We had been walking for about two hours and Salamander had bound my hands behind my back but that hadn't stopped me from talking to Cana and Erza, trying to get my mind off of where we were headed. Gray and Salamander didn't say anything but I knew they were listening. Cana giggled.
"So wait, you have a sexy beast that's a lion spirit- but he looks like a human, and he completely adores you?" Cana asked with a smirk and I laughed.
"Oh yeah, I mean he's a player and loves girls but they're all one night stands. But he's super protective and adores me. Comes in handy if Sting is being an ass and I need something to cuddle." I said and Cana smirked more.
"Oh yeah. Cuddle." She implied and I laughed although some of it was nervous, a light blush on my cheeks.
"Well I mean...if Sting wasn't in the picture and Loke happens to slip into my room…" I said, going on with the jokes. I held back as Cana shrieked in delight and Erza laughed, both boys tensing as they had to endure listening to this. I didn't care though.
"Lucy liiiiiiiiiikes him!" Happy purred.
"In his dreams." I muttered, the blush staying on my cheeks. Thank God he couldn't hear this or his ego would go through the roof.
"So wait, tell me more about the book you were talking about." Erza said and I looked at her, not noticing the way Gray slowed slightly so that he could listen to.
"Oh yeah, it's really just something I've been working on and will continue to work on when I get back to Sabertooth. It's going to be my life story just with different names for the people." I said and Gray spoke up.
"You're writing a life story when your life isn't even halfway over?" He asked and I shook my head.
"No, it's something that I will add too over the years. My adventures aren't nearly close to over." I said and he chuckled while Cana drank some booze.
"Can you guys shut up?" Salamander snapped suddenly and all five of us froze, watching his hard glare. His lip twitched and he turned, walking again. The others sighed and kept walking, our group going silent as a Happy guilty floated over to hover over Salamanders shoulder and Gray rejoined him.
I watched the ground, sighing to myself as I tried to think of a plan. As soon as I was in care of the guards I would whip out Tauros and Loke, get my sword and whips from Salamander and book it out of there. The problem was my hands were bound.
We walked for maybe an hour more. The sun was high in the sky now, it probably being around 1 in the afternoon.
Suddenly Salamander stopped along with Gray.
"The meeting place is just behind these bushes. We'll sit here until they arrive." The pinkette said and my breath caught in my throat, anxiety filling me as a wave of fear rolled over me. I felt like I couldn't breathe.
"How long do you think it'll be?" Gray asked and Salamander shrugged.
"Hopefully not long-" He went quiet for a second. "I can hear them." He said and all of us went dead silent, straining our ears. I distantly heard the sounds of clanking metal and I started to back away, the noises getting louder by the second. Salamander grabbed me and pulled my back to his chest. I started to struggle, kicking and panicking.
"N-no! I'm not going back! You can't make me no I won't go back!" I hissed at him as he shoved me against a tree.
"You are going back, and I am making you." He said bluntly, causing me to panic more as I kept struggling.
"They're in the clearing." Gray said and Salamander nodded. Picking me up while I thrashed and carrying me over his shoulders like I was a sacrifice being taken to the temple. I kept kicking thrashing my body but his hold on me remained tight as he led the group from the bushes. I stopped moving for half a second to take in the scene, a royal carriage surrounded by maybe 50 soldiers. Then...the carriage door opened and a feeling of complete doom and fear took control of me as I saw my father.
I started thrashing harder, starting to yell and scream at him to let me go, jerking my hands and arms as best I could from the restraints. Suddenly Salamander stopped in the middle and set me down. I ripped myself from his grasp and spun around, glaring daggers at the entire group, feeling like a deadly viperes ready to spit venom at anyone who dared come near me. My father watched me, not a smile, not tears of happiness, just hidden cold anger as he approached me.
"You held up your end of the deal." He said, snapping his fingers. I seethed as a few guards strode forward, carrying multiple chests. Salamander walked forward, starting to look at his treasure. My father turned to me.
"I'm not going back with you." I snarled at him.
"Lucy. Stop acting so childish. I let you run around and play dress up but now it's time to come home. You will be attending a party tonight where you will meet Prince Bora. You will make him happy because he will be the one you're going to marry. I expect you to bare him a son as soon as possible so you will not resist any advances he makes." My eyes widened in anger and I spit at him, it landing on his shirt.
"Like hell I will." I snapped at him. He growled and rose his hand, slapping me hard. My face turned with the force of impact. I heard the gasps from behind me and a protest from what I thought was Happy however it was quickly cut off.
"You don't have a choice." He said and I brought my foot up, kicking him between his legs. The soldiers gasped and I smirked as he fell.
"Wanna bet? I sneered. I heard fingers snap and suddenly two of the bigger guards strode forward toward my small frame. Uh oh. I tried to run but I was grabbed hard and forced back in front of my father, grunting as I was shoved into the ground.
"Lucille! Hey you can't do that to her!" I looked to the side to see Gray holding Happy back, all of them having looks of shocks on their faces. I tried to struggle free as my father got up, fear consuming me as tears pricked at my eyes. I didn't want to go back. He gave me a look of rage, kicking my side hard. I grunted.
"You're too much like your mother...but I'm telling you now to get past this. You're coming home, you'll act like a lady, you'll meet Prince Bora, marry him and give him as many children as he wants. Understand?" He growled and I lost it, screaming in fear and anger as the guards picked up my kicking and thrashing body, carrying me towards the carriage.
"Hold on." A strong voice rang out across the field, causing everything to stop. I looked up in shock at Salamander who was glaring at my father.
"You didn't say you treated her like shit." He said. I was set down, being held by just one of the guys. I was confused. Why would Salamander stop?
"That's none of your concern you sea scum. You're lucky I don't string you up for not bringing her friend and for just being a pirate." The king declared. Salamander opened his mouth but I quickly spoke up.
"She's dead!" I yelled and all eyes fell on me. I glared defiantly through the tears.
"I ran her through myself." I said, knowing she wouldn't be safe unless they thought she was dead.
"Stupid." My father sneered. Suddenly there was a knife to my back and the scent of pine and lemons flooded over me. I froze for a second before I heard the man holding me whisper.
"Long time no see, and you've gotten better at your lies." He said quietly and I resisted the urge to smile as he started to cut my ropes.
"Hey! You don't deserve to have Lucy near you...she...she doesn't deserve to be treated like a rag doll! She's a person and you can't just control her like that!" Salamander yelled. Since when did he care? Suddenly my ropes were much looser but I kept my hands together for a moment.
"Watch me. Guards. Kill the pirates." My father ordered.
"Now." The man behind me said and we both jumped into action, me wielding two keys while he stripped the armor inhumanly fast, his mop of blue hair and red tattoo on his eye visible, in a black muscle shirt and regular black pants. The Fairy Tail members had launched into battle in a heartbeat, no hesitation, no second guessing the numbers.
"OPEN! GATES OF THE GOLDEN BULL AND THE LION! LEO AND TAURUS!" I yelled, feeling my energy sap instantly. They both appeared, greeting me before launching into the fight along side Jellal and the Fairy pirates. I ran up, grabbing my sword and whips from Salamander who barely blinked, punching down a guy with a flaming fist. I lashed the whip hard, swinging my sword and cutting down anyone near me with the royal deal on them. The battle was over within a few minutes, passed out bodies laid everywhere while the rest retreated, along with my father.
"COME AFTER ME AGAIN YOU SON OF A BITCH AND I'LL KILL YOU!" I yelled after him as they disappeared. I took a deep breath before turning, smiling widely and almost tackling Jellal. He laughed and caught me, hugging me tightly and swinging me around.
"I missed you so much Sg." He said and I pulled away, grinning widely.
"What are you doing here?! Oh God I'm so happy to see you! I could kiss you!" I exclaimed and Loke draped an arm over my shoulder, doing his handshake he and Jellal had made a long time ago.
"I heard the Princess and Duchess were being returned, figured I might help out but looks like your friends had you covered." He said and I looked to see the group of Fairies.
"Oh! I almost forgot! Jellal, this is uhm...they're uhm..." I trailed off, not knowing what to classify them. Salamander walked forward, offering a hand out.
"I'm Natsu, enemies know me as Salamander." He said, and Jellal raised a brow, shaking his hand as Loke growled, tensing his arm around me.
"You're the guy that hurt Lucille." He snapped and Jellal tensed as well while Salamander narrowed his eyes.
"And? I just helped her escape." He tried to justify. I opened my mouth to intervene but Loke beat me to it.
"You wouldn't have had to save her if you hadn't had taken her to begin with." Loke said and they both moved forward aggressively until I caught Loke by the tie and pulled it gently. He was like putty in my hands as all his attention went to me, his eyes soft as he waited for my command. My simple action enforcing so much power onto him that the Lion became nothing but a mere kitten.
"Loke, in the end he did what is right. Everyone deserves second chances do they not?" I asked and he sighed, standing up straight as he pushed up his sun glasses.
"I can't argue with that my dear Lucille. Anyway if all is good here I'll be back in my world. Look at me often." He winked before shimmering out. I rolled my eyes out of love and looked back at the group. Gray introduced himself, then Cana who seemed a bit tipsy, Happy after that. I looked at Erza and saw her staring at Jellal. When he looked at her something caught in his throat. It was silent for a few moments Salamander coughed.
"So...who are you? To Luc..ille." He asked and Jellal broke from his trance.
"What? Oh right...well at first I was a contender for her hand in marriage but that was put to rest quickly by my father declaring me a bastard son. I'm Juvia's half brother but we've never considered our different mothers as something to separate us...which reminds me...how is she?" He asked, looking at me. I shook my head.
"I don't know...we were both captured but when we tried to escape their ship," I said, gesturing to Salamander, "we got caught so I shoved her off the ship. She would've headed for the meeting place...and met the ship. That's where the ship is headed for." I said and he nodded.
"What meeting place?" Gray asked and I looked at him.
"It's where Sabertooth goes if something happens. Like if the crew was scattered or split up somehow. We would all meet up there, or if the captain was seperated from the crew I would have six months to get to the island and meet them there before I'm replaced...which means I have five months and two weeks..." I said, thinking it through and chewing my lip. There was a moment of silence before a sigh.
"How far is the island?" Salamander asked and I turned my attention to him.
"About a months trip...if we have good weather and the winds are in our favor." I said and he nodded.
"Well we better get going then...your friend coming too?" He asked and I blinked in surprise, frowning slightly.
"Wait what?" I asked and he raised his brow.
"What? I'll take you to the island you need to be at...it's the least I could do...you saved Happy's life after all." He said and it was quiet, no one daring to make a move for a moment before I slowly smiled.
"Then I thank you..." I said, holding my hand out. He looked at me for a moment before smiling slightly himself and shaking it it. He turned to Jellal.
"Are you coming?" He asked and Jellal snapped his eyes away from whatever he had been staring at. He looked at Salamander for a long moment before looking at me.
"If it's alright with Sg..." He said and I nodded quickly.
"June would be so happy!" I exclaimed and he raised an eyebrow.
"June?" He asked and I realized we hadn't told him.
"We changed her name like we did with mine, otherwise it would be pretty obvious who we were. Juvia goes by June now, like I go by Lucille." I explained and he nodded.
"If that's the case...wouldn't you need a new alias now?" Gray piped up and I frowned.
"Why?" I asked, tilting my head at the shirtless ice mage.
"Well, Happy called out your name, they know you go by that now." He said and I furrowed my brows.
"Huh...guess you're right…" I mumbled to myself, trailing off. Jellal cleared his throat and rubbed his hands together.
"Well, anyway it looks like I'm coming then." He said.
-edited version-