Summary: Time Travel! A far more powerful and mature Natsu Dragneel finds himself in the body of his seven-year old self, the day he joined Fairy Tail.

NOTE BEFORE YOU READ: This chapter is really emo and was a pain to write. Do not fear, the angst will end soon. I hate writing it, so there won't be much next chapter and it'll hopefully end after Natsu gets over meeting Lucy (which will happen around Chapter 4 if everything goes according to plan). So please, just bear with it for a few chapters and then it'll be gone.

Reignite
The Sage
Chapter Two
Food for Thought

Blood pooled around the dying form of Makarov Dreyar. The old man's fingers twitched and Natsu Dragneel could only stare in disbelief and horror as his grandfather figure, the one who had been there for him for the majority of his childhood, laid dying. And there was not one fucking thing he could do about it.

"N... Natsu..." the old wizard whispered, his voice weak and soft, immediately coughing up blood after he spoke. Natsu stumbled forwards, dropping to his knees in front of his master and holding his hand, tears refusing to fall. He wouldn't allow himself to cry. There was no place for tears in this war.

"Old man..." he croaked, a burning sensation in his eyes – no, no! Don't cry, Natsu. Death is inevitable. It happens to everyone and he had killed plenty in this god-forsaken war, so why was the sight of one man dying driving him insane?

"You... runt..." the master took a deep breath, his eyes widening a bit in pain. His breathing was shallow and ragged. "Natsu... I don't have much time left. This war is hopeless. We're losing and they haven't even managed to control Zeref yet... but they're close, very close. As soon as they control him, this war is over. We have no chance..."

"Don't say such things, master!" Natsu shouted, feeling rage despite himself. How could the old man just give up? He was the one who always said to follow their dreams, no matter what anybody said! So why was he giving up?

"Natsu... stop... stop being a kid!" Makarov shouted back before he immediately cursed, pain shooting through his old bones. "Look... under the guild. There's a spell there... you can go back... you can fix everything! You're the only one left who I can trust, Natsu. Please, as my dying wish, go back and change the world! The spell will take you many years to master, I began studying it when I was sixty and I still haven't completed it. But you... Natsu... you're a genius under pressure. You must learn the spell before the world goes to hell! For me, Natsu!"

"Old man..." Natsu could only whisper, tears threatening to fall. He hesitantly nodded.

"Thank you, Natsu," the old mage seemed to sigh, as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "The spell will take at least twenty years to understand and use. You must go into hiding and learn the spell."

"But I have to fight!" Natsu argued. "All these people are counting on me!"

"Natsu!" The master shouted again, though it was significantly quieter. He was losing energy. "Whether you fight or not is not going to change the world, you have to understand that. Please... please learn the spell! Go into hiding and learn the spell! Lucy, Erza, everyone you cared about is dead! This is your only chance!"

Natsu stared at the sky for what seemed to be a long time.

"I understand. I will follow your wishes."

"Thank you, Natsu... you have made a dying old man very happy."

Natsu could only stare at the bland, white hospital ceiling as he recalled the events that had led to his arrival in the past. I did it, old man... he blinked back tears, remembering his Makarov – because no matter what happened, this Makarov could never be the same one from his time. As soon as he had come to the past with more power and a different attitude, the future that he had known had been destroyed. He hadn't been able to reflect on it when he arrived, too excited by the fact that the spell had actually worked. But now, lying in the hospital ward, he was able to take a breather and just think. His family from the future was never coming back. No matter what he did, no matter how he acted, too many things had been set in motion. The simple fact that he had arrived in the past had far-reaching consequences, effects he couldn't even think of right now. He also had to consider the missions he took, the people he met – he couldn't remember the first mission he took with Team Natsu, much less the first mission he ever took. He was going to meet completely new people, and people he knew from the future were not going to know him.

It was a tough pill to swallow. People he cared about might never know him because of the changes he was going to make, but it was a necessary sacrifice. The lives of many came before the happiness of one, Natsu told himself firmly. This was not the time to be selfish.

But that didn't mean he had to be completely selfless, Natsu thought with a grin. After all, if he could prevent his friends from feeling pain – why the hell shouldn't he? A shudder ran through him as he remembered the days and nights Elfman and Mirajane had beat themselves up over Lisanna's 'death.' Although she had come back years later, the pain and guilt that plagued those two had never left, even with her return.

He could prevent that. Happiness welled up inside of him – images and fantasies of the things he could change, the things that could be different flashing through his mind.

"Jewel for your thoughts?" an amused voice called from the doorway, and Natsu couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness in his heart, remembering how many times his Makarov had asked him that – before firmly squashing the seed of despair before it was planted.

"I'm wondering if this," Natsu pointed at the thin hospital robe and then the hospital room itself, making it clear what 'this' was. "Is going to become a regular occurrence."

"Hopefully not, m'boy," Makarov entered the room, a small smile playing across his face as he studied the young boy on the bed in front of him, taking note of several scars that were on his body (dragons must have a tough training schedule, Makarov thought, only half joking) and the gaze the boy had as he studied his surroundings, clearly memorizing it in case of an attack.

The mentality of a war veteran, Makarov thought to himself, frowning. The question was: why did a seven-year old think like a seasoned soldier? As a father and grandfather, it pained him to see the child in front of him looking so... serious. Children were supposed to be happy and carefree, they weren't supposed to look like the weight of the world was on their shoulders.

"So..." Natsu began, breaking the old mage out of his train of thoughts, shooting him a nervous glance. "Did I make the cut? Will you let me join the guild?"

The guildmaster smiled softly. "Of course. I would never turn away anyone, much less a child. Like I told you before, you proved yourself to be more than capable – I just thought it would be interesting to see how powerful you could become. And you've proven to me that you have talent, potential and the drive to become strong. You will become powerful, especially while you're in a guild like ours."

Natsu grinned slightly, though he inwardly wondered if he should start playing poker with the amount of restraint and lack of facial emotions he was displaying. He was going to be seeing his old friends again! Not immediately, of course, that would take years, but... still! Mirajane, Lisanna, Elfman, Gray, Levy... his heart began to beat faster. Would he be able to keep up the ruse in front of them? He could only hope.

"Now then," the master spoke. "If you feel strong enough to walk, come downstairs with me. We'll fill out the necessary paperwork together and get you stamped."

I remember this moment, all those years ago, Natsu thought with a chuckle. I was so excited.

But of course, he needed to keep up an image – despite all his talk, Natsu really, really wanted to look cool in front of his guildmates and friends. He didn't enjoy being taken as a joke, even though it had been mostly his fault throughout his life – he had been an idiot for far too long, and that had eventually cost his friends their lives.

He was not going to let that happen again!

"Hey," a gorgeous white-haired girl peered at him impatiently from across the counter. "You just gonna stare or do you need something?"

"O-oh, yeah," Natsu smiled, abashed, rubbing the back of his neck. Truthfully, he had not been leering at Mira – Mirajane, he corrected himself (she didn't allow people to call her Mira until she became nicer, after the ruined Takeover Trio mission. Though she was strangely nice now... perhaps it was because Erza hadn't joined yet, and so she didn't have a rival?) – though admittedly, she was a rather beautiful girl. He had been trying to prep himself to talk to her, since the only thing Natsu could think of when he saw her face was her body, crushed beneath a boulder. She had protected her siblings till her last breath. You need to get over this, Natsu! He reminded himself. What was the point of being cool if he couldn't talk to any of his friends without bursting into tears? "I'm joining the guild and the old man said I was supposed to ask you for the papers and the guild stamp?"

"Mm," she stared at him curiously, not responding to his sentence. "You seem a bit familiar..."

Panic set in – crap! Had he messed up this timeline already? What if because of his reappearance in the past, he had a long-lost twin brother who had arrived in Fairy Tail and attacked them? And now everyone thought he was evil so they all -

"Oh, I know!" she clapped her fingers as she remembered. "You're that kid who actually made Master break a sweat in that duel a few days ago! Cana and I drank for the first time that day, so I couldn't remember clearly, but your girly pink hair is very defining."

A noticeable twitch was forming on Natsu's forehead. Girly... pink... hair? He wondered if he would have to show her exactly what this 'girly pink-haired mage' was capable of! But it was a lost cause as she hummed and told him she would go to the storage room to get the stamp.

Something's a bit... odd... Natsu furrowed his eyebrows, trying to figure out the strange feeling he was getting. Hadn't the guild usually been... louder? He turned in his seat and had to bite back a shout of surprise as he realized the entire guild had been staring at him in a mixture of awe and curiosity.

"Uh... hi?" Natsu said weakly, waving his hand sheepishly, as if he had done something wrong. In a choreographed movement, the entire guild turned back to each other, talking and whispering and completely ignoring him. "What the hell?"

"Don't mind them," Mirajane giggled softly at Natsu's confused look. "They're just trying to hide the fact that they're staring and talking about you. After all, it's not every day we get a seven-year old who can force the master to use his magic, you know."

Maybe this cool personality is working after all! A mini Natsu cheered inside his head while the real Natsu just grinned. "Well, I am destined to be the most powerful mage in this guild, so maybe that's why."

"I don't doubt that all," the master's wry voice cut into their conversation. "You're a very powerful and intelligent kid, Natsu. I don't doubt for a second that you're going to be making waves in this world."

"Aw, hell," Natsu blushed slightly, unused to the compliments. People didn't usually talk about him this nicely – at least, not in front of him. Lucy had told him that Sorcerer's Weekly had plenty of articles talking about him, and ranked him as the third most desirable male mage in Fairy Tail, though she claimed that was because none of them had the misfortune of actually talking to him, only having heard of his exploits.

"Now, Natsu, what color would you like the guild stamp to be? And where would you like it?"

Natsu didn't hesitate. He had always liked the placement and color of his old guildstamp, so there was no sense in changing it now.

"Red and my right shoulder, please," he replied politely.

"What a gentleman," she flashed him a cute grin and leaned forward to stamp the guild marker where he had asked for it, in red.

"It's time to welcome the newest member to the guild!" The master roared immediately, and cheers were heard throughout the entire hall. "Bring out the beer!"

A few hours later, Natsu found himself sitting by the riverbank near the guild, staring at the bright moon which contrasted heavily against the night sky. He was so damn confused. He thought he had made a decision back in the hospital, but after the party started and his old friends came up to him to talk, Natsu could barely form complete sentences.

He couldn't look at Lisanna without remembering the bags under her red eyes, tear stains on her face as she punched him over and over again, screaming at him for letting Mira die when he had promised to never let any harm come to her or her family.

He had barely been able to give Gray a handshake without remembering Gray clasping his hand, blood dribbling from his lips as he stared lifelessly into Natsu's eyes, having been killed while protecting the guild when it should have been him.

Pain struck his heart – he had failed to protect his friends. He had known that, of course. But with their happy, innocent faces staring back at him, nonjudgmental and free of the emotional baggage that came from war – it just hit him so much harder.

He had to protect them!

"But how...?" Natsu mumbled to himself, staring at his guilt-ridden reflection in the river. "How can I protect everyone when I couldn't do it the first time around? I wish somebody could give me a damn answer!"

He shouted the last part and peered around, hoping that some deity would take pity on him and send him a teacher who knew the ins and outs of time travel and could help Natsu save everyone without fucking the entire world up. But of course, he did not have that kind of luck.

When did you start caring about rules, Natsu? He thought to himself tiredly, though he knew the answer. He had started caring about rules and all the things that he had never looked at in his childhood when Lucy had died, his future – or was it past? - wife to be. Her death had struck him the hardest, not only because she had been his best friend and only love, but also because she had died for him. Because the council had decided he was too much of a loose cannon and had sent an assassin after him. Lucy had protected him with her life, giving him the time he needed to prepare himself for combat and saving him.

After that, he had never not followed the rules ever again.

But that's not going to happen this time! His inner voice argued. If you don't break the rules, what was the point of going back in time anyways?

People could get hurt! He argued back, knowing his argument was weak.

And people will be hurt for sure if you don't break some rules! Stop pussy-footing around, Natsu! You've always been a man of action, not a man of rules or words. Stop being something you're not!

Natsu sighed. Only he could lose an argument to himself.

He stood up, stretching and staring at the moon before heading back to the dormitories which had thankfully not been destroyed by Gildarts (yet).

He would need a good nights sleep before he began breaking the laws of the universe.

Author's Note: This is a really, REALLY bad chapter, I'm sorry. But I need to get this out of the way before I get to the good stuff. As you can see, there's a bit more emotional baggage with Lucy than with any of the other characters, but don't expect Natsu to be a mopey emo kid for long, I hate writing it and I'm sure most of you dislike reading it. But it's necessary for character development – you can't expect a mature adult to go back and suddenly begin breaking rules that hold the universe together, you know? So in a couple of chapters, expect for the emoness to die and for Natsu to be back to kicking ass.

This is a reward for all those kind reviews :')