Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or Soul Eater
Pairing(s): Natsu Dragneel x Zeref (eventual), mentions of Gajeel x Levy (established)
WARNINGS: AU , eventual Shounan ai (boy/boy pairing); you have been warned so don't like, don't read
A Matter of Souls
By V. Shalyr
4. Who You Are, Who I Am
Hiding
Zeref had been avoiding him, he was sure of it. Natsu had tried the library several times that week, going so far as to camp out there on a less busy Friday, missing all of his classes and earning himself yet another paper to write for detention from Sid. He wasn't that annoyed about it though, especially since the zombie teacher had also given him Zeref's home address, scribbled in the margins of the writing assignment prompt.
Which was why Natsu was now standing in front of the door to a second-floor apartment in a small but neat apartment building close to downtown on a rather beautiful Saturday morning. The hallway was one of those open ones and it was the front side of the building, so he had a clear view of the people passing on the sidewalks and the handful of small shops and eateries that lined the street. All in all, it seemed like a nice place—quiet enough, but still close enough to the major commercial districts to be convenient.
Hopefully, Zeref was home. But if he wasn't, the bakery across the street smelled amazing.
Natsu reached out and jabbed the doorbell. And then he hit it a few more times for good measure.
Zeref didn't usually get visitors on Saturday morning. Actually, he didn't usually get visitors at home at all, so he had no idea what to expect when he opened the door.
Maybe he should have been surprised to find Natsu standing on the other side of the threshold, but... honestly, he wasn't. The other student had already proven himself to be possibly the most stubborn and persistent person Zeref had ever met. It had only been a matter of time before he found him. Still...
"How did you get my address?"
"Sid gave it to me," Natsu said cheerfully. "Have you had breakfast yet?"
"Um, no?"
"Good. Grab your jacket. The weather's nice, but the breeze might be a bit cold."
When Zeref didn't move right away, Natsu wedged the door open with his foot and gave the other boy a slight push.
"Go on, hurry up. That bakery across the street looks like it should serve some great breakfast. Besides, I want to talk to you."
Natsu said this last bit with a lot more seriousness, and whether it was the tone or the words, it seemed to snap Zeref out of whatever daze he was in. He didn't look entirely happy as he went to get his jacket though, but that was okay. Natsu hadn't expected him to be. If Zeref had been keen on having this conversation, he wouldn't have been hiding out at home all week.
Five minutes later, the two of them were seated at one of the square tables beside the bakery's front windows. Zeref picked at the glazed donut on his plate—recommended to him by the cashier. It was good, but he didn't have much of an appetite. Natsu had no such problems. In addition to the donut, he'd ordered a sandwich, a salad, and even something that looked a little like a custard tart.
"Are you... sure you can eat all that?"
"Of course I can. And you know, you're supposed to eat a good breakfast to give you energy for the rest of the day."
"If you say so."
For awhile, they ate in silence. Or rather, Natsu ate and Zeref immersed himself in a large mug of fresh coffee while he observed the other customers.
Finally, Natsu polished off his sandwich and paused to fix his companion with an intense stare.
"So why have you been avoiding me?"
Well, that was blunt.
"I... haven't exactly been avoiding you."
"Yeah? What do you call it then?"
"..."
"I thought so." Natsu frowned at him, although it was more a thoughtful expression than an annoyed one. "I just wanted to let you know that I've decided that we're going to team up."
Zeref opened his mouth to protest, but Natsu cut him off.
"Listen, it doesn't have to be anything permanent. But you have to admit that it would be a relief if you could actually manage that power of yours without resorting to other tools, right? I mean, what if someone breaks that necklace of yours or something? Anyway, I think we can figure it out."
"But aren't you looking for a partner you can actually go on missions with?" Zeref asked, finding his voice. "That doesn't sound like a good use of your time."
"You can't waste time if you're helping someone," Natsu countered. "And anyway, I did say teaming up didn't have to be permanent, but that doesn't mean I'm not hoping it will be. I have the feeling we'd be unstoppable."
"What good is it to be unstoppable if I lose consciousness and you go crazy?"
"Which is why we start by working on that," Natsu said patiently. "We'll just take things one step at a time."
"What if it's not possible?"
"We won't know until we try right? I'm not like anyone you've ever worked with before. No matter what happens, I won't quit halfway."
Zeref stared across the table at him. "But aren't you afraid?"
"Of what?"
Zeref opened his mouth then shut it again. He struggled to remember what some of the other Meisters had said.
"Of not being yourself anymore."
"What? No way. I've never heard anything that ridiculous. I know myself far too well for that." The grin faded briefly from Natsu's face, and he said seriously, "The good and the bad."
The solemnity left as quickly as it had arrived, and he added with a wry smile, "Anyway, the only thing I'm afraid of is not being able to protect the people I care about, and I've already sworn to myself that I won't let that happen."
"But if you keep trying to work with me, you might be the one who ends up hurting them."
Natsu laughed. "You need to have a bit more faith in your fellow academy students. They can look after themselves."
Apparently deciding that he had said everything he needed to, Natsu returned to finishing his breakfast.
Zeref sat in silence, watching him eat and thinking back over his words.
"I know myself," Natsu had said. "The good and the bad."
Funny, but Stein had said something similar to him back when he'd offered to try working with Zeref himself.
"I know my own strengths and weaknesses," the scientist had said. "I'm pretty sure I'd be able to manage things eventually. If you're willing to try, that is."
Was he willing to try? He hadn't been back then, but what about now?
Zeref looked down into the dark depths of his coffee. He tilted the mug, watching the way the sunlight reflected off its surface, then glanced back across the table.
"But Natsu, I think I might be afraid."
The last few bites of custard tart disappeared before Natsu answered. "That's understandable, all considered. And we don't have to try anything until you think you're ready. I just want to know if you're willing to eventually give it a shot."
Zeref weighed the options in his mind then said cautiously, "And if I say yes?"
A wide grin broke out across Natsu's face. "In that case, Loke had a few suggestions for us..."
.
Moving
Zeref didn't think there had ever been this many people in his small apartment at one time, not even when he'd moved in himself. He'd rented this place partly because it came fully furnished, so it wasn't like there had been anything heavy that he needed to haul up the stairs or move around. There wouldn't have been anything like that now either if it weren't for the second bed. To make room for it in the bedroom, almost all the furniture had to be rearranged. The desk had to be shunted into the living room, which also meant the bookshelves had to be shifted about some, and heaven knew how heavy all those books were.
How had he let himself be talked into this?
Maybe he would regret it less after all these people—some barely acquaintances, some total strangers—finally cleared out and he had his peace and quiet back again. As it was, after only five minutes of utter chaos, he had retreated into the hallway outside, choosing to leave the specifics of furniture arrangement to everybody else. He didn't care as long as his presence wasn't required and the end result wasn't too impractical. Instead, he sat down next to the railing where he had an easy view of the street below and tried to ignore the noise drifting through the open door.
Over the cacophony of thuds and clunks, he could hear Natsu arguing with a tall, rough-looking boy that Levy had told Zeref was her boyfriend. She had also said somewhat proudly that he was a bit of a musician and given Zeref an invitation to a club where his student band would be performing. Zeref had accepted the invitation to be polite, but he couldn't imagine himself actually attending.
Zeref looked up when a paper to-go cup appeared in his field of vision.
"It's coffee," Loke told him, "from the cafe on the corner. You look like you could use some."
Zeref accepted the offered cup with a quiet thank you.
"You also look like you think you might be making a mistake," the older student said, sitting down next to him.
Zeref glanced sidelong at him, hesitated, and said, "Natsu told me it was your suggestion."
"Well, sort of. It was Natsu's idea to move in with you. I think it's his solution to how you've made it so hard for him to track you down. My actual suggestion was that the two of you spend more time together and really get to know one another before trying to fight together again. Which is also why I'm out here talking to you right now. Not that they need my help in there anyway." Loke gave a small shrug before continuing, "I was thinking about your... situation, and I talked with some of the teachers and—well, anyway, I guess that's not important."
He paused and cleared his throat, glancing away. He had all of Zeref's attention now though, and the dark-haired boy waited in curious silence for him to finish what he had apparently sought Zeref out to say.
Loke looked uncomfortable, and he took a large gulp of his own coffee before speaking again. "To start off with, I suppose I should clarify that I'm a Meister. You haven't really interacted with other students much in your time here, so you probably don't know this, but I stopped being able to work with my original Weapon partner some months ago and I haven't been able to work properly with anyone else since. My original partner and I had a huge fight about how she was treating a mutual friend of ours. Honestly, looking back, our disagreements had been building for awhile, but anyway... She went off by herself in the middle of a job. Some Weapons can fight completely on their own, you know, but it's rare because most Weapons find it really difficult to transform without a Meister to wield them. She was always really headstrong though. Anyway, she went off on her own and got really badly injured. Badly enough that her family demanded she return home, and she probably won't ever be able to fight again."
He stopped again, but Zeref didn't interrupt. This was obviously not an easy subject for the older boy to talk about.
"The truth is that I felt—still feel—really guilty about what happened to her, but... I also haven't forgiven her for the other things she'd done." A small, self-deprecating smile found its way onto his lips. "I think that's why I haven't been able to find a new partner. You know how the academy saying goes. A sound soul dwells within a sound mind and a sound body."
He took another gulp of his coffee then added, "I thought I should tell you, because I figured you're probably carrying around your fair share of guilt and other things like that. I can't exactly tell you that you shouldn't feel that way. I'm still dealing with these things myself. But I suppose my point is that it does eventually need to be dealt with. Sorry if this is all a bit confusing."
"No," Zeref said slowly, "it makes sense. Thank you for telling me."
"Yeah, well." Loke coughed and got to his feet. "No need to thank me. I don't know if it's actually good advice in the end, and maybe helping you out is one way to help myself out too. Who knows?"
Zeref watched him wander back into the apartment to check on the progress of the move then turned his head to look back down at the street. Whether it was good advice or not, it was certainly something to think about.
Zeref was still sitting in the hallway when all the extra help left more than an hour later. Natsu saw them off with a grin before returning to his new roommate.
When the wild-haired Meister stopped beside him, Zeref looked up and said, "You have good friends."
"Yeah," Natsu agreed before reaching out to ruffle the seated boy's hair—just because he could and because part of him wanted to know if it was as soft as it looked, which it was. "And you know, they can be your friends too if you let them."
.
Armory
When Zeref thought about household decorations, this wasn't the kind of thing he tended to envision.
"Um, Natsu, what is all this?"
Natsu turned from where he was busy appropriating half of his friend's closet space to see what he was asking about. "Oh, those? They're practice blades. Made of wood and weighted to make them more realistic. I have to be at school if I want to practice with real, metal ones."
Zeref regarded the eclectic collection, not entirely sure what to make of the fact that they were all now hanging on the wall on what was now Natsu's side of the bedroom. He could identify several different types of swords, two or three different, bladed pole arms, a knife, a dagger, and even a battle axe of some kind. It would have made more sense to hang them in the living room, but with all the bookshelves out there now, there simply wasn't any room.
"Do you know how to use all of these?" Zeref finally settled on asking.
"Some better than others." Natsu made a face. "The teachers insisted I learn a few different fighting styles since I wasn't working permanently with anyone and had more free time than anyone else. Not sure what's so bad about having more free time than other people, but at least it's stuff I enjoy."
"Ah."
.
Roommate
It was... strange... to suddenly find himself living with a roommate. Even when he'd still been living at home, he'd spent much of his time alone.
Zeref had never been close to his parents. They had found him to be a strange child, altogether too thoughtful and too clever to be really childlike and with an obsession with the supernatural that they couldn't entirely condone. They hadn't been the only ones either, and once people got over being impressed with his intellect, he started making them just a bit uneasy. Normal children weren't supposed to read, let alone enjoy, historical documents and records. Normal children didn't write essays about the theoretical underpinnings of magic and why it worked. Normal children... Well, suffice to say that Zeref had never been a normal child.
The fact that he was a Weapon had not come as much of a surprise to him, not like it was for a lot of his fellow academy students. The day it had happened though, that was something he'd rather forget about. The point was that after that day, his parents hadn't been able to get him out of the house fast enough. They provided him with an allowance for his living expenses and he had his allowance from the school as well, so if he was careful about his spending, he wasn't too pressed for financial support. And as long as he kept doing well and didn't ask them for anything they didn't feel prepared to handle like having him back home with them again, his parents were happy to keep giving him enough to get by. Anything to make them feel less guilty about not asking him to visit or visiting him in turn.
In some regards, Zeref supposed he'd grown accustomed to loneliness.
When Natsu declared his intentions to move in with him—and immediately acted upon those intentions before Zeref could change his mind and refuse him—Zeref had expected his daily life to change drastically. To become more noisy for one thing, and possibly more hectic than he was comfortable with. To a certain extent, that turned out to be true.
Natsu dragged him out to dinner their first night under the same roof. He made it clear that he would, under no circumstances, allow the dark-haired boy to closet himself at home all the time, and he was determined to get his friend to try out some of the other popular student activities and recreational destinations in Death City when they weren't busy with classes and homework. Then the next morning, Zeref was startled out of sleep by a crash in the living room when Natsu accidentally knocked over a kitchen stool while going through his morning exercise routines. Of course, that was an accident and would not be a common occurrence, but it really brought home how different it was to not be the only person in the apartment anymore.
It took them a few days to settle into a routine.
They ate breakfast at home with Zeref doing most of the cooking. Natsu wasn't a terrible chef, but he tended to be an impatient one, which wasn't really conducive to creating good food. He helped with preparing the ingredients though, and cleaning up the dishes afterwards went much faster with two pairs of hands.
They walked to school together and then went their separate ways, Natsu to his classes and Zeref to the library or the labs where he was helping Stein analyze the items they'd brought back from the witch's phantom island. And when the school day was over, they lingered in the library for awhile before heading out to dinner at one restaurant or another. Natsu insisted they visit eateries popular with other DWMA students—"so you have something to talk about with them"—much to Zeref's chagrin. But the walks they went on afterward, meandering through the city as they took the long way home, were calming, and Zeref found himself relaxing into this new way of life with minimal reluctance.
Because when all was said and done, Zeref found that maybe he liked these changes—or would like them once he'd had the time to adjust.
He liked that when he woke in the middle of the night from a bad dream, he could turn his head and see someone else in the other bed on the other side of the bedroom. He liked cooking for two and actually putting some effort into making the food taste worthwhile with someone other than himself to give an opinion on it. He liked being able to talk to someone other than himself whenever he wanted, and he liked, too, the companionable silence when they were both working on something either for class or work.
Living with Natsu wasn't nearly as chaotic as he had half expected. Sure, Natsu was energetic and forthright with his opinions, but he could be patient and observant too. And now that Zeref literally wasn't going anywhere, he seemed content not to pry into his business until Zeref was ready to share.
Was this what it was like not to feel detached from everyone? He'd never had this kind of closeness with anyone, and Zeref hadn't realized before how much he'd been craving it. Maybe being a normal person with an average family would have felt something like this too. He'd just never had the chance to find out.
.
Late Night Conversations
"You mean you don't talk to your family anymore?" Natsu asked, brow furrowed.
Zeref shrugged, turning a page in his book where he was sitting on his bed. "Not really. We don't have anything to say to each other, and they don't really care to know what I'm doing."
Natsu's eyes narrowed in disapproval. "That's not right. They're your parents."
Zeref stilled. Suddenly, he was very grateful for Natsu's habit of playing music on low in the background when they were at home.
"They... were less than thrilled when I turned out to have Weapon abilities," he said carefully. "I don't blame them though, and you really shouldn't let it upset you."
"Why aren't you angry with them? It's not like you can help what you were born as. Hell, Weapon abilities are genetic, right? Which means you have to have gotten it from one of them."
Zeref glanced across the room to where the other boy was sprawled, reading a textbook for class. Or rather, he had been reading it before this conversation had started. For a moment, Zeref debated with himself. He'd never told anyone about the incident, but this was Natsu. It seemed only fair, and he was certain at this point that Natsu wouldn't think the worse of him for it.
Sensing his internal struggle, Natsu set down his book and looked over to meet his gaze.
Finally, Zeref said, "We found out that I had inherited Weapon abilities when we were out after dark this one time. My parents liked going to shows—operas, plays, concerts, and that sort of thing. They took me with them that time, and we got caught up in a fight on our way back to the car afterwards. It was late, and there was a bar close to the theatre, and I suppose several people got drunk and started a brawl. Anyway, we got caught up in it, and I got attacked. I think I was in shock, so I don't remember the fight that clearly, but... there was a lot of blood. I injured that man quite badly and scared a lot of people, my parents included."
"You were protecting yourself," Natsu pointed out.
Zeref shrugged. "My family and classmates already thought I was peculiar. Almost killing someone doesn't really improve one's reputation for strangeness. Because of my particular interests, some people even accused me of dabbling in black magic. If I had been a girl, I suppose they would have accused me of being a witch."
Natsu's scowl deepened, and he folded his arms across his chest. After a moment, however, he just sighed and said, "I guess people can be like that sometimes. At least here, you don't have to worry as much about that sort of thing."
Zeref blinked slowly and then nodded. "That's true."
The citizens of Death City were accustomed to the unknown and bizarre.
"I'm doing what I want to do, and the staff at the school are good to me. I really have no reason to complain."
Natsu thought this over. He didn't like it. There was something wrong about parents treating their child this way. But if Zeref wasn't upset by it, then there wasn't much point in pursuing the issue.
After a moment, Zeref ventured cautiously to ask, "What about you? Do you often talk to your parents?"
"Well, not that often really, but Dad calls now and then. He travels so much that it can be hard to find the right time, but he said he might be able to visit later this year. Maybe you'll be able to meet him. I don't really remember my mother."
Natsu paused then added more quietly, "I told you before that the main reason I came to this school was 'cause I like to fight, right? Well, I moved around a lot when I was younger, because of Dad's work. And I got into fights all the time everywhere we went."
"Because you were a stranger?"
"That was probably part of it. Honestly, I never really thought about why it happened." Natsu grinned a little crookedly. "I know it wasn't always for a good reason though. Sometimes, I just wanted to blow off steam, and there's something awesome about winning a good fight. I'm guessing it's a lot like when you're able to make something cool."
"I see." Zeref shut his own book and set it aside before looking across the room and asking, "Have you thought about what you want to do after this? After you graduate."
"Not really. I mean, I've still got at least two years, so I figure I've got time to sort that out. You?"
"Continue working at the school, I suppose," Zeref said after a moment. "I want to make things that will be useful to people and to the DWMA in the current unrest. I'll probably have to travel too, so I can search for and study old artifacts that might be of use. See if I can uncover more Magic Tools."
Natsu smirked. "Well, if studying Magic Tools requires you to visit different countries, I can help you out and show you around. Like I said, I've been to tons of places."
"Places where you had fights?" Zeref asked, amused.
"Hey!" Natsu exclaimed in mock offense. "I'm good at getting into fights, but I'm good at getting along with people too."
The other boy smiled, a small, fond tilt to his lips that brought an answering grin to his companion's face.
"I don't doubt it."
When they finally turned off the lights that night, Zeref found himself staring up through the darkness at the ceiling and thinking that if Natsu really meant it, traveling the world together... That would be nice.
.
Classmates
"Come to class with me today."
Zeref blinked and looked away from the coffeemaker. "Why?"
Natsu shrugged. "Just 'cause. I mean, you officially attended classes for only what, one day?"
"Two."
"Right. Two days isn't nearly enough time to have a proper feel for what being a regular student is like."
"But I'm not a regular student."
"But you'll be working with regular students," Natsu pointed out—quite reasonably, he thought. "And I'm a regular student. Well, mostly regular. It wouldn't hurt to experience it yourself, right?"
"You never know," Zeref said warily. "It might."
Natsu rolled his eyes. "All you have to do is sit there. You don't even have to talk to anyone if you don't want to. Nothing's going to go wrong."
So it was that Zeref found himself reluctantly trailing after Natsu into one of the academy's many small lecture halls with tiers of seats rising in a semicircle around an open space before the whiteboard at the front of the room. Wendy waved at them from halfway up the rows of seats, and the two boys joined her—Zeref less than thrilled at having other students seated in front of him, behind him, and to his left. At least no one tried to talk to him. He wouldn't have known what to say if they asked him any of the typical, new student questions.
Ten minutes into the class, however, and Zeref's anxieties were overridden by something else.
"Natsu," he said under his breath, both amused and exasperated, "you're the one who wanted me to accompany you today. Aren't you going to at least pay attention?"
"Ugh, but this is so boring."
"Important and interesting are not always the same thing, you know."
"Yeah, yeah." Natsu grumbled, but eventually picked up his pen and began to jot down halfhearted notes.
Zeref glanced over at his paper and occasionally pointed something out for him to write down. He knew what information was really important, after all. Halfway through the teacher's lecture, someone tapped Zeref's shoulder with their pen. The dark-haired boy started and turned his head.
"Hey, speak a little louder, will you?" the student behind him asked.
Only then did
Zeref notice that several of Natsu's classmates had been surreptitiously trying to listen in on his suggestions. For a moment, he wondered if he should excuse himself and leave the room after all. Was it okay for him to be giving suggestions like this? But then, it wasn't like this was a test, so maybe it wouldn't hurt. And the teacher hadn't made any move to intervene.
So, after this brief deliberation, Zeref spoke just a bit louder, and for the first time that semester, almost all the students took diligent notes on history. Zeref wondered if he should be flattered that they thought him worth listening to or concerned about the quality of current DWMA students who couldn't pick out the important points of a lecture without help. Or perhaps, after he'd walked them through it, they would be able to start doing so on their own in the future. After all, if you just paid attention and thought about what the teacher was saying, it wasn't that hard to simmer it down into key points—at least Zeref didn't think so.
As the first class drew to a close, his tension slowly crept back. No sooner had the teacher left the room then Natsu's classmates were crowding around them, peppering them with questions. Natsu fended them off smoothly with the simple explanation that Zeref was also an academy student, but one doing independent study, and dragged Zeref out of there towards his next class before anyone could pry further.
The rest of the day passed in much the same way, although Natsu liked his later classes more and took notes in those without prompting. Then there was lunch, of course, which they ate with Natsu's friends in the school dining hall. Zeref listened to their banter while he made his way slowly through a bowl of noodles, and he found to his own surprise that he didn't feel nearly as awkward as he would have anticipated. Maybe it was because walking into a class full of strangers had been far worse, or maybe he was just settling into the idea of mingling with his fellow academy students since he'd been doing so for an entire morning and nothing terrible had happened.
And really, he had to admit that this had been a good idea. Not only was this a chance to learn about other students, it was a chance to learn more about Natsu. And as well as they had thought they'd begun to know each other before, perhaps Loke had a point and they'd really only just begun to scratch the surface.
.
Workroom
"Natsu, I'm going to visit one of the staff workrooms today to look at that scimitar the others brought back. Do you... want to come with me?"
Natsu was so shocked by the unexpected invitation that it took a moment for him to respond. When he'd recollected himself, he looked across the kitchen table, caught the other's gaze, and grinned.
"I can get out of the resonance practice this afternoon. I could meet you outside the library at, say, twelve? We can eat lunch with the others, and then I could join you."
Zeref nodded. "Okay."
Natsu had explored quite a bit of the school in his free time, but the academy building had all sorts of hidden passageways and secluded corners. It was rumored that there were even parts of the academy that shifted about from day to day, although no one could ever produce concrete evidence of this. It was no surprise, then, that he'd never been to the wing of the school that Zeref brought them to.
Like many of the school's other more secret facilities, the room in question turned out to be located underground down one of the many hallways that formed a virtual maze beneath the school. The room itself was huge with more than half of the rectangular space set aside for, Natsu presumed, testing inventions. The remaining area had cupboards and counters running along the walls and an island workspace along with two computers and a collection of boxes full of things that looked like they'd been bought in bulk from an arts and crafts store.
"Please don't touch anything without asking me first," Zeref said as Natsu wandered off to explore.
"Got it," the other boy assured him. "Guess some of this stuff could be kind of dangerous, huh? What are these empty doorframes for?"
The doorframes were tacked upon the far wall side by side. They would have looked like the typical home doorframe, made of plain, unpainted wood, except that neither of them had any doors in them and there were runes carved all along their edges.
"You know how Lord Death can travel through mirrors? I was thinking about that."
Natsu raised his eyebrows. "I'm not seeing the connection."
"I just thought it would be nice if ordinary people could travel more easily from place to place—between two different cities, for instance. Here." Zeref walked over to the doorframes and ran his fingers lightly over a few of the runes on each one. The empty space within the frames began to shimmer, kind of like the surface of a giant soap bubble. Then, with barely a pause, Zeref stepped through the doorframe on the left—and disappeared into the wall only to emerge from the doorframe on the right.
Natsu blinked, startled, then whistled. "Wow, that really is convenient. Hell, I didn't know you could make stuff like this that normal people could use."
"Well, it will eventually be convenient." Zeref tapped the doorframes again to deactivate them and explained somewhat ruefully, "I still haven't managed to get them to work when the frames are more than ten feet apart."
Natsu's laughter accompanied them back to the work island where there was a flat, oblong box. Zeref unlatched it and flipped up the lid. The interior was lined with black velvet, dark enough that the gleam of the overhead lights upon the translucent green scimitar was easily visible.
The younger student immediately sobered and stepped up beside him to inspect the witch's blade. "It almost looks like it's made of glass."
Zeref nodded. "It's stronger than ordinary glass though, and it's always cold to the touch. According to Loke, the witch implied that she could—harvest—a fragment of someone's soul with it."
Natsu frowned. "Is that what those manikins were about? Wooden puppets animated by pieces of those townspeople's souls?"
Zeref shrugged. "Maybe. I'm not sure what happened with that town. Apparently, what we saw really was all just an illusion. The people who lived there died centuries ago."
"But I thought she said whatever she did wouldn't work if we were dead."
"That's why I said I'm not sure about the townspeople. It's possible that their situation was different. For all we know, they made an agreement with her in the past so that they could live on her island. Perhaps they really did all end up there after shipwrecks, and if they were all still young when they washed ashore..."
He trailed off, and they focused once more upon the unearthly looking blade.
"So what are you supposed to do with it?" Natsu asked finally.
"Figure out how it might work," Zeref explained, "and see if there are any recognizable signs left behind from it so we can look for other victims. Those two DWMA students were only effected for a short time, and we don't think the experience had any lasting, negative side effects. Other people might not have been so lucky and might need more specialized help recovering. Maybe try to find a way to shield people from similar tools in the future."
Natsu folded his arms across his chest, eyes narrowed as he thought. "Shouldn't we destroy it?"
"Once we figure out how," Zeref agreed. "I believe Professor Stein tried, but it's quite durable. Not to mention that a lot of things just pass through the blade like it's thin air."
"Right. I guess that would be a problem."
"I'm not too worried though. If we really need to destroy it, I'm sure Lord Death and Spirit could manage something."
Natsu seemed to remember being able to strike the ghostly blade when he'd been working with Zeref in the tower, but he thought better of mentioning it. Instead, he changed the subject to ask about other projects that his friend had worked on, and Zeref set up a computer for him so he could browse through them while Zeref himself got to work. It was just as quiet and comfortable as the library, but they were free to talk more without having to consider the peace of other library patrons. Aside from appreciating this glimpse into the kinds of things the other boy actually did, Natsu was quietly pleased that Zeref had thought to share this place with him. Getting out of regular classes for the afternoon was an added bonus.
.
Outings
"Natsu's really outdoing himself, isn't he?" Lucy observed, her copy of the restaurant's menu resting loosely in her hands as she gazed across the room full of tables and chairs at the two people seated by the windows in the corner.
Levy agreed. "He certainly is. I've seen them all over the city lately."
"There was that new sushi place I wanted to try," Lucy mused, ticking it off on her mental fingers. "That ramen place everybody likes to go to, and an ice cream parlor close to campus, if I'm remembering correctly."
Her friend made a face at that last one. "An ice cream parlor? At this time of year?"
It was late autumn, going on winter, and the outdoors in Death City had become distinctly chilly, especially in the afternoons when the academy students were usually out and about in the streets.
"I know, right?" Lucy shook her head. "Still, I'm glad they're having fun. Which reminds me, they've invited everyone to go bowling this weekend."
"Bowling?" Levy repeated. "I've never been bowling."
The shorter girl smiled. "Me neither, and I'm pretty sure Zeref's in the same boat."
"I guess it's going to be an interesting experience then."
They exchanged bemused glances and returned to trying to decide what to order. Really, it was nice to see Natsu enjoying himself this much. Lucy realized with a twinge of guilt that, after the rest of them had settled into their teams, they really hadn't had as much time for just hanging out and having fun. And even when they did all get together, there was a lot of what they talked about that related to their work. No matter how carefree he acted, it was difficult to believe that Natsu hadn't felt at least a tiny bit left out. No wonder he was enjoying having someone to do things with.
At their own table, Natsu was busy giving recommendations.
"The grilled salmon here is really good," he said, pointing out the item's corresponding picture in the menu. "So is the chicken potpie. You should try the chicken with mushroom sauce too. If we order the two-person special, we'll also get dessert—and a soup or salad."
"I only have one stomach," Zeref reminded him, amused. "It doesn't matter if this place serves the best food in the world. I can only eat so much."
Undeterred, Natsu turned his menu around to show Zeref the section that detailed the two-person deals. "Choose two things you like then. We can split them. Sound good?"
"Sounds good," Zeref agreed. Really, he didn't care a whole lot what they ordered. But if Natsu wanted them to sample as many different dishes as possible, he wasn't going to argue.
It was kind of funny when he thought about it, how much of people's lives revolved around mealtimes. And true to this observation, Zeref had noticed a distinct theme in Natsu's choice of recreational locations. They visited other venues too, of course. There was the play put on by the student drama club that they'd gone to see and the informal concert that Levy's boyfriend had participated in—it was crazy how much you could cram into a mere few weeks of time when you were really determined—but for the most part, the places Natsu took him to all ran a brisk business in food and drink. Zeref seriously doubted that food would ever hold the same value for him as it did for Natsu. Hell, he forgot to eat at all sometimes when he was busy and there was no one around to remind him. But there was something nice about the meals they shared.
"I hope the bowling alley has good pizza."
The musing comment tugged Zeref out of his thoughts, and he tilted his head in question.
"Why pizza specifically?"
"Because that's what I heard they serve." Natsu shrugged. "It's a good choice for a place that wants to host parties. Pizza's practically custom made for crowded events like that."
"If you say so."
Zeref hadn't attended enough parties to have an opinion on the matter. And when the weekend rolled around and he found himself in the vast room full of the clamor of voices, the thud of bowling balls dropping onto the polished floors, and the sharp clatter of falling pins, he wasn't sure he would be attending any more given the choice.
There were several other parties at the bowling alley, including at least two groups of other students. As the others set up the computer to keep track of people's names and scores, Zeref watched a teal-haired boy three lanes over throw a bowling ball with enough force to send it flying almost all the way down the lane. Unfortunately for the stranger, the ball missed the pins entirely, rocketing into the gutter on the left with a crash that made Zeref wince. A brief scuffle ensued in which the stranger attempted to go again even though it was no longer his turn, and then a girl with her pale blond hair drawn back in thin pigtails stepped up to take her shot.
A gruff call from Gajeel made him turn back to his own scattering of companions.
"Hey you, you want to go first?"
Levy elbowed her boyfriend in the ribs and whispered something, probably chiding him for being rude, but Zeref couldn't be sure.
"Um, I'd rather not, if it's all the same."
Gajeel shrugged. "Suit yourself."
A few minutes more, and the large screen overhead shifted to display a grid with the names of everyone in their party listed in the column on the left. The columns on the right were all currently blank, awaiting their scores for each round.
"Why am I going first?" Lucy shrieked when she saw the final line-up.
Levy coughed, looking embarrassed. "Sorry. I wanted us to go early."
"What? Why? This means we don't get to see any examples!"
Zeref settled into one of the colorful, plastic seats arranged in a semicircle before the computer console used to operate the scoreboard. He wondered a little guiltily if he should have volunteered to go first instead, but really, he was glad he'd get to observe how other people went about bowling before he was forced to attempt it himself.
Zeref looked away from the two girls when someone sat down in the chair beside him. He expected to find Natsu back with drinks, but instead, he found Gray, who had the hood of his jacket up and kept casting furtive glances towards the front doors.
"Pretend we're talking," he said urgently.
"About what?" Zeref asked, befuddled by this strange behavior.
"Anything. I just need to look busy and not out of place."
"Why?"
"You know how I originally thought I couldn't come today? Well, I told someone that, which is why she didn't decide to come today either. But I ended up not having to do that makeup assignment after all, so I thought I'd drop in on you all, and I think she might have spotted me out in the street. She's at the doors now, probably checking to see if I showed up after all, and I don't want her to know that I did."
"So," Zeref said, trying to sort through this convoluted explanation, "you're... hiding from someone?"
"Er, yeah, I guess you could put it that way. You haven't met her yet. She's Gajeel's Weapon partner, and she's, uh..."
"Obsessed with him," Natsu filled in, dropping into the chair on Zeref's other side and handing him a to-go cup. "The kind of obsessed where she makes him boxed lunches with food arranged to look like his face."
Zeref blinked. "Really?"
That was... creepy.
"Really," Gray confirmed with a groan. "I've never been so relieved to be a Weapon."
Zeref thought this over. "So that she can't insist on partnering with you?"
"And so we don't get teamed up by the teacher during practice for class," Gray agreed. "Anyway, pretend I'm not here, at least until Wendy and Loke get here."
"...I thought you wanted me to converse with you so you didn't seem out of place."
"Right. That."
Zeref shook his head. "Sometimes, you people confuse me."
Gray sighed, an aggrieved sound that seemed to indicate that he, too, had a difficult time wrapping his mind around all of their actions.
Natsu only laughed.
Honestly, Zeref was starting to like going on these small outings. He was even starting to get used to Natsu's friends, confusing or not, and he wondered if maybe he shouldn't have spent as much energy as he had in the past avoiding his fellow academy students. Then again, there had been so much gossip and speculation after the accident, and there was only so much being stared at he could stand.
No, Zeref decided after a moment's contemplation, listening to Natsu and the others discussing the merits of a coffee shop he and Natsu had tried last week. All of this had only been made possible by the fact that he'd ended up with this particular group of people at this particular time.
.
Agreements
"Okay."
Natsu blinked. "Huh?"
They had just switched off the bedroom lights for the night, although apparently, neither of them had fallen asleep yet.
Natsu had been thinking about a conversation from the day before. It had been after the bowling alley after everyone had already had a turn at the pins and were settling into the way the game worked. Lucy had mentioned seeing them at the diner earlier that week, and then Loke had asked them for their review of a bakery that specialized in festive cookies—something about placing an order for the upcoming holidays.
Somehow, that had led into a discussion of the various places Natsu and Zeref had visited since they'd started spending time together. The list was quite long, if not particularly varied.
"Maybe you should take him to that Halloween amusement park that opened last year," Levy had suggested, tapping her chin in thought. "That's pretty different, and it's not that far from Death City."
"It's starting to sound like they're dating," Lucy had commented with some amusement before going on to describe when she'd been to that same amusement park with some of her old friends from middle school.
It had been an innocuous enough comment, probably meant to be a bit of a joke, but it had gotten Natsu thinking. Mostly, it had gotten him thinking about the fact that he liked living with the other boy and didn't want to move out if the whole team thing didn't become a long-term arrangement. He'd wanted to find a Weapon partner so that he could go out on regular missions like his friends did—fight witches and monsters and that sort of thing. It had never even occurred to him to think about how such partnerships also meant living with someone. And he'd certainly never thought about how he might like or even want that.
"Okay," Zeref repeated, quiet but no longer hesitant, from the other side of the room. "I think I'm ready to start trying."
It took Natsu a moment to decipher this cryptic pronouncement and realize what the other boy had just agreed to. He should probably be ecstatic. This was what he'd been hoping for, wasn't it? Of course it was, and he was a little excited, but... There was something else he had to straighten out first.
"You know," Natsu said, choosing his words with uncharacteristic care, "that even if this team thing doesn't work out, I'm not going to stop being your friend or something, right?"
"I know."
That was one reason Zeref had agreed to give this a try.
"Good." There was a pause, then Natsu added, "Which also means that, even if we don't team up, you won't kick me out of your apartment, right?"
Zeref smiled into the darkness, amused by the trace of relief in the other's voice. "Right."
He wondered how much of what he'd been thinking Natsu had been thinking too. Quite a lot probably, judging from what he'd just said. And it was interesting to realize that, although they were quite different, on some levels, they were quite similar too.
Maybe this really could work.
And if it didn't... Maybe that didn't have to be a bad thing either.
TBC...
AN: Thanks for the Weapon form suggestions. Yeah, I am seriously considering just going with a sword, since it's the only weapon I remember Natsu ever using too. I've been basing my choice of Weapon forms more on the Meister, whereas the particular abilities I've been basing on a combination of the magic both people use.
I actually also considered allowing Zeref to have different forms, but I double checked and that ability is supposed to be unique to Tsubaki's family and I don't want to contradict that. Anyway...
Happy New Year everyone:)
.