The guild had finally returned home a week ago, Reese and the Justine family going on into Seven so that he could be introduced to the court as Kurino's intended. In that time life had returned to normal, as the hangovers for celebrating the guild's victory had finally subsided yesterday. So, Nash was where one could normally find him, in the guild's library doing research for the upcoming war meeting as they all prepared to face off against the beast.
"hmmm," Nash hummed as he felt a familiar pair of hands begin to work their way into his scalp, easing the tension headache that was beginning to appear. Leaning back into them he looked up meeting lavender eyes. "Hey," he smiled lazily as soft lips met his in a languid kiss.
"Did you figure out where he's been hiding?" Lexie asked as she laid her head on his shoulder wrapping her arms around his neck as she nuzzled her head into him.
"No, but it's been almost thirty years since anyone has seen Acnologia. It would be notable that we may never find his hoard," Nash said his green eyes narrowing slightly as he felt Lexie purr against him.
"We should tell them," he said quietly as he felt the purr suddenly stop.
"No, you're not ready and I won't tell them until you are," the blonde said shaking her head.
"That's bull shit and you know it," Nash growled lowly.
"Nash," Lexie sighed in annoyance, it was a conversation they had been having with increased frequency.
It always went to same way. He'd bring up the issue she'd try to change the subject, when that didn't work they'd start yelling then ignore each other for a few days and the stale mate would end when he'd had enough and ended up pinning her to the nearest wall so he could steal the breath from her lungs.
"No, if I let you, you'll wait as long as Wendy did. Lexie, we have known I'm your mate since I was twelve and you should have said something then," Nash said for the near thousandth time.
"Yeah, a sixteen-year-old, claiming a twelve-year-old sounds good to you right?" Lexie growled sarcastically under her breath as she stubbornly refused to look at those green eyes that would cause her to crack.
"You wouldn't have claimed me then and you know it but we could have dated openly," the pink haired teen groaned as he ran a hand over his face.
"Please," the lighting dragon slayer exhaled rolling her eyes.
"Please she says. I'm not your average mage I'm the son of a dragon slayer," he groaned as he turned to face the girl.
Learning he was the mate of a dragon slayer wasn't odd. He'd always felt drawn to Lexie, would follow her around the guild much to annoyance of his older brother. But it wasn't until his twelfth birthday that he knew the reason. In the middle of the guild he sat surrounded by presents everything from vials of rare ingredients to toys he would most likely give to the orphans littered amongst the remains of wrapping paper and bags. Feeling a presence in front of him he looked up and found Lexie standing over him a worried look on her face as she shoved a book in his hands. It wasn't wrapped but his eyes widened in shock as he held it.
Opening the first page he scoffed in disbelief. It was a spell book, from an Altlan incubus clan about a thousand years ago. Jumping up he hugged her tightly as he thanked her, but soon a jolt rushed down his body as he could only vaguely hear the laughter around him. Looking up he saw the same look in her eyes that he'd seen so much growing up. Weather it was from his father when he looked at his mother or his aunt's and uncle's when they looked at their own mates.
"Yeah I know and you got the dragon hide... I've never been afraid of hurting you," Lexie sighed bringing him back to reality. Over the last few years they grew closer his friends in the guild dated around but he only had eyes for one girl, his mate.
"Then what your father? The guild? Cause if you're afraid of my parents I know for a fact dad will find this funny for the rest of his life," Nash said with a knowing smile.
"Lexie are you down here?" Laxus's voice boomed from the top of the stairwell, sniffing he knew his daughter wasn't alone.
"Yeah dad," Lexie confirmed as she knew her father bit back the growl he held in. Even at twenty he still hated the idea of her alone with any boy.
"You and Nash should come up here we are going over the plan again," Laxus grunted as the two teens made their way up the stairs. The guild elders all surrounding the table which held maps, charts and various plans that had been scratched over the years. Every few months this seemed to happen but as far back as any of them could remembering their parents had been planning for Agnologia's return.
"Okay you two," Laxus grunted as he waved them forward as they meet the eyes of the other teens who had joined in the planning.
"So, what were you discussing down there?" Igneel taunted knowingly Kyra sitting right next to him as she giggled.
Glaring at his elder brother Nash had had enough, all of his elder siblings were openly with the people they would settle down with and the frustration of being so close and yet so far was finally too much.
"This," Nash said as he yanked the back of Lexie's head till it was on his shoulder and proceed to kiss her fiercely.
"hahaha, I knew it Luce didn't I tell ya!" Natsu cackled as Lexie's head was still swimming from the kiss.
"Okay little Zeref," Laxus growled out the guilds nickname for the Dragneel "you have ten seconds to explain yourself," the guild master hissed as the other slayers all backed up knowing what was coming.
"I can't kiss my mate?" Nash said cheekily as the lighting dragon Slayer growled in anger as he set a bolt of lightning to the Dragneel. But it never reached him as Lexie stopped it as her once dazed face contorted into rage at her father.
"You dare attack my mate!" Lexie roared as she leapt at her father.
"So how long have you known?" Lucy asked as she sat back down next to her son, unconsciously rubbing her stomach as her baby bump was just starting to show.
"Since my twelfth birthday party," he said as Lucy groaned.
"See Luce I told you that's what was happening," Natsu said as he ruffled his son's hair. "So, when are you gonna complete it?" The fire dragon slayer asked as he looked over as Lexie and her father continued to fight.
"I'm gonna guess not long after they finish that," Nash said as he found the note book, he was looking for. "So, here's all my research on Agnologia. I can't pin point his hoard but I have a theory as to why he hasn't been seen since Tenrou island," Nash said quickly as he felt charged air surround him.
"Times up mate," Lexie growled as she and Nash disappeared in a clap of thunder.
"So, master how ya feeling?" Gajeel jeered as Laxus stumbled to the table. It had been some time since anyone had actually whipped the floor with him and there was a huge part of him that was proud at the fact that his daughter was the one to do it. "So Agnologia," he groaned as he passed on the table.
"Wendy are you going to heal him?" Lisanna asked chuckling.
"No, he can heal on his own," Wendy said as little Gale giggled on her mother's lap.
"So, I was looking over Nash's notes and I think his theory is pretty sound," Ren said later that day.
Laxus had been moved to the infirmary and the others had gotten back to work. Ren had spent the last few hours going over every scrap of research Nash had and realized that not even his mother did as much research as Nash did.
"What's his theory?" Lucy asked.
"Well it's kind of complex, mom do you have a light pen?" Ren asked as he caught the pen his father had thrown at him without looking up from the book in his hand.
"So, we know that Agnologia attacked Tenrou island in the year x783,"Ren began as he wrote the date and place of the dragon's appearance. "But there hasn't been any signs of him since then and Nash has had Chance cast card every week for the last eight years looking for him and nothing started popping up until over a week ago near the end of the games," Ren continued as he walked a few feet away and wrote that on the board.
"Yeah it didn't get a location just a presence of his magic almost like he was waking up," Chance said as he drew again and got the same results.
"So here is Nash's theory which I don't quite fully understand. Agnologia has been in a deep state of hibernation for the last thirty years, so that his magic can regenerate," Ren read as he used his magic to have those word appear at the top of the board.
"Why would he need that?" Levy asked as she tried to take the note book from her son but he simply held it out of her reach. "you had to get your father's height," Levy growled as she tried to jump and reach the book but was stopped when her mate pulled her in his lap.
"At least let him finish," Gajeel growled against her neck.
"So, here's his reasoning, Agnologia cannot kill anyone with Haroworth blood using his magic. According to his research, magic that is passed down through blood lines would always cancel each other out when life was on the line. You can harm them but not kill them it won't let you," Ren read as Lucy scoffed.
"But Agnologia killed key holders to enact the Zodiac curse," the celestial mage spoke rocking Luna to sleep, the little girl drooling on her shoulder.
"Yes, but he did so by his own bare hands with brute strength, not using Magic. When he attacked Tenrou island he used a roar attack and there were two Haroworths on the island that received the hit as well. What Nash's theory is that when the attack hit the barrier you all created using your combined magic, which included two Haroworths. It sent an attack right back at him. Now like all of you it caused him to go into stasis for many years," the prince spoke as he placed one book down and rummaging around for another.
"But we woke after seven years," Levy said snatching the book her son once held from the pile going over the notes herself.
"Yeah, he has a note here saying ask Mavis," Ren said tapping the light pen against the book in his hand.
"You called?" The cheerful voice of the first master spoke as she appeared. Sitting on the edge of a table her feet kicking.
"Do you know about what happened on Tenrou island? Specifically, with the barrier?" Ren asked as he looked down at the spirit.
"Yes, when I realized what had happened, I spent years cracking away at it," Mavis said seriously as she waited for the next question, she knew the eldest Redfox would ask.
"So, it was you who help raised the island again," Lucy confirmed.
"Yes, I didn't know what had caused the barrier but I knew if I worked hard enough, I could weaken the barrier. Then when the guild came to look one more time, I was able to channel their magic and free everyone," Mavis cheered as the group looked around.
"I just have one question. How did the bastard survive?" Natsu growled Anna curled up in his arms.
"The same way you all did, Nash hasn't done any experiments on this yet looks like right now this is all just theory," Ren sighed as he looked down at the sicky note on the page before rooting through the pile in search of another book. Making a mental note to teach his guild mate a proper filing system. "Here it is," Ren sighed as he found the book and turned to the appropriate page.
"It says here that when blood born magic is used against it's sibling it will cause a coma in both parties relative to the powers that they used," Ren finished as he turned the page to read the notes. "then it has references to something called the takeover war in Iceburg from x506. Then all he talks about is proving the theory questioning if it is simply the same magic or if it extended to other blood born mages of the same family but not the same type….. I think this is a newer theory he's not got a lot of this figured out," Ren sighed as he handed the book to his eager mother.
"So, why he doesn't know?" Gajeel growled as Zeref read over Levy's shoulder.
"Scientific inquiry is a process, Nash hasn't tested this theory because it requires conditions that can't be met," Zeref said as he stood up straight.
"What are those exactly?" Laxus groaned as he made his way back down the stairs rubbing a hand over his head. "Where are my daughter and the Zeref clone?" the guild master grumbled as he sat down at the table the others were gathered around.
"First off he would need two mages of the same type and blood line to fight. And not just fight, they would literally have to try and kill each other. Then it would need to be replicated at least three times with different mages and similar results. Then you look at mages form the same blood line but with different magics, and repeat," Zeref said as the table looked at him in concern.
"But there is a reason this is just a theory. Nash would never do this since the only mages that have inherited magic are all in the guild," he reassured.
"But wait, how can Layla defeat Acnologia if they have the same magic?" Sting asked as the table seemed to come to the same realization.
"Actually, Draco has a plan," Lucy spoke up as the table turned to look at her. "and I need a favor in order to test it out,"