Hello my lovelies!

I apologise for not updating last weekend! We had a music camp that was really fun but really tiring and I am now sick from it as a result (which is not so fun).

Anyway, here's chapter 15; it's one of the longest chapters I've ever written. I hope you guys like it!

Last Chapter

Minerva looked up from the lacrima in her hand, where a green-haired woman was walking away from a dragon slayer. Her lip curled.

"Hm…someone's in trouble…"

"I don't get it!"

"Natsu! Just listen to Levy-chan!"

Levy smiled softly, as the two bickered in such a familiar manner that the guild looked startled for a second. Even without her memories, Lucy would always be Lucy.

Levy decided to save Lucy. "Natsu! It's like this. You know what you did last time to get the memories into the lacrima?"

"Yeah…?"

"Do that again, but transfer the memories from the little lacrima into that big lacrima."
"Why?"

Levy sighed. "That would've been the step before we transferred the memories to Lucy but seeing as we can't really…"

Natsu nodded. Then frowned. "Why, though?"

"Why what!?"

"Why are we putting the memories into the big lacrima?"

"Because it's more effective and less harmful, baka! Weren't you listening at all before? Sheesh," Gray scoffed, clothes miraculously missing.

"Oh yeah? Put some clothes on before you talk to me about anything!"

"When did that happen!?"

Levy sighed. "Anyway, Natsu, just do-"

A flutter of paper fell in front of Levy's face. "Huh?"

"It's another message," Mikino murmured. Everyone jumped at the sound of her voice as she emerged from the shadows. "She didn't tell me she would send another message."

"So?" Natsu scratched his head. "She doesn't tell you everything, does she?"

"No," Mikino agreed. "But I was always the messenger. This means she suspects."

There was a small gasp from the corner of the room and Lucy looked at Mikino in alarm. "But…but how!?"

"I don't know. We'll figure that out later. Levy, read the message."

Lucy frowned slightly but turned her attention to Levy, whose eyes were nervously skimming the paper. "Levy-chan? What's wrong?"

Levy looked up and, for some reason, looked at Natsu, Wendy and Gajeel with eyes that looked like they'd seen a thousand years of tears. "Only a lacrima coated in a dragon's breath could stand such magical power, my pets."

The guild of Sabertooth was completely and unusually quiet. Maybe because of the enthusiastic party from the night before that could rival even Fairy Tail's parties. Or maybe because every guild member was trying to eavesdrop on the conversation being held by the Master and his closest friend.

"Rogue-"

"No, listen to me. We can't just let them go in blind."

"We're not-"

"They may know Minerva is manipulative but we've seen the way she works ever since she joined."

"I know." A pause. Then the faintest touches of curiosity. "Rogue…did she…do something? You're…oddly passionate about this."

There was only silence.

The stars seemed rather bleak.

The inky darkness of the night seemed to drag Natsu into their shadows and no matter how bright they were, the stars couldn't seem to save him that night. For the new message had re-opened old wounds and Natsu felt the aching loss of his father once again. Where could he have gone? Why did he leave him? The same questions he'd asked himself for more than a decade weighed heavily on him, so much so that he felt like he was drowning in the sea of questions.

"Igneel…where are you?" Natsu asked aloud. Then he felt stupid. But he swallowed his pride and stared at the weakly twinkling stars. "Please…if there's anything you can do to help Lucy… anything at all…"

Natsu bowed his head quietly and wished the hardest he had in his entire life.

From a distance, a blonde mage stared sadly at the lone figure on the hill.

"Igneel, you know that you cannot interfere."

"I know. But she is the boy's mate...can there not be one exception?"

"You know the answer to that, Igneel…"

A slight pause.

"Yes, I do."

The second time Fairy Tail walked up Mount Gijimas was hardly better than the first.

The moon was full and bright and lit the path before them. The wind rustled their hair and bit their skin but no words were shared between them. The group was grim and unwavering in their footsteps and Lucy felt suffocated by the nervous tension in the air. This time, the group consisted of Natsu, Erza, Gray, Juvia, Wendy, Gajeel, Mira, Laxus and the Exceeds. Lucy walked towards the front of the group, where Natsu was. The two walked in silence for a while, until the rest of the group were far behind them.

"Natsu?"

"Yeah?"

"I…I'm scared."

Natsu stopped and looked at her. There was a quiet determination in his gaze that made her feel a sense of déjà vu and made butterflies explode in her stomach. She felt like he'd looked at her that way before, a long time ago. His eyes were the same onyx black as always, but the way he looked at her made her toes curl.

"So am I. So is everyone else. But we don't need to be. We're nakama. We'll always have each other's backs."

Lucy felt her eyes sting, for some reason, and looking at him now, she remembered the boy on the hill, staring at the stars as tears left their mark on his skin. But looking at him now, she saw none of the fear he felt inside. She wanted to hug him and never let go. But it wasn't the time, or the place, to do that. They had a mission.

Lucy steeled herself. She knew that there was a high chance that Minerva wouldn't give them the answers that they needed. She knew that she could get hurt, but that her seemingly invincible friends could also be hurt too. She wanted to yell at them to stop, to leave while they still could, to leave her to face Minerva alone because Minerva Orlando was her battle to fight. But she knew that her friends would fight with her until the end. She knew that they would stand again and again just to keep fighting for her sake. And the thought both terrified her and thrilled her because she had friends that loved her so much they would die for her and she feared that they would when they reached the top of Mount Gijimas.

Lucy jumped slightly when she felt the warmth of another hand grasp hers and her cheeks coloured as she clutched the hand of the dragon slayer. But he didn't look at her; he simply stared ahead and continued to walk. Lucy smiled softly and the two continued to walk up Mount Gijimas, followed by their most faithful friends, where an enemy and a friend were waiting.

"Ryos-nii! Play with me!"

"Not now, Chiyo!"

"Aw…"

A little girl wandered around the backyard, playing with her magic power that seemed unnaturally advanced, while an oblivious Ryos was flipping through the pages of a wizarding magazine. The sun moved across the sky and the dark haired boy didn't look up until he'd finished reading. To his surprise, he was faced with an empty garden.

"Chiyo?"

Only when he could not find the girl did he start screaming for help.

Two days passed, and the young girl was found in the forest nearby, her eyes dazed and glassy.

"Chiyo? Are you okay? Chiyo!"

"Who are you?"

Rogue jolted awake, sweat glistening on his forehead from the terrors of his dreams. He stayed in his bed, unmoving, for a minute before he got dressed, unwittingly waking Frosch.

"Rogue?"

The man looked at his small partner, face unreadable.

"Where are you going?"

A ghost of a smile flitted across Rogue's face. "I just need to find Sting."

"Fro wants to come too!"

And so it was that two figures knocked on an ornate, brown door at 11:30pm.

"Sting! Wake up! This is important!"

Rogue didn't have to wait long. A minute later, a sleepy Sting clad in pyjamas opened the door, his tired but ever faithful Exceed by his side. "Rogue? What the hell are you doing? I want to sleep!"

"We need to go to Fairy Tail," Rogue said, his face grim. Sting blinked.

"Of all the things you could have said at 11:30 at night, that surprised me the most. Give me a minute."

A small smile appeared on Rogue's face as his friend shuffled into the house to change. There was a reason Sting Eucliffe was his best friend and partner in crime.

"It's quiet. Too quiet," Lucy whispered, wincing as her voice echoed eerily. The group stood in a circle, eyes wary and alert. The wind moved the trees as the moon vanished behind a cloud, bathing them in darkness.

"Where's Minerva?" Wendy asked, her voice meek and quiet. There was silence.

"Found you."

The town of Magnolia fell asleep slowly, with the scent of flowers and the light of the moonlight decorating its enchanting streets. However, the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth had no time to admire the town. Their objective lay before them, in the form of a grand, towering building with a large orange and white guild insignia.

The doors to the guild opened and those that were still there raised their heads sleepily to greet the newcomers, only to be shocked as Sting Eucliffe and Rogue Cheney stood in the doorway. With their Exceeds.

"Where is Master Makarov? We wish to speak with him," Sting declared, in a voice that held no room for argument. There was a small thud as a short man landed on the floor of the guild.

"The Twin Dragons…" Makarov observed the two with amused curiosity. "What can I do for you?"

"May we speak in your study? This is a private matter concerning a guild member of Fairy Tail," Rogue said, eyes serious. Makarov's eyebrows rose.

"Oh?"

"Lucy Heartfilia."

There was a pause. "You'd better come in," he said at last. The three walked into the study, to the astonished and bewildered glances of the other Fairy Tail members.

Rogue jumped straight to the point. "We have come to offer our services in aiding Lucy in whatever way we can. We know Minerva. We can help," Rogue said quietly, his eyes earnest and slightly desperate. Makarov considered him for a moment.

"Rogue…you have encountered Rememoria before, haven't you?"

Rogue stiffened. He turned his face away, his hair hiding whatever emotions displayed on his face. "My sister."

Sting made a noise of surprise. He didn't even know Rogue had had a sister.

"I see. The group left for Mount Gijimas an hour ago. You can still catch up."

With a nod, the two dragon slayers left the guild with Master Makarov staring after them long after they'd gone.

Lucy gasped as she was flung to the side by Minerva's magic. Again.

She had a vague feeling of déjà vu.

Minerva's magic had changed, according to Erza. It seemed like a more advanced level of Territory, and it sure felt advanced. Minerva laughed as Lucy's friends were beaten and battered constantly; even Erza was smashed against a tree.

Mikino had been dealing some damage too, though not as violently as Minerva. She used a mixture of her illusion and elemental magic to make their injuries look a lot worse than they were. Lucy was shocked and a little afraid as she saw the level of intensity and concentration in Mikino's eyes.

There was a thump and Natsu flew into a rock, obliterating it. Lucy screamed.

Minerva looked around mockingly at the fallen Fairy Tail members. "Dear me. It seems I may have overestimated you." The woman walked around slowly, her eyes scanning the group of weary mages. She stopped in front of the dragon slayers and a broad smile spread across her lips.

"Did you like my message?"

Natsu lunged forward with a snarl but before he could land a blow, Minerva flicked her hand and he crashed to the ground. She scoffed. "How weak. I'm sure you cried when you heard about the dragon's breath, didn't you? When you knew exactly how hopeless this situation was for your little girlfriend?"

Natsu glanced up and looked at Lucy with so much despair and defeat in his eyes that her heart broke for the boy with the salmon-coloured hair. Minerva's smile didn't falter once. Lucy crawled into a sitting position and was just about to get up and murder her when Minerva whirled around, a murderous expression on her face, and pinned Mikino to a tree.

"Mi-" Lucy slapped a hand over her mouth before she put her friend's life in any more danger. But Minerva's grip continued to tighten.

"So…you thought you could double cross me? You thought you would get away with betrayal? Oh no, my dear. I knew from the moment you stepped into that hall. I know every single thing about you." Minerva's eyes glinted and she leant towards Mikino's ear. "I even know some things you don't know."

Mikino snarled and pushed her back, lifting the illusion of their injuries as she did. Minerva glanced around. "Huh. Impressive. You actually know what you're doing sometimes. But now it's time for you to suffer the consequences."

Minerva transported herself behind Mikino but Mikino already had a hand up to block the attack. The playful smirk on Minerva's face melted into a sneer. Mikino caught Minerva in a spiral of wind but Minerva transported in front of her and punched her in the stomach. Minerva was no longer using magic; she was simply using sheer force.

"Mikino!" To hell with double agents; Lucy was going to save her friend. "Loke!"

There was a brilliant shine and Loke flew forward with every other Fairy Tail mage, their eyes murderous. But Minerva flicked her hand and they crashed back down. Minerva laughed.

"You are going to scream and plead and beg for mercy, just like Hoshime did," Minerva whispered. Mikino's eyes widened. "Or maybe I can't call her that anymore. After all, there won't be even a flicker of recognition in her eyes when you say 'Hoshime'."

Minerva lifted her hand to deal the final blow and Mikino closed her eyes. There was a sharp whoosh.

When Mikino opened her eyes, she wasn't in some white place with pearly gates. A dark figure stood in front of her, the remnants of shadow dragon slaying magic evident.

"Hello, Minerva."

Tell me what you guys think of this new chapter! Who do you think was the one who saved Mikino? (Hehehe gosh I wonder who)

Also, is anybody interested in giving Rogue a love interest? (coughMikinocough) Tell me your thoughts on it!

This is probably one of the last couple of chapters. So maybe…2 more? I didn't really expect to end it so suddenly without telling you guys but I feel like this fic has almost run its course. So, until next chapter!

P.S. There might be some more info about Mikino and her mysterious sister Hoshime next chapter!