Cold and Armored Hearts
Even when a fic is at it's deadest you have to appreciate those who take the time to continue to review. (And such awesome reviews at that)
Thank you all so much.
I haven't read the manga in so long. (My online manga site got shut down!) U.U So of course I can only write fics that pertain to the earlier chapters, and also if they seem a bit OOC then the long absents of reading the manga is the reason why.
Hope this little ficlet makes you ErzaxGray fans happy!
Enjoy!
Wait for Forever
The shooting star blazed fast and striking through the darkened sky leaving a streak of light in its aftermath.
"There, there did you see it! Just now in the sky! The star, the shooting star!"
"Stop yelling fool, I saw it!"
Young Gray standing on the grassy bank closed his eyes tight a look of pure determination on his face.
Young Erza who sat down in her armored attire knees pulled to her chest only watched him with a dull half gaze as one eye remained hidden behind patch.
When Gray opened his dark brown eyes he was looking skyward. Looking to see if he could still make out the last bit of proof that the shooting star had been there.
Still searching the sky he asked,
"You make a wish?"
At first the thought of mind had been to lie to the young ice mage but then thinking the question as pure innocence she decided to quietly relay the truth.
"Yes."
Gray's gaze was back to her in a flash.
The two children were still getting their bearings for each other. They weren't really friends, but they weren't really enemies either.
Not anymore.
Not ever since Gray had silently vowed to stop challenging her.
Here…right here on this very grassy slope that lead down to the water bank.
Here is where they first became nakama.
They don't talk much when they are in the guild together. She's still a little to use to being alone.
But he finds she is a more accepting to him here.
On early mornings or early evenings when he sometimes can still catch her standing by the river.
It is all they have together.
And for right now, he figures, that is good enough.
"What did you wish for?"
He asks slightly bewildered that she even knew the tradition of shooting stars.
She didn't seem to know much of any of the daily norms of life. Trivial foods she eats with hast and fascination like she has never tasted them before and simple things like going for a ride in a buggy seem to astonish her.
He wondered greatly about the young girl before him. He had quite brazenly asked her about her past plenty of times.
But he found when he did she would clam up completely and he wouldn't get another word from her for the remainder of the day.
He soon stopped asking.
Erza's honey brown gaze looked to him with an uncaring side glance.
"What did you wish for?"
Gray can't help himself.
A proud grin pulled full on his features as he happily, boisterously announced,
"To be the strongest member in Fairy Tail ever! The strongest Ice Mage there ever was!"
Erza tilted her head back to observe the heavens,
"You have a long way to go. You can't even beat me yet."
"Oh yeah!" Snapped Gray heatedly, "Well maybe not now but someday just you wait, I'm gonna be stronger than you and all the other S-Class Mages out there!"
He gave a triumphant smirk,
"I'm barely just getting started."
Erza looked to him then and for a moment they shared a gaze.
She turned away from him disinterestedly, "That'll never happen."
He faltered angrily at her easy rejection, "Yeah it will!"
"No, it won't."
"It will! I'll make it happen! I'll see to it that it happens! I'll train and train and keep on training even to my dying day to make it happen!"
Erza again looked to him.
She was nearly stunned by the sudden intensity and determination in his young anxious expression.
"Even if it takes forever!"
She stared at him wide eyed trying to keep in mind that this was the same silly boy who had challenged her to a failed dual time and time again.
She caught her breath,
"F…forever?" She trained her voice to sound taunting, "You'd wait for forever? To be the world's strongest mage?"
He was undeterred and smug,
"I won't even have to wait that long. But if I did then yes." He lowered dark brown eyes down to his pumped fists squeezing his hands into a tight clench. He could just feel himself surging with energy.
Lowly almost to himself he finished,
"It'd be worth it."
Erza watched him in almost rapt fascination then slowly her uncovered eye softened with thought,
"Would it really…?"
Again Gray's dark stare was drawn to her.
For a moment the children were shrouded in silence save for the soft river noises and the cries of crickets and frogs.
Gray spoke up, "Hey…what did you wish for?"
Erza swallowed thickly.
"I'm not telling!"
"What? Come on, why not? I told mine!"
"So what!"
Her quick defense and her sudden hostility had the ice mage wondering.
Without really thinking his next words through he spoke,
"Does it have something to do with where you came from?"
Erza's one visible eye widened and Gray mentally kicked himself!
Why had he asked that? He knew better than to bring up anything about the young armored girls past!
He steeled himself waiting for the inevitable for her gaze to turn hateful, to turn away, to not talk to him again for the night.
She did neither of these things.
Instead, to the Ice mages shock, she lowered her gaze to hide her slightly pink features and answered,
"Yes…no…kinda…"
Not really an answer but still better than nothing.
Gray felt he was breaking ground.
He didn't really want to push his luck and chase her into silence but…to him this was coming so far.
And he just couldn't turn his back on her now.
So unsurely, almost timidly he ventured,
"How…how was it…? Your past I mean, what…I mean where did you…I mean did you…?"
He bit his tongue and mentally kicked himself again.
Way to sound like a babbling idiot.
Erza then stood up before dusting her small hands on her bottom to wipe off any excess grass that might be clinging to her skirt.
She began to make her way up the embankment.
Gray's heart sunk.
Erza passed him on her way up the slope.
Then she paused.
"Dark."
She said in a low and foreign tone.
Gray looked to her with raised brows,
"What?"
She was silent for a moment more before she spoke again,
"It was dark." She continued her way up the slope, "Very dark."
Gray never ventured further than that.
…
Years passed, and it took a long time for everything to fall into place.
Erza found herself torn and tattered, bruised and bleeding staring up at him.
Gray stood on the now icy plains (even though it was hotter than the worst kind of hell) breathless missing his shirt, as always, bruised up and bloody as well.
But as always he had come for her.
Hundreds and thousands of bodies of dark mages lay scattered out on the frozen fields.
Some taken out by the metal of her sword. Most taken out by his overwhelming element.
A wind blew throwing the air into a chill that shot up her spine making her shiver. Making her eyes widen in realization.
His power was still radiating off of him. She could feel it. His energy washing over her in waves!
So much so it almost frightened her.
And it may have taken years but it was finally at this moment that Erza realized he had done it.
His wish had come true.
And along with it hers.
Because when your world is ruled by darkness sometimes one has no choice but to believe in heroes.
And that is what Erza had wished for that starry night on the bank long ago in her childish years.
A hero.
Her heart racing she smiled proudly up at him.
His dark eyes were still just as intense as ever, he grins back.
The wait had been well worth it.
Gray had been right...they didn't even need forever.
~Fin~
Some Graza story ideas would be a real helpful treat! And if anyone knows of any free online manga sites, I'm listening!
Peace)-AR