Amnesia (A Fairy Tail Fanfic)

12. Ambush

Juvia was amazed at how quickly Gajeel reacted. He slammed a metal fist into one of the men, sending him flying. She snapped out of her daze and faced the other man, concentrating her magic, remembering how it felt when she used her magic before.

"Water Lock!" She yelled, surrounding him with water. The man started to run out of breath, thrashing around in the water, but he couldn't break out of Juvia's powerful magic.

"Don't let him fall unconscious!" Gajeel yelled back at Juvia. "We need information!"

Juvia stepped back and released her magic, causing the robed man to fall to the ground, gasping for air. Gajeel grabbed him and lifted him up off the ground by the front of his robes.

"Are there more of you bastards lying around?" Gajeel growled at him.

"Yes! Don't kill me, I'll show you where they are!" The man said, flailing about in the air.

Gajeel looked back at Juvia. "Let's follow this guy. But keep your eyes peeled..."

Gajeel knew that this dark guild had been defeated by Fairy Tail before, but he had a bad feeling in his gut. It was easy... Almost too easy to get this guy to talk. But he couldn't just let him go, either.

Warily, the two mages followed the robed man into the forest.

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A little bit later...

"Hey guys! I see someone over there, on the ground!" Happy yelled. He had been flying ahead, scanning the area.

"That looks like..." Lucy started to say, nervously.

"A member of that dark guild," Gray said, finishing her sentence. "Gajeel and Juvia were definitely here, because he's out cold."

"Damn it! We just missed them. I bet that dumbass Gajeel is leading Juvia right into the lair of the dark guild right now..." Natsu yelled, frustrated.

Then, the robed man on the ground began to sit up. Natsu and Gray lunged for him simultaneously.

"Where are they?" Natsu yelled.

"Tell us where your hideout is," Gray asked, calmly but with a deadly tone.

It took a few flame punches from Natsu and Gray freezing half of the man's body before he talked. He frantically told them the location of the Serpents of Chaos's underground hideout.

"Let's go!" Gray said, charging ahead of Lucy and Natsu.

"Hey, wait for me!" Natsu yelled.

"And put your clothes back on, Gray!" Lucy added, running after them.

Gray didn't even bother putting his shirt on again. That could wait. He had an uneasy feeling in his stomach, and not just because Juvia and Gajeel were in danger. Gray slipped his hand into his pocket, feeling the small vial that Porlyusica had given him.

"Next time you see Juvia, tell her to drink this. It's a very powerful potion that is used to unlock repressed memories. I wasn't going to give it to her until we were sure her memory was gone for good, because there are some unpleasant side effects..."

"Like what?" Gray had asked.

"Well, for instance, her personality might change. A lot of people who take the potion end up remembering things they were trying to forget, and it changes them." Porlyusica had looked stern.

"Do not use this lightly. I want the poor girl to remember her life as much as anyone, but you have to wonder... At what cost?" Porlyusica had said, handing Gray the vial.

Gray had nodded, gripping the vial tightly. He had been eager to get Juvia's old self back, but now that he had heard the possible consequences, he felt uneasy.

Gray was so lost in thought that he almost ran straight past the hideout of the Serpents of Chaos. His heart dropped when he heard Gajeel's booming voice.

"No! Juvia!" Gajeel yelled.