A/N: Don't expect this to happen every day, but because of all of you lovely people review/favoriting/alerting, I had a burst of inspiration and spent the day writing this until I got called into work...

Prompt #3 - Lost. Just so you know, I'll try to keep them in some sort of chronological order, but occasionally I'll have one that's set previously - like this one. It could happen after #2 or before, really; either way it fits pretty well, but I like to think this happened first...

Hey, Shimmer712! Thanks for reviewing as a guest! Like the few other suggestions I've been given, I'll be using yours, too, in the future!

That being said, if anyone has any ideas for future chapters, drop me a message of some kind! I like getting ideas for things like this! :D

Disclaimer: Still posted before ch.388: Erza vs. Minerva...

Lost

He still felt completely lost sometimes. Oh, he knew his way around Magnolia like the back of his hand now, but sometimes just sitting in the guild hall made him feel completely lost. This guild – more, the people in it – had been a huge part of his son's life, but much of it was lost to him. Tartarus had been in no way, shape, or form what Fairy Tail was. Fairy Tail truly was a family; made up of the misfits and the mages no other guild would take, the members had strong bonds. They had all been to Hell and back (quite literally, now) and had survived. Together.

That was why he felt lost, looking over them from his place at the bar. That was why he felt he shouldn't stick around much longer. They had all grown up together; he simply didn't fit with them. As he had stated many times before, he didn't want to ruin a good thing.

Where would he go? That was a question that always countered his statement. Where would he go, and how could he ruin their family; no, he would only add to it. They always argued. Mostly Gray, Mirajane, and Master Makarov argued, anyway. Many of members, he felt, would be more at ease if he left, as well; many of them, he thought, would never accept him as a mage of Fairy Tail if he stayed. Though that didn't stop any of the three from trying. "You wouldn't be the first to try to destroy our guild only to end up joining it," Makarov had told him. "Look at Gajeel and Juvia. They are both well-loved now. If you stick around long enough, people will begin to see the other side of you too."

He was still unsure.

He knew Gray wanted him to stay, but his son was no longer a child. Gray had long ago grown up, forced to by the circumstances of life. Gray didn't need him to be there. He was perfectly capable of taking care of himself.

Regardless, he didn't want to miss any more of his son's life than he already had. Ten years was far too much time, and he had hardly been able to spend any time with his son even before that, having been so consumed with work. Work, he acknowledged, had been a necessity – he had to provide for his family – but that didn't change the fact that he'd hardly been there.

He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He couldn't stay, but he didn't want to leave either.

He sighed. Perhaps it would be better to leave, only dropping in from time to time to visit. After all, since Gray had hardly even seen much of his father as a boy, maybe it would be easier on him to only see his father every now and again. It would be more normal.

"You look to be deep in thought."

He glanced up at the young barmaid. Vaguely he wondered how such a pretty girl could still be single in a guild that seemed to have more of the male variety than female before voicing his thoughts.

She 'hmm'ed softly, cleaning a glass, as he finished. "You know, I don't think that's such a bad idea."

His expression quickly morphed to one of surprise. "You… You don't?"

She shook her head. "I think it might help, knowing Gray. Though you don't have to leave to be gone occasionally, you know. If you join, you can just take jobs. Gray wants you to stay, after all – I don't think I need to tell you that. But by joining the guild, I think that would actually help, too. He'll know you'll always be coming back, but that way you can also take jobs, placing a little distance between yourself and Gray. At least for right now, I think that'll help him adjust the most. Besides, if you join and start taking jobs, I think the other members will start to warm up to you more as well. It's a win-win situation, Silver-san."

He rested his head on his hand. "You do seem to know this guild and its members well, Mirajane," he mused.

She smiled. "Growing up in Fairy Tail, that wasn't difficult, but especially now that I mostly just run the bar with Kinana-chan, knowing people isn't difficult. I don't know their histories, but now is what really matters, not the past. We all have dark secrets, Silver-san; Fairy Tail has never been a guild that judges those secrets. I guess that's why I can know everyone here. When people aren't afraid of being judged, they come to you when they need advice or just when they have a juicy piece of gossip they can't hold in any longer. We don't all get along or agree, but we'll always stand up for each other and for what's right and help each other out as much as we can. That's just Fairy Tail."

Sliver took a swallow of his drink. "I can see why people would come to you for advice, Mirajane. Arigatou."

Maybe he wasn't so lost after all.

Gray was lost. There was no other way to describe it. But, sitting there in the guild hall among his nakama, listening to Natsu brawl with Gajeel, he felt entirely lost. On the opposite side of the guild, he could see his father sitting at the bar, conversing with Mira, and he had to wonder what they were talking about. His father was, after all, the reason for this feeling.

As he thought back to a few days before, he couldn't deny that he wanted his father to stay in Magnolia and join Fairy Tail. There had been a time, after all, many years ago, when he had wanted more than anything to fight alongside his father. Now he wanted nothing more than to have that relationship with his father back.

But those thoughts wouldn't let him be. They wouldn't let him forget what had almost happened.

If he were honest, a part of him hated his father. A part of him hated that the person he had looked up to when he was young had abandoned him at the age of seven. A part of him hated that the reason he'd been forced to grow up too fast, the reason he'd lost his childhood, was because his father had let anger overtake him – an emotion his father had constantly told him was unacceptable except under certain circumstances. A part of him hated his father for what his father had allowed himself to become.

And that thought scared him. It scared him because he knew if it hadn't been for Ur, he could have turned out the exact same way.

That was why he felt lost. He didn't want his father to leave, but at the same time a small part of him hated the man. And even though he understood where that feeling came from, he didn't understand why it was there. He knew that the Silver sitting on the other side of the guild hall was the same Silver he had always known; he wasn't the bitter man filled with hatred that had sought revenge to the point of selling his soul. Ur's sacrifice had, in reality, not healed him alone but his father as well. Deliora was gone; there was no reason for either of them to feel hatred or anger or bitterness any longer.

So why did he feel this way? He loved his father, yet hated him at the same time.

He was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"You look to be deep in thought, Gray."

The Ice Mage glanced up as his oldest friend in the guild sat down across from him. He cocked an eyebrow. "Where's your barrel of booze? That's unlike you," he spoke sarcastically.

Kana frowned. "Oh, shush. Last I checked it wasn't against the rules to not be drinking when you come into the guild hall." She paused for a moment. "So, what's on your mind? It's unusual for you to not join a brawl – especially when it's one Natsu starts."

He took a sip of his drink. "Last I checked," he mimicked, "it's not against any rule to not join a brawl when you're already sitting enjoying your drink."

"Touché." She grinned. Despite everything that had happened and the concerns of their fellow guild mates that his battle with his father would have serious repercussions for the Ice Mage, he seemed to be doing just fine. When she glanced back over at him from watching the brawl, however, she had second thoughts as she read the emotions flitting across his face. "Something is bothering you, though, isn't it?"

He sighed, answering her question with one of his own. "Nothing gets past you, does it?"

"Not when it comes to you; I've known you too long. What's wrong?"

He sighed. "You're father… When you finally told him, he was overly enthusiastic about reconnecting with you. But…" He trailed off. He both wanted and needed to talk about this with someone, and Kana understood him better than most, but he still wasn't sure he wanted to voice his concerns aloud. If he did, that made them more real. As long as he kept it to himself, he could pretend that feeling didn't exist. That was a dangerous way to live, and he knew it, but knowing that fact didn't make it any easier to actually say it out loud. He took a deep breath. "Was there ever a time you…resented Gildarts?"

Kana tilted her head slightly to the side. "I think I understand where this is going." She sighed. "Even though you know he's not like that, you can't stop thinking about the way Silver was while he was with Tartarus. Am I right?"

Gray only nodded, staring down at the table in front of him.

Kana was silent for a moment. She knew she needed to choose her words carefully; even after a month, this was obviously still a delicate topic. And for good reason, she supposed. "I can't really say I know how you feel, Gray, but I don't think how you feel is wrong either. I never had to battle my father with my life on the line, that's for sure. We've never been enemies. I think I probably resented him a little, though. All I wanted was my father, and he was completely oblivious. I envied him for not knowing. More than once I wished that I didn't know. I don't regret coming to Fairy Tail to find him, though. It allowed me to get to know my father even though he didn't know he was my father. Once I finally got up the courage to tell him, it was the best feeling in the world." She paused. "He loves you a lot you know – your father. I don't think he would have stayed even this long if he didn't. He doesn't feel like he belongs here because of what happened. He stayed because of you."

Gray gripped the glass his hands tighter. "I know. And he's trying to make up for lost time – I get that! I want to try too, but…it's just not that easy."

"I never said it was. It's going to take time but, if you make the effort, I know it'll be worth-while. For now, all you can do is take it one day at a time. Not every day is going to be a good one. But the ones that aren't? Take a deep breath, let it go, and try again the next day. If it's you, I know you can rebuild your relationship with your dad."

His grip relaxed, a small smile working its way onto his lips. "Arigatou, Kana." He had to admit, maybe she was right. Maybe that feeling of hatred would disappear as he got to know his father again.

Maybe, he wasn't so lost after all.