Hey! Thanks for coming back! Sorry for the delay. I'm afraid the next chapter will take some more time as well, but it is being written! I'm not abandoning this story any time soon, so don't worry!

A note for this chapter: I slightly changed some of the canon character motivations to fit this story better. It might not add up with the original Fairy tail storyline.

And a short message to the guest reviewer who has asked me to write a Detective Conan fanfiction: I feel flattered :) and I would do it were it not that I haven't seen Detective Conan and right now don't really have the time to get into it (I'm still behind on One Piece and even Fairy Tail). But thank you for asking me! I hope you'll find someone else willing to write it!

Other than that: enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 23: After A Hundred Years

As I get back on my feet I feel determined. I came to this palace to negotiate and the fact that the person I will be doing that with is you doesn't and shouldn't change that. Natsu and Gray have to be saved, that has always been the goal. If I can just keep that in mind as I face you, things might work out. If I just keep my cool and pretend you're not the reason my life is miserable.

So off I go to find the red doors. I walk back the way I came, turn a few corners, glare at some paintings and finally find them at the end of a hallway. As soon as I lay eyes on them they open by themselves. Couldn't even take a second to prepare.

The final few paces I think of the pale faces of my friends. If I can just keep this up. If I just stay calm.

As soon as I enter the room that's beyond the red doors all that fades away. Instead I'm hyper focused, almost panicking. I keep on walking and at the same time inspect every inch of the space. I'm no expert on palaces, but I suspect you've led me to the throne room. The ceiling is crazy high and on my left are six long windows with stained glass, the sun shines through and draws figures across the floor. There's a red carpet, just like the one outside, starting from the doors to where the room ends at the other side. Against the wall on this other side is a platform on which stands a throne.

It would make sense if you were sitting on it, waiting for me, grinning as I approached, but you weren't there. Instead there stood a mirror on the cushion, a mirror that reflected nothing. There was only a mass of darkness moving around in it, shadows with rasping, whispering voices resembling the flames'.

Again: you couldn't be bothered to show up yourself, could you?

The red doors slowly close behind me. I'm now halfway into the throne room and then stop, because that's when I notice the girl standing next to the platform. She has her back turned to me, so I can't see her face.

It's the red hair that throws me off a little.

Save Natsu and Gray. Think about Natsu and Gray, and seeing Erza again. If I can just take the lead, have the upper hand in this negotiation, all of that can happen. For that I need confidence, or the pretence of that.

I force myself to keep walking. The girl says nothing while I near and does not turn around. I stop a few paces before the platform and look directly at your mirror.

The first thing I say to you could be crucial, so I take the time to think of something that immediately tells you I'm not afraid. A lot can be said after a hundred years (though it doesn't really count since you've sent me forward in time).

A quick sidenote: the flames are awfully calm during all this. Subdued in the presence of the big boss, I guess.

The words that eventually leave my mouth are: 'What do you want from me?'

And you, the darkness in the mirror, chuckle, and that already tells me I screwed up. You chuckle in a way an adult does when a child does something silly. And the fragile confidence I built up while walking into the room is wavering again.

You say: 'That's a broad question. What do I want from you? Aren't you the one bargaining for the lives of your companions?'

And damnit, you're right. I said a stupid thing. And on top of that: I hadn't considered what hearing your voice would do to me. Sure, I hear it every single night in my nightmare, but this is different. This is in real time, in real life. We're in the same room (sort of).

I start sweating and I hate myself for it, but I can't help it. It's like hearing the brakes of a train: the sound is a trigger of negativity.

Luckily I don't fall to my knees or start panting or something else that would make me look pathetic. But that's like putting glitter on a pile of shit, because I know I've already lost. I'm not calm anymore, I'm not cool, I'm not thinking about saving friends. All I want is to run as far away as possible.

I guess it should be admirable that I didn't. I stood there in front of you, as if awaiting punishment, and said, with the tiniest voice ever: 'Yes. That is why I'm here.'

A part of me feels frustrated and it forces me to not look at the ground. I can't look directly at your mirror anymore either, so instead my eyes drift over to the girl standing next to you. She still hasn't moved. She wears a purple gown that reaches all the way to the floor. Her hair is the same length, the same colour and the same amount of pretty as Erza's, but from the first glance I've known it's not her. She doesn't have the same magical presence. The one that I feel coming off the girl does ring a bell, but I can't concentrate enough to properly identify her.

And at the moment I don't care. It's not Erza, but having someone in the room that looks like her when you and me first meet is just a dick move on your part. You somehow already knew that I care for her and decided to use that against me, to throw me off guard.

And just as you suspected, I found myself staring at the girl.

You, from your mirror, watch me closely. After some time, you ask: 'Like what you see, prince Riku?'

I look away from the girl and instead focus on the cushion on which leans your mirror. I don't answer and that makes you chuckle again.

'Look at you,' you say, patronizingly, 'you've grown. Last time I saw you, I was afraid to crush you beneath my own two feet if I didn't pay enough attention as to where you were.'

You pause again, as if I have to say something to that. You sound like a distant family member, or a childhood bully whom I just happened to run into years later on a sunny day in a bright city. You look great. What are you up to now? Are you married yet? That sort of thing.

'Interesting,' you say then, 'you have the body of a man, but the spirit of a child.'

This causes my eyes to focus on the ground before your throne. You're mocking me to my face and there's nothing I can do about it.

I wanted to. The last thing I want is to be afraid of you or to admit to that, but it is the truth. In that stupid palace in Bosco I turned back into the little boy I am in my nightmares.

And while I stand there I can feel that you sense all this from me. You enjoy having this power over me.

Really: what did I ever do to you? I was just a kid when you took me. Did this whole revenge-thing on my parents need to last this long?

These and other questions swim around in my little boy mind, but I ask none of them out loud. After another chuckle, you say: 'But, then again: you are a bit early. One year, to be exact.'

I raise my gaze a little. I'm...too early? That sounds as if I had to come to Bosco at some point. As if it was already decided for me.

From the moment the mud creature tried convincing me to come to the palace, I'd suspected I was needed for something. After finding out you were the Emperor I already knew I played into your hands, but I never anticipated your schemes went so far as to have an actual planning.

If Erza didn't plan out this trip to Bosco, I would've somehow gone to the country myself.

'When I sensed you at the borders,' you continue from your mirror, 'I was surprised, and delighted. It saves me the trouble of summoning you myself. Well, unless you intend to leave after this conversation is over. Do you?'

I don't answer right away. I consider lying to you and realize it doesn't matter. I wet my lips and respond with a soft 'Yes.'

'Why?' you ask quickly. 'Everything you need is right here. Good food, comfortable beds, people who worship you, endless dark magic and all the red haired girls you could wish for. I have no intention of keeping you imprisoned here, but I am curious to know what is out there in that cruel world you so desperately want to return to.'

All you just said made me realize you have no idea what kind of person I am. Did you actually think I wanted dark magic? Did you think some red haired girl was all I needed to feel content? That those two things were all I lived for?

You reminded me of how shallow you are. You're a beast who only thinks in what he needs.

Now that I'm almost done telling you about my life, you've realized I never wanted dark magic. I was able to fight off what you wanted me to become and I think that is partially thanks to my mother and her magic. The woman you killed to take revenge will always fight you.

I still have nothing to say, so you take the lead again: 'Fine. I won't stop you from returning to the world, because I know you will come back here. And when you do, you must tell me about yourself. I want to know what drives the Dragon Prince to stray away from his destiny.'

At this I could almost laugh. The thing you call destiny is something you've created. Fate doesn't exist when it's manmade. Or monstermade.

Sadly I don't have the balls to laugh at you in your face.

'I imagine friendships must be part of it,' you continue, and I can almost hear you smirk, 'so it would be unwise to return the magic of those two boys, would it not?'

I feel my throat closing up, but swallow and say with the most unsteady voice: 'But you already know I can't escape.'

The darkness in your mirror stays quiet for a moment. 'That is true. So I would be doing you a favor. But what do I get in return?'

I open and close my mouth.

'You have nothing left to offer,' you say, 'and considering I already gave you so much, I have trouble feeling generous.'

You're talking about the flames. The greatest gift you've given anyone, right? You taught me how to use them and somehow think of that as a charity, even though you did it all for your own gain.

You're not generous. You haven't given me anything. All you've done is take. I have no life because of you.

'Ah!' you say then, 'there is one thing you could do that can repay some of your debts to me. It's very simple, think of it as a symbolic gesture. If you can do this small thing for me, I will give the magic back to those poor boys.' You pause. 'Swear your allegiance to me.'

This is before I knew what the hell kind of destiny you had in mind for me.

Out of all the "favors" you've done me this would be the first one where I actually got something out of it; Natsu and Gray would be saved.

But, as I just said: you don't know how to be generous. I would return to Bosco in one years time, whether I wanted to or not. Swearing allegiance wouldn't change a thing.

So I sunk down to one knee, bowed my head, and told you I would serve under you as the Dragon Prince.

'Good,' you say when I'm standing on two feet again. 'Now, prince Riku, are you curious about your destiny?'

I really wasn't feeling it anymore and that clearly showed, but you didn't care. You just started telling me about how you had your eyes on Bosco for centuries, about a war that raged in this country long ago and how it destroyed the magical foundations, causing all of it to turn dark.

'As you may know,' I remember you saying, 'I'm quite fond of wars. In fact, I plan to finally finish the one I started 400 years ago, with your help.'

I have little memory of our training together and most of what I know about you I heard from other people. A Dragon Slayer who is more Dragon than Slayer. Someone who will kill anything that has to do with Dragons.

'Prince,' you say, 'have you ever heard of a Dragon Seed?'

Of course not. The Dragon Slayers I knew personally at that time didn't know about it either. You explain it to me in a few sentences I can't repeat now, because I had no way of processing all of it properly.

As I understand it, the Dragon Seed is the plant-like thing that grows inside a person practising Dragon Slayer Magic, resulting in them eventually turning into a dragon themselves. This can only occur after a certain amount of time.

Now let me back up a little, just to get the full experience of what I was thinking. According to the old man of Snowtown, you chose me because you needed a successor. Not only that: my parents somehow wronged you and you took revenge by taking me.

But really: what the hell would you need a successor for? The country of Bosco? Hell no. You had no use for a prince. That was just a cheeky nickname. What you want is a monster. Imagine what you could do with a dark dragon, a thing that consumes dark magic. The flames you gave me were not for me to guard, or to keep safe. They are exactly what you said they were: Dragon Seed.

You knew the Dragons who still existed a hundred years ago planned to send their pupils forward in time to stop you, and you went ahead and sent your own pupil a year before they did. You hoped it would speed up the process of me becoming a dragon-like monster, but all it did was make the flames more aggressive. Sure, I turned into a monster a bunch of times, but those were babies compared to what you wanted me to become.

So you calculated again. I should be ready in a few years. By the age of twenty, I'd be ready to turn into your personal creature of darkness.

'I despise Dragons,' you say, 'and I despise anyone that comes close to them. I want to rid this world of them. The Dragon Slayers, that is. I want a Dragon strong enough to kill any Slayer.'

In a year's time I would become a monster. I would suck out all the dark magic lingering in Bosco and do whatever you told me to do.

That's why the people of Bosco were going insane when they knew I was coming. The city of Underlind was the only place without dark magic, thanks to you and they loved you for it. You somehow put it in their heads there was a way to free the entire country of dark magic, and the person who could do that was me. Prince Riku would rid Bosco of evil, free the people, all that kind of crap.

'I would've done it myself, of course,' you say, referring to the killing of the other Dragon Slayers, 'but now that you've pledged your life to me, I won't bother.'

I sometimes do wonder if you're just being a dick or if you're actually stupid. I never had a choice in the matter and you try acting as if I willingly put myself in the fight. You never planned to fight this war yourself, because you knew you wouldn't survive it. You knew I wouldn't.

But there's more.

As I've told you, my mother discovered the flames were getting weaker. It seemed to me I couldn't turn into a monster anymore. Of course I didn't say this to you while in the throne room.

By now, I've told you about my mother. And now you know why I still haven't transformed.

There's one more thing, which you've probably already realized yourself: Natsu is a Dragon Slayer. The same Natsu whose magic got taken away by your servant, the mud creature. The creature told me you couldn't consume the magic because I used the golden magic, something you hadn't mentioned either.

If your one goal in life is to destroy anything Dragon, there's no way you would willingly return Natsu's magic. The only reason you would return it would be if you didn't know he was a Dragon Slayer.

So to sum it up: you didn't know Natsu was a Dragon Slayer and you didn't know about the golden magic, which meant someone was keeping information from you.

As I was thinking all of this over I felt my confidence growing. Maybe not all was lost. Maybe there was a way to turn things around.

'Well, Prince Riku,' you say then, 'is there anything you'd like to say before I send you off?'

And for the first time since entering this stupid throne room I know exactly what to say.

During this conversation I felt defeated, humiliated, just so very small, but I managed to find a light in the darkness. I guess a little bit of that stupid Fairy Tail mindset stuck with me. Anything that has to do with magic should be impossible, but it is possible, which means anything is possible. Something along those lines, something similar to what Lucy tried to tell me back in Onibus.

This journey to get rid of everything that bothers me didn't end when I met you. It has only just begun.

Are you getting nervous? You should be. You have no idea what's coming.

There's still some story left if you want to hear it. All about how I returned to Erza and the guild and spent the last year of my free life before I came back.

You want to know more, right? I will tell you everything, as I've done this entire time, because it doesn't matter. I could tell you all the details of my plan and still execute it perfectly.

So. Shall I continue?

Fine. Let's start with what I told you before leaving that stupid throne room. I looked straight at your mirror, cracked a smile, and said: 'See you in one year.'

And to this you said nothing. I think you were confused. You didn't expect this sudden change in attitude. Perhaps you suspected something was off, but you didn't stop me. You ordered your mud creature to return the magic to Natsu and Gray.

And when you gave the order, the girl with the red hair that had been standing beside your throne the whole time started melting. Like a candle burning out she fell apart into a pile of brown I recognized as the mud creature that brought me here.

Outside on the courtyard, the mud creature transformed back into the clay carriage I arrived in earlier. The monster would take me out of the city quickly, so I wouldn't have to deal with the crowds of screaming people.

The creature joined me inside the carriage as the clay man with the top hat. It sat on the opposite bench and said nothing while we drove off the mountain, into the forest with the giant flowers. I expected to leave the carriage once the walls of the city couldn't be seen anymore, but the doors remained closed.

I thought again about the missing information. About you not knowing Natsu was a Dragon Slayer and not mentioning the golden magic once. There was only one person who knew, one person who had been present in the throne room besides your mirror and myself.

I looked at the clay face of the mud creature. It stared into nothing, almost seemed lost in thought.

I suddenly thought back to the moment Erza went away with Gray. The mud creature insisted I would tell Erza to go East, to find the cliff.

Even though this thing took Gray and Natsu's magic, even though it got me into this mess, I felt thankful.

After a while, I asked: 'Why didn't you tell him?'

And for the first time I saw some emotion in the face of the creature. Its mouth trembled a little, its eyes looked sad. I heard its voice answer inside my head. 'I rarely think about what it's like to be human. However, that golden magic has awakened a desire deep inside of me.'

I realize this monster wasn't always like this. You made it this way. It feels the need to serve you, but doesn't really want to.

After all the revelations and new information of that day, I struggled as to what to say to this. 'I...can't help you, I think. I don't know how to undo what he did to you.'

The mud creature simply nodded. 'I thought so. Though there is a rebellious spirit inside of you, is there not? You will oppose him.'

Hearing it from someone else, out loud, made it sound dumber than I feel it is. But it's true; I'm not going along with your destiny.

'Then,' said the mud creature, 'I am satisfied.'

So if you're wondering where your servant is, all I can say is that it's probably long gone.

The mud creature took me to the Bosco foot of the cliff. There your servant transformed back into the tentacle form it had earlier. It wrapped one tentacle around my waist and lifted me off the ground. Before it set me down on the cliff, I heard its voice inside my head: 'Good luck.'

My feet hit the ground and then I'm back. When Erza sees me and the tentacle, she runs to the edge with her sword drawn, but the mud creature quickly disappears between the average sized trees and the giant flowers.

She then turns to me. 'Are you hurt? What happened?'

Inside the palace, there was a moment where I thought I would never see her again. So for a couple seconds I just stand there, looking at her.

Then, without saying a word, I just take her into my arms, bury my nose in her hair, and sigh. I feel her freeze up, just because she's surprised. This is, by my standards, a blatant act of affection. Eventually she lets go of her sword and answers the embrace.

And for about half a minute it's just us on that cliff. I nearly forget the reason I went away. Then I feel something small land on my head. I see Happy's blue tail hanging in front of my eyes.

Next two other arms grab me from behind, and a face is pressed against my back. It's Lucy.

Natsu joins in by wrapping his arms around the three of us. I hear Gray sigh before deciding to join the group hug.

The mud creature did as he was told. Gray and Natsu got their magic back, and felt as good as they did before it got taken away. We all survived the trip to Bosco and I'm so happy I don't have the time to feel embarrassed about getting hugged by everyone here.

I guess you were right. Friendship is part of the reason I want to be part of this world. These people, and this cat, are my friends.

The thing that eventually breaks up the hug is the rumbling of my stomach. I haven't eaten since this morning.

'Ah, sorry,' I say softly.

Erza laughs. 'Let's get out of here.'

We let go of each other and grab our bags. I quickly grab an apple from the front pocket of my backpack, because I really feel like fainting now.

Before we leave I look over the edge of the cliff once more. The palace can't be seen from here, but I somehow feel you looking back at me. Next time we'll meet, everything ends.

I look away when I feel a hand grabbing mine. It's Erza, of course. 'Come on.'

When I look at her now, the most awful realization hits me: I can't tell her. I can't tell her a single thing about what was discussed in the palace of Bosco. If I do, she'll want to come with me when I return. She can't, and shouldn't.

I realize I can't tell any of these people. Once again, I will have to live keeping giant secrets. And this time I have to come up with a lie too.

You've succeeded in making my life horrible again, and I just can't wait to pay you back for that "generosity".

Erza can obviously tell something's going on. She's standing so close she can see every drop of sweat on my forehead. 'What is it?'

I force myself to smile, even though I'm pretty sure it looks awful. So I say something that fits that expression. 'The flames aren't gone. I don't think they ever will be.'

She squeezes my hand. 'We'll find some other way.'

That just breaks my heart. There is no other way. There never was and there never will be.

But that's just Erza. The swordswoman with an endless fighting spirit.

I don't correct her.