A/N: I have returned from the dead. Here's a chapter.
Reviews:
Queenbooklover: Thank you. Here's another chapter.
***Trigger warning: Mentions of extreme bullying/abuse and suicide.***
Enjoy :)
…
Ame's POV:
…
The villagers showed the group of mages a lot of hospitality and lead them to a room where they would be able to stay until they completed their job. Some nice villagers even gave Ame an outfit to wear while she washed her clothes. The day's trek through the forest following getting tossed onto the beach by a tidal wave made Ame's clothes rather unpleasant to wear. Gray didn't complain about it, mostly because he had stripped again between entering the village and thus wasn't bothered by the state of his clothes like Ame was. Unfortunately, Ame would probably be wearing the new outfit for the duration of the trip because she doubted her clothes would dry completely overnight, but she didn't really mind much.
The outfit that the islanders gave Ame was naturally a bit big for her, but thankfully didn't restrict her movement. It was a simple draped dress made of a light fabric that had been dyed a pale shade of blue with a cream white trim and a belt made of twine that helped fit the dress to Ame's abnormally thin frame. The dress came down to Ame's ankles, but thankfully it was sleeveless so her hands were free.
The room the group was in was pretty spacious and was fully furnished. It also consisted of four woven sleeping mats, one for each other them. Except for Happy, but the Exceed was content sleeping anywhere.
At the moment, Happy was looking out the window at the glowing purple moon with Ame. The strange color of the moon didn't bother Ame much. It was odd for sure, but not very intimidating. Especially considering that she knew what the cause of it was. It occurred to Ame that one day she may slip up and her secret origins and knowledge will be revealed. It scared her what the others might think of her then.
She did know intimate details of their private pasts and had knowledge of future events after all. Would they think she was weird? Probably. But who knows with Fairy Tail? Ame will just have to cross that bridge when she gets to it.
A small frown sagged on her lips. Ame hoped that they wouldn't shut her out someday. She didn't think they would, but even the possibility it could happen was unsettling.
"The more I look at the moon, the creepier it gets." Happy commented, breaking through Ame's thoughts, "What do you think Ame?"
Ame shrugged silently and turned away from the window as Lucy warned them that if they got too much moonlight that they would turn into demons too. Ame closed the shutter while Happy retreated from the window.
Across the room, Natsu and Gray were complaining about the impossibility of the mayor's request.
"But then that's troublesome." Natsu grunted.
"No way we can destroy the moon." Gray agreed, crossing his arms.
Lucy nodded in agreement, picking up on their conversation.
"I have no idea how many punches it would take to destroy it." the Fire Dragon Slayer said, adding onto his previous statement.
Ame sighed. "N-Natsu-san. I-It would t-take a l-lot of pu-punches to destroy t-the moon! Y-You w-wouldn't be ab-able to get t-there anyway! An-And there w-wouldn't be a-any oxygen e-either, s-so your f-flames would g-go out i-immediately!"
"Come on Ame! You gotta be more optimistic than that!" the pinkette stated.
"She's got a point Natsu." Lucy agreed, "Destroying the moon is impossible. I doubt there's a mage in Earthland who would be powerful enough to pull that off."
Gildarts could probably pull it off… Ame thought to herself, ...but he isn't here and destroying the moon is a stupid plan anyway!
"But 'destroy the moon' is the request this time." Natsu defended, "If we can't do it, that'd be a disgrace to Fairy Tail."
The Shadow Mage shook her head. "D-Destroying t-the moon i-is the s-solution f-from the m-mayor's p-perspective, b-but if t-the moon w-was the pr-problem, wo-wouldn't t-this curse be a-all over?"
Gray nodded. "Ame's right. Again. The problem isn't the moon."
"So what is?" Natsu demanded impatiently. He looked over at Ame, expectation in his eyes.
"Why are you looking at Ame like that?" Happy asked.
"Well she's been right so far! Maybe she'll know!"
"Um…"
Regardless, Ame pinched her chin between her fingers in thought. "W-Well...i-it's only l-logical to a-assume t-that the s-source of t-this curse i-is somewhere o-on the island."
"Wow. That's smart." Gray said
"See? She knows everything!" the Fire Dragon Slayer exclaimed.
With that, Natsu flopped face-first onto a sleeping mat, Happy close behind.
"We'll go explore the island tomorrow! Let's just sleep tonight!" he stated.
Gray yawned, nodding sleepily in agreement before hitting the hay as well. Lucy wished Ame a good night and they both went to bed as well. Ame's mat was situated next to Gray's, but Lucy made the poor decision to sleep between Natsu and Gray. Though it was hard for Ame to sleep as well since both mages snored like chainsaws.
But she eventually fell asleep.
…
When Ame awoke it was still dark out. Her forehead was cold with sweat and her heart was still racing. The remaining shreds of her nightmare still rang in her ears, sending chills down her spine. The small mage had bolted upright after startling herself out of a nightmare. It took a minute for her to remember where she was.
When she heard the song of the native birds in the distant forest, her fingers fondly trailed up to the sunshine gold emblem that now adorned her neck. Glancing next to her, Ame saw that the others were still fast asleep.
She considered trying to sleep again, but Ame doubted that she'd be courageous enough to risk another nightmare. Instead, she quietly detangled herself from the blanket and tip-toed to the bathroom, her bare feet scuffing softly against the wood. Ame ducked into the room and closed the door behind her.
The bathroom was pretty spacious and well lit. It was a full bathroom complete with a toilet, a shower, and a sink with a large oval mirror hanging above it and the walls were panelled with what looked like bamboo.
The first thing she did was take a towel and wash her face clean of the sweat that had dried on it. She noted that her face was a little paler than usual, though it was hard to see since she had removed her glasses in favor of washing her face, but she could still see the shape of her pale white face standing out against the pitch black background reflected in the mirror.
Her thoughts wandered back to the dream that had plagued her sleep earlier, but this proved to be a mistake as the disembodied voices from her past resumed ringing in her ears.
You worthless brat! You just make everything worse! Why the hell do you even exist?
You're pathetic! Who would even care if you just disappeared? Ha ha ha!
This is all you're fault! Can't you do anything right?!
Quit complaining! Do you have any idea how much I have to sacrifice to take care of you!? You're such a burden.
Why don't you just ki-
CCCC-RRRACK!
Plop..
The voices that echoed in her head abruptly halted at the sound of something breaking. Ame's eyes snapped open and she reached for her glasses after uncurling her hands from the edge of the counter and put the cheap frames on. What she saw alarmed her.
A web of cracks spindled across the surface of the mirror before her, a few pieces of the reflective material falling out into the water filled sink and sank to the bottom of the bowl.
Did I...do that…?
The Shadow Mage stared at her broken reflection for a moment before a knock rattled the door.
"Ame? Are you okay? I heard something break." Gray's voice said from the other side, sounding concerned.
"I-I'm fine." Ame replied. She had meant to sound normal, but her voice only came out as a meek whisper.
"Is everything alright?" the Ice Mage asked again.
"Yes!" she replied, this time her voice coming a bit too loud.
Three more shards of mirror fell from the frame as the cracks seemed to worsen and fell into the sink with a depressed plop preceded by another loud, splintering crack. The bathroom door was thrown open without warning and Gray quickly entered the room.
Ame flinched in surprise as the Ice mage entered the bathroom and as he did, Ame felt like a dark weight had lifted. Gray's eyes quickly darted from Ame to the shattered mirror in front of her. Ame felt her throat tighten.
"Ame. What did you do to the mirror?" he asked flatly.
She flinched under the cold tone. Ame's voice quickly abandoned her as she tried to speak, the only sounds she was capable of creating being a quiet whimper. The room suddenly felt airless.
Gray looked back at her and she instinctively shrunk in on herself. A strange expression had formed on his face. Ame couldn't tell what it was for sure, but to her it looked like anger and disgust.
He reached out to her, but Ame stepped back, fear pulsing in every cell of her body. The lights began to flicker alarmingly. Gray halted in his tracks and remained silent as the lighting continued to fluctuate as Ame's heart raced.
"Ame…." he trailed, his eyes falling back to her.
She went completely rigid. And strangely, he did too.
"...Are you doing this?" the Ice mage questioned, his eyes not leaving her's.
Ame didn't move. Fear had frozen her to the spot. The air seemed so terribly thin that it was hard to breath and panic solidified into a rock in her throat. Her voice still abandoned her.
Gray took a small step towards the Shadow mage and she flinched. A light bulb suddenly burst above her, showering her with shards of glass. Her knees buckled unexpectedly as the hot glass bit into her skin. Ame yelped, curling in on herself as her skin seethed from the heat of the glass.
"Oh sh-. Ame!" Gray exclaimed.
Ame shouted and flung her hands over her head, not daring to look up at the Ice mage. As she did, she heard two more light bulbs explode with a sharp pop! and hot glass rained onto the toilet seat and the counter, some shards joining the bits of broken mirror in the sink, hitting the water with a loud hiss.
Then there was silence. Silence with the exception of her breathing. It shocked her with how fast it was. When had she started to hyperventilate? Ame slowly lifted her head from her knees and looked around.
Broken glass was now scattered across the floor and the room only illuminated by a single bulb that still flashed like a strobe light. Gray stood exactly where he was before, a dark and ominous figure silhouetted by the solitary light.
"Ame. I'm not mad, okay? J-Just calm down." Gray assured, his voice level and soft.
A few short breaths later, the light steadied and Ame calmed herself down a bit. Once she had calmed down, she let Gray help her off the floor and out of the bathroom. As they left, he didn't say much outside of the assurances that it was okay that she accidentally broke some things as they left the room.
"I-I s-sorry I-I m-m-made s-such a me-mess." Ame mumbled as the Ice mage lead her from the bathroom.
"It's fine Ame. You're a Fairy Tail wizard after all. We break stuff all the time." he dismissed firmly.
Once they returned to the main room, they almost ran right into Lucy. Ame could clearly see the Celestial mages startled and worried expression even in the pitch blackness of the room. It occurred to Ame that the ruckus must have woken her.
"What happened?" the Celestial Mage asked in a hushed voice.
"Nothing. A few light bulbs burst." Gray explained.
Lucy tiptoed to her bag and pulled out a light and turned it on. Ame's eyes snapped shut as the beam was shone in her face. Lucy gasped.
"Oh my gosh! Ame, you're hurt!"
The Shadow mage didn't get a chance to respond because Lucy was already pulling her into a separate room as to not wake Happy and Natsu as well to inspect the wounds that Ame had sustained. In the light of the room, Ame could clearly see the thin streams of blood that ran from a dozen or so cuts and the angry red burns on her arms and shoulders. Small fragments of glass had painfully melted onto her skin and similarly fused with her hair. Of course, she was only made aware of the shards in her hair when Lucy started pulling at them.
And just when she had recovered from the burns she sustained on her last job.
"What happened in there?" Lucy asked.
"A-A b-bulb s-shattered o-over me…"
The blonde winced in sympathy before rushing to grab a box of band-aids, a pair of scissors, a tube of antibiotic cream and some burn ointment from a First Aid kit she brought with her and began helping Ame tend to her wounds.
In no time, Ame's shoulders were plastered with brightly colored band-aids and burn ointment and some parts of her hair were shorter than before since the bits of glass in her hair had to be cut out. Thankfully, none of the glass was hot enough, and her hair was thick enough to prevent the glass from fusing to her scalp. The case was the same with the glass on her shoulders, though the spots where the shards once were seethed uncomfortably under the band-aids. The blood that had dripped from the cuts unfortunately had stained the dress Ame wore, leaving strange red-brown spots on the shoulder straps and trailing down the back.
Lucy didn't ask what happened, probably because Gray had said that some light bulbs had simply burst, but Ame could see in her eyes that the Celestial mage didn't believe she heard the full story. Of course, she'd probably get even more suspicious when she saw the broken mirror.
Gray was sitting in a chair close by, but he glanced at Ame quite often. His expression was hard to read, but it was clear to Ame that he was wondering how that happened.
He wasn't the only one.
…
"It's too early." Natsu moaned as he trudged along the path.
Gray grunted in agreement, head hanging low in exhaustion. Ame felt bad because it was probably her fault he was so tired. Of course, she knew he probably would be complaining about waking up at the crack of dawn anyway.
Lucy however, wasn't having any of it. "We're going, so you'll just have to suck it up!" she said as she pulled Happy off of a crate that he decided to rest on.
The sun had fully risen not too long ago and Ame hadn't slept a wink between now and when she first woke up. Her shoulders were still sore, but she wasn't going to complain. Natsu had given her a strange look when he saw her shoulders were decked out in band-aids, but he didn't say anything. Though he did complain a bit about the broken mirror, but the Fire Dragon Slayer didn't bother asking how it came to be that way in the first place.
They reached the gates rather quickly and the guard looked down at them.
"You're all up early. We you not able to sleep because you were surrounded by demons?" he questioned.
"No. It's not that. Please don't worry about it." Lucy assured, "We want to investigate the island before we destroy the moon. Could you please open the gate?"
"WHAT!? WE'RE STILL GOING TO-" Natsu exclaimed.
However, Ame clamping a hand over his mouth quickly silenced him. She shot him a keep-your-mouth-shut look and removed her hand.
Thankfully, the guard didn't seem to hear him and gave them the go ahead. It wasn't long until they were deep in the woods again.
And it wasn't any longer that Lucy summoned Horologium and hid within the clock spirit's empty cavity.
Meanwhile, Natsu and Gray were arguing once again about how impossible it was to destroy the moon, obviously not picking up on the fact that Lucy simply said that so they could get out of the village without raising much suspicion.
Finally, they seemed to realize that they did need the moon, but not exactly for all the right reasons. Though Ame wasn't surprised that they cared more about food than the stability the moon brings to ocean tides and the planet's rotation.
"'Hey guys. Can you tone it down a little? We never know what's surrounding us.' she says." repeated Horologium.
"Why don't you walk?" Natsu mumbled.
"Are you sure you're using you're Celestial Spirit the right way?" Gray asked.
"'B-But our opponent is a curse. Something unsubstantial is creepy.' she says."
Ame looked back at the Celestial Mage. "W-Well. T-Think of i-it this w-way L-Lucy-san. I-If it r-really is a d-dark s-spell of s-some sort, th-then there's s-someone c-casting it. W-Which means t-there's so-someone to h-hit." she offered.
"Oh yeah! I like the way you think Rainy!" Natsu cheered, pressing on into the forest.
They continued walking for a while, but didn't find much.
"H-Hey Happy-san? C-Can you take m-me up a-above the t-trees? I w-want to see i-if there's a-anything c-close by."
Happy nodded and came out of Horologium's cavity and quickly latched onto Ame's back and hoisted her up above the trees with ease.
"Wow Ame. You're a lot lighter than I thought you'd be." the blue cat commented.
Ame nodded her thanks and began looking around. Not too far ahead of them was a large temple-like structure that the small mage immediately recognized.
She pointed at it.
"T-There's a t-temple n-not too far ahead! M-Maybe there's s-something there." she said hopefully.
"Alright! Good eye Ame." Happy grinned.
However, not too far behind where the others were, the forest trembled.
"O-Oh no."
Happy dropped back down through the trees, not needing to be told.
"GUYS!" Ame shouted, "T-THERE'S S-"
A large creature broke through the foliage behind them and towered above them. It was a giant mint green rat in a maid costume.
Ame reacted immediately, magic buzzing around her hands.
Time to use a new spell! She declared.
Ame extended both of her hands in front of her, a large sphere of darkness forming before them. Shadows quickly streamed from the surroundings and added to the already huge orb until it was the size of a dumpster.
"Maree Noire!"
The orb launched at the mouse, striking it hard in the chest and knocked it over. While it was knocked prone, Ame rose both her hands up, focusing on the area under the mouse. A pillar of inky blackness shot from under it and launched it a good twenty feet away.
Ame huffed in exhaustion as beads of sweat trickled down her face. Luckily, she didn't need to speak to tell her comrades to start running. Happy continued to be her wings while the mouse made its comeback. It didn't seem all that happy with what Ame had done and was specifically targeting her.
The mouse whipped around, lashing its tail at Happy and Ame. The blue cat wasn't able to dodge and they were swatted out of the air and slammed into the trunk of a nearby tree. The air was driven from the Shadow Mage's lungs as she dropped hard to the forest floor, stunned from the impact.
However, she quickly dragged herself up, trying to ignore the pain that shot up her back. The mouse loomed above her, its foot raised to squish her, but a hard impact from behind made it lose balance. Unfortunately, it also made it fall towards Ame.
Ame grabbed hold of Happy and dove into the shadows as the mouse crashed down on the spot they had landed in. A muffled shout was heard from the plane above and Ame reemerged a few feet from where she had once been.
Upon exiting the shadows, Ame fell to her knees, dropping Happy in the process. Exhaustion was beginning to set in. Ame was burning through her magic too quickly and it was taking a toll, but she found the strength to stagger to her feet.
"Ame!" Natsu and Gray shouted.
"We thought you got crushed!" Natsu exclaimed, sounding relieved that wasn't the case, "I'm sorry! I wasn't thinking!"
Ame dismissed it with a forgiving wave and swung her arm at the mouse, who had risen once again.
"Eclipse Blade!"
The dark curve of magic struck the mouse from behind and it fell forward again, this time taking the tree down with it. Ame's legs felt like Jell-O and her whole body felt weaker.
"Ame, are you okay?" Lucy asked, her spirit now gone.
Ame nodded weakly, and forced herself to remain on her feet. Natsu and Gray tried to hit the mouse, and though their attacks wrought more destruction on the creature than Ame's did, it didn't seem to phase it much. The mouse finally seemed to get fed up with getting hit and drew a deep breath. Ame knew what was going to happen next.
"R-RUN!" she shouted.
The group tried to flee, thankfully taking Ame's warning but Ame herself was lagging severely behind due to her exhaustion. Not that it really mattered anyway as a hot, stinky cloud of mouse breath consumed them all seconds after they began their retreat.
Ame held her breath, but the dreadful smell still seeped into her nose, making her gag. The mouse's breath smelled of rotten cheese, decayed plants and just plain morning breath. It was enough to make Ame's eyes water and almost pass out.
Next to her, Natsu, Lucy, and Gray shouted in disgust. When they exited the stink cloud, they all ran with new vigor, even Ame.
"Ice-Make: Floor!" Gray shouted.
The ice mage slammed a palm on the dirt and a thick sheet of ice quickly covered the ground behind them, making the mouse slip and fall almost instantly.
"Nice!"
"T-There's a...t-temple...a-ahead!...W-We...can h-hide...there!" Ame shouted between gasps, "We sh-should...go...wh-while we c-can!"
However Natsu and Gray weren't so keen on abandoning the fight so easily and were now beating on the downed mouse.
"WE'RE BEATING IT UP WHILE WE CAN!"
Lucy groaned and facepalmed.
…
The temple was crumbling. Ruins would be a better term to describe it with. In its heyday, it was probably a beautiful monument, but now any sign of that former glory was long departed. The main chamber was overrun by plants as if the jungle was trying to reclaim the ground it stood upon. There were even trees growing through the stone. Dried up fountains and crumbling pillars decorated the room and long faded paintings of crescent moons adorned the walls.
There was an energy about this place that made Ame's skin crawl, but she wasn't sure what it was but it felt like it was sapping a bit more of her remaining strength. Her legs finally gave out and she sank to the cool stone floor with a heavy sigh.
"Are you okay Ame? You look like you're going to pass out." Lucy remarked.
Ame didn't reply and just sank to her knees on the cold stone floor. "Ye-Yeah….ju-just u-used...t-too much m-magic...t-too fast."
"Makes sense. Those were some pretty big spells you did. And given how recently you said you started magic, it makes sense that you don't have the energy to pull off all that at once yet." the Celestial mage said, observing the temple's high ceilings.
That seemed logical. Ame hadn't really done much to broaden her magic reserves, so maybe it was too early for her to try to be on the same level as Natsu or Gray. She once again wondered why Master Makarov asked her to join the guild in the first place.
However, these thoughts were interrupted when the floor suddenly gave out from under her. The party shouted loudly, presumably at Natsu for breaking the floor if her memory served. The landing was less than comfortable as Ame hit the pile of rubble and was peppered by the remaining stones that fell with them. In her weakened state, she unfortunately couldn't attempt a more graceful landing, but she doubted that the unevenness of the floor would have been to her advantage.
Ame pulled herself up from the rubble, noting that her surroundings were colored with blacks and greys. Looking up, she could see a very distant spot of light that unfortunately couldn't find its way to the depths they were at.
"Hey! Are you all okay?" Natsu asked.
"Natsu! Why the heck do you always act on instinct!" Gray roared angrily.
"Lucy!? Happy!? Ame!? Are you okay!? Answer me!" the Fire Dragon Slayer demanded.
"I-I'm fine, N-Natsu-san!" Ame replied.
"Happy and I are okay too!" Lucy affirmed.
Natsu let out a sigh of relief.
"Where are we anyway? I can't see anything…" Lucy asked.
"W-We're in a c-cavern u-under the t-temple. I-I can le-lead us o-out w-without m-making any l-light i-if you'd l-like. Y-You never k-know if t-there's enemies a-around." Ame informed them.
"Huh? Ame, can you see in the dark?" Happy asked.
"Y-Yeah. I-I t-think it's a Sh-Shadow mage t-thing…" the small mage said.
"Whoa! That's so cool! I had no idea Shadow Magic was so useful!" the pinkette exclaimed, "What do you see Ame?"
"U-Um…" Ame looked around for a moment and found a tunnel, "T-There's a t-tunnel ne-near by. I-I'll lead y-you all t-to it."
The person who was closest to Ame was Natsu, so without warning, she took his hand and tugged him towards Gray and took his hand. Since she didn't have any free hands left, Ame used some of her remaining magic to guide Lucy and Happy to the tunnel. As they got closer, some light from the cavern on the other side reached them, so the others were able to find their way from there.
"Wow. I didn't know that Shadow Mages could see in the dark." Lucy commented, "Though I guess that makes sense. Still, that's a really cool ability Ame."
"Th-Thanks."
Since the group could see now, they continued onwards down the tunnel. Dread knotted in Ame's stomach as they approached the end. Though before they reached it, Natsu charged ahead without warning, an excited grin on his face.
"Natsu! Don't go charging ahead!" Lucy scolded.
They picked up their pace, though it was harder for Ame to keep up since not only was she shorter than the others by more than a foot, she was still exhausted from the earlier fight, so they reached the cavern before she did.
When she entered not too long after them, she stopped dead in her tracks. Though she knew what was waiting ahead for them, it didn't prepare her for just how enormous and terrifying the demon of Destruction, Deliora, truly was.
The demon was frozen in a massive block of blue-tinted ice that sparkled with residual magic. Behind the thick walls, the monster felt like it glared at them with milky white eyes as it towered over them at about ten stories tall with broad shoulders and long arms tipped with wicked black claws the size of cars. Long, curved horns protruded from its head and its mouth was open, frozen in mid-roar, showcasing its multiple rows of sharp teeth.
And its presence….
Though it was encased in magical ice and Ame knew it was just barely clinging to life, Ame could clearly feel the demon's dark presence. It was suffocating how powerful it was. Ame shuddered to think of how terrible Deliora's presence was when it was at full strength. And even more frightening was that the demon's presence seemed familiar. She couldn't place it, but something about this monster's presence resonated deep within her.
It terrified her.
"A humongous frozen monster!" Natsu exclaimed.
"Deliora!" Gray roared, "No way! How can Deliora be here!?"
"Deli...you know what this thing is?" Natsu asked, turning to the Ice Mage.
"It's impossible! It can't be here!" Gray shouted, not even acknowledging Natsu's words.
Ame was starting to get concerned. Gray looked like he was having a mental break down, and given what she knew of his past with Deliora, his reaction made sense.
"G-Gray-san. P-Please calm d-down." Ame begged, "D-Deliora c-can't hu-hurt you a-anymore."
The Ice mage seemed to hear Ame's words and gradually began to calm down. He still was trembling though. From rage, fear, or disbelief, Ame didn't know, but it still concerned her.
"Anymore…?" Lucy asked, "Ame, what do you…" she stopped herself, "Nevermind. Gray, what is that anyway?"
Gray took a deep breath and clenched his teeth. "Deliora." He growled, "Demon of misfortune and disaster." he scoffed, "It hasn't even changed one bit."
Before Gray could say anything else, Ame felt something behind her. Her shadow sense had picked up something. It was footsteps, she assumed. At most three sets and approaching quickly.
"S-Someone's coming!" she hissed, "H-Hide!"
Thankfully, the group heeded her warning and hid behind a nearby pile of rubble. Not long after they had concealed themselves, two people entered the room. Ame remembered their names were Toby and Yuuka and that they were Lyon's comrades.
Yuuka glanced around the area. "Is it around here that you heard the voices?"
Toby nodded. As he did, Yuuka tried to stifle a yawn.
"Daytime...I'm sleepy." he muttered, he looked back at Toby, "Did you get Moon Drip on you?"
"I DID NOT" Toby shouted, "THE EARS ARE JUST DECORATIVE! YOU SHOULD KNOW!"
Yuuka sighed. "I'm just teasing, idiot."
"Moon Drip?" Lucy whispered, "Did he mean the curse?"
"T-The n-name's f-familiar...b-but I d-don't t-think it's a c-curse." Ame mumbled.
Ame sensed another set of footsteps as Sherry came into the cave with a distressed look on her face.
"Yuuka, Toby, I have sad news. Angelica has been attacked!" Sherry announced.
"IT'S JUST A MOUSE!" Toby shouted.
"She's not just a mouse. Angelica is a hunter that gallops the darkness. And love."
"Something's really wrong with her." Lucy murmured.
"They're not from the island. Their smell is different." Natsu pointed out.
Ame turned her attention back to the trio before the demon for a brief moment. But she couldn't help but glance at Deliora every once in awhile. The demon felt like it was glaring at her and it made Ame's skin crawl uncomfortably.
"DEATH! WE'LL KILL THEM!" Toby shouted, pulling Ame's attention back to the situation at hand.
After that, Lyon's comrades left the cavern. Ame held her hand out to signal her friends to wait while she followed the footsteps of the mages until she could not longer sense them. She dropped her arm, nodded and the group emerged from their hiding spot.
"Now what?" Natsu asked, crossing his arms, "We should've caught them and asked them questions."
"I-I do-doubt they w-would a-answer a-any."
"This is gettin' confusing." the Fire Dragon Slayer complained.
"I wonder who they are." Happy said.
"The better question is why they brought Deliora here." Gray commented.
"O-Or w-who this 'C-Cold Emperor' i-is." the small mage added.
"But how did they find where Deliora was sealed…?"
"Sealed?"
Gray looked up at the frozen demon. "It was sealed in an iceberg on the Northern Continent. It's an immortal demon that penetrated the Isgin area 10 years ago."
The ice mage took a ragged breath. "It's a demon that my teacher, Ur, gave her life to seal away."
