"Master? You wanted to see me?" Lucy knocked as she opened the door to reveal a sombre Makarov, and her heart sank.
"Lucy, I need you to do something for me," he spoke softly, and Lucy nodded.
"Is everything okay?"
"Not really. I need you to go and check on Erza for me. I've sent her home."
"Erza? What's happened?" Lucy placed a hand on her chest, frowning.
Makarov let out a deep sigh, pushing the papers towards Lucy, who moved to look at them.
--
"I can't believe it... I thought she'd escaped that horror... Now it's back in her life again," Lucy ran her fingers through her hair, finishing the final document and listening to what Makarov had to say.
"I know, but as I said to her, there's nothing we can do until I can find some more information. Until then, I need you to keep an eye on her for me, and keep this low profile."
"What do you think she's going to do?" Lucy asked, rather afraid of the answer.
"I'm not sure, I can never tell what's going on in Erza's head. Usually she's the most rational person I know, but when something gets to her, she can-"
"I know, she could do anything. Don't worry, Master, I'll have her stay at my place for a little while, until we plan our next move," Lucy offered a small smile, which Makarov returned in kind.
"Thank you, dear."
--
Erza reached her apartment after what felt like a lifetime of walking, and fell through the door. Closing it behind her, she stumbled inside and fell to her knees on the floor as a wave of dizziness and nausea overcame her. As hard as she fought, she couldn't stop the memories flooding in; she could almost physically feel the pain of her many torture sessions in the Tower of Heaven, and the thought that someone else was now doing that to somebody else's children made her sick to her stomach.
Giving in to the crushing fatigue that had hit her like a magic mobile, she exquipped her heavy armour, into her casual outfit, and laid down on the floor, covering her face with her hands as she cried.
--
Knocking once more on the door of Erza's apartment, Lucy began to feel alarmed. She had given the other girl an hour or so to be alone, then made her way to the Fairy Hills dorm to check on her. After knocking several times, she checked the door, and it was open, so she stepped in quietly.
It was just after dark, and it was dark in Erza's apartment except for the light of the full moon flooding in.
"Erza? Are you here?" Lucy called out, cursing herself silently for not coming sooner, hoping that Erza hadn't already run off on some hopeless mission to rescue the slaves.
"Erza? Where are you..." Lucy mumbled, more to herself than anything.
Her heart skipped a beat when she caught sight of the dark shape of Erza laying on the floor, only vaguely outlined in the moonlight. Running over, Lucy fell beside her in a panic.
"Erza! Wake up, come on!"
She pulled Erza's head onto her lap, lightly slapping the latter's cheek in an attempt to wake her. To her relief, Erza almost immediately stirred, and as the moonlight shone on her face, Lucy saw her eyes were red and still a little wet from crying. She had cried herself to sleep on the floor, and Lucy sighed, partially in relief, partially in sympathy.
Pulling her up onto the couch, Lucy placed a pillow under Erza's head and retrieved a blanket to cover her with, before curling up on the couch opposite to go to sleep herself. The last thing she saw before drifting off into darkness of sleep was Erza's slow breathing as she slept, far too exhausted even to have nightmares.
YOU ARE READING
Fairy Tail - Darkness Revived
FanfictionSeven years have passed since Natsu and his friends were caught up in Erza's tragic past as they rescued her from the Tower of Heaven. All is well at the Fairy Tail guild, but disturbing rumours soon arise, and strange job requests are coming in - m...
