Narrator's POV:

The Fairy Tail Guild was in a frenzy. No-one had seen or heard from Gray, Natsu or Lucy since they set out, and the only thing the village who'd hired them could tell them was that the mission had been successful, though the lack of property damage had confused the poor fellow who'd sent the request in the first place. After all, Fairy Tail wizards were as famous for their destructive prowess as they were for their proficiency in their chosen fields of magic. So not having to charge damages and submit a formal complaint was a fair shock. A pleasant one that the village elder appreciated, but an occurrence so rare from a Fairy Tail Wizard that it was enough to warrant unrest within the guild. Especially as this was Gray and Natsu they were talking about.

Of course, there were those.... less experience guild members who speculated that Gray and Natsu simply got along when no-one was watching, but those ideas were soon quashed when Levy unhelpfully pointed out that Lucy was with them, and so was Happy, so that couldn't be right. Cana and Mira had made some kind of bet, one that had both girls sending each other the Extra Specially Creepy Fangirl Look every so often,
though the details of said bet were kept a secret. (And in case you were wondering, yes, it was Mavis who came up with that name).

Two weeks. That was how long it took Gray, Natsu, Lucy and Happy to return after they'd finished their job. Nothing really unusual there though. The job had been quite far from the guild, so they'd taken the train to get there, so it had made sense that the team had walked back. Well, mostly. None of them needed to know about Happy and Natsu giving Lucy and Gray a lift most of the way. Nor did the guild need to know what they'd been doing for the past week and a half. Though Mira had a jolly good idea when the dragon Slayer burst into the hall, only to pause for a split second to adjust his scarf. Everyone else missed it, but Satan Soul Mira had caught a glimpse. She smiled secretively to herself, knowing that a hickey was hidden behind those pristine white scaly folds.

Erza didn't need to see the hickey though. She knew Natsu well enough by now (especially as they'd secretly dated for a while shortly before Lucy arrived) to know the signs. He was picking more fights with Gray than normal, but he was pulling his punches to the extent that the Titania of Fairy Tail was utterly confused when no one else commented on it, also, the dragon slayer's annoyed growl was more of a purr whenever Gray was nearby. Natsu could not purr consciously. It was a subconscious reaction to being in close proximity to his current mate, whether it be male or female. The armoured woman said nothing though, content to wait for the inevitable chaos that would follow when everyone else found out.

Lucy walked up to the bar, ignoring the ball of ice that flew past and ducking with a bored expression as a fireball nearly hit her in the back of the head. Mira was smiling in her creepy fangirl way as she started up casual conversation with the celestial Mage, subtly probing Lucy for information, disappointed to find that Lucy's behaviour wasn't suspicious at all. It was almost as if she didn't know anything about Natsu's unusual bruise.

"How the hell should I know?" Grays voice bellowed, and Mira chose that moment to look up, freezing at the sight. Gray and Gajeel were head to head, snarling in fury as Levy tried desperately to pull them apart. Several people had crowded round to watch the fight, which was quite strange in it's own right because Gray and Gajeel usually got along quite well, though heavens knows why.

"You two reek of each other. Man-whore." Gajeel growled, and Levy tried again to pull the two apart, confused as to why her Gajeel was being so hostile to the only guy in the guild who appreciated his songwriting as much as she did.

"He's worse than I am." Gray retorted, ice beginning to crackle over the floor as he began to lose control of both his magic and anger. No-one had the foggiest who they were on about, though most eyes fell on Juvia, who shook her head in denial. She wasn't going to snitch. It was none of the guild's business if Gray was interested in her or not, and she knew he was not. How could he be interested in her when he was gay? And also, she was definitely a girl. Gray had said 'he'.

"No he's not. He's still a....."

"Finish that sentence, I dare you." Gajeel froze as an unfamiliar voice chimed in. Erza and Gray spun to face the direction of the voice, only to blink stupidly. He was only semi-visible, but he was certainly there. And apparently everyone could see him. Mavis materialised beside him with a cheeky grin. The dark haired ghost bore an uncanny resemblance to Romeo conbalt, but there was something about his whole appearance that set him apart just enough so he would not be mistaken for the young fire wizard at a second glance. There was another guild member he reminded them all of too, but no-one could quite figure out who.

"Meet my boyfriend!" Mavis grinned, as the dark haired ghost grinned nervously. Despite the fear of being hated all over again, he wasn't going to let anyone say anything about his baby brother. Zeref had heard the whole argument, and was furious. Downright livid.

"I dare you, Gajeel Redfox. Just try and say that again."

"Why should you care? You're just some dumb ghost who follows another dumb ghost about." That was it. Gray wouldn't have it. Even if they didn't recognise Zeref, nobody had the right to call the First Master And Fairy Tactician an idiot. Ice exploded up the walls of the entire guild as Gray lunged for Gajeel, Levy forced to leap back lest she got caught in between. Makarov was out at a guild masters conference, and Erza was choosing to stay out of it for some reason. Laxus was on a job, Gildarts was AWOL again and Mira was too busy gawking at the ghost next to Mavis to intervene. Nobody else was strong enough to force them apart, save possibly Natsu, but he'd vanished. And anyway, Natsu would probably destroy the guild along with stopping the fight.

Guild members started to evacuate the building, knowing a Dragon slayer and Gray butting heads was a recipe for disaster, when Natsu appeared in the doorway. Sharp green eyes narrowed as he saw the two brawlers, and let out a low, threatening growl that most people missed. Then Natsu was moving with a speed that rivalled even The fastest Mage, darting and leaping over mounds of ice and dodging blades of iron as if it was no trouble at all.

More than a few wizards gasped as the pink haired Mage managed to get between Gajeel and Gray, forcefully pushing them apart for a second before they shoved him aside and clashed again in a flash of enraged magic. "Zeref! Help him!" Erza shrieked, as a spear of ice flew far too close to the fire Mage, though Natsu didn't seem to bothered. The two fighting slayers were not in any state to listen to reason. They were fighting like animals, and as she knew they were both dominants, it was highly likely their argument had awakened their animal sides, and sparked a fight, not between two mages, but between a dragon and a demon.

"I can't Erza, I'm still a ghost, remember?" Mavis's ghostly companion warned, frightening Lisanna who'd been standing beside him and looked ready to bolt in and protect Natsu as it was. "Also, he doesn't need help. Just watch." The grin on Zeref's face was creepy. Too creepy for most people. Sure, the evil black wizard was a ghost now and couldn't really hurt them, but still...

Natsu's POV:

           Damnit! Gajeel's done it this time. Stupid metal muncher. Gray's gone completely crazy. I can't get through to him like this, he needs to calm down! If he's not careful, he'll lose control of his devil slayer magic too, and then Mavis only knows what'll happen. I have to get them apart long enough for at least one of them to calm down. Arrggggghhh, I can't do anything as a normal wizard, nothing that wouldn't cause more harm than good anyway.

      A presence beside me told me Zeref was there, and I heard him say something like 'it's ok to show them you know. Just tell them it's some kind of takeover magic or something.' I know that! I just don't want to scare Romeo or Asuka, and I know Asuka is nervous around monsters. A cold blast of shattered iron flew at me, and I didn't think about it anymore. That shrapnel would tear me to pieces if it hit me. I relax and just let instinct take over, but not to the extreme that the stripper and metal head have.

         My scales flicker into existence all over, protecting me and deflecting the frozen shards of metal. I notice their fight was getting worse, and Gray was gonna do something real stupid if he didn't stop right now. He was already half covered in black armour like skin. Gajeel was mostly defending himself, with iron scales acting as armour and how the hell is he so much slower than Gray?

       I run between them as they both step back for a second to ready another attack, and as they rush towards each other..... it's like they can't even see me. I'm... so..... scared. Stop. Stop it. Gray stop fighting. Please. Gray stumbles ever so slightly as I think this, and that gives me enough of an opening. "STOP IT. NOW" whoa...... I didn't know I could roar like that! And I really didn't mean for my wings to appear and knock both of them flying.

       Natsu? Huh? Did Gray say something? I could have sworn I just head him tell me to stop fighting. I look sharply at The Idiot Stripper before smiling at him and offering a hand to him, my grin getting bigger as he takes my hand groggily. It looks like he's been in a trance. A shriek warns me we're not alone, and I let go of Gray's hand once's he's on his feet and turn to Gajeel. He's still angry. And he's still not in control. I know he's not, because he's still aiming for Gray. Please tell me they are not fighting over me. Gajeel has Levy. And I will never EVER betray Gray. I am Gray's. And he is MINE.

He lunges for me, teeth bared and magic swirling around him. Ok. Time to bring out my best non violent attack. I go full demon. Not just scales and wings, but horns, claws, tail..... even the red eyes and really long fangs. Dragons aren't stupid. Nor are Dragon Slayers. The Metal Muncher knows not to pick a fight with a superior predator, even in his enraged pri... pri..... primal state. Gajeel's reverted to a dragon's primal state. That's Gray's voice again, but it wasn't reaching my ears. It was almost like Warren's telepathy magic, but not.

      "What the hell salamander!" He growls as his metal skin goes back to normal. I growl back, much much louder, spreading my wings slightly from their folded position to make myself more threatening. Gajeel isn't scared of me anymore though, mores the pity. It seems his primal dragon state is much smarter than his normal Dragon Slayer state.

     "That's enough boys!" Ack! It's Erza! Gajeel of course, he clearly isn't thinking straight yet, because he decides to snarl at her in a more normal way. For him at any rate. Moron. Is he begging for a fight? It's not a fight against Erza, it's a one sided annihilation and you never win. Ever. Believe me, I know. Not that I ever use my demon side or my hottest flames against her.... but still.... scary. "Gray, take Natsu home. Now. Natsu, change back this instant. And Gajeel, dare pick a fight with either of these two again, and I'll let Levy borrow that book you wrote..." stupid iron head. He's gone and lunged at her, hasn't he?

It doesn't take long. It never does. That Moron is on the floor unconscious, with a half eaten sword pinning him to the ground. I fold my wings as close to me as I can, and turn to the crowd behind me. I know some of them will know what I am. I... I can't lie. I don't want to lie to my friends. But Zeref.... do I really want to be publicly known as Zeref's baby brother turned fiercest Demon? I look to Gray, who doesn't look quite with it yet, though it's kind of his normal face too.

       /I might be completely off the mark and going nuts, but can you hear me ya Pyro?/ HUH?!?!! It's Gray's voice all right, but it's not in my ears, just in my head. What the hell? I'm destructive enough as it is. Fire dragon slayer magic, fire demon curses, a weird sort of takeover where I look perfectly human or perfectly demon, or any mix in between.... I better not have telepathy magic on top of all that! How do I respond anyway? And Erza's still glaring at me. Is it as simple as thinking a thought at Gray?

        /if you're going nuts I am too./ I think, then I try to change back to normal, but I can't. I still feel real uneasy, and I feel safer like this, even if I can't keep it up forever. Erza's glare is getting even scarier, if that's at all possible.

Gray's POV:
        Ok, I don't remember fighting Gajeel, but apparently I did, and I destroyed half the guild while I was at it. And what the hell is with being able to hear Natsu's voice when I know he's not talking? Unless.... ok, now I know I'm completely nuts.

       /I might be completely off the mark and going nuts, but can you hear me ya Pyro?/ he's not gonna hear me. There's no way he can hear me. The only person in the guild who might hear me is Warren.

      /if you're going nuts, I am too./ His. Voice. Is. In. My. Head.. It's. Actually. In. My. Head. and not in my ears. Shit. Shit shit shit shit. I can hear Natsu's voice. In my head. And he can hear mine. I see him pull a face, I think that's the one he pulls when he wants to change back to normal, but he doesn't, and Erza's face is giving me lightmares. How the hell can she get any scarier than that? Dunno, but she manages it. She's giving me the evil eye.

      "Make your boyfriend change back, before I make him." She demands. Does she ever ask nicely? I shake my head. The air is too tense. Natsu probably can't change back because he's scared of Erza, and what the guild might think of him now. /can you change back? Or are we gonna have to run for it?/ I think at the Pyro, hoping the thought thing wasn't just a one time thing. It's almost like the air itself relaxes and suddenly, The Idiot is a normal pink haired moron again. He grins one of his fanged grins, and I'm pretty sure Everyone takes a step back, because there is no way in hell he just did that with his fangs accidentally.

Narrator's POV:
          It took the rest of the day to clean the guild hall and explain Natsu's new ability to everyone (except Gildarts, Laxus and the thunder legion. They were still out on missions). The notion that Natsu was actually Zeref's little brother was met with scepticism and more than a few flat out snorts of disbelief. That is, it was. Until their resident male Ghost confirmed the fact himself, admitting rather morosely that he'd turned Natsu into a Demon just to save his life. Neither brother thought it would be a good idea to admit that Natsu was actually a resurrected corpse turned into a monster of demonic proportions.

        By the end of the whole 'by the way, Natsu is actually the wanted Demon END' talk, there were more than a few who remembered how Erza had addressed Gray and Natsu earlier, and one either very brave, or very stupid, soul (Elfman. Who else?) asked what Erza had meant by Gray's Boyfriend. This sent both the ice wizard and the newly revealed fire demon into a fit of laughter, and then Natsu suddenly went very very quiet, his face going several shades darker pink than his hair. No one else knew why, but Gray was laughing even harder now. How could they know that Gray had just thought something very dirty at Natsu?

      "Let's not ask Gray that. Ok?" Mavis chimed in, as soon as Gray's laughing fit had subsided. Her tone of voice clearly told everyone to back off, lest they be the victim of whatever evil scheme she decided to put in either Asuka's, Natsu's, Happy's or Romeo's head this time. (It was kind of hard to forget the Evil-Yellow-Flame-From-Hell that had stunk out the guild so badly they'd had to get Wendy to sky Dragon roar in the hall to clear the air, though the basement was still a bit pongy.)

      ...... A few days later, once things had calmed down, Gray admitted to The guild that he really did have a boyfriend, but his partner was shy about it. Of course, several people cursed at this, because most of the guys had bet on him getting with Juvia, and some had bet on him getting with Lucy, but nobody save Erza Lucy and Juvia had bet on him getting with a guy, though neither girl were telling who they'd bet on, and not even Cana herself knew. Natsu had gone on a solo mission with Happy, and was due to return today, and Gray knew this. They'd agreed before he left that Gray could tell everyone, but NO NAMES.

     Of course, everyone began guessing, several fingers pointing at Bickslow, who denied any knowledge of Gray's sexual orientation, let alone a boyfriend. However, Bickslow did admit to knowing about Natsu being END, but he'd kept quiet because he was aware that Natsu himself wasn't actually conscious of the fact. The conversation flowed from one topic to another after that, until Lucy literally collapsed around mid afternoon. Loke summoned himself just in time to catch her, but it was clear something was very wrong with her. Or at least, that's how it looked to everyone save those very few in the know.

        Gray was one of those very few who knew. Natsu and Porlyusica were the other two. Lucy and Loke did not count. He pushed people aside with worry as he made his way through the growing crowd, creating an Ice Make Shield to keep people back as he knelt beside his teammate. For some unknown reason, he knew this event was not for mortal eyes to see, and yet somehow he knew it was ok for him to witness.

    "Loke, get her to Porlyusica. Now!" He whispered sending out a desperate thought to Natsu, though Gray didn't think the thought thing would work at such a distance. /Natsu! Hurry. Its Lucy. It's happening. Hurry!/ He wasn't expecting a reply, there was no way the thought thing would work. /I'll meet you at Porlyusica's. Go!/ ok, so apparently the two way thing worked at a distance, because Gray had the distinct feeling that Natsu was still far off, because his thought voice was faint and weak. Loke gently picked up his Wizard and nodded to Gray, who used his ice to create an easy path out of the guild, up over everyone's heads and down to the ground outside, where Loke took off towards porlyusica at a sprint.

Natsu's POV:
        The walk back from my solo job was refreshing. I'd stopped off at one of my minor hoards -there's no way a sane dragon keeps all his treasure in one spot- to pick up two of the crystal geodes me and Gray had hidden together, and gone fishing for Happy, who was now fast asleep on my head, and now I was heading for home, looking forward to seeing Gray. My stripper. My mate. Maybe we could make out or more.....

         /Natsu! Hurry. It's Lucy. It's happening. Hurry!/ And there's goes my peaceful stroll home. How can I hear his voice anyway? Telepathy doesn't work at such long range. Or at least, it shouldn't. I prod Happy awake, making sure he was holding on tight. There were rune knights up ahead, I could smell them, so there was no way I'd risk using my wings. Happy was still sleepy, and I know he's a bad flier when he's sleepy, so I run. /I'll meet you at Porlyusica's. Go!/ I think to him, somehow knowing he's in the guild.

        I don't get very far. The rune knights have captured someone. Usually, I'd just ignore them, but I can smell who they've got. Nope. Not happening. They are not going to get away with this. Not a damned chance.

    "Happy. Go to their prisoner. Hurry. It's time END returned the favour." I don't think Happy gets it, but he listens to me and does as he's told. I hope those particular rune knights don't know what END looks like, because I'm not sure if I can win the fight without losing control....

Nashi's POV:
      I really really like racing through the forest with Daddy. He's on a Special Magicycle he designed, and I'm on a chunky black pony with a white blaze on his face called Mickey. He's actually a wild pony, but he's my friend and he likes to chase Daddy so he lets me ride him. Daddy's really good at driving his Magicycle, but he can't do what Mickey can do. There's two tracks up ahead. One is long and bumpy and winding, the other is short but is more fallen trees than actual track. Daddy goes the long way, but me and Mickey choose the short way.

I jump off my friend and race him through the track, leaping from fallen tree to fallen tree. Whilst my pony friend jumps each trunk with ease. I don't know why, but it's really easy for me to keep up with him, and Mickey's not going slow either. He's at a fast canter right now, though I know he can be much faster when he's in the open. Wild ponies don't normally jump stuff, but Mickey does. Maybe he's feral instead of wild. He is rather friendly to me, Daddy and Grampa Lee...

I can see the last tree trunk now, and I can hear Daddy's Magicycle. He's behind me, but not my much. I might win today! I'm about to leap the final gap and vault onto Mickey's back, when I hear Daddy speaking in a low voice.

"Nashi. I know you can hear me. Keep outta sight." Why? I sniff the air. I'm glad I have dragon slayer magic. It gives me stronger senses too. I can smell more people. Mostly men. There's maybe two women. Whoever they are, Daddy doesn't want them to see me, so I stop and duck under the final tree instead of using it as a springboard to land on Mickey's back like a normally do. He snorts and shakes his head, jumping the final tree because he can't stop, but he slows down and comes back to me, sticking his head into the gap I'd squeezed into. I give him the carrot I brought with me. Then whisper at him to stay close. Well, I say whisper, but I'm not sure if I said it out loud or not, because me and Mickey know each other too well. He's a good Pony.

There's a forest of fluff now, with bits of the track behind it, because Mickey's stood right by my hidey hole, grazing. There's not much suspicious about a wild pony grazing round here, so I'm safe. I can see Daddy skid to a halt from between Mickey's legs, and the men surrounding him. They all wear the same thing, like a uniform, but why would they want to chat to Daddy? He's done nothing wrong.

Then this lady is shouting and there's magic runes everywhere and Daddy is pulled off his bike and he's on the floor crying in fear and why can't they just leave him alone? I stay hidden though. Daddy never tells me what to do, nor does Grampa Lee, so when they do, I listen, because I know it's not safe to ignore them. I want to protect Daddy, but I want to stay safe. I don't know Rune magic, so I'm not sure if my Dragon Slayer magic is good against it or not.

"Leave him alone!" Huh? Who's voice is that? I can't see much of the sky, but that's where the voice came from. Then I can see a little blue exceed with wings hovering in front of Daddy, a scary look on his cute furry face. I have a feeling I should know this exceed.

"See! I told you, this is proof. Only salamander has a blue exceed. Now get him!" The lady's voice screeched, but nobody moves. I can see why, but one of the men point behind her. She looks behind her and screams. Why do people scream? It feels like a hundred knives are being stabbed into my brain. I miss most of the next bit because I'm cowering in my hidey hole in pain. Sometimes super senses are a bad thing.

Narrators POV:
The leader of this little posse of Rune Knights let out a strangled scream as she took in the sight before her. She had not heard it approach, nor could she hear it now, despite it's proximity to her now. Huge horns adorned it's dark red head, bloody hair surrounding the appendages like a nest and deep red eyes stared unblinking in a red scaly face. Fangs protruded from it's mouth, though the creature had it firmly shut otherwise, a long tail thrashed about behind it, somehow creating no noise at all, and an impressive set of wings were folded neatly at it's sides. It was the most terrifying thing any of them had ever seen.

"Fireball." The monster snarled, flames flickering into life as it forced its way past the Knights and into the little ring of people, going right up to the crying man on the floor, who still had his racing goggles on, though his hat was nowhere to be seen. The exceed, much to the Rune Knights evident surprise, landed on the monster's head with a contented purr, just as the monster picked up the Magicycle driver.

The monster carefully righted the Magicycle, gently depositing the man onto the seat, and suddenly, the snivelling wreck of a man was no more. Drastic personality change. It was like two people in one body, though that wasn't possible. Right? The beast was fearsome, so frightening that the Rune Knights were too afraid to react, which was saying something consider several of the men there had tried to arrest titania's team from Fairy Tail once -and walked away empty handed because a rain of fire, ice and swords followed by a double regulus impact that had somehow not killed or mortally wounded anyone. They'd still fought though. Terrifying, but not paralysingly so.

      The beast turned to them, flames in his eyes. "Leave this man alone." It snarled out, flames leaping to life all around him. "He is not Salamander. Do not harm him, or bother this Fireball again. They are my humans. I am their demon." Demon? Wait... fire? Fire Demon? Could this be the elusive END? "Fireball, head to my guild. I'm sure the girl will follow. I have to go. I am needed." The demon snarled out, though the head Knight of the group realised that the angry snarl was actually his normal voice, when a true snarl ripped through his mouth, eyes flashing dangerously. "Don't. Pull. My. Tail." And with that, the demon beat it's wings and burst through the canopy of trees, the little exceed still on it's head.

It took Natsu much longer than he anticipated to get to Magnolia, but he made the time up by flying most of the way. He sent a rushed thought out to Gray, hoping the Icicle would hear him, and continued to run, though at a much slower speed as he was in town. Happy remained on his head until they reached the edge of town, but Natsu prodded the little cat awake and told him to wait at the guild. It wasn't for the little blue Exceed to see.

However, by the time Natsu arrived at Porlyusica's, it was mostly over and Gray had been banished from the house. The ice-make Wizard was sat on the step, a strange expression on his face. He looked annoyed, confused and was that a bruise forming on his right cheek? Natsu almost demanded what happened, but the loud cry of a baby stopped the words in his throat.

His face split into a fanged grin as he heard the quiet murmur of voices as Lucy and Loke spoke, and he offered a hand to the ice wizard. They could talk later. It would be better to just head back to the guild, fight by the river on the way to cover that bruise, and get some food at the guild's bar. And maybe Natsu could somehow talk to Erza in private about a certain ice wizard and certain concerns involving magic and.... well, he'd rather not think about it.