Alrighty guys, back with another chapter! Hopefully I will have Natsu's little visit planned out shortly after. In other news, I may be starting another fic once I get farther into this story. Whether or not it's a one-shot will vary on the responses I get. And as of now I am debating on which one I want to do as I have two ideas I feel comfortable with right now. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Now onward to the story!
~Chapter 4~
~At the Fairy Tail Guildhall~
It was around ten in the morning in Fiore, and every member at Fairy Tail was in the guildhall, save Mira who is running around Magnolia grabbing some groceries for the guilds kitchen, and Gildarts who left on a job and would return until later today. People were sitting around talking, eating, laughing, and most of all, not really feeling up going on any quests. It seemed like everyone had gotten over yesterday's shock, and are now going about their business.
Well, all but one team with in the guild. That team is Team Natsu, Lucy was sitting their wondering where her best friend is so that they can go on a quest. Gray was fuming that he had fall behind is brother/rival, but at the same time felt proud of him for getting so strong in the span of one year. Erza was still stuck on the incident yesterday, and the slight amount of fear she felt in the presence of, what she could only assume is, the real Natsu. Wendy was just chatting away with Charle and Happy about something, at the same time, Happy is trying to win over Charle with fish.
Just then the guild doors exploded open, cutting them out of their thoughts. In the doorway stood a panting Mirajane, with bags of groceries in her arms. "Master! You need to see this!" Mira called out, her face held the expression she usually has when she is 'matchmaker mode' as some would call it.
It didn't take long for the old master to come out of his office, and take a seat at his usual spot on the bar. As soon as he did, Mira shoved a copy of Sorcerer Weekly in his hands. He took a look through it, flipping through the pages while he took a drink of his beer, until he landed on the page that had Mira so estatic.
His eyes widened, and as the shock caught up to him, he spits out his drink and yelled. "WHAAAAAT?!" He the promptly fell backward, twitching on the ground. Eyes still wide open from the shock. Leaving the page, he saw open.
Everyone in the guild decided to see what called for such an action from their guild master. On the page was an image of their very own Salamander, with someone they all knew very well, the Princess of Fiore, Hisui E. Fiore. Natsu was down on one knee holding a box of sorts, looking up at Hisui with nothing but love. Hisui on the other hand, had her hands clasped over her mouth tear falling rolling down her cheeks. They all stared at it for a minute, putting the pieces together. Shortly after, cries resonated throughout the city of Magnolia, leaving the citizens to wonder what on Earthland are they doing now.
~Back at Mercurius Palace~
Hisui was the first to awaken from her slumber, feeling something wrapped around her. Once her mind cleared a bit more, she looked up to see Natsu sleeping peacefully, his arms wrapped around her protectively. A look of contentment on his face. The first thing she noticed, was the increase in magical power, and magic. It took a little before she noticed something else, more about her than Natsu. She could see finer details in everything she looked at, she was also able to hear things she normally wouldn't hear unless she was at her window. And on top of that, she noticed her sense of smell was a lot stronger. She took a moment, getting used to her new sense, while at the same time inhaling Natsu's scent. It was one of the forest and campfires, which made sense considering he was raised by a Dragon.
It took a little bit of effort, but she finally managed to get out of Natsu's grasp, and made her way to the bathroom, where she noticed some other changes about her. Her hair, which was at her lower back, now reached just below her butt, her canines were grew in length, and at some point, she accidentally thought of someone taking Natsu from her making her angry. She took note that when she had that flash of anger her eyes turned to Draconic Slits. She also noticed a marking on her body. It was a Crimson Red Dragon head, with a golden crown upon it holding a Jade. It was located at the base of her neck where Natsu had bitten her.
"Morning beautiful." Natsu said softly as he wrapped her in a hug from behind. Nuzzling the crook of her neck as he did so, taking in her scent.
"Morning, my dragon." She spun around in his arms, and rubbed her nose against his before giving him a gentle kiss.
"We should probably shower, get dressed and packed. We have a long train ride to Magnolia." Natsu said looking at his mate.
"Will I have to deal with motion sickness as well?" Hisui whined knowing how bad Dragon Slayers have motion sickness.
"Nope, that only occurs to Slayers who haven't marked their mate yet. Why that is I have no idea." Natsu replied.
Hisui sighed in relief before pulling Natsu to the bathroom to shower. Which they both agreed is much needed after last nights 'fun'. Once they were done Natsu took this time to teach her a little bit of controlling her magic. He coated himself in fire to dry himself off instantly.
"Imagine the flames not around, but coming off of your body. Let your magic flow off of your skin, but don't let it explode, just let it flow." Nastu guided her.
Closing her eyes, Hisui imagined just that. After a bit she started to let her magic flow, being careful to not let it explode outward. Soon enough she coated herself in fire, drying herself instantly. When she opened her eyes she was greeted by the sight of herself on fire, and Natsu grinning brightly at her. He pulled into a hug.
"Well done! When we get to Magnolia we can start training you in Hand-to-Hand combat, and your first spell. Actually, we could probably do it walking over to Mt. Hakobe. Being in nature will help you get more in tune with your new magic as well." Natsu said.
Hisui started to grin as well. "I can't wait to get started, I also can't wait to meet a Dragon that won't be actively trying to kill me." She chuckled sheepishly remembering the events with the Eclipse Gate.
And so, the two of them proceeded to get dressed, and decided to pack a little closer to departure time. Once dressed, the two of them walked hand in hand down to the dining room for some lunch, as it was almost noon and they haven't eaten yet today. Upon their arrival they were greeted by some of the cooks, Arcadios, and Toma. All of them took notice of the bright smile on Hisui's face, one they feared they would never see again since the passing of her mother. Both of them also noticed the mark on Hisui's and Natsu's neck. Causing those who knew of Dragon mating rituals to smile, knowing she had someone like Natsu to protect, care, and love her, and vice versa.
"Well you two seem bright eyed, and bushy tailed today." The King said with a smile at the two.
The couple looked at each other. "Last night is definitely one I won't forget for as long as I live." Hisui giggled, looking lovingly at the ring on her finger.
Natsu gave her a soft smile, and placed a small kiss on the cheek. While Toma, Arcadios, and anyone else who saw the two smiled even brighter at the two. As Natsu and Hisui sat down with their meal, Natsu stopped and looked around, sniffing the air. Narrowing his eyes as he looked around.
"Something wrong Natsu?" Hisui asked noticing his actions. He looked around a bit more before responding.
"I thought I picked up a familiar scent in here. One I haven't… Ah nevermind, it's probably my imagination." He said, but he could have sworn he smelled someone familiar. Whoever it was eludes his mind.
Hisui eyed him. "Alright if you say so." Hisui said. "Anyway, how about we go and get packed. I really want to start working with my new magic, as well as see the world like you do!" The Emerald Haired Princess exclaimed.
Everyone laughed at her excitement, and Natsu nodded in reply. The rest of lunch was finished, they all made small talk, some on the current events in Fiore, some about the more political issues in Fiore. But all-in-all, it was an enjoyable lunch. Once they were done, Natsu and Hisui said their farewells, and proceed to make their way out to the city. Outside the window of the dining room, in the shadows stood a figure. 'Dragneel' The hooded man growled out before disappearing from the area entirely.
~Back with Natsu and Hisui~
As they were packing their things, Hisui could sense Natsu's slightly foul mood. "What's wrong Natsu?" Hisui decided to ask.
"It's that scent that I picked up at lunch… I know that scent, but I can't place my finger on who it is…" He sighed in frustration.
Hisui brought him in to a hug. "Hey don't worry about it. If the scent pops up again you'll get it. In the meantime, don't hurt yourself over it."
"Sorry, it just smelled dangerous… But thank you I needed that." Natsu gave a smile to Hisui. "Now that that's over we should really get to the train station." She just nodded her head in agreement.
And so, after saying their farewells to Toma, Arcadios, the Garou Knights, and everyone who showed to say farewell. The two boarded the train inbound to Magnolia. The train ride was relatively short, the two had a small room, with a bed to share. They were sure they are going to have a lot of questions, if not a lot of harassment for Mira for details, so they decided to rest up while they could.
~Magnolia City~
The lovely couple arrived in Magnolia after a couple hour train ride, feeling rested, and ready to handle the oncoming chaos their arrival will bring. As they made their way through Magnolia to the Fairy Tail guildhall, they couldn't help but notice the stares of awe that they were receiving. They often heard as they walked by something along the lines of 'I can't believe it' or 'That article wasn't lying' causing the two to laugh to themselves. It wasn't long before they found themselves standing in front of the massive double doors of Fairy Tail.
'Are you ready for this?' Natsu spoke telepathically to Hisui.
'As ready as I can get for this.' She replied, and with a deep breath they pushed open the doors to the guild. Preparing themselves for what is coming next. That's when they heard something the made Hisui angry, very angry.
Inside the Fairy Tail guildhall, the mages of this guild are still trying to process the image they saw from Sorcerer Weekly.
"There's no way Flame-Brain got the Princess as a girlfriend." Gray finally spoke up.
"It looks like he did, and that they might be more judging from the image." Cana countered.
"Well I refuse to believe it! There is no way he got a girlfriend, he is way too stupid for such things!" Gray yelled, really not believing the image he saw.
Just then the guild doors opened revealing the two people of topic. Both of whom smiling sheepishly. Natsu had his arm around Hisui's waist, his scarf not on his neck surprisingly, it was actually wrapped around his waist, his neck displaying his mate mark to the world. Hisui was leaning into Natsu, not wearing a dress for one, but she wore skin tight jeans, and a neon pink tank top, her mate mark displayed to the world as well. The guild fell silent, as they made their way over to the bar, Natsu took a seat on a stool, while Hisui sat on his lap leaning into him, while Natsu wrapped his arms around her waist to stabilize her.
"So, I assume you have some question?" Natsu spoke up, breaking the silence in the guild.
"No shit!" They yelled. Making the all the Dragon Slayers flinch and cover their ears.
"Ears!" They all yelled back. Earning a mumble of apology from them.
"Wait, why did Hisui cover her ears? I though she used Celestial Spirit magic." Lucy asked.
"Not anymore, since I claimed her as my mate her magic was replaced with my magic." Natsu said.
"Allow me to explain." Gajeel spoke. He then explained what a mate means to a Dragon Slayer, leaving out the ritual itself as it is extremely private.
All the girls had stars in their eyes, while all the male members paled at the thought of what Natsu would do to them if they tried to steal Hisui from him. Sting and Rogue were also there wanting to hear about this.
"Now that that's out of the way, how did you two become an item! I really want to know how you managed to win the heart of our ever so dense Dragon Slayer!" Mirajane squealed out.
"Alright, alright calm down. I guess it started just after I defeated Future Rouge and Destroyed the Eclipse Gate."
Flashback
Natsu stood atop the corpse of Motherglare and the ruins of the Eclipse Gate. Future Rouge laid there, barely conscious, unable to move from the beating and impact. Natsu's body was littered in injuries from his battle, most of them nearly fatal. He took in a deep breath and let out a roar. One that put a dragon to shame, a roar of victory and triumph. This was by far the most difficult battle he had. It reverberated throughout the battlefield, reaching all the other seven Dragons, and the Slayers. That's when the Dragon knew they had lost. The Slayers smirked knowing who gave off that roar, if anyone could win, it was Natsu.
The guilds on the other hand stood in awe, the power and endurance that the Fire Dragon had displayed was amazing. He not only slayed Motherglare, where the other slayers couldn't even scratch the Dragons they were fighting. But he also managed to defeat Future Rogue and destroy the Eclipse Gate. Then all Future Rogue, and all the Dragons started to glow, and head back to their timeline. Off to the side of the Eclipse Gate ruins, stood the Princess of Fiore, hands clasped over her mouth, tears rolling down her cheeks. She couldn't believe it, he actually one, he saved them all. She was cut out of her thoughts when she saw him stagger, soon after he collapsed.
"Natsu!" She called out running over to him, Arcadios close behind, still in awe at how the Rose haired slayer could fight with all those wounds.
Arriving at his side, they inspected Natsu only to find his injuries were a lot worse than what they saw, and if they didn't treat him fast, he surely would die. So, mustering up all the magic she could she started to apply basic healing magic, thanking she actually studied a bit of magic outside of her Celestial Magic.
"Go find the Sky Dragon, and God slayers, I'll try and keep him stabilized until then." Hisui ordered Arcadios, starting to sweat a bit.
Needing no further instruction Arc he took off. 'Come on Natsu, stay alive.' She prayed.
It was about fifteen minutes before Arcadios returned with the two Slayers. Wendy and Chelia gasped at the sight when they arrived, and soon the two went to work on healing Natsu, relieving the heavily panting Hisui from what she was doing. Tears rolled down Wendy's cheeks as she worked. But she didn't leave Natsu's side, she just sat next to him gently squeezing his hand. Silently praying for him to make it through, which didn't go unnoticed by Arcadios and the two Slayers. It was another half hour, and everyone had arrived at Natsu's location. Hisui long ago let his hand go. No one really knew the extent of Natsu's injuries thanks to Wendy and Chelia, and everyone who knew didn't bring it up as to not worry the other guilds.
"He should be fine, let's get him somewhere better to rest." Wendy said.
With that, Makarov used his magic to pick up Natsu and move him to the medical tent so he could recover. Everyone else, also went to have their injuries checked over. And when they were done, they couldn't help but worry for Natsu, as he did have the most difficult fight of them all. Hisui made her way over to her father to explain the situation.
"Hello father, I have good news. Natsu Dragneel has managed to not only defeat Future Rogue, but also slay Motherglare and destroy the Eclipse Gate." Hisui said, with a small bow. But it did nothing to hide the worry written all over her face.
"That's good and all. But I can tell there is a little more than what you're telling me. I can see the worry all over your face." Toma replied.
Hisui just sighed and started to explain the extent of Natsu's injuries. Toma just looked shocked at the news. He knew Natsu was tough, but this was beyond what the tops Saints could handle. His shock soon turned to a mischievous smirk as he realized something.
"You like him don't you." Toma teased, causing Hisui to blush horrendously.
"W-what! I don't know what you're talking about." Hisui stuttered.
Toma just laughed. "It's alright if you do, in I believe he would make a nice king one day. I was beginning to wonder if someone would catch your eye."
He turned around to go address the wizards that partook in the battle. Leaving Hisui a blushing mess. It didn't take long before she went back to her own quarters to sort out her thoughts.
It's been nearly two days before Natsu finally regained consciousness. He stood up and looked into a mirror, making note of all the scars he gained from his fight. And using a bit of illusion magic that he learned from Mira, he hid all his scars except the x-shaped one from the punch that Future Rogue landed on his hip. When he was done he made his way out of the tent, and was met with cheers from everyone. Needless to say, they were worried about him because he was out for so long, they just chalked it up to be due to the amount of magic he used, but Wendy explained the full story to him, and the true extent of his injuries in private.
Another day passed, and Natsu was wandering the halls of Mercurius Palace while all his friends were down in the party that the King was hosting, looking for the Emerald Haired Princess to properly thank her. After all, if she hadn't kept in stable, he very well would be dead. Thinking about how he would go about it he didn't notice somebody standing in front of him until he bumped into them, knocking them both over.
"Omph, sorry about that." Natsu said, holding a hand out to, now that he saw her, the Princess.
"Natsu! What are you doing here?" She questioned, accepting the hand that was held out. 'He's warm.' She thought to herself.
"Actually, I was looking for you!" He said giving his toothy grin. Causing the Princess to blush a little.
"What for?" She inquired, trying to ignore her beating heart.
"For saving my life, if it wasn't for you, I would very likely be dead right now." Natsu explained with a deep bow.
Hisui giggled a bit at his actions. "No need to thank me, I should be thanking you. You had the toughest battle out of everyone."
Natsu blushed a little. "C-cute." He said softly, but not softly enough.
"W-what?" Hisui squeaked, her face now fully flushed.
"N-nothing!" Natsu said a bit panicked. "Anyway, I should get going. I hope to see you around Princess."
"Please just call me Hisui. And you are welcome to visit anytime you find yourself in Crocus." She smiled gently at him. Natsu just gave his famous grin in reply before heading back to the party. Neither noticed her father watching with a warm smile on his face.
Flashback End
"After that, whenever my team found ourselves in Crocus. I would leave to go spend time with her. Eventually I went out of my way to make time to spend time with her. Every week, one thing led to another, and now here we are, engaged, mates, and happy. I wouldn't have it any other way." Natsu said kissing Hisui's cheek.
By the everyone by the end of the story were smiling. Extremely happy for the pair, Makarov had tears in his eyes, he was filled with nothing but pride toward the Fire Dragon Slayer, at the man he's become. Before for anyone could think further Gray spoke up.
"Can we see the scars?" Gray spoke softly, surprising everyone at his tone.
"Sure, it's been long enough." Natsu said taking off his shirt, and dispelling the illusion.
Once the illusion was gone they could only gasp at the sight. Small scars littered his body. But the most noticeable one was the large scar that ran from the top of his right shoulder, all the way down, connecting to the x-shape scar on the left side of his hip. He had another very large scar that ran along his left arm. Both of which he received from Motherglare.
"Damn, those looked like they hurt…" Gajeel muttered, getting a nod of agreement.
"How did you push yourself so far? Gildarts wouldn't be able to keep going with injuries like those during battle." Makarov asked.
"Easy! I kept in mind what I was fighting for." Natsu said grinning.
"What would that be?" Levy asked.
"I was fighting for you guys, and the safety of Fiore! I refuse to be done in until I know everyone is safe." Causing everyone to smile warmly at him.
It wasn't long after that they heard an all too familiar sound ringing throughout Magnolia.
"Everyone please get to you designated areas, we are now commencing the Gildarts shift." The voice rang.
"Why does Gildarts have the entire city move for him?" Hisui asked completely confused.
"It's because the old man is too lazy to train to control his magic!" Cana spoke up mildly infuriated at this fact.
It wasn't long until the guild doors opened revealing the man who holds the title of Ace of Fairy Tail. Gildarts Clive.
Alright, another chapter completed. Next chapter will contain the start of the first adventure I have planned for this story. I have to give thanks to the guest who went by the name of "Nemo" for his review, it made me laugh and brought up my mood tremendously the day it was posted. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I look forward to see what you guys have to say. Until next time.
~AlbusEques