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 (since this isa fusion-type crossover), some descriptions of violence, eventual Shounan ai (boy/boy pairing); you have been warned so don't like, don't read

A Matter of Souls

By V. Shalyr

5. Trial and Error

Files

It had been such a long time since Zeref had opened this particular file cabinet that he half expected the drawer to refuse to budge. Instead, it didn't even squeak as it slid open to reveal more than a dozen black file folders.

"Black? Really?"

"A little melodramatic," Zeref agreed, removing the folders and laying them out on the living room table. "But this is Death City. Black is a popular color."

Shutting the now empty drawer, Zeref joined Natsu at the table. The wild-haired boy had already begun leafing through the documents. Zeref watched him do so, but made no move himself to pick up any of the papers.

He didn't really need to look at them. He already knew what was written in them.

"I don't think any of this will actually help though," he said. "Most of it's just observations and records of what the people I worked with could remember, which generally wasn't much."

Natsu paused on a collection of graphs depicting data related to varying soul wavelengths and resonance levels, and Zeref could tell from the wrinkle in his brow that he had no idea what to make of the information. It was probably the first time he'd ever seen such graphs in his life, and really, Natsu wasn't the kind of person who learned well by sitting around and looking at equations on a piece of paper.

Glancing over the folders, Zeref selected three and held them out. "These will probably be more relevant to you. Though as I said before, I doubt any of it will actually be useful."

Natsu opened the top folder, scanned the first page, and paused. Information on the other Meisters that Zeref had worked with. He really wanted to read these in detail, but now didn't seem like the right time. Carefully, he shut the folder and set it aside before looking back at Zeref.

"I think we'd better talk things over with the teachers. We're probably going to need their help, right?"

Zeref sighed. "Right."

.

Rules

Stein adjusted his glasses and inclined his head towards one side as he examined the two boys who had sought him out after class. Honestly, he was quite pleased to see them. He'd been expecting them to seek him out sooner, but late was better than never.

"So first off," he said, his words even and deliberate, "this is going to have to be a group effort."

"What do you mean?" Natsu asked, frowning.

His companion looked equally puzzled.

"I want to try something different from what we tried before," the doctor explained, the corners of his lips quirked upward. "I have a number of reasons, first and foremost, of course, being that nothing we've done in the past has worked. I think we need to be a bit more daring."

When the two students only continued to stare at him, Stein sighed and waved a hand in the vague direction of their departed classmates. They could still hear the chatter in the hallways as their fellow students made plans for lunch or compared notes from class.

"Recruit a few of your friends, Natsu, and bring them with you when the two of you come to the training room, say, tomorrow afternoon—Zeref, you know the one. At least two or three teams, if possible. Of course, there will be some degree of risk involved. Make sure they know that. Though I'll be on hand to patch up any injuries, so I don't anticipate any major problems."

It was Zeref's turn to frown. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

The older man only smiled. "I've given this a lot of thought."

It wasn't a direct answer, but it was obvious that that was all they were going to get out of him.

Natsu glanced from the teacher to Zeref then back again before grabbing the latter's wrist and towing him towards the door. "Well, come on then. We should be able to catch everyone in the cafeteria."

Zeref tried hard not to drag his feet. When he'd made up his mind to work with Natsu, he hadn't counted on this.

Natsu's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "Are you afraid they won't want to help?"

Zeref blinked and looked up. He hadn't realized that he'd stopped walking.

"I don't know," he said finally. "Maybe a little, but I think... I'm more afraid that they'll agree."

He couldn't read the expression on Natsu's face. But when the younger boy spoke, it was with that same combination of sincerity and seriousness that always gave Zeref pause.

"This isn't the same as what happened with your class, you know. They'll all know what they're getting into. It's not going to be a big surprise like it was for your classmates."

That said, Natsu slung an arm around him and propelled him forward—on towards the cafeteria.

When they arrived at what had become their usual table in the cafeteria, they were met with fewer people than they had expected.

"Where are Levy and Gajeel?" Natsu asked, setting his plate down at an empty seat.

"Juvia's feeling under the weather," Lucy explained. "They're looking after her."

"Must be bad."

The blond girl frowned, poking at the noodles in her bowl. "She hasn't been able to tell anyone exactly what happened. As far as we can tell, she was heading home late from campus last night and got into a car accident. No one was badly injured, thankfully, but Juvia had to change to get out of the way. She ended up mixed in with the water in that fountain before the public library. You know how cold it is at night right now, and it was hard for her to, er, extract herself, and she came out of the whole ordeal pretty disoriented. She's lucky she doesn't have pneumonia."

Natsu nodded in understanding, then caught the bewilderment on Zeref's face.

"Juvia can turn into a blade made of water," he explained. "She can completely liquefy herself too if she wants—and sometimes when she doesn't want. When she first got here, she kept accidently losing control and getting mixed up in places like the swimming pool."

Seated across from them, Wendy frowned slightly at Natsu's obvious amusement. "It's not funny, you know. She had a terrible time pulling herself back together, and it would make her sick more often than not."

"I assume it's better now?" Zeref asked.

Wendy nodded. "She had to work hard at it though, and I know it still causes problems sometimes when she's surprised. I'd better take her some medicine after school. I volunteer in the infirmary, and I should be able to find something that will help her in the medical supplies there."

"That's a good idea," Gray agreed. Then he looked at the two newcomers and asked, "So why are you two so late?"

Natsu glanced at Zeref, who opened his mouth as though to speak and then hesitated. It was his turn to pick at his food while the rest of the table waited patiently for him to collect himself.

Then finally, he said, "We were talking to Professor Stein about... about training..."

He gave the rest of their table a brief rundown of their meeting with the professor and was surprised by how little surprise the explanation elicited from his listeners.

"I'd be happy to help, but I don't think Levy and I would be a good choice," Lucy mused, tapping her fingers thoughtfully along the side of her cup. "From what we saw, I imagine that more straightforward combat teams would work best. Or teams with really good defense."

"Gajeel and Juvia should be perfect once Juvia gets better," Gray said. "It's pretty hard for her to get injured, because of the nature of her particular ability. I'd be glad to help too, but Wendy and I aren't that great in confined spaces. You said this training room's what, underground?"

"What do you think about asking Jellal and Erza?"

Wendy's question made everyone pause.

"You know," Lucy said finally, "that's a really good idea."

Zeref looked from Wendy to Lucy and then his partner with confusion. "Have I met them? Their names don't sound familiar."

"No, you haven't, but I think I know where we can find them after school. They're in Loke's class."

The dark-haired boy wasn't really looking forward to having to seek out and ask yet more people to help with something potentially hazardous to their health, but in the end, he decided to keep this opinion to himself.

.

Target Practice

"Natsu, is this... an archery range?"

"That's right. I'm fairly sure we can find Erza and her partner here."

"But the sign says the place is closed."

"That's how you know they're here. Otherwise, this place is open to students around the clock for practice."

"...I don't think I understand."

"You will," Natsu assured him, ushering him through the front doors, which apparently hadn't been locked.

"Is she a bow?"

"Nah, she's a sword—well, mostly. She kind of comes with armor too."

"...I see."

Zeref didn't think he'd ever been quite so confused, but as they stepped out into the range, it turned out that there were, indeed, people there. Or rather one person that they could see, wearing silver armor over his DWMA uniform and talking to the sword in his hand.

"If we don't get this down soon, it'll be another month before we can take another job," he was saying.

"I'm sure we'll have it down soon," a young woman's voice replied, full of confidence. "Let's give it another try."

"All right. Ready?"

"Whenever you are."

That said, the young man lifted the sword, pointing it skyward as silvery light with a tint of pink formed a nimbus around him. A second later, that light brightened and solidified into dozens of identical blades that showered down around the targets at the other end of the shooting range. Several of the targets exploded into splinters, and clouds of dust wafted upward from the earth around them, momentarily obscuring the far end of the range from view. When the dust cleared, the man's shoulders slumped a little.

"Well, I suppose we're improving, but it doesn't look like we're going to be perfecting it today."

The sword sighed as well and agreed, "It is getting a bit late."

Only now did Zeref notice the slight differences in the targets. While some of them were predominantly red with blue centers, others had their colors reversed. Most of the targets that were still standing were primarily blue, but there was still at least two red targets intact. In addition, the remains of a blue target lay strewn amidst the wreckage.

"It's a new attack they've been working on," Natsu explained, grabbing his wrist to tug him forward towards the other students. "She used to only be able to do two to three swords at most. But they managed to improve their soul resonance, and this new technique was the result. Problem is, it's hard to use when you have teammates. Or when there are things around that you don't want to destroy. Guess you could say they got taken off active duty until they work out their aim."

Okay, so the archery range made sense now.

What now didn't make sense was this. "And you think we should practice with them?"

Natsu quirked an eyebrow at him, wry amusement sharp in his green eyes. "Are you worried about them or about us?"

"Both."

"I'm fairly sure we'll be fine," Natsu assured him, apparently not sharing his partner's reservations. "As for Jellal and Erza, they're not one of the best teams in their class for nothing. And if anything goes wrong... well, she manifests armor too, so they should be durable, right?"

"..."

It was difficult to argue with the younger boy's relentless confidence, and Zeref was the one who had agreed to start practicing together. All the same, as Natsu half led and half dragged him over to meet their upperclassmen, he couldn't help wondering if this whole thing had been a very bad idea.

Ten minutes later, the four of them were sitting on the benches before the main building. Erza drummed her fingers on her folded arms while she listened to their explanation, her eyes sharp and intent beneath her strikingly red hair. Striking described quite a lot about her actually, from the vibrant color of her hair to the way she carried herself.

When they had finished, the young woman glanced at her partner and said, "I don't think helping should be a problem. What about you, Jellal?"

"It sounds like we're a good choice," the young man agreed, a faint, thoughtful frown creasing his brow. He ran a distracted hand through his short, navy blue hair and asked, just to be clear, "You said you wanted to start tomorrow?"

Natsu nodded. "That's the plan anyway. So are you two free?"

Erza and Jellal exchanged glances then nodded in unison. A few more minutes were spent working out when and where they would meet up after class tomorrow, and then the two younger students departed, one of them all eager enthusiasm and the other seeming slightly stunned by the pace of events.

Jellal watched the pairs' retreating forms until they had disappeared into the building before shaking his head and turning to his partner. "It's strange seeing him talk to someone. I used to see him in the library sometimes, but he was always by himself. I wonder if he knows that we read a few of his essays in our advanced soul theory class."

"Hmmm." Erza tilted her head, a slight, thoughtful frown on her face. "You know, I actually know someone who was in his class. She only ever spoke about what happened once. I was out practicing late, and when I got back to the dorm I was staying at, I found her in the common room. I think she'd just had a nightmare, and part of her really wanted to talk to someone about it. That was when she told me what she remembered from that accident in her class. I didn't realize she was talking about Zeref, but I still remember what she said."

Jellal tried not to look too intrigued. "Can you tell me about it? Or would that be breaking her confidences?"

His partner shrugged. "Considering we're about to start training with him, I think I'd better. I imagine it'll help if you know what to expect."

.

Trial One

Stein took in the four students waiting for him beside the training room door with a raised eyebrow. "You remember that I said two to three teams, right?"

Erza cleared her throat, drawing the teacher's attention before stating matter-of-factly, "Gajeel and Juvia agreed to help too, but they have to wait until Juvia's feeling better. In the meantime, Jellal and I talked about it, and we believe we can handle it—at least for the time being."

The pale-haired man absently reached up to turn the screw in the side of his head. He considered them for a moment then shrugged and fished the room key from his lab coat pocket.

"If any other team had said that, I would have said they were being foolish. But I suppose you two should do all right. Just stay on your toes."

Jellal nodded. "Understood."

The lock clicked, and the door swung inward.

Zeref only vaguely remembered the last time he had been here, and he found himself staring at a set of long, thin cuts in the stone of one wall. There were quite a few similar signs of damage scattered throughout the large room, actually, made all the more visible by the room's lack of furnishings. Had he been the one to cause those? Should it bother him that he couldn't remember?

"Well, we're ready when you are," Jellal said. At the same time, his partner vanished in a flare of silvery pink light. Jellal caught the sword and turned to face them, dressed once more in the silver armor they had met him in the day before.

Zeref took a deep breath, let it out slowly, then looked at Natsu.

The Meister quirked an eyebrow in return and said, "Any advice before we start?"

Zeref considered the question very seriously for a very long moment and then said, "Think about something calming."

"Something calming, huh?" Natsu looked thoughtful for a moment then frowned. "Hey, it just occurred to me, we have that necklace thing to turn you back if things go wrong, right? But we were out cold for hours last time after that."

"That was last time," Stein said as he shut the training room door behind them. "As I understand it, all Loke did was throw it at you. This time, I'll be the one handling that pendant. There's a trick to it that should make it less of a shock. Of course, there's no guarantees, but it should help. If it doesn't, I'll excuse you from classes tomorrow."

Apparently satisfied with this answer, Natsu tugged his partner over to the other side of the room. Jellal thought the dark-haired boy looked a little ill with apprehension, but after the two exchanged a few words, Natsu turned to face their upperclassmen and Zeref disappeared.

"Brace yourself," Erza's voice warned from the sword in his hands.

But Jellal was only half aware of the words, because the entire room around them had begun to grow dark. Zeref disappeared in a flurry of shadow, and the lights in the ceiling dimmed. The air seemed to grow colder too, although Jellal wasn't sure if that was just his imagination. What truly caught and held his attention was the black fog that unraveled through the room, centered around the other Meister and Weapon. He'd never seen anything like it, and as it swept over him, he braced his feet and tightened his grip on his sword. Was that an inherent part of the other Weapon's transformation, or a consequence of his lack of control?

Don't get distracted, he reminded himself firmly. Don't get—

"Jellal!"

Erza's warning rang in his ears, and his body was already moving, reacting instinctively both to his partner's voice and the flicker of movement in the darkness around him. Metal rang against metal, resounding, and Jellal felt the strike all the way up his arm to his shoulder. He caught a glimpse of Natsu's eyes through the semidarkness and was startled to find that they had turned red. Then he had to put all his attention on parrying the barrage of attacks, relying partly on reflex but mostly on his extensive combat experience.

It wasn't just that Natsu was a skilled fighter. It was the shadows and how difficult they made it for him to trust his eyes—a difficulty his opponent didn't appear to share. Actually, that was pretty interesting now that he thought about it.

Well, Erza had definitely been right about one thing. This was going to be a long and grueling afternoon.

From his place on the sidelines, Stein adjusted his glasses and narrowed his eyes, focusing past the shadowy haze on Zeref and his new partner. It was interesting to note the differences between the two. Although Natsu was an extremely active and energetic person, his soul was calm, bright, and steady. In contrast, Zeref's soul was chaotic and constantly fluctuating, sometimes bright and sometimes dim, despite his generally quiet and calm demeanor. Now the question was what would happen when you put the two of them together. Stein supposed they'd just have to wait and see.

.

Disturbances

They settled into a new routine, meeting up at the training room after classes each afternoon. Gajeel and his partner started joining them a few days later, and they would chat a little while they waited for Professor Stein to arrive. It was during one of these brief conversations that Zeref first heard about the disturbances.

"The moment I left the school, I felt like someone was watching me," Juvia was saying as Zeref approached the group of students waiting outside the training room. "I know I shouldn't have, but I panicked. And you know—the moment I started to run, I swear I saw something chase after me."

Erza frowned. "And that was how you ended up running into the street?"

The blue-haired girl grimaced. "Like I said, I panicked. And I was so focused on trying to see what was following me that I almost didn't react to that car in time. It was my own fault. I should have been more careful. I hear the driver was quite distressed."

"Still, it must have been frightening," Jellal said consolingly. "You were very lucky that your ability is what it is. Things could have been a lot worse."

Coming up beside Natsu, Zeref asked quietly, "What are they talking about?"

"That accident Juvia was involved in," his partner explained. "It's weird though. Juvia's not the only student who's been saying that they were being watched or followed. There have been all sorts of rumors flying around."

Beside Juvia, her Meister Gajeel folded his arms across his chest. "People talk. Most rumors are just rumors. I blame that ghost story club that just started up. I'm pretty sure the first person to report being followed was one of its members. It's obviously a recipe for paranoia."

"A ghost story club?" Natsu made a face at that. "Really? Don't they get enough of that stuff on missions?"

Erza pursed her lips in thought. "I think I've heard of that club. Most of the members are NOT class students, so they wouldn't be going on missions."

"I'm almost certain I wasn't imagining things though," Juvia mumbled, half to them and half to herself. "Of course, it was quite late, and I did have a nightmare the night before…"

Zeref frowned. He had noticed more students wandering about the halls before and after classes lately. Perhaps this club and the rumors had something to do with it. Frankly, he didn't understand the appeal of ghost stories, but it didn't surprise him that they'd be popular—especially on a campus like this one.

Shortly after, Professor Stein arrived, and the group filed into the training room to start the afternoon's practice. Zeref would have forgotten about the rumors altogether if it weren't for what they saw later that evening.

Practice had ended, but Natsu and Zeref had remained in the training room until the fatigue from fighting full tilt nonstop for the entire practice wore off. It was one of the downsides of these bouts of temporary insanity that they didn't retain the presence of mind to regulate the use of their own strength and stamina. For that reason, they'd started packing snacks too, and they sat on the training room floor while Natsu ate and Zeref picked at the food, more tired and contemplative than hungry.

"We can pick up something else you like better on the way home," Natsu offered. "You've got to eat something even if you don't think you're hungry."

"I know." Zeref sighed. "Maybe that noodle shop from last week. I think they had a few different soups on the menu."

Meaning he wouldn't really have to put in the effort to chew anything. He was—that—tired.

Natsu thought for a moment then nodded. "They do, and they're open until midnight at least."

Zeref gave up on the sandwich wraps, which Natsu was more than happy to polish off on his behalf. He waited until all the food had disappeared before speaking again.

"Do you mind if we stop by the library? I want to check if this book I wanted to borrow has been returned yet."

"Sure, if it's still open."

"It should be."

It was on their way to the library that they saw the girl, her pale pink hair a splash of ghostly color in the hallway lighting, which had been dimmed down now that campus was mostly deserted. She wore the uniform of a DWMA student, and she was alone. They spotted her standing before the open door of an empty classroom. She simply stood there gazing into the room, something cradled in her hand. Then, quietly, she shut the door and moved on to the next classroom, easing the door open and repeating the process.

The two boys exchanged frowns, but the library would be closing soon and it didn't look as though the girl needed any help. Besides, there was something about her that made them both reluctant to approach her. As they continued on past the hallway, however, Zeref caught the glint of light off the object in the girl's hands.

It was... a hand mirror?

.

Break

"It's not working," Zeref sighed, slumped forward over the library table, his face partially hidden in his folded arms.

He looked every bit as exhausted as Natsu felt. It was a good thing it was the weekend tomorrow. They could both use the break, even if Natsu would never admit it.

"It's only been two weeks," he pointed out instead. Yes, they'd been practicing late into the evening after school almost every day, but two weeks was two weeks. Practically no time at all, especially for learning to control something that Zeref had been struggling with for years.

"I know." Zeref sighed again then lifted his head to glance over the papers in front of his partner. "Do you need help with those?"

Natsu glanced back down at the assignment he'd been working on. "Well, if you feel up to discussing the founding of this academy, I've got four questions left to go."

Zeref put his head back down and asked, "What's the first question?"

Natsu blinked and raised an eyebrow. "I thought you didn't like to just tell me answers."

"I want to go home," Zeref mumbled. "The first question?"

Natsu shrugged and read it out loud. If Zeref was in the mood to just dictate answers to him, he wasn't going to complain.

With Zeref's help, Natsu finished the rest of his homework in no time. They packed their things in silence, but lingered at the table even after all the books and papers had been stowed away. This spot in the library had long been a sort of sanctuary to Zeref, and now, it had become something special to the two of them. It was, after all, where they had first met.

"I know you said you wanted to go home," Natsu said at last, catching the other boy's eye from across the table, "but how about going somewhere for dinner first? We could order out, but then we'd have to wash the dishes."

The evening found both boys occupying a booth in the pumpkin cuisine restaurant that they had previously dined in. Since that first dinner Natsu had taken him to, the place had become something of a favorite for them, both because it had good food at reasonable prices and because of its comfortable atmosphere. There was also the not insignificant fact that this wasn't the kind of restaurant that attracted the rowdier types of crowds, even now on a Friday night. Zeref felt comfortable here, despite the presence of so many of their fellow academy students.

Zeref tilted his mug, watching the tiny pumpkin marshmallows drift about on its creamy orange surface. Natsu ordered for the both of them and then settled into a contemplative silence. When Zeref glanced up, he found his partner watching the groups of students seated at their neighboring tables with an unusually pensive frown. He spent a minute wondering what the other boy was thinking about before deciding just to ask.

"Natsu?"

The wild-haired Meister took his time answering. "You know, I've never really thought about how different teams end up working together as well as they do. I mean, the teachers only told us to find someone we get along with when forming teams, but there has to be more to it than that, right?"

Zeref looked at the students at the other tables too. "Well, that's probably because there isn't really any one formula for it. Although it is more common for teams consisting of two individuals with complementary personalities to work out. I suppose that means being too similar or too different makes souls less compatible, but again, there are always exceptions."

"Well, I can second that," Natsu said wryly. "So what else tends to make a team not work?"

Zeref sipped at the warm, pumpkin-flavored drink while he considered the question. "Serious arguments or disagreements between partners can interfere with their soul resonance. I assume that fighting style would matter as well, although that's less about their actual compatibility."

"Like Gajeel and Levy," Natsu said.

Zeref nodded. "A person's overall state of mind can have a great impact too."

"State of mind, huh?"

His partner frowned, but the expression was more thoughtful than troubled.

The waitress brought them their food. Natsu thanked her and then focused back on his partner.

"Hey, do you remember when you told me that I should think about something calming? What do you think about?"

"It varies," Zeref admitted, poking at the pumpkin pasta on his plate. "I like the night sky, and the sound of the ocean is helpful. The smell of books too. What about you?"

"Martial arts practice routines and going camping with my dad."

Zeref was slightly taken aback by the first one, but the second one made sense to him. Sometimes, he wished he had that kind of memory too, but honestly, all his memories of his parents were overshadowed by the fact that he could never go back to a time when his parents didn't feel like strangers.

"I've been thinking," Natsu continued, dragging his companion from his brooding thoughts, "maybe we should try to think about the same thing. There has to be something that we both find calming. If there isn't, we can find something."

Zeref blinked. "That's... not a bad idea."

Certainly, it was something he wouldn't have been able to try with any of the Meisters he'd previously worked with.

For a few minutes, they ate in silence, both of them caught up in reviewing their time together for the most suitable memory. In the end, there was only really one choice.

.

Journalist

It was a bright and beautiful Saturday, completely at odds with the pamphlet in Lucy's hands.

"That's a very serious look you have there," Levy noted, setting a cup of tea down in front of her partner before sliding into the chair facing her across their small, kitchen table.

"Thanks," Lucy mumbled, tapping her fingers on the page as she finished skimming it. "It's just this ghost story club thing. I'm supposed to write an article on them for our next newsletter."

"Something wrong with their flyer?"

"Well, I wouldn't say anything's wrong exactly. It's just," Lucy paused and shook her head. "I guess I just find it hard to understand why people like to scare themselves. And the stories they mention, most of them are so dark."

Levy shrugged. "It's a ghost story club. Wouldn't that kind of come with the territory?"

"There are funny ghost stories. I know I've read some."

"I'm sure there are, but I don't think the people who join ghost story clubs are that interested in funny ghost stories."

"I suppose." Lucy sighed. "Well, anyway, they're hosting this big party on Halloween. That's probably something I should ask about in the interview. What else do you think other students would want to know about the club?"

The two girls spent the rest of breakfast brainstorming for Lucy's article. It promised to be a lazy sort of weekend overall. They planned to visit the marketplace just for fun later that afternoon and had invited some of their classmates, but they were still waiting to hear back from everyone.

"I'm surprised that Natsu and Zeref said yes," Levy said, double checking her phone when it buzzed to announce the arrival of another text message. "They've mostly turned us down since they started training."

"I think it'll be good for them to get out for a bit," Lucy observed. "Any idea how it's going? I haven't had the chance to ask them about it."

The blue-haired girl shook her head. "I'm just going to assume that we'll hear about it if they get things to work. Last time I asked Gajeel about it, he just swore and grumbled a lot. Which basically means that helping out is proving to be tougher than he likes to admit."

The blond Meister frowned. "I wish there was more we could do to help. From what I remember though, we were basically able to work well together right away. I think that makes us kind of unqualified to give advice."

Levy hummed in agreement. They really had been lucky that way.

Now that Lucy thought about it, they were the most normal team in their class, and that was including the fact that Lucy hadn't planned on being in the EAT class at all until that fateful school field trip when she and Levy officially decided to partner up. If they hadn't gotten lost in the city and that kidnapper hadn't attacked them, there was no telling what either of them would be doing now.

"Well, like you said, the fresh air should do all of us some good," Levy said, tapping out a message on her phone and then rising to put her cup by the sink. "And it looks like it's a yes from Gajeel too, but Wendy and Gray have a small job they have to do."

Lucy hummed her acknowledgement, finished up her notes, and got up to help clean and put everything away.

When the two girls arrived by the market stall where they had agreed to meet up, they found Natsu and his partner inspecting a poster that had been tacked up on a nearby bulletin board. The image upon it of a burning candle in an otherwise dark window was familiar. Lucy had seen it on the ghost club flyer that morning.

"I don't know," Zeref said as they approached. "I don't think I'd enjoy visiting a haunted house very much."

"Have you ever been to one?"

"Not unless you count the tower and the ghost town from our mission."

"That absolutely does not count."

"Are you saying you think we should go when it opens?"

"Maybe. It says it's going to be a haunted funhouse. It could turn out to be interesting, right?"

"It's part of the party they're holding though..."

At that, Natsu cackled. "So it's not the haunted house that bothers you, it's the party? Seriously, it's just a party, and we don't have to stay for long. You know what? We should definitely go. I bet you've never been to a school party."

Lucy and Levy exchanged amused glances. Well, at least it looked as though their friends were in good humor, for which they were glad. Hopefully, that was a positive sign.

"If you do go to the haunted house," Lucy said as she and her partner joined them before the poster, "can I interview you afterwards about your experience?"

.

Soul Space

The large, empty practice room was starting to become so familiar that it was practically like a second home. Except that homes were supposed to be places you felt comfortable and safe in, and this definitely wasn't either of those things.

"You remember what we talked about, right?" Natsu asked as they moved to their usual side.

At the other end of the room, Jellal was doing warm-ups while he and Erza talked quietly.

"I remember," Zeref said.

They had chosen their "something calming" already, so now, it was just a matter of focusing on it: the one place that held the most meaning for both of them. The place where this had all started and where they still spent quite a bit of their time when they were together.

And this time when Zeref let himself fall into the transformation... This time, something was different.

Rather than a sea of darkness, Zeref found himself sitting at their usual table in the library. There were several books stacked at his elbow and another open in front of him, but the pages appeared all to be blank.

"Well, this is new."

Zeref started at the voice, realizing for the first time that he wasn't alone. He recognized the voice, of course, but it was still disorienting to look across the table and find Natsu in the chair across from him. The younger boy was looking around them at the bookshelves, more curious and intrigued than surprised.

"Is this how it usually is for you?" Natsu asked.

At the question, Zeref took his first real look around them. He had thought at first that they were in their usual spot in the library, but that wasn't entirely true. The table in front of them, the shelves immediately to their sides—those were similar enough. But beyond the first handful of bookcases, everything around them disappeared into darkness. It was as though the two of them had remained in the library after it had closed and all the other lights had been turned off. Staring into the darkness made the hairs prickle on the back of Zeref's neck.

"No," he said slowly. "Usually, I'm just floating in the dark."

He wasn't sure if that was better or worse. With an actual floor beneath his feet, he felt more grounded than he ever had before. But at the same time, having this little piece of light made the darkness seem even more black.

"I wonder if the rest of the library is out there," Natsu mused. Then, looking at the book his partner had apparently been reading, he asked, "Why's it blank do you think?"

"I don't know."

Zeref picked out a different book from the pile beside him and flipped it open. Natsu did the same, rifling through the pages from cover to cover. Both of those books were blank too."

Natsu set the book back down and shook his head. "Weird, huh?"

Zeref shrugged.

"I mean," Natsu continued, "if this is supposed to be a representation of us, I'd expect these books to be full of stuff. With how much you know, this ought to be a proper library."

Zeref looked back down at the book in front of him. He hadn't been thinking about it before, but Natsu was right. And if this place was a representation of them, then maybe…

"Maybe they're blank because there are things I don't want to think about."

Things Zeref didn't want to remember.

Natsu rose from his chair, walking around the table and peering into the shadows that consumed either side of the lane of bookshelves. "You know, I think you could be right. It's got to be some serious things though, considering how much darkness there is out there. I think we should go take a look."

"What?" Zeref jerked his gaze up from the unmarked, ivory paper to look at his partner like he thought Natsu had gone a little crazy. "But for all we know, we could get lost out there. What if we can't find our way back? What if it's dangerous?"

Natsu quirked an eyebrow at him. "But if we just stay here, nothing's going to change. We might as well give it a try, right?"

Zeref looked at the darkness beyond the shelves, not at all sure he agreed with this. But when Natsu held a hand out to him, he found himself reaching out to accept it.

As they made their cautious way out of the pool of light into the shadows of the rest of what might or might not be a library, the pages of the book upon the table behind them began to change. Rather than words, however, the ink that began to seep across the previously unmarked paper filled in the outlines of a picture of what might have been some kind of concert hall or old-fashioned theatre.

.

Turning Points

There were always plenty of turning points in a person's life—major events and moments in time when things changed for better or for worse. Zeref had never really sat down and thought about the turning points in his own life, but the moment the darkness around them gave way to a nighttime city street, he knew that this had been one of them even though the buildings didn't look quite right and most of the people moving around him were little more than faceless shades in colorful, fluttering garments.

The air was cold against his face. Even though he knew this was all in his head, it felt incredibly real, and he realized with a pang of fear that he was alone.

"Natsu?"

There was no reply. Of course Natsu hadn't been there that night either, but this wasn't the same. Years had passed since then.

His head ached. It had been warm in the theatre, and in contrast, the night was even colder than it should have been. What had the play even been about? He couldn't remember.

"Dear? You need to hurry up. It's late. We have to get home."

That was his mother's voice.

The theatre house was behind him, the lights before it shaped like old-fashioned lanterns. He remembered thinking that they were nice. A lot more interesting than the actual performance.

Zeref turned, trying to find the source of the voice, but as he moved, the street around him changed, colors and shapes bleeding together and resolving again amidst shouts and screams and curses.

And there was blood on his hands.

His clothes were sticky with it. The smell of it was stuck in his nose, raw and coppery and horrible. And the drunkard who'd pulled the knife was screaming, the knife was lost somewhere, and he couldn't tell if the fear he felt was his own or an echo from the chaotic mass of people around him. Because there was definitely fear in the air—in the drunk man's bloodshot eyes, in the whispers of the crowd, in the blaring of the sirens growing closer and closer—in his parents faces where they stood steps away, their feet frozen to the sidewalk. There was a splash of red on his mother's dress and a few stray specks just visible on his father's gray slacks.

All of a sudden, it was as though someone had grabbed him by the shoulders and given him a hard shake. Zeref gasped, blinked, and looked up. And abruptly, he and the child in the memory weren't the same person anymore—and, more importantly, Natsu was there beside him.

"Finally," Natsu said, sounding very relieved. "It was like you couldn't see or hear me at all. I was starting to get really worried."

It took Zeref a long moment to reorient himself. He looked from his partner to the muted chaos of the memory around them then back to his partner again.

"I couldn't," he said when he'd found his voice. He felt drained, shaken by the vividness of what had just happened. Before today, he'd forgotten—or tried to forget—a lot of those little details.

Natsu left a hand on his partner's back as he surveyed the scene still playing out around them, although the edges seemed somehow more faded and less real now than the two of them.

"I know you told me about it, but it's really something else when you're there."

Zeref made a noncommittal sound in his throat. His stomach was still churning, even though his hands and clothes were clean now and he couldn't smell the blood anymore. It wasn't even the severity of the injuries he'd caused that really got to him. It was—

"They were pretty scared, huh? Your parents?"

Zeref looked away and nodded. His parents and pretty much everyone else in the neighborhood, but at the end of the day, his parents' reactions were the only reactions that mattered. Honestly, he didn't like to think about it. The feel of Natsu's hand on his back was anchoring, and he tried to focus on that instead. It had been such a long time ago. It shouldn't still bother him this much, right? Except... maybe it still did, because then there had been his classmates and the other Meisters, and really, the fear had never really had a chance to go away.

Not until now.

Natsu nodded, the motion slow and thoughtful, his own gaze fixed on his partner's younger self and his parents as he spoke, "I think I've said this before, but you know that I'm being perfectly honest when I tell you that I'm not scared, right?"

When Zeref didn't reply right away, he continued, "And that goes for most of the others too. Erza and the others wouldn't be training with us if they felt that way."

"Can you really be sure of that?"

"Well, they're still here, aren't they?"

Which was more than Zeref himself could say about most of the people who had passed through his life up until this point. And Natsu was right. It had been more than two weeks, and all of them—Jellal, Erza, Gajeel, Juvia, their other friends, and, of course, Natsu—were all still here.

As far as turning points went, this one was definitely a change for the better.

.

First Steps

"Something's different," Erza muttered.

"I know," Jellal said, taking several steps back.

In the corner of the room behind them, Gajeel straightened and Juvia stopped talking.

It was something different in the quality of the air, or maybe that was just the shift in the atmosphere. At first, Jellal thought it was just his imagination that the darkness was growing somewhat lighter. But upon closer inspection, he was sure that he was right. The shadows around the room and the dark fog didn't disappear, but they thinned considerably—enough so that seeing Natsu and the sword in his hand wasn't the struggle that it had been before.

Then there was the fact that Natsu wasn't attacking them anymore, which was a first so far in the weeks since they'd started this. The other Meister seemed almost disoriented as he stared at them and then dropped his gaze to the Weapon he was still holding.

It had been obvious to Jellal that the Weapon was some kind of blade, and getting his first good look at it now, he thought it was rather fitting that it turned out to be a double-edged sword. There might have been some elaborate patterns on the hilt, but if there were, he couldn't distinguish them because the entire sword from its blade to its cross guard were pitch black. It was a black that reflected no light at all, like someone had forged it from solid shadows rather than metal, and wisps of dark fog lingered around it like smoke.

Stein's voice rang out over the tense silence. "Well?"

The other students jumped when, after a moment, Natsu replied. They were so accustomed to him responding with violence during practice rather than words.

"I think we're finally getting somewhere," he said. He sounded pleased and, more importantly, fairly sane—at least until he added, "Still feel kind of, how did you put it? Bloodthirsty. But hey, it's a start right?"

TBC...

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