"Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another." – Ernest Hemingway. (Quote from Rubybird2329).

Natsu awoke in a cold sweat. His breath was ragged and a sharp pain stabbed at his heart. His eyes stung with tears. Before they spilled over the rims of his eyes, he brushed them away with the back of his clammy hand. Igneel. The dragon that haunted his dreams. His father.

Natsu had been having a reoccurring dream for months, and every night, he'd wake up in the same state. A sheen of sweat covering his skin, shimmering in the pale moonlight, cool air sticking to his damp body, drying his sweat. And there would always be tears. Because in this dream, he couldn't help but cry. After years of being separated from his father, who left him at Fairy Tail. And as much as he loved his friends, enough to temporarily vanquish his sadness, he couldn't stop painful thoughts from creeping into his mind. Tainting his sleep, was the person Natsu most longed to see. The person he couldn't see.

Before he left for the guild every day, he would calm himself down and compose himself, not wanting to be seen in tears. But even so, his friends could tell something was going on. Lucy frequently asked about his absence from her house. Since he'd started having his nightmares, or dreams, he had refrained from climbing into the blonde's room. If he accidently fell asleep and had that dream… well, he didn't want Lucy to know. Or anyone for that matter.

Happy was curious as well. Natsu refused to tell his little buddy of his problem. Happy was a heavy sleeper, so it was easy to wake up before him and calm himself.

He clutched his white scarf, breathing deeply, imagining that he could smell Igneel's lingering scent on the garment. But it was long since gone.

Readying himself, he woke up his blue cat, and left his house for the guild hall. As he approached it, though, a peculiar sight caught his eye. Gray, Lucy, and Erza were all huddled together, looking as if they were whispering. About what, though? Lucy caught sight of him, and he could hear her intake of breath from where he was standing. Gray shrugged and stalked off. Erza, looking sheepish, followed him. Lucy, however, his job partner and friend, did not. Instead, she walked over to Natsu and smiled weakly.

"Hey, Natsu." He didn't respond, frowning.

"What were you talking about?" She started to look nervous and ducked her head. He automatically knew that she would lie next.

"N-nothing. Nothing important." He could see right through her. He grimaced.

"You're lying. You might as well tell me, I'll find out either way." She sighed, and then, feigning a smile, swallowed.

"We- we were talking about you, Natsu. We're worried. It's obvious to anyone that something's up, and we're your friends. We can tell that you're hiding something. Won't you please tell us? Or me? Or at least Happy?" Her questions stood in the air for a moment, growing and stretching into an awkward silence as Natsu didn't respond. He breathed deeply.

"Nothing's going on, Lucy. Please just don't bring it up." And with that, he left. Lucy remained standing for a minute or so longer, until she decided that she needed a plan of action.

Later that day, Lucy followed Natsu to his home. It was a quaint dwelling… she liked its simplicity. She waited for him to enter before following further. Just as she neared the door, it swung open. Surprised, Lucy fell over.

"I told you to leave it alone, Lucy." His anger scared her.

"No," gathering courage, Lucy stood and brushed the dirt off of herself, "I will not just let my best friend suffer quietly. I care about you too much to let that be! And so do Gray, Erza, Happy and the rest of our friends. So tell me what's wrong. For all of our sakes." Breathing heavily from her rant, Lucy released her clenched fists and sighed at his silence. As she began to turn away, Natsu spoke.

"I've been having a dream." Turning around, Lucy frowned in confusion. When he didn't continue, she took his hand. Looking at her, Natsu swallowed. It might have been Lucy's imagination, but she thought she saw tears spring into his onyx eyes.

"And-and every time, Igneel speaks to me." Lucy's face softened as she heard this. "I miss him. So much. Always, he says the same thing." Lucy smiled at him. It was sad, but she hoped it was encouraging.

"He says, 'Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.' What does it mean, Lucy? It sounds like he's dead or something. But he can't be, he just can't-" His words got choked up. Lucy released her hold on his hand and wrapped her arms around him.

"He's okay. I believe it. And you should, too. Have faith in him. I know it hurts now, and it might always, but I'll be here for you. We all will." And behind her, Erza, Gray, Mira, Master and everyone else appeared. And they all smiled at him. And suddenly, Natsu didn't feel alone in the slightest.

A/N: Yeah, sorry. I know, they're all going to be really short. Hope you guys liked this. Again, thanks to my reviewers. You don't have to read all of the chapters I post, they probably won't be connected. Comments and suggestions are appreciated! All for constructive criticism, but not destructive. Thank you all, you're amazing and beautiful!