Once upon a time

Chapter 2

"Her Highness, Juvia, is here."

"Show her in," the king, Gajeel, replied. He was clenching his teeth, wondering how on earth he would spill the beans to Juvia. The truth was, Juvia was to be married to the prince of Ishgar, Natsu Dragneel. First, it was arranged for Lucy to marry the prince, but now... Just thinking about Lucy made Gajeel terribly sad. He knew how much it had hurt Levy too. 

After the twins were separated, King Gajeel and Queen Levy tried very hard to withdraw the promise made to Ishgar. You see, the oldest twin was to stay at Fiore and rule it while the younger twin was to be married to another kingdom. The royal couple had no intention of combining both kingdoms, but only to strengthen their ties. They wanted to secure trade rights between the kingdoms. But, if Juvia were the only princess of Fiore, then marrying her to Prince Natsu would make Fiore and Ishgar one.

Unfortunately, the King of Ishgar was not so easily persuaded. They had made a promise a long time ago that the princess of Fiore would marry the prince of Ishgar. Even though King Gajeel tried his best to explain the situation to him without giving away the truth about the curse, it was all futile as King Igneel of Ishgar failed to understand Gajeel. Eventually, Makarov stepped in and told King Gajeel that it would be better for Juvia to be married to the prince so as to not fight with Ishgar. Gajeel gave in eventually.

The fact that Juvia was to be married was finalized five years ago, but, due to the king and queen's reluctance, they never told Juvia. Now, she would be told that she was to be married in a few days when she turns eighteen. Hopefully, Juvia would not make a rash decision such as running away.

You see, the marriage was fixed on the date of the twins' birthday for a reason. Neither the king nor the queen nor the fairies wanted Juvia and Lucy to touch each other on their birthday. As Layla had said to the queen before, they only needed to keep Juvia and Lucy away until three o'clock on their birthday. Why is that, you ask? Well, curses always had loopholes. In this particular curse, the loophole was that Lucy would only die if Juvia touched her the moment the clock struck three, for that is when she was born. So, if the king, queen, and Layla managed to keep the twins away from each other until three on their birthday, the curse should not take place.

But, the fairies and the royal couple knew that Selene would not rest until Lucy died. Therefore, for more protection, Gajeel ordered more guards to keep watch around the castle, ensuring that the princess wouldn't get away. Irene had decided to stay over at Lucy's in case Selene somehow made Lucy slip away from the forest. With all this protection, it was almost impossible for the curse to take place.

"Hello, Mother. Hello, Father." Juvia had entered the room and she curtsied before the royal couple.

"Juvia," Queen Levy's face broke into a smile and she opened her arms wide, hoping for a hug. Juvia smiled and complied, and the two embraced for a short amount of time.

"What is it that you have called me for?" Juvia asked once she and her mother had sat down.

"Well, you see," King Gajeel looked at his wife, unsure about revealing the truth. Queen Levy nodded, silently telling him to get on with it. "I have some news."

Judging by her father's tone, Juvia knew the news was distressing. Her thing eyebrows furrowed and worry took place in her face. She gently grasped her father's huge hand and smiled supportively. Gajeel's lips cracked into a small smile and he looked at Juvia lovingly. Levy joined in and put a hand on her daughter's shoulder. She looked at her husband, who took a deep breath and proceed to reveal the truth.

"You are getting married, darling."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The Princess of Fiore is getting married to the Prince of Ishgar," Irene said.

The news made Lucy gasp loudly. She stood up quickly, almost tripping, and started to spin. "How wonderful!" She said. "A marriage! The princess is getting married! And to a prince!"

Erza rolled her eyes. "It's probably a marriage of convenience."

"A marriage of what?"

"Convenience. Where the princess marries the prince for the sake of joining their kingdoms," Erza replied, lifting her head higher for knowing something that Lucy didn't.

"That's terrible!" Lucy exclaimed, her joy melting into sympathy. "The poor princess!"

"Now, now," Layla said. "It might not be a marriage of convenience. Why, the king has told me that they had no intention of combing kingdoms with Ishgar!"

Layla had worked in the court before Lucy was born. Or so she's been told. Irene works at the court most of the time, rarely visiting Erza.

"Actually, they changed their mind," Irene said. "Due to Makarov's interference, Princess Juvia will be married to Prince Natsu for the sake of kingdoms."

Layla gasped and turned around, facing Irene. "That's impossible. The Queen herself said she had no intention of merging kingdoms!"

"Yeah, well," Irene glanced around nervously. "You know, things have changed, so..."

Layla quickly understood the look on Irene's face. "Oh, I see."

"See what?" Both Erza and Lucy asked the older ladies.

Irene was quick to change the subject. "Did you know there is going to be a huge festival on the princess' birthday?"

"Isn't there always?" Lucy replied, feeling upset again for not being able to go.

"Not like always," Irene clicked her tongue. "This time, the kingdom is celebrating both the princess' birthday and her wedding."

"What?" Lucy was intrigued.

"It is going to be a big celebration for sure," Irene said, lost in her own world.

"Can I--" Lucy began.

"No, you cannot," Layla was quick to deny.

"What? Why not?" Lucy whined. She had never been to festivals. She was hoping she could go now considering the fact that she was turning eighteen. She would turn eighteen on the same date as the royal princess. She had always wanted to meet Princess Juvia. She was the most beautiful woman on the planet, with azure hair and sapphire blue eyes. Imagine how she would look in a wedding dress! Oh, Lucy wanted to go to the celebration so much.

"Because," Layla paused, thinking of a good reason. "You are too young."

"What?! I'm turning eighteen!"

"But you are too immature."

"Then, Erza can come with me!"

As Erza opened her mouth to agree, Layla interrupted. "Absolutely not! She has better things to do than look after you!"

Layla's voice had come out harsher than intended. Lucy bit her lip and clutched her skirt. Tears stung her eyes. Without a word, she dashed out of the door and into the forest.

"Layla," Irene began.

"Don't," Layal said firmly. Seeing Lucy like that hurt her too, but she refused to show it. "I'll apologize when she comes home. Besides, I say this for her own good."

Erza looked between the two ladies. She knew they were hiding something, she just didn't know what. With a sigh, she too ran out of the door, trying to find her best friend.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hope you enjoyed!