Prince Jellal…I never expected him to look so…in shambles. I knew that migraines could take a lot out of someone, but even at the end of the day, the prince was still human. Even those in the highest of standings can succumb to illness. Still, at least he was feeling better. Enough to give me an introduction anyway. However, the invitation to join him in the gardens was unexpected. He knew as well as I did that it was my job to follow him wherever he may go, yet he still asked me.

His Highness seemed so kind…So caring. When I watched him walk, he didn't even carry himself with any sense of regality. I hope he really does end up ruling over Fiore. He'll make a great leader one day. Although, something else about him seemed…I'm not sure. The prince had an air of familiarity to him. Of something I've felt before. Yet, I couldn't put my finger on what it was or when it may have happened or where it could be. Something in my gut told me I could trust him. Perhaps it's the title, but then again, he didn't get that title by birthright.

As we walked through the gardens, I took a moment to appreciate my surroundings. The rows and rows of rosebushes and lilies and tulips and vines upon vines were definitely a sight. The gardens were blanketed in a lush shade of green with different pops of blues, reds, white, orange, pinks, and purples all throughout. Yes…A beautiful sight indeed. Even after living here for a week, I still couldn't believe this was where I lay my head at night.

"So," His Highness broke the silence between us, "Could I ask you something?"

"Please, Your Highness," I insisted, "Ask me anything you'd like."

"Why did the king and queen choose you as my new guard?" he wondered.

"I'm not really sure," I admitted, "If we're being honest. Maybe it's because I'm not like any other guards you've had before."

"And what makes you different?"

"Well," I held back a smile, "I'm not exactly a knight, but I am a highly skilled fighter. And I'm also a wizard."

The prince stopped in his tracks, not even looking back at me, "You're a wizard?"

"Yes," I nodded, "Is there something wrong with that?"

"Not at all," he smiled, "What kind of magic do you practice?"

"I use requip magic," I gave him a quick demonstration, changing into my celestial armor, "It's also how I access all of my weaponry, too. I have quite the collection."

"I have no doubt," His Highness applauded, "That's very impressive. And you say you're also a skilled fighter?"

"Yes, Your Highness," I confirmed.

"No," he stopped me, "Stop that."

"Stop what?" I wondered, going over the last five minutes in my head. What could I have possibly done wrong? How could I have offended him? It's not like we've spoken much. Is it the fact that I practice magic? Or because I'm not a knight? I could've sworn that sort of thing would've have been much of a bother to him.

"Your Highness," the prince explained, "That doesn't sit right. It doesn't sound right when it comes out of your mouth. So, stop."

"Yes, sir," I quit immediately, "What would you rather me call you?"

"When it's just the two of us," he thought, "Like it is now, you can call me Jellal. Just Jellal. Nothing more. Nothing less."

"I…" His boldness caught me off guard, "I couldn't, sir. You're…You. You're the prince of the realm. I couldn't call you by your first name so casually like that."

"Please," His Highness assured, "I insist. It's not a problem with me. Go ahead."

He is above me. And I do have to do as he asks. If it doesn't threaten his personal safety, I have no say in it. My hands were tied, "Alright then. And when we're in mixed company?"

"I suppose I can deal with the formality for the sake of formality," he let out a heavy sigh, "It's not like I asked for it, but it was better than what I had, so I'll live."

"I know what you mean," I admitted, "Things weren't always as easy as they are now for me either."

"Erza, right…?" Jellal asked.

"That's right," I nodded, "What is it?"

"Do you think…" a little smile stretched cross his face, "Maybe we could spar sometime?"

"I really couldn't do that," I stopped him, "I know you said it was ok for me to call you by your first name, but the two of us sparring? They could court martial me for that! I'm supposed to be keeping you safe, not be the one putting you in harm's way. Or being harm's way, for that matter."

"They wouldn't court martial you if it was on my order," Jellal pointed out the loophole, "If I ordered you to be my sparring partner, there would be nothing they could do about it. Besides, I'm curious as to what it's like to go against a full-fledged wizard. Especially one that boasts your kind of skill. I promise I would take full responsibility for it and the most either one of us would get would be a slap on the wrist."

"Honestly," I thought it over, merely toying with the idea, "If it were to come down to it and we were to go up against each other, excuse me for saying this, but I'd have the upper hand."

"And how do you figure?" he asked, genuinely intrigued.

"Because," I reminded him, "I have my magic. I've taken out monsters four times my size on my own. Some even bigger. I've fought against some of the strongest wizards Fiore has to offer and I always come out on the other side mostly unscathed. Sometimes, they get lucky and get a few good swings in, but it's not often. I didn't get to be an S-class wizard on my good looks alone. You can ask any of my guildmates. Some of them respect me out of fear and some fear me out of respect. For your own safety, we should keep that idea of sparring out of your head."

As we continued walking along the stone path, a few rocks started floating in front of my face. I took a quick look around, making sure no one else was out here but us. But then, I turned around and noticed Jellal's smile tighten up into a devious smirk, "Bold of you to assume that I don't know magic, too."

I guess one really should never judge a book by its cover. Although, if I said I wasn't surprised, I'd be lying, "You're a wizard, too?"

"I wouldn't say I'm a full blown wizard," he explained, tossing the rocks aside without laying a hand on them, "I'm more of a hobbyist. Occasionally, I like to use telekinetic magic to cause minor mischief around the palace. It gets boring, being shut up in my bedroom with nothing to do but be miserable. I needed to do something to occupy my time. Not many in the palace know I can do that, but I figured you'd be able to appreciate it."

"It's quite remarkable," I applauded, "It's not often I meet a telekinetic."

"From what I understand," Jellal went on, "They're far and few in between. Hence why I picked up the art in the first place. Although, Mother and Father don't exactly approve of it. Mother's thoughts on the average wizard aren't exactly favorable. Unless you're a Wizard Saint, you're merely a street magician to her."

"I got that impression when she and I first met," I confessed, "But forgive me. That was rude."

"It was more accurate than rude," he chuckled a bit to himself, "I do love her, but some of her world views aren't…Let's just say as open minded as they could be. That's why I practice my magic in secret."

"If you don't mind me asking," I thought for a moment or two, "What's stopping me from telling Their Majesties right now about your practices? Not only did you tell me, but you showed me as well."

"You wouldn't do that," Jellal assured, "You have a very trustable heart, Erza. I can tell. You wouldn't tell the king and queen about this. Because that would mean you'd never get to see it again."

He had me in a box. I wasn't going to tell them. I knew that when he told me it was a secret practice. But for him to know so quickly fascinated me. It made me curious if he was more than just telekinetic, but perhaps he's also telepathic as well. There's only one way to find out. Since we're being so honest with each other in this garden.

"So," I asked, "You're telekinetic?"

"Among a few other things," he nodded, "Yes."

"Is that where your headaches come from?" I assumed.

"No," Jellal took a seat at the edge of the center fountain, his previously jovial face falling more and more with each passing second, "Those are for a different reason."

"I'm sorry," I joined him, "I didn't mean to bring up anything painful."

"No, no," he shook his head, "It's not that. I almost wish it was painful. That would mean I remembered something."

Suddenly, I could feel it. I knew exactly the feeling he was talking about. I could feel it in the back of my head as if my own headache was about to start, "Do you often get gaps in your memory?"

"Only when I think back to when I was young," Jellal told me, "I don't really get much from then. Although, I remember when I came to the palace for the first time after being taken from the bad place. The first time I got to sleep in a comfortable bed and have hot food in my stomach. I had never felt anything like it. And it was wonderful. Almost indescribable. I sat in the dining room for an hour straight, eating more and more. I didn't stop eating until someone stopped me. One would think I slept well that night…But I didn't. There was a nagging feeling in my heart…Guilt. I remember the bad place was bad, but there was something I left behind. And I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out what that was. It kept me up that night."

"I'm sorry to hear that." It's nice that Jellal is comfortable enough with me to vent like this, but hearing what he had to say broke my heart. There was something he cared about. And he must have cared a great deal to lose sleep over it. But it wasn't my place to pry. Perhaps some quid pro quo might be an order, "I get like that, too."

"What do you mean?" he wondered, his interest piqued, "You're an S-class wizard with, from what you've told me, unmatchable strength. I doubt you'd ever succumb to something like this."

"Forgive me," I apologized, "But you're wrong. When I'm stressed and have that feeling that I may let everyone down, I get anxious. And that anxious feeling pulls me down a dark hole that I never see the light out of. When that happens, I can sometimes completely shut down. But that's only the worst-case scenario. Sometimes, I remember all of my friends at the guild hall, my family, and their support pulls me out. That…That's my light. And when I see that light, I latch on and let it pull me out of that darkness. Because that's what it's there for. It may seem out of reach at the time, but then, there's that split second where it's just within my grasp. I hold on and I never let it go."

"So…" Jellal stared up into the bright, blue sky, his mind wandering, "You do understand."

"I will never make you talk about anything you don't want to," I assured, "But if you ever need to, you can always talk to me…Jellal."

That felt so foreign to me. I haven't had to do much for dealings with the royals. That was usually something Master Makarov took care of. But to address one so informally…It went against everything I was ever taught. Yet, I had Jellal's permission. I had a feeling he told me things today that he has never told another soul. But he trusted me.

"You know," Jellal smiled, the light returning to his eyes, "I've never been to a guild hall before. What's yours like?"

"Hectic," I giggled, "If I could sum up the Fairy Tail guild hall in one word, it'd be hectic. It's not much for sparring matches to be going on while we're all having breakfast. That is, until I walk in."

"What do you mean?"

"That's when they all stop," I went on, "The usual ruffians in the guild hall know that I like some peace and quiet while I have my breakfast in the morning, so they'll usually tone it down when they know I'm there."

"And if they don't know you're there?" he wondered.

"Then, I make sure they know," I grumbled, "Although, these particular wizards know when I walk into a room. It's like a sixth sense to them. But those two have also squabbled like brothers for as long as I've known them, so I'm not surprised. They think I don't know they fight behind my back, but I know better. It's just what they do."

"Do you think I could see it for myself?" Jellal requested, "The Fairy Tail guild hall?"

"You want to see my guild hall?" I gasped, "I don't know if that'd be the wisest decision…But I also have orders to follow you wherever you go."

"In that case," he got up from the fountain, offering me his hand, "Erza…Could you please escort me to the Fairy Tail guild hall?"

It's not like I could refuse his orders. But to take him to the Fairy Tail guild hall? I didn't even know if I was allowed to take him away from the palace. I'm sure there was someone we'd have to see about that. If anyone, at least the queen. It's best I have my bases covered before we go, "Should we tell someone we're leaving?"

Jellal looked over my shoulder toward my little shadow, who had stayed put like a good boy when we came out here, "You!"

"Me, Your Highness?" Roland jumped out of his skin.

"Yes, you," Jellal confirmed, "Go tell the king and queen that Erza and I are going to town for the afternoon."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Roland nodded, "When should I tell them you'll be back?"

"I'm not sure," Jellal thought it over, "Likely before dark."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Roland ran off inside, following orders. He's a good, little squire.

"Alright then," Jellal pulled me onto my feet, "Lead the way."