Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or Scarlet Heart Ryeo
Igneel, Gildarts, and Makarov watched from a distance as the princes happily gathered in one of the palace's pavilions.
The King chuckled to himself as Gray and Loke engaged in a playful wrestling match, "I've been thinking about finding a suitable husband for your granddaughter, Grand General Makarov. I'm considering choosing one of the princes."
Makarov immediately perked up at the idea. Having a Juvia marry one of the princes would be a great gain for their family, and he knew that Juvia held an incredible devotion to one prince in particular. The old general would do everything he could to make his granddaughter happy, and he knew what prince had to be chosen in order to do so.
Gildarts narrowed his eyes in thought as he surveyed the princes, "Fourteenth Prince Loke would be a suitable match for Lady Juvia. They both love martial arts and their horoscopes are a good fit."
Makarov's grin faded, "Come now. What if husband and wife got into a fight? The two of them would tear the house down."
Igneel chuckled, nodding his head in agreement.
The astronomer scanned over the princes again, his eyes landing on one who stood apart from the rest of his brothers, thoughtfully examining the scarlet roses that rested in a pot on a nearby table, "Then…how about the Thirteenth Prince, Jellal? He's Magnolia's best looking man. Juvia would be the envy of all the girls in Ishgar."
"And then she might be stoned to death by them all." Makarov glared at the astronomer, "I don't think so."
"The Fourth Prince," Igneel suddenly cut in. His eyes followed said prince as the man started a conversation with Jellal, "I don't know about the others, but Natsu and Juvia both learned martial arts together under your instruction, Makarov. So there must be some sort of relationship there."
Makarov scoffed, "One was busy killing bears and the other was busy killing wolves. They've never even met each other."
"If you don't like any of them, then what shall we do?" Gildarts fixed the old man with a quick glare before turning his gaze back to the princes, "Ah…what about Eighth Prince Sting? He should remarry-"
"Hey," Makarov suddenly interrupted angrily. "You should count properly. You went from the fourteenth to the thirteenth but now you're talking about the eighth. Why are you skipping over people? Look…you forgot one."
The three turned their gaze to the third youngest prince, who was playfully batting a long strand of grass against Loke's head.
Gildarts eyes were widened slightly as he looked back to Makarov in disbelief, "Seriously? Of all the princes you choose him?"
Gray excitedly counted the marbles he had stashed in his sleeve as he settled next to one of the small tables that had been brought to the pavilion for the princes to sit at while they drank their tea. The colorful orbs had come all the way from Pergrande, and he'd just received them the previous night.
The prince grinned happily at the blonde court lady who came to serve him his tea. He leaned forward to excitedly whisper to her as she set various cups and pastries out in front of him, "Lucy, I have something for you. See me later, 'kay?"
The blonde smiled and nodded her head softly, "Of course."
"His Majesty, the King, is entering," a voice called from the entrance of the pavillion.
The princes all stood as Igneel entered, bowing to him in greeting.
"It's good for you to gather together like this," the King pleasantly remarked as his eyes traveled over his sons. "You've all worked hard as of late, and deserve a break." His eyes landed on his fourth son and he turned to face him fully, "Especially you, Natsu. You relieved us from the drought and I want to reward you. Is there anything you want? I thought of giving you land in Magnolia to build a home so you could live outside the palace like Sting if you desired."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. But…there's something I want more than land."
"Alright, tell me."
Natsu turned his gaze to Lucy, but her head was still bowed forward and her gaze rested on the floor. The salmon haired prince cleared his throat as he looked back to his father, "Please give me Court Lady Lucy."
The blonde's head immediately snapped up at the request, and she stared at Natsu with wide eyes.
Several of the princes were also taken aback by their brother's words, Gray and Sting in particular.
The girl's head dropped back into a bow when Igneel turned his gaze to her and hummed in thought, "Alright. I suppose it would be good to keep her close by to help you with the cosmetics. In recognition of her efforts, Lucy will be promoted to Senior Court Lady. From now on your only duty will be to actively assist Natsu."
Lucy swallowed heavily, "Y-yes, Your Majesty. I'll accept your commands."
Natsu smiled happily at her, but she still wouldn't meet his gaze.
"To celebrate the rain, we'll have a royal marriage," Igneel informed his sons. "We'll set a date soon. It'll be the Grand General's granddaughter, Juvia," he turned to face his third youngest son, "and the Tenth Prince, Gray, who will be getting married."
The pavilion's occupants were all taken aback by the announcement, and several of them looked to said prince to gauge his reaction.
Gray's eyes widened a fraction at the information, his expression otherwise blank.
Loke excitedly bumped a fist into his brother's shoulder, smiling brightly, "Gray, you're getting married! Congratulations!"
The raven haired prince didn't take his gaze off of his father, "But I…I don't want to get married."
Igneel chuckled, misunderstanding his son's obvious panic, "There's no need to feel shy. You should have in-laws and do your part as a royal family member."
Gray shook his head desperately, "But…there's still Natsu, and Sting is single again. They're older than me...I'm too young to get married. And that Juvia girl…I…I just can't do it. I refuse…I refuse to get married!"
Igneel raised a brow as the raven haired price threw himself on his knees in front of him, bending his torso forward in a pleading bow, "Your Majesty, please withdraw your words! I…I really don't want this," Gray begged. "If you…if you insist on marriage….I would rather die."
Lucy's eyes widened and her face filled with worry at his statement. Gray was her first friend in Ishgar, and he'd always been so playful and bright in her presence. To hear him speak such words made her heart drop.
Several of the princes were also taken aback by the display, not only because Gray was showing disobedience to the King's orders, but they'd never seen him so desperate for something in all their lives. They all understood exactly what their brother was feeling, but this was one the burdens of being a prince, and there was no way to escape it.
Igneel let out a heavy breath, his anger at his son's disobedience growing, "Instead of doing what I ask, you would rather dishonor me and die?"
Zeref stepped forward suddenly, his expression desperate as he reasoned with the King to save his brother, "Your Majesty, he must be so excited that he doesn't know what he is saying." He turned his gaze to his younger brother, urging him, "Gray, go on and thank the king."
The raven haired prince turned his gaze to Lucy before he slowly stood. His eyes held sorrow that she would never have even imagined the joyful prince to be capable of feeling.
Gray clasped his hands in front of him, his head bowed and his bangs shadowing his face. His voice was barely above a whisper as he regretfully caved, "Thank you for your great benevolence."
The marbles slipped from his sleeve then, the glass orbs falling to shatter against the floor.
Gajeel roughly patted Gray on the back as they made their way down a dirt path. The Ninth Prince had caught word of Loke having started a fight with some of Makarov's soldiers, and he was eager to see the brawl. His raven haired brother had followed him in a daze, but Gajeel let him tag along, knowing that he'd already been through enough for the day.
He did his best to comfort his brother, but he didn't have much experience in doing so, "Gray, women are only different on the first night. After that, all women are the same. I even get the names of my first and second wife confused sometimes."
Gray scoffed, "I don't want to live like you."
As they got closer to the commotion of the fight, Gajeel's eyes widened a fraction when he caught sight of Loke's opponent. He jumped in front of Gray, blocking his brother's view of the skirmish, "I think it'd be best if you didn't see."
"Move," the raven haired prince angrily pushed his brother aside, making his way through the crowd of soldiers that were cheering the fight on.
His mouth dropped open when he got a glimpse of figure who was locked in combat with his brother.
Juvia and Loke had their hands fisted in each other's belts, both bent over and struggling to down their opponent.
The cheers increased in volume when the orange haired prince easily threw the girl over his shoulder, loosening his grip on her so that gravity would pull her to the ground.
But Juvia expertly flipped in the air, landing lightly on the balls of her feet before lunging forward and sweeping Loke's feet out from under him.
The prince didn't expect the girl to survive his attack, so he was unprepared and therefore unable to catch himself as he landed heavily on the ground.
Gray scoffed as the soldiers all rushed towards Juvia, rolling his eyes when their cheering grew in volume as two of them lifted her onto their shoulders, the blue haired girl triumphantly pumping her fists in the air.
Loke made his way over to his brothers, smiling brightly despite his heavy breathing from the fight, "Man, Gray. She's really amazing. Juvia can beat any man. She's really a great soldier!" He wrapped his arm around his brother's shoulders, "Gray, I envy you."
The raven haired prince glared at his younger brother, "I don't want to marry a great soldier. I want to marry someone I love."
Erza had gone to a secluded part of the forest to practice her dance. She'd desperately needed to get away from her people. They'd all watched her sadly as she learned the steps of the dance and she couldn't bear to be under their piteous gazes any longer.
After being displaced from their home country, they'd been forced to move on and start entirely new lives. Her people weren't taking the change as well as she had prayed that they would.
Being a former princess, Erza had had no training in any particular occupation, so she'd chosen to become a gisaeng. She'd always had an affinity for swords, and the only way to get her hands on some was to become a performer.
The swords used for the dance were quite different from those used in battle. The rounded blades were attached to the hilt by only a thin wire, allowing the blades to swing around more and better complement the movements of the performer. Two flat, silver hoops were strung between the two parts of the sword and scarlet tassels were attached to the hilt, meant to add noise and flashes of color as they were swept through the air.
Erza tripped over her hanbok as she attempted to spin around herself. Even when she was a princess she'd preferred not to wear lavish hanboks, but becoming a gisaeng had left her no choice other than to put on the poofy gray clothing.
Her hair was slightly throwing her off balance as well. It had been done up a complicated twist on top of the left side of her head and secured with a heavy hairpiece who's many silver gems resembled berries.
She lifted her head as the sound of a saenghwang being expertly played sounded through the forest. It was beautiful, and it was just what she needed to better immerse herself in the dance.
Erza moved gracefully to the gentle beat of the music until she finished her routine, sighing heavily as she finished the last steps without messing up.
Curiousity eventually got the better of her, and she carefully moved through the trees towards the music.
She found her way into a small clearing, and smiled softly at the sight that greeted her.
A group of children were gathered around a blue haired man as he leaned against the base of a tree and played his saenghwang, his eyes closed as he carefully moved his fingers about the instrument.
Erza thought that the man looked familiar, but she couldn't think about it much longer as one of the children suddenly gasped when he looked her way.
The children all quickly scurried to their feet and ran to hide behind the tree. The man stood as well, putting himself between her and the children, his gaze focused on the swords in her hands.
She quickly hid them behind her back, smiling softly at the children as they peeked around the man and the thick trunk, "I was only practicing a sword dance. There's no need to be afraid. I won't hurt you."
The blue haired man sighed, examining her critically for a moment more before turning to pull a small sack out of his much larger bag. He faced the children, "Here are some treats."
They all held their hands out eagerly, "I want some!"
"Me too!"
"Me too!"
The man chuckled softly, "Eat them slowly. And share."
The children all thanked him as he handed the sack to the eldest of the bunch, smiling at him brightly before running off in the direction of their village.
Once they were gone, the man turned back to Erza, "I've seen you before, haven't I? You're one of the people from Bosco, right?"
The scarlet haired woman scoffed and turned to leave. She remembered their encounter well, and it still aggravated her.
"You should pay for the drawings you ripped!" the man called after her, successfully bringing her to a halt. She turned to find him standing with his arms folded proudly over his chest, grinning smugly at her, "But if you have nothing to give me, you could show me your sword dance as payment."
Erza scoffed, "So that's where I recognized you from. You're that money insect."
"Money insect?" the man repeated, raising a brow.
"Drawings and instruments," she spitefully started. "You sure work hard to please the nobles. You're quite diligent."
"You came here because of my music, correct?" the man smirked, "Anyone in Magnolia who dances can't help but move once my music starts. Let me see you dance. You never know, I might play my great music for you."
Erza clenched her jaw, "I don't dance for strange men."
The man sighed, "Then…why don't we introduce ourselves to each other instead? I'm Jellal. How about you?"
"Jellal?" The scarlet haired woman scoffed, "If you're Prince Jellal than I'm one of your attendants. You don't have a speck of honesty in you at all. It's a waste of your talents. You shouldn't live that way."
The blue haired man raised a brow as he turned to pack up his things, "I really am Jellal. Ah, you must not know because you haven't been in Magnolia for very long."
Erza turned to find Macao and Wakaba standing a short distance away, gesturing for her follow them.
Jellal cleared his throat, straightening himself out as he turned back to the woman, "I'm the thirteenth-"
He cut himself off when he noticed that he was now alone. The scarlet haired woman must have ran off while he was focused on packing his things.
"She disappeared again," the prince sighed to himself.
Something clinked against his foot as he took a step forward. He looked down, spotting an intricately made, scarlet red incense pouch with gold beads and a silver elephant charm secured to it.
Jellal carefully picked it up, examining its details with slight wonder, "This thing…it must belong to that woman. It unique…just like her."
AN
I have absolutely no idea how to describe the appearance of instrument that Jellal was playing earlier, but it's a type of wind instrument. It's called a saenghwang if you're curious and want to look it up though.
Thank you so much for reading!