The Demon's Concubine

Chapter 4

Lucy sat at the edge of Natsu's balcony, her legs reaching beneath the railings and swaying. Tonight marked 3 weeks since she'd came into the castle, and Lucy was surprised to say that she really liked being here.

She never came in contact with anyone other than Natsu, and although it got lonely, it made her feel safe. She spent her days cleaning up after the king, and it usually didn't take much time at all. Whenever Natsu dismissed her, she spent her time on the balcony. 

The king's room was the highest room of the castle, so the view was amazing. Lucy especially loved coming out at night to see the stars and the various lights of the lands of the kingdom. She didn't have much to do, often busing herself with planning Natsu's outfits or attempting to tame his hair. She didn't have much technology- Natsu didn't use much aside from his phone, and she didn't want to bother him by asking for anything. There was the TV, but Lucy didn't find demon television very appealing. She enjoyed watching it with Natsu on the few nights he had free time, though, as they laughed themselves to sleep as they made fun of every show that came on.

Lucy did have a lot of books from Natsu's untouched bookshelf to read, which was her favorite thing to do. Some nights, Natsu would "order" her to read him to sleep, saying that he felt that her voice was very soothing. 

She found herself getting flustered a lot by the kind words he'd say to her. Everyday once she was done getting ready for the day, Lucy would spend the whole morning overthinking his words as if there was a deeper meaning to them.

Sharing a bed made her situation that much more embarrassing, but it wasn't like she had a choice. A week into their meeting, Natsu had confessed that the guards perceived her as his concubine, considering the term "chamber maiden" was usually a more formal way of saying "sex servant," but Lucy expected as much, she'd thought he'd meant for her to be a concubine at first, too. 

Being considered a concubine didn't bother Lucy, it wasn't like she spoke to anyone but Natsu to really feel the effects of the gossip. And she'd only been against the idea because she didn't want to hook up with someone just because he was a king. Concubines got to stay in the king's room for however long without raising suspicion, since many assumed she was either "servicing" him, getting ready for the next session, or recovering from the last. It helped that she was the only "concubine," too, so she wasn't required to leave the room so that a different woman could take her place. 

The most damage all this had done was to Lucy's feelings. She and Natsu had hit it off quickly, and she felt like she knew him her whole life rather than just 3 weeks. She couldn't help but feel a certain longing towards him, but she always narrowed it down to her loneliness. 

With her being considered a concubine, and Natsu being okay with that, Lucy couldn't help but want something more.

"Where are your clothes, weirdo?" 

Lucy stood up and beamed at her king. She went to walk past him and into the room, but jolted as he gripped her forearm. She rolled her eyes before answering, "I just got out of the bath, alright? Now, have you brought supper? I'm starved!"

Natsu gazed at the plush red towel that clung to the blonde's body. He'd decided red was his favorite colour to see her in since she first worn one of his red robes, but then again, he'd only ever seen her in black and red.

He pulled her still damp body flush against him, drying her with his magic. "Ya shouldn't be out here when you're wet… you could get sick."

"The air is warm. I'll be fine." Lucy ran a hand through her now dry hair, glancing up at Natsu's scruffy face. She placed her hands on his cheeks, trying and failing to wipe away some dirt.