There are certain things you never think would happen. Even if you do think of it, you see it as a worst-case scenario. Something that will never happen. Then when the terrifying thought of 'what if' comes creeping along, taking form of that scenario. And you admonish yourself for even thinking something like that could happen.
Especially when there's no chance it could happen.
This was something none of them could have imagined happening.
This was something that shouldn't have happened.
Everyone stood outside the guild hall in horror. Looking over the metal beams that mutilated their home. Wood was splintered, and stone was crushed under their weight. The outside was a mess, but they could only imagine what the inside looked like.
Mirajane couldn't breathe. She could feel herself drawing breath, but none of the air reached her lungs. She slowly suffocated as she looked over each beam and tried to trace where they would land, what they would hit, who they would hit.
She could feel herself moving forward and reaching toward the front doors. She had to know. She had to see.
"Sis…" A large hand settled on her shoulder. She stopped and swallowed her panic and let him guide her back a few steps.
Thoughts of blood splattered, a warm body now cold, green hair stained red filled her mind. A quiet presence that was trying to find his place in the guild, now snuffed out.
She glanced down at the Master and saw him shaking. He glared ahead at the ruined guild hall and gripped his staff so tight she thought it would break.
"That boy is not dead." He muttered. He looked at all the Fairy Tail members that had gathered around their ruined hall. "Until we have anything resembling a body, that boy is not dead. Do I make myself clear?" He slammed his staff down. Some flinched at the noise, but it hardly phased Mira.
"Mirajane." He turned to her. "Mirajane, look at me."
She focused on him. She could still feel her brother's hand on her shoulder.
"Can you round everyone up and get things set up in the basement? Can you do that?"
She found herself nodding.
Yes, she could. She needed something to do, or else the horrifying thoughts would eat her alive.
"Do you want help sis?"
"Sure, thank you, Elfman." Her voice was barely above a whisper as she gathered her thoughts and tried to put aside her emotions for now.
It was just as the Master said.
Until there was a body, Izuku was not dead.
-FH-
Whispers plagued his mind. Faint and far away, dragging him slowly back to the real world.
He opened his hazy eyes to see a bright blue sky far above him.
"I'm not…supposed to be here…"
-FH-
"So, how did it feel to go on a job after a while?"
Gray glanced at Lucy and shrugged. "It felt pretty good. Though I forgot how much of a pain flame brain over here is."
"Last I checked, using fire is the best way to deal with bugs, not your stupid ice."
"You nearly set the forest on fire, moron!"
"But I didn't droopy drawers!"
"Yeah, that was because of me." Lucy held up her gate keys. She had gotten an earful from her water spirit before she disappeared.
"Either way, we got the job done." He crossed his arms.
"When I saw which job you picked, I thought we were going to be gone for a few days," Lucy said. "I'm still surprised we got it done so soon."
"Well, we are the strongest team, Lucy!" Happy flew around her.
"Yeah, we are."
"Don't you forget it."
"Indeed." Erza smiled as she looked over them. It was nice to be out and spend time with them. She hoped to go on another mission soon. After all, they had bills to pay.
"Hey, you think next time we can invite Izuku?" Natsu asked. "Maybe he'll be feeling better by then."
"We can invite him, but that doesn't mean he'll want to go Natsu." Lucy adjusted her hold on Plue. "He hasn't wanted to go yet, don't try to push it."
"Perhaps he should come on a job with us."
"Not you too Erza…."
"He's been doing well in training. Perhaps a few more sessions, and then he can join in. It wouldn't hurt him to spend time with others and gain some experience."
"Well, if we bring him along, let's try not to destroy anything?"
"No promises!"
Gray said nothing as they spoke about Izuku. He kept his gaze on the cobblestone of the road. He still needed to talk to him. Hopefully, he wouldn't scare the kid this time.
"Gray? Do you have any opposition to Izuku joining us?"
He paused for a moment before shaking his head. "It's fine. Let's just keep an eye on him, don't want anybody getting hurt or anything."
"Of course."
Lucy picked up her face to walk in step with Gray. "Hey, so I wanted to talk about it more, but then we went on the job. I heard you wanted to talk to Izuku, was it anything serious?"
"I'll admit that I've been wondering about that too," Erza said. "What happened?"
Gray looked at them and sighed. "Just some stuff, but I scared him before I could really talk to him about it. It's just something that's worried me, nothing too bad. But he was on edge the minute he saw me."
"Geez, what did you do to him?" Happy asked.
"I don't really know."
"Maybe it's because of your bad habit?"
"I will admit stripping probably doesn't leave a good impression," Lucy said.
"Definitely not."
"Hey!"
Erza gave him a look before shaking her head. "Speaking of bad habits…"
"Where is your shirt!" Lucy shouted.
"Crap!"
Happy sighed as he helped Gray look for his shirt. "What's the longest time you've been able to keep your clothes on?"
"I don't want to hear it from a cat who only wears a backpack!"
"Say that all you want, but at least I don't lose it."
"You've got a mean streak in you cat."
"Aye sir!"
While they laughed and discussed what to do once they got back, they suddenly realized the looks they were getting from the people around them. People glanced at them before turning away and whispering to others.
"What's with all the weird looks?"
"It feels like pity…"
Natsu looked around. "What do they have to pity us for?"
The others suddenly stopped when they reached the end of the street. That's when they saw it. The guild hall looked strange from afar, with giant metal rods from afar.
"What the…what in the world happened to the guild?"
-.-
As they approached their guild, they saw someone standing in front of the rubble up ahead.
"Mira!" Lucy called out.
The young woman stiffened up before slowly turning towards them. They all came to a stop in front of her.
"Mirajane, what happened?" Erza looked up at the metal beams.
"Who did this to our guild?" The dragonslayer growled as he looked up at the ruins.
Mira was quiet before she turned back to the ruins and pointed at a symbol crudely painted on one of the walls. "It was Phantom. They're the ones that attacked us…"
"That's awful."
"Wait, hold on!" Happy looked around. "Where's Izuku and Katsuki? Are they okay?"
They all went quiet as Mira flinched at the question.
"Mirajane," Erza clenched her fists. "Where is Izuku?"
She shook her head and bowed her head. Her hands shook as she spoke. "They attacked the guild last night, when everyone had left for the night. We haven't seen any trace of him yet, but we haven't looked in-inside."
A cold feeling seeped into their insides as the realization dawned on them.
Lucy's hands went to cover her mouth as the others stared at the guild hall in horror. Gray was the first to look away. His stomach churned in nausea. Erza didn't say a word as Natsu began to shake with rage.
"You haven't checked yet?"
"The building isn't stable," Makarov answered Natsu as he approached. He held his staff in a white-knuckled grip. "I didn't want anyone to go inside and possibly have the place collapse on them."
"Master!"
"Gramps!"
"Well, let me go in and check! I can handle it if the place falls on me. But Izuku can't! What if he's in there and hurt?"
"Don't you think I've considered that?"
Erza, who had been silent, took a deep breath and looked at them. "Izuku's room, it had a window, yes?"
The old man looked her way with a nod.
The armored wizard was quiet before nodding to herself and walking away.
"Erza."
"Wait, hold on!"
The others trailed after her as she marched around the side of the building. Her lips were drawn into a thin line as she went straight to one of the splintered walls of the guild. She kept her eyes forward and ignored the others as she went forward. She had to know, and she had to know now.
There was a burning sensation in the center of her chest, and it only grew worse the closer she got. It crept up her throat and slowly suffocated her as she drew closer. The possibility of what she could see scared her, but she had to know. She had to know what to do next, what would come next.
Uncertainty would kill her.
"Erza!" Makarov raised his voice as she found the window and stood in front of it. She didn't respond as she took a deep breath and stepped forward to look inside. Natsu rushed forward after her while the others stood back with bated breath.
She gripped the frame of the window tightly as the burning anger in her chest simmered down. The hot iron grip it had around her throat eased as she scanned the ruined room. A metal beam sat in the center of it, making a mess of everything. The bed, though broken, was a mess. There was no sign of anybody having rested in it. There was no shock of yellow, signifying his backpack.
There was nothing there.
"His scent is faint…" Natsu muttered, then turned to the others. "He's not in there, but he was a long time ago. None of his stuff is in there!"
They all stared at him before letting out shuddering sighs. Mira stumbled back a few steps and was caught by Lucy.
"He's not in there," Makarov muttered. He sighed and looked up. "The commotion of the first strike must have woken him up. If his things aren't there, then he likely took everything and ran."
"But then where is he?" Natsu asked, then scowled as his flames began to heat up the air. "Hold on, if he's not here, you don't think those Phantom jerks took him, do you?"
"Don't jump to that conclusion so quickly." Erza finally spoke as she stepped away from the window. "It's more likely he ran off, and he's hiding. If Phantom attacked the guild at night, it means they anticipated nobody being here. They wanted to send a message, as for why I'm not sure yet. But I don't think they had plans to attack any members."
She ran a hand over the splintered wood and finished gathering herself. "The one behind this is likely Black Steel Gajeel. If he was focused on destroying the guild, it's possible Izuku and Katsuki had the time to run away and hide. Knowing him, Izuku's most likely shaken up, and Katsuki is staying with him."
Natsu eyed her and allowed himself to cool down. "So then, how are we supposed to find him?"
"Can't you use your nose?"
Natsu shook his head at Lucy's question. "I can't. There are too many people out now. His scent would be covered up."
"Then we'll look for him." Makarov tapped his staff against the ground.
"Well, let's get going! The sooner we find him, the better." Natsu shouted,
"Then let's split up. We should try to cover as much ground as possible."
Natsu didn't hear anything else as he and Happy went running off. The others watched him run off with a sigh.
"We may as well get started." Gray nodded at the others and made his way into town.
Before Lucy could head off on her own, she stopped to look at Erza. The armored wizard stared ahead until she noticed Lucy looking her way.
"What is it?"
"Are you okay?"
"...I'll be fine."
She turned away, then back to Erza. "Do you want to look together? You're with him more often, so maybe you know where he'd be hiding."
Erza shook her head. "No, go ahead."
With that, Lucy left, and Makarov turned towards Erza. "Are you going to look?"
"I want to, but at the same time, I want to stay here. He's scared, but at some point he'll make his way back. Because this is his safe place. Even if the guild hall is destroyed, he'll come back. I know he will. And when he comes back, someone should be waiting for him."
The guild master nodded to himself. "I suppose, you wouldn't mind keeping an old man company. Would you?"
"...No, I wouldn't mind it at all."
-FH-
The sound of metal crunching and being torn apart filled part of the room. It was quieter, more subdued than normal. The feasting dragonslayer glared at his food with contempt but reminded himself that he was still eating it. He could still eat iron. His power was still his.
He gripped the edges of the table and nearly splintered it with how hard he held onto it.
A strange feeling sat in his chest, like something was dislocated. It was still where it should be, but it still felt off.
"So Gajeel, I heard you made a mess out of the Fairy Tail guild hall!" He growled as he was pulled from his thoughts. "Man, I wish I could have seen the looks on their faces. They probably ran away crying to their-"
He whirled around and sent the talking idiot flying with a single blow. Satisfaction bloomed in his chest as he heard the sound of a body colliding with stone.
"How many times do I have to tell you I don't like to be bothered while eating." He glared at the offender as his arm turned back to normal.
Still his, still his. His magic was still his.
He grit his teeth as he clenched his fists. "Besides, those Fairy Tail brats don't stand a chance against us. They're weak, worthless little bugs that are meant to be crushed. If they really think they can take us on, then they're a pack of idiots!"
He ignored the cold sweat on the back of his neck as he recalled the familiar voice that rang around in his head. A voice he hadn't heard in years.
They all looked up as they heard a loud clapping from above.
"Now the dye has been cast, I compliment your excellent work Gajeel."
He pushed the unsettling feeling down as he grinned up at his Master. "I didn't think tearing up their guild hall was enough for them. So I left them a little present, a little fairy that happened to be living in that dump. That'll get them riled up."
Master Jose grinned. "Very good my boy, be sure to take extra care that no harm comes to that one if you please."
-FH-
"Stop moving! You idiot, stop moving!"
He was somewhat aware of the voice screaming at him. He could barely hear it over the ringing in his ears.
There was somewhere he was supposed to be, something he was supposed to do. It was hard to think with how much his head hurt.
Everything hurt, actually.
He flinched as he pressed a hand against the wall to keep his balance. He hissed and pulled his hand away to see pieces of glass stabbing into his bloody hand.
"That's right. The vial broke and now…"
"Who gives a shit?"
He looked up through blurry vision to see a familiar figure in his face, screaming at him. He paused for a moment to avoid bumping into him.
"I'm…" His throat hurt. "I messed up."
"Yeah, okay fine, I don't care. Just quit moving."
Izuku looked down. "I was supposed to look after it. How could I mess up so bad?"
"What's messed up are your priorities! Just listen to what I tell you! Do you not see how fucked up you are? Just sit your ass down!"
Izuku stumbled but managed to catch himself. He panted as he stood up straight and began to move forward again. As he walked forward, quiet whispers tugged at the back of his mind. He had to get back. He wanted to go back.
There was a quiet part of him that screamed at the idea, that wanted to turn and make his way out of town.
But he couldn't do it.
"I need to go back. I need to get back to the guild. If I don't then-" He stopped talking as he stumbled again.
"Fine. Fine!" Katsuki yelled at him as he grabbed his shirt to help him stay on his feet. "We'll go back idiot, but you're all beat up. If you keep trying to walk, you're going to fall down and break your stupid face."
He gave his shirt a tug to make him stop. Izuku looked up at him, and the cat huffed. "If you just sit there, I'll get one of the guild idiots to get over here. Those assholes better be looking for us by now and not crying over that dump!"
"It's not a dump."
"It's a fucking wreck nobody can live in, therefore a dump!"
Izuku's legs gave out, but Katsuki helped lower him down as he leaned against a nearby wall. "Just sit down and stay here. I'll be back with one of the idiots, and then we can go back to the guild."
The teenager didn't argue and sighed as he lowered his head. "Right, thanks."
Katsuki watched him before shaking his head and flying off.
-.-
Gray sighed as he looked through the streets. He tried stopping by some of the places he expected Izuku to hide away in. Unsurprisingly, he ran into some of the others as well. The post office, the library, and even the cathedral before they split up again.
No dice.
He didn't know where else Izuku would hide. Maybe some alleys and side streets, but there were so many of those it would take forever to comb through them.
He had…has a lot of mixed feelings about Izuku. Especially before he left for the job with the others. No matter what, he couldn't shake it.
Izuku scared him.
He was a threat. He hurt him and seemed to realize it. Even if he did fix it, it didn't mean it wouldn't happen to someone else in the guild. Whoever was next may not be as lucky as he was.
Still though, none of that meant that he wanted the kid to go missing. He didn't want him to just up and disappear.
"You will never have to see me again! Y-You won't. I swear I'll leave you all alone. I'll go away. I'll leave! You will never have to see me again. I will disappear, and none of you will ever worry about me again."
Gray paused, then looked up at the sky.
If the guild was attacked, there's a chance he took that opportunity to run away. He said he was going to leave…did he mean it? Will any of us looking around actually help, or are we just wasting our time? What if he's already gone?
At least Izuku running away on his own terms, safe and sound, with Katsuki in tow would be better than the alternative. Somewhere in the city, injured and scared.
"If I tell Erza she'll probably get angry, then sad. She'll hunt him down before going after any of those Phantom jerks."
He tapped his foot on the ground as he thought, then shook his head. He had to tell them what he said. He had to tell them about what Izuku did. It might bring some peace, then shock. They had a right to know if Izuku wasn't going to…couldn't tell them.
He turned to start making his way back to the guild, and think up a good way to tell the others.
"Hey!"
He stopped, then looked towards the source of the voice. He shouted as something crashed into him. He stumbled back and looked up to see what hit him.
"You!"
"What the…" He froze.
It was Katsuki. Of all people he expected to see…
The cat glared at him with a huff. "Of course. Of course, the first idiot I'd run into is you."
Gray looked over the cat and realized he was hurt. He was bruised and scratched up. He had to give his wings a hard flap in order to keep himself airborne.
"Wait, if you're here then…Izuku's still here."
"Yeah idiot! What do you think happened?"
"I thought you two would have run off. The guild was attacked and-"
"And nothing dipshit! Listen, I know you don't like De- the damn nerd, but get over yourself for like five minutes! That asshole did a number on him, and he's not looking too good."
Gray watched him for a moment then paled. "So you two didn't run off."
"No! Now are you going to help or not?"
"...Show me where he is."
Katsuki turned around and began to fly away, with Gray following close behind.
"So the guy that wrecked the guild is the same one that went after you and Izuku?"
"What do you think?"
Gray followed him into an alleyway that led to the quieter parts of the town, places nobody would really tread in the daytime.
He ran through the quiet streets and kept pace with Katsuki. It didn't take as long as he thought to find the kid.
He nearly froze when he saw him, and began to slow down.
Izuku was struggling to get to his feet and relied on the wall to keep himself upright. He was trying to move forward toward the guild.
He stood back for a moment, then stepped forward.
"Izuku."
He gasped and whirled around. If he didn't look pale then, he did now.
Gray frowned as he got a good look at Izuku. He was bruised and bloodied, swaying from side to side, and he held one of his hands close. Both of his gloves were gone now. Though what really caught his eye were the parts of his skin that had turned to metal. Some of the metal was cracked and scratched, but overall intact.
What did you do?
He swallowed hard and stepped forward slowly, though it wasn't like Izuku could run in his current state.
"G-Gray…"
The ice wizard stopped in front of him. They stared at each other, one beginning to shake and the other resisting the urge to turn and get away.
Gray sighed and held out a hand. "Come on. Let's get you two back to the guild."
-FH-
"Any sign of him?"
"No, I couldn't even find Izuku's scent."
"They have to be around here somewhere. If not then…"
"If those Phantom jerks took them, then they've got another thing comin'"
Natsu, Happy, and Lucy had met up in their search for Izuku and Katsuki. As well as a few of the others in the guild, but there wasn't much luck so far. They had decided to go back to the guild to update the others, and figure out what to do next.
Up ahead, they saw Erza talking with Mira and Makarov. They looked at each other before making their way over to them. Mira was the first to notice them.
"You're back!"
Erza turned to look at them, and frowned when she didn't see Izuku with them.
They all froze as she marched towards them.
"Where is he?"
"Erza…"
"Did you find him?"
"No…we didn't. Not yet. We just thought we should let you know."
"And there's no sign of him?"
"No."
Erza's fists shook as she looked over them.
"Where is Gray?"
They looked at each other, then back at her.
"We're not sure. We didn't see him while we were looking. Maybe he's had better luck than we did."
Erza was quiet before turning to Makarov.
"Master."
The man looked equally upset. He held his staff in a white-knuckled grip as he listened to them.
"Are you sure you've searched everywhere?"
Happy was the one that spoke up this time. "We didn't check the forest. Maybe he ran back there."
"Go check, then come back."
"Right!"
Before the small group could run off, they heard Mira gasp behind them. When they turned to look at her, she ran past them toward the pair that were slowly making their way down the street.
Mirajane ran up to Gray, who was supporting Izuku and keeping him on his feet. As soon as she was close enough, Gray let him go.
Izuku stayed on his feet long enough for Mira to pull him into a hug. When his knees buckled, she slowly lowered him down.
While the others came running over, she looked over him and saw all his injuries. She couldn't help but cringe as she saw parts of his skin covered in cracked metal.
"Oh Izuku, what did they do to you?"
Izuku managed to open his eyes. "I-It's fine. It's nothing, I'm-"
"Don't lie!" Erza came up to them and knelt down. "Do not lie to us when the truth is so blatant. You couldn't even stand on your own."
Lucy went over to Gray as he stood away from them. "Where did you find him?"
"Katsuki left him in an alley to look for help, and he ended up finding me."
She looked around. "Wait, then where is he?"
"I'm right here, Key Girl." The aforementioned cat flew up behind them. He was injured too, but in much better condition than Izuku. Though, it was clear he was low on energy. He was beginning to sink, and his wings were starting to fade.
"You're okay!"
Happy flew over and hugged Katsuki, who began to swat at him.
"Get off me, you damn fleabag!"
Lucy smiled to herself, then stopped as she saw Natsu beginning to shake. The air around him began to grow hotter. He made his way over to Izuku and was about to speak until Makarov beat him to it.
"Who did this to you?"
Izuku looked up. "O-Oh. Master…I…I don't think I can do the mail run today."
"That doesn't matter to me. Tell me, who did this to you? Was it the same one who destroyed the guild hall?"
He was quiet for a moment, then lowered his head. "I'm sorry. I couldn't do anything. I-I couldn't even run fast enough. He ended up catching me and…."
"It's fine." Mira stopped him. "You're okay now, and that's what's important."
"You need to tell us who did this."
Izuku muttered something as an answer, but no one could hear him. After a moment the metal in his skin disappeared and turned to normal. Izuku had finally lost consciousness,
"What in the world?"
"The metal bastard!" Katsuki shouted. He pushed Happy off of him and made his way over to them. "That asshole wrecked the place while we were sleeping and chased us all night! The fuck got a kick out of it! De-He fought back, and you can see how well that turned out."
Before Erza could question either of them further, Makarov slammed his staff on the ground. "I can tolerate our guild hall being destroyed. If it had been just that, I would have been willing to let it go. But this," his staff shattered in his hands. "I will not allow any harm to come to my children without taking revenge!"
The earth seemed to shake with his rage as he looked at the rest of his children. A few rushed out of the basement area to see what the commotion was about, and saw bright light surrounding their Master.
"We have no choice but to go to war!"
-FH-
They were quiet at first, faint. Barely audible enough to make anything out.
Over time they grew louder. Loud enough that he could hear them clearly.
"So, this is the one he chose?"
"You have to be kidding me. Out of everyone we could have ended up with, we get some brat?"
"Beggars can't be choosers. Would you rather he gets a hold of it? Or some random kid off his radar?"
"A capable hero would have been better."
"We're a little short on those right now!"
"You shouldn't be so quick to write him off. Then again, you always did have an issue with judging others."
"Bite me."
Bickering voices roused him from his sleep. He slowly opened his eyes and was met with the dark sky of his field. He was dreaming again, which meant he must have passed out a little after Gray got him to the guild.
He sat up and stretched his limbs to help wake himself up. At least in his sleep, there was no pain, no reminders of what happened in the waking world.
Izuku got to his feet and looked around. He could still hear the voices, but couldn't see them. They seemed to be echoing all around him.
As he looked around he caught sight of a dark gray figure made out of mist. It kept its distance, but Izuku couldn't help but feel that it was glaring at him. He shuddered and moved away.
He looked out to the distance of his field but saw nothing. Though he couldn't help but feel something was different. There was a shift.
His field seemed brighter somehow. There was no crushing presence that wrapped around him, but he didn't feel alone. He couldn't see anyone, but he knew they were there. There was something in his field. He had heard them.
"I didn't take anybody's magic, did I? No…No, I couldn't have…"
As he walked through the field, he heard their voices continue to echo. They were still talking, still arguing.
"Hello?" He called out.
All the arguing stopped.
"I can hear you. Where are you?"
He frowned and continued to wander. His field didn't take up a lot of space, so he had to run into the intruders somewhere.
Is someone using magic on me? Maybe that's who I was hearing…but none of the voices sounded familiar. If that's the case, then where am I, and who am I with?
He figured he had to be safe. He remembered seeing Gray, and he faintly remembered Mirajane and Erza. So he had to be with someone from the guild.
Before he could think it more, he felt them. The intruders.
He froze in his tracks and looked around. They were nearby, he knew they were. He wasn't sure where they were until he looked out to the rest of his field. There was something strange there. His field was usually barren with no color to it, save for the mists of people whose magic he had taken.
Here though, something was bleeding through a dense fog. Small sparks of color appeared near the edge and turned some of the field green. Some of the fog seemed to be swallowed up into the ground, slowly being dragged in. Like the two were merging, yet pushing and pulling against each other.
There's something strange here…but I don't remember taking any magic like this…
Izuku crept closer to the border and leaned forward, trying to peer in.
Before he could react, a hand shot out of the fog and grabbed his shirt. He shouted as he was pulled in. A thick fog surrounded him, almost drowning him as he was pulled through. He fell through and landed on a concrete floor.
He groaned and slowly got to his feet. He did a once over and realized he looked different. Most of his body was made of mist. He could see the outline of it clearly, but some of it was hidden beneath a dark fog.
He looked up to see where he had ended up. He didn't recognize it.
Instead of the open area of his field, it looked like a corner of a crumbling building. Dread crept into his gut as he realized he found the source of the voices. Figures stood around the room, each with their gaze turned towards him. Each of them silent.
Some of them were clearer than others. Two of them refused to even face his direction.
Izuku jumped as someone appeared at his side. He slowly looked up to see a man with long white hair smiling down at him.
"So, you must be our Ninth."
His heart stopped as he stared up at him and backed away.
"I know you must be confused. Unfortunately Eighth didn't get to explain much to you."
Eighth? Ninth? No. No, I want to leave. Let me leave! Let me wake up! I don't know what this is, let me leave!
He turned to try and run through the fog, but the man continued. "I'm sure this must be alarming, but rest assured- you are not alone. We'll help you to the best of our abilities."
Izuku felt himself begin to dissipate and jumped as he felt the man place a hand on his fading shoulder.
"Now, I believe it's time you wake up."
-FH-
Lucy hung her head as she sat beside a hospital bed. In one bed was Izuku, covered in bandages and sleeping off his injuries. In the other was Katsuki, who had pretty much collapsed once they got there. He was snoring away, buried under the blankets.
After the Master had declared war, Izuku and Katsuki were rushed to the hospital. As soon as they were safe there, everyone had taken up arms and rushed out of town.
She decided to stay behind and watch over the two as the rest of the guild were rushing through the streets. She had practically felt the rage Natsu and Erza carried as they hurried out of town. She didn't blame them. Out of everyone in the guild they were probably the closest to Izuku, other than Mira.
Still though, she was sure Erza felt some kind of relief in someone watching over Izuku and not leaving him alone.
The door to the room creaked open, and Lucy looked up. Only to see a familiar face peek in with a smile.
"Hey, Lu."
"Levy!"
She came in and closed the door behind her. In her arms was a small bag and a book or two.
"I thought you would have gone with the others," Lucy looked around. "Where are Jet and Droy?"
Levy set the bag and books down on a nearby side table. "I convinced them to go ahead without me. They were pretty riled up, and I promised them I'd be here looking after everyone who decided to stay."
"They actually left without you? That's a little surprising."
"It is, isn't it? It feels a little weird, but I don't want to hold them back in any way. They wanted to go fight, so I told them to go for it. I figured that maybe you could use some company."
Lucy was quiet before smiling. "Thank you."
"Also!" She reached into the bag she brought. "I heard you all just got back to town from a job when all…this…happened. So I wasn't sure if you ate at all today so…" She pulled out a wrapped up sandwich. "I figured you could use some food."
She hadn't even realized she hadn't eaten at all that day. Once they woke up, it was straight to the train station to get back home.
"Oh wow, thank you."
"No problem!"
The two chatted and ate quietly for a bit, looking over the injured affiliates from time to time. There was no stirring from them, no sign of waking up yet.
"So," Levy balled up her wrapper, "what did the doctor say about them? If they said anything?"
The Celestial Wizard shook her head. "She said they were going to be fine. A lot of it was just scrapes and bruises. Though she was surprised that Izuku didn't have anything worse, considering how bad he looked. The worst he had was the cut on one of his hands, there was a lot of glass in there. They said he might have a concussion, but they weren't sure yet."
Levy hummed as she looked over them. "If they went up against Black Steel Gajeel, I guess this is the best possible outcome. They were forced to confront someone who is a lot higher skill level then they are, and they came out mostly intact, I'd say it's a win."
"That's true. It could be a lot worse…"
Lucy was quiet for a moment before sighing. "You know, I can't help but feel like I could have prevented this…even just a little."
"How so?"
"...Natsu once told me that Izuku doesn't seem to sleep well alone in the guild hall. Then he decided that it was a good idea to invite Izuku and Katsuki over to my place to sleep for the night."
"That sounds like him."
She nodded. "Natsu had been watching the window for hours, thinking he'd stop by. At some point, he nearly jumped out of it to go and get Izuku. I told him not to and to leave him alone…what if I had let him go to get him? Or, what if I had invited him over sooner? What if there was a chance that instead of being hurt, he could have been sleeping here safe and sound?"
Levy grabbed her hand. "You shouldn't blame yourself for this, you can't. I don't think there was any way to keep this from happening. I'm not sure how Izuku would have felt staying over at someone's place for the night when they're not there."
"I…guess that's true."
"I think even if Izuku hadn't been hurt, the Master would still be angry. He was still in the guild hall. Even if he wasn't injured, he was still put in danger. They might not be official members, but at this point, the Master probably considers him and Katsuki as part of the guild."
Lucy was quiet before sighing. "Why even attack us? What's the point of it? What does Phantom have against Fairy Tail?"
"We've never been on good terms with them. They're sort of our rivals, but not in a good way. We've had our scuffles whenever we run across each other on a job, but never anything too serious."
"Oh jeez. Still, it doesn't explain why they'd attack all of a sudden? What would be the point?"
"I'm not sure, especially since inter-guild fighting isn't allowed. Guilds aren't meant to go to war with each other."
"But they're the ones that struck first."
Levy nodded and looked out the window to see the impaled guild hall. "It's a real mess we're in, but I won't lie. I think this is something that was a long time coming. It's just now it finally exploded."
She sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I hope everyone is okay."
Levy smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "This is Fairy Tail we're talking about. I'm sure everyone is going to be fine."
"Right…"
As they sat beside each other and continued to talk, it had begun to rain outside.
Izuku woke up with a gasp.
-FH-
An intense fire began to consume the front doors of the Phantom Lord guild hall, before breaking open in a fiery explosion and taking a few nearby members with it.
"What the hell?"
Before any of the others could leap into action, a figure jumped through the flames and knocked down one of the other members.
More shouts erupted as the flames died and more people came rushing through the doors.
"Fairy Tail has come calling!"
A battle erupted as the two sides came to clash with each other. Magic and weapons went flying through the guild hall to collide with each other. Fire burned crowds of mages, and flying swords came to cut down others.
Makarov watched his children tear through Phantom Lord's members with ease. The mercy they'd show towards each other in their brawls was nowhere to be seen here. They fought together, never letting any of Phantom's mages sneak a blow on them.
He turned his attention towards the large group surrounding him.
"Get the old man!"
"He can't be that strong!"
"Take him down!"
Fools.
Makarov felt his magic surge through his body as he grew into his giant form. He swept a hand through the crowd with a roar, sending some of the remaining fighters fleeing from the area.
A few brave souls tried to fight back with their magic, only for the giant to crush them with a single blow.
"W-What is he?"
"He's a monster!"
Makarov growled as he landed another blow. "And you all committed the grave sin of harming this monster's children. Are you foolish enough to believe human laws will protect you from my rage?"
All of them cowered before him, while a few managed to run away from him. He looked among the crowd and narrowed his eyes as he saw no sign of their master. Their leader.
Coward!
"Jose! Show yourself!"
Makarov looked over the building and saw the stairs that lead upwards. He began to make his way over and shrink down to his normal size. It made a few foolish mages brave enough to try and attack him again. He deflected their attacks with ease before throwing them to the side.
He looked over his children one more time as he climbed the stairs. They were all in high spirits, coveirng for each other and taking down the enemy in waves.
"Erza!" He called out, and the red-haired warrior looked up. "I'll leave the rabble to you!"
"Yes, sir!"
Jose, once I find you, there will be hell to pay!
-.-
Natsu watched Gramps climb up the stairs, then turned his attention back to the enemy in front of him. A few of the Phantom mages had refused to go down after the first attack, but were beaten easily enough.
He was paying more attention to the rest of the building. He was waiting for someone; he knew he was there, lurking somewhere.
The one who destroyed the guild hall and hurt Izuku and Katsuki.
Apparently, he didn't have to wait long for the guy to show up. A cackling figure came down from the ceiling and crashed into the ground. Before anyone could react, large metal poles erupted from the center and barreled into the group surrounding them. The attack took out many of the surrounding Phantom Lord members and graze some of the Fairy Tail mages.
"He took out some of his own team members?"
"That jerk!"
"Well, well, look what we have here. Some fairy flies trying to act like they're tough." The iron dragonslayer grinned down at them. "So, which one of you-"
He was sent flying before he could finish his sentence. Flames trailed his body as he crashed into the bar.
Natsu allowed fire to surround his fists as he looked down at Gajeel. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Fairy Tail's dragonslayer."
Gajeel got up and grinned at Natsu. "Oh, look at that. You actually think you've got a chance against me? Think again!" He threw his fist forward as it turned into a metal beam.
Natsu took the blow head-on but didn't go down. He had grabbed onto the metal and held onto it. He glared up at Gajeel as the air around him heated up, and flames sparked to life.
"It was you. You destroyed the guild hall and hurt Izuku and Katsuki!" He roared as he threw Gajeel away from him. Gajeel righted himself and went charging at Natsu again, only to be thrown into another wall.
"Natsu!"
He looked over his shoulder to see Erza.
"I've got this. I know you've got a bone to pick with him too, but I got to him first."
She looked him over and nodded. "Fine, but be careful."
"Yeah, you too."
"I'm still standing, Salamander!" Gajeel raced towards him, and Natsu blocked the metal beam.
"Good, because I'm not done with you yet!"
The two dragonslayers fought and clashed with each other. Others in the area scrambled to get out of the way as they threw each other around and wrecked anything in their path. Iron and fire collided again and again, and explosions of magic rang out from their blows.
During one of their collisions, Gajeel managed to catch Natsu off guard and punched him with a metal beam. He sent him flying into the rafters above. He shouted as he slammed into a wooden beam and jumped away just as it was destroyed.
Both dragonslayers glared at each other as they caught their breath.
As they got their second wind, the building began to shake. It had to be Gramps. Natsu looked up, then back at Gajeel. He ignored the shouts of fear from below from the rest of Phantom.
"You're a real jerk, you know that? Destroying our guild hall wasn't enough, but then you went after two of our members? What is the matter with you!"
Gajeel smirked. "They were right there. I figured it was a pretty decent 2-in-1 deal. Besides, that green brat deserved the beatdown I gave him."
Natsu snarled as he leapt towards Gajeel. Instead of hitting him, he caused another beam to collapse. He looked above to see him standing there.
"You hurt someone who had nothing to do with this! You beat up a defenseless kid!" He chased after Gajeel, trying to hit him and narrowly missing each time. "And for what, just to feel better about yourself?"
"Ha!" Gajeel dodged again. "Defenseless is the last thing I'd call him. That little pest is nothing but a parasite, and he got what was coming to him."
Natsu felt his anger rise but pushed it down enough to grin. "Aw, is that your way of saying you almost got your butt handed to you? Maybe Phantom is the one that talks a big game. You can't even take what you dish out!"
It was Natsu's turn to dodge as a metal sword cut the beam he was standing on in two.
Gajeel watched him as he landed across from him.
"You don't even know what that brat is capable of, do you?" He asked. "You've got a parasite hiding in your guild, and you don't even know it. By all means, I was doing you a favor."
"Quit calling him that!"
Natsu leaped forward and grabbed onto his shirt before landing blow after blow on him. Only to be sent back with a hard punch.
Gajeel cackled. "You don't know the first thing about that kid. I can't wait for the day that he ends up tearing you fairies apart! Then again, there won't be much left after we're through with you!"
Natsu blocked the incoming hit. "You don't know the first thing about him. So you don't get to talk about him like that. Nobody does. I won't let anyone badmouth Fairy Tail or any of my friends in the guild!"
"Is it really badmouthing if it's the truth?"
"Shut up!"
Fire burned through the support beams and made them jump to another one.
Before the two could start their fight again, a loud scream erupted from above, and a body fell down.
Natsu looked down in horror and realized who it was.
"It's Gramps…"
"Is he okay?"
"Master!" Erza cried out and hurried to his side.
Natsu threw a fireball at Gajeel before making his way down. Erza and Gray were already there, with a few of the others nearby to watch their backs.
"M-My…My power…my magic power is…"
"What happened to him?"
"Is he okay?"
Gray looked pale as he stared at their Master. "I can't sense any magic energy coming from him…"
"Gray, are you saying he's just an ordinary old man now?"
"No!" Happy shook his head. "That can't be!"
Gray looked sick as he looked above them. "Someone must have taken his magic power…"
"But how? He's so strong. How could anyone do that?"
Erza looked around as the remaining Phantom members stared at them, each of them grinning with sick satisfaction and excitement.
"We need to go."
"What? No! We can still fight. We have to!" Elfman protested. "Real men don't run from a fight!"
A few of them charged toward their small group, and Natsu unleashed a wave of fire. "Don't you start getting cocky!"
Now that Phantom had gotten their second wind and had their morale boosted, it was clear how the battle would turn. They were confident now, and since their Master was down, they had to protect him.
Erza shook her head as she got to her feet. "We must retreat! Everyone, back to the guild at once!"
"What?" Loke looked up.
"No way, we can't just give up. We need to figure out who did that to Gramps!" Gray protested.
"I've still got fight left in me."
"Yeah, me too! Let's stay."
"We can't!" She looked over them. "Retreat, that's an order!"
Everyone obeyed her with hesitance. They began to run out of Phantom's guild hall. Some of the others helped their members get away from their fights in order to flee.
"Come on, let's go!"
Natsu heard her but continued to fight to allow others to escape and keep them from chasing Fairy Tail.
As he fought her couldn't help but overhear voices from above. One of them of course, being Gajeel.
"So, what's the deal with that Lucy girl?"
Natsu whirled around and looked up at them.
"...Master Jose is not pleased. The attempted capture was a failure."
"What? Are you serious? How the hell did Juvia and Sol screw up that bad?"
"They say a green-haired pest was to blame. Apparently, someone, who shares the same ability I do of draining magic."
"That brat again?!" He screamed.
Natsu narrowed his eyes.
Green hair? Izuku?! But draining magic…he can't use magic!
"Natsu, let's go!" Happy tugged on his scarf. He stopped when he saw his face. "Natsu what's wrong?"
"Those jerks…they tried to kidnap Lucy."
"What? How do you know that?"
"Gajeel was talking about it. Come on, we gotta get back to the guild. We need to make sure everyone's alright!"
"Aye sir!"
He turned to leave, then looked back up at the iron dragonslayer. "Gajeel! I'm not done with you! Just you wait, the next time we fight you're in for it."
He grinned as his form began to dissipate. "We'll settle this one day, Salamander."
And with that, Natsu joined the others in their retreat.
-FH-
Discord: /Y9wcvSMt