Number 7 didn't find Number 8 in the library. She found Number 10.
"Please?" She rubbed tiredly at her eyes. "All you need to do is find the others and tell them."
"No way. You're the messenger here, not me. Don't be lazy, find them yourself."
With a sigh she gave in. "Do you at least know where they are?"
"Nope," she popped the p sound annoyingly before grinning broadly. "Good luck." With that she wandered off, going away from where the exam room was.
Number 7 groaned. She knew for a fact that Number 10 was going to stall and put off going to Lord Heartfilia till she was the last one. She always did. She'd also probably lie and say she was the last one to know about the exam too. Number 7 knew she should have just ignored her as soon as she figured out that she was talking to Number 10. At least she didn't lie and say she was going to tell them. Then again, Number 7 was expecting her to do that.
She yawned as she, once more, started to search the large building for the other Lucys. Although she knew she should be thorough, whenever she saw a closed door she just couldn't bring herself to open it. Her hands hurt too much and they were starting to look swollen.
It was when she was walking down another seemingly endless hallway that her luck seemed to take a positive turn. Number 7 perked up at seeing a blonde head at the end of the hallway.
"Lucy! Wait up!" Unfortunately the other Lucy didn't seem to hear her. She kept walking. Number 7 huffed and hurried after her. "I said wait!"
"What?" The other Lucy snapped as she turned sharply to face Number 7.
Number 7 winced at her tone. "Number 3?" she guessed. She thought it was a good guess; Number 3 was the crabbiest out of all the Lucys.
The other Lucy scoffed. "Number 10. Get it right."
She blinked in surprise. "Really? Oh, well…did you find any of the others?"
"Why're you looking for them?"
"Lord Heartfilia needs them." Why was Number 10 acting so confused?
"What does he need us for?"
"Didn't I tell you?"
Number 10 cocked an eyebrow. "This is the first time I've seen you since the meeting."
"But…" She told Number 10 about the exam, she knows she did…Unless it wasn't Number 10? But the Lucy in the library said she was Number 10… Maybe Number 7 had been mistaken? Number 10 looked genuinely confused. "Oh, uh well, Lord Heartfilia wants to examine us. He also wants us to fill up a crystal with our magic. I thought I told you?"
"Well you didn't."
"Weren't you in the library?"
"Why would I be in there?"
Number 10 had a point; unlike herself and Number 8, Number 10 avoided books like the plague. "But I thought…Never mind. Could you go to Lord Heartfilia? He's been waiting a while. And if you find any of the others, could you tell them too?"
"Why would I? That's your job."
"But…"
"Don't be lazy, Lord Heartfilia told you to find them yourself. But thanks for telling me, I'll go to Lord Heartfilia…Eventually." With that, Number 10 stalked off, in a direction that wouldn't lead her to Lord Heartfilia's exam room. Leaving Number 7 with the oddest feeling that this had all happened before.
She stood there in the hall for a while, rubbing her eyes and trying to think. She had been positive that the girl in the library had been Number 10. Unless another one lied to her? But there wasn't any reason for them to do that. More than that, she'd acted so much like Number 10 that Number 7 almost hadn't needed to be told her number.
However, she had just met Number 10 who also acted so much like Number 10. Number 7 was too tired to know what to think about that. Maybe she had dreamed the first encounter? She shook her head to clear it. She couldn't pinch herself to wake up; it hurt too much to move her fingers for that, instead she bit her lip as hard as she dared. It didn't really help. All the same she started looking again.
Number 7 ran into Number 10 two more times. Each time the other Lucy had no idea what she was talking about. It was enough to nearly drive Number 7 to tears. It didn't help that she was so tired it felt like she was going cross eyed.
She really did break down crying when she explained herself to Number 10 for the fifth time.
"What's the matter with you?" Even though she was upset, Number 7 could hear laughter in Number 10's voice.
Number 7 hiccupped, "you're- you're doing this on pa-purpose, aren't you?"
"Doing what? Stop being such a crybaby. You said it was just an exam."
"So that's why you were running in circles." A third identical voice spoke up. Number 7 and Number 10 looked to the side to see two more Lucys. One of them had her arms crossed and was scowling at Number 10 while the other held several books and looked indifferent.
"Should have known you were being cruel, 10." The girl with her arms crossed scolded.
"What? I was just having a little fun."
"You made her cry!" The angry one snapped.
Number 10 scoffed and rolled her eyes. "It's not my fault Number 7's a baby…or that she's too stupid to know when she's being tricked."
"I'm not stupid!" Number 7 sniffed. "I'm tired and my hands hurt and Lord Heartfilia's going to be so mad…" She shook her head to get her thoughts back on track, "But I'm not stupid!"
"Whatever," Number 10 scoffed, "this was getting boring anyway." With that she turned and walked away again. "I'll see Lord Heartfilia later."
The other two Lucys turned their attention back to Number 7. The one with the books peered at her hands. "What kind of examination was it? Your hands look irritated." Number 7 wasn't surprised to find that she was Number 8.
"It was normal. And he wanted an egg sample. Then he pulled out these crystals…Larcima?"
"Lacrima." Number 8 corrected.
"Whatever. He wanted me to fill it with as much magic as I could as fast as I could." Number 7 frowned. "I don't think I did too good."
"Well." Number 8 corrected again, "you don't think you did too well."
The other Lucy had a frown on her face as she gently grabbed Number 7's arm. "Hey 8, could you find 3 and tell her about this? I'll go to Lord Heartfilia after I take 7 back to the room."
Number 8 nodded. "I'll see if I can research what kind of Lacrima he's using as well."
The third Lucy chuckled at Number 8's retreating back. "Any reason to be in the library, right?" She turned to Number 7. "Come on, we shouldn't keep Lord Heartfilia waiting any longer."
"Thanks Number…5?" Despite what she'd said earlier, Number 7 felt kind of stupid. There was only five of them; she should have figured out which Lucy was who just from that conversation. But her mind felt sluggish and everything seemed like it was taking longer than it should.
"Anytime 7." They walked in silence for a while. Number 7 was very thankful for Number 5's guiding hands, because even though she walked these halls every day Number 7 would probably have gotten lost on the way to their room. She even almost missed it when Number 5 started talking again. "8 was right though, your hands don't look so good."
"They don't feel so good. I don't think I did it right."
"Did Lord Heartfilia do anything to help?"
"Why would he?"
"Cause you got hurt doing it."
Number 7 was pretty sure Lord Heartfilia didn't care if she got hurt or not. After all, there were four other Lucys around. "Probably cause I did it wrong. I tried to meditate but that didn't work. So then I just pushed as much magic as I could into it. I don't think that was right."
Number 5 nodded. "Okay, I'll try to think of a better way. Maybe it's like Miss Layla's keys?"
Number 7 blinked in surprise. "I didn't think of that," she should have though. "But I didn't think the…ah…crystal thing had magic. I didn't check." It would have been easier if she had. If the crystal had its own magic then she could have just made a bridge between its magic and her own rather than forcing hers into it. Like breaking through a wall when there was an open door.
"I'll check and let the others know." They paused at the door to let Number 5 open it; Number 7 could barely keep her eyes open, much less open a door. As it was, in those few seconds without Number 5 supporting her, it had felt like she was going to fall to the floor at any moment. "I'll bandage your hands up before I go, okay?"
"I don't care. I just want to sleep."
"Alright, I'll see you when you wake up then."
"Kay."