But It's Precious to You, Isn't it?

Ten

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Gray though Natsu's attachment to his scarf was ridiculous.It's just a scarf! No matter how important it was to him, touching it did not mean that Natsu had the right to break his nose! "Stupid fuckin' pinky. Punching me just 'cause a dumb pice of cloth... I'll get him back..."

Gray didn't ever get him back. He couldn't, not when Natsu came to him after and apologized.

"I didn't mean to get so angry..." His eyes were aimed at the ground, and he refused to look up at Gray. He kept one hand buried in the fabric of his scarf as he stood there. No one else was around, and it sounded genuine. "It's just... It's all I have left..."

Gray raised an eyebrow, "All you have...?"

"When Igneel vanished, this is all he left me with," Natsu mumbled. He dug his toes into the dirt at his feet, focusing his eyes there, like he was trying not to think too hard.

"Oh," Gray quickly puffed his chest up a bit, "It's fine. It's not like you even hurt me!" Porlyusica had fixed his nose no problem anyways.

Natsu didn't say anything. He just nodded and walked away, head still to the ground, and for some reason, Gray felt guilty.

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Natsu knew he shouldn't have punched Gray, but he had just reacted. He felt the scarf being pulled off, so he didn't bother with thinking. He just turned and hit the nearest person, which happened to be Gray. It's not like he knows how precious this is to me...

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Twelve

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"Why do you still wear that thing. It can't possibly still smell like 'em," Gray mumbled. Erza had drug them on a mission, then made them share a room, and while it was already annoying, the question just made it more so.

Natsu swallowed the urge to shove him off the bed, "Why's is matter? I can wear what I want!"

Gray shook his head, "Don't get so damn defensive. I'm just curious."

"Because I can do what I want," Natsu replied flatly. Instead of waiting for a response, he took the blankets and wrapped himself up in them. Gray's not gonna use them anyways.

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It was almost one in the morning when Gray heard Natsu's soft voice from beside him, "Because it's precious to me... just like dad is..." Not long after that, the slayer finally dropped into a deep sleep, his small snores echoing throughout the room.

Oh...

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Fourteen

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Gray didn't remember exactly how it happened, but he knew that Natsu was now in the infirmary. He vaguely recalls Porlyusica saying something to him about "shock," and he wonders if she was talking about him or Natsu. It didn't matter.

He waited until the sun set and everyone left them alone to sleep before he slipped out the window. His scarf is still there... I can't leave it there...

The rain outside was cold, but it's not like that's ever bothered Gray before. He dug his hand through the mud where the fight had happened. It was just a spar... Erza didn't have to do any of that.

Gray had read Polryusica's report on it before he left. Erza had tried to keep them from sparing, but when she hit them both upside the head, she hit too hard. Natsu had ended up with a concussion and stitches from where her gauntlet cut his face. It wasn't too bad, and he'd be fine in no time, but all Gray could see was him crumpling from the force of it. Natsu's knees had buckled and he'd hit the ground in seconds.