Lucy

Inside the Cave

Elsewhere in the Cave:

"Which way now?" asked Juvia, her hand resting on Gray's arm. The cave split into two corridors.

"Either way, there's going to be something waiting. I can just feel it," grumbled Gajeel.

"Juvia thinks we should have a dragon slayer on each team," she sighed. She didn't want to part from her beloved, but it only made sense.

Gray nodded. "I'll go with Natsu. You go with Gajeel."

The pairs split off. Both parties found the cave splitting again and again. Gray was thankful for Juvia's suggestion - the power of the nose of the slayers made all the difference for choosing the right direction.

The four finally met up in one large cavern, where all the paths seemed to empty into. Juvia had used a spell for a glowing ball of water to light their way and raised it to look at everyone.

"You met up with those damn shadow warriors, too, I see," Gray commented, noticing how rough everyone looked.

Gajeel grunted.

"We're wasting time!" Natsu growled, looking around at all the pathways. He sniffed. "Damn it! They all smell the same!"

"Juvia has an idea."

Everyone turned to the water mage, who blushed. She extinguished her ball of water since Natsu's raised fist lent them enough light.

"Juvia will cast water off in all directions and it will, um, tell, Juvia which one leads to Lucy."

"You can do that?" asked Gray incredulously.

"Um, yes, but it is a difficult spell. It has to do with Juvia's, um, body," Juvia blushed. How could she tell them that to do the spell, her body would turn to water and then reform when it returned? That, if part of her body did not return, she would not be whole again? Then again, what choice did they have?

"Juvia will have to disrobe," she murmured, blushing deeper. The boys turned their backs as she slipped out of her clothes. She let her body dissolve into water, willing it to spread to each of the pathways from the cavern, excluding the two they had entered from.

"Juvia's quite a girl," Gajeel praised, hitting Gray hard enough on his back to send Gray into a coughing fit. "I hope you're treating her like she deserves, ice boy!"

"Did you know she could do this?" Gray asked Gajeel.

"I just know she can do amazing things with water - even turn into it. I didn't know about this particular talent, but it doesn't surprise me."

Natsu snorted. "Can we stop with the love talk? Where the hell is Juvia?"

"Give her time, Natsu," Gray glared back.

The sound of liquid started to intensify and the three stepped back as a puddle began to form on the floor. It grew in size and started to rise, taking the form of a person.

"Hey! You don't need to be looking, perverts!" yelled Gray as the figure started to gain female attributes. He held up Juvia's clothes in front of her as she reformed, looking to the side.

,

"Thank you, Gray-sama," whispered Juvia, taking the clothes from his hands. Gray looked down at the floor until she spoke again.

"I found her, but it does not look good. I did what I could to help but it's not much."

They would see for themselves soon enough, she thought. Leading the way, the four ran down the tunnel after Juvia.

"Lucy!" screamed Natsu when he saw her. She looked....dead. No, he couldn't think that! He'd know if she was dead! He'd be able to feel it!

Lucy was barely aware that they were there. Natsu, watch out! she thought, but no words would come out.

"What the hell is this? It's not ice...." Gray started, looking at the substance that covered Lucy almost up to her chest.

Gajeel tore the cuffs out of the wall and used an unusually gentle touch, for him, to take them off her wrists.

"We need to get her out of here, Salamander!" he yelled at Natsu, who was pounding his fired up fists at the lacrima that had swallowed parts of Lucy's body.

"The hell with this!" Gajeel yelled. He punched Natsu, knocking him out.

"Take him!" he yelled at Gray, lifting Lucy over his shoulder with a grunt.

Gray nodded, slinging Natsu over his shoulder. "Do we know the way out?" he asked, wondering about the twists and turns they had to make just to get to Lucy.

Gajeel lifted up his face and sniffed. "We'll make our own way. Juvia!" He pointed at the rock wall to the left of Lucy's prison.

"Right!" Juvia nodded, then focused her water cannon spell at the wall. It took some time, but she managed to make a small hole in the wall, letting in the fresh air from outside.

"Got it! Simple science," Gray said, blasting the water with ice. With both of them working together, they were able to erode away enough rock so that the group could get through to the outside.