Alright, I decided on a pairing . The long wait for the update has been explained (although ik I rlly should update more) But first, something I've been putting off for a while now

Disclaimer: If I owned Fairy Tail, Igneel would still be alive, and Natsu would be banging someone that isn't Lucy, probs Mira.

Dawn turned into dusk as the courier finally arrived at the port town of Hargeon after two days of riding on the company owned boat from Alvarez. From here he could see the twinkling lights of the sleeping town. He thought them all to be lucky. Not only were they asleep but they had absolutely no Idea of the scale of the battle that war raging on in the next town. His legs ached from manning the wheel for so long, his temples throbbed with exhaustion and he was severely homesick. The thought of his mother's homemade pasta flooded his mouth with saliva.

And on top of all this, he couldn't get through the gate.

"No night shipments," says a guard. "Mid-war regulations."

So some people did know it seemed. Probably only those of importance though.

"This is a special delivery. I am expected," insists the courier, handing over a document enclosed with the details of his arrival.

"Turn around, you heard him" replies another guard, expressionless behind his helm.

Four meters above the gate, an assassin stands flat against one mirror-smooth obsidian glass spire of the gate, the weapons in his fists emblazoned with the crest of a clan long left behind, souvenirs from a lost time. He does not understand the conversation between the courier and the guards. In Japanese, the assassin knows these words:

I, You

Hello, Goodbye

Yes, No

Yours, Mine

Have, Be, Understand, Kill, Go

Who, Where, What, When

He does not need anything else, especially why. 'Why' is not his problem. Where he goes, he learns these words and leaves why to the employer. If they wanted a specific method they should say. If they didn't like the results they died. That is how the assassin operated. It also got him very good reviews and references.

In any case, 'How' is his only problem.

The courier raked his hands through his hair in annoyance. This was the only close gate for shipments in this town. The next closest gate would take another day to get to, a day he didn't have.

"Look, okay, I'll admit I'm not actually a courier but the guild Berated Blade needs this package in the next twelve hours" He opened the package producing two blades. With the flick of a switch, the metal blazes were alive, molten metal flashing and spitting.

The employer had provided the assassin with a timetable of when the guards switched over shifts and their patrol routes. One of the guards from the previous shift lay dead in his locker, stripped to his underwear and his oesophagus clogged with his own blood.

Upon revealing the weapon two guards came rushing through the gate. One was strong and burly with a long career ahead of him, the other old and pending retirement. He would be even closer after today.

The assassin does not need to understand the conversation. He doesn't understand the use of conversation at all. He understands those blades, however, flaming eerie green through the infrared lens. His tongue sucked up onto the roof of his mouth. He slid his weapons back into their sheaths, silent, knees bending, anticipating the big spring, breath slow. The old guard's armour creaking slightly and he poised. Ready.

The assassin jumped, landing with the toes of one foot on the shoulder of the strong guard. Before the courier can react, the assassin has side flipped over him, his tail whipping in a spiral. He snatched the hilts of both blazing blades from the untrained hands of the courier, whose terrified face glows green.

"Mine," says the assassin, and pushes one molten blade down between the courier's left clavicle and shoulder blade, incinerating the man's heart.

When the guards turn away from the gate, only a shadow remains behind the blank-eyed courier, who slides sideways to a heap of burning flesh on the road. A shadow, and the one thing left in the courier's pack: a leather-bound journal bearing the national insignia of the Alvarez Empire.

The assassin decided he liked the blades. The Employer would have to die then. 'Noblesse Oblige'; I can so I will. It was something the assassin used to believe in.

Over time,

Understatement of the year: Lucy was worried about her best friend.

He didn't speak. He didn't laugh. He didn't smile. He wouldn't look anyone in the eye. This alone was bad, but the most worrying thing was that Natsu hadn't eaten. Natsu hadn't eaten. Three words Lucy never envisioned could ever be put together in the same phrase.

He had been camped outside Polyusica's house for a week now. Just staring at the door. No amount of Porlyusica's grumbling or Wendy's pleas on her frequent visits could get him to speak. The only times he seemed to make any movement at all was when the door opened and just for a second, Natsu was able to make out the red hair of the unconscious swordswoman inside.

Then it would close, and the cycle would repeat.

"You good Lucy?"

The blonde looked up at the only other human occupant at the table. Gray was without his shirt, as usual, with a sombre look on his face. His dark eyes studied her with interest. She had been still for the past 10 minutes which, for those who knew her, was very unlike her.

"I'm fine Gray," she offered a small smile. He didn't buy it, "also, Gray,"

"Yeah?"

"Your clothes!"

"Damn it!"

The ice mage spent a good 5 minutes looking for his missing shirt and shorts, unsuccessfully, for his not-so-secret admirer had taken them in an effort to 'win his love'.

"Never mind my clothes," he said as he sat, "I ain't buying that 'I'm fine' stuff. You're worried about him too, aren't you?

She sighed in response and sank further into her seat "I'm still trying to wrap my head around all… this. I mean, Natsu is E.N.D. for heaven's sake. Erza's been unconscious for a week because of Natsu, and to top it all off, I got a letter yesterday from the firm that awards author of the year; they want me to be at the finals!"

Gray held back his grin. Typical Lucy.

"Oi Lucy" She raised her head. "Don't worry about Erza, she's strong, she'll get through this.

"And Natsu?"

A pause followed.

"How about we go check on him now? We'll take some food and we won't take no for an answer. C'mon!" Gray stood up and walked over to Mirajane at the bar to order some extra food

Lucy sighed and stood up. She really wanted all of this to just blow away. She could feel the tension in the air whenever she was in the guild. If anything, the best thing she could do right now was to help her best friend.

Fault: the responsibility for an accident or a misfortune. Guilt: the feeling of having committed a wrong or failed in an obligation. Tiny raindrops splattered on his head, weighing down like his own sins.

It was his entire fault.

Everything she had done for him. Every moment, every fight, every knock-out to save him from that horrible, horrible train. Every single tip, every single lesson, but the repayment? A full week's trip to the infirmary. And that wasn't it, of course, the worst part was that he, Natsu Dragneel, was E.N.D. The very thing they had fought to destroy only a few months ago. He was the only thing his father could not destroy. Natsu was the one who has caused himself so much pain. E.N.D. was the reason for Tartaros' creation, so the nine gates of Tartaros could grow closer to him. Even then, it was all a façade. A fake, just to grow closer to his dead brother.

Oh, Lord! His brother!

He had a brother! Someone who actually shared his own flesh and blood. His own DNA. His family. How did that make Natsu feel? Well, angry of course. He should have known. He had the right to know who his family was, no matter how demented or dark they were, they were family. And Natsu never turned his back on family. Never. It was against his moral code, his motto. He admitted that he was reckless, and his recklessness was one of his faults, but he would never willingly hurt one of his own, which was why what he had done to Ezra hurt so much.

He hated what he had done, if he could go back in time he would make sure that everyone stayed as far away from himself as possible, and then fight himself. Yet still, deep down inside of him, Natsu was scared. He was scared of himself. Scared for himself, because deep down, as much as Natsu hated it, Natsu had enjoyed the terror. During his time as E.N.D., Natsu was fully aware of his actions and as much as he wanted to stop he couldn't. The terror on their faces was like a drug. It filled him with glee. It fuelled his actions. Every hit, every cry, every tear was like the sweetest fire.

Hating yourself with 100% of your being is impossible, yet Natsu was coming dangerously close. He hadn't ignited a single fire since the incident. He didn't think he would start any time soon. And without that, he-

"Yo Natsu!"

The said pinkette jolted his head in the direction of the voice. Lucy and Gray stood stationary a few metres away from him. Surprised, he slowly brought his head back to its previous position. He hadn't heard them or smelled them. The look they gave him was odd. He judged they had been standing there long enough to see him mentally arguing with himself.

"Is everything alright Natsu?"

No. No a million times over. Nothing was alright. He was a demon for God's sake. He was the sole reason the whole Tartaros mess had ever happened.

He was about to reply until he looked at Lucy. It wasn't really a look, more like a study. She tried to hide the fact she was shaking. He could smell the salt just behind her eyelids. Her body posture was too rigid, very unlike the usual Lucy. Her right leg constantly moved from behind Gray's to besides it and back again. A sign of distrust, and with is brought the horrendous truth. His own best friend, Lucy Heartfilia, was scared of him. And in his opinion, she had every right to be.

That didn't mean that it hurt him any less.

"I'm fine." He accompanied his words with a weak smile.

Lucy, on the other hand, felt stupid. For God's sake, she thought, why on Earth are you hiding form Natsu? Yet every time she tried to move in front of Gray, she couldn't. Hesitation. Reluctance. Fear. In the end, that was the reality.

"We brought you lunch", she stated.

He waited, but she made no movement

She desperately wanted to help him. However, every time she looked at him, he looked different. And it wasn't just the physical changes. His longer than usual hair, his pitch black right hand with markings of similar shape that snaked up his arm, his overshadowed eyes. Yes, they were unsettling, but what really scared her was this…aura. Whenever she had come near to after the 'incident' the had been scared, for absolutely no reason at all.

So here she stood, helpless, unable to even offer him a simple lunch. Nevertheless, with everything in her heart, she wanted to fling her arms around him and cry.

Natsu sighed. It was to be expected. And as much as he didn't feel like getting up, he was still Natsu. He was known to be one of the fastest (and messiest) eaters in Fairy Tail. It not like he wasn't going to eat forever.

He stood up. Lucy gasped. Natsu had become significantly taller. Even as he walked up to her and Gray, she could instantly tell that he was taller than her. She had often wondered between Natsu and Gray which one of them was taller. She now had her answer. Standing next to them now, she estimated there were at least 5 inches between them in height. Natsu took the brown paper bag and sat down

As Natsu turned around Gray realised that as soon as he sat down, they would be exactly back to square one. They had made progress already; this was the first time they had seen him stand up in weeks. Seizing his chance, Gray asked

"Yo Natsu, aren't you gonna come with us in visiting her?

The pinkette stopped in his tracks. Slowly he turned his head. Lucy and Gray both suddenly felt a drastic increase in the Aura around Natsu. It was nothing like his usual magical aura, which was already unusually strong. This was stronger, scarier and far more unsettling. Gray had never imagined he could ever feel afraid of his sworn rival. But in that second, where he could finally glimpse Natsu's eyes he felt afraid. The golden orbs unsetttled him more that he would like to admit.

Then they were gone as suddenly as they came, and Natsu's posture became slumped, his eyes back to their usual onyx black, suddenly tired. Pink hair fell over black eyes as the dragonslayer turned to look at his two friends.

With an fake smile for added effect, he replied "Nah, sorry guys"

Crushing their hopes with three words, he proceeded to walk back to his spot, openign up the brown paper bag.

Lucy was going to have none of that. It had been a week already. Just before he sat down, she grabbed his arm and forcefully pulled him toward Porlyusica's hut.

"Natsu, I didn't come all this way just to fail you know, I came to help you"

She looked back at his face with her ususal bright smile

"And that's exactly what I intend to do!"

The ceiling she looked at as she came to was unusual to her. The whitewashed ceiling was replaced with greenish brown, with faint lines and a darker centre. As her vision cleared she recognised it as the inside of a hollow tree. Light shone through the green tinted windows. She couldn't remember how she had gotten there. Nor how long she had slept. Every muscle in her body felt tired. The very moment she tried to sit upright she was assaulted with immense pain, causing her to gasp.

"You're awake"

The voice of the medic made her want to turn her head towards the voice,, which brought more pain.

"Do not move, most of your muscles are still recovering, and although many of the fractures have healed the one in your right leg is still recovering, and your right arm is broken. Blocking all of those attacks caused severe damage to your ulna."

While giving her the run down of her injuries, she seemed to be watching something from outside the window. Something interesting it seemed. She could faintly hear a voices through the ajar window.

"Don't move," she repeated. Yet Erza was stubborn, and once she put her mind to something , she did it. Despite the pain she managed to sit up and swing her legs over the bed. Standing up proved a harder task, as soon as she put her weight on her legs she collapsed

"Silly human"

The pink-haired medic walked over to the injured swordsman and hefted her arms onto her shoulders, helping her to stand. From here, just as she had predicted, Erza could see out of the window. Gray and Lucy seemed to be talking. Lucy, who held some sort of bag, stood behind Gray. Her, curiosity satisfied, she opened her mouth to ask the medic to take her to the chair.

A splash of pink in her peripheral vision caught her attention. She looked back at the window and gasped. Natsu was there with them.

Natsu. Everything that happened a week ago came back to her instantly. The golden eyes. The smell of smoke. The crater. The beatings. She needed to talk to him.. She made for the door, and promptly fell.

"You want to see him," It wasn't a question. There was contempt in her eyes. She didn't understand humans, their feelings got in the way of most things they did. Porlyusica understood enough to know that that boy was the one who had injured Erza. Why she wanted to see him was beyond her.

"You are too injured, you require rest, another time maybe," Again, it wasn't a statement. Yet Erza is a stubborn woman. She had managed to get enough strength on one leg to put herself up against the wall, and was slowly proceeding against the door.

"Do you not understand?"

The swordswoman continued regardless. The medic did not admire her determination, she thought it was stupid. However, there was no way she was going to be able to put the redhead back in bed herself.

Erza was surprised when her arm was placed on Porlyusica's shoulders again, taking some of her weight.

"Thank you"

"Hmph"

Lucy had just reached for the door handle when it opened. Out from it stepped the person she was least expecting to be up on her own two feet. Supported by Porlyusica, Fairy Tail's resident Swordswoman stepped out in a pale blue hospital gown. Her right check was covered by a plaster and her untied scarlet hair fell loosely around her shoulders. Her right arms was bandaged and her right leg wobbled slightly under her own weight.

"Erza!"

"Hello Lucy"

The blonde ran towards the redhead for a hug, and was promptly stopped with a blow to the head from the medic.

"Do you want to send her back into a coma?"

"Gomen."

"It's nice to see you too Lucy," They both smiled.

"Yo Erza!," Gray raised one hand in greeting "You're looking better"

"Hi Gray," She gave him a smile "Have either of you seen Natsu?"

"He's right here". Lucy pointed to behind her where she had let go of the dragonslayer's hand to greet Erza.

The pinkette was nowhere to be found.

Yay, finito, Sorry for the extremely slow updates. At least this chapter was long. Now for reviews:

Tsuki-no Hazame Hime: Nice name. And thanks a lot

Pokedude 816: OMG, i had no idea till i went and checked, thanks a lot!

TheLaughingStalkingLenny-kun: yeah basically. Ik its not realistic,I probs should have thought that out better, just image there's like some sore of magic barrier or something

And thanks to the rest of you who have given your votes and your thoughts. As for pairings, lets go with NaMiZa. Although, technically this wasn't part of the vote and it may disappoint some of you, some of you who had initially voted for one went and voted for both after chapter 3. Also i'll fix chapter 3.

Hopefully the next update will be quicker

Striker