Chapter 11...
"Ok, everybody order what they wanted right?" Ultear asked around their table. They had decided to go get something to eat while discussing what their next move will be.
"Mm." Kagura nodded.
"Yeah." Mindy said.
"Yes." Erza said.
"..." Natsu was silent.
"Natsu?" Ultear asked.
"..."
"Did you order your meal?
"Why..." He muttered. "...AM I THE ONE WHO HAD TO PAY!?" He shouted which startled nearby guests.
"Oh, well I forgot to bring my jewels with me, and Erza and Kagura only brought some for emergencies." Ultear explained, as Natsu grew a tick mark on his head.
"..Sigh, whatever, as long as it's just food."
"Excuse me ma'am?" A waiter came by as Ultear turned her head."Your reservations have already been taken care of, all we await now is the payment."
"Reservation? I thought you didn't have any money?" Natsu asked in a confused tone.
"I don't."
"..." Natsu then put two and two together as he realized that he was going to pay for it."Sigh, How much?"
"Ah, were having a group discount today so..510,00-" The waiter then jumped as Natsu crushed a cup in hands as a murderous aura emanated from his body. He then looked up with a grin."Ok, where do I pay?"
"J-j-jj-just head over to the counter over there. I have to go now!" The waiter then sped off not wanting to anger this customer. Mindy Erza and Kagura then looked at him astonished. Ultear just smiled.
"Thank you Natsu. I promise to pay you back when I return to Gra-" She then started sweating as she noticed he looked at her with the same grin, except with tick marks on his forehead."If I go broke because of you.." His eye then glowed red as she shivered."I WILL BURN YOU."
"You don't have to get all scary Natsu~. Since we are such close friends, I figured you wouldn't mind."
"At what point did we become so close that I had to start paying for everything?"
"C'mon, it's not that bad. Besides, you heard her, it's a group discount." She tried to reason.
"IT'S HALF A MIL JUST TO STAY HERE! EVEN ON A FUCKING DISCOUNT THAT'S LIKE A THIRD OF MY SAVINGS!"
"Don't worry Natsu, i'll make sure she pays you back when we return." Erza assured him. He then sighed in defeat as he went off to pay for the bill as he grumbled.
"You are Mindy right?" Kagura asked Mindy as she looked at her and blinked.
"Yep! Your Kagura right? Nice to meet you." She said as she smiled. Kagura just bowed her head.
"I was curious or not whether you knew that mage Natsu was fighting."
"No clue. That's the first time I've seen him too." She shook her head. "Although, he must be strong if he held his own with Natsu, he used different fire then him too." She said as she recalled the dark purple flames.
"Do you think he used the same magic as Natsu?" Erza asked.
"Not even close." Natsu said as he came back and sat down as the group listened."Oh yeah, hold on." He said as he rummaged through his pockets."Ah, here we go...Well i'll be damned, it is him." He said as he looked at the photo and put it on the table for the others to see.
"Eeeh, guy looks freaky." Mindy said as she looked at the photo.
"Who is this man?" Ultear asked as she looked at it.
"His name is Zancrow. He's part of a big time dark guild in the Balam Alliance." Ultear, Erza, and Kagura then made a noise of surprise.
"You mean the three strongest dark guilds in Fiore!?" Ultear asked astonished.
"Yeah. Anyway, I met the guy a while ago when I was heading through a village. He killed, and burned everything in the village till it was just a smoking crater." He then frowned as he remembered the smell of burnt flesh an wood.
"An entire village?! That's crazy!" Mindy exclaimed.
"I couldn't believe it either. The guy was the most heartless bastard I ever met."
"Is he also a Dragon Slayer?" Erza asked.
"Tch, no. He's a God Slayer, I think."
"God..Slayer?" Ultear said as she put her hand on her chin."You mean, he has the power to slay gods?"
"Does such a magic exist?" Kagura asked Ultear.
"Wow, he must be pretty strong." Mindy said as she was amazed such a magic existed.
"AH-HEM!" Natsu coughed into his hand as he got their attention."The guy may be a God Slayer, but he's not unbeatable. Anyway, after I fought with him we ended in a tie."
One year ago...
"You...are one tough bastard.." Natsu panted as he wiped the blood from his eye.
"Keh..he...hehe, I could say the same...about you..." Zancrow smiled as he was equally exhausted.
"So...? Now..what?" Natsu said as he stood back up.
"HEheh...heheh..HEHEHEHEHAAAHAHAHA!" Zancrow was laughing maniacally, as Natsu looked at him like he lost his mind."You my friend...are the first to last...this long...against me.."
"So what?" Natsu said as if he didn't care.
"So, that means...that you are my...RIVAL!" He said as he pointed Natsu.
"Rival?"
"Yeah, we came so close to killing each other...and we can't even continue."
"Hate to rain on your parade..but I can still keep going." Natsu said as he smirked.
"Heh, now your talking!"
"Azure Dragon's..."
"Flame God's..."They both then inhaled their flames as they then breathed out a large torrent of flames at each other.
"Roar!"
"Bellow!"A large explosion enveloped the area as the blast could be seen from a distance.
"And after that, he said that we would be rivals till he kills me...or I kill him." Natsu said in a more serious tone as he took a sip from his cup. The other four were a bit surprised to find an opponent on the same level as Natsu.
"How come you never mentioned him before?" Mindy asked a bit concerned.
"If I told you about every mage that wanted to kill me...it would be a pretty long list."
"Well, I wouldn't worry about it. If Natsu here can hold his own against one of my top mages, then I wouldn't worry about it." Ultear said reassuringly.
"I'm not so sure about that..." The four then looked at him with a worried expression."..Zancrow is no pushover. If I had to fight him again...well lets just say that I think that only one of us would walk away." He then sat back as he thought back to all his fights. Out of all the opponents he had to face, Zancrow was by far the most toughest he faced. And he was a fire mage of all people.
"So, what do you plan on doing now that you know who the culprit is?" Natsu asked as he sat up.
"Well, if he doesn't stop what he is doing soon, i'm authorized by the council to take action in capturing him." Ultear said as she put her hands on the table.
"Heh, good luck with that. The guy may be a total psycho, but he's not dumb enough to get caught." Natsu scoffed."Although if these two were with you, I don't think you would have much trouble." Natsu said as he chuckled. Erza smiled as she nodded.
"Mm, me and Kagura will take this man in if we see him again." Kagura nodded.
"Hmmm..." Natsu was thinking a bit.
"What is it?" Mindy asked.
"I'm just trying to remember why that book was so important. I'm pretty sure my father said something about it a while ago."
"A book?" Erza asked curiously.
"Oh yeah, he also took something of mine so I thought I could get it back if I found him." Natsu then crossed his arms as he made an annoyed expression."Although I didn't get a chance to find out what he did with it, I might as well just give up on it."
"What's so special about this book?"
"To be honest, I can't remember, all I do know is that I was supposed to keep it safe. Tch, Venigon must be turning in his grave right now." Natsu said as he frowned.
"Venigon?" Erza asked curiously.
"Oh, Venigon is the dragon that raised Natsu." Mindy explained.
"You were raised by a dragon?" Erza and Ultear said in unison.
"Yeah, but not just any dragon, Venigon is a Lost Dragon."
"I haven't even heard of one before." Ultear said as she thought out loud.
"Well, he told me they were the strongest dragons that ever lived. Although I can't tell if he was just boasting. He was kinda prideful..Scratch that, he was VERY prideful." Natsu said as he winced from remembering all the times Venigon flicked him around as a kid."Well, he did have his good points too." He then smiled as he remembered.
"I see, so he must have been a great father for you." Ultear said as she smiled."So what happened to him?" Natsu then frowned as Mindy looked at him with concern.
"He...died...or more like I got him killed." Natsu said as his hair foreshadowed his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Ultear said in an apologetic tone.
"It's fine, i'm over it now. Rather, I guess I got a purpose now."
"What is it?" Erza asked.
"...To kill the dragon that killed my father." Natsu said in a more dark tone.
"Natsu.." Mindy said, she had never seen that expression before on Natsu. To be honest it looked kinda of scary.
"But enough about that, HEY WAITER! GET YOU ASS OVER HERE, WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOREVER!" The mood suddenly changed as they were astonished at the quick switch in behavior. Ultear then giggled."You may be scary at time's Natsu, but I know your a nice person." She thought as as the chef came with his dishes.
"Ahhhh, now that hit the spot." Natsu said as he patted his stomach.
"Indeed, the meal was most delicious." Kagura said as she put the fork down and wiped her mouth.
"Ohhhh, man am I stuffed." Mindy said as she laid back in her chair.
"Alright, it's getting late. I think we should head up to our rooms. Here are your room numbers." Ultear said as she handed them keys."We'll begin planning our next move tomorrow, so be sure to get plenty of sleep." They all then stood up as they went to their assigned rooms.
"..." Natsu narrowed his eyes at Kagura who was fidgeting as they were standing in front the room Ultear assigned him to."What are you doing here?"
"Umm..."
10 minutes earlier.
Wow, this is pretty big." Mindy said in awe as she looked around at the size of their room. It had three beds lined up next to the wall and a lacrima lamp hanging on the wall.
"Wait, three beds...but theirs.." Mindy counted everybody in the room."But theirs four of us."
"Oh nuts, I thought this was a family sized apartment. Sorry everybody." Ultear said as she face palmed
"It's no problem, I can just sleep on the floor." Erza said.
"No Onee-sama, I will." Kagura insisted.
"Its all right, I don't mind."
"But-"
"Actually," Erza Mindy and Kagura then looked at Ultear as she was in a thinking pose."I think Natsu's room was a two persons bedroom." No sooner had she said that Erza and Mindy were heading for the door but stopped as they glared at each other.
"And just what are you doing?" Mindy asked Erza.
"I could ask you the same thing."
"Its fine, Natsu and I are friends, so he won't mind."
"If it's about who he's friends with, then it doesn't matter if I go then." Erza said but Mindy kept holding her back.
"But he's familiar with me, not someone he just met a week ago!"
"I'm his friend!"
"I'm his childhood friend!" The two then glared at each other, as sparks were flying.
"You know what? I have an idea." Ultear then picked up a pencil off of a drawer and snapped it into four pieces."Ok, whoever gets the end with the eraser has to go to Natsu's room for the night." She said.
"Why am I participating?" Kagura asked as she thought this was a bit foolish.
"Hey the more the merrier right?" Ultear said as Kagura just narrowed her eyes at her. "Ok, is everyone ready?" All four of them then took a piece. And much to Mindy and Erza's distress, neither one got it. They turned to Ultear and Kagura who were looking at their own pieces.
"Awww, I thought for sure I would get it." Ultear said as she whined. They looked to Kagura as she was shaking a little, she then revealed the eraser in her hand as the other two's jaws were wide open.
"Wow, talk about unexpected." Ultear said astonished.
"P-p-pass."
"Sorry~. No passes, which means...YOUR OUTTA HERE!" She then kicked Kagura out of the room and locked the door.
"And, that's how I ended up here." Kagura finished. Natsu then groaned."Something tells me that she planned this from the get go." He wouldn't put anything past Ultear, considering how she always schemed behind everyone's back.
"I'll just go order another roo-" Natsu was stopped, as Kagura grabbed his jacket from behind.
"It's fine." She said as her hair foreshadowed her eyes.
"Uh, ok. Well..come on in." He said as they walked in. As they entered Kagura looked around the room. It looked like a smaller version that the girls were staying in except with only two beds.
"I guess take your pick." Natsu said.
"In that case i'll take this one." She then went over and sat on one bed as she tested it out. Satisfied she gave Natsu the nod. Natsu then fell on his bed as he let out a yawn."Man, it's been a long day. I hope tomorrow ain't going to be as hectic."
"Well, we now know who is responsible, all is left now is for that dark mage to make a move." She said as she laid her Archenemy against the wall.
"I'm not going to wait, when tomorrow comes I gotta find Zancrow and get the book back."
"I'm not so sure that would be wise. He's probably headed back to his guild's base of operations. You would have to be crazy to attempt something by your self." Natsu then chuckled as he smirked.
"Well, it's a good thing i'm crazy." Kagura then looked at him as she was trying to see if he was serious or not."Actually.." He then made a narrowed expression."It probably wouldn't matter, seeing as how my days are numbered.." Kagura then made a noise of surprise. He then looked at her with a curious look and then realized what he said as he quickly smiled and chuckled nervously. "Oh, don't worry. I'm not gonna die anytime soon, or anything like that." She then had concern, but decided to leave it alone for now.
"I see..well, we better sleep now. It's been a long day." Natsu nodded as he then turned over on his side as Kagura turned off the lamp and laid down as she stared at the ceiling. She then turned her head to Natsu who was already sleeping as she turned and faced him as she watched him sleep.
"It probably doesn't matter, seeing as how my days are numbered." Those words stuck with her as she the clenched her sheets."What did you mean by that?" She wondered as she closed her eyes as everything started to fade in black as sleep overtook her.
"Simon!" A little girl screamed, as she watched a boy being taken by some men.
"Kagura, just run! You can't let them catch you!" The boy yelled back. Tears were running down the little girl's eyes, as she watched the young boy being taken away.
"No, stop! Let my brother go!" She said as she tugged on one of the men, but they kicked her back, as she fell down and watched the men retreating with her brother as she reached out weakly with a outstretched hand as she continued to sob."S...S..imon." She weakly said, but she passed out as everything went dark. When she opened her eyes, she couldn't see her brother or the men any where, as she stood up and touched her forehead.
"Simon? Simon? Simon! SIIIMOON!" She screamed as she called out to her brother as she sobbed and tears ran down her eyes. The place she was standing had small buildings on fire, and had dead people around her. If their was a hell, she felt like she was in it. All of a sudden, she felt someone grab her hand as she looked up in surprise, a girl about her size began pulling and leading her as she stumbled.
"You have to be quiet! They left some patrols behind to find anyone they missed!" The girl said as they rushed towards the outskirts of town.
"B-but my brother.." She began but was cut off when the red headed girl turned around and hugged her. "Don't worry, i'll keep you safe. I promise." The little girl then felt like crying again as she then returned the hug to the red head.
Kagura then woke up as she had tears streaming down her eyes as she sat up and wiped her eyes."Just a dream huh?" She then noticed that her hand was gripping a scarf, as she turned to see Natsu sitting on the side of the bed. "Bad dream huh?" He said. She then made a noise of surprise as she tried to wipe the tears away.
"I-it was nothing." She said as she tried to recompose herself.
"I see.." He said as he nodded.
"I apologize, I woke you up didn't I?"
"Don't mind me, I couldn't sleep at all actually, so I was kind of awake the entire time." He said as he continued to sit with his back facing her."By the way.." He said as she made a noise of surprise."You don't need to be so reserved around me. If you have something to let out, just do it." She then made wide eyes.
"I..." She couldn't really answer. She always kept her emotions in check most of the time around people, except with Erza.
"Ahh, you don't have to answer." he said as he turned and faced her." I told you once didn't I? I always treat my nakama the same as if they were my family. So, I guess what i'm trying to say is..well if you need anything just let me know." He said as he scratched his head. She then was a bit taken back, as she then had her eyes foreshadowed.
"I-in that case.." She then decided that she could trust him."Could you wait here till I fall asleep?" He then smiled as he flashed his toothy grin.
"Sure!" She then smiled a little as she laid back down, unconsciously she was still holding onto his scarf, as she went to sleep rather quickly with the thought of Natsu watching over her. She had grown quite fond of him and was happy that their was at least one decent man out their who she could rely on at times.
Natsu just smiled as he looked at the wall, as his thoughts were on the book that Zancrow stole from him."Geez, I wish Venigon would tell me why that book was so important. Ah well, I guess i'll figure it out tomorrow." He then turned noticed she was asleep, as he then was attempting to go back to his bed, but Kagura kept holding onto his scarf as he decided to sit on the floor right next to her bed as he closed his eyes and smiled.
"I sure hope she actually falls asleep soon." He chuckled to himself, as Kagura then smiled a little.
Well I hope you enjoyed the NatsuxKagura moment. I had break the ice with Kagura, because she barely gets any one-on-one time with Natsu. So I figured I should develop the characters a bit more. So their you have it. Next update will be in The Flames of Destiny.
See you all next week!
Laters!