Disclaimer – I do not own Fairy Tail

*Rated M for Mature

Chapter 14

Fairy Tail Infirmary

Gray and Natsu sat in the infirmary in silence, Zeref—the Black Wizard—resting in the infirmary bed.

"You want me to treat the Black Wizard Zeref?" Porlyusica started, breaking the silence.

"Yes?" responded Natsu, eying the healer hesitantly. He was taking a big risk bringing Zeref to Fairy Tail.

"Yes," she echoed. "Do you have any idea what you are asking me to do?"

"Can you just…please check him over?" asked Natsu. "Then you can leave and I won't call for you again."

"Does Makarov know?"

"Not…yet."

"Hmph," she responded, looking defeated. She did a quick examination before she spoke again. "He seems, for the most part, fine. Whatever happened to him seemed to drain his magical power. It will take some time before he's fully recovered."

"When will he wake up?" asked Natsu.

Porlyusica looked thoughtful for a moment. "Why does the wellbeing of this…person concern you so much?"

Natsu averted his eyes.

"Either way, I'd say he'll wake in a day or two. A lot of dark magic was at work here. May I take my leave now?"

At Natsu's nod, Porlyusica left them.

"I don't understand," started Gray. "You can't seriously expect us to harbor Zeref in Fairy Tail, can you? We should hand him over to the Magic Council."

"I can't do that," said Natsu.

"He tried to kill you!"

"It wasn't him who was doing it!" the dragon-slayer snapped. "It was Ankhseram again. After I attacked Zeref with my magic, I saw that same purple light leave his body."

They both just sat there in silence, lost in their own thoughts for awhile. Gray sighed, crossing his arms as he leaned back. He looked at Natsu. "What're we going to do?" Gray asked softly.

"I don't know," replied Natsu.

Knock, knock!

The dragon-slayer turned his head to see Rogue peeking inside. "Your master wants to speak with us."

Natsu inwardly groaned. "Here we go."

"WHAT WERE YOU BRATS THINKING?!" roared Makarov.

"I can explain," started Natsu.

"I don't want to hear a word out of you yet," said Makarov before turning his attention to Sting and Rogue. "You two participated in the destruction of the Magnolia Stadium, and a bathroom no less! Sabertooth will assist Fairy Tail in paying for damages since both are at fault."

Sting and Rogue nodded in understanding.

"I'm not finished yet," he continued. "The Magic Council is concerned that such a young Guild Master is detrimental to Fiore. As such, they've deemed it fit that I oversee Sabertooth for the time being until the Magic Council decides whether or not to replace you, Sting. This means you must have my permission to do anything at all related to your guild. Is this understood?"

"Yes, Master Makarov," replied Sting.

"Natsu!" snapped Makarov. "Would you care to tell me why you thought it appropriate to bring Zeref—the Black Wizard—into our home?! A place for our family's safety and wellbeing? You put everyone in danger by bringing him here!"

"It's not his fault," cut in Gray, trying to support the dragon-slayer.

"Silence!" he interrupted. "We will be handing Zeref over to the Magic Council."

"You can't!" shouted Natsu.

"He shouldn't be here. Not in our hands. There is too much risk."

"Makarov." Everyone's heads turned at the new voice save Sting and Rogue.

"First Master," gasped Makarov. "What brings you here?"

Mavis smiled and stood beside Natsu. "I think you should trust Natsu. He obviously brought Zeref here for a reason. Won't you at least hear him out?"

Makarov sighed and looked back at the fire dragon-slayer. In a much calmer voice, he asked, "Why did you bring Zeref here?"

Nastu took a deep breath. It was now or never. "Something…wants me dead."

Makarov's mind sobered up at that. Who would want to harm one of his children?

"He's…followed me ever since you found me on July 7, X777."

"Who, Natsu?" asked Makarov.

"Ankhseram, the God of Life and Death," the fire mage replied. "He's always…haunted me…hurt me. But the last few months have been the worst. I was finally able to get away just as the Grand Magic Games began, but at the cost of my and Happy's home. I think I hurt him when I burned our house down somehow.

"Lately, though, I've been having brief flashes of memory from before my time with Igneel. I don't remember everything. I think the Dragon Ceremony I underwent with the other dragon-slayers made my mind fuzzy. I can only hold onto certain memories. Some are clearer than others.

"During the Grand Magic Games today, I think Ankhseram was trying to possess people. I think he was trying to test what he could do to see if he could manipulate people into doing his will. He feeds off of negative emotions. It gives him power and strength. He possessed the person who tried to strangle Kagura, and he possessed Zeref. I think he was trying to make Zeref…kill me."

Makarov frowned in thought. Why would Ankhseram, the God of Life and Death obsess over Natsu in such a way? "I'm afraid I still don't understand why you saw fit to bring Zeref here. He is the Black Wizard, a creator of demons who have killed thousands over the centuries. Why would you bring someone like that into our home whether he was possessed by another or not?"

Gray looked at Natsu. He wanted an answer to this question as well, but the fire mage had shrugged him off every chance he could. The dragon-slayer wouldn't be able to avoid it any longer.

"Zeref," Natsu began, however, he hesitated as if fearing the worst. "Zeref is…I brought Zeref here because…he's my older brother." There. It was out in the open now.

"He's…what?" asked Gray.

Makarov silently thanked him for asking the question. He was too stunned to reply.

"Zeref is my older brother," Natsu repeated, this time, a little more firmly.

Mavis looked at him curiously. "What makes you say that?" she asked.

"I'm…not sure," the fire mage replied, clearly frustrated. "I just know that he is…somehow. Whenever something sparks in my mind, it's like it fades out before I can grasp onto it."

"Hm," started Makarov. "Does this happen with the rest of you? The dragon-slayers, I mean?"

Both Rogue and Sting nodded. "Like Natsu said, everything's kind of fuzzy. Our memories have been like that since July 7, X777. That goes for Gajeel and Wendy, too," answered Sting.

"Makarov?"

"Yes, First Master?" said mage responded, still trying to overcome the information he'd suddenly been burdened with.

"Is it possible for Porlyusica to recover the lost memories of the dragon-slayers?" Mavis inquired.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," cut in Natsu. "She's already mad at me for having her look over Zeref."

"I'll speak with Porlyusica," said Makarov. "In the meantime, Zeref will be restrained by Magic Seal Stone cuffs. I will have Freed take precautionary measures by placing runes around Zeref's infirmary room."

"Isn't that a little much?" Natsu questioned softly.

"Personally, I don't believe it's enough," replied Makarov. "We are at risk with Zeref being here. I will hold off taking him to the Magic Council for now until we sort all this out. However, we will still have to worry about his ultimate discovery."

"But it's not like anyone knows what he looks like," said Natsu. "Other than us, that is. No one's gonna know unless we actually say we have Zeref here."

"He does have a point Makarov," added Mavis. "If we take the proper precautions, I don't see why we can't keep Zeref here."

"We could call him something else for now," offered Gray.

"Fuyu," said Natsu. "We'll refer to him as Fuyu."

Makarov took a deep breath and sighed. He was getting too old for this. "Fine. But I will need to know which members of Fairy Tail know that that is Zeref so that they can be filled in on our current situation."

"Everyone else will be told that his name is Fuyu," added Mavis, "and that he is Natsu's long lost brother who wants to join Fairy Tail. Let's give him a guild mark."

Makarov sputtered in indignation. Give the Black Wizard Fairy Tail's guild mark? What on earth was the First Master thinking? However, he felt the need to trust her. "Fine. Have it your way. Now someone get Porlyusica. We need to discuss the complications that resulted from the Dragon Ceremony."

Natsu waited for nearly an hour before he was allowed to see Zeref again. The fire mage sat next to his brother's bed, staring at the Magic Seal Stone cuffs around his wrists in annoyance. There was no need for that, but he'd abide by what Makarov said for now. If anything, the runes were enough.

The dragon-slayer brushed a strand of hair out of Zeref's face. "We can't call you Zeref for the time being. I settled on Fuyu, so that's what we're calling you for the time being. I thought it was fitting."

He paused when no reaction came from Zeref.

"Please wake up soon. I want to talk to you," he continued. "I want to understand what's happening, and I think you'll be able to give me the answers I need…nii-sama."

"How is he?" said Gray, sitting next to Natsu.

"The same," replied the fire mage, but something started plaguing his mind. "You're taking this awfully well."

"Are you surprised by that?"

"I am, actually," said Natsu, turning his attention to the ice mage. "Zeref created the demon that killed your family, and here you are supporting me. I thought you'd be…angrier."

"I admit that this is difficult for me. I know he's the one that caused so much devastation in my life. But I keep thinking about whether there's some greater force that's really behind it all. I want to trust you. I do trust your judgment, and I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt.

"I'm not saying this isn't going to cause some ripples in our relationship, but this is a heavy responsibility. I will make an effort to fulfill it to the best of my ability. Natsu, I will venture to the very edge of danger, especially it if will make you happy. Even if Zeref is the true cause behind all of my past traumas, it brought me to you. And I'm grateful for that because I love you more than you'll ever know."

"Thank you, Gray," replied Natsu, resting his head on the ice mage's shoulder. "I love you, too. I don't know what I'd do without you right now."

"That makes two of us," said Gray. "Let's go home. There isn't much we can do here now."

"Okay."

Gray's Bedroom (Early Morning)

Gray sighed, stretching fully before collapsing back onto the bed. Turning onto his stomach, he pressed his face into the empty pillow next to him.

Empty?

He shot up from the bed, the sheets pooling around his waist, and looked quickly around the room. Natsu was nowhere in sight. He was just about to leave the room when he saw the door to his balcony open. Curious, Gray moved toward the door and peeked outside.

Natsu was sitting on a chair, a warm blanket wrapped around his shoulders. His knees were pulled up to his chin and he seemed to be staring off into space.

"Natsu?"

The dragon-slayer's head snapped in the direction of Gray's deep voice, but he rapidly turned away again, as if he were trying to avoid him.

This was not the reaction Gray had been expecting. Immediately taking initiative, he went up to Natsu and sat on the ground in front of him, his eyes panning over the fire mage as if searching for the answer to Natsu's sudden discomfort.

"Natsu, what's wrong?" Gray asked concernedly, placing his hands on Natsu's hips and massaging him gently, trying to coax him into relaxing.

"Nothing's wrong," Natsu responded distantly, shrugging off Gray. "I just want to be alone right now."

He wanted to be alone? Why?

Gray, not used to being brushed off so easily, wrapped his arms around Natsu's waist and pulled him toward him. After a little bit of struggling, Natsu consented and allowed the ice mage to pull him down from the chair and into his lap.

"Now tell me what's wrong. Talk to me," Gray said firmly, a rigid frown on his handsome features.

"I just want time alone…to think…" he mumbled, irritation evident in his voice.

Gray sighed, his patience wearing quite thin. "Think about what?" When he remained silent, Gray turned Natsu to face him. "Will you please talk to me? I have no idea what's bothering you. Is it Zeref?"

Natsu lowered his eyes and buried his face in the crook of Gray's neck, embracing the momentarily stunned ice mage tightly.

When he started to feel Natsu sigh, he pulled Natsu closer to him. "Natsu? What is it? After everything we've been through, you can tell me anything. You know that, right?"

"Of course, I know that," Natsu replied, though it sounded quite muffled. He pulled away and looked into Gray's startling blue eyes. "I need you to promise me something, Gray," Natsu demanded seriously.

Dumbfounded, Gray replied, "Sure. Anything."

"I'm serious, Gray. I need you to sincerely promise me." When Gray nodded again, Natsu continued. "If…anything should happen to me, I want you to look after the guild."

"What the hell? What do you mean if anything should happen to you?" Gray shouted, pulling Natsu closer to him in a means to protect him from whatever threat might be out there. Where the hell had this thought come from so suddenly?

"Gray. Don't make this any harder than it has to be. Just promise me. Promise me," Natsu pleaded.

"No! Not until you tell me why the hell you're suddenly thinking this way!"

Natsu averted his eyes before he spoke again. "Something bad is coming. I can feel it. And I don't know if I can stop it."

"Natsu," Gray started, his voice strained, "no one is asking you to do anything! You don't have to do anything! You have so many other people to rely on. Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?"

"I heard a voice again…early this morning. I think something might happen soon. I don't know."

Gray was momentarily rendered speechless. Another voice? "Did the voice sound threatening or-"

"How the hell are you supposed to tell if something is threatening when it's a disembodied voice, Gray? Huh? Tell me! Because I sure as hell would like to know the answer!" Natsu bellowed, pushing Gray away from him.

"I don't know!" Gray roared back. "But," he continued more quietly, "if something does happen, we'll face it together. You're not charging into the battlefield without me, especially if you're unsure about what's really going on. We can't let one little voice get in the way of us living our lives, Natsu."

Natsu hadn't thought of it like that. How much power did the voice really have? He had been practically asleep when he heard it. Maybe he'd dreamt it or something. But if he did, why did he feel like something bad was going to happen? Was it really just all in his head?

End Chapter