Months flew by, and their friendship only grew; but Juvia found that the more fond she became of Gajeel, the less sure she was how she actually felt about him.

Repeatedly, she reminded herself that he wasn't 'her type'. Juvia wanted a nice guy, and though she knew there was a heart of gold buried in Black Steel, she wanted someone who was nice whether anyone was looking or not. Admittedly, she'd always thought her problem would be guys who acted nice in public but who were actually assholes rather than the inverse, and this did amuse her, but all the same.

She wanted a guy who was sensitive yet strong, a guy who was compassionate toward others, but who wouldn't stand for injustice. And... admittedly, Juvia sort of wanted someone she could protect- someone she felt really needed her. Gajeel fit neither the personality type nor the moral alignment, and she wasn't sure if she even knew anyone more capable of getting by on his own.

Then again, didn't dozens of her novels purport that love often took people by surprise? She shook her head, fighting a blush, as she denied the very idea. She was certain she didn't feel that way about her comrade... but at the same time, this was easily the closest she'd ever been to anyone. ...Maybe 95% certain?

Of course, someone wasn't exactly helping matters lately.

Within the team's private lounge, Totomaru rose from his seat at the table, stretching. "Eh, I guess we'd better get going. Those heirlooms aren't gonna track down themselves." With a glance toward Juvia, who was pretending to read a book on the couch, he asked, "You sure you don't want in on this one?"

"No thank you," she answered without looking away, although she had no idea where she'd last been on this page, having become lost in her thoughts instead. "Juvia doesn't need the money right now, and the last job was a little draining. Juvia will rest for now."

The fire wizard shrugged. "Whatever you say, Juv." Putting on a smirk and turning toward the perpetually-darkened corner of the room, he asked, "Gajeel?" Juvia fought a flinch at the name. "Feeling in the team spirit today?"

"Fuck off," came the short response.

Totomaru only laughed. "All right then. Catch you guys later."

The door shut behind him, and Juvia began counting. Seven... eight... ni-

Not ten seconds later, the dragon slayer all but materialized in the seat next to her, a dark arm stretched over the back of the couch behind her. "Hey Blue," he greeted in an oddly pleasant growl. "Whatcha readin'?"

Wait um.. what even was it? It seemed Juvia had forgotten. Then again, "Do you actually care?" she asked hesitantly.

"No." And just that fast, Juvia felt sharp teeth begin nibbling ever so lightly at her ear. It seemed he was being slightly more forward than usual today.

"Gajy..." It was a weak protest, if one could even call it that, and the affectionate nature didn't help.

He released her, then, but moved only just far enough to purr in her ear. "C'mon, doll. You can't tell me you don't wanna piece o' this.."

Oh, but she did... Gajeel Redfox was not her type. Juvia wanted a handsome prince, and the dragon was much more a roughhouse rogue- or, well, a literal dragon. But that toned body, those rugged scars, that wicked grin... A wave of shivers moved down her spine.

"Easy..." she murmured, scooting away just a few inches.

But Gajeel didn't want to take it easy. Quite the opposite, in fact. The man had needs, after all. Most of them involved fighting and food, but there was another that had been on his mind more and more often the past few days. A need that especially involved a certain rain woman- one with big, beautiful eyes and gorgeous blue locks. Come to think, he'd always had a bit of a thing for bluenettes... And this one also had an absolutely rocking body; it was almost a shame she kept it so covered, but at the same time it was kind of appealing when he thought of it as a private treat, just for him.

Of course, these were the only reasons for his actions. Sure, she might have also been the first person since Metallicana- the first human at all- to really take the time to get to know him, and to like him for every part of him rather than just his power or reputation. But- Gajeel mentally scoffed at himself- all that sappy stuff didn't matter much to him. That was girly, mushy stuff, and obviously he was way too tough to give a damn. Obviously.

So, fueled by what was most definitely just lust and not at all a suppressed assortment of feelings, he tarried on. "You know you can't fight it," he boasted. "I'm just that magnetic."

Juvia managed to refrain from laughing, but just barely. "Juvia..." Initially, this was going to be another protest, but as she failed to think of one, she instead finished, "..isn't sure."

At that he went deadpan. "Bout what."

"Juvia..." Uuuuugggghhhh, why did this have to be so difficult? "Juvia doesn't-..." Heaven help her he looked enticing right- "...Did you take out the lip studs today?"

"Maybe," he answered, as if there was any other reason they wouldn't be in. Shrugging, he added, "You said they got in the way, right?"

By this point, her breathing was becoming a bit difficult, and she felt so warm she was half-surprised she wasn't evaporating. So it was... specifically for... Oh dammit all.

In the next moment, she was in his lap, lips locked lustily with his.

It wasn't the first time. That had been about a week ago...

-

It had been an awful day. They'd finished their mission, but at what cost? This village was all but decimated, and there was.. that poor, poor boy. The whole team was disheartened, but neither Aria nor Juvia could stop crying- and it had only gotten worse when the village leaders still insisted on paying them. This was too much. They'd dealt with high costs before, but it was simply too much.

Juvia needed to get as far away as she could, far enough to pretend it was all just a terrible dream. But Gajeel had disappeared now, and they really shouldn't leave without him. However, they had no idea where he'd gone or when he'd be back.

"Mademoiselle Juvia..." spoke Sol softly. "We really should be returning to commit zese criminals and report to Maître Jose. Perhaps.. you would go find Gajeel while the rest of us begin ze journey?"

Juvia sighed heavily. It was no secret that of the Four, she was the closest to the Dragon Slayer. But more than that, she suspected the others might appreciate getting out of the rain, which could only be further dampening their moods. Dejected, she simply nodded and headed off to search.

First she checked what was left of the village, then walked its perimeter. Just as she was finishing the round and deciding which direction to search next, a commotion began to stir nearby. At first Juvia thought nothing of it, but it quickly grew louder, and- excited?

She then heard one voice rise high above the rest: "YUKIRO?!"

The-..? Juvia rushed toward the source.

In the midst of battling the wizards who'd been terrorizing this village, a massive sinkhole had opened, swallowing several buildings. Most of the villagers had managed to evacuate, but one little boy- Yukiro- had run back in for his cat. His parents barely had time to scream.

Now, however, a crowd had gathered at the edge of the hole. Finding an opening, Juvia made her way there and felt her heart stop. With iron limbs formed into perfect climbing equipment, Gajeel was making his way up the side, with- was that the boy tucked in the front of his shirt?!

As he finally made it to the top, iron reverted to flesh and he did indeed pull a battered, beaten body from it. Disfigured, bleeding, with the worst wounds crudely wrapped in black bandages, a bulge or two beneath those possibly indicating potruding bones: the child, nonetheless, appeared to be breathing.

His parents were quick to take him, and the village healer only a step behind them. Even as they began checking him over and better dressing his injuries, they showered their praise upon the boy's savior, the knight in black steel armor. Juvia wished she could say she was surprised at how disgusted he looked, but she couldn't especially bring herself to care at just that moment. That boy was still alive, and it was all thanks to Gajeel.

It was some time before he was able to escape the crowd, during which time Juvia hadn't even tried to fight the throngs of villagers eager to thank their hero. When at last he put some distance between himself and them, however, she was quick to catch up.

"Gajeel!" she exclaimed, elated. "That was incredible!"

An exasperated growl came in response. "Fer fuck's sake, it's not that big a deal. The kid still might not make it anyway."

That-.. that was true. His injuries were certainly severe. But he did seem to be in very capable hands, and she had faith. Besides.. "You still gave him a chance," Juvia noted, struggling to speak through tears of joy.

Gajeel only grunted, not even looking at her as he picked up his pace.

Without really thinking, she closed the gap again and grabbed one of his crossed arms, holding it as they walked. He flinched once as if to tell her to let go, but when she didn't he offered no further protest. At this point she realized that his arms, which had previous been covered nearly to the elbow, were now quite bare, with what little remained at the base of each sleeve being torn and fraying. It occured to her that that had been the source of the boy's bandages, and her heart swelled all the more.

"Juvia thinks Gajeel is a hero," she offered.

With a glare, taking back his arm, he snapped, "I said it wasn't a big deal!" Juvia couldn't imagine why he was so defensive about this. "I only went down to check cuz it woulda made the guild look bad if I didn't," he grumbled. She knew he hated appearing as anything less than a hard-ass, but he was also usually pretty arrogant. To fight praise this much, even if it was for something he felt was 'too noble', seemed odd even for him.

Juvia said nothing to this, but did look to him questioningly until he could no longer ignore it. Finally, looking away, he muttered, "Anyway, you shoulda seen what was left o' the cat."

A little squeak of realization escaped the girl. He... She tried to fight it, but couldn't help herself. Feeling bad even as the sound left her throat, she heard herself saying, "Awwwwww."

To no surprise, Gajeel cringed. "Whatever," he spat.

She hated making him feel worse, and certainly didn't mean for it to come off as though she didn't care about the cat. But all the same, Juvia found she couldn't stop smiling at this revelation of just how kind-hearted the allegedly-heartless man could really be. "Gajeel..."

He sighed heavily, eyes barely moving toward her. "What."

"Juvia..." She wasn't really.. certain exactly what she wanted to say. She just wanted to express... how much she cared about him, and how proud she was of him, and that he should never be ashamed of showing his feelings around her, and...

At last giving up on words, Juvia instead took his arm again. She stopped in her tracks, and a tug on that arm stopped him as well.

"Huh?" he asked, turning to face her properly now.

Before he'd even finished, she was on her toes, and a kiss was placed lightly on his cheek. Gajeel's eyes widened, while Juvia returned to flat-feet and simply smiled up at him in adoration. "Gajeel is still Juvia's hero."

The dragon slayer found his heart racing. She.. kissed him. Did she... really feel that way? The idea had never even occurred to him, but now that he thought about it... Did this mean... Was he allowed to...? His brow knitted in thought.

Noting the change and growing silence, the woman's face began to color. "Ah... Juvia is sorry if that was... a bit much," she started sheepishly. "She just ah.."

Before she could work out the rest of her explanation, she found herself suddenly swept up into his strong arms, a rough kiss landing on her lips. Juvia startled and squeaked in surprise for just a moment, but then found her arms moving of their own volition to clasp behind his neck as she almost literally melted into the embrace.

Juvia had dated before, and she'd been kissed before. So of course, given her condition, every single kiss to occur outdoors was a 'kiss in the rain'. Somehow, though, that made it feel no less thrilling or special. Perhaps it was because so many stories included such kisses, and they were one of the few ways in which the rain was nearly always portrayed positively or outright romanticized. The rain alone was gloomy, but a kiss in the rain was like magic. Whatever the case, Juvia loved it.

Although at this point this was becoming harder and harder to call simply 'a kiss'. When they finally broke away, both were left breathless and more than a little confused.

Gajeel stared into the eyes of his beautiful bluebird, wondering for a moment how such a small body of water could contain two separate oceans. He then realized his own thoughts were about to make him barf, and quickly pulled out of the embrace and changed the subject. "We should get going eh?"

"Hm?" Juvia blushed deeply as the situation fully dawned on her as well. "Ah. Right. Yes. We shouldn't keep the others waiting."

That did present another thought, however. Finding she couldn't quite bring herself to look at him- or perhaps just didn't want him to see just how red she was- she all the same said to him, "You know.. We do need to let Master know about the boy." The rest of the team would no doubt have reported his 'death' by the time they arrived, after all. Master Jose would be pleased to hear there weren't any (human) casualties after all. He was not especially averse to a few necessary sacrifices, but it did look much better for the guild where they could avoid them, and that their Master did always love.

Gajeel shrugged. "Guess so.."

Eyes falling to her feet as she walked, she offered, "J-... Juvia could take the credit for it, if you want...?"

That brought a slow smile to his face. "...Gi hi." To most people, such an offer would sound absurd, and that just went to show how well she really knew him. "You're too good to me, Blue."

-

So things had been about like this ever since. Every time they found themselves alone together, they fluctuated between awkward confusion and fits of passion.

Running his large hands over her petite form as they continued making out in the guild lounge, Gajeel found that as content as he was, he couldn't resist pushing her buttons a little. "What were you saying?" he rasped.

Saying...? Juvia found herself in a haze for several moments before recalling that she had, in fact, been meaning to say something. "Ju-"

She really should have expected she'd be cut off by another kiss. "Can't quite hear you," he teased. In a lower tone, he added, "You've got something in your mouth."

Though she knew it was only- 'only'- his tongue (his strange.. delectable.. arguably 'draconic' tongue..), that wording was still enough to cause her to go crimson. "Ga-.."

When he went for it this time, she pulled away, causing him to frown. ...Too far? He hoped not. "Whatsa matter, hot lips?" he asked, putting on a smirk; he couldn't have himself sounding too concerned, after all.

"Ahhh..." How did she-

The doorknob moved.

Totomaru peeked back into the room to see Juvia sitting quite engrossed in her novel and Gajeel sitting at the table idly carving the edge of it with a finger-turned-blade. "Hey guys, did Aria leave his hat in here?"

Juvia 'noticed' her teammate's presence and glanced up. "Hm? Oh, no. Juvia doesn't think so. Sorry." Gajeel simply grunted.

The fire wizard shrugged. "Aight. See ya guys later, then."

When the door closed again, both breathed a sigh of relief. Getting caught together like that would be-

... Come to think, there would probably be little to no consequence at all. Gajeel was actually pretty sure there were at least a few people who already suspected there was more going on between them than actually was, and he really doubted anyone would be particularly surprised. Phantom Lord had no rules against it, and even if it did he was hardly one to care much for rules.

Then again, there were always the tabloids... Gajeel could very much deal without all that bullshit. Still, he couldn't say that was his only reason, and he doubted it was Juvia's either.

After about a minute to make sure no one was coming in again, Juvia again returned to her concerns, this time free of... distractions. "Gajy..." Her voice was small, at a loss. "...What are we doing?"

"Mm?" What kind of question was that? "If ya need a reminder already I-"

She shook her head, looking almost pained. "Juvia..." How could she put it..? "Juvia doesn't want to marry Gajeel."

The Dragon Slayer went slack-jawed. "-Whh-Uhhh... I didn' know that was on the table."

"Oh- Well-" She tried to put down her book, but had become so flustered she dropped it instead. ... Love and Lacrimae. That was the title of this one. Right. Again putting it out of her mind, though, she left it where it lay. "What Juvia means is- Juvia. She really wants to get married. -Not right now! Not to you, just. J-Juvia wants a storybook romance, with a handsome prince and lots of kids and- She just.. doesn't.. see that with you?"

Then again, Gajeel... did have a secret soft spot for kids, didn't he... Oh this just kept getting more confusing!

The man simply propped his head on one hand and twisted his mouth as he listened. It was actually pretty cute when she got all fidgety like this, but what she was saying was... Denying even to himself just how many things bothered him about it, he decided to pick out one in particular. "...You callin' me ugly?"

Juvia let out a small scream of frustration as her hands moved to cover her reddening face. "No, no, it's not that, it- you-!" A long whining noise followed. Finally, with a huff, she managed to organize her thoughts. "Juvia cares deeply for Gajeel, but she isn't sure exactly how she feels!"

The dragon sneered a moment, then stood. "Whoa, dame, look. We ain't gotta start bringin' feelings into all this, okay?"

She froze at that. "...What?"

Dropping to the couch beside her once more, he shrugged and rolled his eyes. "It's pretty simple. You're hot an' I got some time ta kill. This ain't gotta be no happily ever after forever crap. I just wana have some fun, all right?"

Her initial reaction was outrage, but even as she opened her mouth to express that, she reconsidered. She.. did enjoy their little fling thus far, aside from the confusion surrounding it. And if they were clearing that up... Oh dear, was she a terrible person for thinking that way!?

But what.. what was the harm in it? As long as they were clear about what it was, and agreed on everything, and... Well.. She could think of one thing. "What if... What about when Juvia does find a prince? What.. would Gajeel do?"

He shrugged again. "Why should I care? I already said I don't expect this ta be forever or nothin'." Right. Just a fling for as long as it was convenient. That was all.

"So.. Juvia could just... walk away at any time?" Could it even be that easy?

He smirked. "If you think you can," came the haughty response. "Told ya before, I'm pretty magnetic."

Juvia laughed lightly at that, but she did have one more serious question. "So... Gajeel wouldn't be hurt by that?"

"Tch," he scoffed. "Nah. There's plenty o' fish in the sea ya know." Though not.. many of them were so much the sea itself... Finding his own answer unsatisfactory, he added, "It ain't like I'm in love with ya or somethin'." Even as the dry, confident words crossed his lips, he felt his heart shrivel.

The smile that brightened her face at hearing those words was like cauterizing a wound, making it both better and worse all at once. "As long as you're sure... Juvia thinks.. she might like this~"

"Oh, I can guarantee that," he growled pleasantly, once again suppressing all hint of emotion to focus on enjoying the moment. "..So are we good then?"

Juvia thought on it, searching for anything she may have forgotten, but came up with nothing for now. "Juvia thinks so." She nodded.

"Good." He pulled her back onto his lap, then, and leaned in to kiss her neck, eliciting a gasp of pleasure from the rain woman. ...Unsurprisingly, she tasted like water.

Belated realization if there ever was one, Gajeel suddenly asked. "...Hey. Blue. If you're always water, how come I can't see through ya?"

That... Uh. ... Juvia didn't want to think about things like that right now. "Shut up and kiss me." She didn't wait for him to comply before kissing him instead.

Gajeel supposed he was okay with that answer.

-

Downstairs a while later, a couple of Phantom Lord wizards sat around having a drink. The front door opened and another entered the guild hall. Joining those at the table, the newcomer commented, "Hey guys. I take it Juvia's out?"

"Uh... I dunno?" shrugged one at the table. Seeing his friend was a little wet, he added, "Why do you say?"

"Sun's out," she answered casually. "Sun shower, but it's pretty light. I was just wondering was all."

"Huh. That is a bit odd." They all agreed it didn't much matter, though, and the topic quickly changed to something more interesting.

-

A/N: I don't know what happened, I never meant to spend this much time on... GaJu? Gajuvia? Gajia, Gavia, Juveel, Jujeel? What is this ship even called? Is it even enough of A Thing to have a standardized title the way NaLu or Gruvia do? (This is an actual question, btw.)

:'3 At any rate, next chapter we'll finally get back to Shadow Gear! Huzzah!

As always, reviews are much loved3