Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail
Warning: Major spoilers if you aren't caught up with the manga… but hopefully you expect that by now if you're browsing :)
There's the edge of the forest. Just a little farther and he'd be in the clear.
"NATSU DRAGNEEL!"
… Or maybe not. Time to run.
"OPEN, GATE OF THE MAIDEN, VIRGO!"
Aw crap. He dodged and wove around the random holes that exploded into existence, courtesy of Virgo. He knew, if he really wanted to, he could have finished the fight in one powerful blow. But he couldn't. That's the whole reason he was running in the first place.
"Natsu! Don't go!"
It was that pitiful cry that stopped him in his tracks. Resigned to his fate, he slowly turned to find Lucy and Happy panting, clearly exhausted from chasing him.
"Hehe," he said nervously, reaching up to ruffle his hair. "Hiya, Luce. Happy…"
"Natsuuuu!" Happy flew into his arms, where Natsu reluctantly caught him.
"Finally…" Lucy gasped, clutching a stitch in her side. "Thanks Virgo, you… you can go." Then she straightened and glared at the dragon slayer. "And just where… do you think… you're going… after… running out… of the guild… like that?"
"I'm, uh, gonna go train?" It came out as more of question. Lucy raised an eyebrow.
"Train," she repeated skeptically. Natsu nodded quickly. "And you bolted out of the guild warning everyone not to follow… because you wanted to train?"
"Y-yeah. Can't have ice princess tryin' ta steal my tricks, you know?" he chuckled nervously. Lucy's eyebrow inched higher.
"Uh huh," the celestial mage deadpanned. "So tell me what the real problem is. And don't try to feed me anymore of that training bullshit." Natsu blinked. Crap, she must be angry if she's cursing. Lucy crossed her arms and waited.
"I can't tell you." Lucy's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Can't, or won't?" she asked, obviously trying to be patient. Natsu considered this.
"Lil' bit of both, I guess," he replied.
"What the hell does that mean?" Lucy demanded.
"Not telling," Natsu sang. Maybe if he annoyed her enough, she'd storm off and leave him alone.
"Natsu Dragneel," Lucy started, deceptively calm. She stepped forward until the two were almost nose to nose. Happy flew out of the way in alarm. "You," she poked his chest. "Are going." Another poke. "To tell me." Poke. "What." Poke. "Is going on." Harder poke. "Right." Poke. "Effing." Poke. "Now." Poke that might have left a dent. "Or so help me, I'll tie you to this tree with fleuve d'étoiles and leave you here to starve." The last part finished in a snarl, and Natsu gulped. There was no getting away from Lucy when she was this angry.
"L-look, you're makin' a big deal outta nothin', Luce," Natsu stammered. Lucy rolled her eyes.
"Natsu, you're a terrible liar," she told him.
"No seriously, you don't gotta worry -"
"Why? I'm not supposed to worry about the fact that my best friend is going off to train without any supplies, or taking Happy? That he didn't bother to tell anyone what was going on before leaving the guild? That I feel like he's going to abandon us again?" Natsu flinched at the reminder of the admittedly crappy note he left Lucy before leaving for a year.
"I've gotta go, Luce," he said lamely. He didn't know what else to say without telling her everything. And there was no way she could know. None of them could.
"No you don't," Lucy said furiously. "Whatever it is, you're just running away from your problems. I never thought I'd see the day when Natsu Dragneel, of all people, turned into a coward!"
Oh hell no. "I AM NOT A COWARD!" he bellowed. "I'M TRYIN' TO PROTECT EVERYONE!"
"BULLSHIT!" Lucy screamed. "WE DON'T NEED PROTECTING, WE NEED ANSWERS! YOU'RE OUR NAKAMA, MORON, AND FAIRY TAIL DOESN'T GIVE UP ON FAMILY! SO WHATEVER IT IS, WE'LL HELP YOU THROUGH IT!"
"YOU CAN'T HELP ME!" Natsu shouted right back. "NO ONE CAN!"
"WELL, WE DEFINITELY CAN'T HELP YOU IF YOU DON'T TELL US WHAT'S WRONG!"
"YOU CAN'T HELP ME BECAUSE I'M A MONSTER, LUCY!" Natsu roared. The shock on Lucy and Happy's faces would have been comical in any other situation. Natsu visibly deflated.
"Look," he said miserably, unwrapping the bandages around his arm. If possible, his friends' eyes widened further at the sight of the marks branded into his skin.
"T-those are…" Lucy whispered.
"Demon marks. I… I'm a demon, Lucy," Natsu finally confessed. He closed his eyes and braced himself for the worst. "I'm END. Etherious Natsu Dragneel," he spat. Silence.
"What makes you think that?" Lucy asked finally.
"Zeref told me," Natsu mumbled. "In… in Alvarez. He told me I'm his lil' brother that he turned into a demon hundreds of years ago…" Happy heaved a dry sob and Lucy covered her mouth in shock.
"Oh, Natsu…" she trailed off. She took a shaky breath but managed a small smile. "Well, at least we don't have to track END down anymore," she said, clearly trying to be optimistic. "And I guess it's not going to be a problem since it's you -"
"Not gonna be a problem?" Natsu hissed. "Lucy, I'm the most dangerous demon Zeref ever created. And you think that's not a problem? You're supposed to be the smart one, Lucy!"
"You're Natsu. You wouldn't hurt your nakama," Lucy said simply. Natsu growled.
"And what if I can't control it? I have trouble holding back now. What if it gets worse?"
"If it does, we'll help you through it," Lucy said encouragingly. "We know more about demons now, so we should be able to find a way for you to control your, uh, demonic qualities."
"But the battle with Tartaros nearly destroyed us!" Natsu waved his hands wildly. "Imagine a demon with more strength than all of 'em combined! Hell, Igneel couldn't even…" he closed his eyes as the memory of his father's death ripped through him. "Igneel couldn't take down END an' he was the fire dragon king. Even Fairy Tail can't beat something like that."
"Fairy Tail will find a way," Lucy said firmly. "We always do." Natsu moaned in exasperation. Why was this girl so stubborn?
"Don't you get it? Even if… even if Fairy Tail is prepared to fight END… Are they prepared to fight me? Cause I'm END, Lucy, and there's nothing I can do to change that." Lucy frowned.
"We'll always love you, Natsu, no matter what. You're family."
"No, you can't," Natsu muttered. "You can't love me, I'm a monster. Monsters can't be loved." Another beat of silence.
"You're right," Lucy said coldly. "Monsters are incapable of being loved." Happy and Natsu stared at her, and Natsu could feel his heart breaking. Lucy was right; he was a coward. While he did genuinely want to protect his friends, this is the kind of rejection he was running from.
"Lucy…" Happy trailed off, horrified.
"Let me finish, Happy," Lucy said, tone surprisingly gentle. She locked eyes with her best friend.
"Monsters can't love or be loved. But you, you have so many people that love you. And you have the biggest heart of anyone I know. How can you possibly be a monster, Natsu?"
Natsu gaped. "W-what the… But… Didn't you listen to anything I said?!" he cried. "I'm END, Lucy! Zeref's brother! You can't just -"
"Accept that? Yes, I can." She took a step forward. "In Fairy Tail, your past is only important insofar as it shapes who you are, but otherwise all we care about is your future."
"But my future is -"
"With Fairy Tail," Lucy interrupted sharply. Her expression softened. "You're my best friend, idiot. It's not like you suddenly became END overnight; it's always been a part of who you are. And to be honest, Natsu? Who you are is pretty damn fantastic.
"Sure, you're loud, obnoxious, reckless to a fault and have destructive tendencies that would scare any sane person," Natsu cringed at that. "But you are also unflinchingly loyal, stupidly brave, and more than that you care. You care deeply, Natsu, not just about your friends and family but also others you've never met before. How many times have you risked your life for a stranger, huh?" She didn't allow him time to answer before barreling on. "How many times have you put yourself at risk to save a village? A city? The country? And even with all the tragedy in your life, you still manage to smile that stupidly bright smile of yours and make us all laugh!" Happy was nodding in time with Lucy's declarations, while Natsu was rooted to the spot.
"You know why Igneel wasn't able to defeat END? I think it's because he saw the goodness in you, and knew that one day, you would be a hero. I mean, think about it. Where would Happy be without you? You practically raised him. Hell, where would I be? Most likely married to some rich brat and forced to live a life I hate. And there are countless other stories like that. Those aren't the actions of a monster, Natsu, so don't give me that crap about having to leave to protect everyone!" Then she smiled one of her bright, sunny Lucy smiles and held out her hand.
"We're partners, right? And partners stick together. So don't go running off on your own again, okay?" Natsu stared at her in astonishment.
"Yeah, what Lushi said!" Happy added unnecessarily. She glared half-heartedly at the Exceed.
"Don't go taking credit for my work, stupid cat," she scolded.
"But you said everything. Selfish Lushi, not leaving me anything nice to say!"
"What about something like, 'I don't want you to leave because you're my friend, Natsu!' You're just being lazy! And besides, I can't help being loquacious, I'm a writer!"
"What's lo-loka-loqua..."
"Loquacious? It means wordy."
"Then why'd you use that big word instead of wordy? Lushi's a weirdo."
"I am not weird!" The bickering pair were interrupted by a snort.
"Yeah, you are a weirdo. Who lectures the most dangerous demon of all time?" Lucy huffed.
"Excuse me, but that was a pretty good speech for a spur-of-the-moment thing, you know." She fisted her hands on her hips triumphantly. "And it changed your mind, didn't it?"
"Not really." Lucy gaped and spluttered, but Natsu just shrugged.
"I still think it's a stupid idea to hang 'round the guild since everythin's gonna go to shit one day, but you're so damn stubborn it don't really make a difference what I think, does it?" He heaved a dramatic sigh. "Guess I got no choice but to go back, huh? Or are you gonna make your spirits kidnap me?" He glanced at the fuming blond out of the corner of his eye.
"You, you," she pointed her finger, frustration rendering her incoherent. "You're impossible!" she finally burst out. Finally Natsu cracked a grin.
"Yeah, but you're worse. Weirdo," he added for good measure. Lucy grumbled something but offered a smile and a hand in the end.
"Then you're coming home with us? Not going to run off first chance you get?" she asked hopefully. Happy hovered nearby nervously. Natsu hesitated to answer just to make them sweat… for all of five seconds.
"Yeah, I'm goin' home," he relented. Lucy's smile widened and Happy cheered, zooming over to land on Natsu's head.
"Yay!" the little blue exceed squealed. Lucy shook her head.
"Honestly, Natsu, you're such a drama king," she said.
"Am not!" he argued. "And besides, who's the one that flips out every time me and Happy come over to her apartment?"
"THAT'S BREAKING AND ENTERING! IT'S ILLEGAL!"
"But you haven't called the cops on us, yet. And you should be used to it by now, anyway." Lucy threw her hands up in exasperation.
"What am I going to do with them?" she asked the sky.
"Feed us?" Natsu suggested. "I worked up an appetite with all that runnin' around."
"That's your own fault -"
"Yeah! Can you make us some yakizakana, Lushi? I don't really like cooked fish but yours is the best," Happy said.
"Don't think you can flatter your way out of this, stupid cat!"
"But Lushiiiii I'm hungryyyyy!" came the whine from both boy and Exceed.
"Then eat your own damn food!"
"We don't have any left," they chorused. Lucy groaned.
"Of course you don't. Why did I ask?" she muttered to herself.
"Natshu," Happy asked in a stage whisper. "Isn't talking to yourself the first sign of insanity?"
"I AM NOT INSANE!"
"Wahh! Natshu, help meeeeee!" Happy cried as Lucy chased him around.
Unfortunately for Happy, Natsu was too busy laughing to be of much help. Part of it was mirth at his friends' ridiculous antics, but much of it was a release of all the fear and confusion he had been dealing with since he found out the truth. Leave it to a weirdo like Lucy to make a problem this big seem so easy to solve.
"Okay okay, I give up!" Lucy panted. "Too much running today! I can't do it anymore!"
Happy snickered. "That's cause you're getting fat, Lushi!"
"Yeah, Luce," Natsu chimed in. "Guess you're the one that needs some trainin', eh?"
"ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT!"
And so the three friends sprinted back home, two laughing manically and the third trying - and failing - to hide her wide smile.
Author's Ramblings: Please excuse the lame title. I'm going with the theory that Natsu's hiding demonic markings or something under the bandages. And I know Natsu might be a little OOC, but I figure if he found out that he was essentially a demonic zombie born over 400 years ago whose older brother just happened to be the most dangerous dark wizard of all time… well, I think anyone would be freaked out by that. Especially someone like Natsu, who values his ability to protect his nakama above all else.