Trapped in The Labyrinth

Chapter 5: Teamwork is the Best

Disclaimer: You know the drill! Yadda, yadda, yadda... I don't own this... blah, blah, blah.... This belongs to Hiro Mashima...

Chapter Five:

Teamwork is the Best!

-Lucy-

Lucy groaned as she walked down the same freakin' tunnel for the millionth time. She suspected she was walking in circles, but she never tried to see if it was true. Now, it was too late and she lost her way, trapped in a circular maze.

"If Natsu was here, he could've destroyed our way out of here," Lucy mused, thinking about him for the thousandth time today. She couldn't help it; she missed his warm company. But every time she began thinking about him that way, she stopped herself immediately and tried to think about other things, which led to her thinking about how she was going to defeat Archimedes.

Summon all twelve Spirits, huh? How do I do that without killing myself? Lucy thought miserably. She couldn't even summon three Spirits without draining her magical power. She thought about it some more, trying to see if it was a hidden meaning in it. She didn't notice the silhouetted figure behind her until it was too late.

"Huh?" Lucy said as the person grabbed her arm and twisted her around, so she was face to face with them. Before she realized who it was, she grabbed her whip and began to attack.

"Lucy! Lu-chan!" Two voices said. One was feminine and the other was masculine. Lucy took the chance to glance at their faces, and she saw the cheery face of Levy and the scowling face of Gajeel. Perched on Levy's shoulder was none other than Happy.

"Levy! Gajeel! Happy!" Lucy squealed. "Boy am I glad to see you guys! I've been walking around in circles and I can't find my way out!"

Before the others could respond, Happy flew into Lucy's chest and started to cry. "Waaah! I missed you Lucy!"

"I missed you too, Happy," Lucy comforted the blue Exceed. Then she dared to ask, "Have you seen Natsu?"

"Ah, worried about someone, huh Lu-chan?" Levy teased. Lucy blushed in response and began to stammer. "We haven't seen him yet, unfortunately."

"I can smell him," Gajeel said. Three pairs of eyes turned to face him. "His scent was all over the tunnel we just came through."

"Really?" Lucy asked happily. Gajeel nodded then proceeded to show her where. Levy and Happy followed, glad to have found Lucy unharmed. Their happiness soon ended when a dark hand reached into the wall and pulled Lucy into it.

"LUCY!" They all screamed as Levy grabbed her hand, while Gajeel grabbed Levy's waist. It was like playing tug-of-war, except instead of a string, they were fighting for Lucy. Levy and Gajeel were nearly pulled in with Lucy, when Happy flew to the hand and bit it. In retaliation, it let go of Lucy and crept back into the wall.

Lucy sat where she was, staring at the wall that would have lead to her inevitable demise. She was shaking, and her face was pale. Her chocolate brown eyes were wide like saucers, and she couldn't stop staring, trying to process what she just saw.

"Lu-chan!" Levy cried as she hugged her friend. "Lu-chan, are you alright?"

"I saw him..." Lucy trailed off. She turned and faced Levy, who gasped at the look on her face.

"Who?" Levy questioned. "Who did you see?" She was concerned about who Lucy saw, because it made her shake with fear.

"Archimedes," Lucy responded before passing out.

-Natsu-

Natsu had been running nonstop, from the time he left Aleris and her sisters' room to now. He couldn't stop, because if what they told him was true, then Lucy...

"Dammit!" Natsu cursed loudly. "Archimedes, come out from where ever you're hiding, you son of a bitch!" He then let out a huge column of fire, which made him feel a bit better. But he couldn't keep spitting out fire whenever he felt angry. He would end up using all of his magic, and wouldn't be able to fight.

So, to distract himself, Natsu did something that would even shock Master Makarov.

Natsu decided to think.

First he thought about how he was going to kill that bastard that dared to even look at Lucy. But thinking about Lucy made him think about what Adora said. Nathan Dragonus was Lucinda's lover. Did that mean him and Lucy were...? No, Lucy and I are just friends! Natsu thought. But he began to realize that maybe, just maybe...

While he was thinking and walking, he did not notice a black figure creep up on him until it was too late. When he turned around, all he saw was an evil grin on... Wait, that couldn't be her! Natsu mentally screamed. But as much as he wanted to deny it, the truth was in his face. Lucy was trying to kill him. He took one sniff before a hard object came crashing down on his head. That's not Lucy. He smiled as his world faded into blackness.