Welcome to the Family
There was fighting between the two families that day. There was always fighting, but it was done in harsh undertones, in words and in documents written in angry scrawls. Today had been a different kind of fighting, the kind of which spilt blood onto cobblestone streets and painted swords red.
The head of the Fullbuster family sputtered. The battle was a loss to both sides, as very few walked away and even less walked away on their own two feet. So the head of one family had called the head of his opponent, one signor Dragneel, to call a truce. He had lost two nephews that day and countless cousins. His eldest was now spending the night on some cot in the medico di familia's and his youngest had been blissfully missing. As had the Dragneel head's only son.
It was the Fullbuster's dining hall that they sat in, and it was a combination of two different cook's food that they smelt. Roasted pork, cut lamb, flavoured with creamy sauces and vegetables. There was a bowl of tomatoes sitting in the middle of table looking beautiful and deadly. Dragneel had insisted upon them. To have such a poisonous thing in the middle of the table was odd, Fullbuster fancied, especially when with a multitude of lavish food surrounding it.
Fullbuster picked up his fork and cut into the meat. They would not talk business until the plates had been cleared, the table emptied. Talking pleasure was always a viable option at meals. Normally their wives would gossip, tittering between each other like little birds, while the men talked sports or weather. Today neither felt like pleasantries and both remained silent.
It was only when the final plate was cleared away, leaving only the tomatoes in the centre of the table, did someone begin to talk.
"You have brought me here to form a treaty, so I would like to ask you want do you propose that we trade to form this treaty?" Dragneel asked. He flexed his arms and leaned against the table with muscles bulging. His generation was new to nobility so he had a body that screamed hard labour and hard hours with a sword. He liked to show it off.
"You," started the host, "have acres of land with only a fraction of it devoted to farming. You lack both the hands to tend to fields and the cattle with which to fertilize it."
"Skip to the point."
Ever in a hurry, Fullbuster thought. He did not hold this man's intelligence in high regards. "I have bustling fields, more than enough hands to spare, and a herd that is threatening to grow beyond the capacity that my land can hold. So!" he snapped, before the other could butt in, "I propose that I lend you those hands and the cattle to tend to your crops. As well as several of my best bulls. In return I get more to hold my cattle."
"And what of the milk and beef?" Dragneel said in a deep growl. A fair point and one that the host had already though t of a solution for.
"We will divide that evenly between the families. Both our people will be working with the cattle I suspect so we will both be aware of the product. This will, of course, only apply to my cattle that I have in your fields and will not extend to the cattle which remain on my land or your own herds."
Dragneel nodded. He seemed to be thinking the proposition over, weighing pros and cons. However, Fullbuster expected that the man wanted the same thing he did. Which was to avoid a repeat of the day's happenings. He would undoubtedly say yes.
And after a long minute of holding his eyes shut he did agree. "How do we ensure these ties hold?"
He meant marriage. Of course. It was still customary to marry and ensure family ties, normally minor nobles like the two of them did not bother with such things, letting their children marry whom they please. But the Fullbuster's and the Dragneel's had been fighting too hard for too long and any treaty made would be flimsy at best. Marriage would have been the best course of action.
But both family heads had only sons to their names. Which made such an arrangement impossible.
"I expected this. That is why I asked for these," he gestured to the tomatoes. "I propose a game."
"Why squander your time in silly games? We are not required to fortify our alliance."
"I have a niece that would adore to be married to your youngest son. However I know for a fact that your son does not feel the same towards her. He is tolerant of her at best. I also know that your son and my son get along as well as any young men can. They rough house amiably and they both grow as a result. They are not the enemies that we are."
Fullbuster's scowl, which had been a constant on his face all day, deepened significantly. "Preposterous. My son would never-" He clipped off his sentence before it went too far and any hope of the treaty died that moment. There were still papers to sign. A man's word was not enough in this day and age.
His son would never become friends with an enemy unless it was for deceptive means. And Gray, despite the rebellious nature he still clung to, was too honest for such a thing.
The guest seemed to be amused by Fullbuster's reaction. Which was a chance better than insulted. "So a game. To test this fact. My son seems to be immune to the poison of these fruit," he gestured to the tomatoes, "as he has been eating them since he was a child; without our consent, of course. But your son is not aware of this. Natsu will eat one of these tomatoes and if your son goes out of his away to save him then you concede that they are friends and their children shall get married. If not then either Gray can marry my niece, Natsu can marry yours, or neither has the obligation to get married and our alliance will remain hazy and breakable at best."
Immune, hm? That seemed as unlikely as the two boys being friends. But he had heard rumours of the French dining of them so perhaps it was not as farfetched as one might believe.
"Very well, we shall play your game." Fullbuster rose and Dragneel echoed him. They both shook hands. "Maybe the fighting end this night."
A/N: I mere snippet of the main work which is for all intents and purposes, a PWP. As such, the Gray/Natsu part of the can be found on my AO3 account. The link to which will be in my Bio. : )
Thanks to MiyuTanemura who suffered the wrath of purged this fic of its multitude of mistakes. Please check out her out and she enjoys and meaty review/babble/whatever as much as the next girl, I'm sure~
Please review where you can, I love to hear from people. : D