Natsu felt at ease for the first time in well over a year. Lucy's left arm slung around his shoulders helping guide him to the entrance of Magnolia. Happy, tucked in his left arm, had declared that he would never leave Natsu alone. Ever.
But even with the joy of the war being over and being back with his friends something weighed him down.
"There's no need to apologize to Makarov. He's already dead." That's what Zeref said. Since then it was the one thing on his mind. Natsu had already lost Igneel there was no way that Gramps could be dead too. But a part of Natsu believed what he said.
"Finally." Natsu heard Lucy say, looking up Natsu saw what she meant.
Walking inside the half destroyed guild they found Porlyusica inside hovering over an object on one of the beds in the infirmary. Walking forward Natsu saw what she was standing over. Gramps.
Natsu fell to his knees accidently dropping Happy and dragging Lucy down with him. Tears welled up in his eyes as he watched as the Makarov slowly sit up.
He was alive. Natsu walked forward ignoring the concerned voices of his guildmates and the Porlyusica's scolding tone and wrapped his arms around Makarov, finally allowing the tears to spill.
The past days had been rough as it was with healing people right and left, but that wasn't compared to the amount of injuries everyone had at the end.
"Back away." Porlyusica growled at the onlookers to see what she was doing to the fire dragon slayer. After that threatening tone they retreated, even Makarov though they were told to keep a close eye on him, all except for Happy who was allowed in the infirmary, but forced to stay out of the way.
Placing an IV into Natsu's left hand and carefully cleaning out his more minor wounds, Porlyusica wrapped his abdomen and head in bandages. Then she inspected his arm.
Natsu hissed as his right arm was barely even touched.
"Can you move it at all?" Porlyusica asked in a questioning tone while still looking at his arm, which was charred in most places but the farther up the arm the more blistered it became.
Natsu shook his head after trying to at least move his fingers. Apparently after Acnologia was defeated Natsu lost whatever adrenaline he had, and his arm became as stiff as a bored.
Porlyusica sighed and started to prepare an herbal paste she knew that healed more severe burns. But after it was done, and she started to administer it to Natsu's thumb he shifted away, and his face looked more painful then it did a second earlier.
Porlyusica set the jar of paste down onto the nightstand next to the table and grabbed a bottle of strong pain killers and a glass of water.
"Take them child, they'll help ease the pain." Porlyusica said in the softest tone she could use and handed the painkillers into his palm and then gave him the glass of water to drink from.
Natsu was asleep within minutes allowing Porlyusica to continue brushing the paste against the charred and blistered skin without any interruptions.
Happy continued to watch as Porlyusica worked hard on Natsu's arm and gently wrapping the arm loosely in bandages. When she finished Happy padded over to Natsu's bed and curled up in his left arm and soon he too was asleep.
Natsu's dream came in flashes, most of it was his birth parents, but then the dream shifted. Igneel falling out of the sky, to even newer events. He was in the guild and Zeref was in his Fairy Heart mode.
"There's no need to apologize to Makarov. He's already dead." Natsu slammed his eyes open. Taking a deep shuddering breath and realizing he was still in his bed in the infirmary.
Lucy's wounds were wrapped, and she was sleeping in the chair next to him with her head on his pillow. Happy was curled up in his left arm softly snoring. Natsu settled back down and fell asleep once again.
"You'll need to rest for at least a week to allow your wounds to recover and then we'll talk about what to have done with your arm." Porlyusica told Natsu sternly as he was getting ready to leave the infirmary.
It had been almost a week after the war and although many of the physical wounds had healed on Natsu and all of the other guildmates, they all still had a long way to go before they will be okay once again.
"And what if my arm doesn't heal?" Natsu asked the healer.
"I highly doubt that it won't ever heal, but you may need skin grafted later on at most." Porlyusica said as she secured the bandage that covered most of his arm. "Someone needs to put this paste on your burns twice a day," she said placing the jar of paste in his left hand. "And your arm should be wrapped, but not tight. If need be these are the painkillers that I have been using, if you are in pain take them. And lastly you need rest and I mean it." And with that Porlyusica allowed Natsu to leave.
When he exited, he spotted Lucy waiting right outside the infirmary, without a word she took the paste, roll of bandages, and the bottle of painkillers. "Come on Natsu I'll allow you to stay at my place."
The first thing Natsu did when they arrived was lay down in her bed and closed his eyes. The walk from the guild to her apartment wore him out, which wasn't all that surprising because he really hadn't been up walking around much at all over the past week.
"Do you need anything?" Natsu opened his eyes and saw Lucy standing over him.
"Just sleep." Natsu admitted closing his eyes again and this time he fell asleep.
Natsu didn't know how long he was asleep, nor did he remember what he was dreaming about. But a glance out the window told him he had been out for at least a good portion of the day. Natsu sat up using only his left arm and noticed that at the end of Lucy's bed Happy was curled up sleeping soundly. Natsu leaned forward and rubbed the blue exceed's head.
Natsu must have made at least some noise because when he looked up Lucy was walking towards the bed with a soft expression on her face. Natsu had also noticed that she had the roll of bandages and the paste in her hand.
"Porlyusica said that you needed the paste on your arm twice a day, right?" Natsu nodded as he slowly remembered the conversation that he had with the healer this morning. Natsu swung his legs over the side of the bed and started to unroll the bandage that was around his arm.
Natsu knew that Lucy was trying to be as gentle as possible, but it didn't stop the pain after the medicine was placed on his arm. Once the bandage was fastened around his arm Lucy stood up.
"What do you want for dinner?" Lucy asked Natsu as she helped him off the bed. To which Natsu mentioned that he didn't care.
Happy had joined them for dinner, and while they ate Natsu hoped that it could stay like this for at least a few years. No black dragons out to kill them, no evil wizards wanting him to kill them. He wanted it to be normal again with him and his team going on adventures, but of course it would never be that easy.