This is a little Graylu piece, I hope you enjoy! I've been a bit back and forth with what I'm going to post on here, but I've decided on just small short stories with pairings, or maybe even new quests. This is my first attempt and it's not quite finished yet. Criticize away, it would be greatly appreciated.
Lucy Heartfilia laid awake on her small mattress. The stars shun bright above her head, if her day hadn't been so full of pain and suffering maybe she would have had the heart to enjoy them. The fire beside them all crackled as it's flames lowered. Natsu and happy snored lightly to the left of her, they where merely a meter away. Carla and Wendy laid curled up on the other side of the fire, with a red haired Erza sleeping peacefully next to them. Looking at the peaceful resting faces of her friends made her smile lightly, until she noticed that the last bed was empty. Gray, who had been furthest away from the campsite was no longer in his bed.
Lucy felt sadness rush over her again as the memories of their day came flooding back.
Gray, rolled around on the ground, screaming in agony. Although it wasn't physical pain he was experiencing it was emotional. Treemain stood above him, towering over like a giant, an evil look in his eyes. Lucy ran toward Gray, her hands on her keys ready to do something about this situation when out of no where her body was reefed into the air, her keys fell from her posetion and onto the ground below her. "Now, now Princess I can't have you interfering with Gray's little show here can I?" He taunted, Lucy looked around trying to inspect what was holding her in the air. Bound by her arms and legs, but no visible sign of anything. Invisible chains, well at least that's what it felt like. Lucy ignored the taunting of their enemy and stared intensely at Gray. "GRAY SNAP OUT OF IT" She yelled, trying to reach her fallen comrade. "ARGH!" She screamed, as Treemain tightened the grip on the invisible chains, bending her into near impossible positions. "Gray you have to get up!" She cried, a sense of overwhelming terror rushing over her. "I told you Miss Lucy, that when the Curse of Shadows takes over a person is doomed to have a constant replay of every hardship they've ever faced. Until eventually, they lose their will to live and die. It's quite beautiful really!" He went red in the face, gushing over the brilliance of his curse. Lucy felt absolute terror getting worse, but it didn't feel like it belonged to her.
Gray had been trapped in one of Treemain's curse for so long that it was going to have effects that lasted well after the curse had been lifted. The thought of his pain carrying on hurt Lucy's chest. "I have to go check up on him" she said aloud, and with that she stood up and headed toward the forest. Assuming that's where he'd be.
The Ice Wizard Gray Fullbuster sat at the edge of the forest, in the shadow it cast. He was truly a sight to behold. Slouched down over a rock, tears and sweat streaming of his usual half naked body, despite the fact it was cold outside. He cried and cried, with agony he hadn't felt in years. But he remained completely silent about it, as his shaking body sat there in the dark.
"Why did this have to happen!?" He yelled, punching the dirt beneath him so hard it shook the tree's. He took a deep breath, and looked up at the stars. He wanted to enjoy them the way he always had, but the day had been to heart-wrenching to bother.
Tears continued down his face, as he stared up toward the sky, deep in the memory of being in that place.
"UR, DON'T DO IT!" Gray screamed into the darkness. This place was hell, he couldn't even close his eyes to escape the painful memories. It didn't matter where he turned or what he did he saw one horror after another. Losing his village, losing Ur, losing Utire, the pain of his guild, the pain of Erza. Any time he' ever been scared, or broken, or angry it was all right there. "I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANY MORE!" He yelled so loud his voice cracked on the edge of insanity, and yet not a soul could hear him.
"Gray..." A quiet and delicate voice gripped his attention, forcing him to snap his head forward. The big brown eyes that met with his had too much sympathy for him to deal with and quite frankly he wanted nothing more than to be alone.
"Go back to the camp Lucy, it's late." He snapped, and instantly wondered why he was showing so much hostility toward his friend.
"Gray, I'm worried..." she pressed, with a voice breaking.
"Well that's a waste of damn time!" He barked at his friend, she took a slight step away from him. That action made guilt rush through Gray, Did I scare her? he thought to himself. With that, he stood up and turned to walk into the forest. "Look, I'm sorry. Just go back to bed okay? I'll see you in the morning." Gray was nearly engulfed by the darkness of the forest when a small hand gripped onto his tightly.
"Gray can you please stay here with me?" Despite the fact Gray knew what Lucy was trying to do, he couldn't help but give into the blonde girl. The pain in her voice was too real for him to leave her standing there alone.
They stood there a while before Gray turned around, the whole time she didn't let go of his hand. Her arm outstretched in front of her and his outstretched behind. He could feel her eyes burning into the back of his skull, she was worried, genuinely worried. And despite the darkness within him, he couldn't help but feel a little warmth from that. He turned, and Lucy let go of his hand after a moment longer, he watched as she walked a few steps away.
Lucy decided to leg go of Gray's hand, she went and sat down on the same rock Gray had just been slouching over when she walked up. She remained silent as she lifted her head and looked toward the stars again. She couldn't help but wonder why humans always looked to the stars in times of pain. She decided on the fact they probably think if they stare long enough they'll get answers. But she knew all to well that answers never came.
Gray sitting down beside her brought her rushing back to reality. He was quite close, his skin touched hers and even though she'd spent her whole time at Fairy Tail imagining he'd be cold..he was in fact warm.
"Gray, are...are you okay?" Lucy broke the tense silence, with words she didn't really think through before she asked. Of course he's not okay! she blurted in her head. What a stupid question.
"I'm fine.." His voice trailed away, it sounded different so Lucy looked up at him. And there he was, the great Ice Wizard staring at the stars with tears running down his face. Glistening from the moonlight above.
Seeing these tears brought Lucy guilt, and after leaving their friends behind for seven years, finding out about her fathers death she didn't know if she could handle any more guilt. Tears started to stream down her face as well.
"We survived, so why is everything like this." She said ever so quietly to herself, before standing up and positioning herself in front of Gray.
The Ice Wizard looked up at the Celestial Wizard wondering what she was about to do, and why she'd moved.
"Gray, I'm sorry..." that took him by surprise.
"Why are you sorry?!" His voice sounding angrier than he intended.
"I couldn't stop him quick enough, I lost my keys and without them...without my...keys...I'm just utterly...useless." Her voice was trailing in and out, breaking from the intensity of her crying. "All I could do was watch, I'm not even someone people can depend on!"
Gray's heart burned watching his friend like this in front of him. She was this hurt over his pain, and he didn't know how to react. Lucy stood there crying for what seemed like eons, before he'd mustered up the thoughts to say anything.
"It wasn't your fault, he cursed all of us. We where all hopeless, I couldn't help you any more than you could have helped me." He motioned toward the bruises on Lucy's wrists and ankles. "You got hurt too."
These words only seemed to flare up Lucy's crying even more. Gray felt even worse what the hell am I supposed to say here?
"I couldn't fix anything, I'm a bad daughter and guild mate." She choked again "and your pain is all my fault."
What happened next took Gray by surprise. Lucy closed the gap between them, and buried her head into Gray's chest. She gripped onto him tight, he felt her arms wrap around his body. She was smaller this way, and comfortable.
Gray sat there, with Lucy's head pressed against his chest. Her tears ran onto his bare chest, her skin felt kinda nice against his but those tears seemed to burn as though they where filled with poison. Lucy was many things, bright, bubbly, warm, intelligent and inviting. This was a side he rarely saw of her, and he hated seeing it.
Lucy was acting on impulse, the memories of that day had replayed in her head and heart over and over again, all she knew to do was embrace her friend. She knew how much of a difference that made for her. But she couldn't deny that part of her hugged him out of selfishness, she wanted the comfort of an embrace as well.
Eventually her crying calmed down, but she didn't dare let him go. He needs to know he's not alone. she thought to herself, promising she'd not let go until she knew he knew that.
Time passed slower, as Lucy breathed heavily into Gray's chest. It was quiet, and the air smelled like damp wood. She started to get lost in memories, not just of Gray this time but her father, and the pain they all endured on Tenrou Island, the pain their guild mates endured for seven years. She nearly started to cry, but the sensation of something wet falling onto her head stopped her.
At first she didn't know what it was, but after a few more fell she realized that Gray was crying again. Once she noticed, she gripped him tighter. She could feel the unsteady rise and fall of his chest, she could hear the noises of pain he held inside. His heart wasn't beating regularly, he was emotionally damaged from what he'd experienced. This much she could tell. A burning desire to tell him the truth, rushed over her, and without a second thought she opened her mouth and blurted.
"I felt it too Gray."
Those words took him back, they hung over his head and then fell on him all at once. "What the hell does that mean?" Although part of him already knew what it meant.
"I was too close, Gray. When he cast it...I was too close, so he chained me up in the air. He chained me with the same chains he had you with. And he told me that he'd let me see your pain, so I could die knowing the torture you faced." She Lucy began to cry heavily again, and quite loud. But Gray didn't feel supportive, he felt angry.
"You're tellin' me you saw all of that Lucy?!" His voice raised, drowning out her crying as it did so.
"No! Gray I only felt it...I tried to stop it..I tried so hard, I saw you I felt what you felt and it was too much..." she began to talk fast, as if lost in emotion. "It was hard, Gray how are...how do you smile...all of that suffering..all at once..and I was useless!" Lucy's talking continued, but Gray zoned out. His anger melted away unearthing guilt as it did so.
There stood the beautiful Lucy Heartfilia in front of him, a babbling mess. Her blonde hair stuck to her wet cheeks, her arms folded over her chest as though she was holding herself together. Feeling his pain, on top of all of her own must have been hell. Gray couldn't bare seeing her that way any longer so he stood up and held his finger over her quivering lips. She stared at him in awe, her eyes damp, glistening in the moonlight.
"Hey, I got out in the end Lucy we all did. If you didn't carry me back I'd be laying there. We're Fairy Tail Wizards, our strength comes from our bonds and our ties to each other. That alone helped us survive an attack from Acnologia in the flesh. Our bonds are too strong for that pricks pissy spell, we're all going to be okay." He didn't believe the words coming out of his mouth, not until Lucy smiled up at him. It was a very weak smile, tears still ran down her eyes. He couldn't help but wonder if she'd run out of them soon. But despite it's weakness, her smile was as always the brightest thing he'd ever seen. She reached out and embraced him, in a way he'd never experienced from her before. Sure, they'd hugged plenty. They'd been through a lot together, they'd nearly died together. But this was different, and the warmth in his heart made him hug her back tightly.
"Ouch" she hissed quietly into his shirt, making him let go instantly.
"What is it?" He questioned, scanning her body for injury, when his eyes reached hers again they where staring guiltily at the ground.
"It's nothing, just a little sore." She lied, terribly.
"You're a horrible liar Lucy, it doesn't suit you. What is it?"
She slowly took a step back from him, covered her eyes with one hand as if afraid of what she could see next. And lifted her shirt. Gray gazed at her stomach, and it took a while in the darkness before he noticed it. She had a bruise that covered the whole left side of her abdomen. It was swollen, and very nasty looking. His mouth opened in the awe of how brutal this injury was.
"Geez Lucy did that bastard do this to you with his chains?! I swear to god, I'll kill him." His voice started to rise, but he stopped abruptly when he noticed her shaking her head.
"I saw you, I could feel the pain you felt and I could see it coming off of your body language, I couldn't bare it. I thought maybe if I could feel you, you could feel me." Gray took a step back himself, he didn't like where this was going. "Stop." he muttered but Lucy pressed on anyway. "I tried thinking about joyful things, like the day I joined Fairy Tail, and I noticed you changed for just a second." She paused, and started to tremble a little. "But it wasn't enough. So I figured out a way to do something else, and I prayed for a spirit to make their way to our world, and like always one of them answered. It was Loki, I was still in the air, and he was about to attack Treemaine, but I knew that would be useless. So I told him to hurt me. He didn't want to, but he did." She stared Gray right in the eyes now. "And you snapped out of it."
I remember.
Gray had already given up on his will to live, he'd been trapped in his own personal version of hell for what seemed like an eternity. He felt insane, he was laughing one minute crying the next. Calling out to people who weren't there. Refusing to accept that this was reality, desperately trying to create a fake one but it didn't work. He could hear the screams of his comrade in the outside world, but he couldn't make them out properly. "Can ya just kill me already?!" He screamed "I deserve it, KILL ME KILL ME KILL ME." Gray was pushing the point of no return, his head spun. He no longer had a concept of time, and hardly knew whether anything was real any more. The pain he was enduring, the guilt and anger, the jealousy. With no smiles, no brightness, no relief in between. It was too much.
Gray was in an empty place, a place you couldn't describe with words, and he was laying face down. His whole body pressing on the ground, like gravity had increased. He couldn't move, he couldn't think. Until suddenly, a stabbing pain in his abdomen hit him so hard he got lost in the intensity of his pain. "Arghhhh!" He screamed, clutching his side. And when he opened his eyes, a mortified looking Treemain stood in front of him. He blinked a few times, and realized. He was free.
"Loki threw everything he had at me, and I put everything I had into making sure I didn't die." She started to look guilty. Gray took a step forward. "I know it would have hurt you too, I know it was reckless but it was the only way." She continued talking nervously. Gray took another step forward. "It doesn't hurt that badly though, I swear. It'll heal up in no time." Gray took another step forward, and was now directly in front of her, he put his arm on her shoulder and carefully pushed her down to the ground, gripping onto her waist (the good side) so she didn't fall. Once she was on the ground he leaned over her, he could see her cheeks redden. She tried to speak, but he didn't let her. Once again he held his spare up, and finger pressed to her lips. He knelt over her, and rested his free hand lightly over her bruise. She winced at this, and he knew then she had lied about the severity of this pain. He then started to use his ice maker magick, cooling the air around her wound in hopes it could ease her pain. Lucy sat there frozen, in awe of Grays actions. He could see the relief wash over her face. "Is this helping?" He murmured, his face was so close to hers he could feel her breath.
"T-thanks" is all she managed to get out.