A/N: Did you read the new chapter? All I can say is I BELIEVE NATSU IS END.
And uh if you like GrayZa I started a one-shot collection that gets updated every day. Thanks again to my beta Epicocity! (I really tried to get the dialogue thing done this chapter. I seriously had to redo like ten sentences, but who knows.)
She threw her sword, the sword that had impaled Deliora, onto her bed, the blood staining the coverlet. It had been a long journey to get back to headquarters, tiresome to the extreme. She next ripped off her hood, letting it drop to the floor. She was angry, beyond angry—because Gray had been there. She let her fingers run through her short black bob—Gray, Lyon and Ultear. The exact people she didn't want to be involved in a battle like that.
"I know you're angry," a soft voice came from the doorway… Lisanna.
"Hell yes I'm angry!" she whirled around, jabbing a finger at the white haired girl. "Keeping Jellal and Meredy thinking Ultear was in the dark was one thing—but this is another."
"Ur. I need you to calm down," Lisanna spoke carefully, "Sting and I decided that the best option here was to send Ultear into the field."
"You know she's to weak right now—"
"How do you know that? Because if I remember correctly, you haven't been to see her once since the incident. Not that she knows of your new state."
"When everything calms down I will," Ur snapped, her eyes shifting to a view a picture of the girl in question.
"I went to get Gray's future told like you requested," Lisanna smoothly changed the subject; once again remind Ur why this girl was the head of the rebellion. Lisanna had been angrier than anyone here, and in some ways she had a right to be. Ur couldn't help but think the incident changed her for the worst.
"You didn't tell Cana?" Ur asked carefully, they couldn't let something slip to the brunette until the time was right.
"Of course not…. No—I had Sting ask her."
"And? What did his future say?" Ur demanded, his future was the one she was worried the most about. They seemed to want him the most, and for that she needed to make sure he was safe.
"It said…" Lisanna took a deep breath and continued; "It said he has love, memory and… pain in his future."
Five Months Later
"I can't believe they're forcing us all to go home," Gray groaned, stepping onto the train car, going as slow as he possibly could. "I mean it's only spring break," Erza smiled slightly at his complaints, the two of them had become closer in the months that followed Deliora, studying together, him painting while she 'observed', talking, going to class, teaching her how to draw and have fun-and while she still hadn't seen him smile—she felt like she knew him better than anyone else here.
"I wonder where Natsu and Wendy are going for the break," she mused instead, her brown eyes scanning the train car for their familiar faces. Since Lucy's sudden departure, Natsu had been rather distant—but Wendy was still her good friend, even she didn't talk much.
"I don't know, but I'm glad I don't need to see his mopey ass any longer." Gray slid into the seats in the back row, Erza sitting next to him.
"Be nice. You know it's hardest for him that we heard nothing from Lucy after her departure," he simply rolled his eyes at her, rummaging once again in his bag for his sketchbook—much like the first day. She sighed, he'd taken the window seat—and she found herself without anything to do.
"What are the chances that he sneaks out and goes to find her?" Gray asked her after a moment, and then—
A small blunette ran towards them, a look of distress upon her small face. Gray gave Erza a look of triumph as Wendy shoved a piece of paper in Erza's hand for her to read.
Natsu went to Lucy's house! WE NEED TO GO AFTER HIM! The Master asked me to deliver this personally; him and Mira are waiting in a car.
Gray sent Erza a grin, and the scarlet haired girl exhaled with relief—she wouldn't have to go home yet, she wouldn't have to see them-she pushed those thoughts aside and sprang up after her best friend and followed him out of the train car.
They didn't notice the tall student glancing after them from in-between her dark curtains of her, idly throwing one blue dyed tip behind her shoulder as she narrowed her green eyes at the sight of them.
"Annika?" someone next to her asked, and her attention broke away from the departing students.
…
"Thank you so much!" Mirajane cried at the sight of them, jumping from her position leaning against the car and hugging them both. "I'll give you a week of no therapy for this!" The Master, or Laxus as he preferred to be called, was sitting in the driver's seat of the car, his face pulled into a scowl. "We decided that we couldn't bring Natsu back without the help of you two," Mira explained next, gesturing for them to get into the car.
"It's no problem at all!" Gray and Erza said in almost perfect unison, which caused a laugh to bubble out of Erza's lips before she could stop it. Gray grew very weird and silent around laughter—so she generally tried not to do it much.
"Well, let's try and catch him before he gets to far!"
…
It wasn't that hard for Natsu to find Lucy's house. In fact, it was very easy. All you did was google 'Heartfilia Estate' and a handy little address popped up, not that far from the school in fact. Natsu wondered to himself why Lucy took the train when she was close enough to walk.
Well, it took around twelve hours for him to walk there, foregoing all offers of vehicles. He would rather not be vomiting on her carpet when he arrived.
He whistled through his teeth when he saw her house, large, gold and impressive, rising out of the trees like some giant gold statue with lots of windows, the back of the house pressed against a tall snowcapped mountain. It was a lovely sight really, and if it was not for Lucy hating it the structure so firmly he didn't know what his opinion would be. He had no idea what window could be Lucy's, and there were lots of windows—so he observed the whole house for a couple minutes. Guards strolled regularly across the gardens, although they mostly seemed relaxed, like this job was more boring than exciting. Still, boredom meant if they did see someone—a.k.a him, he was done for.
He was currently standing behind a tree in the forests that bordered their house, and he slowly creeped out from behind it's thick trunk when he saw an opening between guard patrols. He was immediately inside a green garden bush before anyone could see—feeling extremely proud of himself.
"You have to make sure Lucy Heartfilia doesn't get back to Fairy Tail, that's your only mission." a voice crackled through what Natsu assumed was the speakers of a phone, and he tilted his head to the side, automatically snapping to attention as Lucy's name was mentioned.
"Juvia knows sir." another voice spoke up, female and cool. "Juvia will succeed in her mission."
"You better. Or you know what will happen."
"Juvia understands. Have a nice day." she said, and Natsu can practically hear the sadness radiating out from her tone. His assumption that she was depressed was only further proven when the sounds of someone sobbing echoed through the bushes. He dared a peek, and saw that the owner to those tears was a young woman—probably Lucy's age. She had curly blue hair that fell to her shoulders, and large blue eyes that couldn't stop crying. Something about her whole body almost looked watery, but he decided he must have been seeing things. "Juvia just wants to go home," he heard the girl whisper to herself, "Juvia just wants this all to be over. She wants to be with the others!"
Natsu took her tears as an opportunity to dart out of his bush and run across the courtyard to another bush—and he didn't notice the happy look that spread across the bluenettes face at the sight of him, and he certainly didn't notice it dissolve into more tears when she watched Natsu hide.
He wasn't sure how he was going to figure out what window was hers, and decided to act on impulse rather than smarts. He could see books in that window; if it was anyone's room it would be hers. He knew this after all, she was the girl he…. Pushing away that thought he scooped up a rock from the grounds, and stepping out of his bushes chucked it at the window, and it bounced off the glass with a solid sound. Natsu seriously thought he had magic for a moment there. Lucy came to the window, golden hair glinting in the sunlight streaming through her window. He waved at her, smiling happily.
She went white, and mouthed frantically at him. What are you doing here?
I want to talk to you. He mouthed back, and then caught sight of the perfect tool for getting into her room. A rose trellis, clinging tightly to the side of the house, and so what if he got stabbed a couple of times by some roses? It wouldn't matter—not to him anyways. Looking left and right to make sure no guards were coming, he began to climb up it like a ladder, quickly and efficiently. Lucy opened her window and hauled him inside before anyone could see, sending them both crashing on to her rug, his body smashing against hers for a moment before he quickly pushed himself off of her before it could be considered in any way 'scandalous'.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed, shutting her window with a snap and turning to face him. He didn't answer, instead taking this moment to sink into one of the pink cushy chairs by her window. He stared at his hands for a moment, his eyes thoughtful.
"I came here to take you back with me," he finally said, his eyes flickering up to meet her form. She was as beautiful as she was in November, large brown eyes and golden hair, her mouth set in a firm line, which softened as she heard his words.
"Natsu—" she began, her eyes moving from him and switching to staring at the floor, "I can't go with you."
"Why not?" he demanded.
"My Father—he's having me get married. To a man, I don't even know," she smiled weakly, "If I don't, he's going to make sure Fairy Tail gets run into the ground."
"Like hell that will ever happen," Natsu growled, his whole body tense. "Laxus was right, your dad is a jack ass."
"Oh like you're any better," Lucy snapped back.
"I am!"
"How?"
"How am I not?"
"Well both of you don't trust me," she suggested, anger radiating from every pore. "Tell me Natsu, why don't you trust me? My lovely amazing Father doesn't trust me because he thinks I'm out for his money, but you don't have any reason do—" She was broke off in her tirade when he lunged forward and kissed her.