Disclaimer: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima


ACT II: Celestial Guidance – New Beginnings

Approximately X772

Chapter 4: Travelling

In the beginning Layla kept doing her duties as a mage for her guild, but it was soon evident for her that the Eclipse Gate took more of her magic, than she had originally thought. To open the gate without using too much magic, they would need all the unique golden keys, but since they didn't have that, they would have to use her raw magic. It was sufficient yes, but it was hard work since it felt like the gate was somehow tearing on her body, each time she poured some of her magic into it.

So it was with a heavy heart she reached the decision to retire as a mage, which essentially meant she had to retire her spirits as well. With that said she distributed her beloved spirits to three different owners, making them promise that if she should one day get a child, then he or she would inherit them. Layla felt sad about it, but she was too determined to keep her promise to Zeref, to back away from the project.

The celestial mage stayed at her guild though, because she was starting to find a certain annoying idiot person interesting. Layla didn't know when her feelings towards him changed, but it did and fortunately for her the feeling was mutual. With that the celestial mage found herself in a relationship with Jude Heartfilia in the year X766. After that it didn't take long before they were married and a year later they had their lovely daughter Lucy.

Layla was a proud woman and all the time she worked with Zeref, she managed to keep it a secret to Jude. If her husband knew what she was doing, then he might try to prevent her from being involved, because he might think it was too dangerous for her to be involved. She didn't want that to happen, so all though she loved her husband, she could not tell him her secret. No, it would cause more harm than good.

In the meantime the dragons in the past each found suitable children and for them the date 7/7 was fast approaching...

~ o ~ O ~ o ~

Igneel let out a sigh, as he looked down at the sleeping kid that was laying next to him.

It had almost been a month already, so it was about time for them to go to the portal. Which was easier said than done, especially considering that the aftermath of the war was still going on.

Thieves and people searching for easy money was out there rummaging the world, doing whatever they could to gain something from the bloody trails that had marked the earth.

Spoils of war...

Of course it was getting better, since the government was doing their best to re-establish order, but it took more than some pretty words and regulations in the law, to make the world a harmonic place to be in. Sure it would come eventually, but for now it was too dangerous for the dragon, to carelessly wander around.

That was one of the reasons they were hiding in the mountains in a large cave, just him and the idiotic kid. The other dragon's had left after their talk with Zeref, in order to find their own humans, but also because it was more safe not to stay in a large group.

All in all it was easier for all of them if they were separated, after that until they reached the specific time, because it was easier to flee in a small group, but also because it made it easier to be incognito.

So the month had passed by with him and the kid hiding in different caves, switching locations once in a while, to make sure they avoided human scavengers. Usually they would travel at night, because it was easier to prevent unwelcome attention, but also because it would make it more difficult for Natsu to see all of the horror and blood, that was left after the war.

Unfortunately it wasn't enough, because the poor kid could easily smell and see the traumatic scenes, that was displayed underneath the moonlight.

Each times they saw a corpse or encountered a bloody scene, the kid would tremble and cry, because he didn't understand what had happened. And how should Igneel respond to it? Tell him the truth about the war, which his childish mind wouldn't understand? Lie and tell him that sometimes bad things happen and this was all due to a horrible nightmare, that was turned into reality.

Well obviously he lied...

Igneel could feel the sleeping child stirring beside him and a second later a painful whimper escaped his lips, signifying that he was having a nightmare. It happened every now and then, but it was still too often for the dragon's liking.

The poor child was traumatised...

"Kid..." Igneel called out but it only seemed to worsen the child's condition as he started whimpering more loudly "... hey kid, wake up"

The child's breathing was becoming more irregular, on the brink of him hyperventilating.

"Natsu wake up" the dragon gently nuzzled the kid's head encouraging him to wake up.

A high pitched and painful scream escaped the child's mouth as he shot up to a sitting position, where he sat panting, with small drops of sweat suddenly streaming down his face.

"Wha... what?" Natsu turned his head and scanned his surroundings "Where..?"

"It's okay, kid. You're safe" Igneel said in a soothing voice "There ain't nobody out to get you here"

"Ig... neel?" Natsu asked as he stared back at the dragon "... we're safe?"

"Yes"

"Ohh..." a few tears ran down Natsu's cheeks which he immediately tried to remove, as he rubbed his eyes "... I'm sorry..."

"There's nothing to feel sorry for" the dragon chuckled warmly "It was just a nightmare nothing more"

"Yeah..." the kid sulked and sniffled a few times "... but... it was... awful..."

"I know... just try to forget about it, okay?"

"Uh-huh..." Natsu brought his arm up to his nose, and in a quick movement he removed the snot that was threatening to run down his chin "... I..."

"Yes?"

"I'm scared..." his mouth was quivering, from all of his emotions as he took a deep shaking breath "... I'm sorry..."

"Don't be, it's only natural to be scared sometimes" Igneel gently scratched the kid's head "Feelings are important and a huge part of being alive. So don't be scared and don't hide it"

"Re.. really?"

"Of course"

Natsu didn't say anything, but instead just sat there biting his lip, with tears threatening to escape his eyes.

"I..." the kid started but a second later his face twisted in pain, as he committed to the fear and pain he was feeling "I'm sorry" his voice cracked, as he wrapped his arms around Igneel's arm and started weeping like there was no tomorrow.

"There, there..." Igneel said as he gently nudged his snout against the kid "... let it all out okay"

None of them said anything as Natsu cried his eyes out. Not even Igneel when he noticed that, it wasn't only tears but also snot, that was slowly streaming down his arm, from the kid's outburst.

It was disgusting, but Igneel actually didn't mind that much. Which was weird, because he didn't think that he could grow so attached to the kid so fast.

When the crying seemed to stop, Igneel slowly raised his head making the kid look up at him with huge confused eyes.

"Natsu... today is a special day"

"It is?"

"Yes.. today we're going to travel to a certain place"

"Ohh?" he blinked a few times "Where are we going?"

"To a peaceful place, where we can do whatever we want"

The tiny human lid up momentarily "So I can practice magic?"

"Indeed" Igneel nodded. Over the last month he had shown some different things and movements to the kid, but it was too dangerous to do too much, since it might attract attention they didn't want or needed.

"YES!" Natsu cheered and bounced around a few times, clearly enthusiastic about the prospect of learning proper magic "When are we going?"

The dragon let out a heavy breath as he looked at the hyperactive kid "Soon... just give this old dragon a few more hours to sleep, then we'll be on our way..." Igneel pretended to yawn as he placed his head on the ground.

"But... but..." Natsu clenched his tiny fists "... I wanna go now!"

"Sorry ain't happening kid" Igneel smirked and closed his eyes "Goodnight"

"Pleeeeease!" the human pleaded as he quickly ran over and stood in front of the dragon's head "Please, please, please, pleeeeease!"

"No" the dragon chuckled and opened one of his eyes, to look at the kid who was squirming impatiently.

"But... I promise I'll be good! So please!"

Natsu's eyes was sparkling with anticipation and eagerness, which made Igneel's feel like laughing.

So adorable...

"Kid, have you emptied your bladder this morning?"

"Uhm... uhh, no?"

"Well if you go do that, I promise we'll go right after"

"Really? You mean it?"

"Of course"

"YAAAAARSH!" Natsu squealed as he hugged the dragon's snout "Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!"

"You're welcome, now go. The sooner you pee the sooner we can leave"

"Okay!" he nodded and quickly ran away to go do his business.

Who knew it could be so easy to like such a small human? The dragon wondered as he laid waiting for the kid to return. He honestly didn't know what it was about him, but there was just something charismatic and adoring about his personality. It wasn't just because the kid seemed so fragile in some aspects, that it evoked his protective side, but also his optimistic and honest attitude, made it hard not to like him.

Igneel laid there thinking when he head an ear-piercing scream coming from outside.

Ohh no...

He quickly launched himself out of the cave and to his surprise he saw a scruffy looking man kick Natsu in his stomach, making the pink haired kid yelp in pain, before the man grabbed the tiny kid's neck and raised him up in front of him.

"Still not saying anything huh?" the unknown man snorted as he slammed the kid against a tree, making Natsu whimper in pain.

"Come on! Where are your money?! Where is your food?" the man shouted, his voice dripping with insanity "I need it, so stop fucking around!"

A blind rage overwhelmed the dragon as he approached the couple.

No one could survive the dragon's anger... no one!

A snarl escaped Igneel's lips, making the unknown human turn his head to look at him.

"You dare interrupt my domain and harm my kid, puny human" Igneel snarled in anger "Then you better prepare to take the consequences"

"What the freaking fuck?!" the human removed his hand from Natsu and took a few steps backwards, away from the dragon that was hovering threateningly above him.

"You heard me!" Igneel's voice boomed, making the human shiver in fright "And now you'll suffer the consequences!"

His eyes was radiating with fury as he opened his mouth prepared to bathe and drown the unknown human in fire.

"Shit!" the man gulped and quickly ran away from the scene, hoping to avoid sudden death.

Igneel was about to deliver the final blow, but stopped when he heard Natsu whimpering in pain.

"Igneel... please..." he coughed trying to gather his breath "... don't... kill him..."

"Kid..." he snapped his head towards him "... are you okay?"

"Ye... yeah..."

Igneel narrowed his eyes as he watched the unknown man disappear, making him growl in anger.

God damn it!

"Natsu..." the dragon turned around and walked over to the kid, who was struggling to breath.

"... is... kay..." he smiled a toothy grin ".. we're going to... safe place... right?" a few tears ran down his cheeks, making the dragon flinch in pain.

How could he be so strong, after someone just tried to kill him? He was just a kid!

"Yes, we are" Igneel answered.

"Neat..." Natsu took a deep breath and covered his eyes with both hands, clearly trying to prevent himself from crying again. The dragon watched for a second as the kid started to shake more profoundly evidently struggling to suppress his outburst.

"Kid..." the dragon eyed the red marks that was left after the other human had tried to strangle him, making him growl in anger inside "... you sure you're okay?

"Uh-huh"

"Well then..." if the kid wanted to act strong then that was fine with him "do you want to go to the safe place now?"

"Ye... yeah..."

"Good..."

"I..." Natsu sniffled profoundly "I'm sorry..."

"It wasn't your fault kid"

"But.."

"Some people are cruel because they are scared and afraid, so don't you dare think it was your fault"

"..."

"You hear me!"

"Ah-aye!"

"Good..."

"But..." Natsu started but quickly stopped his sentence and instead launched himself towards the dragon where he hugged his snout, trying to seek comfort "... sorry..." tears was now freely flowing from the kid's eyes.

"I told you, it wasn't your fault" the dragon gently stroked his back, trying to comfort him "Now tell me, did you finish your business?"

"... yeah..."

"You washed your hands?"

"Uh huh..."

"Good!" the dragon smiled "If you're too tired to walk, you can rest on my back..."

"Naaaw-aww!" Natsu shook his head "I'm good"

Igneel couldn't help chuckling as he watched the kid clench his tiny fist in enthusiasm.

"Very well then... but you know we'll get there faster if you get on my back"

"Ohh... well okay" Natsu eagerly nodded and a second later he was on top of the dragon, hugging his back.

"Ready?" Igneel asked and felt the tiny human hugging him tighter in response.

"Yeah, let's go"

"Good" the dragon smiled and soon they were both on their way towards their destiny, that would lead them to the future.

~ o ~ O ~ o ~

Layla could feel the magic being drained from her body, as she stood in front of the gate.

It was finally the day where they would open the gate to the past, so this was the last time she would have to put such a huge strain on her body.

She could do it!

The pain she was feeling was nothing compared to the things they would essentially gain in the future. And honest to god, Layla would do anything in her power if she could make the world a better place for her daughter.

A groan escaped her lips, as her body started to radiate even more. Right now she was pushing her own limits and it was starting to have a negative effect on her body.

"Layla..." she heard Zeref whisper but she ignored him.

"Ungh!" the blonde woman moaned in pain.

Her heart was starting to beat irregularly and her muscles was aching in pain. For her it felt like tiny needles was continuously being stabbed into her body, trying to turn her muscles into mush.

"Don't push yourself too much" Zeref said not that far away from her. This time she didn't ignore him, but turned her head and sent him a smirk.

"I'm fine..." she took a shaking breath "... don't worry so much"

"... I'm not..." the dark mage muttered, with a tiny blush on his cheeks.

"Uh-huh..." Layla smirked knowingly and ignored the fact that she was now sweating profoundly.

Her stomach was starting to ache and throb in pain, almost as if the magic was trying to crush her organs.

They stood in silence deeply concentration about their task, when they heard the gate cracking, signifying it was about to open.

"That's it!" Zeref roared and took a step forwards "Just a tiny bit more! You can do this Layla!"

"... yeah..." the celestial mage sucked in her breath and bit down her lips, pushing for that last amount of magic that would stabilize the portal "Arrrrngh...!"

The portal was radiating more profoundly and a second later the doors opened. As they did, Layla let out an ear-piercing scream and feel to her knees. She had gone beyond the boundaries of her own magical capacity and was clearly drained by her effort. Fortunately she wasn't so deprived it had killed her, but it was enough to physically hurt her body.

"Layla!" Zeref yelled with horror clearly written in his eyes as he span on his feet to glare in the woman's direction.

She didn't answer but instead started hugging her stomach and leaned forwards, trying to ignore the pain she was feeling in her intestines.

Gritting her teeth, Layla started rocking back and forth completely ignorant to the light that was suddenly beaming from the portal, bathing both of them in a soothing light.

"Are you okay?" Zeref started rubbing the woman's back as she started coughing into her hand. Once the coughing stopped, the dark mage flinched when he saw that her hand was suddenly covered in blood "Shit!"

"It's okay..." the blonde wheezed, struggling to breathe "... I'm fine"

"No you're not!" Zeref snarled in anger.

Layla giggled and tried to stagger to her feet, but since that took a lot of strength she didn't have, the dark mage helped her begrudgingly.

"... you shouldn't be standing, you idiot..." he grumbled and removed his arms from the woman, who somehow managed to stand on her own.

"It's okay..." the woman answered "... it wouldn't be proper greeting the dragons laying on my hands and feet, now would it?"

"Like I give a damn about that"

The woman didn't say anything to that, but stared at the portal where the silhouette of a massive creature was spawning.

Astonished by the view, Layla stood in awe as she watched four gigantic dragon's emerge from the portal. A few moments later the dragon's stood proudly in front of the duo, each of them carrying a small human child.

The sight of the children made Layla burst with energy, making her squeal in excitement, however she quickly regained her composure.

It wouldn't do, reacting like a protective mother all of a sudden.

"My name is Layla Heartfilia. It's nice to finally meet you" she bowed her head in respect and quickly whipped her mouth, to remove the blood there. After all she was a proud woman so she had to at least have some level of decency.

All of the dragon's nodded and greeted the two people in turn.

"I see you all managed to get a human child" Zeref nodded in approval.

"Indeed" Grandeeney smiled wholeheartedly as she gently placed her child on the ground. The others followed her example and placed their own humans next to the tiny girl.

Layla clenched her fists as she tried her best to keep her composure. It was just really hard, when there was five children laying in front her, all of them sleeping peacefully.

Heck three of them was no more than infants!

Smiling she felt her mother instinct overwhelming her as she went over to the children and gently eyed each of them in turn.

"Such precious little children" Layla smiled and gently stroked the hair of a little baby girl.

"They are indeed" Grandeeney nodded "That one is my child"

"Ohh... your child?" the blonde turned around to stare at the dragon "... I'm sorry to ask you this, but what about their parents?"

"Deader than a fish who lost his head" Metallicana smirked teasingly.

"... what?" Layla whispered in outrage.

"This is no laughing manner" Weisslogia said stoically "The parents of these children died during the war"

"I see..." the blonde narrowed her eyes, clearly saddened by that fact "... they're all so small though, they can't be more than a few months. Especially these three cutie pies"

"They would have died if we left them to their fate" Skiadrum said in a sad tone "the aftermath of a war is a dreadful thing to experience and brings out the worst in people"

"Indeed..." Igneel nodded in agreement to that statement.

"How dreadful..." Layla gently patted the baby with blonde hair, remembering that not that long ago Lucy had been just as small and fragile "... will they remember any of it?"

"No, I don't think so" Weisslogia answered "After all they are so young that they should suppress their traumatic experiences"

"That's probably for the best" Layla nodded suddenly deep in thought "Mmm..."

"What is it?" Zeref asked when he noticed her frowning.

"I was thinking about their age. Obviously we could say that these three babies are from this year, but I don't know about the other two"

"We'll figure something out" Igneel said "What year is this?"

"It's the year 772" Layla answered noticing the child with the pink hair stirring "Looks like someone is about to wake up"

"Where..." Natsu's voice was fragile as he started blinked with his huge and tired eyes ".. where are we?"

"Hello there little man" the blonde radiated with warmth as she glared at the child, who looked like he was about the same age as her own daughter "Did you sleep well?"

"Uh-huh..." he turned his head towards the woman and looked at her in scepticism before he noticed the other dragons and children surrounding him "... huh?"

"We should get going, it's dangerous being so many dragon's together. It's too easy to catch unwanted attention" Igneel said and turned towards the other dragons who nodded in agreement.

"Yeah don't wanna spend too much time with the idiotic flame head" Metallicana chuckled.

"Watch your mouth idiot" Igneel snarled in anger.

"You shut it!" the steel dragon chuckled " Now come on brat I know you ain't sleeping no more" the iron dragon snickered as he glared at the black haired kid, with unruly hair.

"That ain't fair..." the kid pouted and begrudgingly got into a standing position "... you used that weird dragon magic again, didn't ya?"

"Yeah, yeah whatever..." Metallicana said as he turned around and started walking away "... now come on, or I'll leave you behind"

"Shut it, stupid dragon!" the kid snorted in reply as he followed the dragon and soon they were both gone.

"We should be leaving as well" Weisslogia gently grabbed the blonde haired baby "I bid you farewell"

"As do I" Skiadrum grabbed the black haired baby "Farewell"

And with that they also vanished from their view, into the distance.

"I guess I should follow their example Grandeeney said as she took the blue haired baby.

"But..." Natsu muttered with eyes widening in sadness "... where are you going? Why are you leaving?" his lips started quivering "Did... did I do something wrong?"

"No, no, no" the wind dragon assured the child "We just have to go away for a while, but we will see each other again sometime in the future"

"We will?" the pink haired kid sniffled, on the brink of tears.

"Yes" Grandeeney nodded "At the very least I'm sure you'll meet my child in the future"

"Who?" Natsu blinked in confusion.

"This precious girl" she showed him the blue haired baby "Her name is Wendy"

"Wen... dy?"

"Yes" the dragon gently nuzzled Wendy with her snout "Would you like to say hi to her?"

"No..." Natsu reluctantly turned his head away, because for some reason the display of love the dragon was showing towards the kid, was making him jealous.

"Very well" Grandeeney smiled wholeheartedly and scratched Natsu's head with her claw "You take care, okay?"

"You too..." the pink haired kid muttered as he watched the dragon saying her goodbyes and soon thereafter, she was gone too. When Natsu could no longer see the other dragon, tears suddenly started streaming down his face.

"What's wrong?" Layla quickly went over to the crying kid and kneeled down in front of him.

"I..." the kid sniffled "... don't want them to go..."

"Aww..." the blonde smiled warmly and patted his head "... that's okay, you'll see them again, right?"

"Yeah..." Natsu froze all of a sudden, his eyes widening in horror.

"What's wrong?" Layla asked in concern, not noticing that a droplet of blood had escaped her nose and was trailing down her skin.

The kid didn't respond to her question, but instead started shivering uncontrollably.

"Woman..." Igneel narrowed his eyes in concern "... you're bleeding"

"Ohh..." she quickly removed the blood.

"Natsu is still rather traumatised I'm afraid" the dragon sighed "He has seen some brutal things on our journey, so I'm afraid the sight of blood makes him recall some horrible things. Hopefully he'll forget about it in the future"

"I see" Layla nodded feeling slightly guilty about her own stupid body "Natsu?"

He nodded but didn't say anything.

"Come here" she raised her arms, encouraging the kid to receive a hug from her.

"... kay..." he practically leaped into her arms, where he kept shivering at the horrible things that was playing inside his mind.

"It'll be alright" she started rocking him and gently placed a kiss on top of his head "Shh... just relax..."

"... scared..."

"It's okay to be scared sometimes. Now can you be a big boy and listen to something for me?"

"To what?"

"Place your ear on my chest and tell me, if you can hear something"

Natsu did as he was told and listened to her chest.

"Can you hear it?" Layla asked and stroked his hair with her fingers.

"It's..." he narrowed his eyes in concentration "... beating... like... boom, boom"

"Indeed it is" she smiled warmly "That's the sound of my heart and as long as it's beating, it means I'm alive"

"Ohh..."

"Now just relax and listen to it, okay? Forget everything else and just focus on the beat and I promise you that everything will be fine"

"Kay" Natsu once more did as he was told and after a few minutes he was lulled to sleep. Which was made apparent by the drool that was leaving his mouth, streaming down into her cleavage. She didn't mind at all, but instead smiled in affection as she once more kissed his hair.

"Poor kid..." Zeref snorted and for some reason avoided looking in her direction.

"My, my..." Igneel chuckled teasingly ".. do I smell a hint of jealousy in the air?"

"Of course not!" the dark mage huffed "Don't say such absurd things, when I'm present dragon"

"Yeah, yeah..." Igneel snickered.

"I know this might not concern me" Layla turned her head and looked at the fire dragon "But what happened to Natsu's neck? I noticed some red markings on it"

"I was careless and sent the kid out to pee on his own" Igneel said clearly unhappy about it "When he was out there a mad human attacked him"

"That's horrible!" the celestial mage said feeling outrage "Why would he do that to a poor defenceless kid?"

"I guess he was hoping to score some easy money" Igneel shook his head "Though I fail to see why he would think a kid would have anything"

"I'm sorry" Layla said, feeling really sad "No child deserves something like that"

"You're right" Igneel nodded in agreement "Anyhow I guess it's about time, we should be going too"

Layla looked down at the child in her arms, momentarily reluctant to let him go, but she eventually submitted to the dragon's will and gave him the sleeping kid.

"You take good care of him you hear" Layla said in a somewhat demanding tone, with tears suddenly forming in her eyes.

"Of course" Igneel smirked warmly towards her "I'll make sure he grows up all right"

"Good" she quickly wiped her eyes "Ohh gosh, I'm sorry I don't know why I'm so emotional all of a sudden"

"It's your instinct" the dragon said knowingly.

"Indeed instincts" Zeref butted in from out of no where "Farewell king of fire dragons"

"Yeah, yeah..." Igneel's eyebrow twitched in annoyance "... see ya around, kids"

"Farewell" Layla said and watched the dragon and the kid until they were no more visible for her.

Once they were gone she let out a heavy breath and feel to her knees.

"Ohh?" she said in bewilderment at her body's sudden action.

"You need rest" Zeref said in a sympathetic voice as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I do..." Layla sighed and placed her hand on top of his "... would you mind taking me home?"

"Your wish is my command"

The blonde giggled "... you silly goose..."

The dark mage didn't reply to that remark, but instead helped the woman on her way.

None of them knew what the future might hold, but they had finally finished the most important part of a mission that had started almost 7 years prior to the event.

So it was with happiness in their hearts they left the scene, towards something that would hopefully be a clear and bright future.


A/N: Gotta say I loved making Zeref butt in like that... he's such a nerd ;)

So why did I introduce Wendy to Natsu? Well it was my attempt to explain why Natsu seems like he somewhat recognise it later on, when he meet her for "the first time".

And yes I know Natsu cries a lot, but he's just a kid who experienced some really horrible things. I mean I think a lot of adults would act the same way, if it happened to them ^^

Fun fact: there's a contradiction in the lore, because Lucy is born in X767 and Layla decides to retire in the year X764 (where she distributed her spirits to three different owners, each to be entrusted with a key until Layla's child was ready to inherit the spirits).

So unless Layla was pregnant for a long time, then there's something not adding up ^^

Also I decided that when I'm editing an arc, I'll publish the chapters as I finish them. So I can't be specific about when I'll update, but since I'm far ahead in typing, it should be sooner rather than later. With that said I will finish this current arc, during this weekend (there are two more chapters after this one, but since I need to do some typing as well, they might not be finished until tomorrow)

(the fuel the author consumed editing this chapter was: coffee, popcorn and cola – that is all, bb)