"Oh my god…"

Lucy was horrified. After all this work, after all the years, was this all they got? Was this all that he would get? What would he say anyway? She looked around. Happy was standing next to her, his face full of shock. "Is that…?" he asked, but it did not seem as if he really wanted to know.

Behind them, Natsu appeared, still screaming, "Wait up! I just thought that was a clue back there!" When he saw them standing there with tears in their eyes, he slowed down. "What is it?"

Lucy, the writer, did not know the right words, so she just pointed at the scene and croaked "I'm sorry." Natsu took one look at the scene, and his face fell. It had taken her a long moment to realize what this mess of bones and scales was, but for him, there never was any question.

"Igneel… dead?"

Slowly they walked towards the dragon remains, getting more and more downtrodden with every step.

"Maybe he is not dead yet?" asked Happy, prodding one of the scales gently. It creaked.

"Don't be stupid," said Natsu. "Whatever this is, it is not alive. But maybe it is not really Igneel…"

"Do you think so?" asked Lucy. On reflection, she had no idea what Igneel actually looked like, other than the vague descriptions her friend had given her. "Are there more red dragons around?"

Natsu shook his head. "Not on this world, Igneel said. There's one dragon of every kind. But maybe he's from Edolas…"

"But Edolas Grandine is a human!" said Happy. "So Edolas Igneel would be a human, too. Or a cat!"

"You don't know that!" said Natsu. "Or maybe it's not Edolas, but some other world. We don't know how many there are. Or maybe this is some sort of time-travel. That's it, yes! The future Igneel came back to warn us, and now we have to prevent his death!" He was getting more and more agitated. "Or maybe this was never a dragon. Maybe someone enchanted a… rock, or a tree, to look like this! Hey, we're on to you! Igneel is not dead!"

"Natsu…" said Happy quietly, clearly not convinced. Lucy agreed with him. Natsu was just grasping at straws here. Carefully, she looked around the mess, to see whether there was any clue one way or another. Suddenly, she saw something.

Together with Natsu, whose theories became more and more insane, she moved some bones away. Beneath them was a small piece of paper, folded neatly. It had probably come from a small leather pouch a few feet away.

She unfolded it and was greeted by a crayon painting. Under a yellow, smiling sun was a red lizard-thing with wings, spouting yellow and red goo… no, flames. Next to it was a tiny stick person with pink hair and an enormous grin. Underneath, in huge, crude letters, stood "DAD + ME".

Lucy began to tear up as she saw it. Natsu just froze.

"I made that for him…" he whispered. "Never knew where he got the crayons from. He promised to always keep it safe. I was so happy that he liked it…"

He paused for a second, as if to collect his thoughts. Then he began to scream.

"Daaaad!"

There was nothing they could do. Igneel was far too big to be buried, and according to Natsu, dragons did not want to be buried anyway. Whatever the cause for the death was, it was probably long gone by now.

The journey back home was the most uncomfortable that Lucy had ever been on. On the plus side, Natsu was so angry that he forgot to be sick. On the other hand, Natsu's anger was so big that it physically hurt. It had taken the ticket agent three tries to understand that Natsu wanted to go home, not insult him.

Inside the train, everyone left a lot of room around their seats. From a literary point of view, Lucy would have preferred if it was some mystical aura coming from the dragon slayer, but in reality, he simply shouted at anyone who dared approach them. It was making her feel very uncomfortable.

"I'll just go… and get some… fresh… air… water… something…" she stammered as she stood up. Natsu did not look at her. He was angry at a herd of cows the train was currently passing. Suddenly, he spoke up. "Stop!"

Surprised, Lucy sat back down. "You're trying to flee, aren't you?" asked Natsu. "You're trying to leave me!"

"What! N…no! Just some… fresh… airwaterthingy"

In truth, she did not really know where she wanted to go. It hurt to see Natsu so angry, and it hurt even more that she had no idea how to help.

"Wait." Natsu took a deep breath. "Please; don't leave. It's better with you here. You too, Happy."

The blue cat had a guilty look on his face. He had been hiding on the overhead luggage rack.

"I just thought… you're so angry, maybe you wanted to be left alone?" said Lucy carefully. He shook his head.

"I'm angry, yes, very angry. But not at you! Just… I don't know how to say it. Angry in general. At the world, for allowing that to happen. At Igneel, for leaving without saying anything, and then he dies on me. At the guy with the headphones over there WILL YOU TURN IT DOWN ALREADY!"

The man turned around, saw Natsu, and fled into the next carriage.

"Ah, that's better. Lucy, Happy, I'm really angry right now, at everyone and everything. But I'm not angry at you."

Afterwards, the rest of the journey wasn't actually any better, but it felt better. A few times, Natsu even tried to smile at Lucy and Happy. However, when they arrived, it became clear that his declaration did not extend to the rest of the guild. Natsu managed to start two different fights before Lucy could even begin to explain what had happened on their trip. The others were more than kind and sympathetic, which seemed to anger Natsu even more. It was as if he simply wanted to be angry right now, and the guild was used to being his punching bags.

Two days later, Lucy was sitting at the bar of the guild, ostensibly trying to continue her book, but actually just doodling. Erza sat down next to her.

"So, how is Natsu doing?" she asked, her voice full of concern.

"Not better. Right now, there is apparently a big fight in the library. Levy is trying to contain the damage."

"I see." Erza ordered a beer. Around them, fighting noises erupted. It seemed that Natsu had returned to the main room.

"I just don't know what to do," Lucy said helplessly. "He was so nice after my father died. And I want to be there for him, but I get the feeling I'm standing in the way."

"Don't give up," said Erza, casually catching a table that was flying towards them. "This anger is just his way of dealing with it. And he will need his best friend."

"Happy is with him, I think…"

"I didn't mean him. You two have something special, with your deep friendship. You're the most important human for him… in fact, the most important girl." The knight winked very obviously, then added "if you get what I mean."

Elfman flew over the counter, shouting "That's a man!"

"Yeah, no, I do," said Lucy, blushing furiously, "but it's not like that. We're just friends. Besides, doesn't he love Lisanna?"

"Everyone loves Lisanna. I love Lisanna, you love Lisanna… Gray, what do you think about Lisanna?"

The ice mage bumped into the bar stool right next to Erza. "Lisanna? Gotta love her. As a friend, I mean. Yo, flame head, you'll pay for that!"

He took off, but left behind his stalker. "Juvia loves Lisanna, too, as a friend, but she fears she might be a rival for Master Gray's attentions." A flying whiskey bottle knocked her hat off. "That is no way to treat a lady!" she shouted, and left again.

"You see?" asked Erza. She looked around and spotted Fried, casually strolling through the Battlefield. "Hey, Fried! Do you love Lisanna?"

The green-haired mage stopped dead in his tracks and lit up like a candle. "I… what… ye… how do you kn… None of your damn business, Miss Scarlett!" He stormed out.

"So you see," said Erza, completely ignoring the outburst, "everyone likes Lisanna. But there is nothing romantic about that… at least not for Natsu. He may not know it, but he really needs you now."

"Hm…" said Lucy, thinking. Partly, she was thinking about Natsu and herself, but at the same time, also about Fried and Lisanna. Natsu loving Lisanna was a good defense, she had thought, and part of her was disappointed that it didn't work. On the other hand, a tiny part that she usually tried to suppress was absolutely ecstatic about this. Just then, the dragon slayer appeared next to her.

"Lucy, I need you!"

He did not even wait for an answer, but simply dragged her away. "I found this great book in the library! With it, I think we can get Igneel back!"

"Wait, what?" asked Lucy. Resurrection was damn near impossible. The R-system had been one of the most massive construction projects in the past century, and experts were still not sure if it could even work. Of course, there were even darker, more destructive rituals, but surely Natsu would not consider them?

They stopped near the river. Natsu surveyed the area and apparently decided that it would do, then handed her a book.

"It's called the Ritual of Siedle. It is meant to resurrect lizards and birds. I figure if we simply increase the power…"

"Wait, I heard about that before…," said Lucy, while Natsu began moving tree branches around. She thought back. "Arlandine Siedle was the first mage to prove that resurrection was not entirely impossible. Her ritual could resurrect lizards up to a person's foot in length, depending on magical power. It is forbidden, because it requires… a sacrifice! Natsu, what exactly do you think you're doing!"

"Well, a dragon is sort of like a lizard, so…"

"That's not what I'm talking about!" She slapped him in the face. "What is this about a sacrifice here?"

Natsu blinked for a second, then something dawned on him. "Ah, don't worry, you're not going to be the sacrifice! I am going to do that myself. See, Siedle sacrificed a mouse, and then…"

"You stop this ritual right now!" she screamed. He immediately dropped the pieces of wood he had gathered. "There is not enough power in the world to use this dark ritual on something the size of Igneel! He is not just ten times as long as a tiny lizard, he weighed a thousand times as much. It would absolutely not work!" She took a deep breath, then continued more quietly. "And even if it did… I don't want to loose you."

Natsu's face sunk. "Thanks, I guess. But what else can I do?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. I'm sorry. It is just not meant to be."

"That's not fair! He was my father! There must be something I can do to make him come back! Anything!"

"There is not! Parents die, and we have to live with it. It's hard, I know, but there is nothing you can do! Nothing I can do! Nothing my father could do…"

Lucy's thoughts returned to the horrible day that she always tried to forget. She tried to push them away, to focus on Natsu and his pain, but it didn't work.

He looked at her again more closely. "You're right. I'm sorry. Moaning about Igneel when both your parents are…"

"It's not that!" she said quickly. "You have every right to be upset. You just have to accept that you can't change things. I'm sorry."

"You're right," he replied, looking more sullen than ever. "I just don't like it… I'll have to go think about that."

Without another word, he turned around and walked away, leaving her standing alone.

Two days later, Lucy was sitting at home. In the meantime, Natsu had not broken in even once. She was not worried; he did it a lot less than the other guild members always thought. What did worry her was that he had not been at the guild during the time.

Suddenly, she heard a weird noise coming from her door. It took her a second to realize that it was something soft knocking. When she opened it, it took her another moment to notice Charle standing in her doorway.

"Can I come in?" asked the white cat. "I just wanted to talk. I'm worried about Happy…"

"Of course," Lucy replied. "Do you want some tea?"

Charle agreed and sat down at the kitchen table. "Happy and Natsu have not been at the guild in the past days. You know them better than I do, so I thought to ask you."

"I wish I could help you" said Lucy, bringing the tea over. "Natsu is really taking it badly. I guess he never really thought about Igneel being dead before. He always thought he would see him again, so this news has really shaken him."

"And Happy refuses to leave his side," said Charle. "He really depends on Natsu. If Natsu is depressed, then Happy cannot be happy either."

"You're right," said Lucy. "Mirajane thinks that Happy will cheer Natsu up, but I don't believe it. If anything, it works the other way around."

She had told it Mira back then. Whenever Happy was upset, a look at Natsu's cheerful face would make the cat believe that there was good in the world again. On the other hand, if Natsu was feeling down, then Happy usually stood next to him with tears in his eyes.

She took a sip, while Charle spoke.

"You know where they live, don't you? Have you visited them lately?"

"I did, actually," said Lucy. She had not told anyone in the guild about this, but Charle was definitely trustworthy. "When I arrived there, I found a sign on the door saying 'Keep Out! Really!'. At first, I wanted to knock, but it just… didn't feel right. So I left."

Charle nodded. "I agree. That is the reason why I came to you instead of visiting them directly."

"By the way, how is Wendy dealing with all this? Where is she now? The first we hear of any of the dragons, and then it is like this…"

"Wendy is sleeping," Charle said. "She is dealing with it a lot better than I thought. Of course, she knows loss. Grandine, Mystogan, all of Cait Shelter, and I still do not know what happened to her birth parents."

"Poor girl!" said Lucy, as the scope of it all hit her. Come to think of it, friends and loved ones leaving Wendy seemed to be the world's cruel running gag.

"Yes, indeed. I've made it my mission to stop that," the cat said earnestly. Lucy was not quite sure how the tiny being could ever achieve it, but she had no doubt that Charle would do everything in her power to keep the promise.

"But even though Wendy is my prime responsibility, I have grown to like this guild… even the loud members, like Natsu."

"And Happy?" Lucy said, winking, but Charle just ignored it. The two cats were just too damn adorable when together.

"I guess the only thing we can do right now is wait for them to return," said the cat.

The next day, Lucy was sitting in the guild, talking with Reedus about artistic expression, when she heard Cana scream for her. It took her a few moments to find her friend — in the wine cellar, of course. She should have expected that. What she did not expect was a passed-out Natsu next to her.

"I didn't do it!" shouted Cana. "I mean, yes, I did tell him the secret password that Mirajane thinks I don't know to get in here, but..."

"What happened?" asked Lucy, although it was really fairly obvious. "He heard about drinking his sorrow away, and decided to try it himself, right?"

Cana tried to make herself as small and invisible as possible. "I gave him all the alcohol–is–not–a–solution speeches, but, well, it's not really convincing when it's coming from me, is it? I had no idea he'd go this far, though. Don't worry, he'll be all right. I hit him with a detox spell when I found him. Still, we need to move him to the infirmary."

"You know healing magic?" asked Lucy, but then thought for a second. "Just this one spell, right? Don't worry, we'll get him there. How long should it take for him to recover?"

Cana looked visibly relieved that Lucy wasn't blaming her. Not that Lucy was not considering it, but Cana's relationship to alcohol could not be called normal.

"He should wake up in an hour or two, but he won't be fit to leave the bed until tomorrow."

Ten minutes later, they had shuffled him into a bed in the infirmary, mostly complaining about his weight. Cana left shortly thereafter, afraid of what Erza might say if she learned of the whole situation.

"Oh Natsu, why do you do things like that?" Lucy said idly. To her surprise, Natsu opened his eyes and began to answer.

"Lucy... I'm sorry."

"Natsu! Just what do you think you were doing? I was really worried, Cana too! And where did you leave Happy?"

"...he's fishing... Didn't wanna bother him. Didn't wanna bother you. Just drink…"

He sighed for a moment and then began to stammer incoherent thoughts. She had to ask several times over to get a total picture. Apparently, his thoughts were: If Igneel could simply die like that, die and be gone, and no chance of getting him back, then what was the point? It had been horrible when Lisanna went away, but this was even worse. So he thought drinking might help.

Lucy squeezed his hand and slowly stroked his hair. "I don't know what Cana has been telling you, but that won't work. Yes, it hurts. It's supposed to hurt. But you are not alone with this! We are all here for you."

"Thanks... But if it all just ends like that... I mean, really, what's the point? Why even bother?"

"For the time in between, I guess. For the friends who will remember you even after you're gone. Igneel isn't fully gone as long as you are there to remember him."

"Hm..." said Natsu, as if he was thinking about it. She waited for a reply, but he only started snoring. It was a bit annoying, but also cute, she thought.

When she entered the guild the next morning, everyone was running around, looking for something, shouting "He's not here!" from the weirdest of places, including the request board, underneath a table, inside a wine barrel and in a stack of old newspapers that Lucy swore hadn't been there before.

She stopped Erza, who was carefully investigating a pillar, and asked her about the situation.

"Well… Cana told me not to tell you…," said the knight, fidgeting, "but I guess this is an emergency. Natsu is gone."

"Wait, what? Also, why doesn't Cana want me to know? She was scared that you'd find out! It was Happy's job to watch him; he took over after I left."

"Happy is not here, either. It seems they left together. And Cana…"

At that moment, the brunette drinker broke into the conversation. "I told you not to tell her before we found him! Lucy, I'm really, really sorry, this is all my fault. I will leave the guild if you ask me to…"

"Everybody shut up!" screamed Lucy. They all complied immediately. "So let me get this straight. When you let Natsu into the wine cellar, you were scared of Erza. But when he's actually gone, you're even more scared of me? I don't get it!"

"It's… just… you know, a feeling, since you're partners and all…"

Suddenly, everyone looked through the window, as a blue cat came hurtling in. "Calm down!" shouted Happy. "Natsu is just gone to get something. He'll be here any minute now."

"You should have left a note for friends!," said Erza. "This behavior is unacceptable."

"There was no paper" said Happy, smiling. Erza was content with the answer, although Lucy knew he was lying. Were the two plotting something?

Just then, Natsu came in. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but before he could even start, Lucy slapped him in the face, screaming "Where have you been? We were worried about you!"

"Ow! Sorry…"

He took a step back, scared. She could see that he was holding something behind his back. There was definitely a plot going on back here.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you!" he said. "I just wanted to say, I'm sorry for all these things I've done recently. I've got it now: Igneel is dead. I have to accept that." He was still slightly shaking as he said it, but his face remained sincere. "Still, I want to know what killed him. It's what he deserves and what he would have wanted. Will you help me?"

Lucy smiled. "Of course!"

"Great!" said Natsu, grinning widely. "But first, there is something more important, that's why I was away, too…" He began gradually getting quieter, until she could only hear mumbling.

"Hey, if it's so important, then speak so I can hear you!"

"…right…," he actually blushed. It was cute and creepy. "…something really important… wait, I said that already, didn't I? Heh. Anyway, I've realized it and… and…"

Happy punched him in the leg.

"Oh, yeah, right! I realized that there is… is…" — Happy hit him again — "…someone more important than Igneel..."

Blushing even more, he revealed what he had in his hand. It was a nice little bouquet of flowers.

"…and that someone…"

He handed her the flowers.

Author's note: Wow, that ended up being a lot less dark than I planned. Near the end, anyway. Now, first of all, I'm sorry that I killed Igneel, but it had to be done. He just wasn't pulling his weight in terms of story-telling. There were maybe four random clues in the series, and after the pilot, no arc featured people going out looking for dragons. Igneel is much more useful as a mentor character that provides motivation, and as we all know, killing them is never a bad idea.

Why did Igneel die within the story? I'm leaving that one up to your imagination, which is a fancy way of saying I have no idea.