Standard disclaimer applies.
a/n: pertaining to Samuel felixs's feedback about scents/dragon slayers: yes, I've pondered about that prior to creating a story about secret affair. it's tricky since individuals with heightened senses are around. I don't want to come up with something too mediocre. but, Juvia being a water mage gave me a good opportunity to take liberty when it comes to this. I just hope I didn't make it too fictitious. I hope it's convincing enough how these two kept their affair for months. ^^;
Without further ado, enjoy.
Chapter 7
Back to present time...
The train arrives at Magnolia Station late afternoon. A dizzy salmon-haired dragon slayer slumps on the seat, barely noticing he's reached his destination. His whole body is enwrapped in fatigue; his magic is a little bit depleted. The previous day, Natsu has exhausted himself into finishing the job with Lucy, even Lucy had to give up when midnight struck. Yet, Natsu has insisted and offered to continue the reconstruction. By sunrise, the whole project has been completed, Natsu barely standing.
It is safe to say Lucy was surprised and impressed. What shocked her, however, is the fact that Natsu left ahead, entrusting her with collecting the payment. He claims he needed to go to another town for another special mission.
Suffice to say, Natsu has survived riding the train alone, perhaps the very first without a companion. Yet, he arrives at Magnolia quite late.
It is Saturday, and it is Juvia's birthday.
He leaves the platform in weak steps, nervousness surging through his body. There's a strong foreboding developing in him — that feeling when strange creatures fly inside your stomach, gnawing at your intestines. He wonders if the relationship between Juvia and Gray progressed into something else. It pains him to think that it might no longer be out of his control, especially with how devoted Juvia is to Gray.
And it hurts that he wasn't there to put a stop to it.
It angers him that he didn't put a claim to what should've been his. If only his scent lingered on hers...
"Uh, Juv, Gajeel might smell me on you," he commented as he handed the water mage a shirt he rarely used. Her clothes had been tattered, and god forbid he'd let the girl walk exposed through Magnolia streets.
His worry didn't just stem from her wearing his clothes. They spent the night with skin-to-skin contact, his sweat mixed with hers. Dragon slayers have heightened senses and could easily distinguish a person's natural scent. If this person bonded with another, their natural scent would get altered. Natsu didn't think about this concept prior to giving in to his lust.
Juvia bit her lip, and then she pinched his cheek, making the boy scowl. "You don't have to worry about that, Natsu-san. A water mage's scent cannot be altered or transformed, unless the body composition itself has been tampered." Juvia continued her explanation about her elemental make-up. Like fresh water, Juvia's own scent would stay the same no matter what, or no matter whom she bonded with. Sure, perfume can temporarily give her a different fragrance, but the moment she washes herself with water, it would be washed away readily.
"Meaning... my scent will never be on you?"
Juvia nodded, reassuring him. "If Gajeel-kun comes by here any minute for example, sure he'll smell you on me. But once Juvia bathes, your scent will be washed off completely."
Natsu hummed in response, not sure if he liked what he heard. He scowled when Juvia added before standing from the bed.
"Plus, Juvia's scent will never be on Natsu-san's!"
And that's what frustrates Natsu even more. He can't leave a kiss mark on her skin, as it heals within days. Plus, Juvia is covered up like always. He can't even leave his scent on her. How else can he stake his claim? Natsu fidgets at his pocket, ensuring a small box is still safely tucked in there.
He's made a firm decision. He wants Juvia to be solely his. The only question is if Juvia wants that as well.
A dream come true... That's what this date should feel like. In just an hour or so, Juvia is scheduled to meet up with the man who plagued her imagination and delusions, since the day blue skies appeared in her life.
In an hour or so, Juvia will sit across her dream guy with tousled raven hair, lazy demeanour, and his signature smirk.
Juvia takes out her collection of Gray-sama memorabilia stashed away in her closet. She's collected (and created) such items to prove her devotion to the ice mage. Days go by, without exactly getting a concrete idea of his feelings for her, these collectibles have simply become mere decorations in her quite plain dorm room. She's forgotten about them for the past few months, since her time has been filled up with something — someone — else.
Juvia proceeds to grab the huge portrait under her bed. She unwraps the cloth and stares at the picture. She begins to question if her love has been sincere. Does she still love him?
She sighs out loud. "I have a confession to make, Gray-sama," she says this with a solemn voice. She kisses her two fingers and brings them to portrait-Gray's lips. She's now ready to face the man who's captured her heart from long ago.
"Hey Natsu!" the blue exceed greets his best friend happily. The fire mage bursts open the guild doors, head jerks in all direction as if looking for someone. "Are you looking for Lucy?"
"Lu-chan went home after the party. It's too bad you missed it," Levy interjects when she passes by.
The pink-haired boy ignores them but continues to scan the area around him. The members of the guild are doing a clean-up.
"It was Juvia-chan's surprise birthday party," Happy notifies him. He rubs his belly and announces, "There are still some fish left if you want, Natsu."
"Where is she?" he asks snappily.
Happy, thinking Natsu was referring to a certain celestial mage, answered, "She went home already. She was quite annoyed you weren't here yet."
"Fuck," Natsu curses. Without saying anything to Happy or Levy, he leaves in a huff.
"I guess Natsu is on his way to follow after Lucy. She's pretty mad Natsu left her at their mission place," Happy explains to Levy.
"Ah, no wonder Lu-chan was a little irritated once she arrived," Levy muses. "Anyway, Juvia was really surprised today, wasn't she?"
"Aye! And now she's going on a date with Gray. That's a dream come true for her, for sure."
Natsu gets to the Fairy Hills in a blink of an eye. The distance from the guild building to the dormitory is a short walk, less than thirty minutes. But of course, Natsu dashes as soon as he stepped out of the guild. The last thing he wants is for Juvia to think he forgot her birthday. Well, technically he did, but he's here to rectify the situation.
He stares at the imposing gates of the dormitory. He recalls not seeing Erza at the guild, so it's safe to assume the Titania-bully roams the forbidden castle of Fairy girls. Not like it matters. The fire dragon slayer knows his way around the area to sneak into Juvia's room. He rarely visits Juvia at the dorm, and has only spent a two or three nights at her place.
Their favourite rendezvous location is his house. And he's come up with all the ways to trick Happy into going to Lucy's place.
Come to think of it, Natsu reflects, he and Juvia have perfectly hidden their liaisons from their fellow guild members. If Natsu gets his way — and oh how he hopes Juvia is willing — he will announce to their comrades and friends about their relationship. He just feels it's the proper thing to do. He's not ashamed of telling everyone he's with Juvia. But... what if she is? What if Juvia doesn't want anyone to know he's with her?
Heck, what if she doesn't feel the same way as him?
Natsu shakes off these thoughts. There's only one way to find out. So, the salmon-haired mage stealthily makes his way around the corner of the dormitory. The sun is about to take its slumber, hence the whole sky is bathed in red-orange colours blended with some purple and blue. It would've been better if he's doing this in the dark, but there's no sense in waiting.
Quietly, like a trained ninja going for crucial operation, Natsu scales the wall like an expert. He knows Juvia leaves her windows open as he requested. When he tugs, the window easily slides open. A smile creeps up to his lips, excited to see the blue-haired goddess.
As soon as he steps inside, he realizes the whole room is enveloped in silence. The room looks exactly the same as the last time he visited. He recalls acting slightly callous towards her, and he could only hope she didn't get mad at him.
"Juvia?" he whispers her name, hoping it's enough for her to hear. He walks to the bathroom door, presses his ear, and listens if there's any sound of running water. Nope. Not there. Just one sweep of his eyes around the room is enough to conclude the water mage isn't in her room.
Yet, something catches his eye. Strange beings comfortably resting on top of her bed. As Natsu's vision refocuses and forms what look like plush toys, a raging sensation pulsed through his body.
Anger. Annoyance. Pain.
On top of Juvia's bed, a place where he has shared intimate moments with her, a collection of Gray-looking dolls (of different sizes!) lie in an organized manner. And to add insult to injury, a huge portrait of Gray leans on the side of the bed.
Natsu feels nauseous. This is enough to make him realize, and completely comprehend, Juvia's utter devotion towards Gray. What she feels towards the ice-jerk isn't just infatuation or admiration.
"She loves him," he mumbles under his breath, his clenched fists shaking. "She's obsessed with him," he adds out loud. "She wants the ice douche and not the flame brains."
His right hand feels the bump of the small box inside his pocket. He clutches at it, knowing the gift has been rendered useless. With a dejected countenance, he leaves Juvia's room through her window, knowing he'll never be a visitor in that place ever again.
The dark indigo sky is littered with glistening glitters. The light from the full moon serves as a spotlight. Two figures walk in awkward silence. The taller one has his hands shoved inside the pockets a white trench coat. The shorter, slender figure walks with her hands clasped in front of her. A sizable distance separates them. An onlooker wouldn't think these two have just completed a dinner date.
An evening breeze passes between them, coolly kissing the exposed skin of the blue-haired maiden. Juvia hugs her coat tightly around her, desiring to quicken her pace to get inside the comforts of her warm dormitory.
"Are you feeling cold?"
She turns her eyes to the inquirer, shaking her head, and offering him a smile as an assurance. If someone tells her, say five months ago, that Gray would walk her home after a dinner date, she'd probably be buried five-feet underground. She would've died of a heart attack from excitement and joy. Good thing no one around her had the gift of foresight.
If someone told her five months ago that she wouldn't exactly feel elated during a date with Gray, she would've slapped that person with all her might.
When she sees the gates leading to the inside of Fairy Hills, Juvia couldn't help but feel relieved. She faces Gray and conjures up her brightest smile.
"Thank you, Gray-sama. Even after Juvia told you how she feels, you still proceeded having dinner with Juvia. Thank you."
Gray looks away, unable to meet her eyes. "It's my birthday gift for you. I didn't know what to get you, but Erza and Mira told me you'd love to try out that new restaurant. I hope you liked it there."
"Oh, Juvia certainly did. Their dessert menu was astounding. Juvia hopes all of us from Fairy Tail can go eat there together."
Gray slightly nods in agreement. "Well, happy birthday again."
"Thank you again, Gray-sama. Juvia hopes you'll have a good night as well." The bluenette waves a farewell, opens the gates, and steps inside.
"Juvia," Gray calls her when she was about to close the gates. "I..." he trails off not sure how to properly word his thoughts.
"Yes, Gray-sama?"
"I'm not gonna give up."
Juvia blinks at his statement. She is confused, although she has an inkling what he's trying to say. "Gray-sama, Juvia thinks that—," she was cut off by Gray's firm tone.
"You don't understand. I felt the same way as you did before. So this time, I'll be the one doing the pursuing."
Juvia shakes her head. "Please don't, Gray-sama. If you think Juvia is going to be cold or ignore you, that's not going to happen. Juvia will remain the same. Juvia's feelings are just... different now."
"That's why this time, I'm the one who's going to make you see that the two of us can work out," insists Gray, starting to feel a tinge of frustration. "Go in. It's late. I don't want you getting sick on your birthday." With that, he turns around and walks away before she can protest.
Juvia remains unmoving, staring after the disappearing figure of Gray. Prior to her date with Gray, she has decided to come clean about her feelings for the ice mage — or should it be dissipating feelings? Her affair with Natsu clouds her mind, and she still has no idea about the state of their 'affair'. Sadly, she is also clueless about Natsu's emotions regarding her.
It took six knocks before Gray finally opened the door. He was shirtless, but a polo shirt hung on his shoulder.
"Juvia? I was supposed to pick you up at Fairy Hills," confusion clouded his face as he opened the door for her. "Come in though."
Juvia apologized for the unexpected visit, but explained that she needed to tell him something important. It was so important, she explained, that their dinner should be cancelled. Gray let her speak without interruption.
"The truth is, Gray-sama, Juvia lied to you." When Gray made no retort, the bluenette continued, "Juvia kept saying she loves Gray-sama, when in fact she doesn't. At least not anymore. Don't get Juvia wrong. Juvia's feelings for you before were genuine. But now, Juvia realized that it's just deep love for a friend." She found staring at her hands placed on her lap was easier. "Love for a saviour," she added. "Gray-sama saved Juvia from her gloomy rain. Juvia mistook that as something romantic. But now Juvia knows..." Juvia paused, peeking through her bangs to check his expression. He remained impassive.
"So, Gray-sama shouldn't be forced to take Juvia out for dinner." Again, Gray remained frozen where he stood. Juvia smiled and waved her hand. "Thank you for letting Juvia in your home. This is Juvia's first time here. Goodbye, Gray-sama," she bid him a hasty farewell. As she was about to head towards the door, Gray gripped her wrist, his hold still gentle.
"Give me five minutes and I'll be done putting my clothes on," he told her. When Juvia gave him a questioning stare, Gray explained, "This dinner is my birthday gift for you."
Apprehension slowly builds up inside Juvia, as she reaches a few blocks away from the guild building. She could just imagine the girls — namely Mirajane, Cana, Erza, Levy, Evergreen, and Lucy — interrogating her about the previous night's dinner with Gray. Not only that, how should she face Gray now?
Juvia recalls the uneasy atmosphere during the whole meal. She has sensed that Gray forced himself to be chatty — very unlike him. Not to mention, Gray's words make her ponder what exactly he aims to do, especially about the 'pursuing' part.
The majority of her sleepless night, however, has been spent thinking about a certain fire dragon slayer. Scowling, Juvia can't accept that he missed her birthday, particularly when Lucy managed to make it to her surprise party. When Juvia casually inquired about the missing fire mage, the celestial mage got infuriated at the mere mention of his name. Apparently, that 'stupid flame-breath named Natsu' had another mission to attend to. Mirajane teased the blonde maiden that she's acting like a spoiled girlfriend, after the latter complained that Natsu left her by herself. Juvia hid her disappointment with gusto.
She highly appreciated what her guildmates and friends did for her. So for a little while during the party, thoughts of Natsu were pushed to the back of her mind.
But now that she's making her way to the guild — with a big possibility the dragon slayer is there — Juvia can't help but feel excited, irritated, nervous, and dejected. Yes, she's a bag full of mixed emotions.
And then the massive guild doors appear in front of her in all its glory!
Juvia takes one big, deep breath as if she's going for a huge plunge. She places her hands on the door handles, the loud beating of her heart serving as sound effects.
"Can you move?" an all-too-familiar voice breaks her concentration.
The water mage pivots to face the one boy she doesn't want to see, and at the same time craves to gaze upon. "Nats-," she's cut off before she even finishes his name.
"I'd appreciate it if you either open the door or step aside to let others in," he tells her coldly, clear exasperation written on his face.
The water mage blinks in bewilderment, wondering whether her imagination's at play again. When she is about to open her mouth to say something, the blonde mage appears from behind Natsu. She playfully slaps the fire mage on his back, scolding him.
"Don't be so mean to Juvia. You already missed her birthday," Lucy chides the salmon-haired mage. She turns to Juvia, offering a bright greeting. "How's the birthday girl? I bet you had so much fun last night," Lucy raises her brow continuously, stressing on the 'last night' part. Juvia doesn't miss the implication behind it.
"Good morning, Lucy-chan," she greets back in a small voice, "You too, Natsu-san."
He mutters gruffly, "What's good about the morning? Someone kept me up all night with her snoring."
"Oh, hush you!" Lucy punches him on the arm. "You're the one who intruded in my home. You've no right to complain. Plus, who told you to sleep on my bed. Now all the dragon slayers can smell you on me, and they'll get the wrong idea."
Juvia watches this exchange between the two with clenched fists. Natsu dismisses Lucy's chagrin, pushes the guild doors open, and walks away from Juvia without a glance. Lucy pulls Juvia by the arm, giggling as if being tickled.
"I can't wait to hear what happened last night. Don't miss a single detail," the blonde says while she leads Juvia towards the bar counter where Mira waits. As soon as the white-haired maiden saw the two female mages, she waves vigorously, beckoning the two of them to walk faster. "The star of the day is here!" Lucy announces, and right away Cana, Erza, and Levy make their way where Mira is.
Juvia, for her part, lets Lucy drag her. Her eyes trail after Natsu, who already found a seat beside a fish-munching Happy. The water mage hears Happy asking when Natsu returned, since he didn't spend the night at their home. That information simply solidifies the fact he spent the night at Lucy's place.
As soon as Juvia's butt is placed on a bar stool, all girls surround her inquiring about the date. Juvia puts on her usual mask — she's smiling shyly with a hint of playfulness in her words. All she wanted is to not divulge what she's told Gray, and vice versa. Juvia just needs a plan where she can subtly show her diminishing attraction towards Gray without attracting suspicions.
"Oh, it's just like an ordinary meeting between two friends," she responds when Mira asked how Gray was as a date.
Cana snorts before chugging her beer. "Yeah right. As if you see Gray as a friend. I bet you ogled him all throughout the meal."
"Juvia didn't do that. Juvia is a prim and proper lady," she insists.
"I agree," Erza nods her head firmly. "Juvia isn't the type to undress Gray using her eyes."
"She doesn't need to. Gray does that by himself," quips Lucy, earning laughter from everyone except Juvia.
"But I bet Juvia would like to be the one undressing Gray," Cana pokes Juvia on her chest, making the water mage cover her bosom with crossed arms. The not-so-drunken mage cackles out loud.
"As long as you had fun with Gray, that's all that matters," Mirajane interjects, but the dreamy glaze in her eyes is apparent. "Soon, we'll have little Juvias and mini Grays running around the guild."
"Juvia thinks Mira-san's imagination is more powerful," comments the water mage, puffing her cheeks. She doesn't like the direction of the conversation, especially when there's a certain fire mage with good hearing senses around. Stealing a peek, Juvia checks if Natsu is somewhat affected. It hurts to see that he's not at all bothered by the loud discussion of her date with Gray. In fact, Natsu looks like he doesn't give a damn.
Erza ponders out loud how the combination of Juvia's and Gray's powers would be like. She adds that a mini Gray would look good using water abilities, while a little Juvia plays with ice. Lucy and Mira get fully immersed with the topic, discussing about the supposed physical attributes the Gray-Juvia offspring would produce. Cana, every now and then, insinuates something inappropriate. Juvia has actually tuned them out, her attention already elsewhere.
All this while, a participant in this discussion remains silent. She observes Juvia with curious eyes; the only one who notices the water mage's energy or lack thereof. When's the last time Juvia's not excited when the topic involves Gray? The last time is probably... never!
"Ju-chan, everything all right?" Levy smiles at her with concern. The other girls are too engrossed with their delusional chit-chat that they didn't hear the petite's question.
Juvia flashes Levy the cheeriest smile her lips can create. The last thing she wants is to worry her friend. "Juvia is a-okay, like always, Levy-chan. Juvia thinks Levy should take Gajeel-kun to dinner on his birthday, which is very soon." Her suggestion makes Levy blush, and the latter gets distracted. Levy bumbles through her protests. To hide her embarrassment, she joins the conversation with the other girls instead.
"But where are you going? You haven't even eaten lunch yet!" Happy's voice echoes inside the guild. No one turns to look except Juvia. She watches as Natsu gets up from his seat and heads straight to the guild doors.
The girls are too consumed imagining a winter wedding for Juvia and Gray. So when the water mage leaps off her chair and bids them a goodbye, they respond with a wave as well. As soon as she's out of the guild doors, she scans the whole area, hoping to catch a glimpse of pink — err, salmon-coloured hair.
When her sight fails her, and she cannot rely on her nose, Juvia guesses he might go to that park near the guild. If not, she will try his house.
"Juvia?"
The water mage whirls around and greets Gray. "Good morning, Gray-sama. Goodbye," she waves, not intending to be too abrupt.
"You're not running away from me, right?"
She faces him once again to deny his assumption. "Of course not. Juvia just needs to rush to go somewhere," she reasons.
"Are you feeling burdened with what I said last night?" he asks, making her stop from marching away.
"Of course not. Juvia doesn't think it's a burden," she tells him, not exactly comprehending her own answer, "Juvia just needs to go now or she'll lose his trail."
"His? Who's 'his'?"
"Umm... Gajeel-kun. Juvia needs to follow after Gajeel-kun to talk about our cancelled mission today. Sorry Gray-sama. Juvia will talk to you later," with that, she turns around and breaks into a run.
Gray frowns at Juvia's altered attitude towards him. He's confused that when he's finally able to try to reciprocate, she's the one retracting. He wonders if she only likes to pursue, rather than being pursued. This concept alone makes it more challenging for the ice mage.
He enters the guild, fully aware of the barrage of questions going to be thrown his way. But, seated at one of the tables, the imposing figure of the iron dragon slayer meets his gaze. So why the hell is Juvia running away?
"Juvia was correct — she'd find you here, Natsu-san," the excited voice of the water mage grates on Natsu's eardrums. He is not going to turn his head to look at her. Nope, he is not happy to hear her voice. He does not want to see her.
Yet, here she is, standing behind him, a forced smile flashing on her face. She could sense his coldness, and she is reminded of the last time they were together. Of him leaving in a rush. Of his words being quite curt. Of him not turning to look at her with his usual grin. Of him just giving her the cold shoulder.
Still, Juvia lets the excitement fill her whole body. She is eager to tell him of the development inside her heart. Will he be happy?
But before Juvia could voice out her glee, Natsu stands from his squatting position on the ground. This is the exact spot where he shares his first kiss with the bluenette.
"Great, you're stalking me too?" he purposely raises his voice to give her this biting remark. Natsu will not, god help him, turn to face her after he released those words. So, his back remains facing her. The small pond sparkles from the sun's rays. No trace of grey skies. She's not hurt with what I said, he mulls it over.
Juvia nervously laughs, not sure how to take in his comment. "Well, Juvia thought this place is very memorable for Natsu-san too," she reasons.
"Yeah, yeah…" he brushes off the implied event in that very location. He racks his brain for another sarcastic retort. "Something that should be forgotten," is what he came up with.
Yup, that does it. Juvia's smile instantly fades. She stands rigid upon hearing his words. She blinks, inhaling deeply, and then sighing in defeat. She shakes her head. "Oh, Natsu-san wants to forget eating Gray-sama's bread lips," she giggles but of course the humour in that is lacking.
"No, it was someone else's lips I shouldn't have tasted."
Why is the sky still blue? Natsu questions internally. He is really hoping for the gloomy rain. He tells himself, prior to her showing up, that if it begins to rain when he hurts her, it must mean she likes him. In fact, the sun shines even brighter.
"Does Natsu-san regret kissing Juvia?"
Of course not, but I need to know if you like me. Of course he's not going to voice that out loud! He hums a response, "It's just like kissing other girls."
"So there's a feeling of regret, no?"
Goddammit, he curses inside because his body involuntarily whirls around to face her. And then he sees that Juvia's face doesn't show a trace of sadness. It angers him that his hurtful words aren't affecting her.
He flashes Juvia his signature toothy grin. "You're a good practice partner. I say not as good as other girls I've kissed before."
"Like Lucy-chan?"
Natsu controls his facial expression. The idea of kissing a close friend like Lucy is quite unpleasant. It's like kissing your sister. He shudders at the thought. "Haven't kissed her. Do you suggest I should?"
Unbeknownst to him, Juvia is so proud of herself for keeping her emotions intact. Perhaps the thought of not causing the rain diminishes the gloom she's feeling. Hence, it's not raining. Ah, the power of elimination.
"Maybe Natsu-san should. After all, you're so used to sleeping beside her. Why not take things a little further too?"
"Good advice, Juv. I'll try that one of these days." He puts up a hand as a sign of farewell. Natsu is not sure if he can continue playing the jerk and fool. He brushes past her, getting a whiff of her fresh, natural scent. If she's been cuddling with ice-douche, or any other man, he wouldn't even know. She's also too covered up for him to check of any kiss marks.
When he's a good distance from her, he hears Juvia states in a rather loud voice:
"Thanks for showing Juvia intimacy. Maybe Juvia will put it to good use when she finds a better partner!"
If the fire dragon slayer could conjure a downpour of flames, that would be the trigger. If he could cause a gloomy fire, that would be the activator. If he could submerge the whole town in a sea of inferno, that would be the catalyst.
And yet, it's still not raining.
a/n: I've already veered from my original plan for this supposed one-shot. so, i'm not too sure how this chapter came out. feedback are really highly appreciated and wanted. m (_ _) m
off-topic: is it true that the English dubbed anime voice actress for Juvia (and Gray) stated she doesn't like Juvia at all? hmm... if that's true, highly unprofessional and she shouldn't be getting paid voicing a character she despises. oh well, what matters is that Juvia has an amazing seiyuu in Mai Nakahara who adores our water goddess.