Chapter Two- Skies that Cannot Rival Silence
The rain hasn't stopped since the news of Lucy's demise. The dark skies rival the gloom that hangs over the guild. It's eerie, for once in a blue moon the whole hall is silent, even when a messenger runs to the door, "Gildarts is coming!"
"Tell the village to prepare for a Gildarts shift," Makarov orders somberly, nursing a mug of brandy in his hand. The master looks disheveled and unpresentable. His cap is on sideways, the long striped end hangs in his face. His clothes look like he dressed in the dark. One of the arms of his bright orange jacket hangs limp against his side. The rest of the guild looks just as worst for wear. Cana refuses to drink her beer, lazily flipping her cards around the table. Nobody wants their fortune told. Macao and Wakaba sit across the table from each other, looking up from their drinks every now and then to try and start conversation. Neither get further than opening their mouth. Members all around the guild are in similar shape. Nobody wants to break the silence. Fairy Tail is quiet, mourning.
Mirajane serves gracious amounts of liquor to anyone nearby, stopping every now and then to let out a choked sob. She misses not only Lucy, but Lisanna. Her sister's death anniversary is coming up soon. The kindhearted mage can't fathom why both would die so young and in such similar fashion. Elfman trails behind her, trying to catch the drinks that fall from her shaking hands. He occasionally lets out a few tears himself, and nobody says a word about him being a man. Wendy rubs the spot where her new guild mark rests. Her tears are cried not only for Lucy, but the knowledge that her entire guild was a fabrication. Levy lays her head on a book, surrounded by many of Mirajane's plentiful drinks. Tears stream down her face. Jet and Droy keep trying to put their arms around her, but she pushes them away to the point where they clutch each other and cry at their misfortune.
Gajeel sits next to Levy, regulating her alcohol intake. He suddenly slams his fists on the table. Startling fairies nearby as he starts getting up and moving toward the true dark cloud over the room. The pink haired man is an utter mess. His scarf is haphazardly laying over his shoulders. His clothes are still the same pair that Virgo gave to him, the ones that match his beloved friend's. He looks like he hasn't done anything but sit for days. His hair is greasy and starting to flatten on his head. Nobody has approached him. They can all see the grief in his face and know not to come near. Not a single soul could console him but her. Gajeel, though, gets the bright idea to walk up behind him.
"How long are you going to sit there, flame-head?" Gajeel questions loudly. The guild collectively raises their heads, a couple shocked, a couple disgusted, and a couple curious.
"Fuck off," Natsu growls, his voice raw from being unused.
"Get a job request, you lazy ass," Gajeel challenges back, leaning forward closer to the other dragon slayer. He's hoping to get slapped or punched. Something that would tell him the pinkette is healing. Natsu frowns, tilting his eyes towards the iron dragon slayer, "Get the hell out of my face."
"Make me," Gajeel taunts. The tension in the room grows. Many people lean forward, wondering what might happen. If it was quiet before, the silence is deafening now. One almost wishes that Erza could stop them, but she and Gray left on a job without their depressed teammate. Happy is passed out on the chair next to Natsu, unable to effect the outcome of this interaction.
Without warning, Natsu's flaming fist slams into Gajeel's stomach. The iron dragon slayer flies across the room, crashing into a table. He lands on top of Jet and Droy, squishing them underneath his weight. They groan, and try to push Gajeel off themselves. Levy manages a small grin at the sight. A couple mages perk up at the aspect of a fight.
"I said leave me alone, Metalface!" Natsu shouts, pocketing the Celestial Keys as he rises from his chair. His body is engulfed in white hot flames, and he starts stalking towards the guildmate that provoked him. Gajeel springs up, brushing off his pants, "Oi! You gotta lotta nerve for someone who hasn't moved in two days!"
"Fire Dragon's Breath!" Natsu shouts hoarsely, making a large stream of fire blast from his mouth. The flames near Gajeel, who smirks as he protects himself with an iron arm.
"You're getting rusty, Salamander!" The iron dragon slayer jests with a half-hearted smirk. At least he got the man up and about again.
"I'm getting all fired up!" The pinkette remarks in return. A frown graces his face for a moment. The line doesn't sound as cool without Lucy around. Before he can retreat, Gajeel sends an iron pillar towards him. Natsu jumps back, lighting his palms on fire. The iron post hits Elfman, who yells, "It's not manly to hit someone not in the fight!"
The white haired man pounces on Gajeel, and some more people from the guild stand up, wiping their eyes and downing the rest of their drinks before joining the fray. Dust kicks up as the brawl commences. Every now and then a splash of magic escapes, causing another nick on furniture or burn on the ceiling. The fight continues for a while, there's a lot of energy to burn. Natsu manages to get a hold of Gajeel again. He spits more fire at him, misses and hits the doors.
"What happened while I was gone?" A voice calls out as the doors crash open. A tall man shroud in a cloak appears. His orange hair contrasts sharply with the black that clothes him.
Instantly the fight stops, all heads turn towards the man. A couple drinks spill on the floor, and a table crashes to the ground, unable to take the weight of Gajeel on top of it.
"Gildarts, 'bout time you showed up!" Makarov slurs, slamming his drink down next to him. The amber liquid swishes onto the table.
"Old man, are you wasted?" Gildarts chuckles, and then breaks into a hearty laugh. He continues until he notices a perturbing silence forming across the room. Eyes are directed towards the floor, and nobody seems to find that funny at all. The Crash mage sighs, "What did I say? And where is Natsu? I'm surprised that kid hasn't come to fight me yet!"
All eyes glance around waiting for the pinkette to come and try to prove that he is okay.
"Salamander! What the hell?" Gajeel shouts, spotting the fire dragon slayer passed out underneath the job request board. Mirajane nears closer to him, managing a tiny smile, "It must be all the activity. He hasn't eaten or done much since..."
She chokes out a sob, covering her mouth. Elfman runs over to her, slinging his arm around her shoulder, "Nee-chan."
"Wait, what did I miss?" Gildarts questions, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. A sheepish smile graces his face until Makarov turns toward him, "A Fairy has died."
"I can't believe it. Who?" Gildarts mumbles, lowering his hand from his head. From what he can tell, nobody is missing. His eyes search over everyone, trying to pick out who has left forever. He looks over at the Strauss siblings, and back around at the gloom in the room, "Lisanna?"
"Yes… she died two years back," The Master informs, hanging his head, "But we have lost another. Her name is.. no... was Lucy."
A groan echoes from the request board and heads spin to find the source. The pinkette seems to start stirring at the sound of his deceased partner's name. Gajeel sneers at the reaction, "Hopeless."
Natsu pushes himself off the floor, onyx eyes locking with Gildarts. A grin builds on the fire dragon slayers face as he pitches himself towards the Crash mage, "Fight me, Gildarts!"
The force of Gildart's punch sends Natsu flying towards the ceiling. The grin on Natsu's face melts as the Celestial Keys clink against the wood. Angrily, the fire dragon slayer pounces on Gildarts again, earning another punch that sends him flying.
"Oi, kid, don't you think you've had enough?" Gildarts questions as the pinkette picks himself back up again. Flames build in the young mage's palms as he rushes at the Crash mage. The man in question slams Natsu to the ground, shaking his head, "Give it up, not today, boy."
"I'm not giving up," Natsu growls as he picks himself up off the ground. His body engulfs in flames, even as the young man underneath sways with the effort. His resolve is lost when Gajeel comes up behind him, locking Natsu's arms in his own, "Salamander, you moron. Eat something before you get your ass whooped."
"I didn't ask you, Metalface," The fire dragon slayer growls, squirming in his comrade's grip.
"Natsu, you sure have changed," Gildarts observes, tilting his head at the boy's haggard appearance. He understands the grief that has taken over the young man's heart. The eyes still gleam with a determination, but he is so dull.
"I can still beat you, old man!" Natsu grumbles angrily, struggling feebly against Gajeel's iron grasp.
"Fight me when you've done something about...this," Gildarts proclaims, gesturing at Natsu. He turns around in a dramatic fashion and breaks a hole in the wall of the guild. Gajeel lets go of the feisty dragon slayer and he falls to the ground. Natsu grumbles something about Gildarts and starts to exit the building. His hole appears next to Gildart's and a couple of the members still in the guild shake their heads at the destruction.
Natsu makes his way down the street, pulling the Celestial Keys out of his pocket again. He feels just terrible. There's this sense of loss that he hasn't felt before. With Igneel, there is always hope. He is out there, and the dragon slayer knows it. This is a different feeling. Completely gone, disappeared. Not even a body left behind, just the keys that she held so dear. Tears are not enough for the pain that he feels, knowing that he couldn't protect her, knowing that there was nothing he could have done. Before he knows where he was going, Natsu is standing in front of her apartment. Part of him doesn't want to go in, because she would never come in to yell at him, but then again…
He walks forward and places his hand on the doorknob. Unlocked, with a twist of his wrist the door swings open.
"Oi! 'bout time you showed up, flames for brains," A voice calls out as Natsu walks in. The ice mage in question is lounging on a chair, shirt and pants discarded nearby.
"It took you a week. I thought you were better than that," the scarlet haired mage replies as she flips through what looks like Lucy's book manuscript.
"What are you talking about?" Natsu grumbles, annoyed that his teammates have even the thought of teasing him when Lucy isn't around.
"We're going on a job, but you wouldn't get off your ass so we had to wait," Gray jests. The line reminds Natsu of what Gajeel said. He has been pretty pathetic. Igneel did say to stand up.
"First, he is cleaning up. I am not being seen with… that," Erza grumbles, putting down the manuscript. Her hands carefully lay it on the table and then straighten it, as if Lucy would come back and get mad that it is out of place.
"She's right, squinty eyes, take a shower," the ice mage chuckles halfheartedly. From the initial shock of seeing his teammates, Natsu can see the strain they are going through to try and bring things back to normal.
"Only if you put some clothes on, droopy eyes," Natsu banters, making his way towards the shower anyways. He can't see it, but his partners both share a look of relief. He opens the door to Lucy's room and sees a bouquet of flowers resting on her bed. He bares his teeth, trying not to think about it when Happy flies in through the window.
"Natsu! I brought you some clothes!" the blue Exceed proclaims, handing the dragon slayer a pair of his usual getup.
"Were you in on it too?" Natsu grumbles, stalking towards the bathroom.
"We planned it right next to you. You were too busy staring into space. It was scary," Happy admits, landing on the floor and following his partner.
"Sorry, Happy," Natsu remarks, handing the Celestial Keys to his friend while he begins to get cleaned up.
Her head hurts so much. All she can see in her mind are the tears in Natsu's eyes as he called for her not to disappear. Her heart aches. She tried so hard to reach out, but her hands wouldn't move as her body started to fade into the anima. Fear had clutched her heart then, not for her, but for her comrades. Would the same thing happen to them?
Lucy's eyes open and she is in a new place, somewhere entirely foreign. The colors are so bright, and the landscape so different. The Celestial Mage instantly reaches for her belt, searching for her keys.
"Gone!" She exclaims, sitting up from her position on the ground. Her eyes search the area around her, and suddenly everything is different. The grass is.. blue? Lucy runs her hand along the ground, before feeling tears running down her face, "Am I dead?"
Her hand reaches up to touch her face, wiping away the tears. Her eyes glance down at her clothing, "Eh?"
Lucy is clothed in a black leotard with a large protruding collar. Her boots reach up past her knees and are topped with grey lines. A metal plate covers her right shoulder. Lucy pokes at it, making a weird face. Her right forearm is covered with a black and white sleeve. The Celestial Mage's face pales as she inspects the rest of her. A decorative tattoo adorns the top of her left arm. Her hands fly up to her hair. A trinket is holding up the ponytail in it's usual place.
"A skull? I guess I'll get Cancer to..." Lucy starts, being greeted by an empty belt again. That's right. They're gone. Not just her spirits, but her guild. Lucy contemplates laying on the ground and not getting back up, but as she closes her eyes, they are watching her.
"Thanks... everyone," A tear falls from her eyes but she pushes herself off the ground and stands.
"You took long enough, flame spewer," Gray insults, running a hand through his hair. He seems to have shed the remainder of his clothing.
"Shut up, stripper," Natsu growls angrily, keeping care not to flame up. He doesn't want any part of Lucy's house damaged.
"Gray, clothes," Erza comments with a distracted look as she rummages through some of Lucy's drawers.
"Damnit!" Gray shouts, pulling his discarded items off the ground and starting to dress himself again.
"Can we go? I'm hungry and Lucy doesn't have any fish," Happy complains loudly, stepping out of the kitchen. The group pauses slightly, waiting for the angry yelling that is never going to come. Their eyes look at the area around them. It used to feel like home, but now it seems haunted with a ghost of the past.
"Yeah, let's go," Erza cuts through the silence with ease, taking large strides as she exits through the door.
Gray follows suit, as does Happy. Natsu lingers for a moment, glancing at the Celestial Keys in his hand. He hesitates leaving them on the table where they belong, and instead pockets them again with a large sigh. He turns and trudges out of the room, feeling the weight of his deceased partner crushing his moral.
The strongest team journeys in silence as rain thunders above their heads. Their first job without their beloved Celestial Mage. She may not have been the best of help at times, but she was always there. Was. The dreary attitude continues long after they get out of the rain's cold grasp. The group opts out of a train ride, instead walking to the outskirts of town to complete their mission, reprimand a swindling saleswoman
Yay! Second chapter completed! I hope that you enjoy this chapter as well! Though the feels are real. Depressed Natsu is pretty pathetic and Lucy made an appearance! Wonderful!
Thanks again to Akela-Nakamura. She is not chopped liver and is an amazing beta reader!
If you can guess what arc I am modifying, leave it in the reviews. Not you Akela. You know.
Chapters will be out every other weekend, or shorter if possible!
A large thank you to those who reviewed, favorited and followed!
Come back next time!
Spirit