Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail

Co-Author and Beta: Etheral-23

Co-Author and Action scenes: Godospartan the kitsune

Chapter 7: An island of confusion

XxX ~ last time ~ XxX

The Time Mage stretched her limbs as she entered her room, glad to have all of today's nonsense be done with. Those Fairies were a bunch of buffoons but at least they provided for a good laugh. She hummed to herself as she stepped into the bedroom and changed into her nightgown.

The sound of stone rasping against metal immediately sent her on alert. She turned around, magic gathering at both hands ready to strike, but stop after seeing the source of the sound. She rolled her eyes and lowered her hands, dismissing the energy gathering in them. "You still know how to sneak into places, I'll give you that"

Sitting by the open window was a tall man with long untamed gray hair. He was dressed in a black long coat with a grey shirt underneath and brown pants, on his feet were long leather boots with various straps at the side. His brown eyes focused on his task of sharpening the katana in his hand with a whetstone.

He has the blade a twirl, hearing the edge cut through the air. He didn't even look at her as he spoke. "You got too close to that man" His voice is strong, calm yet filled with displeasure.

She rests her hands on her hips. "Please, he's not even that handsome. I was only having fun with our prey, gives the whole game more spice" She smirks teasingly at him. "Are you perhaps jealous by any chance Weiss?"

The man now known as Weiss says nothing which only makes Ultear roll her eyes scoffing; "You are such an unbelievable man I swear."

Sheathing his katana and setting on the table, Weiss looks directly to the young councilwoman; "You think this new pet of yours will provide anything?"

"Remember Master Hades is a bit curious about him" The time mage points out. "He doesn't have magic, yet has energy that is more biologically tied to his body. It's an oddity, something we need to uncover. Let's also not overlook he is powerful enough to destroy a demon of Zeref, even if it was one the weakest."

The man's face remains blank; "So that's your only reason for clinging to his arm?"

Walking over, Ultear stands directly in front of Weiss as she leans forward placing her hands on the chair rests. Their faces inches away from one another; "Well if wanted to have fun with him I would have needed some privacy."

She only gasps as she finds herself on her bed. Weiss on top of her, holding her wrists. His face blank, emotionless, but the time mage being the only person, next to her daughter, who could actually read his face, and she saw rage in his cold, stony eyes. "You belong to me," he voice calm and slow.

"So possessive..." She whispers huskily. "Not really trait women find attractive in a man"

He inches his face closer to hers. "Trait or not, it is a fact" She can feel his hot breath on her neck, making her shudder. "You are mine; you yourself said so, many, many times..." A soft kiss upon the bare skin on the crook of her makes her entire body go warm, he softly follows by tracing a path of more kisses from the base to her neck to her ear. "Don't you remember? Those times on a bed like this. 'Don't stop' you say... 'Make me yours' those are your words" He captures a sensitive lobe between his lips and Ultear can't suppresses a happy purr.

He eventually let's go of her wrists, his hands slowly, torturing slow, seek entrance into her nightgown, tracing her bare skin. A hand reaches down her leg, softly caressing her thigh, sending a shiver through her spine. "Say it" He commands huskily.

"You..." She moans as his lips arrive on her collarbone. "You won't win so easy..."

"Say it" He repeats. A hand comes dangerously close to her bosom, making her gasp.

Well... no use in fighting a losing battle.

"Take me..." She breathes out with desperation. "Make me yours" She does not request, Ultear doesn't make requests, and she demands him to pleasure her. If she was his, then he was hers as well.

Weiss brings his lips upon hers, softly at first, tender, but soon after their tempo increases, and their tongues explore each other's mouth. Ultear grasps his coat, eagerly trying to pry it off him. It's not fair how much clothing he has compared to her-

Suddenly Weiss pulls his lips from her, staring at her for a moment with those browns eyes before softly nodding to himself. "I have to go"

And with that, he steps off from the bed, leaving Ultear stunned and confused. "W-Wait, what?"

He stretches his clothes and picks up his sword. "Hades has a mission for me, I need to go now"

Her mouth opens and clothes a few times, her eyes are wide and the heat still hasn't left her cheeks, or any other part of her body. "WHAT?!" She finally shouts. "B-But you just-"

"I was only having fun with the prey" He uses her own words against her; a small, very subtle smile graces the corner of his lips. "Gives the whole game more spice" He waved her goodbye before jumping out the window, disappearing into the night.

Ultear just stood on the bed, gawking at the window from where Weiss just left, feeling tricked, incredibly angry, but more than anything still so very aroused.

"Y-Y-YOU FUCKING TEAAAAASE!" Her screams echoed throughout the night sky.

The silver haired swordsman chuckled. Ahhh, music to his ears.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

It was peaceful morning at Fairy Tail-

"HIYAH..!" Erza shouted as she launched a spinning kick.

Scratch that, it was never a peaceful ANYTHING at Fairy Tail.

Expertly ducking the redhead's foot, Naruto spins with a reverse heel to knock his sparring partner to the ground. The blond sage was wearing a shirt and athletic sweats and Erza a gi, they traded blow after blow in quick succession, Naruto's greater expertise in hand to hand combat allowed him to have a greater edge in the spar.

Lucy noted this as she and the others watched. "Woah, he's really giving Erza a hard time"

Gray nods absently. "Yeah, Naruto is pretty good in hand to hand. Plus, Erza always trains with those weight seals she makes him do"

Under a tree close by to Fairy Hills; Lucy, Gray, and Levy watched on. "Weight seals?" the buxom blond lifts a brow.

"Think of them like the normal training gear all wrapped into a seal. Naruto uses them all the time," Levy mentions while reading.

The ice mage sweatdrops. "Ever since Erza found out about those she's been making him place those seals on her too, only five times the weight of his"

The Celestial Mage lets her jaw drop. "F-F-Five times?!"

Levy laughs sheepishly. "Erza's a glutton for punishment..."

Dodging a straight right from Erza, the air leaves her lungs as the blond Uzumaki's hard fist slams into her stomach. The trio cringes while Naruto's face remains blank. "Forgot to mention." Gray says quietly. "Naruto can be downright brutal when it comes to sparring and training."

The Scarlet coughs, holding her abdomen. She heaves as she rests her hands on her knees.

"Wanna call it a day?" Naruto asks.

The Titania only sends him a piercing gaze. She stands straight once more and adjusts the belt of her sleeveless red gi. "More weight"

The blonde sage blinks at her. "Uh, Erza are you sure about-?"

"More. Weight"

"Alright, alright. Jeez..." He sighs before raising two fingers in a handsign.

Lucy lightly gasped while Erza gnashes her teeth; now slouching slightly forward, sweat dripping heavily from her body. The sage only whistles; "You're adjusting at a very good rate. Ero-Sennin always kept me at an even pace with these." His cerulean absently watching a bead of sweat go down Erza's neck down the between her ample breasts.

The blond shakes his head, damn that old pervert's corruption!

"HEY!" A living fireball blazed at the distance as Natsu quickly run towards them, shrouded in flames. "Why are two fighting when you told me you didn't want to fight with me?! Let's fight right-!" He was silenced by a pair of fists which extinguished his flames and sent him flying towards the tree where the others were sitting. His head buried inside the bark.

Happy lazily floated near. "Told him this was gonna happen, but he didn't listen..."

XxX ~ xx ~XxX

Sitting at a table in the guild, Naruto and Erza back in their normal wear, Lucy looks both dryly and concern seeing a slightly bandaged face Natsu eating like nothing happened. 'My life is going to be a series of crazy events like those isn't it?' She thought before letting out a sigh. 'Oh well, I knew what I was getting into... well ok, I didn't. But I still need the money...'

Lucy yawned, suddenly finding herself feeling very sleepy. 'Huh, thought I rested well lately...' Her vision going blurry, she still noticed everyone in the guild was suddenly growing more tired. Slowly, each them began falling asleep. 'What is...?' She couldn't even finish the thought as sleep claimed her.

Naruto slumped on the bar, forcing himself to remain awake but found he couldn't. 'Oi kid. What are you doing?' The fox asked him.

'So tired...' He mumbled before his eyes closed.

Mira's eyes become droopy before falling forward, her head resting Naruto's shoulder. One by one, everyone falls to the ground asleep. Sitting at the bar, Makarov looks dryly at the figure walking into the guild. "Mystogan..." His voice dry as is his gaze.

A mysterious figure enters the Guild; a cloak hid most of his figure, while a face-mask with a bandanna with a metal plate hid all features of his face. On his back were five magic staves, six in total counting the one on his hand.

He steps lightly, carefully avoiding the sleeping figures of his guild mates, and approaches the jobs' board. Picking a request from the board, he turns and takes his leave without a word.

Makarov grunted. "Don't forget to wake them up"

The hooded figure gives a slight nod; "5." Mystogan steps over each guild mates. "4, 3, 2... 1..." Mystogan vanishes at the doorway.

Slowly, everyone starts shifting, groaning as they stand up. "What the hell happened..?" Naruto wondered as he rubbed his head. Mira makes a cute yawn also shaking her head while blinking.

"Mystogan passed by" Makarov explained as cleared the blockage on his pipe.

The blonde looks at him confused. "Mystogan?"

"Get this harlot off of me!"

They turned to see Erza trying to pry Claire away from her. The raven haired elf had somehow taken off the redhead's armor and was currently burying her face in her ample bosom while holding her tightly.

"Can't. Sleep" Came Claire's muffled reply.

A disgruntled groan comes from the ice mage; "Swear that guy does it on purpose."

The two blonds of the guild only look to each other; "I've heard of Mystogan, but not much," the celestial wizard speaks up.

"Just heard of his name, not much else."

"He's one of the S class mages of the Guild" Mirajane says, making both blondes look at her. "He comes in and leaves when he feels like it" She taps her chin. "I don't think anyone but the master has ever had as much as a conversation with him..."

"Gramps isn't the only one," Heads quickly turn to the second floor to the smug looking Laxus staring down at them. "Mystogan is kinda shy. Not surprised you never heard of him Naruto. Hell you never seen Gildarts yet."

The sage struggled to remain civil with the taller blonde, if only out of respect for the master. So he crossed his arms and replied. "It's strange S ranks would be away from the Guild for so long. Plus Mystogan putting us to sleep just so we wouldn't see him..."

Makarov takes a drag from his pipe. "Gildarts is our best mage, so he's always busy making money for the guild"

"Weird that we never see any of that money" Naruto points out.

The old master sweatdrops. "Yeah well... he uses most of it to pay for the damages he causes"

Lucy, by this point, is no longer surprised that a Fairy Tail mage has to do that. "Of course he does..."

"And Mystogan" The master shrugs. "Well, he'll have his reasons I imagine"

That was an excuse if Naruto ever heard on, but chose not to press. Lucy squeaks nearly jumping from the table as a fully awake Natsu stands on top of it with flames on his fists.

"LAXUS! FIGHT ME!"

Lifting a brow, the mage lightning mage looks to the rosette haired teen; "Oh Natsu, Huh wonder how I didn't notice you."

"What's with that of all sudden?!" The celestial mage question.

No one bats an eye as the dragon mage jumps towards the second floor, only to be swatted away like an annoying fly by the blonde. He crushes against a table and Laxus rolls his eyes. "Tch. Only S rank mages are allowed up here. You just stay right where you are you dumbass"

Happy looks to his semi-unconscious friend dryly; "Knew that was coming."

Shaking of the mental cobwebs, Natsu snarls up at the smug S mage who speaks up; "Erza is about the only one I'd acknowledge as strong to the rest of you weaklings." Laxus eyes Naruto; "You to Uzumaki, even if you're not a mage."

"Oh~" the blond sage showing false cheer; "How glorious the mighty Laxus holding me in such high regards," Naruto not holding his tongue or caring to now.

A savage predatory smile was Laxus response which did not sit well with either Makarov or Mirajane. "Enough! I won't have you two tearing Magnolia apart with a pissing contest," the old master orders loudly.

Both sage and mage stare at each other intensely. One could almost see the sparks forming between them. They turn their heads to the side and snort at the same time. "Tch"

Claire rests a shoulder over the bar while taking a swing of the bottle. "So what's up with those two?"

"They really~ don't get along" Cana replies.

"Could have fooled me" She finishes the bottle and starts another.

Lucy looks to Mirajane in confusion. "What's that about 'S ranks'?"

"After a mage performs enough job requests, and shows the skill and experience can get to be named an S rank. A guild has annual rank promotions where selected mages can earn it so you can go to the second request board where more dangerous but higher paying jobs are listed," Mira speaks casually while cleaning a glass and keeping an eye on Naruto and Laxus.

"How much 'higher paying' exactly?" Claire asked interestedly.

Mira smiles cheerfully; "Well I used to be 'S' rank so I can say it can be quite a lot."

"You were 'S' rank?" Lucy jaw nearly drops.

"A long time ago." She says, not paying attention to Naruto muttering 'two years' to the buxom blond. "The current 'S' rank members we have are Erza, Laxus, and Gildarts... Master has been trying to get Foxy into the promotions, but he always 'conveniently' vanishes." the white haired beauty dryly glares to her roommate.

"And I will keep saying why the hell does a non-mage want to be a 'S' class?" The blond sage's eye twitches. "I'm a sage and Chunin, that be enough for me dattebayo."

"No idea what those are" Lucy mutters.

"The latter's a ninja rank, the other is a... title/role thing I guess"

"Hey if you think about it Erza's not really a mage either" Mirajane points out. "All she does is pull out armor and weapons from her storage and fight with them"

The blond Uzumaki groans, slumping putting his head on bar; "Don't you start please. Jiji is bad enough riding my backside."

Mira pouts while Makarov glares with one open eye; "And I will keep riding your backside till I physically have to drag your sorry ass to the promotions brat!"

Naruto was soon right in Makarov's face, both snarling; "Try it old man, will gladly kick your ass!"

"Bring it brat!"

Mirajane puffs her cheek and places her fists on her hips, presenting an image more adorable than frightening. "No fighting on my bar!"

"Well I myself will fight alright," Natsu giving a feral grin. "Right up there to 'S' class and kick your ass Laxus."

The lightning mage snorts; "You're not even ready to face me Natsu, let alone take an 'S' class job. But if you want to get killed by all means."

The master scoffs. "You wanna be an 'S' class, than wait your damn time for the next trials"

Laxus snorts before walking back to his table, which only makes Natsu angrier, forcing Lucy to hold him back. Erza only watched with disapproval at Laxus while Naruto rubs his temples.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

Lucy walked home, pondering on the new information about how Guilds managed themselves. Being an S rank mage seemed to come with a lot of responsibilities but also with plenty of rewards from taking one of those harder jobs. So she determined herself to start working even harder.

She opened the door to her apartment... and saw Natsu doing sit ups inside.

"Hey Lucy!" He greeted her while continuing his exercise.

Happy lifted an iron dumbbell, strain written all over his furry face. "Welcoooome!"

She forced herself to ignore that Natsu was shirtless and how sweat was running all over his muscular frame. The strong odor coming from him helped with that.

She stomped on his stomach, making his eyes bulge out. "You stink!"

"Damn girl" She heard another voice speak. Her jaw dropped when she saw Claire looking through her drawer. "You got some kinky underwear here" She grinned perversely.

"What are you two doing here?!"

The buxom blond blushes as the elven woman hugs her from behind; "Aw sweetie what's wrong with a little sleep over?"

"You're groping me for one," Claire's idle hands room to places where they shouldn't, making Lucy blush all the more.

"Hmm, very soft" The elf notes with interest. "I've gotta tell Cana"

"Okay!" Lucy swats her hand away. "Will you tell me what are you doing here?" She asks with irritation.

Natsu grins with that wild smirk of his once he stands up. "We made a choice"

"They really shouldn't have told us we can't do something" Claire quips. "That just makes doing it all the more fun" She high fives the dragon slayer.

The Celestial mage gives them a look. "You're not making sense"

"Here!" Happy exclaims cheerfully. And from his green backpack he pulls out a job request... a job request with a large seal that said 'S Class' on it.

"DO YOU WANT MASTER TO YELL AT US! 'S' class missions are prohibited for us normal mages," Lucy shakes Natsu by the shoulders. "I just got into Fairy Tail, I don't want to be kicked out!"

At the young lady's word Claire only snorts; "Honey I have been more dangerous situations than you can shake a stick at. Putting a letter 'S' on a paper does not mean anything to me."

"It will now because they can excommunicate us for it! Actually, what am I saying? You did this, I had nothing to do with it. I know nothing, I have no idea what's going on. Have fun" She tried to ignore the issue as she headed for bed.

"Come on Lucy!" Natsu insisted. "It'll be fun, just look at the reward!"

A long tired irritated sigh comes from the blond as she snatches the paper from Natsu. He, Happy, and Claire soon smirk seeing their friend's eyes widen.

"SEVEN MILLION JEWELS! Plus a golden celestial key! We're going to Garuda Island!"

"That's the spirit!" Claire enveloped them all with her arms. "Let's go on an adventure!"

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

Back in their place, Naruto shivered as a creeping cold ran down his spine. He looked up from his meal to Mirajane. "You got the feeling one of our friends, or a number of them, is about to do something stupid?"

"I stopped feeling it a long time ago. Now it's just sort of expected with this guild"

The blond Uzumaki grunts; "Yeah that's true. Still, I have this urge to head slap somebody." He starts eating again; "This casserole is awesome!"

The Strauss smiles sweetly. "I'm glad you like it. You have to eat something other than ramen"

XxX ~ next morning ~ XxX

At the bar, the odd feeling was still there while Naruto sat beside Makarov. 'You ever have those days you just know it will be going straight to hell furball?'

'A certain wretch of an Uchiha comes to mind,' the old fox grumbles.

"Oh no!" Came Mirajane's voice from the second floor. Everyone looked up to see what the commotion was, and saw Mirajane running down the stairs, looking distressed. "Master! One of the jobs from the second floor is gone!"

Everyone gasped in shock at the news. Makarov spit his drink all over Naruto's face, the blonde glowered as he cleaned himself.

Coughing the last drip of alcohol from his throat, the tiny mage looks to the former 'S' Mage; "Which one?!"

"It was Garuda Island gramps," Everyone looks to Laxus while he smokes a cigar. "Strange, saw this blue feline snatch the paper before running off." By his tone everyone could tell he could care less about the situation.

Storming down the steps, Mira glares at the tall blond; "You knew full well that was Happy. Why didn't you stop him?!"

Laxus lifts a brow before smirking; "Haven't seen that look in a long time" He noted, referring to Mirajane's dark glare, a reminder of why she used to be called 'The Demon' "How was I supposed to know it was that furball. Could have been some alley cat just walked in and grabbed it."

"Hey!" Everyone looks to Macao. "Claire and Lucy aren't here either!"

"Oh for the love of-" The master was close to tearing what remained of his hair. "Naruto!" He snapped at the sage. "You bring them back right here, right now!" He saw how uncaring Laxus was about the whole situation, he wouldn't lift a finger to bring them back. "You're currently the only one here who can force them to return!"

"Gramps..." The master turned to see Gray, the Ice-mage got up from his chair and frowned. "Now that's insulting" Without another word, he went for the door, his trench trailing behind him with every subtle movement. "Come on Naruto, let's go grab those morons"

The sage sighed as he followed him. 'Miss the days where I was the irresponsible knucklehead, at least I didn't have to deal with this crap...'

He hears the fox laugh at him.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

The train ride was quiet mostly while Gray looks out the window and Naruto flips one of his Tri-pronged kunai. "Where is Garuda anyway?" the sage mutters dryly.

"Not far from Port Hargeon. Simple boat ride and you're there" He shakes his head. "Natsu and Happy I get it, those two are always getting into trouble. But Lucy and Claire? His stupid is rubbing off on them."

"I think we should have realized Claire is just as much of a bad influence the moment we brought her into the guild" The blonde says dryly.

Gray sweatdrops. "Yeah... it was pretty obvious in hindsight. Hell Laki told me she woke up with Claire somehow in her room snuggled up with her and no clothes," ice mage blushed at the mental image.

Naruto buries his head on his hands and groans. "Oh what did we bring to the guild?"

"What I heard about the elves seems to be a great misconception..." The ice-mage mumbles. Pausing, Gray looks to his friend;" So~... How are things with you and Mira?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about" He replied neutrally. Of course he knew what Gray was talking about, he and everyone in the guild knew it. It really wasn't any of their business but he couldn't blame them. He and Mira tried to pretend there was nothing there, that they were just friend but...

A mere friend didn't make him feel so happy whenever she smiled. That she made him feel hope with just a few words of encouragement, that he loved every little thing she did, from the cute pouts and puffs of her cheeks when she got angry, to the smile and kindness she gave everyone in the Guild.

He had felt so alone when he first arrived on this crazy world, so lost... but Mirajane had been there to make him feel at home.

That's what killed him, he had another home to go back to, a place where they needed him. To people he had made promises to... a home he had to return to eventually once he found the means to do so.

Gray rolls his eyes in exasperation. "Come on man, everyone can see it"

"Look Gray it... it's complicated. It just can't happen"

Gray only shakes his head before looking back out the window. However another voice speaks his opinion. 'It's only complicated because you feel so sure you have to return to that wretched place. Admit the truth Naruto... You hate our old world as much I do.'

'Shut. Up' He growled in thought. 'I don't hate our world. If I hated our world I wouldn't be worried for all of my friends there!' He had to control himself as not to leak out killing intent.

A condescending chuckle comes from the ancient fox; 'Oh yes... The ones who thought you as a burden till you proved useful for their own ends. Your childish promises to that female of returning that fool Uchiha who already is lost in the darkness... And let's not forget your promise to that old pervert.'

Clinching his fist so tightly, Naruto tries not to growl out loud. 'You fail everyone who puts their trust on you. Why, you yourself are planning on leaving this guild eventually, it is only a matter of time before you disappoint them as well'

A hand touching his shoulder makes Naruto's instincts kick in, making Gray duck from getting stabbing between the eyes by Naruto's kunai; "HEY MAN WATCH THAT THING!"

"Oh damn. I'm so sorry Gray!" He apologizes, helping the ice mage sit straight. "I uh... was lost in my thoughts."

Grey grumbles as he yanks the kunai from the seat. "You do that a lot you know that right?"

The blond rubs the back of his head; "Just old memories." He mentally growls hearing the fox laughing at him once.

XxX ~ Port town: Hargeon ~ XxX

The elf looks around the port. "So this is where you guys met?"

"Yeap" Lucy smiles fondly. "Haven't been here in a while"

"Hasn't been that long..." Natsu mumbles.

Happy covers his mouth with his paws to stifle a giggle. "Lucy is old so to her everything happened long ago"

Claire snorts seeing Happy embedded in the ground by Lucy's fist; "Oh shut up furball!"

"All we need to do now is find a boat to take us to Garuda. Should be easy" The elven woman grins.

"We could swim there," Natsu offers his opinion.

"We are not swimming," Lucy glares over to the dragon slayer; "I am not getting this new outfit ruined."

"Awe..." Claire pouts. "And I wanted to see you all wet."

"...Gonna ignore that" The Celestial mage said before heading out to find transport.

Turns out, it was harder than they thought. No one wanted to go to Garuda, the 'Curse Island' as they called it. Lucy herself was starting to feel hesitant about the whole thing if everyone was so afraid of that place.

"Some things never change" The elf muses.

"What do you mean by that?" Lucy asks.

"Garuda was always called a cursed place, but those who say such things don't know what they're talking about. Garuda is a nice place and its people are kind"

A cloaked man sitting on his boat turns his head hearing the conversation; "You seek passage to Garuda?"

"Aye sir," Happy says while in Lucy's arms.

"Actually..." The group freezes hearing a familiar gravelly voice behind them. "They need to come back home dattebayo..."

A pair of hands settles on Natsu's and Lucy's shoulders. "Found ya" Came Gray's teasing voice.

Both Dragon Slayer and Celestial Mage jump back while the elven woman looks back sharply, the four of them look in shock to see Naruto and the Ice mage standing there, giving them a dry look.

"Going somewhere?" Naruto asked with a raised brow.

"N... Na... Naru!" The buxom blond stammer under her fellow blond's gaze. "We... We... We were just."

"Getting ass deep in trouble," Gray finishes. "Seriously guys, even I'm not THIS crazy."

"Master wants you back" Naruto said, crossing his arms. "If you say you're sorry, he won't expel you"

"E-E-EXPEL!" Lucy exclaimed in shock, sweating nervously.

Claire seemed to be taking it all in stride. "Not even a week here and already they'd expel me... meh, they've kicked me out of other places WAY faster than this" She giggled as she remembered that 'incident' with Mermaid Heel.

Claire claps her hands, giving Naruto a wink; "How about we all share the jewel together? And I could show you a good time Naruto. You're cute enough for me to play with."

Naruto remained silent for a long while, until Gray slapped him in the back of the head. "Remember why we're here!"

The blonde shook his head. "Right, right!" He tries to push the pervy thoughts away, a task made for difficult by Claire's suggestive expressions, and tries to put on a stern look. "Guys this is a serious deal. You're still not ready for an S rank. Besides..." He shivers at the thought. "I don't want to think about what Erza will do to you when she finds out..."

The fact Naruto was actually afraid of what might Erza would do was shaking Lucy's resolve till Claire sighs; "Okay... The hard way."

A flash of azure light manifests on her hands, the elf was now holding a bow of light. "We're gonna go to Garuda one way or another and help them out"

Naruto runs a hand over his face. "Look, if they're having problems I want to help as well, but you should leave this to other people and stop causing troubles for the master"

'The sheer irony that you're being the voice of reason here' the fox mutters.

Promptly ignoring the fox, Naruto does not flinch as an azure arrow was pointed at him. "Naruto, I will not stop being who I am because some paper has an 'S' on it. I haven't in five hundred years, and damn sure won't in the next five hundred. So either help us or get out of my way."

The cloaked man with the headband and the thick mustache looks at them in surprise. "W-Wait, you're mages!" He looks at them with both relief and desperation. "Please, you've got to save our island!"

Looking to the man, Naruto and Claire look back at each other. "Well Naruto... Balls in your court. Are you going to ignore a cry for help?"

The rest just observe as the two stare off in silence, the elf had a cheeky smile on her face while the sage tries to keep his gaze stern. Finally, Naruto sighs, his expression shifting to resignation. "You play dirty you know..." The blonde grumbles.

The bow sizzles out of existence and Claire smiles even more widely. "I know right? Some say I've got some dark elf in me"

"Naruto, Erza will kill us," Gray reasons with the tall blond. "Mira will be actually pissed!"

"I know," the sage whines like a child in trouble with a teacher. "But how can I say no to someone asking for our help."

The ice mage was about to say something till a chop to the neck by Natsu knocks him to the ground unconscious. "NATSU!" Lucy waves her arms wildly.

"Hehehe" He laughs evilly as he shoves the knocked out mage to the boat with the cloaked man. "What are you guys waiting for? Let's go!"

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

"S-Someone kill me..." The rosette moaned, nauseated as the rocking motions of the boat made his state even worse. "N-Naruto" He pleaded to the blonde. "The seal please..."

"Nah" Naruto replies. "You gotta us into this, you pay the consequences"

Now it was Gray's, who had awoken a few minutes ago, to laugh evilly. "Hehehe serves you right"

Claire looked on to the horizon towards where she knew their destination was. "I wonder what's going on in Garuda"

"You said you've been there before" Lucy speaks up. "Right?"

The boatman's eyes widen as she looks to the elf. "You've been to Garuda?" He asks in shock.

There was look in her eyes that the others couldn't quite describe. "Yes, many years ago"

"Then you know..."

"They're good people"

The others couldn't help but notice something was off with how the man and Claire were looking at each other. The man sighs in relief and mutters a soft; "Thank you..."

Naruto raises a brown. "What are you talking about?"

Claire waves him off. "Nothing important. Don't worry about it" Naruto wasn't convinced.

Gray looked at the man. "Hey old man, why are you taking us to Garuda. Most people, even pirates, avoid that place. Say that it's cursed"

A shadow is cast over the boatman's eyes. "It is indeed cursed" He replies. "My name is Bobo by the way. I used to live in the island. It was around a few years ago I fled, it is my hope you can lift this... Curse," Bobo removes the left side of his cloak.

Lucy and Gray gasp in shock, while Naruto's eyes widen. "Holy crap..." The blonde mutters. Claire only narrows her eyes.

Bobo's left arm was dark gray, but that wasn't the most disturbing thing. The muscles twisted in a way no human limb would, forming a form of carapace in some places, instead of fingers in his hand there were long sharp claws.

It looked more like a demon's arm.

Bobo points ahead of them; "There... Garuda Island."

In the horizon they saw a large landmass that seemed to peak out from the ocean with a mountain being its most distinguished feature. On the sky the sun was settling down, hiding behind the mountain's peak.

"Did anyone else just got an ominous feeling right now?" Naruto asked to no one in particular

"Um..." Lucy said. "Where is the old man?"

The others look around frantically as they noticed that, indeed, the boatman had disappeared. Claire's eyes go wide looking behind them; "We've got bigger issues!" Everyone looks back, save a motion sick Natsu, as they gaze in shock to a massive tidal wave coming their way.

"...Oh shit," Naruto mutters quietly.

The boat rocked violently as it was getting drafted into the giant wave. "Happy, lift the boat and fly!" Lucy shouted.

"Are you crazy?!" The cat shouted back.

"I can't believe I'm gonna die because of you!" Gray cursed as they were dragged more and more into the wave.

"Status report captain!" Claire called, somehow both finding it in herself to joke and be terrified at the same time. "We're royally fucked!"

They all scream as the wave hits hard.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

A soft groan comes from the buxom blond; "I'm not dead," she mutters quietly opening her eyes. Her gaze focused and sees the sky, she finds herself lying on her back. Lucy groans while sitting up to look around. "Natsu... Naru..."

The celestial mage realized she was on a beach at the borders of a tropical jungle. She looked at the wreckage of their boat and saw her friends stranded in the sand. "Is everyone okay?!" She asked in worry.

Natsu immediately rose, looking far too excited for someone who just survived crashing from a tidal wave. "Wow! Are we on Garuda?!"

Naruto groaned as he cracked his neck, he noticed the sun's position was higher than when they first saw it. "Guess we were unconscious for a while..."

The sage kneels to a just stirring Claire; "Well, the few men I've slept with slammed me harder than that." The elf laughs, finding it in her to joke.

"Oh must you?" Lucy exclaimed with a blush.

"If it's all civilized you're doing it wrong" The elf said sagely.

The Celestial mage grumbles. "Anyway" She tried to get things back on track. "The leader of a village around here is supposed to be our client. We better go find him"

Upon popping his joints as he stands, Gray looks dryly to everyone; "Well no use standing around here. We're stuck here might as well seeing what's going on." The ice mage glares to Naruto as they start walking; "You and your hero complex."

'I'd call it suicidal tendencies'

'Oh shut it furball'

The group trekked through the jungle, seeking for any sign of civilization. They eventually came about a clear path without trees, obviously a man-made road. Following it, they soon came across a large wooden gate in between tall walls made from wood.

"Is this it?" Lucy wondered.

"This is it" Claire replied, sounding very sure. "Is anyone here?!" She shouted with her hands around her mouth.

"Who goes there!" a man's voice yells behind the gate, they see two cloaked men peering from atop the wall. "Identify yourselves!"

Lucy puts her hands to her mouth; "We came from Fairy Tail. We're here to help!"

"You're from a guild! Show your insignia's!"

Each one shows their Fairy Tail symbols. "Strip the blonde girl" One of the men calls, making the other deadpan at him.

Natsu and Gray were already taking off her clothes, with a very excited Claire trying to undo her bra. "STOP THAT!" She shrieked.

Naruto gives the man a look. "S-Sorry, I got carried away. You can come inside!" The doors slowly open.

Lucy angrily puts her clothes back on. Grumbling, "You disgusting perverts… Claire stop that!" The elf whines in disappointment, letting go of the blonde's skirt.

The group enters, and they are received by the villagers, all covered from head to toe in heavy cloaks, hiding all their features. A hunchback man carrying a staff approaches them.

"We thank you for coming here, mages" He sounded old; his voice carried a small raspy tone. "I am the leader of this village, Mocha"

"We are from Fairy Tail" Naruto said, introducing them. "You posted a request saying your island needed help?"

"Indeed" Mocha replies with a nod. "Please, do not be afraid, for you need to take a look at what's happening to us. Everyone" He addressed the villagers. "Take off your robes"

Lucy gasps, while the others show their respected shock seeing each and every villager with an appendage looking demonic in nature. Mocha nods, "And this is not the worst of it. When the purple moon shines, I am afraid are appearances will not be so pleasant."

Claire only keeps her green eyes narrow while Gray lifts a brow; "A purple moon?"

"Yes" Mocha nods grimly. "It has to do with how we look; the moon emits some strange magic. We do not know why or how, but a few years ago the moon started shining purple on our island. Animals, birds, and we of course, are somehow... changed by it. This limbs you see here are the result"

Lucy looks at them in confusion. "The moon shining purple? We haven't seen anything like that back home"

"People from the mainland always said that" The elder said dejectedly. "But no, this phenomenon has only been occurring our island. I've consulted with doctors and anyone with even the smallest knowledge of magic, it is no disease, and they don't know what could be causing it"

"Look!" Happy suddenly shouted, pointing to the sky with one paw. "The moon is up!"

They looked up to see that his words were true, and that the moon, indeed, was shining purple. Screaming gain the group's attention as the villagers. Some hold their head while others fall to the ground, soon their bodies begin to shift.

Lucy covers her mouth and stares in horror along with the others. The only one remained calm was Claire, who was uncharacteristically quiet, only starting at the shifting villagers with an unreadable gaze.

The bodies of the villagers began taking many different forms; most of them looked very reptilian in appearance, developing deformed protuberances along with twisting of their limbs. Horns growing out of their skulls and bones piercing through the skin. Finally, it stopped, the villagers ceased their shouts, but they all wore weary and mournful expressions on their faces.

"Sorry if we scared you..." The elder, now looking completely like a demon, along with the rest of the village, apologized. "This is what the purple moon does to us; it turns our bodies into grotesque demons..." His gaze falls to the ground, the villagers cried openly at their misfortune, making the Fairies' heart go out for them. "Eventually, it changes more than just our looks, it twists our very souls…" Tears fell from his eyes. "I even-" He chokes on a sob, the sheer pain and heartbreak in his voice could be felt by all. "I even had to kill my son" He takes out a picture. "My son, whose soul became evil"

The Fairies stared with shock at the picture… it was the boatman who had taken them here, the same boatman who disappeared before they arrived.

While Lucy softly voiced her concerns, with Gray telling her to keep quiet, the elf remains quiet and Naruto lets out a long breathe; "What do you need?"

Mocha points upwards with his staff; "Please destroy the moon."

The team, understandably, falls silent at the request.

'You're gonna need a lot of chakra' the fox rumbles. 'Like waaaaaay more than I have'

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

The villagers were kind enough to grant them a house for them to sleep in. The group discussed what their options to solve the villagers' plight were.

"It's not like we can destroy a moon" Lucy mumbles while closing the curtains. She didn't want that baleful purple glare shining on them, turning them into demons as well.

The flame Dragon Slayer pondered. "Wonder how many punches it'd take?"

"You're actually considering it?!" Gray shouted incredulously.

"I think that's impossible Natsu" Naruto drawled, before turning his head to the elf that was standing by the other window. "You've been pretty quiet Claire, everything okay?"

The elf sighed and walked over them. "I didn't want to say anything in front of the villagers, they were acting very strange and I didn't know how they'd react. I didn't tell you this before because I didn't know how you'd react either, for all I knew, you would have dropped the job altogether. Their kind is not really cared for by other races"

Lucy looks at her in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"You know what's wrong with these people?" The jinchuuriki asks.

Claire shakes her head. "There is nothing wrong them, aside from their mental state apparently" Her green eyes look at them all intently. "These people aren't human... they're demons"

"Their what," Both blonds almost yell out.

"Demons... But I have no idea why they have forgotten, any more than a purple moon in the sky."

"W-W-Wait, hold on a minute!" Gray waved his arms wildly. "You mean to tell us they normally look like THAT?!"

"Yeah" The elf said as she sat down. "This island, Garuda, is also known as 'Demon Island' for a reason. Most of the wildlife, and people as you have seen, are actually demons with shapeshifting abilities. But like I said, somehow they've forgotten about it. You saw how they were all acting" Claire rubs her chin in thought. "Something is causing some deep mental pollution on them..."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Natsu asked in confusion.

Claire lets out a humorless laugh. "I thought you'd turn back if you knew you were helping demons. Understandably, most people are wary of their kind. But they don't know these people, they are kind and they've never hurt anyone. I thought-"

"You thought we wouldn't accept them" Naruto finished for her, a look of understanding in his eyes.

The elf lowered her gaze. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have thought so little of you" She apologized with heartfelt sincerity.

He had been called a demon before, by people who didn't understand, and was shunned because of it. He had learnt not to judge on looks alone, or even the reputation someone had. These people may be demons, but the pain they felt, the love they showed, was all he needed to know they were people too.

As he was about to voice his opinion, Gray beat him to it. "I don't care what they are" He said, much to the blonde's surprise. "They are desperate and they are suffering, we ain't turning back now"

Lucy nodded with a smile. "We'll do anything we can to help them"

"Yeah!" Natsu banged his fists. "I'm gonna break that moon to pieces!"

"You still on that?!"

Claire gave them a sincere look of fondness and thankfulness, while Naruto's surprise was quickly replaced by heartfelt joy. At that moment, they couldn't feel any more proud of being called Fairy Tail.

The moment passed, Gray voiced another concern. "What about Bobo? What happened to him?"

"He most likely escaped the island while everyone began acting weird. And on the boat, well, he must have flown away the moment he saw the tidal wave"

"Flown?" They repeated with curious glances.

"Yeah, they have wings" After what they've seen and been told, they weren't really surprised anymore. "I don't know what's happening to them, it might be a spell that's being cast around the island" The elf's gaze shifted. "Or maybe... hmm, there is a place where perhaps we'll find our answers, a temple not far from here. But it's late now; we'll set out by morning"

"Sounds like plan" Gray nodded before lying down.

Natsu grumbled. "Still think we should blow up the moon..." He fell asleep quickly despite his mood.

Naruto shrugged and lay next to him. "The temple you mentioned might be our best bet" He stretched and closed his eyes, crossing his hands behind his heads. "Night guys"

"Night" Lucy said in return. She laid down for a much needed rest... and soon felt pair of hands sneaking around her waist.

Claire smiled widely as she nestled her head on the blonde's bosom. "Night~"

"...GET OFF ME!"

XxX ~ and then ~ XxX

As per Claire's request, none spoke of what they discussed last night before bed. It was better they first figured out why the villagers had forgotten what they truly are. After eating breakfast, the group follows the elven woman to the ancient temple.

"So what the hell could be affecting them?" Gray asks, eyes scanning through forest.

"I have a hunch" Claire simply said. "But I can't really confirm anything, it wouldn't make sense either. Because what I think might be affecting them hasn't done that before"

Natsu scratches his chin; "Can I ask why there is a village of demons right next to a holy temple as you called it this morning? I know I am not the smartest guy around but that sounds off." Getting an 'Aye' from Happy who is in Lucy's arms.

"Because that temple hasn't been emitting any kind of holy energy since the last... thousands of years" She replied with a certain edge of her voice, the confusion this whole situation brought didn't sit well with her at all. Something was happening, and she suspected the temple was the answer.

But if her suspicions were right... then what did they imply?

Sitting high in the trees, away from their sight, a white fox gives slowly lets out vulpine smirk.

His cerulean gazing around the forest Naruto lightly hums; "This place is peaceful all things considered. Meditating would be awesome here." He soon whistles along with Gray at the sight of the temple. "Damn that's big dattebayo."

It felt nostalgic seeing the temple after so long. Claire found her sight getting lost as she felt a... a power, an energy washing from it in soft waves. Calming, soothing... divine.

'How is it-?' Her thoughts were cut short as her ears picked something, a rumble in the earth.

Natsu's own enhanced hearing caught it too. "Did you guys hear that?"

The group stops, looking around. "What, you hear something?" The ice mage asks.

Claire nods, looking around for the source. "Something big is coming our way"

The ground soon shakes from loud rumbling steps as a massive shadow soon looms over as they all turn to look. "Holy... Shit," Naruto summing up everyone's thoughts.

It was a rat... a gigantic rat with turquoise fur, dressed in a black corset-style top with pink frilly edges, a white lace headband and a red ribbon tied across the chest. It approached them with the curiosity of its smaller kind, bringing its small (small compared to the rest of its body) paws before the torso and titling its head at them.

"Would really like to say a giant rat is a new one for me..." The elf drawled. "Sadly, it isn't"

'Hey furball, finally found you a date.'

'Ha, Ha.' The Kyuubi laughs dryly.

"Come on guys kick its but," Lucy says fearfully behind Natsu and Naruto. They see the gigantic rodent begin to take a deep breath.

Ice make: Shield!

A wall of ice courtesy of Gray rises in front of the group as the rat exhales.

However, it's not a solid matter that spew from its mouth, but a gas which carried a powerful stink to it. It clashed against the ice shield and went over the edges, reaching the group the moment it reached their noses the group fell to the ground in a coughing fit. Much to the rat's delight if its laughter was any indication.

"What kind of attack is this?!" Naruto gagged.

While it was distracted by its own laughter, the group managed to break into a run towards the temple. But the giant rat soon noticed it and gave them chase; it sprinted towards them on all fours, quickly closing the distance.

"Ice make" Gray chanted, gathering magic on his hand once again before slamming it on the ground. "Floor!"

The blond Uzumaki was not sure to either laugh or feel pity seeing the massive rodent's eyes go as wide dinner plates, it's legs finding zero traction with now ice covering it. Natsu however did not hold back as the rat fell on its back sliding hard into a large boulder, knocking it out.

"HAHAHA! Did you see that?" The dragon slayer holds his side while pointing.

"No time!" The elf grasps the back of his scarf and drags him. "To the temple!" The rest of the group didn't need to be told twice as the continued running towards the temple, leaving the rat behind.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

They ran up to the stone stairs and slowed their pace once they felt they were out of danger. Crossing a massive entrance, most of the Fairies could help but gawk at the size of the stone temple, marveling at the architecture that still stood.

"It's really big" Lucy commented.

"Look at that" Natsu pointed at one of the carved murals. "Those look like moon shaped marks"

"I heard this place used to be called Moon Island" Gray added.

"And you'd be right" Claire said, looking at carvings with reverence. The Fairies were surprised to see the free-spirited elf to speak with such respect and, dare they say it, worship. "This used to be a temple to the gods"

"Right" Naruto nodded. "You know this because you visited before no?"

"Rather because I was told by my father actually" She replied. "Once, in a time long lost, this temple was a place of worship, built to honor the gods" Her eyes held sadness in them. "But... those days are gone. Even the holy magics have faded" She softly runs a hand over a pillar. "Except... It actually feels like..."

"How old is this place for 'holy magic' to fade?" Natsu wondered, looking at the floor with a questioning look. "Even the floor looks bad" He began stomping his foot on the floor.

"Stop that!" Lucy shouted. "You just said the floor looks-!"

Suddenly, the stone beneath their feet gave up. Crumbling as the others feel through screaming.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

They all groan as they awake to find themselves down in some massive cavern. Natsu chuckles sheepishly at being glared by everyone before receiving a hard slap to the back of the head courtesy of an angry Naruto.

"Don't do that again," the young sage growls.

Dusting herself off Claire stands looking around. "I remember this too. It's one of the caves under the temple. A whole network actually" At the end of one of the tunnels, she notices an icy mist coming from it. "What is that..?" She wonders.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asks as he helps Lucy stand up.

"Something's there!" The elf points, before trotting towards the source of the mist.

"Hey wait up!" Natsu rushes in. "I wanna see too!" He said with childlike excitement.

Gray sighs as he shakes his head. "That moron never changes"

Whatever Naruto was about to say died in his mouth as they heard both Claire and Natsu gaps in shock. "T-That wasn't there before..." The elf says meekly.

The other four shared a confused look before breaking into a run to see what the deal was about... and stopped the moment they saw a giant monster incased in ice.

It was massive. It had a large torso and two large arms that ended in scaly hands. Around the left and right part of its body, along with around the neck and the back, it was covered with a series of spikes. It also had two large bird-like feet. Its hair was mane-like in shape and, flowing down to the nape of its neck. It had a pair of horns that pointed upwards, jutting from a plate on the forehead. Along with sharp teeth and hollowed eyes.

"It's a demon..." Naruto breathed in realization.

While the group stared at the frozen monster with shock and surprise, Gray could only stare in terror and hate. His hands tightened into fists, and his teeth clenched. His whole body shook with barely contained rage. Images, painful images flashed before his eyes.

Destruction. Death. Blood. A monster that loomed above everything else, crashing everything on its path as if they were mere ants before him. A roar whose strength sent shock waves and a sheer raw power with teared through the land with ease.

This was the monster that had haunted his nightmares...

"D-Deliora!"

"Impossible," Claire looks to the young mage. "I heard he was killed"

Gray shakes his head; "No, he was sealed away in this. But what the hell is he doing here!?"

He's breathing was becoming very erratic, they could practically feel the rage coming from him in waves. "How? How?!" He seethed.

Naruto approached him in concern. "Gray calm down" He said, placing a hand on his friend's trembling shoulder.

The elf of the group perked up and looked to one of the underground paths. "Someone's coming" She whispered loud enough for the others to hear.

The fairies hid behind a large boulder as the footsteps get louder; "I heard voices in here. It is better to double check." A male voice speaks up.

Another voice makes a dog-like groan. Both Naruto and Claire lift a brow at each other before peeking just enough to have a look. They see two men, one short with a green shirt with collar, blue uplifted hair. The other a tall shirtless man with shaggy brown hair, tattoos, and dog-like features on his face, down to even dog ears on his head.

"I want to take a nap," the dog man yawns.

The short blue haired man sighed; "Toby... You have been taking in too much Moon drip haven't you? I mean those ears..."

"I DIDN'T!" The doggish young man snaps. "YOU KNOW THESE ARE JUST FOR SHOW!"

"Jeez calm down" The blue haired young man sighs. "I was teasing you, you idiot"

The young man named Toby gives another dog-like groan.

"Moon Drip?" Lucy whispers. "What's that?"

"I don't know" The elf whispers back, scratching her head. "I... I think that must a sort of celestial magic"

A new voice suddenly made itself known. "Yuuka-san, Toby-san" It was a woman's. "I have sad news"

A beautiful pink haired girl tied in pigtails, a choker tied around her neck in a ribbon, with purple and pink short spaghetti dress with light pink trimmings, black leggings, with high-heeled sandals. Least around Lucy's age, and quite striking in Naruto's opinion.

Her sapphire eyes shine with sadness as Yuuka lifts a brow; "Something wrong Sherry?"

"Someone really beat up Angelica." Sherry cups her hands in between her ample chest.

"She's just a mouse!" Toby snaps once more, he was prone to pointless anger as the Fairies were beginning to notice.

Sherry narrows her eyes at him. "Angelica isn't just a mouse. She's a hunter who gallops through the darkness and love" She replied passionately.

"Well..." Claire whispers to Lucy who stares incredulously at the pink haired young woman. "Someone's feeling poetic"

Natsu sniffs to better feel their scent. "They smell different, they're not from here"

"So why are they here?" Happy whispers in between Natsu and Lucy.

Yuuka sighs; "Great... Intruders."

"Just when we are so close." Sherry says mournfully. "We must stop them now so the Reitei-sama is not bothered by this."

"...Cold Emperor?" Naruto whispers dryly. He even hears the fox scoff.

"Men and their ego," Was Claire's response. "Always needing a big title to compensate for other things"

Sherry looks up to a rupture in the roof. "The moonlight will gather soon" She turns to her companions once more. "Let's get rid of them before Reitei-sama finds about it"

"Yes" Yuuka nods in agreement. "They must have seen Deliora. We can't let them escape alive"

"We shall grant them eternal slumber" The pink haired girl said passionately. "In other words 'love'"

Claire and Lucy shared a look that clearly said 'what is wrong with her?'

The trio retreats to where they came. The Fairies waited they were far enough and then left their cover.

Naruto looks to the giant frozen demon; 'Can you feel anything pass that ice?'

'Nothing brat, that ice is far from ordinary. But appearance wise, I am hardly impressed.'

The blonde blinked before frowning. 'What do mean you feel nothing?'

'It's the ice, it must have been slowly draining it's lifeforce for years. That thing is practically dead' the old fox pauses; 'but doubt that brat who wields ice would believe that presently.'

'Is that actual concern?' Naruto mentally smirks only hearing a scoff before falling into silence.

Suddenly, he saw Gray punch Natsu across the face, driving him to the ground. He really should start paying more attention to his surroundings whenever he started talking to the fox.

"A fire mage can't go near it" Gray snarled, fear and anger mixed in his features. "If the ice melts then Deliora shall be free, and no one will stop him" His words proved the fox's' correct, Gray believed the demon to still be alive.

"So you're saying it can be melt easily?!" Natsu snapped.

The ice mage actually looked taken aback; he lowered his gaze in shame. "No..."

"That ceremony won't be till nightfall," Naruto spoke up. "What's your story with this demon?"

Gray only looks at the blond before slumping down to the ground. "...When I was a kid, my family and my entire town was slaughtered by Deliora during one of his rampages. To this day I still wonder how the hell I survived that."

His voice was laced with old pain. "It was my teacher, the ice mage Ur, who defeated Deliora. She used a spell called Iced Shell to entrap him... at the cost of her life"

"Gray..." Lucy whispered softly, the others couldn't help but look at him in sympathy.

He lifts his gaze, his eyes held a piercing glare to them. "These people want unleash Deliora, we can't let that happen. I won't let them make Ur's sacrifice be for nothing..." He seethed through clenched teeth.

The group falls into silence while Lucy places a hand on Gray's shoulders. Naruto stands by Natsu; "You knew any of that?"

"It wasn't my business. Always figured if someone wants to tell me something about them they just do," Count on the dragon slayer's blunt philosophy, also getting an 'Aye sir' from Happy on Naruto's shoulder.

Shaking his head the blond sage looks to the elf of the group; "You said this place was to worship the Gods?"

Claire blinked, suddenly remembering what she had been saying earlier. "Oh yes. This was a place to worship not just the moon and other celestial deities, but also the Loa"

Lucy tilts her head. "The Loa?"

"The Earthbound Gods or the Primal Gods as they were also called. The gods born of this world, given power and divinity by the spirit of the planet. Long ago they helped alongside mortals to keep the balance of Earthland... But it was said a dark curse sent them into slumber," Claire's voice gave a slight tremble.

The elf sits beside Gray. "It was long before I was born. Pretty much all races of Earthland fought against a great darkness, the pillars of the world, those which held the balance of nature, defiled and turned against the gods. Cursing them to a deep sleep from which they haven't woken yet"

'Huh' The fox muttered. 'Kaguya did something like that actually; she absorbed the Shinju in our world and used its ties with the planet to put the gods to sleep'

It took Naruto a few seconds for the full weight of the words to dawn on him. "Wait, WHAT?!"

Claire, misunderstanding what was the cause of his outburst, just nodded. "Yeah, that's usually the reaction most people have" And she could see he wasn't alone in that, the other Fairies were also looking at her in shock.

The sage inwardly cursed and made sure this time he didn't voice his thoughts. 'What are you talking about?! Who is Kaguya?!' Silence was all Naruto got; 'Damn it Kyuubi tell me!' Again nothing, the blond mentally growls.

"Wait... I read a lot of books on Earthland history," the buxom blond spoke up. "How is it I never heard once of the Loa?"

"Lucy this was nearly two thousand years ago. And thanks to the dragon wars four hundred years ago, much was lost," Claire reasons.

"Dragon War?!" Natsu exclaims, eyes bulging out of their sockets.

"Oh yeah, by the way, your dad's race waged a war because some wanted to eat people and others didn't" The Dragon Slayer could only sputter in shock. "I'll tell you about it later. Anyway, it wasn't only the Dragon War. There were other many conflicts before it, like the Caelum invasions"

"That I did hear about" Lucy comments. "The empire of Caelum had conquered a lot of Ishgar, the Kaesars' dynasty was one of the largest and most prosperous the continent had seen..." She winces. "Though the empire had its times of tyranny where slavery was legal"

"Still is actually" The elf says. "In western Caelum at least. Then you have the conflicts which came after empire's dwindling, including those that did not involve the human races. two thousand years is a long time, it's no surprise so much was forgotten. My people, the Eldrin were lucky enough to have a few books left of that time. Along with those who lived it. Our queen Keishara, my father, and few others were alive back then."

"Ever since the god went to sleep, their power on this world has greatly diminished..." Her eyes shift uneasily. "Yet somehow, the energies of the temple are strong enough to affect the demons that must have gotten close. This doesn't make any sense" She shakes her head. "Either someone among these people has been tampering with the temple's magic, or they've found something to bolster it. Maybe something they plan to use to unleash Deliora"

"... What if..." Lucy bits her inner lip. "What if the Loa have awakened?"

Claire blew a raspberry, along with a bit of her raven black hair from her face. "Please" Her green eyes twinkled with amusement. "The Loa haven't awakened in the last two thousand years, NOTHING that my people did could awake them, hell I think there are a few in the world that still try to do so. Why now of all times?" She crosses hear arms behind her back and leans back at the rocky wall of the cavern. "And more importantly, how?"

When no one spoke the elf shrugs; "Exactly. It would take something primordial that even I can't comprehend in order to bring them back. And that's just a guess. But we should focus on the now, we should wait and see what these people are doing so we can stop them"

As they waited for the moon's light to shine on the caverns, Lucy voiced her boredom and anxiety, so she summoned the Celestial Spirit Lyra to lighten the mood.

The notes and lyrics went nearly ignored by Gray, yet they stirred memories from within him. Memories which made him feel joy and sadness all the same. Of a woman with short black hair who looked smirked at him, a powerful and kind person, the type of mage he aspired to be.

'My training is harsh, you sure you're up for it Gray?'

'Heh, Yup! I can do anything!'

The smirk had turned into a proud smile. Whenever she smiled at him like that, Gray could remember what it felt to have a mother.

As Lyra's song continued, his hands which were joined trembled, a single tear fell from his eye. 'I'll end this nightmare before it starts' He swore. 'As your student, I swear this to you Ur'