Recommended song to listen to on repeat whilst reading this chapter: "Bottom of the Deep Blue Sea" by MISSIO. I love this song, and the vibe is perfect for this chapter.
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Lmao hey guys welcome to chapter 16. It's the weekend so basically I'm gonna post two or three chapters within two days. I hope y'all like the frequent updates, they make me happy too.
EYYY REVIEW TIME!!!
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Nina-Chan202: well as the app hates me ill simplify my reviews to prevent more misunderstandings. maybe i just suck too much as im apparently the only one having this kinda issue. sorry. this chap was indeed the opposite of the previous one. simply reading about Juvias disgusting and creepy persnality was enough to make me hate her all over again. and to think she would go so far as to drugging Gray is giving me the creeps. lets hope Natsu will find Gray asap.
Me: nuuuu it's okie don't worry about it, I'm not upset or anything. You're totally fine, I figured you liked the fluff, I really didn't think there was a problem at all! So pls don't beat yourself up over it, the app can be a dick sometimes (excuse my French). I know because I write and upload chapters directly from the app and it can be a little shit sometimes lol. And yeah ikr, Juvia is seriously taking her creepiness to a new level. Honestly this chapter will surprise you with how twisted and fucked up she is. The way she treats Gray just isn't okay, you know? I honestly gave myself the creeps writing about someone like her. Jeez. Just a reminder that your reviews are such blessings and I really do love hearing from you! You maintain your status as my favorite review writer! Much love, enjoy the chapter! I look forward to hearing from you again!
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Alright so, let's hop our asses right into the mfing chapter XD.
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Natsu POV
Trigger warning for graphic descriptions of torture
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I was up all night looking for Gray. Around midnight, it began to rain, which immediately masked his scent and made Juvia's impossible to discern. I had a feeling she used her magic to conjure up this storm, knowing it would hide her trail. I knew she wasn't stupid enough to take Gray to her home, she must've had some sort of hideout.
But Erza and I still checked anyway. I wasn't surprised when we discovered Juvia's home was empty.
I had run back to Lucy's place as soon as it started raining to get Erza. I knew I couldn't do this alone. And she was all kinds of freaked out because Gray was missing and his scent was alongside Juvia's, and all this had happened right after someone had slipped something into his drink.
Now there wasn't a single doubt in my mind that Juvia had done all this. I wasn't sure how she pulled it off alone, so she was probably getting help from someone else. Lucy came to mind, but I didn't want to jump to conclusions about her right away. Maybe there was someone outside the guild helping Juvia. Her old friends from the Element Four with the exception of Gajeel came to mind.
I knew Gajeel would never participate in something like this, even though he was close friends with Juvia. So I crossed him off my suspects list. That only left three possible helping hands. Lucy, the Element Four, or Laxus.
I highly doubted it could be Laxus, but he always did hate me, so there was a very small chance this was his way of getting me back. And I had to admit, it was working. I took everything from him when I defeated him and Gramps expelled him from the guild. He knew that, by taking Gray away, he was taking everything from me. An eye for an eye.
By the end of the first day, after interrogating everyone at Fairy Tail just to make sure they didn't see anything, I had gotten nowhere. Erza walked home with me, even though I didn't want her to. She said she didn't want me to be alone at a time like this, and she wanted to look after me.
Although I was fuming at her presence, I was secretly glad she was there. Life didn't seem quite so scary when you had a big sister like Erza.
When I got home, the first thing I did was pick up a glass plate that was sitting on the table and fling it across the room with a scream of frustration. I needed to let some of this pent-up anger and stress out. The glass hit the wall across the room and shattered into a million white pieces that sprinkled across the carpet like snowflakes.
Snowflake.
"Gray..." I whispered, picturing his smiling face. His pale skin and beautiful midnight eyes. His raven hair and gentle smile. That strange sparkle in his eyes he only got when he looked at me.
Erza had been watching from a distance, a pained expression on her face, but now she came forward and gently wrapped her arms around me. Tears stung my eyes and I tried to push her away, but she wouldn't let go.
"Dammit... Why... I want him back." I told her, blinking away the moisture swimming in my eyes.
"I know. I miss him too. But we're gonna find him and everything's gonna be alright." Erza reassured, holding me close and pressing a gentle kiss to my forehead.
Suddenly I realized that I hadn't slept for over twenty-four hours. And the thought itself reminded me how fucking tired I was.
"I'm sorry, Gray. I promise I'll find you and bring you back." I mumbled.
"We both will." Erza said, and I was suddenly extremely grateful for her presence. I really didn't want to be alone while the pain and anxiety was gnawing away at my heart until there was nothing left but an aching desire to find the one I love and bring him home safely.
"Oh, Gray..." I buried my face in her shoulder and sighed as her red hair fell into my face. "He must be so scared... I can't imagine the things Juvia might be doing to him right now... I wish I could save him..."
"It's okay, Natsu. We'll find him, I promise. And he'll be okay. We'll make sure Juvia can't hurt him again, okay?" Erza stroked my hair reassuringly, her skin warm against mine.
I nodded my head in agreement. "Y-Yeah..."
She stayed with me until I had stopped trembling and I told her I wanted to go to bed. This was true, I was exhausted and knew Gray would want me to take a break before continuing to search for him so I didn't hurt myself in the process. What good would I be to him if I was too tired to hold my head up?
I kinda thought I wouldn't get any sleep that night. Erza left, and I went right to bed. Images of Gray kept flashing before my eyes. The wide-eyed, flustered look he had given me when I caught him off-guard with a quick kiss. The laughter echoing from his soft lips as we wrestled in the grass of the meadow, trying to pin each other. The way he smiled at me and told me he loved me.
Strangely enough, all these things helped me to fall asleep, rather than keeping me awake. If I closed my eyes and wrapped myself in a blanket, I could almost pretend he was lying in bed beside me, breathing deep and evenly as the moon rose and the night wore ever on.
Although I could sleep just fine, the nightmares that plagued me made it bittersweet. Yes, I was resting, but unconscious, my anxiety and fear could assault my senses and create any sort of horrible vision they wanted.
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There was a shrill scream. It seemed to come from everywhere at once. It chilled me to the bone because I knew that voice.
Suddenly the world blurred and then came into focus. I was no longer lying in bed buried beneath a blanket. I was in a cold, dark room. And a familiar blue-haired woman was standing in front of me, her back turned. Clenched in one pale hand was a dagger. A dark liquid trickled down the sharp edge. I knew it was blood.
And then I realized Gray was there. He was huddled in a corner of the room, knees drawn up to his chest, arms raised to protect his head. He was trembling all over, and bleeding from small gashes running all the way up his arms.
The blue-haired woman was Juvia.
She laughed maniacally and yanked at a chain that she held in her other hand. The chain led to a shackle around Gray's neck, like an iron collar. He was jerked forward, yelping in pain as the metal cruelly dug into his skin.
"You're mine." Juvia hissed, getting down on one knee and running her hand across Gray's back.
"N-No... No, please..." he whimpered, voice choked with sobs.
"Stop!" I roared, trying to pounce the water sorceress and beat her into a pulp for daring to hurt my Gray. But my voice never came out, and I couldn't move. I was frozen in place, being forced to watch what was going on. Tears began streaming down my face. I had to help him.
"Listen, Gray-sama. You will love Juvia. You will forget about Natsu-san. You will be hers, now and forever." Juvia hissed, using the chain to drag Gray closer.
He tried to wriggle away from her, but she ran the tip of the dagger along his shoulder as a warning, not hard enough to break his skin. He shuddered violently and shook his head, silently begging for mercy. His face was streaked with tears and a large bruise was forming along his jaw. What had she been doing to him? It filled me with anger. I wanted so badly to rush in and save him from that bitch, but I couldn't move. Hell, I could barely breathe.
"You will love Juvia." Juvia repeated, suddenly slashing the dagger across his shoulder.
I watched, eyes wide with shock and horror, as his sleeve was cut like paper and his skin split open. Bright red blood welled from the new wound and formed a little river down his arm, merging with the blood from the cuts there. He cried out, and the agony in his voice made my heart break.
I realized why he wasn't struggling or fighting back. His wrists were bound together with a thick, dirty rope. Not even I could break out of that without help from my magic, and I assumed Juvia was still using drugs on him to annul his magic.
"Gray-sama? Answer Juvia. You will love her and no one else. Understand?" Juvia grabbed his chin roughly and forced him to look at her.
"N-No... No... I love him..." Gray sounded so weak and frightened. "P-Please, I-..." he started to say, but Juvia screamed in frustration and slapped him across the face, hard.
He was sent sprawling on his back from the force of the blow. Juvia rose to her feet and kicked him in the side scornfully. "Natsu-san DOES NOT DESERVE YOU!" She shrieked, kicking him again and again. "JUVIA DOES! CAN'T YOU SEE THAT??? LOVE ME!"
He curled into a ball and screamed in pain as she beat him mercilessly. Blood splattered everywhere. He was helpless, he couldn't defend himself. And I couldn't bear to watch. I instead focused on the ceiling until the torture had ceased. Juvia sighed in exasperation and left the room, slamming the door behind her, leaving Gray there to die.
He was bleeding everywhere now, covering his face with bound hands, desperate to protect himself. He was trembling so hard his entire body was heaving and shuddering violently. Choked sobs and whimpers of pain escaped his torn, bloodied lips.
"N-Natsu... Please... I-I'm scared..."
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"GRAY!!!" I sat bolt upright in bed, his name torn from my lips as a shrill scream. My face was absolutely soaked with tears, and I was quivering like an arrow that had just been shot from a crossbow into a tree.
I buried my face in my hands, unable to stop the sob that wracked my entire body from breaking out of my chest. The image of Gray's broken, trembling body lingered before my eyes, drawing out more tears from my already red, puffy eyes. I didn't want to cry, I didn't want to be weak.
Gray... My poor, sweet little Gray... What has Juvia done to you..?
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Gray POV
I was in a cold, dark room. My mind was gripped by fear. I was absolutely terrified because I knew that any second now, she'd come back and... and... No, I didn't want to think about it.
My wrists were tied together with a thick rope, so tightly that the rough cord was cutting into my skin. Blood trickled from beneath the rope and dripped down on the floor. It hurt like a bitch. My shirt was torn in several places from the cuts Juvia had inflicted on my body, and I could feel warm liquid sliding down from the pained areas. More blood. My mind was foggy from the drugs she was using to keep me docile, and my entire body ached and trembled all over.
I was so frightened. She kept hurting me, and because of the drugs' hold on me, I could barely remember how she had done it. All I knew was it hurt, and I was scared, and I wanted Natsu.
Natsu was warm and safe. He'd hug me and tell me everything was gonna be okay. He'd keep me safe. He'd never let her hurt me again.
If I tried hard enough, I could almost feel his warm, strong arms around me, his gentle fingers combing through my hair. I tried to imagine I was with him, cuddling in bed, safe and sound. But the pain was too much to get past, and I came crashing back into reality. Juvia had taken me from him. I wasn't safe. And she would be back soon with her sharp knife and she'd hurt me again.
Don't think about it. Think about Natsu. He's gonna find you. You're gonna be alright.
The drugs were beginning to wear off, I realized, because I could think somewhat clearly. Earlier, I couldn't even remember Natsu's name because it was too hard to think. Maybe I'd be able to use my magic and break myself out of here?
My mind had cleared enough for me to realize where I was. I was lying on the floor, on my side. The cold cement dug into my ribs, making me shiver even harder. An absolutely frigid iron shackle was fastened around my neck. The chain was currently attached to a metal ring on the wall, keeping me from leaving. It made me feel like a dog that had been beaten and chained outside in the cold. There were small puncture marks on my neck from where Juvia had injected more sedatives, more drugs, to keep me from escaping.
A couple painful coughs wracked my body. I wanted Natsu so badly.
I jumped a little as I heard the lock to the door in front of me click. Juvia was back. The door swung open and a ray of soft yellow light flooded into the room. I tried to scramble into a sitting position, but the best I could manage was a slumped sort of half-lying half-sitting position, with my back pressed against the wall behind me.
Juvia entered the room, and absolute panic gripped my chest as I saw the syringe in her hand.
"Juvia is back." she said, softly.
She slowly crossed the room, coming closer and closer. I shrank back against the wall, eyes wild with fear. I didn't want to be drugged again. That meant she could do whatever she wanted and I wouldn't even remember it happening for several hours. I shook my head in protest, eyes locked on the syringe.
"P-Please..." I managed to gasp out, my lips were dried and cracked and bleeding, and my throat was raw and sore. "Please... N-No... No..."
"Juvia's sorry. But this has to be done." she told me, as she crouched down in front of me and gently brushed my hair out of the way. I flinched as her fingers brushed my skin, and whimpered softly, shying away from the sharp object in her hand.
She didn't hesitate, and jabbed the needle into the side of my neck. The side where Natsu had peppered my skin with sweet, tender kisses. His marks were probably still there. I cried out as a dreadful stinging pain shot through my neck. She quickly injected the contents of the syringe into me before withdrawing. It was done. I had been drugged again, and wouldn't be able to think for much longer.
"N-Natsu..." I felt fresh tears begin tracing their way down my face as I voiced what my tortured mind was screaming at me. "I-I... W-Want... Natsu..."
Juvia grimaced. "Forget about him. You have Juvia now."
"No..."
I wasn't sure how long I had been there for. It had been at least twenty-four hours, and Natsu still hadn't found me yet. I was getting more and more desperate by the second. I just needed to be in his arms right then, where not a single damn person in the world could hurt me.
Juvia didn't leave, much to my horror. It seemed she wasn't gonna wait for the drugs to kick in to torture me even more. Her ice cold hands were running down my chest, making me shiver violently.
"P-Please don't..." I pleaded, tipping my head back and closing my eyes as a familiar fogginess began pressing in on my mind, shutting down my senses. I tried to struggle, tried to push her hands off me with my bound ones. But her cold fingers traced across my skin and slid down to my stomach, as she pushed up my shirt so she could access me better. "S-Stop... Stop, please..." I begged, squirming feebly as she stroked and caressed my hollow midsection.
Her fingers ran over the cuts down my stomach that she had inflicted on me only a few hours ago, and I shuddered and cried out at the pain. I had a feeling she was doing this on purpose. She knew how badly it hurt. She wanted me to feel pain. She wanted to torture me.
I didn't want her to touch me. I hated it. Her touches were nothing like Natsu's. His were warm and gentle and sweet. And if I asked him to stop, he would in an instant. But Juvia was cold, and she moved too fast, and she never left me alone.
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Natsu POV
The next day was much the same: no success whatsoever in finding Gray. At this point, I was panicking, especially after the horrid nightmare that had been haunting me throughout the day. It hurt thinking that Gray might be living through that right now. Where had Juvia gone?
But then, before midnight, as darkness settled over the town of Magnolia, I found it. Juvia's scent. Now that the rain had passed, I could pick up on her trail. She had come through here recently, but Gray wasn't with her. Which meant she had left him all alone. My hatred for her grew even deeper at the thought.
Gray, my precious Snowflake, sitting alone in a dark room, bleeding, scared, dying... I quickly shook those thoughts out of my head before they got any darker. I have a trail to follow. I'm gonna find him tonight. Gray, my love, I'm coming. I'm gonna take you home. Just hold on a little longer.
I looked up at the sky and my eyes darted over the full moon. It reminded me of Gray's ice-make magic, sparkling and hissing in his hands, glowing brightly. I sighed sadly and blew a kiss at the moon, hoping that somewhere out there, Gray would feel it and know I was on my way.
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Juvia's scent led me all over town. It seemed she was moving erratically on purpose, but I refused to get thrown off the trail. My focus was razor-sharp, heightening all my senses. I was filled with grim, stubborn determination to find Gray and bring him home.
I followed the scent of rain until I reached an old, run-down house that was known as abandoned. I knew instantly that this was the right place, because I began picking up on another scent too.
It was soft and sweet, but delightfully sharp and cold, like mint. It reminded me of that odd smell in the air on a cold day that nobody really pays much attention to. The smell was wintery and familiar. Gray's scent. He was definitely in this house. I had found him.
I knew better than to just rush in without help, so I ran back to the guild as fast as I could and got Erza. Then we ran all the way back to the house, intent on saving Gray.
I kicked down the rotting wood door with a vengeance, flames sparking in my fists. I was all too ready to lay some serious hurt on anyone in the house. But it was dark, cold and quiet. Nobody came running out of the dark corridors to fight me. Erza was standing behind me, hands on her hips, glaring into the darkness. The floors and walls of the house were in really bad shape. Cracks and holes snaked up the walls, and the wood floor was all but completely decayed. The ceiling looked about ready to collapse on our heads.
"Hello?" I called out, tentatively. "Gray?"
There was no response. But my sharp hearing picked up on a sound deep within the house. It sounded like a soft whimper, a little wail of agony. And the voice was all too familiar.
"He's definitely here, I can feel it." Erza remarked, keeping her voice low.
"Yep. I can smell him. And I heard him just now." I agreed, cautiously stepping into the house. My heart was trying to pound right out of my chest. I followed my nose down a dark, rickety hallway.
The floor creaked and groaned beneath my feet, and the cracks in the narrow walls looked like long hands with sharp fingers reaching to grab me. I shivered. Poor Gray. How could Juvia force him to stay in a place like this?
His scent grew stronger. I kept following it until I found a closed door I knew was the right one. I tried the handle, it was locked. I growled with frustration and punched the door as hard as I could. The flimsy lock broke and the door swung back on its hinges, hitting the wall inside the room with a loud BANG!
I heard a little gasp from inside, and felt slightly guilty. The noise probably scared the shit out of Gray.
I hurried into the room and quickly took in the sights. It was even colder here than in the rest of the house. And there was this horrible feeling in the air. I just knew something terrible had happened in here. There was both dried and fresh blood splattered all over the walls and floor, and in one corner there was a bloody handprint that couldn't have been more than a day old. Gray's blood.
Gray himself was huddled in the corner, lying on his side, facing me and Erza. He was trembling all over like an injured dog, his shirt was a tattered, bloody mess, and his arms were all marked up with deep cuts like they had been in my nightmare. His wrists were bound together, he was bleeding all over the place, and his eyes were closed.
"Oh my god." Erza gasped and clapped a hand over her mouth, pointing to the shackle locked around Gray's neck like a collar, keeping him chained to the wall. "Who... Who could be so terrible as to do this to him?"
"Juvia's not human." I hissed, anger and sadness welling up in my chest at the sight of my lover like this.
Gray's skin was paper pale, and he was extremely thin, making it obvious he hadn't eaten or had water in a very long time. I slowly crept forward and dropped on my knees beside him. Even though his eyes were shut, he shied away from me. He knew I was there, and he must've thought I was Juvia.
"Oh, Gray... My precious Gray..." I said, my voice soft and gentle. I reached for him and hesitated before gently laying my palm on his shoulder.
He let out a strangled cry and curled further into himself, desperate to escape me. "Please don't touch me, please don't touch me..." he whimpered, shaking his head in protest.
"G-Gray... Sweetheart, please don't push me away. It's just me. I'm not gonna hurt you." I murmured, gently scooping him up and laying him down in my lap, across my legs. He struggled feebly for a moment, but he was too weak to fight back and gave up with a little sigh. "That's it. Shhh. It's gonna be alright. I've got you. You're safe now." I continued to talk to him in a low, soothing voice, trying to calm him.
His familiar wintery scent had been almost completely drowned out by the sharp, metallic scent of blood and something else. It was vaguely familiar, I had only ever smelt it once, at Lucy's party a couple days ago. Drugs. Juvia had been consistently drugging him. That immediately told me that he would be extremely disoriented and confused for awhile, until they wore off. That also explained why he couldn't tell the difference between me and Juvia. He couldn't see, hear or think clearly.
"I never thought Juvia was evil enough to drug someone..." I said to Erza, looking over my shoulder at her. "He's completely out of it, and doesn't recognize me."
"God." Erza shook her head in disbelief. "Should I go get Wendy and bring her back here? She can ease him to sleep until they wear off so we can safely get him out of here." she offered, brushing a strand of scarlet hair out of her face.
"No." I was already shaking my head before she could finish her sentence. "Juvia isn't here, and we don't know how long she'll be gone for. I don't want to frighten Gray, so we have to get him out of here before she gets back so he doesn't have to witness a fight. He's already traumatized enough, I don't want to add more onto the pile."
"Okay. Makes sense." Erza reluctantly agreed.
I gently brushed Gray's hair out of his face. He shuddered violently at the touch and tried to get away again. But I was patient, and kept stroking his hair, speaking to him in a calm voice, hoping I could get through to him. I carefully began untying the ropes, winning as I saw how deep the thick cords had cut into his wrists. The long red cuts, still bleeding like crazy, ran all the way around both wrists and were split open in several places. I managed to undo the tight knot and tossed the rope away, trying my hardest not to aggravate his injuries.
"N-No... Please stop..." Gray began to cry, from pain and fear. "I-It hurts... Stop..."
I began to talk to him as I carefully melted the shackle off his neck with my fire magic, keeping my free hand between his skin and the shackle so I didn't burn him. "It's alright, Gray. I'm not gonna hurt you, I swear. You're gonna be okay, I promise. Please, let me take care of you." Finally, the shackle came undone and fell to the ground with a clatter. I slid my arms under his thighs and shoulders so I could pick him up and carry him bridal-style, lifting him as I stood up. He was too weak to fight back, and his entire body went limp. "There we go. It's okay. I've got you. We're gonna get you out of here and take you someplace safe. I'll never let her hurt you again. It's over now."
I continued to talk to him as I carried him back through the dark hallway and out the rotting front door, into the moonlight. He never stopped trembling, and soft little sobs and whimpers occasionally escaped his bleeding lips. I just kept walking towards the guild, and praying the drugs would wear off soon.
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Gray POV
The drugs wore off after three hours, like they always did. But this time, as I slowly emerged from the brain-fogginess, I realized that something was different. I could no longer feel the weight of the shackle around my neck, or the stinging bite of the ropes cutting into my wrists. There was no cold floor beneath me, it had been replaced by something soft and warm. A bed, I assumed. The air was a lot warmer here, and didn't smell like blood and death.
Is Juvia finally being nice to me? Did she move me from that horrible room somehow? I wondered, as I considered opening my eyes and looking around.
Panic gripped my chest again when I realized she might be here with me. I couldn't stand to look into those cold, dead, vacant blue eyes again. I was so afraid of seeing her that I almost didn't want to open my eyes, but my curiosity got the better of me and I slowly cracked them open.
I was in a familiar brown-walled room, with colorful red, blue and green tapestries hung on the walls. The Fairy Tail infirmary? How did I get here?
Suddenly a familiar face crowded my vision. She had blue hair, but it was darker than Juvia's. Plus, this girl's eyes were a pleasant, glittering gold color, much more beautiful than Juvia's dull ones that reflected the deepest, darkest corner of the ocean. The girl in front of me was really short, probably only four and a half feet tall. And her eyes were sparkling with concern.
"Mr. Gray! You're finally awake!" Wendy exclaimed, rushing forward as if to greet me.
The sudden movement startled me. I flinched back, gasping for breath. "W-Where's Natsu?" I choked out, fighting off a panic attack. "I-I want Natsu."
Wendy nodded her head in understanding. "He's outside talking to Lucy. Would you like me to get him for you? I'll fetch him immediately." she turned and ran out of the room with surprising energy.
I realized that I was now alone in the room and shivered all over. Every shadow looked like Juvia. Even though I was warm and in a safe, well-lit room, everything looked and felt hostile, like the safety and familiarity was just an illusion. I swear I could feel her eyes on me. She was creeping up behind me now, closer and closer...
I jolted out of the hellish hallucination with a strangled cry of terror. I couldn't breathe and a thin layer of sweat coated my forehead.
It's just the drugs, Gray. I told myself, but even the voice in my head sounded scared. She's not here. You're safe. The drugs are still wearing off and causing you to see things that aren't there.
Even so, I stifled a sigh of relief as I heard running footsteps and Natsu's voice shouting, "I'm coming, Snowflake!" He sounded so eager to see me. Focusing on his familiar voice made me feel a little better.
The door to the infirmary burst open and Natsu practically exploded into the room, sprinting over to my side, shrieking, "Graaaaaaaaay!"
"Natsu!" I cried, overwhelmed by my happiness to see him.
He made it to my side within a millisecond, and threw his arms around me, completely smothering me in his warm embrace. Tears began streaming down my face, I couldn't help it. After such a long time yearning for his presence, I couldn't believe he was finally here. I was finally safe. I could breathe again.
"Oh, Snowflake... My precious, beautiful, sweet Snowflake..." Natsu murmured, stroking my hair and peppering my face with soft, tender kisses. "I'm so sorry I lost you... I promise I'll never take my eyes off you ever again. Everything's okay now. I love you so much."
I just buried my face in his warm chest and sobbed hysterically. All the pain I had suffered this past couple days weighed in on me, threatening to completely destroy what little bit of sanity I had left. But Natsu was here, and he was holding me. I couldn't stop a little wail from escaping my lips, and he rushed to comfort me.
"No, no, shhh. It's alright. I'm here. I've got you. It's over, you never have to go through that ever again. She can't hurt you anymore." he reassured, gently kissing away my tears and running his finger across my chin. His touch was so soft and sweet and familiar it made me cry even harder. "Gray... It's okay, really. Look at me, honey. It's okay. You're safe and everything's gonna be fine." He told me, running his thumbs across the dark circles under my eyes.
"N-Natsu... Natsu..." I whispered his name over and over, trying to breathe in as much as his warmth as possible. "I-I missed you..."
"I missed you too, cupcake. So, so much. And I was so worried for you. I'm just glad I found you in time, you were all but completely dead when Erza and I got to you last night." Natsu explained, sliding into bed beside me so he could gently pull me into his arms, my head resting in his lap.
I sighed and closed my eyes, sniffling pitifully. "I-I... I was so scared..." I mumbled, as all the dark memories of the things Juvia had done to me came crashing in on me.
"I know, baby. I know. But it's all over now. She's gone, and I'm here. I won't let her so much as look at you ever again." Natsu promised, combing his fingers through my hair with the lightest, most gentle touch and pressing a series of tender, loving kisses to my temple.
I stifled another sob and pressed my face into his warm thigh. Everything about him was so familiar. I just wanted to stay like that forever. He could protect me, he would keep me safe.
Natsu kept absentmindedly playing with my hair. His free hand found mine, and he grasped it firmly, twining our fingers together. What he did next left me breathless. He brushed my hair out of the way to reveal the nasty syringe marks on the side of my neck, bruised and red against my skin. There was a ring of raw, blistered skin going all the way around my neck just above my collar from the shackle, bruising at the edges. He flinched as he gazed upon the wounds Juvia had cruelly inflicted on my skin. But then he leaned down and pressed a kiss to each and every little bruise she had given me.
That's when a true feeling of calm and safety settled over me. Maybe I'd be okay now.
To be continued...
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Sooo... I figured rather than leaving y'all on another cliffhanger, I'd wrap up the scary Juvia drama in one chapter. Although I must say there will be another scene with her in the next chapter, it won't be nearly as big and bad. Now we're moving back into recovery phase, which will also serve as some special bonding time for Natsu and Gray, which means more fluff is coming.
I'm seriously enjoying writing this fic but I'm kinda starting to wonder if and when I'll stop, you know? Once that happens, I'll start a new fic with a different topic. I have a few different ideas. None of them are guaranteed to come out, so I'm not gonna list them. As of right now, I'm simply planning ahead. There will come a day when I won't be able to update this fic anymore because I'll be out of fresh ideas to keep the story going. Thanks to Lorelei, I have fresh ones that'll prolong the story and make it interesting. However those ideas will eventually run their course. So yeah. But that won't happen for awhile so please don't panic XD.
Love y'all, see you next chapter!!!
-UltimatexAdmin