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*Magnolia Town Square - Evening of the Harvest Festival*
The festival was everything Levy had promised and more. The entire town square had been transformed into a wonderland of warm light and cheerful chaos, with the scents of roasted chestnuts, spiced cider, and fresh pastries filling the evening air. Damian found himself genuinely relaxing for the first time in months as Levy guided him from stall to stall with infectious enthusiasm.
"You absolutely have to try Mrs. Henderson's apple turnovers," Levy insisted, pulling him toward a bakery stall where an elderly woman was serving golden pastries dusted with cinnamon sugar. "She only makes them for special occasions, and they're practically legendary in Magnolia."
"If you insist," Damian said with amusement, accepting the warm pastry. One bite confirmed Levy's assessment—the turnover was perfectly flaky, with apples that had been cooked to sweet perfection and spices that seemed to capture the essence of autumn itself.
"This is incredible," he said honestly. "I don't think I've ever tasted anything quite like it."
"Palace cooks probably don't use the same secret ingredient," Levy said with a knowing smile.
"Which is?"
"Love," she replied simply. "Mrs. Henderson has been making these for her family and friends for forty years. You can taste the difference."
As they moved through the festival, Damian found himself seeing his kingdom from an entirely new perspective. These weren't subjects to be protected or citizens to be governed—they were individuals with their own stories, dreams, and simple joys. Children ran between the stalls with sticky fingers and bright laughter, couples danced to music played by local musicians, and elderly residents shared stories with anyone willing to listen.
"Try this," Levy said, appearing at his elbow with a stick of candied fruit. "Old Master Chen makes the best candied apples in the kingdom, though don't tell him I said that or he'll get even more impossible about his prices."
Damian accepted the treat, noting how Levy's eyes sparkled in the lantern light as she watched him taste it. The apple was perfectly crisp beneath its candy coating, sweet but not overwhelming.
"You're enjoying yourself," Levy observed with satisfaction.
"More than I expected," Damian admitted. "I spend so much time thinking about protecting people that I sometimes forget what it is I'm actually protecting. This—" he gestured around the festival, "—this is what makes life worth living."
"Exactly," Levy said warmly. "All the politics and guild conflicts and magical threats... they matter because they could take this away from people. But sometimes you need to remember what normal happiness looks like."
They continued their circuit of the stalls, sampling honey cakes and spiced nuts, trying their luck at ring toss games where the prizes were small stuffed animals and hand-carved trinkets. Damian found himself laughing as Levy demonstrated surprising skill at a magical target game, her Solid Script magic allowing her to guide her shots with subtle precision.
"That's cheating," he accused playfully as she won her third consecutive prize.
"That's strategy," she corrected with a grin, handing him the small wooden dragon she'd just won. "Besides, the rules don't specifically forbid magic—they just assume most people won't think to use it."
"A technicality worthy of a royal advisor," Damian said, pocketing the carving with more care than such a simple prize probably warranted.
"Speaking of which," Levy said, her voice taking on a slightly more excited tone, "there's something special happening in about an hour that I thought you might find... interesting."
"Oh?"
"The Miss Fairy Tail contest," she explained, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. "It's become something of a tradition during festivals. The guild members who want to participate compete in various categories—talent, evening wear, that sort of thing. It's all very lighthearted and fun."
Damian raised an eyebrow. "And you're telling me this because...?"
"Because I thought you might like to watch," Levy said, her blush deepening slightly. "I mean, if you're interested in seeing more of what makes my guild special. The contest really shows everyone's personalities in a different light."
"Are you participating?" Damian asked, genuinely curious.
"Maybe," Levy replied evasively. "I haven't decided yet. But some of the others are definitely competing—Erza, Mirajane, Cana... it should be entertaining."
The thought of seeing more of Fairy Tail's famous members in a non-combat context was actually quite appealing. Damian had heard stories about the guild's more colorful traditions, but he'd never had the opportunity to witness them firsthand.
"I think I'd like that," he said. "Where is the contest being held?"
"There's a small stage area behind the guild hall," Levy explained, pointing toward the familiar building that loomed over one side of the town square. "It's more intimate than the main festival stage, but that makes it more fun. The whole thing feels more like friends showing off for each other than a formal competition."
"Then lead the way," Damian said, offering her his arm again. "Though I have to admit, I'm curious about what talent categories a guild like Fairy Tail would choose."
"Oh, you'll see," Levy said with a mysterious smile. "Let's just say that 'conventional' isn't really in our vocabulary."
As they began making their way toward the guild hall, weaving through the festival crowd, Damian found himself struck by how natural this felt. Walking arm-in-arm with Levy, sampling festival food, laughing at simple games—it was the kind of normal evening he'd never thought he'd be able to experience.
"Levy," he said as they paused to let a group of excited children run past, "thank you for this. For inviting me, for showing me this side of your world. I didn't realize how much I needed this kind of... normalcy."
"Everyone needs to just be human sometimes," she replied softly, her brown eyes meeting his with an understanding that made his heart skip. "Even princes. Especially princes."
"Is that your professional opinion, Miss McGarden?"
"That's my personal observation, Mr..." she paused, realizing she didn't know what name he was using for the evening.
"Just Damian," he said simply. "Tonight, I'm just Damian."
"Then it's my personal observation, Damian," she said with a smile that seemed to hold all the warmth of the festival lanterns. "And I'm very glad you're here to share this with me."
As they approached the area behind the guild hall, they could already see other festival-goers gathering around what appeared to be a makeshift stage decorated with colorful banners and magical lights. The sound of laughter and cheerful conversation filled the air, and Damian could make out several familiar figures from Fairy Tail preparing for what promised to be an entertaining evening.
"So," he said as they found a good viewing spot among the growing crowd, "what exactly should I expect from a Miss Fairy Tail contest?"
"Expect the unexpected," Levy replied with a grin. "And prepare to see why our guild has such a reputation for being... unique."
"I can hardly wait," Damian said, and realized he meant it completely. Tonight wasn't about royal duties or magical politics or the complicated realities of their different worlds. Tonight was about spending time with someone who made him laugh, in a place where happiness was the only thing that mattered.
And if that happened to include watching Fairy Tail's most famous members compete in what would undoubtedly be a thoroughly unconventional beauty contest, well, that just made the evening even more perfect.
As the first contestants began to take the stage and the crowd around them pressed closer with anticipation, Prince Damian E. Fiore allowed himself to simply be present in the moment—surrounded by laughter, standing beside a woman who made his heart race, and about to witness something that would undoubtedly give him stories to remember for years to come.
Sometimes, he thought with satisfaction, the best parts of life were the ones that had nothing to do with being royal at all.
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*To be continued...*