*3rd Person POV*

"She's been gone too long..." Meliodas announced in a voice that was far too chipper for the situation. "I reckon we should go look for her!" The captain descended the front steps of the tavern and started towards the village without a second thought; his arms stretched behind his head.
"Wait up, I wanna go check out all those stalls...That's probably why she's late, anyway..." Ban tossed his apron over his shoulder, following after him, along with a floating ginger boy.

"By check out, you mean rob blind..." King sighed with a roll of his eyes, narrowly avoiding a weak punch thrown in his direction. Meliodas knew better than that, though. Even though Elizabeth was a very curious girl by nature, she was also extremely gullible. Always seeing the good in people was as much of a curse, as it was a blessing. There was something telling him that he needed to find her, and that was just what he had to do.

"So, you'd probably know this place best, Ban...Y'know, cuz of being a thief and all..." Meliodas began as they walked side by side along the path. "Where do you think she'd be?" The taller man shrugged his shoulders, kicking a stone out of his way.

"Fucked if I have any idea...She's your little girlfriend, you should've been keeping an eye on her..." Ban snapped back, though he didn't really mind tagging along. It was getting boring just sitting around cooking all day.

"Or...you all could have just asked me..." A new voice jumped into the mix, and the three men turned around and saw their sightly female colleague approaching from the way they had come.
"You're absolutely right, Merlin! Why didn't I think of that?" Meliodas chuckled, whilst the rest of them just internally facepalmed. "So, know where she is?" Merlin stopped just short of the trio and closed her eyes; head tilting to the side as she sought out their missing companion.

"Nowhere safe, that much is certain..." She announced, and the mood dropped instantly.
"Y..you mean she's been taken?!" King flailed about in the air, dropping so that his toes touched the ground. Merlin nodded, but continued to use her powers to try and locate Elizabeth's presence.
"Seems like it. To me, it looks like she's been taken underground...Follow me, I'll take you to her, if you wish..."

Nonchalantly, the ravonette took the lead and continued along the road, and the men didn't question it. All three others noticed the dramatic switch in their captain's expression, and they knew things were going to get ugly. Whenever Meliodas frowned, things always got ugly.

It didn't take all that long for them to arrive at what appeared to be an innocent inn, but there was something suspicious about the place. Merlin knelt down by the closed door and inspected a rough marking that had been carved into the wood, and she looked back over to the others.

"This is a brothel." She stated clearly, and both King and Ban's eyes widened.
"Ya don't think she's been, like, scouted, do ya?" Ban mumbled; a bead of sweat forming on his brow. Meliodas didn't speak at all. He just turned and glanced past the rest of them as a figure approached from further up the street.

"Oh, good afternoon, you lot!" A man gave them a polite smile and waved in greeting, stopping just shy of the door. "My apologies, but we don't open till nightfall!"
"No problem! I assume that's also the case for your second business too, right?" Meliodas returned the cheerful gesture, and to the untrained eye, nobody could have realised just how angered he truly was.

Flipping the turquoise scarf over his shoulder, the man smirked down at the blond boy for a moment before lowering his voice.
"That's right..." His sharpened eyes flickered over to Merlin, who didn't seem to be showing any form of emotion. "What a beautiful young woman you are, my dear! Your companions are lucky to be blessed by such an angel!"

"How sweet...Thank you for the compliment..." She responded dryly, scanning his every move as he began to unlock the door.
"I know true beauty when I see it...Now, if you would kindly excuse me, I have a few things to take care of before we open...So I hope to see you all later on..." The man placed a foot through the threshold of his establishment before turning and locking eyes with Meliodas. "I'm sure you shall all be more than pleased with what I have to offer here..." The bell of the door jingled as it clicked shut behind him, and before any of them had a chance to speak, Merlin began to walk off in the opposite direction.

"H..hey! Aren't we gonna get Elizabeth?!" King rushed after her, zooming to hover in front of the woman, who had a determined look upon her flawless face.
"It would be wise to wait until nightfall. Nothing shall happen to her before then...but we need to devise a plan, first. He isn't an ordinary crook." She advised, and King blinked at her in absolute confusion.
"What do you mean? He looked like some plain old creepy manager, if you ask me..."

"That was Warren Abendroth, wasn't it..?" King yelped as Meliodas nudged him out of the way, sending him spiralling off in the air. Merlin nodded once, starting off again with the others in tow.
"Undoubtedly. He may look pretty pathetic, but he's one of Britannia's most wanted criminals...That man has abducted more women than I care to count...and not one of them have been recovered alive...so we need to play this smart if you wish no harm to come to your Elizabeth."

Ban gritted his teeth and hunched his shoulders at the thought of such a crime.
"Human trafficking? For real? Disgusting bastard..." He growled, spitting onto the pavement as they moved along.
"It'll be fine! We'll just bust Elizabeth out of there tonight, and bring that scumbag down while we're at it! I already have a plan, too!" Meliodas grinned, and everyone just accepted it.

When Elizabeth was involved, they all knew by this point that he wouldn't leave anything to chance. If he thought she was going to be in immediate danger, he would have broken those doors down then and there. He as sure of whatever plan he had devised, and they were all willing to accept that.

"So, Captain...A penny for your thoughts..?"

-------------------------------------------------

*(Y/N) POV*

"So...I'll be sold off tonight..?" Elizabeth gulped, and I nodded solemnly, flipping my matted (H/C) hair out of my face.
"Usually the girls go pretty quickly...There's only been a few cases where some have stayed a few days longer, but that's just if business is slow...You'll probably end up with one of his regulars, who broke their old toys..." The disgust in my tone was apparent, and the poor girl gulped whilst twiddling her fingers.

"It'll be okay...Sir Meliodas is coming..." A soft, worried smile graced her rounded face, and it made me feel ill. Her hope and trust in the man she just wouldn't stop speaking of was painful to hear, but there was no stopping it. She was going to believe it until the inevitable hit her like a runaway coach.

Poor thing...So oblivious...

"They'll probably come and fetch us soon...make us all nice and pretty for potential customers..." I announced, actually looking forward to having my wrists freed from their restraints. My shackles jingled a little, and Elizabeth reached out and touched the cold steel.
"Why have they locked you up like this..?" She questioned, and I pumped my fists to try and start the blood flowing again.

"When they don't have me pumped full of drugs...they think it's safer to have me restrained..." I mumbled, eyeing the door as I heard faint footsteps grow closer.
"They drug you?! (Y/N), that's horrible!" Elizabeth gasped; a hand flying to cover her mouth.

That's one of the most pleasant parts of this situation...

I couldn't help but flinch along with Elizabeth as the door swung open, even though I knew they were coming. The two men from before, along with a scantily dressed woman, strutted in and stopped a few feet away from us. The new girl jumped to her feet, standing in front of me, which had me taken aback.
"Leave us alone!"

Dear god, this girl is an idiot..!

"Naaaaw, what a cutie! Come on, sweet things...gotta doll you two up!" The woman who spoke with such a velvety tone was named Kaferine, and, just like everyone else I knew in this place, I hated her guts. She easily grabbed hold of Elizabeth's arm, whilst the other two began to remove my shackles and lifted me to my feet.

I was relieved that the girl didn't try to resist. She at least had some smarts, but I still pitied her. I decided not to resist either, though these days I didn't usually try to anyway. It was routine, and there wasn't any point anymore.

We were led down the winding halls and up a flight of stairs, to a new, less dank and dreary room. As usual, I was pushed down into a chair, and my hands were locked behind me, and Elizabeth was seated in one to my left.
"Just let her do what she wants to do...Believe me..." I whispered, clearly remembering just how many vicious slaps to the face I had received in the past.

Elizabeth nodded slowly, cowering down as Kaferine wheeled over a table, topped with various makeups and accessories.
"Now, your pretty yellow dress is still clean, so we won't bother changing you...but we must do something about this plain face!" She stated, already dabbing a brush in some bright, hideous colour.

"As always, you have horrendous taste, Kaf..." I snickered tiredly, already well prepared when a sharp slap struck my cheek and sent my head whipping to the side. Elizabeth squeaked, but I quickly rolled my neck to show her I was fine. I was used to that kind of treatment.
"Stupid little bitch...It astounds me that Warren keeps you around..." Kaferine spat under her breath, resuming her multicoloured assault on the poor girl's eyelids.

"Could say the same about you..." I hummed, again being smacked right in the jaw.
"Filthy little shit..! Xalbert, Normand! Drag the slut for hire into the bathing room and hose her down! Make sure it's like ice!" The elder woman shouted her orders to the two thugs, and I deflated, regretting that last little snip I had made.

"P..please, Madam...D..don't make her suffer..!" Elizabeth pleaded with her, and Kaferine gave her a warped smile as I was dragged off, chair and all.
"Oh, don't you worry your pretty little head, dear...She loves it! Lets the dirty bitch actually feel something, for a change..."

----------------------------------------------

My skin felt like a tin can that had been buried in the snow for a good month and a half. So cold that it almost burned. After my hose down, I had been forced into yet another ugly, black dress, and led along with Elizabeth into what they called the 'viewing room'.

It was a dimly lit place, with a single red velvet couch in the center, and two low platforms for us to be placed upon. I envied Elizabeth, as she only had a single shackle connected to her ankle, but me? Thanks to my track record, I was all but crucified against the wall behind us.

"A..are you alright, (Y/N)..?" Elizabeth whispered over to me, even though both Normand ad Xalbert were both easily within earshot.
"Sure...That's the usual..." I replied flatly, knowing exactly what was going to come my way. Of course, it was my owner, Warren, who entered through the doors, dressed in a suit so match the vibrant turquoise of his damned scarf.

"Ah, my girls look absolutely heavenly, this evening!" He clapped his hands together, moving to stand directly in front of Elizabeth. "I had word just moments ago that a wealthy young gentleman is very eager to meet you, little miss princess..." The girl shied away, hiding her face and what I assumed were tears filled with fear, and the despair that she should have started feeling hours beforehand.

Yeah...that's all there is to feel when  you're trapped in here...Despair...

"And my darling (Y/N)..." I tensed my entire body as Warren's fingers pinched either side of my face, forcing me to look up into his murky, hazel eyes. "...I must say, I miss those snarky remarks you used to throw in my direction...What happened? Lady Kaferine still gets to hear them, why not me?"

"There's only so much I can say to a cunt like you..." I snarled, and I hated the way his expression lifted.
"That's my girl! Ready for your daily dose of sugar? Can't have you maiming any more patrons, can we?" The vile he pulled out of his pocket looked a little different than the usual, but the syringe Xalbert handed to him was all too familiar.

Probably something stronger...just for kicks...Great...

I glanced to Elizabeth as he drew the clear, unknown liquid from the vile, and she met my (E/C) eyes with her own, terrified sapphire. Just as the tip of the needle broke into the flesh of my neck, I mouthed a few final words for her.

"I'm sorry...but they aren't going to save you..."

.
.
.
.
.
***I'm almost finished with season 2 and I seriously don't think I have any tears left***