"Princess! Princess where are you? Princess!"

Lucy looked up as the flustered maid emerged from behind the bookshelf. The blue-haired woman looked around searchingly. Her eyes passed over the blonde girl sitting there before she suddenly locking onto her. Her startled face went slack with surprise, but a moment later she was frowning. Her cheeks were flushed brightly, enhancing the blue in her dark eyes.

"There you are!" She gasped, sounding out of breath. The smoothed her ruffled skirts and latched the girl with a glare. "Your presence is being requested in the dinning room. Juvia has been looking all over for you! Your father will be very upset when he sees you!" Despite ranting, Lucy caught the maid's eyes drifting towards the book in her hands. "What book is that?"

Lucy smiled and held it out to the girl. The maid froze and then gingerly took the book from her hands. She examined the cover and smiled. "Romeo and Juliet? Juvia didn't take you to be such a hopeless romantic, Princess."

"How many times have I told you to call me Lucy?" The blonde girl asked, rolling her eyes and standing up. The maid opened her mouth to protest about political correctness, but her words turned into a shriek when she saw what Lucy was wearing.

"Princess! What kind of dress wear is that? That's no type of dress to wear in front of your father!" Lucy blinked and looked down at her dress. It was a faded pink color that went out from her waist to her knees in soft, flowing patterns. It wasn't any fancy ball gown, but her mother had given it to her. Lucy preferred it over much of her other wear.

"It's not like it matters," the princess sighed, patting the dust off her skirts. "My father won't be there anyways."

"His majesty requested for you himself!" Juvia humph-ed, looking offended on her boss' behalf. Juvia was a new maid, just recently assigned to Lucy's side. She hadn't been around the castle long enough to understand what was going on. Lucy sighed. "Why Juvia has never met such a disrespectful princess! Who would deny her father—"

"Alright," Lucy relented, and Juvia closed her mouth mid-rant. She blinked, surprised by the princess's sudden willingness. She'd been fighting with the blonde all day. His majesty had warned her when she applied that Lucy was a wild and hard-headed girl, but Juvia had never come across a princess—any girl, really—who disregarded politics and formalities as much as this one did.

"To your chamber then," Juvia recovered briskly. Lucy nodded and started forward, letting her skirts drag behind her. Levy's eye twitched and she grabbed them in a bunch, jerking Lucy back. "At least try to walk correctly!" Lucy rolled her eyes.

"And there you go! A perfect Princess!" Juvia exclaimed, pulling back and examining her work. Lucy was a very beautiful girl, even without the fancy dresses and make-up, and Juvia couldn't help the pang of anger when she realized the make-up made her almost duller looking. "Well, almost," she said with a frown and Lucy groaned.

"My face feel stiff," the blonde complained, reaching up to rub her cheeks. Juvia slapped her hand away, tutting.

"If you do that, you'll ruin it!" She chastised, biting her lip. The princess was right; she did look stiff. Like a doll, Juvia realized with a cringe. A beautiful, fake doll.

"I feel as if I am wearing a mask," Lucy admitted honestly, shifting in the seat. "And this is a death trap, not a dress."

"You're too used to wearing loose gowns," Juvia sighed, smoothing Lucy's probing hands away from the waist. "Didn't your mother ever teach you how to dress properly?"

Lucy went stiff, making Juvia look up curiously. She was surprised to find the girl staring off to the side, her eyes suddenly very distant. "My mother always said that a woman comfortable in her own skin is the most beautiful." She looked at Juvia, her eyes refocusing as she scowled. "I am not comfortable at all."

"You're stubborn and spoiled is what you are," Juvia hissed, turning the girl by the shoulders. "Now be quiet while Juvia does your hair."

Surprisingly the princess cooperated with her request. Juvia expertly worked her golden hair into intricate braids. The only sound was that of her breathing. It was so quiet that Juvia jumped when the princess talked.

"Juvia, how much of this place do you know about?" The princess's voice was soft and curious.

"Must you speak with such familiarity? For your information, Juvia knows quite a deal about this kingdom. Who doesn't? The Heart Kingdom is very famous." Lucy doesn't respond. Juvia sighed and resumed placing the braids into a bun.

"How old are you, Juvia?"

"Hmm? What a rude question," Juvia huffed, clipping the bun into place. As soon as it was situated, the princess turned and looked up at the maid. Her eyes were wide and sparkled under the lighting.

"You can't be older than eighteen, can you? You look younger, but you must be a young woman?" Juvia puffed her cheeks out indignantly.

"If you must know, Juvia is seventeen," she huffed. The princess's smile widened.

"Truly? As am I!" Juvia blinked when Lucy giggled. The princess is seventeen? Certainly that can't be true!

"Impossible," Juvia scoffed. "You could be a middle aged woman." Despite the offense Juvia put into her tone, the princess laughed.

"It may seem hard to believe, but it is the truth," she assured. Juvia humph-ed, but she began to see what the princess meant. Despite her well-developed body, Lucy had a young face.

"No matter," Juvia dismissed, finishing a couple touch-ups on the hair. "Hurry down to dinner now. You've kept your father waiting long enough."

Lucy's smile disappeared, but she doesn't give any more ridiculous protests as Juvia ushered her out of the room. The bluenette led the princess to the dinning room, where two butlers wait at the door. Juvia resisted smirking as they opened it. They stepped into a...empty room?

Juvia looked around in confusion, but there was only one plate set up at the table. Beside her, Lucy sighed and headed over to the plate. An older chef came out to greet her, bowing.

"I'm sorry Princess, but your father had an important meeting and couldn't attend dinner," the man said, but his tone sound rehearsed. He gave Lucy a sympathetic look, to which the princess smiled.

"It is not a problem, Makarov. Would you mind setting up a place for Levy and Juvia?" Lucy turned to smile at the maid. "I would hate to waste all the effort she put into my appearance."

"Of course!" Makarov smiled and turned away. He disappeared into the kitchen. Juvia snapped out of her shock, stepping back.

"Juvia cannot eat with you!" She protested, shaking her head as Makarov brought out two more sets of eating ware. "No, put those back! Don't you know it is improper for a maid to eat with her mistress?"

"I am not your mistress," Lucy frowned, motioning Makarov to continue. The man set up the plates and went back into the kitchen to cook. "And I would prefer it if you did not think of yourself as my maid."

"Juvia is your maid, Princess—"

"Lucy," the princess said forcefully. "My name is Lucy, not princess or mistress. We are the same age, therefore we have no need for such formalities."

Juvia stared, her brain simply not understand what was happening. "Your father," she stammered. "He just happened to miss today. Juvia is sure he will dine with you tomorrow."

"If he made up for the times he missed dinning with me, we'd be dinning together every day for the next ten years." Lucy stated this as a fact, without emotion. She approached Juvia and grabbed the girl's hand, pulling her to the table. "Please do not make me eat in this giant room all alone."

Somehow Juvia found herself sitting beside Lucy, another maid on the princess's other side, eating an elegant meal. The other maid is a small girl with light blue hair and shinny gold eyes. The princess introduced her as Levy, without any formality.

The princess continued to try and converse with her maid, but Juvia only responded with formal, proper answers. Eventually Lucy sighed, leaning back.

"How about books?" She asked after a moment, startling the maid. Levy perked up, looking at the maid curiously.

"You like books?" She asked excitedly.

"Books?" Juvia clarified, her heart jumping at the word.

"I saw the look on your face earlier," Lucy told her, smiling at their new topic. "What is your favorite?"

"As if Juvia could chose one!" She froze, realizing how loud she was being. It is silent as both girls stared at her, and then they began to laugh.

"That's what I say!" Levy agreed.

"I love all sorts of books. I'm even trying to be a writer," Lucy informed her maid.

"A writer?" Juvia gasped, shocked by this fact. "But you are a princess!"

"But I'm not just a princess," Lucy fought, shaking her head. "Here, such things don't matter. My father is never around to enforce rules and I don't wish for such stupid rules to be enforced!"

"What about the queen?" Juvia worried. Levy looked at the princess in concern, but the blonde girl smiled kindly.

"You really don't know much about this castle, do you?" Levy wondered aloud, looking sad. Juvia opened her mouth to protest, but the princess cut her off with a laugh.

"I doubt the queen would hold much fuss, considering she is dead."

Juvia felt as if someone had punched her. She dropped her fork with a clatter and looked up at the princess, but she was smiling. "There's no need to apologize," she said, noticing the look on Juvia's face. "My mother didn't believe in the rules, either. I am sure she would be supportive if she was still here."

"You're alone here, aren't you?" Juvia asked quietly, realizing the reason behind much of the blonde's actions.

"I have Levy," Lucy said, wrapping an arm around the blue haired maid, "And books keep me company, but they're not good for much conversation." Lucy frowned and looked at the maid hopefully. "I know I have been difficult to handle and made life hard for you, but I was hoping you could join our little family as well?" 

Juvia looked between the princess and the maid. She thought back to how the servants had treated the princess, and how kindly she had been to them in turn. She remembered her previous boss's; some would not even let her speak without first being spoken to. Juvia smiled, looking up at the princess. "It would be Juvia's honor." 

The girls smiled at her and before Juvia knew it, she was being squished between two bodies.

"I'm so glad!" Lucy cheered, wrapping her arms around her new companion. Juvia softened into the embrace and smiled. She felt like she had found her last place of employment. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"He's too flat," Lucy sighed, kicking her feet up in the air. She was on the floor of her bedroom, her legs draped over the bed where Levy was. They were discussing the characters of a book they'd read, and were currently having an argument over the male lead. Levy thought he was absolutely dreamy and perfect which was true, which made Lucy dislike him. "Everything he does is so cliche." 

"No," Levy corrected, holding the book to her chest. "Everything he does is so romantic." 

"He's too perfect," Lucy said again, shifting her foot to nudge Levy's arm. 

"What's wrong with that?" The blue haired girl asked, looking at her friend doubtfully. "He's handsome, and charming, and romantic." 

Lucy laughed at her friend. "Exactly, he's too perfect. Everybody has something wrong with them, and besides, he has the humor of a dead slug." 

"Alright, so he's a little lackluster on the funny side of things," Levy admitted, accepting the princess's criticism. "He's still perfect." 

"Predictable is more like it."

"Oh, come on! Don't tell me you wouldn't be swooning if some handsome knight came to save you," Levy laughed, leaning her chin over the bed. 

"I don't have any dragons that need to be slayed, and how on earth am I expected to fall in love with a man who says 'I have come to save you, my beautiful sunflower peach.'" Levy laughed at the deep tone Lucy gave her character and the enunciated motions of her arms. She looked like a wiggling octopus on the floor. "I mean, what even is a sunflower peach? Is that even a thing?" 

"It's not about the words, Lu," Levy sighed dreamily, flipping onto her back and looking up at the ceiling. "It's about the actions. The knight risks everything in order to give the princess a happily ever after." 

"Well, I'm a princess, and I don't need anyone to give me my happily ever after," Lucy grumbled, folding her arms. 

"You're just jealous that no knight has come to rescue you," Levy teased, dodging Lucy's half-hearted kick. She giggled, rolling herself into the blankets on the bed. Lucy laughed, standing up and jumping onto the bed beside her. The girls squealed as they fought for control of the blankets, kicking and pushing each other. They were so loud that Lucy didn't even hear the door open, although she saw Juvia standing there, watching them with a mixture of disappointment and sadness. 

"Juvia!" Levy cried, spotting the blue haired maid. She pulled the blankets from Lucy, who was too surprised to react, and rolled herself into a burrito. "Where have you been? We've been discussing Dan Straight without you for the past hour!" 

Not even the mention of one of Juvia's favorite book characters seemed to lift her mood. "Juvia is sorry, but Juvia is here to retrieve Princess Lucy." 

Both girls paused at Juvia's formality. They looked at each other uncertainly and Lucy lifted herself off the bed, standing up and smoothing off her dress. 

"Is everything okay?" She asked. Juvia bit her lip, her eyes so sad looking that there seemed to be tears forming in them. Lucy realized it wasn't her imagination and stepped towards her friend. "Juvia? What's wrong?" 

The maid shook her head. "Juvia is here to retrieve Princess Lucy. His Highness Jude has requested her presence in his study immediately." She stuttered on the words, causing them to come out wobbly and soft. She quickly wiped at her eyes and turned around. "Please follow Juvia." 

Lucy glanced back at Levy, shaking her head as the maid tried to get off of the bed. Levy froze, watching sadly as the two walked away. 

The hall was silent when the two girls walked through it. Juvia kept her face carefully directed ahead, her eyes locked onto some unseen target. Lucy studied her. There were more tears forming in her eyes, despite the fact she had wiped them. 

"Juvia?" Lucy asked quietly. The maid stiffened but didn't give any indication of hearing her. "Juvia what's going on?" 

"His Highness Jude has requested Princes Lucy's presence in his study," she said stiffly, sniffing a bit at the end. "He asked Juvia to bring her there." 

"I know," Lucy said gently, reaching out and touching Juvia's arm. It felt freezing cold and as stiff as a board. "But why are you crying?" Lucy paused, her frown deepening. She didn't want to think about it, but... "Did he...do something to you?" 

"No, of course not!" Juvia squeaked, taken back by the question. She looked at the princess and Lucy was able to see how red her eyes were. 

"Juvia, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Lucy touched her friend's flushed cheeks and more tears formed in the maid's eyes. 

"Juvia was requested to bring Princess Lucy to His Highness Jude's study," she repeated, stepping back. She looked at Lucy for one last second and turned away, quickening her gait. Lucy followed after her silently, seeing no other choice. 

When they reached the study, the guards opened the door for them. Juvia hung back, her hands clasped and head down. Lucy paused, and put her hand gently on her friend's arm. "It's okay," she assured her, feeling her quiver. "I will be back in a moment." She gave her one last reassuring squeeze before she turned to the study. Lucy took a deep breath and stepped in. 

Lucy remembered her father's study as being one of her favorite places in the house. She liked the big windows that let sunlight in, and a cool breeze if left opened in the summer. His desk had seemed like a playground to her tiny self and she would love sitting on his lap while he did work, listening as he explained what everything meant. Now, it felt like a prison. The windows were blocked with tall shelves, never to be opened again, and her happy memories seemed like dreams. The desk was just a desk, always occupied by the blonde man behind it. 

She shivered at the chill of the room, silently wondering how her father kept company in such cold conditions. She approached said man, whom was currently writing on a piece of paper. He hadn't seemed to notice her presence, but she decided to wait until he spotted her. 

It wasn't that her father had turned mean after her mother's death, just distant. She knew he hated ruling the kingdom alone, and that everything in the castle reminded him of her, including Lucy. He used to say that it was a miracle the girls looked so much like each other, but Lucy knew now that he thought it was nothing but a curse. She couldn't blame him; how else was he supposed to act after loosing the love of his life. 

She tried to give him leeway the first few months, but when the odd behavior continued, Lucy began to suspect it was permanent. It hurt at first, and she was incredibly lonely, but eventually she got used to living by herself. He still talked to her every so often and his guards watched over her for him, but it wasn't the same. It wasn't like having a father. 

Jude Heartfilia finished whatever he was writing and looked up, blinking in surprise to see Lucy. She smiled at him and he managed a weak smile back. He coughed into his hand, turning away and pushed the letter aside. 

"Lucy." He said her name like it was some foreign word he'd never heard before. He used to say it like it was the best thing in the world, but she tried not to think of that. 

"Father," she greeted back, trying to keep her tone formal. 

"I'm sorry to call you away, but I think it's time we talked about your future." Straight to the point, huh? Lucy frowned at him, confused. 

"My...future?" 

The king sighed, rubbing his blonde beard. He hadn't had a beard when the queen was still alive. "A neighboring Kingdom has threatened to take Heart." He sighed again, looking up at his daughter. Lucy saw pain in his eyes, and the lines that marked his face made him look like an old man. He looked like he held the weight of the world on his shoulders. "I'm not the king I once was, not without Layla, and the other kingdom's have noticed. It was only a matter of time before one of them tried to overtake us."  

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked uncertainly. she knew what he meant but she didn't want to believe he meant it like that. "They couldn't possibly be planning to—"

"They offered us a scapegoat. The Prince of the kingdom is your age and in search of a bride. He offered to take your hand," he said. Lucy froze, locked in place. The king sighed. "I have no other choice, Lucy. If you do not take his hand, they will remove you from a place of power." 

"They will kill me?" Lucy read between the lines. The words tasted sour on her tongue, like rotten fruit. She swallowed thickly. "So then we have to put a stop to them. We have armies and soldiers who love this country. If we rally the people I'm sure we can—"

"No." 

Lucy paused, closing her mouth. Her spirit came crashing down. "No?" 

"I won't put you at risk," the king stated. "I lost your mother, and I don't plan on loosing you too. Heart is doomed, and I won't have you fall with it." Lucy cringed at the analogy, feeling the threat of tears on her eyes. Was this why Juvia had been so upset?

"So what do I do then?" She whispered. "I won't abandon my people when they need me." 

"It is not your choice," he said harshly. "I have spoken with the king. His son, Prince Sting, is your age and in need of a bride. He has proposed for your hand." He paused, looking down. "I have agreed." 

"That's not fair!" Lucy protested, anger filling her chest with fire. "Father I'm not ready to be married off, and certainly not to a prince who threatens our city! I will stay here and help you save the kingdom! I can help!" 

"You will not!" He yelled, his voice echoing through the room. He was standing now, his eyes angry. Lucy was reminded of when she was a little girl and got caught doing something wrong. She always feared upsetting her father because he was, well, her father. Those familiar, insignificant feelings began permeating her chest now, making her feel small. "The arrangements have already been made. By the end of the fortnight you will be at Eulight, married to Prince Sting. This is my final decision!" 

Lucy was quivering. She shook her head. "You have no right," she whispered. "After all these years, you have no right to act like you care now!" 

"Out." He commanded, his voice soft but forceful. "Get out of my study and pack. You will be leaving in two nights." He turned away, ending the discussion. Lucy spun on a heel, slamming the doors to the study open. The guards jumped at the noise, watching as the princess stormed out of the room. Juvia looked up when Lucy approached, jogging after her. 

"I'm sorry," Juvia said as they rounded the corner. Lucy froze at the sadness and fear in her tone. She realized the maid thought she was mad at her. 

That seemed to be the breaking point for the young princess. With a sob, she collapsed on the ground, covering her face with her hands. Juvia knelt beside her, wrapping her arms around the girl and cradling her head to her bosom. Lucy shook even harder than she had in the study, finally recognizing the unfamiliar emotions in her chest. It wasn't anger; it was fear. She was afraid of these extremists, of marrying Prince Sting, but most of all, Lucy was afraid of her father. 

The realization made her tears fall harder.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Somehow, Juvia managed to pick up the princess and work their way back to her room. Levy found them in the hallway and helped, not saying a word. The whole time, Lucy shivered and shook, wracked with sobs. The two girls helped the princess to her bathroom and ran her a bath. Without saying anything, they stripped her down and settled her in the water. They sat at her side until she managed to settle the storm of emotions within her. She felt embarrassed when she was able to breathe steadily. 

"I'm sorry," she muttered miserably, sniffling. She felt like a child. What kind of princess acted like this? She was supposed to be calm and collected, no matter the situation. Twelve years of behavioral lessons go down the drain just because of one incident. What a failure. 

"Don't apologize," Juvia soothed. She was still sad, but seemed to have buckled up to support the princess. It wasn't fair for her to be crying when the princess was the one who was clearly distressed. 

"What happened?" Levy asked, her hand running absently through Lucy's hair. The princess sniffed again, but she didn't look like she was about to burst into tears, so Juvia let her explain. 

"A neighboring kingdom has approached our borders and is waging war against Heart." Levy gasped, but Lucy only shook her head. "Father refuses to fight and has agreed to marry me off to the bastard prince!" 

"Oh Lucy," Levy sighed, looking down. She was silent for a moment as she thought it over. "I know you are upset, but it is clear he's doing it for your protection. He just wants you safe and in proper care." 

"I know," Lucy said, which surprised the girls. "I know he's doing it to make sure I'm okay, but I don't care. Heart is my kingdom as well, and I won't let it fall to these terrorists. How can I worry for my own protection when my kingdom is in such disarray?"

"While marrying the Prince goes against your morals," Juvia spoke up finally, "I think you should go through with it." 

Lucy looked shocked, and then angry. "I am not ready to marry, not yet, and I refuse to marry someone unless it is for love. It's what my mother asked of me." She looked down at the water, tears blurring her vision again. Levy reached over and wiped them away. 

"I don't think this is something you can fix, Lucy," Levy sighed, looking sad. "Heart has been like this ever since Queen Layla died. King Jude lost control, and other kingdom's began to notice. This is war. Your father doesn't want you caught up in something like that." 

"He's trying to spare you heartache," Juvia added. 

"By sending me off to marry the man who threatens to kill me and destroy my kingdom," Lucy griped. "I feel saved."

"What other choice did he have?" Juvia fought, but she sounded tired. "I want you to stay here as much as you do, but I also want you to be safe. It is either marry him or die."

"I've heard of Prince Sting," Lucy told them with a glare. "A complete womanizer. He's proposed to at least a dozen different princesses. I can't marry myself to a man like that, especially if said man is taking over my kingdom!"  

"So then what do you want to do?" Juvia asked as quiet settled over the room. Lucy looked up at her. "You have two choices; stay here and die, or be sent off to be married and leave your kingdom behind." 

"I don't want either of those," Lucy said, her chest tightening in distress. 

"Maybe you don't have to pick one," Levy said slowly, an idea coming to mind. She tossed it around in her mind while the other two woman looked up at her. 

"What is it, Levy?" Lucy asked in excitement. 

"It's crazy," Levy finally said, looking off to the side. "It could fail in a hundred different ways."

"Fail how?" Juvia asked skeptically. 

"Death, enslavement, torture," Levy shook her head, but Lucy was sitting up now, smiling. 

"But how could it succeed?" She pestered, undeterred by the bad news. Levy looked at Juvia unsurely, but the blue-haired girl nodded at her to continue. 

"You could reclaim Heart without being married," Levy revealed, "But it would be near impossible. Hardly a hundred in one chance." 

"As long as there is hope, I'll go with it," Lucy said, leaning forward. "Tell me about it." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lucy packed the last of her clothes into the small sack, tying it closed with a leather string. It was the night after her father had told her about the attempts on her life and how she was being sold off to Prince Sting as his wife. It was a night after Levy had explained her plan. 

The plan was risky, that was for sure, but Lucy had faith in it. It was her light in the dark of her new scenario, the secret path to freedom. It would require the princess to sneak away and live her life out as a regular citizen. It was asking her to abandon everything she knew and give it up for a life of danger and unfamiliarity. Lucy had never given into something so willingly. 

She didn't know if she'd ever return to Heart, or if there'd even be a Heart to return to. She hated the thought of abandoning her city, her father, and her friends, but Levy had assured her that this was the best choice. Lucy would escape with her life, and hopefully find someone who could help her reclaim her kingdom. They knew there was a chance it wouldn't work, however, so Levy and Juvia told her that, no matter what, she was to continue on living. They wanted her to escape and be free, to find her happily ever after. 

Tonight was the night. Juvia had managed to get her hands on some village clothes. They were unlike any clothing Lucy had ever seen or worn, but she liked them. There were blouses instead of dresses, and pants instead of skirts. Levy had even managed to find some boots for her to use, which Lucy was rather fond of. She wished she'd discovered these clothes before she was sent off to run for her life. 

She had a small pouch of coins and numerous pieces of jewelry she could broker off if she needed money. Even one of her head guards, Laxus, had slipped her a dagger. She didn't know how he knew, but he had given it to her with a wink and a reminder of the lessons he had taught her. Laxus was the one who taught her how to fight after she had begged him for years. She was no expert, but she knew how to hold a sword well enough. A dagger was the same, just shorter, so she'd have to keep her stance closer. It was also less suspicious, and could easily be hidden by her boots. 

Fear crowded Lucy's chest as she slipped through the darkened halls. She was clad in black pants and a dark red blouse. She had her hair tucked up into a cap that Makarov had supplied her with, making her look more like a peasant than a princess.

She pressed against the wall as a guard passed, but she was relieved when she saw it was only Freed, a member of Laxus' Thunder Legion. He spotted her right away, but his eyes only scanned over her before he moved on. As he moved down the hall, he raised his hand in a wave goodbye. Lucy nodded to his back and darted the way he came, knowing the rest of the way would be filled with friendlies. Laxus had told her he'd try to get his groups stationed for tonight, but he didn't know if the last minute change would go through. Lucy was glad.

Lucy was right again when, down the third hall, she came across Evergreen. Evergreen was the only woman guard, but she was easily able to keep up with the males. She had been Lucy's first friend after her mother's death, and almost acted like a second mother to the young princess. When she saw Lucy she smiled and approached her, holding out a small bag. 

"You'll probably need this," she said, giving the princess the bag. Lucy took it and peeked inside, spotting a variety of food. "Makarov sends his best wishes." 

"Thank you," Lucy whispered, feeling tears prick at her eyes. She smiled at the guard and threw her arms around her. Evergreen hugged her fiercely, nearly knocking the breath out of the blonde. Lucy pulled away with a laugh and Evergreen smiled at her. 

"Please stay safe, princess," Evergreen said, stroking her face. Lucy leaned into her touch, smiling. 

"You too," She whispered. 

The next member Lucy ran into was the one she least expected to see. Laxus himself was waiting for her at the stable, petting her horse, Plue. He looked up as she approached, the light of his torch enhancing the lightning shaped scar on his face. He smirked when she came closer, noticing her new additions. 

"I see you ran into Evergreen," he guessed, noticing the bag of food she was toting. 

"And Freed," she said, setting the heavy bag down. She was thankful for the gift, but she thought evergreen went a little bit overboard. She dragged the bag over to the horse, smiling at Laxus when she realized he already tacked Plue for her. "You'll have to tell Bickslow thank you for me."

"No can do," the leader of the Thunder Legion sighed, leaning against the post. Lucy frowned at him. She finally noticed the black mare beside Plue, recognizing it as Laxus' steed, Bolt. 

"Laxus," Lucy said slowly, her voice reprimanding. She realized what this meant and turned to the man, shaking her head. "You can't. You can't go with me."

"The king charged me with keeping you safe, no matter what," he said, smiling wryly.

"My father charged the whole Thunder Legion with keeping me safe," she fought, hoping to deter him. 

"And as leader of the Thunder Legion, I stand representative to go with you and protect you," he smirked. "I also won at rock-paper-scissors." 

Despite the situation, Lucy laughed. She shook her head, trying to fight down the smiles. "Fine," she relented, seeing no other choice. "So you're coming with me, then."

"Wherever you go," he accepted, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I will protect you." 

Lucy smiled at him, feeling a knot in her chest loosen. "Thank you," she said. He nodded his head and turned, picking up her sack of food. He grunted at the weight, looking at it curiously. 

"How much food does Ever think you need?" He muttered, making Lucy giggle. 

Finally Laxus divided as much of the food between the two horses as he could, dumping the rest into a nearby stream. He loaded up Bolt and then came up to Lucy, a sheathed sword in hand. 

"I know I gave you the dagger, but I think this seems a little more threatening," he told her, holding it out to the princess. Lucy took the blade gingerly, unsheathing it enough to see the shiny steel beneath. She gasped, recognizing it as one of Laxus' favorite swords. 

"Laxus," She said, looking up uncertainly, but the blonde man was already jumping on his horse. 

"Come on, we don't have much time. Dawn is coming," he said, eyeing the reddening sky. Lucy, her emotions stuck in her throat, nodded her head and wrapped the sword around her waist. Laxus had never given her a sword belt because they were impossible to wear with dresses, but with pants, they were perfect. Lucy felt proud of herself as she swung herself up onto Plue. 

"I'm ready," she said determinedly. Laxus nodded and gave Bolt a sharp knead. The horse started off, Plue close behind. 

It wasn't until they were across the field, the sun just beginning to rise in the sky, that Lucy looked back. She saw her castle, cloaked in a sky of red, and felt her chest tighten. She silently swore to herself that she would return and reclaim what was rightfully hers. What had rightfully been her mother's.