I wanted to update this a long time ago! Sweet goodness! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the chapter.
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Kyoka dragged Erza, who was groaning and pushing herself to wake up. The demon ignored this because soon they would be in the torture room; the door was in sight. The corridor was dark and eerie, with a black metal door at the end. Past the entrance, Kyoka could smell old blood. Blood had a wonderful scent, but it became sour after sitting on the floor for days. Luckily, new blood will spill soon.
The green-haired demon opened the door but paused. Her eyes landed on a form tied up by her wrist, hanging from the ceiling. It was a young, human girl with bushy brown hair and glaring brown eyes. Her front teeth were big but not too noticeable. Kyoka was beginning to become annoyed because of the girl's defying expression. It made her want to gouge out her eyes. But one thing still eluded her: why was this human here?
"Ignore the mudblood," said the hissing whisper of Voldemort. Kyoka turned her gaze to the bold, snake-faced man. "She gets her defiance from Potter, who is not here to protect her now. I plan to leave her disfigured corpse at the front of the guild for him to find."
Kyoka raised an eyebrow. "Mudblood?" she questioned the unknown word.
"Mudblood means dirty blood. She was born from muggles - non-magic scum - and entered our grand world to taint it with her filth. We wizards had our own rules and traditions. The Mudbloods replaced them with their muggle-loving ways. They have ruined our world. Now, all you see are muggles and wizards together on the streets. They walk and talk among each other without a care in the world," Voldemort explained. It took Kyoka everything not to scoff. That was the dumbest thing she had ever heard, but he was human. Humans would use anything to hate and kill each other.
The human girl didn't bother to suppress her scoff. "You are a hypocrite, Lord Voldemort. You're a half-blood who grew up around muggles, and you don't care for pure-blood ideology. If you did, you would have gone through the means to fix the wizarding world the legal way. You had the charisma and power to do it. But you wanted to watch the blood of the weak paint the streets," she said as Kyoka hung up Erza. The red-haired mage was now awake and glaring at the demon and dark lord.
Kyoka had to admit, though: this brat called Voldemort out. It infuriated the man so much that he cast the torture curse on the female, who screamed a beautiful tune. The loud music urged Kyoka to start her part as well. 'Let's see if I can create a harmony.'
Lucy cringed when she heard Erza and Hermione scream. The sound was faint, but the tone sent chills crawling down her spine like death's cold fingers. Blood pounded in her ears, and her limbs shook. The blond-haired mage wanted to charge through the locked door and save her friends. She wasn't the only one. Gray let out a cry and punched the stone floor. Ice covered the surface, cooling the air and hissing.
"I say we bust that door down," growled Gray, clenching his teeth.
"I already tried that," sighed Max, who looked down at the hard floor.
"That door is metal, right?" asked the ice-make mage, earning a nod. "Then let's try freezing and heating it." Gray swept through the crowd with his eyes, searching for someone who could use fire.
Lucy scanned the cell, too. Natsu would be excellent for this situation, but he wasn't captured like they were. Macao and Romeo could help, too, but they were with Natsu outside. That was when Lucy saw red hair attached to a freckled face. Ron had the same kind of magic as Harry. That meant he could conjure fire and help Gray break down the door.
"Hey, Ron," Lucy called. "Do you think you could give Gray a hand?" Ron's face was pale, but Lucy saw a raging fire in his icy-blue eyes. The teen flinched when Hermione screamed again. Ron growled, shot to his feet, and marched toward the door, standing next to Gray.
Gray locked eyes with Ron, and the two nodded. Gray thrust his hand forward, coating the door in layers of ice. Ron called the incantation and slashed his wand like a blade. Fire blasted the door, melting the ice and causing the metal to glow. They took turns attacking the door. After their 10th interval, Ron cast the explosion curse. Dust scattered around the cell, forcing everyone to cover their eyes. When the dirt settled, Lucy saw glowing symbols alining the exit.
"A barrier," stated Makarov, his voice deeper than usual.
Gray spun to face the master. "You have got to be kidding me!"
"I wish I was. But before we remove the door, we need to break the enchantment." Makarov placed his attention on Ron. "Can you do that?"
Ron shook his head. "No, Hermione was the only one who learned how to do that," he said.
The master then turned to Lucy. "What about you? You and Levi work on projects like this, don't you?"
"Yes, but I've never broken an enchantment before," Lucy replied. "Levi would be better at this than me."
Ron snapped his gaze onto her. "Can you try?!" he demanded, his eyes were wide and wild.
"Hey, don't shout at her!" Gray scolded.
"I could," Lucy trailed off and tapped her chin. "But I would need my wind reader glasses. Alas, I left them back at my apartment," she replied, her heart aching with each distant scream.
"Then there is nothing we can do but wait for the others to get here," muttered Makarov. He lifted his head to look up toward the tiny window behind them. "Hmm...?" Lucy turned to see what had her master's attention. A small, imp-like creature was squeezing through the bars. It was brown with white eyes and a spike on its head, with leaves crowning its skull. In the creature's hand was a scroll. It was small, a letter or a note. Whatever the message was, it was for Makarov.
Makarov took the note and read its contents. Lucy and the others waited in silence. Once the master finished, he rolled the scroll and eyed each member.
"What did it say?" asked Gray.
"The letter said help is on the way," he replied.
Lucy scooted closer to the master. "Who sent the message?" she asked.
Makarov sighed, "It's from Zeref." Fairy Tail gasped. Gray was silent, and Lucy knew why. What she didn't understand was why Zeref said help was coming. Why didn't Natsu or Harry send the letter?
Gray was gritting his teeth, fists shaking at his sides. His mouth opened, a protest ready on his tongue.
"Be silent!" Makarov ordered, glaring at everyone. The guild fell quiet. "I understand you're all confused and want to know why Zeref is helping. Well, it turns out history became twisted over the years about him. Zeref was born 400 years ago, and he did create the demons, but the reasons behind these acts were false." Makarov explained what happened to Zeref when the mage was young. He told them that a dark mage killed Zeref's little brother and how he tried to bring him back. He succeeded, but not before he tried to kill himself with his demons.
Gray demanded why dark mages built the Tower of Heaven. He also ordered an explanation on why Deliora was roaming around if Zeref sealed the demons away. Makarov told the ice mage that Zeref designed the tower to bring back his little brother. But he scrapped the idea.
Lucy decided to explain why Zeref's demons were still wandering the world. She told Gray that Zeref sealed the demons, but dark mages wanted to control their power but failed. The etherious killed the mages before they could lock them away again.
After Makarov finished retelling Zeref's backstory to his guild, everyone felt lost. How were they supposed to look past their former knowledge of the Black Wizard to see the victim that he is?
{Harry, Zeref's here,} said Fawkes, pointing his beak behind Harry. The young wizard cranked his head and saw the dark-haired mage approaching.
"Zer...er...Zeff, what are you doing here?" Harry asked, catching his guildmates' attention.
Zeref stopped before them and replied, "I heard what happened and wish to help."
"Why would you want to help? You're not a member of our guild," demanded Gajeel, his eyes narrowed.
"I made a deal with King Fiore. I'm helping him take down the dark guilds associated with Zeref," Zeref explained.
"What do you get out of it?" Harry heard the warning growl in Gajeel's tone.
"Our countries were at odds for 100 years because of Zeref's creations. I desire to bring peace between us, but the King refuses to think about letting bygones be bygones. He will be willing to negotiate if I remove the dark influence Zeref left behind."
Harry stepped between his group and Zeref. "Gajeel, I know this man. He's a friend, and I trust him. I understand you don't, but trust me on this, okay?" he pleaded, waiting for anyone else to protest. Fairy Tail remained silent. Harry nodded his head and turned his gaze onto Natsu and Zeref. "Natsu, Zeff, come with me. We need to talk."
TBC
Zeref is back in the picture, and he is staying! I can't wait for this story to end. How long has it been since I started?
Zeref: You published the first chapter seven years ago.
Enj/Dark: D=
Natsu&Harry: Wow... 0_0
Voldy: You have more patience than me. I would have cursed my whole army six years ago if I worked on something this long.
Enj/Dark: Yeah... I don't have plans to work on a story this long again.
Harry: Then you're going to have to write more often.
Enj/Dark: I'm aware. -_- Natsu, it's your turn.
Natsu: Please review!
