So... I'm not sure why, but there was a notable lack of response to the last two chapters. I appreciate the feedback I got but it really made me wonder what exactly am I doing wrong. Some of you expressed concern that I was making the Natsu weaker and that the story was getting worse. I had no intention of giving that impression in his fight with Doriate but I can see where the idea came from. I do hope the vague explanation I gave in the last chapter put at least some of the doubt to rest.

Also, I will note that this chapter will be a sort of a filler – I want to establish Natsu's feelings towards Fairy Tail and its members in this chapter before I move to Tartaros arc as there will be a lot of action in the following chapters and little time for that, I think. Not to mention that I don't want some of the things to seem sudden and unconnected.

I sometimes read through the earlier chapters of this story and I can't help but think that there is so much I would change if I wrote it now, get rid of some of the plot holes my younger self left and make the whole story more… compact I think is the word I'm looking for. When I finish this story I will finish the rewriting I stared a long time ago and fix at least all the chapters I wrote in 2015, when I believe my writing was at its worst (grammar wise at the very least) and after that is done I will go though my other story and fix the errors there. That being said, despite my regret about some of the things I did and how I did them, I am rather happy with how it turned out.

This chapter, as I mentioned earlier, will be a filler of a sort. It will be a mix of short episodes and interactions Natsu had with other members of Fairy Tail and other characters and will hopefully answer some of the questions. That being said it will still continue on to the last chapter so it's not the type of filler like those in Naruto where they take a look at the past. Thinking about it I guess filler isn't the right word for it.

In any case, sorry for the rant, here is the chapter:

Chapter 83:

Gajeel lied on the bank of a river in the forests surrounding Magnolia, hands behind his back and one leg casually resting on the knee of the other. Panther Lily sat next to him; the cat was carving a bird out of a branch with a small knife. Neither spoke, perfectly comfortable to sit in silence and enjoy the warm day.

It wasn't until a shadow suddenly fell on Gajeel's face that the dragon slayer realized they were not alone anymore. The dragon slayer blinked, opening his eyes and staring at the figure towering above him.

"Natsu," he managed to say after a moment, congratulating himself on not jumping in shock and actually managing to sound calm.

"Gajeel," Natsu greeted and then after a moment of standing there took a seat next to Gajeel on the soft grass. The slayer propped himself on his elbows to get a better look at the dragon prince. When he didn't say anything Gajeel huffed and lied back down. "What's up?"

Natsu blinked and glanced his way, a movement hidden by the coat he still wore. Gajeel wondered how the dragon wasn't fainting from the heat in the thing when it was as hot as it was today. "You say that like I'm the one who suddenly showed up here"

Gajeel opened his eyes again, raising an eyebrow. An expression Lily mirrored. "Because you are?", Gajeel supplied and the corners of Natsu's lips lifted. "You are about two miles from my house, I come here quite often"

Gajeel spluttered, finally pushing himself into a sitting position. "We had no idea," Lily said carefully, standing up. Natsu looked at them, his own eyebrow raised. "You don't have to leave," he said like that was perfectly obvious, "I'm just stating a fact"

Lily paused, he and Gajeel exchanged a look and the cat sat back down, going back to his bird. Gajeel stared at the wooden figure for a moment before turning to look at Natsu who seemed content to just sit where he was and stare at the water.

He lied back down and no one said another word.

Lucy was balancing on the edge of the bridge that crossed the canal, walking toward her apartment. Plue tittered behind her, orange nose pointed up.

"You are going to fall over one day"

Lucy gave a startled shriek, stumbling back, and barely keeping her balance. Plue jumped in shock, the poor spirit lost his balance, and in a puff of smoke disappeared before he landed in the canal.

"Natsu?!"

The dragon rubbed his ear, staring at her from the other side of the bridge where he stood, one hand holding a paper bag filled with… groceries. Lucy couldn't help but find the image absurd. It looked so normal. Too normal. Until that moment she wasn't sure if she could even imagine such a picture. She pursed her lips, looking at the spot where Plue disappeared.

"Yes?", the dragon finally spoke, one eyebrow raised under the dark hood.

"It's… I'm surprised to see you -," she almost said looking normal but bit her tongue, "- here," she finished lamely. Laughter met her statement and only then did Lucy notice Arthur and Annie standing a few feet away. She grinned as the two laughed, cheeks red as she scratched them in embarrassment and amusement. Even Natsu looked amused.

"Where to, Lucy?", Annie asked brightly.

"Home," the blonde responded easily, eyes moving back to her keys, wondering if she should call Plue out again.

"Want to come over?", Arthur asked with a grin and Annie nodded happily at the idea, the siblings ignored the look Natsu sent them. "Natsu's cooking"

Lucy was certain her mouth fell open in shock. She blinked, turned to look at Natsu. If she thought seeing him with groceries was weird the image of the dragon in an apron was something she very much wanted to see.

Not that she would voice it. Her reluctance to intrude and her wish to go must have shown on her face because Natsu gave a frustrated sigh – at least she thought it sounded frustrated, she dared to hope she was getting better at reading him – and nodded at her silent inquiry. "Come along if you want"

She grinned brightly, "Thank you!"

Erza swirled, sword dancing in a deadly arch as she closed the distance between herself and Gray who at the last moment raised an ice shield from the ground, blocking her strike, and then she had to jump back for the ice mage already brought a hammer above her.

She panted slightly, lowering her sword and Gray straightened, his hands moving apart as he grinned. "You're getting faster," Erza complimented.

"Maybe you're getting slower," he teased and she gave him a mock glare. "Is that so?", she said, her voice challenging and the two resumed their friendly spar, trading blows with increasing ferocity and speed. Erza jumped over Gray's attack, two blades appearing in each hand before she sent them flying at the ice mage.

Gray twisted out of the way, hands already together to create a new spell when the look of surprise and horror on Erza's face made him stop and turn to look behind him. He blanched.

The figure stared at the two, standing good forty feet away, holding the blade of one of Erza's swords inches from his ribs, with the other blade embedded into the tree trunk inches from his face. He was definitely not here a moment ago!

"Should I consider moving?", Natsu asked dryly and Gray blinked at the odd question. They were in a clearing in the forest, why would… oh.

"Sorry," Gray said sheepishly. Natsu rolled his eyes in answer and dropped the blade into the ground, burring the tip so that it stood upright.

"At least you didn't actually aim at me," he glanced at Erza who pursed her lips, her cheeks flushed. "I apologize," she said quickly, then paused before adding, "We are sparing"

Natsu raised an eyebrow, "I can see that"

No one spoke for a moment and the dragon turned around to continue walking when Gray spoke, "Want to join?"

Erza brightened at the idea, "A great idea"

Natsu looked at the two, his voice betraying the barest hints of surprise. "Are you serious?"

"Of course," Erza said with a decisive nod of her head. The dragon stayed still for a moment longer before he shrugged and put down the worn gray bag he was carrying.

"Alright"

"Concentrate here, not here," the dragon tapped first just below his belly button and then below his pectoral muscles. Laxus took a deep breath, doing as he was told and thrust his hands in front of him, lightning crackling down their length. Natsu stared at him for a moment longer before nodding, seemingly satisfied for now and the dragon slayer grinned.

"Now concentrate here when you draw your breath in, I noticed when you prepare for a roar you don't draw from here -"

"You're good at this," he told him as he straightened. Natsu glanced up at him. Standing as close as they did Laxus was reminded that, despite how it felt most of the time, he was taller than the other man. "I was a dragon slayer – and still use pretty much the same magic in this form"

Laxus gave him a sly grin, shrugging, "I meant this teaching stuff"

Natsu blinked at him before he looked away. "Oh," was all he said after a moment of silence before he promptly jabbed his finger into Laxus' diaphragm and made the other man splutter. "Here," he told him and then jabbed his fingers again and Laxus swatted his hand away, "I get it, I get it! If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to feel my spine from my front"

Wendy sat at the table alone, nursing the glass with orange juice that Mira left in front of her over an hour ago. She turned around again, looking at the door of the guild for the fifth time that minute before hastily looking back in front of herself and pretending that nothing was wrong. She bit her lower lip. Waited. Turned around.

"I don't really know what you want to hear me say, Wendy," Natsu's voice from the other side of the table made her jump and she almost sent the glass in her hands flying. She swallowed, a nervous laugh bubbling in her chest at the thought that she very nearly sent the juice flying into Natsu's face.

"You don't have to say anything," Wendy said firmly, eyes shining. "I wanted to apologize again"

Natsu stayed silent when she paused as she expected him to object but she realized that he really had no intention of saying anything until she said what she had in mind. She sighed softly. It will be easier that way. "We already went over this and I just… wanted to ask if we could… try to talk to each other. I guess I can't ask for it to be the same as it had been but… I want to try. What I did was terrible but I didn't… anyway, all I wanted to ask was as we could… try to work on it. Ignoring each other won't solve anything and I… I want my brother back. I want you to trust me again – how you used to trust me… how I still trust you. You trusted me and I betrayed that trust so… I guess what I'm asking is…"

She fell silent and peered from under her bangs at his stony expression. The dragon didn't say anything.

She bit her lower lip again, looking at the glass of orange juice before she looked up again.

"Okay," he finally said, his voice soft. "We can… work on it"

Jellal glared across the table at the pink-haired demon. His heated stare was returned with a mildly bored one. Half of the guild was probably gathered around their table but Jellal paid them no mind. He was the only one left. He will not give in so easily. He stared at Natsu, trying to see any sign of nervousness, uneasiness. He was not surprised he didn't find any. Disappointed but not surprised.

"You had enough?", Natsu asked mildly, leaning back in his seat.

"Not yet," Jellal replied and the guild cheered at him. He was fairly certain his cheeks were bright red, but that could very easily be because of the beer he drank.

Natsu shrugged, "I bet the coat"

Jellal grimaced, looking at his own rather substantial lack of clothes. He had socks, boots and his underwear left. Natsu lost his gloves. Jellal swallowed, glancing to the side where Gajeel, Gray, and Laxus sat butt naked. He licked his dry lips and looked back at his cards.

"I call"

"Shirt"

Jellal sighed, pulling off his boots wordlessly.

Natsu's fingers tapped at the ceramic cup in the rhythm of a song he couldn't place. Tap, tap, tap, taptaptap, tap, taptap, tap. The bitter coffee in the mug was still steaming as he brought it to his lips and took a sip. Tap, taptap, tap, taptap. They returned from Sun Village few hours ago, eating and drinking in the guildhall until the moon rose high, and eventually the group drifted away to their beds.

All but him, who now sat alone in the hall at the small hours of the night. Taptap, tap, tap.

'He was looking for END,' Atlas Flame had said. Natsu took another sip. His fingers around the cup stopped their drumming and the other hand, resting on the bar of the guild continued. Igneel was looking for him in order to kill him. The Fire Dragon King didn't know, certainly, but Natsu found it incredibly ironic that the dragon who tried to kill him was one of the dragons that helped bring him back. Taptaptap, tap –

He stopped the tapping, fingers still raised in the air as he looked down at his hand. Nothing bad happened from using as much magic as he had on the mission and he couldn't help but feel relieved. Himmel warned him that the healing magic he used on the prince was extensive and even with the considerable power the Sky King possessed, he was not healed completely. And Chaos magic was to the Healing magic as Water was to Fire. He flexed his fingers before he brought them up and massaged his temples.

No one really went into details when he asked in what state his body was when they brought him back to life but he had seen his fair share of corpses after they had stayed in the open for a few months. He shuddered at the idea that maggots likely nested inside him at one point. Himmel did as much as he could – which was a lot and by the time he woke up, it was as if he had never been a half-rotten corpse in the first place. Instead of being in excruciating pain, all he felt was as if he had a nasty flu and was recovering from it.

But Himmel and Acnologia warned him to not use much of his magic as long as he could, at least until Himmel could have a look at him again. Chaos magic was to the Healing magic as Water was to Fire.

He took another sip from his cup and the tapping started again.

All he got from the Sun Village was a massive headache in the end and he dared to think it was because of the ice and nothing else. He was perfectly healthy after all. He gave a sardonic smile to his cup, knowing he was convincing himself. But he'd be damned twice over if he let Doriate defeat him.

A demon from Zeref's books. Tap, tap, tap, taptaptap. 'We opened the Hell's gate… The way he said it… We closed them so why did he sound so… final'

The guildhall was eerily quiet in the small hours of the morning, a stark contrast to the usual rowdiness of the halls. Natsu's breathing seemed impossibly loud to his ears but it was a comforting sound, one that reminded him that he was alive.

Tap, tap, tap.

How was he supposed to stand in front of Acnologia and tell him about all this? Stand there with Atlas Flame and Igneel and tell them about what he was. Ankhseram showed him things he wished he could forget again. He was angry at Wendy for keeping secrets – admittedly secrets that in the end cost him his life – but how many secrets did he have? He knew where Grandeeney was since he met Wendy and he never told her. He always justified it as a secret that was not his to tell but it seemed like an excuse. He knew exactly what Atlas Flame was talking about yet all he did was shake his head when they asked him about it. He was Zeref's brother and he said nothing.

He was a hypocrite, hurt by Wendy keeping secrets from him when what he kept from her was just as bad, if not worse.

He was END. Was it somehow connected to the doors in his mind that Future Rogue pried open, the doors that have since been fully opened after whatever Ankhseram did? But what did it mean, exactly? How did Igneel know of that name? Why Acnologia never even mentioned that?

Acnologia and Zeref had a past, the full extent of it not even Natsu was sure of. Could it be that his father knew what he was? Knew of his connection to Zeref?

Tap, tap, taptaptap.

But it didn't make sense. Acnologia didn't know because he was certain there were some things his Father wouldn't do if he knew. The demon heart came to his mind, among other things. If he knew, Natsu suspected the Dragon King would never even take him in the first place.

Why did Igneel want to kill END? He had no recollection of ever actually being that demon so it couldn't be something he did under that name. Some sort of legend perhaps? Prophecy?

Maybe Zeref made a note somewhere about his book (and wasn't that a disturbing idea) and Igneel decided that a demon like END must never be summoned. His tapping stopped again and he emptied the cup. Guessing will get him nowhere. His mind was spinning in circles and it only served to intensify his headache. He'll ask Acnologia.

He looked at the clock above the bar, wondering how long will he wait here when the doors of the guild opened and a figure wrapped in an expensive cloak walked inside. Silver hair slipped from beneath the hood before tanned fingers took hold of the rim of the fabric and pulled the silver-lined hood down, revealing the handsome face of the human form of Acnologia. The dragon king walked into the hall, his booted feet not making a sound as he took a seat next to Natsu at the bar. Natsu's questions died in his throat.

"Coffee?", Natsu asked instead when the other didn't move or spoke. The dragon prince was already pouring himself another cup. "Atlas Flame landed on the Island a few hours ago," Acnologia said instead. "His sudden appearance shocked quite a few. Even more so when he told us where he had been and who found him," a meaningful glance and Natsu sighed.

"I'm… glad you came," Natsu finally said. Acnologia stayed silent. "It wasn't just because of the demon slayer that froze the village that I called you… And I would've come to the Island myself but I didn't know the exact location and…"

"We told you not to transform," Acnologia nodded then frowned, "Out with it already, what happened?"

Natsu smirked into the cup but didn't say anything for a moment, "There were demons there when we came, a flying beast and a demon that went by the name Doriate"

Natsu paused and glanced at Acnologia, trying to see if the king knew of the name but when the king gave no sign of recognition the prince continued. "He was a demon from Zeref's books," at that Acnologia straightened even further, "and he was talking of Hell's gate. He said we opened them"

Acnologia scowled. "We did," he finally said when Natsu stayed silent as if asking the prince 'What of it?'

"The way he said it… It sounded like we left them opened," Natsu explained and then cited, "He said; 'It can't be undone' "

Acnologia stayed silent after that, blue eyes looking at the dark-skinned hands before he looked at Natsu's red orbs. "I will investigate this. It could be the demon was referring to something else entirely but…"

"But better safe than sorry," Natsu agreed. They fell silent, Natsu suddenly realizing his fingers were drumming on the cup again and he stopped, tightening his grip on the cup.

"The flying beast you saw," Acnologia suddenly said and Natsu's eyes snapped to him, "Did it have one eye and rat's tail?"

Natsu blinked, startled, before nodding. "Almost as large as my dragon form, I think. Why? Have you seen it before?"

"A few days after you and your group left prince Ganseki and his hunting partner spotted one," Acnologia said, something in his voice made Natsu feel on edge. "Then, not a week after that three more were spotted near the Floating Island. Now, a day doesn't go by that we don't see at least one of these things. We killed all that we came across but more keep appearing, closer and closer to the Island, no matter where we move it"

A chill went down Natsu's spine, "Did they attack?"

"As soon as we spotted them," Acnologia said, his tone grave, "If what this Doriate said is true, we need to do something, fast. Because if we don't…"

The grip he had on the cup tightened and the ceramic exploded. Hot liquid dripped from his white skin and Natsu nodded in understanding. Acnologia stood up and, almost hesitantly, pulled a small scarlet orb from an inner pocket in his fine coat. "I implore you, use this only if absolutely necessary"

Natsu forgot to breathe for a moment, taking the small orb with numb fingers. "This is…"

"Crush it when you need our help, and every noble soul in the Palace of Dovah will come to aid you. Dark times are ahead of us but let's hope you won't need to use this"

"A war horn," Natsu said softly, twisting the seemingly innocent scarlet orb in his hand. Acnologia nodded, "I don't need to tell you that I will personally rip your head off if you use that without a very good reason. You can start a war with that, Natsu. Don't let it fall into wrong hands"

Natsu looked up sharply, part of him wanted nothing more than to shove the orb back into Acnologia's hands.

"Do others even know you gave me this?"

Acnologia huffed, "Of course – it was Igneel's idea actually"

Igneel who wants to kill END.

Natsu frowned and looked at the orb if only to hide his face from his father. He closed his fingers around the orb tightly and nodded decidedly. "I'm truly grateful"

"As you should be," Acnologia agreed and turned around, walking to the great door of the guildhall. Natsu stayed rooted to spot only a moment after his father left the hall but by the time he was outside there was no trace of the dragon king.

He looked away from the full moon and down at the orb again, the small shape glowing a dim, deep red and he squeezed it again.

End of chapter 83.

Damn… I'm really printing this out lately.

NEXT CHAPTER: Nine Demon Gates Of Tartaros

There's not much to say, thanks to the rant before the chapter so… thanks for reading and please review :)