Disclaimer: Don't own anything.

Heir to Darkness

1. Reminiscing a Sickness

"Erza," I had once called out to her. It was one of those days where the red haired girl was in a foul, depressing mood. This would have been the first time I approached her. "For why are you so down these days? I understand what has happened to you, but the past will not change even if you stay caught up in it. It isn't good to linger; it only hurts more."

She sniffled, her single brown eye teary. As always with most people and especially children, she stared at my face before her eyes wandered to any place where skin was visible.

"I know that, Don. But... it's hard to get used to such a..." Her voice trailed off as she struggled to find a word. I waited patiently, sitting down next to her on the wooden oak bench. "S-Such a... lively... bright place." She eventually finished, her hands clasped tightly. I sighed.

"How about I tell you a story?" Her head shot up, as with the other children's. They and even some of the adult members crowded around, the children sitting at the table to hear best.

"My mother... She sinned against the deepest traditions of our people. She rejected her high-born husband and fell in love with the wrong man—not only a servant, but a vampire. My mother was a fool. She didn't know what she was getting into, what trouble she would bring down on our race. She was naive. And the man... he shouldn't have ever gotten involved with elven affairs."

Everybody, even Markov, listened with rapt attention. Mirajane wasn't making any snide comments for once, and Gray and Natsu weren't fighting. No one knew much about me as the information was lost and scrambled over the years. But now that they're able to get it from the source, they'll make sure to remember.

"From her giving birth with a vampire, a horrific sign appeared. The moon, once so bright and white, a symbol of our race... it had dimmed. It had gone dark. Nyx had abandoned us. A series of events had happened before Nyx left, one of which he setting an ancient curse on the elves." I paused, quickly answering Lisanna's question that Nyx was the god of the moon and that elves were attuned to both the sun and moon.

"The curse was visited most heavily on myself, the product of mother's doomed marriage. I was a sickly boy; my growth was stunted in childhood. The gods only know why my sister was spared—perhaps her vampire half absorbed the burden. Nonetheless, it was clear from my very existence that I was a blight to the elven race besides our skin. We were eventually forced to leave, my sister and mother staying close to me as I was so weak.

"When we fled to the underground, our radiant brown skin began to grow patches of gray. It was odd, seeing yourself change before your very eyes. Though since I wasn't the only one, I suppose it wasn't too odd as I somewhat grew up watching that change."

A dark hand of my own brushed my cheek, remembering the spots of brown that I was told were once there. I then gazed at my hands, almost seeing the patches once more.

"My mother knew there was only one path to freeing me from the curse. She set out for our homeland to offer her life in exchange for a cure. She wouldn't return, but our family would know if she succeeded if the curse was lifted. Even though she never returned, even though she gave up her life, I never forgave her for what she doomed us for in the future.

"Our family waited. As the weeks became years, our hope was lost: the curse would not be lifted. It took us completely. Our family's skin lost all its warmth. We, once being the very definition of the sun's rays and harnessing its heat... We were reduced to a cold, glassy surface that reflected the moon; alone and distraught.

"We tried going outside, many times in fact. My sister and I had, even. The sun burned our eyes. We were forever doomed to live underground, hiding from the light. Thus we escaped the tunnels at night. Even then it felt more terrifying than being burnt. I could feel Nyx's eyes bore into me, a voice in my head saying that it was my mother's stupid decision that caused all of this. The strongest males we had were usually the ones to go out at night to hunt and bring back water."

I shifted my jaw, squeezing my hands so tightly that I felt little pricks of pain. I didn't care. I slapped away the wizened old hand that landed on my shoulder, words becoming rushed.

"Decades came and went, and before I knew it, a century had passed. And then another. The past two hundred years were filled with blood and death as our people dropped in either groups or alone. I had grown used to it, but my sister had always flinched at the mere thought. Two more centuries passed, and only a handful of us were left. We were being killed off by the other races much more faster, now. I was put in charge as the head of the race because I was the heir, a bastard child I may be.

"I ordered for the remaining few of us to relocate seeing as our current tunnels weren't safe. So we packed and left, learning to dig fast for makeshift tunnels as we traveled on foot. My sister always stood right next to me for moral support and because she was still to skittish to do much on her own, despite being almost physically fully grown.

"It wasn't until another century went by that we finally made it to the land you all now call Fiore. Back then we had called it Vellmel, for he was the god of plant life. Vellmel was a decidedly perfect name for the land; trees so thick and strong, food not poisonous growing in easy reach. Even the animals were calm in the area, adapting to our being there as if we weren't trespassers. The best thing was that from the thick oak and willow trees, we were able to leave our tunnels just before the sun set—a feat that hasn't been done since we first tried going outside so long ago.

"Our tunnels flourished. Decorated with raw materials we learned to meld into other variants, it was a beautiful sight to behold. It didn't take us long to forget our previous troubles and to move on, but we were always wary. We had to be, they both saw me every hour of the day and were forced to look at each other with skin shades that shouldn't have been there.

"Sister eventually grew to be bolder, getting rougher and stronger the longer we stayed in Vellmel and didn't evacuate. She grew to be on par with me in terms of leadership, but she always made suggestions and let me have the final say. I suppose that's why I'm the chairman of the Council, as I grew used to such things."

I coughed lightly into my fist, getting up for a moment to go behind the bar for a drink, returning to my seat with a glass of water. I sipped at it, amber eyes gazing back at their reflection in the rippling water.

"I'm still not sure just when, but your kind—humans—had discovered Vellmel. All of the sudden, our peace was broken. Fear now rearing its head once more, we with instincts thought lost took what we could carry and ran. It was stupid on our part, yes, but humans were the first beings to start killing us off, the next being vampires and then other elves.

"Faster than we could have ever thought, the humans took over Vellmel. They renamed it Fiore and ruined the beautiful landscape with their stone fortresses. Trees were torn down, food being taken by their grubby hands. Fortresses that had taken over fifty decades to complete were taken down without a thought, something plainer built with the wood of Vellmel's trees being used.

"The humans stepped onto the land of Vellmel, claimed it their own, and tore it apart. It was disgusting. We were eventually discovered, and somebody thought that the humans would share their resources if we helped them. We were betrayed. We were documented like rodents in a lab, some of us even being captured and tested on. They were never returned, our ancient eyes seeing their bodies being dumped into a pit and burned. Ashes had floated in the air often during the Years of Crucifixion.

"By the time your first master—Mavis—created Fairy Tail, my sister, myself, and four others were the last ones left. We didn't bother in trying to move anymore. It wouldn't have mattered. Past results show that history would simply repeat itself, for Nyx was always watching us."

I sighed, a childlike hand lifting to my collar where I tugged at my necklace absentmindedly. It was an amethyst stone attached to a gold setting hanging on a black cord. It belonged to my mother; I've long forgotten how I gotten it back in my possession.

"During the Lost Years, when we weren't being killed off for once... a different kind of sickness plagued us. The decades were called as such because I'm the only one who lived through them. I... My sister's eyes were green, much like our mother's. I also inherited those priceless gems, but... Well, the sickness that plagued us—me—was a fickle thing. Put in as simple terms as possible since to this day my memories of the Lost Years are incredibly hazy, I-I killed them."

I ignored the gasps, flinches, and cringes with practiced ease, curiously glancing at Markov to see that he was gazing sadly at me. Most of the children were wide eyed in shock—for those that understood, anyway. Natsu understood, I knew, but he acted dumb.

"Maybe it was because of all the countless times I've watched us being killed off. Or because I watched my mother walk outside into the sunlight knowing that she'd face certain death. Or... a number of things, really. Being on the run for so long, seeing Vellmel being taken away. I don't know, but... it's done. All this started with my mother because she wanted to be selfish, and this treacherous saga still hasn't ended, nor will it until I'm ready for it to end.

"By the time Mavis was born, I was able to collect all documents on our kind and destroyed them. I even found decomposing bodies and the like of our kind, along with what I assumed to be our blood. I got rid of all the evidence, but I'm still paranoid of the possibility that I haven't gotten everything, despite the looks I'm constantly given proving me otherwise.

"...Your lesson from this, everyone, is to plan ahead. If there's only a single thing you should remember out of all of what I've said, it's that you should always think of the possible consequences of your actions. Your actions not only affect you and whomever you involve directly, but the future of others for centuries to come, even if you aren't around to watch it happen."

"Don Kuro!" I sighed and stood, sliding off my chair and going around the desk to push open the heavy, black wooden door. There stood Natsu, strong and grown with a blonde girl at his side. She was currently looking at me with wide eyes, similar to the eyes of the children from a decade ago.

"What is it now, Natsu?" I muttered, sighing. He was always the one to interrupt my work.

"I tried telling that story you told us a while ago, because I wanted to hell Happy and Lucy-" So that was her name. "-But I can't tell it as good as you... could you retell it?"

I sighed once more, pushing past the two teenagers as the door slammed shut behind me without anything holding it open. "Very well. Let me get a drink first." And so after speaking to Mirajane for a few moments, I sat at an old oak bench with a glass of water in hand once more. My orange eyes looked up to see the same people in the same places with a few exceptions.

"This is a story of long past, over eight hundred years ago..."

I gasped silently I walked out what was called "Don's office" as my legs buckled underneath me, sending me to the floor with a thump. Heads turned to my direction while I pushed myself to a sitting position, frowning. White gloved hands moved to the 'seam' of the pant leg. I had long ago made my own clothes to my liking, replacing the seam with hidden buttons. I undid them for each leg, scowling as my eyes met stitches that I forgot were there.

I admit that healing nor anything medical was something that I knew, because it wasn't, but I was bleeding. I think I broke the stitches... narrowing my eyes, I concluded that I did. Tapping my leg with a finger after fixing my pants, I waved the closest guild member over—Elfman.

"Will you carry me to the bar, Elfman? I have an injury and I can't put much weight on my legs."

He was obviously concerned but said nothing, lifting me as if I weighed nothing (which I honestly didn't), crossing the room in a few strides and gently setting me on a stool. I hissed quietly as my legs were jostled and thanked him. He didn't move away, I didn't mind.

"Mirajane?" She turned to me, smiling wide. "Ah, Don! Is there something I can get for you?" I shook my head. "Do you know if Markov is here right now?" She frowned lightly, finger going to her chin as she thought.

"I don't remember there being a meeting... nope! He's here-"

"-Right here!" I turned my head to see the small man hop down from the second floor. He moved to stand in front of me, not at all caring he was quite literally looking up at someone who was five inches shorter than him.

"Good. Markov, I need you to make an announcement. This is something that everyone who is currently here needs to know. If anyone's missing, they can be filled in later." Thick white brows scrunched together, but he nodded none the less. I quickly muttered to him what to say, as I didn't feel too good. After a few seconds, he turned and whistled loudly, jumping up on the stool next to me and standing on it.

"Listen up! Guild, we're going on an excursion. You can ask questions when we're there—you must go, no exceptions. You don't need anything aside from good shoes, of which you all are wearing—Gray put your clothes on." I gestured for Elfman to pick me up again, which he did without complaint. I think he liked to carry me, seeing as I was the only person close enough to a child in the guild. "Just follow Elfman and Don!"

I exhaled through my nose, breathing in deeply. We were deep in the forests just outside of Mongolia taking a break while I recounted. I scanned through my sepia colored memories with haste, my eyes snapping open. Looking around, I knew where we were. It looked a lot different than some centuries ago, but nature doesn't really change itself unless you force it to.

I pushed myself off of the tree I was sitting against, swatting away Elfman's large hands gently.

"Come on everyone," I called in a loud voice so everyone heard. "We're close. Try to keep me in sight, and don't touch the red trees." I faintly heard people scramble as I darted forward, feet chasing after me.

I weaved through the branches and jumped over bushes, my white hair darting just around corners. It seemed to aggravate those like Natsu and Gray from their shouts if I was correct. I chuckled quietly, slowly down as I saw the pit. I paled (if that were possible) and skidded to a halt on my knees.

Gasps were heard behind me as the others caught up. I crawled forward and peered over the edge, myself gagging before I pulled away. "Go... Don't. Don't... " I couldn't speak, keeping my back firmly towards the pit as I went around it, the others following after a brief moment of hesitation. I heard their mutters of them guessing that being the pit where I had told them the bodies were dumped, realization occurring in them all.

It wasn't until about five miles later when I stopped again, this time there being a set of cracked stone stairs and broken black doors, the rust effectively locking them close. I breathed in, then out, slowly.

"Elfman?" He walked forward until he was within my sight. "Could you open these doors without damaging them further?"

He nodded. "I'll try." He keeled awkwardly in front of them, large form appearing too big for the entrance. His hands moved carefully and diligently, myself cringing at every sound of bending metal. I sighed in relief as he pried them open without anything being ruined. I thanked him, turning to face the guild of whom were looking on with curiosity and excitement.

"Alright... everyone, if you remember my story, you'll know that the pit you was is indeed where... where the bodies of my own were tossed and burned. I didn't realize it was so close, I apologize. But this..." I gestured behind me. "This is the entrance to the first set of tunnels we made when we first came upon Vellmel. You will not touch anything nor step where I haven't. You will not do anything unless I give the okay. The floor may be weak and may collapse under the weight of someone other than myself. Understood?"

Nods were quickly given. I muttered to myself before turning back, staring into the darkness of the tunnel. I didn't move at first, but I took a shaky step forward and then another, quiet guild members following from a few feet.

It was pitch black, but I groaned in relief, welcoming the darkness. I snickered as I heard the annoyed and slightly frantic whispers of the 'adults'. "It's alright, just follow the sound of my voice.

"Right about... here are another set of stairs. They spiral downward to your left. They're no railings, but it's best to place your right hand on the wall to your own right. The steps are short, so go slow if you don't want to fall."

It was slow going, as I expected, but it was alright. At the landing there was a short corridor with another door at the end. "Stop, there's another door." I examined it just as Elfman, who was right behind me, got closer. "You won't be able to see, Elfman. It looks alright anyhow..."

I was suspicious. This place was old—ancient. I tested them, pulling on the handles. They moved smoothly with only some slight struggle. I decided to say nothing about it as my eyes narrowed.

"The door's open, don't take a step in until I say so. Also, if any of you bring a light out, you'll probably make my eyes bleed. Don't. I don't care that you can't see at the moment. When it's safe, I'll turn the lights on." Aggravated mutters were heard, along with frantic whispers directed at Natsu to 'hold him down'. I rolled my eyes, a booted foot going out to push on the stone.

Nothing shifting, I placed more pressure on it before adding my other foot. Nothing. I hummed, walking forward slowly around the room. The walls were made of stone to reinforce the cherry red wood planks, gold tapestries and black wall paint decorating them. The paint designs stretched to the ceiling and floor, making it look as if the place were alive.

Looking up, I noticed the now very outdated light sources and could only hope that they still worked enough to be salvageable to fix. I stopped with a surprise grunt as my face hit something, my body falling back.

"Don? Are you alright?" I heard Markov ask. I quickly muttered that I was alright before looking up, gasping in fright as a face appeared before my own. "Don't move!" I shouted, my eyes not moving.

I crawled back, aiming to get distance, but the face merely got closer, footsteps being clearly heard. Seeing as this was getting me nowhere, I studied the face, doing my best to calm my raging heart.

A pair of amber eyes stared back at me, appearing much like an animal's. I saw what appeared to be either smudges or stripes of black on their, his (I decided), face. Two sections of black hair were bound by something I couldn't define, most of the short black hair being covered by a cap. He was wearing a coat of sorts, brown with fur on it. I saw a white skull of... something on his left shoulder. That was as far as I got before he spoke.

"Kuro, you're sick." I froze, body stiff and eyes wide. All movement and sound ceased behind me. He sounded feminine... or, well, I suppose his voice is in the gender neutral zone like myself.

"Why have you come back, Kuro? You're only going to make yourself worse."

"Who... are you?" I whispered, body shaking. Gloved hands gently lifted me, pausing only when I jerked violently. I was set onto a navy chair I saw when I came in, the male kneeling in front of me, holding my hand in his.

"Don't you remember, Kuro? Who was the one that watched over you when you entered the lands of Vellmel?" I tried to pull my hand away, but he held on gently. It was as if he'd only release me if I really wanted him to.

"I... I don't understand..." I said, for sure looking all like a scared child. I saw a faint, sad smile.

"Who was the apple of your eye?" I choked. Then, with sudden anger, tackled the male to the ground with a shout. My hands were wrapped firmly around his neck as I snarled.

"Don't you dare utter that saying!" He snapped his fingers and the dim lights turned on. As the others began to edged in (but stopped after I ordered them), my hands twitched as I saw the being in front of me with near perfect clarity.

A gloved hand of his went up to my head, cupping my face. I hardly noticed, my eyes locked onto his as he smiled sadly, brows slightly together.

"Come on Kuro. They'll recognize me as a threat if you don't say something," He softly chided. I breathed heavily for a few second until I spoke, stuttering all the while.

"M-M... M-Meili... apple of my eye, was ta... tasked with g-guiding... man... mank-kind..." He nodded, wiping away the tears the began to fall from my cheeks.

"Meili... Meili? My... tiger?" My voice cracked, which I was sure everyone noticed, but said nothing on.

"Yeah... your Bengal tiger, Kuro." I shuddered out a few breaths, habitually restraining my crying, hands moving to rest on his shoulders. He sat up and held me close, whispering in my ear. "Let it out, now." I pulled back just enough to place my forehead to his, he clearly getting the message. A soft growl echoed in the room along with the guild's gasps as a tiger appeared.

A sob escaped from me as my arms wrapped around a thick neck. I buried my face into his fur, crying. "M-Meili! Where did you go?! I needed you!" A tail lightly flicked me, his muzzle rubbing my cheek. He turned back, holding me even tighter.

"I'm sorry. I was sealed, Kuro. Nyx-" I cut him off, quickly pressing my lips to his. He shut up, sharp eyes widening. "Shut up... Just... tell me later." I wiped my face, remembering there was an audience. I could feel my face heat up as I turned to them, seeing a few smirks. Though, most were glaring at Meili.

"Err... he's good, guys. Uh... Markov?" The man coughed, ceasing his glaring, whistling to get everyone's attention. "You can come in now... just don't let Natsu light anything." They all walked in swiftly, forming a half circle while Meili sat me in the chair once more, sitting cross legged next to my feet. I hid a grin, coughing into my fist.

"I am Meili, the god tasked with protecting avatars of humanity and guiding mankind. My realm is the western world, here, and all that walks on land. I've been around since before Kuro was born. I only have control of the entire area of Vellmel and some parts of the sea that I have by right on conquest. In point, my job is to protect all of you."

"How do you know Don?" Gray asked. Meili hummed, glancing towards me, silently asking a question in turn. I rolled my eyes, nudging him with a foot. He continued.

"You know of Nyx?" Voices of confirmation were given. "Then you know that because Kuro's mother sinned, he cursed the elves—his own race. Seeing as it happened in his domain, I was unable to do anything but watch from afar. It took a long time for the elves to step onto my land, by which most of them were wiped out. When Kuro and his remaining family finally arrived, I was challenged by Nyx. He had wanted control of the sun to further humiliate and ruin his people.

"We fought. In short, I sealed both Nyx and myself away in order to keep my reign over the sun. It took centuries of careful prodding and communicating with Kuro in his dreams to break out without freeing or breaking Nyx's seal. This was around ten or twenty years before Mavis created Fairy Tail. Kuro... he became very sick. His mind was such a mess that I couldn't get into contact, and on the rare cases that I did, he dreamt of myself dying.

"It... those didn't help matters. From all the time I was in close proximity to Nyx, despite him being sealed, I was... poisoned, I guess you could say." I hummed slightly in question. Meili sighed and stood, hand going to his hip.

"Then... Meili, was it?" He nodded at Markov's question. "Can I correctly assume that you have... lasting effects of being... poisoned to this day?" The god hesitated, but I'm sure that only the master and I caught it before he nodded, sighing.

"Meili, you-"

"I'm not the only one." He turned to face me, taking his hat off and setting it on the arm of the chair. "Kuro, you've been poisoned yourself, haven't you? Though the question is... was it by Nyx, or not? Maybe Sentinel? She never did like you..."

I cringed at the accusation, sliding off the chair. As Meili took off his brown coat and tossed it to the chair, I unbuttoned the sides of my pants after taking my boots off. Meili, at this point, has taken off his form fitting black sleeveless v-neck, also dropping it to the chair.

The guild gasped in horror. For my part, they could see the crudely stitched together skin going from the top of my inner thighs down to above my ankles. For Meili, he had numerous scars that were sure to end in bloody stories. There were also bright red wounds where you could visibly see the indentations as if someone had purposely carved them out, even in this dim lightning.

"Meili... are... are those fresh?" I asked, voice weak. Seeing a bit of blood, my answer was already given. "Are yours not?" They were, but I didn't need to say anything.

Mister Tiger raised his hand, all sounds ceasing. He lowered it, sighing out a groan. "Firstly," He leaned down to pick me up, setting me on his left shoulder. "Kuro, you shouldn't even be standing let alone walking with those injuries. Secondly, do you know of someone who may have even the slightest possibility of healing a god?" He directed the last part to Markov who blinked. It seemed that he, along with most others, forgot just what Meili was.

"There's a woman named Porlyusica. She's the best healer we've ever had the chance of meeting."

"Mind showing us the way? My injuries really aren't for a cause of concern, but actually being poison does sting a bit." He stared, as did I. Meili raised a brow. I lightly hit his head, receiving a grunt in response.

Meili, with his free arm, picked up his shirt and jacket and draped them over his arm, setting his hat on his head. We followed the guild out with me promising they can come back and explore the tunnels as long as Meili and I were there. We eased out of the tunnel, Meili taking the head.

Elfman, always, was close near me, being behind Markov of whom was directly behind Meili.

"Alright you kids!" Markov shouted once we were all outside, earning breaths of relief. "You all head back to the guild! Team Natsu, stay behind." It was with a few grumbled complaints and some well wishes that they left. I felt bemused, as was reflected on Meili's face.

Natsu walked closer once he had the room, eyes narrowed at he gazed at the two of us. He eventually shifted his gaze to only Meili.

"...Why have you shown up only now?" He asked. The god smiled. "Little Salamander, I really don't think you should delve into the divinity of others... Now tell me, you raised of dragon-kind, why did you turn your back?" Natsu's pink brows went together. "What?"

"He's right," We looked to Markov, of who gestured for us to catch up as he began walking again. "Why did you have Happy steal an S-Class job?" The two stiffened.

"You what?!" The two females yelled. The thieves paled. "I... thought it'd be... a nice challenge," He said weakly, wilting under their glares.

"Natsu," His eyes met mine. "What job was it?"

"Something about a cursed island... something about destroying the moon on luna-something." Meili nearly dropped me, his items going to the ground as his hand clenched his scarf. He pulled it taught, bringing Natsu close to him, face full of anger.

"Galuna Island has 'luna' in it for a reason! Galuna is a giant ritual ground for Nyx! A sacrificial piece of land! You'd know he's bad news if you just listened to what was being said!" Everybody paled. I shook, a hand moving to grasp at a bound lock of Meili's hair. He held me tight, marching on after Markov (Lucy nicely picked up his clothes). Everybody was subconsciously moving at a faster pace.

"C-Can't you stop him then?" Lucy asked, clearly frightened by all the possibilities. "I mean... you're a god, right?"

"That isn't how it works... Yes, I did fight him. Yes, I did seal him away. I only succeeded in stopping him because I had to seal myself as an additional lock. What's being done on that island, because I'm not there anymore to redirect the doings, can and will release Nyx if left alone for too long. You humans thought Zeref was bad? Zeref's no god, he's just a mortal with an insanely long lifespan. No, Nyx should be the one you fear. You all should be fearing the moon, but instead you see a fake Death. Death can't even walk on the physical plane-"

I sweatdropped as the god holding me began to rant, sometimes raising his voice to a shout.

"And if you think-"

"Meili!"

"What?!"

"We're here." He looked forward and blinked, vaguely surprised. I don't blame him. To him, it was as if we were still quite a bit back. We all entered the literal tree house, Meili moving to a clear space near the wall.

"What is it?!" An elderly voice snapped. We turned and saw just that, an elderly lady with pink hair in a bun with a high collared red cape.

"Ah, Porlyusica. These two," Markov pointed toward us. "Are injured badly and need help." The woman visibly seethed, but when she made eye contact with the two of us, calmed considerably.

"Fine. The rest of you, get out!" Team Natsu scrambled, leaving their elders. Porlyusica directed us to a bed, having us sit side by side.

"What are you?" She asked while she examined our wounds. I decided to speak for the both of us. "I'm a Dark Elf. Meili is a... tiger." She raised a skeptic brow. "He's a god," I clarified. "Markov said that you were the best healer he knew that had a chance of helping Meili."

She only nodded, scowling as she saw the stitches in my legs. Luckily she said nothing, moving around the little old man who sat on a nearby stool. I winced as she removed the terrible stitching, Meili's hand holding mine tightly.

"What did you do to cause this catastrophe?" I winced, doing my best not to move.

"I suppose I could say that I hate humans to an extent. Being the last of my kind that I know of, I was thought of as a 'prize', I guess you could say. Simply put, humans are greedy bastards who believe that anything that isn't like them can experience the things they can." I could feel Meili's and Markov's gazes but ignored them in favor of meeting the woman's, whose red eyes narrowed at my face before going back to work.

I let out occasional grunts as she disinfected the wound and stitched me together properly, the room mostly silent. She then moved onto Meili, sighing at his state.

"And your story?" He smiled faintly.

"Fighting the moon." I snorted. Well, he was right, in a sense. Porlyusica merely shook her head, her apparent normal frown turning into a deep scowl.

"You're poisoned. How do you even poison an apparent god?" She muttered to herself, testing multiple salves on him. When they didn't seem to have any effect, she went to the extent of mixing them up and making new ones. When she put a blue paste on his back, Meili hissed, breathing in sharply. She pulled her hand away, and seeing light burns, quickly removed the rest of the paste.

The woman huffed in irritation, crossing her arms as she glared at the god. "Either you're just immune to anything human, or none of my ingredients can apply to you positively."

Meili shifted his jaw, closing his eyes. We were all trying to come up with something that world help. But the problem was that there were too many unknown factors. It seemed that the options were Meili getting healed, Meili getting burned or the like, or nothing happening. That isn't even counting the fact that it may help at first and then hurt him, or the other way around.

"...Since a god did this to me," Meili started out quietly, tapping his fingers on his arm. "Then a god can heal me, unless I just let it go and scar." He paused. "Well, since I don't know if I'm immune to poison or not, it probably isn't best to wait it out..."

"Meili, no." His eyes met mine, defiant. "It's simple enough, Kuro. If I can get out of stasis without freeing or weakening Nyx's seal, then I should be able to control what goes on inside to an extent. I may be able to leech on his life force."

"But you're the sun," I exclaimed, shaking his arm hard. "He's the moon. You'll probably end up in worse condition. And he's the base of the elves, he could override your human base and erad-" He covered my mouth.

"Kuro, even if that's a possibility, there's truly no telling what can happen. For all I know, it could work and nothing could go wrong. I don't mind waiting the years out until I heal, but we only have two known options that may work in our favor. While waiting, it could be discovered that I actually can die from poison, proving healing to be moot. With trying to leech off of Nyx, I could either have my human base destroyed, free Nyx, or die trying with a load of other things. And even if I did wait it out, if I did die or weaken, Nyx could be free either way."

I growled lowly, hands moving to clutch at my white hair.

"...Human base? What were you saying, Don?" I mentally groaned as I lifted my head to look at Markov. Meili placed a gloved hand on my shoulder and spoke, however.

"...I represent the avatars of humanity. Kuro here is one of the few remaining that I'm actually able to do something for. Because I can directly react, I need to guard him. Besides that, I'm to guide mankind. Humans. My human base is just that... I represent all humans, despite ruling over the western world and all that walks on it.

"If my human base is destroyed, such as myself being possessed or turned into something else, all of you will be in danger of becoming nothing more than ghosts. ...Though, if I were killed, I would have to make sure that humanity wouldn't need me for a long time—if at all for the next millennia. If that's the case, then you'll probably be fine so long as people like Zeref don't show up and screw it up... such as another war."

Markov was white with shock, as was Porlyusica. "And... the plague that happened..?" He asked weakly. Meili, turned his head.

"I don't control the animals, of which were the source, but I can limit how much humanity is able to receive. I took it upon myself to turn that into..." He took off his left glove, setting it in his lap. His hand matched his glove; black with it fading to gray where the bands wrapped on his forearm were before fading to a normal skin tone near his elbow.

"I absorbed it and my hand turned to this. Doing that, I effectively ended the years of the plague. I couldn't take it all in, else I wouldn't have been able to do my job properly, so many were forced to suffer..." He let the healer examine his hand, but refused to take off the black bindings. He didn't even let her touch the right arm.

"You can't do anything with it, Porlyusica. The pain has lessened to a tingling sensation over time."

The four of us debated on what to do, none of us coming up with a decent solution aside from what was already said. Meili picked me up when I froze, setting me on his shoulder once more, coat and shirt on the same arm.

"The moon's out. Markov, we should head back to the guild. We've been gone longer than a simple healing session." He frowned, but seeing me, nodded. The healer mentioned that she'd be by the day after tomorrow to check on our injuries before letting us go. The trip back to the guild was a much shorter one than compared to the tunnels to the healer's house.

As we left the protection of the trees, I groaned as the moonlight came over us. I buried my face in Meili's hair, hands shaking as I held onto his neck.

"Kuro?" He murmured. I didn't reply, mind becoming hazy. He craned his head to peer at my face. I heard him curse before he grabbed Markov by the back of the man's robe, running to the guild.

Doors were slammed open, the normal liveliness in the guild hall shattering as Meili dropped the master, nearly slamming me to the ground. He backed away, shutting and locking the doors.

I could only clutch at my head, mind thick with pain. I gasped as I rolled onto my side, Meili edging closer. "...Answer me, Kuro... anything..."

I growled, my orange eyes shining brightly as the wall to the bar was rattling. Glasses clinked together, broken and sharp objects around the room floating and appearing behind me.

Amber orbs met my own, the god snarling as he ran at me. He stopped in midair before being slammed back into the closed doors. The members went to the walls, as far away as they could manage.

"Kuro!" He roared, pushing himself up with strength, judging by his shaking arms. "Get a hold of yourself! You know Nyx is sealed! Be stronger than him, gain control."

He rushed forward again when I stood, tackling me back down. We were both snarling, rolling over one another. Meili, being much more physically stronger than I ever could be, along with being taller and weighing more, easily pinned me to the ground, wrists by my head. My eyes narrowed, Meili yelping as broken legs of tables and glass rained down on his back with force.

"K-Kuro... stop this!" My body shook, and then I felt like I wasn't myself. Numb, I forced Meili down further and bit his neck, much to his shock. He ripped his neck away from my mouth and flipped me over, kneeling on my back. The weight lessened for a moment, and I managed to use my arms to push myself up, but they were quickly pinned above my head as the god's knee dug itself in my shoulder blades. I let out a quiet cry, but Meili didn't loosen his grip.

I could hear him groan, his body arched over me. "What... did you do to me... Kuro?" He asked, panting. I tried to twist myself around, but I couldn't move at all. I released another growl, hearing more yells of pain from Meili as his back was hit once more.

"Stop this at once!" My gaze snapped toward Markov with difficulty, myself breathing heavily as my body shook. I moved my head up, trying to pull my arms as close as I could. My lips only skimmed the skin of Meili's bicep when it went out of reach. I yelled and thrashed, but I couldn't move.

"Kuro... you don't need this anymore..." He whispered in my ear. "You're sick, Kuro... you're making yourself worse. Let me handle it. Please." I strained, but my energy quickly vanished.

"Let me take your pain... let me release you from your pain of falsehoods."

I let out another gasp, giving a barely seen jerky nod. Meili slowly let me go, rolling me over so I was on my back. He was pale, his neck bleeding, but was concerned for me all the same. We were both panting, me more so, bodies shaking. He pulled off his right glove with his mouth, placing his—blistering hot—hand over my eyes.

"Let yourself succumb... banish all your fears... your pain shall vanish, your falsehoods going to me. You are mine and mine alone... as the apple of your eye, I shall be your sword and shield..." I heard him wince before his breath was felt on my face. "May you forever need me, Avatar of Hardships and Tyranny. Accept my ruling and drink my blood, let me heal you from within..."

Then his lips pressed against mine, much like in the tunnels. A rumble rose from my throat, as I kissed back, tongue tasting both Meili and a liquid. We groaned softly, Meili pulling away and moving his hand. I opened my eyes, dazed. His thumb wiped at the corner of my mouth and I saw a smudge on his.

"How do you feel, Kuro?" I made a noise I didn't care to recognize, sighing and letting my head go to the side. "Mm... nit... buzz..." I mumbled, sleepy. My eyes slid close, Meili's arms picking me up as I fell asleep.