It was a rainy day in Magnolia, a week after the death of Lisanna Strauss. No one could believe that the cheerful and sweet Strauss sister died so soon, at such a young age. Mirajane stayed cooped up in her house, crying from the guilt of believing that it was her fault. Elfman became withdrawn lately, blaming himself for killing his little sister. No one had seen much of Natsu lately, he didn't even attend Lisanna's funeral, something that surprised everyone, as they thought that he would want to pay his respects. Not even Natsu's friend Happy knew the whereabouts of Natsu.
A certain scarlet-haired knight was walking down the street, using an umbrella to cover herself from the rain. She was just passing by the graveyard when something caught her eye, a damp mop of pink hair.
"Natsu? What is he doing here?" She mentally asked herself as she turned and walked in the direction of the Dragon Slayer. She noticed that he was in his usual sleeveless vest, and had nothing to cover himself from the rain, "Isn't he cold?" she idly thought, before she noticed the name on the gravestone that was in front of him, making her stop in her tracks.
Lisanna Strauss.
"He came to visit her grave?" Erza thought in sadness, she wondered how Natsu must be feeling right now. Lisanna was his best friend, in fact, now that she thought about it, she was the only friend he had in the Guild. She felt a pang in her chest when she thought about how the death of his friend must be affecting the boy. Usually if he was feeling down, Erza would just beat him instead of helping him with his problem, and then Lisanna would come and cheer him up. But that couldn't happen now.
Erza decided that the best thing to do right now was to do what Lisanna would have done, instead of what she would normally do. She walked up to Natsu until she was standing right next to him, and noticed that his clothes were completely soaked. She frowned when she noticed his dull, empty eyes as he stared blankly at Lisanna's gravestone.
"Hey Natsu." She said softly, but got no response from the pink haired boy.
"Natsu?" She asked again, placing a hand on his shoulder. Still no response.
She sighed. She turned to leave, but then she heard Natsu's voice.
"I-If… If I was stronger… do you think I could have gone with them?" His voice was hoarse and weak, clearly he hadn't spoken to anyone for a while. Erza frowned. "Do you think she'd still be here with me… with us… if I was stronger?"
Erza turned to look at him and was taken aback by the look on his face. His eyes were lost, and he looked confused about what he should do. She had never seen him look so defeated. "Natsu… You can't blame yourself for her de-"
"No!" Natsu shouted, his eyes becoming misty, "It's my fault! Before they left, Lisanna asked me if I wanted to go with them, but Mirajane said that I was too weak… if… if I was stronger… I could have gone with them… and Lisanna would still be here… with me."
Natsu turned around and faced Erza, causing the red haired girl's eyes to widen when she saw his appearance. His eyes had deep bags underneath them, his skin was pale, and his cheeks were hollow.
"Natsu… how long have you been here?" She asked in shock.
"… Wednesday…" Natsu whispered after a slight pause.
"W-Wednesday!? You've been sitting here for four days!?" Erza exclaimed in shock, "What did you do about food? Where did you sleep, Natsu?"
"…n't…" Natsu mumbled quietly.
"What was that?" Erza asked as she kneeled down beside him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.
"I… I didn't." Natsu whispered, "I didn't sleep or eat… I just want her back." Natsu sobbed, "She was my best friend! Why did she have to die!? She promised that she'd come back, so why!? Why did she leave me!?" Natsu screamed in frustration, burying his face into the crook of Erza's neck.
"Shh, Shh, it's okay Natsu. Just let it out." Erza whispered in Natsu's ear as she rubbed his back and consoled him.
It took about ten minutes before Natsu stopped crying over the death of his friend, and Erza couldn't blame him. She had an idea of what he was going through, due to what happened with Jellal, even though he didn't die. She made up her mind right then and there, she would help Natsu. There was no way in hell that she would let him go through what she went through.
She slowly stood up with up Natsu and placed her arm around his shoulder when he stumbled a bit, "He must have stayed sitting down these past four days." She thought.
"Come on Natsu, let's get you to my home. I'll take you to Fairy Hills, and if anyone has a problem with it, I'll take responsibility." She commented, getting a weak nod from him.
As they walked away from the graveyard and into the streets of Magnolia, they both failed to notice an orange haired man watching them with a serious look on his face.
"He wants to get stronger, eh?" A smile made its way onto the man's face, "I guess I've found an apprentice."
Okay, so for those of who are wondering why I'm posting a new story instead of updating my old ones, it's because I think I'll forget this if I don't write and post it. I'm almost done with Natsu Uchiha and halfway through Shards: Enclose. Going to start on Rise of the Kaiser tomorrow.
