This is it people. Chapter 25. This chapter will be split into two parts, just warning you now. There's a lot going on, some new (and perhaps surprising) POV's, and it's the climax of the story. As you can see, it's kind of busy. Have mercy.

S/O to JMxJLxRT, because I realize the feels that make you write a review in all caps. Stay strong.

Here we go!

Yukino struggled against the hands holding her so tightly. They were pressing into her arms, and it hurt. She'd undoubtedly have bruises- if she stayed alive long enough to form them. Someone had hastily shoved a rag over her eyes as a makeshift blindfold, though it didn't work very well as she could still see pinpricks of light come through. Another rag had been stuffed in her mouth to serve as a gag. This one worked somewhat more effectively.

There were several people involved in her kidnapping. One had blue hair and a tattoo over his face- he was the one that had entered the dressing room and originally subdued her. Then someone else had entered and put the blindfold on. They'd pushed her out of the window to two others, who had yanked her arms behind her back and held her still until their friends climbed back out the window and joined them.

"Stop squirming!" Someone snapped at her, and she growled in what she hoped was their direction.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Another voice popped up, this one more anxious. "She looks awful scared, aren't you hurting her? I don't think they'll like that."

"Be quiet!" The first voice cut out and the anxious voice disappeared.

They pushed her along at the same rapid pace and she did her best to keep up. The faux wedding dress didn't help matters much, and kept snagging debris on the ground. Her abductors shoved her onwards regardless.

Hearing the dress rip made her think back to the real dress, and Lucy. Had they taken her too? If so, what were they doing to her? If not, then why? What was she thinking of right now? What was she doing right now? There were so many possible scenarios, all of them running rapid-fire through her mind, more quickly than she could process.

Someone pushed her shoulders and shoved her onto something- a chair? They removed her blindfold and she amended her assumption; she was actually on a stump.

With her hands and eyes now free, she spat out her gag and glared at them, trying to subtly wipe the spit off her mouth. Her glare raked over all of them and she noticed something strange- there were only three of them here, when she'd been sure there had been four of them before.

"What do you people want?"

"Your cooperation." This came from a red-haired woman, clad in battle armor and a scowl as sharp as the sword on her hip.

"Ah," Another man stepped forward, and a swell of outrage swelled within her. "Maybe we should-"

"You-!" She gaped at him.

He stared at her, lost. "Uh, I…?"

"You're the commander of the royal armies!" She pointed an accusing finger at him.

"…Yes?" He posed it more as a question.

"You kidnapped me!"

"…Yes?" He still looked confused. She continued to stare at him, unable to believe the man standing before her was the commander of the highest, most elite army known to their country.

"This is getting us nowhere." The redheaded woman huffed. "I apologize if Jellal offended you, but we need your cooperation."

Yukino looked back and forth between them, as lost as the blue guy- Jellal, wasn't it?- was before. Another man stepped forward and grinned uncertainly at her. "Uh, maybe I can help?"

He looked to Red and Blue (those were easier to remember and besides, kidnappers didn't get proper names), then turned back to her and continued. "Hi, I'm Oliver."

"Hello Oliver." She echoed automatically. This must have been a sign of encouragement to him because he started talking again.

"Ah, okay, well I'm not sure how to phrase this all exactly but I guess I should give it a shot considering it's kind of my fault and we kidnapped you." He chuckled weakly and, seeing that no one else was laughing, cleared his throat awkwardly.

"So, in a nut shell, there's a rebel group from Sabertooth that wants to start a war between Sabertooth and Fiore so that they destroy each other, leaving both countries vulnerable to a takeover. You're the bait they're using as a catalyst."

"Gee, is that all?" She sniped at him sarcastically.

Oliver thought for a moment. "Yeah, that just about covers it." He smiled at her.

Blue brought her attention back to him. "It's a little confusing, but that is really the gist of it. Sabertooth thinks you're in danger, and so we brought you here to show them that's not the case. We left our agent back in the dressing room, as you've probably deduced by now. He's working on getting the ambassador from Sabertooth here so we can resolve this as quickly as possible.

She snorted hysterically. "I hope he's a damn good negotiator then."

"Of course." Red and Oliver quickly nodded in agreement. "He's one of our best."

"Where is she? What's happened?" Levy spun around, scanning the room again.

"Juvia does not know. According to Gray-sama, Lucy and Yukino were supposed to be in here readying themselves." A crease formed between Juvia's brows and her mouth was pulled down into a severe frown. She looked genuinely concerned as opposed to faintly worried for once.

Levy stared at her helplessly. "And the bride? Did anyone bother to inform them of who exactly was supposed to be walking down the aisle?"

"…No." Juvia at least had the grace to be embarrassed.

"What?" She stared incredulously at the woman who was actually shuffling her feet. "How could you have neglected to mention that?"

"Juvia didn't exactly get a chance before now!" She snapped back at Levy. "The white woman and castle servants kept Juvia from seeing Lucy or Prince Natsu, no matter how many times she broke their arms!"

"Maybe you should have used your words instead of your fists for once!" Levy snarled at her. She didn't usually act like that, but she was worried and desperate and angry, dammit!

Blue eyes glared at her sullenly. "Juvia prefers violence to persuasion. The truth tends to be more accurate."

"Yes, because that philosophy certainly worked out in this situation, didn't it?" She gestured to the slumped body in the attached dressing room. "Just look at all the valuable information he gave us before you killed him." Sarcasm dripped off her words.

"Juvia did not kill him," She sniffed disdainfully. "…Though perhaps she should have let you speak with him before taking care of him." Blue eyes glared at the body as if it were the man's fault.

"Well-" Levy cut off when a woman walked into the room. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing!" She huffed at them. "What are you two doing in here, she's about to march!"

"Who?" Levy shot a bewildered glance at Juvia.

"The bride of course!" The woman grabbed each of their wrists and pulled them towards the main part of the cathedral. "What are you doing, lazing about in there? You're supposed to be right behind her, the anthem is about to play! I swear, if I get in trouble because of your incompetence, heads are going to roll!" The large doors came into view, with a woman in white standing before them. "Now get out there and try not to screw up!"

She hesitated before leaving and looked at Juvia closely. "Do I know you?" A familiar song started playing and she shook her head. "Never mind, go, go!" She shoved them towards where the bride was starting to walk down the aisle.

Levy stepped up behind her and plastered a smile on her face. She could feel Juvia behind her, walking at the same measure pace as the bride.

Inconspicuously, she tried to get a look at the bride, but it was no use. She was behind her and couldn't lean around without drawing attention. Besides that, there was a heavy veil obscuring the bride's face and the dress covered her from head to toe.

Natsu was waiting at the podium, looking over above their heads. He looked utterly bored.

The King, Gajeel, and Gray were all standing behind Natsu, with Happy and Lily sitting at their feet quietly.

Gajeel caught her eye and glanced towards the bride quickly, a slight frown on his face. She shook her head minutely and tried to surreptitiously shrug her shoulders. It seemed like he didn't know who the bride was either. That didn't bode well.

People stared at them from the pews, silent like statues. The wedding song played in the background, and she realized a chorus had joined in. The aisle seemed to stretch out before her, longer and longer. Juvia brushed against her back comfortingly. This was bad. This was so, so bad.

Lucy was missing, Yukino was missing, and a stranger was about to marry the prince.

Levy tried not to wince and kept walking.

Gray stared at Juvia as she walked down the aisle and frowned. He knew her well enough to tell that she wasn't happy, worried even. One look at Levy told him the same thing. She had a smile on, but still looked like she was about to keel over.

Gajeel rumbled unhappily in front of him and Gray guessed he'd come to the same conclusion. Both the bridesmaids were uneasy, and kept sneaking looks at the bride. Which could only mean they were uneasy about the bride or something to do with her?

He frowned again. The one under the veil was supposed to be Lucy. Were they concerned about her safety?

Something was pressed into his hand from behind and he glanced back. There was a servant in a suit standing impassively behind him, staring ahead vacantly. He looked utterly bored, like he'd been standing there the entire time.

The note unfurled easily against his palm and he brought it around his body slowly, so as to not draw attention. An easy task, considering everyone was watching the bride walk down the neverending aisle (the name he'd given it since the first time he'd witnessed its impressive length- though seriously, who wanted to walk that far?).

Messily scrawled words stared back up at him when he glanced down:

White dragon captive in woods- 2 M 1 F

That wasn't good. 'White dragon' was the codename for the bride, which was supposed to be Lucy. 'Captive in woods' wasn't very hard to figure out, though that didn't seem possible. Servants had sworn up and down the bride had been in the dressing room with Yukino and Lucy. A swell of panic rose in him and he pushed it down, trying to focus. '2 M 1 F,' so there were others involved in this scheme. Two men and a woman had kidnapped Lucy, and then what? Replaced her with this woman?

But why would Juvia and Levy go along with it, knowing it wasn't Lucy? That had to be what the looks and glances were about, they knew Lucy had been kidnapped. So… so that meant… what? Lucy was being used as a hostage for their cooperation? Of course! It made perfect sense now, he should have realized something was up sooner.

He drew Gajeel's hand back and slipped the note inside it, knowing his brother would come to the same conclusion.

Watching the fake bride walk towards the front half of the chapel filled him with anger and disgust. It took everything he had to keep his neutral smile in place. What kind of sick person kidnapped someone as innocent as Lucy? And for what- to try and start a war for their own ends? It was revolting. Here this woman was, walking down the aisle, knowing that she was bringing about death and misery. She was walking towards the man she was about to have killed, and there was no hesitation in her step whatsoever. There was probably a knife in that perfectly put together bouquet.

He hated her. This wouldn't stand, he wouldn't let it.

Gajeel's shoulders stiffened in front of him and he knew the pierced man had figured it out. Good. He hoped Gajeel strangled the little imposter. He wanted to scoff at how ridiculous this situation had become, how impossible it seemed.

Lucy had been kidnapped, Yukino was probably in the same boat, and a murderer was about to marry the prince.

His eyes narrowed. This bitch was going down.

Sting's fists clenched at his sides and he ground his teeth together. There she was- she close, and yet so far away. Walking down the aisle calmly, peacefully, unaware of the treachery done to her. Two women walked behind her posing as the bridesmaids, smiling yet still looking anxious. They probably knew how gentle and trusting Yukino was, and felt guilty about deceiving her. Yet they still marched her forward, on towards her cleverly-disguised jailer.

A snarl tugged at his mouth and he dug his nails into his palm. They would pay for this, too. He'd interrogate them first, and then decide their fate depending on the information they gave him. If it was good, they would have a quick death, or perhaps be sold in slavery somewhere. If it was unsatisfactory, he'd give them to the prisoners on death row, and then kill them. Slowly.

She was ten feet away from him now. It was almost time.

He and Rogue were seated on the outside of the pew, closest to the aisle itself. They were in the second row, the first being reserved for Royal family of course. He didn't mind the slight, as it worked in his favor. Once Yukino was close enough, Rogue would grab her and get her to safety while he took out the prince. Natsu was a weakling, a legend past its prime. That just made it all the easier.

His own guards and loyal servants were scattered around the chapel, waiting for them to strike. Once they saw Rogue go for Yukino, they would detain the other princes and the King long enough for him to take down Natsu, and that was when the real fun would begin.

Nine feet.

Fiore thought itself so clever, tricking his sweet cousin into marriage with Prince Natsu. They would undoubtedly hold her hostage as Natsu's rightful wife, and force Sabertooth into caving to any and all demands they would make.

The thought of that slimy, disgusting, pink-haired bastard forcing himself on Yukino, locking her up and using her as a bargaining chip made him rage inside. She'd never hurt anyone in her life, she'd only aspired to help others, become strong for others. She was a good person, no matter how hard she tried to hide it.

Eight feet.

Others thought her strange and cold, eccentric and distant. His family knew the truth, however. Despite her somewhat frigid-looking appearance, she was really warm and caring. She especially enjoyed babying Lector and Fro.

That would all change though. Sting would capture and subdue Natsu and bring him and Yukino back to Sabertooth. Once there, they would use Natsu as a bargaining chip, ensuring that Fiore would cave to any and all demands they made.

He was willing to bet they wouldn't like it when the tables were turned. Hypocritical bastards.

Seven feet.

They deserved to rot in the deepest, darkest pits of hell for this attempt. He knew Fiore and all its royal family were bad people at heart. He'd known it since that brat Gajeel had outright refused to ally with them through marriage, practically announcing that he thought they weren't worthy of his family name. And then, to abdicate the throne entirely in case they tried to force him into a marriage again? Absolute humiliation! At the hands of a walking sheet of metal, no less!

They would pay, all of them. He would make sure of it. He would not let this slide, refused to let it slide. They couldn't get away with trying to imprison his baby cousin, not her. He'd practically raised her, he and Rogue. They'd played together, slept together, even taken baths together!

Six feet.

And now some low-lives were trying to steal her away, and they thought he wouldn't know about it? They thought he wouldn't retaliate? Idiots. Bastards. Idiotic bastards. Idiotic, arrogant, bastards.

She was probably terrified, his Yukino. Absolutely petrified with fear. Of course she'd figured it out, she wasn't stupid. And of course she'd probably tried to resist, brave girl that she was. But she was no fighter, even if she could at times hold her own. She was made for gentle loving, not bloody fistfights.

Five feet.

He wondered how they'd forced her to cooperate. They'd probably threatened him, or else held a knife to her throat. That was probably why the dress was so long, and covered so much. Her body was covered in bruises, maybe even some cuts, and they hadn't wanted it to show.

Someone had fisted her hair, yanking her head back as they put on her veil. Someone had forced her arms straight when they shoved on the gloves. Someone had pinned her down and strapped that dress on.

Four feet.

Every mark on her body, every cut and bruise and blemish, he would repay to Natsu tenfold. His wrath would rain down upon this country and all its citizens, and they would quake beneath it. He would destroy them. It was what these people deserved.

Three feet.

They'd brought it upon themselves. Sabertooth would be a better ruler for this country anyway. They would make it prosper, make it strong. They would take this land's potential and shape it into something truly amazing. They would never lie to the people, or try to force their sons into marriage, or kidnap princesses and force her down the aisle.

Two feet.

He could see her through the veil, vaguely. Everything was covered by a thick sheet of white, barely thin enough for her to see where she was walking.

One foot.

She turned to look at him briefly, he swore it. She knew he was here to save her, she was grateful, she was relieved. He imaged her face beneath that veil and felt his blood rush.

NOW! He screamed inside his head, and jumped from his seat. He pushed her towards Rogue and bolted towards the altar. He saw her fall towards his brother and scream, twisting in Rogue's grip.

Everyone surged to their feet, more screaming, more yelling. There was chaos.

Some tried to rush towards the doors, some tried to get to the bride, others simply ran into the aisle and sprinted around.

He turned his full attention back to Natsu and slammed into him, punching as they both fell. Blood spurted onto his face and he smiled at the warm feel of it.

It was time for them to pay.

And close curtain (for now). Part 1, there it is, how do you like it? This chapter is mostly building up the drama, whereas the next part is when it all does down. Should be interesting, yeah? Oh, and how did you like that Sting POV?

Review, review, REVIEW or I'll go all bloodthirsty like Sting.

Some things for this chapter:

#1. Just to clarify for those of you who are confused: Yukino was taken by Jellal, Erza, and Oliver so that their other agent could bring Sting and Rogue to her and avoid this entire mess. Juvia KO'ed their agent, not knowing he was trying to help. She and Levy think that Lucy and Yukino are missing and don't know who the bride is. Gray and Gajeel think the bride is some sort of Sabertooth spy. Sabertooth thinks the bride is Yukino and is still being tricked/forced into marrying Natsu and is vowing revenge. Oh, and Lucy still has no idea what's going on. Got it? Good.

#2. Sting has his own POV, yay! Kind of new, a bit OOC, but I think it's still pretty good. In this fanfic, he has a really good relationship with Yukino as his cousin, as does Rogue. He cares for her deeply and views her as his little sister. He's therefore very pissed on her behalf (and he never liked those Fiore bastards anyway).

#3. Just warning you now, I'm not the best at action sequences. The majority of it will probably be told from Lucy's POV with some Natsu or Sting thrown in, as well as others. Just warning you.

Characters we've met so far:

Lucy Heartfilia- Daughter of Jude and Layla Heartfilia, only child. Lady of Magnolia. Engaged to Natsu Dragneel, First Crown Prince of Fiore. Assistant/ wedding planner to Natsu Dragneel, First Crown Prince of Fiore. Living.

Levy McGarden- Orphaned only child. Employed by Jude Heartfilia. Companion to Lady Lucy Heartfilia. Living.

Juvia Lockser- Orphaned only child of Jose Porla and OC. Employed by Jude Heartfilia. Companion to Lady Lucy Heartfilia. Assistant/wedding preparations fetcher to Gray Fullbuster- Dragneel, Third Crown Prince of Fiore. Living.

Jude Heartfilia- Husband to Layla Heartfilia, father to Lucy Heartfilia. Lord of Magnolia. Living.

Layla Heartfilia- Wife to Jude Heartfilia, mother to Lucy Heartfilia. Lady of Magnolia. Deceased.

Jose Porla- Father to Juvia Lockser. Deceased.

Erza Scarlet- Orphaned adopted only child of Grandpa Rob. Former Royal Army soldier. First Bodyguard to Lady Lucy Heartfilia. Living.

Natsu Dragneel- Second son of Igneel Dragneel, King of Fiore, and OC. First Crown Prince of Fiore. Engaged to Lucy Heartfilia, Lady of Magnolia. Living.

Gajeel Redfox-Dragneel- First son of Igneel Dragneel, King of Fiore, and OC. Second Crown Prince of Fiore. Escort to the Royal Search Party. Living.

Gray Fullbuster-Dragneel- Third son of Igneel Dragneel, King of Fiore, and OC. Third Crown Prince of Fiore. Assistant/ wedding preparations fetcher to Natsu Dragneel, First Crown Prince of Fiore. Living.

Jellal Fernandes- Supreme Commander of the Royal Army of Fiore. Head of the Royal Search Party. Living.

Happy- Pet to Natsu Dragneel, First Crown Prince of Fiore. Breed: Exceed. Color: Blue. Living.

Jet- Castle runner/messenger. Living.

Droy- Castle runner/messenger. Living.

Mr. Sakinawa- Husband to OC. Owner of a flower shop in Fiore. Living.

Wendy- Assistant at a fabric shop in Fiore. Employed by Lacy. Living.

Lacy- Owner of a fabric shop in Fiore. Living.

Bianca- Formerly known as the Leader of the Cleaning Clones. Is actually the head of a secret organization within Fiore dedicated to keeping peace within the kingdom. Living.

The Cleaning Clones- Employees of the Lookalike Leader (aka Bianca). Employed at a glass shop in Fiore. Are actually a secret organization dedicated to keeping peace within Fiore. Living.

Oliver Cottonwood- Right hand man to Erza Scarlet. Bodyguard to Lady Lucy Heartfilia. Living.

The Belkbroth family- Two men and one woman that have some medical association and are employed occasionally by the royal family. Living.

Nurse Welde- a nurse in the Royal Infirmary.

Lily- Pet to Gajeel Redfox-Dragneel, Second Crown Prince of Fiore. Breed: Exceed. Color: Black and white. Living.

Marie- Servant in the Dragneel Royal Castle. Best friends with Katie. Dislikes Jessica. Living.

Katie- Servant in the Dragneel Royal Castle. Best friends with Marie. Got her job by sleeping with Henry. Dislikes Jessica. Living.

Jessica- Servant in the Dragneel Royal Castle. Unknown: background, history, family, friends, past jobs, how she gained her current position of employment. Living.

Henry- Head of the kitchen staff in the Dragneel Royal Castle. Is known to give positions to those who sleep with him (Katie is included in that not-very-exclusive list). Living.

Anthony- Soldier employed by the Royal Army of Fiore. Living.

Yukino- Woman from Sabertooth currently employed by the Dragneel family to act as a stand-in fake fiancé until Natsu's real fiancé can be recovered. Cousin to the Sabertooth Royal Family. Living.

Sting- First Crown Prince of Sabertooth. Very close to Rogue, Fro, Lector, and Yukino. Living.

Rogue- Second Crown Prince of Sabertooth. Very close to Sting, Fro, Lector, and Yukino. Living.

Lector- Pet to Sting, First Crown Prince of Sabertooth. Breed: Exceed. Color: Brown-red and white. Living.

Fro- Pet to Rogue, Second Crown Prince of Sabertooth. Breed: Exceed. Color: Green (though is usually encased in a pink frog suit). Real name: Frosch. Living.