Lucy slowly opened her eyes to a dark room. Her mind felt like it was trapped in a fog, and she felt like her eyelids had weights pressing down on them. She rose from the bed on which she was lying and pressed a hand to her forehead; the room spinning into focus. Even though the room was dark, she could still make out some of its features: along one wall, a vanity table and a tall wardrobe stood, her bed occupied another wall and a small writing desk was nestled under the single curtained window. It was a small room with only one door, but from the look of the furnishings and what felt like silk sheets on the bed, it was extravagantly decorated.
"Where am I?" Lucy whispered to the empty room, trying to remember how she got there. The fogginess in her mind was slowly dissipating as she searched her memory for clues. Her last memories were of a girl glaring at her before everything went dark.
The girl…Do I know her? The memory of the girl's face was blurry, but one feature stood out. Pink. Her hair was pink like…
"Natsu." The fog was blown away, and everything came rushing back to her. She had left the café to go search for Natsu and found him, but he wasn't alone. There was a girl with him, but it wasn't the one with pink hair. No, that girl had golden blonde hair. Lucy's heart squeezed as she remembered the moment—the kiss. She pushed past that memory, not wanting to relive it again. She had ran and then she was lost in Venice, crying alone on a bridge with anger and sadness swirling in her heart and jumbled memories in her head.
The pink-haired girl had found her there, and the next thing Lucy knew, she woke up in this room. But it felt as though there was something Lucy was forgetting, something that she needed to remember. It kept tugging at the edge of her memories like it was an important clue to solving where she was and who that pink haired girl was.
"For love, we mustn't tarry. My dear Boss has waited long enough." The pink haired girl's last words rang in Lucy's mind and she went still.
Boss. The girl was working for the mafia. If Gold Pistol was the "Boss" the girl was referring to, why was he looking for her? It had just been a few days since that awful night when this wretched treasure hunt began. He knew she was with Natsu looking for Gray. Unless the "Boss" she was referring to wasn't Gold Pistol, but the true power behind the Italian Mafia. The person who had ordered her wolves to kill Lucy the first time they had met; the person who was haunting her dreams at night.
Scrambling off the bed, Lucy threw back the curtains and gawked as she saw the windows were boarded up from the outside. Her heart pounding wildly, she ran to the door, her fingers desperately reaching to twist the knob. Locked. Panic was rising within her as she kept twisting the handle and pulling hard on the door but it wouldn't budge. She was trapped.
"No," Lucy gasped as she backed away from the door. All she could see was the hatred glittering in Juvia's eyes and the knife plunging down to claim Lucy's life. Lucy didn't want to die, especially not by Juvia's hands.
The lock on the door clicked and Lucy's heart stuttered. They were here. They were coming for her and then she would be dead. Looking around the room, there was no means for escape. Nowhere to go, nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. She gulped and tried to bully her tears to keep them from falling, but a few slipped down her cheeks as the door opened.
A masked figure entered into the room and flicked a light switch she hadn't noticed by the door. Lucy's eyes widened at the plain nondescript mask the person wore. It was silver and covered the entire face. The eye slits were covered in black fabric, blocking the person's eyes from view. She noticed the person was also carrying a large brown bag.
"Get dressed," a male voice ordered from behind the mask, "When you're done dressing, knock on the door three times and I'll escort you to the Boss."
"Wait. Please you have to help—" The masked man turned and left the room, shutting and locking the door behind him and cutting Lucy's words off. She thought if she could speak with the man, reason with him, maybe he would take pity on her and help her escape. After all, Juvia wanted to kill her just because Lucy was friends with Gray. What kind of reason was that to die?
"Still, Italy's Underworld sees it as its duty to protect Juvia and will do whatever it takes to make sure her happiness is assured. If Juvia wanted to, she could order the men to kill Gold Pistol and assume the title of Boss, and no one would think twice about it." The memory of Natsu's words echoed in Lucy's mind.
The masked man wouldn't listen to her. She couldn't convince him to help her. Natsu had said the people loyal to Juvia would kill Gold Pistol without out a second thought if she ordered them to. If they were ordered to kill Lucy, a woman Juvia believed was trying to steal away the man she loved, her goons wouldn't hesitate for a second if it would make Juvia happy.
How did things turn out like this? All this time Juvia's wolves had been hunting her and she didn't even know. All she wanted to do was find her friend and save him. Natsu had been right though. She wasn't prepared to handle the wolves of the mafia. Trapped and powerless, there seemed to be but one fate left to her. Lucy had failed to save Gray and now she was going to die. Lucy should be crying, or crawling into the wardrobe or wedging herself under the bed, and losing herself to hysterics. Her death might be moments away, but she just stood there looking at the brown bag.
She believed Natsu would find Gray, but only to get the treasure he loved, and then he could play around with the blonde from earlier. Juvia would win and have Gray in her clutches. Lucy's heart trembled a little at the thought of her best friend in the hands of the mafia once again. He would be her only regret. She wanted to save him, but she was powerless, unable to do a thing. Lucy just hoped that one day, he would find a way to escape.
The man had left the bag on the floor by the door. Suspecting rags or some other humiliating garment, Lucy picked up the bag and dumped the contents on the bed, furrowing her brow at what came out instead. Picking up the first item, she held it up to her and looked at her reflection in the vanity mirror.
It was a gorgeous white, sheath cocktail dress that stopped a few inches above her knees. The sleeves and collar of the dress were made entirely out of lace with exquisite silver beading accenting the lacework while the rest of the dress was pure white. Silver heels that perfectly matched the beading on the dress also tumbled out of the bag. Frilly lingerie that would make Virgo proud were the last pieces to fall out.
"What's with this outfit?" This didn't look like an outfit someone was killed in. She shivered as she stripped and then dressed herself. Did Juvia have some twisted plan of torture in store for her? Like it or not, Lucy was going to find out. Her hair was a mess, and there wasn't a brush or a comb in sight. She tried finger-combing her hair to tame her blonde locks, but stopped herself. If she truly was about to die, then death wouldn't care whether or not her hair was a mess.
Knocking three times on the door like she was instructed to do, Lucy waited for her escort. The door opened and the masked figure appeared.
"What's that for?" Lucy eyed the black fabric in his hand.
"No questions. Turn around." He barked and Lucy quietly obeyed. The man stepped towards her and covered her eyes with the cloth, tying it around her head. A blindfold. "Come." He tugged on her arm, as he led her out of the room and into the space beyond.
The only noises she could hear were the click click clicks of her heels and the man's breathing behind his mask. He led her down long hallways, turning right and left as they walked to her execution. When Lucy thought he was going to walk her to death, the man finally stopped. She heard him knock on a door before turning a handle and ushering her into a room. The blindfold was removed and Lucy blinked as she took in the space.
Saying the room was grand, magnificent, or even extraordinary felt wrong. Those descriptions were too weak and couldn't do the massive space any justice. The room was a testament to centuries of master craftsmen and artisans pouring their passion and artistic labor into creating the space. All four walls of the room and the gold gilded ceiling were covered in hand painted portraits, depicting famous rulers, religious scenes, and historical moments. Her eyes darted all around the room in an attempt to absorb every detail that went into creating such an awe-inspiring room. She realized it would probably take as many centuries to see and appreciate all that the room had to offer as it had taken to create it.
This place. But how? Why am I here?
Lucy kept looking up, turning around as she swept her gaze over the portraits above her. There was so many and they were all so breathtaking. Her gaze flew down from the ceiling and she stopped. Having been caught up in the moment, she hadn't realized she wasn't alone. At the end of the long room, a group of masked men and women stared at her.
Mafia wolves.
They were all wearing the plain silver masks that her escort was wearing. Her gaze travelled over all of them, trying to pick out Juvia from the pack, but she couldn't tell from the distance if she was one of the figures staring at her. Her escort came up behind her and gave her a nudge, indicating for her to approach.
Her footsteps echoed on the tan marble floor as she walked forward. The panic inside of her kept rising as she came closer. If Juvia didn't kill her herself, then one of the masked figures might be her executioner.
I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to die . She chanted to herself as she frantically thought of a way to escape. What could she do that could stop the inevitable from happening? What could she say? Was this really her fate? Lucy couldn't accept it. Wouldn't accept that this was the end. There had to be something she could do. But what?
With her impending doom looming over her, the magnificence of the room took on a darker glamor. Lucy threw her gaze to the ceiling once more, trying to find the answers she sought there; but only blank faces stared back at her. The blank faces of dead men. All they knew now was death, and their blank faces seemed to say, soon she would know it too.
Her eyes fell down from the ceiling, but she couldn't look at the masked people either. Her gaze moved past them and up the raised dark wooden platform behind them, fixating on the masked figure seated on a throne. Lucy stopped.
How had she not noticed him before? She focused solely on the masked individual on the gilded chair. Even with the mask on, she could feel the person's gaze sweep over her. Lucy was suddenly conscious of the tight fitting cocktail dress she was wearing. The man slowly raised a hand from his armrest, and beckoned to her. As if pulled by an unknown force, her feet started to move across the marble floor again. Reaching the outer line of the group, the mafia wolves parted for Lucy so she could stand just before the bottom step of the platform.
The masked figure rose and from this distance, Lucy could tell he wasn't wearing a mask, but a helmet in the shape of a horned demon with only his nose and mouth visible. A plume of purple fur fell down his back. Up close it was terrifying to look at, so she descended her gaze to look at his clothes instead. He was wearing a fitted black suit that outlined his lean, but muscular frame. Even though it was just a plain suit, she could tell it was expensive from the tailored features and sleek material it was made out of. The man stood on the platform looking down on her, the very picture of power and wealth. Realizing he had to be one of Juvia's top wolves, Lucy swallowed hard.
"You know your roles and I expect nothing but perfection for tomorrow night. You're all dismissed."
The voice was male and rang with authority as the masked group bowed slightly and began to depart. Lucy heard the figures walk away. It seemed none of them would be the one to kill her. If it wasn't Juvia, then it had to be the man in the horned helmet. That was something she was sure of. Lucy might have been relieved at the realization that she only had to contend with one of Juvia's wolves. However, the man before her exuded such lethalness she didn't believe she stood a chance against him.
While departing, one of the masked figures bumped into Lucy—hard, making her believe it wasn't an accident. Turning to the person, she found a familiar pair of angry blue eyes glaring at her behind a raised mask.
"Sherry." The man on the platform spoke, her name became a warning. Sherry turned to the man and bowed deeply.
"My apologizes. For love, I tripped." Lucy was shocked to see the anger in Sherry's eyes quickly melt away into what looked like pure admiration at the man.
"Leave." Was his only reply, his voice still hard and demanding.
"For love, I do as you command my dear Boss." Sherry straightened and glared once more at Lucy before fixing her mask in place and following the rest of the masked figures out of the room. Lucy watched her go, becoming more confused about the turn of events.
The girl—Sherry—was the one who had kidnapped Lucy and brought her here. She had said it was for her Boss, but Lucy believed it was Juvia she was referring to. However, Sherry just addressed this masked man as her Boss.
Who is he? Why hasn't Juvia shown up yet? What's going on? Lucy thought trying to wrap her mind around everything.
Lucy pivoted back around and watched as the masked man descended the steps to stand directly in front of her. He stood on the last step, towering over her as he looked down. He took her hand in his and bent slightly to plant a soft kiss on it. She wanted to rip her hand away, but she was frozen.
"Hello, Lucy Heartfilia." Her name sounded strange when he said it, the words echoing in the cavernous space. "I cannot express to you just how happy I am that you could join me here. I've been waiting to meet you."
"Me? Why?" Her voice sounded small and meek, exactly how she was feeling—exactly how he wanted her feel.
He straightened and stepped down from the final step, tucking her hand into the crook of his elbow as he began to lead her around the room. "Because you're the guest of honor. I couldn't possibly start my party without you, now could I? "
"Guest of honor? Party? You're not making any sense. Who are you and why did you bring me here?" Lucy's panic was starting to bubble back up. The man's words, though delivered as light and joyous, were edged with something cold.
"So many questions and all I wanted to do was see how lovely you would look in the dress I prepared for you. And you didn't disappoint." She could feel his gaze sweep over her frame again, making her spine shiver. "Yes. You'll do perfectly as my guest of honor for tomorrow's party."
With the helmet on, she couldn't tell who the man was. There wasn't a single identifying feature about him. He wanted her to be his guest of honor, but why? Did she know him? Had she met him before? No, something about him felt wrong. There was something dark and hard about him. There was nobody in her life now like that. The only people that walked like him were Gold Pistol and Juvia—people with power, with influence. People who had experience manipulating other people's lives for fun and for conquest.
"You're working for Gold Pistol, aren't you?" Lucy blurted out.
The man tipped his head back and laughed. "Me? Work for Gold Pistol? I didn't know you could be so funny," he replied with little humor in his voice. "I work for no one but myself."
"Not even Juvia?" Lucy needed answers. The dread she was feeling kept growing. If he wasn't working for Gold Pistol, then he had to be working for Juvia. But if he wasn't working for her, then who was he? How did he fit into all of this? What did he want with Lucy?
The man stopped their walk around the room. He stared at her for a long moment, the black slits of his helmet bearing into her until she looked away. "And how do you know about the leaders of the Italian Mafia?"
"My best friend is supposedly engaged to one." Lucy let her bitterness at the forced engagement seep into her words.
"Not if I have something to say about that." His words held more bitterness than Lucy's and she noticed how he tightened one hand into a fist. Lucy understood why she was so upset about Juvia's engagement to Gray, but why was he? None of her questions were being answered and the longer she stood there, the more questions she kept forming.
"Let's talk about more pleasant things," he continued on, picking back up their walk. "Now that all my guests have gathered, I'll hold my party in this very room. I've been planning it for weeks and this space will come alive with everything in place. It's perfect."
Looking around the room, indeed the space was grand. Any event held here would be a spectacle unlike any other. The amount of people this place could hold, coupled with the decadence around them would result in something magical. But there was no way this man could have his party here. It shouldn't be possible. Unless….
'I work for no one but myself.' Lucy replayed his words again in her mind.
Her eyes went wide as Lucy remembered there was one more Boss she hadn't thought of. Thoughts were clicking together in Lucy's mind as she asked, "This party you're holding tomorrow…It's the same one you sent your people out to buy supplies from all the local vendors isn't it?"
Sherry hadn't brought her here for Gold Pistol or Juvia. When Sherry had kidnapped Lucy, she wasn't working for the Italian Mafia. The wolves that had dragged her into their den were the same wolves Natsu and Lucy had been hunting for the past few days. The masked man leading her around the impressive area was the one who began this horrible nightmare. The man responsible for turning her world upside down.
Lucy tore her hand from his grasp and took several steps away from him. "You're the rival Boss," she gasped.
All the orders put in place at the local vendors hinted at a grand affair. Natsu had suspected the rival Boss would hold the event in an equally grand venue. She knew where she was. Lucy knew the second her blindfold had been removed. She had come here just the other day with Natsu and the thousands of other tourists that ventured in and out of these centuries old halls. Lucy was standing in the middle of the Sala del Maggior Consiglio, The Great Council Hall located in the Palazzo Ducale, The Doge's Palace.
It was all making sense now. The amount of food, entertainment, and supplies the rival Boss ordered would need to be presented in a large venue and one of the most famous rooms in The Doge's Palace would certainly provide the dramatic flare Natsu had indicated was this particular Boss's style. Lucy suspected the rival Boss used some underhanded and illegal maneuvering in order to use the space for his private use. There was no way an ordinary person could ever rent out this piece of history for himself. It was unheard of. Just what limits did the mafia have?
"Rival? To whom? Gold Pistol? As if that brute could ever be on the same level as me," he scoffed. "But aren't you a clever young thing?"
"What have you done with Gray? Where is he?" Lucy steeled her heart as she demanded the rival Boss to start talking. It wasn't too late. There was still time to save Gray.
The rival Boss's visible features faltered, his lips pressed together in a hard line. A wave of cold blood lust rolled off of him at the mention of her friend. Lucy backed away further, but forced herself to stay put. This man had the answers she had been seeking so desperately. She wouldn't back down.
"I see you care a great deal for him. Your friend must mean a lot to you." He recovered his features and gave her an attempt at a sweet smile.
There was something about the rival Boss's tone; the venom laced in his words that unnerved Lucy. He reacted with such hatred at the mention of Gray's name, that she couldn't understand why. Gray was just an artist. What could Gray have done to make this man loathe him so much? How did Gray even know the rival Boss in the first place? And did this truly have something to do with the sin Gray hinted about in his past?
Even if she were to find all the answers to those questions, she didn't care. Gray would still be Gray. He would still be her best friend. And she would still do whatever she had to do save him. "Of course I care about Gray. He's very important to me. Now tell me! Where is he?!"
"Curious kitten, aren't we," the Boss wagged his finger at her. "Curiosity killed the cat, don't you know?" he chided, and chuckled softly. His words sent shivers down her spine. Her heart kept pounding and her brain kept telling her to run as fast and as far as she could away from him. This man was dangerous. Yet, she had to fight—fight to save her friend.
"I'm curious though. Would you still say that if you knew the truth about him?" the rival Boss asked.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"You said you care for him. You said he's important to you. But would you still say that knowing who he truly is? Would you still care about him if you knew the sins he's committed? About the blood on his hands? Would you still claim so fiercely that that murderer is important to you?"
Her heart faltered for a moment. Murderer? What was he talking about? Gray? Gray couldn't be a killer. He wasn't a murderer. He was an artist. His hands were capable of creating so many beautiful things. Gray wasn't capable of doing that. He couldn't be capable of something like that.
"You're lying," she shot back, but her voice shook. "I know Gray. He wouldn't kill anyone." The rival Boss smirked and shook his head slightly and closed the distance between them. Lucy couldn't move as he slowly caressed her face.
"You know nothing," his words were so cold and harsh, she started trembling in fear. "Beautiful, intelligent, kind, but I think I admire your loyalty the most, Lucy Heartfilia. It's such a shame that you decided to befriend such a monster though. He's filled your head with so many lies, that you can't even see the truth." The man tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, his fingers trailing the line of her jaw until he reached her chin. With subtle force, he tilted her chin up to him. "It's truly a shame, but you'll die knowing nothing as well."
Her eyes widened to saucers. Die?
"For nearly a decade I've been waiting for this day. The day I can get my revenge on the monster I have locked in the dungeons below. I thought such an opportunity was lost, but fate chose to smile down on me. I planned it all, watching as the pieces gathered together for my revenge, but there was always something missing. The final piece I needed to ensure that your friend met the cruelest of ends. I sent my best people out to hunt it down. Imagine my delight when Sherry finally found it crying all alone on a bridge and delivered it to me. When she brought you here, Lucy Heartfilia."
'It seems your friend isn't the only person this other boss is after. He's looking for someone else as well…I don't think the person the rival Boss is looking for is connected to Juvia. I think the person is somehow connected to the princess.' She had thought, Natsu meant Gray's distant past. Lucy never once suspected that the rival Boss would be searching for her.
"And you, my guest of honor, should feel privileged since your death is going to help me achieve my revenge."
Lucy wanted to escape, but her legs wouldn't move. Her brain kept shouting, screaming at her to run. Run. RUN. But she was frozen in place, staring into the bottomless pits of the skulled demon mask he wore. She couldn't look away. She couldn't do anything, but listen as he directed that cold blood lust towards her.
"I'll tell you this—the monster you befriended took someone very important away from me. Now I'm going to return the favor. I'm going to kill you in front of him and make him experience the same pain I felt that day before I end his pathetic life too. Tomorrow night's grand spectacle? It is your death, Lucy Heartfilia."
She was so cold, numb inside and out. His words had encased her in ice, paralyzing her. The rival Boss stepped away from Lucy and she collapsed to the cold ground, shivering in fear. He snapped his fingers and another masked figure entered the room.
"Escort Miss Heartfilia back to her room. She is not to be let out except for use of the facilities. If she requires anything to make her last day as comfortable as possible, bring it to her. If it is within reason, that is," the rival Boss commanded his subordinate.
Lucy vaguely made out the man's words, but she didn't resist as her escort pulled her from the ground. As she was shuffled out of the room, the rival Boss raised his hand, causing her escort to pause at the door. She heard those sure and powerful steps move across the room towards her once more.
"Now now," he tilted her chin to him again, forcing her to stare back into those black pits. "Don't look like that my dear. You should be delighted. In your last 24 hours, take solace in the fact that your death will be as beautiful and tragic as you are."
—-
Her escort had deposited her back in her room hours ago. When Lucy figured Juvia was going to kill her, she thought that was it. Gray would still have a chance to survive. Yet, not only was she going to die, the rival Boss was going to use her death in order to hurt Gray. All she wanted to do was save Gray, but now, everything was being turned around.
Lucy sat in her dark room, staring without seeing anything as she sat on the floor. When the rival Boss spoke to her, all his words were icy daggers sent straight into her heart. She was going to die. He was going to kill Gray. There was no time. This was it. She curled in on herself, wrapping her arms tightly around her knees to hold herself together.
'In the Underworld, there are no heroes out there to save you if you get caught off guard. There are only mad wolves who want to sink their teeth in you and devour you before you can even scream.'
Natsu had warned her. He told her this would happen if she went running around in the Mafia's Underworld. Was that also his way of telling her he wouldn't come rescue her if she got caught? Why would he anyway? There would be no gain for him. She couldn't offer him treasure like Gold Pistol or Juvia. They were barely even friends. Natsu had made himself clear. Lucy was on her own.
Gold Pistol, Juvia, the rival Boss, all of them juggled around people's lives like they were mere toys. They thought they had the right to decide a person's life and death based on what best suited their own interests. Gold Pistol treated Gray like an object he could buy for a price. Juvia treated Gray like a possession and showed how she would kill anyone who threatened to come close to Gray in any way. The rival Boss wanted to use Lucy to hurt Gray in a horrific way. They weren't wolves. All of them were monsters.
Lucy had lived a life where she was treated like a doll, passed around and told what to do and what to say and what to wear. She escaped that life and built this new one for herself. Letting the mafia do whatever it wanted with her meant throwing away the past five years of her life and running back to how she used to be. Was she just going to curl up in herself again? Was she just going to let Gold Pistol, Juvia and the rival Boss do whatever they wanted? Was Lucy just going to lie here and cry until she was killed? Until Gray was killed? She had worked so hard and had come so far. This was her life. She wouldn't become that doll again. She escaped that life once before, and she would escape it again.
Standing, Lucy stood in front of the vanity mirror. The girl reflected in the mirror looked exactly like her old self. Her eyes looked vacant, her skin paler, and her hair dulled. The girl looked defeated and fading into a ghost. Lucy had promised to save Gray. She promised she wouldn't hand him over to the mafia. The obstacles in her way, the fear inside of her, those were just excuses. This wasn't the time for giving up. Lucy gathered fistfuls of the fabric of her dress and tore.
"I promise I'll save Gray, I promise we'll escape these monsters, and I promise we'll survive," Lucy ripped the dress into ribbons with every promise she made. One day was all she had to escape her room, rescue Gray and get the hell away from the mafia. It was daunting, all alone in the mafia's den, but it was something she would do. The obstacles would be surmounted. The fear inside of her would be suppressed. Her promises would not be broken. Looking back in the mirror, there was hope sparkling in her eyes. Lucy grinned. "And I always keep my promises."