Chapter 4

And so it Begins

By the time Natsu returned to the farm, night had fallen and his muscles were sore. Finally able to park the fruit wagon after miles and miles of dragging it around everywhere, he grabbed the groceries he picked up at the market and take them inside.

Without a doubt, his trip into town had been far more interesting than usual. That girl- Marla- was definitely one of the weirdest people he'd ever met. She was wealthy and obviously from a high ranking family, but she never did explain what she was doing by herself in the lowly Oakdale town nor did it make any sense to Natsu why she insisted on buying him a suit so that he may attend that Ball thing.

But perhaps the strangest thing of all was that Natsu was actually considering going. It was ridiculous right? He grew up on a farm; he didn't belong in that world of luxury and indulgence. Grant it, he didn't really feel like he belonged on the farm either, but still, going inside the Fiore Castle when the King himself had a personal vendetta against wizards was under no circumstances a good idea. The reason he and Wendy stayed with their stepfamily was for the seclusion living on a farm in the wilderness could bring. One tiny slip up in the public world and he would be arrested and most likely executed for practicing magic.

And he had a feeling the princess wouldn't be too pleased if he upstaged her shindig by getting his head chopped off.

Nevertheless he kept the suit Marla had bought him secured firmly in the bag he had slung over his shoulder.

Normally when he came back inside the ranch house from being out all day, Natsu would just keep his head low and hurry up to his room, but this time, Natsu could help but stop and stare in disbelief at the scene that was taking place in the parlor.

Sting and Rogue were standing on… pedestals in the middle of the living area and hand their arms out straight at 90 degree angles from their bodies. Additionally there was a small team of men and woman clamoring around them, holding up tape measurers and pins to the most ridiculous get ups he'd ever seen. Both were wearing these puffy pants that were tucked into tall boots rising up to their knees. Sting's pants were pure white and matched with brown boots while Rogue was decked up in his typical black on black combo. The most hilarious part of their outfits, however, were the ruffled sleeves and broad shoulder pads that adorned their blouses.

From her seat on the sofa, his stepmother took her calculating gaze off her two precious sons to rest it on her much less liked child. Her icy glare attempted to slice at Natsu's soul, but the pink haired boy was in far too good a mood to let her ruin his amusement.

"Sweet getup." Natsu commented slyly to his stepbrothers as he gritted his teeth to prevent his inner laughter from escaping to the surface.

"Like you're one to talk. I've never see you wear anything but that wretched shirt you dirty up every day." Sting was quick to shoot back as a seamstress continued to adjust the ruffles on his shirt sleeve so that they wouldn't droop past his fingers.

"That's cause I don't spend my free time playing dress up." Natsu replied through narrowed eyes.

It was obvious what was going on here. Sting and Rogue must be planning on entering the Coronal Contests and going to that Ball. He should have known they'd be the first to sign up.

"Sting and Rogue are attending the Opening Ceremony Ball at Fiore Castle." Eldia said fondly, her voice warming as much as it could after coming from her frozen heart. "One of my dear boys are going to marry the princess and become King of Fiore."

"Good luck with that." Natsu rolled his eyes and walked away to begin putting away all the groceries in their respective cabinets.

"You jealous, pinky?" Sting called out, taunting him with superior blue eyes.

"Not in the slightest." Natsu mumbled to himself, not speaking loudly enough for anyone to hear him.

His momentary good mood quickly faded away as he began to contemplate what it would be like if Sting or Rogue did end up marrying the princess. He refused to believe that anyone- even royalty- would be stupid enough to marry the likes of them, but anything was possible. Sting could be charming when he wanted to and it would be impossible for Rogue to get on the princess's bad side since he hardly ever talked. He didn't mind the idea of them marrying a snotty princess (they could have her for all he cared), but the more annoying notion was the thought of either of them becoming King. Yes, they would have the power to make his life even more miserable than before, but in addition to that, their coronation would give even more satisfaction to his greedy power-hungry stepmom. Worse than that, having his stepmother in that position of power could potentially blow his cover and leave him and Wendy without protection from the Royal Magic Patrols that ride around Fiore searching for wizards every day.

I guess I'll just have to bank on the fact that Sting and Rogue are dicks. He reasoned with himself, not seeing the point of worrying too much about it. There was no way anyone would willing choose to get Eldia as a mother-in-law.

Finishing his task while the brothers were still getting sized for their outfits, Natsu snuck upstairs before he brought too much more attention to himself. Hearing a soft scrubbing noise coming from an upstairs bathroom, Natsu ducked inside it.

"Hey Wendy!" Natsu said with a broad grin, seeing his sister on her knees, scrubbing at the tile floors with a sudsy bright yellow sponge.

"You're back." She returned his smile with a close eyed grin of her own, pausing her cleaning for the moment. "How was the trip to Oakdale?"

"Interesting. I met this weird girl-"

"You met a girl?!" Wendy interrupted him, her eyes bright and her voice hopeful. Natsu laughed.

"Not like that." He shook his head in good humor. "She was from a rich family and was getting harassed by a group of punks so I helped her out. The weird thing though was that she bought me a suit as a thank you."

"Really? That is sort of- oh wait! Is the suit for the Ball? Are you going to the Ball, Natsu? Oh I wish I could go, but the open invitation only works for boys."

"Slow down, squirt." He replied with his hands help up defensively. "I didn't say anything about actually going to the Ball. It seems stupid if you ask me."

"It's not stupid, it's romantic!" Wendy insisted, getting this dreamy glazed over look in her eyes. "For the princess it's the beginning of her journey to find true love. Just like in the Fairy Tales! And I've heard Princess Lucy Heartfilia is around your age, Natsu. Maybe you two are destined to be together! You could become King and move us to the castle and we'd all live happily ever-"

"Alright, Wendy, you've officially lost it. All this princess is doing is looking for the next King. It's all political and fake. Love's got nothing to do with it and don't even get me started on what I think about destiny."

"You don't believe in destiny?" She asked, much more subdued that before, her voice soft and innocent. Natsu tilted his head in confusion before answering.

"No, of course I don't. It's not real." He tried to keep his voice gentle, but it didn't stop Wendy from disliking his answer. She frowned and looked up at him with a defiance in her eyes that he wasn't accustomed to seeing.

"Yes it is. I believe in destiny and I don't care what you say. There is no way that we are going to live the rest of our lives like this. There has to be a better future."

That caused Natsu's lips to twitch up in a half-smile. He remembered when he had that much optimism about the world, but time had a knack at scraping it away until all you were left with was reality. And the worst part about reality is that it lasts forever.

He wasn't about to burst Wendy's bubble though. He didn't want her to lose that blind faith kids always seemed to have. If believing in a great destiny in the future was what got her through the day, then he wasn't going to argue about it with her.

"Maybe you're right." He ended up saying as he knelt down on the tile floor as well, gesturing for Wendy to hand him the sponge. She relaxed her shoulders in a grateful sigh and passed it on to him, letting her brother finish her final chore for the day.

"Thanks, Natsu."

"No problem." He replied and then flashed her a knowing wink. "After all, this isn't going to last forever, right?"

"Right." She nodded vigorously. "And so does that mean you are going to attend the Ball? Destiny doesn't come to those who wait, you know."

"When did you get so smart?" He laughed as he rubbed away a particularly stubborn fleck of dirt on the floor.

"I'm not as young as you think." She told him. "And I'm not going to let you avoid the question either."

Although her tone was lighthearted, when Natsu looked up from his work he could see the desperation and pleading in the large brown orbs of his sister. They held all her dreams of seeing a Fairy Tale unfold in real life and all the faith that they would come true.

She really did have the sort of eyes that were impossible to say no to.

"Fine." Natsu sighed in defeat. "I'll go to the stupid Ball. I doubt Eldia will let me, though."

"I have an idea about that." Wendy said mischievously. "After all it was you who taught me to think outside the box."

"What sort of monster have I created?" He joked.

"The kind that's going to make sure you become the next King of Fiore." She responding promptly, looking happier than she had been in a very long time.

And to Natsu, that was more than enough to justify entering the Coronal Contests.

XXX

Lucy's heart hammered with a nervous excitement. Tonight was the Opening Ceremony Ball of the Coronal Contests.

"You look beautiful, Lu." Levy said warmly, reminding the blonde that her best friend was standing beside her as they examined Lucy's imagine in the long mirror that stood in the corner of her bedroom.

Lucy wanted everything to go perfectly and that included looking the part of a soon to be queen ready for marriage. She had come to terms with all the things that were going on in her life and had decided to make the most of them. If she had to be married in such a short amount of time, then she might as well do her best to find the right person who could become a fantastic King while also being somebody that she may fall in love with later on down the road.

And to do that she needed to put her best foot forward.

She was wearing a stunning red gown that hugged her chest and narrow waist before it exploded out into a full, smooth skirt that flowed to the floor. With its off-the-shoulder neckline, the dress left her collarbone exposed as the loose fitting sleeves began below her shoulders and floating down to her elbows. The entire ball gown was made from the finest Mulberry Silk in the world and was adorned with dazzling silver embellishment put together with authentic and flawless gems. Although Lucy allowed some of her bags to frame her face, she tied the rest of her hair up in an elegant up due crafted by one of her stylists.

But perhaps the part she loved most about her look tonight was her shoes. As she pulled up the hem of her dress, she revealed a pair of glass slippers, shining bright but remaining perfectly clear as they allowed everyone to see the red nail polish on her toes.

"It's all thanks to you Levy." Lucy replied softly. "You picked out a killer outfit for me."

"I did spend all of yesterday harassing the royal seamstresses to make it perfect." The blue haired girl replied with a giggle. "But the real find was those shoes! They are simply gorgeous."

"And surprisingly comfortable." Lucy commented. Although the shoes were stiff and obviously made of glass, they fit perfectly to her foot, hugging every curve and holding her feet at the perfect angle.

"That is surprising."

"IT'S RUINED! Everything is ruined!" A high pitched shrill cut through the nice moment between friends as a rapid knock was heard banging against the door to Lucy's bedroom.

"Is that Erza?" Lucy asked quietly to her lady-in-waiting, who promptly gave an uneasy shrug. Lucy sighed and raised her voice higher. "Come in."

Sure enough, it was Erza who burst through the door, her hair radiating the same brilliant red that coated the princess's dress. Before Lucy could ask her Coronal Contests Coordinator what was wrong, the CCC stomped over and began her rant without needing to be prompted.

"I must apologize profusely, your highness!" She said, jerking her torso down in a deep bow. "The Amaryllis flowers I had delivered for the ball are a horrible shade of vermillion instead of amaranth like I specifically requested! It throws the whole color scheme of the Ball off and much more gravely…. I fear that the color will clash with your dress."

Erza spit out her words with unfiltered shame, failure evident on the scrunched up features of her face. Lucy stared blankly at the woman, unsure of how to respond.

"It's alright…" Lucy started to say, not knowing how to comfort her. "I mean, I'm sure they are going to be more than fine."

"I've failed you!" Erza moaned. "They are clearly Vermillion and are disastrously atrocious."

"Vermillion? Is that some shade of purple?" Levy asked, amused by the scene unfolding in front of her. Lucy shot her a harsh glance, urging her not to make the situation worse.

"Vermillion is RED!" Erza said, "And these flowers are merely a blander version of the princess's dress color. They certainly do not go together! I meant for the flowers to be amaranth, a delicate yet deep shade of pink that would have perfectly brought out the blush in her highness's cheeks…"

The redhead trailed off sadly and Lucy suddenly felt much more sympathetic. Erza was so dedicated to her job and must have spent countless hours making sure everything was perfect.

Lucy walked over and placed a comforting hand on Erza's shoulder.

"None of this is your fault." She told her gently. "I'm sure the amaranth would have been beautiful and I appreciate all the time you've spent making sure everything is perfect. And it will be. I don't care what shade the flowers are because I'm going to be meeting my future husband tonight. That's the most important thing to me, so don't feel guilty about the flowers."

"Thank you, your highness." Erza said looking up. "Your generosity is unmatched."

"Hey, now I thought I told you to call me Lucy."

"Of course." Erza said with a smile for a moment before she jolted up with a look of sudden recognition on her face. "The guests will be arriving soon! I must go! There are still things to be done!"

With that, Erza spun around and rushed out the door again in a hurry. Before she closed the door behind her, however, she poked her head back through the doorway, calming down for a brief moment.

"Good luck tonight, Lucy. You are going to be great."

Erza left for good this time without waiting for a response. Levy laughed once more.

"Wow, she's quite the character."

"Yeah." Lucy agreed softly. "But she's definitely the kind of person you want to have at your side."

XXX

Even though her glass slippers were comfortable at first, no shoes could have prevented the aching pain in Lucy's feet as she danced a full song with yet another man.

The Ball had been in full swing for about an hour now. She had her big entrance into the Grand Hall with an entire orchestra playing and was greeted by a gigantic room packed to the brim with the most eligible bachelors in Fiore. They clapped enthusiastically for an unreasonably long period of time upon her arrival. Her father gave a short speech shortly after, announcing that at the end of the night Lucy would select ten men to continue onto Stage Two of the Coronal Contests.

Ever since then, Lucy found herself matched up with one dance partner after another. Men were grabbing her arm and asking for a dance all over the place and, of course, she said yes to every one of them, even the pudgy 30 year old with a thick brown mustache that covered his upper lip.

Currently she was dancing with… Brian? Benjamin? Barton? She couldn't seem to remember the name he introduced himself with a few minutes earlier, but that was no surprise as she already had no less than fifty names thrown at her in the past thirty minutes alone.

Anyway, the nameless man she was dancing with was rather handsome. He was probably in his early twenties and had a neat shock of black hair and sported warm green eyes. She might have actually enjoyed dancing with him if it weren't for the trickle of sweat she felt slivering down her back. Not only were her feet aching with so much dancing, but her muscles were tired too. It was a lot of work to do in heals and a tight dress.

Thankfully, the song ended before too much longer.

"Thank you for the dance." Lucy said sweetly, taking her hands off his shoulders.

"Care for another?" He asked hopefully. Lucy couldn't tell if the gleam in his eyes came from a one-sided connection or originated from pure greed. Either way, she needed a break.

"I must decline. There are many people here that I must split my time between. It was a pleasure meeting you though." She said, perfectly reciting the line she had practiced for this very situation. It was a line she repeated to all of the men who insisted on one dance too many.

"The pleasure was all mine, your highness." He said, picking up her hand to give it a swift kiss that maybe lingered too long. "We shall meet again before the night ends."

"I look forward to it." She spat out the lie quickly, finding the man rather creepy all of a sudden.

Maybe it would have been less weird if I knew his name…

Spotting the long table of refreshments across the room, Lucy began to make her get away, daydreaming about an icy cold drink of water to soothe her dry throat.

As she weaved through the crowd, she was talked to by nearly every man she passed as they clamored for the chance to introduce themselves to the princess. She returned their introductions with a hasty greeting of her own and would continue to rush away before any of them could ask for a dance.

Although she was making progress, the crowd of people was so thick that Lucy began to feel that it would be impossible to transverse the entire hall to get to the refreshments table. She shouldn't have been surprised by the sheer number of people who showed up, but still the amount of bodies crammed into one room was appalling. Not only were there hundreds and hundreds of men, but there were also quite the number of woman as well. Most Noblewoman were invited to the ball as it was necessary to have more than just one dance partner for the hordes of competitive men. Lucy liked to play around with the idea that some other future couple would meet here as well and fall in love. It was one of the things that made her excited for tonight.

And despite numerous warnings from the part of herself that didn't want to get her hopes up, Lucy allowed her eyes to search the crowd yet again for the main reason she was genuinely excited for tonight.

She didn't tell anyone about the boy she met on her escapade into Oakdale Town a few days ago, not even Levy. She liked holding that secret close to her chest partially because it made the whole idea of meeting a handsome stranger that much more mysterious and thrilling, but also because she didn't want anyone to see her inevitable disappointment if Natsu were to not show up.

It was a strange sensation. Natsu and she didn't really get off to the best start when they first met. Sure he had rescued her from some street thugs, but he had made it more than clear that he hated noble and wealthy people.

Being in the top three most noble and wealthy people in Fiore, she definitely was not someone on Natsu's good side. In fact, he probably would dislike her even more when he found out that she happened to be the Princess of Fiore. In that regard, she should be hoping that he wouldn't show up so that she wouldn't have to face any potential yelling or anger, but she couldn't deny that she wanted to see the strange boy again. All her life, Lucy had experienced nothing but kindness and respect from other people and so it intrigued her when someone wasn't afraid to tell her how they really felt. It was that brutal and unfiltered honesty that Natsu openly displayed that made her want to have another conversation with him.

When she bought him the suit, he seemed like he was seriously considering coming to the Ball, but after another visual scan around the Grand Hall, she spotted not a single strand of pink hair.

She sighed in disappointment.

"Need some water, your highness?" A kind voice said from beside her. "You look like you could use a refreshment."

"You have no idea!" Lucy replied instantly, forgetting her proper manners in the tidal wave of relief that crashed over her. She looked up to see who was offering her the glass and instantly straightened up when she saw two very attractive boys around her age standing in front of her. "I mean, thank you so much I would appreciate it greatly."

"It's my pleasure." The first boy said. His blonde hair was impeccably styled, but at least it wasn't slicked back with gallons of gel like the majority of men here. To match his light visage, were a pair of narrow but piercing blue eyes that were locked right on hers.

He handed her the glass and Lucy, taking it gently with a smile, slowly gulped the entire thing down. She was slightly embarrassed by her guzzling, but it was more than worth it as she felt the cool liquid slide refreshingly down her crackly throat.

"Thank you." She said once she finished drinking all the water. She offered her hand out to the blonde boy and he took it firmly, kissing her lightly on the knuckles.

"My name is Sting Eucliffe and this is my brother, Rogue." He said smoothly, charisma leaking from his silky voice.

"Pleasure to meet you, your highness." Sting's brother, who was dressed in all black with black hair and black eyes to match, said with a simple nod. To Lucy's surprise he didn't kiss her hand like all the other men around here insisted on doing, and the princess appreciated that. She could tell Rogue wasn't going to be anything that he wasn't.

Sting and Rogue. Lucy thought to herself. I'm definitely not going to forget those names.

"We've been waiting all night for a chance to introduce ourselves." Sting said, making Lucy feel comfortable with casual and unforced conversation. "But it always seemed like you were constantly on the dancefloor."

"Not by my choice." Lucy replied. "I enjoy a good dance, but it gets rather tiring without any breaks."

"Would you like to dance with me?" Sting asked suddenly, taking Lucy by surprise.

"Um… sure I suppose-"

"I was joking." The blonde said with a smirk. "I'm just messing with you."

"Oh thank goodness!" Lucy laughed in relief. "My feet are not ready for another waltz."

And that was Lucy's first genuine laugh of the evening. It was a breath of fresh air to meet somebody tonight that wasn't strictly business and wasn't afraid to joke around with her. It was nice to know that at least someone could be themselves around a princess.

"You're much too nice." Rogue said in his deep, steady voice. Lucy got the feeling that this Rogue character didn't speak much, so she took into account the words that did escape past his mouth.

"It's part of the job." She replied with a shrug.

"But still you don't have to dance with every creep that comes up to you. If you ask me there should have been stricter restrictions on who is allowed in here." Sting commented.

"Perhaps you're right. Although I don't think I regret allowing any eligible man to attend. It lets me meet new people, you know?

"Of course." Sting said, nodding in understanding. "This is a very important decision you must make and so you must consider all possible options. All I'm saying is that some of those options require less consideration."

Lucy laughed, sure that Sting wasn't being completely serious this time either. He laughed along with her and even Rogue allowed his lips to twitch in an almost unnoticeable smirk.

"Lucy." A deep, rumbling voice said as it approached. It came from her father, the tall broad King of Fiore who donned his opulent crown for the special event.

"Father." She greeted with a smile as the two boys she was talking to bowed in their King's presence.

"I have someone I would like you to meet. He has traveled all the way from the country of Minstrel to meet you." The King said, his voice resonating above the clamor of the dance.

"I must meet him then." Lucy said, slightly disappointed she would have to leave her new friends to meet another pompous nobleman, but she understood that it was her responsibility. "I apologize, Sting, Rogue. I must go."

"We understand, your highness." Sting answered while Rogue simply nodded in agreeance.

"Very good." Jude said and he gestured for Lucy to follow him as he paved a path through the crowd with his presence alone.

"Listen, Lucy." Her father said, his voice growing much more serious. "I assure you that I am going to let you make the decision of who will become your husband on your own, but I must make clear my endorsement of the young man you are about to meet. He is the second son of the King of Minstrel, making him the prince. His older brother will undoubtedly take the thrown in their country, so after negotiations with Minstrel's King, I've convinced him to send his second son here to meet you. If he becomes your husband, the future of Fiore would be bright as Minstrel is a large and very powerful country. A solid alliance with them would prove most profitable."

"I see." Lucy said, suddenly feeling a lot of pressure placed on her shoulders. "I will be on my best behavior then."

"Thank you, Lucy." He said proudly.

The King led his daughter over to a less crowded part of the Grand hall where there wasn't so much dancing. There was a young man standing alone with his hands casually stuffed into his pockets. He had to be around the age of 18.

"There he is." Her father told her. "Go introduce yourself."

"Yes, sir." Lucy replied and confidently walked up to the boy.

"Hello." She said politely. "I'm Lucy Heartfilia, Princess of Fiore. I'm very pleased to meet you."

"Sup." The prince said with a nonchalance that went along perfectly with his messy dark hair and disinterested dark blue eyes. "I'm Gray. Gray Fullbuster."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Guys, you have no idea how proud I am of myself for getting this chapter written in such a short amount of time. This means that there is still hope for semi-consistent updates!

Anyway, things are getting good, aren't they? Sting is getting on Lucy's good side and our heroine has just met Gray, who happens to be a Prince!

But you might be asking where the heck is Natsu? Why wasn't he at the dance? Well, stay tuned for the next chapter to find out! I wanted to fit more into this one, but before I knew it this chapter hit 4,000 words and I thought I might as well cut it off sooner than planned otherwise it would A.) Be like 8,000 words long and B.) Not be posted for several more days.

Oh, and fun fact! The Amaryllis flowers that Erza was freaking out about the color of actually has a really cool/tragic love story in Greek Mythology. Just thought I'd throw that fun tidbit in there because symbolism is awesome and I didn't pick just any random flower to use in my story.

Yay! Alright that about wraps this little note up so I will bid you farewell with the promise of a new chapter to be posted ASAP.

Stay cool ;)