Chapter 1: A Request

"Excuse me, Natsu-san.."

It always jarred him to be addressed with respect; while he rarely conversed with fairy tail's only water mage, it felt awkward and somewhat wrong to have any formalities with comrades. While Natsu smelled her coming from 5 miles away, he certainly didn't expect her to make a beeline for him. He looked at Happy and exchanged thoughts quickly. No words were needed to express their concerns. The cat nodded in agreement with how awkward this was for them.

He could usually smell her around Gray, but there were no immediate traces of the ice mage nearby. Odd. Considering how often she touched Gray, (Natsu figured she frequently hugged Gray from behind, as her scent was stronger around the ice mage's back) he was surprised to note that her scent was untainted this morning. In fact, he could tell that she did not interact with any human until just now - meaning that he was the first person she talked to today. Weird.

Where the hell was Gray, anyway? He couldn't smell that asshole anywhere this morning. Natsu quickly glanced at Happy, and a silent conversation pursued.

Ne, ne, Natsu!

What is it, Happy?

You should turn around and say "Hi!" to Juvia!

I was going to! And don't you forget too!

Aye!

They both quickly turned around to face her.

"Good morning, Juvia!" said Happy.

"Hello," smiled Juvia warmly. Happy nodded in approval of her response and proceeded to organize his collection of one fish for the day. Juvia noticed Natsu's crossed arms and tilted head. She could see that he was surprised at her initiating conversation with him. She blushed.

"What's up, Juvia? You need somethin'?" At this, Juvia's eyes darted to the left, while her lips quivered. Gajeel-kun was right, Juvia thought. Juvia needs to be a better comrade - starting today! She quietly began to talk, but she knew Natsu could hear her just fine.

"Juvia has a favor to ask .."

While Natsu's brows furrowed in curiosity, the entire guild attempted to listen in on the conversation. Cana slowly drank her barrel of alcohol in order to hear better while Elfman stared with narrowed eyes. Levy nudged Gajeel in an interrogatory way, which resulted in him shrugging his shoulders with an approving smirk. Erza and Lucy watched with raised brows, while Mirajane moved closer from behind the bar in order to listen in. The demon bartender knew that neither Juvia or Natsu would care or look at the reactions of their guildmates - there was no need for stealth as these people wore their hearts and opinions on their sleeves. They weren't the type to hide information out of embarrassment.

How curious, Mirajane mused.

Juvia wanted to talk to the pink haired comrade in private, but she only managed to see him during brawls or announcements. Outside of jobs that usually involved a bigger group, she did not take many opportunities to talk to salamander. She felt guilty for not having established a relationship with someone who had been on so many missions with her. Now this was her chance!

"C-c-could-" she felt herself getting nervous as her cheeks turned into a dark shade. She became flustered at her nervousness, while her guild members' eyes widened at the scene before them. Juvia never requested anything from anyone, with the exception of asking for a date from certain someone! Members whispered to each other furiously, but the water mage paid no attention. She focused on her own mission for the day.

Juvia will not lose to sheepishness!, she told herself.

While Natsu possessed fantastic hearing, that did not mean he had the best processing skills for jumbled words. Juvia's stutters and hesitance were difficult to decipher.

For someone who's got such a fancy way with words, she sure can't string a sentence now, he thought.

"Wood? You need me to burn some wood?" He asked. She shook her head.

"Wou-"

"Wool?"

"No, Juvia would like-"

"Juvia's lost her kite?" piped up Happy.

"No! Natsu-san-"

"Look Juvia, you gotta be clearer! I can hear, but I still don't get it!" Natsu said, brows narrowed in confusion more so than irratation. Juvia noticed his countenance, and immediately thought of the pink haired comrade as kind. That's what she liked about Fairy Tail - no matter how callous (or cold, she thought) some members acted, every action and word came from heartfelt sincerity. She knew he snapped not because he was mad at her, but because he most likely wanted to understand her. With even more resolution, Juvia acknowledged her comrade and stated her purpose with a confident, battle-ready smile.

"Juvia wants to fight Natsu-san."

In another apartment, twenty minutes away from the guild, an ice mage looked at himself in the mirror and sighed. Some mornings were easier for him, and other mornings (such as this) were a bit harder to bear. He knew it wasn't a sign of weakness to mourn over something that happened years ago, but he was also tired of the emotional strain that mourning always brought. Nightmares plagued him again since Ur's death, and it was hard to shake off the guilt. He knew blaming himself was illogical, but he could not help it. He was definitely going to be tense for the rest of the day, and he wasn't looking forward to that version of himself.

It was frustrating to wake up later that usual. Early mornings gave him the opportunity to be alone, and to be at the guild when it was less chaotic. Mirajane and Cana were usually there before him, and he often enjoyed their silent company. Cana did not want Mirajane to do all the cleaning by herself, and would usually help set up the bar and tables. Coming in earlier in the mornings also allowed her to drink as early as she'd like without any noises. The two girls would sometimes greet with Gray, but often times they silently regarded him with nods. It helped to enjoy the guild this way - one could be alone, yet comforted by a few people at the same time. These type of mornings helped refresh the three for the daily brawls and smart alec remarks from other members.

Perhaps what he needed more of was not solitude, but companionship. He tried to stay away from conversations this past week, yet he did not feel lifted. If anything, he felt worse as his thoughts would quickly recount past events. He then would set himself up to potential self-loathing. Even Natsu stayed away from his brooding.

"I can't fight a guy who's in a piss poor mood," Natsu said, after badgering Gray and eventually giving upon his usual taunts."Lucy says I should leave you alone - but I'll only do this once. Okay, pervert-bastard?!" Natsu then stomped off and challenged everyone to a fight afterwards. Gray simply went home.

Gray grabbed his toothbrush and began squeezing toothpaste from the tube. He started brushing his teeth as he mentally prepared himself for his late morning. Can't let this keep me down for long, though, Gray thought. If others can keep up a grin, I can at least maintain a smirk. Maybe I can challenge flame-brain today...wait. Come to think of it, he threw some heavy trash talk at me not too long ago.

Suddenly, his brushing pace quickened and his left hand started to grip the sink. He could feel his body recharging in faux anger, as he suddenly recalled the full onslaught of insults that Natsu used. A vein pulsed rapidly on his left temple, and a familiar eye-twitch came back. Hearing the insults over and over in his mind somehow allowed Gray to finish brushing and quickly put on his clothes.

... actually, did he call me a shit-eater again!?

As he put on a shirt, two more veins began to surge, as he realized that Natsu called him an ugly-ass-pervert at least five times. Sissy, exhibitionist, moron, stripper, full-mooner, jackass, icey-ball face. ...why, that stupid pink-haired..! I'll kill him!

He refused to mentally say thank you to Natsu for lifting his spirits.

After taking one good look at his messy apartment before closing the door, and Gray finally felt relief. The place didn't look melancholy anymore. It seemed normal, and Gray was ready to begin his day with a punch in someone's face. He ran off in the direction of the guild, ready for a fresh brawl.

Yeah, I think today will be a better day.

Unfortunately for Gray, the day was only going to become worse - and it would take him months to figure out why.