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Lion's Pride	By : Rhov Category: +. to F > Fairy Tail Views: 10067 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. I make no money writing this. I do it for my own pleasure. Any lyrics are my own or I received permission from the artist.

Chapter List
- 10
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- 12
"Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O Lord." - Psalms 58:6

Chapter 11

Breaking the Lion's Teeth

Lucy sat in her gloomy, barred cell listening hard. She heard shouts she knew well.

"Fire Dragon's..."

"Ice-Make..."

"Solid Script..."

"Sky Dragon's..."

"Requip..."

"Iron Dragon's..."

And then...silence. It was not even a massive explosion like how most Fairy Tail fights end. Shouting and then...nothing. She had a very bad feeling about it, but she refused to believe Natsu, Gray, and Erza combined could ever be defeated.

Far down the dimly lit corridor, she heard plodding footsteps approaching. She hurried off her little cot and ran to the prison bars, straining to look through and see who it was. She did not recognize the steps. They were not Erza's clunking boots, Natsu's flopping sandals, or Elfman's clopping geta.

"Gray?" she asked in waning hope. "Gajeel?"

No one answered, and the steps did not hurry at her call. Finally she saw blue-gray scales. Her heart began to sink, and when he got into the waning light she felt her whole world shatter. Lucy dropped to her knees with tears already forming in her frightened brown eyes.

Haftorang came forward and saw her collapsed, watching him, unable even to scream or gasp. His massive mouth tugged down into a pout. He waved a magical key over the lock of her cell and entered.

Lucy could only watch as the fishman carried Loke in his fin-like arms. The Lion's tailored suit was torn and dirty. He had lost his sunglasses. His fluffy orange mane was tangled with dirt and plant debris. He looked as pale as a corpse, and his mouth hung open as his head wobbled loosely against the Southern Fish's scaly body. Lucy covered her mouth, fearing the worst.

Haftorang knelt by the cot and gently laid Loke down. He even straightened his suit coat and brushed back some locks of hair with his translucent fins.

"He has only minor injuries-s-s," he assured her. "However, his spirit is very weak. The attack he made likely reduced his life by months-s-s."

He pulled forward a satchel he wore around his shoulder. From inside he pulled out a mug, a pouch, and a flask of water. He sprinkled some glittery powder from the pouch into the mug, then poured water into it. He took a spoon and gave it a quick stir.

"Tea from the Spirit World. It'll help him regain strength. Get him to drink it."

Lucy still felt like she could not stand up. The lack of food gnawed at her. She scooted across the dungeon floor, took the mug, carefully lifted Loke's head, and dribbled a little tea into his mouth. He moaned, swallowed, but did not wake up.

"What about the others?" she whispered as she worked on him.

"Stunned only. I truly did try to produce the least amount of energy. They will awaken soon. Mistress Kefira is an honorable woman. I interrupted her battle, so she won't strike them at the disadvantage I alone created. She shall continue to fight them fairly as soon as they regain consciousness-s-s. I merely wanted to get my old friend away from the rest of the fighting so he wouldn't get hurt."

Sure enough, somewhere high above her head, Lucy heard Natsu shout "Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"She let them sleep it off?" Lucy asked in shock. "She didn't kill them while they were down?" That was not at all like most villains she knew who would have at least tied them up, if not outright killed them.

"Is that how warriors do battle these days? 'Tis a barbaric way to fight. Mistress Kefira comes from a time when battle was about honor."

"From a time?" she repeated. "Just how old is she? Shaman-Queen of Kohinur...but they've been a Republic for four hundred years."

"Indeed, but as the royal family was never officially disbanded, Mistress Kefira still holds her title, as she has for centuries-s-s."

Lucy frowned. She eased Loke's head down and set the mug aside. "I can tell she's not a Celestial Spirit, yet I sense something Spirit-like in her. What is she?"

Haftorang sighed a long hiss. "You can ask Leo when he awakens-s-s. I must witness my mistress's fight." He rose, left the cell, relocked it, and walked down the long corridor.

"Don't I get any food?" Lucy shouted at him. "Sheesh! I'm starving here." She pouted, then looked down at her patient. "Silly Lion! I bet you and Natsu rushed in and got blown away first." She kissed his forehead. "Thank you."

"Anything for...my master," Loke managed to say. One eye peeked open, and a weak smile came to his lips. "You've lost weight."

"Best diet ever," she laughed and sniffled as she stroked back his orange hair.

"I'm sorry I lost to him."

"It's fine," she hushed. "Just rest." She dreaded Haftorang's warning that Loke's fight had taken months off of his already slipping life.

Loke tensed up and gritted his teeth hard to keep himself from shouting. Suddenly, his body shimmered in a viscous green wave. Lucy covered her mouth as she helplessly watched. She had seen that odd appearance before...as Loke was fading away in front of Karen's grave.

"Please, no...no," she whispered.

"I won't...leave...you," he gritted. By sheer willpower, Loke fought through his pain.

Just when he thought he could control it, a jolting spike hit his chest. He gasped and grabbed at his left side, eyes wide as the pain hit too hard. His body arched and his legs kicked at the cot to fight through the agony. Lucy could not bear to watch. She cried, wanting to hold him, but unsure if keeping him was the best thing for Loke right then. His groans pierced her heart with guilt.

"Just go," she sobbed. "It's too hard for a Celestial Spirit to heal in the Human World. You'll die for real. I can't stand watching you in this much pain. I don't want you to suffer anymore because of me. Just...go back."

He panted through the attack. Slowly, the pain eased. "I can't. What sort of man would I be if I left my lady in a dungeon just over a little pain? And it'd hurt me far worse if I abandoned my child. I can't do it again."

Lucy hesitated a little. "Again?"

Loke looked stunned and terrified for a moment. He turned his head away from her in shame.

Lucy felt a chill prickle her arms. "This...happened before. This situation. With you."

She looked down at her massive belly. She felt tears already forming in her eyes. She shook her head, refusing to believe her fears, yet it made sense. She saw how the pieces fit, creating a picture she did not want to see, yet she could not turn her eyes away.

"Loke, were you...Zeref's father?"

He did not move for a long time. Neither one could speak. High above them, they heard an explosion. Dust rained down on them, and a few rocks crumbled. Lucy put her hand over the teacup to keep the dirt out. Then all was quiet and awkward.

"Her name was Naomi," Loke finally began, still looking at the wall and lost in thoughts of the past. "She lived in the Kingdom of Kohinur four hundred years ago, a Celestial Spirit mage under the Shaman-Queen Kefira."

"That crazy bitch?" Lucy asked.

"So you met her," he muttered. "Kefira and I...were lovers," he admitted hesitantly. "Back then, although Naomi owned my Gold Key, Queen Kefira had more control over me."

"Does this have to do with the Key to the Heart of the Lion?"

He looked over in horror. "She told you?" he cried out, and his face paled even more. "Oh shit, she doesn't have it, does she?"

"No, but she wants it. She thought I had it. What is it?"

He looked away again, but for a brief moment Lucy saw relief in his face. "Something so powerful, it was removed from existence...or it was supposed to be. I only hid it, just in case a time came when I really needed it. The Royal Stars..." His face pained over. "In summary, the Key to the Heart of the Lion is a way to give me immense power, but the owner of the key has total control over me. Queen Kefira had that sort of control and made me into her lover. I really did love her for a time, back when she was regal and idealistic, ruling a peaceful land with happy citizens. Then, Naomi showed up.

"She was a quiet girl, not terribly strong, but powerful enough to wield me. Just me. My Gold Key had been in her family for generations, a clan of legendary Celestial Spirit mages, so it was expected that she'd inherit it. I didn't think much of her at first. She was so frail, many other mages teased her. After all, how could such a tiny girl wield the most powerful Zodiac Spirit?

"She relied so much on me, but I liked caring for her," he admitted with a nostalgic smile. "I felt sorry for her, facing so much expectation, not only from her clan and Queen Kefira, but from the whole kingdom. Simply owning a Gold Key made her quite a celebrity, but she dreamed of a simple life away from fighting. Even within the queen's court, many people wanted the Lion's Key and tried to kill her. I first learned to break through my gate so I could be by her side whenever I sensed she was in trouble.

"Eventually, I began spending more time with Naomi, simply to make sure she wasn't stabbed in a corridor. I listened to her dreams, strolled and dined with her, laughed as we watched bards put on plays. Love grew gradually, not something spontaneous, but I think that slowness made it stronger. I remember the day I kissed her. It...felt right. Although she worked under Queen Kefira, and although I was deemed her favorite, we...we married in secret," he whispered. "I helped her to escape Kefira's domain, and we headed west together. We were free, except Kefira kept using my other key to call me to her. I couldn't disobey her summons. I had enough control of my own to turn her down and stay faithful to Naomi. I also wouldn't give in to her threats. No matter how Kefira demanded to know where the Gold Key went—she didn't care about Naomi, only the key—I wouldn't tell her. One day, she struck me. Because of that, I declared our contract broken."

"Just because she hit you? But then with you, Aries, and Karen, why couldn't..."

"Because back then I was king," he yelled in anguish. She saw that admitting this hidden past agonized him. "I...Regulus was the leader of the Royal Stars, the King Star, and through his power, I was...I was the King of the Spirit World."

Lucy covered her mouth. Questions began to flood her mind. How could a single star grant a person that much power? Why was Loke not king anymore?

"It's complicated," he sighed, "but I sacrificed my heart." He squeezed over his chest again. "I gave up the power of Regulus so I could free myself from Queen Kefira and be with Naomi. It's a long and painful story, but suffice it to say I was broken, the Lion's teeth were shattered, his roar was silenced. I was left a pathetic shell of the Lion I once was. Without my power, I had no choice but to abdicate, and the current Spirit King took over at that time."

"You once told me," Lucy whispered, "without the Heart, the Lion can't roar."

"I have only a fraction of that Heart now," he said, rubbing over his blue ring. "Compared to back then, my roar is a squeak from a newborn kitten."

"You gave that up...for her?"

"Not just her. There were numerous reasons. In fact, I had stubbornly held out on the Royal Stars' request to leave. I don't think any of us constellations liked it, but my agreement made it final. I not only weakened myself, but all four of us: Piscis Austrinus, Taurus, Scorpio...it hurt Scorpio worse than it hurt me. He doesn't even remember being attuned to the Royal Stars. He repressed it all so he could live on. I'm just a selfish bastard."

"I'm sure you had good reasons."

"Oh, I did. Anyway, four years passed in a blissful dream. I focused everything on being happy with Naomi, spending as much time as possible in the Human World to avoid the upheaval in my own world. I built up a tolerance to minimize the time I had to spend away from her. We fought enemies sometimes. She even gained Aries in one battle, but mostly we just tried to live quietly.

"One day, she came to me saying she was pregnant. It shouldn't have been possible. I thought she must have cheated on me. Then I sensed the life in her, just as I can sense this little guy," he smiled, caressing her belly and giving it a light kiss. "Celestial Spirits can sense one another, and I knew...that tiny life was mine. My son!

"I was...immensely happy," he said, as if that was an understatement. "I returned home in such high spirits, so proud that I couldn't wait to tell all the Zodiacs. Hell, I wanted to tell every Spirit of every sort! They were all happy to see me, their former king, moving on and enjoying life. We were celebrating, singing, laughing...but then, so suddenly that even now it gives me chills, judgment came down. The Spirit King learned about the baby. It wasn't against any rules, but...but rules were changing quickly under him."

Loke's eyes gleamed in hatred for a moment. Lucy tried to imagine it. There he was, the King of the Heavens a mere four year prior, and suddenly being lorded over by a new king. It must have crushed his pride and left him bitter.

"He said he had a premonition, but I thought it was pure spite. He just wanted to keep me where he could see me, fearing I might fight against him. I was forced to stay in the Spirit World as punishment and barely escaped a death sentence. I tried so hard to get any information. Naomi had Aries, but it seemed there was also a rule that no one could tell me anything. One day, Aries told me that the baby was born. She was punished for telling me, but it made me so happy. And sad. I wanted to go to them. I wanted...so badly...to be there for her, to hold my son," he sobbed with a hiccup. "But I couldn't leave. I almost killed myself trying to escape. I would've rather been exiled than forced apart like that."

Loke wiped his eyes and refused to look at her and show Lucy his weakness. She sat on her heels, her eyes misty at the thought of how he had kept this tremendous pain buried for so long.

"I never saw Naomi again," he whispered. "I was in there...I don't know how long. Years. Then it happened so suddenly. I was summoned, and much to my surprise, I could leave. I was back in the Human World, but it was a different master. His name was Cheveyo. You might have heard of him."

"The Cheveyo?" Lucy asked in shock. "The strongest Celestial Spirit mage ever to have existed?"

"That's the guy."

"I guess that makes sense," she realized. "History books say he was the only celestial summoner to collect all twelve Zodiac Spirit Keys."

"Exactly. He had only recently won my key through combat and didn't have time to make a contract. The battle was already in progress, and he needed my help, right then, right away."

"The Battle of Kohinur Keep," Lucy whispered in awe. "I read about that in my studies on Cheveyo. It was when he obtained the twelfth Gold Key. That was you?" she gawked. Suddenly, Loke seemed much older than she had yet realized.

"Yep. I demanded to know what happened to Naomi. He didn't know, he had never met her, so I told him I would help him that day, without an official contract, so long as our contract could not be agreed upon until he researched what happened. Cheveyo was an honorable mage, and after the fight, he did. That was when I learned...Naomi..."

Loke's voice choked off on thick tears. It was impossible for him to hide his grief anymore by just staring at the wall. His shoulders shook with sobs. Lucy patted his arm, but she was torn that he felt so strongly about another woman...a woman whom he had loved enough to marry, give up everything, and start a family with her.

"He didn't know how," Loke forcefully continued despite his throat being tense and hurting. "No one really knows how. She went on a mission, and she never returned."

Three deep breaths shoved that pain back into the empty chamber of his heart where he had hidden it for centuries, and by the third breath his tears stopped. Anger instead took the place of grief.

"Cheveyo only knew who he took the Lion's Key from: Queen Kefira! Apparently she managed to hunt Naomi down and...and since I wasn't there..." He closed his eyes tightly. "Kefira was also unable to open the gate. When she was defeated, Cheveyo got the key. He was immensely powerful, enough to break the spirit barriers that had been placed on my cell. That power amplified my own diminished abilities. In all of history, Cheveyo was the only mage ever to have been able to summon all twelve Zodiac Spirits at the same time and keep us out for a whole day."

"What!" Lucy shouted. "I never read about that." She vividly recalled when she called out all of her Spirit Keys at once, five Gold and four Silver. It lasted only a few seconds and nearly killed her. To summon all twelve for a whole day...

"He was insanely powerful, eventually helped to establish the Ten Wizard Saints, but he wasn't the best owner. Personally, I didn't like him, but I respected him. With me, he finally had all twelve Gold Keys." Loke smiled distantly. "It was the only time I ever got to see my eleven other comrades as they appear in the Human World. All of us, plus countless Silver Keys, and he could summon us all at once as if it was nothing!

"That was when I learned who we were fighting. It wasn't just Cheveyo or his guild. It was a huge force, mages from all around the world. History came to call it the Great Gathering. They united for one mage, one insanely powerful, evil dark wizard. I heard the name of this enemy: Zeref! I only knew that name because of the time Aries told me. My son...Zeref!"

"That must have been hard," Lucy realized.

He nodded sadly. "For the sake of my new master, I was forced to fight him. I was there when Zeref was captured. I helped. I saw him for the first time. My son...this twisted dark thing possessed by Evil itself. And he knew me. He saw me and called out to me. He said his mother told him about me. And then...he smiled. He looked truly happy. He said he was glad to meet me at last. That was when they took him away. We were told he was sealed along with all his followers, including Queen Kefira and Piscis Austrinus, the only Celestial Spirit who sided with him."

Loke closed his eyes as tears dribbled out.

"He was my son! I wonder sometimes, if I could've been there, helped to raise him, would he have turned out better? Would he have fallen so far if he had a father to guide him? I don't know. I just don't know! But...but I really wish...I pray that he wasn't always like that. I pray that while Naomi was alive he was a good child, a faithful and helpful son. I hope...I hope she died proud of him."

Lucy suddenly threw herself on top of him. Loke was stunned. He had been certain she would hate him for not telling her from the beginning. His face cracked into a smile, and he grabbed her tight to him.

"I'm so sorry, Lucy. I'm sorry I'm not strong enough to defeat Haftorang and get you out of here. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Naomi and Zeref. I'm sorry you have to go through the same horrible stuff she did. That's why I can't leave your side. I can't let you suffer loneliness like that. I can't let it happen again!"

"Naomi," she sobbed, "probably knew. If she loved you, she knew you're the most loyal person ever to have existed. You're Leo the Lion, after all. You don't run from trouble, you fight! Even if you know it's futile, you fight. If she was married to you for four years, she would've known that. I bet she told Zeref how wonderful of a man you were. I bet he was immensely proud of you!" She squeezed him tighter as tears choked her. "You are going to make the best father in the world! Our son is going to be so proud of you. And I'm going to raise him to be a good man. I swear," she shouted as the dungeon rocked again with explosions above. "I swear I'm going to raise him to be someone you can take pride in."

Loke was speechless for a long time. Finally, he smiled gently and stroked her disheveled blonde hair. "And you are going to make the best mother in the world. With two parents like us, our kid will not only be so handsome he'll have to fight off the girls, but he's going to be the luckiest kid ever." The dungeon shook again, and more rocks fell with a clatter. "And we'll be lucky if they don't bring the whole damn fort down on top of us."

High above, they heard Erza shout, "Natsu, stop before you bring the whole thing down!"

Lucy had to laugh and sniff away any worries. "Seems Erza's concerned about it, too."

Loke looked over at her, searching the emotions on her face. "Are you angry with me?"

She shook her head. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. You'll have to tell me one day how you stopped being king."

"A story I don't want to tell when I just got my ass handed to me by another member of the Royal Stars."

She gave him the mug of tea. "Then drink up before rocks fly into your cup. And Loke," she smiled, "thanks for coming after me even when you're weak."

He tipped his head to her. "My pride demanded it."

End of Chapter 11

Rhov's Corner:

Cheveyo - Native American Hopi name meaning "spirit warrior." Appropriate name, no?

Chapter 250 just came out, and we learn the "Zeref Key of Revival" was all a pretense... Damn... There went a whole plot line I had planned. Thankfully, I hadn't written more than brief notes on Zeref's Key. So everyone who asked "where the heck did you get that Zeref was a Celestial Spirit," that's what I was aiming after. Up until this chapter, we've heard many hints about "Zeref's Key," and I guess my ability to read Hiro Mashima's mind is about as good as my ability to use telepathic hypnosis to convince him to make Loke the new main character. The fact that Zeref never "slept" (was he even sealed?) made me rush back to this chapter and rewrite parts. Loke now says "We were told he was sealed" since that was the rumor. I may make minor changes like this as new twists unravel. Hiro-sensei, why do you do this to meeeeeeee? T_T

Ahem...this chapter is what many of you have been waiting for. Lots of questions answered, only to bring up more. Just what were the Royal Stars? Why did they leave? What were the circumstances that led to Leo abdicating as king? Why did Piscis Austrinus (Haftorang) side with Zeref? Will Natsu destroy everything around him before Lucy and Loke can escape? I think most of you already guessed about Zeref. I must be terrible at surprising my audience.

=^..^= "You surprise me, Rhov."

"Really, Happy? I do?" ^_^

"Aye! I'm surprised people are still reading this after two boring lectures on stars."

"Grrr...I'm surprised you think you're getting tuna tonight."

=^O.O^= "I mean, I'm surprised MORE people aren't reading it. They should tell their friends and...and..."

"Uh-huh. Don't worry, after I finish writing this story, I'll organize these footnotes better."

"You mean you think people will read this even after you stop updating? Aren't you being optimistic, Rhov?"

"Urusai, baka neko!"
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Lion's Pride