Chapter 26:

"YOU WILL PAY FOR EVERYTHING YOU HAVE DONE HERE TODAY!"

You had to give it to the man, Gray decided as he watched Laxus stand straight in front of the furious dragon. He was either one of the bravest men Gray ever met or the stupidest. Though Gray would put his money on the latter. The dragon slayer still didn't back down. Gray would've been on the floor begging for forgiveness by now. But he must know he has lost. There was no hope that he could win this fight.

Why was Laxus still fighting? What did he want? What did he hope to gain with all of this?!

But even though a smile was plastered on his lips Gray could see his eyes, wide and terrified. And then Gray understood, 'He was too terrified to even move'

But apparently not to keep quiet.

"I'm a dragon slayer, you giant waste of space!" Laxus yelled, anger masking the fear, "My magic is made to kill dragons! I pity you, Souleater! You, pretending to be someone, pretending to be important! All that just to boost your overinflated ego!"

Gray and Levy winced. Laxus certainly lost his mind.

"What is wrong with him?" Gajeel muttered, shaking his head. "Is he trying to get himself killed?"

Levy was the one who answered even though Gajeel's question was rhetorical. "Maybe he is. Maybe he realized what he did but he's too prideful to back down and in turn, he wants death"

"That's some twisted logic"

"Maybe but if you think about it… The shame he feels at failing could be enough"

"Or he's just crazy," Gray finished dryly.

Levy opened her mouth but it was when Natsu decided to speak again.

"How. Dare. You?" he growled, head dropping lower and he bared his teeth at the lightning mage and it didn't take long for everyone to notice he was shaking. "Do not try to pin your image onto me. Wear your own badge of shame you worked so hard to get!"

He leaned closer and Laxus could feel the freezing breath on his face. Natsu's clawed foot suddenly slammed into him, pinning him against the ground. "How dare you mock me? How dare you call me weak?! How dare you? I am a chaos dragon, son of Apocalypse, son of Acnologia, King of Dragons! I am a prince of the strongest creatures that ever walked on Earth. And you call me weak? A pretender?!"

Natsu leaned closer, a mockery to what Laxus himself did to him not too long ago and Laxus' screamed as something cracked under the wight.

"How dare you laugh at the death of a family member!"

No one expected that to be what came next out of his mouth next but if Natsu noticed that every pair of eyes around him was watching in shock he did not react to it.

"How dare you call Fairy Tail's wizards weak? How dare you hurt them?! How dare you do this to the people that would give their lives for you?!"

"Not one of them shunned you. Not one of them was afraid of you like they were afraid of me. They treated you like family, gave you a place to call home and welcomed you with open arms. And you…," the dragon took a deep breath, obviously struggling to speak through his anger, "AND YOU THROW IT ALL AWAY!"

He pressed harder and Laxus released another scream as something else snapped inside him. Tears pricked in the corner of his eyes and he squeezed them shut before he started yelling right back at the dragon. "I would prefer that they were afraid of me! At least it would be directed at me! Not at the Dreyar grandson! Not at the grandson of Makarov! You have no idea what it is like to live in someone's shadow your whole life! You're right! They welcomed me with open arms! But I didn't do anything. Everything good I did was expected and everything that went wrong was a disgrace to Makarov! All I want is some fucking respect! Not respect for whose grandson I am but respect for who I am!"

Natsu stared at him, claws still pressing down on his opponent and for a moment those who watched him thought he might lift his leg off of Laxus. But those thoughts quickly disappeared when his look darkened even further and a tendril of some rose from his parted jaws, an ominous glow lighting at the back of his throat. "I lived in the shadow of my father for half of my life. I know what it is like. The fear that this guild greeted me with was not the fear of me but of that one name. But I learned to accept it. I learned to bare it with pride in this world as I did among the dragons. I will scream to the Heavens who my father is because I know what I did and I know that I deserve respect because I earned it. Just as I earned the fear and mistrust and glares. What you did today lost you all the respect you might've had. You act like a petulant, spoiled child. Screaming at the world for not giving you something that has to be earned"

"I hate you," Laxus spoke, his voice resigned but still surprisingly firm, "I hate you so damn much"

"I earned that as well," Natsu agreed without hesitation, growling low in his throat, his jaws opening a moment later.

Gray dispelled the shield once he was fairly certain the dragon will not turn and attack them. He swallowed, climbing unsteadily to his feet. He still couldn't wrap his head around what was happening and what was leaving Natsu's mouth. The verbal massacre in front of him was almost as hard to watch as the actual, obviously rising pressure of Natsu's claws on Laxus' body.

"AND YOU THROW IT ALL AWAY!"

He jumped at the sudden rise in volume, looking with wide eyes at the dragon, Gajeel and Levy doing the same.

"Guys! Levy!" the three turned to see a group of Fairy Tail mages running towards them. Jet reached them first, "Are you alright?"

Gray moved to walk towards them only to grimace as something shifted inside him that shouldn't have. "We'll live"

"Is that… Is that Natsu?" Erza spoke, barely a whisper. Gajeel nodded as the group listened to Laxus' speech. Lucy shook her head, "How can someone be so blind?"

"He's acting like a spoiled child," Erza said, her voice steel. She was surprised when Natsu apparently shared her sentiment.

"He… is sane? He's still Natsu?" Lucy asked, biting the inside of her cheek when the dragon growled at the mage underneath him.

Gray nodded, grateful as Juvia suddenly appeared next to him and let him lean on her. "He's understandably angry… I'm fairly certain that everything that happened today sped up the process that resulted in…," he gestured at the dragon, "This"

"He could've been humans for weeks if not months had this not happened," Wendy informed them and the group seemed to sag in relief when they noticed her and Mirajane behind her. The blue-haired dragon slayer gave a weak smile, moving to Gray and Gajeel to see if they needed help.

"I earned that as well"

Mirajane pushed past them before they could stop her. "YOU DID NOT!"

Natsu's red eyes turned to her, his whole head turning so quickly it was a wonder they didn't hear anything crack. For a moment the dragon did not close his mouth, the magic in them not dimming at all. Was he going to attack them?

"Natsu! Please!" Mirajane moved closer and the dragon's mouth closed with a snap, his nostrils flaring. "Enough fighting! It's over"

The dragon snarled in return, "It will be over once he is dead!"

"Don't kill him," Wendy spoke up, eyes wide, "Prove everyone that you are not a monster"

"It is too late for that, Wendy"

The dragon slayer's eyes watered and she shook her head. "I refuse to believe that!"

"You are not a monster," Erza spoke up, walking towards him and standing next to Mirajane, dangerously close to the dragon whose red eyes sparked with anger at her voice. "I'm not flinching. And I never again will"

An odd expression passed over Natsu's face as he looked at the scarlet-haired witch.

"Listen to them," Mira agreed, "This isn't worth it. He learned his lesson"

Natsu looked back at Laxus, still watching him. His eyes resigned. He accepted his death.

"He deserves it," he hissed through clenched teeth and he could hear the others already opening their mouths to protest but he spoke before they could, "But so be it"

He looked at Mira, and with a sigh he lowered his head to the ground, closing his eyes. Every part of his body still hurt from the transformation but he ignored it because it was just the lingering ache, already ebbing away with each passing minute.

"Thank you," Mira smiled brightly.

"NATSU!"

Wendy slammed into the dragon before anyone realized what was happening and Natsu blinked at her, red eyes staring carefully at the bawling girl.

"Wendy"

"You're a dragon!"

"I'm sure he didn't notice," Gray supplied dryly.

"Seems you were worried about dragonification for nothing," Natsu responded, lifting his head from the ground when Wendy released him. She huffed, "Of course I was worried! And besides! You can't tell me it didn't hurt!"

A brief grimace passed over Natsu's face before he pulled on the carefully controlled expression back on.

"You know, if the master didn't die from a heart attack before he will when he sees the bill for this," Lucy suddenly said and the mages looked at the ruins of the cathedral and the town around them. Wendy looked at her, a bright grin on her tear-streaked face, "He's going to be alright! I just came from there. Porlyusica is watching over him"

Her statement was followed by a loud cheer of the gathered mages.

"That's great news," Erza said, turning to Natsu and to everyone's surprise dipped her head down in a bow. "Natsu. I am sorry. For everything. You are no monster and I am an idiot"

The dragon looked at her closely, a small smirk lifting the edges of his scaly lips. Erza returned a small smile.

"You defeated Evergreen. Don't pull a stunt like you did after the Tower and we'll… we'll call it even"

"You have my word"

Mira spoke up, breaking the silence that wrapped around the group, "Natsu… can you… transform back?"

"To my human form?... I don't know," he admitted after a moment. He stayed silent, concentrating and every person watched expectedly for some sign that something was changing. Natsu grimaced after a moment, looking frustrated and shook his head.

"Not yet… it will take some time for me to get used to this form and that will have to happen before I transform back"

"Some time?" Wendy echoed, voice small, "How long?"

Natsu seemed to roll his eyes as he straightened his back and raised his neck. "I'm not going to disappear forever. A few months at most"

The group fell silent, watching him. "What are you going to do?" Mira asked.

"I'll go into the forests and get control over this and then I'll come back," he explained evenly, wings behind him stretching as he moved them in preparation to take flight for the first time as a dragon. He stopped, eyes falling on Wendy and Mira and he seemed to hesitate for a brief moment, picking his next words.

"No crying, remember?"

She nodded and wiped her tears. His voice was almost quiet, just shy of tender and it sounded odd coming out of a creature like him. "Now let me see that smile of yours?" he spoke again and Wendy chuckled, staring up at him as a watery smile lifted her lips. He looked at Mira who watched him with an odd expression and Natsu smirked at her. "Don't look at me like that. I'll be back before you know it. No crying goes for you too, my Lady"

She smiled at him and he then sighed. "Tell master what happened and if Rune knights come here asking about a dragon tell them... That I'm able to use illusions. Oh, and if Master needs money for this damage I have some savings in my house so just give him as much as he needs"

He spread his wings and took flight at long last. Mira shouted after him "Come back soon, Natsu! I… I mean, the guild needs you!"

They watched in silence as his form disappeared in the distance into the moonless sky before they turned and left the cathedral, taking the oddly subdued Laxus with them.

Makarov did not have a heart attack for the second time those few weeks ago but it certainly was a near thing when he had seen the state of the town. He had talked to Laxus, or tried to at least, but the mage refused to respond to any of the questions his grandfather asked and with a heavy heart the master banished his grandson out of the guild. The council had come, demanding answers and with some reluctance the old master explained that they were attacked by a dark guild, defeated by Natsu's illusions.

Now, a month later, the city of Magnolia once again stood proud and whole and the parade that had been postponed was about to take place.

Mira looked through the window of the hall, her blue eyes fixed on the sky above her. 'Come on, Natsu. It's been a month'

Footsteps behind her alerted her to a new presence in the empty hall and she turned around, not willing to admit how much her hopes were dashed when she saw Elfman who smiled sheepishly in return. "Come on, Sis. The Parade is about to start"

"Right," Mira smiled, her magic briefly sparking around her as she changed into her costume, moving quickly with her brother to reach their platform. Her eyes never left the sky for long.

Makarov rode on the first platform, dressed in jester outfit yet still managing to look important as he smiled at the crowd before them. Behind him Gray and Juvia were making a spectacle out of water and ice, ice sculptures turning and twisting with water as if they were alive. Wendy danced on her platform with Lucy, both dressed in white dresses and feathers. Mirajane and Elfman followed behind them, magic twisting around them as they danced, following complicated steps, quick and sharp. Mira smiled to herself, unable to stop her thoughts for going to who she had wished to be on the other side of the platform.

Magnolia's streets were full, lights and decorations glistening so strongly that even though the moon was not full the town was light up like it was noon.

A shadow passed over the moon and even though most dismissed it as a cloud the shouts quickly spread through the tightly packed crowd. The mages on the platform tensed and the parade came to a grinding halt as a dragon swung his wings above them.

The blond-haired mage on the roof of a house stood up, eyes wide for a moment before he recognized the dragon and he lowered his head in shame.

No one dared to speak a word even as the mages on the platform gradually relaxed and the dragon above them was suddenly wrapped in magic. A mournful yet beautiful sound echoed around Magnolia and something stared falling slowly down to the ground, twisting and shining beautifully under the light. Mira snatched the falling object from the sky, twisting the smooth black shape in her thin fingers. 'A scale,' she thought, moments before it crumbled into ashes.

A shape suddenly dropped beside her and she couldn't help but laugh as Elfman gave a very unmanly shriek. She turned around and flung herself into the arms of the pink-haired dragon. "You're back!"

Mirajane ignored as the dragon tensed awkwardly under her arms, squeezing him harder. The platform under her feet started moving, the sound of the crowd cheering almost deafening. Finally, she pulled herself back, looking at his face.

She almost cried in relief at the sight of his unblemished, perfectly human face. All that was left to signify just how much he changed were two red eyes that stared back at her with the barest traces of a smile in them. "You could… release me"

She blushed stepping back and Natsu's smile widened and his hand pressed against Mira's hip, pulling her closer. Mira's eyes widened momentarily as Natsu's lips crashed against her own, surprisingly soft and eager and he gently opened them, fanged teeth playfully biting her lips before he pulled back and Mira stared at him, breathless.

He looked around, watching the faces of his guild members, all staring at him in shock. But he didn't care. A big toothy grin plastered over his lips, so warm and infectious that everyone soon shared it.

Laxus tensed as even over the whole crowd, Natsu's eyes locked with his for one brief moment but the dragon gave no sign that he saw him even though Laxus knew he must have.

The dragon raised a hand towards the sky, index finger and thumb stretched out and without hesitation, everyone soon followed the sign. Makarov felt his eyes water watching the scene unfold, unaware his grandson had buried his head into his hands.

'Even if I can't see you… Even if we're separated for a long time… I'll always… be watching you'

Was it a threat? A promise? Forgiveness? Laxus did not know, but he could only hope, as he turned around and walked away, ignoring the tears that still blurred his vision.

End of chapter 26.

Rewritten

I hope that you liked this chapter! There's a big surprise coming your way in Edolas Arc. Please review and thanks for reading :).