Erza POV


After we were sure that we had lost Dragon, we slowed down our run to a walk in order catch our breaths.

"I still can't believe that you got hurt by a stuffed animal of all things," Natsu wasn't dropping the subject. "It's like it's too good to be true."

"You're never gonna let me live this down, are you?" Gray frowned at his rival.

"Nope," the son of Igneel smiled back.

"Fine then, I'm not letting you live down the fact that he was wearing an animal onesie and holding a stuffed animal, too," Gray declared.

"Well fuck you too then," Natsu's smile turned into a frown.

"Why can't you two just get along?" I sighed, looking back at them. "It's not that hard."

"For them, it's probably the hardest task in existence," Lisanna joked. "So it would probably be a miracle if they managed to get along."

"That doesn't mean that they can't try," I kept my gaze on the two rivals, "so you two either shut up or get along, understood?"

They both nodded nervously in response.

"Good."

I looked away from them and we all continued walking until we came across some patches of flowers. Some of the flowers in them appeared to be trampled, the broken stems and smushed petals making it evident.

"It looks like someone was in a hurry," Juvia observed. "Do you think that it could be Wendy?"

"Wendy? Trample flowers? I doubt it..." Natsu stated skeptically.

"And besides, why would Wendy be running fast enough to trample flowers in a place like this?" Gray spoke up, for once agreeing with the fire mage.

"Then maybe it was that other Erza we saw?" Gajeel suggested.

"If it is, then she shouldn't be too far away," Levy said.

"And why's that?" Gray asked, turning his attention onto the solid script mage.

"If she ran this far without stopping for a breath, then she shouldn't have long before she has to pause for a breather."

"Then we better catch up with her before she can catch her breath," Lisanna said with determination.

We followed the trail of flowers that had trampled, until we finally caught up to my double. She was facing away from us, hunched over with her hands on her knees as she panted heavily. Her hair hung down, covering her face but I knew it was her.

"Hey!" Natsu shouted, trying to snare her attention.

"Dr-Dragon? Is...is that you?" she wheezed out between breaths.

She glanced over her shoulder with timid eyes that quickly became wide and fearful when she saw us. She stood up straight, turning around and gasping.

"Calm down, it's okay," Juvia was quick to reassure her. "We're not here to hurt you."

She didn't listen as she began to back away from us, her amber eyes unblinking and full of distrust.

"Don't run away, we just want to ask you some questions," Lisanna tried to speak calmly her as well.

Once again, she didn't listen to us and continued backing away.

"Would you calm down?!" Gajeel snapped impatiently. "We ain't here to hurt ya! We just said that for Mavis' sake!"

"Eep!" she flinched, freezing in place.

"Wow...the other you is a real scaredy cat, Erza," Gray pointed out.

"I can see that," I responded, not caring too much about the fact that the other me was a pansy.

"Okay, so like Lis said, we're just gonna ask you a few questions," Natsu reminded her. "Where's Wendy? Where are you keeping her? And where's Lucy?"

She didn't respond, appearing to be too petrified as she stared at us with wide eyes.

"Can you hear me or are you deaf?" Natsu began to approach her.

"Natsu, do-!"

"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!"

"If you don't want me to come closer then answer my-"

She reached behind her for something that appeared to be underneath her shirt seeing as her shirt began to slightly move.

"Get away from her Na-!"

"STAY AWAY!"

She whipped out a plush sword that was just as big as a real one, swinging it at Natsu. Luckily, he managed to dodge it in time leaving only a small slash on his arm which blood began to slowly ooze from.

"What the-? That thing's stuffed, right?" he sounded confused. "Then why did it cut me?"

"Who's getting beat up with a stuffed animal now?" Gray taunted him.

"Oh shut up!" Natsu snapped at the devil slayer, losing his focus.

"I told you to not come any closer, but you didn't listen," the other me glared at him. "Now you're gonna pay."

She rose her plush sword upwards, looking like she was planning to strike Natsu with it, but I acted quickly. Sprinting in front of Natsu and blocking her plush sword with my own real one, she looked at me with surprise before quickly regaining her composure.

"I refuse to let you harm my friends," my tone was serious as I met her glare with my own.

"You didn't listen to me either," she ignored my words. "Why the hell does no one ever listen to me?!"

"Listen up!" I raised my voice to get the attention of the others.

"Don't worry Erza," Gray got into his telltale maker magic stance. "We got your back in this fight."

"That's not what I was going to say..." I told him. "You all go on ahead, I'll take care of this."

"When that monster could literally be anywhere and anyone?" Natsu demanded. "No way!"

I glanced over my shoulder at them and gave them an authoritative look.

"Don't argue with me," I commanded, my tone deadly. "Go. I'll catch up with you once I'm done here."

Everyone seemed very reluctant to leave me there.

"Now!"

That was the push they needed as they walked past, leaving me and her alone.

"Once I'm done with you, I'll be sure to go after your friends and punish them to," my doppelgänger threatened.

"Then I'll be sure to defeat you," I wasn't going to let happen. No one messes with Fairy Tail and gets away with it.

She kicked me away to get her plush sword free from mine without risking any damage, and then came at me with it. I dodged her attack with ease, slashing at her with my sword only for her to dodge as well.

"You're going to regret ever crossing paths with me!" she spat.

"You picked the wrong guild to screw with," I growled.

The fight continued with both of us sustaining damage. As expected, we were evenly matched. However, she was the one with the most injuries due to the fact that she was in pajamas and I was equipped with armor, but she still refused to give up. That is, until I delivered a long, deep slash across her chest.

"ARGH!" she cried out as she quickly jumped back.

She held her chest with her free hand, trying to stop the blood that was beginning to pour out of it. It coated her hand in crimson, and immediately started to dye her pajamas with a dark red hue. My eyes widened in horror.

"Oh my...what have I..." I didn't realize how much strength I had put behind my attack, and now it was too late. My actions could not be undone, time could not be reversed.

"N-no...everything...is g-going to...*cough*going t-to be...okay..." she wheezed shakily, tried to reassure herself.

She fell to the ground with a thump. I dropped my sword on the ground then to my knees beside her, pulling her into my arms as I tried to give her some form of comfort.

"I'm so sorry," I apologized to her, my voice coming out choked. To think that two people who had just been quarreling with the intent to kill, were now trying to save the other from the grim fate of death. "I didn't realize how much strength I put behind my attack, and I di-"

"Shhh...it's f-fine..." she quieted me. "In a w-way, I guess you can s-say that you did me a f-favor..."

"What?"

"Everyone that I k-knew and loved died violently, and everything that I c-cared for was taken from me...m-my part of this world i-is nothing more than a shadow of its former self now..." she gasped. "With no h-home and no loved ones left, I-I began wandering, a-and I waited for the day that I w-would finally die."

She gazed up at me, a weak smile on her already pale face.

"I had always v-vowed that I wouldn't let myself die until I d-deserved it, but now that I lay dying here in your arms after t-trying to hurt you and your friends..." she croaked out. "I believe th-that I finally deserve to die. But I'm a-afraid that the only thing that I can offer you is a thank you and s-some information that may p-prove useful to you..."

"Don't worry...that...that's more than enough..." I tried to reassure her, but my voice came out strained.

"Is i-it? That's reassuring..." she sounded relieved. "I'm a-afraid that I do not know where your Wendy is, but I do know the l-location of another one of the dreamers...if...if y-you keep going north from here, you'll...you'll find an entrance to a c-cave..."

"And one of them is on the other side of the cave?" I guessed.

"Yes..." she answered as her eyes began to droop.

"Wait...don't die yet, please..." I pleaded.

"And why...why is that?"

"I don't even know your name...you should at least tell me your name so you won't be forgotten," I answered.

"Very well...m-my name is...is Knight...because I am the guardian who...who protects everyone...though I suppose I'm...I'm a failure as I...I can't protect anyone..." she was struggling to talk. "Look on the...bright side though...you are no...no failure and you will...continue to succeed..."

"Knight...I swear that I will never forget your name, and never forget you either..." I swore.

"I would hope...you wouldn't...you could be..." she said something that I couldn't make out after that.

"What?" I asked.

"Thank...you...thank...you...thank...you...thank..."

Her eyes shut and she stopped breathing, her body stilling in my arms.

"May you rest in peace," I said softly, lying her down on the grass.

Her body began to fade away, as something else appeared it in its place; it was a small rag doll plush version of her with nub limbs and brown button eyes.

This must be what happens when people like Knight pass away. I thought to myself.

I went to pick it up, but before my hand could come into contact with it, the white dove that had been sitting on Levy's shoulder earlier swooped in and flew away with Knight's plush form held in its talons.

"I can only hope that it doesn't do anything bad to her," I knew that I wouldn't be able to get it back.

I got up off of the ground and picked up my sword. I stared at Knight's plush sword for a few seconds, before picking it up as well. Deciding to take it with me, I put it in my requip inventory.

I then sheathed my sword and attempted to clean the blood off myself, which took a while seeing as there wasn't much that I could use to clean myself here, before heading off to go catch up with the others.

"Erza!" Lisanna exclaimed in relief upon noticing me. "Thank Mavis you're okay!"

"Did you get her to tell you where Wendy or the others were being kept?" Gray asked.

"She didn't know where Wendy was, but she did know where someone else was," I answered.

"Really? Who is it?"

"She said that if we keep heading north then we'll find a cave, and if we go through it then we'll find one of the others," I answered, my voice sounding somewhat shaky.

"Are you okay, Erza?" Levy asked me with a frown. "You sound sad...what happened back there?"

"I don't wanna talk about it," I stated firmly.

"But it helps to-"

"I said that I don't wanna talk about it!" I cut her off. "So let's go already."

"Alright," Levy sounded unsure. "Let's go."

We continued walking north, looking for the cave that Knight had told me about, with me being unable to get my mind off her the entire time that we were walking.


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