Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Fairy Tail

When a week had passed and the girl still had yet to wake, Zeref knew that the time rift's reach had stretched further than before. This town didn't feel quite as suffocating as the road in the desert, but it was still lacking in energy. Zeref himself had taken three days to return to his usual level of energy as well, which informed him that magic could at least be recovered in the area. Yet…the slow recovery was alarming the healer more than it should have.

"I'm so sorry, your majesty! I swear, I'm good at what I do. She'll wake up, I know it just…" He trailed off, shaking his head. "More cases came in, and they're all like her. None of them are getting better as fast as they should."

"That is to be expected, given the circumstances." The healer frowned at him, yet Zeref only gave a small smile, patting his back gently. "If it appears as if she has a case that allows for recovery, that is all I must be aware of at this time. This is a delay I had anticipated, though I was uncertain of just how delayed the recovery would be."

"Oh." The healer glanced around his hut, staring at other patients in similar states to the girl. Zeref had seen the cots fill up gradually over the week, while Zeref did his best to stop in twice a day to check and see how she was doing. Typically, he wouldn't have bothered…but he wished to know why she had trusted him, after nearly beginning a battle against him. Plus, he had to be nearby after she woke up, so he could properly investigate the time rift again and see if he could determine exactly what was causing this to happen. "Then would you mind sharing what happened? I mean, I understand if it has to stay secret, but I just thought it'd help, you know?"

The healer's gaze flickered over the others again. Zeref smiled, nodding. "I would have informed you, had I believed it to be of use. However…I still see no harm in sharing what I know, either." He shrugged. "There is a magical anomaly nearby, draining the ethernano out of the air. If a wizard manages to use magic within its vicinity, it targets the ethernano within the body as well."

"That then that means if we move them, they'll recover faster…"

"And do you have the equipment to safely transport them over long distances?" The healer's head dropped, and he slowly shook his head. "I thought not, from what I had seen. Your skills are adequate, and will suffice to improve their conditions. I assure you, this is no typical situation to have to handle. If possible…I'd advise ensuring others in town are aware of how to treat this. As wizards continue to ignore my warnings, this will spread and soon, it will overwhelm you if you remain the only healer available in town."

"But I'm not the only one! My dad…" His shout broke off, and the boy closed his eyes. "He trained me, and works with me here. But someone called him away. Royal Serpent took him to another town, saying they needed magic and a healer for some job, and that they'd split the reward with him. Money's been difficult to come by, you know? People want magical cures, without realizing magic just can't do that. But they still go to the guild instead of us." He shook his head, his hands closing into fists. "He's been gone for three weeks now, nearly a month. I thought he'd be back, but I guess it was just a difficult patient, right? He's still…"

Walking towards him, Zeref hesitated. He…wasn't the sort to give comfort. Really, why would he be? No one wished for him to come into contact with them, not with the curse. As for handling children, he'd avoided them even more so than the adults. Something about seeing a dead child was just…far more brutal and heart-wrenching than seeing an adult fall to his curse. "It…wizarding jobs tend to be difficult, and often result in challenges along the way." He paused, frowning. "Delays aren't…uncommon."

How old was the boy anyway? Zeref couldn't quite tell, but he was at least a teenager, he'd thought. The healer sniffled, taking a deep breath. "Sorry, your majesty. Don't you worry about a little healer like me! You've got an entire empire to watch over, so just one boy's tears aren't worth your concern."

With that, he seemed to quickly head back to look for more supplies in his cabinets. Whatever he was doing…he was trying to keep himself occupied. He likely wouldn't take on an assistant of any form, because he did not wish to worry about his father. It…wasn't unlike Zeref's own decisions, when he was avoiding contemplating his own guilty conscience. Being busy had distracted him from the misery, and had allowed him to avoid harming himself…at least, it was the case most of the time.

Taking a seat on the floor near the girl, Zeref sighed. He'd explored the town over the last few weeks, and he still was not entertained here. He wanted to speak with Levy, and just ask her how things were going for her. This trip wasn't meant to take so long, and he wondered if she was getting worried. Already, he'd stopped to get a…gift for her, when he returned. He'd had a jeweler make a replica of the locket he'd received from his family. With such an object, he thought that maybe Levy would have something to comfort her when he was away, just as he had when he was apart from Natsu. Yet, he had belatedly realized she never seemed to wear jewelry. He had no idea if she'd enjoy it or not, though he'd still give it to her regardless. Perhaps a new headband would be more appropriate…she did indeed wear those frequently.

He was lost in thought when he felt the familiar buzz of magic in the room. It was faint, but it made him frown. "—Mer—dy. Ar—" It was a faint, broken voice. Blinking, Zeref glanced down. He'd…forgotten about the lacrima. How had he forgotten to contact her friends? Maybe he had been more exhausted than he realized. Though, perhaps it also stemmed from him rarely going to others for help himself.

Either way, he pulled the device out, glancing over at the healer. The man nodded, staying silent as he worked and giving Zeref a thumbs up of approval. "You were supposed to contact us days ago! What—" The voice finally broke off, and Zeref saw Jellal gazing at him with wide eyes. "Zeref. What have you done to my friend?"

"Nothing." Zeref tilted his head, frowning. "Though…she—" He broke off, glancing at the healer with his brow furrowing. He'd been about to make a retort about how her actions nearly killed himself…but he needed to remember his surroundings and be careful. "She is not well. I have brought her to a healer for recovery, but the situation is…difficult to explain, to say the least."

"It's not that hard!" The healer walked over with a huff, placing his hands on his hips. "You explained it to me, your majesty." He knelt down, waving his hand at the lacrima. "Hello, friend of Emperor Spriggan! I'm Veno, at your service. Emperor Spriggan here brought me a girl with a nasty case of magic deficiency at the start of the week, and I'm guessing that's your friend, right?"

"Please, Veno, attend to your patients. This…isn't a conversation you need to participate in." The boy blinked, before nodding and shrugging.

Jellal, however, narrowed his eyes. "Actually, I'd like to hear what the healer has to say."

"Oh, I didn't have much more to add. Just that Emperor Spriggan here explained that her delayed recovery is due to some weird magic thing nearby. There apparently isn't enough ethernano around us to really let her recover at a usual rate…"

"The ethernano is…scarce?" Jellal's eyes were wide, glancing over at Zeref. "Just what could cause something so drastic?"

"An…unnatural existence, of sorts."

"You didn't. Tell me you didn't go and remake one of your—"

"I did not." Zeref rolled his eyes, leaning back. "I assure you, I have no reason to create my demons again." He paused, frowning. "Well, mostly no reasons. There are two gaps amongst my advisors now, thanks to that bit of destruction. But, we'll manage to fill them soon enough."

"Your demons…worked in your government?" Zeref nodded, and Jellal seemed to grow silent. After a moment, the blue-haired wizard shook his head with a sigh. "That…you're just trying to distract me. Keep me from asking about Meredy and what you've done to her."

"Not at all. There simply isn't much to say about the matter." He could…go about the same lines he fed to Royal Serpent in front of the healer. At least, similar enough that the boy would not be too suspicious. Or…maybe he would leave? It wasn't as if magic deficiency patients needed constant care. "Veno…I'd like to discuss something with my…acquaintance in private. Would you mind stepping out for a moment so I could do so?"

The healer nodded with a grin. "Of course! I've got to restock supplies anyway, so I'll head off to the store. Oh, and if any of them wake up, please ask them to wait for me, okay?" Zeref nodded, and Veno ran off.

With a sigh, he turned back towards the lacrima. "Is there a reason you had him leave?"

"You and your companion are performing illegal activities. I'd prefer the citizens of Alvarez to be unaware of how lenient I am being in your situation, given the recent peace we've just established." Jellal frowned, and Zeref rubbed his forehead. "Meredy…nearly killed myself and Levy, in the process of putting herself in this situation." Jellal froze, his eyes widening. "She'd been utilizing a sensory link, believing I'd be more violent and aggressive than I was. However, when she still refused to return the G-amplifier…" He broke off, realizing Jellal had no idea what had begun the argument in the first place. "I may have made some threats, and she reacted by expanding the link. I…she tried to do something else, but at that point, she was exerting enough magic for the…anomaly to realize she was there."

"Sensory links don't affect the magic energy of others. Even if Meredy developed magic deficiency, the rest of you would remain unharmed so long as she lived."

"Typically, it would not…" He frowned, trying to think. The time rift made everything unpredictable. August, likely, had a theory that would blame it on a physical entity acting on another. Yet, even that wouldn't quite be accurate, given what the time rift was. "The sensory link connects individuals together, physically. Yet, it would not take much to alter it and connect their magic as well, or even connect them mentally, emotionally…" He trailed off. "It interfered, didn't it? But how…why?" Zeref needed pencil and paper, or something to write with.

"I'm afraid you've lost me. What are you even speaking of?"

"The time rift." He didn't even bother to hide it anymore. There wasn't a point anyway, and it wasn't like anyone else would understand the complexities of the anomaly. "It needed energy…the air around it had been drained completely of ethernano. It wouldn't surprise me to find dead bodies along that road soon, after finding themselves unable to recover from spells in that location. Yet, how much energy does it require to survive? To relocate?" He paused, trying to think back. The calculations were in Vistarion…he needed them, or at least needed to recreate them. "An average wizard's energy…it is nothing compared to the energy of the time rift, that much is certain. Three, however…" He paused. "It was attempting to move? Yet, it had been here for too long and could not obtain enough energy to do so…"

If he had magic to waste, he'd want to feed the time rift and see what change it would cause. He wanted an answer, even if it was likely a reckless path of investigation to attempt. "Could you…slow down and explain, perhaps? I don't even understand what this has to do with Meredy, even."

"The time rift is what drained away her energy, as she began to utilize magic nearby." He paused, glancing towards Jellal. "Speaking of which…where are you staying? It may be dangerous, if you are too close to the rift yourself."

Jellal seemed to hesitate, before sighing. "You will not provide its location and let me decide, will you?" Zeref shook his head. "Very well, I suppose it is far, considering the fact that I remained in your country."

"And that you continued to utilize magic here as well. You do realize that unless you are a member of a guild, one registered within the empire, magic use is illegal in Alvarez?" Jellal hesitated, before slowly nodding. "Then it is dangerous regardless of where you are."

"I'm not being that careless. I've lived on the run as a criminal for the past eight years now, so it isn't much different here." Zeref shrugged, and Jellal let out a sigh. "I'm in Kingston. Meredy supposed to meet me here, after bringing me an artifact we'd discovered that was…affected by concerning magic."

"You sensed my magic and assumed it was harmful."

The man was quiet for a moment. "So…you saw what she had taken, then?"

Zeref nodded. "Your actions nearly forced an entire village into starvation, you know."

"W—what?"

Zeref nodded, crossing his arms over his chest. "I was quite irritated, having to handle the situation personally. After all, it isn't as if anyone else can resurrect the dead, even if it was only crops." He paused, seeing Jellal staring at him with wide eyes. "Not all of my creations are as destructive as demons, Jellal. This enchantment was what allowed them to grow crops in the middle of a desert. That is all it was for, and by removing it…"

"They…they could no longer be sustained…" He trailed off, taking in a slow breath. "The…the villagers, are they okay?"

"I will be returning the enchantment soon, and for now, I've assisted them in recovering their lost harvest." He paused, glancing out the window. "Though, perhaps it may be wise to find a…longer route back. The direct path has its own dangers now, it seems."

They were both quiet for a moment, and Zeref wondered what to say next. Jellal…was not fond of him, though he seemed to gradually be lessening in that distrust of his. "Do you still wish to investigate threatening magic, Jellal? While I know your guild seems inherently focused on my own creations, I could send you in the right direction to handle more dangerous situations instead. If you were so inclined, I could direct you to restless dark guilds instead, perhaps. Irene is likely growing quite irritated with the one she's been dealing with herself lately."

"I'm not helping you deal with your own problems in Alvarez."

Zeref smiled. "Ah, what a shame. I had thought I could find a reason to grant you permission for magic use if you did…after all, only the emperor can establish exceptions to the rule."

Jellal was quiet again, narrowing his eyes. "You enjoy tormenting people, don't you? Taunting them with these deals of yours."

"Not at all." He paused. "Though, I do find your reactions particularly interesting to observe. It…strangely, it feels like speaking to myself, in a way."

"I'm nothing like you!"

"Do you logically think through your problems slowly, before rushing in to fix them?" Jellal nodded. "Are you skilled with magic?" There was another nod. "Have you studied a variety of branches of magic, to familiarize yourself with the way it functions?" This time, Jellal had stopped responding, only scowling at Zeref. "And are you carrying with you more regret and guilt about your past than you truly feel as if you can explain? Attempting to move past all of it, towards a future you can accept yourself in?" He was still silent, staring at Zeref with his scowl as his answer. "You and I, Jellal, are alike. That, is why I treat you differently, I suppose. I have an…odd sort of respect, for what you are attempting to do, even if it is not the same path I take."

"What…if I were to agree to help you…what exactly did you plan on having us investigate?"

"It would depend, I suppose."

"On what?"

"On what sort of magic you and your guild is familiar with." He glanced over at Meredy, nodding. "She utilizes a lost magic, one that surprised me to see. If you have others like her…" He trailed off, frowning. It was…unlikely, to say the least, but he'd need the help if he could manage it. "Perhaps one of them understands time magic to some degree?"

Jellal looked away, his gaze lowering. He was quiet, before he looked back up with a sigh. "There…there was one member, with such magic, a while back. However, she seemed to just vanish a little over a year ago. Meredy and I learned a little from her, but we are no where near the expert she was."

"Could you locate her, perhaps?"

"We've tried. Meredy, especially. Ultear was like a sister to her." He sighed, shaking his head. "I haven't the faintest idea what could have happened to make her…just vanish completely."

What could? Time magic…it wasn't as if time travel would be the answer. Even he had struggled with finding the pieces he needed to accomplish such a thing, and they would have needed celestial wizards for such a goal as well. "What…what form of time magic did she possess? I'm just trying to…determine what may have happened."

"Arc of time magic."

That was…interesting. Could arc of time directly affect the time rift? It wasn't a living thing, but it was volatile. Likely, it would not go over well. However…that shouldn't be his consideration at the moment. What about arc of time could make someone vanish? Dimaria…she'd always scoffed at arc of time users, claiming they were lesser time mages. She always had that prideful snark to her, even though she was hardly an expert herself in her own branch. Yet…there was one spell, that she had admired as even she could not use it. Though, the cost was never worth it to her, so she didn't understand why anyone would call it useful anyway. "Lost Ages."

"Pardon?"

"A spell, within that field of magic. It allows the user to turn back time…" Though, it wouldn't kill her. All it would do is make her unrecognizable to her companions…and if she no longer had the will to face them after what she'd done, all she would have to do is walk away. "However, the spell comes at a cost."

"Is…" Jellal hesitated, taking a slow breath. "Is she dead?"

"From the spell? No." Zeref paused, thinking. "Though, I cannot say she would still be alive now, not for certain. A year has passed since you last saw her…and I suspect you last saw her within a rather desperate conflict, if such a spell was actually used."

"It was." Jellal narrowed his eyes at Zeref. "In fact, the conflict was heavily based upon someone utilizing your Eclipse Gate. We were fighting against seven dragons and nothing seemed to be capable of stopping them."

Zeref blinked, staring at him. "Interesting. So, it still connects to the first gate opened then…" He trailed off, realizing that Jellal likely did not care about the nuances of Eclipse. "Regardless, that situation would be the sort I'd suspect would cause such a spell to be used. To turn back time with Lost Ages, the wizard must sacrifice their own time…in essence, time is turned back at the cost of aging the wizard using it well into their last years of life. If your companion is still alive, and if my suspicions are correct, she would be an elderly woman now."

"Then…we…with that, I'm certain we could find her." Zeref nodded, closing his eyes. "So, what sort of dark magic did you need a time mage to help you with?"

"The time rift, of course." Jellal blinked, while Zeref smiled. "Not that you'd be working alone, of course. I have studied it myself in the past, but time magic is…difficult to work with. Even then, I had someone assisting me who understood the field far better than I. Now…something has changed about the rift and it is no longer as harmless as it once was. I need to determine why, and a method of stopping it before the problem worsens over time."

"I…I will…" Jellal hesitated, glancing at Zeref. After a moment, he sighed and closed his eyes. "I will send someone to search for Ultear again, this time with word of the problem at hand. Hopefully, she'll come to us to help." He paused, glancing over at Zeref. "And for now, I'd like to be able to be by my companion's side as she recovers, so if you'd kindly inform me of where she is being treated…"

"Kingston." Jellal blinked, staring at Zeref. The black wizard smiled, chuckling faintly. "You should be able to locate the healer's place of work easily in town. I know I did. And…" He trailed off, the smile fading. "Be careful. The time rift is only a few miles outside of town, and is already affecting the city itself. I've warned the guild here, but it is up to them to listen or disregard my words."

"Then…I suppose I will see you soon." Zeref nodded, and the lacrima went dark. He leaned back, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Now…now he'd have help, even without Dimaria around. As much as he wanted to call her here…he didn't want to worry Levy unnecessarily by doing so. She knew he was capable and if he called for help…he didn't know how she'd react. So, he'd contact them later, once he had an answer to what was going on. Then, he'd apologize for the delay…and explain that he had something a little extra to take care of before returning home.

And here is the second chapter for the day! Feel free to review and tell me what you think!