Chapter 3:
Dim, Fairies and mourn the Moon
"Lights gone, the Devil and Beast weep. Fairies surround dark light. Grief, Sadness, Guilt, awake and give these two hearts. The Slayer dies; the Dragon roars. The Knight is bare, Azure feelings; the coming of the King of flames!"
Elfman drearily woke up in the early morning light. He lay still, wondering why he was in the guild clinic, dressed in bandages and with a new scar in his right cheek. Where was Mira-nee and Li-? His eyes widened as the memories of the past day came back to him, tears slowly filling up his eyes at the massive hole in his heart.
He sat up quickly, too quickly, as he felt the effects of exhaustion cause the world to tilt heavily. Heh, like how my world tilted the moment I tried to Take-Over the Beast. He thought bitterly, tears now starting to fall freely as his mind cleared slowly. He looked around the clinic and saw Mira-nee in the bed beside him, bandaged as heavily as he was and draping an arm over her eyes, cheeks stained heavily with tears. He realized that she must have been staying up all night, crying and trying to come to terms with their loss. Or rather, that was what any person would coherently think at that time.
Lisanna…I-I killed you…I shoved Natsu away because I thought I could protect you and Mira-nee…Now, I hurt Mira-nee, I killed you! I bet Natsu would kill me if Master would not know it was him…
Elfman wanted to kill himself at that very moment, what use would being alive mean if you hurt your family? He was useless, Natsu was right about that. He was too weak to protect his family that faithful day, now what use were his speeches on being a Man? He couldn't hold back the tears once they broke out, his pained sobbing echoing emptily throughout the entire room and, unbeknownst to him, throughout the guild hall beyond; such was his pain.
"Ne Elfman, don't cry please." Elfman jerked his head up at the sound of Mira-nee's voice; but it was different, softer somehow. He started at the face of his sister, who by now had removed her arm from its resting place on her head and sat up heavily. Her whole body was as dirty and caked with blood as his, her bandages slightly more as she had to endure the Beast's assault; but Elfman didn't take note of anything more than her face. Her face, once always strong and filled with determination, was heavy and sunken, her eyes drooping with guilt and exhaustion. She didn't turn to face him, instead keeping her head turned slightly towards the window beside her bed, both arms clutching her heart.
"Lisanna wouldn't want to see us crying would she? We have to be strong, if we- we –w-" She finally broke down, unable to keep her bottled up emotions from breaking out. Elfman couldn't resist the tears himself; they were already flowing down his face. They both cried themselves to exhausted sleep, dreaming of beasts and dragons and a white-haired girl.
Down in the guild hall, almost the whole of Fairy Tail was there, yet the atmosphere was as far from boisterous as it could be. The distinct lack of noise was easily explained by the depressing aura hovering over each and every person in the guild hall. Cana was busy drinking with many more barrels of alcohol scattered all around her; Gray was busy pacing again and again, no one commenting on the fact that he lasted almost three hours of not stripping his clothes; Macao and Wakaba were not talking or shouting; Reedus was not drawing for once.
Everyone turned to the sound of footsteps on the second floor; Master Makarov appeared and jumped on the railing. His eyes swept all over their tired, sad faces, his own face more lined and drawn than everyone had ever seen. He coughed into his hand.
"Five days from now we will be having the funeral of Lisanna Strauss at sundown. All guild members are required to attend; that's all, and if anyone sees Natsu, please tell him." Finished, he jumped down from the second floor and proceeded to grab a glass of alcohol to drown his sorrow.
"LISANNA!" A cry came from the guild clinic, Elfman, they thought. His sobs were audible to them all even though the door was closed. The guild members who were close to Lisanna also began sobbing silently, unable to accept the fact that bright, happy Lisanna was really gone for good.
Gray was not thinking about Lisanna, he was wondering where the hell Natsu was. He wanted to find that idiot and hit him again and again for saying those words to Elfman. What kind of person crushed and rubbed salt into the wound when the victim was still grieving over the death of a sibling? He fumed. He should respect their grief, He wasn't the one to lose a beloved sister dammit!
He knew that he was being too biased, that Natsu was in as much pain as Mira and Elfman, if only because Lisanna was his closest and maybe only friend in the guild. His eyes slowly started to mist as he thought of a certain little boy with his teacher and his rival.
What would you do if you had only one friend in the world and suddenly that friend died?
…Only one friend in the world…
He knew the feeling alright, when Ur died, his teacher and his foster mother; and Lyon, he might be Gray's rival, but he was a constant, a friend in the barest meaning of the word; he lost them both.
"Dammit!" The guild was shocked as the sound of Gray's voice and the splintering of wood echoed all throughout the room. Everyone looked at where Gray was to see that he had punched the wall with his bare fist, which now sported blood and bits of wood. They wanted to help but knew that Gray needed to let it out.
Suddenly the door opened with a resounding bang, the cold wind entering to room like the touch of death. Everyone almost had whiplash turning their necks to see who entered. Some hoped it was Natsu, saying that he was fine and he forgave Elfman; some desperately hoped it was Lisanna, appearing with a happy Natsu and talking about how she got lost after regaining consciousness in the forest where the mission was. They were disappointed.
Erza stood in place of the door, figure silhouetted by the light so they couldn't see her face, but they could imagine her expression by her next words.
"Is Natsu here?"
They slowly shook their heads. Erza then fell to her knees, clutching a paper in her hand, sobbing and her shoulders trembling violently.
"Then he really left…"
It was the day of the funeral, the guild of Fairy Tail was attending along with people who Lisanna befriended in their travels and around Magnolia. Everyone was there: Erza, Mira, Elfman, Gray, Cana, Jet, Droy, Levy, even Laxus and Mystogan; everyone but a certain pink-haired dragon slayer.
They were holding the funeral in the grave that Natsu made for Lisanna, Erza having led them there on the day itself, saying that they could only see it then. The grave was a beautiful sight; the guild cleaned up the clearing and put flowers around the stones. No one dared to remove the rain-soaked scarf curling protectively around the main stone, knowing the significance of the scale-like clothing. Similarly, no one dared to move the two rings from their places, to do so would be an insult to both Natsu and Lisanna, they felt.
They all knew that Natsu made this grave itself; he spent hours shaping the stones in the rain to dedicate it to her, his only love. To hold the funeral here, in the grave her love made for her, seemed fitting. Once Mira and Elfman found out that Natsu made the grave, they wouldn't have it anywhere else. They thought it would be an insult to their memory of Lisanna, the girl who loved that pink-haired idiot with all her heart; also, it would be an insult to Natsu's memory as well. He disappeared the day after their return, leaving only a note that said that he would be leaving Fairy Tail and hopefully he would never return to the place that lost her.
It was raining again, the same as that fateful day. It seemed fitting that they attend the funeral in the rain, as Natsu did six days ago. All of them were drenched to the bone, Jet and Droy trying to stop their teeth from chattering too loudly at the cold, but all of them were already cold in the inside.
In the span of one week, Fairy Tail lost two of its most vibrant members, two people who always seemed to make everyone smile and be happy. Natsu with his antics and screams of becoming stronger, Lisanna with her smiles and words of comfort and wisdom. One lost to death, the other lost to grief.
Master Makarov ignored the cold he was feeling outside, he was much colder inside. He considered his entire guild to be his family, and he just lost two of them. He sighed heavily and turned to the rest of his children.
No parent should feel what I'm feeling right now…No parent should be holding the funeral of their own children…
"6 days ago, a member of Fairy Tail disappeared from this world."
Mira started sobbing silently and Elfman held her against his chest, his own tears masked by the rain.
"Lisanna Strauss was many things; she was kind-hearted, able to communicate easily with others, able to understand others…
"But most of all, it was her love that made her do all of these things. It was her love for Fairy Tail and its members that made her smile; it was her love for her siblings that made her happy, it was her love for Natsu that made him open up." His voice nearly broke then, remembering his other lost child, Natsu.
"The name Fairy Tail came from the question of whether fairies have tails, they may or may not have them. They are gone now, but maybe somewhere, in a forgotten corner of the world, fairies still live. It is a life-long journey to find out the truth of the question, as it is a life-long journey for us to find the answer to our own deep mysteries.
"Lisanna Strauss, Fairy Tail will continue to find the answer to its mysteries, as will we continue to find the answer to yours. Your life ended before it has blossomed, but know that we will make it blossom through our own tears and blood if need be."
With that Master Makarov stepped away from the gravestone and gave her the Fairy Tail gesture, echoed by everyone behind him. Tears were running free.
Why did you leave us… Natsu? Do you hate us that much now? Or are you like Jellal, consumed by yourself?
Erza couldn't stop her tears no matter how hard she tried. Master was making a speech about Lisanna but she couldn't hear it over the sound of her own sobs. She knew she must look terrible, having been depressed ever since Natsu left. She alternated between visiting the grave where she saw Natsu last and lying in her bed, remembering the azure kid from the slave camp. She tried to understand what made Natsu leave them, much like how Jellal left them.
Now, six days since she last saw him, she wasn't any closer to finding out why. She knew that Natsu loved Lisanna with all his heart, knew that she understood Natsu completely and accepted him without reservations.
Why? Why is it you leaving made my heart ache so much? Is it because you were just like Jellal? You both were always protecting others, is that why you both wanted to become more powerful?
Natsu? Answer me…
He went farther and farther from Magnolia, from that guild and that city that reminded him so much of her. Beside him, Happy was walking with his backpack behind him; the sight made him smile slightly at the image, it needed only one more person to complete the image of a Happy family.
"Ne, Natsu, where are we going?" Happy asked. He was still grieving over Lisanna, Natsu knew, he was just putting up a strong front for his 'father'.
"Who knows Happy? I want to find another guild, but not like that guild; a guild that has no need for pride and honor, a guild that understands how useless those emotions are." He replied. Happy's ears suddenly perked up.
"I remember a guild like that!" he exclaimed. He then used his magic to fly up to Natsu's shoulder to perch himself there. "It's that way!" He said, pointing straight ahead.
"Good, I'll find a way to take care of you Happy, I promise." Natsu swore. Happy's eyes started to mist again as he remembered Natsu's words to Lisanna that he would take care of him until the three of them would be united once again. Happy smiled genuinely, he did not need to put up a mask in front of his father, no matter what, he would support Natsu till they met Lisanna again.
"Aye sir!"
Cry not for me, bloody Moon.
The Sun turns black with loss, he is alone.
The Slayer is dead, the Dragon revived.
The princess he loves is gone.
Cry, bloody Moon, for the foolish.
who seek to hinder the Dragon
from the princess he lost...
Hey guys!
WOW, like 10 reviews already? It isn't even the 2nd day yet! AWESOME!
Windraider – well, my justification is that Natsu's flames are the flames of emotion; as such he gains his true power whenever he feels very strongly about something. Thus, when Lisanna died, his anger and hate transferred to magical power, causing the boost. Don't worry, it's not a temporary thing, as Natsu will gain even greater control over his flames soon!
Claire Starsword, RaBBitm0nster, ChedderChez, XNaruKushiX, Edwiddlem, lucifer.94, sasa – thanks for the reviews! I'll try to update this story as much as I can with the time I have.
Yes, Elfman would gain Natsu's drive to become stronger. Yes, Erza is deeply scarred by the similarities between Jellal and Natsu. Yes, Mira will still become the bartender supreme. Yes, Gray would also inherit Natsu's drive.
Again, review please so I'll know whether to improve the quality or mod stuff etc…
Cheers,
Creleuth
