a sky to love

Characters: Juvia Lockser, Gray Fullbuster

Summary: Perfection like her is rare.

Universe: Possibly AU if Mashima decides to be cruel

She was haunting him lately.

His mind was full of images of her and he wondered whether this had been why Erza had warned him. Water Mages – and especially powerful ones like Juvia – often shared the attributes of mermaids. They sneaked into the men's minds and did not rest before they possessed them completely, until the men were too confused to defend themselves against their charms. This had to be the reason why she was stuck in his mind, ever since he had seen her dancing with Lucy and Cana at the party after the battle of the Grand Magic Games. She had looked so different then, so happy as she had twirled around, making her wide red skirt billow around her legs.

He exhaled as he leaned against the balustrade, looking at the townspeople who were bustling through the alleyway. The air was cool and this calmed him slightly as he wondered why Erza was sneaking out of the guildhall in the most ridiculous disguise ever and yet, barely recognisable in the twilight.

A low rustle of a silken dress sent him nearly of the balcony as he flinched. "Hell, Cana, you really shouldn't scare me like that," he snapped at his oldest friend.

The card mage only chuckled. "I have been calling your name about eight times before I came over," she said as she grinned. "Is there something on your mind, Gray?"

"You are drunk," he pointed out, wondering why he even bothered. Of course Cana would be drunk because she was always drunk at the point of the evening but this did not make her any less dangerous. Even a wasted Cana was still as dangerous as the deepest and darkest sea because she was unpredictable. On good days, she would be calm and friendly but when she had a bad or an especially observant day, she would easily guess what he was trying to hide.

"Juvia?" she asked as she raised an eyebrow. "You have gotten obvious, Gray-sama."

He angrily swatted her hand from his shoulder. "Don't call me that," he muttered.

"You aren't telling Juvia the same," she said as she leaned against the balustrade. "So, let me guess: this is really about her because somewhere along the way, you have finally seen what everyone could have told you weeks ago: she is a pretty young woman and anyone can see this."

"Leave me alone … it's too fucking late for that, Cana," he groaned. "I haven't slept in weeks."

"Give me a moment, I'll ask someone to take you home," she smirked and disappeared.

He wanted to stop her but he was not fast enough.

A moment later, the familiar pattern of steps appeared and he wondered whether he should jump before he realised that he had been jumping from the balcony for years to get away of Natsu's challenges and that it had never killed him.

"Gray-sama? Cana-san said that you needed to be taken home."

She looked nearly ethereal in the pale might. The moon dyed her blue hair silver and let her skin shine. She looked stunning and for a moment, he wondered why it was so damn hard to admit that Juvia Lockser had indeed captured his heart.

"I can go home alone, Juvia. You don't have to leave the party if you don't want to."

There, he could be nice as well. He could talk with her without belittling her feelings, feelings he was aware of. He wanted to be nice to her, especially with Lyon still lurking around in the background, especially with him waiting for a chance. He knew that his so-called older brother was still waiting for him to screw up everything.

"Juvia is tired as well, Gray-sama," the water mage replied. "The drink Lisanna-san has given her as made her very, very tired."

Gray raised his eyebrow. Lisanna was – no matter how innocent and sweet she seemed – related to Mira and so it was not rare for her to show matchmaking tendencies. "I guess that in this case, I should escort you home instead," he said. "I had nothing to drink and … well, it's not always safe on the streets for a single woman."

"Juvia is a mage. She can handle herself," she replied. "Gray-sama does not have to be worried for her safety. He can go straight home if he wishes to."

"I am walking you home," he said as he crossed his arms. "We are nakama after all, aren't we?"

"Juvia does not want to be only a nakama," she muttered quietly.

He froze. It was entirely silent. In the distance, he heard the flow of the nearby river and he slowly turned his head into her direction. "I know," he admitted. "I know."

She looked back at him, blue eyes reflecting the moon light and the light from the lanterns of the guild. She looked lovely because Juvia Lockser was the subtle hidden kind of beauty. She was not loud and somehow, he appreciated this silent kind of beauty. He sighed as he reached out to brush back a pretty blue strand of her hair.

"We … we could grab something to eat from a takeout and watch some movies," he suggested. "Cana borrowed me some movie lacrima … that's if you like the silly movies she likes…"

He knew that Juvia would claim to love Fire Magic – something that made her wary and he knew this – if it was to spend time with him but he hoped that she really liked Cana's kind of movie because otherwise, it would be a very weird and awkward opening.

"Cana-san has asked Juvia to come with her picking out movies a few weeks back," the blue-haired woman said. "And yes, Juvia would love to watch movies with Gray-sama."

"You are leaving?" Laxus smirked, clearing intoxicated.

"Got a problem with that?" Gray snapped, slightly annoyed with the lightening mage's aggravating behaviour. It was rare for Laxus to be drunk but he heard early how Cana had goaded the blond man into a drinking contest.

"Nope," Laxus said with a wink. "Just remember that your pink-haired buddy wants to leave for some job early tomorrow. No one wants you to be tired because you stayed up all night."

"Go and drink with Cana," the ice mage snarled as he dragged Juvia away. "Seriously, why can't he just mind his own business and leave people alone?"

"It's because Cana paid him," Lucy remarked as she sipped on her drink. "Plus, I think he might have lost a bet with Gajeel and had to do something embarrassing. Have fun with your movie night but don't strip, Gray. That would kill the mood … or set it."

"Lu-chan!" Levy giggled.

Gray merely rolled his eyes as he kept walking. He only exhaled as they had left the guild behind. "You know, I think it's the first time that someone other than Lo- Leo and Cana stop by at my place," he shrugged. "That stopped when Leo turned out to be a spirit and Cana was too busy being depressed … she could have said something … I'd have helped her."

"Gray-sama and Cana-san are old friends, aren't they?" Juvia asked calmly.

"She was the only one in my age group when I joined so yeah, we hung out and started going on little jobs together before she started working alone and I worked with Leo."

"The way Juvia worked with Gajeel-kun when she and Gajeel-kun first joined the guild?" she asked as they strolled through dark Magnolia.

"Yeah," he said.

"That sounds nice," she said as she looked around. "Would Gray-sama mind to work with Juvia once as well?" she inquired, averting her gaze.

"Sure, we can go on a job once I am back from the one with Natsu and the others," he shrugged. "Knowing Erza, we will be back tomorrow moving and then, we can look for a job for us."

"Gray-sama is very kind to Juvia tonight. Is Juvia dreaming?"

He shook his head. "No, not really. I like spending time with you."

She blushed crimson. "G-Gray-sama!"

"Argh, don't be like that … that's why I didn't want to tell you," he sighed. "Seriously, Juvia, you are far too easy to get excited. You need to stop that or people are going to take advantage of you. Really, you need to protect yourself sometimes."

"Juvia apologises," she said as she lowered her head. "It's just that Gray-sama makes her really, really happy right now … does that mean he will give Juvia a chance?"

He hesitated for a moment. "Yeah," he said.