Hey everyone!
I know, it has been two months since I updated and I am very sorry I have kept you waiting for so long. I just lost interest in this story for a bit and worked on something else.
But now I'm back and I hope you'll all enjoy chapter seven
################################################################################
After spending yet another night on the ground, Gray had enough. He just wanted to get home, take a shower and spend some time in his own bed. He was fairly certain everyone else felt just the same.
Okay, maybe not everyone. Natsu seemed actually to enjoy being outside like that. The Dragon Slayer always had, but not to this extend. It really seemed as if his salmon haired friend fit right into this, for humans not really suitable, environment. He didn't seem to mind the hard ground, the damp grass or the wind that was blowing through the trees at night.
In return, the forest seemed to readily accommodate the young mage as well. Insects seemed to steer clear of him and even while he slept, pine needles and leaves seemed to fall everywhere but on top of his resting form.
He seemed just so in tune with nature now, it was almost scary.
Natsu had always preferred to live anywhere but inside the city of Magnolia. Rather he'd chosen to build his house a bit outside of town, someplace quiet where no other people lived near. Gray had always wondered if that may have had something to do with Natsu never having lived among humans during his time with Igneel, or just simply with the fact that his sense of smell and his hearing were just too sensitive to live among this many people.
As he sat there, musing about his friend, said Dragon Slayer suddenly opened his, now bright yellow colored, eyes.
"Yo, Frosty, what are you starin' at?" His voice was still a bit slurred from sleep and if Gray had closed his eyes, he could almost have forgotten the situation they were in.
"Nothing flame brain, go back to sleep."
Growling lightly, Natsu uncurled from his position on the floor with one smooth movement, raising his wings and straightening his tail. Now sitting up, his horns and scales shimmered slightly in the soft glow of the morning sun.
This peaceful image however was destroyed, when Natsu opened his mouth and yawned widely, exposing his razor sharp fangs.
"No way ice princess, I'm awake now. What about the others?"
"Still sleeping. I'm only awake because I can't rest properly outside."
In silence, the two mages sat there, watching as the sun rose slowly over the horizon. It was already getting warmer by the minute. Today would probably get quite hot.
"Man, I'm hungry."
Natsu looked at him surprised. Wasn't he hungry as well? After all, they didn't exactly have much to eat since… Actually, had they eaten anything at all since they'd been taken at Hargeon? How long ago had that been now? Almost a week maybe?
"Do you want me to go catch something?" The offer was both unexpected and welcome at the same time. Getting some roasted meat for breakfast sounded like a very good idea and since he wasn't the best hunter when it came to normal animals, he nodded.
"Yeah, that would be great. I'm sure the others will be hungry as well once they wake up."
"Okay then, I wanted to try out those anyways." Flapping his wings a bit, Natsu got up and started to make his way into the forest.
"Hey, wait! If you're going to do that, then let me cone along, just in case!"
Hurrying after his friend, he stumbled through the shrubbery and really had to move fast in order to catch up to Natsu, who didn't seem to have any problems whatsoever walking through the dense undergrowth.
"Fine, but if you're going to be this noisy, I won't be able to catch anything."
After walking for a few more minutes, the two teens suddenly found themselves at the edge of a meadow. It looked almost like it was cut right out of a fairy tail. The huge clearing was surrounded by tall trees and in between the soft grass that was covering the ground were different kinds of small flowers. It looked almost to perfect.
"I found this place last night and thought it might be a good place for this."
Gray nodded wordlessly. This place really was suited perfectly for training. Of course, it hadn't escaped him that his friend had snuck away during the dark. He'd just assumed that Natsu needed some time to himself, so he hadn't followed him back then. "So, why didn't you try it out right away?"
"I just didn't feel like it."
Strange. This didn't sound like something his rival would say normally. Usually, Natsu always had a very good reason behind everything he did, or at least one, that made sense somehow. Because 'he didn't feel like it' really never had been among those before.
"Ooookay, I'll just sit down right here and wait until you're finished." Not even waiting for an answer, he did just that.
Shrugging, Natsu turned around and walked into the middle of the clearing. Standing still, he seemed to just relax for a few seconds. Then, he spread his wings, apparently as far as he could.
Seeing them like this was impressive. Gray hadn't noticed how big they were until now. The sun's rays were shining through the thin and delicate membrane that made up most of their surface, making them look almost golden. He could even make out thin veins spider-webbing through the membrane.
And then, as if he'd always known how to do it, Natsu took a few quick steps, while simultaneously flapping his wings forcefully. Then, his feet left the ground and he started to gain altitude.
At first, the whole thing looked a bit shaky, but after a few minutes, The salmon head seemed to have gotten the hang of it. Laughing madly, he soared around the clearing like he'd been born to do so. With a triumphant roar, he flew even higher. After hovering for a minute, he then slowly flew back down and actually managed to land safely without falling on his face.
Gray had to suppress a grin. He'd never seen his friend look quite this happy before.
"So then, done for now?"
Grinning widely, Natsu looked at him. "Nah, still need to catch breakfast." This time, he took off without even having to do a running start or anything. It was really amazing how fast he managed to learn to control that new body of his.
Soon, the half dragon was out of sight.
Gray just hoped they'd manage to get back to camp before Erza woke up. She'd surely be pissed when she noticed they had snuck away without telling her. He shivered involuntarily. Erza's wrath was nothing to joke about after all.
He decided to wait another five minuted before heading back. In case she had awoken already, he wanted to at least get back and explain on his own instead of her coming and finding him herself.
Just then, an armored hand painfully clamped down on his shoulder.
################################################################################
The second she woke up, Erza immediately knew that something was off.
It was way too quiet.
Taking a look around, it was relatively easy to spot the reason, or lack thereof, why. Natsu and Gray were both missing.
The rational part of her brain knew of course that this could have many reasons, most of them harmless. But after the events of the last few days, she immediately assumed the worst. Had Igor come back somehow? Had someone else noticed Natsu and decided he'd make a nice souvenir?
Trying to calm her thoughts, she shook her head. If something like this would have happened, Natsu wouldn't have gone quietly. The missing of any signs of a struggle pointed to a harmless reason for the boy's absence as well.
Erza could still hear Natsu's pained screams and see his agony whenever she closed her eyes. Those images were almost as haunting as the ones she still remembered from her time at the tower of heavens.
Deciding that looking for the two of them would be better then just sitting around and waiting would be the best cause of action, she knelt down besides Lucy, She shook the girls shoulder in order to rouse her.
"Lucy? Hey, wake up, we have a problem." The girl woke immediately, getting up while rubbing the sleep out of her eyes
"Wha-...What is it Erza? "-"
"Come on, Natsu and Gray have disappeared, we need to go look for them right away!"
Immediately, she was fully awake and prepared to go. "What?! You don't think it's Igor, do you?"
She shook her head. "I don't think so, I'm pretty sure he's dead. I'm not sure if anything serious has happened, or if they just decided to take off somewhere. We'll need to look for them anyways, just to make sure."
Lucy nodded, her face now pale and serious. "I hope you're right Erza."
Looking around for a bit, she noticed a path that had only very recently been made in the undergrowth. "Lucy, over here!"
The blond followed her immediately. It didn't take them long until they reached the edge of the forest. And there, sitting under a tree as if nothing was wrong at all, was Gray, staring up into the sky, apparently without a care in the world.
Feeling rage boil under her skin, she quietly marched over to him. When she'd reached the ice mage, she clamped her hand on his shoulder, making him flinch violently.
"E-Erza I-"
"Gray? Where. Have. You. Been?" She only barely managed not to yell at him.
"Ehh, Erza, we just ahh,...-"
"Well? Explain!"
"Aye!"
It was really funny, how easily she could make him squirm like that. Once she knew where their resident dragon had run off to, he'd be next.
"Well, I was awake really early, and then Natsu woke up too and we decided to go and find some food. Natsu said he could go and hunt something since he'd wanted to try flying today anyways. Then we went here and he actually managed to fly pretty fast. I don't know where he's now, only that he said he'd go hunting. Then, he flew off again."
"I see. And none of you thought it would be a good idea to tell at least one of us where you were going?"
"You guys were sleeping and we just-"
"Gray, Erza is right, we were really worried that something might have happened to you guys!"
"Sorry Lucy, We really didn't mean to and we were planning to get back before you woke up."
"Well, that may be true Gray, but that doesn't change the fact that the two of you should have said something!"
Before Erza could continue, her rant, they could hear something above them. It sounded like rushing wind combined with the sound one would associate with the wings of a huge bird taking flight. Looking up, she saw something flying towards them at high speed.
A second later, it flew over them and something heavy dropped to the ground right next to her feet. Looking more closely, she could see that it was a young deer.
A gust of wind caused her to protectively close her eyes and when she opened them again, Natsu had landed right next to his prey.
"Good morning Erza, Lucy!" With a toothy grin, he waved at them. "I caught us some breakfast."
She could do nothing but stare at him. Natsu's face, as well as his hands and claws were covered in blood, as were his teeth. She totally forgot that she'd intended to yell at him just now.
"I… I see, let's just go back to camp." everyone nodded, as Natsu picked up the dead animal in front of them. Taking a look at the animals neck, she almost lost her appetite again. It looked like it had been ripped open by an angry predator. Bits of flesh were hanging off of it and blood was still dripping to the ground.
His smile slightly faltered, but he followed her anyways. Once back, they lit a fire, skinned and dressed their meat and then preceded to roast it. Well, all except for Natsu, who'd started to devour his piece as it was. Raw and bloody.
Once breakfast was finally over and Natsu had cleaned up, they started moving again.
Soon, they'd left the forest behind completely and were wandering down a path that was leading through a few fields. Erza didn't like this. They were way to exposed like that. If one of the farmers that owned the fields here, or anyone else really, saw them, she was certain, Natsu would attract unwanted attention.
When the sun had reached it's highest point, they could make out a group of people in the far distance. Without thinking, she shoved Natsu behind the nearest boulder.
"Stay there, people are coming!"
"But Erza-"
"I said stay!"
She, Gray and Lucy slowly continued walking, in order not to draw attention to themselves. Soon though, she noticed something familiar about the three people that were walking towards them.
Shimmering white hair and a flowing dress, A small girl with long pigtails and a huge man wearing a black cloak. Could that really be? Had they really run into those three?
Not believing their luck, they waited for their comrades to reach them.
"Thank god, Erza, Gray, Lucy! When you didn't return, we were so worried!" Wendy was the first one to reach them, tears of joy flowing freely from her eyes. "Are you guys okay? Are you injured anywhere?"
"No, were fine, but-"
"Erza! So good to see you, Master was so worried!" Mira was the next one to reach her. A genuine smile on her face, the albino women enveloped each one of them in a tight hug. "What happened? It's really not like you to vanish just like that."
"Trust us, we didn't have much of a choice on the matter." Gray's dry comment did nothing to calm her down.
"What, why? Did someone attack you? Did-"
"Now now Mirajane, let her explain in peace."
"But Gildarts I-"
The ginger haired man just shook his head. "If we want to know what happened to them, we need to let them talk, don't you agree? Although I understand your worry." Turning back to her, he looked at the knight with a very serious expression in his eyes. "Erza, that said, there is one thing I do want to ask you. Where is Natsu? He was with you guys, right?"
She nodded. "Yes, but you see… I don't even know how I should explain that one…"
Wendy, who'd followed their conversation until now, inhaled deeply, smelling the air and then opened her eyes in surprise. "Don't worry Gildarts, I think he's here as well, although something about his scent is a bit… odd."
The elder man looked at her. "Odd? How?"
"I'm not sure, it's definitely him, but at the same time, it isn't."
"Erza?"
"Yes, I was getting to that. I think it may be easier if we just showed you." Turning around, She waved in the direction of the boulder she'd hidden Natsu behind earlier. For a few seconds, nothing happened and she was afraid, he hadn't seen her signal, but then, he emerged and slowly walked towards them. Turning back to the others, she could see the terror and confusion clearly on their faces.
Now, she wasn't so sure anymore that it had been a good idea not to tell them beforehand.
################################################################################
Gildarts didn't know what to think. He'd been happy when Wendy had said that Natsu was with them, after all, he'd known the kid for years now. But that, what was walking toward them right now, didn't look like his little friend at all anymore. Except for the salmon colored head of hair and his general build, there wasn't much left of the old Natsu Dragneel.
Scales, Wings, tail, horns, talons… And there was no telling what else.
"What...How?" He was at a loss for words. Wendy and Mira seemed to shocked to speak as well. The little girl looked ready to cry and Mira was covering her mouth in shock.
Natsu seemed to be able to sense their confusion, at least it seemed like it since he stopped a little distance away from them, looking at them skeptically out of slitted, yellow pupils.
Gildarts had to suppress a shiver. Those weren't the eyes of a human anymore. They reminded him way to much of the eyes of that monster Acnologia if he was quite honest with himself. The only difference was the color and the fact, that his friend's gaze didn't hold any hostility or blood lust what so ever.
Mira seemed to be the first one to regain her composure. After all, this didn't look too different from her in her Satan soul form.
Tentatively walking towards him, she carefully extended her hand and, when she reached him, placed it on his cheek. "There you are Natsu, we were worried when we didn't see you right away."
"Hey there Mira."
The moment he spoke, it seemed as if a spell had been broken. The simple sound of his voice, and the fact that it hadn't changed, made it clear to them, that this was still their Natsu.
Wendy ran forward and hugged him, careful not to touch is wings in case she might accidentally hurt them.
Deciding that he should say something, he put his hand to the back of his head and grinned. "There you are kiddo, mind telling me what's up with that new look?"
"Hey old man!" A clearly forced smile on his face, Natsu returned his greeting.
Now that this was out of the way, he turned back to Erza, who'd been watching the whole scenario with a frown on her face "Well Titania, I think we need to find some place to sit down and talk."
She nodded. "Yes, I think that would be best, although I would suggest finding someplace a bit more secluded then this."
"Yes, I think that might be best." There was no telling what might happen if they ran into travelers out here. With Natsu like this, they'd sure get quite the scare out of seeing him.
The scarlet haired knight turned to Natsu. "Would you mind searching for a place we could use to make camp? It should be someplace we all can reach until sundown."
Natsu nodded, then spread his wings, and to the three newcomer's surprise, flew off.
Gildarts whistled impressed
Once Natsu was out of sight, He turned back to the others. "Okay then, start talking. I'm sure you didn't just send him off to find someplace to sleep later."
Sighing, Erza nodded. "You're right, I don't think it would be good for him to be reminded of all that has happened so soon."
Judging by the worried look on her face, this was serious.
They all walked back to the boulder Natsu had hidden behind earlier and sat down. Taking a deep breath, Erza started recounting everything that had happened in their absence.
As the minutes went by and the story went further and further, Gildarts and his two companions got more and more horrified. What Erza told them was so dark and gruesome, he had trouble to actually believe everything she said. By the end of it, The girls had started crying and he himself had to really restrain himself in order to not destroy something out of rage. The only good thing she told them was, that the monster who'd done that, had been killed by herself and Gray already.
"There is something else you should know as well."
"And what would that be? There can't be more, can there?"
"Sadly, there is. You see, Natsu does not only look different, his behavior has changed as well. You can't expect him to react like he used to with some things."
Gray nodded. "She's right Old man, Yesterday, we were arguing, and he went totally feral. He was snarling and acting more like an animal then anything else. When we asked him about this, he told us it had been instinct or something like that."
Okay, this was concerning. As long as they didn't know how far this went, they couldn't let him go on jobs or let him out of their sight. If there was any risk of him acting like this towards clients, the guild could get in quite some trouble.
"Well, that's not good."
"Yeah, you can say that again. We also haven't determined the state, his magic is in. He hasn't used it once since we escaped."
"What?!" This was even more concerning. Normally, the boy was using his magic often, and for all purposes. For him not doing that for days could only mean two things. Either, he couldn't use it, or he didn't want to for some reason.
Before they could continue, They made out the sound of wings above them. Hovering in mid air, Natsu waved at them. "I found a nice spot about two miles from here, just a bit further north."
Erza gave him a thumbs up. "Good work, lead the way!"
Slowly flying in front of them, he did just that. Gildarts really had to marvel at how well this new body seemed to work for the salmon haired teen. The way he moved was so elegant and effortless, it looked as if it had always been meant to be like that. Judging by the look on Wendy's face, she was thinking something along the same lines. Mira on the other hand, was happily chatting with Gray and Lucy, who just seemed to enjoy a normal conversation for once.
How would they explain this to the guild? Of course, Master had to know the whole story, no question about that, but what about the rest? They would need to find a version to tell them, that would maybe not include every detail.
For example, they couldn't tell everyone that Erza had plainly killed the bastard. Even if he deserved it, she'd still be punished for it by the council. It would probably be better to keep the details about the torture Natsu had gone through under wraps as well. There was no need for the entire guild to get nightmares because of that.
Well, whatever happened, Master would be pissed anyways.
################################################################################
To be quite honest, Natsu was happy to have gotten away from everyone for a bit. He'd of course known that he'd have to face the rest of the guild sooner or later, but still… The fear and hesitation he'd sensed from those three had really hurt him. Of course, he'd smiled and waved it off in order not to worry the others, but that didn't really change the fact that it still had been quite painful to see that his family's first reaction after seeing him like this had been fear.
Even old man Gildarts had seemed scared of him. Was he really that much of a monster?
Slowly flying further towards Magnolia, he continued to search for a place to make camp. He really wasn't in a hurry to return, especially since he was sure, Erza had only send him ahead in order to talk to them about everything that had happened without him listening.
Well, they'd just have to accept it, hadn't they? The only thing he could do if they couldn't was leaving Fairy Tail, and he'd never do that. He just hoped it wouldn't come that far. He was sure, Gramps wouldn't send him away. But if even Mira, Wendy and Gildarts were scared of him, what about everyone else?
Frowning, he suddenly made out a group of trees in the middle of nowhere. Deciding to check this out, he started to decent towards them. Once he was on the ground safely, he slowly and quietly made his way underneath the trees. The cool shade was a welcome change from the burning hot sun that had mercilessly beamed down upon them since this morning.
The trees here were old. Their trunks easily being to thick for him to completely reach around them. Thick roots were covering the ground, forming nest-like holes from time to time. They looked really comfortable. By the smell of the place, no one else had been here in quite some time.
This place was perfect. Through the silence, he could pick up on the sound of running water and after walking for a few minutes, he found a small spring. Deciding that he wouldn't be able to find a better spot, he spread his wings and started to make his way back to where he'd left the others.
He'd only flown for the first time on his own this morning, but he was loving it already. The wind in his hair and under his wings, as well as the sheer vastness of the sky and the countless possibilities as to where he could go… It was pure heaven.
For a few seconds, he allowed his mind to wander off and think about what it would be like to just… fly away and not return to the others. Part of him knew that he'd miss them terribly, but an almost equally strong part told him to just forget about them and continue flying. He could feel his chest vibrate lightly as he purred at the thought of that.
Would they even mind if he disappeared? They'd have a lot less problems if he just didn't return. They'd be able to just go home and continue on with their normal and fun life at the Guild without him.
Logically he was aware that those thoughts only came from the dragon part of his mind, after all, the weren't known to live in big groups.
His human part however hurt terribly at the mere thought of leaving his family behind.
Flapping his wings faster, he hurried back. If he took any longer, he feared that his dragon half would win and he'd simply fly away.
Those conflicting thoughts thankfully disappeared the moment he laid eyes on his friends.
Once they were on their way together, he'd decided to rather fly instead of walking. After all, that was what his body was build to do now.
During th whole time it took them to reach the small oasis he'd found, only Mira spoke, chatting happily about everything and everyone in order to lighten the mood a bit.
So he'd been right to assume Erza had used the time to fill them in on what had happened then. He could still smell the salt from tears and the anger that was surrounding the others like a dark cloud.
Once at their destination, he flew up into the highest tree he could find, tucked himself under his wings and tried to sleep. He didn't feel like talking right now.
Tomorrow, they'd reach Magnolia. He could smell the city from here already.
Dreading and simultaneously looking forward to tomorrow, he finally fell asleep.
################################################################################
So, that's it, another chapter done.
I hope you guys enjoyed reading this. Please review and like or follow if you want to read more.
See you guys next time
Nahesa