Sorry for this late and short update, but I have so much work to do for school as well as a summer job and I haven't gotten much of a chance to just sit down and write.

Chapter 9

Lucy and the prince were currently crouching behind a pillar, hoping that the group of Hearts soldiers passing by wouldn't notice them. Loke had gone back to the Spirit World, saying that it was easier to hide as a group of two than three.

The soldiers passed, and the two quickly moved on. The prince told her there was a safehouse for himself and the king where they were supposed to hide. The quickest way to reach it was by taking a shortcut through the garden then finding the secret library passageway. Lucy thought this kind of thing seemed much more exciting in her books, but right now her heart was hammering against her chest. Even Natsu seemed calmer, though she supposed he could just be good at hiding his feelings.

There was something weighing on her mind ever since the other Lucy told her to take care of the prince. Hesitant to ask, she waited until they were completely alone on the path to the garden to bring it up. "Can I ask you something Na- I mean Prince, er, your highness?"

He turned around, offering a small smile. "Just call me Natsu. I'm sure it's weird for you."

"No kidding." Imagining Natsu Dragneel of all people as a calm and noble prince like the one before her… No way. She remembered how weird it was when she discovered how different the Edolas Natsu was from his Earthland counterpart with his love of vehicles and how afraid he was of her. Their relationship, as in her and Natsu, was always interesting in alternate worlds. No matter how different their personalities were, they always ended up as friends somehow. According to Lisanna even more in the case of Edolas. She cleared her throat, waving away the memory.

"I was just wondering about your Lucy here." And her past especially. "I mean," Lucy thought, "Jellal as her brother? Secret long lost princess? Who wrote this fairy tale?"

"Oh I see. Well for one thing your magic is pretty similar. She uses Heavenly Light. I know you know about her being the 'Golden Knight' et cetera, and her rank in the court. She's also my bodyguard."

"Bodyguard?" Lucy turned around, thinking that there was some noise behind her. There was nothing, so she dismissed it as paranoia. Who wouldn't get nervous in this situation?

"Yes. I'm…" He started. Pause. He furrowed his eyebrows. "Is it really that strange for a prince to have a personal bodyguard?"

"Oh not at all! Again, it's just weird for me knowing how my Natsu is."

He nodded his head. "And your Natsu… what's his magic like?"

"On Earthland Igneel, your father, is a dragon. He taught Natsu Fire Dragon Slayer magic, which is insanely destructive and quite the annoyance on jobs. It's pretty useful in the winter. " Lucy joked. In winter she would be a lot more affectionate with him, although she could admit that it wasn't entirely because of the cold. Walking in this snow, she almost wished he was here right now. According to Prince Natsu, the garden existed in a bubble, and it was warm in there.

"Fire magic! As you know, I use ice."

"Right, like our friend Gray."

Natsu looked sad for a moment. "Right, Gray. He was my friend when we were kids. Once Ur stopped faking diplomacy and visiting other kingdoms, I couldn't see him again." He hesitated before starting again. "If Lucy asked you to watch over me, there's something you should know."

Natsu had stopped and turned around, but he was looking at his shoes rather than at her. Lucy wanted to hear him out, but several horsemen were coming their way fast, holding lances and scowling at them. Two in the back of their formation were holding Hearts Kingdom banners.

"Natsu, get out of the way!"

She tackled him and they rolled into the snow right as the soldiers charged past, nearly skewering them. They stopped, and some changed their lances for swords. Lucy didn't hesitate before summoning Taurus, one of her biggest spirits.

"Are you okay?" Lucy gave him a hand.

"I'm fine." He brushed some snow off his shoulder.

"She trusted me to protect you, so just stay behind me." It was weird saying that to Natsu's face knowing how many times he had protected her. Well anyways, this was a lookalike, not Natsu himself.

She wasn't sure right now about how much training this Natsu had, or how strong he was. All she knew was that he used ice magic, so she decided to rely on her own strength instead. With Taurus summoned, he used his axe to knock some of the soldiers away and scared off some of the horses.

Still, there were so many of them. How could she take care of all of them at once? Her eyes glanced around the terrain. They were on a pathway from one tower to the gardens, and it was basically open. There was no water, nothing but snow, and no cover either.

She changed into her Sagittarius Star Dress, hoping to knock a bunch out at once. Some of the soldiers had produced shields, and she wondered if this group was a group of non magic users.

"Woah!" She heard the other Natsu exclaim from behind. She couldn't help but smile. Her transformation had purposefully been flashier than usual, knowing that he'd never seen this type of magic before.

Lucy took a deep breath as Taurus struggled to fight the group before him. They had firmly planted themselves in the snow, not allowing him to knock them around. He couldn't exactly shatter the ground here either, since the snow was deep. She drew back the bow, closing her eyes.

"Star Shot!"

A flurry of arrows rained upon the soldiers. It almost seemed like starlight. The majority of the soldiers had been knocked out by Taurus and her attack, yet a few remained standing.

"Taurus, you can go!" He went away, and Lucy immediately summoned Loke. Hand to hand combat would be best against a few soldiers.

"Miss me, Princess?"

"Shut it."

She changed into her Leo Star Dress. She definitely had to talk to her spirits about designing more weather appropriate versions later on, but for now, she charged the soldiers alongside her spirit. Her initial guess had probably been right, since none of them had used magic at all. If this world was anything like Earthland, most of the people wouldn't be practicing mages, making most of Ur's army regular soldiers.

She moved in and grabbed one guy's wrist, twisting it. He dropped his sword to the ground and tried to push her away, but she smirked as her leg glowed with the power of Regulus.

"Lucy kick!"

The man doubled over, holding the sensitive area Lucy had just attacked.

"That's enough!" The other one grunted. He didn't have a weapon, but he tried to punch her in the face. In the corner of her eye, Lucy could see Loke struggling.

"Natsu!" Two soldiers made a move to get him, but he ran from them. Why didn't he just use his magic? She punched her enemy in the jaw, and winced when he spat blood. He growled and latched his hands around Lucy's throat. She couldn't breathe, Loke was struggling, and Natsu still wouldn't use his magic. Why?

"Lucy!" Her spirit and the prince called for her in unison. The prince bit his lip and stood his ground. Lucy recognized his stance, and she realized he was about to use his ice make magic.

A hammer materialized, not as cartoonishly gigantic as Gray would have made it, but it was effective. It hit the soldier choking her in his side, and he fell over. Lucy gasped for air and watched, horrified, as Natsu fell over too. Unmoving. What just happened?

"Loke, go back!"

"But-"

She glared at him with tears in her eyes. "Listen to me." In a flash of light he returned to the Celestial Spirit realm and she sprinted over to Natsu, who was definitely passed out.

"Natsu? Wake up!" He was definitely breathing, but she couldn't figure out what had suddenly caused him to faint. The two soldiers left standing who were chasing him chuckled and gruffly picked her up by her arms. Lucy cried at their grip, already imagining the bruises she would have from this.

One of them put Natsu over his shoulder like a sack and said, "C'mon miss. We're taking you to Lyon."