A/N My first venture into the Fairy Tail universe. Please review! If this is liked I will accept requests for other couple shorts, depending on the couple. Enjoy!
End of the 1st day of the Grand Magic Games
The silence trickles by. The room is dark, its furniture shrouded in shadows. Outside, lights flicker across the windows, tracing patterns on the floor.
Curled up in a faded blue armchair, shoulders hunched, Lucy stares down at the floor. Patterns of light dance across her bare toes, illuminating a patch of fair skin, a gleam of red fabric from her skirt, the bruises dappling her ankle for a split second before vanishing again. Her finger clench, blunt nails biting into her palms as she remembers the stinging lash of hair curling around her ankles, jerking her into the air, Flare's insane red eyes boring into her, the redhead's mouth twisting in a cruel sneer. The strand of hair hovering threateningly behind Asuka, poised above the younger girl's head. Not a word. I can kill her with one strike if I want.
I was so useless. The knowledge sinks into her, settling inside her chest like a heavy fist. All she can think about is Wendy, always so brave, always so cheerful, sobbing beneath the covers of the infirmary bed, of the look on Gray's face as he walked away from the first game. All I wanted was to avenge my friends. I wanted to prove that Fairy Tail was still strong. I failed them. I failed everybody.
Her eyes sting. She bites her lip, conscious of the figure standing by the window behind her. She can't cry, not now, not in front of him. She can't forget the look on his face, the way he hesitated walking past her, muttered an apology as if he felt he had somehow failed her personally. He probably feels the same way I do, she thinks bitterly, and curls her clenched fingers tighter at the thought. It's not his fault. It's mine. I should have said something when he walked by. I should have gone after him, told him that it's alright, it doesn't matter, we'll beat them the next time for sure.
It's too late now. Everyone was counting on me, and I failed them. It's my fault we're losing.
Her head droops. She slowly unclenches her fingers again and stares at the flickering light dancing between her toes, the shadows blurring, the memory of Flare's mocking laugh echoing in her ears.
My fault.
Gray stares out the window. Below, shadowy figures bob back and forth, laughing and chatting in the flickering light of the lantern lacrimas. Faint sounds of laughter echo up from downstairs, the rest of the guild celebrating their defeat of the day with their usual indefatigable spirit. Any other day he would join them, but tonight the shame of today's defeat still hangs heavy on his shoulders. He can't even summon the energy to strip.
There's a faint rustle from the armchair to his right. He glances over and sees Lucy still sitting the way he had found her when he first came in, her shoulders slumped, her blonde head bowed, her hands clenched tightly in her lap. She's taking the defeat almost worse than he is. It makes him want to find the psycho chick who did this to her and freeze her. He's used to Lucy smiling no matter what happens, when all it takes to make her feel better is a few simple words, even when she's crying. Seeing her quiet like this, the shadows falling over her face, is strange. He doesn't like it. "You're still down about that?" he says abruptly, breaking the silence. Lucy doesn't look up. "Same to you," she mumbles, staring down at the floor. He hands clench and go limp, twisting together distractedly in her lap.
He turns to look at her fully. The lantern light falls on the side of her face, casting deep shadows over the pink straps of her shirt. Her gaze flickers restlessly, an empty look in her eyes, her blonde bangs falling forward to hide their expression. Gray sighs and stretches his stiff legs, tucking his hands into the pockets of his white jacket. "It sounds like the others are celebrating in the pub downstairs," he says over his shoulder, heading for the door. "It's a pain, but you should probably stop by-"
A tug on his sleeve stops him. He glances back, his dark eyes widening.
Lucy stands behind him. He hadn't heard her get up, but she's right behind him, her shoulders curling inwards, her fingers fisted in the sleeve of his jacket as she looks down, determinedly avoiding his eyes. A flush creeps across her face. "Don't leave me alone," she mumbles. "...Please."
The look on his face is so startled it's almost funny. Gray's eyes widen. Lucy shifts her feet, avoiding his gaze. She hadn't meant to grab his sleeve, but she'd heard his footsteps heading for the door and suddenly she couldn't bear the thought of being left alone in the dark room, listening to the sound of chatter and laughter downstairs. But now, judging by the look on his face, this was a really bad idea. She sneaks a cautious glance up at him through her bangs. Gray still looks a little stunned, but to her surprise he's a little flushed, too. His dark eyes flick down to hers, then hastily away again. "Lucy...what..." he says, sounding bewildered.
She hastily lets go of his sleeve. "I, um," she stammers, taking a step back. "I just didn't want to be alone, and I thought that -well, maybe you felt the same way- but obviously not!" She waves her hands in front of her. "Sorry!" she says, trying to lighter, more like her old self.
Gray grabs her arms as she flaps her hands. "If you want to say something then say it," he says gruffly, and lets go. Lucy drops her gaze again. "Ehm...well..." she hedges, shifting her feet awkwardly and sincerely regretting saying anything in the first place. "It's nothing, really. I was just..." she takes a deep breath and looks up at him. "I wanted to tell you, what happened earlier isn't your fault. The other guilds are really powerful, too, and you did the best you could. I thought you were great, actually." She rubs her head, a little embarrassed. "You definitely did better than I did. After all, I just managed to mess everything up." She tries for a smile. "So don't blame yourself, alright? I like it better when you're being crazy, not standing in the dark all by yourself."
Lucy smiles up at him, but her smile is trembling around the edges. Her eyes are very blue in the faint light, darker than he's ever seen them. He shoves his hands into his pockets. "Same to you," he says. "I like it better when you're smiling." Feeling the need to say something else, he ruffles her hair and gives her a small smile. "And you didn't mess up. I was watching the whole thing from the upper levels. You did great out there. That Heavenly Bodies spell or whatever was really something."
Her face brightens the tiniest bit. "Really?" Then it falls again. "But it didn't work."
Gray shakes his head. "Raven Tail cheated," he says. "I'm not sure how, but something wasn't right. That girl you were facing didn't do anything, but all of a sudden the spell just vanished. Someone from the crowd must have nullified it. So don't worry about it. It wasn't your fault. You did great."
All the exhaustion seems to drain out of her. She stands a little straighter, lifts her chin a little higher. "Mm!" she says happily. "You too!" She smiles back at him, and sniffs, rubbing her eyes. Tears start to gather in her lashes. Gray blinks. He could have sworn she was happy, but now she's crying. "Oi, what's the matter now?"
Lucy laughs in the middle of wiping her eyes. "Sorry," she says, and sniffs again, but she's still smiling. "It's just, you saying that makes me really happy all of a sudden...but I felt really sad inside, so I think I got mixed up and started to cry instead." She shakes her head. Teardrops roll down her cheeks and drip off the end of her chin.
Gray sighs and shakes his head. "You really are something," he says, and reaches out and wipes off a tear forming in the corner of her eye. Tears are shimmering in her blue eyes, turning them into a hundred different shades of the sea. A wisp of fair hair clings to the damp curve of her cheek. He's suddenly very conscious of his fingers brushing her skin. He drops his hand. Lucy doesn't seem to notice. She's still sniffling and wiping her eyes, then wiping her damp fingers on her pink tank top. "Thanks, Gray," she says, and takes a shuddering breath. "I'm fine now. You should go down and join the party."
He finds it slightly offensive that she thinks he would just leave her here crying. "Like I'd do that," he says, and steers her back over to the couch. "Besides, those guys are probably partying themselves out by now. I wouldn't be surprised if we went downstairs and found them all passed on on the benches."
Lucy giggles. "That'd certainly be like them," she agrees, chuckling. "And Natsu's probably fighting everyone, too."
He settles down in the seat besides her. "Well, there hasn't been too much commotion yet, so the place must still be standing. Maybe the idiot challenged Laxus again and got himself knocked out or something." He grins. Lucy grins, too. "Or maybe he met one of the other competitors," she says, stretching out her legs with a sigh. "I wouldn't put it past him to try to beat the other teams before the games start up again."
Belatedly, he realizes that the couch is too small for two people. Her shoulder is jammed up against his chest, but Lucy doesn't seem to mind. She leans back against him and wriggles her toes in the air, then relaxes again and brushes her bangs out of her eyes. "I wonder who will fight tomorrow."
"Dunno. But we'll beat them for sure this time." He clenches his free hand. "Definitely. I can't wait to see the looks on those bastards' faces when they meet Laxus or Mira."
"Erza, too." Lucy shivers. "She's practically a monster when she's angry."
He grins at the reminder. "Yeah. Just you wait, we'll win this whole thing. You and I both." He glances down at her. She's stopped crying, though her eyes are still a bit red. "Yeah," she says, and closes her eyes, as if she can imagine the whole thing already. "We're Fairy Tail, right? Fairy Tail never loses."
"Right." Downstairs, the noises have almost stopped by now. He can barely hear any voices. Those still standing must have finally dragged themselves off to bed. It must be getting late. He glances down at Lucy again. Her eyes are drooping and she's sagging against him. "Sounds like the party's finally over," he says. "We should get some sleep."
"Mm." She doesn't seem in much of a hurry to move, but he figures they probably should before Erza and Natsu make it upstairs. He nudges her. "You're heavy," he says. Lucy makes a face. "I am not," she mumbles, and reluctantly shifts over enough for him to stand up. He looks down at the half-asleep girl on the couch. Her eyes are closed, her breathing already evening out. Gray sighs and runs a hand through his dark hair. She really must be exhausted after using that spell after so many double summonings. "Oi," he mutters, and stoops and picks her up. She is heavy, but nothing unmanageable. Lucy stirs as he carries her into the next room and dumps her onto the closest bed, regaining consciousness long enough to mumble "good night" and promptly goes back to sleep. He tucks the covers over her and impulsively brushes her hair out of her face. "Good night," he says, and walks out and collapses on his own bed.
He's asleep by the time Erza and Natsu come upstairs and find Juvia eavesdropping at the keyhole, listening desperately for signs of suspicious activity.
A/N So I apologize for this being mostly fluff, I was so disappointed once I found out this scene wasn't real in the anime that I just wanted to write it. I also thought that in different circumstances, Lucy would have followed Gray and supported him after his defeat, since they really seem to get along well and understand each other. So I combined the two (: The next couple short may have more 'serious' matters, depending. As always, ideas are welcome!
~Rose