Fairy Tail Rogue x Reader (Book 3)

The Black Future

As we were fighting, I suddenly dropped to my knees as I felt an immeasurable amount of pleasure. 'Dammit, Larcade!' It wasn't long before Zeref followed.

"Please stop Larcade, right now," Zeref told him telepathically. "You're harming your allies too". After a moment, the spell stopped and we were able to continue our fight.

We had been fighting for a while when the doors burst open. I turned around expecting to see Natsu, but my eyes widened when I saw Gray instead. "(Y/N), I can take it from here. You just rest".

"Where's Natsu?" I asked confused.

"He's on his way". I could tell there was something he wasn't telling me, but I didn't push it. All I could do was nod. I moved to the wall and sat down in an effort to regain all the magic energy I had lost.

"You're name's Gray, and you are one of Natsu's closest friends in this guild," Zeref confirmed. "Your parents were killed by Deliora, a demon that I myself created, and then several years later, your master fell to him as well. I'm sure you must have a burning hatred for me".

"Shocking, you know about people who mean absolutely nothing to you," Gray said sarcastically.

"It's basic strategy, knowing one's enemy is crucial. There's Lucy Heartfilia, the descendant of an old friend of mine named Anna. She's bright, optimistic, and she's been a major influence in Natsu's growth and development. And of course, Natsu's partner Happy. The bond of trust they share is nay unbreakable. I can't leave out Erza, Wendy and Gajeel. I've done my best to learn all I can about every key player". I stiffened.

Gray took a step closer to Zeref. "And for some reason, finding any real information on you has been practically impossible for us".

"I imagine that's the case," Zeref said, glancing at me.

"Why don't you start by telling me what you're really after?" Gray got straight to the point.

Zeref smirked. "Surely you should know that much by now. I want to have Mavis' magic power for myself, and you and your guild want to protect her. Therein lies our conflict".

"If you have an army at your command, not to mention immortality, why would you go through all this trouble to take her power as well?"

I looked at Gray in confusion. 'Didn't I already tell you all of this?' After a moment, I shrugged my shoulders. 'He probably wants to hear it straight from the source'.

"Because I need it to defeat Acnologia," Zeref answered Gray. His eyes widened. "Wouldn't you say that's a cause worth assisting?"

"That's nothing but a load of crap!" Gray snapped, and even I flinched. "(Y/N) already told me the real reason!" Zeref narrowed his eyes at me and I just smiled innocently.

He turned back to look at Gray. "I have told you no lies. I'm resolute in my goal to take down Acnologia once and for all. However, my ultimate ambition is to achieve something far more significant than that". I watched in silence as Zeref confirmed what I had already told Gray. He froze, realising that I was telling the truth. "You're actually the first person I've ever told about my plan, aside from (Y/N), that is. In fact, none of my faithful twelve have any idea," Zeref pointed out once he had finished. "Mavis' magic power, AKA the Fairy Heart, has the potential to make it happen. Care to hazard a guess as to why you're the first person I've told?" My eyes widened in realisation. "It's because Natsu is on his way here, and when he arrives, you'll be dead on the floor".

I did my best to stand up and leaned on the wall for support. "No, he won't. Not if I have anything to say about it".

Zeref turned to look at me. "How do you expect to stop me in the condition you're in?"

I smirked. "I'll heal in a moment. Then I'll be able to stop you".

"By then, it'll already be too late," he pointed out with a smirk.

Gray butted in. "(Y/N), stay back. I got this". I froze but stayed exactly where I was.

Zeref continued. "Rushing to save his dear friend, only to discover a corpse. The grief that overcomes him will soon be supplanted by anger". I watched as his expression darkened, and it sent a shiver down my spine. "This will allow me my final chance to fight against Natsu with absolutely all he's got. Your death will be the key to unlocking his full strength and setting my plan in motion".

Gray and I turned to look at each other before we turned our attention back to Zeref. "That's not gonna happen," Gray informed Zeref. "By the time he gets here, you're gonna be long gone".

I looked at him in confusion. "Gray, what are you planning?" I asked cautiously. He ignored me, of course, and focused all his attention on Zeref.

"How delusional," Zeref mocked Gray. "As you said, I'm immortal. It's just not possible to end my life. Besides, even if you did somehow manage to figure out a way to kill me, it would mean your friend Natsu..." He didn't even have to finish that sentence for us to know what was coming.

Gray and I both lowered our gazes to the floor. "Yeah, I know that," Gray pointed out.

Zeref raised his eyebrows. "Oh? I'm surprised. So you already knew that Natsu's true form is E.N.D".

I rolled my eyes. 'At this point, he's just mocking him'.

"No, he's not. He's Natsu," Gray answered with a soft smile on his face. I couldn't help but smile alongside Gray as I thought of Natsu and everything he'd been through while in Fairy Tail. Zeref was rendered speechless, which only made my smile grow. "For a long time, I was looking for someone to blame for my parents and Ur's deaths. E.N.D was perfect, a faceless enemy". My smile quickly faded after that. "Everything changed when I found out that he's Natsu. I decided that his life is more important to me. I don't give a damn what he is, cause Natsu's a true friend". My smile quickly returned when he said that.

"Whether it's you or I that dies here today, it won't make any difference. You'll still lose him".

"You know I'm not gonna let that happen, which is why I'm taking you down myself". Gray then got into a stance I instantly recognised. He was preparing to do a spell I'd only heard of, Iced Shell.

My eyes widened in realisation. "Gray, you can't do this".

Even Zeref looked terrified. Gray ignored my pleas and instead, looked at me with a smile. "Look after Natsu for me".

Suddenly, I stepped in front of Zeref and put my arms out, stopping Gray in his tracks. "Get out of the way(Y/N)!" Gray yelled.

I looked at him bravely as I said, "No".

"Why are you protecting him?!"

"I'm not, I'm protecting you!" I yelled; my eyes filled with tears. "Don't you get it? Imagine what would happen to the rest of us if you were to suddenly just 'disappear'. Even if we didn't remember you, it would still feel wrong, like a piece of us was missing. You wouldn't be saving our lives; you'd be destroying it".

No sooner than I said that had Natsu come barging in, pushing Gray to the ground and stopping him from casting his spell.