Chapter 85:

He stumbled out of the Void, stunned by the ringing in his ears. He barely escaped the brunt of it and he cursed himself for being so focused on the council. He looked around, swiftly noting his surroundings. Not even a foot from him Gran Doma's empty eyes stared back, face twisted by a frozen look of shock. He couldn't see a wall that wasn't crumbled and he swallowed, trying to stop the ringing in his ears.

Nothing seemed to be moving. Was he the only one who survived? He took a sniff of the air. A scent of cooper and dust and ash. And a trace of gunpowder?

Maybe what was used to create the explosion. He quickly dismissed the idea for if that was the case, the amount of it that would be needed would've been clear in the air when he came here. A bomb?

He took a step further, ringing in his ears finally subsiding and he shook his head again. Eyes narrowed and all senses on alert he moved through the rubble, finding the councilors one after the other, all dead. And no sign of the attacker. If he was even still here. Natsu was fairly certain whoever was responsible was still here. This looked more like the work of magic than a bomb. He sniffed the air again. The smell of air didn't change and the dust tickled the back of his throat almost enough to make him cough. But the scent of gunpowder was stronger. His eyes narrowed and he moved to take another step when he heard a choked voice.

"L-Lahar?"

His head snapped to the side, eyes landing on Doranbolt's bowed back. The man's clothes were tattered and burned but he looked surprisingly unharmed all things considered. Red eyes looked at Lahar and he knew immediately the other man was dead. "He's dead"

His voice made Doranbolt turn so quickly Natsu wondered if it gave him whiplash. He stared at him in shock, likely wondering why the only damage on him was his ruined coat and a fine layer of dust. "You – you're alive"

Natsu paused, waiting for the man to say what he wanted but he didn't continue and so Natsu nodded, "Yes"

"Did… did you do this?"

The dragon prince stared for a moment, trying to figure out if the other man had hit his head. He didn't sound accusatory… more like he wanted to have some reassurance.

"No," Natsu replied immediately, eyes narrowed, "Why would you even think that?"

"The council thought you had connections to Tartaros. That's another reason why they called you here, to make sure that you didn't turn dark after you… died," he obviously struggled with the thought.

"I didn't, obviously," Natsu said dryly. At least he hadn't had any connection with Tartaros, that's for sure.

"They are all dead," the young man stated hollowly.

Natsu paused then looked around, concentrating again on their surroundings. "Not all"

Doranbolt stared, uncomprehending for a moment before his eyes widened and he looked up, searching the ruins as Natsu started making his way around a particularly large piece of the fallen wall. Doranbolt scrambled to his feet, casting one last sorrowful look at Lahar before he ran after Natsu as quickly as he could over the uneven terrain. Doranbolt grimaced, almost falling as he tried to climb over a part the dragon crossed. He made it look so easy. He stumbled across it just in time to hear Natsu speak, "Don't even think about it"

Doranbolt finally managed to have a visual, staring at the blond man who held Org's head. Org was breathing heavily, obviously in a lot of pain, his lower half was pinned under debris, his legs likely crushed and blood trickled down his beard, but he was alive. The blond man was grinning like a wolf, staring at Natsu as if the dragon prince made a joke. Doranbolt swallowed, he had heard the sharp edge in his voice. The dragon prince did not give empty threats.

"My name is Jackal of Tartaros," the blond informed them, the ears on his head twitching and the tail on his back curling, grin widening. Doranbolt tensed. 'Tartaros!'

"Remember that because I am a man who killed the Magic Council!"

Doranbolt could feel his eyes widen, 'He's the one behind it!'

Org was looking at them, Doranbolt realized, his eyes lucid and sharp despite the pain. "Run," he wheezed out, and Jackal cackled, the hand on Org's head pushing harder into the dust. "No one escapes my explosions, old man," Jackal informed them happily.

"Doranbolt," Org said, his voice urgent, "Make sure that they know. Souleater is innocent. Make sure that they listen to him"

Doranbolt looked at Natsu whose face didn't show much of what he was feeling, but the Fairy Tail mage still somehow managed to seem touched by the sentiment.

"Souleater?", Jackal asked, sounding annoyed – likely because he felt ignored. He looked at Natsu and Doranbolt suddenly realized that the man had no idea who he was looking at. "Interesting name, chap. Now then, where was I? Ah, yes," he gave a devilish smile, "Boom"

Doranbolt tensed but for a second nothing happened, and he suddenly realized that Natsu was not standing there anymore but was standing where Jackal had been, the Tartaros mage sent flying several feet back. The mage looked shocked, rubbing his jaw that might've been cracked if not broken.

Natsu didn't wait for him to get his bearings, moving at the Tartaros mage. Doranbolt was struck by the image of a predator moving at his pray and he shuddered. He looked at Org and when he realized no one was paying attention to them he rushed over, trying to figure out how to pull the man out without making things worse.

"Listen Doranbolt," Org said, his voice a hoarse whisper. "They need to know he's alive on our terms, otherwise Tartaros won't be our only problem, whatever the council thought I am sure that no Fairy Tail mage had dealings with that guild"

"How am I supposed to convince anyone about anything?", Doranbolt asked incredulously, realizing he was whispering. He glanced up, watching as Natsu dodged a hit from Jackal and once again sent the man flying. It was odd, actually. The blond was getting beaten into a pulp yet he was smiling.

Org gasped and Doranbolt looked down at him, eyes widening when he saw the soft golden glow that started spreading around the councilman. Doranbolt stared, wide-eyed, looking from the man to Natsu, only to realize the dragon prince was glowing that same golden glow and Jackal, lying on the ground and holding the stump where his arm had been, was laughing like a mad man. "Doranbolt, listen -", Org said, his voice urgent.

Natsu slammed his fist into the man's stomach, chaos energy wrapped around his arm. Jackal flew back, a look of utter shock on his face. "What the fuck…", the blond muttered, "How are you so strong?"

Natsu twisted in the air and Jackal moved out of the way in the last second. He jumped to his feet and moved to slam the palm of his hand into Souleater's torso. The pink-haired mage twisted out of the way and in the circular motion he used to avoid the hit brought his arm with him, slamming his elbow into Jackal's face. "You should reconsider your current strategy," Jackal said, still shocked by the man's speed and strength but finding his amusement growing.

Natsu paused where he had been, an arch of chaos energy flying at Jackal, and Tartaros mage jumped out of the way again. The attack came fast and in his haste to avoid it he lost his balance. His eyes snapped to Souleater, only to realize he had fallen into a trap as the man was already above him, one hand cocked back and fingers spread like the claws of the birds of prey, ready to strike. Chaos energy exploded around him. He twisted in his awkward position as best he could and the hand struck above his elbow instead of his chest. Jackal howled, his hand torn off of him.

He fell to the ground panting and stared as Natsu stood above him. For a brief second before he struck his magic had wrapped around him like a second skin, spreading behind him almost like wings. "What are you?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Natsu said, twisting his hand up again and his fingers burst into black and red energy, "But then again I am fairly certain I already know"

Jackal stared at him, not sure how to answer but he twisted his remaining hand, a smirk lifting his lips despite the pain. "You should've listened to me when I told you to reconsider your strategy," he paused and watched in delight as golden glow filled the debris, "Everything I touch turns into explosives"

Natsu stopped moving, eyes wider by a fraction as he looked down at himself, golden runes running over his body. Jackal laughed. "Explode, you asshole!"

Natsu's eyes snapped to him even as the glow intensified and Jackal suddenly wished he could speed up the process. The mage didn't hesitate, his hand moving towards Jackal as quick as a snake. He grabbed Jackal's neck before the demon could respond and stared at the demon's eyes with his own red ones, his pupils pulled into slits.

Jackal gasped, as much for air as in shock, a terrible thought occurring to him and just as the golden light blinded them all Natsu pushed his free hand through the man's chest, blood bursting on the other side. And Jackal laughed out loud, his skin suddenly golden. "You fool," Jackal whispered, "I may die but I will destroy the whole Era"

Warrod was already outside of Era when the fist explosion almost made him fall from his tree he used as a transport. He stopped, wide-eyed, and turned around, the top of the mountain he had stood on not a mere half an hour before now burning. He stood there, mouth agape and not moving for over a minute. Were they attacked? Who would attack the magic council?

His stomach twisted and he stared, a flash of red eyes under the hood crystal clear in his head. Could it be? He could hardly believe it? He turned abruptly, moving back to Era. He was not even halfway there when the second explosion rocked the ground again.

Why would Souleater do this? Was this his work? It didn't look like it but if he planned on killing the council, he certainly wouldn't want it to look like him… right? He wondered if it wouldn't be a better idea to just leave right there and then. If the man managed to kill the entire council what did he hope to do against him? But maybe the council wasn't dead?

By the time he landed on the top of the mountain the building was practically gone, all that reminded where blocks of walls and crumpled floor and dust and corpses. He stared at the destruction, suddenly aware that if everyone who had been here was truly dead, he had lost good friends today. A branch sprouted from the ground next to him, clearing the worst of the debris as he tried to find any sign of what happened.

His heart nearly stopped when he saw the figure that stood alone in the destruction. His clothes were ruined, half of his exposed skin burned, and his hair out of any sense of order. But he was alive and the only one standing.

Warrod's eyes narrowed, fury bubbling inside him, and the branch that was cleaning the debris suddenly flew at the motionless figure. Red eyes looked up a second before the branch skewered him through and he jumped above it. His movements were stiff but even looking as he did Warrod realized he should've turned and run.

He landed on the branch as it twisted again, running down its length towards him and easily jumping away as the second one joined it. Warrod cursed himself, he was not young anymore. What was he trying to accomplish? A quick death?

But the dragon's hands didn't burst into twisting black and red. He jumped over his head and he pressed his body against Warrod's, his knee pushing Warrod's out from beneath him and he snatched both his hands and twisted them behind his back, almost far enough to pull them out of his sockets. Warrod fell to his knees and Natsu pressed harder, one hand holding his hands like a vice and the other on the back of his neck. A warning.

"What are you doing?", Natsu growled into his ear and Warrod moved the branches behind them only for the hand on his neck to tighten. "I'm in a very foul mood right now," Natsu told him and Warrod turned to look at him from the corner of his eye. The man's face was relatively unhurt though an angry red mark spread from the lower side of his jaw and down his neck, disappearing out of Warrod's current line of sight. When he didn't say anything Natsu growled.

Warrod swallowed and steeled his nerves. He was going to die either way but he will not die a coward. "Did you do this?"

Natsu suddenly let go of him with a snort, and Warrod almost fell face-first into the dust. "Do I truly look that villainous?", he paused and then snorted again, "Don't answer that"

Warrod stared at him from where he sat on the ground. He didn't dare to move now. He'll wait until he has a chance – to either run or attack. Natsu stayed silent for a while before he finally spoke again, slowly as if talking to a child, "I didn't do it"

Warrod waited for him to say something else but the dragon reminded silent, his cold hand pressed tightly around his neck, just lose enough to not actually hurt but tight enough to show that he had no trouble breaking his neck at any sudden movement. Warrod swallowed, pulled himself to his feet and noticed how the dragon immediately tensed, ready for attack, but didn't move. "You could be lying," Warrod said after a moment. It was perfectly reasonable. Natsu obviously fought back a growl as his eyes narrowed, eyes flashing just short of a glare. Foul mood indeed. Warrod glanced around, not sure what to do and the branches coiled around him like snakes. Souleater stared back, unimpressed. "I don't want to fight you," Natsu said, voice still infuriatingly cold and sharp and Warrod found it hard to believe him.

A flash in the corner of his vision made his head turn and Warrod's eyes widened as he saw Doranbolt appear among the ruins. 'Run, you fool!', he almost said but Doranbolt didn't seem shocked to see Natsu here – or even afraid. He was looking at him with wide, shocked eyes.

"Souleater?", Doranbolt said after a moment of silence, turning to look at the dragon who nodded his head at Warrod.

"Apparently, I really do look like a villain," the dragon stated dryly.

Warrod saw Doranbolt grimace and knew the man likely assumed the same. Then why did he believe him now?

"Souleater killed the guy responsible for this," Doranbolt told Warrod. The old man frowned, looking around before he looked back at Natsu. "And where is the body now?"

"Exploded," Natsu said dismissively and when both looked at him with wide eyes he sighed again. "When I killed him he started glowing," he said that pointedly at Doranbolt who was struck that the dragon even noticed that, "I pulled him into the Void to avoid it obliterating Era"

He proceeded to gesture at the state he was in and Warrod suddenly wondered how was he not showing any sign of pain. His left arm was a charred mess, what he had previously thought was a black sleeve actually a burnt skin.

"Are you alright?", Doranbolt asked, looking concerned and Warrod looked back at him. He didn't know anymore what was going on. No, he corrected himself, he didn't know from the beginning what was going on.

"I am," Natsu said easily, and oddly enough Doranbolt believed him without questions once again.

"Tartaros did this," Doranbolt said after a moment, looking at Warrod. "If it hadn't been for Souleater I would've likely been dead as well," he glanced at Natsu before he continued, "Sage Org said that he was innocent, that we need to make sure that the public knows the… truth"

Warrod didn't miss how he hesitated and looked back at Natsu, "The truth?"

"I never died," Natsu said, eyes narrowed as if he dared the other man to say otherwise.

"How do I know you are saying the truth?"

Doranbolt hesitated then opened the tightly pressed palm and revealed a signet ring, one worn by the council member. "Sage Org gave this to me," he paused, obviously rather terrified of the implication, "He said that because this was the state of emergency, he can make me a provisional member. To carry out their intentions until the new council was selected"

Warrod stared, that would make the young man the only living member of the current council. But he could've easily taken the ring from the man's hand if he had died in the explosion. He shook his head. He will either have to trust them or not.

"Who attacked? You said Tartaros?"

"A blond man by the name of Jackal," Doranbolt supplied, his eyes moving away from the ring.

Warrod stopped. He had seen him. It had to be the man he had seen as he was leaving. He could've warned them.

He looked back at Doranbolt and he nodded. "I will help you," he said to he young man and turning to Natsu, he stated, "You didn't die"

Doranbolt sagged in relief and Natsu's lips twitched, a smirk appeared briefly and Warrod couldn't help but feel he made the right choice. He will have to live with the consequences if he chose wrong. He looked back at Natsu who suddenly sat down on the part of a wall, his posture an odd combination of tense and relax, and Warrod realized that the man was very likely feeling more than a bit sore. Another spike of guilt went through him at the thought that he attacked a (possibly) innocent man. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Natsu looked away from his charred hand, and, still perfectly calm, replied, "Yes"

Doranbolt hesitated for a moment, staring at the two and absent-mindedly twisting the ring in his hand.

"I'll head back to the guild to inform them of what happened," Natsu said after a moment of silence. "If you need anything…", he seemed to hesitate, almost as if he was not used to offering his help – which he likely wasn't, Warrod realized – before he finished, "You know where to find me"

And with that, he disappeared into a black hole that opened beneath him and Warrod realized this must be the 'Void' he had talked about. The younger man looked at the wizened mage, neither of them quite sure where to start.

Natsu reappeared in the guildhall, startling quite a few people. His ears were still ringing, and he was fairly certain a trail of blood was going down them. He looked back at his left arm, flexing his fist. The arm was inside of Jackal when he exploded and he knew that when he stumbled out of the Void it was not there. It gave a piercing jolt of pain that almost sent him to his knees where he stood among the debris and reformed a black and charred but whole. Was this because of the contract he had signed? He wondered for a morbid second if his head would've grown back if someone cut it off.

"NATSU?!"

He looked up, realizing that, perhaps appearing in the middle of the guild looking as he did was not the best idea. Ultear was in front of him in a second, hands hovering above him as if he would break if she touched him. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Sure, it hurt but it wasn't anything too serious. A bit burned. And he could already feel it healing. Concerned eyes popped around him and he couldn't help but stare back, suddenly, inexplicably feeling self-conscious.

"We should get you to Wendy or Prolyusica," Erza reasoned and any unexplainable feelings were quickly pushed away in a fit of righteous anger. "Not necessary," he said easily and then proceeded to talk as half mouths opened to protest, "This can't wait"

"He's right," Gajeel reasoned and at several glares he received in return he rose his hands in the air, "Whatever happened to make him look like that can't wait"

"Tartaros," Natsu said, paused and realized everyone was looking at him again. 'Good,' he thought, 'I won't need to explain twice'

He looked around, straightened further and lifted his chin, "They attacked the council while I was in there. Or more accurately, one member attacked it"

"One guy did this to you?", Gray asked, his voice expressing his disbelief. "Where's the bastard now?!"

"I am not important right now," Natsu hissed and blinked again in shock as people around him shifted uneasily, obviously not agreeing. "Wait and I'll explain everything," he looked around, glaring and daring anyone to say something, "Don't interrupt"

"The member of the Tartaros could turn everything he touched into explosives," he said, gesturing to his own state, "I touched him while I proceeded to punch a hole through his chest," he raised his left arm and several winced at the implication. "He's dead now but he managed to kill most of the council before anyone even knew he was there – he blew up the building of the magic council"

He paused, letting the information sink in, watching the varying degrees of white and green shade the faces around him took. "Most of the council? Some survived?", Makarov asked, wide-eyed. "Org was alive for a few minutes longer, long enough to give Doranbolt his signet ring before Jackal set off another round of explosives. I managed to pull him into the Void to get the worst of it away from Era but I had to hold onto him to do that which is why I look… less than presentable"

"Jackal… this Tartaros member," Lucy stared, brown eyes still staring wide-eyed at the dragon prince, "How strong was he?"

Natsu paused, considering before he answered. "I don't know much about Tartaros but there is one thing I am almost certain off after today. Jackal was a demon from Zeref's books and if I am correct so are all the other members," his answer was met by another shocked silence, "I don't think he was at his strongest when he fought me but I would not say it was… difficult to win. It was the lack of information and my carelessness that resulted in this – not his actual strength"

"So… you're saying… what exactly?", Annie asked and Natsu sighed, sitting down on one of the chairs. "I underestimated him. It didn't occur to me that he would be able to transport the curse through touch alone, without even skin contact. With that said, we have to be careful, we have no idea what they can do"

"You're saying they will attack again?", Lucy asked, dread filling her eyes. It was Gray who answered, "They certainly will. They killed the whole council. They wouldn't do that just to stop and disappear again"

Natsu nodded in agreement. "We need to keep our eyes open"

He stood up, ignoring the way Ultear and Mira practically tried to push him back into the chair and he brushed off their hands. "I'll start looking for them," he paused at the protests and then amended, "Tomorrow"

He moved to leave the guild but Annie grabbed his right hand, tugging him back, "At least stay in the infirmary"

A chorus of 'Yes's met her statement and he sighed, turning around and walking to the white-walled room. The members parted for him, giving him space to walk and he looked a bit oddly at this, not sure when did this happen. This… respect. No, not respect, they respected him before. This was different yet he couldn't name it.

A few minutes later he was sitting on the bed in the infirmary in nothing but his underpants and with what felt like half of the guild still standing in the room. "You could at least let Wendy take care of the worst of it," Gray said but it sounded more like a plead than an order Erza made it sound and he almost smiled at the different approach. Almost. He wasn't even sure why he was so against it. He was always practical. This was a practical, logical thing to do. He shrugged after a moment and looked as Mira set a roll of bandages on the bed next to him and a poultice for the burns. "I don't think it's necessary," he said at least and ignored the way Ultear snorted.

He rose his left hand, blackened skin already brownish and not as dead looking as it did in the middle of the ruins. "Whatever I signed apparently accelerated my healing," he paused, considering if he should tell them before he finally added, "This hand was gone in the explosion"

"Whatever you signed?", Arthur repeated, incredulous, "Do you even know what was in that contract?"

"No," Natsu said dryly, his voice heavy with sarcasm, "Why would I read a contract with a devil before signing it?"

Ultear, who was putting the poultice on his left arm promptly slammed her fist in his shoulder and Natsu will forever deny he winced. "Not funny," she told him through narrowed eyes. Natsu stared for a moment, suddenly feeling the urge to laugh like he hadn't in years. The situation was surreal. Since when did people care about his well being this much? Since when do people tell him to be more serious?

He couldn't take it and a bark of laughter left his lips that seemed to shock the arguing members of the guild into silence.

He looked at their frozen faces and snorted, a smirk stretching his face, gesturing to Ultear who was watching him carefully, "She told me I'm not funny"

Laxus walked down the street, hands full of groceries he was carrying to Yajima's restaurant. He stopped in the middle of the street, a woman behind him nearly ran into his back and went to curse him at his carelessness only to bow in apology when she saw his face. Laxus blinked, staring as the woman quickly walked away. Was his face that recognizable?

He looked around the street, realizing he was not sure where he was. He hadn't passed this way before. With a frown he looked down the way he came from. Should he try to go forward or back? He didn't get much time to consider before he heard an explosion and turned around, staring wide-eyed as a tornado ripped through the roof of a house. He immediately knew where the restaurant is and he disappeared in a flash of lightning, leaving startled civilians behind him.

He came just in time to see a robes-wearing man in the process of doing something that would surely kill Yajima. He slammed into him with his whole weight before he bounded back as a bolt of lightning and glared, noting the fallen forms of comrades. "Laxus," Freed breathed out in relief.

Annie sat quietly at one of the empty beds in the infirmary, a book in her lap. She glanced at Natsu who lied unmoving and still, chest rising and falling slowly. She knew that at most he dozed off but was more than likely completely aware of everything despite his looking like he was in a deep sleep. She turned her eyes back to the book, the silence of the infirmary a stark contrast to what it has been an hour earlier. Natsu more or less forced them all to leave but Mira and Ultear made him agree to at least one of them staying. She smiled at the memory, turning another page of the book.

'I don't need to be watched over like a child', the dragon prince had said. Ultear, gesturing to his charred state, had snorted, 'Then think of it as more of a way to make us sure that you're alright than making sure you are alright'

The sentence didn't make much sense but the dragon prince understood it perfectly. So, he told them to go bother someone else and didn't comment when Annie took a seat on one of the beds. When everyone left had looked at her for a solid minute, as if trying to frighten her to leave. She knew him well enough to be able to ignore it. Mostly. So, she stayed rooted to her spot and pulled out one of the books from a nightstand that someone had left from before.

The door of the infirmary opened and Annie looked up, blinking in shock at who entered, and in a fit of curiosity her hands flashed with magic and she disappeared from view.

Makarov looked around the infirmary as he closed the door as silently as he could. He was certain he had seen something there but now the infirmary stood silent and empty except the silent dragon prince who appeared to be asleep. He bit his lower lip, glancing around once again before he sighed and turned back to the dragon. Did he want to wake him up for this? Maybe it would be better if he came back later. He still wasn't sure how to say what needed to be said.

"What?", Natsu's voice made him jump and he turned to look at the dragon who still hadn't moved nor opened his eyes, "I can practically hear gears turning in your head. What is it?"

Makarov swallowed and shuffled a bit in the spot and Natsu sighed, as if he was in a presence of an extremely annoying child, and finally, his red eyes opened and he turned his head to look at the old master. Makarov swallowed, staring for a moment at what he was certain was a rather angry red burn an hour ago but now was turning to a pale scar around the edges.

"This is… important… I think but it can wait until you're feeling better," he paused and coughed in his hand, aware of how that sounded. Natsu didn't miss it either, one eyebrow raised, "You think?"

The master cleared his throat, not missing how Natsu glanced at the bed behind him, and spoke again, "Are you alright?"

Makarov could see the dragon was getting annoyed the longer he avoided the subject and his next sentence made it perfectly obvious, "Stop beating around the bush"

"I want you to become the new Fairy Tail master," there was a sound of something falling and Makarov's eyes snapped back to the room, missing the way dragon's jaw had slackened into a rather dumbfounded look. Had he seen it he might've found it amusing but Natsu pushed back his emotions behind a mask by the time the older man looked at him and was in the process of staring at him with such intensity Makarov wondered if the dragon prince learned how to read minds.

He was silent long enough that Makarov started worrying he might've spoken too soon. Maybe he should've waited? If the dragon prince now fainted from shock Ultear or Mira would certainly kill him. Not that he looked ready to faint but the stony expression and the utter silence was unnerving.

"Me?", he finally asked, his voice not completely hiding how incredulous he was feeling, "You want me to become Fairy Tail's new master?"

He paused and his eyes narrowed, a fierce scowl and a glare suddenly on his face and Makarov paled, unsure what he did wrong. "If this is your way of trying to apologize out of some misguided feeling of self-pity or gods forbid pity, save it"

Makarov swallowed again, the murderous look in Natsu's eyes made the afternoon seem like a far-off dream. "It's not like that!", he protested finally, hands raised and eyes wide, "I honestly think you would do a good job! I've been thinking about this for months if not years!"

At Natsu's continued glare he added, "Honest!"

The dragon still watched him for what felt like an eternity and he cursed his diminutive height. He felt like an ant under a magnifier, hoping to not get burned by the sun. "Why?", was what he finally said, voice carefully blank, a fierce expression still on his face that made Makarov aware he wouldn't accept anything but the truth.

"You are the most responsible, practical, and logical member of the guild. They listen to you like they never listened to anyone else. And…", he stopped, suddenly not sure if he should share this particular sentiment.

"And?"

Makarov sighed, "And you care, more than anyone would've thought…", he paused again and, feeling bold that he was still talking to the dragon, continued, "More than you think as well"

Natsu stayed quiet, staring at him from where he sat on the bed. His expression completely closed off and Makarov wondered if he made a mistake, if he somehow went too far. It was no longer his place to say anything to him, it was no longer his right to even ask to be heard. But the dragon had heard him and had listened.

Now all that reminded was for Makarov to hear the answer.

Something flickered across Natsu's face but before Makarov could recognize it, it was gone. Finally, he opened his mouth, and out came a sentence Makarov didn't expect, "Should I do it?"

He wasn't looking at Makarov but somewhere above his shoulder and the old man wondered if he should answer. When a moment of silence passed and Natsu still didn't say anything else the old master spoke hesitantly, "It's entirely your -"

He was interrupted by a new voice and it almost made him jump out of his skin. He realized with a start that the question was never aimed at him. Annie appeared next to Natsu, her young face set in determination, her eyes wide. "Yes," she said that firmly, her belief in the dragon evident and Natsu paused again as if startled by her conviction. Like he hadn't expected that at all and Makarov nodded before he had time to stop himself.

Natsu stayed silent and Annie climbed on the bed next to him, sitting calmly for a moment before she took his right hand in her own and squeezed it. "You're an awesome dad," she told him and Natsu had to fight back a snort that came with the sentiment, "And you would be a great Fairy Tail master"

Natsu sighed, stared at Annie's hand, so small in his own and he looked up, staring Makarov in the eyes and the master held his breath without even realizing it.

"Fine," the dragon prince finally said, the word leaving his lips so softly and yet Natsu himself seemed surprised by what he said but the expression quickly disappeared and he nodded again, more firmly, "Yes, I accept if the guild will have me"

End of chapter 85.

Another chapter up! So, thanks for all the feedback, I truly appreciate it! You guys are wonderful. How do you like it? Let me know and if there's something that feels like it's left unsaid feel free to ask. It'll most likely be explained in later chapters but there is a possibility I just thought it was self-explanatory and didn't think that it's only obvious because I am the one writing it and know what's going on through my head. Anyway, please review and thanks for reading :)