When Juvia first beheld Gray's castle she became very frightened and was anxious to go inside. True it was a magnificently built estate but it was so dark and shrouded with the winter winds covering nearly every perimeter. She could see no light from the windows which gave her the assumption that there was no light inside the estate at all. When the reached the front doors she feared that once they were opened horrible creatures would come running out and tear her apart. But luckily no such event occurred when Gray made the entrance open by itself with just a snap of his fingers.

Inside the castle it was even darker and so very cold. For a moment she suspected that the entire place was made of ice but then she heard Gray snap his fingers again and some candelabras were lit which allowed her to see that this castle was made of stone not ice. 

"Follow me." He told her.

She followed him down a long candle lit corridor that seemed to be leading them into an abyss of darkness that made her very unsettled. She could not see much in the dim light but what she could see were the doors of the corridor and some of the artwork that adorned the walls. But they was nothing remotely elegant or exquisite about them. The few paintings and tapestries she saw were all of hideous, twisted, and fearsome beasts who were either suffering pain or inflicting it onto someone else.

"I have an acquired taste in decor." She heard him say. "Some things in here may startle you at first but you'll get used to it."

"Wha...What will my duties be?" She asked trying to take her mind off of how scared and uncomfortable this place was making her.

"You will serve me my meals and you will clean my abode." He explained. "You will dust my furniture, launder my clothing, fetch me fresh straw when I am spinning at the wheel."

"I'm sorry." She said confused. "Spinning with straw?"

"Well if you've heard of me then you must know about my talent for spinning straw into gold."

"Oh that...Yes I've heard of it. I just forgot for a moment."

"Well I'm not in the habit of repeating myself so pay attention when I speak to you and keep your memory in check."  As they approached a part of the corridor that had rug laid out on the floor, he continued explaining her tasks. "You will read and translate any language or scripture when I tell you to. You will wax the table and polish the silver."

"Yes." She told him, she was all too familiar with this scene. "I understand."

"Oh and you will skin the children that I hunt for their pelts." He grinned sadistically.

She was so horrified and taken aback by that phrase that she tripped over the rug, fell down, knocked over a small table, and ended up dropping one of her shoes. 

"That one was a quip." Gray chuckled. "Not serious."

"Oh...Right." 

"A little clumsy, are we?"

"Maybe. I'm sorry." She said scrabbling to push the table back up in it's place. "It's not broken and the wood as no scuff marks."

"Just try to walk a little better. I can't have you wrecking my things."

"Yes sir. I'll be more careful." She assured him. "Shall we continue on?"

"Um...Lose something my dear?"

He stretched out his finger and from the end of it hung the heel of her shoe which she had dropped.

"Oh thank you." She moved to take it from him and put it back on her foot. 

"You know they can tell a lot about someone based on their shoes. That pitiful covering for your feet will be very ill suited for your work."

"I know. They're worn and tattered but their the only pair I have. I could never afford anything more suitable. I often wished that I knew how to make shoes then I could make them instead of needing to buy them."

"You need leather to make shoes and that's not cheap."

"Not always. with the right material and skills you could probably make shoes out of anything. Cotton, wood, glass."

"Glass? A shoe made of a glass?"

"Well why not? Just because something sounds silly doesn't mean it's bad right?"

"You know I tend to forget how amusing naivete can be. It's almost like a good joke." He turned his back to her. "Now then I'll show you to your room."

"My room?" She said.

"Do you want to sleep here in the corridor or outside perhaps? Because that can be arranged."

"No. No. I much prefer a room. Lead on sir."

They started to go up a stairway, during the walk Gray could not help but look back a few times at the maiden following him. He couldn't help but a be a little fascinated by her appearance. You see despite his frightening and beastly form, Gray had always held a certain admiration for beautiful things. Naturally beautiful things like the roses in his garden or the sun coming out after a long rainy day and now especially this woman. She was the epitome of natural beauty and it rather surprised him that such loveliness was to be found in a common scullery maid. When he first saw her on that horse he was so astonished by her delicate features that for a brief moment he felt unworthy to let such a beautiful woman see his terrifying form. A very brief moment that didn't last too long and he recomposed himself very quickly.

As for Juvia she was very worried about her quarters would be like. She was certain that she would probably spend her nights sleeping in a cold dudgeon with no light and no bed, just the stone floors. It would probably be worse than the attic back at Ulrich's house. But if she were to spend the rest of her nights in a dudgeon so be it, she would adapt. That's what she had been doing her entire life. Adapting to extremely difficult living conditions.

When they reached the top of the stair way they went down one last corridor and stopped at the door at the end. This door was not like all the others she had seen. The other doors were all sold black and drab looking but this one was white and much more pleasant in appearance.

"What's your name?" He asked her.

"Ju-Juvia sir."

He snapped his fingers and the words: Juvia's Room appeared on the door in golden writing. He opened the door and what was on the other side was something Juvia was not expecting at all. The room was completely lavished with a marble-flooring, rich hardwood paneling, and ornate stained-glass windows that displayed images of roses. The bed style was canopy with white carving, blue curtains that draped over it, and a coverlet embroidered with yellow, white, pink, and red roses. Across from the bed was a fire mantle and some very exquisite furnishing. There was much more inside as well but she was too stunned at the moment to view it all. 

"This is my room?" She asked. "I may sleep here?"

"Yes." He confirmed. 

"But I...I thought you would send me a dudgeon."

"That was the plan but after thinking it over I realized if I were to have someone like you sleep down there that rats would eat you alive by morning."

"Ugh." Juvia shuddered at the thought.

"Yeah so I have no other choice but to give a more decent area to sleep in and a place to freshen up."

"Freshen up?"

"Well I can't have a dirty woman serving me food. That's unsanitary. I maybe ugly but I'm not filthy. Your private bathing chamber is just on the other side of the room. Don't worry about getting new work clothes, the wardrobe will magically provide them for you should you need them. The door to your room is magic as well, no one may enter without your permission not even me. Your work begins tomorrow at eight. Do not over sleep."

He started to walk away.

"Thank you for giving me such a lovely room." She said. 

He stopped dead in his tracks and for a moment was perfectly still. He then turned around slowly to face her. 

"Don't assume I'm doing this out of kindness. I'm only doing this because the alternative would result in you being rat food before you could ever be of any use to me."

"I understand. But still thank you."

"Don't be too grateful yet my dear. I forgot to inform you of one more condition in regards to your service here."

"Which is?"

"You're not allowed to leave the castle grounds. Ever."

"Ever?"

"That's what I said. Don't make me repeat myself."

"But what if I want to visit my friends or go shopping?"

"Sorry not going to happen. Nothing personal but I've got a lot of secrets and I can't have anyone blabbing them to outsiders who pretty much want to either control me or kill me. So you leaving this place is no-no."

"But I can't just stay here and never go anywhere else for the rest of my life."

"Technically you can, you just don't want to."

"But aren't you being a little paranoid? I don't know any of your secrets."

"You could learn them while working here."

"Well if I learn anything I won't tell anyone. You can trust me."

"Trust is for fools. I trust no one in this world. Not even a priest. I'm sorry but you're stuck here."

"So I'll never see anyone I know again? I'll never meet anyone else?"

"Not likely."

"Can my friends at least visit me?"

"No outsiders. Besides they wouldn't be able to find this place anyway."

"Can I write them?"

"No."

"So basically I can't have any contact with anyone?"

"Pretty much."

"That's unfair."

"Who ever accused me of being fair?"

"But I-"

"Hey if you have a problem with that my dear you can leave but if you do our deal is off and I get carve up Ulrich like a Christmas goose."

Juvia tried to protest but she quickly understood that there was nothing she could do or say that would change this unreasonable and very cruel condition he had.

"Alright." She sighed.

"Glad we could reach an understanding." He turned around again and left. "Have a pleasant night."

She quickly went inside of her new room and closed the door. She listened carefully to the sound of his footsteps, to make sure that he wasn't close enough to hear her make sound. When she was certain he was gone she finally let all the sadness building up inside of her be released. She ran toward her new bed, threw herself on to the coverlet, and burst into tears. She sobbed bitterly as the realization hit her that she would never see Gajeel or Levy again. She would never be able to see anyone again. She would spend the rest her life in this dark cold place and she would die in this dark cold place without ever seeing anyone who cared for her again.

Was this really her fate? All those years of dealing with abuse and holding on to hope just so she could end up here? Had she really endured so much only to find herself enduring even more until the end? She had tried so hard to have faith but now she wasn't sure if she had the strength to hold on to it any longer.

"I'm sorry Mother." She wept. "I tried to have faith but...It's just no use. No use at all. I can't believe. Not anymore...There's nothing left to believe in...Nothing."

And the poor beauty cried and cried until she fell asleep.

...

One particular morning in Edolas, Yuki Vastia the owner of the local flower shop had been suspected off secretly carrying illegal drugs during his deliveries and Gren happened to be in charge of investigation.

"You've searched both my shop and my vain Detective Fullbuster." Yuki told him. "You didn't find any drugs."

"True but with illegal drug transportation you can never be too careful." Gren said.

"But I'm innocent."

"Your accuser says different."

"Who accused me?"

"You don't need to know."

"It was you, wasn't it?"

"Me?" He said feigning innocence. "Mr. Vastia I assure that I would never lie or bear false witness."

"No but you probably manipulated someone to lie."

"That's a bit of stretch don't you think? Also what reason could I have for somehow orchestrating a false allegation against you?"

"I don't know but I do know that you've had it in for me ever since we first met. I mean you gave me a ticket when I stopped in a handicapped area for two seconds."

"The law is the law."

"Law my ass! You just hate me! What's your deal? Why did I ever do to you?"

"I'm just doing my job and I believe that we should take your vehicle for further investigation. Just to make sure the boys didn't miss anything." He turned to one of the police officers with him. "Take the van."

"Wait!" Yuki protested. "I need that van! I have a dozen deliveries tomorrow!"

"Not my problem." 

"Can't we just work something out?"

"I'm not in a negotiating mood right now. Ta-ta." He said walking over to the sidewalk. "Oh and if you try to stop them you'll be arrested."

"Oh this is no way to do business Fullbuster!" Yuki shouted at him angrily. "You are the lowest! People aren't gonna put up with this!"

"Yada, yada." Gren mumbled. "I've heard this all before."

He was just about to step into the police station when he was approached by Lusha.

"Good morning Madame Mayor." He greeted politely. 

"Quite a show back there Detective." She said.

"Well Mr. Vastia was just having a bad day. Happens to the best of us."

"I've been meaning to talk to you about something."

"Yeah and the moment you have something I want to discuss, we'll have that little chat."

"No." She said sternly. "We're going to do this now. It'll only take a moment."

"If you're itching to get something out in the open then I'm afraid you're going to have to wait."

She started to protest but became silent when he said the next word.

"Please." 

He smirked and continued on into the station. Lusha glared at him but she would notbe defeated that way. Oh no, she would just have to try a different approach. A more crafty one and in almost no time at all she figured out the exact method she should use.