Holy cow!
Ok! Hello all! I'm back!
Updating took WAY longer than I had originally planned. I guess I just had no time this week with sports and school. And then I decided to get sick for a few days. So, you could say this is the first time back on my computer in 2 weeks :/
I may be back tomorrow to change up the chapter again but we'll see.
Again I don't own Fairy Tail or any of its characters, even though I wish I did. Those both belong to Hiro Mashima.
Anyway, please enjoy the second chapter of Sharing Tongues!
So, yes I did have to go back and change this up a bit. Please review, I love hearing from you guys and it makes my day.
Chapter 2 - The Fun of Battle
Shouts of the seated guild members rang out in their surprise. Most of them had gotten out of the way, but the ones who had failed to notice the earlier signs were now haphazardly scattered around their seating area.
Lucy sat at her usual spot at the bar, a glass of orange juice in her hand. It'd been a few weeks since Aya had joined the guild and surprisingly, she was fitting in just like the rest of them. Joining in full force with whatever antics the guild was up to.
She had noticed Aya was very loud, the girl more than once had gotten the attention of the room to announce new challenges and missions for the master when he was feeling lazy. Not that she was surprised the master just wanted to drink, his children we're exactly the easiest bunch to handle. Of course, she only had the opportunity when the Titania wasn't there.
Aya had decided to not reveal her magic to anyone in the guild, to which Lucy found very odd. Over the past few weeks Aya had not used her magic once, even when she was trying to get out of some kind of scuffle. She always resorted to talking, running or pinning the blame on someone else. Which mostly ended in an all out guild brawl.
Lucy had also noticed that she never touched the swords on her back either. At first, she had gotten the sense that by the way she looked, Aya had trained for years in the art of combat. But as she watched her from either her place at the bar, or with Natsu and Happy, it looked as if she never fought a battle in her life.
From what Lucy saw on the first day Aya had joined the guild, she had tried to keep her distance from the new member. The overwhelming sense of dread and fear would constrict in her chest whenever she thought about it. But as she watched her, and eventually tried talking to her, she noticed that even though Aya might have seemed a bit off kilter she was very kind. Lucy still had a problem looking her in the eyes though. She just couldn't figure out why they looked so empty.
Lucy fiddled with the straw in her glass and happily tapped her fingers against the wood of the counter.
Aya had actually tried multiple times to gain her trust and make her feel more comfortable around her. None of which had much effect. In actuality they had the opposite effect. At one point, Lucy had gone to the lengths of avoiding the girl completely. Sometimes to the extent that her guild mates started to notice.
That was when Aya had gotten desperate. So with nothing else she could do, and nothing else she could really lose, she decided to play a little prank on the celestial mage.
Lucy had come home from a short mission with Team Shadow Gear. Natsu and Happy had been busy fishing that day and she needed the money. So, Levy had let her tag along. When she entered her house nothing seemed at all out of place. The lights were off, no one was in the kitchen, and her book was still on the table. Everything was how she left it. Other than the presence of a certain dragon slayer and flying companion, everything was in it's place.
At first she thought it odd that Natsu and Happy weren't sitting on her bed, or raiding her pantry, waiting for her to come home. They usually were here whether she liked it or not. Her mind got the better of her though, telling het to enjoy the piece and quiet while she had it. So she did. And that's when she noticed it.
One of the doors to her closet was wide open, and there were no clothes in it.
She had booked it over to the space and practically ripped the other door open. All of her clothes, every single article, gone. The first thought that ran through her mind, she had been robbed! But that didn't last very long. If she had been robbed why would the robbers only take her clothes and nothing else. She had to admit she definitely had other more valuable things around the apartment.
After pacing in front of her closet for a few minutes, she decided to look around and try to find some sort of clue. Not even the best robber could leave without a trace. Especially in this town.
She scoured the space from top to bottom. After around thirty minutes had passed, she had turned up with nothing.
Feeling dejected and now knowing she'd have to spent the money she just earned for her rent on new clothes, she headed to her shower. She had been exhausted from her mission earlier and now with this new development, she felt as if she'd been hit by a truck. A bath usually helped her calm down and loosen the tension in her body. The warm water and quiet space always helped her to clear her head.
She had entered the bathroom and stopped in her tracks. Sitting on her counter, right next to the mirror, was a piece of paper. The piece of paper was addressed to her. Written in neat curly handwriting. She opened up the letter and began to read:
Dear Lucy,
Hey it's Aya. So as you probably know by now… your clothes are gone. I will admit that is my doing. I decided to play a little prank on you. Please don't worry I will tell you where they are but bear with me for the time being.
I have noticed you seem very nervous whenever you're around me. I just want to tell you I mean you no harm. I know I can seem intimidating to those who don't know me. I'd like to be your friend, but I can also be patient for you to conquer your fear of me.
As this prank in concerned, I may have gotten a little help from your friends. The pink haired one (Natsu I think his name was) helped me to get into your place and told me where everything was. Granted I probably could've done that last part on my own. He also told me this was where you usually go after missions (only spending a few hours with him I can see why). So I decided to put this here, hoping you'd find it eventually.
Now then, your clothes. I won't tell you exactly where they are but I will give you the hint your friend gave me.
"Once a year the trees of the fairies live. In the darkness of night when the stars shine, is when they come to life."
Your friend actually hid you're clothes for me. So please if you can't find them come to me and I will help you. It was not my intention to cause you a great amount of trouble.
Happy Hunting
Anaya
At first Lucy was shocked, then outraged, then embarrassed. Mostly due to her teammates all to willingness to help someone break into her place.
She had figured out the riddle easily. Her clothes were in a chest at the base of the tallest sakura tree, the one Natsu had dug up to float down the river right next to her apartment. There was a small note on top of the chest in messy handwriting from the fire breather himself. "Cheer up Luce! You don't always have to go through everything alone. We're here for you!"
After that word quickly got around about Aya's trick. Soon more and more stories developed. People losing their keys, finding objects in their drinks, or even coming home to find that their house had been rearranged. All of which lead back to one person. Soon after that Aya had earned the title of Guild Prankster.
Lucy couldn't help but smile at the memory. The fact that Aya had seen right through her and then gone to the length of trying to make amends had pushed her to try to get over herself. If she was trying that hard to be her friend then she was worth the effort of getting rid of her fear.
Now that she thought about it, that day had been extremely stressful. One that had taken her out of bed at the break of dawn and hadn't let her back in until the middle of the night. Not to mention having to deal with a certain dragon slayer in the middle of it.
Lucy confronted the new member that next morning and now they were starting to make progress. Even though Lucy still couldn't seem to look in her eyes. Natsu had to ensure her that there was nothing to be afraid of until he as red in the face. Much to the amusement of both girls along with their teammates.
She couldn't seem to get him out of her head. She didn't even know he was worried about her until she saw his note. Even when he wasn't around he always managed to make her smile.
Lucy noticed a small fluttering feeling in her stomach at the thought of the dragon slayer's actions. It was truthfully, really sweet. Maybe she'd have to look into that side of him a little later. She grabbed her orange juice and spun around in her chair, sipping up the last of it's contents.
A loud crash followed by several shouts from the back of the guild drew Lucy away from her thoughts. What was that?
She hopped down from her stool and walked over to one of the tables near the bar where Natsu, Happy, Wendy and Carla were busy talking. She took a seat next to Wendy and the small girl smiled up at her. "Did any of you hear that just now?"
Natsu looked over at her, his face a mask of confusion, "Hear what Luce?" He turned to take a seat on the benches.
His shirt hung open as he sat, one arm resting up on the bench behind them. Lucy couldn't help it as her eyes made a quick once over of the man sitting in front of her. The way his tanned skin almost looked like baked bread. How the muscles on his arms flexed as he fidgeted to find a more comfortable position. Or the fact that his toned chest was totally visible for all to see slowly turning into strong abs that soon narrowed into his-
WOAH WOAH WOAH
This was Natsu she was talking about. The most dimwitted and ignorant guy she had ever met. Maybe even the most innocent in some ways.
Lucy looked back up noticing that the table had gone quiet, all waiting for her to continue. Happy snickered and flew over to her, landing onto the railing slightly behind her head, "Lucy you're weird!"
She really had to get her mind out of the gutter, "I am not weird! I just got…lost in though for a minute."
The blue feline merely giggled again and hopped back over to where Natsu was sitting. The rest of the table had watching their exchange with very confused looks. Oh great.
She let out a sigh and crossed her arms over her chest. "Anyway, It just sounded like a loud crash towards the back of the guild. And I thought I heard someone shouting. It was probably just my imagination if you guys didn't hear anything though"
Natsu let out a boisterous laugh, "I bet it was Ice pick! He probably knocked something over in the back room."
"Aye!"
Lucy rolled her eyes at the two. They really were meant for each other, "C'mon guys Gray isn't that clumsy"
"Why am I clumsy?"
Speak of the devil. Of course the man in question was walking over to their table. He stopped at the end near Happy and Carla, his hands tucked neatly in his pockets.
Natsu just had to open his mouth, "Because we were saying you'd knock something over in the back room!"
The ice mage went rigid, placing his booted foot on the table edge, "You wanna repeat that flame face?"
"Yea! The ice princess is gonna slip on his own ice!" Natsu stood to his feet a goofy smirk lighting up his face.
"At least I wouldn't burn the whole storage area!"
"You wanna go?!"
"Bring it Pyro!"
Lucy groaned and thumped her head against the table. So much for having a nice quiet morning, but what did she expect. This was considered normal around here. She turned her face towards Wendy who was giggling quietly as the two scuffled. Lucy felt herself smile as well.
Suddenly crashing, banging, and another series of shouts and curses came from the back of the guild. This time much louder than before. Lucy immediately sat back up and turned towards the others, "You guys heard that too, right?"
"Yes, I heard it. I wonder what it is." Wendy spoke up from the seat next to Lucy, her hands were placed on either side of her and she turned herself around again.
Lucy scowled in thought, "It kind of sounded like Erza."
Natsu and Gray both froze mid punch and paled. They turned towards the back of the guild, looked at each other, and scrambled to take a seat back at their table.
Gray had ended up beside Lucy, "Who the hell would make Erza mad?"
Lucy couldn't help the grimace she made at the thought of angering the red headed swordswoman. "Let's hope it's not too bad for the sake of whoever messed with her." The table murmured their agreement. They had all at least once been on the bad side of Fairy Tail's strongest female mage, and to say it was a bad experience was an understatement.
The doors to the back of the guild burst open and Lucy heard, rather than saw, someone crash into the first row of tables.
Shouts of the seated guild members rang out in their surprise. Most of them had gotten out of the way, but the ones who had failed to notice the earlier signs were now haphazardly scattered around their seating area. As the dust cleared, the flying mage stood to their feet. They coughed and began to pick sticks and other things out of their deep orange hair.
The only person that had that hair, and hadn't figured out the boundaries of the red head was… Aya.
Lucy refused to believe it. Aya couldn't have been idiotic enough to pull a prank on Erza. The appearance of the red head in the guild doorway confirmed her fear. She was dressed in her flight armor. That was unusual. Erza usually never needed to requip when she was delivering "punishment". That is unless…
Lucy gulped. What had Aya done to Erza?
"STAY STILL SO YOU CAN BE PUNISHED!" The red head roared, leaping over to where Aya was sitting. She requipped what looked like her Purgatory sword as she leapt. She swung the black blade down crashing it into the tables, scattering them ever further out into the guild.
Shouts and screams came from her guild mates as they ran for cover.
"No I really don't think I will."
Lucy whipped around. Aya was standing on one of the tables that had flown past her in Erza's rampage, her arms crossed over her chest. Her hood was back over her head and covered most of her features, but Lucy could make out the slightest hints of a smirk on her face.
This girl was nuts!
Erza let out a yell and dashed towards Aya yet again, her sword raised threateningly. Aya danced just out of reach of the swordswoman, only fueling her anger.
Lucy's mouth fell open in utter shock. Someone was besting Erza, and they weren't even fighting back. She turned to look at Natsu. He had to be at least thinking the same thing.
Her jaw only dropped a second time in the last thirty seconds.
Natsu was on his feet, pumping his fists in the air and cheering the two on, mostly Aya though. Lucy could understand that. Natsu had been beat around by the requip mage ever since he was little, so she guessed it would only be natural for him to want a little pay back. But she was also surprised he wasn't jumping in for himself. He usually didn't hold back for a chance at proving himself.
She had to admire that quality about him. He always had this will to fight no matter the consequences. No matter how tired he was. No matter how beat up he was. No matter if all the odds were stacked against him. He still fought for all of them.
And she had to admit, he'd saved her pretty butt more than once.
She couldn't help but smile at the dragon slayer. He was the best friend she'd ever had and she knew she could trust him with anything.
Natsu then turned around and looked at her. He starred at her for a few seconds then gave her a smile. His eyes narrowing as he showed her his canines. Lucy felt her heart skip a beat and heat flooded her cheeks.
What the hell?
She shook her head to try and clear her thoughts. What was with her lately? Her mind always seemed to stray towards Natsu within the past week and she couldn't put her finger on why.
"Hey, Luce you're missing it!" Natsu's voice cut into her thoughts and she turned her attention back to the center of the guild.
Tables, chairs and wood boards lay scattered around the floor. Most of them were broken or ripped to little pieces, but some were just merely thrown in all different directions. The scene made the hall look much more like a battle ground than a bar. And at the center of the chaos stood Aya and Erza.
Lucy could feel a bead of sweat drip down her forehead. Aya had done as much damage as Erza? And she wasn't even fighting yet? Or maybe this was all just Erza's doing. Lucy could remember the times the red head had gone on a rampage, but the damage was never as bad as this. Even when someone had knocked over her cake.
Aya really must've done something bad to make Erza this destructive.
The two stood silently facing each other. Erza had requipped back into her everyday armor and held a small sword in her hand. She still looked angry in Lucy's opinion.
On the other side Aya seemed very relaxed for someone just minutes ago was running for their life. One hand rested casually on her hip while the other hung at her side. She had taken off her hood earlier and the smirk she sported was now visible.
"Have you calmed down yet?" Aya spoke jokingly, like this was something that happened every day. Lucy noticed she had yet to draw one of the swords on her back.
Erza scowled and raised her sword to her waist, "Why are you not fighting me seriously?"
"Fight you seriously? That was you fighting seriously?" Aya let out a laugh and raised her arms above her head in a stretch. "I have to say I'm disappointed. I expected more from the famous Titania."
Lucy could see Erza go rigid, either from the comment about her fighting seriously or the fact that she knew of Titania. Aya continued before she could think further on it, "If you really want to know, I won't fight you. Not seriously anyway."
Erza raised her sword and lunged at Aya, "Tell me why!"
Aya easily dodged to the side and knocked the red head on the back with a hand, making her stumble before turning around. "You're stamina and magic are superb, I'll give you that. But your sword skill is…"
She paused in thought and dodged around another one of the red head's attacks. "Shall we say, adequate? No, that's not quite it. It's less than that."
After the many definite blows to her pride, Erza's temper had risen to all new heights. Lucy could see the rage burning in her eyes as the swordswoman readjusted her sword. She had never seen Erza this mad before, not even when Phantom Lord had attacked Team Shadow Gear and kidnapped she herself. An experience she would not forget for a long time.
Lucy could feel her hands start to tremble and she couldn't help but think about Natsu. Had he ever seen her this way before? He had his history with the red head, he never liked to talk about their childhood to anyone. Not even the people who were part of it.
She turned her head up to look at the pinkette. Said boy looked as if he had been turned to stone. His arms had fallen to his sides while his eyes were fixed on the match before them. She could almost feel the fear radiating off him. Without thinking, she reached out her hand and wrapped her fingers lightly around his.
She felt Natsu stiffen at the sudden contact and he turned to face her. His eyes now shown with surprise and the slightest hint of confusion. That was better. Fear didn't suit him at all she decided. Anything would be better than to see his features twisted in fear. That just wasn't like Natsu.
Lucy smiled softly and gave his hand a small squeeze. This was just Erza being Erza. Granted, in an extremely disastrous way, but still the same. She would never push it so far that she would hurt the rest of them.
She could see Natsu's face relax considerably. He seemed to come to the same realization she had and he gave her a smile in return. His hand tightened around hers for the briefest of seconds and then the contact was lost as he turned back to watch the match.
Lucy blinked as her hand fell back into her lap. For some odd reason it felt cold. Like it had missed his hand holding hers.
She shook her head and rubbed her hands together subconsciously. That couldn't be right. She probably just felt cold because of the overheated man on the other side of the table. He did always have this way of making a room much hotter.
A loud, metallic clang drew her attention back to the match. It was one of those sounds that made the back of her eyes hurt. Lucy figured Aya must've finally taken out one of her swords. But as she looked over at the two, that wasn't quite the case.
They stood not two feet apart facing each other. Erza was stopped in a position about mid swing with her sword just in front of her face. Aya, on the other hand, was not holding a weapon. She stood with her left hand raised above her head, effectively blocking the path of Erza's sword. The edge of the blade rested snugly in the palm of Aya's hand.
Ok, this girl is officially insane! Lucy thought to herself.
Now that they had stopped, something looked off about Aya's hand. Lucy already knew the only skin actually showing under the sleeves she always wore had a silvery shine. As she looked closer she noticed that it was reflecting the light from Erza's blade. Was it… metal? How could she not have noticed that before?
Aya's face fell and she took a step closer to Erza, her arm still raised high. Her demeanor had completely changed from her joking face earlier and it made a shudder pass down Lucy's spine.
Aya finally broke the deafening silence, "Your sword skill is lacking greatly compared to your magic. You attack when you should block. You leave your torso defenseless when you lunge and try to make up for it with what little speed you have."
The entire guild fell silent and Lucy could hear her heart beat in her ears. How did she get all that in a matter of minutes? Aya had only been in the guild for a couple of weeks so no one knew a lot about her. But now with this, Lucy wasn't sure she knew anything about the sunset haired prankster.
She felt that all too familiar fear creep its way up her spine. It was like the first day she met her all over again.
Aya pushed at the blade in her hand, making Erza take a step back. She straightened and crossed her arms over her chest before continuing, "You rely heavily on your magic and pure strength. What will you do when someone is faster than you? Or stronger than you? Or even both?… What if you have to fight someone without your magic? At your current sword level now you wouldn't last more than a few minutes."
Erza was silent, her eyes were narrowed like she was trying to process the information just given to her. "Is that why you won't fight me?"
"No, that is not why I won't fight you. It's just part of the reason." Aya sighed heavily and ran a hand over her face, "But I know you're not going to stop asking until I tell you so I might as well get this over with."
Aya squared her shoulders and dropped her arms to her sides, looking Erza square in the face. The red head didn't flinch at her expression, instead she tightened her hold on her sword. Aya started, "If I were to fight you as you are now, I could kill you. I don't want any more innocent blood on my conscience. Do you understand?" She rested a hand on her hip and watched the person across from her. When there was no answer, Aya finally let out a sigh and began again, "You're a fine warrior and a skilled ma-"
"Prove it."
Both women were quiet for a long time after that. Erza's face was tilted towards the ground and her sword had fallen, so that its tip rested on the floor. She looked entirely and utterly defeated. Lucy felt her breath catch in her throat. This couldn't be right. Erza would never give up.
Aya finally broke the silence and raised a brow at the red head, "Excuse me?"
Erza's head snapped up at her opponent, "I SAID PROVE IT!" Her declaration resonated clearly through the guild. "I will not be defeated so easily with just some harsh words! I am a wizard of Fairy Tail. I will not back away without a fight, so bring your worst!"
The guild erupted into cheers. Shouts of encouragement and whistles aimed at the red head.
"YEA, YOU TELL HER ERZA!"
"NO ONE MESSES WITH FAIRY TAIL!"
"HOW DARE YOU INSULT OUR GUILD!?"
"BRING IT ON!"
Aya remained silent throughout the barrage of insults with her arms at her sides. She simply swept her gaze around the faces that surrounded her. Inspecting each one in turn.
Lucy had joined in with the shouts and cheers of her comrades. There was no one that could bring Fairy Tail down, even if they tried they'd be brought to their knees. She clenched her fists in front of her chest and looked at her friends around her. They were her family and she loved them with all her heart. She turned back to the center of the guild, another shout of encouragement already bubbling up her throat. But she never got to say it.
Aya stood with her hand on her face, her metal one attached to her hip, as her laugh rang out strong and clear.
Lucy blinked. She closed her eyes and wrapped her hands around the wooden bench. The unconditional rage that had erupted under her skin wasn't something she had thought herself capable of in this situation. This wasn't a life or death situation. There wasn't any immediate danger. So, why was she reacting like this? The feeling of needing to just punch something, or someone, bubbled to the front of her mind.
Now I'm just like Natsu. She thought bitterly as she opened her eyes.
Her gaze came to rest on the man standing only a few feet across from her. His eyes were set in a hard line across his face as he watched not the match, but her. He seemed to be trying to read her mind in a way. Like if he starred hard enough everything would make sense. But the world doesn't work like that.
Lucy huffed angrily and turned away from the dragon slayer, not bothering to console him. She caught the quick flash of confusion and hurt that passed across his eyes as she turned. Her chest seemed to contract at the expression but she didn't turn around. Instead keeping her gaze focused on the match.
Aya's laughter had stopped but her face was still lit up with a menacing smile, "As you wish Erza." She slowly walked towards the red head, reaching behind her to grab one of the swords attached to her back. Her hand wrapped around the red hilt, the blade scraping against its sheath as she pulled, "I will not be using magic, as I want to see your sword skill alone. If you have any that is."
Her voice was laced with arrogance as she drew her sword. The blade's edge was a bright crimson, almost the color of her opponent's hair. It looked like it was dripping with the remains of those who had fallen. The edge glowed menacingly, as if it anticipated the glory of its next victim.
Aya took a fighting stance, flipping her sword around so that it faced the opposite direction of her hand. She raised her sword in front of her face and bent her knees. The edge of the blade reflecting against her features.
"Show me what you're made of."