A/N: Hi, everyone! Sil (myentropicmess) posting this time! How are you doing? I know that we were missing these last months, but finals and exams got in our way and we hadn't enough inspiration and time to write lately. I had planned to submit this Zervis fic for ftsidecharactersweek (we even promised to write something but, as I said before, we were too busy to do it and we're very sorry) and, even if I'm too late, I wanted to share this little oneshot with you. I want to thank my friends San (onlywordswithoutsense ), Marta (mavis-118 ) and Sara (worshiperofunknownstories ) for taking your time to read and beta reading this piece even if you have very little time to do it... You're all awesome! :)
Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or its characters, they belong to Mashima sensei.
Warning: SPOILERS from chapter 440 of Fairy Tail manga. It also includes my own theory about the identity of God Serena (I can be wrong). I apologize if there's some OOCness from Mavis or Zeref, but this is my first time writing about them.
Zeref appeared in another point of the big forest of Tenrou island and sat down between the roots of a big tree.
He was there. His brother. His lost brother.
That was the first time he'd seen him in centuries. And the only thing that he'd done was leaving him again. But this time was different than that fateful day when he couldn't stop him.
"You were too selfish to let me go… Now you should pay for your sins, brother."
That day when his little brother, a few years after he had brought him back to life, realized that his existence wasn't natural and that he should have remained dead. Natsu lost his mind and left him with those last words and the promise that despair and destruction would be his punishment for all that he had done. But Zeref hadn't even try to stop him. He wouldn't been able to, anyways: Natsu was now the strongest Etherious, the one who would have the privilege to kill him. He knew that, even if he would have to wait for centuries, they would see each other again and, that day, he would pay for his sins. However, that journey didn't come, because Igneel sealed away that part of Natsu, his demonic powers and his memories, offering him a normal life. Zeref saw him one last time from the shadows. He saw his brother smiling while he was learning dragon slayer magic from whom was now his foster parent. He didn't had the heart to take it all away from him for his wishes. He had been an utter failure as a brother and didn't deserve to have him by his side. That would be his punishment: wandering alone for the eternity, waiting for the day that wouldn't ever come.
He was being too prideful by thinking that life wouldn't be able to surprise him again. He thought that he wouldn't be able to see him again, but he was wrong, like he had been in so many occasions. Natsu didn't recognize him, but he was glad that his younger brother wasn't blind by anger and revenge. He was living the life he deserved. The life that he stole from him. That sole thought made him feel warmness invading his chest. Then, he rested his head on the trunk and moved his head to look at the clear sky while a weak smile appeared in his face. He missed that sensation in those years of cold solitude. But he knew that wasn't going to last long: they were just mere rays of light before the upcoming storm. A battle was approaching, and each one of them were going to play their role.
While he was too lost in the passages of his long life, he didn't noticed her dear friend approaching the place while he was resting nor the little smile she was dedicating to him.
"You were here," Mavis said, looking at him.
Mavis was peacefully walking through the woods, while she was hearing conversations from the members of Fairy Tail who were doing their S class exams. She really liked those visits, even if she didn't reveal herself in front of them. She, who had been the founder and first master of the named guild, liked the company and the noise from the next generations, reviving the island with their fighting spirit. Not that she had been feeling lonely before, anyways. The blonde had always been wrapped by good people, enlightening her life and filling it with endless adventures.
"My dream from this forward will be to protect you, come what may. To protect you and believe in you, until the very end."
Mavis remembered when she first met Yuriy, Warrod and Precht, who in that time were treasure hunters. At that point they were enemies who were in her island to steal the Tenrou Jade, but then destiny tied them close to live an unforgettable journey, which led them to found Fairy Tail. So many memories that were hidden in the back of her mind came back to her: when she met certain Black Wizard that was too afraid of hurting her and ended teaching her his magic, her sacrifice in order to save Yuriy from the power of the Tenrou Jade, the promise he did to her and the sacrifice the blond mage did to save her and his guildmates, cursing himself to the same fate she had, the creation of Lumen Histoire. She wondered where would Yuriy be at that moment. She knew that he was one of the Wizard Saints, but she wished to see him again, like her other guild mates. Mavis missed that times, when they could be together, sharing their latest adventures and welcoming new guild mates. But the birth of Lumen Histoire and the consequences of their acts took all from them, having to part ways.
Even after she and his friends had to choose different paths, she didn't feel alone. Years after, that Black Wizard that had teached her friends and she how to master their magic, was looking for a place to die and their lives got intertwined again. Games of the destiny, she guessed. But that second time, she noticed that he was different: the mist of madness had corrupted his mind because of his curse, affecting his reason. Nevertheless, they both enjoyed their company: they were lost souls, drowning in the dark waters of loneliness because of their sins.
Suddenly, the blonde stopped on her tracks. She hadn't seen Zeref since the sudden intrusion of the next generation in her island. Yes, Mavis knew about the blasts of dark energy that took place in some points of the forest because of the Black Wizard's curse and she was used to it, but she couldn't tell where was he at the moment. She wanted to have a proper conversation with him, like in the old times, but she knew that that was nearly impossible. The curse took away his sanity, not letting him think about the good things in life, obliging him to think in mass destruction and the extinction of the living beings to master it. She couldn't blame him: she would be the same way if she was in his place.
After getting out of her inner thoughts, Mavis started walking again until certain scene caught her attention: Zeref was sitting on the roots of a big tree, his unruly black hair touching its trunk while he addressed his dark eyes and a weak smile at the sky. Even if the vegetation and the living beings around him were dying, she wasn't going to ruin the moment. The blonde knew that he already blamed himself because of what he had done and he got the worst punishment. He deserved those rays of light in his darkness to keep going.
"You were here," Mavis said, looking at him.
"Mavis…" He slowly moved his head to pose his eyes in her. "It's been a long time since we last had a chat…"
"Yes. The next generation of Fairy Tail came to the island and I was enjoying the renovated energy that they had provided to these forest," The First sat beside him while giving him her kindest smile. She was glad that the special properties of the Great Tenrou Tree allowed Zeref to see her without having the guild mark. That let them have a normal conversation and reminded her to the old days, when she wasn't in that special circumstances.
"Even so… The forest lose that vital force because of me," the Black Wizard whispered as he looked at the ground.
"New lives are born, while others are lost. There's nobody to blame, because it is the natural course of life."
"Human race is doomed, rotten to the core. Humans will only find their own destruction. That's what they are constantly doing: Fight each other until they reach their extinction." He lifted his head to look at her eyes, the ghost of a smile plastered in his face.
"I don't think so…" Mavis replied while leaning her head in the trunk and looking at the sky. "Yes, they fight each other, but there's hope. Even the ones that are consumed by darkness have good in their hearts. Humans have caused destruction, but they can also be the kindest beings and sacrifice themselves to protect the people they love. I have faith in them, and I will fight to assure their future… Even if I have to stop you."
"I've already decided my place to die. The only one that can stop me is back and the pieces are settled." As he said those words, the blonde looked at him again. But this time she didn't find any trace of wickedness. At the contrary, a glint of relief invaded his eyes."The game is on, Mavis. The rest is on you. You are the one that will have to choose the strategy, Fairy Tactician."
"You have my word, Black Wizard," Mavis replied as she dedicated him her biggest smile. "But for now, we will wait."
Though times and hard decisions were ahead. That was the death of the current era and the birth of another one, full of destruction and sacrifices. The human race would fight their biggest battle and choose sides. The game had started and the roles were settled but, for the time being, the two most important pieces on the board decided to stay there, close to each other, looking at their eyes while their hands were on the grass, almost touching. That was a stop on their long road. A stop that brought them the calm before the big storm.
"Yes, we will wait."