"Hey where's Juvia?" Gray looked back and forth seeing not trace her.
"She just started spinning towards the cottage with Frosch." Rogue pointed out as Juvia resurfaced from a slope in the earth like a wild blue top. Even though Amefurashi was small it was surprising easy to lose track of someone with all the hills.
"She probably wants to beat us there. Probably left a teacup in the sink… and wants to clean it up before you get inside. That girl is such a perfectionist." Gray chuckled shaking his head remembering how mad she got about his messes.
Meanwhile the lamps turned on in their tiny cottage.
"Yeah." Rogue agreed a smile playing in his quiet voice.
The two raven haired mages entered the warm cottage together and where greeted by Frosch who was bouncing up and down with excitement.
"Miss Juvia is making lentil and ham bone soup." Frosch purred.
"Oh wow sounds great." Rogue bent down and patted the top of Froschs head." Let's take a seat somewhere we don't want to get in Miss Juvias way."
"Oh yeah come sit on the couch we have a L.V., books, Sorcerer Weekly, chess and ummm Juvias notebooks." Gray rubbed the back of his head feeling a little disgruntled he was not used to having guests and did not know how to attend to them. Even in Magnolia he never had guests in his apartment.
Rogues face lit up with 'Juvias Notebooks'.
"Lady Juvia are these your studies." He said in a giddy tone that freaked Gray out. It was odd to see the stoic Rogue act so out of the ordinary.
"The leather-bound ones are Juvias finished studies, most of those are about water magic and the spirals are just notes and half cooked thoughts, Oh and those art books are Gray-samas they are very interesting. Juvia had no clue about the artistry that went into Gray-samas magic." Juvia beamed with pride making Gray blush a little.
"Oh that reminds me your books." Rouge recalled
"Oh you can open them for me." Juvia called as she fussed through the tiny cottage
Rogue obeyed and ripped apart the parcel paper that protected the books.
"THE FLUIDITY of MAGIC and MAGE." Rogue held both books up looking at it like it was the cure to cancer. "I still have the copy of The FLUIDITY OF MAGIC that you gave to me." He blushed.
"Yeah you never returned it you little punk you are lucky Juvia is not a library. How much would you owe her?" She teased.
Gray felt left out. "What's that?" He chided in before he was completely lost.
"This is the book that taught Juvia the concepts of Magic Fluidity which allows her to turn her body into water."
"Juvia gave me this book to teach me how to sink into the shadows."
"So, do you want your copy back?" Rogue added in quietly looking down at his feet. He did not want to return the book it reminded him of Juvia and it is what made him the avid book collector he was today.
Juvia laughed and waved her hand dismissively "Of course not this copy is a first print and don't think Juvia is silly but She- I want you to keep it as a memento of our time together."
Rogue gave her a little smile and kept marveling that the new copies of THE FLUIDITY of MAGIC and MAGE.
"So this book can teach you how to become your magic?" Gray asked.
"Yes but only those with Fluid magic. Such as water, air, fire, earth and most of its fluid extensions such as shadow, light, steam, sand, lightning and some space magic." Rogue explained as he caressed the book.
"Dinners ready." Juvia called, "Rogue-kun I want to show you something Juvia is working on since you seem to have become quite the scholar."
"Sure." Rogue beamed
The group sat at the small table that had two mismatching chairs for their guests everyone chattered about the basic conversation topics such as how Fiore was having very wet winter, rumors of a tax increase on guilds due to the damage they caused, the Grand Magic Games and how Sting did not want to compete this upcoming year.
"Sting is against it but I read the details and It takes a little bit of money off your pay towards the kingdom and goes towards a fund in your guilds name. If passed it will be in action for four years and then it will be put on the ballet again to keep it for another four years so that if it is no longer working for us then we can vote against it. I think it is worth a try."
"That sounds good especially if Fairy Tail gets back together." Gray nodded his head in approval of the way the monarchy was letting the people have input in Fiore.
Juvia slammed a fat five subject notebook onto the table in front of Rogue.
"Rough-kun let me show you what I have been working on."
"Damn Juvia its Christmas give him a break." Gray snickered. It was 10 at night and no one was sleepy except Frosch who was curled up dead asleep with a little frog doll Juvia had whipped up for him during dinner.
"Ummm…. Juvia How long have you been working on this?" Rogue looked up at her impressed as he speed read through the pages with a pair of magic reading glasses.
"9 years ago when Juvia was still in Phantom Lord Master Jose commissioned this study for Gajeel. Juvia stopped when she joined up with Fairy Tail but got back to it five months ago towards the end of the grand magic games to about now."
"WOW do you really think he could learn this anytime soon. It looks to be almost done and the reasoning behind these notions are pretty sound. If they translate into real life then this could really change things."
Gray knew that Juvia was smart and bookish from their past few months together but never to this extent. She never showed it off the way Levy or Lucy did. She always seemed to be the shopping, cooking, arts and crafts type of girl. But in reality, she was just as smart as those two but then again, she was an S class mage at some point and at a very young age.
"What is it?" Gray asked. It kind of ticked him off that the two talked like he was not right next to them and that Juvia did not discuss her work with him. They lived together for crying out loud but the first guy that comes over she shows right away. How did she even know Rogue Cheney anyways?
"Did you not tell him about this?" Rogue asked
"No what if it was just a bunch of Jibberish." Juvia said.
"Gray this could make it so that People like you who use solid forms of magic be able to create an ice body or travel throughout ice which is solid… something that isn't fluid."
"Wow… that is unheard of, I didn't know you were so … smart."
Juvia beamed with pride at her beloved.
"Oh no Juvia does not hold a candle to Levy. Juvia is just an expert with magical theories because she read so much as a child to try and take away her rain curse." She needed to be modest it was true Levy knew about far more subjects than Juvia and Lucy was an excellent writer. Juvia was just a good scientist.
"Miss Juvia do not be modest! When I was little Juvia was the pride of Oak town."
"Little?" Gray was confused.
"Yeah I was about 12 when Phantom disbanded and when I heard that Gageel and Juvia betr-..." Rogue cut himself off remembering that things where different now.
"Rogue did you say Juvia was the pride of Oak Town?" Juvia asked with a stunned expression painting her face.
"Of course, I remember hearing many people around town talk about how you were strong, smart, pretty and so accomplished for being so young along with Gajeel and Totomaru as well."
It began to drizzle outside
Tears fell onto the table
Rogue and Gray where paralyzed not knowing how to talk to the crying girl in front of them.
"Juvs whats the matter?" Gray making the move to comfort her stroking her fingers.
"Juvia is so happy she thought everyone in Oak Town hated her for bringing only gloomy rain. They always complained when she was around and she thought she made them miserable. Thank you Ryos-Kun. I did not know how happy that would make me..."
"I did nothing it's just the truth." Rouge chuckled.
"Juvia never even dreamed of hearing those words. Also, Juvia is so sorry can you ever forgive her?" Juvia spluttered
"For what?" Rogue asked softly.
"For letting you just disappear, for not looking harder." She said her voice sounding shaky from the crying.
"You looked for me?" Roughs face was filled with emotions, happy, sad, dismayed, stunned all bundled together. This was something he did not know he needed to hear.
"Of course, I looked for you even though we did not know each other too much but I saw you as the little brother Juvia always wanted. Gageel and Juvia both looked for signs of you in Oak town after the fight with the Fairys. We then became so busy with the Phantom Lords council trial and joining the new guild we eased up our searching. We just figured you would turn up. You were such a capable mature child we convinced ourselves not to worry but that is no real excuse we got too caught up in ourselves."
Rogues voice cracked as tears streamed down his face, he moved past Gray like a black flash and he let his face fall into Juvias lap. Juvia pet his hair in response looking down at the man like he was not a man but still a young boy. Gray smiled at the exchange feeling warmth in his own chest from the scene in front of him but also it ached when thoughts of Wendy flooded his mind. He really loved her like a little sister as well. His arm burned cold. He ignored it as he decided to go to the living room to pet Frosche while the two had a moment.