A/N: This fic originated out of a suggestion to write a Mystwalker AU for my Jerza one-shot series. I thought writing the flip-side of my first one-shot would be a fun and challenging thing to do, but then this fic ended up growing into a monster that probably wouldn't fit in a one-shot anymore. So, I'm going to be posting it here.
It's based on Chapter Six from the Fairy Tail light novel that came out last year, which provides an update on what the Edolas crew have been up to following the Edolas arc. You can read the translation on my Tumblr if you'd like.
Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!
Prologue
"It's really pouring outside…" Lucy muttered to nobody in particular as she stared out of the large windows in front of her desk.
The rain had been coming down in sheets ever since early in the morning, splattering against the roofs, walkways, and walls of the still-bewildering castle complex where she now lived. And beyond that, though she could only vaguely see them through the rain and mist, the concentric rings of the city were equally soaked.
Inside her large tower office, however, it was still dry and warm, with a fire going to ward off the autumn chill.
Lucy sighed and sank a bit deeper into her cushy chair.
Other people might associate the rain with boredom and gloominess, but she had only ever known it as the savior that gave her guild a welcome respite from the endless chase. Even the kingdom's mages could not force their magical steeds, the Legions, to fly out on days like these.
Rainy days were when they could relax, enjoy each other's company, and pretend that all was well.
She smiled happily and closed her eyes. Even if she was now the army's chief of staff and the second most powerful person in the entire kingdom, old habits were still hard to break.
As if she was reminded of that fact, she glanced back at the mountain of work on her desk and felt her brief moment of relaxation evaporate. It was in times like these that she wondered exactly what she was doing.
When the prince had asked for her help after the Earthland mages returned to their world, she had agreed as a matter of course. No matter if it had been in that world or not, he was still a member of Fairy Tail. But when he had appointed her chief of staff, she had balked at that decision.
All Lucy knew was how to survive as a mage on the run, constantly escaping the kingdom's clutches and adapting to whatever they might throw at her and her guild. She was completely unprepared to suddenly be in control of the most powerful military in the world.
Still, the prince had convinced her that he needed someone whom he could trust. And her guild had convinced her that they needed to do their part in rebuilding Edolas into the place it always should have been.
Lucy laughed a little and rested her head on the cool wooden surface of her desk.
She still had no business being chief of staff, just like Gray had no business being Captain of the First Defense Squad, or Natsu being Chief of Transportation. But they were all still trying their best and giving their all, even winning over some of the skeptics in the military and bureaucracy.
Maybe… being able to survive and adapt was precisely what was needed in times like these.
"Lucy?" asked a familiar voice. "What's wrong?"
"Ah, Natsu!" Lucy instantly sat up straight and faked a smile. It wouldn't do to show any worry or fear in front of her friends, especially after all the progress they had made lately. She turned and saw both Natsu and Gray standing near the doorway. "And Gray! Nothing's wrong, nothing at all!"
"Don't tell me our fearless chief of staff was taking a nap," Gray laughed. He was only wearing one overcoat today, of a lovely deep blue color. Lucy actually found herself rather proud of him.
"That's a nice coat," she commented, quickly changing the subject.
"Of course it is," said Gray, hearts forming in his eyes. "It's the same color as Juvia-chan's eyes!" He clasped his hands together and did a little twirl.
"That's nice," said Lucy. "And not at all sickening. Do you act like that in front of your soldiers too?"
"Of course he does," said Natsu, in a completely serious manner. "Gray's love is pure and strong and a beautiful thing."
"I knew you were my best friend for a reason!" Gray exclaimed as he knocked Natsu over with a sudden hug.
"Oi," said Lucy, pulling Gray off of him by the scruff of his neck. "I'm the only one who's allowed to tackle Natsu."
Gray, however, lost his balance and pulled her down with him until all three of them were a tangle of limbs and laughter.
It was at this time that Coco stuck her head inside the doorway. "Lucy," she said, "it's almost time for the council meeting… Oh, eek! I'm sorry to interrupt."
"Ah, it's okay," Lucy said as she moved Natsu's elbow out of her face. "We were just about ready anyway."
"Err... right." Coco still looked mortified and unsure of what to do or say.
"Well then boys, you heard my aide." Lucy stood up and brushed the dust off her leather jumpsuit. "It's time to go to the meeting."
"You're the boss." Gray laughed as he checked to see that no damage was done to his beloved coat.
They followed Coco out of Lucy's tower office and down a wide spiral staircase that led to the castle's main gathering areas. They passed a few soldiers along the way, each of whom gave them a quick salute. Lucy smiled and nodded in return, though she still hadn't quite gotten used to it.
"I hope the prince will finally set a date for the coronation," said Gray, once they arrived at a long ornate hallway that led directly to the meeting room. "He insisted that he wanted to hold off until the reconstruction was complete, and it finally wrapped up this week."
"Mmm, I agree," said Lucy. "The kingdom could really use a big celebration like a coronation to rally around right now. It would do wonders for morale. But who knows what he's thinking?"
"Why doesn't he tell you?" asked Natsu, puzzled. "I mean, you are his chief of staff and all."
"I wish," Lucy grumbled. "I don't think anyone knows what's going on in that head of his."
Their prince was kind, wise, and all-around wonderful, but he was also the most secretive person that Lucy had ever seen. Maybe it was because of all the time he had spent sneaking around in Earthland. Perhaps old habits were hard to break for him as well.
"I still like him a lot more than the previous king!" Coco exclaimed.
"Mmm, he is a lot more good-looking, isn't he?" Lucy smirked. "Makes you wonder what he looks like underneath all those wrappings."
"You're so bold, Lucy." Natsu blushed.
Lucy looked at him over her shoulder and gave him a sly smile. "It's okay, Natsu. He's not really my type. I like guys who are a bit more... submissive."
Natsu choked a little and did not reply.
"Since he's going to be the king," said Coco, with stars in her eyes, "he needs to marry the fairest lady in all the land and then they'll have beautiful little princes and princesses that'll run all over the castle and brighten up the place!"
"The fairest lady in all the land, huh? Well, that rules out Lucy," said Gray.
Lucy turned around and brought her fist down on Gray's head. "Do you have a death wish or something?"
"Ow! Just kidding." Gray dodged before she managed to hit him next with an upper cut to the chin.
"Hmph." Lucy crossed her arms and turned back around. "I agree with Coco's idea though. It'd certainly help the stability of the kingdom if he found himself a wife and started producing some royal spawn."
"The fairest in all the land then… Who would that be?" Natsu wondered out loud. "It's hard to say, especially since everyone in Blue Pegasus is already gone…"
"What about Mira?" asked Lucy.
"I don't know... Mira's pretty much essential to the Royal Treasury now. They can't even function without her," Gray mused, scratching his chin. "What about Cana?"
"Cana's busy studying medicine at the Royal Academy," said Natsu. "Besides, I don't think she's exactly suited for something like this..."
"I have an idea," Coco piped up.
"Spit it out then," said Lucy.
Coco turned a bit red and looked down at her feet. "I've always thought that... well, Captain Knightwalker is the strongest and most beautiful woman I've ever seen."
"The Fairy Hunter?" Natsu almost tripped over himself in shock.
"That is not her name," Lucy hissed at him. "Not anymore."
"Ah, sorry. I'm so sorry. I forgot. Old habit, I guess." Natsu cowered away from her. "Please don't hit me."
"We agreed when we decided to work for the kingdom that we would make a fresh start with everyone, didn't we?" Lucy demanded. "The royal military received and carried out their orders from the king. The one issuing all the orders was at fault here, not the people carrying out those orders, and he's already been deposed and exiled. We've managed to work with them to rebuild this kingdom without much conflict. I will not let anyone's loose tongue threaten whatever stability that we've managed to attain."
"Lucy is right," Gray nodded. "And ever since I got appointed Captain of the First Defense Squad, Captain Knightwalker's been nothing but cooperative with me."
"She pretty much grew up in the Royal Army," said Coco. "She's a soldier first and foremost, so she'll do whatever it takes to ensure the kingdom's strength and safety."
"I understand," said Natsu, looking like he was about to cry. "It won't happen again, I swear!"
Lucy sighed. She hadn't really liked the idea of working with the Fairy Hunter of all people at first either. But...they were working towards a common goal now. And Erza certainly had been nothing but cordial to any and all Fairy Tail members after the Earthland mages returned to their world. She wondered sometimes what had happened to make her attitude take a one hundred eighty degree turn. Perhaps she would never know.
"In any case, Coco does have an interesting idea," Lucy thought aloud, as she weighed all the different factors at play. "In fact, I think she might be the perfect choice. There are still quite a few people in the military and bureaucracy who aren't thrilled with the idea of him as king, but they're all more or less insanely loyal to her. Marrying her would certainly wipe out any remaining opposition to him taking the throne. And they're sure to produce some incredibly strong purple-haired babies for Coco to coo over."
"Incredibly strong purple-haired babies?" Natsu looked like he wasn't sure whether to laugh or not.
"Lucy sure has her priorities straight," said Gray.
"And Captain Knightwalker would make such a beautiful bride!" Coco exclaimed, her eyes shining.
"You too!" Gray took a step back and gaped at her.
"But Lucy..." Natsu said gingerly, "you're forgetting one thing."
"What's that?"
"How are you going to make this happen? The prince and Captain Knightwalker don't seem to like each other in that way."
"They're both nineteen, aren't they? So they're still almost just teenagers. All we need to do is lock them in a closet together and let their hormones take over."
"I think Captain Knightwalker's more likely to just break the door down and escape," said Gray. "Or failing that, punch a hole through the wall and then escape. And then Mira will be angry with you for adding the cost of repairs to the royal budget."
"Hmm, I do see the flaws in that plan," Lucy grudgingly admitted. Maybe this was going to be harder than she thought.
"Did I hear my name? And what are all of you chatting about so secretively?" asked a voice behind them.
"Ah, Mira!" Lucy smiled at seeing their lovely white-haired Chief of the Royal Treasury.
"Incredibly strong purple-haired babies," said Gray.
"Incredibly strong purple-haired babies?" Mirajane repeated, confused.
"Well, they're still hypothetical purple-haired babies as of now," said Lucy. "We don't actually know that their kids will have purple hair."
"Lucy wants the prince to marry Captain Knightwalker," Natsu explained to a completely bewildered Mirajane.
"Ah, a royal wedding!" she exclaimed as she clasped her hands together in delight. "How wonderful!"
"Unfortunately we're not sure how to actually make it happen," Lucy admitted.
"Hmm, it is a tricky little problem, I agree." Mirajane looked thoughtful. "But perhaps not altogether hopeless. In fact, I might be willing to assist you in this very worthy endeavor. I have but one condition though."
"What's that?"
Her big blue eyes twinkled. "Let me plan the wedding. I can assure you that it's going to be absolutely perfect."
"Deal," Lucy immediately replied and held out her hand. This sort of arrangement was actually perfect for her, since she didn't have the time to plan something that enormous to begin with.
"It's a deal then." Mirajane took her hand in a firm handshake.
"I thought it was a totally crackpot idea, but now it might actually happen," said Gray, amazed at how quickly things were developing.
"What are you trying to imply?" Lucy narrowed her eyes at him.
"Nothing," he squeaked. "Anyway, it's almost time for the meeting to start. Shouldn't you hurry up, since you're the one running it?"
"Yes," she sighed, before turning around and pointing a finger in their direction. "Gray, no excessive sweating or anything of the sort if you're called on. Natsu, no fainting or turning bright red if you're asked to speak. It clashes horribly with your hair. Coco... just do whatever it is that you usually do. And Mira... well, I guess Mira's perfect."
"Yes, boss!" all four of them replied in unison.
"All right, let's do this!" Lucy led the way, as they marched into the council room.