~Chapter Four~

Resolute Anna

I was honestly still adjusting to...everything. The rebels were very lively, to put it mildly. As far as I could tell, they couldn't go five minutes without starting another fight amongst themselves. Especially Natsu.

"Say that to my face!" Natsu yelled. I'm pretty sure he would have grabbed Gray's collar forcefully, but Gray wasn't wearing clothes. Again. I'd grown accustomed to Gray's strange habit, but still thought it peculiar.

"I just did, idiot!" Gray yelled back. He grabbed Natsu's scarf and, for some reason that went unknown to me, that pissed Natsu off. Before I knew it, Gray was sent flying. I sighed and turned around in my seat. This was just the usual scene.

"You look bored," said a deep voice. I stiffened and looked to my left. I vaguely recognized the guy who was next to me.

I pointed a finger at him, "The guy who caught me?" He nodded. "Thanks again for not letting me become pavement putty."

He stared at me, "What?"

"Never mind. Anyway, yeah, I'm a bit bored," I replied.

"You must have a special talent to get bored here. I'm Laxus," he said, pointing to himself.

I nodded, "Sometimes I think so, too. Oh, and it's nice to meet you. I figure you already know this, but I'm-"

"Anna!" someone interrupted. I flinched when someone tackled me from behind.

"Jeez! Do you want me to die?" I shouted, looking up at Natsu.

He scoffed, "You wouldn't die just from that. I wouldn't hurt you." I smiled. Of course he wouldn't hurt me, but that didn't mean I wasn't going to toy with him.

"You're right, I wouldn't die," I said, "But it still hurt."

He stared at me, "Really?"

I nodded, crossing my arms, "Yes. Apologize."

He looked horrified, "Huh?"

"Apologize," I repeated. I flicked some of my silky hair out of my eyes and whipped Natsu's face with it...intentionally.

Natsu grimaced, "You really are starting to seem like a spoiled Princess."

"Isn't that what you expected?" I asked, dropping the act.

"I liked that you weren't what I expected, though," Natsu said. I fought the urge to either touch him or run away.

"Thanks, I guess," I said, looking away from him.

I could practically hear him smiling, "So, I was thinking that you should come on a job with us!"

I blinked, "Job?" I turned back to him and stared at him. He eased off and sat on the other side of me. Natsu opened his mouth to speak, but Laxus beat him to it.

"We make a living off of jobs given to us by people who also don't support the monarchy," Laxus said, "Of course, it's a secret."

"Laxus!" Natsu shouted. Laxus didn't even look up.

"What do you do on these jobs?" I asked Natsu.

"I think the one we just got was to take out some monster somewhere," Natsu replied. I gulped.

"Monster?" Of course there are monsters in Fiore. That was just one more tidbit that came along to brighten my day. Images of grotesque creatures from horror movies flashed through my head in fast motion.

"A wyvern, to be exact," Lucy said, joining us, "One of those green ones. The really tough ones."

"Wyvern?" I questioned, "Tough?" I wracked my brain for what little information I possessed of wyverns.

"Are those like dragons?" I asked Lucy.

She grinned, "Sorry, but dragons don't exist. I guess they're similar, though." She stroked her chin, in deep thought. Dragons don't exist? But I thought a dragon created my kingdom…Vitruvius, I think. I didn't ask, though. I had a feeling that I would be in Fiore for a while, if not forever, and would have plenty of time to ask questions later.

"Why are you discussing wyverns with Anna?" Erza asked suspiciously, coming up behind Lucy.

"They want me to come on their job," I answered. Natsu covered up my mouth with his hand immediately.

"No! No, we don't!" he corrected. I blinked...what? But, you just…

"Absolutely not!" Erza yelled. She had her arms positioned over her armored chest crossly.

"Erza!" Lucy protested.

"No! It'd be much too dangerous for her! She's just a princess!" Erza said, gesturing to me. I ripped Natsu's hand off my face.

"I'm not weak!" I insisted.

"You are," Erza said, "I hate to be rude, Princess, but you're not nearly as strong as you think you are. I doubt you've seen much of the world outside of that castle, so you don't know how dangerous it can be."

I paused. She had a good point. I was new to this world, so I knew nothing about it. Heck, I couldn't even fully remember what it was that a wyvern was.

"Not to mention that you don't possess any magic," Erza added. My shoulders slumped. She had me there.

"I know," I mumbled.

"Master!" Lucy called. I hadn't even realized he was there until Lucy yelled for him; I imagine that his small stature accounted for that conundrum.

"Master, Anna said that she was bored here and that she wanted to see the outside world for the first time," Lucy said, grabbing my arm and pulling me forward, "Would we be able to bring her outside?"

The Master stared at her and then at me and then back at her, "Unfortunately for both of you, I agree with Erza. It's much too dangerous for her to go on this job."

Lucy withered visibly and she loosened her grip on my arm. "Which is why you'll be taking Laxus with you as well," the Master added. Lucy jumped up and down. I glanced over to Laxus, but he was just calmly slumped against the bar table, unmoving. Clearly he didn't care about any of this.

"Really? She can come?" Lucy squealed. She hugged me. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to come. If this was going to be as dangerous as they all seemed to think, a normal girl like me wouldn't belong there.

"Master!" Erza said, appalled.

The Master raised his hand to silence her, "And why you shall go disguised. We can't have you being identified. I'm sure the royal guard is looking for you...and for us."

"We'll go now, then!" Natsu cheered, grabbing me and lifting me off my feet. He slung me over his shoulder and pinned me there.

"What the- Natsu, what are you doing?" I demanded as he carried me towards the door.

"Well, I have to do this. Otherwise, you might chicken out," he said. I felt my face set on fire.

"I would not!" I shouted, pounding on his back.

"Yeah, that doesn't hurt at all," he said, hugging me tighter.

I gave up and slumped against his back, "Jerk."

"It's not that I don't want you here…well, I don't…but what I mean is that you'll be in danger. Not to mention the royal guard who are searching for you. The cape will somewhat protect you, but it's not 100% safe," Erza said. She'd been fretting since we left the guild.

I tapped her arm, "But you're here…and so is Laxus. I'll be safe. I may not be strong, but I'm not stupid. I won't go charging into enemy lines of go near this wyvern."

She stared at me skeptically. "Ok, so it really depends on the situation. But I won't do it if the situation doesn't call for it," I said.

"The Princess-" Laxus began.

"Anna!" I interrupted.

"Anna," Laxus repeated, correcting himself, "Will be fine."

I nodded, "Yep."

"I understand your concern, Erza. We went through a lot to get her here, but that doesn't mean we have to keep her cooped up back at base," Lucy said with a smile. She latched onto my arm and gave me a little huggish squeeze.

Natsu's arm found its way around my shoulders again, "I'm here, too. Don't forget that."

"Right. Your hand-fire…I almost forgot," I mumbled, sarcasm dripping from every syllable.

"Oi! I'm one of the strongest!" Natsu protested. I looked up at him and nodded, then looked to Lucy on my other side. I raised an eyebrow.

She nodded in response, "It's actually true." I frowned. Dammit.

"Not stronger than me," Gray said quietly, his hands in his pockets.

"Ah, Gray! Nice of you to join the conversation! I almost forgot you were there!" I said with a grin.

He just stared at me. After a moment, Erza spoke up, "Anyway, when we arrive, at least one of us should be near Anna at all times."

"Isn't that why I'm here?" Laxus asked, his deep voice resonating.

I suddenly spoke up…unintentionally, I might add. "I think Laxus should be up front…to help fight the wyvern. Someone else should be in the back," I blurted. That was secretly my way of saying that I wanted Natsu to be the one guarding me. I wasn't about to tell anyone that, though.

"She's got a point," Lucy said, nudging my arm.

"I'm the most powerful in Rosae Crucis. The fight'll be over if I join in," Laxus said matter-of-factly.

"Just because you're one of the top in R-Class doesn't mean that you're the best. I bet, if all of Fairy Tail attacked you…you'd lose," Happy said. He floated down and landed on my head, pointing at Laxus accusatorily. I'm pretty sure that was one of the worst and most baseless arguments I'd ever heard, but, to be fair, it had come from a cat. Just saying.

"Fairy Tail? R-Class?" I asked everyone at once.

Erza was the one to speak up, "R-Class is the Rosae Crucis, the most powerful out of all of Fairy Tail's wizards. Fairy Tail is the name of our organization."

I nodded, "Fairy Tail." If I'm being honest, I found that name ridiculous…still, I didn't say that. I'd feel pretty bad if I just insulted these people to their faces.

"Depends," Laxus said as we walked.

"On what?" I asked curiously, running to catch up with him. Happy slid off my head and landed in my arms. I grinned.

"On whether or not he's on a train," Lucy said with a smirk.

"Shut up, Cheerleader," Laxus growled.

"Don't call me that!" Lucy hissed back.

"Girls, girls…you're both pretty. Can we move on?" I asked. Lucy laughed. Laxus looked horrified.

"We're here," Erza said. I froze and looked at her.

"By here do you mean here?" I asked. I tensed and looked around, "Oh god, there's not a wyvern in this train station, is there?"

Natsu loomed over me, "Yes, and it's so big that it'll eat you in one bite. And then it'll digest you slowly, and you'll be turned into-"

"Natsu!" Lucy yelled, punching him in the stomach. I gulped.

"Turned into what?" I asked Lucy.

"He's just kidding. There aren't any wyverns in the train station, Anna."

"Did you actually believe him?" Gray asked.

"Hey, I've never seen a wyvern before!" I argued as if it justified my stupidity.

"By 'here' I meant the station, Anna. Calm down," Erza said and the briskly walked away.

"Where's she going?" I asked Natsu. He opened his mouth, but I held up my hand. "Wait, I'm mad at you. Don't answer that." I turned to Lucy. "Where's she going?"

"To get tickets," Lucy said with a smile.

"Riiiight. Tickets. Those'd be good to have…to get onto a train," I said, nodding in a sagely manner.

"Did you really believe me?" Natsu gloated with a grin, leaning closer to me. I ignored him.

"Don't tell me you've never been on a train before," Lucy said, staring at me.

I blinked, "Wh—of course I have!"

"I guess you're pretty easy to trick; I've never been able to trick anyone other than you," Natsu said, stepping even closer.

"So…you haven't?" Gray asked.

"I have," I insisted, (if you count the subway).

"Do you get tricked a lot?" Natsu asked; he was now so close that I could feel his body heat on my arm. I'm pretty sure the hair on the back of my neck stood up.

"So…you have," Gray said with a hesitant nod.

"I have," I said. When Natsu wrapped his arms around me, yet again, I froze and looked up at him. I narrowed my eyes.

"Why are you hugging me?" I asked.

"He does that. Just ignore it," Lucy said as if she were talking about a small dog that had a pesky habit. I grinned.

"It means that he likes you," Lucy whispered in my ear jokingly. That definitely sounded like she was talking about a small dog.

I laughed, "Likes me?"

"I heard that," Natsu said directly into my ear. His breath made me shiver.

"Jeez, do you have superhuman hearing or something?" I asked, slightly annoyed.

"Pretty much," Gray replied.

"He's a Dragonslayer," Lucy informed.

I sighed, "I thought you said dragons don't exist."

"They don't," Natsu said. His voice sounded a bit sad.

"They disappeared," Lucy told me, "Pretty recently. Why…don't you know that?"

"Right…so you slew dragons?" I asked, looking up at Natsu, (I decided it was better to not answer Lucy's question, and instead ask one of my own). My eyes were barely above his arms, so it was a bit difficult to see.

A look of horror crossed his face, "No!"

"Then why are you called a Dragonslayer?" I pressed.

"Igneel taught me my magic," Natsu said, his voice suddenly quiet. I took that as my queue to shut up. Natsu, as far as I could tell from my short time with him, was almost always loud. When he started to speak quietly, you'd gone too far. I'd gone too far. So I shut up.

I nodded and grabbed Natsu's wrist, "You don't need to explain anything to me." I smiled, trying to ease the pressure off of him. He blinked and stared at me. I could recognize pain when I saw it. My life had been full of pain. Still, being away from it, I was able to see that I actually loved it a bit. Maybe deep down and in an unconventional way, but I still loved it. Somewhere in my heart I longed to go back, but I forced that thought away. I'd told myself that I would take all of this seriously if I woke up and was still in this crazy world, so I was going to.

"Igneel was my father," Natsu said, his voice just as quiet, "But he's gone now."

My breath caught in my throat and I looked up at him, "My father is gone, too."

"The King? He's gone?" Lucy asked.

"Not the King," I said, shrugging Natsu off. I hugged myself due to the sudden cold that surrounded me. I fought the temptation to return to Natsu's warmth.

"What?" Gray asked, "Not the King?"

"I meant my real dad," I said. The one I had memories of. The one I truly loved. That's when I decided. I knew I had to choose. But…which life did I want? This seemingly dangerous world filled with magic, monsters, monarchies, and…rebels or my normal life, filled with only pizza dough, Mom, and Skylar. It was surprisingly hard to choose, but I came to a decision soon enough. I didn't know this world. It wasn't my world. Even if I really was Princess Anna and woke up with false memories, they were the memories I had. The memories I loved. The memories of happier times, with my mother and my father…I wasn't about to let them go. Fiore wasn't my world. However amazing it was, it wasn't mine.

However much I liked the people here, it wasn't mine.

However much I liked Natsu, it wasn't mine.

It had fallen silent—most likely because the others were confused—when Happy reached up and took my finger, "You're sad, aren't you?"

"Happy, don't-" Natsu began.

"I will tell her," Happy interrupted. He looked back to me, "We wanted to bring you because you looked sad. We thought a job would cheer you up, because it always cheers us up."

I forced a smile, "I didn't realize I looked sad."

"You did," Natsu said. He was being surprisingly considerate.

"Well, thanks. I hope you're right…that this job will cheer me up," I said, actually smiling a bit this time.

"It will!" Lucy proclaimed and hugged me. I hugged her back, surprisingly open to her friendliness.

I smiled, "I'm just a little homesick is all. I'm sure you're right."

"I've got the tickets!" Erza said, running back to join us, "And the train is leaving now!" She pointed behind her and I saw that by 'now' she meant now. The wheels squeaked as it pulled away.

"Come on!" Natsu yelled. Her grabbed my arm and yanked me alongside him.

"What? We missed it!" I shouted.

"I wish!" Natsu said.

"No, we didn't!" Lucy said with an ecstatic smile.

"It's still right here," Gray said as he rain next to me.

"Run faster, guys!" Happy yelled. I swear, these people must have been cross-country runners, because they were fast. I found myself falling behind almost immediately. This was most likely due to my short legs.

"You're falling behind!" Natsu yelled over his shoulder.

"I realized that much, thank you!" I shouted, annoyed.

"Come on, Anna," Happy said with a laugh. He swooped down above my head and grabbed me. Soon enough I felt my feet leaving the ground. I struggled immediately.

"What the hell are you doing!?" I screamed. Ok, so I'm not proud of my language there, but it was justified. I'm not all that fond of heights. Whenever I'm high up, my legs get so shaky that I can't stand. I'm pretty sure I've fainted a couple times also.

"Stop struggling or I'll drop you!" Happy said.

"WHAT!?" I shrieked. I clung to his little paws.

"Just kidding! I won't drop you," he said as we passed the others.

"Wait up, Anna!" Natsu shouted. I was too busy being traumatized to relish the sweet taste of victory…not that we were racing.

"When we land, if I'm still conscious, I am going to strangle you!" I yelled.

"Let go!" Happy said. I did so unconsciously and then regretted it a moment later. Happy let go of me and I flew through the air a good ten feet before slamming into the wooden floorboards of the train. I didn't move, just lay there in pain with my eyes shut.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow," I mumbled.

"Are you ok, Anna?" Natsu asked. Apparently he'd leapt onto the train like spies do in movies.

"Just mostly dead," I replied without opening my eyes.

"Why didn't she put her legs out?" Happy asked.

"Did you tell her to?" Lucy asked skeptically.

"Yes."

"No!" I opened my eyes only to see Natsu's face right in front of mine. He smiled at me and I smiled back, momentarily mesmerized by his proximity and then snapped back to reality. "No, you didn't!"

"I did, but you might not have heard me because you were screaming," Happy said, nodding with his arms crossed over his chest.

"It's not my fault I'm afraid of heights," I mumbled.

That's when Natsu's head dropped into my lap, "I'm sorry, I can't hold it any more." He moaned and curled up next to me clutching his stomach. I didn't move, not knowing what to do. I stared at him as he started to sweat.

"He gets motion sickness," Lucy explained.

I sighed and put a hand on his head, "Oh. That makes sense."

"We're going to go find our seats. You can just leave him here. Come on," Gray said, offering me his hand. I looked up at him and then back at Natsu.

"Um, I'll catch up with you guys. I just want to make sure he's ok," I said, waving them away.

"Suit yourself," Erza said. They left the small room we'd jumped into and slid the door shut behind them. I sighed.

"You're a mess," I said to Natsu. His only reply was a grunt. I shook my head and tucked some of my hair behind my ear.

"Whenever I was sick, my dad always used to sing to me," I said, unsure of why I was telling him this. I guess I trusted Natsu. "I loved him a lot, and I just liked it when he was near me. When I was sick, he used to hold me and remind me that it was all going to be over soon enough…that I would always get better."

The only indication that Natsu was listening was a weak nod. I found myself gently touching his hair. "He used to pet me…just like this."

The corner of Natsu's mouth lifted. "That's why I was so sad when he died. I miss him, but not as much any more. I know it's impossible for me to forget him, though. He always used to say, 'Anna Banana, we're partners for life!'" I smiled and then realized that I was crying only when a tear dropped onto Natsu's face.

Natsu's eyes fluttered open and he stared at me. I wiped my eyes quickly and tried to hide my face behind my hair. He wouldn't let me hide though. He reached out with a shaky arm and touched my face.

"I miss Igneel too," he whispered.

I nodded, "Yeah."

Natsu lowered his arms and I kept stroking his hair. He kept staring at me and the only sound was the clunking of the train tracks below us. Suddenly, Natsu's eyes went wide. He jerked upright and slammed the door open. He leaned out and threw up. I looked away and cringed.

"Sorry," Natsu said. I looked back to see him collapse on the wood floor. I smiled and shook my head.

"It's not your fault…however nasty it is," I said. He let out a tiny chuckle and looked at me. I smiled and patted my lap. He raised a brow.

"Come on. I'll be your pillow, but just for this ride…and only as long as you don't barf on me," I said, patting my lap again. He hauled himself upright and then fell back onto my lap.

"Thanks," he croaked.

I smiled, "Don't thank me yet; it's not for free."

"Huh?"

"You'll see."

Sorry it took me so long to update. I liked this chapter, though and hope that you did, too! Leave me a review if you'd like, but I'll stick with this story either way. I'm just being honest here. And so I'll be honest and tell you that I want you to review.