Natsu POV
"Lucy!" I screamed, sitting straight up in a bed that wasn't my own.
"Jesus Christ, Pyro. Dial it down a notch would you?" Gray whined, stirring on a small couch in a stale room. Vague beeping came from my bedside and I looked down to find my arm and body covered in tubes and wires.
Gildarts got up from his wooden chair right beside my bed and embraced me, "Good to have you back again, kid."
I pushed him away but locked eyes with him, communicating my own message. He knew what I was asking, but I said it anyway, "Where's Lucy?"
He sighed and looked away from me. I got up on my knees, pain stabbing through my body, pulling on the IV that was attached to my wrist. "Gildarts... Where's Luce?"
Gray sighed from the side of the room and spoke in a soft whisper, "They haven't found her yet... I'm about to head back over there and take Lyon's place reinforcing the walls your girlfriend took out to save you."
My heart was crushed. In not even a second, my world had gone tumbling down a cliff; it smacked the ground below with an earthly thud but there was nothing earthly about the news I had just been given. My mind was a little camper and a tornado had just come and whisked it away with no remorse. Nothing mattered to me anymore.
I ripped the IV, monitors and plugs off of me, throwing them off the bed and sending the machines into a fit of panic and screeching.
"Natsu, what the hell are you doing? You're not healed yet! It's only been a couple of days! You lost all your magic power. Get your ass back in bed!" Gildarts screamed at me, but I could hardly comprehend the words that were coming from his mouth.
A heat was growing in my belly, and even though it was a gentle heat, I could feel it pulsating and radiating to find the one I wished to call mine.
"We can handle this, fire brain. Get back in bed. We'll find her," Gray stated without moving a muscle.
The fire was getting larger by the second, and more so as I put one foot on the floor. Cold seeped from the floor into my toes, electric currents pulsed pain into my legs, but that didn't stop me.
"Jesus Christ, kid. You're not doing this again." I looked over at the orange haired man, only to be cut off when his fist met my face and darkness consumed me yet again.
Gray POV
I stared, wide eyed as Gildarts pushed Natsu back into bed and called a nurse to put all his gear back on. "Gildarts, was that necessary?"
The man with orange hair shrugged, "I dunno. He wasn't listening, was he?"
A slow nod from my head was all the approval Gildarts needed so he simply went back to napping on his chair.
I gave a hushed sigh. Like foster father, like son, I guess.
A quiet hum fell over the room, allowing me to relax for a brief second knowing Lyon could hold up the walls until I had my strength back. After the first enforcement, Juvia and I were trying to make a schedule and he popped up, volunteering to be my double and help out as much as he could as long as he could be around Juvia.
Not like I gave a shit.
Now we had been had it for almost three days. Or something like that.
My own eyelids were closing a bit when my phone went off, pulling me from an almost relaxing nap. But I picked up without hesitation. "Oi, Juvia, what's up?"
Her voice was crackled, "The building is emitting some kind of heat, it may be love rival but Gray-sama and Juvia need to reinforce the walls again."
I groaned, "We just did it an hour ago and Lyon can do it for a little longer."
She hummed in confirmation, "Yes, but love rival may be waking up again. And Juvia likes Gray-sama more. We need a long search. This will be the last one then..." Her voice trailed off at the end, just enhancing the end of that sentence.
"Alright. Give me ten minutes." Then I hung up.
Gildarts' head bobbed up to look at me, "What was that about?"
"They think they might have found Lucy, but it's unknown if she's alive or not. Or if it's even her. I'm gonna go back over to help with one last search then... they're proclaiming her as dead and giving up on the search." I could feel my voice drop at the end, not wanting to say the words that had to come out.
"There's no way that she lasted this long. But I know she is. Because he's not dead," Gildarts sighed.
I stopped my trek to the door and turned, staring at the profound statement our strongest mage had just stated.
The old man quickly noticed my confusion and sighed. "Listen Gray, when I found Natsu, I did some research on dragons and dragon slayers, as it was necessary if I was going to raise the son of Igneel," Gildarts' tone was dark, and his eyes hidden in a shadow, "I looked up what his training would be like and if he needed anything special. Nothing was really different, until he hit his adulthood.
"When he turns eighteen, he begins the process of finding his mate, after all he his part dragon and dragons need mates. Everything I found said if he had already met his mate, fantastic, more power to you, however, if hadn't, he would be out of it until he did.
"This is not a big deal, but if his mate is found, and dies before they get the chance to 'seal the deal', Natsu will die from heart break. Dragon slayers need mates to go on with life."
My eyes widened as shock coursed through my veins.
"Lucy, is not just a friend to him. From what Natsu's told me, Igneel knew Lucy was Natsu's mate, even when they were just kids. If we can't find Lucy, that idiot pyro head will die, whether we like it or not, then we'll have lost two of our most powerful wizards and friends. For the love of all that is Mavis," Gildarts looked up, staring me in the eyes, "Find her. Only she can heal Natsu."
He looked me in the eye, "Tell the others, this is double life or death now. I'll keep an eye on him."
With a nod, I took off in a sprint. Nurses stared at me as I ran. Pyro and I might hate each other, but he can't die.
Not like this.
It took me five minutes to reach the destroyed base, where Juvia, Lisanna, Wendy, Mira, and a few others were waiting for me.
"That was fast, find a shortcut or do you finally care about Natsu?" Lisanna teased, seeming to have finally found her humor.
I shook my head, "I have some more... news."
"Is it about Natsu and Lucy? Did Gildarts tell you?" a raspy voice spoke from behind the group in front of me. Gramps came out from behind the group, looking me dead in the eye.
I nodded, "We have to find Lucy. Soon."
"Wait, why is this suddenly more urgent?" Wendy met my gaze with worried eyes.
I gave another low sigh, "Did any of you guys notice how when Natsu turned eighteen, he got a bit more out of it? Even more than usual?"
The circle glanced around, then decided on a nod as a response.
"Well, when a dragon slayer turns eighteen, they enter 'mating season' or the early stages of it. They begin searching for a mate, or if they've already met theirs, they began to take a keen liking to them. After they meet their mate they have to 'seal the deal' and if they don't before the mate dies, the dragon slayer will die in return, from heart break and disgrace of losing their mate."
Before I could explain the rest, Lisanna spoke, "Lucy is Natsu's mate."
I nodded, "Neither of them know this, they have to figure it out on their own, but if we don't save Lucy..."
Wendy let out a cry and fell into Levy's arms, who stumbled back into Gajeel. Lisanna stared at the floor, and Juvia fell to the floor, weeping in her hands.
Gramps wasn't accepting pity as an answer.
"You brats, didn't you hear him? They're not gone yet! Get in there and save her!" Makarov screamed, sticking his hand in the air, turning it so his palm was facing behind him and holding up a backwards L with his pointer finger and thumb.
Our signal.
I followed his lead, and soon after me, Lisanna joined. Mira, Levy, Juvia and Gajeel all put their marks up as well. We gazed at little Wendy who wiped a tear from her eye and then stuck her signal in the air.
"For Fairy Tail!" Gramps yelled, then led everyone back down the hallway.
Well, almost everyone.
Speaking against my mind's judgement, I stuck my hand out towards Juvia. She looked up and smiled at me, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. I clicked my tongue, "You coming or not?"
She laughed at my hostility and spoke softly, "Juvia knows you're worried about love-rival and Natsu. Don't worry, Gray-sama's secret is save with Juvia." She placed in her soft hand in mine and I yanked her up, heading into the building once she was steady.
"Yeah, yeah... Thanks," I whispered.
She giggled, "Anything for you, Gray-sama!"
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Thanks for reading and support! We're on the back end of this story. Hope your enjoying!
*And I'm still broke so Fairy Tail still doesn't belong to me.
~MelodyElaine