I am finally back! Please excuse the delay but here it is *drum roll* the final chapter to my wonderful story. Please R&R and I shall see you at the bottom of the page.
POV: Lucy, Natsu, Narrator
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail
I can't believe I said those things.
As horribly true those words were I still can't believe that I said those things to my grandfather. Thinking back on it now I'm not all too sure how I really feel at the moment. All the anger and frustration from before has drained out of me leaving me feeling cold and empty. I'm numb to any and all feelings around me.
Even the cold winds that whip around me don't bother me anymore and my breathing, which should be quick and panting from my previous running, is now slow and calm. My eyes are trained on the snow that has somehow already reached almost an inch above the frozen floor. It's still snowing hard and the small flurries that land on me have stopped melting and now coat me in its fine cool blanket like a hug trying to comfort me.
My feet hurt from all of the walking I have been doing along with all of my previous running. I don't even know how much time has passed since I left Kardia Cathedra. Was everyone looking for me again, or did my words hurt them enough to leave me alone? The question has an image of Natsu popping up in my head but I quickly push it down not wanting to think about him right now. My aching heart couldn't possibly take any more heartbreak at the moment.
Before long, I notice that I seem to be trudging uphill and I look in time to find the grove of sakura trees that Loke had brought me to not that long ago. Thinking of Loke leaves me feeling a bit worse as I stop halfway up the hill and just stare at the spot where I would spend my time with the orange haired male. There was also that time Natsu had found me in the cold only a few days ago, but now those peaceful moments feel as if they happened a lifetime ago.
"Why did this have to happen?" I ask no one in particular as a small gust of wind sweeps up around me giving me an unheard answer.
A chill runs up my spine then as a pair of long cold hands wraps around my shoulders and a face leans in close to my ear whispering, "That's the question we all ask princess," I jump away staring down at Erigor's smug expression, "You're not the only one who has suffered by being a poltergeist. The rest of us have gone through our own trial and tribulations as well while living constantly in fear of being killed by those so called hunters," he says as he leans on his scythe while looking at me from under the brim of his hooded cloak causing him to look like a vengeful Grim Reaper.
"That has nothing to do with me," I say feeling far too drained to actually argue.
"It has everything to do with you, didn't Kageyama tell you that?" he asks and I shake my head. Kageyama only told me the specifics of what our kind are, but he never really explained to me what Eisenwald was so intent of getting me.
"What is it you want?" I ask skeptically, "Why is it so important for you to get your hands on me?"
"Revenge," Erigor whispers while leaning towards me, "We want revenge on those Fairy Tail Flies along with all the other hunters within Fiore's borders. We want to hunt them down like they've been hunting us and I'm certain that with your help we can accomplish our goal. They will all finally pay for everything that they've done to us… to you."
Murmurs from around us have me noticing that a circle of Eisenwald members has surrounded us in a tight circle. I look around at the somewhat familiar faces and notice that the number of members has dropped considerably. They all stare at me with emotionless expressions that look dark and desolate through the falling snow.
"You want me to fight against my own family," I ask, my voice barely audible through the now howling wind.
I look over at Erigor who shakes his head slowly causing some of the snow piled over the hood of his cloak to fall, "No, not your family," he says, his voice a little louder than before, "Revenge will be cast onto those who hurt and lied to you. Those who caused your heart to hammer with fear and made you shed unwanted tears. Those who say they love you but will ultimately betray you in the cruelest way possible," Erigor points out into the distance as he continues with a fiery passion, "Those who you call family are nothing but frauds who won't think twice about taking your life. Look at what had happened to your mother and the lies that came after her death. If your grandfather didn't think twice of murdering her do you think he'll think twice of killing you?"
Looking away, I can feel the truth of his words hitting me fiercely. He was right.
"Join us Lucy, and together we'll get our revenge on those flies!"
Erigor extends his pale hand out towards me with clear invitation and for a split second I'm almost convinced by his angry words to accept his request. I even begin to reach out towards his hand when an image of Kageyama's face pops in my mind and I begin to retract my hand.
If I were to accept Erigor's request all the pain he made me go through would have gone forgiven and Kageyama's sacrifice would be in vain. Kageyama had known all of what Erigor has just told me, and in the end he found it in him to keep me away from it. He had taken the wrong path after losing his beloved and he probably didn't wish for me to fall down the same cruel path. If I followed Erigor and the rest of the Eisenwald members it would be as if I were turning back on my promise to Kageyama. I also think of Igneel and how he seemed to continue to take care of Natsu from behind the shadows even when the teen himself kept on trying to kill him.
Standing my ground, I look up and stare into Erigor's cold eyes feeling determination run through me giving me courage, "I can't do that," I say after a few beats of silence, "Even if they have hurt me, dead or alive they're still my family and I'm willing to protect them even if they won't protect me in return. I won't go with you and that's my final decision so leave me alone."
With the lightning speed, Erigor's scythe is once again pointed towards my neck while a coil of thick black ribbons tie themselves around me entrapping me in place, "Like I said before princess, you don't have that luxury. You're coming with us one way or another."
"You can't force me to do anything against my will," I growl as I fight against my binds causing the older man's menacing smile to widen.
"On the contrary, we have our own means to make you follow along our plan without your say. You'll soon find our methods of persuasion to be quite the thing," he laughs mockingly, "You'll be working willingly with us in no time at all."
"I'd rather die than work with the likes of you," I spit earning an approving gleam from the white haired male.
"All in due time my dear." He straightens up and turns around to walk off while growling, "Let's go," to the quiet members of his group as I'm picked up and thrown over a shoulder like a sac of potatoes.
Was this really going to happen to me again?
"LUCY!"
Just as the man holding me on his shoulder starts to walk, I hear my name being called out from somewhere nearby. I look up in time to see a dark shadow falling from above us hitting the man under me with a powerful blow that has me flying in the air helplessly. The binds holding me down disappear as I flail my arms out watching as the ground under me comes rushing towards me at amazing speed.
Before I know it a pair of warm arms catch me before I hit the ground and I look up in time to stare into a pair of warm amber eyes, "Caught ya," comes a dark husky voice that I'd know anywhere and it takes all of my will power to keep myself from crying again.
"Natsu," I whisper as I stare up at him feeling the crushing guilt of my previous words weighing down on me, "Natsu I'm…"
"No," he cuts me off with a stern tone, "Don't be sorry for what you said at the church because none of it was your fault. It's my fault Luce, my fault that I couldn't protect you no matter how much I tried. Forgive me Luce," he then whispers while clutching me closer and planting a soft kiss on my forehead.
"Don't make me sick," comes a dark voice not too far off and we both look up to watch Erigor standing only a few feet away, scythe ready to be used, "We didn't come this far just to lose her to the likes of you," Erigor snarls, his dark eyes glowing beneath the winter darkness.
"Funny," Natsu says while placing me down on my feet and reaching behind him, "I was just thinking the same thing."
Without warning, Natsu pulls out a pistol and shoots several times where Erigor is standing while hugging me close to him. I look over where the bullets are sure to hit, but Erigor was able to deflect the bullets with just the swipe of his scythe. He then jumps in the air and falls towards us with his scythe raised above his head ready to strike us down.
Natsu clutches me close and jumps out of the way just as Erigor's scythe crashes into the spot we had been previously standing. This causes the white haired male to growl angrily and soon enough there are other figures jumping in to attack us. The sudden attack hardly gives Natsu any time to shoot at them leaving him only capable of jumping away from the attacks directed at us.
"There's too many of them," Natsu then groans while jumping out of the way of another attack, "At this rate neither of us will get out of here in one piece."
He shoots a few more rounds before once again jumping out of the way. Not once does he loosen his grip on me and before we know it we're at the top of the hill in front of the tree I have somewhat called my own.
Looking around us, we're once again surrounded and all Natsu has been able to do is slightly wound only a few members without actually getting in any critical hits. Erigor, especially, seems to be untouched as he watches from only a few feet away with a victorious smile playing on his face. Does this really mean we have no hope?
"HEADS UP!"
Before I have time to look up and find where that voice came from, Natsu pulls me tightly against him while holding my head as something explodes behind me. Natsu's scarf covers my face and I can feel the warmth radiate off of it and onto my cold face as chunks of snow hit my back. I can hear more gunshots behind me erupt as I look up in time to catch Natsu's disbelieving face.
"Who is it," I ask while trying to loosen myself from his tight hold.
"I-I'm not sure," he says while following whoever it was with wide eyes, "I think they might be from another association," he then whispers more to himself than to me.
I turn my head as far as I can to find what seems like three figures fighting off members from Eisenwald. They're all dressed in black making it hard to see any specific features, but from what I can tell is that they're on our side. Mostly because they haven't tried coming after us as of yet.
"Watch out!"
Natsu spins us around in time to catch one of the new mysterious guys taking out a member who tried to attack us from behind. I recognize the man to be the one who had been holding me down back at the school, the one who could somehow teleport through the ground. I watch as his attacker produces a thin long spear and, ignoring the man's pleading, continues to drive the spear into the man's back silencing him immediately. It isn't long before that man vanishes completely and our savior looks up with a cocky grin and familiar blonde hair.
"YOU?!" both Natsu and I exclaim at the same time while pointing at the cocky looking teen whose smile only broadens at our recognition of him.
"You're the boy that pushed Lucy down the stairs," Natsu snarls while already starting to push me behind him.
"For the last time, I didn't push her down the stairs," The boy responds back with his own angry tone, "Like I said before, she came out of nowhere and I crashed into her, thus sending her plummeting down the stairs."
"Should you guys really be bickering at a time like this," Another male with dark raven hair asks without really looking at us before jumping back into his previous fight.
"Shut up Rogue," the blonde boy yells before clutching his spear and glaring back down at Natsu, "You know, you should be more grateful that we came to cover your worthless ass," he says, regaining his arrogant air, "If it weren't for us you'd probably be dead."
"Why you…" before Natsu could continue, the blonde mail jumps back into the fray without another word, "Damn, I hate those bastards from Sabretooth," Natsu growls, his hands clenched into tight fists at his side, "How could I not have noticed that they were hiding over at Fairy Tail?"
Looking over at the fighting, I watch three figures instead of two fighting off the members of Eisenwald and I begin to wonder who that third person is. Natsu is still standing in front of me making it hard to see the third person clearly. That doesn't stop me from seeing two large figures falling from the sky right towards us. I don't have time to warn Natsu before both figures land on either side of us startling the pink haired teen.
It doesn't take long for me to recognize the two males as both Gildarts Clive and… Igneel?!
"Sorry we're late," Gildarts says with a cheeky smile, "Took a long time tracking down this bozo and turning him human again."
Gildarts slaps Igneel's back making the rosy haired male shoot him a dirty look, "Hey, you already know my reasons," he says before looking back towards us.
His eyes land immediately on me and for a split second I see that recognizable worried look he had given me before the elevator closed between us back at the hospital. He's the only person, other than Eisenwald, that knows of my true nature, and now that he's a human again that makes him all the more dangerous than before. If he revealed to Natsu the truth now… what would happen then?
Igneel's eyes don't stay on me long before shifting over down towards his son who hasn't seemed to stop staring at him. I grab onto his arm in case he tried to do something stupid, it wouldn't really surprise me, and I instantly feel him shaking all over. It doesn't take much for me to realize that it has nothing to do with the cold.
"Dad…" Natsu starts, but doesn't seem able to continue as Igneel ruffles Natsu's hair with his large hand and casting a warm and caring smile down at the boy.
"We'll have time for happy reunions later kid," Igneel says before retracting his hand and pulling out a gun of his own, "In the meantime you keep an eye on the pretty young lady you've got there."
Without another word, both Igneel and Gildarts jump into the fight leaving us both behind. I watch the fight continue as I grab hold of Natsu's shaking fist and slowly open his hand enough so that I could weave my fingers through his. We stand there in silence with the wind whipping around us in smooth caresses. It's almost as if we were watching a movie that could do us no harm, but we weren't watching a movie and if we didn't act soon we'd probably get attacked soon.
"We should go," Natsu finally says while gently pulling on my arm so that I could look at him, "We'll be in the way if we stay."
I want to complain, but he's right we'll just be in the way if we do stay. Even then I can't help but want to pull back and insist we stay, or at least for Natsu to stay and help them. He wouldn't leave me behind that much I know, but I still don't think that he should walk away now. Especially now that he just got his dad back.
"Natsu…" my words drift off as Natsu continues to tug on my arm to follow him. He looks back at me then with a very conflicted expression on his face. He doesn't want to go, "We can't go," I say stubbornly while letting go of his hand, "We can't leave them."
"We have to get you somewhere safe," He insists while pulling me a little harder which causes me to stumble a bit forward.
"No," I insist while yanking my hand away from his, "Don't you see, there is no where I can be safe as long as these creeps keep chasing me," I say while taking a few steps back, "Even if we run now they'll just come after me again and hurt even more people."
"Luce…"
Grabbing a hold of his face with both my hands, I force him to look me straight in the eye so that he knows how serious I am, "I have to stop running Natsu," I whisper before removing my hand from his face and taking his hand in mine, "We both have to stop running from what scares us."
Sighing heavily, Natsu nods and slowly pulls out something from his jacket, "You're just as stubborn as me," he mutters before taking my hand and wrapping my fingers around the hilt of a small dagger, "Stay by the tree and if you see anyone coming our way just tell me," he says before letting go of my hand and reloading his gun, "Whatever you do don't step away from the tree," and with that I run until I reach the tree I've claimed as my own.
I stand just behind the tree to keep me a bit hidden as I watch the others fight just a few meters away. The exchange between the hunters and the poltergeist is appalling, mostly because it seems that the hunters have a great disadvantage since the poltergeists can use magic. Even then I've noticed that both Gildarts and Igneel have taken out a few members of the enemy.
As I continue to watch, the third member from Sabretooth lands a few feet away after dodging an attack. My heart leaps so hard in my chest leaving me unable to breathe properly as I watch Yukino shoot at the Eisenwald member dressed in Egyptian styled clothing. The same one who had captured me at Kardia Cathedra the first time I met Eisenwald.
He blocks her bullets with his black ribbons that seem to stream from black tattoos that he has on his fingers. He also attacks her with those same ribbons but she holds down her own by jumping out of the way and landing close enough to punch the man hard in the stomach before pressing her gun to his chest and pulling the trigger. The man snarls something at her before disappearing and for a few seconds she stands staring at the spot he disappeared before jumping out of the way from another attack.
The other two Sabaretooth members make easy work of the members of Eisenwald doing a tag team combination. Even Gildarts and Igneel seem to have made sport of the situation by counting down their kills and this somewhat bothers me. Natsu, unlike the others, shoots at random from where he's kept his ground near the edge of the hill. On occasion he looks over my way to make sure that I'm fine before continuing to shoot. As I watch I realize that Erigor is nowhere to be found.
When Natsu looks at me again his eyes widen and he points his gun at me while yelling out my name. For a split second I feel like we're back in the alley with his gun pointed at Erza's head. He yells out my name before shooting three times in my direction causing me to hug the tree thinking that he was shooting at me. Thankfully none of the bullets even touch me as I hear a heavy thud behind me.
Gasping, I turn and find Erigor on the ground just behind me, his dark lifeless eyes trained on me with a listless smile on his pale face. He chuckles darkly when I fully turn around to face him as I press my back against the tree while panting from the shock I've just received.
"So close," he mutters while groaning as he presses his hand on the bullet wound right where his heart should be.
"You were never going to succeed," I whisper back unable to raise my voice any more than that.
"Perhaps, but you can't escape it Lucy, no matter how hard you try. Fate will one day catch up with you just like it did us," he coughs and I notice that he's disappearing, the snow already beginning to be visible through him.
"Wait!" I cry before falling to my feet as a thought crosses my mind, "You were always certain that I had died, but when exactly was that? When was it that this happened to me?" I ask desperately.
Erigor, with knowledge swimming through his dark eyes, says in the coldest voice I've ever heard, "Remember Hargeon five years ago," and with those final words he's gone.
After I shoot at Erigor, who had started to sneak up behind Lucy, I rushed towards them as fast as I could while evading a few attacks sent my way. It doesn't take long for me to reach them and when I'm only a few feet away I barely hear Erigor say, "Remember Hargeon five years ago," making me pause in my tracks.
What did he mean when he said that?
Lucy looks up in time to see Natsu watching her from where she's kneeling beside the spot Erigor had disappeared from. She slowly stands, eyes weary as she watches him for any signs of him having heard her conversation with the white haired man.
"Luce," He whispers while opening his arms in a warm invitation, "It's over, there's nothing for you to fear. Eisenwald is gone."
Those words could not have been more relieving for the blonde to hear. She was finally free from these monsters and that was enough to have her crashing into the pink haired teens arms, tears of joy flowing down her cold cheeks. Natsu hugs her back after taking the dagger from her hand, arms tight around her shaking frame, as Erigor's words begin to flow through her head.
Pieces of broken memories begin to slowly connect and soon those strange dreams she had been having suddenly begin to make sense. All along she had remembered, but had never realized the truth until now. Now she knew truth, all of it, and somehow it didn't bother her all that much in knowing what she was.
Maybe it was fate that had all of these events take place.
Maybe it was supposed to happen this way.
Maybe now things would be better.
Maybe…
Looking up, Lucy stares into Natsu's eyes with a confused look on her face, but his eyes are a dull amber. She pulls away from him, as far as his hold on her will allow, before slowly looking down at her chest. At first there is nothing, but soon a red begins to bloom through her clothing like an opening flower. She gasps at the sight and tips to the side feeling the world spin in dizzying circles. Natsu catches her before she falls, but even he doesn't feel strong enough to stay upright as they both fall to the ground. Not once does the rosy haired male let go of the dying girl.
"W-Why," She finally asks, her voice a listless whisper barely audible through the soft wind blowing as Natsu cradles her in his shaking arms. Fresh tears stream down her face as she stares up at the boy completely confused by his sudden actions.
His face is hidden beneath the shadow of his hair and his mouth is covered by his pristine scarf, but even then she doesn't fail to notice the tears streaming down his cheeks. His heart, which beats erratically beside her ear, drowns out any noise that surrounds them as she continues to wait for his answer. His arms then shift under her as he admits the thing she had hoped would never leave his mouth, "Because you're one of them."
Suddenly Kageyama's words surge into her head ringing like the warning bells she was now so used to.
"It's his job Lucy."
"It doesn't matter who the person is, they'll kill you without a second thought once they find out that you're one of us."
She now understood that he had been right, and that what she had hoped for was nothing more than a childish wish.
In a swift movement, Natsu pulls out the dagger from Lucy's back making her cry out in pain. He hugs her close when she thrashes from the pain as he throws the blade away from them before pulling Lucy closer to him with both arms.
She's starting to disappear and for once since arriving to Magnolia Lucy felt completely at peace, she felt safe, but most of all she felt that she no longer needed to fear a thing. She was glad that it was Natsu who did it, even if she had dreaded it before. Somehow it left a good feeling dying in the arms of the one she truly loved, even when it broke them instead. Either way, she understood why he did what he did and she didn't blame him for anything.
With the last of her strength, Lucy lifts her hand and cups Natsu's warm cheek with her cold one forcing the boy to look at her. Tears stream through her fading fingers as she pulls herself up and whispers something into his ear before entrapping his lips with hers silencing the boy from any words he was about to say.
Not too long after she's gone leaving his arms and heart empty.
"Natsu…"
A voice behind him, filled with worry and sympathy, calls him. He stands from his spot on the ground, hands and clothing covered in her blood, and stares at the spot his beloved had been not many moments ago. Red stains the pure white snow beneath the tree he knew was hers. It is now the only proof that she had been here at all, and soon even that would disappear. She'd be the phantom she was and would disappear completely from the memories of those who loved her dearly. Those who knew nothing of the secrets he helped to keep buried would never remember the name Lucy Heartfelia. She's just be known as the deceased granddaughter of Makarov Dreyar who died five years ago in an accident at Hargeon.
Warmth from a heavy hand envelops his shoulder and it is at that moment that for the first time in his life that he feels cold. Even the scarf wrapped around his neck is as cold as a block of ice making it now almost unbearable to wear. He keeps it on because she had also worn this piece of cloth not too long ago.
Igneel squeezes his son's shoulder encouragingly knowing all too well how it feels to take the life of the woman you loved with your entire being. I guess you could say it was a family curse to lose the woman you love, but his son was still too young to have to go through those hardships. The boy was still only seventeen for crying out loud.
"You knew, didn't you," Natsu asks, his voice lifeless and cold making the older Dragneel wince. Yes, he knew that Lucy was a poltergeist. She had told him herself just before the elevator doors closed between them, but how could he explain that to his hard headed son?
"Since I first saw her in the hospital when she got here," a feminine voice says from the cold causing the older Dragneel and the three other companions to look at the white haired female in surprise. From what Gildarts had told him while they were fighting the Eisenwald members, that girl was a relative of the now deceased girl.
Natsu nods, not uttering another word, as he continues to stare down at the frozen ground below him. Igneel's heart could take no more of seeing his son look so empty and with his large arms pulls in the boy who hugs him back with as much force, if not more. He's gotten stronger since the last time they embraced.
"It's not fair dad!" Natsu finally wails, sobs pouring out of him in the same speed as his tears.
"What's not fair," Igneel asks, knowing all too well the answer.
"It's not fair that I had to lose someone I love in order to gain someone I lost," He yells angrily and for a moment this makes the older man wish he hadn't allowed Gildarts to turn him back into a human, but of course he knows that this outcome was inevitable and all he could do now was hold his breaking son.
Keeping his hold on his boy, Igneel begins to lead everyone away from the dreadful scene that would now haunt their very hearts.
Nothing but the sound of the wind, Natsu's sobs, and Lucy's last words fill the younger Dragneel's ears.
"Thanks for catching me, Natsu."
Well my lovely readers, that was the final chapter. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it and I hope to see you all in my upcoming works.
Shout Outs
Great thanks to my Fantastic Favorites...
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To my Fabulous Followers...
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And to my Fantabulous Reviewers...
- ScarletRoseAngel = I'm so happy to hear that! I can't wait to hear from you again in my future work.
- blazingpyro606 = Thank you very much.
- FDsecretart = I understand you completely.
- MeGustaZeref = I hope it was to your liking.
- Splendora Lopez = I haven't read or watched Haikyuu but I'll definitely check it out when I get the chance. Also, thank you for your wonderful support.
- Snavej = I know right! Too bad he somewhat failed...
- Reaper3698 = Thank you, and I am truly sorry...
- HazelDragonNora = Hey there. Wh-What you gonna do with that duck tape? I-I Umm... I probably should start running...
- Guest/RandomPandaLover = I'm sad that it has ended as well. I have worked on this story for a year and it's just so hard to say goodbye to. I will write more stories, I can promise you that and thank you so much. It means a lot when people compliment my work. P.s. I totally almost made another S/O to your second review right now -_-'
- fanficlovee2014 = Yes, she was a poltergeist like Lucy and that is why they attacked her. I'm also glad you liked the chapter. As for the ending...
- Saranau34 = I am considering making this into a book. I'd change it a bit of course like the title and the character's name, but hopefully I can get it published one day. Also, I would never start a story and just never finish it. I have had the same thing happen to me where I read a story and they just never update again and I promised myself that I would never do that to my readers. I might delay updates, but I'd never just stop without a reason. I was close to giving up on this story because of the lack of inspiration, but because of my wonderful readers like you I kept on updating. I solemnly swear that any story I start up I will finish it one way or another. I also hope to hear from you in my upcoming work and thank you so much for your support. Your words have been heard loud and clear and they will not be taken for granted.
- ddrockdoesfanfic = Thank you so much. It fills my heart to hear that you enjoy my story so much.
Well that's all the shout outs for today.
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Until next time my lovelies.