The Demon's Concubine

Chapter 31

"Princess… you were supposed to be ready an hour ago… we should hurry and get this over with." Virgo scolded quietly, she knew Lucy wasn't exactly thrilled about this day, but the longer she dragged it on, the worse things would get.

"I know, Virgo. I wanna get ready alone, please." Lucy huffed as she sat up on the bed, staying in place for a few minutes after Virgo left and shut the door.

Today was the day of her arranged wedding, and Lucy had to stop herself from jumping out of the window and running away everytime she thought about it. 

She kept quiet and stayed in her room lately. If she behaved, there was a chance her father would go easy on her and her baby. As she stood, Lucy ran her hands over her belly and looked at herself in her mirror. 

Her belly wasn't huge, but the small bulge was definitely noticeable. The dress that hung over her wardrobe was designed to hide her stomach, and Lucy found herself not being opposed to possibly getting morning sickness during the ceremony so she could have an excuse to leave.

She'd never met prince Bora, but after doing some research, Lucy figured he was pretty much an asshole. She rubbed her belly once more before going to her dresser and putting some underwear on. As she sat down on her vanity, she sighed at her reflection. 

The bags under her eyes were dark and her cheeks were swollen. She looked horrible, and she knew no amount of makeup would fix the broken expression on her face.

As she began brushing the knots out of her hair, Lucy cringed at how obvious her self-negligence was. She sighed, she really let herself go since she'd been here. Being without Natsu took too much of a toll on her mental health, and she figured her pregnancy brain had something to do with it too. It didn't help that she was always stressed and anxious about something now either.

Lucy snapped her head towards the window, her brows furrowing in concentration. It almost sounded like someone had said something from outside, but she brushed it off. She'd been having daydreams lately, mostly memories of her time with Natsu and Happy or thoughts of what could've been.

She slapped her cheeks, the only way she could come to terms with things was if she let them go. It's been nearly 2 weeks since she left Tartaros, and Lucy was sure this meant Natsu had given up. She was more trouble than she was worth, and maybe he'd seen her as a traitor like every other member of his kingdom. 

"Lushi!" 

Lucy laughed humorlessly at the sound of Happy's voice. Her little auditory hallucinations have been especially bad lately, sometimes she'd wake up thinking she heard their laughter or the sound of them eating food. 

"Lucy…?"

That was Natsu's voice, the sound making her weak. What she wouldn't give to hear him for real, to tell him all the things that's been going on in her head and to hear him share his.

Her head fell on the vanity stand, her feelings numb as she tried not to be overwhelmed. She banged her head on the surface over and over in a desperate attempt to clear her mind. Thinking about her boys would just make things worse.

Suddenly, a hand grasped her head, stopping her from inflicting any more pain on herself. It was probably Virgo, this wasn't the first time Lucy had been caught doing something like this.

"Let go." She muttered weakly, not really caring if Virgo complied or not.

"No way, you're gonna hurt yourself if you keep doing that!" 

Lucy gaped at her reflection in the small mirror, not being able to see who was now behind her. She caught sight of the hand on her head, though, the skin tanned and calloused.