Gray readied himself, his dark blue eyes narrowing slightly as he took in the finish line sign a couple of yards away from him. Running his fingers through his dark hair, Gray glanced slightly at the woman standing next to him, his heartbeat speeding slightly as he took in the bright blue hair that curled around her pale face. Averting his eyes at the last moment, Gray managed to miss the sight of deep blue eyes.
The guild was growing more rowdy as the bright sun shined down on the large green field and the contestants were waiting for the sound of the Master's signal to finally start the competition. Gray could hear the loud shouts of his guildmates Natsu shouting about getting fired up and Lucy shouting back that she didn't even want to try out in the event. Gray knew he couldn't let the flame brain win, or he would never let the rest of the guild members ever hear the last of it.
"Mr. Fullbuster?" a soft feminine voice inquired before a soft slightly comforting weight shifted against Gray's bare side. Looking down a little, dark eyes met with shining deep blue. "Are you sure you wish for Juvia to be your partner in this. Juvia will try her hardest, but why not someone like Erza to help you win." Gray shuddered immensely at the sound of the re-equip mage's name, his eyes shifting slightly to see if the re-equip mage was within hearing distance.
"If Erza was my partner, I might not come out of this fully intact," Gray mumbled, his lips nearing the blue haired woman's ear as his eyes continued to search for that red of hair that almost always sent fear into his very bones. The blue haired woman couldn't help but shudder pleasantly at the close proximity the two were in before she gripped Gray's arm tightly, her head resting lightly against Gray's arm.
"Juvia will try her hardest for Mr. Fullbuster!" Juvia cheered, leaning in closer to the suddenly stiff ice mage. Gray could feel his heartbeat racing slightly, but without much thought, pushed the thought aside as he tried to concentrate once more.
In a large field over by the area where the rainbow sakura usually shines, the guild Fairy Tail couldn't help but feel the need to take advantage of the breezy summer day and host an impromptu picnic and barbeque. Of course, what kind of picnic would it be without a few games to get their bellies growling. Tied very tightly at the ankle, Gray and Juvia waited for the Master to finally start the three legged race. Walking in front of the line of participants, the Master of the guild Fairy Tail, Makarov gave a little cough to gather all of their attention. Knowing what the small gray haired man was fully capable of, the guild members grew silent almost instantly at the very sight of the small jester clothed man.
"Alright you brats! You ready for this to finally start!" The guild member roared happily in response, anxious to start the three legged race. With a slight nod, Makarov turned slightly towards the obstacle course that the barmaid Mira managed to set up.
"As you all can see, this isn't some normal three legged race. You and your partner have to work your way around the course without causing too much damage to the course. I don't want to see any of you use your magic and you all must go through all the obstacles, no skipping out on a single one," Makarov said with narrowed eyes, looking at each and everyone of the participants before lifting an ale filled mug in cheers to the participants.
"So just have fun and try not to break anything. Winner gets a medal while the loser has to do as the winner says for an entire week. Got that, brats? Alright, now let the games begin!" With that, the participants raced forward, quickly ducking under or jumping over the single horizontal pole that crossed the field. While some stumbled with the first obstacle, Gray and Juvia pressed under, both ducking under the thin bar before turning right, only to pause slightly at a tall rock climbing wall.
With a light curse in irritation, Gray turned his attention to Juvia, who was looking up at the obstacle with deep concentration, the space between her eyebrows scrunched together slightly.
"How are we going to get up that?" Juvia pondered quietly before letting out a mild shriek as her full weight suddenly lifted off the ground. Peering at the blue haired mage expectantly, Gray started to pull the two up with one arm. Understanding what the ice mage wanted, Juvia tried to suppress a loud squeal as she used her free arm to balance out the two and gripped onto a ridge. With his right arm wrapped securely around Juvia's waist, both members carefully, but surely, crept up the tall rock wall, trailing a bit behind the gunslinging couple with Natsu and Lucy at their heels.
"Hey, if you feel a little tired, let me know, we'll stop for a bit," Gray grunted at the two reached the halfway mark of the rock wall. Knowing that Gray's rival was only a few feet behind, Juvia shook her head no.
"Juvia is strong, Juvia will be fine," Juvia reassured, pushing herself forward. Sweating slightly, Gray strained upward, his breathing growing more strained as the top of the rock wall slowly came into view. As they finally neared the very end of the rock wall, Juvia's hold slipped, causing the two to get unbalance as a small shriek escaped Juvia's lips. Shifting his body to give the water mage more support, Gray tightened his hold instantly before forcing their joined legs to lean more towards Juvia's momentary shocked and terrified form.
Regaining her composure, Juvia grabbed hold of the rock wall once more before she and Gray pulled themselves up and over the rock wall. Unfortunately for them, with that slight mishap causing them to fumble, both Natsu and Lucy managed to pass the two easily, now pulling a little ahead of them. With her arms wrapped tightly around Natsu's waist, Lucy sent the two an almost apologetic look before the two slipped down the thick black cable on a single pulley.
Watching as the duo zip-lined down the cable, Juvia and Gray rushed forward, taking a detachable pulley from the bucket placed near the start of the zip-line. Motioning for Juvia to hold his waist, Gray guided the two towards the long black cable, his grip tight on the pulley before snapping the pulley to the cable. Giving an experimental pull, Gray looked behind him momentarily; noticing no one was directly behind them, Gray turned towards the bright faced Juvia, who wasted no time with grabbing hold of Gray's well muscled waist.
"Ready?" Juvia nodded excitedly before Gray gave a bit of a push off, forcing the two to slip down the zip line with a bit of a boost. Blue hair flying about, Juvia leaned in closer to Gray's chest as the rush of incoming air brushed against her face. Once reaching the end, Juvia reluctantly pried herself from Gray before the two continued on with the race.
Walking straight ahead, the two faced no other obstacle for a while until a large growth of greenery obscured their path. Right before them was a large maze created from large bushes. Staring at the behemoth monstrosity before them both in awe and a bit of reluctance, Gray and Juvia pushed onward, the green of the bushes surrounding them. Upon entering the maze, both Gray and Juvia could hear a pair shouting about the next path to choose. Taking a quick right, they were met with an arguing Natsu and Lucy, both pointing towards directions. Chuckling deeply, Gray smirked at the seething pink haired fire mage, passing the two breezily before talking quietly with Juvia, trying to find out which was the best path to choose.
Glancing at the hedges calmly, Juvia whispered back her answer, her blue eyes set as the two walked towards the right side. Seeing his rival take the path to the right, Natsu pulled a protesting Lucy off towards the left path, both disappearing from the other duo's view as they continued onward.
With her right hand grazing the green hedge lightly, Juvia led both her and Gray forward, letting her hand guide the two. Looking at the water mage curiously, Gray gave a little cough, gaining the water mage's attention.
"So what's the plan?" Gray asked a little awkwardly. Juvia frowned a bit in concentration before beaming towards Gray.
"Juvia once heard of a trick to get out of a maze. Juvia is to follow the path of her right hand. See, Juvia puts her hand here and just follows," Juvia explained, gesturing lightly towards the hand currently grazing the green shrubbery. Staring at his partner a bit in awe, Gray nodded mutely, surprised the water mage knew of such a trick. Traveling in near silence, Juvia continued to lead the two out of the hedge maze with very few dead ends blocking their path.
As the two continued on their path, Gray noticed a lot of other participants in very heated arguments.
"What do you mean this way. Obviously it's that way!" Evergreen shouted, looking up angrily at her tall partner, her head barely reaching the tanned man's chest.
"That path looks unmanly! We must take the more manly one!" Elfman retorted, gesturing towards the left more lightened path.
"Man, man, man, all I ever hear from you is manly this, unmanly that! We're taking this path because I'm know that the fairies will lead us to the finish, and well all know that fairies like hiding, so we have to take the right path!" Gray gave a small sigh at the two's bickering, glad to have someone like Juvia as his partner.
"Put me down, Gajeel! I can walk fine on my own!" Levy shouted as Gajeel continued to carry the squirming blue haired script mage by the waist. Ignoring the petite bookworm, the dark haired dragonslayer continued onward, barely sparing the shouting Levy a second's glance as they took a path in the middle, disappearing from sight.
"Slow down, Natsu! This is supposed to be about teamwork! You're going to pull off my leg at any moment!" Lucy shouted off in the distance, no where near Gray and Juvia.
"If we don't hurry, then that ice bastard is going to win!" Natsu protested, causing Gray to laugh loudly; loud enough for the duo to hear him.
"See!" Gray quieted his laughter a bit as he and Juvia took a path to the right. Not much longer, after a few more twists and turns, the two finally reached the end of the maze. With a slight smile on his face, Gray turned to Juvia and couldn't help but envelop the startled water mage in a tight embrace. Before Juvia had a chance to completely return the motion, Gray released the water mage; making Juvia grow slightly depress as Gray began to guide the two towards a dirt hill.
Trudging forward, the two made it up and over the hill without too much difficulty. Looking down the hill, Gray and Juvia could see part of the white strip of cloth that was the finish line. So far, it looked as though the duo was in the lead as of now. Feeling a bit anxious, Gray slowed down their relaxed walk towards the finish line, his blue eyes darting back and forth. As if sensing Gray's uneasiness, Juvia's body stiffened slightly as she too checked her surroundings. As the two finally reached the bottom of the dirt hill and onto a large grassy plain, a flash of red grazed Gray's vision before he instinctively wrapped his arms around Juvia and lunged towards the side, narrowly missing the sweep of a silver blade.
"I commend you two for getting this far, but no one shall escape my path," a strong feminine voice vowed before bringing her blade closer to her well controlled form, waiting for the duo's first move.
"Erza?" Gray gasped, pulling the equally stunned Juvia to her feet. Brown eyes darkened slightly before a sort of grimace spread across the scarlet haired re-equip mage's face.
"Gray, Juvia," Erza said with a little nod in their direction, her blade held out in a sort of menacing pose.
"I cannot forgive you for not picking me for the event, Gray, and for that, I cannot let you two pass." Erza shifted a little on her feet before charging full force towards the two. Startled, the two tried to go separate ways, momentarily forgetting that they were tied together. With their string straining at the force, the duo's legs pinched in warning before realizing that this would get them nowhere. Slamming her body against Gray's, Juvia managed to narrowly miss the sleek blade as the two tumbled towards the side. Groaning a bit in pain, Gray struggled to get up before Juvia forced the two to roll out of the oncoming attack.
"Mr. Fullbuster, how are we to get past Erza?" Juvia questioned, her expression a mixture of awe and seriousness as their rolling came to a stop and Gray pulled himself upwards. Looking over his shoulder, Gray took in the scarlet haired mage's stiff composure and sword, knowing that if they tried attacking her without magic, they wouldn't last very long. Already previously knowing the re-equip mage though, Gray knew it was possible to outrun her.
"Listen Juvia, we have to somehow outmaneuver Erza and run to the finish line. If we can get across there, even if we don't win, she can't attack us if she's an obstacle," Gray whispered quietly, earning a slight nod from the water mage.
"You will not cross past me, Gray, Juvia. I am determined to defeat you," Erza said with determination ringing in her voice. Lifting her sword, Erza charged forward. Waiting for the last possible moment, Gray and Juvia ducked under the swing of the blade and charged forward, brushing against Erza slightly before running in complete unison towards the finish line. Stunned, Erza froze at the duo's unpredicted move until she realized that she had been duped. Letting out an angered roar, Erza spun on her heel and raced after the speeding duo.
Knowing not to spare a single glance back, Gray pushed onward with Juvia at his side. Hearing the clink clank of Erza's armor sent Gray to pick up his pace a bit more, causing Juvia to also pick up her pace as the two came closer and closer to the white finishing line. With Erza at their heels, the duo's breathing began to pick up and become more labored.
Lifting her blade in one last attempt to stop the racing duo, Erza gave one last swing, forcing the duo to lunged at the finishing line and barely missing the swing of the blade. Now crossed over the finish line, Gray and Juvia began to breathe even more heavily before a leisurely walking Makarov walked in front of the sweeting duo.
"Very nice, you two. You as well, Erza. I really thought you had them. Now hurry on back before another team gets closer to the finish line," Makarov said with a grin on his aged face, stopping Erza in mid skid. With a slight bow, Erza stiffly spun on her heel and returned back towards the field. Turning back towards the duo, Makarov smiled even bigger before lifting his half filled mug in congrats. "Congratulations on winning the three legged race. If you'd just head on over to Mira, she'll give you your prize," Makarov finished before chugging down the rest of the ale and cutting the thick rope that was tied around the duo's ankle. Without giving much thought, Gray gave a big grin before collapsing onto his back, too tired to get up.
"Mr. Fullbuster!"
Good Gollie, guys! Day four of Gruvia week! I hope you all enjoyed this. Thanks for reading! Leave me a thought before you go! Again, thanks for reading and I own nothing! Now let's see if I can somehow finish and start up the other prompts before their given days. Wish me luck!