It was nearly dawn when Gray walked up onto the beach and rested his back on a rock, exhausted after his epic battle with the Sea Witch. The gentle sunlight filtered through the fading storm clouds to make way for the shining sun, and the crown prince of Lamia Scale slowly recovered from his injuries. Gray breathed, "That was intense…" He added with a chuckle, "That giant creepy lady was tough, but not tough enough."

The sound of approaching footsteps caught Gray's attention, and he turned to see Lyon, Sherry, Chelia, Sting, Rouge, and Ur running towards him. "GRAY!" they all cried.

"Thank goodness you're alright!" Sherry cried, checking the young prince for injuries.

"You jerk!" Sting laughed. "You could've saved some action for us!"

Rogue remarked, "You saved us from that giant monster with your Ice-Make Magic."

Chelia cheered, "Hooray! The big bad monster is gone! Prince Gray saved the day! Nothing can stop that Ice-Make Wizard!"

Lyon grinned, "You are indeed just like your father, King Silver. He'd be very proud of you."

Gray's response was immediate, "Has any one of you seen Juvia?"

"Juvia? You mean the girl with blue hair?" Chelia wondered. "Well, she…"

Sherry and Lyon shared worried looks, as they were both reluctant to answer. Lyon started slowly, placing a hand on Gray's shoulder, "Gray… No one has ever seen her. Not since sunset yesterday."

Gray pulled away from his friend and advisor, a look of deep concern filling his eyes. He silently looked out over the sea, wondering where the girl of his dreams had gone off to. What if Juvia had been whisked away by the whirlpool after she delivered the final blow to Kyôka with the trident? Or worse…

"Gray!" a female voice cried. "Prince Gray!" Gray's attention turned to Lucy splashing in the shallows nearby, trying to get him to notice her.

"Hey, I know you!" Gray recognized. He knelt down on the sand in front of Lucy and asked, "Where's Juvia? Is she okay?"

"I… I don't know…" Lucy muttered, backing up a little.

Getting back onto his feet, Gray waded into the water after Lucy, with Lyon, Sherry, Chelia, Sting, and Rouge not too far behind. As they reached a large rock poking out of the water, Gray froze, spotting Juvia's unconscious body beside it.

"Juvia!" Gray exclaimed, taking Juvia's body into his arms. He gently shook her body in an attempt to wake her, "Juvia, are you okay?"

At that moment, Juvia's eyes slowly fluttered open, seeing the blurry image of her beloved prince until it completely came into view. She wheezed, "Gray…?"

Gray sighed with relief, "That was close. I thought that whirlpool almost had you."

Juvia shrugged, "Well, I'm a mermaid. I can swim through the toughest currents with a quick flip of my fins. What do you expect?"

"Yeah, I know," Gray admitted with a chuckle, as he helped her onto the rock. "And by the way, what you did was amazing. You're beautiful… and pretty tough, too."

Juvia blushed at that comment, "Oh, it was nothing, my darling."

"Are you alright, sweetie?" Sherry asked.

Juvia nodded, "Yes, I'm fine."

Lyon sighed in relief, "Thank goodness…"

Gray smiled, "So… you really are a mermaid. The mermaid of my dreams."

Juvia giggled, "Yeah, that's me. Oh, and by the way, thank you for saving my life."

Gray laughed warmly, running a hand through her long sapphire hair, "My Dad always teased me about having a crush on a mermaid… He'd be so happy to see he was right."

Juvia asked sadly, "But darling, how are we going to make this work? You're a human, I'm a mermaid…"

Gray replied, "I know. But I promise you, Juvia, I'll do whatever it takes to be with you…"

Offering him her fondest smile, Juvia whispered, "I love you, my beloved Gray…"

Gently cupping the back of her neck, Gray slowly brought Juvia's face closer, gently placing his lips on hers. Forgetting about their different worlds, she kissed him back. Obviously, they'd have to give their love everything they had, but if there was one thing that soft, tender kiss told them, it was that they were meant to be. They never cared if they're from different worlds; all that matters is that they were meant for each other.

Unbeknownst to Gray and the others, King Makarov was quietly observing the scene with Natsu and Lucy alongside him, a look of sadness in his eyes. It was a huge surprise to see his youngest daughter in the arms of a human. Not just any human, but a handsome human prince.

Makarov asked Natsu, "She really does love him, doesn't she, Natsu?"

Natsu nodded, "Well, it's like I always say, Your Majesty..." He held up a claw, repeating the quote he never actually said. "Children got to be free to lead their own lives."

Makarov raised an eyebrow at Natsu, "You always say that?"

Natsu grinned sheepishly, "No, but I think it's true."

Makarov was still conflicted. He admitted, "I'm just not sure I'm ready to let her go. She told me a few days before that she's old enough to take care of herself. By the look on her eyes, I can tell she meant it. Do I really have to…?"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty," Lucy assured, putting a fin on his shoulder. "It's not like she's going away forever. You'll know where to find her. Everyone on the ocean will know where to find her. Land and sea are all part of one big world, after all. And we're all a part of it, whether up top or down below."

Makarov began thinking Lucy's words over, and he smiled, "You were right, Lucy. We're all a part of one big world. I suppose that leaves just one problem left."

"And what's that, Your Majesty?" Natsu asked.

Makarov answered with a heavy sigh, "How much I'm going to miss her."

Without another word, the sea king's trident glowed in his hand and encased the ripples of the ocean in a warm golden light, until it reached Juvia. As everyone watched on, Juvia felt a soft, soothing tinkling in her mermaid fins as they gently melted to skin, her tail again changing into a pair of human legs. Before fading away, the light wrapped around the rest of her body, clothing her in a sleeveless, glittering white dress that shimmered in the sunlight like the sea itself.

Instantly, Juvia realized what was going on. She turned a glance to her father, who smiled with a single tear falling down his cheek, with Natsu and Lucy smiling as well. Makarov whispered, "You belong to their world now, Juvia. Take care of yourself… alright?"

Overjoyed, Juvia threw herself onto Gray's arms, the latter lifting her up and spinning her around in circles. The little mermaid-turned human has never been more happier than she had ever been in her life. With the blessing of her father, Juvia was now free to lead her own life the best way she knew how— by sending every moment with her beloved Gray. The two eventually threw themselves into another kiss, one much sweeter and wonderful than the last.

"That was so BEAUTIFUL!" Chelia sobbed beside her cousin Sherry. "It brings tears to my eyes!"

Sherry remarked, "Who would've imagined that Juvia is actually a beautiful mermaid princess?"

"So, Lyon, you still think merpeople are 'nautical nonsense?'" Sting smirked, mimicking Lyon's voice.

"Just admit it!" Rouge added. "Merpeople are real! Just like the mermaid we saw at the wedding ship, and also King Makarov over there!" He gestured to King Makarov at the other corner of the beach.

Lyon crossed his arms and gave an offended 'Hmph', turning his back. Sting, Rouge, Sherry, and Chelia couldn't help but chuckle, before they looked back at the young prince with the beautiful sapphire-haired girl beside him.

"So, what do you say, sweetheart?" Gray asked his lovely girl with a smile. "Will you marry me?"

Juvia giggled, her smile growing even wider, "I thought you'd never ask…"

Warm, glowing sunlight streamed the cloudless blue sky, flooding over Lamia Scale Town. The kingdom was alive with magic and music, excitement hanging in the air. Villagers of every age flocked onto a large wedding ship, the sea itself sparkling like a million diamonds.

Yet again, the kingdom was eagerly awaiting the wedding of their future king, only this time, the ecstatic prince knew exactly what he was doing. As the ship pulled away from the docks, Gray felt his heart racing. After waiting his whole life long, the day had finally arrived; he was marrying the girl of his dreams, the little mermaid who saved him at the night of the storm.

Of course, the people of Lamia Scale aren't the only ones attending the ceremony. Merfolk and marine life of every age and species emerged from the shimmering sea, smiling and chattering with excitement. Accompanying the sea creatures was Makarov, the king of Fairylantica, and his six other daughters Mirajane, Levy, Erza, Laki, Lisanna, and Cana, accompanied by their respective mermen boyfriends Laxus, Gajeel Redfox, Jellal Fernandez, Erik, Bickslow, and Bacchus Groh. Juvia's elder sisters were anxiously waiting for their younger sister's marriage with Prince Gray, their future brother-in-law from the human world.

"And so, by the power vested in me…" Ooba Babasaama the wedding priest announced. "I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride!"

Before he could move, Gray immediately found his new wife kiss his lips, but it didn't bother him in the least as he kissed her back. The kiss, perfect at it was, didn't last long, before the two were interrupted by Ur bouncing around their feet. Everyone from both land and sea applauded and cheered for the newly-wedded couple. Some people were taking the wedding very enthusiastically, such as Sherry sobbing too hard on Lyon's clothes, and Chelia rubbing it in on the other maids' faces that Gray's bride was indeed a mermaid princess.

Happy spread his wings and lifted Lucy up to the wedding ship so they can say goodbye to Juvia... Well, at least they can visit every now and then. Juvia kissed Lucy on the forehead and patted Happy on the head, wishing them the best of luck before they returned back to the water.

Macao Conbolt the Blue Lobster and Wakaba Mine the Old Fish were also very happy for the newlyweds. Wakaba grinned, "Well, buddy, this is the dawn of a new day for us. Land and sea together for the first time? That was unexpected!"

Macao nodded, "Yeah. I'm really happy for Princess Juvia. She's all grown up. Same thing goes with Natsu, my best friend who's taken care of her. But that's not the only piece of good news. My son, Romeo, is making friends with Wendy!"

"Wendy?" Wakaba asked. "Who's Wendy?"

Macao chuckled, "The Royal Seahorse Announcer. She's dancing with my boy as we speak, right over there." He pointed to a different corner where a small blue lobster named Romeo was happily dancing in the water with Wendy the Seahorse. Should any sea creature on the surface see this, they could only sigh at how cute and adorable those two young kids were together.

Meanwhile, Natsu was sitting on the cake, crying happily for the two newlyweds while holding onto two decorations based on Gray and Juvia. The emotional moment was interrupted by Sol, the castle chef obsessed with Natsu, who attacked with a kitchen knife in hand. The crazed chef chased Natsu across the deck, intent on chopping the salmon crustacean down to size. Grinding to a halt, Natsu desperately looked around for some kind of escape, until a sole rope caught his attention. The rope was holding up a particularly large sail. Flashing Sol his cockiest, most toothy smile, Natsu cuts the rope with a single snip of his claw. Its own weight instantly taking hold, the sail swung from its place, hitting Sol square in the face. The hit was so big that it shattered nearly all of Sol's teeth and knocked him unconscious.

Laughing with success, Natsu leapt off the ship and bowed with accomplishment, receiving amused smiles from Happy and Lucy, "YES! Thank you, thank you…"

Lucy grinned, "I like your style, Natsu. Just like when you handled those eels."

Natsu chuckled, "Yeah. I like your style, too. But you deserve all the credit. After all, you helped Juvia get to that boat…"

Lucy giggled, "Thanks, Natsu. Here's something from me to you… for being so brave."

She then kissed Natsu lightly on the cheek, causing him to blush.

"And once we get back to Fairylantica, maybe we can eat at the 8-Island Sea Diner?" Lucy asked.

Natsu smiled and nodded, "I'd love to." Joining hands, the two sea creatures watched the rest of the celebration.

Happy took notice of this and smiled slyly to himself, "She loves him…" Of course, he wasn't the only one. Back aboard the wedding ship, Juvia observed the scene from the railing. She was glad that Lucy, her best friend, and Natsu, her mentor, were starting to get together.

Juvia watched as her father Makarov rode a rising wave up to meet her. Reaching over the edge of the boat, she locked him in the tightest hug she could manage, not caring about the cool salty water just starting to seep through the fabric of her wedding dress.

"I love you, Daddy," Juvia whispered in his ear, smiling contently as Makarov held her tighter, then an off-screen choir began to sing.

Choir: Now we can walk
Now we can run
Now we can stay all day in the sun

Silently letting her go, Makarov gave his new son-in-law a smile that meant 'take care of my baby', in which Gray responded with a respectful bow. Makarov sank back into the ocean as Gray gently took Juvia's hand.

Just you and me…
And I can be…
Part of your world!

With a wave of his trident, Makarov created a glorious rainbow that stretched across the sky, as the bride and groom waved to their sea life guests. One by one, the merfolk and marine life disappeared back under the surface, but Makarov remained with Natsu and Lucy beside him, wishing Juvia and Gray the best of luck. As the wedding ship rode off, Juvia and Gray kissed one last time – a symbol of land and sea coming together in harmony at last.

THE END