Hey there everyone! This is my first fan-fic, so if it's complete and utter crap not to your liking, be sure to let me know!

Anyway, this is a NaLu fan-fic, it starts off to be a bit tragic but ends up being cutesy. I'm aware that this chapter is kind of long, but I kinda had to explain the backstory of what had happened to Natsu. Either way, I've got some stuff planned, and I hope that you'll enjoy what's coming!

Chapter one: The end of Zeref

It had been three months since Natsu's fight with Zeref. On the brink of death, Natsu fought on against the dark wizard relentlessly as he was hit with spell after spell, all of which were supposed to kill him. The entire guild lay unconscious except for Lucy, as she watched him being pulverised by the wizard of death. Lucy lay there watching, her tears practically drying her eyes out as Natsu tried desperately to defeat Zeref.

Zeref, clearly growing tired of Natsu's attempt to defeat him, began chanting the most dangerous spell he had. Lucy recognised the sound of it, and attempted to warn Natsu. "Natsu, look out!" she yelled as loud as she could.

"Lightning-fire dragon mode" Natsu muttered as his entire body was cloaked in his flames, which now had been cloaked with lightning. Lucy saw his eyes, unwavering as he stared directly at Zeref, who was still chanting the death spell.

Lucy, still watching Natsu as he stood there waiting for Zeref to act, that around his eyes, there appeared to be what looked like scales forming. Dragon Force? Lucy thought to herself. But he's never been able to bring that out on his own before!

Suddenly, a black aura started to emit from Zeref. He opened his blood red eyes and started directly at Natsu. "Natsu, I really thought you could have stopped me." His voice was filled with remorse, but he suddenly took a much darker tone "but I guess that was all just a dream. Say goodbye to your loved ones."

A large, dark magic circle engulfed the area that they were battling on, engulfing the guild members in its grasp. "You bastard!" Natsu screamed, and began running towards Zeref.

"It's futile" he muttered as he sent out a wave of dark aura, throwing Natsu back a few feet. "You, your guild members, this world shall all die by my hand!" Zeref began to cast the spell.

Natsu got up slowly, he could feel the dark magic sucking away his life force and figured that everyone else must be experiencing the same thing. Natsu, tormented by the idea of having his friends taken from him (even those bastards Gray and Gajeel, Natsu thought) gave him strength, as he began charging up his most powerful attack.

"Secret dragon slaying art…"

"It's over, Natsu!" Zeref yelled.

Natsu looked up, straight into Zeref's eyes. Zeref smiled upon seeing his glare, cast his spell.

"Black Arts: Death Magic" Zeref chuckled "Death Orb!" A huge amount of dark aura gathered around Zeref before blasting out as a gigantic dome in every direction, destroying the very ground that it passed over. Lucy, seeing this destructive magic, started to panic. If that hits us, we're all going to…die? Lucy panicked even more, then stared over at Natsu, still standing there with his flames cloaked in lightning. Is he planning on taking the hit?

"Natsu! Do something!" She yelled. To her surprise, Natsu gave a quick smirk as he faced the wave of death.

"Crimson Lotus: Exploding Lightning Blade!" he screamed as his attack raced towards Zeref's. The two attacks collided, with Natsu's attack seeming to win and Zeref's Death Orb being pushed back towards him.

Seeing how much power Natsu had to be using to propel his own attack against him, Zeref muttered "This is the end. Congratulations, Natsu. You beat the most powerful wizard in history." He closed his eyes calmly, accepting his fate.

He suddenly opened his eyes again, the red iris of his eyes practically flaming. In the split second that he had left before his imminent demise, he deduced that Natsu wouldn't be able to move from where he was standing before after launching such a massive attack. He quickly moved his arms and shouted "Death Pillar!"

A beam of dark magic shot straight out of the mixture of lightning, flame and death magic that encased Zeref, and hit Natsu directly. He screamed. This magic was like nothing that Zeref had thrown at him before, and he felt his consciousness fade away into nothingness.

Natsu fell onto the ground, followed by Zeref less than a second later. Lucy, struggling against the pain she felt on her body, crawled herself over to Natsu as he lay face-down on the ground. She checked his pulse, but couldn't feel it. She checked for breathing, but he wasn't moving at all.

Tears streamed from her eyes at an accelerated rate than before, but she couldn't contain herself. "It can't be…" she muttered "There's no way that… he could…"

She stared over at Zeref, whose body (or what remained of it after his own magic hit him) lay on the ground a few metres away. He wasn't breathing, which was a sign of relief, but she quickly drew her attention back to Natsu. He wasn't breathing, and if she didn't do something quickly she would lose her best friend forever.

"Someone save him!" She screamed as loud as she could. The other guild members woke up and saw Natsu lying there unconscious. Wendy, seeing him in such a state, ran over and tried to help him with her magic. Lucy continued to sit there and watch him lie lifelessly on the ground next to her, afraid that her worst fears might actually come to life.

Suddenly, he coughed. It was weak, but it was a sign of life. This was enough to make Lucy so relieved that she passed out right there next to him.

The next day, she arrived at the guild hall (which was undergoing reconstruction again) and couldn't see Natsu. He wasn't picking a fight with Gray, who was sitting next to Juvia as she fawned over him. He wasn't trying to pick a fight with Gajeel either, who was sitting across from Levy, her best friend other than Natsu, as she read her favourite novel. He wasn't even looking for a job (which she'd expected him to do, even after his near-death experience against Zeref).

Lucy walked up to Levy asking where Natsu was. Levy looked down to her knees as she closed her novel. She stared over at Gajeel, who gave her a reassuring nod, implying that she should tell Lucy about him.

She took a deep breath, and looked Lucy straight in the eye. "I don't know how I should put this, Lu-chan. Natsu's… still unconscious after his fight with Zeref, and in critical condition."

BAM! First chapter down, with more to come! I don't know how many chapters I'm going to make this, but I do know that I'll try my hardest to keep it somewhat interesting.

Yeah, I know I left it on a cliff hanger, but after such an epic battle such as that, you kind of have to leave the readers, being you guys, on the edge of your seats.

Reviews welcome! I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible, but considering I'm currently sitting my exams, it might take a while.

Chapter two: Reminiscence