Chapter Twelve
Her Horror
Princess Lucy Heartfilia: Banshee. Wanted Princess of the Star Lands. Has royal blood inside of her that connects to her Nymph heritage - however, she is able to expel this side of her if she wants (but let's face it, why would she, free cuddles with Natsu for life). Also has the strange, unheard of ability to take on a were-lions attributes without actually being a were-lion. Full of mysteries. Needs to be protected like a smol bean but can kick major ass. Is a screamer. *snickers*
Someone was talking.
Not to me, but it was a conversation. Just on the frays of my mind, I could hear it. It made me open my eyes, or at least try to. They fluttered for a few seconds, streams of light entering my sight before disappearing when the task of opening them was too much.
I moved my limbs, and found them to be bare, freezing. I was shaking.
When I tried to open my eyes this time around, they agreed to follow my command. I felt my body twitch, and the room slowly swam into focus. There was a small tray, a small cup that had steam rising from it's brim. A small flower sat beside it, a beautiful red lilica.
"And the town?" I moved my head very slowly towards the door, listening to Erza's voice. Relief swam through me like a tidal wave, bringing tears to my eyes when I realized she was alive.
"They believe it was a heaven cry. They do not possess knowledge that would tell them otherwise." Ultear's voice was soft, and I heard Erza sigh thankfully. I joined that sigh, closing my eyes for a moment. A heaven cry was exactly how it sounded, a cry from the heavens that normally warned people of danger, and made the earth shake.
Nobody had ever figured out what caused this strange phenomenon, not even the dragons that roamed the sky.
"And the damage?"
I listened intently, slowly lifting my body up so I could support my upper body on the headboard, as Ultear began, "Other than a few shops having broken windows and supplies, they got lucky." Then she stopped and muttered, "I'm sorry. I didn't-"
"It's fine, Ultear." Erza replied softly, her voice odd and it made me frown. Obviously something had happened. Something that made Ultear apologize for a seemingly innocent comment. If anything, the town had gotten lucky in damages. An image of my Kingdom splitting apart from my voice alone swam through my memory.
They walked away from the door, their voices drifting away and I turned my head slowly to the window, laying my hands in my lap. The sun was setting, casting a beautiful coral color into the room, playing off the creme and brown scheme surrounding me. A slight breeze brushed in, covering my skin with pleasant goosebumps and I felt a tear slide down my face, relief and exhaustion overwhelming me.
I brought my knees up to my face, burying my head in them with a soft sob.
I'm so tired.
Tired of this, already.
Shame occupied my senses, realizing that such thoughts were weak. There were people in this world that had it harder than me, after all.
What right did I have to feel this way?
My shoulders shook as I kept my crying silent. I had long since perfected the art of crying quietly after all. Anger at my own pathetic feelings made my power jump slightly, but it was held down, pushed back by the bracelet that seemed to have been recharged while I was asleep.
Still, feeling that power spike, made the dark feelings wrap around me even more so. A noise made me lift my head, wiping at my eyes to get rid of the evidence just in case Erza came in to check on me. The door remained shut and I turned to the window, jumping in fright at the figure crouched outside it.
Two gleaming red eyes were pinned to me, long scaled wings stretched out as a clawed hand kept balance on the window sill. Scales crept along the ridges of his body, his torso shirtless, showing off his impressive body and warm skin tone. Pink hair hung around his face, casting it with a shadow and something inside me tingled at the look.
His eyes narrowed further and I slowly put my knees down, not wanting him to know I had been crying.
"How long have you been awake?"
"Not long." Once I replied, he seemed to feel comfortable creeping in, giving his shoulders a light shake so that his wings retracted but didn't completely disappear, only shrinking so he could fit through the window without causing damage.
"Have you spoken to Erza yet?" His voice was soft, low, and he ran a hand through his hair, pushing the strands from his face. I shook my head, frowning at the guarded look in his eyes.
Something was up.
"How are you feeling?"
I huffed, "What's with the twenty questions?"
His lips quirked, "That's enough answer. Hungry?"
I looked down at my abdomen in thought, as if it could talk and tell me if I was hungry. I shook my head slowly, before rubbing at my eyes, "How long have I been out?"
"A little less than a day." He told me, and then sat down on the corner of my bed, wings disappearing completely. Not before I caught a glimpse of a deep red appendage behind him. Unfortunately, his transformation was gone before I could further investigate it.
"Was that your tail?"
His eyebrow twitched a little, "Yeah. I was flying, and it doesn't feel right without a tail."
"But you've flown before without a tail, before." I was sure of it, he hadn't had a tail when he dropped off Loke in the mountains.
"That doesn't mean I enjoy it. It's all about balance in the air." He told me, lightly cracking his shoulders and I nodded, sort of understanding it but then sort of not.
"Where did you go?"
He pursed his lips, "Mirajane and Lisanna asked me to take their brothers body to the place they were born. I had to lay his body in the stream and burn his talisman." My heart ached and I looked away, tears flooding my eyes.
"Oh."
"You know that his death had nothing to do with you?"
"I know that." My voice was minuscule because even though, consciously, I knew that nothing I could have done was going to save him, I still felt responsible. It made me wonder if this was what my life was going to be like, constantly feeling horrible for a curse that I had been born with.
"Without you, we wouldn't have known that they were in trouble." He stated firmly, but his voice was soft, soothing. I closed my eyes to stop the tears from cascading down my face, trying really hard to actually listen to him, and not be overwhelmed in my own guilt and insecurity.
Because it wasn't about me.
"Lisanna and Mirajane would both like to talk to you. They know you were involved in their rescue."
"Did you tell them about the other thing?"
"No. It would be better for them not to know about that." Natsu sounded apologetic, and it made me confused because I was happy that they didn't know. It made me believe I could just ignore it all together.
"I'm not ready to see them yet…"
He nodded understandingly, "You can take your time. We still have a few more hours before we have to go anywhere."
"So we aren't behind schedule?"
"No. If we were, we would have tied you to the roof of the carriage and gotten on the road again." His ability to joke eased the seriousness of the moment away from me, glad that Natsu was still the same. That there was no judgmental look in his gaze, no horror at what I had done.
"You think I'm stupid, or something? If we needed to go and I was still unconscious, I bet my left leg that you would be the first to volunteer to carry and cuddle me as we traveled." I smiled a little shyly at him, and he swallowed his bottom lip for a second, eyes finally switching back to green.
"You're right. I already know you like our sessions so I'd feel confident that I could cuddle you to health."
I wrinkled my nose, "What have I said about calling them 'sessions'?"
"I'll call them something else when you can come up with a better name for them."
I pursed my lips at him before shuffling onto my knees, a blush spreading across my nose and cheeks. I inched closer, biting at my lip and he watched me carefully, though his eyes were darkening once more.
"You okay?"
"Just feeling really horrible." I admitted, stunned by my honesty but he nodded, eyes soft and full of pain, pain for me. I closed my eyes and climbed into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck as his warmth seeped into me. I kept the bracelet on, not feeling like I was aching for touch, but more so comfort.
He twisted one hand through my hair, tangling his fingers in the strands, before his other looped around my back, tucking me into his chest. Tears prickled at my eyes, and I brought one of my hands to his hair, rubbing my nails against his scalp. He growled softly and the noise swallowed me, making my skin warm, soothing my tormented insides. The vibration of it was unlike nothing I had ever felt and it seemed to cause the stress, and anger from what had happened slide off me like rocks rolling down a mountain side.
He didn't speak, just continued to make soft, low noises that were full of bass and affection. I felt my spine prickle at the sensitivity, tips of my ears burned a little because they sounded so much more than a simple growl. It felt like Natsu was telling me he would comfort, and protect me for forever. And even though I wanted to hear that - at the same time, I really didn't.
But I didn't move away or tell him to stop, slowly beginning to get obsessed with this sort of treatment.
I pulled back a little to look over his shoulder as Erza entered. He took in a sharp breath and squeezed me tighter, but I had stupidly thought he was just being cheek. I poked my tongue out at him, unaware of the look in his eyes hardening before smiling at Erza, "I crawled into his lap this time so-"
My words stopped as she smiled back, a small thing that lacked warmth and held anxiety. My eyes focused on the difference and I felt horror pierce me. I pushed against Natsu and he released me, glancing over his shoulder with a wince.
"What happened to your eye?"
"You need to go home. Get Eileen to heal it." I state, as Erza shakes her head, her hair a stark contrast to the white bandage wrapped around her face, covering her left eye from my unstable mental state.
"There is no need to," Her voice was pinched, forcing a calming tone around the edges but I just shook my head, my stomach crawling in sickness and horror as she continued on, "We have a very strict schedule to follow."
"That was before I hurt you."
"It is fine, Lucy. It is only one eye." I shook my head, refusing to hear her almost flippant words, disgusted with myself and upset with her for not taking this seriously, for doing what she did, even if it saved a village. The idea of me hurting Erza, this insanely powerful Fae future queen, scared me witless.
"That is not the point-"
"Lucy, we don't have time for this. We need to talk to the Strauss' family, then get back on the road." Erza said softly, and I simply stared at her, unable to reply properly because her attitude towards the topic was aloof at best. It was clear she didn't want to discuss it, and normally I would thank her endless professionalism to the edge of the earth and back, but this wasn't one of those times.
I couldn't tell if she honestly didn't care or she was avoiding thinking about it.
A funny thought occurred to me as I was trying to understand her mood about this, addressing her with a shaking voice, "Why are you still covering it with a bandage if it's fine?"
She stilled, anxiety rolling off her and I felt my heart grow ten sizes smaller. My heart raced inside me, but I didn't worry about my power potentially breaking out during our conversation, the bracelet was doing an excellent job so far in keeping it placid and out of the way.
"Lucy, I promised I would never lie to you when we first met. Please, pay me the same respect and try your hardest to keep a clear mind."
"What exactly did I do to your eye Erza?"
Terror crawled through me like a wet amphibian, choking my senses and she sighed, bringing her hands up to unravel the bandage slowly. Her hands shook slightly, fumbling and it whipped at my heart, to see her so unsure. Erza had never been unsure of anything in her whole life.
A gasp ripped out my throat as she pulled the bandage away. Her eyeball was entirely black, not a spec of that cool brown color that usually filled her iris. Instead, it was a endless sea of darkness, as if her entire pupil had grown and replaced all white and color. The corners of her eye were red, and there were slight deep purple, almost black veins crawling towards her nose and cheek.
"You can't see anything from that eye. Can you?"
Her one working eye glanced to the ceiling and I could see she was summoning some sort of strength. Maybe it was too hard to admit pain for her, or she didn't want to scare me off with the truth.
"Ultear has assessed the damage." She said slowly, her arms tucked neatly behind her back, as that one good eye flickered to me, "All the nerves to that eye have been severed, and my magic is unable to heal it."
"It's dead." I whispered, my hands shaking as I took a staggering breath in, staring at her in horror, "I destroyed your eye."
"Better my eye, than my being." Erza replied, her voice soft and I felt tears fill my two working eyes. A sob crawled up my throat and I covered my face with my hands, squeezing my eyelids shut.
"Lucy…"
"You need to go home. The sooner Eileen looks at it, the better. There's a chance she can fix it, right?"
"I have spoken to my mother. We both agree, that turning back now would be pointless. And your father probably has men stationed where he dropped Loke off, it would be impossible-"
"Then I will go with Natsu and Ultear!" I cut her off with sharp cry, "We will go, and you can return home. You can even come back after it's fixed! We can meet up along the way or -"
"No."
My heart squeezed painfully and I shook my head, trying to stop the grief and horror from swallowing me whole. The room was quiet, safe from my quick breathing and muffled sobs, before two smooth hands cupped my own, pulling them away from my face.
I looked up at her and winced at her eye, another shard of hurt and terror ripping through me.
What have I done?
"I gave my oath to protect you and get you to the Vapids safely. I knew the chances of you hurting me when I attempted to block the scream from the town was possible. I do not regret it."
"How could you not? I've… taken something from you. My power, all because I don't have the strength to control it."
"You are a new creature. All awakened creatures have trouble mastering control at the start. And to make things worse, you are an extinct species. You have nobody to teach you, to guide you through learning your power and how it works."
"Stop making excuses for me." I pulled my hands away, grinding my teeth together in a desperate way to keep my tears silent. I felt horrible, filled with conscious-stricken horror. I felt my power amble up, reacting to my negative emotion but the dull sting of Fae magic from the bracelet tampered it down once more.
Erza sighed, then stood, picking up the bandage so she could once again wrap it around her eye. I kept my eyes on the floor, sinking further into a penitent state of being.
"I will send Ultear to give you some food and then you must meet with the sisters. We need to be on the road before the moon is at it's highest." She stated quietly, and I closed my eyes, tears lingering on my lashes.
"I'm so… sorry." I choked out just as she was leaving, and her body stilled.
When she spoke, it was a watery, but firm tone, "I am not."
I lifted the spoon up to my mouth shakily, my nerves fried, feeling like I could explode with all the hate and irrational fright inside of me. What I had done, was done. There was nothing I could do to change it now.
But seeing what I was capable of affecting one of my closest friends, left me a mess of epic proportions.
And the sisters sitting across from me didn't help my mental state at all.
Lisanna's eyes were puffy, red lining them, whilst Mirajane showed her grief in a much more subdued way, the only noticeable reaction was her red nose that looked brighter against her pale skin. She kept a small smile on her face, whereas Lisanna, had no expression besides pain.
"We are very thankful for you and your friends. Without your… assistance, I fear that our lives would have ended similar to Elfmans." Mirajane handed her sister a tissue from the table in front of us, and I nodded, my lips pulled into a small, weak smile.
I took the tray from my lap and placed it on the coffee table, noticing Erza's narrowed one-eyed gaze when I did so. She had told me to eat previously, but I had left the food Ultear had brought me untouched, and I wasn't really in the mood for food now either.
"I'm sorry for your loss."
Lisanna glanced up from the floor and gave me a grim face, but didn't speak. Her eyes were haunted, wet and filled with the shadow of mourning. Mirajane simply took a deep breath in, and spoke in that same soft tempered voice.
"Your dragon has been very helpful and respectful to our customs." The dragon in question was by the window, clearly paying attention to our conversation but also giving us space. Ultear sat on the bed, whilst Erza stood closest to me.
"He's not my dragon, but I am glad he helped you while I was resting." I replied, folding my cold hands in my lap as Mirajane blinked, before a contrite look appeared over her face.
"I apologize for assuming, Lisanna and I both came to the conclusion that you were…" Her eyes skipped to Natsu and her words died down a little, a blush appearing on her pale cheeks. My eyebrows furrowed as I tried to come up with what she could have said.
Luckily, Lisanna spoke up before I could go to deep into my psyche, "The dragon… is not your… minaar?"
I bit my lip, trying to remember what language swan-maidens spoke when Ultear laughed softly, and replied back in that same dialect, "Nee, ze willen alleen worden."
Mirajane suddenly smiled knowingly and I felt a smudge of anxiety run through me, knowing that Ultear would say something completely wrong just to be a pain.
"What did they ask?" Erza beat me to it, looking at Ultear who shrugged.
"They asked if Natsu truly wasn't Lucy's lover."
"And what did you tell them?" Natsu's voice made me glance over to him, finding him with an amused, piercing look on his face. Ultear smiled innocently, before answering.
"I told them no." I didn't believe that for a second, before she added, "I also said that you only wish to be."
Erza sighed, and Natsu smirked a little as he turned away. I shook my head, closing my eyes for a few seconds before opening them once more to look at the women opposite me.
"Where are you going next?"
Mirajane smiled a little, seemingly getting better at it but the desolation in her eyes stayed..
"Princess Erza has organized a carriage to pick us up and take us wherever we need to go." Mirajane stated, before admitting, "Although, she has mentioned her Kingdom and we have never been there…"
"Queen Eileen, of the Fae Lands would be delighted to have you. If you were planning to visit, I will contact my mother and she will make sure you are accommodated." Erza stated with an easy, confident smile. I remained quiet, staring at the steadily chilling soup in front of me until a pale hand reached out, and sought mine.
I looked up just as Lisanna grasped one of my wrists, our faces close together, her skin soft and cool against mine. She blinked a few times and my heart seized painfully at the lost look in those glowing, wet orbs.
"Thank-you." She whispered and I bit my lip, my own emotions reacting to hers as tears began to prickle and sting my sight. I knew that me crying would not help her so I just twisted my palm so that I held her hand, giving it a firm squeeze as I offered what in my heart, I knew was true.
"He's in a better place. It's peaceful there, and calm."
Lisanna struggled to interpret my words for a few seconds before repeating, "Calm…"
I nodded, and she sniffled, a few tears running down her cheeks, "Is it full... gold?"
That, I didn't know. I knew the place I sent them was supposedly the place of rest, and it always left me feeling calm that a soul was transferred over there, but I was unsure of what it looked like, and what things were there.
But I didn't want to hurt her by saying that, so instead, I guessed, going off what my own perception of the place was.
"It's filled with priceless souls, and beautiful golden sunsets. Nothing is ever dark, and he won't ever be lonely."
Her lips parted a little, finding my words shocking for some reason before she gave way to great shaking sobs that pierced the depths of me with their sorrow. I opened my mouth to apologize for further upsetting her when I noticed the wide smile she wore on her face, as she crawled over the table and wrapped her arms around me.
Stunned, I hugged her back slowly, supporting her jerking weight as she continued to cry, squeezing me tightly.
"I believe. Not lonely."
I took a deep breathe in, sinking further into the bath in attempt to feel the burning sensation of the water on more parts of my body. I still felt cold, and I was beginning to believe I was still in shock, or at least I was refusing to feel warmth due to my own guilt for hurting Erza.
My hair was half-submerged in the clear water, the weight causing the strands to hang heavier than usual. I could feel my body shaking in tiny little shocks and electrified pulses. My power was loitering on the ends of my body, which probably had something to do with my internal body temperature being so low, reacting to my emotions as if it wanted to banish all of them.
But I knew what that meant, if I took the bracelet off, I'd scream.
I had been trying to fix my emotional state, to pull myself out of this darkness but it was hard.
And I was so cold.
I sunk lower, the water stinging at my skin at how hot it was but only a few seconds after it met new skin, the spark of warmth disappeared entirely.
My hands gripped the side of the small bath, fingers digging into the porcelain tightly until I began to feel it crack lightly under the pressure. I pulled my hand away in shock, before holding my that hand to my chests, clenching my fists so hard that my nails began to cut into my flesh. I closed my eyes and tightened my fists, pushing my nails further into the skin.
Absorption of the pain caused me to ignore my surroundings, and I got the surprise of my life when the water piqued higher and a hand grabbed my wrist, using another hand to loosen my fist. I opened my eyes, my mind slipping into an almost submissive state as pink hair, tanned skin and bright eyes filled my vision.
He kneeled in the bathtub, fully clothed, water soaking the fabric of his pants and shirt. His scarf wasn't in it's usual spot, or on his body at all. My breathing deepened as he observed the damage with his narrowed eyes, before red began to crawl outwards in those pupils, swallowing the green whole in a matter of seconds.
I watched as he lifted my hands to his mouth, and pressed his lips against the marks I had caused. My lips parted as he lightly licked over the welts, which made me wince a little, a throb of pain coursing through my system numbly.
After that hand was healed, and tingling, he moved onto the other hand. Lips lightly brushed, tongue stroking against the skin of my palm. I could vaguely feel my heart race in my chest, and it was an echo in my ears.
He made a move to pull back my hands reached out and grabbed at his shirt, twisting my fingers in the fabric. His eyes, which had been very carefully not looking at me this entire time, found mine. My soul fell into those eyes, a deep warm red that should have frightened me if I was normal.
But I was not, normal.
"Can you heal this?" I whispered, pressing my hand to my chest to show him where it hurt most. His eyes flickered down and then back up again, one of his hands reaching up to cup my face.
"No, Luce. I can't."
I closed my eyes and nodded, already expecting that answer. It was a childish notion that he could, but I didn't care. If there was a chance that he could just take it from me, to squash all this self-hatred and guilt, I'd beg for it.
The feel of his thumb brushing my cheek made me open my eyes, tears free-falling from them the minute the block was gone. He moved closer, and pressed his lips to one of my tears, then another, my grip tightening on his shirt with every soft kiss. Something eased inside of me, separating the grief, turmoil and agony from my soul, giving way for a light spark of hope.
It was like his kisses were slowly opening my senses back up, allowing some light to enter me, to replenish myself. My breath staggered, because I could feel the broken sense of darkness on my edges, the negative heavy emotions making hard to concentrate but it was a distraction.
He was distracting me from the pain, with just a few kisses to my cheeks.
"You taste so sad." He murmured, stopping another tear from going further down my cheeks and I turned my head, following his lips. Our lips brushed against each other, and he went still. Our eyes locked, and I felt his breath slide against my bottom lip. My heart pounded inside my chest, and I felt my soul to gleam inside of me, that small contact lessening the impact of everything I felt.
My eyes slipped closed and I tugged on his shirt, not caring that it brought him closer to my entirely naked body; something that I had forgotten entirely. I felt my heart dip just before I pressed my lips to his.
His lips were a little rough, firm and warm. I waited there for moment before moving my lips against his, applying a gentle, cautious pressure, then his lips responded. His thumbs slid along my cheeks, cupping them as he drew me closer, as our lips caressed each others. My heart pounded in my chest, my fingers tingled and my toes curled.
I pressed my tongue along the seem of his lips, tracing his bottom lip gently. He made a low noise, and I responded with a whimper, as he followed the reaction then lightly, so softly, bit my bottom lip, drawing it into his mouth a second later. My body melted against his, and I opened my mouth a little, allowing his tongue to slip into my mouth and seek mine.
In that exact moment, warmth crashed into me. It was like he lit a fire deep inside me, and stoked it until it spread over my limbs, and breathed life into every dark, upset corner of me. It was suffocating, but somehow free all at once, giving me this strength, and making my skin flushed.
He ripped his lips away from mine and took a shaky breath in, head lowered towards the water. If it were another circumstance, I would have assumed he was catching a look but his eyes were tightly closed, his shoulder tense, body rigid.
"Hristos." He breathed in that foreign language he had spoken a few times before, bent down in front of me so that I was looking down at him. My heart was an overexcited rabbit in my chest, and I could feel the flush on my cheeks and other body parts.
"I-I'm sorry." I whispered, assuming that it was the fact I had just kissed him and maybe he wasn't ready for that.
Or he just didn't like women initiating the kiss?
When he looked up, my eyes widened at the scales on his face, crawling towards his nose and eyes. His hair was slowly growing longer, and his fangs were long, a gleaming white under the dim light of the bathroom. I glanced behind him, not finding wings or a tail, which made me bite my lip because I wasn't sure why he was half-formed.
"How do you feel?"
I gulped, "Warm."
He breathed a laugh, "Don't freak out…"
"Did I hurt you?" The almost parallel to the way Erza had said it made a spark of fear run through me and I quickly assessed his being with my form, but then noticed. He looked… darker. There were edges of darkness crawling around him, like an aura of this power I had never seen before that was attached to him. And when I looked closer, there was a line of live fire inside it.
Towards his head, it twisted into two shadow horns, similar to the one I had seen when he was in dragon form but also different. The darkness lingered on him, like a protective but dangerous blanket, and it was mixed with his dragon, so much so, that the warm red, twisted around the black mist.
I opened my mouth to ask him about what I was seeing, when he shook his head, "No. You didn't hurt me, I promise. You just… When we kissed, your power swept through me. It triggered my change."
I flushed, "I'm sorry. I didn't know I could do that."
"It's okay," He smiled a little, "Really. But that's not the only thing…"
I waited patiently, and he raked his eyes over my face, "I think my power did the same to you."
I blinked, momentarily confused before I frowned a little, imagining what he was seeing.
"You mean I have black hair and skeleton skin?"
He shook his head, before turning around slightly, grasping the hand held mirror that was on the the counter. He handed it to me and I lifted it up, my own eyes widening at what I saw. Black hair sat heavy around my face, tousled and wavy, and two dark eyes stared back at me, flickers of stars and what looked like swirling pink dust surrounding the pupil, the effect so vibrant against the midnight blue.
Golden swirls that were outlined with a thin line of black glowed, stopping just before my nose, lining my cheek bone, my forehead, and down my neck and jaw. They decorated my pale skin like a tattoo, but I could feel the power thrumming along them.
I handed him the mirror back and looked at my arms, raising them to see swirls of that glossy golden color, the thin line of black making it that much more prominent.
"What the hell is this?" I whispered and Natsu placed the mirror on the floor, eyes never leaving me.
"I think it's your true form."
Ohohoho, hellooooo.
More information/questions revealed. What EXACTLY is a Banshee? You'll find out very soon ;)
Question Time!
Will Mira and Levy be joining the gang? No. Mostly because, they are targets not warriors. They would take up space and swan-maidens aren't know for defending/fighting anything. It wouldn't make much sense to bring creatures that are dominantly peaceful.
Why did Elfman have to die and ruin the nalu moment? Two words - plot progression! Plus, I'm a tease.
Will Natsu be Lucy's companion? If there's no mates in this book, is it just a case of semantics? No. I can't answer the companion one without giving to o much away but it is not a case of mates. Typically, mates were born for each other - they live their lives searching for their other half, and it's like this amazing thing in others books etc Natsu and Lucy, do have a connection. One that you will eventually find out but do not liken their 'bond' to mates. It is a lot more serious, and I really just don't like the description of the word. So it would be best to just throw the idea of mates out, because the only creature in this world that can call their lovers 'mates' are wolves.
Is Lucy leaching abilities of those close to her? *clears throat* that is an interesting theory ;)
I dunno if I missed something but who are the two ladies? There were two sets of two ladies in the previous chapter so I have no clue which one you are referring too. The ones from when Elfman is dying, is Mira and Lisanna whom were introduced a few chapters before. And the women seated on the floor, hugging, was Erza and Lucy?
Why does Lucy see herself and her surroundings through the view of the passing soul? This I can answer and hopefully it will help you understand a little bit more of that third person view. When Lucy feels the urge to scream and pass a soul, her soul leaves her body so it can make room for her to absorb the dead and let it ride her scream to that other place. Then as soon as she faints, her own soul returns to her body. This is ONLY when it comes to the first scream, which is the one she uses to send souls to the other side.
Is her nymph side eventually going to leave her or is she some sort of Banshee hybrid? The only thing keeping her nymph-like traits inside of her is Lucy. She doesn't want to part with her family power, she thinks it keeps her close to her mother who was a nymph when she was alive. However, as Eileen has said previously, she is NOT a full nymph. She only shares some qualities, and if Lucy really felt the need to, she could expel that small part of her completely.
Does this chapter imply that Natsu lacks some control over himself/his dragon? Well, it is an animal. Who is to say that someone can execute perfect control over that part of them in this world? And also, who is to say that perhaps, one person could make control seem foreign because they affect them so much? This question raises a lot of interesting questions, because as far as I have put it, 'control' is a wide-spread of things.
Is Natsu beginning to crave Lucy's touch as much as she craves his? Ohohohoho. I can't answer this, yet… Ask in a couple more chapters!
Is Lucy's animal side just a reaction to Natsu's through their bond etc? No. That is implying that the only reason she has that side of her, and is able to pull those lion attributes is because of Natsu. And if that were the case, why wouldn't she change her form into a dragon? If you remember, the first time Lucy was able to form her power into a lion, was BEFORE the initial link with Natsu and Erza.
Throwing the hard hitting curve balls, eh? *knocks it out of the park* You know me fam ;)
*tips my hat to you all* You crushed the comments again, and I am already finished the next chapter, show me what you are made out of guys!
30 for the next chapter.
As always guys, stay fresh!
xo fresh princess