WARNING: Mildly disturbing imagery.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fairy Tail as it's owned by Hiro Mashima. Also, Hatsune Angelbeat (OC) is owned by Shiranai Atsune.

Chapter 4:

Captive

It had to just be a nightmare.

Too many… there was too many.

She had just put the guy down, cut off the hand with the mark, and he was ready to be taken to jail. Almost hurriedly she'd lugged him back to town so she could get her reward and finally be done for the day. She was tired of putting up with all the weird shit she had to face because of him, all those secrets she had to stash now and the stories she'd have to alter if her guildmates decided to ask…

Then he started wailing.

He cradled his arm as his mouth started frothing, saliva and blood intermingling with the tears from his wide, dilated eyes, and he curled up into a shivering ball. The man who she deemed a threat suddenly looked so small, but she there was not enough time to dwell on it.

His core pulsed, nearly knocking her off of her feet, and as she struggled to regain her bearings, she saw it. His body contorted into angles impossible for the human body to do, tears in his flesh and bones cracking—

Those things came from everywhere, decimating everything in sight.

They cried.

He screamed.

She had no choice.

Hatsune blearily opened her eyes, squinting hard at the black spots that dotted her vision. Her head was pounding, and all she could hear was the sound of her rapidly beating heart.

She exhaled shakily.

It was just a nightmare, and she reluctantly suppressed any emotions that came from it to the very dark recesses of her mind.

Once she was able to focus, she started to analyze her surroundings. She was on her back facing the ceiling of what seemed to be an old prison, with cobwebs and tiny pebbles lining the corners. There wasn't a window in sight, leaving her boxed in with only one way out. There was a dimly lit lantern atop a desk outside, her only light source, and it made the shadows around her dance and play tricks on her eyes.

If she was weaker-minded, the psychological attack might have worked.

She instead sniffed, dry sinuses itching at the smell. The air was different here; earthy—underground, most likely—and tinged with dust.

She shifted slightly, and she frowned at her bound arms. Her magic felt sluggish and muted, so she figured that they'd slapped on magic-suppressing cuffs on her.

Not that she could do anything right now, her limbs felt like lead, and moving even an inch would send bolts of pain in her muscles. She could tell that her leg suffered most damage, and Hatsune had to bite down on her lip to prevent herself from crying out. She breathed in sharply, hoping her headache would abate soon. It was tolerable, but it was hard to stay awake.

Despite it all, she felt grudging respect for her captors. 'Clever,' she thought. 'Beating me up so I'm helpless…'

She hoped that the others had only taken minor injuries, especially Jellal.

And that brought her to the crux of the matter. She had gotten knocked out so easily and was taken for some reason.

Whoever had taken her didn't make a single sound. Either they're extremely good at sneaking up on people, or that's their magic. Perhaps it was one of the men Jellal and Gray encountered earlier, but that brought the question: why her?

While she had a few ideas—

"So, you're up."

Hatsune couldn't move her neck properly, stiff as it was, so she settled for a sidelong glance. All she got view of was worn-out boots and grey cargo pants outside her cell.

"What do you want from me?" she asked, wincing at her scratchy throat.

The man only chuckled.

"What do you want?" she gritted out, feeling somewhat off put by the easygoing laughter, like nothing was wrong with the world.

"I dunno, depends on my mood. On weekends I have this huge craving for sweets or chips, while on the weekdays I wanna let loose. Oh, but don't tell Darven, he'll never stop nagging me," he replied cheekily.

'Smartass,' her mind instantly labeled. She didn't want any mind games at this point. She was much too tired, stressed about being separated, and had a head she wanted to bang into the wall. Hatsune gave him a pointed look, at least tried, since all she could do was direct it at his chest area.

"Well, nice to meet ya too, sunshine."

"… Who are you?"

A shadow descended in front of her, and she jumped a little at the lingering palm in front of her face. She didn't even see him move!

"Well missy, I'm just a guy hired by this one individual with their own agendas. I gotta say though… " The hand was retracted, and she was greeted by curious golden eyes and messy red hair. "You're surprisingly calm for someone who's kidnapped. Hm, makes sense, you were a mercenary."

She raised an eyebrow, thoughts racing a mile per minute.

He was young and good-looking, and with the idiotic grin he sported he may have passed for some unassuming fool. He had the posture of one too, slightly hunched over and with an aura of nonchalance, plus his casual greeting to her could have hammered that fact down. However, underneath his shabby black cloak were daggers attached to his belt and the clink of coins in a pouch, and the tell-tale fading smell of gunpowder.

"I guess your employer must be someone who wants me thanks to my reputation, to kill or torture me, or maybe even sell me."

The redhead leaned back, thankfully still visible from her peripherals, and shrugged. "I dunno, they never really told me much."

'He's been careful in not mentioning his employer's gender and he didn't refute the statement. He may not actually know or he may be confusing me...' Hatsu had to play his game carefully. "They did tell you to watch me when I wake up."

He shrugged again, placing his hands behind his head.

"If they didn't, why did they even bother cuffing me and have you down here just as I become conscious? They must be familiar with me, if that's the case."

"Can't it be because I enjoy the view?" he drawled.

"If I was going to be sold off, then I shouldn't be here alone," she continued. It was far too quiet. "Inventory," she said, feeling a wave of disgust at the words. "Should be all accounted for."

He shot her an amused look. "Well, aren't you knowledgeable?"

'This guy is good,' she internally mused. "Even if the illegal trade route in Hargeon was destroyed, I doubt Bosco is that desperate for new women."

The redhead crossed his arms, adopting a mildly bemused expression.

"In any case, your employer doesn't want me dead yet."

The highest possibility now was torture, next to blackmail and death, and she smoothed out her face to prevent her grim mood from showing.

Her captor eyed her, interest and something else glinting in his eyes. "Do you want to be killed?" His tone revealed a thinly veiled killing intent, yet at the same time she could tell he was not serious.

She made a noncommittal noise. "No, but at this point I'm simply a tool waiting to be utilized."

"A tool, eh?"

Her dead-eyed glare did not seem to affect him. He simply beamed at her with the enthusiasm of a young pup finding out they had a tail to chase.

"In some shape or form, people think of others as tools. Cruel yes, but such is the way of the world for the embittered," she forced out, uncomfortable with the topic.

He hummed. "Are you embittered?"

Hatsune huffed. "And are you not?"

"Maybe, maybe not, so who knows?"

She wanted to look somewhere else, preening at his stare, but for some reason she couldn't look away. Hatsune bit the inside of her cheek, hand twitching to massage her temple. "Whatever the case, I'll be stuck here for a while. Even if I try to do anything, you'll pop in without warning like you did earlier."

This earned her a devilish grin. "My, my, never did I think I could impress the Melodic Angel."

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the moniker that still stuck to her until this day. "Think what you want."

"Oh I will. You're interesting, Hatsu."

The way her nickname rolled off his tongue ticked her, but she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her squirm. Instead, she gave him an indifferent look. "You know my name, I don't know yours," she said flatly.

She didn't think it was possible, but his grin stretched even wider. "Wanna play a guessing game with me?"

"Not really." 'We already are.'

The cloaked mercenary lurched back with a hand on his chest, mock horror pasted on his face. "So quick to reject, gah, that hurts my feelings, Hatsu."

She shot him an unimpressed look.

"Ah~ you're so cold!" He pouted, but then he straightened up from his slouch. "Well, guess I better go, boss is calling for me. See ya later, sunshine!"

In the blink of an eye, he disappeared and Hatsune frowned at the empty space he occupied. What a peculiar man… at least he clarified some things. She had to contemplate them now, even if all she wanted was to sleep and leave the thinking at a much later time. The logical part of her screeched that she most likely had a concussion, so sleeping would be bad, but a larger part of her just wanted to sink into unconsciousness.

She was so, so tired.

And she was drooping.

Something was telling her to stay awake, but…

She needed to…

But—

Not yet.

Hatsune bit at the inside of her cheek, and distantly tasted iron. Feebly, she made to move her abused leg, and the flare of absolute pain got her to bite down a cry.

Sleep can wait a little longer.

The first order of business was to gauge how able she was, which much to her displeasure, involved being able to sit and move to the corner of the cell in a painstakingly snail-like pace. She was sweating and borderline ready to just throw up by the end, and she gladly released what remained in her stomach. A minute after, she leaned back at the smooth stone, careful about her injured leg.

Natural recovery can only do so much when it came to fixing a couple of strained tendons and broken bones, so she'd have to be mindful of it.

Second order of business then was finding out how much time had passed. Her stomach was a sign that more than a day or two had presumably passed. Her guildmates… she wondered how they were faring. Knowing them, they'd tear the ground apart to find her, like during their battle against Phantom Lord for Lucy.

Hopefully when they encounter these unknowns, they're cautious. Natsu and maybe Juvia would go ballistic at the mere prospect of her captivity, so she also hoped that the others have kept them in line.

"Delivery to one sunshine sweetheart coming right up~!"

Let it be known that Hatsune does not take too kindly to being taken by surprise, she wasn't used to it. She glowered at the redhead that sporadically appeared beside her.

"Geez, lighten up! And I brought you some food too…"

The mention of food got her stomach to emit a loud growl, and she turned her head away in embarrassment.

He snorted. "Come on, Hatsu, don't be shy." The teleporter then held up a spoon filled with some gray, viscous mush that faintly smelled like a stale cracker and nearly expired milk.

She crinkled her nose, both at his action and at the smell that wafted up to her nose. "Just leave the… food here and let me eat in peace."

"I could but… I wanna feed you~!"

She shifted away from the redhead who was leaning towards her with a goofy smile. "I'd rather you not. I can still move, despite my injuries."

"I know."

"Then go away," she said dryly.

"You hate me that much, huh?"

"Yes."

He recoiled in mock hurt. "Ouch, sunshine, ouch. Spare a guy some dignity."

She only rolled her eyes at that, but stopped when the spoon was moved closer to her. "I said I can eat by myself."

He adopted a thinking pose, chin down and hand over his mouth, exaggerating his expressions and making him look slightly constipated. "Hm… nah, I wanna have you all to myself when I still can." Golden eyes seemed to sparkle, and he lifted his hand to show a rather seductive smile.

She felt her eye twitch. This man… "You're being awfully pushy. Is something going to happen?"

The cloaked mercenary sighed. "Look Hatsu, I just wanna make sure you're up to speed on your recovery."

They must be overly confident they can put her down if she tried to escape. That… or they did want something from her. "Then you can just watch from outside while I eat."

"Nuh-uh!"

She frowned.

Eventually she had conceded to taking two spoonful of the slop (he claimed it was porridge made with love) and Hatsu was never more grateful that she could endure the chatty man, staring into space as she was.

She was thankful when he finally left her to rest and think of her next move.

It was hard to keep track of time—thanks to the fact that she'd dozed off for a few moments without her knowing—but she had gotten used to the dullness of her magic. Her cuffs could only be removed by the one who placed it on her, at least from what she could barely read of the runic symbols, so breaking it was a bust.

She could only rely on her instincts, ears honing in on every minor thunk and crick, but there was no whistle of air indicating a quick out. Her leg and other minor wounds were a cause for concern because infection was highly probable, alongside her dirty clothes, but she could manage.

They were stupid to assume that just because they'd lock her Ethernano connection away, that would mean she was useless.

As for everyone else, she just hoped they're alright.