A/N: Hey guys I hoped you all enjoyed the last chapter. I know it was basically a talk with Natsu and Erza, but like I've mentioned, I'm OCD about these types of things and since I'm wrapping up this Fic soon I want it to end on Chapter 15. It was also a good reliever to be able to write a fairly chill chapter without stress while updating at the same time to bring more content out for you all :) The sequel is already in progress so don't worry about that, I will be uploading it as soon as I get back from my Hiatus. Also, NaVia week is coming up and NaVia just happens to be my second favorite Fairy Tail Pair of all time, tied with NatZa (Because I HATE JerZa) and behind NaMi because NaMi is the best! I'll be at Basic during NaVia week, but I still plan to participate so I'll be putting up seven NaVia One-Shots (one per day) that incorporate a given theme for the respective day; Days 1-7. Since I'll be gone during the actual NaVia week I'll post them late, but I'll explain the circumstances in the beginning notes of each One-Shot. However! Bonds Stemmed from Mourning is my top priority so don't worry about that. You can expect to see the sequel for this as my first upload after my 6-8 week absence :) As for the NaVia pairing for those of you who have never read a Fic based on it, I highly encourage you to give it chance because I have seen some pretty realistic Fics revolving around the two and isn't the cliché "Opposites Attract" an interesting enough reason as is? x) If you end up disliking the pair still no harm, no foul, but I always find it enjoyable when an author is capable of getting you to root for a pair that at first sound ludicrous. Well, enough with the NaVia recruiting, let's get to my favorite pair of all time, NaMi! Here is Chapter 13 of "Bonds Stemmed from Mourning"
*Disclaimer* I do not own Fairy Tail or any of its characters.
xXx
"GILDARTS IS BACK!"
The whole guild was still going nuts over the surprise of their strongest guild mate returning early. Natsu positioned himself at the far end of the guild directly aligned with the doors waiting for his adoptive father to enter the building.
"Natsu are you really going to try and ambush Gildarts?" Mira asked.
"Well that's Natsu for ya. I got 20 bucks saying he doesn't last five seconds." Macao was the first to start a betting pool.
"I bet he won't last three!" Wakaba was quick to jump in on the wager.
"Slow your roll boys, our hot friend here just came back from training remember? I think he just might get Gildarts to take a step back." now Cana was in on the pool.
"Just how strong is this guy? There are more people in favor of this Gildarts character than there are for Natsu." asked Lucy, due to the fact that she hadn't met Gildarts yet, on account of being the newest member of Fairy Tail.
"That's because Gildarts is the strongest wizard in all of Fairy Tail, He's coming back from a Decade Quest and I heard that he said he wanted to try a Century Quest next." answered Mira.
"Whoa, a Decade Quest? As in, it takes 10 years to complete?"
"Exactly." said Erza.
"Oh you're here Erza? I thought you left on a job?" asked Mira who still wanted to talk to her later.
"I was about to leave the city when the bells started to go off. I called my employer and told them I couldn't make it today and I'd stop by tomorrow. I figured seeing Gildarts who's rarely here is more important." explained the scarlet haired beauty.
"I see. Then can I talk to you about something later after everyone's done greeting Gildarts?"
"Sure, where do you want to talk?"
"We can head to my house."
"Ok that's fine with me." As Erza agreed to talk with the silver haired beauty Lucy continued her questions.
"A Decade Quest sounds insane as is, but who is crazy enough to take on a quest that lasts 100 years?!"
"Him." Erza replied with a smile.
"So who do you think is going to win when Natsu ambushes him?"
"Everyone already knows that Natsu winning is out of the question." Erza answered without hesitation.
"But, Natsu did just get back from years of training so it will be interesting to see how long he can last." added Mira.
"That Flame Brain has never lasted two seconds with that monster." commented Gray.
"So I take it Natsu has fought with him before?" asked Lucy.
"Natsu's just about fought with everyone in the guild who's stronger than him, but it's a little bit different for him and Gildarts." said Mira as she smiled remembering Natsu as a child.
"How so?"
"Well when Natsu first came to the guild, like many of us, he didn't have his parents anymore. Gildarts basically took him in as his adoptive son and raised him whenever he was here at the guild."
"Wow, so this guy must have a strong bond with Natsu."
"Mhm, that's why what Natsu is about to do is perfectly normal for the two of them." smiled Mira.
"Well it's clear that he's strong given what I've heard so far, but I still don't see why all of Magnolia has to shift for him."
"Oh, that's because Gildarts uses Crash and Disassembly Magic."
"Crash and Disassembly Magic?" repeated Lucy who was confused.
"Yeah, basically, anything he touches gets broken into millions of pieces. Gildarts is pretty forgetful as is so Magnolia creates a straight path for him to the guild whenever he shows up as a precautionary measure."
"He just breaks entire buildings into millions of pieces just by walking into it?!"
"Yup!" replied Mira.
"I should have known this guy would be the king of breaking things." Lucy sighed.
"Well that's Gildarts for you." replied Mira with a smile.
Just as Mira finished her sentence the guild doors flew open and in walked the man of discussion. He was tall with a muscular build and had a cloak similar to what Natsu had worn when he got back from training. The only difference was a few metal straps on the shoulder portions. He also had bandages wrapped around his right forearm and the majority of his torso. His orange hair was shoulder length and slicked back and he sported some five o'clock stubble. Gildarts took a look around the guild seemingly lost and approached Mira who was clearly the barmaid and rightfully so.
"Uhm, excuse me miss, but have you seen a guild called Fairy Tail around here? I believe this is where the building used to be the last time I was here."
"Yup! This is Fairy Tail. I'm Mirajane." Mira replied with hospitality and a beautiful smile as always.
Gildarts took another look at Mirajane and compared the Mira he remembered seeing to the one currently standing in front of him.
"Wow! You're little ole Mira?!"
"Mhm."
"You sure have changed huh? You've grown into such a beautiful young woman!"
"Thank yo-"As Mira was greeting Gildarts a loud voice at the opposite end of the guild had interrupted her, loud enough for everyone to hear.
"HEY GILDARTS!"
"Huh?" Gildarts looked up to see Natsu across the guild from him. He instantly recognized him and gave him a warm smile. "Hey Natsu, you look stronger than ever, good to see ya pal."
"I just came back from years of training not too long ago and I'm ready for that fight you promised me last time!"
Everyone was silent as they watched the interaction between the adoptive father and son. Macao, Wakaba, and Cana all had their money out waiting in anticipation of what was to come next.
"Maybe next time Natsu, I'm kind of tire-" Before Gildarts could finish his sentence Natsu had launched himself forward so quickly, even Gildarts had to put a little effort into keeping his eye on him.
Natsu's entire forearm was already encased in his signature flames, but right before Natsu was about to make contact Gildarts put his arm up to block. Natsu had already planned for a block and instead grabbed his arm with one hand to pry it down and engulfed his other fist in flames cocking his arm back in preparation of landing a blow straight to Gildarts' face.
"This won't be enough to stop me!" exclaimed The Fire Dragon Slayer with a mischievous grin on his face as his fist began it's decent.
"N-No way?! Is he really going to land a hit on Gildarts?! Just how strong did Natsu get?"
"Those guys are monsters."
"How long has it been?!"
"10 seconds and counting."
"Shit! There goes my last 20!"
"He still hasn't moved an inch though, we could still break even!"
Everyone was in shock at what was happening right before their eyes. Fairy Tail's Ace was about to get a full blown punch from Natsu to his face.
"That Ash-for-Brains got this strong while he was away?" asked Gray.
"I don't even know if I could beat Natsu in a spar as he is now." said Erza, remembering about promising Natsu earlier to have a fight with him.
"He was totally holding back on me! I'll make sure to bring this up with him later." Mira thought to herself.
As everyone was getting suspenseful about what no one ever expected to happen, the expected happened. Gildarts used his free hand to grab Natsu's fist and spun him like a hula hoop around his arm launching him into the ceiling. Natsu was caught off guard, but quickly regained his composure. He gained his balance again and landed his feet nimbly on the ceiling, launching himself back down, leg already in motion and covered in flames up to his knees. Gildarts was surprised at how Natsu recovered and was forced to take a step back to dodge the kick, but almost instantaneously pushed his palm out connecting with Natsu's torso and sending him flying into the wall at the end of the guild, knocking the pinkette unconscious.
"Guess we spoke too soon about the punch." said Macao.
"Dammit! He stepped back!" cried Wakaba.
"Shit!" Macao was so caught up with the actual fight he forgot to pay attention to Cana's wager.
"Pay up guys, that's why don't underestimate my Natsu." Cana purred the last part of her sentence.
"Natsu isn't yours." said a calm yet chilling voice.
Cana looked over to see a bitter smile plastered across Mirajane's face. She was also emitting a deep dark purple aura.
"Awww c'mon Mira can't you just share? It's not fair that you get to hog all of that to yourself." Cana teased.
Mira instantly became embarrassed and started blushing. "I-It's n-not l-like that… I was just saying that Natsu doesn't belong to anybody…"
"Oh? Well, if you aren't going to claim then I will, but I suppose you're right. He isn't mine…yet." Cana teased with a wink causing Mira to twitch her eyebrows.
"Calm downnnn, I was just kidding…Well…about the last part at least. If you're willing to share or if you really aren't going to claim him, let me know kay? He should still have that contact card I gave him a while back."
"How do you know he still has that?"
"Don't worryyyy, it's not like he calls me for phone sex or nudes, with which I'd be more than happy to comply with. My magic lets me keep track of all my cards. They can work as trackers, or even little magic cameras to spy on people and if I may say so myself you should hurry up and claim him because mmm, the things I could do with what I've seen… seriously, don't forget to share with me kay?"
Cana winked at Mira and left the building leaving a flustered Mirajane redder than Erza's hair due to what Cana had implied witnessing and now that it was brought up, Mira's mind began to wander in a direction that no one would ever suspect of the beautiful barmaid who was currently known for her proper and elegant demeanor. Meanwhile, Natsu was regaining consciousness at the other end of the guild.
"Ah man, I'll beat you someday Gildarts!"
"You've gotten a lot stronger so I don't think that's an unreasonable goal if you keep going at this rate."
"Alright! Anyways there's something I wanted to talk to you about."
"Hm? What is it?"
"Well, it's kinda personal so I was hoping you could stop by my place later and we could discuss it there."
"Alright sure, just let me finish letting Master know I'll be in town for a bit and then I'll head on over."
"Alright thanks!" Natsu flashed his well-known toothy grin at his second dad and headed out the guild to his humble abode.
"Hey Mira, are you ready to head to your place?" asked Erza, pulling the former Demon out of her currently perverted train of thought.
"Oh! Yes, I'm ready." Mira smiled, regaining her composure.
"Alright then, let's get going shall we? It's getting pretty late."
"Good idea."
xXx
Back at Natsu's house, Fairy Tail's Ace and Salamander were sitting at the table about to discuss something Natsu wanted help with. Gildarts was the first one to speak.
"Wow, you've really cleaned up the place."
"Yeah Mira comes over every so often so I've been keeping it clean for her."
"Oh? You and Mirajane huh? I never would have pegged her as your type." teased Gildarts.
"I-it's not like that!" denied the Fire Dragon Slayer shaking his hands wildly while he started to blush from embarrassment.
"Hahahaha I'm just joking Natsu calm down. So what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"
"Well, I kind of need some help with something. I've been getting these funny feelings ever since I got back and it isn't just recently either. I remember my body acting up like this when I was younger too."
"Hmm, well for as long as I can remember, the only times you'd ever get sick is when you ate an element other than fire."
"Yeah and that's why I'm so confused. I haven't eaten any other elements and I haven't done anything crazy so I don't know what it could be. I was hoping maybe you would have an idea."
"Natsu, everything you do is crazy hahahah. If you haven't done anything too drastic that could have caused you to be feeling weird then I'm not sure what it could be. Hmmm, have you asked anyone else about this?"
"Yeah I've talked to Erza about it and she says she knows what's wrong with me, but she's being confusing."
"What do you mean by confusing?"
"Well for one thing, she won't tell me what I need to do to get back to normal. She also says what I'm going through is perfectly okay, but I don't get it because I know how I usually feel and how my body acts and this isn't normal for me…it might be normal for a monster like her…" Natsu mumbled the last part of his sentence out of frustration.
xXx
*Achoo!*
"Erza are you ok?"
"Yes Mira I'm fine. I just got this weird urge to hit Natsu all of a sudden."
"Well c'mon we're almost to my house." Mira smiled.
xXx
"Ok so if Erza says you're fine then why don't you trust her? Isn't she your friend?"
"It's not that I don't trust her, it's just that she told me this was something that she wasn't going to help me too much on and that I need to figure it out for myself. I told her I'd go ask Mira for a second opinion, but she got more confusing and made me promise not to talk to Mira about it until I've figured it out. When I was running out of ideas of who to talk to I heard the bells go off and figured I'd ask you."
"Hmmm… She made you promise not to talk to Mira?"
"Yeah, weird right?"
"The only reason I can think of that would make sense for Natsu to talk to Mira after he figures this thing out is if…" Gildarts silently pondered to himself.
"Gildarts?"
"Oh, sorry I was just thinking. Say Natsu, these weird feelings you get, do they always happen around Mira?"
"Yeah! That's weird, Erza asked me the same thing. Did you figure out what's wrong with me?"
"I think so. Just one last question… Exactly how close are you and Mirajane?"
"Out of everyone in the guild she's the closest one to me aside from you."
"Oh? And why is that?"
"Well, we've been through a lot together. We've even kissed a few times."
"You've kissed her?!"
"Yeah, three times."
"And how did she react?"
"Well I kinda dodged talking about the first two times with her, but the third time she said we could talk about it later before I could come up with anything to say."
Gildarts cried internal tears of joy at the growth of his adoptive son. He was happy that Natsu had scored Fairy Tail's most beautiful girl and felt that he had raised Natsu right.
"Hey are you ok? You're zoning out again."
"Sorry I was just really happy for you Natsu. You've really grown."
"I don't really get it, but thanks." Natsu said scratching the back of his head out of embarrassment.
"Ok so I've figured out what's happening to you and although I agree with Erza that it's something you need to resolve for yourself, I'm not against helping you understand what it is."
"Really!? Thanks Gildarts you're the best!"
"Hey, don't worry about it. That's what I'm here for." smiled Gildarts.
Gildarts leaned back in his chair and started to reminisce about what it was like for him to be young and in love. Sure he's had his fair share of one night stands up to this point, but he would never forget about the one woman he truly loved. As he was leaning back he saw a magazine hung up on the wall that caught his attention.
"Hey Natsu, I know you keep souvenirs from missions and everything, but why do you have a magazine? ...Have you finally become interested in things like that?! Man you've grow up so fast!"
"What!? No! It's nothing like that! That's another souvenir. It's the latest issue of "Weekly Sorcerer" from when I went with Mira to her photoshoot as a bodyguard." Natsu grabbed the Magazine and tossed it to Gildarts.
Gildarts went through the Magazine and saw all of the pictures and articles that were written. He couldn't help but smile at the young man that he saw Natsu becoming.
"Natsu, you've done all this and you still can't figure out what's going on with yourself?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well look at this! Never in a million years would I have pictured you modeling, let alone with a beauty like Mira. And this interview too!"
"Oh I haven't looked at the interview questions and answers from Mira yet. We were going to discuss that later for the sake of strengthening team NaMi."
"Team NaMi?"
"Yeah, it's the team Mira and I formed. Happy usually stays at the guild now or goes back and forth between my place and hers when he wants, but for jobs and stuff it's just me and Mira."
"So you've formed a team with her as your only partner, you've kissed her...three times, and you've done a photoshoot with her? You even keep your house clean just for her! Is there anything else important that you've done with her?"
"Well she was the one to help me get over the loss of Lisanna and other than that we've stayed the night at each other's houses every now and then."
"Natsu you already know what's happening to yourself, you just don't realize it."
"What do you mean?"
"Look Natsu, you do things that you would have never done before with and for her. I wouldn't be surprised if she's borrowed your scarf by now."
"Oh I've lent it to her twice. Why do you and Erza think that's such a big deal?"
"See! It's because you'd never let it out of your sight for as long as I can remember hahahah."
"Well yeah, but I know she'd take care of it so what's the problem?"
"That's not the point, just look back on everything you've done with her. Do you get that weird feeling again?"
Natsu stopped to replay his life ever since Mira came to his house that evening while he was mourning. Gildarts was right. The funny feeling was definitely coming back.
"Y-yeah…"
"Natsu you're magic always keeps you warm, but I bet you're feeling a different kind of warmth right now. Even though you don't know what it is, there's probably some part of you that doesn't want it to stop isn't there?"
"Y-yeah…but what does that mean?"
"You already know what it means. You're heart probably races and you're always happy when she's around. She's the only one who can cheer you up no matter what and you would do anything to protect her…I know exactly what you're feeling because I've been through it once before." Gildarts looked up and smiled remembering the only woman he ever married.
"I still don't get what it means."
"Think about it, you always want to be around her and you'd do anything for her. Earlier when I was joking about her being your type you denied it, but you're not fooling me."
"I...Mira…is my…type?" the pinkette questioned out loud.
"Not just your type Natsu, you really like her…maybe even something more, but the point is, you want to be with her."
"No that can't be it! She's my closest friend…I couldn't possibly ruin what we currently have…I definitely don't want to lose her that's for sure, but…" Natsu started think long and hard about his feelings for the silver haired teen.
"I know what you're thinking. You don't want to ruin the great relationship that you two already share. Is that it?"
"Yeah exactly…"
"Maybe the past Mira I know of might have blown up at you about this, but the Mirajane that I met today would never do that. And if what you've told me about your guys' childhood together is true, then I'm sure even back then you wouldn't have ruined your friendship for trying to take it a step further."
"But-"
"Listen. Take it from me who has been through this. I've been with plenty of different women and no matter what age you are be it 15, 25, or even 45 years old, everyone meets someone at some point in their life that ignites a fire in them that will never go out. And I'm not talking about your flames Natsu."
"So since you've been through this where is that person for you now?" asked Natsu who was genuinely curious.
"That's the sad part, that person is not always the one you get to spend the rest of your life with…and as the one who knows this gut wrenching truth firsthand…take my advice and go for it Natsu, because I guarantee you that it's worth it when you get to be with that person."
Natsu just stood there at a loss for words at the depth of the advice Gildarts was giving him. It's moments like these that make Natsu truly feel like Gildarts is his second father.
"If you're still stuck on the whole friend thing, just know this. Marry a friend, because they're the people you would want to spend the rest of your life around. Now I'm not saying to go and propose to her, but I'm telling you not to let something like this get in the way of how you feel."
"…Yeah…You're right… Thanks Gildarts! You always know what to do for things like this."
"Like I said, it's what I'm here for." replied Gildarts with a genuine smile, glad to see Natsu having matured so much.
"I have to go tell Mira! Make sure you stop by again before you leave!" Natsu said as he ran out the door flashing his signature toothy grin.
"Will do! And good luck!" waved Gildarts as he watched his adoptive son rush off to take a huge step in life.
"I keep saying it, but man…You really have grown haven't you Natsu."
xXx
A/N: 4,000 words! I'm not going to lie, I ALMOST split this chapter in half, but I figured you all really wanted to see Natsu and Gildarts' talk. So how was it? I really hope you all enjoyed it because I tried really hard to make it as believable and serious for Natsu and Gildarts to hold a conversation like this. So you all know the drill! REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! Let me know what you thought about how I introduced Gildarts and what you thought of his advice and conversation with Natsu as a whole. I didn't mention Having a prosthetic left arm and leg because I don't think he has those until he comes back from his century quest so don't jump on my head for leaving that out when describing him. So anyways, I CANNOT WAIT to hear back from you all on what you thought of this Chapter! :) Favorite the story, me as an author, follow the story and me as an author (SO you can be notified of the sequel's release) and leave a Review/PM, whichever is more convenient for you, to give me some feedback on what you just read and the story as a whole :) Once again, I can't wait to hear back from you all and stay tuned for Chapter 14 of "Bonds Stemmed from Mourning" :)
~ I Kurisu I