It's Monday!
Guest: Aw, thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying it. Here's a little bit more for ya. ;)
- K. Chandler
"Just a little tired, huh?" muttered Gray, forcing himself to unclench his fists.
Once he had managed to steer Lyon out of the crowded hall, it had been easy enough to make it to the prince's chambers undetected. Most of the castle security had been stationed at the party, which left the remaining halls relatively empty. A lucky thing, too, since Lyon had basically been dead weight the entire time.
Gray shot an anxious glance over at his cousin.
Where was Cana with Levy?
"Hanging in there?" asked Gray.
"I'll manage," gasped Lyon, biting back a groan. The prince's breathing came in ragged gasps, a sheen of sweat forming on his forehead. He had barely moved from where Gray had deposited his limp form on the bed when they arrived.
Gray paced the room, one hand working anxiously at his magic bracelet, spinning the chain looped around his wrist. Gray knew his ice would be of no use in this situation. Gray had never seen anyone deteriorate so quickly. He couldn't be any more certain that something weird was going on here.
With a pained hiss, Lyon curled in on himself, hugging his knees to his chest. His already ashen face tightened in agony.
"Lyon?! What's wrong?"
Lyon just shook his head, his eyes shut tight, a very un-Lyon-like whimper coming from his throat as he tried to ride through the spasm of pain.
"Just…just hold on, okay? Levy's coming. She'll be here soon," said Gray, feeling as useless as his words. "Just hold on," repeated Gray.
"We're here!" shouted Cana, bursting through the door. Behind her, were Levy and Juvia. Levy was panting, struggling to keep up with Cana's long strides.
"Took you long enough!" shouted Gray.
"Came as fast as we could," said Cana.
Juvia's eyes widened as she rushed forward, dropping to her knees beside the ailing prince's bedside. Wasting no time, she pried one of Lyon's hands free of his knees, clasping it in both of her own. Then she turned to Gray, her eyes widened, her features twisting into an expression of absolute horror.
"Juvia?" asked Gray.
Juvia shook her head frantically, pointing at Lyon.
Gray sighed. "Juvia, I'm not sure what that means, but maybe we could figure it out later," he said with a terse frown. He steered her out of the way, so Levy could conduct her examination.
Juvia shook her head again, her eyebrows drawn in distress.
"Juvia, please. Not now," sighed Gray.
"His heart's going way too fast," mumbled Levy. "What was he doing before he collapsed?" she demanded.
"Talking to us," said Gray.
"Before that?"
"I… I don't know," said Gray. "What does it matter?"
"I think he was poisoned," said Levy, frowning.
"Poison?" asked Cana sharply.
"I mean, it makes sense," said Levy. "Rapid pulse, shallow breathing, muscles seizing up like that? With his symptoms, I don't know what else it could be."
"You mean someone tampered with the food at the party?" asked Cana.
"Lyon wouldn't have eaten anything at the party. He knows to be careful at things like this," added Gray.
"I didn't notice anyone else getting sick," added Levy. "I don't think it was the food. I think someone might have been poisoning him for a while."
"A while? Levy, that's impossible," said Cana. "Somebody would have noticed by now."
"Not necessarily. Small amounts of a toxin would be impossible for anyone to detect," Levy pointed out. "But over a long enough time, they can make a person really sick."
Gray groaned, dragging a weary hand over his face. "I thought something seemed off with him," he admitted guiltily. "But he has a habit of overworking. With all the crazy going on lately, I assumed that it was just stress. I didn't think to say anything about it until earlier." Gray swallowed hard, fighting the tightening sensation in his chest.
"How long? Think back," Levy pressed.
"Maybe a week, I guess? But never mind that," said Gray impatiently. "Can you help him?"
Levy bit her lip. "I'd have to figure out exactly what sort of poison was in it. If we're lucky, we might have the antidote on hand."
Lyon moaned pitifully as another wave of pain tore through him.
"Lucky?" snarled Gray murderously. "You want to rely on luck?"
Levy glared back up at him, drawing herself to her full height. "I'm doing my best, Captain. Are you going to help me or not?"
It took Gray a moment to process her words. He blinked, suddenly feeling cold all over. He looked away, all unjustified anger gone. "Sorry. I didn't mean that. I…I just…" With a deep breath, Gray composed himself. "Is there anything else we can do for him? He just seems like he's in a lot of pain."
"Not until we identify the poison," said Levy firmly. "Trying to treat the symptoms or purge the poison from his system could just make things worse. That's why we need to go, and we need to go now."
"All the guests are still at the party. We can start our investigation there and work backwards until we get to the kitchens," said Cana, taking charge of the situation. "I know you don't think it's the party, but we should still check," she added, ushering Levy toward the door.
Gray let his knees fold under him, sinking to the floor. He shut his eyes, taking another measured breath to force aside his anxiety and worry. He needed to be calm. Gray fidgeted with his bracelet again, drawing some small measure of comfort in feeling the familiar coolness of the silver under his fingers.
They couldn't have been gone for more than a minute when the door opened again.
"Did you get it?" asked Gray, jumping up.
Cana shook her head. She was holding the door ajar, as if to keep him from seeing something. "You might want to see this, Captain."
Gray stiffened at Cana's deliberate use of his title. He met her out in the hall, almost groaning when he saw the red-headed woman who was with her.
He should have known he'd never be able to get past Erza Knightwalker's sharp eye. Still, it was possible that she hadn't seen Lyon yet. He might still be able to salvage this situation.
Smoothing his features, Gray approached the other captain. "Captain Knightwalker? Why aren't you at the party?" asked Gray conversationally.
As strange as she had looked in her purple party dress, she now look even odder still with the standard-issue cloak—probably Jellal's—that she was wearing over it.
"Spare me the charade, Fullbuster," she said coldly, crossing her arms. "I know."
"You know?" repeated Gray.
"About Prince Lyon," said Captain Knightwalker.
Gray sighed. "Who else has noticed?"
"Other than Jellal and myself and a few trusted officers of the Heaven's Wheel? Nobody," said Knightwalker.
"So, basically, everyone," said Gray.
Knightwalker shook her head. "I believe the situation's been contained. I suppose I have to commend you for your quick thinking," she added grudgingly.
"Why did you come?" asked Gray suspiciously, his eyes narrowing. He wasn't in the mood for her barbs tonight.
"I have some information that may be of use," said the other captain coolly.
"What have you found?" asked Gray, suddenly businesslike. He could be professional if Knightwalker was willing to work with him.
Captain Knightwalker glared darkly. "I don't answer to you."
"Prince Lyon is indisposed at the moment," said Gray tartly. "But if you'd like to make your report to him, be my guest."
Knightwalker scowled, but nodded curtly, recognizing defeat. "I had my men remain at the party. They're watching the perimeter, discretely, of course, to avoid arousing suspicion. If the culprit was a party guest, he won't be able to escape. I have Jellal hunting for evidence and hopefully identifying the toxin."
"That was good work, Knightwalker," said Gray.
As much as he disliked her, Erza Knightwalker was an undeniably capable officer on land or sea. Had she joined the Army instead, she could easily have earned a battalion to command, which is something Gray couldn't say for himself.
Knightwalker nodded in acknowledgement. "Let Jellal know I sent you," she said to Cana. "That is, tell him that Erza sent you. He'll be able to help."
For a moment, the two women squared off, each eying the other appraisingly. Then Cana nodded, her hand raising in what was almost a salute.
"Let's go," said Levy, rushing back toward the party with Cana in tow. "There's no time to waste."
"You aren't going with them?" Gray asked the other captain.
Knightwalker shook her head. "I'll wait here. Someone needs to post a guard and I doubt you're in the right frame of mind to be much use."
Gray ignored the obvious jibe. It was probably true. "Thank you," he said instead. He stepped past her to go back inside.
"Watch your back, Fullbuster," Knightwalker called over her shoulder. "Who knows what's being planned? With your connections…" she added darkly. But she didn't finish the sentence before closing the door behind him.
Gray wasn't terribly worried about his 'connections' to the royal family, as Captain Knightwalker called them. He was only a cousin, and adopted, at that.
No, his mind was spinning with the possibilities of a far more serious matter.
What happened tonight was no accident. But what bothered him was the timing of it.
"The Heartfilias are a wealthy family," Lyon had said. "They have no status, but plenty of money. You, on the other hand. Well, you're the opposite."
There was little doubt in Gray's mind that scheming businessman and his daughter were somehow involved. It was too convenient to be a mere coincidence.
A restless movement from Lyon caught Gray's eye. He wasn't conscious, but he still suffering terribly. His cousin was an aggravating idiot, but he didn't deserve this.
Gray clenched his fist. Why didn't he notice something was wrong earlier? He'd run into Lyon almost every day when he came to the castle to see Juvia. He should have noticed. The signs were all there. Why didn't he notice?
Slender arms laced around his waist. Gray jumped, startled.
"Juvia?" murmured Gray. Juvia had hugged him from behind, her forehead pressed against his back. In the commotion, he had forgotten that Juvia was still here. Gray heaved a guilty sigh. In his distress, he had been rather curt with her earlier too.
Juvia released him, moving to stand in front of him. She was giving him an apologetic look. She took hold of his fisted hand, prying open his stiff fingers. She slipped her hand in his tentatively, a question in her eyes.
"I'm not mad at you, Juvia," he said. "Sorry, I just…" Gray shook his head. "What I mean to say is—I don't mean—This is my fault. All of this is my fault."
Juvia rose on her toes, pressing a finger to his lips. She squeezed his hand comfortingly, a sad smile appearing on her face. Her wide, blue eyes shone with concern and tears.
The worried cast to her eyes made his chest ache in a way it never had before. Closing the distance between them, Gray crushed her to his chest, his arms tightening around her small frame. She wrapped an arm around him too, the other reaching up to tangle gently in his hair.
Gray let his head drop to her shoulder. And for a moment, she was his whole world. Juvia in his arms. A moment that lasted forever.
Gray wasn't sure if he had wanted to comfort her or if she was trying to comfort him, but there was one thing that he was certain of. He wasn't about to let go.
But eventually he did let go, pushing her away when he heard the commotion outside.
"No one passes," Captain Knightwalker snarled, her voice deadly steel.
"Let me through! My daughter can heal him!"
Gray recognized the voice right away. Jude Heartfilia. As much as Heartfilia's unexpected arrival reeked of conspiracy, Gray wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"You have healing magic?" interrupted Gray, popping his head out the door. Captain Knightwalker was glaring up at Heartfilia, who had Lucy in tow.
"Sort of," said Lucy, squirming. She held up her hand, revealing the magic ring that she wore.
"Let her through," said Gray.
You know those moments when Lyon's smug, self-satisfied attitude makes you want to kill him? XD I kind of wanted him to be the Maes Hughes to Gray's Roy Mustang...to use a Fullmetal Alchemist reference.
So, I know that Levy's smarts don't usually extend to the medical field (people usually write Wendy in that role), but I wanted to give Levy some more screen-time so we could develop her as a character. The Levy-nator is now an all-around genius, who is uncommonly good at all things intellectual. So does that make her a little bit Mary-Sueish? Possibly...probably. But I'm lazy and I'm happy to lean on the 'Good-At-Everything-Genius' trope if it means that we can get to the good stuff faster. (And by good stuff, I mean causing more drama for Gray and Juvia.)
You know that feeling, that warm fluffy feeling from when Gray had Juvia in his arms? Hold on to that feeling. You'll need it. ;)
In canon, Gray's rivals are Natsu and Lyon. Here, we couldn't really do that because of formal authority and power dynamics. Lyon is Gray's boss and Gray is Natsu's. You can't be your boss's rival. Doesn't really work. We do still get some bickering between the boys because of how close they are, but they're not true rivals because they're not on equal footing. Erza's character has shifted to fill that rival role. It's an interesting parallel and subversion to canon. I love Gray and Erza's canon friendship, with all of that trust and unspoken respect. Here, they're not remotely friends, because they basically hate each other. There's still an unspoken respect, though it's of the begrudging sort.
Next time, in Silence, Gray acts in desperation and enlists an unlikely ally: An idea sprang into Gray's mind. One that made his gut churn with revulsion.
Stop back next Monday for the next installment, or just follow me, Karine of R011ingThunder.
