"Six wishes," Natsu said quietly as they landed. "I don't even know what to do with them. I want them to be good. I don't want to waste them." He glanced over. "What would you wish for, Happy?"

"An endless supply of fish."

"Of course you would," Natsu sighed, rolling his eyes. "What about you, Gildarts? What would you wish for?"

"Me?" Gildarts blinked, genuinely surprised. "You're asking me for advice?"

"It's not against the rules, is it?"

"No... it's just..." He scratched the back of his head. "No one's ever asked before. Not that I remember."

"Well?" Natsu pressed. "Would you wish for money? Power?"

Gildarts gave a dry chuckle. "Kid, I live in a lamp. What am I gonna do with money and power?"

Natsu frowned slightly. "Then what would you want?"

For once, Gildarts didn't joke.

His expression softened—something distant, almost tired, passing through his eyes.

"If I'm being honest?" he said. "I'd want to be human again."

Natsu blinked. "You'd give up immortality? All that power?"

Gildarts let out a slow breath. "That power comes with a price. One that's too high to pay, if you ask me."

He looked down at his hands, watching the faint glow of magic flicker around them.

"It cost me my freedom. My memories. My life. I remember pieces... names, faces, fragments. But most of it's gone." He gave a faint, humorless smile. "Hard to miss something when you can't even fully remember what you lost."

Natsu's expression softened.

"Zeref was brilliant," Gildarts continued. "But even he made mistakes. Turning me into this... was one of them. Not out of cruelty—he didn't understand what it would do. He didn't know I'd lose everything I was. Didn't know I'd be bound forever to whoever holds that lamp."

He clenched his fist slightly.

"No choice. No control. Just orders."

A quiet pause settled between them.

"I'm not angry at him," Gildarts added more softly. "He meant well. But intentions don't change the outcome."

Natsu looked at him, something heavy settling in his chest.

"Oh... Gildarts," he said. "That's terrible."

"The worst part," Gildarts said quietly, "is that even though I can't remember... I feel it. Like something's still there, buried deep. I know I had someone. A family."

His voice softened, almost distant.

"In my dreams, I see them. A woman... beautiful. And a child. They're smiling, reaching for me like they know me—like they love me. And I... I don't know who they are." He let out a slow breath. "I've spent years trying to remember. Searching my own mind for something, anything. But it's just... gone."

He looked away.

"If I could just find them again... just remember... that would mean more than all the magic and treasure in the world."

Natsu's expression shifted, something deeply familiar stirring in his chest.

"I know exactly how that feels," he said quietly.

For a moment, he saw his own past—faces he couldn't reach anymore, voices he'd never hear again.

"Isn't there any way?" he asked. "Anything at all?"

Gildarts shook his head. "Only one. If my master wishes me free, I'd become human again. I'd get my life back maybe even my memories."

A humorless chuckle followed.

"But let's be real—no one's ever going to do that. Who'd give up a wish-granting slave?"

"I would."

Gildarts blinked. "Yeah, right."

"I'm serious," Natsu said firmly. "I'll use five wishes for myself and the last one to set you free. You have my word."

Gildarts narrowed his eyes. "The word of a thief?"

Natsu didn't flinch. "My word's all I've got."

"It's true," Happy added. "In all the time I've known him, he's never broken a promise."

Gildarts studied him carefully, skepticism still lingering.

"I don't know." he muttered. "You're not pulling my chain?"

"No," Natsu said. "I swear. That last wish is yours."

He held out his hand. For a moment, Gildarts didn't move. He wasn't naive. He knew what humans were like, what he had been like. Greed, temptation, self-interest they always won in the end. But Natsu, there was something in his eyes.
Not ambition. Not calculation. Just honesty.

Slowly, cautiously Gildarts reached out.

"Alright," Gildarts said, shaking his hand firmly. "Let's get started. What is it you want most?"

"Food!" Happy blurted out immediately. "Wish for food! Wish we never go hungry again! That's literally our biggest problem!"

Natsu sighed. "Happy... we can find food if we try. These wishes should be for things we could never get on our own."

"Alright then," Happy said, thinking hard. "What about a house? With a door? That's already an upgrade. Or—better yet—a palace! Like the Sultan's! You've always wanted one of those!"

Natsu opened his mouth to respond then stopped. Something clicked.

"Actually," he said slowly, "what I really want most is... well... there's this girl—"

"Oh no," Gildarts cut in immediately, throwing up a hand. "Don't even finish that sentence. I can't make anyone fall in love. That's off-limits."

Natsu blinked. "Really?"

"Really," Gildarts said. "Love is just too powerful. Too important. Not even Zeref messed with that. Love's... different. It doesn't bend to magic. Zeref always said true love is the strongest force in the world. Stronger than anything he could create. That's why every contract he made had a 'true love' escape clause. Same with most of his spells, potions, artifacts—you name it. There was always some kind of loophole."

"Why?" Natsu asked.

Gildarts gave a small shrug. "Ever heard the phrase 'be careful what you wish for'?"

Natsu nodded.

"Yeah. Turns out, a lot of people who get exactly what they want, 50 percent of the time, end up regretting it. Or it backfires. Badly." He smirked faintly. "Zeref knew that. So he built in escape routes just in case."

"Interesting."

"Yeah," Gildarts said with a shrug. "Point is, I can't get involved in your love life, kid. Sorry."

"But Gildarts, she's incredible," Natsu insisted. "She's smart, she's funny—"

"Pretty?" Gildarts cut in.

"No—beautiful! Inside and out!" Natsu sighed, almost lost in the thought of her. "I think about her all the time. I've never met anyone like her. I don't think I ever will again."

Gildarts glanced at Happy. "Wow... he's got it bad, huh?"

"Too bad," Happy said bluntly. "She's a royal princess. And she's already supposed to marry someone else."

"She's being forced into it!" Natsu shot back. "She doesn't love him. Gildarts, I don't want to make her fall in love with me—I get that you can't do that. I just want a chance... a real chance to see her again. To find out if maybe—maybe—she could feel the same."

"Not gonna happen," Happy said, crossing his arms. "Not unless you magically become a prince."

That's when it hit Natsu like a ton of bricks.

"That's it."

"What's it?"

"I'll become a prince!"

"What?!"

"Don't you see?" Natsu said, suddenly energized. "It solves everything! If I'm a prince, I can go to the Magnolia Nation and properly court Lucy. The law won't be able to stop me."

Happy frowned. "I don't know, man. Don't you need a kingdom? Subjects? You know, actual royal stuff?"

"No, I just need to be rich and classy."

Happy gave him a flat look. "You realize you are currently none of those things, right?"

"That's where he comes in." Natsu turned to Gildarts. "You can do that, right? Make me a prince?"

Gildarts smirked. "Oh, I can. That part's easy."

Natsu grinned. "Perfect then—"

"Hold it," Gildarts said, raising a finger. "You're gonna have to be very specific."

Natsu paused. "How specific?"

Gildarts began pacing slightly, gesturing as he spoke. "You say 'make me a prince,' but what kind of prince exactly? If you're not careful with your words I could turn you into the Prince of Rats or Chickens. You've gotta be careful with magic. It does exactly what you say. Not what you mean."

"Alright..." Natsu said, thinking it through carefully. "Then I want to become a prince who could impress the Sultan of Lazan City. A prince with more riches and treasure than any other ruler in the world... and someone who actually has a chance of winning the princess's heart."

Gildarts smirked. "Now that's specific. I can work with that."

"Wait—" Happy cut in quickly. "I don't know about this. I feel like you're playing with fire, Natsu. Can't you just fall for another girl? Someone in the same class as you?"

Natsu frowned. "Why are you so against this, Happy? What—are you jealous or something? Scared I might like her more than you?"

Happy froze.

Then his face twisted with hurt and anger. "No! Of course not! How could you even say that?! We're friends!"

"Some friend," Natsu snapped, frustration slipping through. "You won't even let me dream!"

"Because this dream isn't rational!" Happy shot back.

"And what dream is?!" Natsu fired back.

"Be serious!" Happy insisted. "What you're trying to do—this isn't how the world works! You chasing after a princess? It's just asking for trouble. It stinks, but that's how things are!"

Natsu clenched his fists.

"And you don't care that being with her makes me happy?"

"Of course I do!" Happy said, his voice losing its sharp edge and turning softer, more worried than anything else. "I want you to be happy. I just don't want you to get hurt. What happens if this doesn't work, Natsu? What happens if she rejects you? If she looks at you and decides she's too good for you and treats you like you're nothing?"

His ears drooped.

"You'll be heartbroken. Devastated. Hurt in a way you can't just shake off. I've seen people like that in the city... and I don't want that for you."

Natsu went quiet. The anger drained from him almost immediately, replaced by something heavier—guilt. He looked down at Happy, realizing how badly he'd misunderstood him.

"Oh, Happy..." Natsu knelt and gently picked him up, pulling him into a hug. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I know you're just trying to protect me, and I appreciate it. I really do."

He pulled back just enough to meet Happy's eyes.

"But I have to do this. If I don't try... I'll always wonder what could've happened. And that regret... would hurt more than anything she could ever say to me. Can you understand that?"

Happy sighed, long and defeated. "...I guess I can. I just hope you know what you're doing."

Natsu gave a small, confident smile.

"I do."

He gently set Happy down and turned his attention to Gildarts.

"Gildarts, I wish for you to make a prince worthy of Princess Lucy."

"Your wish is my command," Gildarts replied with a confident grin.

The genie rolled his shoulders, then stretched his arms with theatrical flair, cracking his knuckles as if waking up the magic in his veins. With a final flourish, he snapped his fingers. In an instant, Natsu was engulfed in a flash of magic. Dirt and sand vanished from his skin. His untamed salmon-pink hair was neatly groomed and styled with care. His ragged clothes dissolved away, replaced by elegant black-and-white royal robes, trimmed with gold and tailored to fit him perfectly.

"What do you think?" Gildarts asked, conjuring a full-length mirror beside him.

Natsu studied his reflection, tilting his head slightly.

"I like it," he admitted, a grin spreading across his face. "Very nice. Way better than how I looked before."

"But it takes more than fancy clothes to make a prince," Gildarts said, folding his arms.

"I know," Natsu replied. "I'll need riches, servants... basically everything I've never had. And a new name. I don't think I'll ever see that creepy old man again, but I don't want to risk him exposing me. Or anyone else for that matter."

"Don't worry," Gildarts said confidently. "I've got it all covered."

He flashed a grin and leaned in slightly. "Now hang on to your turban, kid. We're gonna make you a star."