Chapter 13: Memories Will Haunt

Lucy was looking out the window of the train compartment, the weight of everything finally hitting her shoulders like a ton of bricks. She thought back to the day her and Freed were captured.

~Flashback, evening of the Gala, 2 A.M. ~

Lucy was staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep from the excitement. She turned on her side and watched her small family for a few seconds. Freed had forgotten to braid his hair again, the silky green strands laying in every direction. Lucy smiled, her thoughts turning to how peaceful he looked when he was asleep. Her eyes then drifted to the young girl that was asleep between them. She had also forgotten to braid her hair. Lucy chuckled when she saw how some of Freed and Mika's hair was weaving together. She was about to reach over to try and fix it when she the door of the suite open and footsteps. Instead she grabbed her requip bracelet and hid it in the hidden pocket on her pajamas, then she pretended to be asleep as she listened for the intruders to say something from the joined living area.

"Quiet, we don't want to targets to wake up. There should be a blonde and a green haired fellow. Boss wants them both."

"What if there is someone else?"

"Orders are to kill anyone else."

Lucy's eyes went wide, and he looked at her daughter. With determination she reached over and lightly woke up Freed, motioning him to be quiet as the intruders continued to speak.

"I heard they had a kid."

"So? Kill the kid too."

Freed's eyes went wide when he heard the conversation and he looked at the still sleeping Mika. Lucy got out of bed and motioned to the door. Freed nodded and followed her lead, pulling the disheveled covers over Mika and kissing her lightly on the forehead. His voice was barely a whisper.

"We will protect you Mika, so stay strong and never lose hope."

Lucy smiled and took Loke's key and placed it on the nightstand with a smile.

"Keep her safe Loke..."

~End flashback~

Lucy sighed and turned to look at Freed who was sleeping across from her. A soft smile played across her lips when she saw his peaceful face. Her eyes travelled to his wrists where deep red marks played across his ivory skin. Tears threatened to fall as she remembered the short hours between when they arrived in Bosco and when they were separated.

~Flashback, Carriage crossing Bosco's border ~

Lucy was being held in Freed's arms, his wands lightly combing through her hair. A soft sigh left her lips at the soft touch. Freed let out a deep breath and spoke, his words soft and precise.

"Lucy, I want you to promise me something."

"What is it?"

"I have a feeling I know who is behind this, seeming we just crossed the Fiore-Bosco border. I want you to promise me that you won't give up, no matter what. I want you to promise to not give in, no matter how dim the situation seems. Promise me, that no matter what your threatened with, no matter what they do to me or you, that you will remain strong. Promise me that you will remain loyal to yourself."

"I promise Freed, no matter what. I'm a Fairytail mage, the words 'give up' is not in my vocabulary. I will not give in to the Duke, no matter how doomed the situation may seem. I promise you that. But even more so, I promise that I will remain loyal, not only to myself but to you too."

Freed smiled softly, a single tear streaming down his face.

"I know you will. I don't know when I'll be able to say it next, so I'll tell you this now: I love you Lucy. I love the life we have made together. I love our family, all of it. Especially our sweet little Mika. I don't want it all to end before it's barely begun, so I won't let it. I will fight with everything I have to get us home."

Freed gently cupped her cheek in his hand and lightly touched her forehead with his own as he continued.

"There was a time when I asked you to jump with me, do you remember?"

Lucy nodded lightly, tears streaming down her face.

"I told you to catch me."

Freed nodded with a smile.

"I will always catch you Lucy. It may take a while for you to reach the ground when you jump, but when you do I will be there to catch you. No matter how many times you climb the tower and vault off it, I will be at the bottom waiting. The fall may feel like it is for nothing, like there is no end, but have faith that I will be there to catch you."

Lucy's tears flowed faster when she saw tears falling silently down Freed's cheeks. She smiled and kissed him passionately, breaking away only when air was needed. Her voice was low and full of emotion when she finally spoke.

"The fall isn't the scary part because I know that it's a temporary thing."

"Then what is the scary part?"

Lucy chuckled, the tear stains on her face not washing any of her light away.

"The scary part is getting up the courage to jump."

~ End Flashback ~

Lucy's gaze started to climb up Freed's body until it finally reached his face, his green eyes staring into her own. The couple sat there for a second, Lucy finally breaking the silence.

"Your finally awake."

Freed frowned and his gaze narrowed slightly.

"What's wrong Lucy?"

Lucy gave Freed her award-winning smile and tried to brush it off.

"Oh nothing, just wondering if Mika is alright. She's not used to being away fro- "

Freed's gaze got sterner as he cut her off.

"Lucy that may work on the Master, and almost anyone else for that matter, but it will not work on me. What's wrong?"

Lucy sighed, and plopped her head in her hand looking out the window.

"I was just thinking about how you got hurt so badly every day for almost a month because of me."

Freed sighed and got up, walking over to her and wrapping her in his arms.

"Please don't blame yourself for what that demented fool did. It's not your fault, not in the least."

Lucy hummed in content with his arms surrounding her.

"Doesn't mean I can't wish it didn't happen to you."

Freed lightly kissed her hair.

"As long as that doesn't turn into guilt I'm happy.'

Lucy smiled sweetly and leaned into him.

"If your happy I can be too; but you really should get your wrists tended to. Should I call Virgo?"

Freed shook his head.

"No need. I'll have Wendy look when we get to Magnolia."

Lucy nodded lightly and closed her eyes, Freed's warmth lulling her to sleep. Freed smiled when he noticed her breathing cam and looked down to see her face. His gaze caught on the abused skin of his wrists. He understood why her gaze lingered so long. The sight was horrible, and he knew the injury would be sure to scar. With a sigh he looked out the compartment window, his own memories flooding him.

~Flashback, Whinningham mansion ~

The carriage came to a sudden stop and two men roughly pulled Lucy and Freed out of the dark cabin and into the blinding sun. They were quickly pushed to their knees. Freed looked over to Lucy to see that she had a determined look on her face and was staring straight ahead, not even a miniscule hint of fear or tears. Smirking he did the same and looked straight ahead, and right into Duke Whinningham's eyes. The duke was smirking, his arms crossed.

"So, you two have finally arrived. Let me explain how simple your situation really is. Ms. Heartfilia annul your marriage to the Fairytail brat and marry me. If you do then I'll let him go, if you don't then I will imprison him and torture him every single day until you do."

Freed narrowed his eyes at the Duke as the cruel man walked over to Lucy and grabbed her chin in his fingers.

"So, Ms. Heartfilia, what will you do?'

Freed watched at Lucy smirked and tore her face from his grasp, her voice sure and strong as she spoke.

"It's Mrs. Foudre, as for your… threat, I recommend you release us. We are not only Fairytail mages but also nobility, doing this is not a smart move for you."

The duke slapped her and then turned his words laced with venom as Freed fought against the men holding him.

"Take the green haired scum to the dungeons and Ms. Heartfilia to her room."

The men grabbed his hair and started to drag him to the dungeons. His fingers just barely brushing up against Lucy's as they were torn from each other. He could see the first sign of tears forming in her brown eyes. Too soon he could no longer see the sun, magic cancelling shackles encompassing his wrists.

~ End Flashback~

Freed gently combed his fingers through Lucy's hair, grateful to be able to touch her again. The sleeve of his jacket had ridden up some and he saw one of the many scars that now littered his once pristine skin. He pulled his sleeve up higher to examine the jagged scar that ran vertically up the outside of his arm. The memory of when he got that scar ran through his mind. It was a mere week after they had arrived in Bosco.

~Flashback, Whinningham mansion dungeons~

Freed was strung up on that basted pillar again. The duke seemed to be more agitated then normal. He had yet to hit, beat, whip, cut, or abuse him in any way. No instead he was ranting and raving about something that Lucy had done.

"…Can you believe that? Maybe I should let you keep her! She is nothing more than a disrespectful cunt! I gave her jewels, but does that woo her? NO! I gave her the most succulent and rare dishes in Bosco, but did that sway her? NO! She's an ungrateful little BITCH!"

Freed chuckled at his ranting, which unfortunately gained his attention.

"What? Is something that little bitch did funny?"

The duke pulled out a knife and walked over to him, a feral grin on his face as he snapped Freed's head back by his hair.

"I should just kill you…You seem to be an inspiration for that worthless cunt. Maybe if your dead she'll bow to me."

"If my wife is such a cunt and bitch, then why do you even want her? You should just let her go if you can't control her. Besides isn't that what all this is about? Control, ownership, pride? Just give up. Lucy will never bow to any man, but especially not you."

Freed could see the Duke's blood begin to boil and smirked at his small victory, even though he knew he'd pay for it in pain. And indeed, he did. The duke stabbed Freed's arm by the elbow and dragged the blade down to the shackles that encased his wrist, an evil grin on his face and his eyes dark. Freed screamed when the blade pierced his skin and ground his teeth as it was raked across his tender flesh. The duke then walked away from Freed without removing the knife from his arm and picked up a whip with a small blade at the tip of it.

"If there is any man in this world that can control that bitch, it's me. Because you see… this goes beyond control, ownership, or pride. This goes right into debt and being paid what is due. I OWN that woman."

"She belongs to no one. Not you, not me, not her deceased father, no one."

The duke laughed like he was possessed and began to whip Freed repeatedly. Every strike causing long, shallow cuts over his bare torso and back. The torturous whipping continued until Freed passed out from a mix of pain and blood loss, the last thing he saw was the duke grinning like he had earned a victory.

"I see your passing out…I hope this time it you don't wake back up. For both of our sakes little fairy."

Freed's eyes closed like they were full of led as the duke walked out. He didn't even realize when the servant came in to get him down and clean him up.

~End Flashback~

Freed angled Lucy so she was laying on the cabin bench and got up, taking his jacket and shirt off in the process. He was just about to grab a looser fitting set of clothes when he heard a gasp and turned around to see Wendy and Makarov behind him. Tears were in Wendy's eyes as she took in the sight of Freed's scars.

"Hello Master, Wendy."

"Hello Freed-sama. Master wanted me to come look at your injuries. Do you mind?"

Freed shook his head and sat down so it was easier for her to see.

"Go ahead, I told Lucy I would hunt you down to take a look at them anyway."

Wendy nodded and began to work on his injuries as he stared out the window, Makarov having left shortly after dropping Wendy off. After a few minutes of Wendy healing the injuries she could she spoke, her voice soft and full of worry.

"Freed-sama?"

"Hm?"

"I just wanted to let you now that I can't do anything more to help out. The injuries that weren't fully healed I was able to heal without scarring but…"

"But the ones that were already healed you can't do anything about right?"

Wendy nodded and looked at Lucy.

"Would you lie me to look Lucy-sama over as well?"

Freed shook his head.

"Not until she wakes up, but if you want you can stay here and keep me company while she naps. It's been a while since I've had much human interaction. That and for some reason you remind me a lot of Mika."

Wendy smiles and sat down next to Lucy.

"Okay!"

Freed smiled and the two began to talk, Wendy telling Freed about everything that was going on in Magnolia and how Mika was doing. After about an hour Lucy woke up and the three continued to chat until they reached Magnolia.