I slept beside Jellal that night. I only slept beside him, in case you were wondering. I wanted to lay beside him and stay there, but I couldn't forget my dream. I needed to go to the lake. 

I crawled out from under my blankets and walked quietly to the exit of the cave. Everyone was asleep.

"And where do you think you're going?" Ultear whispered.

I spun around and smiled sheepishly.

"I'm getting help."

"Can I come?"

I nodded politely. "Sure."

Besides Mira Jane, Jellal, and Porlyusica, I trusted Ultear more then anyone else in Fiore. Ultear knew of my magic, unlike Jellal. She didn't flinch when I used it, unlike Mira. And when I did something reckless, she understood, unlike Porlyusica.

~ ~ ~

"My darling father," Minerva sneered, as she watched Faust behind the bars of his cell. 

"Why?" the king rasped. "All I did was love you. I raised you. I taught you everything."

"You are wrong, foolish king," she hissed. "You lied to me. You were ashamed to have me as a daughter. And you didn't teach me anything. Morgause did."

"Minerva-"

"Queen Minerva," she corrected.

"You're making the wrong decision-"

"I will get my revenge," Minerva said in a low voice. "You, Jellal, Siegrain..All of Fiore.."

"Please-"

"You will never understand how much you hurt me, Faust," the young woman whispered. "And it hurts more then you can imagine."

She turned on her heel and left.

King Faust cried that night.

~ ~ ~

"You have a pet dragon," Ultear said in awe.

"Yep," I said, smiling.

"Why do I even help you?!" Igneel snarled. "You foolish, ignorant-"

"Climb on," I told her, grabbing Igneel's wing and getting on his back. "Igneel, how's Grandeeny?"

"She left."

"But she's just a baby!"

"Baby dragons are born independent," Igneel informed me. "And they also grow three times the speed of an adult dragon. I need room you know."

"What's he saying?" Ultear asked from behind me.

"Nothing important," I said lazily. "Igneel, take us to the lake."

"What lake?"

"Oh, you know," I said, gesturing. "That really big one."

~ ~ ~

"They evacuated, my lady," Morgause said. "Cowards."

"We'll kill them later," Minerva whispered, lounging on her throne, a beautiful crown atop her head. "Bring the prisoner."

Two guards brought in Prince Siegrain.

"I'll leave you to it, my lady," Morgause said, leaving the Throne Room.

~ ~ ~

We approached the lake cautiously. Igneel had flown off, and Ultear was staring at me with delight. "Are you going to do some magic?"

"No," I said, feeling like a fool. Why was I listening to a dream? I didn't see my mother anywhere.

'Cause she's dead, idiot.

"Oh my-" Ultear began, stepping back from the lake.

A hand shot up from the waters.

And grasped in the hand was Excalibur.

~ ~ ~

"My lady," Ivan said bowing.

"And how are you?"

"Fine."

"And your son?"

"I don't know where he is."

"You should keep an eye on him," Morgause said. "You can't trust him."

"I was thinking...this deal isn't very fair," the king said slowly.

Morgause narrowed her eyes. "What did you say?"

"Yes, my men are turned immortal. But now they are Minerva's army. And I have nothing."

"Greedy king," Morgause murmured, raising her hand. "Greedy king's don't deserve to live."

Ivan collapsed to the floor.

~ ~ ~

It was morning.

Our group was exploring deeper into the caves. Jellal had decided since most of us were injured, we try to recover as fast as possible. And that meant not fighting immortal people.

It was quite boring, as most of the smaller chambers within the cave were empty. Until Natsu found another entrance, almost hidden.

In it, there were dusty pieces of old furniture. Cobwebs covered most of the items, but that wasn't what caught our eye. It was the enormous round table in the center of the chamber.

There was nothing fancy about the table. It was a simple dark oak, with the Fiore crest made from gold in the center. Chairs surrounded the table. Jellal brushed his hand across the table.

"Sit with me," he told us, sitting at the head of the round table.

We looked up, surprised. This wasn't the voice of a friend we had gotten close to. Or even the voice of the Crown Prince we obeyed.

This was the voice of a king.

~ ~ ~

When Prince Laxus entered the castle and found his father dead he didn't know whether to be sad or pleased. He knew it was a terrible feeling, but felt relieved.

When Laxus became king, he would make Bosco a country of peace again. And maybe Bosco and Fiore would become allies again.

~ ~ ~

"Long ago," Jellal said in a hushed voice. "The first king and queen of Fiore..their names were Queen Mavis and King Zeref..They used to have meetings here. The knights that attended these meetings..They were the king's knights. The Knights of the Round Table. These knights were more then senior knights. They were the king's friends."

"Why doesn't Faust have knights that close to him?" Natsu asked.

"And why is the table here?" Gray added.

"Father doesn't trust people. He trusts people only related to him by blood and people who are like family," Jellal said. Wincing he whispered, "And sometimes that's a big problem."

I knew thinking about Minerva still hurt him.

"But you guys.." the prince said, looking at us.

Porlyusica, Mira, Ultear, Lyon, Natsu, Gray, Gajeel, Macao, Princess Lucy and me..

"I trust you with my life," he said emotionally.

From under the table, I brushed my hand against his. He didn't looked at me, but I felt his hand grasp mine. I smiled.

"I may not be king," Jellal continued. "But I see some of you and I think..How much you deserve to be knights. Royal blood or not..Male or not..It doesn't matter to me."

~ ~ ~

Natsu, Gray, Gajeel, Ultear, and I were down on one knee, staring at the ground.

Jellal drew his sword and placed the flat side on either side of Natsu's shoulders. "Arise, Sir Natsu Dragneel of Fiore."

"Arise, Sir Gray Fullbuster of Fiore."

"Arise, Sir Gajeel Redfox of Fiore."

I was next.

He looked at me and smirked. "You don't deserve to be knight, sweetheart."

Natsu and Gray chuckled.

Jellal hovered his sword over both of my shoulders and whispered, "Arise, Lady Erza Scarlet of Fiore. First female knight."

"Arise, Lady Ultear Milkovich of Fiore. Second female knight of Fiore."

~ ~ ~

We were back around the table, and Jellal stood up. "We will attack and fight to regain Fiore. Who's with me?"

Gray stood up. "You taught me that being a knight is more than having royal blood. Of course I'll go."

Jellal nodded, satisfied.

Natsu stood up quickly. "If that idiot is going, I'll go."

Gajeel stood up too. "Same with me."

Ultear stood up. "I'm ready to be a knight."

Mira Jane stood up. "I may be a servant, but I'll come."

Porlyusica stood up. "If you ever need an old woman.."

Jellal laughed.

Lyon stood up. "I hardly know you, but sure. You trust me. I trust you."

Everyone looked at me.

I leaned back in my chair and propped my legs up on the table.

"Nah..I don't feel like fighting tonight."

Jellal grinned and pulled me up.

"You've got no choice, Erza."