Author's note: I do not own Fairy Tail, A Song of Ice and Fire, or Game of Thrones.

I

The Jeweled Kingdoms

-Gray-

The day had almost turned to night in the blink of an eye. The sun was setting over mountains in the west, and a small line of clouds filled the bright red sky over the shaded valley below. Men from up in the Frost Point mountains were returning home after a long day of harvesting spruce wood for villagers and townsfolk, and all of them were ready for their day's work to come to an end.

This included Gray. He spent far too much time up in those hills today, and needed to return home as soon as possible. His feet were aching, and despite his usual experience, the tips of his fingers and nose were starting to freeze up. Gray never came with the workers this late in the summer, but he felt he owed his hand to the men gathering wood for the coming fall that would be on them later in the year. Gray was high born, but liked doing his part for the Land of Isvan. He never looked down on anyone around him, and never used his family name to acquire anything flashy or flamboyant.

He did however wear thick, expensive cloaks and gloves when working with the other men. Gray was not about to sacrifice his health for a few logs, and now that northern winds were sweeping into his home valley, he had to be prepared. Despite being late in the summer, things were a lot colder this time of year here in Isvan. This was Ishgar's northernmost providence after all, and being so close to the northern wastes, harsher climates plagued this territory nearly all-year round.

The march was ending, and the men from the mountain were all right outside the castle walls. The village of Mikage passed them by over the last few minutes, and now Gray and the others were walking under the cold, stone walls of Iceberg. This was his father's house, and seat of all in the north. A banner flew over his head as the lordly son stepped through the barbican. It was a field of white, and adorned in its center was a cerulean gem, almost shaped like a hexagonal cube of ice.

Gray never paid any attention to that banner whenever he passed through the gates. He knew what it looked like. Gray continued moving with a sled of fresh spruce logs following behind his horse. Normal work horses from the south could not carry a sled of thick wooden logs, but these were northern horses—frost fangs. They could carry anything. Gray dismounted his ride, and tied his grey steed to the stable door, and began removing logs from the sledge in tow. One by one he and the other workers filled a pile as tall as a one-story home in the side of the courtyard, and as the bounty filled its place, the workers cleared out and congratulated each other on a job well done.

"Nice work today, Ice Boy! Ol' Silver would be proud to see what you can do up there in the mountains."

"Thanks." Gray smiled as he turned away from another worker. "Anything to get me out from under his nose is good work in my eyes."

"Is that so?" Replied a sharp voice from the balcony. "In that case I'll be sure to tag along next time you venture out there."

Gray turned to see his new guest, but did not have to think long once Lyon took his view. Lyon was a friend from childhood, and always gave him a hard time for helping the common folk. He was nice, but a little more use to royal rule than Gray was.

"Lyon, you could actually use a day out in the real cold." Gray gave him a smirk as he marched up the wooden steps to join his comrade. "I'd be surprised if you've ever felt the chilly weather up in those mountains."

"Nonsense!" Lyon put an arm around Gray. "While you go out every day playing with trees, I stay here and train my sword hand for rule. My future people will need a strong lord ruling over their lands…"

"Yea?" Gray stopped him there. "Well keep living in your little future, and just let me live mine, okay?"

Lyon opened the door for Gray, but kept his smirk alive. "If my future bothers you so much, then I can always take you out of it. My wedding is in one month, and I'll be needing a best man for the festivities. I can always ask some other fool from this side of Isvan to do it for me."

Gray rolled his eyes, and continued walking with Lyon's arm over his shoulders. He was set to marry Gray's younger sister, and regularly enjoyed reminding him of it whenever he had the chance. Despite the close bond between them, Lyon would be moving back to the southern border of Isvan by the end of the wedding, because his seat at Margaret Town sat just off the coast of the White Sea. Lyon preferred its more temperate climate over Iceburg's anyway, and rejoiced at the thought of living there while permanently married.

Gray did not mind the idea of sitting down and planning more of the wedding with him, but as he and Lyon approached the great hall, they could hear a heavy conversation taking place.

"Oh, I almost forgot. "Lyon removed his arm from Gray's shoulders once they stopped outside the door, and crossed his arms with concern. "Survivors from some northern voyage stopped off here last night. You were still out at camp on the Frost Points."

"Northern voyage?" Gray could hardly think of anything more northern than his home country of Isvan. The Wastes, maybe? They were just a field of barren land, and hardly worth venturing out for anything. The ancient seat of Pergrande? Nothing but worthwoods as far as the eye could see. He had to know more. "How many were here?"

"Only two. They had a captain, but he left for the south. That Dreyar lord from the Tenrou Islands was his liege, so your father sent him out on the first ship down there. They had some mission in the Frostlands, but I missed the rest. Silver asked me to fetch you once your party returned."

"Well gee, sorry." Gray took that as a jab, and went to grab the handle of the door, but just then it swung open on its own, revealing a medium height woman with short black hair and soft white skin.

"Gray! I thought that was you." Lady Ur wrapped her arms around her freezing step-son, and gave him a warm hug once the door stayed propped open. She was a northerner too, a lordly daughter from the middle of Isvan. She was also very close to House Fullbuster, and married their liege lord Silver after his first wife died in labor.

"Hey, did I miss anything?" Gray liked Ur, and treated her like his natural mother. He knew enough from Lyon to start asking questions, and decided now was his best opportunity to join the conversation.

"Ur, don't tell him a word," A booming voice rang over from the great hall's hearth, and in front of it stood a man with great height and strength, grinning at the flames. "Gray should figure it out on his own."

Gray rolled his eyes as Ur stepped out of the way, and the son finally entered the room, with Lyon right behind him greeting his future mother-in-law. The black-haired son of Lord Fullbuster marched forward and placed his gloves on the hard, mahogany table. Gray spoke loudly to greet his father. "So what happened with the northern voyagers?"

Silver kept his grin hardy and solid. He was in his late thirties, but slight streaks of white lined his once thick mane of short black hair. The lord father was a tall, well-built man. He had a sharp face, marked facial features, and slight wrinkles below his eyes signifying his dwindling youth. Silver also carried a long scar extending from his hairline to his lower left ear, which appeared to have been left by a former enemy's attack.

He finally turned, and stepped up to embrace his son. "Nothing our people need to be concerned with. They were serving House Dreyar, so I sent the captain to Grey Harbor for the first ship out of here. His two lackeys wanted to stay behind though. So, I gave them a room downstairs."

Ur rolled her eyes, and placed a hand on Gray's back from behind. "But, they're asleep, and in dire need of it too. Let them rest, and try not to bother them."

Gray's face changed from intrigued to dissatisfied. He had never been to Grey Harbor. It was the only town in the north he had never visited. He took a seat at the head of the table, with Lyon taking one to his right. "Okay, so if you send them off for a nap, why did you summon me straight here?"

Now, it was Silver's expression that took a change. From the look gathered by Gray, his lord father appeared to be withholding some serious information. At the same time, Ur turned and shut the door to the hall, which left the four of them alone in the chamber. Silver had returned to his place over by the hearth, and rested his right hand on the mantel shelf above the fire. His left stayed firmly at his belt, on top of his house sword—Absolute Zero. It was white steel, and apparently as old as the Fullbuster family name. He had no way of lightly releasing whatever weighed down his mind, so he chose to empty it all out at once.

"King Toma is dead."

Silence filled the great stone hall, and both Gray and Lyon sunk in their seats, shock slowly taking over their faces. Gray spoke first. "Wow. When did you…?"

"This morning." Silver cut him off. "The message came from Crocus, not Era. He was away from the capital spending some time with his daughter in Fiore, and that's where it happened."

"How by?" Lyon asked quickly.

"Natural causes, or that's what the letter said." Silver shrugged. "He was pushing 80. Damn shame…one of the only southern bastards I actually enjoyed."

Gray hated the thought of rushing the conversation, but he had no memory of meeting King Toma to morn over. "So what does this mean? Who takes the throne now?"

Silver turned his head slightly to look at Ur, and she back at him. Both paused before the lord carried on. "The capital won't let a lone girl take the throne. That daughter of his isn't even old enough, anyway. Not to mention…"

Silence filled the room yet again, but now the tension had built up too much for it to hold. "Mention what?" Gray demanded.

Silver sighed. "Nothing…I called you here because I'm leaving for Crocus. I'm paying my respects to the King's passing, and I want you running this place until I get back."

-Cana-

A small rabbit was darting through the forest, again. It was the sixth one that evening. Cana kept her eyes sharp and her hands steady as she held her bow tightly. A thin brown arrow tipped with silver stuck out from her bow string, and as the small rodent stopped to catch a cold breath of air, she took her own, and released her shot.

"Gotchya." Her smirk was met with a shot right through the rabbit's heart, and soon the little creature fell to the ground. The beautiful brown-haired hunter stepped up from her perch behind the brush, and went to collect her bounty. While doing so, she made sure to remove a small leather flask from under her cloak, and took a large swig of whatever she had hidden away inside.

Cana was the daughter of a high lord sworn to defend House Fullbuster. Her family had lived in Iceberg with the Wardens of the North since the early days of men. She enjoyed the quiet life of Isvan, but always made it a priority to find the village's rowdiest tavern every single week. She was the heaviest drinker in the north, and used her skills to distract herself from the harsh realities of living in a land frozen with snow. Not to mention she was an only child of a nobleman, and the fact that she was a woman kept her from ever truly inheriting her father's name after marriage. She did not like the idea of marrying anyone in the first place, though if she had to, a northern boy would never be that bad in her mind.

Cana let these thoughts distract her every time she rode back home from the forest. It seemed like that was the best way to speed up the time. Hunting in the forest by day, and drinking in the taverns by night, that was the life of a high-born beauty. She tried spending time with some of the others in the castle, but she preferred the company of Gray and Lyon over that of his step sisters. Either way, her venture was now coming to an end as she could see torchlit flames piercing through the gates of Iceberg.

"What the hell…?" Cana sped up her ride, and passed under the gate to find a large force of men preparing to leave the castle. They all held banners for House Fullbuster, and some even had arms for House Clive, her own family sigil. It was an orange shield on a field of grey. "Defending Ice" were the words, fitting for any house subject to serve a high lord. House Fullbuster's words were "As Hard as Ice." She liked those words better than her family's.

Cana pierced her gaze around the courtyard until her eyes landed on a brutish man atop an all-black steed. He had slicked back orange hair, and stubby facial hair to match. Cana never wasted any time getting his full attention. She rode her frost fang horse with a quick gallop, and met him directly. "Hey, what the hell is going on?"

The man smiled and turned his horse toward hers. "Cana, sweetie! Glad you're here to see me off."

"What are you talking about?" Cana asked Gildarts, her noble father. "Where are you going?"

Gildarts let the cheer run out of his voice and returned to his normal, serious expression. "Eh, sorry. I better tell you the news first…Old King Toma was declared dead this morning."

"What?!" Cana almost fell from her brown racing mare. "How did he die? And why are you raising an army?!"

"Escort, dear." Gildarts grinned. "And the man was old. He couldn't have made it another 5 years under that crown. I bet that throne of his was really getting to him too." He shook his head, and looked out the gate. "Still, Silver wants all these boys to follow us around the bend. We're sailing for Crocus first thing tomorrow."

"…" Cana stopped talking, and hesitated in turning her horse for the stables before her father reached over and grabbed the reins out from her hand. "Hey, hold on. You're staying here to keep Gray and Lyon out of trouble. That idiot Silver's leaving Gray in charge, so I figured you'd stay back here with him."

Cana rolled her eyes, because she knew why her dad had spelled it out that way. Gildarts and Silver were very close, so in his mind their children should be close too. The problem was she and Gray had known each other since they were very little, and she almost viewed herself as his twin sister. Either way, she gave her father one last word. "I'm not stopping ya, old man. Enjoy the capital."

Gildarts chuckled under his breath, and released his daugher's horse for the stables. "Get a drink tonight, honey. You look like shit."

Cana reluctantly smiled at that, and let him ride for the gate as she dismounted her horse. While tying the beast to the stable, the castle doors swung open, revealing Lord Silver Fullbuster and his son, Gray. Lyon stayed inside with Ur and the other girls, but Gray came out to see his father off in the courtyard too. Silver came out almost in his original black shirt with brown leather pants. His riding boots matched his trousers, but there was more to the knight's outfit this time around as compared to earlier. Over his shirt, the lord father donned a grey, segmented metal chest plate, bearing the sigil of his house on the left pectoral. Secured to it by two round, golden clasps was a long, brownish white cape hanging over the man's shoulders. Silver's armor was finally completed by two blue, rounded pauldrons, possessing metal-colored edges and squared protrusions on the upper and lower edges, each adorned by his white house sigil, and finished by brown riding gloved plated with steel.

"Okay, don't do anything stupid in Crocus." Cana could hear Gray warning his father. "Everyone knows you hate the south, but it's not like it's the capital or anything."

"Thank the sun and moon." Silver laughed. "When I told those bastards I'd never set foot in Era again, I meant it. If I'm lucky I'll avoid seeing the others, though it will be hard if I stop off in Saber along the way."

Cana watched Gray roll his eyes, and then he reached out to grab Silver's wrist in a firm handshake. They finished, and Silver mounted his white stallion to leave for the night, but now she was too distracted on Gray making his way over. When he finally saw her, a small smirking expression took her face.

"Come on." She laughed out loud. "I gotta story to tell ya, but only if you're buying, tonight."

-Lucy-

The letter felt heavy in her hand. It was only brown parchment paper, but the words weighed over one thousand pounds in her mind.

"King Toma, of the House Fiore, the Jeweled Kingdoms, and Ruler of Ishgar has passed away on this day, July 2, X784."

There was more, but Lucy had already read the whole note over a dozen times. The ruler of the continent, and King of its nine Kingdoms, had just passed away. He had ascended to the throne only 7 years ago, but his rule felt like it would last her entire life. He diffused tension between the north and south, and kept all the lords from tearing the continent apart.

The continent of Ishgar was broken up into nine governing regions. To the world, these were known as the "Jeweled Kingdoms," and each had a ruling lord who served as Lord Protector of their realm. They were not independently governing states, and all answered to the authority of the crown. The central capital sat in the Bay of Fairies, and it was known as Era.

Era, however, was a long way from Lucy's home town of Hearthome. This was the city she had known all her life, and housed the castle she lived in to this day. Castle Hearthome was the seat of her lord father's power, and all through her life, Lucy had been bred to live in its shadow. Lucy was from a family of generous nobility, and that would be putting it lightly, but now she was reading the death letter of a close family friend, and everything seemed to be inflating rapidly in her mind. She was currently floating in the Bay of Fairies, a response to the recent royal letter received by her father. She had rarely ever left her hometown, and this entire voyage marked a new beginning for her.

"I see you took father's letter," A boy's voice came from the door of the lord's office. Lucy had trapped herself inside the stern castle of the ship to view her father's letter from Crocus, and now set the letter down rapidly as if startled by some sort of ghost. The boy carried on. "Relax, I wasn't trying to scare you."

"Sorry, Loke…he doesn't know I have it." Lucy turned with a now lowly expression as her older twin brother, and heir to Hearthome greeted her at the door. The elder sibling Loke was a young man of average height, distinguished by his delicate facial features and his burnt orange hair, unlike Lucy who wore bright golden locks of blonde like her parents. Both children were very handsome, but Lucy kept her face frozen with a sorry attitude after breaking into the office, and reading about the tragedy on her own time.

Loke rolled his eyes, and continued walking forward with hands deep inside his pockets. As he walked up to the large bay window overlooking the fading blue waters, the sun beamed through to light his burgundy silk tunic like a newly lit flame. His bespectacled face pierced through to look at the evening scenery, and his hazel eyes followed every wave that they could catch. He turned to give his beautiful young sister his full attention soon after. "Are you still upset about the trip to Era? Father expects that we'll be able to meet the royal family there after they're done morning in Crocus."

Lucy turned away and gave her brother a cold shoulder. "Why not make the extra effort and visit them in Crocus? Is he that selfish to not attend the funeral? And why is he not riding with us?"

Loke grinned, and gave her a shrug. "You know the man well, almost better than I do. He's not the one to grovel at someone else's power, even if that person just died…" Loke pressed forward and put his hands on Lucy's shoulders from behind. "And besides…you never like it when he's around anyway, do you?"

Lucy tensed up, and kept her face low. She and Loke were close, but she really had not been in the mood to receive him since they left from the Heartlands. Their lord father was obviously sending them to court to seek out marital alliances, but the trip alone with each other meant different things in Loke's mind. He was always after the fairest girl in the land to sit at his side and rule Hearthome, and until he'd find that girl, his younger sister seemed to be the closest thing to it. This never bothered her, but she knew his relationship with father was healthy, and, she almost felt in the mood to protest the elder Heartfilias both. In the meantime, Lucy sat down at the desk, while Loke took a lock of her golden blonde hair, and began playing with it using both of his hands.

"Relax, father wants me to grieve with the saddened daughter, Hisui. A woman can't take the throne on her own by law, and he knows lords all over will flock to be the future king. Who knows? This may just be my lucky break." He released her hair, and placed his hands back down on her shoulders. Lucy's scarlet red gown had sleeves, but it felt like his palms were pressing right against her skin.

He lowered his head parallel to her right ear. "I'm just looking for company on the way over…and if you play your part well, I may help you find a lord of your own in Era while we're there."

Yes. That is what she wanted, after all. Lucy longed for her overly close brother to find her a lord for a husband. That way, she could go off and sit in that man's castle all day doing the exact same thing she does at home. What a romantic and exciting ending to her life. She did not hate Loke in the moment, but she almost heard her father's voice coming from her older brother's words. She went to say more, but stood to prove a point. Lucy turned for the door, but met Loke's shoulder on her way out. He stopped her for a moment, and leaned into give her a quick peck on the cheek. The blonde debutante received the gesture, and carried on through the ship's threshold, and located her own quarters as fast as she could. Her hand immediately went up to wipe away the remark left by Loke, but the red on her flushed face still remained.

Once inside her lavished bedroom for the voyage, Lucy locked the door behind her. She hated leaving Loke on such a sour note, but he was the one at fault this time around.

"Can he just leave me alone from father's words for one minute?" Lucy sunk down on the bed, and buried her face in the white cotton pillows organized neatly over the sheets. The ruby silk quilt felt wonderful on her resting frame, and almost gave her enough comfort to take a long nap. However, the heavy rocking of the evening current kept her hesitant of resting anytime soon. To pass time instead, Lucy sat up, and grabbed one of her many books sitting on the bedside stand. Lucy was a public student of history, and found her nose buried in these books more so than ever.

After lifting the pile with one hand, she removed her other out from under the pillow to grab a red suede encyclopedia of sorts on the fabled histories of Ishgar. Lucy sat up like a toddler, and lit up with a smile once the pages came open before her eyes. The current section was a recent installment, and only happened seven years prior. It involved a fabled rebellion set out to overthrow a seemingly mad king, a king of which was only a few years older than her. He was the former ruler of Ishgar, and King of the Jeweled Kingdoms. His royal line had been traced down over a thousand years, and his ancestors were said to be some of the first continental inhabitants.

"Awe, I remember these days. I was only ten at the time." She remembered how this history came about during her own childhood lifetime, and tried focusing on more of the words from there. The king was very handsome, and many accounts recalled that he was kind and gentle to his servants. He had a younger brother, and both ruled alone without any parents lording over them. That was always Lucy's favorite part. Despite growing up with them as her rulers, she never met the boy king, or his younger brother. Her father kept her hidden away back in Hearthome in those days. He knew something was bound to happen to the two young rulers, and much to her dismay, he way right.

It was July of the year X777. The High King was set to marry a beautiful young girl from the Tenrou Islands, which honored an ancient alliance between the two noble families. The girl was said to be even nicer than the king, but at that time, something terrible happened that ultimately led to her death at court. The Kingdoms revolted, and blamed their young ruler for the death of the beloved young girl. There were rumors that the king had always practiced black magic, but nothing was ever proven by trial because the two brothers vanished from the face of the earth. From there, the late King Toma took the throne, and ruled for a long fought seven years before dying this morning.

Normally this part of the story left people in tears, or angry at the former actions of their past ruler, but Lucy always found herself grinning, and flipping back to a world map while letting her eyes trace about the globe. "I always like re-reading these parts…I wonder what it'd be like if the Dragneel brothers never vanished. Or for that matter…I wonder if they're still in hiding."

-Natsu-

"Agh, come on! I still have a whole batch here!"

Natsu ran up and down the piers searching for any customer that would look his way. Normally he would have sold his entire inventory by now, but these days no one seemed to want the product. Natsu had earned quite the skill by acquiring goods from Ishgar, and flipping them for profit once they would land in the West. Here in Eisen, everyone always fought over his expensive gem stones and precious metals that he found onboard the ships. However, ever since he started a few years back, the profit has only gone down.

"Man…ergh, maybe I shouldn't stay at the docks, today." Natsu had kept his business plan quite clear by limiting his sales only to the open piers. He always had to go into town whenever he returned home, but bringing his entire cart down those narrow streets was financial suicide. Eisen's sergeants were not very defensive of petty theft cases, and rarely did they ever feel the need to lend a hand. Natsu was very limited with his fighting skills, and the tiny red dagger strapped to his side was the only thing protecting his merchandise. Still, he knew the material better than anyone, and if he only stepped foot in the streets for thirty minutes, it would all be sold in time for dinner.

Once the sun hit a certain low point in the Alakitasian sky, Natsu wheeled his traveling cart off the wooden docks, through the throngs of pedestrians eager for different products, and down the vast Eisani streets to set up his new shop. This was not the first time Natsu had to wheel through coarse urban sidewalks. It had been roughly seven years now, seven years since he and his brother fled their home land. Nastu barely remembered it, but he did remember the fancy boat they traveled by on their way to Alakitasia. They came on a cargo ship, and his older brother taught him all about the goods that come from the Jeweled Kingdoms. Once they got here, however, the boys did not stay together for long. Natsu's older brother left one night to find food for the two of them, but after a long night of being alone, Natsu woke up to find his brother missing. Ever since, the pink haired boy had spent his last seven years earning his own living on the docks of Eisen, keeping his brother's wisdom in his mind to help sell his product.

"Ooh man, just think! I can get 50,000 Aloks to enter the pits, and still make enough for dinner!" Natsu should have been raising money for food and a decent living space, but his actual target was for entry fees into the local fighting pits. Eisen's Stadium of Daybreak was home to some of the greatest man fights on this side of the world, and anyone who wished to enter had to carry a large wallet on their person at all times. Still, Nastu carried a small amount of sword skills from his days back in Ishgar, or mainly from the ride over with his older brother. He could still see fuzzy memories of the liege lords training him in fancy rooms, with solid steel swords cast in castle forges. Natsu always had to rent a weapon for fights, because he found himself too nervous taking his ruby dagger into the fights. The thing was supposed to be a family heirloom, but to him it was just a good way to defend himself walking down the street. Either way, with tomorrow's fights starting at sunrise, he only had half a day left to get the remaining 5,000 Aloks. Natsu tried his hardest, and even tracked down the most bizarre faces in the plaza just to sell his gems and artifacts of the day, but after wasting too much time on a broken piece of topaz, he finally passed his threshold of 75,000a.

"FINALLY!" He shouted as the money he counted passed over his rough but sturdy hands. 50,000 for the circuit of pits, and 25,000 for the road. "For a second there I thought I'd have to miss out on tomorrow's fight. This is the first-time easterners have entered all year!"

He was excited to see noble armor once again, and started wheeling his product back down his usual route on the way home. It was time to close shop early, and retire for a healthy dinner, but just as Natsu rounded the corner with his tan merchant cart, a foot stopped one of the wheels.

"Excuse me, sir!" A nearly bald man with a thin black ponytail stretching the back of his head stopped Natsu in the street with a forgiving smile. "I'm terribly sorry, but you're not on your way home, are you?"

"Wha-?" Natsu jerked the cart with both hands, and then raised an eyebrow. "I dunno…who's askin'?"

The young man laughed, and stepped back. "Oh, apologies. I'm in need of a wedding gem for my fiancé. The rings they sell in town are far more expensive if they have gemstones already in them, so I figured I'd just by my stone separately."

"…" Nastu kept his eyebrow raised, and a hand on the dagger hanging behind his lower back under his belt. He wondered why this man weaved through alleyway traffic just to find a jewel merchant, but carried on nonetheless. "Okay, what does she like?"

"Oh, well her birthday is in February…" The man calmed down for a moment and watched as Natsu opened half his cart to show off a product. He tried describing a certain type of stone, but as he did, his eyes left the cart and traveled beyond Natsu's shoulder to find a very tall, and overly muscular man with a unique hairstyle slowly walking toward the cart.

Natsu followed the shopper's words, but began tilting his head with confusion. "Uh buddy, do I have a bug on me or something?"

The shopping man grinned, and kept his eyes down at Natsu's product. "No, nothing at all…I just think you have a second customer."

"What in the hell are you…?" Nastu turned, and just as his eyes met up with a very tall man's torso, his eyes followed up to find a spikey head of bizarre black hair, and then felt a stinging pain as a metal ringing noise crossed his forehead and sent him crashing into his cart. Natsu shook himself off a moment, and then stood back on both feet. "HEY PAL! WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA!?"

"Sorry, chump, but I'm hands free!" The tall, muscular man waved two empty hands, but continued grinning as Natsu finally turned back around, only to be greeted by the original shopper holding a small but sturdy cast iron frying pan.

"Well, I can't remember the gem stone she wanted…" He slung the pan forward, and nailed Natsu upside the head, sending the poor pink-haired boy crashing to the ground. "But I'll just take whatever you have left!"

The tall man grabbed the bag that fell from Nastu's shoulder, and gave him a quick kick in the side for good measure. He tossed the bag up high, and took the cart with his two muscular hands. The smaller man with a frying pan grabbed the flying bag, and hopped on the cart as they both road off back down the other way.

"Urgh…bast…ards." Natsu twitched as he tried collecting his mind, but the pain was so strong he almost threw up from discomfort. The young boy finally raised himself to two feet, and went off running down the alley after the two thieves. As Natsu regained most of his vision, his speed picked up, and while dodging late evening traffic, he could final see the two robbers rolling down an empty lane.

"THERE THEY ARE!" He sprinted with all his energy, and just as they made the turn down a dead end, Natsu drew his tiny red dagger. "ALRIGHT WISE GUYS! Hand over my cart and my entry money pronto!"

"Sheesh, hey bro! Check out the little guy trying to block our path." The taller man with control of the cart released the handles, and took out a pair of daggers on his own belt, while the smaller man spun the frying pan around in his hand.

"So sorry." The near bald man laughed. "But I guess we'll take your life along with your merchandise."

They both charged forward, but even as Natsu leaned in with his own forward aggression, they dodged his attack, and widened their eyes with alert expressions. Standing in the now open entrance to the tiny alley way was a shadowy figure, but as it walked forward, a shining man with silvery armor stepped into the backstreet, and drew a flashy longsword from his belt. He looked a little taller than Natsu, but was entirely cloaked in solid steel armor, trimmed with gold. From head to toe the knight was dressed, and as he stepped forward, both crooked brother cowered for their lives.

"Agh, wait a minute!" The small one tossed the pan behind him, and ditched the scene, but met the fist of the brute knight right upside his head. As the tall one passed by, the knight's blade met the back of his leg, crippling him bloody right in his escape.

Natsu stood back with a face of total confusion, and as the two brothers cried out in fear, the knight turned to Natsu, and gave him a direct stare. Only after a short time collecting the scene, the brave mysterious man turned away from the alley and marched off toward the pier. The pink haired merchant shook his head, and watched the injured brothers flee together in agony, all while he grabbed his stolen cart, secured his precious pouch of money, and smiled his usual cheery grin. "Man, I hope that guy shows up for tomorrow's fights! I've gotta thank him in person!"

-Hisui-

It was early in the morning, on the day July 2, X784. The green fields of Fiore glowed brilliantly across the open window, and the warm morning sky seemed inviting to all that laid eyes on it. Here, the princess to the Jeweled Kingdoms, and Lady Regent of Fiore rolled out of a fluffy white bed and onto her soft carpeted floor, with both arms extended to embrace the day before her.

"Well!" Hisui let out a sigh. "This seems like a wonderful day to go outside." Her eyes were already lost beyond her open bedroom window, and now the sun and warm air seemed too inviting to keep her locked away for an entire day. Hisui was always fond of the outdoors, and favored walking through her father's flower gardens more than anything in the world. She had spent far too much time trapped in the stony capital of Era. She almost forgot what home felt like back here in Fiore. Fiore was one of the nine kingdoms in Ishgar, and its local capital was Crocus, the Blooming City. Hisui was the High King's daughter, but until his death she remained here as the ruler of Fiore. She returned home with her father yesterday evening after a long trip in Era for some royal festival, and was planning on spending the day with King Toma in his flower gardens here at home.

Hisui leapt out of bed, and walked into her private quarters. She tidied herself up, and washed up for a delicious breakfast down stairs in the great hall. Once she changed into a mint green gown, the princess ran through her bedroom door, past the usual guards outside her room, and found her way to her father's former hall.

It was former because King Toma E. Fiore was now the total ruler of Ishgar, and his permanent residence was all the way across the Bay of Fairies in Era. He was sent to the throne seven years ago after the kingdom violently overthrew the brothers from House Dragneel, both rumored to wield black magic of horrible sorts. They were responsible for the death of the young king's future bride, and after being exiled, or presumed dead by several high lords, King Toma earned his natural claim in their place. Toma was related to the boy's father on a distant side of their family tree, and had the best claim left over in Ishgar. When the Lords Heartfilia and Dreyar both pledged their houses to his rule, the rest of the high-born noblemen followed and made way for the new era. Now, Toma rules with a comfortable grasp as he returns to Fiore to enjoy the presence of his glowing daughter.

"Father! Arcadios! Good morning!" Hisui strode into the hall, and greeted both her loving father, and his loyal body guard Arcadios, who stood by at the main entrance into the hall. Arcadios was a Lord Commander, and Captain of Toma's Royal Guard. He stood at the king's right-hand side for all matters, both political and military. Despite his usual stern appearance, Hisui leaned up and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before taking her seat at the lord's white birch table.

Toma, meanwhile, sat in his old chair at the head of the table, grinning in awe at the sight of his former palace. "Well, it does feel like seven years. I cannot believe I've been gone for the entire time." Toma laughed, and took a great big bite to eat out of his eggs and steak sitting on the plate in front of him. He washed it all down with a glass of morning wine before carrying on with his daughter. "So Dear, did you enjoy your stay in Era this past week?"

"Father. I'm never going to answer that with an honest face." Hisui hated the royal capital. She preferred Fiore's cities, like Crocus and Magnolia. The flowers and bright colors of the warm country side filled her with more delight than any building or rampart could back in Era. Unlike her far away friend, Lucy, Hisui only ever wanted to stay in her palace and family yard, and enjoy the soft smell of flowers and air in her home country of residence. She took a quick plate of food, and continued talking with her father on the matter. "But have you considered staying here over the fall? You know it is your favorite time of the year, remember?"

"Yes, I do remember…" Toma thought about the rolling hills of Fiore, filled by every line with pumpkin patches and other warm colored gourds. It was now July, but the autumn weather was quickly approaching as the royal harvest had just reached its halfway point. "Sometime when I think back, I do prefer Mercurius over Etherion." Mercurius was the name of the Fiore home castle, but it trembled in comparison to the mighty Etherion Palace of Era. Known as the true seat of Ishgar, the Etherion Palace had no rival this side of the world. Toma enjoyed it his first few years under rule, but after seven years ruling from a mighty keep, he longed for the beautiful country side that only his home Fiore had to offer. "I'm not sure…I may have to stay in Era this coming autumn."

"Awe." Hisui lowered her head. "I'm sorry to hear that. "What changed your mind?"

Toma sighed, and switched his hand over to his wine rather than meal. He lowered his eyebrows, and shook his head with dep concern. "There are rumors of a harsh winter ahead. Sailors from up north say the sea is solid ice, and its growing larger by the day. I've been told this coming spring will the beginning of the shortest growing season in history."

"Oh no!" Hisui nearly dropped her fork. "Well is it too late to double our efforts here? I-I'm sure I can find enough extra men to man the fields for the second half of the…"

"Relax, darling." Toma sighed with a smile, and leaned back in his chair. "I do not wish to burden you with my own paranoid thoughts. This will hardly be the worst winter endured by the people of Ishgar, and I would hate to be a king responsible for our first failed harvest. We'll make it through a late spring, and come back twice as strong starting next year."

"I suppose you're right…" Hisui rolled her eyes, and grinned as she took a bite from her own meal in satisfaction. This gave time for Toma to carry on with his further daily thoughts. "Anyway, I've recently heard back from Lord Dreyar of Tenrou. He's told me that grandson of his is quite interested in taking a visit to the capital."

"Oh?" Hisui clenched her shoulders while still sitting in her chair, and felt a bout of wind flush over her neck. Toma nodded, and swished his wine glass back and forth. "Well, I just figured if you wanted to return to the capital with me when he arrives, I'm sure he'd be happy to meet you in person."

"…" Hisui stopped her rolling, happy thoughts to let out an even bigger breath. "Father, I love the concern, but I am absolutely fine with reaching out to Lord Dreyar myself. I have heard good things about his grandson, and maybe if he would like to come here for a visit I would be more than happy to…"

"Pssshh!" Toma spat out a quick ball of wine that was previously swishing around his mouth. He tossed the silver glass down onto the table, and began scraping his tongue frantically with a spoon next to his plate. Hisui stood halfway out of her seat, and grabbed a napkin. "Oh my, father! Are you okay?"

"Yea kof, sorry, Dear!" Toma coughed through his remarks, and started using his spoon as a mirror to look down his own throat. "Sorry for any scare just now, but my wine grew bitter at the end.

"O-Oh, well that's good?" Hisui sat down slowly in her seat, but kept a puzzled, fearful expression locked on her father. He continued using his spoon as a tool, and gave her a nonchalant wave.

"Anyway…" The king continued. "You were saying you'd rather see him here? Well kof I'm sure he's not opposed to that idea, and if I get kof back to him right away I'm sure we could arrange…"

Toma let out a larger cough than before, and suddenly rolled out of his chair, and onto the floor. Hisui stood up violently from her own seat at the other end of the table, and now Captain Arcadios was rushing over to tend to his needy king.

"PLEASE STEP ASIDE, PRINCESS!" Arcadios thoughtfully passed by Hisui, and knelt to grab Toma's pulsing body. Hisui was down on her knees beside the two of them with both hands covering her mouth, and a tear rolled down her cheek the moment red blood came pouring out of her father's twitching mouth. King Tome throbbed for a short while longer, before letting his head fall back, and slammed against the ground. Hisui's hands hit the floor in a sobbing outburst, all while Arcadios leapt from his chair. He charged out into the hallway to call for the nearest healer.

Their king was dead, and by the look of his horrified daughter, this life was by no means ended from natural causes.

Well, I'm actually excited to finally release the first real chapter of this story. This is going to be a weird one. I've only been writing for 2 years, but I expect this will be my final story ever...

...which means this story is going to be around for a looong time, and will run veeery slowly. I have no idea when chapter 2 will be released, but that's the fun of it. These are my two favorite series, and they are total opposites! If anyone is wondering, the story will loosely follow the path of George's books, but will instead use names, places, and people from Hiro Mashima's work. There will be no Starks or Lannisters, but there will also be no Fairy Tail Guild Hall. It's a weird project...but I'm already having a blast planning it out! I love Hiro Mashima's characters more than most real people, but like George RR Martin's story, no one is safe here...and All Men Must Die.

If you find yourself reading any of the chapters, thanks! I'd like to hear your thoughts in the comments. Until Next time!