Where Do We Go From Here?

By: juvia0613 (FayeValentine00)

Chapter 1

The 100 Years Quest was finally over. In the battle with the White Mage, Juvia was possessed and used to cause endless problems for Gray and the rest of Team Natsu. Although her memories were fuzzy, the Water Mage could clearly recall being saved by Gray. He'd protected her from the White Mage, but also from their friends when he wouldn't let them go all out against her. Although Juvia didn't think that was the best decision from a world saving perspective, it made her feel incredibly loved.

When it was all over, Gray had pulled her aside and confessed that he truly was in love with her. He said that he wanted them to be together and, of course, Juvia agreed in a nanosecond. Everything was perfect. Now they were finally arriving back in Magnolia, literally hand in hand, and suddenly Juvia realized that she didn't know where they went from here. Were they openly an item? Looking down at their intertwined fingers, Juvia could only assume so. Could they kiss now? He'd kissed her after his confession and she'd nearly had a heart attack. What did the future hold?

The closer they got to the guildhall the Water Wizard began to wonder if she had only won a battle and not the war. More than anything in the world, Juvia wanted Gray. She wanted him forever, for better or worse, regardless of what dangers might be thrown at them next. What she didn't grasp was where Gray stood on things. He was in love and he wanted to be together? Yes. But does that mean marriage, kids, living together or was Juvia just jumping to conclusions?

Juvia and Gray had once lived together for 6 months and those were some of the best times in her entire life. They were good at cohabitation. Was that something they could do again? Of course, it would be different now and he probably wouldn't lock her out if she tried to sneak in his bed… Just that thought made her chuckle, drawing Gray's attention.

"What's so funny?" he asked with a grin, joy practically radiating from the Ice Make Wizard and Juvia hoped she played at least a small role in that happiness.

"I was just remembering something," she replied evasively. The thoughts still making her smile widely which made Gray even more interested.

"Are you going to tell me?" What Gray hadn't been expecting was Juvia's face to flush brightly and the Ice Make Mage got embarrassed by proxy.

"If you must know... Juvia was remembering Amefurashi Village."

Juvia felt, more than saw, the man's slight hesitation when she mentioned their previous home. To this day, Gray felt terrible about leaving Juvia behind even though he'd had the best of intentions. Natsu, Lucy, Wendy, Carla and Happy had each told him in depressing detail how they'd found her and Juvia was fairly certain he'd never forgiven himself. Hoping his good mood wouldn't falter, she quickly followed up on her explanation despite being incredibly embarrassed.

"Don't be upset! … I was just wondering if Gray-sama would still kick me out of the house if I tried to sleep with him." Her words got progressively softer as she spoke, and her face got progressively redder, but Gray caught everything, and it made him blush too.

Juvia noticed that he made a point to look in the opposite direction so she couldn't see his face but even his ears were red. It was adorable. Thankfully, she could tell that any anxiety he'd had over the mention of their former home was now completely overridden.

His answer came a few seconds later, inaudible to anyone but her. "Probably not…"

The Water Wizard's legs seriously almost gave out, but she kept herself together. These kinds of moments with Gray were becoming more and more common since the fight with Alvarez and each time she got more hopeful for their future.

When they returned to the guild, their friends were waiting. As always, there was a large amount of celebrating and drinking going around and, when it was all over, everyone ended up passing out on the floor.

When she woke up the next morning, Juvia found her head resting on Gray's chest and his arms were protectively around her. Off to the side, she saw Natsu and Lucy in a similar position, both still sound asleep. She was still trying to decide if she should stay put or try to get up when she felt Gray move.

His eyes opened slowly and when he looked down at her, a smile spread across his face. "Morning."

"Good morning, Gray-sama," she whispered, pulling herself off him reluctantly so he could sit up.

As she climbed to her feet, Juvia could see that all the other people remaining in the guild were asleep but seeing Gray's handsome face first thing in the morning energized her. "Gray-sama can sleep more, if he wants. Juvia will probably head home."

"No, I'm up now. I'll walk with you." He said the words so casually now. It seemed like once Gray had finally admitted his feelings to himself, he wasn't holding back any longer.

"Juvia would like that."

The couple left the guildhall without waking their friends. It couldn't be much past 7am because hardly anyone was wandering the streets and only a few bakeries were open. Neither spoke as they walked. Both Gray and Juvia were both still trying to wake up and, at least Juvia, was trying to figure out what to do next. She knew that this was the moment of truth and the next few minutes would probably dictate how they handled their relationship from this point forward. Honestly, despite her joy, Juvia was afraid. She had so much hope and so many dreams that deep down it didn't seem like this happiness could become her reality.

When she hazarded a glance over at the Ice Devil Slayer, he seemed to be overthinking just as much as Juvia. What the Water Mage couldn't know was where his thoughts were headed. She was only a few blocks from her apartment when Juvia finally spoke up. "D-Does Gray-sama want to come in when we get to Juvia's apartment?"

Their eyes met for just a moment before they both looked back to where they were walking. She thought he might consider his answer for a bit so when he answered almost immediately; it took Juvia aback. "Sure."

Gray agreeing to come to Juvia's apartment was one thing. He'd been over many times before but rarely alone. Also, some real-world questions began racing through her mind. She had very little memory of leaving Magnolia to track down Team Natsu thanks to the White Mage and she had no idea what her apartment even looked like. Was it clean? Was it a wreck? If it was trashed, what would Gray-sama think?... and so on. Regardless of what the apartment looked like at this point, Juvia was not going to pass up this chance.

When they got her building, they walked up together, nearly shoulder to shoulder. "Juvia feels like she should warn Gray-sama that she doesn't even remembering leaving Magnolia so the apartment could be a mess."

She saw a shadow of anger flash across his face, but it passed just as quickly. She knew that look had nothing to do with being angry with her, rather it was directed towards the White Mage herself, so she took his hand and gave him a big smile. "Either way, Juvia is fine now. Let's go in and Juvia will see if there is anything for breakfast."

To her relief, that made Gray smile, "Alright. Sounds good."

To her extreme relief, when Juvia opened the front door, everything appeared to be normal. Her place was tidy and organized just like it had been at the guild dorms and in her home with Gray. It might not seem like a lot to anyone else but after feeling the personal violation of possession, knowing her home was still intact went a long way in making her comfortable. The Water Mages sigh of relief was audible.

Gray followed Juvia into the kitchen and while she went through the cabinets in search of edible food, the Ice Devil Slayer finally struck up a conversation. "Now that the 100 Years Quest is over, I wonder what kind of crazy plan Natsu will come up with next?"

"Is Gray-sama planning to go straight back to work?" Juvia did her best to keep her voice casual, but she was sure Gray would hear the disappointment.

"I doubt it. I mean, I'm hoping to have a reason to stay..."

Juvia had been pouring flour into a bowl when she heard those words. By the time she recovered, the bowl was filled to brim and spilling out on to the table. "Oh, my goodness!"

Juvia rushed around trying to clean up the mess and try to figure out Gray's meaning at the same time. It was so easy to assume that he was talking about her, but was he? Maybe she should say nothing and pretend like she hadn't heard him. If she was wrong about his meaning, she might just scare him off like she had so many times before. Juvia's head was spinning with all of her self-doubt and she didn't realize some tears had leaked from her eyes until Gray caught her by the arm while she was still cleaning and spun her around to face him.

"Why are you crying?!" He looked confused, but also ready to fight whatever upset her.

For a moment she fidgeted in his arms, but his hands held her firm. He was waiting for his answer and saying the next words while looking Gray-sama straight in the eyes was one of the hardest things she'd ever done. "J-Juvia wants to be Gray-sama's reason to stay."

There was a long silence between the two, neither dropping their gaze until Gray started to laugh. And not just laugh, Gray doubled over leaving a very embarrassed Juvia to watch him in utter confusion. "Gray-sama?" she finally questioned him when his laughter subsided.

"You're ridiculous," he managed, still chuckling but trying to control it.

When Juvia still looked like she would cry, Gray sighed dramatically. He was convinced that Juvia would never see things the way they really were. How clearly did he need to tell his silly woman he was in love with her? What would he have to do to prove to her she was his future? He imagined marrying her would help but even then... Juvia would always been Juvia.

"Juvia isn't ridiculous!" She puffed up her cheeks, looking indigent and it made Gray laugh all over again.

The banter felt so good. After everything they'd gone through, Gray had finally admitted his true feelings to the woman he was in love with, everyone was safe and healthy, and they could tease each other like this without having to hold back. Gray truly felt at home.

Unable to continue his gentle bullying, Gray pulled Juvia into his arms, earning him a shocked expression from the Water Mage. He smiled down at her, amusement still dancing in his eyes. "You are ridiculous. What other reason would I have to stay?!"

Gray's exasperated words took Juvia aback momentarily but as his true meaning settled in, her tears did fall in that dramatic way she did whenever she was obsessing about Gray. "J-Juvia is so happy, Gray-sama!"

"Okay... This is the last time I'm going to say it so listen closely." He pulled her an arm's length away and looked straight into her damp eyes. "Juvia, I love you. I want us to be together."

She was quiet for a spell and then finally admitted, "Juvia was worried that maybe you would change your mind when we got back home."

"What are you talking about?! Why would I change my mind?!" His voice rose in frustration and he blurted out words he'd meant to save for a more appropriate time. "JUVIA LOCKSER, I'M GOING TO MARRY YOU!"

They both froze in place, eyes wide. Both their faces were bright red and Juvia didn't dare to speak, in fact, she hardly wanted to breathe. Gray looked horrified.

"Ummm... So yeah... I didn't mean to say it like that but still, stop being so negative." The Ice Devil Slayer took a moment to compose himself and, then to Juvia's shock, Gray took her hands in his and dropped to one knee right there in her kitchen.

"Gray-sama..." She whispered his name as she looked into his eyes.

"Juvia, please marry me and give me a reason to come home."

Gray's eyes were damp but Juvia's were twin waterfalls as she pulled Gray to his feet and threw her arms around his neck. "Juvia would marry Gray-sama right now!"

The level of relief Gray felt surprised him. He didn't doubt her answer for a second but hearing her agree to be his wife still affected him deeply. They held each other tightly until Gray finally pulled away enough to see her face again. Reaching out, he cupped her face in his hands and looked into her eyes. He saw the blush spread across her cheeks as his thumbs wiped away a few stray tears on her cheeks. "Thank you."

When he pressed his lips to hers, she responded immediately. Her hands rested on his waist as she melted into him, her breasts pressed to his chest. When the kiss depended, he could still taste a hint of the alcohol from the night before, but he didn't care. In that moment, he felt at peace. Juvia was his family now and there was nowhere else he'd rather be.

Gray and Juvia finally broke apart when they had to come up for air, flushed with exhilaration. It was when Juvia's stomach growled that they realized they still hadn't eaten. Glancing over, Juvia saw there was still a large mess on the counter and now they were both covered in bits of flour too. When her stomach growled again, they both chucked.

"Maybe we should go to a restaurant instead?" Gray suggested with a smile, brushing some flour from her long blue hair.

"Will Gray-sama come back when we're done?"

Their eyes met, both sensing a deeper meaning. When Gray smiled, so did Juvia. "Of course."

Taking another step closer to the Ice Make Wizard, she murmured. "Juvia misses living with Gray-sama."

Gray's surprise was clear on his face and he turned away so she couldn't see his blush, but he still replied. "Then maybe we will have to do something about that."

Her grin was ear to ear as they left the apartment hand in hand. No one was going to believe it when they announced the news to their friends.