"Hey, Gajeel! Have you seen (y/n)?" Lucy, with a look of worry in her eyes, looked at Gajeel, who instantly stiffened. He should have known that people were going to be asking for you, that people would be curious as to where you had gone. Despite the fact that you had had very few friends in Fairy Tail, people did remember you. And one of them happened to be Lucy. Running a hand through his hair, Gajeel chuckled, just the slightest hint of nervousness in his voice.

"No," he lied. "I haven't seen her. The last I heard of her, she had gone on a job with Natsu. It's been a couple of weeks since they've been back here, right?" He feigned a look of worry. "...What if something happened to them?" Lucy let out a soft gasp, her chocolate-brown eyes becoming watery."

"I-I...what...? No! That's impossible! Natsu and (y/n) are strong! And Natsu's one of the most powerful wizards here! There's no way something could have happened to them, not when he's so protective of (y/n)! But... But...what if something...what if something did happen?! What are we going to do, Gajeel?! We have to look for them!" Gajeel's brow furrowed, and he looked at Lucy in concern. If they did start a search party, it could backfire if there was any trace of Natsu or (y/n) leading back to his house. He could be sent to prison, or executed for murder. And then... then he would never see his precious (y/n) again. But on the other hand... if he was careful enough, he could make sure that they never found (y/n). He could make sure that the trail went cold, without a trace of anyone of importance, and thus "prove" himself innocent. If that would work. He wasn't sure what would work.

Gajeel cleared his throat. "I'm not sure what we should do, exactly, but you're right. We should look for them. I'll tell Master Makarov that they're missing. But, in the meantime, you should go home. Maybe there's some kind of clue as to where Natsu went, there. I know he likes to crash at your place, maybe he left something indicating where he went. Maybe the job paper is there." Lucy nodded slowly, and quickly walked off, heading out of the guild hall and quietly shutting the door. As soon as she was gone, Gajeel sighed, instantly knowing that he had made a mistake. He shouldn't have encouraged the girl to look for Natsu, because now she was going to be in his way, looking for Natsu and (y/n). And if they found her...everything would fall apart. His eyes narrowed, ever so slightly. He would have to make sure that Lucy was on the wrong track. He would have to make sure that she never found a trace of them...but how to do that?

Then, it came to him. He would simply get rid of her. It was a simple solution- he would kill Lucy, bury her where no one could ever find her, and then he and (y/n) would have more time before the trail became hot again. He did know that killing her wouldn't solve everything, but it would buy them enough time for him to get her somewhere...safe. He already had an idea of where he could keep (y/n). Somewhere dark, damp, not cold, but cozy. There was a cave about ten miles out of Magnolia that he and Metallicana had previously used for training- though it had been years since he had used it, there were still some accommodations that he could put to good use. Blankets, a fireplace, and a lot of dried goods that (y/n) could eat if she got hungry. All in all, it seemed like a pretty good plan. So he grinned. Now, he just had to figure out how to move his love without being noticed by anyone.

I can do it at night... Yes, that seemed like a good idea. He would have to bind and gag her so she couldn't make much noise while he carried her, and though it might not be the most comfortable, it would work. (y/n) wouldn't be able to make any noise to alert anyone to her presence. Which was a good thing. Now, he just had to wait for the right time...

"W-...Where are you taking me, Gajeel?" You had awoken to to your captor's arms curling around you, scooping you up into a position where your head was laying on his chest. It felt almost...nice. Had the circumstances been different, and you were not being held here against your will, you might have found the gesture a bit comforting. But this was far from comforting.

"We're going some place safe, don't worry, (y/n)," Gajeel murmured lowly. His voice was raspy, and it nearly sent a shiver down your spine. Despite how careful he was being, making sure not to hurt you, the fact that he was, all of a sudden, seeming so gentle was...frightening. You knew now that at any given moment, he could snap, and you would be put into a world of pain. He had nearly broken your arm the last time it had happened- you had been crying in your sleep, calling out Natsu's name- and he had not taken it well. Just as you were about to ask him another question, he put a gag over your mouth, preventing you from making any noise other than muffled whimpers.

Where is he taking me?!

You had no idea, and, even if you did, you weren't sure that you would want to know. Fear began to course through your veins and you started to struggle, writhing around, pushing at Gajeel's chest and kicking with your legs at anything your body could come into contact with.

"Mmph! Murph!" You tried your best, trying to get free of his iron grip, but it didn't work.

"Stop fucking struggling!" Gajeel snarled, his loud voice scaring you into submission and sending more shivers down your spine. Tears pricked at your eyes, and you slowly breathed out, stopping your movements and eventually going limp in the man's arms. Great, you were showing weakness...the tears that had pricked at your eyes now began to roll freely down your cheeks, and you let out a muffled wail. You were never going to escape.

"Shhhhh..." Gajeel whispered. "It's time to go."

Then everything went black.