Hey guys Ira here with the next update to Heart of Diamond! I really am enjoying this story so far and I am glad to see a lot of you guys are as well! I know that last chapters fight scene was not...well not really to much of a fight BUT It was more to introduce the characters to one another and to set things in motion than to display their fighting styles etc. There will be more and much longer and better fight scenes in the future so look forward to that! Anyways as always thanks for reading and don't forget to R&R!
-IRA
**Northern Fiore Forest with Natsu**
Natsu sat quietly with his legs crossed over the rough bark of the log he was currently sitting on. The flames from the fire he and Lucy as well as that cat had made was flickering in the darkness. Occasionally the fire would pop sending sparks bursting into the air leaving small trails of light in their wake as they floated up into the sky before vanishing without a trace. Natsu flitted his gaze for the millionth time in the direction of the two prone, and rather damaged, unconscious figures laying in their bedrolls after being carefully placed there.
These people they were...not normal people. Besides the fact that they were mages once Natsu had stated his attention to the two still conscious members of the merry band of Fairy Tailers they had just accepted it. They did not question him, although that may have been because he had just beaten two of their comrades senseless, and they went about their day as if it was just normal. Natsu moved his eyes to Lucy who was now attempting to strangle the blue flying cat to death for attempting to steal her food. Natsu felt a small genuine smile flicker across his lips for a second before he quickly returned to his usual stoic mask.
However despite how fast he had hidden his amusement the damn neko had spotted the small shifting of the mask and grinned mischievously before lazily floating his way over to Natsu.
"Did I just see a smiiiillleee" Happy said drawing out the i's longer than was necessary
"No" Natsu replied curtly hoping to avoid the obvious baiting the cat was attempting
"Yes you did! Lucy! Diamere smiled!" Happy shouted with glee before flying in circles around Natsu's head. A tick mark popped up on Natsu's head before he lost it and started trying to snatch the cat from the air. Lucy just laughed at the funny image of the usually calm and collected mage flailing his arms about in the air and shouting at the laughing cat.
"Come here you damn Neko!" Natsu shouted
"Catch me if you can!" Happy shouted before sticking out his tongue at the mage and continuing in his speedy circles around Natsu's head. Natsu stopped moving and took his time to analyze the cats movements. quickly Natsu darted out a hand and snatched the cat from the sky before putting him in a headlock and grinning evilly.
"Now time for your punishment" Natsu said his eyes glowing red as a dark purple aura started to sorround him.
"Luuuuuccccyyyyy heeelllpp meeee!" The cat shouted as large streams of tears flowed from his eyes comically.
"Uh-uh cat, you got yourself into this one don't come to me looking for a bail out" Lucy said amused at the scene before her. The cat got what he deserved. Natsu just laughed evilly before he gave the cat a nooky of a lifetime. Happy shouted and squirmed trying to break free but Natsu held firm as he furiously rubbed his knuckles over the top of the cats head. Lucy couldn't help but crack a grin at the sight. Natsu however realized that for the first time in a long time he felt...well happy. He was enjoying himself.
So preoccupied in his punishment of Happy and his own thoughts Natsu didn't notice that the two sleeping members of their party had woken up until the cold steel tip of a blade was pressed beneath his chin. Looking up Natsu released Happy who instantly rocketed into Lucy's lap and pulled out a bag of popcorn from nowhere to observe the scene. Natsu stood slowly his gaze cautiously observing Erza Scarlet as she pressed her sword even deeper into his neck forcing him to take a small step back.
"Is this how you treat the person that carried you all day while you took a nap?" Natsu said a small smirk forming beneath his mask.
"You. You use diamond magic" Erza hissed through her clenched teeth
"And?" Natsu asked a bit confused. What the hell was the significance of his type of magic have to do with the situation he was in.
"You are the Diamond King?" She responded angrily her grip tightening on the hilt of her sword in anger. Natsu sighed internally, of course that was why she was here.
"I am" he responded curtly
"How could you do that, all those villages were filled with innocents! How can you stand there so calm and mighty when you have the weight of all of those dead people resting on your shoulders!" Erza shouted. Now she stepped forward drawing her sword from Natsu's neck and grabbing a hold of his shirt.
"You know nothing Titania, do not presume that you understand me" Natsu hissed out, who the hell was this woman coming here and telling him that he had killed those people. No, he could never do that to anyone, least of all innocents no matter how much he hated humans.
"I know enough about you to know what you have done is inexcusable" she responded "You're a monster"
Natsu tensed. The word monster shot through his mind like a bullet ripping apart hundreds of blocked memories tearing them all open at once. All the feelings the emotions shot back into him with the force of a charging bull. Stumbling back slightly Natsu fell to his knees and quickly wrapped his hands around his head. Erza and the others just looked at Natsu confused, what the hell was wrong with him!
Natsu was lost inside his mind. Thousands of memories coursing through his brain. Titania's words had triggered a chain reaction, this was never meant to happen! These memories were meant to stay locked up behind his wall. Natsu slowly felt tears form on the corners of his eyes before they dripped to the ground. The small sound of gasping could be heard from around him but Natsu didn't care. Standing slowly he felt immeasurable rage towards Erza. Stepping forward with fury plainly showing in his eyes Natsu grabbed hold of Erza's neck and lifted her up till she was on her tip toes staring shocked into his eyes.
"I will say this once Titania so listen very, very closely. I do not care what you call me, may it be my name or Diamond king or criminal. I don't care if you insult me or judge me or call me names, but next time you call me a monster I will rip your skull from your body. You know I can do it just as well as I do so next time you yell at someone like that maybe you should think about what your saying." Natsu growled out lowly "I am not someone who comes easily to anger but you manage to bring out the worst in me Scarlet. I was having a good night as well before you came butting in with your talk of justice. You know nothing about me Scarlet" he said almost spitting out her name "The reasons I had for covering those villages in my crystals was not for revenge or from anger or even just blind blood lust. No I did that as a blessing, a relief! I did what I had to do to stop the world from seeing something it couldn't unsee" Natsu released Erza back onto her feet. All of the members of Fairy Tail just stood their eyes wide and faces shocked.
"I saved you from those villages Titania, because if you had seen what that man had done to them..." Natsu trailed off his voice breaking a little bit.
"You would not be the same"
Natsu finished his speech. The only noise now was the sound of the fire crackling and the wind blowing over the tops of the trees. Natsu shook his head slightly before walking over to his bags and picking them up and shrugging them back onto his shoulder.
"Your Welcome. Good luck with your journeys Titania, it seems I was wrong about Fairy Tail. You have nothing to offer after all" Natsu said his tone blunt and emotionless. Natsu was in fact in turmoil, over the years he had built of walls in his mind to block out certain memories using Mind Magic. If he hadn't he would quite literally be insane at this point, but Erza Scarlet had broken several of them and Natsu had to be in a state of emotionlessness to fix them again.
"You think I can just let you walk off" Erza said her voice stern but now laced with a small amount of concern
"You couldn't stop me if you tried Titania"
"Wait! D-Diamere , you said that Fairy Tail has nothing to offer? What did you mean by that?" Lucy said her voice quiet and timid at his outburst. Natsu stopped and turned around. Despite his attempts a bit of sadness leaked into his gaze.
"I thought you would be different, different from the rest of this world but clearly you think I am nothing but...inhuman, just like the rest of them" Natsu explained quietly
"That wasn't who we are Diamere" Erza spoke up this time her voice gentle now her eyes downcast "What I said to you was out of line, even if I was angry I should have never let myself lose control like that. I made assumptions without having the facts" she took a step forward before bowing slightly before a now shocked Natsu.
"If you would like to see what we have to offer we can take you back with us" Grey spoke now his gaze still cautious but definitely not hostile "To Fairy Tail"
Natsu turned his gaze back to Titania who was still bowing and not looking him in the eyes "What do you think Titania, should I go back with you to see if my assumptions were wrong?" he asked quietly his voice laced with uncertainty. Unlike the others these people had apologized, that in itself is rare. In fact no one had ever apologized to Natsu but his mother.
"I think...I think that I would love to have you come with us, not just to see that we are not like...like we were but to clear your name, if in fact you are innocent" Erza replied before looking up and smiling at Natsu. Natsu felt a small amount of warmth course through him as he observed Erza's smiling features. There was a kindness and understanding that there wasn't previously. Maybe he was right, Maybe they were different.
"Then" Natsu paused looking around at all their anticipating faces
"To Fairy Tail"
