How long had he not felt this way? Natsu did not remember, but now he was at peace as he watched the blue haired woman resting in her lair lying on top of the rubies and lacrimas.
She is familiar to him, at some point in the past he had met her. Nevertheless, where? When? As? Natsu did not remember this was frustrating for the dragon; it was as if the answer was right in front of him, but at the same time, it was all blurry.
He knew her, he was sure of it, her scent was familiar, her magic was familiar, and everything about her kindled a fire in him that was long gone. Natsu felt happy, hopeful...there was not a right answer to that, but it was how he was and it was frustrating not knowing why.
The dragon quickly got up and was about to leave to fly when he felt a drop dripping on one of his scales, being soon followed by others, showing that it was now raining. Before the big beast could do anything, he heard a small muffled sob and turned to see the blue one writhing as tears welled up in her eyes.
A feeling of panic and worry pierced the dragon's chest causing the beast to approach the girl, which made her relax and the rain stopped. This made Natsu blink and look at the sky as he stood up on his front paws, seeing no more sign of rain, the dragon returned to its original position.
His eyes first went to one of the rubies that was on the side of the girl's wound. It glowed a crimson red as it sent particles of magic into the wound that was slowly closing.
Satisfied with that, the creature let out a yawn and was about to lie down under his rubies when he noticed that the blue one shivered with a small breeze that entered the chamber.
Seeing this the dragon quickly lay down around her giving her considerable space, but making a practically dome. With one last look at the blue, the dragon closed its eyes and began to sleep.
However, unbeknownst to him, a small figure watched them with a relieved smile on his face, it was Marvis Vermillion.
"I see I made the right choice, even if you cannot see me or remember the past, you still keep your instincts and Juvia-san is making you follow them again..." Marvis comments before looking at the Dragon's shoulder and smiles even more seeing a mark slowly reappearing.
"We will bring you back Natsu-chan, just wait!" Declares the girl with determination.
(The next day.)
Juvia slowly opened her eyes while letting out a groan of pain, the first thing she noticed was the big hole high up in the ceiling wherever she was. The girl blinked in a daze, turning her head sideways confused, and her vision was still a little blurry.
"What happened? ...The last thing Juvia remembers was..." Thinks Juvia remembering having taken the quest, her arrival and night in the city before finally going to hunt the "Vulcan" which turned out to be a Chorabash, they fought before...
At that moment Juvia widened her eyes and sat up before looking at her waist, however she was shocked when she saw that the damage to her clothes remained, but her wound disappeared completely, cautiously she ran her hand over the wound, noting that it really disappeared.
"How is this possible?" Juvia asks before noticing the rubies and red tears around her, the girl was extremely confused and scared before getting up looking at the ground around her, which was nothing more, nothing less than several of the gemstones scattered one over the other.
However, that was not what shocked her the most, the amount of energy that Juvia could feel coming out of them. In addition, it was something extremely potent that explained why Juvia healed.
The blue one was grateful to be unconscious during the healing process, after all from what she could see her healing mainly done by rubies and not by a person. When an object does the magical healing process it is, much more painful than when done by a human, bringing into question the control of the flow of magic transferred in the healing.
When it is done by people there is a control in the flow with it being reduced when the pain becomes too much or even increasing when the wound is not healing properly, however with objects they have no control, they just send the flow, and even worse it was pure natural, mineral energy, without really the healing element.
Juvia slowly got to her feet, despite healed, she was still a little unbalanced and dizzy, however she managed to stand up, with several questions in her head, where was Juvia? How did Juvia get there? What happened to Chorabash? As the mage asked these questions to herself, she never noticed how the "rocks" around her began to move.
Suddenly a noise echoed behind her causing the girl to turn her head back to see some kind of red stones, Juvia stared at them for a few seconds before lifting her head and seeing that the other stones inside the mountain were of a different color.
Before Juvia could make any decision, the stones all moved, causing the unstable ground that the mage walked on to move, knocking her down. The girl groaned in pain before sitting back down with a small frown, which soon changed to shock.
The "red stones" were not part of the cave; they were the body of a large dragon, the size of Acnologia. Juvia stared wide-eyed at the creature in front of her who was still sleeping peacefully.
It was at that moment that everything started to spin for Juvia, the mage quickly turned around to support herself with her hands and knees while breathing heavily, Juvia raised one of her hands to the center of her chest, squeezing it trying to breathe again.
Juvia felt as if she was choking, the mage flinched as she trembled more and more before tears began to fall from her eyes.
"Juvia is going to die... Juvia is going to die... Juvia is going to die like Natsu-san..." Juvia thinks with wide eyes in an expression of horror.
Suddenly Juvia feels a hand on her shoulder with a comforting grip, however the water mage could not lift her head, and she paralyzed as she continued to stare at the rubies below her.
"It is okay Juvia-chan, don't worry, you're not in danger." Says a voice calmly that Juvia cannot recognize now.
The hand that was on her shoulder came out of there and started rubbing small circles on her back while Juvia slowly started breathing normally and her vision returned to normal. Once the water mage has improved enough, she lifts her head weakly to see Marvis staring at her with an affectionate smile.
"It is ok Juvia-chan; focus on me for now ok? Now come on, breathe slowly." Commands Marvis while Juvia slowly calms down, however she is still shaking a little.
The two stayed like that for a few minutes before Juvia finally gave Marvis a weak smile.
"Thank you, Juvia needed this." The bluish girl declares, receiving a smile from the first master.
"Good, I'm glad to see that Juvia-chan is better." With that, the first master gets up before looking at Natsu sleeping with a bright smile. "I must admit, I didn't expect you to find him so quickly and even in the early days."
Juvia looked at the first mistress confused while tilting her head.
"Juvia doesn't understand, finding who…" Suddenly Juvia's mouth went dry before she slowly turned to the dragon, however all the terror she felt disappeared seeing the creature's expression.
Unlike Acnologia who showed, nothing but rage and a killing spree directed at Juvia and her guild, this dragon was perfectly at peace in peaceful sleep with a few rubies trapped between its scales and horns. Juvia could not help but cover her mouth as a small snort came out of her mouth, before freezing to see the creature moving its head a little closer to them before lifting its head a little groggily.
Juvia froze as Marvis continued to smile at the dragon. The creature looked around before looking at Juvia, the dragon kept its gaze on her for a few seconds before returning to its original position, returning to its sleep.
"…" Juvia had no words to describe it other than her racing heart beating in her chest as if it were a magical vehicle driven by Erza.
"See? There is nothing to fear, our host seems more interested in sleeping than fighting and even if he was not sleeping I doubt he would even try to hurt you Juvia-chan." Guarantees Marvis making Juvia turn to her, doubt clear in the expression of the blue, which only made the first master laugh to herself.
"Don't worry, I know you have questions and you will get them all while you train with him." Marvis declares making Juvia's eyes widen.
"EH!? JUVIA IS TRAINING WITH A DRAGON!?" Juvia exclaims in shock before freezing and turning to the dragon who just twitched his eye before pulling his head away.
"Yes, Juvia-chan, after all, there is no one better to be your partner than an ultra-powerful dragon, Acnologia alone was strong and all dragons are said to be extremely durable and powerful, besides the amount of rubies here, I imagine that the villagers must know of its existence and left you alone to train." Explains Marvis calmly with his always-present smile on his face earning a stunned look from Juvia.
"But...he...Juvia...dragon...Tenrou...Natsu-san..." Murmurs Juvia trying to think of some argument to use against Marvis, before the blonde smiles even more.
"And if you want another reason to train with him, know that it was this dragon that came to your rescue when Chorabash was about to kill you and he brought you here to heal." Marvis declares leaving Juvia speechless before the blue one turns to the dragon with new eyes and without so much fear.
Juvia continued to stare at the dragon and saw that despite its intimidating appearance, his expression was very serene while he slept, after which she placed her hand on her waist where she had been injured in the mission before sighing.
"Juvia will not be able to make Marvis-san change his mind, will she?" Asks Juvia with a tired smile making Marvis shake his head.
"Okay then…Juvia will train here Marvis-san." She agrees before Marvis screams with happiness raising his arms and hugs Juvia before the blonde walks away with a huge smile.
"I'm happy to hear that, now go to the hotel you stayed and get your things, you should camp in the cave for your training, besides that I'll be back in three months to take you to the games, see you soon Juvia-chan and dragon-chan!" With that, the first master leaves the cave before disappearing completely leaving a speechless Juvia alone staring at the place Marvis left before sighing.
The blue one soon turned to the dragon that was still sleeping peacefully before she finally noticed a small noise that the creature was making, something like a small snore.
Juvia blinked a few times before letting out a small giggle.
"Even though you look like a monster, like... that dragon... you actually look a lot cuter than before." Juvia thinks with a relieved smile when suddenly the dragon yawned before shooting a small fireball from its mouth, before going back to sleep, making the blue one widen her eyes.
"...Maybe Juvia should rethink her opinion." Juvia concludes a little pale, at the same time she remembered a little of her dead guildmate, Natsu Dragneel.
(In the village, a while later.)
"Are you sure about that? The forest is not one of the best places to camp in this city...in fact; nobody here would recommend you a place to camp in the surroundings." The receptionist of the hotel comments that Juvia was while the said mage paid for the night that passed.
"Yes, Juvia is a powerful mage and can take care of any monster or animal that appears." Declares the mage calmly, despite thinking that having a dragon now, as a training partner was something that would help a lot.
"I see then, have a good workout and please come back often."
With that, Juvia waves before picking up her things and leaving the hotel, heading quickly towards the hotel, under the frightened eyes of the citizens.
As Juvia walked through the forest towards the cave, the water mage could not help but scowl before starting to grumble angrily about her current situation having to be with one of the most dangerous creatures in the wizarding world.
However, before she could think more, a current of wind passed through her, shaking her clothes and hair, forcing Juvia to hold her things and hat to prevent them from flying away. After that, she hears a thud behind her and an earthquake that knocks her down, the girl gets up soon after dusting her clothes before turning around and facing the dragon that saved her.
The dragon was staring at her with a curious expression as he cocked his head to the side, something Juvia could not help but found quite cute. They stood in the same position facing each other before Juvia slowly raised her hand a little and waved at the dragon.
- Hi... - She greets Juvia a little embarrassed.
With that, the dragon approached Juvia's face, making her tense seeing his big jaw, probably bigger than the Chorabash. However, before Juvia could complete her thought the dragon sniffed her, causing her to blink in confusion at the action.
"...He doesn't want to eat me?" Juvia thinks, surprised and relieved, while the creature continued to sniff her before walking away, with that the dragon huffs and walks towards the cave, with its tail wrapping itself around Juvia.
"Hã? Wait a minute..." Juvia mutters, noticing the tail before she screams as she lifted into the air, while quickly picking up her suitcase, with that she finds herself transported by a dragon towards her new camp.
"Well... at least that's convenient." Juvia thinks, relieved for not having to walk all that distance, however in the end she ends up sighing tiredly.
"Juvia must be going crazy to train with a dragon."
(In the cave a few hours later.)
"FINALLY! Juvia finished setting up camp!" Juvia exclaims with a smile as she raised her arms in celebration seeing her tent and bonfire built inside the cave entrance.
Suddenly she clapped her hands before looking at the area in front of the cave seeing that it was a very big clearing that would give her enough space to train, with that Juvia smiled before going to the middle of the space, it was time for her to train.
However unbeknownst to her, the dragon reappeared at the entrance of the cave; the large beast looked at her camp and approached her face sniffing it, realizing that it had the same scent as the blue haired girl, the dragon walked away before lying down on the bed. Ground on its paws and started to watch the training of the bluish one.
She appeared to be doing a series of physical exercises, after which she sat on the floor and began to meditate. At that moment the dragon could feel her magic power in the air again, something that reminded him of the rain of a few days ago, then a light rain started to fall while Juvia was covered by a faint blue aura, almost invisible to the naked eye.
The dragon was delighted to see this, but now that he was closer, the dragon could sense something strange, as if there were two forms of magical power mixed in her, though he was more concentrated on her thigh. Suddenly the dragon could feel the same thing in its own body; the creature followed the sensation to its shoulder.
The creature continued to stare at his shoulder for a few seconds before turning to Juvia accumulating magic and the dragon noticed that she now had some water balls floating around her.
Suddenly she got up and started shooting water balls quickly at trees scattered around the place, faster, faster, and more powerful until she stopped and fell to her knees breathing heavily. The dragon watched with fascination the way she was moving and the amount of magic used, which made him quite thoughtful, even more so when he caught a glimpse of a sky blue symbol on her thigh.
It was at that moment that Juvia turns around and notices the dragon staring at her calmly from the entrance to the cave, Juvia blinked with her eyes locked on the creature, in response the dragon blinked back trying to understand what was going on in her head.
Scared Juvia let out a small scream as she fell on her butt on the floor, something that ended up scaring the dragon making him get up at once and hit his head on the cave ceiling. With that, he bent down roaring in pain as he shook his head trying to push his pain away.
Realizing what she did, Juvia quickly gets up and runs towards the dragon worried about him.
"Oh my god, I'm sorry, Juvia didn't mean to scare you, and Juvia just got scared and..." However before she could get any closer the dragon glared at her with a little anger and caution before growling, freezing her in place.
With that, the creature began to retreat into the cave, never losing sight of Juvia, until he completely disappeared from the bluish view, leaving a Juvia alone behind.
After the dragon exits Juvia growls to herself before ripping off her hat and throwing it to the ground annoyed with herself for what happened.
At the same time a thoughtful Marvis watched everything sitting on the branch of a tree, the blonde-haired person sported an angry expression.
"This does not look good, but I have faith that Juvia-chan will be able to think of something." Marvis comments before chuckling.
(Some hours later.)
Juvia was sitting in front of her bonfire poking the fire with a stick, she was inside the cave with the bonfire illuminating only her small camp while the inside of the cave seemed completely dark and the light of the moon and stars illuminated the forest.
Despite the beauty of the forest Juvia could not help but stare into the fire with a scowl, she could not stop seeing the dragon's expression over and over earlier when he growled at her. The creature looked hurt by her, betrayed even, and that for some time was bothering her a lot.
"Why is this bothering Juvia so much? Juvia has not even known him for so long, Juvia didn't feel that way even when Gray-san ignored or rejected her..." Juvia mutters softly to herself before crossing her arms and facing the fire for a few more minutes.
Then she closed her eyes and hid her face as she sighed.
"Juvia will never come to a conclusion with all this, why can't things go back to the way they were before the whole S-class exam disaster" Juvia exclaims frustrated before putting her hands in her lap and opening her eyes to see the fire, then her face changes from frustration to sadness.
"Ah yes... At that time, he was with us." Juvia mutters solemnly.
She stayed that way for a few seconds before feeling a hot wind on her back which made her turn around to face the dragon staring at her silently but cautiously. To her credit, Juvia did not look scared; she was surprised before adopting a smile at the immense creature.
"It's funny to think that in a short time I managed to feel more comfortable with a dragon than I did in my own guild." Juvia thinks with a sad smile, not noticing the dragon's eyes glued to her before the creature makes a noise in its throat and cautiously lies down on its paws getting close to the bluish one.
The two fell into a comfortable silence before Juvia looked at the dragon out of the corner of her eyes, and to her surprise, he seemed totally focused on facing the fire, with a strange expression. It was at that moment that Juvia remembered what happened earlier and took a deep breath before looking down at the floor in shame.
"Hey..." Juvia calls softly, making the dragon turn his head to her with curiosity. "Sorry for earlier, for having scared you and making you hurt; it was never Juvia's intention to do that."
After that, the two were silent while the dragon continued to stare at her.
"Sorry if this seems strange, it's just that Juvia really felt a little bad about it... recently nothing seems to be going well for Juvia and when you walked away it looked like something else went wrong." Juvia explains under the watchful eye of the dragon.
"Look, what Juvia means is that Juvia is sorry for what happened... it's all very frustrating, you know? Juvia was 'dead' for 7 years and when Juvia came back everything seems different, Juvia's guild for example is a shadow of her old self and... Moreover, Juvia wants to help Fairy tail to get back up again, that is why Juvia came here, to train, get stronger and help the guild." The girl declares before she pauses taking a deep breath.
"So how about we start again? My name is Juvia Lockser, water mage from Fairy tail and you?" Asks Juvia looking at the dragon that just blinks in response making the blue one widen her eyes and let out a small laugh.
"True, Juvia forgot that you can't talk... or at least Juvia thinks you can't talk..." Juvia comments with a laugh before looking into the creature's eyes with a thoughtful expression, making the dragon tilt his head to the side.
"Juvia doesn't want to continue to refer to you only as a dragon… so how about Juvia give you a name?" With that, Juvia makes a thoughtful expression holding her chin while thinking of several names for the dragon.
"Does it have to be something that relates to him, maybe something with fire? Or..." It was at that moment that Juvia looked at the fire again, remembering the good old days in Fairy tail where everyone was happier and more united, when they were all together...everyone...including a pink dragon slayer.
At that moment, Juvia opened a huge smile and turned to the dragon.
"Juvia might not be very close to him, but Juvia thinks that considering his desire to find his father again, maybe it's good to at least honor him by giving the first fire dragon seen the name of his father, Igneel." Juvia declares with a sad smile, while her face made a strange grimace, before she started to cry and turned her face away from the dragon.
She was not crying exactly for the rosy one, her old guildmate, but for what her memory represented, the old Fairy tail, the guild she would come to love. A memory now very distant when compared to reality, at that moment she felt something touching her, quickly the bluish one looked towards the object and widened her eyes.
It was the dragon, he was nudging her with his nose as if to comfort her, at that moment he snorted at her, but in a much softer way than usual before nudging her again making the girl laugh while holding him gently and patted the side of its muzzle.
"Thank you, Igneel-san, Juvia needed this." Juvia declares with a huge smile making the dragon move away from her, but still facing her.
At that moment, he opened his mouth and his throat started to move, Juvia stared at the dragon confused trying to understand what he was doing.
The dragon continued making strange noises in its throat towards Juvia before he grimaced and sneezed some sort of steam from his nostrils, scaring Juvia off her feet. However, she does not get up, as she stares at the steam with wide eyes as it disappears.
"...That is it! Juvia knows what to do now!" Juvia exclaims, standing up excitedly, earning a confused look from the dragon.