YO! Mslead here for your Sunday update! Ya'll are so impatient for your answers, but you'll find out all our secrets soon. Muahaha. Anyway, I want to give Sorcerer Weekly a special shout out for basically reading along with the story as we wrote it and giving input along the way. Also thank you so much for your beautiful fanart which is the cover of our fic! Show her some love!
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CHAPTER 2
Parley
A conference or discussion between opposing sides during a dispute, especially when attempting a truce, originating from the French, "parler," meaning "to speak."
Lucy had to say she was not a stranger to the oddities of the sea, however she was amazed by the secrets it still had left to be discovered.
She watched the large tank of water currently standing tall in her quarters with its strange contents. It was filled to the brim with salt water, and while that alone might have been odd it spoke nothing about the man who was resting inside.
The discovery of the merman aboard the enemy pirate ship had been astounding, especially one who seemed unable to gain legs while dry and on land. To her knowledge, the legend of the merfolk said the blessings of the Tempest allowed her children to walk on land, unrestricted by her borders. However as this was the first time she had ever seen a merman out of water before, her knowledge was limited. She had never seen anything like him before.
The merfolk were notoriously private, similar to the dragons who were thought only to be legends. The mermen and maids that haunted the seas were known for their voices and the allure they had in seducing pirates with their songs.
Still they stayed to themselves, never wanting to be caught in human nets...
The merman they found was bloody and pale, breathing ragged from the lack of moisture. It couldn't have been good for him to be as dehydrated as he was. The man looked like he was on the brink of death, which spoke volumes on his treatment. Merfolk were sturdy creatures, as they had to be able to swim comfortably under the crushing pressure of the ocean. They held mysterious magics, and were believed to be made from magic themselves. If the way this man's tail was scraped up was any indication, the pirates they attacked believed that rumor as well.
Lucy had been horrified at the sight of the creature so beaten and torn. He looked like he was strong, but she wondered why he was unable to stand on legs. The legend of mermaids spoke contrary to what she was currently seeing from him.
She pressed her palm against the glass, looking at the healthier color in his cheeks and the way his healing tail twitched in the swirling waves of the tank.
"How is he?"
Lucy turned at the soft voice and looked up to find Gray and Levy both standing there, concern on their faces.
"I'm not sure." She admitted quietly, "He seems to be healing, but he hasn't woken up yet."
"The salt water will help." Levy assured her, "And once we reach the Navigator's temple we can help more. The goddess has a friendly relationship with the merfolk and will help protect him."
"I hope so." Lucy sighed fervently, "Though I'm more worried about contacting his people once we get there. He may need healing of some kind, and we don't know enough about his kind to help."
Levy smiled and laid a reassuring hand on her arm, "It'll be alright Lu. We'll figure it out. And anyway, our new friend looks tough enough. I'm sure he'll pull through fine."
"And besides." Gray spoke up, "If the goddess is friendly with his kind maybe her priests have a way of contacting his kin."
Lucy smiled and relaxed a little, "I hadn't thought of that. If nothing else maybe they can send Juvia a prayer to help." She glanced at the tank, "In the meantime, maybe we should see if we can catch a few fish or something for him? If he wakes up he's sure to be hungry, and I'm not sure mermen can eat human food."
"Consider it done Captain." Gray smirked, "With your permission we'll anchor for the night so Mira and Lisanna can try their luck. As long as the wind keeps blowing like this we shouldn't lose much time to the temple."
Lucy nodded, "Do it. Make sure the night watch is keeping a sharp eye on it though. The last thing I want is for us to be caught in dead water. If it's a choice between our friend here trying to choke down salted fish and getting trapped, I'll take the fish from stores myself."
Gray nodded sharply and headed back out, though not without a lingering back look at the still sleeping merman. Levy smiled confidently at Lucy, and followed Gray out leaving Lucy alone with her strange guest.
A guest who had his eyes open as soon as he was left alone with her. He stared at her.
Had Lucy been a little less sea hardened, she might have screamed at the sight of those sharp eyes watching her through the glass.
As it stood though, his unnerving gaze followed her, shifting to straighten up in the water. He was tall with his tail, ruby scales catching light as he moved towards the glass. She could see where they were growing back, smoothing over the patches of raw areas and glistening like gems.
Slow, he almost hesitated in his movements before lifting his hand and resting it on the surface of the glass just where Lucy's hand still remained. His touch warmed the glass from the inside, enough she could almost imagine feeling his hand through the thin barrier.
Lucy's breath caught at the merman's cautious movements. Her eyes followed him and he moved closer, almost pressing his face to the glass as he looked at her with an intensity that should have freaked her out.
"I eat human food," he said, answering her question from before. Lucy was hardly able to wrap her mind around the thought, because at once something inside her melted at the sound of his voice.
It really was as breathtaking as the legends made it out to seem. The silky tenor of his voice both somehow smooth and rough around the edges. It seemed impossible for both to exist, but Lucy was amazed.
"What's your name?" He asked with his own poorly hidden fascination, another hand drifting to the glass to stroke across the glossy surface.
"Lucy," She responded but remembered herself and shook her head to break free of the spell in his voice, "Captain Lucy Heartfilia."
"Ah, hello Captain Lucy," The merman tested out her name on his tongue. The was he said it though made her imagine it was rolling across his tongue, flicking careful with the taste of her name soaking his palate. There was certainly something ethereal about the way he spoke her name, almost a sense of familiarity that burned into her soul as if greeting an old friend. The allure of the merfolk was truly a powerful thing.
"I'm Natsu," he introduced himself and smiled at her, opening up his face to something much broader, "did you rescue me?"
Lucy smiled back at him, something in her responding happily to the honest joy on his face, and nodded, "After we found you on the other ship we discovered a bunch of tanks like this one below decks." She gestured vaguely towards his tank, "We were able to set it up and fill it for you. That was the better part of ten hours ago."
Natsu's sincere smile widened, "Thank you for that." He told her with trust it seemed odd for him to have in her, "Where are we going now?"
Lucy pulled her desk chair closer and sat down, deciding she might as well get comfortable while they talked.
"The great library at Crocus." She replied, and waved at his frown, "I know it's heavily populated by humans, but I promise we'll keep you safe. My cartographer Levy is devoted to the goddess of knowledge and navigation, and the priests and priestesses there all know her well. If we're fortunate we'll be able to get them to help us."
Natsu seemed to consider that and nodded as he settled next to her, looking for all the world like he would cuddle up to her if given the chance, "What happens if they can't?"
Lucy shrugged a little, "I'm not sure." She admitted honestly, "I'm leery about just turning you loose while you're recovering, and I don't know how to contact your people."
Natsu hummed thoughtfully, "I may be able to help there." He finally replied, "But I'll wait to see what your temple friends can do first, it's been a very long time since I've been around friendly humans," He grinned as he relaxed a little.
"So tell me about your ship?" He asked hopefully, "I didn't exactly get a good look at her before."
"Well I don't imagine you'll be doin' a lot of walking around to see for yourself, and I'd hate to spoil the surprise by just telling how great my ship is," Lucy grinned at the merman. He really did seem to have a playful nature when he wasn't being filleted.
Natsu for his part settled down onto the bottom of his tank, unable to look away from the woman in front of him. It was hard to explain the feeling he held in his chest, and logically he knew he should be more cautious around humans after being tortured and harvested by pirates. However he couldn't shake the feeling that dug at him.
It trusted her so willingly, and while Zeref and Igneel always mentioned how foolish it was for Natsu to befriend his enemies and forgive them, his trust was a little harder to win.
She had stated good intentions for him, and Natsu took her completely at her word.
Something in him felt like it had filled. Like a space was closed for the first time he could remember.
"At least tell me your ships name!" Natsu pressed his entire face against the glass and made an obnoxious expression that made the captain snort in disbelief at his silliness.
"Human ships make me sick, when I was onboard that pirate vessel that captured me I could barely keep down the sips of water they gave me," Natsu groaned at the memory.
"Our ship is very well designed to counteract things like motion sickness, we have a special lacrima on board particularly for that," Lucy smiled at the merman, "Her name is Fairy Tail, and she's the gem of the sea."
Natsu blinked, his breath catching and in a moment the smile slid off his face. He didn't know why, but the name... it meant something to him.
A vague memory of a man, whose face was obscured by the fog of memory floated to his mind's eye. Natsu got the impression he was large and imposing, metal glittering along his arms. But his odd, memorable laughter rang in Natsu's head, "she's a pretty one cap'n. I'll make her the fastest the sea has ever seen!"
It was gone in a flash, leaving that ache behind he always felt when there was a trickle of memory that he could never explain.
He looked around himself, realizing he felt a sense of unknown familiarity with these surroundings.
"Natsu?" Lucy's words burst into his mind, "Are you concerned that we're pirates?"
Natsu blinked at the odd question and shook his head, "no? Why would I?" A smile broadened his face again and he straightened, putting his fragmented memories to the back of his mind, "I think pirates are spectacular!"
Lucy smiled at that, "I'm glad to hear it." She replied, "Though that does leave me wondering what had you frowning so a moment ago."
Natsu flushed a little as he belatedly realized what that must've looked like to Lucy, "Ah, it's nothing related to you." He assured her, "Honest. Something you said just sparked a memory is all."
Lucy's expression cleared, and though it looked like she wanted to ask for details she instead reached for an apple and held it up, "Would you like one?"
Natsu's expression lit up, and she laughed a little as she tossed it into his tank. However, the merman had done little more than grasp his treat before Gray came crashing into the room.
"Captain!" He cried in alarm, "There's a whole host of merpeople off the port bow, and none of them look friendly!"
All of a sudden there was a massive lurch in the ship, sending Lucy crashing against Natsu's tank, and screams erupted on deck.
"What the-?" Lucy gasped as she tried to find her balance only to pale as cries of 'Kraken!' filtered down, "You've got to be kidding me!"
"Lucy wait!" Natsu called as she made to dash out with Gray, "Release me!"
"What?" Lucy exclaimed, "Natsu we're under attack!"
"I know." Natsu replied, his tail flicking urgently, "But you gotta listen to me! My brother's been looking for me since I was captured. He's the only one who could command a kraken like that! Please. Get me in the water. I can explain things to him."
Gray stared at him incredulously, "Your brother commands a kraken? But the only one who can do that is the Sea King of Alvarez!" His eyes widened in shock as Natsu's serious expression didn't flicker, "You're Prince Natsu?!"
Lucy gaped at him for a moment, but another rock galvanized her into action, "Alright, we can be impressed with your title later. Gray! Get some of the others! Help me get this thing moving!"
Natsu yelped as Lucy's command was followed. Whether it was by her firm orders or by the fear induced by a giant squid, Natsu was amazed by how quickly they filed in to hoist his tank upright and out onto the deck.
Outside was chaos. The tentacles wrapped around the ship, it's wood screaming in protest over the rough treatment. Natsu knew it was only a warning squeeze. A kraken was powerful enough to snap a normal ship in half like a twig. Although Natsu suspected this may not have been a normal ship.
He didn't have time to admire the icy tentacles wrapping around the ship. Lucy's crew promptly slid him tank and all right against the rails. A large man used a considerable amount of strength to hoist his heavy tank upright, and Natsu yelped when he was poured out.
He hit the water without grace, groaning in pain at the impact it had on his tail. Natsu didn't have time to orient himself as friendly hands grasped at him. He was immediately swarmed by mermaids and men, each one clearly intending to pull him away from the supposedly dangerous ship.
"Wait!" He shouted, disoriented as he looked around for his brother.
He searched the waters for the darkest spot of gathering magic, knowing his brother could reach into the crushing pressure of the abyssal trench to use its force to scuttle the ship.
He spotted it at the helm and broke free from the restraining hands, using the reserves of his strength to rip off their hands. He jettisoned himself to the helm, and not thinking twice he threw himself in front of the ship.
Zeref, who had been in the middle of lifting his black trident to drive into the ship, froze with his weapon an inch from Natsu's face.
"Natsu!" He yelped in mingled alarm and relief, and the weapon made a hasty retreat, "How did you-? No never mind that. What are you doing? Get out of the way!"
"Not happening brother." Nastu growled firmly, "You're attacking the wrong ship. These pirates saved me from the ones that captured me."
"What?" Zeref exclaimed, and Natsu swam a little closer. His tail still hurt, badly, but the salt water gently massaging it was helping.
"It's true brother." He replied, "These pirates raided the ship that was holding me."
Zeref's expression darkened, his eyes sweeping over Natsu's various injuries. They lingered over his tail, rage coloring his face, "Your tail Natsu, it's been scraped raw."
It was perhaps a thing of vanity, but Natsu swallowed and nodded. For the merfolk, their brightly flashing tails were often a sign of beauty and class. Dragons recovered quickly, scales shedding off naturally, however for a normal mermaid this would have been a permanently disfiguring attack. They both knew that, as it stood, there might be some lingering scars that would create an interesting striping over his tail.
"No doubt they were also planning to profit off your torment as well." He growled, "We'll show them what happens if they take even one of us!"
Natsu shook his head, "No Zeref! They weren't!" He insisted, "If they'd planned to do that then they could've left me as I was. But they didn't. Captain Lucy got a tank set up for me. So I could rest and heal. She was afraid that if she turned me loose with my injuries I would've been killed."
Which, he probably would've. Merfolk were powerful, but he'd been unconscious and badly wounded at the time. Sharks probably would've been the least of his worries.
Zeref frowned thoughtfully, an assessing eye running over Natsu. No doubt drawing similar conclusions.
"So what were they going to do with you? Surely they didn't mean to keep you."
Natsu smiled, the knot of anxiety in his chest relaxing a little, "They were planning to take me to Crocus and ask for help from the Scholasticate. They didn't know how to contact you, and thought maybe they would know."
A story made much more believable now that he was back in the sea. His directional sense told him that Crocus was only a day or so away, and there were no other islands or other places they might stop nearby. The knot in his chest loosened a little more. He'd believed Lucy, but the confirmation was nice.
"Call off the warriors Zeref," Natsu demanded, his hand raising to settle on Zeref's wrist, "please. I owe them my life."
Zeref sighed, lowering his weapons and lifting a fist to hold back the rage of his fighters. A ripple of magic pulsed through the water, signaling for them to cease their attacks.
"Invel, release the ship," he ordered his pet, watching as the kraken gave Zeref a flat glare before unraveling itself and sinking down into the ocean.
"Let me apologize to your saviors," Zeref nodded at Natsu, lifting his trident once again. This time a jet of water rushed up around them, this time hurtling both Natsu and Zeref to the surface.
Zeref sailed upwards and landed right in the deck of Lucy's ship, the red in his eyes having faded back into their natural dark black. It took him a moment, but he stood among them with human legs, while Natsu drifted in the slipstream Zefer kept floating next to the ship.
Zeref was immediately surrounded by the crew, cautious over having just been attacked. Natsu watched as Lucy came back into view, heeled boots clicking with each stride as she made her way closer to their attacker.
"You're King Zeref of the Alvarez," Lucy noted. Natsu was interested to see that while her tone and eyes were respectful, she didn't cower away or immediately begin to grovel to his brother. And why should she? She had done nothing wrong.
"I am," Zeref acknowledged her as the captain with a nod. If he was surprised there was a woman manning the ship, he didn't comment on it. No doubt he had learned better thanks to Mavis' own prowess as his general.
"You are the captain of the Fairy Tail," Zeref inclined his head, "we've heard stories of your exploits even under the sea."
"We have?" Natsu asked, poking his head from the water and earning him an irritated glance from both his brother and Lucy.
"Forgive him, my brother lives inside a clam," Zeref raised his fist over his chest and bowed his head, "and forgive me as well. You saved his life and I attacked you unknowingly. I apologize for that, when I should be thanking you instead."
Lucy's lips twitched a little, "I suppose I can't entirely fault you for that all things considered your Highness." She replied with only a faint trace of irony, "I hope that from now on you'll do us the courtesy of asking before attacking? We're not interested in conflict with you or yours if it can be avoided."
Zeref lifted his head and smiled a little, "Of course." He agreed, "I'll make certain your ship is known and should you ever require safe passage through our waters you shall have it."
Lucy's eyebrows shot up, and a truly delighted smile lit her face, "Now that is a compensation I cannot turn down!"
Natsu didn't blame her either. Humans sailed over merfolk waters all the time anyway, but they did so at their peril. It wasn't unusual for humans to encroach a little too closely, or offend in some way, and Zeref to retaliate. To offer Lucy and her crew guaranteed safety was a boon few could boast, and probably none in living human memory.
"It's the least I can do." Zeref replied serenely, "I would also extend an invitation for you and your crew to join us for a celebratory feast. Natsu may live in a clam, but he's much beloved by our people." His lips twitched a bit, "And my wife would be most put out if she did not get the chance to meet his rescuers."
Lucy looked a little taken aback by the invitation, "Your Majesty... I'm honored by the invitation, but I'm not certain such a gesture is warranted? We weren't looking for your brother when we raided the ship he was on. It was nothing more than an opportune moment. I'm pleased we were able to help, but the reality is far less heroic than it sounds."
Zeref's smile widened as his lingering uncertainty about this human settled, "And yet despite that, the thought to do anything other than help never entered your mind did it?" He asked softly, "You worked to save his life without hesitation and with much inconvenience to yourself."
"It was the right thing to do." Lucy replied, "We may be pirates, but we're not the sort to profit on an innocent's suffering."
There were nods of agreement all around, and Zeref inclined his head, "And that, dear lady, is why you are worthy of such a gesture. I do hope you'll accept it?"
Lucy smiled and her eyes flicked around to her crew, "Well, I'm pretty sure no one else can boast a feast with the Sea King." She grinned, "What say you?"
There were bellows of approval all around, and Lucy nodded at Zeref, "We would be honored to accept your invitation. Though, I should warn you that if your intended destination is far we'll need provisioning."
"Drop anchor," Zeref smirked at her, backing towards the railing where Natsu was picking at his ear. He was trying very hard to pretend he wasn't excited over his rescuers joining them for the feast. Although he supposed the original feast on his 'birthday' might have been old now.
Although he wouldn't have put it past his father to have preserved it.
Lucy's crew was just lucky Igneel hadn't been the one to search after him. Otherwise Natsu may not have had the chance to stop him. Dragons were a little on the death and destruction side of things at times. Hellfire quite literally had a tendency of raining down from above.
"You'll be taking the scenic route," Zeref continued, laughing at the somewhat puzzled expression on their faces when he beckoned for them to follow him over the railing.
"You can swim right?" Natsu called out to Lucy, "that would be pretty damn embarrassing for a pirate if you couldn't!"
"Of course we can! But we can't just leave the Fairy Tail here unguarded, it'll be raided!" Lucy protested.
Zeref snapped his fingers and two long ice, white tentacles rose up from the deep on command. He smile, calm and humored, "I believe you will find your ship in good hands."
"Yeah, eight of them," Gray muttered, unsure how he felt about leaving the squid in charge.
Levy elbowed him, and he shot her a grumpy look, "What?"
"Behave." Levy hissed, "The kraken won't harm the ship and is strong enough to turn any vessel that attacks into toothpicks."
"I just hope it doesn't get bored." Gray mumbled.
"It will be fine." Zeref called in amusement, "I assure you, and if by chance something does happen, I'll take full responsibility."
Gray grumbled a bit, but at Lucy's nod he sighed and walked over to the rail, "So where're we going anyway? Your undersea palace?"
Zeref laughed, and the sound sent a shiver of delight over them all, reminding them of his heritage, "You would hardly be comfortable there! Even with magic assisting you. No, we have a different destination in mind."
Lucy glanced at Natsu, who nodded encouragingly, and took a deep breath as she reached out and grasped his hand to step onto the waterspout. As soon as they touched, Lucy felt something like a spark shoot through their joined hands. Like an electric current soared from his touch right into her chest. A flush worked over the back of her neck and ears, unable to help but notice his grasp was strong and steady, allowing her an easy purchase onto the spout. She wobbled there for a moment, getting used to the strange sensation of not falling or getting swept away, but after a moment the disorientation passed and she realized it was as steady under her feet as the deck of her ship.
She grinned at Natsu, a little startled by how warm his hand felt in hers even with water rushing around them, and looked back at her hesitating crew, "It's alright!" She called, "It's steady!"
One by one her crew warily followed her, the platform slowly expanding until they were all aboard, "Our lives are in your hands your majesty."
Zeref nodded, and Lucy barely had a moment to register the tingle of magic coursing over her before they were suddenly plunging towards the sea below. Something which should have alarmed any sailor worth their salt, strangely made her feel at peace. She could hear the roar of Natsu's laughter as they were swept away by mermaids.
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At first she hadn't realized what she was looking at. The distant shapes moving around on the cliffs had been large, but she'd mistaken them for some kind of large lizard that was relatively common in the more tropical regions of the world. However, the closer they got the more she realized those weren't lizards. They were...
"Dragons!"
Lucy gaped at the sight of the enormous creatures swarming out of what she now realized were cave mouths. First merfolk and now a dragon's nest of all things? This day was getting weirder and weirder.
"Indeed." Zeref replied calmly as they rode closer to shore, "This is the home of the fire dragon king Igneel and his nest. They're close friends and allies of ours."
"But... why bring us here?" Lucy asked, her nerves starting to climb a little, "And where is here anyway? I don't remember this island on the maps."
Zeref smiled at her serenely, "That's because the island can't be found except by those who already know where it is. An ancient bit of magic done by Igneel himself several centuries ago to protect the nest."
"I see," Lucy hesitated, aware Zeref had done nothing to answer her first question.
At least until Natsu broke away, surging to the shore with strong strikes of his tail, "dad!"
'Dad,' was apparently a massive dragon.
