8. Ice-Make: Change

"If you could change the past, would you?"

Gray was used to snowstorms. He had grown up in Isvan after all where blizzards of high magnitude were quite the norm, but this, this was just ridiculous.

The snow had been falling incessantly since the day before, and though the sun was still high in the sky, none of it seemed to be melting. The myriad of falling snowflakes blurred his vision and he could barely make out the almost empty train station in front of him. There were only a few other people mingling around, or at least that's what he thought. They just looked like dark figures more than actual people, randomly placed against a white backdrop.

Gray leaned back on the bench he was sitting on, the cold snow soaking the back of his white coat. He could feel his pants getting soaked too, making him reconsider his decision to sit there. Looking down, he could barely make out his black boots buried under the accumulating pile of snow on the station platform. If it got any higher, Gray was sure their train ride would be canceled.

He began to wonder where the others were, as they were either late or he was just early. The job request Natsu and Lucy had chosen seemed fairly simple. A small town not too far from Magnolia was experiencing continuous attacks from who they suspected were dark mages. The request hadn't specified what kind of attacks, so they assumed the mayor of the town, who had filed the request, would give them more information once they got there. All in all, Gray didn't think they'd have much trouble with it, plus it paid pretty well. They'd quickly finish the job and get on with this Eliftis business.

He was still having a hard time believing all of it. To think that this white blanket would cover Earthland forever was a frightening and somewhat unimaginable thought. Despite his preference for the beauty of winter, he didn't wish for all these snowflakes to blur his vision every time he stepped outside. And even as an ice mage, Gray wasn't that desperate for the temperature to remain below the freezing point for eternity.

It was only now, as he was surrounded by the potential permanent setting for Earthland, did he realize the gravity of the situation they were in. Aside from the caster of the spell and his possible henchmen, Gray wondered if there was anyone other than his team and Levy who were aware of what was going on. If this was as dire as it seemed, were they supposed to be dealing with it on their own? They hadn't even told the master, let alone the rest of the guild who had been just as mindblown at the change of weather as they were. If this was really as threatening and catastrophic as they thought it was, then were they supposed to tell the magic council? This was something they were meant to deal with, wasn't it?

Gray sighed and put his head in his gloved hands. The sight of the black fabric in front of his eyes was a surprisingly nice change of scenery from the sea of white that had been clogging his view for the past day and a half. He had been up all night thinking about the Eliftis spell, wondering how such a thing could happen and what in the world was he supposed to do about it. He tried to remember what Ur had told him about it, but either he couldn't recall what she had said, or she had just not said enough. He was quite sure it was the latter, as he was fairly confident in his memory of it, despite his apparent lack of attention at the time.

Why hadn't she told them more? If it was as important as she had kept on emphasizing then wouldn't she have explained it to them in greater detail? Why hadn't he asked more questions when he had the chance? If only he could go back and warn his past self of his future situation-

Stop it! Gray thought, ashamed at himself for thinking that way again. I'm not supposed to be thinking like this. Hadn't he told Erza just a few days ago that he had gotten over his longing for a second chance at past mistakes? Hadn't he told himself that?

Then maybe I'm not over it.

Gray removed his gloved hands from his face and lifted his head. The snowstorm hadn't dwindled at all, and if anything it had just gotten worse. There was something different now though, someone else was occupying the bench with him. Turning his head slightly to his left, Gray's eyes fell upon a young girl, her black coat sticking out prominently in the surrounding whiteness. Her hands were uncovered, exposed to the frigid air and the falling snow. Her pants were as soaked as his, yet she didn't shiver.

She barely moved, as if she was unaffected by the freezing temperature and icy winds.

He could sense some magic energy coming from here, so perhaps she was an ice mage? It was a slim chance considering the rarity of ice mages in these parts, but it was always a possibility. Whatever the case, it really wasn't his business to go prying into some random girl's magic.

Gray turned away from the unknown girl, his gaze resettling on the nearly empty train station in front of him. He was really starting to wonder where the others were already. Either they were really later, or he had just been really early.

As he stared ahead into the ongoing blizzard, Gray couldn't help but gaze back out of the corner of his eye at the girl sitting next to him. Her stagnant and unwavering position intrigued him, making him wonder if it really was ice magic that rendered her immune to the shivering and trembling that usually came along with exposure to these winter extremes. He wanted to ask her, but a direct accusation would probably come off as rude, if not completely awkward and maybe even a tad suspicious. He'd have to go for a milder approach.

"This is some crazy weather we're having."

Of all the possible things he could have said, he just had to choose that. He should have just kept his mouth shut, but it was too late for that now. Sneaking a glance at his seatmate, Gray noticed that she hadn't made any sign that she had heard him, so maybe he could just pretend he hadn't said anything.

"Did you say something?"

Or maybe not. It was a delayed reaction, but the young girl had turned to face him and before Gray could even think about turning away, his blue eyes met hers.

"Just commenting on the weather. It doesn't normally snow in the summer." He said, shifting his gaze towards the snowstorm in front of him.

He could still feel her eyes locked on him, staring intensely at his figure. It felt quite unsettling, yet the girl didn't seem to notice his discomfort as he shifted awkwardly in his spot on the snow covered bench. Seriously, what did she find so interesting about him anyway?

"You practice ice magic."

Gray's head spun around at the sudden accusation, his blue eyes meeting hers again.

"Excuse me?"

"You practice ice magic." She repeated. "What kind?"

She was looking at him expectantly, making Gray wonder if he should answer her or not. Her sharp, blue eyes bore into him and while he wanted to look away, he found that he couldn't.

"Ice-Make," He replied hesitantly, still a bit unnerved by her ability to identify his magic like that. "but how did you know?"

"It's not that hard to tell." The girl said, finally removing her gaze from him and refocusing it onto the blizzard.

That hadn't really answered his question, but Gray figured he'd let it slide. At least she wasn't staring at him like that anymore.

"I may be mistaken," Gray said. "but are you an ice mage too?"

"Yes." She answered, her black boots kicking the snow in front of her. "Ice Binding Magic."

"I see." He'd heard of it before, but never actually saw it in action.

"Can you sense it?"

Gray glanced over at the girl, a look of confusion plastered on his face. He was starting to regret initiating this conversation with her. "Sense what?"

"This weather, it's not natural."

"I know- oh, you mean the ice magic." He said, realizing what she had been referring to. "Yeah, I can sense it."

"Do you have any idea of what it may be?"

Should he tell her? She already seemed to notice it all wasn't natural, so maybe she knew something he didn't. But what if they were wrong and it really had nothing to do with the Eliftis spell? Sure, he had found some snowflakes which looked exactly identical to the one from the book, but other than that they really had no proof.

"No clue." He lied. "Do you know of anything?"

The girl shook her head. "Nope."

The conversation morphed into silence, the only sound being the whistling of the freezing wind rushing past them. The snow continued to fall heavily, and Gray could almost see the heaps of snow around him growing. He wondered when it would stop, or rather if it would stop.

"Tell me something," The girl beside him said suddenly. "do you have any regrets?"

He knew they were both ice mages, but that certainly didn't qualify her to question him on such a personal and rather random topic. They had only just met and quite barely seeing as they both knew practically nothing about each other except their magic types. They hadn't even exchanged names, not that he even wanted too, but the point was they weren't close at all. This was something he wouldn't even consider talking about with some of his best friends, so why would he tell her? Surely, she wasn't expecting an honest, detailed answer because she definitely wasn't getting one.

"Of course," Gray said, not planning on embellishing at all. "doesn't everyone?"

"Yes." She answered, staring into the blizzard. Gray wondered what she was thinking, but her expression was unreadable. "You're right. Everyone makes mistakes that they wish they could go back and change, but obviously they can't. The past can't be tampered with. The choices we make are set in stone forever, but if you could change the past, would you?"

He should have been unfazed by her erratic questions at this point, but this one had really caught him off guard. Why was she asking him these things anyway? A part of him just wanted to get up and walk away right there, but something else was telling him to stay. This girl was creeping him out, but at the same time she intrigued him immensely.

"I- I don't really know." He answered truthfully, as he really wasn't sure. "I mean, I don't think I would. While it's true I sometimes wish things had gone differently, at the same time good things have happened that never would've been possible if I hadn't made those mistakes I always regret."

"That's good to hear." The girl said, but before Gray could ask why, she stood up from the bench. "I have to go now, but it was nice talking with you, but before I head off, just promise me one thing. Promise me you'll heed your own words in the future."

"I promise?" He said, though not quite understanding what he was promising.

"Good." She said, turning around slightly to give him a smile. "My name's Lena, and in case you didn't notice, you kind of just froze the bench there. Goodbye, Gray."

And then she just walked off, vanishing into the white sea and becoming just another dark figure, unable to be identified. But as she disappeared, Gray felt like she had just left him at some three way crossing, lost and unsure which path to take. Should he run after her because she said her name was Lena, the name of the girl Erza had talked to? Should he take the second route and wonder why his magic was going out of control again or should he be panicking because she somehow knew his name?

As he sat there on the frozen bench debating his options, the train pulled into the station and four familiar voices could be heard behind him.

"Well, looks like we made it just in time."

"Hey, ice block, is that you? I can barely see anything in this stupid snow!"

"Natsu's right. I can't even go fishing anymore because I can hardly see them. What'll I do, Lucy?"

"Seriously, cat? The whole world's about to freeze and all you can think about is your stupid fish?!"

Gray stood up from the bench, silently praying they wouldn't notice it was covered in ice. It was "winter" after all, so it was completely normal, right?

"So you guys finally made it." Gray said as they approached him. "I was beginning to think you'd never come."

"This weather really made it hard to get here." Lucy said, defending her tardiness. "If I would have known, I would have left earlier."

"It doesn't matter." Erza said, putting the conversation back on track, as expected. "We should go board the train."

It had only been half an hour since they left the station, and already more than half the team was knocked out or asleep. As he leaned against the window, Gray could see Lucy sitting across from him, as she lay asleep curled up against the wall with a sleeping Happy on her lap. It didn't look all that comfortable, but it's not like she had many options considering Natsu's sprawled out figure taking up more than half of the bench. Though, despite the seeming discomfort, Gray could only wish he could be in one of their positions, unconscious and therefore unable to be bothered by any worries and concerns, both valid and not. He was almost considering asking Erza to knock him out too.

Instead, he was stuck with all his thoughts and problems bombarding his mind, each one battling for his full focus and undivided attention. So many questions were being asked at once, and Gray didn't even know where to start. Should he think about that girl, Lena, and all those seemingly random yet possibly meaningful questions she had asked him? Should he tell Erza about her? If this was the same Lena, then it would probably make sense to tell her as she did meet her before. Or maybe he should just bottle everything up and hope it all would work itself out. That seemed like a better plan not because it was more logical, but it's what made him the least uncomfortable at the moment.

"I would think all this snow and cold would make you happy," He kept his gaze on the window as Erza began to speak to him. "but you seem troubled by something. Is there anything wrong?"

Here was his chance to drop his more preferable and less reasonable plan for a more rational and sensible one. Telling Erza about all the problems, questions, worries, and concerns that were inundating his mind may not cease them, but it would at least give him more room to breathe if someone else was sharing them with him. He wanted to tell her just to get it out in the open, but something kept telling him to hold back.

"It's nothing, really." He said, his back still turned to her. He'd compromise; he wouldn't tell her everything, just some things. "I had a strange conversation with someone at the station while waiting for you and it just got me thinking."

"What did you talk about?"

"She asked me some odd questions, a little too personal for just chatting with someone you meet on a bench." Of course, he didn't add that he had initiated the conversation. "It was almost like she knew who I was. Scratch that, she did know who I was! She knew I was an ice mage and by the things she asked me, I felt like she somehow knew something of my past too, and on top of all that, she knew my name!"

He didn't know when he turned from the window to face her, but at some point he had and was now staring expectantly at Erza's calm demeanor, much the opposite of his own panicked expression.

"Gray, you are a somewhat famous wizard." She said, smiling. "People have heard of you and as much as you don't want to believe it, they do recognize you at least somewhat."

"She was not a fangirl."

"I never said she was. I'm just saying it's not completely unheard of for us to talk to a random stranger only to find out they know exactly who we are. Don't tell me this was the first time it's happened to you, was it?"

He glared at her as she smiled amusingly at him. So this was the more rational and sensible plan, huh? He should've not said anything just like his guts had told him. Though, to be fair, he hadn't really told her everything, and by the way he had described it he guessed it did somewhat sound like what Erza was referring too, and just for the record, it wasn't the first time it had happened.

"Look, I just have this feeling it wasn't like that." He said, leaning back in his seat. "She was just sitting there and we started talking. She didn't even tell me she recognized me until the very end when she got up and walked away. She knew me from somewhere else, I just don't know where."

"Did she tell you who she was?"

Was there a reason he couldn't tell Erza that vital piece of information? He tried to rack his brain for one, but he could only find a million and a half reasons for why he should tell her. If he told her it was probably that same girl she had met earlier, perhaps she'd believe him more, and maybe it would give them a lead on something. Why was he so hesitant to tell her, anyway?

Her name was Lena. He rehearsed in his head. Just say her name was Lena.

"She didn't tell me."

Liar!

"Well, I guess you're right about her not being a fangirl considering she didn't tell you her name or try to get an autograph." Erza said, a hint of amusement still in her voice. "But if you really think there was something more to it then I'll take your word for it. However, I can't really make any deductions based on your description of what happened. Do you remember what she looked like?"

Yes. He thought. Black coat, black boots and creepy, yet captivating blue eyes that lured you towards them even though every bone in your body wanted to turn away.

"It was hard to get a good look with all the snow clogging my vision."

"I see." She said, though Gray knew she really didn't. "Well, if you do remember anything else then be sure to let me know. And if there's anything else that's troubling you, you can always try talking to me about it. I may not always have the answers to your problems, as clearly shown just now, but I've learned that everything feels a bit less burdensome after you talk it out with someone."

Maybe it would've if he had actually talked it out with her instead of giving her the bare minimum.

"Thanks." He said, turning back towards the window. "I'll keep that in mind."

And he would, along with every other thought that made him reconsider his silence. And of course, those intruding thoughts were somehow much louder and demanding, making Gray wonder if he had any control over what he thought and said.

It's Thursday which means an update! Chapter 8 already, and we've still got a lot to go!

So, first off, thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! I can't even begin to tell you how excited they got me to continue writing this story. So thank you so much guys and thanks to anyone who's just taking their time to read this.

I actually really liked writing this chapter because it's a lot of internal Gray and I love writing about Gray and his internal monologues. I mean, I hope I got his character right. It's just I find him really easy to write because I feel like we have similar personalities, so hopefully I did this okay. And there is a reason for his introvertly conflicted self here, other than his characteristic introvertly conflicted self :D

Also, as much as I ship Grayza as if it was just meant to be, I decided that there will be no romance in this just to keep things civil and focused on the main plot, however there will be a lot of Gray and Erza moments (in case you haven't already noticed) just because I love their relationship, both platonic and not.

Alright, that's enough blabbering for me today. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, leave a review if you can, and stop by next week for the next installment. Thanks so much for reading, and have a great day!

-britishsconesahoy