A/N: I finished this up a long time ago, just forgot to post it. I decided to keep these stories separate one-shots instead of a single story of stories. Enjoy!

New Spear

By KindredWriter

Whoosh. Whoosh.

Refined metal sliced through early morning dew. Erza Knightwalker continued to correct flaws in her movement every swing. She swung diagonally, then vanished momentarily, leaving a brief mirage in her place, and appeared a few steps away. Spear thrusts appeared as afterimages and once more did Erza flicker out of sight to reappear another couple feet from her previous position. Deftly, she allowed the spear to contort her body and moved to its fluids twirls; a final wide sweep ended her routine.

She wiped the sweat from her brow and examined the spear. "This isn't it either..." Erza placed the spear back in its wooden holder by the rest of its kind. Disappointment awashed her face unable to find a new spear among the castle-quality weapons lined up. None could compare to the perfection of her Magic Spear: Ten commandments; a perfect marriage of weight and length. Odd to harbor such thoughts for a spear, but it had been her oldest and most trusted comrade and far more reliable then Hughes and Sugar boy. Though a feeling guilt came over her at the thought of using a weapon stained with fairy blood.

"You are up early." The deep baritone of Jellal startled her. She faced her approaching king and saluted him, though did feel strange when she did so.

"What are you doing here, sire?"

"I could ask you the same. Usually your morning regimen does not begin until nine. Is something the matter?" Silence met his query, Jellal unaware of her inner turmoil.

"I could not sleep very well, so I came out here to work off some tension." Erza omitted the fact he caused her current condition. His confession, that kiss– her thoughts raced a mile a minute and she couldn't process it all even a week later.

"I see." Jellal motioned her to follow him. "Would you care to accompany me around the castle? I have a bit more time until my day begins and I would like to spend it with you."

Erza tucked a hair behind her ear, sure a dark crimson painted her cheeks. "I am a little busy, sire. Forgive me."

"You still cannot find a spear to suit you, correct? Then it is all the more you should come with me. I may have something to your liking." Jellal's offered peaked ber curiosity. With a resigned sigh, she followed him out of the courtyard.

"What do you mean you have something for me?" Erza asked.

"I have noticed you find the spears we have unsatisfactory. Not that I am surprised. How long did you wield the Ten Commandments?"

"Over ten years, sire."

"That's quite a long time." Jellal said, surprised.

"The ethernano kept the metal from rusting, along with the extremely durable material used to craft the weapon. Sadly, its retrieval is quite difficult." The loss of ethernano made daily life difficult, but also did a number on the kingdom's fighting force where most of its soldier depended on magic artifacts and weapons to fight. Abandoning things like skill and such due to its irrelevance as the weapon made up for it. "It was the perfect spear, not too heavy or light, not too long or short. Of course I won't find a spear with its versatility though."

Jellal and Erza turned a corner. The two nodded at a few soldiers who saluted them. "Yes, I doubt its re-quip function can be replicated anymore. However, the rest should not be too difficult." He slipped his hand into Erza's and she jolted and stopped, the spear woman as red as a beet. "On your king's orders, your hand shall remain binded with mine."

"Did you not say you will not abuse your power?" Erza ground out.

"I swore not to abuse my power and force you into my chambers. Is holding my hand such an obscene thing to do?" Jellal's thumb caressed her hand. "Rather soft..."

Erza scowled. "Is this a trick?"

"No, I do have a spear for you. But I also wish to enjoy our little walk." Jellal led Erza down the hall. She couldn't stop blushing, embarrassed beyond measure. Walking hand in hand with her king, the man thinking nothing of the suggestive stares they received from passersbys, she didn't know how long her straight face would remain. But his hands were quite soft and warm. To her recollection of his retelling of his time in Earthland, he used to be a gifted magus so she assumed his hands would be somewhat coarse from battle.

"Sire, there you are." Said the castle's head blacksmith when they arrived in the castle's ironworks. Erza's hand felt empty when his slipped out and she unconsciously reached for his. She swiped her hand back before any could see. "We finished last night."

"Good. Thank you for your hardwork." Jellal motioned Erza to come closer. She obeyed and her eyes shimmered like stars when they gazed upon her new spear.

"This... It looks exactly like my Ten Commandments..."

The blacksmith laughed a hearty one. "It should! I'm the one who made the darn thing, after all. Who needs that magic mumbo-jumbo when you've got the tools and good ol' elbow grease? Go on, pick it up."

Slowly she retrieved the spear; it felt exactly like her original Ten Commandments. She took a few steps back and swung the spear. Her eyes gleamed as she swung it a few times, her body and the weight of the spear as one. Her gaze went to Jellal's clapping. "I see improvements already." He said.

"You do?"

"Yes. The more I observed you practice, the more I noticed an odd stiffness in your movements. Now that stiffness that stifled you has vanished. To think you could look more elegant and beautiful. I have never been so glad to have been proved wrong." Jellal said.

"T-thank you. I will take your words to heart and continue to improve." Erza barely managed to remain poised and the chuckling blacksmith didn't help either. She cleared her throat. "Isn't this metal hard to find? How did you retrieve such a large quantity?"

"I told him where we found it the last time and he led a dispatch team the other night. Came back with quite the haul, I'll tell ya. Covered in grim and dust and shit and you name it, haha!"

Erza gaped. "You went?! How could you do something so irresponsible as leaving the kingdom without a king? Without notifying me, no less?"

"You would have tried to stop me and it would have ruined the surprise. Besides, this was something personal. It wouldn't do to send soldiers on such a selfish errand. Our excavation took place under the moon and we returned before daybreak. I doubt many saw us."

"And what would you have done if rebels decided to take advantage of your absence?" Erza frowned.

"That would not be a problem. You still remained in the kingdom, so I had little to worry about regarding the stability of this nation. I trust you with my life."

"I..." Erza rummaged for a retort but found nothing. Any other moment she would be overjoyed her king felt so strongly about her. But not anymore, considering he wanted her to be his queen. Her heart almost leapt out of her chest.

"Glad you like the spear. Now go on. You're muking up my workspace with your mushy mushy crap."

Jellal laughed. "Please excuse me." He looked to Erza. "I would enjoy if you joined me for breakfast, but I sadly do not have the time to eat. I must be off."

Erza nodded and watched him walk out of the ironworks. And though she had her spear gripped firmly in hand, somehow, it felt empty...

Fin