Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or Scarlet Heart Ryeo

Just a heads up: There will be a lot references/flashbacks to previous chapters, so time jumps around quite a bit in this chapter. I apologize for that and hope it's not too confusing!

Thank you for joining me on this crazy ride and enjoy the final chapter of Scarlet Heart!

Lucy let out a small sigh as she fondly gazed around the entryway of the palace. She'd desperately wanted to get out of the place, but now that the time had come, she found herself a bit saddened that she would never see its grand structure ever again. It'd been her home for more than five years, and although it'd been the place where great misfortune had befallen her, it was also a place that held very fond memories.

The blonde turned to the group of four court ladies that stood behind her, graciously taking a small parcel from one their grasps and giving them each a small smile. All of the court ladies in the palace had been her constant companions, from when she had been a court lady herself up until now, and the fact that she would never see any of them again was another cause for her sorrow.

She'd come so far since she'd first entered the palace, and so much had changed, though not all for the better.

But she wasn't going to be bitter about all that happened. She only had ten years left to live, and she wasn't going to let them waste away while she got hung up on what might've been if she'd done things differently. She was wise enough now to know that the best thing to do was to accept the past and find joy in the present.

She'd once been foolish enough to think that she could challenge fate, but she knew now that such a thing wasn't possible, and when one got involved with things that were far beyond their control, misfortune was the only outcome.

She wasn't going to let her life end like that. She was content with marrying Loke if it meant that she got to live out the rest of her days in peace, even if she had to turn her back on Natsu to do so. He'd turned his back on her last night, and she knew that there was little chance of salvaging anything from their lost love.

She realized that he'd probably just got caught up in the heat of the moment when he told her that he didn't want to see her ever again, that his anger was too overpowering for him to see reason. But regardless of his clouded judgement, he'd brought whatever relationship they'd had to an end over something that'd taken place years ago. And if that's the way he wanted to leave things, then she would respect his decision, even if the gaping hole in her heart stung like hell.

Gildarts watched on with worry in his eyes as Natsu numbly dragged his brush across the parchment before him, the King's gaze absolutely lifeless and completely lacking its usual fire.

"Your Majesty…" the astronomer started softly, "…wasn't it torturous enough to have to give her up once? I know they say you must sacrifice in order to protect this throne, but if you send her away like this, I fear that you'll lose yourself as well."

"I didn't give up on her," Natsu choked out, "she…is the one that gave up on me."

Jellal walked Lucy through the gates of the palace to where the palanquin was waiting to take her to Loke's estate, having come to the palace for the soul purpose of seeing her off. A soft smile spread across his face as he saw the servant that he'd commanded to wait for him just beyond the gates. He took two small cups from her tray before turning back to the blonde, "We first bonded over soju, so I figured that we should have a drink when we part." As Lucy took one of the cups from him, he huffed out a light breath, "Had I known that Loke had that decree, I don't know if I would have helped you two so easily."

"I didn't know that he had it either," the blonde remarked softly. "He told me that he had a way out of the palace. That's all I knew."

"You don't seem too happy about this marriage either," Jellal pointed out. "You should turn back now, before it's too late."

Lucy gave him a bitter grin, "I don't like the marriage, but it's my only way out of the palace. So I'll follow it through."

The prince accepted her statement with a small nod, adopting a bitter grin of his own, "At the very least, I had hoped that you and Natsu would have always stayed together. I've watched too many people get torn apart from their loved ones, but it always seemed like you two could endure it all together. I know that you won't be able to get over him no matter how much you say that you can...So why are you leaving him?"

"There's too much blood in our relationship. I thought I could stop it…" She regretfully shook her head, "But I was wrong. I don't have the confidence to stand by his side and watch anymore."

Jellal's attempts to get her to stay died out with that statement. How could he be mad at her for leaving when he'd left for the very same reason?

So instead he gave her a small smile, "I was very lucky to become friends with you, Lucy. It was a precious relationship that Lady Yukino gave us, and I'll treasure it until the day I die."

"Me too," the blonde smiled back. Her voice softened, "Please don't let yourself become sick with grieving. Don't get so hung up on the past that you forget about the present."

He gave her a small nod, taking the emptied cup from her hand and placing it back on the tray beside his own. His focus was drawn towards the palanquin when someone new entered the area, and anger flooded his veins when he saw Sting tentatively approaching them, his hands quietly clasped behind his back.

Jellal stepped protectively in front of the blonde girl next to him, fixing his brother with a furious glare, "Go. Now. If you stay any longer, I don't know what I'll do."

Lucy gently placed a hand on his shoulder and he turned to see a reassuring smile spread across her lips, "It's okay, Jellal. Let me talk to him."

The blue haired prince glanced between her and Sting one last time, giving her a quick hug as a final farewell and shooting his brother a glare in warning before disappearing back through the gates of the palace.

Her gaze turned to the blond prince as he slowly made his way up the steps towards her, giving him a small, grateful smile and a quick bow as he came to a stop just in front of her, "You disobeyed your exile to come here, right? For once, I'm grateful that you went against the King's commands. Now I have the chance to say thank you."

She knew he was the one who had confessed about their history together, and although it'd broken both her and the King's heart, it'd been just the push Natsu needed to finally let her leave the palace.

"I didn't do it with purely good intentions. Minerva's the one that asked me to do it. She wanted to tear you two apart no matter what," the blonde prince quietly remarked. "You shouldn't be grateful for what I did."

"I know that you wouldn't have told Natsu about our past if you didn't know that I wanted to leave. You put yourself at risk so that he would finally let me go. That's more than enough for me to be grateful for."

"You saved my life, Lucy. I was only returning the favor," Sting responded. He paused to swallow heavily, his lips pressing into a thin line, "Loke…he'll be good to you. Please take care of yourself. Since you're intent on leaving, cut things off cleanly. Forget everything that has passed, and think only of the future."

Lucy was taken aback when he suddenly turned his gaze to the side, looking like he was trying to stop himself from crying. It seemed just like it had with her, the weight of his actions had suddenly crashed down upon him all at once too.

"Lucy…I think you should know my heart," he hesitantly reached out to place a hand on her shoulder, and the girl didn't stop him as he tentatively pulled her into his chest. "In this lifetime…our intertwined fate ends here." He pulled back, and his soft smile, which she hadn't seen for years, finally returned. Lucy couldn't help but smile back, her heart feeling a bit more at ease knowing that the blond prince might finally find peace.

He gave her one last bow before he disappeared back into the marketplace, this time with a lightness to his step that he hadn't had before.

Once he was gone from her sight, Lucy turned around to get one final look at the palace, and her thoughts immediately turned to who she was leaving behind.

There was still some part of her that was desperately hoping for Natsu to come flying through the gates to call off her marriage and drag her back into the palace. But she was all alone on the front steps, her only company being the men that were waiting to take her away to Loke.

She shakily let out a heavy sigh, blinking to clear away the tears that threatened to gather as she climbed inside the palanquin, her mind still consumed by the thought of her lost love.

'If only I hadn't meant him, then I wouldn't yearn for him. If I didn't know him, I wouldn't think of him constantly. If we hadn't been together, I wouldn't have to disappear. If I didn't treasure him so much, I wouldn't have so many memories. If I didn't love him…we wouldn't need to throw each other away like this.'

Lucy swallowed heavily as the side of the palanquin was lifted, Loke slowly coming into her view. His hair was now knotted in a small bun at the crown of his head to signify their marriage, and he stood in front of the house that would be her home for the rest of her life.

The prince was exiled to Onibus, and becoming his wife meant that the same punishment would befall her. She couldn't sail the seas or go to distant deserts to ride camels like she'd always dreamed of doing, but she was content with finally having peace.

The orange haired prince stepped forward, a gentle smile on his face as he held his hand out to her.

Lucy's own soft smile faltered when the familiar action caused a memory to resurface in her mind.

Natsu let out a sigh and held his hand out to her, "Let's go."

"What?"

"It's my present for you. I'll take you somewhere nice," he grinned softly at her. "So let's go."

A small smile spread across the blonde's own lips as she looked between his face and his hand, gently placing her palm on top of his. He slowly curled his fingers around hers, their eyes never breaking contact.

Lucy forced her thoughts to come back to the present. She'd told herself over and over to forget about the past. This was her life now, and there was no going back to the way things once were.

So she took Loke's hand and allowed him to pull her from the palanquin and to her feet, taking the first step of the rest of her life.

The prince kept a tight grasp on her hand as he led her into the house, solemnly remarking, "The King has forbidden us from having an actual ceremony. But…I still prepared something in secret. I hope it's enough."

The blonde gave him a reassuring smile, "It's more than enough, Loke. Thank you."

He returned her grin, "You don't have to worry about anything anymore, alright? All I wanted was to get you out of the palace. Even if we're married, I'll still only treat you as a friend."

Lucy let out a small laugh, "I'm not worried about such things."

The prince ran his hand over the furnished walls of the home as they made their way to the main living area, "It's far away from the noisy main house, so you should be able to live in peace. And it's quite close to my primary residence, so visit whenever you want. I'll come to see you a lot, too."

She nodded her head, a gentle smile on her face as she took in the sight of her new home. It was simple, but she was content. It wasn't the palace, and that was more than enough for her.

Lucy swallowed nervously as the doctor checked her pulse, her eyes anxiously traveling between him and the orange haired prince that leaned against the table only a few feet away. She'd passed out earlier that morning whilst taking a walk in her home's garden, and Loke had insisted that she let the doctor see her even though she assured him that she felt fine. She already knew what was wrong anyways, and she had no need to hear the same words over again.

She was relieved that he'd managed to get the same doctor that worked in the palace, grateful that more people wouldn't find out about her condition. The doctor had also proved himself to be reliable when it came to keeping secrets, as he had done so for her on numerous occasions in the past.

He knew her greatest secret of all, something she knew was far more serious than her heart palpitations. Even Natsu didn't know. She had been too afraid to tell him, or to tell anyone for that matter.

But now Loke was about to find out, she was sure. The grim look on the doctor's face giving her enough evidence to know that he was about to talk about it.

The old man briefly glanced back at the orange haired prince, only proceeding in sharing his findings upon receiving a small nod from the blonde, "Before you left the palace, I was unable to feel the pulse of the baby. But now…"

"It's okay," Lucy quietly breathed out. "It was still early-"

"B-baby?" Loke quietly interrupted, his eyes wide, "Then are you saying…you and Natsu…"

The blonde softly nodded her head in affirmation as his voice faded out, her own expression turning grim.

She was pregnant with Natsu's child. She was pregnant with the King's child.

"Like I warned you about before," the doctor solemnly continued, "you have heart palpitations and the baby has only weakened you further. If you insist on keeping it-"

"I'll be fine," Lucy cut him off. "As long as the baby is safe, I don't care about anything else."

"How can you say that?" Loke haughtily pressed. He turned his gaze to the doctor, "You have to keep this a secret. Please delay going back to the palace, and stay here for the time being."

"Of course, Your Highness." The old man began packing his things, giving his advice to the blonde all the while, "You must never stay out in the cold, Lady Lucy. And get plenty of rest."

Lucy slowly nodded her head. She'd heard it all before, and she knew that no matter what she did or what Loke wanted, she wasn't going to live much longer. All that mattered to her now was whether or not her baby was safe, her own health was secondary.

Lucy couldn't help but giggle as Loke did his best to settle into the small bed that his servants had dragged into her home for him. It was only two thirds of his height, and watching him struggle to scrunch into it was more than enough to drag a few laughs from the blonde. He propped his head in his hand once he'd found a comfortable position, a smug grin on his face as his gaze landed on her.

The blonde turned on her side to face him, resting her head on her hands, "I told you not to worry about me. You don't need to stay by my side every second, so go home and sleep comfortably."

He pursed his lips, "It's the first time I've slept in the same room as my wife. Why do you keep telling me to leave?"

She blonde let out a light scoff, rolling her eyes once again.

Loke's voice suddenly lost its flirtatious lilt, adopting a more reminiscent tone as he quietly remarked, "A lot of time has passed. And a lot has changed."

"If there are good times, there will be bad times, too," Lucy softly commented. "I've lived long enough to know that."

"Do you remember when we first met?" the prince asked, a subtle grin beginning to appear on his features.

The blonde tiredly hummed in thought, "Was it in Sting's library? Ah, or was it when I saved you?"

He chuckled, "You mean that time you came running in with that giant stick?" He excitedly sat up, still laughing, "I was really shocked then. I'd never seen a girl so brave. And when you fought Gray…I still laugh every time I think about it. Your hair was a mess and Gray got that big bruise on his head."

Lucy laughed too, finally content with being able to find joy in the past rather than misery.

Loke pouted at her, "And why haven't you kept your promise of singing to me on my birthday? I've waited every year."

She huffed out a light breath, "Oh dear…I get it. I'll sing for you this year, 'kay?"

"You better," he chuckled. Though his grin soon faded as he watched the blonde drift into a pleasant sleep.

No matter how bright and passionate she seemed now, he knew that she didn't have much time left, and he had the feeling that her promise would remain unfulfilled. With the way the doctor spoke, she wasn't going to make it to his next birthday, and she would be lucky enough to survive until her baby was born.

Six months later…

Loke paced outside the room that Lucy was in, the crying of the baby inside doing little to set his heart at ease. The blonde's child was born, and he should have felt relief that her agony was finally over. But he knew well the toll that childbirth could have on a woman's body.

He froze in place when the doors were pushed open, a female servant entering the hallway with the baby cradled in her grasp.

The prince gave himself only a moment to be relieved at sight of the child, his worry for Lucy still preventing him from feeling completely calm, "What about my wife? Why was the baby born so early?"

The servant smiled softly at him before gazing fondly at the baby, "There's no need to worry. Your daughter's very healthy."

Loke clenched his jaw, choosing to ignore the fact that this woman thought the child was his, "This baby was stillborn. Do you understand? You can't tell anyone about her or who her mother is. Now, take her to the wet nurse."

The woman solemnly nodded her head and left to obey her commands, and Loke pushed his way into the room in which his wife was laying. He stumbled to a stop when he caught sight of her, his heart dropping when he saw how pale she'd become.

The doctor turned to him after laying a blanket over the shivering blonde, his lips pressed into a grim line, "She's very weak. Don't let her leave her bed for the next few days."

He left after giving a final bow, and the prince rushed to kneel at his wife's bedside when she let out a small whimper, her eyes fluttering open and anxiously landing on him.

He did his best to give her a reassuring smile, answering her unspoken question, "Don't worry about the baby. She's healthy and beautiful. I got her the best nurse in all of Onibus."

"That's….a relief," she quietly breathed out, a weak smile spreading across her lips.

Loke reached under the blanket to grasp her hand between both of his own, gently pressing her fingers against his lips, "Stop worrying about the baby and start worrying about yourself, okay? You need to get your health back as soon as you can."

She nodded her head, her other hand moving to grasp something that rested just beside her head. She slowly dragged her arm across her frame, her hand quivering as she held an envelope out to him, "Please…send this…as soon as…as soon as possible."

The prince's brows furrowed when he saw that it was addressed to Natsu, "Do you want to let him know about the baby?"

She swallowed and slowly shook her head, "I just…want to see him."

Loke gave her a reassuring smile as he took the letter into his grasp, "Okay. I'll take care of it. So rest up."

Loke clenched his jaw as he handed Lucy's letter to a servant. He didn't think Natsu deserved to see Lucy after all that he'd done to her. But he cared for the blonde more than enough to put his own feelings aside and help her see the man she loved for what might be the last time, "Send this to the King. Tell him to read it as soon as possible."

"Yes, Your Highness," the messenger bowed to him before starting on his way.

A thought suddenly occurred to the prince, and he called out to the servant, "Wait!" He took the letter back into his hands, "I don't want people to be suspicious of him for receiving letters from a girl that he isn't married to."

He placed the envelope inside another, scrawling his name across its front in hopes that Natsu would realize that if he was sending him letters, their message was important.

Two months later…

Natsu scoffed as he looked over the envelope a servant had just given him, rolling his eyes as he skimmed over Loke's name, "I can't believe he isn't getting tired of sending these." He gave it one last glance before he threw it aside, the letter landing atop the stack of the other unopened envelopes the orange haired prince had sent.

Gildarts quirked a brow, "You're not going to read it?"

The King's lips pressed into a thin line, "I'm sure it's full of resentment for me. That's the only thing Loke's ever been so persistent about."

"He said he had an important message for you, Your Majesty," the servant who had delivered the letter respectfully informed. "He even sent someone to make sure that you read it."

"Do I look like I have the time to meet with someone like that?" the salmon haired man spitefully spat.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," the servant backed away with a respectful bow, leaving the throne room without another word.

Natsu turned back to the scroll he'd been reading, forcing the thought of the unopened letter from his mind.

He and Loke had never really gotten along, and his bitterness towards his orange haired brother had only grown over the years. The fact that he'd married Lucy, even if the King had consented to it, was like the final nail in the coffin. He had absolutely no desire to hear anything about the prince whatsoever, no matter how 'important' his message was. In his mind, he'd already given the orange haired prince everything he possibly could.

Loke already had Lucy, so what more could he possibly want from him?

Loke clenched his jaw as he sat beside Lucy on the bed, taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm his anger towards Natsu so that his conversation with the blonde would be at ease.

She'd done well at hiding her illness from him before, but now it was painfully visible, her appearance drastically altered as the imminent failure of her heart drew ever closer. She was far paler than he'd ever seen her before, her normally rosy and healthy complexion lost to memory. And her eyes never fully opened, constantly dropping shut and unceasingly surrounded by irritated, red circles. Her hair seemed to have lost its shine as well, thinning out and barely managing to stay in its bun at the base of her neck.

Her head wearily fell onto his shoulder as he settled next to her, her voice hoarse and weak as she quietly asked, "Is he not here yet?"

Loke couldn't bring himself to say no, but he also couldn't get himself to give her any reassurances that Natsu would come eventually. Because to him, it seemed like his brother was never going to show, and he didn't want to give the blonde any false hope.

It seemed that his silence was answer enough though, and he heard Lucy inhale a raspy breath before she choked out, "I've sent him so many letters. Does…does he hate me that much?" Her hand shakily came to grasp one of the prince's own, "Loke…please send someone to the palace. If you send him my message…I'm sure that he'll come."

Loke's lips pressed into a thin line. He'd already sent several servants to the palace, but still not a single reply. The prince slowly exhaled, scrounging up whatever remained of his own hope that his brother would show as he reassured, "Of course, Lucy. I'll send someone right away." He forced a pleasant grin onto his face as the blonde straightened herself out to give him a grateful smile, and he placed a hand on her shoulder to help her remain steady, "Why don't we go outside? You need to feel happy to get better. I've invited the best musicians Magnolia has to offer. Jellal trained them himself. I brought peonies, too. Don't you want to see them?"

She closed her eyes, swallowing heavily as she slowly nodded her head.

Loke let Lucy fall into his side again once they'd settled onto the edge of the house's porch, wrapping an arm around her back to help her remain sitting up.

The musicians, a female singer and a man with a saenghwang, stood in the yard just in front of them, the pink and orange peonies placed in vases atop pedestals at their sides.

The prince leaned down towards the blonde, softly asking, "Is there any song that you want to hear in particular?"

She slowly shook her head, her hands absentmindedly pressing down the poofy skirt of her hanbok in her lap.

Loke turned his focus back to the musicians, "Just play whatever song you're best at."

The woman gave him a small nod, a bright smile on her face as she started, "It's said that there's a court lady with whom the King was in love. They say this is the song she sang that made him fall in love with her."

"The King?" the prince looked to Lucy to gauge her reaction, ready to give his word and bring the musicians to a stop before they could even began.

But contrary to what he expected, the blonde had a soft smile on her face, her head falling to rest on his shoulder as she breathed out, "I would like to hear it."

Having received her consent, the man raised the saenghwang to his mouth and began to play, and the familiar tune to which the woman hummed confirmed the blonde's suspicions.

It was the very same lullaby that she'd sung for the princes on Gray's birthday seven years ago, and the sound of it brought the memory rushing to the surface of her mind.

She recalled how they'd all begged her to sing for them, and how their bickering had come to stop upon her clearing her throat. Her mind had raced to come up with a song, and she'd nervously settled upon a lullaby that her parents often sung to her when she was little.

Although the woman only hummed the tune, the lyrics of the lullaby were still fresh in the blonde's mind. It spoke of friendship persisting through even the hardest times, and it was one that she held dear to her heart.

And although Lucy's voice wasn't perfect, the princes had all smiled softly as she sang.

She could see all of their faces as they had been on that day, so clear that it was almost like they were standing right in front of her again.

Natsu had stood off to the side, leaving without a word as soon as she finished singing. Now she understood why he'd left in such a hurry.

The singer had told her that this was the song that made the King fall in love with her.

And just like the lyrics of the lullaby, the love that was born on that day had persisted. Even if her recent memories of being together with Natsu were far from pleasant, she treasured the times that they'd spent together in pure bliss. The boat rides that almost always ended with one of them soaking wet from taking an unplanned dip in the lake. Stargazing in the middle of fields populated by fireflies. The fleeting kisses and the passionate ones.

"Long ago…" Lucy started softly, quiet enough to not disrupt the musicians but loud enough for the prince to hear, "…you promised that you would treat my life as if it were your own. Do you remember that?"

"Of course," Loke quietly replied, not liking the tone of voice that the blonde was using. She spoke like these words would be her last.

She lifted her head from his shoulder, shakily breathing out, "My daughter…in my place…I need you to protect her. You cannot let her go to the palace."

Loke swallowed, trying to ease the tightness in his throat that gathered upon hearing her words. He did his best to smile at her, "Why would you say such things?"

Lucy's gaze fell back to her lap, her voice laced with sorrow, "He won't be coming. I know that." She let out a heavy breath, wearily falling back into the prince's side, her eyes tiredly sliding shut.

Loke wrapped his arm tighter around her, pulling her further into him, his voice slightly choked as he started, "Lucy…In your next life…you'll remember me, won't you?"

She slowly shook her head against his chest, softly breathing out, "I'm going to forget you…I'll forget everything…All that happened…All of the princes…Even…Even him…"

Her body went limp, all of her weight falling fully into the prince's side.

Loke wrapped his other arm around her front and pulled her into his chest, tucking her head beneath his chin as silent tears began to stream down his cheeks.

Lucy was gone.

Natsu shot to his feet at the words that'd just slipped from Gildarts' mouth, his senses going numb as he shook his head in denial, "Lucy…wouldn't hate me enough to do this…"

The astronomer's lips pressed into a thin line, his own sorrow at what had happened apparent in the gentle way he spoke, "Apparently, she'd been sending you letters. Haven't you read them?"

Natsu froze in place, his wide eyes turning the discarded pile of envelopes with Loke's name scrawled across their front. He snatched the most recent and tore it open, his heart dropping when he pulled another envelope from inside, this one with the characters of Lucy's name printed upon it.

His breathing quickened as he grabbed another, tearing it open to find the same thing. He hurriedly pulled the letter out and unfolded it, tears gathering in his eyes as he immediately recognized the handwriting as Lucy's. He skimmed over the letter through his blurry vision, his heart sinking further and throat clenching more with every word he read.

'Life is like a dream. Right and wrong. Love and hate. They all get buried with the passing of time and leave quietly without a trace. I'm always worried that I may have left with you with hatred instead of love, preventing you from living in peace. I still love you, and you have my whole heart. When you gave up everything and stood by me in the rain…when you threw your body in the way of a flying arrow to protect me…you became someone I could never forget. Now, I've come to realize that the opposite of loving is not hating, but leaving. I'm afraid that you might think that I left you, and you left me. I yearn for you so much, but I can't be near you. I hope and wait to see you again. I'll be waiting for you…every day.'

He accidentally crumpled the paper between his hands as he lost himself to sobbing, his tears soaking the letter as he pressed his forehead into his hands.

She was gone. She'd gotten over all that had happened, patiently hoping that he would too. She'd been waiting for him for months.

And he hadn't answered her call.

Loke numbly ran his hand over the gold embellishments on the olive green urn that sat on the table before him, having long since cried himself dry. As her husband, he'd been the one tasked with setting Lucy's coffin ablaze, and the act had taken everything he'd had left out of him.

The doors to the room he was seated in were suddenly thrown open, and Jellal came rushing in, the blue haired prince stumbling to a stop when he saw the urn on the table.

Loke briefly glanced at his brother, mindlessly grabbing an envelope from beside the urn and passing it to him.

The blue haired prince tore it open without a second of hesitation, his face slowly going slack as he read over Lucy's last words to him.

The sound of hurried footfalls began echoing through the hallways outside, growing louder until Natsu flew in to the room with a cry of Lucy's name. He ran to Jellal first, tears streaming down his face as he fisted his hands in the front of his brother's hanbok, "Where's Lucy?! Where is she?!" His hands slipped from their grasp on the fabric, his breathing labored as his eyes desperately began to wander about the room, "Stop playing around and come out…Lucy…Lucy, where are you?!"

Natsu's wandering came to an end when his eyes landed on the urn that rested on the table, Jellal having to grasp onto his shoulders to prevent to him falling to the floor as he stumbled when his legs seemed to momentarily give out on him.

The orange haired prince's eyes were blazing with anger, his jaw clenched as he ground out, "What have you been doing this whole time? Don't pretend to be sad now. She was waiting for you for months!"

The King's eyes slowly traveled up to the prince's face from where his hand rested on the urn, and he lunged for his brother with a wordless shout. He fisted his hand in Loke's collar, roughly pulling him to his feet and shouting in his face, "It's all your fault! Your name was on the envelopes!" His voice lost its power, but his grip on his brother remained strong as his vision went blurry and he weakly choked out, "I didn't know…I didn't know that Lucy's letters were inside…"

"I…I did that for your sake," Loke weakly defended, his anger at the King fading a fraction as he watched Natsu continue to fall to pieces. "I didn't want anyone thinking that you were exchanging letters with a woman you weren't married to." His voice picked up in intensity once more, more of his anger becoming apparent, "Still, you must have known that Lucy was dying! I know you had someone watching us!"

Jellal decided to intervene, his jaw clenched as he came to Natsu's defense, "You were sharing a room with Lucy and living your lives happily. He stopped getting reports on the two of you months ago!"

The orange haired prince's will to fight with his brother disappeared at the statement, and he remained frozen in place as Natsu's hands slipped from his collar.

The King turned to the urn, letting out uneven, choked breaths as he placed his hands on its sides, his forehead falling to rest on its lid. He let out small, sorrowful wails as his sobbing returned full force, and Jellal turned away from the sight as tears of his own began to fall.

Natsu shakily wrapped his arms around the urn and pulled it into his chest, "Lucy…let's go."

Loke rushed to stop him as he began to stumble towards the doors, desperately grasping onto his shoulders, "No. You can't! She's my wife!"

"Move," the salmon haired man ground out, his voice quivering with his sorrow. "Lucy may be dead…but she's still...she's still my person."

When the orange haired prince moved to lung at the King, Jellal grasped onto his arm and pulled him aside, intent on shaking some sense into him, "Loke! You should know better than anyone!" His voice grew softer, cracking several times as he quietly breathed out, "You know…You know who Lucy would want to be with."

Natsu stumbled from the room with the urn, his wailing sobs echoing through the hallway as he made his way back to his horse.

Loke's whole frame was tense as he went, his jaw clenched and his eyes zeroed in on the place where the urn had previously rested.

"If you truly consider Lucy a friend," Jellal reprimanded, tears still silently steaming from his eyes, "don't fight with Natsu any longer. She spent her whole life caught between all of us." He sucked in a shaky breath, "Knowing all that, are you planning on making her even sorrowful by continuing to fight?"

Loke silently reached into the waistband of white hanbok, his hands quivering as he withdrew a hairpin and his tears resumed full force. It was the same hairpin the blonde had used to risk her life in order to save his. He'd kept it all these years, using it as a reminder of all that she'd done for him.

Jellal looked between the hairpin and his brother's face, realization beginning to dawn on him, "You…did you really…love her?"

"Lucy…" the orange haired prince shakily breathed out, his fingertips running over the hair in his grasp.

"You idiot," Jellal heartlessly reprimanded, grasping onto his brother's shoulder and pulling him into a tight hug as the youngest prince fell to pieces once more.

Natsu held the urn in his arms as he numbly gazed down at the prayer tower before him. It would forever remain the same height, its maker unable to give another prayer and add another stone.

He thought over the moments they'd spent together at the lake that rested just behind him, numbly wondering about when the love and affection had started to fade from the time they spent together. He knew it was because of the throne, or rather his obsession over protecting it.

He found it ironic that their last happy moment together had been spent upon the golden seat, the blonde resting her head on his shoulder and giving him her reassurances on the night of his enthronement.

"I'll never leave your side. No matter what happens."

Five years later…

Gajeel barely managed to catch himself as he was thrown to the floor. He shot back to his feet in an instant, whipping towards the guards that had so carelessly tossed him inside, "I'm someone who could have been king! You dare treat me in such a way?!"

He scoffed as a servant came to quietly place a tray that held a bowl of soup on the floor in front of him, his fists clenching as he realized its purpose. It was laced with poison no doubt, "Are you telling me to kill myself?"

He glared at Jellal when he entered the room, scoffing as the blue haired prince bowed his head to him, "What? Did the King send you to confirm whether I die or not?"

Jellal didn't even look at his brother as he spoke, his voice void of any emotion, "I'm here to deliver something to you. Lucy requested it."

He held out a folded, red splotched cloth, and the Ninth Prince slowly took it into his grasp, "Lucy died a long time ago."

"She asked in her will that I deliver Levy's last letter to you," Jellal firmly stated.

Gajeel's stony expression slowly faded at the mention of the blue haired court lady.

"You're guilty of treason. I can't do anything more for you," the blue haired prince solemnly remarked. "I'm sorry, Gajeel. But this is the last time we'll be seeing one another." He gave his brother a final bow before quietly exiting the room, leaving the Ninth Prince locked inside all alone.

Without thinking much about it, Gajeel slowly unfolded the cloth, an unpleasant chill spreading throughout his body with every word he read.

'I know that the end is coming soon. I'm just a person who couldn't stop loving once I started. I'm a foolish person like that. Gajeel took me in off the streets after my mother died, and I worked diligently every day to repay him for saving my life. Somewhere along the way, my devotion for him grew beyond that of a servant to its master. I love him.'

Gajeel fell to his knees upon reading that phrase.

He supposed he'd always known. The way she'd constantly ask to return to his estate. The way her face would light up upon receiving his praise when he'd taught her to read and write. The way she'd tense whenever they accidentally brushed against one another in passing…It was all because she loved him.

At the bottom of the letter, she'd said that she didn't regret loving him, nor did she resent him for what he'd done. But he knew that he deserved it if she did. He deserved all of her hate and more. He'd been the one to drag her into this mess, and she'd died because of it.

"Stupid shrimp…" he choked out. "Why don't you hate me?"

His eyes wandered towards the tray that had been set before him, reaching out for it and pulling it towards himself without a second more of hesitation. He knew that he deserved this end after all that he'd done, so he didn't waste time in prolonging the process. He threw the spoon aside, taking the poisoned soup into his hands and drinking it straight from the bowl.

Jellal strung his bipa over his back, tightening the strap around his chest as he entered his brother's estate. He let out a heavy sigh as he looked around the garden that rested just inside the gates, memories of both good and bad times resurfacing in his mind.

Sting was waiting for him on the porch of his home, and the two fell into step with one another without a word. They silently strolled through the estate, the blond prince fighting to muffle his coughing all the while.

He suddenly let out a heavy sigh, quietly remarking, "The King has spent his time reading 'The Essentials of Government in the Pergrande Reign.' He's freeing the slaves and returning them to their former status, and he's taking power away from the noble families."

Jellal let out a small chuckle, "You still have great interest in the palace, just as you always have."

"I'm only observing. I'm waiting to see what kind of king Natsu will become. I wonder…perhaps Ishgar now has the most powerful King in its history."

The blue haired prince let out a heavy sigh, "And he's had to make many sacrifices to attain that status."

Sting nodded his head in agreement, another coughing attack taking hold and rattling his frame as he fought to muffle it. Jellal moved to help him, but he held up a hand, finally getting his coughing back under control. He slowly sucked in a raspy breath, his voice slightly hoarse as he quietly continued, "Lately…there are faces I can't stop thinking about."

"Do…do you still miss Lucy?" Jellal tentatively asked.

The blond prince let out a small chuckle, "I was always giving my heart, and I was always making mistakes. I only realized that when it was too late. It's not Lucy's face that won't leave my head…but hers."

Jellal fell out of step with his brother, knowing that he was talking about Yukino without having even mentioned her name.

Sting continued forward, another brutal coughing attack beginning as he disappeared from the blue haired prince's sight.

Minerva clenched her jaw as she glared at the King, her eyes blazing with fury, "It's his birthday. How can you not go to him even once?"

Natsu didn't even look up at her, sounding disinterested as he remarked, "Isn't it more than enough that you're there with him?"

"He fears his own father," the Queen ground out. "You treat him like he's your competition! He's your own son! Why can't you trust him?!"

He set down the scroll with an irritated sigh, "Look, Minerva. I know very well about people who hide their true selves behind masks. Both you and that child…I know very well that you'll come after me someday, whether I'm a good father to him or not."

The Queen let out a scoff, "So…you still haven't moved on? You can't bring yourself to treat your family like they actually matter? You still only remember her?"

Natsu's expression went slack, his hands clenching around the scroll on his desk.

"Lucy was the only one who was insane enough to speak of all people being equal. You're emancipating the slaves from Bosco and you're taking power away from the nobles…all because you can't forget about her. Did you think that I wouldn't notice?"

"So what if I am doing it all because of her?" the King spat back. "Will you knowing about it change anything?"

As he turned back to his readings again, Minerva let out another scoff, "Now that I've thought about it, I think I understood why Lucy left."

Natsu let out a heavy sigh as he stared at the prayer tower in front of him, his thoughts on the blonde that had created it. It'd been five years since she'd passed, and he'd done everything he could over those years to make up for all of the misery that he'd put her through in her last days. He'd ignored her wellbeing for the sake of keeping her by his side, and yet she still loved him even after all that he'd done. His pride had prevented him from making it up to her whilst she'd still been alive, so he'd settled on using his power to finally rebuild the nation with the blonde's ideals.

Minerva was right to think that he'd emancipated the slaves and taken power from the nobles because of Lucy. It was the endless struggle for power that'd brought about all of their misfortune, and he would see to it that something was done to end the conflict so that no one else had to suffer like he and his brothers had.

He was drawn out of his thoughts when something bumped against the back of his leg, and he turned to find a blonde little girl staring up at him with wide eyes, letting out small, overdramatic whimpers as she clutched at her forehead.

The King let out a small chuckle at her antics, simply remarking, "You bumped into me." He crouched down in front of her, gently removing her hand and running his fingertips over her forehead, noting with amusement that she was perfectly fine, "What's your name?"

The sound of hurried footfalls rang out through the air before she could answer, and the little girl was soon rushing to meet the man who was approaching with a cry of, "Daddy!"

Natsu's pleasant grin faded when he turned to see the little girl throw herself into Loke's arms.

"I told you not to run off like that," the orange haired prince scolded. He swallowed heavily as he looked back to the King, his uneasiness about the situation apparent in the way that he pushed the small girl behind him, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Natsu rose from his crouch, glancing at the girl one more time before focusing on his brother's face, "You're not supposed to leave Onibus, but yet you've come all the way to the palace?"

"It's…it's the anniversary of Lucy's death," he solemnly explained with an apologetic bow, "so please forgive me. I must've lost my mind for a moment. This won't happen again."

"Is she your child?"

Loke pushed the blonde further behind him, reluctantly admitting, "Y-yes."

Natsu's lips pressed into a thin line, "Your family asked permission for you to marry and I recall consenting to it. However…that was only three years ago, and your child is very grown. How old is she?"

The prince huffed out a breath, "I'm sure you're very busy managing the country. Why bother with my child?" He turned to the small girl, taking her into his arms and attempting to leave before Natsu could question him any further.

And the King almost let him go, having no desire to fight with his brother any longer.

But then he caught sight of the familiar white hibiscus hairpin that held the girl's bun in place, his senses starting to go numb and his voice firm as he commanded, "Stop."

Loke turned to face him, and the slight traces of terror in the orange haired prince's features were enough to confirm Natsu's suspicions.

This girl was Lucy's daughter.

Before he could fully process the information, reckless words were slipping from his mouth, "Leave the child."

Loke set the girl back on the ground, keeping a tight grasp on her hand as he kneeled before the King, firmly proclaiming, "I can't do that unless you kill me, Your Majesty. For this child…Lucy…she asked that she not live in the palace. Life here is so scary and lonely. She said that she didn't want her to live like that…That's all Lucy worried about until the moment she died."

That phrase finally brought Natsu back to his senses. Having Loke leave the girl behind was like condemning her to the same fate as Lucy, and he couldn't do that. He knew better than anyone that life in the palace was lonely.

He looked to the girl as she peaked out from behind his brother, his heart softening as he recognized traces of Lucy in her features.

If he was truly going to live as Lucy would have wanted him to, then he knew that there was more left to be done.

He turned his focus back to his brother, his voice soft, "Loke…I release you from your exile to your hometown."

The orange haired prince's eyes widened, disbelief in his gaze as he looked up at the King.

Natsu gave him a soft smile, "I'd like it...if you came to the palace every now and then."

"T-thank you…Natsu."

The King's smile widened upon hearing his brother say his name. It'd been years since the orange haired prince had referred to him using anything other than the regular formalities, and his heart felt a little more at ease knowing that after all of these years, both he and Loke might finally be ready to start acting like brothers again.

He gave the girl one last quick smile before starting down the path to the palace, his hands clasped behind his back and peace in his heart.

Still kneeling, Loke pulled the girl into his chest in relief that he'd been able to stop Natsu from taking her into the palace.

She wrapped her arms around his neck in response, but her gaze remained fixated on the back of the salmon haired man as he walked away, her undying curiosity peaked and a strange sense of familiarity creeping up on her.

Natsu's lips pressed into a thin line as Gildarts bowed to him, having known that this moment was coming for quite some time, "Do you really want to leave that badly?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," the astronomer admitted, slight traces of reluctance in his voice.

"You promised me otherwise all those years ago. You said you weren't anyone's person, but the King's person."

"I did say that, didn't I?" Gildarts huffed out. "Although, I think my devotion towards this palace has long since run out. I've lived long enough to watch three kings rise to power and fall. I think I can leave in peace knowing that the fourth won't face the same fate as his brothers." He let out a heavy sigh as he changed topics, "In regards to Lady Lucy, I don't think that she was from this world. When you think back on things, there are many instances in which you realize it. My last advice to you, Your Majesty, is that you should move on from her. Don't forget, but accept all that happened and move on. If you long for a person you can't reach, you'll end up crazy like me."

Natsu averted his gaze when the astronomer bowed to him. He'd long since grown tired of watching his comrades lower themselves before him, and Gildarts was no exception.

The King supposed he could simply order the man to stay, but he'd learned that seeking control over others in such a way was far from the best thing to do.

"May you live long and be healthy, Your Majesty."

Natsu didn't watch the astronomer leave, not having the heart to watch the very last of his comrades go.

Natsu stood alone in the palace's courtyard, solemnly gazing at the grand structure that rested in the center of the great empire that he, his father, and his brothers had sacrificed so much to build.

It all seemed rather stupid to him now that he was King. It was only a title, one that came along with a shiny golden throne…and that was it. There was no tangible sense of power or a promise of success.

But still, they'd all risked so much to gain and protect it.

The sound of footfalls on stone steadily grew closer, and he cast Jellal a quick glance as his brother came to stand at his side.

The blue haired prince's eyes were downcast, slowly sucking in a breath before he solemnly informed, "Sting…has passed. He was unable to overcome his illness."

Natsu's eyes slowly slid shut at the news. He wasn't going to cry, but the fact that another of his brothers had passed was more than enough to tear at his heart.

Of eight princes…only he, Jellal, and Loke remained. That fact alone was a testament of how much the royal family had sacrificed to build the nation.

"I'll…I'll be going back to my estate to grieve. Please be well, Natsu," Jellal gave him a final bow before he started towards the palace gates, leaving the King all alone once again.

Thirty-one years later. Year 975.

Natsu drug in a rugged breath, exhaustedly fighting to keep his eyes open as he listened to Loke tearfully give his last farewells.

Forty years ago, he would've never imagined that it would be his youngest brother who would be at his bedside during his last moments. But their relationship had changed after their meeting at the lake that day, and it was something that the King was eternally grateful for. It'd brought both him and his two remaining brothers peace in the latter years of their lives, and Natsu knew that it'd been cause for much relief in Jellal's life before the blue haired prince's own passing five years ago.

And Natsu was ready to join Jellal and the rest of his family in whatever afterlife he would be sent to. He was sixty-five, and the first King in nearly thirty years that had actually lived out his entire life. He'd spent his reign making up for the transgressions of his younger self, and knowing that he'd done all he could, he was content with moving on.

Minerva wasn't even at his bedside, too preoccupied with preparing their son to take his place on the throne to stop by and give her last farewell to her dying husband. And he could say that he preferred things that way. He knew that she was close to dying herself, and she'd only grown more bitter and deceitful in her old age. To have her at his bedside in his last moments would've prevented him from having a peaceful passing, he was sure.

He gave up on trying to keep his eyes open, finally caving in and letting them fall shut. He was vaguely aware of several sorrowful cries from his brother and servants, but they soon faded into silence.

His only true Queen had died nearly forty years ago, and knowing that she was waiting for him in the afterlife, he let go, peacefully growing less aware of everything fading into nothingness.

'If we are not from the same world…I will find you…My Lucy…'

"'Life is short and fleeting'…those were Ingeel's last words," Natsu solemnly remarked to the blonde girl at his side. "That it is all short and in vain."

There was silence between the two for a few moments, the only sound being the crunching of the dirt beneath their feet as they strode along the path that ran along the edge of the lake.

The corners of Natsu's lips quirked, and he broke the silence, "But I think that he was wrong." He bumped his shoulder against the blonde's, "You and I are together like this, so how could it be in vain?"

Lucy suddenly slowed to a stop, turning to face the lake and beginning to watch the cherry blossoms lazily float in circles on its surface with her lips pressed into a thin line.

Natsu came to stand beside her, concern in his eyes as he gazed at her, "I feel anxious whenever you have that look on your face. I feel like you're going to leave me and go far away. What are you afraid of? What are you hiding?"

She huffed out a heavy breath, "It's just…I feel anxious every day while I live here. Every step that I take, I feel I must be cautious…like I am walking on thin ice. Sometimes, I feel like I can't even breathe freely."

"Even though you have me?" the King hopefully asked. "You still feel that way?"

The blonde turned to softly smile up at him, "If we had met in another world or another time…I was thinking about how great that would've been. If only that could happen…I wouldn't fear anything. Then, I could love you all I wanted."

Year 2018

Lucy startled awake with a gasp, her heart pounding and her limbs tingling. Her breaths calmed as she woke up fully, her reoccurring dream of the salmon haired man still fresh in her mind.

She sniffled as she sat up, scoffing at herself as she wiped away the tears on her cheeks, "God…who is he that I'm like this?"

Lucy huffed out a breath as she restocked the makeup on the shelves of her small stand, her limbs already feeling weary even though she'd only been working for a couple hours.

Her ever-vibrant coworker, Mira, seemed to pick up on her exhaustion, "You alright, Lucy?"

"I didn't get much sleep last night. It's because I've been having the same dream for a year," she started to explain. She ran the tip of her index finger from the bottom of her left eye over her cheekbone, "He's a man with a long scar on his face like this, and he hides it with a mask. He wears olden day clothes, too."

Mira gave her an understanding smile, "It's because you came back from death. You nearly drowned and then were in a coma for a year. It's understandable that strange things like reoccurring dreams would happen, don't you think?"

"But it's been a year since I woke up. I should be back to normal by now…" The blonde let out a heavy sigh, "I don't know why…but every time I dream about him, I end up crying."

Lucy looked up from the counter she was working when a man entered the store, coming to a stop just beside her and giving her a pleasant grin. She briefly noted that he was the same man who'd been giving tours of the Ishgar exhibit that rested on the other side of the store she worked at in the mall, something 'Clive' if she remembered correctly from overhearing him introduce himself. She gave him her best smile as she enthusiastically bowed to him in greeting, "Hello!"

He said nothing in return, only continuing to give her his pleasant grin.

The blonde let out a small, nervous laugh in the silence, unsettled by the way he smiled at her like he knew something she didn't.

His eyes quickly scanned over her nametag, "So, your last name is Heartfilia?"

"What?" She was a bit taken off guard by the sudden question, but recovered in the matter of only a few seconds, "Oh…yes. I'm Lucy Heartfilia."

"Did you know that the Heartfilia family was one of the most powerful families at the beginning of the Ishgar Dynasty?" he quirked his eyebrows at the end of the statement, almost as if he was trying to get her to realize something.

"Oh, really?" Lucy turned to some of the products that rested on a shelf at her side, "We happen to be selling some makeup inspired by that of the Ishgar Dynasty. What a funny coincidence."

He gave her a smug grin, "There's no such thing as a coincidence, Ms. Heartfilia. Things only return to their original place."

"W-what?"

He paid no mind to her lack of understanding, instead taking a deep sniff and pleasantly remarking, "It smells a lot like roses in here."

Lucy finally recovered from her confusion, jumping on the chance to finally be able to talk about something she understood, "Ah, that's because a lot of our products have rose oil in them. This serum in particular has a lot. It's made in houttuynia cordata extract with rose oil from Pergrande-"

"You didn't put in the rose oil from Pergrande that I gave you, right?"

The blonde's voice faded out as those words suddenly echoed in her mind, accompanied by a flash of a man with blue hair and a red tattoo.

At her sudden silence, the man's grin faded, giving way to concern, "Are…are you alright?"

"Oh…it's…it's nothing," Lucy shook her head to clear her thoughts, resuming her spiel about the product, though with much less enthusiasm, "It's good for your skin if you use it regularly. And did you know that they had something similar to foundation during the Ishgar Dynasty? It was more like a paste-"

"You better prepare yourself. Now…I'm never going to let you go."

Lucy froze up again when another vision appeared in her head, this time one of the same salmon haired man from her dreams as a hand applied a tan paste over his scar with a thin brush.

The serum slipped from her hands and shattered against the floor as she stumbled back a few steps, and the man she had been talking to took an eager step forward to assist her, "Are you okay? I think you need to sit down."

The blonde scoffed at herself, pressing her palm to her head as she felt a fever started to take hold, "God…what's wrong with me?"

Mira seemingly appeared out of nowhere and came to her side in an instant, taking her hand and leading her away, "Just go home, Lucy. I'll take care of things here, so rest up."

The blonde numbly let her coworker lead her to the bathroom so she could change out of her uniform, too out of it to protest and her hand pressed against her forehead all the while as a pounding migraine began.

Why did she feel so horrible every time she thought about that man?

Lucy rubbed the back of her neck as she exited the bathroom, starting to feel better now that she'd let her hair loose and changed into a simple loose sundress.

She slowed to a stop when her gaze happened to land on a painting that hung on a nearby wall, one that belong to an exhibit entitled, 'Ishgar Era Paitings.' Without thinking much on it, she wandered closer. In the painting, a familiar salmon haired man stood atop a podium, his hand outstretched to catch the rain that fell from the sky.

A violent chill ricocheted through her body, intensifying with every moment more that she spent staring at it.

It was the same man from her dreams. And why did it feel like…she'd been there?

She clutched at her head as her mind was assaulted by images, the feelings associated with each of them attacking her senses.

Overwhelming joy as she helped the salmon haired man cover the scar that he used to keep hidden under a mask. Uncontainable pride as she watched him confidently stride into the courtyard to perform the rain ritual only a few moments later. Deadening dread as she realized what kind of person he was going to become, that he was Gwangjong, the king who murdered all of his brothers.

Tears began to gather in her eyes without her volition as a as tirade of emotions poured over her, and she realized that those feelings were far too real for those images to be just images…and that they were memories.

'It…wasn't a dream.'

She stumbled back a few steps, clutching at her head as a hoard of memories all centered on the salmon haired man suddenly resurfaced. Their first kiss, and every kiss after that. The moment that he'd poisoned himself to save her and when he'd risked being executed to stand beside her in the rain. The day that he'd thrown himself in front of an arrow to protect to her. The night that they'd given themselves fully to one another.

"The moment you touched my face…I decided I would never let you go. You are…my person."

How could she have forgotten all of that? How could she have forgotten all of the princes? How could she have forgotten Natsu?

She turned over her shoulder, her teary eyes landing on a large painting of him as he had looked when he was first enthroned. His wild salmon hair was haphazardly gathered in a tight knot at the crown of his head and secured by a golden pin, Igneel's royal family crest emblazoned on the front of his black silk hanbok.

History didn't remember him as 'Natsu' if the placard of information next to the painting was any indication, only by the name 'Gwangjong' that he had taken upon himself after becoming King.

The blonde numbly read over the information, her eyes picking out phrases to try and piece together what kind of man he'd become.

'…Gwangjong was a good and wise King…'

'…emancipation of the slaves taken during war…'

'…purge of corruption and those guilty of treason…'

'…equal distribution of power amongst the people…'

Her breath caught in her throat when she realized that there wasn't a word about him murdering his brothers.

She'd done it. She'd changed his fate.

But she had only a brief moment to celebrate her success, another painting drawing her gaze.

It was of Natsu once again, facing the palace and standing all alone in the middle of the great empire which he ruled.

"I'm sorry," she softly choked out as the tears finally slipped from her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Natsu…for leaving you all alone." She pressed her hand to her mouth as she began full on sobbing, barely managing to catch herself when she fell to her knees as her legs gave out under the weight of the realization of what she'd done.

She'd been the one to realize that the opposite of loving wasn't hating, but leaving.

And she'd done just that.

When Natsu opened his eyes again, his eyelids were just as heavy as the last time he was conscious. But he struggled to lift them anyways, because it felt like he'd been run over by a horse and something…something felt absolutely wrong…and he needed to figure out where he was as soon as possible.

He thought that the afterlife was supposed to be a paradise, and he certainly didn't expect to be greeted by the taste of blood upon arriving there. Then again, maybe the afterlife he'd envisioned was quite different from the reality, and maybe he'd been sent to a place of suffering to pay for all of his transgressions.

He painfully lifted his head and tried to take a look around, but everything he saw made absolutely no sense to him. There was metal and other rough materials he didn't recognize twisted all around him, sharp edges jutting out in every direction. But somehow, he was still fastened to a cushioned seat, a soft comfort in the middle of all those jagged pieces.

He nearly choked on his own blood when he saw who was unconscious in the seat next to him, his eyes wide as he weakly spluttered out, "G-Gray?"

Lucy clutched at her head as two ambulances whirled past, her migraine from earlier still persisting at full force. Now that she'd recovered her memories of the past, she could ensure that all of the noise was one thing about the future that she'd never missed.

She rolled her eyes as Mira began mumbling all of her worries once again despite the blonde's reassurances that she was fine and only needed time. But the white haired woman had insisted on taking the blonde to the hospital after finding her passed out in the middle of the Ishgar exhibit, and had even called her boyfriend to come pick them up.

And Lucy had only grown fainter when he'd arrived, her heart skipping a beat when it was Laxus that came to find them in the midst of the busy mall. But the longer she watched him talk with Mira, the more she realized that he wasn't the Laxus she'd known, even if he shared a name and a face with the man from over a thousand years ago. He still seemed to be a bit of an asshole, but if Mira was steadily dating him, at least that meant he was a lovable asshole.

She pushed her head harder against the window of his car, praying that the cold glass would cool her down enough so that the doctors would see that there was nothing wrong. She hoped that they wouldn't fuss over something as simple as a fever, but she was a former coma patient, so she could never be sure how wary they might be when handling someone with her history. She'd been to the hospital far too often for her liking after she'd woken up, and she certainly wasn't eager to go back.

When Natsu awoke once more, he noted right away that everything hurt a lot a less. But he was unsettled nevertheless, because instead of pain, there was a strange absence of feeling in the majority of his body.

He peeled his eyes open, immediately snapping them shut when a brighter white than he'd ever seen assaulted his vision. Maybe now he was finally in the afterlife? A white so pure and vibrant could only exist in such a place.

He tried to open them again with a groan, wisely going much slower this time around. Nearly everything in the room was a pristine white, and the smell was absolutely horrid, assaulting his nose with an unfamiliar sting of something unnatural.

"Natsu! You're awake!"

He flinched at the sudden shout of his name, his wide eyes immediately trying to find the source.

A girl, no older than seventeen, was excitedly smiling down at him from his bedside, having jumped to her feet upon exclaiming his name. Her hair fell to her waist, seeming to alternate between a deep purple and blue as it shifted in the light. He'd only seen hair that color once, before his mother had gone gray with age.

On instinct, he tried to sit up, his stomach giving a terrible lurch the second his abdomen tensed. He relaxed back onto the bed without having moved more than an inch, letting out a hiss through clenched teeth at the painful sting that radiated throughout his entire body. His eyes drifted back towards the girl, his hoarse voice catching in his throat several times as he drowsily mumbled, "What…what h-happened to me?"

Her bright smile slowly faded as she quietly, solemnly explained, "You were in a car accident this morning."

Car? What on Earthland was a car?

"Gray was driving, but it was your side that got hit. The doctors…they said your heart stopped for a few seconds…" she gave him a soft smile, "but you're persistent like you've always been. They said it was more from shock rather than injury though. You hit your head pretty hard, too, and two of your ribs are broken. But other than that and a lot of bruises and cuts, you're probably just really sore. Given how the car looked, the doctors were surprised that you didn't have more injuries. It's a miracle really. We'll probably be able to take you home soon."

Natsu only stared at her in silence as she rambled on about his injuries and taking care of him with a bright smile on her face, his mind slow to process the mass of information she was spouting at him.

The main word that had him stuck was 'home.' Did she mean the palace? He definitely didn't consider that place home, even if he'd lived in it for the majority of his life. A home was a place of peace and love where one lived in happiness with their family, and the palace certainly didn't have any of that.

And what did she mean why 'we'll go home?' Why did this girl talk like she knew him?

The one thing he knew was that this place, wherever it was, wasn't the afterlife. He'd been dying, hadn't he? Not from any wounds, but from old age.

So if he wasn't dead, where was he?

"Where…w-where am I? And…who are you?"

He wished he could take his words back right away at the heartbreak that appeared in her eyes, her enthusiasm immediately deflating, "What…you…you don't know who I am?"

He was too afraid to say anything more, worried that if he told her he didn't know her he would only make her more upset.

But his silence was answer enough.

Her forehead crinkled as her eyes filled with disbelief, hope in her voice as she quietly introduced, "I'm your sister…Wendy."

Sister? He'd never had a sister named Wendy, much less a sister that actually seemed to care for him.

"And we're in the hospital right now," she softly continued. "Remember how I said you were in a car accident?"

It'd only been moments ago, so of course he remembered. But he still had absolutely no idea what a car was. His brain rushed over the rest of what she'd said to him, trying to piece together information so he could figure out what the hell was happening.

Gray. She'd also mentioned Gray.

"You…you said Gray was there…How? How could he be? Gray's dead."

The girl's brows furrowed and she slowly shook her head, "No…Gray's fine. He has a few bruises and scrapes too, and he said he was really sore but…He's still alive."

Natsu thought his heart might stop beating again at her words.

If Gray was still alive, could he somehow have been transported back in time? He'd never really believed that such things were possible, but then again, no one really knew what happened after death. That would explain the overwhelming sense of wrong that he'd felt since he'd first woken up covered in blood. His body had felt foreign and strange, and it still did, beyond that of what it felt like to have wounds.

"Wendy…" he tentatively started, fearful of the answer he would receive, "…what…what year is it?"

Her sorrow visibly deepened, her worry reaching its peak, "It's…it's twenty eighteen, Natsu."

Natsu gripped his hand tighter on the pole that he had to roll around with him, his initial annoyance at its presence turning into gratitude because it gave him something to anxiously squeeze as he walked around a completely unfamiliar world. The girl, supposedly his sister, had called it an IV.

She'd momentarily left him on his own, excusing herself to make a call to someone with a name he couldn't recognize nor remember. She'd told him to stay in the same spot and wait for her, but he knew there was little chance of that happening.

After finding out where, or rather when, he was, he'd understandably been overwhelmed with disbelief and denial. Time travel wasn't possible. It only existed in the stories that Gildarts had told him when he was little.

But he couldn't refute any of the information that Wendy had told him because truly, he felt incredibly different. The atmosphere of this place, of this time, felt incredibly different. The smells in the air. The sounds that echoed into the room from the hallway. The perfection of the patterns on Wendy's clothes and of the architecture of every structure he laid his eyes on.

It was all too different to have existed in his time.

He'd insisted on getting up and looking around, intent on finding something, anything that would tell him that this was all a dream. Wendy had eagerly lent him her help upon realizing that there was no way she was going to get him to lay back down, calling in a nurse to make sure it was okay.

He'd nearly passed out after seeing his own reflection in the mirror on the wall upon standing up. He looked as he had when he'd first started to live in the palace again at the age of twenty three, not the wrinkled old thing he'd been at the end of his life, or at least what he thought would be the end of his life. His hair was a lot shorter than it had been then though, seemingly defying gravity and sticking up in all directions. But the biggest shock of all was that there was no scar over his left eye, only smooth tan skin.

The more he wandered through the halls of the building, the more he realized that Wendy had been telling the truth. Suddenly being thrown one thousand years forward in time whilst simultaneously being thrown back over forty years in age was more than enough to unsettle him, and his new environment did little to comfort him. He'd concluded that the hospital had been drastically misnamed, because he didn't think it was very hospitable in the least. For a place meant to maintain life, he found that it was very much lacking it. Everything was so clean and plain and the atmosphere was so tense…he actually found himself missing the palace, with its vibrant colors and intricately carved wooden pillars.

The clothes that he'd woken up in were no comfort either. He now knew them to be a hospital gown and pants, and they were unlike anything he'd ever seen. He felt almost naked with only one layer between his skin and the outside world. He was used to the layers upon layers that came with wearing a hanbok.

He stumbled to a stop upon arriving at an intersection of hallways, his eyes catching a glimpse of familiar gold at the end of one of them.

His eyes widened, his breaths slowing the longer he stared.

It was her.

Lucy huffed out an irritated breath as she followed Mira towards the counter after hearing the nurse finally call her name. They'd been waiting for hours to see a doctor, and now that the time had come to finally see one, she felt completely fine, at least in the physical sense. She wanted to go home and bury herself in her giant blanket more than anything else, and a doctor's visit definitely wasn't what she needed at the moment. She'd recovered nearly seven years' worth of memories in the span of only a few minutes, and her brain felt fried. What she really needed was time. Time to process all that'd happened and time to figure out what to do next. All she knew was that her life was never going to be the same after all that she'd remembered, and there was no way she could go back to being 'normal.'

A sudden chill raced down her spine when she felt eyes on her, and her eyes widened as she turned over her shoulder, her purse slipping from her hand and its contents spilling across the floor.

He was standing at the end of one of the hallways that branched off from the large waiting room she was in, his hand clutched tightly around an IV and his face slack, his eyes filled with a strange mixture of disbelief and hope.

Some small part of her conscience told her that he was probably just another doppelganger or reincarnation or whatever else one might call them. She, Laxus, and Gildarts had one, so was it that unlikely that he had one too?

But the look in his eyes…it told her that it was him. That it was her Natsu.

His name slipped from her lips, at first in a whisper and then once more in a desperate cry, and she started running towards him through the crowded hallway without a moment of hesitation, tears streaking down her cheeks.

He started towards her too, though it was more of a hurried limp, his IV toppling over and yanking from his arm. But he didn't seem to notice in his desperation to get to her, his eyes never leaving hers and her name repeatedly slipping from his mouth.

They collided halfway, Lucy wrapping her arms around his neck and Natsu wrapping his around her waist. In his desperation to pull her closer, he lifted the blonde from the floor, both of them toppling over as his weakened legs refused to support their weight.

But neither cared as they crashed to their knees, still desperately clinging onto one another and burying their faces in the other's neck, soaking their skin with tears and mumbling sweet nothings all the while.

They paid no mind to the judgmental stares they were getting or the mumbles of disapproval. All thoughts of self-doubt and loathing were gone from Lucy's mind, and all of Natsu's fears about suddenly finding himself in a different time vanished.

In this moment, they only cared for each other.

They'd spent years and years and years apart, constantly having to fight against fate to be together. They'd watched their loved ones fight against and kill each other, all affection lost in the battle for the power to protect. They'd fallen into despair and bitterness, not strong enough to stay together but still endlessly suffering while they were apart.

But all of that was behind them.

They were finally in each other's arms once more, and nothing, even fate, could tear them apart ever again.

AN

And it's done! I did somewhat stick with the original ending of the show, but I continued on after it ends so that this fic would have a happy end :) My end was kind of based on the second season of the Chinese version of Scarlet Heart, but the way in which Natsu ended up in the future is entirely my own concept, as well as Laxus and Gray having doppelgangers/reincarnations in the future.

A lot of people were asking me to change the entire ending and forgo the marriage of Natsu and Minerva and the death of Lucy, but really...if I had changed all of that and let Lucy and Natsu get married in the past and gave them their happy ending then, would this fic have been as good as it is? I think one of the things that made Scarlet Heart Ryeo so memorable for me was that it didn't have a happy end. First of all, it's pretty historically accurate (which I really appreciate), but then all of the tragedies kind of drive home the meanings that they've been focusing on throughout the entire show, like doing whatever you can to survive and the corruption that comes along with power. All of the bad stuff that happens is what makes the story beautifully sad and memorable.

For those of you who haven't watched the series, I highly recommend that you watch it now! Words cannot compare to the beauty of Scarlet Heart Ryeo, and the visuals, acting, and music of the show adds a whole new level of greatness to the story. There were also a lot of components of the story that I omitted for the sake of adapting it to the characters of FT, so there will definitely be new stuff that you guys haven't seen before. Feel free to pm me about it as you watch if you choose to do so :)

And as for my plans now: This was kind of my first fic, and it definitely won't be the last. I plan on sticking around for a while and I've got lots of new ideas (some of which you can read about on my bio and others I'm keeping secret), so keep an eye out for my new stories!

7/22/18 Update: Scarlet Heart now has an epilogue/sequel under the title Another World, so go over and give it a read if you want to see more and read about Natsu and Lucy's adventures together in the future!

For the last time, thank you so much for reading! And thank you guys so much for your support! This fic has received way more love than I originally thought it would, and I'm eternally grateful for that! So really, truly, THANK YOU!

Signing off for the last time

~McSquidster