Always and Forever (Sequel to 'If Only You Knew')

Chapter Fourteen - Gray's Ghost

Gray felt a chill pass through him, and he turned around but there was nothing there. Nothing broke the deathly silence that now existed between Alyssa and him. She had nothing to say--what could she say? How does one respond to a strong person like Gray breaking apart and breaking down under the pressure of a secret that had been tearing them apart since childhood? Alyssa wanted to help him, but she couldn't think of anything she could say or do that wouldn't make the situation worse. She decided it would be best just to leave him alone.

As they sat in the silence they had created, Gray began to hear voices, and see flashes across his mind. Then he saw her--his master, the woman who had raised him, loved him, died for him: Ur. Gray hardly dared to breathe.

"Master?" he called out softly. "Master Ur..."

He could feel the tears coming again so he called out to Alyssa, "could you give me a moment? Please? I'd like to be alone for a little while..."

"Oh! Of course, Gray! I'll just be over the hill over there. Call out when you're ready," she responded, eager to get out of the awkward silence.

"Thank you," he managed.

He sat down in the snow until she had vanished over the hill, and he called out once more, "Master Ur?"

He heard nothing save the howling of the storm on its way, and the soft sounds only he as an ice wizard could detect, of the snowflakes as they fell and merged with the rest of the snow. His heart was breaking as he began to relive the moment Ur sacrificed herself. He couldn't take it anymore.

He tried one last time, "Master Ur?"

Nothing. Then, a few small moments later, he heard the whispering of the wind, and he could just make out "Gray...Gray, child..."

He was sure now, that it was indeed his master's voice he was hearing.

"Yes, Master? I'm here, it's me...I'm so sorry..." he began to walk around, desperate to find the source of the voice.

"Gray."

The voice was strong now--solid. It was as clear as his love for Erza, and it was coming from directly behind him. He wanted to turn around, but at the same time, he was afraid to face what could very well be the biggest disappointment of his life. He made his decision and after a few moments, he slowly turned around, and standing there, just as he remembered her, down to the very last detail, was his master, Ur Milkovich.