Chapter 24:

The trip was tense and awkward to say the least. For the majority of the time they stayed in silence, only breaking it with occasional words or grunts as they both kept to their own thoughts. To be honest, Laxus was a little curious. Why did Natsu care so much? And why did he insist on being here? He knew that they'd had a past and as much as he tried to deny it there was a pang of jealousy in his heart whenever he thought about it. How serious was their past relationship, exactly?

He stuffed his hands into his pockets as they walked in silence, quietly telling himself he actually didn't and honestly shouldn't care. Laxus had no claim to Gajeel. They could barely stand each other. Each time they'd been involved they hadn't been in their right minds.

Each time they'd been involved Laxus seemed to do nothing but hurt the other Dragon Slayer or force him to do something he didn't want to do.

But he didn't have the balls to admit that to himself.

The thick quiet was eating away at him. Usually, it was something he didn't mind but the whole situation had him a little off balance. It didn't help that even Natsu wasn't his usual hotheaded self. He seemed just as off kilter as Laxus, avoiding his gaze and scratching at the back of his head nervously every ten or fifteen minutes. He couldn't stand this anymore. He had to break the silence.

"He's probably fine, you know," Laxus forced out, trying to sound as natural as possible.

Dark eyes flashed his direction, "I don't know… he's never been gone this long before."

"Maybe he just wanted to spend some time alone… he's like that,"

Natsu didn't respond, just kept his eyes forward as they continued their trek. Laxus clicked his teeth.

"Why are you so worried, then?" he grunted, "Did he say something to you before he left?"

"No…" Natsu clenched his fists defensively, eyeing Laxus out of the corner of his eye, "He just said he was going to be back in a week and then without saying anything he never came back… you don't think that maybe something happened?"

"I just think you're reading too much into it," Laxus said coolly, trying to diffuse the salmon haired boy.

"Out of everyone at the guild, shouldn't you be the most worried?" Natsu spat venomously.

Laxus stopped in his tracks, causing Natsu to have to turn to look at him. The two locked eyes heatedly, daring the other to respond.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Don't you care about him?" Natsu growled at him through gritted teeth and sparks of fire began licking at his fists.

Laxus was sure his face reflected how stunned he felt. His stomach bunched angrily and he prickled, not completely sure as to why he was suddenly so furious with the fire mage.

"Do you?" it sounded more like an accusation than a question and after a few minutes of Natsu returning his angry glare he finally let out a tense sigh.

"Not like that,"

Silence once again descended on the pair, though some of the anger had finally been dissolved from the air.

"So how did you find out?" Natsu laughed easily, trying to smooth things over even if just slightly.

"I overheard you two talking."

"Really? Probably shouldn't let Gajeel know,"

"Yeah?"

"He doesn't like people knowing about his personal life."

"Makes sense," Laxus sighed, happy that the tension in the air had finally given way. He felt like he could breathe again, "So, uh, what happened?"

Natsu cast a sly glance at the blonde, his eyes sparked with mischief, "Why do you want to know?"

Laxus gritted his teeth, "You're such a kid."

"Do you liiike him?"

"Hell if I know! I was just trying to make conversation," Laxus seethed, "Maybe I should have left it alone when you wouldn't even look at me,"

Natsu eyed him as if to see if he was serious of not before he turned his attention forward again, "Gajeel noticed I was acting strange a while back. He'd actually only been at the guild for a short while. It's still pretty hazy looking back on it, but I think Gajeel knew what was going on way before the idea crossed my mind…"

Laxus furrowed his brow at the Fire Dragon, clearly confused. Natsu's cheeks flushed red.

"The Heat… Gajeel thinks it's like a coming of age thing since it happened to him when he was so young. He doesn't believe me but I'd never been through it until after Gajeel came to the guild."

"…wait… what?" Laxus stopped in his tracks and just kind of gawked at Natsu who was trying to stare a hole into the gravel road at their feet as he was speaking.

"Heh, yeah… weird, right? I mean, Igneel said it was a competitive thing so maybe it never happened to me because there weren't any other Dragon Slayers around… and now suddenly there are four of us at the same guild…"

"So… what was different about Gajeel?"

"I don't know, honestly. He won't talk about it."

"And you think, what? Something happened to him?"

Natsu shrugged, "Who knows. But when Gajeel realized what was going on he kind of followed me home and talked to me about it… which was weird. But I mean, it kept me out of trouble. Usually, I go see Lucy whenever I think something is wrong."

Laxus only grunted in response. He could only imagine what would have happened if Gajeel hadn't intervened. Maybe since it was Lucy it would have worked out. It wasn't hard to tell that the two had a thing for each other. But at least Natsu didn't have to deal with the what-if's. Or the guilt.

Laxus's stomach felt a little sour even as his mind just barely remembered what had happened between he and Gajeel. His eyes darted to the pink haired mage as he walked on, leading slightly and seemingly trying to sort out some of his own thoughts as well. How did Natsu find out about everything?

"So… did Gajeel tell you about what happened?" Natsu returned a blank stare for a moment and Laxus ran his tongue against the inside of his teeth angrily, "The mission."

"Oh," Natsu stopped and pushed his hands into his pockets, obviously uncomfortable, "Yeah… I mean… I put together a lot of it on my own. You smelled like each other, so it wasn't too hard to figure out at least part of it. The rest..." he shrugged, "I got him mad enough to tell me."

"Doesn't seem like that's too hard for you to do."

Natsu flashed a toothy smile, finally lightening up.

"What did he say? About what happened…?" Laxus turned his head as if he were looking off into the trees, trying to hide the heat that was inching it's way up his neck. He tried to ignore the anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach. Why should he care what Gajeel said?

Natsu's eyes were keen and he saw through Laxus easily, "Not too much… just that you two got into a pretty bad fight."

Laxus had no idea why, but he felt like he'd been holding his breath. He sucked in a breath but whatever he was about to say was immediately taken away when he detected a hint of something on the wind. Natsu stiffened at the same moment and both of their heads turned in the direction of the scent. Laxus's brow furrowed. Natsu plucked his way off of the trail and into the woods. As they walked Laxus felt the prickle of something familiar, an electric sensation from the eyes of someone hidden in the forest. He couldn't help glancing back over his shoulder as every stride took them farther off the path.

"Gajeel!" Natsu called into the woods, his voice bouncing back at them off of the trunks of trees and the warm summer ground, "Gajeel! It's time to go back to the guild!"

Laxus's ears picked up the sound of water. That was right, Gajeel had camped out by a small waterfall. A nervous feeling coiled in the pit of his stomach. It was an eerie quiet that was around them. There were no birds, no scuttle of animals in the brush, not even wind. Just the ever-growing noise of water hitting stones greeted them as they approached. Laxus tasted the air tentatively, sure he'd catch the whiff of sweat and iron. Instead, all he could detect was forest. As they breached the clearing, Laxus's eyes immediately trained on something on the ground.

"Gajeel!" Natsu's call sliced through the air, less care free than before. Laxus stepped towards the abandoned camp. The simple man that he was, he didn't carry much. His mat was unrolled and there was no blanket. There was no sign of a fire. Just scraps of iron metal glittering up at him as it was strewn about the ground. Natsu came up beside him, wrinkling his nose as he tried to figure out whatever Laxus was looking at. He crouched down, dark eyes flicking this way and that.

Laxus stuffed his hands into his pockets. The smell of the Iron Dragon was muted under the damp of rain and the natural humid of the forest. This place hadn't been abandoned recently. Laxus tilted his head towards the waterfall and noticed how the water seemed darker as it fell against the rocks in one spot. A cave maybe?

He made to step towards the water when his heavy boot brushed against something in the dirt. He glanced down, his eyes noticing instead of the browns of dirt or the green of moss a slightly different hue of something in the dust. He squatted down and dug his fingers into the damp mud and pulled out what looked to be a dart with a sharp needle point just greater than the length of a tac.

"Natsu…" Laxus glanced up and saw the boy was standing stock still. His eyes were locked on something in the forest and Laxus sprung up from his crouch and stalked quietly to him. He dropped his voice to a harsh whisper, "Natsu."

"I don't think he hears you," the voice startled him and he froze, his heart suddenly beating much harder than before. Slim and sliding from the tree like a snake, Bianca's feet made a muted noise as if she were a puma dropping from its perch. She was silent and Laxus was incredibly aware of the fact she had no scent. It was almost terrifying how undetectable she was. She could have been following them for miles and neither Laxus nor Natsu would have ever known. He gritted his teeth at the thought, angry lightning snapped around his fists as he tried to contain himself.

"Where's Gajeel." Laxus demanded flatly, pushing down the snarl that wanted to rip its way through his throat. He didn't want her to see how difficult it was for him to remain calm. Deep down in his chest a sinking feeling started to grip him and he forbade himself from allowing the thought to find purchase in his mind: What had she done to him?

"I love how direct you are. No games, no riddles, just straight to business…" she sashayed up to him, confident and smug knowing she had leverage against the hulking mage, "Your little damsel is locked away, safe and unharmed. And he'll remain that way… as long as you do exactly as I say."

He was so furious that red was beginning to inch its way into his vision. He could hear his blood begin to sing through his veins and it took every ounce of control in him to keep his magic in check. But the electricity was already building a current in the air, causing the hair on his arms to stand up and the hum of energy to make the air buzz. He kept his fists balled at his sides.

"What do you want?"

She grinned slyly in a way that made him feel like it should have been the blood covered jaws of a shark instead of the softly rouged lips of a woman, "As much as it pains me to say… I need you."

Laxus didn't respond, just continued to glare at her silently.

"You see, I wanted this to be easier. The day I tested my potion on you was supposed to be our last encounter. It was my hope that you'd kill your friend and I'd have his body to play around with at my leisure… but you didn't."

She slipped behind Laxus and he had to fight not to immediately turn and keep her in his sights. He felt the brush of her fingers against the small of his back as she walked around him.

"You already have your potion. You know the fucking thing works. Let Gajeel go."

"Hmm?" she came around to face him then, eyes coy as she grinned sweetly at him, "You think that's what I need? Laxus, the men I deal with have enough testosterone as it is. If they wanted products that were ready to fight them off they wouldn't need my services, now would they?"

Laxus's stomach dropped.

"What my clients want is something that will bend my products to their will… make it so they can't say no…"

"Fuck off!" Laxus snapped, taking a step forward towards Bianca. She didn't even flinch and her smile didn't waiver.

"Tsk, and here I thought you'd want to help your friend," she stepped coolly away, not even slightly perturbed by the raging Thunder Dragon in front of her, "But I have to say I wouldn't be too thrilled about it either. The man has a nasty temper on him…"

She eyed Natsu as she spoke and let one of her hands glide gently against his arm, "Maybe we'll just have to take your pink haired friend with us instead."

"Don't touch him you f-"

The feel of magic filling the air made Laxus dodge out of the way. He turned, his eyes searching wildly to find the offender who shot at him. He gritted his teeth as he caught sight of her lackey, Caetus if he remembered correctly. He could take him down in a heartbeat but what would that mean for Natsu who still unable to move as Bianca eyed him hungrily? He suppressed a growl and stayed still, clenching his fists. The ebony haired woman traced her fingers up Natsu's neck to grip his chin, her eyes flickering over to Laxus as she examined the Fire Dragon as if he were just an animal.

"Don't touch him." Laxus growled again, resignation in his voice. She let her hand drop from his face and flipped her long tresses, a pleased smile coming to her lips with victory.

"You'll meet us back here at sundown… alone," she moved with grace over to him and gripped his shirt, pulling him down so he'd have to look at her eye level, "And if anyone else comes with you the red-eyed one dies."

She released him and he bit back the ire that was making his stomach turn. Throbbing scarlet was making his peripheral vision foggy. He'd never wanted to punch anyone so badly. Like a vulture smelling a drop of blood while circling its dying prey, she honed in on his anger and helplessness. She cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Yes Bianca," she cooed at him.

"Yes…" Laxus's voice was hardly more than a feral growl as his golden eyes pierced into her, "Bianca."