This fanfic is a present to the wonderful xMissFortune who is celebrating her birthday today. It also happens to be her Christmas day today, so she needs twice as many good wishes. If you've enjoyed this it would make my day if you could wish her happy birthday :)
Once upon a time, in a kingdom far far away, in a small and somewhat sleepy town of Magnolia, there was a quiet little guild that was about to get a lot louder.
It was the very beginning of January and most of the guild were snoozing away their festive leftovers. The air was drenched in the smells of cinnamon, sweets and musty smoke. Some of the Christmas and New Year decorations hung limply across the ceiling, but most were kicked under tables and chairs or thrown haphazardly into the corner. Hints or gold and red here and there reminded them that although their first festive season in Fairy Tail was officially over, there was still plenty of work to be done.
As a young Erza Scarlet stretched her arms, she soaked everything in with a smile, her eyes wide despite the sleepiness around her. "This has been wonderful!" she exclaimed.
The other children of the Fairy Tail guild looked at her tiredly, already sensing what was going to happen. She had that sparkle in her eyes. She had that way of speaking a little too loud and a little too bold as she placed herself in the centre of the room with her hands on her hips. Looks were exchanged throughout the youngsters, preparing themselves for the worst.
"Yes, this has been incredible!" Erza pronounced as she walked through the hall, glancing around at the broken remains of the golden baubles, ribbons and the pile of ash that had once been a Christmas Tree. "I love celebrations. I love the decorations and the cake and the presents and the cake and the family."
"You said 'cake' twice…" Gray pointed out, barely raising his head from the table before finding it slammed back down by Erza's heavy gauntlet.
"Yes, it is the best time of the year!" Erza continued, undeterred. "We should have a celebration every day!"
Mirajane rolled her eyes heavily at her rival as she leaned back against the bar. "You can't have a celebration every day, otherwise there'd be nothing to celebrate."
Erza paused to contemplate this. "Hm. This is true," she thought to herself. "After all, half of the enjoyment of a celebration is the preparation! So let's begin the preparations for next time!"
"Well, actually-" Gray started, rubbing his head.
Erza decidedly ignored what was no doubt another sarcastic remark, already formulating plans. "What is the next event? Easter isn't until April."
"Valentine's Day?" Lisanna questioned with barely a whisper.
"That isn't until February. We need to find something sooner than that!"
"We've just had New Year."
"What about Chinese New Year?"
"That's even later!"
"What about birthdays?"
"I-uh-"
"Mine's October 14th!"
"Mine is March 22nd."
"April 9th."
"No, no, no!" Erza shouted, as she slammed her hands into the table. That was unacceptable! She was thoroughly disappointed in all her new friends for not having enough effort to have an acceptable birth date. "Natsu!" she shouted suddenly, pointing towards the surprisingly quiet dragon slayer. "When is your birthday?"
Natsu looked around the room. "I don't have one."
The entire guild of Fairy Tail seemed to collectively blink.
Erza stormed towards Natsu almost furious, her eyes wide and her heart racing quickly. In the few short months that she had known him, she had little reason to believe this was anything but a prank. "What do you mean you don't have a birthday?! Everyone has a birthday!"
"I guess dragons don't really celebrate birthdays… They have quite a lot of them!" he laughed, scratching his head and trying to remember any celebrations. Most of the time with Igneel he didn't even know what the date was. He remembered watching the fireworks over the sky in winter and seeing the cheering and dancing from the towns far below in the summer, but he couldn't recall anything as specific as a birthday. "What do you do with one?"
Erza took in a short sharp breath. A life without a birthday? Even as a slave she had held one day very close to her, she had counted down the days until she could enjoy that one day. Not that she really knew the answer to his question, not here in the real world, but that didn't matter. And she'd seen birthday cakes, which was particularly important. "Natsu, we shall show you exactly what a Birthday Party is supposed to be!" she announced, moving past him to stand on the table. "If we don't know your real birthday, then I'll make you one! Natsu, we will hold your birthday on January 7th, we will have a huge party, and everyone is invited!"
The guild cheered. The adults raised their glasses while the children looked up to the young redhead with excitement and anticipation.
All but one.
Gray stared up at Erza in disbelief, still trying to piece together her unconventional announcement. He couldn't quite believe that she had just awarded Natsu with a birthday and they would somehow have to pull together a party a week after New Year. It was a terrible date, it was too sudden, and there was part of Gray that felt ready to scream. This would end terribly.
Erza set about her newfound task of not only planning a birthday party but also finding out what one was supposed to be. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had a real birthday party, one that hadn't been spent hunched together in the cold damp prison cells along with her childhood friends. Her fellow slaves had tried to keep what pleasant traditions that they could alive, and she had supposed that many of the things that they had done would have been typical for a birthday if only under better circumstances. She just needed to make it bigger and better.
She had spent the entire evening in the Guild Library, a place that when asked no one had even seemed to know existed, and had poured over the books until she had found a one on birthday celebration. It had detailed instructions of how to plan a party, of which she took down notes that she could no longer read due to her scrawling handwriting, but most importantly it included a picture of the perfect party. The picture that she had torn out of the book and placed under her breastplate.
"Come on!" she urged Natsu as she leapt forwards, pointing her sword through the air as if she was going to slay some giant beast instead of planning a child's event.
"Alright!" Natsu exclaimed as he ran after her, looking thankfully just as excited as she was. He looked up at Erza with an innocent awe, like a student to a master, which Erza had not failed to notice. "Where are we going?!"
"There's a party shop on the end of this street," Erza said, remembering where they had purchased all of their Christmas decorations only a couple of weeks earlier. "You'll need to decide which ones that will be fitting for your birthday theme."
"Theme? What theme?" Natsu questioned, tilting his head to the side.
"Every birthday party must have a theme! It will help us coordinate together the decorations and the food and the cake and the party bags and the cake. But we are to look in our local store to get ideas for this theme first, as we don't want to pick something and be disappointed."
"Ohhh… Right, a theme!"
Gray rolled his eyes, refraining from pointing out that yet again Erza had mentioned the cake twice. "So why the hell am I even here?!"
"We need you to help us carry the decorations back to the guild," Erza said, obviously.
"… how many decorations are you getting?!"
Erza opened the door wide, a small bell giving the tiny shop giving a pleasant jingle against her sudden entrance. It was only a few square feet in size, but there were boxes piled high to the ceiling, bright colours twinkling from a loose streamer here or misplaced confetti there. Each one labelled with a vague description of colour schemes, events or themes. It was a place of wonder for young preteens. Natsu immediately ran in and started to pull on the first box he could find, a beaming grin written across his face as he pulled out tinsel and intricately patterned snowflakes. Even Gray found himself curious to the variety of colours he'd never even seen before.
Erza was on a mission, however, storming her way to the man sitting at the counter. "We need to find decorations for a birthday party."
The man glanced over to the young children, clearly keeping a sharp eye on them for signs of destruction. "A difficult time of year to have a birthday party. I'm afraid we don't have much in the way of decorations, we haven't had much space to stock anything but Christmas over the last few weeks. When do you need it by?"
Erza wore a heavy frown across her face, bracing herself for disappointment. "This Sunday."
The man shook his head. "A little last minute, don't you think? I'll see what I've got."
The children watched as the man began to rummage through the boxes. Although it seemed at first glance that most of were filled to the brim, as he began to clear through them they quickly discovered that the majority that were tucked away in shelves were actually empty, mostly with descriptions of 'Christmas – Blue' or 'Christmas – Baubles' and the like. He pulled every filled box he had he had together onto the desk one at a time, including last year's decorations for Easter, Valentine's Day and all other events, letting the children go through them all.
"I don't think we've got enough to do any theme, Erza..." Gray said, looking at the items in dismay.
"Nonsense!" Erza exclaimed. "We'll find a theme! Natsu just has to think of one."
Gray and Erza both looked back at the young dragon slayer, waiting for a miracle.
"Fire."
"Fire isn't a theme!" Erza yelled in disgust.
"Why not?!"
"Well, its, uh… It just isn't! Now think of a better one!"
"Like what?!"
"It's supposed to be your decision!" Erza insisted, pushing a box into Natsu's chest.
Natsu looked at Gray, hoping that he could catch his gaze for some kind of hint, but the ice maker was going through a box of golden decorations with mild disinterest. He glanced to Erza, who's eyes were as sharp as her swords as she watched him, and knew anything less than a perfect answer would have him in serious pain. So, he looked down at the box he'd been given in more detail, the ribbons and baubles and hats and scraps that didn't seem to join together. There just didn't seem to be anything that even seemed like a theme, or anything that even seemed specifically birthday.
"Erza, there isn't anything here but a bunch of Christmas crap!" Natsu exclaimed eventually.
Erza frowned, realising as much was true, and announced. "Then we shall just have to have a Christmas theme."
"What?" "Huh?!"
"That's all there is for it! We shall have a Christmas themed birthday party! Everyone likes Christmas after all," she said.
"But its just been Christmas!" Gray stuttered.
"That just means that we already have a lot prepared," she said with full conviction, turning to the mildly amused shopkeeper. "We would like to buy all of the Christmas decorations that you have please."
And she did truly mean all of them. By the end of their shopping trip they were leaving with what appeared to be more than they could have physically fit in the tiny store. The cart that Erza had taken there was filled precariously high, which she marched along with confidently, leaving Gray and Natsu trailing behind with huge bags.
"How many decorations do we need?!" Gray growled under his breath, feeling the sweat starting to drip from his forehead under the weight.
"How does Erza even have the money for all of this?" Natsu questioned, staring at the redhead in front.
Gray frowned, remembering the poor girl that had come to the guild with literally nothing. She had been injured, with only than the tattered remains of a dress and an eyepatch. It hadn't taken long for her to become a seasoned member of the guild and to give herself quite the reputation, but now it was hard to even imagine the two as the same person. "Have you seen the jobs she takes? Even most of the adults won't take those ones on. They make her so much money, and she's always working. I wouldn't be surprised if she was on one right now."
"Whoa…" Natsu breathed, staring at the young woman with a new sense of wonder. "That's awesome!"
Gray grunted an agreement. Erza was 'awesome' in many ways, but it also made it even harder to resist being pulled into these awkward situations.
"Do you think my dad might show up?" Natsu wondered aloud.
Gray glanced back at him. Right, his dad; the 'dragon'. Since Natsu joined six months ago, he hadn't stopped talking about him, so it was hardly surprising to see the glimmer of hope sparkling in his eyes even if there was no explanation for it. It wasn't even a real birthday, a celebration he'd already said that he thought dragons didn't celebrate, so there would be no explanation for Igneel to appear on this day more than any other. "Do you think he'd fit through the door?" Gray asked, keeping his eyes forward.
Natsu gave a short laugh. "I guess he wouldn't! He's even bigger than the whole guild! And his wings can cover the whole lake and he can tear down a mountain with a single breath!"
Gray had heard it all before. The last thing he felt like listening to was someone exclaiming how wonderful their parent was, even if it was one that was currently missing. He tried to ignore him as best as he could. Some days it felt uplifting, some days it was irritating, and other days – like today – it inexplicitly stung.
The faster this birthday was over and done with, the better.
Erza was unscrupulous in her planning. She told half of her friends to organise the decorations that they had bought into piles and the rest to begin the task of taking down the old decorations and cleaning the guild. The children ran around, into the smallest of corners and high in the rafters, the peril of not abiding by the angry preteens wishes proving a strong motivator. Erza herself took the time to meticulously create the invitations, only to change her mind half way through and instead simply create a poster up on the guild board. A poster which no one could read, but one that she appeared incredibly proud of all the same.
They spent the next three days preparing in these ways. Every member of Fairy Tail that was unlucky enough not to find a mission to take them far away was recruited into the cleaning or organising or cooking or crafting. The old decorations were cleared to lead the way for the second Christmas of the season. The only valid excuse that anyone had given so far was that they needed time to look for a birthday present, but it was only a matter of time before that excuse wore thin.
This was the excuse that Gray had given on the fifth of January, but it had quickly backfired against him when Erza exclaimed "We can go together!"
He could feel all of Fairy Tail watching him with pity as he was left with the fierce woman, dragging his footsteps towards the town centre and the marketplace.
"I hope it doesn't snow before the party," Erza remarked casually as she walked, holding out her hands as if she could feel invisible raindrops.
It had been said that it was the warmest winter that Fiore had had for three hundred years. There was an air of disappointment to the locals as they mentioned the lack of a White Christmas, by which Gray guessed that the weather was appreciated on one day of the year. Gray had never seen snow in Fiore. He'd arrived in the guild in late March last year, when the snowfall was still heavy in his homeland but a distant memory to his new home. "I'd like to see snow again," he decided, looking up at the sky and trying to judge the clouds.
"But it'll be distracting, and we barely have any time left!" Erza argued.
Gray pretended to agree with her. "I guess it would be nice to see it snow on the birthday, though… That would be pretty cool."
She gave a soft smile. "On the day would be perfect. Like a White Christmas."
He couldn't imagine the 'White Christmas' of Fiore. Before Christmas, he hadn't been able to imagine any real holiday in this new life, and though he had thoroughly enjoyed himself he wasn't quite certain he wanted to feel it again. Especially when it was so fake.
Erza's feet were slowing down outside of the bakery and Gray understood now why she had taken particular care to come out today. In some ways she could be so predictable it was almost cute. He slowed down also, making it clear that he was going to walk on, but offered "Do you need me to get candles?"
Her eyes widened in a way that made him certain she'd forgot. "Yes please! Oh… I don't know how many! How old will you be on your next birthday?"
Gray wanted to veer away from the conversation as quickly as possible, taking a step back and half-wave. "I'll just get as many as I can... Enjoy looking for the cake, Erza."
He was free. It was the kind of freedom which meant that he still was caught in her slavery, but it was the closest he'd had to a fresh breath since they'd begun this ridiculous quest. He was exhausted. He hadn't even considered what you were supposed to buy someone for a fake birthday/Christmas and a part of him didn't want to acknowledge the forced holiday with a gift, especially when he was already chipping in here and there for things like candles. Regardless, he forced himself into the present buying, even paying for someone else to wrap it since he clearly did not have the energy to do it himself. He even somehow brought himself to walk back to the guild and continue their efforts.
By the end of the day, the guild was sparklingly bare. The arrangements had been made, everything was fully planned. All they needed now was a Natsu-free environment for twenty-four hours to put everything in place. Although Lisanna and her siblings were by far the newest members of the guild, she had already warmed to the young Firestarter and was keen to volunteer to take him away for the day. Tomorrow they would have the chance to finish everything, put up all the decorations, and the dragon slayer could come in to see the completed result the following morning.
Gray's mind was spinning with all Erza's instructions as he faceplanted into his bed that night, wondering when the nightmare would be over.
"Hey, Gray?"
He must have been dreaming already. Or rather, having a nightmare. He groaned into his pillow.
"Hey, wake up ice block."
He wasn't even sure if he could have dreamed such an irritating voice even if he tried. He half-opened his eyes through the darkness, realising that he wasn't alone. Natsu's sharp, slanty, eyes, were staring back at him, waiting for him to wake up. "How did you even get in here…?" he grumbled, though he could feel the cold air streaming through the open window.
"You know how I said I hadn't have a birthday before?"
Gray opened his eyes a little more, trying to pull himself up. If he continued to try and have this conversation while drifting into slumber he was more than likely going to say something that he'd regret. "Mmm…"
Natsu pulled himself into a ball on his friend's bed, resting his back against the wall. "Well, I think I might have lied. I-I think that I did have a birthday with Igneel, but I… I'm not sure…"
What. "What makes you think that?"
"Well, I remembered it when you came in with the candles. I have this memory of him giving me a cake with a candle on it, but I don't know when it was. I don't know why it's so blurry," he put his hands on his head, frowning heavily to himself in frustration.
Gray blinked as he watched Natsu, the sudden realisation bringing him fully awake. Every memory of his parents and Ur was precious to him and he knew exactly how frustrating it was for the memories to slip away and blur. Even if his father was still alive, while he wasn't here it must have been difficult to process. "Yeah, that sounds like a birthday…" he said.
Natsu nodded, trying to pull more memories out of how the previous celebration had unfolded. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do. Do you think Erza will be mad it isn't my first one?"
Gray shook his head with confidence. "I don't think much of this has anything to do with you."
"How do you mean?" Natsu asked.
"Well… you know how you were supposed to be making the theme and picking the decorations and the food and the cake and stuff?"
"Yeah?"
"How much have you done?"
"…. Oh."
They hung in silence.
"Is that what usually happens?"
"No, Natsu, it's not. I mean, unless it's a surprise party, which it isn't. I don't think Erza really knows what she's doing, and she's pulled you into this whole fake birthday mess."
"Fake birthday?"
"Yeah, its not your real birthday, is it?" Gray asked, barely able to believe he had to spell this out for him.
"But we can make it my real birthday! It could be my real birthday! Who's to say that it isn't?!"
If Gray wasn't so tired he would have punched Natsu in the face. Instead he rolled his eyes, deciding that the conversation was over and falling back onto the bed. "Go home, Natsu. The sooner we get this over with the sooner we can pretend it never happened," he said, defiantly throwing his duvet over his head and falling asleep even before he could hear a reply.
Erza had never felt so much power in all of her short life.
The entire guild worked like a well-oiled machine. Guild members rushed around in all directions desperately trying to follow every part of the plan in the correct order. The plates upon plates of food were all produced, and those that needed to be hot or cold were given the empty places ready for the next morning. The hall was a Christmas delight. There were red baubles and golden ribbon and stars that twinkled above them. The warming scents of winter spices filled the air and there was a distinct sense of deja vous all around.
"We need this one here and that one there! Remember that we need to put these in height order! No, not that one, that one!" Erza instructed as she moved across the great hall. Although she was firm, there was not a single word she gave that was in any way mocking. Even when she disagreed with someone's ideas, she would command but with guidance and authority, never in any derogatory fashion. Except when against her rival. "Mira, what are you doing?! Can't you see how ridiculous that looks?!"
"I'm ridiculous!? I'm not the one throwing a goddamn Christmas party for a birthday, moron!" Mirajane growled, exchanging the heavy glare back to Erza.
"If you don't like it you don't have to be invited, bimbo," Erza hissed.
"Who are you calling a bimbo, carrot-top?!"
"The birthday cake is here!"
Erza immediately dropped her staring contest, her eyes now glowing with a bright new light as she ran across the room. The cake! She had been waiting desperately for this moment, to be able to gaze across her marvellous creation. The huge tray squeaked across the room. It was covered entirely by a large white sheet, but it was clear to see that whatever lay beneath was just as ridiculous in size as could have been expected by the enthusiastic requip wizard. Erza clapped her hands excitedly, almost looking like a little girl, her smile uncontained as she watched them throw back the cloth.
The guild was left stunned. Standing centre stage was a cake that really only could have been suited for their young dragon slayer. It was painted in rich reds, oranges and yellows, catching the light in the shape of thousands of tiny scales. Almost identical to the shape and design of the scales the friends recognised as the material that created Natsu's scarf, though in a deep blood red. Four gigantic layers stood tall, each slightly smaller than the last blended together and with a white spiral wrapped around each tower.
The guild was in quiet awe, chattering to themselves and to Erza with exclaims. "That looks incredible." "Not bad!" "Oh, he'll love it." "It's so Natsu!"
Gray was in disbelief. This had been the first indication that Erza had actually been making this party for anyone but herself, but the amount of care and detail that she had put into this cake's request was amazing. His mouth hung open, which she must have seen as she was suddenly walking towards him.
She had a piece of paper in her hands, and pushed it towards Gray. "It doesn't look like the picture. But do you think he'll like it?"
He glanced down, seeing the scrap of paper and realising what she had been looking at all this time. The happy faces of the birthday party, the image that she had set out to create. Bright colours, streamers, cake, party hats, and everyone getting along. Her hand shook ever so slightly as she held the picture up for him, the determination set in her expression.
He looked back at her, a small smile on his face. "He'll love it," he said with confidence, stealing another glance at the fire dragon cake. The colours of the reds blurred together, the image of the decorations vastly different from those in her picture, but somehow prodding at his creativity. "I have an idea. Do we still have the broken decorations we took down?"
Erza tilted her head. "I think they're outside. Why?"
Gray snatched the paper from her, running forwards and scrambling around for a pen. Turning it over, deciding to completely ignore their image of the 'perfect' birthday party, he drew quickly and crudely visual instructions, and pointed towards the ceiling. "Do you think we can do this?!"
Erza nodded, smiling as she understood.
Natsu couldn't wait another moment.
He ran through the streets, past the people he had been growing to know the past six months and those he had already built quite the reputation with. He had the beaming grin written across his face, more than he'd had since he'd first arrived as a new orphan to the guild, and was more careless than ever as he stormed his way through the familiar avenues.
"Hey, watch it, kid!"
"Sorry! It's my birthday!" he laughed.
He took in a deep breath as he stood outside of the guild doors, staring up at the familiar woodwork and brimming with excitement as he thought about what was behind it. He had been specifically told by Erza that he was not to come into the guild until 10am that day. It was nine. That was… close enough, right?
He threw open the doors and his eyes grew wide. This was not Christmas. This was something even better.
The baubles, tinsel, ribbon, and every other kind of decoration they could find had been colour coordinated. The reds burst into bright explosions, surrounded by trickling golds to form giant flames crawling around the ceiling. The ripped New Year golden ribbons had been stuffed and twisted around twigs to produce bright yellow fires to rest on every other table running up to the front bar. Along the bar itself was a huge feast, appearing more than enough to feed a guild five times their size. Hanging from one end of the room to the other was a huge banner with the words 'Happy Birthday Natsu' written in bright red against a golden background. The room had been rearranged for even more space for people to stand and mingle and enjoy the company of the day-
Erza punched Natsu hard in the back of the head. "You're not supposed to be here yet!"
Natsu staggered around, seeing stars in front of his eyes as the room blurred into fire. It almost made it seem more perfect. "Th-thank you!" he exclaimed as soon as he could, turning to his assailant and throwing his arms around her tightly. "It's amazing!"
Erza glared. It felt like it had been ruined by his earliness. She hadn't had a chance to make sure that everything was checked and double checked or to finish placing all of the food in the right order or prepare his entrance… but her face softened as he squeezed her, and she had to squeeze back. "You're welcome, Natsu. Happy Birthday."
"Can't-Breathe-"
"You know, you need to thank the others too. Mirajane helped us tremendously with the cooking, Lisanna for helping keep you busy, Elfman has been doing most of the lifting, Gray-"
"Can't-! Let- Go-!"
"Oh!" Erza dropped him, letting him cough hysterically until the breath returned to his lungs. "And Gray has truly helped with the decorating."
Natsu lifted his head. "Gray?" He was the one that pointed out that none of the party had anything to do with Natsu, but of everything that he could see, hear and smell, it was the decorations were screaming fire – the exact theme that he had wanted from the start.
The guildhall was filling with people by the second, drowning away his question. Although most of them had seen the designs before they had left the evening, there was still a sense of wonder even within the adults as they came in, each one congratulating Natsu on his birthday and complimenting the friends that he held. That was the best part for Natsu. He knew that everything that had been done had been his friends pulling together and creating something magical that they could all enjoy. When he explained this to his elders, most laughed and said that was only because he hadn't seen his cake yet.
Fairy Tail did not wait until 10am to begin their partying. Most of the adults began drinking in the morning, even some of the children being given a couple of drinks under their watchful supervision. They laughed and cheered, told stories together and the presents gathered in the corner. It was nothing like Natsu had half-remembered his last birthday, but of that he felt quite glad. He had a very different life now, and until he had Igneel back in his life he would enjoy new moments, new memories and new stories to tell him when he came back.
"You're late," Erza scolded Gray as he walked in around midday.
"I slept in," Gray said under his breath, bags under his eyes suggesting that he had not slept at all.
Erza nodded slowly, deciding to accept the explanation. "Natsu is very happy with the place. You really helped pull this together, thank you."
"Yeah, don't remind me."
Erza raised an eyebrow at her surprisingly bitter friend.
"Did he like the cake?"
"We were waiting for you."
"That's dumb."
Erza threw him a warning gaze. He was entitled to his bad moods, but she wouldn't stand for anything that pulled down the day they had been working so hard to achieve. "We'll begin now then. Macao says he has a spell to help us," she said, stepping through the growing crowds and tugging on the older mage to come with her.
Gray looked confused, wondering why she would possibly need Macao to help them with a birthday cake.
And instantly understood as soon as it was wheeled out. She'd used every single candle that he'd given her. The entire pack of four hundred.
"Oh my Maker."
Natsu stared in wonder. The cake was more fire than food, rows upon rows of tiny candles all burning with a fiery passion as the pair quickly pushed the trolley towards him. And that was when the singing began. The entire guild singing in unison for the dragon slayer.
"Happy Birthday dear Natsu, Happy Birthday to you," Igneel spoke the words slowly and carefully rather than real singing, as if he was testing a strange enchantment he was not familiar with.
"This is for me?" Natsu grinned, taking in a sharp breath.
"You have to make a wish as you blow it out," the wise dragon told him.
Natsu extinguished the candle in one quick breath. "I wish that you'll be with me forever!"
"Fool, you're not supposed to tell me your wish!" Igneel growled, baring his huge white teeth. Then, slowly, he leaned closer, rubbing the tip of his snout against Natsu's pink hair. "And you shouldn't waste wishes on such trivial things. I'll always be with you, if you believe it."
Natsu watched the lights dancing before his eyes, the dragon scales of the cakes frosting twisting into his memories. It felt for a moment that he was right there, and that this entire room was made of his dragon fire.
He took one big breath in, soaking in the huge flames and eating every last one of them.
The guild burst into laughter. "I guess that's one way of doing it!" Macao commented, putting a hand on Natsu's shoulder. "Did you make a wish?"
Natsu nodded, patting his filled belly and grinning confidently. "I sure did!" he said, vowing that he wouldn't say his wish this time, in case it would mean it couldn't come true.
It didn't take long for Erza to produce one of her swords and begin slicing into the beastly cake, expertly creating the perfect ratio of icing and cake mixture (strawberry filling, of course), and beginning to hand them out to all to her friends. The guild marvelled at the success, amazed that very little had been damaged so far – though it was still early in the day – and it appeared as if the birthday party was truly a good plan.
Makarov watched his brats proudly as he sipped his drink. He soaked in their conversations, he absorbed the happiness around him, and he saw what he suspected others may have missed. The partying continued for several more hours, several more drinks and more than a few fights later, but he continued to keep himself mostly on the side-lines. Eventually, however, he hopped off his stool and moved over to the dragon slayer.
"So, Natsu, am I to believe that you will be taking this date as your official birthday moving forwards?" the master asked him.
Natsu turned, surprised that this was the first he'd heard from the guildmaster this entire day. "Sure thing, Gramps! I guess I don't really have much reason not to."
Makarov nodded to himself. "I did suspect as much. You'll be pleased to know have already changed the date in your file. Happy birthday, Natsu," he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small gift.
It didn't matter how many presents Natsu received, he would never stop feeling his heart racing as soon as he saw one for him. "Thanks, Gramps!" he exclaimed, before realising that the old man still had something else in his hand, another gift wrapped almost identically to the one he'd just been given. "What's that one for?"
The old man chuckled to himself. "I made quite a discovery as I was amending your record, Natsu. I take it you are unaware that you share this birthday with someone else?"
It was too damn hot for winter.
Gray pushed his hands deep into his pockets, gritting his teeth against the howling winds that were a terrible excuse for winter weather. He missed Isvan weather. He missed snow that could bury houses. He missed winds that ran through your bones. Ur had trained him to feel that cold and every day that he spent on this strange warm country he felt like he was defying her instructions.
He didn't want to think about Ur, but she was in his head today. He closed his eyes and he could see her, a kind smile written across her face as she wished him a Happy Birthday and coated the room in magical iced decorations. She created him toys from her skilled magic, bought Lyon and himself sweet treats from the local market and even took his side when the bitter arguments between himself and his step-brother inevitably unfolded.
Then there was the birthday before that. The one that he had spent with his parents, the one where they had given him real toys and a real cake. Where he had sat in front of a warm fire and been treated like a prince.
Fairy Tail just couldn't compete with memories like that. He didn't want them to try.
"Gray!"
He kept walking, kept pushing his hands deeper into his pockets and trying to pretend that he hadn't heard. He had done his party piece, he had helped make that stupid fake birthday into everything Natsu could have ever asked for. The only birthday presents he asked for was a little space.
"Gray!"
He lifted his head up just in time for his cheek to be connected with Natsu's fist.
"What is your problem, Ice Block?!" Natsu screamed at him, panting for breath.
Gray hit the ground hard without his hands free to brace the fall. He pushed himself back as quickly as he could, staring at disbelief at the sudden and unexpected attacker. Natsu was shaking, that way he did when his anger and determination blurred together but Gray couldn't understand why. Even more confusing was why Erza had not even tried to stop him. Did a fake birthday just give Natsu free reign to beat him senseless? "What the hell was that for?!" he demanded.
"It's your birthday?!"
Gray froze. His mouth hung open, his eyes wide and staring back but seeing nothing but Natsu. Gray didn't know how he knew, but he didn't need to. Natsu looked like was gearing up for a fight. He could practically feel the heat pouring out of him, burning his skin. Then there was something in his eyes that was almost frightening, something that caught him there.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Natsu demanded, stepping even further forwards. "Why would you do all of this for me and not even tell us it's your birthday too?"
"I-I-" Gray stammered, staring up at Natsu, thinking through the thousands of reasons that now didn't seem to make much sense. At first, he had thought it might have been fun to celebrate but the more the day spiralled out of control and into Erza's brilliant plan the harder it was to speak up. The closer the day became, the more realise that every time he thought about his birthday he felt a huge void inside of himself, missing the people that he truly wanted to spend it with. "I just didn't want to, OK?! I didn't ask for any of this!"
"Gray, you should have told us…" Erza said, taking a small step forward and looking as if she was going to burst into tears at any moment.
"Why wouldn't you just tell us?" Natsu insisted.
Gray hissed angrily. His fingers clawed at the ground beneath him as he started to scream at them. "Don't you get it? I don't want to celebrate! I didn't want a party or presents or any of this! I didn't even want to be at the guild today! You can have this stupid birthday, I don't want it!"
There was no reply to that. The wind howled through their silence.
There was no more explanation given, no more questions that they could ask. Natsu and Erza stared back at Gray's defiance, at an expression that should never have been on seen on someone's birthday. It hit them both painfully. They waited a signal, for something to turn the situation around and find a way of lifting their friend's spirits.
Erza's lip wobbled as she stepped forward, Makarov's tiny gift in her hands as she held it out to him. "This is from the master," she told him. "If you really don't want to celebrate, well, it is your birthday, so you should be able to decide."
"Erza-!"
Erza shook her head at Natsu's complaints. "We won't force you, but… I hope you'll come back to the guild, Gray," she told him, putting the present in his palm and closing his fingers around it.
"It's not the same without you, ice block," Natsu shrugged, following Erza's suggestion and begrudgingly taking a step back, even as his instincts screamed to him to stay.
Gray couldn't meet either of them in the eye. He couldn't bring himself to move away either, however, his feet staying firmly rooted to the spot as he heard them both slowly but surely leave. He could hear their hesitation. He knew that this revelation had probably ruined a wonderful day for them, and part of him just wanted to go back to the guild just to make them feel better. But he didn't know if he could.
He gave a heavy sigh.
Once he could not longer hear even Natsu's angered shouting, he looked down to the tiny gift in his hands. Makarov. He must have somehow found out and spilled the beans. Gray was disappointed in himself for not even thinking to warning the master not to tell anyone, but right now he was too tired to be mad. It had been a long and stressful few days. He didn't even take the time to unfold the ribbon, ripping at the box and unveiling the present underneath.
A tiny silver ball.
"What the hell, old man…?" he questioned, pulling it out of the box and examining the curious thing. It appeared to be made of silver, with no obvious markings or instructions. Just a strange silver ball, about the size of his hand. "Weird…" he remarked to himself as he started to walk home. At least it wasn't big or intrusive, even if it was still an unwelcome present.
And then it began to vibrate. He jumped suddenly, almost dropping the gift in his surprise. It buzzed and pulsated, murmuring to itself for quite some time before jumping up into the air and floating far away.
Gray blinked. The unwelcome present had… taken care of itself? "I hope I don't have to explain that to Gramps…" he said under his breath, staring up at the sky and trying to catch the glimmer of metal soaring through the air, before eventually once again deciding to turn home.
He didn't know when he'd lost his jacket and shirt, but he was in no mood to get it back. It wasn't as if it was cold enough to need them. As soon as Gray walked into his home he slammed the door shut and fell back against it, sliding down to the floor in a tight ball.
Everything had been going well. Natsu's party had been a huge success, the guild had been having a marvellous time and it had been everything that a young dragon slayer could have wanted. That was what Gray had wanted. He didn't want the day to be anything about him, he didn't want every pair of eyes watching when he was feeling vulnerable, but to stand on the side-lines and cheer on his friend instead… it was so much better than he could have expected. He hadn't dreamed that he would have been able to make something so suited to such horrendous tastes and make it fun.
Until he'd yelled at his friends. He hit the back of his head hard against the doorway, remembering the hurt looks across their faces.
This birthday was so different to Isvan. It was different to the cabin in the middle of nowhere, trying to mimic the beautiful snowflakes which Ur had poured from the ceiling. It was different from a warm home that he had spent locked away under layers of snow, receiving the promises from his parents that they would rearrange their parties for when everyone was able to come out of their houses and join them.
But maybe just because it was different didn't mean that it was bad…
There was a thud against his window. That was unexpected.
Slowly he picked himself up from the floor, wondering how long he'd spent recounting his memories. His legs were aching, wobbling as he stood-
A second attack struck, this time hitting the space where his window was open and flying through his apartment. He blinked as the familiar white ball splattered across his bedroom floor.
"Snow…?"
"Hey ice block!" Natsu's voice called to him from below.
He turned to the window, scrambling over the bed to look down upon the city below. His heart raced. It was as if there had been something being lifted from his shoulders and he was finally able to catch his breath. Snow. Real, Fiore snow. Magnolia snow. This was white wonderland that he'd heard everyone talking about, and it was just so familiar. The sky was filled with heavy white clouds and a white dusting scattering through the sky. Already he could see Natsu's feet had disappeared into the white canvas that spread across as far as the eye could see, covering rooftops and treetops and streets and signs and market stalls!
"Aha, there he is!" Erza called up to him, putting her gloved hand over her eyes to shield herself from the falling snowflakes.
"What are you waiting for, Ice Block, let's go!" Natsu called.
Natsu and Erza stood below his windowsill, both smiling back at Gray. Erza had supposedly requipped into her long navy coat, the fur collar pressing against her cheeks and pushing away her red hair. Even Natsu had changed, possibly the first time that Gray had ever seen him cover his guildmark in favour of wearing a heavy red jacket. He wore gloves too, though Gray wasn't sure if it was to protect his hands from the cold or as a tactical advantage to not accidentally melting snowballs, as another one was being moulded in his hands ready to throw.
Gray looked down at them both, confused by their sudden appearance as well as the equally sudden snowfall. "Where are you going?" he asked.
"The lakeside, the whole guild is already there," Erza answered for them. "Apparently the lake usually freezes over in the snow and we can try ice skating. I've never been ice skating before," she added, her cheeks turning a shade redder.
Gray couldn't imagine having never been ice skating before. He had known that there wasn't much snow and ice in this country, but with a world like this he couldn't help but feel the need to enjoy every part of it. He felt himself ready to jump out of the window just to join in with the sudden winter playground, but something held him back. "But what about your birthday party?" he asked Natsu.
"Who cares about that?!" Natsu shouted back up at him. "Come on, hurry up and go, I wanna get there early and get the best spot for the snowball fights!"
Gray finally let the smile cross onto his face. A snowball fight did sound really good right now. He threw a spare jacket back over his chest and ran down the stairs, almost slamming into his friends in the excitement but receiving nothing but laughter as they caught him at the bottom.
By the time they arrived, their footsteps were difficult and the snowball arsenal plenty. It took no time for the youngsters to run into the battle, laughing as they made the snowballs deadly and with precise aim. Gray marvelled at how mages of all different kinds, even those who enjoyed nothing more than heat, were laughing and having fun in the playful white powder. As he saw the edge of the lake and realised how brittle the forming ice was, to the great delight of his new family he cast his ice magic across the surface and hardened it, allowing the guild to begin their skating. He created iced skates for the bottoms of the shoes for anyone who needed them, and helped take Erza across the ice for the very first time. Then, after a few hours of the winter wonderland, someone suggested that they should bring down the food from the earlier party. It took most of the guild to haul the buffet and cake across the snow, but once it was set in place there was no need to go anywhere.
As darkness started to fall on the happy guild, the three friends gathered together in fulfilled exhaustion, lying on the cold ground side by side. They smiled comfortably, staring up at the growing stars that glimmered between the white droplets still falling.
"I take it that you enjoyed Gramps' present?" Erza asked him.
Gray smiled. He'd been suspecting that the tiny silver ball had had something to do with the sudden change in weather for a while, but Erza had only confirmed it. "Yeah, it's been pretty good," he said, the highest form of compliment that he would ever give, even if his tired but bright grin shouted an even higher praise. "Hey, Natsu, I-uh… don't think I said Happy Birthday…"
Natsu didn't sit up, but Gray could hear him shifting in the snow to look at him. "Happy Fake Birthday, you mean?"
Gray shook his head. "No, just regular…. Happy Birthday. It's as good a day as any, right?"
There was a pause. Gray was almost certain he could hear Erza repressing a small chuckle under her breath, but he didn't mind. The unconventional celebration had been completely unexpected, but it had actually turned out for the best, and for what felt like the first (and possibly last) time in his life he didn't mind sharing with Natsu.
"Happy birthday, Gray," Natsu eventually said back to him.
It took a while for Gray to realise that it had been a happy birthday.
I hope you've enjoyed 3 If you have, please leave a review and let xMissFortune have a happy birthday too!