A/N: Sup guys! wiErD here and I got another chapter for you guys.
Hope ya like it.
Disclaimer: Hiro Mashima owns the whole franchise. Support the official release.
- Trouble Ahead –
Three days have passed as Natsu slowly woke up from his bed, greeting the warm feeling of the early sunrise at his feet as usual. He sat up straight with half-open eyes before rubbing them with his hands to shake off the drowsy feeling. He looked around to his side and saw the bed of his brother already fixed and empty. It seems like he already went ahead to school without having him to send him off outside.
Usually, he would always see his brother off on his own but it seems like he was in a hurry that he didn't bother to disturb him at such an early time.
Looking around, he noticed he was the only one who still hasn't gotten up and that all the kids have gone out to play. Realization kicks in as he adopted a panicked expression, causing him to move the blanket away and started sorting out.
"Oh, crap. I'm late!"
No wonder why he didn't get to see his brother off.
He slid his feet on a pair of slippers beside his bed and started sprinting out of the building. He was running late for breakfast. If he doesn't reach in time, there will be no left for him to take some for himself. No way in hell he would not get his chicken in the morning!
Quickly arriving at the dining section, he could already see a lot of children gathered in groups as they sat at different tables in peace. The atmosphere was filled in laughter and the warm greeting of the rising sun gave a refreshing feeling at the start of the day.
His eyes soon sighted the group who were waving at him as soon as he got his tray from the kitchen counter.
"Oi, Natsu! Over here!" Sting called out as the pinkette arrived just in time to start his breakfast. The others seemed to have woken up quite early than him, judging from their brightened expressions...
―Well, most of them.
Gajeel had his usual cold look as he sets down to focus on his own matters which pisses Natsu to no end. Even though he'd grown used to his cold nature, he still doesn't get that much understanding towards him, except that they're both sworn rivals. Ryos and Wendy were there as well, eating their breakfast in peace as the group started discussing today's activity.
"Well, aren't you a bit late than usual," Ryos noted as seeing Natsu quite of a morning person in his eyes.
"Yeah... well, I did some things last night so I pretty slept late because of that." He reasoned.
"Well, what a bummer..."
"What sort of things?" Ryos asked curiously.
"Nothing important really."
"Heh, don't tell me you're planning something that could win against me. Well, it won't work either way just so you know." The spiky-haired boy already responded in which Natsu brushed off aside with a nonchalant look.
Where the hell did that even come from?
"I'm not doing anything like that. More importantly, I won't be around later on for a while so I won't be tagging with you guys."
A couple of eyes now turned towards him as the group thought out in confusion about his reply just now. It's also interesting to note that Gajeel lost his composure and merely looked at the pinkette in shock.
"Huh? Why's that?" Sting asked with his head tilting in confusion.
"I'm just gonna go visit Alice just outside of town. It's not like I should stay here all day. I'll inform it to Elena once I'm done eating."
"Going out again, huh? You really like keeping tabs with other people." Ryos muttered.
"Well, it's been a while since my brother and I last visited her so I thought about going there."
"Yeah, but isn't it forbidden for us children to be wandering in that kind of place? I thought Elena had warned us all about going far out of town." Sting perked up.
It's true that the children in the orphanage are prohibited from walking out of town, especially to the Lower City where Alice currently lives at as well as most of the slums are. Ever since Zeref and Natsu moved away, they barely got enough contact with her due to circumstances surrounding people from the Lower City and the Upper City. Zeref had explained to him about these reasons that it even made it hard for him to sneak outside and visit her. There was one time where he even tried to use the last resort and ended up being caught and got grounded as a result.
However, Natsu was eventually given a chance to visit although it would be under a set of conditions. He should be able to go back before sunset and the visit should be only done at least twice a month.
"U-Umm, when are you coming back?" Wendy's timid voice finally spoke for the first time ever since the conversation started.
Natsu soon turned his gaze to the blue-haired girl who for some reason, looking at her feet while twiddling her fingers like some lost child. He wondered when she was about to speak. She's been pretty silent throughout their conversation for quite a while. However, she was not the kind of person to speak for herself when decisions took up the whole group. Usually, it would've been either him or Gajeel taking those roles. She would be like―playing the supporting role for the group although none of them seemed to be aware of it and eventually gotten to the point of passively giving her that kind of position.
"Well, I'm not taking that long for the visit. I guess I'll be back by afternoon."
"I-I see..." Her voice trailed off at his response, seemingly downcast. At the moment, he had already shifted the topic as he looked again to the rest of the group.
"So what are you guys gonna do later?"
"Elena had some letters needed to be delivered to someone so I guess we'll start from there. Since she's already busy with the paperwork, she wanted someone to deliver it for her." Sting explained in which Natsu nodded in response.
"Is that so? Well, I hope it goes well. What about you tin head?"
"You wanna go, pinky!?"
"I'm up for it but I'm not dumb enough to cause a ruckus in the dining area. Elena would get our necks for sure." Natsu sighed, shrugging off the challenge much to Sting and Ryos' relief.
Gajeel also settled down as well as he regained his composure. For once, he had to agree with him. The old woman had one hell of a backswing. He cut off his thought as he looked at the pinkette with his arms crossed. "That reminds me... Today's the day about that event, right?"
"What are you talking about?" Natsu perked up; his food still stuffed onto his mouth as he heard an interesting topic in their conversation.
"Idiot, did you forget? Today is Mildian Academy's anniversary. The school where your big brother is studying."
"What about it?" Looking at the rest of their deadpanned faces towards him, it seems like the pinkette was the only one who didn't know about it.
Ignoring the sneer from Gajeel, Sting and Ryos looked at him with excitement. "It's a big event around these parts. Members of the royal court will visit the fair and choose the best student who had talent."
"If by talent, that means his worth in serving the kingdom. I even heard the members of the Order are going to visit as well." Ryos added, covering the former's explanation about the said event.
"Waaaaaaaa... That's quite a spectacle. Those people from the Upper City are all coming just for that." Even Gajeel seemed overwhelmed at the information given to them.
Members of the royal court along with the Order are part of the highest point of society in Astarlein. Their presence symbolizes royalty and authority over all else ― which means that they also hold power over normal folks like them. They're the ones who run the kingdom with their own hands. The rest of the people worked for them in exchange for protection and shelter from the dragons. They pretty much hold almost all of the kingdom itself.
"Is that so? Sounds boring though..." In contrast to their elation, Natsu merely gave it a look of disappointment. Needless to say, it shocked the three boys from their seats as they retaliated with a look of scorn.
"What are you talking about?! It's one of the most looked-forward-to events in the kingdom. Of course, it's going to be big. You'd be lucky if your brother got selected. That'll set him for life."
"That's right! Even with that, he might be able to become one of those noble persons with high―Hey where are you going?!" The overly anticipated conversation was quickly cut short as the four noticed the pinkette who was supposed to be beside at scrambled out from his seat along with the empty tray, looking uninterested at the topic they were in.
"I'm going on ahead. I'll see you guys later! Bye!"
Within a few seconds, the group watched as he went out of the building, leaving them behind completely baffled.
"What just happened?"
At Mildian Academy
The day has finally come as Zeref stuck himself in his own chair, thinking about the topic he wanted to demonstrate for the upcoming event. Apparently, the whole academy was given a day off from classes and decided to build up their own works or discoveries, hoping to gain attention for the ones who will be coming to their school grounds for examination. It's like a Magic Fair but bigger as nobles and other respected people from the Upper City will be conducting evaluations for the best and the most intelligent students.
To put it simply, it's a game of impressing them as he might say.
A pair of notes laid half open in front of his table; both of which are filled with scribblings that he wrote last night in preparation for this said event. Even as someone viewed as a commoner, Zeref is still required to participate or else he would get a failing remark at the end of the day for not coming up of something.
The students in his classroom mostly go by pairs or groups which is quite an interesting idea since no one can manage a work of his own.
'No brain is clever than two heads.'
At least, that's what the school's belief system tells them in pursuing knowledge.
Zeref thought differently on that belief and his exceptional intellect is proof of that. Some of his written works are already catching a lot of attention along with a fair share of animosity from other students held against him.
With his reputation as a genius, no one would dare come up next to him to join. The reasons, however, are not centered on his ability but rather his reputation as a commoner.
Who would even dare approach someone with common lineage? The school is built around to train noble families in the arts of magic as well as its nature. That very thought of having a commoner attend the school is just disgraceful. His intellect was an added insult to their achievements so far. A mere student even capable of solving even questions outside his grade level is utterly ridiculous.
That's why he was the only one in the classroom who had to participate on his own.
However, despite that, Zeref thinks little of the thoughts of his other classmates. In fact, he could just make a simple continuation study on one of his professor's lessons the other day and give some more detailed explanation but that wouldn't be interesting in Elena's eyes.
Even though she's not part of the school, she was still his acting guardian. A favorable result would be very well appreciated for her to see him progress further as a capable student versed in the knowledge of magic.
His eyes stared right back at the notes, recollecting the things he had planned for his own work.
'The concept of a purely amplified ethernano with the use of five elements.' He thought as he read through the title of the work he's currently conducting.
Not exactly a subject occupying his current grade but it's something to be worth noting with coming from a student with a common status and limited access to privilege. Maybe this would be enough to satisfy Elena's expectations from him. Zeref closed his eyes at the thought, deciding finally of what to do on his work in the next few minutes.
A few moments passed, he opened his eyes once again, holding the notes he had written from last night. "Alright, this will do."
Standing from his seat, he made a swift departure from his room with little attention from his classmates and went straight to the faculty hall where some of the best students often choose for discussing advanced topics or magic theories. His work is something new and discovered by his own efforts alone. Giving this a recognition would probably get more attention from those nobles and possibly invite him to be part of the elites in the near future.
Zeref could only smile in thought as he recalled the time he spent with his little brother the other night. The wish he wanted to fulfill for his sake returned. And a sense of warmth was brought inside him, accompanied by a growing confidence as he started his own work at a vacant board where he began illustrating his 'new' theory.
...
Natsu could remember how many times he had visited the same lodge; the very same place that gave him home for the first time after the horrible events that happened four years back. The people they've encountered were quite the noisy bunch but they aren't as uncaring as that of the knights that came by to gloat at the people or just make a mess out for no reason.
Ever since the incident with Zeref, the division that was stationed here were given a strict punishment and who knows what penalties they had suffered thanks to Reina's report on the matter.
The pinkette could hardly care about what happened and the knights were rarely seen around anymore due to the punishment. At most times, they would only come to regulate the order around town.
Stepping on his way from the wooden stairs, he met the door right in front of him where he could hear the sound of beers breaking and the shouts of people drinking to their heart's content after hours of working from labor and other things. The boy had grown familiar with the atmosphere and it was commonplace for the people living in the Lower City to have this kind of environment. In contrast to the nobles living above, life here sure gets interesting no matter how hard it is for them.
He opened the door and was greeted by the loud sound of rumbles as the whole place was surrounded with brawls and other fights. It looks like the whole place was suddenly turned into a fighting ground. The reason, however, is easily noticed due to most of the people drunk inside and had a short fuse with each other when provoked or even made fun of for some reason.
As such, it's a place not suitable for younglings like him.
He made a nifty approach to the bar counter where he could see Alice, tending to her chores as usual as if the whole situation was a normal occurrence to her.
It's a wonder how she was able to keep her sanity for all the flying projectiles thrown at her way accidentally. Looking at her beaming face, she also seemed used to the damage dealt on the lodge but something makes the pinkette worried about the constant smiling she always had whenever a fight breaks out. Repairs aren't exactly cheap as he remembered.
Nevertheless, he felt pity for the girl.
"Hello, Alice-nee!"
Finally making his appearance, Natsu called out from one of the stool bars as the white-haired girl spun around at the call and beamed in joy.
"Natsu! It's been a while! How're you been?" Alice put down her glass in which she was currently holding and hurried to the counter to greet the pink-haired boy.
"Been good. I wanted to visit here every once in a while. Oh, and here." He paused, giving a small basket full of bread and other food. Alice prompted to look at the basket, removing its covers and smiled warmly.
"Thank you. I'd be glad to have these later in my spare time." The barmaid happily accepted the gift, placing it on a small shelf where she could come by and eat it for later after her shift. The day has reached the height of noon and the workers came by to relax which puts her job more needed in attending the new guests.
Even how small the place was, it still regarded as a common hub for all the people to drink away their problems and worries.
Natsu had been a residence of this place for a time before they were taken to the orphanage. He remembered the time when he and Zeref had no place to go and it was Alice who gave them an offer to stay at the lodge for the time being. Even until now, he continued to give her some food and other things as an act of gratitude for taking care of them in the past.
And while they live separately, they still keep in touch with each other. After all, they're like a family in more ways than one.
"So how's your day?" He asked.
"Well, nothing short of any interesting. Though a lot of people come by and a lot of stories I can get to them."
"Can you tell me? I would like to know too." Natsu wouldn't be surprised to hear that from her.
Over the past few years, Alice had been like the center of gossip around town. Rumors and stories don't go unheard without the white-haired girl's attention. It's like she knows what's been going on around town through these methods alone. The boy couldn't say if it's a convenient thing or not but it did serve him a lot of fun times to hear it from her.
Regardless, the boy had a curious look whenever she decided to share some of those rumors with him. It's like a partner-in-crime kind of thing and with his mischievous acts around people and her ability to deceive others with her bubbly attitude, it's like a match made in heaven.
"While I'd like to share with you some, there's also something I would like to ask first."
"What is it?"
"I have heard of the school that your brother was attending."
"Aaaannnnddd what does big brother's school had to do with it?
"You didn't tell me it was a prestigious one. Mildian Academy that is!"
"Even you huh? What's so great about it, anyway?" Natsu huffed, his arms crossed on his chest.
"Come on, Natsu. You really haven't heard about that school. It's one of the most recognized schools in this kingdom where people could become elites. Of course, not all are able to enroll there since it's a place where the best are selected. I also heard that they're holding an annual event for its anniversary." Alice stated. The last statement soon caught the pinkette's attention, having to hear it awhile back from Gajeel and the others.
"Yeah, I heard that they have that kind of thing today and that Zeref-nii will be participating as well. He's been very busy with this whole thing."
"Why wouldn't he be? It's a chance for him, you know. If the school recognizes your brother's talent, then he would be picked up right off the bat. I hear that those who were chosen will be provided with financial backs and will be given the same status as those from the Upper City. It's a good opportunity."
"Yeah. Good for them." Natsu replied; an uncaring expression took over his face as he lost interest in the topic and decided to look away.
Alice noticed his sudden change of expression, prompting her to ask. "Is something wrong with I just said?"
"No, it's perfectly fine."
"Are you upset about the whole thing?" She asked.
"Not really."
"Well, I'm just saying that if Zeref were to be chosen, it could mean a good thing for both of you. Don't you want that? You probably wouldn't be able to live hard. You probably would live like those people from the Upper City."
"Then that does mean that I wouldn't able to stay at the orphanage? I wouldn't be able to visit here again?" A sudden question halted her from giving another answer. A moment of realization went over to her as she knew what was making the boy upset about the whole thing.
The reason for his complaint was because of the possibility of being taken in by another family. Originally, Natsu and Zeref were in custody of the orphanage and if someone from the noble family were to be interested in the latter, they would be given a chance for an adoption. Naturally, Natsu would be included on that matter.
Alice understood what he was trying to say and it seemed obvious to him to say nothing about the matter to his brother because he wouldn't want to hinder him. That's probably the reason why he doesn't want to show it.
She felt a part of her being saddened at a possible future without them though she was interrupted when she heard him speak. "I'm happy for Zeref-nii but I'm just as happy living with others in the orphanage. Heck, I'm just as happy to be able to visit here and talk to you like this. That's why I couldn't tell him and kept quiet."
"But you'll never know when things got better up there. I'm sure that it wouldn't change that much. It's just that Zeref wanted you to live better, you know."
Natsu felt torn at his dilemma, unable to say anything further at the situation. Alice wanted to help but she feared that even with her assurance, it wouldn't change the mood. The gap between the Lower City and Upper City is just as bad as the viewpoint between the poor and the rich. If the two were to be part of the Upper City, the chances of them meeting with her will be minimal. People would look at anyone living in the Lower City as something disgusting or uncivilized. That's the harsh reality of the world they're currently living.
Seeing the long silence put between them, Alice didn't notice how long she had to pause in her words as Natsu hopped off his seat and simply went outside of the lodge. "I'll go outside for a bit."
Long before she could reach out to him, he was already out of sight. The teen frowned in thought after seeing how their conversation ended like that. She noticed her shift turning up but decided to put it on hold as she slowly made her way to change and catch up to the pinkette.
...
Day at the Mildian Academy went on as students set their stations with the ideas that brought about their inventions and theories. The school was decorated beautifully with banners and other embellishments to appease the visiting nobles. It was time to show off their talents.
Zeref took the appropriate place to set up his own near research building just outside with only a set of board and chalk. Since he didn't have the luxury to get any materials to beautify his presentation, he had to improvise.
With his book at hand and the content written at his board, his work has already gotten a couple of attention including the teachers themselves.
"...The idea of five elements breaking down into ether is possible through the use of an extractor given in this concept. We can say that all elements derived once into one single source which is the One True Magic. However, we can never know for sure what this True magic is or its nature but it exists as does all elements that made up of light, dark, etc..."
His work comprised merely a set of theories both unheard of which is why even students began circling around him, completely dumbfounded at his work compared to theirs. The eyes of curious nobles were enough to show the vastness of their differences in knowledge. It was even more gut-wrenching as they were noble-born unlike him who was only a commoner.
"...Thus, a new concentrated form of ethernano is formed once the fusion of these five elements is fulfilled. This type of ethernano contains more magical output that even a single gram of this amplified energy is enough to power an entire kingdom for a month."
A couple of "oooh's" swept the crowd as Zeref revealed his work. A hefty round of applause came to his way as he finished his conclusion a few moments later. At the end of his presentation, the whole place was littered with people, completely interested in his work. A few eyes from the nobles are already set on him.
Amongst the audience was a face all too familiar to him. The black-haired teen sighed as he watched Reina clapping as if like a parent showing support on her kid's presentation, causing his slight embarrassment. He simply went on and finished his bow and went down from his presentation to let the others look into his work. Even then, he was not spared by a flood of multiple adults vying for his attention although it was greatly dispersed when she appeared before him with a proud smile on her face.
"I'd appreciate it if you would not grin like a fool earlier," Zeref muttered.
"How could I?! It was a marvelous performance! That theory is revolutionary. I didn't think you would come up with something like that." Reina cooed, ignoring the light sarcasm in his tone and simply went on to hug the boy, further increasing his embarrassment.
"Come on. In the end, it's just a theory." He said so dismissively.
"Well, that would certainly stir some attention to you but how about taking a little break?" She suggested.
"Yeah, I could use that. I'm sick of people staring at me for no reason."
"Riiigghht? Come on, my treat."
Without making the other people butting in for his presentation, the two simply walked out of the crowd, ignoring the pressing nobles that were planning to talk to him in the process. The distinguishable armor worn by Reina which was from the Order made it difficult for them to approach the teen. In response, they could only spit under their breaths in discontentment.
They left the presentation along with the crowd as the two went straight back to the main section of the school. Since Zeref's work was placed at the research building, they eventually escaped the portion of people who got wind of his theory.
They stopped at a nearby stall with Reina's treat for the black-haired teen.
"If you gotta need some energy for a second presentation, you need to eat," Reina said as she handed a piece to him. Zeref accepted the treat silently and began munching.
They slowed their pace as they wandered around the premises, talking a lot of things in the process.
"So how did you find my place? I'm pretty sure I wanted to hide away as much as attention as I could from other people." Zeref began.
"Well if you're gonna pick up a topic that is uninteresting from people, maybe you should've picked a lighter tone suited to your age."
Zeref shrugged. "Well, Elena had hopes for me to shine in this event. It's not like I want to turn down her offer."
Saying that, Reina immediately remembered something that she forgot to mention. "Oh, now that you mentioned it, Elena's here in the academy."
"Elena? What is she doing here?"
"Beats me. But I guess she had some matters with some people who are expected to visit here."
Zeref pondered, recalling a memory from a few nights ago. There was a bit of a conversation between her and Reina but he couldn't quite catch what it is about. With Reina having no knowledge of her sudden visit means that she wasn't informed as well.
Regardless, he didn't think much of the topic and decided to let it go in the meantime.
"I wonder what she's up to? It's not like she usually goes out the orphanage since there's no other adult to look after it."
"We'll find out once we meet her later," Reina said, taking the last piece of food from her stick and finished up eating. She lightly smacked the boy's back, grinning. "Well, we better get going. You don't want to miss your second presentation now do you?"
Zeref smiled wryly. "Yeah."
The two went back to the hallway, leading back to the area where Zeref's work was placed. It was just only then, the two spotted a group of people right in front of them, seemingly looking on their way. Zeref recognized a familiar figure amongst them.
"Elena-san?"
Looking back, the group approached the two without a moment's notice, seemingly expecting them. They all wore white-gold armors that covered almost all of their bodies except for their heads. A series of clinking sounds from their armors reverberated the lively hall, silencing them as people turned their heads to the two in curiosity.
Reina had a surprised look on her face as soon as she spotted them but immediately withdrew her expression and met up with the man leading the armored people.
Zeref stared at the man with keen observation. He appears to be someone not far from Reina's age and seemingly young due to his robust appearance. His hair unkempt, judging from the length it has that reached down on his back, comparable to Natsu but worse. His eyes dyed green with black circles forming around it, releasing an aura of unimaginable power that even onlookers turned their eyes away when he gazed at them.
Disturbingly enough, he's been staring at him for the first few seconds of their encounter as if he felt like he was about to get devoured in the process. Instinctively, Zeref took a step back.
This person is uncomfortable to be around with. It looks as if the white armor he's wearing is a complete irony to his unpleasant presence.
Still, Zeref wouldn't judge easily as someone based on their appearance so his response was obvious.
"Lord Acno... It's quite a surprise to your sudden visit. I thought you were on a campaign outside of the kingdom." Reina spoke. The man, called Acno, frowned slightly as he turned towards the female dragonslayer passively.
"There's been a change of plans. I thought I'd visit this place to catch my fancy."
"I see. Well, there are a lot of promising students who might be interested in joining the Order. I was just discussing matters related to it with Elena here." He glanced to the side where Elena had been standing.
Zeref peered over, noticing the displeasure written over her face as she glared at Acno with such hostility. He could already assume that their conversation is not something very heart-warming.
"Acno. This is not a recruitment facility. These students are tasked to show their capabilities and talents. It is not something that the Order would take advantage of. Moreover, bestowing the gift to these people is not something trivial to begin with!" Elena soon started speaking as if to continue where they left off.
Acno sighed, turning his gaze away from her dismissively as he speaks. "There was never a rule where a few people are chosen to inherit the gift. It is within my decisions whether those people are worthy of bestowing the gift. Right now, I'm greatly disappointed."
He made no indication of hiding his displeasure from the others. "The number of candidates is slowly getting thinner each year. If this happens, so be it."
"You're gonna force people to inherit the power?! Are you mad?"
"If it takes to defeat those dragons then I shall do so."
"You're not touching any single one of the students here."
A few exchanges went on with the two, ultimately silencing Acno who simply clicked his tongue in exasperation and suddenly walked ahead, nudging off Reina and Zeref as they gave way. The other knights followed suit except for Elena who had been standing ever since.
Zeref kept silent as he meekly watched the group went past him until he heard Acno. "You boy, what's your name?"
"E-Eh? Umm, Zeref." In a stuttering response, he answered mildly.
It was only then he felt a pat on his shoulder as Acno grinned at him with an obscure expression.
"That theory was magnificent. I look forward to your next presentation."
And with that he left without a word, leaving a stunned Zeref as he stared at the end of the hallway in which they disappeared after taking a turn.
He felt another pat, causing him to look over to Reina who seemingly heard his brief conversation with him. "Don't worry about him. He might look that way but he has his reasons."
"I guess..." Zeref answered unconvincingly.
There are a lot of mysteries surrounding the man. Zeref couldn't even figure out what his intentions were after seeing that look on his face.
"My goodness. It's getting worse day by day." Elena finally moved next to them with her hands on her waist, donning a troubled look. "I suppose you don't have something to do with this."
Her eyes set on Reina for answers.
"Well... it's probably because of the last skirmish we had the other day."
"The subjugation of the dragon king. No wonder why he's so adamant about taking more. I warned you about this."
"I know but as you see, I'm not in command of the Order."
Elena sighed. "Really... if only there was someone who's smart enough to guide it. Even the dragons allied to us are growing fearful of the Order."
There was a short silence between the two females until Reina broke the ice. "Well, we can talk all about that later. Zeref here is going on about for his second presentation."
Elena's eyes perked up, looking at the boy with a smile of her own.
"Indeed. Unfortunately, I won't be staying here for too long. I have an orphanage to attend to."
Reina nodded as the two eventually began to part ways with her and Zeref continuing on their way down towards the hall until Zeref spoke up.
"Is Natsu doing fine?" He asked, causing Elena to glance back before forming a warm smile.
"Always worrying about him, huh? He's out for a visit with Alice, he'll be back in the orphanage by now."
"I see..." Zeref smiled, finally free of concern. "Thank you."
And with that, he returned back to his presentation.
...
Natsu paced a few more steps as he blindly walked through the street with a set of confused thoughts whirling above his head.
It's been a couple of minutes since he went out of the lodge without knowing where he's headed. But that doesn't concern him right now. His thoughts about his brother are what's been circling around his head for quite some time.
Man, how he'd wished to tell all those thoughts to his brother right now that it doesn't have to be always for his sake.
If he wanted to become someone, it'll be on his own power alone. He wanted to put all his efforts alone to make his goals and not being able to be pulled by anything else. That's what he feels about right now.
But how could he say it to him? Everything he did until was just for the sake of his well-being.
He didn't choose to be helped. After all, he had his own fair share of hardships. He learned a lot of things ever since moving to the orphanage. He met a lot of new people and made friends with them. The group was just like his second family. Even he had to admit that Gajeel is part of it too despite being a dick at first but cool nonetheless.
He never had this bond ever since with his parents and to see himself separate from them is really depressing. He's sure that even his big brother would've noticed his feelings if he had just said it to him right away but―
"What am I doing?" He muttered, staring at the ground in deep thought.
Taking another blind stroll around the corner, he continued walking until he bumped into someone hard, probably due to the armor, resulting in him to stumble back and land on his butt much to his annoyance.
"Ow! Watch it!" He glared, looking up but immediately changed into a pale-faced expression as soon as the stranger turned towards him.
"You!" A voice that he longed forgotten over the years but his face, he could never forget it. The vile tone of his voice suggested that he never seemed to forget their faces either. Nevertheless, Natsu felt a chill went up to his spine.
Tellus, the man who tried to harm his brother.
The sound of clinks entered the pinkette's ears as two more knights showed up next to Tellus who were seemingly his fellow partners.
"Hey, hey. What are you doing, Tellus?" One of the knights asked, seeing how he stopped in front of the kid he just bumped into. "Hmm? Isn't that the kid from before?"
"Yeah."
"Haha! The one that demoted you into a regular knight? Man, you had one hell of luck to stumble onto each other."
"Shut it, asshole. It's because of these fuckers, I lost everything!" Without any heed of warning, he grabbed Natsu by the hair, causing him to bawl out in pain due to the force of the pull. He pulled even harder as to lift the boy to match his gaze with contempt. "You see this? Because of you, I lost my position as a captain!"
He then proceeded to the throw the boy back to the ground fiercely.
"That reminds me. Where's that big brother of yours, huh? I figured he'll be here with you cling to him like some goddamn insect." Tellus mocked, expecting him to give an answer
"No? Then that means you're out here by yourself, huh?"
Realizing that, a dark smile went over his face as he looked back to his other two knights who were standing and watching the whole scene.
"Hey, you two. Take that brat."
"Oi oi! Are you serious, Tellus?" One of the knights spoke.
"I'm serious. We're just gonna give this little kid a lesson about messing with the knights of this kingdom." He turned back, looking at the pinkette who stared in horror after seeing his menacing gaze towards him.
"N-No..." He whimpered as the two men grabbed him on both his arms with Tellus standing before him. "Let me go―"
As he was about to scream for help, his consciousness faded before he could even do anything. Tellus dug a fist right onto his abdomen, causing him to go limp in the process.
"We're taking him back with us. I know a good place where we can make an example out of him."
The two offered no resistance to his decision and decided to follow along as they dragged off the knocked out Natsu away from the streets.
Unaware of them, a pair of terrified eyes was witnessing the whole scene. Her voice crumbled as she saw them dragging the pinkette away from the corner.
"N-Natsu... N-No."
A/N: There you have it. Natsu is taken! Lalala. It's been a while since this updated so I'm glad to have been able to do it. I'm currently in the process of dividing this story into a three separate fic with this being the prologue.
Yes, this whole story will be the Prologue for the next story to come with a grown Natsu but I'm featuring a lot of characters that would be appropriate for his upbringing such as Igneel, etc. Don't worry, I'll have some plans for Eileen and the others so look forward to it.
As always, thanks for reading!
- The wiErDos send their regards...
