Swords clanged in the air as the two warriors sparred in the training arena outside of the King's castle, drawing the attention of many onlookers. Cries from said onlookers fueled the two warriors as the crowd began to take sides. "You can do it Prince!" "Nah, you can kick his ass Captain!"

The two stared each other down before the captain smirked, stroking her flowing red hair before a golden light enveloped her, revealing an armor that appeared to be made of feathers with several swords floating behind her. "I'm ending this. Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"

The prince expertly dodged each sword as he summoned a shield of ice to deflect what blades he couldn't dodge. "Dammit Erza, I thought we agreed on not using magic? This was supposed to be a friendly spar!"

"Come on Gray, you lack spirit. There is no such thing as a friendly spar in the field of battle! Do you think your opponet will go easy on you just because you're the Prince of Deliora?"

"Tch" Gray wiped the spit from his mouth as he stared her down. "You should be addressing me as Prince, Captain."

Erza smirked. "I'll address you as Prince once you're able to defeat me, Gray."

"Challenge accepted, Erza." Gray began to exude a blue hue of pure magic power, practically freezing the air around him as Erza requipped into an outfit that she referred to as her flame empress armor. The two looked like they were going to enter a fierce magic battle, but a detached voice broke their spar up.

"Prince Gray. Captain Erza." A girl that appeared to be about 12 or 13 years old with bright pink hair and a golden winged headgear walked through the crowd and up to the two dueling mages. Erza immediately dropped to a kneeling position.

"Princess Merudy, what can I do for you today Your Ladyship?"

Gray sweated at the scene in front of her. "You bow down to her but not me? What the hell Erza?" Erza turned her attention away from Merudy for a brief moment to get in front of Gray and 'worship' the ground he was walking on.

"Oh, my amazing Prince Gray, I'm deeply sorry for offending you. You're the most amazing prince ever and I'm deeply honoured to be graced with your friendship." Gray shooked his head and pinched his nose.

"Fine, you don't have to bow. But don't ever do that again." He turned his attention toward Merudy. "So what's up sis?"

Said pinkette was still chuckling at the scene in front of her as she spoke up. "Well, bro, the king, aka our idiot brother, has requested both of your presence in his royal chambers as soon as possible. He sent me to come get you two as he's a little preoccupied right now. Cabinet members bugging him and all."

Gray shot Erza a confused glance. "If he was holding a meeting, why wasn't I informed before?"

"He says you were. Which is probably why he sent me to get you." Gray stared at his sister for a moment while racking his own brain, trying to remember his brother mentioning a meeting.

"Shit! Come on Erza!" Gray grabbed her hand and sped toward the castle.

...

Lyon sat on his throne with his crown on his left knee and his head held in his right hand. His blue and silver robes lay on the floor at his feet, stripped off in the aftermath of the frustrating meeting. He breathed out a heavy sigh as he heard a knock at the door. "Enter."

Gray and Erza marched into the room, the latter taking a knee. "It is an honor to be in your presence, Your Majesty." Gray just laughed at the woman while Lyon looked even more irritated than before.

"Will you stand up Erza? I don't feel like dealing with a bunch of stuffy formalities right now. And it's about time you show up Gray." Lyon stood up and redressed in his robes as he walked toward the two.

"Yeah, Merudy reminded me of that a little too late. So what's up King?" Gray smirked at his brother once his irritated expression came back. "You can't seriously be that mad that I forgot, right?"

Lyon grit his teeth before speaking again. "I don't particularly care that you missed the meeting, although it would be nice if you would take your duties as a Prince more serious. However, that's not why I called you here today."

"So what is going on, Your Majesty?" Erza was now interested in the subject seeing as it wasn't going to be the two brothers fighting like they normally do. Lyon looked at the two before continuing.

"The topic today was my marriage. The council believes that it is time for me to find a suitable Queen to help me govern the nation, and they have decided on who they want me to marry." Lyon gave a moment of silence if the two wanted to interject. They didn't, so he continued. "They want me to marry Lucy Heartfillia, the former heiress to the nation of Caellum." Erza's eyes widened at this statement.

"Caellum? But-" she was silenced by Lyon holding up a hand to her.

"Yes, she is the rogue heiress of the nation of Caellum, the last one of that nation who has the true royal family's blood inside of her. I know this as well as the council, and that's why they chose her."

Gray furrowed his eyebrows. "Rogue heiress? What the hell does that mean? And why don't I know about this?"

"Like I said, you need to take your responsibility as a Prince of this nation more serious. If you came to more council audiences, you would know this information. And she is considered a rogue heiress because when the new royals ran a coup over their government, she is the only one that survived."

"So, where is she now?" Erza asked him. Lyon sighed again, feeling very bored after having to explain everything.

"She's locked herself inside a tower somewhere on the ocean off the coast. It's located in between here and Caellum, though we haven't pinpointed it's exact location." Gray held up his hand.

"One second, this is a nice story and all, and I'm glad you're getting married. Seriously, I am. But what does this have to do with either of us?"

"Gee, you really aren't the sharpest tool in the shed, are you Gray?"

"What'd you say to me you squinty eyed bastard?"

Erza quickly knocked both of their heads together before she grew wide eyed at the realization of what she had done. "Your Majesty, I am so sorry. Please, hit me if you wish!"

"No no, that's quite alright" he slowly backed away from her before redirecting his attention to Gray. "But seriously, I thought it was pretty obvious that I was briefing you on a mission."

"Wait, so you want me to go get your future wife for you? Why can't you do it!" A very naked Gray screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Gray, our country is still recovering from the incident during the battle with Malkuth four years ago. If something were to happen-" a dead silence fell over the room as all three of them hung their heads. Finally, Lyon managed to find his voice again. "It was the council's idea. They still don't think it's a good idea for me to leave the kingdom."

"Then why the hell would they want to go to Caellum just to get your bride?" Erza agreed with him.

"That is very odd. I don't understand why they would choose her either." Lyon sighed for probably the twelfth time in the last two hours. He was really getting sick of explaining things.

"This is supposed to be a secret even the captains of the military aren't supposed to know yet, but we're on the verge of a war with Caellum. The council still doesn't believe we have the strength to take their forces down, so we figured that if we rescued their heiress that maybe we could swing some of their citizens to our side. Their leaders aren't very well liked, after all. So, what do you say?"

Erza had a very uncomfortable look on her face as she shifted her weight from one leg to the other. Gray, on the other hand, had just one more question. "What's in it for us?"

Erza quickly stood tall, all looks of being uncomfortable gone. "I am a knight of the kingdom. I will accept any task handed to me Your Majesty."

"I figured you would say so Erza. However, Gray, to answer your question, the council has said that I could allow you to marry whomever you choose when the time comes, so long as they don't have a prior engagement. Sound fair?"

Gray shrugged. "Better than nothing I guess. Well should we be on our way then?" He began walking toward the door with Erza to his right and Lyon in between them, arms around both of their shoulders. The king let out a relieved sigh as he walked them out.

"So, just to recap, you're going to the tower on the island, slaying the dragon, retrieving the girl, and bringing her back here. Got it?" Gray and Erza both nodded as they began to repeat what he said.

"Going to the tower on the island, slaying the dragon, retr-wait, WHAT?" Lyon laughed nervously.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the dragon there, well at least it's just a rumor, sorry long day must've slipped my mind hahaha see you next week!" And with that, he quickly shoved them out of his chambers and locked the door.

"Asshole" Gray muttered as he caught his balance. He looked to Erza to gauge her reaction but she kept her face stoic. "Dragon hunting?" She nodded.

"Dragon hunting."

With that, the two high fived and quickly set off to prepare for their upcoming mission.

...

A/N: Well, this is my first attempt at a non modern AU fic, so let me know what you all think in one of those lovely reviews ;)

Also, to anyone who gave this story a chance despite its terribly clichéd summary, I thank you.

Disclaimer: Once again saving my own ass by stating that I, Thunder Explosion, claim no ownership over Fairy Tail.