Frost

1

"No, I haven't seen him," Natsu yawned to Erza, one of his closest friends. They were sitting on a bench in the park, and Erza was ticked off at the fact of not seeing Gray in a week.

"But you were seen with him last," Erza mumbled. Natsu bit his lip and looked up at the clouds. They were dark, and the sun was covered. It would probably rain if Juvia starts to cry.

The city of Magnolia hasn't been as lively. Without the famous ice mage, the noisy guild hall has gotten quieter—a plus for some because the guild hall wouldn't be frozen or burned to pieces—and it caused the citizens to grow quiet. Even members of Lamia Scale and other allies have gotten worried. Fairy Tail was supposed to be destructive and noisy. For an entire week, their were no complaints about the guild throughout Fiore.

"Just because I was the last one to see him, doesn't mean I did something about it," Natsu rolled his eyes. Ever since Gray has left, guild members realized that Natsu has been down lately. Even Gajeel tried to fight him, but Natsu rejected his offer, and it surprised mostly everyone.

"He could be sick or something."

"Well, he's not home. We checked there a while ago," Erza sighed. Natsu scoffed and looked over at Erza.

"Who's we?"

"Jellal and I." Natsu hadn't realized that Crime Sorcière was going to get involved as well, let alone the guild master, Jellal Fernandez, whom has known Erza since they were kids.

"You probably didn't need to check his place. He normally leaves it unlocked when he's not home. His apartment is just calling for thieves."

"It wasn't unlocked. That's why we searched it," Erza said, watching as Natsu looked away. He loosened his scarf a bit and gulped. Erza could tell her friend was seriously worried. Natsu ran a hand through his rosy colored hair and looked back at the scarlet.

"How's Juvia holding up?" Natsu quietly asked.

"Isn't the weather obvious enough?" Erza laughed. "She's been sleeping at Lucy's, and Lucy claimed that Juvia sleeps on her stuffed Grays every night. Sounds creepy if you ask me."

Natsu thought for a moment. If Gray was physically here—even if he still is and just went into hiding—then it would be really creepy. It would be scarier for Gray. However, Natsu was up to laying on a pile of stuffed Grays at the moment.

It was only a thought . . .

Natsu pushed that aside and looked back up at the sky. He felt a few drops of water fall in his face. Knowing Juvia, it was likely to start pouring any minute. Natsu wouldn't be surprised if she actually flooded Magnolia today. He looked at the mud puddles in the grass from previous days, and he watched as kids began to make their way to the park in rain coats and boots. He stood up and looked down at Erza.

"Let's get back to the guild hall before we get rained on."

•••

Natsu and Erza came back to the guild hall soaking wet. With only a mile left to walk, it began to pour, and both mages ran the rest of the way. A series of curses came from Natsu's mouth as he slipped on the stone roads a few times. Followed every time was a slap from the older woman.

Natsu pushed the guild hall doors closed while Erza requipped into some dryer clothes. Natsu dried himself off with his own fire. He then made his way to his usual table, passing the whole guild of Crime Sorcière, members from Saber Tooth—including Yukino, Rogue, Minerva, and Rufus—, and members from Lamia Scale—Lyon, Shelia, Yuka, and Toby— and Blue Pegasus—Ichiya, Eve, Ren, Hibiki, and Jenny. All three guilds decided to help search for the famous ice mage, but no one has found a clue.

Natsu plopped down next to Lucy, who was sleeping on Loke's shoulder. The celestial mage most likely had no idea Loke was even there. And it turns out, that was true.

"Sh! Don't wake her up, I don't want her to know I'm here," Loke whispered. Natsu rolled his eyes.

"Like I was gonna say anything." Natsu spoke loud enough to make Lucy fidget. Loke's eyes widened, and he pushed Lucy onto Natsu's shoulder before vanishing into thin air. Natsu groaned and pushed Lucy off his own shoulder, making her fall back on the floor. Surprisingly, she didn't wake up. Natsu assumed it must have been a long day.

Especially for Juvia, since he could hear her loud sobs come from the second floor. Checking the guild hall for Erza, Natsu found her quietly talking the Jellal at his reserved table. The dragon slayer then made his way to the second floor of the guild hall.

As Natsu made his way up the stairs, the sobs got louder and louder. He wasn't shocked to see water pouring out from under the infirmary door. Natsu struggled to push the door open. Water immediately came pouring out onto his sandals, and the door was wide enough for him to slip inside. Once he was fully in, the door slammed shut due to the amount of water. Natsu watched as Mirajane, Cana, and Levy were all trying their best to calm Juvia down.

"Juvia! I checked my cards! They said that Gray would be back soon!" Cana whined. Natsu scratched the back of his head when Juvia stopped crying for a moment.

"H-how long i-is soon?" the water mage asked. Cana lifted her fortune cards to her face before sweatdropping. Levy questioned her look while Mira dumped buckets of water out the infirmary window.

"It doesn't say," Cana whispered to Levy. Natsu heard it loud and clear due to his dragon senses. When he noticed the tears starting to pour out of Juvia's eyes, he figured she heard Cana's comment as well. Levy rubbed her temples while Cana searched through her cards, desperately trying to find the day Gray would come back. Mirajane continued to dump water out of the window, not noticing that the water was rising rapidly.

Natsu decided to help a bit by heating himself up. The water began to heat up, and soon the infirmary became a sauna. He stopped Juvia from crying and gained the attention of the other three girls in the room. Soon, the floors were dry, as well as clothes, and Cana placed a hand behind her head.

"Well, would you look at that, Juvia! Another hot guy in our guild!"

"But I want Gray!" Juvia whined. Natsu rolled his eyes and made his way over to Juvia, who decided to sit on one of the infirmary beds. The dragon slayer sat next to her and stared at the wall farthest from him. Juvia looked at Natsu with wide eyes.

The tension from the dragon slayer grew to a point where Juvia could feel his aura. The room grew hotter, and Natsu seemed miserable. His emotions grew strong enough to a point where Juvia was done crying, and she made her way off the bed. The four girls in the room huddled on the other side and watched to see what Natsu would do next.

"Is he mad because I would rather have Gray over him?" Juvia whispered. A small smile appeared on his lips, making the girls question himself. Natsu looked over at them and stood up.

"You don't have to worry about that Juvia. I'm just wondering why Gray left in the first place," Natsu sighed. "I've decided that I would search for Gray, no matter the cost. I will bring him back, and I will do it as quickly as possible. I promise." That was a commitment he made, and he wouldn't break that promise. There was no way in hell he was going to give up.

In order to find Gray, he was going to need clues. The first place he would check was Gray's home. At that thought, Natsu could've sworn he felt a small tug on his scarf. The dragon slayer shivered, and he made his way out of the infirmary with the four girls following behind him.