Chapter 3.
" I've never seen them this nervous" she thought to herself seeing them hug. "Dad's also never been as strict like that to me..given the situation I understand but still. Whatever they are planning on doing for getting justice for Erza, it's clear they want us out of it" Separating from their hug, they nodded at each other. Taking his phone out, he walked away and out of the room around a corner out of Layla's sight. "Are we going back to the mafia mom?" "No Layla. We're going back to hospital once your dad is off the phone." "If it's alright , can I go home and check on my parents please? I know they are probably worried given I haven't seen them" he asked longingly. "Of course, Tristan. Just be mindful of your surroundings. Watch for any car that might be following you alright?" cautioned Lucy. "Yes ma'am" replied Tristan.
"Be careful Tristan, please" " I will Lay, I promise." Sensing her worry, he wrapped his arms around her as she put her arms up his back. "I gotta go but I shouldn't be too long. I'll call you when I get there." "Okay" her lips started to tremble. He kissed her making them stop as he smiled at her then headed towards the door. "Tristan?" "Yes ma'am?" "Make sure you call when your leaving too" "Will do" he answered closing the door behind him.
"Mom, are Gray and Gajeel going to be there too?" "No Layla, they will not" she answered firm. "Where," Lily started to ask while Layla had the same question going through her head. But before Lily could finish, the hard stare Lucy gave her, and Layla stopped any other words from coming out. Layla grabbed her hand reaffirming she should stop while she was ahead. "I know you grew up in a mafia too Lily but this one of those situations you don't ask questions, understood!?" "Y-yyes mma'am." She stuttered answering quickly diverting her eyes from Lucy and looked at the floor not wanting to see the ferocity in her face.
Empathetically, Layla squeezed her hand. "I know that feeling, mom can be really scary" she told herself. "Hey, where did Tristan go?" said Natsu turning the corner back into the living room. "He wanted to go check on his parents and make sure they were safe so I told him he could. It's been a little bit since he's seen them Natsu so you can't blame him one bit. And before you say anything, he's going to call when he gets there and leaves. Also, he said he will watch out for any cars that look out of place." "Hmm, I still don't like this. But alright, as long as he's aware." "It's his family Natsu, I'm positive he's very attentive to what's around him given what's going on." Skeptic, he said "Luce, he's sixteen. How aware do you think he is, but okay. I trust your judgement. Yo Lily, you alright kid?" he asked seeing Lily kept her head down. Surprised by his voice, she popped her head up
"Oh I'm good, ha ha. Yeah I'm good." "Okay" she answered nonchalant. "So, everything set?" "Yep, let's head to the hospital." Said Natsu. With that, everyone got their shoes on and were out the door. "Do you think there's a chance she woke up or will wake up today?" Lily asked hesitantly once they were on the road. She felt everyone's emotions when the car went silent.
"I could lie to you and say yes Lily" replied Natsu. Layla's eyes went big eyed as she listened. "But that wouldn't solve anything now isn't the time. Unfortunately, with her injuries and Wendy's examination, there's no way she would right now" "Oh, I'm sorry" she muttered immediately regretting having even asked. Meanwhile Layla was still stunned. "First they yell at me like they did this morning then mom and now dad's willing to lie!. He's never lied about anything in my whole life. Hell, that was the one thing he pounded into my head growing up. Don't lie and never make a promise you can't keep. That's what he taught me. Dad, just how bad does it have to be to make you two do things that are completely opposite of who you are."
"Layla, you okay, hello?" "Huh, I'm fine" "Uh huh, sure, you looked like you were zoned out lost in thought" she said not believing Layla was fine. " I was. I was thinking about my parents." "What about them?" "They aren't acting themselves. Everything they taught me ; they are going against. Your father's mafia… , I've seen my dad crush his enemies and make other mafia's who have tried to take him on leave terrified. Even in his competitions, he rarely loses. I have never seen my dad afraid of anything and there's been plenty of chances where he could have been but wasn't. Your dad's attacks that's he made on the mafia members; they have made both my parents show emotions I never thought I would see."
"I told you Layla, my father's mafia..he's strong and doesn't care about anything but making his the strongest and most powerful mafia in Fiore. Your parents, they are only human. Being afraid is a normal response." "Hmph it doesn't matter who it is. Strong, weak , big , small. My parents are the Dragneels. One of them being the dragon. They will take your father down" she said with complete confidence. "After living with you guys, I fully understand and believe it. My father doesn't stand a chance in hell against yours. One thing he never learned is when you back an enemy into a corner then that's when they can become their most volatile." "Ha and where did you learn that?" she asked with light amusement.
" From books, I can't say it's experiences sadly because my father has won everyone he's ever gone up and challenged." Putting a hand around Lily's shoulder, with a devious smirk, she said "Don't worry Lily, on top of his strength, my dad also has a secret weapon." "A secret weapon?" she asked very curious. "Yep and it's one your father will never see coming. "What is it?..if you don't mind my asking that is." "You don't need to ask; you've already gotten a hint of it before." "I ..I have?" "Yep…the night he went after all of you." She sat back in her seat going through all her memories.
" I hate thinking about all that again…what I did to her. Then that night. Wait!" She said suddenly trying to keep her voice down as Layla looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Are you talking about who he was that night?. I noticed something different in his eyes."
Shuttering she said "I will never forget that look. That wild ,uncontrollable fury. I thought he was going to kill me." Layla chuckled confusing Lily. "He wouldn't have killed you Lily. My dad is many things, but he isn't a cold-blooded murderer. Especially when it comes to kids" she assuring. "In any case your right about your dad having a weapon. Mine won't stand a chance against that." Lily added in agreement making them smile.
Unbeknownst to them, as quiet as they tried to be, Natsu had heard everything along with Lucy. Sharing a proud look with her, he thought "Damn kid is observant as hell. Which can be a blessing and a curse." "We're her parents, she's not supposed to worry about us but thanks baby girl for believing in us" thought Lucy. "Your right Layla, he won't see END coming" "Mom, Tristan just texted me he's safe at his parents." "That's great. Did he see anyone follow him?" "No, he said everything was clear." "I'm glad" she said relieved. "Tell him to keep his guard up" 'Okay dad" Stopping the car, Natsu turned around in the seat and said "alright everyone. We're here"
"Hey Jellal" greeted Lucy nicely until she saw his bloodshot and dark bags in his eyes. "Uncle Jellal" Layla said sadly. "You dumbass" remarked Natsu. "You didn't get any sleep at all did you?" "No" Jellal muttered looking at Erza. "Tch, you not sleeping isn't going to help you or her!" snapped Natsu pointing to Erza. "Shut your mouth" Jellal said coldly making the girls hold their breaths with Lucy standing beside them. Putting a hand on each of their shoulders, they looked up and saw she had an easing, calm face bringing them comfort. " Excuse me?" questioned Natsu taking a step back.
"You heard me. As if I could sleep while Erza is in this condition. You can't tell me you wouldn't be acting the exact same way were Layla or Lucy in this position." "This isn't about me. This is about you being stupid thinking sleep deprivation is going to solve anything." "If I recall you and even Lucy didn't sleep for days then you charged when they were grabbed." Putting a hand over her heart, Layla closed her eyes burying the emotions that threatened to come out.
Lucy squeezed her shoulder as Layla put a hand on top of hers. "It's okay" said Lily trying to comfort her. "Watch it Jellal" growled Natsu. "Your about two words away from me putting you to sleep myself. Second or not, you are not above that and incase you forgot , I am your leader and talking about my family is out of the question." Jellal didn't say anything but the anger was plain to see.
"You wouldn't be saying any of this if you weren't exhausted" he said reasonably.
"You bastard" Jellal yelled suddenly leaping up from his seat. "Lucy, stand back" Natsu said quickly as she took the girls and they all stepped back towards the door. Standing in front of them he stared down at Jellal. " Quit it Jellal. You aren't in your right mind right now." "Yes I am!" he yelled putting his hands up. "You don't want to do that man" he warned. "Yes I do, you think your high and mighty oh fearless leader, you aren't so as noble to think you are above feeling what I feel IF LUCY WERE IN THIS POSITION. YOU WOULD BE OUT THERE RIGHT NOW!" He charged for Natsu as he held his hands out to defend himself as Jellal hard kicked him in the stomach. "Natsu dad!" the girls yelled. " " he said grabbing his stomach.
"Natsu" Jellal raised his arms again as he ran at him. On his feet, Natsu threw his arm back and thrusted it at Jellal's face knocking him unconscious as he fell back into the chair. "Get some sleep Jellal" he said softly releasing a breath as the girls ran up to him. "Are you okay?" asked Lucy immediately checking his stomach. "I'm fine Luce, I've taken bigger hits from my competitions." "Dad, is Jellal going to be alright?" "He'll be fine sweetheart, I promise" he said giving her a hug.
"Did you really have to knock him out?" "You saw how he was Lucy. Doing that was better than him going further and listening to him overstep his boundaries. Erza shouldn't have to come home to her husband on the outs for being sleep deprived. It would kill her.. I couldn't let that happen." "So he knocked Jellal out not just for himself but for aunt Erza." Layla surmised
. "You really are a wonderful person daddy" "Now what?" asked Lily causing the rest of them to turn their heads at her. "One of the reasons we came here was to ask Jellal about where Erza was and obviously we can't do that now so" "Wait it out. He needs a few hours of sleep. Hopefully he will be fine after that" answered Natsu. It felt like an eternity was going by as they waited for Jellal to wake up.
"Natsu, I'm taking the girls out to get them something to eat" she told him seeing the bored looks on their faces. "Okay, do you have your-" "Way ahead of you" she smiled as she lifted her shirt showing her sidearm clipped to her belt. "Okay, be careful baby, please be back soon" he said giving her a kiss. "We will, promise. Let's go girls" said Lucy. They walked behind her waving to Natsu as they shut the door behind them.
"Have you heard anything else from Tristan Layla?" "No…I'm hoping I get too soon" "Don't be sad baby girl. You know it's been a little while since he's seen his parents. I'm sure he will let you know soon he's coming back." "I guess" she muttered. Rather then risking having to pull out her gun and freaking everyone out, she went through a drive thru and pulled over so the girls could eat. "should we get dad something to eat while we are out you think?" "Probably, knowing your dad, his stomach will say something long before he does" she said giving the girls a laugh.
"Mom…do you think dad will be alright with uncle Jellal?" she asked with some concern. "Pfft, Layla, honey your dad will be fine. You know your father." "I know I know. Just things are tense right now, so I wanted to be sure and that it was just me stressing out too much." Shaking her head, Lucy looked at her with amusement. "Thank you Lucy for the food" "Your welcome Lily. Alright, get your seatbelts back on. We should get back to Natsu, see if Jellal has woken up yet." As she put her seatbelt on, Layla's phone went off as she happily cried "Tristan is leaving. He wants to know if he can come to the hospital." "Settle down first baby girl and sure he can come. Just tell him to continue to keep an eye out" she cautioned.
"Yes ma'am" she replied with a squeak. "Glad to know someone can be happy during all this" said Lily admiring the loving look Layla had on her face. "Right now, we need all the happiness we can get..with all the shit this guy is doing" Eyeing the girls she said "don't tell Natsu I said that" "Mom please, you know that isn't the first time you have sworn. I've heard say you damn, shit fu-" "Alright young dragon, enough" she scolded. Keeping her eyes on the road, she said "yes I am aware you have heard your dad and I swear but you also know we don't want you repeating it till you are old enough. Is that understood Layla?"
"Yes ma'am" she replied. They rode back in silence as they pulled up. "Hey dad. Catch" she said when they walked in throwing him a bag. "Food" announced Lucy. "Thanks" he said grateful with a tooth showing grin. . "Any change?" "Nope, he's still out." "It's been a couple hours though and we were gone for almost a whole hour. How hard did you hit the man?" Lily asked stunned. "Unfortunately, I don't always have control of how hard I punch" he answered with a slight chuckle. Lucy and Layla shook their heads. "What he means is he could have hit a lot harder" explained Lucy.
"Oh ,Yeah" said Layla who started laughing. "I can't help it ,you know that Lucy. I give it my all when it comes to protecting my family" "I know" she agreed softly putting a hand on his shoulder. "Eat Natsu" Opening the bag, he stuffed the double cheeseburger into his mouth. As they sat watching Jellal, he started to stir. "Dad" "I know" he said muffled by food. Swallowing quickly, he wiped his face and walked over to Jellal. "Jellal? , you with us?" "Natsu?" he grumbled blinking his eyes a few times before he saw everyone staring at him. "What?. Why are you all staring at me?, ahh" he grimaced putting a hand to his head. "My head hurts" "Yeah,..but your lucky that's all that's hurting Jellal" He looked up at Lucy surprised by her saddening tone. "Take a minute, I'm sure it will come back" said Natsu crossing his arms.
"Wha.?" He started when the door opened. "Tristan" Layla said cheerfully jumping to her feet. Walking over, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her. "Hey Lay" he said hugging her as she laid her head against him. "I remember now" he muttered looking at them with a hurtful expression. "Did something happen?" Tristan asked but nobody answered. "Natsu…my leader. I'm sorry" Getting to his knees, he hung his head down ashamed. "Jellal" thought Lucy sympathetically. Standing above him in a commanding voice "Jellal…lift your head up." "I messed up." "Jellal, I said lift your head up" Slowly he lifted his head where Natsu looked him right in the eye. "Wha," "Shhh" silenced Lucy. "This is not the time for questions Lily" Gulping, she closed her mouth as Layla looked at Tristan giving him the same message.
"Dad doesn't mess around when it comes to mafia business or when someone disrespects him. Mom either " thought Layla knowing her parents. She knew there were times she could step in and times to not. "Your right, you completely messed up. You disobeyed an order, threatened my family, and attacked me!" Jellal closed his eyes waiting for the final blow when there was silence. Nervously he opened his eyes and looked back at Natsu. "Jellal" he said kindly shocking him.
"You did all that yes, but you weren't in the right state of mind. You were sleep deprived, under tremendous stress and, your wife is in a coma.." He remained frozen to the floor unsure of what to do next. Holding his hand out, Natsu motioned for Jellal to grab it. Not questioning it, he took a hold of it firmly as Natsu brought him to his feet. Smiling he said "you are forgiven Jellal. I'm not holding this against you" "Thanks Natsu" he said graciously. Bringing him into a one-armed hug Natsu put a firm hand on his back. "You got it brother" They released looking at each other caringly as Lucy came up beside Natsu giving Jellal a warm smile.
"WHAT THE HECK!" Lily bursted out causing everyone to turn their heads at the outburst. "He did all that and you just pat him on the back, I don't understand. You two were swinging at each other and you just forgave him. He's a part of your mafia isn't he. I thought that meant more punishment. "Lily" Layla called out grabbing her wrist and dragging her over away from the others who were paying no mind. "I just.. I don't understand." "I can see that" said Layla very calm. "We've told you before my dad's mafia is different than other ones. My father doesn't just fly off the handle when it comes to certain situations. Jellal is also more than just a mafia member Lily. He's family. He's been there for me my entire life. Him and aunt Erza both. They helped my mom take care of me when I was a baby."
"I feel like such an idiot" sniped Lily as realization hit her brain. "No, don't feel bad. I understand how you might have been confused. Your father's mafia isn't like ours." "It's like a completely different world Layla. My father doesn't show compassion or remorse. If someone screws up or tries to disobey him, they get punished severely. Some of them haven't come back , I'm sad to say. He's cutthroat and that's all there is to it." "Has he always been like that , like even when you were a baby?" she wondered. "When I was a baby, no. At least not as bad. My mom was able to keep him grounded most of the time but after she passed, all of it went away." "I'm sorry Lily" "Me too, were it not for him, I may not have ended up how I did before I met you Layla. All my father wants now is power and will do anything to get it. Right now, your dad holds the most power since he's the strongest in Magnolia. He will do whatever he needs to do to get the mafia." She said in a completely serious voice and was confused when Layla started giggling.
"Did I say something amusing?" "Ha, no, no your good. Just your father doesn't stand a chance as I've said. The mafia base, it's nothing. It's just a building. It's the members. My aunts, my uncles. The other members. They are loyal to my parents. They don't hold anyone there by force or chains. If they choose to leave, its their choice. He doesn't take for someone insulting any of us and a few other things but aside from that, nobody is staying because they have too." " Really?"
Smiling she said "yes, really. So there's no way your father can take that forcefully. You can't make someone be loyal to you so even if he managed to get a hold of the place. He wouldn't have anyone in it and he can sure as hell forget trying to make my aunts and uncles be part of his mafia. That's what I'm laughing at."
"I get it" Lily replied feeling amused herself. "Do you understand better now?" "Yes, I do, thanks." "Your welcome, come on, let's go back over." The girls walked back over as Tristan put an arm around Layla as she laid head on his shoulder. "You alright now Lily?" Lucy asked seeing them come back over. "Yeah, Layla cleared some stuff for me." "Huh?. What happened?" Natsu asked who had been completely oblivious to the girls. "Dad, did you really?. you did" she said shaking her head completely in disbelief. "Wow"
Cracking up Lucy said, "baby girl, if it's not important, It's' as good as gone in your dad's brain" Looking at Natsu, Lily completely awestruck said "seriously?, you completely forgot that fast. I yelled and everything." "Yep, don't remember a thing" he replied. "Typical Natsu" Jellal said with a smirk. "Some would call that a blessing" said Tristan. "With my dad, it's just funny." "Hey if it's got nothing to do with my family, I have no reason to remember. But jokes aside Jellal."
He looked up as the humor dropped from Natsu's tone. "You want to know about the town where Erza went." "Yes, what is the name?" Anxiously they all waited for his answer. "It's a town outside of Magnolia. "To be frank, I don't know where the town is or the island its on. The name of it though is called Oak town. From Erza's words, the town didn't sound all that big." "And you have no idea what Erza went to investigate there?" "Not a clue, just that I shouldn't have let her go in alone Damn it." "Not your fault Jellal. Don't put that guilt on yourself."
Putting a comforting hand on his shoulder, Natsu could see in his eyes how torn up Jellal felt. "This isn't on you. I also sent Gray and Gajeel around to the other mafia's to see if they have any information on that town and what Erza investigated." "Has there been any word from them at all Natsu?" asked Lucy.
"Not yet. But you know those two. They can bicker with each other worse than they bicker with me." Jellal and Lucy started laughing leaving the kids confused. "Oh, you have no idea Natsu. Try being stuck on the road with those morons for a year or months at a time. What they pick on you and Lucy about is nil in comparison to what they pick on each other for. Am I wrong Lucy?" "Nope, jeeze, sometimes Gajeel wouldn't keep his damn mouth shut" she answered still chuckling. "Oh, I can only imagine how they are doing right now" said Natsu.