Every Time We Touch
Disclaimer – I do not own Fairy Tail
Author's Note: It's been so long! And that's mainly been due to the fact that I had no idea where I was going with this chapter! Be prepared!
Chapter 6
6:30 PM – Gather Outside for Announcements
Gray looked up at the clock. It was almost time for announcements, which meant he had to wake up Natsu. But he really didn't want to. And he wasn't fully aware why. The dragon slayer had finally settled down and he wasn't shivering anymore; however, the ice mage found himself feeling concerned.
Reaching out, he shook Natsu's shoulder. The dragon slayer opened his eyes, peering at him in confusion before slowly sitting up. Rubbing his eyes, he said, "What time is it?"
"Almost time for announcements," answered Gray.
Natsu looked down at the three blankets pooling around his lap. Three? He could have sworn he'd only grabbed one.
"Let's go," urged Gray. "Happy's already gone."
Nodding, the dragon slayer stood mutely and followed Gray out the door and toward their meeting place. Makarov noticed them and smiled. How did he have so much energy?
"I hope all of you have had fun today so far. I'd just like to inform you that the evening activity with the entire group will be watching a film on a lacrima screen. We'll meet there after dinner," announced Makarov, his eyes brimming with joy. The man had to be on something; he just had to be.
6:45 PM – Dinner
Natsu was almost too sleepy to even eat. He stared blankly at his food, which consisted of crispy chicken, roasted potatoes, vegetables of some sort, salad, and a chocolate cupcake with icing. At least there was meat this time around. Popping a potato into his mouth, he chewed it slowly. His jaw felt heavy and lethargic. How was he going to eat at this rate? Looking forlornly at his meal, he poked at it instead.
Gray had had enough. "I don't care if you don't feel well, but you need to eat something. If you really are sick, not eating will only make everything worse."
Worse? Natsu couldn't imagine feeling any worse.
"At least eat your chicken. You need to have something more solid in your system," continued the ice mage.
Not wanting to argue, Natsu started to eat his chicken. But he ate it so slowly that Gray wanted to pull his hair out strand by strand. Well, at least Natsu was trying to eat. It was a start.
7:45 PM – Evening Activity with the Entire Group
Sitting down in a seat away from everybody else, Natsu thought that this would be the perfect time to take another nap. He was just so tired. All he had to do was close his eyes…
"Natsu?"
The dragon slayer felt himself being shaken awake. "Mm?"
"Hey, wake up. The film's over."
That was Gray's voice. Wait. The film was over? But he'd just shut his eyes. It was like time had been fast forwarded. Opening his eyes slowly, he peered at Gray, who was now hovering in front of him.
To the ice mage, Natsu looked confused…dazed, even. He took a step back when the dragon slayer slowly stood up, looking around the nearly empty room. When he placed a hand to his head and wobbled, Gray reached out and caught him before he fell.
"Natsu?" started Gray, trying to wake him. "Natsu?" He was starting to panic really badly now.
"What happened?" Thank goodness Makarov was still here.
"He just fainted. I don't—"
"We'll take him to the health center. Can you carry him?"
Gray nodded, lifting Natsu bridal-style as he followed Makarov toward the health center. Makarov led him to a small room with a bed and told Gray to lay Natsu down. He did so, staring down at the dragon slayer uneasily as the man left to find help.
A few minutes later, Porlyusica returned with Makarov.
"I need to ask you to leave," said Porlyusica, ushering out the ice mage.
"But—"
"Don't worry. He's in good hands," commented Makarov.
Soon, Gray found himself standing outside the room, staring dumbfounded at the closed door. Just what the hell had happened?
After what felt like forever, Makarov said, "You're still here?"
"How is he?"
"Well, according to Porlyusica, Natsu's been holding in his magic. Which is probably why he's been feeling so cold. But that's not all. She found burns all over his body," said Makarov.
"Burns?" Gray echoed.
Makarov nodded.
"Did someone attack him? Did he get hurt on a mission and not tell anyone?"
"I'm afraid that's not the case. Natsu caused the burns."
"I don't understand."
Makarov sat down next to Gray. "I'm not sure I do, either. According to Porlyusica, Natsu's come of age as a dragon, or in this case, a dragon slayer. His magic power has fluctuated significantly, to that of a real dragon. His body isn't able to control this sudden onset of power."
Gray swallowed hard. "What does that mean? Is he going to be okay?"
Makarov averted his gaze and sighed. "Not exactly. Well, Porlyusica did mention a way to help him, but I'm not sure it will work."
"What is it? We have to help him!" Gray started, jumping to his feet. "Don't you care?"
"Do you?" Makarov turned his attention back to Gray. "Natsu's wellbeing may very well depend on you. So I'll ask you again. Do you care for Natsu?"
Gray stared at Makarov, his emotions conflicting with themselves. Of course he cared about Natsu, but the dragon slayer just made him so angry sometimes.
With everything that happened to them, how could Natsu continue living life with that ridiculous smile on his face when he himself couldn't even muster a small grin? He was jealous and angry that Natsu could just keep on smiling. Why couldn't he feel like Natsu felt? Carefree and happy? That's why he did what he did to Natsu. To make the dragon slayer feel as he did.
But…that didn't matter anymore.
Taking a deep breath, Gray looked Makarov in the eyes. "I do care about Natsu," he said earnestly.
Makarov gave Gray a small smile. "Then it might be worth a try."
"What do we need to do?"
"Natsu's fire magic is out control, to the point where he's burning himself with his magic. I think he's aware of this, so he's been trying to hold in his magic so that he doesn't have any magical outbursts. But that's been making his body temperature drop and putting him in a lethargic stasis. Much like a reptile," Makarov chuckled at the irony before clearing his throat.
"What he needs is someone to help keep his magic in balance. Someone with magic that is the opposite of his own…yet an equal," Makarov continued.
"Ice…magic," Gray stated, the pieces coming together. "When Natsu was asleep in the cabin, he was shivering. I gave him some more blankets, but I stayed next to him, and eventually his shivering stopped."
Makarov nodded in understanding. "It seems your magic has already connected with Natsu's."
"I'm willing to help Natsu at any cost," said Gray truthfully. I owe him that much.
At this Makarov looked saddened. "I'm afraid you don't realize what that cost truly is."
"What do you mean?"
"If you go through with this, you can never leave Natsu's side, at least not for very long. You'll always need to be near each other. The longer you are apart, the more out of control Natsu's magic will become. Your magic will keep him in balance.
"But if you refuse…Natsu's magic will go out of control and gradually destroy him from the inside out. I'm afraid no one else can connect with him at this point; his magic connected with yours when he came of age. I suppose it's because you're around each other so much."
Gray crossed his arms, a worried expression coming over his features. He'd have to stay with Natsu? All the time? And what did Makarov mean by their magic being connected?
"I'm not sure I fully understand, but I will try. For Natsu's sake, I'll try," said Gray.
Makarov nodded. I'll tell you the rest when the both of you are ready.
"Can I…see him?" asked Gray unsurely.
"Absolutely. He's awake. A bit out of it, but I think he can have some company for now."
The ice mage followed Makarov back to the room where Natsu was. Sitting on the bed, looking nervous, was the dragon slayer. Gray felt relieved at seeing that he looked much better.
"You have a visitor, Natsu," said Makarov.
The dragon slayer looked up to see Gray. He mutely acknowledged his presence.
"Since you've had such a rough day, perhaps we should send you back to Magnolia," Makarov pondered aloud. "Gray can take you home. You can rest up there."
"No!" Natsu stammered, a look of fear in his eyes. "I can't…"
"Can't what?"
Gray watched the interaction apprehensively. Why was Natsu so scared?
"I can't…go there." He really wanted to tell Makarov the truth, but he was afraid of what might happen if he did.
Makarov sat on the bed and looked Natsu straight in the eyes. "It's okay. You can tell me. I told you already that I'll help you any way I can. I promise you that."
Tears stung Natsu's eyes, so he rubbed at them with the back of his hand. It was now or never. He just really hoped Makarov would keep his word. "I burned it down. And the nearby forest. I didn't mean to! I swear! I lost control! And now it's all gone. Happy wasn't there at the time. He's been staying with Lucy. No one else knows."
He burned his house down? "Where have you been staying then?"
Natsu averted his eyes. "The woods around Magnolia. Near where I…burned down our home."
"How long have you been staying out there?"
"…about two weeks."
The next question Makarov was about to ask was extremely important. Natsu's future depended on the answer. "How long have you been losing control over your magic?"
Gray felt his blood run cold when the dragon slayer said he'd been like this for two months. This revelation was something he hadn't expected. How had no one noticed? Gray couldn't help but feel like the scum of the earth. It wasn't like he'd made the situation any better for Natsu. But now, things were going to change.
Makarov patted Natsu on the head comfortingly. "And you haven't been on any missions outside of Magnolia for that long either?"
The dragon slayer nodded mutely and stared at the floor. What would happen to him now?
"You'll stay at the camp with everyone else until our two weeks are up," Makarov continued. "After that, I'll see to it we find you and Happy a new home. Would you be okay with that?"
Natsu's head shot up and he stared at Makarov with hope-filled eyes. "I…think I'd…like that."
"Good. Now, Gray, would you please help Natsu back to your cabin? I want him to remain in bed until further notice. We want him to get his strength back. And I'll go over all the details on how you'll be taking care of him later."
"Sure," said Gray.
Makarov, pleased with Gray's answer, chose that time to exit, leaving the two teens all alone. They stared at each other for a minute or two before Gray did something Natsu completely wasn't expecting.
"What are you doing?" the dragon slayer exclaimed as Gray suddenly lifted him bridal-style, carrying him out of the health center.
"What's it look like I'm doing?"
"Fine. Why are you doing it then?"
"Because…because I just am," Gray muttered, finally reaching their cabin. He set Natsu down on his feet and opened the door, only to be nearly run over by Happy.
"Natsu! Gray! Is everything okay?" Happy cried, inspecting the both of them.
Before the dragon slayer could answer, Gray cut in. "Natsu's not feeling too well. I took him to the health center and he was advised to take it easy, so let's make him comfortable. Can you find him some pajamas to wear?"
Natsu looked up at Gray unsurely as he was led further into the cabin. Happy then handed the pajamas to Gray which he then passed onto Natsu. "Take these and change."
"Okay," Natsu mumbled. He took the offered pajamas and headed into the bathroom to change. When he returned, he noticed that the couch had been moved next to the bed with a pillow and a few blankets. As he veered toward said couch, he soon found himself heading in another direction.
"I'm sleeping on the couch," Gray said softly. "You're taking the bed."
"But—"
"I put the couch right here so that if you need anything, I'm within your reach," he cut in. "I'm supposed to take care of you, aren't I? Now get in the damn bed before I toss your fucking ass into it."
Climbing into the bed, Natsu lay down, watching helplessly as Gray pulled the blankets over him. "Goodnight," the ice mage mumbled to him as he made himself comfortable on the couch.
Natsu sighed and thought over what had just transpired. How had things gotten this way? Gray was starting to be nice to him. Although…his bedside manner could use a little work. But it was pleasant. The dragon slayer just wondered how long it was going to last.
End Chapter