Lost Magic

Chapter 5

2 hours later
Gray's POV

"Where is that flame freak?" Just how far did he go? I walk toward the park. The last place to check.
I release a breath of relief as I spot a certain pink haired mage sitting on a bench.

Natsu's POV

I hear footsteps approaching me. I look up through bloodshot eyes to see ... Gray.

"Hey ... Natsu."

Silence.

"What do you want, Gray?" I say coldly. He walks closer and sits down beside me.

"Just wanna talk."

"I don't."

"Okay."

After a few minutes, despite what I said, I start to talk. "What're you doing here, ice princess?" I ask.

"I could ask you the same thing." I stare at Gray and sigh.

"After... after I found out, I stayed with her for a little. But I couldn't take it, listening to her talk about you all and just... just not know who I am." I try to fight the tears, but they start to fall anyway. "She doesn't know who I am, Gray. She doesn't remember me."

Gray stares at the ground sadly. "I know."

"No! No, you don't know. She doesn't remember me! I'm only a shadow in her memories! A shadow, Gray! A shadow!" He doesn't reply. Maybe I was too harsh. But it's true. He doesn't know what it's like, not really.
"After we defeated the monster, the ground cracked beneath her feet. A-and she started to fall. I grabbed her hand before she fell, but my arm was injured and I-I couldn't... I couldn't pull her up."

"Natsu, you don't have t-" Gray tried to stop me, but I kept speaking.

"S-she..." I stutter. "She told me to let go," I spit out. "I told her I wouldn't and asked her why she would say that." I turn to Gray and see him watching me. I give him a weak smile. "She said she loved me." Gray's eyes widen, then shine with understanding. "I was shocked, but I told her I loved her too." I tilt my head up to the sky. "It was strange; we were on a cliff and Lucy was about to fall, but I had felt a brief moment of happiness." I close my eyes. "And then she said, 'I'm sorry' and... and she..." I take a deep breath. "She let go." I keep my eyes closed but I can tell Gray's staring at me with wide eyes and an open mouth.

"S-she let go?" He asks.

"... Yeah." I stand up, my eyes covered in shadow. "I'm gonna head home now." I start to walk away, but after a few feet, I stop. I turn my head back toward Gray. "Thanks, Gray."

Erza's POV

It's been almost 3 hours since Gray went looking for Natsu. We're kind of worried about him.

"Master, should I go looking for them?" I ask.

"Hmm. Let's wait a little longer. If they aren't back in the next 30 minutes, then we can all go looking for them."

Then, Gray comes through the doors.

"Gray-sama! You were gone for so long!" Juvia says worriedly as she rushes over to him and clings to his arm.

"She's right," I say. I look around. "Where's Natsu?"

"I looked all over Magnolia for him. I found him sitting on a bench in the part just a little while ago. We talked, but then he decided to go home."

"Oh... is that so?" I say, suspiciously. There's something Gray isn't telling us.

"Y-yeah." I cross my arms and stare at him.

"Hm. Did you find out anything interesting that you would like to share?" He's sweating nervously, his eyes never meeting mine.

"Uhh...n-not really?" He says, but it comes out like a question.

"Gray." He looks at me. Big mistake. He starts to sweat even more as I continue to stare at him. I glare.

"A-alright! Natsu did say something that was... shocking." Gray admits.

"And that would be...?" Carla asks.

"Uh, well he told me what happened. The full story."

"What happened?" Master asks.

"After they defeated the monster, the ground cracked beneath Lucy's feet. And she started to fall. Natsu grabbed her hand before she fell, but his arm was injured and he couldn't pull her up. Lucy told Natsu to let go," Gray says sadly.
"He told her he wouldn't and asked her why she would say that. Lucy said she loved him." Everyone's eyes widen, and I hear a few gasps, but I know we all suspected it. "Natsu was shocked, but he told her he loved her too." Gray looks at the floor sadly. "Natsu told me: 'We were on a cliff and Lucy was about to fall, but I had felt a brief moment of happiness.' " He looks at all of us. "He told me that she said, 'I'm sorry' a-and she..." Gray stutters. He takes a deep breath. "She let go."

Wendy, Master, and Juvia gasp. Gajeel and Lily and I have wide eyes and mouths open. Carla and Happy and Levy all cover their mouths in shock.

"Lucy-san... let go?" Wendy asks, still unbelieving.

"Lu-chan..." Levy stares at me with tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

"I don't think I heard you right, Gray. Can you repeat that?" I ask.

"No, Erza. You heard right," Gray says. "Lucy..." He looks me straight in the eye. "Lucy let go." Tears start to gather in my eyes.

"She sacrificed herself. For Natsu," I say, sadness starting to seep into my heart. "Natsu will never forgive himself."

"And on top of that, Lucy doesn't remember him." Levy's says sadly. "When I asked her about him, she told me she had never seen him before today."

We look at Lucy's door, all thinking the same thing: Lucy, please remember Natsu soon.

Natsu's POV

As soon as I got home, I sit down on the floor with my back against the wall. I feel so sad. Without Lucy, I feel empty. She is my light in the darkness. She is my life. My world.

My heart belongs to Lucy, but she doesn't even remember me. To her, I'm just a stranger.

I've heard people say that they feel like a piece of their heart is missing. My heart has shattered into a million pieces, but a piece is not missing.

My whole heart is gone.