Hey everyone! Sorry for not updating for awhile. As a heads up, my updated days will be either Tuesday or Sunday.

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Chapter 2: Catching up

Honeysuckle and pine. Erza sighed with content. She buried her head further into the pillow while keeping her eyes closed. Blanketed by a field of soft and fluffy sensation was a feeling she was not used to. Hugging the pillow closer to her, she lazily opened her eyes while a dull pang hit her right arm as she moved it. "Huh?" Sitting up caused a wave of shooting pain in her head and limbs. Crashing back down against the pillow, she examined her bandaged arm and assessed the parts of her body that was cared for in a similar fashion. What happened again, she asked herself. Right, she was accused of being a murderer and was almost beheaded. Leading a fascinating life like this made her wonder how she could still be alive right now.

Someone must be watching over her.

She looked to the side of the bed where a man slept soundly by the edge. He buried his head in his arms and snored lightly. His position did not look comfortable. Raising her uninjured hand, she raked her hands through his hair. It's been two years since she had seen him. They've kept in touched over the years after their first "exciting" meeting until two years ago. Work overwhelmed her and she could no longer remain in contact with him, at least not without causing some trouble on his end. She knew how nosy he could be. Keeping the description of her current occupation under wraps was the only thing she could do to keep him from getting sucked further into her world.

The soft curls of his short powder blue hair made her feel slightly piqued. Grabbing hold a handful of his hair, she hoisted his head up, rousing him from his slumber. "Wakey, wakey princess." Jellal shot up upon the sound of her voice.

"Erza!" While the happiness that usually swam within him every time he was around her appeared, a whisper of annoyance also nagged at him. "Erza! Where have you been? Two years. You fell off the face of the planet. You didn't even say goodbye!" She shook her head and rolled her eyes purposely at him, knowing this certain behavior of hers irked him somewhat. Erza flicked his forehead. "Excuse me sir, but I did say goodbye. I left a note."

He smiled. It was a smile of someone who was extremely exasperated and masking it with a broad smile was all they could do to keep themselves from screaming out loud. "A note?" Irritation oozed from his tone. "The note contained a few words. I memorized them you know. Let me remind you what of you wrote." He cleared his throat. "I have something to do…" A surge of silence fell in between them while they stared at each other with a certain burning intensity boiling in their eyes.

"Why are you telling me? I know what I wrote."

"You didn't even sign it, Erza."

"Jerry, you know my handwri—"

"My name is not Jerry!" Taken back by the sudden loudness of his voice, she retracted her head into the barricade of blankets like a turtle and feigned sleeping. The loudness of his voice made her head throb in pain. "I'm sorry, Erza. I didn't mean to yell." He heard a sigh from under the covers. "No, I'm so…sorr…piss." She tried again, but this time with more sincerity. "Sorry." Puking out those words was truly difficult for her. Not because she didn't mean it but she knew saying "I'm sorry" never fixed anything. In her opinion, it was a waste of breath. However, she will make an exception. The exception will only extend towards the prince.

Letting out a sigh of contentment, the prince tugged on the covers and urged the redhead to eat her breakfast. "Now get out of there. You need to eat because we have an abundance of work to finish and you require sustenance so that your strength will return." Food sounds about right at the moment. Her stomach growled at the mere mention of anything remotely edible. The prince informed her that she had been in a coma for four days.

"Four days! Why didn't you wake me up?" He walked over to another table, carrying a tray of food. Eggs and a few slices of bread were one of the few scrumptious items in the meal. Drool started to drip out of her mouth "It is cold. I can heat it up for you, if you want." Incredulous was apparent on her face. Heat it up, he says. Who was she, royalty? She eats expired food. Most of the time, the temperature was the least of her concern.

"Are you kidding me? Breakfast in bed? Hurry and give that to me, manservant." He bowed his head ever so slightly for a mock bow and elegantly presented the food to her. Forking one of the eggs, she chewed slowly, savoring the crisp flavor ingrained within this golden meal. "So Erza, here's the plan…" She placed a finger to his lips and sniffed the air. Erza grabbed a few strands of her scarlet locks and inhaled deeply. The waft of cherries mixed with a little bit of honeysuckle tickled her nose. "My hair smells good. I like my hair unscented. What sorcery was done to me?" He chuckled.

Speaking with a straight face, the prince answered her. "You were given a bath."

"Who gave me the bath?"

"Who else would give you a bath?" They never broke eye contact. Jellal finally closed his eyes and gave in. "The maids bathed you. They were careful with your wounds. If you wanted me to give it to you, you should have woken up and asked me yourself." The redhead resumed eating her late breakfast and clicked her tongued. "A wise guy, are we? This kid…"

During her meal, he filled her in about the current events that were surrounding her. She was still accused of the crime and was under the protective watch of the prince's royal brigade. The prince built a case of her innocence to his father and at least the old king was willing to listen as to what he had to say. Later on, when his father finds out about her conscious status, the old king would discuss the matter with her. "The death of the Chancellor was a great blow to the capital. He was an avid supporter of my father and they worked on many projects in the past. Chancellor Santier believed in equality and fairness to all. I managed to remodel various orphanages and other civil structures that benefited most children coming from different backgrounds because he was my main benefactor."

She nodded her head in understand. Knowing what the prince did for the brats of the lower city warmed her icy blackened heart. When he was old enough, he did whatever he could to make the living conditions more tolerable for the poor and less fortunate. It was more than what the current king have given them after all.

Tenderly, he patted her shoulder. "Right now we need to scour for some clues as to who really killed him and why. Proving your innocence will take precedent but justice is what we want also, Erza. For you and the Chancellor." The marking of irritation marred her face. "Stop talking like that. You're making my ears bleed." Despite her words, a small smile lingered on her lips.

Casting an eye on her face, he placed his hand on top of hers. "Hey, I know you are not the culprit. Buried under all that sarcastic, cynical, bad tempered and apathetic attitude of yours, I know you care and I know you aren't guilty…" He then goes to add, "At least of this specific crime. I can't vouch for the other things you've done, whatever they might be." That last bit earned him a gentle smack on the head. "Shut it."

"Fine, fancy pants. What do you suggest we should do next?" He walked over to a shelf and handed her a plastic bag. In it was the same dagger that was on her person during the alleged murder. "I borrowed this from the city watch. Do you recognize this blade?" The model wasn't just any-run-of-the-mill kind of blade. It was expertly well crafted, from stem to the stern. Suspicion ran through her bones. She might know the smithy that created this masterpiece. Erza displayed the butt of the hilt and revealed an indentation with a small letter etched in it. It read, "G."

"I know this blacksmith frequents certain establishments that invites customers of a specific sex, although it doesn't discriminate who enters its domain. Let's just say it's more male orientated and there are offerings that can be made. Preferably in singles." Jellal tilted his head in confusion.

"Church?"

"Yes! Church. Why not?" She frowned. He couldn't read between the lines. She shook her head. "It's…you know. That kind of place where…you know do stuff." The prince simply looked at her. "What kind of place, Erza?"

"Well, the place is in a district with red lights." Something clicked in his head. "Oh…OH. That kind of place. I've never ventured through that kind of environment before."

The redhead smirked. "Once you can finally wear your big boy pants, I'll personally take you there."

"Very funny, Erza. Anyways, I'll get my men on it." Erza was a bit unsure of that idea. Exactly reading her thoughts, he reassured her. "My brigade is professional. There will be someone keeping them in proper conduct. Don't worry." While he had his men search for the blacksmith, G, Jellal suggested that they return to the scene of the crime. Perhaps it will fill in the missing blanks in her memories. Satisfied with his answer she jumped out of bed, forgetting for a moment that her leg was injured. He quickly caught her lithe form when her legs caved in. "Erza, you should—" A faint tinge of red dyed his cheeks. Upon catching her, his arm accidently brushed against the thin satin fabric of her crimson gown. The sudden act hurtled shivers down his body. His eyes automatically roamed down to the curve of her waist and to the mounds of her breast. Gulping seemed like a strenuous act because of his current position. He was careful not to touch any parts of her that would result in her smacking him.

"Hey, kid. If you're going to look, might as well touch. It's only fair that both of us enjoy this." The prince abruptly coughed. If she was strong enough to joke around like that, he had nothing to worry about. Helping her up was not difficult since she was light as a feather. Has she been eating properly?

Erza finally noticed her ensemble. "What the fuck am I wearing? I look like a whore!"

"That's not possible. You're wearing too much." He said with a serious tone. She playfully stuck out her middle finger at him. "Is this your closet?" Recalling the time he opened every single closet in her apartment brought on a desire for revenge. The redhead flung the door open and foraged his closet for something more appropriate to wear.

"Erza, I will bring you clothes that will fit so please get out of there and rest." His words fell into deaf ears. "How many pants and shoes can a man need?" She noted the rows of dress shoes and the line of designer pants and various colored formal shirts. Erza opened drawer and she quirked her brow at the neatly folded undergarments. "You're a brief kind of guy, huh?" She screamed from inside the closet. A blush spread throughout his cheeks to his ears. "Erza!" About to barge in and shoo her out of his closet, she warned the prince not to enter because she was not fully clothed. She smirked when she heard his defeated grumbling outside the closet.

"Huh. What's this?" One particular fabric caught her attention and it didn't belong with the rest of his outfits. A dress? The sleeveless cobalt dress hanged on a wired hanger by a thin golden strap. The hem stopped at knee-length with frilly lacing decorating the end of the dress. Contemplating on the dress' simplicity and beauty, it would be quite the haul if she sold something like this in the markets. This must have been expensive.

Rummaging for more treasure, she found a box that was tucked behind other miscellaneous items so she inspected it. It contained a box of garments and layers that also didn't fit his style. They were more for women as evident to the smaller size and design of the clothes. Fortunately enough, the few pants included among the bundle were her size. Disliking most of the tops, she settled for one of his white collared shirts and improvised when it was too baggy on her. She tied the back in a simple loop and tucked it in. A black buttoned up vest that appeared brand new begged for freedom so she added it to her costume.

Erza freed the dress from its wired warden and showed it to Jellal. "Is there something you want to tell me? I also found a box containing a few clothes a manly man such as yourself would never wear. You got a lady friend?" A smile lingered on the prince's face. He thought she wouldn't find it but it didn't really matter. They were for her, anyways. He meant to gift it to her but she disappeared so he never got the chance.

"Just keep it."

"Bad break-up? I understand." She pinched his cheeks, stretching it out as much as she could. "Ewva! Staph. (Erza! Stop.)" A short knock on the door interrupted their playful banter. The door swung wide when no one made the move to open it. The King of Edolas entered the room, donning a long white robe. Erza focused on his long beard and marveled at how he could keep it so kempt like that.

"Farva (Father)." He smacked her hand away when she didn't let go. The sudden presence of the king caught her off guard. "Your majesty."

Wasting no time, Faust first spoke. "Our guest is awake. I'm hearing from my son that your friendship started during his youth. How you achieved to conceal your relationship with him boggles me." A curt snort came out of her. "We weren't keeping it a secret. You just never paid attention to your kid." Jellal nervously juggled his eyes to and fro from his father and Erza. The king inspected the young lady before him and took heed the bits of rebellious nature seeping out of her tone and posture. He also sensed an air of familiarity around her. Noticing her confident sable eyes, he once knew of a woman who similarly gazed at him like this.

"Anyways, sir. I'm Erza Knightwalker, sir. I'm definitely not the murderer…sir." She was told that adding sir or ma'am at the end of every sentence was a polite thing to do when addressing a person of importance. Faust's eyes briefly widened at the mention of her name that the prince almost missed it. "Duly noted, Knightwalker."

"Father, have you reconsidered what we talked about?" The king nodded his head. "My son, you claim your friend is innocent and yet I do not have any proof from either of you."

"Father please-" The king raised his hand, silencing his son. "You did not let me finish, boy. As you are aware, the royal council has had many recent tragedies over the past few months. All of the deaths have been announced as accidents to the public but as you know that is not the case. Panic has overwhelmed our council. They were the ones who issued the execution without my consent. They wanted the head of the person responsible. The council's action will be met with consequence, of course. I will determine it later." The redhead took a sit on the prince's mattress and crossed her arms. So all they wanted was a quick fix. "Typical nobles." She muttered under her breath. It didn't matter who they were condemning, as long as they rid of another wart forming around their fat faces. "But straight to capital punishment, Father? What about the law? You and the council are not above the law, Father. This isn't right! Erza was not given the chance to prove—"

"Jellal!" Faust booming voice rang against their eardrums. "Once more…" The man was certainly overbearing. Erza noted her friend's change in his demeanor. His head was casted down, lips quivering with frustration. "Father! I…"She watched as father and son continue to interrupt each other and if this were any other time, it would be comedic to say the least.

"My son, I will not argue with you any longer. I came by to inform you of the decision we had made. You have 14 days. Find me evidence of her innocence and all charges laid upon her will be dismissed. Simple as that." Sensing that Jellal was not happy by this, the redhead threw herself in front of the stubborn prince and extended her hand for a handshake. "Brilliant, sir. We will find what you require, sir. Thank you…sir." Jellal bowed although dissatisfied by the short deadline given to them "Very well, father." The king left without saying another word, closing the door behind.

"Erza, 14 days might not be enough. All the lead we have is that blacksmith." She flicked his forehead. "I know we are in a shit situation but we'll make do with what we have…" Knightwalker trailed on. "That's odd. You are optimistic for once." The prince's comment earned him a glare but he easily ignored it. "Very well. We will make the most out of our situation." Jellal glanced down at her feet. "But first, you'll need some shoes."

…

Hey thanks for reading guys. Tell me what you think about the chapter whenever you got time.

As a side note, is anybody watching the filler season of Fairy Tail? I swear, the people behind the anime needs to stop stalling! I want to see the Tartarus arc animated. I want to see how the animators will do the torture scenes from the manga...that says something about me doesn't it?

Anyways have a nice day.