#natsu soul not just magic almost got absorbed

[vitaetmorsfilo]

this is a list of moments where natsu is smart (but it's getting less and less of them per arc, so i'm filling up space with my yapping) (episodes from 65 to 80)

(i took a small break, c'mon, watching fairy tail for 5 days straight is tough)

- when hibiki gave them the map of nirvana lacrimas, managed to figure out that zero is on lacrima 1 by his senses alone (tho i don't know how much he trusted them, he seemed pretty shocked when he saw zero)

- when fighting zero, managed to stop/dispel/burn zero's dark capriccio with his iron fist

- (am i the only one who thinks that we are SO missing out on a bond between jellal and natsu? how natsu was going to fight jellal there and then, how jellal shielded natsu feom zero's attack, and it being paralleled with how simon shielded erza and natsu from jellal's attack? how jellal gave natsu his flame of rebuke to boost natsu, and natsu accepts it and thanks him? gah-)

- when fighting zero, natsu managed to deflect zero's attack with his fire

- (for me, it's always such a delight to see natsu fight, he moves so much, with so much grace, like dancing licks of flame, and fight with zero shows it spectacularly, ough-)

- (also, what is it with igneel? "you dare to call yourself child of igneel" huh? i kinda see where he is coming from, natsu really strives to proof himself, so he wants to encourage him to fight that way, but it rubs me the wrong way? and in the flashback, at natsu's very reasonable question how can he even break that huge rock, igneel just says to "never give up before you try" and "believe in you strength" and "never forget that you are a dragon slayer, be proud of it" (okay, the bit with how he'll always be with natsu is sweet), and natsu is just "okay, but i still don't get it how to break this rock :/". i think he was trying to convey what makarov said in first episodes, how magic comes from the heart and belief, but from igneel, to me it came off more like a parent telling their neurodivergent child to "just do it, it's easy, everyone else is doing it fine, you should try harder", like, hey, if i am not managing to do it, how would i do it without you explaining it? eh, it's me rambling-)

- when fighting zero, he managed to burn and dispel zero's genesis zero with his flames (which i think set a precedent to him just burning his way through various spells and magic)

- (and also, can i say how beautiful the names of his attacks are? first it was crimson lotus against laxus, now it's phoenix blade against zero, wow, i did not know you had it in you, natsu (i mean, okay, we don't know who exactly designed them, natsu himself or igneel, but even if it was igneel, i just can't imagine him naming them, especially after another mythical creature))

- (natsu was the first who stood up for jellal against rune knights, calling jellal their comrade, my fucking heart)

- (i am now an advocate for jellal and natsu's sibling-like relationship. like, look: tried to revive a person, tried to sacrifice his loved one person, tried to change the world, regarded as genius in magic, feels immense guilt over past actions, has several personalities. now, who am i talking about - jellal or zeref?-)

- (also, do we have honest to god ghosts in fairy tail? cait shelter was all an illusion, and roubaul said that he was something of a thought projection, like jellal used with siegrain, and then mavis with herself, since she was not really dead. so, no ghost?)

- (also, my headcanon is that cait shelter was named after cat is beacause dragon slayers behave kinda like cats, and roubaul took one look at wendy and immediately thought of her as an abandoned kitten)

- (oh, daphne arc, joy🙄🙄)

- when fighting gray, for gray to not land a hit on him he broke the floor under them

- (what was your deal, gray? yeah, natsu forgot about his promise, but what does it have to do with you? he was 12, what could have he done? and people of silence just said that they'll be waiting for as long as they'll need, so no time clutch. and since you stalked him there, why did you not just, reminded him? i doubt you were going out of your way to solve it, not since you met up with daphne while she was in magnolia these seven days, just say that there is a person for natsu to beat, thats all. and really, "when i heard about dragonoid i figured that the only way to beat him was from inside" don't give this bullshit, the fastest way to beat dragonoid was to beat daphne before she even started it. and the condition to releasing people of silence was to beat "the one who controls dragons", not the dragonoid itself. if it was your genuine plan, and not something to fuck over with natsu, then please, don't let anyone let you plan again, there will be casualties-)

- (and the moment natsu fell into dragonoid he remembered town of silence, go figure that gray really didn't to go all this way to remind natsu of his promise)(also, he only forgot about it because he thought it was a weird dream on his part, but gray couldn't have had this thought because he was watching natsu, so he knew for sure it was not a dream)

- (daphne is overpowered, what do you mean you can stop a whole town from revealing themselves from their magic-)

- (i... get it what they were trying to do, they wanted to overheat dragonoid with natsu's flames of emotions, but could you not do it when he gave you direct permission to thrash dragonoid with him, and not when the guys soul is 3 percent from being fucking absorbed, i swear to god, if not for gajeel just straight up punching the core, they really would've lost natsu)

- (kudos from me to gajeel for remembering that lucy has a spirit with arrows and that they can deliver fire for natsu to boost himself)

- (THANK FUCK ITS OVER)

- at fairy tail's annual sprint, he managed to boost his speed with his flames (but gajeel still was running toe to toe with him and gray and erza, gray has ice floor to skate and erza has her special get up to not lose as much stamina and maintain her pace, how did gajeel got in top 5 all on his own? how fast is that fucker?)

- (i really want to see natsu in serious sexy get up-)

- hey, for everyone to know, natsu knows that when people are in danger you should prioritise people in danger over fighting since he was 12 YEARS OLD-

- ooooow, gildarts playing catch with natsu while talking with him, then going fishing, playing with him, picking mushrooms, having a picknick, watching over him when he and lisanna sleep, he is such a dad to him, he just looked at him once and immediately thought "yeah, that little spitfire needs a parent. anyone? no? oh well, why not me-"

- natsu worrying over wendy, asking if she bumped her head, precious

- when in edolas, made them disguises out of literal plants, like, carla's doesn't look half bad, and wendy's look really cute! its only with his and happy's that he decided that slapping some leaves is enough, lmao

[mdelpin]

AO3 | FF.Net

Chapter 1

"I can't believe you're getting married before I am," Lucy said looking at the two of us wistfully.

"I can't believe the two of you are getting married," Erza shook her head, her smile warm and proud. She'd already smashed us against her armor when she'd heard the news.

Happy snickered and let out one of his favorite phrases to say whenever he was around us. "They're in loooooooooooooove!." He smiled at us as he munched on his fish. He had been the first we had told and that had made him feel secure in his place. He couldn't be happier.

Natsu grunted at him and held on to me for dear life as the train started moving, and his motion sickness began to affect him.

"Shh love, I've got you." I kissed the top of his head and placed my hand on the back of his neck letting the cold relax him and cool him down enough to overpower his nausea. He molded himself against me with a small grunt of thanks. I smiled into his head as I kissed it again."I'll always have your back."

I still couldn't believe that he had agreed so readily. I looked down at the rings that were on both our fingers. Neither one of us had wanted to come on this job, but Lucy needed rent money, and we couldn't just abandon her, not even to celebrate our engagement. We were going to have a party at the guild when we returned though.

We arrived at our destination. There was nothing out of the ordinary at first. We had been walking hand in hand, laughing at each others' stupid jokes, still too drunk on the events of the previous night to bicker about anything.

The girls were walking ahead of us to give us some privacy. We were just headed to the hotel before we started looking for the members of the dark guild we were supposed to take down. But Natsu, he's always alert with those damn senses of his, and he must have heard something because next thing I knew he was running as fast as he could towards Lucy.

I chased after him, ready for a fight the moment I noticed he was focused on something, but I was left behind as he propelled himself using his flame jets. He was just in time to position himself in front of Lucy, arms crossed in a blocking stance.

It all happened so fast.

The rest of us stood there, ready to fight, but not knowing what we were up against. The first attack came, seemingly out of nowhere. It was a tremendous burst of magic, black in color and carrying an overwhelming smell, like rotting meat. It was like no magic we'd ever encountered before, and it went right through Natsu's block and straight through his chest.

He wobbled briefly, shaking his head as if to clear it before going on a full out assault on the five men that had managed to surround us as we'd watched the initial attack on Natsu. They were all wearing the same style of black cloak, the mark of their guild emblazoned on it. It was the men we had been looking for, they had somehow found us first.

We were all a bit shaken at how quickly the attack had pierced Natsu's block, but we fought hard, our years of training moving our bodies in familiar patterns. Natsu took out the mage that had attacked him while the rest of us went after the others. The Rune Knights arrived quickly probably alerted by the sound of fighting.

We'd managed to complete our job before we even checked in to a hotel. We'd all started talking excitedly about the party that would begin as soon as we returned to the guild when we first noticed that Natsu wasn't alright.

He'd stopped in the middle of the road, his hand going up to his chest, covering the spot where he'd been hit. I moved it out of the way and saw a black emblem disappear, seemingly absorbed into his skin.

His breathing was ragged, but he smiled at me and told me he was fine. He grabbed my hand and squeezed, pulling me towards the train station, I should have known then. Natsu Dragneel did not willingly head towards transportation unless something was very wrong.

I felt him slow down, but he played it off as waiting for the girls. Happy and I shared a look. By the time we got back to the station, his skin was clammy, and I was helping him walk. I looked at the schedule desperately, the town we were in was tiny. It had no hospital that could deal with magical injuries, but Magnolia was only an hour away by train. It was only when I realized that I couldn't read the words in front of me that I realized I was crying.

Lucy stood in front of me and looked at the schedule. I felt Erza put her hand on my shoulder as she hovered over Natsu, like the older sister she had always been. I saw the concern in her eyes and that cemented it more for me than anything else.

My insides felt colder than anything I'd ever experienced before, I'd always heard of fear leaving you cold, but I'd never felt how true that was until that moment.

Lucy told us there would not be a train departing for another hour. We all huddled together, watching as Natsu deteriorated more and more. An old woman had seen us and ushered us towards the bench she had been sitting on. We laid Natsu on it. Soon after he began to bleed out of his eyes, nose, and ears but he would not let go of my hand.

Happy and I looked at each other in desperation, both of us desolate and unused to doing nothing.

"I'm going to fly him back to Fairy Tail." Happy cried. "Wendy can help him, I just know it!'

"Happy, I know you want to help, but it's a long distance. I don't think you can make it carrying Natsu." Erza told him as she petted him gently. She was holding on to Natsu's other hand. I could have sworn that hers looked paler than mine as if Natsu was sharing with her what he wouldn't with me.

"I don't care, I have to try!" Happy sobbed. "We have to do something, or it'll be too late. Gray, please!"

"Take him, Happy." I knew Erza was right, but I was selfish. I needed Natsu to be ok, even if it was at Happy's expense.

Lucy stood off to the side, her hands in a constant wringing movement and her eyes fixed on the ground. I knew one of us should talk to her, tell her that we didn't blame her. That Natsu would have done the same for any of us, but I couldn't worry about her now. She could wait, I wasn't sure Natsu could.

"I'll always love you, Ice Princess." The words sounded strange, almost gurgly as we helped him sit up. Blood was dripping out of his mouth, but I kissed him anyway. Kissed him like I've never kissed anyone before as if my entire existence was dependent on it. He must have felt the same because he kissed me back the same way. Like we needed to imprint the kiss into our souls, or we might never know each other again.

I hugged him as tightly as I could without making his condition worse, then I lied to him for the first time. "Everything's going to be ok, Flame Brain." I'm sure he knew, I never could use his name if I didn't mean it.

"I'll see you at the party," he told me with his smile, the one that my world revolved around and I wanted to believe him so badly. I wished I could possess his unshakeable optimism, but life had never been particularly kind to me and I was in the middle of reliving my biggest heartache.

Happy gave me his most determined look. "I'll get him there in time, I promise."

I watched him fly away with my heart, and I begged every deity I knew to watch over him, but when I got back to the guild, I learned that gods no longer exist. Neither Wendy nor Porlyusica had been able to help him. Natsu had been hit with a Death Curse, and he was going to die at any moment.

"Is that what you wanted?" Gray snarled at the creature that was standing by Natsu's bed. He wiped at his eyes uselessly, his tears refusing to retreat.

If gods wouldn't help him, he'd had no problem asking the competition for help. It hadn't been hard, a stolen book from the guild library, a name, a few ingredients.

The first thing that had surprised Gray when his summons of the devil called Nergal had been answered was how nondescript the devil looked. He had the outward appearance of a human male. Average height, average weight, shoulder-length dark brown hair. In fact, the only thing that even hinted that he was anything other than human was his eyes. They were black, a thick black devoid of any reflecting light. The second had been how quickly the creature had agreed to help.

He should've known it had been all too easy, but he didn't care as long as he could find a way to save Natsu. He would deal with the repercussions later.

"Oh yes! That will do nicely." Nergal said as he licked his lips in anticipation. Gray shuddered at the implication but he couldn't back out now, not if he had the ability to cure Natsu.

"Such strong feelings! I think we have a lot to work with here, oh my yes!" The devil grinned giving the ice mage a rather good view of his very sharp teeth. "I'm so thrilled you summoned me."

Nergal was in front of him, moving faster than the human eye could track, and Gray found himself suddenly surrounded by the sickening smell of sulfur mixed with bubble gum. He had but a second to think about the fact that Natsu would surely have vomited at the stench before a clawed hand was pressed to his forehead.

Gray had but an instant to startle at the devil's sudden appearance before he found himself screaming in agony as the memory was torn from his brain. His head throbbed long after the disgusting hand and smell were removed, and he felt shaky, but what he felt most of all was a loss. A part of him had been taken, never to return. What had he given up? He had no way of knowing.

"You've done your part, time for me to do mine." Nergal made his way over to Natsu slowly enough to get on Gray's nerves. He fought against every instinct he possessed that was screaming at him to keep the devil away from his love.

Gray looked over at his fiance, lying in the infirmary bed. He was still slowly hemorrhaging, his body occasionally shaking. Natsu had not said anything since his final words at the..where had they been?

Gray didn't even know how much of Natsu was still in there, but he had to try to get him back. There was no way he would ever give up on him. They were going to share the rest of their lives dammit, they'd planned it, and no fucking disease was going to take that away from them. So he kept himself under control while watching to make sure the devil was not trying to make things worse.

"I didn't realize how bad off he was." Nergal immediately said as he looked down at Natsu's body. "This is a rather nasty curse."

Curse, what's he talking about, Natsu was just sick wasn't he?

"Don't you dare back out of our deal, you bastard," Gray growled, immediately getting into his battle stance, hands at the ready.

"Relax, I didn't say I couldn't do it, did I? It's just going to take longer than I thought." Nergal looked at Gray with black, dead eyes that still managed to look greedy. "And of course, I will need more payment."

"You sonofabitch!" Gray hissed, "That wasn't our deal!"

"Let me show you what I'm capable of." Gray saw a flash of teeth that were meant to look like a smile but made the devil look bestial.

Nergal placed both of his hands, claws no longer visible, over Natsu's body. They began to glow, and Gray observed, with ever-growing hope, as some of the black sickness came out of his lover's body and became absorbed by the devil's hands. The bleeding appeared to stop, and the once deathly pale body regained some color.

"Would you want me to keep treating him, or should I stop?" Nergal looked at him, his head tilted to the side as he waited for an answer. "After all, memories are such little things."

Gray couldn't argue with the results. He thought about it, how much longer could it take? Gray had plenty of memories. He and Natsu had known each other most of their lives after all.

"Not all memories are equal, wizard. The more emotions associated with a memory, the more power I get to help your love."

Nergal winked at him as if he knew what Gray had been thinking. Gray supposed it wasn't an uncommon ploy in the devil's line of business.

"Alright." Gray agreed, his heart already mourning the imminent loss while he still could. There was no other choice to be made, no price too steep at this point. He was all in.

"No games, either you keep your end of the deal, or I will make it my mission to end you." Gray threatened, letting his arms become covered in the marks of his Devil-Slayer magic to bring home his point.

"No need for violence wizard, I am bound by my word." the creature bowed to Gray.

"Now that I know what I'm dealing with, I need to prepare appropriately. I shall return tomorrow night. Make sure we are not disturbed."

Gray wondered what he had gotten himself into, he was betting on Natsu's Dragon Slayer regenerative abilities to help the healing along. That was his ace in the hole. He had a bad feeling Nergal was going to try to milk him for as much as he could get.

His head was still throbbing, and he was exhausted. Gray changed Natsu's bandages and stripped down to his underwear, climbing into the bed and holding Natsu close.

"I know you'd hate this, but you look so much better already. Please don't be mad."

Gray liked talking to Natsu, it made it feel like the Dragon Slayer was there with him, even if he couldn't answer, yet. He kissed Natsu as he had done every night for the last few years and whispered his secret before falling asleep.

"Please come back to me, I need you."

To Be Continued...

A/N: This fic was originally a part the ftlgbtales When We Take Different Paths last year. I am updating it for Gratsu Bingo so I wanted to go ahead and have a Tumblr post for it as well. The next chapter should be up in a few minutes.

[queen-swagzilla]

Knights of Oberon, A Fairy Tail Fanfiction—Chapter 1

Rated: M

Summary: Almost a decade has passed since one of Fairy Tail's strongest teams, The Knights of Oberon, went missing on a job and left the rest of the guild heartbroken. Now, three months after Fairy Tail's victory at the Grand Magic Games, Lucy's seeing the full scope of their grief and loss—most notably where Gray and the Thunder Legion are concerned.

As she trains and learns more about her capabilities as a celestial wizard, strange things start happening in the guild. What happened to the Knights, and what on earth does it have to do with Lucy?

Like the story? Consider buying me a coffee!

Don’t know what’s going on? Read it all on Ao3!

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“We finally made it back.” Dag groaned, collapsing to his knees. 

“Well,” Ayla collapsed next to him. “Almost. But we’re probably never getting out of this rift, so this is as close as going to get.” 

“How long until we fade?” Nole asked, sitting next to his teammates. Ayla shrugged, eyes drinking in as much of her surroundings as possible. 

“It took a lot to get back to here. You too are running low on magic energy.” She muttered.  

“After the rift finishes draining our magic energy, it’ll absorb our kinetic energy, then our souls.” Dag continued. “I only use this space as a gateway. We’re only supposed to be in here for a few seconds at a time. We’ve already been here too long—living things can’t survive in here. That sealing spell is keeping me from getting us back out, though. That said, we’ve got pretty large magic containers, so it could be a while. It’ll suck, though.”

“Well,” Nole sighed. “At least we made it back to Fairy Tail.”

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“Morning Mira!” Lucy greeted the beautiful barmaid as she bounded forward to slip into her seat. They’d woken up from their seven-year nap only three months ago, and the Grand Magic Games had just passed. Winners. They were back on top with a brand new guild hall and an impressive underdog victory under their belt. Everyone’s spirits were high. 

“Morning Lucy. Your usual?”

“Yeah. Can you add protein? Capricorn’s on me about my diet and training.”

“Sounds good. Just give me a minute.” 

As Mira walked away, Lucy turned her attention back to the rest of the Guild. She was running later than normal, so the place was packed. Natsu was chatting merrily with Happy, Lisanna, Warren, and Elfman; and Erza was eating strawberry cake while discussing the merits of various weapons with Pantherlily. Levy was chatting with Jet and Droy while Gajeel napped nearby. Cana was still asleep next to a barrel of unknown alcohol, but it would be noon soon, so she’d be starting her day with a fresh flagon any minute.  

Everything seemed normal. That is until the Thunder Legion walked into the guild. They made their way to their usual table, but everything about them seemed off. Bickslow’s totems were conspicuously absent and he was scowling. Evergreen’s hair was in a messy bun, and it looked like she was wearing one of the guys’ training shirts and a pair of black shorts. Freed’s hair was in a ponytail, and he was wearing a training outfit too, looking unkempt and sullen. In the time she’d known them, she’d never seen Bickslow without his babies, nor looking anything less than happy—if not mischievous. Evergreen was never messy. Even in training gear, she looked polished and lethal. Freed, on the other hand, was virtually never seen outdoors without proper clothing and perfectly coiffed hair. Furthermore, she’d never seen any of the Thunder Legion in workout gear unless they were training. 

More than anything else, they just looked gloomy. 

“What’s up with them?” She asked Mira. Mira looked up from her task and glanced over at the Thunder Legion. She blanched, eyes flicking to the calendar, before dropping back to the task before her. 

“It’s not just them. Laxus and Gray will be in shitty moods, too.” She muttered. Lucy’s eyes widened. Mira rarely swore. 

“Your mood just tanked, too. What’s going on?”

Mira glanced around, taking in all the faces who hadn’t realized what day it was yet. She realized, however, that they’d all know as soon as Laxus or Gray arrived at the guild. They wouldn’t be quiet or subtle about it. 

“Nine years ago to the day, we received notice that a Fairy Tail team was defeated—obliterated. We searched for months and found nothing except scraps of clothes and armor from the fight. They were particularly close to the Thunder Legion, but one of them was Gray’s best friend. They’d been attached at the hip since he joined the guild.”

“Gray wasn’t talking to her when she left. They’d gotten into a huge fight.” Cana continued, sliding into the seat next to Lucy’s. “I don’t think you’ve ever been present or conscious for the anniversary. Gray’s awful to be around. You should go get a coat.”

Lucy’s eyes widened in surprise. “What, like he’ll lose control of his magic?” Cana shrugged. 

“He has in the past. When he wasn’t paying attention and his mood got worse. Especially when Ayla’s on his mind. He gets guilty and sad and angry and everything nearby gets frosty.”

“Laxus used to lose control, too.” Mira muttered. “Remember when we had metal bannisters on the stairs? One time, Gray froze them and Max got his hand stuck. Then Laxus electrocuted him on the way up to the S-Class lounge.”She glanced at Lucy knowingly.

“What’s that look for?” Lucy demanded.

“Your best friend and your wet dream are about to be the most intolerable people in the guild.” Cana chuckled. It lacked its usual level of humor. Lucy blushed anyways and socked Cana in the arm. 

“That’s supposed to be a secret!”

“Lucy, I’m hard-wired to spot romance.” Mira tutted. “I’ve known since we woke up on Tenrou.”

Lucy grimaced. “Anyways,” she grumbled. “Why were Gray and…Ayla fighting?” She struggled to remember the name. She’d never heard it spoken before. 

“Ayla was about to start dating someone that Gray disapproved of. He didn’t trust the guy, but Ayla was falling in love with him. Gray made her pick. She didn’t. She grabbed a job, grabbed the Knights, and left. We never saw them again.” Cana explained, voice soft and words quick.

“Who was the guy?”

“We haven’t been able to find that out. Whoever it was seemed to be overshadowed once we lost them. The Thunder Legion and Gray were…explosive in their grief. Everyone else was distraught. It really made us face our mortality.” Mira replied. “Then we lost Lisanna, and we were all in a serious funk.:

All of a sudden, the temperature plummeted. “Oh, shit.” Cana grumbled. Lucy glanced over at the Thunder Legion, only to see them look even more defeated, expressions dark and sad. Conversation ground to a halt around them. Macau and Wakaba’s expressions went blank before their gazes dropped down to their glasses. 

Natsu grew uncharacteristically solemn, and Lisanna’s kind eyes grew sad. Happy looked close to tears. Warren, Elfman, and Max halted their debate, and Erza went silent, only speaking again to quietly explain the situation to Lily, Carla, and Wendy as she waited for Gray to arrive. Levy quietly did the same for Gajeel while Jet and Droy wilted beside them. 

When he finally arrived, Gray looked terrible. His eyes were bloodshot—his hair and clothes rumpled. His cool facade was decimated. The Thunder Legion made room for him at their table, and he joined them wordlessly. 

“What job did they go missing on?” Lucy asked. 

Mira glanced at her. “Why do you ask?”

“So I know what kinds of job to avoid for the next few weeks. It’s my turn to choose.” She murmured. It was growing almost unbearably cold around them. 

“Solo mage kidnapping civilians near Clover Town. The research they did beforehand suggested that the Mage worked with some sort of Spatial magic, and that the citizens were being used as some sort of sacrifice.” Cana told her. Lucy, now shivering, cut her eyes over to Natsu. He met her gaze, taking in her frozen form. She felt the temperature in the room pick up. Not enough to piss Gray off—just enough to keep the entire guild from getting frostbite. Lucy shot him a sad but grateful smile. 

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“I hate that they’re still mourning us.” Ayla murmured. Her voice was raspy and thin—her skin pale and waxy. 

“You’d think they’d start to move on.” Nole replied. “It’s been nine years.”

“Not really.” Dag reminded him. “Nine for us.” His voice shook from the sheer effort of speaking. “They went missing for seven years, so it’s still fresh for them. Especially those five.”

“God, I think it’s actually colder in here.” Nole groaned, miserable. “I didn’t think it was possible.”

“They didn’t mourn together the second year. Only the first. That’s when Laxus went crazy and tried to overthrow the Master.” Dag continued, as though Nole hadn’t spoken. Then, he fell silent. They all did. Speaking too often used up too much energy. It tired them in mere moments, and began to hurt the longer they continued. This was a place of silence and stillness.

“I’m glad Lucy found Gray.” Ayla murmured, almost inaudible. “She’s good for him. For all of them, but especially him.”

“I can’t believe they’re a team. Gray, Natsu, and Erza.” Nole muttered. “And they haven’t murdered each other. If Blondie weren’t there…”

“If Miss Heartfilia weren’t there, they’d have either destroyed Fiore or never banded together.” Dag agreed. 

“I hope she sticks with them. Even after we’ve faded, I hope she’ll keep looking out for them.”

“I don’t think you have to worry. She’s incredibly loyal.” Dag muttered. “Even with the threat of eviction and destitution, she sticks with the team that spends most of their reward money on paying for repairs.”

Ayla smiled. “You’re right. They’re in good hands."

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