A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, friends! Enjoy~

Juvia didn't know how long it took for her to reach Gray's room. She didn't remember if she was running there, or walking there with a purposeful stride. The only thing she remembered was anger.

She was furious. It was enough that she was practically a pawn in the royal court, but this took it to the next level. Dark creatures lurking in the garden? That wasn't something Juvia could just turn a blind eye on. It was a threat not only to herself, but others working in the palace. How many people had known about this? Juvia sipped a breath of air and realized this probably wasn't the first time the creature had visited the garden. Before she knew it, she was at the front door of Gray's room.

She didn't even bother to knock.

In fact, she kicked the door open, with as much force as she possibly had left, not caring if the entire palace woke up from her clamoring. Once the door swung open, she looked at Gray straight in the eyes with a twisted face.

Gray flinched at the late night visitor, with his hand immediately seizing his sword attached to his belt. He was sitting at his desk, with shuffled papers and thick books sprawled across his desk. It looked as if he had been furiously scribbling something before the intrusion. As he saw Juvia, his face carried on many emotions at once- from hostile to angry, and from confused to concerned.

"What in Mavis' name are you-" Gray thundered. But he suddenly stopped as his eyes wandered to Juvia's arm, which was now thoroughly covered in a blotch of red blood and black liquid. "Your arm! Are you alright? What happened?"

Gray shoved his chair back and rushed toward Juvia's side. But Juvia stepped back, clutching her tender wound, not caring that her blood was staining his carpet. In fact, she hadn't even gauged the pain on her arm yet. But by amount of blood that had continued to drip from her arm…well let's just say the diagnosis isn't pretty. It seemed as if adrenaline coursed through Juvia's veins, because she hadn't even had time to feel pain until Gray mentioned it.

"I was hoping you could answer that, Prince Gray." She gritted her teeth as his name escaped her mouth. It took all of her strength not to start screaming at him and remain calm.

Gray just looked at her, with a bewildered expression on his face. "What? You think I did this to you?!" Gray practically shouted this, temporarily forgetting to keep his princely composure.

"You didn't do this. But you could have prevented it had you not kept these important secrets to yourself!" Juvia accused, as she took a step closer to Gray.

"What are you talking about?!" Gray put his hands over his disheveled hair and lividly combed through it.

"Something attacked me," Juvia replied in a calm voice, with her eyebrows furrowed. "And it wasn't a human or an animal."

Gray just looked at her, with his face slowly erasing any trace of annoyance and replaced with anxiety. He looked at her face, then shuffled his glance toward her arm. That black ooze wasn't just any type of liquid. It was blood.

"You need to…explain to me…" Juvia slurred, with her adrenaline slowing down. Her steps wavered, as she took more steps toward Gray. Curses, she thought. If there was any time to faint from blood loss, now was not the time. Her vision started to fade out as the surroundings started to dull out into darkness. She suddenly collapsed, and Gray grabbed her by the shoulders, just before she lurched forward.

"Juvia?" Gray asked. She couldn't see his face anymore, as the daze settled in, but she could tell by the tone of his voice that he was worried, just in time for her to pass out completely.

Gray shook her lightly and called out her name again. And a second time. And a third time, but a bit more frantically.

"Dammit!" Gray cursed under his breath. He wasn't sure what had caused her to pass out. He didn't know if it was because she had lost a lot of blood, or if that bite from the monster was venomous. He quickly ripped the sleeve off of his expensive shirt, and wrapped it around the punctured wounds to stop the bleeding, although he wasn't quite sure if he was helping, because the blood soaked right through despite the pressure he placed on her arm. He immediately sent a guard to retrieve Wendy, one of the healers in the palace.

"Make sure she comes here ASAP. And do not tell anyone what you saw today. That is an order," Gray said, a bit too forcefully. The guard nodded and sent the message along.

Waiting for Wendy felt like waiting for an eternity. In reality, it probably only took her ten minutes to arrive, but Gray couldn't stop thinking about what would happen if she came just a moment too late. He kept his hand pressurized onto Juvia's arm, with his other hand brushing against her hair, whispering her name. Worry was outlined in every crease of his furrowed brow, and his voice started to lightly tremble.

"Prince Gray?" a voice whispered from behind.

Gray spun around immediately. "Juvia…the girl. She's been attacked by something! There's this thick black ooze and I'm not sure what happened," he said frantically, with his eyes still darting from the healer to Juvia.

The healer was only a young girl, who had long blue hair and concerned eyes. Despite her young age, she had been taught by her mother, a renowned healer in Fiore, and could fix almost anything.

"Prince Gray, please calm down. I've never seen you so distraught," the healer said, clutching her supply box. Even though she was an excellent healer, she was still only a girl. The sight of blood that ran down Juvia's arms made her voice shake.

"Wendy," Gray began. "You aren't just any healer right? You know how to heal with magic."

Wendy shyly nodded, but her eyes still darted around to make sure no one else heard her secret. Even if she was safe working in the castle, she tried to conceal the fact that she knew magic. She didn't want to be slaughtered for her gift like her mother.

"What I'm about to tell you…might be difficult to understand. But from now on, after I tell you this, you will become my personal healer. You will know things that aren't supposed to be known, and you mustn't tell anyone. Is that clear?"

Wendy nodded. Although she was frightened of what was to come, she would never betray the Prince. Her loyalty was to him after he and Lyon took her in when her mother passed away and treated her like a little sister.

Wendy approached Juvia and started working on her. She held out her hands and a magic circle began glowing above Juvia's wound. The thick dark substance dissipated and the blood began to trickle down. As Wendy focused on healing Juvia, Gray told her about how a strange beast had attacked her.

Several hours passed as Wendy worked on Juvia. Gray paced his room back and forth, sometimes with his hands pressed to his temples, and other times completely slack. He had so much running through his head- What attacked Juvia? Was she going to be okay? What had Jellal said to Juvia?

Then, finally, a small voice.

"Prince Gray?" Wendy asked, looking exhausted and a bit sleepy.

"Yes?" Gray immediately shot his head up and walked to Juvia.

"She is going to be okay, but she will need some rest. Whatever bit her didn't have any mercy. It sank its teeth in her pretty sharply. I would put off the sword-play for a few days. You can train her on other things, such as running and endurance."

Gray let out an exasperated sigh as he slumped onto his bed where Juvia laid.

"But… this black ooze on her arm. Thankfully, it doesn't seem to be from her, but rather from the beast she was fighting. I've never encountered anything like this before. But her wound is fine. There doesn't seem to be some magical ailment associated with the bite."

Gray nodded and thanked Wendy for her help. She said her goodbyes and gave Gray extra bandages to change Juvia's current ones when needed. He rubbed his eyes, with his temples throbbing. It was already deep into the night, and he was desperately tired from the sudden unpleasant surprise. He looked at Juvia for the hundredth time before releasing a large sigh, finally allowing himself to relax. She was quivering and whimpering a bit, looking drained from the magic spells that Wendy used on her. Gray sat next to her in bed and gently rubbed circles on back until she calmed down with a peaceful look on her face.

Juvia groaned as she shuffled in the bed, with her eye still shut, trying to stop the sunlight from invading. She felt like she had been hit by a carriage. As she came to her senses, she felt two arms tighten around her waist. Wait…arms?

Juvia's eyes jolted open, with the sun momentarily blinding her. She was staring at someone's bare chest.

And it wasn't just anyone's bare chest. As she slowly rolled her eyes upward, she realized she was staring at Gray's chest.

She gulped.

Her heart beating unnecessarily fast, and her face lit up like a tomato. What was she doing here?! What was he doing here? Did she do something she immediately would have regretted? But she paused for a moment and thought back to what happened last night. The beast. Jellal. And her collapsing in Gray's room. She slowly looked down at her arm. It was neatly bandaged and cleaned. Despite the pain that still shot up from her arm, it was much more bearable that yesterday, and it seemed to be on the path to healing itself. But what was she doing here? In Gray's arms?! As these thoughts ran through her head, Gray must have sensed her panic, because he murmured in his sleep and pulled in Juvia by the waist and curled her up against his chest.

"Eep," Juvia squeal, in equal parts of terror and fluster. She had never been so close to Gray before. Her eyes traced every feature of his face, from the onxy wisps of hair that fell over his eyes, to his square jaw and soft lips. She paused for a moment and noticed a scar that was right above his left eyebrow. Perhaps it was from a battle. He was, after all, not only a Prince but the Captain of the Guard. Her eyes continued to roam down to his chiseled body, and again, she noticed another scar above his hip. It was a deep cut, and looked like the form of an "x". The scar tissue gleamed in the sunlight.

Juvia couldn't take it anymore. Having her eyes explore his body wasn't something that should be her priority right now. She felt like she was going to melt in his arms from embarrassment.

"Um…Gray-sama?" Juvia whispered quietly, hoping this would be enough to stir him awake.

No response. Gray's heavy breathing was the only thing she could hear.

"Er, Prince Gray? …Your Highness?" Juvia said a little louder. This time, she poked his cheek with her pale finger.

Gray grumbled and barely opened his eyes. He was in a groggy state and it seemed as if he was still half-dreaming.

"…Mmm?" he mumbled, as he dug his face into Juvia's blue hair, taking in a deep breath. His eyes were half opened, but they looked like they would close again any moment now. Despite the predicament they were in, Juvia found Gray's morning side to be adorable.

"Juvia would like to get up to check her wound," she said shyly.

Once those words escaped Juvia's mouth, Gray's eyes shot open. Juvia stared back at him. His arms were around her. And why was he shirtless?! He momentarily looked at Juvia, who was blushing and had a small pout on her lips, and then he looked down at his arms. Immediately, he released her from his hold and backed his hands against his chest. He started blushing furiously.

"J-juvia! You're awake! Look, I didn't mean to…I mean I must have fallen asleep next to you…Because your wound was…And then the healer…And my arms…" Gray stopped himself before he completely went off the deep end. Juvia just stared at him with a set of confused and curious blue eyes.

Gray took a deep breath, and tried to recollect himself. "I apologize for what just happened, Juvia. You were recovering from treatment from your wound and I must have fallen asleep next to you, because I was watching you to make sure you were healing properly."

Juvia giggled at how quickly Gray changed from a babbling mess to a prince with good mannerisms.

"What's so funny?" Gray frowned.

"Juvia just thinks that Gray-sama doesn't have to act so polite and princely all the time. She forgives you for what happened today, as long as you tell me what is going on."

Gray just sighed, and gave her a simple nod as she got out of bed to check on her wounds. The bed felt infinitely colder as soon as she left.

Well, Gray thought to himself, there's no use in staying in this bed now. He got up and grabbed his tunic that he threw on the floor. He silently thanked Mavis that he hadn't mindlessly stripped off his pants last night like he did with his shirt.

"Let me check on that wound tonight. Wendy said that I should change it later in the evening today," Gray explained.

Juvia just nodded as she began inspecting her wound. She touched in gingerly and flinched when her fingers ran over the bite marks.

"We won't practice swordplay today," Gray said. His eyes watched her as she began experimenting with the extent of motion she had with her wounded arm. "Instead, we'll do a morning run."

"What? No! You have to tell me more about that thing that attacked me! And whatever else you are hiding from me!" Juvia exclaimed.

"We will, but we can't neglect training. Besides, it would be better if we went over these together with Jellal. There's things that I don't even know."

"And when will that be?" Juvia asked with frustration. "I told him to meet me at the garden tomorrow at dusk. Does that mean we must wait until then?"

"Yes. Jellal's a bit of a secretive man, and I often find it hard to locate him. And dusk will be a good time as well, when it will be darker and not many will be able to see us," Gray responded. "Now, go change and I'll meet you outside your room in 10 minutes. We are running today."

Juvia struggled to find something to change into. The last time she tried to go shopping she spent all her money on a stupid necklace that a gypsy sold her. Now the only clothes she had left were a few black tunics with mud stains, a green cloak, and three pairs of pants. Not much variety. She sighed and grabbed her outfit. Once she freshened up in the bathroom, she walked out only to find Gray already leaning on her door frame. She gaffed. It hadn't even been ten minutes and Gray already looked ready to take on the day. Juvia, on the other hand, had dark circles under her eyes and her messy hair was pulled back into a ponytail.

"I can't believe we are going running when you should be telling me what's going on," Juvia complained.

Gray crossed his arms and shrugged. "Let's just focus on our training today. If it makes you less neurotic we can talk about it briefly over lunch."

The two continued to squabble as they walked down the hall to prepare for their training. They didn't notice Lyon at the end of the hall until he walked right in front of them, interrupting their drabble.

"Juvia?" Lyon asked carefully.

Juvia stepped back, a bit shocked to have Lyon here of all places. Then it hit her. Right before she was attacked, she bumped into Lyon. And he said he was going to pick her up for breakfast. Juvia unconsciously groaned and Gray raised an eyebrow to her.

Lyon, on the other hand, had an annoyed look on his face. He looked like it was ready to dine with Juvia and was dressed in a formal blue frock coat with golden lining trimmings that hung from his epaulettes. But that didn't seem like it was going to happen, because Gray was hovering just beside her.

"What are you doing with Juvia this early in the morning?" Lyon asked, horrified. A knot tied in his stomach. "I saw you walking out of Juvia's room."

"Wait…Did you two spend the night together?!" Lyon accused, with suspicious written all over his face. Lyon felt his heart crumble a bit, unsure of what to make of the situation.

Gray's jaw dropped open, shocked from such a claim. Yes, they technically did spend the night together…but not in the way Lyon had thought. The last thing Lyon would believe would be a story about Juvia being attacked by some monster and suddenly, as if almost too conveniently, passing out in Gray's bed. "W-what? What kind of question is that?! That wouldn't even cross my mind! It's Juvia, she's my assassin, a cold blooded killer! I would never, with her-" Gray, all too flustered caught himself. Guilt immediately flooded his mind. Were those words too harsh? He knew that one of his bad habits was getting too defensive, and always letting words fall out of his mouth to dispel any doubts-even if it meant hurtful words.

He glanced at Juvia. Only for a split second did he realize a fleeting look of hurt that flashed before Juvia's face. The expression disappeared in a blink, but Juvia's demeanor shifted to a detached presence. But even Lyon could see that she had tensed up from Gray's words.

Gray also picked up on this, and silently cursed to himself. He felt uneasy, and extremely uncomfortable. Was it always this hot in the morning? He pulled his collar to let some air in, and looked at Juvia. She did not meet his eyes, but instead stared forward, past Lyon.

"…Um, anyway, I just came to pick up Juvia for her morning routine. We are training, remember?" Gray spoke with caution, still keeping his gaze on Juvia.

"I certainly don't," Lyon replied, also glancing at Juvia. "Juvia, why don't we get something to eat?" He treaded carefully, noting that Gray's words must have hurt her. After all, she was still a lady. "I know a great restaurant by the aquarium…"

"Sorry, Lyon. I'm not too hungry right now. And besides, I think I have to let off some steam." Juvia said tartly. She was glaring at nothing in particular, but Gray swallowed loudly as she walked away. He took after her.

Lyon stood there dumbfounded. All he wanted was to have some coffee and a nice breakfast with Juvia. He even ordered some fresh flowers to be placed at their table. And now he was left with confusion and dismay. Lyon sighed at his bad luck and figured he would have a better shot next time as he walked back to his office, with grimace written on his face.

Fresh air always did Juvia good. She hadn't run like this in over a year, since she was enslaved in Bosco. The air in the coal mines was polluted and muddled with filth, so she graciously sipped the cleaner, brisk air here. Their path winded through the woods, which held strong oak trees that were in the midst of changing from a vibrant green to a warm red, indicating summer would soon be over and autumn was arriving. Past the trees, tall mountains dipped into the horizon with shades of blue and black. The raw beauty of the nature that surrounded Juvia calmed her down from the indecent words Gray had said earlier.

In fact, none of them said a word to each other since they bumped into Lyon. Silence was sometimes the best remedy.

Juvia thought back to his words. It was true, Juvia wasn't an ordinary girl. She didn't wear delicate dresses and ornate golden hairpins. She wasn't ladylike at all, and couldn't separate manners from crudeness. She didn't have makeup that defined her features or have handsome men waiting to court her. Juvia was an assassin. She donned black clothes to hide in the shadows, rough housed anyone who dared threaten her, had blood that would splatter on her face, and men wanting to kill her. She was, indeed like Gray said, a cold blooded killer. Was that how everyone saw her as? Some maniac that kills at all costs? If that's how she was viewed, how was she any different than that monster that attacked her last night? She didn't dare think more deeply about it, afraid to uncover secrets that she wished she hadn't known about herself.

But that didn't change the fact that she was still a girl, and sometimes she was prone words about how undesirable or frightening she was. And it always stung a little more when a Prince, who was trained to have proper manners and good diplomacy, would say that about her. She sighed, admitting defeat. Maybe Gray was right. It wasn't like she could compare to Princess Ur, who was dignified and beautiful, or any other woman in the royal court for that matter.

The thoughts stayed at the back of Juvia's mind for the rest of the run, which annoyed her because she shouldn't be all the affected by it. But for some strange reason, she was. She shifted her attention to other things, like meeting with Jellal, wondering how Gajeel was doing, and what to say to Lyon the next time she awkwardly runs into him. She tried to keep her focus past Gray, who was running ahead of her, and at the beautiful mountains in front of her.

Gray slowed to a stop as they reached back to the front of the palace. They ran for what seemed like miles, and Juvia's legs felt like they had just taken a beating of a lifetime. But as she took in deep breathes, she felt the strength return to her, knowing that it had been a productive work out. Gray, who was in front of her, slicked his hair back with his hand as sweat trickled down his forehead. His white shirt had been nearly soaked with sweat as it clung onto his body.

"How was that?" Gray asked as he placed his hands behind his head.

"Good," Juvia responded. Although she wanted to get past what he said earlier, she still replied curtly.

Recollecting her breath, Juvia wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. She paused as she watched two women from the court rush over to Gray's side.

"Prince Gray!" The blonde one squealed. She donned a poufy fuchsia dress that was adorned with silver embroidery hemming, and her waist was tightened so thinly that it made Juvia hurt to breath. "What a coincidence to meet you here!" She placed her hand, which was cloaked in a dainty laced glove, on Gray's chest.

Juvia rolled her eyes. There was no doubt that the women noticed their morning run and waited for Gray to come back to the palace gate. No one simply loitered at the front gate. If they wanted to say hello, they should at least be more honest about it. It was obvious enough that these two were vying for Gray's attention in hopes to be a Princess to a handsome Prince. The two women only glanced at Juvia for a moment. By the sweat dripping down her body, her hair in a mess from the wind, and dirtied clothes, they assessed that she wasn't a worthy competitor, and completely ignored her presence. Juvia stifled a laugh. How nice would it be for her to be a regular girl and worry about something so petty as competitors for the prince's hand?

"Yes, and it's been such a long time since we've seen you," the redhead cooed. Her eyes ravished his bare body, which could be seen through his soaked white shirt. "Are you free to chat with us this afternoon? Or maybe even later at night…" Her voiced dropped into a more seductive tone, and she moved closer to press against his body.

Juvia gagged. But Gray seemed unaffected by their words or touch. He displayed his princely attitude and talked to them naturally.

"Ah, it really has been a while," Gray said charmingly. He stepped back, away from their physical contact, to bow and give them a kiss to their hand. "I hope you are enjoying your stay at the palace."

"Oh, we are. But it gets sooo lonely," the blonde one responded in a distinctive whine. She waited, hoping for Gray to offer his company.

But Gray didn't give in. He simply directed them to other activities. "Ah, well we can't have that now, can we? There should be a small festival today near the harbor. I'm sure that will suit your tastes," Gray said politely with a warm smile.

Juvia smirked. The port was across the town, far, far away from the castle. It was satisfying watching the scene unfold. The women, who were desperate for Gray's attention, seemed to be brushed aside in the most cordial, yet painful way possible.

"Well, there's still the Ball!" said the redhead, with desperation. Her eyes were still glued to Gray's chest.

"Yes, Fiore's Annual Royal Ball is next week! Do you have a personal guest yet?" The blonde folded her hands together in front of her, as if she were pleading him to make her The Chosen One.

"No, not yet…" Gray trailed off. He had completely forgotten about the ball, and now that he was of age to marry, the harassment from girls yearning to be his personal guest increased ten-fold. Lyon usually welcomed this, but Gray had always copped out by taking Wendy to the ball as his little adoptive sister. No one would question his marital status and the media would always find it a generous gesture from Gray to watch over her. But this year, Wendy said she was asked to the Ball by a baker's boy. His eyes unconsciously settled onto Juvia. She was looking at the leaves on a nearby tree, horribly failing to hide the amount of annoyance that riddled her face.

The girls noticed his gaze that set on to Juvia. Their jaws dropped with a look of pure disgust.

"Prince Gray, please don't tell me you that you were thinking about taking … her" -she emphasized the word with revolt- "to the Royal Ball!" one of them said, with hysteria clinging onto every word.

Juvia snapped her head back toward the conversation. "You'll be glad to hear that he isn't. In fact, this is the first time I've even heard of this Royal Ball. And let me tell you something, you aren't exactly princess material either, lady." She glared at the two, with her fists clenched until her knuckles turned white. It was already enough that the Prince of Fiore told her she wasn't the cream of the crop, but now she had to hear it from these two pompous, pretentious women? She just couldn't catch a break today.

"Listen, you filthy peasant. I may not be a princess, but I'll always be of higher rank than you are. You are nothing but a piece of rubbish and it's no wonder you haven't heard of the Royal Ball. You're probably too busy scrapping up some coins to get some real clothes! You should be exalted that you are even in Prince Gray's presence!" The redhead glared, but kept her voice sinisterly cool as she dropped the snide remarks.

"Oh, trust me. I'm exhilarated to be here right now," Juvia spat back.

Gray, in the meantime, was looking back and forth between the two parties. Sure, he was trained to have good diplomacy and resolve issues concerning problems between nations. But he was never trained to break up… a cat fight.

Gray cleared is throat, trying to ease the tension between everyone. "Ah… well, look at the time! It looks like lunch is approaching and we better go before Soldier Droy eats everything. Haha!" Gray laughed nervously. No one even smiled at his joke. Instead, Juvia walked right past them and headed inside the castle.

"Ladies," Gray said, as he swept a deep bow and said his goodbye.

The two women stood there baffled at Juvia. They had surely never seen her around the royal court before, and could only assume that she was some country bumpkin who didn't know her place or how to hold her tongue.

Gray jogged to Juvia, hoping that she wasn't about to break down a door or throw a vase at someone.

"Wait, Juvia!" Gray said as he caught up to her.

"Charming friends you have there."

"I wouldn't exactly call them my friends…More like acquaintances," he explained, hoping she wouldn't lump him with them.

"It must be nice, having women constantly throw themselves at you," Juvia started.

"I would much rather prefer no encounters of that sort," Gray said with a deadpan face.

"They are despicable. What gives them the right to put others down because they have a bit more money and are of a higher class?" Irritation surged in Juvia's voice.

"I wouldn't let their words bother you too much. They don't know what they are talking about," Gray said, trying to comfort her.

"Well, I've been called worse. Like cold blooded killer," she replied, referencing his words earlier in the day.

"Are you still mad about that? I want to apologize, I didn't really know what I was saying and I didn't mean-"

Juvia interrupted with a fit of rage. "Is that how you see me as? Is that how everyone sees me as? Some ruthless murderer willing to kill on command? Like I have no remorse when I put someone down? I'm still human! I still have emotions!" Juvia surprised herself at the words that she had spoken. She never opens up like this, and worst of all, she never cries. But she felt a hot tear streaming down her face. She furiously wiped it off and blinked away any other tears that threatened to fall.

Gray, shocked at the sudden tear, reached out for her hands, and grasped it firmly in his.

"Juvia, don't cry. It's my fault, I didn't mean to hurt you and I didn't mean what I said at all. You aren't, and never will be some cold blooded killer. Yes, you've killed people before, but that doesn't define you. Because I've seen you as you are, and you are warm and adventurous and determined. So please don't cry." Gray felt his stomach turn at the idea that he made her cry. If he had felt guilty before, it was nothing in comparison to now. He just wanted to hold her and apologize over and over again, as if that could somehow help take back the words he said earlier this morning. But he just stood there, holding onto her hands like a child whose hands were so cold and fragile.

"I'm…just worried. If this is how people see me, how does that make me any different than what attacked me yesterday? I didn't want to mention it before…but I saw a bit of myself in that monster. The merciless, mechanical killing." Her voice was quaking, as if she were recalling vivid details from the attack. She looked away from Gray, too ashamed at her confession that made her all the less human.

When Gray first met Juvia, he would laugh at the mention of him needing to protect her. It had only been a few weeks since he's met her, but all he could think about right now was never letting her cry again. It pained him to think about what she had to go through, and what he was essentially making her continue to go through by hiring her as his assassin. If anything, it was Gray who felt like a monster. He was encouraging her to kill by training her and helping him defeat King Jose. But he didn't say this, too afraid of the consequences. Gray couldn't hold still anymore, as these thoughts rattled his brain. For the second time today, he wrapped his arms around her, but with full intention this time, and grasped her close against his body.

"You are much more than that, Juvia. Much more... That monster didn't have a conscience. You do. A good one. And I've seen it before, like the day you saved your Captain Erza and her men from my attacks. I've seen it day by day after that ," Gray whispered in a soft and gentle voice.

Juvia stood there in his embrace, with her arms slack. At any other moment, her heart would have already left for the skies, but she couldn't perceive anything right now. His words surrounded her as she felt his hot breath pressed against her hair. Was she supposed to feel more human because of his words?

Because she didn't.

HOLY SMOKES! Sorry that chapter took a while to come out- I had some emergencies back at home I needed to take care of. I also was working a lot with the plot for the future of this story. HUEHUEH am I excited to share this with you all!

I'll be introducing more characters (Like Natsu and Lucy) when the time comes, but I'm wondering- would you all like to see some romance between NaLu? Obviously, this is a Gruvia fanfic so any NaLu moments will be light and not too distracting, but I wanted your opinion. Because if that's the case, there will probably be a few chapters that are more heavily written about them. Still undecided if I want to put Levy into the story…

So now I've thrown in a royal ball in the mix, woohoo! Wendy is usually Gray's date, but now she has a new date! And yes, it's Romeo for all those who are wondering. But you'll probably never hear from him in this story.

I've also noticed that as the story progresses, I'm making Juvia to be very OOC. But I kind of like her this way, as it brings the mood to where I need it to be in this story. I hope you all enjoyed, and thanks for all your reviews! You all rock :')