Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

Main Pairing(s): Natsu Dragneal x Zeraf (eventual), , Jellal Fernandes x Erza Scarlet (established)

Other Mentioned Pairing(s): Gajeel Redfox x Levy McGarden (established), Loke x Lucy Heartfilia (eventual)

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


Modern Fantasy

By V. Shalyr


7. In Hiding

It turned out that Z was in the record books after all. Natsu had just been looking in the wrong time period.

He stared down at the little black and white picture with the name printed neatly underneath. It seemed Z had even worked for the government for awhile way back. The image was so sketchy that it was doubtful he would have recognized him anyway. At the time, cameras hadn't been invented yet. It wasn't the oldest record book in their collection, but it was very close to it.

Natsu wondered if anyone even realized that Zeraf's picture could be found in their archives. Probably not, or someone would have mentioned it. A bad picture was better than no picture when you were trying to find someone.

Carefully, Natsu shut the book and slid it back onto the shelf. The cleaning staff made sure to keep the place free of dust, but even so, the books on these particular shelves managed to feel forgotten. It wasn't like registration records made for enjoyable reading. Several decades had probably gone by since the last time anyone had had any reason to browse them.

Standing alone in the silent and slightly stuffy archives beneath Magnolia's main police station, he wondered how the hell he was going to make this all work.

.

Zeraf wandered around the small apartment, feeling... well, mostly bewildered and a bit anxious.

Up until this point, he had been staying at a large hotel where there were numerous staff members and guests to take the attention off of him. He'd accumulated a decent amount of funds with his work in the past, and now and then, he picked up jobs in the cities that he stopped in—usually jobs where he didn't have to interact much with other people.

Natsu's apartment wasn't nearly as lavish, but it felt much more lived in. A scattering of photographs had been taped to one wall, and a somewhat badly made but still impressive pottery dragon towered in one corner—being used as a makeshift coat rack. Zeraf excavated a half written report and some old newspapers from beneath a collection of snacks. Snacks seemed to be the main feature of the apartment, which made Zeraf want to smile. Somehow, it didn't surprise him.

He read all the newspapers from cover to cover then skimmed through all the advertisements and magazines piled haphazardly in a cardboard box by the door. Natsu apparently wasn't an avid reader, but Zeraf did manage to find half a dozen books.

Maybe he could get Natsu to go to the library for him and borrow some things. In the meantime, one of those books turned out to be a cookbook. He figured it was as good a distraction as any.

.

"You cook?"

Zeraf looked up from the stew bubbling away in the stainless steel pot. Natsu deposited several bags of groceries on the floor by the fridge. They couldn't exactly eat out at the moment.

"I was looking at your books. There was a cookbook and I thought I might as well try something."

"I bought that when I first moved here," Natsu said, moving to look over his shoulder at his creation. "Before that, I mostly lived outdoors, so all my cooking was done over a campfire. Well, that or with magic."

"This is the first time I have ever cooked anything," Zeraf said, using the ladle to stir the contents of the pot and make sure nothing stuck to the bottom. "I do not actually need to eat."

"Is it done yet?"

"Five more minutes, according to the recipe."

"Can't wait to try it."

Natsu went back to the groceries and set about putting everything away.

"Hey, I brought you some books too. They're in the black bag by the couch. Don't know if you've read them before or not. I just got a list of recommendations from the librarian."

Zeraf paused, startled by this echo of his own earlier thoughts.

"Thank you."

"Yeah, well, you're always reading, and it's pretty boring being stuck here for god only knows how many days. The dark wizards have been kind of quiet, but Erza's got all of us scouring the city for anything suspicious."

Zeraf sighed, watching the steam rise from the stew.

"I can't hide here forever, Natsu. Sooner or later, someone will find me."

"I know."

The Dragon Slayer didn't elaborate, and Zeraf didn't know what else to say. Well, it wasn't like staying here or leaving now would make much of a difference.

The oven timer beeped. Retrieving two bowls from one of the cupboards, Zeraf ladled the stew into them and set them on the table. Natsu wasted no time digging in.

"Jeez, your first attempt is so much better than my half a dozen that it's sad. I can do a mean barbeque though. We should go down to the beach sometime and I'll make some for us."

When his companion didn't respond, Natsu lowered his spoon and looked across at him. Funny how many of their conversations took place over dishes and dining tables.

"Hey, stop worrying about it, okay? I told you, we'll figure something out."

"You'll get in trouble for hiding me."

"I'll deal with it."

"What if something goes wrong?"

"What if it doesn't?"

Zeraf started to protest, hesitated, then said instead, "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Dark eyes studied Natsu's face for awhile longer then dropped to his own bowl of stew. Finally, slowly, he began to eat.

.

The pair settled into an easy routine. In the morning, Natsu brought breakfast back from a nearby cafe along with a copy of the day's news. They'd eat together before the Dragon Slayer headed off to work. Zeraf would spend most of the day reading the last batch of books from the library, and then make dinner at around seven. Natsu would be home by eight, and they'd eat and talk until late into the night.

Reluctant though Z still was to talk about his past, now that he had nothing to hide, he gradually began to share more about himself, the things that he had done and seen. The Fire Wizard was especially interested in what he knew about dragons and Dragon Slayers. Firsthand knowledge of these was nearly unheard of in the modern era.

Natsu insisted that Z stay in the bedroom while he took the couch, since if people did barge into his apartment, he didn't want Z to be one of the first things they saw.

The only time Zeraf left the apartment was to accompany Natsu to the hotel so they could pick up the few belongings that he had.

If it wasn't for the tension that pervaded Magnolia's streets courtesy of the strange, seemingly causeless death and the heightened security, life would have been quite peaceful. But as it was, that peace existed on borrowed time.

.

"That must be how they managed to follow him here. We might be able to track him in the same way," Jellal was saying when Natsu entered the conference room. "If these dark wizards can pinpoint his magical signature using the items from that exhibit, I see no reason why we can't do the same."

That sounded problematic.

Slipping into the chair next to Wendy, Natsu asked quietly, "What are they talking about?"

Wendy twirled a lock of her long, navy hair around her fingers. "Lucy noticed some things about the artifacts in several of the museums that have been broken into in the last couple years—you know, the times when nothing was stolen? It seems that all those relics were suspected to have been created by the Black Wizard."

"Were they?"

She shrugged. "Maybe not all of them, but at least one or two from our own museum are. And everyone's magic has its own unique signature like a magical fingerprint, so we might be able to locate Zeraf that way."

This... drastically cut down on Natsu's thinking time. If they tracked Zeraf to Natsu's apartment, many difficult questions would be asked and they would both be in serious trouble. Then again, the Black Wizard couldn't stay hidden in the apartment indefinitely. Sooner or later, Natsu would have to introduce him to his colleagues if he wanted their cooperation, so maybe this wasn't a bad development.

"Lucy has a meeting with the curator later this afternoon," Loke spoke up. "I could go with her and take another look at those artifacts. Maybe even borrow one, if he's willing."

"Hmmm."

Erza considered this then nodded slowly. But before she could say anything, Natsu cleared his throat.

"You guys, there's someone I want you all to meet tomorrow."

"I don't think this is the time, Natsu," Erza started, but the Dragon Slayer stopped her. When he looked this serious, she knew it had to be important.

"Trust me, I'm pretty sure you'll want to meet this person."

Granted, Natsu was equally sure that this person did not want to meet them.

"But you all have to promise me that you'll hear us out and not—I don't know, attack him or anything, all right?"


TBC...


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