We waited. My feet were reluctant to move, and I knew so did hers. We stood, arms linked, on the top of the stairs, hidden by the pillar. I knew she was anxious. Her hand was cold. But her smile stayed, and a fire was burning in the depth of those eyes. It was something completely different from how it was that noon. There was no trace of tears. She had returned to the woman I knew.

"I wasn't even nervous on our marriage day," she whispered, "but now I do."

I squeezed her hand.

"We will be fine."

A Tale from Thelua

[20] heart to heart

Lucy had her eyes set on the man in front of her. A set of onyx eyes stared back at her, and he mouthed "it's okay" at her. It was the fifth time this evening. Natsu had been telling her this since they descended to the hall, during the king's speech and queen's blessing to the knights, and even as they danced. Was she that easy to read?

"No, but I know how nervous you are," Natsu whispered as they moved to dance closer, walking in circles to the tempo of the music. Lucy paid more attention to her steps, being extra careful with her shoes more than the small smirk Natsu had on his face. "He won't do anything rash with most of the attention falls on him like this."

Lucy glanced past Natsu's shoulder, spotting the siblings of the royal family who was dancing a distance away from them. Wendy's small figure seemed to be overwhelmed by Zeref's height, but they danced nicely, nevertheless. The ladies on the sides were also watching the pair of siblings with such intensity and she remembered how they gasped in silence when Zeref stepped up to dance.

"I think I'm more worried about the ladies now," Lucy sighed. "They must be seeing this as a golden chance to introduce themselves, yet he would only dance with Wendy and me."

"I thought you already knew," Natsu said, then continued with a lower voice, "that he is already betrothed. Though, it's still unannounced."

When Lucy was going to ask who the lady was, the music came to an end. Natsu bowed and mouthed "good luck" to her, in which she returned with a firm nod. To the sound of her name called, she turned and saw Wendy and Zeref walking toward her and Natsu. At that time, she knew he would come to her, but she certainly had no idea when he asked her to accompany him walking instead of dancing.

Of course, she couldn't deny it. If anything, she was a little bit relieved to be able to escape from the stares of the ladies. But it was short-lived when she realized that neither Wendy or Natsu could come along. It was implied, and even though Natsu clearly opposed the idea, he knew better than creating a fuss.

"Brother, where will you take Lucy?" He asked, instead. "I hope it has nothing to do with a closed space."

Zeref chuckled. "Fear not, little brother. We will just be walking around the garden because tonight, as you can see, is a full moon."

Natsu looked at Lucy and she gave him a small nod. "Alright. I will be waiting at the usual place, then."

Lucy knew what Natsu meant by it – his hiding place behind the tapestries. Natsu and Wendy walked away, and she let Zeref walked first before she followed him several steps behind him. They left through the door on the west side of the hall, meaning they weren't going to the garden with the wisteria flower, which was quite a relief to Lucy. She didn't really want to remember what happened this noon at that place.

Neither of them talked as they walked. The click and clack of her heels were the only sound that accompanied them through the empty corridor. From the window, she saw the full moon hanging in the sky, casting a dim light to the garden outside. Only when they exited the corridor and stepped into the garden that she realized that the scenery was almost similar to the one she had in her memory.

When Zeref stood facing the fountain, Lucy was reminded to the familiar sight yet in a different place. It was a small fountain of a park on the edge of Feliose's small town that bordered Thelua. Someone was standing there, head hung low with a wooden sword resting at his feet. When he picked up the wooden sword and started moving, she thought she saw him dancing. And without her realizing, she was watching him from behind a tree, silently wishing to see his face.

The wind brought her back to the present, to the man in front of her who watched her in silence. She wondered if he found the stolid indifference of her face interesting because even as she glanced away, she kept on getting the feeling of being stared at.

"If you are aware of the new rumor staring us, I think you have a bad taste of choosing a place to talk with me," Lucy said, breaking the silence between them.

"I can't treat it as a rumor," he replied.

Lucy's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Rumor is a mixture of the truth and untruth, after all," he explained. "To me, it's a fact."

A fact. The simple word sounded heavy to her. Lucy walked to the fountain and sat on its edge. Her eyes found the distorted reflection of the moon on the rippling water. "What you did today was unnecessary, Zeref."

She could almost hear him smiling as he spoke. "Maybe it's unnecessary to you, but to me, it's quite the opposite."

"Provoking Natsu is not a wise move, and I believe both the king and the queen would be opposed to the idea as well."

"I'm not provoking my brother, nor did I give the king and the queen any ideas. I was just trying to impress the woman I love." Lucy glanced at him as he knelt in front of her, took her hand and kissed her there. "Or am I wrong?"

If anything, Lucy was more bothered with how quick her heart was beating as his eyes met hers rather than the kiss. She would be lying if she wasn't feeling embarrassed, but she tried her best not to let it show. Yet she found herself wavering, swayed by the sudden burst of feeling that had been suppressed throughout the passing years. It felt warm, but heavy at the same time. As if there was something that jabbed her chest. The more she tried to discern it, the more she felt confused about it.

It felt true, yet wrong.

"I've been missing you," he whispered, pulling her close as he stood, "I've always been wanting to see you."

The last time she saw him was somewhere around two years ago, in which she was appointed by her father the king as the delegate from Feliose to meet with the one of Thelua. The last time she saw him was when he stood behind Thelua's king's advisor. The last time she talked with him was the night before the day of the conference. The last time she touched him was when he hugged her, when he whispered the promise to her ear.

"You broke the promise," Lucy found herself whispering, hand clenched at her sides.

There was something in his gentle eyes when she said that. "I did… And I've always regretted it."

"You never told me that you aren't an ordinary knight."

"I was going to tell you about it when we meet again the night after the conference."

Her eyes burned, voice rising, she pushed her confusion aside. What used to be a wall to suppress all about him broke. Everything was spilled – her thought, her feelings. "You didn't come. No matter how long I waited, you never come."

He fell into complete silence.

"You lied, Zeref," she said finally, sighing. "And after all of that, you are a fool for having that feeling unchanged."

She, too, was a fool herself.

Now I understand how hard it was for Natsu.

His hold on her shoulder was released. Zeref took a step back before sighing. "Is it because my brother is the one who will be the next king that you choose him?"

His usual warmth was gone for a moment. Lucy glanced up at him, noticing how the obsidian eyes could be so cold. There was no trace of a smile that once there, nor the hopeful light in his eyes. He turned into someone she didn't recognize. It almost scared her.

"No," she denied. "It's because that's how the agreement between Thelua and Feliose is. If it's said that I have to marry you, then I will. It has nothing to do with Natsu being the next king or you are being the Flower Knight. I only think about the best outcome for the people of Thelua and Feliose."

When he said nothing, she took his hand and held it, smiling a little. "I am simply fulfilling my duty as a princess. My personal feeling has nothing to do with it. If it's my heart that you seek from me, then I can't and will never be able to give it to you. I have decided that I will only give it to my husband."

Lucy released his hand and walked past him. "We have been absent longer than I expected. I will take my leave first," she said. "Good evening, Your Highness."

When Lucy was back in the hall, carefully avoiding the guest and reached Natsu's hiding place, only then she realized how the nail that was digging into the skin on her palm caused a small wound. And only when Natsu's arms warped around her that she let out the tears she didn't know she had been holding.

Around that time, Lucy wasn't sure if she should be feeling thankful or guilty. But the hand that ran across her back comforted her. At last, Natsu asked, "What were you two doing?"

"Talking," she managed to reply clearly despite the sobs. "Explaining things."

There was uncertainty in his voice. "Is it settled?"

Lucy clenched his suit. "I don't know."

"It's okay," Natsu whispered.

She nodded.

"It's okay."

i'm sorry for the delay. the past months has been really hard for me. thank you for reading :)