallen asleep with a pounding heart.

After that, two weeks on the water sailed by, marking a month Lucy had boarded the boat known as the Fairy Tail. This part of the Obsidian had been safe travel for the blonde while she still had her tail, and she spent her days helping around the ship and continuing her bonding with the people there. She practiced more with the sword with Natsu, got some combat training as well to serve as a time filler. As those two weeks went by, Lucy was certain that this ship--of all things--was more of a home to her than the Horizon had been in the past seven years. After the night Natsu had heard her singing, the blonde and the dragon slayer seemed somehow closer.

One thing Lucy knew for certain was that they both wanted to get to the next island soon; they all did. Walking on land to Lucy was desperately needed, and she wasn't even originally from that world. So, when Levy and Wendy announced that they'd reach one of the last islands separating them from the Horizon the next day, the whole crew decided to celebrate with a big feast. A feast that Lucy helped prepare for the first time; she introduced Mira to her native delicacies, offering spices in dishes that apparently the white haired maiden didn't normally use with it.

So, when Mira approved of the way they tasted, the blonde was overjoyed she'd helped out.

"What's the name of the island?" Lucy asked, curious.

"Natantis," Erza replied, standing next to her. "It means floating, swimming."

Looking out over the side of the bow, Lucy looked at the crashing waves below them, the sun shining brightly in the blue sky. The water was clear, and she could faintly see dolphins grazing the bumps of the water in their play. She smiled, resting her chin on the heel of her palm.

"What is it?" Erza asked looking over the side in suspicion. "Sharks?"

Typical Erza, always on guard and alert no matter what.

"Nope," the blonde replied, "it's just dolphins."

"Actually, I've been meaning to ask you that for some time," the scarlet haired warrior added. "What do your people do about dangerous sea creatures such as serpents and sharks?"

"Sharks aren't as evil as humans think," Lucy started, lazily looking off into the distance. "They are dangerous, but mermaids and sharks have a mutual respect. I heard from my mother that in the old days we used to fight with them like horses are to early era human wars."

"Fascinating..." Erza murmured, her eyes wide in respectful wonder.

Lucy shrugged. "They just don't come near the Horizon. If they smell blood of course, they'll bite whatever they can. We have an aura that keeps them clear from us, something we've developed on the food chain over hundreds of years."

"And sea serpents?"

Lucy sighed. "Much different relationship. If there is anything we are afraid of, or anything that we are a rival of, it would be the serpents. They speak intelligently, but once tempted, they can decimate a whole side of the Horizon."

There was a silence as Lucy let Erza absorb the information, but then her mind was turned back to what they were originally talking about. She pulled a strand of hair out of her face, regretting letting it hang down long and wavy as she did in the water. The wind was definitely no help, either.

"Why is it referred to a name that means floating?" the blonde asked, turning her back on the ocean and looking to her left back at the red-haired female.

"The island doesn't extend underwater and into the ground; it's supported by magic and rests on the surface, giving the illusion of it being a real island."

"I've never heard of that..." Lucy replied in awe. "No wonder I didn't notice it during my travel. I must've passed right by it one night."

Erza nodded in acknowledgement. "We stopped there a couple months back, running from the authorities." Lucy laughed slightly at that. "They were preparing for the summer festival, living up to its known title as the Island of Festivities. They have celebrations for everything, including the official beginning of summer."

"But it's been summer for a while, hasn't it? Or do humans do the seasons differently?"

Erza chuckled. "No we're the same in that aspect at least. Natantis, however, is an independent island and city. Their official first summer day of the year is a little later than the rest of us."

"I see..." Lucy murmured, intrigued.

A couple of hours later when the sun was at its highest peak in the sky, the island finally came into view over the water. Lucy jumped up onto the net ladder that took a person to the crow's nest, only going up a few steps from the bow to get a better look at the approaching island.

"It's about damn time!" Gray exclaimed, his voice tight but his expression amused. "The sea was starting to make me bored."

Lucy tuned the others out as she looked at the island coming into view, delight on her face. It reminded her of the older times she'd read about in her studies, wooden-roofed stone houses with towers and bustling cobblestoned streets. Shopping stalls lined all the way to the docks, and the many buildings extended up one of the three mountains on the island, surrounding a giant building with pillars and marble steps she could see gleam from there on the ship.

"What is that building?" she asked Levy, whom had been standing there when the blonde had dropped from the rope ladder and onto the deck.

"I'm not sure," she answered, her expression puzzled. "We weren't here long enough to find out."

"We'll be docking here for a couple of days!" Natsu exclaimed from the steering wheel, the crew on the deck hearing him loud and clear.

"Yes!" Levy squealed in excitement. "That means we can go to the festival tonight! I haven't been to one in ages--I heard this place throws the best of them--"

Lucy laughed at her good friend, her excitement contagious.

As they docked, the natives there welcomed them all happily despite seeing their captain's strange hair. Lucy followed after Gray and Natsu, Plue at her heels and Happy on Natsu's shoulder. Levy was beside her, rattling on and on to Gajeel and Droy about what she had to do to prepare for the festival.

"Natsu?" Lucy asked, pulling on the back of his coat.

"Yeah, Luce?" he looked over his shoulder at her, curiosity on his face.

"Are we allowed to go to the festival?" she questioned, unable to help but feel excited and upbeat.

He smirked. "Aye! Everyone is, especially me. Can't pass up a good food opportunity!"

"I swear, all you think about is your stomach..." Gray replied, a sly grin on his face that was slightly mocking to the captain.

"What?!" Natsu started, and Lucy shook her head.

Here we go.

She was suddenly pulled away from them and the rest of the crew, and she turned to see Levy grasping her hand.

"Come on, Lu-chan!" she whispered quickly, shaking her hand everywhere in excitement. "We have to find us some dresses!"

"Dresses?" the blonde asked, blinking in confusion.

"Y-You've never worn a dress?!" she exclaimed, Mira and Erza passing by. "Oh, wait! Mira, Erza! You too come too, I need more opinions and you two need dresses too--don't forget Wendy!"

"Sounds fun!" Mira exclaimed.

Lucy could have sworn Erza's eyes were twinkling. "Ah. We must look our best."

Wendy took her position next to Lucy, smiling up at her as Charle followed at her feet. "This sounds great, right Lucy-san?"

She nodded, smiling. Her heart was warmed that she had met such great people. "Yeah!"

As the five of them shopped around, Lucy was mostly just giving her opinion. At times, she would tease Levy about how hard she was trying for Gajeel, in which Levy would puff up and get all red, shaking her hands in front of her vigorously. The action would make her laugh, and eventually Levy would join in as well after she stuck her tongue out at her blonde friend in unfairness. As they closed their shopping, which Lucy had never done before, Levy, Erza, Wendy and Mira were adamant about finding the perfect "first dress" for the mer-girl to wear.

As they looked, Lucy would often gaze at the lights hung up all over the city, the flowers lining the streets, and the faint music already playing as the smell of all kinds of food filled the air already, hours before sunset.

They were currently in their tenth shop, and Lucy jumped when she heard Levy gasp.

"This is definitely the dress you should wear, Lu-chan!" she exclaimed, practically jumping up and down.

Wendy and the other two inspected it first, but then Erza held it up with an amusingly shocked expression on her face.

Oh.

It was completely white, with ruffles along the beltline, strings hanging from it to tie in the back in a bow. The front crossed in a V, the torso of the dress smooth and the skirt decorated in lace. By looking at it, Lucy would guess it would end about her shins.

"It's beautiful!" Wendy replied, and Charle meowed in her arms.

"Why don't you go try it on, Lucy?" Mira asked, handing it to her from Erza.

Lucy started, putting her hand up. "Oh no, I couldn't--besides, the festival is mostly during the night...I'd have to go back to the boat, and I wouldn't have much time to wear such a beautiful thing..."

"Come on, Lu-chan!" Levy replied. "The best parts of festivals are always at sunset! And your transformations are a little while after it gets dark, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but..." the blonde wandered off, unsure.

"Please?" Levy questioned, Mira holding it out again.

Lucy sighed after a moment of thought, a smile beginning to appear on her face. "Alright."

"Yay!"

"What's going on here?" Mira asked.

Lucy had ended up buying the dress, and they'd returned to the Fairy Tail. People Lucy didn't recognize were setting up ladders and putting up decorations on the boat, some of the crew helping out. Laughter was heard as they conversed, and Lucy looked around and spotted Natsu talking with someone who looked important across the deck.

"We gave them permission to decorate the ship in lights for the festival," Gray explained next to the five of them, dressed in a nicer set of clothes than his normal wear.

"This is so exciting!" Wendy replied to Levy, who nodded in agreement. "It's going to look so pretty."

"Now," Mira began, taking the bag from Lucy's hands. "One more thing before we go to the festival--do you know how to dance, Lucy?"

Lucy blinked. "Dance?"

Levy let her forehead drop into her palm. "Oh no, I forgot all about that...we won't have time to teach her..."

"Oh, yes!" Lucy piped up, surprising them. "I've read all about it, and well, um...practiced in my room despite not having legs..."

Erza chuckled. "Well, we'll make sure you got it down in these last two hours before the festival."

"You really do read about everything, don't you Lucy-san?" Wendy asked, smiling.

Lucy rubbed the back of her head, a sweat drop appearing there. "W-Well, yeah..."

Erza and Mira had made sure that she'd been ready in just an hour of practice, and because of that, her head was still spinning. Luckily she hadn't needed much work; she just needed to get used to dancing with feet, not a tail. And with an hour still left, Levy helped her get ready as Wendy, Mira, and Erza changed as well, all of them helping each other get ready too. The others had went on ahead, including the captain, who had told Lucy that he'd been talking to the mayor of Natantis and making sure their presence was welcome. Of course, there had been no problems.

"Done!" Levy replied, stepping back. "I really didn't need to do anything to your face, but your hair was the big thing we needed to focus on."

"My hair?" Lucy asked, confused. "What's wrong with it?"

Levy giggled, answering her as she handed the blonde a mirror. "Your hair is so pretty Lu-chan, of course there is nothing wrong with it! There was so many ways I could have styled it, so of course it was a tough decision."

Lucy looked in the hand mirror and saw the pearls around her neck and in her ears. She turned, however, and looked at her styled hair. She had to turn to face the bigger mirror, however, and use the smaller one to look at it from the back.

Her eyes widened.

Levy had used a beaded clip to bring back two strands and twirl them together, and she had added some human thing that seemed to make her locks shimmer. She looked different, but the same at once.

"I know, looks good right?" Levy added, smiling brightly.

She herself was dressed in a pink dress, her curly short blue hair was left the way it was, just brushed through. Lucy thought she looked great, and the excitement was growing in her to experience the festival these humans did. This was what she had wanted to do all along--before she was cursed, she wanted to do things like this; make friends, enjoy the customs of the humans, try new things. This was exactly it.

"Come on!" Levy replied, setting the mirror down. "The others are waiting!"

"W-What about shoes?" the blonde asked, practically being dragged by the script mage.

They'd grabbed shoes, but it'd taken them a little while to get there to the middle of the city--the town square. People were gathered in a large circle, dancing to the music and moving the way Erza and Mira had taught Lucy. The balcony in front of the mayor's home was fit with enormously long tables, and the entire area with the lights and sparklers--something Levy had to explain to Lucy--glowed in the sunset's light. She soon found herself laughing with her friends, getting complimented by the young men there. However, she didn't feel threatened, only flattered, for she could tell they only meant to be courteous.

For the first time, Lucy felt like a human.

"Holy shit."

Natsu looked up, an eyebrow raised in question at his boatswain.

"Captain, do you see...?" Warren added, pointing as his mouth dropped open.

Natsu grunted in confusion, but followed his gesture towards the middle of the crowd, spotting Mira, Erza, Wendy, and Lucy.

"I don't see what all the fuss is about," Natsu began, adjusting his position in his seat. "They--" he did a double take.

Lucy, his beloved friend, was glowing.

He blinked again in awe, experiencing that same feeling again that he felt the night he heard Lucy singing. He tried rubbing his eyes, but that didn't work either because she still glowed to him.

"They look really nice," Gray replied, smiling kindly. "I bet this is fun for Lucy, since she's never done this before."

"Too bad she'll have to leave after the sun sets," Elfman added from across the table.

Natsu was barely hearing them, still watching as Lucy was bowed to by a stranger, an elderly man who needed a partner to the current song. She looked hesitant, looking at Levy and Erza, who encouraged her forward. She then smiled at the man, nodding and then returning his bow. As he offered his arm, Lucy looked around, as if looking for someone. The dragon slayer held his breath as she scanned the area, her eyes landing on Natsu himself.

She smiled, and Natsu was too awestruck to return it.

"What's wrong, Flame Brain?" Gray asked, smirking, knowing exactly what Natsu's problem was.

Natsu never noticed someone like he did Lucy, and after she had turned away to try and dance, he blinked out of what seemed to be a trance, and looked back at Gray. "What did you say?"

Gray chuckled.

Lucy was nervous about dancing with someone for real, but the old man was kind and was just looking to make her smile. He reminded her of the elderly mer-people back at her home at the Horizon, and once she thought of that she felt fine. The dance ended quicker than she thought, and she almost regretted having to stop twirling with the group of people. When she said goodbye, she stuck with Levy, and they went to many stalls and tried things to eat together.

When she had seen Natsu, she'd smiled a little wider, thinking he had looked very nice, especially for Natsu. Gray must've made him change, she bet. She'd felt something too, and felt like warmth had filled her chest when they'd made eye contact. Her head spinned after she'd turned away, noticing that he had already been looking at her when her eyes had landed on him.

As the sun was setting, she realized regretfully that she needed to return to the Fairy Tail before she transformed. She couldn't feel the change coming yet, but she didn't want to take the chance. So, saying goodbye to the others, she headed back by herself, making it there with no problems. In fact, she got there right as the sun disappeared, and the lights of the city were turned on.

People floated in their small rowboats with their own lights, lighting up the water so that it looked like a mirror image of the night sky; as if the stars were in the ocean. From the deck, Lucy leaned against the side, resting her elbows on the wood. With a slightly sad expression, she could still hear the faint noise of the music, the sound of people laughing. She'd eaten her fill, and she'd had the most fun, but she wished it could have lasted a little longer.

Then again, if she didn't get cursed a month ago, she never would've seen this in the first place.

She began to hum, her eyes reflecting the beautiful glowing light of the city. She smiled slightly, closing her eyes as she sang, the sea breeze blowing her hair across her face. Plue ran up to her, meowing happily, glad to see her. Happy was with him, as the animals had stayed on the boat, and she began to pet her friend as Happy walked around to find a place to eat a fish he must've stolen.

"It's no fun to be by yourself, Luce."

Lucy turned her head, seeing Natsu standing there.

Her eyes widened. "Natsu? What're you doing here?"

He smirked. "What do you mean, lass? No one should be alone right now, during the festival. Besides," he rubbed the back of his head. "Some crazy lady kept asking me if I'd seen her husband. I think she was drunk."

Lucy laughed, and it made Natsu smirk grow wider.

"So, you danced with an old man. How was that?"

"Fun," she replied honestly. "I just wished I would've been able to do it more. I like dancing, I think."

There was a moment of silence, and Lucy continued to look at the city.

Natsu grabbed her hand which was resting against the railing, pulling her away from the side.

"Natsu," she questioned in a low tone, "what are you...doing?"

"Dancing."

"You know how to dance?"

"Erza forced me to learn; she said something about it being gentlemanly or somethin."

Lucy laughed, imagining Natsu dragging his feet and Erza frightening him into learning.

Her thoughts, however, thinned away as he grabbed her other hand, resting it on his shoulder and then resting his hand on her waist. She gulped, looking up at Natsu, whose eyebrows were slightly furrowed in puzzlement.

"W-What?" she asked, afraid her face was going to heat up. Why was his face so serious?

"I forgot how to start."

The response was so abrupt it only made Lucy laugh more. She doubled over, clutching her stomach; She'd never laughed like that before.

Natsu crossed his arms. "Oi, and to think I was trying!"

Lucy straightened herself, rubbing a stray tear away. "I'm sorry Natsu, but that answer was just so you it was amusing. Here," she repositioned them, and the dragon slayer suddenly stiffened at how close they were. "I've only just learned and I still remember, silly."

Natsu shrugged, but as they tuned into the music that they could still hear despite it being soft--to Lucy at least--they got a good rhythm. Lucy led at first, but then Natsu took control and guided her steps, and she really just focused on not stepping on his feet.

He twirled her, and they both lost their balance, which made both of them laugh. Continuing, Natsu watched the radiance on Lucy's face and that unfamiliar feeling grew stronger in his chest. As the dance continued, they grew closer, their goofy dancing perfectly fine to their standards. Plue and Happy were curled up in balls, watching their companions. When Lucy returned from another spin, facing towards him, she felt the change as her tail took form instead of her legs.

"Looks like my time's up..." she murmured, looking up at the pinkette.

Lucy didn't take into account that, because of the change, she lost her balance, and was heading for a fall onto the deck. However, as she began to drop straight down from her standing, Natsu caught her. His arms around her waist, Lucy's breath thinned as her arms settled on his biceps, since he'd taken off his coat while they'd been dancing. His instinctive catch had settled his head resting against Lucy's, and even Natsu's eyes widened as he realized what he'd automatically done.

Lucy's heart was pounding, but she breathed a sigh of relief. Her dress had disappeared, waiting to reappear once her legs returned to her, and she was back in her normal mermaid outfit like always.

"T-Thank you..." she murmured, awkwardly trying to find a place for her arms.

"You okay?"

"Mhm..." his question had made her smile, and she was pleased Natsu couldn't see the present coloring of her cheeks. Feeling grateful for his concern, she slid her arms around his broad torso, resting her head on his shoulder as she closed her eyes. "...thanks to you."

Natsu's body was naturally hot; he was a fire dragon slayer. But his face was hotter than usual, and he had no idea why. Setting her down gently, Natsu pulled back and they looked at each other, Lucy smiling in gratefulness.

"Thanks for the dance," she replied, bowing despite already on the ground. "And for the save. I think...I'm completely fine now; in the sense that I can swim."

Natsu nodded, his expression impassive. He, however, felt compelled to say something else. "Luce?"

She tipped her head to the side, slightly concerned. "Yes?"

He reached for her hand again, and her eyes widened slightly. "I--"

"Captain, we're back!"

Natsu looked up, seeing a tipsy Cana being carried by Elfman, who was walking behind the girls and Gray.

"I wish you could've seen the sparklers being lit, Lu-chan!" Levy exclaimed, stepping forward. "You would have loved it!"

"Yeah..." she murmured, smiling slightly. "I wish I could have seen it."

"Well, we should all turn in for the night," Erza stated, and the rest of the crew nodded in agreement.

As they began to disperse, Natsu lifted her up and set her on the railing, and Plue joined the blonde's side. He began to step back to retire, grabbing his coat from the floor.

"Wait, Natsu?" Lucy asked, reaching her hand out slightly. "What were you going to say?"

He turned to her, smiling slightly. "Sweet dreams, Luce."

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As Natsu and Lucy grow closer, they still have yet to cross both physical and mental obstacles! With the Trackers after them, what's going to happen next?!

Find out in Chapter 7: Uncertain Future!