Chapter 7 – Rollercoaster of Emotions

Magnolia, Summer Time,

Year X792

General Perspective

Sting and Natsu returned from the dining job the day after having reported completing it. When the pair arrived, they were in high spirits, however that lasted for all of ten minutes, as not long after Haruki Himura approached them.

"So, do you have the money that you owe?" the teen asked in a rather upfront tone of voice. Sting sighed and produced a small bag with the jewel inside.

"It's in here" he stated, reluctantly handing over the sum to the fake-blond teen, "Although… is Kenji not around to ask for it?" the White Dragon Slayer added after a moment, glancing around. Whilst it wasn't unusual for Haruki to prompt people about the debt, it was odd for the teen to be seen collecting the money that was owed himself, especially since it was his grandfather that seemed to have the magical box in which the money paid was stored.

Haruki smiled. "Pops isn't here, Arthur called him away for something, so I'm here doing the debt collecting" the teen grinned, before another teen came to join in.

"Hi hi, I just received word about your exceptional performance" Edric Zollzero smiled brightly at both of the Dragon Slayers, who had just managed to get a table in the quite busy guild hall. The teen was wearing formal attire, yet spoke with such an informal tone that Natsu and Sting were unsure exactly how they were supposed to talk to him. "You not only captured the guys, but also handed each one over to my families… ahem… associates without any of them being in such a state that they couldn't answer our questions" the teen laughed, "It's a shame they didn't have anything interesting to say, though" he added after a moment, before looking to Haruki.

"I'm sure the people in information gathering will get somewhere with them eventually" Haruki smiled. Edric nodded.

"Yes, they will, however…that's not what matters. No, what matters is that once again these two, fine gentleman have assisted in paying off their debt, little by little" the Zollzero child stated, his voice full of grandeur, like an actor on stage. Natsu and Sting watched the teens interact for a moment, before Sting decided to raise his voice.

"Yes, now… unless there is something in particular you want from us, could we please get on so we can order some lunch" the blond Dragon Slayer stated in as friendly a tone as he could muster. Edric smiled at Sting for a moment, before chuckling.

"I suppose we should leave you be. Hey, look Haruki, Lucy and Gray are back from their job" the teen stated, before sliding his arm around Haruki's shoulders and directing him away from Natsu and Sting's table. "Come on, let's go say hi" he added, before gently pushing Haruki forward with a hand, Sting noticed, on his very lower back; The White Dragon Slayer could even, perhaps, say Haruki's butt, however he didn't make any comment, especially since he was just thankful that they were leaving. As Haruki began moving forward, Edric turned and glanced back at the Dragon Slayer pair for a moment. "Oh, actually… I almost forgot. After you've eaten something, Thomas would like to speak with you two in the office. There is another Zollzero-related job if you're interested, however he will need to debrief you" he stated, before moving off and away from the pinkette and blond.

Once they were gone, Sting looked to Natsu. "Did you see that, with Haruki?" Sting asked Natsu, who shrugged.

"I was too busy trying not to just bark at them to piss off; that Haruki kid really annoys me for some reason. What was it you saw?" the Fire Dragon Slayer replied, his face a mixture of thinly veiled contempt and genuine intrigue. Sting chuckled.

"It wasn't anything important" the White Dragon Slayer, "Anyways… let's eat!"

/

Thomas sighed, as he watched his brother with the two Dragon Slayers, and not long after the Ice Mage and Celestial Spirit Mage. "He always forgets our role" he muttered to himself, before reactivating his magic, multiple Archive screens appearing before his person as he lay back against the building wall. Unlike Edric, who was wearing a perfectly immaculate navy blue waistcoat and darker blue shirt combo, along with black trousers and shoes, Thomas wore a simple, plain blue t-shirt and dark blue shorts, along with white socks and trainers that had a blue stripe on them. His platinum blond hair was brushed lazily to one side, so as not to impair his view of his screens, but still not particularly neat. After about thirty minutes of peace and quiet, the teen felt a shadow fall over his person. Looking up, Thomas's emerald eyes came to meet the steady gaze of a smiling Mirajane Strauss. "What do you want?" he asked flatly, his tone completely unwelcoming of the woman's presence. Mirajane frowned down at him.

"You know, for twins you and your brother couldn't be further apart" she stated with a slightly scolding tone, momentarily looking over to Edric, who was laughing with Gray at the other end of the hall. "I only came to ask if you would like a drink or anything, since you haven't spoken a word to anyone since you arrived here" the waitress added. Thomas sighed and flicked away his screens so that they rested only in his peripheral vision, and he could more easily look up at the Take-Over Mage.

"I'm just fine. Although a glass of water, if you are so insistent" he said to Mirajane. The waitress sighed, before moving off to fulfil the request. Before she was out of earshot, Mirajane overheard Thomas muttering to himself. "Wonder why they are being so pleasant, when we're their creditors?" he questioned to himself, before he resumed his typing, calculating how much of the debt was left, as well as beginning to pull up the information he suspected would be required in his next meeting with the Dragon Slayers. When Mirajane returned, he was already operating about twelve different screens in front of his person, different information flashing up and then disappearing rapidly. "Here is your water" she stated, to which Thomas nodded.

"Thank you" he said, almost automatically, making no move to pick it up. Mirajane looked to the boy, and his faraway stare as he analysed countless amounts of data in an instant. Just before she was about to leave, he looked at her through one of his screens. "Mirajane Strauss, sometimes called the She-Devil. User of Satan Soul Magic, of the Take-Over variety, one of Fairy Tail's S-Class wizards, and probably the strongest female wizard, if not for Miss Erza Scarlet" he stated, his voice cold and analytical. Mirajane turned in her spot and looked to him.

"Yes, that's me" she stated, "Did you find that information in your Archive?" she asked after a moment. Thomas smirked.

"I wouldn't bother storing information like that with magic, I just memorised it before I came here" he said, before briefly glancing at another screen, "I have a question for you" he stated, after dealing with the issue that had arisen on the new screen.

Mirajane gave a look of intrigue. "What do you want to know?" she asked in a probing tone.

Thomas frowned for a moment. "You aren't afraid of my questions?!" he asked, in a surprised tone, before he shrugged this off, "No matter, I was going to ask; since I have only memorised the Fairy Tail roster for those who pose potential threats, is there anybody who utilises magic like mine or my brothers?"

Mirajane heard Thomas' question, however she shrugged in response. "There isn't anybody here currently who uses Archive Magic, however Cana Alberona does use Card Magic like your brother" she answered, before countering with her own line of questioning; something in particular had caught the Take-Over Mage's ear when Thomas had spoken. "Why would someone answering your question be surprising to you?" she asked the teen.

Thomas pouted at the question for a moment, before shrugging and going back to looking at his screens. "It is just unusual for people to answer me on the first go" he stated, his tone suggesting that the conversation had ended. Mirajane realised that she wasn't going to get any more information out of Thomas and so left him be. After about five minutes, Thomas deactivated his magic, picked up his glass of water, and went to a separate room that had been designated by Makarov, at his instance, as the base of operations for the Zollzero family whilst they were present at the guild.

/

A little while later, Natsu and Sting were directed by Mirajane to the room that she knew the Master had allocated for the Zollzero's to use. "Thomas is in here, I think. I saw him leave earlier" the waitress-wizard stated, before turning to face the two Dragon Slayers. Sting smiled at Mirajane.

"He is in there, I can smell it" the White Dragon Slayer stated, before glancing to Natsu, "Right Natsu, I could be wrong since I'm not completely familiar with all this guild's smells yet" he added, seeking confirmation from the accompanying wizard. The Fire Dragon Slayer smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, he's in there all right" the pinkette stated.

Sting smiled, before Mirajane moved aside, "I'll leave you to it then" she said politely, turning and leaving. When she was gone, Sting looked to Natsu.

"You okay with this, Natsu. I mean, I know you were alright on our last job for them, even though it didn't turn out as expected, however if you don't wanna do these jobs then just say so. Or if you wanna work by yourself…" the blond trailed off. Natsu looked at Sting intently for a moment, before smiling and laughing.

"What's wrong Sting? I'm okay doing these jobs with you… even if they are a little surprising" the pinkette stated. Sting smiled contentedly, before recomposing himself at the door, reaching for the handle.

"Well alright then" he stated, before opening the door and entering.

/

Magnolia, Summer Time,

Year X792

Sting Eucliffe

Thomas sat curled up in a ball on a wooden chair, opposite Natsu and me. "Here's the job" the Archive Mage stated, no more than a minute after we sat down, making a screen appear for us to read off of. On the screen, a picture of a piece of paper, likely the flyer that would be posted, was displayed, as well as a slightly more detailed description of the job beside it. Natsu and I both scanned over the information, before looking to Thomas.

"So basically, we have to deal with some kidnappers at an amusement park?" I asked the blond teen, who nodded.

"Yes, that is what it says" he replied, in a flat tone of voice that made me frown.

"I'm not saying I'm opposed to the job offer, but why exactly is this anything to do with the Zollzero family?" I asked with an interested voice. Thomas sighed.

"The amusement park is a busy and crowded area, perfect for secret meet-ups or drop offs. Plus, if anyone wanted to try anything, then the busy crowd acts as a deterrent" the teen explained in an almost bored voice. "Additionally, our family put the current manager into his position in order to maintain some of the parks more… secret… areas for our own purposes" Thomas added, before waving his hand dismissively, "And to have this kidnapping business going on there is interfering with our work" he finished.

I nodded in understanding, before looking to Natsu. "So, do you want to do this, Natsu?" I asked him. The pinkette cocked his head for a moment.

"I don't mind, but doesn't the job say they go for kids?" he asked. Again, I frowned and reread some of the information.

"Yeah, but… oh, right… we'll need somebody as bait you mean?" I asked in realisation, seeking further confirmation from the pink-haired Mage. Nastu nodded, however it was Thomas that spoke up to answer this.

"Edric will be coming with you. He can act as bait, since he can use a spell to make himself appear younger" Thomas stated aloud, but with no particular direction to his tone; since showing us the job the teen had ceased to look at me and Natsu directly, and was instead scanning over an impossible amount of information on a separate screen to the one he had facing us two. "Edric can really do that?" I commented in surprise, before another voice butted into our conversation.

"Sure can" Edric stated, as he swaggered into the room, before coming to perch on the side of the desk that separated us from Thomas. Natsu and I both looked to him as he entered; although he was Thomas' twin, he was anything but his brother in terms of both personality and looks. Grinning, Edric glanced at us both, before eyeing Thomas. "Come on Tom, you can do better than that for an explanation about this oh-so-important task" the twin said to his brother. Thomas didn't even bother to look at Edric.

"So, you were listening?" he questioned in a bored tone of voice, already clearly knowing the answer. Edric rolled his eyes and resumed looking to Natsu and me.

"Huh, unfriendly as always… anyways… do you two have any qualms about me accompanying you?" Edric asked us. I looked to Natsu, who pouted.

"Er… so… you will be the bait?" the pinkette asked, the pout on his face visibly showing that he was more than a little confused about the specifics of the job. Edric nodded.

"Yes. You see, according to all our intel these kidnappers, whoever they are, go after young kids, especially unaccompanied ones. I'll use one of my Magical skills to make myself appear younger, and then try to lure them out. Once they've got me, you two shadow them at a distance, and once they're cornered, we deal with 'em in one strike" Edric explained, giving a punch to the air to emphasise this last bit. Natsu nodded in understanding at this simpler explanation. I smiled, however I had my own questions.

"So you have more than just Dice and Card Magic, since I don't think either of those could make someone appear younger?" I asked the teen. Edric raised an eyebrow.

"Who said I didn't?" he chuckled, before folding his arms over his chest, "And yes, I do have more than those, you see… unlike my siblings I don't like to specialise. When I was beaten by Gray, I told him I was more of a 'Jack of all trades', and that was not an understatement. I, in fact, know how to use six different forms of Magic" Edric stated in a boastful tone, raising three fingers on each of his hands to emphasise his point. I raised in an eyebrow in surprise.

"Really?"

Edric nodded. "Of course, I never lie" he laughed, "On top of those two mentioned, I can also use both Transformation Magic, Slot Magic, although that requires a special gauntlet I had made with the slots built in, as well as both Telekinesis and Telepathy. I use these latter two to both manipulate the dice I roll, as well as read my opponents thoughts to tell me what types of dice rolls I need to defend and attack" the teen explained. Natsu and I laughed.

"So, you cheat when using one spell with another spell?" I chuckled. Edric smiled.

"It's not cheating. Just… controlled victory" he explained, "Besides, luck is both an artform and a skill… although it didn't exactly work out for me in my battle with Gray Fulbuster, did it?" he added with a mock pout. Once Natsu and I had heard this, we couldn't help but laugh, however not long afterwards we left the temporary office room with an agreement to set out on the job the following day.

/

"Sooo… what kept you guys?" Edric asked, with his arms folded behind his head as he stood at the entrance to the Fairy Tail guild building. Natsu and I huffed and puffed as we tried to regain our breath, each of us having just ran at full speed from our respective locations.

"I'm sorry… I spent so long thinking about… well… stuff, last night, that I guess I slept in this morning" I stated, trying to avoid saying exactly what, or rather who, I had been thinking about.

Similarly, Natsu bowed his head apologetically. "I got… side-tracked eating at this new place in the market" he said in a truthful tone, "It was supposed to be really cheap, but then… I ate too much and I had to beg Lucy to pay off the rest. She was so pissed" the pinkette added with a slight shudder. Edric looked between us for a minute, his green eyes practically sparkling with amusement, before he shrugged and gestured to some random point behind us.

"You two are both idiots" he said, before grinning brightly, "At least… that's what Erza said when I had to explain to her that you kept me waiting" he explained after a moment of both Natsu and I looking confusedly to him. Edric continued smirking as he gestured for us to begin walking with him, since we had all agreed to walk to the destination rather than take transport, "I think she thought I was offended or something, but honestly I don't really care. I may be a member of the Zollzero family, and the current familial representative here to collect the debts, however I have no interest in causing problems or anything, I just wanna have a little… fun" Edric smiled at us both with a pleasantness to his voice that admittedly put even my mind at ease. Both Natsu and I soon fell into step with the teen, as we began to set off outside of Magaolia town. "So you two being oh… seven minutes late, doesn't really mean anything to me. Although… you probably shouldn't do stuff like this with Medea or Thomas. Artie and I are a bit more lenient, however those two…" Edric frowned "Thomas is one thing, being the stickler for rules and all, however my sister… Medea would double the debt on the spot just to see you both sweat… and then make you do something very embarrassing to restore it back to what it was" Edric said with a slight tone of warning in his voice. I nodded in understanding, a faint picture filing into my consciousness. Natsu seemed to have a marginally worried look on his face.

"M'lday…" I mumbled for a moment, without really meaning too. Edric nodded.

"I suppose you have your own experiences of… women like that, eh?" he stated, glancing from me to Natsu and back with faint enjoyment written all over his face.

I couldn't help but smile in admittance. "M'lady, er… Minerva is like that sometimes. Even though I'm the Guild Master now, she still likes to torment me as she always did" I stated with slight embarrassment to be saying such things. Edric and Natsu both laughed at me, as I expected.

"Huh, never thought Masters'd get bullied too" Natsu chuckled. I raised an eyebrow.

"Minerva may play a few tricks, but she no way near as bad as what Erza seems to be towards you and Gray" I commented, which earned a faint look of surprise from the other Dragon Slayer.

"Hmph… I could take her if I wanted to" he huffed, crossing his arms over his chest as he continued walking. I laughed.

"Oh, so is the reason she's an S-Class Mage and you're not because you can't be bothered to become one?" I asked in a sly tone, giving the Fire Mage as much of a probing look as I could manage. Natsu responded to my look by glaring.

"I'm… just… hmph" he stammered, unable to produce a response. I laughed at the pinkette for a moment, before shrugging.

"Don't worry, I'm only teasing you Natsu" I stated, before glancing to Edric, who was grinning like crazy.

"Is it always this fun being in a guild?" he asked with a chuckle. Me and Natsu both looked to the teen with equally as muddled expressions.

"It… can be, but it can be hard work too" I stated. Natsu nodded in agreement.

"Sometimes when there's no jobs it can be pretty boring too" the pinkette added on. Edric shrugged.

"Oh, it's just it's never this amusing at home. Or at the guild hall. You see, the guild hall for Zero Star is built onto our family estate, so it's pretty much the same atmosphere… all drab and gloomy. I've always liked to go out and have fun, so sometimes I use my Magic to sneak out and do stuff that would definitely get me in trouble if anybody found out" the teen stated, before hoping a couple of steps ahead and turning around with his hands behind his head, "At least when I'm at your guild it's not dull" he added with a grin. I looked intently at the teen for a moment. Maybe this is a chance to get some info… or at least appease the family a little. Never know, might also reduce the debt somewhat I thought cunningly.

"So… I was wondering, why isn't your family, or even your guild, dealing with these kidnappers?" I asked with an intrigued tone of voice. Edric pouted in thought for a moment, before shrugging and cracking a smile again.

"My brother, Arthur, just figured that using your guild might be more… er… official. I mean, if Zero Star dealt with it, and they easily could, the Magic Council probably wouldn't do anything because of our family's reputation, however if another guild like yourselves does it, they'll probably actually lock these people up, if that makes sense?" Edric explained, looking to me for confirmation. I nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, that makes sense" I stated, before glancing to Natsu. The pinkette was looking to Edric, however he did not seem to have anything to say, and was obviously just trying to follow what we were discussing. Damn it, why does he have to look so cute… wait… focus on the discussion I thought to myself, trying to ignore the pouting pinkette. "So… Edric," I started again, trying to start another conversation topic before I became too distracted by my own stupid crush, "is everything your family does… er… you know, underground, or do you actually do some more normal stuff too?" I asked the blond. Edric smirked at me, and flicked his eyes to Natsu for a moment, before smiling openly.

"I guess you would be interested… I can't really say very much about our activities, however I will say this; our family does have some more formal and legal business, such as the restaurant you saw, or the multitude casinos, bars and other such establishments. We also use the guild to get other work from the Magic Council, such as dealing with certain underground organisations, so in some way we do enforce the law… although I don't think that really outweighs all the other stuff we do on the side" Edric stated, "And just out of interest, the Zero Star guild's speciality is 'finding things', wherever, or whoever, they may be" he grinned.

I smiled. "So, you're thieves and officers of the Magic Council?" I questioned amusedly, earning a few laughs from the blond, who spun around and ceased walking backwards.

"I said nothing" he chimed in cheerfully. Natsu, who was looking at the back of the teenager in front of us, then began smiling wickedly. What's got him so amused? I thought suddenly; looking at the pinkette's eyes I could almost see the flames of mischief rising in them.

"Speaking of your little guild…" the pinkette began, earning the attention of the blond teen, "What's up with you and that Haruki kid, I noticed you were quite friendly with him?" Natsu asked. Edric stopped walking for a moment, and looked at us both; his smile dropped a little. What's with that look… did we say something to offend him? I thought suddenly, a little worry rising in me. Natsu and I stopped a few steps ahead of the teen for a moment.

"Just so this is absolutely clear, you can't tell my father. I think most of our guild, my siblings and Kenji know about this… but for the sake of not my safety, but Haruki's, you can't let slip what I'm about to say" Edric stated, with a seriousness to his voice that completely belied what we had seen of him so far. Natsu and I both leaned in a little with both intrigue and the interest that was born only of fear of Edric's severe tone of voice. "Haruki and I have a… special relationship. It doesn't interfere with my information gathering work, however if my father found out he would most likely do something extreme in order to prevent me getting, in his mind, 'distracted'. Understand?" the boy stated. I looked in mild shock at Edric for a moment, however I nodded in understanding soon after he finished speaking; Natsu equally nodded.

"I understand, but… relationships like that are okay…" the Fire Dragon Slayer said quietly, "aren't they?".

Edric smiled. "Sorry to be so serious all of a sudden…" the teen apologised not a minute later, "Just to be clear though, it's not the type of relationship that's an issue, just the fact I have a relationship."

I nodded. "It's alright, I think Natsu and I get the message" I stated, before glancing to the pinkette, who nodded back at me in agreement, "You don't have to worry though. We won't tell anyone anyways, a relationship is a private thing, and I don't think anybody should judge another person on who they choose to spend their time with" I added, with complete honesty in my tone. This seemed to earn the trust of the blond-haired Card Mage, as Edric returned to his previously grinning self not long after, Natsu likewise began to show a cheerier expression. It was not long after that we began chatting once more about guild life.

Despite this return to normality, after Edric's little confession I found myself almost sympathising with the teenage wizard. After all, whilst he is busy trying to obviously hide his relationship, I'm trying to hide my want for a relationship… I thought reflectively. I just wonder, will either of us be able to get what we want given our circumstances?

/

Rising Star Park, the location of the kidnappings,

Year X792

Natsu Dragneel

After our extended walk to the theme park, Sting, Edric and I were all dragged into a meeting room, where a very gruff-faced manager greeted us. Despite his initial appearance, the manager immediately recognised Edric as one of the Zollzero patriarch's children and became especially pleasant towards us all, carefully explaining the situation, whilst also obviously trying to avoid any of the blame falling onto himself as leader of this part of the family's organisation. Despite the apparent importance of the task assigned to us, I listened only half-heartily to the manager's explanations and excuses. Personally, I thought I didn't really need to know all the ins and outs of the business, all I really wanted was to be told who to punch and when, the rest I figured I could leave up to either Edric or Sting to decide.

On the subject of the White Dragon Slayer, I was becoming increasingly suspicious, since after Edric's confession on the walk over to this place, he had been a bit more withdrawn and quiet than previously, often not speaking unless the conversational spotlight fell onto him or his guild. I wonder if he really is okay with gay relationships? I thought to myself, since that seemed to be the most obvious thing to cause the blond to have such a worried and withdrawn expression. Maybe I was wrong and he doesn't have a crush on me or something… it could just be that he was worried about his guild like Mira said I debated, whilst still smiling at something Edric said to the gruff-faced man. Regardless of the reason, what I really wanted to ask right at that moment was not the details of our job, but rather what was so obviously bugging the White Dragon Slayer that I had been partnered with from day one of this debt-collecting.

After a few exchanges of pleasantries, witty comments, and a shaking of hands, Edric ushered Sting and me out of the room to follow him discretely to the front gate of the theme park. Once we alone he showed us each a straighter face than before. "Alright, we're gonna go into the park in a couple of minutes. The manager said that he's going to have the surveillance lacrima cams tuned to follow us whenever we're in view. That way even if you two lose sight of me, the others can tell you where to go" Edric stated plainly, his tone very flat and business-like. Sting and I nodded in understanding, prompting Edric to reach into his trouser pocket and produce two tiny, spherical lacrima crystals, with a tiny cone-like appendage. "Here" he said, handing both Sting and me one of the lacrimas each, "Put these in your ear. It's a very small communication lacrima, designed by my family to be used for discrete purposes" Edric explained as soon as Sting and I had a couple of seconds to eye up the device. I frowned, confused as to how exactly I was supposed to use this, however Sting, after a few moments of looking, picked up the communicator and pushed it into his ear, with the smaller appendage pointed into the White Dragons ear. Edric nodded at Sting, confirming that was the right thing to do, and I, a few seconds later, did the same thing, copying the other Dragon Slayer as best I could. "This feels weird…" I mumbled after a moment. Edric shrugged.

"You get used to it quickly. Just don't be surprised when someone starts speaking in your ear and no one will notice you even have it in" the teen instructed, before a black suited man waved at us from the ticket office outside the gate. "Looks like it's show time" Edric stated after a moment noticing the suited man's wave. I looked to Sting.

"Ready to have some fun?" I beamed, to which Sting smirked back.

"Just remember we're here on a job Natsu…" he said, before cracking a smile, "And no big rides either" he added. I chuckled.

"I couldn't go on 'em even if I wanted to, thanks to my stupid motion sickness" I laughed.

Edric looked between Sting and me for a moment before sighing. "I swear that if I have to deal with either of you two throwing up because you chanced your luck on a ride, then I'm gonna get you two to pay for my drinks when I take you out to a bar" the teen stated, before a poof a magical smoke made his appearance go from grinning blond teen, to smiling blond ten-year-old. Sting and I were both taken a little off-guard by Edric's sudden transformation, however we soon recovered, at least enough to respond to his last comment.

"When did we say that we were going to a bar?" Sting asked the now childish Edric.

The blond boy smirked wickedly, an odd look to come from a ten-year-old. "I just figured I'd have a little fun with you and a few of the guild wizards later, once this job's done" Edric stated. Although this would've been a more tempting invitation earlier, Sting and I both couldn't help but laugh as the appearance of Edric as a child, and the more adult things he was talking about completely contradicted each other.

"Okay, whatever you say little man" I chuckled as Sting and I began to follow Edric to the ticket booth to 'pay' for our entry.

Edric pouted. "Don't even…" he began to say, but stopped as Sting and I grinned down at him. "Fine, but just for this job. Call me that any other time and I'll haul your asses out and beat you to sorry state" the boy said, before making fake 'woo' sounds at the sight of all the impressive rides that had just come into our view, perfectly selling the little-boy act he was putting on.

As Sting and I 'looked after' the childish Edric, we both couldn't help but get distracted by the food and other amusements going on around us. Soon, as planned and expected, we were alerted by the tiny lacrima in our ears that the child we were supposed to be looking after had been taken away by strange men, and then, completely unlike any normal parent or carer would, we each smiled viciously.

"Time to go Natsu" Sting said, finishing the last of his candyfloss in two bites. I nodded.

"Yup" I said excitedly, before getting up, binning the last few remnants of sweats that I had in my hand, and then proceeding to follow the instructions given to me by the cleverly concealed communications lacrima to close in on the side room that Edric had been taken.

Once Sting and I were positioned at either side of the door to the side room, we looked to each other, smiled, and then proceeded to burst in and give the kidnappers hell.

/

A short while later, as Sting, Edric and I all began walking towards the hotel where we would be staying the night, I couldn't help but wonder about a few things. "Hey Sting" I voiced as the three of us were walking up the flights of stairs to get to our rooms on the third floor.

"Yes Natsu" the White Dragon Slayer responded, looking to me intently to show that he was listening.

"Have you ever gone on any of the rides at a theme park before?"

Sting frowned at my question, thinking for a moment before responding. "Not really… I went on one when I was younger to see if I could manage it, since I figured it wasn't really a vehicle, however all that ended up happening was that I threw up all the stuff I had eaten all over myself; it wasn't very pleasant" the White Dragon Slayer stated, before looking at me suspiciously, "Why do you ask? Do you go on them, even though you're a Dragon Slayer?" Sting seemed intrigued by my line of questioning.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "I was just wondering. If you can't go on the rides, is there anything else you like to do then?" I answered, before changing the topic with another question.

Sting cocked his head this time when I asked my question, stopping his ascent of the stairs. "I like to eat, but I think that's pretty obvious. I guess… I kinda like doing some of the stupid little things like trying to win prizes at some of the hut-type things… oh… and if I don't eat anything too big and I just focus on looking into the carriage, I can go on the Ferris-wheel type rides… usually" Sting said, before looking to me again with a quizzical gaze. I looked back at him from my place on the next stair up, whilst Edric seemed to observe us both from a little way ahead. Sting stayed quiet for a whole minute, before asking me anything. "Why are you interested in this, Natsu?" he questioned me, repeating his earlier inquiry one more time.

I shrugged, and smiled at the blond. "I was just wondering. Anyways, just out of interest I can go on the Ferris wheels too, provided that the carriage doesn't shake or wobble too much" I answered before turning to look up the stairs towards Edric. From the corner of my I could see Sting stare at me, before shrugging this off like it was just a normal conversation. He then proceeded to follow me and Edric once more up towards our rooms. Once we were on the third floor, and each in our separate rooms, I flopped down onto my bed and sighed.

"Why did I want to know that stuff?" I asked myself with a genuinely confused tone, "I mean… yeah we were just at an amusement park, and yeah Sting's the first person I've been to one with since… er… well since I was a kid… but why was I so interested in what he thought about it?" The questions left my mind in disarray, however only silence responded to my voiced concerns. After a moment, I sighed and sat up on the bed. "Guess I should probably get showered, since we're gonna be walking all the way back to Magnolia tomorrow too" I thought aloud, trying to shrug off my self-questioning and do something more productive.

Stripping down, I threw all of my clothes onto the bed, before going into the quite spacious bathroom and jumping into the shower. "Edric really knows how to pick a hotel, and it's even free, thanks to his family" I commented aloud as I began to turn on the water. Initially it flowed at a cold temperature, however I soon had it up to a nice, pleasantly warm stream that flowed over my shoulders and chest. Standing under the water naked for a little while, I allowed myself to relax, however this soon brought up a few unwanted thoughts; particularly when an image of the blond I was partnered with jumped into my head. "No no no no…" I said, shaking my head as if to dislodge the unwanted idea. "I don't wanna think about that again" I said to myself before pausing for a second. Although… why don't I? I thought to myself suddenly, is it weird that I'm thinking about what Sting thinks? I shook my head again.

"It isn't weird or anything… I just… was interested in Sting's opinion as a fellow Dragon Slayer, that's all" I muttered before reaching for the soap. As I began to lather my body up I noticed that a particular part of me was beginning to act up. "Really? Now?" I said looking down to my half-erect cock. I don't usually masturbate in the shower… but then again, I suppose it would be weird if I ended up walking back home with a hard on, I thought with a slightly irritated tone to my internal mind-voice, Plus, Sting'd be able to smell it on me if I did, he is a Dragon Slayer after all… I decided that for my own pride I'd let myself have a little release, just this once.

As I began to pump my cock, a little part of my mind had one question that, annoyingly, wouldn't go away. I wonder if Sting is doing the same thing right now… in the shower… or the bed…

The thought, and subsequent mental image it unleashed stayed with me right until I came over my own hand, and the tiled walls of the shower.

"Argh… stupid Sting…" I cursed as I felt the pleasure of release pulse over my body. A few minutes later I tried to clean up the mess I had just made, before finishing off my shower. Not bothering to get dressed, I just used my flames to instantly dry my body, before practically falling into the warm, soft bed.

As I felt my eyelids go heavy, my mind was filled with many questions, many of them revolving around the White Dragon Slayer. I fell asleep with these questions still in my mind, something I was definitely not accustomed to, however I also found my resolve in those few peaceful moments before unconsciousness hit me.

I need to corner Sting and get him to answer my questions. Most importantly, I need to figure out why he's been acting so weird… then maybe I can get an answer for why I keep thinking about him and his stupid cute face.

Wait… cute?

End of Chapter 7

Chapter hint; Beaching Problems