"MOMMY HELP!" Juvia dropped the bowl of cereal on the ground and ran to River's bedroom with Gray close behind,
"River?! Honey, what's..." In the middle of his room sat a very giggly Lyra and her 7-year-old brother stuck in an uneven block of ice. "What is it what's wrong?!" Gray pushed past Juvia and picked his daughter up giving her a once over and making sure she was fine, "Phew...alright River what-"
"DADDY I'M STUCK!" Gray stared at River and almost bit his tongue off trying not to laugh while Juvia began melting the ice with her hands, "Baby, what happened?" She wrapped River in his small bathrobe and held him to her, warming him up. "IT WAS LYRA, MOMMY! SHE FROZE ME!"
Juvia raised a skeptical brow. "River, she's just a baby. She can't even use ice magic yet. Are you sure you weren't practicing magic without Daddy again?" River's cheeks flushed as he recalled the last mishap during father-son training. "No! It was Lyra!"
Meanwhile, Lyra sat in Gray's arms, chewing happily on his necklace. Her bright giggles filled the room as Juvia wiped a stray tear—and a little snot—from River's cheek with her sleeve. She pressed a kiss to his forehead.
"Let's get you warmed up and have breakfast before school, okay? Come on, Mommy's got you."
Gray watched as Juvia led River out of the room, then turned his attention to Lyra. Holding her up at arm's length, he gave her a playful but serious look.
"Now listen here, young lady. Daddy knows you didn't trap your big brother in ice, but if by some miracle you've already discovered ice magic, we're going to have to have a talk little lady." Lyra squealed in delight, tugging at Gray's hair with a grin. He shook his head, chuckling.
"Who am I kidding? You're only two!"
Juvia waved goodbye to her son as he hurried into school, then adjusted Lyra in her stroller to walk through the market.
"Come on Sweet Girl, let's get some groceries and we'll go right back home," Lyra squealed and Juvia smiled.
As they walked Juvia watched as Lyra played with her ear, her usual sign that she was finally getting ready to fall asleep, as
they walked, Juvia noticed the sudden delicate snowflakes beginning to drift down. She held out her hand and caught a few flakes inspecting them,
"Snow? In May?" she murmured, glancing down at Lyra. Who was now fast asleep in her stroller her arms over her head.
"Let's get you home, darling. We don't want you catching a cold," Juvia said, draping her shawl over Lyra to shield her from the chilly air.
Once they arrived home, Juvia carefully transferred Lyra to her crib, tucking her in snugly. She straightened and cracked her door open, "Gray-sama? Are you home?"
"Yeah! Just taking a shower!" came Gray's voice from the bathroom.
Curious, Juvia made her way to him, pulling the bathroom door open. "Darling, are you alright?"
Gray poked his head out from behind the shower curtain, shampoo suds dripping down his face. "Yeah, why? Is everything alright?"
"Well," Juvia began, folding her arms, "we were walking home, and it suddenly started to snow."
Gray blinked, water dripping into his eyes. "Snow?" He frowned thoughtfully. "Huh… weird. Maybe it's something magic related?"
Juvia's brows knitted in concern. "That's what I was wondering… but It felt strange."
"Let me finish up, and I'll take a look outside," Gray said, ducking back into the shower. "Just in case."
Juvia nodded, her mind lingering on the peculiar flurries.
When the two stepped outside, they were greeted by clear skies and the usual summer warmth. The snow, as mysteriously as it had appeared, was now completely gone.
"You said it was just flurries?" Gray asked, glancing around for any lingering signs of the anomaly.
"Yes," Juvia replied, her tone still tinged with concern. "The entire way home. Do you think it could be Lyon? You don't think—"
Gray cut her off, shaking his head. "If something was wrong, Lyon would've reached out by now. Besides, he's not exactly the type to let snowstorms go unnoticed."
"Then what could it have been?" Juvia wondered aloud, her arms crossed as she scanned the horizon.
"Could've just been a random bout of magic messing with the weather," Gray suggested with a shrug, turning back toward the house. "Crazier shit has happened."
Though still unconvinced, Juvia followed her husband inside, her mind replaying the fleeting snowfall and Lyra's unusual excitement over the flurries. Something about it didn't feel quite so random.
"She doesn't exactly have a fever, but I still think we should go to the guild," Juvia said, her voice filled with worry. Lyra's face was flushed, and she was whimpering. She was snuggled against Gray's neck when she sneezed, causing Gray to freeze in place.
"What? What is it?!" Juvia's heart raced as she saw the panic in her husband's eyes.
"I—I don't know! Sh-she sneezed and now she's freezing cold!" Gray's voice shook, his grip on Lyra tightening.
Juvia felt a chill of dread but quickly masked it with a calm demeanor. "Okay, we're going to the guild," she said, trying to reassure him.
"Mommy, where are we going?" River's sleepy voice broke through the tension as he yawned, still half asleep in his mother's arms.
"We're just going to the guild, baby," Juvia replied gently, pressing a kiss to his forehead. "Daddy has a boo-boo, so we need to get some bandaids, okay?"
River nodded sleepily and soon drifted back into slumber against her chest, his little body relaxing as they rushed to the guild.
At the guild, they headed straight for the infirmary where Porlyusica was waiting.
The family spent the night at the guild, with Porlyusica keeping a close eye on Lyra. By the morning, the little girl was back to her usual energetic self, waddling around the infirmary alongside her brother, giggling as they played.
"I've never seen this before…" Porlyusica muttered, watching the two children.
Gray and Juvia exchanged confused glances.
"Do you think this could be because of the snow?" Juvia asked, her tone uncertain.
"I'm not sure," Gray replied, still puzzled. Polyusica tilted her head, looking at them quizzically. "What snow?"
Juvia went on to explain the strange snowfall they had experienced the day before, while Porlyusica listened intently, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. After a pause, she said, "It's close to impossible, but the only thing I can think of is… well, 'Magic Puberty'."
Gray snorted, while Juvia just stared at her. "Puberty? She's only two!"
Porlyusica smirked and, with a sigh, gave Gray a smack on the head. "I said Magic Puberty! It's when a child starts discovering their magical abilities, but... well in this case, very early."
Gray blinked, taken aback by the explanation. "You mean... mytwo-year-old is going through Magic Puberty?"
"Yes," Porlyusica confirmed, "It's not unheard of, especially in families with strong magical bloodlines, especially like you two. I'm assuming your son has already shown signs of magic?"
"Well… I've been teaching him," Gray said, while Juvia shifted River in her arms. "He can copy some of my magic, but it's not much. I just taught him how to make a snowflake the size of a pebble."
River swayed in his mother's arms, his face glowing with pride as he flashed a small, glittering snowflake he'd just conjured. "Look, Daddy, I made ice!" he said with a wide grin.
Juvia kissed the top of his head, a soft smile on her face. "That's amazing, sweetie."
Porlyusica nodded. "Besides all of that, she also has a small cold, so make sure to give her some of this medicine tonight and she'll be fine by tomorrow morning." Juvia smiled at the woman and thanked her for all her help.
Gray frowned, looking between the two children, still trying to wrap his mind around it. "Magic puberty... at two?" he muttered.
Everyone made their way down the hall, and River excitedly dashed toward his little crush, the now 19-year-old Wendy Marvell, who had grown into an almost identical version of her Edo self.
"H-hi, Wendy!" River stammered, his cheeks flushed bright red.
Wendy bent down with a warm smile and hugged him. As she did, Gray couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of his son's very pleased face, given that it was being squished between Wendy's chest. "Aww, hi River!" Wendy said, squeezing him tight.
Juvia and Gray settled down with their friends, and Gray held Lyra as she happily played with his necklace. Lucy, always fond of the little ones, leaned over to tickle Lyra's feet, causing the two-year-old to squeal with delight.
"So, how's she feeling?" Lucy asked, her tone gentle but concerned.
"It's complicated," Gray replied with a shrug, glancing at Juvia. "But long story short, she just has a little cold."
Happy, always the playful one, came over to join the fun and started playing with Lyra. The conversation continued among their friends, but soon, a small sneeze from Lyra caught everyone's attention.
"Achoo!" Lyra sneezed, and as the small burst of magic left her, Happy yelped in horror.
"AH! MY FISHY!" he cried, looking down at his prized fish that had, to everyone's shock, been frozen solid by the sneeze.
Everyone looked at the scene in disbelief, and River's voice rang out with wide-eyed certainty.
"I TOLD YOU, MOMMY! IT WAS LYRA WHO DID IT!" River yelled, pointing an accusatory finger at his baby sister, who was blissfully unaware of the trauma she had just caused Happy.
Gray burst out laughing, while Juvia could only stare at her daughter, still not entirely sure how to feel about Lyra's unexpected magical mishaps. "Well, it looks like we are gonna have to have that talk after all little lady…" Lyra giggled and wrapped her small arms around his neck.