The beginning of spring

"The spring sun was shining down on the large clearing in the middle of the Eastern Forest, and on the little Natsu peacefully asleep. The child lay on the grass, with his arms spread out like a star and his mouth slightly open. His chest rose and fell gently. Occasionally, a whistle escaped his lips, and the sound of his snoring echoed across the meadow.

Next to him, Igneel also lay stretched out, enjoying the warmth of the sun like an old lizard while dozing off. Seeing the great dragon asleep was quite common, but seeing Natsu snoring so peacefully was a scene more unique than rare.

He looked so cute and so good that even Erza was undecided whether to wake him up, but in the end, it wasn't that difficult to choose the answer: you can't play with a sleeping friend.

"Wake up!" shouted Erza, throwing the flower garland she had just completed onto Natsu's head. She had already waited too long to do it!

"Wake... why?" And the child finally woke up, pulling himself up and rubbing his eyes. He was still so sleepy that he didn't notice the garland until it fell in front of his face. "What is this?" Erza was now laughing so much that she couldn't even respond. It took her a while to catch her breath. "What happened to you? Didn't you sleep last night?"

"And how can I sleep?" replied the other, spreading his arms in exasperation. The garland of flowers tilted on one side of his head made him look like a wild deity. "Don't you hear it too? In spring, all the animals get sick!"

"Sick?" Erza repeated, unable to even imagine what he was referring to.

"Of course!" Natsu continued. "Igneel told me! It's because of the changes between the winter cold and the warmth of the sun! A lot of animals get sick, and that's why they scream all day and night! Don't you hear them too?"

Oh, now everything was clearer! Erza had also noticed that with the arrival of spring, all the creatures in the forest had become noisier.

For example, the last time she and Grandeeney went out to gather herbs, they had encountered a pair of large deer bellowing at each other. For a while, the two animals had looked at each other suspiciously, but then they had started a spectacular battle with horn clashes.

Erza had also asked Grandeeney what was happening, but she had received a completely different answer - 'It's the mating season! All the animals are looking for a mate to have offspring.'

"So spring is the season of love and not of illnesses?" Natsu took his chin with one hand while Erza laughed, thinking that maybe he had misunderstood what Igneel had told him.

"But what is love?"

"Really, you don't know?" exclaimed Erza, increasingly incredulous. "Love is the most beautiful thing in the world!" And at these words, Natsu woke up completely from sleep. "More than eating and sleeping?"

"Much more!"

Natsu opened his mouth wide: he couldn't believe such a thing existed!

"Where do you find this love, then?" If it was so beautiful, he now understood why the whole forest was searching for it relentlessly.

"It's not that you find it somewhere... Love is not like a mushroom..." Erza began to explain, trying to use the clearest words possible. "Love is when you care so much about someone that you couldn't live without them."

"Like with you or with Igneel? At this point, I think I also love Grandeeney a little."

"More or less. But you and I are friends, not in love!"

"And what's the difference?" grumbled Natsu. "I can't live without you." For a moment, Erza remained literally speechless, not knowing what to say. She blushed to the point where you couldn't even distinguish where the hair began. "Th-th-those... those... in love... they do... different things from friends." The girl stammered, trying to get back to the point of the conversation.

"Like?"

"For example, they kiss by putting their lips against each other."

Natsu stayed for a moment to reflect on this, then hurriedly grabbed the big head of Igneel, who was still sleeping peacefully next to them.

"Like this?" And he pressed his lips against the dragon's muzzle. It was as if an electric shock had suddenly passed through the reptile, and Igneel opened his eyes wide. For a moment, he remained still, staring at his son, and then he jumped, lifting his head suddenly and shaking him off. "Can someone explain what's happening here?!" roared the dragon.

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