"Six wishes." Natsu said when they landed. "I don't know what I'm going to do with them. I want them to be good, I don't want to waste them. What would you wish for Happy?"
"An endless supply of fish."
"Figures." He rolled his eyes. "What about you Gildarts? What would you wish for?"
"Me?" Gildarts said surprised. "You're asking me for advice?"
"It's not against the rules, is it?"
"No, it's just that no one's ever done it before. At least not that I can remember."
"Well would you wish for money? Power?"
"Kid I live in a lamp. What am I going to do with money and power?" He said. "But if you really want to know what I want most, I want to become human again."
"You'd want to give up immortality and endless magic?"
"That immortality and endless magic comes at a price that in my opinion is far too high to pay. It cost me my freedom, my memories, anything related to my old life. Zeref was wise but he still made mistakes and making me a genie was one of them. I'm not angry with him though, he didn't mean any harm and he didn't understand what it meant. He didn't know I'd been torn away from my human life, he didn't know my will would be forever dictated by whoever holds that lamp, and he didn't know that turning me into a genie would cause me to lose everything."
"Oh Gildarts that's terrible." Natsu said sympathetically.
"The worst part of it all is even though I can't remember, deep in my heart, I know that I had someone who loved me. A family. In my dreams I'd see a beautiful woman and a child calling out to me with smiling faces and loving arms. For so many years I tried to search my mind to find out who they were and what they meant to me. But I just couldn't. If I could just find them, just remember them, sucha thing would be greater than all the magic and all the treasuresin all the world."
"I know exactly how that feels." Natsu said, thinking of how to this day, would give anything in the world just to see his parents one more time. "Isn't there any way for that to happen?"
"The only way out if is my master wishes me free. Then I'd regain my human form and my human life. But let's face it, no one is ever going to do that. Who would give up the chance to have a wish granting slave?"
"I would."
"Yeah right."
"No I'm serious. I'll use five wishes for myself and use the last wish to set you free. You have my word."
"The word of a thief?" Gildarts said dubiously.
"My word is the only thing I've got."
"It's true." Happy added. "In all the years I've known Natsu, he's never once broken a promise."
"I don't know." Gildarts said, still skeptically. "You're not pulling on my chain?"
"No. I swear. That last wish is all yours." He held out his hand to make it official.
For a moment Gildarts was still skeptical. He wasn't a fool, he knew that no human on earth was completely immune to greed. Himself included when he was human. But Natsu did have honest gleam in his eye, so maybe he could be trust worthy.
"Alright." Gildarts said shaking his hand. "So let's get started, what is it that you want most?"
"Food!" Happy volunteered. "Wish for food! Wish that we'll never go hungry again! That's literally our biggest problem!"
"Happy we can always find food to feed ourselves in someway. These wishes should be for something we'd never be able to get no matter how hard we tried."
"Alright then, about a house with a door? That's something we could never get. Or better yet, what about a palace? Like the one the sultan has. You've always dreamed of living in one of those."
Suddenly Natsu knew exactly what he wanted.
"Actually what I really want most is...Well you see Gildarts there's this girl-"
"Oh no! Sorry kid, did you forget? I can't make anyone fall in love." Gildarts protested. "It's too great and powerful for anyone to tamper with. Not even Zeref could interfere with matters of the heart."
"Really?"
"Yep. He always said that true love is the most powerful magic in all the world. Greater than his. That's why he always made his contracts have a true love escape clause. Actually pretty much every spell, potion, and artifact he made had some form of a loop hole."
"Why?"
"Have you ever heard the phrase 'Be careful what you wish for?' You see at least 50 percent of the people who get what they wish for, end up not liking it or their wish leads to something very bad. So he created those exit clauses just in case things don't work out. Even this lamp has one but for the life of me, I can't figure out what it is."
"Isn't it true love?"
"No that's just for the contracts. Every exit clause is different but they're always based on some form of virtue."
"Interesting."
"Yeah. Point is though, I can't get involved with your love life kid. Sorry."
"But Gildarts she's just incredible. She's smart and she's fun."
"Pretty?"
"No, beautiful! Inside and out!" He sighed. "I dream about her night and day. I'll never meet another woman who's as magnificent as she is. She's just so...Words can't even describe it."
"Wow, he's got it bad huh?" Gildarts asked Happy.
"Too bad." The cat remarked. "She's the royal princess and she's supposed to marry someone else."
"But she's being forced to marry him." Natsu said. "She doesn't love him. Gildarts I don't want to make her fall in love with me, I know that's not how true love works, all I really want is to have a chance to see her again. A chance to see if she could maybe return my feelings."
"Not going to happen pal." Happy said. "Not unless you suddenly become a prince."
That's when it hit Natsu like a ton of bricks.
"That's it! I'll become a prince!"
"What?"
"Don't you see Happy? It solves everything. I'll wish to become a prince, go to the Magnolia Nation, and court Lucy."
"I don't know if that'll work. Don't you need a kingdom and subjects and a royal bloodline for that?"
"No. I just need to be rich and classy."
"You do realize you are none of those things right?"
"Gildarts can make me have all that and more." He turned to the genie. "Can't you?"
"Sure I can. But you're going to have be a little specific here."
"How specific?"
"You say you want to be a prince. What kind of prince exactly? I mean with the snap of my fingers I could turn into the prince of the rats or turn into a prince who's already well-known. You have to be careful magic."
"Okay, I suppose I'd like to become a prince who could impress the sultan of Lazan City. A prince who has more riches and treasure than any other monarchy in the world. A prince who has a good chance at winning the princess's heart."
"Alright, I can make that happen, no problem."
"I don't know about this. I feel like your playing with fire here Natsu." Happy said. "Can't you just go fall in love with another girl? One who's in the same class as you?"
"Why are you so against this Happy?" Natsu asked, frustrated. "What? Are you jealous or something? Scared I might like her more than you?"
"No! Of course not!" Now Happy was getting angry. "How could you even ask me that?! We're friends!"
"Some friend, you won't even let me dream."
"This dream of yours is not rational."
"Well what dream is?"
"Be serious! What you want to do is just asking for trouble. You pursuing the princess, it's just not how things work around here. It stinks but it's how the world is."
"And you don't care that being with her makes me happy?"
"Of course I do! Of course I want you to be happy. I just don't want you to get hurt." The cat said now sounding more concerned than angry. "What happens if this plan of yours doesn't work? What happens if the princess rejects you? Thinks that she's too good for you and treats you like your worthless. You'll be heartbroken. Devastated. Hurt beyond repair. I've seen it happen to people all over the city and I...I'd hate to see you in that kind of pain."
Natsu's demeanor softened and he felt guilty for even thinking that Happy could be jealous or selfish. Perhaps he was wrong to discourage him but his actions didn't come from any malice. He was just trying to look out for his only friend like Natsu had been doing for him since the day they met.
"Oh Happy." Natsu gently picked him up and hugged him. "I'm sorry. I know you're just worried about me and I appreciate that. But I have to do this. I have to see her again. If I don't try I'll only regret it and that'll be worse than any broken heart I could possibly get from this attempt. Can you understand that?"
Happy sighed in defeat.
"I guess I can. I just hope you know what you're doing."
"I am."
He put Happy down and turned his attention to Gildarts.
"Gildarts I wish for you to make a prince worthy of Princess Lucy."
"Your wish is my command." Gildarts said.
The great genie then stretched, turned, and cracked his knuckles, really getting the magic in his veins going. Finally he snapped his fingers, and in a blast of magic, Natsu's appearance was instantly changed. Dirt and sand was magically cleaned from his body, his messy salmon hair was well-groomed and properly styled, and his ragged clothes were changed into rich, black and white robes and boots which were gold trimmed.
"What do you think?" Gildarts said making a full-length mirror appear so Natsu could see his reflection.
"I like it." Natsu said admiring his reflection. "Very nice. Way better than how I looked before."
"But it takes more than fancy clothes to make a prince." Gildarts said.
"I know. I need riches, servants, basically everything I've never had. And I'll need a new name. I don't think I'll ever see that creepy old man again but I don't want to risk him exposing me. Or anyone else for that matter."
"Don't worry, I've got it all covered." Gildarts assured him. "Now hang on to your turban kid! We're gonna make you a star!"