Idiot's Guide to Love and War

A/N: The Tower of Heaven is now far behind us, but awaits our protagonists when they return to the guildhall? Fairy Tail won't be the same place they left, and more things will change than just the building itself.

However, they aren't the only ones that faced tough challenges. The Black Bulls are back, but something seems different about a few of them. Members, both new and old, will have shocking new reveals.

Make sure to comment your thoughts, I love hearing reactions to my ideas, both positive and negative.

"Okay, I may have only seen this place while it was destroyed," says Ur, "But I'm pretty sure it did not look like this."

Our returning heroes were currently standing in front of what should have been the construction ground for their old guildhall. Instead, they found the building to be completely revamped and looking much more like a small-scale castle.

"Natsu and the others are back!" Sting, Lector and Romeo walk by, having noticed their arrival. "We finished fixing things back a while ago, and this place is cooler than ever!" The two preteens then proceeded to show the group around. "We've got a gift shop, a café, a swimming pool, a game room, it's all so cool!"

When they walked inside, they found that the entire design of the main guildhall was also changed. Levy, who had completely recovered from her injuries during the Phantom Lord incident, also told them that anyone could go up to the second floor now, not just S-Class wizards.

While everyone else seemed excited about the changes, Lucy noticed Natsu grumbling behind his scarf. "What's wrong Natsu? I thought you would be most happy about the guild being rebuilt."

Natsu simply grumbled a rough, "It's not the same," and didn't elaborate any further. Lucy looked at him, worried why that mattered so much to him before Makarov came and introduced them to Juvia in a new white and blue outfit, who had left to join the guild before they left Akane Resort. She greeted them all happily and especially thanked Ur, her 'Love Master,' confusing everyone else who wasn't in on her feelings.

"Oh, and she isn't the only new member!" exclaimed Sting. "You can come out now, I don't know why you're still so shy." The returnees looked at Sting in confusion until his shadow started moving and out came another familiar face.

"Rogue!" shouted Natsu, who had suddenly forgotten his foul mood. "I knew I smelled something weird when I got here! Why were you hiding from me?" Rogue bashfully tries to hide behind Sting, who nudges him out into the open. "We went over this. Big Bro Natsu clearly isn't mad at you, so go ahead."

Rogue sighs and bows his head. "I'm really sorry for trying to kidnap you Ms. Lucy. I didn't know you and Natsu were mates, and I sincerely apologize for what I did." He is then caught of guard by Lucy patting him on the head.

"Don't feel too bad about it. Juvia also tried to kidnap me, but I can tell you're just as honest as she was." Lucy then leans in and whispers to him, "Don't tell them I told you this, but he and Sting were actually really worried about what happened to you."

"You know I can still hear you right?" Natsu comments, to which Lucy gives him a grin that says, 'I know you did, so what?' Rogue's cloak then shakes, causing him to move it and reveal another bipedal cat like Happy and Lector, but this one is green and wearing a pink frog suit.

"Fro is hungry, is it time to eat yet?" Rogue then picks up the cat-frog (frog-cat?). "Frosch, I've told you a hundred times, if you need to eat, just tell me, I can get you something."

The immediate reaction from the girls shocked everyone, as they swarmed the talking cat at lighting speeds, 'ooing' and 'awing' at it ceaselessly. Happy on the other hand, got a chill up his spine as he gasped comedically. "What's wrong?" asked Lector.

"My worst fear is coming true," Happy sagely answered, "I first thought of it when Nero arrived with Asta, but they can't talk so it's okay. I then worried about it again when you showed up with Sting, but you lack the charm to do so." Lector looked at him, bewildered at what Happy is getting at. "I'm sorry, what's the problem again?"

"I'm being usurped as cutest animal in Fairy Tail!" whined Happy. Natsu came to rescue with some encouraging words for his feline companion. "Don't worry Happy! He'll never beat you at being blue!"

As everyone continues to talk, they are interrupted by a loud voice that some of them recognized. "Shut the hell up, I'm tryin' to eat here!"

"Wait! He's here too! You've gotta be fucking with us!" Gray couldn't believe his eyes as sitting at a table was the man responsible for destroying the guild in the first place, Gajeel Redfox, eating a plate full of scrap metal.

Everyone's attitude sours once Gajeel makes his presence known. "I don't mind that Juvia and Rogue joined, but Gajeel is the one that destroyed our guild hall!" Erza wastes no time making her opinion clear alongside the rest that they don't appreciate the Iron Dragon Slayer's presence.

"Yeah, well the feelings mutual, so don't go getting your panties in a twist." Gajeel shows the same disdain for them that they have for him. "I have no interest in being friends with any of you. I just needed a job that paid money that's all."

The tension in the guildhall only increases more with his snarky remark, but before the situation gets any worse, Gajeel suddenly finds him being lifted off the ground by a muscle-bound hand around his head. "I thought I told you to play nice, instead you start shit the moment I get back from taking a dump? I'll kill you for that." Yami's aura was as menacing as ever, almost making everyone forget what they were made about.

"Yami! When did you and the Black Bulls get back from your mission?" Asks Lucy.

"Last night. If you want to know more, ask them. I gotta take time out of my day now to deal with another of my idiots." Yami's response confuses most of them. "What do you mean, 'your' idiot?" Erza asks.

"Oh, Yami was the one who invited Gajeel and Rogue to join Fairy Tail in the first place," explains Makarov to everyone's surprise. "I was planning on asking him myself, but he beat me to it."

"What? Why the hell would you let him in here!?" Natsu's enraged question was met with a glare from Yami, instantly making everyone quiet down.

"Why I picked them up is none of your business." Yami then drags Gajeel away screaming while remembering how the recruitment process went.

(Flashback)

During the Reconstruction of Fairy Tail, Yami went out one dark and rainy day, looking for someone in a place he knew well. He eventually found the person he was looking for, one Gajeel Redfox sitting on a pile of metal.

"What the hell do you want?" Gajeel was quick to get ready for a fight at the sight of him. "Salamander already gave me an ass whipping, and you Fairy Tail losers don't seem like the type to pick on someone while they're down."

"Wow, you have more brains than I thought, I guess not all Dragon Slayers are as dumb as Natsu and his new sidekick." Yami laughs, infuriating Gajeel. "Look, just get to the point already!"

"Fine, I want you to join my group, the Black Bulls." Yami's offer is met with a laugh from Gajeel. "Hah! Why would I want to join that guild? I'm sure everyone there hates me as much as I hate them! I know Juvia planned on going there, did the Rain Woman set you up to this?"

"No, if she does want to join, I may offer her the same deal, but that's for later. Right now, the offer is for you and your little ride along." Gajeel barely bristles at Yami's comment, but the darkness user notices. "What are you talking about? I'm the only one here."

"Pfft, yeah right. It's a skill from my homeland, I can tell that kid's hiding in my shadow right now, though I'll admit, that's a pretty good skill for someone his age to learn. Guess Dragon Slayers are just full of oddities." As Yami speaks, Rogue emerges from his shadow and walks over to his older brother figure.

"Ok, you finding the kid is weird and all, but you still haven't answered my first question. Why the hell do you want us to join your guild?" Yami doesn't respond at first, taking a long drag of a cigarette before responding.

"I'm gonna start this off in the most cliché way possible but let me finish before you call bullshit. I know what you're going through." Gajeel scoffs but is silenced by Yami's glare. "Like I said you little shit, let me finish or I'll kill you. Now, where was I, oh yeah. If I'm right, the situation you two had was probably similar to Natsu's when he first got here. You woke up one day without your dragon parents, no one believed you when you told them about that, and you couldn't even read the language here before eventually just joining the first place that put a roof above your head. Am I right so far?"

Neither Dragon Slayer responds, so Yami takes that as a yes. "But, unlike Natsu, who had nice people to grow up with, you two didn't. I've heard what people say about 'Black Steel' Gajeel, and they all boil down to the same thing. 'He's scary.' While I'm sure you're not mad at that, being raised by dragons and all, but you're not just feared because you're strong, people are afraid of you just because of the way you look, everything about you screams like some kind of thug."

"You don't know what you're talking about! I was feared because of my strength, I was an S-Class member of Phantom Lord after all!"

"Oh yeah?" Yami questions, "Can you say for certain whether it was before or after you got that title?" Gajeel opens his mouth to respond but closes it when he realizes that Yami is right. People always disliked him; he always knew that on some instinctive level, but he desperately wanted to believe it was because people could tell that he was strong.

Yami then begins addressing Rogue. "Oh yeah, and for the kid, I'm sure it wasn't great for you either. Take it from someone who uses Darkness Magic, I know that most people see you use one spell and assume you're the second coming of Zeref or something. Though guess you were lucky enough to find metalhead over here faster than the lightbulb and Natsu."

"Well, how do you know that I won't just wreck your guildhall again to get back at Salamander?" Yami chuckles at Gajeel's outburst. "What the hell are you laughing about, I'm serious about this?"

"No you won't." Yami answers him with an air of confidence that bewilders them. "That skill from my homeland also lets me tell people's emotions for the most part, and I can tell that you're just barking loudly so that no one bites back." Yami remembers his own past, of the young girl he left behind to keep safe, learning about this country, and the brothers that inspired him to become the man he was today. "You can take my offer whenever you want, just come to my hideout and they'll probably help you, hell the kid already has a cloak, so he'll fit right in. If you won't do it for yourself, don't forget that kid is attached to you, and I doubt that he's gonna let go of you anytime soon."

Yami then left the two to think on his proposal, leaving the former phantoms to stew in the darkness that should have comforted them. 'I wonder what you're doing right now, Nacht.'

As Yami and Gajeel left the rest of the guild came to welcome Natsu and the rest back from their vacation. "So, Gajeel and Rogue were the guests that Yami was talking about before we left?" Ur was not a fan of him either, considering the acts he committed against Lucy (and herself, but that was less important.)

Yuno looked annoyed as he explained how the encounter went (or as annoyed as Yuno could look). When the two of them first arrived at the Black Bull hideout, it was kind of awkward as he told them who he was and what he why he was there. Thankfully, Mimosa managed to keep things amicable between the two parties until the rest of the Bulls came back.

"Speaking of people that came back, what the hell happened to you guys?" Asked Magna. "You look like you went through almost as much shit than we did at the Sea Temple."

"Oh yeah, it was a super cool story!" Natsu took a break from being weirdly quiet like he had been this whole time and explained what happened at the Tower of Heaven, though he shockingly had the common sense not to mention Erza's personal details, just that some crazy guy that claimed to be a member of the Midnight Sun tried to use Erza to resurrect Zeref. "And then at the end, I ate some of the Etherion and kicked that psycho's ass in no time flat!"

Gray interjected when Natsu left out the details of his own involvement, but before the two could argue about who did more damage to determine who really won that fight, Sting and Romeo start bugging them about the powerup.

"So, are you telling us you really transformed?" The two boys were starstruck at Natsu's explanation of Dragon Force and Devil Trigger, as explained by Erza who mentioned she heard Siegrain use those words to describe their new states. "Can I see, can I see, can I see-"

"Alright! Don't worry, I'm gonna show you what a true Dragon Slayer looks like!" Natsu strikes a pose trying to charge up his magic power, but before Erza or anyone else could warn him that would be a bad idea, something strange happened – or rather didn't happen.

"What the hell!? Why aren't my flames coming out!?" Natsu tries multiple times to summon flames in his hand, summoning only sparks. "Let me try this. Fire Dragon's Roar!" Natsu takes a big breath, but the only thing that comes out is a puff of smoke.

"Did you burn out or something, Natsu?" Happy asked. "Maybe the same thing happened to Gray?"

"Yeah right. Watch this. Ice-Make-" Gray is cut off by Ur slapping him on the back of the head. "Stop trying to compete with Natsu, it's pretty obvious what happened. It's the same thing I went through when I came back from Iced Shell. You used more magic than your bodies were capable of naturally producing, so you'll just have to deal without magic for a while."

Natsu freaks out when he receives this diagnosis. "Live without magic? But I can't remember the last time I went a day without setting something on fire. ("I think that's more of a problem than not being able to use magic for a week." Says Lucy, but is ignored for the sake of Natsu's rambling.) Who could possibly spend more than a day without magic, that sounds like the most horrible life someone could possibly live."

"Did someone say something about not having magic?"

Everyone immediately pales as they realize the voice from behind Natsu came from one of the members that was mysteriously absent from the welcoming committee. "O-oh, hey Asta." Natsu sweats as he tries to not bring up the fact that he basically complained about being disabled to his disabled friend. "I was just talking about how that Ki thing you told us about helped us out against one of those Midnight Sun jackasses."

"Oh really, well it sounds like you got off better than I did."

"What do you mean by that?" Natsu then turned around and gasped as he found Asta alongside Noelle and some blue haired girl that was hiding her face. The shy lady was the last thing on their minds as there were two other things that were much more eye drawing.

Asta looked the same as always, except for the fact that both of his arms were in slings as they looked severely damaged. It was clear from his previous comment that they had fought the Midnight Sun as well, and this was the price they paid for victory.

Though there was something equally shocking when their attention changed to Noelle, specifically from the Dragon Slayers, as they noticed a small creature on her shoulder that looked like blue snake with horns and fins on its head.

"What the heck happened to you guys? How did Asta's arms get broken, where did that creature on Noelle's shoulder come from, and who is the new girl trying to hide behind her fingers?" Ur asked, said 'new' girl yelping at being noticed.

Noelle sighs. "It's kind of a long story, so I guess I'll explain."

(Flashback)

Sea Temple

Things were not looking good for the Black Bulls after one of the Third Eye, Vetto the Despair, arrived and proceeded to walk through their toughest members with ease. Luck and Magna went first, and despite a last-minute Unison Raid, only managed to scratch him. Asta and two friends they made, Kiato and his sister Kahono, engaged the beast of a man next, but their new allies stood no chance either, Kiato losing his foot, and his sister getting her throat injured to the point she couldn't talk anymore, ruining their dreams of being a singer and dancer duo. Asta was unconscious, leaving Noelle the only one able to fight.

She quickly tried to form magic in her wand for a Sea Dragon's Roar, but Vetto's immense speed let him quickly appear in front of her and rip the wand out of her hand. "I've heard about wizards like you. They have a hard time controlling their magic, so they use focuses like wands for their spells. However, take away their focus…"

CRACK

Noelle's could only watch with wide eyes as Vetto snapped the wand in half like a twig. "…Then they are worth less than nothing. Now sit there like the dog you are as I rip your friends limb from limb, until one of you shows me the despair I want to see."

Vetto then started walking toward Asta's limp body, leaving Noelle to look on, paralyzed with fear that only increased the closer he got to the magicless swordsman.

'No, come on, move! Move, Noelle! Damn it! You have to move, or else you'll be exactly what your family says you are! A worthless waste of space, that can't even protect…' Noelle then thought to the time she spent with Asta, him buying her a wand, their first fight against Eisenwald and Lullaby, Asta's duel with Erza, the way he spoke up for her at the capital, his heartfelt speech on Guluna Island, all of the times he desperately stood up against those with power he could never even grasp, and how he would always win with that same dopey smile on that face.

A smile, she realized, that she couldn't live without.

'I will protect him. I don't care what it might cost me, but I have to protect him, no matter what!' Noelle's internal declaration is met by her perception of the world slowing down, to the point where it almost looked like Vetto was standing still.

"Do you speak the truth, Child of the Seas?"

Noelle looks around as the world around hers slowly fades, until in front of her lies a giant, dark blue, snake with huge horns and fins, every part of it screaming power.

"Do you have the will to protect the ones you love from any darkness that my come for them?"

Noelle, though confused by the titanic creature in front of her, doesn't hesitate in her response. "I will. If someone like Asta, who wasn't born with any magic at all, can find the will to be strong, then I will as well."

"And what of your kin that may despise you for your past failures?"

Noelle thinks back to the discussion she had with Mimosa right before they joined Fairy Tail, where she asked why she cared what her siblings think.

Noelle responds with a smirk. "Fuck em. If those self-obsessed morons want nothing to do with me, who gives a shit." Despite this being the first time she had ever used such vulgar language, Noelle had never felt more alive. "Besides, I have a new family now, and they see me for what I am. Now, are you going to help me save them, or not?"

The being before her didn't respond, instead the world turned back to normal. Noelle looks at Vetto who is still nearing Asta, and shouts at him. "Hey, furball! On the name of House Silva, and more importantly, as a proud member of Fairy Tail, I won't let you take one more step towards my friends!"

Vetto stops in his tracks, not from fear of her mysteriously growing mana, or her newfound resolve. Instead, he starts smiling maliciously when she says her family name. "Oh, so you're a royal, aren't you? Of course, I come face to face with one from the most corrupt clan!" Vetto then responded to Noelle's growing magic with his own. "Bark at me all you want, but a dog's claws will never pierce my hide!"

Noelle smiled at his words, knowing something he didn't. "You're right, a dog could never beat you. Unfortunately, you're mistaken about something. I'm not a dog."

"I am a dragon."

Noelle then took a giant breath of air, and water started seeping in from both outside and inside the temple and she started gulping it all down. Her body then started to change, parts of her hair turning blue like water, along with growing scales of the same color around her body. Claws formed on her hands, her teeth grew sharper, and her eyes became more draconic. All of these signs pointed to one possible conclusion.

Noelle Silva had just become a Dragon Slayer and achieved Dragon Force at the same time.

"Now then, let me ask you a question, do you know what dragons do? Well, we don't bark, but I can show you what we do instead." Noelle then opened her mouth as her magic power grew rapidly, all of her magic being put into one spell, the only one she knew, but this time slightly different.

"Sea Dragon's Roar!"

A literal tidal wave of water erupted from Noelle's mouth as Vetto mustered all the power he could to defend against, but failed as the magic erased his right side entirely and shot out the back of the wall in the shape of a dragon roaring as loudly as its caster.

As the dust from Noelle's attack settles, her features go back to normal, although her teeth seem to stay a bit sharper than before. 'That was all the magic I had, plus more from my new Dragon Slayer powers. That had to do something.'

She was proven right, as the dust cleared to reveal Vetto missing his entire right arm and parts of his chest and right leg, even his ear being torn off from pure force. Noelle gave off a small laugh, reveling in her apparent victory. "Heh… could anyone help find an arm? You can't miss it, it's big, green, and furry."

Vetto however, did not find her joke amusing, as he roared in pain. "Grrraaaahhh! You think this is funny!? Well… it's not as funny…"

"Huh?"

"…As your face."

SQUELCH

Vetto suddenly gained a third eye on his head as a dark magical circle appeared over his missing arm. It then did something that should have been impossible for any magic to do – it regrew an entire arm. "I'm impressed human, you managed to draw me out!" Vetto then pointed his new arm at Noelle and dark mana appeared alongside more ancient runes. "Now, vanish!"

As a beam of vile magic was blasted at Noelle, who was completely out of energy with her Dragon Force having just ended. For a brief moment, Noelle was faced with the very real fear of death before a small figure appeared in front of her.

BOOM

As another hole was made in the opposite side of the room, Noelle stood uninjured behind a heavily injured Asta wielding Demon Dweller in his normal hand while his Devil Breaker arm barely managed to protect them. "We haven't given up yet!" He then turned to Noelle and patted her on the head with a big smile. "I don't really know what just happened, but I know that you just proved you were more awesome than I ever could have imagined. Leave the rest to me, knowing that you were outstanding just now, plus I may not have woken up in time if you didn't get so strong. Thanks a lot Noelle."

Noelle blushed while nodding her head, Asta turning back to face their opponent as she passed out behind him.

'You idiot, don't smile at me like that.'

The image of Asta's back as he protected her was one that Noelle knew she would treasure forever.

'Or else, I'll fall in love with you even harder.'

Noelle told them an abridged version of what happened at the temple, minus the bit about her feelings in regard to Asta. "During the fight, Vetto managed to grab onto Asta's arms and broke them, even his Devil Breaker arm couldn't protect him from his raw physical strength. After we beat him, my grimoire opened up and this little guy popped up. Apparently, he's the Sea God that they worship down there, but he's actually the Sea Dragon King, Leviathan. He told me that he had gone into hiding 500 years ago when some black dragon tried to kill him, and he had been recovering ever since, until I showed up. He said that he was dying from the fight against that black dragon, but he somehow knew that he would need to find a host before he died, and me, being a water mage, a grimoire holder, and a royal, fulfilled all the conditions he needed, so he's gonna stick around with me in this tiny form until he's fully recovered."

"Wow, so you're also a Dragon Slayer too now?" Natsu didn't really get anything she said besides that. "I knew that my training would eventually work out."

"Natsu, I'm sorry to say, I don't think your training was the reason that happened." Lucy was once again ignored for the sake of Natsu's ego.

While she was explaining, Sting and Rogue were bugging Leviathan for information about their dragon parents. "Have you ever heard about, Igneel, Weisslogia, Grandeeny, Metallicana, or Skiadrum?"

Leviathan nodded. "Ah yes, I knew them well. As fellow Dragon Kings and Queens, we would sometimes meet and battle. Igneel was especially impressive as his flames were great enough to burn away even my water. It saddens me to hear that my kind is gone after all these years, not to mention that they have gone missing after managing to survive for so long. However, I never knew they were raising human children. I hope my son Mercphobia managed to survive after all of these years."

"What was the black dragon that tried to kill you?" asked Rogue.

Leviathan seemed upset (or as upset as he could in his current state.) "I, confess, I do not know. I didn't interact with many others outside of my own race of sea dragons, not to mention it has been 500 years since then. I believe that most of the dragons were having a rather large battle, but I regrettably don't know any more than that."

"Ahem." Ur coughed loudly. "That's all cool and all, but that still doesn't explain one thing." She pointed at the blue-haired girl again who was currently hiding under the table. "Who the hell is this?"

"Oh, it's just Grey, couldn't you tell?" Everyone looked at Natsu like he was an idiot. "No, not ice princess, the other Grey."

Natsu's explanation did not change their expressions.

"No, he's right actually." Explained Asta. "I was shocked when I found out, but apparently that's what Grey's true form is. The big guy with smoke coming out of him was just someone she ran into once, and she just stayed like that all the time. She's really shy, so that's why she didn't show herself until now."

Elfman walked over to the table that Grey was hiding under and lifting it above her. "Hiding under tables isn't very MANLY!"

Grey responded by shielding herself like he was about slam the table down on her. "Ah! I'm sorry, please don't beat me to death with your thick arms!"

"Beating up little girls isn't what a real man would do!" Mirajane walked up to her brother and put a hand on his shoulder. "Elfman, I don't think she responds very well to all this 'man' talk."

"Hey, do you ever think that Elfman sounds kind of like Mr. Yami sometimes?" asks Asta.

"Who the hell was talking about me?" Everyone figuratively shits themselves in fear as Yami chooses that moment to come back, alongside a beaten up Gajeel.

"N-no one, Mr. Yami sir!" Asta successfully manages to throw enough suspicion off of himself that Yami walks away bored. "Never mind, I can't imagine Elfman ever being that threatening."

(A/N: This joke was for dub watchers, as Christopher Sabat is the English voice of both Elfman and Yami.)

A while later everyone had calmed down and was currently relaxing the day away, except for one Dragon Slayer that had gone back to pouting. "Ok, Natsu, what's going on?" asks Lucy, sitting at a table with just the two of them. "You've been way quieter than usual, and I know It can't just be that you can't use magic, so what's the problem?"

Natsu didn't respond, instead sinking further into his chair. "Natsu, I get that you're bad with words, but we're not just partners in a team sense, we're dating now, so now more than ever, I need you to talk to me when you get upset."

Realizing that Lucy was right, Natsu sighed and righted himself up. "I'm sorry Luce. You're right, I've been acting weird, but I didn't mean to worry you. I think the new guildhall is great, the changes are cool and all, but it just isn't the same place we grew up."

Lucy looked at Natsu with a face of understanding. "Okay, I get that you're upset that this place is different than usual, but I get the feeling that there's more to it than just that."

"Geez, did you suddenly get psychic powers or something." Natsu rubs his head as he looks at another table where Happy is munching intently on a fish as he gives a jealous glare towards Frosch who was being pampered by a bunch of the girls. "The problem isn't about my past here. It's about the past Lisanna had here."

"When Mira and her siblings came here," explained Natsu. "They had just escaped from a village that wanted them dead because of Mira's powers. Despite that, Lisanna still managed to keep hope that they'd be okay, and eventually they were when they found Fairy Tail. So, the building being different is just a reminder that she's still gone."

Natsu stares down at the table before Lucy reaches across the table. "I'm sorry. If it's any consolation, I understand a bit. Every day I would spend in my mansion was another day that reminded me that my mom wasn't coming back. But things are different for you, you still have the rest of the guild to remind you of the kindness that Fairy Tail brings out in all of us."

Natsu smiled at his girlfriend's words. "Man, you're getting better at those speeches."

"Well, I learned from the best," said Lucy as she leaned in to give her boyfriend a kiss.

"Oh, I love when Mother and Father get along." Their tender moment is interrupted by Celeste's appearance from Lucy's grimoire. "I can't wait until they get married one day."

"Hold on, you're getting way too carried away!" Lucy was blushing madly at the idea of marrying Natsu. "I am nowhere near ready to get married anytime soon!"

"Are you telling me you don't want to marry me?" Natsu looked aghast at the insinuation.

Lucy immediately tried to clarify what she meant and pushed her fingers together. "N-no! I want to get married with you, it's just that we've only just started dating and…"

"Gah hah hah!" laughed Natsu. "I know what you mean, it was just really fun to mess with you."

While Lucy proceeded to throttle Natsu for his antics, other romantic happenings were occurring in the guild.

"Oh, Yuno, I've been gone so long, I need to make up for how much food I've missed making for you." Charmy had her sheep working overtime to make a mountain of food for Yuno.

"Charmy, I literally could not eat all of this food if I tried," Yuno commented.

"La, don't worry, I'll be there to help you eat as much as possible!"

A barrel of booze then slams down on the table they're sitting at. "Well, if you're gonna eat all that food, then you're gonna need some good booze to wash it all down."

Yuno refused. "No thanks, I tried alcohol once, I don't really like the taste of it."

"Aw, you're breaking my heart, Goldie." Cana's nickname confuses Yuno. "Goldie? Where did that come from?"

"Well besides what's usually hanging around your neck," Cana points to his short robe on his shoulders, "But also because that's all I can think of when I look into your eyes."

Cana leans in as she speaks, but her flirting fails to register in Yuno's mind. "Well, I've never had a nickname before, so thank you. Though I guess I should come up with one for you too."

"Oh, you can call me whatever you want." Despite Cana laying it on so thick that you could drown a mountain of pancakes, Yuno manages to miss the point entirely.

At a table next to them Asta sits with Noelle and Mimosa, listening in on their conversation, though only Asta seemed to be paying much attention. "Wow, Yuno's getting really close with Charmy and Cana. I worried that Yuno's personality would drive most people away, but I'm glad he's making friends. Hell, he managed to somehow convince Mira to join our team too. I wonder why they all hang out with him so much? What do you guys think?"

Asta's words fall on deaf ears as Noelle and Mimosa are stuck in their own heads. 'I finally realized that I'm in love with him, but I don't know what to say now. Not to mention, what about Mimosa's feelings?'

Noelle's anxious thoughts are also mirrored by her best friend's.

'Oh, Asta finally comes back after so long, only to have his arms broken. I wish I could heal them, but I'm not skilled enough to fix a broken arm, I might mess something up. Oh, but now that he's hurt, all I can think of is wanting to protect him.'

While Asta watches as steam pours out of their heads, he tries to think of a way to get them to notice him, before he gains inspiration from Yuno's conversation. "Ellie, Mimi, what's wrong with you two?"

The two royal's brains both grind to halt as their minds fail to comprehend what was just said to them. "A-Asta," asks a flustered Noelle, "W-what did you j-just call us?"

The young man grinned at finally getting their attention. "Ellie and Mimi. They're your nickname's I just came up with. Ellie from Noelle and Mimi from Mimosa Vermillion. I heard Cana and Yuno talking about nicknames earlier, and Natsu always calls Lucy 'Luce,' so I figured I should come up with some for you guys as well. What do you think?"

SLAM

The lovestruck girls both instantly pass out and fall face first onto the table, leaving Asta to figure out what's wrong with them.

Nearby, Juvia was watching all of this with a sinister grin. "Good, Juvia was worried that she may have Love Rivals to compete with over her darling Gray, but it seems that most of the other women here have other targets. That means Juvia is the only woman that has eyes for Gray, and I will make him mine."

"Cool, are you done with your villain monologue?" asks Ur who was right next to her. "You won't be able to seduce that blockhead if you're too busy looking at other people."

Juvia gasps. "You're correct, Love Master! Please teach Juvia more love tactics, so that she may make her beloved fall for her!"

"Okay, go talk to him." You could hear the glass shatter in Juvia's head at Ur's response. "I'm sorry what?"

"Just talk to him," repeats Ur. "He's by himself right now, and there won't be any interruptions like at the Resort, so just talk to him. Come on." Ur then drags Juvia by the arm to where Gray's sitting and puts her in a chair in front of him. "Oh, hey Gray, have you met Juvia, she's lovely and she wanted to talk to you, I would stay but I gotta go, OK bye!"

After Ur makes herself scarce a flustered Juvia is left sitting in front of Gray. "So, how have you been enjoying Fairy Tail, so far?"

Despite her nervousness, Juvia manages to respond. "Juvia loves it. It reminds Juvia a lot of Phantom Lord, but everyone is much nicer than they were back there. I hope Gajeel can enjoy it as much as I do someday."

Gray scoffs at Gajeel being mentioned. "Well, I don't know much about him, but if he's anything like Natsu, then I doubt that we're gonna get along much."

"Please, don't be mad at Gajeel, Juvia knows that he has done bad things, but once you get to know him, he's a nice guy." Gray looks at her skeptically. "Okay, he's a nicer guy than he lets on. Oh, but don't think that I have a crush on him or anything, we are just friends!"

Gray sighs. "Fine. I guess since he isn't nailing anyone to a tree anytime soon, then I'll ease up on him. A bit. But enough about him, I have something I wanna ask you."

Juvia perks up immediately. "Of course, my beloved! I will answer any question you throw at me!"

Ignoring her odd outburst, Gray moves on. "I was just wondering, why do you always refer to yourself in the third person?"

"Oh," Juvia's mood declines quickly. "Well, that has to do with Juvia's past. Juvia was born an orphan, but the only thing of my own that Juvia ever had was my name. Despite that, no one ever called Juvia that. Instead, Juvia was only referred to as 'the Rain Woman,' which eventually became Juvia's title at Phantom Lord. At some point, Juvia heard it so much, that she almost forgot her own name, so she started saying her own name as to remember who she was."

Juvia did not like talking about her past, as whenever she did with her last (and only) boyfriend, he would always ignore her and seem disinterested, instead complaining about the rain around her.

For some reason, Gray felt oddly intense after hearing Juvia's story. "Well, you don't have to do that anymore. Fairy Tail's your home now, and we'll always be there to remind you who you are."

All of Juvia's love sensors were at full alert, her heart beating wildly in her chest. "W-would you do Juvi– me a favor?" Gray nodded his head. "Could you say my name?"

"Okay, I don't really get it, but if it'll make you feel better."

"Juvia."

Even though Gray said her name completely normally, Juvia's sense of reality was so distorted to the point that she thought he was one step away from proposing.

"Juveeeeeen!" Juvia passed out in her chair, her eyes full of hearts. Gray was now also left trying to figure out what went wrong with her, while Ur watched from the background and pumped her fist in the air. If she had her way, it wouldn't be long before Gray would be begging for Juvia's affections.

Back at the table with Yuno, Charmy and Cana were trying to force their favorite hobbies onto him, (read 'drinking yourself into a stupor' and 'eating until you're in a coma'), when Mirajane finally came by and slammed her hands on the table's surface.

"We're going shopping." Mira left no room for argument as she grabbed Yuno by the arm and started dragging him out of the guildhall.

"What's going on?" asked Yuno. "I was talking to Cana and Charmy when you grabbed me."

"I know," grumbled Mira. "Gajeel's about to sing and I thought you wouldn't want to be around when another guild brawl starts."

Before he can ask what she meant, he immediately hears a table being thrown and someone (definitely Natsu) yelling in anger.

"Also, you have been wearing the same outfit ever since you joined Fairy Tail."

"It's the only one I have; besides I send most of my money from jobs back to the church."

"Exactly, you and your brother are way more similar than you let on." Sighed Mira. "I asked Asta what he spent money on, and it was the exact same thing."

Yuno looked at her inquisitively. "Then why aren't we bringing him or any of the rest of the team along?"

Mira turns her head to hide the blush that she has. "Well, I kind of wanted to go shopping with just the two of us. Do you have a problem with that?"

Yuno shakes his head. "Of course not, Mirajane. I like spending time with you."

Mira then stops in her tracks. "What's wrong now, Mirajane?"

"I heard your discussion with Cana earlier," Mira explained. "So, I wanted to know why you don't call me Mira like everyone else?"

Yuno actually looked embarrassed for once (which would be forever saved in Mira's mind). "Well, it's actually kind of funny. I don't call you that because I have too much respect for you. When I first met you, you were the only one that didn't seem shocked when Asta talked about Liebe and were the first one to try and talk to a demon. Then, when everyone else thought Erza would lose, you stood firm that your rival wasn't losing anytime soon, no matter how bad it looked. Not to mention when you helped us out against Jose, you really impressed me that you were able to push past your pain to save us."

Mira, who had been worried that maybe he felt uncomfortable around her, is left speechless at his response. "W-well, that's nice and all, but I would still like it if you called me something other than Mirajane, it feels too fancy."

Yuno ponders how to respond. "Hmm, no I still don't want to call you Mira like everyone else… I know. How about Jane?"

"Jane?" Mira wasn't exactly sure how she felt about Yuno's new nickname, but it did make her feel warm and tingly inside. "Well, let's see how I feel about that after we're done shopping."

"Damn it, I was hoping you'd forget that."

"Not on your life."

While all of the adults were hanging out in the bar, the children were having their own conversations in the forest nearby.

"Why did you drag me out here in the middle of nowhere?" Rogue was not in the mood for their antics, especially since they left Frosch back in the guild.

"I don't know, Romeo was the one who asked me to bring you?" Sting was also unaware of what was happening, though he hoped that maybe it involved punching something. "Hey, Romeo, what did you bring us out her for, did you want another go at him?"

Romeo currently had his back turned to him before taking a deep breath and bowing before them. "Can you two show me how you got so strong?"

The two Dragon Slayers looked at him in confusion, prompting him to continue explaining. "You two are the same age as me, but both of you are way stronger than me. I get that you two are Dragon Slayers and I can't compete with that, but still maybe you two have something that I can use to get stronger."

"Why?" asked Rogue. "Why do you want to be strong?"

"What kind of dumb question is that?" said Sting. "Obviously, he wants to be strong so that he can beat Natsu one day, which isn't happening because I'm gonna do that one day."

"No, that's not it," Romeo disagreed. "While I still respect Natsu a lot, I've seen how dedicated wizards like Lucy, Yuno, and even Asta are. They all say that they have a dream, and that somehow makes them stronger. That started to get me thinking about the type of wizard I wanted to be. Of course, Natsu was the first thing on my mind, but then I thought of what Natsu was to me, and I realized what it was – he is my hero."

"When Lucy first joined the guild, she and Natsu went to go save my dad after he went missing. I would've gone off myself if they didn't do it for me. All I could think of was how he saved my dad when no one else did. So I started thinking about what a hero looks like and came to the most obvious conclusion.

"The biggest hero in the world is the Wizard King."

"Um, isn't that what Asta and some of the others wanna do?" asks Sting. "I'm pretty sure they have seven years on all of us."

"Yeah, well I can't just give up! I'm gonna try whether you want to help me or not, so what do you say, friends?" Romeo put out his hands for the other two boys to take.

Sting accepted first, though he wasn't very nice about it. "Fine, I guess it wouldn't look very good on me if I just let you be weak."

The both of them then looked toward Rogue, who groaned before shaking Romeo's other hand. "Okay. I never really had a friend besides Sting, so I'll see if you annoy me too much."

Wha the three young boys didn't know that day, is that they were actually setting the foundation on which Fairy Tail's future would rest on, but that tale has yet to begin.

"I'm never doing that again."

Yuno had the incredible misfortune of being victim to one of Mira's shopping sprees, and anyone who had been victim to one of them could attest that it was an experience like any other, a shopping trip to hell with a demon.

"Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad." Mira's smile hid the true evil that Yuno saw, though unlike most others, Yuno found it rather endearing. They had just stopped outside of Mira's house after the shopping spree, though the only one who had bought anything was Yuno, who had his new outfit in a shopping bag.

"You know, everyone always says that you're just as scary as Erza, but I don't really see it." Yuno thinks back to when he talked to Mira about her trauma during the Phantom Lord attack, as well as her transformation against Jose. "Even having seen the She-Devil that everyone talks about, I think power more than fear whenever you fight."

"Well, you probably wouldn't say that if you knew me back in the day." Mira had a wistful expression as she talked. "To be honest, the more I think back to how I used to be, the more I realize that I wasn't really the nicest person to be around. When Lisanna died, a part of me wanted to keep her alive in our memories, so I eventually moved on to just being a full-time barmaid. Though now I don't really know who I am after all of that. Am I still that punk who would cause fights with Erza all the time, or is the only way I can channel that now by forsaking my humanity and becoming a demon?"

While Mira struggled with her own identity, Yuno put his hand on her head in an attempt to calm her down. "Hey, you don't need to worry about that. I think that all of those things are still a part of you. Don't think of it as you being different, think of it as you being more of a person. You're always going to be the same badass Jane, whether you're a rowdy goth girl, a savage demoness of darkness, or even a barmaid that listens to everyone's problems."

Mirajane had lost control of her emotions completely at that point, especially when he used his new nickname for her, and her face turned the same color as her rival's hair. "Why do you have to be so damn charming?" Mira mumbled.

Yuno couldn't hear her when she was being so quiet. "Hm, what was that?"

Mira decided to take a gamble, as she now realized how hopelessly smitten she was with the four-leaf prodigy. "Oh, nothing. Hey, why don't you lean down here, and I'll tell you a secret."

Yuno, suspecting nothing, leaned his head lower, as he was a several inches taller than her. What he didn't expect…

"*Mwah*"

…Was for Mira to give him a peck on the cheek. Yuno looked at her, stunned at what she just did, but Mira managed to keep a straight face as she walked inside. "Oh, the Ms. Fairy Tail contest will be in a few days, so make sure to wear your new outfit and cheer me on."

Yuno dumbly nodded his head as Mira closed the door on him, actually at a loss for words on how to react. 'This must be how dumb Asta must feel all the time.'

Yuno was walking home, still dumbstruck from his interaction with Mira, until he walked upon a sight that managed to wake him from his stupor.

What he saw was Gajeel, standing in front of Jet, Droy, Levy, and Laxus shockingly enough. Yuno was quickly able to surmise from the current conversation that Jet and Droy wanted to get payback on Gajeel, Levy tagging along only to make sure they didn't go to hard on him, though shortly afterward Laxus showed up and started beating him up too.

'From the looks of things, Gajeel hasn't even thrown a punch in retaliation. Is he actually trying to gain their trust?' Yuno's thought process is interrupted by Team Shadowgear asking Laxus to calm down, and getting a lightning bolt blasted at them for their trouble's. 'Crap! I'm too far away to intercept it!'

Right before the electric current is about to hit Levy, Gajeel rushes in front of it and blocks it with an iron arm. "Are we one here? Cause I got other things to do."

"Oh, you think I'm done with you, well there's plenty more where that came from!" Laxus prepares to throw another blast of lightning at Gajeel before Yuno makes his presence known.

"Hey, Laxus!" Laxus stops as Yuno walks into the scene. "I'm pretty sure that the master wouldn't think of very highly of his grandson beating up on new guild members."

"Oh, so you're protecting him!" Laxus roared. "Well, for your information, this waste of space is the reason that people are talking shit about Fairy Tail! In fact, you wanna know what the last time I heard people dissing our guild! It was when your midget brother kicked Erza's ass!"

Yuno's face hardened as his grimoire opened. "If you think I'm just gonna stand here and let you slander Asta, then I'm here to tell you that is not happening. Go have your temper tantrum somewhere else unless you want to settle this right now?"

For a moment, it seemed like Laxus might rise to Yuno's challenge, but instead he turns and walks away. "Whatever. This isn't even worth it. I thought you would understand, but clearly you don't."

Those are the words Yuno is once again left to be bewildered by as Laxus storms off in anger. Levy tries to ask if Gajeel is okay, but he brushes her off and stumbles off, clearly still in pain from the prior beat down.

After making sure that Levy and the rest were okay, he catches up to Gajeel, who is still reeling from his injuries. "You know, we have someone that can heal you if you need it."

"Don't need it," mumbled Gajeel. "I'm fine on my own."

While normally one to keep a cool head, Yuno had gone through a bit too much today, and let some of his emotions seep into his words. "Can you cut the tough guy act? Look, we're living in the same place, so I hoped that you would stop being such a jerk, but clearly, I was wrong."

Gajeel responded with some anger of his own. "Why do all of you care so much? I destroyed your guildhall and captured one of your friends before brutalizing her, why don't you just hate me?"

"Because I can already see that you hate yourself!" Gajeel doesn't respond, leaving Yuno to keep talking. "I know what it's like to make a mistake and want desperately to take it back, but you can't do that! Otherwise, you'll never be able to look at what's ahead! If I had to guess, you feel guilty about what you did because of Natsu and the other Dragon Slayers."

"Why would I give a rat's ass about Salamander?" asks Gajeel.

"I don't know, why do you keep Rogue around?" Yuno sarcastically retorts. "I wouldn't think a lone wolf would keep a cub around him all the time?"

Gajeel doesn't respond.

"Well let me tell you," Yuno continues, "It's because you think of him as your brother, the same way that Natsu sees Sting, and I bet you care about those two more than you'll let on, otherwise people will think you're soft."

"Do you also have that weird skill that Smoky had to read my emotions?" growled Gajeel.

Realizing that he was talking about Yami and Ki Yuno shook his head. "No. I can tell because I also hated myself when my brother Asta got hurt when we were young. After that, I started training hard to get strong enough that wouldn't happen again, but for a while, I was kind of distant to Asta when I didn't need to be. When we first set out on our journey, I planned to try out for another guild since my skills were good enough that I could go anywhere, but I eventually realized that he was hurt by how I acted, so I decided to join him at Fairy Tail. So, if you're finally done pushing people away, how about you let someone in for once."

Gajeel was quiet for a minute before mumbling something Yuno couldn't hear. "I don't have dragon hearing; Gordon whispers enough as is. Unless you're talking to Noelle, no one in the base will understand you, so speak up."

"I said, can you bring me to your healer."

"I can't hear you," Yuno teased.

"SHOW ME WHERE YOUR DAMN HEALER IS BEFORE I BITE YOUR HEAD OFF!" yelled Gajeel.

"Hah hah hah." Yuno chuckled. "I heard you the second time, now hurry up, Mimosa usually goes to sleep not long from now."

Natsu lay in his hammock, looking up toward the ceiling. He thought back to his conversation with Lucy. He hadn't been completely honest with Lucy during their talk. While everything he said was true, the guild wasn't the only thing that was on his mind lately.

Ever since he met Lucy, it seemed like every other day he ran into something that reminded him of his past. Lucy had the same scent as his teacher Anna, then he ran into more of the Dragon Slayers he grew up with, so he figured it would only be a matter of time until Wendy showed up sooner or later. While all of these were changes he was glad for, (except Gajeel, who he was happy was okay, but was still pissed off at,) there were other things that worried him.

For every nice thing he remembered, he also got reminded of bad things that he forgot about. They kept running into Zeref's creations, Lullaby, Deliora, the R-System, all of them incredibly dangerous, yet all of them were things he remembered his brother working on at some point. It made him wonder who his brother really was, that he was apparently involved in a lot of the things that ruined people's lives, like Gray and Erza.

And if that wasn't bad enough, there was that – incident – where he killed that random Phantom Lord member. He hadn't been that angry in a while, but this time was much worse than that. He wondered what it meant that all of these things were happening at the same time.

He looked down at his adoptive son, purring happily on his chest in a deep sleep. He moved his hand to pet him, but froze right before touching him.

'If I keep getting stronger, will I eventually do the same thing to Happy?"

Or worse, Lucy.

He immediately removed the thought from his head, refusing to believe that he would do such a thing. 'I already lost Lisanna. As long as Lucy and Happy are safe, I promise on everything that I am, have been, and will be, that I will never let anything harm them.'

Unknown to Natsu, something dark inside him momentarily influenced his thoughts, though the effects of which were far from coming to fruition.

'And I will destroy anyone who tries to stop me.'

In the depths of his soul, something malicious started to grow, waiting for the day when it could burn the world once more.

'If they're gone, then this world…'

Until there was nothing but ash.

'Doesn't matter anymore.'

Man, action chapters are cool and all, but it's ones like these that make writing this series worth it.

There was a lot in this chapter, and I don't think I can talk about all of it without spoilers, but I'll say as much as I can.

The first thing I'll mention is Gajeel and Rogue being part of the Black Bulls. It was a no brainer connecting Gajeel and Rogue to someone like Yami. Yami sees himself in Gajeel, as well as a bit of Nacht and his sister in Rogue, and I think it's a fun addition to that group of misfits.

Next is the bit with Noelle and her newfound Dragon Slayer magic. Yes, I did give her Leviathan way early, but I changed a lot of his backstory to fit in more with Fairy Tail, and I think it worked well. Also, Noelle has realized her feelings for Asta as well! Unfortunately, she doesn't seem any closer to figuring out what to do with those emotions.

The bit about Dragon Force making them lose their ability to use magic a bit is just because I didn't want 6 characters ganging up on Laxus at the end. They'll eventually lose that drawback after they're strong enough to control it better. Though now the question is what group will be the one's to confront Laxus this time.

The bit between the children is more setup for arcs far in the future, though it will have an impact on this arc as well.

There was a lot of relationship drama in this as well. Lucy and Natsu had an actual conversation for once, which is important for a relationship to develop. A thin that most media doesn't say about relationships is that just because they're dating doesn't mean that everything is perfect, and I'll have plenty of chances to show that throughout.

Next is the bit about nicknames. Natsu makes my brain melt every time he calls Lucy 'Luce,' so I decided that other characters would also give nicknames to future partners, although not all of them will get one because I don't think all of them are gonna be winners. For example, unless I come up with one, Gray will not have a nickname for Juvia, especially since it would be weird with the conversation they just had.

Finally, my favorite part of the chapter, Yuno and Mirajane. Every time I write about these two, I fall in love with them more and more. I initially wanted Mira to go straight for his lips, but I figured I should save that for later. I do plan on more development with him and Cana next, as that one so far is just her being horny, and not actually getting to know him all that well.

Last thing before I go, Gajeel and Yuno's interaction. While at first, I wasn't sure how the two of them would interact, I think they mesh rather well, with Yuno's dry humor and Gajeel's prickly attitude making for a fun combination.

Next Time: The Battle Begins