Alright, so, I uploaded this chapter earlier but, I just knew I could do better than that. So, with some alterations here and there, plus combining it with what was going to be the second chapter, here it is.

The Deal

Five years.

So many things change in five years.

Five years ago, Natsu-nii, Lucy-nee, Wendy, and so many others disappeared.

Five years ago was when a man named "Mest," the man who left them all to die, told them Tenroujima had disappeared.

Five years ago was the last time he smiled.

Ever since the disappearance of Tenrou Island and all of the S-Class exam participants, life had never been the same for a young Romeo Conbolt. He tried to get everything to go back to normal. For everything to be the same as it was before, when everyone was happy and cheerful. When family and nakama actually meant something. When every day wasn't just a struggle to earn enough money just to live another and keep the guild going.

He even tried dressing up like his idol to see if that would inspire anyone. But in the end that was futile as well.

Yes, Romeo wished for nothing more than to wake up one day and find out none of it ever happened. That it was all just some elaborate dream created by his seven year old subconscious and that all his friends were alive, safe, and on their way home. Natsu-nii would have been S-Class. Him and Gray-nii would have fought over who really deserved the title. Erza would have bashed their heads together and knocked them both out. And Wendy would be there to heal the two up.

But he knew that would never happen. This was no dream, his friends were gone, and Fairy Tail was on the verge of being shut down.

And it all happened five years ago today.

He liked to spend this day at Hargeon, looking out at the sea from where they left. He never liked to go to the graves, or to say he was mourning them. Both implied that they were dead. But as much as he held hope they weren't, each day that hope fades a little more.

This day was different, however, for the mission he'd convinced Alzack and Bisca to take a few days prior was taking longer than any of them could expect.

It sounded like a relatively simple mission. It was also a much higher-paying one than any of the ones they'd recently been getting, which could help keep Fairy Tail afloat.

The job was to guard an ancient tower that stood outside of a small town of Flosignis, located by the Fiore-Bosco border, just barely within Fiorian territory. Apparently it was rumored that a group of bandits were going to rob it. So here they were, waiting for the bandits. Waiting for them to strike.

But it's been three days...

Three days of waiting and exhaustion...

And well, Romeo was...

"So borrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeedddddddd." The purple haired preteen groaned, hanging himself upside down on a nearby boulder.

"You picked the mission, Romeo," Bisca sighed, "It's your own fault you're bored." It was fairly obvious she didn't want to be there either. Not only did was she tired from staying awake for three days straight, but she had a child back at the guild! Don't get her wrong, she loved her guildmates to death but, they weren't exactly the best influence.

Heck, they're the reason Romeo doesn't and probably will never know his first words. And while her daughter 's vocabulary was quite advanced for her age, Bisca didn't exactly want to go home and find her little Asuka cursing like a sailor.

"I know," The young boy groaned. "But can I at least practice my magic? Or maybe I could go search for the bandits? That way we won't have to wait anymore!" He shouted the last part with enthusiasm.

"No," the greenette coldly responded.

"Bu-"

"Romeo, you know you're too young to go off on your own. Besides,you should probably get some rest." Bisca suggested. "I'll get Alzack to help me look."

Bisca stared over at the tent where her husband was sleeping and called;

"Alzack."

No response.

"Alzack!"

Still nothing.

Bisca took off her boot and threw it at the tent. That woke her husband up, causing him to scream in a very "manly" way.

"ALZACK!"

"WHAT?!" The very disheveled and confused man called back, poking his head out of the tent.

"Romeo wants to rest."

"No I-" Before Romeo could finish, Bisca glared at him. He decided it would be best not to piss off the already cranky gun mage.

"Can you and him switch places, please?"

"Yeah, sure," Alzack replied. He got out of the tent,stretched, and sat over by his wife. All while the rainbow fire mage trudged over to his tent.

He climbed in and put the sleeping bag around him. He really didn't feel like going to sleep, so he just pretended so he could be alone with his thoughts.

'Is this really what we've come to? Are we really so pathetic that even the mayor of a dinky little village, one I've never even heard of, will give us a fake mission?! Out of what? Pity?! A joke?! Will they even PAY us for this?'

Romeo slumped over and groaned.

'I can't believe this. If Natsu-nii or the others were here things wouldn't be like this. We'd still be Fiore's number one guild, not Fiore's laughingstock.' He sighed.

'I just want to be able to help.' Romeo thought, 'How can I do anything if no one will even let me? All I want is for Fairy Tail to be a place we can be proud of again. For us, and for them.

Just wishful thinking I guess...'

Romeo began to shut his eyes and drift off to sleep. But not before hearing one final thought. One, that was not his own.

'Maybe I can help you with that...'

Romeo woke up in a world filled with fire. For miles all he could see was the endless flame, burning so hot they could even put the sun to shame.

But, even though Romeo could see the flames, and feel how hot they burned, he remained unaffected by them. In fact, they even felt oddly... comforting.

Despite this fact, however, he was still very alert. How did he get here? Where was here?

"Hello?" he called, "Where am I?"

His voice echoed through the vast emptiness. Shrugging, he figured he'd walk around a bit. Sure there wasn't much more to see than the bright orange flames, but it's better than just standing around.

He was about to take his first step when a large shadow wooshed right below him, causing him to jump and let out a "manly" shriek. At the same time, the flames around him all spiked.

"Romeo," a loud, regal sounding male voice called.

"Y-yes?" The twelve year old answered; the fire around him changing from the calming orange to a chilling blue. He tried to act brave, but the flame's color remained the same.

"H-how do you know my name!?"

"There is no need to be frightened."

"I'm not scared!" Romeo shouted, balling his fists. Streaks of red began to form in the fire.

"There's no need to pretend, young one. I can see your emotions in the flames."

"Huh?" The fire mage looked around, finally noticing the fire had changed color. "Ooooohhh..."

"Yes, here you cannot tell a lie."

"Okay..." Romeo said questioningly, "But where is here?"

"Inside your soul."

"What?!" Once again, the flames spiked.

"Yes. As of the current moment, you are sleeping in your tent in front of my tower."

"Okay, we're inside my soul," Romeo repeated, not really believing it, "But who are you?" The flames shifted back to there original orange color, yet still had a few streaks of blue.

"Someone who wishes to help."

"Yeah... that's not ominous at all." Romeo said sarcastically. "How do I know you're not a demon or something? I'm pretty sure that's something a demon would say." The flames around Romeo grew larger with streaks of red.

"I am no demon."

"That's also what a demon would say!"

There was a few seconds of silence, before Romeo heard the echo of a loud, deafening slap.

"Oh boy..." the voice sounded exhausted.

"You know, I get you being vigilant right now. I've seen it plenty of times before. Trust me, if I had a better method of doing this, I'd do it. But you seem very distrusting of me. Very contrary to what I see in your heart, despite the darkness also apparent on it." the voice casually mentioned.

"Why are you looking at my heart?" Romeo asked, annoyed. "And what do you mean 'darkness'?"

"Do not fear, young one. A little darkness can be a good thing, so long as you do not let it take control of you. But I noticed it grow slightly today. Is there something significant about this date?"

"No," Romeo lied, with the fire burning lower and turning into a deep blue. The color only made him sadder, as it was a color he knew very well.

"It's the day they disappeared, isn't it?"

"How do you know that!? Were you looking in my memories too!?"

"I didn't need to. You told me yourself, albeit unintentionally."

Romeo groaned, but conceded. "I just miss them so much..." he admitted, "Nothing's the same without them. I try to hold out hope that they'll come back any day now, but..."

"It get's hard, doesn't it?"

The young fire mage nodded. Tears threatened to spill from his eyes.

"I just want things to go back to how they were."

"Listen, Romeo. Things can never go back. They can only change and become something new. Your friends could show up at your doorstep tomorrow and things still wouldn't be the same as before, would it?"

"No..."

"I'm glad you understand." The voice sympathized.

"These friends, they're the reason you wish to become stronger?"

Romeo nodded again.

"Why?"

"Well, if the Tenrou team never comes back, I want to at least give us all a little hope that things will be okay." Romeo looked at his scarf, then back up. "Even tried dressing like Natsu-nii, since he could always do that. Give hope, believe in his friends. I want to be able to do that too."

"Your heart's already in the right place, young one. And I can help you."

"How?" Romeo asked hopefully.

"I will teach you fire magic unlike anything you've seen before. And when I am done, you will become one of the greatest masters of fire to ever have lived."

"Like Totomaru-sensei?" Romeo excitedly asked.

"Better. You will become the guiding light that leads your guild into a new era."

"Really?" Romeo was still a little doubtful of this mysterious voice. But, if it was telling the truth, this could be an incredible opportunity for both him and the guild.

Yet there was still one thing that didn't add up. "But wait... what's in it for you?"

"That will be discussed later. Now, wake up."

Romeo gasped awake, panting and sweating. He figured it may have something to do with whatever he was dreaming about, and prayed he hadn't reached the stage of puberty where he starts getting those types of dreams.

But he felt like it was something else. Sure, he usually doesn't remember many of his dreams, but he felt like there was something significant about this one. All he could remember from it though was a lot of fire and some sort of deal being made. And now he had this nagging voice in his head saying 'Go to the tower...'

Choosing to ignore it, Romeo exited his tent. He saw that it was now morning, and that Bisca was making breakfast over their campfire that smelled absolutely delicious!

He, along with Alzack, couldn't wait until it was done. Aside from Kinana and (formerly) Mira, Bisca was one of the best cooks in the guild!

Once Bisca had finished and passed out the food, both boys ate "Like they haven't had food in forever," as Bisca put it. To which Alzack and Romeo replied, "Yesterday is forever when it comes to food!"

As the rainbow fire mage ate, that voice popped into his head again.

'Go to the tower...'

Romeo stopped eating and stared at the tower as the voice in his head continued to beckon him. Bisca threw a worried glanced at her husband before asking the boy, "Romeo, what's wrong?"

Not bothering to answer, the ravenette got up and ran to the tower. The doors slid open to allow Romeo to enter, but slammed closed the second he was in, leaving the guns couple behind.

Romeo kept running, ignoring the calls of the two mages, and climbed to the top of the tower. He passed many strange artifacts on the way, most of which would have interested the boy had something not been compelling him to the top of the tower. And when he finally reached it, he saw...

… an egg?

Now, it wasn't an ordinary egg, otherwise this story would've been the biggest waste of time for both of us. For one thing, it was the only thing in this giant room.

It was about two feet tall, four including the pedestal it stood on. But that wasn't the most interesting part, it was how it glowed. It was as if someone took a large, glass eggshell and put a miniature sun in it.

'Maybe it's an exceed egg? Natsu-nii said those look somewhat like this.' Romeo thought, 'But he never said it glowed...'

The fire mage circled around the egg, trying to examine it and figure out what it was. Certainly it was important. Romeo highly doubted it would be at the top of this place if it wasn't.

'Maybe it's something else? Maybe it's a dragon egg!' he excitedly thought, his imagination filling with all the things he could do with a dragon.

Yet, that didn't seem right either. As said before, it just looked like glass with fire inside of it. Maybe it wasn't really an egg at all, but just an artifact containing some sort of mystical power?

He decided not to waste anymore time and just touch it. He obviously wasn't going to steal it, he's probably already in enough trouble for just being here. But maybe touching it will give him a better understanding of both what it is and why he was here at all.

He reached out and placed his palm on the egg. It felt warm and smooth, pretty much as he expected, but that was about it. He didn't feel any signs of life, no mysterious energy, no anything.

"Well, this was a waste of time," Romeo sighed. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he began to walk out of the room. "Probably scared Alzack and Bisca half to dea-"

CRACK!

Romeo's head shot back faster than a bolt of Laxus' lightning. His eyes widened in horror at the long, jagged line running down the egg.

He rushed over to the artifact to assess the damage. Needless to say, it didn't look good.

"O-okay, I can fix this!" Romeo said, not really believing it. His left hand lit up with his Purple Flare magic and trailed down the crack, covering it with the sticky fire.

Romeo let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't broken anything, and he can say this whole escapade was just out of boredom or something. As he was thinking this, however, more cracks began forming in the egg.

The ravenette panicked once again. "Nononononononononono!"

He reactivated his Purple Flare and tried to seal the cracks as they formed. Not long after, the entire egg had been covered with it.

"Heheh, no one will notice," Romeo sweated, attempting to act calm. That disappeared when he saw the egg shake.

The egg fell off its pedestal and landed with a soft thud. It's shaking grew more violent, causing it to roll around in a circle around the pedestal. Bulges began appearing from underneath the purple covering, and the egg moved faster and faster, until it actually started floating above its original resting place. The flare magic expanded beyond its limit, finally breaking and releasing a massive golden beam that shot straight into the sky. Romeo could almost make out some sort of birdlike creature at the top of it, but by then it was already descending back to the tower.

At the base of the Tower

The two gunslingers gasped in horror at the giant, monstrous, thing that was about to fall upon not only the place they were supposed to protect, but also the place holding someone who was basically a second child to them! (Or first child, if we're going chronologically) They tried pounding on the door harder, to no avail. They figured it was time for some "unconventional" methods.

Bisca requipped her Big Bazooka magic gun. 'Screw protecting the place', she thought, 'guildmates come first.' Putting her eye in the scope, she took aim at the door.

Near the tower

Two robed figures stood behind some nearby bushes, appearing to be just in time for the 'fireworks.'

"Looks like we're a bit late," the first figure stated.

"Yeah, I noticed," said the second. "We'd better report back to master."

The first figure nodded, and they went back to headquarters.

In Flosignis Town

An elder man with a long, white beard and red robe awoke to the sound coming from their sacred tower. He walked outside to see that many of his townspeople were awake too, and all of them were staring the massive pillar of light. Most of then were frightened, except for the old man. In fact, he grinned at it.

"Still as flashy as ever, aren't'cha Pyris?" He chuckled and went back to his house.

"Well, let's see how this one turns out."

Alright, chapter one done!

Romeo: Did you kill me in the first chapter?!

Please follow, leave a favorite if you feel like it-

Romeo: DON'T IGNORE ME HERE! I COULD BE DEAD!

And above all, please tell me what you thought of the chapter. Your feedback is always appreciated and it can tell me how I can improve my writing. But no flames, those will be fed to... oh, right. Spoilers!

Romeo: Why did you kill me!?

Oh you know I didn't kill anyone... yet.