Hey, Dark Gothic Lolita here!
Are you guys proud of me? I updated with another chapter in less than a month this time! I hope you guys have all been doing well since the last update, I can't believe how many of you love this story so much! Thank you!
ENJOY!
The wrong girl
Chapter eleven
Kami had decided that she was going to visit Ankhseram. All this time, he had been coming up to meet her, but she never went down to see him. She had to admit it, she just thought that her fellow god didn't like her much. She even got on better with the 18 war gods than her polar opposite.
"Ankhseram?"
She heard a grunt and the door to his underworld abode opened. Before, they just used to have planes of existence. As time went on and they saw how the humans designed their own homes, they couldn't help but follow suit. Now the underworld looked like a place that she wouldn't mind spending time in.
"Oh, you're here. Come to watch how the final day will pan out?"
Kami practically sparkled as her lilac eyes glittered. "At first, I hated what you did with their little romance, but I really slept on it and I came to understand that what you're saying was right. Gray has been a harsh person to Juvia, even if I did make him to be her life partner. I just don't understand why he would need to be so cruel in the name of not wanting to lose anyone close to him. But Juvia is a bubbly character and sometimes, opposites don't always attract. Maybe Juvia was better off with someone like her who loves openly."
"Or obliviously. Juvia is all about love and Natsu didn't even know what it was. Please tell me, is his stupidity a side effect from becoming a dragon slayer or did you create him to be this dumb?"
Kami flushed in anger at the thought of Ankhseram calling one of her creations dumb. "H-HEY! As soon as they're created, I let the environment shape their personalities!"
The god of death chuckled darkly and Kami couldn't help herself as the reason of her blush was no longer because she was angry, but because she genuinely liked to see Aknhseram laughing. The way his deep tone reverberated into a somewhat pleasant sound was nice.
"Anyway, come over and sit down. Instead of having an oasis like you, I made it a TV so we can watch it like humans watch their little shows. How long do you think it will be after the bite fades away before they both realise they were made for each other?"
Kami sat down on the sofa next to her fellow god and hummed. She was a little distracted by the way his aura seemed to nip at hers. Life and death, different sides to the same coin. She used to be so on guard around him, but now she realised that death wasn't all that bad. Depending on the sort of person you were, your death experience could be very different and she had to admit that Ankhseram had a certain level of peace that calmed her down. As the goddess of life, she was always bubbling and frazzled. Death was peaceful.
"Maybe about a week and a half. I think they'll think that they have to give it another 5 days for them to truly be over the bite. What about you?"
"I was going to say the same thing. We'll see how stressful these two become."
Kami snickered as she found herself leaning her head on Ankhseram's shoulder to watch the scene in front of them. She felt him tense at the sensation of her being there, but just as she was about to move away from him and apologise, he relaxed. Kami couldn't help the grin on her face.
When Juvia woke up that morning, she felt slightly empty. She sat up slowly, trying to put her finger on what it could be before her eyes widened and she literally put her finger on what the issue was. The mating mark was gone. Exactly five days had passed from the time that Natsu had bitten her.
With how tired she had been from working on the farm, she had showered and gone straight to bed without even so much as eating. She didn't want to stay up a minute longer and the moment her body hit her bed, she was out like a light. Nothing would've been able to wake her up, not even a tsunami. Still, she rushed up from her bed, almost tripping on her tangled duvet and went to her mirror just to see if the mark had really gone and it had. She couldn't believe it. It had really faded after the 5 days and she couldn't help the silent tears that rolled down her face as she sank to the floor.
She hadn't realised that the entire time she had the bite mark, she had been feeling a certain level of warmth even when Natsu wasn't physically with her. She had never noticed that it was because of the mating mark that his magic had somehow acted like a background comforter or warmth for her. It just seemed to pulse in the background and now that that feeling was gone...
She felt all alone.
Juvia wrapped her arms around herself as she tried to stop herself from crying. This is what she had wanted, wasn't it? She wanted to make sure that they were compatible with each other without the influence of the mating mark swaying them. She hadn't felt this lonely since the rain was a constant issue in her life and this seemed to feel even worse than having no friends. Technically, the mark had given her love. She had a mate for 5 days and she had experienced what it would be like to be held and loved unconditionally. Now all of that was gone and it felt like a really bad break up. One that she wasn't sure she could ever recover from.
"What if Natsu goes back to acting like Juvia was nothing but a friend to him?"
She tried to focus on her feelings for Gray and wasn't as surprised as she thought she would be when she realised that there were none to reach out for. She could see him as nothing more than a good friend of hers and that terrified her. She had made loving him her whole personality and now it had all slipped through her fingers. Not like she minded no longer being in love with Gray, but she felt hollow. Just who was she supposed to be now if she didn't love Gray and she no longer had Natsu in her life the way she wanted to?
She shook her head, wanting to get ready for her day. She used the back of her hand to dry away her tears and she stood up from where she had fallen. No, she was going to be fine and she was going to overcome this one way or another. She was going to prove that the bite didn't make her fall in love with Natsu and that this was just the backlash of the bite fading. In a day or two, she was going to be alright again. If it took 5 days for the bite to fade, then maybe it took 5 days to regain her sense of self back. So they hadn't been able to avoid each other for the duration of the bite due to the job, but maybe she could try and do it now!
"Juvia will think of more details to the plan when she's on her way to the guild," she mumbled to herself as she shuffled to the bathroom to brush her teeth.
~x~
"Morning Juvia!"
Juvia waved to the barmaid, trying her best to be her upbeat self. She didn't want Mira to question every little thing. "Good morning, Mira-chan."
"Gray just left for a job, if you were looking for him."
The water mage shook her head. Thoughts of Gray refused to fill her head no matter how hard she tried to think of him. It was almost like a fog had been cleared from her mind and she saw how obsessive she had become with him. Sure he got rid of the rain, but she was grateful, not in love with him.
"Ano, Juvia wasn't looking for him..."
The white haired take over mage narrowed her eyes at Juvia for a moment and Juvia was worried that she might be able to read exactly what was on her mind. Luckily for her, she was no Warren and she backed off of her almost immediately.
"I guess it's true, what Er-chan said. She told me that you said that you're no longer interested in Gray and that you didn't really look his way once on the job. I was just trying to test it out and see if what she was saying was true. What brought that on, did you guys have a fight or something?"
Juvia sighed and shook her head. "Honestly, you don't want to know, but Juvia has been thinking about it for some time now. Juvia's feelings weren't getting reciprocated and there were just little things that Juvia started picking up on that seemed like a good idea to quit while she's ahead. You should've seen how annoyed he was when Juvia got asked to come on this job. His exasperation was infuriating to say the least and then by the end of it, he warmed up to Juvia purely because she wasn't giving him any attention. Juvia will not fall into that trap."
Mira looked like she was squeezing a glass a little too hard and her smile seemed a little too sweet. Juvia giggled a little bit. She was so overprotective sometimes and she now knew what it was like to have an older sister. Lisanna was very lucky, but at least Mira didn't limit her older sister services to just her blood relatives.
"It's okay, Mira-chan. Please calm down, that poor glass will smash in a minute. Juvia doesn't care anymore, it's alright."
Mira frowned as she placed the glass down where it belonged. "But...I just think it's too quick how you got over him, no? I mean, you were all over him the day before you guys all went on the job and you were ready to strip because you saw him do the same. Suddenly, you're no longer all over him the next day, you don't even spare him another look! What happened?"
At this point, Mira was leaning against the bar, almost in Juvia's face. The water mage blushed at how close she was, but she wasn't going to let her secret slip for anything and especially not to Mira.
"W-well, to be fair, Juvia pretty much fell in love at first sight, so Juvia would say that was quicker than falling out of love with him!"
While Mira would be the best person to ask for love advice, there was no love between her and Natsu. Because of the bite, everything was carnal. The amount of times she had thought to herself that she wants Natsu to take her virginity back when they were in the hotel room would make even sex workers blush.
At the thought of Natsu, Juvia couldn't help herself as she deflated. She wondered where he was, he would usually be in the guild with Happy right now. Hell, she even missed Happy's cheerful presence. She perked up when she realised that she could ask Mira about Natsu's whereabouts without making it seem suspicious.
"Oh, Mira-chan! Where's Natsu and Happy? Happy wanted to pencil in a date and time for us to go fishing and I'm pretty sure they're usually here by now. Hmm, even Lucy-chan would usually be here by now too."
It then dawned on Juvia what had happened. The three of them must have gone on a job and Juvia was now stuck here with her own thoughts. Gajeel and Levy were still away, so she was technically all by herself. She almost clutched at her heart at the feeling of being left behind. She didn't even get to see Natsu this morning and maybe see how he was doing, but it turns out that he was doing a lot better than her if he was able to go on a job with Lucy. Did he even miss her the way she craved for him?
"See, Juvia knew he was in denial. Juvia knew that his real mate should've been Lucy-chan and he didn't think that was possible. It's better this way, Juvia should be spending time away from him, not trying to look for an excuse to be around him."
"Oh, those three grabbed a job a little earlier. I mean, come to think of it, you're the one who's late coming to the guild. Probably because you don't need to follow Gray around anymore. But yeah, the three of them grabbed a job. Nothing long and heavy, just a short and sweet little job. Apparently that job that you guys went on paid handsomely and they're going on this one purely for fun."
Mira confirmed Juvia's thoughts on the team going out on a job, but her heart thumped in a little bit of hope. If they had gone on a short job, it just meant that it was just to pass time, not because he didn't want to be around her anymore...She hoped anyway. She then thought of something that made her annoyed even though she just told herself that she shouldn't be around Natsu right now.
"Knowing that team, it'll get longer. Team Natsu seems to attract a lot of attention and danger. Sometimes in the best or worst way. An easy job turns out to be the beginning to some long and difficult adventure." Juvia said it with spite in her voice, but Mira didn't seem to spot it. She was complaining that even the shortest of jobs would get complicated with Natsu involved. Honestly, that should give her enough time to ground herself and make sure that the bite really didn't affect her anymore.
Mira giggled and nodded her head. "That's very true! So what are you going to do? I noticed that Gajeel and Levy aren't around, so they must've gone on their monthly retreat. I really do wonder where it is they go and what it is they do..."
There was a smirk on Mira's face, showing that she knew exactly what they were doing and Juvia couldn't help but try to rein in her jealousy. For Gajeel to be in a relationship that wasn't a secret was amazing, meanwhile Juvia wasn't able to shout out from the rooftops that she liked Natsu.
"That's because you don't like him. It was just a bite, the feelings of missing him will go eventually. Maybe Juvia should take a job to clear her head. Maybe one with a lot more travelling time than fighting."
"Well, seeing as everyone else is away, maybe Juvia should be away too. Juvia will go and look for a job on the board and-"
She was cut off when her lacrima phone rang and she saw Gajeel's name flash up on the screen. She shrugged, wondering why he would be calling her when he had Levy's company.
"Gajeel-kun? Is everything okay?"
"Yo, Samagui wants ta know if yer up for a job. He knows it's only been-"
"Tell him yes, Juvia will be on her way! Everyone else is on a job, so Juvia will come straight away! See you soon!"
She didn't even give him a chance to explain himself as she hung up and grinned at Mira who smiled back. "It looks like Juvia has a job! Juvia's guess is that Gajeel-kun was asked and he can't be bothered, purely because he's on holiday with Levy-chan. Anyway, Juvia will see you in a few days time, Mira-chan!"
The demon waved with a pure smile. "See you later, Juvia! Please take care!"
"Juvia will!"
With that, she was gone and Mira stared at the door for a little while before shaking her head with a giggle. "That girl is definitely hiding something and I don't know what it is...Oh well."
Team Natsu's job had taken only three days and it had gone smoothly. It was a very good job that helped take Natsu's mind off of things. Not once did he mention Juvia's name to Happy, so the exceed never mentioned it to him. Happy couldn't help but watch Natsu sometimes and there were times he found him staring into space and he wondered if he was thinking about Juvia. It was actually worrying him. At first, he thought it was a good idea for the two of them to be separate and make sure that they still had feelings for each other after the bite, but he never thought that Natsu would end up like this.
Even Lucy had been glancing at her friend every so often. She always tried to rope him into a conversation and it always worked as he spoke like his usual upbeat self, but he spent a lot of the time looking like he was thinking about something else and she didn't even know why. Happy always gave her a helpless look to show that he was just as confused as she was.
"Yo, we're back!"
Everyone greeted the team and Lucy slipped over to their usual table, opposite Cana who was on her third barrel of the day. The brunette nodded in greeting.
"How was it? You look happy, so I'm guessing there was no destruction."
The blonde grinned as Natsu sat down opposite her, in the mood for ordering some food. "Yeah, it went really well! Other than our last job with Juvia, this was the first time in ages that Natsu hasn't destroyed anything and I actually got to keep my full pay!"
At the sound of Juvia's name, Natsu tensed up. He had done so well to shelf any thought of her at the back of his mind, but just by hearing her name, it made everything tumble to the front. He couldn't get the thought of her out of his head. Her hair, her eyes, her smile, her laugh, her wit, her patience, her everything. Even if they hadn't had the mate mark for 5 days, he found himself closer to her on a friendship level at the very least. They hadn't been close before, but the mark had changed all that and now it was almost like he couldn't live without her. It honestly felt like it was on a higher level than when Lisanna had 'died' and that was shocking in itself because at least Juvia was actually still alive.
"So where's Juvia?"
Luckily, the question came from Happy, so it didn't seem weird that the question was being asked. Cana shrugged her shoulders, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
"I dunno, I'm pretty sure she went on a job the same day you guys did. I have no idea where she went though, she looked like she went solo."
Natsu's heart fell. She went on a job and she wasn't back yet? He didn't know how to describe it, but he felt almost as if some part of him was missing and that was odd. Where they hadn't mated properly, the bond between them shouldn't have been this strong. Nothing should've been missing at all. He wasn't sure how Juvia felt on the other end, but he probably didn't mean much to her if she was gone.
"Or is she gone because I'm gone?"
He wished that he had gotten to see her that morning, and usually she would be in the moment that Gray was in the guild, but where she wasn't into Gray anymore, she probably just came to the guild whenever she felt like it. Still, he had been convinced that she would return back to her stalkerish ways and that she would be ready to jump on the ice mage's dick if he asked her. He was also going to need to keep those two away from each other, because Gray's eyes seemed to wander in Juvia's direction a bit too much for his liking.
"Why would you want to know where Juvia is?"
Lucy rolled her eyes at Cana's question. "He wants to go fishing with her, because technically, it's no longer fishing. Juvia can get the fish herself and give it to Happy."
The card mage snorted. "And here I was thinking it was the act of hanging out with Natsu that made it a fun hobby. You're really fish crazy, aren't ya?"
Happy laughed impishly. "Well, it's not like it's a secret, is it?"
Everyone at the table but Natsu laughed. He just sat there, leaning his chin on his hand as he thought about what Juvia might be doing. Was she having fun on her job? Was she safe if she was going by herself? Was she ready to go on some sort of difficult job without thinking about how she had taken human life? Why couldn't she just wait for him to come back?
Just as he was about to get up and leave the table, the other three at the table moved away from him quickly and a chair smacked him down. His eyes widened in surprise as he looked up to see a smirking Gray. He growled, kicking the chair off of him in anger. He didn't even realise the bastard was back from his own job and now that he had thrown the chair at him, it was the perfect excuse to finally try and fight him over Juvia.
"What in the fuck are you doing?!"
"Lucy was tryna get your attention, so I did it for her."
That was the only ammo Natsu needed to lunge at Gray and they started fighting. Things started to escalate and it turned into a typical Fairy Tail guild brawl. With no Erza in sight, it didn't look like the fight was going to be able to come to a close any time soon. Natsu himself purposely continued to attack Gray, not caring if someone else threw something at him. His main aim was Gray and that's all he wanted to do. He took his anger out on the ice mage and whether or not he realised that, Natsu didn't care.
"WOULDYA STOP IT, YA DAMNED BRATS?!"
Natsu was panting when everyone around him stopped fighting and they were all the same way. Makarov was in his titan form, but was small enough to make sure that he didn't burst through the roof of the building. Without another word, everyone started cleaning up the mess around them. Natsu bit back his rage and helped to sort out the guild in silence. It was cathartic to finally smack the living shit out of Gray, but it wasn't enough. He still felt this odd sense of fury festering within him.
When the guild was back to normal, Natsu didn't even bother speaking to anyone, Happy included. He just left and the exceed had to practically fly after him at full speed.
"Natsu, wait! That was a bit much in there, wasn't it?"
He shrugged carelessly, not caring how it came across and Happy pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know, I don't think Juvia would've appreciated what you did there today. What's your problem? You were fighting Gray for real in there, weren't you?"
Natsu nodded, his face contorting in anger at the sound of Gray's name. "Course I was! I've had a problem with that ice dick ever since Juvia stopped giving him attention and he was giving it to her instead. Who the fuck does he think he is?! Juvia deserves someone better! Someone like..."
He trailed off, not sure where he was going with this. There was no mark binding them together anymore, yet he still felt territorial over her and he knew that right now, he had no right. He sighed harshly and ran his hand through his hair, annoyed at his own behaviour and Happy shook his head, finishing off his sentence.
"Someone like you?"
Natsu hesitated and nodded, almost guiltily. He dropped his hands to his sides as he stared down at the ground.
"Yeah. Yeah, someone like me. I know that it all came from that dumb bite that I gave her and that technically our feelings weren't real, but now...Happy I need her in my life! In only 5 days, she changed my view on having a mate. I never thought much of having one because I never cared, but...I do now and I want her."
Happy hummed in understanding, but he realised that he had been pushing this way too hard. "I would say it would be good to tell her that, but I can now see where she's coming from. What if this anger of yours is all some sort of side effect from not completing the mating process? I think it would be a lot better for you to wait it out like she suggested and then see if you still want each other."
Natsu sighed, his whole body deflating as he agreed. The burning sensation that he felt within himself wasn't normal at all. Just why did he feel this way? It was almost as if there was heat pumping through his body that wasn't exactly his, he felt so uncomfortable.
"Maybe you're right. But still, it feels kinda weird with the connection being cut. I didn't realise that I always felt her so close by and now it feels like she's gone, it's stupid to explain. In a way, I always knew if she was alright or not. But still, I guess I'm just worried about her."
Happy frowned. They had come back to the lake where they had breakfast together the morning before. Natsu breathed in deeply as he remembered just how they were yesterday.
"Why are you worried? Juvia's strong all by herself, I'm pretty sure she'll be okay if she's on a solo job. Besides, she does a lot of solo jobs and you never cared about her then."
That much was true and it made Natsu feel sick just thinking about it. Ever since Gajeel mated with Levy, Juvia had been shoved to the sideline it had seemed. Juvia also wasn't the sort who would tell people how she was feeling, so she would rather do things by herself than bother anyone. Juvia probably hated being the third wheel to Gajeel's relationship and Gray probably didn't let her go on many jobs with him. Natsu had never really thought about it, never really offered for her to join his team sometimes and he felt like shit knowing that it was only because of the bite that he even properly realised her existence. Before then, she was just a Gray fangirl to him.
"I know, I know. I'm still allowed to worry though, it's not like it's a crime. But I mean, I wasn't expecting her to get back out there after everything that happened on the job. Maybe she picked something easy, but I doubt she would. She's kinda strong like that. Either way, I know that whenever she comes back from a solo job, she comes straight back to the guild so that we all know she's okay, so I guess I'll see her then. By then, enough days would've passed to see if we really can go from here or if this is the end."
He said it so nonchalantly and Happy gave him an odd look. The exceed hadn't realised that Natsu already knew some things about Juvia before he had bitten her and he had to hide his smirk. Oh Natsu was in love and he was too shy to admit it! Although he could see why he was, it was odd to just fall in love with someone after 5 days because of some stupid bite, but maybe Natsu had some well hidden feelings for the water mage that even he didn't know about. It seems like he was wrong yet again. He thought that Natsu never paid her any attention, but he secretly did. Just like before when they were on the train and Natsu said that he knows that Juvia likes the window seat, it was weird.
"Okay, well let's kill some time then. Maybe we can go on another job later or something if she's not back in two days."
Natsu sighed as they continued walking through the street. He was tired and just wanted a nap before he started thinking of anything. He never even got to order his food that he wanted. He'd have to come back later. Still, he wanted to deal with this burning rage he had within him and if that meant not seeing Juvia for the time being, then so be it.
"Yeah, that sounds like a plan."
~x~
Four days later, Juvia returned from her job, exhausted and upset. She didn't know exactly why she was upset, but her mood was fluctuating between anger and sadness. She was tired of it all and she just wanted to fall into the comfort of her bed. She thought maybe it was her period, but even this was too hormonal for her. She was usually more a chocolate eater on her period, not a crier.
"Well, Natsu's arms would be better but Juvia doesn't think that's appropriate."
It wasn't that the job Samagui had given her was a difficult one, but she had been extremely distracted and that wasn't like her at all. She had apologised profusely to Gajeel, Levy and Lily who understood. Her plans of being away from Natsu for 5 days had failed as she clearly thought about him more than ever.
She sighed as she pushed her way through the guild, taking in the hustle and bustle. She gave Mira her flyer as the woman nodded and logged it down. As Juvia and Gajeel did a lot of private jobs that weren't really advertised, they had to show their flyer at the end of the job so that it was logged down so that it counted towards their S class mage nomination.
"How was it? You took longer than usual."
"It was kind of okay, but Juvia was very distracted. Her head wasn't in the job."
The barmaid raised an eyebrow as she looked up from writing in the information beside Juvia's name. "Is it something you want to talk about?"
Juvia shook her head. Even if she did talk about it, where would she start? Natsu would get into so much trouble and both Mira and Erza would be waiting to beat him up. On top of that, it was because of this bite that she was feeling this way, so she just had to live without it and then everything would be back to normal. Right?
"No, Juvia is okay but thank you for offering. Oh, this wasn't a solo job. Juvia went and met up with Gajeel-kun, Levy-chan and Lily-kun."
Mira nodded as she then wrote down the same information to their names as well. Juvia looked up and around to see if Natsu was back in the guild, but it didn't seem like he was. She wasn't sure if she was relieved or sad by that, but maybe it was for the best. She needed to not see him right now and then see if she could still live her life like she did before.
"Okay, everything's been logged down! Are you going home, you look tired."
Juvia thought about it before shaking her head. "Not yet, Juvia will hang around here. It won't be good if Juvia messes up her sleep schedule."
She wasn't prepared to go home and be alone where she would be left alone to her thoughts. The amount of times she had already cried in private was worrying and she wondered if the bite had messed with her hormones in some way, because this just wasn't normal.
"Yo, Juvia!"
The girl perked up when she heard her name and saw Cana and Lisanna beckoning her over. She lit up at the sight of then and jumped over to their table. The three of them had become extremely close and even closer since Gajeel started dating Levy. Lisanna was adamant that they become friends because she was best friends with Juvia in Edolas and Cana had become a good friend of Juvia's ever since she accepted her into the guild and they worked alongside each other on Fairy Tail team B.
"Cana-chan, Lisanna-chan! Juvia hasn't seen you guys in ages!"
The drunkard nodded as she guzzled on her pint. "Yup, I've actually been working. I need to get the next S class mage trials right."
Juvia nodded her head with a smile. While she wanted to become an S class mage again, she felt like she didn't deserve it before anyone else in the guild. She was an enemy before, why should she be so privileged? Besides, the jobs that Samagui entrusted to her and Gajeel were pretty much S class pay with sometimes the difficulty of a D class job. She wasn't in a rush as long as he was around. It was nice to not have to be responsible for something.
"And seeing as Mira-nee doesn't really want to go back to jobs full time, I tag along with El-nii! But we haven't seen you in ages too! I heard that Levy and Gajeel actually joined you guys out wherever you were because of something that happened with you?"
There was a certain level of care in their eyes as they clearly wanted to know if she was okay. Juvia felt her smile slip away as she nodded her head. She might as well tell them, so she did. By the end of it, the girls were holding both her hands as they were quietly sobbing at the mental anguish that their friend had been facing since long before she joined the guild.
"Why didn't you say anything?!"
Juvia squeezed Lisanna's hand. "Because Juvia knew that one day, it would be all over and it is. Juvia is sorry she never told you about being an assassin though. Juvia was just so ashamed."
Cana pulled her head down to her chest as she hugged her tightly. Juvia would have blushed at being so close to her breasts, but she appreciated the hug and the sentiment. She wrapped her arms around her friend and sank into the hug that was being offered to her.
"No one would ever look at you like you're beneath them! But we get it, we really do. I believe we need a spa holiday!"
Lisanna cheered and clapped her hands. "Yes! Just a girly time away, no jobs, no boys, nothing! What do you say, Juvia?"
Juvia couldn't be more thankful for the distraction if she was being honest. She wouldn't get any time to be alone to think about Natsu and that was perfect for her. She didn't want to think about him constantly. If anything, this would definitely not be a repeat of what happened with Gray. She had learned her lesson and wouldn't let a guy's presence take over her life like that.
"Juvia will join in with that idea! Does Cana have a good place?"
The drunk just smirked.
~x~
Cana had taken the two other girls to a well known spa town somewhere near central Crocus. Juvia felt like she could finally relax. Natsu wouldn't be anywhere near the capital, so she wouldn't bump into him. She also felt like the further away they were from each other, the easier it would be to iron out her feelings for him. It didn't mean she didn't miss him like crazy though. He was always there, in the back of her thoughts.
"So we're going to be here for a few days, let's soak up the fun! Anyone gonna be joining me with the drinks?"
Juvia glanced over at Lisanna who was looking at her and they both shrugged before nodding and giggling when Cana cheered. Only Macao and Wakaba drank with her and it was nice to know that her girl friends would be happy to do the same thing now. She wanted them all to have fun, not just herself.
"Great! Okay, let me go and check in and then we can head up. I booked us a room together so we can have the full sleepover experience, hope that's good with you guys."
"Fine by me, I'm super excited!"
Juvia could just about burst. This was great, she wouldn't be alone and stuck with her own thoughts anymore! Hopefully, she would end up forgetting about Natsu and this would be the best thing she needed in order to move on.
"Juvia is fine with that too!"
The brunette nodded and went to check the three of them in. Juvia made sure that their bags weren't in anyone's way as Lisanna stretched out on the seat before looking up at her.
"You know Juvia, we're going to get you to talk one way or another."
Juvia raised an eyebrow in confusion, not sure where her friend was coming from. She wasn't worried though, Lisanna couldn't be the slightest bit curious about anything going on between her and Natsu. She hadn't been around them to see what was going on. If it was Lucy saying this to her, then she would have been shitting bricks.
"What do you mean?"
Lisanna smirked. "You know that I'm animal take over mage, right? That means that my senses are heightened almost like a dragon slayer. I can smell things that most people can't and that includes the fact that you and Natsu were mates at some point."
Juvia's jaw dropped as she shook a little bit. She hadn't realised that Lisanna would have the same sort of senses as her ex best friend. Lisanna saw the worry in her eyes and stopped smirking as she leaned forward.
"For some strange reason, I can tell exactly what happened, because Natsu is an idiot and I'm here to give you a complete rundown on the whole mating thing. I'm not going to mock you, I just want you to know that I know exactly what you're going through."
Cana came back with their key cards and was smiling until she saw a tear roll down Juvia's face and her smile disappeared. She looked over at Lisanna with a frown, wondering what the hell she had done, but Lisanna shook her head and gave her a look that told her she will tell her when they get to the room.
"Come on Juvia, we're going to help you get through this, okay? Let's go up to the room."
The water mage nodded as she grabbed her bag, but Lisanna was faster and held it for her. She was instantly reminded of Natsu and how he never let her hold her bags and her stomach turned slightly. She really missed him and it hadn't even been that long! Did he really spoil her that much in 5 days that every little thing reminded her of him?
They eventually got to their room and Juvia managed to pull herself together and stared at their room surprise. She knew that she should be used to fine hotel rooms due to the suite that she had, but this was magnificent. Lisanna and Juvia turned to stare at Cana who was humming and grabbing dibs on a bed. She turned when she could feel eyes on her and she stared back.
"What?"
Juvia crossed her arms. "How did you get this place?"
The drunk waved her hand. "Some woman my old man used to hang out with said I could use here any time I wanted when she found out I was his daughter. She said it must be sad being related to that old womaniser and I guess I agree with her. She owns the place. Besides, what I really want to know is why were you crying?"
Lisanna cackled as she grabbed dibs on another bed, leaving Juvia with the last one. The water mage wasn't really ready to answer that question yet and decided to stall, but she would have to answer her eventually.
"Well, I can get used to this! This place is amazing!"
Juvia nodded. "It's like a swankier version of the place that Loke-san got tickets to that time when Erza-chan got kidnapped for the Tower of Heaven. Probably because it's in Crocus and not in Magnolia."
Cana jumped onto her bed and pulled out a pamphlet. "We can get the massage done in our room if we book in time. How does that sound?"
"Good for Juvia. We just came up all this way, Juvia doesn't feel like going back downstairs."
"Good idea. Are we getting it done for this evening?"
Cana thought about it. "We can get it done for the early evening and then head out to the bar after! You guys said you were drinking after all."
Lisanna smiled. "That we did. I can't wait! Kami knows I need a fat break from the amount of animals that I've been taking over! I want to be in for the count of S class mage promotions too. I don't care if I don't pass, I just want to be nominated as well. Still, that might not happen."
The white haired mage sighed wistfully and Juvia frowned as she sat on the edge of Lisanna's bed. "Why? Lisanna-chan can chain so many transformations together and even Mira-chan sings your praises."
The said girl rolled her eyes. "She has to say that she's my sister so she's biassed. The truth is, I'm years behind everyone. I was already 2 years behind you guys from going to Edolas and not being able to use my magic freely and then the 7 years on Tenrou stunted my growth even more. I'll never catch up to everyone."
"Not with that attitude you won't."
Lisanna balled her fists up as she shot a glare at Cana and Juvia was wondering how it got so serious so suddenly. Cana continued, as if she didn't feel the heat behind the glare.
"You don't see it, but we do. You've got talent and dedication. You think you're being overshadowed by your older siblings and you work hard to make a name for yourself. People in Magnolia love you. I've seen when you train hard and get your hands on strong animals. Don't sell yourself short, you're strong as hell! Now come on, let's get the masseuse in here, knead away our troubles and then go and drink! Oh and tell me what's going on, will ya?"
"Juvia and Natsu were mated!"
The drunk's eyes almost popped out of her head and Juvia turned to stare at Lisanna like she was nuts. The white haired girl averted her gaze with a sheepish look and a simple shrug of her shoulders.
"Hey, she's been asking the entire time and you haven't even answered her. It's only fair that we discuss this over some drinks."
Cana rubbed at her temple and Juvia bit back an annoyed groan.
"At this rate, the bar won't be able to handle what I'm about to do to it after I get the full gossip of what you've been doing."
Juvia smiled nervously. "Let's just say that it started with a drink in the first place."
The brunette threw her head back. "Oh now this I have to hear! Come on, let's get ready for a good night out!"
The two other girls nodded and cheered. Juvia decided that Cana was right. There was no need to be so depressed about Natsu on this trip, she was going to make the most of it. She was surrounded by her friends that she hadn't hung out with in a while, she wasn't going to let a man upset her anymore.
So, how was this chapter? Originally I had planned for there only to be 11 chapters, but when I started writing out 11, it was getting super long, but in a way that wasn't making sense anymore. It wasn't flowing the way I wanted it to flow and I kept getting hit by more and more ideas, so I split the chapter up. HOPEFULLY, chapter 12 will be the final one, but I don't even know anymore haha.
Let me know what you thought of it, you cutie patooties! Love you all to the moon and back!
Lolita-chan
