Lucy: This author owns nothing except for the story. :D

Natsu: Where's Gray?

Lucy: Emotionally scarred I guess, so...

Natsu: Oh...

Lucy: Oh and the typos that may occur. The author also owns the fault for not proof reading this. :D

Me: That's mean... :P

Lucy: It's the author! OH NO!

Me: Why was she...

Natsu: Afraid you'd kill her off so...

Me: Oh...

Wendy: Enjoy this chapter!

Happy: AYE!


"Ready Luce?" The Spirit asked his owner with that natural purr in his tone upon reaching the Guild's entrance.

"S-stop calling me that..." Juliet's cheeks flushed as she turned her face with pouted lips.

"Haha." Loke laughed in amusement.

"Huh?" The blonde gasped for two things; one, that unusual alarmed expression lit up his eyes again and two; the way his hands gently held her chin and turned her face around to look at him. It felt so... soothing. His touch was so strong yet so gentle. And that exact moment his eyes met hers, electricity shook her entire body. It just felt so... strange. More so with her knowledge of Loke's relationship with Aries.

Was he blowing everything off again to hide the pain?

"Relax." The Lion chanted a single word with a simple smile.

The wind blew, Lucy's eyes widened.

"I am." She tapped his hand away from her face, trying to convince him with obvious lies.

"Hn." The brunette snickered,

"Of course you are." He started walking ahead.

"Huh?" He turned around, shocked with the hand that weakly grabbed his arm before he could walk off,

"Lucy?" He asked in all seriousness.

"Today..." The Mage started; her head bowed down and her hair covering her eyes, it was like she was trying to stop tears,

"You're not 'gonna leave my side." She stated an order.

"Lucy-" Loke attempted to say something, he couldn't disobey an order from Lucy, she was very serious and he felt that this wasn't the right time to mess with her.

"Literally." She cut him off sternly; a dark aura started building up around her,

"Even if I bore you to death, you're 'gonna stay." She started looking up a bit,

"Leo." She stared into his eyes.

Loke was really surprised. He had never seen this Lucy. She was really scary.

Something must be wrong, the Zodiac started thinking,

She's just hiding it, he stated a fact.

For a millisecond he frowned, he was genuinely worried about Lucy so, he decided that he'd fin out what was going on himself. He had nothing better to do anyway.

"Hn." He grinned,

"I wasn't planning to." He held out his hand so Lucy could curl her around it. She was shocked, she really thought that Loke would be upset but she was wrong. He was being a real gentleman about everything.

Well, he is my Spirit... shouldn't he do what I say?, the blond asked herself. She knew that she had a self rule on not using Spirits like tools but right now, she couldn't even see straight let alone think and Loke was the only one there for her. She couldn't see any other alternative.

She held on to his arm, he smiled as they started walking towards the beer hall.

"Thank you for doing this Loke. I'm so sorry." Lucy clung onto his arm with both hands, having a slightly clearer vision of the world. As they passed through the gift shops, people started looking at them, they must've been shocked at seeing Loke. He hadn't been around for a while.

"That's not what they're looking at." Loke grinned again, letting Lucy hug his arm.

"Huh? Can you read my mind or something?" She asked him as she let go of his arm completely, which oddly disappointed him.

"No. You're just... an open book." Loke found the words he was searching for.

"I am?" Lucy said in shock.

"Yeah." Loke laughed a cheerful laugh,

"But don't worry. Today, I'm not 'gonna leave your side." He repeated her words in her ear.

The way he said those words and the feel of his hot breath on her skin made her face flush.

"W-whatever." She shook her head, desperately trying to get some thoughts out of her head.

"Loke? Long time no see. Welcome back." Macao was the first to greet Loke.

"Hey Loke." Everyone else greeted him randomly.

"Hey." He retorted, his heart felt warm for some reason.

"That's because they miss you." Lucy told him in fake (but very natural and believable) cheerfulness.

"Can you read minds?" He asked her the same question.

"No. But I'm not dense." She laughed as she grabbed his hand.

They both gasped, she looked at his eyes to see if that unusual alarmed expression was there, but it wasn't.

"Let's go to the bar." She said as she nonchalantly let go of his hand.

"Right." Lucy went ahead; Loke following her.

She didn't see it but he did. Gray had been watching them the whole time, and through the corner of his eyes, Loke saw an annoyed look on Gray's face when the awkward moment happened.

Was Gray..., The Spirit started drawing conclusions but decided to find out more before setting his final sentence.

"Long time no see Loke!" Mirajane greeted him happily as she set down a medium-sized mug of beer in front of of the brunette.

"Thanks." He smiled.

"You're drinking?" Lucy asked him with an eyebrow raised. He knew it was just a simple question, she wasn't protesting.

"But I'd rather have a glass of water." He smiled to Mirajane. His words were truthful enough but if it were really up to him, it would be liquor.

"Seriously?" Lucy asked in the same tone.

"I have to drink something." The Lion gulped down the glass of water.

Lucy giggled and through Loke's point of view, she looked unbearably cute and comically sparkly.

"Lucy-chaaan!" Her friend greeted the blonde.

"Levy-chan." She gave the blue haired mage a hug.

"Hey Loke." She smiled at the one behind the Spirit Mage.

He waved back sharply.

"So... Why are you all geared up?" Lucy asked, noticing her friend wearing different clothes.

"I'm going on a mission with Gajeel and Juvia. Again." She smiled happily.

"So... Are you guys like a team now?"

"Hmm... It's not official. But we have gone on a lot of missions together. I'll ask them." The Mage smiled in wonder,

"Well... I'll probably be back in a few days. See 'ya then Lu-chan." The two girls hugged once more before Levy, Gajeel and Juvia departed.

"Hey. What's up Loke." Gray walked up to them the moment Juvia left, then the Ice Mage and the Spirit did a secret handshake thing that raised Lucy's eyebrow. Again.

"You guys have a secret handshake?" Lucy chuckled a bit.

"I'll teach you if you want." Gray said huskily, his cold, misty hands holding her face closely like before.

She shivered at his touch then her heartbeat suddenly went through the roof.

Loke stood up; about to take action.

"No thanks." Lucy tapped Gray's hand away from her face, like what she did to Loke this morning, and gave him a fake smile.

He can't just charm his way into her heart with everything he's done into consideration.

Loke gasped with wide eyes, Lucy was fighting back so much. This was definitely different. And Gray felt the same way. He had never seen his teammate like this before.

She took a step closer, completely zeroing the distance between them.

"What game are you playing?" She whispered into his ear somewhat seductively.

"What?" The dark haired boy replied, completely clueless.

"Huh?" Gray gasped as Lucy rested her left arm on his right shoulder.

"If you want something, you grab it. Before someone else does." She whispered once more, leaving a cryptic message behind.

"Where's your best friend?" She asked him, still not leaving their position.

"Being nursed at home." He replied,

"By Lisanna." He shot her a name that electrified every nerve ending in her body. She lost all her angst and returned to the sweet Lucy they all knew. She bowed her head and Gray smirked.

"Bully." Lucy leaned in closer and whispered, still covering up with the angst that was slowly fading away, and bit his ear lobe ever so softly.

"Huh." Gray gasped as his entire body got electrocuted.

He took a step away to add some distance to him and this girl.

"Huh." Another gasp was heard as something suddenly blocked Lucy's view of the world and a pair of soft but strong lips crushed into hers. She felt them, they were quite warm and moved in perfect sync with hers. You could easily tell that these lips had already kissed many.

"L-Loke." She uttered his name as she slowly looked up, only to see the back of a familiar guy with light brunette hair.

"Whatever happens, there's no decent excuse for hitting a girl." The words were said clear and stern.

"C'mon Loke." Gray looked at his old friend with dark eyes, like he had been possessed or something,

"You don't 'wanna get in the way." He smiled as cold mist started forming around everybody, The Ice Mage's hands shifted into their Ice Make position.

Loke wasn't 'gonna be last either, his hands lit up; beams of gold covering them.

"Ice Make-" Gray started as Loke charged.

"ENOUGH!" Lucy cried out loud with tear-filled eyes, the tears she had been hiding all this time. The entire guild shifted their eyes on her and everything stopped.

She walked normally and grabbed Loke's hand gently then suddenly squeezed it painfully tight and pulled him behind her.

"Huh?" The Spirit wondered as the golden beams and the mist faded.

"What's wrong Gray? Why are you being like this?" She screamed at him; letting everything out,

"What the hell are you doing!" Her tears flowed stronger.

"I thought you were my friend. That sounds naive but... WHATEVER!" The dark haired subject took one step back, this wasn't Lucy...

"You told me... while we were hiking. You were carrying me 'cuz my knees were frozen... Don't you remember?" The two both had a flash back.

"Horologium! Don't leave me now!" Lucy shuddered as she fell to the ground.

"Don't count on your Spirits too much." An ignorant voice pissed her off.

She looked up and saw the Ice Mage with his face hidden and his hand reaching out to help her up.

"I don't need you hel-WHOA!" She slipped; her knees too frozen for mobility.

"Huh?" She found herself being held by strong, firm arms.

Gray Fullbuster.

"You need my help." He laughed as he swooped her up from the ground and held her in a bridal carry.

"Put me down! Put me down Gray!" She comically fought.

"You can't walk. He'll carry you. We're almost at the top anyway." Erza put a stop to the noise.

If Erza said it, nobody could complain.

"Hmph." The Celestial Spirit Mage crossed her arms in silent protest.

"Don't count on your Spirits too much." The blonde repeated Gray's words in a mocking tone that easily annoyed the Ice Mage.

"Careful with your mouth sweety. I could just drop you down the hill if I wanted to." He pretended to let her go as he laughed in amusement.

"AAAH! Gray, STOP IT! That's not funny!" She didn't notice her left hand holding on tightly to the boy's toned shoulders and her right pressed softly against the right side of his chest. She could feel the hard, tight muscles that were almost hard as rock if not for the skin and natural squishiness of the body.

A silent conversation passed as the cold winter air surrounding them blew.

"Y-you took off your clothes again... I don't have anything to hold on to..." The blonde found the best and most believable excuse. She curled up closer to his body. The Ice Mage held a smile on his face unknowingly.

"I hate you." She said in a muffled voice.

The genuine smile suddenly vanished from the young boy's face.

"Why is that?" He grinned.

"You're cold." There was a lot of ways to go with that.

"How?" He held her closer since she was gradually slipping.

He didn't know where but somewhere in his stomach was a tingly feeling he had never felt before.

"I meant that literally." She looked up to face him,

"Why are you so red? There's a blizzard." The Spirit Mage buried her face back into his body where she could feel the slightest heat.

Hey, something's better than nothing.

"N-nothing." For a small fragment of a second, his words faltered.

"Why can't Natsu carry me? At least he's hotter than you." Lucy shot away carelessly.

How does she do it?, Gray thought to himself. She was the only one who could make him feel so insecure about himself. He already knew who, what and how he looked like to himself but this girl... was something different.

"How does she do it..." He sub-consciously wondered out loud.

"Huh?" All four of his teammates stared at him.

"Nothing." He managed to escape the heat.

"Natsu can't walk either. He's still winded because of that ride we took to get to the half of the mountain." Erza stated, pointing a Happy.

"Aye!" The neko said; carrying a Dragon Slayer on his tail.

"O-oh." Lucy shivered. The winter season here was cold and the person carrying her was perhaps a little colder.

"Sorry." The dark haired boy threw her an apology.

"It's okay. I'm sorry too." She tried to say without her teeth clanking against each other.

"Why?" Romeo laughed.

"I must be so heavy." The blonde frowned,

"I haven't exercised in forever plus, I keep eating ice cream at the Guild I must-"

"Guys don't like insecure girls." The Ice Mage cut her off, looking ahead.

"Huh? Well, I don't need to make you like me 'cuz you're my teamm-"

"'Cuz I already do." He cut her off again.

"Seriously? I can't finish one sentence? Seriously?"

"Hahaha. I'm your friend Lucy... Heck. I'll be anything you need and want me to be." He smiled warmly.

At that moment, the sun started shining down and the snow slowly started to melt.

"Here we are."

"Are you okay now?" Gray asked his teammate.

"I'm good. You can put me down." He set her down and reassured her that she was 'gonna be okay.

"Thank you Gray." She smiled at him while he was fixing his things.

"No problem Lu-" He was cut-off, as he turned around, she hugged him.

The genuine smile returned to his face.

"-cy." He finished her name and just when she was about to break away, he hugged her back tightly. She gasped in surprise. She didn't think he'd hug bac at all but he did, her heart settled to a safe place.

"I love you Gray. You're one of my best friends."

The genuine smile was fleeting once again. Something bothered him about the word "best friend" when Lucy used it on him...

"... I love you too Lucy." He meant it as what it was but of course she interpreted it as what she thought.

"Yeah. Do you remember now?" She asked him once again, still in tears.

He looked at her with unrelenting eyes.

Once again, pride got in the way.

Gray was... Gray.

But of all the times I could be... me... Why now?, The young wizard asked himself.

He remembered everything he saw.

That hug at Southern Park, he was there. And just a while ago with Loke.

WHY THE HELL DO I CARE?, The Ice Mage screamed at himself.

He never felt this way before.
Okay seriously, that was cliche, cheesy and over dramatic, but he didn't even care.

"Well... I'm 'gonna go check on Natsu." Lucy said more clamly,

"You know... he's my friend. That's why I'll always be there for him." At that, she walked out with her loyal Spirit following.

The Guild was left without a word. They returned to their normal stuff and tried their best to forget the whole drama act that just happened.

Gray, with his hair covering his eyes and fists clenched tightly, walked out of the Guild normally.

Hatred, regret, sorrow, confusion... A thousand feelings made his heart 'wanna burst and a hundred thoughts boggled his mind as he started heading towards a friend's home...


That's it for now. Yey. Review if you can. :"D That would really make my day.

'Till nect time!

AYE!