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Time is the Path to Strength	By : Repiece Category: +. to F > Fairy Tail Views: 47111 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 12
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Chapter 10: Natsu and Co. Visit The Cursed Island

"Oh no!" Mirajane's voice of worry and horror rang out throughout the guild as everyone stopped what they were doing and turned their heads to the stairs. "Master! One of the S-Class jobs is missing!"

Makarov did a spit take and splashed his booze all over the place, wetting some of the guild members in front of him. However, they didn't care as they were as shocked as he was. "W-What?"

"Oh…that's right…I remember now…I saw a cat snatch it away…yeah…one with wings actually…" Laxus smirked and leaned back against his chair, arms crossed and feet on the table.

"Happy!" Mirajane turned around in shock.

"That means that Natsu and Lucy are also responsible?"

"What are they thinking?"

"I knew they were stupid, but this…"

"He just went ahead and took one of the S-Class jobs?"

"That doesn't make any sense! He first refuses his promotion and now he does something like this! Just what the hell is going on with him?"

Makarov agreed. Something was off. Why would Natsu turn down a promotion to become a S-Class mage and then suddenly take a S-Class job? Something was going on and whatever it was, he had to find out. He knew he wasn't going to get anything from Natsu, so asking him about it was out of the question.

"Hey, Geezer! They broke an unprincipled rule, right? That means when they come back they'll get expelled…" He then started to laugh. "…not that it matters since they're going to die anyway!"

"Laxus! If you knew about this, then why didn't you stop them?" Mirajane yelled at him.

"Oh? Don't blame me…I just thought it was some thieving cat with a piece of paper in its mouth…" Laxus replied, smirking. "How could I have known that the cat was Happy and that Natsu was going to do an S-Class job? I mean what kind of you idiot turns down a promotion and then runs off to do an S-Class Job…haha what an idiot!" He laughed. Mirajane became angry at the way he was badmouthing Natsu. Not only that, but she found it terrible that this man, who was in the same guild as all of them, would act like this toward his comrades. It made her angry, but worse, sick to her stomach. "Oh…" Laxus commented as he looked at the very angry face Mirajane was making, bringing flashbacks to the days she was called the 'Demon of Fairy Tail'. "I haven't seen that face in a long time."

"Mira-chan…what job was taken?" Makarov asked.

Mirajane turned halfway so that she could still glare at Laxus while answering his question. "The Cursed Garuna Island job."

"I see…" Makarov sighed and closed his eyes. "…there is no need to worry then." The guild all gave him confused looks as even Laxus and Mirajane were surprised by his reaction.

"Master?" She asked.

"Even if he did decline the promotion, Natsu is still considered to be an S-Class Mage. A job like this, shouldn't be much of a problem." He replied.

"Oi, Geezer! You know something about that idiot, don't you?" Laxus asked.

"I do, but I don't have to tell you anything." Makarov reply angered Laxus.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" He angrily asked.

"Master…" Mirajane whispered, feeling worried.

"Mira-chan…if you're really that worried then I'll send someone to make sure they get back here alive." Makarov told her and then looked at Gray. "Gray! Go follow them."

"Huh? Me?" Gray pointed his finger at himself.

"If you don't want to, then I could send someone else who can join them on this S-Class job." He said.

"That's an unforgivable insult, Master." Gray said standing up. "I'll go and show to you that I'm too capable of doing an S-Class job." He told him. "I won't lose to that idiot!" Makarov smirked as Gray played straight into his trap. He nodded.

"Alright then, go!" With a nod, Gray ran off.

Mirajane looked at the door Gray used and still felt worried over the safety of Natsu and the others. 'Lucy, Happy, Gray...Natsu…please come back safely…'

"Uwaaahh! I haven't been here for a while!" Lucy exclaimed. She put her hand above her forehead to shield her eyes from the sun to take in the view of the town that she first met Natsu, Harujion. "This is where we first met, right?"

"Yeah...but it hasn't been that long..." Natsu replied.

"Old Lady, Lucy..." Happy put his paw in front of his mouth and puffed his cheeks to prevent laughter from escaping his mouth.

"Urusai!" She shouted at Happy. She sighed. "Alright then, first things first...we have to find a ship that'll take us to Garuna Island." She told them.

"Huh? But I thought we decided that we were going to swim there?" Natsu replied.

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

"When did we decide that?" Lucy shouted at them in response. "Besides, that's impossible. Let's just go and find a ship."

"Fine..." Natsu grumbled and followed Lucy to the port.

"Garuna Island? Get out of here! I'm not going anywhere near that island."

"No way! I don't even want to hear that name."

"That island is taboo amongst the sailors in this town."

"There's a curse: it's just too fishy."

"I don't know what you guys plan on finding there, but no sailor wants to go there. Not even pirates go near it." The last fisherman answered negatively for Lucy's request. Lucy sighed and sat down on the stone ledge.

"Nooo..." Lucy groaned.

"See...I told you we should have swim there." Natsu told her, sitting down next to her.

"Aye!"

"I said that's impossible!" Lucy yelled at them.

"You would be crazy to swim all the way to that island." The fisherman from before interjected. "It's suicide, especially with the sharks that live in these waters."

"I'm not scared of some wussy sharks! I'll fry them!" Natsu fired back and pumped his fist in the air.

"You do know your fire won't work in water, right?" Lucy sighed.

"So then I'll just punch them in the nose." Natsu told her.

"Aye!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Lucy smacked them in the head. Natsu rubbed the back of his head and sat back down. "We can't swim there, period!" She put her foot down.

"Then how do you expect us to get there?" Natsu asked.

"I-I don't know..." Lucy frowned. Natsu sighed and turned to face forward. He then smirked.

"Maybe Gray might know..."

"Huh?" Both Happy and Lucy blinked in confusion at Natsu.

"What?" Happy and Lucy turned their heads in shock at the voice. "How the hell did you know I was here?"

"Gray!" Happy and Lucy both shouted in shock. Gray scowled at Natsu.

"You smell." Natsu responded.

"You bastard..." Gray growled.

"I'm guessing you're here to bring us back for stealing that S-Class job?" Natsu asked, scowling.

"Nope! I'm here to join you on this job and make sure you come back alive!" Gray smirked, not telling them that the Master told him to do it. Natsu was surprised by this. "This is my chance to prove to the Master that I am capable of being an S-class Mage and unlike dragon boy here, I won't decline a promotion." Gray narrowed his eyes at Natsu. Natsu scowled at the smirk his rival was giving him.

"Yeah...I doubt that..." He replied, putting his hands behind his head.

"What was that?" Gray growled. He raised his fist to threaten Natsu.

"I said you suck!" He stuck his tongue at him.

"That's it! I'm going to kick your ass!"

"Just try it!" Natsu and Gray gritted their teeth at each other. Lucy sighed.

"Not this again..." She sighed once more. She felt a headache coming and pressed her fingers against her head, hoping it would stop the headache.

"Get ready to eat my ice!" Gray growled and ice started forming around his fist.

"Bring it on!" Natsu yelled, igniting his fist into flames.

"Magic?" The fisherman whispered, watching the argument between the two. "Are you mages?" The four of them turned their heads at his question. "Are you here to stop the curse?"

"YEAH!" Both Gray and Natsu shouted, which caused the two to glare at each other again.

"Will you two knock it off?" Lucy shouted at them and pushed them away from each other. She then looked at the fisherman. "Yeah...we are..." She told him. "Although...it looks like it would be a pain in the ass with these two..." She made a side comment while making an irritated face.

"I see..." The fisherman spoke, shaking a bit. "...hop in."

"Alright!" Natsu cheered.

"Really?" Lucy exclaimed in happiness.

"Yosh!" Gray pounded his fist into his hand.

"Aye!"

"Let's go! To the S-Class Island!" Natsu cheered as the four of them got onto the boat. "Ugh..." Natsu instantly succumbed to his motion sickness as the boat hasn't even sailed yet.

"That's really sad..." Lucy sweat dropped.

"Ha! What a loser!" Gray mocked.

"Is he going to be okay?" The fisherman asked.

"Aye! Don't mind him! Let's set sail!" Happy answered.

"Huh? A talking cat?" The fisherman gawked.

Soon, the boat set sail toward Garuna Island. Happy happily sat on the front of the boat, hoping to be able to see the island coming into his view any second. Natsu groaned against the railing of the boat, his hands in the water as he tried his best not to vomit. Gray rested against the edge of the boat, his hands behind his head and Lucy had her legs pressed to her chest and started shivering. Not from the cold, but from the anxiety she was feeling.

"I'm getting this creepy feeling..." Lucy stuttered, wrapping her arms around her legs, hoping it would stop the anxiety.

"Why did you come anyway?" Gray asked, opening an eye and looking at her.

"Because the reward..." Lucy answered. Gray looked at her in surprise.

"Really? Didn't think you were that shallow..." Lucy narrowed her eyes at him.

"Says the guy who is only doing this because he wants to be an S-Class Mage..." Gray flinched slightly.

"A-Anyway...why did you decide to change your mind and let us on?" Gray asked the fisherman. There was a silent pause.

"My name is Bobo." He finally spoke. "I once lived on that island..."

"What?" Lucy asked in surprise.

"Weird name..." Gray whispered a side comment.

"...but I escaped from that cursed island." He continued, ignoring the side comment he heard.

"What kind of curse is it?" Happy asked, turning his head.

"Ugh..." Natsu groaned as the fisherman pondered if he should show them. He made a decision.

"Misfortune will befall on those who go to the Cursed Island." He told them. "Can you guys really get rid of this curse...? This demonic curse..." He showed them his arm and they gasped at it, except for Natsu who groaned in pain again. Lucy gasped. Gray and Happy's eyes widened in shock.

"Ossan...that arm..." Gray muttered in disbelief.

"The curse...you mean..." Lucy muttered. The fisherman nodded his head and then noticed an island in the distance. "There it is..." He told them and they turned their heads to where he was looking and saw the island. "Garuna Island."

"Woah..." Lucy and Happy both looked in awe. "Hey, Oji-san..." Lucy turn around to ask her question, but he was gone. Lucy, Happy and Gray's eyes widened in shock. "Eh? W-Where did he go?"

"Did he fall?" Gray panicked and looked down into the water. Happy jumped in and searched for the fisherman, but he was no where. Happy rose back up.

"He's not here!" Happy told them. Gray and Lucy started to panic more.

"W-What the hell is going on?" Lucy exclaimed.

"W-Wave..." Lucy and Gray turned around.

"You say something, Natsu?" Lucy asked. Natsu struggled to get his hand up, but when he did, he pointed his finger.

"B-Big...ugh...w-wave..." He repeated and then slumped his arm back down from his sickness.

"Eh?" The three all blinked at him as they felt the boat start to rise. Gray and Lucy eye's widened in horror as a huge tidal wave formed, carrying the ship up with it. "KYAAAHHH! TIDAL WAVE!" Lucy screamed.

"Shit! It's pulling us in!" Gray panicked.

"Happy! Quick! Lift this boat up and fly!" Lucy ordered the feline cat with wings.

"That's impossible!" He gawked at her.

"Ugh...Natsu groaned in between their discussion as the tidal wave sucked them in. Lucy screamed in fear. Gray cursed and Natsu groaned again, his eyes turning into two swirls. The four of them were sucked in by the tidal wave.

"Oi...Lucy..." Natsu patted her cheeks to get her to wake up. She let out a moan, but didn't wake up. He felt relieved at the response. She was fine. He tried shaking her. "Lucy...wake up..." It didn't work. He felt slightly irritated. He placed a hand on her back and raised her body so that it looked like she was sitting up. He then put his hands on her shoulders and started shaking her violently. "Wake up!" He stopped shaking her and he realized that he just made it worse as her eyes were now two big swirls. 'Crap...' Natsu sweat dropped. He sighed. 'What should I do...?' He turned his head around over to the two unconscious bodies of his rival Gray, and his feline friend Happy. "Man...come one Lucy! Wake up!" He tried slapping her lightly in the face to wake her up. Unfortunately he slapped her way too much and she got mad. So, she slapped him back, returning all the pain she felt after getting slapped around silly by the pink haired Dragon Slayer.

"Knock it off!" She yelled. Natsu groaned and felt on his back from the force of the slap. His right cheek became red from the attack. Lucy realized what she did and started apologizing to him. "Ah! I'm sorry, Natsu!" Natsu put a hand on his swollen cheek and sat up.

"It's fine..." He told her, his voice slightly muffled by his swollen cheek. "I'm just glad you're finally awake." He grinned at her. She blushed slightly and avoiding eye contact with him. She then noticed that she was on a beach, a jungle right behind her.

"W-Where...?" She asked and looked at her surroundings.

"We're here on Garuna Island." Natsu answered her question. He stood up and then walked over to Happy. "Oi...Happy...wake up!" He shook him.

"Garuna Island...?" Lucy whispered. She looked around before setting her eyes on her body to see if anything changed. After seeing what happened to the fisherman, she wanted to make sure nothing like that happened to her. Luckily for her, nothing happened. She sighed in relief and looked over at Natsu who managed to wake Happy up.

"Natsu...is this...heaven...?" Happy weakly asked. Natsu smirked devilishly as he thought of a good practical joke to play on his friend.

"No..." He answered with a tone that would scare little kids into comas. "...this is the other side! Wuahahahaha!" Lucy sweat dropped as Happy screamed in horror. He then fell into another state of unconsciousness as foam formed in the corner of his mouth. Natsu chuckled. "Just kidding!" He told him, but Happy was unresponsive. Natsu started sweating in nervousness. Hen then panicked. "Gah! Happy! I was only kidding! Wake up!" He started shaking the feline cat vigorously. Lucy couldn't take it anymore and decided to step in.

"Would you stop that?" She yelled and then hit Natsu over the head. She grabbed Happy and pulled his coma like state closer to her. "Come on...Happy...wake up..." She said nicely and the feline cat started opening his eyes. "Happy!" She grinned at him.

"Lucy..." He muttered. "I see...if I see you then I must be alive!" Lucy didn't know why, but his comment sort of pissed her off.

"Y-Yeah..." Lucy responded with a lopsided smile.

"Ugh...what the hell?" The three of them turned to Gray as he finally woke up. Gray put a hand on his head and looked back to the others. "You guys okay?"

"What...? You're alive..." Natsu pouted in disappointment.

"YOU WANTED ME TO DIE?" Gray yelled at his rival in anger.

"Now...now..." Lucy tried to calm them down. "Let's just go find this town..." Lucy told them.

"Yosh! Let's go explore!" Natsu shouted and started stomping toward the jungle.

"Aye!" Happy hopped out of Lucy's arms and followed Natsu.

"We're here for a job! Not an expedition!" Lucy yelled at them.

"Geez...those two are so noisy..." Gray groaned in annoyance. Lucy giggled at his annoyance and the two followed Natsu and Happy, hopefully going in the right direction.

After searching through the jungle, making wrong turns several times due to Natsu playing pranks on them, he finally led them to their destination. Right in front of them was a large wooden gate that had a sign that read 'Keep Out' on it. "This is it...?" Lucy asked, tilting her head.

"Keep out...what kind of village is this?" Gray commented.

"Excuse us! Can you please open the door?" Lucy shouted but got no response.

"I'm bored..." Natsu grumbled. "Let's break it!"

"No!" Lucy yelled at him and smacked him over the head.

"Who's there?" A voice above them spoke. The four looked up to see two men standing above them.

"We're from the Mage Guild Fairy Tail!" Lucy responded for the group. "We...ermmm...saw your request and..."

"Fairy Tail?" One of the two men questioned. "We know nothing about you guys accepting our request."

"Well...ummm..." Lucy nervously responded.

"Well..it is understandable since Happy stole the job request..." Gray muttered.

"Borrowed..." Happy corrected him.

"Anyway...if they don't let us in we probably have to leave." Gray ignored Happy.

"Like hell I'm leaving!" Natsu yelled at him.

"Shut up..." Gray growled in irritation, leaning away from Natsu.

"Show me your symbols!" The second man ordered them. One by one the group showed their Fairy Tail marks.

"They look real..." One of the guards whispered to the other.

"Hmmm..." The other man hummed. "Strip the girl!"

"What?" Lucy gawked in shock. "Why do I have to?" She yelled at him while Gray, Happy and Natsu started stripping Lucy. She blushed in embarrassment as she smacked them away from her. She quickly put her clothes back to their place as the guard apologized.

"Sorry! I got carried away..." Lucy huffed in annoyance. "Get in! I'll go get the Mayor!" The guard told them and the four watched as the gate started rising. Natsu and his group entered the village and were greeted by another guard. He had his face covered by his cloak and motioned the four to follow him.

"Thank you for coming here, Mages." The Mayor of the village, named Mocha, thanked Team Natsu. He too was covered by a large cloak as the group of villagers behind him wore similar garments. The Mayor walked forward. "I'm sorry if this startles you all of a sudden, but please take a look at this." He then turned to the group behind him. "Everyone! Take off your cloaks!" On his command, they all removed their cloaks, revealing the effects of the curse that plagued the island.

"I knew it..." Gray muttered. Lucy gulped and checked herself to make sure none of her limbs were turned into one of those.

"Woah! Awesome sideburns!" Natsu roared in awe. The Mayor sweat dropped.

"N-No...I wanted to show you my arm..." Mocha corrected him. "Did it surprise you? Hoga."

"Not really..." Natsu whispered low enough that the Mayor didn't hear it.

"Everyone on this island..." Mocha continued. "...even the dogs and birds...are affected by this curse."

"I'm not questioning you here or anything, but..." Gray started. "...how do you know this is a curse? It could be some sort of disease."

"I have shown this arm to many doctors and each one said they never saw such a disease." He answered. "Also...the moon's 'Magical Power' is a factor in this curse." Lucy blinked at him in confusion.

"The moon's 'Magical Power'?" The Mayor nodded.

"Ever since ancient times, this island has accumulated moonlight. It made this island so beautiful that it shined like the moon." He explained. "However, a few years ago, the moonlight suddenly started to turn purple."

'Moon drip...' Natsu looked up to the sky. 'I wonder if I could destroy it now...nah probably impossible with them still using moon drip...'

"A purple moon? I never heard of that!" Lucy said.

"People from the mainland all say that..." The Mayor sighed. "But in reality...the moon did turn purple on this island. After the purple moon showed up, our bodies started to change." As he finished, the moon started to reveal itself in the night sky.

"Ah! The moon is up!" Happy exclaimed as everyone turned their heads up to check out this purple moon. Lucy gasped and placed her hands over her mouth in shock.

"It's true! The moon is really purple..." Gray cringed at the moon's creepiness.

"That is so creepy..." Natsu crossed his arms.

"This is the curse of the moon's 'Magical Power'." Suddenly, the whole village yelled in pain as they're bodies started changing.

"Eh? W-What is going on?" Lucy asked turning her head from one villager to the other. Her question was answered when every one of them turned into monsters. Natsu stared at them while his comrades all gawked in horror.

"Sorry that we scared you...but this is what happens to our bodies when the moon comes out." Mocha explained. "If this isn't a curse, then what is it? Once it becomes morning, everyone turns back to their original form. However, recently, there are those who don't change back and lose their soul."

"Lose their soul? Y-You don't mean..." Lucy frowned in sadness.

"We decided to kill anyone who'd lose their soul and turned into a real demon." Natsu didn't like that. Why would they do such a thing? Even if they're is at least a .001% chance, you shouldn't give up on someone. As long as the percentage isn't zero, then anything can happen.

"Listen old man!" Natsu retorted. "It doesn't matter if you're friend turns into a demon because of some curse, you should never kill your nakama! Even if they changed, as long as the chance of rescuing them or changing them back isn't zero, then anything is possible!" The Mayor's eyes widened at his words. Lucy, Gray and Happy were awe struck by his words.

"Natsu..." Lucy whispered his name, feeling her cheeks get warm a bit.

"I...I..." The Mayor was speechless.

"Don't worry! We'll get rid of this curse!" Natsu pumped his fist in the air and grinned.

"I see..." The Mayor responded. "I only wished my son could be here to hear you say those words." He then took out a photo of his son. Lucy's eyes widened at the photo of the fisherman that gave them the ride to this island. "I...I had to kill my own son. My own son who turned evil...I had no choice...I had to stop him from going berserk and killing everyone on this island...just like all those who turned into real demons." The demon Mayor cried at the memory.

"B-But yesterday...we..." Lucy tried telling him, but Gray stopped her by pointing a finger in front of her face.

"Shh...I guess now we know why he just vanished. I'm sure...he can't rest in peace like that." Gray told her. Lucy's eyes widened in realization.

'A-A g-ghost...' Natsu wanted to smirk, but he didn't want to be disrespectful because they didn't know the truth.

'Oh man...are they going to be in for a surprise...' He chuckled mentally at the image of Gray, Lucy and Happy's shocked faces.

"I acknowledge you as famous mages. Please...save our island..." He and the others bow their heads. "If this keeps going...everyone...will lose their soul...and turn into demons..."

"I won't let that happen!" Natsu told them and pointed his thumb at himself.

"Thank you." He raised his head. "The way to remove this curse...please destroy the moon!" The four all were stunned, Natsu pretending to do so.

"Say what?"

"The more I look at the moon, the creepier it gets." Happy commented as he stared out the window toward the moon. Lucy turned her head to the cat while she unpacking her suitcase in the hut that the villagers gave them to use.

"Happy! Hurry and close the window. Didn't you hear what the Mayor said?" Lucy told him.

"No." He answered, turning his head to stare at the Celestial Mage.

"He said if we get too much exposure of the moonlight, we'll turn into demons too!" Happy's mouth formed into an 'o' shape and closed the window.

"But how do they expect us to destroy the moon?" Gray questioned a she was now shirtless.

"Sounds impossible." Lucy said.

"Hmm? I wonder how many punches it would take." Natsu thought.

"YOU WERE ACTUALLY GOING TO TRY IT!" Gray gawked at him. "It's impossible, you idiot."

"I agree...no mage can do something like that." Lucy agreed.

'Maybe Zeref can...that bastard...' Natsu pouted at the thought. "But destroy the moon is the request this time. If we can't do that then it's a disgrace to Fairy Tail's name."

"Whatever is impossible remains impossible." Gray fired back. "First of all, how do you plan to get to the moon?"

"Happy!" Natsu answered.

"I can't do something like that."

"Destroy the moon is the solution that comes from the victim's point of view." Lucy frowned. "But just maybe...just maybe there might be a different way to get rid of this curse."

"I wish there was." Gray yawned and then collapsed to the floor, tired.

"Fine! Tomorrow we'll explore the island to see if there is another way! Let's just sleep tonight!" Natsu said while collapsing as well.

"Aye, sir!" Happy did the same.

"Yeah...we'll think about it tomorrow..." Gray grumbled, getting comfortable.

"Yeah...I'm sleepy too..." Lucy rubbed her eyes and then yawned. "Good night..." She told the three and laid down in between them. Soon, Gray, Happy and Natsu fell asleep, while Lucy had a hard time doing so. Lucy opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling with an irritated expression. 'How the hell am I supposed to sleep next to an animal, a pervert and a cat?' Lucy thought. She tried to fall asleep, but it wasn't going well. She turned her head to her right and saw Gray snoring away into the night, only in his boxers, which made it uncomfortable for her. Then she looked to her left and saw Natsu. Unlike Gray...Natsu had his back turned to her. This surprised her a bit. She imagined him being sprawled all over the place based on his attitude. She turned her head back forward and stared at the ceiling. She closed her eyes, hoping to get some sleep. Lucy felt herself about to go to sleep when she heard a noise next to her.

"No..." She opened her eyes and turned to Natsu. Her eyes widened when she saw his body slightly shaking. She sat up and moved her hand toward him.

"Natsu?" She whispered his name. "Are you oka-" She barely even touched him and the next thing she knew, she was staring straight up at Natsu as he hovered above her, his hands gripping her wrists. "W-Wha...?" She questioned in utter shock. She felt her cheeks get really hot in the position she was with Natsu and she figured her face must have been as red as a tomato. "N-Natsu...what are you...?"

"No..." He repeated again. Lucy blinked in confusion. She tried to get a good look of his face, but he had his head lowered so much that she could only see up to his forehead. His voice, however, told her all she needed to know about his facial expression. His voice had fear in it. What would Natsu be afraid of? It confused her. The only time she ever saw him show fear was when it had to do with Erza beating the crap out of him for fighting Gray or doing something stupid.

"N-Natsu..." She whispered his name again and it seemed to get a reaction from him. Natsu made a noise in surprise and raised his head to look down at Lucy. He blinked down at her.

"You're alive..." Lucy's eyes widened.

'W-What...? I'm...alive? Wha...what did he mean by that?' Lucy was confused. Why would he even say something like that. Did he have a nightmare and she died in it? Well, that would have sucked. What was more important though, was that she never seen Natsu so spooked about something. Granted she only known him for a couple of weeks now, but it felt like she known him for months. He was an idiot, but he was always happy. He never once shown a side of sadness or fear for as long as she's known him.

"That's good..." He muttered.

"Umm..Natsu...can you...?" She spoke nervously, avoiding eye contact with the Dragon Slayer. Natsu noticed the position they were in and immediately let go of her wrists.

"Sorry..." He apologized and got off her. He sat down on his side of the bed, his back turned to her again, and she sat up. She frowned at his back.

"Natsu..." She whispered again, feeling worried for her comrade.

"Sorry about that..." He apologized again. "I got caught by surprise when I felt someone touch me..." He explained his reason.

"It's alright..." She replied, believing him. She knew that there was no way he would do anything to a girl, especially something perverted or sexual harassment. He was just that type of guy. She wondered if he even knew about a female's anatomy. She doubted that. "Did you have a bad dream?" She asked. She noticed Natsu flinch a bit.

"Y-Yeah..." He replied after a short, silent pause.

"Do you want to talk about it? My mother always told me that it's best to talk about things like this..." She offered her ears.

"No..." He answered. Lucy felt a bit saddened at his answer. She didn't why, but she hoped he would talk to her about his dream. Was it that bad?

"Why...?" She asked.

"I just can't..." He told her. "Sorry for waking you up..." He laid back down on his side. Lucy frowned at his answer, but didn't pursue any further. If he didn't want to talk about it, then it was his choice. Although, she wished he did. She stared at him for a few minutes before laying down herself. She stared at the ceiling and then closed her eyes. She didn't get much sleep.

Natsu felt the movement of the sheets beneath him indicating that Lucy laid back down. It was the same nightmare. The same one he had last night. It was strange to see the same nightmare in back to back nights. It hadn't happen since some time in the first year of his training. He wondered if it had anything to do with making contact with Zeref. He didn't know, but he hoped the nightmares would go away. If they didn't, then he was afraid of the possible chance of him breaking and telling someone everything. He knew it would take a lot to break him, but something of this magnitude to him was huge. Lucy asked him if he wanted to talk to her about it, but he had to say no. He wanted to talk to someone about it, but he just couldn't. He closed his eyes. He felt sleep take over him and only hoped, he didn't have another bad dream.

Natsu awoke the next morning tired. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. He looked around and saw that Lucy was awake. 'She's awake...oh...that's right...because of us she couldn't sleep...' He let out a yawn and it startled her a bit.

"Good morning!" She smiled at him and he raised a hand to signal the same thing to her. Natsu stood up and walked over to her.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Oh...nothing!" She told him and quickly hid something behind her back. Natsu blinked at her in confusion.

"What are you hiding?" He asked.

"Nothing...nothing at all!" She answered rather swiftly.

Natsu narrowed his eyes at her. 'Hmm...the only reason she would do this is if she was writing her novel...ah...that must be it...' He yawned again. "Whatever...since the both of us are up already we should explore the island." He told her and turned around. "I'll go wake up those two." She nodded her head and watched him walk toward Gray and Happy. She took out what she was hiding behind her back and looked at it. It was a letter to her mother. She smiled warmly down at it, but the mood was soon ruined as she heard Gray's cry of pain.

"What the hell is the matter with you?" Gray yelled at Natsu as he rubbed his butt after it was slightly burned by Natsu's fire. "Can't you wake someone up like a normal person?"

"I wanted to, but this was more fun!" He chuckled.

"You asshole!" Gray yelled at him again.

"Oi Happy! Wake up!" Natsu told his feline friend, turning away from Gray.

"Don't ignore me!" Natsu ignored Gray as he walked toward Happy.

"Wake up!" He grabbed the cat's cheek and pulled it.

"Owowow!" Happy muttered in pain. Natsu let go of his cheek. Happy yawned and rubbed his cheek. "Why are we up so early?" He whined.

"Yeah...and why the hell did you have to wake us up?" Gray added.

"Put your clothes on, ice boy." Natsu told him.

"Don't tell me what to do!" Lucy sighed.

"Even in the mornings it's this loud." She looked over at Natsu and saw that he didn't show any signs of what happened last night. She knew he was probably only putting on a mask, but she didn't want to say anything to him. If he didn't want to talk about it, then she shouldn't pry.

"I thought yesterday we decided that destroying the moon was impossible." Happy said as the four of them traveled through the jungle.

"I only said that because they believe in it. It really is impossible." Gray told him.

"Oh...I see...that's a good idea from someone like you..." Gray glared at the cat in annoyance.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Natsu chuckled.

"He's saying your an idiot!"

"I don't want to hear that coming from you!" Gray yelled at him.

"'Guys, you might want to keep your voices down. We never know what's surrounding us.'...she says." The Celestial Spirit clock, that Lucy was in spoke her words.

"Why don't you walk on your own?" Natsu asked.

"Are you sure you're using your spirits correctly?" Gray added.

"'Urusai! Our opponent this time is a curse! Something unsubstantial is creepy.'...she says."

The two of them ignored her. "Waahhh! Let's go!" Natsu roared, becoming excited.

"Yeah...I'll just freeze the curse so don't freak out." Gray tried to reassure her, but it wasn't working.

"'You're really dumb'...she says."

"I want to go in too!" Happy told her. She opened the door for him and he entered. Suddenly, both Natsu and Gray heard some rustling and a quiet growl.

"Hmmm? What was that?" Gray asked. Natsu already knew and turned in the direction that the large rat came from. Gray, Lucy and Happy gawked at the size of the rat. "It's freaking huge!"

"'Guys...go beat him up!'...she says."

"'Aye!'...he says."

"I already did!" Natsu told her as he stood on top of the unconscious rat. The three of them were in shock.

"W-When did you...?" Gray's jaw dropped to the ground at the speed Natsu beat up the rat.

"About three seconds ago." He answered.

"'You got to be kidding me...'...she says."

"'Way to go, Natsu!'...he says."

"Hmmm?" Natsu looked in the direction of the ruins and pretended that he just found it. "Oi, there is some ruins over there! Let's go there!" He shouted, pointing his finger in the direction.

When they arrived at the ruins, they entered and were struck in awe of the place. There wasn't much about the place. It was a total mess with broken walls, moss growing everywhere and the usual rat or two that scampered away at their appearance. "Wow...I wonder when this place was built?" Lucy commented.

"It's spacious...I'll give it that." Natsu said, crossing his arms.

"It's shabby." Gray responded with his own comment.

"Hey, look at these weird drawings." Natsu pointed in the wall in front of them. "They look like moons."

"Well, this place was originally called Moon Island." Gray told him.

"Hmm...Moon Island, purple moon curse and now moon shapes...something is fishy." Lucy muttered, placing her hand under her chin in a thinking pose.

"Huh? Fish? Where?" Happy reacted at the word fish and started searching for his favorite food.

"No fish." Lucy told him. Happy frowned in disappointment. He then spotted a bone and ran over to it. He picked it up and then showed it to Lucy.

"Lucy, look!" Happy showed her the bone.

"What are you, a dog?" Lucy asked while sweat dropping.

"I wonder if this place is even sturdy..." Natsu wondered and started to stomp his foot on the ground.

"Don't do that!" Lucy yelled at him. He didn't stop because right below them was the monster that made Gray's teacher die. Not that he cared, but it was important for him to make sure the past stays the same. In due time, the ground beneath them crumbled. All four of them gawked in shock as they fell through the hole. "You idiot!"

"This floor got no guts!" Natsu yelled.

"Since when does a floor have guts!" Gray responded to his idiotic comment.

"Happy...can't you do something!" She turned to the flying cat, hoping he could help them. However, her eyes popped out of her head in shock as Happy started choking on the bone he found. "You're not supposed to eat that!"

The group crashed onto the ground of a cave that was hidden underneath the ruins, the rubble falling with them. Natsu popped out of the rubble and looked around for his nakama. "Hey! Are you guys okay?"

"Happy isn't! Although it's for a whole different reason..." Lucy said while trying to help Happy get rid of the bone stuck in his throat.

"Why do you always act on instinct, you idiot!" Gray muttered, rubbing his head in pain.

"Damn...you're still alive..." Natsu pouted.

"WHAT THE HELL?" Gray yelled at him. Natsu chuckled as Lucy was able to pull out the bone from his throat.

"Thank you..." He thanked her.

"No problem..." She replied. "What do we do now?" She asked Natsu and Gray.

"Let's go explore!" Natsu chuckled and jumped out of the rubble.

"Ah! Wait up!" Lucy called after him.

"Damn him...how could he have so much energy." Gray groaned. He then noticed that Natsu stopped. "What is it, Na-" He didn't finish as his eyes widened in horror. Lucy and Happy both had their jaws dropped to the ground in shock.

Natsu stared at the large monster inside the huge block of ice and clenched his fists. 'Deliora...' He glared at the monster and then turned his head slightly to take a glance at the horrified Gray.

"Why..." Gray made out. "WHY IS DELIORA HERE?"

To Be Continued...
- 9
- 10
- 11
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Time is the Path to Strength