Chapter 3

"Flame-brain."

"Midget."

"Ash-tray."

"Dwarf."

"Idiot."

"..." Natsu was about to retaliate when Lucy stopped their useless fight before turned into a dangerous physical brawl that would probably include everyone in the guild.

"Stop it, Natsu. I can't believe you would even fight with a child much younger than you." Lucy sighed in disappointment.

"Yeah, Natsu-san." Zen repeated as he hid behind Lucy and stuck out his tongue while Lucy wasn't looking. Of course, that particular action only added fuel to the fire and made Natsu burn in anger, literally.

"Why you—?!"

"Natsu!" Lucy gave him a stern look.

"But Luce, he smells like..."

"He smells like what?"

"He..." Natsu was about to say something when Cana came in her usual drunk state, putting an arm around Natsu for support or she'll undoubtly fall. "Come on, Natsu, don't be jealous just because Lucy is spending more time with that kid she brought today. Her world doesn't revolve around you, you know." Cana explained which was quite an achievement for someone as drunk as her. When she saw Zen latch onto Lucy's arm,she added, "Hey, kid."

"Cana-san, the card mage, right? My name is Zen, a pleasure to meet you," Zen greeted in a politely formal tone.

"My, My...What a gentleman and those are some fine looks you got there. Tell me kid, do you have an older brother that could play with me?" Cana asked slyly.

Lucy face-palmed. Drunk Cana talking to a kid wasn't the best idea. It would be best for children to stay away from her to save their poor innocence.

" Onii-san?" Zen asked. "To answer your question, Cana-san, I don't have an elder brother, but if it's Lucy-oneesan, I do know someone..." Zen replied innocently.

"Really?" Cana squealed in delight. Happy at the revelation of progress in Lucy's lovelife. " Knowing Lucy's standards, he must be so much better than Natsu."

"Hey, I'm here!" Natsu complained, "Stop ignoring me."

"I'm not ignoring you. I can't believe there's a person as stupid as you in Fairy Tail though." Cana laughed making Natsu protest about his coolness—no, hotness?

The card mage proceeded on chugging her drink peacefully until everything clicked in her mind. Cana choked on her drink at once. "You mean Lucy's ACTUALLY dating someone and she never told us about it? And it's your HOT friend?!" Cana yelled, earning the attention of everyone in the guild.

"What?" Lucy stood there, confused at what was happening. What boyfriend are they even talking about? As far as she knew, she never had a boyfriend and she wasn't looking for one at the moment.

"Come on, Lucy. I can't believe you never told us that. So...what's the lucky guy's name?" Cana nudged her, forcing her to spill her non-existent secret. Lucy looked at Zen for help but the help he gave was not needed. In fact, it had just made her situation worsen.

"...Onii-san, my friend, even said that while he's not beside Onee-chan, I should protect her from everything that was deemed dangerous. I think a flirty Celestial spirit, an idiotic best friend, and a stripper are included in those dangerous things too." Zen said.

"What?" Gray demanded.

"Lucy!" Loke ran towards Lucy's arms expecting to be hugged and comforted. His expectations were shattered by Zen who tripped Loke a meter away from Lucy.

"What did you say, Chibi?" Natsu roared as fire gathered in his fists. "Wanna go?"

Zen smirked. This was what he was waiting for. After a long day of boring things, he finally had the opportunity to fight someone he hoped was strong. Nobody would even blame him if he broke a few bones. It was a fight and the Fire Dragonslayer was way too excited to die. So his answer was obviously, "Of course."

Natsu, impatient as he was, took the first move by punching Zen with his Fire Dragon's fist.

Zen yawned as he dodged several of his attacks. The remaining ones were either out of target or he was too bored to do anything about it. It didn't even hurt him. "You're boring, Natsu-san."

This seemed to hyped up Natsu even more rather than being down casted. Natsu was the type that only got stronger by overcoming the hardships he had faced. Zen had seen this part of Natsu as threatening, and considered assassination. The only reason he didn't was because he promised Lucy that he wouldn't do anything that included raising any suspicions from anybody, coming to the guild disguised as someone else, and that harming anyone in the town is not allowed.

He had agreed to her conditions and pretended to be a harmless, stupid, annoying kid. It was quite easy since all he had to do was stick with Natsu-san, cause some guild brawls and act like the stupid person Natsu was. He usually didn't hold a grudge against anyone but after what his brother had told him. He couldn't help but hate Natsu from the deepest part of his heart.

'Remember this Zen,' Zeref had said, staring at the beautiful full moon on the sky. 'Not long from now, you'll meet a certain Fire Dragonslayer raised by Igneel and...'

'And what Zeref-nii?' Young Zen asked curiously.

'...he's the only one who will be able to kill me. Don't hurt him, Zen.'

Zen clenched his fists, masking his fists with invisible Dark magic making it harden even more. Don't hurt him? Was his brother insane? How could he not hurt him when he was the one who's going to kill him? He couldn't bear to lose his only family member because he didn't kill Natsu when he had the chance. He remembered those times he had spent on making him see reason not to die but he already had set his mind. His brother was tired of killing anyone and not having any control over his power. He didn't want to see people dying anymore and for that reason, he felt that he needed to die.

Zen hurled his fists towards Natsu's direction. Even if the fist doesn't connect with his body, as long as the dark magic reaches him, he would slowly die...so slowly, in fact, that it would avoid any suspicions about them. But instead of hitting Natsu, he had almost hit Lucy. If not for his advanced physical training, fast reflex, and agility, he would have hit her straight in the heart. Thanks to his skills, it had only managed to graze her shoulder...with dark magic.

The dark magic entered her circulatory system by coming in her scratch, mixing with her blood then slowly seeping its way to her heart. The result was deadly even for someone who had the same heart as his brother. The supposed to be slow reaction had quickened due to her...unique situation of owning half of Zeref's heart. She sputtered out blood from her mouth in mere seconds.

Everyone in the guild panicked and went to Lucy, taking care of her bruise which for them, seemed like nothing was wrong, but for those who knew the truth, the pain was unbearable. However, nobody knew the reason why she suddenly coughed out blood since what Zen did was only a slight graze and his punch didn't even hit her directly.

"Minna, please bring Lucy to the infirmary quickly." Mira ordered, then she sent Wendy a silent message which she instantly caught. It was simply asking Wendy for help to heal Lucy which Wendy was only too glad to do.

Lucy was pale, and blood was streaming out of her mouth, dark magic was still entering her graze. Seeing her in this state made Zen feel guilty all over. It was the part of Dark Arts that he loved and hated at the same time. It kills the victim quickly, if you as so much make the slightest mistake—and he did.

"H-How is she Wendy-san?" Zen hesitantly asked, his eyes reflecting all the guilt and pain that he was feeling. He wanted to protect his elder brother but in turn, he was going to lose a sister. Tears cascaded down his face "Onii-chan..."

Wendy must have seen the pain he was feeling since she smiled at him and tried to downplay the true pain it was supposed to bring.

"Please tell me the truth, Wendy-san!" He begged, trying his best not to let his voice break.

"Well," she stared at the floor which looked so interesting to her right now "I can't find the source, that's why I can't heal Lucy-san completely. She's fine physically, just a mere graze but something seems terribly wrong."

"I-I see..."

Wendy took Zen's hand in hers, a sign of support, "But I'm sure that Porlyusica-san would be able to heal her."

"Porlyusica-san?" Zen asked, curious about this certain woman. He has heard about her before, he just couldn't remember where.

"She's Master's friend, and also she's the one who heals us when everything is tough, like now."

"N-No..." Lucy's lying body weakly said " I-I'm fine, Wendy. No need to bother Porlyusica-san, you know how she hates humans."

"But—!"

"Wendy-san, thank you for your help but can you please leave for a moment while Onee-san and I speak about something privately?" Zen politely asked. The things they were going to talk about were extremely private, if anyone knew then their first destination would lead to a Magic Council prison cell.

It wasn't hard to convince Wendy to leave and not to bother Porlyusica-san anymore. She did it without asking any questions and no nasty suspicions, she was truly one of a kind— someone fitted to be a fairy.

"I-I'm sorry..." was the first thing that Zen muttered when they were the only ones left in the room. He truly regretted what he had done. "I shouldn't have done that but I was so focused on my anger that I —"

Lucy reached for his hand and held it tenderly which stopped him from sputtering nonsense, then she gave him a weak smile "What are you saying, Zen? It isn't your fault and I'll be fine. After all, I have this." she proudly showed him the real cursed pendant that he was once ordered to take. For other people, the pendant was a curse– a sign of Zeref's awakening but for Lucy, it was her good luck charm– a memento of the man that had saved her years ago.

"That's..." Zen's eyes widened in realization.

" Oh, you don't know right? This..." she raised the cursed pendant so Zen could see her precious treasure before holding tightly on it, as if having a silent prayer. " I guess I'll let you on a secret, if you promise that you wouldn't tell anyone."

"Come on, oneechan. Who am I going to tell... Natsu?" He joked.

" I guess you're right," Lucy let out a slight giggle. " You know... the truth is... I have this part inside me that I should hate, but I surprisingly don't. Honestly, I was glad that the previous owner of the pendant died... so that I could have this."

"Woah, Lucy-nee."

"I know. It's so unlike me. But...I'd almost do anything to find him." She gripped the pendant tighter and closer to her heart. "Because I finally had something that can connect me to Zeref. Did you know, Zen? Zeref was the man that saved me when I was a child. I really wanted to thank him for that, and tell him that he's not as bad as people say he was. But..."

"But?"

" ...nothing. I just want to meet him soon." Thinking that, she finally slept peacefully to the world of dreams

In the peak of midnight, the large bell chimed. Under the moonlit sky covered with twinkling stars, a blonde celestial maiden laid at her bed in Fairy Tail's infirmary. The pitch black darkness made a good cover for every secret that was going to be spilled. This was the time of the night that nobody should wander aimlessly into hidden things or they would pay the price with their life. Midnight was truly the deadliest hour of the night.

The head of the Dark Council appeared from the Communications Lacrima Crystal looking old double ugly as usual, perhaps a little more stiff and serious...and mad. Zen laughed inwardly, he was sure gonna get it now. He made him wait for a week without reporting anything to the council.

"Zen, when are you planning on bringing the girl here!?" The Head Councilman demanded.

"Hey, old man! Nice to see you too," Zen greeted foolishly.

"The girl, Zen."

Zen sighed. "Fine, fine...Old man. I'm kinda stuck here in a legal guild in Magnolia called Fairy Tail. They have quite the number of powerful and talented mages that would cause a little complication if my onee-chan here suddenly disappears."

"And when are you planning on taking her back? The Council is itching to awaken Lord Zeref. Everything is almost prepared. The child is the only component we are missing. We are planning to start the resurrection of the Lord in a month's time. You better bring her back before then, understood?"

"...Yes." Zen huffed. Bossy old man.

The Communications Lacrima flashed then turned dark, signaling the end of their conversation.

A gentle gust of wind came in through the infirmary window making Zen smirk.

"Is that enough, Nii-san?" Zen asked as he turned around and saw the image that he was exactly expecting.

Zeref sat on the edge of the bed where Lucy was laying on. His gaze swept through her tenderly, cherishing the unconscious figure in front of him.

"Yes, it is. Thank you."

"What are you saying, Onii-san? We're siblings! You don't need to thank me for that and if this is what it takes to keep Lucy-nee safe, then I'll do anything in my power. Although...would it be okay to keep Onee-chan's condition hidden from the council?" He looked at Lucy with a sad look, secretly blaming himself for everything that happened. It was all his fault.

"Yes, it's fine." Zeref held her hand in his as he muttered something like an ancient spell. Lucy's body started glowing and all traces of dark magic in her blood stream were no more, she was fully healed.

Zen smiled at the view. Zeref placed a light kiss on Lucy's forehead while holding her hand tightly. No matter how much his brother regrets placing half his heart in Lucy thinking it would only endanger her life, he felt as if this was the only thing that had gone right for them after a long time of living.

A mistake that had gone right for once.

"Are you leaving already?" Zen asked his older brother

"Being here would only bring her trouble than I already have. I don't want to bring her anymore misery."

"Misery?" Zen clenched his fists tightly, " What misery are you talking about?! Stop blaming yourself already! You're not a monster."

"I am, Zen."

"Then you're a changed monster."

"But that doesn't change the fact that I'm a cursed monster that had killed countless lives with dark magic before, I can't even control my own magic from accidentally killing innocent people. You should be more like the other people, scared of The Dark Mage, Zeref. Why can't you be like the others? It would be so much easier for me to die if I have no ties to this world."

"But you do! I'm not gonna hate you or get scared of you, because you're my precious older brother who took care of me since we were young. You protected me from all those people even if it meant tainting your hands with blood while I just stood there. I couldn'tdo anything. I felt helpless because I couldn't do anything for my brother. You didn't have to bear the title of Dark Mage alone. I was there too. I could have helped you kill them but you didn't let me! You're not a monster. You're my brother!"

An eerie silence reigned. Both parties remained still. Zen knew that it wasn't enough to convince his brother. He was still going on with his plan of getting killed by the Fire Dragonslayer. One of the hardest—almost impossible things to do was to change his brother's mind. He was extremely stubborn and once he decided on it there's no going back BUT, but he had to try.

"What about Lucy-nee?" Zen muttered. "What will happen to her when you die?"

"She would continue to live on, with half of my heart." Zeref replied. "My heart was a substitute for hers. As long as nobody would rip it off, she would liv—" He paused, finally understanding what his little brother meant.

"See? When she turns eighteen, the heart would regenerate by itself with the help of dark magic and she would be immortal like us. If you died, what do you think would happen to her?"

"...You would take care of her, " Zeref answered, hesitantly.

"That's not what I meant! She would die on the inside. I had spent merely three days with her, and did you know all that she was talking about is how she would like to meet you and thank you personally for saving her that day. She thinks of you as her savior, not some ugly monster. And admit it, I've been with you for about 395 years, you like Lucy-nee! After all, she was the one who made you see reason." Tears were falling rapidly from Zen's eyes "...She was the one who changed you from the inside with that crazy stunt she pulled in that old town," he whispered. "You would be sad to leave her too, right Onii-chan?"

Before Zeref can even reply, Lucy flinched, her body turning into a more comfortable position snuggled under her sheets "Zeref..." she whispered with a smile " Thank you."

Zeref froze.

"Zeref-nii?" Zen looked at his brother when he didn't reply to what he was previously saying. In addition, he suddenly froze which was quite rare since he was almost never caught off-guard. But the look that his brother possessed made him laugh his head off. His brother was blushing! The Great Dark Mage Zeref, the Lord of Evil was blushing right in front of him! He was lucky it was only near morning. The blush was barely visible but it was there. That's what happens when you keep yourself as a recluse in an uninhabited place, the smallest thank you made him feel warmth. But then again— maybe it was just because Lucy was the one who said that.

"I-I'll think about it, until then don't do anything stupid that would cause both of you trouble. I'm sorry I can't be with you two, but I... might accidentally release my power and kill..." Zeref stopped at that before staring at the beautiful full moon and in the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the shadows.

o.O.o.O.o

Rewritten (06/14/16)

Thanks for the support!

-Vea