The Dance of Love
Chapter 1: The Princess and the Demon
The ballroom was brightly illuminated with luminous lights decorated all over the hall. The ball was held at the Royal Palace of Croccus in the kingdom of Fiore. Royal guards were protecting the palace while the usual warriors were enjoying tonight. Every legal guild was present at the ball, along with a certain independent guild, Crime Sorciere.
The ball was held to celebrate the destruction of Alvarez empire. But the bad times weren't over yet with Zeref and Acnologia still being alive, and planning the destruction of mankind. But our heroes decided to celebrate anyway, to respect the efforts of the mages who risked their life to protect the world. And thus, they accepted the invitation of the king for this ball celebration.
Everyone in the ballroom was cladded in pretty dresses and even prettier smiles. A certain blonde haired mage was talking to the Princess of Fiore while often looking here and there, as if searching for someone. But it was a damn tough thing to do since the hall was filled with over two thousand people.
"You're looking beautiful, Lucy-san." Princess Hisui commented, making the said person blush a little. Lucy Heartfilia, Fairy Tail's Celestial Spirit mage was really looking something extraordinary. Her long blonde hair was untied, covering her back, with two little braids starting from her ear and later mixing together. She was cladded in a long and pink wavy gown, matching the guild-mark on her right palm.
"Thank you very much, Hime-sama. You yourself are looking mesmerizing." Lucy complimented politely.
"Good evening, Hime-sama." Knight Arcadios bowed before Hisui, then turning to Lucy, "Good evening, Heartfilia-san."
Lucy greeted him back, but he was busy whispering something in Hisui's ear. The princess sighed in distress, then excused herself along with Arcadios.
"Well, I guess I'm all alone now." Lucy muttered to herself, looking at the crowd before her. There should be someone she knew, anyone as there was a large number of mages she knew, thanks to her job in the Sorcerer's Magazine, but all she could see was unknown faces.
"But how?!" Lucy mumbled in distress. She knew most of them.
She could see Freed offering some cocktail to Laxus, Meredy doing some weird chats with Juvia, Gray and Lyon shooting each other deadly glares, Wendy and Sherria eating puddings together, Erza, Kaguya and Minerva hanging out, Macao and Wakaba asking Mirajane for dance while she was rejecting them politely, Rogue talking to Gajeel who seemed to be lecturing about something while Levy stood there with Panther Lily, often cursing under her breathe.
No, she knew them all; it's just that the one she was trying to find wasn't there. 'Where could he be?' she thought, making her way to the balcony.
She wanted to take some fresh air, and stood there in the balcony, resting her elbows on the railings. Lucy looked at the sky above her; beautiful night sky decorated with bright stars.
Lucy loved watching stars. It reminded her of her mother; how she used to tell her stories about stars, about the celestial world, its spirits. She grew up listening to those stories until her mother died. And now, she was part of the world, being the only mage in the world to possess ten gold keys.
"Mama, are you proud of me?" Lucy mumbled, feeling tears forming in her brown eyes.
"Of course, she'd be proud." Lucy heard a very familiar and turned around to see the source of the voice only to find a pink haired boy sitting on the railing while looking at the sky. He was wearing a white shirt with black vest, and black pants with a white checkered scarf place around his neck.
"Natsu!" Lucy approached him, "What are you doing here? And when did you come? I didn't see you when I came here."
"You didn't notice me because you were busy thinking weird stuffs." Natsu replied casually, but Lucy somehow felt hurt. Usually she'd hit him for accusing her of thinking "weird" stuffs, but not now. It's not like he was rude or something, it's just that she knew how unusual it was for Natsu sitting quietly. Wreaking havoc and destroying things were like hobbies to the Dragon Slayer.
"What's the matter, Natsu?" Lucy asked, looking at the sky. She didn't want to look at him, she wanted to make him feel comfortable.
"Nothing, it's just... nothing."
"Natsu, what's bothering you? You can tell me." Lucy soothed, feeling her friend's anxiety, "Remember, we're comrades, we're family. Your victory is my victory. Your pain is my pain..." At this statement, Natsu looked at her, his eyes wide with surprise.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Natsu smiled, "Lucy, we've known each other for some time now. Do you believe that I'm a demon?"
His voice was heavy, filled with regret, disbelief, and... fear. Lucy's eyes widened as she felt her heartbeat become ten times faster. Natsu was afraid? She'd never seen him afraid before.
She remembered Zeref's voice, "Natsu, you are E.N.D. Etherious Natsu Dragneel." Her blood turned ice just by thinking about that.
Natsu, the infamous fire-head, who loved the guild and his friends more than anything, was a demon?! Lucy couldn't believe it. How could she?! It was Natsu who took her to Fairy Tail, who gave her the courage to stand up and fight for her comrades, who taught her to snatch her own freedom, who'd rescued her countless times...
"Natsu..." Lucy mumbled, making the pink-haired mage look at her, "I don't know your identity. All I know is that you are Natsu Dragneel! An absolute idiot who knows nothing but fight, and eats fire, and own a weird cat! But you're a powerful mage, a Fairy Tail mage! And... and above all... you are my most cherished friend!" Lucy shouted, tears running down her reddish cheeks.
Natsu's eyes widened. Lucy's words had shattered his fear; his fear for himself. The Dragon Slayer smiled before looking back at the sky.
'Igneel, thank you for raising me, and loving me, and teaching me magic. Because of you, I'm powerful enough to protect my friends.'
"Lucy," Natsu looked at her with something unusual in his eyes, making the crying girl blush, "you look like a weirdo when you cry."
Lucy felt a vein pop on her forehead. She smacked on his strong tough arm, but a warm smile radiated her beautiful face. Natsu was back! What could make her happier than this?
"Thank you, Lucy. You've saved me; you've saved me from myself. I don't know if I'm a demon or not, but I certainly know that I'm your friend. And I'll protect you with my own life."
Lucy's heart was now pounding so hard that she's afraid that Natsu could hear it. Blood was rushing to her cheeks, making them all red. The feelings were so unknown to her. Was it because she was happy for a friend, or because the person before her was more than a friend? Lucy bit her lip to control her emotions, and leaned towards the boy in front of her.
"Thank you, Natsu..." Lucy whispered in his ear, and placed a soft kiss on his cheek, making the Dragon Slayer red all over his place. The Heartfilia heiress giggled at her friend's reaction, who was stiff with blush all over his face.
'Mama, I feel like this is a story you used to tell me, The Princess and the Frog, where the princess saves the prince by kissing him. In my case, it's The Princess and the Demon...'