The Rosafelt [Fairy Tail/Nalu AU Fanfic]

Chapter 19: I'm Here for Lucy

-Ekiro P.O.V-
I made my way down to Lucy's cell with my mind deep in my thoughts.
I lived by the rules of justice. Just like my father. He died in the hands of a criminal, and I'd hated all criminals with a passion ever since.
But now I was confused...for once the words of an enemy were getting through to me...
The council were hiding things from me, that was clear. I had been educated well in the field of identifying messages within body language, tones of voice, and many other similar methods. The chairman, along with his snobby assistants, were teasing me. Giving the answer in riddles, yet laying it out clearly for me. It was a technique that various cunning criminals used during interrogations.
Criminals.

"Open the door," I told the two guards beside Lucy's cell. They nodded bluntly, already aware of their orders. I waited patiently as one of them fumbled with their keys, trying to find the right one. He slid the rusty key through the keyhole and turned it slowly, the creaks of the old metal echoing down the halls. Such a sound cause Lucy's eyes to open from her sleep.
"W-What? What are you doing?" She asked, assessing the situation.
"They're ready for you," I replied, my face a blank slate.

"Hm..." Lucy said, as I escorted her down the prison's halls.
"What?" I asked.
"You're not as sassy as you were before."
"That question's inappropriate."
"You would've said something much harsher an hour ago," she told me. Then she looked me in the eye, trying to figure out what was missing. Then her eyes glinted. "They told you something, didn't they?" She asked, smirking.
I turned away from her, annoyed.
"They simply told me your sentence," I answered. "And I'm just doing my job."
"No...they definitely told you something. And you don't agree with it, do you?" She continued. "Do you finally believe me when I say I'm innocent? Or can you not trust anyone now?"
"Shut up!" I shouted at her. I thought she would grin at my frustration, or even laugh, but I received the complete opposite. Her eyes widened, and she seemed scared.
This is the most talented Rosafelt that Fiore has ever seen.
What does she have to be afraid of?

There was an awkward silence between us, while we walked towards the machine that could possibly end Lucy's life.
"I'm...sorry," I muttered, avoiding eye contact.
"I wasn't afraid of you," she replied bluntly. "I was afraid of me hurting you."
I laughed a little at her comment. "That's a stupid reason to pull a face like that," I told her. "You looked like a little girl who'd just watched her whole family get slaughtered ."
"Wow," she replied, whistling. "What a simile."
"I-I'm sorry if I offended you-"
"Ekiro, what are you doing?"
She stopped walking, and grabbed my hand while facing me directly. I froze, then tried to turn away, but her gaze was unavoidable.
"Ekiro...do you think I'm innocent?" She questioned.

I felt beads of sweat drip down my forehead, as I hoped silence would answer for me.
"Ekiro," she repeated. "Tell me."
"U-Um..." I murmured, my eyes rolling away from her direction.
"Ekiro!"
"I don't know!" I cried. "I don't know."
There was a pause, then she smiled.
"So you'll help me get out?" She asked. My jaw dropped with shock and slight anger.
"Of course I won't!" I yelled, annoyed at how she'd underestimated me.
"It's either that or the other option," she added. Then she inhaled deeply.
"Cancer."
A sudden glow emerged from her chest and palms (which were now somehow out of the magic restricting cuffs), as two giant scissors formed out of thin air in Lucy's grasp.
"H-How did you..." I stuttered, backing away.
She pounced towards me before I could even grab my sword, and placed both scissors around my neck.

"I didn't want to do this," she told me. "That fear you saw back there wasn't an act. I don't want to hurt people that don't deserve to be hurt."
"How did you get out of the handcuffs?" I asked, shocked at her behaviour.
"You kept a key on your belt, which your hand conveniently rested by."
My eyes widened as I caught on to what she was saying.
When she grabbed my hand; she snatched the key as well? While she was asking me if I thought she was innocent, it was making me glance away from her...and that's when she unlocked the cuffs!