June 13th, X524 (0:10 AM)

      At the quiet place, two streets away from the 'White Hart' pub, Laxus stopped his steps. Lucy, who was following him, also halted, as a moment of silence remained between them.

"Your Highness, Gemini lured them out and killed them. So, you don't have to worry if I might stain your reputation," she whispered, "I'm sorry."

      The young man turned around, before looking at her. Although they were standing a few meters apart right now, their relationship seemed too far from each other. She would never know how he felt when he heard that she had sneaked out, or when the captured troublemaker intentionally told them that they had kidnapped Lucelia Dreyar. Deep inside, he realized that he was scared of losing her. The thought of 'what if she got hurt' had been tormenting him this whole time.

      And there, she was... standing bravely, not only defending all accusations but also turning those unfriendly glares from the commoners into admiring looks. It was the moment he realized that he didn't have enough faith in her strength. Til now, he always thought little of her... always decided things for her, regardless of her actions.

      The entire conflict was his fault. It was his domineering personality and his temper which always hurt her. Because of his stubbornness, he created a wall of unfriendliness between them.

"Sorry," he said. She looked at him with confused eyes.

"For not believing you... for questioning your actions.. for neglecting your feelings and for avoiding you. I know it was late, but I still want to apologize."

      Lucy wasn't sure whether he was sorry for this accident or her confession. What she knew was that, for a proud royal prince like him, to apologize to a mere girl like her... 'I'm not worthy of your apologies,' was her thought.

"I'm the one who should apologize, Your Highness. I act without thinking the probability of my plan being failed. If only something went wrong, Your Highness, Fairy Tail, and Sabertooth will be in uproar again. I overestimated myself."

      She had figured out how to lure the culprit out, and also the identity of the fake girl with the help of Virgo who got some information about the silver key holders. However, she missed two points; that Karen would send one of her men to inform to city guards beforehand, and that City Guards would arrive very quickly. Of course, it was more convenient for her to clear all rumors in the spot. Even so, a part of her didn't want his anger or disappointment.

"Sometimes, overestimating yourself is good, Lucy," he walked towards her, and stopped three steps away, "You did well... but next time, please tell me first, okay?" he pursed his lips into a slight smile.

"Are you complimenting me, Your Highness?" she whispered, being puzzled as to why he was acting like this. Earlier, he was mad at her, and the next moment, did he just praise her?

      Laxus removed his long black furry coat, and put it over her shoulder, "Wear it. It's windy here."

       His large coat was long enough on her that it almost touched the ground. Lucy held the hems of the coat tightly so that it wouldn't fall off.

"Juvia, take her home," Laxus raised his voice so that the bluenette could hear him. Under the street lights, Lucy saw a feminine figure which was standing some distance away, and started moving towards them. Juvia seemed like she had given them some space.

"I've already arranged a carriage to send you," Laxus told Lucy. A carriage arrived a minute later after the blond prince's signal. Juvia was standing behind Lucy, and locked her arms around Lucy, "Prince Laxus, please excuse Lucy and Juvia first."

"Okay," Laxus replied.

      After the girls settled themselves in the carriage, it started the destination. The blond prince walked back to the crime scene to regroup with the city guards while ignoring a pair of sad eyes staring at him the whole time.

• • • • •

"Useless Karen... she promised me that she would get her job done when I hired them. Look at the result now. She is dead, and I lost fifty thousand jewels. Only Lucelia gained so much. If Karen had been more careful..." Lisanna said with much disappointment. She had rented a room from an inn to stay. To avoid suspicion, the inn she rented was not on the same street as the 'White Hub' pub. She installed a magic lacrima on a building across the pub so that she could observe through it. Who could've guessed that they failed to get rid of Lucelia Eucliffe?

      The youngest Strauss then looked at her sister who had been staring outside, "Mira-nee... Mira-nee... why are you still looking outside? Your prince's gone."

      Mirajane turned around and looked at Lisanna with distress, "Lisanna, why are so relieved? You caused such a huge problem yet you never be guilty of your actions. Do you think Laxus-kun won't notice us? He can sense that we're here."

"He has no evidence, hasn't he?" Lisanna retorted quickly, "Besides, this room is protected by a sound-proof spell. Tell me, Mira-nee.. why do I have to be guilty? If Lucelia Eucliffe was gone, the one who gains profit would be you. Am I right?"

      Mirajane sighed, "Your plan backfired, and it nearly harmed you. If I came a minute late, they would capture your employee, then things would be complicated. Because of your offer, people lost their lives. What happened to my kind-hearted sister?" She scolded her sister.

"Kind-hearted?" The younger Strauss laughed at the comment, "That word disappeared from my life long ago. I abandoned my life of living as a kind innocent girl and followed you and father's steps. And now, you're telling me why I'm cruel? Because becoming evil is my sole escape from the torture of the society, from the gossip of both nobles and commoners. They don't want His Majesty and our father. I thought you knew my pain, nee-chan. But, I was wrong. I forgot that you ran away, leaving me behind alone... You left me for five years. So don't act like you know me well, nee-chan. I hate Lucelia. I want her to disappear from the world. I want her to be hated by the citizens as the same as they hate me."

      Mirajane looked at her sister in shock. Not in a million did she think her beloved sister resented her like that. Lisanna was telling her story calmly without any emotion... as if she was used to living like this. She blinked her eyes vigorously to stop her urge to cry or hug her sister.

"Thanks to you, there are more people who like her now," Mirajane whispered, before quickly turning her back and directing to the door to exit the room. Little did Lisanna know, the drops of tears were freed from the corner of her eyes. She was tired of her life... an unhappy life which had been carrying a burden of guilt and regret.

• • • • •

June 13th, X524 (noon)
Magnolia downtown

      It was noon currently, which meant time for lunch. In an inconspicuous inn, the lively conversation from the customers made the inn livelier.

"Have you heard that Lucelia-sama was kidnapped by a group last night?"

"Yeah, what a relief, she is unharmed. Her female knights defeated them immediately."

"I heard it, too. The White Hart pub is also under investigation. The bi*ch who impersonated Lucelia-sama is dead. Serve her right."

"Karen something, isn't her name? She has the same magic as Princess Consort. That is why she caused so much trouble under the fake identity of Princess Consort."

"I was also there yesterday. Lucelia-sama is awesome. Delicate as a flower, but fierce as a tiger. Bright like sunshine, and brave like a warrior. Princess Consort Lucelia is a true soulmate for Laxus-sama."

      The more they complimented Princess Consort, the happier Evergreen was. "I knew it, right. They're a match made in heaven," she chuckled.

• • • • •

June 15th, X524 (2 AM)
[Lucy's POV]

      A dream... it was a dream... She was dreaming of a place where she had never been before. A place somehow familiar to her.

      She found herself standing in the middle of a room... a room which was approximately wide enough for fifty people. The room was lighted by the fire from six wooden sticks on the wall.

      A girl in the maid's dress was sitting on the floor, leaning against the strong wooden pile. Her light-blue hair was so long that the strands of hair lay on the ground in the form of coil. Her right leg was caught by an iron chain, and her wrists were also tied together by a chain attached to the pillar.

      She tried to approach the light blue color-haired girl to free her. However, a realization of being in her dream stopped her action...

      And they were not alone.

      The girl's beautiful brown eyes were glaring at the group of five people in black robes and black masks. A red demonic heart-shaped pattern with two thorns, and two wings-pattern underneath the heart, was drawn on the bottom of every robe.

"Aguria... I've never thought we've been tricked for many years... It's time for your death." a voice said, from outside, "Kill her." As soon as the voice faded, two of the black-cloaked figures pulled their swords out as they approached the girl.

      The girl's lip crept into a smirk, as her eyes shown a look of bravery and determination for her survival, "OPHIUCHUS!"

      The next moment, the room was trembling, and the walls and the roof started to crack. She could feel very strong magic pressure around her. The broken masonry of the house were scattered on the floor, and the area was engulfed by a giant dark creature that had two large red eyes.

• • •

"NO!!!" Lucy shouted, and it was the moment she woke up from the nightmare. Even after that, she was still terrified by a pair of red eyes that remained in her vision.

"Blondie, you okay?" a voice with full of concern brought her back to the reality from the confused state. She looked up, to see the blond prince standing beside her bed.

"Your Highness? Why're you here?" she asked, as she sat up quickly and pulled the blanket high immediately.

"Stop questioning me Blondie. Answer me first. Why did you shout 'No'?" he looked at her impatiently.

"I... I was having a nightmare."

"Nightmare?" he asked, "That's all?"

      Lucy nodded, not understanding what his questions meant, "Is there something wrong, Your Highness?"

"Because... you stopped breathing."

^_^