Chapter 2
The Shadow of Magic
"Maybe you should look at this whole situation as a good thing."
"How so?" Lucy replied, raising a skeptical eyebrow at her blue haired friend.
"Well you get to marry a handsome prince." The girl replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Do you have any idea how many girls dream about that opportunity?"
"Are you one of those girls, Levy?" Lucy was only teasing, but to her surprise, the other girl's eyes lit up like fireworks as she clutched her hands together against her chest.
"Of course I am!" She responded enthusiastically. "I'm ready to meet a man and have him whisk me away to a faraway place were we'll get married, have children- one boy and two girls- and live the rest of our lives together in a stylish cottage on the edge of Fiore. I'll stay in touch of course, but I'll be busy reading since my husband is totally going to buy me a library. I'll settle for him not being royalty, but he will certainly be wealthy since he is a hard worker and very responsible."
Lucy threw her head back and laughed at the idealistic fantasy.
"Seems like you got it all figured out." She commented.
"All I'm waiting for is the right guy." She agreed.
Lucy absolutely adored her best friend, Levy McGarden. They had known each other ever since Lucy was just a young girl and received her one and only lady-in-waiting. At first, Lucy did not understand why she needed a personal assistant to accompany her throughout her day to day activities, but as years wore on, the princess had no doubt that Levy was an essential part of her life. Yes, the small and plucky blue haired girl helped her select dresses to wear and organized her day to day schedule, but she had become so much more than an assistant to Lucy. The girls had quickly become best friends and Lucy considered Levy to be her most trusted companion.
"Well whoever that guy is, he's lucky to have you." Lucy replied fondly, remembering the main reason why Levy was a lady-in-waiting in the first place. Levy was born into a noble family, but was relatively low-ranking in society and didn't receive much esteem or acknowledgement from other families. To top it off, she was the youngest of four sisters and her family knew that they would struggle to find a suitable man for her to marry. And so, Levy's parents sent her to Fiore's castle where she would eventually be selected as the princess's lady. This gave her higher social status and a better opportunity for a beneficial marriage.
"I think your future husband should be considered the lucky one!" Levy replied. "You can literally choose any man in Fiore or a prince from a faraway country with a cute accent. All you have to do is point at the most attractive man in the room and he would beg to be your husband."
"I think that's a little bit of an exaggeration and besides, it's not just about looks." Lucy sighed, shaking her head. "I have to pick the man that would make the most suitable king. I would be doing my country a disservice if that wasn't my first priority."
"Well I still think that your first priority should be love." Levy stated confidently.
"Love? I don't even know what that means and I'm surely not going to find out in the next six months." Lucy said, brushing stray locks of blonde hair out of her eyes and behind her ear. After the news her father gave her yesterday, Lucy had returned to her room to sleep on the earth-shattering choice she had to make. In the morning, she told Levy everything about her mother's condition and what her father wanted her to do.
"You never know." The blue haired lady shrugged as she sat on Lucy's plush purple silk bedspread while the princess continued to pace her bedroom.
"I do know." She stated firmly. "It's just not going to happen for me and that's okay. What I need to focus on his what is best for my country."
"But what about what's best for you?" Levy was clearly worried about her as she looked at her friend with pleading brown eyes. "You don't have to go through with this, you know. You haven't told your father yet. You can still say no. It's not fair that you don't get to marry a person that you love."
"I'm the Princess of Fiore and heir to the throne." Lucy nodded once, trying to convince herself as well as her friend. "I was blessed to be in this position that comes with so many advantages and if that means that I need to make a few personal sacrifices, then I am more than willing to do so. It all comes with the job."
"You're going to be an amazing queen, Lu." Levy said warmly, letting her look of concern change into pride. "I only hope that you'll still allow me to be your lady-in-waiting once you take the crown."
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
XXX
Since Lucy's bedroom was located in a tower separate but close to the royal family's living quarters, all Lucy had to do to visit her father was walk down a winding staircase and travel across the hall to her parent's parlor.
The parlor was extravagantly decorated as usual and served as a living room area for the royal family with several couches, tables and chairs. Across the room was a door that led to the King and Queen's bedroom, where her mother was currently sleeping.
Hearing his daughter's entrance, the King emerged from the bedroom to greet his only heir. Lucy could see how tensed up his whole body was as he awaited her final decision.
"Lucy, good morning. I hope you slept well."
"As well as I could under the circumstances." Lucy replied. The pair sat down on one of the couches. "How is mom doing?"
"Same as before." He replied somberly, shaking his head in regret. "That damn magic is torturing her. And it's all my fault."
"No." Lucy said firmly to her father with unblinking brown eyes. "It's not your fault. You can't blame yourself."
"I can and I will." He said firmly. "Throughout my reign as King, I've been far too lax on magic users throughout this kingdom. I've allowed them to hide in the far reaches of Fiore, thinking that they wouldn't be able to harm anyone, but I was sorely mistaken and now Layla is inflicted with their disease."
Lucy dipped her head, unsure of how to comfort her father, knowing how much he must be hurting. Official Fiore law stated that magic was illegal. All known magic users were executed without question as practicing magic was notorious for being extremely dangerous.
The entire situation began hundreds of years ago when magic was prominent throughout the land. Wizards were known to run free and existed in guilds, groupings of wizards that dotted the landscape of Fiore that served as a place where people could hire wizards to do tasks they could not accomplish on their own. Everything was peaceful and calm, but then a war erupted throughout the land, pitting wizard's guild and wizard's guild, causing massive destruction in its wake. Many lives were lost and Fiore was nearly brought to its ruin before a great and wise king rose up to take control of the country. He banned magic and it had been illegal ever since.
The world was better off without magic, Lucy knew that for certain. Magic was a volatile and dangerous entity that no one could ever fully understand. It only caused destruction and death and her country was better off without it.
She especially felt that way now. Her mother was inflicted with a magic-induced disease. The doctor described the cause of the disease to be from ethernano magic particles floating through the air. When wizards use their magic, thousands and thousands of the particles are emitted and can travel far and wide. Ethernano is dangerous to those who do not possess the ability to control magic themselves. The particles affected Layla and could very well harm others too.
"All this is the fault of those who continue to use magic in spite of the law." Lucy said with conviction. "They are the ones who sent ethernano flying through the air and it was only by horrible luck that mom was affected. None of that is your fault."
"Nevertheless, I cannot allow this disease to spread throughout our country." Jude said confidently, straightening up so that he could speak with his full authority. "The main point of our council meeting last night was to not only discuss Layla, but also to set new policies regarding wizards in Fiore."
"What new policies?" Lucy asked.
"They will be hunted down and terminated for good. All of them. No longer will I allow these fiends to hide in the shadows and harm the rest of us with their selfishness. No longer will I allow them to jeopardize Fiore."
Lucy nodded once with resolute agreement. "Good."
"And… It is a policy that I hope you will continue after my time as king is over." Jude said, turning the subject to the elephant in the room. "This is just another reason why I want you to inherit my crown. You understand as well as I do why magic must be erased from this continent."
"I do understand." Lucy said, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "And I am here to tell you that my answer is yes. I will find a husband and become Queen once mother is no longer with us."
"I am pleased to hear it." Although Jude did not allow his severe countenance to break into a smile, Lucy knew that he was happy to hear her say yes.
However, the brief pleasure of her father's approval didn't last long. Giving her dad a definitive yes somehow made the whole situation more real, final. She was going to be queen and she was going to get married. Her mom was going to die and she was going to take her place.
Lucy's heart started to beat faster as this new wave of anxiety began to settle in. What if she was no good at being queen? What if she ran the kingdom into the dirt? What if she couldn't stop all the wizards out there and her nation suffered from an epidemic of the same disease that was killing her mother?
And as much as Lucy would like to say that love didn't matter to her, she still couldn't help but resent the very possible fact that she would be stuck in a permanent marriage with a man she did not love.
And then Lucy took a deep breath. She would just have to learn how to control her emotions. She needed to just bottle all of these fears and doubts up and seal them deep inside of her so that they would never return to the surface. Whenever she was feeling down or sad, her mom would always tell her to "fake it until you make it" and that was exactly what she intended to do now. Straightening her spine and pushing her shoulders back, Lucy adopted a posture fitting of a queen as she wore a face blank of any emotion. Her father smiled and nodded at her in approval.
Maybe I can do this after all. Lucy thought to herself.
"Excellent. Now that you've agreed to get married, we must start searching for prospects immediately. We may have six months, but that is still precious little time to find a man fit for the throne… and for my daughter." He added with a small wink.
Lucy started to listen with interest. She was curious as to how they were going to find her a husband. It wouldn't be the worse thing in the world if her father merely picked someone he found suitable. At least then the matter would be settled and she could focus the next six months on getting to know the man that would become her husband. An arranged marriage would cause little fuss and overall be the simplest solution.
But then a horrifying though crept into her mind. What if her father wanted her to do… that?
"I'm sure whatever man you select for me will be fine." Lucy said hurriedly, not wanting her father to continue his train of thought. Lucy remembered very vividly the stories her mom told her about how she and Jude fell in love…
"Lucy. I'm not going to just pick a husband for you. Of course I will present you with plenty options and I must approve of the man you ultimately choose, but it's no longer the dark ages and as the future queen, you have a right to select the man you marry."
"You don't mean…" Lucy said quietly. "You don't mean that you want me to go through the Coronal Contests, do you?"
"I know that you are adverse to the idea, and I agree that the method is peculiar, but under these circumstances, I believe that it is the best way to find the right man whom you can love and properly rule Fiore with."
"I don't know about that." Lucy said, shaking her head.
That was her putting it lightly. There was no way in hell she wanted to go through that.
The Coronal Contests were a series of events through which every man in the kingdom (or woman in the case that it was a prince who needed to find a partner) was eligible to participate in. The participants competed against each other in separate contests of strength, intelligence, and tests of other qualities necessary to take the throne. If Lucy decided to take this route in finding her husband, then she would be expected to watch the events, mingle with the participants, and eventually decide the winner, the man that she felt would be the best king.
In theory, it sounded like a plausible idea. She would have a wide selection of men and would be able to witness first hand whether or not they were suitable. But in reality, it seemed barbaric and unpleasant. Lucy had no interest in watching a bunch of strange men fighting over her and her heart. She rather not make a huge spectacle of her situation and if she were to go through with this, her love life would be the most talked about piece of gossip in the kingdom.
"I know it doesn't seem appealing at first." Jude warned knowingly. "When your mother was put in your situation all those years ago, she wasn't too confident about it either. As a participant, I wasn't sure what to expect either. But through the Coronal Contests, we found each other and fell in love. I don't believe you should pass up on the opportunity to find the same thing for yourself. However, if you insist, I can select a worthy nobleman for you to marry. The choice is ultimately yours."
Lucy closed her eyes for a moment, thinking about what she was going to do. A large part of her was screaming to just let her father arrange a marriage for her, but something far deeper inside of her was telling her to go through with the contests. She guessed that there was still a little girl inside of her dreaming about her prince charming, dreaming of true love and a happily ever after. Could she really find that in only six months? The process worked for her parents so why shouldn't it work for her? What if she still had a chance of being happy after all?
She thought back to the conversation she had with Levy earlier today. Her best friend was under the impression that love should be her first priority. Maybe that was true. Maybe it was best for Fiore if its leaders were happy and in love…
"Alright." Lucy said finally. "I'll go through with the Coronal Contests."
"Excellent! Her father said, this time visually pleased. "I will begin arranging the opening ceremony immediately."
"Opening ceremony?" Lucy asked in curiosity.
"Yes, the opening ceremony is the traditional start of the Coronal Contests. It is a royal ball and every willing bachelor in Fiore is invited to attend."
"A royal ball… great." Lucy said softly, blissfully unaware of just what she was getting herself into.
XXX
As usual, it was dark by the time Natsu finished all of his chores. His mouth was dry, his back hurt, and all he wanted to do was satisfy his growling stomach with something to eat. Taking a deep breath, he took off his dirt-ridden boots before he walked inside the ranch house.
He tiptoed quietly into the kitchen. It was a wide spacious area with marble-topped counters and the same shiny dark wood floors that covered the whole house. He thanked the heavens as he saw that there were no candles lit and the room was empty. It was completely dark as Natsu crept over to the pantry, ready to satiate his hunger.
He opened the door to the pantry ever so slowly, worried that the door may creak and wake up his stepfamily.
Eyes glowing with delight at the endless rows of food piled up on the shelves of the pantry, Natsu quickly took a few things off of the shelves, not wanting to be greedy lest his stepmother learn about his thievery. He turned around to take his treasures upstairs to his room and-
"What do you think you're doing?" A harsh voice greeted him as he spun around to see the haunting figure of his stepmother standing two feet away from him.
"Damn." Natsu muttered in defeat, shaking off his momentary shock.
"Answer my question." The woman hissed with fury in her beady black eyes.
Eldia Eucliffe was the woman's name. She was tall and willowy with a long face that narrowed into an abnormally long jaw resembling a witch. Carrying a candle in her palm, flickering yellow light illuminated the harsh protrusions of her cheekbones and cascaded shadows across her villainous complexion.
"I worked hard and did the chores all day long." Natsu said harshly, a fire of defiance raging in his eyes. He was tired, irritated and hungry and did not want to deal with this right now. "I deserve a decent meal."
"Hardly." Eldia replied, venom lacing her cutting tone. "Sting told me of your transgression. You punched him in the face. How dare a piece of worthless cum like yourself lay a finger on my flawless boy? You will be punished for this. There will be no dinner for you for a week."
"I can't work if I can't eat." Natsu spat in frustration.
"Are you refusing to do your share of the work around this house?" She said, raising her voice into a loud sneer.
"My share of the work?!" Natsu reacted with a raised tone of his own, outraged by her claim. "Wendy and I do all the damn work while you and your pretty boy sons sit around getting fatter off of my father's hard work!"
Eldia slapped him without a moment's hesitation. For the second time that day, Natsu's face stung with pain as he was helpless to do anything about it. His stepmother's eyes were cold and unflinching.
"Your father would be ashamed of the little rat you have become. He was always too soft with raising you children."
"I swear if you say another word about my father, I'll-" Natsu began to say before he stopped himself midsentence.
"Or you'll what?" Eldia said with a knowing smile. "Run away? Go ahead. You and I both know that you won't last a day on your own."
With one last frustrated growl, Natsu brushed past his stepmother, dropped all his stolen food on the counter and left the dark and shadowy kitchen.
Stomach blazing with anger, he climbed up the stairs to the second story of the house. From there he weaved through the narrow hallways to a small closet in the back of the house were there was one more staircase inside, leading to the only room on the third story of the house.
The second stair case was shabby and made out of a poorly constructed wood that wobbled when any weight was put on it. Nevertheless, Natsu continued up it in a hurry to the small door at the top. He had to carefully duck his head in order to get through the threshold and into the tiny room that resided beyond it.
"Natsu!" A much gentler and sweet voice greeted him when he entered. "You're back!"
"Hey, Wendy." He replied, forcing a smile to his lips that ended up looking more like a grimace than a grin.
He and Wendy shared the shabby closet-sized room they called a loft. It was a square room with walls that were probably about six or seven feet long. The walls and floors consisted of the same dark, aging wood that probably had mounds of mold growing behind them and there were two sleeping places lining the walls that could barely pass as a pair of cots, let alone beds. Despite its shortcomings, the room was made cozy by the piles of blankets and pillows resting on the cots along with the light rays of moonlight that streamed through the singular tiny window situated high on the far wall.
It wasn't much, but this was the only place left on the farm that felt like home.
"You seem upset. Is something wrong?" Wendy asked, concern evident on her face. Natsu walked over a couple steps to sit on her bed next to her. The makeshift mattress squeaked beneath his weight.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it, squirt." He said, mimicking his usual jovial tone, forcing a much more realistic smile onto his face than his first attempt.
"Natsu, how many time do I have to tell you? I don't like it when you call me 'squirt' and I know when you are upset. You aren't very good at hiding it, you know."
"I know." Natsu sighed, dropped the pretenses. Sometimes his little sister could see right through him as if he were made of glass.
"What happened to your face?!" Wendy asked suddenly. "Your cheek is all red and there is a giant bruise on your jaw!"
"Oh, yeah. That's just the usual family love." Natsu replied, reaching his hand up to feel that his face was all swollen and puffy. It still stung a little, but overall wasn't bad at all.
"Why can't you learn to just keep quiet and do as you're told?" The girl pleaded with him, grabbing his arm in desperation.
"Sting and Rogue were threatening Happy." He said, shaking his head. "I couldn't just stand back and watch. I may or may not have punched Sting in the face."
"You what?!"
"Yeah, yeah I know." Natsu smiled. "It still felt pretty good, though."
Wendy slapped his arm, although between the puny size of her hands and her lack of commitment, it didn't hurt at all.
"Hey! What was that for?"
"You're so stupid sometimes. It's like you're asking for a fight. A fight that you can't win." She said, her face growing serious.
"But I can win." Natsu said stubbornly, feeling that familiar sense of frustration creep back in. "I'm stronger than Sting and Rogue combined."
"I know." She said softly. "And that's why you can't keep picking fights with them. If you do then they are bound to find out."
"I'm pretty sure our stepmother knows about us, anyway." Natsu said shaking his head. "I was down there trying to nab some food before she caught me. Don't get mad, but I was arguing with her a little bit and she said something like 'you and I both know you wouldn't last a day on your own'."
"What?" Wendy said with genuine fear in her eyes as her round face went pale. "Do you really think she knows?"
"It's possible." Natsu shrugged. "Igneel trusted her. He might have told her the truth."
"Do you think she'll turn us in?"
"Nah, if she wanted that then she probably would have done it already. She wants us here to do her dirty work for free so that she can spend all of dad's money on Sting's pantyhose and those ridiculous dresses she likes to buy."
Despite his assurance, Wendy was still shivering and cowering in fear, making her tiny body seem even smaller. Natsu put on a soft smile and wrapped a comforting arm around his little sister, tucking her head into his chest.
"Don't worry about it, squirt. I'll always be here to protect you." He told her warmly.
"Thanks, Natsu." She whispered, tears wetting his dirty shirt. The silence that fell over the siblings lasted only for a few moments until it was interrupted by a growling stomach. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't Natsu who made the noise, but Wendy. The older brother laughed.
"You hungry?" He teased.
"Eldia was in a bad mood, so she didn't let me eat either." Wendy admitted sheepishly, clutching her stomach in embarrassment.
"Well, no need to worry, because your big brother always has a trick up his sleeve!" Natsu announced as he pulled something out of his pocket. Wendy gasped in joy as she saw that the object was a piece of bread with a perfectly golden crust covering an inside of soft, chewy bread. "Here, take it." Natsu offered the food out for her, ignoring the crushing pain in his own stomach.
"How about we share it?" Wendy asked. "And don't even try to argue because I'm not taking no for an answer.
"Fine." Natsu grinned as he broke the chunk of bread in half, offering one piece to his sister. "You'll hear no complaints from me."
The pair happily munched on the bread until it was all gone. The small portion fell short of satisfying their stomachs, but it was more than enough to get them through the night.
"Thanks, Natsu." Wendy said, swallowing the last of her meal. "I know that you'll always look out for me."
"Of course." He replied and then adopted a sneaky grin. "And besides. If the Royal Army ever does find us, I'll just burn then to a crisp. We are wizards after all."
"Yeah." Wendy said with a content smile on her face as she felt her eyes begin to droop under the influence of sleep. "Yeah, we are."
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Alright so I spent a lot of this chapter setting stuff up too, but I swear Lucy and Natsu are going to finally meet in the next update and from there it's going to get really interesting. You just have to keep reading!
Oh and I have my reasons for making Natsu's stepmother an OC. You'll find out why sooner or later.
Until next time!