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This is based on opinion. Please don't list it on a work's trope example list.

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Tear Jerker / Fairy Tail

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This page contains unmarked spoilers. You Have Been Warned!

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/natsu533.png
There was one last thing I forgot to tell you...You didn't need to apologize to Makarov...because he's already dead. I hope you meet him in heaven.

  • The earliest TearJerker of Fairy Tail is Natsu's reaction when he discovers Igneel had vanished. Made even worse by the fact that Natsu was still a young boy...
    • More Fridge Tearjerker: Why is Natsu so quick to go find and rescue Macao? Sure, because he's his friend and Natsu cares about everyone in his guild, but also because he doesn't want Romeo to be without a father, the same way he was after Igneel vanished. He remembered how heartbroken he was when that happened, and he didn't want anyone else to feel that way.
  • Ur's death. Doubles as a heartwarming moment.
  • Every time there is a flashback involving Lisanna, you can prepare yourself to wipe some tears from your eyes, because it is either this or a slightly less depressing heartwarming moment. The anime expands her role and only makes it worse.
    • Then her return and her explanation. Especially the reunion between her and her real siblings.
    • Natsu and Happy's emotional reactions to seeing her in Edolas... especially in the anime with all the interspersed flashbacks.
    • In particular, both versions of Elfman drive this home. The way Edolas!Elfman just holds Lisanna's neck and rests his head on hers with a little smile when she's about to leave combined with how Earthland!Elfman can do absolutely nothing but sob uncontrollably and stare in awe as his little sister returns is both heartwarming and heartbreaking.
    • The fact that Edolas!Mirajane and Elfman really did lose their little sister. When the time comes for Earthland!Lisanna to return home, they end up losing her again (but this time, with a proper goodbye).
  • Lucy's Well-Intentioned Extremist father Jude Heartfilia hires Phantom Lord to take her home after she runs away to help his family business. Unfortunately, it goes From Bad to Worse as his attempts inadvertently cause a guild war between Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail. During their reunion, Lucy flat-out states that she's going to consider him her enemy if he tries that stunt again, as well as leaving her home and not coming back. Ouch. You have to feel sorry for Jude at this point; his face after seeing what he's done and broken Lucy's heart is just awful. It becomes Harsher in Hindsight when it's revealed that Jude always loved her. At least we can take solace in the fact that he atones for being a bad father by sending her gifts before his death.
  • Erza's funeral. It's All Just a Dream, but that doesn't make it any better. Just seeing everyone's reactions, especially Natsu being mad with rage while screaming that she can't die, with Lucy and Gray trying to hold him back, really drives the point home.
    • Even worse, that scene most likely serves as a Deconstruction of how the people left behind would really feel after someone's Heroic Sacrifice. There's no true "honor celebration" or "his/her heart will live on"; just endless grief and sadness over the loss of a friend. Erza's quote near the end of the arc definitely rams the point home
      Erza: "You don't die for your friends; you live for them!"
    • The Tower of Heaven arc was essentially just one big Tear Jerker with some heartwarming moments thrown in between.
    • Also from the Tower of Heaven arc, Simon's death is arguably one of the biggest tear jerkers in the series.
  • From the Battle of Fairy Tail, Mirajane having to watch as Fried brutalizes her little brother Elfman, unable to do anything but beg him to stop. Add in traumatic flashbacks to Lisanna's death and its little wonder she snaps when Fried tries to kill Elfman, reawakening her magic so she can go after Fried.
  • Laxus' big sendoff during the Fantasia Parade. Especially in the anime, thanks to the Awesome Music.
    • Hell, the moments just before that when after fighting the Fairy Tail guild for the position of leader, Laxus visits Makarov in the infirmary, and has his first heartfelt talk with his grandfather in years. Makarov expels him from Fairy Tail, and yet the old man turns his back while Laxus leaves after calling him "Grandfather". Makarov is in tears.
  • Makarov's royal thrashing. Yes, he's old and we shouldn't be too surprised, but he's always been there, to the point that something of that magnitude happening to him just seems impossible. And that's not even counting how it happened.
  • "I won't let you die again."
  • Episode 68: From Jellal's arrest (and Erza's breakdown) to the revelation that Cait Shelter was nothing but an illusion.
    • "Bury your pain in the arms of your friends..."
      • The title of that chapter in the manga is one: "A Guild For The Sake of a Single Person."
  • Cana's backstory.
  • Simon's Heroic Sacrifice and death.
  • Almost all of Chapter 241.
  • During the very end of Episode 89 (Edolas arc), where the Dragon Chain is launched into the island with Magnolia's lacrima, we have a shot at Happy's reaction: trembling, bursting into tears, and his voice breaking. Rie Kugimiya conveys his distress really well.
  • Chapter 251: When Cana finally tells Gildarts that she's his daughter. Gildarts has a flashback of all the times he saw Cana while she was growing up (coincidentally, she always looked sad), and he has an absolutely heartbroken expression on his face when he realizes that this whole time, she was suffering because of him. Then, he cries with happiness.
  • Chapter 252 has Makarov fighting off Acnologia and giving the others his final orders as their master to run to the ship for safety. The tearful looks on everyone's faces tells it all.
    • The fact that Laxus is the first one to understand his grandfather's action and take action to save the others really hits home. He really is a changed man. Even more heartbreaking is when Natsu looks at Laxus and he can see the older man's grief clear as day.
  • Chapter 253: The entire thing.
    • Episode 122 makes it worse.
      • Makarov's English voice actor did a superb job when monologuing about his choice
  • The next chapter shows us what happened to the Fairy Tail guild after the seven year timeskip.
  • You know how after Lucy saw the reunion between father and daughter at Sirius Island she began to think that she'd like to go see her own dad? Well, she's finally able to in Chapter 256, only to find out he died one month earlier. Anyone who has lost a parent will know her sorrow.
  • The entirety of Chapter 257. Also doubles as a heartwarming moment.
    • To my beloved daughter, Happy Birthday, From Dad.
      • "Lucy, I've always loved you."
  • Lucy's defeat against Flare Corona during Chapter 272: Flare cheats, threatening the life of Asuka Connell in order to persuade Lucy to give up. Lucy lets herself be harmed and wants to surrender. Except that Flare won't let her surrender; she gags Lucy with her hair, and is ready to tattoo her guild's sigil onto Lucy's, all the while enjoying herself. Fortunately, Natsu overheard her threat, discovers Flare's hair, and severed it, allowing Lucy to counterattack. She then summons Gemini, and casts her most powerful spell along with her double: Urano Metria. But the spell is cancelled, obviously absorbed by a member of Raven Tail. Lucy, exhausted, fall onto the ground. Flare is declared the winner, and rejoices. The public mocks Fairy Tail. Lucy bursts into tears. After all of this, Fairy Tail members and the readers share the same feeling: They want to see Raven Tail lose hard and burn in hell!
  • In Chapter 281, Yukino is expelled from her guild for losing one match in the Grand Magic Games.
    • Made worse by how she is berated, forced to undress, and is mentally abused right in front of everyone. Even Rogue, The Stoic, had a very uneasy look and later questioned if Sabertooth is really a true guild.
      • To hammer it in, Sabertooth is portrayed as a guild of Smug Supers and Jerkasses. When this event occurred just about every single one looked pretty unhappy. Even Sting seemed displeased and described Ziemma as "extreme".
      • To make it even worse, we latter learn that Yukino is an orphan, who had long admired and sought to join Sabertooth, and only recently joined them. She's basically Lucy, who sought a place to belong in her guild, and then she was cruelly ejected from it.
  • Thought Lucy's defeat against Flare early on was bad? Chapter 291 makes it worse by having Minerva mercilessly beat Lucy up in the next match clearly enjoying her suffering while Orga and Sting smugly laugh at the other Fairy Tail members clearly amused watching the horrific beatdown. If there was any doubt they were complete assholes before...
    • Made worse given they did it within the rules and maximized the cruelty potential in those five minutes compared to the cheating Raven Tail did. It makes a lot of sense Makarov doesn't consider his son a enemy given they were being covert and petty in their callousness in comparison to Minerva who was disarming Lucy and pounding her mercilessly right in front of the crowd. This is a rare case of a Tear Jerker involving tears of sadness and rage.
  • Chapter 292 also had some tearjerking moments. Lucy wakes up after having passed out; the first thing she does is attempt to apologize to everyone for losing. They are all quick to assure her that she did great and actually got second place. With tears in her eyes she asks for her Spirit Keys, which were taken from her during the fight against Minerva. Happy gives them to her and she smiles and thanks him before falling asleep, still smiling and cuddling her keys to her chest. Poor girl.
  • Chapter 300: If Yukino being expelled the Sabertooth guild for losing a match wasn't bad enough, Sting and Rogue had it worse, especially Sting when Lector, after the latter tried to stand up for Sting, got blasted into oblivion by Ziemma right in front of Sting. Sting responds in kind with a full blast of a White Dragon's Punch right through Ziemma.
  • Episode 150: Cobra finally is reunited with Cuberos/Kinana only to for Doranbolt and Lahar to come and arrest him.
    • Cobra actually let himself to be caught because Doranbolt and Lahar was going to arrest Cuberos/Kinana as they thought she was associated with Cobra. Cobra let himself to be arrested so that his best friend can roam freely, shows that he really cared for his friend.
  • Chapter 304: The cover page of this chapter shows Frosch holding two ice cream cones with a sad expression on his face as he feels lonely for the very first time since Lector's death.
  • Chapter 305: When Sting gets the drop on Bacchus and drops him out of the fight in a single attack, there is a single image showing his facial expression: He isn't sporting a Slasher Smile or any enjoyment of the fight at all, and he enjoys a fight. It's safe to say he was mentally focused on the loss of Lector more than the event taking place, which makes the depressed feeling Sting is displaying much more saddening.
  • Chapter 312: Future Lucy's crying as she meets with her old Guild for the first time in God knows how long. We're already aware the future she comes from is quite possibly a Crapsack World, or the End of the World as We Know It, given Levy's Apocalyptic Log, it is really difficult not to feel saddened by the tears she's shedding, knowing the shit she has most likely been through.
  • Chapter 322: Sting and Lector's heartfelt reunion after Fairy Tail wins the Grand Magic Games. Also doubles as a gigantic heartwarming moment.
  • Guard Captain Arcadias, the supposed "Big Bad" controlling the Grand Magic Games, is betrayed by the princess he was deeply loyal to when he realizes what's really going on. In attempting to escape the underground dungeon and a special Execution Squad that seeks to take their heads, Arcadias, Future Lucy, and Yukino cross a huge moat of boiling lava. As Yukino is about to fall from the weak ledge she grabbed, Arcadias jumps into the lava to push her higher onto the ledge (with Future Lucy trying to pull her up) so that she can climb up. After Yukino is saved, Arcadias "supposed" last words before he's consumed by the lava...talk about a badass!!!
  • Chapter 324: Future Lucy's Heroic Sacrifice.
    • It was particularly jarring because this was the first time we've seen Lucy completely lose it. She didn't just cry, she screamed at Future Rogue and used profanity for the first time ever.
    • Special mention goes to Happy, who goes into a Heroic BSoD after that. He and Lucy were shown to have more of a Vitriolic Best Buds relationship than anything, with the two of them constantly getting on each other's nerves. But when Future Lucy tells him not to cry over her as she lay dying (as she is not technically "their" Lucy) Happy refuses and says that she is Lucy no matter what and there's no way they could not be sad over her death. He then holds Future Lucy's hand against his cheek with tears streaming down his face.
    • Natsu bursting into Berserker Tears after the group realizes that Future!Lucy lost her right arm, which was not helped with his flashback of Lucy showing off her new Fairy Tail mark to him.
      Natsu: "You stole something precious to me, in front of my eyes."
  • Chapter 333: In a flashback (after Lucy & Co. have left the scene), we see Natsu crying over Future!Lucy's body. When asked if Future!Rogue is an enemy, Natsu simply replies:
    Natsu: "Lucy was... He's my enemy."
    • To make it worse, Ultear may or may not kill Present!Rogue in order to remove the future one. It's heart-wrenching to see someone like Rogue get killed all because his of his future self's actions.
      • And speaking of heart-wrenching, it was pretty sad to see Present Rogue's reaction and breakdown to the news about his future self and what he has done.
      • Which only makes the fact that someone is about to come after him for it that much worse.
  • The fifth ova is full of Fanservice and Crowning Moments of Funny, but there is a brief moment where Future Lucy is seen outside about to cry. She clearly remembers what's about to happen which reminders her of the death of all her friends from her timeline.
  • Hisui watching in shock and horror as she watches the dragons that just came through the Eclipse begin to destroy Fiore.
  • Chapter 334: Assuming that it's not a fake out like other teased main character deaths shown so far, it looks like Gray will be our first main character to die.
    • Juvia's reaction, whether or not the above scene was a fake out, is still heartbreaking to look at.
  • Chapter 335: Ultear, thinking she is beyond redemption, casts "Last Ages". It only turns back time by one minute at the cost of her life, making her believe that her Heroic Sacrifice was a Senseless Sacrifice while dying. To be fair, she doesn't realize that she saved the lives of countless people doing it and will never know.
    • However, this has been subverted as of Chapter 339.
    • Before that, Juvia's Heroic BSoD as she blankly stared at Gray's body with tears in her eyes...who knows what would have happened if Ultear hadn't hit the magic Reset Button.
    • Also Lyon's frantic screaming for Chelia to come and heal Gray, trailing off when he talks about the last blow to hit, which he knows has to be fatal. You can see practically hear the desperation in the calls only to see the devastation in Lyon's face as he says Gray is...They hit his head.
  • Chapter 337: Before leaving due to the destruction of the Eclipse Gate, Future!Rogue gives Natsu some parting words and a warning for his present self: Protect Frosch because she will be killed in a year's time. Not died, but killed. Worse is that Rogue never was able to specify the culprit.
    • Oh no, he specified it. It was revealed later on that it was Gray who killed him. Natsu's actively working to prevent that.
      • Have you forgotten what's shown after that: Future!Lucy reuniting with her other friends in heaven.
  • Chapter 339: As it turns out, Ultear didn't die from the spell, but instead aged rapidly, leaving her with literally only a short time to live. Meaning that while her actions saved countless lives and she knows it, she can't go back to her friends since her magic is useless now. With this in mind, she bids Jellal and Meredy a final farewell.
    • Gray recognizes the elderly Ultear and realizes the sacrifice that she made for him.
  • Chapter 341: Directly following the Grand Magic Games, when Lucy and the girls are in full furo scene at the newly-restored Fairy Tail hall, a repentant Flare Corona appears and tells Lucy how sorry she was for what she did to her during their match. Flare mentions that she left Raven Tail and has nowhere to go, but wanted to make amends before she leaves town. Cue a heartwarming scene of Lucy, Wendy, Lisanna, Mirajane, and Levy (who are all naked, btw) all hugging Flare and telling her that she's forgiven and is welcome at Fairy Tail.
    • The Sun Village Arc expands on Flare's background, showing how she grew up in the village of giants who treated her as one of their own. When Flare returns to the village to find it and all the giants completely frozen, she tearfully begs Lucy for her help because everything and everyone she knew is encased in near-unmeltable ice. During the arc's resolution, the giants explain that although the orphaned Flare was human and tiny compared to them, they accepted her and when she came of age, wanted her to travel the world and meet other people like her. Unfortunately, she met with Ivan and Raven Tail and was taught that only strength matters, which drove her to be twisted and sadistic. Cue another big heartwarming hug from Lucy and Wendy at the end!
  • Chapter 356: Tartaros attacks the council and massacres everybody except Doranbolt. The tearjerker comes when you remember that Doranbolt's dream was to see Lahar make it to the top of the council someday. All of the hope he had for that dream goes down crashing in one fell swoop when Lahar makes it into the list of casualties.
  • Chapter 358: Even after Laxus performs an awesome act that nearly kills him to save everyone over a hundred people are still killed by Tempesta's poisonous mist and the village was rendered completely uninhabitable. When Fried feebly asks Makarov if everyone was saved, Makarov says yes. Fried's tears afterwards are the icing on the already upsetting cake.
    • And at the end of the chapter, Natsu declares war. Everyone else in the guild is emotionally drained/broken by the attack, and Natsu is the only one currently willing to do anything. It's oddly heartbreaking to see characters like Gajeel so utterly apathetic.
  • Chapter 362: A minor one occurs when Natsu, Lucy, Wendy and Carla believe Happy performed a Heroic Sacrifice to stop Jackal's Taking You with Me. Carla in particular is starting to cry. Though Mood Whiplash sets in when Happy is shown to have survived with only his fur messed up into an afro.
  • Chapter 363: Elfman is Forced to Watch as his body is manipulated into strangling Lisanna. The poor man already had to shoulder the guilt of thinking that he killed Lisanna for years and now he may have to do so for real this time.
  • Chapter 368-369: Though it turned out to be an illusion, Meredy's reaction to Zero killing Jellal. She'd already lost her other guildmate/foster mother with no word of her actual fate; seeing her remaining comrade blown to bits visibly traumatized her.
  • Episode 244: After having fought a desperate battle to beat Ezel and destroy Face, Wendy and Carla realise the only way to stop the detonation is to force it to overload. The kicker? It has to be done manually. Carla tells Wendy to get as far away as possible, but Wendy refuses to leave her best friend, reminding her that they each made a promise to be together forever. We get a few flashbacks of their earlier years together, including said promise being made, as each breaks down into tears. It is abundantly clear to them both and the audience that they will not be walking away from this. It should be noted, these girls are twelve and six years old, and they're about to die in order to save countless lives. They even discuss the possibility of just walking away, figuring that they could probably live in a world without magic, but their friends who are fighting for the lives right now would die if they did so. The fact that Mest teleported them away at the last second doesn't detract from their bravery at all.
  • Chapter 381: The Strauss siblings' backstory. Not only were they orphaned, they were banished from their village given the other townsfolk's fear of Mirajane's Demon Take-Over powers. Mirajane was even viewed as a monster. Young Mirajane resented her Take-Over so much after that, a while after she'd joined Fairy Tail, she actually tried to leave, thinking she'd only bring them misfortune. No wonder Mirajane and Elfman are so protective over their family.
  • Chapter 384: Lucy breaking the Key of Aquarius to summon the Spirit King. Twisting the knife even further, the fact that it works proves that deep down Aquarius and Lucy really loved each other. And now, barring another miracle, they will never see each other again.
    • Somehow the utter badassness that is the Celestial Spirit King actually makes it all worse. When he's finally summoned, Lucy is so consumed by her grief she doesn't even notice, and the Spirit King himself is clearly in the grip of a Berserker Rage at the ones who forced her to break Aquarius' key.
    • What hurts is the flashback. Little Lucy sees Aquarius for the first time screaming, "A mermaid! A mermaid!" and looking so excited to have a partner in the Celestial Spirit.
  • The Reveal in Chapter 390 has a bit of Fridge Horror in it that doubles as what can arguably be called one of the biggest tearjerkers yet in Fairy Tail. Silver of Tartarus is none other than Deliora, the massive Eldritch Abomination of a demon that carved a path of destruction through the north, killing Gray's parents and causing Ur to use Iced Shell to seal it. Deliora then possessed Gray's father, Silver Fullbuster, with the help of Tartarus, meaning the demon responsible for just about everything bad in Gray's life is Not Quite Dead and turns Ur's use of Iced Shell into a textbook Senseless Sacrifice. That's right: Gray's beloved teacher and Ultear's mother died for nothing. No wonder Gray flew into an Unstoppable Rage. Deliora joy-riding in Silver Fullbuster's corpse has to be sad and horrifying for Gray on so many levels.
  • The actual reveal about Silver is even worse. He really is Gray's father in body and soul. He was raised as a zombie by Keith as part of Keith's twisted experiments in necromancy. The reason he claimed to be Deliora and threatened to hurt all that Gray cared about is because he so badly wanted Gray to kill him. Even then, he can't.
  • In Chapter 397 we get a flashback to when Gajeel was in Phantom Lord, with Belno telling him to live a meaningful life and that he reminds her of her dead son. When he comes to her home after her assassination by Tartaros, he cries over how he couldn't save her and repay her for her kindness.
  • Episode 261 has one for the villains. As Mard Geer orders Kyoka to speed up Face's timer, she looks at the unconscious body of Seilah, her lover, and remembers her smile. Given that Kyoka had previously made a link with the lacrima, meanining that one way or another she would die, she was aware that she would never see Seilah's smile ever again. Erza a few minutes later saying she chose death over going forward with her comrades most probably felt to her like rubbing salt on the wound, so it is no wonder Kyoka exploded in rage.
  • Chapter 414: Natsu can only watch helplessly as Acnologia tears apart and vaporizes Igneel right in front of him, all while Igneel tells him telepathically how much he loves him.
    • On a lesser note, Mard Geer weakly reaching out to his father/creator Zeref while telling him that he can fulfill Zeref's wish, only for Zeref to casually turn him back into a book which he promptly burns to ash and mention that Mard can't realize his wish is also rather pitiful. All of his efforts were rewarded with little more than casual indifference. Even Gray, a guy who had the most important people of his life taken away by demons was so pissed that he yelled at Zeref for killing one of his own creations.
  • Chapter 415 tops the previous chapter when the other Dragons admit that Acnologia already killed them by draining their souls long ago in the past. The chapter ends with them vanishing into thin air.
    • Natsu's grieving. For a series usually devoid of proper death and emotion, Chapter 415 shows that when Hiro tries, he can make an audience cry. In the wake of Igneel's death, Natsu is reduced to tears, grieving for his father. The scene is made even sadder when you realize that unlike the other dragons, not only was Natsu unable to say goodbye, but he saw his father being brutally killed before his own eyes while he couldn't do anything. It's one of the few times Natsu displays the normal human range of emotion, and it's made even worse when one realizes Hiro also lost his father when he was young, meaning Hiro wrote this scene from his own experience and his own heart.
    Natsu: Dad... you promised me... that you wouldn't go anywhere... don't break your promise...
  • Chapter 416: Fairy Tail disbands. Nothing Is the Same Anymore, indeed.
    • Lucy's reaction to Natsu and Happy leaving on a year-long training journey: A combination of anger and tearful loneliness. She lost Aquarius, her guild disbanded, and two of her best friends left without saying goodbye (except for a letter).
    • Juvia finds Gray sitting in the snow at his parent's gravestone and admits that she was the one who killed his father. It looks like Gray is genuinely angry at this for a moment, even grabbing her by the front of her coat, but then he breaks down and sincerely thanks her. He knows his father wanted to die and he's grateful that he isn't the one who had to kill him, but at the same time, he desperately wanted his father to live.
  • Chapter 424: Juvia has been waiting for Gray to return for half-a-year now after his Devil Slayer Magic seemed to have taken him over. By the time the others arrived, she had an intense fever.
  • Chapter 436: Zeref reveals his past. His little brother Natsu died and he sought a way to bring him back, developing the theories of both the R-System and the Eclipse Gate in his efforts. Then he was cursed by the gods for studying taboo magics, which manifested in the form of a curse that was designed to kill anybody he could ever care about or even being in the same general area as him, with immortality to boot. Suddenly, it makes sense why he's so withdrawn and always seems happy around Natsu.
  • Fairy Tail Zero - Chapter 11: Mavis lost the ability to age by using Law to save Yuri, and then she learned that Zeira is an illusion that only she could see.
    • Chapter 449, when Zeref reveals that Mavis was cursed in the same way as him. He was shocked that Mavis even tried to use Law in its incomplete form, and Mavis' reaction to the revelation that she will start to unwillingly kill her comrades once her Curse Escape Clause ends doesn't help at all.
    • 450. Good God, 450. First, Mavis' "Instant Death" Radius inevitably activates, and kills Rita, the mother of Makarov right after she gave birth to him. Mavis runs off, leaving a trail of bodies behind, and becomes an absolute emotional wreck, until Zeref discovers her again. Zeref starts having a mental breakdown as a side effect of his curse (coincidentally, the reason why it seems like he has a Split Personality at times), and Mavis embraces him, promising that they'll find a way to break the curse together. Zeref starts crying Tears of Joy, says she's the only person who has ever truly been kind to him, confesses his love for her, and then they have The Big Damn Kiss... and she dies. Zeref finally finds the way to end the Curse, and he does so in the worst possible way.
      • This is actually, in a way, a darker version of fairy tale. Zeref ended Mavis' curse through a True Love's Kiss, though unlike in children's books, they didn´t lived Happily Ever After. Mavis may have died, being released from the curse, but Zeref just saw the first person that loved him in 400 years die because of him.
      • It gets even worse when you consider that, according to the timeline at the end of Zero, Makarov was born in X696 and Yury died in X700, meaning that Makarov lost both his parents by the time he was five years old.
      • The anime adaptation makes this whole sequence so much worse. Mavis' Despair Event Horizon is shown in stark, visceral, unforgiving detail, with nearly the entire episode featuring a desaturated art style and a Simple Score of Sadness, broken only by the sound of Mavis' anguished screams, hysterical crying, and finally, the sight of her completely broken, barely able to speak when she finally meets Zeref again. And then the Kiss of Death happens...
  • Chapter 451, it is heartbreaking seeing Zeref struggling with what happened to Mavis. He keeps either denying his feelings for her or saying he shouldn´t have fallen in love. He even shows self-deprecation for himself, as he claims that if Mavis was a fairy, then he is a Spriggan (Ugly Fairy).
  • Although it is a fairly cheerful origin story, Fairy Tail: Zero becomes heartbreaking once you realize the tragic fates that befall all five founding members. Zera actually died as a small child and was really a combination of her soul and Mavis's illusion magic. Although, since it was founded in her memory, she was an honorary founder of the guild, she never lived long enough to see Fairy Tail open. Yuri suddenly lost his wife seconds after the birth of their son and the child he swore to care for and protect ran away and was later declared dead, with him never knowing what killed either of them. He passed away a few years later, most likely dying of grief. Perchet had to carry the burden of what happens to poor Mavis alone, and unintentionally created Fairy Heart during his crazed experiments to try and revive her. He dived into dark magic and drove himself insane trying to save his friend; for all his efforts, he becomes a crazed, sadistic dark guild master, and is unceremoniously killed off by Zeref. Mavis's sad tale needs no further explanation. Actually, poor Warrod has most likely had it the worst. He is over a hundred years old, and had to experience the tragedy of losing his comrades and god knows what else. He lost Mavis and never knew what really happens to her and, apparently, appears to still not have any knowledge of her ultimate fate. Yuri's wife died and Yuri also died not to long after. His second best friend, Perchet, disappeared, and he only found out what happened after his friend was killed by zeref and the members of their old guild disappeared. He then gets brutalized by God Serena and nearly dies; his final wishes were to see Mavis's smile one last time and to met Yuri and Perchet in the afterlife. After deciding to fight on, he gets to see Serena ripped apart by Acnologia. Really, the whole backstory of the Titular guild is rather depressing.
  • Chapter 465, Zeref finally tells Natsu a little about his past. Namely that his name is Zeref Dragneel, and that he lost his family, his parents, and Natsu to a dragon attack, and so he resurrected Natsu as E.N.D. When Natsu refuses to believe this, Zeref takes out the book of E.N.D. and shoots a hole through it, causing Natsu pain. Natsu charges to land the final blow on Zeref, and Zeref says that as a demon from a book of Zeref, if he dies, Natsu would too. Natsu states he doesn't care, but before he could land the fatal blow, Happy grabs him and flies away from Zeref, crying, and screaming that he absolutely would not allow Natsu to perform a Heroic Sacrifice.
  • Chapter 469, Warrod after being beaten by God Serena alongside the other Four Gods, remembers of Mavis and says he would like to see her smiling face just one more time. When God Serena prepares to end his misery, his final thoughts, while crying, are that he was about to join his friends Yuri and Precht. That said, the next chapter reveals he has no intentions of going down without swinging.
    • Lucy's reaction to Natsu's condition; she's in tears as she begs Brandish to help him.
  • Chapter 476: Ultear offers to help Wendy and Chelia defeat Dimaria by giving only one of them "Third Origin", an accumulation of all the magic power they would have in the future. However, whoever uses it will never be able to use magic again. Chelia sacrifices her magic so Wendy can use hers to fight for her guild, and defeats Dimaria.
  • Chapter 488:
    • Gajeel is dead. After having beat Bradman for the sake of Levy, Bradman decides to pull a Taking You with Me, becoming an entire vacuum of Magic Barrier Particles that sucks Gajeel in, changing his body into nothing more than Magic Barrier Particles. Levy refuses to let him die, but Gajeel pins her to a rock. She breaks free but Panther Lily shows up and restrains her. Gajeel thanks Levy for bringing out the best in him, that she taught him what it means to love. He was able to think of the future, a family, and happiness. That after everything Gajeel has ever faced, having his future with her taken away is the most terrifying thing he has ever had to experience. He tells Levy to live for the both of them and Lily to make sure she gets back to the guild safe and sound. As Gajeel managed to Go Out with a Smile, Levy unleashes a Skyward Scream. He is most likely Killed Off for Real, as Achnologia remarked that aside from him, there are six Dragon Slayers left.
    • Mest has jumped off the slippery slope in the worst of ways. Brandish has finally managed to convince August to think for himself, then affectionately calls him Grandpa. Mest then decides to rewrite her memory, implanting the idea that she "Must kill August, no matter what the cost.", causing her to pull out a shrunken sword, enlarge it, then impale August with it. Natsu tries to deliver a What the Hell, Hero? but Mest rationalizes it as him protecting the guild. Brandish has tears streaming down her face as she tries to process what happened. August then begins to unleash his magic, now believing that fighting is the only answer, meaning Mest's actions may have doomed the guild rather than save it.
      • Fridge Horror kicks in when you realize that Mest's repeated altering of his own memory may be damaging his sanity, and led him to forget what Fairy Tail truly is. He has had the most objections to keeping prisoners rather than killing them. Even if they do survive, Mest won't be stable enough to be a trustworthy ally.
    • Now let´s imagine what Brandish might have felt after she stabbed August. In the previous day she just saw her mother being stabbed and dying. Now, she had just done the same thing, even if brainwashed, not only one of her comrades but to a guy she saw as a grandfather figure. She just nearly killed, most likely, the closest individual she has for a family.
  • Chapter 491. Irene beats the entire royal guard the King begs her not to hurt his daughter Hisui, but Irene turns her into a mouse and asks the king if he still loves her in that pathetic form.
  • Chapter 493.
    • After several years separated the sisters Sorano and Yukino finally reunite, but Sorano claims she has no sister, because Yukino doesn't deserve someone who has done so many sins as a sister.
    • Lisanna turns back to help Mirajane and she founds her big sister bleeding and starts crying believing she had died. Luckily Brandish diminished Mira's wound.
  • Chapter 499, full stop. Invel's Ice Lock causes Gray and Juvia to fight one another to the death. While they're beating each other to a bloody pulp with Gray emerging as a clear victor, one expects The Power of Love to kick in just in time to save their lives. It doesn't. At least, not in the way you'd hope: Both Gray and Juvia kill themselves, stabbing themselves through the chest with their magic, but for some reason, Gray lives. He hears Juvia's voice, saying she used her magic to transfuse her blood with his, and says her life had always been his, and that she'll live on through him. Cue Really Dead Montage, and Gray's Unstoppable Rage.
    • The corresponding episode even more so. The revelation that Juvia saved his life at the cost of her own, drives Gray to a Skyward Scream while clutching her in his arms before going into the above mentioned Really Dead Montage, but it's itty bitty part after the montage that grinds (what's left of) your heart into pieces. The scene cuts to Gray lying on the ground next to Juvia, holding her to him, BEGGING her to open her eyes. In barely more than a whisper, he promises to take her more seriously if she'll just wake up. He sounds utterly broken.
  • Chapter 500.
    • Juvia might have survived, but you can see that Gray is utterly heartbroken over the events of the previous chapter, particularly when, standing over a defeated Invel, he realizes that beating him up won't bring Juvia back. Gray then learns about E.N.D. being Natsu, a revelation that will likely force the two friends to fight.
    • Brandish tries to Take a Third Option and ensure that the three members of Fairy Tail she most cares about (Natsu, Lucy and Happy) live, but not only are they prepared to take on an impossible fight for the sake of their guild, but two of Brandish's comrades- Dimaria and Neinhart- seem to consider this degree of mercy as an act of treason.
    • Let´s imagine what Dimaria is thinking. She and Brandish were never actual friends but they were still comrades that devoted their lives for their emperor and nation. Now she was watching the same comrade acting behind the Emperor's and everyone's backs and trying to save the lives of the same people that the emperor wants dead and who have been fighting them for days. She has every reason to feel betrayed.
      • This get Harsher in Hindsight. Dimaria was already thirsty for revenge, but her Laser-Guided Karma made her act nicer to Brandish, which could have mellowed her down over time. Now, after witnessing Brandish doing this treacherous act has certainly turned Dimaria's heart even colder.
  • Chapter 501: Brandish being cut down by Dimaria has two reactions.
    • Lucy cries in utter horror. While she and Brandish were technically enemies and just fought each other minutes later, Lucy truly sympathized with her and wanted to be her friend.
    • Dimaria could easily see that Brandish was no longer entirely loyal to Alvarez and she needed to pay for secretly helping Fairy Tail, but her face while doing it was clearly not one of joy or satisfaction. She then vows, with Berserker Tears, to give Lucy a slow and painful death for 'corrupting' Brandish and forcing Dimaria to cut down her comrade.
  • Chapter 503.
    • It's clear that any hope of Brandish and Dimaria being or becoming friends has been irrevocably shattered when, upon finding Dimaria badly wounded as a result of E.N.D. awakening, Brandish doesn't appear concerned about her, or even seem outraged over Dimaria cutting her down, but simply warns Lucy, Evergreen and Porlyuscia to put anti-magic chains on Dimaria before she can use her time magic again..
    • The chapter ends with the long awaited battle between Gray and Natsu/E.N.D. about to begin. While Natsu and Gray had often butted heads, they genuinely trusted each other and considered each other friends, so it's heartbreaking to see them in a battle that will apparently be to the death.
  • Chapter 504.
    • Natsu and Gray start fighting, Natsu is driven by his desire to kill Zeref (much like the other Etherious) while Gray is driven by revenge after losing his family, Ur and Juvia.
    • It turns out that after beating Dimaria, Natsu tries to wake up Lucy but she doesn't respond (because she was still under the effect of Age Seal), leading to him believing her to be dead. This in turn triggered his demonic power.
    • In a lesser note, Dimaria's condition. At the beginning she was a cocky and confident warrior that loved teasing other women. Now, after a shameful defeat at the hands of Sherria, seeing one of her comrades helping the enemy and being forced to cut her down and enduring the wrath of an enraged E.N.D, she is now nothing more but a shadow of her former self and can´t even answer Evergreen. Dimaria might have had it coming, but it is still pitiful seeing her like this.
  • Chapter 505. As Irene Enchants the army, strengthening them to the point at which Fairy Tail is overwhelmed, Makarov performs a Heroic Sacrifice, not wanting to see the blood of any more of his "children" spilled, even if he believes Mavis could come up with a strategy to win the battle. The following chapter shows that it's especially hard on Mavis and Erza, who'd hoped to come up with a way to prevent him from having to do that, and who seem to feel responsible for his death.
    • It's even worse in the anime because of the voice acting from all parties, especially Colleen Clinkenbeard (Erza).
  • Chapter 519. We get to see Irene about to Enchant herself into her newborn daughter's body... then the baby starts to smile at her momma, and Irene breaks into tears as she realizes she just can't steal her baby girl's life, which leads her to abandon Erza on the steps of Rosemary's church.
  • Chapter 520. Wendy wonders what happened to Makarov because his smell disappeared. Erza just hugs her, and that's when the girl understands. Remember, she already lost her first Master. And now she has to relive the same loss.
  • Chapter 523. Gray has encountered Zeref in the Fairy Tail guild hall and was in the middle of casting Lost Iced Shell, a spell that would make all those who knew the caster completely forget about their existence once it is finished cast, on Zeref to trap him and ensure at least temporary peace. Natsu (along with Lucy and Happy) also manages to make it to the guild in time to stop him from casting it completely via a good hard faceplanting into the ground.
    Natsu: Have you... forgotten all about the past already? I'm sure I've already stopped you once from using this magic.
    Gray: I... I once tried to kill you, my best friend... all because I got carried away with my emotions... I NO LONGER HAVE ANY RIGHT TO BE IN THE GUILD! So please...
    Natsu: I'M GONNA THROW THOSE WORDS RIGHT BACK AT YA!
    (Gray stands silent with shock)
    Natsu: Aren't we... (cut to tears pouring down his face) you know... friends?
    • The real reason why this scene is such a Tearjerker is the very fact that, for whatever reason, Natsu felt that asking that question was even necessary, as if he wasn't so sure anymore if that was the case and hoped desperately that their bond hadn't broken because of the two previously having tried to actually kill each other in their fits of rage. Seriously, what with him discovering his true identity as E.N.D., getting incredibly close to dying/getting killed multiple times, and being horribly mind-broken to the point that it led to him awakening his Etherious powers when he mistook Lucy for dead, pretty much the entirety of this arc has not been kind to Natsu at all.
  • Chapter 527. August decides to sacrifice himself to destroy everything, but as he's doing it, he sees Mavis for the first time, and loses his will to follow through with it. With his magic power consuming him, August fades away, but as he does, he laments that he wished he could've been held by his mother just once. An image of August as a child briefly appears behind Mavis, but quickly vanishes, leaving the First Master to wonder what it was.
    • Not helped by the fact that neither Mavis nor Zeref ever knew that they even had a child, and may never know.
    • Harsher in Hindsight, but Brandish lost her grandfather figure. She, who had already lost her mother, now lost the closest thing she had of family.
    • Larcade breaks down further, telling Zeref that his wounds hurt. The Black Wizard quickly erases him from existence, not wishing to see him any longer. Poor Zeref sweats heavily through the whole ordeal, implying he still didn't like it even if he was ending the suffering.
  • Chapter 529, in-universe: As Gray, Lucy, and Happy collect themselves after being hustled away from the Natsu/Zeref battle by Mavis, Lucy breaks down crying while clutching the Book Of E.N.D....she can't believe her best friend's life is little more than a pawn and creation of the Big Bad.
    • Arguable worse is said Big Bad's condition. Zeref an originally well-intentioned who just wanted his brother back and who was able to keep his sanity and moral intact for over 400 centuries, who was cursed with such a terrible power that any lesser man would have lost all reason long ago....... Has completely broken. Zeref is little more than a lunatic who has lost all sense of self. This coming after the revelation of having a son he never knew about so close by. Likely to be killed by his said little brother who he resurrected and will likely die doing so making Zerefs suffering and all the death and missilery caused by Ankhseram's terrible curse completely meaningless and for nothing. Many fans are beginning to doubt mashima promise of a happy ending
  • Chapter 532 and 533. Jesus Christ. You really know that shit has hit the fan when there are two potential major character deaths revealed in one week. That is, if it does stick.
  • Chapter 537. Zeref is on the receiving end of a Kiss of Death from Mavis (torn between hating him and wanting him to die or loving him and wanting to be with him forever). It takes both of them for good - no more immortality, no Only Mostly Dead, they are both Killed Off for Real.
  • Chapter 538. Watch Lucy's reaction to Natsu disappearing. She takes Heroic BSoD to the extreme. It took everything she had to rewrite the book and save him from his fate, and now it seems that she has failed and her best friend is gone along with Zeref and Mavis.
  • Chapter 539. Natsu has disappeared, Acnologia is destroying the world around the battered and tired guild members, and all they can do is try to evade his devastation ensemble. And Lucy? Witness the absolute pain and misery on her tearful face as she screams her best friend's name to the heavens as the Black Dragon tears everything apart around her.
    Lucy: '''NATSUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!'''
  • Chapter 543. Acnologia of all people has a small moment: when Natsu claims Acnologia is not a true Dragon because Dragons are brave and strong and kind, the Black Dragon furiously answers that Dragons can't possibly be good because if they were, they wouldn't have destroyed Acnologia's home and killed his entire family. Acnologia started as a Heartbroken Badass seeking to avenge his loved ones by wiping the entire species he blamed for their death, and he ended as the very same monster he wanted to destroy.
    • The Anime backs this up during Acnologia's final moments. By the end of it, seeing Acnologia's madness and rants of killing everyone, even Natsu pities him, and by the time he is dying, he desperately tries to hold on to his delusions and if it's already somewhat pitiable to see such a powerful villain brought so low, how Natsu says next definitely would confirm once and for all that beneath his ruthlessness and destructive attitude, he is a truly Tragic Villain who is never happy with what he had become but was too far gone to end himself. The music that played was no triumph, but instead a solemn peaceful tone that shows how Acnologia wasn't a villain to be hated and feared, but rather someone who should be pitied.

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