Ahh it's finally done! I'm so sorry it took so long guys! But I'm back and I come bearing a torture oneshot!
Prompt: I would love to see hurt!Gray (non-con, torture...) and protective Natsu.
My inner sadist was awakened with this one and that was why it took so long, sorry XD It's also why this is so long O.o This prompt was by a guest and I hope everyone likes it! This one actually required so much research.
Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, Hiro Mashima does
Read and review!
It had been on his way back from a job. He had taken a solo job ridding a town of monsters. He was only supposed to be gone for a day. On his way back, he had been walking alone in the forest when he had felt something prick his arm. He had looked over and found a dart sticking out of his upper arm. He had moved to pull it out when his vision had faded to black.
When he had woken up shirtless with his feet chained to what he presumed was a cell wall. The room he was in was completely dark, not a window in sight. His hands had been encased in a stock which left little freedom. He had tried time and time again to use his magic and summon forth even just a chilly fog but even that had failed: the chains were made of magic seal stone and the wooden block was likely mixed with some as well. He had passed out right after the attempt, the drug still in his system. He had woken up a couple more times after that, but he had no idea how long he had been out for each of those times. Gray coughed and winced at his dry throat. How long had it been since they had given him water? In fact, how long had it been since he was captured? Probably less than three days if he was still alive, but to his dehydrated mind, it felt like decades. His wooden cell door creaked open and he was faced with a blond man.
The blond was likely in his mid-thirties. His eyes were a cold blue that reminded Gray of his own ice magic. He kept his head down as the man entered the room and pulled him up by his hair.
"Gray Fullbuster. It seems you're finally awake. I suppose you don't know why you're here. After all, the drug that we gave you was quite potent. All we want is a little information about your precious boyfriend." Gray groaned and coughed, his dry throat pleading with him not to speak. The blond scoffed. "What? Are you dying on me, lover boy?" When Gray didn't respond, the blond clicked his tongue and released him. Gray's head fell back down onto the floor, his body too weak to keep himself up. A blue haired woman passed by and opened the door to his private hell, peering inside with interest.
"What's the matter, Clovis? Can't get the fairy trash to spill?"
"Shut up Ailla. He can barely talk. Grab me some water." The person named Ailla stepped into the cell, her heels making a sharp clack noise on the stone floor.
"You're spoiling him. He's not going to talk if you're so nice."
"And he's going to die if we don't give him some water. Don't you want to take revenge on the Salamander?" Ailla frowned but exited the dark cell.
Ailla returned a few minutes later, a dish with water in her hand. She set it down in front of Gray.
"Drink up, Fairy Tail dog." Gray, who had been lying on the floor, weakly pushed himself up and managed to crawl over to where the water was set down in front of him. He let the cool water wash down his throat, bringing him instant relief. He didn't even care that he was on the ground drinking from a dish like an animal.
He was about a quarter of the way done when the water was snatched away from him. Gray looked up to see Ailla holding his dish of water.
"That's enough. Clovis, hurry up and start," she commanded as she turned on her heel, left and let the heavy cell door swing closed. Clovis knelt down in front of Gray.
"Let's get down to business. What are Natsu Dragneel's weaknesses?"
"As if I'm going to sell out Natsu!" Gray was rewarded for his outburst by a kick to the head. Gray's vision swam as he glared up at the man towering over his prone form.
"I'll ask again. What are Natsu Dragneel's weaknesses?" Clovis asked, pinning Gray with a merciless glare. With some difficulty, Gray answered.
"Go… to hell!" Another kick to the head. Gray groaned and moved onto his side and brought his restrained arms up and over his head as a weak attempt at protection. Clovis walked to his side, boots pointing towards Gray's exposed stomach.
"What is the source of his power?" Gray gave no response, too dazed to say a thing. Clovis kicked Gray in the gut and the wounded raven gave a choked gasp, the air in his lungs effectively knocked out. Clovis continued, stopping sometimes to repeat a question. Each time, Gray either swore at the man or didn't answer. Clovis never questioned his behaviour and continued with his kicks. It was only when Gray passed out that Clovis stopped. On his way out, he gave the raven one last kick to the head. Gray's head snapped back and a cut made from the boot on his forehead began to bleed, the blood travelling down onto the cold stone floor. The cell door closed firmly leaving Gray's unconscious form enshrouded in darkness.
"WHERE IS HE?!" Natsu roared. It was already well into the evening. Gray was supposed to be back hours ago. Lucy stepped forward in an attempt to placate the raging Dragon Slayer.
"I'm sure Gray just got held up. He'll come walking in the door any time now!"
"Lucy's right. I'm sure Gray is fine. He can take care of himself," Erza added. Natsu growled in at them.
"If he's not back by tomorrow, nothing's going to stop me from finding him."
Gray woke up to a sharp pain in his chest. His eyes snapped open and he found himself being hung by magic seal stone chains from his cell's ceiling. He looked back down to find the girl named Ailla looking at him, hefting a whip in her hands. Gray gulped as he braced himself for another painful impact. The sharp crack of the whip as it smacked against his chest made him gasp. Ailla smiled as she took in the angry red mark that decorated Gray's pale skin.
"I'm sure you've already heard this question, but what are Natsu Dragneel's weaknesses?" Gray coughed more than he breathed, his entire body laced with pain.
"I already said… I won't sell out Natsu!" he shouted defiantly. Ailla gripped her whip and let it hit Gray again, causing him to grit his teeth and grunt. The torture continued, Ailla asking questions and lashing Gray with her whip when he refused to answer. Gray didn't know how long it was, but Ailla eventually stopped and crossed her arms.
"You're too stubborn for your own good, Gray Fullbuster. Just sell out your boyfriend and save yourself." Gray struggled to meet her gaze, his entire body screaming for him not to move as his muscles ached and his vision turned the once clear figure of the girl in the room into a distorted image.
"W-Why… do you want him so badly?" Ailla's expression turned livid.
"He humiliated me. Me and Clovis both." She raised her whip again and Gray looked away, grunting every time the harsh whip made contact with tender flesh. It wasn't long before he passed out from the pain and blood loss.
"WHY THE FUCK ISN'T HE BACK YET?!" Natsu screamed. Erza had to hold Natsu back, her arms tucked underneath his armpits as she struggled to keep him from running off.
"Calm down, Natsu! Running all over Fiore won't do anything!" she reasoned. Natsu squirmed, trying to tear himself from Erza's hold.
"It's better than sitting here doing nothing to find him! What if he's hurt, Erza?!" Erza glared at him.
"Are you saying that Gray can't handle himself, Natsu? I thought you trusted him more than that!"
"And I thought you two were friends and you cared about one another but I guess I was wrong!" A harsh slapping noise echoed through the guild, rendering everyone silent. Natsu held his now pink cheek tenderly as he turned around to face the Erza. The mighty Titania had tears in her eyes.
"How dare you. Gray is my best friend! I'm just as concerned as you are for him!" Natsu immediately felt guilty for accusing Erza of not caring.
"Erza, I'm sorry…" It was then that Lucy decided to intervene.
"Come on guys, cheer up! Gray will be fine!" Natsu chose to ignore the sinking feeling in his stomach that something was wrong and forced himself to smile a smile too wide and too happy.
"You're right Lucy. I'm sure Gray is ok."
Another day passed by in the dark for Gray. Ailla had taken him down after the whipping session and he lay on the ground again, feet shackled and hands locked in a stock. He shifted on the ground and subsequently moaned at the paint he action brought. How much longer would he have to hold out? Where was Natsu and his guild? As if on cue, the door opened. Gray weakly lifted his head up, hope shining in his eyes that it was his lover, only for it to fall back down, disappointed when he was greeted with Clovis. Just before the door closed, he caught saw light glint off of something in Clovis' hand. Gray gulped as he realized what Clovis had brought with him for today's session. The blond twirled the small knife he held in his hand. He walked up to the prone raven on the floor and dragged the knife's tip over Gray's upper arm, cutting into the pale flesh easily. The ice mage hissed in pain and curled in on himself. Clovis frowned and moved to Gray's hands. Midnight blue eyes widened in fear.
"N-No… don't!" But of course, his torturer didn't listen as he stabbed the blade through Gray's left hand. Gray screamed out his agony as his body shook and the blood dripped out of the new wound in his hand. Gray felt his heart drop to his stomach. He molded ice with his hands. Without the use of them he couldn't perform magic!
"All you need to tell us is how to kill Natsu Dragneel. All this will stop once you tell us." The knife moved to hover over Gray's right hand. Gray shrunk back, trying to put as much space between him and Clovis as possible only for Clovis to stomp down on the upper arm that he had just lacerated. Gray blinked away the tears in his eyes and looked away, bracing himself. Clovis sighed in disappointment as he ran the knife through Gray's hand and listened to the raven scream.
"He isn't coming for you," Clovis stated when he finished his torture session. Gray was left weak and bloody, his body reaching its limit, but he still flinched, one of his darkest fears since having been capture revealed.
"L-Like hell he isn't! Natsu will come! I know it!"
"Then why isn't he here yet? He has his enhanced hearing and sense of smell. Why hasn't he come for you?" Gray paused as he began to think about what Clovis had said. Why hadn't Natsu found him yet? With the Dragon Slayer's heightened senses, finding him shouldn't be a problem. And yet…
"Think hard on it. Does this man truly deserve your loyalty?" Gray was left with that thought as the door swung shut and he was left in the darkness.
"Natsu! Do you smell anything?!" Natsu growled as he sniffed the air for the umpteenth time.
"No, I don't Lucy!" he snarled, letting his irritation seep into his voice. Lucy flinched back and Erza glared at him. Natsu however, did not shrink back. He was too angry to be afraid of Erza. Gray hadn't come back from a day long job after three days. Natsu gnashed his teeth. He should've gone with him!
Lucy watched as Natsu's expression darkened. She sighed.
"Come on Natsu, let's ask around. We'll see if anyone has seen him." Natsu growled but turned to follow the celestial spirit mage.
Please… wherever you are Gray, just be safe.
Two days had passed in complete darkness. Gray was rocking back and forth on the spot, the stock and bound his hands over his scarred knees. The midnight blue eyes were wide and bloodshot, as if afraid to blink. What time was it? Day? Or was it night? Gray did not know. When was the last time he had eaten something or drunken something? Gray did not know. All he knew was that he was scared and that he wanted the light. He loathed the suffocating darkness.
A sudden click from the door made his head snap up. Ailla walked in, holding another dish of water. When she cast her gaze on her prisoner, her eyes filled with pity.
"He's not coming for you. He doesn't love you." Who? Who was she talking about?
"Just tell us what you know. That's all we ask." But what did he know? Ailla sighed as she realized that this was getting her nowhere. Her captive was too far gone to even understand. She doubted if he was even sane anymore. She set the dish down in front of Gray, who flinched away from her as if afraid she was going to touch him.
"He won't come for you, Gray Fullbuster. Natsu Dragneel has forgotten about you." Gray's eyes widened as the door shut and left him in the darkness again. Gray lowered his head into his knees and screamed.
Clovis walked around town, a bag of groceries in his hands. He and Ailla had kept Gray Fullbuster with them for about a week now. The last time Clovis had gone into Gray's cell, the raven had been screaming and crying, going absolutely insane. Clovis had quickly left and gone to inform Ailla of his findings. He grabbed an apple from his bag and took a bite. Where in the world was Natsu Dragneel? Surely he hadn't abandoned his lover.
As if summoned by his thoughts, just as he turned the corner, he passed by three Fairy Tail mages, one of which was Natsu. He gulped as he walked by them carefully. Suddenly, quick as lightning, there was a hand choking him and holding him up against a brick wall. The bag of groceries in his hands dropped to the ground, forgotten in the face of this attack. Clovis brought his hands up and clawed at the strong arm holding him up.
"Natsu! What are you doing?! Put him down this instant!" a redhead shouted. A blonde stood off to the side, her brown eyes wide.
"Where is he?" Natsu growled out. Clovis' eyes widened. How did he know?! Natsu snarled. "Stop wasting my time! You smell like Gray so where is he?! What have you done with him?!" Clovis had no choice if he wanted to live.
Sorry Ailla… this was a foolish idea from the start. We should never have taken that which was precious to a dragon.
Clovis weakly pointed a finger east.
"Five hundred meters down you should run into an old pub called 'Tavern Clove'. If you go inside, the third table from the left has a button underneath it. Press it and some stairs should appear. Go down those. From there, your nose should tell you the way." Natsu growled at him, trying to read him and see if he was really telling them the truth or if he was sending them on a wild goose chase. Erza however, seemed to have already made her assessment.
"Come, Natsu. Gray is waiting for you." The Dragon Slayer turned, but not before delivering a flaming punch to Clovis' left cheek, rendering him unconscious.
"Let's go."
Within minutes, the team was inside. A blue haired woman turned from the behind a bar counter and smiled at them.
"Welcome, how can I help you?" Natsu's onyx eyes narrowed in rage as he pounced. The blue haired girl's eyes widened before blasting him back with snow magic.
"Salamander, huh? It's about time," she said. Natsu stood and let his flames lick hungrily over his skin.
"Yeah? And who are you?" The girl's beautiful features contorted with rage.
"You don't remember me?! Me, who suffered that humiliating defeat at your hands?! I'm Ailla Transvlena! You defeated me three years ago!" Natsu turned back to the girls who were standing behind him, watching the duel.
"You two go and find Gray. I'll come down once I'm done here." Lucy was about to open her mouth the protest but Erza nodded quickly.
"Understood. Come on Lucy." Erza walked over to the table Clovis had told them about and felt around the bottom for a button. Sure enough, when Erza pressed it, a magic circle appeared on the floor and the floorboards melted away. Lucy and Erza quickly went down the steps, intent on finding their missing friend.
Natsu turned to Ailla.
"You didn't stop them."
"I have no need to. I got what I wanted and it was a chance to kill you!" Natsu scowled as his flames burned hungrily.
"You can always try." Ailla scoffed.
"I'll do more than that. Your little boyfriend was of no use though, unfortunately. Quite the tightlipped one, that Gray Fullbuster." Natsu's eyes widened.
"You bitch," he seethed as he launched himself forward, his body coated with this hottest flames he had ever created. Ailla took a step back, already unnerved. Natsu Dragneel was nothing like he had been three years ago! Natsu threw a punch forward and Ailla jolted herself out of her fear and jumped to the side, missing the attack by a hair. The glass bottles that were behind her fell and shattered, coating the floor in alcohol. Ailla looked down and cursed. When she looked back up, the Dragon Slayer was already in front of her, flames ready to ignite at his word. She had lost.
"Damn you! What the hell is wrong with you! You're a monster!" she screamed hysterically. Natsu's eyes narrowed.
"Even if I'm a monster, it doesn't matter to me. You took away someone precious to me and for that you're going to pay."
Erza and Lucy ran down the dimly lit hall. They had had no idea where to start looking so they had simply burst into every room. So far, they had had no luck finding the ice mage. Erza cursed and wished that she had been the one to stay behind and fight Ailla, since Natsu's superb sense of smell was obviously needed to find the raven. Lucy caught up to Erza and gave her a reassuring smile.
"We'll find him, Erza. Look there's a door ahead of us!" True enough, Erza looked back up and found a wooden door in front of her. Quickly, she charged forward and kicked the door down. A figure in the dark flinched at the sudden light. Erza gasped and from beside her, she heard Lucy do the same. They had found Gray…
…but it looked like they were too late to save him.
Natsu followed after the scent of the two girls. He had finished dealing with Ailla and the authorities had taken her after they had arrived on the scene due to a complaint from a citizen. Natsu perked as he felt a familiar winter pine smell flood his nostrils. Gray! He picked up his pace and say Erza and Lucy standing in a doorway. He wondered what they were doing just standing there. He burst into the small room.
"Gray!" he shouted. However, his cheerful mood instantly left him when he laid eyes on the ice mage on the ground.
Gray was trembling and was covered in multiple lacerations and bruises. The chains that held his ice mage's legs to the cell wall clanked as he shifted and tried to move himself further away from them. Natsu took a step forward and the raven flinched hard.
"S-Stay away! Don't touch me!" he screamed. Natsu jolted and stopped where he was. Instead, he tried talking to Gray.
"G-Gray, It's me. Natsu. I came for you," he said softly. However, his words did not have the desired effect. Gray curled in on himself, hiding even more of himself away from them.
"N-No… Natsu… forgot… doesn't care," Gray stuttered out. Natsu was shocked into silence. What had Gray been forced to endure for his sake? Erza took a step forward and tried to soothe the raven.
"Gray, we came for you. Natsu is right here with you. We're here to help." Gray shook his head furiously. Lucy covered her mouth, tears in her eyes. They had found Gray, but they had been too late to save him from his torture. Just when she was wondering what they were going to do, Natsu took a step forward. With baited breath, they watched as he took another. And then another. Gray continued shaking his head, denying the presence of his saviours more to himself than to anyone else. Suddenly, there were knees in his field of vision. Gray's head snapped up.
"N-No!" He was silenced by warm lips on his. Gray's eyes widened as his vision cleared and he saw pink. Natsu's eyes were closed as he kissed him, but Gray saw that his Dragon Slayer was crying. The tears that ran down his Natsu's face broke Gray's heart. When the rosette pulled away, Gray was staring at him like he was a ghost.
"N-Natsu?" The person in question nodded.
"It's me, Gray. I came for you." Gray sobbed in overwhelming relief and fainted soon after. Natsu gently ran his hands through Gray's raven locks, disgusted to find dried blood caked in it. He shook his head and turned his attention to Gray's restraints.
When Natsu had successfully broken the stock and melted the chains that had bound Gray, he immediately scooped the raven up in his arms, trying to mind his injuries. Gray moaned in his arms and Natsu silently apologized to his lover. He slowly made his way back to the girls who had been watching the two with solemn expressions. Erza extended her hand behind Natsu and guided him out the door with Lucy followed him. Erza took one last look at the room that had held Gray captive before following her friends and slamming the door shut for the final time.
Gray's eyes snapped open as he sat up with a start. Instantly, warm hands were on his body, urging it back down onto the soft bedding that he had sat up from.
…soft bedding?
Gray looked around and found himself surrounded by the familiar Fairy Tail infirmary. He blinked as his vision took in the Dragon Slayer leaned over him.
"Natsu?" The rosette smiled.
"I'm glad you're awake, Gray." The raven's eyes widened as he moved his arm up to cup Natsu's warm cheek.
"I'm not dreaming am I?" Natsu closed his eyes and shook his head, giving Gray the smile that he reserved for his lover.
"No. You're really here. Welcome home, Gray." Of their own volition, tears welled up in Gray's eyes and trickled down his cheeks as he sobbed in relief. Natsu brought Gray's head into his chest and hugged him tightly, giving him physical proof that he was safe. Gray continued to cry and without looking up, he began talking.
"T-They… they told me you forgot about me! They said… that you didn't love me anymore!" Natsu's grip tightened on his lover's head as he looked over Gray's wounds. Gray had bandages wrapped around his head, torso, arms and legs. The lacerations and bruising still made Natsu cringe when he thought about them covering his ice mage's perfect pale skin. His flames had threatened to erupt when he saw the blood from Gray's head and had been told that his head had been kicked. It took Erza, Gajeel and Elfman to hold him back from destroying something.
The wounds made from the whip that had clearly been used on the ice mage were horrifying. Gray's back had been a mess when Natsu had first seen it. Thankfully, Mira had applied some magical salve and Wendy had also used some of her healing magic. Gray had been at risk of an infection before, but thanks to them, he was in no danger now.
Finally, Gray's hands came to mind. Natsu had almost set the room on fire when he had seen the stab wounds through his ice mage's hands. The hands that were so steady when casting ice magic were now weak and wounded. He couldn't imagine what Gray must have felt when they had been stabbed.
Natsu felt that that was only the tip of the iceberg though. Now, he could see that Gray's tormentors had done more than kick and beat him. They had tried to convince Gray that Natsu did not care for him anymore; did not love him. And they had almost succeeded. Gray, his strong, beautiful and confident Gray had been broken into pieces trying to protect Natsu. The thought was almost unbearable. Natsu pulled Gray up from his chest and kissed him deeply, wiping away the tear tracks that adorned Gray's cheeks as he did so.
"Thank you. Thank you so much, Gray. I love you so much," he said, his voice cracking slightly as he kissed his raven again.
Sometime later, Erza and Lucy entered the infirmary with Happy, Wendy and Carla in tow. Gray tensed up upon seeing them and Natsu glanced over with worry.
"Gray, you're awake!" Lucy exclaimed happily. Happy immediately flew over and landed on Gray's bed. The raven flinched but said nothing. Natsu noticed and from the looks of it, Erza did too. Wendy walked over to Gray's side.
"Gray-san, how do you feel?"
"I-I'm fine. Thanks, Wendy." Natsu raised an eyebrow at the stutter, but again, said nothing. Lucy walked up as well and gently placed her hand on top of Gray's bandaged one. She hadn't been expecting Gray to respond to the touch, but she definitely hadn't expected him to tear his hand away from her.
"Gray?"
"Don't touch me!" Gray screamed. "I…I…" Erza quickly saw what was happening and ushered everyone out of the room, leaving Natsu alone with Gray. Once outside, Lucy looked down.
"I'm sorry, Erza. I didn't think he would react like that." Erza gave the blonde a sisterly smile.
"You couldn't have known. I didn't expect him to react like that either. It seems the psychological damage has been done. We can only hope Natsu can bring Gray out of the darkness that he's found himself in."
"Gray! Gray! Snap out of it, Gray, it's me!" Natsu pleaded desperately as the raven clung to his hair, his back hunched. Gray trembled as he shrunk away from the voice.
"I won't tell you anything! Leave me alone!" he shouted. Natsu's heart broke at the desperate tone his lover's voice took. All the more reason to snap him out of the nightmare he found himself in. Natsu roughly pulled Gray's head to face him. The droopy blue eyes had a glaze to them, seeing but not really seeing. Natsu stared deep into the depths of blue.
"Gray. Come back to me. You're fine. You're here at Fairy Tail with me. Come on Gray, I know you can do it." Bit by bit, the disoriented look in Gray's eyes faded and ebbed away into nothing. Gray blinked and found himself staring into Natsu's hard onyx eyes.
"Natsu…?" The rosette breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness. You scared me there, Gray."
"What happened?"
"You were acting like you were back there with them. I snapped you out of it just now."
"Oh. Sorry." An awkward silence settled in between the two. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Natsu carefully looked over to Gray who gave a small nod.
"It's open," Natsu called out. The door swung open to reveal Makarov and Porlyusica. The old man's eyes softened when he looked at Gray.
"How do you feel, Gray?" he asked. The raven looked away just as the pink haired healer came up to his bedside and began unwinding his bandages.
"I'm better now," Gray responded. Porlyusica finished with the bandages and inspected each of Gray's wounds.
"He's much better now. That little healer of yours has improved, Makarov. He should be fine to go back to his own house but he needs to take it easy for a while. No jobs for a week, I would say." Makarov nodded in agreement. With that assessment, the healer redressed Gray's bandages with fresh ones and left. Makarov turned to Natsu.
"Why don't you go home for the day, Gray? I'm sure you'd like to get back home." Gray nodded and carefully began to ease off the bed. Natsu was immediately by his side, ready to help him if he needed it. The two walked out of the infirmary and out of the guild, very aware of the stares that followed them.
"Will Gray-san be ok?" Wendy asked. Erza watched as the two retreating figures of her brothers moved farther and farther away.
"He has Natsu with him. I'm sure he'll be alright," she whispered.
The walk back to Gray's house was silent and uncomfortable. Natsu didn't know what to say and Gray didn't want to talk. Gray opened the door to his house wordlessly and it opened with a clack. His house was exactly as he had left it but everything seemed unfamiliar and strange now. After a week of being tortured, home didn't feel like home.
Natsu wordlessly guided Gray up his stairs and into the bedroom that he had slept in many times now. Natsu looked at Gray in worry as he ushered him onto his bed. Gray looked up at him, his deep blue eyes showing a vulnerability that was unnatural to them. Natsu forced his anger down and climbed into the bed beside Gray.
"Go to sleep Gray. You need to rest." His words fell on deaf ears as the raven was already asleep. Natsu smiled and pulled the covers over them both as he was lulled away into dreamland.
Gray snapped awake and sat up harshly, sweaty and out of breath. After waking up from a horrible nightmare— no, a memory— Gray was panicked. He turned frantically, not recognizing his surroundings and only seeing darkness, loathsome darkness. Suddenly, it was like he couldn't breathe as he felt himself immerse back into the horrible memory of that dark, dank cell. Without thinking, Gray covered his ears and screamed.
Natsu bolted upright, ready to attack when he was woken up by a scream. His first instinct was to light his fists on fire but he immediately stopped when he remembered where he was. Speaking of which, he looked over to Gray. The raven was hugging his knees, trembling and rocking back and forth. Natsu drew in a sharp breath as he was reminded of how had found Gray in the cell.
"Gray? Are you with me, Ice Princess?" he asked, his voice no louder than a whisper. Gray's voice cracked as a broken whimper escaped his lips.
"N-No… Dark… Don't… Want Natsu… Natsu…" he pleaded. Natsu's heart shattered into pieces hearing his lover beg for him when he was right there. Slowly, he moved to envelop Gray in a warm hug.
"Shhh… I'm right here Gray, you're safe," he cooed. Bit by bit, Gray calmed down and looked up at his lover.
"Natsu...?" Then without warning, he clung onto his Dragon Slayer's neck and buried his face into the crook of his neck. "Turn on the lights, please! The dark…! The dark! Please, Natsu!" Without question, Natsu lit his index finger on fire, illuminating his face as well as Gray's tear stained one. Natsu kissed the tear tracks on his lover's cheeks, tasting the saltiness of his tears.
"I'm right here. I won't leave you alone in the darkness. Never, Gray." With that solemn promise, Gray nodded and slumped against Natsu, mentally worn out. Natsu extinguished the flame on his finger and laid his ice mage back down on the bed. He stared at the unconscious raven sadly as he ran a hand through Gray's black locks slowly, savouring their soft touch. It had been obvious, but Gray had clearly sustained mental damage as well as physical. He did not know what his lover had been subjected to to break him so thoroughly, but he would do everything he damn well could to help Gray heal.
Before he went back to sleep himself, he opened the curtains and let the moonlight flood into the room, filling it with its pale glow. Natsu smiled as he wrapped his arms around his lover's waist and pulled him closer. When Gray woke up, Natsu would be right by his side.
Gray's eyebrows furrowed as he opened his eyes slowly. He felt warmth around him and wondered where is had come from. All he remembered was being cold. Gray tilted his head up to look at the sleeping face of his lover. Natsu's even breaths rained down on him and Gray found himself running the pads of his thumbs over Natsu's warm lips. The next thing he knew, he was kissing Natsu. The rosette's eyes instantly snapped open when he felt the pressure on his lips. But looking at the raven who seemed just as surprised as he was, Natsu didn't resist in the slightest.
The two shared a chaste kiss, closed mouthed and sincere, before Gray pulled away, embarrassed. Natsu chuckled and tugged Gray closer to him, letting their bodies fit into each other perfectly.
"Good morning, Gray."
"Good morning, Natsu."
"How do you feel?" Gray looked down, not wanting to make eye contact with Natsu.
"I'm sorry about last night," he began. There was a short pause before Natsu responded.
"Do you want to talk about what happened?" During the time you were captured. The rest of the sentence wasn't spoken, but it was obvious to both of them. Gray took a deep breath and grabbed onto Natsu's waist as well, clutching it like a lifeline. Slowly, the story trickled out of his mouth like poison.
Natsu hugged him close as he finished the tale of his torture, tears of rage in his eyes.
"I'm so sorry, Gray! If only I'd gotten there sooner!" Gray smiled and returned Natsu's embrace, feeling tears of his own stinging his eyes, the relief of being home with his lover finally settling in.
"It doesn't matter, Natsu. All that matters is that you came for me. I love you." The two sat there in the morning sun, hugging each other, one asking for forgiveness and the other out of gratitude.
It would be weeks before Gray's injuries all healed. It would take even longer for Gray's mind to heal and return to what it was before his capture and torture. But through it all, Natsu showered Gray with his love, protecting him from nightmares as well as trying his best to make sure that he was never in the dark without a source of light. Even after Gray had healed and went back to challenging other people to brawls and going on missions, Natsu was the one to stay by him at night when he would wake up crying after a nightmare about his torture again. Natsu was the one to create a small flame when Gray woke up in the darkness, screaming and sobbing. Natsu was the one to whisper reassuring words and give him sweet kisses. Natsu was always there for Gray when he needed the rosette. And he always would be.
Humans can survive 3 days without water and 3 weeks without food. It's pretty interesting that we can go so long without food.
Solitary confinement and darkness actually can drive people insane. Two days is enough to cause extreme paranoia and emotional breakdowns are extremely common.
Welp, this one got wayyy out of hand, but I hope you guys enjoyed this! See you next time!
