Enemies who do not care
Chapter One: Meeting
I don't own Fairy Tail. Enjoy!
In the year X781, Fiore Kingdom – with at the time, the Heartfilia family so powerful, influent and rich it practically ruled the country – was attacked by invaders from the north. At the very origin of this battle stood a relatively unknown Mage Guild, Fairy Tail.
Notorious for its destructive power, it was at the time said to attract the most uncontrollable mages. Partly the truth, if you regarded some of their aces. Gildarts Clive, Laxus Dreyar, Mystogan, Erza Scarlet and ex-Demon Mirajane. They were barely teenagers, and yet managed to unleash a war far greater than their own.
In the year X784, Fiore Kingdom was officially under control of the invaders. Fairy Tail was abandoned and the rising star vanished from the planet. Nobody knew what had become of them. At the same time, Heartfilia Konzern was still as rich, but not quite as powerful as it once had been. The owner, Jude Heartfilia, had been cunning enough to make himself necessary. His child, a lovely young daughter of seventeen years old, was spared, too.
In that same year, faster than anyone could have imagined, the uprising began. Fiore wasn't exactly fond of their conquerors, and the counterattack was quick, yet hard. Surprisingly hard. Everyone whispered, voices silent and timid, about the leaders of the rebellion. All agreed. It was Fairy Tail. They hadn't left them down after all. But this time, tongues spoke of other names. Natsu Dragneel, Gray Fullbuster, Wendy Marvel, Gajeel Redfox, Juvia Lockser What happened to the previous prime fighters of Fiore's number one Guild? A lot of rumours, but none concrete.
The people also spoke about the Heartfilia company. They allied with the invaders, they betrayed their people. Unfortunately, most were influenced by the hard work and little food they had gotten. They couldn't imagine that Heartfilia Konzern was doing their all to give them food – at all.
Namely Lucy Heartfilia, daughter and heir to the Konzern, was worried about the people. She did all she could – which was much, but not enough. Her father negotiated and dealt with the invaders, she went to the people and gave them food, shelter and hope. The frontline moved every day a bit, quite close to their manor, so that suddenly, wounded soldiers were being nursed in field tents at the very edge of their property. It was scary, but not as much if you think that their property stretched out all the way to the mountains.
One day, however, war seemed all too close.
Lucy was about to go out for her usual walk to her mother's grave, when she heard commotion in the hall. Who could that be? Transport was primarily for military use – only the supply cart got there once a week.
"Miss Heartfilia!" Her butler hurried towards her and bowed.
"Yes, James?"
"There is an emergency at the front door. Two people wish to speak to one of the Heartfilias and they're rather in a bad condition. What do you wish for me to do?"
Lucy frowned. "Father isn't back yet from the negotiations?"
James shook his head. "Unfortunately, he is not. We expect him home in the evening, however."
"I'll go then." Lucy walked to the door, James behind her like a shadow.
At the door, she realized how urgent it was and why James had called it a 'bad condition'.
Two people were standing on the steps, one of them tall, in a black cloak and with several staffs. His face was covered and he seemed to worry about his companion, a young man with gorgeous red hair. His hair wasn't the only thing red; he seemed to be bleeding in his side.
"James, get the doctor here immediately."
"Which one, Miss?"
"A skilled one. Please hurry up." Lucy sped towards the pair.
"What happened to him?"
The other man shrugged and tried to stop the bleeding. Lucy pushed him aside and applied the right pressure on the wound. Her father had once insisted she would follow a First Aid course. There wasn't much she could do now.
"Are you from the army?" the man nodded, and she vaguely noticed he had blue hair.
"What happened? Please tell me, it might help." She almost pleaded.
The man shrugged again and pointed to the wounded man, then down.
"Fine if you don't talk', Lucy snapped. "You want me to take care of her?"
The man nodded, relieved. He then pointed at himself and the door. Lucy sighed. The man offered her a money pouch, but she refused it.
"Fine, go. I don't want your money, as if we don't have enough here. It's a surprise that my toothbrush isn't gold!"
The stranger only nodded, looked at the unconscious man on the ground and left nonchalantly, as if he did something like this every day.
Lucy's bewilderment disappeared when she noticed the erratic breathing of the man under her. To her relief, James and doctor Whale arrived. Though eccentric, he was one of the best.
Lucy stepped politely back and let him do the work. James bowed again.
"Thank you, James." Lucy sighed.
"Shall I make a cup of tea to calm you down, Miss?" he asked. Lucy nodded and sighed again. She had to think this over and wait for the results. With resolute steps, she moved to the library on the first floor. James would know where to find her.
Indeed, barely a minute after she arrived, James arrived with a tray.
"Thank you again, James." She sipped from the tea, but immediately put the cup down as her tongue was burnt heavily.
"Ouch!"
"Be cautious, Miss. The tea is warm." James said with barely a hint of a smile on his lips.
Of all her butlers and servants, James was her favourite. He was attentive, careful and with her for ages. With his humour and advice, along with a listening ear, he was one of the best persons she had met.
She smiled back at him. "But your tea is simply too good. How do you do that?"
James nodded in acceptance of her compliment. "Does my lady really wish to know?"
Lucy nodded back, and he poured in her second cup. "The truth of a good tea lies in the teapot. The teapot must be heated before one pours the tea in it. And the same counts for the cups. If they are both warm, your quality in tea will rise stunningly."
"You know so much about these things." Lucy said in admiration. James nodded.
"I was born and raised to do these things. I enjoy it, too. Miss Heartfilia is indeed a joy to work for."
Lucy almost blushed. "That's not true. I just try to be kind."
Her smooth butler put his hands behind his back. "That is the secret of loyal servants, Miss, be kind. Your mother was like that, too."
Her mother… She could barely remember her.
"How long have you known her, actually?"
He looked down and spoke with a soft voice. "I was only fifteen when she passed away. I was clumsy and inexperienced, but she always forgave me and helped me secretly. She was very much like you, I daresay."
Fifteen? That only made him six years older than she was. How could he be so mature and serious, so educated and well-read. He was of noble spirit and mind, his heart greater than a king's. How did someone like that end up being a simple butler?
She looked at his wavy brown hair, piercing light eyes and broad shoulders and knew it was impossible.
"How did you end up here?" the question was blurted out.
James smiled. "Do you really wish to know? It is a sad story."
Before she could answer, his communication lacrima rung. He looked at it once and put the thing carefully away. "Dr Whale is finished with the patient. He asks if you could spare some time to discuss some matters with you."
Lucy nodded. "I'll go see him now. And I'll ask after the story later, if you wish to tell me."
He nodded, a white glove on his heart. "As you wish."
She walked the staircase down slowly, thinking and worrying. Maybe she does too much.
She knocked gently on the white door of the infirmary. Although the house was her father and hers, this part barely felt like it. It was still the doctors' area, where their word was law – within their capacity, of course.
"Take a seat, Miss Heartfilia." Doctor Whale said, nodding to the chair opposite his.
"Why did you want to talk to me, Doctor?" Lucy asked, nervously fidgeting a bit. A doctor calling you was never a good sign for the patient. "Is there anything wrong with the man brought here?"
"No, not quite." Whale said. "It's just, when he was in the healing lacrima, I noticed quite a few extraordinary numbers." He shoved two papers in front of her, both of a list of complicated, long numbers.
"What is this?" she asked confused.
"It is a medical tab. Used to compare the sick or wounded with a regular, healthy man. Please take a look at these." He pointed at some red numbers.
"I'm no doctor, as you can tell. What is with him?"
"These stats point at incredibly high reflexes, speed, strength, and an ability to heal five times faster than a regular human."
"What? What are you saying? She's some kind of superhuman?"
"Perhaps. I just wanted to inform you, Miss Heartfilia. You may visit him now. Oh, one more thing…"
"What is it?" Lucy said a bit impatient.
"Even with these super-powers, in any normal circumstances, it would be to no avail. Normally, the man would have died instantly."
Lucy's eyes narrowed. "So…"
The man nodded. "Remember, Miss Heartfilia, even monsters can be called heroes by some people."
Without answering, she opened the door and walked into the darkened room without hesitation. That is something you can only find out yourself.
"Hello. I'm Lucy Heartfilia." She said softly.
"I'm Er… Erwin Dawnson. Thank you for saving me."
"It was nothing. How are you feeling?"
She could hear the man smile. "Excellent. But I presume you're wondering about how I ended up at your doorstep."
"A little. But if you don't want to tell, it's fine."
"No, it's no problem. I owe you, Miss Heartfilia."
"Please, call me Lucy." She said in a habit. Only her servants called her Miss Heartfilia, they stubbornly refused to stop with it.
"Lucy. It's a beautiful name."
Something about the way he spoke her name made her feel a bit tingly.
"Thank you."
"But on to the story. My fellow soldier and I were on a secret mission, behind the enemy lines. Our target was one of the camps. Due to my carelessness, I got stabbed in my side and my friend took me here. That is, in short, how I ended up here."
"Really?"
"Really. Although there's a lot I'm not telling you, because of my own safety."
Lucy laughed a bit. "You came up here nearly dead. I think you're safe here. What a shame it would be to rescue you and then kill you once you were breathing again."
The man nodded and smiled. "That is true. Now then, Lucy, I have got three secrets: each of them more dangerous than the last. I can only tell you when I trust you enough. That is the only compromise I can make."
Lucy frowned. "But how do you know if you can trust me now?"
He laughed and it sounded a bit feminine, strange enough. "A gamble. I feel I can trust you."
"So, what is it?"
"I'm not on your side." Erwin said. "I'm an invader."
Lucy's eyes widened. "Don't tell me…"
"Yes, I was sneaking behind enemy lines to get to your house with an important message, but that was destroyed."
"You're my enemy?"
"I am. Well, I am your prisoner, I imagine."
"No." Lucy said.
"What?"
"You're not my prisoner. By no means am I keeping you here. If you want to leave, leave. If you want to stay, stay. I am fed up with this war… And I can't stand people being caged."
"I hear some personal experience." Erwin said softly.
"Maybe another time." Lucy smiled.
"Maybe." Erwin said, and his eyes were slowly closing and falling back into dreamless sleep.
Lucy carefully opened a curtain for the slightest bit and what she saw shocked her.
A face, symmetrical, elegant, smiling and slightly feminine. Scarlet hair surrounding him like fire. And Lucy knew.
The enemy that she saved, was an angel.
End of chappie One.
Finally I'm writing something again. How'd you like it?