Just Misunderstood
Chapter 15
Emotion
Natsu wiped tears away as he ran towards the blinding pillar of light. Lush green forest surrounded him, animals of every kind, beautiful flowers dotted the ground. But in all the beauty around him he only felt hate. Natsu had never, never hated someone before, no enemy had ever deserved his hate. Not even Gajeel, and Jellal, Lyon, Laxus. They were all just lost, even if they did horrible things in the process of finding their way. He never hated them, not even a little.
But, in that moment, Natsu hated Brain. He had manipulated Lucy in her time of need, made her feel wanted when she was really being used. He preyed on people's fears and vulnerabilities. He didn't care who he hurt, even if it was his own guild. He was the worst kind of person.
Natsu wanted to hate Cobra. But couldn't bring himself to do it. Cobra was using Lucy too. Exploiting her weaknesses. But he couldn't hate him. Maybe that was because Natsu knew that on some, deep, level that the poison slayer didn't want Lucy to get hurt. He might even miss the old her. Natsu almost asked himself why the slayer was suddenly so attached to the blonde.
But he already knew. This was Lucy. She is able to warm the coldest hearts with merely her smile, she was so kind, forgiving, strong, fiery. She trusts so easily, she loves with her entire heart. But she also was insecure, and scared a lot. Lucy never thought she was strong, and for that she thought it was her fault that Loke, Elfman, Erza and everyone else got hurt during Phantom Lord.
Natsu knew this even without her telling him. He knew she would burden the guilt on her own, because that's just the type of person she is.
And then there's Cobra, who has probably never felt real human love in his life. That was usually the case with wizards who joined dark guilds. They didn't have a family, or true friends so they went to the darker side. So when Lucy showed up and showed him a chance at real human intimacy he fell a lot harder than he should of.
After all, it had only been four days.
Natsu's thoughts were silenced when he was thrown violently against a tree. He groaned and looked up as a figure stood over him.
"Natsu Dragneel, you've been a problem," Brain's cold voice reached his ears.
~JM~
Angel stumbled into the clearing with Midnight close behind her. Cobra's heard them and their questioning thoughts as he sat next to a sleeping Lucy. "Another flicker happened," he whispered. "She chose to stay with me. She left Natsu for me," his eyes were wide looking towards a patch of grass. Angel went to kneel next to him but Midnight grabbed her arm, he shook his head and she looked at him in confusion. Cobra laughed, one that wasn't sarcastic, one that wasn't malicious. It was pure unadulterated joy. He stood and whirled towards the two, "She said I was the only one to help her! She chose me over Natsu! Ha!" He smiled wide. He went and hugged Angel, spinning her around in circles.
"Calm down!" Angel scolded as she struggled from his grasp, "Why are you so happy about it?"
His stilled and silence filled the space. He didn't have time to answer when Angel's eyes caught the gleam of something on the ground. "What is that?" She raced to it, her knees sliding on the grass, she grabbed it and her eyes wiped to Cobra's.
"Lucy gave it to me before she went back?" He said, his eyebrows raising at her reaction.
"Did she say anything?"
"Uh, she said that she needed help and that I was the only one that could help her," he said as he grabbed the key out of her hand.
"Well? Are you fucking dumb?" Angel scoffed as she took the key back.
"Excuse me?" He growled.
"You idiot! You touched the keys and she attacked you. She gave me all of her keys except for one, and now she gave you that one, during a flicker no less, and you still can't figure it out," she threw her hands up in anger.
"I normally would from your thoughts but Jesus fuck Angel your mind is so fucking cluttered right now," he complained.
"Erik! You are not the anchor!" She threw the key at his chest and he caught it, "Leo is!"
"No wa-," his own words were cut off by his thoughts. Suddenly every thought in all of their minds became clear to hear. Cobra slumped to the ground. His knees pressing against the soft grass. His eyes moved to Lucy, whose own were closed. It was silent, Midnight and Angel quiet as Cobra contemplated the meaning of all this. "I'm not the anchor?" He whispered quietly. "That makes zero sense, she said she would die for me. She protected me, that's from the spell, that's the only explanation."
"Maybe her feelings for you are so strong that it's fighting through the spell," Angel said as she rubbed his back.
"But that," he took a deep breath, "She didn't feel that way with Natsu, or the others? Why would it push through for me? She barely likes me."
Midnight stepped to the blonde laying on the ground, he dropped gracefully and tucked her hair away from her face then leaned back on his hands. "She cares for you, just like you care for her."
Cobra shook his head, "No, not to this extreme, I mean yeah I don't hate her like I did and I wouldn't kill her myself but I wouldn't die for her," he looked away, "Just like how she wouldn't die for me."
Angel rolled her eyes and scoffed, "You wouldn't? Really?"
Cobra found a piece of grass suddenly very interesting and his ears twitch as he heard her smug thoughts. "I have only known her a few days," he said quietly.
"So? You have combed through her thoughts, you have combed through her life. You know everything she has ever heard, seen or done. You know every word she had spoken and every thought she has thought. Please, don't ruin this. You have such a good chance here. You are allowed to care Erik. They took so much away from us in that tower, we deserve to care for people and not feel guilty. We deserve to feel things other than rage and hatred."
Cobra's eyes closed tight as tears burned on his lids, Cubellios wrapped herself tightly around his leg, her head settling on his thigh, her tongue flicking in confirmation. "I have never wanted any of this Sorano. I just wanted to hear her voice, just once. But even now," his eyes met Cubellios, "I can't hear anything. I don't want this anymore. I was just following Brain because I owe him my life. I never wanted it to get this far," Cobra violently wiped tears from his face, but his actions were futile as more just replaced the old.
Angel's eyes filled as she watched the strongest man she knew breakdown in front of her. "Erik… you have found a way to escape," she looked towards Lucy, "Use it."
The clearing was silence once again as the duo ceased talking, it was a comfortable silence. One where they thought and spoke without words. Cobra listened closely to the thoughts of the other two, hearing their growing denial and resentment.
~JM~
Erza fought tears as she stood just a few feet away from the man she loved.
His own eyes widened as she spoke the words of his past, the things he had done. His mind was exploding with thoughts, as he continued to drown himself in the feeling of no memories.
"Erza?" He mumbled and more tears came to both of them.
She heard the words of self-hatred and negativity that left his mouth, then purple rings of magic began to grow on his chest, the same magic that he had just put on Nirvana, to destroy it forever. And as his limp body fell back, with the suicidal thoughts of a possessed man, she ran to him. Tears cascading down her face, as her armored heart beat wildly in her chest. Pleads and cries left her mouth, word of love and loss. Painful thoughts that struck deep within him.
In that moment, as her beautiful words graced him, the purple melted away from both the locations it had been. With relief and vulnerability, her armor began to crack off, the metal that was concealing her body disappearing and showing her softly clothed body.
Jellal smiled and his fingers went to play with the small lace that hung from her shirt.
"An armored heart will beat without the metal and warm the chest of a hated man."
~JM~
Lucy woke up to a clear blue sky, it greeted her happily and the tips of trees waved their hellos. Green and brown mixed together to create the forest around her. A slight smile almost graced her lips, then suddenly dark clouds and strong wind swept in. And then she heard the terrible roar of Nirvana as the angry pillar of darkness settled into the atmosphere. She sat up quickly, a white coat falling off of her form. The wild wind shook her to the bone and she slipped the large cost on and wrapped it around her. She was alone.
Nirvana, obviously widening, was just now several meters in front of her, she watched how the ground around the pillar cracked and crumble into the powerful magic as it ate away at the forest, a sudden shock wave blew out across the forest and the trees melted away into darkness, small particles of death floated up from the ground and rose to the sky. She stepped back and ran into a hard chest, she looked up and Cobra's eyes narrowed in on hers. He almost backed away when he saw gold.
"You're awake," he started slowly.
"What happened?"
"You passed out after your fight with Natsu. Nirvana is growing, Brain just notified us that Nirvana has the power to turn good, evil and evil, good, at least while it's rising."
Lucy looked to the side to see Angel standing alone, her eyes downcast and her hands clasped together in front of her, "I am not evil. I never wanted to hurt anyone. I never wanted to be this person. I don't want this life anymore. I want to be good, but not even Nirvana, this ancient powerful magic, can turn me good again. Can nothing save me?"
Cobra went to go to her, to comfort and convince her otherwise, but he stopped when Lucy stepped up slowly. "You can not turn something good if it is already. You guys aren't evil," she made eye contact with Cobra, "Just a little unloved and misunderstood."
His breathed hitched, and he bore into her golden eyes. Again, she was saying this because she believed it. Not because it was the nice thing to say. She said it because it was true in every sense of the word. "Really Lucillia? You think that?" A deep voice chuckled as a sudden chill ran through them all. "They are my guild, my family, my pawns. They are evil, have been since the tower. They want power, the power to corrupt, kill and destroy. We want to rule and decimate this kingdom. We want the light guilds to fall. We want the King of this realm to fall to his knees and pledge his allegiance and love to us."
Green mist seeped out of the ground as Brain stepped out of a seemingly hole in space. The sky darkened and his green iris shone with hate and anger. His tattoos, now some missing, joined his eyes as they began to glow with his power. Emerging from the darkness behind Brain Midnight stood. His posture rigid and his face one of panic. His eyes darting between the four mages in front of him. Cobra stiffened as he stepped in front of Lucy, his eyes piercing through Brian's. "Oh? Have you finally chosen a side, Erik?" He nearly sneered.
"There were never any sides. She was loyal to you Brian. To me. It was your greed for her power that drove all of us away." Cobra felt Lucy press into his back. "You betrayed us."
"No, no, no. Listen here. Lucy Heartfillia." She almost flinched at the way he said her name, "You have been turning my knights against me since day one."
"No Brain, you have been turning us against you for years," Angel said as she stepped up, tears shining in her eyes.
Brain snarled and green magic erupted from the ground, "Then I guess I don't need you three anymore!"
"You four," another deep voice said as he stepped into the light.
"Make that five," Racer whistled as he stood next to Hoteye. They both moved to stand next to Cobra, as the said man looked at them in shock and disbelief. Brain's staff snapped in his hand and a yell of rage left him as green spewed out of the ground around the five guild members. Cobra's heart fell into his stomach as his muscles were frozen by the powerful magic. He groaned as he strained to move, using all his strength to turn his head.
Lucy's eyes were wide with panic and silenced fear.
-emotion-
Angel was on her knees along with Hoteye and Racer. The three struggling to even keep their heads up. Cobra watched as Lucy's own buckled and she fell to them, he did as well. Trying his best to get to her.
"Erik?" Lucy whimpered, his heart exploded. The shards impaled his lungs and every organ they could get to. The pieces bounced around his ribcage and he almost whimpered back.
Brain laughed, "Hmmm, what to do? What to do?" He sang.
Cobra pulled himself back, settled right next to the girls and he watched as Brain's toxic gaze held onto Lucy. "Don't fucking touch her," Cobra growled, Brain narrowed his eyes, and snarled.
"You don't give me commands," Brain laughed. Lucy suddenly screamed as the magic on her doubled pushing her completely to the floor.
"No! Stop!" Cobra yelled, he pushed against the magic. He flicked his eyes to Lucy when she called his name desperately quiet. She reached out a trembling hand, and slow, ever so slowly he reached for it. He noticed Lucy's other hand was tangled with Angel's, and hers with Racer's, Racer's with Hoteye's.
Lucy looked towards the dark sky and two orbs of purple magic developed in between their hands. Deep breaths left her, and the scar on her back throbbed painfully, which it hadn't done in a while.
"What are you doing!?" Brain shouted, dropping more weight onto them, screams sounded from them all. "Lucy! No! You might die! Where are you even!?" But the orbs only grew bigger. "No. No! Stop, stop, stop!" Cobra screamed, but Lucy only smiled and closed her eyes. When they opened again, they were solid brown, no eerie gold or slight glow. And then all at once, Cobra saw his guildmates turn into stardust and he felt his spine nearly ripe out of his ass.
-no-
It has been so long. And I know this is a short chapter, but the next chapter will be up very soon.
Remember a few chapters ago when I said that my grandmother was in the hospital? Well, she died on October 10th. It really broke me, she practically raised me and I really don't think I will ever be the same. And I am not telling you this for sympathy or because I want people to feel sorry for me. I am telling you this because I wanted to give you a reasonable explanation on why I have been gone so long. And because it might start impacting my writing style, hopefully in a positive way at least.
I should begin updating again regularly, well as regularly as I did before anyway.
:)
-WreckedProgress
