Gratsu Bingo 2019
Prompt: Dare

Chapter 2

Two men walked along a busy street, looking at the numbers on the buildings as they bickered. One had longish pink hair, his skin sun-kissed. Everything about him radiated nervous energy while his companion, a slightly taller man with dark raven hair and a pale complexion only looked at his surroundings with disinterest.

"You don't even know where you're going, do you?" An exasperated grunt was heard from the taller male. "What do you plan to do, yell out his name and hope he answers? Sounds like something from a bad movie."

"It's around here somewhere, Sting wrote the address down for me," Natsu Dragneel huffed, not wanting to admit that he wasn't even sure they were on the correct street. The numbers were all wrong.

"What makes you think he even wants to see you again? From what you said, you were kind of a douchebag to him."

"Shut up, Zeref! I wouldn't have had to be if it weren't for you," Natsu snapped, his frustration evident in the sharpness with which he replied.

"Me?! What on Earth did I have to do with it?"

"Just shut up."

They continued to make their way slowly up the street when Zeref tore the piece of paper from Natsu's hand. "Let me see that."

Natsu huffed, "What would you know? You're not even from around here."

Zeref swallowed his retort and studied the address that Natsu's friend had scribbled on the piece of paper, peering at the numbers on the buildings nearest to them. With a long-suffering sigh, he pointed out the problem. "We're on the wrong side of the street."

Natsu only gave him an embarrassed grin before hurrying to cross the street with Zeref following close behind. He looked at the number on the building and announced, "It should be on the next block."

Zeref had already begun to move towards the address when he noticed Natsu hadn't budged.

"What's the matter now? We've come all this way."

Natsu's eyes were unsure, fear lurking in their shining depths. "What if he's still angry? What if he's moved on?"

Zeref sighed, not this again. He tried to be patient, matters of the heart were complicated and frankly more terrifying than being chased down by a band of bloodthirsty warriors intent on their destruction, which they had been doing for quite a while now.

"There's only one way to really know the answer, and that is to talk to him. If you mean as much to him as he does to you, he'll listen," Zeref wanted to hug Natsu desperately, but he held himself back, still not sure if he had earned such a gesture.

"You're right," Natsu breathed deeply, and in a jittery voice, he added, "I knew it was a possibility when I decided to go on this journey. If only he'd waited a bit longer before acting on it."

Natsu frowned at himself. It wasn't Gray's fault for telling Natsu how he felt, it was Natsu's for not telling him what he was planning. He sighed, when did everything get so damn complicated?

"Let's go," Natsu tried to find some confidence within himself to quiet down the panic he was starting to feel. Not much longer now. He surprised himself by grabbing Zeref's hand and holding on to it, like a child looking to his parent for strength, was even more surprised when Zeref allowed it. And as they moved closer towards the address Sting had jotted down, Natsu was glad Zeref was with him, even if he wasn't the touchy-feely type.

O-o

The Uber finally arrived at their destination, and after having paid for the ride, Gray had the unenviable task of somehow getting his passed out brother out of the car and into their apartment. He managed to pull him out, and to save some of his dignity maneuvered him onto his back, the offending sash all but forgotten.

Gray turned around, hoping for once the unreliable elevator in their building was working, he wasn't really looking forward to lugging his brother up four flights of stairs. It was at that moment when he saw him. Or at least he thought he did.

A sakura haired man was walking towards him, his hand held loosely by a slightly taller man with features not that dissimilar to Gray's own. Gray blinked wanting to make sure he wasn't seeing things, it wouldn't be the first time he'd imagined seeing Natsu, and he had been drinking.

When the vision in pink was still there, Gray felt a blind fury explode within him. How dare he? How dare he disappear for two years and return with a boyfriend that for all intent and purposes looked like his replacement? Was he not good enough?

He could tell the exact moment Natsu saw him, could see the panic in his best friend's eyes and the squeeze to his hand the other man gave him before letting go and giving him a soft nudge in Gray's direction, an action that both enraged and confused Gray but he wasn't about to dwell on that now.

He forgot he was holding Lyon as he darted forward, and feeling annoyed by the weight on his back that was keeping him from moving swiftly, he dropped it, instantly hearing a thud followed by a surprised yelp.

"What the hell?" Lyon muttered in confusion as he woke mid-flight to landing on his ass on the sidewalk in front of their building.

"Damn it, Gray, the last thing I need is a bruise on my ass!" He protested loudly, already rubbing the sore spot as he stood up unsteadily. He watched in disbelief as his brother quite literally stomped towards another man. A man who looked to have a rather distinctive shade of pink hair.

Lyon closed his eyes for a moment, willing the alcohol to stop showing him impossible things, but when he opened them again the man was still there, and his brother was still headed towards him with what looked to be murderous intent. He also noticed the man standing next to who could only be Natsu tensing up, his eyes measuring Gray up, his hands already clenched into fists.

"Oh, shit! Gray, just hold on a minute," Lyon stumbled along as best he could trying to reach his brother before he did something he would regret. "Will you just listen to me?" he continued to shout as it became increasingly clear he wasn't going to get there in time.

Natsu could only stand there like a deer in headlights, he'd never seen Gray so angry. And even though he'd spent most of his childhood fighting with Gray, and had upped his training the last two years while evading Zeref's enemies he knew he deserved whatever Gray dished out. He tried to relax his body as he waited for the impact.

"One free hit is all he gets," Zeref avowed next to him, his voice remaining calm but Natsu was quick to recognize the menace implied as to what would happen after that hit. He knew he had to do something fast. If there was one thing he'd learned about Zeref in their time together, it was that he could be quite violent and scary when he wished to be.

Natsu knelt, touching his head to the sidewalk and whispered, "I'm sorry!"

This action was enough to stop Gray in his tracks, leaving him with a confused expression that was enough to make Zeref relax slightly.

"Get up!" Gray growled, and Natsu complied, albeit slowly, taking in the changes that the last two years had wrought on Gray. His gaze got as high as Gray's chest before his expression changed from one of remorse to one of profound sadness.

"When's the wedding?" Natsu asked politely, trying to hide how everything inside of him was shattering.

"Tomorrow," Gray responded, confused by the question, but it had been one he had been asked a lot that evening, and so he responded matter-of-factly, as he had every other time.

"I wish you congratulations, I guess we can talk after you get back," Natsu held on to the last threads of his self-control, not wanting Gray to see how much that information had affected him.

"Let's go Zeref," he turned around walking as quickly as he could, leaving all three men staring after him blankly.

"Why is he so upset about Lyon getting married?" Gray scratched his head, not understanding anything that was happening. He felt an eerie pressure on his back, and as he attempted to find its source, he was confronted by the heated glare of Natsu's companion.

His fingers moved to his shirt, already working on getting it off when they bumped into the sash, and things finally clicked. The fucking sash, God how he hated that thing.

For fuck's sake!

Gray ran after Natsu, reaching him before he could cross the street. He pulled him back, turning him around in the process. He was startled by the way Natsu seemed to be fighting off tears.

"You idiot! I'm not the one getting married. Lyon is, he just made me wear this to torture me," Gray cheered inwardly at the relief on Natsu's face, but then he remembered how Natsu had left without a word and even though he was thrilled to have him in front of him again he was still mad.

"But even if I were, it would be none of your damn business. Where do you even get off being upset about it? You ran away from me, remember?"

Natsu threw his arms around him, ignoring the stiff set of Gray's shoulders that were clearly screaming, Don't touch!

Once Natsu let go of him, Gray took the sash off and shredded it to pieced before throwing it away, hoping Lyon hadn't intended to keep it. He kind of doubted it, his brother was not exactly the sentimental type.

He took his own look at Natsu, his eyes hungry for the sight of him. It had been too long, two years of only being able to see him in old pictures and memories. Natsu looked leaner, having finally lost the boyishness of his features, and even though Gray lamented their loss, he had to admit Natsu looked even more attractive than he remembered.

"I'm so sorry for the way I left, but you have to believe me, it was the only way," Natsu's eyes pleaded with him in a way that was very familiar although this had more urgency than usual, and Gray was comforted to see that at least some things hadn't changed.

"That remains to be seen, who's the boyfriend?" Gray tried to keep the jealousy out of his voice, but it still hurt. Then again, it wasn't like he hadn't dated anyone in that time or like they'd promised each other anything.

Actually, he promised you less than nothing, his mind reminded him helpfully.

"Boyfriend?" Natsu had no idea what Gray was talking about, he'd never even looked at anyone that way since he'd left, his mind being full of Igneel and Gray. He thought about the way he'd been grasping Zeref's hand and guessed that could be confused for something more.

"Oh, you mean Zeref? He's my older brother," Natsu explained, knowing very well it would come as a shock. Hell, it had been a shock to him too! He'd gone in search of Igneel, only to discover a brother he never even knew he had.

"Brother? Are you sure?" Gray had known Natsu all his life, and he'd never heard of a brother before. Just what the hell had happened in their time apart? He couldn't help it, his curiosity was far outweighing his anger, and he knew it.

With a halfhearted nod to his quickly receding rage, he announced, "I'm still angry with you, but I want you to tell me everything. Come on, let's go inside, Lyon has to get up early tomorrow."

They walked back to the other two men who were engrossed in conversation, and Gray wished he'd been able to hear it. He was very interested in this Zeref, especially considering the glares he was getting from him.

Natsu managed to get Zeref's attention and quickly introduced him to Gray, "Zeref Dragneel, these are Gray and Lyon Fullbuster. Guys, this is my brother, Zeref."

He managed to grin a little, after all this time alone, it felt good to be able to say he had a brother.

"It's Vastia now," Lyon corrected absently.

"Huh?"

"Don't even get him started," Gray rolled his eyes at his brother, "He and Juvia are doing this thing where they're picking a last name they both like instead of having her take Fullbuster."

"Juvia? As in Juvia Lockser?" Natsu asked as if there were a horde of girls named Juvia who lived in Magnolia.

"The one and only," Gray shrugged, not giving the matter much importance, "If you ask me, he just wants to make sure she doesn't end up with my last name."

"After the way you treated her when you guys were together, maybe she wasn't comfortable with the idea," Lyon defended weakly, but the way his cheeks flared made Natsu think that perhaps Gray might be on to something. Juvia had obsessed over Gray all through high school, sometimes in overly creepy ways.

"You used to date her? I think I need to sit down."

"Don't even attempt to change the subject, you have a lot of explaining to do."

They entered the building, luck favoring them as for once the elevator roared to life when they pressed the Up button. Natsu and Gray remained silent, each preparing for what was to be an awkward conversation, while Lyon and Zeref exchanged meaningless pleasantries.

They entered the apartment, and Lyon set about making coffee for everyone. Although he should go to bed, he knew how volatile Natsu and Gray could be, and he wasn't sure Zeref could handle them. Besides, he was curious as well.

Lyon was glad to see Natsu back. When they hadn't heard anything from him in such a long time he'd feared the worst, well aware of Natsu's gullible nature.

He believed the two could hash out their differences with time. Lyon missed the way his brother used to be before everything had happened, and he hoped that Natsu's presence would cure him of the depression he'd been under.

"Alright, talk," Gray demanded, barely even giving Natsu a chance to sit down in their living room, which was currently cluttered with all sorts of items for the wedding.

"I got a strange letter right before graduation," Natsu began, looking down at his hands nervously.

"What kind of letter?"

"It said that if I wanted to see my father I needed to go to Alakitasia right away," Natsu explained.

"I should have known!" Gray exploded, "I should have known this would have something to do with Igneel. You promised us Natsu! You said you were done with these wild goose chases."

"See?" Natsu yelled in frustration, his voice sharp as he defended himself, "This is exactly why I didn't tell you anything then. I knew this was exactly how you were going to react."

"Because all it does is cause you pain," Gray snapped," You always come back empty-handed, and then you're miserable for months, and I'm the one stuck helping you get you over it."

"Well excuse me for not wanting to give up hope on finding the only person who ever cared for me!" Natsu retorted, feeling hurt by Gray's words," Sorry for inconveniencing you with my feelings."

"You know that's not what I meant, Natsu," Gray protested weakly, knowing he might have pushed too hard a bit too early. He really was out of practice, and in some ways, this was a new Natsu. He'd have to get to know him all over again.

"Not to mention, Alakitasia? It's not exactly the next town over," Gray sputtered in disbelief, "For chrissakes, you get lost taking the crosstown bus! How the hell were you expecting to get to Alakitasia? That's not even factoring in your motion-sickness! Who was the letter even from?"

"I don't know," Natsu had been dreading that question, but he'd promised himself that if he ever got this far, he would be truthful.

"You're telling me you went off to Alakitasia on the say-so of a letter that wasn't even signed?" Gray shouted, even though his head was throbbing from the stupidity that was spewing from Natsu's lips, "Are you out of your goddamned mind? They could've been trying to kidnap you!"

"I know, Gray," Natsu sighed, this was going to be harder than he'd thought, "Are you going to let me talk?"

"Are we sure they even like each other?" Zeref whispered to Lyon, confused by the amount of tension and anger in the room.

Lyon laughed easily, "They do, they've just never communicated well with words."

"Then how do they usually...," Zeref let the question linger in the air, not sure what he was asking.

"Fists usually, that's where you and I will come in. We'll need to stop them before it gets to that."

"This is friendship?" Zeref asked in disbelief.

"They're not easily defined, "Lyon's smile was full of affection for both men, "Perhaps we should arbitrate from the kitchen? I'd love to hear about Alakitasia, it was one of the places we considered for our honeymoon."

Zeref nodded in agreement, still perplexed by this man his brother was so deeply in love with. His temperament was all over the place, and a few times he'd looked like he genuinely wanted to hurt Natsu, only to have his face look like a kicked puppy when Natsu replied in kind. It was nothing like the love that he'd been used to, and he wondered if he'd done the right thing letting Natsu come back here.

A/N: Okay just ignore me completely, I have no idea how long anything is ever going to be. I've just come to accept it. It grew too long as I was writing and so I have decided there will be another chapter because I became too enamored of Zeref's backstory and Natsu hasn't even left Magnolia yet in his telling of events. This seemed a good stopping point.