Hello my lovely readers!
I am SO sorry that I haven't uploaded a new chapter earlier; I've been away, sick, drowned in homework…I swear the holidays are busier than the term.
Anyway, because you guys didn't get a chapter last weekend, I might be able to whip up another chapter sometime during the week before school starts again.
Here's chapter 6; enjoy!
Last Chapter
There was a dull clunk as both fell down after one blow from Erza, who stood intimidatingly over them, her eyes flashing dangerously. "It appears we need to pay a visit to Sabertooth."
The day was perfect. Blue, cloudless skies, a gentle breeze rustling the trees. Nothing marred the perfection of the spring day. It was perfect.
Too perfect.
A tall building stood on a rocky outcrop, mountains surrounding it. The intricate headquarters of Sabertooth appeared to consist of many buildings held together to form one giant, imposing structure. The guild members of Sabertooth sat in their guild hall, beer flowing freely and laughter echoing around the walls.
The guild doors of Sabertooth slammed open and each member immediately tensed. A black haired man looked towards the doors, his pale face serious and unreadable. A small group of people stood in the doorway, silhouetted against the sun. For a moment, there was silence; the calm before the storm.
"Who are you?" A blonde man came from inside a study at the back of the guild, his expression steely and guarded. The first figure stepped forward and the guild gasped collectively. For it was none other than Titania that stood in their doorway, followed by the one and only Salamander and Iron Gajeel. And in the back, Gray Fullbuster and Juvia Lockser stood, intimidating figures that radiated power. And Happy.
The blonde man's face erupted into a grin.
"Natsu-san!"
The Salamander stepped forward with a grin and a wave. "Yo, Sting!"
But before he could engage in conversation, an armoured arm barred his path. "Natsu, remember why we're here."
Then, Erza Scarlet turned to Sabertooth, "I'm afraid this is no social visit. We have some questions we'd like to ask you that concern one of your guild members."
Sting's cheerful grin turned into a frown. The master of Sabertooth gestured towards the mages of Fairy Tail. "Come on. Let's go into the study."
"Minerva?"
It was quite a tight fit in the study, with all the Fairy Tail mages, Sting, Rogue and the Exceeds. Sting and Rogue shared a look before they turned back to the Fairy Tail group.
"The thing is...we haven't seen her at all since the Grand Magic Games. She just vanished after your victory and we don't think she was even helping with the dragons."
Erza's gaze hardened. "So you have no affiliations with her whatsoever?"
"No." Sting turned his curious gaze to Erza. "Why are you asking about Minerva all of a sudden? Did something happen?"
Erza regarded the two men, as if trying to figure out the meaning behind Sting's words. "You both know Lucy Heartfilia, our celestial mage."
Both men nodded in surprise. They knew that Minerva had beaten her up pretty badly before but she had made a full recovery, if the way she fought the dragons was any indication.
"Lucy has been...cursed, you could say. A spell was placed upon her by Minerva, apparently, that steals an individual's memories. It's called-"
"Rememoria." Everyone looked at Rogue. His face was as unreadable as ever but there was a stiffness to his shoulders that made the Fairy Tail mages think he had encountered the spell before.
"Yes," Erza said warily. "Lucy cannot remember anything about Fairy Tail. Her last memory is of the night before she first met Natsu. We need to collect the memories from Minerva before the year is up and we thought you might know where she is."
"No…no trace of her. But we'll let you know if anything happens," Sting said. "Knowing Minerva…she would have made it a game. She loves to play on people's emotions…" Sting glanced at Lector for a second before continuing. "I think you should expect a message soon."
"A message?" Gajeel came out of the shadows. "What kinda message?"
"I don't know for sure, but it won't be pretty," Sting said grimly. "Keep in mind what Minerva's done to other members of your guild. It may give you a slight indication of what she's capable of."
"Everyone needs to have a partner at all times," Erza declared, staring at the mass of Fairy Tail mages in front of her. "We've talked to Sabertooth and they believe that Minerva may try and send a message to us in some way. You all know what she is capable of. Work in groups of at least two, if not more, to ensure safety."
The Fairy Tail mages split off one by one, muttering and concerned. Lucy and Mira were talking at the bar, so Erza made her way towards them.
"Erza! Are you okay? You look a bit peaky." Mira and Erza may have been childhood rivals but Erza couldn't have been more grateful to the white-haired mage as Mira placed a plate of strawberry cheesecake in front of her.
"I'm fine. I am simply worried about the type of 'message' Minerva will leave." Erza's face darkened considerably at the mention of the dark-haired mage. "I've found a temporary solution though, for your memories, Lucy."
Lucy perked up. She had to admit that Erza could be scary sometimes but she was a good friend that Lucy was glad to have. "A solution?"
"It's only temporary, and I'm not sure it'll work, but maybe everyone should tell you about your lost memories. It won't be the same as having them in your head but it's our best option at the moment, while we wait for the message anyway." Erza's smile brightened at Lucy's obvious enthusiasm.
"That sounds great, Erza! Can we start no-"
There was a smash as the front door of the guild opened violently. The normally rambunctious guild fell silent as Gray stood in the doorway, his face pale and afraid.
"Juvia's been attacked!"
The same thought ran through the mind of every terrified mage who had been to Sabertooth.
The message.
Juvia Lockser lay on a bed in the infirmary of Fairy Tail, wounds covering her entire body. Gray had taken the seat next to the bed and sat there in silence as Wendy worked her magic and the wounds started to heal. Erza, Lucy, Natsu, Mira, Gajeel and Levy stood around the bed of the water mage and Erza clutched a small piece of paper in her hand. Lucy felt a pang of guilt every time she saw Juvia, motionless on the bed. She didn't know where the paper had been found but judging from Erza's dark glare and Gray's shaking hands, it hadn't been pretty. She'd never seen Erza so angry in her life (well, she probably had. She just didn't remember much about it, thankfully). Lucy glanced at Gray. Her friend's face was stony and pale but she could see the fear in his eyes as he held Juvia's hand like a lifeline.
"Erza?" Mira prompted. "Is the...message...on the paper?"
Erza's hands tightened on the paper, as if she might tear it into pieces. A dark aura emitted from Titania and everyone looked at her in concern.
"Show them, Erza."
All eyes turned to the ice mage sitting beside Juvia's bed, who had not previously made a sound. Erza took a deep breath and handed the paper around.
Well done, little Fairies. You've figured out the spell - I didn't think you had the brains. Now you have to find the memories. Really, it's as easy as 1, 2, 3. They're such lovely memories. I rather enjoyed looking at them. Poor, little Lucy Heartfilia. So much pain. But I'll leave you to it. It can't be easy for such dim-witted creatures like you to find memories. When in doubt, start at the beginning.
M
"Start at the beginning? What does she mean by that?" Natsu wondered, his face scrunched up in confusion. Lucy found it kinda cute.
"I can try and decipher her words. I think some sentences have double meanings. She wouldn't just tell us where to find the memories; that ruins the point of the 'game'," Levy frowned at the paper in her hands.
"Yes, I think you're right," Erza said. "Lucy and I were discussing this before; we should have people tell her stories about her life at Fairy Tail while others decipher the message. It's not a permanent solution but it's the best we've got."
"Alright then," Mira said with a small smile on her lips. "Let's crack this code."
So that's chapter 6. Tell me what you think! Apologies again for the late update! Thank you for the reviews and follows and favourites; they always make me smile and motivate me to write faster :)
Reviews are appreciated ^_^
*spoiler alert* (and on a completely unrelated note, did anyone else feel like their heart was breaking when Gray saw Ultear in that episode two weeks ago? T_T)