Who Needs a Princess, When You Can Have a Queen?

Celestia193's Author's Note: Alright, since it seems like we've got some lawyers on our hands, I should probably remind everyone of a few things. First: Minerva nearly kills three people (and a cat) during the games, and no one nails her for it. Second: the Magic Council never nailed Jiemma for forcing his teenage wizards to fight to the death (though that should clearly be illegal). And third: Who is dumb enough to go down onto the field in the hour after Minerva is killed to go and arrest Sasuke while there are still full-scale battles going on? I mean, I'm not a big fan of Lahar, but still…he's not THAT brain-dead. That said, we may (and that is a very tentative may) consider some sort of realistic consequence that WON'T plunge the kingdom into a civil war right after they get attacked by dragons.

Silver's Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. Like Celestia said we may have the Council try something for the sake of at least looking like they're following the law and because we do take reviews into consideration. Though good luck trying to capture Sasuke or detail him when you have the Uchihas, Blue Pegasus, and Fairy Tail protesting his arrest or detainment. Anyway, happy reading. There is a lot of silly family time in this one chapter to look forward to!

Chapter 24

"Sasuke? Sasuke…wake up." A gentle hand pats Sasuke's cheek as warm magic washes over the still form on the ground. "I know that it hurts, but it's best that you wake now."

He felt someone touching him and they were talking, but he was drifting. Drifting in a sea of blackness on the edge of being conscious and not. The voice was so familiar to him, but he couldn't quite place it.

"Sasuke?" The hand pauses a moment. "Chelia, how is he doing?"

A smaller pair of hands touch him, moving along his chest and stomach. "He's still pretty banged up, but it could have been a lot worse. There's nothing broken now, and I've stopped all the bleeding, but I can't restore stamina like Wendy can, so it might take him a few more minutes to come around."

A sigh of relief blows over his face. "Good. Thank you Chelia. And Itachi?"

"He's gonna pull through, don't worry. You guys bashed him up pretty good, though. He's gonna have bruises for weeks, but other than that, he'll be okay." The smaller hands withdraw, as does the magical healing. "I'm gonna go and make sure that Jura's okay."

"Yes, of course. Thank you, Chelia." The larger hand reaches for Sasuke's squeezing it gently. "Sasuke…? Can you hear me? It's Erza."

A name. Erza. It was Erza. What did she want though? He was trying to sleep and Sasuke knew that if he opened his eyes, it was going to be painful. She really was lucky that he loved her. "Mmm?" He probably wouldn't have bothered to open his eyes for a good long while, if anyone else had asked him that who wasn't an Uchiha or from Pegasus.

Above him, and bandaged head to toe, well, at least her torso and her legs, was Erza. She smiles just as gently at him, brushing his bangs aside as dark eyes open. "Welcome back."

"Are you alright?" What about Itachi? "Where's my brother? What about the other contestants?" He had enough presence of a mind to ask about that. Sasuke was on autopilot at the moment though. He doubted he could have strung many more coherent thoughts together.

Erza presses on Sasuke's shoulders, holding him down, just in case. "Itachi is fine. He had some serious internal damage and some broken ribs, but it's been treated for the most part. Everyone is being looked at right now. Gajeel is being stubborn about things, but he was up and walking about half an hour ago." Bandaged up like a mummy, yes, but still, walking was better than not. "Laxus was up first, Itachi released the genjutsu that put him to sleep. Your other teammates were knocked out early by Gajeel, so they're here and no worse for wear. And Milianna and Kagura are going to be alright as well."

Well that was a relief. Though there was still one problem. "I"m glad that everyone is going to be okay." Sasuke pauses as he looks at her. "Do you think they'll be stupid enough to try to arrest me?"

…Erza wasn't actually sure. "They may try. However, there are many laws that are…suspended for the sake of the games. The competition itself is a violation of the treaty banning conflict between the guilds. And there are no rules that explicitly state that actions such as torture, murder, or killing in self-defense are not allowed." It was something that she found rather odd, but Erza was in no place to have those rules amended. "In any case, if they try, they will fail. That much, I can promise you. After all, at the moment, we're not on very good terms with the kingdom, ourselves."

"I'm more worried about them than me." Sasuke shrugs, but then winces. "My family wouldn't allow them to take me, even if I went willingly." And that was assuming Fairy Tail didn't come to his defense. Gajeel might hold a grudge against him, but Sasuke figured Erza would do what she always did in battle. Something equal parts reckless and heroic (and that would likely ensure he had a head of gray hair before he was his father's age at this rate)!

"Yes, you should worry more for them than us." Erza's gaze darkens considerably. "Lest they wish to make enemies of Fairy Tail and Blue Pegasus. And I'm certain that Lamia Scale would stand with us."

He sighs at that and nods. "I don't regret killing her, but I hope I didn't just start a war." Not over that bitch, anyway. There were some things worth fighting for. Minerva wasn't one of them.

Erza blinks, then smiles sympathetically, stroking Sasuke's cheek. "Don't worry. If fighting were to break out, then the blame lies solely with the kingdom. They are the ones who started this, and we will be the ones to end it."

"It's hard to worry when I have you here." Looking suspiciously well recovered. "The healers must really be something." She had been more dead than alive when he killed Minerva and now, she was the one offering him comfort? It would have been funny, if his entire body wasn't in agony.

"I can worry enough for the both of us." She laughs softly, before turning her gaze on the tall spires of the palace worriedly. "…They've been in there for hours…" And yet, there had been no explosions, no fire, not even a mild earthquake. And they'd lost contact with the team as well.

"Maybe, they just asked for a difficult prize to grant or the King is giving them a tour." Sasuke pause as a nagging question resurface in his mind. "Where is Natsu anyway?"

"In the palace." Erza's eyes narrow, expecting to see a signal flare, but seeing nothing. "Leading a team to take back our 'prize' by force from the Royal Army."

"Take back your prize?" Sasuke looks at her in confusion. "What are you talking about and why are you going up against the Royal Army?"

Erza turns her eyes back on Sasuke, lifting his head and placing it in her lap. "In return for winning the games, we were promised an audience with the king to negotiate for the release of one of our members who was arrested on false charges of treason. But, as we do not expect the minister or the king to release her, Natsu, Wendy, and Mira, along with Happy, Carla, and Pantherlily, broke into the palace near the start of today's competition in order to rescue Lucy. They forced our hand, and we are responding accordingly."

Sasuke really wasn't sure what the cats were going to be able to do about anything, but he was more stunned at the fact they were willing to storm the castle. "I don't know what to say..." Other than Lucy apparently had a target on her back wherever she went and they were nuts. "They'll try to keep it under wraps, but with the way Natsu fights, the entire Kingdom will likely be aware of what is going on soon."

"Yes, I assume that as we haven't seen their signal flare to indicate the success of their mission, that they are currently in battle." Though not particularly heated battle, in Erza's opinion. "Likely with the common soldiers, as we've seen no fireballs shattering palace windows and blasting into the sky."

"If they're just fighting foot soldiers, would they know to hold back?" Did Natsu even know the meaning of the word restraint?

"Of course." Erza sighs, toying with raven locks. "It's likely the only reason that the palace remains standing." If Natsu weren't holding back, the palace would likely, at the very least, be tipping over by this point. "We do have an unfortunate reputation concerning…property damage."

"Unfortunate, but accurate." Sasuke smiles at her, enjoying the feeling of her playing with his hair. "I'd help, but I've used up all my chakra."

"It's alright, we were simply the distraction." Well, and the backup plan. But Erza wasn't counting on the king's good graces to get them out of this pinch. "I'm certain that Natsu, Mira, and Wendy can handle things inside. We simply have to rest and recover, and be prepared just in case a battle does break out."

Rest sounded good. "Yeah. I can do that." Sasuke closes his eyes again as he begins to doze off.

Erza runs her fingers through his hair, lulling him to sleep. He deserved it, she had just woken him to make sure that he was alright. He'd taken quite the hit to the head, after all. "Sweet dreams…"

"Is he alright?" A woman who looked suspiciously like Sasuke rushes over. "I saw him go down during the match." A man who vaguely resembled Itachi wasn't far behind her.

Erza raises her eyes to the pair, nodding slowly. "Yes, he is. He's just tired and requires sleep, and time to heal." Examining them both, and noting the reactions, she smiles. "I take it that you are his parents?"

"Yes, I"m Mikoto." She glances at the man. "And this is my husband, Fugaku." Mikoto pauses in a manner that resembled a child trying to sneak into a cookie jar. "And I take it you are my son's lover? Well Sasuke's more specifically." Itachi apparently had a fondness for someone Shisui referred to as a 'She-Devil.'

Cheeks flushing to nearly the same shade as her hair, Erza shakes her head. "Ah, no, we're not…" It was a little early for THAT, wasn't it? "Not…yet."

Fugaku shakes his head. "Forgive my wife." He gives her a look. "She can be rather...direct sometimes." He smiles at her. "Though...I can't entirely blame her for getting that impression. You did look rather fond of each other during the final match." That was putting it lightly.

…Right, they did that while being recorded by the lacrimas. She'd forgotten about that. "Yes…we are certainly fond of each other." Fond enough to start kissing where thousands of people could see them. "I take it, by your reactions, that the two of you do not disapprove?"

Mikoto smiles at her and shakes her head. "We were...not able to be there for him for most of his life. I'm happy that someone else was able to." She rubs the back of her head sheepishly. "And well, I doubt we could really stop him from seeing you, even if we were inclined to do so."

"If he's anything like his mother or grandfather, I assure you that my wife is right about that and it is best not to inquire about details." Fugaku coughs and suddenly finds his sandals fascinating.

Okay, so there was something there that Erza shouldn't ask about. Interesting, but potentially dangerous. Or perhaps simply embarrassing. Better than worrying, as she was about to admit. "I…wish that I could have been there for him more than I was, however, I cannot claim that credit due to circumstances outside of either of our control. The wizards of Blue Pegasus are responsible for raising Sasuke, and supporting him during the years that he thought…well, the worst." That she was dead. Not that she could blame him, it was a logical assumption to make.

Fugaku sighs at that as he watches Sasuke sleep. "Well it seems that we all understand the pain of not being there for the ones we love due to circumstances outside our control." That was putting it mildly. Well he was here now. Maybe, he could at least prevent Sasuke from getting a third tattoo.

"Yes." Erza's fingers twitch, but she remains careful not to cause Sasuke pain or wake him up. "But we will do better this time. We won't fail our family again." She looks up to them, smiling sadly. "And I'm sure that you'll do the same."

"Yes, of course." Mikoto smiles. "Oh and tomatoes, by the way. That's his favorite food." Such things were important for a wife to know about her husband.

Erza blinks, caught a little off guard by the helpful 'advice'. "I see, that makes sense." She'd seen him asking for tomatoes when he was younger, when he used to visit the guild hall. "He ate them frequently when he used to come visit as a child."

Fugaku shakes his head. "Let the boy at least recover before you help the girl pick out her wedding dress." Honestly, his wife was a force of nature sometimes.

"There's no need." Erza shakes her head, a little baffled by the turn in conversation. "I already have a wedding dress in my collection."

Fugaku blinks at that. "..." Well really, how was he supposed to respond to that. "Welcome to the family. Come, My Love. We should go and tell the others that he's going to be alright and have another look at Itachi before we leave?" Mikoto nods and walks off alongside her husband.

Erza watches them leave, utterly perplexed by the strange behavior of Sasuke's parents. "Well, they certainly do fit in with Blue Pegasus." Perhaps…a little too well?


Wincing as he sits up, Itachi eyes his parents warily. They'd just finished no doubt traumatizing Erza, and the last thing he needed was to be subjected to the same treatment regarding Mira. Especially not when he was still recovering from broken ribs and internal bleeding. He'd been treated by Porlyusica, Chelia, and one of the royal healers, and by now, there was really nothing more they could do for him. His energy was being replenished by a potion that Porlyusica had given him, and Sasuke's would likely return while he slept.

That did not mean, however, that he was ready to face an inquisition by his parents. "Mother, Father." He bites back the urge to curse painfully. "How is Sasuke?"

"Sasuke is doing as well as can be expected. He's sleeping peacefully." Fugaku nods at him. "Don't worry. He has a Fairy watching over him. So all things considered, he's rather lucky."

"Yes, he is not the only one." Itachi eyes Shisui suspiciously. His cousin was getting far too close to Cana for that to be without ulterior motives. "Shisui appears to be looking for the comfort of coming in second from his own Fairy." Whereas Itachi's…his was nowhere to be found.

"You are trying to distract us." Mikoto laughs at her son and kisses his forehead. "You always were a clever boy, but I suppose you do need your rest. We'll speak to you about this She-Devil later." She smiles at him.

Itachi gulps. That was not an interrogation that he was looking forward to. "I assure you that there are no developments of note concerning Mirajane." Maybe he could head them off early and save himself a headache? "It is not nearly as…advanced as with Sasuke and Erza." Yes, in this instance, Itachi was more than happy to throw his foolish little brother, who thought that making out in front of thousands of people was a good idea, under the bus.

Fugaku chuckles and shakes his head. "We'll be sure to take that into consideration." He smiles at his eldest son. "How are you feeling besides terrified?"

"I am not terrified." Itachi would never admit to such a thing. "However…" Well, what could he say that wouldn't alarm his parents. "I feel as though I've been hit by a train." Well, he was hit by both Laxus and Erza, so that qualified in his mind. "But, I will recover."

She winces at that. Itachi was clearly in a lot of pain. "If you like, I can see if they'll bring you some cabbage soup." Maybe some of his favorite food would make him feel better.

"Ah…perhaps later." Itachi wasn't sure that he could stomach anything right now. He'd gotten himself a little shredded on the inside, though he suspected that was only to be expected when challenging a dragon slayer. "I am still healing from some internal injuries." Not to mention his newly healing ribs. Those were still rather tender.

Fugaku nods and sighs. "Don't press yourself. You did the right thing." It couldn't have been easy for Itachi. "Yielding so that Sasuke could be properly tended to. I'm proud of you." He shakes his head as a thought occurs to him. "Most of this lot would have done the stupid thing and pressed on anyway."

Well, Itachi hadn't wanted to surrender. Down to the wire, whoever would have won that match would have taken the games for their team. But there had been Sasuke to consider, and then, Erza herself. "It wasn't a fight that was tilted in my favor. Attempting to win by dragging it out would have hurt Sasuke further, and likely caused me permanent injuries." In the end, it hadn't been worth it, and against a match-up like Erza, it just wasn't his fight, not one on one and out in the open with someone seemingly immune to genjutsu and ninjutsu.

"None of those fights were in anyone's favor." Mikoto shakes her head. "I'm surprised these dragon slayers are allowed to compete. Their abilities more closely resemble those of Tailed Beasts than anything."

"And the strongest of Fairy Tail's dragon slayers wasn't even competing today." Itachi wasn't sure how things would have ended had Natsu been competing instead of Juvia. Badly, that was certain. His intelligence or lack thereof, aside, there was no denying that the destructive dragon slayer was powerful. "A Wizard Saint also competed, though I believe that it is for those same reasons that the guild masters are barred from competing." Power and decades of experience? That wouldn't go well for anyone.

Fugaku eyes his son with concern. This world was nothing like their own. "Well I still don't like it, but the Games are over now." So there was nothing for it. "You should get some rest."

Itachi sighs, smiling softly. "You should not let a single competition ruin your opinion of this world. Things are not usually like this. This year it was simply out of control." What with Sabertooth pulling more dirty tricks than usual, and Raven Tail messing things up, and Fairy Tail causing chaos all over the place.

"That is very hard to do when I only have two sons and this competition nearly killed the both of them." Fugaku was far less than pleased by that and he was about to find that damn Iron Dragon Slayer and start chopping off body parts. Starting with his hair…he might work his way down, though. "In any case, you fought well."

Mikoto nods and smiles. "We're very proud of all of you." Especially, Shisui who had been too smart to get involved in this strange competition, it seemed. "And no Fugaku, while it's tempting I don't think you want to attempt to castrate a dragon slayer. You really don't know what might be down there."

"That's a good point." Hmm. "Never mind. Maybe, just his hair then. He should still be unconscious…"

"Uh…" Itachi coughs loudly. "Actually, he was one of the first back on his feet." Dragon slayers were nothing if not sturdy. "And…I believe that he can hear you." Judging by the way that Gajeel's red eyes were garing in their direction. "Dragon slayers have exceptional senses of smell, and just as exceptional hearing."

"Oh good!" Fugaku and Mikoto both glare at him at once. Both parents' eyes just as red, if not redder than the dragon slayer's.

That…wasn't smart. And Itachi was not fond of the look that Gajeel shot back at them. The man didn't know the meaning of fear, that was certain. Well, not when it came to potential opponents. The little blue-haired Fairy, on the other hand, grabs his attention away by elbowing him in the gut, and tugging him away by that long, spiky black mane.

Itachi rolls his eyes at the sight. "There's no use trying to intimidate a dragon slayer, they don't know the meaning of the word fear."

"Then he will damn well learn it." Fugaku snorts.

"You wouldn't be the first to try…" But some lessons just didn't seem to sink in when it came to Fairy Tail. And if the Magic Council, encounters with two of the most powerful dark guilds out there, and the supposed Dragon of the Apocalypse didn't do it, well, Itachi doubted that even his parents could manage it. "Fairy Tail is tenacious and stubborn, to put it lightly. So you may wish to proceed with caution." Then, Itachi frowns. "And keep in mind that we're ALLIED with them." He would rather not sour relations between the guilds for something that happened outside of the games.

Mikoto tries not to twitch at that. "He certainly didn't seem like your ally on that field." At least the red head had shown some restraint. "I will trust your judgment, but if he should happen to accidentally get hit with an Amaterasu, I would not be upset."

Itachi sweatdrops. "Well, we did defeat three of his teammates…and I believe that Sasuke has already introduced him to Amaterasu."

"A few more repeated instances, might deliver the message through his exceedingly thick skull." Mikoto like most parents was not particularly fond of anyone who nearly killed her sons. "And you showed restraint against them." The reverse wasn't true. "Sasuke didn't but that was…self-defense."

Fugaku shakes his head. "We'll leave the matter for another day. I trust your judgment." He sighs as he leans against the wall. "And the fact that Sasuke is practically engaged to a Fairy while Shisui and you are both panting after two other Fairies does make it difficult not to be at least somewhat civil to him."

That, and Gajeel likely had little respect for his elders, and Itachi really didn't fancy his parents' chances against the Iron Dragon Slayer. "I am not 'panting' after a Fairy." He was respectfully pursuing. There was a rather large difference.

"Does your Sharingan activate for this Fairy?" Fugaku smiles at his son.

Itachi's eyes narrow at his father. "I can appreciate that she is a beautiful woman." A beautiful woman who had nearly been wagered away to another man, but he would be sure to rectify that later.

Mikoto giggles and shakes her head. "Then that's the closest to panting an Uchiha gets." She was definitely going to be a grandmother soon.

Displeased by the insinuation, Itachi shoots a scathing look at his mother. "I do not pant as Hibiki, Ren, and Eve, or those fools from Quatro Cerberus do."

"No. They slobber." Mikoto corrects him as she kisses Itachi's forehead. "Get some rest, sweetheart." He was getting wound up over nothing, really.

Rolling his eyes, Itachi leans back against the nearest piece of rubble. And there was plenty of that scattered about from their various battles. Some rest sounded pretty good right about now. He could argue with his mother in the morning.