3 Weeks Later

3 weeks passed since the fight between Natsu & Erza took place. Natsu hadn't returned since that day and everyone was a bit on edge about it, but they had little time to worry about the pair as they had to train for the battle in under 4 months. Happy regularly came to give updates on Natsu's condition, but all the blue cat would say was that Natsu was training to become stronger and nothing else.

While Natsu's friends and team worried about his mental and emotional state, they had their own things to worry about. Gray left to Mt. Hakobe to train in the snow capped mountains and to no one's surprise Juvia joined him. Gajeel & Panther Lily went to Oak town, where the old headquarters of Phantom Lord used to be. Gajeel had a makeshift training are that he and Lily would use during the 4 months, Levy also visited on occasion much to the chagrin of Jet & Droy. Lucy went to her mother's grave to talk, but to also see if she may have left anything for her regarding how to use the sealing spell. Aura chose to stay at the guild hall in order to train Wendy, but she still did her own training when the guild had closed so no one could see her use her Dragon Slayer magic.

Everyone returned from time to time to talk and take on job requests, but much of their time was spent away from the guild training. On a given day the only ones in the guild hall were Mirajane, Aura, Wendy, Master Makarov, & Carla

Erza, like Natsu, also stayed away from the guild hall due to training, but everyone knew it was because she was afraid to see Natsu. Cana would come from Fairy Hills every now and again to what she called "check on everyone's progress" but Mirajane & the Master knew she came for Erza's sake to see if Natsu had returned. Things were more than a little depressing in the Fairy Tail guild hall as omens and regrets hung in the air like a dark cloud.

…

Wendy & Aura entered the guild hall to take a break from training. They had been at it since the early morning and both of them were more than a little exhausted. They sat at the bar as Mirajane greeted with her usual warm smile. Wendy wiped the sweat off of her brow as Mira handed her a glass of water.

"Thank you Mira."

"You two look like you're working hard." Mira commented as she handed Aura a glass of water as well.

"Thank you Mirajane." Aura said as she took a sip of the ice cold drink.

"Yeah, Aura's really fast." Wendy said smiling warmly despite her being so tired. "I still haven't been able to catch her."

She looked out of the corner of her eye to see Carla standing on the countertop, towel in hand. The white cat handed it to Wendy.

"Here Wendy. It's unladylike to sweat everywhere after a workout." Carla said in her usual motherly tone.

Wendy smiled and took the towel from her, wiping the excess sweat from her face. "Thank you Carla."

Aura sat quietly and sipped her water as she looked at Wendy & Carla chat happily with one another. For the past couple of weeks Aura & Wendy's training consisted of a simple game of tag. Aura promised to teach Wendy everything she learned from the young girl's future self if she could catch her, starting with the Sky Walk.

The sky walk is an advanced Dragon Slayer technique that mimics flight for 1 minute. Future Wendy taught it to Aura the same way Aura was teaching it to present Wendy… a game of tag. In order to execute the Sky Walk, a Dragon Slayer has to achieve the same level of speed as the Dragon that trained them. Having no dragon to train her and with her father being deceased, Wendy took it upon herself to teach the Aura the technique. It took Aura nearly 3 months to catch Wendy, but as expected her teacher's present self had more a knack for it. Aura thought since that it was a form of air magic that Wendy was already predisposed to learning the technique.

*It's only been 2 weeks and she's already gotten so close.* Aura thought as she looked at the young girl. *It's already gotten to the point where I have to use my Dragon Slayer magic to keep ahead.*

"Have you talked to Happy?" Wendy suddenly asked Carla, causing everyone at the bar to pay attention.

Carla looked down sullenly as Wendy realized the mistake she had made. She quickly covered her mouth regretfully. "I-I'm so sorry Carla." She apologized.

Carla smirked at her. "Stop that child, its fine. You did nothing wrong, your question just caught me off guard." Her smirk turned into a smile, "To answer your question yes I did talk to him, yesterday in fact."

Wendy's eyes lit up, "Really?!" she asked excitedly. Aura couldn't help but prick her ears up at the news. "How is Natsu?" Wendy asked with an expectant smile on her face.

"I don't know…."

"You don't know?" Wendy asked confused.

"Happy told me Natsu hasn't talked to him in 5 days. He always leaves home in the morning and returns at night scarred and bruised from head to toe. He's worried about him, he said he's pushing his training too far."

"Really?" Wendy asked worried.

"Yes, Lisanna has come by on a couple occasions but Natsu keeps turning her away."

"Well I can go heal him…"

"No." Mirajane said suddenly startling Wendy and Carla, "If Natsu wants to be alone then we should respect his decision. He'll be back soon." She then moved from behind the bar, dusting her dress off as she walked towards the door.

"Where are you going Mira?" Wendy asked

"I'm going to see Erza." Mira replied smiling, but something about her smile seemed off to both Wendy and Aura. Wendy watched transfixed as Mirajane walked out of the door but soon snapped out of it when Aura placed her hand atop her blue haired head.

"Come on, Wendy time to get back training." Aura said as she removed her hand from the young girl and walked towards the door, Wendy reluctantly following her.

"Aura wait." Wendy called worried before turning around suddenly.

"Oh bye Carla." Wendy smiled and waved at the white cat who returned the pleasantry.

"Don't overdo it Wendy, I don't want to have to fly you home again."

"Don't worry I won't." Wendy replied smiling as she walked out of the guild hall.

Within a couple of minutes Aura & Wendy had returned to their training spot in the woods about half a mile away from the guild hall. Aura began to stretch as she saw Wendy looking at her as if she had been holding something in for a while. "What's wrong?"

"Well, they're your parents. Aren't you worried about them?" Wendy asked Aura hesitantly. Of course she didn't have to say names, but Aura continued to stretch nonchalantly.

"Yeah I'm worried about them, but there's nothing I can do about. I may be their kid, but they don't know that and I don't want to risk exposing myself because of a lover's quarrel." She reached her hands over her head and interlocked her fingers. "Besides we have bigger things to worry about now."

"I know but-"

"Focus on training for now Wendy," Aura replied as she crouched and stretched her legs, "You know them, they'll sort this out." *I hope.*

"O-ok then. If you say so." Wendy hesitantly relented.

"I do, now come on let's get started. You still have to catch me." Aura smirked cockily at the young dragon. Wendy smiled at Aura's face as she looked at her determination. Her eyes were as fierce as Erza's, but her smirk was as fiery and confident as Natsu's.

"Don't just stand there daydreaming." She extended her fist and waved her fingers back and forth, taunting Wendy, "Come on."

"Right, I'll definitely catch you this time." Wendy said with a renewed spark in her eye. She squatted down, clenching her fists as her magical energy began to swell and swirl around her. Aura stood opposite of her unfazed as she continued to charge up.

"Nnnng-Yaahhh!"

BWOOM!

A torrent of white energy was circling Wendy as she stood in a ready position. She looked Aura square in the eyes with matching intensity. "Ok, I'm ready when you are."

Aura smirked once again as she cranked her neck and cracked her knuckles. She tapped the tip of her foot on the ground three times then…

FWISH! She was gone.

Wendy searched the area as Aura suddenly appeared in front of her. She touched Wendy's forehead with her index finger. "Tag…you're it."

SLASH!

Wendy swiped at Aura with incredible speed but Aura simply jumped back and then into the air dodging effortlessly. "You're going to have to be faster than that kid." She said with smirk as she teleported again.

"Okay fine." Wendy said with a smirk as she gathered her energy into her legs. Then…

FWOOM! She disappeared into the wilderness after Aura.

…

Mirajane reached the top of the hill where Fairy Hills dormitory stood. She walked inside the doors and was pleasantly surprised to see Cana. She approached slowly as to not bother her, but it made little difference.

"Mira," Cana said aloud not looking as she sat in the middle of the lobby, her legs crossed in a meditative pose. "Surprised to see you here." The fortuneteller smirked as she realized the irony of her statement.

"Hello Cana, It's been a little while since I've seen you."

"Sorry about that. I've just been training to get ready for the battle, if things get as bad as that girl says they will…I may have to use *that* spell." Her body tensed for a brief second as she thought of the technique in question.

Even though Cana didn't say it, Mirajane knew exactly which spell she was speaking of. The thought of it being used made her a bit uneasy as well if she was being honest with herself. "Well hopefully it won't come to that." Mirajane replied as she looked at Cana who was still sitting on the ground, she was amazed how focused Cana was while still being engaged in conversation.

"I hope not, but you can never be too careful. Now why are you really here Mira? As much I love talking to you, I know you didn't come here to check up…at least not on me."

Mira was mildly surprised at how on the nose Cana was. She almost forgot that Cana was still pretty intelligent and insightful when she was sober. Despite her nagging drinking habit, Cana was still one of the guild's most powerful wizards.

"You're right. I'm here to see Erza. Is she here?"

"She's in the back field training. She only comes in to sleep and even then she goes right back out in the early morning. She's even taken to eating out there."

"I see." Mirajane said slightly sullen. "Thank you Cana." Mirajane began to make her way to the dormitories backdoor before Cana spoke up again, stopping her.

"Mira, be careful. Erza's still pretty upset about what happened."

"I'll be fine." Mira said smiling warmly, "But thank you for the concern. I'll be easy on her."

"Good luck."

Mirajane left the dorm and made her way to the back field. The sun was beating down on her, but oddly enough it wasn't all that hot although she did sweat some. She walked through the trees until she reached a small meadow in the middle of the forest, it was there that she spotted Erza.

Clad in her red and yellow hakama with bandages covering her breasts, she wielded her twin blades expertly as she sliced through targets she had made out of straw from the dorm's storage. As usual Erza's movements were of both violence and grace, each strike hitting its mark with no blade attacking where it wasn't wanted. Her control despite being so tired was breathtaking, as she not only switched blades but armors on the fly.

From Heart Kreuz to Robe of Yuen, from Flame Empress to Giant, Black wing to Armadura Fairy, and even Adamantine to Purgatory. Mirajane had seen Erza cycle through all of her armors, even seeing some she didn't even know Titania had. Switching between them and chaining her attacks seamlessly with each armor. Despite the awe inspiring display, Mira could sense that Erza was still moving a bit sluggish.

She came from behind the trees once Erza had taken a small break and rested against a tree. Mira chose to approach her friend slowly.

*Dammit.* Erza thought to herself in frustration, *it's not good enough, I have to be faster, better. At this rate I won't be able to protect anyone…I won't be able to protect-*

"Erza." Mirajane called breaking her thought process.

Erza looked up slowly and saw the white haired barmaid staring down at her, her infectious smile on her face. Erza looked back down at the ground as she spoke to Mirajane.

"Hello Mira."

"Looks like you've been training pretty hard." Mira commented as she looked at the destruction wrought by Erza's techniques, no doll was cut the same.

"It's not good enough. I need to get better." Erza stood up and walked past Mira, making her way towards her practice area.

"How are things at the guild?" Erza asked as she stretched her arms above her head.

"It's quiet. The only ones there are the Master, Me, Wendy, and Aura. Everyone else is still training on their own although they do check in from time to time."

"That makes sense. Everyone is trying to get ready for the battle."

"You're right, but it does get a bit lonely sometimes with everyone gone."

"Don't worry, soon everyone will return and we'll be stronger than ever."

"I know." Mira replied smiling as Erza continued to stretch. "You should come by sometime, I know the others would be glad to see you."

"I'll try when I have time." Erza said plainly with her back turned.

Mirajane knew Erza was lying, but she smiled and accepted her words. "Good. I'll look forward to it." A few silent seconds passed between the girls as Mirajane continued to watch Erza who had begun stretching. After dispensing with the obvious questions, Mira got to the real reason she sought out Erza.

"Natsu hasn't come by the guild hall in a few weeks."

Erza suddenly stopped and stood straight up, her back still facing Mirajane. "I didn't ask about Natsu." She said sternly.

"I know, but I also know that you would want an update on him."

"What makes you think that?"

"You don't have to play dumb Erza, I know the reason you keep yourself away from the guild is because you're ashamed of what happened."

Erza clenched her fist. "I'm not-"

"Then why do you stay up here at Fairy Hills instead of coming to the guild? Are you afraid that you'll see him?"

"No. "

"Do you not want to see him?"

"Of course I do."

"Then why did you end things the way you did?"

"Because I…you wouldn't understand."

"Then help me understand Erza. You said he couldn't fight in the battle, you forbade him, do you know what that did to him?"

"It's just a fight, he'll get over it."

"It's not about him being able to fight or not Erza." Mirajane answered coldly. Erza shook slightly when she heard her friend's words. Mirajane hadn't taken to a tone like that in years, her old personality had briefly resurfaced in that moment.

"He wasn't upset that he couldn't fight, he was upset that you didn't trust him enough to let him try."

Mirajane's words hit home as Erza continued to listen to her speak. "You know how much Natsu looks up to you, how much he admires you? All he wants is your respect, just the fact you acknowledge him is something he strives for. You two were beginning to connect on a deeper level. You left the guild together for over a month. Do you trust him that little?"

"Of course I trust him!" Erza yelled defiantly, shocking Mirajane. "I trust Natsu with my life, I always will. He is one of the strongest wizards I've ever met, in fact he's even stronger than me. There is never a time in my life where I ever doubted him or his abilities."

"Then why won't you let him fight?"

Erza turned around and the look on her face made Mira's heart sink. Erza's face, the strongest woman in all of Fairy Tail, one of the strongest women in the world, the women who excelled at keeping her emotions in check…was afraid. It wasn't obvious from looking at her, but Mira could tell behind her strong eyes was a look of uncertainty, of uneasiness, and of fear.

"I don't want him to get hurt. I don't want anything to happen to him." She clenched her fists even tighter, "When I heard Aura's story, when I heard Natsu…died, something in me snapped. Whether or not her story is true, I don't wanna take that chance. I can't. If something happened to Natsu…I…I don't know what I would do. I know it's selfish of me to think of that when the others are training so hard…but I can't help it."

Mira smiled at her friend, "It's ok to feel that way Erza, but doesn't Natsu get to make a choice as well?"

Erza's eyes widened as she looked up at Mira, the silver haired wizards face smiling upon her like an angel. "Do you think Natsu wants you to die either? How did you think he'd feel if you died trying to protect him? He'd never forgive himself."

Erza continued to look at Mirajane as her face glistened in the sunlight. She was right, everything Mira had said was right on the mark and Erza couldn't deny it. Ever since her feelings for the Dragon Slayer became clearer she's been more and more protective of him and she knew it wasn't fair to him. How would Natsu ever fully accept who she was if she tried so hard to keep him on a leash? She loved him for him, and she knew that trying to restrict him was bad for both of them.

"You're right…" Erza said as she unclenched her fist slowly. "I've been such an idiot, forbidding him to fight would go against the promise we made to each other."

"Well then why don't you go see him and apologize?"

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I wouldn't know what to say. I've never been the best when it comes to apologizing, I might make things worse." She smirked as she turned around.

Mirajane thought to herself for a moment before snapping her fingers in realization. "Ok, I've got it. How about this, let's fight."

Erza's eyes narrowed in confusion, "Fight?"

"Yeah, just like we used to. If you win, I'll leave and I won't bring up this conversation again, but if I win you have to go see Natsu and apologize."

Erza thought to herself for a moment before smirking and raising her sword towards Mirajane. "Fine I'll take you on your wager, but I won't go easy on you."

"I wouldn't expect you to red." Mirajane said confidently as magical energy began to swirl around her.

"Satan Soul!" Mirajane yelled as her body began to glow and her appearance changed. It had been awhile since Erza had seen Mirajane use her Takeover magic for battle, it astounded her. The glow began to fade as Mirajane now sported longer hair, yellow devil horns that extended from each of her ears, and what looked to be a blue, white, and black cloak.

Erza requipped and jumped back. "So you decided to use Sitri huh? It's been a while since I've seen that form. I thought the Master forbid you from using it."

"Well I can't afford to hold back if I want to win this bet. Besides I won't tell if you won't." Mira winked as she scanned Erza's new appearance up and down. "I see you chose to with the Armadura Fairy armor."

"Like you, I can't afford to lose this bet either."

"Well then," Mira began smirking, "Let's get started!" Mirajane rushed forward.

"Let's." Erza followed her lead, gripping her sword tightly.

"RAGH!"

"KYAA!"

The two most powerful females in Fairy Tail lunged at one another, their heated battle had begun.

…

About 3 hours later, Erza was walking down the streets of Magnolia as the sun began to set. She was more than a little banged up from her fight with Mira as she clutched her left shoulder, but a bet was a bet and she wasn't about to go back on her word. *I can't believe I lost. I must have gotten sloppy over the past few weeks.*

...

Mirajane arrived back at the guild hall smile on her face as she walked behind the bar.

"Welcome back Mira." Master Makarov said as he sipped from his mug.

"Thank you Master." She replied cheerfully as she began to clean the bar countertop.

Makarov looked at the smiling bar maid, widening his eyes and doing a double take as he spit out his beer in surprise. "Mira what happened!" he asked concerned as he looked her up and down. Her dress was almost torn to shreds she had bruises on her arms and legs and a couple cuts on her faces. Her hair was a dirty mess and a black eye rounded out the "makeover" she received

"It's nothing, I just finished fighting with Erza." Mira replied smiling.

"You fought Erza?! Why in the world would do that child?"

"We had a bet." Mira answered smiling at Master Makarov as she continued to clear the countertop. *I still got it.*

…

Erza's destination was Natsu's house and if she was being honest, the thought of going there made her nervous. It had been almost a month since she had seen him, and with the way things ended between them, she wasn't surprised that they stayed clear of one another. *I'm sure he's still mad at me.* She thought as her heart began to drop, *what do I even say to him? Not only did I forbid him to fight, I embarrassed him in front of the entire guild. He probably won't even want to speak to me anymore.*

She smacked herself in the face. *NO! Stop thinking like that, what would Natsu say if he saw you in such a sorry state? No matter what he says to you, you have to face it head on and without fear. Besides you won't know until you try.* She calmed down a bit as Natsu's house came into view.

She knocked on the door. "Natsu? Are you home? It's Erza."

No answer, she tried knocking again.

"Natsu?! It's Erza, I have something I wish to speak to you about. Are you here?!"

Again no answer. Erza's mind began to flood with negativity again as she thought of Natsu ignoring her. *Maybe I shouldn't come here. It must still be too soon for us to reconcile. Maybe he*-

BOOM!

The noise startled Erza as she looked up to see a huge torrent of flame rising from behind Natsu's house. *What was that?* She asked herself as she ran to the back to see what was going on. Sure enough she found her answer.

Standing a few meters away from her was Natsu. His breathing was heavy and his vest was all but destroyed, he had small cuts and bruises all over his body as he wiped the blood from his mouth and forehead. He looked like he had been through the 7 circles of hell, but Erza knew that he was training.

"Damn," he said in frustration not noticing Erza's presence, "It's not good enough…not good-"his words began to trail off, his eyes glazing over as he began to fall to the ground.

"Natsu!" Erza ran to him instinctively, all of her previous fears and insecurities fading as she caught him an instant before he hit the ground. She laid his head on her knees as the sun continued to set. Her eyes were soft as she looked at his beaten form. *He looks terrible.* She rubbed the side of his face with the back of her palm. *He must have been training for days without stopping.*

A saddened look appeared in Erza's eyes as she continued to look at the disheveled Dragon Slayer. "I'm sorry Natsu." She began to apologize, "I shouldn't have pushed you away. I'm sorry that I-"

"Erza…" he said weakly with his eyes still closed, he was delirious from his training.

"Yes? Natsu?" she answered thinking he was calling to her.

"Not strong…enough. Have…to be…stronger." Natsu began to drift in and out of consciousness as his speech became broken.

"Natsu…" she said his name again in quiet disbelief.

"Have to…protect everyone. Have to protect…"

"Natsu, stop talking and rest." Erza pleaded hoping he could hear her.

"Erza…"

"Yes?" she answered once again.

"Have to protect…Erza." Erza's eyes widened as Natsu said his last words and finally let sleep take him.

Erza could only smile at him as she watched his pink hair shift in the gentle breeze. He looked so peaceful lying in her lap, you wouldn't have known he just put his body through such a grueling ordeal. Erza rubbed the side of his face as his mouth hang open, and smiled wider when she heard that he began snoring.

She looked at his sleeping face and requipped into her signature white blouse and blue skirt. She ran her bare fingers through his hair as he continued to sleep peacefully. He was a bit noisy but she didn't mind. "Natsu, I'll protect you. No matter what happens, I'll be by your side." She placed her hands on his chest as it moved up and down slowly. She then looked out towards the setting sun and smiled. "Just believe in me, and I'll believe in you ok?"

"Ok…"

Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked down at him. "Natsu? Are you awake?"

"I said ok Happy…we can get…some…fish…" he said lazily as he resumed snoring.

Another smile crossed Erza's lips as day turned to night around the pair.

…

After Erza was sure he was sound asleep, she laid Natsu to rest in his bed and began bandaging his wounds. After about an hour, she stood up from the bed and wiped the sweat off her brow to survey her work…it was terrible. Too much gauze in some places and too little gauze in others, Natsu looked more like a mummy than a patient, but Erza was satisfied so she left it at that. She left, closing the door behind her as she looked at his house one more time. *He's exhausted, I'll talk to him tomorrow.*

She started the path towards Fairy Hills but as she about to reach the inner part of the city, a noise broke through the still silence of the night.

FWOSH!

Erza's eyes widened as she noticed the sound was coming from directly in front of her. She looked up to see a pillar of fire rising from behind the Fairy tail guild hall. *Natsu?* She turned around and looked back towards the Dragon Slayer's house. *No that's impossible, I just put him to bed and he was in no condition to move.* Her feet began to move on their own as she found herself running to the guild hall. *The guild hall is closed, who could be there at this hour?* As she came closer to her destination Erza's mind began racing faster than her feet. Who was at the guild hall? What was that pillar of flames? Was the guild under attack? Did Oracion Seis come early? The questions poured in like a waterfall as she reached the back of the guild hall.

She walked through the trees of the training area as the stars blanketed the night sky, at least at night she would have the advantage if it was an attack despite the lack of light. Ever the cautious warrior she summoned her sword to her side with her requip magic. As she got closer to the source of the flame, her pace began to slow as if something was weighing her down and she started to look at the scorched trees around her. *What could have done this?* Her approach was silent, her breaths still as if she was hunting prey as she stopped just short of the clearing. She hid behind a tree as she scanned the meadow for anyone or anything that didn't belong.

*Where are they?* She continued to scan the area but saw no sign of anything out of the ordinary. *I know the flames came from here. Did they leave already?* She stayed a bit longer just to be safe, her grip tightening on her sword. She heard shuffling coming from the trees directly across from her and readied to pounce but stopped when she saw who it was.

"Wow, you're amazing Aura." A blue haired girl praised as she walked out of the scorched trees. Her face was covered with dirt and sweat and the tank top and white pants she was wearing were nearly ripped to shreds but the smile on her face made all of that irrelevant.

Erza's grip on her blade loosened as she let out a sigh of relief. *Thank goodness. It's only Wendy.* *She looks like she's been working hard.* She couldn't help but smile to herself, but the question still remained, who was the one who caused the fire? *Wendy doesn't use fire magic and Macao & Natsu are at home.* Erza pondered to herself as she continued to watch Wendy.

She heard another voice followed behind Wendy. "I don't know. I'm still not strong enough to protect my parents." Erza followed the voice with her eyes and saw a girl not the much younger than her emerge from the trees, her wine red hair was a mess as it extended to the small of her base of her spine. Her red headband was dirty and her face was no better off but Erza could tell that it was the results of training.

*Aura is here as well?* She thought as she looked at the two girl's converse with one another. As she looked on she was beginning to notice what Natsu was talking about something familiar was about her. She wanted to leave the trees and ask what they were doing out so late but something was stopping her so she continued to observe them.

"Well try it one more time." Wendy suggested as she looked at the exhausted Aura. "Maybe you just weren't focused enough.'

"Ok, but I'm going to try something different instead then we can go in for the night." Aura replied smiling as Wendy nodded.

What are they talking about?

Erza watched as Wendy backed away from Aura. The red haired girl stood silent with her eyes closed as the grass around her began to singe. What is she doing? Does she know fire magic? Erza thought in awe as she watched her.

Aura clenched her fists and suddenly opened her eyes as a magic circle formed above her head and scales formed under her eyes and on her hands as golden flames surrounded her body. Erza's eyes widened in shock as her body began to move on its own from behind the trees. *That circle…it's…*

The cry rang into the night as Aura rocketed into the sky.

"Crimson Lotus…PHOENIX BLADE!"