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Lion's Pride	By : Rhov Category: +. to F > Fairy Tail Views: 10067 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. I make no money writing this. I do it for my own pleasure. Any lyrics are my own or I received permission from the artist.

Chapter List
- 36
- 37
- 38
"Woman, hold me close to your heart. However distant, don't keep us apart. After all, it is written in the stars." - John Lennon

Chapter 37

Close To Your Heart
Due to superstitious feelings, the ship Lucy's group boarded did not take them all the way to the island. The crew moored in a bay and told them they had three days before they would be back from the neighboring islands, gathering spices for the seaside markets, then they would return to get them. After a too-formal farewell from the captain that sounded more like what one might say to a man heading to the gallows, they were lowered on a rowboat and abandoned to what the sailors were certain was a doomed fate on the cursed Hoshinoue Island.
Gray and Erza rowed; Levy stood on the prow watching for the treacherous rocks that made approaching the island a hazard; Wendy used a pole to push the boat if any rocks sneaked up on them too fast to steer with just the paddles; Natsu hung off the edge vomiting; while Lucy and the two Exceeds sat at the stern with their supplies, enough food for three days plus equipment for exploring.
The tiny boat gently crunched into the wet sand on the shore. Gray heaved the rowboat up out of the way of the high tide while Erza and Lucy dragged Natsu onto the beach. One girl grabbed each arm, tugging him along until he got his bearings and could walk on his own. With the boat on shore and supplies on their backs, they trekked farther inland, following a freshwater stream that flowed out to the sea. Not far in, they came to an area with soft ground, shady palm trees, and berry bushes to supplement their food. They set up camp and stored their supplies in tents. They then broke into two groups to explore. Levy, Erza, and Wendy went east. Lucy, Gray, and Natsu went west. Charle and Happy flew around the interior of the island, searching for anything suspicious from the sky.
Gray led their party. "The map showed a rock cropping with a cave this way," he said, shading his eyes against the bright glare off the ocean. "If I were to hide something, a cave would make the best place."
"That aligns with the story," Lucy realized. "It says: 'He put his heart in a magic box and hid the box in a cave on a far southern island, so no one under the stars would find it.'" She squeezed Loke's ring, which hung from a silver necklace. Luke was seated in a baby backpack and played with her blue ribbon. At her heels, Proto stood ready to protect the baby from anything this exotic island had to offer.
Natsu cracked his knuckles. "Let's go," he said firmly, and Lucy nodded with determination.
They set out over the sand and followed the coast. Two hours later, they found the rock cropping. Instead of a natural cave with rough edges, the dark hole was obviously carved with symbols etched into blocks of stone that supported the entrance. There were signs of a road leading to the cave, now cracked and worn nearly to nothing. Flowers and grass hid the stones, spreading them further apart with their stubborn roots.
"Definitely suspicious," Gray frowned.
Luke squirmed in his seat in the baby backpack. "Mama, head owwie."
Natsu came up behind her to rub the little boy's blond and orange hair in sympathy.
"Should we signal the others?" asked Lucy.
"Don't bother," thudded a voice.
They jolted, and Lucy gasped with a huge smile. From within the dark entrance, sharp heels clicked over stone and a familiar silhouette stepped out. The figure exited the cave, and the sun shone on orange hair.
"Loke!" she cried out ecstatically and ran to him.
"Thank God you're okay," Gray said in relief.
"Awesome!" Natsu grinned. "I knew you'd be back."
Loke grabbed Lucy and gave her a long kiss. "I was so worried about you," he sighed, pawing her face. "No troubles getting here?"
"Not many," she shrugged, too happy to be bothered with that. "Are you okay?"
His eyes shined as he gazed down at her with a joyous smile. "I am now."
"Dada!" Luke shouted.
Loke's face dropped for a moment. "Dear heavens...! Luke?" He grabbed him up out of the pack and swung him up into the air, getting the boy to squeal. "Look at you, my little man! You got so big. Oh, thank the stars you remember me!" He squeezed him tight and nuzzled into short, spiky hair. "It's not fair. He grew up so fast."
"He can walk a little bit."
"He can?" Loke smiled in astonishment, then looked sad. "I missed it, his first step."
"I wrote about it in the mother's journal Freed gave me. I've been keeping accounts of everything for you. And he has a talent for art. You've gotta see the 'grown up kitty' he drew."
Loke's eyes closed with overwhelming emotions. "I didn't want to stay away this long," he apologized.
"Virgo told me. It's cruel of the Spirit King to detain you for no good reason," she pouted. "At least you're here now."
Loke still held the little boy close to him, his cheek rubbing against Luke's pudgy face, unable to let him go. "I'm so sorry, Luke." Tears came to his eyes and slid down his face. "I am so, so sorry!"
Gray smiled, happy to see how overwhelmed he was. "It's good to have you back." Loke still looked torn, and the expression worried the ice mage. "You...are back, aren't you?"
Lucy's eyes went huge. A slight feeling of panic struck her chest, making it hard to breathe. "Is the trial over?"
Loke did not move for a while, holding Luke tight against him while stress wrinkled his forehead. After a long pause, he shook his head. "Lucy..." He reluctantly pulled Luke away and returned him into his backpack. "Give me my ring back."
"Huh? Oh...r-right," she muttered. His cold tone disturbed her. Still, she unclasp the necklace and took the ring off.
"Lucy, wait," Gray warned, sensing something was wrong.
She handed it over. "Even if the trial isn't over, you can find the Regulus Key on your own now. Then we don't have to worry about anything. You know where it is, right?"
"I do." Loke placed the ring back on and tightened his fist. "But I'm not going to get it yet."
Lucy's mouth dropped. Gray sneered; he saw the look in Loke's eyes, and he did not like it. Natsu also sensed something was wrong and moved in closer to Lucy.
"W-Why aren't you going to get the key?" she asked in a shaky voice. "We're right here. We're so close! The Key to the Heart of the Lion is here."
"If you want to seek it, you can. It might help us later, but..." He hesitated in worry. "There's something I have to do first, and you're not going to like it. After I tell you..." His face went sad with regret. "...you might not want to use the key, or even see me again."
Now even Lucy saw something was definitely wrong. "Did the trial go bad?"
Loke's eyes were on Luke. The baby grinned happily to see his father again, but that carefree face felt like acid to the Lion's chest. "The Spirit King gave me an ultimatum, something I simply can't afford to refuse. I can be forgiven of all my sins, keep my magic, and continue living however I please, on one condition: bring Luke back to the Spirit World."
"What?" Lucy immediately pulled away as if Loke might grab Luke from her and vanish with him. "For how long?"
Loke sighed miserably. Her horrified face made his chest ache. "I don't know. Probably a while."
She pouted stubbornly. "Tell him no. If he banishes you and makes you Human, then we can live a nice, simple life. We'll grow old together."
Loke shook his head. "That's not possible anymore."
Gray tried to think levelly, but it was not easy. Every fiber of his being wanted to grab Lucy and get her out of there before Loke said something to truly crumble her happiness. "Does the Spirit King just need to inspect him and see for himself that he's a normal boy?"
"That's the problem: he's not a normal boy. He's half Celestial Spirit, and the Spirit King warned that, because of this, he needs to live half of his life in the Spirit World."
"Then he can live the later half," she yelled angrily.
"It doesn't work that way," Loke said regretfully. "Has he been getting nightmares? Has he been in pain?"
Lucy frowned at that.
Luke answered for himself. "Head owwie."
Loke reached forward and stroked the boy's hair. "I'm sorry, Luke. Daddy just wants to make it better."
Lucy glared bitterly. "Get your hands off of him," she hissed with shaking fury.
Loke's mouth dropped in shock. Lucy could be really scary when she was angry. He knew she would be furious but...well, he should have expected this. "I'm sorry, Lucy. We didn't know. No one knew about it until just now. The Spirit King was looking for a way to protect me, and instead he discovered a danger for half-Spirit people. Luckily they learned about it before it was too late. Just like I can only live in this world for so long before I feel pain, and after a while I'll die, same with Luke. It'd take a longer time before the pain hits, but it's inevitable. As a baby, his endurance will be low and the effects more drastic. If his head hurts, then we don't have much time. First nightmares, then pain, then dark, evil thoughts. At his age, any darkness will severely affect the path of his magic. It's a critical time for a mage, and he must spend it somewhere where he's not in agony."
Lucy sniffled moistly. "Then...you came here...just to take him from me?"
Natsu felt furious to see Lucy ready to cry. "Can't you distract the Spirit King for just a year?"
"Natsu, you don't understand," Loke yelled. "His vitality is draining out in this world. He's slowly dying. Luke doesn't have a year left. Besides, the Spirit King wants him brought in within six Human months."
Lucy sneered at him, feeling bitter at such betrayal. "Isn't this the same Mustache-Man who kept you away from Naomi all because he said he had a vision? What if he takes Luke and doesn't free you? What if he never gives Luke back to us? How can you trust him?"
Loke dropped his head and let out a long, weary sigh. His face looked pained for a moment. "I have to. He is still my king and his rules, no matter how much I disagree with them, are the laws of the Spirit World. I...have to honor that," he admitted. "If I don't return with Luke before the trial restarts, the Spirit King will come himself to retrieve him and I'll be punished harshly. Since you now know where the Regulus Key is hidden, I'll definitely face a death sentence."
Lucy turned away to hide her face and the tears that fell thickly. She had dreamed of the day when she could see Loke again, wanting so much to be in his arms and feel his hot kisses. Now he was here, and she felt ice cold despite the tropical summer sun. She shook her head as tears tumbled down her cheeks. "I just spent three months waiting for you. Now you want me to spend who-knows-how-long waiting for him? Why do I feel like the losing parent in a nasty divorce custody battle?" she grumbled. "You and I weren't even married, so why should you get full custody?"
"This isn't custody, Lucy," he argued sternly. "This is for his own well-being, to save his life."
"I don't believe that one bit!"
"Then at least it's for my own life. You know the Spirit King really will kill me." Loke took a moment to rein in his desperate anxiety. "I knew this wasn't going to be easy, but please believe me, it's for his own good." He stepped up to her, but his hand landed on the baby instead, silently apologizing to Luke that he had to witness a fight between his parents. "Think of it as sending your child to boarding school. He'll be gone for a while, but he can come back. It won't be forever."
"How long?" Natsu demanded.
"I...I don't know," Loke admitted worriedly. "Might be a couple weeks, for all I know."
"You know it won't be a couple weeks," Gray accused. "How many years?"
Loke let his shoulders drop. "He'll be allowed back for visits, and when it's safe, you can come to the Spirit World to visit him."
"But when can he come back on his own?" Gray yelled. "When can he stay here?"
Loke's eyes narrowed at him for making this even harder. If he could just explain it all calmly to Lucy, he was sure she would understand that it was for their child's safety. "In all likeliness, he'll never be able to stay in either world permanently. His vitality drains here, but his life is threatened there. The Celestial Clothes will help for a little while, but he'll have to balance his time in both worlds. When he's an adult by Spirit World law, he will be given a choice to either be a Human and remove his magic so it can no longer endanger him, or be inducted as a Celestial Spirit."
She looked back at him from over her shoulder. Her huge eyes were bloodshot and watery with sadness. "How old is that?"
"Incredibly young, actually. Only ten years old, according to the ancient laws. We rarely had to actually invoke an age law, but it's still written in the books."
"Ten years?" she asked. "A single day in the Spirit World is three months here. If he has to grow up...if even ten years must pass..."
"Ten years to us is nine hundred years to Humans," Loke nodded sadly.
"No way!" shouted Natsu.
Gray thought it over. "Nine hundred and twelve, actually."
"That's not what I mean," Natsu glared. "You can't do this, Loke. Ten years to you is nine hundred to us? So what is ten years for us like for you?"
"Forty days," Gray answered.
"So distract him for forty days!" the dragon slayer bellowed.
"Luke might die in the Human World before the year is over!" Loke shouted angrily. "Do you want that, Natsu? Do you want to keep him here and watch him suffer? Even if he survived the agony, he could be twisted for life. I sure as hell don't want that to happen again!"
"Just because it happened to Zeref doesn't mean it'll happen to Luke," Natsu yelled back.
Luke began to cry from all the yelling and covered his ears. "Mommy, head owwie. Noisy."
Proto glared up at all four of them. "Luke is in danger of a migraine. Please lower the volume of your voices."
"He's already in pain," Loke pointed out. "We can't wait much longer. A normal Spirit can die after just a week in the Human World. He's lucky he's managed to last nine months."
"But ten years..."
"It won't even be that long," Loke protested. "He's growing at three times the speed, he's already the size of a two year old...so eight more years, at three times the growth rate..."
"He'll be physically ten years old in two years and eight months," Gray answered.
"But even then," Natsu argued, "two years and eight months for a Spirit would be..."
"Two hundred and forty years for Humans."
"Do you have a calculator in your head, droopy eyes?" Natsu exclaimed at Gray's fast answers.
"I'm simply good in math, flame-brain."
"Spirits grow up very fast," Loke said, feeling desperate now. Knowing the math was making this even harder. "It's why I was worried about him going to the Spirit World. Instead of two years, maybe it'll take half a year."
"For you, yes," Lucy shouted. "For me, that's still half my life!" She rubbed out her forehead, mostly because she did not want him to see her crying. "Loke," she said direly. "Look around you. We're here now, on that island where you hid your other key. I figured out where it is. All I need to do is find where you hid it. Then we'll be free from the Spirit King's unfair laws and absurd ultimatums."
Loke took a sweeping glance. "Yes, Hoshinoue Island," he said, frowning slightly. "Damn, the war really destroyed it! That's why the locals avoid it. We fought and captured Zeref here. We had to act fast because I feared he would find the Regulus Key. He either didn't know it was here, or he was protecting it. I never got to ask him, why this island? I'm honestly shocked you discovered it so quickly when no one in four hundred years has come close."
"The clue was in Naomi's story, The Heartless Lion."
Loke laughed bitterly, completely stunned. "She put it in one of her goddamn fairy tales? That stupid girl."
"Hey!" Lucy shouted. "She was your wife. Don't talk about her like that."
"She wasn't supposed to tell anyone or even hint at it," he told her harshly. "That's twice she betrayed me. And now you're here. Now you know. Dammit! This is going to make everything worse."
She folded her arms stubbornly. "You were the one who told me to find it."
"I know I did!" he shouted. "And...and part of me wants you to get it. But if you do, the whole Spirit World will go into war."
"I'm prepared for that."
"You're only a key owner! It's not your home that will be turned upside down," he shouted.
"But if we had it..."
"Luke would still need to go to the Spirit World. There's no way to help that," Loke tried to explain, but he saw that all three of them looked unconvinced.
"Please, Loke, I beg of you...don't make me choose between you and my son."
In anger, Loke yelled, "Would you rather we both die?"
"Hey!" Natsu warned. Both he and Gray stepped in front of Lucy as she turned away in tears.
Loke tried to look at her past their formidable shoulders. "Lucy, I honestly believe this is the right thing to do. Maybe this was Zeref's problem. Maybe he should have been raised in the Spirit World. We don't know. I...I just don't know," he sighed and dropped his head until his orange mane fell into his face. "I wish I did, believe me. All I do know is that Zeref can live in the Human World only because he was given a curse. Obviously, we're not going to curse our son."
"We'll find another way then," she protested.
Loke looked at her seriously. "We don't have time."
"How fast will he grow in the Spirit World?"
"Honestly," he said softly, "we don't know. There are occasions where Humans are made into Spirits, but they're usually full-grown. For a half-Spirit...we...don't know."
"So you're turning against me like this, all on a wild guess?" she exclaimed.
"I'm not turning against you!" the Lion shouted. "I'm trying to protect our son. And it's not a wild guess. It was a warning found in an ancient tome...and it's the orders of my king," he said a little more firmly.
"Che!" Gray scoffed. "Your king can go to hell. Come on, Loke! Find another way, another solution, anything!"
"There is none. If there was, I would use it. This—having Luke grow up in the Spirit World—is the only and final solution to everything. My friends in the Spirit World were bending over backward trying to give me a legal excuse for a second chance, and this is it."
"Sorry," Gray sneered, "but I won't let you make Lucy cry anymore."
"This is not your concern, Gray," Loke shouted in frustration. "This is between me and Lucy, so butt out of it."
"Nope," Natsu said, folding his arms over his chest. "You made the two of us the godfathers. That means we're responsible for looking out for Luke's safety. That means this is very much our concern."
"It's a family issue!"
"And Lucy is our family."
"I'm trying to save Luke's life!"
Gray's voice raised just as loud. "You're going off of a wild guess told to you by a guy you really can't trust."
"Just stop," Lucy muttered.
Gray looked back to her, worried by the quavering in her voice and the moistness of her sniffles. Her eyes turned to him, begging him to tell her what she should do. Loke might be right, it made sense that Luke might gain his vitality from the Spirit World, but...to give up her son...
Loke caught their shared glance. He saw Gray's eyes soften as he looked at her, and he saw Lucy look with what he mistook to be yearning. Slowly, a morbid thought took seed and grew in Loke's mind. His eyes narrowed at the two of them.
"It'd probably be easier on you both if I just went away, wouldn't it?"
Lucy jolted at the words that sounded heavy with bitterness and jealousy. She wanted to protest, but the grief had thickened her throat too much to speak.
"Shit," Loke whispered in a bitter hiss, rubbing his mouth as he felt like laughing and screaming at the same time. "Sometimes I can't believe how similar you and Naomi really are, barely waiting for the gate to shut on my ass before you hook up with someone else."
"What?" she asked in confusion, angry at his insinuations. Had something happened with his first wife? He never mentioned it to her before, and she never wanted to pry into that painful history.
"And you!" he sneered to Gray. Loke's gaze narrowed until it seemed like only his blue sunglasses held back the burning fury. "You probably hope the Spirit King does kill me so you can move in on her freely."
"No!" Gray protested, shocked he could even think that.
"After all I've put up with," Loke continued in growing jealousy. "Suffering for so long so I could stay by your side, being tortured in the Spirit World because I dared to fall in love with a Human! And all I ask..." He stopped and tried desperately to regain control over his emotions. "All I ask is that you let our son grow up in the Spirit World to keep him safe."
Gray's anger had reached its limit. "You shut up about sacrifices and suffering! 'Oh woe is me, I went through a little pain.' How much do you think Lucy has suffered?" he shouted. "You spent, what, barely one day in the Spirit World? She spent months alone and crying. I won't let you make her cry again."
"I thought we were partners, Gray," Loke accused acridly.
"Stop it, you two," Lucy sobbed.
Gray glared hard. "Partners? All I see right now is someone threatening my friend. I won't allow you to take Luke away from her."
"Then you do want me to die. You've wanted me to die since the day you heard Lucy was pregnant. You stabbed me in the back with your ice that day, remember? So see," Loke laughed in wry anger. "You truly are a backstabbing sonuvabitch."
Gray stared coldly as Loke's fury turned into glowing light, magic lit up with the energy of emotion. "Natsu," he said softly, not even blinking as he kept an eye on Loke. "Take Lucy into the cave. Protect her. I'll deal with this traitor."
Natsu saw the determination in his friend-and-rival's face. "Got it," he nodded. He turned around to Lucy, and she buried her crying face into his white scarf. With hard eyes as he tried to work out how he felt about his two friends fighting, Natsu led her away.
Loke waited until Lucy was out of earshot. Then he let his anger boil over. "How long did you wait, Gray? I knew you had feelings for her, but I thought you were trustworthy. That's why I put her into your care. You bastard!"
"Loke," Gray gritted tightly, "I am pissed and, honestly, immensely disappointed that you dare think that way. Do you trust Lucy so little? She has traveled halfway around the world all on a hope that she could rescue you, and right as we're on the cusp of doing that, you show up wanting to take her baby away. So who's the bastard?"
"Then swear to me you haven't touched her. Swear you haven't kissed her."
Gray was about to, but he hesitated just a moment. Suddenly, he remembered the previous night when he leaned over and gave Lucy a kiss in her sleep.
That hesitation and look of guilt was too much for Loke. "O Regulus, grant me your strength!" he gnashed.
"Loke, wait, you're mistaken!"
"Zenith of Regulus." The gold glow intensified around him. "Lion Brilliance!"
Gray raised his hands fast. "Ice Make: Shield!" A large barrier spread from his hands, but the intense light of the attack blinded his eyes. Gray shouted at the burning sensation, and his shield shattered.
"Ever heard of snow blindness?" Loke mocked.
Through the spots in his eyes, Gray saw swift movement. He barely managed to duck a golden punch, but then he felt his legs kicked out from under him. He fell hard on his back and scraped against the ancient stone pathway. Another punch smashed down on his stomach, knocking all air out. Gray felt as if his kidney might have ruptured with the blow.
"Ice-Make: Lance," he coughed out while aiming blindly. The golden glow leaped away and lessened. Gray blinked out the dancing spots in his eyes. "Bastard, using an attack like that to blind me."
"I knew you would use your shield, and Lion Brilliance can nearly blind a man on its own. Magnifying it with ice is just asking for trouble."
Gray rose back up to his feet. "I don't want to fight you, but you can't do this to Lucy. Asking her to give up her son...I can't believe you agreed to it. I thought you had decided to become Human."
"That's still an option, but it's not one I want anymore. Luke will die if I don't bring him back. If he really does need to live in the Spirit World, I should at least live with him. Now that Lucy has discovered the whereabouts of the Regulus Key, it solidifies my sin for telling her about it, tempting her, committing treason against the Spirit World by asking her to find it. Even as it is, I might not be forgiven for this."
"Then why bother taking away Luke?" Gray screamed.
"Dammit, don't you get it? It's because he'll die!"
"You don't know that. Some bastard monarch tells you and you just believed it?"
"Libra confirmed it. She can't lie or make mere guesses. Trust me, I didn't want to believe it either. I sure as hell wouldn't have if it was just the Spirit King saying so, yet Libra confirmed that Luke would waste away and die, just like any other Celestial Spirit trapped in the Human World."
"Then we'll find a way. You said you have six months, right? Give us six months! Maybe by then, you guys in the Spirit World can come up with a way for Luke to stay in this world."
"You think we'd have time for that?" Loke shouted. "It's only two days for the Spirits. You Humans think you have all the time in the world. Well, you don't! Your days fly by so quickly. I could take a nap, and you'll all be many weeks older. In one of my years, you'll all be dead. Your world rushes, rushes, rushes, so you Humans can't understand how it's like for us."
Gray's mouth dropped, stunned for a moment. Softly and with a sneer, he said, "That's the first time I've ever heard you talk about Humans that way, as if we're insects. Is that what you think?"
"Of course not," Loke sighed. "But you don't understand. In six months, Luke very well might be dead. He's in the second stage of vitality deprivation. This world is slowly killing him. I could take him to the Spirit World while you research it, and even if it takes you a year, it'd be as if only four days passed for Luke. Isn't that what's best for the child? Instead of months apart from his parents, he'd only be away from Lucy for mere days."
"Which means it's Lucy who has to suffer," Gray shouted. "You don't care, do you?"
"Of course I do," he growled, "but I'm doing what I have to for my son."
"While abandoning the woman who loves you."
"She picked you."
"No she hasn't!" yelled Gray.
"You said you've kissed."
"Goddammit, I kissed her in her sleep, okay? It was wrong, I shouldn't have, she doesn't even know I did it." Gray fisted his hand and looked away. "Lucy hasn't given up on you, Loke. She's a loyal woman, but you're pushing her to the very limits of what a woman can endure. If you try this, you very well might lose her forever."
Loke looked down at the blue stone ring. "I'm aware of that." His fist tightened and began to glow. "It's a gamble I have to take to keep my son alive."
Gray posed ready for another round of fighting. "And I won't let you make her cry. You're right, I have feelings for her, but above all else, Lucy is my nakama. You come here as if it's nothing. To you, you left Lucy a day ago. You don't care how desperately she's wanted to see you. You don't care how much she's missed you. You don't give one fucking scrap of care about how many nights she's cried, how hard it's been for her to raise Luke on her own, how happy she was to see you back after so long. You don't give a shit about her!"
"Of course I do!" Loke screamed furiously.
"If you did, you wouldn't have tried to steal her child away before you even properly told her hello. I can't see how she could ever love a heartless bastard like you!" A sword formed in Gray's hands, and he stood squarely in front of the cave entrance. "I won't let you get close to her."
Loke stared hard at him for a long time. "Heartless?" he whispered, smirking at the irony. "You're right, I lost my Heart. It's here on this island, so close I can feel it. My first wife left me after I was imprisoned for a year. To me, it felt like merely four days. If I did have a remnant of a heart, it froze on that day. I thought Lucy had melted that iciness. Now here we are again, mere months since I left, and she's practically yours. After this, I bet she'll be in your bed before you can get back to Fiore."
"Then you severely underestimate her love for you," Gray glowered. "And you sure as hell don't deserve it."
Loke's head dropped in surrender. "Maybe I don't. Maybe I've lost Lucy already," he said in a defeated, tired tone. Then his eyes flashed up with a stubborn gleam. "But I can still be the father Luke deserves. I will not lose my son. Before it's too late to save him, I will—one way or another—bring him back to the Spirit World to be healed. He is my son, my pride and joy! I will do everything in my power to save his life."
"Just give us a few months," Gray pleaded.
Loke bellowed back, "I can't sit back and watch him suffer! I know exactly how it feels to have your vitality leeched away. It's a feeling a Human like you can't comprehend, and I don't want my son to go through agony like that. He doesn't have much longer, and I have no more time to argue with you, Gray! If you won't listen to reason..." His arms stretched out to attack. "...then maybe you'll listen to this. Regulus Impact!"
A flaming lion of light shot out from his ring and roared toward Gray. The ice mage was hit hard, no chance to block or evade. He was shoved into the cave, all the way into a chamber of gold with runes carved into slabs of silver. Lucy and Natsu were nowhere in sight. He was glad they had gone on ahead. It meant they had not heard what he and Loke talked about.
"Ice-Make: Bazooka!" A huge launcher formed on his shoulder, and Gray blasted out an icy burst, aimed to pass through the cave opening. It hit Loke and shoved him up into a tree. Gray ran out of the golden anteroom, worried about caving it in and trapping his teammates. He shot another bazooka round, but Loke evaded it.
"Regulus Blast!"
Gray thought he had dodged, but the rush of glowing energy was more widely spread. It clipped him, but it was still enough to fling him backward into a bolder on the edge of the ocean. Getting hit by it felt almost exactly like the brute force of Natsu's Fire Dragon's Roar. He cringed at the pain stabbing through his body.
When Loke came in for a punch, Gray rolled fast to the side and evaded. The glowing fist hit the bolder Gray had been leaning against and left behind crumbling bits of stone. Gray countered with an ice-enforced punch. Loke evaded and fell back a step. Then he went for a leap and a swinging kick.
"I won't let you keep me from my son!" he shouted. "I will not let what happened to Zeref happen to Luke too. Upon my pride and my very existence, I will not lose another son!"
The kick hit Gray in the side. He cringed as he felt at least two ribs crack.
"Am I interrupting a reunion between ye two?"
Loke was about to go in for a punch to Gray's head that certainly would have rendered him unconscious for half a day. However, at that simpering voice, he leaped back and took on a defensive pose.
"Dear stars, not you!" he hissed.
Kefira stepped forward, her deep purple gown swaying like the palms that lined the sandy beach. Behind her, Haftorang smiled to see his old friend again.
"I know not why ye are fighting, but forgive me. I can't help but laugh and wonder how friends became foes." Her eyes glimmered with excitement. "Do continue. I miss the days when the Lion fought in the arena. I would love to see how thou hast improved over the centuries, my dear lover."
"Lover?" Gray shouted, swinging a glare at Loke.
Loke glared hard. "Kefira, you and I haven't been lovers in centuries, so shut the hell up!"
"My, my," she smiled while laughing softly. "I always loved how thy face looked when I surprised thee, Leo. Perhaps it would surprise thee even more if I told thee...I know how to keep thy son alive in this world."

End of Chapter 37

Rhov's Corner:
Crap is going on in my life which will slow down my writing. If you're curious, I left a message here: youtu.be/4XuYQ04HBME
Winry7405 is a psychic for guessing back in Chapter 35 that John Lennon's "Woman" fits Loke. And go ahead, call me a bastard for ending on a cliffhanger.
=^*o*^= "You bastard, Rhov!"
O_O "Happy!"
=^._.^= "Whaaat? You said I could."
-_- "Hmph!"
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Lion's Pride