Hello everyone welcome to the next chapter of A Dragon's Rose!

Authors notes will be at the bottom make sure you read it. Anyways enjoy!


He simply just stood there with the women of the rain, surrounded by nothing but broken wood, furniture, metal, and all sorts of random debris. The guild was in mere ruins. He felt no pity, no remorse, he would not allow himself to mourn over this event, after all it was his fate. This guild was not his home, his guild mates were not his friends, not even acquaintances, just strangers in this cold world he called reality. He knew the woman that stood beside him felt the same way, they did not share the same pasts, but they both indeed shared the same emotions, in which had brought the two together.

Juvia had taken care of his injuries after dragging him out of the collapsing building, not leaving the side of the Iron Dragon for even a moment. Gajeel noted the perseverance in her eyes the whole time she had tended to his wounds, he saw that the words she had spoken were true. Was this what it truly felt like to have a friend? After scavenging the wreckage around them for metals of all sorts, Gajeel's body was soon rejuvenating to its former state, the opposing Dragon had surely inflicted an unimaginable amount of damage to him, hell if it wasn't for the fact he was a Dragon Slayer himself, he would've been surely have been dead by now.

Honestly he did not know what he was going to do now, his blood screamed for revenge, yet his heart ached and his soul called out for something. The very feeling of yearning for something was strange to the Iron Dragon, he never wanted much in this world, the satisfaction of living and conquering others was enough to please him, but he desired more. With a frustrated sigh he turned to look at Juvia, who in returned casted him a glance as well, what had she been thinking the past few hours? Shrugging, the built man glanced upwards to the sky, eyeing as a single black raven flew overhead, how he would wish he could simply be like that magnificent bird in the sky. To be able to simply fly away from what life threw at you and not give a rat's ass about the world. But life would never be that simple, now could it?

"Taking pity on the past will not make life any easier on you two."

With widen eyes and teeth bared, Gajeel twirled around jumping in front of the now surprised Juvia protectively, focusing his attention on the short wizard saint that stood before them. What the hell was Fairy Tail's Guild Master doing out here? Whatever the hell the reason was, Gajeel would make sure he wouldn't go down without a fight.

"Here to finish what that bastard Dragon of yours failed to do?" Gajeel said tauntingly to the man whom did not look a little surprised from his outburst.

"Natsu could have simply ended your existence, the young boy may be an imbecile, but his intentions are good." Makarov stared into Gajeel's eyes hard, not a waiver of intimidation hinted in his pupils, but rather a pang of guilt embraced his features. Glancing at the girl behind him, she seemed to be sharing the mans emotions as well.

"It may be true that the two of you have drawn blood from my children and the anger still resides in my heart…." The man trailed off as he saw Gajeel's posture began to slacken and his arms slowly fell to his sides as he stared into the ground below.

"The two of you have never experienced what it is to truly to be accepted by others, a place to call home and friends that will do anything for their Nakama, now have you?" Fairy Tail's guild master questioned the two. The wise man already knew the answer, he had seen it in their eyes, it was an ability of his to be able to stare into the souls of others and make do with what he had seen. Maybe that's why his guild was at the very top, where everyone embraced one another, with different characteristics and abilities, this is what made the guild flawless, where everyone makes up for each other's weakness's.

Gajeel's fists clenched at the man's words, every single one were true. It was something that he had truly wished for at such a young age, surely Juvia wished the same. But what was Makarov truly getting at, what was his goal, had he truly not come here to end their lives? The next few moments stunned the two former S-Class mages as the old man held out his hands to the two.

"Take my hands, I shall lead my future children into redemption, you both shall walk down the path of light, forget the past and move onwards towards a new road, a bright future shall embrace you in the halls of Fairy Tail."

Gajeel and Juvia looked at each other, their hearts aching for what was promised to them from the Guild Master. The blue haired girl nodded to Gajeel in confirmation. Looking back towards the hand outreached to them, he slowly reached his hand out. Would the road to a new future be this easy? No. It wouldn't be, but fuck, they needed a new start, a new life, this is what they had needed since the beginning. Firmly grasping the man's hand he shook it, acknowledging every word that he had spoken before.

"The road to forgiveness shall not be easy."

"Heh, shit nothing's ever easy in life old man." Crimson eyes watched as the old man before him simply nodded and turned away, walking into the opposite direction, his hands signaling them to follow.

So they followed their new Guild Master into their new futures.


"What the fuck are the two of you doing here in Fairy Tail?" And the first to greet them of course had to be the damn flame head. He looked utterly pissed off to see them in his presence, hell everyone in the guild was either ticked off or surprised that they would actually be anywhere near the Fairy Tail vicinity. Whispers and gasps filled the guild, and of course the topic being centered on them. Damn he was getting annoyed rather quickly, but he would maintain his composure for the sake of his word with the wizard saint. Oh the road of redemption is going to suck ass.

"Gajeel are you and your little lady friend here back for revenge, because if that's the case, I would so kindly hand your asses to you fuckers."

Oh now the fucker had pissed him off, he would surely knock some sense into that bastards head, before he could raise his now shaking fists, he felt Juvia's hand gripping on his shoulder and he saw as she shook her head at him. With a small snarl he calmed himself down and simply stared ahead at the enraged Fire Dragon. Gajeel would get a second shot at the bastard, not now, but eventually they would exchange talons once again and the next time iron shall reign supreme. Suddenly a very familiar scent hit his nostrils, the powerful smell of lavenders.

Levy.

And surely enough the marine haired girl was standing alongside the celestial mage at the other end of the guild. Their eyes locked in an intense gaze, neither moving a muscle as they stared one another down, then emotions began to attack the girl at full force. First panic hit her facial features, then pain and finally terror. For some reason this had stung Gajeel, he was no idiot, he knew the girl had to be horrified of him, after all he wasn't the type to make good a first impression. Hell when has he ever made a impression? The dark haired man watched as Lucy began to whisper soothing words into the now shaking scholar's ear. Shit. That's how exactly he had felt at that very moment, more or less like a pile of shit.

"Shit I knew you weren't the brightest of all people in the guild, but to this extent Salamander?" Gajeel hissed at Natsu as he moved his left shoulder into his view.

"WHAT THE FUCK!?" Natsu screamed as he saw the once Shadow Lord's insignia replaced with a very familiar black emblem. Of course more whispers from before began to spread around the guild, earning another irritated look from Gajeel. Did these people ever shut the fuck up? "How the hell…why the fuck would Master let you two in…" Natsu was at a loss of words, he hardly could care who the old geezer accepted into the guild, but this…this just crossed the line. The bastard had hurt Levy and her friends, and his little friend there was probably the one who had kidnapped Lucy!

"Natsu please calm down…" The blonde haired girl reached out and grasped his hand, immediately Natsu's anger had vanished into thin air, and his attention redirected to the celestial mage. He could feel the warmth spreading throughout his body as she looked deep into his eyes, trying to calm him. "I don't forgive what they have done to us…but I know from the bottom of my heart Master Makarov intentions are good…believe in him Natsu.." Lucy's soft voiced pierced into his being, her angelic voice soothing his spirit, he felt much more relaxed and the adrenaline which pumped his heart slowed down to its normal pace. How the hell was she able to do that to him so easily? The Fire Dragon should have been on a fiery rampage right about now, but no, here he was standing rather relaxed and slowly forgetting the fact the "new" members had been the very ones who've damaged their now recuperating guild.

"What a nuisance." Gajeel simply stated rather annoyed at the pink haired teen, he began to make his way towards the end of the guild, his eyesight solely focused on one particular girl. Natsu gritted his teeth as he felt Gajeel's shoulder bump into his harshly, Lucy taking notice of the Natsu's frustration squeezed his hand harder, which seemed to calm him down. Sighing Natsu gave up in defeat as he let Gajeel pass by along with the blue haired girl. Juvia took a small glance at the celestial mage, who in returned looked with a questioningly look, it seemed Lucy was more surprised than afraid of the rain mage and was rather perplexed at Makarovs decision, after all, Gajeel and herself were rather surprised at his sudden offer.

"Levy!" The brunette card mage called out the rune scholar's name.

The outburst caused most members of the guild heads to turn, to see the sight of the Levy fleeing from the guild, tears streaming down her face. Lucy bit down on her bottom lip nervously at the sight of her panicking friend, of course she knew the cause of her sudden departure, after all, the source of her anxiety had suddenly waltzed into the guild bearing the mark of their guild. Heck, she wasn't the only one in shock, the entire guild had been at the sudden intrusion, nevertheless the commotion seemed to die down, the members of the guild returning to their original business, yet a certain scarlet haired women eyes never leaving the two mages.


His cerulean eyes followed a certain mage that had caught his interest. Of course the ice mage had been rather surprised to see mages they had recently just gone to war with, now trekking around in their homes as if they have lived there their whole lives. Hell, it felt as if they were vandalizing their guild with the simple steps that were taken within the Guild quarters. But that did not matter at the current moment, what truly mattered was the fact that the girl who was walking along side Gajeel, he had most definitely seen back at their former guild during the conflict a few days prior. Eyes widen in realization as the girl turned her head to the side and their blue eyes met for the second time.

Yes that was the very same girl Grey had seen standing above the staircases, he could remember those cold lost dark blue pupils staring back at him with hopelessness, it had been plastered all over her facial features. How could he not remember her? She held the same eyes in which he once bestowed upon his former childhood self. The ice mage had been simply wandering the lands of Fiore, Grey had felt like a puppet, devoid of all life and purpose, where was the man to go, he had in fact lost everything dear to him at such a young age, something in which he and a certain pink haired Dragon Slayer had shared in common. Maybe that was why they were so close, Grey had never been the type to become good friends with anyone, let alone acquaintances, yet he had easily accepted the loud flame headed idiot in a heartbeat.

Refocusing his attention on the girl, he realized she was now out of sight, allowing his eyes to wander about the guild, it stopped at the end of the guild, surely enough both former Phantom mage's were at the bar, a certain silver-haired barmaid currently pouring both of them drinks. Grey was not surprised at Mirajane's lack of shock of their appearances, after all she had most likely have been the one to stamp their insignia's on their respected places. Dark eyebrows furrowed, the Fairy Tail idol had always been the type to accept others rather quite easily, it sometimes had made him uncomfortable in the past, but eventually he got used to it, Grey had taken notice of master's and her abilities to read others emotions. So the two mages had to be good right? Shaking his head, he would not allow himself to simply embrace these two into his family that he had searched for, for many years. They had to truly prove themselves to not only him, but everyone in the guild as well.

What was that girl's name, shifting his thoughts around until he stumbled upon some recently heard gossip he had heard earlier. Sometimes it was beneficial to have such a rowdy, loud ass guild, even though most information heard from these lunatics was very biased. Apparently Lucy had been kidnapped by the legendary S-Class rain women from Phantom Lord's guild during the raid of their building early that morning. Of course Grey along with other members of the guild were dumbfounded to why they wanted the celestial mage, especially considering the fact she was recently just accepted into the guild and he had highly doubt she would know anything about the rival guild.

"Juvia…" The name rolled of his tongue with interest as he continued to eye the girl on the other side of the guild. Cold eyes met his once again, he noticed a flicker of pain flashed in her eyes before she turned her head away once again. Grey for some reason knew the pain she was feeling, what had she given up in her lifetime, or had life given up on her? Biting down on his lower lip, his mind began to recede back into the depths of darkness, only faint memories lingered in his conscious. Why must one sacrifice so much, to only feel pain, remorse and sorrow to only hopefully see the light of day present the next? It was a stupid question and he knew this, he's seen others sacrifice so much, just for him. Literally.

A loud slamming of the guild doors filled Gray's ears and right away he assumed a certain Dragon Slayer was the cause. Looking towards the front of the guild, he caught a glimpse of blonde making its way towards the exit, with a small smirk now on his face at the confirmation of his assumption, he simply shook his head. Those two made it so freaking obvious to the world around them, or at least the guild at most. Now he just needed someone for himse…Shit what was he saying?

Ultear. Lyon...I think…I think it's time for me to…


Yup. Once he had saw them getting all nice and comfy with Mirajane he had felt the burning rage resurface in the pits of his stomach. Not wanting to cause a scene, well scratch that he wanted to cause the biggest fucking scene in all of Fairy Tail, but if he did that, he would surely regret it. And why do you ask? Oh well let's see…Natsu knew for a fact that a certain blonde haired celestial mage would have been upset with him, then a lingering guilt would replace his anger. Shit, if it came down to it, he would rather be pissed off then dealing with anything else close to depressed like emotions. The pink haired man did not really cope well with guilt, it was hard for his mind to register on what the man was supposed to do to fix the dilemma at hand. So now here he was looking like a mad man stumbling around in fumes around the streets of Magnolia. Did he know where he was going? No, not really, but he had an idea where he would end up.

Immediately after the large doors of the guild had closed, the scent of distress and honey had shortly began to follow after his trail. Well he was somewhat surprised, usually no one has ever made attempt to chase him down, especially when he wasn't exactly in the best of all moods. Yet here was this girl he had only met not too long ago, concern and worry reeking off of her from miles away, following his every movement from behind. If he had a jewel for every time he would admit that this girl was so damn intriguing he would be one rich motherfuc…

"Natsu!" Turning around to the soft voice, Lucy was now standing right in front of him, her chocolate orbs worriedly eyeing him and small pants escaping her small pink lips. Well he had to give her credit for catching up to him so quickly.

"Natsu…where are you going?" The Dragon Slayer simply shrugged his shoulders at her question, he saw her lips slightly open and formed a small o shape to his response. Natsu did know where he was going, but he wasn't really in the mood to be talking to anyone as of yet.

The two Fairy Tail mages continued to walk down the streets of the lake town in silence, to wherever the fire mage had in mind. Lucy eyed Natsu from the corner of her eyes, his breathing was slow but strong, eyes focused on the road ahead of them, his body was tense and it seemed like he was lost in his own little world. What was going on in that mind of his? A few more minutes passed by, still no words were exchanged from the two teens, Lucy was now getting somewhat irritated, not at the nonresponsive boy, but the fact she did not know where in the heck they were going! In a way it was somewhat childish, but hey, she couldn't help who she was, the blonde was a very curious girl.

"We're here." His deep voice snapped her out of her thoughts, eyeing the surrounding area with great interest, it seems like they were in some sort of park…Lucy's eyes widen in realization, had Natsu led them to the very park in which Gajeel had marked Levy and her friends for the world to see? Looking at the older teen for confirmation, she saw that he was staring at a certain tree centered in the park. So this is where the Shadow Gear team had been "crucified" for the whole world to see. Lucy could not imagine the amount of pain, humiliation, shame, that Levy and her team were going through right now. The blonde wouldn't know what to do if she was riding on the same boat, it was just too…too heart wrenching.

"Memories."

"Huh?" Lucy responded to the random outburst from Natsu. What did he mean by "memories", but she had a feeling she was about to find out.

"The reason why I came here...the memories in which this park now serves to me…" His voice was lighter than usual, a hint of sorrow ringed from every word he had spoken. Lucy could not have helped but to let her eyelids droop and feel for the man besides her.

"It's no time for me to mope around with nothing but regret, feeling like shit all the time and constantly thinking "what if's" all the time….what happened is all in the past." He turned his head to face the blonde girl, who in returned gasped at him. His usually brash, happy going smile replaced with a more serious, more mature Natsu Dragneel, it felt as if he was staring into her soul.

"I've lived all my life living in the past, surrounded by nothing but darkness, reliving every single movement, every single breath and left only to dream for a brighter future.." Natsu took small steps towards the girl, her heart jumped in her chest, the man was pouring out what he was hiding in his most inner depth's to her like it was nothing. Not only that, but he was staring at her with so much intensity, so focused on her and with a gleam of what seemed to be regret in his eyes. What had the poor man been through to adorn such a sad feature?

By now Natsu was standing in front of her, her heart pounding continuously against her ribcage, oh lord what was he going to do, what was he going to say next, the suspense was killing her. His hand reached forward towards her face, the next thing she knew, Lucy felt a strong warm sensation spread around her face. Looking at the now large hand that now rested on the side of her face, she felt her insides melting away and her face lighting on fire. Natsu was cupping her cheek! Natsu of all people! The warmth slowly left her face as he pulled his hand away from her visage, but instead he leaned his head down towards her, she gasped as she felt his warm breath against the side of her ear.

"No more, no longer do I want to live in a sea of regrets, no longer my shall my past make me weak, but in fact allow me to grow stronger, to decide my own fate, walk down my own chosen path and this is why for the last time I chose to allow myself to falter alone…" As the last few words escaped the man's lips, he pulled himself away from the now stunned Lucy, walking towards the tree that stood before them not once taking a glance back at her.

"Na..Natsu." Lucy choked out as he saw the said man standing alone in front of the tree. From what he had just told her, she had learned so much more about the man, yet at the same time there was so much more to unravel from the words that he had spoken. And why had he told her that he was alone, did he not realize everyone in the guild worried about him in some way, shape and form? What was she to do…biting her lower lip she found her body moving towards the pink haired man. Her mind in total control of her actions, the next moment she found her arms wrapped around his torso and her head now buried in the now surprised man's mid-back.

"Lucy?" Natsu said in shock at the contact from the girl. His emotions were now going hay wired from the warmth that radiated from Lucy's touch and her scent slowly wrapping around his being. Was she trying to comfort him?

"Natsu..you don't have to go through this alone…you don't have to distant yourself from the world..there's people that care about you…that worry about you…that will always be there for you." Her small hands tightened around his waist with each word she said and he could feel wetness pressing into his back. Is she crying? Then he heard the sniffles come from the girl, confirming his suspicion.

"You are not alone Natsu…everyone is here for you..I…I'm here for you." Natsu's eyes widen as the girl stuttered out the last words. His head looked down to the soft hands wrapped around him, did he truly have to go through this alone, like she said, there were people that will always be there for him, to accept him for who he was, yet he simply pushed them away. But she had also said that she was indeed there for him as well. Idiot. With a small smile now on his face, he placed a hand over hers, interlocking them together, he gave her a tight squeeze of appreciation, earning him a gasp from Lucy.

"Thank you."


Natsu lay in his bed staring at the ceiling overhead. His thoughts lost in what had occurred earlier that day with a certain blonde haired girl. He was not going to lie that he had some short of interest in the girl, but he did not want to admit it, he just couldn't. He growled in frustration at the thought, it just wasn't meant to be..

"Natsu are you alright?" Happy's voice filled the small roam.

"Yeah just thinking about some stuff…" Natsu replied to his best friend, not really wanting to go into the events that happened with the celestial mage.

"Is it about Lucy?" God Damnit. Was it that damn obvious it was about her? Shaking his head he rolled onto his side, staring out the window into the night sky, ignoring the cat's remark about the blonde girl. He heard a small chuckle come from his friend, as he jumped onto the edge of the bed, curling up into a small ball against his feet, slowly drifting off into a deep sleep. Well at least he wouldn't have to deal with a sarcastic cat the rest of the night…hopefully.

Letting his mind to trail back onto the previous subject at hand, after the two had left the park, Lucy had suggested that the Dragon Slayer along with other members of the guild should have a get together at her place the coming weekend. Of course Natsu had accepted in a heartbeat, he wasn't the type to turn anyone down, especially if Lucy was the one asking. Was he really doing the right thing? Hell, he already knew the answer to that question, yet he continued to trek along the path he knew he shouldn't be following. Sighing in frustration, Natsu tightly closed his eyes, he was tired of all the thinking, he would allow the darkness to overtake him and wait for the coming weekend, shortly after he fell into a deep slumber alongside his friend.


Crimson eyes twinkled in the shadows of the night, the lone figure stood with a menacing smile, accomplished with its latest deed. The moonlight shone around the mysterious figure, tiny drops of dark red fell from the tips of its claw like fingers. The figure let out a satanic laugh, allowing the once silent night to embrace its sadistic laughter.


Well that's the end of that chapter ^_^, next chapter will be a longer chapter. Now for where the story is heading...The Fighting Festival arc will be coming up next, hopefully after that I want to dive into Erza/Gray's past among other things.

OhtaSuzuke- Hopefully that was some nice enough fluff ;)

Helekiller92- Errr...I hope the ending won't be a problem ^_^

PhoenixedDragon- Haha you better take it =( lol jk. Want to know something funny? I never intended for this fic to follow the manga, it just happened and i'm enjoying writing it haha. With the arcs...i'm just going to through which ones I feel are appropriate to how the story is progressing, but yes I will be diving into Erza and Gray later on.