Chapter 7: The Tower of Heaven
Underneath the flame stands Natsu. 'Is it normal to go shooting people in the mouth?! That hurts! Somebody could get hurt really bad!'
He's nearly screaming, making my ears ring and reminding me of why I don't like him. If Mirajane only knew.
Next to me Lucy mumbles something about normal people being dead after being shot in the mouth. But not Natsu.
Looking at her face, it seems I had nothing to worry about when it comes to Lucy's relationship with Natsu. She's clearly glad he's fine, but slightly annoyed by his yelling as well.
'That damn blockhead!' Natsu screams then, and next we know he's running off, leaving a cloud of dust behind.
He's said nothing about me being here, or Juvia. I bet he hasn't even noticed we're around.
Lucy shakes her head, but Gray, somehow, is amused. 'He's probably on to something. He's got a nose that puts animals to shame.'
Before I know it Lucy turns to me. 'You too, right?'
Gray's eyes are suddenly on me again and I am not prepared. I look at the ground and mumble something about mine not being as good as Natsu's. Which is probably true; I get overstimulated pretty easily.
'Well, we can use all the help we can get, right?' Lucy says, way too cheery for my taste, but I appreciate the effort.
'Right,' Gray says, 'we should probably tell the army about what happened here, and then track down that idiot, see what he finds. Can you do that, Rain?'
I feel like throwing up the muffin I had earlier when he says my name, but I manage to keep it in. 'Yeah, probably.'
He actually remembered my name.
Before I know it, we're all on a rowboat heading for some stinky place. I'm not kidding; the wind carries the most awful smell of ashes and rotting fruit, it makes me want to yack. Natsu is bent over the side trying to beat motion sickness, and I almost feel like joining him.
But Lucy already thinks I'm a Dragon Slayer and I don't want her to have high hopes for me. Although I don't want her to think I'm useless either. I'm just not a Natsu. I have spells that slow down time for a bit, and spells that make it rain in one place at a time, and spells that smell like farts, but they're all for distraction. My magic involves a lot of supporting others. Mostly Misty.
The spellbook currently rests on my lap. I left my bag and other things behind at a hotel for safekeeping, back on the main land.
While I'm focussing on not throwing up, Lucy and Gray try to understand the situation. I'm staring at the flock of pink birds in the sky above us and don't pay much attention, until Juvia asks a stupid question: 'But how did a wizard as powerful as Erza get captured?'
I've wondered that myself, but I know well enough to not say it out loud. I try not to smile as I see Gray's face transforming into a mask of anger.
'She wasn't defeated!' he spits at her. 'You don't know a damn thing about Erza!'
Juvia mutters an apology, and Lucy in turn scolds Gray for getting angry.
I've always wondered what Gray found so amazing about Erza. I've never talked to her myself, only watched from a distance. Sure, she is powerful, and a good warrior, but she's not supersmart. I've never seen her read a book, for example. And she beats up Gray and Natsu whenever she likes. And I've always felt a little strange around her, because Misty avoids her like the plague for some reason.
But I don't mean to judge too harshly, because Misty doesn't always make the right calls. If Gray likes Erza, there must be something about her worth getting to know.
The atmosphere aboard has turned sour. Both Lucy and Gray seem pretty down and worried about Erza. If it's true what Gray says and she wasn't defeated, there must be some other reason she got captured.
'Maybe she knew the people who took her,' I say aloud. Gray doesn't like the idea, but Lucy nods sadly.
'I did hear them say they were her old friends.' She looks at her hand, which rests on a lacrima that's making our boat move forward. 'I guess we really don't know anything about Erza.'
Erza does strike me as the kind of person that keeps to herself, despite her friendships. She's kind of a loner, like Misty. Well, I guess Misty had me around.
I squeeze my own leg, warning myself to stop thinking about him. The team is done and he left, so he must be fine with it. Why can't I?
All of a sudden, the awful smell becomes even worse, causing me to cough. Lucy places a hand on my shoulder in worry. 'Are you OK?'
Next, Natsu is miraculously back on his feet.
'Something smells dangerous,' he says ominously.
One disturbing thing after another happens. The birds that were flying above us the whole time suddenly fall from the sky, the boat bumps into a school of dead fish. The wreckage of a Fiore warship passes by.
And among the confusion, all I can think is: this is delicious.
Next, everything's dark.
'Hey!' I hear Lucy say from far away.
I blink and next I see Gray. I'm lying down flat on the bottom of the boat, my head resting in Lucy's lap. And Gray's above me. I must've fainted.
'You need to breathe,' Gray says, which doesn't help at all. Him hovering right there makes breathing harder, and it's really stupid advice as breathing in more of the disgusting/delicious air makes all this worse.
I feel something wet on my face and bring my hand to my nose. When I pull away again, there's blood.
Great. I have a nosebleed. While Gray is bent over me.
I grab the bottom of my blouse and pull, but all the strength has left.
'What are you doing?' Gray asks.
I faintly hear Juvia snicker. 'She's undressing, can't you see?'
It makes me so embarrassed I want to cry. 'N-no, I just…my nose.'
I thank the heavens when Lucy seems to understand. She helps me rip off a piece of my shirt and makes two equal balls of fabric to plug my nostrils with. It doesn't keep the awful smell out completely, but it's doable now.
Slowly but surely, my mind starts to clear. Lucy helps me sit up.
'What is going on?' Gray asks.
I think about my words carefully. I don't want to appear weak in front of him. 'I'm fine, just a little motion sick.'
'I'll say,' says Natsu, his face still a little green.
'It didn't look like that,' Lucy says, placing a hand on my forehead as if to check if I have a fever. I guess she finally decided I'm not a dragon slayer. 'Maybe you should take it easy.'
I push her hand away. 'I said I'm fine.'
It comes out snappier than intended, even with my voice sounding weird while my nose is blocked, but it's already too late to apologize. I stand up to hopefully show the others I can still fight. Before anyone can say anything else, I point to the island we're nearing. 'What's that?'
Lucy looks at me strangely, almost disapprovingly, but does answer. 'The Tower of Heaven. At least, that's what Erza called it.'
She sits down again next to the lacrima and the boat continues on towards the island.
I then hear Juvia's voice. 'Water dome!'
A bubble of water surrounds the boat, so thick the sun barely shines through.
Gray turns to Juvia. 'Good call. Better to arrive unnoticed.'
Her cheeks flush with a dark blue. I feel anger rise, but I don't look the least bit threatening with two pieces of fabric hanging from my nose.
Gray then looks at me. 'Maybe Lucy's right. You should take it easy.'
I don't know how to respond. This was not how things were supposed to go.
'Look, I appreciate you coming all the way over here for...a quest,' he continues, and for a moment I'm thinking he means my personal quest. But I haven't told him yet, so there's no way he knows. 'But I think it's best if you go home now. I'm not sure what we'll find on that island, but I'm pretty certain there's going to be a fight. In your condition, you'll just be in the way.'
I can't believe this is actually happening. After months of thinking he has no idea who I am, doesn't know my name and will never notice me because I'm a weak mage, it turns out he does know who I am and has noticed me because of how weak I am.
Somehow, I manage to look him in the eyes and smile. 'None taken. Should I keep the boat then?'
But his attention is already somewhere else. He turns to the nearing beach. 'Yeah, we'll find our own way back. Don't worry about it.'
I sit back down. I wonder if this is how Gray had always thought of me: someone who's in the way.
