Before you read this, I beg of you: PLEASE DON'T KILL THE AUTHOR. I got stuck okay? I had to make the word count goal! IT HAD TO HAPPEN DAMMIT. I'M SORRY.

Sorrynotsorry.

Jellal figured this was his luck. Of everyone in the entirety of Fiore, of course this happened to him. Not freakin' Cobra, certainly not Meredy or Hoteye, or hey, anyone else that can use magick and wasn't a fugitive. No, him.

He swore the fates conspired against him specifically. Plotted and giggled for strange and odd things to happen to him, just so they could get a good laugh. He hoped they were laughing now, because he was never going to speak of this. Not ever. Crime Sorciere would never let him live this down, and Erza would bust a gut laughing, then tell the rest of Fairy Tail, and they'd never let him live it down either.

Tapping a finger against the glass, he wondered if he was wrong. Wondered if someone else had found themselves behind a display case in a museum. Somehow, he suspected not. At least, not anyone he knew. No, this had 'this would only happen to Jellal' written all over it. With a sigh, he contemplated a way out. Obviously, this glass wasn't made to contain magick. It would be simple to get out, but he didn't want to draw too much attention to himself. After being a fugitive for eight years or so, announcing his presence without cause to rubbed the wrong way. He was sure the museum would have security, and his breakout would be all over the news.

After all, he was pretty sure he was supposed to be dead.

From what he could see, the room was designed to be a snapshot of time, back in his time. It was designed to look like Crocus, near the square, where he'd been fighting before his time had ended. Apparently, it hadn't ended quite as permanently as he'd thought. He remembered he'd been defending some citizens, wondering if he'd really stood a chance against the army amassed before him.

Then something had happened.

What that something was, he didn't know. He wondered if someone else would have the answers. Of course, to find out that meant getting out of here. Without tripping every alarm in the joint. A task easier said than done when he had no idea what kind of security would be around.

There was one option that he could pull. After all, a thousand years had passed and any record of him being a fugitive was probably long destroyed or lost to time. He could take a page out of Fairy Tail's book and say to hell with consequences. It would take too long to figure out the security measures, and he had people to find. Besides, if his face was plastered all over the news, at least the people who knew him would know where he was last. It might help.

Smiling, he wondered if he'd spent far too much time with Erza and her friends. Natsu had, apparently, rubbed off on him. Pressing a hand to the glass, he activated Meteor. The burst of magick and the speed he gained was more than enough to escape. Alarms screamed and Jellal sighed. He didn't know why Fairy Tail did stuff like this. They must be adrenaline junkies. There were shouts and metal bars crashed down on the doorways. He could only imagine what they'd think when they saw their 'mummy' had come to life.

He supposed he should take it easy on them. They didn't know he'd still been alive when they'd found him and brought him here.

Sure enough, when someone entered, weapon in hand, his jaw dropped to the floor. Glass sparkled in the lights, and Jellal's clothing was nothing if not destroyed. He could only imagine how scared the man was.

"Put your hands up!" Jellal had to admire the fact that the man barely stuttered over the words.

"I'm not here to hurt you." He said, wondering just how one explained the fact that he'd never been dead and was not here to enslave the world or something. "My name is Jellal Fernandez. I am a mage of Crime Sorciere. Please, lower your weapon. I don't want to fight you, but I need to find my friends."

"I-you shouldn't…" The man faltered, but didn't lower his weapon. A gun, Jellal noted, but it seemed sleeker than those he'd seen before, and no magick circle glowed at the barrel.

"Shouldn't be alive?" Jellal finished for him. "I was never dead. It's complicated, but I know I'm not the only one once again walking this world."

He dropped his gun, just let it clatter to the floor. He seemed overwhelmed. Jellal strode towards him, and wasn't sure to be glad or dismayed when the man made no effort to get out of the way. He could hear more guards approaching. Glancing at the man's nametag, Jellal laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Steven," He said. "The world is changing. The World of Magick, the Fiore of the past, never vanished completely. It was simply waiting. Now that magick has returned, beings of magick are returning as well. It's not something to fear."

"Step away from him!" Another voice commanded. This one female. Jellal stepped back with a silent vow. He would not allow himself to be arrested. He wouldn't put Erza through that pain again. Ultear would kill him if he surrendered now, since that meant Meredy would be alone. He'd find her, and the rest of his guild, and meet up with Fairy Tail. A millennium may have passed, but the sins of his past weren't negated by time. He'd see what Fairy Tail was doing and go from there.

"I don't pretend to understand how you're alive, but you're not going to be for long." The women was steadier than the Steven had been.

"Clare, don't." Steve said. "If he wanted to kill me, he would have by now. He busted the bullet proof glass like it was paper."

"What the hell is happening to the world?" Clare shook her head, something like fear in her eyes. Jellal wondered if the world was ready for magick to return. It didn't seem like it. A thousand years without it had caused everyone to fear it.

"Is there a procedure for a thousand year old man...waking up?" Another guard asked, and someone laughed. It was shaky, but a laugh nonetheless. The guns were put away, as it seemed no one thought they'd do anything.

"Listen...I know this is odd, to say the least." Jellal couldn't think of a way to calm these people, except for maybe the truth. "But this isn't the end of the world. It is simply evolving. Change isn't always a bad thing. Sometimes, you'd be amazed what change can create." He closed a palm, opened it to show the small flame that burned there. He wasn't as good with small details as Natsu was with his, but he could create some things. Like the Fairy Tail symbol, and Crime Sorciere's. He could also add a gold tinge to it. "I don't know what you think magick is, but it's not always destruction. Magick is like fire. It can harm a great many things, and if not respected, it will often backfire on its user. But if used right, and understood, it can create, just like fire."

The woman-Clare-walked over to the wall, flipped open a keypad. The metal bars retracted, and the flashing lights stopped.

"Listen, the cops are on their way." She said. "And we've got footage of you. But there's no law against someone breaking free from what was basically a coffin. Nothin' we can hold you for. No reason too. You didn't hurt anyone, and if I woke up behind some glass, I'd be bustin' out too. I hope you find your friends."

"Thank you." Jellal said. Maybe he hadn't done this Fairy Tail's way. As much as they'd rubbed off on him, talking his way out of things seemed to work.

And when it didn't, that's when he showed he'd learned a thing or two from the rowdiest guild in Fiore.

Jellal walked out of the museum, into the Flowering Capital, and let the sun warm his bones for the first time in a millennium.

Natsu frowned at the fork in the road. One lead to Magnolia. Chances were, someone from the guild was there. He should go see who, and then go to Crocus. Crocus was a bit of a long-shot. There was no telling where Lucy was, and if she knew where her keys were. She'd find out, he had no doubt about that. But it would make more sense to go to Magnolia….

Dammit, where was Happy when he needed him? Happy would help him decide, even if it was a rock-paper-scissors game as the decider. It made more sense to stop by Magnolia, then go to Crocus….Eye twitching, Natsu groaned. He hated making decisions like this.

His mind flicked back to the war with Tartarus. How they hadn't known that Lucy had sacrificed so much to protect them. How the loss of Aquarius had affected her, even after a year.

Decision made, Natsu made his way to Crocus. He'd ride the damn train if he had too. He wasn't going to let Lucy lose another friend. This entire world was an unknown, and she'd feel better with her keys at her side. She was probably scared right now. He hoped to the gods she wasn't crying.

"Hang on, Lucy. Just hang on."

"Are you kidding me?" She couldn't believe. Just couldn't. Of all the things the guild had pulled, the situations they'd survived, the time they'd lost, this was the creme da la creme of it all. This was Fairy Tail's craziest adventure yet. Somehow surviving a thousand years into the future.

This had Gray and Natsu's handprints all over it.

Dear Mavis, she didn't know whether to laugh at the absurdity of it all, or bash her head against a rock repeatedly.

She wondered if it was possible to combine the two actions.

"Lucy." Happy looked as freaked as she felt. "Do you think there's still fish in this future?" Lucy burst out laughing, knowing the concern was serious.

"I think there's plenty of fish in this future. Maybe some you haven't tried yet."

"Good!" He frowned, toe kicking a rock. "Lucy...the rest of Fairy Tail is okay, right?"

"Of course they are." Lucy couldn't let herself think otherwise. "We're the strongest guild in Fiore. A thousand years can't and won't change that."

"Do you think the other guilds survived?"

"I don't know. I hope so. We have so many friends there." Lucy bent down and gathered Happy into her arms. "They may not be the number one guild in Fiore, but they're still really stubborn. I don't think any of them would go down without a fight."

"True. Lyon would probably freeze himself. A Lyoncile." Happy giggled. Lucy laughed too.

"I think Jura would lock himself into a rock. And maybe Yuka's eyebrows protected him!" Laughing louder now, Happy grinned up at her. Lucy giggled.

"Good ones Lucy!" Happy praised.

"Thanks, you did good too." As they walked, they bantered back and forth, trying to lighten the mood. Natsu was nowhere to be found, and the absence of hey keys was a weight on the soul. The others had to be okay, but it was impossible to know where anyone was. She and Natsu hadn't been next to each other when the world had changed.

When it had mattered most, they hadn't been able to protect each other.

"Lucy…" Happy said. "It is always more fun when we're together."

"I know, Happy." Lucy rubbed his head. "We'll be together again. I know it."

"We're not to far from where Crocus used to be." Happy said. "We could fly there. Someone's bound to be there."

"Yeah. Maybe we can get a clue as to where my keys are." Lucy agreed. "I hope we run into someone soon."

"Me too."

When they took off, Lucy revealed in the feeling of the wind in her air, and the freedom of flying. It was no wonder Natsu loved this. Even if he'd been able to handle transportation, Lucy figured he'd still choose flying with Happy. Who wouldn't? No sharing, just you and your best friend in the air, the open sky in front of you. She spread her arms out, just feeling.

"You're weird Lucy." Happy commented. Lucy just smiled.

"Like you'd want me any different." She couldn't see his face, but she figured he was smiling. The land that rose and fell beneath them was nothing like she remembered. There was a forest where once a pretty meadow had been, and a town that was twice as large as the one she'd known. She could only imagine the changes in the world. It was more than just the landscape. Fiore was Fiore, no matter how it looked. The culture had changed as well. Magick wasn't a normal part of life.

She had to wonder if it ever would be again.

There was no way that the mages from the past age would give up their magick. It was a part of who they were. It was blood and soul. People could express things with magick that words could never hope to convey. A heart could be beared with magick, and tears expressed. Magick breathed, it created and destroyed. It was no miracle. It was born from reason. But the people in this time wouldn't think like that. To them it would be a miracle. It would be a fascination, a strange feature from the past. They would covet it. Fight over it. Magick would be seen as both a weapon of destruction and a prayer for peace.

She wondered if they could get them to see it was neither. Magick wasn't dark or light. It wasn't always shiny and bright. No, it was caught somewhere between the dark and the light. It was no fairy tale. It granted no wishes. It simply was. She wished they could feel magick in their veins. Could feel the pulse of it in the air. Then they'd see. It was like a tree. A miracle of life, but not a miracle by simply existing. It could awe, but it was as common as the blood in Lucy's veins.

Or at least it had been.

"Do you need a break, Happy?" Lucy asked. They'd been flying for a while now. So far, nothing looked familiar. It was hard to tell if they'd passed by what had once been Crocus, or if there would be some sign of what remained of it. It was hard to tell if anything would be left. Some places looked remarkably like the places Lucy had known.

"No," Happy said. "We should be at Crocus soon though."

"I wonder what it'll look like." Lucy said. She should take flights with Happy more often. It was so pretty up here. And peaceful. When they weren't running from crazy people and explosions, that is. Lucy realized that most of her flights with Happy were because she needed to escape, or she was falling to her death, or both.

Mavis, Fairy Tail was insane.

"Let's find out!" She didn't like the sound of that. He sounded far too mischievous. "Max Speed!"

"HAPPY NO!" She'd never flown that fast before! Well, there was that one time on Tenrou, but she'd been more concerned by the fact that she'd been on fire.

It was too late though, Happy's speed increased, and the ground beneath her seemed to elongate. The sky, moments ago peaceful, now seemed to go by too fast, too soon. Her eyes watered, and the wind turned vicious. She yelled out in protest, but Happy only cackled in response. Scrambling for something to hold on to-it didn't matter that she hadn't been holding onto anything before, she didn't something now-she wondered how Natsu managed to fight like this! He was more insane than she'd thought.

Something came into view, something large and achingly familiar.

"Crocus!" Lucy gasped out. It was impossible. But there it was, the Blooming Capital, nearly the same it was the last time Lucy had walked through it. Happy's speed finally decreased, and he started descending into the town. When Lucy's feet touched the ground, she collapsed.

"That's insane."

Happy laughed-eviller than she'd expected he was capable of. "How'd you like it?"

Lucy's shoulders started shaking. She threw her head back, and laughed until her sides ached. "Oh my god Happy. That's kinda fun, actually." She gasped out. Natsu had rubbed off on her. But now that she was on the ground, she realized just how awesome going that fast was. Happy beamed.

"Okay." She calmed herself. "Okay, we need to look around."

"Who're we lookin' for?"

"Anyone we know. We can't be the only ones who survived." Though it was her secret fear that they were. She didn't know if she could deal with that. But she had to be wrong. There was no way Fairy Tail had fallen. None.

She refused to believe it.

"Do we know who was fighting closer to Crocus?" Lucy asked. "Besides us, of course."

"I think some of Crime Sorciere was fighting south of here." Happy frowned. Obviously, he was trying to remember more.

"Oh right!" Lucy snapped her fingers. "I think Cobra and Hoteye were to the south and southeast. Ummm, Lamia scale had a few members to the north, I think." She brought back the battle arrangements. It had happened so quickly. First Magnolia, then the rest of Fiore. They'd all ended up under attack.

"Sabretooth was in town." Happy recalled. "Minerva was defending the king and his daughter."

Lucy remembered that. Minerva was crazy powerful. Even more so with the King's guards at her side. "Yeah, which means she might be around the city. I don't remember where the Twins were. Everything was so hectic. Hmmm."

"Yeah. I just remember Minerva 'cause she seemed to happy to take down an army on her own."

"Yeah...she's overzealous like that."

"Sabretooth is a lot like Fairy Tail."

"Yeah, Happy, I don't think that's a good thing. We cause enough trouble."

"Do you think it's the dragon slayers?"

Lucy stopped and looked down at Happy. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, is it the dragon slayers that make us and Sabretooth so crazy?"

"Ummm. I mean, before the Grand Magick Games, Sabretooth didn't cause too much destruction. I really think its exposure to Natsu that makes a guild go crazy."

"If so, I think Fiore's gonna get crazy again."

Lucy laughed. "You'd be right about that, but I don't think it'll be just Natsu causing that. It'll be all of us. This world won't know what to do with so many mages just popping out of the woodwork."

"Or flying cats."

"Or flying cats," Lucy agreed. Mages were one thing. Flying, talking cats? People were going to freak. If they survived the dragons, that is. Mavis knew the dragon slayers were...exhausting to handle, to put it lightly.

"Lucy, look!" Happy trotted over to an outdoor cafe. On the screen, security camera footage was playing. Glass exploded, and a man with a tattoo over one eye stepped out.

"Jellal!" Lucy exclaimed. He was okay! Not who she expected to find, but at least it was somebody. She just wished she knew where Erza was.

"It appears that even 'mummies.'" The women on the screen quoted the statement with her fingers. "Are coming back to life. After a brief confrontation with the guards, the man, dubbed "The Wizard" by the archaeologists who discovered him in XX900, walked out the doors under his own power. Reports say that he is still around town. While he's certainly powerful, magickologists and historians are arguing if the man is truly dangerous. Citizens are advised to treat the man with caution should they encounter him. Historians are hoping to ask him questions about the Land of Magick, its laws and policies. He told guards his name was Jellal Fernandez. Well, Jellal, you've got the world asking questions. Will you answer them?"

"I didn't think Jellal would be so bold about that."

"Mmmhmm!" Happy said. "He's usually...quieter."

Lucy frowned. "You know, they're talking the fact that a thousand year old man woke up pretty well. You'd think people would be panicking more."

"This time is weird." Happy declared.

"I have to agree." It rubbed the wrong way. People should be terrified. They shouldn't be calmly watching a news report about a man waking from a thousand year nap and just chatting quietly with a neighbor. Where was the fear? The wonder? This was magick. Something they hadn't seen in a millennium! She didn't want the entirety of Fiore in a panic, but it seemed logical that they would be. Did they think it was a prank?

Lucy looked at the people around her. It was like a punch to the gut. Hollow eyes and staring faces. Plastic features and stiff limbs. They weren't real. It was obvious now. The colors were to harsh. To bright. Their plastic features were too sharp, too straight. Not real, the realization had her stepping back in shock. Nothing was real. The sound of her shoes on the sidewalk was a hollow sound. Echoing off into nothing.

Because nothing was here. Nothing was alive.

"Aw, too bad." Happy's voice spoke, but it was deeper, smoother than it should've been. "I wondered how long it'd take you to figure it out. You're too smart for your own good, Miss Heartfilia."

Color faded all around her. Sucked out like the breath in her lungs. A deadly cold swept through on the breeze.

"I still need END."

She didn't have the breath to scream.

If I tell you Gray and Juvia get a cute moment next chapter, will that stop you all from killing me? For those of you who have read Natsu: The Friendly Demon, you probably know I like building tension and love me some cliffhangers. That being said...I think this story might be just a TAD more intense than NTFD. Maybe. I don't know yet. Only like 8,000 words into this crazy thing. I'm literally pulling shit outta thin air. Bear with me lol.

Anyway, enjoy you guys! I love hearing from ya! Your comments so far have been great.

And I don't mind suggestions. XD