Once Upon a Fairy Tail {A Fairy Tail Fanfiction}

Chapter Eight: The Princess and the Pea

Lucy sneezed as they were pulled into the next chapter. Immediately, there was a dizzying rush followed by a painful sensation, as if she were being stretched and pulled by multiple forces, all threatening to destroy her.

She felt her mouth open and she gasped for air, only to find herself floundering in the nothingness. Her heart accelerated at the shock, pain lacing her body as she began to suffocate. The only things she could feel were the rather familiar heat of flames and a rush of an extremely powerful magic. Just as suddenly as the pain had come, it disappeared. Her eyes opened, and a drop of rain hit her nose.

Lucy blinked.

And after that drop came another, and another, and yet another; the drizzle quickly became a fierce downpour that drenched Lucy's clothes (which she noted was a rather tasteful dress, simple yet somehow elegant- still, a cloak would really have been handy) in a matter of seconds.

In front of her was a grand, towering castle, and it looked remarkable more comfortable inside than outside in the pouring rain. The windows were glowing a warm orange, undoubtedly from some kind of warm fire that she wasn't around. She sneezed again (god, if she caught a cold in this weather, that'd just suck) and glanced around. Natsu was nowhere to be found. With a sigh and being none the wiser on what fairy tale she had landed in, Lucy stepped towards the castle in hopes that she they could spare a room...

A maid opened a small side door, pouring dirty water from a bucket outside, and Lucy took this opportunity to approach. The maid glanced up warily, but quickly relaxed when she saw that Lucy was just a tired girl who was a little worse for the wear. With a start, Lucy realized that the woman looked quite like Bisca.

"May I come in? I need somewhere to stay..." Lucy trailed off. Would the family that owned the castle be mad if they found out she was there? In all the stories that she read, it was always a secretive wanderer in a castle that couldn't afford being found out, and for all she knew, she could be risking something huge right now...

Clearly, Bisca didn't seem too apprehensive about the situation. "Oh, honey," she clucked. "You're lookin' mighty terrible! Come in, come in!" She stepped aside and ushered Lucy towards the door. Her voice was soothing, a relaxed drawl that comforted Lucy. With a grateful smile, Lucy thanked Bisca and stepped into the castle. Immediately, she was enveloped by the heat of the candles and the warm scent of bread. She inhaled deeply, making Bisca grin widely in response.

"It's not much," Bisca chuckled, tucking her green hair behind her ear, "but I'm one of the cooks of this here place. The rest are all sleepin', though, the lazy bunch." She waved about, setting the bucket on the floor and wiping her hands on her apron. "Feel free to dry yourself up by that there fire, now, ya hear?"

"Thanks," Lucy gave a relieved sigh, crouching down by the hearth. The kitchen was sizable, and Bisca freely waltzed from counter to counter, wiping the counters and chopping vegetables to put into a large pot.

Seeing as how Natsu was nowhere to be found, Lucy pushed on by herself, asking,"So, who are the owners of this castle?"

Bisca nearly dropped a dish in surprise, and quickly scrambled to catch it before sending Lucy an irritated look, as if she had dropped it herself. Lucy shrugged sheepishly.

"You don't know? Everyone knows 'round these parts." She carefully set the dish down.

"Who?" Lucy pressed.

"Why, the mighty Dragneel family." Bisca grabbed a wooden spoon and began stirring the soup, pausing to taste it.

Lucy stared in disbelief, her jaw going slack. Wait, did dragons own this castle? Was that even possible? Or were they human? What kind of fairy tale was this, anyway?