Author Note:

I don't currently have a beta so all errors are totally me just being really out of practice writing and reviewing, so I'm sorry.
Also, I was listening to Nickel Creek's "When You Come Back Down" while writing this and I may have cried. Maybe. Because of reasons. But, that being said, the last time I put anything up was forever ago and I am super out of practice, so, sorry?

There was a moment as the magic of Fairy Law swelled in his chest where Makarov thought all of time stood still, and he was granted infinity encapsulated that allowed him to see all of his children as they are, were, and would be. Their lives laid out for him to lovingly pore over.

Fairy Tail. His home. His family. His children.

From mighty Gildarts to tiny Auska. Makarov could feel his heart swell and clench, twisting painfully in his chest. He could clearly recall every moment of his time as Master, each second a crystalline drop of perfection.

There was Macao and Wakaba, old friends who have been a source of amusement and friendly nights drinking and reminiscing, little Romeo with his exhaustive sighs at the old men. Gildarts, his strong right arm in whom he could trust implicitly.

His smile grew pained as his fingers ghosted over the shifting faces of the Strauss children. His Mirajane, Elfman, and their little Lisanna. How glad his heart had been to welcome her home, to see the wholeness of their hearts restored.

Here, his delight in Bisca and Alzack making a new family, with little Auska bringing new joy to his weary bones. How he rejoiced in love taking root and making whole those that had been broken before.

Every family had their oddities, and he suppose he wouldn't be far off the mark calling Nab and Vijeeter his. But they were good, loyal men who loved their guild as much as the rest of them.

Max and Warren, playful bickering and boysih delight in spades. Laki and Reedus, truly two more mismatched friends you'd never find. Mest and Mystogan, wayward children who would always be able to call Fairy Tail home, no matter what kept them away.

Makarov felt a familiar sting as he dwelled for a moment on Porlyusica, his old and dear friend, whose temper had once been able to curb some of his more outrageous plans.

There was sweet Kinana, with her patient and shy smile, her willingness to stand at their side. How blessed he had been all these many years, surrounded by such goodness.

A smile flitted across his face, fingers moving through the drops of his lifetime, seeing Jet and Droy always together, always trying to win the heart of the spritely Levy, whose quick mind and loyal heart and brought much joy to their family in the years they've called Fairy Tail home. Whose kind and fierce heart had latched onto his shadowed Gajeel, full still of so many prickling wounds and bristling temper. Much less angry now that he had Levy and Patherlily to ease the old ache.

Heart strings plucking a bittersweet tune as his eyes turned to children who had come into his life and left marks that would never fade, not through death nor all the years of history.

His own blood, Laxus, who had struggled with this world and his place in it for so long before coming to terms with what it meant to be Fairy Tail, and his loyal friends who had learned humility and camaraderie in the intervening years, garish and bold Bickslow, fierce and haughty Evergreen, proper and loyal Freed. How thankful he was for their growth and maturity, they would be shelter and foster the legacy he left.

Tears gathered in Makarov's eyes as his hands plunged into the pool of crystallized faces smiling up at him.

Erza, his wounded warrior who built upon the life gifted her by Rob until she had become so strong she learned how to stand in her own skin, unafraid to embrace her own vulnerabilities.

Icy Gray who had thawed so much in such a short time, starting first with a golden girl, and truly embracing what it meant to live when Juvia patiently washed against his shores, letting her love ease the frostbitten edges of his heart.

There, little Wendy and her huffy Carla, two bright spots of innocent sweetness in his rowdy guild. Fierce Sky dragon girl, heart so gentle, soul so bright. How thankful could a man be to look upon his guild and see so many loving faces? The answer would span eons.

Cana had been there for so long, he barely recalls what life in the guild was before her. What luck they had that she had chosen to find her father in their walls, and had stayed and brought such devious laughter to ring through the guild.

Oh, how he loved them all.

Finally he submerged his heart into the pool of fire and starlight that was so intermingled he would never be able to think of one without the other.

Natsu, his bright and fiercely joyful boy. All reckless abandon and most solid loyalty one could ever hope to find in a soul. With his constant partner in crime, Happy, the pink haired child had brought equal parts laughter and yelling into their family. Who had always somehow been on the edges and in the center of Fairy Tail until the final puzzle piece of their family had been added.

Lucy Heartfilia. Stardust golden daughter. For such a delicate child, she had broken down the guild and put it back together in such short order. She was the golden lacquer that filled in the cracks running through every heart that beat under the Fairy Tail mark, unknowingly, unintentionally, just by being there, being her, she had healed over wounds he had despaired over, saved Loke through her refusal to stay quiet in the face of injustice. Somewhere along the way, this starfire girl had come to embody all that was Fairy Tail.

Fiercely loyal, bold and strong, kind and good, it was easy to be proud of her, always pushing herself to be better. But above all, she endured past the point of heartbreak, past the point of torment, Lucy endured and chose to be kind in the face of pain. She never abandoned her friends, she never ran from her pain, didn't let her loneliness make her bitter, she had held the ember of the guild he had disbanded and breathed life and love into it, keeping it alive in her small hands, in her strong heart.

Mavis was the heart and soul of Fairy Tail, the founder and First Master. And Lucy was the unknowing heir to the throne of Fairy Heart. Their very own Fairy Princess, all golden and warmth, Makarov didn't know what he had done in his life to deserve such happiness in his life, but he thanked every moment for filling him with such love.

This was the light of Fairy Tail. These were his beloved children. And he would give his life for them, because they were his life. They were why he could never retire, never abandon them, even for a moment. He could only offer his life for theirs.

He mourned that he would have to let them go their own way, for there was nothing he wanted more than to see all their beautiful smiling faces as they celebrated their victory in their home.

As his infinite moment came to a close, as his magic and Fairy Law continued to build, to spill across the battlefield, he broke his heart into a million pieces against the sorrow that he would not be able to see them all come crashing through the door, to welcome them home. Each piece of his heart got carefully tucked into their chests, forever connecting them to him. He had always been there to catch them when they fell, he had always been there to lift them back into the air.

Makarov felt his life flicker, his time on this world coming to a close, and he poured his desire to protect them into his magic, their faces flashing through his mind, hearing a harmony of voices calling for him, from sweet Mira to loud Natsu, from Wendy's quiet voice to Laxus' lazy drawl.

He would wait for them, on the other side of this light that tugged at a place deep in his chest, his only fear that he wouldn't feel them should they falter, that he would not be able to count their wounds, nor watch over them as they healed.

As the very last of his life slipped through his fingers, his final wish for his children whispered through the air, "Take every chance you dare, I'll still be there, when you come back down."

And with that, Makarov Dryer died, determination and love in every line of his body as Fairy Law left the shell of his body statue strong, hollowed of everything but the imprint of his protective desire.