Chapter 5

Okay…*deep breath* chapter 5. Umm…I've been resurrecting this story because I forgot like half of the plot that I originally had, oh well. You guys are amazing, thanks so much for all the reviews and follows! I'm really excited for this because I have plotting out my evil plans for Natsu and Lucy. I apologize in advance, because I was crying when I wrote out the outline for a certain chapter.

I just started watching RWBY….It's not really an anime but everyone calls it one even though it's American. Haven't decided whether I like it or not, but I may or may not write some fanfic for that if I decide that I do like it.

Kay, here we go.

Lucy's POV

"Lucy! Where are you? Hellooo!" I look up from seat in the window, hearing the sound of the great doors slamming shut. I guess Natsu and Happy are back.

Shutting my book with a sigh, because I was at the best part, I walk out into the hall and down the staircase into the entry hall. This morning, I did some more exploring, so I have a better sense of the castle's layout than I did last night.

"Good Morning!" Natsu greets me, grinning from ear to ear.

"Well, look who's awfully cheerful today." I say with a light smile.

I woke up this morning, and immediately put on a light pink sundress from the mystery closet that I found the night before. It was a relief to know that there was a supply of girl's clothing in the building, because I doubt Natsu would have considered my lack of belongings.

"That's because the Summer Festival is today! There'll be food and games and food!" Happy says happily. (A/N- do you guys see what I did there?)

"AND tonight, we'll have bonfires and dancing and fireworks. It's the biggest event of the year!" Natsu adds.

"Does everything involve fire for you?" I tease.

Happy flies up into the air and plops down on Natsu's head."Yup. Pretty much everything."

"That's great! I hope you guys have fun." I smile, even though I was secretly hoping they wouldn't go anywhere so that I wouldn't have to be alone all day long.

Natsu's smile widens. "You're coming too! You can't just miss the Summer Festival."

"Umm…"I blink several times. How do I put this? "Natsu…I don't think that's the best idea. I'll just stay here and you guys go have fun."

"That's dumb. You have to come, it's the biggest thing of the year." Happy frowns from his perch on Natsu's head.

"No, you don't get it. If someone recognizes me, I'll get you both in big trouble."

Natsu's smile falls away. "Oh. You're right."

I feel relief wash over me, glad Natsu understands.

"But that's okay! You can just wear a disguise." He perks up.

"Natsu, I don't think…"

"Come on! We'll find you a fake mustache or something." He grabs my hand and pulls me up the stairs. He stops at the first closet and goes though several shelves before triumphantly retrieving a piece of black cloth. "You can wear this!"

I look at the cloth skeptically. "Umm…What is that?"

He laughs. "It's a ninja mask! Best disguise in the book!"

I exchange a look with Happy. "No." We say in unison.

"Okay, how about this?" He pulls out a pirate eyepatch.

"No."

"A pumpkin head?"

"Absolutely not."

"A Darth Vader mask?"

"What's a Darth Vader?"

"I dunno, some evil dude from another dimension."

"This isn't dress up."

He lets out a sigh, running a hand through his pink hair. "Okay, how about a big floppy hat?"

I shrug. "It's better than the pumpkin head."

He hands me a big straw hat, which shades half of my face when I put it on.

"There. Perfect." He grins, showing off a set of sharp canines.

I laugh. "Where in Earthland did you get a pumpkin head?"

"I stole it from some crazy short dude."

"Natsu, that's illegal."

He winks. "Well, he was really crazy, so it's not really stealing."

I take a big whiff of the air around me. The scent of flowers drifts lazily through the air, mingling with the smells of fried chicken and fresh bread. All around me are people, and I keep thinking that someone will see me and shout, "Look, there's the princess!" or "Hey, isn't that Princess Lucy, the one who was kidnapped?" But no one pays me any attention, and after an hour of glancing behind my shoulder, thinking someone will recognize me, I begin to relax and enjoy myself.

I've rarely been outside of the palace walls since my mother passed away, so I can't remember the last time I went to a festival. The whole town is decorated for the event, and with the warm sun on my back, it's easy to feel excited about the whole thing. I watch as a florist sets out gorgeous floral displays in her storefront window; stunning bouquets of lilac, daisy, rose, and foxglove. She notices me watching and flashes a friendly smile, waving from behind her vase of lilies. I smile tentatively. I'm not used to common folk being so friendly; all my life, people have treated me with excessive respect, as if I wasn't even human.

"Lucy!" Natsu shouts. He and Happy are waiting for me further up the street.

When I catch up, Natsu flashes a smile. "We're gonna show you the whole town! There's a pizza place on 12th street that makes the best pizza in Fiore. People come from all over to eat our pizza."

"What's pizza?" I ask.

Both of them stop walking, staring at me with equally horrified and shocked expressions. "You've never had pizza?"

I look from Happy to Natsu, confused. "No, I've…never had it. Is…that bad?"

"Oh no! Natsu, we've got to get to 12th street right now! There's not a minute to loose!" Happy cries.

"Right! Come on, Lucy!" Natsu grabs my hand and pulls me through the crowd.

"Wait! What? Why are we going there now? It's not even time for lunch yet!" I protest as I am dragged through the street.

A half hour later, the three of us are sitting at an outdoor table, with full bellies and glasses of lemonade.

"That was the best thing I've ever tasted." I say contentedly. I finished three pieces of the stuff.

"Does anyone want the last piece? Cause if not…" Natsu eyes the one remaining slice of pizza.

"Take it. I'm stuffed." I tell him. Without another moment's hesitation, he snatches it up and gulps it down in a few bites.

"How could you have never tried pizza? That's insane!" He says between bites.

I squirm in my seat a little. My father believed that as royals, we had to eat like it every day. So 'commoner's food' was beneath our status. "My…uh, my parents were…vegan. They never let me eat much meat."

Happy faints.

Natsu picks up the cat from the ground, where he landed. "Man, that sucks. Speaking of which, where are your parents? Have you told them you're in trouble?"

I clear my throat, squirming uncomfortably. "Um, well, my mom died when I was younger, and, well, my dad's still alive."

"Can't he help you?" Natsu says, confused.

"No, he can't." I change the subject fast. "What about your family? Where are they?"

He shrugs, taking a sip of his lemonade. "They're all dead or missing, which I guess mean pretty much the same thing. Thanks to our benevolent royal family."

I feel a knot start to form in my stomach. What if he knew who I really was? A member of the same royal family who ruined his own?

"I'm sorry." I tell him quietly, because what else can you say to someone who's family was destroyed by your father? "It was an evil thing he did, the King. He took the lives of so many innocent people."

Natsu shrugs again. "It's okay. It was a long time ago. But I promise you this: If I ever get the chance, you can bet I'll barbeque the bastard."

"What a lovely thought."

We continue to tour the city, and Natsu shows me all the major landmarks: the beach, the plaza, the town hall, and the Library, which I'm especially excited about. There are more shops selling more things than I can count; bakeries, tailors, fruit vendors, artists, even tiny little monkeys that dig through your pockets and pee on anyone who makes them mad. Standing at that particular stand, I befriend an adorable little monkey, who chatters politely at me, then leaps from my shoulder to Natsu's and proceeds to bite his ear.

"Ow! OwOwOwOwOwOOOOWww! Let go, you little runt!" He shouts, spinning in circles to dislodge the little creature.

I keel over laughing, and so does Happy.

"I guess he likes you!" The cat giggles.

Finally rid of the fiend, who has returned to my shoulder grinning innocently, Natsu rubs his swollen ear. "Not funny. I think I'll stick with cats, thank you very much."

The monkey sticks his tongue out at Natsu, and the pink-haired dragon returns the immature gesture. I can't help but let out another barrage of giggles.

"It's so not funny! That little imp tried to kill me!" He protests, though he's starting to crack a smile.

"No..(giggle)…that wasn't (giggle) funny…BWAHAHA…that was hilarious!" I manage, wiping a tear from my eye.

"Natsu you look so silly!" Happy says.

We say goodbye to the monkey, who cackles and spits on Natsu. It is all I can do to prevent him from strangling the creature,(I remind him that he would have to pay for it,)and we move on to check out the fire-breathers.

The five men swallow fire from their torches, and other daring stuff involving fire. I gasp in amazement when one man dances across hot coals, but when I look to see Natsu's reaction, he's just standing there, with Happy on his head, looking mildly amused.

"Oh. That's right, I forgot. Fire's kinda your thing." I say aloud.

The dragon-boy smirks. "They're just playing. They haven't seen what a dragon can do."

"Shhh!" I look around to see if anyone heard him. "Not so loud!"

"Pfft, it's fine. No one cares anyway."

"Besides, no one would believe him if Natsu got up on a stage and told everyone what he was!" Happy pipes in.

I shrug. Maybe they're right.

Hours fly by faster than I thought they could. I drag Natsu and Happy to every booth and every shop, all of which are preparing for the festival tonight. By the time we start heading for the plaza, where the festival is taking place, the sun is low in the sky and Happy has started to yawn. I watch the sky turn a fiery shade of red, as the sun sinks below the far off mountains.

The entire town is lit with an amber glow; the cobblestones are tinted orange from the fading light. In the plaza, men stack firewood in huge pires to prepare for the evenings's events. We stop to watch them, and Natsu smiles giddily. "Can you imagine the bonfires tonight? They'll be huge if the stacks of firewood are anything to go by." He nods in the direction of several carts, all full of chopped wood.

I shake my head, chuckling. "I'll never understand what's so great about fire to you."

"If you could taste it, you'd understand." He flashes one of his grins. "Hey, look happy! Check out those fish…Happy?"

We both look at the blue cat, who has fallen fast asleep in Natsu's head of pink hair.

"Awww, look at him. He's cuter when he's sleeping." I say, watching his small body rise and fall. "Laughing at you all day must have tuckered him out."

"Funny. I swear, that monkey was the devil incarnate." He scowls. "You know what I would do if I was in charge of this country?"

"What's that?"

"I would ban all primates. Then no one would get killed." He says.

"Because banning primates would be the solution to everyone's problems?" I joke, smiling at the irony of it all. He's unknowingly talking about how he would run the country to the girl who's father actually runs it.

"No, but I guarantee it would make the world a better place." He replies airily. "Come on, lets go grab spots. They'll be starting soon."

We head over to sit on a bench near the edge of the plaza. Natsu gently lifts Happy off of his head and sets him on the bench. A question sparks in my brain. "How did you and him end up together?"

Natsu looks at me, his eyes, thoughtful. "How did we end up together?"

I nod. He leans back on his hands, looking up at the sky. "I dunno. It just seems like he's always been here. Maybe…gosh, I've known Happy ever since my folks disappeared."

"That's what…ten years?"

He runs a hand through his hair, which has been messed up by the sleeping cat. "Yeah, I guess so. Wow, I never thought about that."

We sit in companionable silence for a while, watching the stars come out. I'm amazed at how many there are; since Thorpe is much smaller than the Capitol, the night sky is so much clearer. I pick out the constellation of Gemini, the twins. My mother taught me to identify all the zodiac constellations when I was young, so looking at the stars reminds me of her.

I hear a crackle and a pop, and see that the bonfires have been lit and are blazing several feet into the air. People are filing into the square; thank goodness it is so big, because it looks like the whole town is here. I remove my hat and set it next to Happy. I'm not so worried about being recognized now that it's gotten dark. My blond hair falls around my face freely, shining amber in the firelight.

"You ready?" Natsu says, grinning from ear to ear.

"For what?" I reply.

His grin widens. "You'll find out in a moment!"

I don't have long to wait, because in a minute or so, a loud BOOM resonates through the square, and a glorious blaze of golden sparks flashes through the sky. Another one follows close behind, this one vibrant green and pink.

"Fireworks!" I say, smiling. It's been a while since I've seen them. One after another, they set the sky on fire, in a catastrophe of blue, red, orange, gold, and green sparks. They shower down around us, and it seems almost like magic.

I look over to see Natsu looking up, his face shining from the light of the bonfires. I've decided that his grin must be permanent. In the plaza, I see people begin an energetic folk dance in the ring of bonfires. It's all a mess of swirling skirts and spinning people, but it looks like fun.

"Come on Natsu! Lets go dance!" I say excitedly, standing up and pulling him with me. He just laughs and follows me.

"Do you even know how to dance?" He inquires, raising an eyebrow.

I'm about to tell him that I'm a princess, of course I know how to dance, but then I stop myself. "I can dance. My father taught me."

He just shrugs and takes my hand. "Come on then."

We enter the group, and I feel my feet carry me through the throng. Swirling, spinning, stopping, starting, spinning, I dance my way through several partners and then back to Natsu. By now, I'm dizzy and giddy with energy; My skirt swirls around my legs in the lively steps. After the second round of partners, I'm back with Natsu, sweaty but happy. I've never felt so free in a long time. The fireworks continue to boom and crackle above our heads, and the bonfires make jagged shadows on the cobblestone, making the very air around us seem alive. I want to stay here and dance my way through the rest of the night.

My hair whips around my face in time with my feet. All thoughts of concealing my identity are put aside, but why worry? No one has noticed me at all, and no one will recognize me now that it's dark and everyone is having fun.

I don't know how much time passes; maybe an hour or so? But eventually Natsu, laughing and sweaty, pulls me out of the ring of dancers. "Are you thirsty? Cause I'm dying." He heads over to a table full of more refreshments than I thought existed. I'm about to follow him when someone steps in front of me.

"Um, hey! Excuse me!" I say indignantly, then wish I could take the words back when I look into the face of the man who blocks my path.

He's over six feet tall, with a muscled chest and a nasty scar running from his eye to his jaw. He absolutely reeks of alcohol, and I gulp when I see the twin blades in his belt.

"Um…excuse me…I'll just be going over there…"I try to move around him, but he reaches out and grabs my shoulder.

"Come on, sweetheart, where 'ya goin so fast?" He drawls.

I look around him, trying to see where Natsu went. I've dealt with thugs like him before, but I have no intention of getting stabbed tonight. I ponder the risk of calling his name. Would he hear? If he didn't, I would make things worse for myself.

I look back at the man. He looks me up and down, smiling maliciously. I swallow down fear as he takes out one of his knives and starts to clean his fingernails. "What's a pretty girl like you doing all by herself?"

Suddenly angry, I straighten my shoulders. "Move out of the way, please."

The man laughs aloud, obviously drunk. "I like you. You've got…"He searches for the word."… spunk."

His laugh is a little too loud for my ears, and I wince and rub my ear a bit. But the man still has my shoulder in a death grip. If I survive this, I'm positive I'll have a nasty bruise.

He holds the knife up to my face. I lean away from it, a little worried about the sharp-weapon-pointed-at-face part. He tries to drag me away, and I scream and kick. Amid the ruckus of the festival, no one hears my cries for help, and he manages to pull me into a dark alley. I take a deep breath, and scream. "NAATTSUU!"

The man curses and slams a grimy hand against my mouth. "Now, we don't want anyone to come find us, do we? So you'd better keep your pretty mouth shut."

He presses a knife to my throat, and just when I think I'm done for, he pauses. My heart pounds against my ribcage.

"I like you. Before I kill you, what's your…"He belches. "…name?"

I'm about to open my mouth to spit in his face, when:

"Lucy!" I hear a voice a few feet away. I can't turn my head to look, but I let out a sigh of relief. Natsu heard me!

"You jerk! Let go of her before I make you regret it!"

Muttering angrily under his breath, the man turns to look at Natsu. "Aww, look at that. You even brought your little boyfriend."

In any other circumstance, I would have bristled at the statement that Natsu was my boyfriend, but right now I'm too concerned about the knife at my throat. I feel a single droplet run down my neck to rest in the hollow at my throat.

"Let. Her. Go." He almost growls.

The knife digs further into my neck, and before I can stop it, a little whimper escapes through my lips. The man laughs.

This makes Natsu look furious, and I swear there are flames in his eyes. "Alright, you asked for it."

In the blink of an eye, Natsu whams one flaming fist into the side of my attacker's head, sending him reeling into the wall. He throws another punch into his stomach, again and again, until the man slumps to the ground, unconscious. He slowly straightens his shoulders, extinguishing the flames from his hands. "That'll teach you to go around picking on helpless girls."

We make eye contact, and I slide to the ground, relieved. My heart is still pounding against my chest.

"Are you okay, Luce?" Natsu looks kinda concerned, which is sweet of him.

"Yeah…" My voice shakes a little. "Yeah, I'm fine now. I guess that makes two times now."

He looks confused. "Two times for what?"

I smile. "That you've rescued me of course."

He helps me up.

"Thanks, Natsu. I thought I was a goner."

"Nah, it's no big deal. I could use a good fight like that every now and then." He cracks another grin.

I can't help smiling. "It looked a little one-sided to me."

We laugh, heading back to the plaza, where Happy has woken up and is looking for us.

"Hey, where've you guys been? It's almost midnight." Happy says, flying up to Natsu's shoulder.

I open my mouth to reply, but am interrupted by Natsu. "Doesn't matter. But we need to be getting home. I think we've had enough excitement for one day.

The next day, I'm just getting up to eat breakfast when I hear the doorbell ring. Who could that be?

I reach for the doorhandle and pause for a moment. Could it be someone who recognized me from last night?

I shake myself and open the door, only to jump back, shocked.

Standing in the doorway, looking fierce and infuriated, is none other than the Captain of the Guard.

Aaaand…that's it! Sorry about that little cliffhanger. I hope you enjoyed it, let me know what you think!