Chapter 3: A little wait.

"Hold on!" – she said pleadingly.

"You can do it!" – spoke another voice.

Both girls were anxiously trying to support their still very fazed friend.

"Ju-… ugh, Juvia is all right", - the water mage managed to say while holding on to the girls' shoulders. Lucy and Levy were supporting Juvia on each side as they were trying to keep up with the guys.

"Oi! Hurry up, we don't have time!"

Juvia was beginning to finally see clearly and hearing Gajeel's voice sobered her up.

"Gajeel-kun?"

Juvia spotted the man's tall figure, rapidly turning his head from side to side as if he was looking for something.

"Which way now?" – she heard him say. Juvia waited for a reply but none had followed.

"OI!"

"Left…".

That was Natsu's voice.

"Are you asking me or telling me?!" – yelled Gajeel back.

Juvia gave the girls a little pat, signaling that she was now fully conscious and able to walk herself, but this situation did beg a question.

"Why are the girls carrying Juvia, and not Gajeel-kun?" – she thought.

Back in Phantom Lord she and Gajeel went on a couple of missions together, although "sent" would be a more accurate word. They never helped each other nor did they interfere in each other's fights. If one of them was in trouble, that in no way obliged the other to lend a hand. If you screwed up, you screwed up and you only had yourself to blame. If you died, you died and the other would've had to let Master Jose know what had happened. That was the silent rule in Phantom Lord that seemed to get acknowledged and accepted very fast by newcomers. And yet, with each passing mission the rule was fading more and more until finally there had been a time when Juvia found herself being carried by the Iron Dragon Slayer. He gave her a warning that, - in his words, - she shouldn't try to pull any kind of carless shit while he's around because he would have to answer to Jose, and he refused to tell Master that the Element 4 was once again incomplete. But however Gajeel put it, it was clear to Juvia that he cared. She cared too.

Juvia gave Gajeel another look and noticed that he was standing kind of strained. It appeared he was holding something heavy.

"It's left, okay! But I can't be sure!" – yelled back Natsu.

"Well you better fucking BE sure!"

"Gajeel-kun!" – called Juvia.

Both Natsu and Gajeel turned her way taken by surprise and then a look of dread crossed their faces.

"Ah, crap." – blurted out Gajeel.

He drew his lips together into a thin line and slowly turned to face her, holding a body in his hands.

Juvia instantly stopped walking and felt her stomach drop, followed by a chilling numbness in her fingers and a sharp pain in her chest. Her eyes grew large as she recognized the body. And after two-heartbeats-long pause and a few incoherent peeps, she shook and screamed:

"GRAY-SAMA!"

Lucy and Levy both grabbed onto her harder, preventing her from falling over.

"Ngh-…what-...hu-….mn..." – she was gasping for air and her heart was racing, while the girls were still holding her from running towards him. She kept her gaze focused on him.

"Shit. Shit!" – dragged out Gajeel, turning back around, shifting his hand under Gray's legs for adjustment.

"I'll knock her out", - said Natsu stepping forward.

"What? NO! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"What?! You said it yourself, we don't have time!" – retorted Natsu.

"What. Is wrong with you." – asked Gajeel in a completely different tone.

"Ha?", - said Natsu in a lower voice.

"You've been acting all weird ever since we left the room. And now what? What's your plan? Punch her out so bunny girl and shrimp have to drag her?! Why can't you find the exit?!"

"WHAT HAPPENED?!",- yelled out Juvia, struggling against Lucy but not really trying to set herself free anymore.

"Juvia, please calm down" – tried to soothe her Lucy.

"Fuck", - Gajeel turned to yell over his shoulder – "He's fine! He's just out!"

"M-but…", - Juvia sighed out for another breath. She had a feeling something was wrong and what was making her even more worried was a strong arising sense that all of them were keeping something from her. She had been unconscious for too long. She missed something important.

"Juvia? Juvia," – Lucy kept trying to get her attention but she wasn't paying any.

"Juvia-chan."

Lucy placed a firm hand on her other shoulder and turned Juvia to face her, looking deep into her eyes and said:

"He's fine. He's just exhausted," – Lucy used the calmest voice she could've mastered.

Juvia took one look at her, then squinted to keep the forming tears from falling and whispered:

"You're lying."

Lucy bit her lip, and giving Juvia an apologetic look replied, her voice now breaking but still keeping it firm:

"Please, believe me for now."

"I can find the exit!" – barked back Natsu, - "We're close!"

"PUT YOUR NOSE INTO IT!" – bit back Gajeel.

"Stop it, both of you!" – stepped in Levy, - "At this rate someone will hear you!"

The boys gave each other a final glare, and stepped out in different directions. To loosen the tight atmosphere and change the topic Gajeel addressed Levy:

"Do you still have the thing?"

"You mean the blood?" – clarified Levy.

"Yeah. That." – he said uneasy.

"Yes," – she told Gajeel and then spoke more to herself, - "Can't believe he's scared of blood."

"He's not…." – said Juvia in a thin, raised, half-whispered voice. Juvia went pale. She didn't know what was going on and every minute more questions were appearing. More importantly it looked like no one intended to truly answer them.

"It's the demon's!" – quickly assured her Lucy.

The water mage raised her head and locked her gaze on Gajeel's back. Lucy barely felt Juvia take in a long breath, followed by an even longer exhale. After that she asked the blond in a very calm and slightly lower than usual voice.

"Where are we going?"

"We're getting out of here," – rushed to say Lucy.

"We're going to Porlyusica's, and this blood is for Laxus and the rest."

Juvia's eyes were half lidded and she was once again ready to let go of her blond friend and continue on her own.

"Where's the exit?" – she inquired.

"This way!" – answered her Gajeel.

The party hurried to follow Natsu who had finally gotten a trail and was now dashing to get his friends out of there and get Gray to Porlyusica. As the girls were running after them Juvia felt Levy's eyes on her.

"Juvia?" – asked Levy with caution.

"I don't want to know." – calmly replied the rain woman.

"Not yet", - she added silently.

After the Spirit King's attack the Tartarus HQ was now in shambles. Everywhere were signs of battle and struggle but the team did not waste any time and they tried to avoid any unwanted encounter. Around a quarter of an hour later they've reached the infirmary. The cube was moving while they were still inside and after being destroyed it was scattered in large parts across one side of the town. Lucy thought that they've probably exhausted a lifetimes worth of luck by landing so close to their only safety point.

As they were getting closer Natsu joined Gajeel in carrying Gray. He was still cold, but he was breathing. Natsu kept his hearing focused on Gray's breath. He heard the shallow inhales and how they resonated against something hollow within Gray's chest. Natsu was very confused. Gray became heavier, so he pondered the possibility that Gray's insides were now completely frozen, but in that case he wouldn't have kept on breathing. Right?...

"We're almost there!" – he assured his friends.

The moment they reached the doors they busted them open and called for Porlyusica. She was furious but her anger quickly subsided as she saw the state Makarov's children were in and immediately took action. She gave Levy a book and sent her off to prepare the solution with the demon's blood according to the recipe. As Lucy started to brief the Healer in to what had happened Juvia was listening closely. She hadn't spoken a word since her last ones to Levy.

The Healer took charge, Gray was laid on the bed, Juvia was given permission to stay, and the rest were out the patient's room door. Porlyusica began her examination.

*Present time.*

"I don't understand" – muttered Lucy,- "I don't understand at all,"- she let out a painful moan and grabbed her head, burying it between her knees.

"Who gives a shit. Whatever happened there isn't going to help him now" – pointed out Gajeel.

"Natsu?"

The fire dragon slayer was staring at the wall.

"That light…."

"We all saw it Natsu" – confirmed Lucy. She was worried, something was wrong with Natsu, and she was afraid he was beginning to loose his mind. He had been fighting battles after battles, and Lucy worried over what all this was doing to his mind. She trusted Natsu unconditionally, but she could never tell what was going through his head. He was very unpredictable and crazy at times. Just when she was about to reach for him, Natsu snapped his head up. Porlyusica finally opened the heavy door.

"Come in".

The mages were very uneasy. They looked at each other to decide who would go first, and after a few awkward glances Natsu stepped in first, followed by Lucy, followed by Gajeel, who closed the door behind him.

Gray was lying on the bed with bandages across his body. A cotton pad on his chest, already soaked with blood was showing from underneath the bandages. His arms were wrapped from wrist to shoulder, and his right arm had a thick blue material around it.

"Is it broken?" – asked Natsu.

"No," – answered the Healer in a way that made it clear she knew a lot more than she was going to say.

As Porlyusica began going over his wounds, starting from the most life-threatening one on his chest, Natsu and Lucy sat down on both sides of the bed, listening carefully.

Gajeel spotted Juvia in the far end of the room by the built in sink, washing something intensely. He slowly walked her way and made out the purple T-shirt that was being harassed by the water mages hands.

"Oi," – Gajeel stopped next to her, but she didn't respond.

He put a hand on her back and Juvia stiffened a bit in pain. Gajeel immediately pulled back remembering the hard impact she took against the ceiling rocks. She was now wearing different clothes, a black top and a long skirt with side cutouts that ended inches above the floor. Her arms were in bandages as well. There was a huge red-ish purple bruise on her right shoulder blade that stretched all the way down and hid behind her top.

"Rest," – he said calmly.

"When Gray-sama wakes up he's gonna need a clean shirt", - she replied serenely.

"Where'd you get that?"

"Stock pile. In the wardrobe."

Gajeel figured it made sense that this place would have spare clothes for patients, who came in often with their own torn to shreds in the battle.

"Why's it in blood?" – he continued.

"Ran out of towels", - she said and Gajeel noticed the quiver her hands made. He also took in the awful stench of rusty blood that was filling the room along with some medicines.

Gajeel took a look at the bed where Lucy and Natsu were carefully listening and Lucy was nodding from time to time. Natsu appeared to be more focused on Gray. He weighted a while before speaking again.

"Rest," – he said once more, and once more he was ignored.

Gajeel turned around, his back now towards Juvia. He was standing in a way that hid her from Natsu and Lucy so they couldn't see her behind his large figure.

Gajeel was facing the most difficult situation he'd encountered. The one where he was supposed to talk. He could stop a running train, - hell, he could eat it if he had to, - he could destroy and entire guild on his own, he could live in the mountains for all eternity with no provisions, depending solely on his hunting skills. But he could not find the right words. He wanted to say something. He knew this Juvia. The ameonna, that would always walk with a stone cold face, that would never let outsiders know her thoughts. He could only guess what being locked here in this room, with Gray barely breathing and gushing blood in all directions was doing to her. Plus, whatever Grandine over there was saying surely didn't help. He was afraid of what she was going through. He had no doubt it was killing her; he knew it hurt her. He knew she was in more pain than physical right now.

"When he wakes up," – he started, still with his back to Juvia, - "… he'll see you."

Juvia kept rubbing out the blood in soapy water.

"If he sees you looking like that," – he continued slowly and carefully added, after hearing her hands stop splashing the water, - "Don't you think he'll be worried?"

The question was left there unintended to be answered.

Juvia hung her head low, her fringe falling over her eyes, and Gajeel was still covering her from the rest of their frineds.

"I think he'll be very worried," – finished Gajeel.

There was a pause, and Gajeel felt heat forming behind him. Not actual heat, but the feeling that his friend was now shaking, and he stood there tense until he heard her spit out a silent cry trough her teeth in a strained "tch", followed by a few soundless whimpers. He did not turn to calm her, but waited until the shaking stopped and she whispered:

"Thank you, Gajeel-kun."

"Don't mention it," – he finished and stepped forward towards the bed.

Porlyusica invited Natsu, Lucy and Gajeel into another room to take care of their wounds, and to give the patient some rest. She turned to Juvia, who had now finished scrubbing out the T-shirt and was approaching them.

"You can stay."

Juvia nodded and the Healer along with her friends stepped out of the room.

"Lady's first" – invited Porlyusica Lucy to enter the room next door, leaving the boys once again in the hallway.

Juvia heard the other room's door close shut, and then muffled voices of the two dragon slayers in the hallway. After removing all water with her magic she folded the T-shirt neatly and put it on the small bedside table, then moved the chairs to the side. Slowly she sat down on the wooden floor, on her knees, and let her eyes wonder over Gray's face. It wasn't moving but his chest was rising and falling with a bit more amplitude than before, and in complete silence she was able to hear his subtle inhales.

"Gray-sama…" – she called in her head.

Juvia quietly reached out for Gray's palm and gently took it in between her own.

"Cold," – she thought.

His hands were cold, but that was normal for an ice mage, right? The thought made something pour over her heart and she felt her cheeks getting warm.

"Gray-sama…"

He was an ice mage. What a simple and very silly thought to get these feelings over. Wasn't that common knowledge?

"Gray-sama…."

Maybe she was going insane..

Juvia squeezed his hand a little bit and felt stinging tears appearing and something thick creeping up her throat. Suppressing it took all her strength. She held her breath in order not to let a sound escape, and the effort echoed in a blunt pain all the way down her spine into her lower back.

"Please, be okay" – she whispered this time loud enough for only him and her to hear.

Juvia went into deep thought. Her eyes kept wondering from his face, to his chest, to his arm, and every once in a while she would take a deeper breath, and start again. A bit absent-mindedly she began to gently rub his hand. She didn't know how much time had passed but when she felt that maybe it was time to pour herself a glass of water, she felt the tiniest movement in her hands. Juvia froze in anticipation, but the next movement came from under the blanket around his left ankle. And then the most heavenly sound broke and tore hear heart in two brining both immeasurable joy and torturous pain.

Gray sighed once more, and when Juvia gave his hand another little squeeze, she felt a tiny squeeze back.

"Gray-sa-ma?" – she whispered carefully not to choke from wanting to both laugh and cry as loud as her lungs allowed her to.

"Wait," - she told herself.

If Juvia wasn't looking so intently she would've missed the faint tilt his head made in her direction.

She squeezed his hand once more, looking if he would respond. A light quivered smile appeared on her lips when he squeezed back stronger, as they were still trying to decide whether to cry or laugh. And when she turned to look at his face again she felt a sudden punch hit her somewhere inside her chest as she met his fully opened eyes.

He was awake and fully conscious now, and he was looking right at her.

"Gray-sama?" – she asked again with a bit more voice this time.

Meanwhile behind the door a heated conversation was coming to its end.

"Do you realize that you sound like a complete psycho?! Salamander, this is bullshit!"

"I don't care how it sounds" - he replied, - "That tattoo….".

"Just wait a bit!"

Natsu turned to face Gajeel, a look of complete determination taking over his face and even posture. Green eyes met red:

"We have to get rid of it."

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Continues in Chapter 4.

AN:

I hope this was worth the wait... It looks like I'm quite determined to update this fic weekly ^_^

A special thank you goes to Lady of the Round Table, Yuki Loxar and mgaa, who reviewed and reassured me that they've enjoyed the previous action-packed chapter! (I know it's more interesting to watch fights, than read about them, but I hope it wasn't to boring...). Another round of thank you's go to IcePrinceRay and hotrodren, whose comments made me very happy and excited to continue this story! ^_^

As always, please do not hesitate to contact me, I'm available almost 24/7 and I reply really fast! ^_^

See you next week! ^_^