The Red Dragon

Chapter 23

Chapter 23

After Natsu had left him with no explanation, Gray had spent all of his free time searching the woods for any signs of him. He could feel through their bond that Natsu wasn't far, but no matter how hard he looked, he could never seem to find the elusive dragon slayer.

He'd even ventured towards the dragon slayers' cave once, figuring Natsu must surely be there, but he lost his courage when he heard the noises coming from inside. Loud roars and heavy dragging sounds accompanied by scuffles, obviously belonging to multiple creatures, leading him to believe some dragons might have returned as well. An image of Atlas covered in hellfire was all he needed to turn himself back around.

He was having a hard time cataloging his emotions. On the one hand, he now knew for a fact that his mate was alive, and that made him incredibly relieved. On the other, he couldn't help but feel frustrated that he didn't know what was going on.

Why was Natsu hiding from him? Where had he gone? And the one question that kept him up at night, what had made Natsu so reticent and full of despair?

His mind, already filled with questions relating to his missing memories, was now even more overloaded, and a part of him wondered if the two things could somehow be connected. He'd heard a voice when he'd woken up in the field, a familiar voice that had asked for his forgiveness.

Could that have been Natsu?

The uncertainty continued to gnaw at him, and after a particularly long day of training and patrolling, he found himself drawn to the lake. It wasn't a place he often visited, much preferring their field, but it was peaceful. So he sat down and stared out at the water while his fingers did their usual dance with the fringes of Natsu's scarf. He wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting there when he felt someone sit next to him.

He didn't bother glancing to see who it was, automatically assuming it was Lyon. Gray had made the mistake of telling him everything that had happened between him and Natsu during the summer solstice, thinking Lyon would be happy for him.

He now had undeniable proof that Natsu was alive, but Lyon had been furious. He felt Natsu had used him and then disappeared, adamantly refusing to listen to any of Gray's claims to the contrary.

It was only in the last few days that they'd talked again, but it was still awkward, and he was too tired to deal with it now, so he remained silent.

"I see you've found my thinking spot," Erza remarked, smiling at him warmly when he startled at her words.

"It's nice here," Gray replied simply.

"It is," Erza agreed, working her hair into a ponytail as the wind worked at it, "I like to come here to think about my mom. It's hard not to know, isn't it?"

Gray nodded, absently playing with his scarf once again.

Erza studied him briefly before asking in a kind voice, "Does Natsu know how you feel about him?"

She chuckled as he blinked at her, his features settling into a shocked expression before blurting out, "Did Lyon tell you?"

"No, Lyon would never betray your confidence, not even to me," Erza assured him, remaining quiet for a few moments, eyebrows furrowing in thought before finally explaining.

"When I saw how upset you were when Natsu first left, I thought the two of you had become very close friends. After all this time, though, the only reason I could think of for you to continue carrying on this way was if you were in love with him. Then it was just a question of thinking back to how you acted around him."

Erza's eyes twinkled at his bewildered expression, and she asked again, "So, does he know?"

Gray thought about denying it, but he saw no point in it now that he knew Natsu was alive. "He does."