THIS IS A SEQUEL. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE FIRST PART, I SUGGEST YOU DO SO NOW. a/n: Welcome to my new story! I hope you all enjoy itJ

Someday

Someday I hope, we'll return to normal. Someday the pain we felt will only be a distant memory, washed out and faded. Someday we'll tell the stories of what happened, of the things we went through. Someday, we'll move on, find happiness again.

For now, however, we are trapped. We are trapped in an endless maze of new twists and dead ends, and even I'm starting to give up. Where's the exit, and how do we find it?

-Taken from the Diary of Lucy Heartfilia, during her time under the Duchess's reign.

…

"Let me guess," she said as soon as he entered the small café she worked at, "Your usual Mr. Eucliffe?"

He nodded, smiling. "You know me well," he said, and she smiled at that. She smoothed her hands over her apron. "And please, call me Sting."

"That wouldn't be very professional," she said quietly, but her brown eyes brightened considerably. "One apple pie coming up!" she trilled, turning to the pastry case.

She passed it over to him, and he took the warm plate gratefully. "Thank you," Sting said, "Yukino." She nodded and flounced away to help another customer, leaving him to eat his pie alone.

When he got up to leave, his pastry eaten and his belly full but his heart empty, she waved at him.

"See you tomorrow Sting!" she called, and he waved back. He watched her for a moment before he fully departed to go back to that hellhole of a cave, with sad brown eyes.

Maybe she'd remember him tomorrow.

…

Natsu's pencil scratched against the paper, the sound the only audible thing in the room. The writing on the paper was wobbly, messy, but readable. His hand moved fast, knowing Lucy would be back from her annual meeting with Loke soon. He had to leave her a note before then.

He wasn't sure why he kept leaving her notes instead of facing her himself, but it worked. He was one of the best fighters they had, he was constantly on missions. He didn't have time to stop and talk with Lucy. At least that's what he told himself. It was easier this way, so much easier.

It wasn't like he was good with words. The notes he left her usually composed of a few short sentences, describing where he was going and whom he was going with.

He was never going with her. In a bout of pure frustration he shoved back the note onto her bed, flinging the pencil to the ground. He raised a weary hand to scrub at his eyes, sighing. This new war had changed them all.

After Gray's funeral, Lucy had pulled him aside. Her brown eyes had been wide, her face tearstained. "We're just friends, right Natsu?" she had asked him, as if looking for some sort of reassurance that any commitments they had made over the last three years didn't matter.

"'Course Luce!" he had exclaimed, but inside a new mixture of emotions swirled, ones that he had never felt before.

Natsu wasn't good with feelings in general. He knew the basic ones, angry, happy, and sad—but the ones Lucy had sparked inside of him were so new and unfamiliar he didn't even know what they were. Usually when he didn't know what things were, he beat it out of someone. That was the simple way of doing things. With these types of things, he was to scared to ask someone else. That could be potentially dangerous. What if it was something the other him, the one without his memories would have felt?

It was easier to keep leaving her notes, not looking her in the eye, so he didn't have to feel those emotions again. All he wanted was his friends and family back, and to beat the shit out of the Duchess.

He left her room then, carefully, so no one could see him.

…

Thump. The dagger hit the middle of the target with perfect accuracy, not a millimeter out of place. Erza drew back her arm again, already reaching for another dagger.

"You're going to break the target if you keep hitting it like that," a voice said from behind her. Erza didn't even need to turn around to see who it was. She didn't answer, but threw the second knife. It wobbled as it flew, but it still hit the center. The target cracked in two, the pieces falling to the floor. "Told you so," the voice said smugly, and Erza turned around.

There he was, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest, inky hair stuck up in ruffles all around his head. He was wearing the pajamas he had been in when he died, and the chest area was soaked with blood.

"Shut up," she growled, and stalked across the room to pick up her fallen knives.

"Who are you talking to Erza?" Wendy slid into the room unannounced, long blue hair swishing. The other girl now looked like she was Erza's age, but she had accepted the changes in herself over the past few years. Wendy was the only one out of them all that had changed the least, personality wise at least.

"Nobody," Erza said, wiping the sweat from her brow. Gray moved to stand behind Wendy.

"Just a ghost," he said in that haunting tone, a smile pulling up the corners of his mouth. "Isn't that right Erza?"

Erza ignored him. "What did you come to talk to me about?" she quickly reequipped into the normal clothes for someone that lived in the caves.

"Mira-san wants you in the conference room," Wendy said, cocking her head to the side, "She says it's important."

"It's always important," Erza muttered, shoving her short hair back. "Thank you Wendy, I'll get right on it."

"You better hurry," Gray said from behind her as she left the room.

…

"Natsu's information is reliable," Laxus said, slamming his palm onto the desk in front of her. Mirajane's blue eyes flickered up to meet his scowling form. "Are we just going to stop trusting our guild mates now?"

"I never said Natsu's information wasn't reliable," Mirajane said, tapping her fingernail on the desk, "I'm inclined to believe it in fact. I'm just saying we need to meet with Erza and decide when she's here."

"We could be losing precious time here," Laxus replied, but was cut off as Erza entered the room.

"You're the one wasting time Laxus," Erza said coolly, "Don't argue with Mirajane." Mirajane nodded her appreciation, and pushed back her white hair with one hand. It was so hot in here, the heat pressing over her like a mask. The heat is always there though, melting her bones, turning her blood to fire. "What was Natsu's information?" Erza asked next, turning her narrow gaze onto Mirajane.

Mirajane fought off the urge to shudder. Erza was still one of her best friends, that much was true, but something had changed in the scarlet haired girl since Gray died. It was like something had wilted inside her, until all she was negative emotions and fake promises. Of course, she was a very good leader despite her new cold attitude to everything.

"Natsu says he found the location of where the Duchess is manufacturing her weapons," Mirajane said. The Duchess did indeed have an army, squadrons of soldiers that were constantly hunting them, all equipped with weapons far beyond their capabilities.

"Good," Erza said, her eyes glittering. "Well you know who we're going to have to send on this particular mission. It's importance is to significant to give it to just anyone." Mirajane lifted her chin, and smiled a genuine smile at Erza.

"You mean our strongest two."

"Of course," there was something like amusement in Erza's tone.

"But our strongest two are—" Laxus started and broke off. "You two cannot go in there!"

"We just need a plan," Erza said, "I'll ask Lucy to help, she's good at that kind of stuff."

"We don't even know if the weapons are really being made there!" Laxus protested.

"Who cares?" Mirajane surprised herself by asking, her voice bitter. "She hasn't spared any of our places, why should we grant her a favor by passing up this opportunity?" Laxus still looked quite angry, but Mirajane shook her head firmly. "This is our choice," she told him firmly. He sighed.

"I know," he said softly, "I just wish it wasn't like this. We've been on the run for two years, and we're lucky she hasn't found the caves. We should be figuring out how to lift the memory curse, not focusing on destroying weapons."

"We need to take her down before lifting the curse," Erza said, her voice hard. "And for that to happen, we need to cut off all her other means of support." And she turned and left the room, but not before calling over her shoulder, "I'll consult with Lucy, you need to be ready Mira."

"She really has changed hasn't she," Laxus muttered, looking after her.

"Yeah," Mirajane whispered, her voice sad. "She really has."

…

"You're going to do what I ask," the Duchess snarled, and her hand cracked hard across his face. His face broke into a grin, and he laughed. The laugh was lacking his normal light though, and as his eyes lifted to meet her's, they were cold. Ice cold.

"Like hell," Gray Fullbuster spat, and the Duchess punched him in the stomach, making him sputter for air.

"You will do what I say in the end," she whispered, her fingers moving to grip his chin and force his face up so he was looking at her. "In the end."