Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

Pairing(s): Natsu Dragneal x Zeraf

WARNINGS: Slight AU , Shounan ai (boy/boy pairing), you have been warned

Firelight and Shadows

By V. Shalyr

Scroll IV: The Journey

Home

"Wow," Lucy marveled, standing in the middle of the main cavern, "this place is pretty cozy, isn't it?"

With the exception of the dead trees out front, but that could be ignored.

Natsu just grinned, still preoccupied with the sleeping bundle in his arms. The dark wizard's face was obscured both by his unruly, black hair and the hood of his plain brown cloak pulled low to shadow his features. Even so, Natsu had led them along little used streets and back alleyways as he brought them through the city towards the woods. It seemed that for the sake of this other wizard, the Dragon Slayer had learned to take precautions and to be careful. Admittedly, Lucy was impressed. Natsu really did care a lot about him, didn't he? It made her wonder just exactly what kind of relationship the two shared.

Leaving them to look about the living area, Natsu disappeared into the adjoining cave with his burden. The wizard had hardly stirred the entire way, but Natsu wasn't particularly worried. He could tell through their connection that the wizard's sleep was calm if not entirely content.

For now, that was enough.

"So when I thought someone was following us," Gray said as Natsu returned to the main cavern, "it was him, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. I thought it would be more interesting than sitting around here waiting for us to get back."

The Ice Wizard grimaced and muttered, "I still can't believe this is happening."

"And the months you were missing," Erza mused aloud. "I take it you took the long way back to do more than see the sights."

Natsu shrugged. "We needed to figure out a way to keep his magic more or less under control."

The three had many other questions, and the story of their journey had to be retold with previously missing details filled in now that secrets no longer needed to be kept.

Natsu paused once in the conversation to glance towards the other cave and Lucy assumed that Zeraf had woken up. But the Slayer didn't comment and so none of them asked. There had been enough tension in the air for one day.

It was so late that it was early by the time his teammates left. Natsu remained in the main cavern for awhile longer thinking over everything that had been shared before rising and heading into the other room. The dark wizard's eyes were open although he hadn't bothered to sit up, simply staring a little blankly at the ceiling.

"They know."

It was a statement rather than a question, but Natsu answered it anyway.

"They do. I told them most of what happened." Not including the part where they were bound together by a spell developed by Dragon Slayers, but they didn't need to know that yet. "They've agreed to give you a chance."

"Why?"

This made the Dragon Slayer quirk an eyebrow, moving closer to the side of the bed so he could peer down into the wizard's face. "Why not?"

Why not? Zeraf said nothing. He thought it was rather obvious why not.

"I know what you're thinking, but that's not how the world works. Not everything is so black and white. And being fair sometimes means giving people a second chance. Acceptance is something people often have to earn, but you can't earn it if people don't give you the opportunity. Besides, you have me vouching for you."

When Zeraf's gaze finally focused on him, the Dragon Slayer grinned. "I could swear I've been saying this forever, but seriously, lighten up. You're not wandering around by yourself anymore. Things are different now."

And, strangely enough, he found that they were. He wasn't alone anymore, was he? Even his Death Magic didn't seem to be as complicated a dilemma as it had been before when he'd had to deal with it and its consequences on his own.

And somehow... Somehow, these caves where they'd spent so much time together had become home.

.

A New Horizon

The situation remained quite delicate for several weeks. The members of "Fairy Tail's strongest team" tread cautiously around each other while they tried to settle back into a routine that had been broken by Zeraf's arrival. But after the initial shock and dismay that resulted from their discovery of his identity, they found it hard to stay wary or suspicious of him.

There was something incredibly... dare she say, endearing—about walking into Natsu's apartment to find the great and terrible Black Wizard Zeraf puzzling over a cookbook. At least she knew now where all those books Natsu had bought had gone.

The wizard could almost always be found out in the woods or in Natsu's apartment. Now that Natsu's closest friends knew about him, he stayed with the Slayer more often. That meant that the team ended up spending less time at Lucy's, including Lucy herself.

"Anything good?" she asked from the doorway.

Natsu had told them all to try their best not to startle the dark wizard, a rule they all followed to the letter. They had witnessed what his rampant Death Magic could do once, and none of them wanted to inadvertently trigger a repeat of the experience.

"I don't know," Zeraf admitted. As far as he could tell, all food as long as it wasn't too badly burnt or over spiced was good in Natsu's books.

Watching the expressions change on Gray's face every time they had dinner at Natsu's was hilarious. He couldn't seem to wrap his mind around the idea of Zeraf being a good cook. For several days, he wouldn't eat the food until everyone else had had it and pronounced it more than tasteful.

For his part, Zeraf avoided the Ice Wizard when he could. Gray represented so many of his regrets.

Still, eventually, the conversation picked up around the dining table and the atmosphere relaxed. Their team had always been a bit dysfunctional; well, most people found their entire guild a little dysfunctional. But they worked, and they would make this work too.

.

Comfort

"I guess this explains why you went on all those curse breaking and relic hunting missions," Lucy mused, watching Zeraf run his hand over the runes carved upon the ruin walls and mumble under his breath.

"Yup." Natsu grinned, tossing aside the shattered limb of a stone statue he'd just dismantled. The statues could be found all throughout these ruins, and they activated the moment people came within reach of their weapons. "Z's great with all the ancient mumbo jumbo, and I handle any of the fighting that has to be done. It's perfect."

"Sounds like you two had fun," Erza observed. Clearing her throat, she raised her voice, "So, Z, any luck?"

Using the nickname herself felt strange, but she understood why Natsu had decided that it was best. Although she rather thought he could perhaps have been more creative.

Zeraf paused, deep in thought, then nodded. "According to these records, the artifact we're looking for should be housed in a shrine underneath the north tower."

Natsu cracked his knuckles. "What are we waiting for then?"

"Natsu." The Black Wizard's quiet voice halted the Slayer mid sprint. Once he was sure he had the Slayer's attention, Zeraf pointed in the opposite direction. "The north tower is that way."

"Oh, right." Natsu laughed, scratching the back of his head. "My bad. Let's go!"

Gray crossed his arms, falling into step beside Lucy as Natsu rushed off with the Black Wizard trailing after him. "Amazing, Natsu actually listens when he talks. It's a little creepy how well they work together."

"It's almost like he's a part of the team."

The Ice Wizard frowned uneasily at her statement, but Lucy rather thought it was true.

That would probably make Natsu happy, she mused. As for Z... Well, she was still trying to figure him out and it was apparent to her that he was still trying to do the same.

One thing she did notice, though, was how the dark wizard seemed to take comfort from Natsu's presence. He was visibly more relaxed when the Dragon Slayer was around. Or maybe it was more the fact that he still felt ill at ease around the other wizards. Whatever the case may be, he stayed close to Natsu when he could, and once, Lucy had even seen him smile at something the Dragon Slayer said. It was a small, faint smile but a real one, and it told her more than either of them had in words.

.

Loneliness

"He's happy when he's around you."

"Hmmm?" Natsu looked at Lucy over their campfire, mouth full of venison.

"Z," she clarified, feeding a twig into the fire.

Natsu glanced back at the dark wizard, who had chosen a spot some ways apart from them and fallen asleep. The black of his hair and clothes made him almost disappear amidst the forest shadows. He didn't say anything in response to Lucy's statement. After all, what could he say?

"I'm glad you two ran into each other," the Celestial Wizard added, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. "I think he must have been very lonely."

Natsu swallowed the food and turned his gaze from the sleeping Black Wizard to the flames. He could remember the way Zeraf had looked back then, walking away from him amidst the dead trees with dried leaves drifting down around him. He'd thought the same then too, thought that the rather odd, quiet stranger seemed so very sad somehow and so very lonely.

But that was then.

"I'm glad I went after him that day," Natsu admitted then grinned at her. "He's not alone anymore."

Neither of them were, and Natsu would see that it stayed that way.

Besides, who knew where the Black Wizard would have ended up or what he would have ended up doing if Natsu hadn't come along?

.

Peace Offering

"Hey."

Gray waited, unsure if the wizard dozing on the bank of the stream had heard him. He had thought long and seriously before finally deciding to come out here. Erza had glanced his way when he'd left but hadn't said anything, a knowing look passing through her eyes.

Just when he'd made up his mind to call again, the other dark-haired wizard stirred and turned his head his way. Recognizing the Ice Wizard, he sat up completely, his expression unreadable.

Gray didn't wait for the silence to become uncomfortable. "You probably know that Natsu left with Lucy and Happy this morning to go on a job."

Zeraf nodded, waiting in silence for the Ice Wizard to get to the point. He wouldn't have come all the way out here into the woods to tell him that.

"In the mean time, Erza and I have been asked to take on a different request." Gray paused then squared his shoulders and continued. "There's going to be a lot of translation work involved and it seems we may be dealing with a powerful Rune Wizard as well. Neither of us are any good at that sort of thing. Besides, to be perfectly honest, I'm not all that keen to go on a mission alone with Erza."

He let the silent question hang in the air between them, waiting for a response and unsure whether he wanted the dark wizard to say yes or no. He would never forget the terrible things that had happened as a result of this wizard's past, but there was a place and time for such memories. And that wasn't what this was about.

Zeraf hesitated, apparently just as unsure about joining the two Fairy Tail wizards on their mission without Natsu as Gray was about asking him to accompany them. But this person before him who had the most reason amongst the members of the team to despise him had found the resolve to seek him out, and if he could do that, it seemed only fair that Zeraf found the courage to accept the awkward peace offering despite his own misgivings.

Gray relaxed a little when the Black Wizard got to his feet and moved to follow him.

It wasn't about forgiveness. Zeraf hadn't asked for forgiveness. He hadn't asked for anything.

It was about moving on.

It was about knowing how precious life was and doing something about it. It was about humanity and about acceptance, and so many of the other things that Fairy Tail stood for.

.

Jealousy

Natsu wasn't sure what was wrong with him. He should have been happy that Zeraf was getting along with his teammates, and he was—but he also sort of wasn't. There was a part of him that wished they could return to the days when it had just been the two of them. Somehow, watching them all together simply made him feel restless and a little irritated.

He didn't say anything out loud, but Zeraf noticed. He'd always been observant, and he was even more so when it came to Natsu because of the bond they now shared. At first, he wasn't sure what he should do. For days, he waited to see if Natsu would decide to talk to him about it, but despite usually being so loud about his thoughts, this time, the Slayer only brooded and watched. When Zeraf started noting a hint of red creeping into the Slayer's normally dark eyes, he reasoned that something had to be done.

He kept quiet until they were alone in the caves one evening after a joint mission before approaching Natsu. The Dragon Slayer sat unmoving on one of the large, flat boulders they'd left in the living area for extra seating. He hadn't gone to see his teammates off and he had an uncharacteristic frown on his face.

"Natsu, something's troubling you."

"It's nothing."

"Natsu."

The Slayer growled, jerking around so quickly that the wizard barely had time to blink. He found himself on the ground with the Slayer on top of him, hands on either side of his head and narrowed eyes fixed intently on his face. There was a beat of utter stillness in which they stared at one another, then Natsu leaned down and kissed him—a fierce kiss—frustrated, rough and demanding.

After a split second of shock, Zeraf relaxed and leaned into the touch, unexpectedly comfortable with their proximity.

Somehow, this silent gesture of submission made the frustrated tension in the Dragon Slayer unwind a little. Eventually, he pulled away and rested his forehead against Zeraf's.

"I suppose I was starting to feel a little jealous," Natsu admitted. "I liked having you to myself."

Zeraf wasn't sure what to say to that. He didn't know how to tell Natsu that no one could ever mean as much to him as the Fire Dragon Slayer. He didn't know how to tell him that he cared for him more than he had ever cared for anyone or anything in his life.

He had suspected that the dragon in Natsu wanted him, but he hadn't been sure what the human part thought until now. Although the fact that the dragon was interested had been a sign in itself that the Slayer considered him special to him, and that alone had made the dark wizard feel at peace.

What a strange concept. Zeraf had never thought before that he would ever be able to find peace without dying. But then he'd been proven wrong about so many things in the past few hundred years that perhaps he shouldn't have been surprised.

He hoped that Natsu could read these emotions through their bond because he sure as hell didn't know how to put them into words.

It seemed he could because the Dragon Slayer grinned. He didn't say anything either, but he did move to kiss him again, more gently this time. And everything was all right again.

.

Affection

For all his hundreds of years of life, the legendary Black Wizard Zeraf couldn't say that he knew what love was. He'd never been in love before and certainly no one had ever loved him, not like that. "Love" simply wasn't a word that he or other people generally associated with him. At least not back then.

But a lot could change in four hundred years. A lot had. He'd just never thought that it could change quite this much.

He was still getting used to the idea of intimacy and, for once, Natsu seemed content to proceed slowly, so not much changed outwardly in the way they acted around one another. The easy rapport between Natsu and his teammates returned though, and it became a normal occurrence for Zeraf to wake with Natsu's arm around his waist and his head tucked under the Dragon Slayer's chin. The first time this had happened, Zeraf had frozen up and woken Natsu with his awkward panic. Now, if the Slayer was still dozing—which he usually was, he simply shut his eyes and went back to sleep.

It was a warm, easy sort of affection, a strong but simple kind of love.

It could have been very complicated. In essence, they were both rather complicated people with complicated histories and unusual positions in the world. But Natsu didn't care for unnecessary complications and Zeraf had enough complications in his life not to want to see one more.

And in any case, they had time.

.

Nightmares

They knew something was wrong when every member of the guild had the same nightmare. They dreamed of a great tree upon an island in the sea protected for hundreds of years by a sacred magic now beginning to wither and die. And with its death came misfortune upon misfortune, loneliness and separation.

The mood in the guild house that morning was grim. After the initial surprise and discussion, a grave silence fell over everyone.

"Something must be wrong on Tenrou Island," Makarov announced at last, opening his eyes and looking up at the wizards gathered before him. He considered them all his children and his heart ached to think of what these nightmares might foretell.

"Some of us should go investigate," Erza said, her expression dark. "Whatever is going on, it must be serious. If someone is trying to cause harm to Fairy Tail, they must be very powerful if they're able to affect the island in this way."

The old guild master made a sound of agreement in his throat.

"So who's going?"

.

Dream

"Something strange has been happening on the island and I'm going to help figure out what. That island is sacred to Fairy Tail. It's also where the trials to make S-class are held. I'm not going to let anyone ruin it or get in the way of me becoming an S-class wizard and finding Igneal."

Natsu and Zeraf stood on the bank of a lake they had found some distance from the cave. It felt unpleasantly like a goodbye.

"It's been almost ten years and you still want to find your dragon that much?"

"Of course! Do you even have to ask? I'm never going to give up on searching for him." Turning to face the dark wizard, Natsu added, "If you disappeared one day, I'd look for you too. And I wouldn't stop until I'd found you."

Zeraf didn't know what to say to that. So instead, he jut lowered his head and said, "Be careful."

He had a bad feeling about what was to come. And unfortunately, his instincts were seldom wrong.

.

Conflict

"Who are you and what are you doing on this island? This island belongs to Fairy Tail. You're a trespasser."

The spiky-haired man grinned, showing teeth as he lifted one hand, displaying a handful of black fire. "I am a member of the guild known as Grimoire Heart. We're looking for the Black Wizard Zeraf. We have reason to suspect that he has connections to Fairy Tail and so here we are. Hand him over or we'll destroy this island."

Natsu could feel the shock and confusion from some of the people behind him. However, right now wasn't the time to wonder how these people had gotten a hold of their information. Fortunately, it seemed their sources weren't too thorough.

"He's not here," Natsu said quite honestly, calling up his own flames. "Now leave. You're not welcome here and there's no way in hell that we'll let you destroy this place."

"I was hoping you'd say that. I've always wanted to fight Fairy Tail's famous Salamander." Before either of them could launch an attack, however, a distant look flickered across the man's face and he grimaced. "Unfortunately, it seems this will have to wait. Boss's orders."

"Hey, you can't just run away!"

"I'm not running, Salamander. It just so happens that I have somewhere else I need to be right now. But my colleagues and I will be back, you can count on that."

Natsu didn't like the look in the other fire wielder's eyes one bit, but he was gone before anything else could be said. He had a sudden, sinking feeling that this Dark Guild knew a lot more than they'd let on.

.

Break

Something was blocking their connection.

Zeraf frowned, staring out across the vast expanse of ocean water. When the change had happened, he had immediately sought out the island where Natsu had gone with the other guild wizards. But without their link, he wasn't sure where to start looking for the Slayer.

However, he'd caught glimpses of their enemy. They all used magic—powerful magic—that had been classified as "lost" for decades. And it seemed that they were looking for him.

It upset and angered him to think that all of this was because of him. How many times did he have to tell these Dark Guilds to leave him in peace? How many people were they going to hurt in their vain pursuit of his magic? Why could they not understand that he wanted no part of their schemes?

He would give them another warning, but they were really beginning to try his patience.

Unfortunately, the tall, dark-haired woman did not see things his way. Her sheer determination not to let him walk away caught him off guard. One thing became apparent. She wasn't the kind of wizard he could defeat in the state he was in.

.

Wrath

Dark eyes snapped open and Natsu sat bolt upright, scanning the area around the campfire. Nothing seemed amiss but his internal senses were driving him crazy. He felt an inexplicable, overwhelming rage threatening to cloud his mind, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

"Natsu?" Lucy yawned, sitting up and rubbing at her eyes. "What's the matter?"

They'd been searching for the Dark Guild wizards all day and she was still exhausted.

Erza and Gray began to stir as well, all roused by their companion's sudden movement.

Natsu didn't answer. Something was wrong, he knew it, but what? They weren't being attacked and he didn't smell any of their enemies nearby. So why did he feel so angry?

He was missing something here. Wait a moment, something was missing—something important. Concentrating, he reached out with his mind, trying to find a familiar presence that was somehow no longer quite there. The connection wasn't broken, but it felt like a wall had been built between them, and try as he might, he couldn't break through it.

"Natsu."

"I think they found him."

It was lucky that they'd all split up to scour the island. His teammates knew the truth about Zeraf and he had no need to explain anything to them.

They packed up quickly and headed out again at once. Natsu fought down his panic, trying to concentrate on the sounds and smells that reached him. Suddenly, it seemed like there were unfamiliar people everywhere. He growled low in his throat, finally locking onto the scent of the man they had confronted earlier and veering in that direction.

He wanted answers.

.

Scatter

Fights were going on all over the island. Zeraf could sense the clash of magical power all around him as he opened his eyes, although all that was eclipsed by the awareness of a force infinitely greater and more deadly heading their way.

He was a little surprised to wake up in the middle of the woods, but he had more pressing matters that needed his attention. He stumbled to his feet, wisps of darkness curling around him. He had only one thought on his mind: finding the person responsible for all this turmoil and making him pay.

.

Destruction

The destruction of the airship was silent and swift. Zeraf had almost forgotten what it was like to have the full use of his magic, yet the strength of it left a bitter taste in his mouth and it angered him even further that these people had pushed him to this point. He'd finally been finding a place for himself in this world. He'd even begun to learn a little of what it might be like to belong and to be happy. He couldn't help but resent these foolish dark wizards for forcing him to let some of that go—to punish them for all the trouble they had caused Natsu and his guild and to prevent them from pursuing him any longer.

Now the Black Dragon was coming and it was all their fault.

Dark wings blotted out the sunlight and Zeraf suddenly found himself wishing that he could send the dragon away. He wished that he'd been able to warn Natsu. But those were just some of the many things that he had discovered over the years that he could not do.

Sometimes, no matter how powerful you were, it just wasn't enough. And the truth of that was bittersweet.

.

Absence

It felt like someone had just ripped his heart out of his chest. Zeraf doubled over in agony, curling in on himself amidst the wreckage of the airship. His breath came out in short, shallow gasps and he clutched at the fabric off his robes, trying desperately to find some kind of stability in the sudden chaos of pain and emotions fogging his mind.

The island was gone. There was nothing but ocean where the Black Dragon's attack had landed.

For a brief moment, Zeraf wondered if his old wish was finally coming true and he was going to die here alongside the island that the Fairy Tail guild had held as sacred. But then the pain eased up a bit and he was able to breathe a little more deeply albeit shakily.

The island was gone, but somehow, he knew in his bones that the people who had been on it weren't dead. He didn't know where they had gone, but at least they were still alive. This knowledge helped relieve the pain from their abruptly broken connection a little bit more and his body relaxed enough so that he was simply lying on the cooling metal.

It looked like he would be back on the road again, for how long he had no idea. Still, he had all the time in the world to wait.

Natsu.

TBC...

AN: I will be redoing a couple of the series' major events. Hopefully, it's not too confusing. I wrote this story for myself (being something of a sucker for second chances), so I didn't originally pay too much attention to whether or not people who haven't seen the series would be able to understand it. Still, I usually try my best regardless to make sure my stories include enough info.

.