Solitude, how bittersweet it was.
To say Natsu had become well acquainted with it wouldn't do their relationship justice.
While the planet buzzed with the sweetness of life and populous, while civilization struggled mightily with itself on whether to pursue its own progression or not, the dragon slayer found himself in the one state he could do no harm.
Alone.
In the middle of a burnt down forest that hovered on cliffs that bordered canyons, Natsu sat at an extinguished campfire, alone.
No songs of life echoed, just a barren army of charred stumps that stretched meaninglessly and produced deafening silence. A blaze had taken the forest but weeks before, smothering the earth with ash.
The night sky stood starless above Natsu as he sat on a flaky log, staring at the last few cinders of his campfire as they burned their final goodbyes. There was no one there to be cold, so he had no reason to reignite it.
He had sat in the darkness, waiting for the sun to yawn and stretch over the horizon so he could continue his journey.
The sound of him shuffling was the only noise louder than the dutiful chirp of crickets, as Natsu cast a bored glance to his sleeping bag, still rolled up atop his backpack.
Sleep was a chore, a chore he was tired of doing.
While he had pulled himself into productiveness during the latter half of his month-long vegetation, the first few weeks had consisted of quite literally, nothing.
Natsu had laid in bed, not sleeping, not resting, and done nothing.
When one shoulder grew sore from lack of movement, he absently shifted to the lay on the other one and merely stared.
Just stared.
At the walls to his left and right.
At the cobwebs that stretched out in the untouched crannies of his home.
At the eternal movement of night and day through the confines of a window in desperate need of cleaning.
Anything and everything, he had just stared.
All the while his own thoughts, unhampered and dissolute, lay waste to his head.
Like vultures so famished they plucked at their own feathers, experiences and memories of the past conflicts ate away at his brain, rotting each wrinkle with one dizzying reality after another.
Despite having long since broken from that stupor, some habits remained unscathed.
The most important one being, not sleeping.
Sleep seemed meaningless now.
As his hatred for sudden loud noises and large chaotic crowds grew, so did the frequency of nightmares.
Each one was meticulously brewed and crafted from the plentiful ingredients his psyche provided, specifically tailored to wake him with a start, to ignite fighting instincts.
After the thousandth attempt at reaching his hand into the land of dreams, only for his fingers to get gnawed on by nightmares, Natsu finally gave up.
Every once in a while, he would slip up, let his guard down and allow himself a moment of foolish naivety in the hopes he could make it through the night.
Juvia had been around in time for his latest blunder, and had offered Natsu a truly meaningful moment of rest with her presence. But it was a fleeting solution, a temporary lapse in a schedule he was aware he would soon return to, unwilling or otherwise.
That short ride his train of thought took did nothing but remind him that across the dwindled campfire, lay no one.
Next to him, sat no one.
No Juvia, sweet Juvia with her soft words and tender heart to help soothe his nightmares.
No Erza or Mirajane with their insistent concern for his well being and guilt over their past actions.
No Lisanna. No Gray. No Levy. No anyone.
Not even Happy, his very best bud, the one who was always with him, simply wasn't with him.
Natsu didn't like this.
In fact, he loathed it as much as one person could realistically despise something. But, it was for the best.
He couldn't hurt anyone. The reality of who he was could not bring danger.
This way, his supposed true self, this ascendant being beyond all measures of comprehension, had no way to bring the destruction it embodied.
Natsu had shaken his head at that last part, knowing how flawed that logic is. He revisited the melodious song of Juvia's voice as advised him against that line of thinking.
The fact remained however, until he could muster enough energy to pull himself together, this was for the best.
After hours of nihility, Natsu grew bored.
With but a few short hours before the sun would claim its throne in the sky, the dragon slayer acknowledged his grumbling stomach and left his campfire.
This was the very last environment to hunt in, as the wildlife had long since moved on for more dappled shade and greener pastures. However, as fast as Natsu was, he could go across the planet to hunt a deer before a cricket could finish its chirp.
Before the vibrations of sound could ripple across the air a single meter, Natsu traveled in a blur to far off forests and returned, a burly buck draped over one shoulder.
A hail of twigs and dirt billowed in his wake as he gently set the buck down, gathering a few undulated sticks to toss back onto the campfire.
The buck lay motionless on the ground, a swift chop to the back of the neck instantly separating vertebrae, resulting in a painless end. The nerves hadn't been able to send signals fast enough before the neutral black of death met it.
Snapping his fingers, Natsu breathed new life into the campfire, blustering flames stretching eagerly to paint his drab surroundings with tones of warm orange.
Drawing a hunting knife from a travel holster he wore behind his waist, he began the process of skinning and gutting it.
Beneath his breath, Natsu quietly murmured his thanks for the nourishment the buck would provide as he sliced fur from flesh and flesh from bone.
Messes of gooey intestines and organs split from the incision in the buck's belly, rivers of blood soon surfing in every direction, soaking everything it touched.
By the time Natsu was done, he had more meat than he knew what to do with, and a full deer pelt in exquisite condition.
Surreptitious movement registered in his ears, the snapping of twigs and crushing of dried up leaves such a chorus that it told him whatever was moving felt as if they owned the place.
The slinking blob that crept through the night towards him distinctly canine in size and shape.
As a pair of piercing yellow eyes stared at him from the darkness, Natsu merely spread the deer pelt over the log he sat on and took a knee beside the campfire.
Seeing as wolves were too intelligent, too shy, to further approach a human and their campfire, Natsu performed a little trick his father had once taught him.
By fluctuating his magical signature at a certain frequency, he could pacify and calm animals, making them almost entirely aloof of his presence. Igneel had told him it was a neat hunting trick to us if you didn't go through the tedious process of hiding his scent.
Large paws kissed the earth lightly as the lone wolf grew closer, the welcoming glow of the campfire chucking out portions of light that in turn temporarily revealed the canine's brilliant silver coat.
Finally stepping into the light without natural caution, Natsu finally got a good look at what was most likely the forest's only remaining occupant.
The wolf stood tall and stood broad, exuding valiance and valor despite how obviously aged the wild animal was.
His fur, thin against his muscled yet malnourished frame like a windbreaker in a gale, had several stories of harsh battles written across his mane in the form of deep scars and gashes.
The coarse white hair that tapered its marred muzzle twitched as the wolf soaked in every new scent stoically, as if studying the new phenomenon that graced his now broken home.
Natsu, even from yards away, could cleanly count each of the wolf's ribs, noticing how the elderly canine's tired eyes immediately settled on the buck corpse.
Natsu made no motion to assert his position of power over the campsite, he merely stuck one of the chunks of meat onto the end of his hunting knife and held it over the fire.
Nose tickling the burnt forest floor, the wolf didn't even acknowledge Natsu, seemingly in disbelief that there was fresh prey in place where it hadn't been in a long time.
Finally giving in, the wolf darted across the campfire to feast on all the remained of the buck, but not after glancing behind him, as if habit told the wolf to alert its clan to the existence of food.
However, after realizing the thing he had evidently fought tooth and nail to protect was no longer with him, the wolf decided to use the last of his waning strength to fill his belly.
Under a glitter-less night sky, two warriors enjoyed a meal.
Sloppy smacking and chewing came from the wolf, who didn't bother announcing his contentment with a growl or warble.
An ear with a noticeable chunk bitten from it swiveled in Natsu's direction every so often, but other than that, the wolf lacked enough energy to do anything other than eat from a kill it didn't make, back turned to what usually would have been an intruder.
Natsu, of course, finished first, the taste of meat bouncing off of his sterile taste buds like unaware birds against a sturdy pristine window pane.
The dragon slayer positioned himself back onto the log, holstering his knife before he grabbed the crinkly stack of bounties from his bag.
The commotion did little to disturb the furtive wolf, who scarfed down intestines and tendons alike.
Straightening a dog eared edge of one of the quests, he thumbed through them, finally stopping upon catching a gander of a few familiar key words.
None of the other quests seemed too special, despite the bounties attempts at painting their threats as if it was the end of life in the galaxy.
There was a so-called 'Mistress of Time and Space' looking to expand her slave trading empire who needed stopping, a rogue clan of mages who needed banishing, and a legendary beast called the 'Shrike' that needed slaying.
It was bland, boring, and endless, all the evil that kept surfacing its ghastly head the moment peace tried to settle.
Folding the stack in half, forming a horizontal crease so that he could stuff them back into his pack's side pocket, Natsu looked back at his new acquaintance for the first time in a few minutes.
The wolf rose his head, compulsively licking the blood from his chops before breaking into a light pant, having neglected his need to breathe for too long.
Hand diving into his pack, Natsu produced a water canteen and a small stainless steel pot. The sound of swishing water caught the wolf's attention, inquisitive eyes turning to stare at the curiously shiny object.
The dragon slayer set the pot near his feet, gesturing to it with a tilt of his head before taking a swig himself.
The movements the wolf made caught Natsu's attention, how his creeping movements now lacked the par for the course fluidity. The wolf seemed old, very old, older than most wild animals could ever hope to be, but the tremble in his limbs told a story that was soon to end.
Plopping down onto his haunches, he brought his nose to the metallic bowl and gave it an examination of sniffing. His whiskers twitched before he finally began to fervently lap up his share, sending tiny crystal globes to splash against Natsu's ankle.
Closer inspection let Natsu hear how the canine's ribs creaked with each breath, his decaying body quivering with each movement.
If he was forced to guess, Natsu would assume the rest of this wolf's pack had fled to more prosperous territory.
Why the wolf would stay and let his kin go, especially after evidently fighting so hard for its survival, Natsu would never know.
Perhaps the wolf had a concept of death, had an awareness few animals had that his time on this Earth was coming to a close.
Because of that, he had decided to stay, to not burden his pack in these trying times, as his job was done.
Or maybe he was the only member of his pack left.
It was possible the forest fire had claimed his family, leaving him alone to wander helplessly, to let the realization his life's efforts had been for naught chip away at his last ounces of defiance.
A chillingly wet nose pressed against Natsu's calf, snapping him from his theorizing.
The wolf, jowls still dripping wet from downing the entire bowl of water, now panted harder as he took in Natsu's scent.
Natsu made no movements, letting his new acquaintance decide whether interacting with him was worth the precious energy.
A thankful nuzzle to the thigh told him the answer was yes, as Natsu held out a shaky hand to give the wolf's side a few pats.
The canine gave a low warble as it pressed its weight against the log, slowly sliding down to lay on his side, legs limp as they no longer held the capacity to hold him up.
Hearing his heart beat slow, Natsu joined the wolf on the burnt forest floor, crossing his legs as he let the canine rest his head in his lap.
The fur beneath his fingers was coarse and matted, shed hairs and flakes of dirt sticking to his hand as he continued to stroke the wolf's back.
The bumpy sensation of scarred desiccated tissue Natsu felt as he brushed over scab after scab was painstakingly similar to the texture of his own skin.
The sigh that escaped the wolf was so heavy it practically sunk to the planet's center, so hesitant as if the animal was saying 'this is just for a minute, I'll get back up soon'.
Natsu knew better.
The lurid ghoulish sound of the wolf's lungs fighting for all their worth just to continue breathing was a noise the dragon slayer had heard come from himself countless times before.
The wolf wasn't ready for his eternal sleep, as if he still had a point to prove to his family, whether they were alive or not, that he was still capable of protecting them.
An almost angry huff came from the wolf, like he was annoyed with his own mortality.
However, with body far more content than mind, there was nothing the wolf could do.
His belly was full, and his thirst was quenched. Sleep must follow suit, however infinite it may be.
He was losing the clash with death, yet the wolf still fought like a warrior, each breath a show of defiance as he gave a feeble growl to no one in particular.
Natsu wanted, really, to say something.
To tell him he was sure that he had done his very best.
To tell him that he understood better than anybody.
He understood wanting to do more, of knowing there had to be more left in the tank, of knowing that there was so much more to give.
He wanted to say something, anything.
But he knew it wouldn't get the message across.
Natsu finally rested a gentle hand atop the wolf's head, as if to express, 'you did your job, you can rest now'.
The only thing he could do other than that was ironically enough, making sure the wolf wasn't alone.
The wolf had more than earned the ability to accept his fate.
Affording the wolf a sentiment he never would to himself, the dragon slayer merely stared at the dancing fire and supportively caressed the length of the canine's neck.
The hollow rise and fall of the wolf's white underbelly eased, gradually slowing without pushback.
When the wolf's eyes inevitably closed, his serene golden pupils were sealed for eternity, never to be seen blazing with the wilderness of life ever again.
In the presence of a kindred spirit, a fellow warrior, the old wolf drew its last content breath.
Natsu stared at the grave he had made for his late acquaintance thoughtfully, the rising auroral iris that rose past the horizon painting the darkness around him with a vibrant gold mascara of light.
With his campfire extinguished behind him, and the buck's corpse serving as breakfast for a family of ravens, the dragon slayer stood over the carefully built pile of stones with a stoic yet solemn expression.
Inside the front pockets of his duster, the fire mage's hands clenched for a second, his stare falling to his feet.
The wolf would have appreciated this, he was sure of it. This was the least he could do, they had provided each other company in very crucial moments after all.
The old canine's body would serve as nutrients, there to help bolster the process of green grass rising from the ashes of its fallen forerunners.
In a few months time, the wolf's grave would serve as a pasture, in a few decades, the wolf would be at the heart of his thriving home once more.
While the early morning called to the soul of the land like a mother to their child, a playful breeze fiddled with Natsu's hair as he pursed his lips and chewed on the inside of his cheek.
Despite all that, it didn't balm the stab of empathetic pain that cut his gut open.
Whatever situation the wolf may have been in, Natsu knew exactly what was going on through his head as he was forcefully returned to his creator.
He wouldn't wish that kind of turmoil on his worst enemy.
He finally turned on a heel and walked away, intent on finding his next adventure. As he head towards the perfect line up of clouds in the distance, the dragon slayer reflected.
Even if things didn't turn out perfectly, the warrior canine had stayed loyal to his home and his family until the end. Now, his legacy would birth new life, new packs.
The wolf had done his job.
Natsu wasn't quite sure whether he could say the same for himself.