The Golden Eagle soared high above the patchwork quilt of fields and forests that stretched between Magnolia and the villages near the Town. The wind roared past, a constant, powerful rush that flattened Natsu's wild pink hair against his skull and whipped his white scarf into a frenzy behind him. Below, the world was a blur of green and brown, dotted with the tiny, toy-like shapes of farmhouses and winding dirt roads.
Lucky sat cross-legged near the eagle's neck, perfectly balanced, one hand loosely gripping a thick feather for stability. He watched the horizon, his expression calm, almost bored, as if riding a colossal, magical bird was the most mundane thing in the world.
Natsu, on the other hand, was vibrating with pure, unadulterated joy.
"WOOOOO!" he yelled, leaning so far over the side that his feet dangled precariously.
Lucky didn't even flinch. With a casual flick of his wrist, he reached out, grabbed the back of Natsu's scarf, and yanked him back onto the eagle's back with a thud.
"If you fall, I won't catch you," Lucky said, his voice flat and unimpressed.
Natsu scrambled up, glaring, but the fire in his eyes was more playful than angry. "Tch, Igneel taught me to land on my feet! I wouldn't need catching!"
Lucky side-eyed him (¬_¬)
Natsu started to ask lucky Questions. "Everyone knows you on the streets, why is that?!"
Lucky shrugged, giving a small wave back. "Not personally. My clones handle most of it. Portals deliver supplies. Healing potions, broken tools, fixing roofs… It's just what I do."
Natsu stared, his mind clearly struggling to process this. "So… you're like… a whole guild by yourself?"
"Exactly," Lucky replied, turning his gaze back to the horizon. "Efficiency."
Natsu slumped back, a thoughtful frown replacing his earlier excitement. For a moment, he was quiet, watching the world rush by. Then, a wide, competitive grin split his face. "Well, when I get stronger, I'll do it all by myself! No clones, no portals! Just me and my fire!"
Lucky didn't respond, just closed his eyes, letting the wind wash over him. The conversation was over.
—————————————————
They descended toward Oak Town's fields. From above, the problem was already visible: patches of farmland torn apart, crops gnawed down to stalks, burrows dotting the ground like scars. Farmers waved frantically as the eagle touched down.
Natsu was the first one off, tumbling headfirst in his eagerness, then springing up like a jack-in-the-box. He immediately started sniffing the air like a bloodhound.
"Huh?" he grunted, his nose twitching. "Smells… weird. Like dirt, but… sour. And… magic?"
Lucky dismounted more gracefully, landing beside him. "That's our target. Magic-infused rats. "
Before Natsu could respond, a group of villagers approached, led by an old farmer with a deeply lined face and eyes full of worry.
"It's Lucky who came!" one farmer called. "Thank the heavens...it's gotten worse. They're eating everything!"
Natsu tilted his head. "They're just rats, right? How bad can it be?"
"How bad can it be?" the farmer spat. "They're a plague! They aren't normal vermin! They've grown to the size of dogs, and their teeth… they glow with magic! They bite through iron traps and enchanted fences like they're paper! We've lost half our harvest already!"
The farmlands outside Oak Town stretched wide, golden stalks broken into jagged patches where the rats had chewed through them. Farmers pointed nervously toward the tree line, where faint squeaks echoed in an unnatural chorus.
Lucky crouched low, brushing a hand along the dirt. The soil was shredded with claw marks, and faint glowing crumbs of mana residue clung to the grooves. His eyes narrowed. So, they've adapted to enchantment runoff. Makes sense.
Natsu's eyes, which had been scanning the fields with mild interest, suddenly lit up like twin suns. "Perfect!" he roared, punching the air. "Monsters to fight!"
Lucky sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Natsu. We need to observe first. Understand the threat. We don't just charge in."
"But they're right there!" Natsu pointed towards a cluster of burrow holes at the edge of a field. "Look! One's coming out!"
Sure enough, a large, grotesque rat, its fur patchy and its teeth glowing with a sickly green light, scurried out of a hole. It was easily the size of a small terrier.
It was not the only Rat; the ground trembled. From the shadows of the trees, dozens, no, hundreds of glowing eyes emerged. Rats the size of small dogs poured out, their jagged teeth gleaming faintly with mana. Their whiskers sparked like tiny lightning rods, claws scraping stone as they surged forward.
Farmers screamed, retreating behind the boys.
Natsu's grin widened. "Perfect!" Fire erupted around his fists. "Now we fight!"
As he charged, a blur of pink hair and flame. "FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST!"
His fist, wreathed in fire, slammed into the ground where the rat had been. The rat, however, was unnaturally fast, darting to the side. Natsu's punch created a small crater, but the rat was unharmed.
"Hah! Missed!" Natsu taunted, turning to face the rat.
The rat didn't attack. It let out a high-pitched squeak.
The glowing-eyed rats all now stopped what they were doing and stared at Natsu.
And they all started to rush towards Natsu from all directions
"OH, COME ON!" Natsu yelled, suddenly surrounded. He swung wildly, sending fire in all directions.
AS Natsu's Fire Punch exploded, scattering three rats in a burst of flame. They squealed and rolled across the dirt, burnt but still alive. Dozens more surged forward.
Natsu roared with laughter. "Hah! Too easy!"
Then, in his excitement, he swung wide, fire trailing into the wheat field.
"Natsu, Wait..." Lucky started too late. Flames spread hungrily across the dry stalks.
Farmers shouted in horror. "The crops!"
Lucky's eyes sharpened. He raised a hand, words burning into existence above the flames:
[NO FIRE IN THIS AREA]
The spreading blaze hissed, then snuffed out like it had never existed. Only blackened dirt remained.
Natsu blinked, mid-swing. "Eh? Where'd my fire go?!"
As the Rats saw no more fire from this wired human, they all started to charge at Natsu. One latched onto his leg, biting through his pants. Another scrambled up his back, sinking its teeth into his shoulder.
"AAAAH! THEY'RE BITING!"
Lucky Sighed, and for once, he felt Makarov's pain
He calmly raised a hand. Portal Creation.
A shimmering blue oval opened directly beneath Natsu. He and the rats clinging to him vanished.
A second later, the portal opened above the center of the field. Natsu and the rats fell out in a tangled, squealing heap.
"Now, Natsu," Lucky said, stepping forward, "observe and learn."
He pointed. "They move in packs. Which means there is a leader. Which means they're coordinated. If you take out the one that leads them, then the others lose their coordination."
Natsu, brushing dirt and a few dazed rats off himself, stood up, his clothes torn and blood trickling from his shoulder. He grinned, completely unfazed. "So? I'll just punch all of them to find the Leader."
Lucky stared at him. The sheer, unadulterated Natsuness of that statement was almost overwhelming. "You're impossible."
Lucky sighed. "Fine. But you do it my way. No fire near the crops. We need to herd them, not burn the field down."
"But fire is the best!" Natsu whined.
"Would you rather explain to the farmers why they have roast rats but no food?" Lucky shot back.
For a heartbeat, the boy froze, confused. Then his jaw tightened, his flames dimming slightly. "Tch… fine. I'll do it my way."
"Good. Now, watch."
Lucky began to move. He didn't run. He walked with calm, deliberate steps, placing his feet precisely. As he walked, glowing words appeared in the air, almost invisible words of light.
As Lucky was nearing the Rats, the rats also swarmed closer, a wave of gnashing teeth and glowing claws. Lucky stepped forward, his hand moving lazily as glowing words formed in the air with each thought.
[HUGE RAT ONLY CAGE] — as a wall of golden light shimmered into existence, trapping part of the swarm.
The Rats, seeing this they retreated and began to attack from another side.
Lucky then created a small portal Next to Natsu, hovering on Natsu's side. "These are one-way. They led to a Rat cage I prepared earlier. We're going to funnel them in."
Natsu watched, his initial impatience slowly giving way to fascination. "So… you're like a… magic sheepdog?"
Lucky ignored the comment. "Your job is to push them. And when one cage gets full, I create another. After this, we burn all of them."
Natsu, with A grin and excitement, "Leave it to me."
As Natsu tore through the remaining horde, fists blazing, scarf whipping as he spun and shouted with wild joy. He wasn't graceful, not controlled, but he was relentless. Every strike knocked a rat flying, every roar shook the air with fire.
Lucky let him fight, only stepping in when flames went too wide. Each time, a calm word erased the danger.
It was chaos, raw, noisy, and destructive, but for the first time, Lucky could see the destructive potential behind Natsu's recklessness. 'If he ever decides to actually cause this type of destruction … he'll be terrifying after all. Fire Magic is one of the most destructive out there.'
——————————————————————————————————
Just as the last of the swarm began to thin, the ground split open with a deafening crack. A massive shape burst from the earth, easily the size of a carriage, fur bristling with glowing veins of mana. Its eyes burned red, teeth like jagged swords.
Natsu's eyes lit up like a child at the Winter Festival. "Lucky!!"
"Hmm"
He dashed forward, flames roaring hotter. "THIS ONE'S MINE!"
"Natsu...!" Lucky started, but the boy was already gone.
Natsu leapt high, his fist blazing. "FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST!"
The Rat King swung its massive paw. Claws like spears met Natsu's flame-coated punch. The collision rattled the fields, shockwaves ripping across the dirt. Natsu was thrown back, tumbling head over heels before he landed in front of Lucky.
Lucky didn't flinch. He Spoke. "[STRONG TRACKING MANA CHAIN]."
Glowing, ethereal chains materialized in the air, wrapping around the rat and binding it tightly. It squealed, struggling uselessly.
"See?" Lucky called out. Then decided to give Natsu a Fist of Love on his head.
"AHHH, why did you hit me?" Natsu screamed
Lucky gave Natsu a gentle smile while his fist was still raised, "Natsu, I am doing this for your own good after all, it is easier to remember something...." raising his Fist higher, "Through this."
Natsu, slightly dejected, "ok.." while he mumbles, "Lucky hits harder than Erza."
Looking at Natsu and at the huge Rat, Lucky decides to give Natsu another chance. "Natsu, Attack it right, don't just charge ahead with no plans."
"YES!" Natsu pumped his fist.
"That's more like it!"
The Rat King hissed, sparks dancing along its fur. With a roar, it unleashed a burst of crackling mana bolts of lightning-like energy arcing toward the fields.
Farmers screamed again.
Lucky's eyes glowed. [MULTI LIGHTNING ABSORBING RODS]. The bolts vanished midair, siphoned harmlessly into glowing script.
"Natsu!" Lucky shouted. "Flank it! Don't just charge head-on!"
But the boy was already running, scarf trailing, eyes blazing with fire and joy.
Lucky sighed. 'Fine. I'll cover him.'
———————————————————
The Rat King loomed over the field, claws tearing deep scars into the earth. Its fur sparked with unstable mana, each twitch sending bursts of electricity snapping through the air. It let out a shriek that rattled the bones of every farmer watching from behind the fence.
Natsu, grinning ear to ear, wiped a smear of dirt from his cheek. His fists burned hotter, the scarf around his neck whipping like a flag in the storm of sparks.
"This is it! THIS is what I wanted!" he shouted, his voice wild with excitement. He charged forward, fire exploding around his legs. "FIRE DRAGON'S CLAW!"
He spun in midair, his flaming kick slamming against the beast's side. The impact scorched its fur but barely knocked it back. The Rat King snarled, tail whipping out like a spear. Natsu barely ducked, the ground where he stood exploding into a crater.
From behind, Lucky observed with calm eyes. His clones stood by, ready but restrained. This was Natsu's fight to prove himself. Still, Lucky wouldn't let him die.
He raised his hand, script forming instantly in golden light.
[DEFLECT] — A bolt of mana lightning aimed at Natsu bent sideways, sparking harmlessly into the ground.
[STRENGTHEN] — the word shimmered briefly over Natsu's legs, doubling his leap as he launched into another attack.
Lucky's thoughts were precise, each word chosen to complement Natsu's reckless style. He wasn't teaching the boy to hold back. After all, his first teacher was a dragon and A fire dragon at that.
The Rat King slammed its claws into the dirt. Spikes of hardened earth erupted in a wave, ripping toward Natsu. The boy crossed his arms, fire roaring. "FIRE DRAGON'S WING ATTACK!"
He spun, blasting waves of fire in both directions, shattering the spikes. But the force staggered him, leaving him open.
The Rat King lunged. Its massive jaws snapped forward
Lucky acted. "Portal Creation."
A portal opened directly in the Rat King's path. The creature charged through it.
Another portal opened directly behind Natsu. The Rat King tumbled out, landing right behind the unsuspecting dragon slayer.
Lucky's eyes sharpened. "Move, Natsu!"
Natsu leapt back, panting. Sweat rolled down his face, flames flickering weaker than before. He grit his teeth. "Tch… stupid rat's tough."
Lucky stepped forward a pace, his voice calm but firm. "Then stop playing around. Focus. Use everything you have. This is your first mission, show me what you have got."
Natsu, scratching the back of his head, "I don't... have any magic left"
Lucky started to laugh, "Hahaha," after calming down and seeing Natsu's face start to turn Red, Lucky stopped "Cough... Here you go [BIG FIRE]"
A huge Fire word came into existence, it was huge enough to burn a house, but it was hovering in front of Natsu
Natsu's Eyes widened, but he started to eat like he had been starving for years
Lucky "Full?"
"Hmm"
"Then Start"
Natsu, understanding, inhaled one final time. His chest expanded to an impossible size.
"FIRE DRAGON'S… ROOOOOOOOOOAR!"
A torrent of flames erupted from his mouth, a blazing inferno that tore across the field like a living storm. The flames slammed into the Rat King, engulfing it in fire so bright the farmers shielded their eyes.
The beast shrieked, thrashing, but the fire consumed it entirely. When the blaze died down, only a scorched, unconscious husk remained.
Silence hung for a heartbeat.
Then the farmers erupted into cheers.
"I… did it…" he gasped.
Lucky walked over, looking at the Natsu. "You did. With a little help."
"Yeah… thanks," Natsu mumbled, then immediately perked up. "That was AWESOME!"
Lucky ruffling his hair, "We just killed the leader, there are still some left."
—————————————————
After a while
Natsu stood, chest heaving, flames finally flickering out. His grin was unstoppable. "Hah! Did you see that?! I roasted all of them. Totally roasted!"
Lucky walked up beside him, calm as ever, though his eyes betrayed the faintest glimmer of pride. "Not bad. A little reckless. But… not bad."
Natsu scratched the back of his head, sheepishly. "Heh… I guess I did a good job, right?"
Lucky glanced at the scorched earth, the half-burnt fence, the cratered ground.
"Sure?'
The boy blinked, then burst into laughter. "See! I'm awesome!"
The farmers rushed forward, showering both mages with thanks. A bag of Jewels was pressed into Lucky's hands, though Natsu kept trying to peek inside. "Whoa, that's a lot! Can we buy food with that?!"
"First," Lucky said, handing the bag to Natsu, "this is your pay. Your first mission. Don't lose it."
Natsu froze, staring at the weight in his hands. Slowly, a different kind of grin spread across his face. Proud. Accomplished. "My first… reward."
Natsu stared at the pouch, then at Lucky, his expression one of pure confusion. "Uh… what do I even buy with money?"
Lucky raised an eyebrow. "Furniture. A bed. A roof."
Natsu scratched his head, embarrassed. "But the forest..."
"No," Lucky said, cutting him off with a look so firm it brooked no argument. "You're living in a house now. End of discussion."
Natsu looked down at his feet, then back at the money. A small, genuine smile spread across his face. "Alright… thanks, Lucky."
—————————————————
Back on the Golden Eagle, flying home as the sun began to set, painting the sky in hues of orange and purple, Natsu slumped against the feathers, utterly exhausted but radiating happiness.
Lucky glanced at him, his voice quieter than before. "So… Natsu. Where do you want to stay now?"
The boy hesitated. "I dunno… somewhere close to the guild, I guess."
Lucky studied him. "Not the forest?"
Natsu grinned, his eyes half-closed. "Nah. The guild's… fun. Loud. Kinda feels like…" He trailed off, mumbling as sleep began to pull at him. "…like family…"
Lucky didn't reply. He just watched as the boy drifted off, scarf fluttering in the wind, a faint smile still on his face.
Back in Magnolia, the guild doors swung open again. Lucky walked in first. Behind him, Natsu stumbled sleepily, scarf lopsided, grin already returning the moment he smelled food.
"Mission complete," Lucky announced simply to Makarov.
The guild erupted into cheers again.
Natsu puffed out his chest. "I beat a GIANT RAT! With FIRE!"
The hall shook with laughter. Gray smirked. "Congrats, Squinty Eyes. You're still an idiot."
"DROOPY-EYES!" Natsu yelled back instantly, fists blazing.
And just like that, Fairy Tail roared with life again, chaos, warmth, and the first spark of something greater.