The journey to Seyruun was definitely going to be long, and the monotonous fields of golden wheat certainly didn't cure Lina's boredom. The group of adventurers was on horseback, making their way to the city of Justice.

"This is so boring I could die..." thought Lina. She never really hid any negative emotion she happened to be feeling.

"Why don't you take the time to relax a little. Some boredom could do you some good," said Filia cheerfully smiling.

"We all can't be little rays of sunshine like you Filia..." replied Lina.

Gourry didn't mind at all, but then again it really didn't take much to occupy his dwarf like intellect. There were several peasants out in the fields harvesting the wheat. One of these peasants looked up from his toiling, and squinted his eyes.

"That... can't be..." he said looking straight at the traveling party.

"It is!" exclaimed the old man, who dropped his sickle and bag and ran over as fast as he could. Stopping in front of Lina and the others on the road, the man jumped for joy like a little puppy.

"I can't believe it's you! After all these years we thought you were gone!"

Lina raised an eyebrow and looked at her comrades. Gourry simply shrugged his shoulders. No replies were forthcoming from Vargas nor Filia.

"I saw you when you were just a little babe. You've grown into a beautiful women. Yes, of course you have! You are the spitting image of your mother the queen! Your regal looks, your delicate manner, everything about you is perfect!" said the old man in a hasty rushed manner.

Lina immediately blushed and laughed haughtily, throwing her head back.

"I know my beauty must have captured you. No no, it's okay I understand. But I must assure you I have no idea.."

"Not you, you plain looking hag, that girl over there" said the old man pointing straight at Filia.

Lina couldn't stand it when her rickety ego gets shot down. She fell off her horse comically, a gigantic sweat drop bonking her on the head as she lay on the ground dejected.

The old man ran up to Filia and held the young girls hands smiling as if he had won the lottery.

"I'm sorry sir I have no idea what you are talking about..." said Filia laughing nervously.

"Of course you don't that is perfectly fine. You are the princess of this kingdom; you've been missing since you were a small child."

"But how do you know she is the princess if you haven't seen her since she was a small child," asked Vargas, equally stupefied as Filia.

"Why she's the spitting image of our late queen! Hurry, hurry, we must take you to the castle immediately. I'm sure the royal family would love to see you. Yes! The prince is back from his journey, how fortunate he will get to see the princess right when he gets back!" said the old man tugging at Filia. Before she could offer a word of protest, she was already being dragged away.

"Oi oi, where are they taking Filia, Lina?" asked Gourry, but no reply was forthcoming. Instead, Lina was still on the ground, lying in shock.

"Plain...looking...hag" said the dejected Lina, despondent over the destruction of her precious self esteem.

"Snap to it Lina!" said Gourry, picking her up and shaking her. Lina snapped to, and climbed back onto her horse.

"Let's investigate and see what the heck is going on around here," said Lina. Gourry and Vargas simply nodded, and the three tried to follow Filia as best they could.

---------------------------

The castle of the kingdom was fairly normal as castles go. It was made of light gray stone, had three large red steeples, and was surrounded by a deep moat. The old man, despite his age, was able to lead Filia the long distance into the castle. One of the guards was about to place his spear in the way of the entrance, but then took one glance at Filia and yelled out in surprise.

"It's the princess! Where did you...that doesn't matter anymore, just go inside and see the king! Herald!"

Filia was led into the castle through the hall, practically being dragged. Looking up, she noticed a gigantic portrait hanging on the left most wall. Examining it carefully, Filia was thoroughly shocked. The woman on the portrait looked almost exactly like her. The face was a little softer and the features more accented in places, but the woman in the picture was practically Filia's twin.

"They must be mistaking me for that woman's...daughter!" thought Filia.

A herald entered the main throne room, bowed low, and immediately opened the door. The king looked disinterested at first, but upon seeing Filia, he stood up immediately and ran towards her. Holding her hands and lifting the blonde haired priestess up.

"Oh my daughter! It's been so many long years but you're back," said the King, giving Filia a big hug. Not really knowing how to react, Filia simply stood their being held by the King.

"Nice to see you too...I think..."

"We thought you had died so many years ago. Maids in waiting! Give the princess a bath and get her ready for a royal feast!"

Everyone in the hall cheered loudly.

"But I...I..." but instead of protesting, Filia was warmed by the genuine smile of the king. "Maybe I shouldn't burst their bubble, I mean, maybe it doesn't matter that I'm not the real princess.." thought Filia as she was led into the royal bath.

Lagging behind Lina, Gourry, and Vargas finally made their way to the entrance of the castle, only to be stopped by the sentries.

"None may pass."

"What the heck do you mean 'none may pass', let me through! I'm Lina Inverse the great sorceress?"

"Lina who? Whoever you may be we still can't let you pass..."

Lina was thoroughly frustrated but resigned herself to the fact she couldn't reach Filia.

"Dangit, what are we going to do now. It's obviously a case of mistaken identity..." said Lina slapping herself on the forehead.

"Well let's try and get some information from some of the villagers. Maybe we can figure out why they would mistake Filia for the missing princess.

"Yeah I guess you've got a point..." said Lina turning around.

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Filia truly did feel like a princess as she let herself sink into the depths of her bubble bath. She hadn't had this type of comfort in a long while, and she was definitely going to enjoy it while it lasted.

"I feel kind of bad though, not being the real princess and all…"

Filia knew it was a lie, but wouldn't a lie that made everyone feel better be alright in the end? Besides, this treatment would be a reward for all the hardships she had suffered until now. After Filia had finished her bath and dried herself off. Three ladies in waiting were already standing near the entrance with sweet smelling perfumes and fruit for the young maiden to snack on. Within minutes Filia was dressed in a long flowing light blue gown with sequins down the edge.

"Wow, I truly am a princess," said Filia to herself, looking in the mirror. The finishing touch to her costume would be a diamond tiara one lady in waiting placed on her brow. Filia made her way to the dining room, descending down a long staircase, taking care not to trip on her own gown. The dining table had already been prepared with sumptuous meals on the finest china. The smell was almost unreal, as well as the look of the food.

"This…this is so much…" said Filia taken aback by the splendor.

"It's all for you daughter, we're so glad that you're back I had the servants prepare this feast to celebrate."

Sitting down, Filia was served her first course, a thick creamy soup topped with parsley.

"We never thought we'd see you again, but now I see your mother in your eyes…"

"The woman in the picture must have been the queen…we do share an uncanny resemblance…" thought Filia. The young priestess began to feel bad living the lie. After all she wasn't the real thing.

"I…"

The King began to lose his composure and sob slightly.

"I was totally surprised when they brought you to me. You were too young to remember but you were kidnapped when you were very young and we never saw you again. I can't put into words…" but the King couldn't finish his sentence without breaking into long stifled sobs. Filia looked at her reflection in the spoon and began to really feel for the king.

"Maybe it's best if I don't…."

When Filia was done eating, the maids in waiting were already ready to take her to her bedroom to retire for the night.

"You've got a big day tomorrow," said the King beaming. Filia simply nodded and followed the servants to her room.

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Lina was still fuming over not being let into the castle, and snooping around town had come up with little.

"Well everyone knew the princess had been kidnapped years ago, they all must be happy to see her back," said Vargas.

"Well it's too bad Filia isn't the princess, I can assuredly say that Vargas. Besides everyone seems really excited for tomorrow for some reason…" said Lina, scratching her head.

"Everyone seems to be bolting down their roofs and putting protective covering over their shops. What in the world is supposed to go down tomorrow?" asked Gourry.

"Well we'll see what happens when it happens, right now all I can say is I'm totally beat and I need some sleep."

That having been said, Lina and her motley crew found an inn and checked in for the night.

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Tomorrow indeed came, and Filia was one of the first people to rise. She was awoken with a loud gong by one of the maids in waiting.

"Rise and shine mistress today is the big day."

"The big day?" asked Filia still groggy from waking up.

"You'll need to be bathed and dress as quickly as possible. We'll have to be at town square before the sun reaches full height."

"What on earth for?"

"Well it is your 17th birthday today according to our records, so today is indeed a very important day. We don't have any time to dilly dally we must get you prepared."

Before Filia could even put up a decent protest, the maids in waiting had her dressed and prepared. After taking a quick bath, Filia was soon escorted outside to a carriage waiting to take her to the outskirts of town.

"What in the world…" thought Filia as she was taken away.

Elsewhere, Lina, Gourry, and Vargas hurried over to where a large number of peasants were gathered near the edge of the city.

"Why is everyone here? What's going on?" asked Vargas confused.

"Umm, excuse me? Is this some sort of festival? A party?" asked Lina to one of the peasants.

"Today is the princess' 17th birthday, so it is a very special day for the whole kingdom."

"So this is a birthday party then?"

"Not quite. You see in our kingdom, the royal family must sacrifice their first born daughters to the dragon of Eire or else he'll destroy our entire kingdom."

"Ahh I see sacrifice to the dragon….WHAT!" asked Lina, her eyes as big as saucers. Grabbing a hold of the peasants' collar, she shook the poor man back and forth like a rag doll.

"If we don't the dragon will burn our village to the ground. It's been tradition for quite some time."

"Guys, did you hear that! These wackos are going to sacrifice Filia to a dragon!"

"That's insane, we have to put a stop to this!" said Vargas in a rather stately tone of voice.

"But you can't! No one can stand up against the dragon, if you do we'll all be killed!" wailed the peasant.

--------

Soon Filia's carriage pulled up to the edge of the city. Getting out, Filia looked at all the peasants who had gathered around to see her.

"Is this some sort of party or greeting of some kind?" Filia asked.

"Not quite princess," said one of the guards hoisting Filia up.

"Oh my, where are you taking me? Oh is that a stage you've made up there? Are you going to introduce me to everyone?" asked Filia excitedly, thinking she was really getting the royal treatment. The guards hoisted her up onto the platform.

"Oh my, this really is the royal trea---hey what are you doing? Why do you have rope? What's going on!" screamed out Filia as the guards tied her to a pole.

"Don't worry princess, it'll be over soon enough. Your sacrifice is for the whole kingdom."

"My sacrifice? What the HECK are you people going on about!" yelled out Filia.

The guards finished tying her to the stake and, checking that the rope was tight, they gave the OK to the other guards standing by the sides. Filia was panicking, and justly so, as the stage revealed itself to be a moving platform pulled by horses. Looking into the crowd, Filia saw Lina and the others.

"Miss Lina!" yelled out Filia.

"We're coming for you Filia!" yelled out Lina, trying to move through the throng of peasants.

Soon the noise of the crowd was drowned out by the beating of wings. The dragon in question soon appeared flying in from across the horizon. It was a silver dragon with metallic scales that reflected the sunlight. Landing slowly, the dragon took its place in front of the stand where Filia was tied up.

"I am Eire the ancient dragon! I am here for my sacrifice!" roared the dragon.

Filia simply screamed at the top of her lungs. She clearly didn't want to be sacrificed to anything.

"Ah yes, I see my sacrifice is quite beautiful. You will make a fine meal my young maiden," said the dragon, looking down on Filia with a predatory look.

"You, you can't eat me. That'd be ….. CANNIBALISM!" cried out Filia making a disgusted face.

The dragon was clearly puzzled, even more so once Filia's form began to glow, indicating she was transforming into her dragon state. Easily breaking free of the rope, Filia soared into the air. The peasants gasped as they pointed to the golden dragon flying through the skies.

"Looks like that's our cue guys," said Lina, casting a flight spell. Vargas and Lina flew upwards carrying Gourry, in order to join up with Filia. Not happy with how things were developing, Eire the dragon let out a mighty roar.

"Since I do not have my sacrifice I will level this kingdom to the ground and feast on the inhabitants!" yelled out the mad dragon.

"We'll see about that, Filia, make another pass around. I'm going to finish this guy in one shot…" said Lina with the grin she gets when she's about to cause massive destruction. Filia nodded and made another pass around.

"Run! Run everyone the dragon is going to kill us all!" cried out a peasant, causing the rest of the throng to scramble every which way.

Lina raised her hands in the air and began to chant:

"Darker than the deepest twilight. More crimson than blood that flows, buried in the flow of time, In thy great name I pledge myself to darkness! Those who oppose us shall be destroyed by the power that you and I possess! DRAGON SLAVE!"

A fantastically power red beam of energy erupted from Lina's hands, streaking towards the dragon and obliterating it in a huge explosion of energy. Bits of debris and earth were flung in all directions, as the shockwave from the blast sent the hapless peasants flying. All that was left of the evil dragon was a gigantic smoking crater.

"Heh heh, that felt good. Gotta let loose sometimes ya know…" said Lina smiling.

The peasants, relieved that the dragon had been reduced to ash, cheered up at the band of heroes.

"Way to go! Thanks for freeing us!" they yelled with heartfelt thanks.

Lina, adoring the chance to take some well deserved credit, blew kisses down at the crowd and winked.

"If you don't mind Miss Inverse I think it'd be best if we skipped the celebration and continued on? We've spent enough time here as it is," remarked Vargas.

"Yeah sure thing, Filia, you feel like flying some of the way?"

"No problem Miss Lina."

That having been said, the small band of heroes flew off into the distance.