A/N: I am veeeery sorry for the long wait. Here's chapter 10. Hope you'll like it :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail

The little boy had no idea what was going on. He could see people moving, running, yelling next to him yet his eyes were stuck on the boy in front of him, his senses shut down. Maybe it was because he was so small and young, or maybe because he just didn't understand. He did notice how everybody in the room glared at the boy in front of him, how the scarred man was the only one who kept those mages away from him. But his little mind made no connections. No. Even though he heard what the boy said, he was still lost. He felt as if he was a ghost and everything that was keeping him on Earth was the boy in front of him. So he did what everybody would've done. He clung to his gaze, not taking his eyes off his, not even for a second.

Scar was watching everything that was going on around him with his cigarette sticking out of his disfigured lips. He watched the green-haired mage yelling at Alzack and pointing her finger towards the black-haired boy behind him, gesturing with her other hand. Alzack remained silent and thoughtful, staring at Biska, throwing quick looks towards Ray. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't disguise the disgust in his eyes, disgust which the Captain noticed immediately. Fairy Tail valued family more than anything in the world. It was against all of their beliefs what Ray did. And he wasn't the only one. More and more mages were gathering at the door of the room, brought there by the loud sounds. Scar heard the ones that were present before whisper to everybody else what happened. It all spread so quick and judging by the shocked and reluctant faces they had, everybody came to one conclusion. A conclusion, which Scar guessed, wasn't too much in favour of the black-haired boy.

He gritted his teeth as he turned around and looked at his pupil who was laying against the wall. Scar held his surprise back as he looked at his empty face. Mere minutes ago he was yelling and crying and cursing and now he just stood there, with his mouth half open and his gaze lost. Scar threw a quick look towards the white-haired little boy and saw him staring back at his pupil, as if his life depended on it. He made a short sign of his hand and caught Mei's attention with a wince.

The boy was brought back from his trance by the scarred man's sign. He didn't know why he saw that particular movement when everything in the room went unnoticed for the last minutes, but he did know he wanted to return to his previous state. The moment he broke the eye-contact with Ray and turned his eyes to look at the Captain, every sound in the room returned brutally, hurting his ears. He became painfully aware of everything and everybody in the room. He noticed Biska and Alzack and the black-haired pierced mage that picked up on him when he first entered Fairy Tail and the blue-haired water mage and many more. He gulped as he pushed his back against the wall, trying to blend in with the shadows, further away as possible from the guild members and from Scar and Ray.

Ray was looking straight through the boy in front of him, straight through the green eyes he knew too well. Somewhere in his mind he knew that the boy was staring back desperately yet he made no move of recognition. For the outer eye he looked lost and empty yet he was completely present and focused, lost in his thoughts. Only when he felt his brother's gaze disappear he cleared his mind and focused his sight on the man next to him. But Scar wasn't looking at him, but at the small boy Ray observed was trying to go unnoticed. He made a few steps towards him before he could think twice.

In less than an instant, most of the mages in the room placed themselves between him and Mei, glaring. He gritted his teeth, glaring back. He knew they had every reason to block his path after everything they've seen and heard yet he wished they'd all disappear and let him settle everything alone with Mei. But judging by their stiff postures, he had no chance.

"Maybe we should leave them alone" Scar's deep voice echoed around the now silent room. For a second nobody said anything. But then they all started talking at once, yelling the same negative answers. Above all, Biska's voice could be heard the best.

"Absolutely not!" she furiously yelled at Scar "For heavens, he tried to kill him again minutes ago!"

Ray winced as she pronounced the word 'again'. Scar saw that and started to get angry. Those mages knew nothing of the story behind the incident. He himself knew it vaguely as Ray never talked about it. It annoyed him how they all treated Ray as if he was a killer on the loose. He clenched his fists and made a few steps forward.

Ray knew all too well it never ended good when his captain would get angry. As it happened very rarely, he wouldn't worry too much, but when it did, he felt pity for anybody Captain Scar's rage was directed towards.

Sensing the state his captain was in, he quickly made a few steps towards him, trying to place himself between Scar and the other mages. He could see from the corner of his eyes the puzzled and afraid faces some of the guild members were making as they watched the scarred man approach them with a death glare.

"Captain Scar...?" Ray let go of his captain immediately as he turned around to look at the door. Three mages were staying there looking straight at him and his master. The one who talked was the only woman of the three, a red-haired mage dressed in grey armour. She was looking surprised at Ray, but she quickly moved her gaze as he saw him staring back. Next to her was a blonde-haired man who had a lighting shaped scar crossing his right eye. He was looking back at Ray but contrary to what the girl did, he didn't move his gaze, but continued to stare at him in an insolent and defiant way. And in front of the two was a short old man who looked curiously at Ray. Ray turned his head and looked at his master, feeling intimidated under the old man's gaze.

Captain Scar quickly took his eyes off the mages in the room and tried to compose his face. The last thing he wanted now was them to believe they had two pirates with killer intents. He took out another cigarette and took it to his lips, moving slowly, taking all his time before having to answer.

He felt the tension grow in the room, knowing everybody was probably watching his every move. He sighted and straightened up, throwing a quick wink towards his pupil which nobody but the boy saw. He was now ready for everything they wanted.

Erza started to speak again, taking Scar's silence as a hint to go on.

"Laxus" the blonde mage took his eyes off Ray and nodded grumpily towards the scarred man" returned minutes ago. We will have a last meeting before we leave" Scar nodded and after he put out his cigarette he made a few steps and stopped in the doorway, right besides the three mages and looked back at Ray.

"And Ray?" he asked the girl

But before he could answer the old man smiled broadly and said "He of course can come if he wants. His recovery is very unusual of course as we expected it to happen later but we can't deny we will need any force we can get for this operation. I am Makarov Dreyar, Fairy Tail Guild Master by the way."

Ray looked perplexed towards Makarov. He figured out he was in a guild ever since he woke up. He would've been more curious to where he was and what has happened if he wouldn't have seen Mei. Or who everybody claimed to be Mei.

"What operation?" he asked. He noticed Mei from the corner of his eye as he was sneaking through the shadows towards the door. His white hair was unmistakeable. He had to talk with the little boy. He grew more and more tensed as he waited for an answer, following Mei around the room with his eyes.

"To save Lucy" answered the redhead, looking straight at him, following his reaction.

Ray froze. The girl's words brought back the memories of the past days that he kept buried inside as he tried to deal with Mei. He saw the bullet racing at him, he heard her scream and then he felt pain, he remembered how he was laying on the ground, with fire all around him, watching the girl as she was taken away from him while he could do nothing but watch. He finally understood what it was like to feel weak and incapable. The following moments were foggy and unclear, his mind balancing on the verge of death and life. Somewhere in that uncertain darkness he heard voices and then he felt he was lifted and carried away. The smell of the fire and the heat died out and the pain in his leg took over. Again seconds or maybe years passed until he heard a yell as he felt the ground under his back. Recognising the voice he made a great effort and opened his eyes and managed a few words and smiled, happy his master was alive. Everything after that was dark.

"Lucy..." he whispered with his eyes wide in shock. Her face was clear in his mind, her beautiful face distorted in a worried mask as she was taken away.

Erza smiled sadly, recognising the longing look on the boy's face with one that a certain dragon-slayer always had when he thought that Lucy was in danger.

"We have to save her! She is in great danger! The ritual ..!" but he was cut short by Erza

"We know. We'll be leaving as soon as possible. Everybody here knows and is coming. You can come too if you want. We'll explain the details to you too" Ray gave a short nod and followed them out the door.

But before he could turn around the corner and be gone, a voice stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Wait"

Ray knew that voice too well. It was the voice of his childhood, a voice he tried to bury deep inside a long time ago. He turned around and looked at the little boy in front of him. He never heard him speak since he woke up and it pained him even more to hear that he had the right voice. Mei was looking straight at him, a determined mine he didn't have before playing in his eyes. Everybody stopped and looked at the two brothers, enchanted by their invisible connection.

"Explain" he said again while looking in Ray's green eyes. "Please..." he whispered only for the boy to hear.

Ray was torn between his feelings. Everything was against his reason. His brother should be dead. He killed him. Yet, a perfect replica was standing right in front of him, with the same looks and voice and habits.

"What?" he asked sharply. He held his regret back as he saw the little boy wince. He could see how the boy was becoming more and more aware of the people around them looking straight at him and his determination started to fade.

"Who am I..." he answered in a frigid voice, so slow Ray was sure he was the only one that heard.

For so many years Ray has been torn by his memories, by his choices and mistakes. The memory of his smaller brother haunted his dreams every single night, reminding him of what he had done. There wasn't day when he wouldn't think that he'd give anything he had for another day with his brother and yet there he was, with his wish in front of him, unable to say more than two words.

"Ray was fourteen when all of this happened. Mei five." Ray looked surprised at Scar who started talking. He didn't know he knew but he was grateful he did. He looked at Mei who was devouring every word the captain said "They were orphans, sons of one of the greatest pirate of all times that died leaving behind no more than a small sack of gold and a rusty small key. Every pirate heard about it and immediately launched in a journey to retrieve the key. I myself can say I've sent some men in order to find it. Ray's father was very wealthy and the fact that he left nothing to his kids but a key made everyone believe the key unlocked a great treasure. The boys were on the run for many months, barely managing to evade. But one night, their luck finally ran out. And they were captured by the worst kind of pirates there were. All I know from then on is that Ray was the only one that survived the explosion on the ship. I've found him floating on a piece of wood and took him in as a subordinate ever since then." After he finished, a dreadful silence fell upon them. Every pair of eyes in the corridor fell on Ray who was deliberately ignoring all of them and was looking down at his hands.

Laxus opened his mouth to complain and tell everyone something but he was interrupted by Ray's slow voice. The boy didn't raise his head as he spoke.

"Nobody knows exactly what happened on the ship. As captain said, I am the only survivor but I don't remember everything myself. The pirates caught both of us" he made a short sign towards Mei who looked at him with wide eyes "in the middle of the night while I was supposed to stay awake and watch over the two of us. But I fell asleep."He looked in pain as he admitted that "When we woke up I was on the ship, locked in a cellar. Mei wasn't" Mei flinched at the mention of his name. "For a whole week I was kept inside that cellar, all alone. Once a day I was brought food but no one would answer my only question. Where was my brother? I started to think that maybe they didn't catch him. That hope fuelled me. Every day after the food a man would come and ask me to tell him where the key was. I refused every time. That's when the whip was taken out" Ray was talking faster and faster, as if it was the first time in years when he finally said what happened. And it probably was. Scar tried to compose his face but it was hard. He knew Ray went through a lot but it was still hard to hear. "One day, after endless others, a man entered my cell and told me to tell him where the key was. I refused once again to tell him unless he'll tell me where my brother was. I prepared myself for the hit but it didn't come. He didn't answer but told me to follow him. I started to fear what I was about to see. In another cellar, close yet far from mine, was my brother waiting for me. But there was something different about him, something any human being would've noticed but my young scared mind didn't. He was laying on the floor, in a dark red puddle, a dark red puddle that perfectly matched the one in my own cell. I don't know if he was breathing or not. Everything I knew was that they tortured him, my little brother. The man that brought me there told me that if I'll give them the key, they'll let us live. I could survive a few more days, I was older. But Mei needed help right then. I told him that and he just laughed and told me to give him the key first. I didn't know where the key was. My father left it to Mei to whom he told to always keep it on him. I was sure that they searched Mei and that they obviously didn't find the key. I was scared and I had no idea what I should do. That's when the first shake came. The ship was under attack. Other pirates heard they captured us and came after the key. The man took me by the arm and dragged me away from my brother. On the deck there was chaos. Pirates fighting other pirates. The man left me all alone and jumped in the fight. I tried to return to my brother and take him out but I couldn't find the way back anymore. Another cannon made the ship shake. I was thrown in the water. All I remember before I blacked out was the explosion. All of the crew men from the attacker ship were on the other ship when it exploded. I was the only one that survived. You see, if I wouldn't have fallen asleep, the pirates wouldn't have caught us! If I would have gone down after Mei, maybe I could've brought him out with me. It is my fault! I killed my only brother!" He finished in a yell and looked down at his hands. He didn't want to say so much but he couldn't stop. After so many years of keeping it inside, he finally said it. He threw Mei a quick look but the boy wasn't looking at him. He was looking at the ground, his small fists were clenched. A cold sensation took Ray over as he watched his brother. Never for once did he expect that kind of reaction.

Everybody around them was silent. Even Laxus had his lips sealed, looking through the wall, lost in his own thoughts. For a few seconds, nobody moved or said anything. And then Mei broke the silence and started to speak

"I don't remember..." he whispered with a sad voice, thinking he couldn't please Ray. Everybody looked at him but the boy only raised his head and looked at Ray. Ray was looking back at his brother with badly hidden longing. Everybody waited for him to go on. "Everything is so foggy and unclear when I look back in the past. I remember small fragments... I don't understand...?" he continued to whisper looking at Ray. "I woke up five years ago on a shore, a few miles from Hargeon. I couldn't remember anything at that time. I just went on and lived, thinking that one day I'll find out…" he suddenly stopped and started searching in his pockets. He let out a childish laugh as he took out a long string at the end of which dangled a key. "I never knew what this was. I just now realised" he grinned happily towards Ray who looked back dumbfounded. Biska watched Mei in surprise. Never until then did she see him so careless and not at all timid.

"But how did you survive...?" Ray asked astonished "Why didn't they find the key if it was on you all the time?"

"I don't know... I think I told them I had it on me... but they couldn't find it so they thought I was lying..."

"I know what that is" Erza's voice came from behind them. She approached the little boy who smiled timidly. She smiled back and studied the key "That is a special key, even more special than Lu" but she stopped herself before mentioning Lucy's name. She felt it would only aggravate the situation "spirit keys. Back in the tower of Paradise there were many captive pirates. They always told us stories. They were all very hard to believe. One of them told us there is a key for immortality. The one that has it in its possession is almost perfectly invulnerable towards any kinds of death."

"Why ...almost?" asked Laxus who seemed very into the story, his eyes glistening. Erza gave him a disapproving look and answered him

"Because there is one way he can die and that is age. You see, the key is like a shield. No. More like a healing potion. You get beat up, you feel pain but then the key makes it disappear. The pirate that told me about this died a few days later from exhaustion and I never heard that story again. It may be completely false I don't know."

"It's not false. It's a very old pirate story, more of a legend. People talk about it but nobody ever saw it. That key may or may not be the key in the story. It is true it does fit" Scar added

"It still doesn't explain why the pirates couldn't find it!" Ray was getting angrier and angrier. He was clinging so tight to the idea that his brother was dead that it was hard now to accept what he thought was impossible. It annoyed him that they thought they found the answer when there were still small cracks left.

"If you would've let me finish..."Scar groaned towards Ray. "You see" he addressed everybody "the legend does say something about the key that could fit our last problem. But as it is just a legend, we don't know if it's real or not." The mages around sighted in defeat. "So we'll test it" Scar finished, gathering everybody's attention.

He walked towards Mei and stopped right in front of him. He got down on his knees so he could be on the same eye-level with the boy.

"Take the key and place it in your hand" he instructed the boy. Mei did as he was told and placed the key right on his bare skin. A second passed as everybody waited in tension and then the key disappeared, leaving behind a small mark that resembled the key. "Can you see the mark?" Scar asked the boy.

Ray puffed in annoyance.

"What mark?" Mei asked puzzled.

Scar smiled while everybody looked surprised towards the little boy's hand. "Can you still see the key?" he asked again

"Yes" came the boy's soft response.

"Now take it by the string and hold it up for us to see" Mei did as he was instructed and everyone gasped as the key appeared dangling in the air. Everybody smiled towards the little boy who looked at it with wide eyes. "Your father really was a great pirate" Scar winked at the smiling little boy

"The key may be the reason why he has those powers. He can make people forget things. But he can't do it on mages because we already have magic power that collides with the key's" Erza said smiling.

Gray let out a happy sight before he could restrain it. There was nothing magical about the kid after all. Erza gave him a disapproving glare that made him freeze immediately.

At the other end of the corridor, watching with teary eyes stood Ray. He quickly wiped his tears away and turned around, heading for the stairs.

"Come on, we have to save Lucy. We don't have time to waste!" he yelled as he started climbing up the stairs.

This can't be happening. He can't really be alive. No. I killed him. He died in front of my eyes. He can't be alive.

Something warm circled his chest. Something heavy pulled him back. Something he didn't dare to hug back started crying on his chest with little childish sobs. Ray just stood there, in the middle of the corridor, with his hands falling aimlessly around his body, with his long lost brother hugging him tight. He knew what he should be doing yet he didn't. He felt dirty while his brother was pure. He didn't want to spoil him.

Scar made everyone leave so the two brothers could be left alone. He knew it will be a hell of a time for Mei to get through the cold walls Ray built around him yet he had faith in the little kid.

Upstairs, the Fairy Tail mages were sitting down at the tables while Erza was recapping everything. Laxus was sitting next to her, a bored look playing on his face.

"Can we leave already?" he groaned towards her.

The sun started to rise above Magnolia, throwing long shadows inside the guild.

"Yes..."Erza sighted in defeat. People all around her got up and headed for the doors. They were to reach Galuna Island before nightfall so they could have an advantage over their enemies. Erza, Gray, Laxus and Gajeel were to enter right inside and recover Lucy, Natsu and Lisanna from deep within the temple. All the others will wait outside and fight. A small group with Erza as a leader was to leave first and gather information. As her team already did a mission on that island before, it would be better for her to be the one to talk with the villagers. The others would follow them close behind. It wasn't much of a plan but it was everything they had.

She sighted as she made her way outside as well. A hard battle was coming and she knew it. But she trusted Fairy Tail and the love they carried for their nakama. She knew they'd never give up on someone they cared for, no matter how hard the task.

When the drums, the sounds stopped, darkness took over. At first, she tried to fight it back, to chase away the shadows. She recalled all her happy memories and for a time it seemed to work. They stayed away. But the coldness didn't. It crept around her, surrounding her and striking. Soon, she was too numb from the cold to concentrate. And that's when Lucy gave up resistance.

Seconds, months or maybe years passed as she drifted alone through the darkness. She could feel the temptation coming from inside, trying to make her close her eyes for good. For countless times she was on the verge of doing it yet she somehow managed to resist it at the last second. There was still a tiny ray of warmth inside her that fuelled her, made her go on even when she wanted it to stop.

"Lucy" her heart started beating faster as she suddenly gained control over her body. She saw the shadows drifting away and she watched surprised as she started to emanate small rays of gold. The voice that called her was so familiar and warm. A voice she knew all too well. The voice of her childhood that she hasn't heard in years. She felt herself be dragged towards it, her rays of gold getting brighter and brighter.

And then she opened her eyes.

She gasped for breath as she suddenly got up. Her eye darted around as her heart was beating nervously. Everything she could see around her was blue. She could feel herself be slowly cradled and when her heartbeats and breaths finally lowered, she realised she was on a boat.

"Your are stronger than you look young Heartfilia" a voice besides her made her rise immediately but she fell back as she was tied to the topmast. Lucy looked around her, trying to hide her scared gaze. She was on the deck of a vast ship on which numerous men were moving from a place to another, yelling orders at each other. Somewhere in the back, she saw a group of people; all dressed in black robes, sitting still and silent. The sight of them made her realise who must be the one talking to her. She remembered the last time she met him and what he did. She hated him with her every fibre.

She slowly turned her head around, trying to keep her mind clear as all the memories of the past days invaded her. Besides her stood a man dressed in dark blue robes. His hood covered his face.

"You see" he continued to talk and Lucy could sense a smile in his words "I didn't think you'll wake up on your own. The nightmares I gave you are very special. They are fear itself, slowly devouring you. Your only weapon against them would be your happy memories which keep them at bay. But I perfected that" he seemed as if he was enjoying himself, bragging about his disastrous magic. Lucy watched him with badly hidden repulsion "Fear is only kept away by happy memories. But coldness isn't. Coldness is the invisible attacker that strikes when you least expect. And when you're cold, fear sucks out all your happy memories. You've put on quite a good resistance but in the end my nightmare won. And then you drift away through darkness until you finally close your eyes." Lucy shivered before she could stop it. That was more or less what happened and it was awful. "You were to wake up a few hours later. As I need you alive, you wouldn't have died if you would have closed your eyes. But then you woke up. Something I didn't plan and neither should have happened" his voice was curious and cold in the same time. He wanted to know how she did it yet he was angry she somehow beat him.

Lucy remembered the coldness and the darkness. But then the gold rays surrounded her and someone called her name, waking her up. But of course she won't tell him all of that. She didn't want to give him satisfaction. Knowing she knew something he didn't made her smile.

But then the smile froze on her lips as he saw the man taking off his hood. She was so surprised that he did that that it took her a few seconds to realise how young the man in front of her was. His dark blue eyes were staring right at Lucy. She quickly moved her gaze and looked down at her feet. He gave her a weird feeling that he could read her mind.

The man smiled all-knowingly when she moved her eyes away. He didn't put his hood back on as he started to pace around her. His eyes were now fixed in the distance. This gave Lucy some time to study him better. He didn't look more than a few years older than her. He looked very pale in comparison to his dark shade of red hair that fell on his forehead. Did everybody he surrounded himself with knew how young he was? She shivered at the thought of him being so powerful people would fear him to such a point his age wouldn't matter. But he had something sad about him, something that made Lucy wonder how this boy could be behind all her sorrow.

"You probably wonder why I tell you all of this" he smiled towards her. Lucy brutally turned her head around. It is just a trap. She kept repeating to herself. That man was bad. Yet he looked so pitiful. "Well, I feel like I can trust you." Lucy gritted her teeth. Remember what he did to Natsu. To Lisanna. To Ray. "But of course, it may be the fact that you'll soon be dead anyway." He said that so bluntly Lucy didn't have time to compose her face. She cursed herself for being so amazed by that fact. She knew long time ago they'll kill her yet she let herself be fooled by him.

He smiled seeing her so tensed. "My advisors are very boring. And we still have a few more hours to go. Maybe you are curious about why you specifically are needed for my plan"

Lucy held her breath. She was more than just curious. She craved for answers. She needed to know what her mother had to do with all of this, why Natsu was needed, what those gold clouds were. But again, she won't give in. She won't give him the satisfaction of being right.

But her opposition was gone unnoticed. He seemed as if he wanted to talk about all of this a long time ago. "There are numerous spirits as you surely know." She frowned. Of course she knew but why was he talking about it? "The twelve golden keys and many other not so powerful spirits. But there are more than just these. Legendary gold keys that are more powerful than the twelve combined. Spirits that nobody ever heard of. Spirits whose binding contract was more than just what you know of. Some of these spirits have special powers. But there is one key even above all of these. The most powerful and rare key there is. The key of the dragon. As far as I know, there were only two people along history who were able to conjure it. One of them was your mother." Lucy expected that but it still came as a shock. Her mother really was a great celestial spirit mage yet nobody really knew. Something warm inside her grew. "The other one was too many years ago for history to more than mention him. As I said before, the binding contract is different. This is where you and your fellow dragon-slayer come in." Lucy threw him a morbid glare which he completely ignored as he went on with his story. "One of the elementary pieces of the contract is the blood sacrifice. The blood of a dragon to be more exact. I almost gave up on this as we all know dragons disappeared a few years ago. But then I realised almost all of the dragons left behind something to resemble them. And those were..."

"Dragon-slayers..." Lucy whispered. She knew this already from Scar.

The boy continued anyway, as if he didn't even hear her. "Dragon-slayers. The dragon spirit key is made of dragon blood. And obviously, you need a celestial mage. Of course, I could've picked any celestial mage. But I chose you. At first it was just for my own satisfaction but then, as I studied you, I realised how far better than I expected my choice was. You see, because your mother opened the gate she was granted the power of the dragon spirit and thus, making her a spirit dragon slayer." Lucy's eyes were wide open. Her mother was a dragon slayer. She watched the boy as he continued to talk. He looked like a small kid bragging about his intelligence and ingenuity. Something which he was actually doing, his achievements only being a lot worse than some kids'.

Lucy looked around as he was speaking, trying to find a way out. She knew Natsu was somewhere on that ship too. But in order for her to find him, she had to first get out herself. Still, she wasn't trying as hard as she should have to escape. She wanted to know his plan. And that meant staying.

"And because she was your mother, you got some of that dragon-slayer magic too. Your gold clouds." And for the first time since he started talking, he turned to look at her. He smiled satisfied seeing the surprised look on her face. Lucy didn't know what to believe anymore. It was so confusing. She understood that he was telling her all of this because he considered her dead already yet why was he so calm? Why was he telling her everything in such a way that it made her feel as if they were friends. He seemed so normal and good that it was getting harder and harder for her to think this boy and the man who destroyed her life were the same person.

"This power of yours made me hesitate for a while. I didn't know if you were aware of it. But time was running low and it was now or never. Luckily, you weren't aware. As far as I could see, you were able to trigger it only when you were angry." Lucy was captivated without her will. She was annoyed with herself but she did nothing to change it. She knew everything was too confusing and strange. She knew she shouldn't trust him, that she shouldn't listen to him so intently. But she was curious. Curious beyond measure.

"We are heading for Galuna Island now." Lucy looked at him surprised. "For the key to be forged we need moon drip. Another task I at first thought was impossible to achieve. But after years of search, I found it" years of search? How long has he been up to this?

Lucy waited a few more moments for him to continue but he didn't. She still didn't understand why he was doing all of this. Conjuring the dragon spirit had, by far, more advantages for her than for him. So why was it?

Again she raised her head only to see him looking straight at her. She quickly moved her eyes away but she knew it was of no use. He already looked into her eyes.

"When the dragon appears, he is able to grant a wish. But not any wish. Only what you truly want. You deepest greatest desire. And he grants it only if you know it. You have one chance." Now Lucy understood. He did all of this for that wish. What did he crave for so much this was his only way?

She looked at him and saw him staring in the distance. But there was something different on his face now. It was convulsed, almost seeming mad. His fists were clenched in tight fists, so tight she could see how his fingers cut into his skin, letting small drops of blood fall. Any sign of beauty she thought he had was completely gone as she watched him turn around, with his face now a mask of fury.

He got up on his feet and paced around her, trying to calm down.

"I could've chosen any dragon-slayer at all. But the pleasure of taking the one you loved was too great. And so was taking you as a celestial mage. Your mother would have hated it!" He was now looking straight at her and even though she wanted to move away her eyes, she couldn't. There was something evil in his eyes; he looked mad; a large grin spreading on his face as he continued to talk.

"Your mother was on a mission when she found out about the dragon spirit. I was on that mission with her and the pirate and my father" Lucy's eyes widened in surprise. He was in the same guild as her mother? But he probably was just a small little boy when all of this happened. "She grew obsessed with this key. For so many years she tried to find the contract binding ritual. She never told anything to anybody. She worked on her own. I don't know how but she found out eventually. But she needed a dragon-slayer. Back then, there still were dragons but she wasn't stupid enough to go and ask one for something like that. She knew of the wish as well. What she didn't know was that the dragon-slayer didn't have to die. But she thought she was smart." he started to talk higher and higher, until he was now only screaming. She saw how painful everything was for him but his anger was worse "She thought she could kill him and then ask the dragon to revive him! And that's what she did. The dragon-slayer accepted without second thoughts. He would've done anything for your mother. So she killed him and completed the ritual. But when the dragon appeared and she told him her wish, he refused. That wasn't her greatest desire. She killed him! He trusted her! And she let him down in the worst possible way!"

He stopped again as he breathed heavily. Lucy looked right through him. His words were like daggers through her heart. They were staining her mother's memory.

"She didn't want that! She wanted to revive him! It's not her fault! She tried to bring him back but she couldn't. That wasn't her greatest desire but it was close! She. Tried!" she started to yell back at him before she could stop herself. She saw from the corner of her eyes the black figures approaching them quickly

The boy started laughing. It was a deep joyless laugh that had something maniacal to it.

"Do you think I care? Do you really think I care that she tried? It wasn't enough! He died for her yet the only thing she did was to try! She killed him! Right in front of my eyes!" Lucy suddenly understood but it still came as a shock when he said it "She killed my father right in front of my eyes!"

She opened her mouth to say something, anything at all but she was silenced as she felt something hard hit her in the head. Right before she fell into darkness, she caught a glimpse of his angry face. His eyes were full of pain and hatred. Hatred toward her.