Disclaimer: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima
ACT III: Crossroad - Where demons roam
Approximately X793
Chapter 13: Fault
~ o ~ O ~ o ~
The light was so bright, that it not only blinded the celestial mage, but actually hurt her physically. It was kinda weird and hard to describe how, but it was like the light was somehow burning and prickling her skin, like she was standing in the middle of a beam that shone with too much heat.
"Ugh" Lucy flinched and wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying her best to somehow withstand the intense pain. Especially her head seemed to pulsate and ache like someone was trying to crush her brain and turn it into mush.
"I'm sorry... It seems I was a little too late to call you back here" Mavis gentle voice called out but Lucy couldn't see the tiny mage, since the light was too radiant to see anything.
"Mavis...?" Lucy whispered in a low and fragile voice "... how?"
"I warned you though..." Mavis said in a more serious tone "... I told you that what you summoned was raw energy so you shouldn't be too reckless"
"I... I'm sorry..." the celestial mage managed to say.
"It's okay... you have a good friend out there, who's trying to repair the damages right now... she's a good healer and I'm sure she will heal the primary damages. However..."
"However?" Lucy asked and luckily for her she could feel that the pain was gradually starting to evaporate, leaving a weird but numb feeling in it's place.
"There might still be consequences... what those are I do not know yet. It could be good, it could be bad, but for now only time will tell..."
"Ohh..." Lucy whispered and felt slightly guilty, but also rather confused.
"It's almost time for you to wake up..." Mavis chuckled in a bright tone "... they are all worried about you..."
"Yeah..." Lucy smiled genuinely and felt how the realm she was currently in, slowly started to vanish all around her. As it did she could feel how her body started to ache in a different but rather uncomfortable way. Especially her back seemed to hurt, like the skin there had been cut open in multiple places. It was a rather nasty and unpleasant feeling, especially because she didn't recall receiving any wounds at first. However it didn't take long before she recalled a certain person who dug his sharp claws into her back.
Ahh... yeah... that happened, Lucy thought to herself, before she started hearing muffled voices around her...
~ o ~ O ~ o ~
"Lucy? Lucy!" Natsu roared in confusion and despair, as he saw the light evaporating from Lucy, before she started to fall.
"Shit!" he managed to catch Lucy's unconscious body and flinched momentarily, when he felt how the sudden movement made a lot of his own muscles ache painfully, but he didn't care nor did he pay any attention to his own body. Instead he focused his attention on the girl as he gently placed her on the ground, before turning his head to look anxiously at the figures that was by their side a second later.
Wendy didn't say anything but immediately started healing the blonde.
"You can't!" Carla yelled in outrage "You've used too much magic already!"
"It's okay" the healer nodded "I can't heal her 100% I know, but I can take care of the wounds in her brain"
"Damn..." Gray muttered as he sat down next to them "... so uhm... how are you feeling?" he asked while glaring intensely at the Dragon Slayer.
"Me?" Natsu blinked before pointing at himself "I'm fine I guess... kinda sore for some reason, but it ain't that bad" his eyes widened in shock when he saw the wounds covering the ice mage "What happened to you?"
"We'll explain it later, for now rest assured that we've dealt with the situation" Erza nodded stoically but smiled warmly, clearly happy that they had their friend back.
"Okay?" Natsu blinked in surprise when he noticed that Erza also was covered in several wounds "But what exactly..."
"Natsuuuu!" Happy had launched himself and a second later he was firmly face hugging the Dragon Slayer while crying profoundly.
Surprised by Happy's reaction Natsu gently grabbed the cat's neck and removed him from his face.
"Waaaah!" the cat cried loudly.
"What's up with you?" Natsu raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"I missed you!" Happy sniffled and removed some tears with his paws.
"I missed you too buddy" he smiled a toothy grin and hugged the cat against his chest.
The Dragon Slayer turned his head and glared at the celestial mage and for some reason there was something about her state, that made him feel horrible and slightly on edge. Actually it was almost like he had experienced something like this before...
Like... that time...
The air got caught in his throat and he felt his jaw drop, as he remembered the last moment before he had lost his consciousness. To him it felt like it only happened a few moments ago and back then she had been completely silent almost as if...
Natsu's eyes widened in horror as he placed his hand above his mouth.
So cold... her skin had been so cold against his warm skin.
He kept glaring at her unmoving body and felt an uncomfortable shiver run down his spine.
Lucy... was and had been everything... but she was gone... gone forever...
His body was shaking uncontrollably as he stopped hugging the cat.
"Natsu what's wrong?" Happy asked but didn't receive an answer.
"No it can't be..." the Dragon Slayer whispered in a low inaudible voice.
He had to make sure, but then again... he was afraid to act for some reason.
Please... ohh god, please no...
His hand was shivering when he placed it on Lucy's neck, trying to feel her pulse. When he felt it beating underneath his fingertips he let out a shaking breath and sat down, almost as if his body suddenly weighed a million ton.
"Ohh thank god!" a moan escaped his lips as he placed both hands on his face. Leaving them there for a second, before wiping them slowly down his skin "Haaah..."
"What's wrong?" Erza asked in concern.
"Nothing..." Natsu sighed, his shoulders dropping visibly "... just... remembered something is all"
"Ohh" the armoured woman knew right away what he was referring to.
"Pheeew!" Wendy stopped healing and leaned backwards clearly exhausted "That's all I can do for now. I'm sorry"
"Don't say sorry! You did more than enough!" Carla huffed.
"Nnnhh..." Lucy moaned loudly and immediately earned everyone's attention "... where?"
"Lucy-san!" Wendy said in her cheerful voice "how are you feeling?"
"Mm... kay... dizzy... headache... and tired" staggering the blonde got into a sitting position, where she scanned the area to look for Loki but evidently he had vanished when she had lost her consciousness.
"That's awesome!" Natsu said enthusiastically as he scooted closer to her.
"Ye-yeah... guess so" Lucy blushed and for some reason avoided looking in his direction, as she quickly used her hands to wipe the blood away that had been streaming out of her ears and nose.
"Aww come on don't be like that" the Dragon Slayer grinned towards her "You're alive aren't you?"
"Uh-huh" the celestial mage bit her lip and lowered her head, almost as if she was ashamed of something.
"Don't be like that" Natsu chuckled warmly "Now cheer up will ya?"
Wanting to encourage the other mage, the Dragon Slayer raised his arm and a second later slammed his hand against her back.
"Argh!" Lucy screamed in pain as his hand hit her, making her back arch backwards for a few seconds, before she started panting to regain her composure.
"What...?" Natsu blinked, feeling utterly perplexed about her reaction.
"You fucking idiot!" Gray snarled in anger.
"What?!" the Dragon Slayer snapped his head in the ice mage's direction.
"She's wounded on her back!" Gray roared.
"WHAT?!" Natsu quickly crawled behind the blonde and flinched in regret, when he saw the wounds.
Holy shit! He cursed inside and felt a rush of guilt as he glared at the deep and nasty looking scratch marks...
As he kept glaring at the wounds an uncontrollable anger started to burn inside of him, making him clench his teeth firmly against each other.
Whoever did this would fucking pay!
"I'm sorry Luce" Natsu muttered in a cold voice.
"It's okay..." the blonde giggled nervously ".. you didn't know"
"Who..." his eyes narrowed in anger.
"What?" the celestial mage turned around slowly so she could face him.
"Who did that?" his tone was suddenly dripping with malice, making the girl flinch for some reason.
"Ahhh!" Lucy waved a hand dismissively in front of her "It's no big deal, really!"
"WHO?!" his eyes glistened with pure hatred and for a split second it looked like they flashed red as he used a clenched fist to hit the ground "Tell me!"
"It... it doesn't matter really! Because he's already been taken care of!" Lucy said sounding really insecure and nervous.
"Yes" Erza stated knowing what Lucy was trying to do "He's gone"
"Fine!" Natsu turned his head to look in another direction "Good!"
Ohh, but his fingers itched to be the one who could harm whoever was the culprit...
A growl formed in his throat as he looked down at his hands.
Wait… what?
He turned his hands a few times and was utterly surprised that they were drenched in blood.
Why didn't he smell that when he covered his face earlier or when he tried searching for her pulse? Was it because there was so much blood all around him? Had he been so overwhelmed by his emotions, that he managed to ignore it? Now that he thought about it, he had also failed to notice just how much his own body ached since it was covered in multiple wounds...
Natsu honestly didn't know how he could ignore all of that...
"What... the...?" he muttered in a low voice and raised his hands closer to his face, staring at them like they were suddenly alien to him. The Dragon Slayer was looking so intensely at his hands that he almost didn't see that the markings on his arm was glowing very faintly in the same golden colour that had surrounded Lucy.
Wait a second...
His markings acting up, memory loss, the others being heavily wounded including himself, the enemy gone yet his victims remained...
"Natsu..." Lucy whispered in concern.
The Dragon slayer ignored her as he closed his hands and looked at his fingernails.
There was definitely blood underneath them, but there was also some fabric. Of course the blood made the colour of the cloth less distinct, but it was fairly easy for him to see, that it was blue.
No...
His eyes darted over to the celestial mage who was shivering uncontrollably, from withheld sorrow and pain.
"No..." Natsu looked at his hands again, that started to shake violently as the realisation hit him so hard that it felt like a train had suddenly collided with him, making his stomach clench painfully. "No way..." he shook his head in denial.
"Natsu..." Lucy tried to appeal to him, but he still didn't respond to her.
He... clearly it was him who did that to her... no to them...
".. no..." he breathed heavily through his mouth as fear and guilt started to overwhelm him, making a thin layer of cold sweat spawn in tiny droplets, before trailing down his body.
Their blood was on his hands... And on his face after being a fucktard and wiping it with them.
He hurt her... he physically hurt her...
Fuck!
The smell was suddenly very dominant making him feel like vomiting.
Why... ohh god why?
He felt utterly horrible, but weirdly enough also angry... like the energy inside of him was rummaging through his veins, making him feel really weird. But it also felt like all of his feelings was so unbearable and cruel, that it threatened to erase his existence. It was just too much for him, especially because the last thing he ever wanted to be guilty of, was hurting his friends...
"It can't be..." Natsu managed to mutter and felt how his heart started to pump more fiercely in his chest. Simultaneously with that his breathing was becoming more irregular almost as if he was on the brink of having a panic attack.
"SHIT!" closing his eyes he clutched his head with both hands "FUCK!"
Natsu started shaking his head furiously almost as if he was trying to deny the truth.
"Please listen..." Lucy tried again, but he still didn't hear her.
He hurt her... one of his best friends that he would do anything to protect... he hurt his team, his precious friends...
Why?
WHY?!
A painful scream escaped his lips, before he started slamming his head against the ground.
Honestly he had no idea why he did that, maybe it was to do something about the chaos in his mind. It didn't really matter why, but once he started he couldn't stop...
You fucking retarded idiot!
Failure... a pathetic loser!
"Please stop..." the celestial mage said in her gentle voice before placing her hands on his shoulders.
"I..." moaning Natsu did what he was told and stopped his actions, before resting his forehead against the ground, where a small puddle of blood was gathering, from the newly acquired wound on his head.
"It wasn't your fault" Lucy massaged his shoulders with her thumbs "So please..."
"Tsch!" he snorted as tears freely streamed down his face, making it tickle as it ran down his nose, before dripping down on the ground.
His body was visibly shivering and shaking from the overwhelming sorrow and guilt he felt.
"I'm sorry..." his voice was low and hoarse "... I'm so sorry"
"You don't have to apologize" the celestial mage said.
"I..." he started but gritted his teeth firmly against each other.
Yeah he did... how could he ever look her in the eyes without feeling horrible?
Very slowly he removed his hands from his head, and placed them on the ground, so he could use them as support to raise his upper body.
"I can't..." he took a shaking breath and took a moment to look up at Lucy, who was smiling at him in encouragement.
Why didn't she resent him? How could she give him such a pure look of affection?
You know what, screw it!
I don't care, I'll take it!
Natsu reached out and grabbed her shoulders, before pushing his head forcefully against her chest.
This would be a dream position for any guy, but he didn't care about something as meaningless as perverted thoughts.
Nope, he was too busy trying to seek comfort in her presence as he tried his best to forget the horrible truth and focus on her scent. That way he could somehow try to pretend that he couldn't smell his friends blood everywhere...
~ o ~ O ~ o ~
Lucy didn't know how long she sat comforting Natsu, but it wasn't as long as some might think, since he was clearly distraught and in agony about the situation.
Well maybe it was because the Dragon Slayer knew, it would be for the best to get a hold of himself, so they could get going, especially since the rest of the team was horribly wounded and needed medical attention, or perhaps it was because he was fast in coming to terms with the things he had done, more so than she or either of them thought was humanly possible.
No... he couldn't have... that would be way too fast...
She kept glaring at Natsu in concern as he removed himself from her and took a few deep shaking breaths, his face holding a mixture of emotions as he tried to suppress the events inside of himself.
"I know this might sound sudden, but we should get going" Gray stated and got into a standing position.
"Yes" Erza nodded in agreement.
"Okay I..." Lucy tried to get up, but it was a futile effort, because for some reason the muscles in her legs felt like jelly. Besides that it really, reeeally hurt in the wounds on her back, whenever she tried moving too much "... ohh"
"Lucy" Gray said as he eyed her up and down "You okay?"
"It's..." she chuckled feeling rather embarrassed "... for some reason I can't move my legs..."
"Ahh" the ice mage nodded to himself "Very well then I'll carry you..."
"No..." Natsu said in a low tone, but kept staring at the ground clearly avoiding looking in the other's direction.
"Why not?" Gray crocked his eyebrow in surprise.
"You're kinda wounded aren't ya?" the fire mage let out a loud sigh "And from the looks of it I'm in the best condition, so it would be stupid if it weren't me who carried her"
"I see" the ice mage said "Very well I'll leave that task to you then"
"Natsu..." Lucy whispered in concern "... you sure?"
"Yeah..." he answered, still not looking in her direction ".. yeah... it's fine"
"Okay" she nodded briefly as she watched the Dragon Slayer knell down in front of her, with his back turned towards her.
"Th-thanks" Lucy stuttered and somehow she managed to get on his back, despite of her muscles feeling incredibly weak. Once there he grabbed her legs with his arms and leaned slightly forwards, to make sure she didn't fall down from her position.
"You comfy back there?" Natsu asked in a serious tone, but in contrast to that a small blush was suddenly spawning on his cheeks.
"Ye-yeah" she rested her chin against his back, feeling utterly exhausted "I'm good"
"Neat" the Dragon Slayer said, with a small and rather sad smile playing on his lips.
And with that the small group found themselves travelling towards their next destination: home!
A/N: Let's take a moment to discuss a thing that is evidently a thing in FT: when a character needs comfort they tend to rub their heads in a woman's cleavage. Even Happy does it, so maybe it's a quirk shared between the male characters O.o
For those wondering about Lucy acting weird in the last chapter: She was consumed by Lumen Historie and gradually the warm feeling from the unrestricted raw power (similar to the one magic love), overwhelmed her and started to consume her rationality. That was why it suddenly backfired on her, because the magic was too potent and wild for her small untrained body to comprehend.
That's it for now! Hope you liked it and look forward to seeing what the heck Zeref is up to :D
Ohh and Frozem1 (guest): Thanks again for your reviews :) I would answer you more often if I could send you a PM, but unfortunately I can't do that.
