Sorry for late update guys! The internet lag problem has not been fixed yet (if you've read my Now You See Me fanfiction, you would know), I would not be updating for that fanfiction yet, this one would be updated next week!
Groaning, Faye woke up, finding herself on a bed in a clean, white room. "Where…"
She trailed off when the door clicked open and Erza came in, carrying a bowl of steaming hot porridge. She almost dropped it when she saw that her youngest daughter had woken up.
"Faye! Are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere? Oh, you had me so worried." Erza continued fussing over Faye, who waved away the concerns good-naturedly. Erza then encased her in a bear-hug, stroking her head gently. After a few moments, she pulled away, a serious expression on her face.
"Faye, do you remember anything that happened to you three days ago?"
"Three days? I was out for three days? Wow.."
"Yes, you freaked everyone out. Now back to the question."
"Well, let's see. I was fighting alongside Zura and Cy, and then…" Faye's voice trailed off, as she remembered the events that lead to her sister's death. She can still hear the screams of the wounded and the dying, the snapping sound of bones breaking. She saw her violet-haired sister breathing the last of her breaths, lying in a pool of her own blood. There was a stabbing pain somewhere in her chest, like someone was ripping out her heart. Faye clutched her head, shaking it vigorously, while muttering, "Go away, go away, go away." She felt a dull throb in her head, which in time worsened and felt like someone was poking it with needles.
Erza, noticing the sudden change, started shaking Faye, trying to snap her out. It didn't work though. Before long, she had to call the nurses to subdue her.
When Faye was calm and asleep again, Erza turned towards the nurses. "What happened to her?"
The nurse, a plump elderly woman with a kind soul, appeared to look distressed. "Ah, well, I believe the poor child has been traumatized with her sister's tragic death. It appears that this was also what triggered her mind to.. summon those swords. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't know what she had done. It was an amazing feat. According to literature, only two of the most powerful exquippers were able to do so." The nurse gave a small smile, "You have an amazing daughter."
Erza smiled sadly. "I'm afraid she's broken now. I sure hope there would be someone to fix her up and return her back to normal."
"By the way, how's your oldest daughter?"
Erza stopped and stared at the ground. "She's…"
Two days ago..
Azura woke up, not knowing who she is, where she was or who the man sitting by her bed was. He had clearly stayed up all night, for he was now leaning back on his chair, sleeping soundly.
She looked around. She was in a room similar like Faye's, though in here, the lights are off. She threw open the covers and slid both her legs out. Shuddering when her toes touched the chilly wooden floor, she tried standing up, putting her weight on her legs…
And immediately, she crashed to the floor. The commotion woke the man (who is of course, Jellal) up.
"Zura! You're awake! What happened? Did you fall? Here, I'll help you up." Jellal put his hands out, only to be slapped away by Azura.
"Don't touch me! Who are you?! Where have you taken me?!"
"What?! Zura! What's wrong?!"
"I don't know what's wrong, so you better tell me. I.. I don't remember anything.. What's wrong with me?! Did you drug me?!"
Jellal's eyebrows creased. "It's me Azura. Jellal Fernandes. Your father. Don't you remember?"
Azura's eyes widened. My father? But… I don't remember.. she thought forlornly.
Just then, Erza came in with the old nurse. "Zura! You're awake!" Erza ran towards her daughter, about to hug her, but stopped when Azura shyed away from her touch. "What's wrong…?"
Jellal pulled her aside and whispered, "I think, she 's having amnesia. Forget us, she doesn't even know who she is."
Erza gave a small gasp, her eyes watering. Jellal noticed and pulled her into his arms. "Come now. I know it's been hard, with Cy… gone, Faye currently in a coma, and now Zura losing her memory. I'll talk to Porlyusica. Maybe she knows how to cure Zura."
Erza shook her head. "Porlyusica's busy. She has hundreds of other mages to tend to, those with more serious injuries. The healers are her top priority now, so that they can help her out later on. Wendy and Chelia, our two best healers are still unstable. No.. I'll just have to wait. Maybe, she'll regain her memories over time."
Jellal turned around to look at her daughter. "I sure hope so."
"Layla. Wake up Lay. Please. I'm not going to last for long. Lay, wake up," Igneel whispered to his sister who had fallen asleep next to his bed, his voice hoarse.
Layla groaned, "What's up Iggy?"
"I wanted to say goodbye to you."
That jerked Layla awake. "Why?! Where are you going?"
Igneel looked up, staring at the ceiling, his eyes dreamy. "To the place of our ancestors." Layla started to panic. "What do you mean? Come now, don't talk nonsense. "
Igneel faced his sister. This time, his eyes were sharp as an eagle's, face dead-serious. "Layla, I can feel it. My soul, my life force is drifting away by the second. I acquired that skill years ago, when I was under the apprentice of the Great Healer."
Layla shook her head vigorously, "what are you muttering about?! Snap out of it Igneel! It must have been the medicine, it's making you hallucinate. I gotta call the nurse, you wait here." She got up hurriedly, tripping over her chair. Before she could go more than two steps, Igneel grabbed her hand.
"I don't care if you don't believe me Lay. But just listen to me. If anything should happen to me, please tell mom and dad I love them. That I'm really sorry for all the troubles I caused. And for the grief I would cause them later on. tell Master Makarov and the rest of the guild that they were all great, that our adventures we had together will always be embedded in my memory. Tell the Redfoxs they have awesome knife-throwing skills. Tell Faye to stay sharp and cunning. Tell the Fullbusters that I was glad to have them as my friends. Tell Ace (Laxus's and Lisanna's son) his lightning skills are great. And also… don't laugh, but, tell Azura I've always had a major crush on her."
Igneel blushed profusely. Layla laughed, "You finally told me who your crush is. Hold on, I'm getting the nurse. I'm so gonna tease you everyday iggy."
Layla moved towards the door. "And Lay, I love you! You've been a great sister!" Igneel called out.
Layla replied, "I know!"
When Layla was walking down the hallway towards the receptionists, she wondered to herself, "What's gotten into him anyway? Talking about dying and all that. Creeps me out. I better hurry before he starts doing anything stupid."
It only took a moment for her to call the nurse and return back to Igneel's room.
"I told you, you're not gonna die. Now tell the nurse what's wrong."
Silence.
'Hey, Iggy. Not funny. Quit joking around."
Still he remained silent.
Worried, Layla went over to his side. His eyes were closed, and there was the slightest hint of a smile on his face. "Asleep, huh? Wake up you litt-"
No pulse. No signs of breathing.
"Igneel! Wake up! What's wrong with you?! Nurse! Why isn't he breathing?! Igneel wake up!"
Layla crossed the thin line of hysteria, and the nurse had to move her out as the doctor was called and tried to revive Igneel. It was no use though. Igneel was gone.
Layla continued to sob and scream, two nurses having to hold her back. It wasn't long before Natsu and Lucy came, huffing and panting. One look at Layla and they both knew that there was something incredibly wrong. "What is it? What happened?"
The nurse cleared her throat, hesitating. "It's your son. He's.. he's dead."
Natsu and Lucy stood stock-still, mouth gaping wide. It took a few seconds for the news to sink in, before Lucy started crying and Natsu tried pushing past the nurses to see his son.
It was very rare to see that silver line of tears streaming down Natsu's cheek. He sat by Igneel, unable to do anything but cry. Layla appeared next to him. With a shaky voice, she whispered, "Mom, dad, Igneel told me to tell you guys he loves you a lot."
In her dream, Faye was in a garden, one fit for a queen. The green grasses were lush, the flowers bursting forth with the full radiance of their beauty, perfuming the whole area. Butterlies danced, birds chirped, the bees buzzed on. and there, right in the center were people sitting on a small, red picnic mat. There were all kinds of snacks around them, from cheesecakes to sandwiches.
Faye took a step forward. One of them, a boy with raven-black hair swiveled around, facing her. Faye realized with a start that it was Jason, with his usual cheeky smile.
"Hey guys! Look! It's Faye!"
The others turned and showed their faces. Aside from Jason, there was Izo, Tamora, Igneel, and finally Cyan. All had smiles on their faces.
"Come on over Faye. We've got cakes." Igneel gestured towards the plethora of food.
Yielding to temptation, she moved forward and soon found herself eating and laughing with her friends.
"hey Faye, can you please pass our messages to the others?"
Bewildered, Faye asked, "What messages?"
"These messages."
Each of them then handed Faye an envelope. They were labeled with the names of their senders.
"But, why me? What are these for anyway?"
'We're going Faye. And we won't be returning anytime soon. We're counting on you. Send my regards to everyone in the guild." Jason winked, then vanished before her very eyes.
The vanishing part shocked Faye, of course. (Who wouldn't get shocked?)
"Don't worry. He's in a better place now. Please tell Levina I love her, and that I'm sorry I have to leave so soon. Give a big hug from me to Acquanetta and my parents." Izo ruffled her hair before he too, vanished.
"Okay, that's it guys. No more vanishing!" Faye expostulated.
"No can't do. Make sure Layla conveys all my messages kay, Faye? And I'm pretty sure you know that I've always looked up to you and you're my role model and all that. Now don't get so cocky."
"Of course I know that. Oh and by the way, I know you get all moony-eyed over Zura too," Faye remarked.
Igneel turned beet-red and shouted, "shut up Faye!" before disappearing.
Tamora was next. She wasn't the serious girl in a hooded cloak anymore. She had changed her cloak to jeans and T-shirt, and wore a smile on her face. "Say hi to Layla for me will you?"
"S-sure. Wow, you look so different than the Tamora I knew."
"Yeah, I've become more sure of myself. By the way, that Igneel guy, I think he's kinda cute."
Faye rolled her eyes. "Just so you know, he already has a crush on Azura."
"well, they're far away from each other now. Luck's on my side! My chance to make him mine," Tamora giggled. Faye sighed, "Whatever you say. Run along now. Catch up with your boyfriend."
Tamora chuckled, waved goodbye, then disappeared, probably to stalk Igneel. (Poor him)
She felt a tap on her shoulder. Her sister was there.
"Cy, I'm so sorry I couldn't save you. I ju-"
"Hush now. It's not your fault Faye. You and I know that. It wasn't you who willed the dragon to strike me, now was it?"
"But I wasn't able to save. If only I ha-"
"Listen to me Faye. Let go of all those guilt. It's eating away all your sanity. I'm afraid for you. You won't be as strong as before Faye. Those black-outs you're having will hinder you. But once you learn to let go of the past, they'll leave you."
"So I just have to let go right?"
"It's not as easy as it sounds. Here, seek help from Akame. She'll teach you the art of finding peace again. Her address is in the letter I gave you."
Just then, Jason reappeared. He tousled cyan's hair affectionately, which made Faye raise one of her eyebrows questioningly. Jason asked, "Ready to go?"
"In a while. I haven't got much time Faye. Tell mom, dad and Zura I love them. Send my regards to the guild."
Cyan inserted her hands into jason's. "Let's go Jas, the others are waiting for us."
"No! Cy! Don't leave me!" Faye exclaimed, her eyes wild, panicked.
Cyan reached over and hugged Faye one last time. "Bye Faye.." And with that, she disappeared, along with Jason, the picnic basket, the food and the beautiful garden. Faye was all alone, in a place full of darkness.
She woke up with a jolt. Was it all a dream?
No. the letters were in her hand.
Review! The author's fanfiction account is FoxfaceChase16
