Thank you all for your wonderful reviews! Now let us get started with the third chapter of this story, and the beginning of the Galuna Island Arc. Read, enjoy, and review!
(Magnolia, Lucy's Apartment)
Lucy hummed a small tune as she took her shower. The last few days had been pretty intense. First Natsu beat Erza, then Erza getting arrested by the council because of the damage caused during the battle against Lullaby, and finally when Natsu went nuts and nearly killed that guy, Laxus. Though Lucy had to admit that Laxus sort of had that coming for being a jerk. The only good thing that came out of it all was that Lucy won, unintentionally, the betting money from Natsu and Erza's spar.
Natsu. The pink haired dragon slayer had been on her mind lately, ever since the battle with Lullaby. He began to act strange since the battle and getting that sword, like getting two different personalities. One side was like his normal self, only less hyperactive, calmer now and less easy to anger too. But the other side was a lot more serious, rarely talked, and was very protective of that sword. Ever since the whole fiasco with Laxus people didn't bother to bring up the sword around Natsu, worried he might attack them. Though that didn't stop Erza from trying to get Natsu to open up about his deal with the sword. The Dragon Slayer would just ignore her, not even slightest bit intimidated by the feared Titania, something that shocked everyone in the guild. The only reason why a fight didn't break out between the two was because Master would stop Erza from interrogating Natsu.
However the really embarrassing bit for Lucy was Natsu's new attitude around her. To the blonde's horror Mirajane had revealed that Natsu had won Lucy the betting money from the spar, which in the barmaid's view was very sweet. Lucy wouldn't deny it, since the jewels really did come in handy for paying several months of her rent, and still have a little left. Ever since then, Lucy had the unfortunate luck to be teased slightly by her fellow female guild mates about her and Natsu being a couple. Even though Lucy would just say that she and Natsu were just teammates, a part of her wouldn't mind being in a relationship with the Dragon Slayer. However Lucy would venomously try to deny that. They were, as she said, just teammates.
"But still, it was nice of him to give me all that money." Lucy thought as she got out of the shower and dried herself off. She wrapped a pink robe around her body. Lucy had long since learned that it was better to cover herself fully when having friends that barged into her home uninvited. Still, the robe did little to hide her voluptuous body and hugged her curves.
And she was proven right. The moment she opened her bathroom door Lucy was greeted with the sight of Natsu and Happy, sitting in her living room like they owned the place. "Heya Lucy!" Natsu said cheerfully, back leaning against the sofa as he gave the blonde his signature smile.
A tick mark forming, Lucy yelled, "HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO SNEAK INTO MY APARTMENT?!" She shouted as she launched a Lucy Kick at Natsu's face.
To her surprise however, Natsu didn't even flinch at the kick. Hell he didn't even budge from it. Instead all he did was gently grab the ankle with his hand (Lucy could've sworn that heat was rushing to her face from the contact), and carefully lowered the leg.
"Sorry, but Happy and I wanted to show you the next job we picked!" Natsu said as he shoved a flyer in Lucy's face.
"Aye! It's as easy as fish!" Happy added as he stood on a chair.
"A job request…?" Lucy muttered as she studied the paper's contents, requesting help in breaking a curse. But her face went pale as she noticed something at the bottom in bolded letters. "This…this is an S-Class Request!" Lucy cried, dropping the paper like it was contaminated.
"Yep!" Natsu replied as he picked it up. "Happy borrowed it from the second floor."
"You mean stole it when no one was looking?" Lucy said accusingly.
"Whatever…" Natsu said with a shrug. "Anyway you should get dress, because we're leaving in ten minutes."
"Like hell I am!" Lucy cried as she began pushing the two out of her apartment. "I'm not going on an S-class request and getting myself killed!"
"Even if the reward was a golden key?" Natsu asked, as he and Happy were nearly towards the door.
That made Lucy stop. "Huh?"
Natsu turned around and showed her the flyer again. "Beside jewels, another reward is a golden key similar to the ones you have." He explained as Lucy reread the flyer. Sure enough, a Golden Celestial Spirit Key was added to the reward for whoever completed the job. And being a Celestial Spirit Mage herself, that was something Lucy could not ignore.
Now Lucy had fire in her eyes. "Well, what are we waiting for?! Let's go and complete a S-class job!" Lucy declared.
"Aye sir!" Happy said in agreement while Natsu just smiled.
(Some time later, Fairy Tail)
"Master!" Mirajane cried as she dashed towards Makarov. Said person was sitting on a barrel while drinking when the barmaid called him. "Someone stole a S-class request!" Mirajane reported.
Makarov performed a comical spit take, his drink shooting out of his mouth, hitting several nearby guild members in the process. But Makarov, who was in too much shock at the news, ignored them. "W-what? W-who!?" He asked.
"You know, I think I've might have seen a winged blue fur ball going up to the second floor. And then I think it took something." The cocky voice of Laxus commented. The man was sitting on a chair, leaning back against it as he had his legs resting on the table. In his right hand was a mug of beer while bandages could be seen under his shirt, where the wound from Natsu was.
"Happy!" Mirajane gasped in shock. Murmurs began to break through the guild.
"That means Natsu and Lucy took the request!"
"What the hell were they thinking?"
"I think beating Erza got to Natsu's head."
"Hey Gramps! Since they stole an S-Class request, that means they'll be expelled for breaking an unprincipled rule right?" Laxus asked before laughing. "Well, it won't matter since they're going to die anyway!"
That seemed to have angered Mirajane, as she turned around to glare at the lightning mage. "Laxus! You knew what happened and did nothing?" She yelled.
"Hey, how was I supposed to know that the cat was Happy?" Laxus asked with an uncaring shrug. "Besides it's the idiot's fault for taking an S-class job, though he'll be a dead idiot soon anyway!" He finished with a laugh. He paused slightly however when he noticed a rather dark glare from Mirajane. "Oh, now that sure brings back memories." Laxus mused, not the least bit intimidated.
"Mira, what was the mission that Natsu took?" Makarov asked the barmaid.
Still keeping her glare on Laxus halfway, Mira replied, "The one for Galuna Island."
"I see…" Makarov pondered for a moment. "Then there is nothing to worry about." He said, making everyone confused. Even Mirajane and Laxus were taken surprised by the Master's now calm attitude.
"Master?" Mira asked, dropping her glare on Laxus to focus on Makarov.
"Natsu has proven himself more then capable of handling an S-class request like that." Makarov began. "He did after all, single-handily defeat Lullaby with a single hit, as well as beat Erza in a spar easily. He even managed to land a blow on you Laxus." The Master added as he eyed his grandson.
The reminder made Laxus frown darkly, a glare in his eyes, daring anyone to repeat that. The lightning mage still hadn't gotten over the fact that someone he deemed inferior to him, had managed to land a solid blow on his person.
"Are you sure Master?" Mira asked. She was still concerned for the three, despite Makarov's claims.
"Dead sure." Makarov said as he took a drink of his ale. "In fact, I bet Natsu could probably go toe-to-toe with me if he wanted to." He added.
Now that had people starring at the Guild Master in stun silence. It was undeniable that Makarov Dreyar was the most powerful mage in Fairy Tail. And if being the Guild Master wasn't convincing enough, then the fact that he was one of the Ten Wizard Saints, mages deemed the strongest, certainly was. For Makarov to say that Natsu could fight him on equal grounds, then it would probably be better to let Natsu complete the job request.
However some people seemed to disagree.
"Don't bullshit with us old man! As if the punk is that powerful!" Laxus roared towards his grandfather, his feet hitting the floor. Despite his boasting and arrogance, Laxus was at least humble enough to admit that his grandfather was a very powerful mage. So the thought of someone like Natsu, someone that he considered trash, was on the same level as Makarov infuriated the lightning mage.
Makarov said nothing in response. He didn't feel like revealing the sensation he had felt from Natsu when the latter had pulled his sword out for Ultear to see. He could tell that the blade was powerful and only an equally powerful person could wield it. Makarov had to summarized that said person would have to be a Wizard-Saint or stronger in order to use it. So if Natsu was able to do so easily then that left little room for doubt in Makarov's mind, that Natsu was indeed near his level. And the only other person who was close to Makarov's in terms of power was Gildarts, the Guild's Ace. After a moment of silence, Laxus scoffed and walked off, an aura of anger emitting off of him.
"Master…" Mirajane said, still worried despite Makarov's claims.
Seeing the worried look in her eyes, Makarov let out a sigh. He supposed sending some back up wouldn't be a bad thing. "Oi, Gray! Why don't you go after them and help with the job anyway." Makarov said.
The ice mage raised an eyebrow. "What, me?" He asked.
"Well if you don't want to, you don't have to. Seeing that Natsu is stronger then you-" Makarov said, but his sentence was cut off.
"That's something that I can't ignore gramps." Gray said angrily, getting to his feet. "I'll show you that I can finish an S-class job better then that idiot, and prove that I am ten times stronger then him!" The ice mage declared before dashing out the door. He missed the smirk on Makarov's face, not knowing he had played right in the Master's trap. The Master nodded, and went back to his drink.
(Hargeon Port)
"Ah! I haven't been here in a while!" Lucy exclaimed as she, Natsu and Happy were walking around the seaside city. The place was as lively as ever, especially near the docks where all the boats were. The blonde had a hand above her forehead to shield her eyes from the sun as she looked around Hargeon. "This is where we first me, remember?"
"Yeah…but it wasn't that long ago…" Natsu commented as he looked around. A few people were giving him looks, perhaps recalling what he did the last time he was here. He ignored it though, more focus on making sure not to lost sight of Lucy.
"Old Lady Lucy…" Happy teased, cheeks puff and paws covering mouth to hide his laughter, though failing slightly.
"Stupid Cat!" Lucy cursed Happy, trying, and failing, to smack the flying cat out of the sky. She quickly got a hold of her temper before walking towards the docks, dozens of boat floating in the water beside them. "Anyway, let's find a boat that can take us to the island." Lucy said.
"Boat? I thought we agreed to swim there?" Happy asked as he floated above Natsu.
"Are you crazy?! The island is miles away! We wouldn't even make it after half a mile without being drowning, eaten or whatever horrible things!" Lucy exclaimed to the cat.
"Well then we better find someone to take us, shouldn't we?" Natsu asked before walking off, leaving two astonished people. This was the first time anyone had seen Natsu so calm and okay about taking any kind of transportation. However Lucy wasn't going to complain since anything was better than swimming.
"Galuna island? No way!"
"You couldn't even pay me a king's ransom to take you there!"
"That island is cursed! Anyone who goes there ends up dead!"
"Get lost, I have no wish to get involved with anyone trying to get to that accursed place!"
"No one is going to sail to that island! I suggest you just give up!"
After an hour of asking around, the trio sat down on a bench, a depressed and tired aura around them. Every person they had asked so far refused them, none of them wanting to even think about the island. Clearly it was going to be a lot more difficult to get to Galuna Island now.
"I didn't think it would be so hard to find a boat to take us there." Lucy moaned.
"They all seemed pretty scared of Galuna Island." Happy commented while munching on fish.
"We haven't tried everyone. I'm sure we can find someone who could take sail us there." Natsu said, trying to stay positive.
'I doubt it." Lucy stated. "The majority of sailors seem to be pretty firm on not going anywhere near this island. We have a better chance of swimming or even freezing the ocean and walk there." She added.
"Speaking of freezing…" Natsu said before he stretched his hand behind him. Before anyone could react, Natsu slammed something big on the ground before the trio. Said 'thing' turned out to be a fully clothed Gray Fullbuster.
"Gray?!" Lucy and Happy exclaimed together, surprised to see the Ice Mage here. Gray was also surprised, more so on the fact that Natsu knew he was there. Recovering quickly, Gray got off the ground and to his feet, glaring hotly at Natsu.
"How the hell did you know I was here?" Gray asked his rival.
"Dragon Slayer, remember?" Natsu said plainly, pointing to his nose. Gray scowled before looking away.
"Gray, what are you doing here?" Lucy asked worriedly. "Did the Master send you to bring us back?"
"Nope! I'm here to make sure you guys don't die on this mission!" Gray said confidently, surprising the others slightly. He didn't tell them that Makarov ordered him to go, or that the Master said that Natsu was near the Master's level. Gray wouldn't give his rival the satisfaction of that. "And if I do this, I'll prove that I'm S-class material, unlike you."
"Yeah…I doubt it." Natsu replied.
"What was that flame brain?!" Gray yelled, clenching his fists, his magic beginning to appear around them.
"Magic?" A voice suddenly said. Behind Gray, was a fisherman who had surprise look on his face as he asked, "Are you four mages?" The four Fairy Tail mages nodded in response. "And the ones who want to break the curse on Galuna Island that I've been hearing about?" The fisherman asked again.
"That's right." Lucy replied before the others could.
"I see…" The fisherman said before finishing it with, "Well then hop into my boat."
"Really?" Lucy asked, getting to her feet. "Thank you so much!" She said with a bow.
"S-class Island here we come!" Gray said confidently as the group followed the fisherman to his boat. None of them seem to notice the way Natsu stared at the fisherman, studying him intently.
'Something feels off about this guy…' Natsu thought to himself. The man looked human, and he sounded honest about giving the group a rise to Galuna Island. But something about him was bugging Natsu.
The voice seemed to agree as well. "Indeed, the man is definitely hiding something. But there are no foul intentions from him, and Lucy is already boarding his boat so we have no choice."
Natsu nodded as he and the others got on board. The Dragon Slayer had to admit, it felt exciting to get on transportation and not get motion sickness. He could still remember when the voice told him that since Natsu had begun to awaken his past self, he could no longer get motion sickness that all Dragon Slayers inherited. Still, seeing how the others were distracted, Natsu held his excitement in and just sat against the boat's railing. The moment the boat took off from the docks however, was when the others realized that Natsu was not moaning in pain and looking ready to vomit.
"What the…you're not vomiting?" Lucy asked, dumbfounded.
Natsu raised an eyebrow at the question. "No? Should I?"
"Yes! What the hell happened to your motion sickness?!" Gray demanded, not liking that he couldn't mock his rival suffering from his usual weakness.
"I don't know? Grew out of it maybe?" Natsu lied, shrugging.
"Is everything alright?" The fisherman asked from his spot.
"Aye! Everything is okay!" Happy said, not really bothered by his best friend's unusual behavior.
"What? A talking cat?" The fisherman gawked, having just realized that Happy could speak.
Eventually, everyone had gone silent as the boat continued to sail. Happy had gone and sat at the front of the boat, keeping an eye out for the island. Natsu had closed his eyes while sitting cross-legged against the railing. Gray was now resting against the edge of the boat with his arms behind his head. And finally Lucy was sitting across from him, her legs pressed against her chest, shivering. The shivering wasn't from the cold, but from an uncomfortable feeling coursing through Lucy.
"I got a really bad feeling about this…" Lucy murmured, wrapping her arms around her legs, hoping to stop the anxiety.
Gray looked at her. "Why did you come on this job anyway?" He finally asked the Celestial Spirit Mage.
Lucy let out a low "Eep" before replying. "Well because of the reward…" she answered shyly.
Gray looked at her in surprise. "Seriously? I never took you as a shallow person…" He commented.
Lucy looked a bit ashamed at that. However shame turned into a scowl. "This coming from the guy who came with us so he could become S-class?" She retorted.
Gray flinched, knowing what she said was true. Wanting to change the subject, Gray turned towards the fisherman. "Say why did you decide to help us? All the others seemed really scared of taking us to the island." Gray said.
The fisherman was silent for a moment, and then responded. "My name is Bobo." He said. "And I use to live on the island."
"What?" Lucy asked, surprised. Natsu had open an eye and stared at the now named Bobo.
"Weird name…" Gray commented offhandedly.
"However I managed to escape from that cursed island." Bobo added, ignoring Gray's comment.
"What kind of curse is it?" Happy asked from his spot.
Bobo seemed to hesitate at that, and for some reason tried to avoid Natsu's gaze. Eventually he answered, "Misfortune befalls all those who go to that cursed island." He replied before looking slightly ominously. "Can you guys really get rid of that demonic curse? The one that did this…" He said as he showed them his arm. He received a gasp from Lucy, wide eyes from Gray and Happy, and narrowed ones from Natsu. For now his arm had the appearance of a demon.
"Old man, your arm…" Gray muttered, his eyes unable to leave from that demonic limb.
"That's no illusion." The voice said in Natsu's head. "But it's definitely not a curse either…"
"So the curse…you mean…" Lucy stuttered.
Putting his arm underneath his cloak, Bobo nodded before looking straight ahead. "There it is…" He said, as an island in the distance came into view. The others followed his example and also spotted the mass of land. "Galuna Island"
"Whoa" Lucy and Happy said in awe at the sight. Lucy had turned around to ask Bobo something, only to see no sight of the man. "W-where did he go?" Lucy yelled in shock.
"Did he fall overboard?" Gray asked, looking around the boat, but found no signs of the fisherman. Happy was flying around the boat for any signs of Bobo. The only one who wasn't panicking was Natsu. His ears had briefly caught the sound of wings flapping but now they were picking something else.
"He's not here!" Happy exclaimed in fright. That only made Gray and Lucy panic more.
"Hey guys…" Natsu said calmly. Once all eyes were on him, he said, "Don't look now, but I think we're about to be killed." He commented, pointing.
"Eh?" Was all Gray, Lucy and Happy had to say as they looked up. Approaching the boat was a large body of water. Then Lucy and Gray's eyes widened in horror as the wave began to lift the boat up. "KYAAAAHH! TIDAL WAVE!" Lucy screeched.
"Shit! It's pulling us in!" Gray yelled.
"Happy, quick! Lift the boat up and fly!" Lucy ordered the flying feline cat.
"That's impossible!" Happy gawked at her.
Natsu said nothing as the wave finally sucked them in before everything went black.
(Later)
A couple of minutes afterwards, an unharmed Natsu was walking out of the water onto the sandy beach of the island. Held securely in his right arm was an unconscious Lucy, her head resting peacefully on Natsu's shoulder while his hand held her by her rear (A/N: Not like that you perverts!). Tucked underneath the back of his vest was Happy, the cat purring away. And finally in Natsu's left hand, was Gray's right ankle, the rest of the body attached to it as the ice mage was dragged along the sand.
Once he was far enough from the water, Natsu promptly dropped Gray's leg onto the sand. He then gently lowered Lucy, leaning her head against a nearby rock. Finally Natsu pulled Happy out of his vest, laying the feline beside Lucy's form.
Squatting his legs, Natsu looked at Lucy's prone from. He almost didn't want to disturb her, as he noticed the peaceful look on her face. But Natsu knew that now wasn't the time so he began poking the blonde's cheek. "Hey, Lucy, wake up." Natsu said.
It didn't take long as Lucy's eyes slowly fluttered open. "What…what happened?" She asked quietly. Natsu's face soon came into her line of vision, and Lucy let out a squeak upon noticing how close he was to her, and how intense his stare was too.
Fortunately, Natsu moved back a bit. "Thank goodness you're okay." Natsu said with relief, grinning at her. That made Lucy blush before trying to change the subject.
"Where are we?" Lucy asked as she got to her feet, feeling a bit wobbly after the whole experience.
"We made it to the island in one piece." Natsu said as he walked up to Happy. Lucy watched as the Dragon Slayer pulled out a fish and hovered it a few inches from Happy's face.
At the smell of the amphibian creature, Happy lunged forward and swiped it from Natsu's hand. He let out a loud, "My fish!" before sinking his teeth into said creature.
Lucy sweat dropped at Happy while Natsu just chuckled. At the sound of the cat's declaration, Gray awoke soon after. "Ugh…the hell…where are we?" The Ice Mage asked as he sat up, rubbing his head.
"The island." Natsu said as he looked around the place. "Now all we have to do is find the village!" He declared and walked off towards the forest.
"Aye sir!" Happy declared, having finished the fish. He then flew up and landed on Natsu's shoulders.
"Hey do you even know where you're going?" Lucy asked as she ran after the two.
"Damn they're noisy…" Gray complained as he followed after them.
After an hour of searching, having been delayed due to Happy playing pranks on Lucy, the group finally found themselves staring at a large wooden gate. By then it had gotten dark. On the sign, in large bolded letters were the words "KEEP OUT."
"This is it?" Lucy wondered, tilting her head.
"Can't believe they have a 'Keep Out' after we just found their village too." Gray muttered as he crossed his arms.
"Hey! Open the door!" Natsu barked, contemplating of whether or not he should just bust the gate down.
"Whose there?" A voice asked. From a top of the gate, two figures could be seen. Most likely gate guards. "Who are you?" One of them asked the mages.
"We're from Fairy Tail!" Lucy responded. "We're here because of your request!"
"Fairy Tail?" One of the two men questioned. "We know nothing of Fairy Tail accepting our request."
"No surprise there, since Happy did steal it…" Gray muttered under his breath. His comment was ignored.
"Well we are now!" Natsu shouted back.
"Show us your emblems! We want to see solid proof that you are who you say you are!" One of the guards said. So the mages showed their guild marks one by one for the guards to inspect. "They look real…" The guard muttered.
"They really accepted our request!" His companion whispered. "Open the gate!" He shouted on the other side of said structure.
As the gate opened, one of the guards said, "Come in! I'll go get the mayor!" Before disappearing.
Natsu and the others soon entered the village and were quickly greeted by another guard. Curiously, he and the others were all wearing cloaks over their heads.
"This way, the chief is waiting." The guard said before leading the Fairy Tail mages further in. They soon arrived to what looked like the village center. There, more cloaked figures greeted them. One of them walked forward towards Fairy Tail Mages.
"Greeting Fairy Tail Mages. My name is Moka and I am the chief of this village." He said. "I am sorry if this startles you all of a sudden, but I believe you should see the reason for our request." Moka then turned towards the group behind him. "Take off your cloaks!" He ordered and one by one everyone did, revealing the effects of the curse. All of the mages gasped, except for Natsu, who studied the demonic limbs curiously.
"Wow…" Natsu said as he looked at the villagers. "So then everyone…"
"From the dogs, birds and even us…" Moka said. "Everyone on this island is plagued by the curse."
"I don't want to sound rude," Gray began. "But are you sure that this is a curse? It might just be some sort of disease."
"I've had many doctors look at this before and they've told me that this is no disease." Moka replied. "Plus the moon's magic is a factor in this curse."
Lucy blinked at the mayor. "The moon's magic?" She asked in confusion.
"Yes, in ancient times this island has accumulated moonlight. It made this island so beautiful that it shined like the moon itself." Moka explained. "But recently the moon began to turn into the color purple."
"A purple moon? I've never heard of that." Lucy said.
"People from the mainland say the same thing. But the moon indeed has turned purple on this island. And when it appears, our bodies start to change." Moka said. And when he finished, the clouds above began to part and revealed the night sky. As everyone looked up, there was indeed a purple moon.
"What the hell?!" Gray exclaimed as Lucy covered her mouth in shock.
"That's creepy…" Happy muttered as he hid behind Natsu. Said Dragon Slayer merely frowned in confusion.
Suddenly, the sounds of pain caught the attention of the Fairy Tail mages. Turning around, they saw that the villagers had begun to transform. Soon they had all become full demons. As his friend's gawked in horror, Natsu was thinking to himself.
'Something is very odd here. What just happened was definitely a transformation, but I don't think the moon caused it. In fact, in this form, they feel a lot familiar too.'
"That's because this is their true form." The voice answered. Natsu's eyes widened at what it was saying. "Galuna Island is a place colonized by demons, not ones created by Zeref, hundreds of years ago. They have the ability to change their forms into humans."
'Then why do they think that the curse turns them into demons?' Natsu asked. 'Unless they're transform back to their real forms without even knowing it, but that would mean that what's being effected is their-'
"I am sorry for scaring you all, but this is the result of when the moon shines down on this island." Moka's voice interrupted Natsu's thoughts. He held up his arms, which had turned a bluish color. "If this isn't a curse than what could it be? Fortunately in the morning everyone returns back into humans, however recently there are some who remain as demons and begin to turn insane and act like monsters."
"What did you do with them?" Natsu asked, though he had a bad feeling about the answer.
At this Moka's legs began to shake and he looked like he was on the verge of crying. "We tried locking them away and far from the village, but they would break free." By then Moka had gotten to his knees. "So we had no choice but to kill them before they became mindless monsters!"
"You kill them?" Natsu whispered in disbelief before anger appeared in his eyes. "You kill your own people?! Even if there is a slight chance they could return to normal!?" Natsu yelled before watching as the mayor shakily pulled out a photo from his cloak.
"I know our law is sinful, but what other choice do we have? It was us or them! I even had to kill my own son when he became a monster and lost himself!" Moka cried as he held out the picture for them to see. The Fairy Tail Mages felt a chill of horror run up their bodies as they looked at the photo. In it was the same man, Bobo, the man that had sailed them to Galuna Island.
"B-but that's not possible." Lucy whispered to herself as she stared at the photo. "We saw-"
She was cut off by Gray, who placed a hand over her mouth, and a cold sweat over his face, "Shh, I think I know why he disappeared before…his ghost can't rest in peace with his home like this." He said low enough so the villagers didn't hear.
Natsu wasn't convinced. He kept thinking (He'd been doing that a lot lately, ever since the voice appeared) about the flapping noise he heard before the wave came in. That was no ghost that brought them here: Bobo was definitely alive so something odd was going on.
"So please, I beg of you!" The Chief cried as he got on his hands and knees, heading touching the ground. "Please save our island so that we can be free of this curse and never have to stain our hands with the blood of our own people!"
"Don't you worry" Natsu said as everyone looked at him. "We'll put an end to this before anyone else has to suffer, we promise that." He added, with the others nodding confidently in agreement.
"Thank you" Moka said as he got up. After wiping away the tears from his eyes, he got serious. "We've come to realize that there is only one way to lift the curse off our island." The chief began as he pointed upwards, towards the purple orb above them. "You must destroy the moon."
The Fairy Tail mages blinked at that; completely bewildered. "Eh?"
(Later that night)
"The more I look at it, the creepier it seems." Happy commented as he stared at the moon from the window.
"Happy, get away from there!" Lucy called out to the flying cat as she unwrapped her sleeping bag. "The chief said that the longer you're exposed to the moon, the higher the chance of you turning into a demon." She said, shivering at the thought.
"We're lucky that the villagers rented us a hut while we're staying here." Gray commented as he sat on a chair.
Lucy looked around and noticed that they were one person short. "Hey, where did Natsu go?"
"He said he was going to talk to the chief because he thought he smelled something odd on the island." Happy replied as he closed the window and then the curtain.
"Huh, you know Natsu's been acting different lately. A lot smarter and calmer too." Lucy commented.
"Aye, and he doesn't get motion sickness anymore!" Happy added as he sat down on a small table.
"Flame brain has been acting odd now that you mention it." Gray said as he looked at the ceiling. "In fact, it all started when he got that sword."
"He never did tell us where it came from." Lucy thought out loud. "And ever since he got it, I don't recall seeing him without it. It's like he's become possessive of it."
"Well remember what he did to Laxus when he tried to take it from him?" Gray asked, shivering slightly at the memory. As much as he hated to admit it, seeing the sight of Natsu ruthlessly attack Laxus out of the blue did not sit right with the ice mage. It kind of scared him to be honest, not that Gray would ever admit it.
"Happy, did Natsu ever tell you anything about the sword?" Lucy asked the blue feline. She was surprised to see Happy shake his head.
"No, in fact I don't see him when I go to bed. I see him sleeping when I wake up though. Whenever I ask, he never lets me hold it nor tell me where he got it from." Happy said. That surprised the two mages; Natsu never kept anything from Happy. The two were best of friends and always shared each other's secrets.
"Natsu is definitely hiding something." Gray stated.
"And it's going to stay that way until I say so." Natsu said, suddenly appearing out of nowhere behind Gray. Said ice mage let out a surprise yelp and fell on the floor, while Lucy and Happy also appeared a bit shaken up by Natsu's appearance. Ignoring that, Natsu spoke. "I talked with the chief. Apparently there are ruins from an old temple not too far from the village. We can check it out if anything has to do with the purple moon over there." He said.
Recovering from her shock, Lucy thought about it. "That does sound like a good idea. The cause might be on the island to make the moon purple and turn the villagers into demons. It makes more sense then trying to destroy the moon." Lucy said, rolling her eyes.
"Well" Gray said with a yawn. "We're going to have to do it tomorrow. I'm hitting the hay, good night." And with that he plopped down his sleeping bag, shirt off, and fell asleep. Happy soon followed afterwards, curling up beside Natsu's sleeping bag, said Dragon Slayer already asleep. Lucy sighed and soon got underneath her sleeping bag, which was situated in between the two boys, and closed her eyes, hoping to fall asleep.
Unfortunately it was no easy task for her. Lucy opened her eyes a short while later, an irritated expression on her face. 'How the hell am I suppose to fall asleep with a stripper, a cat, and a pyromaniac around me?' Lucy thought to herself. She turned to her right and to her annoyance, was greeted with Gray sprawled across his mat, snoring without a care in the world. What made it uncomfortable for Lucy was that somehow, Gray had managed to take off his pants and was now clad only in his boxers.
With a huff, Lucy turned to her left and glanced at Natsu. To her surprise, Natsu's back was facing her and he was completely composed over his sleeping mattress. His sword was lying against the floor on the other side of him. Lucy had expected Natsu to be sprawled over his mat just like Gray. He actually looked very calm and peaceful sleeping like that, that it almost made Lucy feel a bit sleepy too.
However her thoughts were broken when she heard what sounded like a whimper, coming from Natsu. "No…Leandra, no…" Natsu muttered, his form shaking slightly.
'Leandra?' Lucy wondered before reaching out to Natsu's shoulder. "Natsu, are you okay?" The blonde whispered, since she could tell something was troubling the Dragon Slayer.
Lucy had only brusher her fingers against Natsu's shoulders when she suddenly found herself pinned under Natsu. The Dragon Slayer's hands were wrapped tightly around her wrists, his onyx eyes staring deeply into her brown ones. "N-natsu…!" Lucy gasped, her cheeks getting hot due to the position they were in. In fact, Lucy was pretty sure her entire face was now as red as a tomato. It was difficult for her to look into Natsu's eyes, which seemed to radiate some sort of hidden passion.
Natsu didn't respond at first. But after a few seconds, his eyes softened and he realized the compromising position the two of them were in. A hint of pink on his cheeks, Natsu let go of Lucy's wrists, before plopping back onto his mat. "Sorry…" He mumbled, his eyes not meeting Lucy's. "Sometimes I get a little defensive whenever someone tries to touch me when I'm sleeping." He added.
"I-it's okay." Lucy replied softly as she sat on her knees, facing him. "You looked like you were having a bad dream, so I got worried." She explained.
Natsu didn't say anything; his eyes still did not meet hers. Pausing for a moment, Lucy added, "You also said a name, Leandra." Lucy didn't miss the way Natsu's body flinched at the name. "Was that someone special to you? You can tell me if you want, my mother always said that people feel better when they talk about bad dreams they had."
Natsu hesitated at first, but eventually spun around. "It's nothing." He lied. "I was just saying words." And with that he lied back down on his bed mat, eyes not facing Lucy.
Lucy frowned at this. She was a little upset that Natsu wouldn't open up and tell her about the dream. But seeing as how he was being stubborn, Lucy decided not to push any further on the matter. Giving one last glance at Natsu, Lucy eventually faced the ceiling of the hut, and promptly fell asleep.
(Next Morning)
Natsu let out a yawn, arms stretching out as he did so. He realized it was very early in the morning, seeing how the sun hadn't fully risen through the window. That and Gray and Happy were still asleep, oblivious to the world around them. Happy had somehow moved away from his mat towards the middle, his tail swishing side to side, narrowly avoiding an outstretched hand from Gray each time. However, Natsu noticed that Lucy was up and wide-awake and sitting at the table.
"Good morning!" She said cheerfully to Natsu.
"Morning" Natsu said as he walked up to her. He could tell that Lucy was looking at something. "What are you doing?" He asked.
"N-nothing!" Lucy replied quickly, hiding whatever she had in her hands behind her back. "Just getting ready for the day."
Natsu blinked at her in confusion but eventually shrugged it off. He figured she was probably writing another part of her novel. Though in truth it was because Lucy was writing a letter to her mother.
He adjusted his scarf around his neck and made sure he could still summon Dyrnwyn. Then he sat down on a chair opposite of Lucy. He didn't look her in the eye and nor did she vice versa. Natsu still felt kind bad about last night, rejecting Lucy's offer of comfort. But there were still too many unknown variables right now for the Dragon Slayer and he didn't want to involve Lucy unless there was no other choice.
After what felt like an eternity, Natsu spoke. "Listen, Lucy…" Said girl looked up and found herself staring right into Natsu's onyx orbs. The intensity, as well as warmth, made Lucy's cheeks turn pink. Not that Natsu noticed, as he seemed to be trying to find the right words. "About last night…I want to…"
"OOOWWWWW!"
"ARRGGGHHHH!"
The noise caused Natsu and Lucy to jump, startled by the sudden interruption. Recovering quickly, Natsu moved in front of Lucy, getting into combat stance, ready to slay any enemy nearby.
However that turned out to be unnecessary. The source came from none other than Happy and Gray. In his sleep, the Ice Mage had confused Happy's swishing tail as a fly. Using quick reflexes, even in his sleep, Gray had managed to finally grab the 'fly' and crushed it in his fist. That resulted in a chain reaction from Happy, who immediately yelled in pain from his tail being squeezed. Reacting defensively, Happy began to claw the nearest thing his half-sleepy mind could deduce as a threat. In this case, would be Gray's face. Thus Gray also awoke in a rather painful manner.
"Oh fuck! My face!" Gray moaned as he felt the numerous scratches on his skin.
"What about me?! Look what you did to my tail!" Happy exclaimed as he held it up, the end comically hanging downwards.
Seeing how there was no danger, Natsu relaxed his posture. Then he went to check on Happy's tail. Lucy also managed to relax, giving a light glare towards their two companions. Mostly for scaring her to death and also for interrupting whatever Natsu was going to say. But now it seemed like he wasn't going to bring it up again.
Sometime later after the whole morning fiasco, the group made their way out of the village. They were heading towards the direction that the temple Natsu had mentioned was located at. As Natsu and Gray were walking, Happy was floating above them, Lucy was taking refuge in her spirit, Horologium.
"Why are you in there again?" Gray asked the blonde.
"Hey, you heard what the chief said! Who knows what kind of dangerous creatures there are on this island?' She says." The Clock-like Celestial Spirit repeated for Lucy.
"Hey let me come in!" Happy said as he opened the door and made himself comfy inside the talking clock.
"I doubt there will be anything that serious." Natsu said, arms casually behind his head,
"Yeah, and if anything comes, I'll just freeze its ass!" Gray added to reassure Lucy, but it did little to convince her.
The ground shook suddenly, followed by a low growl and a shadow looming over the group. Looking up, the Fairy Tail mages found themselves staring face to face with a large mouse. Gray, Lucy and Happy were gawking at the giant rodent while Natsu just gave it an inquisitive gaze.
"Is that a bow on its head?" Natsu asked out loud.
"Natsu" The voice said. "Take out Dyrnwyn, time to try out one of the curses of yours I mentioned before. Trust me."
Natsu merely shrugged and pulled out his sword. Meanwhile Lucy shouted, "Guys go beat it!' She says. 'Aye!' He says." Horologium stated.
Gray looked like he was about to attack when suddenly Natsu raised Dyrnwyn up in front of the mouse. As he did the blade began to glow, dark red and a reddish color emitting from the blade. The mouse stared at it for a moment, then its eyes became as wide as dinner plates, its body going pale. An aura of red energy began to form around the blade and then expanded outwards. It soon formed into a large ethereal serpentine dragon, glaring and hissing down at the rodent, revealing its long, sharp fangs. Fear filled the mouse and it quickly dashed off, running away at high speed while screeching all the way.
"Hmm, you can't bring it out fully yet, but you've indeed gained access to a small portion of the Purgatory Curse." The voice commented. "Your main curse that allows you to control the flames of hell, flames that burn anything, even the intangible and magic itself. Of course you can also use Dyrnwyn in conjunction with it. So far it seems like you can create illusions with the blade.
"That's good to know." Natsu thought as he watched the mouse run off in terror. The others though had looks of shock and confusion, as they did not see the ethereal serpent due to it being an illusion.
"What the…?" Gray gawked, looking from the fleeing mouse to Natsu's form.
"Did Natsu scare it off just by looking at it?' She asks. 'Way to go Natsu!' He says." Horologium commented. Lucy and Happy were both looking through the glass door of the clock spirit.
Putting away his blade, Natus looked around until his eyes came upon what appeared to be ruins. "Hey look there are the ruins!" Natsu declared, pointing at said structure. The others followed his fingers as Horologium dismissed himself. The group shortly made their way there.
"This place looks old." Gray commented as he and the others investigated the ruins.
The inside of the temple was a mess. It was filled with broken walls, growing moss cobwebs, and the usual rat or two would be seen scurrying by.
"It is big though." Natsu added. Then some images on a nearby wall caught his attention. "Hey, these look like moons!" He exclaimed.
"Well this island was called Moon Island." Gray stated.
"Hmm, a moon island, moon curse and now moon emblems…" Lucy muttered, rubbing her chin. "Something is very fishy here."
Natsu had continued walking when he froze in mid-step. He could sense a strong demonic presence nearby. This one was different from the villagers, it was more similar to his and Lullaby's. An Etherious was on this island, right underneath the Fairy Tail mages.
"There's something beneath us." Natsu said seriously. He checked the flooring and noticed that it was weaker in his spot. Without wasting time Natsu retreated back and wrapped his arms around Lucy's waist, surprising the blonde.
"W-w-what?! Natus what are you=?!" Lucy tried to ask but was cut off when Natsu struck the ground with a flame-enhanced punch. Soon the floor began to crack rapidly before it collapsed completely.
"KYAAA!" Lucy cried, closing her eyes as she waited for the eventual impact with the ground. However, after a minute or two, she realized nothing happened. "Huh?" Opening her eyes, Lucy was surprised to find herself in the air. She was being held in Natsu's arms, bridal style, with the Dragon Slayer shooting flames from his feet to keep him afloat. Floating beside him was Happy, both males looking down at the rubble. Lucy's face went red at the position she was in, as well as how close she was to Natsu.
Popping out of said rubble, was a slightly bruised and angry Gray. "What the fuck you pyro bastard! I nearly got killed because of that stupid stunt!" Gray roared at Natsu, who had gently landed on the floor.
Putting Lucy down, not noticing her blushing face. "Calm down, you're still alive…unfortunately." Natsu said calmly.
"YOU WANTED ME TO DIE?!" Gray roared in disbelief. But Natsu ignored him as he made his way down a pathway.
Natsu could feel the power he had sensed before down the passageway. He ignored all other noises, focused on finding the source of this feeling. Behind him, Lucy, Gray and Happy were trying to catch up to him. They called out his name several times, but he blocked them out.
Eventually they finally managed to catch up to Natsu. Or to be more precise, Natsu finally came to a stop. Turns out they had arrived to a large cavern that was slightly colder than the rest of the place. But what caught everyone's attention was the large piece of ice in the center of the room, or more like, what was trapped inside of it.
"What is that…?" Lucy gasped as she stared at the gigantic figure, terrified. Behind her, Happy hide himself.
Natsu's eyes narrowed, his onyx orbs briefly turning red. Images began to pour through his head, recalling having seen the figure once before in the past.
"Why…?" Gray muttered, catching the other's attention. His entire body was shaking, sweat pouring down everywhere, a horrified look on his face. His wide eyes were focused on the demonic being before him. "WHY IS DELIORA HERE?!" He cried.
Chapter 3: Complete!
Next chapter we'll get to see Lyon's group vs. Team Natsu and more of Natsu's new powers. Be sure to leave a review!
Wacko12