A/N Hey guys! This is a new story that I've been working really hard on! I hope you will read my next chapter when I eventually post it! Thanks, and Enjoy!

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1 week before the battle with Alvarez…

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Lucy had left her apartment to meet Natsu in the morning at the guild hall as usual. It was a warm morning, with the sun occasionally peeking out from the clouds. The walk to the guild was peaceful and tame, something she was grateful for since she didn't like being in a rush.

Once she walked into the lively guild hall, everyone said their good mornings or glanced in her direction offering a hello. She lightly skipped up to the bar where Mira was drying some mugs and offered her a bright smile and a good morning,

"Good morning Mira! Say, you wouldn't know where Natsu is would you?" Lucy asked hopefully. The truth is, she hadn't seen him very much recently, and it was starting to worry her. Although after all that had happened, it was understandable that Natsu would want some alone time even if it was just for a little while.

"Yes actually, I saw him come in earlier! He took a seat at the far end of the guild where the request board is, so I suggest you look over there." Mira explained thoughtfully. She was hesitant to tell Lucy about how he looked, though, because it honestly scared her. She didn't worry about it though because he was Natsu for god's sake, he could get over anything if he tried. She had seen happy earlier, and Happy looked bad. Sleep deprived most likely, with bags under his normally bright eyes. But Natsu…

"Alright, thanks, Mira! I'm going to go find him" Lucy declared, standing up mid-sentence. She was getting low on cash this month, so a job was desperately needed to conjure up some dough. Her rent was due in a week, and since she just moved back to Magnolia from Crocus, she had to pay more expenses to get her house back. Even after everything, she managed to keep her head held high when fairy tail came back, as did most of the other fairy tail members.

Lucy started to walk in the direction Mira had pointed her to and waved at her fellow guild members as she strolled down the halls and around benches. She caught a glimpse of wild salmon colored hair and smiled. Lucy quickened her pace, but once she managed to get around all the people who were blocking most of her view of Natsu, her smile faltered.

She stared at Natsu from a distance before carefully approaching him. From a distance he looked.. bad. But as Lucy inched closer, realization hit her like a ton of bricks. Natsu was sick. She could feel his tinted magical aura from where she was standing, but it was stronger than what a usual mage would commonly have. It had a cloud of darkness surrounding it, and that's what terrified Lucy. She examined Natsu from top to bottom and pointedly figured out the dead giveaways that made it obvious he was sick.

He was hunched over, with his face hovering above the wooden table and his hands tightly cradled around the back of his neck. His face was pale, not the tan that usually stood out, in fact, he looked like a ghost. Natsu sensed Lucy's presence and slowly lifted his head to look at her. Lucy gasped at the prominent bags under his eyes and the dullness that clouded his usually vibrant green eyes.

"Wh.. What happened to you?" Lucy whispered with both her hands now covering her mouth. Tears threatened to fall, she hated seeing him like this… it didn't fit his cheerful character. He should be jumping around the guild hall, demanding fights and begging people to challenge him… he should not be hunched over a table, at the back of the guild, looking like death.

Natsu just sighed and stood up. Lucy noticed immediately that his legs were wobbly and unstable, as he swayed on his feet before momentarily regaining his balance. His eyes were half lidded and his posture was absolutely horrible, yet he took a step forward when his eyes widened.

Lucy was about to ask what was wrong when he suddenly collapsed onto the floor with a thud, barely giving Lucy enough time to catch his head and shoulders on her legs. With wide and incredibly concerned eyes, Lucy stared down at him. She noted that his breathing was shallow, and he has broken out into a cold sweat. His eyes were clenched tightly closed as if he were in pain while he let out a soft moan of agony.

"WENDY! WENDY! Please come here right now!" Lucy desperately called to Wendy, who was sitting at the bar, happily eating ice cream with Carla and Mira. Her head snapped around to look for where Lucy was, at the very back of the guild. She saw a limp body beneath her and immediately dashed towards the celestial mage. Lucy's sudden outburst caught the attention of almost everyone in the guild. They all looked around to look for her when they saw Natsu lying motionlessly on the ground with his head cradled by Lucy.

At some point, Lucy had started crying above Natsu, letting her tears freely drip onto his face and moisten his skin. Wendy already had her magic out to begin searching for his body for a sickness to heal, with her hands softly glowing a light blue hovering above Natsu's body. Wendy was beginning to feel nervous, because though it surprised her, she couldn't find a sickness to speak of…

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Later - In the Infirmary

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Natsu was lying down in one of the white infirmary beds next to a window in the fairly large wooden room. Wendy had told Lucy that she couldn't find any sickness in his system and that she was coming back later to try looking for it again. Lucy doubted that she would be able to find one, though, because she already knew the cause of this wasn't a stupid bug going around. She thought Natsu had the same sickness she did, but it wasn't one that fully went away…

It was after the battle with Tartaros, that brought pain and suffering all in the name of Zeref. She lost Aquarius, Natsu, and her family, all in the span of one measly week. It all happened so fast that it hit her like a train on a track, and didn't leave her time to take in the blow... it winded her so she couldn't even breathe when the news came that fairy tail was disbanded. Being left all alone, she suffered a deep depression that eventually, made her sick. Loke and Virgo were the ones who nursed her back to health, always bringing gifts for her from the spirit world to help her feel better. She eventually came back to life and began her training with Capricorn and the other spirits. She never told anyone how sick she really was, because she didn't want anyone in her precious family to worry about her. Lucy is now wondering that the same situation is happening with Natsu. But he will try to prove that he was okay, no matter how sick or frail he was, he would try to get her to brush it off, she knew he would.

After sitting at his bedside for what seemed like an eternity, Lucy felt a warm presence behind her and instantly knew who it was. The leader of the Zodiac, Leo, or Loke as he prefers. He walked up behind her but didn't say anything, because he knew just by looking at Natsu, that this feeling was all too familiar. When she was sick, Loke and the other celestial spirits were devastated. They watched her suffer depression until she literally collapsed, and they knew they couldn't just stand by anymore. Lucy had said that she needed to be alone, that seeing her spirits would only cause her more pain. Loke realized though that she just didn't want to lose them...she just wanted to keep them safe.

"Hey," Loke said to the blonde who was resting her head on Natsu's side. He knew she cared for Natsu, and it was hurting her to see him like this. The fire dragon slayer was fragile, something Loke never would have thought to see.

"Hey," Lucy replied, her tone suggesting she was tired, with a mix of worry that blended with her exhaustion. She was tired, yet she couldn't bring herself to sleep. She was too worried about Natsu, and when he was going to wake up.

"You need to rest, Lucy. We can't let what happened to you happen again, do you understand?" Loke said with his voice laced with concern and worry, but still firm. If she kept this up, they would have to deal with two sick idiots.

"I know, but Loke," Lucy's voice lowered to the point where she was whispering, "I'm so worried. I'm so, so worried. Why is he like this? Has he been like this the whole time without telling me?" She started crying, burying her head into his side to muffle her sobs. Loke watched as her emotions broke down and poured themselves out of her soul.

She reached for Natsu's warm, calloused hand and brought it to her face. She gently kissed the back of it and laced her fingers with his before resting their hands gently on the bed. Loke watched the scene unfold, slightly feeling like he was intruding on the moment. Her bangs casted a shadow over her eyes and she said,

"Can I stay here? I promise I will get some sleep, just please, let me stay with him" She pleaded softly.

Loke felt like he had no other choice but to allow his master's wish, so he nodded slowly before glowing in a golden yellow light, entering the celestial realm.

Once he was gone, Lucy sighed and looked up to Natsu. How had it come to this? He seemed perfectly fine when they got back from his year-long training trip only about a week ago, so why was he suddenly suffering from a dark sickness? Or, at least, that's what she thought it was. Her questions were left unanswered as she lowered her head once again, grasping onto his hand as if it were a lifeline.

What she failed to see, was a black marking that was slowly creeping its way up his neck.

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1 day before Natsu's reunion with Lucy - Two weeks before Fairy Tail rejoined…

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Natsu and Happy were on the outskirts of crocus, where they made a camp stay for the night. They were set up in a forest where many travelers avoid due to the monsters that are frequently seen in these parts. Natsu and Happy paid no heed to the signs that adorned warnings and 'beware's' because as far as they were concerned, the monsters were no threat. Although, Happy flew around to scout the area just to make sure it was safe, at least for the moment.

They made themselves a camp located next to a beautiful flowing waterfall that joined to a small pond below. Happy figured it would be a good place to bathe, and Natsu fully agreed. They hadn't bathed in at least a week, and the stench of their bodies not to mention their clothes was starting to bother even the dragon slayer. Once they set up their camp, they were eager to dive into the warm spring that was within reach.

The blue feline dove in first, since he only had to take off his small hood that he carried fish in while Natsu had to strip himself of all his clothes. Ever since Natsu had left on his year-long trip, he had gotten immensely powerful. He practically maxed out all of his old attacks, so he learned some new spells and techniques that he worked on and eventually mastered. To hide his identity when they were crossing through towns, he wore a large black tattered cloak that covered most of his body. There was a risk of having people recognize him, or else he might have been publicly announced and he didn't want any interruptions or inconveniences.

Once he practically tore the cloak off his body and pulled off the remainders of his clothing, Natsu launched himself into the waters. The water was a crystal clear blue that he could see right through to the round black rocks that were the ground beneath him. An occasional rock had some vibrant green sea moss on it, and a few had some fresh water fish hiding under them. Natsu observed the pond in awe. It was shaped like a big round hot tub, with big rocks lining it around the outside. The waterfall was not a raging one, but rather a calm and peaceful one, as the water flowed almost soundlessly. There was a big rock that was situated only a foot or two beneath the surface, which Natsu moved himself to sit on.

He leaned back against a rock with a pleased sigh, enjoying the feeling of dirt being released from his pores and the rush of cleanliness that washed over him. Happy came flying over with a smile on his face and sat down beside Natsu, who grinned back at him.

"Hey, Happy! Isn't this great!?" Natsu said with enthusiasm. The last time he took a bath, he had to rush out of a person's bathroom naked because he thought it was a public wash house.

"It sure is! I still can't believe last time you tried to take a bath, that was the funniest thing ever!" Happy said with a laugh. He could hardly believe how utterly stupid his best friend is, even after all of this time.

"Pfft Shut up Happy," Natsu said with a slightly annoyed expression, yet his words were light, "How was I supposed to know it was their house?! Ugh, people have huge houses these days, it's hard to tell them apart from a freaking Mall!"

Happy just sighed, and they sat there in silence for a while watching the birds fly above. It was a peaceful silence, and both Natsu and Happy enjoyed the pond that was cleaning the filth off of them.

"Hey Happy, I think we should get out soon because we don't want to get wrinkles!" Natsu suddenly piped up, making Happy startle awake from a sleep that nearly claimed him.

"Aye…" Happy agreed tiredly. He was really tired from flying all day. He and Natsu got out of the spring and shivered when cold air gusted across their skin. Natsu looked down at his arms and saw that he had goosebumps, so he rubbed his arms in order to keep warm. After Natsu had walked over to his clothes and put on his pants, he suddenly heard a gasp come from behind him. Natsu whirled around to see Happy with tears forming in the corners of his wide eyes.

"Happy! You scared the crap out of me! What's wrong?" Natsu asked in a concerned tone. He knew Happy wasn't looking to scare him, because if he was he would use a different approach.

"Natsu… Your back…" Happy whispered. His eyes were as wide as Natsu had ever seen them, but the tears shadowed the shock with worry and panic.

"What?"

"There are black marks all over your back, Natsu" Happy was crying fully with tears streaming from his eyes but could still manage to mutter out,

"It says END"

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After the bath - That night

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Natsu's P.O.V

Everywhere as far as the eye could see there was darkness. Above me were midnight blues and below me, blacks that took the name 'black' to a whole new level. I wasn't even sure if where I was looking was up but I felt like I was sinking, being pulled deeper down into the abyss. It wasn't like I was floating in water, but more like a thick syrup that moved slower than molasses in January. I can't really move my body. It's almost like my limbs are frozen in place, my muscles feel too cold and stiff to move.

As I sunk, I thought about how I had gotten there. Where am I anyway? My brain was foggy, almost as if I had amnesia. At some point, I finally remembered my name, Natsu. Natsu Dragneel. Everything else was a blur, though, and I can't even begin to remember what I look like. My memories are gone, not a trace left behind except for my name, that's it. I searched and searched my head for just the slightest bit of information, but to no avail. And in that moment, a force suddenly launched me upward, towards the surface of whatever had imprisoned me. The blow left me breathless, desperate for air.

All of a sudden, I could breathe again. While I was heaving on the ground that seems like glass, I cracked one eye open only to find blinding white light. Above me, a blue sky with clouds scattered throughout but no sun to speak of. For miles, all I could see was the same glass white floor.

"Welcome, Natsu" I heard a deep voice come from behind me. A memory flashed before my eyes.

A little boy with spiky pink hair and a white scarf was running in a golden field in the forest when he ran into a big hard surface. Since he seemed to be young, he was on the verge of tears from just the small bump. But the tears vanished when a look of pure excitement took its place. He had a look of pure happiness when he jumped onto a big, red, scaley dragon that was sleeping contently in the meadow. "Igneel!" The boy yelled with enthusiasm, a big bright smile practically splitting his face.

The memory cut off sharply, leaving me dazed and confused. What just happened? Whatever it was, it left me with a whole new light of perspective. I remembered something. I remembered Igneel, the king of all fire dragons, my father. I spun on my heel to look where the voice came from and was presented with none other than the dragon that I saw in my memories.

"Igneel?" I said, but I couldn't bring my voice to raise above a whisper. My voice sounded foreign to how it was in my memory, it was deep and masculine like I was a lot older.

"Natsu, try to remember," Igneel said with soft eyes, "Try to remember your friends in Fairy Tail"

Fairy Tail?

"Fairy Tail…" The name rolled off my tongue like it was the most natural thing in the world. Realization struck me again, but this time, I remembered a lot more.

Fairy Tail, Natsu, how could you forget? It's your home, where you met all of your friends, it's where you met your family. A woman's voice was speaking to me, but it made me relax for some reason. Fairy Tail is the reason we became friends, Natsu! We've had so many adventures together, we've fought together, and we've laughed together. You, me, Happy, Erza, Gray, Wendy and Carla are a team! We're team Natsu!

It all came back to me. How could I forget? I would do anything for Fairy Tail, I would die to keep my family safe. Erza Scarlet. Gray Fullbuster. Wendy Marvell. Happy. Carla. And… Lucy Heartfilia. All of the names of my friends came back to my memory.

Erza and her long, flowing scarlet hair. Gray with his weird stripping habit and sword pendant. Wendy's shyness and caring nature. Carla, who has a strict personality but loves Wendy and the guild with all her heart. Happy, my best friend who's always been there for me to make me laugh when I'm sad. And Lucy, who I care for more than anyone in the world, my best friend, and teammate.

The rest of the guild popped into my head. Gramps, Laxus, Mystogan, Mira, Lisanna, Juvia, Gajeel, Levy, Lily, Cana, Alzack, Bisca, Asuka, Macao, Wakaba, Romeo, Evergreen, Elfman, Bickslow, Freed, Jet, Droy, Max, Mest, Nab, Reedus, Warren, Vijeeter, Laki, Kinana, Loke, and Gildarts. So many people who I consider family.

"I remember everything…" I whispered to the voice in my head, then looked to Igneel and said more loudly, "I remember everything, everyone, and all the adventures I've gone on"

"That's very good Natsu," Igneel said with a warm grin since dragons can't really smile. His expression suddenly turned serious and he stared into my eyes with an intensity I've never seen him wear, "Now, I need you to keep on remembering them. Something is coming Natsu, and I won't be able to hold it off forever. It is pure evil, and it will surely try to take over your soul."

I took this information in, but I had so many questions for Igneel. What was he holding off? Why is he telling me this?

"When it comes, Natsu, you have to be prepared to fight. You need to be able to remember." Igneel was now glowing with a yellow light, "I won't be able to protect your soul forever"

Shock suddenly flooded my body, as I just remembered, Igneel was dead. He died before my eyes after Acnologia ripped off half of his body.

"W-wait! Igneel! Please… PLEASE DON'T LEAVE AGAIN! IGNEEL PLEASE COME BACK!" I shouted after my father, who was slowly disappearing, fading into a golden light that entirely enveloped his huge dragon form.

"This isn't Goodbye, I'm sure we'll meet again soon, my son…" These were his last words, before he disappeared into thin air, leaving nothing but a small book that lay on the glass floor.

Natsu grabbed the book and clutched it tightly to his chest. He let one tear slip out of the corner of his eye as he stood tall, focused his eyes in a determined fashion and said to himself,

"Okay, I'll be ready. But when we meet again, I'll beat your ass to the moon and back for not explaining all of this Old Man!"

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Present time… Infirmary

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Natsu rose from unconsciousness groggily. He opened his eyes to be greeted with the wooden roof of the infirmary and his sensitive nose picked up some fresh summer air blowing in from the window. He remembered when he passed out in Lucy's arms, he could feel the curse getting darker. Natsu let it slide for the time being since he finally got some uninterrupted sleep.

Natsu lifted his head up to cross his arms underneath it when he found he couldn't move his left hand. He looked down to find that Lucy was clutching onto it while she rested her head on his side. He smiled down at her, glad to see she was getting some rest. His slight movement woke her up, though, and he immediately felt guilty for interrupting her sleep.

Lucy lifted her head and her eyes widened. She examined Natsu and noted that he looked considerably better. His eyes regained the blazing fire that they once held, and the bags under his eyes had gone away. She figured those two problems were from sleep deprivation most likely. His tanned skin was once again, and he was smiling at her, both very good signs.

Lucy let out a relieved sigh and relaxed, "I was beginning to wonder when you were going to wake up" She said with a chuckle.

Natsu perked up at her voice and his grin grew. "Yeah, sorry I made you worried," He said to her with a sad smile. He didn't like seeing her worried, but he hated seeing her hurt most of all. He knew she would forgive him for staying asleep so long.

"I'm glad to see you're okay, Natsu. The whole guild has been worried sick about you! But more importantly, what happened to you Natsu?" Lucy asked, she sounded like she was incredibly frightened at what he would answer to her, but she wouldn't know how bad it really was.

Natsu sighed and looked out the window. Should he tell her? He kept it hidden pretty well since only Happy knew. Ever since that night, things had changed. He knew what Igneel had warned him about now, and he was doing his best to fight it every night. It was only nightmares, but enduring them took incredible strength that began to take its toll on his body, and that's how he ended up here. He tried to act Happy for his friends, for Lucy, but on the inside, he was in agonizing pain.

"Natsu, are you sick?" Lucy asked desperately. It was clear she wanted to know really badly, but he couldn't tell her yet, he couldn't tell anyone yet. He needed to figure out what was happening to him and get rid of it himself. For the sake of the guild.

"Lucy," Natsu looked directly into her eyes with his that contained regret hidden deep within them, which he covered with a mask of happiness "I'm fine! I think I might have eaten some bad fish or something, but that's Happy's fault! I also haven't been sleeping very well, so that's probably all it was" He said with a hearty laugh.

Lucy wasn't fooled, though, she knew he was hiding something from her. She was determined to figure out what it is because she wants to help! She was tired of sitting around and doing nothing for her friend when she knew he needed help. Lucy decided to play along with his little lie, but she was not going to be tricked.

"Okay, I'm going to tell the guild that you're fine and you woke up and that you're going to take a nap before getting up and coming down to see them. Rest up, Natsu!" Lucy said as she got up and turned to go out the door.

"Thanks, Luce!" Natsu yelled to her with a big smile as she slipped out of the doorway and into the guild halls. His smile left his face the instant she left, and was replaced with an exhausted frown. He would definitely need rest to keep this up, so with reluctance, he pulled the covers up to his chest and closed his eyes.

Next, he waited for the nightmares to arrive.

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