The sound of fireworks can be heard from the distance, confetti and colorful balloons are seen everywhere on the big campus. There is a big parade with students and faculties joining in, dancing and singing to celebrate the big birthday of their college. Today is not just an ordinary birthday for the school, it's their big 100th anniversary since the founding of Magnolia University.

Besides the big parade, each department of the university is contribute to the event with different activities. From a poetry competition of the literature art department to the research and debate of the business department to a friendly coding competition of the computer science and engineering major, everyone is joining the festivity with a big smile on their face. All classes are closed for two days and no deadlines are allowed on the week of the event, allowing the students to fully enjoy themselves without worrying about their schoolwork.

Despite all the fun activities, great food and fun parades, almost everyone is looking forward to the big performance from the theatre and dance department, they have been practiced for months just for this specific event. There is high expectation and anticipation for all students who are participating in the grand concert.

Gray and his friends are walking around the campus, enjoying good food and the festivity. Juvia has told him that he should not come early because it's a big mess backstage as everyone is getting ready for their performance. Although reluctant to do so, the raven head obliges.

Loke, as always, keep teasing him about the lovely bluenette, how he can already imagine how pretty and dolled up she is, how she will capture the hearts of thousands of people just with one look. His comment, of course, earned him a death glare from Gray and a whack on his head from Gajeel. Despite holding calm and stoic faces, they both have the same level of protectiveness over Juvia.

"Jeez, that really hurt Gajeel."

"Serve you right, you four eyes."

"Man, how the hell Levy is not jealous of you and Juvia?"

"I don't need to, I trust Gajeel a lot." the small bluenette gives her friend a sweet smile "Besides, he would never do that."

Loke looks at her as if she grows a second head. How they hold such high trust for each other, he can never truly understand.

"Maybe if you stop playing around and actually settle down with someone, you will understand."

"Ouch, that hits hard man." the glassed man holds onto his chest playfully "I might consider it if our baby boy Gray Gray here be a man and confess his love to Juvia."

If Gajeel and Levy don't hold him back, Gray would have thrown this cup of hot coffee at his friend. Loke laughs out loud at how the vein on his friend's forehead is threatened to pop at any second if the teasing keeps rolling. By this point, everyone already knows his feelings for the lovely bluenette and Gray doesn't even bother to hide it anymore. The current question that everyone has is when he will tell her. They even have a bet on who will be the first one to say it, which only annoys Gray even more.

Since when does his love life become a topic of discussion for the public? He doesn't know…

"Gray!"

The raven head turns his attention to the voice calling his name, Erza and Jellal are waving at him.

"Erza, Jellal-san!"

"Hey there, you guys are heading to Juvia now?" the redhead woman smiles warmly "Let's go together."

"Of course, we're also discussing Gray Gray's confe-?! OUCH!"

This time, it is the raven head who slams his hand to Loke's mouth, shutting him down immediately. Jellal is amused to see this. He knows how the raven head feels about his beloved sister and the man wishes nothing but luck to his junior, the thought of being teased every day is surely annoying, even for someone like him.

Call it a miracle or whatever, Jellal was very surprised to hear from the butler that he was allowed to leave the Fernandes manor to come here on this special day. Not that he cares much about asking for permission or anything, but the fact that his own father let him do this was quite shocking.

After his encounter with Juvia, the man spent the majority of his time in the study room. When he asked the butler if everything was alright, the man just gave him a kind smile and told him that there was nothing to be worried about. The answer confused the older bluenette at first but kept asking the same question was not the route he would like to take. So Jellal just leaves things the way they are.

Erza was very worried about what happened, even asking him if he wanted her to get Juvia some bodyguards. He appreciated the offer, but knowing Juvia, she would never enjoy having people follow her around. At least everything is slowly returning to normal again, all thanks to the Gray and Juvia duo.

For the recorded audio, Jellal decided to keep it in the drawer of his room, just in case something happen. His father might not be doing anything right now, but that doesn't mean he trusts the man blindly to throw away such an important piece of evidence.

"We have two hours left, let's get the girls something to eat, they must be starving." Jellal suggests.

"I'll get them hot sandwiches, it's not good to eat something cold right now."

After getting the food, they all walk to the auditorium building, where the grand performance is taking place. On their way there, they meet up with Lucy, Natsu and Cana, who are having a difficult time trying to get the brunette off her bottle of sake. Like the responsible person she is, Erza begins to nag at her friend for acting so irresponsibly, drinking sake during this time is something an adult should do. Cana just laughs while listening to the nagging, she's having so much fun with her friends that whatever Erza is saying doesn't bother her anymore.

When they arrive at the auditorium, Gray and Jellal excuse themselves backstage, where Juvia and her friends are getting ready for their performance. But when they arrive, something inconvenient just happens to the bluenette.

Lyon looks worried as he is applying an ice pack on Meredy's wrist, her face is pale and looked devastated. Juvia tries to cheer up her friend, but no matter how kind her words are, Meredy can't help but feel so guilty about this.

"I'm sorry… I should have been more careful…"

"It's okay Meredy, it's not your fault."

"What's going on?" Jellal walks up to them.

"Meredy fell down the stairs and strained her wrist…" Lyon sighs "At this rate, she can't…"

As he trails off on his sentence, they all understand what happened. The swelling on her wrist is painful to look at, even with the ice pack on. Jellal advises her to go to the infirmary room but the pink head refuses, her voice almost cracks up as her vision becomes hazy.

"I'm so sorry Juvia…"

Juvia bites her bottom lips, she feels guilty when her friend keeps apologizing to her. it's not Meredy's fault when something like this happened, maybe today is just that one unlucky day. She can't really blame the pink head for not being careful, not when her friend is so distressed about injuring her wrist.

"L-let me find someone, there may be someone who can become your pianist." Meredy clumsily reaches for her phone "Let see…"

"Meredy, it's okay…" Juvia looks at her friend "It's okay, you don't have to…"

"I have to!" she snaps back, eyes watering "You have been training so hard for this. I'm not going to ruin your moment like this."

Jellal lets out a deep sigh while Gray scratches his head. The raven head wants to help, but he knows nothing about music, how can he possibly aid his lovely bluenette when he can't even read what is on the music sheet? The older bluenette walks up to his sister and takes a hold of the music sheet in her hand, reading the notes carefully.

"Jellal-nii…"

"Hm…okay…" his forest green eyes scan the whole paper, nodding his head a few times "Alright, we have less than two hours left, let's practice as much as we can."

Juvia looks at her brother as her face beams up, and a big smile appears on her lips. Could this be it? Could this be the day that she finally be able to play music alongside her beloved brother?

"Thank you Jellal-san!"

It's like the weight in her heart just lifted, Meredy cries out in joy, making Lyon sweatdrops as he soothes his girlfriend by patting her back. Jellal turns to Gray and tells the raven head to ask Erza to get him his formal suit, he can't just walk up on stage with this casual outfit while Juvia is glammed up with her dress.

"Understood!" he nods his head and turns to the bluenette "Focus on your practice, we'll handle the rest!"

"Thank you, Gray-sama!"

Jellal and Juvia hurry to one of the practice rooms near the auditorium while Gray calls Erza to let her know what's going on. The redhead woman nods her head and leaves the building to get to her car. Gajeel and Levy walk backstage to check on Meredy while the other waits patiently at their seat, praying to Mavis that everything is going to work out for the Fernandes-Lockser siblings.

Jellal stares at his hand for a moment, part of him is happy to be able to play with his sister and yet, part of him feels ashamed about it. For so long, he has been focusing on perfecting his techniques, just like how William wants him to. He's afraid, afraid that this will not work out. That the innocent and brightness of Juvia's music are not something he can reach.

His hands are tainted…

How can he produce a clear note that can reach people's soul when all he knows are the technique to master one piece of music?

"Jellal-nii?" she turns to him "Are you okay?"

"I…" he lowers his head, looking at his own two hands again "Juvia, I…"

He can feel a warm touch on his hands, as Juvia small palms hold onto the calloused ones. A light touch, as if whatever is in her hands right now is the most delicate and precious thing ever. A smile forms on her lips, one that always chases away his doubts and fears, one that shows such caring and love towards him.

"Let's do this together…" she looks at him, her eyes smiling as well "Let's do this for us, for mother, for father… For our family…"

"Yeah…"

As his fingers touch the keyboard, the first sound comes out, shy and reserved. As if he's afraid to play the next one. But Juvia is there with him, her beautiful sapphire eyes never leave him. She pulls the bow, letting the clear violin sound float into the air. It's crisp and bright, as clear as a crystal, an encouragement for him to do the same. To play his piece of music freely, with no restriction. There's no right or wrong, there's only the beautiful melody, a harmony between the piano and the violin.

As they keep playing, the sound becomes more beautiful. It intertwines, the violin and the piano, creating the clearest notes that one can describe as free.

It's a pleasant feeling, the warmth in his heart as Jellal plays the song, his mother's favorite song. And maybe because it's practice, Juvia can't help but hum to the melody. Her soft humming sound blends in with the music, as soft as a feather and as bright as a star.

Beautiful might be an understatement, as Juvia switches from humming to singing the lyrics. She remembers it very well, as those words are deep in her heart. Her mother always sang this song to them, it's her favorite song after all.

They continue their practice, as much and as long as they can, until there's a knock on the door and Lyon pops his head in. They don't know how long it has been, it's probably longer than they have originally planned because Lyon told them that there are three performances left before them.

"It's been that long?"

"Time sure flies when you're focusing on something." Jellal looks at his watch "We have 20 minutes to get ready."

"Right, let's…" she stops for a moment, looking at the window and listening to the pitter-patter sound "Oh, it's raining…"

"It is…" he smiles, at peace with his heart "Let's go now."

They go on their separate ways to different changing rooms, with Gray coming to give them their outfits. Lucy is waiting for the bluenette in her changing room to help her with her hair and makeup, something that she is grateful for.

The dress looks beautiful on her, the subtle sparkle is on point with her whole song of choice. It's long and modest, yet elegant at the same time. Juvia doesn't choose an outfit that makes her the center of attention, her job as a violinist is to bring the music to one's heart. The bluenette has light makeup on, her hair is in the signature braid that she always wears for performing. Lucy even puts on hairpins with star decoration that matches the sparkle on her dress. Juvia looks at herself in the mirror, admiring the work her blonde friend has put on her.

She loves it a lot…

When she walks out of the changing room and heads backstage, her brother and friends are already there, waiting for her. There is a soft smile on her lips as she looks at them, feeling grateful that they're all here for her.

Just a few months ago, she was friends with Meredy and Lyon only, and now… Now is different…

She has her brother, Erza, Gajeel, Levy, Natsu, Lucy, Loke, Cana and most important of all, she has her beloved Gray-sama right here with her. The raven head gives her a genuine smile, a rare one that even Loke doesn't see that often. Their friends understand the task as they slowly walk away, leaving the two love birds some alone time.

She has her hands behind her, holding tightly onto the violin case. A blush adorns her cheek as she shyly looks away, knowing that her beloved is staring at her. How can he not when she's like beautiful goodness standing right in front of him?

Although he knows that Juvia always looks good in a long dress or skirt, today, however, she looks breathtaking. Maybe it's due to the stage light, maybe it's because of the way she does her hair, maybe it's the soft makeup on her lovely face, or maybe it's because of the energy surrounding her. He's not sure anymore, but he knows one thing. Juvia looks like a star ready to shine.

"You look beautiful." said Gray as he reaches his hand, caressing the softness of her cheek "You truly look beautiful."

"Thank you, Gray-sama…" she gives him a warm, loving smile "It's all thanks to you that Juvia is here today."

"Nonsense, you are the one who makes all of this happen." he chuckles at her words "You truly are the most amazing person I've ever met in my life, Juvia."

Juvia thinks that she might be going to cry, but her eyes are dry and her lips form the most beautiful smile Gray has ever seen. One that establishes her growth, her dream and the love she has for him. The smile that he has sworn to protect no matter what…

"Good luck to you. I know that this will be your best performance yet."

"Thank you, Gray-sama…"

With that, he takes his leave, returning back to his seat. Juvia walks up to the stairs, standing side by side with her brother, who is also looking at the stage. It's almost time, after this one, it's their turn to walk on stage.

How are they feeling? Scared? Excited? Anxious? Happy?

They don't know…

But the rain brings a sense of calmness to their hearts, like a blanket wraps around them, letting the siblings feel safe in the hands of their mother. The rain is here, and their mother is here, cheering them on. Juvia unconsciously holds onto her brother's hand as he tightens the grip, the MC is introducing them.

"Are you ready?"

"I am, Jella-nii."

"Alright, let's get on there."