Lucy fidgeted with her fingers as Makarov skimmed through the letter that Natsu had reluctantly allowed her to hand over after working hard to piece it together again. The others in the room flicked their gazes back and forth, attention darting between Natsu, Lucy, and Makarov with interest. Natsu feigned his usual disinterest, his chin resting on the table and his hands tucked in his lap with Happy beside his head. Gray looked as impatient as Laxus, while Mirajane patiently sat there in silence, her hands clasped on the table before her. "Well?" said Laxus when Makarov pressed his mouth into a hard line and put the letter down on the table. Lucy blinked when he removed a piece of the paper, tucking it safely in his pocket, and most certainly didn't miss the flash of worry that crossed his face. Instinct told her it had nothing to do with the letter.

Rather than answering the question, Makarov turned his face to Natsu and Natsu alone. "Natsu, I cannot continue this conversation without my council, but I can also not continue this conversation without revealing to Laxus, Mirajane, and Gray what you told me when you joined this guild all those years ago. Do you acknowledge this and allow it?"

Natsu clenched his jaw. "Gray knows what color of blood I bleed," he said curtly. "That's all they need to know." Gray stiffened, caught off guard, and looked even more concerned about where this was going.

Lucy frowned at the coldness in her chest. This was different than what he'd felt when Sting had been so cruel to him. This was so different from the way he'd hidden everything behind a wall that had crumbled back to where it had been within days with Lucy's careful poking. He'd cut her off entirely now, focused on something he didn't want her to really be a part of.

Too bad, she thought and silently took one of his hands, prying it from its place in his lap and winding her fingers through it. He cast her an odd look she couldn't read; she ignored it and squeezed it, enjoying the comfort it brought her this time. She didn't like this; she could feel that there was something about to happen that she would never fully understand without having been born in this time, let alone a mythic.

Natsu eyed their hands for a moment before snapping his gaze back to Makarov as Mirajane said softly, "What do you mean 'what color I bleed?'"

Natsu took his free hand and slid his arm out on the table. "Happy," he said simply, and the cat purred, butting his head against Natsu's before pressing a paw over the fleshy part of Natsu's forearm. All it took was Happy digging his claws in as deeply as he could. It earned a hiss from Lucy, who was a little surprised when Natsu's hand tightened almost apologetically around hers. But it did its work, and beads of black blood appeared, sliding down his skin to gather on the table beneath.

Gray didn't react, having known ahead of time. He merely sat there silently as Laxus and Mirajane silently sat there, studying the sight. Lucy could have heard a pin drop.

And then Mirajane exhaled sharply, uncertainty flickering across her face. "A demon. You're a demon…"

Laxus was far more reactive. Disgust flickered across his features and Lucy thought she'd break her own fingers with how tightly she gripped Natsu's hand when she felt the hurt that cracked through that shell he'd made. "All that talk about Zeref – you knew him personally, didn't you? What the hell is a demon doing in the Fairy Tail guild? Is this a joke to you – something you'll turn around and destroy for the hell of it?"

"Laxus," warned Makarov patiently. "Just as there are good and bad humans, there are good and bad demons. We are fortunate to have a demon who likes to help people among us, regardless of his origins and what he is."

Mirajane tipped her head to the side. "This is why you always go to Natsu for advice, is it not?" she said, uncertainty replaced with interest. "Natsu, if I may ask, did you fight in the Demonic Wars?"

Natsu slid lazy eyes to Mirajane and let that ancient magic dance in the air, oh so different from anything else they'd felt. Lucy kept her attention on it – more so than normal, and wished she could run her fingers over it, feel what it was like. "I fought in 'em, yeah."

"Lucy," said Makarov, making her jump. That ancient magic vanished as Natsu's attention went to Makarov and his Marked One. "Would you care to read the letter aloud for Gray, Laxus, and Mira?"

"I…sure," she stammered. She released her partner's hand, reaching across the table and taking the letter. The first thing she noticed as she settled back to read it aloud was that the piece Makarov had ripped off was the one that labeled Natsu as a prince. Noticing that, she said nothing and read it out to the other three.

When she was done, she lifted her gaze to study the others' expressions. Gray looked stunned and worried – with good reason, she thought – and Laxus appeared to have forgotten his disgust with Natsu. Mirajane looked horrified.

"The Pergrande Kingdom…they're really itching to start a war?" murmured Gray. He snapped his attention to Makarov, horrified. "Where's Gildarts? Shouldn't he be hearing this, too? Do the other guilds know? Does Jellal?"

"Likely not," Makarov said, "and Gildarts is busy preparing something that has been a long time coming." He didn't bother to explain himself further. No one asked him to. Instead, they turned their attention onto something far more important: the prospect of a war. "What troubles me is the Pergrande Kingdom. They've not made trouble in some time – never, even," he said with a glance at Natsu for confirmation.

"They weren't a part of the Demonic Wars," Natsu said, not bothering to lift his head from the table. His eyes were sharp, wary. "I wouldn't trust the Spriggans either though. They weren't the most helpful people in the Wars either."

"Perhaps not, but they support the empress of the Empire," pointed out Mirajane.

"She was one of them," Natsu said firmly. "None of the Spriggans are mythics, by the way. Zeref performed the spell he used on himself to give him immortality – although to a much lesser degree. They'll probably be a little older from what I remember."

"Huh," muttered Laxus, squinting suspiciously at Natsu. "Are they demons then?"

"I just told you," Natsu growled. "They were human – test subjects, probably, for some of his more perfected magic." He slapped his hands on the table suddenly, pushing himself to his feet. "Do what you want, but I'm not helping 'em. Luce and I got enough to do, and I don't give a damn about any of them. Alvarez, Pergrande, whatever. They've got nothing to do with me."

"So why are they sending you letters for help then?" demanded Laxus.

"Who knows?" muttered Natsu bitterly before jabbing a finger at Gray, looking over his shoulder at Lucy. "Look, are we takin' him with us this time or not?" Gray stared blankly in surprise at Natsu; that had been one of the very last things he'd expected to hear at that moment.

Lucy, caught off guard herself, hesitated. "I…I guess? If he wants to go, that is–"

"Good. You're coming with us as long as you don't ditch Lucy with some random version of me again," Natsu told Gray unhelpfully, and the half-demon threw his hands into the air, completely bewildered by what was happening.

"Where are you going?" asked Makarov with an amused expression. He clearly didn't approve of Natsu's behavior, but couldn't help but be entertained by his determination to bring Gray along. "If you intend to willingly take Gray with you, Natsu, I assume it's somewhere non-friendly."

Natsu beamed, his mood-shift somewhat forced. Lucy said nothing as she gathered Happy into her lap. "Southwestern mountains. Gotta go find another spirit there, right, Luce?" Lucy shrugged, not wanting to be a part of the conversation when Gray's confusion turned to horror.

"Hold on," he said hastily, "I didn't say I wanted to go there."

Lucy paused then. It was that bad then. What the hell did the spirit represent if it was going to be this challenging to reach it? Happy purred and she stroked his fur for comfort, admittedly worried. Even Laxus had frowned. "You're gonna take Lucy there?" he said, and Lucy felt her face pale, once again absolutely terrified of these mountains if even Laxus was worried about the fact that she was going there.

"Perhaps you should contact Erza," suggested Mirajane sweetly, and Lucy threw a frantic look at Natsu as he frowned at all of them.

"You're scaring Lucy again," he complained. "Besides, Erza can't ditch Jellal and come with us, you know that."

"So take Jellal with you," encouraged Mirajane with a wave of her hand. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind accompanying you. Besides, I'm sure Erza would like to see you in person after what happened, Lucy, she's expressed some concern whenever I've spoken with her. And, of course, you should take Gray as well. I'd suggest Wendy just to be safe, but those mountains will be a bit too much for her."

"Natsu, maybe we should just forget the whole thing and just…go to the Pergrande Kingdom," Lucy tried, but Natsu threw her a wild grin and said, "No way, Luce, this is gonna be fun!"

"I will speak with Jellal and Erza and request that they accompany you," said Makarov, and Lucy felt a flicker of relief that at least one other person would be going. "Just to be safe. Of course, Gray, you know you're not to interfere with any of the tests these two are asked to complete by the celestial spirits." Gray nodded seriously. "I will send word to the empress that Fairy Tail has expressed an interest in helping them, but that Natsu will not. Regardless of your stance, Natsu," he added when Natsu gave a huff, smoke curling around his face, "you know very well that this could end badly without caution and attempting to stop a war ahead of time."

Natsu jerked his head in a curt nod. He didn't care if everyone else helped them; he himself would not be doing so.

"To finish this meeting," said Makarov, leaning back in his seat, "I would like to request that you keep Natsu's secret, Laxus, Mira. It has been one I, personally, have guarded for years now. I would not like for it to be spread among the guild and out into the world when demon hunters still attack even Gray's kind."

"Of course," said Mirajane, but Laxus wasn't as easily convinced.

Laxus leaned forward, bracing his elbows on the table and met his grandfather's gaze. "Gramps, he's a demon. The guild should know that we have a demon as a part of the guild."

"No," said Lucy rather sharply, furious with Laxus's annoyed disgust, and he looked at her in surprise. Just as she'd done with Gajeel and Levy, she stared him down, even rising to her feet. "Natsu's been a demon since the day you met him. Nothing's changed, you simply know about it. From what I've heard, he has not once tried to harm any of you. So why the hell would you turn around and put him at risk like that? He's done nothing to deserve it."

"Well said, Lucy," commented Mirajane with a warm smile. She turned to Laxus, her blue eyes glimmering with kindness, but also with determination. "Leave Natsu be, Laxus, he's done fairly well this far, has he not?"

"Also," said Makarov as if none of them had spoken. He turned his attention onto Natsu. "I suppose I should likely not admit this to you, but seeing how you appear to be continuously pointed towards the Pergrande Kingdom, you should consider that you may not have a choice about going there. Leo has called the Pergrande Kingdom home since Layla's death; I spoke with him upon Lucy's arrival almost a year ago. I believe his situation has not changed since then - although if it has, it has likely gotten worse - and he may require your assistance shortly."

Natsu went stock still, his entire body frozen in place. Lucy didn't like the sudden numbness that crept through her veins. Very slowly, Natsu turned a look on Makarov that likely would have sent most people running. As it was, the cold glare had Laxus rising warily to his feet, even more cautious now that he knew Natsu was a demon. Makarov didn't react – even when flames as black as pitch sprouted to life on Natsu's arms.

And just as suddenly, they were gone, and Natsu was grinning.

Lucy held her breath, unable to breathe around the tightness in her chest as he bared those sharp teeth at Makarov. "You promised me when I told you what I was that you would never keep something important from me, Gramps."

"As I'm aware," Makarov answered calmly. "It was at Leo's request that I said nothing. You would not have gone around as you now do, gathering the spirits and helping Lucy grow stronger, if I had told you anyhow."

"You don't know that," Natsu breathed. "You wouldn't know that because you didn't tell me." Black fury ripped through him, accompanied by immense frustration, and Lucy felt a stab of sympathy. She knew where Makarov was coming from, but Natsu…

No matter how tough he thought himself to be, the slightest betrayal was enough to shred his soul into pieces. He was constantly on the defensive, looking for ways in which people turned against him as a way of protecting himself against the harm that such a thing would bring.

Very gently, Lucy sank back and let herself curl around that numbness, soothing it as best as she could. Natsu glanced briefly at her, eyes still as cold as ice, but she ignored the look as she calmly gathered Happy in her arms, cradling the purring feline. Without addressing the others – figuring they'd understand at least to some degree – she said, "Let's go get something to eat. I've still not tried any of the places in Magnolia. It'd be fun."

He said nothing, eyeing her suspiciously as if he knew what she was doing, and she curled tighter around that frozen piece of him – until it suddenly melted and was replaced with a rather intimidating fierce flash of protective, searing heat. Lucy could practically feel the talons that dug into her, attempting to pin her there, as if made frantic by the idea that she'd turn around and slight him, too. It was accompanied by a surprising amount of sincere fondness, of warmth, and a feeling of home.

Lucy calmly let him, admittedly a little frightened by that fierceness.

Because she knew without a doubt that when he found out what she'd been keeping from him – that he was the one who destroyed Old Crocus – things would go from bad to worse. And, to top it off, when whatever went down in two years' time happened…the world would be subjected to the other side of it, and Lucy had no idea where she'd be in that mess.

From the sounds of that book she'd been given, it most certainly would not be with Natsu.


A knock on her door startled Lucy away from the book she'd been reading in a rare down moment in which Natsu wasn't present at her house. She was concerned about where he'd gone, actually, but assumed he'd be back shortly. He'd stuck to her like glue in the last few days as they prepared their trip to the southwestern mountains and planned how to meet with Jellal and Erza, who'd agreed to come with them readily. He'd even left his scarf with her. Something about not wanting to lose it while he was working, although she had no idea what he was working on.

Lucy tossed the book aside and rose to her feet, meandering her way over to the front door. She opened it and blinked at the sight of Gray before her. He looked rather tired, and she couldn't blame him for it; it had been Gray who'd been doing most of the work organizing everything, claiming he didn't trust Natsu to do it properly and that Lucy, while helpful, didn't know all of the details – no offense, of course.

"Hey, Lucy," he said in a friendly manner, and Lucy flashed him a smile in return, stepping aside to let him in. He glanced around curiously, and she snorted.

"He's not here," she told him. "I don't know what he's doing, actually."

Gray shrugged. "Oh, well, wasn't here to talk with him anyways. Just wanted to let you know that we're set to leave in the morning if you guys are ready. Erza and Jellal are gonna meet us at a small village at the base of the mountains. Jellal said Natsu would know which one. It's like a gateway, I guess."

"Okay," agreed Lucy, letting out a gust of air. She felt a lot better now that Jellal and Erza would be joining them – and Gray, too, of course.

"He still pissed?" Gray suddenly asked. She glanced at him questioningly. "Natsu, I mean. I noticed he didn't come in with you yesterday to the guildhall."

"Yeah, he's still angry." Lucy grimaced, running her hand through her hair. "I don't think…it'll be a very long time before he forgives Makarov, I think. I mean, I'm a little annoyed, too, but the level of Natsu's anger…" She paused to think it over before saying slowly, "I don't…I don't really understand him in that regard, to be honest. I don't know if it comes from something we don't know anything about, or something with Igneel, but there's just…something about lies and tricks and tests that rubs him the wrong way." She wasn't being entirely truthful. She knew exactly what it was that set him off. "I think it's why he doesn't mind me as much as he used to. I've always been really careful to be honest with him and I like that he speaks his mind, even if he knows it'll bother me." All except for the worst of her secrets.

"He's always been like that," agreed Gray, folding his hands behind his head. "He taught Asuka to be brutally honest when she was smaller and it's still ongoing work to explain to her that she doesn't have to tell everyone everything. I remember when we were kids…he didn't usually mind us. I think he thought we were fun to mess around with. But he'd get really mad and crabby if we started trying to lie to him. He's got a soft spot for kids, I guess, so it didn't ever carry over, but there was one time a guild member…he's been kicked out since, mind you, but he hurt someone badly and tried to lie about it to Natsu. Natsu unleashed hell on the guy. I think it's part of the reason Makarov trusts him so much. He doesn't lie, regardless of what it is."

"Unless it's about what he's thinking or feeling," muttered Lucy to herself. She fingered the scarf he'd left with her in silent thought and then said, "I'll let him know – what you said, that we're ready to go. I think he's ready to leave town anyways, so it shouldn't take long for us to get ready. We'll meet you at the guildhall at dawn tomorrow?"

"Sounds good," agreed Gray. He patted her shoulder comfortingly. "See you tomorrow then, Lucy." He gave a final wave and then ducked outside.

Alone in her empty apartment, Lucy bit the inside of her cheek and wondered not for the first time if she should tell Natsu about the truth behind Old Crocus.


Chill little chapter with some drama added in. ;) Always love that kind of thing.

Sorry about the small wait, btw! I slept in this morning and then had class.

Uchida Akira, regarding Natsu's age...I haven't really set a specific number, but he's at least 850 years old! ;)

A BTL fan, regarding werewolves and Cobra...perhaps one or both will be squeezed in somewhere. ;)

Thanks to reviewers (stranger1999, Bugseey, BeautifulSamurai, NaluNom, aquarius592, PersephoneQOTU, Person, Uchida Akira, Guest #1, valerioux, Surfy, madaraswife, sayaofthewillows, YoursTruly, ThirdGreed, Lissuin, and A BTL fan!) as well as those who favorited and followed!