Chapter 1: Sometimes I Wonder

The moon was high in the sky and the wind was slightly chilled – in the shadows were a few people hiding, waiting for the chance to strike. One sighed and glanced at the person next to her as they waited on a signal for their time to move. Lucy took in the city before them while wondering what she was thinking much like the others. The Dragon Slayers were apparently quite happy to be working together, but sometimes they were more Dragon than human. Sigh frowned slightly and glanced at Natsu who was looking around the area a bit.

"Anything?" Natsu shook his head.

"Nothing so far…remind me again why we took this job? Its boring…" she smiled a bit.

"Because. Master Markarov said it would help us get to know each other as teammates better," she stated as she leaned against him.

Three months ago after the Grand Magic Games had ended Markarov had issued an Elite team of FairyTail Members known now as Fairy Crux – a combination of Drake Crux and FairyTail – and began their training as teammates. This mission, to secure a few bandits was going to be the thing that let Markarov figure out if they were going to be a good combination. Naturally the former Drake Crux members were great working together and Natsu and Lucy had gotten more in tune with one another as well. Lucy smiled at the memories that she had of them training into the late hours of the night or early morning, during the heaviest rainstorms and once during the snow fall.

She giggled a bit and then glanced to Natsu who was watching her with a small smile on his face while she ended up raising an eyebrow and frowning. At that he sighed and placed a hand atop her head. Lucy was pulled into a warm embrace before she felt him take in another deep breath. She would never get used to this deep down she was still amazed that the two of them had ended up together. Lucy glanced at the rose haired dragon slayer and smiled – then again she didn't quite care how they managed it, but she was looking forward to the day that the two of them could start a family together much like Alzack and Bisca had with Asuka.

"By the way, how is Asuka doing with her training?" she asked.

"She's a natural. Saya is thrilled to have a pupil." Natsu smiled at her and she leaned over to kiss his cheek.

"I'm glad how did the training session with Romeo go last week?" the Fire Dragon Slayer glanced to the side.

"Surprisingly well…he's still rusty about some things – using his fire attached to his body to fight and things like that but otherwise he's doing well," he stated.

"Good….Natsu….um….." he glanced at the girl.

"Yea Luce?" she flushed.

"So…when we have kids are you going to teach them how to use the Tome-Gate Magic?" Natsu glanced her way.

Even after learning about it, and also seeing it several times Lucy still felt odd with it being around even though her spirits seemed to think otherwise. They were quite comfortable with the spirits, but Lucy was as he had assumed not accustomed still.

"If they show an affinity for it yea I guess….but….I know you don't like it Luce…I just want you to realize that it isn't a bad thing okay? Besides, think of one of them being a Celestial Dragon Slayer? That'd be pretty cool huh?" Lucy laughed a little and smiled.

"I figured you'd say something like that…but yea it would be pretty cool..."

"Natsu! Luuuucccyyy!" the two looked up at Happy as he flew down to them.

"What's up Happy?" asked Natsu as the blue exceed pinned his ears back.

"We missed them! But…."

An explosion went off followed by a high pitched cackle and a blast of ice and electricity mingled with stardust. Gears burst from a bluish-green light and a set of swords went flying as water flashed and purple flames whipped outward. The two looked at one another as wind and iron joined the show of magic and Natsu sighed.

"Let me guess…." Happy nodded smiling.

"Erza found them!" the exceed cheered.

"And destroyed half the town while doing so," stated Lucy.

"Shall we join the battle?" Natsu held his hand out to her and she smiled.

"Why not, can't let them have all the fun."

With that the two of them left with Happy carrying them to join the fray. A sweep of ice shot outwards and Happy dropped them. The two hitting the sheet of frozen water with their feet and sliding down the curve like a ramp. Still standing the others were momentarily shot back until black fire sweeping into the area alongside gold flashes as the two used their magic to momentarily blind the bandits. Haru grinned as Fuyu gave a wicked cackle like laugh and joined with Natsu as Saya dove downward and snatched one of the bandits by the front of their clothes and tossed them into the iron and ice cage that Haru and Gray had put together.

One of the bandits tried to run and was stopped as a wall of black flames appeared and he was forced to freeze as Natsu stood before him. His horns having appeared as the man seemed to look behind him at the other members of FairyTail's elite team, and then back at Natsu who grinned and bared his fangs at the man as his eyes turned red. The man dropped to his knees and began to pray as if his life depended on it as Natsu stared the man down and he dropped to the ground before being grabbed by the Fire Dragon Slayer as he picked him up and looked him in the eyes.

"If you try and run I will give you a taste of hell am I clear?" he asked.

"Y-Yes please….I'm begging you! Don't kill me!" Natsu tossed the man and he landed at the feet of the others.

"Please, why would we kill you? We're not here for your soul anyways…" a cage made of iron slipped around him and he stared. The flames vanished and Natsu's appearance went back to normal.

"We're here for the debt you owe to society for destroying the town yesterday and making us have to wreck it even more because of you and your cohorts running away," he said as he crouched and smiled.

"WHAT?!"

After the group had gotten the men to the police station Natsu and the others headed back to Magnolia. The man had actually paid them because of the destruction that was already present. As they boarded the train and it started to move Natsu, Saya, Haru, Gajeel, and Laxus dropped completely out of commission. Lucy began running her fingers through Natsu's hair while Fuyu and Wendy looked at the others with pity. Lucy sighed as she looked at the others while Laxus stayed on the floor not caring about his pride one bit. Gajeel merely leaned comatose against the bench while Saya and Haru were lying across from each other on the benches. Juvia looked to Gray who merely shook his head while Lilly stood post next to Gajeel and Happy laid down next to Natsu and Lucy as Carla looked to Wendy.

"Honestly, your all practically adults! Why does this still affect you?" asked the white exceed.

"That's the problem! We've magic wise reached maturity – adulthood if you will….but….we're….well…..Dragon Slayers – it's a side effect…." Natsu ducked his head at that.

"Remember that ice we got from mount Hakobe? It cured motion sickness what if….we got some and stored it for the Dragon Slayers?" asked Lucy.

"Now that's not a bad idea – how long did the effects last?" the blonde thought for a moment.

"Three days so seventy-two hours," she stated.

"Great! That means that if we store it up then they can eat it before we leave and we're good to go." Natsu glanced at Lucy.

"If it keeps from having five of us down…let's go for it…" he said giving her a weak smile.

The ride back was surprisingly uneventful which both Lucy and Natsu were thankful for. It was when the train stopped in Magnolia that the four Drake Crux members shot up like bullets. The entire group let out different sounds of shock as Natsu and Saya looked to one another as did Fuyu and Haru before the four of them had bolted out of the train and into the streets of Magnolia. The station was mainly deserted which was a good thing now that the FairyTail Wizards considered the actions of the four Dragon Slayers. Erza rose an eyebrow as she looked at them and then frowned as they ended up back to back watching from different angles.

"Whatever their doing is not just for simple reasons…we need to be on high alert."

Erza drew her sword as she stepped off the train and the others prepared themselves for a fight. It was as they started down the walk way that they were made to freeze as the four Dragon Slayers shook their heads. Erza waited as the four of them began to spread out and ran down different streets. Natsu going straight and Lucy trailing quickly behind him. The others stood prepared but the town was silent. There was no sign of anyone. But they began to split up and search in hopes of finding the Dragon Slayers who'd ran off. It was down the street that Lucy caught up with Natsu.

She took in a deep breath as she looked at the pink haired dragon slayer only to be jerked his way and held close as he looked around them with narrowed eyes. Natsu felt something very strange present near them and it made him uncomfortable. Lucy looked at him again as he scanned the area and then felt him tense again before looking at the little yellow figure present. It hopped down the street almost like a bird would and soon was standing before them. They stared at it in confusion.

It looked slightly like a baby chicken and a duck combined. It was yellow with a small body and large head. Wide eyes and a beak. It fluttered up and down continuously before they both looked at each other and Natsu lit himself on fire. The bird squawked and froze as Natsu narrowed his eyes at the thing.

"Please! Don't hurt me! I need help!" said the bird. Lucy looked at Natsu and placed a hand on his shoulder before the flames vanished and he crouched down to its eye level.

"What do you need help with?" the bird fluttered.

"My friend is hurt! Please! You're a Wizard right? Can you help me?" asked the bird.

"I don't see why not. Come on Lucy." Natsu took her hand and they followed the bird, staying close just in case the creature was some sort of trick.

It was as they rounded a corner that they were met with the bird worrying over a girl lying on the ground in pink Indian style clothes. The two of them ran over to her and Lucy carefully walked over to her and helped Natsu moved her onto her back before checking her wounds. It was as they finished assessing the wounds that they heard a set of footsteps come from behind them. Natsu turned to see Gray and Juvia running up to them.

"Go to the Guild hall! Tell Mira and Wendy to meet us at Lucy's okay?" the blonde glanced at the girl and then at Natsu as the Ice Make and Water Wizards ran off to the Guild Hall.

"Natsu…" he hoisted her up into his arms and looked at the bird.

"Follow us and we'll get her fixed up okay?" the bird nodded.

"Thank you!"

Lucy followed Natsu back to her home as she thought about what was happening. She looked at the girl in his arms and felt a sense of problems to come. Lucy shook herself out and decided not to dwell on it at the time being. They made their way onto Strawberry Street and up into Lucy's apartment where Wendy and Mirajane was waiting for them at the door. Once there Natsu settled the girl on the bed and they stepped back to let the two girls work as the yellow bird creature sat back with Happy. It seemed worried which, seeing as it had called the girl it's friend the expression made some sense. Mirajane had told them that the others had decided to let them handle it for now and they would check on it again later while they tended to her.

As they waited on Wendy to finish up so Mirajane could walk her back to Fairy Hills Lucy led Natsu and the yellow bird and Happy into her kitchen where she started brewing some tea that Saya had gotten for her recently. A comment that cinnamon tea was good for calming nerves – and was one of Natsu's favorites – she had so far never tried it but loved the way it smelled. The yellow bird sat in a chair and waited as they settled there wondering what was going to happen. He knew that his friend hadn't wanted to come to Magnolia but insisted that it would be good for them to do so. Now he wasn't' so certain. However, if he considered it, the two who had found him seemed like decent people even for wizards. He glanced at the blonde liking her kind personality and the blue cat before looking at the rose haired one. He smelled like hickory, brimstone, and an underlying scent of burning maple.

His eyes trailed over the boy and then he questioned what kind of magic he used – definitely a fire base judging from what he'd seen. However, he was unsure and a little uncomfortable with him. The blue haired girl and the white haired one seemed genuinely nice and were helping his friend, thus he had no complaints. As he thought a cup of tea was put in front of him that had a sweet, spicy scent to it that made him feel a little warm inside. He picked it up and sipped on it while looking at the boy and girl.

"I am sorry for asking so much of you," he said.

"No, it's not a big deal really….um…what's your name?" he glanced at the blonde.

"Momon, I'm just wondering….what are you?" Momon questioned as he looked at Natsu.

"What kind of question is that?" Lucy sighed.

"This is Natsu Dragneel, he's a Fire Dragon Slayer," she answered.

"A….Dragon Slayer? I haven't seen one in ages…..amazing! Are there others?" asked Momon.

"Yea, myself, the blue haired girl in there is Wendy Marvel a Sky Dragon Slayer, then there's Laxus Dreyer a Lightening Dragon Slayer, Gajeel Redfox an Iron Dragon Slayer, Saya Dragnoir a Time Dragon Slayer, Haru Glory a Black Ice Dragon Slayer, and Fuyu Alseif a Galaxy Dragon Slayer. Those are just in our guild. In another Guild called Sabertooth there's two named Sting Eucliffe who's a Light Dragon Slayer and Rouge Cheney who's a Shadow Dragon Slayer." Momon looked shocked.

"That's so many! But you are the only Fire Element based one?" he questioned.

"So far I'm the only one…I'm sure there are hundreds of others but...that's all we've seen so far." Natsu glanced to Lucy who smiled. Momon looked at the two of them.

"So you must be Mrs. Dragneel?" Momon questioned to Lucy. The girl turned blood red.

"No! Not yet at least…we're holding off on getting married for now," she said. The bird nodded.

"So your engaged? It is very sweet to meet such a young couple." Natsu and Lucy glanced to one another.

"By the way my name is Lucy Heartfilia, I'm a Celestial Wizard," Lucy told him.

"A Celestial Wizard? Another rarity! Have you met others?" the girl nodded.

"We have – Yukino Aguria is a Celestial Wizard in Sabertooth, and the Princess of Fiore is one as well," she stated.

"Amazing…then what Guild do you associate with?" Natsu smiled a bit.

"We're FairyTail Wizards," he told Momon and the yellow chick chirped happily.

"Good Graces! Just who we needed! I am sorry, I didn't tell you my friend's name – her name is Éclair, she's from a place far away from here….I was wondering….could you…"

"We're done, we'll leave them to you Natsu, Lucy – Happy Carla said she and Lilly were going out if you want to come along?" Wendy stated.

"Yes! Bye Natsu! Lucy! See you later Momon!" with that the cat flew out the window and Wendy and Mira came into the kitchen.

"Is she gonna be okay?" asked Natsu.

"Yes, she needs a little sleep. We left some medicine and Lucy can make some stuff for her in the morning – light foods to start with I think would be best. We'll leave you two be and let you get some rest okay?" Mira waved as Wendy left through the door.

"We'll take care of her, don't worry Momon," said Lucy as the door shut and the bird nodded.

Once they had finished their tea Momon went to lay next to Éclair while Natsu and Lucy took their turns getting a shower and getting ready for bed. It was later that Lucy came over to check on Éclair before joining Natsu on the large sofa where she snuggled up to him and they fell asleep soon after. Momon watched them slowly wondering what he should even think of the two. Éclair would often looking longingly at couples in curiosity seeing as she had never been in love before. The bird snuggled into the covers and slowly drifted off to sleep.

It was in the middle of the night that Éclair blearily opened her eyes and looked at the area around her before glancing at the two figures lying curled up asleep on the sofa. She gave a weak smile before closing her eyes and falling back asleep. As she did her dreams drifted to an earlier point in her life as she settled before a fire to dance during a festival. There was laughter, music, the scent of food and drinks and smoke from the fires and four faces that were recently present in her village. They joined in with helping in the festivities and now were enjoying the celebration.

They danced with everyone, the girls learning the moves of the other dancers quickly as one of the boy's was asked to dance with some of the children and another came to her as she moved to sit to the side and avoid the dancing crowds after a few moments her personal space having been envaded by so many people coming closer to each other in their movements and jovial dancing.

"Hey, come dance with me…" she looked up into a kind face – only the smile visible – and it was a soulful and warm smile with joy evident despite who he was. He took her hand and they danced together, but she couldn't remember much about him, a smile so warm it felt like the fire they were beside and a laugh that was contagious. If only….

"If only I could meet someone like that again…then maybe I'd remember everything about who I am."

{Chapter 1: Sometimes I Wonder – END}

Author's Note:

I have returned {insert pipe organ music here with lightening flashes} I promised I would once school let out for summer so I am back with the second installment of my FairyTail series: Gears & Flames

Yes, this story covers the movie – which mind you there are maybe five on the site in total that cover the movie let alone mentions it – and I will have as many updates as possible. They may not come as fast as the last one, but they shall come! I want to get to the Tartaros Arc. It'll be a blood good time.

Well, to all my previous readers and new ones: ENJOY!

Next Time….

{There were some questions that needed to be answered. Things that needed to be known, but now was not the time to ask those questions – they had a much more important fact to focus on right now}

"I absolutely despise mages! No matter what guild they come from I hate them! Especially Dragon Slayers! They're the sin of the world! The first generation ones are probably the most vile beasts that have ever walked the earth!"

Chapter 2: Mishaps With Dragons

Arigatou Nakamas!