Chapter 29

Lucy does not like the situation at all. Natsu is unconscious, three enemies have them trapped, and no one knows they are here. As of now, Jackal is the biggest threat since he is close to Natsu who can do nothing to defend himself. Lucy knows she needs to dispose of him quickly before she can worry about the other two.

"Seilah, if you please–" Kyôka begins.

As fast as she can, Lucy shoves Jackal away as he crouches over Natsu. She reaches from him and quickly unsheathes the long dagger from his waist. Wanting to have the upper hand, she holds it with both hands and takes an abnormal stance. She wants to appear she does not know how to properly fight.

Jackal laughs at her. "Look at this! She thinks she's going to fight to protect the stupid prince!"

"Turn yourselves in!" Lucy says firmly.

Seilah smiles slyly. "Do you really think you can stop us?"

"The people of Draconia will thank us for this deed once he is gone," Kyôka begins. "We will not allow that fool to steal the crown from Prince Zeref. Prince Zeref is the one we deserve to rule us. He is the one who will be our king."

"He would never sink so low to try and steal the crown!" Lucy argues.

Jackal cackles. "You don't know him!"

"Clearly you are the ones who do not know him," Lucy says, eyeing him carefully.

"Blah, blah, blah." He stands up and pulls out his own sword. "You're annoying."

"Try to not get her blood everywhere," Kyôka says, and looks at Seilah. "You are coming with me since I have a job for you."

Lucy holds her ground. She plans on protecting Natsu since he cannot do a thing to defend himself.

As his companions begin to walk away, Jackal lunges with his sword ready to land a blow. "Time to go!"

Her demeanor and stance change in the blink of an eye. Before Jackal has time to comprehend what is happening, both of their weapons clash together. Minding her dress, Lucy uses her right foot to firmly knee him in his stomach. He gasps for air and loosens his grip on his sword. She is quick to snatch it with her left hand, disarming him.

Seilah and Kyôka pause, taking in the change of scenery.

Jackal immediately holds his hands up. "Wh-what?" He looks back at the other two. "Did you guys know–"

Taking the opportunity before it passes by, Lucy brings down the hilt of the sword to the back of his head. He crumples to the ground and remains motionless.

"It appears we did not take into account that she can fight," Kyôka comments.

"Is she some sort of undercover guard for him?" Seilah inquires.

"I will give one more chance to turn yourselves in," Lucy warns.

"Seilah, prepare something special for her," Kyôka instructs. "I will deal with her in the meantime."

"As you wish." With that, she walks away.

Lucy glances around before grabbing a nearby vial and hurling it. All according to plan, Kyôka avoids it and it ends up smashing through a window. Lucy hopes that it causes enough of a disturbance for someone to investigate.

"You are quite the troublemaker," Kyôka admonishes with a narrow gaze.

"I suppose Natsu is rubbing off on me," Lucy muses.

Kyôka saunters over to the side, heading towards a shelf full of vials. She selects one, uncorks it, and tries sloshing it on Natsu.

Lucy pulls out the skirt of her dress to use it as a shield for Natsu. It stops every single drop from landing on him. "Leave him out of this."

"He is the reason why we are doing this," Kyôka says, and smiles grimly. "Now, Seilah!"

Lucy turns to look, but it is too late.

After sneaking up on her, Seilah douses the front portion of Lucy in a bubbling liquid that is not warm to the touch from a large bowl. "That should–" she begins.

Lucy is quick to aim the sword at her exposed throat as she keeps both women in her line of sight. She ignores the tingling sensation that is starting up along her skin. "This is to end now."

Suddenly, the front door bursts open and guards storm into the shop. They are quick to apprehend the trio since they recognize Lucy even though she may not recognize some of them.

Her left arm has finally grown so numb that the sword slips from her fingers and clatters to the ground. The rest of her has become quite numb as well that she is struggling with keeping a hold of the long dagger. She totters around even though she cannot feel her legs. The liquid may be scentless, but she knows she is still inhaling it due to how fuzzy her head feels.

"Let me through!" Gray shouts as he pushes his way towards the front guards. His eyes instantly fall to where his charge is lying unresponsive on the floor. "Natsu!"

"Help him," she manages to say. "Vita Mane."

"Vita Mane?" Gray questions as he approaches her.

She stumbles away, not wanting someone to fall victim to the scentless smell from the liquid emitting from her. "Drank tea," she says, vision swimming. "Laced with Nox Mortem."

"And Vita Mane is the cure!" he reasons, only now becoming aware of her condition. "And what do you need?"

No longer able to stand, she falls forward, blacking out before she hits the floor.

x-X-x

Lucy's eyes flutter open and she quickly bolts into a sitting position.

From the nearby chair, Wendy jumps in surprise. "Oh, good! You're awake!"

After realizing she is lying on the bed in her temporary bed chamber, she looks over to her right. "What happened?" After noticing she is back in her green gown, Lucy looks down at her hands, flexing her fingers. She feels better and has proper control of her body. "I am better. Much better."

"They used some kind of liquid concoction that numbs the skin and causes people to lose consciousness," Wendy explains. "Porlyusica and I helped you. Clothes and all, we dunked you inside of a tub full of water to wash away whatever was on you. Then we dressed you and let you sleep it off. You should be back to normal now though."

That bath does explain why her hair is still damp. "I do have feeling once again." Then Lucy practically holds her breath, hoping for good news. "How is Natsu fairing?"

"Even though the incident happened less than an hour ago, he is still unconscious. And he will make a full recovery because of you."

She sighs in relief.

"More importantly, you saved him," Wendy points out with a smile. "They planned on publically executing him in the name of Prince Zeref. You stopped that from happening."

Chills race down Lucy's spine. "They thought Natsu planned on taking the crown from him. They wanted to prevent him from doing so by whatever means possible."

"There is no way he would ever do that."

"I told them that, but they did not believe me. They were blinded by their own ideas."

Unexpectedly, there is a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Lucy says.

Much to their surprise, Zeref is the one who opens the door and enters the room, unaccompanied by a guard. He softly smiles when he finds Lucy is sitting up and wide awake. "I am glad you are well." Then he closes the door and walks over to them.

Wendy rises to her feet and curtseys. "Your Highness."

Zeref holds out a hand. "There is no need for that." Then he turns his eyes to Lucy. "I want to express my thanks from the bottom of my heart. You saved my only brother."

"It was my fault he was in danger in the first place," Lucy explains. "I believed that man was a guard and fell for his trick."

"You still protected Natsu against the odds you faced," he reasons. "This kingdom still has its second prince all because of you. We all shall be forever grateful for the actions you performed today."

Lucy softly smiles. "You are most welcome."

Suddenly, there is a loud commotion from outside the room and it only grows closer, becoming even louder.

Zeref does not even bother to unsheathe the sword at his waist. "At least he is feeling better," he says quietly to himself.

"At least knock–" a deep voice rumbles.

The door swings open and Natsu bursts into the room, his three guards trailing in after him. His eyes fall on Lucy and he takes long strides towards her.

"Natsu!" Lucy is quick to get out of bed, and by the time she is on her feet, he is standing directly in front of her with little space between them.

Without warning, he gently takes her head in his hands and sinks his lips into hers. He makes the kiss deep and fervent.

Her eyes grow wide with shock, having not expected this. She does relax and closes her eyes, enjoying the feel of his warm mouth on hers.

Their lips break apart, and Natsu presses his forehead against hers. "I have a proposal for ya."

After a kiss like that, Lucy is not sure what to expect.

"Marry me."


A/N Part 1: I've had off days from work due to the holiday so I've had time to write :D Which means y'all weren't waiting toooooo long for this chapter! Annnnnnnnnnnnd I'm gonna end it there~

A/N Part 2: In case y'all didn't know/forgot, this au has no magic. That would have made things way to see. Lucy probably would tried using a transportation spell (or gathered magic users to help her) to go back to Fiore. Or, even in a way, tried reaching Juvia faster, like some version of a lacrima from FT.

Panickingathogwarts: YOU CAN'T DIE NOW. YOU GOTTA STAY ALIVE UNTIL THE END. (It's cool, I still recognized you. I like the name since I love Harry Potter!)

buttercup56: :D

Guest: Surprise!

DIGIKO12: *confetti*

Haru Stigama: (Chapter 2) No magic. That would have made things too easy from the start!

Rose Tiger: Now you know!

kiteou-kun: Aye, sir!

fanakatsuki: And now you know~

SolidScriptJess: Gah, thank you! I'm sure Zeref knows he has followers, but maybe not a cult like that. But now you know!

hananodoku: Things are different than that :P

laxusdrayer2324: Zeref loves his brother! It's just his crazy followers :P

PuddyKatz: Better feels towards the end of this chapter for sure 3

Shadow Drade: He is good! He just doesn't know people are doing this to his brother!

TokyoTeddiWolf: All good now :D

Sara lovelymusic: I love Erza! She's great!

Guest: *confetti*

NamesAreFutile: The suffering of my readers gives me strength!

FlamingAngel525: That would be cruel of me to do for sure! Hopefully not too long of a wait :)

Crazy lady: Hopefully that wasn't too long of a wait for you! And I'm hella excited for that moment!

huishensiwang: They will appear again, but now is not the time for that!

icecreamnova: Unless I use Dan before the appearance of the duke, then maybe. However, I'm unsure if the duke will appear or not!

Yeeellyy: I missed you, too! Glad I was able to update! But now things are better for NaLu! And I wanted to make the plants seem somewhat realistic-ish XD

madmissY01: Nah, I'm being nice. Not in this fic of mine at least!

Mrs Limited Edition: (Chapter 1) I'm glad you like it :D (Chapter 2) Same here! I think it's interesting for sure :D (Chapter 3) You gotta keep reading to learn that! (Chapter 4) Lucy is to marry a duke from her kingdom. Still not sure who specifically though. As for Zeref and Lucy, I needed a reason for the two (as well as Igneel) to know each other and what the other looks like! Jude's actions will be explained later! Just will take some time for that chapter~ (Chapter 5) You're totally fine! (Chapter 6) What I plan on for Natsu and maybe Gajeel :)

angelicfrosty: And now ya know~

Haru Stigama: Yay, that makes me happy you're enjoying it ^-^

FireShifter: Nope, he ain't evil! I just wanted y'all to think that for a chapter :)

Marisol: Nope, Zeref loves his brother! It's certain followers of him that are the issue :P And he's not dead, just not awake XD

Nekokittygirl: Got around to that update!

Uchida Akira: I'm glad you did! And no magic in this au~

Fairy Tail 4lyf: Indeed!

FranFranWriter: (Chapter 11) He had to make sure Lucy wasn't a threat! I enjoyed that line XD (Chapter 13) I like the added humor bits this fic can have :) Smiles are a good thing!

Shidake: Haha, nope XD There's a small reason in the next chapter!

Ca5368: Gah, that means a lot! Thank you so much! ^-^ I'm still trying to improve things so I can be better for sure! And I plan on more for sure :D

StellaHeartfilia: But now things are better for NaLu 3