By morning, the thief had not come back, and we're both ready for a longer nap. Luckily the nice but harried store owner had thoughtfully paid for a room for us in an inn across the road.
There's only one bed, but whatever. I can handle that. I'll sleep on the floor. No, apparently we're both sleeping in the bed, or as Gray put it, "you're not freaking sleeping on the floor when I'm sleeping on the bed, and I'm not sleeping on the floor either." And the truth is, he's like a brother. It's not a big deal. It's also not worth arguing over. We both need to sleep.
No. No. NO. What are they doing to me? One moment I was signing paperwork to join the guild, and the next I'm waking up in a room that looks like a hospital, except the one time I was in the hospital to set my leg, I hadn't been strapped to the bed. I'm starting to feel a chills. Not only are my arms and legs strapped down but there's two huge straps going across my chest. I have all sorts of wires attached all over my head.
There's a man with a squeaky voice calmly telling me it will only take an hour for the lacrima to be created. What lacrima? While usually doctors say 'this will hurt only a little bit' I distinctly hear 'this will probably be the most painful experience you'll ever have.' Is the man smiling at me?
A lever is pulled all sorts of lights are pulsating off and on and I can't stand it no please stop the pain no please stop stop NO NO please!'
"No oh no PLEASE stop stop STOP!"
I'm managed to take all the sheets and I've wrapped myself in them like a baby's swaddling and I'm sweating and taking huge gulpfuls of air.
"What the hell?" It's Gray. Well of course. It would probably be difficult to sleep through my screams.
I haven't experience this in forever. This is literally the creation of my ice dragon slayer lacrima. I don't know how lacrima are usually produced, but in Merek's case it was literally his entire magic power being sucked out of him. It was the most painful experience he ever had, and the last. He never woke up. The report said it was 'an unfortunate accident.' No. It was murder. And I'm an accessory to the crime. All because I wanted to learn ice make magic.
"Breathe. It's just a dream. It's all right. You're safe."
"I'm sorry." I'm blubbering. Why do I always blubber when I'm crying.
"You don't have to be sorry. Just. Try to calm down." He's massaging my shoulders. "Relax. It's okay."
"I'm sorry I woke you up."
"Oh please. Stop apologizing. It's okay. Take a deep breath."
And now he's teaching me how to do a real deep breath, and it feels good. Breathe in slowly and hold it and let it go slowly. I've got to do this more often.
"Was it about your dad? He's not here. And if he shows up, I'm going to protect you. I promise."
"Thanks. It was about -it's hard to explain."
"Would it help to try?
"Yeah." I pause. How to explain the Merek lacrima? I start to tell about Merek like it's a story.
"There once was a man named Merek Rezell. He was a first generation ice dragon slayer. The dragon who raised him was Kerachglace. She was like a mother to him. Then his dragon slayer disappeared and he was so sad. He ended up joining a guild, but it wasn't a good fit for him. Then he moved to Crocus, met his wife Thalia who was also a wizard. When she was pregnant with their first child, he decided to travel to see a couple of guilds, Raven Tail and Fairy Tail. Unfortunately for him, he went to Raven Tail first. The guild master seemed so excited saying this would be a great place for him, there seemed to be a lot of job requests, and he would probably qualify for S-class requests. He wrote back to his wife to let her know, and that's the last she ever heard from him."
"This guy's real? How do you know all of this? Is he related to you?"
"He was a real person, but we aren't related. Merek was given lots of important paperwork to fill out, but he never looked at it properly. He didn't think he needed to. He had assumed it was a contract. It wasn't. It was medical permission to extract his magic for the purpose of putting into a lacrima. It was painful. So painful beyond anything you could imagine. His entire magic power was sucked out of his body so quickly, he never recovered. He died the morning after the extraction.
"That lacrima was implanted in my body. This is the dream I had. It's the first time I've had it in awhile."
"I don't understand. You have his magic? How do you know facts so clearly like how painful it was? You weren't there."
"The thing is. I kind of was. Because two lacrima were implanted on my 12th birthday. The second had Merek's memories and his emotions for all sorts of events in his life. Most of them are major life events, but I also know trivialities like how he could never stand the taste of spinach. The orphanage he lived in for a time served it overdone at every meal and he swore he'd never eat the stuff again."
"Oh shit that's crazy."
"Yeah. I know way too much about him, and he never had a chance. It's so unfair."
"That is so sick. How could they trick an innocent man? And to implant his memories inside of you? That's disgusting."
"Well they thought they were just getting his memories with Kerachglace, but it was an experimental process and-"
"And you were the guinea pig?
"it probably seemed like a good deal. I'd be more like a first generation dragon slayer this way. Also, I think my father had gotten a better deal on the lacrima with me as a test subject. Also he had provided the source so that also must have led to a discount."
"Crap. I'm so so sorry. This is insane."
"I'm so sorry too. Everytime I use Merek's magic I feel horrible. Now you know why I want you to teach me ice make magic. Everytime I use his magic it's blood stained."
"Well, you didn't cause his death."
"The pain was so unbelievably atrocious, like his organs were being squeezed out of his body one by one."
"And you can feel that?"
"It's an echo. It's the emotion of the pain if that makes any sense. How he panicked. Would he ever see his wife again? Would he ever get to meet his child? All he wanted to do was to earn a living with his magic and be with his wife and raise a family. Life is so unfair."
"I know." Well of course he knows. He's the only survivor in his whole village.
"I'm sorry."
"Will you please stop saying that? You have nothing to feel sorry about."
It's such a relief to say all this. Why was I so scared to tell somebody? I guess I thought they'd think there was something wrong with me. Well, of course, there is something wrong with me. Most people don't have the thoughts and feelings of a dead man coursing through them.
"Nobody knows I have all his memories and emotions and almost nobody knows about the second lacrima in the first place. Only my father and the scientists, and they think it's only memories of Kerachglace. You're the first person I've ever told." Why am I saying this? I don't know. I hope he won't be freaked out and realize it's because I trust him. I would have told Laxus. I was planning to, but things don't work the way you plan, do they.
"Well, it's good you told somebody. I'd say thanks, but that sounds a little weird. I think we should go back to sleep for a few more hours." Our sleep schedule is going to be so messed up when we're done with this job. Hopefully tonight we'll clinch it.
I'm on Kerachglace with Merek and there's a nice breeze. He looks sad. Of course he's sad. I've been using his magic. His beautiful magic that has death all over it. I want to talk, but he's signalling me to be quiet.
Kerachglace is making weird snorting sounds. What does he want me to do? Become one with the ice dragon or something? He's closing his eyes and meditating. So I figure. Why not? I'm counting ice coins which float all around me.
"Lex. Lex." Gray's trying to wake me up. "I think you should wake up now. It's 3pm. We should get food. There's a shower here if you want to take one." Gray's obviously been up for a bit. His hair is still wet, he's got a new outfit on and he's been reading the Zaphy Consealer novel I bought, because I see he's holding his place but hiding the book behind his back.
The day went quickly. After we got food, I lay in bed read the other book and pretend to not notice Gray is totally enthralled by the Zaphy Consealer. Well they are page turners, and they're hilarious, but people always deride them as girl novels. Funny how nobody talks about boy novels.
Now we're back at the jewelry store after "just one more page" and no that wasn't me. I love when people who usually don't read can't tear themselves from a book. Now I just have to have a triumph of similarly epic proportions in this jewelry store.
I have this need now to talk about something light after last night's intense conversation.
"If you weren't going out with Lyon who would you want to go out with?"
"That's such a girl question." How ironic considering he was reading a so-called girl novel all day.
"Well too bad. I'm a girl. I noticed you totally ignored the question."
"I don't know. Maybe Lucy? Actually maybe not. Lucy likes somebody, who's completely oblivious, and she's more of a friend. I can't really see us together, so never mind that one."
"Let me guess. Does his name rhyme with Gotsu Flagreel?"
"May-be. Oh. I took your advice, and I told her about Lyon. She's more excited about it than I am. 'OMG Gray! I can't believe it! Oh it's so sweet!'" Speaking of OMG, Gray's imitation of Lucy has me spewing my water. Good thing there's paper towels.
"Sorry."
"You don't look sorry."
"You're right." Smirk. "Anyway, she's got a lot of helpful stuff to say, considering she's never dated anyone. She had no clue Lenora was Lyon, so good job there, and she's keeping it totally secret."
"So, anyway who would you date, Gray?"
"Who would you date?"
"I'm 13!"
"So? I had a crush on somebody when I was 13."
"Ooooh who?"
"Uh… it doesn't really matter." It looks like he's regretting mentioning this.
"Oh come on. I'm not going to tell anyone. You know I've got a freaking guy in my head, which is a lot weirder than your first crush. Who could you have had a crush on that would be so embarrassing? Let me guess." I'm thinking who was in the guild back then. Oh I know who it was. "Erza?"
"Huh?" Hahaha he's even blushing. Must have been a powerful crush.
'Erza. it was Erza."
"Uh…"
"Oh come on, just admit it. I'm not going to say anything to her, and knowing how smart she is, she probably knew about it at the time too."
"I hope not."
"Aha!"
"Whatever. What about you? You haven't had a crush on anybody yet?"
"Uh… maybe." Oh great. It's my turn to blush, because I mean, it's not a real crush really, I just think that maybe I'd like to date somebody who looks like Gildarts. Aa younger version of course, and preferably a version who doesn't leave the guild for years at a time, more of a homebody. So technically I don't have a crush on Gildarts, just a younger imaginary guy who looks exactly like him. Except, you know, younger, but just as buffed, and not a womanizer.
"Oh so you have. Okay. My turn to guess. Macao."
"Are you trying to make me spew my water again?"
"Hey, be nice. What about Max?'
"No way."
Then he's saying the names so quickly. "Let's see: Wakaba Freed Bickslow Warren Jet Droy Natsu Gajeel Gildarts ooooh Gildarts." He's enjoying this way too much.
Okay so I might have blushed just a bit when he said Gildarts, but it's not Gildarts. Oh, who cares. So it's Gildarts. Who's like 25 years older than me or something. I love how the whole town has to shift for him, and yet he's so unassuming, and he's gorgeous.
"Okay. That's an interesting choice." I really need to change the subject now.
"What's interesting how both our crushes are on powerful people."
"Well she wasn't as powerful then."
"You haven't answered my question. Who would you date?"
"I don't know. Maybe Juvia if she stopped stalking me from behind pillars and also stopped thinking I'm this perfect guy, when I'm clearly not."
"Clearly." I don't know why, but when I'm with Gray, lately I turn into his perfect obnoxious younger sister, and he pretends to be annoyed, but it's obvious he's really enjoying the whole thing.
"And she'd have to not do the whole 'love rival' thing too."
"So Juvia if she acted like somebody completely different."
"Sounds good."
I've decided we have to nail this down tonight because It's 10:35 pm and I'm starting to get claustrophobic in this store and Gray's getting nervous about making it back in time to get his train to Margaret town. So we have a back up plan. If we really mess this up again, He can simply go right from here to Margaret Town, but that plan relies on us catching the thief at the latest tomorrow night. Of course we're totally getting this done tonight. These guys messed with the wrong guild. That's what everyone says at least. I start practicing saying this when I've got Mr. Shadow Cackly Boy begging for mercy. "You picked the wrong guild to mess with!" Or maybe "You're going to bite the dust!" That would make a really good song, actually. "Another Guild Bites the Dust."
Suddenly there's a sound, but in a different area of the store. Actually, I'm not sure what they're pulling here, because this time it's in the middle of the store. Gray goes towards the sound, and I'm walking behind the cases in case there's another convenient sidekick.
Except it's not the sidekick it's him again, Mister Shadow Cackle Boy. Okay. I've got to get this guy. Ice Dragon Crushing Fang! It just goes right through him. No way. This looks so familiar. Too familiar. He's using a form of illusion magic, not nearly as possible as my father's. The thing is I know rudimentary illusion magic, but I'd rather use Merek's magic than Dad's. If Merek's feels bloodstained, Dad's feels like it's been in a sewer for the last decade.
"We need to switch! The thief's here!" Gray isn't hearing me. I'm hearing his own spells, but this sidekick doesn't seem a weak as the last guy. I'm still going for the jerky unpredictable movements, but jerky unpredictable movements are hard to do. It's like trying to come up with a series of random words or numbers. The main thing is to be unexpected. So now speed up speed up ice dragon roar ice dragon wing attack should I even try dragon slayer secret art: swan dive? Only if I want to look ridiculous. I've barely got the gist of it so far.
There's something here I'm missing. Oh no, a huge shadowy fist is about to slam me against the wall. This is going to hurt-