Morning came. And that, to Gray, meant that he was up at 11 am. Gray managed to slip from the Inn, having evaded Juvia and had a quick cup of coffee and then found himself walking down the overly decorated streets.
It really seemed like the town lived and breathed Christmas.
And that was something that was appalling to Gray.
The snow crunched underfoot but the noises and scents and lights were too much. Gray walked faster down the main road until he finally noticed something that changed his whole demeanour.
If it were a film, the whole town would be in black and white and then there would be this beacon of light and colour. It called to him. I made the world become colourful again.
It was a bookstore.
Gray knew that he shouldn't be surprised for seeing that this nearly hidden town had one but it just lifted his spirits instantly. Gray strode to it, almost like how metal is attracted to a magnet.
He walked inside and, beyond the noise of the overhead bell, everything was silent and still.
'But… it says "open", right?" Gray turned to look back and, yes, it was open. But there was no-one in sight.
"Hello?" Gray stepped further inside, taking in the comforting surroundings with walls covered by bookshelves, a line of tables overflowing with books and the counter and two very comfortable-looking areas that just demanded to be sat on and to have a nice read. Gray's hand itched to find a book and lose himself in that world for a while, to forget all about his current predicament and uncomfortable place.
"Is anyone…" a blond haired girl appeared from the backroom and her eyes caught Gray instantly. "Oh, sorry. Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked walking towards Gray in a way that he'd experienced before but in a menacing way while she only seemed to radiate curiosity.
"Huh. No, I don't think so. I was just… yeah, just having a look around. Books, you know?" he ended with a smile. And that seemed to have an effect on the girl because her smile radiated happiness.
"Yes. I do know. Books are the best, right?" she said with a dreamy sigh. Then she extended her hand, "I'm Lucy, co-owner of Celestial Books."
"I'm Gray." He said, shaking her hand firmly.
Something shifted in the way she was looking at him but it didn't seem off to Gray.
"Yes, Gray. You're the person from out of town." She stated plainly.
"You're all very well-informed here, huh?" Gray asked with a small chuckle.
"Heh, it's part of being in a small town. The gossip vine is pretty fast here." She waved towards the soft green cushions in one of the reading areas Gray had been admiring before. "Come, sit. My partner should be coming soon. Do you want to eat something? Drink? Read?"
"Huh, I'm fine just like this, thanks." Gray sat down and waited for a beat. "I wasn't expecting such a rich bookstore in such a small town."
"Oh, we love being surrounded by books. We knew that it would be one of the goals for us to reach, when we returned to our hometown." Lucy said easily.
"I see." Gray nodded only to pause when a blue haired girl, seeming a bit sleepy still, placed a tray with a teapot and a couple of cups on the side. On the other side of the tray were some small cookies, very delicate-looking cookies.
"Hi, welcome to our bookstore. I'm Levy." She newer girl greeted before plonking herself down onto an armchair.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Gray." He was starting to stand up when Lucy waved at him to stay seated. "I was just telling Lucy that you have a lovely place in here."
"Thank you. It has been a lot of work but it's been a lot of fun too." Levy answered.
"And when you have a side job…" Lucy added.
"Huh?" Gray looked between the two, confused but noticing the twin smiles the two were exchanging. "Is there something I'm missing?" he asked.
"Oh. Ah, sorry." Lucy said after the two exchanged a chuckle.
"See, we don't just love books," Levy said conspiratorially. "We also write them."
"Try to." Lucy interjected.
"Haha, true. It's still a long path to having anything done, really." Levy said with a sigh while leaning bonelessly on the sofa. Lucy looked fondly at her.
"That's very interesting." Gray said, interestedly. He was leaning forward in his seat and could feel a small bubble of excitement in the pit of his stomach. Something was telling him that there was a lot of potential in this meeting he was just having.
"Getting to the end of a story is harder than crawling over hot coals." Lucy mumbled, finally bringing her cup of tea to her lips. She let out a sigh and got a small cookie, looking at it morosely.
"Writer's block?" Gray attempted.
"So much of it." Levy agreed from her lump on the sofa. "But! It will get better. I know that we both will be able to get over this bump on the road and get back on track." She and Lucy exchanged smiles and held their hands in a comforting gesture.
"So, you write together or…?" Gray grabbed one of the cookies himself.
"Oh no. We have different ways of writing." Lucy said with a small laugh. "And different genres too."
"But we do read each other's work." Levy chimed in.
"That sounds very interesting. Would you mind telling me more? I'm kind of in the business."
"Really?" they said in unison.
"Yeah, you have some of our books in here. I-" Gray was saying but then the doorbell rang and someone entered the store.
"Gray-sama! There you are. Juvia has been looking for you everywhere." She said slightly breathless.
"Juvia. What happened?"
"Lyon-sama. The WiFi is back and you are to call him before lunchtime, and as soon as possible." She walked to the cosy reading area and extended her phone. "Do make the call, Gray-sama."
"Wait a minute, I'll call him from my phone. Ladies," he looked apologetically to Lucy and Levy before standing and starting to head to the door, "it was a pleasure and I would love to talk to you a bit more. Later?"
"Feel free to come back." Lucy said, standing from her chair. Levy was on her side and waving him and Juvia goodbye.
"Okay, I'll call Lyon now." Gray grumbled as soon as they walked out the door and he started tinkering with his phone. Only to pause as his name was called. He turned right on time to see Levy running towards him, his coat in her hand. He'd forgotten it again and just had a shirt on.
"You forgot your coat." Levy said pleasantly. "Really, do come back. We wouldn't be averse to talking a bit more. Books are our business." She said with a wink.
"I will, don't worry." Gray nodded to her and turned on his heel, walking to where Juvia was throwing daggers Levy's way. But he paid it no mind, already pressing the call button.
"Yeah?" Lyon's bored voice came from the other side.
"You're the one who told me to call ASAP. What's up?" Gray asked curiously.
"Why, how silly of me to want to have business things going smoothly." Lyon snarked. "Just wanted to inform you that the change of plans about your meeting with the new author have been accepted and, since you don't know when you'll be able to get there but most definitely won't be there on the agreed date, now you have a videocall scheduled with mister Jellal Fernandes. Get ready for it and don't shame us."
"Hey! What are you talking about?" Gray interjected in indignation.
"The necessary information has been forwarded to you and your assistant. And yes," the pointed pause had Gray wanting to plunge his hand inside the phone and punch Lyon right in the mouth, "don't make Ur ashamed."
"You're an asshole." Gray grit out.
"So are you. Bye." And he hung up.
Gray stood in the middle of the sidewalk, looking down at the phone in his hand. He felt the urge to punch something. Which wasn't uncommon for him after talking to Lyon. They had some phases of intense clashing.
"It's time to eat, Gray-sama. Juvia has found a nice restaurant." And with that she nearly dragged him to the Thunder God Tribe restaurant.
The bespectacled light brown haired woman that greeted them also took them to their table. She handed the menus and left the pair to peruse them.
Gray was relieved to notice that there was no seasonal holiday theme or anything on the menu. For a moment it was as if the air were more breathable. And the scent in the air was pretty yummy too.
It looked like cod was a specialty of the house. The two ended up choosing their dishes and making agreeable conversation. Juvia was sneaking some glances and Gray had to ask.
"Is something the matter?" he entwined his fingers and leaned forward, patiently.
"No, Gray-sama. Juvia just wondered why you were at that bookstore." She answered in her customary way.
"I was just walking about town and found that quaint corner. It was nice, and the owners were too." Gray noticed that when he mentioned Levy and Lucy the lines in Juvia's expression became harsh, almost as if she were outraged. "It was nice to find a bookstore. Also, I did notice some of our books in there."
"Oh? Which of the books?" she asked.
"I noticed Mattan's "Idol of Ice and Fire" right away – that cover sure is something." That elicited a snort from Juvia. "Then there was Vidaldus' weird "Ode to Music" and Wally's "Cubist Series". I'm sure there were other of ours in there too."
"Who would have thought that our company would reach this place, right, Gray-sama?"
"They seem to have quite an eclectic collection of books." Gray said in wonder. "It doesn't surprise me, though. Those two sure love books."
"Juvia believes that."
At that moment their food arrived and the conversation died down a bit as they dug in.
After finishing and paying for the meals, they found themselves walking down the street once more.
"What does Gray-sama think of having dessert in there?" Juvia pointed to the bakery that was in between the coffeehouse and the teahouse.
"Sure, why not?"
Once there, Juvia chose a lavish-looking tiramissu that came in a tall glass. Gray just went with a slice of cheesecake. The flavours were exquisite and it had been a while since Gray had had such a delicious dessert.
"Hi Gray. Juvia." Mirajane greeted them, coming from the back door with a box of what supposedly were pastries in her arms. "Are you coming to the celebration?"
"Celebration?" Gray asked.
"We are going to start the town's Christmas celebrations. We are a bit serious about the holiday," she said with a laugh.
"Is that everything?" a red headed woman came from the door and nodded to the boy who was at the counter and she waited.
"Oh, this is Erza, the owner and the force behind all the amazing goodies from Titania Bakery. Erza, these are Gray and Juvia, two of my guests at the inn."
"Pleasure to meet you." Erza said politely before turning to Mirajane and, now with some intensity in her gaze asked, "so you don't need anything else?"
"No, this is enough. I'll talk to you later. You guys want to come with?" was the huffed reply from Mirajane.
"Juvia would like to see."
And with that they went with Erza and Mirajane to the town square where a crowd was already gathered.
There were lots of people and it didn't take long for Gray to lose sight of his three companions. He found himself in the middle of a lot of unknown people and crushed from all sides with the feeling of expectation and excitement that came with Christmas. It was… sickening, to Gray.
Gray was squished and bumped and moved along to the crowd in such a way that he found himself beside the man from the coffee shop, Natsu.
Natsu was looking at him for a while before he held Gray's hand and started to walk in the opposite direction to the crowd.
What the hell? Gray thought. But he went along, anything was better than the happiness and excitement about Christmas.
Natsu had slipped away from the coffeehouse to go check the start of the celebrations. Lisanna had winked at him so he had her blessing, at least. Then again, most of the townspeople were gathered in the main square so he wouldn't be missed at the café.
The air was filled with energy and joy. There was a lot of excitement which also permeated the air, along with the conversations and someone was singing and this way the old man certainly wouldn't be able to make his speech. Unless Laxus gave the death glare that always silenced the crowd, that is.
Natsu was relaxed, a small smile on his lips, as he surveyed the crowd.
That was when he noticed that there was something strange, that didn't exactly fit the scene. And it had to do with the stranger, Gray.
Natsu could see that he was not relaxed or happy. He was giving off the opposite impression, actually. Tense posture, big eyes that were looking around as if trying to find an exit, anxiety screaming off every line of his body.
No, Gray didn't seem to be enjoying the beginning of the celebrations. And the crowd seemed to be pressing down on him and making it even worse. And Natsu felt compelled to do something.
So he did.
Walking through the crowd he approached Gray and paused close to him. And then Natsu considered his options.
Coming to a conclusion, Natsu grabbed Gray's hand and started walking in the opposite direction to the town square.
Natsu knew just the place to help Gray calm down a little. They just had to walk in the woods for a bit, on a not so clear path but Natsu knew the trek by heart.
Gray had tried to ask, possibly where Natsu was taking him but Natsu just strode faster. The two making their way up the hillside and on the snowy path.
Natsu led them to a clear area, the trees becoming sparser and where they overlooked the town.
The grey light was dimming and so the lights emanating from the town square, where the large tree must have been just lit, and from the town, really, reached them.
It was pretty. Natsu couldn't deny it. No-one could deny it.
And it seemed to be having a beneficial effect on Gray too. He seemed to be calming down, relaxing. There was a ghost of a smile on his lips, even.
Natsu walked to the fallen log he usually used and sat down on it. He looked at Gray who was still looking towards the town.
"Want to talk about what happened before?" he offered. "I don't judge."
Gray snorted and turned towards Natsu, walking to sit beside him.
"Was it that noticeable?" he asked in a toneless voice.
"Huh, only if one's looking towards your general area?" Natsu answered and grimaced. "You didn't seem to be having a good time."
"And I wasn't." Was the simple answer.
"I know that it's not my business or anything but… why?" Natsu asked and Gray turned his upper body sharply to him, a mix of emotions flickering in his expression, too difficult to apprehend.
"It's… complicated history." Gray ran a hand through his hair, forlornly.
"Isn't it always? Complicated?" Natsu muttered as he looked up at the quickly darkening sky.
"Okay, this is very odd of me to do but," he stopped himself with a snort before shaking his head and continuing, "the thing is, my parents died on Christmas Eve, when I was little. Since then Christmas has lost its… everything, really."
"Shit. That's… I'm so sorry." Natsu said, understanding.
"It's okay. I have a really great family and life is good but this time of the year… it's always rough." Gray leaned forward, his elbows resting in his knees and hands clasping together. He was looking at them, frowning.
"I can only imagine." Natsu said, understandingly. "And being stuck in a town that loves Christmas and where the high season is actual Christmas… it has to be almost unbearable."
"That doesn't help." Gray said while looking at Natsu, a mirthless smile on his lips.
"Definitely. But, I guess I do understand. Christmas has also lost some of its luster to me." He was looking at Gray straight in the eye.
"You too?"
"Huh, yes and no." At Gray's confused expression Natsu hurried to explain, "see, my father is a linguist – and a pretty renowned one. And he basically is always traveling the world. Like, I really mean always."
Gray tilted his head to the side.
"So he doesn't come home for Christmas?" Gray asked, though his expression already showed that he knew the answer.
"He hasn't been home for three years." Natsu said with a sad sigh. "We do keep in touch, I talked to him on the phone this morning. But…" Natsu stood up briskly and kicked the powdery snow. "It's probably a bit selfish of me but I wish he would come home, we've talked about that but something always comes up. But talking on the phone, through email or a videocall, it just isn't the same, you know?" he said in exasperation but then caught himself. "Aaand I'm so sorry for blabbing like this. Your situation is so much worse and I'm here running my mouth and-"
"Hey, hey, don't worry." Gray cut in, standing up too and grasping Natsu's flailing hands. "It's not an easy season. It's okay."
"But, the funny thing is that I do enjoy Christmas. All the happy energy and good will in the air. It feels like a new beginning, you know?" Natsu said moving their hands a little, but they remained held together.
"That is kind of weird, to me." Gray shook his head. "No, to me, Christmas is grey and drab. And everyone is just pretending."
"That's a very cynical way to look at it." Natsu said with a snort.
"What do you know? I'm a bit of a cynic…" Gray stated dryly.
"You may be that but I'm an optimist. And think that good things do come. As for me, I just get busy and hang out with my friends." Natsu said with a good-natured shrug.
"My friends are also busy and my family knows not to ask. For these days I prefer my solitude. To be home with my books."
"That's boring. You should have a snowball fight or something. Go out and drink hot cocoa."
"You'll be surprised to know that, I don't do snowball fights."
"Oh, you don't?" Natsu said with a smirk, taking a few steps back.
"Don't you dare." Gray threatened.
"What?" Natsu questioned, angelically.
Before long half-assed snowballs were flying and laughter was echoing on the woods.
After agreeing on a draw – which was only because it was getting too dark and the lack of light going down the hillside made it dangerous.
They went back to the town, feeling a bit lighter and, strangely, more connected to the other.
As they got to the main street Natsu took a deep breath. He didn't lie, he really enjoyed Christmas and all the things that came with it.
"You're back to civilization." Natsu said dramatically. "Now you can find your way back."
"You call this civilization?" Gray asked teasingly. "Thanks, though." He stopped for a beat and opened his mouth. But he closed it and smiled at Natsu. "I'll be going now. See you tomorrow, maybe."
"Sure." Natsu waved at him as he started heading to the coffeehouse. 'I think I might have a friend in him…' he thought while there was a touch more pep in his step.