By the time Gray had carried Lucy to the outskirts of the village, half the villagers were already cheering for them, hailing them as conquering heroes. Even for Lucy, though in all honesty she didn't do much. But at least the villagers were in better spirits, which was a far cry from the gloomy aura they had given off earlier that day.

"Hooray for the Fairy Tail Guild!"

"Peace has been restored!"

"Now our livestock will prosper!"

They all assumed Gray and Lucy had killed the beast, but Gray just chased it back to whatever hole it lived in. Either way, it wouldn't be coming back for a VERY long time. And that was enough cause to celebrate.

Somehow within the course of an hour, an entire block party had been set up. Though it was primarily for the farmers and the working men, women and children were also present, mainly taking cider while their men grabbed as much ale and rum as their eyes could see. Gray and Lucy were sitting on one of the benches, each holding a cup of ale, mainly keeping to themselves despite the fact that the party was being thrown in their honor.

"Well," Lucy said, "That was a relatively easier job than I would have thought."

"Well, don't don't get too complacent," Gray remarked, "S-Class jobs are usually more difficult than this. We just really lucked out."

"Do all S-Class jobs end with parties?" asked Lucy, "If so, I could get used to it."

"I wish they did," Gray said, "It'd be a good bonus with the job's payment."

"I'm gonna get some more to drink," Lucy said, getting up, "You coming?"

"In a little," Gray replied, "I just gotta sit for a little while longer."

Lucy waved goodbye, and turned around before Gray could see her blushing. Enough time had passed for her ankle to feel better, but still limped as she Only put one boot back on, leaving the other bandaged. But as she walked towards one of the many booths serving alcohol, Gray peeked at her from the corner of his eye, watching the way her hips swayed as she walked. And how her hair flowed as she turned her head.

Crap, he thought, I've gotta stop thinking like that.

Lucy, however, had no problems thinking about Gray. She'd be lying if she didn't admit she often admired Gray's masculine torso. It was hard not to, given how often he went shirtless. In all fairness, Natsu had a muscular torso as well, but he was...well, not very bright. He wasn't as cool and collected as Gray. Or as considerate of her well-being. Countless times he's looked after her whenever she was down or needed to be cared for. Ironic that the one person who was initially against her staying in their house was the one who would take care of her the most.

Lucy's train of thought derailed when she saw a rather flashy headline on the billboard posted nearby. The picture was of the Heartfilia estate, the place she formerly called home. The headline was 'HEARTFILIA HEIRESS DISAPPEARS'. She knew eventually her disappearance would make the news, but what set her off was the part concerning her father. He was quoted as saying he was 'deeply worried' about her. How he would use any resources money could buy to find her and bring her home. And of course, the press ate it up, painting him as a loving father. They never knew the things he did to her, whether conscious or not. With the painful reminder of all the things he did, Lucy hastened her way to the ale booth and asked for more.

Gray had been waiting a bit too long for Lucy's return. The booths weren't that far away, she should have been back by now. She may have been blonde, but she wasn't stupid. She was a bookworm for crying out loud, she should know how to navigate through whatever surroundings she finds herself in. Then he also remembered that her other love besides books...was alcohol. And without him there to monitor her intake...

"Aw, crap," Gray moaned.

When he turned the corner, he saw Lucy dry-heaving over a trash can. She got drunk again.

"Well," Gray said, "Guess I better make sure she's not abducted or anything."

He didn't think the townsfolk were those kind of people, but one thing he learned about being in Fairy Tail was to always be vigilant, no matter the circumstances. Hence why he personally never drank to excess (his sobriety was atoned for with countless...counts of exhibitionism, something only he could do sober).

"How much did you drink this time?" asked Gray.

"...5," Lucy replied.

Gray would have pressed further, but then he saw the headline 'HEARTFILIA HEIRESS DISPPEARS'. It now dawned on him that this was what made her always try to drink to forget. Something happened at that big-ass mansion of hers that made her want to kill her brain cells with booze.

Guess she doesn't always drink for the fun of it, Gray thought.

After seeing that Lucy was done dry-heaving, and thankfully was not throwing up, he wrapped her arm around his holders, helping her walk to a nearby inn.


Gray had been standing at the counter waiting for the room key. Lucy had more or less passed out on one of the nearby sofas. Hopefully she wouldn't feel as bad tomorrow morning as she did the morning after her drinking contest with Erza (he still wasn't done berating Natsu for getting her into a contest she had no chance of winning). The lobby was eerily quiet, with just the two of them and two other. Two little kids, one with pink hair, and another with black hair, were running around (seriously, where were the parents?) pretending to shoot at each other. The party necklaces they wore jingled as they ran after each other. The black hair one was pretending to reload when the pink haired one stopped and noticed Lucy.

"Whoa, who's that?" The pink-haired boy asked, pointing at Lucy.

"Who cares?" asked the black-haired one, "You still haven't shot me enough to kill me yet."

"But dude," the pink-haired one exclaimed, "I can see her panties!"

"So?" the black-haired one asked, "My sister wears panties too, but I don't stop in the middle of a game to ogle at them. And that's not just because she's my sister."

As much as Gray appreciated the black-haired boy's maturity, he knew that like every other guy, himself included, he would not be ignoring women in undergarments that easily once puberty kicked in.

"But dude," the pink-haired one said, "Just look at it! How can you not see her BIG BUTT?"

Gray actually chucked at this one. He knew if Lucy were awake and sober, she'd give that boy a piece of his mind. But the other boy seemed to be doing that just fine.

"Yeah, so what do you want from that?" asked the black-haired boy.

"Can I...can I touch it?"

"Noooooo."

"...can I smell it?"

"No, you idiot!" the black-haired boy replied, "Now quit screwing around and reload your weapon!"

"Okay, okay, we'll keep playing!" whined the pink-haired boy.

After calling his friend a spoilsport, the two boys ran back outside, where Gray decided to sit next to Lucy and prevent any future 'free shows'. But now he was sitting on the side where her panties were exposed to him, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't get somewhat turned on by the view. Not just her frilly panties that hardly covered anything. But also her flawlessly smooth thighs that seemed to be crying out to him ever since the shower incident. Unable to resist, he brought his hand to her thighs and began caressing them, moving his hand up and down, feeling they were just as smooth as they looked. Gray could feel his body warming up while touching Lucy. He had been tempted to put his hands up a little further up when the receptionist came back with room keys.

"Room 219, sir," the receptionist said, "Will she be okay?"

The receptionist referred to Lucy as she was being picked up bridal style and carried by Gray.

"She just needs to sleep it off," Gray replied, "She'll be fine."

Gray carried her up the stairs, careful not to let her arms, which had fallen limp on both sides, hit any sharp or hard obstacles on the way to the room. He almost fell when he used the room key, nearly dropping Lucy in the process. Fortunately he didn't, and was able to at least get Lucy to her bed before dropping her on it. Well, the only bed in any case. Gray removed her boot from the foot that had not already been damaged and lifted her legs up as he pulled the covers over her, laying down next to her on his elbows. Against his better judgment, he spent the next few minutes looking at her sleeping face, subconsciously admiring her beauty before he too dozed off for the night.