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Gray was finding it hard not to say something as he glanced down at his squirming boyfriend, especially when he caught the nervous frown that passed over Natsu’s face before it was masked by a reassuring smile. Natsu had apparently caught his worried look, but it didn’t seem as though he was in any hurry to explain his odd behaviour. The Dragon-slayer had been on edge ever since they met up that morning, either stumbling over his words or rambling about nothing, jumping whenever Gray spoke to him and at one point he had managed to send everything flying off their table. He was nervous about something, but the Ice mage had no idea what it could be, especially as everything had seemed perfectly normal the day before. Feeling Natsu shift once more he decided that was enough, reaching out to nudge the Fire mage when he realised that the other teen had shifted his attention elsewhere.
“Natsu…”
“Ah, Wendy!” Natsu shouted as he bolted up out of his seat, sparing the startled Ice mage a brief glance before dashing away from the table. “I’ll be right back!”
What the hell is going on? Gray shook his head, wondering if he would ever truly understand how the Dragon-slayer’s mind worked. For a moment he contemplated chasing after the idiot, but something made him stay put as he caught the intense expression on his boyfriend’s face as he pulled the youngest Dragon-slayer aside, and he sighed as he grabbed his drink and took a sip. He had been planning on asking Natsu if he wanted to go to the Winter Festival with him, but he hadn’t got around to it because the idiot had been acting so odd, and he resolved to do it once Natsu returned. Otherwise, he knew that there was a risk of the Fire mage making plans with the others to go as a group. Which was okay, but it seemed like weeks since they’d last managed to do something with just the two of them, and he was keen to make the most of this opportunity.
He was lost in thoughts of the Winter Festival, planning what they could get up to and he jumped violently when Happy suddenly appeared beside him, barely managing to catch his drink before it went all over the Exceed.
“Just say yes,” Happy hissed urgently as he reached out to tug on the Ice mage’s arm, making sure that Gray was looking at him, and the teen blinked down at him in confusion having no idea what the cat was on about, and struggling to pull himself out of daydreams of his date with Natsu.
“Huh?”
“He’s really nervous about this,” Happy muttered glancing anxiously across at where Natsu seemed to be finishing whatever he had been talking to Wendy about, turning back to Gray and adding quietly. “So just hear him out, and then say yes.” Gray wasn’t given a chance to reply as the Exceed took to the air a moment later after spotting the Fire mage heading in their direction, and the Ice mage was still trying to get his head around what the Exceed had been trying to tell him. Say yes to what? It’s not like I can ever really say no to the idiot anyway, but what the hell am I getting into?
“Gray….” Natsu sounded nervous, completely at odds with his usual self that Gray snapped out of his thoughts at once, blinking as he realised the Fire mage was making no effort to sit down. Remembering what Happy had said he bit back the urge to say anything, instead reaching out to grab Natsu’s hand and carefully tugging him down until he was sat on the bench beside him once more, before settling in to wait to see what had been getting the Dragon-slayer in a twist for the last few hours. Natsu seemed unable to meet his gaze, staring at the floor and fidgeting nervously, and Gray was beginning to think that he would never get the words out when he heard the Fire mage take a deep breath. “I…Would you… liketogotothewinterfestival…with me?”
It took Gray several minutes to decipher the blurted words, unable to bring himself to make the idiot repeat himself when he was staring at him with such hopeful eyes, a bright blush staining his cheeks. However, when he did, he found himself blinking in shock. They had been dating for months, and in fact, it had been Natsu that had summoned up the courage to confess his feelings first. Yet, in all that time the Fire mage had never been the one to initiate a date, always getting flustered at the mere suggestion of it, and Gray felt a grin creeping across his face as he realised that Natsu had finally managed to get past whatever fear had always stopped him before.
“Is this why you’ve been a nervous wreck all morning?”
“Y-yes,” Natsu mumbled sheepishly as he glanced off to the side, the colour in his cheeks intensifying and spreading to his eyes as he hunched in on himself, and Gray rolled his eyes slightly as he realised the Fire mage was actually afraid that he was going to say no. Idiot…
“You do realise we’ve been dating for nearly six months? I’m hardly likely to say no to a date with you now,” Gray pointed out calmly, before blinking as he caught the look of utter confusion on Natsu’s face as the Fire mage peeked up at him, and he found himself unable to do anything but shake his head. “Idiot…” He added as he pulled the Fire mage against his side, reaching down and pressing a gentle kiss to the Dragon-slayer’s forehead, smirking when Natsu scrunched his nose up in response to the gesture before glancing up at the Ice mage.
“Was that a yes?”
“You really need to hear the words?” Gray asked in surprise, before seeing the anxiety in the olive eyes and he sighed before getting to his feet, turning around and stopping Natsu from following him by leaning down and gently gripping his shoulders. Patiently he waited for his boyfriend to lift his head so that their gazes met, before offering him a small smile. “Natsu Dragneel,” he felt the tremor of anticipation that passed through the Fire mage as he leant closer, pausing when his lips were barely a couple of centimetres away from Natsu’s before whispering softly. “I would love to go to the Winter Festival with you.” Olive eyes widened at the words before he closed the last of the distance between them and captured Natsu’s lips with his own, feeling the Fire mage smiling into the kiss.
Idiot, as if I could ever say no to you.
****
The next evening:
The centre of Magnolia was heaving as was most of the town, and large numbers of visitors turned out for the Winter festival. The streets were lit with strings of blue and silver lanterns to match the season, and most of the shops had set up street stalls to make the most of the extra people, with carnival games and food stalls interspersed between them. But the primary focus of the festival was the huge ice rink in front of the Cathedral, and it was there that Gray and Natsu had arranged to meet. The Ice mage helped to set the rink up each year to ensure that it wouldn’t melt in the slightest and as much as he was looking forward to his date, he didn’t want to shirk that duty. Not that Natsu seemed to mind, he realised as he glanced across at where the Fire mage was leant against the railing watching him with soft eyes, and he shot him a smile before bringing his hands together, determined to finish his work as soon as possible. We finally have a night to ourselves, and I intend to make the most of it…
Despite his determination, it still took him nearly an hour to finish completely, and he was breathing hard by the time he excused himself from the organisers and dashed across to find Natsu, amazed that the Dragon-slayer hadn’t got bored and wandered off, but no there he was still leant in the same place. It didn’t take long for Natsu to spot him heading towards him, and he was rewarded by a brilliant grin, no sign of the previous day’s nerves to be seen.
“Sorry for making you wait,” Gray apologised as he stepped off the ice, glancing up at the clock on the front of the Cathedral and groaning as he realised that it was much later than he’d thought. “I didn’t think it’d take so long…”
“It’s okay,” Natsu reassured him, happily reaching out to take the Ice mage’s hand, blushing slightly as he gestured towards the Ice rink before adding quietly. “I like watching you work.”
“Natsu...”
“Come on,” Natsu interrupted, his blush brighter than ever, although he was still grinning as he continued cheerfully. “I’m hungry, and I’m sure you are too after all that magic.” His stomach grumbled loudly a moment later, and he let out a yelp before glancing sheepishly at Gray, more than once he’d been tempted to go off and get something to eat, but he hadn’t wanted to leave the Ice mage, and now it sounded like his stomach was trying to devour itself.
“You’re always hungry,” Gray retorted, laughing at the sound of his boyfriend’s stomach, but he allowed his overly excited boyfriend to pull him along nonetheless. Quite content to watch the childishly happy expression on the Fire mage’s face as Natsu’s head whipped from side to side in an attempt to take in everything that was going on. The festival had never really changed in all the years that they had been in the guild, but Natsu had always been ridiculously excited about it, and Gray was pleased to see that hadn’t changed despite all the hardships they had endured recently. And he found himself smiling more than he had he ages as he listened to Natsu rambling on about what they should eat and do for the rest of the evening.
I’ve missed this…
**
Eventually, they had settled on Takoyaki so that they could eat and wander around at the same time, slowly working their way around the festival and relishing the fact that they hadn’t managed to run into anyone from the guild yet. Although they had caught sight of Cana in one of the beer tents and they both winced in sympathy at the thought of the hangover, she would no doubt be nursing in the morning. Still, they didn’t linger, as they were keen to avoid having their date ruined by anyone else, and Gray let Natsu tug him away towards the fairground rides. Although he knew that they wouldn’t be able to go on them unless they wanted to end up with Natsu throwing up everywhere, it was one of the few downsides about having a Dragon-slayer for a boyfriend.
They spent nearly an hour playing on the games, and Natsu was stupidly proud of the fact that he managed to win a simple navy bracelet that he had caught Gray eyeing on a test the strength stall. Although they’d had to flee once the owner realised that he was a mage and that the equipment was no longer working. He’d then blushed brightly when the Ice mage had returned the favour by winning him a fluffy, stuffed Dragon on one of the shooting games, although his embarrassment hadn’t stopped him from carrying it around tucked under his arm as Gray guided him back in the direction of the ice rink. Usually, the Ice mage would have been heading onto the ice at this time of the evening, but he doubted that Natsu’s stomach could handle it, and there was no way he was leaving Natsu on his own, besides it had been a lovely evening regardless.
Reaching the rink Gray had just begun to push a path towards the railing so they could watch for a while when he heard someone shouting Natsu’s name, and he turned to find Wendy with Carla and Happy in tow waving at them. He was stunned when the Fire mage suddenly pulled away from him, and he could only blink in surprise as Natsu took off on him.
“Wait here!”
“Seriously?” Gray muttered irritably as he watched his boyfriend running off to speak to Wendy yet again, feeling a small flare of jealousy even though he knew that there was nothing untoward going on between them. Still, he couldn’t stop himself from watching with narrowed eyes as the pair spoke for a couple of moments, before Wendy leaned forward to rest her hands against his boyfriend’s abdomen, only the sight of her magic flaring stopping him from charging across. Although by the time Natsu had finished thanking her profusely and darted back to join him, he was shifting impatiently on the spot, and he couldn’t keep the sharpness out of his voice as he snapped at the Dragon-slayer.
“What was that about?”
“I asked her to meet up with me so that she could cast Troia,” Natsu explained quickly, somewhat taken aback by the sharp tone.
“Troia?” Gray asked blankly.
“I thought you might like to go ice skating,” Natsu mumbled, suddenly wondering if it had been as good an idea as it had seemed at the time. He certainly hadn’t been expecting Gray to act jealous about him meeting up with Wendy, although he supposed that he should have foreseen this. After all, it had been ages since they’d managed to have time to themselves without Happy, or the rest of their team interrupting them or dragging them off for jobs.
“Natsu…” Gray blinked before he realised that Natsu’s enthusiasm had died completely and he sighed, wishing that he had waited for an explanation before demanding to know what was happening. Realising that the Fire mage was no longer meeting his eyes, he stepped closer to the Dragon-slayer, reaching out to gently tilt Natsu’s head up and offering him a soft smile. “I’m sorry I snapped at you. Are you sure about this?” The Fire mage had never shown any interest in ice skating before, and as much as Gray loved it, he didn’t want Natsu to waste Troia on it if it wasn’t something he wanted to do, especially after seeing the longing gaze that Natsu had been levelling at the fairground rides.
“You might need to help me,” Natsu admitted, brightening as he caught the gleam in the Ice mage’s eyes, hearing the enthusiasm hidden beneath the concerned question and he reached up to gently brush his fingers across Gray’s cheek as he added softly. “I’ve never been able to do it before… But I definitely want to go ice skating with you!” His voice rose to emphasise his point, and he leant up to press a quick kiss to the tip of the Ice mage’s nose, and Gray felt himself blushing at the silly gesture and yet he couldn’t keep the smile off his face.
“Come on then,” he replied quietly, taking Natsu’s hand in his and squeezing the overly warm fingers gently before pulling the Dragon-slayer after him. Now that he knew that it was something that Natsu really wanted to do, he couldn’t hold back his excitement. Not only was he going to get to skate, but he was going to do it with Natsu! He really is spoiling me…
**
Natsu clung to Gray as the Ice mage led him out onto the ice, not sure what to make of the sensation of having his feet slipping out from under him, although he was relieved when there was no sickness from the motion. However, all thoughts of awkwardness faded as he glanced up at Gray and caught the soft look the Ice mage was giving him, feeling his cheeks heating up slightly as he buried his face against the Ice mage’s chest and murmuring petulantly.
“Don’t look at me like that!”
Gray laughed at the protest, pressing his lips gently to Natsu’s forehead and waiting for the Dragon-slayer to pull back slowly before gripping his hands tightly and beginning to carefully tug him across the ice. It was amusing to watch Natsu who could be surprisingly graceful in the middle of a battle, slipping and sliding wildly, but he couldn’t bring himself to tease the other this evening. Instead, he offered gentle encouragement and tips, secretly enjoying the fact that he had to hold onto the Fire mage as Natsu tried to get the hang of it, utterly uncaring of the curious looks they were receiving.
Eventually, Natsu started to get the hang of it, although by that point he had already ended up on his rear more than a dozen times despite Gray’s best efforts to keep him upright. Not that the pain and coldness seeping through his clothes didn’t seem to have fazed him in the slightest, and he was grinning as he gestured for Gray to take a few steps back. The Ice mage obeyed, missing the feel of the Dragon-slayer in his arms, but relishing the bright grin on Natsu’s face as he cautiously but steadily began to move across the ice, although Gray made sure not to stray too far just in case. At one point he thought he caught a glimpse of Lucy and Erza watching from the sidelines, but he couldn’t bring himself to check, unable to take his eyes off the sight of Natsu happily whirling around on the ice.
Now that Natsu was fully mobile, their usual rivalry surfaced, and they soon began an odd game of tag on the ice, darting in and out of families and couples. However, Gray had the advantage of more experience, and it didn’t take him long to corner the Fire mage, not that Natsu seemed too bothered by his defeat as the Ice mage had claimed his victory by dragging him into a hug and peppering his cheeks with butterfly kisses. However, the moment was ruined when they finally broke apart only for Natsu to stumble as he was hit by a wave of sickness, and Gray hastily grabbed him with a worried frown as he caught the way the Dragon-slayer had paled suddenly.
“The spell wore off didn’t it?” Gray asked quietly as it dawned on him what was happening, steadying the Dragon-slayer and peering down at Natsu in concern, sighing as he caught the stubborn expression that had appeared in response to his question. “Natsu?” He prompted, injecting a hint of steel into his voice as he knew that Natsu was likely to try and avoid admitting the truth when he was wearing that kind of expression. Olive eyes met his for a moment and then darted away before Natsu let out a defeated sigh as he nodded weakly.
“Yes…”
“Idiot, you didn’t need to push yourself this far,” Gray scolded gently, realising that the idiot must’ve been feeling nauseous for a while as he had always had some warning when Wendy’s magic was going to run out in the past. “We could’ve stopped before it got to this stage.”
“You like ice-skating,” Natsu countered even as he clutched the Ice mage’s arms to steady himself, his cheeks puffing out as his feet threatened to go out from under him, and he swallowed back fresh nausea before adding quietly. “I wanted to give you as long as possible on the ice.”
“I like spending time with you,” Gray corrected gently, wrapping his arm tightly around the Dragon-slayer as he felt Natsu beginning to tremble slightly, his face now taking on a decidedly greenish hue. Idiot… “Come on let’s get you back on solid ground, it’s getting late anyway. They’ll be letting off the fireworks soon, and then we should probably call it a night.”
“’Kay,” Natsu muttered unhappily, cursing his weak stomach even as he allowed the Ice mage to guide him off the ice, unable to protest any longer as it rolled violently and all his efforts turned to holding it in as he didn’t want to ruin the evening by actually losing control of his stomach.
Thankfully his stomach settled the moment he was back on dry land, although he didn’t complain when Gray fussed around him, forcing him to sit while removing his skates for him and then cuddling up against him while they both caught their breath. Once they were sure the worst had passed Gray left him briefly to go and return their skates and retrieve Natsu’s stuffed toy from the cloakroom, before hurrying back to the Dragon-slayer just as the Cathedral bells began to ring out and he glanced up in surprise, having thought that they had a little longer before midnight.
Cursing he sped up, managing to reach Natsu’s side once more just as the first firework lit up the sky above them, and he was rewarded with olive eyes brightening as the Dragon-slayer stared up at the sky with a smile. More and more fireworks were rocketing skywards now, and Gray gently pulled Natsu to his feet, guiding him to a slightly more open spot before wrapping his arms around the smaller teen who wasn’t able to drag his attention away from the display above them. Not offended in the slightest, Gray merely rested his head against Natsu’s before turning his own gaze towards the sky, Natsu’s warmth driving out the chill as they drank in the colourful sight.
He felt lighter than he had in a long while as watched one firework fill the sky with red and blue sparks. Feeling that, that one had been just for them, he glanced down at Natsu, startled to find the Dragon-slayer staring up at him with a look of utter contentment on his face. Unable to resist he
leant in and kissed the Fire mage, feeling Natsu pressing closer, and struggling not to chuckle as he felt the stuffed toy getting squished between them. They were both slightly short of breath when they pulled apart, and Natsu was blushing once more, but he was smiling, and the Ice mage couldn’t resist claiming another kiss before whispering softly into the closest ear.
“Thank you for tonight…”