He hated him. With every fiber of his fiery hot being he hated Gray Fullbuster and his arrogant, stupid, cold personality. He hated that Gray rarely smiled. He hated how easily he complained, that irritated crease between is eyebrows, the ease he would ball his fists. He hated it when that bastard picked a fight. When he would shoot insult after insult like some kind of sick frustratingly idiotic machine gun with unlimited ammunition. But what he couldn't stand was when Gray would ignore him. Like cold winds that stop for no one, that continue to flow around all in its path, not caring.
Yes, Natsu Dragneel hated Gray because of who Gray was. His appearance, his personality, hell, he hated those cold powers especially. He hated the cold. Therefore he hated Gray.
But he did like fighting Gray sometimes, he liked how those cheeks would dust scarlet as he missed a shot, how he would grimace when Natsu got a hit in, how he would look alive when they were fighting. Because Gray was just the dead, cool, frozen, unfeeling, cold. And Natsu was the fire, the ever moving and changing, burning, flickering, excited fire.
If one person was his polar opposite it would be Gray.
But even though Gray was everything he hated, Gray was still a member of Fairy Tale. Therefore he was family. If they had really been family he had a feeling that he and Grey would be twins who although possessed similar power and strength were born with opposite personalities. Mirror twins.
But that was silly thinking because Natsu knew the more that Gray bothered him, the more time he would think about Gray, the more effort he would focus on figuring that stupid bastard out, the more Gray was winning. Because Gray didn't care about anything, much less him.
So as Natsu sat in the Guild hall with a glass of something resembling tea (he really wasn't sure) in front of him, he couldn't help the way he eyes drifted around the room searching for that bastard. But he could already tell he wasn't in there. Gray smelled like a cold fresh winter breeze. He smelled of pine trees and evergreen and snow and ice and something else that Natsu wasn't sure of. Maybe something he had never smelled before. But whatever smell that Gray possessed it was currently absent from the hall. It kind of made Natsu wonder why he was even in the Guild Hall.
Lucy was nowhere to be found, neither was Erza nor Happy. Gajeel was missing too, not that Natsu really cared, but all he knew was he was really itching for a fight. Honestly the only person who really got his blood boiling enough to make a fight fun was Gray.
Natsu sighed and got up from his seat, roughly pushing the chair in as he made a beeline for the door. Screw it. He was bored and just itching to do something. Anything.
He walked outside and paused. It was still warm but he could sense an underlying cool breeze. One that rattled the trees and penetrated the warmth. A breeze that chilled him regardless of the bright sun shining warmth onto his face and body. Winter was coming.
Winter was coming.
There was a small pond directly north of the forests that were a little ways from the guild. Around that pond were tall, huge trees. Pine trees with sharp needles and dark brown peeling bark. The trees had scars, and Natsu couldn't say that he wasn't the result of a few of those. But in that pond were water lilies which were a rarity in this climate. That's how he always found the pond, the sweet scent of the water lilies.
Sometimes he would sit on the bank and think, his thoughts always seeming to stray towards him, Gray.
Was there really so much hatred and confusion and anger in his heart that he was all consumed by this strange man who couldn't seem to keep his clothes on. Maybe it was the power of Gray that kept him so infatuated with hatred. Many it was because Gray was almost t the same strength as him, not that he would ever admit that outloud. How could that cold, icy, frozen power beat out the hot and uncontrollable power of his raw fire. Fire consumed all, and burned what was in its path. Ice just petrifies and preserves.
Fire was the element of anger but cold was the element of ice, ignorance, anger too.
He knew that he and Gray were alike in ways but also so polar opposites. Even their own powers represented it.
He sighed and put his head in his hands, gazing out at the lilies that filled the pond. He just wanted his thoughts to be quiet, to stop. He was tired of thinking about Gray. It was getting him and riled up. His whole body was tensed, his face heated, itching for a fight. Itching to hit that cold icy skin, to pull that soft hair, to grip that chest and crush it. To crush him into his chest and to burn that ice cold body. To set fire to that corpse. Oh god he felt like a corpse.
He felt like a fucking corpse.
As he brushed off his clothes from the dirt and grass that covered him from sitting on the bank for so long, he looked up at the sky. It was getting dark. Orange and red and pink streaks covered the sky seeming to be ribbons from that bright orange fiery sun. The fiery sky.
Soon to be replaced by that deep midnight blue. The color of Gray's hair.
He hated the night.
Somehow he ended up at Lucys. He knew she wasn't home, he could tell the minute he walked in. The lack of screaming gave it away. He sighed and fell onto her bed. It was softer than his.
Next time he knew he was fast asleep, not that he expected differently. His dreams were plagued with white and blue ice. He hated ice.
He woke up to something cold next to him. He slowly opened his eyes to see a mop of dark hair on the pillow next to him. He smelled pine trees. He could already feel his face getting warm.
"What thE HELL" He shouted and pushed the other person out of the bed. He could tell it was Gray.
The barely clothed Ice Mage quickly jumped to his feet, wiping his eyes with one hand and scowling at Natsu. "What are you screaming about this early in the morning?" He monotonely questioned, his hair flopping into his eyes.
"Why the hell were you in my bed." Natsu flung his legs over the side and rose to his feet, standing in front of Gray, eyes deadlocked on his dark orbs.
"You mean Lucys bed?" Gray smirked and Natsu felt a growl emerge from his throat.
"You know what I fucking mean dumbass." He spat and narrowed his fiery eyes. "What were you doing." He grabbed Grays arm and pulled him closer, staring down at him furiously.
"Chill out." Gray stated and the cold arm in Natsu's grip suddenly felt so cold in burned and he sharply let go. "I was tired. This is where I usually crash when I don't feel like walking all the way home. How is this any different than any other day."
Natsu seethed. "because! Lucy isn't even here?"
Gray scoffed "yeah because she's on a mission with Erza and Happy." That stopped Natsu in his tracks.
"What do you mean? Without us?!" He didn't really know how to feel.
"It was a girls only mission dumbass. And Happy is a cat so that doesn't apply to him. You seriously need to calm down. Why are you so hot headed today, got some fire stuck up your ass or something?" Gray smirked.
Natsu held back a scream of frustrated and instead punched Gray in the chest, sending him flying into Lucys wall, the wall cracking and a few small pieces of ceiling raining down onto the floor. "What THE HELL?!" Gray got to his feet, and glared at Natsu. "What the fuck is wrong with you, you fire breathing toad?!" Gray made a fist, ice coating his hand and stopping halfway down his arm. "THAT IS IT. I aM NOT GOING TO LET YOU OFF EASILY TODAY!"
Natsu leaned back onto his heels and clenched his fists, fire erupting from the palms. "BRING IT ICE BLOCK FACE!" He roared and ran at Gray. Lucy's apartment was too small for this, but right now Natsu didn't care. He was itching for a fight. He wanted to burn Gray until he felt like a human.
Punch after punch was exchanged, every hit felt like a stab in the heart to Natsu. Why was Gray so cold. Why did he feel so damn cold.
He grabbed Gray's arm as he went in for another hit and took and breath in. Just as he imagined Grays arm burst into flames. Slowly creeping down his body. He could barely hear the screaming coming from Gray.
"NATSU STOP." Gray shouted but all Natsu saw was the warm flames. They were alive, moving, burning. They weren't cold. He would make Gray warm. The screaming intensified, but it was merely in the back of Natsu's mind. The flames creeped up one half of Gray's neck, slowly making their way up the left side of his face. Almost to the left eye. He would unfreeze those dark frozen eyes.
Gray struggled and screamed as the burning flames moved up his body. With his free arm he finally landed a punch on Natsu's face, causing him to release his arm. But the flames didn't stop.
With a scream Gray released a torrent of ice, covering everything. Freezing Natsu, freezing himself.
Gray was cold but still conscious, unlike Natsu who was instantly frozen unconscious. He just hoped when Lucy found them like this she would unfreeze him first. Gray knew he couldn't unfreeze them without Natsu coming after him again.
It seemed that Natsu had finally broken.
Gray closed his eyes.
He awoke to tapping.
Tap Tap Tap
He opened his heavy eyes, white frost covered eyelashes slightly imparing his vision. But he could still see Lucy to his right tapping on the ice that incased his body. It had barely melted. Natsu was still trapped. He focused in energy and in a second the ice exploded it thousands of crystals.
"Quick!" Gray yelled and lunged at Natsu who was opening his eyes. With a strong hit to the stomach he fell unconscious, and Gray fell to his knees as his face started throbbing.
The flames were extinguished but it still burned.
"Lucy I need you to tie up Natsu." Gray stated and turned to face her.
Lucy gasped and tears filled her eyes "Gray….. your face." Gray froze and sighed, he would examine the damage later.
"Lucy please. You need to take him to the Guild Master. Tell him that Natsu needs to be locked up. I need to go get help, I'm not feeling so well." Gray stumbled out of the room leaving Natsu to Lucy. It seemed cold, but he knew that Natsu would not harm her.
As he made his way through the guild hall he heard gasps and saw the other members staring at him in horror. He made his way to the infirmary and was surprised to see Erza and Happy.
They both paused when he came in. "Gray, what happened to you." Erza exclaimed and Happy's eyes widened.
"Natsu's gone insane." He replied, the short walk making him out of breath. He took and deep breath but could feel his body becoming numb. 'I'm gonna need some help." He stated as he passed out and everything went black.
Natsu was cold. He didn't like it.
He opened his eyes and saw gray. The floor was gray, the walls were gray, the ceiling was gray. The door was gray. And it was freezing.
A knock came at the door. "Natsu?" It was the Masters voice "Natsu are you awake?"
"Yes?" Natsu said and the door opened. Master walked in and took a look around.
"I know its not the nicest room but we didn't have anywhere else to put you." He said and Natsu loked at him with confusion.
"What do you mean?" Master looked at the floor. "Put me?"
"Yes." Master didn't look him in the eye. "I didn't want to report you to the council just yet, but I couldn't just let you go. You're a danger to the guild at the moment Natsu."
Natsu's eyes went wide. "What do you mean." Just what on earth was this old man talking about. A danger to the Guild? What the hell."
"Look Natsu. I'm not the one to tell you if you don't remember. But if you come out of this room with me just know if I have to I will take you out." Master said seriously.
Natsu stood up. "Old man I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Come with me then." Master said solemnly, and turned to the door. Natsu quietly followed. He racked his brain. Last thing he remember was sparring with Gray in Lucy's room, and then that stupid bastard decided to freeze him to win. Next time Natsu vowed, he would beat that bastard. Master led him own some stairs and through the hallways. "I don't want to risk taking you through the main hall, I don't want to cause any commotion." Natsu scratched his head. Did he do something after Gray hit him with the freezing spell? Or did they really destroy Lucy's room so badly that they actually got in trouble?
"Natsu. We're here." Natsu looked up, this was the infirmary. Master opened the door and he hesitantly walked in. Sitting on one of the beds, back to him, was Gray. Natsu looked questioningly at the Master.
"Gray." He turned, side profile to them. "I hope it's okay that I brought Natsu. He…. He says he doesn't remember what happened." Gray turned away again, and stood up, then turned to face Natsu straight on.
Natsu gasped. Gray had on a pair of white hospital shorts, and bandages covered his stomach and his lower chest. But that wasn't what shocked Natsu. From Gray's left hand, up his arm, covering his shoulder and the left part of his neck, stretching over the left side of his face and stopping beneath the eye, Natsu was charred. His skin was black and dead, it looked like ash. He looked like a partial corpse, one burned unforgivably, fatally, in some kind of powerful fire.
And then he paused. Did he do this? It would explain why Natsu was staring at him with almost+ fear in his eyes. It would explain the way Master was treating him.
"did… did I do this?" Natsu croaked. Gray looked up, directly into his eyes.
And the memories came rushing back. And so did the feeling.
Gray watched and those clear and shocked eyes changed into something else. They turned darker, pupils dilated, they turned glassy. It was like Natsu wasn't looking at him but rather straight through him into his thoughts and fears.
And then he started laughing.