A/N: Thank you for being loyal and supportive of A Spirit's Love. This AU of Loke and Lucy. As FT has officially ended, this AU's plot has veered greatly Mashima-sensei's storyline. The end is near, my dear readers. This is the second to the last chapter of ASL. Thank you very much for supporting me.

Disclaimer: FT does not belong to me. It belongs to the genius Hiro Mashima. After 11 years, Fairy Tail has ended.


The Origin Story

~Quick Flashback~

"Draco? But Capricorn said the Spirit King summoned me."

"He did, only on the behest of Draco. Draco mentioned something about a pact with the first people to wield the powers of the stars. Even I was not aware of it at first."


"A pact with my ancestors?"

"With your ancestors, the Heartfilias, and with Draco."

"Draco?"

"Yes, Draco. He was the original… king, if you will."

"Wait, I thought it was only the Spirit King that was… the king?"

"Well, Princess, Draco was not a king. He is a powerful dragon, and the original guardian of the stars. When the Spirit King was still mortal, he was an elder in your ancestor's village. Draco had frequently communed with him and the priestess that will take over the care of the village. The priestess was a very powerful young maiden and spirit medium. It was through her that Draco has managed to inform them of the ambrosia of the spirits."

"You mean, Draco, the elderly wizened spirit in purple and black robes, told the priestess and the current Spirit King about the ambrosia?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Draco had heard the priestess' request. She wanted to save the old man who saved her and raised her as if she was his own. The original Heartfilia priestess came from a different tribe. She was an orphan, her tribe members turned her into their slave."

"Oh…"


"Draco, he knows of the priestess' plight during childhood, though he is powerless to step in and stop the abuse that happened to her, he saw to it that the elder of the nearby nomadic tribe learned of her sufferings. As I said, your ancestor was the most powerful spirit medium. But she only got that power when she was at death's door. The poor girl was dying of starvation and exhaustion, crippled by the beatings she received, she was left by her tribespeople by the river, near drowning. It was at that moment that the elder found her, he treated her injuries and watched over her for 7 days and 7 nights. On daybreak of the 8th day, she opened her eyes. The elder was overjoyed but soon found that she did not know her name and flinched ever so easily at human contact. He had named her Heartfilia, in their dialect it meant "child of my heart", appropriate considering he raised her as if she was his own. The elder and the tribe had decided to settle by the river and they formed a small village. The elder was patient in helping her come back to a normal, humane, society and before she reached the 1st year anniversary of her rebirth, Draco appeared to the Spirit King in a dream. Draco told him that his young charge has ascended into a higher plane during her battle with death, wherein she was more in communion with the stars. That was the only warning he received about her powers. On the eve of her rebirth, Heartfilia the orphan had gone missing only to be found the next night by the waterfall and Heartfilia the priestess was born."

Loke let out a long breath as he assessed Lucy's reaction. His beautiful master and princess had eyes wide with disbelief. A few moments after, he saw her take a deep breath and nod for him to continue, knowing her he determined that she believes that incredibly far-fetched origin story of her ancestry and powers. The lion spirit smiled tentatively and plowed on with his retelling of the age-old Heartfilia story, the origin of the celestial spirit mages.

"The first time she requested the spirits' help, it was during a drought wherein their crops were dying. Heartfilia came to the river at night and called out to the stars. Aquarius had heard and decided to appear. She listened to the priestess' story and lent her power to water the crops; the village was saved. Many instances like this happened before Draco appeared and told her to form a contract with her spirit friends. He called Aquarius and all three of them formed the first Spirit Key. Every time she called on a spirit, Draco would appear and the three of them would make the key."

"Wow." Lucy was stumped. She did not know that this was how their keys were formed. Now she recognizes the power of her bloodline, a thought formed on the tip of her tongue and as she was about to voice it, Loke cut in.

"No, Lucy, sacrificed keys cannot be recreated. Draco had exhausted that power when they tried to create his own key. Aquarius' key will regenerate on its own time and you will find it once it is here on Earthland."

Lucy just nodded solemnly before asking, "What do you mean Draco exhausted his power to create keys when they tried to make his own key?"

"It needs the guardian, the spirit, and the mage to create a key. A triumvirate, in a way. And since Draco is both the spirit and the guardian, the attempt to make his key failed. Thereby, Draco and the Spirit King does not have their own keys."

"O-oh…"

Loke could see understanding dawn on her beautiful face. He heaves a heavy sigh and inquires if she would not mind if he continued the story. Lucy acquiesced as she settled into a more comfortable position.


"As I said, every now and then, Draco, Heartfilia, and another spirit will make a key. It reached a point wherein the priestess' key collection was so vast that Draco, as representative and guardian of the spirits, discussed with Heartfilia and the then-mortal Spirit King the possibility of having spiritual members of the village help in taking care of the spirits and their keys. Both agreed, thinking it was safer for their beloved spirits. At this time, the elder of the village was getting weak and becoming sickly. Draco and Heartfilia wanted him to have at least one key but the elder refused, stating that he cannot possible take care of a spirit when he can no longer take care of himself. Both of them understood his concerns but it broke their hearts, Draco cared for the old man whom he considered a friend while Heartfilia loved him as a father.

"When it became apparent that it won't be long before the old man would pass away, the priestess started searching for ways to extend and make his life better. Draco learned about this and offered her a one-time solution."

"The ambrosia…" Lucy said, realizing where this story went.

"Yes, Princess, he told her of the ambrosia. Heartfilia went in search of the ingredients, and when she succeeded, she immediately ran back to her foster father."

"Then he drank the ambrosia and turned into the Spirit King?"

"Oh, no. He refused. He said he was happy that she loved him so much that she wanted to spend more time with him. But he said he was tired and would have wanted to rest."

"Then, how did he become the Spirit King?"

"In her frustration, Heartfilia drank the ambrosia. Draco appeared only to find her gasping on her last breath. Apparently, the ambrosia can only be drank by spirits or those on their death beds. The old man was distraught that his daughter would die before him, he asked Draco to help her. Draco, bound by laws of the celestial realm, had agreed in exchange that she must take a celestial form. The man argued that she was too young, the dragon offered a solution." Loke took a deep breath.

"That solution is that someone else must take her place?" Lucy inquired, already knowing the answer.

"Indeed." Loke sighed and went on, "The priestess lived in exchange for the old man's soul. Unknown to them, in that exchange, the old man acquired the priestess' power before he passed on. Thus, he became the Spirit King while Heartfilia lost the power to command all celestial spirits. She can only call on them with a celestial key; she became a Holder-type mage."

"Okay… I get that part. But what about the pact?"

"The pact. When Heartfilia came to, Spirit King was ascending. Desperate, she called out a promise that if not her, surely one of her descendants will join her father and Draco in the realm."

Loke let the information sink in. Lucy was thoughtful for long time, digesting the origin story and the pact. She heaved a sigh and gave Loke a small smile.


"Then, the pact could be honored, right? The Spirit King and Draco will get the ambrosia and in exchange, instead of you being mortal, I will become a Spirit. They can grant you your wish of being with me and the millenia-old promise will be fulfilled."

"No, Lucy, Princess. I can't let you sacrifice your mortality for my selfishness. Your family is here. Fairy Tail, the guild, and your friends. Our comrades. I won't give you the difficult decision in choosing between us."

"So your brilliant plan was to become mortal?" Lucy gave an unladylike snort, "No offense, Loke, but that was stupid. The lion can't leave the Zodiacs. But I can leave Fairy Tail. They will understand, Loke. They'll be sad but they will see that me becoming a celestial spirit will make me happy."

"What do you mean, Lucy?"

"Loke, I love you. I am thankful that you have helped me through all these years. And though I deny it often, I have fallen for you. Yes, I was jealous of Cana and you when you went to the bars. And I am always worried for you whenever we go on our missions. Ridiculous as it may seem, considering you are immortal and I'm not, I always worry about you getting hurt and not finding your way back to me. When you go to the spirit world to recuperate, I can't go with you. I can't stay with you to watch over you. I love you and I want to be with you, stupid lion."

Loke was taken aback by her confession. Oh, how he always wished and prayed that his master will love him back but he never thought it would happen. They were bound by a contract, and Lucy like all celestial mages honored their contracts. The leader of the Twelve Zodiacs was beyond ecstatic. He was shocked beyond words.

"Loke?" Lucy waved a hand in front of him, "I think I broke my lion…" Lucy giggled at the flabbergasted spirit. She gave him a small slap on the cheek to rouse him.

Loke snapped to attention and enveloped the blonde mage in a hug. "I love you, I love you, I love you…"

Loke repeatedly murmured against her ear. Lucy tightened her hold on him and answered, "I love you too."


A/N: (1) I don't think Heartfilia really means that. I don't know what it means. I just made that definition up since it would fit the story. (2) I don't think Aquarius would be the first key, but it strengthens the bond between the Heartfilias and the mermaid. I think that having three powerful beings make the key is appropriate. In ancient Rome, a triumvirate is three powerful men involved in decision-making; in the Bible, they have the holy trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; there are three sides to a triangle; there is past, present, and future. Three is just a very good number to fit this story. (3) Seven. Seven days and seven nights. To be honest, I just like the number seven. But looking at history, seven is significant. Seven days in a week, seven colors in a rainbow, seven stars in the big dipper. A lot of people believe in Lucky Seven. Seven is also a good fit in my story, or maybe I'm just trying to fit it in since I like it. Kidding! Seven just fits the story. (4) Oh, confession! (5) Draco, Spirit King, and Heartfilia. Another trinity, another triumvirate. Are you as excited as I am for the end?