Chapter Text
"So just to make sure I understand this, because what you said is, quite frankly, preposterous, this island is home to a village of demons who think they are humans cursed by the moon, which turned purple due to a ritual being cast to melt the ice that encases a demon from the Book of Zeref? Did I get all that?" Lucy asked, eyebrows pinched together as she massaged her temples.
Natsu looked over to her. "Uhh, yeah, that about sums it up."
"And Gray knows this demon? And the guy who's melting the ice?"
"And who the ice is, yeah."
"And who the what-?"
"Gray is right here, y'know." Lucy flinched as Gray perked up from where he was leaning against Erza, his lips turned slightly downwards. She rubbed the back of her head as she nervously chuckled.
"Sorry, sorry." There was a beat of silence as everyone stared at Natsu expectantly. He blinked once, then titled his head to the side.
"What?"
Lucy facepalmed. Honestly, she didn't understand how this man got through the day with his obliviousness to social cues. Or maybe he just didn't care about them, she thought. She had been slowly getting used to the nuances of life outside massive manors, vast wealth and fancy dresses, but there was still a lot that confused her, and people like Natsu - who lived in disregard of every social norm - were enigmas to her.
Gray sighed heavily as he pushed himself off of Erza's side. "As for Lyon…" His eyes narrowed, "I've not seen him in years, but he always wanted to surpass Ur, so I'm not that surprised he'd try something this stupid. No idea how he managed to move that demon to some random island though."
"Oh that was the cross-dresser." Natsu said.
Lucy blinked at him before she brought her hands together and pointed them at him. "…who?"
"Ultear, she used to be in Grimoire Heart but then she started helping us with Je-" He cut himself off sharply, muttered a quick curse under his breath before continuing. "Anyway, she was cross dressing as some creepy old guy on the island and said that she wanted to control Deliora, and was using Lyon to do it.
The guild master shot up at the mention of the dark guild. "Grimoire Heart is involved in all of this?"
"In this specifically? Not really, but they were definitely a problem by the time the S Class trials came about."
The master nodded, relaxing a bit. "So we have time to plan ahead of them then, good. We can focus on dealing with them after this." He looked up at the group, "now, I believe that we have all the key information, so I would like you kids to go to the island and stop this Lyon figure, and perhaps try to capture this 'Ultear'.
Lucy nodded in agreement, but then paused as she thought of something they had forgotten to ask. "Actually, Natsu?" The man tilted his head towards her. "What is this person's magic? If we're going to be trying to capture her, it'll be helpful knowing what we're up against, no?"
"Uhhh, I forgot the name of it." Natsu ignored the mumbled insult Gray sent his way. "But she uses a type of time magic. She can't use it on people, but can use it on objects n' stuff."
The celestial wizard smiled at Natsu as she thanked him. It was then that Gray spoke up. "not that I don't want to arrest a dark mage, but wouldn't doing that throw off whatever it is that Natsu knows about the future? I mean, if she's involved in Grimoire Heart and they're an issue for us in the future, then won't us arresting her just make the guild's actions completely unpredictable?"
"Hmm, you certainly have a point, Gray." Makarov hummed. "Having insight into the future is incredibly valuable, and we should take advantage of it as much as we can without completely throwing off the series of events that led to the future this Natsu experienced."
A clink rang out across the room as Erza folded her arms together. "So are you suggesting that we let her get away?"
"Yes, but do so without giving it away that that's what we want. If you engage with her, let her escape."
"Understood. Let's head out then." The knight stood up, dragging Gray's arm up with her.
Lucy blinked in confusion. "Wait, now? Don't we need to pack clothes or food or something?"
"We can do that on the way, and grab Natsu and Happy will you?" Lucy watched in shock as the older woman marched into the main hall, ignorant to the pleas of the poor ice mage she was dragging behind her.
"Huh. She does that a lot, doesn't she?"
"Yep!" Great. Lucy must be the only sane one in this entire guild. She sighed heavily before she turned around, dragged the younger Natsu out of the corner and poked the sleeping cat awake from his spot on the older Natsu's bed.
"Lucy." She turned her head to the owner of the voice.
"Yeah?"
"…" The older Natsu looked down at his lap where his hands were placed. "Stay safe, okay?"
Lucy tilted her head to meet Natsu's eyes, but startled back at the glistening of unshed tears. Her lips widened into a small but genuine smile, eyes crinkling at the corners. "I will be." With that, she dragged the other two out to the main hall with her, a determined spark burning in her eyes.
"You're in the clear for now, but I swear if you even think about getting into one of those ridiculous brawls your injuries will not be the worst thing you need to worry about. Do you understand?"
"Yeah, yeah, I got it, now could you stop hitting me with that thing?"
"Only when you get out of my infirmary!"
The slamming of the infirmary door behind Natsu signalled his entrance into the main hall, and the whole building went quiet. Murmurs and whispers broke out as the members of the guild tried to dissect the older Natsu from afar, but clearly forgot that he could hear them all regardless of how quietly they spoke. He sighed as he made his way to the bar and took a seat down in front of Mirajane. The bartender walked over to him, a small, polite smile gracing her lips.
"The others said that you were from the future, is that true?"
Natsu looked up at her, a little surprised to see her back in her old red dress. She hadn't worn that in a while, not since Lisanna had come-. Ah. Right. The whole Edolas thing hadn't happened yet, which means that everyone here still thinks that Lisanna is dead. He clenched his fists. Losing Lisanna had been very painful, for him and the Strauss siblings especially. To know that Mira, Elfman and his younger self were still dealing with that loss, that all encompassing grief? It was heartbreaking, and he couldn't even fix the issue because he had no idea how to even get to Edolas. He took slow breaths, each one calming down the rising tide of his anger.
"Yeah, I am."
Mira chuckled lightly before her expression sombred. "I suppose it would be too optimistic of me to assume that the future is peaceful and pleasant, wouldn't it?" She placed her hands on the bar, fingers rubbing circles into the wood. Natsu watched as she made imaginary lines in the surface and wondered how long it had been since she last used her claws. Wondered how long it had been since his friend, someone he'd grown to see as an older sister, had felt truly happy. Losing her sister had changed them both; Mira grew quiet, took a backseat from active duty, focused on living a simpler life, changed almost her entire personality. Natsu grew quieter too, more serious, focused and isolated, all in the name of becoming stronger.
He was stronger now. He could help his friends now, protect them better, stand stronger for them. He didn't want his big sisters to be drowning in sorrow and regrets any longer. Natsu wanted his guild, his family, to be happy, to be able to finally let go of their past regrets, their grievances, and move onwards into a brighter day. He would make that a reality, no matter the cost to himself. But to do that, he needed to start on the more pressing issues, like making Mira feel happier, even if just for a little bit.
He looked up from where her hands had been wearing down the wood and gave her a small but genuine smile. "Actually, it's not so bad. A lot has happened, and yeah, some of it sucks, and some of it really sucks, but…" He drifted off as he glanced around the guildhall. Macao and Wakaba were having a contest over how much money they'd earnt last month, Vijeeter was showing off his latest dance set, Laki and Levy were chatting about a new novel that had been released, and everyone else was doing their own, usual routine (except for the fact that he could feel the occasional glance in his direction, they really were not subtle). The loud chatter of his guildmates bounced against the walls and the faint smell of beer and freshly cooked meals wafted through the room, all coming together to make this rowdy guild feel like a home.
Natsu turned to face Mira again, "no matter how bad it gets, we'll always have each other to rely on. This is our home, no matter how many times we'll have to rebuild the guildhall, or how many people try to hurt us, no matter how many goodbyes we have to say, we'll all still be in each other's hearts. And that bond of ours will always be enough to get us through the challenges ahead." He ducked his head as he felt his eyes try to water.
"I'm not gonna lie to you Mira, the future has a lot of pain. Each time we beat one big bad, the next one is even stronger. But despite all the hardships we faced, Fairy Tail always came back together, and we shared our tears and our laughter. I won't let things get as bad as they did last time, I won't let you guys go through the same suffering we- I did. We'll beat whoever comes our way, and afterwards we can all sit down and rebuild together."
Mira blinked once, twice, then finally let herself smile, truly smile, as that glimmer of hope for a better future that she had buried deep within her soul finally crackled once again. "Natsu…" She took in a deep breath, opened her mouth to respond properly, and said-
"That was a nice speech, Natsu."
The mages' heads quickly locked in on where that condescending voice came from.
"But if these shitstains who call themselves 'mages' are so weak that they can't even protect the building, then how the hell are they useful in any actual fights?"
Natsu narrowed his eyes, first in confusion and then in annoyance. How the hell did he forget about this asshole? Mira's fists clenched in anger as her magic wrapped around her, creating a dark aura that could be felt across the room.
"Don't you dare insult our guildmates like that! You have no idea what we're up against, so until then you have no right to say a damn word about how strong anyone here is, especially considering you probably won't even help when trouble does come knocking!"
"So what if I don't help? These idiots shouldn't be relying on me to come save the day every time some moron tries to attack. If they can't even defend a building, they shouldn't be in Fairy Tail. And mark my words, She-Devil, when I'm finally in charge around here, you'll be getting kicked out alongside every other useless shithead in here. I won't tolerate weakness in my Fairy Tail."
"You bastar-!"
"Ha! Oh I forgot about all this, oh this is hilarious." The arguing mages turned to look at Natsu, who was now giggling like a small child high off sugar and an unholy cocktail of potions. The room paused, all looking over at the fire wizard in concern or annoyance as he began to calm down.
"The hell are you laughing for, brat?"
"Because…" Natsu finally managed to catch his breath, though a sharp grin presented itself on his face. "Laxus, I forgot how much a asshole you used to be. Damn dude, you really did need that time away, huh?"
Laxus snarled, veins throbbing and eyes widening as he towered above the guild from the upstairs balcony. The world outside darkened as a storm started brewing, and static danced across the air. "The hell did you just say?"
"Give it a rest, would ya? I've got bigger things to worry about than you." With that, Natsu turned away from the older (younger? Oh damn, he was techinically older than Laxus right now, that's so weird) man, ignoring the tingle of electricity in the air, ignoring how Mira backed away from the bar, ignoring the yells of Laxus to 'stop! You're gonna hurt him!'. He merely smirked as he traced his fingers onto the wood in the same pattern Mira did earlier, waiting for the blow he knew was coming.
BOOM
The guild erupted into screams as lightning struck the bar seat Natsu had been sat on, dust and smoke filling the air around it. Mira stormed upstairs to the lightning mage who now sported a sinister grin and wild eyes, and slapped him hard across the face. "Laxus! How fucking dare you! He's still recovering!"
"I don't care! He should know better than to fuck with me. I don't care how many years of training he has, I'm still stronger than him!"
"Sheesh, this really the best you can do? I'm kinda disappointed."
"Natsu?!"
The fire magic stood tall over the wreckage of the chair and bar, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand as his smirk grew. Lightning flickered around him for a few moments before dissipating. "I mean, I know younger-me couldn't take a hit like that without getting injured or sick, but damn, I didn't think it was such a weak blow. You must'a been going easy on me. Rude."
Laxus looked down in shock, fingers shaking as his eye twitched. "'Easy on you'? But that- that wasn't-…" He looked down at his hand and clenched his fists, joints cracking from the sudden movement. "No, of course I was going easy on you. Can't afford our little future-teller to go dying on us so soon. I'm taking a mission, don't call for me." The blonde ripped a quest off the S-class board, pocketed it, and stormed out of the guildhall.
The guild members waited with baited breath, listening for any sign of his return, before they all sighed in relief when three minutes had passed. Mira, Levy and Romeo all darted across the guildhall to where Natsu stood, checking him over for injuries.
"Woah, hey, guys, chill out, I'm fine, I swear."
Romeo sniffled, tears spilling from wide eyes, "but Laxus hit you really, really hard! A-and you might of eated the magic and that makes you sick!" Natsu blinked down at the toddler. He had forgotten just how small Romeo used to be, having grown far too used to the young teenager full of snark in his own time. He smiled down at the kid, ruffling his hair.
"I know he did, but I won't get sick from it this time, I promise."
"P-pinky promise?"
"Pinky promise, now go sit with your old man, I don't want you getting any splinters from the wood."
With the toddler gone, the two women finally stopped looking him over for any injuries. Levy sighed in relief. "Natsu, if you don't mind me asking, how is it that you didn't get hurt? Did you manage to dodge the strike somehow?"
"Huh? Oh, no, I just ate it."
"… S-sorry?"
"I ate it. Like how I do with fire?"
The girls' eyebrows twitched in sync, neither able to understand. "But I thought you could eat only fire magic?"
"Yeah, I used to, but I can eat lightning now too, and I can use it as well." He grinned at the dumbfounded expressions the two mages were making.
Mira spoke up, voice slightly dazed. "You know what, sure, why not? That's not even the craziest thing that's happened today. Why am I even shocked at this point?" She then made her way over to the bar to begin cleaning up the mess, Levy following suite, as Natsu chuckled lightly, shook his head and chased after the two.
Ah, how he missed being at home.
Erza looked out at the sea, searching for the first sign of the island she and her group were heading towards. Natsu was hanging over the edge of the ship they had been offered by a lovely group of pirates, motion sickness once again getting the better of him. Happy patted the pinkette on the back in a lazy attempt at comforting him. The other male in their small group was brooding, looking out over the waves as he fell deeper into his own head, memories of his past consuming his thoughts. Lucy was playing on the deck with Plue, a small dog-like spirit she had contracted recently.
A man who went by the name Bobo was sat near her, watching as the blonde mage interacted with the small spirit. He had joined their expedition after he asked if they were heading to Galuna Island, claiming to be from the island. Erza couldn't sense any sign of deceit coming from him, so allowed him to join them as a guide for the island. They could use as much information as possible.
The wind picked up, the breeze sharp and cold despite the summer heat. They must be nearing the island. The knight stood up from her seat, made her way to the bow of the ship, calling for her comrades to gather around. Straight ahead lied a small island, flora and fauna covering almost every centimetre of ground.
"Here we are. Everyone ready?"
"Yep!"
"Yeah."
"Y-ye-ugh…"
"Yessir!"
"Thank you all for doing this. I must wish you well now. Please help my people."
The group turned around, all calling out for the man to wait, but he was already gone.
"What the heck? Where did he go?"
"I don't know, but regardless of that, we must carry out his request. Perhaps we'll find him on the island." Erza could only hope they would.
The ship reached the shore of the island, docking on a small beach and anchored down to the seabed. The pirates waved goodbye to the mages, wishing them luck on their journey through the cursed island.
Time to get to work.