2. Shackled By Darkness

April, X784
Present

It must have been the third or fourth time that Gray had tried to sacrifice himself for a battle.

Needless to say, nobody was pleased about that. Several people, particularly Erza, Lucy and Cana, were staring rather furiously at him for that – though he knew their anger stemmed from their love and concern for him, as cheesy as that might sound. They were gathered in the cafe of Fairy Tail, with Erza being in charge of them due to Makarov being absent at the moment. Seated to his right was Natsu, his mouth a thin, unhappy line. On his left was Warren. Opposite him were Erza, Lucy and Levy. The rest of Fairy Tail crowded around their table.

"That was incredibly stupid, Gray, even for you!" Erza slammed a gauntlet down on the wooden table, making the surrounding people jump and edge away. The redheaded mage in a rage was something no one wished to be caught in. The ice mage frowned slightly at his lap. That sounded very much like an insult.

Lucy gripped his hand then. He looked up, startled, and was surprised to see her eyes brimming with tears. "Gray, don't ever, ever do such a thing again." Beside the blonde girl, Levy nodded and reached out to hold his other hand. His gaze lowered. He could not bring himself to look anyone in the eyes, although he was of two minds about his actions.

So far, Natsu had remained silent.

Gray cast a quick glance at Warren, who blinked in understanding and placed a hand on his shoulder. Warren's telepathic abilities allowed him to serve as a medium in broadcasting his thoughts to everyone in the guild. They had resorted to this tactic as the ice mage was unable to talk, having damaged his vocal cords.

I am sorry for frightening everyone like that, Gray said in his mind. From the way the people at the periphery of their gathering started in surprise, he knew Warren was projecting his thoughts into the minds of all those within range. But there was no other way to stop Lyon. He has become too powerful. You all know how Erza's fight with him ended in a draw. Natsu could barely defeat him. And Lyon still managed to escape. His hands were clasped together like in prayer and he squeezed them from time to time. I have to seal him with Ice Shell. It is the only way.

"Juvia disagrees," spoke up a voice.

Gray twisted around on his bench to see the girl walking towards him. "There is another way." Juvia stopped beside the wooden table. "Juvia can defeat Lyon. Juvia is willing to give up her life to destroy Lyon for Gray-sama." He began to speak but Cana beat him to it. "No, Juvia!" The woman looked horrified. "I will not allow you to do that!"

I will not allow it either, Juvia, said Gray. The blue-haired girl had not taken her gaze off him. He could see the agony in her eyes. He steeled himself to continue. Lyon was my mistake. It is my fault that he has become like this. If anything, it is my responsibility to defeat him and prevent him from taking more innocent lives. I must use Ice Shell.

"There is absolutely no need for anyone to die in order to destroy Lyon," seethed Erza, her eyes dark with fury as they bore into him and Juvia. "This is an order. I will kill anyone who disobeys this order."

More than one person simultaneously trembled in fear and rolled their eyes at her words and the irony of them. But everyone agreed with her logic – except one. Gray sighed mentally and stood up. Warren stood, too, to keep his hand on his shoulder. His friends' personal feelings were getting in his way and theirs. They could not see that he had to be the one to destroy Lyon – and it had to be him and only him. It simply felt so wrong and selfish that anybody else but him would have to die for Lyon's mistakes. He did not think he would be able to take it if any of his friends lost their lives because of Lyon. He would be ridden with guilt.

Apparently his persuasion was not making an impression on his comrades. He had to try a different tact. Maybe if he made them too annoyed and irritated with his foolhardiness for them to bother with him anymore...?

Please do not stop me, muttered Gray. This is my fight and my decision. I will fight Lyon however I feel like it.

"Gray!" Erza barked his name like a warning. "I forbid you from–"

If anybody wants to aid me in my fight, I am fine with that, Gray interrupted. He ignored the red-haired girl's death glare. Nobody lived forever. Everyone had to die in the end. It was a question of when and how. But we cannot avoid the fact that the only way to stop Lyon is by using Ice Shell. All I have to do is cast that spell and countless lives would be spared. This isn't about self-gratification or personal feuds – this is about responsibility. This is about protecting Fairy Tail from my past. His mental voice was shaking a little by this point. You people could at least understand that.

"All I understand is that you're being stupid," muttered Gajeel from where he sat a little away.

"If you are a Man, you are a Man!" Elfman agreed.

"Please, Gray," pleaded Lucy. "Spare a thought for us, your friends. How do you think we would feel if you were to die – when we could have prevented your death but did not because we failed to convince you?"

Gray looked angry. So, now, this is an issue of personal feelings? He swung himself over his bench with Warren following close behind. He glared at the sea of faces. In a battle, that is the last thing to consider!

Everyone stared at the ice mage in astonishment. They were shocked further when Natsu rose, turned and punched Gray hard in the stomach. The raven-haired boy let out a pained gasp and would have fallen to the ground if Warren had not caught him in time. Juvia was there in an instant. She flung out her arms, shielding Gray with her body and snarling in Natsu's face. "Juvia will not let you hurt Gray-sama, even if she does not support Gray-sama's decisions!"

There was a tense silence.

Natsu raised his hand and slowly but forcefully pushed her aside. Then the fire and ice mages were facing each other directly. They traded dark looks. The dragon slayer lifted his hand and gripped the front of the other's shirt strongly. "You idiot," hissed the fire mage, small flames flickering on the surface of his skin at the intensity of his fury. "Have you forgotten what I told you on Galuna island? Do my words mean so little to you?"

"In a battle, the only thing that matters is personal feelings!"

Gray's dark eyes widened at the blaze of emotions he saw in his best friend's obsidian eyes. For a moment, he was conflicted. His actions had caused his comrades so much grief and trouble. But he had meant what he said about not letting personal feelings get in the way of a fight. It was personal feelings that had led his beloved teacher, Ur, to die for him. It was also personal feelings that had transformed Lyon into the monster he was now.

Gently but firmly, he separated himself from the other boy. Natsu stood there staring at him, flaming fists clenched at his side. Looking around at his guild's anxious faces, he said quietly, I'm really sorry, but I have to find Lyon and defeat him with Ice Shell. Please do not interfere with my decision. Then he turned and fled.

Stunned, everyone watched him run out of the cafe. "That idiot...!" Erza roared, leaping up and preparing to physically drag Gray back. Natsu stopped her before she could Requip into another armor. "I'll go find him, and if really necessary, help him fight Lyon," he growled, eyes ablaze. Erza regarded him for a few seconds before something akin to amusement crept into her eyes.

"Natsu. You are planning to take on your own dragon form, aren't you?" She shook her head in exasperation. "Though I must say I am more at ease knowing you will be accompanying Gray." She walked over to where he stood and put her hand on his shoulder in an approving gesture. "Quickly, follow and keep that idiot safe. We're counting on you."

Natsu nodded and was about to move off when Lucy flung a hand into the air and cried out, "I'm going with them, too!"

Happy fluttered into the air. "We are all going!"

A roar of consent sounded throughout the guild. Natsu glanced indecisively at Erza, who calmly told the rest, "I think it would be better if only Natsu went along with Gray."

"Juvia wants to know why?" Juvia demanded.

Erza's cold glare effectively quelled any objections. She had a feeling there was something to be settled in private between the ice mage and dragon slayer. She had no idea what it was, but judging from Natsu's strange behaviour just now, she intuitively knew it was something fairly important to the two of them. She motioned for the fire mage to go. Natsu was free to exit the cafe and run after their foolish comrade.

As he ran, he remembered what Gray had told him about his past. Ur had been like a mother and Lyon had been like an older brother. They had been with him since Deliora, the demon of destruction, had obliterated his town and family. Gray had treasured them greatly, even if he would not admit as much about Lyon. One particular sentence Ur had told Gray was branded in his mind.

I will seal your darkness, for you.

It was clear there was new darkness in Gray's life.

Lyon.

He sighed heavily in frustration. He should have exterminated Lyon while he had the chance back on Galuna island. It was obvious nobody could have successfully repented and put aside one's burning ambition of eight years in mere days. Now Lyon was back, his thirst for power stronger than ever. Because of that white-haired bastard, Gray had almost died and Erza had been quite injured. He bared his teeth. Nobody could hurt his friends and get away with it.

Natsu could see that Gray was emotionally wounded. He was shackled to the past by this darkness that was Lyon. He had not wanted Fairy Tail to help because he felt obliged to destroy Lyon himself. He felt that it was his fault that Lyon was now terrorising Earthland and killing off innocents. He felt guilty that his friends and other people had been hurt because he failed to make Lyon into a better person. Knowing Gray, he obviously felt that giving up his life would be the sincerest way to repay Ul and Fairy Tail and the world in general for Lyon's sins. Like he repeatedly said so, he felt responsible.

"Stupid guy," he muttered. "Can't that idiot see that dying is the last thing he should do?"

Natsu decided that since Ul was no longer in this world, he would have to be the one to seal Gray's darkness for him.

Sooo... I'm still uncertain as to whether I should continue with this story or not. I've got a pretty decent plot in my head for this, but I need to know if you readers like where this is going. Tell me if you do, yes? c: