Autumn Harvest Festival

The air was cold and crisp, sending a pleasant chill down her spine as she walked through the crowded town of Magnolia.

It was time for the Autumn Harvest Festival, which brought about many tourists to their home.

The festival lasts for a week and is enjoyed by many.

Magnolia, and their local mage guild, Fairy Tail, are well known for their lively festivals and parties.

Juvia Lockser, the resident water mage of Fairy Tail, is walking as fast as she can without spilling the contents of her grocery bags.

She had gone into town per Erza's request to acquire many ingredients.

The girls of Fairy Hills had decided to put together a large feast for the All Hallow's Eve party the guild was throwing.

The party was entirely Levy's idea.

She had found an old book in the library on the holiday and apparently it corresponds with the Autumn Harvest Festival, so she took the idea up with master Makarov.

He agreed, of course. Any excuse to party. Fairy Tail certainly is a rowdy guild.

Juvia had finally made it through the maze of people and had turned onto the dirt road that lead to Fairy Hills.

She let out a sigh of relief. Walking around with the heavy grocery bags and being bumped into constantly wasn't exactly her idea of a good time.

She strolled along in silence, watching her puffs of breath mingle with the air as she shuffled and adjusted the grocery bags uncomfortably.

In the distance she saw a man with dark hair coming from Fairy Hills. He appeared to be wearing jeans, dark boots, and a black tee.

He must have lost his jacket somewhere. No doubt about it. She would know Gray Fullbuster anywhere.

She almost ran to him, but quickly remembered that she was carrying precious cargo.

If she dropped the items, Erza would surely exact revenge. Her spine stiffened at the thought.

She continued walking towards Fairy Hills, calling his name and smiling as she passed. "Good morning, Gray Sama!" If she could wave, she would have.

Gray looked up from the ground and smiled at her briefly. "Juvia."

He saw her shuffling the bags as she passed him and knew that she could not afford to drop them.

He was well aware of Erza's order. He was on his way back to from receiving an order from her.

"Oi, Juvia!" He called to her as he turned around to catch up to her.

"Yes, Gray Sama?" She looked over her shoulder, giving him her full attention.

"Do you need some help? I don't think Erza would be too happy if you dropped this stuff."

Juvia blushed and nodded. He took one of the bags from her and resumed walking beside her to Fairy Hills.

"So, what all did she make you get?" Gray asked while peeking into the bag he was holding.

"Erza San sent Juvia to get baking supplies and ingredients. What was Gray Sama doing at Fairy Hills?" She looked at him with her head tilted to the side.

"Erza sent Cana to drag me to the dorms. Apparently Erza wants me to create some sort of "chill station" for the drinks." He shrugged.

Juvia smiled. "That is a perfect task for Gray Sama. After all, cold is what he does best." Gray nodded. "That's right."

As they approached the entrance, Erza flung open the doors.

Taking notice of the couple in front of her, she snatched Juvia and pulled her inside.

Once Juvia was inside, Erza turned to Gray and took the bag from his arms. "Thank you for helping Juvia. Don't forget your task."

She glared at him for good measure before closing the dorm doors in his face.

"Erza San, that was a little rude." Erza turned to face Juvia.

"You're right. I'm sorry. I just really want this party to go well. Levy put me in charge of planning and I intend to give it my all." Juvia smiled and nodded.

"Of course, Erza San. Juvia knows you'll do your best!" Together they walked to the dorm kitchen with the bags Juvia had brought.

They set the bags on the counter and Erza quickly emptied their contents, examining each item.

"Good. Everything is here and accounted for." Erza began pulling out mixing bowls and whisks.

"Juvia, could you send Wendy and Carla down, please? I could use their help. Oh, Mira and Lisanna too." Juvia nodded and headed to the upper level.

Once the girls were gathered, Juvia led them down to the kitchen.

"Thank you, Juvia. I don't think I will need you to do anything more for today." Juvia smiled and nodded.

She spun on her heels to leave as quickly as possible but Erza grabbed her shoulder.

She whined internally. She really wanted to go find Gray.

"Juvia, have you found a costume yet?" Juvia turned around and blinked. "Costume?"

Erza nodded. "Yes. We all are going to wear costumes to the party. Have you prepared one yet?"

Erza waited for Juvia to respond. "Juvia will think of something!" She smiled and raced out of the kitchen.

Now she was even more determined to find Gray. Maybe if she figured out his costume, she could coordinate!

Juvia ran out into the cold, Autumn air. She ran as fast as she could to the guild.

That was where he would be. Before entering the guild, she composed herself.

She made sure her breathing was normal and was sure to check her hair and face.

Once she was done making sure that she didn't look a mess, she calmly opened the guild hall doors and stepped into the warm atmosphere of her family.

The guild was full of men. The only women in there other than herself was Lucy.

All the dorm girls were out busy following Erza's orders. Juvia scanned the guild but found no sign of Gray.

Slumping her shoulders in defeat, she took a seat at the bar. Elfman was covering for Mira apparently.

"You finished your task already? That's manly." Juvia glanced up at the brawny take over mage.

"Juvia is a woman. But, yes. Juvia finished her task." Lucy sat down beside her.

"I thought you guys were supposed to be baking or something?" Juvia sighed.

"Juvia cannot bake. So, Juvia was let go for today." "You bake just fine." Juvia whipped around in her bar stool.

Gray was behind her, looking annoyed. Lucy giggled. "So you liked her buns, huh?"

Lucy nudged Juvia and gave a teasing look to Gray. Juvia's face turned bright red and Gray's nearly matched.

"Why you gotta make it sound like that?!" He groaned. Lucy laughed and then turned to look at Juvia.

"Hey, I wanted to go see about costumes for the party. Wanna come?" Juvia snapped out of her Gray fantasy land and stood to face Lucy.

"Costumes? I'll come too. Oi! Flame brain! We're leaving. Let's go!" Gray put his hands in his pockets and headed to the door.

Natsu came up behind Lucy, Happy not far behind. "Why do I have to go?"

Happy released his wings and plopped onto Natsu's head. "Aye. Sounds really boring."

Lucy snapped her head back to glare at the blue Exceed. "Shut it, cat!" Lucy grabbed Juvia's arm and began pulling her towards the exit.

"Let's go. It'll be fun, I promise!" Juvia nodded and smiled while following after Lucy.

The four walked along through the streets of Magnolia, headed to the clothing shop nearby.

Lucy was pleading with Natsu to warm her up while Happy teased the two.

Gray and Juvia walked side by side in silence, watching Natsu nearly burn off Lucy's eyebrows.

Juvia giggled. Gray stole a quick glance at her. "So, uh... Do you have an idea of what you plan on dressing as?"

Gray kept looking forward, but was listening closely for her response. "hm... Juvia isn't sure." She gave a small shrug.

"What about Gray Sama?" She looked up at him expectantly.

"I was thinking about going as a vampire. It doesn't require too much effort." Juvia nodded.

"Gray Sama will look cool no matter what he chooses." Gray blushed and turned his head away.

One would think he would be used to her flattery by now, but he wasn't. She still made him as flustered as ever.

They had finally made it to the store. Lucy pulled open the door and held it as they all walked in.

The bell jingled as the door slammed shut behind them. A thin, wisp of a man came out to greet them.

"Welcome to Jensen's, I am Jensen. How may I help you?" Lucy popped up in front.

"We are looking for costumes. Do you have anything in the way of that?" She looked at the man with hope and determination.

He clapped his hands and beamed. "Yes! Of course! At the back and to the left, my dear!"

Lucy bounced with joy and snatched Juvia's hand, dragging her towards the costumes.

Gray, Natsu and happy followed close behind. Lucy dove right in, determined to find the perfect costume.

Juvia browsed through the racks half interested, keeping an eye on Gray.

Natsu was right with Lucy, shoveling through costumes like mad. Gray lazily swiped through the racks, looking a bit bored.

Happy clung for dear life to Natsu's hair while he thrashed about the piles of costumes.

"Oi, ash for brains! Quit trying to destroy the place!" Gray called from a few racks away.

Natsu emerged from the pile he was rummaging in, Happy dangling from his head looking rather sick. "You wanna fight ice pervert?"

Lucy bopped him on the head with an empty coat hanger. "No fighting!" Natsu grumbled and rubbed his head.

Happy was on the floor trying to crawl away to safety. "He started it." Lucy shot Natsu a glare. "Fine." Natsu continued his search for a costume.

Gray strolled over to the rack that Juvia was slowly thumbing through.

He observed her for a moment and noticed that she really didn't seem interested in anything she touched.

"Juvia." She let out a yelp and slowly turned to look at him. "Yes, Gray Sama?"

He looked at her for a minute and then looked at the rack. "Want some help?"

She looked confused. "With what?" Gray gestured to the rack. "You seem to be having some problems deciding."

Juvia's cheeks pinked. "Oh. Uhm... Sure, if Gray Sama wants to help, Juvia doesn't mind."

Gray nodded and stood next to her, examining the rack. He was standing so close that their shoulders were brushing.

Juvia was trying hard not to melt at the contact.

Gray silently browsed the rows of clothing until he found what he was looking for.

He pulled out a mermaid costume from the rack. It appeared to be well made and as far as he was concerned, it screamed 'JUVIA'.

The tail was the same blue as her hair and it was made with a beautiful sparkly material. The top was was made to look like pearl white sea shells. Not only did it complement her magic but he also knew it would look better on her than any other costume.

"This one should work." He handed it to her without moving his eyes from the rack.

She took it from him and held it out, checking his handy work and judging his taste.

"Gray Sama wants Juvia to dress as Aquarius San?" She looked a bit miffed.

Gray stopped looking through the rack and looked at the costume he handed her.

"That looks nothing like Aquarius. I mean yeah, she has a tail, but that is the only similarity."

Juvia put a hand on her hip and held out the costume, staring at it. "Lucy San!"

Lucy poked her head between two racks. "Yeah?" Juvia held up the costume, hand still on her hip.

"Does Lucy San think this looks like Aquarius San?" Lucy's heart tugged a bit.

She still hadn't seen Aquarius since the Tartaros incident. Lucy eyed the costume, examining it briefly.

"It may be a mermaid, but it is definitely nothing like Aquarius." Lucy smiled. Gray smirked. "Told you."

Juvia shrugged. She stared at the costume for a little longer before deciding to just get it.

"If Gray Sama likes it, then Juvia will wear it." She began walking to the checkout to make her purchase.

Gray followed soon after. Juvia noticed he was behind her in line. "What did Gray Sama choose?"

He blushed and scratched the back of his head. "...pirate..." He mumbled.

Juvia didn't hear him, so she turned around to face him. "Hm?"

Gray looked away and held up the costume. Upon seeing it she squealed. Gray's face was ruby red at this point.

"Gray Sama!" She whisper yelled. She was clapping her hands together and squirming with delight.

Not only had he picked out her costume but he actually coordinated with what he chose for her.

She didn't know what to think. It wasn't like him at all. Once he regained his composure, he gave her a stern look.

"It's just a costume. Calm down." She nodded and turned around to make her purchase.

If she looked excited on the outside, she was exploding on the inside. This was a big moment for Gray... And for her.

Once they checked out they saw Natsu carrying two costumes while Lucy trailed behind him with an unconscious Happy in her arms.

"We're going to go to 8 Island for lunch. Meet us there?" Gray called to them.

Lucy nodded and waved her hand at them in a 'get out of here' motion.

The pair entered 8 Island and took a seat in a corner booth.

Juvia sat down first, placing her shopping bag in the seat next to her.

Gray grabbed the bag and sat next to her, placing both bags under the table.

Juvia looked at him in confusion and then looked at the bags.

Instead of saying something, she just accepted it. She looked at the menu and couldn't concentrate.

He could have sat in front of her, but he didn't.

He picked out her costume, but he didn't have to. He matched her costume, but he didn't have to. She didn't even ask.

She thought back to their battle with Alvarez, The Spriggan 12, Zeref and Acnologia.

Before all of that went down, he promised her an answer after the battle. However, he never kept that promise.

She remained patient though. She never brought it up or pressured him.

He will tell her when he is ready. It has been half a year since that happened, but she still remains loyal.

Juvia put down her menu. She always ordered the same thing anyway.

The waitress approached the table, ready to take their order.

Juvia opened her mouth to order but before anything came out, Gray had already ordered for her.

They had come here a few times together before, so he already knew her order.

Noticing the baffled look on her face, he began to worry.

"I'm sorry, did you not want that? I have just never seen you order anything else..." He ran his hand through his hair nervously.

"N-no. Gray Sama ordered right." He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding in.

Gray was about to say something when Natsu hopped over the table and slammed into his seat across the booth.

Happy flew over and sat on the end of the table while Lucy slumped into her seat next to Natsu.

Juvia smiled at Lucy and bounced in place. "So, what is Lucy San going to be?"

Lucy looked over to Natsu and rolled her eyes.

"Natsu thought it would be hilarious for him to go as a demon, because y'know, he is actually a demon...

and he insisted that because we are a team that we coordinate, so..."

She frowned and reached into her bag, pulling out a lovely white angel costume with an annoyed huff.

Gray chuckled. "Oh, Lucy San! That will look beautiful on you!" Juvia gushed.

Lucy shoved it back into the bag. "Yeah, yeah. So, we know Juvia is going to be a mermaid, but what did you pick?"

Lucy looked at Gray, waiting for whatever he had come up with. "None of your business..." He grumbled.

Juvia smiled and Lucy mouthed "Tell me later." Juvia nodded.

After lunch Lucy insisted on going home and taking a relaxing bath. Dealing with Natsu in the store was probably more than exhausting.

Natsu and Happy followed after her. She refused but eventually gave in, demanding that they stay out of the bathroom.

Juvia and Gray were left to walk in silence back to the guild. They were nearly there when Gray stepped in front of Juvia.

He was looking at her with intensity. Juvia became nervous and her snowy skin began to redden.

"Gray Sama?" He grabbed her hand and stared at it for a minute before speaking.

"Juvia, I... uh, wanted to say that I-" He was cut off by a loud explosion noise coming from Fairy Hills.

Immediately they ran to the dorms to see what all the commotion was about.

When they arrived they saw that the kitchen had been blown out and inside the rubble was Erza in her Purgatory Armour and Mira in her Satan Soul.

Upon seeing this, Gray shoved his hands in his pockets and walked backwards the way he came. Juvia however, did not.

"Erza San, Mira San... What is this?" She questioned, gesturing to the crumbling mess that was once the dorm kitchen.

They both turned around and looked at the ground in shame. "Who broke the kitchen?" Juvia demanded.

The She Devil and the Requip Mage quickly pointed to each other in accusation.

"When Juvia broke the kitchen, she didn't blame anyone else." She chided.

Erza rolled her eyes and raised her hand. "I... broke the kitchen."

Mira released her Satan Soul and returned to normal. "See, now was that so hard?" She giggled.

Erza requipped into her normal clothes and shot a glare at Mira. "Be nice." Juvia warned.

"Why are Mira San and Erza San fighting?" She stood between them now and waited to hear what they had to say.

Mira giggled. "Erza tried to take the cakes to her room. So I stopped her." Juvia shook her head.

"Erza San..." She gave her a disappointed look. "I know. I'm sorry." Erza looked away and kicked some rubble.

"Juvia needs to go, but Mira San and Erza San should probably clean this up..." She gave a disgusted look around the now destroyed kitchen.

Both sighed and got to work as Juvia walked back out to the street where Gray was waiting.

"I can't believe you got in the middle of that." He scoffed.

"Erza San and Mira San can be scary, but Juvia can handle herself." Gray nodded, impressed.

Juvia Stood next to Gray and bumped him with her shoulder.

"So, Gray Sama was saying?" She looked up at him, waiting and hoping it was the answer he promised nearly half a year ago.

His eyes widened a bit and his face reddened.

"Oh, uh... I just wanted to say that... y'know, since our costumes match, maybe we should go to the party, uh, together."

It wasn't what Juvia was hoping for, but it was close enough.

She flung her arms around him and squeezed the air out of him.

"Of course Juvia will go with Gray Sama!"

Gray looked like he was about to pass out. "Juvia... Can't... Breathe..."

Juvia released him instantly. "Sorry."

He nodded and leaned over to catch his breath.

That night in her room, Juvia sat in her bath thinking over the day's events.

As she processed everything that happened, she thought to herself,

'Gray Sama never really had a way with words. Maybe he is keeping his promise, not with words, but with actions...'

*AUTHOR'S NOTE* I intend for this to become a multi chapter fan fic. I will try to post a new chapter next week. I am still working on another chapter for my other fan fic 'The Spell'. Hope you like it!