Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon

Chapter 6

The tired group made its way back through the doors of Fairy Tail, led by a still energized Natsu. Upon hearing the doors open, everyone in the guild turned to see who entered. Gracie, who was tired but always friendly, smiled and waved excitedly. Everyone returned the smile and wave.

"We're back, everyone!" Natsu called out.

"We can see that, dumbass" Gajeel retorted.

"Oi, you wanna start something, needles?" Natsu shot back.

Gajeel's face twisted in anger. "What'd you call me?"

"Enough, Natsu," Erza interjected. "You've caused too much trouble lately."

"Trouble?" Makarov said, walking up to the returning group. "What trouble? Was the mission complicated?"

"No, Master, the mission itself went smoothly. There were no threats to the function. However, before the mission started, there was a small bit of trouble," Erza answered.

Makarov lifted an eyebrow. "Care to explain?"

Erza turned toward Gracie. Erza was never one to withhold information from the Master, but she had become fond of Gracie and Nikolias and didn't want to cause them unnecessary grief by revealing secret information. However, when Gracie saw her uncertain gaze, she gave her a smile and a nod, indicating that it was alright to explain. Erza returned the smile and turned back to the Master. "Before the mission started, a major crime boss came to the town."

"Who?" Makarov asked intrigued.

"Lord Darius Nato."

"I've heard of him," Macao interrupted. "He's bad news. He's done a lot of terrible things to a lot of innocent people. Did you guys see him?"

"You could say that," Gray said.

"Did you engage this dangerous man?" Makarov asked. "He's known for having incredibly skilled bodyguards around him all the time."

"They didn't look too tough," Natsu laughed.

"Look?" Makarov asked, confused. "So you didn't stop him?"

"We didn't stop him, Master, but Gracie and Nikolias did," Erza said.

"So you arrested him?"

"Not…quite," Erza said.

Makarov was getting more confused. "Then what, Erza?"

Erza opened her mouth to explain, but she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Gracie with her head down slightly as if she were sad. She looked up and gave Erza a small smile. "It's okay Erza, I'll take it from here." Erza nodded and stepped back.

"So Gracie, what happened?" Makarov asked her.

Gracie still looked sad, but she took a deep breath and summoned all of her courage. She didn't want to lose her new friends, but she knew she had to come clean with this information and let the chips fall where they may. "Niky and I took out Nato and his bodyguards."

Everyone in the guild gasped and began talking amongst themselves.

"Took out as in…killed?" Makarov asked incredulously.

Gracie nodded. "Niky and I kill criminals who have done wrong and have not paid for their crimes. We happened upon Nato while shopping and we took him out once his bodyguards were disposed of."

Makarov's eyes were wide. "You two alone took out all of them?"

Gracie nodded.

Makarov rubbed the bridge of his nose. "This is a lot to take in. So what kind of trouble did Natsu cause?"

Erza took over again. "When Nikolias and Gracie ran off to pursue Lord Nato, we decided to find them and assist in any way we could. We found Gracie alone in an alley where she was planning the strategy while Nikolias tracked Lord Nato. We all went to find Nikolias and came across the town center. We couldn't see Nikolias and that led to a fight between Gray and Natsu. Gray kicked Natsu right into Lord Nato. That caused difficulties for Gracie and Nikolias and they had to change their plan in order to save Natsu from Lord Nato's wrath."

Makarov looked at Gracie. "So you saved Natsu?"

"Niky did," Gracie corrected.

Makarov looked at Nikolias. "Thank you for saving him, Nikolias."

Nikolias nodded. "Of course."

"Um, Master Makarov?" Gracie said quietly.

Makarov looked at her. "Yes, Gracie?"

"I understand that this is a lot to take in, but if you want Niky and I to leave, we will." Makarov didn't respond so Gracie continued. "I'm aware that killing people, no matter how evil they are, is not what you in Fairy Tail do. That being the case, if you're at all uncomfortable being associated with people like us, then we'll leave."

Makarov sighed and turned to the guild members behind him. "I believe that this is a guild decision. Does anyone here have a problem with Nikolias and Gracie staying?" Everyone in the guild looked at one another and began talking amongst themselves. After a little while, they all turned to look at the Master and shook their heads. Makarov nodded. "Good! Then the guild reflects my opinion."

Gracie looked at Makarov incredulously. "You're…all okay with it?"

Makarov smiled at her. "Of course, my dear. I don't see you as a threat and Nikolias even went out of his way to save one of our own. We would be more than happy to have you stay as long as you like."

Gracie was on the verge of tears. "Thank you, Master Makarov. You have no idea what this means to me…to us."

"I'm glad that you'll stay. Now, relax after a mission! Enjoy yourselves!" Makarov exclaimed and everyone cheered.

Gracie nodded and cheerfully skipped over to the bar to get some food and to talk to Mira. Nikolias sighed and went to join her.

"So you guys actually killed those people?" Mira asked.

"Yeah, but he was a bad man and the town was extremely grateful to us," Gracie said.

"We got paid double the money," Lucy said with stars in her eyes.

Mira turned and saw Nikolias walk over and sit at a stool. "What can I get for you, Nikolias?"

He looked at her and smiled. "I'm alright, thanks."

She nodded and turned back to Gracie. "So was it all Nikolias or were you fighting, too?"

"I fought with my katanas."

"Where are they, then?" Mira asked, looking around to find these swords.

"I use a type of Requip magic to arm myself."

"Oh, so you're like Erza?" Mira asked.

"Yes, she is," Erza said as she walked over. She then turned to Gracie. "Gracie, I would like to spar now if you're feeling up for it."

Gracie smiled. "Sure! Let's do it!" She stood up and followed Erza outside. Everyone else on the guild noticed this and followed them out, intrigued to see the two weapon experts duel.

Nikolias banged his head on the counter and groaned. "Can't we just rest?"

Mira giggled. "Sparring is customary here. You should get used to it if you're going to be staying here." Nikolias picked his head up and looked at Mira. He met her eyes and suddenly, she felt entranced again, like the first time she saw him. It was an odd feeling, one that she couldn't possibly describe. She tried to piece together what was happening. 'I feel warm, safe, comfortable. What is this?'

Nikolias smiled at her and stood up. "Maybe you're right. Come on, let's go watch the fight."

Mira blushed and nodded. She walked from behind the bar and followed Nikolias out.

The entire guild made its way to the back fields where training took place. Once they all arrived, the spectators made sure to give the fighters plenty of room. Nikolias forced his way to the front so that he could watch his partner with Mira right beside him.

Erza and Gracie stood at opposite sides of one of the fields, both with confident smiles plastered to their faces.

"So what are the rules here?" Gracie inquired.

"One type of weapon each and we fight until the other yields or can no longer fight," Erza replied.

Gracie nodded. "Sounds good to me!" She clapped her hands together and, like before, she became enveloped by a golden aura. She closed her eyes and held out her arms to the sides. "Come forth, halberd!" With a flash of light, a shape began forming in Gracie's right hand. After a few seconds, the shape solidified and took the form of a long halberd. At the very tip of the six foot pole was a sharp black spike that glistened in the light of the setting sun. On one side of the pole was a wide black axe head that curved towards the bottom. On the other side was a black scythe-like hook. Gracie swung the halberd over her head before slamming it to the ground with surprising force. She winked at Erza. "Ready when you are!"

Erza nodded. "Requip!" With a flash of light, Erza was suddenly wearing her Heaven's Wheel Armor. Metal plates covered her chest, arms, hands, feet, and legs. On the back of the armor was two metal wings made of individual blades. She wore a skirt that had metal plating on the top half and the rest was blowing in the breeze. Her stomach and collarbone were uncovered, exposing her skin. In each hand, she gripped two long broad swords. She raised them both and smiled at Gracie. "Let's begin!"

Mira gently nudged Nikolias in the arm. "I think Gracie's in trouble. Erza went straight for her Heaven's Wheel Armor. Plus, Gracie's wearing no armor."

Nikolias looked at her and smiled. "Don't count Gracie out so soon, Mira. Her skill with that halberd is remarkable. She can take out whole armies with that thing. And in terms of armor, she only ever wears armor when she needs to seriously fight. Not to insult Erza's skill, but this fight will be difficult for her to win."

"You're really confident in Gracie's ability, aren't you?"

Nikolias looked towards Gracie. "I trust her with my life."

Mira smiled and turned to watch the fight begin.

Both sides remained unmoving as both appeared to be hastily analyzing everything they could about the other. Several minutes passed before anything even happened.

Gracie was the first to move. With incredible speed, she shot forward, halberd drawn back and ready to strike. Erza entered a defensive stance and was prepared to block. Gracie swung the halberd towards Erza, who easily blocked the strike. Seeing her attack fail, Gracie hopped backwards and prepared another assault. Like the first time, she ran forward, weapon drawn back and prepared to strike Erza again. However, Erza still easily blocked the attack and once again, Gracie hopped backwards. Again and again, Gracie did the same thing, charging Erza and striking from different angles and every time, Erza blocked it.

Nikolias chuckled from the sidelines, which made Mira turn to look at him. "Why are you laughing?"

He never took his eyes off of the fight, but still answered, "It's just funny. Gracie's totally toying with Erza."

Mira raised an eyebrow. "Really? Why?"

"Gracie doesn't know a lot about that armor, so she's gathering information through her strikes. Once she knows enough, she'll get serious."

Erza was getting bored of blocking, so when Gracie charged the next time, she leapt backwards and flew into the air. Gracie looked up at her with fascination. "You can fly?"

Erza smirked and raised her arms. "Dance, my blades!" By using this command, swords magically appeared around Erza in a circle and began spinning rapidly before flying towards Gracie in a disc formation. Gracie jumped backwards to dodge the blades, but as soon as they hit the ground, they shot in different directions. Gracie was caught off guard, but managed to block the swords coming towards her with surprisingly quick movements with her halberd. Erza looked down at Gracie and smiled. "Not bad reflexes, Gracie."

Gracie smiled up at her. "And that's not a bad attack. Really caught me off guard. But now it's my turn to attack."

Erza cocked an eyebrow. 'Hasn't she been attacking this whole time?'

Gracie crouched low, her halberd's shaft resting on her back as she gripped it with her right hand. She then sprang forward, charging Erza with the same incredible speed. By the time she was a few feet away from Erza, she leapt off the ground and was suddenly as high up as Erza. Erza was impressed by her ability to jump, but had to quickly snap back to the fight as Gracie gripped the shaft with both hands and swung the halberd down upon Erza. Erza was able to block the strike, but the force of the impact sent her crashing down into the ground. She got up and brushed off of the dirt and saw Gracie standing a few yards away, ready to strike again at a moment's notice.

"You're extremely talented, Gracie. This is certainly an entertaining fight," Erza called out.

Gracie smiled. "It really is! I can't remember the last time I had such a challenge. You might actually be someone that I could lose to and there aren't many people in that group."

"If I may ask, who have you lost to?" Erza asked.

Gracie pointed behind her. "Niky and that's it!"

Erza was stunned. "Nikolias is the only person to beat you?" A nod was her only answer. "Well that's impressive, but let's finish this fight and see if I can't be the second person to defeat you in battle."

Gracie giggled. "Alright, let's go!" Gracie charged forward again and Erza got into a defensive stance. However, Erza raised an eyebrow when she saw Gracie's smile widen. Gracie kept getting closer and began to swing her halberd. Erza made to block, but as soon as she began to move, Gracie performed some fancy footwork and was suddenly spinning her entire body out of Erza's range. Erza stared in disbelief as Gracie ended up behind her, her arm still swinging the halberd with such speed that Erza had no time to react. The flat of the halberd smashed into Erza's unprotected back, causing Erza to yell in pain and collapse to the ground. Gracie placed a foot on her plated shoulder blades with enough pressure to keep her down. She giggled again. "Do I win?"

Erza chuckled. "Not yet. SWORD REQUIPPING!" Suddenly, hundreds of swords appeared in the air, all of them pointed at Gracie. Gracie stared at them in disbelief. "Let's see how you block this!"

"Shit," Gracie mumbled, but she stood her ground, her foot still firm on Erza's back.

"Wow, Erza's really getting into this. I've never seen her use this move on a single target," Mira commented. "Gracie fought well, Nikolias, but it looks like this is Erza's fight."

Nikolias just smiled and said, "Not yet."

The swords in the air began flying towards Gracie at incredible speed. She gripped her halberd tightly and began swinging it over her head. "Bring it on!" she cried. As the swords came closer and closer, Gracie stopped swinging her weapon and held it in front of her horizontally. She waited patiently for the blades to get even closer. When they were nearly upon her, she cried out, "NOW!" With practically inhuman speed, Gracie swung the halberd around, knocking away sword after sword. The entire guild's jaws dropped as each and every sword was knocked away before it could do any harm to Gracie.

Mira looked shocked, which made Nikolias laugh. "Told you it's not over yet."

Gracie kept swinging her halberd around, but her panting was becoming more and more audible; she was clearly tiring. 'Not yet, Gracie. Keep going.'

Erza couldn't believe what she was seeing. "How…?"

As more and more swords approached her, Gracie's movements never slowed. The entire ground was littered with swords. As the final sword came at Gracie, she let out a yell and batted it away, sending it flying into a tree. The entire guild looked on in amazement as Gracie stood on top of Erza, panting amongst a field of blades. Gracie looked down at Erza, a tired smile on her face. "Do I win now?"

Erza was silent for a while, but eventually sighed. "Yes, I yield. You win."

Everyone in the guild began talking amongst themselves. They couldn't believe what they saw; Titania had lost a battle of weapons. Nikolias was grinning from ear to ear and Mira was staring in shock. Natsu, Lucy, and Gray's jaws were on the floor. Makarov was scratching his chin. Gracie walked slowly back over to the group with a fatigued smile on her face. "I won, Niky! Man, that was a tough fight. That last move drained me."

Nikolias gave her a thumbs-up. "Very impressive, Gracie. You showed impressive speed and skill."

"Aw, thanks Niky!"

"A truly magnificent battle, Gracie," Makarov complimented. "I don't know many people who could defeat Erza, especially using weapons."

"Yes, you were fantastic, Gracie," Erza said as she walked over. "I was hoping for a good fight like that. I hope to do it again sometime."

Gracie gave a nod. "Absolutely! That was a lot of fun."

"Wow, Erza lost?" Lucy said in disbelief. "Gracie, you really are good."

"Thanks, Lucy!"

Natsu punched his palm. "I'm all fired up after that fight! Nikolias, I challenge you to a fight!"

Everyone looked at Natsu. Nikolias raised an eyebrow. "No offense, Natsu, but I don't think that's a good idea. You're strong, but I don't wanna risk seriously hurting you."

Natsu walked over to him. "C'mon, you scared?"

"Yes," he said simply.

Natsu was taken aback by this. "Why?"

"It's hard to hold back, especially when I'm having fun. I could seriously hurt you."

"Nikolias, if you want to fight, go for it. Believe me; Natsu can take care of himself. It's alright," Makarov assured.

Nikolias looked at Gracie, who gave him a nod. He sighed and turned to Natsu. "Alright, if you're sure you really want to go through with this, I'll fight."

Natsu jumped into the air in excitement and ran onto the field in a space free of swords.

Nikolias turned to Gracie. "What are my restrictions here?"

"Avoid transformations. Just stay completely human. In terms of attacks, just avoid any that you would consider a last resort," Gracie responded and Nikolias nodded to show understanding before walking onto the field.

"Good luck, Nikolias!" Mira called out, which was echoed by many of the other girls.

Nikolias looked over his shoulder and shot Mira a smile before giving everyone a wave of thanks.

Gracie giggled. "What a ladies' man."

Nikolias stood opposite of Natsu, who was grinning excitedly.

"I've wanted to fight you for a while, Nikolias."

Nikolias smiled. "Thanks…I guess. Are you sure you want to do this, though?"

Natsu gave him a quick nod. "Hell yeah!"

"Well then, let's get started."

Over on the sidelines, Lucy was watching in nervous anticipation. "Gracie, is Natsu going to be okay?"

Gracie put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. Niky knows how to hold back. Everything will be fine."

Now Mira looked worried. "But doesn't that mean Nikolias is in trouble if he has to hold back power?"

Gracie laughed. "Trust me when I say that everything will be fine. No one will get seriously hurt, but Natsu is simply too inexperienced to pose a threat to Niky."

"Are you sure, Gracie? Natsu has developed very quickly in his time with this power," Makarov questioned.

Gracie looked at him with a smile. "Natsu is strong, but you'll soon see why he just can't measure up."

Makaorv nodded and everyone turned to watch the fight.

Natsu enveloped his hands in fire and charged. "Here I come, Nikolias! FIRE DRAGON IRON FIST!"

Nikolias chuckled, but made no attempt to move. "You'll never win just charging in like that."

"We'll just see!" Natsu shouted as he threw a punch at Nikolias.

However, as soon as the punch was about to hit, Nikolias ducked and positioned himself underneath a tumbling Natsu. "This is why you should plan first. SHADOW DRAGON FIERCE KICK!" Nikolias' foot became enveloped in shadow as he shot his foot upward into Natsu's stomach. The force of the kick knocked the wind out of Natsu as he went flying into the air.

"Natsu!" Lucy cried out.

"Don't worry, Lucy, he's fine," Gracie comforted. "That kick hurts like a motherfucker, but Nikolias avoided any organs or bones. Natsu just had the wind knocked out of him."

Natsu hit the ground hard. He shakily got to his feet as he tried to get his breathing back to normal. "Damn that was a solid kick."

"You left yourself open, Natsu. Try to plan your moves out and solidify weak points and blind spots," Nikolias said.

Natsu spit off to the side. Planning was not his style. He narrowed his eyes and inhaled deeply. "Try this then! FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu unleashed a column of fire towards Nikolias.

Nikolias sighed. "Still no planning." At the last moment, Nikolias jumped high into the air. "You call that a Roar? Here's a Roar!" While in the air, Nikolias began gathering shadows into his mouth. "SHADOW…" He threw his head back as he inhaled deeply. "…DRAGON ROAR!" Nikolias unleashed a massive vortex of shadows that was at least three times the size of Natsu's Roar. The attack barreled towards Natsu and he tried jumping out of the way, but the force of the Roar still knocked him away. His back hit a tree and he crumpled to the ground.

Nikolias stood in a crater created by his Shadow Dragon Roar. "Not bad, Natsu. I would have thought that would hit you full on."

Natsu slowly got up. "I ain't giving up, Nikolias."

Nikolias scratched the back of his head. "Really? I would be willing to fight again after you train some more, but right now, you're just being reckless. Just surrender and try again another day."

"Hell no! I'm gonna beat you right here! FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu unleashed another pillar of flames at Nikolias.

Instead of jumping to dodge, Nikolias raised his hand and shouted, "SHADOW WALL!" A thick wall of shadows rose from the ground and completely blocked the flames. Once Natsu's attack stopped, he lowered the wall only to see Natsu flying towards him with his fist drawn back.

"Eat this! FIRE DRAGON IRON FIST!" Natsu fired his fist towards Nikolias.

Nikolias was surprised, but was still able to react in time, just managing to avoid the fist and once again positioned himself underneath Natsu. "Very nice combination, Natsu! You really almost had me there. But this fight needs to end now." With that, Nikolias enveloped his foot in shadow again. "SHADOW DRAGON FIERCE KICK!" Once again, Natsu was kicked in the stomach with immense force, sending his breathless body into the air. However, instead of allowing Natsu to fall to the ground like the last time, Nikolias leaped into the air after him. Once he was beside him in the air, he gave Natsu a smile. "You have promise, Natsu, but you're too reckless and you need to learn from failures. Now it's over. SHADOW DRAGON BARRAGE!" Nikolias unleashed a series of rapid fire punches that connected with Natsu's body over and over. None of the spectators could see the punches, but they could see the impact they were having on Natsu's frame. After several seconds of punching Natsu, Nikolias drew back his fist and unleashed a final powerful blow that sent Natsu crashing to the ground at high speed. Nikolias landed easily beside him.

Natsu groaned as he attempted to get up. "Damn it, did you hit me with a truck?"

Nikolias laughed. "Not quite." He leaned down and draped Natsu's arm around his shoulders. "Come on, let's get you some medical attention. I let loose a bit more than I should have."

Lucy ran up to Natsu and Nikolias. "Natsu! Are you alright?"

Natsu gave her a smile. "Yeah, Luce, I'm good. Just a little tired."

"Lucy, would you mind taking him somewhere he can get some treatment?" Nikolias asked. Lucy nodded and Nikolias shifted Natsu over to her. She walked slowly away with Natsu, a worried Wendy right behind her.

"You were awesome, Niky!" Gracie exclaimed.

"I can't believe how strong you are," Mira said. "Natsu really never stood a chance."

"Man, Nikolias, that was a ruthless beating," Gajeel commented.

Nikolias scratched his nose. "Well, he needs to learn to not leave himself so open. There's no way I should have been able to give him two of the same move. He does have power, though, and he can combine them well. He has skill, that's for sure. He just needs time to work on planning. It could make him far more dangerous."

"Well, those were both entertaining fights, even if both of my children fell," Makarov commented. "Could I ask something of the both of you?"

Gracie and Nikolias looked at each other before nodding.

"Is it at all possible for you two to work separately on missions? After seeing you two fight, I feel like your skills could be beneficial to other teams."

"Well, we'd be happy to do missions for you, but…," Nikolias started. He wasn't sure how he felt about doing missions without Gracie.

"Don't be silly, Niky. We can manage a few missions apart here and there, right?" Gracie asked.

Nikolias looked at her. He felt very uneasy about this whole idea, but he did like the people of Fairy Tail, so perhaps he could manage. "Alright, we can work separately. Whatever you need, Master."

Makarov clapped his hands together. "Excellent! This helps a lot. Don't be afraid to do missions whenever you want and with whomever you want. Now, I'm going to check in on Natsu. Gracie, Erza, and Nikolias, you should rest up after your sparring matches." With that he walked back to the guild with everyone following him in, leaving Gracie and Nikolias alone on the field.

"Well, I certainly think that we can have some fun here! Challenging and friendly sparring, missions for money, and they accept us for what we do outside of the guild," Gracie said.

"Yeah, you're right. It's a great place. Come on, you should rest. Erza made you work really hard," Nikolias said, motioning her inside.

They walked in through the guild doors and saw Makarov and Mira standing there waiting for them, each of them holding a small wooden stamp.

"Master, what are those?" Gracie asked.

Makarov smiled up at her. "If you are willing, I would like to mark you both with the insignia of Fairy Tail, making you both official members of Fairy Tail."

Both of them stared at Makarov in disbelief. "You…want us to officially join?" Nikolias asked.

"Absolutely."

They looked at each other again. Gracie was glowing with excitement. Nikolias could see in her eyes how badly she wanted him to agree. Nikolias sighed and nodded, causing Gracie to squeal.

"Master Makarov, if you'll have us, we would be honored to join Fairy Tail," Gracie said, her voice trembling with excitement.

"Excellent!" Makarov said as he walked over to Gracie. "Where would you like your insignia?"

Gracie pointed to her left shoulder. She was usually wearing tank tops, so she figured that people could always see it. Makarov nodded and placed the stamp on her left shoulder. When he removed the stamp, a forest green Fairy Tail insignia was left behind. Gracie smiled as she looked at it, thinking about how well the color went with her blonde hair.

Mira walked up to Nikolias with a big smile on her face. "And where would you like yours?" Nikolias pointed to the left side of his neck and she nodded. She placed the stamp on his neck, taking the opportunity to support her weight by pressing her free hand against his chest. She could feel her heart beating faster just from the touch and she fought mentally against the blush that was threatening to show on her face. 'He's so strong and his muscles feel incredible...wait, is his heart beating faster?' Mira pulled the stamp (and regrettably, her hand) away from Nikolias, revealing a gold Fairy Tail insignia. Mira smiled at him, "Like your eyes."

Nikolias looked at her and smiled. "Thank you, Mira."

She nodded. "Well, I'm going back to the bar. Both of you should swing by if you need anything." She turned and made her way back behind the counter. Makarov followed to get a beer.

Gracie flung her arms around Nikolias' neck. "Can you believe it? We belong somewhere, Niky! This is fantastic!"

Nikolias placed a hand on her arm. "Yeah, it's great, Gracie. Now let's go get some rest."

"Sounds good. Tomorrow we should find an easy mission to do with other people and see how we like it. If we don't then we'll know to always stick together."

"That's a good idea, but of course I would expect nothing less from you."

She removed her arms and grabbed his hand. "Well come on, I'm beat. Let's go to our rooms and get some shut eye."

Nikolias nodded and allowed her to lead him upstairs. He was completely oblivious to all of the eyes that were on him as he made his way upstairs, each set screaming 'I want to go on a mission with him!'