Hi there, folks! It's been ages since you heard from me, right? Well, I've been taking a break from my SAK series for a long time, cause I kinda hit a point where I just can't fully concentrate on doing it. Instead, I've been helping out with my buddy, Coral the Leviathan, in co-writing her series 'Huntsmen in Kalos', as well as helping her in parts of the the series 'SCP: Soaring to the Sky'. I have an OC in each of those stories, and they are fun-loving stories. If you're interested in a RWBY/Pokémon crossover, or a One Piece/Kingdom Hearts crossover, these respective stories contain those crossover styles.

But back to this story, which I was inspired from another good friend of mine, InsaneDominator, and his series 'The Fairy Contender' and the sequel 'A Contender's Bonds'. They are a Fairy Tail/Pokémon crossover, and a great read for those who love action, intense story plot, and a good OC/Erza romance. Anyways, after reading his series for so long, I decided to give it a try, and create my own Fairy Tail story. It's basically the same, but with new OC characters of my own design. The story will have many twists and turns, and I hope this first chapter will be a successful read to you guys. Please enjoy this story!

"As a sister, it is my duty to protect my sibling from all sorts of danger. But considering she is in constant danger, I always have to protect her, and make sure she is safe, and to keep trying to seek out a place that's right for us. I do love her, and I don't want to leave her until she is safe. But sometimes, I feel like it's the only thing I have done since she was born. I wish there was more for me out there than just this. I wish there were more people I could bond with who didn't fear my sister. All I want is a place for me and my sibling to belong to…"

"My memories are fragmented and broken. Parts of my past are forgotten, and I feel they are extremely important to me. I want to know more about who I was in the past, and to piece together who I am now with them. I want to see if I am suppose to be who I am, or am I just fooling myself. But the more I try to remember, the more something inside of me begs to forget what has been forgotten. Why? Am I scared of something I don't know about? How do I know I can conquer it if I don't even know what it is I am suppose to conquer? I wish I knew what it was…

"I don't know when I got it…perhaps I was just born with it. But these flames have been with me for as long as I can remember. They are a gift, but they've been mainly a curse. People treated me like a monster, all because this power is beyond my own control. I wish…I wish I was free of the curse of flames. They burn so hot inside me. I want to be free from this curse, and let these flames burn me no more. You are my only hope, so save me…Salamander…"

These three thoughts will tell you the tale that weaves three people's stories into a another tale. One of a certain guild that rises above all others. These three will soon take part in this guild's tale, bringing with it their own stories of discovery, of belonging, and of hearts burning with hope.

Port Hargeon

Inside one of the town's pub, the Rusty Wand, there were many kinds of folks who came and went about their business, whether it was busying talking about today's topics, looking at the ladies at Sorcerer Weekly, or just plain drinking and snacking.

Sitting at the bar, talking to the barkeeper, was a young lady, about 16 years old. She had magenta eyes and long hair of the same color that frayed upwards to her left side of her forehead, and tied with a pink ribbon near the bottom, just enough for a tuft of her long hair to stick out at the end. She had silky skin and a well-endowed figure that could make many young women jealous.

She wore a pink and white-trimmed top, which hugged her chest tight, showing the words 'Heart' in black cursive. She had black leather shorts with leather padding at her waist, the same color coordination as her top, and a brown leather belt with a silver buckle. She wore purple stockings, the right stocking higher than the other, and pink high-heeled boots. She also had black leather sleeves, going underneath her fingerless, brown leather gloves. Attached to a belt on her right thigh was black and silver foldable crossbow, with pink horn-like crystals attached.

"So let me get this straight." she summed up, "This Salamander was here some time ago, and you said he practically torched half the port while beating up one guy?"

"Yep. Crazy guy, that Salamander." the barkeeper stated, cleaning a glass, "The Magic Council's been flipping a bit about the amount of damage he did to Hargeon."

The girl took a sip of soda from her glass, then placed it back down again, sighing. "Well, that explains the buildings in repair and the scorch marks I saw across town." she stated, "Tell me, is there anything else you can tell me? Where would I find this Salamander?"

"Well, from what I know, the guy is from that famous mage guild named Fairy Tail." the barkeeper explained, placing down the glass, "They're practically a wild bunch of mages who are well known for causing damage as much as fixing it. But that's just my opinion."

"I see…" the girl stated, emptying her drink and placing down some bills, "Well, thanks for all the info, sir. Now I just need to know where this Fairy Tail guild is at."

She stood up and walked away as the barkeeper stated, "The guild's in Magnolia, but by the looks of it, you ain't from around here. You sure you'll be okay?"

The girl stopped and turned to the barkeeper with a plain look. She then smiled assuringly as she stated, "I gotta, or I'll never help my little sister."

Outside the bar, sitting on one of the benches, was another young girl, about 13 years old. She hid most of her appearance under a brown cloak and hood, but her face was revealed to show magenta eyes and short pink, ruffled hair that fanned outward. She was sipping her own drink through a straw, while holding a lance in her legs, which had a red handle with a white band spiraling up it, a golden bottom piece to it, and a head that looked like a red and yellow dragon wing, and a curved blade that looked like a monster claw. Next to her were two traveler's bags, one brown and one dark pink.

She sucked any last bits of her drink through her straw, and set the glass down, sighing in relief. Her legs pulled apart slightly, and the lance almost fell down, had she not shot out a red, gloved hand, catching it. "That was close." she stated, sighing in relief.

Just then, she heard the doors open up, and the other girl came out. The younger girl stood up and asked, "So, Dori. Did you find anything?"

The teen girl, Dori, turned and answered, "We got plenty. Apparently, the Salamander guy is part of a popular guild in the town of Magnolia. Guess that means we need directions to get there."

The younger girl looked down, nervously. "Great…he had to have been in a guild." she sighed. "I know you hate going into guilds, but this guy is your last hope, right?" Dori asked, kneeling down slightly and placing a reassuring hand on her sister's shoulder, "Besides, maybe the guild isn't so bad. Trust me, he will help you."

The younger sister looked to one side. Their group had been traveling a long ways away, from the western continent of Alakitasia, to the Kingdom of Fiore, with one goal in mind: Find the man people called Salamander, and see if his flames were the ones they were looking for.

"Speaking of which, do you know where Leon and Pastry are?" Dori questioned, looking about. "From what I heard, he went up to the blacksmith shop further up the road." the young girl answered, "He said they held some magic equipment and weapons."

"Just like him." Dori chuckled, raising up and folding her arms underneath her chest, "The guy likes to make sure he's ready for anything. Come on, let's go get those two." The young girl nodded, and they walked up the road together.

In the said blacksmith shop, the Iron Keep, the inside had plenty of weapons and armor to sell. Examining a mace in his hands was the man, Leon. He was tall, with a lean muscular figure. He had red eyes and blue, short damp-spiky hair, with a white tuft on his forehead.

He wore a blue and white, long-sleeved shirt over an open, long blue overcoat with black trimming, with white crosses on the bottom of each side. He had on long blue jeans, held by a tied up leather belt, and wore brown boots with silver soles. He wore a long black belt that crossed at his waist, holding the overcoat tight, and wore blue, fingerless gloves. He also carried a massive two-handed sword on his back, and his large, black backpack was resting on the wall nearby.

"Are you sure you're the best blacksmith in town?" Leon asked, looking at the said blacksmith, "Cause none of these weapons have much magic to them."

"Well, that's just what I got, sir." the bearded owner answered, "We ain't got a lot of wizards around here, so I make up for what I can. If you want to look for some powerful magic weapons and armor pieces, I do have a selection in the corner over there. They do cost a pretty penny."

Leon walked towards the corner he was presented to, passing by his ally, Pastry, sitting on a small chair. He looked like a ginger cat, but there was something about his spiky fur on his back that was like a hedgehogs quills. He had a cat-like tail with a white tuft on the end, and he was eating a raw fish.

"By the way, I hope you aren't keeping your animal here for too long." the blacksmith hoped, "I don't want it messing up the shop." "Hey! I happen to be a good cat, okay?!" barked Pastry, "I don't damage stuff unless I mean it!"

"Easy, Pastry. He didn't mean anything by it." Leon assured him, examining the shelves and walls of weapons and armor. He then noticed a shoulder piece of armor that looked like it had red lachryma crystals embedded into it. "What's this?" he questioned, taking the armor piece.

"Ah! That's the Frostburn Guard." the blacksmith explained, "Those lachryma are Fire-based, and using your magic, you can produce a descent shoulder guard against fire or ice magic."

"That does seem useful." Leon stated, "Maybe I should take a note on that. Never though about your shoulders needing that much protection. Well, then again, if you lose the feel of your weapon arm, you're basically screwed. So how much is it?" He looked at the price on the wall. 7,500 jewels.

"Dang, that's pretty darn pricy." Leon muttered. "You shouldn't spend too much, Leon." Pastry warned him, "If Dori realizes you spent that much on something that isn't essential, She will pummel you."

"I know…" he muttered, then turning to the blacksmith, he asked, "Hey, is there any way of reducing the price on this to, say, 5,000 jewels?"

"What?! But that's practically taking a third out of the cost!" the blacksmith barked, "I ain't someone who bargains for something THAT low!"

Leon glared straight into the man's eyes, and he stopped. The blacksmith could feel the intensity of the gaze he was given. It was terrifying, to say the least. He had a look that showed he could kill him in a nanosecond, and wouldn't think about it afterwards. He felt like he shouldn't argue with the guy's choices.

"Leon, stop intimidating the poor shop owner." said a voice. Dori walked in with her little sister.

"Dori! Palva!" Pastry greeted them, sprouting wings and flying into Dori's arms, holding him close to her chest.

"I thought you were keeping an eye on Leon, making sure he doesn't cause others to fear him." the girl named Palva told Pastry.

"He was only just doing it." Pastry explained, "I was gonna butt in, but…" "You were scared of him again, weren't you?" Dori questioned, "I told you, no looking him in the eye. That's how he scares you." Pastry whimpered.

Leon calmed down and turned to the two as the blacksmith owner was petrified by his intimidation. "Sorry for all the troubles!" Dori apologized, grabbing Leon by his arm and pulling him away and out the door.

Once they were out and walking, Pastry explained why Leon was giving the glare."I can't believe you were trying to intimidate the guy for a discount." Dori started, "Seriously, you could easily make an armor piece like that for HALF the price of material."

"I just wanted to get it to see how it worked." Leon noted, "Maybe I can approve on it. Make it better and produce a stronger barrier against stronger attacks."

"Yeah, well just don't give off the bad impression." the magenta girl sighed, "We just arrived at this continent today, so we shouldn't become infamous." "Yeah, yeah. I know." Leon sighed.

Pastry hopped out of Dori's hands and on top of Palva's head, asking, "So, you doing okay?" "I guess." Palva answered, "Sis found some info on where the Salamander is at."
"That's great news!" Pastry cheered, "Soon, you will be the master of those flames. Nothing's gonna control you!" "Let's hope so." Palva sighed, showing off a slight smile to him.

About the same time as they were doing this, a certain trio was arriving in the port town. One of them was a young man with pink spiky hair and a lean, muscular figure. He had on a black and gold-trimmed open waistcoat, exposing his bare chest, a cloth piece of the same color around his waist that reached his knees, a brown belt with a silver buckle, white-knee length trousers with black ribbons at the thighs, black sandals and a scale-patterned scarf around his neck. He also had a rolled up bag on his back, and a bird-like tattoo on his right shoulder.

The second was a young girl with brown eyes and blonde hair that reached her shoulders, tied by a red ribbon, and she had a well-endowed figure just as amazing as Dori's. She wore an orange and pale yellow dress, a short blue skirt with a brown belt and silver buckle, and deep red sandals. She also had a satchel with some gold and silver keys attached, a silver pendant with a blue jewel, and a pink tattoo like the young man's on the back of her left hand.

The third character was a blue cat like Pastry, only with no quills on is back, but he did have a green sack on his back, hiding a mark like the other two. Respectively, the trio's name was Natsu, Lucy and Happy.

"Wow, this is nostalgic!" Lucy stated, peering out into the harbor, "This is where we all first met, you know?"

"Nostalgic?" Natsu questioned, "It hasn't really been that long." "You sound like an old lady." Happy snorted, hiding his laughter as Lucy gave him a glare.

"Okay, first thing is to find a ship to take us to Galuna Island." Lucy started, walking towards the port. This made Natsu panic at the thought of taking a boat.

"No way! Not a chance!" Natsu cried out, "We're swimming, all right?!" "That's even less of a chance." Lucy sighed, finding Natsu's suggestion impossible to accomplish.

Just then, the trio heard someone bark in the distance, "Hey! I'm talking you you guys!" They turned at the sound of the threatening tone, seeing a group of guys and a few girls surrounding a certain group.

"What's up with them?" Lucy questioned. "Looks like those guys got a bone to pick with those people." Happy assumed.

"Well, this might be a good warm-up before we swim there." Natsu stated, grinning as he cracked his fists at the ready. "You're serious about that?!" Lucy barked incredulously.

Within the imposing gang, Leon and Dori were surrounding Pastry and Palva as they matched glares with their surrounding opposers.

"Look, we don't want any trouble, so would you let us be on our way?" Dori questioned in a serious tone.

"Hey, we don't like to cause problems, ourselves." One of the guys answered, "But we have a rule for first-timers in this here port; pay our toll, and you can be on your merry little way!" "First I've heard of it." Leon stated blandly.

Palva looked at the surrounding gang. She counted maybe thirty of them, and they all had weapons of sorts on them, mainly pipes or maces. They didn't seem totally tough to her, so she wanted to not do anything, but allow Dori and Leon to take control of the situation.

"I already warned you once, bub!" the gang leader barked, "You pay the toll, or we will take it from you. Which is it gonna be?"

Leon and Dori looked to one another, nodding in understanding, then Leon said calmly, "I don't think we have a choice, do we?" His hand went for his pocket, where his wallet was at, but he then swiftly reached to the handle of his sword behind him, and in an instant, drew it out and swung it strongly, sending several guys flying in a single strike.

The other gang members were in shock at the sudden attack, then growled as he shouted, "You'll pay for that! Get 'em!" He and the others charged at the attacking group, ready to force the money out of them. Boy, were they not ready to deal with them in the slightest.

Dori and Leon moved away from Palva as she made a tremendous leap, soaring high about the charging gang, who were shocked by this incredible jump, landing a good distance away. In their distraction, they failed to notice Leon unleash a slash from his large blade, sending them flying all about, slamming into garbage heaps and buildings. A couple guys tried attacking him from behind, but he turned with a boot to one of their chests, knocking one into the other and sending them on their backs. "Not even worth it." he muttered.

Meanwhile, Dori was easily avoiding the slices and strikes from the guys's weapons about her. She then leapt up and pulled out her crossbow. She aimed as a magic circle appeared in front and shot multiple crystal arrows down at the group, hitting them and causing damage to all guys in range. She landed just as a guy tried to come at her with a raised blade, but she touched the ground, and something tripped up the man, causing him to fall. He grimaced as he looked up, seeing the crossbow pointed at his face, and paled. "You know what's good for you, don't you?" she questioned menacingly.

The remaining gang members saw the two too much of a threat, and went for Palva and Pastry instead, hoping to find them easier targets. This was a mistake on their end.

"I got 'em!" Pastry barked, leaping up and rolling into a ball, producing his wings as he did so. He then launched himself at three of the guys's heads, knocking them out before recovering in the air. He turned to see Palva was in danger, but knew she could handle it herself.

The first one to get close to her tried hammering a pipe down at her, but was blocked by her raised lance. He tried to push down on her as two more guys leapt up with overhead slashes, but Palva jumped high, making the first man stumble and look up to see Palva shed off her cloak, revealing her petite figure, a black and red-trimmed jacket, a red skirt with black leggings underneath, red and white shoes with silver soles, and red gloves.

"If you want to challenge me, then I'll accept it." Palva warned them, "But don't say I didn't warn you!" She dove down head first, then spun until her feet were raised in front of her, planting them hard on the first guy's face and sending him crashing into the ground.

As she recoiled off of the guy, the other two tried attack her with their blades. Palva placed her boots on one of the swung blades to add a foot hold, then flipped backwards and spun into a spin kick that sent him flying into the other one. She landed neatly on the ground as the two crashed into a pile of crates.

"You think you're so cocky, don't you?!" barked the leader in front of her, "Well, guess what?! I don't give a crap, cause I use magic!" He summoned a red magic circle, sending a stream of flames at Palva, who seemed a bit surprised before they exploded on impact.

Down below, Natsu, Lucy and Happy were startled at the magic attack making contact. "Crap! That guy's a mage!" Happy gasped. "Hey, cheap shot! You play dirty!" Natsu barked, growling as he took a few steps forward to punish the guy. However, he stopped as he felt an odd sensation. A feeling that was extremely familiar to him. The girl in the flames was doing something that he was able to do, but in a different way.

The mage leader cackled at his accomplishment as he barked, "Guess you shouldn't play with fire, kiddo! Or else you'll get-." "Burned?" Palva's voice questioned, stopping the man's laughter. He looked in shock as the flames were suddenly diminishing. Rather, they were being absorbed into the young girl's staff, swirling around it before entering into Palva's body, which was unscathed from the attack. "I think it's you who should not mess with me." Palva growled, causing the man to look terrified at this.

She bent down as a magic circle appeared at her feet, and she leapt forward, breaking the ground, with one of her feet igniting in flames. "Fire Dragon's Talon!" she roared, and she struck the guy hard in the gut, sending him rocketing into several of the rising gang members, colliding with them and causing them to fall over.

Dori and Leon watched as the guys rose up, terrified at the sight of Palva's foot in flames, giving a clare with pupils similar to that of a monster's. A dragon's eyes. "H-Holy crap!" "The girl's a mage, too?!" "That attack knocked out the leader!" The gang members were in shock at what had happened to their boss. Carrying him, they ran away in panic as they knew they were completely outclassed in every way, leaving the four fighters remaining.

Natsu could only stand there, in total shock. The move she used was the exact same as the one he could use. But that meant something unpredictable had just happened.

"That girl…used fire magic like Natsu's!" Lucy gasped. "Yeah! That's one of Natsu's attacks!" Happy exclaimed, "But how could she use it, too?!"

Natsu watched, his expression unchanged, as Leon, Dori and Pastry joined Palva's side, questioning if she was okay, to which she responded she was fine. She's a Fire Dragon Slayer, just like me! he realized.

"You sure you're okay, Palva?" Dori questioned her little sister. "I'm telling you, I'm fine." She reassured her sister, raising her lance, "Look, I have my weapon on me, so I'm fine." "Well, if you say so." Dori sighed in relief.

"Trust me, she's fine." Pastry assured the older sibling, "Geez, you're such a worrywart, Dori." "You know just as much as I do why!" Dori retaliated.

As the two argued, Palva's nostrils flared up, sniffing something out. "What is it?" Leon questioned. "I smell flames…" she answered, "Magical ones…like mine…" Dori and Pastry stopped bickering, watching Palva as she turned to the direction of the smell. She saw Natsu standing there, watching her questionably. There was a moment's pause as she examined him from afar, then without a word, she left her group to approach the pink-haired male.

As soon as she got close, she started to sniff at Natsu from all about, like a dog meeting a new animal. Natsu watched her, very confused at her behavior.

"Uh, what is she doing?" Lucy questioned with a sweat-dropped expression. "Maybe Natsu's has a funny smell on him." Happy suggested, shrugging a bit, "I knew he didn't bathe this morning, but I didn't expect him to draw that much attention." "I don't think that's it, but 'ew' all the same." the blonde girl muttered.

After a few seconds, Palva looked up at Natsu's face, then asked, "You. Why do your flames smell like mine?" "I was gonna ask how you know how to use Dragon Slayer magic?" Natsu retaliated, poking at her head, "And more importantly, where did you learn it?"

"I didn't learn it. I was born with it." Palva explained, "The way you phrase it, it sounds like you know about it pretty well." "Because I'm a Dragon Slayer, too." Natsu stated, acting like it was obvious.

This bit of news startled Palva's team behind her as the said young teen started to put the pieces together. "Hold on. Does that mean you're…that Salamander guy?" she asked. "Yep. That's me." Natsu answered. Palva was stunned at the sheer coincidence of the meeting.

"No way! You're Salamander?!" Dori questioned, rushing up to him, with the rest of both parties joining them, too.

"How ironic. We were just going to Magnolia to find you." Pastry stated, flying onto Palva's head, "Guess that saves the trip of going there."

"Woah! Another talking cat!" Natsu exclaimed, "Why're you copying Happy, you copycat?!" "I'm not copying anyone!" Pastry barked back angrily.

"Wow. I didn't know there were other cats like me out there." Happy noticed, producing his wings and flying up to Pastry. "I've seen a few like me. Though you don't seem to have any quills on you, like I do." Pastry noticed, "But you are blue, so I guess that makes up for the normal factor."

"Are you saying I'm weird?!" Happy questioned angrily. "Maaaaybe." Pastry answered, looking away.

"Now, now." Dori stopped them as Leon grabbed Pastry and pulled him away, "Before we start causing arguments, we should probably introduce ourselves to one another. Let me start; I'm Dori Himeka. This is my little sister, Palva. This is our guardian, Leon Daywing, and his friend, Pastry."

"That's a yummy name." Happy told Pastry. "Well, I do love my sweets. Especially blueberry tarts." the ginger cat responded, drooling at the idea of the said sweet.

"Never mind that. Did you say you two are sisters?" Lucy asked Dori and Palva. "Yep. That's right." Palva answered.

"Does that mean you can use Dragon Slayer magic, too?!" Natsu asked Dori. "No. I don't possess the ability to use it." the older sister answered, "Like Palva said, she was born with the power. Even she doesn't know how she can use it." Natsu looked confused as he turned to Palva, who looked away from him, with a sort of depressed look on her face.

Natsu wondered why she was looking so sad, but decided to ignore it for now. "Well, anyways, my name is Natsu Dragneel. I'm a Fairy Tail mage. This is my best buddy Happy, and this here is Luffy." "It's LUCY!" barked the angry blonde. "Chill out, I'm just joking." Natsu chuckled.

"So why are you guys here at this port instead of the guild?" Leon questioned, "You guys on a mission or something?"

Natsu grinned confidently as he answered, "You bet we are. We're going on an S-class mission." "Aye, sir!" Happy agreed.

"S-class?" Palva questioned. "You guys are S-class wizards?" Dori asked, looking at their group in disbelief.

"Well, not exactly…" Lucy muttered. "Who cares?! We have what it takes to become S-rank, so we're gonna prove it everyone we can complete one, no problem!" Natsu declared. "Aye!" Happy agreed.

"I see. In other words, you guys are breaking the rules, taking an S-class mission despite not being S-class mages." Leon summed up. Natsu saw he was caught off guard, but was unable to deny what he said.

"W-Well, we still need to find a boat to Galuna Island." Lucy stammered, trying to keep herself from second-guessing her decision by mentally reminding herself what reward was shown on the flier. She turned and left, while Natsu watched her leave with a nervous expression after hearing the word 'boat'.

"Aren't you guys going?" Pastry questioned the two. "R-Right." Natsu moaned, turning to Palva, "See you around, short stuff. Wish I had time to chat, but we gotta mission to accomplish. Let's go, Happy!" "Aye, sir!" Happy agreed, and they set off together.

"Why did he look sick all of a sudden there?" Leon questioned. "Could it be…that he's like Palva when it comes to modes of transportation?" Dori assumed, looking at Palva as she watched the fellow Dragon Slayer leave.

"Well, what do you plan on doing?" Pastry asked Palva, "We did come all this way to find him." Palva looked at her staff, thinking to herself. While she hated to go on another boat after the very long ride before, she didn't come all this way just to meet the Salamander and wait for him again. She had to follow him now, before she lost him again.

"Hey, Salamander!" Palva barked. Natsu stopped and turned back, along with Lucy and Happy. "We're comin' with ya!" she declared, marching towards the Dragon Slayer. Dori, Leon and Pastry were all startled at this, as was Lucy and Happy for that manner.

"Why the heck would I let you come with me?" Natsu questioned, "We're on Fairy Tail business. It doesn't have anything to do with you."

"I don't care." Palva retorted almost immediately, "We came all this way to find you so you can help me, and I'm not gonna let some dumb 'business' or boat get in the way of that! You don't realize how important this is!"

Natsu looked at Palva's face, and was surprised to see the expression of sheer desperation she showed. She said she needed his help, but with what? She was a Fire Dragon Slayer like him, so what could she need help with? Nevertheless, this was important to her, and he couldn't say no to the expression she was giving.

Natsu patted her on the head, giving her a reassuring smile as he said, "Okay, then. As long as you don't get in the way, you and your buddies can come with us."

Palva's expression softened, then she sighed in relief. "Thank you." she thanked him. Natsu grinned at how despite that she didn't smile, she seemed very grateful for coming along.

"Well, we should've seen that one coming." Leon sighed. "We've come a long ways for this. I know she wants to be rid of this curse." Dori stated, walking forward, "Come on, guys. Let's see if this Natsu guy can help her." They all agreed, and they followed Natsu over to Lucy and Happy, who were bewildered by the sudden growth of their team for the mission, but didn't decline it.

They went to the port and started asking sailors and fishermen if they could take them to Galuna Island. However, all the responses they got had one thing in common; They were all too afraid of even speaking about the island, let alone take them to it. No matter who they asked, they all declined harshly on the offer.

The last man they went to had a beanie and cloak covering his entire body. "I don't know why you want to go there, but there isn't any ship here that'll take you. Even pirates avoid it." he told them. "Tell us something we don't know." Pastry sassed.

"Are you serious?!" Lucy questioned, worried of ever finding a ride to the island. "Don't know how you guys'll get there, now." Dori stated.

"It's decided! We're swimming!" Natsu said eagerly, getting an 'aye' of agreement from Happy. "Not a bad idea." Palva agreed.

"I told you, it's impossible!" Lucy barked. "I dunno. If you give yourself a good stretch before you swim, it could work." Leon retorted, stretching his legs as he said so. "Are you nuts, too?!" Lucy questioned incredulously.

"Found you." said a voice from behind. Natsu, Lucy and Happy were startled by the appearance of a character behind them, who durned out to be a black-haired young man around the same age as Natsu, with a dark green shirt, black pants, shoes, a silver wristband, and a black bag saddled across his shoulder.

"Gray?!" Lucy squealed. "What are you doing here?!" Natsu questioned. "Orders from Gramps to bring you back." the man called Gray answered. "The jig's up already?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"A friend of yours from your guild?" Dori asked Lucy. "Sort of…" she answered, hearing Gray mention to Natsu the words 'expelled from the guild', and became afraid.

"As if! I'm going on an S-class mission!" Natsu barked at Gray. "You ain't got the skills to handle it!" Gray argued back, then he looked fearful as he added, "Besides, if Erza finds out about this, you'll…" The other three looked too scared to think about it.

Erza? Leon questioned, pondering on the name, Why does that sound familiar? Pastry, on the other hand, looked very scared at the thought. He knew that name as well, but the thought of the name brought fear. Only Dori and Palva were clueless to the fear this woman's name brought.

"Gray, save me!" Happy begged, clinging onto Gray's shoulder, "Those two forced me to come along with them!" "You traitor!" Lucy barked at the fearful cat.

"I'm gonna face Erza down!" Natsu growled, "I'm not gonna back down from this!" "This is a direct order from the master!" Gray retaliated, getting in Natsu's face, "I'm gonna bring you back by force if I have to!"

Suddenly, Gray pulled back a hand, and produced several spikes of ice around his hand. "Don't complain if you get hurt!" Gray warned Natsu. "You're on!" Natsu barked back, producing flames from his hand in retaliation.

"Would you two just stop?!" Dori barked, thrusting her hands in between them, "Violence is not the solution here. It'll only bring more problems!"

"Who asked you? And for that matter, who are you?" Gray questioned. "She's with us!" Natsu answered, wavering his eyes to their new helpers, "They're gonna help us take on the S-class mission, too!"

"You seriously joining a chump like him?" Gray questioned Dori, "He's not even qualified for this mission!"

"Maybe so, but I'm not the one you should be questioning." the magenta-haired girl noted, "It's my sister who chose to follow him." Gray looked to Palva behind her, who glared back at Gray, showing her firm resolve to follow Natsu.

"Magic?" the fisherman questioned in amazement, seeing the two mages's powers at hand, literally, "Are you mages? Could you be here to lift the curse from the island?"

"Yeah!" Natsu answered. "Well, we were…" a hesitant Lucy muttered. "I won't let you go!" Gray barked. "I'm just plain confused." Pastry muttered.

The boatman was startled for a few seconds, then he waved a beckoning hand as he instructed, "Get on board." Everyone was startled at the sudden change of heart he had.

Before Gray had a say in the matter, though, Natsu kicked him unconscious. "What the hell did you do that for?!" Leon questioned the Dragon Slayer as he went to pick up Gray. "Just a little precaution." he answered, saddling Gray's body over his shoulder, "Oh well, guess we're ridin' this boat."

"So does this mean he's coming with us?" Dori questioned Natsu, "Why not just leave him here?" "If this guy goes back to the guild, Erza'll be coming next!" Natsu warned them, showing a terrified look on his face. Lucy, Happy and Pastry all gave the same fearful looks.

"Is she a really scary person?" Palva asked. "Seems like it." Dori answered, "Even Pastry seems to fear her."

"You have no idea…" Leon agreed, causing the two to look at him in confusion. "You sound like you know her." Dori noticed. Leon shook his head in response, the added, "It's more of a feeling. One that makes me tense up." This brought even more confusion to the sisters.

Some time later, darkness fell on the seas, as well as on top of everyone in the boat. Natsu's cheeks were bulging as his head was hanging over the side of the boat. Palva's face was pale and sick-looking, with spiraling eyes to boot, while her sister held her close, trying her best to relax her. Gray was probably just as uncomfortable as the Dragon Slayers, due to the fact that his body was bound up in rope.

"So I guess it's the same for all Dragon Slayers, huh?" Lucy summed up, looking at poor Palva, "She can't handle transportation?" "All except for living creatures, like Pastry." Dori answered, "If she flies with him, she's fine." "Just like me and Natsu." Happy agreed.

"Either way, the darkness is kinda scaring me." Lucy muttered, looking at the darkness about them. "You're one to talk, after getting me mixed up in this!" Gray growled, then to the boatman, "And you, too! Why did you launch the boat?"

"My name is Bobo." the boatman introduced himself, "I once was a citizen of that island." He then looked down in a fearful look as he added, "I ran away from that cursed island. If you go to that island, grave misfortune will befall you."

"I wouldn't mind falling into the sea right now…" Palva moaned. "I'm with you there, kid." Natsu agreed. Both lurched a bit at their sick status.

"Can you really undo the curse? This demon curse." Bobo asked, and he unveiled his cloak to reveal a frightening sight. His left hand, arm and shoulder were not human, but of that of a demon-like creature.

"Old man…that arm…" Gray stated in shock. "Whoa. That's creepy." Leon added. "The curse…you don't mean…" Lucy realized.

Bobo looked up ahead, and said, "You can see it now. That's Galuna Island." Everyone turned to see an island off in the distance. It seemed normal enough from a distance, apart from the shining light on the highest point of the mountain.

"What's that?" Lucy asked, "There's something shining on the peak of that mountain." "Is that where the residents of Galuna are at?" Dori asked, her eyes narrowing.

The team was so distracted by the sight of the island, they failed to notice what happened to Bobo until they turned to see he had vanished. "Hey, where did he go?!" Lucy questioned. "Did he fall overboard?" Gray questioned. "I didn't hear a splash." Leon noted. "Then how did he vanish from the boat?" Pastry questioned.

Just then, the waves became harsh, and the boat started to go at an angle. "Guys, look!" Dori gasped, noticing a huge wave coming towards them, aiming them towards the island.

"A huge wave!" Lucy screamed. "Where did it come from?!" Happy questioned. "It's gonna engulf us! Hold on!" Gray yelled, though he barely had the ability to move his arms. The two Dragon Slayers could barely move from being so sick.

"Happy! Pastry! Grab the boat and fly!" Lucy ordered. "We're no that strong!" Happy answered as the wave engulfed them, shattering the boat and sending the group plummeting into the water. The pressure of the wave and the surrounding waters made them all black out before they could even endure.

It felt like forever before Dori woke up first. Her eyes fluttered at the sight of sunlight and palm trees, trying to make sense of what had just happened to her. Finally, she started to regain her senses, and her eyes were fully awake. She sat up slowly, looking about. They had arrived on the island shores, and it was daylight. She saw the rest of the group unconscious, and pieces of the boat that had floated ashore like they did.

"Well, that certainly wasn't a pleasure cruise." Dori moaned, stretching her arms up into the sky. "You're telling me…" moaned a voice from behind her, and she turned to see Lucy appear from behind a palm tree, massaging her head.

"You doing okay?" Dori asked the blonde. "Yeah." she answered, "How 'bout you?" "I'll manage." Dori answered, turning to the rest of the group, seeing Happy's tail flicking while he was face down in the sand, "Let's get everybody else up."

After they got everyone back to their senses, they all agreed that they landed on Galuna Island thanks to that tidal wave. "We really lucked out." Gray groaned. "You're right about that." Leon agreed.

"But what was with that guy…?" Lucy questioned, "He said something about the Demon Curse?" "I've heard about all kinds of curse powers from books, but never something like that." Dori noted.

"Who cares?! I wanna explore! It's an exploration!" Natsu exclaimed in a childish manner, with Happy 'ayed' in agreement. "You're more interested in that than the request?" Lucy questioned.

"He's certainly nothing like me." Palva compared, then yelled to Natsu, "Hey! Can you get serious?! You said you were on a mission, right?!" Natsu stopped in place as he realized his reasons coming here.

Dori then looked to Lucy and asked, "Speaking of which, what is the mission you were sent here to do?" "Oh, right." Lucy realized, realizing she had not informed them of the situation. She pulled out the paper that had the S-class request on it. "According to this, we need to lift the curse off of Galuna Island." she explained, looking at the details of the request, "There appears to be one village on this island. The chieftain is the one who made the request. Let's search for him."

"Wait." Gray stopped them, drawing everyone's attention. "What? The ship's destroyed, so you can't bring us back." Natsu reminded him.

"No. I'm coming." Gray retorted, surprising the other Fairy Tail mages, "It'd be annoying if you got up to the second floor before me, and if you got expelled, it wouldn't be any fun. We do this job right, and Gramps has nothing to complain about, right?" Natsu, Lucy and Happy all smiled in agreement.

"Well, we might as well help you guys complete this mission." Dori declared, indicating herself and her companions. "We're kinda stuck here, anyway. No point in separating after all this." Leon noted.

"That's great and all, but you sure you can handle this?" Gray asked. "Don't sweat it." Natsu assured him, pointing at Palva, "That kid there's a Fire Dragon Slayer like me."

"Are you serious?!" Gray questioned in shock. Palva raised a free fist, igniting flames around it. "He is." she answered.

"Speaking of which, what about you guys?" Lucy asked Dori and Leon, "We saw you guys fight off those bandits, but can you even use magic?"

"Of course we can." Leon answered, and he raised a hand, summoning a familiar magic circle to the group before producing a spear, "I use Requip magic. I have an assortment of weapons and a couple armors to work with."

"You mean…you're just like Erza?!" Natsu question in surprise. "Erza?" Leon asked, his eyes narrowing. The same feeling of slight hatred from before appeared once more from her name.

"Aye. She can use Requip magic, too. And she has a lot of armors to change into." Happy explained. "Then I guess we are the same. Though I only have four armor sets to chose from right now." Leon explained.

"What about you?" Gray asked Dori, "What's your magic?" "Glad you asked." she answered, and she raised an upward palm, producing a magic circle. Instantly, a small, foggy white, crystal obelisk appeared from her palm.

"I use Crystal Magic." Dori explained, "I can produce crystals from anywhere in my eyesight, including my body."

"Wow. That's so beautiful." Lucy stated, "So is it Maker magic like Gray's?" "No. My crystals can't take any complex forms." Dori explained, "But I've studied many years in harnessing the full potential of my Crystal Magic, so I'm pretty useful."

"Yeah, out of all of us, my sister is probably the strongest mage here." Palva pointed out, then in a slight depressed manner she added, "And the one who has the best control over her magic, too." Dori looked to her younger sister in a sympathetic manner, knowing why she added this.

"Cool. Then I can't wait to work with you guys." Natsu stated, oblivious to the moment, "Let's go save this island!" "Yeah!" everyone cheered in agreement, and they set out into the jungle.

As they ventured into the dense jungle, Happy looked to Pastry flying nearby and asking, "So where did you guys come from, anyway?" "From the western continent, Alakitasia." he explained.

"You're from a different continent?" Natsu asked Palva, "Well, guess that explains why I never heard of you."

"Same here. We only learned about you by a random traveler from Fiore." Palva explained, "When we heard about a Salamander who wielded the flames of a dragon, I thought this would be the best chance I got to get some help."

"And what is this help you need me to do?" Natsu asked. The young Dragon Slayer stopped in her tracks, looking down for a moment. Everyone stopped to watch her before she answered, "I guess you could say it's the same as this island. I need a curse lifted…from me."

"From you?" Gray asked, surprised. "You're cursed?" Lucy questioned. "Yeah. Ever since I was born." Palva answered, looking at her hand, "These flames of mine. They are nothing but a curse to me."

The Fairy Tail mages looked at her with concerned and confusion, while Leon, Dori and Pastry were looked at her and one another with sad looks, knowing her backstory far too well.

"Well, never mind that." Palva waved off, "Once we free the curse of this island off, then we can worry about me afterwards." She pressed onwards, with the others watching her from behind, then following after her.

What is she saying? Lucy questioned, watching her back, Why does she think of her flames as a curse? Natsu was also questioning this. He never thought of his Dragon Slayer magic as a curse, but Palva, who possesses the same magic, considers her magic something she doesn't want. There had to be a good reason behind it.

It was clear that they were unconscious on the beach for a while before, because night started to settle. They were reaching a large wooden fortress set of gates, with a sign that said 'Keep Out' on it.

"Well, here it is." Dori noted, "At least, I hope this is the village." "What's with the 'keep out' sign?" Natsu questioned.

"Excuse me!" Lucy called out, "Please open the gate!" No response from anyone inside.

"Should we bust it down?" Natsu questioned, clenching his fist. "No way!" Lucy and Dori barked back.

"Who's there?!" called a voice at the top of the gates. "We're from the wizard guild, Fairy Tail!" Lucy informed them.

"We didn't hear that anyone accepted the request!" the gatekeeper pointed out, causing Lucy to falter. Of course they didn't know, considering they were doing this request illegally.

"There must've been a mix up, and the message was sent late." Gray lied. "Show us your marks! All of you!" the gatekeeper ordered. The Fairy Tail wizards all showed their guild marks; Natsu's on his right shoulder, Happy's on his back, Lucy's on her right hand, and Gray's on his chest.

"They're for real! They actually came!" the second gatekeeper noticed, then to the other four with them, he asked, "What about these folks? Are they with the guild?"

"We're hired help, specializing in dealing with curses!" Dori lied, "We're not officially part of any guild, but we are here to help!" The two gatekeepers understood, and they lifted the gate open to allow them in.

"It's like we're entering the mouth of a giant monster." Happy compared. "Please don't say things like that." Lucy responded fearfully.

"Actually, I can believe that." Leon stated, "I've been through a similar situation in the past." "How are you still alive?" Lucy questioned in bewilderment.

They all entered in, seeing the row of ratty-robed covered people, with a short man in similar garbs, with a decorated face cover and a staff with a moon-shaped rock on it.

"I am the chief of this village, Moka!" the old man greeted, "Firstly, I have something to show you. Villagers!" Everyone disrobed their ratty robes to reveal their bodies, all of which had some sort of demonic limbs, horns, or even a wing. Moka himself had a hand with sharp claws.

"The same as the man on the boat." Gray noticed, as the rest of the team gazed at the horrid sight. "This is unbelievable." Palva gasped.

"Those sideburns are incredible!" Natsu exclaimed, seeing the chieftain's long, silver-haired sideburns that reached his waist. "Wrong part of the body, Salamander!" Dori barked, "Look at his hand!"

"Every living thing on this island has been cursed like this." Moka explained, "Dogs and birds, without exception."

"I can understand that this is a big problem, but why would you consider it a curse?" Dori questioned, "It might just be some sort of sickness."

"We've consulted countless doctors, but they say there is no disease like this." Moka explained, "And this appearance of ours is linked to the moon's evil spell."

"The moon's spell?" Lucy questioned. "This place has absorbed moonlight since ancient times, and the island once sparkled beautifully like the moon. But some years ago, the light from the moon started changing to a purple color."

"A purple moon?" Natsu questioned. "Guys, look!" Pastry pointed to the sky. "The moons coming out!" Happy noticed. They all looked up to see the clouds part, revealing the moon shining down from above them. However, it was just as Moka said; it was not it's normal white or even yellow, but an eerie purple color.

"He's right! The moon is purple!" Lucy gasped. "But it was white a couple nights ago." Dori recalled, puzzled. "Really, I didn't notice." Palva added. "We were on that ship." Dori reminded her, and Palva grimaced at the reminder.

"It's the curse." Moka told them, and they saw him and the other villagers' bodies started to tense, "This is the evil spell of the moon!" Suddenly, they all started to scream and flail in agony as their bodies began transforming before the heroes's shocked eyes. Any human flesh on their body suddenly warped into a demonic form. Natsu and Palva's team were at a loss as to how this was suddenly happening. All they did know was the moon was definitely involved. Within a few moments, the villagers and chieftain all stood their, as demons.

"I apologize for startling you." the chieftain apologized. "What in the world is this?" Gray questioned. "They weren't kidding on calling it a demon curse." Leon noted, "You guys practically became demons."

"That's…that's so cool!" Natsu exclaimed, surprising the villagers and allies alike, "Awesome! You got horns and spines and stuff! How can I get some?!" "He thinks this is cool?" a male villager asked. "No one's ever said that before." a female villager stated.

"Are you stupid?! These guys don't want to look like this!" Pastry barked, putting himself in Natsu's face, "They want to be normal humans!"

"Really?" Natsu questioned, then he felt sort of embarrassed as he said, "My bad. Guess we'd better do something about it." "Wasn't that the whole point behind taking the request?" Palva questioned, "I'm having serious doubts whether I need his help or not…"

"Returning to the matter at hand." Moka interrupted them, "When the purple moon appears, we all change to these demonic forms. If this cannot be called a curse, then what is?" Many of the villagers started to cry out of the pain of dealing with this dreaded fate.

"When the morning comes, everyone returns to their previous forms, however some never change back again!" Moka continued, "Their very minds have been stolen from them." "How dreadful." Pastry muttered.

"The ones who have been turned into demons, who have lost their minds… We have no choice but to kill them." the chieftain grieved.

The team was shocked at this, then Natsu argued, "But there might be a way to return them to normal!" "Yeah. Maybe binding them down until you found a cure or something." Dori added, "They were part of your village. You didn't have to kill them like that!"

"If we leave them be, then everyone would be killed by the demon!" Moka retorted, "Even when we lock them up, they destroy the jail. So…" He pulled out a photo of a man, and tears formed from his eyes, seeing his picture as he sobbed, "I killed my own son. My son, whose mind was turned into that of a demon."

He cried as he lowered the photo enough for the others to see. They were shocked, for the man he was grieving over was none other than the boatman that brought them here, Boko. "That's…" Lucy started, then she began telling the chieftain, "But yesterday, we…"

Gray hushed her before she could speak about the man, then realized, "I know why that guy disappeared. He couldn't rest in peace, could he?" Both Lucy and Dori were petrified at this statement. If what he said was true, then Boko was not among the living. He was a ghost.

Palva ignored all of this, looking firmly at the Moka and the villagers. Her grip around her lance grew tighter as her face contorted in disgust. They, themselves, were demons. They had been trying to hold onto sanity for so long, while dealing with a power beyond their control. And when someone became a full demon, they had no choice but to kill them. Anyone who was a threat to their existence, to their island, they didn't allow them to live or leave the island. The thought of these people having other options, yet choosing to kill the people who became demons, squeezed her heart tight from anger. She couldn't allow this to continue at all.

"Please save this island!" the chieftain begged, bowing his head to them, "If things stay like this, all of us will lose our minds and turn to demons!"

"We won't-." Natsu started, then Palva intervened furiously, "We won't let that happen!" Everyone looked to Palva as her face became determined. "I won't let you kill off any more people who turn into demons. It's a sick way of dealing with the problem, and one that shouldn't continue! I swear to you, we will stop this curse once and for all!"

The Fairy Tail mages were all surprised at her abrupt declaration. From what they could feel emanating off of her, this issue felt more personal than anything to her. To Leon and Pastry, they knew why she was taking this issue personally, but none knew it better than her older sister. After all, Dori dealt with people who saw Palva in the same exact way as the villagers saw themselves. The pain of those times was close to her heart as it was to her sister's.

"There is only one way to rid us of the curse." Moka informed them, and he pointed to the moon, "The moon… Please destroy the moon!" The team of mages were startled at the near impossible request. He really wanted them to destroy the moon? But a feet like that, as far as they knew, was impossible.

"Can you give us some time?" Dori asked, "We'll try to figure out a way to deal with the curse tomorrow morning, okay?" Moka closed his eyes, nodding in understanding. "Of course, but please destroy the moon as soon as possible!" he requested, "In the meantime, we'll give you one of our homes to sleep in. Please, stay out of the moonlight as much as possible, or be cursed, just like the rest of us!"

Moments later, most of the team were resting inside the hut given to them, settling into bed. Pastry and Happy were watching the moon from the window.

"I never thought I would ever see a purple moon like this before." Pastry stated. "It keeps getting creepier the more you look at it." Happy added.

"Happy, Pastry, hurry and close the window." Lucy ordered, "The chief explained, remember? If we get exposed to too much moonlight, we'll turn into demons ourselves."

As Dori settled down her bag, pulling out some pajamas, she made a sound as she stated, "We should get some privacy for us girls. Give me a moment."

She turned to Leon and the cats as she stated, "Can you make sure no one comes to this half of the hut?" "Sure thing." Leon answered, turning to Gray and Natsu, "Stay where you are, okay?" "Why's that?" Gray asked, while Natsu was confused.

Dori stepped towards the middle of the room and placed a hand on the ground. "Crystal Wall!" With a magic circle, a wall of crystal formed across the middle of the room, creating a dividing wall between the boys and the girls. The Fairy Tail mages were amazed at this magical skill.

"There we go." Dori sighed, turning to Lucy, "The crystals not see-through, so we can undress in peace without peeping toms." "Wow! Thanks, Dori!" Lucy giggled, grateful for the consideration, and the two started to get into their sleeping clothes.

"Anyways, what do you guys think of the request?" Leon asked the other boys. "I think it's insane." Gray stated, "Do they seriously expect us to destroy the moon?"

"Who knows how many punches it'll take?" Natsu questioned, though how he said it almost seemed too casual.

"You seriously plan to destroy it?!" Gray and Leon questioned simultaneously. "Natsu, no one has the power to destroy the moon, not even mages." Lucy informed him as she fitted a white shirt over her chest.

"But the request is to destroy the moon." Natsu reminded, "If we accept a request and can't complete it, it'll look bad for Fairy Tail."

"I get that the reputation of your guild is at hand, but the request was to lift the curse, not destroy the moon." Dori reminded him, "Besides, the moon is pretty far off. How do you plan on getting there?" "Happy." Natsu answered casually, startling the blue cat. "Not happening." he stated. "That's completely impossible." Pastry added.

"Well, in any case, it might be better if we look around the island tomorrow in order to find clues about this curse." Dori informed them, with Lucy nodding in agreement, "Having the moon around is important in so many ways, so destroying it is out of the question."

As Gray was stripping down to his underwear, Natsu looked outside the window again, asking, "By the way, where's Palva? I wanted to ask her a few things about her Dragon Slayer magic."

"She probably found some cover from the moonlight in the village." Dori informed him.

"Why doesn't she come inside here?" Natsu asked. "Because she hates being inside places with other people." Leon answered, "She fears she might cause fires that'll lead to trapping people inside and burning them to death."

"That's pretty extreme!" Lucy exclaimed. "But it has happened a couple times." Dori retorted, then turning to her crystal wall, she requested, "Hey, Natsu? Mind go looking for her?" "Sure thing. I'll sniff her out." Natsu answered, and they heard the door open and close from the other side of the crystal.

Dori finally settled down on her bed, now wearing her sleeping clothes. Lucy looked down at her, forming a question that had been in her mind since talking to the chief. Finally, she asked, "Can I ask you something?" Dori looked at her as she asked, "It might be a bit private, but can I ask why Palva feels like her magic is a curse? And does it have to deal with why she got angry at the chief before?"

Dori paused for a few seconds, wondering if she should answer. On the other side of the crystal wall, Gray and Happy looked towards it, also curious. Leon and Pastry didn't say anything, but wondered if Dori would say anything about it.

"Palva's magic is…special." she began, "She was born with the power to wield Fire Dragon Slayer magic, but it is such a powerful kind of magic, that she has no control over its' flames." "What do you mean?" Lucy asked.

Outside, sitting underneath the shade of one of the hut canopy's, Palva was sitting with her back to a pillow she had in her bag. She looked at the village in general, wondering. Destroying the moon was a complete impossible task to accomplish, but she couldn't leave this island with how it was. She couldn't allow to see these people kill each other off when they can't control the curse any longer. It would be no different than people killing her.

"Hey, kiddo." greeted a familiar voice. Natsu rounded the corner to see her in the shade. "What're you doing here?" she asked. "Thought I swing by to see how you were doing." Natsu answered, crawling underneath the canopy next to Palva.

Palva didn't say a word for a while. Even though she had many questions to ask a fellow Dragon Slayer, she didn't really know where to begin.

"Heard you can't stand being indoors with others, huh?" Natsu asked. "Yeah. That's right." Palva asked.

They sat in silence for a couple of seconds before Natsu continued, "If you breath fire in your sleep, I can't say I haven't done that either." "That's not it at all!" Palva barked angrily at him. Natsu looked at Palva's angry face, then she turned away from him.

"So tell me, why do you consider your Dragon Slayer magic a curse?" Natsu asked, the question forming after hearing about it before. "Do you hate it that much?"
"Well, yes and no." Palva answered hesitantly, "It's not much I hate it as I pretty much am afraid of it." "Afraid of it?" Natsu echoed, surprised.

"Let me show you." she told him, handing him her lance. He took it, and Palva let go of it, and looked down. For a moment, nothing happened whatsoever. Suddenly, her teeth started to grit as she curled her fists, as if she was trying to restrain herself. Natsu wondered what she was trying to do until he noticed her body starting to emanate flames. They started small, and in a few parts of her body. However, the flames started to spread and grow larger, singing the ground and nearing the area around her.

"Hey, what're you…" Natsu started, but he couldn't finish before a small spurt of flames came from her body, silencing him. Palva's entire body tensed up, trying to restrain the flames that were coming out, but with no results. She grimaced and moaned as beads of sweat came off of her forehead. The canopy above started to burn away a hole over Palva. The hut behind her was starting to smoke. Natsu was at a loss for words what was causing this. When she couldn't take it anymore, she stretched her arm out as quickly as she could, and took her lance, holding it close to her. In a few seconds, the flames died down, and she returned to normal, panting from exhaustion, but still in one piece.

"What the hell was that?" Natsu asked in surprised. "My magic." Palva answered, regaining her energy, "It's…uncontrollable." "What are you saying?" Natsu asked.

"Ever since I was born, I, myself, have never been able to control these flames." she began explaining, "Because of it, I've burnt so many towns and villages like this down without even meaning to. I've burnt people alive without wanting to. That includes…" she shed some tears as she sobbed, "That includes my parents." Natsu eyes dilated in shock at this. He never thought her magic would cause her to accidentally kill her parents.

"Because of this, I've been called a fire demon." she continued, stifling back the tears, "People think of me as a nuisance for that purpose. Many people in my continent…even wanted to kill me." "Palva…" Natsu muttered, not sure what to say about that.

"…I was the only remaining family she had left." Dori continued the story, "We've been on the run for quite some time, ever since she was three years old, when she accidentally caused a major city to go down in flames. That was ten years ago."

"You've been on the running for your lives for that long?" Lucy asked, horrified at the story so far. Dori nodded, then continued, "We've tried finding so many ways of stopping her flames from going out of control. We tried consulting those who specialized in Fire magic, but none could ever find any way of helping her. The only thing that can suppress the flames inside her is her lance, Dragonic Fang."

"That lance she carries can suppress her flames?" Gray questioned, looking to Leon, who nodded. "It's practically the only thing that keeps her magic in check." Pastry informed them.

"…Supposedly, the blade of the lance is said to have been made from a fire dragon's actual fang." Palva explained to Natsu, raising the staff in front of her, "As long as I'm in physical contact with this, I can control my Dragon Slayer magic."

"Seriously? This lance has the fang of a fire dragon?!" Natsu exclaimed, then looking up at the blade of the lance and taking a whiff, he stated, "Actually, smelling it almost reminds me of Igneel. Guess it really was the fang of a fire dragon."

"Who's Igneel?" Palva asked. "My dad." Natsu answered, "He's the one who taught me Dragon Slayer magic. He's also a dragon."

Palva was in shock at this new bit of info about Natsu. "Your dad's a dragon?!" she gasped, "Where is he? Can I meet him?!"

"I'm looking for him, too." Natsu answered, and he looked a bit sad at this, "He vanished one day, and I've been looking for him ever since. So far, no dice. But I know he's out there, somewhere." Palva felt a bit let down, but could feel Natsu was sad at losing his father figure. Then again, it's not like he was lost forever, like her parents.

"You're lucky to know he is at least out there." Palva stated, "At least you don't have the guilt to know that your parent is gone forever, or that it was your fault they are gone."

Natsu looked to Palva, and noticed the tears starting to fall from her face. "You don't have to be constantly ridiculed as a monster, or constantly hunted down just because you have a power you can't control." she sobbed, looking to Natsu, "I had to deal with this all my life. Every time I lost control of my powers, something always is destroyed, and people want to kill me for it. Dori has done so much to protect me, as did Leon and Pastry. But I don't want to be a burden to them anymore. Please, Natsu. Save me from all of this!"

Her emotions were overflowing from what she wanted more than anything, what she had to endure for so long, and who suffered because of it. The moonlight shone down from the hole she burnt through the canopy, and it made her tears glisten as they fell to the ground before her. She tried so hard to stifle the tears, but that was a lost effort. Her hand holding her lance was wavering, but she held it tight to prevent herself from losing control.

Just then, she felt a warm hand placed on top of her head, and felt Natsu's breath ruffling the hair on her forehead. She looked up, and saw Natsu giving a reassuring and comforting smile towards her.

"Don't you worry about a thing, Palva." Natsu told her, "I'll make sure you don't have to suffer any more. You're not a monster at all. You're a Dragon Slayer, just like me. I'll help you out with your powers, but only after we complete this request, okay?"

Palva's eyes went wide as Natsu's words touched her heart. For once, someone other than Leon, Pastry, or her sister didn't consider her a monster. Someone else saw how dangerous her powers were, and wanted to help her so eagerly. She was so relieved at this, that she closed her eyes and placed her head on his chest, grabbing his vest tightly.

"Thanks you." she whimpered. Natsu gave a toothy grin at how grateful she was to him. She truly was a kind spirit, and he knew that, as a Fairy Tail mage, he couldn't walk away from someone so desperate.

Back in the hut, Dori had placed down the crystal wall, and everyone was in their beds. Leon and Gray were already dead asleep, snoring away, as were Happy and Pastry. Lucy was attempting to go to sleep, but the snoring of the two boys kept her awake. Dori had the window cracked open, looking outside to see any signs of Natsu or her sister.

"Geez, I can't sleep with all this noise." Lucy moaned, raising herself up. She then noticed Dori at the window, wide awake still.

"Have Natsu and Palva come back yet?" Lucy asked the older sister. "No, and I don't think they'll come back tonight." she answered, walking away from the window and settling herself down at her bed, "I'm sure they're gonna be alright. They are fellow Fire Dragon Slayers, after all." Lucy smiled in agreement.

"By the way, I have something for a goodnight sleep." Dori told her, and she dug into the small pocket of her bag, pulling out two sets of earplugs. "Wow, that's really convenient." Lucy stated, gratefully taking a set.

"You can tell Leon's no silent sleeper." Dori stated, "And Palva may not look it, but she can snore with the best of them, too." Lucy giggled at this statement.

"Well, let's get some shut-eye, and investigate this island tomorrow morning." Dori declared in a hushed tone. "Yeah. Goodnight." Lucy told her. They crawled underneath the sheets, and fell dead asleep.

Outside, Natsu and Palva were fast asleep as well, snoring away simultaneously, while the villagers in their home were desperate to block out the noise. The purple rays of the moon shined all about the island as the inhabitants and mages alike were oblivious to the actual cause of the curse, nor did they know what was sleeping within the belly of the island as well, waiting to be revived once more.