Pride: Here's the next chapter, and Natsu may be a quite OOC in this. I did it intentionally, because I felt that he is not exactly a blockhead, and receives less credit than he deserves. Besides, Natsu being a blockhead would not go well with my storyline at all…
To my dear readers, in case you are not following me: Please do check out my three other stories (and most importantly, remember to REVIEW!), "Dragon Invasion", "Tell Me You'll Never Leave Me" and "Profanities".
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fairy Tail, or any of its characters.
Narrator's Perspective
'Thoughts'
"Speech"
"Attacks/Raised Voices"
Settings- Place and Time
Memories/ Diary Entries
Truth Behind Lies
A Fairy Tail original fanfiction.
Chapter 2 – Holiday Havoc
21 SeptemberX784, Magnolia Town, Natsu and Happy's home
"Natshuuuuu! Aren't you going to the guild?" an enthusiastic Happy enquired.
"Nah, you go ahead little buddy. I'll finish writing my diary entry first" came the reply of his foster father, Natsu Dragneel.
"Since when did you know how to write, Natsu?"
"Since Erza…taught me to"
"Taught?"
"Kinda."
"I thought it was more like she beat it into you, heehee"
"Shut it, Happy!" Natsu playfully scolded his partner, who flew out of the house snickering to himself.
Natsu's diary
Dear diary, I haven't been able to write to you as often as I would have liked to because many things have happened in the last few months.
Remember that guy I told you about, the one that called himself Ryde? I met him again when I was fighting Lullaby. He's a cool guy, but I don't get why he keeps saying that he is me. I mean, I am me right? But if I had his powers, I bet I could beat Erza anytime!
Speaking of Erza, remember when I asked her to fight me after we stopped Erigor? She accepted, but we didn't get to finish our fight 'cause a stupid frog from the Council arrested her and took her away.
I got Macao to pretend to be me, and disguised myself as Erza. It took a guild a while to realize that I was gone, and the people at the Council – boy, their faces were priceless when I barged into the courtroom! I saw Yajima-san there, as well as some blue-haired man that gave me a bad vibe. I don't like him.
The Councillors threw me and Erza into the jail for a night just to make an example of us to the other guilds. The nerve of them! I got beaten up by Erza for making such a big scene and getting us both landed in prison for a night, but I felt that it was worth it when I saw how Erza's expression. She told me she was happy that I cared enough to go to such lengths for her.
I want Erza to keep smiling, so I won't let anyone make her sad!
The next day, I got Happy to steal an S-Class request from the second floor so that I could get stronger and protect Erza. We got Lucy to come with us, but when we reached the harbor to catch a boat to Galuna Island, Gray caught up to us and said that he was going to bring us back to the guild.
In the end, we got him to come with us on the mission, and we also found out that the sailor, Bobo, was a ghost – can you believe that?! When Gray didn't return to the guild, Erza came after us.
Long story short, we found Gray's fellow student, Lyon, who wanted to melt the ice around Deliora to beat it and surpass his teacher, Ur. We beat him and his lackeys and found out that Deliora was already dead. Later, we also found out that the villagers weren't turning into demons, they already were demons! Apparently something about the purple moon made them think that they were humans.
When we returned to Magnolia, we found that Phantom Lord wrecked our guild while nobody was there! Such cowards! That night, Phantom's Black Steel Gajeel beat up Jet, Droy and Levy – how DARE he do that to my sister – and nailed them to a tree in the middle of the town square.
Master brought us to fight Phantom Lord, but before we could give them a good trashing, one of their strongest mages cheated and drained Master of his magic, so Erza told us to retreat.
They kidnapped Lucy because her father asked them to, and used the opportunity to attack Fairy Tail, so I went and saved Lucy from a tower they locked her in.
Another day, the Phantom Lord master attacked us using a giant robot on legs, and Black Steel kidnapped Lucy again.
We beat the Element Four, I trashed Gajeel (he was a dragon slayer too, and told me his father disappeared on the same day that Igneel did!) and Master used Fairy Law to beat Jose and his shades.
After that, we rebuilt our guild - it's so much cooler now, with the swimming pool and shop selling figurines that look just like us! Guess what? I asked Max, and he told me that the figurines of me had a higher demand than the Gray figurines. HA! Can't wait to rub that in the stripper's face! Master told me that the best addition to the new guild would be the new waitresses at the bar to which Mira gave him a scary glare, though I don't understand why…
Then, we found out that Loke was actually a celestial spirit! And the bastard didn't even bother to tell us that even though we've been his family for so many years! Apparently he caused the death of his previous owner, so the Celestial Spirit King banished him from his world. Not to worry though! Lucy solved the problem and now she has Loke, or rather Leo the Lion Spirit's key!
Now that all is well and peaceful, hopefully we can catch up on some well-deserved rest and relaxation. Especially Erza, she's worked her ass off for the guild, she should really take a break.
Right, that's all, so 'til next time!
21 SeptemberX784, Outside Fairy Tail guild, Magnolia Town
"Natsu! Wait up!" squealed Lucy Heartfilia, Natsu's best friend and sister-figure.
"Lucy? You're late today. I thought you'd usually be earlier than me at the guild?" Natsu queried.
"Yeah, but guess what? ImetLokeandhesaidthanksandhewantedtogivemeticketstoaresort- "
"Whoa, whoa there, Luce. Slow down a bit, will ya'?"
"Oh sorry. As I was saying, I met Loke on my way here and he said he was grateful to me for saving his life and look – he gave me tickets to Akane Resort as thanks!" squealed Lucy excitedly, waving four tickets in her hands.
"Akane Resort? What's that?"
"It's a seaside resort with a casino and other facilities, and I have four tickets! You know what that means? Erza, Gray, you and I can all go on a vacation to the resort!"
"Really? That's great, Luce! Let's go ask Erza and ice-queen if they're coming!" Natsu grabbed Lucy's hand and practically dragged her into the guild in his excitement.
21 September X784, Fairy Tail Guild Hall, Magnolia Town
SMASH!
The doors of the guild were knocked off their hinges as Fairy Tail's lovable dragon slayer came barging in, which was a pretty usual occurrence in the guild.
"Nat-su-Drag-neel! How many times must I tell you not to break the doors!" Erza reprimanded her friend, shooting him a glare that caused everyone else in the guild to cringe in fear. The recipient of the glare, though was unfazed.
"Erzaaa! Lucy said she got tickets for all four of us, including Ice-Brains, to Akase Resort!"
"It's Akane!" cut in Lucy.
"Whatever. The tickets are for the 22nd to the 27th September, Erza! Want to come? And speaking Ice-brains, where is he?"
"Who're you calling ice-brains, squinty-eyes?!" Gray shouted back while pulling on his shorts that had "magically disappeared" moments earlier.
"Want to go, droopy eyes?!"
"Yeah, you pile of flaming shit!"
"Who're you calling shit, you walking ice lolly?!"
"You, obviously, retar-"
THUD!
The sound of two heads colliding echoed throughout the guild hall.
"S-s-scary!" was the one thought that ran through the heads of everyone else present in the guild.
"Very well, Lucy. I accept. Natsu, Gray! Go and pack. I expect to see you at the train station tomorrow at 9 o' clock in the morning, sharp!" said Erza.
"AYE!" came the voices of Happy #2 and Happy #3.
22 September X784, Magnolia Train Station, 9:45 a.m.
"Natsu. What time did I tell you to be here at the train station?" asked Erza in a sickly sweet voice.
"S-s-sorry E-erza! I overslept! Pleasedon'tkillme!"
"You…*sigh* Nevermind. Just hurry up, let's board the train, you're lucky it hasn't left yet. Otherwise…"
"*gulps*"
"*sigh* What am I going to do with you, Natsu…"
22 September X784, Magnolia
"Urghhhhh…."
"Don't you dare puke on my, flame brains!"
"Shut up, ice- ughhhh" Natsu couldn't finish his sentence as his face turned green due to the train running along a particularly bumpy part of the railway.
"Ice-ughhh? That's new, shit-for-brains."
"Gray?" Erza interrupted Gray's oncoming stream of insults, seeing as Natsu was unable to retaliate in his current condition.
"?"
"Shut up."
"Aye, ma'am!"
"Natsu."
"Er-zha?"
"Come sit next to me," she beckoned to him in a gentle voice. Natsu complied, moving across with great effort to sit next to Erza.
"Pleaz don knock me out-" the pink-haired boy pleaded with difficulty, fighting to keep the ball of puke down his throat, just as Erza raised her arm to elbow him in the stomach.
Her eyes softened. "Alright then. Lay your head on my lap."
Natsu did as he was told, and closed his eyes in bliss as Erza's fingers running through his hair soothed his motion-sickness.
Lucy and Gray just looked upon the scene with interest and slight surprise as they had seen neither Natsu nor Erza get so comfortable with a person of the opposite sex before.
"They liiiikeeee each ot-" Lucy shut the blue cat's mouth, not wanting him to interrupt this rare moment between her two friends.
The rest of the train ride passed by uneventfully, save for the slight upturning of Natsu and Erza's lips as they sat in relative silence, relishing in each other's company.
22 September X784, Akane Resort, Ume Town
A gigantic and extremely colourful building not unlike a castle loomed ahead of the group of four as they gaped at it in awe. Natsu and Gray's jaws dropped to the ground in shock and disbelief. Sure, they had expected the hotel to be fancy and all, but not as fancy and rich as this! Even Happy had nothing to say, all the smart comments he might have had being caught in his throat.
Erza's eyes were wide and she was visibly in awe of the massive structure, build and architecture, though she wasn't gaping like the other two, because Erza Scarlet does NOT gape.
Even Lucy seemed a little impressed, despite having grown up in the huge Heartfilia Konzern Residence and played in the vast lands nearby that her father owned.
The huge archway leading to the entrance of the hotel overlooked a broad stretch of the beach, with white sands flanking it. However, the people playing on the beach were making their way back to the hotel in a slow trot.
To their far left there was a huge ferris wheel and a theme park that drove Natsu's excitement off the charts.
Entering the lobby of the hotel, the four mages were visibly and obviously impressed with the high stone archways, ceiling and the many intricately designed statuettes that added to the grandeur of the building. The marble floors had been painstakingly polished so shiny they could practically see their reflections as flawless as they would look in a mirror. In the far right corner of the lobby, there were five clusters of plush armchairs surrounding small glass tables. There were multiple fireplaces adorning the edges of the lobby, engulfing the armchairs' occupants in comfortable warmth.
"Whoa, I've never been to such a ritzy hotel before!" exclaimed Natsu, his initial amazement not having worn off.
"You know what, flame brain? For once, I agree with you," admitted Gray, in the same state as Natsu; eyes bugging out of their sockets, slack-jawed and arms hanging limply at their sides.
While her friends were busy taking in the sights of the posh life for the first time in their lives, Lucy stepped forward to the check-in counter, her high-heeled boots clicking on the marble tiles as she took each step. She handed in the four tickets and collected the four room keys, as well as the complementary buffet coupons, making small talk with the kindly young lady manning the counter.
"Natsu, this place is nice, but it's not good enough if they don't have any fish," Happy decided.
The mention of fish made Natsu's endless abyss of a stomach growl.
"Erza, I'm hungry," Natsu whined after he had gotten used to the grandiose of their temporary residence.
"No, Natsu, you may not eat the fire from the fireplace. Besides, we'll be having dinner in just a while," she said sternly.
"Okay!"
The four Fairies (and a cat!) made their way to their rooms at a brisk pace, dragging their suitcases – in Erza's case, a mountain of luggage.
They deposited their luggage in their rooms and looked around, fooling around with the facilities provided in each room. Natsu found the mini-fridge in one of the rooms, but was sorely disappointed when he found nothing but ice cubes inside.
Happy burrowed his furry little head into one of the fluffy pillows, wishing nothing but to lie there forever, all thoughts of fish forgotten.
Gray was so fascinated by the lacrima television and kept switching between channels before Lucy stopped him, fearing for the condition of the remote. They even had a rectangular lacrima that allowed one to read books, which Lucy spazzed over. (A/N: Yes, it is the magic world's version of an iPad, in case you're wondering.)
Erza, meanwhile, was playing around with the many taps surrounding the bathtub in the bathroom, watching in rapt fascination as each tap spouted a stream of different-coloured water, bubbles, and the like.
Once their initial fascination with the strange objects had worn off, Lucy led her friends down to the restaurant in the hotel, where they enjoyed an all-you-can-eat buffet using their coupons. Naturally, Natsu was giddy with excitement.
"The poor chefs are going to collapse from exhaustion, with the amount of food they're going to have to cook," snickered Happy. There was no rebuttal.
Two hours later, the four mages made their way back to their rooms, their bellies content. Getting changed, they made their way to the swimming pool on the roof of the resort, Erza's idea.
While Gray, Lucy and Happy were having a splash war a little distance off, Natsu voiced his confusion and befuddlement to Erza, hoping that she would be able to help him out.
"Erza, do you know anyone called Ryde?"
The scarlet-haired mage's pretty face scrunched up in surprise and slight confusion as she considered her friend's question.
"Never heard of such a person, why?"
"Remember when we were fighting Erigor? At that time, I ran out of energy and a guy called Ryde spoke to me in my mind, saying that he could help me win. I said no, but then I suddenly saw visions that I've never seen before. There wasn't a single person I knew in those visions. Oh, and I saw a pink-haired woman call her son 'Ryde'. When I came to, Erigor was already unconscious."
The fire mage looked down, upset at the complexity of what had happened, his mind unable to grasp the entire situation.
"Hmmm…then maybe it would be safe to assume that that Ryde person is a part of you?"
"That's what he told me. At first I thought that he might be my long lost brother or something, but then he wouldn't be able to get into my mind and take over my body if he was," the pinkette confirmed.
"Then what if the boy you saw in the vision was you?" the female asked.
"Wouldn't I remember if I was? Besides, I've always been Natsu, for as long as I've known," he stated.
"Fair enough. Maybe this person is a telepathic mage who's just trying to fool with your mind. For now, we lack information to come to anything conclusive about this person, and I doubt anyone else, even Master, can give us an answer regarding this. Only time can give us all the answers we need; it is the solution to nearly everything. For now, we must remain patient and watchful," she advised, reminding Natsu of why he turned to Erza of all people for advice.
"Okay!" he grinned brightly.
Erza shivered a little under the cold winds, moving closer to Natsu to enjoy the warmth his body provided, and relishing in the touch of the water around him that had been warmed up by his body heat.
A mischievous grin crept its way onto Natsu's face, putting Erza slightly on edge.
"SPLASH WAR!"
Erza found herself being engulfed in a wave of warm water. She was immensely relieved and wanted to enjoy the warmth, but she had to get some revenge. And so she did.
Soon, the two were chasing each other around the pool, splashing (if you can call it that) water, using their magic to enhance the force behind the water attacks. Happy flew around them, dumping water on them using a bucket that he had found. Where he found that bucket, no one knows, and it's highly likely that no one else would be finding out anytime soon.
The splash war between two (with Happy's ambushes) turned into a team battle between the five teammates, ending up with all four being physically exhausted, but mentally uplifted. They all left the pool with smiles on their faces, their stress and burden from the recent events having left them.
Upon reaching her room, Lucy went into the bathroom to get changed and ready for bed. When she came out though, she saw four grinning intruders making themselves comfortable. Two of them sat on her bed, one was sprawled out topless across the sofa in the far corner of the room, and the last one plopped himself onto her head.
"Do you have to break in into my room even now?!" Lucy screamed so loudly, Gray was sure she would have woken up the rest of the resort's residents by now.
"Aye!" Happy chimed happily (no pun intended) from on top of her head.
"How did you even manage to get into my room?!" the outraged inhabitant of the room shrieked.
Gray smirked and held up a key made out of ice by way of a reply.
"We came to play cards with you, Luce!" Natsu grinned enthusiastically, the exhaustion from the rest of the day's event not showing on his face in the slightest bit.
Lucy sighed. Might as well, seeing as she wasn't getting some sleep anytime soon.
The five mages – or rather, four mages and a cat – spent the rest of the night playing poker and watching interesting programmes on the lacrima screen in Lucy's room before they all fell asleep in her room at about two in the morning, sprawled out in awkward positions over her bed, on the sofa or on the floor.
They slept fitfully, their minds blissfully free of thoughts and even dreams.
Save for one.
As usual, Happy lay dreaming about fish, drooling in his sleep.
Omake: Happy's dream
In his dream, Happy found himself lying on the roof of his and Natsu's house. He remembered vaguely playing cards with the rest of Team Natsu. Or something like that…
His tiny stomach growled. Happy frowned. That would not do, at all. His stomach had to be filled, and at once.
He climbed down the sooty chimney, dousing himself in soot and dust, ending up in the empty fireplace. Of course. The fireplace must be empty, especially considering that it mainly serves to house Natsu's midnight snack.
Speaking of midnight snacks, Happy desperately needed one.
He searched in the fridge. Nope, empty. What's the use of a fridge when there's no food inside?!
He searched inside his pouch that always seemed to have a fish inside it, despite its size. Nope, nothing.
He searched underneath the bedsheets, under the bed, in the sink, inside the closet, and practically everywhere, but to no avail.
By this point, Happy was on the brink of tears, when a second Happy clad in armor and wielding a sword appeared on his right shoulder.
"How can you give up so easily?" it asked.
"Y-you're right! I can't give up yet!"
"Indeed! Who are you?"
"I'm Happy, foster son of Natsu Dragneel!"
"And by extension?" the figure prompted further.
"The foster-grandson of Igneel!"
"And?"
"The great, fearless Nekomander!"
"That's right! So are you going to let something as petty as hunger defeat you?!"
"No!"
"What must you do?!"
"I must go out and hunt that fish like the predatory cat I am!"
"Correct! Now go and get it, tiger!"
With that last encouragement, the figure vanished with a "poof".
With renewed vigour, Happy flew up the chimney and into the woods nearby, landing just beside a small, clear pool.
He quickly washed himself clean of the soot sticking to his fur, and stared into the crystal clear waters.
He saw exactly four fishes swimming. Each of them had the face of Natsu, Erza, Gray and Lucy respectively.
Happy's eyes sparkled in awe and joy. Finally, his perseverance had paid off!
"I'm going to eat you all, fishies! Just you wait. But first, I'm going to eat the Erza fishie! None of you can escape me, the great Nekomander! HUEHUEHUE!" Happy cackled to himself in his cattish voice.
In the real world, Erza shifted uncomfortably in her position on Lucy's bed as a shudder ran down her spine. She had the uncanny feeling that something was trying to eat her. For probably the second time, Erza Scarlet feared something tangible, and it was something small, blue, furry and winged.
There you go! The second chapter of "Watch the World Burn". This chapter was more relaxed, and mainly to skim over the less significant events in between. It was also to serve as a break between the first chapter and the upcoming serious second chapter. Note: The events at Akane Resort in my story were a little different from those that were in the manga, 'cause I felt that it would be too mundane and unoriginal if I were to copy and paste the events from the manga/anime, exactly as they were. Please remember to review before you go, as reviews are the greatest encouragement as well as gauge of ability a writer can get. Thanks for reading, til' the next instalment, seeya!
Yours truly, Pride.