It's Monday! I had so much fun writing that sequence for Gray and Juvia (and we'll need it, especially considering what I have planned...), so I'm glad you enjoyed it! Big thank you to everyone who left feedback. It's always great to hear that you guys are having fun with this.
darling spider: lol! Don't worry, we'll get 'em. ;) Thanks again!
- K. Chandler
Gray let out the breath he had been holding, pressing the heels of his palms against his aching eyes.
Lyon's breathing was still shallow, but it had evened considerably once the poison no longer ravaged his system. He was still frighteningly pale, the color just starting to return to his ashen face, but he was sleeping soundly now. Fighting his way through the agonizing grip of the poison had left him exhausted.
Lucy had come just in time.
Levy and Cana hadn't returned to confirm the diagnosis yet, but Gray was confident that the worst was behind them.
"I think that's it," Lucy said, dragging a weary hand across her forehead. "It'll be a few days before he's on his feet again, but he should be out of danger now."
"Thank you."
Lucy gave a tight nod. "Gray, I…"
"What is it?" he asked.
Lucy's eyes flitted toward the door, shuffling her feet nervously. "Never mind."
Gray walked Lucy back to the rooms that the Heartfilias had been staying in.
"Well?" asked Heartfilia, rising as they entered.
"Everything is fine now. Thank you both for your assistance," said Gray.
"Of course," simpered Mr. Heartfilia. "I would imagine there will be an appropriate gesture of appreciation?"
"I'm sure that once Prince Lyon is feeling better, he'd be happy to discuss payment."
"And you?" asked Heartfilia.
"What about me?"
"My Lucy has saved your life and now the prince's. I think you owe her a debt of gratitude."
"And I am grateful," said Gray diplomatically.
"Perhaps you should consider taking her as your wife, then."
"What?!" Gray sputtered.
"Father, no," said Lucy.
Heartfilia continued as if she hadn't spoken. "Marrying my daughter would guarantee the prince's safety and your own."
"Is that a threat?" hissed Gray, his voice low.
"How dare you, Captain! I would never—"
"No, of course not," said Gray smoothly. "I was only asking. Seeing as your words sounded an awful lot like a confession."
"All I meant was that it would be in your best interest to have ties to the Heartfilias. Having a healer at the ready wouldn't hurt either. The prince is alive, thanks to Lucy. Next time, we may not be so lucky."
Gray clenched his teeth, resisting the urge to lash out with his words, or worse, with his fists. "Thank you again, Lucy. Good night to both of you."
Gray didn't care what Jude Heartfilia said. There was absolutely no way that Lucy was the girl who had saved his life after the explosion on the Fairy Tail. She didn't seem to be very skilled with her healing magic. She had managed to save Lyon's life, but he was still very ill.
On the other hand, whoever had healed Gray had done an incredibly thorough job. He hadn't felt any lingering pain or exhaustion when he woke up on the beach. It hadn't escaped Gray's notice that the old scar on his side—the one that ached whenever the weather got cold and rainy—hadn't bothered him since he had washed up in Akane Bay that morning.
He had only been semi-lucid at the time, but Gray had some scattered recollections about being rescued. He could remember somebody taking his hand—much like Juvia had done to Lyon—before all the pain had smoothed away into nothing.
But that wasn't the only thing that was bothering him.
Knightwalker had relayed that one of her men had apprehended a party-goer who was carrying a small vial of pale blue powder. The mystery substance had been sent to Levy for investigation and the man had been taken into custody. He had confessed immediately, insisting that he was working alone.
Gray didn't believe it for an instant. Again, it was far too convenient. It was almost as if he was a plant, someone who wanted to be caught in order to divert attention from the real perpetrator.
Then there was the haunted look in Juvia's eyes when Lucy had arrived. The way Juvia had stiffened, her cheeks going pale, hadn't escaped Gray's notice.
Something here didn't add up.
Suspicions were all well and good, but without evidence, nothing could be done. With a little more time, Gray had no doubt that he could get to the bottom of this. But time was one thing they didn't have. Whoever was behind this attempt was sure to try again.
An idea sprang into Gray's mind. One that made his gut churn with revulsion. But it might just be enough.
Reluctantly, he sought out his new ally. The one person he never thought he'd team up with.
"A word, Knightwalker?" he asked.
She was still standing guard outside of Lyon's room. She gave him a wary look but nodded. She didn't interrupt as Gray shared his suspicions, explaining his plan in detail.
Knightwalker listened without interruption, her expression inscrutable. When he had finished, she crossed her arms over her chest, giving Gray an appraising glance. "Are you asking for my help, Fullbuster?"
Gray exhaled slowly, letting the air out through his teeth. "…I can't pull this off on my own," he admitted.
"What about your lieutenant or that buffoon of a gunnery master?" she asked, her lips curving disdainfully.
"They can't know," said Gray. "I don't want them suspecting that anything's wrong."
If Cana and Natsu knew what his intentions were, it would put the plan at risk. While he had no doubts about their loyalty, they would be watched as closely as he would. In order to guarantee this plan's success, he would have to fool them as fully as he deceived the others.
"Very well," said Captain Knightwalker finally. "You have my full support."
"Thank you," he said.
"I'm not doing this for you," she said shortly.
"I know, I know. It's all for my idiot cousin," said Gray.
Knightwalker shook her head. "My loyalty lies with the Kingdom of Fiore. For the time being, that would be Prince Lyon. But as we've seen, the monarchy is fragile. It could well be another," she said, giving Gray a pointed look.
"Well, hopefully not too soon," said Gray. "In fact, preferably never."
"Yes," she agreed, quite possibly for the first time in all the years they'd known one another.
"Y'know, I never thought I'd say this, Knightwalker," admitted Gray. He let out a reluctant breath. "I trust you."
She blinked at him, taking an involuntary step back. And for a moment, she just stared. Then she opened her mouth as if to speak.
But Gray turned away, retreating down the hall without waiting for a response. The pieces were in motion, but there was still work to be done.
His next destination was Lyon's private study. With the prince out of commission, his study was empty.
Scowling, Gray retrieved two blank sheets of paper before taking a seat at the writing desk. He uncapped the inkwell, dunking a quill into it twice. Then he began composing a letter that he never thought he'd have to write.
Gray's heart gave a guilty twist. Juvia would be distraught when she found out. He hated the idea of doing this to her. But this was bigger than either of them.
Nobody had used the word assassination yet, but there was no other word to describe what almost happened tonight. The few years he had spent living with Lady Milkovich and her daughter had taught him quite a bit about the politics of the ruling class. Schemes of this nature tended to be much more elaborate than the eradication of a single royal. Though Gray doubted that he was in any immediate danger, the entire kingdom could be at stake.
With so much to lose, the feelings of two people were of little importance. He pushed away the memory of holding her, the way it felt to take her in his arms. Gray only hoped that Juvia could forgive him for what he was about to do.
After reading over the letter one more time, Gray folded it carefully and sealed it with wax. Again, he knocked on the door of the room the Heartfilias were staying in for the night.
"Yes?" Jude Heartfilia was the one who answered.
Gray matched his gaze with steely eyes. "I thought about what you said. This is my response." Gray thrust the letter into Heartfilia's hand. Then he stormed down the hall without another word.
There was no turning back now.
Gray returned to Lyon's chambers, this time to see the prince. He passed Captain Knightwalker wordlessly, rapping his knuckles on the door before entering.
Lyon stirred when the door opened, blinking blearily.
"Gray…" he mumbled, trying to prop himself up on unsteady arms.
"You don't have to get up," said Gray. "Just wanted to let you know that I'm taking care of things here. You can rest easy."
"What? What's that supposed to mean?"
"I'm marrying Lucy," said Gray flatly.
"Gray, no," rasped Lyon, shaking his head weakly. "You don't have to—"
"I've made up my mind," interrupted Gray. "And I've already made the arrangements with Mr. Heartfilia."
Boom. How many of you saw that coming? ;)
So, I played around with different reasons why Gray might turn away from Juvia and put her bet with Jose in jeopardy. Is he under some sort of spell? Maybe he's just fickle? Or there was some sort of misunderstanding? Disney solved that problem by having the sea-witch run interference by disguising herself as a pretty girl and using Ariel's voice... I don't think Gray's dumb enough to fall for something like that and I'm hoping that he's got more commitment than to run after the first pretty girl that comes along. In this case, I wanted Gray to make the decision himself. (Seeing as someone almost died, we sort of forced his hand, but he's ultimately responsible.) Plus, it's a head-nod at his undercover stint in Avatar, which I don't have full details on, (because I don't read the manga, so any further similarity will likely end here).
Don't get me wrong, what Gray does here is pretty awful, and I think we need to recognize that. But I hope we can forgive him a little bit, because this isn't something he wants to do. For anyone who didn't catch it, because of my use of perspective, Gray's made Juvia his priority, so he recognizes how much this would hurt her... and he's completely failed to consider who else will be affected by his little sting operation. As you can probably guess...there's angst and misery ahead. A lot of it. ;)
Next time, in Silence, Juvia's world falls apart: What was that witch doing with her magic? There was no doubt that the ring that Lucy was wearing contained Juvia's powers.
Stop back next Monday for the next installment, or just follow me, Karine of R011ingThunder.
