Welcome to my LucyxHarem fic. Lemons later and violence throughout. Hiro Mashima owns Fairy Tail. Story has been picked up from hiatus as of July 2021.
Lucy Heartfilia was one of the most respected musicians in the land; called to kingdoms everywhere for her beautiful charm and music. Those who listened to her play said that as her notes graced the heavens, the angels came to watch her play below. No one would expect someone so famous to be scurrying around a town bustling with excitement in broad daylight alone.
The woman was clothed in commoners clothing and had covered her golden hair with the hood from her darkened burlap cloak. She bounced with a skip along the cobblestone pavement under the numerous colored paper banners stretched across the street. Her brown eyes glistened as she moved from stall to stall to smell the different delicacies and gaze deeply into the hazy pastels of the artistic displays. The streets were bustling with laughter and merriment; friends walked arm in arm with drinks and food in hand. Lucy could hear the happy gossip of townspeople around her, sharing the news of event preparations and of the royal family. A flower booth drew the attention of the musician as she allowed the gracious breeze to blow the wondrous smell across her path. The conversation of a particular group of young women turned the blonde's head as she easily eavesdropped while browsing the blooms.
"Oh, don't you worry, you aren't the only one who wishes they could have a night with the prince, but it won't happen for any of us." The group of three meandered in the nearby stall and began trying on silk scarves and simple jewelry.
"Which one of the princes do you fancy, Lisanna?" Silence followed as a faint blush crossed the white haired girl's cheeks before the other girls relentlessly badgered the girl into confession.
"Prince Natsu," her voice said meekly. The other girls giggled at her as if reveling in an inside joke. The musician thought it was odd that anyone would laugh at their own friend's confession.
"He's only third in line, you know. He probably won't ever become king."
"I-I-I don't care about that." Her voice trembled as a faint blush spread across her cheeks.
"I think the prince would be lucky to court my little sister." Lucy watched another white haired woman join the group. Her hair wasn't short like Lisanna's but was long with a glittery sheen. "Definitely related." The musician smiled as she agreed with her own statement happily watching the two interact. "If I had my choice, it would be the devilish blonde one, of course."
"Mira, everyone knows already," one of the other girls mumbled.
"She already knows she'll have to get in line behind every other woman in Fiore. That man is simply a work of art."
"Not to mention that his lightning dragon tattoo matches his hair perfectly."
"Honestly, why didn't the other princes choose to get dragons that matched their hair? Prince Gajeel's is grey and Prince Natsu's is red…" Lucy fiddled with the delicate chain around her neck; the mention of dragons was stirring an old feeling of nostalgia deep in the back of her mind. She could recognize a voice telling her a story about princes and dragons. "Was that mother? How did that story go again?" The blonde scrunched her face under her hood as she tried to remember.
"Oh, I almost forgot the time! The lovely Lady Heartfilia will be performing within the hour. Shall we freshen up?" Lucy shot to attention and sprinted down the street towards the castle. She had been a bit carried away with all the excitement and had forgotten the time herself.
The famous woman had recently been invited to the kingdom of Fiore to play in the upcoming coronation and festivities. The event was rumored to be magnificent as the entire kingdom would wait with anticipation to see King Igneel crown his successor. She could hardly wait a week to find out who the new king would be herself.
Lucy had only been in the kingdom for a day yet every passing moment had been filled as she settled her things into her temporary residence: a room at the top of one of the towers. The blonde had hoped to escape into town for a bit unnoticed before her performance, but she certainly hadn't left herself much room for error. After a few minutes the musician slipped into her room and wiped the sweat off her brow.
From her window, the young woman could see the entire valley, bustling with townspeople. The town that lay at the base of the castle was Fairy Tail, and it was certainly the one that had shown the most excitement for this festival. She smiled warmly as she looked out at the sunset over the horizon; the golden orange hues poured into her window and across her face. Tonight the palace was starting the festival with a dance. Every person in the entire kingdom was invited.
Lucy clothed herself in her most stunning outfit. The forest green dress swept the floor. Her long sleeves fluttered by her side, and the dress pulled tightly around her hips and around her waist. The satin flowed over her skin and spread flatteringly across her chest. Small sequins graced the front and seams of her dress. Her hair was pulled back into a long braid.
Lucy ran through her mental checklist. "Dress? Check. Harp? Downstairs. Looking your best?" The blonde stood in front of her graciously provided floor length mirror and turned to all angles. She nodded with approval as she adjusted the fundamental piece of her outfit; the delicate chain around her neck carried a small crystal star in the hands of a golden dragon. It rested safely on her chest; only those standing close enough to reach out to her could possibly distinguish the intricate design.
"You look absolutely stunning." Lucy jumped in surprise.
"Loke, I didn't hear you come in."
Her assistant laughed at the comment. "I just wanted to come check on you. You got ready alright without Virgo's help?"
The blonde threw him a scowl. "Thought I couldn't handle myself for one evening? I knew what I signed up for when I told you all to take the night off."
"Milady, I know that you are quite capable, but you are about to miss your performance."
Lucy's eyes widened as she lifted her skirt and weaved her way to the door with a quickened pace. In her rush, she tripped over the carpet. Two arms caught her as she fell. The blonde found herself staring into Loke's eyes as he stood over her. A light blush graced her cheeks.
Loke saw her reaction and laughed. "Don't tell me that you're falling for me now, princess."
Lucy's cheeks blushed even more than before as she struggled to get up in her ballgown. "You idiot, just help me up. I'm already late enough as is."
The royal court sat in the ballroom, awaiting the announced musician. Whispers bounced around the cavernous room.
"I've heard that her music is from the heavens."
"She's told to be the most beautiful woman in the land."
A certain pink-haired prince leaned against the balcony, clearly bored. "Can I leave yet? I wanna eat."
"Oh, don't be so rude. This young lady traveled quite a distance to give this performance for you, your brothers, and the entire kingdom." The queen scolded her son.
"Grandeeney, let him be. The poor sap needs to learn these lessons for himself."
The queen giggled and poked her husband. "He reminds me of someone I used to know. Care to take a guess, King Igneel?" She teased with mock seriousness.
"I was never like that!"
"Mhmm…"
The weary king quickly noticed his losing hand in this fight and turned his attention elsewhere. "Laxus, Gajeel!" The two princes turned towards their father. "Take Natsu down to the ground floor and make him dance first. Today you boys will represent the Dragneel family with our people below. Make us proud."
The older boys nodded in return and dragged Natsu downstairs. As they began to walk among the commoners, people stopped to stare at the three handsome princes. Laxus stood strong with a permanent scowl on his mouth as he walked ahead. Natsu smiled a toothy grin and waved to a small group of girls, who all fainted promptly. Gajeel wore a similar expression to his older brother, cold and stony. Altogether, two of the princes looked like prickly cacti, and one like a friendly cat; they were an extremely intimidating bunch of men.
As the princes reached the front, Natsu turned to his brothers. "Now what? Who am I supposed to dance with?"
"Dance with whomever you choose, prat, you are a prince after all. As long as you're dancing, no one cares." Gajeel snapped.
"I would listen to him. Father is trusting for you to not ruin this chance to make a good impression on your kingdom, including the ladies." Laxus pointed out calmly.
"Fine. Lemme see..." Natsu's eyes swept across the ballroom. The townsfolk almost seemed to hold their breath as the prince made his choice. "Perfect!" The prince reached into the crowd and pulled out a pretty girl with short white hair. "What's your name?"
"L-L-Lisanna. Lisanna Strauss."
"Haha! That's great! Wanna dance with me Lisanna?" The prince's playful disposition enamored the ladies nearby; Lisanna was no different.
"S-s-sure!"
A pair of frosty eyes stared at the jovial prince from afar. "Looks like Natsu has caught himself another hen, eh?" A short blunette joined the serious man.
"I don't know what they see in him, those poor girls." The knight replied icily.
"Oh, come off it Gray. You're just jealous that your best friend can get more girls than you can!"
"First, Levy, you know that fool is not my friend; I'm only duty bound and you know that. Second, he only gets more girls because he's the prince." Levy giggled at his response before twirling and dancing away. She mocked sadness before saying, "My heart goes out to the knight with no romantic experience." The girl then darted into the crowd before the armored man could catch her.
"Rogue, are you sure this'll be worth it? The so-called goddess is quite late if I do say so myself." The blonde man tapped his foot with impatience.
"We're lucky to get to see her at all, you know that Sting. Traveling expenses from Sabertooth to this castle are quite large; plus the fact we paid to get into this performance as well." The dark-haired man shuffled uncomfortably amongst the crowd.
"I know, you used our entire goddamn life savings to come see this performance." The two men were standing as far in front as commoners were allowed. Sting flirted occasionally with the girls around him, but his eyes always returned to the empty stage. Most of the crowd was unaware of the tension building in the ballroom as the famed Lucy Heartfilia became more and more late with each passing minute.
Two hooded men stood in the corner of the ballroom.
"She's late." The first figure said with boredom laced in his voice.
"That doesn't affect our mission. Stay on task."
"Jeez, you're such a bore, Jellal. This woman is revered like a goddess. I certainly am going to watch this performance to see what they mean." The first figure chuckled. "Who knows? Maybe I can have some fun with her too if she gets to know me."
Jellal knocked the first figure on the back of his head. "Tch, you immature snake."
The stage was set. The crowd was ready to dance, the harp sat waiting to be played. The only thing missing was the wonderful musician.
Conversation in the room dropped off completely when Lucy descended from the staircase leading into the ballroom. Her pretty face and smile dazzled the room. Six hearts quickened involuntarily and eight sets of eyes opened wider at her beauty as she gracefully moved towards the king and queen.
She took a deep curtsy. "Your Royal Highness," She took another deep curtsy," Your majesty, I am deeply sorry for arriving so late. Would you like me to begin playing now?"
Grandeeney rolled her eyes at her husband's flustered face and spoke in his stead. "Of course, my darling, take all the time you need."
Voices became whispers across the ballroom as Lucy nodded and began to walk towards the stage. The crowd parted for the woman as if she was an angel or the queen herself. Her forest green dress swept the stage and bellowed out around her as she sat down to play the beautiful harp before her.
A pregnant silence blanketed the room in anticipation as her delicate fingers plucked the first strings.
