Hi my lovely readers!

Here is another update. Not much longer to go! Just three more chapters after this.

I'm ecstatic all of you are enjoying this!

Disclaimer: I got nothing

Pairing(s): Natsu/Gray

Warning(s): language

I sense angst in the forecast! Please enjoy x)

X: I Wait Eternity For You

Natsu hated waiting.

He hated the way it sank into your consciousness and infected every aspect of your being until all you could think about was how long you have to wait.

He hated the way it wore down on you; how it devoured the hope you clung to as you tried to stay sane as you waited.

Natsu hated waiting; but he hated the sheer stillness of the person whose bed he held vigil beside more.

Gray was a quiet sleeper, unless his subconscious worked against him. He rarely snored, unlike Natsu's draconian bellows. He was a closet cuddler and enjoyed snuggling up to Natsu at every opportune moment. As he slept, his brow would furrow and his fingers occasionally twitch and curl. Nightmares ensnared him viciously and Natsu had many a sleepless night trying to comfort his screaming, crying mate trapped within the darkness of his own mind. But when the nightmares gave Gray a reprieve, the ice mage looked almost angelic as he slept; and Natsu would wake himself up hours early just so he could admire his mate's rare peace.

Gray had a habit of contorting himself to take the minimalist amount of room possible on their shared bed and Natsu oft wondered if that was a byproduct of his rather traumatic past. A way to keep himself safe from the shadows that haunted his footsteps. So Natsu let himself sprawl all over their shared bed as a means of reminding Gray that he wasn't alone, that the darkness would have to go through Natsu if it wanted to get to Gray. The ice mage never said a word about it, but Natsu had a feeling he appreciated the gesture.

It wasn't completely unusual for Gray to not make a sound whilst asleep, but this...this utter stillness; it wasn't natural and Natsu hated it with every fiber of his being. More than once the fire mage had to run his eyes over Gray's chest just to make sure his mate still breathed. It didn't help that with each breath the ice coating the room and the unconscious mage thickened and spread.

Natsu tugged his thick, furred coat tighter around him. "How embarrassing," he grumbled to himself, "me, wearing a winter's coat. Me! The Fire Dragon Slayer!" He eyed the comatose mage. "I bet you'd have a right laugh at this, Ice Princess. This is your fault." Natsu drooped as the expected retort never came. He reached out a hand, despising the fur-lined gloves protecting them, and ran his fingers through the blue-black hair. The thick frost crunched quietly as his fingers disturbed it.

Natsu trailed his touch gently down Gray's temple to his blue lips. His fingers slid smoothly over the iced-over skin. Oh how Natsu desperately wanted to just hold Gray and melt the ice off. He wanted to kiss him and hear him and smell his scent and watch him move. Anything but this silent stillness.

However Porlyusica forbade it. She had stated with a concerned brow and tightened lips that no one could touch Gray right now; if they did, the consequences would be severe. The ice mage was so cold that a single touch from a normal human would give them instant frostbite. Even Natsu was susceptible. Though, Porlyusica admitted that Natsu would survive longer to Gray's iciness because of his affinity for fire. She had made him wear a coat and had Freed draw up runes to protect and preserve Natsu's body heat—though he complained that he was strong enough to maintain it on his own—Porlyusica had bluntly stated that he couldn't keep it up forever and who knew how long Gray was going to be like this? Best to preserve his magic for dire circumstances.

Natsu didn't really want to dwell on what his imagination had conjured up for "dire circumstances". He just wanted Gray to wake up so that Natsu could see those beautiful midnight eyes again.

"Please Gray," Natsu slumped in his chair, gazing longingly at his comatose mate, "please wake up."

Gray heard the whispers, heard the gentle coaxing. He felt the desperate longing and worry. But he couldn't make himself awaken. He couldn't make himself return to the world; not when there was a piece missing that Gray knew he couldn't live without.

His eyes locked onto the emptiness; the gaping hole where the missing piece used to reside.

He reached for the familiar signature, the icy chill that made him smile, but only hollowness had the decency to respond.

Gray retracted his arm and curled into a tighter ball as he struggled to keep his composure. How was he supposed to return to the world, to Fairy Tail, to Natsu, when he was so crippled? He was half a person, at best, without his magic. He couldn't even stand to look at himself in the reflections of the once-occupied container; not when he had failed his magic so terribly. A strangled sob tore from his lips. He had failed his magic. He had made a choice and he had let his magic die. Gray wasn't sure if he could live with himself with the knowledge of his latest murder weighing down on his shoulders.

He had killed his master; he had nearly killed Lyon; he had killed Ultear; and now he had killed his own magic, Ur's last gift to her most ungrateful pupil. Gray wanted to hide away in these dark depths so that he wouldn't hurt anyone else, wouldn't have to live with knowing that all he wrought was despair.

How was he supposed to face his friends and the man he loved with all his heart when he wasn't even able to face himself?

A soft yearning caressed Gray. The ice mage knew it was from Natsu, but he didn't respond. Natsu would be so ashamed of him and his cowardice and his ability to only be good for misfortune.

Gray ignored to longing of his heart and buried himself in the self-loathing that was always lurking to consume him. Maybe if he just stayed here, Natsu wouldn't be added to his list of killings next.

Waiting was laughing at him, Natsu was sure.

It had been days, but Gray remained in his state of unconsciousness. The only sign of his continued life was the ice that froze on literally everything. Natsu had heard that it had even begun to enter the main guildhall. He knew that Gray was still alive, so why wasn't he waking up?

Was there something wrong with his magic? Is that the reason Gray was still unresponsive?

Natsu pushed his Dragon to check on the ice mage's magic. His Dragon sniffed and approached warily. A flare of cold and the crackling of ice prevented the red beast from getting any closer to Gray. The Dragon hissed and backtracked, pacing and growling as it studied the ice magic. It didn't feel the comforting chill of the icy signature it loved so much; all the Dragon felt was the overbearing winter of an unfamiliar magick and the Dragon snarled.

Natsu frowned deeply at his magic's reaction. "What's up?" His Dragon slunk back to him with a soft, mournful noise. "What do you mean? Where's Gray's magic?" Natsu's blood ran cold and his throat tightened. He clenched his fists on his knees and glared intently at his magic. "What do you mean his magic is gone?"

Exactly as it sounds, his Dragon huffed. Ice Mate's magic is not here; another magic takes its place. It is overbearing and powerful and old.

Natsu...Natsu didn't know what to do with this information. Gray's magic was gone? Something else had taken its place?

What was happening to Gray?

The cold was unbearable. Gray had lived most of his life with some form of ice and snow, but this cold was suffocating and colder than anything he had felt before. He lifted his hand and gazed blankly at his trembling fingers, the tips an alarming blue color. Shivers wracked his body and his extremities ached and burned with the beginnings of frostbite, but Gray couldn't make himself care enough to do anything about it.

What was the point anyway? His magic was dead and there was nothing left but this vindictive cold.

Snow flurries smacked him in the face and he spluttered. I am still here, something insisted, you are not alone!

Gray frowned and shifted lethargically. "Who's there?"

Ice, the chill hovered around Gray, I am Ice; remember?

Ice? Gray tilted his head, his half-lidded eyes regarding the presence dully. Slowly, the memories trickled in. "Y-you..." Gray whispered, voice quavering, "this is your fault!" He roared and struggled to rise. Anger coursed through his being. "You—killed—I let you kill—!" Gray aborted his attempt to stand and sank back to his knees with a soft cry. "I—I trusted you," he choked brokenly, "I trusted you and you lied to me! You said you wouldn't kill my magic..."

Ice floated closer and wrapped Gray in a gentle hug, ignoring how the human flinched from its touch. Forgive me, forgive me, Ice begged, I didn't know, I didn't know. Ice drooped, I tried to save...

Gray looked away and glared at the ground he sat upon. Damn his softness! He heard how sorrowful Ice was and Gray knew that Ice wasn't totally to blame; that lied with Gray. The ice mage wanted to remain angry, he wanted to hate Ice for allowing Ice Make to perish, but it wasn't Ice's fault.

It was Gray's fault that his magic was dead and Gray had to live with that. Though Ice was coagulating right next to him, Gray had never felt so alone. Natsu wasn't here and now neither was his magic. Gray shut his eyes tightly, clutching his hair, and tried to stop the furious screams that demanded release.

Caster Gray Fullbuster? Ice began tentatively and several moments passed before Gray inclined his head in acknowledgement. Ice summoned its courage and placed something gingerly in Gray's lap.

It was freezing. Gray opened his eyes and glanced down. His eyes widened and a gasp choked his throat.

Makarov sighed deeply and rubbed his temples with a wrinkled hand. What a mess. The aging guild master took a long swig from his mug and leaned back in his chair as he pondered the events.

So far these past few weeks, he had seen hide nor hair of the Gypsy's Hoard and their monster of a guild master. The other guilds were pitching in and helping to repair the town; it was a slow-going process. Most of the wizards lingered in order to hear news of one particular mage.

Makarov sighed again. And that was another thing; one of his mages, one of his children, was in a magickally-induced coma and showed no signs of waking. Not only that, but his body was having severe issues adjusting to the influx of magickal energy. More than once Porlyusica, Wendy, and Chelia had to run into the infirmary in order to stop Gray's body from failing. It was becoming more difficult with each time.

Natsu hadn't left his boyfriend's side this entire time and wouldn't sleep and barely ate. The boisterous fire mage was wasting away with worry and fear for Gray and there was absolutely nothing Makarov could do about it. He had tried to force Natsu to halt his vigil and sleep, but only got the fury of a Dragon for his troubles.

"Master Makarov?" The quiet, sullen voice roused the elderly wizard from his reverie. He regarded the mage in front of him; once full of vitality and fight and a bit of arrogance, the dreadful situation was heavily wearing down on one Lyon Vastia. Bags darkened the sunken eyes and hollow cheeks, tan skin became pale, and his eyes exposed the exhaustion of the bone-tried and the sorrow of the worried. "Is there any word on Gray?"

Makarov sighed wearily. How to answer this honestly? He was certainly not going to lie to the mage his brat considered a brother. "I'm afraid there has been no change, other than his continued incremental deterioration. He is still hanging on," he added at the hint of despair in the young ice mage's eyes. "If there's one thing I know about Gray Fullbuster, it's that he never gives up. He's a fighter, he'll keep fighting. So have faith in him." Makarov's words gentled toward the end and Lyon nodded silently.

"Yes, that he is," the Lamia Scale mage agreed with a flicker of a smirk, "I won't let him live it down if he loses now." He met Makarov's eyes and gave a short bow in gratitude. "Thank you; if there is any change..."

"I'll make sure that you are informed." The aging guild master assured the younger mage. A small, thankful smile ghosted across Lyon's face before the mage took his leave, heading back out to help the other mages with putting the town back together.

Makarov rubbed his eyes tiredly, wincing at a sharp tug of his sore magic. What a mess.

Porlyusica opened the infirmary and shivered violently at the blast of icy wind. Now she was glad she had had the forethought to wear an extra winter cloak before coming to check on her frozen patient. Closing the door soundlessly, she headed for the occupied bed. The pink haired healer gazed down at the unconscious mage with a deep frown. More and more of the boy's body was cracking under the pressure of sustaining a magick the human body was never meant to. As of right now, only the boy's ability to summon the ancients was keeping him alive, albeit barely.

Sighing quietly, Porlyusica set to work. She reached into her medicinal pouch and pulled out a jar of healing salve and a brush. Dipping the instrument into the salve, she began to gently smear the salve onto the worst of the cracks littering Gray's body. The salve trickled into the cracks and formed a sealant, closing the fissures enough for Gray's skin to begin branching over to heal the cracks. Eventually, the bristles in her brush were coated in ice and the salve no longer took. Setting the brush down onto the bedside table, she quickly procured another and continued with brisk movements.

The healing mage worked until the entirety of the salve was applied to the ice mage. She stoppered the jar and returned it to her bag along with her frozen brushes. Only then did she allow her body to shake and shiver, breath misting before her. Rubbing her arms to bring back some heat, Porlyusica leaned over her patient and scrutinized him carefully. The imperceptible rise and fall of his chest told her he was still alive—she didn't dare touch him for fear of horrid frostbite. She had to admit, his continued living was impressive. She knew from Makarov's incessant bragging about his dumb brats that the mages of Fairy Tail possessed a ridiculous amount of strength, but this ice mage right here blew them all out of the water.

And he probably didn't even realize it, the stupid child.

Porlyusica huffed irritably and leaned back in order to examine the boy's magic. The cage of ice still enclosed Gray and it responded to her prodding with a protective hiss, curling even tighter around the mage.

Porlyusica raised a brow. Well. That certainly was different compared to the other times she had sought out his magic. Normally it responded with an outburst of jagged icicles that Natsu had to melt.

Speaking of, the healing mage glanced up and regarded her fellow pink haired wizard. Natsu was still perched on the armchair by Gray's bedside, the chair itself pushed as close as he could physically get without climbing onto the bed. Wisps of steam rose from his hot body, meshing with the frigid air of the room. The fire mage had curled up into a small ball to preserve his heat, but as the temperature dropped, his thick clothing was slowly becoming ineffective and so he shivered in his sleep. Yet he still refused to leave the room.

"Stupid boy," Porlyusica muttered crossly, "you're going to freeze to death if you stay here." A shake, however, brought her back to her current task. She delved into her pouch once more and pulled out a vial of light pink fluid. Reaching out, she grasped Gray's mouth and eased it open, disregarding the quiet snapping of his skin's ice coat. Snaking her arm underneath his head to raise it slightly, Porlyusica trickled the potion down his throat as fast as she could before it froze. Stowing the vial, the pink haired woman stepped back.

Well, that was the best she could do for now. Wendy, with her skill at magical healing, would have been of great help to Gray, but Porlyusica was not going to allow the small Dragonslayer into this room anymore—not where she could be killed in mere minutes by Gray's chilling cold. She already itched to take Natsu by the ear and toss him out of the infirmary, but she knew the effort would be futile as the stubborn idiot would just sneak back in anyway. And in any case, she supposed, Natsu had a better chance of surviving in here better than any mage present, even Lyon Vastia.

Ice and ice don't tend to mix, after all; the damn proud magic. Gray and Lyon's magic only worked together because they had learned together. Any other ice mage would never mesh with either of the pair. Yes, this foreign ice magick infecting Gray no doubt would react poorly to Lyon's magic.

Grumbling to herself about fickle magic and stupid, stubborn mages, Porlyusica walked over to the supply closet and pulled out all the blankets she could find. In a rare gesture of common decency, the healing mage didn't throw the blankets at the sleeping fire mage. Instead she actually wrapped them tightly around him and cocooned the Dragonslayer within the fabrics. Natsu let out a soft sigh and snuggled deeper into the blankets until only a tuft of pink hair was visible.

With one last look at the comatose ice mage and his devoted sentinel, Porlyusica exited the infirmary.

Trembling fingers tentatively brushed the sculpted faces of his teacher, his parents, Ultear, his mate, his friends, his guildmates...

Everyone was here; everyone he cared about and treasured with all his being was represented with astonishing detail in the sculpture resting in his lap.

Gray swallowed. "H-how...why..."

Ice shuffled in embarrassment. I don't know, it whispered, I don't know. I just...it trailed off before continuing almost inaudibly, I had to do it. Ice floated closer. You were hurting and you've forgotten.

"Forgot what?" Gray rasped. Ice tilted as it studied him silently. You've forgotten your family, it said simply. You've forgotten that you have people who care about you and would be very sad if you left them.

Gray clutched the sculpture to his chest. "My-my magic..." his eyes dropped to the ice figurines, "my magic used to do this for me." His voice was low and quiet as it spoke to Ice. "It did this for me just as you did: to make me remember that I'm not alone anymore, that I have people who care about me and would miss me when I'm gone. Who love me." Gray slowly looked up and pinned Ice with a sharp look. "I've never told anyone about this, not even Natsu. So how did you know about this?"

Ice shrugged, just as bewildered as its mage was. I don't know, it sighed, I don't know why I made that creation. I just...I needed to. Ice paused; it just felt like the right thing to do when you're hurting like this. Ice twisted and shifted; it was fun to make, it admitted decisively. I enjoyed creating.

Gray stifled a snort at the magick. A small, fond smile stole across his face as his eyes lovingly traced each and every figure represented. "I..." he began, but stopped. "Thank you," he said instead.

Natsu was glaring moodily at the table where he was seated. Makarov had kicked him out of the infirmary and forced Natsu to sleep in his bed (it was so awful without Gray and it took forever for Natsu to fall asleep) and eat a hot meal (it tasted like ash).

Dark eyes observed the crowded hall; mages from all the allied guilds lounged on every available surface, including each other. Exhaustion was the name of the game and every mage present felt it down to the marrow in their bones. By coincidence or good fortune, the guildhall survived with only one sizable dent this time. Laki Olietta had been energetic enough to both patch up the hall and extend it to create temporary quarters for the visiting mages who managed to not crash where they stopped.

The fire mage returned his attention to his teammates sitting beside and across from him. Lucy had her head resting on her arms and was shamelessly trying to doze. Happy and Carla were leaning against each other with Wendy providing soft conversation. Erza, true to form, was enjoying a slice of strawberry cake procured from somewhere. His eyes trailed involuntarily up to the infirmary where their final teammate lay. The door was no longer visible through the thick ice sheet and roots of icicles spiraled out from their origin point. They crossed the ceiling, dominated the floor, and conquered most of the closest pillars. It would be beautiful if it wasn't a byproduct of Gray's comatose state.

Natsu sighed quietly to himself and withdrew his gaze from the iced entrance. He wanted to be with Gray, but with Makarov and Porlyusica double-teaming him, there was no chance he would be allowed back in anytime soon. As Natsu plotted the best way to sneak back into the infirmary, the murmurs of all the present mages gradually died down.

"Master Makarov," Rufus of Sabretooth broke the sudden silence, "how is Gray Fullbuster?"

Makarov, sitting in his chair by the bar, raised a brow when people turned expectant looks toward him. "As well as he can be. So far, we've not noticed any serious change." The other mages appeared to droop in disappointment.

"Was it that magick?" Yukino spoke up quietly. "That magick the horrible man was using? Did that magic hurt Gray like this?"

Makarov frowned in consideration. How to explain this? "...No, it wasn't Descartes' magick that put Gray in this state. At least, not completely." He took a deep breath, recalling the information from his Archive. "Descartes used a rare type of magick: Soul Magick. It is very ancient and very powerful. Many people throughout history have studied and gained the knowledge of how to manipulate this magick, to the point where people began to abuse it devastatingly." He paused and noted how he had everyone's rapt attention, even Natsu. He continued, "Eventually, people fought against sustaining the secrets of that magick. Their argument was that Soul Magick was wretched and twisted the natural course of life and the stability of magic itself. It takes a person's soul and magical energy and distorts it for the caster's own use. So the mightiest of mages took it upon themselves to eradicate the world of any and all references to Soul Magick. Over the centuries, with the systematic destruction of all knowledge of Soul Magick, the very concept transitioned into a myth, a cautionary tale to warn against meddling in affairs that humans have no business."

"But Master," Erza interrupted, "if all the evidence of this magick was destroyed, how did Descartes get his hands on it?"

"And what does this have to do with Gray?" Natsu growled lowly. The nearby mages shifted slightly away from his churning anger.

Makarov sighed. "Evidently, some form of the magick's secrets persisted and survived the purging by countless mages before. I don't know how Descartes got his hands on anything pertaining to Soul Magick; that would be a question to ask his guild members. By the state of him, he must have been using it for quite some time."

"Why do you say that?" Lucy asked in confusion, finally having raised her head from the table. "How do you know how long he's had it?"

"Soul Magick corrupts its users and distorts them into unrecognizable creatures. They become shadows of their former selves as their minds are twisted and altered until everything they do feeds the magick's own machinations and lust for power. Oftentimes, the user isn't even aware that the actions they commit are not of their own creation, but are the desires of the Soul Magick itself." The guild master closed his eyes. "The corruption is slow and subtle; as we saw, not even those closest to Descartes were aware of how far he was gone."

"And as for Gray," Makarov opened his eyes and bore them into Natsu's. "Gray's use of Iced Shell made him the vessel for the primal force of Ice. If everything went to Gray's plan, Descartes would be sealed in eternal ice and we would have lost one of ours. However, with the addition of Time Magick into the equation, everything has gone kaput. Gray is now suffering the affects of interacting with a magick humans weren't supposed to truly utilize. There's no telling of how he will come out of this." If he even does, he added to himself.

And if Gray is bound to this magick...what will be the lasting effects?

"Do you know when he'll wake up?" Natsu demanded.

Makarov shook his head. "No, Natsu, I don't know. I've never encountered a case like this before. No one has."

"Gray will wake up soon." A tiny voice spoke quietly yet steadily. "He just needs time, and to come to terms with everything. He'll return to us," Wendy smiled at the others, "you'll see."

Natsu stared hard at the little Dragonslayer. "He'll wake up?" he asked hoarsely and she nodded. "When?" His eyes betrayed the frayed desperation of a worried Dragon mate.

Wendy exchanged a look with Chelia beside her. "When he's ready."

"So," Gray was reluctant to even bring this up, "so, I guess my magic..." His eyes found the little statuette of his family and stayed there as he trailed off.

Ice was silent as it pondered Gray's unfinished sentence. Why had it made that sculpture? It certainly had no whims to create something like that beforehand. Sure, Ice was quirky and odd in comparison to its brethren, but it was also fickle and temperamental. Sentiment wasn't really in its repertoire, so why...?

Unless...unless. Could that be why? It definitely explained a few things now that Ice thought about it. How amusing it would be if that were the case. Yet, all things considered, Ice didn't think it would really be a bad thing.

Ice Make had been fascinating and Ice was saddened to not have it here any longer.

"You know," Gray cut into Ice's musings, "I may not know you well at all, but you're acting...unusual. More unusual than usual."

And wasn't that the kicker? Ice was pretty sure that its previous thoughts were correct. Now how to tell Caster Gray Fullbuster? Ice hoped that he wouldn't want to dissect it afterwards. That didn't really sound like a pleasant experience.

"You're acting like, well," Gray scrutinized Ice, "like my magic." Midnight eyes flickered from the statuette to the presence. "You don't speak like you used to. Less...formal. And you've apparently become insistent to remind me that I've got good things in my life," he gestured to the statue, "so what's going on?"

Ice decided to come clean and pray that its new mage wasn't feeling up to splitting it in twain. I think, it started hesitantly before forging ahead quickly, I think that what was left of Ice Make is still here. Still alive, just...in me.

Gray blinked and tilted his head. "What?" Disbelief warred with hope. "My magic's still alive?" His brain processed the other words slowly. "In...you?"

Aye, Ice confirmed. I believe that Ice Make's last deed was to leave pieces of itself here with me. For you, it concluded softly.

The ice mage stared at the presence dumbly. In his lap, the sculpture felt colder and the ice forming it seemed to pulse gently. His magic was still alive in Ice? Gray turned his thoughts inward and replayed all his previous encounters between himself, Ice, and his magic. Ur's magic had had a certain sense of humor, one that left Gray often baffled. This whole situation just oozed his magic's irony. Giving rethought to Ice's recent actions, Gray realized that all of Ice's gestures and speech patterns reminded him of his late magic. If what Ice said was true, then his magic was still here, just fused with Ice and influencing its mannerisms and personality.

Gray had to huff a laugh. His magic was tenacious and absurd, that's for sure. Rubbing off on an ancient primal force to the point that it unknowingly adopted its idiosyncrasies...that...that was priceless.

"Heh," a smile stretched across his face, "so you've got bits of my magic floating around in that vaporous mass you call you, huh?"

Ice peered curiously into Gray's face. You're not...angry?

"I..." Gray frowned, "I...suppose not. I mean, I'm upset and furious that we've been put in this situation, but I'm not mad at you. You didn't guarantee my magic's survival," his voice cracked slightly, "but you did your best and I can't find fault in that." Gray's eyes filled with soft gratitude. "I didn't think I'd have anything left of my magic. I thought it was gone forever. But now, now there's little pieces of my master's magic in you and I, I think I can be happy with that."

Ice had to admit, it was touched at Gray's words. It was also proud, because Ice was a prideful bastard and had no shame in that. Ice was proud that its mage was so strong and kind.

We can't stay here, Ice murmured gently. Ice was well aware of Gray's reluctance to awaken. He didn't want to face his failure, but they can't just bury their heads in the sand, as it were. People needed Gray Fullbuster out there.

Gray flinched and looked down. He knew they couldn't remain, but he didn't think he could look his family in the eye after what he had done. "Can't we?" he whispered. "I can't—I don't think I can handle what they'll think of me."

Do you really think so little of your family? Ice demanded harshly. Do you really believe that they'll cast you aside for something you had no control over? You were always going to cast Iced Shell, Ice bowled over Gray before the human mage could interrupt. You couldn't have cast anything else. Your family was in danger and no other spell would have saved them.

"But I promised Natsu," Gray's face was awash with shame, "I promised and I broke that promise. What's more, I killed my own magic, Ur's magic."

You can't keep every promise, Ice gave into its urges and hugged its human, you can try, but it's nigh impossible. Although, if you think about it, Ice added mischievously, you technically didn't break any promises. We went back in time, didn't we?

Gray froze then laughed out loud. Ice preened at making its human cheer up. Gray laughed so hard he was gasping for air. This is so fucked up, he determined. But Ice is right; I technically didn't break any promise. Maybe Natsu won't kill me?

Gray finally reigned in his chuckles. If his laughter was a bit hysterical, who was to make fun of him? It's been a stressful few hours.

You know we have to go back; right, Gray?

The ice mage in question regarded the primordial presence in front of him carefully. This presence, this Ice, held the last remains of Ur's magic fused inside it. This Ice had tried its damnedest to save his magic, and even let the little pieces left stay within it.

We have to return, Ice hugged its Gray tighter. We'll make things right. Together?

Gray was silent for a long moment, yet his choice was already made. In honor of his magic, which had given up everything for him, Gray would return. The ice mage nodded once decisively.

"Together."

Natsu wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up. Gray had been in a coma for three months. The majority of the other guild mages had returned to their own cities and Magnolia was nearly completely rebuilt.

The fire mage had sat loyally by his mate's side for the last few months, but even he was beginning to wonder if Gray was going to wake up—

No! Natsu slapped his cheeks to stop that thought. Gray is going to wake up! Natsu told himself. And when he does, I'm going to give that dumb Princess a piece of my mind! After Natsu kissed the ice freak stupid, that was.

He wasn't going to give up hope. Not on Gray, who was the most hopeful person Natsu knew.

Natsu turned back to the ice mage only to stop dead. As if a dream come true, he looked back into weary midnight eyes.

Gray was awake.

Much nicer ending here, no? :P

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Thanks for reading~