It's a miracle, I actually managed to stick to my scedule. I believe pigs can fly now.
Anyway, here's the next chapter, hope you all enjoyed the first! This one is a tad bit shorter, but oh well, i'm surprised their even this long in the first place!
Disclaimer: I still do not own Fairy Tail, if I did, Juvia and Gray would be together as well as Lucy and Natsu :)
Juvia stumbled out of the abandoned mill and out into the drab, wet world. She was instantly assaulted by a cascade of pelting raindrops, the cold water quickly soaking her thin nightgown and long blue hair. She pulled her makeshift cloak made of an old blanket tightly around her shoulders and headed into the heart of the small town. The dreary weather made sure not many people were out and about, making it easier for the small orphaned Juvia not to get caught while stealing a small loaf of bread from a tiny corner shop. Hungrily, she munched on the soaked, soggy meal, the small amount of food making her famished body suddenly regain at least half of her strength. She barely ever got anything more than scraps to eat, only sometimes did she get a fine meal like this.
She was dirty and scratched, the rain doing little to help her battered body. She had quickly adjusted to life alone on the streets, but that didn't make it any less hard. There was always the risk that she would be caught stealing or trespassing and carted away to the local orphanage – and judging by the screams that she had heard from many children that had been caught and dragged off, the place didn't exactly sound like a five-star hotel.
Juvia stuffed the last bit of wet bread into her mouth before wiping her chapped lips. She was in a city, the first she had ever been to. Even with the rain gushing down from the grey sky, many people still bustled about the cobbled streets. She had been travelling for at least a week now, she had no destination in mind, she just knew that she had to get as far away from the ruins of her old home as quickly as possible. She couldn't stand the sight of the dead bodies that littered the streets.
She didn't know what kept her going all this time, only that she couldn't give in – not yet. Many a time she had contemplated taking her own life, and every time she banished the thought. She couldn't commit suicide, not when so many people had had their lives unwillingly snatched away – it wasn't fair, her mother would never want her to do that.
Often, she would find herself teetering on the bridge of insanity, the shadowy hands of craziness calling to her, beckoning her. But, she would always steer herself away from the deep, black abyss, trying her best to survive for what little good there still was in the world.
Juvia stood up from her wet perch on the cobblestone floor and crept out of the dark alley. She kept to the sidelines as she snuck through the city of Arietta. She preferred to not stay in one place for too long, in fear of being found, and moved within at least twenty-four hours. The city was relatively quiet today, not many people venturing outdoors and deciding to stay in the warmth of their comfy homes.
Juvia had heard many rumours floating around about a Dark Guild of mages travelling the country, slaughtering many villages. The gossip of these bandits made Juvia's blood freeze, the mere mention of murder dredging up the memories she wanted to forget most. The blue haired girl rounded a corner and entered the city square. A delicate statue stood in the middle of the square, surrounded by a circular pool of water with pennies lying at the bottom. The fountain was beautiful and Juvia couldn't help but wonder what it would look like in the glorious sunshine, without the dreary drops of rain causing everlasting ripples in the water.
"I'm not lying!"
A loud, angered shout made Juvia snap her head round, looking for the source of the thundering noise. She spotted a small group of boys standing by an alley, one of them was standing slightly slouched, his black hair shrouding his eyes and his fists clenched. The three other boys just watched him, mocking smiles dancing on their lips. They laughed at his outburst and one of them stepped forward, leaning down to the black-haired child and sneering.
"Oh" He mocked; his eyes alight with sadistic pleasure. "You're not? Well, that there is another lie"
The two boys behind him laughed, following in their leaders footsteps. Juvia just stood and watched, unable to take her eyes of the spectacle before her. It was bullying – that she knew all too well.
"Juvia, Juvia, go away, don't come again another day. If you're gone, we'll be glad. But your rain, makes us sad."
The song that the children of her village used to sing echoed in her fragile mind as she watched the older boys push the black-haired boy to the floor. He fell with'oomph' and rubbed his backside. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes and Juvia raised her hand to her thumping heart. Suddenly, the leader of the bullies turned away from the fallen child, his hard gaze resting on Juvia.
"What are you looking at?" He snapped, beginning to stride over to the petite blue-haired girl.
Juvia's eyes grew wide and she stumbled backwards, tripping over her own feet and falling to the wet floor. Then, the boy was above her, towering over her small figure, his cold, green gaze boring into her. He smiled a huge, evil grin and picked Juvia up by her hair.
"Look boys!" He shouted back to his cronies who were still taunting their first victim. Juvia squirmed in the boys grip. "I've found us an orphan!"
The other boys – a tall blonde haired boy and a short brunette covered in acne – looked up. They both smiled malicious grins and kicked the black-haired victim they were teasing and then proceeded to run over to where their leader was. The green eyed bully sneered at Juvia and then laughed at her fear filled blue eyes and panicked expression.
"What?" He teased, poking her in her ribs. "You scared of playing with us?"
Juvia growled and spat at the boy, acting on impulse without really considering the consequences. The boy's eyes widened before narrowing into tiny slits. He bared his teeth and threw Juvia to the floor, while violently wiping the sticky saliva from his cheek.
"Did you just spit at me?" He asked, his voice laced with venom.
Juvia shuffled backwards, her heart hammering behind her delicate ribs. The two lackeys behind the green eyed boy both looked down at the orphaned child with distaste and anger while the green eyed boy himself slowly, menacingly approached Juvia, cracking his knuckles in his palm.
"J-Juvia… D-didn't…" She stuttered, raising her arms to shield her face from the punch she was expecting.
The boy above her smiled and raised his fist, preparing to bring it down right into Juvia's cheek. His fist began to descend, the wind whistling as his hand sliced through it. But the blow never came. Juvia never felt the boys hard knuckles connect with her grubby face – they didn't even graze it. Instead she heard a –
"Ouch!"
Juvia lowered her shaking arms from her face and stared, wide eyed at the boy standing in front of her, his head turned to the side and his back towards her. His short black hair only reached his neck and his clothes were worn and scruffy. He raised his hand to his cheek and winced as his fingers touched his soon to be bruised face. He snapped his head up to glare at the astonished bullies, a coy smile playing on his bleeding lips.
"You know" He cooed, the noise dark and menacing. "I really wasn't lying"
Then, his right hand glowed gold, the light extending up to his elbow before disappearing and leaving a long iron pole. He grinned and raised his hand, showing his new metal arm to the flabbergasted and now scared bullies. The black haired boy laughed dryly and glared at the boys in front of him.
"I'll give you till the count of three" He sang, raising his arm higher and higher. "One. Two…"
The bullies didn't waste another second as they turned and fled down the road, leaving the black-haired stranger and Juvia in the middle of the city square, the rain beating down on the pavement. Juvia watched as the green eyed boy ran away, his strong demeanour vanishing instantly when faced with magic. Then, her line of sight trailed up to look at the boy in front of her, her eyes glistening with awe.
"Gihihi" He laughed, his arm glowing and turning back to its normal skin and bone. "That'll show them"
Then, he collapsed to his knees.
"Thank you again, for saving Juvia" Juvia said, dabbing the boys face with a scrap of her wet cloak.
The boy beamed at her, showing his rows of teeth, the two canines pointed like a wild animals. He laughed and scratched the back of his head.
"It wasn't much really" He said "And plus, you've already said thank you 5 times!"
Juvia blushed and lowered her head so that her hair shadowed her eyes. She finished wiping the blood from the boys face and put the cloth on the floor. She stood up briefly and moved to sit next to the black-haired boy in the dark alley. She fiddled with the hem of her nightgown.
"But, J-Juvia is just really grateful" She whispered. "Nobody has ever saved her before"
The boys smile dropped and he looked at Juvia, his red eyes searching her face. Then, he sighed and looked up at the grey sky, watching the dull clouds roll overhead as a gently shower embraced them both.
"You're an orphan too, aren't you?" He asked, his voice low and flat.
Juvia nodded, remembering the horror she had lived through, and then tried to push the images to the back of her brain, along with the distant, pained screams.
"You may not believe this" he continued, raising both his palms and letting small raindrops plop onto his calloused skin. "But I was raised by a dragon"
Juvia's head shot up and she stared at the boy in fascination. He lowered his hands and looked at her, his face scrunched into a scowl and his eyebrows knitted.
"I knew it" He said, standing up and letting his bangs shadow his eyes. "You don't believe me. Nobody ever does"
He made a move to walk away, but was stopped by a small hand gripping onto his torn trouser leg. He looked back at Juvia, his crimson eyes wide as her grip on his trousers tightened. She looked up at him, her eyes somewhat pleading.
"J-Juvia, believes you" She stuttered "Juvia b-believes anything is possible"
She let go of his trouser leg and looked up at the sky, a watery smile gracing her lips. She reached up towards the dull sky, her hands feebly grasping the air and rain.
"The rain follows Juvia" She whispered "It always has. Wherever Juvia is, so is the rain"
A small tear trickled down her cheek and the boy looked up towards the sky, following Juvia's action. Then he smiled and laughed, looking back down at the now confused girl that had started to stare at him.
"Well that's good!" He cheered, a happy smile plastering his face. "Because I love the rain!"
Juvia looked at the boy like he was crazy. Like the rain? Nobody had ever liked her rain. She voiced her thoughts as warm tears trickled down her cheeks as they often did, the warm, salty water sending ripples of warmth through her veins. Again the black-haired boy laughed and extended his hand towards Juvia.
"And nobody has ever believed my story" He said, smiling a warm smile at Juvia, something she hadn't seen since her mother's death.
Timidly, Juvia reached out and grabbed the boy's rough hands and he helped her to get up. Her heart pounded in her chest and her body was overcome with a warm feeling, even in the icy rain.
"Gajeel" He introduced, pointing his thumb at his chest. "It's nice to meet you, Juvia"
Ok, that's that for this week, seeya next Thursday! Or maybe before then if I'm in a writing mood.
Gajeel is Out of character on purpose, I'm planning on putting a few events in this story that are the reason he turns into his cold gruff self so bare with me. Also, I put Gajeel in this story because I wanted an explanation for why Juvia wanted him to join Fairy Tail, even if I had to make the reason up myself.
Bye!
BTB