Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

WARNING: THERE WILL BE SPOILERS! Read at your own risk. There's still original stuff in here, but if you haven't gotten to this point in the anime/manga, then some things may be ruined for you. I advise catching up to the anime/manga if you haven't already (for more reasons than just reading my story)! Thank you and enjoy!

Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon

Chapter 33

Panther Lily and Carla landed on the sandy beaches of Tenrou Island before stopping their magic to make their wings disappear. The two then began walking off to try and find Wendy and Mest.

"That Wendy," Carla muttered. "Why couldn't she have just listened to me and stayed home in Magnolia? Honestly, she can be so stubborn sometimes."

Lily chuckled. "I wonder where she gets it from. But still, I know where you're coming from. This Mest fellow doesn't sit right with me either."

Carla sighed. "Honestly, I could care less about Mest. It's the whole Trials that have me on edge."

"Is it your clairvoyance telling you this?"

"I'm honestly not entirely sure. It's just so disjointed."

Lily crossed his arms while he walked. "Well whatever your reasons are, I'm personally more interested in Mest. He said he was Mystogan's pupil, right?"

Carla nodded. "Yes, that's what he said. Apparently, when Wendy heard about it, it made her all the more sure that she wanted to help Mest. She still feels like she owes Mystogan, despite everything that she did for him in Edolas. Why do you ask?"

"Mystogan felt it was best to avoid contact with people as much as possible whenever he visited this world," Lily explained.

"Hmm. I did hear that Mystogan would always put people to sleep with his magic whenever he entered the guild. I suppose that was to keep anyone from seeing his face," Carla reasoned.

Lily nodded. "And that's precisely why I find it very hard to believe that he would have a pupil here."

"Lily, where are you going with this exactly?" Carla asked.

"Mind you, this is baseless speculation. However, I do have a theory that makes me feel uneasy." He stopped walking to look at Carla. "I don't think that Mest is a member of Fairy Tail."

"Are you serious?" Carla asked in bewilderment. "Why would you say that?"

"Because Mystogan having a pupil is just too farfetched. Didn't I just explain that?"

"No I mean why did you have to say that?" she asked again in fear. "Now I'm even more worried for Wendy!" She took off down the beach. "Come on, Lily! We must hurry before anything happens to her!"

Lily sighed as he took off after her.


Meanwhile, all over the island, the remaining teams were finding it difficult to locate Mavis' grave due to the strange and monstrous creatures that inhabited the island. However, while most teams were running and hiding for their lives, one pair was more determined to not be stopped.

"Get out of my way or you'll get toasted!" Natsu roared at a strange dark green monster, fire engulfing his right hand. The creature simply leaned in closer, completely unresponsive to Natsu's warning. "Alright, I warned ya! FIRE DRAGON IRON FIST!" Natsu unleashed a powerful punch that collided with the creature's face, sending him crashing into the ground.

"Yay Natsu!" Happy cheered from a safe distance.

Natsu wiped off some sweat with his scarf and gave Happy a cheerful thumbs-up before walking over to the downed creature.

"You ready to keep moving?" Happy asked.

"Not yet," Natsu said as he punched his palm with his fist. "First, I'm gonna get answers from this thing." He started tugging on its face. "TELL ME WHERE THE FIRST GUILD MASTER'S GRAVE IS OR I'LL BURN YOU TO A CRISP!"

Happy sweatdropped. "Umm, Natsu? I don't think that that thing can talk."

The creature groaned. "I don't know," it mumbled.

"Okay, well it was worth a try," Natsu said as he released the creature and walked off.

Happy just stared at the creature. "IT CAN TALK!?"

Natsu looked over his shoulder. "You coming, Happy?"

Happy shook his head and flew after Natsu. "Aye!"

The two continued through the trees for a while until Natsu sighed. "Man, how does Gramps expect us to find the first guild master's grave without any kinds of hints or clues? I mean, it could be anywhere on this damn island."

"Yeah, it's pretty sneaky. This round's gonna be a tough one, Natsu," Happy said.

Natsu scratched his chin. "You know, this island is kinda funny shaped. Do you think that the grave could be at the top?"

"It's possible."

Natsu grinned. "So Happy, you wanna go check out the top with me?"

Happy nodded. "Definitely!"

Natsu pumped his fist. "As much as I wanted to team up with Lucy, it looks like teaming up with you has a huge upside! Let's do it, buddy!"

Happy grabbed onto Natsu and flew up. "Aye!"


In a certain area on Tenrou Island, a white haired man's man and a light brown haired woman were running for their lives from a massive pig-like creature.

"A real man doesn't run from his enemies!" Elfman cried as he continued to run.

"Would you shut up with that?" Evergreen cried.

"Shut up with what?" Elfman asked.

"Oh never mind!"

The pig-like creature lunged at the two, aiming to take them out with a sharp hoof to the back. Elfman was able to notice this just in time. "Look out!" he shouted as he tackled Evergreen, knocking them both out of harm's way. However, the two ended up off of the path and tumbling down a rocky hole where the creature couldn't follow.

The two crashed to the ground in a cloud of dirt. The two groaned, but were relatively unharmed. They brushed themselves off and pushed themselves to their feet.

"Thanks for that, Elfman," Evergreen said with a blush.

Elfman blushed and chuckled. "Don't mention it. A real man protects his partner."

Evergreen turned an even darker shade of red. "Why would you say something like that? I thought I told you that what I said to Mira was only a trick! It wasn't a confession or anything!"

Elfman blinked. "What?"

"Oh forget it," Evergreen huffed.

A rustle in some nearby bushes caught their attention.

"Crap, is it another monster?" Elfman asked.

"I don't know yet, but be on your guard," Evergreen warned.

From the bushes came a young man dressed in a black robe with golden trim. Draped around his torso was a white toga and around his neck was a circle necklace. His hair was jet black and his eyes were dark and sad.

The young man looked at the two Fairy Tail mages. "People?" he asked.

"Who's this guy?" Elfman asked.

"Like I know!" Evergreen hissed.

"I'm confused," the young man continued. "Why have you come to such a desolate place? I thought for sure that this place was uninhabited."

"Well your wrong, pal!" Elfman shouted.

"You're trespassing," Evergreen added. "Only members of the Fairy Tail guild can come to this island."

A very tiny smile crossed the young man's face. "I'm…trespassing?"

"Yeah, you are!" Elfman said.

The smile disappeared and the young man hung his head. "Please forgive me. I didn't know that this island was controlled by a guild."

"It is! It's ours, so get out!" Elfman roared as he stepped forward.

"No, stay back!" the young man cried while holding up his hand, causing Elfman to freeze in his tracks. The young man's face looked very sad. "Please if you value your life, don't come anywhere near me."

"That sounds like a challenge," Elfman smirked.

"No it's not. Please believe me. I don't want to fight anyone." He lowered his hand and bowed his head. "I'll leave the island peacefully. All I ask is that you just don't come near me."

"What's wrong with him?" Evergreen asked.

"I don't know, but he shouldn't be here," Elfman said.

Suddenly, the young man's eyes went wide and he began shaking and clutching his head. "No," he said as he grabbed his head with both hands and closed his eyes. "Here it comes." His eyes then reopened. "The predatory death," he murmured. "I can't stop it!" The young man became shrouded in a black haze as things around him began to wither away and die. Elfman and Evergreen could hear his grunts and cries as he tried desperately to fight whatever was happening.

The black haze began to pulse outwards. Elfman and Evergreen could feel the power that it held and were frozen in place.

"GET DOWN!"

Out of nowhere, Natsu lunged at the two, knocking them to the ground just in time to keep them from being hit by the wave of death. Natsu looked up from his position and stared down the young man across from him.

The young man stared at Natsu with disbelief. Suddenly, tears streamed down his face. "You…"

Natsu looked on in confusion.

The young man continued to cry. "Natsu…"

"Who are you?" Natsu demanded. There was no response. "You better answer me or else!" However, the young man kept staring at Natsu and crying.

"Natsu!" Happy cried as he flew over. "There you are! I thought that we were going to the top?"

Natsu stood, allowing Elfman and Evergreen to stand as well. "Sorry, buddy. A slight change in plans."

Happy tilted his head in confusion and then noticed his surroundings. "Whoa! How'd everything die?"

Elfman pointed his thumb at the young man. "Ask him."

"And who's he?" Happy asked.

"No idea," Natsu growled.

"And he did all of this?" Happy asked for clarification.

"He did," Evergreen nodded. "He's no ordinary wizard. That much we know."

"Hey!" Natsu shouted. "This island is only for members of the Fairy Tail guild, so get lost!"

"You've grown," the young man mumbled. "You've grown so much."

"What'd you say?" Natsu asked.

"I've missed you…Natsu."

"That's it!" Natsu roared as he lunged forward. He threw a punch that connected with the young man's face, sending him to the ground. "Tell me who you are right now or I'll hit you even harder than that!"

The young man simply smiled as he landed on his hand and sprung himself to his feet. 'I see. Nothing has changed, has it? Nothing at all. You still can't break me. I thought since you had become so close with him, you may have grown strong enough, but that's clearly not the case.'

"Tell me who you are right now!" Natsu demanded. "I won't ask you again!"

'When will this mindless destruction finally end?' the young man asked himself. 'I don't want to kill anymore. And the only person who can stop me still hasn't become strong enough.' More tears rolled down the young man's cheeks. 'How much longer must I wait?'

"Man, this guy is creepy," Elfman said.

"No doubt," Evergreen added.

Suddenly, the young man's eyes widened and the black haze once again began to shroud him. Once again, grunts escaped his throat as he clutched his head, fighting against the raw power that was pushing its way to the surface. "Run!" he groaned. "Run now while you still can!" The black haze then expanded, becoming an orb of darkness that swirled around the young man.

"Whoa! What the hell is that?" Happy asked.

"We need to run! That's the same black wave from before!" Elfman said.

"It instantly drains the life force from whatever it touches," Evergreen warned.

"Natsu! Get out of there!" Happy called out.

Natsu turned and began to run. "All of you get out of here right now!"

The young man released a cry before the black haze spread out like a wave, consuming everything around it, including Natsu.

"Natsu, no!" Happy cried as he attempted to fly into the black haze to save his friend. However, he was stopped by Elfman who tucked him under his arm and ran.

"Don't be stupid! If you go in there, you're as good as dead!" Elfman said.

The black wave then exploded, sending Elfman, Evergreen, and Happy sprawling forward. Trees crumpled to dust. Leaves and grass blew away in the wind. Death was everywhere.

Natsu groaned as he pushed himself off of the ground. "Damn, that kinda hurt," he coughed.

"Natsu, you're okay!" Happy cried as he flew over.

"Yeah, I'm alright, but what about that guy? It looks like he lost control," Natsu inquired.

Everyone looked around, but saw no one.

"He's gone," Evergreen marveled.

"Wait, Natsu!" Happy exclaimed. "What happened to your scarf? It's completely black!"

Sure enough, Natsu's scarf had gone from white to black. Natsu stared at his beloved scarf. He balled some of it in his fist in anger. "That bastard. He'll pay for this. Next time I see him, I'll bash his fucking face in!"


Out on a cliff overlooking the sea, Mest could feel it. He could feel the raw magic power that had seemingly come from nowhere.

'This magic power,' Mest thought as a wild grin spread across his face. 'There's no doubt about it! It's him! He's somewhere on this island!'

"Mest?" Wendy asked from her position on the ground. She had been looking at flowers, but could sense something that caught her attention. It was then that she saw Mest with an odd expression. "Is everything alright?"

Mest smiled down at her. "Of course," he answered. 'It looks like this will all pay off in the end.'


Mira, who was being carried by Nikolias bridal style, continuously kissed Nikolias' neck with fleeting and soft kisses.

Nikolias chuckled as he flew towards base camp. "You should be careful, Mira. If you keep this up, we'll have to land."

Mira smiled at him. "That doesn't sound like much of a punishment to me."

He leaned forward and kissed her soft lips. "When did I say that it was a punishment?"

"Good point," she giggled.

Over the tops of the trees, the two could make out the tent tops of base camp. Nikolias angled his body to begin their descent, Mira's arms wrapped tightly around his neck. They landed gently, Nikolias retracted his wings, and he let Mira's feet touch the ground. As soon as they were both firmly on the ground, they could see someone sitting at one of the tables alone.

"Lisanna?" Mira called out. "You're back!"

Lisanna looked over and gave a small smile. "Yeah, I'm back. I just needed to clear my head. Sorry about before."

"No need to apologize," Mira assured. "As long as you're alright. I was worried about you, Lisanna."

"I didn't mean to worry you, sister," Lisanna said while bowing her head.

Mira walked over to Lisanna and sat beside her. "Lisanna, you know that you can always talk to me if something is bothering you. I never want you to bottle anything up."

Lisanna looked away. "I know, but…this is hard to talk about, especially with you."

Mira tilted her head. "But why?"

She gave a quick glance at Nikolias, who was walking over, before shaking her head. "I'm just not ready to talk about it yet."

"But Lisanna…," Mira began.

"Take your time, Lisanna," Nikolias interrupted. "Don't push yourself. As long as you two talk things out soon, it's okay if you're not ready yet."

"Easy for you to say," Mira pouted. "I'm pretty sure you know what this is all about."

Nikolias chuckled. Suddenly, Nikolias' body went tense and his eyes went wide. He could feel an incredible power that made the very air seem heavy.

Mira and Lisanna both stared at Nikolias. "Nikolias?" Mira asked. "Are you alright?"

Nikolias wasn't listening, though. 'This power…I've sensed it before. But from where? Why can't I remember it? This kind of power and presence…it feels like death. It should be easy to recall…'

"Nikolias!" Mira said while gently shaking him.

Nikolias snapped out of his trance. He blinked a couple of times before looking at Mira. "Mira? Sorry, I must have spaced out."

"Are you alright? You look as if you just saw a ghost or something," Mira asked with concern.

He nodded. "I'm fine, but there's something that I need to go check out." He called back out his wings and leapt into the air, hovering slightly off the ground. "You two stay here. I'll be back as soon as I check this out." With that, he flew off towards the location of the power he had sensed.

Mira sighed. "I wish he told me what was bothering him instead of trying to play it off as nothing. Honestly, did he think his face gave the impression that everything was alright?"

"You know Nikolias," Lisanna said. "He does whatever he can to protect you, even if it's something as simple as keeping you in the dark."

"I'll have to try and break him of that habit," Mira said. "He should know that it's better for me to know what's going on than to leave me in the dark to worry."

"I doubt you'll break him of that," Lisanna commented.

Mira sat down beside her again. "So now that Nikolias is gone, do you think you can tell me what's been bothering you?"

Lisanna lowered her head. "I just…don't know if I can talk to you about it."

"But Lisanna, how can I help you if you don't tell me what's going on? I'm your big sister. Let me be there for you."

"You can't help me with this one," Lisanna mumbled.

"But why not?" Mira asked.

"You just can't."

"We won't know until you tell me."

"Mira, please let it be," Lisanna begged.

Mira shook her head. "Lisanna, we're family. If I can't be there for my little sister, then I'm a failure as a big sister. Talk to me. Even if it turns out that there's nothing that I can do, simply talking things out can make you feel a lot better."

"I can't talk to you about this."

"Yes you can."

"No, I really can't."

"Trust me, Lisanna. You can talk to me about anything, no matter the subject."

"I can't talk to you about it!" Lisanna said, her voice shaking and frustration beginning to take over.

"Please, Lisanna. Whatever this is, you can tell me."

"How?" she yelled with her face in her hands. "How can I talk to you about this?"

Mira was taken aback by the outburst. "Because I'm your sister."

"That's exactly it!" Tears were falling from her eyes as her voice was shaking even more. "How can I tell my sister that I'm in love with the same man that she's in love with? The very same man that she's currently dating! The very same man that she hopes to marry!"

Understanding suddenly washed over Mira. She had known that Lisanna liked Nikolias. She knew that for a while, especially after her talk with Lisanna before her and Nikolias' first date. But she never imagined that it could be love. Lisanna's outburst from before made sense now. It also explained why Nikolias kept the information to himself and let Lisanna come clean about it when she was ready. "You…love Nikolias?"

"Yes," Lisanna sobbed. "I love him. I'm in love with Nikolias. I have been for a long time."

"How long?"

"Probably as long as you have. I felt strongly for him ever since I met him. He was handsome, mysterious, strong, kind. He was perfect."

Mira nodded. "I understand that. I did feel that way when I first met him, too."

Lisanna released a heavy breath. "Mira, I don't know if I can talk to you about this anymore. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, Lisanna," she said as she took her sister's hand. "You can talk to me. I'm not upset. Please, let it all out. Talk to me about your feelings. I'm here for you."

Lisanna was speechless. She was so sure that telling Mira that she was in love with Nikolias would have made her angry and she would have kept her distance for who knows how long. But now, she had told Mira about her feelings and Mira was asking her to tell her more. She took a deep breath as she prepared herself to reveal everything to Mira. "Are you sure?"

Mira gave her sister a big smile. "Absolutely."

Lisanna looked at her sister as tears stung her eyes. She wiped them away quickly. "Okay." She took another deep breath. "I first wanted to mention it at the slumber party that Gracie had when she and Nikolias first arrived. But all I could bring myself to say was that he had a nice body. I think I was thrown off when Gracie said that you liked him and then you didn't respond. I knew that meant that it was true. Anyway, time went on and my feelings only grew stronger. When I heard that he saved Natsu on his first job with Fairy Tail, I could see that he was someone who did care for others, even if he barely knew them. When he sparred with Natsu, I could see how strong he truly was. When the Master asked him and Gracie to work with others on missions, I got so excited. I thought that it was my chance to get to know him better. I fought hard to get to work with him first, but then he asked you and that's when everything changed.

"You came back from your mission with him late, not only having slept in the same bed with him, but getting to go on an unofficial date with him to that festival. From that moment on, I felt like my chance was over before it began. I knew I had to do something, but then the whole mess with the Bloody Moon guild happened and my best chance to get some alone time with Nikolias was gone since we couldn't do missions. But that didn't stop you. You got to go on an actual date with him. When I heard that, I was so frustrated. All because you got to him first, you were the only one who was going to get to spend any time with him. I was determined to not give up, though. Before your date, I asked if Nikolias would do a mission with me when the ban was lifted and he agreed. I remember feeling incredibly happy because I felt like there was still a chance. And, after a lot of crazy stuff, the ban on missions was lifted. I asked Nikolias and he said he would go, even though he had just recovered from his injury. We went on our mission and I did everything I could to get the message across. I stood close to him, I kept the conversation going, and I complimented him constantly. Then I tried to use your tactic from your first mission with him and get a single room with one bed, but he fought me on that and the best I could do was get one room with two beds. We went up to the room and…that's when I did something that I'm not proud of." She stopped and looked at her sister. "Mira, I…I tried to seduce him."

Mira blinked. She never would have guessed that her sister would do something so bold as to try and seduce a man. "You tried to seduce him?"

Lisanna nodded. "Yes. I came out of the bathroom in very revealing lingerie. I walked over to him and I…I threw myself at him. I kissed him, despite his attempts to stop me, and even tried to convince him to have sex with me."

"You tried to sleep with him?" Mira asked in shock.

Lisanna nodded again. "He was constantly telling me to stop, but I wouldn't listen. I just wanted to have him. I just wanted him to love me the way I loved him. But then he…he said something that snapped me out of it and made me realize that I had lost a long time ago." She smiled sadly at her sister. "He said that he was in love with you and that was why he couldn't do anything with me."

Mira blushed. "He said that?" She never realized that Nikolias' feelings for her went that far back. She had just assumed that his first confession was during that battle. "Why didn't he tell me about all of this?"

"I begged him to keep it a secret between us because I was embarrassed by my actions."

"I see."

"From that moment on, I tried everything I could to stop feeling the way I did, but I could never get over him. He was stuck in my heart. I couldn't stop loving him. I'm madly in love with him. And hearing you talk about him and mentioning marriage is just so hard to absorb. It's like being stabbed repeatedly in the heart."

"Lisanna, I'm sorry. I didn't know how deeply you felt for Nikolias. Had I known, I would have been more careful. I love you, Lisanna, and I would never try to hurt you. From now on, I'll try to be more considerate of your feelings."

Tears rolled down Lisanna's cheeks. "Thank you, Mira," she sniffed, "but it's not fair of me to ask you to stop talking about him around me or to never be around him when you're with me. I see how happy you two are together and that makes me happy for you, even if I wish that it was me in your place. Just give me time and I'm sure that I'll be able to get past this."

Mira nodded. "Okay. Whatever you need Lisanna. And don't be afraid to talk to me about this. I want to be there for you to help you anyway that I can."

Lisanna threw her arms around her sister. "Thank you, sister."

Mira hugged her back. "Of course, Lisanna. I'm always going to be here for you. No matter what."


A few miles off of the shores of Tenrou, a large airship was flying closer and closer to the sacred ground. Inside, a tall man with a long white beard and a black eye patch across his right eye sat on a throne.

Before him stood a beautiful woman with lovely long black hair. She was staring into a crystal ball that she balanced on her right arm. She smiled. "It seems that we have finally found our quarry. It even seems that he has entered a state of rest. I believe the time has finally come, Master Hades."

The tall man gave an evil grin. "Yes, Ultear. I believe that you are right. The time has come for me to finally meet the man who showed the world the true potential of the Black Arts. A man whose hoards of demons created chaos and death tolls with no equal. The Black Wizard, Zeref." He looked out among his followers. "The day is upon us. The abyss of sorcery is within our grasp. It's time to get to work. Grimoire Heart will get its prize and Tenrou Island will run red with the blood of Fairy Tail!"