Location: Outside Magnolia; Natsu and Happy's house...

Time: Two Weeks Later; Night-Time...

Time flew by, and before anyone knew it, two weeks passed. Happy had noticed that Natsu had been concealing most of his emotions and that he was hiding something. It honestly puzzled him. It seemed like a month ago that Natsu would shout at the world without a care, and suddenly he decided to put an end to it and grow up. He became more serious, but at least he wasn't as strict and scary as Erza.

Happy shuddered fearfully at the thought. Not to mention Natsu has been more distant from the guild to the point he started to avoid going there altogether. He was only going there once and a while to get a job and not provoke Erza's wrath. But even the Scarlet mage was getting frustrated with his sudden change of personality. Hell, Natsu has yet to give his guildmates an explanation on why he left one day without warning and came back looking the way he is.

But despite his sudden personality change, Natsu still showed his affection towards him, the Exceed was happy about that. Happy always enjoyed the private affection his father figure gave him whenever they were alone. They did this as Natsu wanted to avoid getting accused of becoming soft and hold his reputation.

Natsu would often show his affection by giving him scratches and belly rubs, but recently, he's been getting more hugs. Happy never expected Natsu's sudden change of affection, but he silently soaked it up, knowing that it wouldn't last long.

Oh, and they often went fishing too. Just the other day, he caught a rare giant fish, and it was delicious. He drooled at the reminder of it.

It's a shame that from now on, he has to wake up early and train. Happy was bewildered when Natsu went to a bookstore and bought a book on transformations. Natsu never showed any interest in reading or studying new magic; Erza's scary study sections certainly made a traumatizing impact on his father figure for that.

However, he was shocked that some of the books were meant for him and that Natsu planned on teaching him transformation magic.

Happy was muddled on why Natsu suddenly wanted him to teach him a different form of magic, whenever he asks why Natsu would give him one of those fake smiles. While Happy admits that he isn't the sharpest sword, he knew Natsu very well and sometimes will pick up whenever Natsu tries to hide his pain and suffering. They were becoming more common to Happy's dejection and confusion. Asking Natsu would be pointless as he always waves his off and tells him not to worry about it. But that only worries Happy more.

If he had to guess, that book he was reading was the source of Natsu's change of behavior. Every morning Happy would catch the pink-haired mage reading an odd-looking book with a scary cover. He didn't know what it was, and frankly, he was baffled that Natsu would be content with reading a book without having Erza forcing him. He didn't even know what the book was about either, as Natsu was uncharacteristically secretive these last weeks.

Before Happy could ever have the chance to figure out what Natsu was reading, the mage would hide the book and drag him for training. Whenever he looked for the book, Natsu somehow managed to hide it so well for no one to find it.

It was so unfair.

While he never admitted it, he was getting worried. And he was tired. And sore, definitely sore too.

Right now, he had a break given to him, and the first thing he did was lay down. He was breathing heavily and covered in sweat. Natsu made a strict schedule for the last two weeks. He would wake up early (because Natsu always was up before him) and they trained for hours. They only ever stopped to eat, use the bathroom, and sleep. The Fire mage had been trying to get him to perfect Transformation magic and fight him at the same time.

Natsu had been merciless. He could still feel Natsu's fist connecting day in and out in every part of his bruised body. The adrenaline was high that it was becoming borderline intoxicating, almost to the same level as fish. Though fish involve less pain and tiredness. His lungs burned and all of his body hurt and ached as he tried to get more oxygen in his little body. He swore his soul had left his body as he fell asleep in the cool grass.

Natsu stared at his little buddy as he lost consciousness. It was very amusing that he chuckled at his companion's antics. Still, he was amazed by how much the blue cat managed to push himself in the last two weeks. If Happy thought this was unbearable, then just wait until they go on their training trip tomorrow morning. Natsu calmly picked up his tired and dirty buddy and began walking back to their home.

Once inside, Natsu grabbed a wet rag and used it to clean Happy's dirty fur. He did it gently so as not to bother his friend. Though Natsu doubted that Happy would wake up, the blue exceed tends to sleep through anything unless he had said the word 'fish.'

Once he placed Happy in his hammock, he grabbed the book of E.N.D. and went to sit down on the couch. Demons like himself didn't need sleep, so he took this chance to read silently. It was quiet sans Happy's snoring and him turning pages once and a while.

Training these pasts few weeks was ok, but they still needed to improve. Happy always had the potential to train more magic, but the cat never showed any interest. Natsu didn't mind back then, but after what occurred (or rather what will occur), he needed to put the blue Exceed in a strict training section.

Natsu felt bad about it every time the blue cat injured himself or whined about how sore and tired he was. But he was not stopping the training section no matter how much Happy protests or complaints.

Eventually, he'll figure out a way to cox other members of his guild too. But that will be difficult as not everyone was interested in training harder and were content with where they were. No one would train unless given reason to, and announcing that war would be coming in a couple of years coming was a big no.

But at least he had easier people to manipulate.

Erza and Mira's rivalry as of now is active, and both girls pushed each other in levels in an attempt to surpass the other. With a couple of right words, he can push both mages even further. Being a demon, the abilities of deception, seduction, and manipulation were a part of him. Fortunately, he only needed manipulation.

There were others, though, like Gray, Elfman, and Lisanna that needed a right push. The Strauss siblings haven't been training as of now because of Mira's neglect and pride. The elder Strauss has neglected her siblings' training and always pushed them away to take care of it herself. While admirable, it puts a toll on Elfman and Lisanna's experience and training.

It didn't help that Elfman was very timid, and Lisanna was too weak to hold her magic. Natsu pursed his lips in disdain at that. The solution was obvious; he needed Mira to realize that her pride and arrogance have consequences. He resented the fact that the Strauss siblings were going to experience something as traumatic. However, he needed Mira to lose her haughty attitude and arrogance by experiencing defeat in the worst-case scenario.

Experience is the best teacher, and the worst experience teaches the best lessons. At least that's Natsu's opinion, as he had learned through experience more times than he can count or care.

He was basically killing two birds with one stone. Lisanna will survive this encounter while Mira finally sees through her mistakes and accepts that she isn't as powerful as she claimed to be.

He never voiced it before but seeing Mira act like a scared little girl was pathetic and annoying. Additionally, the Strauss siblings will get a life-changing experience and work together to improve. Elfman and Lisanna will learn to become more independent while working on increasing their magic.

But for now, he needed to play the waiting game and take one step at a time. He'll be willing to cooperate if it means keeping everyone alive.

Now, as for himself, he needed to get stronger. Thankfully his magic and strength came with him; Natsu gathered that much. However, he needed to be careful not to expose too many things while slowly gaining more stockpiles of power. He had already raised a few red flags towards the guild unintentionally.

Though he knew he had done some things on purpose, especially since Makarov was keeping an eye on him. At first, the time traveler was confused, but then he realized that he hasn't exactly been acting like his past self. Truth be told, he had forgotten what it was like to be happy. He can't pretend to be someone he no longer is, and honestly, it made him sick.

Just having the thought of pretending to be that happy-go-lucky idiot of himself with the reckless behavior made him shudder. It honestly confused him why he reacted like that, though Natsu believes that it was the work of his Etherious blood running through his veins.

Nevertheless, he ignored gramps for a while and avoided him altogether. However, Natsu pretending to be his happy-go-lucky self was becoming more strainful and forced. He needed a breather and rarely came to the guild anymore. The only time he came in was quickly getting a job that had good fights (which there rarely was) and paid well.

Not to mention a few days earlier, after he left the guild, Erza, who had gotten fed up with his new attitude, had stormed to him and demanded an explanation. He did the only thing he could think of; he ran while yelling for mercy.

Though what Fairy Tail failed to realize was that it was all an act. Natsu allowed the Scarlet mage to chase him around Magnolia as a way to build up her stamina and get everyone off his back for the time being. It was working until Erza finally collapsed in exhaustion, and he escaped to his house. So as far as he was aware, the guild thought he was currently hiding from Erza.

As pathetic as it sounded, it was better if his guildmates believed he was hiding from the Scarlet mage than finding out his true intentions. Unfortunately, that trick wasn't going to fool everyone forever, and eventually, the guild will get suspicious again.

He'll have to confront his guildmates again and face the wrath of the Titania another time and soon. He's already arousing suspicion and concern, and Natsu wants to avoid that. And at one point, he'll have to pick on fights again to get rid of some of the said suspicions.

For the guild to be silent was more than a taboo. Natsu had noticed that whenever he entered the building, there was this tense silence in the air. Sure, there were a few scuffles between Erza and Mira here and there. But whenever either girl went out on a job, the silence felt alien. Paralyzing. There haven't been as many fights and destruction as before; thus, he was already causing problems.

"Currently, Erza and Mira are out on S-class jobs, which means they'll be gone for a while. I can take it as an advantage to sneak away." Natsu clicked his tongue. "But I can't keep avoiding everyone, and the training excuse can only do so much…"

Sadly for the Dragonslayer, he had no other excuse. The only thing he could say was he would go for various jobs and that he would be gone in an unknown extended time to look for Igneel. He hasn't been looking for his father figure for quite some time as there was no need to. But Natsu knew that if he suddenly stopped his search, there would only cause apprehensive consequences with his guild.

Natsu knew that he'd have to bribe Happy by giving him a giant fish to keep his mouth shut.

"At least I have an excuse, even if it isn't perfect." Natsu glanced at Happy, who was sleeping in his hammock, before returning to the Book of E.N.D. with narrowed eyes. "I've already collected as many jobs as I could to help with Happy and Lucy adapt to their training."

"As for a temporary training field, I will take the three of us to different parts of Fiore and out of civilization so that both Happy and Lucy can get accustomed to fighting in harsher conditions as well as getting used to their surroundings. And to ensure fo Fairy Tail not to find me, I need to make as little destruction as possible and insure to spend most of their time out of prying eyes."

His face twisted into frustration, "And I still have no way to contact Mystogan. I was hoping I would find him before I left Magnolia. Apparently, that is not the case; I can only hope that I find him while I'm out Magnolia… But it is very unlikely."

A flicker of light caught his attention. His eyes landed on the fire, dancing on the candles, and Natsu felt this month's stress slowly melt away. The soothing and warm atmosphere brought somewhat peace to Natsu's troubled mind. The black orbs stared at the lit candles. The pink-hair mage admired the fire; it was tempting to eat the flames. Though Natsu resisted as nothing was more thrilling and beautiful than fire.

He could remember Igneel's words when he was a brat. "Even the largest fire starts from the smallest spark. It can either bring destruction or strength, depending on how you use it. But I believe that no fire will be hotter than yours."

A single tear streaked on his cheek; Natsu didn't bother to wipe it off.

Location: Heartfilia Express

Time: Earlier this morning (A couple of hours before sunrise)

The first thing Natsu noticed when he finally decided to close the book of E.N.D. was that it was too early in the morning. The sun has yet to make an appearance in the dark sky, and there was a light breeze in the chilly morning. Without any hesitation, he packed a few of his belongings (mostly food, water, his clothes, and the book of E.N.D., as well as his blanket) and moved on to Happy's bag (which unsurprisingly was mostly filled with fish and a few other necessary stuff.)

When that was over with, Natsu immediately dragged Happy out of his dream-like state and gave him his green bag. Happy, his brain not fully awoken and yawning every minute, protested as predicted, but he fell silent when Natsu gave him a giant fish. That certainly woke him up.

Both of them needed to go before all of Magnolia, especially Fairy Tail members, woke up. He had already gathered enough missions for the next month, and the Heartfilia Express will open soon. They must get on the first train this early morning to avoid any confrontations from their guildmates. For safety measures, he covered himself with his cloak and kept Happy hidden underneath it. Perhaps he was being paranoid, but it was something he needed to embrace, letting go of that habit will take time.

Happy was yawning and clinging to Natsu the entire way. When both of them reached the station, his little buddy fell asleep and fell, but Natsu caught him on time. The moment the train station opened, Natsu paid for their tickets and entered the first train, which was about to part.

It was too early, so there weren't as many passengers. Natsu finally let out a relieved breath and relaxed his tensed muscles when the train began to part away. He removed his backpack and placed it on the floor. The pink-haired mage placed Happy in his lap and removed his hood. He pulled the green bag from Happy and put it next to his to get his little buddy as comfortable as possible while he was petting him. He enjoyed the soft purrs he released as they left away in the early morning.

He'll allow Happy to sleep for now, but once they get to their destination in a couple of hours, there won't be any more mercy from him. The training will be harsh, brutal, and straining, but he can not hold them back from reaching their potential. If he played his cards right, both of his friends would be able to stand their ground against Erza and Mira.

He placed his hand on his pocket as if to check if somethings there. He closed his eyes and let out a soft sigh as he rested his head on the seat. He had nearly forgotten about the keys.

Obviously, he still had Loke's golden key after his confrontation with the Celestial Spirit. Afterward, he learned the locations of a few silver keys and hunted them down before returning to Fairy tail. He still however needed to find the rest of the Zodiac keys and find 'Angel'. Unfortunately, he had no idea where she is currently hiding though, he might have a way of finding her. Though that will be a secret for the time being.

Natsu closed his eyes and let out a deep breath, "I need to find Angel, or rather Sorano, and take her keys to give them Lucy. While I'm doing this for the greater good, I'm nothing more than a selfish demon. I want Lucy to wield every key I take, but that would lead Yukino to never learn Celestial magic… I need to speak to Loke about this and hear the opinion of the other Celestial Spirits."

Natsu pulled out three silver keys and Leo's golden Zodiac key. He stared at the sculpted lion head on the bow of the key more than the silver ones. Natsu swallowed, "My actions are selfish, but I can only hope that my sins shall be worth the trouble…"

Natsu didn't bother to pretend his motion sickness when Happy woke up hours later. The blue Exceed was shocked and confused. When he asked, Natsu merely shrugged and gave him a sly smirk.

It suddenly hit Natsu that this would be the first time that Happy and Lucy will meet. Time-traveling was both a curse and depressing. He had to keep his mouth in check, not to slip up anything else. Lucy was too smart for her own good, and he had no doubt that she might have some suspicion pointing at him.

Location: Heartfilia Manor; Lucy's room

Time: Early Morning

"Dear mom,

Sorry, it's been so long since I wrote to you, but this week I have been getting ready. Today is finally the day! You remember Natsu? The man who unexpectedly came and convinced my father to let me out? Well, he's coming back today and is going to pick me up! I'm excited.

I'm still bummed that I have to wait until I'm sixteen to join Fairy Tail, but I'm still excited to finally get out of this place! Not that I have something against this place! On the contrary. You would already know that Father and I began making amends a month ago and have been slowly making progress. But I just can't stay cooped up in this place anymore.

I've spent my entire life locked in this mansion, and it's been cold and lonely since you left. The only warmth around here was memories of us together.

I shouldn't dwell on the past now. Natsu is going to be picking me up any time soon, and I'm ready. But I can't stop myself from being surprised. Father had always been 'hard-headed' as you put it, so for some random stranger to pop out of nowhere and suddenly have him change his mind is mind-boggling.

I would have never thought someone other than you would make father give in.

I think there is more to this Natsu Dragneel than meets the eye. I mean, how did he know about Father and I's estranged relationship? Or how he knew of my magic? I doubt father actually summoned him here because, as far as I'm aware, Father has a rather strong dislike towards mages. He even had something against my magic! You were the only exception.

Nevertheless, I plan to get along with Natsu, and hopefully, I'll have some answers. But honestly, this Natsu guy seems like a nice guy, and he certainly isn't lacking on good looks either. Plus, he certainly looks like someone who has experienced hardship. I need to go now, but I will write to you when I have the chance.

-Lucy

There was humming as Lucy was sitting down on her desk and writing a note to her mother. It has been a week since she wrote to her. When she finished, Lucy put her pen down. She could barely conceal her excitement to leave the mansion as she stamped the letter finally.

Before a month ago, she would have never believed that she would finally explore the outside world and speak with her father again. Lucy figured that she would be stuck here until she had to marry by force with one of those loud and arrogant suitors her father had in plan.

She was a mature teenager with a busty body and is almost the age of marriage, and honestly, it scares her. But for the time being, Lucy can have a breather as her father had made a final decision and canceled all her appointments on greeting the esteemed gentlemen and their sons. However, that didn't stop any suspicion on what the man was planning now.

But now was not the time to dwell on it. Lucy had to hurry and get ready as soon as possible after breakfast. Her father would join her again, something which became common this entire month. But it seems as though he had something to tell her before she hits the road.

Whatever it is, she was ready. She packed a small bag with clothes and other necessaries, courtesy of the maids. She had books of spells that were either from the library, or her father bought for her. She had already read through them and was interested.

She was brought out of her musings when there was a knock on her door. The maid's muffled voice said that breakfast was ready and that her father was waiting for her.

Lucy smiled and brushed down her dress before heading to the dining room. First things first, breakfast, afterward she will prepare herself for her journey and meet up with Natsu.

We're nearing the training montage, so be prepared!

Also, I have a poll open on whether you guys want Lucy to wield all the Zodiac Keys or not. The choice will be yours, and if you guys have any ideas for a training montage, it will be appreciated.

As for Mystogan, he probably won't be found until maybe another chapter or two. The guy is mysterious and certainly won't show up because you want him to, figured it would be a good way to bring some suspense.

And for whatever Natsu has plans for the mysterious mage, you will have to be patient and find out soon enough. Thank you all for being patient and hopefully, the next chapter won't take as long.