Nightmare:
AN: How about some Gruvia angst?
What am I doing here? Gray wondered as he looked about the busy street he was standing in the middle of. How'd I even get here? And where is here?
He began to walk foward, brow furrowed. It was a cheerful place, wherever he was. It looked like some kind of open-air market place. People were selling their wares, showing off their purchases, talking, laughing. It wasn't that it was an unpleasant place to be, he just didn't remember how he got here. Still, everything looked oddly familiar...almost like he'd been here before. And yet, he hadn't.
Had he?
His brow furrowed as he rounded a corner, then he froze.
"No…" he gasped at the sight before him. His childhood home.
"No," he whispered again, realizing what was about to happen. "No, no, no, no!"
He broke into a sprint. "Please, no! Get out! Get out now!"
The blue sky flickered to black. The laughter turned to screams. The singing birds flying through the air were replaced by ash. The smooth roads broke into a shattered mess. Gray tripped over a cracked piece of cobble stone, collapsing just outside the house. As he pushed himself up he spotted him.
Deliora.
The monster reared his head back a roared.
Gray clenched his teeth, racing to the gate surrounding his old home, jumping it and heading for the now smashed front door. In the back of his mind her knew it was too late. This moment had replayed so many times in his mind. He knew his parents were going to be dead inside.
He pushed the crumpled door open.
There they were.
Bloody. Crushed. Broken. Lifeless.
His mother laid in the remnants of the foyer, her dark blue eyes staring blankly at the sky above her. A trail of blood trickled out of her mouth. One hand was still reaching out for the front door. That was all Gray could see, her face and her hand. The rest of her was hidden under the ceiling beams and roof-tiles that had crushed the like out of her.
"Mom!" he shouted, bolting forward, kneeling next to her, pushing her hair out of her face. "No! No...why?"
He his face away from her, only to find his father lying in what was once their backyard, blood trickling down the gash the demon had given him. Gray wasn't sure if it was that head wound or any of the other various gashes covering Silver's body that had finally killed him. Gray ran to him, collapsing onto his knees just in front of him, tears pouring down his face.
"Dad...Dad...please...don't…"
A scream tore through the night. Gray shuddered, his entire body running cold.
"Juvia?" he gasped, forcing himself to his feet as he turned and looked, a strangled cry catching in his throat.
There his wife was, at the base of the hill the house had once been on, hunched over, body shakign violently. A few feet in front of her, Deliora turned his head, his eyes narrowing in on her.
"NO!" Gray bolted. "Juvia! Juvia, run!"
She didn't though. She stayed put. Gray finally reached her, grabbing her by she shoulder. "Juvia, we have to-"
He stopped, going numb instantly. As he pulled her shoulder up he could see what she had been huddling over.
Bianca, a bloody puncture wound going right through her little heart, her eyes closed, face pale with death.
Meeko, his body limp, his head turned at an odd angle, face still tear-stained as his big, blue, eyes stared blankly ahead, blood trickling out of his nose and mouth.
"STORM!" Juvia shrieked, reaching her hand out in front of her.
Gray looked up.
Deliora was plodding it's way slowly, menacingly towards them. Standing between them and the monster was Storm, holding his hands out in front of him, forming a water cyclone.
"Storm!" Gray jumped up, running towards him. "Storm, run! Get out of there! Storm! STORM! STORM! SSSSTTTTOOOOORRRRMMMMM!"
The demon reached him. Storm released the cylcone, but it did nothing but splash the monster. Deliora glanced down at the boy, lifted his giant, ugly, foot, and stamped down on the young boy.
Gray's legs gave out from under him. Juvia screamed from behind him. Deliora began plodding towards them, leaving Storm's body to bleed out where it lay…
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
"NO!" Gray shrieked, jolting upright. It was dark. There was no demon. No fire. No blood. Just an opened window, the sea-foam green curtains dancing lazily in the breeze that blew through it. On one side of the window was large portrait of him and Juvia on their wedding day. On the other, three clocks frozen and three different times. Under the clocks were the words "When time stood still…" And under those words were pictures of newborn Storm, Bianca, and Meeko.
He was in his and Juvia's bedroom.
Gray let out a sigh of relief. It was only a dream. He leaned forward slightly, head lowering. He willed his hands to rub over his face, but he couldn't get them to move. They were shaking too badly. He closed his eyes, trying to sooth the burning that came from unshed tears. He could hear himself breathing, his teeth still clenched tight. He forced himself to take a deep breath and turned to look to the other side of the bed.
Juvia was still there, sound asleep, curled into a small ball, her hands clutched to her chest. She wasn't screaming. She wasn't hysterical. She wasn't heartbroken. She was peaceful, just as she should have been. Gray finally got his hands to work. He reached over and pushed her hair out of her face. His hand still shook, making the task difficult, but he somehow managed. She had a small smile on her lips. At least one of them was having sweet dreams.
Gray let out a small sigh. She was okay. He slipped out of the bed and headed into the hallway, not even bothering to put something on over his boxers, nor stopping to wonder when during the night he'd shed his pajamas. He walked straight to the room across from his and Juvia's a pushed the door open, heading right over the small bed in the corner.
Meeko was sound asleep. No bloody face. No broken neck. There was nothing wrong with him at all, except that he was missing one of his socks (which was impressive considering he was wearing a onsie). He had a stuffed penguin under his arm, his blankets tangled all around him. Gray gently unwound the quilt from around his son's limbs before tucking him back in. Even seeing him safe and sound, Gray couldn't get the image of seeing his youngest child dead in his mother's arms out of his mind. He gently ran a hand over Meeko's hair, staring intently at him, watching him sleep until this peaceful image replaced the horrid one haunting him.
When he'd finally memorized every detail of his son's sleeping from he stood up, walked back into the hall, and pushed open the door to the next room. Just like her little brother, Bianca was sleeping peacfully in her bed, curled into a tight ball just like her mother. There was no stab wound to the heart. Her cheeks were just as rosy as they always had been. Gray walked to her bedside and stood over her, reaching out to gently stroke her cheek. He took a deep breath. His little girl, his only daughter was safe. Just like with Meeko, Gray made himself memorize the scene in front of him so he could use it to block away the images of the nightmare.
After a few moments he slipped back into the hall, making his way to the last room in the hall. Storm lay on his stomach, a trail of drool trickling down his chin as he snored softly. Like Meeko, his blanket was tangled all around him. Gray began unwinding it. Even as he did this, he could feel his heartbeat quickening. It was bad enough seeing Meeko and Bianca dead, but to actually watch Storm get killed? Not being able to stop it? Only being a few steps away from him as he was crushed?
It was just a dream! It was just a dream! It was just a dream!
Still, as Gray tucked Storm back in he could feel tears stinging his eyes once more.
It was just a dream!
For now…
No!
Gray gritted his teeth. Memories began flooding back, but not from the nightmare, but of that day.
That day those Twilight Ogres tried to kidnap Nashi. Though all of the "Birthday Gang" had come to her aid, Storm was the one who led the charge. Storm was the one who said later than night if anyone treated Nashi poorly that he'd show them. Storm was the one that whenever any of the children were scared would comfort them by saying "Don't worry, I'll protect you."
The older Storm got, the more protective he got. He was the first of the "Birthday Gang" to become an older sibling (not counting Persephone who was fifteen minutes older than Koree) and it showed. He was quickly turning into that one friend that acted like a big brother towards everyone, and while Gray was proud of Storm and his kind-hearted nature, it also terrified him.
He feared the day Storm would jump to protect one of his friends and thereby failed to protect himself. Just as he had, in the nightmare, died failing to protect his family. That could never happen, though, Deliora was long gone. That, of course, did not mean that there weren't other dangers out there that Storm might face.
Gray shuddered at the thought, running his hand over Storm's hair. He'd promised himself the day Storm was born that he'd do everything in his power to protect him. That was much easier to do when Storm was a baby that could fit into the crook of his arm, though. In the blink of an eye his boy had turned seven years old. He was growing up fast. Soon he'd have to brave the dangers of the world, without his father by his side.
Gray knew it had to happen. That it was for the best. That he couldn't keep his children small, helpless, and at home forever.
But that didn't change the fact that he was terrified.
Storm stirred slightly, muttering in his sleep. Fearing he'd wake his boy up, Gray turned and walked out, closing the door behind him. He leaned against the wall, tugging at his hair. No matter what he did the nightmare still lingered, driving him towards insanity.
His children were his pride and joy. They were the center of his world. If he were to lose even one of them….
...but all three?
"I can't," he whispered to himself, fighting back tears. "I can't lose my babies…"
"What makes you think you will?"
Gray turned and found Juvia walking towards him, face etched in worry.
"Darling, what's wrong?" she asked, setting a hand against his cheek. "You're trembling! What happened?"
"Nothing," Gray muttered. "Just had a nightmare, that's all?"
"About the children?"
He shuddered. "Yeah."
Juvia cupped his face in her hands. Gray gently grabbed onto her wrists, leaning into her touch, closing his eyes, breathing deep, one tear finally managing to escape from his eye. Juvia caught it with her thumb, wiping it away.
"Sorry," Gray whispered.
"No, don't be," Juvia told him, pulling him into a hug. Gray wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face against her shoulder. Finally, he felt himself relaxing as she stroked his hair.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Juvia asked after a few minutes.
Gray shrugged. "Not much to tell."
"That can't be true," she said. "Not if it's bothering you this badly."
Gray sighed, tightening his arms around her. "It was like the ones I have about my parents. Only this time…" he swallowed a lump in his throat. "...it wasn't just them that Deliora…"
"It was the children?" Juvia asked when he didn't finish.
He nodded.
She tightened her arms around his neck. "It was just a dream. The children are fine. They're safe in bed. Come," she released him from the hug and took his hands in hers. "We'll go check on them. That'll help."
Though he'd already checked in on the children a few minutes ago, he let Juvia lead him to each of their bedsides. He watched as she leaned down and kissed each of them on the head before following her example.
"Come on," she whispered once they'd closed their bedroom doors back, not having to ask if he was still feeling shaken. "A calming cup of tea will help."
She sat him at the table as she went about filling up a kettle, putting it on the stove, and digging through the cabinets for the tea bags.
"Juvia?" he asked as she dropped a bag into the kettle and set the top back on.
"Yes?" she turned towards him.
"Come here," he held his arm out to her. She smiled softly, walked towards him, took his hand in her own and let him pull her into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in her shoulder. She began running her fingers through his hair, brows furrowed in worry.
"Anything else I can do?" she asked.
He shook his head. "Just let me hold you for a little while."
She smiled, cuddling closer against him. "Okay."
He took in a deep breath, turning his head slightly to nuzzle his face against her neck. She was safe. She was okay. She wasn't wailing in agony so the children were safe. It really had just been a dream. A sigh of relief escaped him as the last of the remnants of the nightmare melted away. He'd needed this.
To be close to her.
To hear her heartbeat.
To feel her body heat.
To touch her neck with his lips, just over her pulse.
To hear her soft giggle as he continued kissing her.
To take in her scent as she scraped her nails his shoulder blade.
To know she was still alive, she was still his, they were still in love.
To know that nothing had actually changed.
He didn't even need the tea she'd made him, but he drank it anyway, happy to have an excuse to stay up with her as he was still reluctant to go back to bed. The minute he'd swallowed downt he last of the drink, though, she whisked him back to their room. As if reading his mind, though, the minute he lied down she guided him into his arms, letting him pillow his head on her chest. He clung to her like he was a frightened child as he listened to her heartbeat. It was a bit pathetic, actually. She didn't seem to mind, though. She kept stroking his hair and smiling at him until he fell back to sleep.