afterglow | natsu x reader

Chapter 54: Tsubaki

a/n: yes, like tsubaki from soul eater

—

I open my cells and I'm greeted with a pair of (e/c) eyes in my face. I try moving, but both my hands and feet are cuffed. "Where am I?!" I asked the masked figure in front of me.

"Welcome to Tartaros." The lady smirks.

"Tartaros?! Where are my friends? Where's the chairmen?!" I ask her.

"Sad to tell you this, but the chairmen is one of us." She informs me. The tea. It had a sleeping drug in it. I try again to move.

"Your restraints are made of a magic blocking mineral. You can't use magic while they're on." She tells me.

"My friends! Where are they?!" I spit at her.

"Stop hollering," She says in a threatening voice. I find something soothing in her voice. That's weird, but I do. Although these chains stop me from using magic, my super senses are still on.

I recognise the voice and scent.

"Tsubaki." I say quietly. She smirks.

"I knew you'd recognise me." She places her hands on her red mask and removed it. I see her face. Tsubaki. My older sister. She looked different.

"It's been a while, N/N." Tsubaki smiles. Jade told me she was alive. I never expected I'd find her here.

"I thought I'd never see you again." I tell her.

"Fallen Angels took me in after the raid. They were hired by Tartaros to destroy Cornelia..." She tells me.

"They destroyed our home... took away our happiness... and you're with them?!" I yell at her.

"It was be against them and lose or side with them and win. I wanted to win. I wanted power. Now I have it." She says. She closes her eyes for a second. When she opens them, they're red.

"They saw potential in me. They were the first to see potential. You were happy in Cornelia, but do you how much it sucked for me? Constantly living in the shadow of my little sister." A red smoke starts coming out of her.

It's a strong scent. It's like I'm breathing in fire. My lungs felt like they were on fire. This was actually burning me. I scream out in pain. I can't help it. When I scream out, I start sucking it up and it hurts even more. My eyes start to burn and tear up. The scent then disappears. It still hurts.

"Tsubaki... The flower with no scent. I was nothing to mom and dad. All their attention was always on you." Tsubaki yells.

"They loved you just as much as they loved me." I try assuring her. The place starts to shake. Tsubaki doesn't look worried.

"Let's start with the punishment..." A vine whip with thorns start appearing at her finger tips. The cuffs around my arms and legs start growing thorns too and start to tighten around my ankles and wrist. I scream out loudly. The same scent comes back.

So much pain.

To make matters worst, she starts whipping me countless of times. All I can do is cry out.

—

"I've heard tales..." Tsubaki says as she finishes 'punishing' me, "About you. All dark guild members hear about you. How someone with such dark magic, someone who had such an evil guardian, is with a light guild. I don't understand either." She starts.

"Acnologia... as evil as he may be perceived... he saved me. He's just a human who's lost all humanity. A man who's been possessed by darkness." I manage to say, despite all the pain.
I look up at Tsubaki. "You're reminding me of him, Tsubaki. You're a dark soul who needs saving."

"I'm not some little girl that needs saving! I chose to be this. I chose to join Tartaros!" Tsubaki shouts at me. The whip starts appearing at her fingers again.

"Tsubaki." I whimper. I close my eyes and get ready. She starts the punishment. No gas this time. It's still the worst pain ever. It feels like the thorns on the whip have gotten sharper. The place starts to shake again.

"I have to see what's happening...." Tsubaki says before leaving the cell. Tears start falling. It hurts seeing that the sweet sister I loved has turned to someone so terrible.

- flashback -

"Mom! Look at all my good grades!" I exclaim and show my mom my report card. My mom congratulates me and pats my head.

"I'm proud." She smiles. "And what about you, Tsubaki?" My mom looks at Tsubaki who's behind me, wobbling back and forth nervously. Tsubaki shows her report card. I don't see the grades, but my mom's face didn't have a smile.

"You can do it better. You tried though and that's what matters." My mom tells Tsubaki.

- end of flashback -

I don't think I've heard my parents say 'I'm proud' to Tsubaki. I think back. Not once did that leave their mouths. I look up at my chains and back down. As I'm trying to think of a way out, the door is blasted open.

When the dusts disappears, it's Natsu and Lisanna. "Natsu! Lisanna!" I cry tears of joy.

"We're here." Natsu smiles. With his magic, he burns off the cuffs. Listen takes care of the ankles. Once I'm free, I drop the floor. Natsu manages to catch me on time though. He holds me in his arms. I'm shaking. Somehow, his warmness and the rhythm of his heartbeat manages to calm me down.

"You're free." Natsu strokes my hair. I pull away and look at him with tears in my eyes. "Yeah... I am free. She's not. I know I can save her." I tell him.

"Save who?" Lisanna asks.

"My sister. I know I can help her." I tell them.

"Let's go find her." Natsu says and both him and Lisanna turn to walk away.

"No. I can't." I say. They stop in their tracks and turn around. I rub my bleeding wrists and look down at my body. I'm just in a tank top in spanks. I'm all cut up and so are my clothes.

"Find Erza and Mira. I'll handle Tsubaki." I assure them. Lisanna does as I say and starts running off. Natsu and I look at each other. I smile at him, "I'll be okay."