Gajeel thrust his face close to Natsu's, and hissed, "Because I'm the one that killed Happy."

   "You what?!" Natsu lunged towards Gajeel, growling, "You'll wish you were never born, Cretin!"

"You and your pathetic cat were not fit for this world! I'll now make Fairy Tail strong again!" Gajeel's nostrils flared, "I'm also surprised that you aren't trembling before me after you saw what I did to Rogue on the last day of the Grand Magic Games,"

   "Quit referring to the Games," Jellal growled, "They were two years ago. You never know how much weaker you've become, Gajeel."

   Gajeel's eyes dilated, as he glared back at Jellal with fury, "After I punch Salamander into a paste, I'll deal with you. You're nothing but Crime Sorcière scum."

   Meredy bristled, "His magic is more powerful than yours will ever dream to be, Redfox."

   Natsu looked at Meredy with a surprised look on his face, whereas Jellal just smiled. It was well-known among Meredy's friends that she became rather cocky when fighting an enemy.

   "Oh really now?" Gajeel said hysterically. "Should we confirm it for real then? Maybe you'll be able to meet your little cat-friend up there when I finish you off," Gajeel chuckled, with a look on his face that didn't seem sane. 

   Jellal could hear Natsu growling louder as he clenched his fists. "And maybe for you," Gajeel cuts off as he looks at Jellal. "Why don't you say 'Hi' to Erza for me?"

   "Why you little-" Jellal swept himself into a fighting stance and glared fiercely at Gajeel. His face contorted in anger, believing that Gajeel had also made Erza vanish from this world.

   "Oh, no, you don't!" Natsu pushed him over. A vein was throbbing in his forehead, and fire danced behind his irises, "I'll fight for both of us, but this piece of crap is mine alone. He killed Happy."

   "He destroyed my family."

   Natsu, without putting much thought into what he was doing, shot flames at Gajeel, leaping over the man, and punching him from behind. It was a battle arena of emotions, and punches flew in all directions. However, despite all Natsu's effort, he was slowly being overwhelmed.

   "No... No!" Meredy jumped in, "Don't say anything, Jellal! I need to do this... For Ultear, and all the fallen. This man must fall."

   Before Jellal could intervene, Meredy created a sensory link on Gajeel and herself. It slowly dawned on Jellal what she was doing to do exactly.

   "No, you can't! You know you shouldn't. After all Juvia, Gray and you had to go through the last time!'

   Meredy gave a sweet smile to the azure-haired man before you, "You get Erza and help restore Fairy Tail, I believe in you."

   Then she stabbed herself with a pole lying on the floor and knocked herself out.

~~~

   "Mereeedyyyyyyyy~!" Jellal screamed, it was hard to know whether she was dead, or just unconscious - as the wound didn't seem to be very deep -  however, he knew that it wasn't the time to check. Behind him, he heard the loud thump and knew that Meredy's plan had worked.

   She put a sensory link on both of them... Which means if she's d-dead, then that Cretin is, too.

   "Jellal?" Natsu stormed into view, "Didn't I tell you not to join!?" Natsu growled and attempted to punch Jellal square in the face.

   "You idiot," Jellal's eyes narrowed, "It was Meredy - don't insult her sacrifice. Now - we must find Erza. She might know how to stop this... It's hard to believe that just this morning, I was coming to exterminate you all. Now I know that there's a way to restore this!'

   "And how do you think that we can find Erza?" Natsu burst out. "And how do you think she can help us? Erza is dead you fool! Just like how Happy is, how Lucy is, what don't you get-"

   "Shut up!" Jellal cut off, pressing Natsu against the nearest wall. "You know nothing! Erza is here! Living or ghost, she's here! I can feel it!" Jellal claims.

   "Happy can still be alive, Meredy can still be alive, heck, even Gajeel might still possibly be alive. There's still hope,"

   Jellal encouraged, collecting himself from the outburst. He released Natsu, controlling his breathing. "We just need to find Erza,"

   Natsu looked apologetically at Jellal. "Yeah, sorry. I just lost it for a second," He sheepishly said.

   "Everyone's suffering, not just me, I shouldn't be so selfish."

   Jellal patted him reassuringly on the shoulder. "It's alright, just help me find Erza will you? Then we'll call it even," He smiled, but his eyes told a different story.

   Natsu nodded, brushing off his clothes and joining Jellal's side.

   "Let's check the Kitchen first,"

~~~

   "Ugh, you'd think they'd at least have a can of soup in the cabinets or something. I'm starvingggg~," Natsu grumbled, opening drawers and cabinets.

   "You and food, Natsu," Jellal paused, lifting a rolling pin, "Should be a ship." Then Jellal grinned evilly, "Food would make Lucy jealous!"

"Heyyyyy~! Take that back!" Natsu pouted, "She doesn't even let me sleep with her."

   There was an awkward silence, in which Jellal started blushing, really hard.

   "Y-you do realize that sounds wrong, yes?" He asked, tentatively. The Dragon Slayer sure was rather thick.

   "Oh, for crying out loud!" Natsu gave up, "If only we had strawberry cheesecake- Or- or Gray was here!"

   Jellal cocked an eyebrow, "Gray?"

   Natsu vigorously nodded, "I bet she'd hunt him down since that idiot would probably be completely undressed."

   Jellal once again mentally face-palmed, Natsu sure knew how to make a situation very uncomfortable. "You're saying she'd be attracted?"

   Natsu snorted, "In a way - yes. Attracted, since she'd want to beat the crap out of him! Now that'd be awesome! Let's go get Gray-"

   "Focus on the task, Baka," Jellal sighed, gripping onto Dragneel's collar, preventing him from going on his wild-goose - or should we say, Gray - chase.

   "Right, I'm sorry." Natsu looked up fearfully at him, hoping he'd not start shouting like he had, before, when Natsu had claimed that Erza's dead.

   "You love her, don't you, Fernandes?" He snuck a secret smile, almost a smirk, at him, before turning away, "Well, let's go get your bride."

~~~

   "I want foooooood~" Natsu's stomach growled for the umptieth time, "You have Erza, why can't I have-"

   "INAPPROPRIATE!" Jellal screeched, making himself be heard over Natsu, "Can't you just shut your mouth, kid?"

   "Uh, no? Besides, we're the same age, though~," Natsu held the 'o', and gave Jellal a questioning look, "I didn't even mention anything about eating Er-"

   Jellal slapped a hand over Natsu's mouth, "Stop."

   "Awwwww~ You're blushing!" Natsu commented, grinning from ear-to-ear, "Jelly the Sinner's blushing!"

   It was true. Jellal's cheeks were tinted- no, flooded crimson. Red enough to rival Scarlet's hair. "Oh, for Mavis's sake: shush."

   "If you say soooo~" Natsu laughed and walked along by Jellal's side. "Where to now, Bro-in-law?"

   Jellal sufferingly gazed ahead, How does Erza deal with this Crap?

   "I can tell you're thinking about it! You should put a ring on it."

   Before Jellal could respond, there was a whisper.

   "Welcome to the Library, Dragneel... F-fernan-Fernandes?!"

   The pair noticed that the voice said Jellal's surname more like a question than a statement. And the voice was quite feminine.

   "Erza?" Natsu whispered, his eyes gleaming a dark shade of emerald-green, "No. No, it isn't her voice. I-It's..."

   "Oh, long time no see! How are you, Natsu!?" A silver-white haired figure stepped closer to them. It was obvious who it was now.

   "MIRAAA!~" Natsu practically screamed, jumping onto the poor woman, and giving her a Natsu-Impression-Of-A-Civilised-Hug.

   Wouldn't call it 'Civilised'.

   "Woah! You're OK." He pulled away, flashing his signature smile. "All these years... And I didn't see you!"

   Jellal groaned, "Didn't you just say that you were too scared-"

   Natsu shot Jellal a look that said 'shut up-shut up-shut up-'

   Mirajane crossed her arms and glared devilishly at the pair in front of her. "You guys, you should focus on the task at hand, instead of mocking each other!"

   Embarrassment flooded Jellal, as he gave up his plan on ruining Natsu's life, and looked back at Mira calmly, "We need Erza."

   "That's very sweet of you."

   The voice echoed throughout the room that Mira, Natsu, and Jellal were in; it was a rather large library, stacks and rows of books heading for the ceiling, and a glittering, gold chandelier at the very top - finishing the look.

   "E-Erza?' Natsu's voice was shaky, and he looked like he was going to burst into a thousand pieces, "That you up there?"

   "Up there?" This time, the voice sounded from behind the three. Breath was tickling the back of Jellal's neck, sending shots of electricity down his spine. "I think your brain's messed up, Salamander."

   "E-Erza... Erza. It- It is you, Erza!" Jellal spun around quickly, and grinned at the sight of the figure he had been desiring to see, "I can't believe it..."

   Erza let out a chortle, "You used my name three times in under five seconds, Fernandes." That made Jellal turn a shade of crimson, "However, I also did miss you, to be frank."

   Natsu was the only one of the quartet that wasn't smiling, "Where. Have. You. Been- AHHHH!~"

   "I'm sorry, Sir- Ma'am, I didn't mean it!"

   Erza was shooting Natsu one of her famous death-glares, as she brandished her Heart-Kreuz sword. "Much better." then she smiled. "I have been studying the secrets of this library for the past year, and believe that I have found a cure for the curse, after all!"

   Mira grimaced, "This entire library? You read it all?!"

Erza narrowed her eyes, "Doubt me?"

   "No, Ma'am."

   "That's good." She nodded her head, and Jellal couldn't help but want to sweat-drop. In the past, Mira and Erza had been rivals; both the strongest female wizards of the guild. However, in the present years, they had put their rivalry aside: so what happened now?

   "The thing is, neither of us here possess the correct type of magic stated: Solid-"

   "I'm here! Erza, Mira, Natsu!" Footsteps were thudding loudly on the oakwood floors, "Oh, it's so good to see you all, once again!"

   Jellal swore that he knew the speaker. It sounded too familiar that he just wanted to punch himself for not knowing.

   Oh.

   "Levy!" Mira smiled, "Wow! You look good~" The two mages tackled each other in a hug... but failed.

   Levy toppled straight through Mira and fell face-first into the floor. Her glasses skid across the ground, and shattered, as a pile of books was sent flying through the air, and straight on top of it.

   "Oh, right." Mira's eyes gleamed, now strangely dark. "I- I can't interact with anyone."

   Jellal knew there was something wrong. It didn't sound like Mirajane Strauss. Her face was contorted in anger, and her crystal-blue eyes had a dark spark to them; although, he brushed it aside, hoping it was disappointment reflecting.

   "You came at the perfect time, Levy!" Erza's chocolate-brown eyes twinkled, "Only a solid-script mage can end this curse!" Erza exclaims, enlightened. "Now, where is it?"

   Erza searched the shelves, throwing books off the walls while dust flies everywhere. Soon enough, she found a book titled: 'Geckos and How to train them'.

   "Really, Erza? How can that possibly help us break the curse?" Natsu scoffed, crossing his arms.

   "Watch," Erza stated. She opened the book and, almost immediately, a scroll fell out. The sides were ripped and burned, and the paper was stained with layers of dirt and dust. "This is what Levy needs to break the curse," Erza explained, giving the scroll to an enlightened Levy.

   Levy let out a squeal, making Jellal wince, suddenly remembering Meredy. He hoped she was Ok, he knew that he shouldn't doubt her abilities. And mourning over her 'death' would mean he would be disrespecting her wishes.

   "When I go back, I'll bury her body with the respect she deserves."

~~~

   "What's are we waiting for? Don't you just need to the 'boppity bop and zippity zap and BOOM!' They're all free?" Natsu rambled. Erza rolled her eyes as she flattened the scroll on a table. She held the sides down with heavy books and lit a candle to put down beside the scroll.

   "It's not that simple," Erza scolded, looking at Natsu with sharp eyes. "We need certain items," She claims, pointing to the side of the scroll. On the side, it had listed: Rotten tomato soup, A dead rat's tail, four lit candles, and an empty book.

   "Perfect! This curse was much easier to cure than I thought!" Levy chirped, her body bouncing with excitement. "We just need to find the items."

   "I'm assuming it won't be hard, but, we should split up so we can work quicker," Jellal joined in. "One will have to go alone."

   "I can go alone," All eyes turned to Mira. Levy leaped across the table to the other side, eyes widened with worry.

   "Are you sure? What if you're in trouble? This is how people die in horror movies, Mira!" Levy pouted, she reached out to grab Mira's hand but only felt the thin air.

   "I'm a ghost, Levy. I can't technically die again," Mira defended coldly. "And do you doubt me that much? I'd have a better chance of surviving better than Natsu, at least," Mira chortled.

   "But-"

   "Levy, I'm sure she'll be fine. It's Mira!" Jellal comforted. Levy looked at him with wide eyes, threatening to spill tears.

   Once everything had calmed down, Erza decided it was ready for everyone to start the search. "Everyone ready?" After everyone had given a response, she started addressing the teams. "Levy and Natsu, you'll be finding the Tomato soup,"

   "Yes! We get to go to the kitchen!" Natsu celebrated, earning shrugs from Levy.

   "Mira, alone, you'll be finding the empty book,"

   "Fine by me," Mira answered with ease.

   "And I guess that leaves-"

   "You and me," Jellal interrupted, quite literally finishing off her sentence. "Since there are already some candles here in the library, I'm guessing we're getting the dead rat's tail?" Erza nodded with hope in her eyes as she gets to look at Jellal's after so long.

   "Not the ideal first date I was hoping for, but it's better than not having one, right?" Erza joked, but Jellal scooted even closer to her ghostly figure.

   "Actually. It's perfect," Jellal thought out loud. They didn't know how long they were standing there, looking at each other. But, Natsu, as always, just had to ruin the moment.

   "Quit flirting, love-birds! You need to find that tail!" Natsu yelled from the hallway Levy dragged him in, and Mira nowhere to be seen. They waited a bit longer, admiring each other. Erza couldn't help but notice how Jellal never seemed to age, how not a single wrinkle marked his face but she did notice that his hair got longer.

   "Well then..." Jellal started. "Shall we?"

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→❤⚘This Chapter was written by Phoenix and Cake~chan  ⚘❤←

Word Count: 2530

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