Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Fairy Tail

The first thing Invel noticed was that the light was gone. His eyes opened, blearily looking around him with a frown. Hadn't he been caught in his majesty's death magic? If not that, hadn't he been enduring the most excruciating pain he had known? Still, he did not know for certain what to say. Then, he blinked a few times, trying to focus his gaze on something else. Why did everything look so blurry? Then, he realized it. His glasses were gone. Wherever they had fallen, he supposed he'd have to find them later.

Sitting up slowly, Invel glanced down at his arms. Nothing felt unusual or out of the ordinary. Flexing them carefully, he found it odd that there was no lingering pain. Was it just an illusionary suffering the spell created? It seemed odd that it would effect the mind when it was meant to target magic so directly. Yet he did not wish for the pain to return, so he simply settled with frowning down at his own self.

It was oddly quiet in the cavern. In the distance, he could see the hunched over figure of the man that had been waiting for them. Something looked defeated in the way he held himself, as if he had realized his goals were not as great as he believed them to be. Staying quiet, Invel rose to his feet, not wishing to disturb him. Turning around, he spotted Zeref, not far away from him. The black wizard was collapsed as well, one arm sprawled out at an angle away from his body, leaving his hand resting off to the side above his head. The other seemed to loosely grip two books near him, which made Invel pause.

One he would have understood. He knew Zeref had obtained the Book of END, and while he had not paid enough attention to notice him carrying it before, he supposed it was likely he had it with him. The second, however, seemed odd. Where the one was a deep, dark red, almost brown in color, the other binding seemed to be a dark blue. Moving forward, Invel knelt down, frowning as he carefully tilted the book to see the covers of both. In black lettering, the red one was labeled with END, marking it as the book of Zeref's greatest creation. The other, however, made Invel jerk back, dropping both of them and falling onto the ground. His own name had been written on that cover, in the same jagged font as the letters of END yet taking on a pale white coloring instead.

His first thought was that it was not possible. Nothing felt off about himself, or different, so how could he have become a demon? Then, it hit him. He had spoken with Natsu, after all. Whatever was demonic inside of him was sealed, just as it must have been within himself. A hand pressed to his chest, shaking as he stared at the ground with wide eyes. He was sitting on his knees, his legs growing numb, but he truly found he did not care at the moment. After all, he did not have reason to leave, not while Zeref still seemed to need time to recover.

Then, he slowly began to shake his head. He could remember Zeref saying that a bond would always exist between them. This took that to another level, and Invel wanted nothing to do with it. He did not want to be one of Zeref's demons, always subservient and practically worshipping his very name. He refused to do that anymore, now that he had seen better methods of thinking for himself. Doing that would take him away from what he was slowly building in Fiore, a life where he could fight for his own happiness rather than that of another. It was not something he would allow, no matter what he had become.

Frowning, Invel stared at the book again. Shouldn't he be incapable of such thoughts then? It felt strange, trying to analyze his own mind to see if it was still his own. After all, if it had changed, would he truly even know? It would seem normal to his mind, since it was the new norm, yet remembering what it used to be like would prove difficult. While Invel could recall his previous interactions with others rather clearly, he supposed recalling his exact thoughts at any one particular moment would be a challenge.

Having heard his unstable fall, the man behind him looked up. "You…you're alive?" His voice came out with a broken question, one which Invel saw no reason to open his mouth up to answer. Right now, he had other things on his mind. How could he not feel different? It was all he could focus on. Was he not the monstrous demon of Zeref? Demons desired death and destruction. That was all Zeref did when he made demons. When would it begin for him? "Thank god. I had thought…I had thought you were unable to get away. For one prepared to fight me as an enemy, you did seem oddly willing to sacrifice yourself to save me…I do not know what I can do to repay that."

All Invel could manage was a nod. Something was blocking his throat, or maybe it was the odd pressure in his chest that made him so afraid to speak. What would come out? Would it still be his voice? He did not even know if he still looked like himself. Larcade looked fairly human, but Bloodman was almost horrific in appearance. He was designed to inspire terror, and Invel did not know which model he was designed after. The thought itself made him feel sick, just imagining Zeref having such control over himself. Everything about him, Zeref may have just remade. Staring at Zeref's still form on the ground, Invel could only wonder why he had done it in the first place.

The man walked closer, his footsteps faint as he walked across the rocky ground. A faint splash was heard as he stepped in one of the puddles, but beyond that little noise was in the cavern. "Are…I suppose you are still recovering. For that, I am ashamed to say I can do nothing to help. If I had thought ahead of time…this all could have been avoided. Never did I realize Moon Drip had such an effect on people. Side-effects were not known to affect those within the vicinity of the spell."

Once again, Invel nodded. The man knelt down by his side, frowning and studying his face. "You appear to be unharmed, however. Yet…there is something different." He looked around, before walking away and returning once more. "Ah, here it is. Likely, they fell off when you collapsed." In his hand were Invel's glasses. Numbly, Invel took them and placed them on his face. It was a mechanical motion, one he could only find himself able to do now because of how much he had done it in the past.

Another silent moment filled the cavern. Invel's mind was almost a blank hum, circling back around through the same thoughts endlessly. He needed someone to tell him he was wrong. Someone needed to at least tell him nothing had changed, that nothing had to change because of this. Sting's face flashed in his mind, and suddenly, Invel wanted nothing other than for him to be here. The dragon slayer would know if it was possible for nothing to change because of this. Logic might have been able to give him the answer, but with his thoughts as chaotic as they were, he needed someone close to his heart that he trusted implicitly to decide for him.

The other wizard sat down next to him, frowning at him. "You are odd. I suspected you'd be enraged with him gone, given your previous protectiveness of Zeref."

Looking at Zeref, Invel finally managed to speak, just barley. "Not dead." It was a whisper, two words to correct the man next to him. Yet, it was still empty and monotone, sounding almost like the voice of a man expecting to be dead himself.

That tone seemed to make Jellal sit up straighter, leaning away from him slightly. "Are…you do not sound as you used to. Perhaps you are right and the black wizard still lives…yet if that is the case, would you not be standing triumphant before me?"

He didn't want to answer. The only person he wanted to speak with was Sting, and the dragon slayer was not here. So, he closed his eyes, inhaling deeply and pulling his legs to his chest. He would wait. Sting would be here soon enough, and this man would realize he would not speak. "Odd. I find myself relieved to hear you say he's alive. When you collapsed…I cannot describe the way he looked. Furious, enraged…yet so determined to fight back against what fate had set out before you. Perhaps history does indeed paint him in a dark light, and perhaps it is that history that others follow. From what I just witnessed…he is simply a man who fights to cling to all that he has, however little that may be."

Footsteps came faintly at first, from a distance. Invel didn't turn to look up at all, sitting still in the room. However, Jellal did stand, turning around with a faint smile. "Meredy. I see you've made some new allies on this island."

Turning his head, Invel frowned. There, he saw a girl with light pink hair, dressed in the same style of robe that Jellal had once been wearing. Behind her, August and Sting seemed to have frozen, their eyes locked on Invel. Yet, the ice wizard could not speak, even with them here. Why? Why was it so hard to explain? Yet, he couldn't help but think of how stunned Sting had been that Natsu was resurrected at all, let alone END. Would it change the way Sting treated him? He had not known what Sting's relationship with Natsu was like before to know if it had altered in any way. Invel did not want anything to change, yet he couldn't help but dread that it would.

The girl smiled at Jellal, gesturing to the others. "Yeah, these two actually helped us out a bit with the moon drip. They claimed they had a spell to eliminate themselves, but were just waiting for the right time to use it."

"No…Invel, his majesty, he isn't—"

Taking a deep breath, Invel looked at the ground. "Unconscious." If he were dead, Invel would be too, after all. August had nothing to worry about with that knowledge safely inside of Invel's own mind.

Still, neither of them looked away from Invel. August opened his mouth to speak, before closing it and lowering his head slightly to stare at the top of Invel's head. "I have not seen you like this before. This is…reminiscent of when you first came to Vistarion, but…I do not think it is the same."

"Like what?" Jellal spoke, frowning at them. "He has been like this since he woke up after the spell faded away. Unfortunately, I did not realize its effects on people trapped within…he somehow knew, and pushed me aside, yet he did not escape the spell."

"He…he was inside of the Moon Drip spell?" Sting looked pale, his gaze spinning towards Jellal. "Why the hell did you even tell your friend to activate it then?"

"Because we came to this island to destroy Zeref and prevent him from gaining more followers…from creating more demons, chaos, and destruction like he was always known for." He sighed, glancing towards Invel. The winter general couldn't help but feel an odd urge to laugh at that. Jellal had pushed Zeref to make another demon, rather than stopping anything. All that came out was an odd noise, something like a cross between a sputter and a choking noise. "After meeting him, I am inclined to believe he is not the wizard I believed him to be based on the history I've heard."

"Of course he is not. History is always written by those that triumph, and his majesty has always found himself falling into despair rather than rising into victory." August spoke, though his gaze lingered on Invel. "This is not a result of pain from a spell. Invel has known pain, and he recovers well."

"Well…he is kinda like history makes him out to be. He did try and get Invel to kill me, remember?" Sting's tone was light-hearted, yet it sounded forced. His gaze kept flickering towards Invel, yet the winter wizard did not know what to say to him at the moment. How could he even begin to explain what it was that was on his mind?

Still, the girl walked over towards Zeref, frowning as she gazed down at him. "All of that and he still isn't gone. Well, at least it looks like we've got—" Invel saw her kneeling down towards the books, and he reacted. If his book was destroyed, he would be gone with it. So, self-preservation still won out within him, making him send a flurry of snow towards her and shoving her away.

The girl landed on her back, looking up with surprise. August and Sting watched, looking almost as stunned as she was by his actions. Yet, Invel knew he couldn't just leave it at that. So, he moved towards Zeref, taking slow breaths to try and keep himself steady. Then, he knelt down and collected both books, avoiding even looking at them as he pressed them to his chest. "Wait…do you even realize what those books are?"

Jellal spoke, staring at Invel who simply nodded, falling back to the ground and closing his eyes. "Books?" August spoke, stepping closer. "His majesty was only in possession of one of his demonic books. You speak as if there are multiple."

"He did have two with him." Meredy spoke, while Invel felt his shoulders shake.

Keeping his gaze on the ground, he inhaled deeply. "Moon Drip is deadly when it is at its full strength." He did not elaborate any more, simply letting his words hang in the air.

"So we didn't do the spell right?" Meredy frowned, glancing towards Jellal.

Shaking his head, Invel met her gaze. "No, you did it quite well. As Jellal has stated, his majesty is known for attempting to fight back against fate…even death itself. Apparently, he valued my existence more than I suspected…not only did he lose control of his magic, but he also…" He trailed off, unable to say the words out loud.

Invel had not been looking at anyone, so it came quite suddenly to him when he felt arms wrap around him from behind. The embrace was familiar, with hardened muscles pressing into his back and the slight softness of fur brushing against his hand as Sting's vest pressed against him. "Stop. I…I think I get enough of what happened." Sting's voice sounded thick, almost pained. "I don't think I want to know any details…I don't want to picture what that looked like."

Closing his eyes, Invel nodded and became silent once more. "That's…you are claiming that you truly did perish in that spell?" Jellal was gazing at him, his eyes wide. "Then…Zeref is aware of how to bring the dead back to life This is monumental…the lives that could be saved, simply by using—"

"One cannot bring the dead back to life without incurring the curse that established the death magic you know him for." August spoke calmly, meeting his gaze. "In fact, it was that very curse we came here to eliminate ourselves. If you wish to bring it upon yourself, so be it, but do not lightly imagine an ideal world with so much death created by your own hands."

"That still doesn't explain what the second book is." Meredy frowned, while Invel looked up and met her gaze. He flashed a smile, but it looked more disturbing than pleasant.

"That would be mine. See, Zeref only knows one method of creating life…and that is to create demons." The girl stared at him, before what he said seemed to sink in. She took a step back, while Jellal turned towards him with shock written across his features.

"You're…he made you a demon?" Invel simply nodded, pulling the books closer to him. Sting's grip tightened, and with that, he found himself relaxing just a bit more. The other blue haired wizard seemed to look wary, uncertain of what to add. "That does not make sense. Demons are violent and deadly…monstrous, in a way. Yet, you've showed no signs of being as inhuman as they are."

"Shut up." Sting spoke, glancing towards him. "If that's how you think, then you don't know a thing about what demons are. Did either of you meet any of the demons on this island before coming here?" Jellal and Meredy shared a look, hesitating for a moment. "Then you know that not all demons are like that. Don't stand there and tell Invel he's supposed to be some kind of monster just because he was forced to become a demon in order to live. Don't try and tell him who he's supposed to be at all, because you don't have the right to even try and help him, not after being the reason this happened in the first place."

"And don't you lay all the blame on us. You helped me with the Moon Drip spell too, remember?" Meredy narrowed her eyes at him, while Sting seemed to stiffen. His grip loosened, pulling away slightly. However, Invel reached around, grabbing Sting's hand and keeping it pressed to his stomach.

"It matters little who is at fault for what." Invel's grip tightened on Sting's, closing his eyes until the dragon slayer slowly relaxed again with a sigh. "In the end, this event occurred because all of us intervened in some form or another. I provoked Jellal, he provoked Zeref, Meredy followed his orders, August and Sting wished to utilize Moon Drip quicker than you would allow, and Zeref…well, I'd say his role is rather obvious at this point. No single person is to blame…and if you wish to add more, I certainly could reason further names into the mix."

Sting leaned forward, pressing his head down into Invel's neck. Invel leaned his head to the side, pleasantly surprised by his actions. He felt Sting press his lips to his neck gently, before sighing and simply relaxing there, holding Invel tightly to his chest. "Either way…I won't complain about what he did." Invel felt some of the weight leave his chest as Sting held him tighter, an iron grip that refused to let him move even if he wished to. "I don't think anyone would have been able to convince me it wasn't my own fault if he didn't bring you back."

"Yet you do not find yourself concerned about his new demonic nature?" Jellal frowned at him, while Sting looked up and met his gaze steadily with a faint frown.

"What demonic nature?" Invel turned his head, staring at Sting with wide eyes. "He still smells like Invel to me…and he acts like the same guy too, though he clearly seems to be having some issues at the moment." Sting glanced towards him, lifting his head with a faint smile. "I'd be willing to bet I'd be hearing all about them right now if you two would just shut up and leave. No offense, but I'm not all that fond of people who help kill the guy I love. So, I'm not all that crazy about you and your group, no matter how good and decent you think your mission really is."

Jellal didn't seem to know what to add. He gazed at the two of them, before smiling softly and shaking his head. "I see. Then can I trust you to deal with him, should he become something truly demonic?"

"I just said—"

"Leave him be, Sting." Invel spoke calmly, smiling faintly. "In all fairness, his reaction was better than I anticipated. Perhaps he truly did realize he had overlooked something when it came to Zeref and his creations."

His voice was soft, more life entering it than before. No longer did it feel like a horrific end, to wake up and find that book. Yet, he couldn't help but dread seeing Zeref again. Sting believed him to be the same, but did he know the full extent of what being a demon did to a person? Still, Sting kept him close, pressing his nose into Invel's hair and breathing in deeply. Jellal and Meredy seemed to be making their way out of the cave, leaving the rest of them standing in an odd silence. Once they were out of the way, Sting sighed. "So…you wanna talk about what that was about? You had me scared there for more reasons than one, Invel."

Closing his eyes, Invel ran his thumb across the spine of one of the books in his grip. "I…it is difficult to explain. In simple terms, I did not react well to discovering what Zeref had done, or more accurately, what he made me."

"Oh." Sting seemed to glance at him, seeing Invel turn slightly to face him. Sting kept an arm around him, now pressing Invel's chest to his own rather than his back. "Does it really feel all that different? Because if you hadn't said something…I don't think I would have even known."

Invel shook his head, smiling yet again. "No, it does not." Sting seemed to frown, while Invel reached over, gripping his waist tightly and staying as close to Sting as possible. "Yet, I worried I was. Is that odd? I questioned if I had changed and simply did not realize it. It would not be impossible for him to weave in such an event in the creation of a demon…"

Sting's frown faded, turning soft as he pressed his chin down against the top of Invel's head. "So that's why you're already getting over it. I guess I managed to help without even knowing what was wrong this time, didn't I?" He pulled back, smiling down at Invel. The winter wizard nodded in return, nuzzling his head into Sting's chest. "I'm glad. So what if you're a demon? Natsu's one too…and he's a pretty great friend. There's nothing wrong with that, alright?"

"Yet my very existence now is tied to that of Zeref." Invel glanced over at the black wizard, feeling Sting's chest rise and fall with his ever breath. "To both him and this book. It feels…strange, knowing that something so small and fragile holds the potential to end my life now."

This time, Invel could manage to look at the book in question. He leaned it back, gazing at the newly made book with a slight frown. Leaning down, Sting stared at it as well, frowning himself. "Huh. It looks like…you, in a weird way. Blue and white, like snow and ice."

Yet the white reminded him of something else other than snow. He could imagine the few moments he had seen Sting's magic, a brighter white than anything his snow could ever become. "The white is too bright for my snow. No…in that regard, I feel as if it is more similar to your own mixed powers, of white magic and ice."

"White ice you say?" Sting grinned, squeezing Invel's shoulders. "I rather like it. Either way, there's no way I'm letting anyone get even close to destroying that book. I don't get how you managed to get through those nightmares…just hearing what you were implying…" Sting broke off, swallowing after a moment. "Yeah. I'm not going to go through that, so I don't care if I have to protect that book and Zeref from the world to keep you with me. You aren't dying so easily again, got it?"

"Actually…defending me will not be necessary." Zeref spoke, startling them all. He had woken up while Invel spoke with Sting, and seemed to be watching them closely. "Yes, the curse has faded…yet Invel spoke to me, of his anger for the things I had done. No, I knew he would refuse to rest comfortably knowing his existence was tethered to my magic…so I focused on the source of the Moon Drip instead. I drew upon its energy for the spell, rather than my own…and by doing so, tethered his existence to the magic of those casting it instead." His gaze flickered towards August and Sting. "In essence, his life is sustained by both of yours. Eventually, it will likely be sustained by only your energy, Sting. Make sure you are capable of withstanding that drain on your energy before that time comes."

Invel froze, staring at Zeref with wide eyes. "You…but why? You spoke as if you wished to sway me into returning to Alvarez with you."

Zeref nodded, smiling at him. "I did. And I suppose I still do…but there are some things even I cannot compete with." His gaze flickered towards Sting, nodding slightly. "If Mavis were still here, there is no doubt in my mind that I would have remained by her side no matter where she went. Perhaps I would have even become a member of her guild, just to keep seeing her smile. So, I suggest you do the same, Invel. Do what gives you happiness, for such moments are often gone before you even get the chance to appreciate what you have."

"Your majesty…the curse, it is truly gone?" August spoke this time, his voice reverent and almost afraid to have hope.

Still, Invel was focused on his original words. Sting's magic was the tether that kept him alive. The dragon slayer still seemed to be taking that information in himself, his eyes wide and his body frozen by Invel's side. "Indeed it is. I was concerned for a moment, given the use of living magic during the process of eliminating it…but it seems to have given little interference in the end." Zeref gazed at August, smiling faintly. "And now…would you object to returning with me to Vistarion? I think I'd rather take a slower path this time, to get to know you better…to speak with my son as his father for the first time."

The elderly man smiled at him, moving forward. "I would like that." His gaze flickered back towards Invel and Sting, before nodding faintly. "Invel, I look forward to the day I see you again. Please, take his ma—" August broke off, glancing towards Zeref and inhaling for a moment. "Take my father's advice. You will be rather surprised as to what you gain when you embrace the bonds that form around you and allow them to give your life meaning."

He was already doing that. Yet, he couldn't leave things with Zeref quite like this. "I will." He glanced towards Zeref, bowing his head slightly. "Thank you for all that you have done for me. Perhaps I was wrong about you being incapable of earning my forgiveness. Maybe one day…maybe we shall visit you in Vistarion, Zeref."

The black wizard looked startled, blinking at him. Then, he relaxed slightly and smiled, nodding towards him. "You will always be welcome, Invel. If you can bring yourself to come, I would be grateful to have your presence in my council even if it were only for a single moment more."

"Then I think that settles it." Sting grinned down at Invel, seeming to recover slightly from the news. "Invel and I have some training to do, but when it's done…you know exactly where we're going. Because you better expect that I'll be heading there with him, Zeref."

"Of course." Zeref simply nodded, before turning to leave with August. "Now…do you happen to have passage off of this place? I assume we will be taking them to Fiore first before leaving for Vistarion."

August nodded, smiling and moving back towards the temple. They spoke of the repairs that would need to be done, and the delays that would come as a result. Watching them, Invel could have sworn Zeref was looking happier with every single problem and delay being given. Then again, he couldn't blame the wizard for wanting to take the time to get to know his son and make friends for the first time in centuries. As they wandered back through the island, Invel stayed by Sting's side, letting the others pick up their pace and get to the airship sooner.

Glancing towards Sting, Invel smiled faintly. "So. It appears as if yours is the life that sustains mine." He saw the dragon slayer look hesitant at his comment, meeting his gaze steadily though. "I think I am rather pleased by that thought. Yet, you seem concerned."

Sting nodded, sighing. "I don't want you to feel like you have to stay near me…I mean, I get that isn't quite how the spell works, but it sounds like you were worried it would…well, force you to stay near Zeref before."

"Not in that sense, no. However, he could have reinforced my loyalties to him in the process of bringing me back." He met Sting's gaze, smiling faintly. "And there is nothing other than my own desire to be here keeping me near you, Sting. For the first time in so long…I feel as if I am making decisions on my own behalf, rather than for another. It…it is freeing, and to be honest, I do not think I would have come to this point if not for you. At the moment, I'd like to remain near you…for being near you is what makes me see such things, and brings to me the only warmth I think I've known."

Slowly, Sting began to smile, reaching out and pulling him close. "Yeah? Well, then I think we've got a lot of work to do. Did you have anything in mind for starting my training yet? It seems like we keep getting distracted every time we try bringing it up."

Yet, being close to Sting seemed to be creating that very distraction he spoke of. The dragon slayer's smile widened, leaning close to Invel. "I…perhaps when we return, I'll have something in mind." Sting chuckled, pressing his lips gently to Invel's. The winter wizard closed his eyes, pulling him closer and feeling the slight hardness of the books held between them. Oddly, he couldn't help but think of Sting's own description of the cover from before, coming to mind as he remained pressed closely to the dragon slayer's body. White ice, the mixture of their magics as one. Invel found he rather liked the idea as well, the thought of the two of them knowing each other so well that they could know each others thoughts and magic with ease. When he thought of the future, Invel couldn't help but smile and pull Sting closer. The dragon slayer trailed his lips down Invel's neck, making him gasp slightly, yet he still kept his smile on his face. One day, they would be like that. He'd train Sting, make friends with the wizards in his guild, and then, he'd still return to strengthen the bonds he had with his former comrades in Vistarion. How he had ever been so alone while surrounded by so many was a mystery, but now, Invel couldn't even imagine being alone again, not with an insistent dragon slayer by his side to always remind him of how important such bonds could truly be.

And we've reached the end! Thank you to everyone for reading. I hope you enjoyed. Feel free to review and tell me what you think!