The search for information was making little progress. They had several vague leads, none of which look promising. Lisanna puffed out a short breath and turned to Natsu.
"We should send out search parties while others search for information. Have them stay connected by lacrima." she suggested. "I could lead one—"
"No. If you find her you'll just make her curse worse." Natsu cut her off, his eyes dark. His words were like a slap to the face.
"Fine. Unfortunately for you, you aren't my boss, so don't try to order me around." She snapped. Natsu bared his teeth in a small snarl as Lisanna whirled around and strolled to the bar, refusing to let his furious stare intimidate her. She would stay strong for Lucy.
"Mira, I'm going to the library." Lisanna called to her sister, who responded with a wave and a cheerful call of good luck. A tiny smile crept across Lisanna's face as she heard Natsu's enraged shout that she simply ignored and took off at a run. She stopped at a perfume store and sprayed herself with the smelliest thing she could find, using just enough to mask her scent, before burying herself in the library. A small idea formed in her mind and she scanned he shelves with a hidden excitement before grabbing the book she wanted. Sure enough, there it was, smack dab in the middle.
The curse of Hidden Pain.
Checking the book out took her less than a minute and before she knew it she was holed up in a small corner, her nose buried in a mass of papers. A few hours later she left for the guild, her mind running over the information. No one would like what she had found, that much she knew for certain.
Nobody noticed her return until she lifted the book into the air and shouted, "I found it!"
Heads snapped to face her, expression ranging from relief to joy to irritation. She ran to Levy's table and flipped through the pages until she found the passage and she shoved to book at the solid script mage, gesturing for her to read it out loud. The silence was heavy and tense as Levy picked up the book.
"Hidden Pain, a curse that stems from the need to express negative emotions. The spell is mostly forgotten, but a few individuals are known to possess the ability to cast this curse onto others. Hidden Pain forces any strong negative emotions such as hate, anger, loathing, hurt, and disgust to the surface, causing the affected to relive the pain afresh. Resulting symptoms range from simple headaches to the desire to inflict pain onto themselves or others. A very common high-level reaction is to try and eliminate the source of the pain. The curse acts in spasms that gradually get worse." Levy paused for breath. The whole guild could have vanished and it wouldn't have made a difference: there was not a single sound in the entire building. "There are no certain cures. However, one rumored remedy that has been said to work involves the affected succumbing to the curse and fighting to remain sane while speaking of their pain to its cause. Failure results in insanity and a forced coma or death."
"So Lucy left… to protect us?" Wendy whispered, her voice filled with horror. A dull thud followed by the sound of breaking wood rang through the hall right before the guild doors slammed shut. Lisanna knew it was Natsu, and she didn't dare try to stop him.
"It's all our fault." Erza muttered. Her armored fists were clenched and shaking. Gray's hair hung over his eyes, hiding his expression, but his rock-hard jaw gave him away.
"I don't think it was just you." Carla stepped in with a small sniff. "The chances of your little scene causing enough pain for the worst symptoms are very small."
"Maybe not that exact phrasing, but she's right." Cana joined after a hefty swing of beer.
"Lucy lost her mother when she was little, and then her father during the seven-year gap." Mira added, her hands once again busy wiping tankards.
"It's not your fault, Erza. It's mine." Lisanna muttered, brushing stray tears out of her eyes. "I should've realized that she was lying when—"
"Are you calling her a liar?!" Gray shouted at her, his anger mounting.
"She said it was okay! She said it didn't hurt, and I believed her! She told me to go with you for her!" Lisanna screamed back, letting her tears fall freely.
"Now who's lying, you—" Gray's outburst was cut off as Juvia landed a solid slap on his cheek. He stayed silent, shocked out of speaking.
"Juvia believes Lisanna because Juvia went with Lisanna and Levy for a sleepover when Team Natsu and Wendy were away on a job. Juvia heard Love Rival tell Lisanna that Love Rival wanted Lisanna to go with Team Natsu for Love Rival." The blue-haired woman clipped her words. "Gray will not harm Juvia's friends over a false assumption. Gray will regret it later and Juvia does not want that. Juvia knows that Love Rival and Lisanna are very good friends."
"She's right, Gray." Levy said quietly. Gajeel's arm snaked its way to rest across her shoulders as the little blunette swallowed her sobs. "Lu told her it was fine, that she was happy for her."
"Juvia doesn't think it is Lisanna's fault alone. It is also Juvia's fault and Levy's fault for not realizing how Love Rival felt."
"In that case, it's everyone's fault." Cana slurred. "Now haul your sorry assess off your chairs and find Lucy!"
The guild scrambled to flip pages and hover over charts. A new desperation filled their movements, now that the stakes were clear. Erza put in more effort, going as far as buying enough pairs of speed-reading glasses for the entire guild. Gray muttered an apology to Lisanna before taking it onto himself to organize search patrols, grouping three people and giving them a lacrima. Four groups went out before Lisanna came up to him with the decision to head out on her own.
"Are you sure, Lisanna?" Gray glances at her long enough for her to catch to distraught in his eyes. He still blamed himself. She nodded firmly.
"Yes. I'll go as an independent, so I won't have to return to the guild. I'll update you with any leads I get." She sketched out a rough plan for the beginning of her journey and he nodded, much to her relief.
"Sure. Take a lacrima with you."
"I will." Lisanna gently squeezed his shoulder. "Don't be too hard on yourself, Gray. It's not only your fault." Without waiting for a response, she took off at a run, stopping by her room in Fairy Hills only to grab a few essentials and the money from her safe. She had reached the train station when she glimpsed a blotch of pink in the crowd of people: Natsu, leading his own search team. Lisanna quickly bought a ticket for the first leaving train and slipped into an empty compartment, leaning away from the window to avoid being seen. She knew Natsu blamed himself, but, not knowing how to deal with his feelings, he would take it out on her, and that was not something she wanted right now. She wasn't sure if she would be able to keep her cool in a confrontation like that.
When the train began to move, she glimpsed the same blotch of pink boarding a train that was headed in the opposite direction. She let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding and pulled out the curse reference book, focusing completely on the words. Any clue would be more than vital if Lisanna was to find, and save, her friend.