A/N: Hello, readers!

No one in Fairy Tail knows Samuel and Sting are dating. I thought I'd clear that up. They're in a secret relationship.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER TWO: THE YEAR OF THE RETURN

X791...

Samuel stood in front of a familiar grave with a bouquet of flowers in his hand, looking at the writing etched onto the stone.

Gray Fullbuster.

X766 - X784.

He sets the flowers down. "Hey, Nii-san." He greeted. "I can't believe it's already been seven years. Romeo still waits at Port Haregon, expecting you all to come back. In a sense, I know how he feels."

Samuel sighs before standing back up. "I'm heading out on a job. I'll come by later." He promised as he left the graveyard.

Later...

Fairy Tail was currently having a welcome back party for the Tenrou team that had returned after seven years. Lamia Scale had eventually joined in on the celebration. It was then that Gray looked around, seeing a certain someone was missing. He looked over at Macao.

"Hey, Macao. Where's Sam?" Gray asked.

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen him around at all." Lucy realized.

"Indeed. I thought he would've been the first one to welcome us back." Erza added.

"He's out on a job. Although, he should've been back by now." Macao replied.

Just as he said that, the guild doors opened.

"I'm back."

The Tenrou team glanced over and saw a nineteen year old male with black hair and dark blue eyes enter the guild. He was dressed in a white t-shirt with a black leather jacket over it, black leather jeans, and black combat boots with two cross earrings dangling from his ears. Gray's eyes widened when he saw that the male was a carbon copy of him.

"Welcome back, Samuel! How was the job?" Kinana greeted.

"It went fine." Samuel responded before spotting Lyon at the bar counter. "Huh? Lyon-nii, what are you doing here?"

"I think you need to be more aware of your surroundings, Sam."

"What do you mean I need to be more aware of my—"

Samuel's sentence cuts off as he saw familiar people that were long gone. He scoffs. "Is this a joke? Because I'm not laughing." He said.

"It's not a joke, Samuel." Max replied.

"Whatever. I'm leaving." Samuel said, turning around to leave the guild.

Gray stands up, quickly grabbing onto Samuel's wrist to keep him from leaving as he turned around. "You're not real. I was just at your grave this morning." He mumbled.

"I promise you I'm really here. We all are." Gray told him. "You've grown up a lot, little brother."

Tears streamed down Samuel's face. "N-Nii-san!" He sobbed out, hugging Gray tightly as if he would disappear if he let go. Samuel continued bawling in Gray's chest, who embraced him back.

Samuel was now sitting with the Tenrou team, sniffing as he wiped any last remaining tears he had. "Still a crybaby, huh?" Gajeel teased.

"Shut up! I'm just... really overjoyed right now." Samuel sniffed out.

"You practice Ice Magic now, correct?" Lucy asked.

"Indeed. Lyon-nii taught me Ice-Make Magic." Samuel replied, shocking the Tenrou team as they didn't expect it.

"Only because you wouldn't stop nagging me to teach you."

Everyone glanced over, seeing Lyon walking over to the group. "I didn't nag." Samuel denied as Lyon raised an eyebrow. "Okay. Maybe I did."

"So you're probably really strong now, right?" Happy asked.

Samuel grinned. "Of course! I had Lyon-nii as my teacher, after all. He's really the greatest." He responded. Gray scoffed under his breath, which didn't go unnoticed by Lucy.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Samuel continued. "All of your apartments should be up to date. So you guys don't have to worry about that. I kept up with everyone's rent."

This takes everyone by surprise. "You paid everyone's rent... for seven years?" Lucy questioned.

Samuel smiled. "I wanted to make sure you all had homes to come back to. If you ever returned." He replied.

After the mini reunion with Samuel, Gray and Lyon went to talk on Fairy Tail's roof, while Alzack and Bisca informed Erza about Jellal. Samuel walked up to Lucy.

"Lucy-san." He said, getting the blonde's attention. "There's something you should know... about your father."

"I see... So he's gone?" Lucy questioned after hearing Samuel's news.

"He passed a month ago." Samuel replied, taking something out of his back pocket, revealing a folded up letter. "I came across him after I had finished a job. He knew who I was and wanted me to give you this."

An eighteen-year-old Samuel was walking towards Onibus's train station after finishing a job. He was wearing a teal and black plaid flannel that revealed his chest and black cargo pants. A man in his forties walked past him, but gasped upon seeing a familiar guild mark on his right pectoral.

"Excuse me, young man!" He called out, causing Samuel to turn. "Seeing your guild mark, I assume you're a wizard from Fairy Tail, correct?"

"I am." Samuel responded, narrowing his eyes. "If you stopped me to badmouth my guild, I don't wanna hear it."

"No, no." The man waved his hands. "I would never. My daughter is apart of your guild."

Samuel blinked. "Daughter?"

"Yes. Lucy."

"You're... her father?" Samuel's eyes widened before his face turned to one of sympathy. "I'm sorry. But Lucy-san is—"

"I already know about Tenrou Island. However, I believe my daughter is alive." Jude interrupted. Samuel frowned as Jude hands him a folded piece of paper. "Do you think you can do me a favor? Can you give this to Lucy when she returns?"

Samuel takes the folded paper. "Sure thing, Jude-san."

Samuel watches as Lucy unfolds the paper and reads what was written. Tears fell from Lucy's eyes as Samuel wraps her in a hug. Lucy hugs him tightly and continues crying into his chest.

Meanwhile, Gray and Lyon were having a conversation of their own. "So, you taught Samuel Ice-Make Magic..." Gray muttered.

"I did." Lyon nodded. "He's grown to be an amazing wizard, Gray. I think you'll be proud of him."

Gray goes silent, lost in his own thoughts as he stares at Samuel, who was still comforting Lucy.

Samuel and Gray walked to their house from the guild. "You okay, Nii-san?" Samuel asked, causing Gray to hum. "You didn't join in on the conversation when I was talking with Natsu-san and the others."

Gray sighed. "I'm just upset that I missed out on seven years of your life. You've grown so much, Sam. You're no longer that annoying twelve-year-old who would follow me around everywhere." He replied.

Samuel nodded. "It does feel weird. I'm a year older than you. Maybe you should start calling me Nii-san." He joked.

"Don't even start! If my age wasn't frozen, I would be 25!"

"I was kidding. You're still my older brother." Samuel grinned. "We should be near the Kardia Cathedral. Come with me. I want to show you something."

Gray raised an eyebrow before following Samuel. They entered a graveyard where Gray saw everyone's names on headstones. It gave him a painful reminder that the members who stayed behind really thought they were dead.

Samuel finally stops at a headstone as Gray looks at it, seeing his own name etched onto it.

"I would come here everyday just to talk to you. Sometimes Lyon-nii would accompany me. Other times..." Samuel trailed off.

"Sting would come with me whenever he visited Magnolia." He added in his head before continuing. "Other times, I would just come alone."

"It's weird seeing your own grave marker..." Gray admitted.

Samuel chuckled. "Yeah, well, now that you and the others are alive there's really no need for this anymore." He said. "Nii-san?"

"Hm?"

"Welcome home."

Later that night, for the first time in seven years, Samuel Fullbuster went to bed with no nightmares invading his sleep.

A/N: Another chapter is completed!

Thanks for reading!

~ Kaleb.