Chapter 37

Everything was black. Darkened black and unnecessary as Rogue felt a familiar yet unfamiliar presence drag him down by the ankles attempting to rediscover where he really was. He had only just arrived here to fix everything that had gone wrong. When he had arrived a blackened sludge encased his ankle quickly moving up his legs to his arms until he hadn't felt panicked anymore, he hadn't felt the need to run away from the shadows, he hadn't felt the sadness of losing Sting or his guild members, nor had he felt the compulsive need to fix the future which had been destroyed.

It was dark and somewhere in the back of his mind only did the image of Levy herself pulse, Levy the reason he was here in this dreaded time, the only reason he would've came here, Levy who still hadn't stopped crying no matter how much he tried, yeah that Levy the one who he was going to give Gajeel back to her.

He glanced around it was dark as if he was being suppressed in his own mind, he could feel his body move but that wasn't his to command. It was like just shutting his eyes for a minute and opening them to see a dreaded destruction.

Rogue glanced around wildly as he saw what outstretched in front of him the very thing that he had tried to prevent. He glanced watching flames swirl around his feet and bodies crumple to the ground as dragons flew a crossed the sky raging as if someone had set fire to their den of young dragon-lings. As he glanced down towards his own two hands vibrating with the quickly darkening color and words "you're the one who did this" gritting his teeth he glanced around to who this thing that he dared not name as it matted his hands in red belonged to. Glancing over towards something he had in-definitely seen before. Standing, no they were on the ground one of them and the other was kneeling above him.

Who were they? Why did they seem so familiar? Rogue felt his feet move on their own as they walked forwards only curious to see the scene that had spread out before him fighting with his eyes as he saw the darker haired boy sob. "You're my twin brother! How could I have done this?" the dark haired boy screeched as the lighter haired boy reached up holding onto his wrist as he coughed up blood, but still smiled up at the dark haired boy. "Because I asked you too. Since I'm the older brother I'm going to take the pain and protect you with everything. Killing me is the only way to get this magic to protect everyone." the boy on the ground smiled up at him. "You had plan tonight remember? Are you going to ditch me, you promised." the darker haired boy whispered his voice slowly starting to fatler as the light haired boy turned to him whispering. "Oh yeah, I've got to keep my promise to all three of you...but tomorrow...I think I'll take a nap first." the light haired boy whispered before shutting his eyes.

"No wait! I can't loose you not here! Sting wake up Sting!" Rogue glanced over to the shrieking boy who was shrieking towards the one who would be called his own brother. Right that's what happened. Rogue felt his frown deepen as he slowly realized the reason of guilt that had become overpowering inside of himself. He had been the one to kill Sting with his very own two hands. "I think I'm going to be sick." He thought to himself attempting to glance away from the sight that had completely encompassed his vision. Everything becoming dizzy as he felt himself fall backwards into the darkness again almost like he was falling and falling asleep at the same time while the belated feeling of being tugged down echoed once again in his head.

"Levy? Where is she...we're the last one's left...I've got to make sure she doesn't cry anymore...I'll protect her."

"For whose sake are you protecting that girl?"

"..."

"Because you were asked is that why?"

"No. That's not why."

"Is it some insatiable need to prove yourself to Gajeel or to repay him?"

"That's not why either."

"Than why is it?!"

"I don't know. I just know that I felt like it."

"I see now. You're in love with the girl."

"And if I might be?"

"Than good. Here she comes now. Witness her demise."

Rogue felt his eyes snap open. Everything was slowly becoming confusing, no it had been confusing from the start. With the constant jumping in and out of not knowing and pretending that no time had passed when he jumped back into the situations. The constant waking up and wondering why the house was a mess with various strange excuse that had come from Sting, not to mention the missing memories and the whispers just now. Rogue gritted his teeth suddenly realizing what was going on as he felt himself lower his head. He was being used by his magic. He wasn't using his magic, it was using him. He was being possessed by his own magic. The shadows.

Glancing around it was if he was awake without his control for several minutes as fire engulfed the main city, flames engulfed all of it, debris was everywhere. Looking down upon the city Rogue saw the petite bluenette that he had been trying to fix their world for struggling to stand as she touched her pounding head. "What happened?" she whispered glancing around at everything. She had hit her head and was crawling out from behind the debris.

"Rogue?" Levy glanced up at the top of a tower. "I will be the one who dominates!" Rogue was at the top of this tower, talking or arguing with Natsu. Rogue glanced down towards Levy out of the corner of his eye barely noticed with Natsu who he was apparently arguing with. It felt like being in a movie, no control what-so-ever just standing there like a doll. As a giant claw landed upon Levy struggling to attempt to scoop up such small and fragile seeming prey. "That's not you!" she shouted reaching out for him as he glanced down at her screech. His eyes were cold, lonely even as if he had been hurt, softening for only a few unnoticed seconds as he saw her.

She had known. She was trying to fix it. But she couldn't reach him. Several minutes that felt like hours ticked by as he struggled to move his body to help her nothing working as he received several blows from Natsu. A second glance towards the dragon a feeling of helplessness beginning to imitate in him. Until he found himself upon the ground, the third and final glance towards the dragon with the words echoing in his head "I have failed" at the same a metal pole smashing the dragon's hand just enough to make the dragon let go.

"Thank goodness." He whispered looking up towards Natsu, he at least deserved an explanation. And so an explanation was what Natsu was given. About the shadows at least. "Natsu." Rogue whispered. "Yeah?" he asked seemingly quiet curious with as such a child would be. "In my world...I fell in love with Levy. In my time I came here of my own decision to bring Lucy back to Levy. There are only us three left and no one else, please protect everyone here. And most of all don't let Gajeel disappear on her." Rogue whispered struggling to barely get his words out as Natsu looked at him. "Of course I would protect them...It takes a pretty tough guy to do what you've done." Natsu whispered. Rogue turned his head. "And no one would ever know. But I think I would like it that way." Rogue sighed feeling himself beginning to shift times as he finally saw Natsu nod before disappearing away.

The place he had landed was ironically of all places in Levy McGarden's lap as she kneeled on the floor struggling to read one of her favorite books. "Rogue?" Levy asked glancing over her book as she wondered how he had gotten there. "Rogue!? What happened? You're bleeding everywhere, are you dying on me too? Where's Lucy I need her help." Levy bit into her lip looking back and forth wildly in the only undamaged library by a miracle in all of Fiore. "Shhh..I fixed it." Rogue whispered reaching his hand up towards her cheek as he brushed her hair out of her face. "Fixed what?" Levy asked struggling to keep herself talking while sitting there and not run out of the room to grab all of the medical supplies she could find to make him a worse mummy than he was when the Grand Magic Games had taken place. "You're the last person left here other than myself! Don't you dare die on me!" Levy shouted as Rogue shook his head. "It's okay, our time is going to start rewriting itself soon." he smiled up at her as she looked down with questioning eyes. "what do you mean by that?" that question didn't even have to be said out loud it was written all over her eyes. "I told you I fixed it. I went...all the way back to the Grand Magic Games...and something different happened...everyone survived this time." Rogue whispered as Levy's hands instantly went up to her face as she tried to suppress tears once again. "You're lying..." she whispered checking his eyes once again. "Oh my gosh...you're not...everything's going to be better?" she whispered as he nodded.

"It's going to be better but why are you crying?" Rogue asked as Levy glanced away. "I'm happy that everyone's going to be fine again. But I'm also mad that you did something so dangerous on your own." Levy sighed not sure how to express herself. As Rogue thought he could feel a genuine laugh rise in his throat. Sitting himself up towards her he pressed a hand to her face as those big brown eyes that could see not through him but who he was poured over him. "This will be the last time that I can be together with you." Rogue whispered. "This will be the last time I can kiss you" is what he meant. As they kissed a warm kind kiss that was full of love. But this love will never disappear.

That was when a warm white light surrounded them.

End

Fin: 12/08/2013 12:21 a.m.