Chapter 3:

Fragmented Memories and Surprise Visits

Poppy

The whole room was on fire. Poppy could feel the flames pulling at her feet while she tried to run, and with every breath she took, she filled her lungs with smoke and made it harder to breathe. In the distance, shouting could be heard over the roar of the flames, and with each beat of her heart she felt the pulse of magic being used above her. She knew she had to get out before she was found down here, but the exit had collapsed into rubble the minute she'd ducked into the lower lab-

"Poppy, keep going!" a voice called out to her, as a hand urgently pushed her forward, causing the girl to stumble.

She recognized the voice - it was the one that had been urging her to find Lucy Heartfilia all those weeks ago. She wanted to know who it belonged to, but she couldn't turn around. And even if she could, the hallway was so filled with smoke it made her eyes water constantly. All she could do was clumsily run past open and closed doors, rooms abandoned as the fire broke out and the fight clambered on. Lacrima lay unlit and cracked, notes were fluttering and adding fuel to the fire; the sound of Poppy's boots clicked along on the tiled floor until they reached one door that was tightly shut - and heavily secured. The hand from earlier reached around her, activating the magic circle. It took a moment (too long, if Poppy's racing heart had any say), but the door finally clicked, and the two were shuffled into the room. In an instant, she recognized where she was: though it looked much better than when she last saw it, the large, translucent crystal in the center of the room confirmed what she thought.

This was the room she'd emerged from, almost a month ago.

"Poppy, take this and get inside," the voice said, shoving an all-too-familiar key pouch in her hands. But what she also noticed was a three-piece, platinum colored staff also being put in the crystal with her. That, she didn't remember seeing when emerging. "The fire hasn't gotten this far, so the Lacrima should keep you safe, but more importantly - hidden."

"Wh-what's going to happen to you?" she heard herself asking, trying to look through the Lacrima's glistening walls. "You aren't… going to fight, right?"

"No… no, we aren't. We're going to lead them away from the lab, and hopefully the Rune Knights will get here," the voice said. Poppy tried to see the face, but where it should have been, was just a reflection of her own face: terrified grey eyes in a soot and ash covered brown face, and frizzy orange hair in two French braids. All she could make out was orange hair on the other person- but that didn't help. "If they think you're gone, then this'll be over quickly, but if not…"

A sob escaped the voice, and a hand raised - Poppy thought she saw tears on the back of it. It touched the Lacrima, fully sealing it from the outside with a whoosh, and the voice's owner stepped back, hesitating. She put her own hand up to the glass, and she could feel her throat tightening.

Her eyesight got blurry again, but it wasn't from the smoke this time.

"Starshine, oh… please, please be careful... Find that Heartfilia girl; she can help you! When you wake up, you must go to Fairy Tail!" was the voice's final warning, before silence filled the room. Poppy closed her eyes, finally letting the fear and confusion take over as she sat down on the Lacrima's floor.

That was when the explosion happened, and the beeping, and the room shaking and shaking. She jumped up, beating on the Lacrima's walls, but it wouldn't open, only powering up immensely, and with one large shudder, it activated, pushing its spell onto her.

After that, Poppy was left with the feeling of falling, and falling, and falling…

… right onto the wooden floor.

"Ow…" Poppy rubbed at her nose, checking to see if it was bleeding. Her right leg was still on the couch, while her left was down on the ground with her. A pillow had rolled underneath the nearby table, while the blankets she'd been sleeping with were tangled around her torso or hanging off the couch. Soft light was spilling into the room from the partially closed curtains, and birds were chirping cheerily. Slowly, the orange-haired girl sat up, unknotting the blankets and setting them aside as she slowly replayed her dream.

It definitely had something to do with her lost memories. When she first arrived, she brought up those missing memories to Wendy and Porlyusica, who did a check and noted the remnants of magic that tampered with them. However, without being able to accurately determine what had caused the memory loss, the two were unable to come up with a counter spell that would safely bring them back. They also suggested the possibility of them returning on their own, but noted the chances of that depended on how strong the initial spell was. Now that she remembered something, maybe they would be able to tell her what happened… and maybe she'd be able to figure out who she was, finally.

"Ah, good morning Poppy…!" Lucy sleepily said, waving a hand as she walked in. She yawned as she stretched her arms, before noting the girl was on the floor, rubbing her nose with a serious look. "... What happened to make you look so serious this early?"

"Oh, morning Lucy…" the orange haired wizard hummed, still wearing the serious look on her face. "It's just… I had a weird dream, but I think… I think it was actually a memory."

"A memory…" Lucy repeated, before blinking and realizing what she said. "Oh! A memory! What did you remember? Was it a good memory? Do you feel like more will come?"

"Um, well, I think... it had something to do with why I was in that Lacrima," she said, standing up and heading into Lucy's closet. A few moments later and she had her outfit for the day, picked from the small chest where she stored her clothes. "And… I don't think it was a good memory…"

"Oh…" The blonde Celestial Spirit Wizard fell silent for a moment, before poking her head through the doorway. "Well… let's focus on what we know, then. Do you know what the Lacrima looked like?"

Lucy nodded along as Poppy described the room and the Lacrima, changing into her outfit. She'd settled on a white vest with a burgundy Heart Kreuz logo, pink arm warmers, and pink jeans. On her feet went the same brown boots she'd been wearing since she woke up, and around her waist went an orange belt, holding the four keys she owned. Once she emerged from the bathroom, she saw Lucy was dressed as well, wearing a blue and gold vest, arm warmers, a blue and white shirt, white belt, black skirt and socks, and brown boots. The blonde was pulling her hair into two ponytails, a thoughtful expression gracing her features.

"Hm… so it sounds like the Lacrima put you under a sleeping spell and wiped your memories." Lucy said, closing the front door behind them as they left her apartment. She hopped onto the ledge, carefully stepping over cracks and uneven stones. "Maybe Wendy and Porlyusica can look into lacrima with spells like that? If they can find out which one affected you, then they might be able to bring your memories back!"

Poppy hummed, a small and excited smile growing on her face. "I hope so! I know with this first memory, more might follow but… I'd like to get them all back, if I can."

"Either way, I'll do what I can to help!" Lucy declared, hopping back down. Behind her was her suitcase, which she pulled towards the doors of the guildhall. "Now, how about we do one more check-in with Levy before we leave?"

Poppy nodded, following the blonde with her own bag, and before long, the duo reached the guild. The usual greetings followed from the members who were present, and as the orange-haired Celestial Spirit Wizard looked around for the familiar light blue head of hair, she realized it was nowhere to be found. Quickly, she checked the time- it wasn't *too* early, and Levy had a habit of being at the guild as soon as the doors opened. Still, with the few members who were here, she wasn't able to spot her.

"Strange… maybe she's running late," Lucy said, brown eyes dimming. "She knew we were leaving today…"

"Well, let's ask around," Poppy suggested, turning towards the bar. "If no one's seen her, then we'll know! Besides- our train doesn't leave for the next hour, so we've got plenty of time!"

But Mirajane confirmed they wouldn't be seeing the Solid Script Wizard for a while. "She left me this note to give you both," the white haired barmaid said, handing over the parchment.

Sure enough, the note was in Levy's handwriting, hurriedly scribbled out in a rush. Lucy held it up, reading quickly over it.

"'I got called over to the Rune Knights' Library to help with an emergency situation; sorry Pops, Lu- I won't be back for the foreseeable future!'," Lucy read aloud. She sighed at the note, frowning a bit.

Levy had been a great help with their search on the Celestial Families Keys; hearing she wouldn't be back for a while because of an emergency situation was a little upsetting, if not disappointing. Her knowledge, not to mention her bright personality would be a loss for the Celestial Spirit Wizards. Poppy always felt comforted by the small blue-haired girl, as she was the first person to reach out to her after she accidentally joined… Silently, she hoped the situation wasn't too dire…

But now that she thought about it, this was the third person delving into a sudden crisis…

"First the princess, then the Rune Knights… now Levy?" she voiced aloud, concern lighting her grey eyes. "What the heck do you think is going on?"

"I don't know, but I hope we don't get roped into it…" Lucy said, an unsettling feeling in the back of her mind. "Anyway, since Levy isn't here, we might as well go ahead to the train station."

Poppy agreed, and grabbed her bags once more, turning to follow Lucy. As she did, however, she felt a sudden, nauseous feeling overcome her. Her vision swam as she tried to stay upright- but didn't, roughly bumping into the blonde Celestial Spirit Wizard. Lucy turned to look at her, alarm lighting her bright, cow-brown eyes as she grabbed her arm, speaking to her. But Poppy couldn't understand her- were her ears filled with cotton? And where was that buzzing coming from? Oh, stars, she was going to vomit all over Lucy's nice brown boots; she swallowed hard to keep it in. Her skin felt like it was on fire, and Lucy's hands felt like a cold towel wrapped around her burning arms. Her heart beat rapidly, washing over her like tsunami waves in a typhoon. Or… was that her pulse? The more she listened, the more she realized it sounded more akin to a growl… or dogs barking… And she knew that sound, she *knew* it, but where- where had she heard it before?

Underneath all that, however, she felt a familiar, soft feeling- one she'd felt before. It was warm, and fuzzy, like a lullaby she'd known all her life, and just remembered the words to. It pulled her towards the door, and too late, she realized both the awful, dreadful barking and the sweet, comforting lullaby were coming from the same place.

She hadn't realized she began stumbling towards the door, dread circling in her gut like a snake poised to strike. Her queasy stomach felt worse as she reached a hand out to the members standing by the large doors, her voice cracking as she yelled out, "*Get down!*"

Just as she spoke, the doors were blown off their hinges, sending dust, smoke, and debris into the large building. Poppy shielded her eyes, and instinctively, she reached down and grabbed the three part staff she'd taken to carrying with her. Next to her, she could hear the tinkling of Lucy's keys as she got them ready, prepared for the attack she expected to come her way. Around, and through the smoke, she could see and feel other members charging their various magic attacks as well, and her already adrenaline filled system got another dose as a monstrous growl echoed through the building.

And when the smoke cleared, she couldn't believe her eyes.

Standing in front of the busted down doors was a very, *very* large wolf-like beast. Its fur was black, white, and brown, separated into equal thirds. It had a large collar around its muscled neck, decorated with the bones of various creatures. It also seemed to have a nametag, but from the distance Poppy was standing, she couldn't tell what it said. And that was not the only thing standing in the doorway, as she belatedly noticed another figure standing near the door, hooded and halfway-hidden. All she could make out from where she stood was bright grey eyes that looked oddly familiar… The large beast snarled as it stood near the doorway, its beady black eyes scanning the crowd slowly before landing on her and Lucy. When it did, it let out another monstrous roar, deafening everyone in the guild. Poppy couldn't help covering her ears to dampen the noise, and found her body curling in on itself.

That was when she heard the large, thudding steps rushing in her direction, and Lucy belatedly cry, "Poppy lookout!"

Just barely, the orange-haired mage dodged, clumsily ducking under the nearby tables as the beast skidded to a stop, knocking over some wizards and a few tables itself. From underneath, Poppy heard Lucy call on her Spirits, and felt the rush of magic as the gate opened. Faintly, she could tell it was Loke (Leo, as he was named before), the Lion Spirit. And considering the beast hadn't knocked over the tables in search of her again, it must have become preoccupied with Lucy; she should get up and help her…

… But she couldn't move.

No matter how much she screamed at her shaking muscles, she couldn't get up, couldn't pick up her staff, couldn't even turn her head. She stayed curled up under the table taking in short breaths, unable to stop the trembling in her limbs. Something about this… this monster… made her inner alarms go off, preventing her from doing anything else. Her head became a pounding mess and she let out a low whine as she rubbed her temples. But it didn't help, and she felt her vision going white-

*"Wow! What's this?"

"It's called a 'Silver Key'! This one's different from the other Keys you have, Poppy!"

"What Spirit is this, [_]?"

"This one's name is-"*

"Procyon!"

The orange-haired wizard burst from underneath the table, finally able to to stand up. She took a quick look around, trying to locate Lucy in the chaos. Other than the large dog rampaging through the first floor, there were other shadow-like dogs running around as well. The guildhall was a mess now, with tables upturned and chairs smashed and splintered and scattered across the floor. Scorch marks from Natsu's flames could be found all over, accompanied by Gray's never-melting ice. Quickly, she spotted the two of them dealing with a rather large group of the shadow-like dogs, with more replacing the ones they'd already defeated. Every so often, Natsu took a worried glance in another direction. Poppy followed his line of sight and finally located Lucy. She and Loke were holding their own with the giant beast- no, *Spirit*- but, before she could make her way over, she was stopped as a circular blade cut into her path.

The owner stepped into her line of sight, and grey eyes stared into grey eyes.

There was silence between the two, before Poppy suddenly blurted out, "Why are you doing this?"

"... I should be asking you the same thing," the voice answered- a girl's voice. She sounded young, so she couldn't have been much older than Poppy herself. "You're interrupting us."

"I'm not doing anything!" Poppy pleaded, dodging the circular blade once more. "Please, just stop hurting Procyon! He's in pain!"

She didn't know how she knew it, but once she remembered his name, she could feel it; she could feel him crying out, begging for it to stop, to let him go. He didn't want to hurt anyone, but he was being forced to hurt them. And the person in front of her was the cause of it. But with Fairy Tail's strongest wizards occupied, and Lucy dealing with the monster-like Spirit, that left Poppy the only person to deal with this intruder. She grit her teeth, holding her staff up. This time, when the circular blade sliced towards her, she knocked it out of the way; it skittered off underneath a table, out of the intruder's reach.

"Ha… this is annoying," the intruder said, crossing their arms. She couldn't help but to feel proud that she'd gotten in the girl's way. "Suppose I'll have to deal with the blonde later- your death comes first."

She reached into her pocket, and Poppy tensed, not knowing what could happen next. However she felt her blood run cold as she recognized the object held in the girl's hand. It was a key- but no ordinary one. This Key was nearly colored black, hiding the silver coating. It glowed faintly, and dread coiled in her stomach as she eyed the Key. Suddenly, the guild hall shook with a bellowing roar, and as Poppy turned, she found herself face to face with the large dog. It pounced on her, pinning her to the ground, and her staff was knocked from her hand, skittering across the floor. Slobber dribbled onto her as the monster-like Spirit lowered its massive jaws towards the orange-haired mage, whose breathing had nearly stopped. She trembled as she heard Lucy call out to her, no doubt fighting to get closer and stop the beast from devouring her. The sharp teeth grazed her shoulder, and Poppy whimpered, finally finding her voice.

"P-procyon… pl-please, don't…" She whispered, looking into the beady black eyes of the beast.

Procyon didn't move, leaving his jaw barely biting down on her shoulder; his hot and heavy breath- ripe with the stench of death and rotting meat- blew around her, making her gag. Taking this chance, she shakily reached a hand up as far as she could, patting him directly on the head. Procyon growled, but removed his jaws from her shoulder. He stared at her, the murderous intent still present in his eyes, but there was something much… *softer* hidden deep in his black eyes. Something that told Poppy the Procyon she *knew* was still fighting to be freed.

Feeling bolder, she kept petting him, and managed to wiggle her way out from underneath him.

"Y-you're still in there… aren't you?" She quietly murmured. The beastly dog only gave a subdued growl, lowering itself in front of Poppy. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry, Procyon…!"

The monstrous dog only bowed its head, letting her pet it some more. For now, it seemed the beast was subdued-

"Poppy!"

Suddenly she was pulled away from the beast- and watched as a circular blade just barely missed her face. She glanced behind her, to see that Loke had grabbed her. Lucy was standing near the doorway, watching worriedly, as Loke brought the orange-haired mage over to her.

"I'm so glad you're alright!" She pulled Poppy into a quick hug, before giving her a bewildered stare. "What were you thinking, petting that monster?!"

"Because it's not a monster!" she said, shaking her head. "It's a Spirit!"

"What?" Lucy said skeptically. However, she wouldn't get a response as the monster like Spirit gave chase, with the mysterious girl on top of him.

"Run!" Loke said, charging in to fight. "I'll hold it off!"

"Wait- Lucy, Poppy!" Natsu called out from the guild. Before he could take a step, he was swarmed once again by the shadow dogs from before- and Procyon as well. "Dammit! Outta my way!"

Loke moved to help Natsu fight against the beasts, and in the process, let the hooded girl slip by. Procyon stayed behind, blocking the doorway and preventing anyone else from leaving the guildhall. Poppy grabbed Lucy's hand and turned, running out the door- she needed to lure that girl away from Procyon, and maybe… The hooded girl gave chase, slowly gaining on the two wizards as they weaved in and out of the crowds of people. By this point, Poppy knew enough about Magnolia, and figured she could find a more secluded area, where no people could get injured or caught in the crossfire. Because… they would have to fight her eventually, and she knew it. Despite knowing this, and being weaponless, all she could think about was poor Procyon, suffering in that form. Procyon…

Her Spirit.

"Ah!" Poppy stumbled, losing her balance and hitting the ground. She lost her grip on Lucy, who turned when she felt Poppy's hand slipped through hers, but had to dodge the circular blade thrown in her path, nearly cutting her thigh. The blonde now faced the hooded girl, who caught the blade as it circled back to her.

Lucy gripped her whip. She wouldn't be able to summon anymore Spirits for a while, and she noticed Poppy had dropped her staff when the monstrous dog had tackled her.

"You two are more persistent than I thought, " the hooded girl said, holding up the circular blade. "That persistence ends here though."

Lucy gulped, readying Fleur d'Etoile, only to be interrupted when Poppy tackled the hooded girl to the ground. "Hey!"

"Give it back…!" She cried out, pulling at the cape the girl wore. She had tears in her eyes as she fought her, the duo tumbling on the ground. "Give Procyon back to me!"

"Urgh- get off!" the girl shrieked. Her hood partially fell off, but all Poppy could make out was deep, cherry-red hair.

"Not until you give him back!" She said, desperation underlying her voice.

Suddenly there was a bright flash from both of them. Lucy saw the keys on Poppy's waist glowing, and, through the binding light, another set of keys in the hooded girl's pocket. Both girls stopped fighting momentarily at the lights, but the hooded girl recovered faster, pushing the orange-haired mage away from her and standing up. She held the faintly glowing keys in her hands, snarling.

"You stupid girl! What did you do?!" She ground out. But Poppy looked just as confused as she did, shaking her head as she sat up. "I can't continue like this- the Key is becoming cleansed. You survive for today, Heartfilia child, and you as well- but your life won't always be guaranteed."

"W… wait!" Poppy called out, getting to her feet. But the girl had already run off, disappearing and leaving the two wizards alone. "... she's gone…"

"Thank goodness…" Lucy said, putting her whip up. She gave a sigh of relief, before turning to Poppy. "But… what was that light? And what did that girl say? The key was being 'cleansed'?"

"I wish I knew…" she said honestly, keeping her Gate Keys in her hand. "Anyway, I think we need to go check on Yukino!"

"You're right- if someone is targeting Celestial Spirit Wizards again, Yukino will be next!" Lucy said in agreement, pulling her backpack around to rummage around in it. She pulled out her ticket, glad she decided to store there instead, and looked to Poppy.

"The train hasn't left yet- we can still catch it, if we run!" she said, glancing at a nearby clock. Thankfully, she still had her backpack with her; there were enough essentials in it to last for two days. However, she'd have to get a new weapon, since hers was still in the guildhall. "Come on!"

"Yes!"

And, with only a few seconds to spare, the Wizards made it to the train, unsure of what the future would hold for them next.

Author's Note:

Whew, finally finished this chapter! So now we've got something strange going on with the Celestial Spirits, leading to Lucy and Poppy rushing to see Yukino as well! Will she be alright, or will she be in some trouble of her own?

Guess we'll find out next time!