Previously on Sacrifice of True Love

"Me and Juvia were talking about a blue mark on her left leg…" Gray said.

" That mark…I have the exact same one on my hand…" Lucy commented as she removed her gloves from her right hand that she wearing and showed them the mark. It looked like a pink bird.

"…OH! I have that same mark!" Natsu said excitedly.

"That mark….I have it too!" Gray said, and then he proceeded to take off his tuxedo.

"It's so weird how we are the only ones who have it. It must have a deep meaning that only we will understand. Moreover, we discovered this mark after the library…incident...We never discovered anything more about Lucy's parent's, then what we already knew…maybe, this mark is a clue to her parent's past..." Juvia spoke confidently and everyone nodded.

"This mark represents that you are from Fairy Tail orphanage" Natsu said.

"We have to travel to Fairy Tail Orphanage…" Juvia nodded.

Lucy was resting on her soft, comfortable bed when suddenly she heard a knock on the door. She lazily got up and opened the door, expecting to see a servant. To her surprise she saw her older brother, Gray.

"Hi Gray, What brings thou here?" Lucy said as she invited him in.

"I just wanted to talk to you..." Gray said walking in her room. As he walked in, he noticed that lucy's room consisted of two colors; mostly pink and some white. Pink walls, pink carpet, even her furniture was pink. The only thing that was not pink was her beautiful white bed.

"Talk? About what?" she asked as she watched Gray sit down on her bed. She decided to sit next to her brother so that way it would be easier for them to talk.

"A-about umm… the Water Princess" Gray said as he looked away from Lucy as his cheeks slightly turned red.

"What about her~" Lucy asked in a teasing tone.

"Um… you see… d-do you r-remember that day… umm when. UGH!" Gray ruffled his hair in exasperation and stood up, feeling embarrassed.

"Come on, it's okay. You can tell me." Lucy said in a comforting tone, as she grabbed Gray's hand and pulled his back into a seated position.

"D-do you remember...the day when Juvia found out about her parents?" Gray questioned as he tried not to make any eye contact with Lucy.

"Yes?" Lucy said with curiosity.

"Um... so...No I can't do it... I really can't tell you!" Gray said as he stood up again.

"Really Gray! Thou should tell me what's bothering you! I will only give thou good advice. I won't judge you, no matter what you say. " Lucy said as she stood up and looked into Gray's dark eyes. Gray sighed as he dropped himself on Lucy's bed and wished that he had never come to her in the first place.

"Okay! Here is the thing! I …. I kissed the water princess..." Gray said quickly before he lost his courage. Gray looked over to see Lucy's reaction and saw that she was frozen in shock.

"You did WHAT!? Wait, wait, wait, wait...let me get this straight..." Lucy said as she placed her right hand on her forehead. Gray frowned at Lucy's over exaggerated reaction, as he rolled his eyes remembering what Lyon had done, when he talked to him on this topic.

"So you dolike her!" Lucy said as she moved back and pointed to Gray with her index finger. Gray blinked twice as Lucy's words processed through his brain.

"WHAT? OF COURSE NOT!" Gray yelled as he jumped off the bed and to his feet, his face flushed red.

"Then why did you kiss her?" Lucy said as she raised her eyes brow and folded her arms.

"I did it to protect my country!" Gray said with a proud look.

"What!?" Lucy said, completely dumb-founded by Gray's answer.

"Well, you see... I kissed her so that she will become comfortable around me.. and then I can convince her to spill any secrets she has on invading Ice Island.," Gray said as though his answer was correct.

"WHAT!Do you even know what you are saying!?" Lucy said shocked and disappointed.

"Of course I know what I am saying! I mean come on, Water and Ice island have been at war for several years. Therefore, we should never thrust our enemies, instead we should show them our good side and when we earn their thrust, we make them tell us their darkest secrets" Gray said as he moved towards Lucy.

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU!? How can you think of princess Juvia in that way?" Lucy said, angry.

"Lucy theyare our enemies!" Gray claimed.

"If they are our enemies then why did you kiss her?!" Lucy yelled as her anger boiled.

"I told you it was to earn her thrust!" Gray yelled back.

"Okay Gray, explain this to me. What does kissing have to do with earning one's trust?!" Lucy said as she felt like slapping her brother.

"It's to make her confused! To make her fall in love with me! This is my way of showing other people my good side!" Gray said as she stood up and yelled at Lucy's face.

"So if you ever to show a guy your good side, you would kiss them?" Lucy said, mockingly.

"Of course not! That's disgusting, and beside I prefer showing my good side to girls..." Gray replied as he walked towards the door and stepped outside. Lucy watched Gray leave her room, and she sighed in defeat.

After closing the door, she leaned against it and sighed once again. I thought he liked her... does he like her? ...or maybe he just doesn't want to admit that he likes her? Hmm... Why are all the boys so complicated? ... but why is he suspecting the water princess? she seems perfecting honest to me...' Lucy wondered.

….Deal… What Deal? Why do I need to earn his trust? Was this deal really made to destroy the Ice Island or murder my fiancé, Prince Gray? ... Father … what is the real reason behind deal you wrote of? why do you want to gain their trust? What is that you desire? What is your goal? Juvia thought as she paced around her room. Suddenly she was interrupted when she heard a knock her door.

"Come in." Juvia said as she sat on her comfy sofa which was right next to the window. She saw Natsu walking in with a letter in his hand.

"What's that you are holding Natsu-kun?" Juvia questioned as she tilted her head to the left.

"Oh this? It's for you," Natsu said giving the letter to the princess. Juvia looked at the letter and realized it was from her father. She quickly put the letter away making Natsu curious.

"Aren't you going to open it?" Natsu said as he saw Juvia becoming nervous.

"Um... No I will open it later. So Natsu-kun, when are we departing for Fairy Tail Orphanage?" Juvia questioned, changing the topic.

"Oh yes, it's seems that the king is busy at the moment, therefore we will have to wait," Natsu said as he fell back on to Juvia's bed and sat down.

"Oh, I see..." Juvia said looking down. Natsu glanced over Juvia and saw the gloomy look on her face.

"Juvia can I ask you something?" Natsu asked with his hands at the back of his head.

"… Hmm..." Juvia responded as her eyes drifted to another dimension.

"How come you got so... I mean why did you react so deeply when we told you about Princess Erza and Prince Jellal? Didn't I mention that it was only a possibility? We were just assuming things..." Natsu said as he looked at Juvia nervously. Juvia glanced up and made eye contact with him.

"Well..." She began as she fumbled her hands anxiously. " I'm adopted... and I always wondered... why... Why did they... a-a-abandon me...? Am I not good enough? why...? I thought they must have been royalty, or of rich descendant... that's why...they never wanted me..." tears streaked Juvia's face as she continued.

"but, when you suggested the Princess and Prince... I just... it just made me think, that …. I'm not worth it... no matter who it is.." Juvia broke it to sobs, as each tears caused her to shudder. Protectively, to comfort his friend, Natsu squeezed her hand.

A comfortable silence fell upon them, and slowly, Juvia's tears dried and the sun glowed, filling her room with sunlight. Abruptly, they heard a knock on Juvia's door. The water Princess quickly wiped her tears, as Natsu stood up, dusted himself off and moved to open the door. Upon seeing a female servant, he bowed slightly and pulled away, moving to the side.

"Thy Princess of Water Island, accompanied by a trusted servant. His Highness wishes for your attendance to a conference in the Grand Hall." said the female servant with a bow.

Juvia thanked the girl and curtsied as the servant bowed and hurried away.

"Natsu-kun how do I look?" Juvia questioned as she quickly fixed her hair.

"Great" Natsu said with a grin and a thumbs up.

"Okay, then let's go." Juvia said with a smile. They walked to the Grand Hall wondering why the king had called them.

At the Grand Hall

Juvia confidently walked into the grand hall, as Natsu walked in her shadow. Stopping in the middle of the hall, Juvia curtsied as Natsu bowed and moved away to the stand next to the other servants.

"Princess Lockser, we were expecting you," The king greeted.

"Juvia Lockser at your service, my highness" Juvia said with a smile as she lowed herself into a kneeling position.

"Rise my child," King said with a smile. Juvia looked up to see that Prince Gray, Prince Lyon and the Princess were standing beside the queen and the king. She stepped back to stand next to Natsu, Levy and Gajeel.

"Gray and the Princess of Water Island, please step forward..." King commanded. Gray and Juvia made their way in the middle of the room.

"My advisor has told me that you wish to visit Fairy Tail Orphanage. Is this correct?"

Gray nodded as the king raised his eyebrows in speculation.

"The princess, her servant, my dearest sister and I would like to travel to Fairy Tail Orphanage..." Gray spoke flawlessly.

"Under what condition?" King stated. Thoughts and emotions flooded Gray's mind, as he panicked, trying to think of an appropriate lie.

Suddenly, Juvia's confident voice echoed in the grand hall.

"It is our hope to visit a quiet place, unrestricted by the effects of the past war. I wish to celebrate our recent engagement, my highness. " Juvia said as she held the kings eyes. Gray's eyes widened in surprise as he glanced at Juvia.

"I understand, but why do thou need the company of Princess Lucy and your servant?" King asked

"I'll never let Juvia go alone with that pervert." Natsu asserted abruptly, causing everyone to turn their attention towards him. Juvia slammed her hand on her forehead in embarrassment as she shook her head.

"Who are you calling a pervert?!" Gray yelled, outraged but Natsu's outburst, as a light blush appeared on his face.

"You, of course!" Natsu called back.

"Guys not now!" Juvia shouted, irritated. She glared at both of them, frightening them back in to place. But before she could say anything else, a thunderous clap echoed in the room. Everyone in the room faced the king, who stood looking down at Natsu and Gray. His face was unreadable. Natsu quickly bowed and moved back next to Levy.

"My apologies father..." Gray mumbled. Juvia stepped forward and spoke.

"My King, Fairy Tail Orphanage is my second home, as well as for my servant Natsu-kun, therefore we would appreciated the chance to visit. Prince Gray and I have decided this as our destination because of it's neutral status. Fairy Tale Orphanage is neither on Ice or Water Island, but rests on a small cove island between the two. Therefore, it is where we may rest in peace." Juvia said sincerely, making the king nod.

"As for me father, I just wanted to give Gray some company." Lucy said with a small grin. The king sighed as he nodded his head.

"I suppose, you shall depart tomorrow...I will contact Romeo today and ask him to serve as a chauffeur...he shall pick you up at the docks." King said with a smile. Natsu, Lucy and Gray, Juvia jumped in happiness making the king laugh.

'How come I wasn't involve in all of this?' Lyon complained mentally as he watched Natsu and Juvia excuse themselves.

The Next Day

"LUCY! JUVIA! We will be departing in 5 minutes." Natsu called, standing in the door way, as Gray stood against the wall, his arms folded and a scowl on his face.

"Yes, Yes" Natsu and Gray heard them say.

"Girls! Why do they take so long to change?" Natsu questioned in an exasperated tone as he looked at Gray.

"How am I suppose to know?" Gray said with an annoy look.

"What's wrong with you? Why are you always so grumpy? What's your problem?" Natsu turned to face him, as he crossed his arms.

"You're my problem!" Gray exclaimed.

"ME!? What in the world did I do!?" Natsu said, as anger boiled inside him.

Gray clenched his teeth and pulled his hands into fists, as he turned to face Natsu. Suddenly, the door to Juvia's room opened. Natsu and Gray saw the girls walked out of the room. Both Juvia and Lucy were wearing cocktail dresses, although Juvia's was blue and Lucy's was pink. They both had their hair curled and open, and a black cloth was wrapped around their necks. Juvia and Lucy were wearing high heels making them look stunning. Natsu and Gray's eyes widened in surprise when they saw the girls, and they began blushing profusely.

"Okay, we're ready! Let's go!" Lucy yelled out with excitement. She grabbed Juvia's hand and ran towards the front of the castle.

"W-wait for us" Natsu and Gray said in unison as they followed them.

Romeo saw a woman with blond hair running towards the ship. He saw that the woman was holding the water's Princess hand and two young men were following closely behind. One had pink hair which he guessed was Natsu and other had black raven hair. Romeo jumped down from the ship to greet his old friends.

"Natsu, Princess, I haven't seen you in a long time," Romeo said as he saw them stop right in front of him.

"Romeo, my man!" Natsu said as they did a fist bump.

"It's nice to meet you again, Romeo-kun" Juvia said with a smile.

"Likewise Princess" Romeo said with a bow as he kissed Juvia's hand.

"Greetings Romeo, I am Prince Gray, I shall be in your care" Gray said as he walked up to Romeo and reached his hand out. Romeo accepted his hand right away and with a smile he shook Gray's hand.

"It's an honor to meet you Prince Gray. All I have to say is please take care of our precious Princess"

Romeo said with a grin as he let go Gray's hand.

"Of course, are you from Water Island?" Gray questioned.

"Yes, I am" Romeo said with a grin. Romeo looked over, and his eyes rested on Lucy who was standing quietly.

"Whom might you be, milady?" Romeo said with a smile as he reached for Lucy's hand and kissed it.

"Greetings Romeo, I am Princess Lucy" Lucy said with a smile.

"Ah! Another Princess" Romeo said as he let go Lucy's hand and bowed.

"Now that we all have introduced ourselves, shall we depart?" Natsu said frankly.

"Yes of course. Welcome to my ship, I give thy my word that you will reach Fairy Tail Orphanage with great haste, and safety" Romeo said with a final bow. Everyone climbed onto the ship, laughter was filling the air.

"Romeo-kun, where is the-" a voice emerged from the back room. Lucy shrieked in joy and bound forward, running to hug the girl.

Wendy stood shocked at the guest's arrival, and was distracted from Romeo.

"LUCY-SAN" Wendy said as she ran towards Lucy.

"WENDY" Lucy said as she jumped on Wendy with happiness.

"I missed you so much Lucy-San" Wendy said as her eyes started to tear up.

"Me too" Lucy said as she hugged Wendy tighter.

"You know this brat?" Natsu questioned.

"Natsu! please have some respect for our Dragon slayer" Lucy said

"Huh! Why should I? I am Dragon slayer! She doesn't respect me, so why should I?" Natsu said as he folded his arms. Wendy bowed to Lucy and Gray, then turned toward Natsu and Juvia.

"Princess of Water Island and honoured servant as well as fire dragon Slayer, I apologize for my unruly behavior and rudeness from our previous encounter. I hope our time together is to your convenience," Wendy said with a low bow.

"Thank you. I accept your apology," Juvia said cheerfully, as Natsu grinned. Juvia turned to face everyone, and saw as Romeo made his way up the steps to the deck.

"We are currently departing and we will attempt to arrive at Fairy Tail Orphanage in a half days' time," Romeo called out as he began steering. The ship lurched forward, and soon the current gently pushed the boat, creating a rocking motion, as Romeo steered toward Fairy Tail Orphanage. The ship started to move as Wendy showed Natsu, Gray, Juvia and Lucy their rooms.

"Hey, Juvia do you remember the first time we came to the Ice Island?" Natsu said making Lucy and Gray look at him.

"Hm... Yeah, I recall how scared I was!" Juvia said with a light chuckle. "I had not been on a ship for ages!"

"Yeah, and we slept in the same room too," Natsu said with a light laugh as good old memories came back to him.

'They slept...in the same room?' Gray and Lucy thought as their world frozen on those words.

"Oh yeah, I remember that, and how I was so frightened, I hugged you the whole night" Juvia said with a smile. Gray and Lucy clenched their fist as jealousy rose inside them.

"Huh! Oh yeah, you are such a crybaby Juvia!" Natsu said, laughing.

"Well, excuse me for crying," Juvia said as she punched Natsu lightly on his shoulder as he continued to laugh. Suddenly, they heard a loud sound 'BAM'.

Juvia and Natsu turned around to see that Lucy and Gray had stood up and a dark aura was surrounding them.

"You Slept..." Lucy said calmly but you could sense anger in her voice, which gave Juvia and Natsu shivers.

"In the SAME ROOM!" Gary said looked down his voice filled with anger as well. Natsu and Juvia looked at each anotherand wondered why they sounded so angry.

"HUGGING!" Lucy said as she looked up with red evil eyes as the aura around her got thicker, which made Natsu and Juvia hug in fear.

"IS ANYTHING ELSE YOU GUYS DIDN'T DO!?" Gray and Lucy yelled at the same time as they walked out of the room slamming the door shut.

"Natsu-Kun..." Juvia said as she looked at Natsu.

"Hm..." Natsu said looking at Juvia.

"I think they misunderstood the whole situation..." Juvia said with a worried voice.

"No kidding" Natsu said with a sigh.

"We will be arriving at Fairy Tail Orphanage in approximately 10 minutes" They heard Romeo's voice say.

"Shoot. Ok I will deal with Lucy, you take Gray," Natsu said as he ran out of the room.

"Wait WHAT?!" Juvia said, as she began to panic and blush appeared on her face.

Juvia gathered her courage and stepped outside of her room. She walked around the front of the ship hoping she would find Gray. She saw Natsu and Lucy talking but did not see Gray.

Juvia circle around to the back of the ship and spotted Gray right away. She hesitated, but finally moved towards him. Gray was leaning on the ship's railings, his arms resting loosely, his hair flapping wildly in the warm summer wind. He stood bent over, his eyes fixated on the sea.

"...Prince-Sama..." Juvia said quietly as she stood next to Gray and leaned onto the railing. Gray said nothing, but glanced over at her once. Soon a cold silence fell over them.

"...Why?..." Gray said softly as he watched the sun lower itself to the horizon. Juvia looked over at Gray, curiously.

"...Hmm?..." she said softly, not taking her eyes off of him.

"Why...are you so close to him?" Gray asked, his tone soft and calm until his lips reached the last word. Jealousy and pain spilled into his voice, as he spit out the word; him.

"I...Natsu-kun..." She hesitated, as she saw Gray flinch when she mentioned Natsu's name. Softly, she continued. " is the closest thing I have to family..." Juvia looked over the sea, as the sun began to dip under the horizon. The sunset glowed, as flames of yellow turned into a fiery orange.

"… That doesn't mean you sleep with him..." He said, coldly.

"… I didn't... not in the kind of way you are thinking..." she said hurriedly, leaning closer to him.

"Then in what way exactly?" Gray said as he looked over to Juvia. The pain in his eyes shocked Juvia, as every word he spoke, stabbed her heart with sadness. His eyes were filled with sorrow, and jealously, and pain and regret and countless other feelings that Juvia could not describe, but caused her heart to sink with distress.

"...He's the only real thing I have... After I found out I was adopted, after I realized I knew no one, not even my so called father. He is my best friend...he is closer to me than any brother. He also knows no family, he was orphaned. We are siblings..." Juvia said softly.

"Sibling or friends...would never sleep together while hugging!" Gray exclaimed. He turned to face Juvia as he grabbed her elbow, pulling her toward him.

"...Prince-Sama..." Juvia said slowly, as she gazed into Gray's eyes. They shone brightly, as the pain and jealously in his eyes slipped away into something else; into longing.

Juvia's eyes widened in surprise as she stared into Gray's eyes. He overwhelmed her senses, and his every touch burned her skin. Her arms seared in pain, but he was grasping her lightly. She wanted to bury her senses, and pull into him, but she stood still, fixated. Her heartbeat quickened and she stared, mesmerised by his eyes.

He was the first one to speak.

"...I can't stand it... when another guy holds you," Gray dropped Juvia's arm and leaned forward. He took her hands in his and rested his forehead on hers. Juvia could feel her heart thumping in her chest and she fought the urge to bury her head into Gray's broad and welcoming chest. Instead she entwined their fingers together, as they held hands.

"So... Please... don't torcher me like this... Please..." His voice drifted off. Juvia could no longer resist. She ached to touch him. To let go of everything, and only think about the intensity she felt when holding him. His hands seared hers. His words overwhelmed her. She gave in.

Juvia removed her hands from Gray's hands and stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and neck and pulling herself into him. Gray stood still, stunned at first. A smile formed at his lips and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She buried her face into his chest and Gray bent over, resting his head in the nook between Juvia's neck and shoulder.

Slowly, quietly, she whispered.

"Never..." She did not want to let him go.

All of a sudden, Romeo's voice echoed throughout the ship.

"We have arrived at Fairy Tail Orphanage, can all the passenger please carefully head towards the ramp." They heard Romeo say. Juvia gasped in surprise and wrenched away from Gray. She covered her face with her hands, blushing profusely. Suddenly she felt someone grasp her hand and she looked up to see a genuine smile on his face.

"Come on, Let's go princess" Gray said with a light smile as he pulled a blushing Juvia forward. Hand in hand, they walked to the ship's ramp. As they approached, they saw Natsu and Lucy and unconsciously, they let go of each other's hands.

"Hey guys, there you are LET'S GO!" Natsu said as he ran down the ramp and onto the piers.

"Finally! We are here at Fairy Tail Orphanage!" Juvia said with a smile as the last rays of sunlight stretched over the sky.

Sorry this is so late, we have no excuses, and we are just lazy people.

These past two months have been very time consuming, and we, unfortunately, had no time to finish this chapter quickly.

We hope to publish the next chapter soon, as it will contain new characters and more information about Lucy's missing parents.