She ran and she ran, but everything felt like it was going in slow motion. Finally she pushed open the door to the room that held her best friend, but it was too late. Natsu was gone. His still form just laid there as Wendy sobbed into Erza's shoulder, saying how she had tried her best but that it wasn't enough. Lucy was sure Erza said something comforting to Wendy, but at this point she could only hear the strange rushing sound in her ear.
Lucy collapsed to the floor, not unconscious, just not able to physically hold herself up anymore. Happy sat by Natsu's head, begging him to wake up. Still the Dragon Slayer did not stir, he never would on his own again. How could this have happened, this was Natsu! He had survived so many near death experiences, heck he had been brought back to life by his brother the one time he truly had died.
Nothing was supposed to be able to defeat him, hadn't she witnessed him take on incredible odds before, ones that would have killed practically anyone else? How had one mage been able to take him down? Why hadn't she gone on this job with him like he had asked her to, perhaps she could have kept it from happening.
Lucy didn't hear her the words her friends were calling out to her, her mind throwing so many random thoughts and feelings at her, though she could hear their voices. How was she going to be able to live in her apartment anymore? Or go the guild? Heck how was she supposed to stay in Magnolia? He was everywhere, it would be like constantly ripping off a band aid from the moment she woke up and until she fell asleep each night. If she could ever fall asleep again.
She knew he would haunt her dreams, teasing her with his living form only for her to wake from it and be broken anew. "How can I say goodbye to him? I'm not ready to do that!" she screamed in her mind. She felt paralyzed by the grief that was overwhelming her, yet not dragging her into the sweet relief of unconsciousness, but rather cruelly keeping her just above the line, in this limbo area where all of her thoughts continued to hit her.
Life would be so cold without him, not just because of his higher body temperature, but his personality. He could light up a room just by smiling and while he had some annoying habits, most of what made him Natsu, heck even those annoying bits, were things she would have never changed about him.
Meanwhile Lucy's friends gathered around her, worried for their blonde team mate. Her eyes were open and moving all over the place, but she wasn't responding to them. Juvia arrived and took in her love rival on the floor, knowing that whether Lucy knew it or not, she had loved Natsu and Juvia couldn't even begin to comprehend how she would be reacting if it was Gray lying motionless over there.
Juvia was the first one to sit down on the floor and pull Lucy towards her, letting her head rest on Juvia's shoulders. Lucy, feeling herself being moved, finally came out of her weird, trance like state. Tear filled eyes looked to who was holding her ever so gently. "Juvia?" she questioned, not remembering if she had seen the blue-haired mage in the room when she had entered. "Don't worry Lucy, we're here for you." Juvia said softly.
At those words the tears burst from Lucy's eyes, sobs following. Gray, Erza and Wendy collapsed on the floor next to the pair, all pulling themselves into a group hug where they allowed the tears to flow. Carla went to Happy's side, the blue Exceed being pulled into a hug by her as their own tears flowed freely. Soon all of Fairy Tail had arrived at the town where Natsu had died and they escorted his body home to be buried.
At Lucy's suggestion and Lisanna's agreement, they buried him by the little house that he and Lisanna had built as children, swapping out the tombstone he had made for her with one for him. After the funeral, they all left one by one until it was just Happy and Lucy standing next to it, though their team mates weren't far away in case they were needed.
Lucy knelt down beside it, Happy crawling into her lap, as she asked "How can I say goodbye Happy?" The blue Exceed stayed silent, for he didn't have an answer to that question.
Wow, that was depressing… I told myself I had to write one story that was sad, wanted to get out of my comfort zone. I played with the idea of him waking up and having it be him that pulled her out of her weird state of mind by her feeling his heat, but then that would make it happy, which means I would fail at getting out of my comfort zone… I think I'll stick to my comfort zone from now on.