Hello again to everyone! Thank you to the people who have stuck with me and our beloved characters so far! I am happy to announce that this chapter is quite exciting! It's action packed and I was so thrilled to write it that it bothered me all day when I couldn't be around my laptop to finish it! This is where the storm finally breaks and the fallout begins! Enjoy!
Chapter 10: Total Destruction
It had been decided earlier that we would be leaving in the morning to return to Magnolia. When I woke up, I noticed that Natsu and Happy had already left the room, allowing me to sleep in. I wasn't very happy about having to leave, especially since I wanted to track down the surviving members of Black Eclipse, but Erza told me that I was leaving with them, whether it was the easy way or the hard way. I knew that the hard way consisted of her hogtying me and throwing me in the back of the vehicle with the rest of them and I shuddered at the thought. Erza could be so mean sometimes. I grabbed Ty, picking up the sleepy kitten and holding her as I left the room wearing a black sundress that dipped in the back enough to show off the blue Fairy Tail marking, even the tattoo that had somehow lengthened and curled down the front of my shoulder.
I walked out into the main room, Ty finally waking enough to jump out of my arms and fly over to Happy when I saw Lucy and Natsu talking quietly. Normally, I wouldn't mind such a thing. I know that they are friends and that she is a part of Team Natsu since she first joined the guild. I'd heard a lot about the newcomers while I was out doing jobs away from the guild. But this was stepping a bit out of line in my mind. She had this flirty smile on her face and kept touching him lightly on the arm whenever she laughed. Even though it shouldn't have bothered me, I was instantly seeing red and storming off in their direction.
"Oh, no, here we go," I heard Gajeel say under his breath to Pantherlily, seeing out of the corner of my eye that they had both stood up, his cat shifting into his humanoid form. I even heard Rogue shout something to me, but his words were lost in the sea of rage washing over me.
With a step, I used my magic to instantly move in between the two faster than they could blink, sending my fist into her jaw and making her fly backwards. I think she was unconscious at that point, not used to taking such a direct hit from someone as strong as I am. I was about to launch myself at her again when Natsu grabbed me and tried to hold me back. I broke from his hold and ran a couple steps away, about to use my magic a second time to run at her when Natsu grabbed me again, only this time Gajeel and Pantherlily were there to help. Loke seemed to just appear out of nowhere with a flash of light, helping those three to drag me outside. In the end, they had to pick me up off my feet and carry me out because I fought them fang and claw to go after Lucy.
When I managed to scratch Loke and knock his sunglasses off of his face, he yelled, "Will you think rationally for just two seconds?! You just attacked my owner and one of your friends!"
I just growled and fought even harder, managing at one point to leap out of their hold and take off running only to have Natsu tackle me to the ground before I reached the doorway. "Stop it right now!" he hissed, his lips only an inch away from my ear. "I'm not letting you up until you calm down."
I snarled and tried to squirm out from under him, but movement was impossible for he had me pinned. It took a while for the jealousy and rage to fade, only to be replaced by irrational fear when I began to feel claustrophobic. I started to shake and almost began crying when he finally let me up, pulling me closer and hugging me tightly.
"I'm sorry about pinning you," he whispered in my ear. "And I'm sorry about making you jealous. I didn't even know I was doing it."
"It wasn't you," I finally said, my throat a bit scratchy from the growling. "You are quite oblivious to flirting apparently."
The door slammed open and startled us enough that we jumped apart, blushing profusely as Gray sauntered outside with a knowing smile. "Well, well, well. What do we have going on here? Natsu is with a girl?"
"Shut up, ice princess!" Natsu yelled at him.
"I just never pictured it before," Gray carried on, ignoring the insult thrown at him. "The pyro getting together with the shadow queen. This has to go beyond the highest levels of weird."
"Shut up, stripper!" both Natsu and I yelled at him this time. Then I pointed at him, which made him give me a confused look. "Is there a reason why you're already half naked?"
He looked down and gasped before running inside where we could hear Juvia excitedly exclaim that she had his shirt for him. Natsu gave me a brief kiss and grinned when he saw my glare at how short it was, keeping a slight distance between us as everyone filtered outside. Loke went over to a dazed Lucy, who seemed extra motivated to avoid me, and helped her down the path as we all headed in the direction of the town in the woods. Yukino waved goodbye to us energetically before heading back to the main building for the guild.
It didn't take long for us all to make it back to the town since we all knew where we were heading by this point. The town square was within sight and we all stepped up the pace again. Once there, we said our goodbyes to Rogue and Sting, their little cats waving goodbye to us. I couldn't leave my brother without a proper farewell and I ran to him, making him flinch in anticipation of a fist to his face and instead received a hug. I threw my arms around his shoulders and hugged him to me tightly, a slight hesitation before he hugged me back.
"I think I'm actually going to miss you this time, brother!" I laughed, letting him go and seeing one of his rare smiles. "Send a shadow dragon if anything pops up and you need my help."
"Don't worry, sister. I'll be sure to do that if need be, but Sting and I have it covered."
When I turned to Sting to say goodbye to him, he grabbed me and hugged me so fiercely that he had my feet off of the ground. I yelped a little in surprise and just patted his back awkwardly until he let me down. With an arrogant grin, he leaned forward quickly and kissed my cheek. Without missing a beat, I slapped him hard on the cheek and made him chuckle, rubbing at the red mark there.
"Yep, you're alright for a girl from Fairy Tail," he said, his grin still intact as he watched me warily. "You're welcome to come back any time."
"Maybe I'll take you up on that offer so I can visit my brother," I said with grin and watching as his fell at my words that excluded him from the mention visit.
I waved goodbye to them both and turned around to see an angry looking Natsu a few feet away. I figured he'd try to run at Sting for what he did, so that was my reason behind the slap. Might as well try for some damage control. I hopped up onto the bench behind the controls, seeing that Zeref was already waiting for me. Now that I thought about it, I hadn't seen him since I came back from being abducted, so he must have been lying low in the forest where he wouldn't hurt anyone with his Death Magic. I patted him on the arm and he smiled at me as Natsu climbed up to sit beside me. I slipped the magic band around my wrist and started the vehicle once everyone was inside, Ty sitting on my lap and bouncing excitedly. Natsu slumped over against me again with a groan, laying his head on my shoulder as I turned the vehicle and moved it along down the path away from town and towards the southeast.
"I heard about everything that happened while you were gone," Zeref said. "Erza kept coming around to keep me updated. I heard about the Lost Magic you're able to use."
"Have you seen anyone else use it?" I asked him curiously, concentrating on driving and talking at the same time to keep my motion sickness at bay.
"Sort of," he said. "I saw it from a distance. There was a wizard travelling with his wife in search of me and he could use it."
"That could have been my parents," I whispered.
"From the description I was given of them by Erza, I now believe it was," he told me as he watched the scenery go past. He gave me a small smile before saying, "Another thing I heard was that you are mated now to Natsu."
"Yes, she is so back off," Natsu said halfheartedly, sounding too sick to threaten him. Both Zeref and I laughed a little from it. I looked over at him and could see a part of a tattoo now forming from my bite.
It was agreed that we'd stop in the village we saved last time for the night and I was wrapped in my thoughts the whole way there. I really wished I could have found the remaining members of Black Eclipse. Some part of me felt as if it was imperative to catch them soon, but I couldn't explain why. I decided to take up a few jobs that would lead me all over Fiore when we got back to Fairy Tail. I was bound and determined to catch them after everything that they had done.
Close to sunset, the small village appeared on the horizon and I upped the pace of the vehicle to make sure we got there before the sun actually went down. Once I had made it through the shadow barrier, I saw banners and streamers strewn about the road and slowed down, looking around and wondering what sort of festivities was occurring. Natsu sat up and studied the whole area with a look of awe the further in we drove. Ty jumped around on my lap excitedly when we reached the village square, the manager walking up to us with a big grin on his face.
"Ah, you made it just in time!" he told us as we got out of the vehicle. "Our Spring Festival is tonight!"
We all decided to help make the festival even better with magic except for Lucy and Loke, who both avoided me in case I decided to start another fight. I created a bunch of animals from the shadows once night fell, making them roam about and the children followed them around with joy evident on their faces. Ty turned into a tiger and gave the children rides on her back, purring the whole time as she ran about. Gray created huge ice sculptures, most of which were by request. Erza showed off her different armors and demonstrated each one's power against Gajeel and Pantherlily. Wendy and Carla went around and helped different stalls with errands and Juvia made a bit of a show out of the water from the fountain. After giving my shadows life, I went over to where I thought Natsu and Happy were and watched what he was doing. Of course, Natsu was the fire breathing act. He made cool rings of fire that Happy flew through, the children watching this in amazement. With a smile, I sank into the shadows and wandered off along an alley.
I happened to hear strange noises down a particularly dark one and my curiosity got the better of me again. I rounded the corner and saw Loke and Lucy together, kissing passionately at the dead end. For a second, I figured it must have been the concussion I gave her to make her act that way. However, being the mean friend that I am, I moved along the shadows in the alley until I was above their heads, pulling myself halfway out of the darkness to look down at them.
"I should have known," I said loudly, making them jump apart fast and glare up at me.
"How are you that high up without falling out of the shadows entirely?" Loke asked incredulously.
"I'm just that awesome," I informed him with a grin. "Now, what do you two think you're up to?"
"Nothing!" they said, a faint blush could be seen regardless of how dark it was.
"Yeah, that's a lie," I chuckled, pulling myself free and landing lightly on the ground. I turned to Lucy and said, "I'm sorry about earlier. I don't know what came over me."
"It's alright," she said hesitantly. "Let's just not go through it again, ok?"
"Ok, we'll try," I said with a small smile. I walked past them and down the alley before turning my head slightly to say something else. "Stay safe, kids. Don't do anything I wouldn't do, Loke."
I heard him grumble something under his breath as I walked away, grinning more than ever as I continued on down the alley. I saw it open up into the village square and decided to get to higher ground. I jumped from windowsill to windowsill until I reached the roofs. Sitting down beside a weathervane, I pulled my knees up to my chest as far as they could go and watched everyone enjoying the festival. I caught sight of Zeref, who was being led around by Wendy to see all of the stalls and decorations, even making him pet a few of the shadow animals.
"I thought I'd find you up here," I heard someone say, turning around to see that it was Natsu. "Of course, the shadow queen is hiding out in the dark."
"Don't go around calling me that, pyro," I said to him with a smile as he sat down beside me. "Being around so many people isn't exactly my thing."
"I can understand that," he said with a nod as he put his arm around my shoulders, scooting closer to me. "You picked the best spot for the fireworks though."
I was about to ask him whether or not he was lying to me when I saw a light rocket up into the sky before exploding into hundreds of smaller sparks. These fireworks weren't as great as the magic ones that Natsu bought that time before the trip, but any firework is still good. I laid my head on his shoulder and leaned against him, watching as yet another one was sent upwards, this one flashing bright red. A few more went up and they were multicolored as they exploded. I felt Natsu kiss the top of my head as a bunch of fireworks went off, this one in the shape of a smiley face and I laughed. They lasted for a long time, maybe that's why the village like the regular ones better. About half an hour later, the grand finale went off as a bunch of them were lit and exploded into the sky like a fiery storm. Natsu and I stood up, taking each other's hand and walking side by side on the roofs to the inn that we would all be staying at for the night. When I remembered what I had seen in the alley earlier, Natsu only smiled and shook his head.
"Better her than you," was all he said, finally pulling me over to the roof of the inn. We snuck down to my room from last time as Ty and Happy flew to us, calling the foot of the bed to be theirs as we crawled under the covers. It wasn't long before we both fell asleep, the explosions from the fireworks still ringing in our ears. I didn't dream once that night and slept peacefully.
I was content to wake up warm and refreshed, Natsu's arm around me to keep me close and I laughed inwardly as I tried to sneakily get free to go change. Into the bathroom I ran, changing into a long black tank top with a lacy trim that was low in the back and black shorts to go with it. Once I was walking back out, I saw that everyone was awake and ready to go. We left the room and had breakfast downstairs before gathering outside near the vehicle. We thanked the village manager for the festivities we were allowed to help with and then were on our way, Natsu once again slumped against me as he groaned sickly.
"Maybe one of these days, you'll stop being sick while on any forms of transportation," I said, trying to keep a straight face.
"I'd be ok if Wendy would use that Troia on me, but she said it becomes useless if used too often," Natsu said weakly. There was a bump in the road that caused him to fall forward a bit so he ended up with his head on my lap, nearly squishing Ty. The little kitten huffed before walking over to Zeref and curling up on his lap for a nap instead.
The sun came up as the village slipped out of sight, everyone in the back chattering amongst themselves as I watched the road. There were a lot of carriages being pulled along by large animals, all of them smiling pleasantly at us as we passed by. My thoughts swirled as I thought back to the memories I had gained back from my missing past. I missed my deceased parents just as badly as I missed Skiadrum. They were all very good to me and I never wanted to disgrace their names in the future.
It was around midday when I saw that Zeref looked a bit uncomfortable. "Are you alright?" I asked him, looking at him out of the corner of my eye.
"No, I think my magic is getting out of control," he said with a grimace, starting to shake as he tried his best to gain control of it. Without missing a beat, I took off the band around my wrist that controlled the speed and snapped it around his. As he started to become surrounded by a black haze, it seemed to just flow into the vehicle and make it speed along faster than I had made it go before.
He gasped in surprise as I said, "Keep it going at that pace. It should keep that magic of yours within manageable levels." He gave me such a grateful look, going so far as to even give me an ecstatic hug.
I heard Natsu growl feebly in protest before it turned back into a groan. "I'd punch you right now, Zeref, if I wasn't so sick."
With an amused grin, Zeref leaned over to quickly kiss me on the cheek. "Then I guess it's as good a time as any to get away with that."
With another growl, Natsu tried to sit up to attack The Black Wizard only to look nauseous again and slump back with his head on my lap again. "Make him stop, Timara…"
I looked over to Zeref with a mock stern look. "Behave, will you? Quit tormenting my mate."
Natsu grumbled something as Zeref laughed quietly but agreed. We kept going at the fast pace and I could have sworn that I could see Magnolia on the horizon. I gasped in surprise when we reached the top of a large hill and my guess was confirmed. Magnolia was shining brightly below us a few miles away, the lake behind it sparkling brilliantly. I heard a rumbling noise behind us and looked back quickly to see dark clouds rolling in far away in the distance. I thought nothing of it as we raced down the hill towards the city. Ty jumped up and down on Zeref's legs after she woke up, looking excited to be back home. Even I was infected with her joyous attitude, feeling happy to finally see Fairy Tail after being away for so long.
Zeref hesitantly slowed down the magic vehicle when we neared the main gate, stopping long enough for them to open the gates and allow us to pass. I heard the chattering stop from within and I looked back to see that they were all watching the familiar surroundings pass by as we headed further inside. Natsu sat up and, still slumping against me, watched the river beside us. I felt his fingers slide between mine and he shook with excitement. I steered the vehicle around to avoid running people over, the children swarming us as they finally saw who we all were. Natsu looked a bit better and waved cheerfully at them, giving them a warm smile as we drove past slowly. Finally, we reached an area where we could pick up the pace and we reached Fairy Tail without any more interruptions.
Pulling over to the side of the courtyard, we all filed out and practically hit the ground running. Zeref said something about waiting outside for me before we headed home and I knew that he was ready to get back to his isolation in the mansion. I told him that I would be willing to lead him back as soon as I talked with the guild master. He nodded and waited beside the big doors as we all rushed inside. There was a cacophonous roar as everyone cheered, welcoming us back with open arms. There were decorations and even a cake, which Erza seemed to eye greedily. I slowly made my way over to Makarov, having to talk to a few people on the way and thanking them for the surprise. Finally, I made it back to the counter where Mira and Makarov were talking. He looked up and gave me a warm smile as he dangled his feet off the counter.
"So, how was the trip?" he asked me.
"It was… eventful," I said with a grin. "I've learned a lot just from the week or so we've been away."
"There was a village that sends their regards about your deeds," he told me. "I guess you drove away a Dark Guild quite nicely."
"And I prevented it from ever happening again. They feared wizards when we arrived and almost turned us away instantly."
"Well, I'm glad to hear that they're ok now," Makarov told me. "Now, go enjoy the party!"
With a happy grin, I waved before wandering back into the party. I stole a piece of cake, which I found to be strawberry, and snuck off to a table near the outside to watch as everyone partied. I hadn't had sweet food in a long time so I savored every bite, letting Ty try strawberries for the first time. She squeaked happily and stole the rest of them, looking so happy I thought she might burst. I heard someone clear their throat behind me and I turned to see Natsu with Happy standing beside me. For some reason, I got the feeling that something was wrong by the tense expression he had on his face.
"Hey, do you have a second?" he asked me, not looking me in the eyes once. "There's something very important I need to discuss with you."
Feeling confused, I stood up, picking Tyger up and carrying her as Natsu led the way outside. I saw Zeref give us a strange look but stayed where he was as Natsu looked out towards Magnolia, avoiding looking at me while he stared at the clouds that were now rolling in from the west. Even I looked up at them, a strange sense of dread washing over me as I saw lightning crackle through the clouds.
"Timara," I heard Natsu call my name, looking from the oncoming storm and back to him. He looked even tenser now than he did back in the guild hall. "I need you to promise that you won't freak out on me."
I couldn't answer him because my eyes were drawn back to the clouds that now covered the entire city, stretching on for miles in either direction. I heard thunder rumble from within the storm, but it sounded… different. I couldn't quite put my finger on it as I saw the lightning crack the sky again. I noticed its color was an ocean blue and I knew it was familiar. My brain was dragged back to one of my nightmares, one I hadn't had in a long time and I remembered. It was him. I gasped when the strange thunder was heard again, only this time it almost sounded like a sinister laughter. Rain began to pour down instantly and I gasped at how cold it was, soaking everything instantly and I knew something awful was about to happen.
"Natsu, Happy, get inside right now," I said over the pounding rain. They gave me a confused look as I turned to Zeref, seeing him turn pale as he recognized it as well. "You get inside, too, Zeref."
Almost as if he was in a daze, he nodded slowly and made his way inside. When Natsu and Happy refused to move, I grabbed them both and dragged them inside as I heard a buzzing noise that kept increasing in volume. I don't have much time left, I thought to myself as the noise moved until it was directly over the guild. I didn't have enough time to be nice, practically throwing them both inside as I slammed the door shut with my magic, making silence fall inside as the buzzing got louder. They all turned to me as I began to charge up my Shadow Dragon Slayer Magic as fast as I possibly could. I gritted my teeth as it became painful, the shadows forming a huge barrier around every single person there and getting thicker by the second. The buzzing roared in my ears, sounding like a tornado bearing down on us as I forced everyone including myself down into the shadows, moving us to the outskirts of Magnolia to a large cliff that overlooked the city that was shrouded by the shadows of a forest. I collapsed onto my stomach, my vision trying to fade as I saw a large blast of sky blue light slam down from the clouds and hit Fairy Tail's guild hall. I saw a huge explosion of that same light and pieces of the building were sent flying everywhere.
Everyone gasped in shock, a few cries could be heard as the one place we knew and loved was completely destroyed, leaving nothing but a huge crater in its place. Natsu ran over to me as I felt blood drip down from my noise because of the overexertion. I had used up almost all of my magic power in such a short amount of time and I heard Ty scream my name as Natsu picked me up, throwing one of my arms around his shoulders and wrapping his around my waist to keep me steady. I heard a roar of outrage from the clouds as it must have realized that it missed its true target.
"Tell everyone to get back," I said weakly as I tried to rally up the rest of my strength.
Natsu yelled and everyone seemed to scatter, falling back to the trees as the roar came closer. Natsu dragged me along with Happy helping as much as he could and I looked up to see a large black dragon diving from the sky, sky blue colors streaking its hide and its featherlike wings fluttering as it spread them quickly. It hit the ground hard and shook it, sending us all to the ground. It roared again, arching its neck down to us to show how fearsome it was.
"It's him," I heard Zeref say quietly over the din. I looked over at him to see a strange mix of fear and denial on his face. "Acnologia…"
"Ah, so there you are," I heard a deep rumbling voice say, one that sent cold shudders down my spine. It was the same voice that had been in my nightmares and I knew now that it belonged to this dragon. "I have been looking everywhere for you, Zeref."
"What do you want with me?" Zeref asked.
"I want your power to create a world of my creation, one where every living being bows down to me!" Acnologia laughed, reaching its clawed hand to Zeref to pick him up.
"No!" I yelled, my second wind causing me to step between him and the dragon. "You stay away from him! I didn't put up with all of those nightmares just to have you win!"
"You barely have the energy to stand and yet you still defy me, girl?" the dragon growled. "I could squash you like a bug while you're in this state."
"You stay away from her!" Natsu yelled, running over to me and standing at my side.
"The Fire Dragon Slayer!" Acnologia exclaimed. "Tell me, how did Igneel take the death of his mate?"
"You leave her out of this!" Natsu growled. "Don't you dare tarnish her memory!"
"But I already have. I'm the one who killed her," Acnologia said as he gave us an evil grin. "She might not have died right away, but she still died by my claws. Blood poisoning is the only way to kill one of the last crystal dragons in existence." He stood up to his full height, easily towering over us all as he said, "I grow weary of this. It's not nearly as fun as it was in the beginning. I think I enjoy the hunt most of all, so I will come back later to do track down the one I seek. I dearly hope that you're able to put up a better fight than this, girl. It was a great disappointment after all of your trash talking."
With a menacing laugh, he spread his wings and leapt into the air, flying up into the clouds and heading somewhere else as the clouds following behind him. I wiped my nose as the blood refused to stop and growled as the dragon left. I watched everyone from Fairy Tail run off towards Magnolia to see if any other damage was caused and to see if it was at all possible to salvage anything from the now destroyed building. Zeref went along with them and I could tell that he felt awful about everything that had just transpired. I was also about to head back when I felt Natsu grab my arm, stopping me in my tracks. I saw Happy grab Ty and fly around with her, making me utterly confused until I realized that this must be about what he wanted to talk to me about earlier.
"Listen," he said as he turned me around to face him. I could see a fire burning in his eyes and saw how determined he looked. "I can't let this stand. I need to avenge Diamantina in any way I can and I think I know how to now that I've seen Acnologia in action."
"That's great, Natsu," I said, wondering all of a sudden why I was beginning to feel apprehensive.
"And this is the part you're not going to like," he said quietly. "I need to leave to train on my own. I have to hone my Crystal Dragon Slayer Magic and it's going to take a while."
"How long…?" I asked, anxiety only making this whole situation worse.
"About three years," he said at almost a whisper.
"I'm coming with you then," I growled now, gathering up my strength.
"No, you need to stay with Zeref for now," Natsu said. "I think it's probably best if you lead Acnologia on a wild goose chase so that this never happens again, just until I am strong enough to defeat him."
"I don't care about that!" I yelled. "What I do care about is you and you are not leaving here without me, so if I have to drag you down to Makarov and tell him what a crazy idea you've got, then so be it!"
With a scream, I aimed a punch at him, going to attempt knocking him out so I could literally drag him down to Magnolia when he easily dodged my attack. I knew that I was in a majorly weakened state or he wouldn't have been able to dodge me effortlessly, so I dredged up every ounce of magic energy left to make my moves faster, forcing him to have to block my attacks or take one. I was just about to hit him in the jaw as hard as I could when I left myself open, Natsu taking the chance to slam his fist into my stomach and the breath rushed out from my lungs. I felt tears stream down my cheeks as my vision started to fail me and I was so angry at myself for not being able to stop him. Just before I passed out, I thought I heard Natsu say he was sorry.
Feeling so sore and exhausted, I woke in a daze to be comforted by Natsu's scent all around me. I had the hardest time forcing my eyes to open as I rolled over onto my side. I stretched my arms out with a sigh as my muscles protested, only to feel something that I had been holding while I was unconscious. The fabric felt so familiar to me, making me gasp and scramble to sit up as my eyes snapped open. There in my hands was a white scale-patterned scarf, one that I had grown so used to seeing. Before I could stop it, an inhuman wail escaped my lips as I realized what this meant. Natsu had left on his journey and there was nothing I could do now to stop him.