DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FAIRY I DO WISH I OWNED GRAY AND NATSU THO!
The guild hall was overflowing with celebration, laughter, shouts and explosions. Some of the members were away on missions and others were simply just sitting inside the guild drinking with their friends. However, there was one Fairy Tail mage that did not partake in the spontaneous festivities that swallowed the guild in an excited stupor. A raven haired teen sat in the farthest, darkest corner of the guild with his head lying in his arms on the table. Dark bags lined his deep blue eyes and his normally flawless pale complexion was waxy and clung to his gaunt cheek bones. His eyes were glazed over and pained as he was haunted by what happened last month. Every time he closed his eyes, that bastard's face would invade his dreams which prompted him into avoiding sleep all together. He sighed exhaustedly and ran his hand through his hair; the only upside about this whole ordeal was that his stripping habit had finally been beaten. Since he had been rescued, not one article of clothing dared to leave his lean frame; he would rather kill himself than let his friends… his family… see the disgusting being that he had become.
He pulled his legs into his chest and closed his eyes for a few moments, hoping to get a few moments of sleep when Yakumo's scarred, beefy face appeared in his mind's eye; the pain from that day immediately resurfaced. His eyes shot open and tears began to gather in his deep blue orbs. His chest started constricting with panic, so he just held himself closer together, praying that no one would notice and try to break through his defenses. For the first couple weeks, he was able to put on this façade that encouraged the guild into believing that Gray was going to be alright and that he was going to get through it; it was so good that for a while he began to trick himself, but now he was falling apart… and he was hating it… he was hating himself… his weakness. His stomach ached silently, hoping that for the first time in weeks Gray would answer its call and eat, but he couldn't do it.
The ice mage pushed himself to his feet and the world began to swim around him. He put his hand on the table for balance and closed his eyes. When he felt that world had righted itself, he made his way from the table and toward the guild doors. He was almost there when the doors opened on their own. Gray's walls around his heart and emotions seemed to crack slightly when the pink haired dragon slayer walked into the guild with that goofy smile on his face. Natsu, Lucy and Happy had been on a quest for the last couple weeks in Akane; they had invited Gray, but he turned them down, so they would not see how broken he had become. Judging by the smile on the dragon slayer's face, the job went well, however Lucy's expression was completely the opposite; she looked like she was about to explode. Gray forced his signature smirk on his face and slowly made his way over to his teammates.
"Hey guys, how'd the mission go?"
Lucy's blonde brow twitched in annoyance,
"Oh it went fine. Defeated the bad guys and that idiot destroyed half the town so we didn't get paid."
"C'mon Lucy," Natsu rolled his eyes, "It wasn't that bad."
"'Wasn't that bad' my ass."
She turned on her heel and stormed away mumbling under her breath. Gray had to laugh at her predicament; what did she expect? Of course Natsu was going to blow the town up; he has never failed to do so before.
"So where are you off to?" Natsu asked curiously.
"I think I'm going to head home," Gray shrugged, "There's not much going on here."
"Oh, okay." The fire mage watched him carefully, "See you around then ice block."
"Sure thing flame head."
Gray moved to walk around Natsu when his legs suddenly gave out from under him. He heard someone calling his name and saw the hardwood floor rushing up to meet his face when a warm hand wrapped securely around his waist. The last thing he saw before his eyes slid closed was Natsu's onyx eyes staring down at him with concern.
FTFTFTFTFTFT
Natsu, Lucy and Happy were making their way back to the guild from the train station. Natsu was walking calmly with his hands behind his head and a smile on his face. He had been away from the guild for two weeks and he missed everyone like crazy; he especially wanted to see how Gray was doing. Despite how the ice mage has been acting the weeks leading to before the mission the pink haired teen couldn't help but notice that Gray's smile never reached his eyes. He was worried that Gray was keeping everything in again; why he thought he had to do that, Natsu could never understand. The dragon slayer expected his friend to be a little shell shocked because of what happened to him, but the ice mage seemed to have bounced back; too fast for Natsu to be completely comfortable with it.
Natsu continued to ignore Lucy's complaints as the guild hall came into view. Subconsciously, he picked up his speed and was nearly running to the hall. The thought of seeing Gray was making his heart pound and he was desperate to see him. At that thought, a small blush spread across his cheeks and his face heated up slightly. He shook his head and decided that he was just wondering how the ice mage was doing. He opened the doors to the hall and was greeted by the sounds of laughter and merriment, causing his smile to widen.
His onyx eyes immediately fell on Gray who was standing by the doors. Even though he was happy to see his rival, he had to fight his facial muscles so that his smile stayed on his face; Gray didn't look well at all. Not only was the exhibitionist fully clothed for once in his life, but he resembled a walking skeleton. His eyes were dark and lacked the warmth that they used to possess. His face was gaunt and his clothes looked too big for his lean frame; they were basically falling off his body. The only things significantly normal about Gray was the coldness he naturally carried and the smirk on his face; but the smirk even seemed forced.
"Hey guys, how was the mission?"
His voice even sounded broken; how could no one have noticed? Natsu was about ready to knock some sense into everyone around him until he realized that Lucy was still complaining about the mission. At least it was half of the town instead of the whole town; honestly, Natsu was proud of his work.
"C'mon Lucy," He rolled his eyes, "It wasn't that bad."
"'Wasn't that bad' my ass."
She turned on her heel and stormed away; sometimes she could be such a drama queen. Natsu returned his gaze back to the ice mage standing in front of him. He wasn't sure, but he thought he saw the ice mage swaying on the spot slightly,
"So where are you off to?"
"I think I'm going to head home," Gray shrugged, "There's not much going on here."
That's when he noticed it again; the slight swaying in Gray's stature was becoming a little more pronounced sparking worry into the dragon slayer,
"Oh okay, see you around then ice block."
"Sure thing flame head."
Natsu watched as Gray tried to take a step forward when his legs gave out. The dragon slayer instantaneously whipped his arm out and wrapped his arm around the ice mage's waist. He was slightly thrown off by how boney his waist was against his arm.
"GRAY!"
Deep blue eyes connected with onyx for a brief moment before his eyes slid closed. Panic ensnared Natsu causing the temperature of the guild hall to spark slightly. Running footsteps could be heard from behind him, but he was frozen. A hand reached towards Gray and Natsu just pulled him closer to his chest,
"Don't touch him."
"Natsu," Mirajane's soft voice blanketed over him, "We want to help Gray, okay? We're not going to hurt him."
The dragon slayer still held on to the raven haired teen protectively, not wanting anyone near him. To emphasize this, the temperature in the guild hall went up even more. He heard the footsteps back up and the temperature cooled down. Something cold was placed on his shoulder and he recognized it as Erza's hand.
"Natsu, you need to let us take a look at him." Her voice was stern, but also held a warmth that he wasn't used to.
"I didn't know it was that bad," Natsu whispered, "I shouldn't have left him alone."
"We're just as much at fault," Erza said sadly, "So let us make up for it by giving him the help he needs."
The pink haired teen nodded and turned to Erza and the rest of the guild. Tears were prickling at the corner of his eyes and one even managed to trail down his cheek. Knowing not to try and take Gray from Natsu again, Mirajane lead Natsu to the second floor and into the infirmary. When they got into the dimly lit room, Natsu gently laid Gray on the white bed and was nearly sickened by the fact that Gray nearly blended in with the sheets. Without a word he sat next to the bed and held onto Gray's hand; afraid that if he were to break contact Gray would disappear before his eyes. For the first time in many years, Natsu bowed his head and cried.
FTFTFTFTFTFT
He was walking down the crowded streets of Magnolia as the autumn leaves decorated the ground and the sun kissed his skin. Natsu was walking by his side with one of those goofy smiles that always seemed to make his heart soar. He laughed as Natsu basically exploded with happiness at the food stands that surrounded the main street. Gray himself could care less about the food, but he was happy to see the dragon slayer happy. Suddenly the sky turned dark and the air turned icy cold. Normally Gray would be okay with this weather, but something wasn't right. The streets of Magnolia vanished along with the food carts, along with Natsu himself. Gray called out for Natsu desperately when something cold and heavy wrapped around his ankles tightly. He looked down and saw familiar shackles around his ankles and panicked. He bent down and tried to pull the shackles off when he was suddenly thrown backwards and a large metal door slammed shut. Tears trailed down his cheeks as he curled himself into a ball so he could just disappear. Then booming laughter surrounded the room he was in and a chill trailed up his spine. He closed his eyes tightly and rocked himself back and forth; hoping, praying, that it wasn't who he thought it was. A beefy hand grabbed his hair and pulled him forward. Out of pain his eyes shot open and Yakumo's obsidian eyes laughed at him maliciously. Gray struggled in his grip, but he failed in doing so when Yakumo's lips smashed against his own. A small whimper of pain escaped Gray's lips causing Yakumo to laugh like a lunatic.
"Gray! Wake up!"
Yakumo threw him onto his stomach with a sickening crack. Gray knew what was coming next so he tried to curl in on himself, but new shackles had appeared and wrapped tightly around his wrists and the back of his neck. Yakumo's hot breath brushed against his ear,
"Don't worry, it's only going to hurt a little bit."
Tears flowed down Gray's cheeks as the pain started. So much pain and he was so alone; he deserved this, he deserved all of it and he knew it, but it still hurt.
"GRAY!"
Gray shot forward, a cold sweat blanketing his pale skin. He glanced around frantically, but all he could see was darkness. His breathing hitched as panic consumed his very being. He was on the verge of hyperventilating, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He pushed himself backwards so his back was against the wall. He pulled his legs against his chest and rocked himself back and forth. Something touched his arms and he threw himself to the ground and put his arms over his head and continued to rock,
"Don't hurt me," He muttered, "Don't hurt me, I-I know I deserve it… but please just spare me this once."
"Gray…"
"P-Please no more!" He cried as his body shook, "I can't take it anymore! P-Please don't hurt me…"
"Gray, I won't hurt you," A voice whispered soothingly, "I could never hurt you."
The ice mage covered his ears and rocked back and forth even faster,
"N-No! You're lying to me! You just want me to trust you so you can hurt me again!"
Without warning, warm arms wrapped around Gray. He struggled and tried to get away, but he was locked firmly in place. Tears continued to fall down his face and his breathing hitched with more ferocity, but the person holding him refused to let go. His eyes opened without his want, but his tears renewed when they did. A familiar pink haired dragon slayer had his arms wrapped tightly around him; the heat was so comforting, but he was so scared.
"N-Natsu?" He whispered brokenly.
"Yes Gray, I'm here."
"D-Don't let him get me." Gray stuttered, "D-Don't leave me alone."
"I won't leave you." His arms wrapped around the trembling mage even tighter, "I won't ever let you go."
"But he's always there…" Gray whispered, "Every time I close my eyes, around every corner, and everywhere I go… he's always there…watching me."
The dragon slayer's own eyes had filled with tears by this point and they were falling down his cheeks like a waterfall. He had never seen the strong, independent, and capable ice mage so broken and defeated; he hated it… he hated, no, he loathed the man who did this to his Gray. Natsu gently pressed his lips against Gray's forehead and rocked him back and forth soothingly.
"Help me…" Gray's voice whispered.
"Don't worry anymore Gray," Natsu whispered back, "I'll be by your side until your strong enough to stand on your own."
The ice mage buried his face into the crook of Natsu's neck and immersed himself in the dragon slayer's familiar scent and heat,
"Thank you."
Natsu held him tightly and nodded his head in response. He ran his hand gently through Gray's hair and wiped the tears of the mage's pale face. Gray snuggled closer to his dragon slayer and let his remaining tears fall down his cheeks. Even though the road ahead of him was going to be tough and even when he feels like he is going to fall apart, Natsu was going to be there beside him… holding his hand.
This is just edited :D not a new chpt!
-sktrgrl