Frost

18

There was a problem.

Natsu was glum because he didn't know whether or not Porlyusica would find a cure for Gray. Maybe she could give him another enchantment? Who knows. But that wasn't the problem.

The weather had gotten warmer as January began to roll in. That meant that people would stop wearing their winter gear for a while. It made it easier for Natsu to tell whether or not Gray was around. But no one had been shivering lately under Natsu's eyes. That meant that the invisible ice mage wasn't around. So the dragon slayer was starting to get worried. This wasn't good.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted to the dragon slayer as he and Happy entered the guild hall. She wore a large smile, and she looked excited. Sitting to her left was Juvia, and sitting across Juvia was Erza. Natsu gave a small wave, and Happy gave his partner a skeptical look before flying away to find Lily and Carla.

Lucy gestured Natsu over, and he slowly made his way to the girls' table. Erza blinked at him before looking at Juvia. The water mage looked back at her, and Natsu noticed immediately how they were acting. What did Lucy want to talk about?

As if reading his mind, Lucy spoke, "We've been talking about the time I was invisible. I was wondering if we could put something on Gray so we can know where he is." Natsu blinked a few times, trying to process what his blonde friend was saying. He already knew it wouldn't work, but there had to be more to her plan, right? Lucy was smart.

"I know we can't hear him, but he can move things, so we can try to communicate with him through objects." This idea changed Natsu's mood a little. It might work out since Gray was able to steal his keys without Natsu noticing and then calling him on his own lacrima. But there was one problem . . .

"We don't know where he is, though," Natsu sighed. Erza nodded with him and rubbed a hand on her forehead. Juvia's eyes widened, and she looked between the other three mages, who were thinking about how to find Gray.

"Wait, I thought you knew where Gray was?" the woman asked, making Natsu's gaze fall on her. Her eyebrows were furrowed. Natsu only wished that was the truth.

"I can tell when he's around. There are times when I can feel he's near, too."

"Have you . . . felt him lately?" Lucy asked. Natsu sighed and shook his head. Erza looked down at the wooden table.

"How are we going to find him if we can't see or hear him?"

"That's the problem," Natsu grumbled before tugging at his scarf. Juvia brushed a lock of hair behind her ear, and eventually, Cana walked up to the table. She plopped down next to Lucy before wrapping an arm around her.

"Howdy! What's the deal!?" the woman said a little too loudly. Lucy tried her hardest to push Cana's arm off of her shoulder, but it wouldn't budge. Eventually, she gave up.

"Nothing really. Just talking about Gray. Oh my, do I miss him," Juvia sighed before resting her head on the table. She yelped, for she hit her forehead against the wood a little too hard. Natsu wasn't in the mood to laugh. He was worried and tired. He wouldn't admit how much he had stayed up the night before, just wondering about where Gray was.

He couldn't stop thinking about what could happen if the ice mage wasn't cured. What if Gray disappeared for good? What if he would be invisible forever? Would the enchantment eventually fade away and make him visible? Would something bad happen to Gray? Natsu didn't know what he would do without him. Gray was his rock, his rival, his bestfriend.

The moment was ruined when Natsu sniffled. It snapped him out of thoughts, and it made him realize that tears were starting to sprout from his eyes. The four girls watched him with worried expressions on their faces. A few people around the guild were even taking small glances towards him.

He was speechless.

"Natsu, you good?" Cana asked. Before Natsu could say anything, the dragon slayer felt a warm hand on his shoulder.

"Actually, I need to talk to him real quick." Erza was standing up from her seat. She looked across the room and made a weird gesture with his head. Then, she looked at him, waiting for his approval. Natsu slowly nodded, and he followed her up the stairs of the guild hall and into the infirmary.

The scarlet haired woman closed the door gently behind her before leaning against it. Natsu relaxed on the infirmary bed closest to the window. He looked outside.

Gray clouds filled the sky, and snow piles rested on the sides of the stone roads. He noticed a bird was flying in the sky, and the trees blew with the wind. Erza watched as Natsu sat back along the bed, his eyes focusing on the window. Not once did he look at her. She jumped at the sudden knock on the door.

"Who is it?"

"Happy! Let me in!" the exceed shouted from the other side of the door. Erza opened it, and in came the flying blue cat. He stayed up in the air and watched as Erza closed the door before focusing his attention on his partner.

"You!" Happy hissed. This grabbed Natsu's attention. His eyes were wide as he looked at his fuming feline companion.

"Me?"

"Yes, you! Why are you so down? You're not fun anymore, and it's getting on my nerves!" Happy was practically pulling at his ears, and he sloppily flew onto Natsu's lap before playing dead. Natsu pulled the cat into a hug, making Happy wheeze.

"I'm sorry, lil' buddy. It's just that . . . things have been hard for me lately. I miss Gray. He was my fighting buddy. I would fight you, but-"

"I wouldn't let you lay a hand on me!" Happy shouted. He struggled in Natsu's grasp, but the dragon slayer pulled the exceed closer to his chest. Erza smiled at the two. Natsu was smiling, and it made her feel happier. She knew exactly how Natsu was feeling.

To be missing someone she loved a lot, that was hard. She loved Gray, but Natsu had it harder. They've been through a lot together. They were practically siblings, if not, more.

"Between me and you, you're right. I would never place a bad hand on you. On Gray, however, I wouldn't hesitate to put a hand on him!"

"Ooh! You liiiike him!" Happy chanted, making Natsu's face turn a bright red.

"H-huh!? What're ya talking about? You're delusional!"

"I bet you don't even know what that word means!" Happy shouted. The two started bickering like young children back and forth. Erza only stayed in the background. She didn't really bring Natsu in the infirmary to talk to him. He needed to talk to Happy. She had told the cat to follow when she made the gesture with her head.

Erza watched as the childish bickering turned to laughter. Satisfied with how things went, she slipped out of the room unknowingly to the other two.

She was glad to see her friend happy. Of course, it was Happy's job to make someone happy. But it would make him better if Gray were back.

She wanted him back again.