notes; go D did it take me 100 years to update this and I AM SO SORRY! i just graduated recently so school was a big deal and i was in a huge writer's block for a little while but i finALLY got this up! hope you like it :) we're getting there!
"Lucy, do you want me to get you anything?" A light tap on Lucy's shoulder indicated a response, and she turned her head to see Erza standing there with a wide smile on her face. Lucy wondered if she was just forcing it, trying to make the best of the situation at hand. She knew Erza, she remember Erza. She remembered everyone else. So what was this? What had happened?
Lucy sighed and shook her head. "No, I'm fine, don't worry about me." Her actions contradicted her words as she slumped lower and lower into the bar table where she decided to stay in her misery. A low breath escaped her lips and she closed her eyes for a moment. "I'll be okay, Erza."
There was a heavy feeling in the air, and the guild was quieter than usual. Natsu was nowhere to be seen, either, which was extremely uncommon. It was almost common knowledge that the guild was like home to him - he was here far more often than in his own house. But today, it seemed as if time had stopped, and no one was around. Team Natsu itself hadn't done much since the event occurred, and without Natsu at the helm, usually waving a job request to the group excitedly, there wasn't much to do at the guild itself. It seemed as though everyone's drive and energy had drained completely with the loss of the duo.
Erza and Gray felt completely helpless in the situation, and it hurt them to see such a riff in the group's dynamic. Most of all, however, they felt extreme anger towards Tomica, who had escaped practically unscathed. Makarov was rarely seen at the guild anymore, for he had been actively trying to find a way to reverse the spell cast on Lucy. But Tomica was too elusive for the Council to get involved in, they had told him. There had to be another way, but at this point, everyone was drawing a blank.
Erza, defeated, walked away from Lucy as she slumped deeper into the bar table and she made her way towards Gray, who was standing nearby and observing Lucy. His head popped up and his eyes widened when he saw Erza's sullen face.
"Did she say anything?" Gray asked.
"I don't want to push her… she's usually the type to say whatever's on her mind, but I don't want to crack her, she's too fragile right now…" Erza sighed. "It's unfair that she was put through this…" Suddenly filled with rage, she clenched her fist tightly and through gritted teeth, continued. "I'm going to kill Tomica if he doesn't change what he's done."
A gentle hand found its way gently to Erza's tense shoulder, and immediately Erza released her grip and peered up at Gray. "Erza, it's ok, don't worry. We'll find a way to fix this." Is he fighting back tears? Erza thought, as she herself, was doing the same. "I'm not letting this team die," he told her matter-of-factly. "We're not going to die, I promise."
Erza smiled a bit and wiped her stinging eyes. Internally, she was repeating to herself to stay strong for Lucy and Natsu. "We need to find Natsu, Gray. We need to get him back."
"Do you know where he would be? Does anyone know where he's been?"
She pondered his question for a moment, then smiled. "Where do we usually go for fun?"
It took a second, but Gray's eyes lit up and he flashed a smile. "I think I know where we can find him."
With that, the two looked back at Lucy, who didn't face them, and they ran out of the guild as fast they could, ignoring anyone who went past, and dashed to the place that the group usually called their second home. It was a long shot, but if Natsu was there, if they could just talk to him, and try to figure out how to solve this problem… maybe something could work out.
"Do you really think he's here?" Erza panted, crossing the bridge at lightning speed. It was in plain sight, straight ahead, and the cobblestone ground was shaking underneath their feet. "If he's not there, don't you think it'll look bad that we trespassed?"
Gray shrugged. "I don't think she'd mind at this point, with the situation we're in." His words her sharp and stunted. They didn't realize just how far Lucy's house was from the guild, but that didn't stop them from continuing. Almost there… he has to be here! He has to be…. where else would he go?…
Finally reaching their destination, the duo halted to a stop in front of a familiar looking door. "We're here," they said at the same time. Upon closer inspection, they noticed the door was slightly ajar. There was no mistake. He was here.
Slowly, they stepped in and shut the door behind them. With a heavy breath, they saw him. Happy was slumped over, leaning on the desk chair Natsu was perched on. He seemed exhausted for some reason, but when he saw Gray and Erza, he flew over and shushed them.
"Look," he huffed, "I tried to get him out, but he won't leave. He only says a few words to me, but…" He looked back at this best friend, who seemed to be reading something. "He said that he wanted to come here. And if you try to talk to him, he'll act like you're not there."
"What? That's insane!" Gray exclaimed, suddenly angered a bit. Ignoring Happy, he marched over to Natsu, with Erza close behind. "Come on, Natsu, this isn't you! What are you doing here? In Lucy's house? Come back to the guild so we can fix this!"
When Gray shook Natsu's shoulder, he noticed a mass of papers had been strewn across Lucy's desk. What… what the hell?
Natsu tightly gripped the piece of paper in his hand, and screamed when he saw it wrinkle. He acknowledged his presence, and boomed, "Gray, what the hell! Don't touch me!" He quickly swatted his friend's hand away from his shoulder. "You… you bastard! You wrinkled it! You…" Natsu sunk off the chair and onto the floor in a pathetic heap.
"Natsu, what are you doing? What is all this? Why are you even here?" Gray asked. Natsu was sniffling and mumbling incoherently. But when Gray's eyes moved to the hundreds of papers on the desk, he saw the words Dear Mother on them. "Wait, did you dig up Lucy's letters? To her mother?"
Erza knelt down next to Natsu as he started to catch his breath. In a soft voice, she hugged him and said, "Natsu, what did you find?"
Muffled, choked up, and perpetually staring at the paper in his hands, of which he seemed to be rereading over and over again, he started to talk. "Lucy… once told me that she wrote letters to her mom. She said she used to write about her adventures, and about us. I… wanted to see if maybe… she wrote about when we first met… It's not like she'd understand it, anyway…" His voice trailed off. He was hopeless.
Happy finally spoke up and sighed. "He's spent about two hours here. He looked every for it. Instead of trying to forget Lucy, he just wants to engulf himself in her."
"Why is it so painful to have her not remember me?" Natsu questioned. "I didn't know how painful this would've been… it's all my fault…" Suddenly enraged, his tone changed. "I wasn't strong enough to defeat Tomica. Then that means… I'll have to kill him next time…"
Erza jumped at that line. "N-Natsu, no, no! Listen to me. You have to listen to me, Natsu. Gray and Happy and I, and everyone at the guild, we can't feel your pain. We all love Lucy so much. And to have her removed from our lives is unthinkable. And for you to experience it …" Her eyes started to water as her hand found its way to Natsu's shoulder. It meant more to her than just supporting him. She was using him to support herself as well. "It's not fair, either! But Natsu… we can't wallow in this sadness. You can't wallow in this pain! It's not fair to Lucy, it's not fair to us, the guild, our team, and yourself! We need to pick ourselves back up from this and find a way to fix it! Do you understand, Natsu?" Erza was practically screaming, and there was a silence that fell upon her final words.
Natsu gulped. "I just… I think I realized I can't have a life without Lucy…" he said slowly. "If she can't remember me… and I can't make her remember me… what can I do?"
"Makarov is researching this right now," Gray reassured him. "We're going to find a way to get our Lucy back. She doesn't seem distrusting of you, and she trusts us. If we trust you, then she'll have to, too. Don't worry, Natsu. This will end soon. I promise."
Erza and Gray leaned in for a group hug around Natsu, and Happy waddled behind them, joining in. "We're gonna get our Lucy back," Happy sniffled quietly.
Natsu was stiffened for the most part, but kept muttering a few words. "Our Lucy… our Lucy… my Lucy… my… Lucy…come… back…"
after notes; hope you liked it! more coming soon i promise!
