Disclaimer: Mashima-sensei owns Fairy Tail minna! :)
Warnings: Violence, Implied Character Deaths, Blood, Language
Silver sat on the porch, his eyes lingering on the brightening skyline as pinks and oranges started to overcome the indigo blue of the horizon. The stars had long since disappeared along with his easiness and calm; the day had finally come. It was hard to believe that it has already been three years since he had approached the Dragon Clan in order to ask them to protect his son from his inevitable fate. Of course, he wasn't expecting the young Dragon prince to imprint on Gray, but now that it has happened he couldn't be more grateful. Now he knew he could leave this world and his son would have protection from the strongest clan of the three races.
"Silver."
The raven haired man managed to suppress a jump as he turned towards the crisp voice of his childhood friend and partner. Ur Milkovich was leaning casually against the post at the top of the stairs; her arms folded across her chest. Silver felt the need to laugh at her stern expression, even though she portrayed the mask of nonchalance, he could tell that she was just as tense as he was. He ran his hand through his hair nervously; he should've known that she would be showing up sooner or later. He sighed, at least that meant he wouldn't have to hunt her down later.
"Ur," He smirked at her, "Good to see you; how are your kids doing?"
The raven haired woman rolled her eyes,
"Let's skip the pleasantries Silver, do you have any idea what day it is?"
The demon slayer stared at the slightly frozen floorboards of his deck and decided not to answer; even if he didn't say anything, she would know. He could feel her brown eyes burning into the top of his skull and he was sure that she wasn't quite through with him yet. He heard her sigh loudly before she walked across the porch and sat down in the wicker chair that resided beside him.
"Does Mika know?" She demanded, "I swear if you didn't tell her you'll have more than Zeref to worry about."
Silver scratched his chin and stared at Ur out of the corner of his eye,
"She knows enough; I'm not risking the chance that she'll be pulled into this."
Ur slammed her fist onto the wicker arm rest,
"What are you thinking?! You're going to die! Doesn't she deserve to know that?!"
He clenched his hands into tight fists as he pushed himself out of his chair and wandered over to the wooden railing that encircled the porch. He leaned against the plywood and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. He knew that he wouldn't be able to keep silent this time; Ur wouldn't be able to accept it if he wasn't able to give her an answer. After all, if it weren't for her, he would never had met Mika and had Gray; and he knew that without a doubt, he wouldn't have survived as long as he had being what and who he was without them.
"Of course she does," He hissed, "But Gray is already losing a father, I will not let him lose his mother as well; what would you do if you were in my situation?"
Silence surrounded them; the only sound was the harsh, late autumn wind as its cold touches caressed the frost covered ground. He didn't think she was going to say anything until her slightly calloused pale hand landed on his shoulder. Even when they disagreed, he could always count on her to make him feel better. She was his emotional rock; he helped him with things that he wasn't able to share with Mika…after all, his wife was a 'null', she was completely human and had next to no knowledge about the demon world or the war that was happening at their doorstep.
"Don't get me wrong Silver," She whispered, "I want Mika to live in the dark as much as you do and I want her to be around for Gray; we both know how much he'll need her in the future, but the Exceeds also told us the prophecy of your death…of both your deaths."
The demon slayer pounded his fist onto the fine wood causing shards of ice to erupt in its wake,
"I won't let that happen! I will not let her die; I refuse to leave Gray alone like that and I refuse to let my duty take her life."
Ur's hand trailed up from his shoulder and rubbed the back of his neck rhythmically,
"Your son won't be alone; he has people who will keep him safe."
Silver scoffed loudly,
"And for how long? Don't forget Ur, you have a prophecy hanging over your head as well."
She smiled sadly and let her hand fall limply to her side. She walked over to the railing herself and folded her arms across the wooden plank. The both of them watched as the first rays of sunlight started to touch the snow covered ground making the white particles shine like diamonds.
"What about the Dragon prince?" She glanced at him with a raised eyebrow, "That clan is practically immortal; they only age if they wish and you mentioned that the prince imprinted on Gray didn't you?"
Silver smiled sardonically,
"A prophecy lies over their heads as well…and it seems that they will be separated for a long time before they can finally meet again."
Ur laughed hollowly,
"It's amazing how our lives are controlled by prophecy; it's almost as if we don't have free will at all."
Silver shrugged his shoulders vaguely and narrowed his deep blue eyes onto the horizon. Most of their lives seemed to be controlled by the higher powers; it was almost as if they were mindless drones who only listened to the will of their master. However, he knew that if Zeref were to finally end this never ending war, it would be an eternity of slavery for both the living and the dead. If he had to give his life in order to set the path to salvation he was willing to do it…
"Papa?"
The demon slayer automatically turned his head to the now open doorway only to see Gray standing there tiredly with his blanket clutched tightly in his hand. His large, droopy eyes seemed more pronounced with the lingering touches of sleep trying to pull his eyes back closed. Silver smiled at his son brightly before walking towards him and lifting him up in his arms. The small raven immediately wrapped his arms around his dad's neck and buried his face into his throat.
"What are you doing up already little one?" He whispered playfully.
"I couldn't sleep anymore; I wasn't tired." He yawned loudly, "Who's she?"
Silver chuckled under his breath as he carried his son over to his childhood friend,
"This is your Aunty Ur; the last time you would've seen her you would've been a baby."
Gray tilted his head to the side and stared at her cautiously. Silver had to hide a laugh as a cough when he took in Ur's surprised expression on her face. She hadn't seen Gray since he was a baby in the hospital; between missions for the Hunter Clan and her own little ones she hadn't had the time to get to know her godson.
"Hi there," She greeted, "You don't need to be so scared; I'm not going to hurt you."
"I'm not scared," Gray pouted, "I'm not scared of nothing."
Ur chuckled and ruffled the boy's raven hair affectionately,
"Even the monsters under your bed?"
Gray flinched and looked away from Ur as he bit his lip. Silver smiled fondly at his son; his boy wasn't scared of much, but when it came to the 'monsters' under his bed it was an entirely different story. Silver rubbed his back soothingly before placing his son on the floor. Gray clung to his pant leg and stared up at him with wide eyes.
"Why don't you go get ready for the day," He whispered, "Mama will be up soon and then all four of us can sit down and have your birthday breakfast, yeah?"
A bright smile overtook the small raven's face and he nodded his head enthusiastically,
"'Kay! Is 'Tsu coming for breakfast?"
Silver smiled softly,
"Not today, but his dad said that he'll be here for supper."
Gray frowned for a moment at the thought, but he nodded his head nonetheless and ran back inside; his feet pattering against the hardwood floor as he moved. Silver's eyes followed his son's frame until he disappeared around the corner. He turned towards his friend and saw the soft smile on her face.
"Shit," He whispered, "I guess you can't stay for breakfast can you? Who's watching over your kids?"
"Rob and Gildarts are watching over them," She shrugged, "Gildarts ended up staying the night on the couch after our poker night went too long and he passed out, while Rob said he would watch all three of them this morning since he knew that I would want to come here bright and early to talk to you."
"So is that a yes to breakfast?" He raised an eyebrow curiously.
She touched his elbow comfortingly,
"I'll stay as long as you need me; after all, what are sisters for?"
He smiled and nodded at her as she turned and made her way into the house. Silver remained outside for a moment longer and watched as the sun completely breached the horizon; finally invoking the start of the end of his life.
FTFTFTFT
Natsu stood outside as the sun started to rise into the sky. As the son of the great fire dragon Igneel, he rose when the sun did along with his father. Of course, his dad usually disappeared before the sun would poke its way into the early morning sky so he could start the ritual of protection. Usually, Natsu could lounge around in bed for a few more hours, but today he found that he couldn't. He knew that something was going to happen today and he knew that it wasn't going to be good; his father had been getting tense for days now and it has only gotten worse.
The dragonling was pulled out of his musings as something seemed to blossom in his chest. He smiled faintly as he realized that his Chosen had woken up from his slumber. He never thought he would meet his soul mate so soon after coming of age; for most dragons it took years, maybe even millennia, but Gray was there on the very day he entered 'adulthood'. Of course part of him wished that his Chosen was a little older (or a lot older) than he was, but he was going to be around throughout Gray's life be it brother, best friend and then finally (hopefully) lover.
"Oi Natsu, stop thinking so hard," A gruff voice called out, "You might burn off the rest of your brain cells."
"Oh shut your mouth metal head," He growled as he turned towards his 'brother', "Don't you have anything better to do than piss me off?"
The son of the metal dragon demon Metalicana guffawed loudly as he approached the fire dragon demon. Natsu scowled as Gajeel's sharp red eyes seemed to scan over him like an experiment and a smirk appeared on his face.
"What's got you in such a bad mood?" He laughed, "Shouldn't you be happy? It's the squirt's birthday isn't it?"
Natsu ran his hand through his pink hair,
"Yeah it is, but I feel like something is going to happen."
Gajeel's eyes narrowed as all teasing left his face,
"What kind of feeling are we talking about? The good kind or the 'world is going to shit' kind?"
The fire dragon threw his hands up in the air,
"That's the problem; I have no clue and it's driving me absolutely crazy!"
Natsu sighed and paced around their forest encampment; this entire thing was just frustrating. He was about to set a nearby tree aflame when he felt Gajeel's hand grab onto his forearm. He turned to face his 'brother' and he immediately noticed the tenseness that resided in the older raven's frame.
"Have you talked to your dad about it?" He demanded.
Natsu frowned and yanked his arm out of the metal dragon's grip,
"I would if I knew where the hell he disappeared to."
Whatever was bothering his father for the past couple days was enough to ensure that he remained removed from the rest of the clan. Natsu didn't know what it was, but even that behaviour made him uneasy. His fingers were twitching restlessly at his side as he broadened his senses in an attempt to locate his father. However, as he scanned the clearing he found it strangely devoid of the Guardian Dragons; it was as if the only ones left in the village were the dragonlings…even the dragonlings who were too young yet to be left alone were without their parental figures.
"Gajeel," He whispered tensely, "When was the last time you saw Metalicana?"
The red eyed dragonling shifted warily,
"Sometime this morning; a little after the sun rose I believe…what are you thinking about flame head?"
Natsu tilted his head worriedly,
"I can't sense the Guardians or my father; it's as if they completely disappeared."
Gajeel frowned at him in disbelief before closing his eyes. The heir knew that the older was scanning the encampment for anything that he may have overlooked. After a few moments, the iron dragon demon's eyes opened slowly; confusion and hurt shining in his fiery orbs. Without saying a word he turned his back on Natsu and started to make his way to the forest line.
"Oi metal brain!" Natsu hollered anxiously, "Where the hell are you going?!"
"I'm going to go round up Laxus, Erik, Sting and Rogue," He answered tersely, "You on the other hand have to head to the squirt's house and warn the demon slayer that something is happening and it's not good."
"But…our parents…"
Gajeel froze in his footsteps,
"For whatever reason, they aren't here which leaves you in charge. You said something big is coming and despite your lack of intelligence I do trust your instinct; you need to be able to protect Gray at any cost. I'll bring the others over when I find them; we need to be prepared."
Natsu clenched his jaw so hard that he thought his teeth were going to crack; he didn't like the idea of splitting up at all, but it was the only thing they had right now. He nodded his head tightly before turning his back on his brother. The pinkette gathered his magic inside him and allowed it overflow; the flames immediately swallowed his body. As soon as the heat left his newly formed scales, Natsu flapped his large wings and took to the sky. He was faintly aware of Gajeel doing the same behind him; it was the fastest mode of travel after all.
He focused on letting his wings rip through the air as he shot above the trees; it seemed that with every flap of his wings, the lower the sun would sink in the sky. He really hated how far Gray's village was from the clearing; it made visiting him difficult. And considering the dilemma he has currently found himself in, he really wished that there was some short cut that he could take. He was about to fly into the barren icy landscape of the tundra when a familiar scent reached his nostrils. Natsu immediately glanced down and noticed a shock of auburn hair; judging by the scent it could only be Erik. Without a moment's hesitation, Natsu dove from the sky and shot like a rocket towards the ground. Before his snout was a hair away from the snow, he leveled himself out and allowed his flames to consume him once more; his human body taking the dragon's place.
"Erik," Natsu addressed the poison dragon demon, "Gajeel and I were looking for you."
The red head was silent for a moment before he turned to face the heir,
"I heard you."
The pinkette's eyes narrowed cautiously; something about his 'brother' didn't feel right and he knew that a large part of it was because Erik never used his unique gift on members of their clan. Natsu sniffed the air around him and instantly put himself in a defensive pose causing a smirk to spread across Erik's lips.
"Erik," Natsu growled warningly, "What did you do?"
The poison dragon demon's onyx eyes shone brilliantly,
"I've done a lot of things, but I have to say that the one I am most proud of so happened to occur today."
Natsu was prepared to charge the red head when he suddenly held up his hand,
"You should be careful your highness, you wouldn't want to leave itty bitty Gray to his death do you?"
The fire dragon demon's eyes sparked dangerously,
"Don't you dare threaten him."
Before he was even able to finish the sentence, Erik had started laughing; his dulcet tones echoing throughout the bitter air. Natsu gathered his power within him prepared to fight his brother only to freeze in his tracks once more. Erik tilted his head to the side and stared at Natsu as if he was nothing more than the dirt that was stuck to his shoes.
"I don't have to threaten him," Erik smirked, "For it has already been written…At the six year mark the Dragons will be Betrayed by one of their own, and the Dark One shall ascend the throne; One snow covered village will be the stage, to be consumed by the Monster's rage; The Protector of Ice shall finally fall, bringing with him the end of them all."
It felt as if every corner of his core was doused in water. His airways seemed clog as realization started to set in. All the sad and longing looks that Silver had as the years went on and the silent worrying of his father; the six year mark was today…today, Gray was turning six years old. Newfound rage burned inside him as he glared hatefully at his brother; the dragonling who was christened on the exact year as himself.
"Erik," Natsu hissed as flames sprung to his hands, "How could you?! H-He's my Chosen…and we…we're your family!"
Dark laughter escaped his lips,
"And that my dear Prince is why it's called betrayal. But now that you know the truth, I can't allow you to leave alive; I can't have you running off to warn the demon slayer now do I?"
Natsu felt his belly swell as he prepared himself for a roar. Just as the flames left his lips, he was able to catch Erik's next words…
"And from now on you can call me Cobra; you should know the name of your killer."
FTFTFTFT
Silver watched his son as the small raven sat in front of the panoramic window; his warm breath fogging the chilly glass. He noted that the sun was sinking lower and lower; it had well passed supper time and Natsu had yet to make an appearance. Gray had refused to touch his plate until Natsu had arrived and with his genetically given stubbornness, it was obvious that no matter how much Mika or himself tried they would not be able to get Gray to have one bite of his dinner. The demon slayer frowned, if that pink haired idiot ever did show up he was going to kick his ass for making his baby boy sad.
He was pulled out of his borderline murderous thoughts by thin arms wrapping around his neck. He placed one of his hands on Mika's right forearm and rubbed it soothingly. Silver smiled softly as she pressed her lips to his temple. She slowly released him and wandered over to the seat across from him and sat down. She set her elbows on the table and laid her head in her hand; Silver gulped, he knew that look. It meant that she wanted to talk…and said topic might very well result in a very brutal smack down from his wife.
"Silver," She frowned, "Natsu's never been late before, early yes, but never late; I'm worried."
The dark haired man tensed slightly,
"He probably got held up is all; he is a teenager."
Mika was contemplative for a moment; her honey brown eyes shining with curiosity and mischief. She played with the ends of her long raven hair thoughtfully before looking her husband in the eyes. Okay, now he knew that his wife was up to something. Mika stretched her hand across the table and placed her small hand on top of his own. She rubbed her fingers along his knuckles and looked at him imploringly.
"I know," She smiled sadly, "I know everything."
Silver's heart stopped,
"Y-You what?"
"I knew something was different about you Silver; you seemed so otherworldly. I thought it was my imagination until Gray was born…he had the same otherworldliness as you did and then when Natsu came into our lives; c'mon you wouldn't think I'd find it strange that he doesn't age and that he's creepily emotionally invested in my six year old." She rambled, "So, well, I talked to Makarov…"
Silver pulled his hand away from Mika's and buried his face in his hands. The very thing he didn't want to happen had happened. He laughed brokenly before raising his head to look at his beautiful wife. Mika had tears in her eyes, but she was still smiling at him. That's when he knew that she knew about the prophecy as well.
"Mika," He whispered, "When the time comes, I need you and Gray to run away from here as fast as you can; do you understand me?"
She opened her mouth to respond only to be cut off by their son's enthusiastic shouts,
"'Tsu is here, 'Tsu is here!"
Neither of them had the chance to blink before Gray had hopped off his seat by the window sill and threw open the front door. Suddenly the smell of death reached his nose and caused him to immediately shoot out of his seat. He heard Mika doing the same, but he was focused solely on the scent that had filtered into his house. When he reached the doorway, Natsu was kneeling in the snow, his body almost contorted into an unshapely ball…that's when he noticed the smell was coming from Natsu.
With a burst of speed that instantly caught up with Gray's little legs, Silver overtook his son and acted as a barrier; causing the small raven to run directly into his arms. Gray started to kick him repeatedly for halting his mad dash for the dragon prince, but he effectively ignored. He quickly handed Gray to Mika who had just caught up.
"Go get Porlyusica," He ordered, "And make sure she hurries."
Something in his eyes made her pale and she immediately listened to him; she started towards the village, Gray kicking and screaming for Natsu the entire way. Silver returned his attention to the fallen Dragon Demon and ran over to his fallen figure. He reached out to touch his quaking shoulder only to have Natsu flinch away from him.
"Don't touch me," He hissed brokenly, "The poison will spread to you too."
Silver's eyebrows furrowed,
"Poison?"
Natsu looked up at him; his amber-flecked green eyes were surrounded by dark circles. His normally golden tanned skin was as pale as the snow that lay around them. He knew that if he didn't do something soon, the Dragon Prince wouldn't survive long enough for Porlyusica to save him. He could not let Natsu die; not only did he owe Igneel, but Gray would be broken for the rest of his life…a part of his soul torn from him. He summoned his ice magic and concentrated a portion of his demon slaying magic into the sheet of ice; enough to curb the poison, but not enough to kill the dragon demon faster.
"Who did this to you?" He demanded.
Natsu winced,
"Erik…Erik betrayed the clan; the prophecy is coming true."
Silver frowned,
"Where's your father? Couldn't he fight him?"
The pinkette's fists clenched tightly and the dark haired male had a feeling that it wasn't because of the pain. Natsu stared at him evenly; worry and fear evident in his steely gaze. He relaxed his hands and closed his eyes,
"Igneel, Metalicana and the other Guardian Dragons have all disappeared; we couldn't sense them anywhere…it was as if they had never existed."
Zeref and Acnologia…
He didn't voice it to the hurt Dragon Demon, but he knew deep in his gut that they were responsible for the Guardians' disappearances. He was about to ask the young heir more questions when a ferocious roar sounded in the direction of the village followed immediately by an explosion. Silver looked toward the village to see what the hell was going on only to see a demon that had to be close to fifty feet tall and he was positive he could sense Zeref's Living Magic surrounding it; he smirked, it made it virtually unbeatable.
"Don't…Don't go."
He turned and found himself looking into desperate green eyes,
"Gray will need you…your wife…if you go all of them will die and Gray will be left all alone."
"I…" Silver sighed and pressed his hand on pink hair soothingly, "I have to protect as much people as I can; my clan is fighting so I have to help them protect those who cannot protect themselves."
"But…"
Silver shushed him calmingly,
"Gray will always have you Natsu, son of Igneel and with that knowledge, I know I can die peacefully."
Before Natsu could argue with him any further he dashed towards the smoldering inferno that used to be his town. He had left Natsu solely for the fact that the other members of his clan were coming to his aid. As he entered the chaos filled streets, he only regretted one thing…
Gray would have to watch both his mother and his father die.
TBC
Hey minna! :D Here's a new update for ya! Sorry for the delay, but I wanted to make this part just right, hopefully it isn't too horrible. I still can't believe I wrote this…sigh…I hope you like the whole betrayal thing lol it was difficult for me to choose a rogue dragon demon (here's a punny moment for ya: I was gonna chose Rogue for the bad guy because of Future! Rogue in the Manga/Anime but decided against it 'cause he wouldn't have the same motivation since Frosch is still alive in this). Waiting on your reviews :)
-sktrgrl
PS. Okay… so before finishing this chapter I watched episode 196 of Fairy Tail…hell I knew it was coming but I still bawled like a baby when Gray took the fall for Juvia :'( and congrats to all of you who said it was Lyon who called out Gray's name…yup, added more to their bromance and broke my heart even more! WAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
I also want to say thanks to all 14 of you lovely reviewers and I want to apologize for making you all wait so long! :) Thanks to those who followed and favourited as well; you guys are awesome!