Whatever it Takes

by Wolves Silver Wind

One simple thought. One simple idea held strongly in everyone's hearts. A person willing to do whatever it takes, no matter what it may take, no matter the pain, no matter the consequences. Seven years fly by a lot differently, for better or for worse. But they refuse to have any regrets because they all understand. They know their bonds can withstand it all. *Seven Years Rewrite

1. For my Family

Chapter One: For my Family

Authors Note: Seven Years rewrite. I'll take that down once I'm caught up, I think. It will be a little different, but still mildly similar, with *hopefully* better writing. Longer chapters. And all that jazz - let's GO!

"Focus your magical energy on Freed!" Lisanna yells as Acnologia begins its breath attack. Mira then reaches her hand out to her younger sister, tears brimming in both of their eyes. With a burst of determination, Lisanna strongly grabs Mira's hand and everyone follows their example. They can feel their magic and bond thrumming through their hands as though they are one.

"We can't let it end here!" Natsu yells, gripping two hands. He squeezes just a bit too hard for a moment but Lucy doesn't mind it one bit. After all, she is squeezing his hand just as hard. In both a rush of adrenaline and fear, the group looks death right in the face. Determined to somehow live another day.

"Everyone, join your power together as one! LET'S SHOW IT THE BONDS OF OUR GUILD!" Gray shouts. Makarov takes Laxus' hand, tears in his eyes and a forced smile. Natsu looks up and sees the dragon already beginning to release the attack, We won't make it. They are all sharing glances with the people they grew up with, with people who's bonds have grown as thick as blood. For some, even thicker than blood.

"We'll all go home together." Makarov's voice wavers, but it's heard by everyone. They all look up and think of their common home, of Fairy Tail.

"Whatever it takes." Laxus adds as he gives his grandfather's hand a small squeeze. For him, it was coming home to fight a battle he wasn't sure he'd be accepted in. But if it was enough, he can only hope.

"Whatever it takes." Natsu echoes softly but the strength of the words is felt in all of their hearts. The pinkette bites his lip for a moment before his gaze hardens.

Lucy doesn't feel Natsu's hand ease her grip into Erza's, and neither does the scarlet mage. They're all too focused, their nerves numbed by the adrenaline and the pain, the magic thrumming through them all is hardly halted by the change.

Only when everyone sees the flash of orange blast up into the sky do the two realize that their palms don't feel the needed warmth. The circle all suddenly feels far colder than before and they watch the pinkette blast off in a surge of hidden power towards the forming attack.

"Natsu!" Everyone shouts for their friend, and a few of their cries sound strangled as if their throats are being torn, but they don't care. They only care about the departure of the family member that tends to bring them the comfort they need. Some of them try to pry their hands away, try to help or to save or do something because their idiotic, selfless, warm, big hearted dragon slayer brother took off. But they find that, for how stubborn they are, they are locked in each others grip by some unknown force.

He easily gets the dragon's attention and he puts all his energy into landing one small hit on the dragon's snout. It's hardly a flick to the large dragon, but even a flick can become an annoyance and the dragon snorts at the pinkette before flicking him out of the sky with a small hit of his tail. The Fairy Tail mages shout in despair and fear and more hate for the dragon above them before all they see is white.

-x-

Natsu opens his eyes, his body aching all over. He tries to move but it just hurts. He scrunches up his face in confusion, tossing and turning as the memories invade his mind and he bites his inner cheek. He blinks a few times until his eyes adjust to the brightness of the room. Scanning the room, he notices most of Fairy Tail inside. They are fidgeting, eyes going on and off of the pinkette in anxious fear.

He stays oddly silent for a moment as he scans the room and realizes he's in the guild. The guild's infirmary, a very familiar place to him but certainly not where he wants to be at that moment.

"What, how..." Natsu looks at everyone surrounding the bed, but Macao comes up between them. The air around him is serious and means business. "How'd I get here?" His voice is scratchy, so either parched, unused, or sore from overexertion. And Natsu honestly cannot pinpoint which one it is.

"Doranbalt, Mest, I don't care about his name." Macao spits out venomously and he snarls at the man's existence. Natsu is taken aback at first by the sudden animosity but then takes a moment to remember his encounters with the man on Tenrou. Macao pauses for a moment and gives a strong exhale before softening his features. "He brought you here on his ship when they saw you floating in the water while searching the area." Natsu ignores what them searching the area may mean and focuses on what he might want to know at the moment.

"When?"

"Three days ago." Natsu closes his eyes slowly and pinches them shut as he feels wetness form behind them. He turns his head away from everyone and opens his eyes.

"And...?" He knows he doesn't need to finish and from his peripheral he sees Macao shake his head. A loud sniffle comes from the Fairy Tail group and their previous happiness seems to audibly deflate as many more sniffles join, a few dry sobs and many others try and fail to cry silently. Again Natsu closes his eyes but it doesn't help, he can hear it, he can smell it. He knows. He knows. And he finds that it just hurts. Slowly the group shuffles out of the room but Natsu knows Macao had stayed. He turns back to face Romeo's father and ignores the grim look in the dark eyes. "What happened?" Natsu can see that Macao is trying his hardest not to break down, he's trying to stay strong for the pinkette and Natsu finds it ironic since he's doing the same thing for the older man.

"You would know better than me." He says honestly before stifling a mournful sigh. "But, they're dead." Natsu bites his trembling lip as he sees the question in Macao's eyes.

"Acnologia attacked." Macao doesn't speak but Natsu can hear the shuffling from outside the infirmary and the pinkette knows he has to continue. "They protected the island with a spell, I'm almost positive, but I..." The pinkette breathes and shakily exhales. "Acnologia's attack was gonna hit. Whatever we were doing, it wasn't gonna be fast enough. So I distracted him." He ignores the gasp from behind the door and Macao's shocked look. "But they're alive."

"They are?" Macao jumps and the door creaks under the pressure of the other shocked mages. "How can they be alive?" He doesn't mean to sound rude, but his world has been turned around too many times in three days for it to happen again. Not again. He can't take any false hope right now, no one can.

"I have faith that the spell worked." Macao doesn't respond and the sag against the door doesn't go unnoticed by the pinkette.

"Faith? You have faith that this spell that might have happened worked?" Macao bites but the hurt and sadness that flashes in Natsu's eyes makes the old man choke back the anger he had wrongly thrown towards the pinkette. "I trust you, but come on Natsu."

"They're alive." Natsu growls at the older man and his eyes flash in a way Macao had hardly ever seen. Macao gulps back any retort as fear sparks in him.

"I know it's hard to believe, but they're gone." He says softer this time. "We should just go our separate ways and-"

"Do NOT finish that." Natsu shouts and sits up in his bed, for all the pain it causes him none is greater than the pain of what he is hearing. "Don't even think it. Just stop thinking and listen, dammit! How can you give up on this? On the guild?! Over something like this?"

"It's not just something like this, Natsu." Macao tries to stay calm. "They're dead. We're done for."

"We are not, we are not done for!" The pinkette swings his legs from the bed and forces himself to stand.

"Natsu-"

"No." He growls and Macao stops heading towards him. "You can all give up but I won't. And I will stay here every single day for the rest of my life if I have to. By myself if I have to because this is my home and I will wait for my family to come home." His fist is clenched and his legs are shaking but he still stands strong. The door then softly creaks open and Romeo timidly yet with an odd confidence walks in.

"I'm staying too." He states strongly. Natsu smiles at the boy and Macao just shakes his head.

"Me too." The door finishes opening and they're all standing there with tears in their eyes.

"We're all staying with you." Natsu smiles at the group before collapsing back on the bed.

"Good." Because even if he was willing to stay by himself, he knew that it would hurt. He couldn't imagine being alone without the family he has come to love so much.

"Since we're staying here for you..." Romeo walks up to the pinkette and Natsu props himself up on his elbows.

"Huh?"

"You should be our Guild Master." The young boy finishes and Natsu laughs as he falls back down.

"No, no I can't do that. Gramps'll be back."

"Then you're our temporary Guild Master!" Romeo continues as no one disagrees with him.

"Choose someone better, Romeo. Really. Me?" Natsu scoffs and covers his eyes with his hand.

"How about some requirements." Macao then says and sends the group a knowing look that Natsu misses.

"We need someone who will protect the guild no matter what." Bisca then says and in her smile is a small chuckle. They want requirements, they'll find the best ones they could ask for.

"Who can always bring us up when we're down." Alzack adds as he nudges Bisca's side.

"Who never gives up." Wakaba says knowingly and everyone seems to join in on the inside joke Natsu doesn't quite catch. They will find requirements that only one person in their guild will fit.

"Well, Natsu, seems you're out temporary Guild Master." Macao says and Natsu sits up in shock. He winces as the fast movement gives him a headache but he quickly recovers.

"Me? I just said not me!"

"You're the best person for the job." He retorts and Natsu sheepishly scans the group.

"I'm young and stupid."

"Don't need to tell us that."

"I'll mess up."

"We expect nothing less." Wakaba says with a smirk.

"I'll make bad calls."

"We all do." Macao nods.

"I have no idea what to do."

"We'll all help." Natsu then scans his family and smiles. "So, what's the plan?" He sits silent for a moment and scans the group of mages. He can see the spark of hope in their eyes, the hope that he's right. And he realizes he needs to be strong and sure.

"I think we should have a small break?" He says with creased brows. "It still hurts, for them to be gone even if they are alive." He doesn't see the look they all send each other. "So go off and 'train' but come back with something." He then sends them all his blinding smile. "But tonight, we party!"

They party Fairy Tail style but Natsu doesn't join in as much as he might have in the past. He mostly watches and appreciates Fairy Tail for its wild genuineness.

Macao watches the pinkette from across the guild. Maybe Natsu wasn't such a bad pick for master... Macao looks at the person he's supposed to advise, sitting at the bar and overlooking his guild.

"Shit." He drops his head on the bar in sadness. Or maybe he was. Macao chuckles at the sight.

Year x791

"According to Blue Pegasus, the readings were in this area..." Warren looks out onto the vast sea, searching for the lost island. Natsu looks at his guild member before scanning the ocean. He can practically picture the island he had boarded a mere seven years ago. He walks around the ship, searching for anything that might be different.

"Is it really around here?" Bisca asks, searching with binoculars.

"There's nothing to see..."

"It's here." Natsu says and squints to see past the reflection off the water.

"We trust you, Natsu." Droy says, standing on the boats tip, showing off his muscles to whoever will see.

"Stop it, Droy..." Jet looks away from him with a sigh.

"We shouldn't get our hopes up, it's been 7 years. The island may be there but they might not be alive." Warren nods his head, agreeing with himself.

"They're alive." Natsu states gruffly and Warren jumps. He knows Natsu's hearing is good, better than good, but from across a moving ship?

"We're gonna see Levy again!" Jet and Droy shout behind them.

"So noisy!" Max turns from the map to yell at the two S-class mages.

"Hey, look!" Bisca yells, getting their attention.

"What...Is that?" They see a figure above the water.

"A person?" They get closer and have a clear view. It's a young girl?

"She's standing on the ocean!" Jet points out. Natsu runs to the tip of the ship and sees the white child.

"Who is it?" Alzack questions, staring in disbelief at the girl. Moving her arms, the girl smiles and the water behind her bulges. Out comes a large marble-like sphere with a wing design and the Fairy Tail mark on it.

"TENROU ISLAND!" Warren and Max shout out in shock. The girl flies towards and onto the island that was encased in the sphere. Natsu stands in shock for a moment before a wide smile spreads across his face. He knew it, he knew it!

"Follow her!"

"Wait up!"

"WAIT!" They scream but she doesn't answer but rather goes closer to the islands center. Natsu jumps from the ship and uses his fire to propel him towards the island.

"Natsu!" They face-palm at the pinkette.

"He'll lead us to everyone!" Alzack states as they run after him and the girl, Jet nods to Droy before blasting off for the girl. Stopping, Jet is soon joined by the others as they come across Natsu standing at the top of a rock slide. He's frozen, staring at their buried friends.

"G-guys..." Alzack's voice wavers, Bisca holds her hand to her mouth, shaking. Natsu watches them before heading deeper into the group, accounting for everyone.

"Gray! Get up! Get a hold of yourself!" Jet and Droy shake the unconscious mage.

"SHADDUP!" He sits up in anger.

"GRAY!" The two men tackle him in a hug which confuses him even more.

"Jet? Droy!" He turns,"You look different!" He points at them, not believing his eyes. "We just got hit by Acnologia's attack and Natsu... Where is he? Where's everyone!" He shouts and grabs Jets shoulders.

"Right here." The girl appears again and a smile is clear on her face. Natsu then turns to face her and spots the last person, Gramps, buried right by her. They watch the dust settle as she lands, all wondering just who she is but understanding that she is not a foe. "My name is Mavis," she turns with a smile, "Fairy Tail's first master, Mavis Vermillion."

"What?" They stare in complete shock, then see everyone else finally begin to wake up. Jet and Droy immediately go to Levy. Bisca and Alzack to Erza and unsuspecting Juvia. Warren and Max tackle the old master who sheds anime tears in their embrace. Natsu watches the reunions with a graceful smile.

"Back then, I took all of your bonds and strength and converted it all into magical power. Your collective powers allowed for Fairy Sphere to be activated. An absolute defense magic." Mavis explains as everyone holds their reunions. "However, it's price is time and you were sealed for seven years." The older members nod, having known the words for quite some time. Natsu chokes back a laugh as he realizes he was right. He was right.

"The first protected us..." Tears spring from the Master's eyes as he speaks.

"I just focused the energy you offered. Your unwavering faith made you open to my help." She floats up, and begins disappearing. "It's become a wonderful guild, Third. Fourth." She then offers a knowing look and a nod to Natsu before a golden light flashes and she vanishes, leaving the stunned guild members.

"Seven years..." Makarov turns to Jet, "And Fourth master?" He looks to the pinkette and his eyes bulge from his head. "Natsu!" He gasps and they all get the chance to see the changed pinkette. He generally looks the same which is one of the key reasons they can actually recognize him. But the closed vest and thick black gloves are an added touch.

"Natsu?" Lucy asks and the pinkette nods to them with a smile that stretches out the scar running from his right temple to his lip. Suddenly Lucy launches a kick right at him and sends him flying into a nearby tree.

"Lucy!?" They all shout in shock but she just huffs in place.

"Ah - Natsu!" Bisca cries out and is quick to race to Natsu, Alzack not far behind her. Warren and Wakaba watch from a distance but their grimace is clear.

"How dare you! Flying off like that, you, you-!" She marches up to him and Bisca backs away from the pinkette. The key mage hardly glances at the gunner before kneeling beside the pinkette and hugging him. "Dammit, you scared us!" He pats her back and they then stand up.

"Glad you're all back!" He says with a cheeky grin and they smile back at the missed pinkette. "Let's head home already!" They all agree but keep sending the pinkette disbelieving looks all the way. Makarov walks up to Natsu but after a moment decides to say nothing. "The guild's still functioning, somehow."

"He's being humble, though I don't know why." Alzack says with a shake of his head. "We're thriving. We're number one." He says with a smile although the Tenrou group hardly reacts. After all, they had never imagined a scenario where Fairy Tail would have lost it's peak position.

The group boards the boat and almost immediately the Tenrou dragon slayers keel over in pain. Natsu looks at them in pity before heading towards the center of the ship.

"No motion sickness?" Erza asks the pinkette who sends her a small smile.

"Ah, no I still have it." He says with a sigh before collapsing on a nearby chair. Lucy takes the chance to walk over to him and takes the chair beside him.

"Has it really been seven years?" The pinkette nods and she plops her head in her hands. Natsu looks to her for a moment, sadness clear in his eyes but she doesn't see it. For a moment, Natsu isn't sure how to respond and he realizes the odd gap that has formed between him and his closest friends.

"Don't worry, Luce." he finally says with a smile. "I don't think too much has changed."

"But what has? What have we missed?"

"How the hell did you become guild master?" Gray asks and Natsu can't say he wasn't expecting it.

"Was not my fault. I didn't want it." Natsu then flicks his eyes over Gray's shoulder. "Gramps! Do you want to be Guild Master again!"

"NOPE!" Makarov seems almost too happy to leave the role to the pinkette. Natsu then sighs and crosses his arms.

"I swear, the only people who want to be guild master are the people who aren't."

"If you want, I can do it for a day." Erza states and Natsu can't help but openly laugh at her. He doesn't mean to, and the twitch of her brow doesn't go unnoticed by Lucy or Gray. He bends over at the waist and holds his stomach as his body convulses at the mere thought of seeing Erza handle all that paperwork nevermind the members! "You think I can't do it?" Her voice comes out in a clear growl, a menacing and foreboding sound that makes Lucy and Gray take a few steps back.

"Oh, oh." Natsu freezes and visibly gulps down his fear. "No, wait, Erza, I don't-"

"You believe me incapable?"

"Erza, you know I don't mean it like that!" Natsu smiles as the words come out, but there is no fear in him and Erza can clearly see that. The lack of the look that was once so familiar on Natsu catches her off guard and she can't help but just stare at him.

"It really has been seven years." It's more of a statement than a question and Natsu understands the underlying meaning. It's hard to believe, probably as hard to believe for them as it is for the guild to believe the group will come back.

But it's all true. They're back and alive and they missed seven years.

"Hard to believe."

"You're telling me." Gray sighs as him and Lucy both slowly creep back to form the group.

"Now that you're back, I can honestly say I doubted this would happen!" He says in a laugh but the wording catches them off-guard.

"What do you mean?"

"Eh!" Jet and Droy shriek from nearby. After all, the Tenrou group sat near each other with Natsu only a slight distance away. Through their own separate conversations, they had also been eavesdropping on the pinkette. More so because they were worried he wouldn't calm Erza down, but also out of curiosity. Natsu turns to look at the duo and sheepishly scratches the back of his neck.

"Well, I wasn't sure."

"What do you mean you weren't sure!"

"You're the only person who was sure!" Jet and Droy seem almost too connected.

"Romeo never doubted Natsu." Warren states and they all look to the previously silent mage.

"So you're saying he was the only person who really believed? Then you did a damn good job of fooling us all." Warren adds on with a small chuckle.

"That was the point." Natsu admits with a chuckle and leans back in the chair. "You can't convince people if they get a whiff of your own doubt."

"Damn, Natsu, when'd you get so smart?" Gajeel cracks and the rest of the group mildly joins in.

"Only took me six, seven years!" He joins in and it helps the laughter and light mood continue. Few people read between the lines, and Natsu knows that fact. When his closest friends disappeared, Natsu had to adjust to the fact that no one knew how to read him. Now they're back and, as he scans the group and sees little to no realization, he realizes that he's changed.

It hurts, but he doesn't admit it. He doesn't want them to understand that he had been a cocky child. Cocky and stubborn stuck in his own blind faith. Yet, as the years passed, he got wiser. And six years later he began to doubt himself, something he had never done prior. They were so close to the Tenrou group returning and he knew that if that island didn't come up… well, he thought up too many horrid outcomes to count. None of them ended with him being the guild master. A few even with him leaving the guild.

Yet no one caught on. And even now, he isn't sure they have.

The rest of the journey remains light, with joking about the past and the future, but few want to talk about the present. It's a fact they all realize but none acknowledge. They just want to enjoy their time with their family, Mavis knows they missed a lot, almost too much. On the way to the guild, many of the members who recall seven years prior when they would be recognized on the spot, are almost grateful that no one stops the group. Almost. But, in another way, they miss it.

"We're back!" Droy yells, walking into the guild hall.

"Taking it from me." Natsu grumbles as he then steps in and gets a far better response then Droy had. The guild erupts in happiness for the pinkette.

"Is he really…?" Gray says under his breath to Lucy and she hesitantly nods.

"This must have cost a fortune!" Makarov blanches at the sheer size of the guild. The layout is exactly the same (he chalks that up to Natsu and his love for the past. He can almost see that young child staring in awe at the building, recalling how it was almost as big as Igneel ), but the amount of people in it explains the enlargement.

"Hey!"

"Welcome back!" People shout greetings but the hall is soon filled with silence as they realize the extra company.

"YOU'RE BACK!" The long-lost guild members are soon tackled by their friends, tears shed as they greet. Alzack scoops his daughter up as Natsu and the Tenrou group are surrounded.

"What are we waiting for?" The pinkette shouts over the guild, a bright smile on his face. "Let's party!" Everyone yells in excitement of the guild members return and they start celebrating. Many of the people from Tenrou crowd Bisca and Alzack, wanting answers about their child Asuka.

"So... are you the guild master?" Makarov sits next to Macao who bursts out laughing at the statement.

"You know I'm not. Are you in denial?" He takes a gulp of his beer.

"I think I am." Gramps states as they both look over to the pinkette.

"Salamander, how strong are you really." Gajeel prods like the dragon slayer he is.

"Way stronger than all of us." A blond eccentric boy butts in and they can't help but see the similarity between him and the younger Natsu.

"Sting, stop it."

"You're a Wizard Saint." The mage says with a telling look and the information floors the surrounding people.

"And surprisingly I deal less damage than you and Rogue on your last mission. Want to explain that?" He raises a brow but Sting just crosses his arms. All the while, the floored members don't understand how the conversation is flowing so casually.

"You know you don't really care about that, Master." Natsu then places a hand on the young man's head, messes with his hair and slightly pushes the boy away before heading to the bar.

"Ah, you're right."

"FIGHT ME!" Gajeel and Gray then eagerly shout as they race after Natsu. The pinkette jumps slightly in shock at their ferocity before gaining a sheepish smile.

"Now?"

"Yes." Gray says with a fire in his eyes. He refuses to believe his rival has completely surpassed him.

"You guys just got out of Fairy Sphere. It takes time for you to get back to full power." He states with a wave of his hand as he finally sits at the bar. "The usual, please." He asks and the barmaid nods before preparing his drink.

"And how would you know that." Gray prods as Natsu receives his drink. He looks at the ice mage for a moment before sighing and taking a sip of the fire whiskey.

"Wow, you didn't tell them anything." Macao comments with a hum. Natsu then turns to fully face the bar and basically gives Macao the okay to take over. They look from the pinkette to the older man who just sighs. "Where do I start..."

"From the beginning." Erza states as she comes up and stares intensely at the mage. The older man sighs again as he realizes he has to get used to Erza again.

"He was brought to the guild by-"

"Not the very beginning." Natsu inputs as he finishes off his drink.

"Fine, fine." Macao then sighs and begins the story where Natsu is okay with it.

Past

"So, Master Natsu." I walk up to him as he lays his head on the counter.

"Hmm? Call me Natsu..." He moans in reply, still depressed about something.

"What spell is keeping them alive?"

"Fairy Sphere." He mumbles.

Present

"Fairy Sphere?! And this was only days later? How'd he know?" Lucy butts in, there's no way he knew so soon.

"I was getting to that..." he mumbles in irritation.

"Sorry..."

Past

"What's Fairy Sphere?"

"I... don't know."

"Then how do you know it saved them?" We want to believe they're alive, we want them to be alive and to just trust Natsu, but we all have our doubts.

"I have faith." Natsu looks up at me. "It's about time I find out."

"What?" I watch Natsu get up, stretch, then head for the guild library. I know that the loss is hard, especially for Natsu. After all, his entire generation is gone. But the sooner he realizes they're gone, the better it will be.

"I'm gonna research." he replies and then openly laughs at himself. "No one will ever believe I said that!" He then turns around. "Keep an eye on things for me, but I wanna know if anyone's headed off for a while."

"Okay Natsu." I can only watch, stunned by how... mature he's acting. For how much he doubted he could even be a mediocre guild master, he's already better than mediocre.

He's constantly in the library and only comes up for food or to send people off. The members that attempted to just wallow in misery, the ones that lost all faith that the others would return, had to face Natsu and his odd quiet anger. Droy was drowning himself in food, a few days later Natsu noticed it.

All his attention was then focused on the weight-gainer. He put off a week of research to help him, and once that was done he forced Jet and Droy out of the guild, not to come back for at least a month. They were gone for almost a year and came back looking far different and much better.

After a month of being in the library, Natsu runs up into the guild with excitement radiating off his features.

"GUYS! I have it!" He screams to the empty hall. The only ones left are Max, Wakaba, Reedus, Nab and me.

"What is it?" Wakaba sees the excited boy.

"I need a scale map of Tenrou Island! ASAP!"

"Yes sir!" Nab gets up and rushes into the library for what was asked for. The rest of us just watch Natsu clear a table, confused on why he needed a scale map, and honestly some of us are not convinced he entirely knows what that means. When he lays the retrieved map on the table he suddenly plops on top of it a large book which he then flips through to find a specific page.

"What is it?" I walk up, stunned at his happiness.

"Fairy Sphere," he looks up at me and then I see the bags under his eyes. He must've gotten little to no sleep. "It's one of the three Great Fairy Magics, like-like Fairy Law. But it's defensive. Now..." He began measuring the size of the island, and after some time of us all just watching him do calculations we didn't know his mind was capable of, he draws a large circle around the island.

"What is that?" Max asks as he points at the sphere.

"The size of it. And the, uh, consequence of this magic is time, so..." He measures the circumference of the barrier and a few other things before sitting down with a wide-eyed look on his face.

"What is it?" I ask him, apparently taking him out of his daze.

"They'll be back in seven years..." He then smiles one of the happiest smiles I've ever seen on him, just a genuinely small but thankful smile. "Thank Mavis."

"Are you sure?" Reedus asks and Natsu nods.

"Positive."

Present

"If I was master, I would've just lead us to rock-bottom." Macao admits, recalling when he had been so close to just giving up.

"Don't say that, Macao." Natsu lightly scolds as he turns back to face the group. "Weird to hear your side of the story." The pinkette admits with a nod. He hadn't known Macao had felt that way.

"You never answered the question." Lucy asks,"How did you know it was Fairy Sphere?"

"I heard someone cast it." Natsu says offhandedly. "Must've been Mavis."

"What luck."

"Is the guild as destructive as before?" Makarov then asks and they all look to Natsu and Macao in mild concern. Natsu doesn't respond and just spins to slam his forehead on the bar counter. They all sweatdrop at the comical response as Natsu mourns over the lost jewels.

"It's worse." Macao translates for Natsu and they all sweatdrop.

"We have two of me." Natsu's voice is muffled in the counter.

"I doubt that." Makarov states as he takes a gulp of his beer.

"No, he's right." Macao states and nods over to the two boys that Gray vaguely remembers the names of. "Sting and Rogue, they're dragon slayers." Although the extra information is nice for the group, they had figured the two were slayers considering the two odd exceeds that are loyally by their friends.

"Okay fire breath, are we gonna fight?" Gray says and Natsu picks his head up from his depression.

"Yeah Salamander. There's no way you're a Wizard Saint." Gajeel adds as he crosses his arms.

"I already told you, not now." He says with a heavy sigh. "Hey, Gramps." Makarov turns his full attention to the pinkette which takes a moment considering the growing blush on his cheeks. "Please take the guild back?" He says and raises his third or fourth drink up. Makarov looks at the pinkette for a moment before clinking his beer glass against Natsu's.

"No means no, son!" He smiles before chugging down the rest of his drink.

"I tried..."

"Keep it! You're doing well, you're its master." He says and Natsu smirks at the old man.

Authors Note: Based on the butterfly effect of Acnologia's firing happening just a tad faster than it actually did. Even one second can make a huge difference. Thank you for rereading if you are, and thanks new readers! Reviews are much appreciated. Til next time, see ya!