Periwinkle Year

{November}

"My lovely November, have you seen my heart, somewhere in your castle of yellow leaves?"

― A Waltz for Zizi

.

The morning light tingled Gray's eyelids like an old friend, urging him to stretch away from the slumber of peaceful sleep. Although he wished he could've stayed a little longer, the events of last night came rushing through, causing his insides to stir and his eyes to open slowly.

The woman lying naked in his arms confirmed his memories were indeed reality.

Her blue hair was sprawled across the white, fluffy pillow, eyes still closed and looking as serene as she had ever looked.

Gray smiled to himself, taking the time to study her face one detail at a time. He found things he hadn't noticed before; the tiny mole, barely visible on the bridge of her nose, and the fullness of her eyelashes, as if they had been carefully crafted and placed there as an homage to her features.

He couldn't help his thumb, ever so softly grazing the skin over her cheekbone.

The touch must've tickled her, though, because it didn't take long for Juvia's eyelids to twitch a little, then her muscles stretching in response to being waken up.

And then her eyes blinked open, and it was like swarming ocean water crashing into him with force, knocking the air straight out of his lungs. But he didn't seem to mind.

Juvia smiled, rubbing her eyes timidly. "Good morning," she murmured in a sleepy voice.

"'Morning," he answered, his voice a little croaky.

Juvia's smile widened, eyes roaming around to spot Gray's arm still safely tucked under her head, exactly where it had been last night after they both fell asleep.

"Seems like we didn't move a single muscle all night," she spoke with amusement.

Honestly, Gray couldn't even say he had noticed. But now that she mentioned it…

He frowned slightly. "I think you're right."

Juvia blinked, looking up at him with wide, questioning irises. "Is your arm…?"

"Yep, can't feel a single thing."

Both bursting out laughing, Juvia lifted her head high enough for Gray to pull back and retrieve his own limb, massaging his hand in an attempt to bring back the dormant nerves.

Juvia placed her head back on the pillow. "Better?"

Gray scoffed. "I think so, starting to feel the blood coming back." The sound of Juvia's laugh seemed to echo in his ears and his eyes traveled back to her face, resting only a few centimeters away from his.

She blinked once more, returning the stare. "What?" she asked in a small voice.

Gray swallowed, sighing lightly. He felt like he was in a bubble of happiness, threatened to burst at any moment. Even so, as long as he made sure to protect it, nothing would be allowed remotely close enough to ruin it.

"You're beautiful."

Pink pigments spread across her cheeks ever so softly. She didn't say anything, however a few seconds later her lips parted as Gray's hand brushed a strand of hair away from her face in a feather-like touch. He brought his face closer to hers in the slowest of movements, building a momentum that existed for them and only for them. Juvia's eyelids closed little by little as the distance between them grew smaller, until finally Gray's lips touched hers.

In a way he hadn't before.

In a way he couldn't describe, even if he wanted to, because it found its beauty in the unspoken-ness of it all.

When they pulled back, Gray felt her sigh, the softness of her breath grazing his nose. He inhaled quietly.

"Juvia, I-"

Three sudden knocks interrupted Gray, making him snap his head in the direction of the door just as Juvia's body tensed, hand clinging to the white sheet covering her.

A muffled voice soon followed, most likely coming from the hallway. "Sir, your presence is required downstairs at once. It's Mr. X's instructions, sir."

Gray frowned, although a breath of relief washed over him when he heard the person's footsteps echoing away from his room, silence setting back into place.

He felt Juvia's muscles relax as well not a second later. "Well, I guess this is our cue."

"'Afraid so," Gray groaned as he pushed the covers off him, slipping into a pair of shorts he had spotted lying on the floor. He scoffed as he mumbled under his breath. "At once," he repeated the employee's words in a mocking tone. "What is this, the 18th century?"

A small laugh escaped Juvia's lips then, probably having heard him despite the words leaving his mouth unintentionally. Gray scratched his head, amused but for whatever reason, a little embarrassed. He saw Juvia sitting up on the bed, her back slim and smooth, and made a mental note of the mole below her right shoulder blade. Another one that had previously gone unnoticed. Unfortunately, it disappeared from his sight as soon as Juvia slipped on her white hotel robe, tying it up in the front.

She got up, stretching her arms above her head as she did so. "Why do you think they requested our presence so early in the morning?"

Gray shrugged. He had actually been wondering the same thing. "Beats me, maybe they decided to- oh shit."

"What?"

Gray's blinked slowly as he reached for the silver clock on the bedside table, holding it up for Juvia to see. "Uh…it's past noon."

Juvia's blue eyes widened as her hand found its way to her mouth, covering it in shock. "Oh…well, 'shit' is right."

They stood like that for a while, facing each other with nothing more than the bed in between them. Gray's eyes found hers, and after silently staring at each other's surprised expression, laughter broke out in unison. Juvia fell onto the mattress as she clutched her stomach, laughing so hard tears had began to form at the corner of her eyes.

Seeing her in such a state, Gray couldn't help the sound of his own laughter erupting like a volcano, uncontrollable and warmer than the sun.

"I don't think I've ever slept that much in my entire life!" Juvia exclaimed with a wide smile, attempting to calm down.

"What, really?" Gray answered with a raised brow. "You're missing out, babe."

And then suddenly Juvia's laugh was gone as fast as it came on, eyes wide and lips parted in a new sort of shock. It wasn't until he witnessed a blush creeping onto her cheeks that he realized exactly what had made its way past his own lips, only a mere second ago. Heat traveled to his own face, nearly burning it.

"Uh…I…sorry, um-"

Juvia crawled on her knees and made her way to Gray's side of the bed, offering him a simple smile. "You have nothing to apologize for." She gave him a quick peck on the lips and got up from the mattress, patting his naked shoulder as if this was the most normal thing in the world. "Juvia will go back to her room to change then, meet you in the hallway in a few minutes?"

Gray's eyes followed her movements, her smile as contagious as contagious could get. He returned it, scratching his neck once more.

"Okay."

. . . . .

"Miss, please stay still, we're almost done."

"Oh, right. Sorry."

Juvia sighed, doing her best to keep her eyelids from batting away. She couldn't really help it, though, as she was a virgin at having people apply makeup on her face. Lucy had tried a few times in the past, offers which Juvia had politely declined. And it's not like she even wore much makeup in her day to day life.

"There! All done." The maid backed away, radiating pride and accomplishment. Juvia looked into the mirror and to her surprise, nothing was overdone. Her lips had been tinted in a mix of raspberry and lilac pigments, while her eyes had only been touched by mascara and dark eyeshadow, enhancing the color of her irises. It was simple and beautiful.

"Wow," she said in a breath. "Thank you. Really."

The maid smiled in response, offering Juvia a curtsy. Probably a typical thing to do here in the palace.

"You may wait here, Miss," the maid spoke as she exited the room, one soft step at a time. "We'll bring your gown shortly."

Gown?

Juvia found herself nodding as the door closed and the room fell back into silence. She sighed, getting up to take a look around while she waited.

The whole mission was surreal, to say the least. After meeting up with X, they had been taken into the palace where they met with the security department. About a hundred guards were to be present for the upcoming event, on top of the Royal family's personal guard. It was an event held by the Queen herself, accompanied by two of her children; Prince Joseph and youngest Princess Rosie. The King himself and the rest of the Royal family of Yerin were not attending the event, as Juvia and Gray had been told. It had been indicated to them that the personal safety of the Queen and her two children was already well counted for by their personal guard, and not to worry about the matter.

Their attention should be entirely focused on the guests coming from the outside, and to prevent criminal activity before it had a chance to take place. The Royal security department had experience to spare, therefore Gray and Juvia were told to only intervene would magic make its way into the equation.

Although, based on what they had been told by X, the criminals who stole the items up for auction used fire magic, and there wasn't anything that suggested otherwise for this year's ball. After all, why change a method that has proved so efficient, year after year?

"We want you to focus on the guests themselves," X, who turned out to be one of the heads of the security department of the palace, had instructed then. "Meddle in with them. You'll be dressed accordingly so no one will suspect you are in on the security team."

Juvia turned to look at the clock, it was nearly 7 o'clock, meaning the ball was starting in a little over an hour. As a maid walked in, gown, heels and masquerade mask in hand, Juvia silently prayed for no one to get hurt tonight.

. . . . .

Gray scratched his cheek for what felt like the millionth time, annoyed. The damn mask they had made him wear was itching his face and it had only been on for like a half an hour. Seriously, just who's genius idea was it to throw a masquerade ball, out of all things?

He huffed as he made his way down the quiet corridor, heading straight for the ballroom where guests would soon enough be invited in. But first, he had to meet up with Juvia.

Speaking of the devil.

"Juvia," Gray let out a relieved breath as he spotted her near the chocolate fountain. "Thank god, listen do you think we really have to keep the masks on? I mean I get it and all, but this shit is killing m-."

Gray's words stopped halfway as they were flowing out of his mouth when Juvia turned around to face him.

He didn't know what he had been expecting, but it wasn't that. She looked unrealistically beautiful. Like the ocean itself. Like a never-ending land of translucent ice. Like an aurora in the night sky. Like the cold wind traveling across snowed grounds, calm and mesmerizing. Gray's mouth fell closed as he couldn't help but stare at her.

She rolled her eyes from behind her midnight blue masquerade mask, fighting back an amused grin. "Gray-sama, I know these masks are a bit annoying to wear, but I don't think we should take them off. We were told to meddle in with the mass, after all."

Blinking the shock away, Gray cleared his throat. If this wasn't one of the hardest things he ever had to do, he didn't know what was. "Hm, yeah. I know, you're right." He scratched the back of his head. "Hm, by the way-"

"Miss Juvia, is it?" A young voice called out suddenly, making both of them turn their heads to see young Princess Rosie hopping in their direction, pink puffy dress and orange butterfly-shaped mask making her impossible to miss. "And sir Gray," she smiled widely, showing her missing front tooth. "We were told you were hired to protect us. Is it true you have magic powers?"

Juvia blinked at the child, who barely reached the height of her waist, her eyebrows high in surprise. "Oh, hm, well-."

"Rosie!" A young man in his late teenage years ran up to her, obviously alarmed. Probably Prince Joseph. "I told you not to bother them!" He turned to Gray and Juvia, nervously scratching his head. "My apologies."

Juvia giggled quietly, covering her mouth with the back of her hand. Gray smiled at the Prince. "Don't worry about it."

As the siblings walked away hand in hand, Juvia eyed them, smile still in place. "She's adorable."

"Yeah," Gray agreed with a laugh. "For royalty they seem to be pretty down to earth, and at such a young age, too."

Juvia nodded, although her mind seemed like it was busy somewhere else. "It's kind of weird that children are still allowed to the event, don't you think?" She met his eyes. "Who knows what could go down."

Gray nodded in return. He had been thinking the same thing since this afternoon, when they informed them of the Princess and the Prince's presence tonight. "Guess the people of Yerin don't take fire magic that seriously then, huh," he shrugged, frown traveling to his face slowly but surely.

Juvia let out a scoff. "They should meet Natsu, that would surely change the way they see fire magic."

"No kidding," Gray snorted.

A few minutes later and the guests started coming in by the dozen, and it wasn't long before the room was full of rich people chatting amongst themselves as they sipped on some probably over-the-top-expensive champagne. Gray and Juvia both declined the valet's offer for a drink. After all, best being as alert as possible when keeping an eye out for a criminal.

The first two hours passed somewhat eventless; people continued drinking while service was served with various platters of amuse-bouche brought up by the waiters one at a time. Classical music played in the background, enhanced by some kind of modern instrument Gray hadn't heard before. He and Juvia decided to split up for a while, studying every guest carefully but finding no one that particularly stood out or seemed suspicious.

Suddenly, three loud hits echoed throughout the room. "All hail Queen Beatrin, Queen of the Kingdom of Yerin."

"All hail Queen Beatrin!"

Gray and Juvia shared a look as the Queen stood on a balcony of a higher floor as the guests honored her presence. She had a few dozen guards surrounding her, standing on the sidelines as she began speaking to the people standing in the room. Juvia quickly scanned the room until she spotted Princess Rosie, standing close to two other girls her age who seemed like her close friends. Juvia smiled softly to herself, noticing the three girls were also surrounded by a handful of guards. Well, at least security wasn't lacking.

The Queen made a speech which lasted no more than a few minutes where she thanked everyone for their presence and proceeded to introduce the main event of the night; the auction.

Then the auction eventually started, much to the excitement of the guests. The items came and went, each being more valuable than the last. About an hour passed before finally the most valuable and awaited item was finally being presented.

"And now, our last and much anticipated item of the night; the infamous Troubled visage, oil painting from the legendary artist, M. Qwentoughlt."

The reaction came instantly from the crowd as people started outbidding each other left and right. It was without a doubt the moment with the most commotion.

And that's when Juvia noticed him.

The man retrieving from the crowd, head down, as if trying not to be noticed by anyone.

"Gray," Juvia called out to her partner in a murmur, then gestured to the man with a nod of her head. "That man."

"I just noticed him, too."

They both paused as they waited to see exactly where this man was headed. When he went straight for a door in dark corner though, there was no place for hesitation.

"Let's go," Gray said as they both started making their way towards that same door.

"Wasn't there a guard on the other side of that door?" Juvia mentioned with a frown, the bad feeling in her gut growing stronger.

When they finally reached it and stepped in through the door, Juvia spotted said guard who must've been standing there when the man came through, now spazzing like a madman on the ground as he struggled to put out the flames on his clothes.

Juvia reacted in a heartbeat and stretched out her arms, blasting water strong enough to instantly put out the fire ravaging the poor guard.

"Are you okay?" she asked in a hurry.

He nodded with a strangled breath, pointing down the hallway. "He went that way. The items are hidden in the fifth room on your left."

"Let's go," Gray called out as they both started running in said direction.

As they reached the room in question, Juvia reached for the doorknob and widened her eyes. "It's burning hot."

Swinging it open not a second later revealed half of the room already taken over by flames, blocking the way of the five guards who had been guarding the items. Juvia knew better than to waste any time as she overwhelmed the burning half of the room in waves, killing the fire within seconds and only leaving behind fumes from the damage already done.

"There he is!" Gray exclaimed as he spotted the man in question, hood over his frame, sprinting toward the exit. Gray ripped the damn masquerade mask off his face and immediately began running after him, extending his hand to blast shards of ice on the exit door the man had been targeting to make his escape. Cussing, the man frantically spun around and headed down the hallway instead, going straight for the ballroom.

Gray was getting ready to throw another round of shards directly at the man when he saw the sudden flash of a fireball aimed right at his head. He dodged it just in time, not slowing down as he chased the hooded man, Juvia following just a few steps behind.

"He's headed to the ballroom!" Juvia yelled when the man opened the door leading back to the crowd. She and Gray both watched in horror as he started throwing random fire balls around the room, screams echoing nearly immediately after.

"Shit," Gray cussed as both he and Juvia ran even faster and entered the ballroom at the same time.

Juvia directly targeted the spots where the fire had hit and extinguished it straight out. "Get the people out of here!" she screamed at the guards while throwing water balls left and right.

In the midst of all the panic, she managed to notice Princess Rosie's dress beginning to burn at the hem as the little girl screamed in fear, held up in a guard's arms. Juvia put out the fire not a second later with another wave, narrowing her eyes as she spotted the hooded man once more.

Bastard.

Gray had continued running after him and was now close enough to stop him. He threw a shard of ice at the man's feet, freezing him in place and causing him to fall forward. He twisted back instantly after, chaos in his eyes. Gray froze both of his hands at the same time, preventing him from throwing any more crazed fire around the room.

However, it didn't take long for the ice around his right hand to begin melting from him regenerating another speck of fire. Gray was about to throw more ice at him when suddenly a blast of water came flying next to him and crashed on the hooded man's face, nearly knocking him out.

"Now! Grab him!" He yelled at the guards standing around them. The men followed his instructions and successfully held him down, searching him for any more weapons or source of threat.

"He was holding this in his right hand," one of the guards called out to Gray and Juvia, handing over the item.

Gray analyzed it, meeting Juvia's surprised eyes. "This is a fire lacrima," she murmured in surprise.

Gray scoffed as he walked over to the mystery man. "So, you're not really a fire mage, are you?"

The man spit out saliva mixed in with blood, most likely caused from the shock of the water punch. He looked pissed from getting caught and stared at the two mages as if taunting them. One thing was sure, he wasn't going to answer.

"Answer him," someone yelled and pressed him to respond. With a quick look to his left, Gray noticed the voice had been X's. The criminal didn't move a muscle.

That's when Juvia's patience hit its limit and against her better judgement, she threw another water punch at the man's face, this time even harder.

The man screamed at the impact and coughed out water, a tear escaping his eye from the force of the attack. "Fine, fine!" he finally spoke out. "No, I'm not a mage! Is that what you rich fuckers wanted to hear?"

Gray scoffed humourlessly. "Which is why he couldn't throw more than one fire ball at a time," he explained to X. "He bought a rare magic item and used it. Without it, he's useless."

X frowned as he eyed the man's pathetic fame. "Alright. Take him away."

But a little someone interrupted the guards as she came running back into the ballroom, tears down her face. "Excuse me, sir." She spoke directly to the criminal.

Everyone turned to her with wide eyes as she continued her speech. "That wasn't very nice of you to put everyone's lives in danger. If you wanted money, you could've just asked."

The man stared at her in disbelief, quiet.

"You also ruined my dress, which just so happened to be my favorite one," she sniffled. "I would like you to apologize, please."

Everyone fell in silence as they waited for the man to answer. About ten seconds later, he still hadn't moved or talked, so Juvia took the matters into her own hands.

She stretched out her hand, beginning to from a swirl of water within her palm. "I think the young lady asked you a question."

The man's eyes widened as soon as he saw the water forming, panic spreading across his face. "N-no, please! Fine! I'm sorry!"

A little under an hour later and the Princess was safely tucked away in bed, ballroom empty of its guests, and the criminal temporarily away in an interrogating room before he was to be sent to the local prison.

"He admitted he had been working alone all these years," X informed Gray and Juvia when he returned from interrogating the criminal. "Shouldn't cause much of a problem now that we caught him, so we won't be needing you to stay for the four remaining days after all."

"Are you sure you can trust what he says?" Juvia asked.

"Oh, believe me, he didn't dare lie," X said, earning a smirk and a nod from Gray. "Not to worry, though, you will be receiving full compensation for your services tonight. The Queen wanted me to let you know how grateful she is for helping keep the Princess safe."

Juvia smiled. "Of course. It's the least we could do."

X smiled back, offering her a handshake, then Gray. "Thanks to both of you, really. You're more than welcome to take your time at the Royal Hotel. Your rooms and our services are available for the next four days, if you wish to stay."

They both thanked X and, walking through the main doors, left the palace together.

. . . . .

"Well, that was quite the…interesting day."

Gray couldn't help the scoff traveling past his lips. "To say the least." He tugged at his tie, loosening up its hold around his neck. A smile cracked free as he did so. "Still can't believe you made the man tear up for ruining the Princess' dress. Didn't know you could be so intimidating."

Gentle laughter spilled out of Juvia's mouth as she tucked a wild strand of hair behind her ear. "He deserved it! And all I did was ask for him to apologize."

Gray turned to her with one raised eyebrow, hands finding his pants pockets while they walked down the hallway, slowly getting closer to their respective rooms. "Ask?"

"Hmm," Juvia hummed with what resembled a pout. "Fine, more like…demanded."

"Yeah, more like, punched the shit out of him with water fists until he finally complied." Gray corrected with a choked laugh.

Juvia threw her hands in the air with a released huff, hiding her face in amused embarrassment. "Argh, fineeeee." She drew out the word. "I admit it, but that prick had it coming the moment he started throwing random spurts of fire around the ballroom."

"Hey," Gray said not a second later, hands raised in compliance. "I'm not saying you were wrong. Quite the opposite. Actually, I can't even recall a time when you were."

Juvia bumped her hip against his, joined hands behind her back and heels clicking on the marble tiles, almost playfully. "Oh, really?" She grinned and turned to face him when they reached their opposing rooms. "So, you're saying I'm always right?"

Gray studied her expression; the way she smiled and looked up at him with in a way he could only describe as sly. Shit, confident Juvia was definitely one of his weaknesses.

He smirked as he scratched the back of his neck. "I guess I am."

Maybe she hadn't expected him to play along, cause sure enough a light blush made its way to her cheeks as she blinked away, this time timidly.

"Hm, I guess I should go." She nodded in the direction of her own room. "You know, shower before bed and all."

He swore he saw her lick her lips just then. Swore. "Oh, yeah, same."

"I am pretty tired after all."

He stared at her a second longer before answering. "I am too, actually."

Juvia hummed in understanding, unlocking her door without breaking eye contact. "You know, if it gets lonely in your room, you can always join me in mine."

Had he just…heard that right?

Nearly choking on his own saliva, Gray took a moment to make sure his brain was still functioning before speaking. "Uh-uh…good idea. I'll keep that in mind."

Juvia flashed him one of those smiles, the ones that are just so goddamn breathtaking, before opening her door and slowly stepping into the room.

"Good," she murmured coyly. "Well then, goodnight, Gray-sama."

Gray unlocked his own door, feeling the distance between them grow larger. "Goodnight."

Juvia disappeared from sight as she closed her door. Silence took over the hallway. One, two, three, four-

Ah, screw it.

Gray felt his knuckles on Juvia's door before he could feel anything else, then her surprised yet not-so-much face came back into view. He didn't even hesitate as he spoke.

"I think you're right. It is terribly lonely in there."

Juvia shrugged, fighting to keep on a serious face. "Well, someone recently told me I was always right, so there's that."

Unable to resist any longer, both Gray and Juvia finally gave into laughter. She opened the door wider for him to pass, mouth opened wide in a smile "Come on in, Gray-sama."

After doing so, he heard her close the door behind him. "You know, I actually wasn't kidding about being tired." She admitted with a timid shrug of her shoulders.

Gray's lips broke out in a relieved smile. "In all honesty, I'm exhausted." A few seconds passed and the room fell back into a quieter state. "Maybe we can just…sleep?"

Juvia nodded once, walking a step closing to him. "Sleep sounds perfect. Although," she walked past him slowly, kicked off her heels one at a time, and undid the pins holding her hair tied, letting the soft blue curls fall onto her bare shoulders. "I really do need that shower."

Gray blinked, swallowing. "I-"

"You're…" Juvia started in a quiet voice, warmth traveling back to her face. "Welcome to join in, if you'd like."

And with that, she disappeared within the forbidden abyss that was the bathroom. Gray heard the water starting a few seconds later, just as his heart began thumping hard against his ribcage.

He knew such a level of intimacy was something rare. Something to be cherished. Something that didn't come so often in a lifetime.

Maybe even only once.

And he realized, as he made his way to the bathroom, that he didn't want anyone else to share it with.


A/N: Epilogue incoming in the next few days :)