"So can we address the elephant in the room?!" Erza asked once she and Lucy were back in their room. After Lucy's acceptance of her arranged marriage, the rest of the night went as if nothing had happened...except for Ace looking as if he had seen a ghost as he spent the entire rehearsal dinner practically catatonic. He had to be helped around by Ryu who was as surprised as she had been, but after a few drinks he seemed more accepting of the news. But she could barely accept it herself. Sure, it was Lucy's decision but how were they going to explain it to everyone in the guild when she comes back with a fiance. And that's IF she even returns with her too. Oh then that would be an even worse conversation...and who would stop Natsu and Happy from coming here to take Lucy back?
"I mean I'm engaged now, Erza. What's the problem with that?" Lucy said as she stretched and flopped down onto her bed, smiling at the ring now on her finger.
"Okay, and how does that make any sense?! You don't even know this guy!"
"That's just it. I do. Sure he's not exactly the same kid I used to know, but I see the same kindness in his eyes. I can learn who he is now if I spend more time with him, we're not the ones getting married tomorrow anyway."
"But Lucy, marriage is a sacred commitment. You're going to make some pretty important and sacred vows to him. Are you really prepared-"
"-to spend the rest of my life with her?! I'm not ready for that, Ryu!" Ace yelled as he was back in his bedroom now while his drunk brother sat on his bed with an open bottle of liquor in his hands.
"Y-You know. I think you have it so good now." Ryu stood up and took big gulp of wine, his slurred speech making his brother groan from the state he was in. "You have such a beautiful fiancee, and don't even get me started on her body either. You're going to leave your darling big bro behind, how is that fair?!"
"Fair?! I'm the one who got placed into this mess for no reason! This isn't fair, this is-"
"-just something I don't mind exploring. It'll be fine, Erza. If it doesn't work out then it doesn't work out." Lucy said as she buttoned up her pajama shirt.
"Do you like him at least?" Erza asked as she took off her dress, stretching she walked over to their luggage.
"Maybe a little. Still, we're just going to take it easy for now."
"So does this make him your boyfriend now?"
"I mean, he's my fiance so we're anything that goes with it. Plus I'm sure he feels the same way. He must be absolutely-"
"-losing my damn mind over this. Ryu, what do I do?" Ace was answered by his brother snoring in his bed. Ace groaned once more and sighed as he sat down at the end of his bed. He took a deep breath and laid back, closing his eyes as he covered his face with his hands. "Damn it. Dad, what do I do?"
After a long and almost sleepless night, Ace woke up and looked around his room only to find Ryu still sound asleep in his bed. Then he looked down and realized he never changed out of his suit, which explains why he felt so warm and uncomfortable throughout the night. He swiftly changed into more comfortable clothes, even if it was just a t-shirt and some cargo shorts, and made his way out of his room and to the kitchen for breakfast. He walked through the halls of his house, taking the silence as a sign everyone else was still sleeping, and let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't that he didn't want to see anyone else at the moment...it was just that he wanted to avoid talking about his sudden engagement. Once he felt the smell of food growing stronger, he hurried over to the kitchen to eat something since he didn't even eat at the rehearsal dinner due to the state he was in.
"Hey Bastion." Ace called out as he opened the door to the kitchen to greet his butler.
"Good morning Master Asemu, sleep well?" Bastion said bowing to the man. He smiled and nodded, before turning his head and realizing it wasn't just them in the kitchen. In the corner of the kitchen by the refrigerator was Lucy with a small bowl of fruit in her hands.
"Hey sleepyhead, nice pajamas." Lucy said grabbing a strawberry and taking a bite of it. "I was just talking to Bastion about some of my adventures."
"Yes and she is quite the storyteller." Bastion added as he walked over to the refrigerator and took out a small basket of eggs. "However I'm still struggling to believe the story of there being another world just like ours with no magic."
"It's true, and that was one crazy journey too. But the adventure also did help reunite some friends of mine with their long lost sister."
"But a kingdom of cats with wings? That's even harder to believe."
"Talking cats with wings." Lucy clarified making Bastion laugh and shake his head. Lucy then turned her attention to her fiance who stood by the door, looking at her as if he had just seen a ghost. "What's wrong, Ace? Did something happen?"
"I don't know, you tell me." Ace replied making Lucy think for a moment and bite another strawberry.
"Oh, you're just nervous for your sister's wedding. Today's gonna be fine, don't worry." Lucy said as she placed the bowl back in the refrigerator.
"My sister's wedding? Lucy, you're wearing my mother's ring."
"It's surprising how perfect it fit."
"We're engaged now! Two days ago I didn't even know where you were, and now you're my future wife?! Does none of this bother you?!" Ace yelled while Lucy took out a pitcher of orange juice.
"Oh, you two agreed to the engagement?" Bastion said as he began to crack the eggs into the now hot skillet in front of him.
"Yes/No." The two's conflicting answers made Bastion chuckle slightly.
"Lucy, can you please take this a bit more seriously?" Ace pleaded while Lucy thought for a moment and walked over to the cabinet, taking out two glass cups and filling up both with juice. She motioned the pitcher to Bastion who shook his head and she placed it back in the fridge. She then walked over to Ace, extending one of the glasses to him with a smile on her face.
"I am taking it seriously. I know what this means and I still agreed." Lucy said as Ace hesitantly took the cup from her hand. "It's not going to happen now, today's Fabi's special day. But this should be fun, and if it doesn't work out then we can always call it off."
"But don't you have a new life away from all of this? That new family of yours? Your friends? Don't you have anyone you like there?"
"Yes. Yes. Yes. No. I obviously thought about all of that and I still said yes." Lucy said before clinking her glass with his. "Is there anything else?"
"Well you're not gonna move in here with us are you? You still have your guild to go back to and I can't ask you to quit it either." Ace said making Lucy think for a moment.
"That's true. So then come to Magnolia with me." Lucy said taking a sip of her juice. "From what I hear, you still don't know what you want to do. So let's take this as an opportunity for both of us." Lucy's proposal made Ace sigh and think for a moment. Maybe moving away was what he needed. But he wouldn't just be moving away on his own, he'd be living with Lucy.
"I...guess. If you're serious about this, I'll go back to Magnolia with you." Ace said taking a sip of his juice as well. Bastion did his best to hide his face from the two, but he couldn't help but smile at what he was hearing behind him. "But to not intrude, I'll stay in an inn while I find a place there."
"You could always move in with me, I don't mind." Lucy suggested making Ace sigh. But even she thought that would've been a bit much, her place was big enough for just her but definitely not for the both of them. Eventually they would have to find a bigger apartment for both of them, but she wouldn't want Ace to waste money on an inn every single night he was there.
"I don't want to intrude though."
"I believe this is a conversation better held when the time comes. For now, it's time for breakfast." Bastion said interrupting the two as he began to place all the plates he prepared during their conversation on a tray to take it to the dining hall.
The rest of the day leading up to the wedding flew by after breakfast as the women were taken to have their makeup and hair done by a friend of Celina's while the men stayed behind to make sure everything stayed up to Fabia's standards. Now it was time for the wedding and the entire backyard was once again filled with the wedding guests as the sun began to set behind the nearby mountains.
"This is exciting isn't it?" Lucy asked as she and Erza made their way out of the Falkner home, both of them dressed in light blue dresses Fabia gifted them to go along with her bridesmaids' dresses.
"Absolutely. But Lucy, let me ask you something." Erza said Lucy groan as she could already imagine her question.
"Oh boy. Yes Erza I know-"
"No not that. I was going to ask if you're still going to return to Magnolia with me." Erza interrupted. Lucy nodded as the two walked to the front row of chairs and sat down on the left side.
"Of course I am."
"Then what about Ace?"
"What about me?" The two's head snapped to the right to see Ace and Keith walking up to them, both of them dressed in tuxedos.
"Are you going to stay here?"
"Nope, Lucy and I are going back to Magnolia together." Ace said as he took a seat next to Lucy. Keith raised an eyebrow confused as to why his brother would be leaving with Lucy, but it didn't matter because he had to go to Crocus soon anyway.
"And where are you going to stay? Lucy's place is nice but you need a bigger space."
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there. For now, let's just enjoy the wedding." Ace said making Erza smirk slightly. After several minutes, the music playing began to change as the groomsmen and bridesmaids began to make their way down the aisle followed by the groom with both of his parents holding his arms. Then the music changed once more as now it was Fabia's turn to walk down the aisle with Celina holding her right arm and Ryu holding her left. As she made her way down, Lucy and Ace couldn't help but exchange glances with each other, blushing slightly once they made eye contact. Once she made it to the altar and thanking their mother, Fabia hugged her big brother tightly for walking her down the aisle in their father's stead. He walked over to the row his family was sitting in and noticed his seat was now taken by Lucy.
"Sit here." Erza whispered to the empty seat next to her and Ryu nodded, quickly sitting down next to her.
"Thanks." Ryu said sitting back in his seat and letting out a relieved sigh.
After several minutes and the usual speech given by the priest, Lucy took a deep breath once Fabia and her fiance began to say their vows to one another and looked up. Was she really making the right decision? She hoped Ace was onboard too but he seemed against the idea this morning. Maybe she could talk to Celina and call it off before it was too late. Seeing a real wedding happen in front of her, was this really what she wanted? She could barely hear Fabia's vows but she knew the words being spoken by her came from deep and honest love, she knew she didn't have that with Ace but maybe it was possible? Maybe she was hasty in her decision to agree to this. Before she could think any more, she felt a hand on hers and looked down to see it belonged to Ace. It was enough to snap her back to reality as she saw the two in front of them put their rings on one another.
"And by the power invested in me, I know pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." The priest said taking a step back as Fabia's husband lifted up her veil and pulled her in for a deep kiss making the guests cheer and applaud them.
Now that the wedding itself was over, the party moved to a large tent set up nearby for the wedding reception. Following an emotional speech from the groom's best man and from Celina herself, the party was now underway and Erza was now standing with a glass of liquor in her hands watching the other people around her drink, talk, and dance.
"Did Lucy ditch you?" Ryu asked as he walked up to Erza. She nodded her head and raised her glass towards him, he smiled and tapped his own drink on hers.
"I haven't seen her since we ate. But it's a party, she can do what she wants." Erza said as Ryu stood next to her. "You looked really nervous when you walked your sister down the aisle."
"My dad should've been the one to do it." Ryu admitted as he and Erza looked at Fabia and her husband sitting at their table talking with each other. "He would've been so proud."
"If you don't mind me asking, was this arranged too?"
"Hm? Nah, Fabia and Graham have known each other since they were teenagers." Ryu replied raising a hand towards the two who happily did the same.
"What about you? Do you have anyone like that in your life?" Erza asked making Ryu chuckle and shake his head.
"Nah. You?"
"Well, that's complicated." Erza admitted taking another drink. She and Jellal were just fine not too long ago, but it was if they moved apart from one another now. Rough patches happen, Bisca told her that, but this felt worse than a rough patch because it was like their lifelong romance was over.
"Life's funny like that. But what can you really do right?" Ryu asked making Erza laugh and nod. Maybe it was the alcohol talking, but she decided it was time to enjoy this party more instead of just standing around.
"Would you like to dance?" Erza asked putting her glass down. Ryu was taken aback by her question but shrugged and put his drink down next to hers.
"Lead the way." Ryu said as he and Erza walked over to the dance floor. Meanwhile Lucy and Ace watched from the entrance to the tent with both of their arms crossed and their eyebrows raised.
"Interesting." Lucy and Ace said at the same time before laughing. The two had decided to go for a little walk once the party started to talk things out a bit more, and now that they had a plan they decided it was time to join the party again.
"And where have you two been?" Celina asked as she walked over with Bastion by her side.
"Talking."
"About?"
"What we're going to do once it's time to go back home." Lucy replied before Ace walked over to his mom, placing his hands on her shoulders.
"I'm going to move with Lucy to Magnolia. I know you might want us or at least me to stay here but-"
"Okay." Celina said surprising the two from how accepting she was with the news. "Bastion, can you help him pack tomorrow?"
"Of course ma'am."
"Perfect." Celina said ready to walk away but Ace stopped her. "What is it, honey?"
"You're fine with this?"
"Of course I am. You need to move on with your life, and if that means moving away then so be it." Celina's reply left the two stunned before walking away again with Bastion in tow.
"That was...easy." Lucy said before beginning to laugh. Ace looked at her and crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow at his fiancee.
"What's so funny?"
"All of this, it feels like we're worried for nothing." Lucy explained waving her hands in the air. "Come on, let's enjoy the party now before Fabi kills us." Lucy said as she grabbed Ace's hand and began to lead him towards the dance floor. But before they reached it, they were stopped by Keith and Fabia.
"What's this Keith is telling me about you two leaving together?" Fabia asked crossing her arms making the two begin to laugh sheepishly.
"I'm pretty confused as well."
"Sis can we talk about this later? You should be with Graham right now."
"Actually I'm pretty curious myself." Fabia's silver haired husband walked over with two glasses in his hands. "Nice to meet you, I'm Graham Maxwell." Graham said bowing slightly to Lucy who did the same as well. "So what's the deal, Ace?"
"This is some pretty big news though. We should talk about this tomorrow Fabi." Lucy added while Ace nodded in agreement. But Fabia crossed her arms and growled slightly, making all of them take a step back as they knew: Fabia was not someone to mess with. "W-Well you see the thing is..." Lucy raised her left hand and began to scratch her cheek, but all three's eyes widened at the sight of Celina's one of a kind ring on her finger.
"Why are you wearing mom's ring?" Keith asked. Lucy and Ace looked at each other, shrugged as they knew they had no way out of this, and took a deep breath.
"We're engaged." The two bluntly admitted. Graham chuckled slightly at the news because he was surprised Ace secretly had a girlfriend this whole time. Keith was dumbfounded because as far as he knew, these two hadn't talked in well over a decade. But Fabia was the one who didn't seem to have a reaction to the news.
"Sis?"
"Fabia?"
"So, you two are going to get married?" Fabia asked as her stern expression began to soften.
"It's not something we planned. Our parents came up with this idea, we didn't even know until last night." Ace explained while his sister sighed and turned her attention to Lucy.
"I agreed to it first and it looks like Ace is onboard for now. We didn't really want to talk about this today because we didn't want to steal your thunder." Lucy added making Fabia nod and grab the two's hands.
"Then take care of each other, you have your darling big sister's blessing. But take your time first, find out if this is truly what you want." Fabia said before pulling the two towards the dance floor. "Come on! Let's celebrate!"
Ryu groaned as he opened his eyes feeling the sunlight hit his eyes. So it was clearly the next day, but what time was it? It had to be the afternoon already, the sun was way too bright. He was in his bedroom, he knew that much, but what happened? He could faintly remember that the party lasted until sunrise, but he was already drunk by midnight to remember clearly what happened. His headache was evident that he was in for a hell of a hangover, but it was time to get up. Last time he woke up this late, his parents wouldn't stop bringing it up for two weeks. He sat up in his bed, letting out a loud yawn as he also noticed he was shirtless, clearly the most he could take off when he was that drunk was his shirt but that was fine. But when he looked around, he was surprised to see one of the light blue dresses the bridesmaids wore on the floor by his bed, along with his shirt and jacket...not to mention the large body shaped mound next to him in his bed. Oh boy, Fabia's gonna kill him if he slept with one of her friends. "Oh no."
Ryu then quickly hurried out of his bed, doing his best not to wake up the person sleeping. Maybe nothing too crazy happened, he did still have his pants on after all. But something clearly happened, and this light blue dress by his feet was evident of that. He groaned and ran his hands through his messy hair, feeling the need to pull locks from it out of his scalp before Fabia beat him to it. He liked her friends but not enough to sleep with any of them...then again he was drunk enough to put that aside. So who could it be? Before he could think of how to figure out the answer: he froze seeing the mound begin to move and he gulped as he saw the form of a gorgeous woman appear from underneath...but her long scarlet hair was what made his jaw drop once he realized who it was.
"Lucy...can you close the curtains please?" Erza asked rubbing her eyes as all she could see from her tired and blurry vision was a blonde figure at the end of the bed. She stretched as she remembered the most of what she could the night before. She should ask Lucy to bring her to more of these parties, it was fun to enjoy herself without having to become a peacekeeper and use her magic to stop a bar brawl. Once she stopped, she opened her eyes once more and her vision cleared up...and she couldn't help but blush and clench her fists when she realized it was a shirtless Ryu standing in front of her, not Lucy. "R-Ryu! What are you doing here?!"
"Me?! This is my bedroom, you're the one in my bed!" Ryu yelled before both clenched their heads, wincing from their headaches. Erza looked around and her eyes widened as she realized she wasn't in the guest room that she and Lucy were staying in. But her eyes widened and her face became as red as her hair once she realized that she was only wearing her panties under the blanket. She hurriedly jumped out of the bed, using the blanket as a makeshift robe to cover herself while keeping her eyes focused on Ryu the whole time. She didn't mind exposing herself among her closest friends...but this man in front of her was a complete stranger, so she did feel embarrassed and ashamed by the situation they were in. But wait...why was she in his bed practically naked in the first place?
"W-What happened?" Erza asked trying to compose herself. But this situation was way too sudden and embarrassing for her and the possible reasoning was worse. She couldn't even remember what happened in the first place, her memories became fuzzy once people began to leave and they began to help themselves to more alcohol. There was only one thought in her mind and that was... "We didn't sleep together, did we?"
"I think that's a little obvious, we both just woke up!" Ryu yelled motioning to the empty bed then to the blanket around her.
"I mean: did we spend the night together? Did anything happen between us while we were intoxicated?" Erza clarified making Ryu think for a moment and shake his head. "Are you sure?"
"I mean I doubt it. I don't feel like we did anything, and nothing seems to say otherwise...right?" Ryu said as Erza thought for a moment and she had to admit that she didn't exactly feel like anything happened. So she shook her head and the two let out a sigh of momentary relief. "I think I should leave the room for a moment so you can get dressed...let's just pretend this didn't happen and hope nothing did last night either." Ryu suggested making Erza nod in agreement and reach down for her dress. He swiftly hurried out of the room and made his way over to Ace's room, hoping his little brother was still asleep to pretend he slept in there. But once he opened the door, he saw that not only was Ace wide awake: he was in the room with Bastion putting clothes into suitcases.
"Oh, good morning Master Ryu." Bastion said bowing to the younger man.
"Hey man, sleep well?" Ace asked as he closed up one of his suitcases.
"H-Huh?! Yeah why wouldn't I sleep well?! What kind of question is that?!" Ryu yelled surprising the two before wincing from his headache again.
"I'm going to make Master Ryu some steak and eggs for brunch, Master Asemu. He seems to have a bit of a hangover." Bastion said as he closed the suitcase he was filling up and bowed to Ace.
"That's fine Bastion, we should be all done for now anyway." Ace said waving to the older man who made his way out of the room. Ryu groaned when Bastion walked out and sat down on Ace's bed. "You do not hold your liquor well."
"Yeah...sorry man." Ryu apologized before seeing a cup of water placed in front of him. He looked up to see Ace standing over him and quickly drank the water being handed to him. "What are you doing?"
"Packing. Erza and Lucy leave tonight and I'm going with them." Ace said as he placed the suitcases by the door. "Speaking of which, have you seen her? Lucy told us during breakfast that Erza was nowhere to be found." Ace's question made Ryu gulp as he was hoping no one had noticed.
"N-No, why would I know where Erza is?"
"Well you two were together all last night. Maybe you saw where she went? Or maybe she went to another guest room thinking it was hers?" Ace suggested. Ryu's eyes widened at this and he managed to find a good enough alibi to hide what happened.
"You know, I remember taking her to a room because she could barely walk. Maybe I took her to the wrong room by accident." Ryu said confusing Ace slightly because he and Lucy didn't drink and he remembered Ryu being the one struggling to walk. But who knows, it was really late anyway. Before he could dwell on it further, there was a knock at the door and he opened it to see Lucy at the door.
"Oh hey Ryu. I'm surprised to see you awake." Lucy said as she walked in and noticed the oldest Falkner sibling was in the room as well.
"Hey, you good to go?"
"Sorta, I'm still hoping Erza wakes up soon so I can ask her where she's been." Lucy's reply made Ryu jump slightly, but thankfully neither of them noticed. "I just wanted to see if you're all packed."
"I'm not taking a lot, just some changes of clothes. Then when we find a bigger place, I'll send for more of my things." Ace said pointing to the two suitcases next to them.
"That should be enough. And at least we got to see Fabia before she left on her honeymoon too." Lucy said making Ace laugh and nod. Ryu looked at the sight in front of him and buried his face in his hands because he had to ask himself: what the hell were they talking about? And how late is it that Graham and Fabia already left on their honeymoon?
It was now 8 P.M and the train that would take Erza, Lucy, and Ace to Magnolia was boarding. But first Celina had to bid farewell to the group, accompanied by her remaining sons and their butler.
"Be safe. Let me know when you all arrive in Magnolia." Celina said as she kissed Ace's forehead. Then she kissed Lucy's cheek and held Erza's hand. "You're always welcome too, Erza. Whenever you're nearby, just come over." Celina said to the scarlet haired wizard who couldn't help but smile at the woman's generosity. But then she turned her head to look at Ryu who was awkwardly looking off in the distance. After their awkward moment earlier, the two hadn't spoken a single word to each other or even shared a glance, not even on the carriage ride to the train station.
"Thank you, Lady Celina. I'll remember that."
"Take care of this idiot, he can cause nothing but trouble." Keith's farewell to Lucy made her laugh and nod in response. "Take care, baby brother. If you're ever in Crocus, feel free to come see me." Keith said extending a hand to his brother.
"Love you too, Keith." Ace said as he grabbed his brother's hand and pulled him in for a quick hug. "Hey Ryu, you got nothing to say?" Ace called out to his older brother, who simply waved him off...only for their mother to slap the back of his head in response.
"Take care. Can I count on you to help me when I need you?"
"Of course, man."
"And Little Lucy, it was still so good to see you again." Ryu said as he walked over and pulled the two in for a hug.
"You too Ryu. Maybe I can see you again before you're legally my brother." Lucy said making Ryu chuckle and nod. Then he turned to face Erza and to avoid having to explain anything, he extended a hand to her.
"It was nice meeting you, Erza." Erza was taken aback by his farewell, but she could imagine his reasoning behind it and shook his hand.
"Likewise, Ryu." Erza said before hearing the train's horn blare behind them.
"Well time to go." Celina said as the trio nodded and began making their way onto the train. But as she boarded, Erza turned around to look at Ryu one more time and felt like there was more she had to say.
"Hey Ryu! I'll see you again soon right?" Ryu jumped slightly at her question but thought for a moment.
"If you want: I'll go by Magnolia soon to visit. That way I can make sure he's not being a nuisance to you guys." Ryu suggested making Erza chuckle and nod.
"I'll be looking forward to it then." Erza said as the train door closed behind her, and both of them smiled as they were excited at the thought of their next meeting.