Hey guys! Sorry it's been so long since I last updated. I've been really busy with work and everything.
Just a warning: The FEELS will be so REAL in this chapter! I even started tearing up as I wrote it.
Another warning: I started writing another fanfiction. It's another NALU, but it's more intense than this story. I haven't posted it yet, but be on the look out for it! It'll be called "The Bounty." I might be writing both at the same time, because this one will be coming to an end soon :(
PLEASE REVIEW!
Nashi's POV
Flashback
"Papa, catch me!" I boldly shouted, launching myself without warning off the edge of the building. Mama began shrieking in fear, but without fail, Papa was underneath me, cradling me in his arms just before we crumbled to the ground in relief.
Papa sighed heavily as I sat up on his chest. He looked almost pained, but it was probably because it was my fourth disappearance and jump this afternoon alone. I knew he was getting tired of this game, but I loved how he always saved me! Of course, even if he wasn't there, I would be fine. Hurt and sore but perfectly fine.
"Nashi!" Mama yelled as she offered me her hand. I let her help me to my feet and laughed at the disheveled Papa underneath me. Mama snapped my attention quickly to her though when she started chastising me for being reckless and needing to be careful. I pursed my lips and looked away. She helped Papa back up, brushing off the dirt from his clothes.
"Aww, Luce," he said, sensing my soured mood. "It's okay to be a little rebellious now and again!" Rough hands ruffled my pink locks, and I swatted his hand away. He laughed at my puny attempts. I growled threatening at him, giving him a small warning. His eyes sharpened, and the challenge was on. I lunged at him, and we started wrestling.
Mama appeared completely deflated and shook her head, but a small, content smile played on her lips. "What am I going to do with you two?"
Mama's calm hands brushed gently through my hair, combing out the knots from the earlier scuffle with Jay at the guild. That boy was always testing my nerves, and since I was my Papa's child, I had to teach him a lesson. Of course, it ended too soon when Scarlet intervened. She tried to separate us, but then the twins started up again. We used it as a distraction, and Jay and I snuck away from the prodding eyes of the guild.
We sat on the rooftop, gazing at the fiery horizon until it was chased away by the icy moon. No one knew yet about our blooming relationship, and neither did we at the time. Jay was always teasing about being in love with me, but I never understood the depth of his feelings until he grabbed my hand and looked me deep in the eyes and told me why I was so special to him.
My cheeks were so hot, I thought I had lost control of my magic again, and my heart was pounding loudly in my chest for unknown reasons. He asked to kiss me, and I did the only logical thing I could. I ran away. I wasn't about to kiss a boy who made me feel so queasy and light and hot and weird all at once! It didn't make sense! But…what if it was because I maybe liked him back?
"Mama," I pondered, "what is it like to love someone?"
"Oh?" she wondered, her hands hesitating for a brief moment. In the mirror, I could see her sneaky smile, and my cheeks felt hot even before she asked: "Would this have anything to do with a certain ice mage?"
"N-no!" I protested too quickly. My eyes shot to the side of the mirror where I could see a reflection of Papa snoozing on the couch. With my dragon hearing, I could tell he was still dead to the world, and I sighed in relief. This was one conversation I didn't want him to hear. Mama gave me a knowing smile and waited patiently for me to explain. Guess there was no denying it now… "Well, maybe. I'm not really sure yet."
She giggled and resumed combing my hair. "It's okay to not completely understand your feelings. Love is very confusing, but it's very magical also."
"It is?" I asked, perked up by the idea of learning another magic.
Mama only laughed, guessing my line of thought. "Not like that exactly. It's very strong, but it's more than just power. It's beautiful and wonderful. It changes people for the better, and no matter what, it's the one thing that no one can ever take away from you."
My eyes could only see her serious expression, but I could read so much pain hidden within her that she was not ready to reveal. I didn't know why she was suddenly so sad, but I couldn't take the agony anymore. My hands stopped hers, and I hugged her tightly. She was shocked at first, but returned the embrace softly. She kissed the top of my hair just as I told her how much I loved her.
"To the stars and beyond!" I promised.
Mama quivered in my arms, and though I couldn't see the tears, I could smell them. "And then to the heavens and back again."
"Again!" Papa demanded, throwing another rock the size of Happy at me.
I shuddered from the physical exhaustion, my breath ragged, but I forced my body to keep moving. We had already been through the same drill a thousand times, but it was never enough. I had to keep going, had to keep pushing my limits. How else was I going to get stronger? How else was I going to protect the guild?
I dodged the rock, cursing and shouting when an enemy attacked from my left. It was Loke, pretending to be a member of a dark guild controlled by Morgaina. He wore a dead expression and acted more insane than usual. Mama stood beside Papa with her arms folded, watching anxiously if I could finally pull it off.
Papa flung another rock, and I barely dodged Loke's attacked coupled with the projectile. The rock smashed against a nearby tree, catching Loke's attention, and I used the distraction as an advantage. My fire dragon iron fist attack landed squarely against his jaw, and he was sent flying backwards only to be replaced with Virgo. Her attacks were always the most vicious, but it wouldn't be fun any other way.
I blocked and parried against her the best I could, but I was reaching my physical limit. Good. This is what we had been aiming for. Hopefully this time, I wouldn't fail. At my side dngled a pouch of golden keys that belonged to Mama. Though the spirits had no contract with me, being the daughter of their celestial owner, I still should have some power over them. That was the theory anyways.
Loke and Virgo were both attacking me, and I knew it was either now or never. I ignited my entire body on fire, calling forth my dragon force and opened my magic flow up to absorb more power. Pulling the keys from the pouch, I tossed them into the air where they hovered above me. Loke looked pleased, but I tried to ignore him as I concentrated on opening up my magic channels to fulfill dual magic.
Every mage of the new generation was able to use dual magic. They had to become stronger in this world to survive, but I was the only unable to use both parents' magic. However, today I changed all of that.
"Unison magic!" I shouted as I felt the rush of fire dragon slayer and celestial spirit magic start flowing through my veins. The power lifted me into the air, and I closed my eyes to focus. The magic power was intense, and my already exhausted body was beginning to shake from the force. Light poured out from my skin and fire licked up my sides. The magic was fighting for dominance, and it was always this moment where I failed. I couldn't control them both because they were both so uniquely strong. There was a possibility that I could literally be torn apart, but after five years of intense training, I refused to give in to the fear of failure.
However, my body was telling me the opposite of my heart's will. Underneath my calm demeanor, it felt like there was a raging war between dragons and spirits. One tried claiming its territory while the other fought for it. It was too much. I could feel the fire building inside me, and for once, it was too hot. A piercing scream filled the air, and I knew without any doubt it belonged to me.
A shock of cold flooded through me suddenly, and I collapsed on the ground in a crumpled heap of tears and pain. Golden keys lied beside me in the grass, flickering warm sunlight off its perfect edges. I snarled in frustration and exhaled a heart breaking sob. Mama and Papa were beside me in an instant. Mama's hands were pulling me towards her, and I could just make out her words.
"You pushed her too hard again!"
"She asked to be trained like this!"
"Just because she asks for something ridiculous doesn't mean you agree!"
"Luce, she's just like me, and you know I wouldn't give up without giving it my all."
Mama huffed, and I buried my face in her chest, hiding my leaking eyes. "I-I…I'm s-so sorryyy," I wailed, apologizing for no true reason. I had failed true, but I was only letting myself down, no one else. Mama pulled me away to look at her, and I wiped angrily at my eyes before I met her gaze.
"Don't you ever be sorry for doing your best," she said. "Celestial magic is difficult to handle, and with your powerful dragon slayer magic, it's infinitely more tough. However, that doesn't mean you should look down on yourself for failing. Only when you stop trying will you ever truly fail. And, no matter what, Nashi. I will always love you for being the brave and beautiful girl you are."
She was smiling tenderly at me, her brown eyes welling up with tears. Papa stood close behind her, his hand resting on her shoulder. He gave me a proud grin and pulled us both into a strong hug. Mama squealed, and I laughed, instantly feeling better. I may not be able to use the magic yet, but I was sure with the support of my parents, I'd able to!
"Mama? Papa?"
I wandered down the abandon streets, sniffing the air for their scents. I could just smell the vanilla perfume of Mama and the spice of Papa, but it was faint, blocked out by a thick variation of others. Even though it was eerily quiet, I could still sense a lot of people. It wasn't right, and the hairs on my skin began to stand up with the surmounting fear and anxiety. My feet pounded harder into the pavement with each new wave of panic washing through me.
An explosion finally ended the silence, and the building beside me crumbled into ashes. I leaped through the thick of the smoke, coughing. Dodging the falling debris, I nearly escaped with my life. Where I had stood not a second ago was piles of brick and wood. Launching myself higher, I utilized the rubble to launch myself onto the nearest building. I kept my body low when I finally reached the top because I heard shouting below on the opposite side. Creeping silently, I sensed Papa's magic and heard Mama scream.
What's going on? Morgania wasn't here, that much I could sense, but who were they fighting?
When I reached the roof's edge and peered downwards to the street, I instantly wished I hadn't. A small shriek of terror broke through my mouth, and I had to cover my lips before I attracted attention. But, it was so hard not to panic when I looked at my parents. Mama was fighting with her whip, and I could sense that all of her magic was now gone. Papa was bleeding profusely from the side of his head, and both were littered with scratches and fresh bruises.
Men and women of every shape and size surrounded them for nearly a mile, and I knew then that though they were the most unstoppable team, even they couldn't escape this. Many were thrown aside, shaking off the effects of being burned by Papa. He must have sent them lying back into the building and caused the explosion himself. Both of my parents were struggling to breath, and they shot each other a worried look.
No! I couldn't take this! I couldn't let them die! I tried wrenching myself off the side of the building, but a pair of strong hands dragged me back, away from the street. I tried screaming, but a hand slapped over my mouth. Without turning around, I knew who was holding me, and I cursed Mama because I knew this was her doing.
"Momke…" I mumbled incoherently, jabbing my elbow into his stomach.
Air whooshed from him in a hurry, and I used the opening to wrench away from his grip. However, the lion-man was stronger and faster, and I barely made it to the end of the roof before he tackled me, and he pushed me flat against the roof using his full body weight on top of me. His hand snaked around and covered my mouth again, but this time I was thankful. I didn't know when I started screaming, and I never knew when I truly stopped after watching this.
Papa finally ran out of magic, and he collapsed in a broken heap on the ground. Mama was at his side in an instant, but she didn't help him up. She stayed down with him, and I knew they had both given up. Mama took Papa's face in her hands and kissed him hard and fast. He pulled her into a hug, and whispered in a voice too low for anyone other than a dragon slayer to hear, "I love you."
That was when the mob descended onto them. It was a tangle of cries, metal clashing, and blood. Oh, so much blood running everywhere in the streets. But, just as quickly as it started, it was over, and the crowd soon turned on each other, still in a mad frenzy. Loke pulled me farther away from the sight, and I curled into his body, tears streaming silently down my face. He buried his own eyes in my hair, and we held each other tight until long into the night when the sounds of the people seceded, and nothing was left except the heavy stench of death and the silence of the slaughter.
I didn't have to fight Loke much, when I knew it was safe. I stumbled like a drunk as I slowly descended down, trying not to study one mangled face for too long as I passed the corpses. Once upon a time, I might have known someone, but I didn't want that burden on my heart. Not when it was already barely holding itself together with a single thread. I wasn't sure what I was looking for when I found them. I guess some small part of me had hoped it was all a grand trick like the games we played as kids, and I wanted to believe that they were still alive, still with me somewhere on this earth.
But, when I reached the bodies, everything I knew about love and life seemed to fade away far from my reach. They held hands, even to the end. Their bodies faced each other as if to wish one more sweet good night before their lives flickered out of existence. Eyes closed, and lips partially parted, they appeared to be sleeping. Trembling, I laid down between them, pretending that we were still a family here, hoping that we could sleep together once more like we used to back when I was a child. For a moment, I closed my eyes and prayed that that's where we were, back in the past. I snuck into my parents' room and cuddled between them. Soon, they'd smile and snuggle closer to me. They'd tell me they loved me once more, and we would wake up and this horrible nightmare would be over.
I whispered to darkness surrounding me, "I love you to the stars and beyond..." Then, because I knew there would be no reply, I finished the silly verse in their stead, "And then to the heavens and back again."
That's all this was right? A horrible nightmare? It couldn't be real…Mama and Papa were still with me. We were still a family…still together forever…
Sobs broke through me, and I don't know when it stopped or when I was moved away from the scene. I suspected Loke had opened his own gate and carried me to an empty and broken home. Whoever it was, I woke to more tears at the realization that I was suddenly alone in this world. I cried most of the morning, and when I stopped it was already night. I hadn't eaten anything all day, but I wasn't hungry. I trudged through the house, and nearly lost it again when I passed by my parent's bedroom.
I went into the living room, and on the table sat the leather pouch containing my mother's keys. Anger, hot and uncontrollable, boiled inside me, and I snatched the keys into my hands and chunked them as hard as I could across the room.
"Damn you!" I shouted at the spirits. "Where were you when we needed you?"
I chased after them, only to pick them up and hurl them into the opposite wall, breaking a painting Levy had given Mama. My hands snaked through my hair, and I pulled hard, screaming as I fell to my knees. Fire blasted around me, burning everything within twenty feet.
"Why couldn't I save them? Why am I so pathetic?"
My body was hot and felt ready to explode, but the inferno on my body was chilled over by a thick layer of ice. The sudden loss of magic and lack of energy in general made me weak, and I toppled to the side. Jay suddenly appeared, shouting blurred words at me, but I soon fainted.
My eyes flickered heavily, and I groaned from my aches and pain waking at the same time. The memories of the past always haunted my dreams. In my sleep, it was the one place where I couldn't escape, and every night I had to fight the same heart break. After that night that Jay had found me, he had taken me to the guild where I continued to live with the other orphans like Scarlet, the twins, and Ever. Though I was constantly surrounded by others, I often wandered outside at night, and Loke would join me to look at the stars. It took many years until my depression faded, but it became a ritual of ours. He would tell me about the spirits and how to control them, and sometimes Jay would help me practice. But, no matter how much I tried to control them, I could never control it. However, I still carried Mama's keys with me as a memento.
Even at the ball, I had the keys strapped to my leg underneath my dress. Wait…that's right! The ball! My eyes shot around, finally taking notice of where I was. Mama sometimes used to say I was a dense and slow as Papa, now I kind of understood what she meant. My wrists were shackled above my head to the wall, and powerful runes were etched into the metal to prevent me from using magic to escape. Damn! I pulled against them, testing their strength, but any effort to pull them off would prove futile.
They never stopped me before though. Since I couldn't see anything in the dark cell where the only light source came from a small window about the size of my hand on the cell door, I decided there was nothing to investigate, and I put all my effort into yanking on the chains. Shit, these things were ridiculously strong! Sweat beaded on my skin, and the skin around the shackles began to rub against the metal. Rivulets of blood snaked down my arms, and I bit my lip from crying in pain. After one last tug, I yelled in frustration and sunk to the ground.
That clearly wasn't going to work so I needed another plan of action, but I froze when I heard the sounds of feet marching closer.
"She's this way," a familiar husky voice grunted outside the door. A lock grinded open, and the door swung forward. I squinted against the harsh light, trying to see the men as they approached. One of them I realized early was the man from the festival that I had taken down. Thank goodness I looked different then, or else he probably would kill me. Two more men pooled in after him and started working on my chains. My eyes finally adjusted, and my gaze found a fourth man lingering just outside the door, a bored expression on his face.
I glowered at Thomas and hissed, "Who else have you taken?"
The master of the treasure hunter guild only smirked before he looked at the other bulky man and said, "Mont, if she speaks again, I want you to punish her." He turned on his heel then and disappeared.
Mont smiled at me as if he had one a huge victory. I scowled back just as they goons undid the chains from the wall and started dragging me forward after their master. Mont laughed and crooned, "The poor little dragon slayer is all tied up like a caged rodent." I spit on him, and he back handed me so hard I saw stars. He wiped the saliva off his face and nodded towards the other two. They pulled hard against the chains, and I pitched forward, almost face planting. They dragged me through hallways that reeked of rot.
My head swiveled around as I tried to look for an escape route or take note of anything unique, but every cell was the same. A bright light was lit at the end of the hall, and I knew that was my destination. Fear prickled against my skin, and I broke out with goose bumps. Wherever we were heading, I could sense a strong and dark magic that felt too familiar to me.
Panicking, I yanked the chains connected to my wrists, and the two unsuspecting idiots holding me fell back. One landed flat on his butt, and he jerked around to look at me. I landed a solid kick on him, and he was out before he hit the ground. The other had only stumbled temporarily, and now that he had restored his footing, he pulled back on the chain to make me obey him. I flew towards him, but I head butted him in the stomach, and he dropped the chain and flew back against the wall.
I laughed with victory and spun around to find Mont. His mighty fist landed squarely against my ribs, and I screamed as something inside me crunched. I fell in a broken heap, clutching my side. Mont's hand grabbed the top of my hair, and he lifted me up until our faces were only inches apart. "You're going to regret that you fucking bitch," he seethed.
"Bring it, asshole," I spat back.
His hand connected with my cheek, and I felt my lip split open and blood trickled into my mouth. I didn't even have time to recover before he was dragging me towards the source of the magic again by my hair. He cursed at the two that had fallen and mumbled something about doing the job himself.
My eyes closed, and I concentrated on breathing past the pain in my side. I didn't want to look when we finally reached the room, and Mont tossed me against a wall. I howled in pain and collapsed on the ground. I didn't fight it when he undid the shackles and pulled them away from my wrists. I peeped through my pinched eyes and noticed that the room I was in now was unlike the dungeon place I had been before. In this room, everything was white: the floor, the walls, the ceiling. In my filthy dress, tanned skin, and pink hair, I'm sure I looked just as out of place as Mont. When I looked at him quizzically, I noticed that his expression betrayed his fear. He picked up the chains then and left.
I watched after him, wanting to be anywhere but where I was now. Especially when I heard my mother's voice say, "It's time to start the purging."
Fear gripped every inch of me, and it took every ounce of effort to look towards the source. Mont must have been blocking the view earlier, because there was no way I could have missed the giant, bleached throne taking up most of the room, with Mama, adorned in an old Victorian style crimson dress, sitting upon it. Black eyes that did not belong to her smiled down at me, and I realized that the source of the dark magic—Morgania's magic—had been coming from her.
Holy plot twist batman! What's happened to Lucy? What's going to happen to Nashi? Where is the guild when you need them?
It's all coming up next! Leave a review and tell me what you think will happen, and what you want to see! Spoiler: Next chapter will have a lot of NaLu!