Stronger Than You Think (Fairytail)

Be Alright

Ritsu smirked, suddenly glad he had picked such an intelligent child for this job.

"What is it?" 

"Using my plan, Kaden and I could make her come her willingly." Lila described her plan to Ritsu, making sure to have an in-depth description. Kaden shriveled at every word. The plan was so horribly acute to Lucy's fears, that it even made him sick. What if she never recovered from what they were going to do?

"I'm positive it'll work..." Lila said softly.

Ritsu grinned, his evil, chilling smile making every bone in Kaden's body tense. He looked exceptionally pleased with Lila, especially from the loaf of bread he snatched from the table and tossed to her. She stared at the bread in surprise. The food they were usually given wasn't fresh, nor was it pleasant tasting. On missions, they could eat freely as long as they had money, but they hardly ever obtained jewels. So, Lila felt her mouth water at the freshly baked bread, it's toasty scent wafting through her nostrils.

"That plan's brilliant, squirt! You're the first rat I'm proud of!"

Lila forced a small smile, clutching the loaf of bread to her chest like it was her child. 

"T-Thank you, sir! I'll be sure to make Crimson Flag proud!" She stammered, saluting him. Kaden internally scoffed, never fooled by the whole "Crimson Flag pride". What was there to be proud of? Being kidnapped by dark mages as children? That was considered an unlucky fate. He had been one of the lucky ones who had gotten to grow up with their real parents before being stolen. That is if you considered remembering everything you once had and lost, lucky. But, kids like Lila were born at the base. They never knew of a mother's loving touch, or of a father's protective glance. The leaders of Crimson Flag found that children who never experienced a family were less resistant and more obedient. After all, who can miss what they never had?

"You two are dismissed. After all, you both have a mission with the target tomorrow. You both must earn her trust if this plan is to work."

Both Lila and Kaden nodded, both stalking out of the dark meeting room, to their quaint quarters, or barracks in the back of the base. They were cellmates, and Kaden was like Lila's older brother. They had been together since Lila had been born.

"Here..." Lila said sweetly, ripping her reward in half. She waved the massive chunk of bread in front of Kaden's nose, and he resisted the temptation to snatch it from her hands like a lunatic. 

"No." He pushed the bread back at her. " You need your strength," He said sternly. She pouted, giving him a heated glare.

"So do you! For this plan to work, YOU have to be at full strength. You're the deciding variable in all this. If Lucy-nee- I mean, Lucy, trusts you, then everything will go smoothly. You'll have to lay on the charms. Not to mention your magic is the one we'll be relying on. You and I are a lot more powerful than we let on to everyone." He visibly deflated at the mention of the plan again.

Halfway to their rooms, guards rushed towards them, activating the guild mark branded on each of their backs. It was shaped like a flag, with a snake wrapped around the hilt. Of course, the color was a blinding crimson. Lila collapsed to the floor, writhing with agony, only having enough brain power to clutch her bread to her chest. Kaden fell to his knees, the sensation of electricity ripping through his body like a forked tongue of lightning had struck him. The guards cuffed them immediately, dragging the two back to their rooms. Once there, the guards deactivated the lightning. 

After handcuffing them to their beds, and laughing at Lila's smashed bread, the barbarian-like guards left. Kaden's whole body was numb, the lightning leaving him exhausted. Even after everything, he still wasn't used to their method of keeping their prisoners in line. 

Both of them settled on their beds of straw, and he finally relented and accepted her kind offer of a chunk of crumbling bread. Munching on their dinner, they both stared at the stars, which were visible through a hole in the roof. They twinkled and sparkled, the moon overshadowing them. It was a truly beautiful sight.

"Kaden?" Lila said in a sleepy voice. He never understood how she could fall asleep so soon after they were tortured by that electricity.

"Yeah?" He responded quietly.

"I don't want to hurt Lucy-nee..." She whimpered, clutching her raggedy cat doll to her chest. Its lopsided body was lumpy and frayed, only one of its jade green button eyes still sewed on. Its clumpy black fur was fraying, and its tail was loosely lagging. But she loved the thing, choosing to name it Chat Noir, a name French for black cat.

"I don't want to hurt her either..."

The rest of their sentences weren't said, but both of them knew what the other was thinking.

'But we don't have a choice in the matter...'