Frost Burned (A Natsu x Gray fanfic)

Aftershock

Natsu's world was black and full of pain. Through the darkness he could smell blood and sorrow. He tasted copper and the salt of tears. Gray's tears.Gray's blood? Natsu struggled to open his eyes, but they were so heavy. He felt something brush against his mouth, soft and sweet. He liked it. He wanted more. Finally his eyes wrenched open to gaze up at Gray's crying face. Natsu tried to smile at him. He lifted a shaking hand from his chest to brush Gray's cheek, only noticing it was soaked in blood after it streaked across his face. Gray clasped it and held it on his face for him. Natsu didn't have the strength.

"Gray, you're crying." Had Natsu ever seen Gray cry like this? He thought not, but his mind was swimming in strange circles and he couldn't be sure.

"No I'm not." His voice cracked in betrayal.

"You're such a tsundere."

"Shut up Natsu."

Tears mixed with red on the hand covering Gray's cheek. Natsu tried to laugh and it came out in a spray of blood with a vicious cough. Gray's eyes widened in terror, then looked down at the gaping wound on Natsu's chest. Gray released Natsu's hand to rest on the gash, sealing it in ice to stop the bleeding. Natsu shivered.

"Sorry." Gray muttered, taking Natsu's hand back in his.

Natsu looked down at their joined hands, and his brow furrowed in concentration. He held his breath for a moment, straining, beads of sweat breaking out anew on his face. After a moment, he let out his breath in a rush and rested his head against Gray, pulling their hands in to his chest.

"Bastard really took my fire." His face looked forlorn, confused. "Now I'm nothing." Natsu glanced up at Gray, who was still had silent tears streaking down. Natsu smiled. "It was worth it though." He shivered again, hard and jolting. "It's really cold inside."

"Natsu, this is all my fault. I'm so sorry."

"Gray, there's something I need to tell you." Gray waited, holding his breath. "You're an idiot, Gray."

"Natsu!" Natsu's world dimmed, eyes threatening to close. "Natsu, stay awake! Natsu!"

"I wanted you to know you're really important to me Gray." His words started to come out in mumbles. Gray noticed his pupils were two different sizes, one a gaping maw, the other a pinpoint of the darkest black within his already dark eyes. Fear shot through the ice mage. "Don't blame yours.... my....stupid...." Natsu's mouth wasn't obeying him, eyes fluttering as he fought to keep them open. "Don't let Juvia touch y.... claim what's mine....snow...." Natsu's eyes slammed closed. Juvia? What was he talking about?

Wendy. Gray had to get Natsu to Wendy. No one had lived this long after taking that magic. All the mages who had been hit with this spell had died, but none of them had Wendy's sky magic to heal them. Maybe she could help release Natsu's magic, keep it from building up inside without an outlet and killing him.

Gray picked Natsu up, and he was running through the trees. "Bastard really took my fire. Now I'm nothing." His fire didn't matter, Natsu was everything to Gray, but the ice mage would get those flames back if it was the last thing he did. It had taken them awhile to get this deep in the forest, but they had been moving slowly, cautiously. Now Gray flew, willing his feet faster and faster. When he got to the village, he would steal a car with a Self Energy plug. Nothing mattered except Natsu.