Title: Seven Moments
A/N: HHEEEEEY! Ice is back!~ Actually, hmm-I'm feeling err-do you know the feeling of being constipated? yeah. sounds gross, but no. I mean, yeah-errr-I've been having nightmares on writer's blocks and bunnies are rarely getting to me. And when it does, I don't know, it's so hard to write and visualize them down... So, now that my fingers were complaining(it's itching, really) I'm forced to write this out, and believe it or not, I found tis bunny on the kitchen sink-when I was washing the dishes. Nuahahhahahahaha!
Oh, yeah!~ recently, I undergone a training for Basic Life Support and First Aid in the Red Cross Youth. Yay! I graduated!~ I'm a bit proud of myself coz really, I'm a scatterbrain myself, I'm reckless so it's better to know how to take care of myself, and of course for others.
So, yeah...that's all the reason I have why I was 'lost'. *sigh* so , excuse me...Imma go into hiding first...-er, I mean, ENJOY!
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail and the rest of the characters are not mine.
Warning: OOCs, grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. (I hope you bear with me)
I.
It was the aftermath of destruction of their guild, after battling the Phantom's guild. The whole of Fairy Tail members were busy reconstructing their building; Master Makarov and the other men were carrying wood it nailing them together, while the other girls gladly made them refreshments with Mira. However, Erza was, once again on her special armor likened to a construction worker, helped the boys out too. She commanded, and played the role very well.
" I need two more wood complete this side here." Macao shouts.
"On it."
"I'll get it." The redhead answered. Erza walked towards the pile of wood, careful to not disturb or get hit by debris. She swung an arm on the other side of the pile, taking two pieces underarm, when there was one familiar hand on the same thing she was holding on to. On top of her gloved hands to be exact.
"Gray?"
"Erza.." the ice mage replied back.
"I can handle this."
"You know I-" Erza cut off herself when she (finally) felt the heat from her hands.
"Wha-Ack!" With that the mighty Titania left a shocked crowd and an unconscious Gray Fullbuster.
He just happened to touch her injured hand that she reacted that much, nothing else really.
II.
"Take that you ice freak!" Natsu roared as he punched the exhibitionist hard enough to send him flying a few good meters.
Meanwhile, a certain blonde was walking towards the guild entrance. "The boutique was good, right? I mean they got the latest trends of everything and their suits really come handy for combat and magic, too!" she told her redhead companion.
"Yes. That's really clever of them. I see that they could really go far." Erza wisely commented. The boutique's going to be her favorite now, she's never found a lovely, astonishing formal black suit and slack skirt that made her look like a damn hot spy. She had it customized with her scarlet colored tie, too. She'd love to have Mira comment on it later-
"Erza, hey-whaa! Watch-!"
"Oh no, he's going to hit her head on!"
THUUD! CRASSHH! Uh, oh.
"Hey, are you guys okay?" Lucy ran to them worriedly. Erza could have dodge the incoming foreign body but hey, she has to have her own fangirl time, right?
"I guess I hit you too hard, yeah?" Natsu grinned sheepishly, not knowing whether to be proud of his achievement or be damned for hitting Erza along, too.
"Was it that obvious?" and while the two went to another conversation instead of helping their friends out of now destroyed gate, Gray had managed to get himself out before his accidentally-made human cushion be any angrier than she must be now.
"Ow..damn, it hurts! Erza wouldn't happen to wear an armor, right? Erza, are you alright?" like the gentleman he was, he offered his hands to the scarlet.
Without thinking, Gray pulled her left arm to help her stand up. She accepted his hand unconsciously, dusting her clothes with her free hand all the while.
10 seconds.
"Let go, you pervert!"
WHAM!
"Uwack!- "
CRAAASSSH. "Eh? Nats-what just happened again!?"
III.
"Hold fast, everybody!"
"This was supposed to be a normal trip!" Lucy complains, while holding for her dear life on a wooden pole.
"I never thought we'd go through this with our original route. Perhaps, I must have overlooked it on my Archive magic!" One of the Trimens, Hibiki replied while doing the same on a piece of rope.
"Hey, Natsu are you okay?" Happy worried for his friend.
Well, first off this was supposed to be a get-together of the two guilds, celebrating their camaraderie getting stronger. They were on Christina, enjoying the spectacular view of the whole country beneath them. They never expected a strong torrent of wind will catch the sails of their ship.
Christina made a disturbing crack below as it practically did a ninety-degree tilt, throwing everyone off their foot and now, holding for their lives on everything close to them.
"WHOAAAA!" They were screams, shouts and panic-filled voices mixing with the strong gusts if the wind. Things slipped off the compartments, dropping off-board, luggages were stumbling like rocks.
And Erza had to curse inwardly for having abandoned by her lucky stars for throwing her a lot of troubles. First was a random chair hitting him straight ahead, then tables, then her bundle of luggage coming fast toward her.
Pain shoot from her arms as she struggled to keep a strong grip but failed to do so. Her hands slipped through the wooden part of the ship she was latching to.
There was a strong grip on her arm as she wondered what it was.
"Hold on!" the owner of the voice said. Erza knew whose exactly it was. Her mind went blank, and reflexes took over.
She grabbed the other man's wrist, catching the other off guard and flailing in mid-air and thrown overhead. She took the momentum and lunged forward, landing atop the handle bars. She didn't pay attention to the man who struggled heavily, too late to realize what she'd done.
"Wha-WHAT THE HELL?!" Gray, determined not to die just yet, created an ice chain out of his magic, one secured on his wrist and one on the redhead's. He was sure he saw his life flash right before his eyes for a moment there.
At last, Christina managed to get on its route and escaped the fierce winds hot on its tail. Silence roamed the ship, sails flapping peacefully as it felt like nothing happened except for the fact that the whole of the ship and the passengers looked devastated and in chaos.
"We made it through!"
"Finally!" Thank goodness!"
"That gave me a heart attack back there!"
"I think I'm gonna throw up.."
"Natsu-san!"
"Oh, my..."
"Men!~"
"Christina's a real man!"
"You still look very cute, Miss Heartfilia~"
.
.
.
.
.
.
"DO YOU REALLY WANT TO KILL ME BACK THERE, ERZA!?"
IV.
"How come she hits me without any reason at all!" Gray shouted in frustration.
They grew up together, knew every little thing about each other, and had seen their secrets inside out( literally and idiomatically). He isn't that cold just because he's an ice mage, and nobody ever complained when his other friends are near him, and besides she's stronger to be affected by that! Now, how come she gets worked up just for a mere touch!? It's not like she ever cared about that now, right? Or is it just hormones?
"Calm down, Gray. I'm sure she has a reason..." Lucy contemplates.
"Yeah.. But it's Erza, what could possibly that be?" says Natsu.
"Mira, do you know anything?" Lucy turned to their white-haired friend who had taken an interest to join the conversation.
She just smiled a knowing smile, placing a hand over her lips to hide it. "Who knows? Oh, here she comes!"
"Hey, guys! I'm back." a certain armored scarlet walked towards the group. Gray, determined to get a good answer wasted no time in approaching her. He has enough brain cells left and can't risk losing any more of it. Hey, going through beatings almost twice the fingers in his hands in a single week is a lot.. Than usual.
He grabbed Erza by his hand and-
That was a mistake.
"Gray? What's wrong with you?" she asked, both confused and a little bemused.
"Erza we need to talk." he said in a firm voice.
"About what?" she hissed.
"Well, you've been acting weird and-"
"Let go of my hand."
"Not until you tell me why-"
10 seconds gone.
Before Gray knew it, his face had hit the wall. AGAIN.
And damn, he's not a bit happy.
V.
He wasn't satisfied, and he's angry and downright pissed, and really beat, but no he won't give up just yet.
When Gray saw the perfect opportunity, he tackled the almighty Erza Scarlet catching her off guard. With all the strength he had, he pinned both Erza's heavy metal gauntlets above the redhead's stray locks overhead. He smirked at his piece of work. Hey, it's not everyday you get lucky enough to restrain the strongest female in the guild.
Hazel eyes widened and stared back the onyx orbs in front of her. In those eyes that acted like mirrors, she saw how much helpless she was; pathetic, restrained, caged.
No. She hates it. She hates that she was helpless in front of this man. She hates to feel that heat... The warmth that melts her sanity.
"Gray Fullbuster." Erza's voice was crisp and downright scary. You do not want to hear your full name escaping the Titania's lips.
"Let go. Let. Me. Go. Now." her voice was firm, but the ice mage didn't miss the trembling beneath her chords.
"No. You pushed me to do this, Erza. I won't let you go until you tell me why are you acting unreasonably." Gray's voice hid pain, anger, frustration, and hurt but he wasn't known as the cold ice mage for nothing. He had countered his trademark poker face to Erza's threatening one.
"LET. ME. GO." she said once again.
"No. Tell me the reason first! Tell me why you act so indifferent with me as if my existence was a mistake and why you hate my presence so much!" he forced himself to keep an eye contact.
"I SAID LET ME GO! LET ME GO DAMNIT!" Erza's loud voice rang out through the guild as she squirmed out of his grip but her hands were numbed by the coldness of his grip, and his knees and muscular build kept her legs useless, too. "I HATE YOU! YOU GET THAT? NOW GET THE FUCK OFF ME AND DON'T EVER SHOW YOUR FACE TO ME AGAIN!" Erza screamed loudly as she could, tears pricking her eyes, and voice cracking under pressure. Everyone else in the room froze. No one has ever seen Erza looking like a child throwing tantrums until now.
Why?
"Gray, stop that!"
Gray froze in shock. Onyx orbs widened as much as possible as the same voice continued to echo and engrave itself into his brain. Unconsciously, his grip had loosen and Erza didn't waste time to shove him off forcefully and then ran outside the guild's entrance.
His heart being broken was an understatement.
VI.
"I get it..."
Beside the cold afternoon breeze brushing past her ears, there was voice that was carried like a wind chime.
He always knew she'd be here. He always does.
Gray stepped forward, but this time more careful to not step on boundaries. It took all of her to watch him by the clear reflection of the crystal waters by the river. His expression gave nothing away, hidden beneath his long raven locks and the way he hid his hands in the pockets. "I'm sorry... Whatever I did to you that you hated me that much.." he continued.
Why? He really wanted to ask.
"I'm sorry for being insensitive, for not knowing the reason earlier.. It's just that, it's not like you to not confront me directly, instead you avoid me and act despicably towards me..."
"I'm sorry that I stepped in boundaries and got this far." he began to walk away. Erza swore she saw his reflection biting his lower lip a bit too hard.
No matter how much she wanted to, it almost took everything in her to stand up and stop him.
"Wai-Gray..it's..it's not that.. I-it's me, okay?..I-" words failed her today.
This is why she hates herself so much. Her thoughts, no matter how much she tried, never align with the words that would slip her mouth. And it's just so wrong...
Silence.
"That's fine. I don't want you to push yourself if you really don't want to. Don't worry though, I won't bother you anymore." he halts in his steps but never really turned his back towards her. The words still stung and he still remembers them exactly as they were.
"..well, if you ever made up your mind about it, I still want to hear the reason why you hated me. And I would really prefer that you tell it to me directly next time.. It's still better than being rejected without knowing his fault in front of everyone."
Words curled up into a tight ball, stuck in her throat as she watched him walk away.
This is what her mind tells her to do, and yet why does her heart suffer so much?
VII.
Blood trickles down her temple and into her throat, and she swore she heard something snap in between her rib part. Visions blurred the tall, smug man in front of her. Her arms won't move, legs went numb.
How did this happen? She began to ask herself.
She was supposed to be with Natsu and Lucy on this S-class mission, now both of them were nowhere to be seen. She was unlucky enough to be separated from them, much less getting to face the rogue mage rumored to be as strong as an S-class, the leader of those delinquents she recently beat up, ALONE mind you. Now, after what it feels like forever, both parties had been badly hurt. Yes, she has to admit that the enemy really took a number on her. Besides, the man plays dirty for crying out loud!
Both of them were slumped in their positions, as her mind unconsciously wandered off the past days when all of her madness began.
Ever since that incident, Team Natsu wasn't the same anymore. Gray had been distancing himself from the group, more than often seen taking solo missions, or tagging along with others. Sometimes he would invite Natsu and Lucy, too. He was still the same with the others, except for the fact that he never was to be found whenever Erza is inside the guild.
He had taken his words seriously.
Erza, was still the same.. She'd take S- class missions, and would take longer days out the guild the usual. If she ever decides to have the fire dragonslayer and the celestial mage, she'd wait for them patiently until they come back and borrow them all the same.
But a few of her close friends would notice the firmer grip on her gauntlets or her glass of drink, and more than often they would see her spacing out, staring blankly at the usual spot a certain ice mage usually stays.
The look guilt was just as broad as daylight in her eyes, but then clouds of hesitation would make her vision blurred.
Even Makarov and Mira, who seemed to know the cause, and the few of their closest friends had gone worried of their fight( no one really knew about them talking by the river that day).
Why did it have to go this far?
She was then again lacking concentration that she'd forget that she was currently held in a tight grip with the enemy sneaking up from her behind. Blade placed at a deadly accuracy against her jugular.
Damnit! She hated this kind of feeling..like she was a caged bird. She struggled under his grip as her body only ached more, the thought of how could possibly the man still move when she knows both of them barely had the strength to stand passed her by a millisecond. She was trapped, and the only destination she was headed was for a dangerously thin cliff.
Silently, she spat out another curse.
All the while her enemy has lost his sanity somewhere back, is whispering cold whispers and mocking sarcasms against her ear.
"Don't worry, I will drag you to hell with me, Titania."
Slowly, they were inching towards the cliff, she began to hear the roaring and clashing of the angry rapids down below, destroying and swallowing boulders and rocks out of its way. Still, her body won't move.
And then they were falling, and falling..into the fierce waters they go. She reached out her hand in desperation.
He was always there in times when I'm close to fall, even though I never even called his name.
The sound of a splash came to her, and she knew she was next to go.
But how come I feel like being suspended in mid-air? Erza tried to open her hazel orbs to see what's going on.
"Don't." it said.
"Wh-huh?" was the intelligent answer she came up with.
Erza felt someone tugging her left arm. The sound of bones and muscles being forcefully stretched and cracking.
SNAP. It went, and she could only gasp in pain. Nevertheless, Erza knew she was saved.
But then the scarlet heard a familiar sound of rocks and earth cracking and falling under pressure. The redhead forgot the cliff was far dangerous and barely keeping itself together, her hopes died out just then. She was pulled upward in one swift move as the other started falling. Everything went suspiciously familiar, the warmth on her hand was something definitely reminded her of that time.
She landed with a soft thud to the remaining edge of the cliff, looking down.
She was right. It was him.
How?
"Gray?-How..?" she asked bewildered, ignoring the incredible pain shooting up her entire upper body.
He just smiled a forlorn smile. "Sorry, you have to see me." When you take a look closer, you could see exhaustion and weariness in his figure coupled with few bruises and cuts.
What is going on here?
'So, even if I came this far to stalk and rescue you, I'm still useless aren't I?' he mused. Wasting his magic over those thugs was a big mistake. Now he's practically drained. His instinct about how this mission was underestimated by only taking three members was right.
CRACK. There was the sound again. Erza panicked as much as possible. The ground barely holding her was starting to crumble again.
"Erza, you have to let go. Or else the two of us will fall." he said.
"No!" her voice was greeted with a brief shock plastered on the other man's face. Erza still winced in pain, slick blood ran down her hand much to her dismay.
"You're really stubborn.. Look, Erza. I'll be fine. I know you don't want me holding you hand. And I don't think either of us could hold on much longer... Just let go."
"No! Damnit! If I do that, you'll-" she cut herself off as she bit her tongue in another hiss of pain. Crimson fluid was already soaking her arms and their grip.
10 seconds.
She passed 10 seconds!
I passed 10 seconds! Even though it should be the least of her worries, she didn't fail to notice it in herself, too.
Still, he noticed that, too. He looked relieved by that. "Wow. Will you look at that, you broke your own record Erza!" he chuckled. "Usually, you'd already beat me up after 10 seconds. Guess that's an improvement!"
The redhead blushed madly, but it was quickly replaced with both pain, and panic as her grip began to slip with all the blood. "Shut it, Gray! This is not the time you should be joking like that!"
He just chuckled like it was normal for him in this situation before he changed into a determined expression, "I'll be fine, okay? Seriously, Erza let me go already."
The ground gave in.
The pale blue moon silently watched them fall, light illuminating their scarred and battered bodies falling in a slow motion.
"I'm glad...you already conquered whatever that's holding you back, Erza.. But..." Gray shoved himself out of a shocked Erza's grip and then using the strength left in his limbs to his legs, he kicked Erza's body upward. The scarlet shoot upward, and the raven only fastened his pace towards his doom.
Erza watched in complete horror as the ice mage fell right before her eyes. She was thrown to a safer ground, but never did she felt this miserable for someone who was just saved.
...No...
..no.
NO! She desperately held out her hands, and tears began to fall...just like how the Sakura tree leaves fell and was carried by the wind.
"..I have a promise to myself to fulfill..." he smiled as he watched her disappear from his half-closed eyes. He could only catch droplets of water falling along with him, and he felt doing the same too.
VIII.
Regret. With each falling petal from the last living Sakura tree, she reminisces. Remembers. Regrets.
This season...she loved autumn, until now... Now, she longed for the snow..
A/N: Yes!~ At last, I finally let it out!- I mean-Sorry? So, this time I've finally got myself to write a tragic fic. And I cried writing this, mind you.
About the title, I only said "Seven" but you read eight parts-you noticed the eight part, the picture was never really complete again...
Oh, do you have any prompts? I'd love to hear them, if you want " still struggling to fend off Writer's blocks...
Ja!~ see ya 'round, mates! Hohohohoho.