G I R L O F F I R E A N D I C E ( Natsu X OC X Gray X Laxus)

A F T E R M A T H U N R A V E L S

L A T E R   T H A T    M O R N I N G

G R A Y

I headed toward the guild, hoping to see Lia there, laughing and sipping on some sweet tea as usual, but found her missing from the hall. I sighed as i took a seat at the bar, where Mira was already back to work. "hey mira." i say casually. she turned to me, her usual smile on her face. "hello Gray." she said, handing me a glass of ice water. i nodded as thanks. "Are you feeling better?" i ask. She chuckled. "Im fine actually. Thanks to Wendy." she said. i smirked. "Yeah. shes a life saver. Literally."

"Any news on Amelia?" i questioned as i put down my drink. She shook her head. "Nope. sorry". i just nodded at her answer. Well thanks. if i hear any thing ill keep you updated." i said as i stood from the bar. "thanks Gray." she said. Then i headed over to where Natsu, Erza, and Lucy stood.

"Hey guys." i said. "Hello Gray." Erza greeted me. i nodded in her direction. "We were gonna head over to Amelia's place to check on her. wanna come?" Lucy asked. "Yeah. im kinda worried about her." i admitted. "Don't be. I'm sure Vibra just overslept as always." Gajeel said as he walked up to us from the other side of the room, Levy at his side. His midsection was covered in white bandage, minor compared to Lia's condition the last time i saw her.

"Well, i wanna see it for myself. She looked pretty much lifeless last night." Laxus said as he walked over. i shivered as the image of Lia, blood spattered and limp in Natsu's arms as he just stared at her. "Yeah. we neeed to make sure shes ok." the fire pit said. Lucy nodded. "Then lets go!" she exclaimed. Then, we all walked out of the guild hall to Amelia's house. no one knew that what we would find would be worse than we imagined.

T E N     M I N U T E S    L A T E R

We arrived at Amelia's place to find the front door unlocked, which was weird for her. She always kept the door locked, unless she knew we were coming over. I gave Erza a questioning look as we walked in, expecting to hear her moving around or singing something sweet under her cinnamon breath. but, There was only the sound of wind swooshing through the floor-length, crimson drapes.

"Where the hell is she?" Natsu said as he looked around for her. We all started to search the house, looking anywhere where she could be. I searched her art studio. the walls were covered in small murals, canvases, and shelves that were piled high with paints and other supplies. there was an easel in the corner where an unfinished painting sit, patiently to be completed.

it looked to be a portrait of a young boy, a confident smile on his face. He had large, honey colored eyes, and looked to be around 13 or 14. the boy had on a black shirt with a navy scarf tied low on his waist, over his maroon pants. a small dagger was painted to be tied to the scarf with a brown leather rope. His hair and other facial features were not painted on yet.

I stared at the picture, trying to figure out who it was. she wouldn't just paint a random kid. could this be what Sergio looked like? i assumed that was the case. i looked around a bit more and found some pictures that looked to be of the people she would see in her dreams. One had the kind emerald eyes and jet black hair that she used to describe her father. Another looked almost exactly like her, but had her hair in a low side ponytail down to her waist, instead of all the way down to the middle of her thigh. The last one was of a small girl with short blonde hair and aqua eyes. 

It was interesting to see through her eyes in those pictures. i could see everything from her perspective. i stepped away from those to look at a few others. some were of people from the guild. Others were scenic views of sunsets or stars overlooking mountains or fields of wildflowers. I even found one of a portrait of me. it looked to be watercolor, and wasnt super detailed. it was more impressionistic.

Then a good amount of them were song lyrics or references. they had backgrounds that went with the song. Like one, had a lot of roses of varying shades of red cover the canvas. But in the bottom right-hand corner, was a skull and crossbones. I knew immediately that it was a reference to 'Painting Flowers' by All Time Low. I chuckled as the song replayed in my mind. But, i was abruptly interrupted by a gasp, coming from Lia's room.

I quickly snapped out of my daze and ran out of the studio, across the hall, and into her room, where Natsu and Lucy stood, looking around. "Whats wrong? Did you find something?" i asked, almost frantic. "What was most interesting is what we didn't find." Lucy said in a hushed tone, her eyes filled with worry. "huh?" i said as i too, started to look around the room. "Her katana, and none of the other gifts she got for her birthday are gone." Natsu said in a serious tone. I felt my eyes widen.

"Do you think she went on a job early this morning?" Happy asked. I shook my head. "Not one person said they saw her at the guild, and Lia is famous for sleeping in. Plus, with her injuries, she would definitely not be leaving for a job anytime soon." i said. "Remember, this is Ames we are talking about, so anything is possible." Natsu said with a chuckle, lifting the mood slightly. Then, Erza ran in, almost looking frantic.

"I found our answer." she said sadly, taking out a letter. We just stared at it for a moment, subconsciously wishing it away, or begging whatever written on it to be just some sick joke. Finally, Fire Face snatched the note and opened it. it took a few seconds, but soon, his eyes were bulging out of his head. "WHAT?!!" he yelled. "What does it say?!" Lucy exclaimed. Then he read it out loud.

'My dear friends at Fairy Tail,

Please don't be mad at me for this, but I've decided to go out on a training mission. I'm tired of always having to be saved by you guys. Also, I'm tired of dragging the ones I love into my problems. It always results in them getting hurt, and Im always to weak to stop it. Dont try to find me, ill be long gone by the time you read this. But don't worry, i wont be gone forever. I already miss you guys. Stay Alive.

                                                         Amelia'

We all just stood there, taking this in. "No way." Lucy said, her voice quivering. Natsu growled. Era just looked at the ground, keeping her composure. Happy had tears in his eyes. I clenched my fist, not completely sure what to think. Why did she think she was a burden? I was so confused. How will everyone else react? How long will she be gone? Will she be ok on her own? Will she ever comeback?

It was depressing to think of how the guild was those three months we thought she left for good. I didn't want it to ever be that way again. It was so quiet, so lifeless. I swallowed down a sob at the thought. I cant even imagine what it will be like now. Sure, i was also mad, but not at her. She chose this. I just hope it was the right decision.