Alright, here's chapter four! I really hope you guys enjoy this, although this chapter might be a bit short because I have a shitload of other stories to update too, lmao.

-BookBearer

Chapter Four: Memories

3rd Person's POV:

The blonde leaned back more into the head of the heat source, the water washing away most of the day's dirt, grime and stress. She sighed almost in content, but her mind continued to race; the only thing that the shower couldn't get rid of.

The steam fogged up the small space, relaxing her in a way, but suffocating her in another. It opened up her mind, but crushed her heart.

"…I will fucking kill you-…"

Punch.

Her eyes squeezed shut at the memories replaying in her mind. If he went to these lengths for her, he must really love her.

"….Don't you ever touch her!-…"

Punch.

Her hands curled together on the cool shower tiles in front of her. He loves her. He'd protect her with his own life.

"…I won't hold myself back, bastard!-…"

Crack went the nose.

She whimpered. She was fooling herself. He loved Lisanna.

"…You killed them! You killed your mother!-…"

Crumble went the ceiling.

Her eyes snapped open at the last memory and gasped, sending her stumbling back and clutching her sides. Her shoulders shook as tears streamed down her face as she shook her head, continuously telling herself that this wasn't real and she was just overacting. Why was this happening to her? Why now?

The multiple knockings at the locked bathroom door did little to awaken her from her traumatized state, merely blending in with the sound of the running water.

That wasn't her fault.

It wasn't her fault it started, it wasn't.

It wasn't.

It wasn't.

It…It…

It was.

She killed them all. She killed-

"Luce? Hey are you okay?" Natsu's muffled voice asked, worry in his tone. He knocked harder on the door, itching to just bust the damn thing down. He had been sitting right outside her door since the very moment she stepped into the long shower, his guilt about the previous night just eating away at him.

She promised that they would talk, but she went to great lengths to avoid the dragonslayer, slipping away here and there, when they made eye contact, quickly striking up a conversation with Marcus or the nearest person that wasn't him.

So he sat by the door until she would come out; that way when she left, they'd have to talk. He could explain himself. And he could expose Marcus for the little worm that he was. And she'd be back on his side-she'd stop avoiding him.

But he frowned in confusion when his ears picked up quivers and sniffs, coming from inside the bathroom. He immediately stood up and knocked, alarmed.

"Luce?" No answer.

"Lucy?" Still no answer.

"Lucy, answer me."

"I-I'm fine, Natsu." Her voice cracked, a really soft answer, but still hearable over the running shower. "Just…just go...please. I'll be out in an s-second, okay?"

He didn't believe her words in the slightest, but respected her wishes and turned away from the door. His heart sank because he knew what she was doing. And he hated when she did it, because it made him want to do it too.

The heartbroken boy slumped his shoulders, his whole mood sinking.

"Lucy?" He called, turning his head towards the locked door. There was a brief moment of silence between the two, no answer whatsoever. His heart sunk even more, if possible when she didn't reply and he sighed. She really was ignoring him.

So much for Mirajane's advice and telling her his feelings.

"…yeah?" Her answer finally came, her voice hiccupping slightly and managing to hurt him inside even more.

"I-…" He paused, for a moment, deciding what to say to her. Believe it or not, but he had a habit of speaking before his mind had time to process information and it got him into a lot of trouble before. And in a situation like this, it was crucial not to screw it up.

"I…I'll be outside. I mean…well, we'll all be outside when you're done. Like in the parking lot…waiting. I mean—take your time, but we…I-…yeah." Damn it.

Maybe speaking before thinking was better than speaking and totally fucking failing, after all.

He didn't hear a response after that, but knew she heard him. Defeated, he walked away, feeling even guiltier than before. Why was she crying? Was it something he said earlier? Was it because he beat the crap out of Marcus for her? Wasn't that supposed to make her feel better?

And why was talking to girls so damn hard?

"Natsu get down here now!" Lisanna yelled, stomping her foot angrily. "We are wasting time and we have to get to the town by sundown! Come on!"

Shaking his head franticly, he stuck out his tongue in a childish manner and hugged the rough, brown tree bark. Lisanna huffed and continued her rant to try to get her childhood friend down. She had to look straight up because of how highly set in the tree he was and had to shout for him to hear her.

"Natsu, you baby!" Happy mocked and laughed, pointing upwards at him. Natsu glared at the feline as a response and hugged the tree even tighter.

"You don't get it, Happy!" He whined, "I'm not getting into that moving metal death machine if it's the last thing I do!"

It was still morning, and the group had paid the hotel bill and started to head out. The mission was at noon, and to be able to get paid they had to get to the mayor to the meeting successfully. All had gone well until Marcus mentioned something about taking a train the rest of the way there and Natsu flat out bolted. The trio tried running after him, but he was already too far ahead—and to far up in a tree.

"Are you seriously afraid of a train?" Marcus snickered, not believing a single word of this whole thing. The mighty dragonslayer? Afraid of a train?

His face had healed pretty quickly, despite the previous night's beatings from a certain dragon-slayer. Bandages were wrapped under his hair, and on his broken nose, and he still held a black eye and a busted lip—but in all, he insisted that he was alright.

Natsu said it was suspicious, no one healed that quickly, but Marcus simply said it was because of the weak punches he had. Of course, that only set them both into another screaming match.

"Shut it you stupid shithead." He hissed out coldly, narrowing his eyes at him. "Before you regret it."

"Oh really?" Marcus asked.

"Really!" Natsu spat back.

"I don't think so, you wouldn't want to break a nail again!"

"I didn't break a nail! I didn't even break a sweat, pretty boy!"

"Pretty boy? Who are you calling pretty boy?"

"You, obviously! Have you seen your hair? You spent the longest time fixing it!"

"It's called proper haircare, thank you! You obviously wouldn't know anything about it, pinky!"

"Pinky?! You did not just call me pinky!"

"P-I-N-K-Y! Who dyes their hair pink anyway?"

"It's natural you dumbass! And it's SALMON!"

"P-I-N-K-Y, you're a-…"

"At least I'm not a basic blonde! You stupid bimbo headed-…"

Lisanna groaned and slumped down the tree trunk in frustration at the two arguing men. She placed two fingers on her temple in attempt to ease a growing headache from the barking next to her. And to make things worse, Natsu was so far up that both of them were practically yelling in her ear. Happy's constant high pitched laughter blaring in her ear wasn't helping either.

Lisanna jumped up quickly, very, very annoyed, and stomped away from the loud noises. "I'm going to go back with Lucy," She said mostly to herself, but loud enough for the boys to hear.

"Shut up you asswipe! You couldn't sew better than me even if your life depended on it! I bet—hey! Lisanna! Don't leave me here with him, wha-where are you going?!" Natsu yelled.

"I'm going back with Lucy, she should be heading up here right now. You can come with, if you just climb down that tree!" She responded, continuing to walk on, frustration evident in her tone of voice.

"Never!"

She knew that he would instantly disagree so there would be no point in arguing anymore with the man. Natsu was the most stubborn guy in the whole guild, apart from Grey. When they started fighting, it was futile to try to stop them. The only ones who actually could were Makarov, Erza and Lucy. Makarov because…well…he was Makarov. Erza because she was the one of the strongest S-Class mages in the entire guild, and Lucy because Natsu had always instantly responded well to Lucy.

And that's why she was going to get her now.

The sound of the two's arguing voices became distant as she moved through the thick vegetation, stepping over huge leaves and making her way past thick trees. She pushed away a large branch hanging off the side of a tree, and yelled for her companion's name.

"Lucy!" She called out while stepping over an ant-infested log.

"Lucy-san! Where are you?"

Lisanna paused a rustling noise was made from a few trees ahead of her. She frowned and moved forward, trying to get a better look.

*Snap*

Lisanna winced when she looked down to see that she had accidently stepped on a small twig, and despite its size, it made a loud echo throughout the forest. The rustling stopped instantly.

"Lucy?" She asked, leaning forwards toward the bushel of leaves. Her right hand slowly extended, as she pulled back the curtain of green. Her eyes widened in horror as she took in the sight before her. Her nostrils was invaded by a rotting, metallic scent, just as her vision was filled with red and only red. She slapped a hand over her mouth and screamed bloody murder at the gruesome scene laid before her.

"Not…quite...try again."

Lisanna ran the opposite direction as fast as her legs could carry her, her heart pounding wildly. Adeline pumped through her veins, and the only thought going through her mind was to get back to Natsu and Marcus and to warn them. Her stomach dropped and her blood ran cold when rapid footsteps could be heard from behind her and the same stench became stronger.

Lisanna was more than aware of the pounding of her feet on the ground driven by her pumping legs but the feet and legs behind her belonged to someone else, someone whose legs and feet could go on pounding forever: thump, thump, thump. And that terrified her even more.

Hot tears began building up around her eyes, blinding her as she took random left and right turns, just trying to get away from this…thing.

She paused a moment to look around, and she heart thudded against her chest as she realized that she was lost. Her breath came out in ragged shutters and her body shook in fear. Her mind continued to replay the repugnant scene over and over again, her stomach clenching and threating to throw up this morning's short breakfast.

Her legs gave out from below her body and she dropped to the dirty ground, her hands covering her tear streaked face. She cried and cried in horror, her tears seemed to be never ending. The stench became stronger, and she feared that, that thing would get her next. She just knew it.

When a hand grasped the girls shoulder, she screamed her lungs out; her throat burning and quickly becoming strained from the loud shriek.

The same hand quickly wrapped itself around her mouth, silencing her cries and yanking her head upwards. Lisanna's eyes met wide brown ones and a bit of the fear she had inside, eased away. Her eyebrows furrowed together as she collapsed into her arms, crying her eyes out.

"Lisanna." Lucy whispered urgently after giving her a few minutes to herself. Lisanna sucked in multiple breaths and looked up at her blonde companion.

"Lisanna, we need to leave, now." She said quickly, every so often looking over her shoulders then back at her. Lisanna's mouth opened in a silent question, still confused and horrified about the quick glimpse. Lucy tugged on her arm, helping her up before starting to run.

"No time to explain. Let's get back to Natsu and get them out-"A woman's shriek was heard from deeper within the forest, her pain evident and clear. Lucy's eyes began to gloss over at the sound, but she then blinked and it was gone in an instant.

Lucy tugged on her arm and sprinted up again, navigating them both along through the trees and bushes. Her face was scratched up and dirtied, forming bruises forming everywhere, her arms and legs in the same damaged condition. There was a bad open cut on her left shoulder, every time it moved she winced visibly, despite her attempts not to.

"W-What's going on?" Lisanna asked weakly, trying to catch up in her foot speed. "W-What was that thing?"

Lucy pierced her lips together in concentration, ignoring the question completely and trying to remember where to go next. She took sharp left and right turns, stopping occasionally and running the other way. The two lungs burned, their breaths coming out in shaggy shutters. Both their legs burned from running so fast and for so long, but Lucy held a steel grip on her arm, forcing her to keep up with her steps.

"Lucy?..." She asked a bit more forcefully this time, tugging on her arm to get her attention.

"What was t-that thing? W-What was it doing—who were those people?...Or at least what was left of them?" She asked, her stomach turning in disgust once again, remembering that scene again.

"Where are your keys, Lucy? Can't we use them?" They took another sharp right turn.

"Lucy please answer me—"

"Lisanna!" Lucy snapped, tightening her grip on her arm in frustration. "Just wait a damn minute and ask me those questions later! Better yet, don't ask me at all! God, this is just so—those people…I-, just…gah!—just please be quiet and let me find our way out of here, alright?"

Lisanna flinched at her tone of voice directed towards her and blinked to keep the tears at bay. She nodded wordlessly as she followed her silently.

More cries of pain rang throughout the air as they moved their way through the forest. Lisanna quickly noticed that every time a voice was heard, Lucy's eyes showed a flash of pain before they returned to their unusual, cold, blank stare. They ran for what seemed to be hours, lungs burning, legs aching, tears flowing.

"…Oh you son of a bitch, who doesn't like Strawberry Daifuku's? It's like miniature strawberries dipped in chocolate that you can pop in your mouth!"

"The 'Strawberry Daifuku' is an absurd creation made by a compete buffoon—such as yourself—who obviously hasn't yet heard of the Crème-brulee or simple Vanilla slices with a hint of lemon spice on the top. That's proper dessert, I suggest you take notes, buddy!"

"…Or fish! Fish is a good dish for desserts! Hey that rhymed!"

Lucy bolted when she heard those voices, dragging alone Lisanna with her. Their hearts lifted with relief, knowing they were close; they could see outlines of the three bodies, just a few meters ahead.

A low, dangerous growl shattered that faint moment of relief though, coming from behind the two sprinting girls. Lucy looked back, her eyes meeting bright red ones. A black outline of what seemed to be some sort of large animal sat crouched, ready to pounce and attack the both of them.

Lisanna froze in fear when she saw the animal, her heart racing. It looked rapid, its eyes flicking between the two, now still girls, almost as if it were deciding who to tear apart first. Lucy slowly raised her arm, pushing Lisanna with her, as she stepped backwards.

"Slowly…back up." Lucy whispered underneath her breath, taking another step. Silent tears streamed down Lisanna's face as she followed suit, stepping each time Lucy did, heart pounding wildly in her chest. The beast looked angry, bloodthirsty and savage, with the stench of death radiating off of it.

If you looked closely into its left eye, you could almost see the faces and the gruesome, drenched with blood remains of its previous victim. Exactly like the girl saw earlier.

"…-its eyes, Lisanna." Lucy whispered harshly, gripping her arm even tighter. Unfortunately, the takeover mage didn't hear her warning as she became entranced in its appalling red color.

And if you looked into its right, you would see yourself; Petrified, eyes widened, horrified and already scarred to the point of no return…its next victim.

That's exactly what she saw.

Herself, in its jaws.

It seemed like the world slowed down miraculously. Rustling trees and its leaves stopped moving, the wind slowing, the bird's songs coming to an immediate stop; the high pitched screams, silenced.

Everything came to a deathly silence as the soft whimper of horror escaped Lisanna's throat. Lucy's head turned to her, as if in slow motion, slowly revealing a paled, fearful expression. Her eyes showed urgency, but Lisanna was paralyzed on the spot. Unable to move, unable to say anything, frozen, staring at the red orbs.

Immediately after the sound was pulled from her throat, the world instantly snapped back into place, everything seeming to move quickly back to its original spot, as if it didn't want to be left behind. Everything moved way too quickly, seeing as it, the young mage's eyes couldn't keep up with it all.

It all went by in a blur; the birds speeding away in the sky, trees rustling wildly, wind blowing by in a rush, the unhinging of the beast's jaw, its red eyes and black fur launching itself at an ungodly speed towards the mage.

The shove to her chest backwards.

The flash of blonde in front of her.

The mixing colors of blonde and black.

Lisanna landed on the ground harshly, knocking the breath right out of her lungs. Her eyes widened as she attempted to breath, arching her back up. Her vision was blurred from the tears, looking straight up in the blue sky. The scene continued replay over and over again in her head; the red eyes, the beast thing, the blood, it launching itself…Lucy blocking it.

Her vision was soon clouded by three worried faces, hovering above her. Happy, Marcus and Natsu ran to her aid, circling her and quickly examining her.

"Lisanna!" Happy cried, grin gone and replaced by two wide eyes and a quivering bottom lip.

"What the hell happened?" Natsu frantically asked, finally down the tree. Marcus propped her up on his knees, quickly ripping off pieces of his own shirt and wrapping it around many opened cuts. Natsu took one scan over Lisanna's body and he was filled with rage. His fists began to glow a dangerous yellow, heating up quickly, ready to pound the bastard's face in who did this to his childhood friend. His family.

"Who did this to you?" He growled, eyes narrowing into slits.

"You guys…d-didn't hear it?" She asked softly, shaking, tears streaming down her face. Marcus shook his head, using another piece of his clothing and wrapping it around places that had been cut or scratched by branches or thorns.

"No." Marcus said. "Hear what?"

"Th-The screams…the shriek…the growl."

Marcus' hands froze at the word. He paled, his eyes widening. "Growl?"

She nodded wearily, shoulders continuing to shake. "The growl. W-We were attacked b-by that w-wolf thing-g." She hiccupped, tears continuing to flow openly down her face. Marcus was going to ask more questions when Natsu jumped, turning around.

"Where's Lucy?" Natsu asked instantly, panicking. If this had happened to Lisanna, what happened to Lucy? Was she alright?

He spun around frantically, looking for any signs that she was walking towards the group, before turning back to Lisanna. "Where is Lucy?" He asked with more force, a more sense of urgency, the unease evident in his voice.

Lisanna blinked rapidly as she fought to stay on the side of consciousness. Black spots began to cloud her vision and her eye lids started to shut slowly. The pain from her wounds demanded to be noticed, dragging her down to the brink of passing out.

"Lucy! Where's Lucy?" Natsu asked her again, shaking her. Lisanna opened them slightly once more, trying to speak, opening her mouth to do so, but she just…couldn't as she slowly begun to black out.

"Lisanna? Lisanna?" Natsu repeated, before huffing and bolting towards the forest. "Keep an eye on her!" Natsu called to Happy, getting an immediate 'Aye' in response.

And off he went, sprinting into the forest, screaming and shouting her name in the air like a madman.

"Lucy! Lucy where are you!" He yelled frantically, his mind racing. He slowly begun running the worst case scenarios through his head and his heart sunk at the mere possibility of them being real. He should have been there with her. He knew he shouldn't have left her alone.

"Lucy!" He called, running around desperately, his eyes scanning anything and everything. He trained his ears to listen to even the slightest movements and his nose to sniff out the familiar sent of his Lucy.

Minutes passed with nothing, but he refused to give up so easily. His inner dragon made his legs burst with speed when his nostrils caught the faint whiff of strawberry in the distance. Once the smell registered with in his brain, his legs instantaneously skirted to a halt as his head steered his body left.

The ground blurred below the dragonslayer as a surge of adrenaline pumped through his veins. The uneven thump of his footsteps echoed in his ears and he felt a bead of sweat roll down his forehead, but he couldn't care less. He needed to get to her.

"Lucy!" He cried when his eyes spotted her leaning on a nearby tree, panting heavily. He knew tell something awful happened because her body was scratched, cut and bruised, she was bleeding and her breaths came out in ragged shutters.

Upon hearing her name, Lucy slowly turned her head to look at Natsu, a weak smile growing on her face despite the pain she was feeling. She turned her whole body and attempted to walk to him, but her knees buckled and she crumbled to the ground with a pained moan. She gasped and clutched her left side, attempting to suck in air.

Natsu dashed to her side and fell down in on his knees, scooping her up into his arms and cradling her. He almost about lost it when his hand accidently brushed passed her injured side, making her wince. Her hair clung to her face with sweat, leaves, dirt, sticks inside it and was a tangled mess—but he still thought she couldn't look any better. The same went for her face; it was messy, stained with blood, dirt and tears, yet she still shined those bright brown eyes and held on to that warm smile.

"Hey Natsu." She whispered softly, wrapping her arms around his waist, resting her head against his welcoming chest. He sighed as he gently used his thumb to push back a collection of her hair around her face and nodded.

"Hey."

"Is Lisanna…alright?" She asked carefully. Natsu shook his head, but genuinely smiled. Lucy was always thinking about other people, besides herself. She was selfless. That's why he admired her.

"Yeah," Natsu spoke, "Happy is watching over her. We're going to get you both some help." She nodded at the promise, before looking away from the salmon haired dragonslayer.

"I know…you probably have…q-questions," She winced painfully, "but…we'll talk more…on the train…alright?"

Inside, he wondered if they really would have that conversation, but right now wasn't the time for thinking about that. He also despised the thought of boarding the train and experiencing motion sickness once again—but in the end, he knew he'd do anything for Lucy. And if that meant riding that metal box of death, then so be it.

"…Alright Luce."

"Natsu?" She asked again.

"Hmm?"

"Thanks…for looking…f-for me. I know I wouldn't…" She choked on her words, quickly blinking away the water in her eyes before they formed. Even in pain, she remained strong and tried not to cry. "…have been a-able to make it…b-back without toppling over m-myself." She breathlessly laughed.

"Anytime Lucy. Always."

"And Natsu?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm…going to pass out now."

Natsu smiled at her once more. "And I'll be right here when you wake up."

A/N:

I applaud myself on that ending! Ah, the feels. Anyways, I know it was a bit short, but I haven't updated this thing since August! Holy Shit.

So now I'm going to try to update more often, (As seen with my Kickin' it story), and get most of my stories updated. Like in a rotation or whatever.

Three stories in in the past week? All over 4000+ words? Come on, I need some credit here..

Do me a favor; tell me what you think is happening so far? Do you guys have any predictions? If so, just put them below!

Remember to please leave a review, comment, favorite, give me a follow, recommend me to your friends, parents, dogs-whomever. Just spread the good BookBearer word around, lmao.

Later guys.

-BookBearer