Since that moment she had rescued a human prince from drowning, Juvia had begun to act very differently. She had a far away look in her eyes and she daydreamed more than ever. Every morning she awoke humming a love song and sighing softly. She now almost spent every hour of every day in the surface world. Yes, something had caused a big change in her behavior and her sisters noticed it.

"What is with her lately?" Chelia asked Sherry and Meredy one morning. "She sure is acting fishy."

"I'll say." Sherry agreed. "Swimming in circles, chasing her tail."

"She's dizzy and she's dreamy." Meredy added. "It's like her head's up in the foam."

"And if you ask where she's going, she giggles like a fool." Chelia said. "Is she ill or insane?"

"No it's not that." Sherry said.

"Could it be a phase?" Meredy said.

"No." Sherry said thinking. "No it's more than just a phase."

"Then what could it be?" the two younger sisters asked.

At that moment Juvia swam by happily humming and fluffing her hair.  She was so wrapped up in her own little dream that she bumped into Gajeel and Levy.

"Oh! Sorry." She gasped. "Morning Gajeel, morning Levy."

She kissed her brother on the cheek and swam off, still humming and smiling. Spinning around in a daze. Suddenly it all became perfectly clear to everyone in that room. Well, everyone except Gajeel.

"Oh she's got it bad." Sherry giggled to Meredy and Chelia.

"What?" Gajeel asked, oblivious as a rock. "What has she got?"

"Isn't it obvious sweetheart?" Levy replied with a pleased sigh. "Juvia's in love."

"In love?" He said not expecting that at all.

"Yep." Sherry said. "That's the only explanation for how she's been acting lately. She's finally met somebody. Somebody special. Somebody who has won her heart and made her feel like she's swimming on air. Oh Gajeel, isn't it wonderful?"

"But Juvia isn't ready for that."

"Of course she is. She's seventeen." Levy said. "It's her time. I myself was much younger than she was when I fell in love with you."

Gajeel blushed.

"I will admit that it is nice to see her so happy for a change." Gajeel said. "But who's the new merman in her life?"

"We don't know." Meredy said. "She hasn't told us anything."

"But I bet he's the catch of the day." Sherry said. "Real handsome and strong like my Ren."

"I wonder why she wouldn't tell me about this." Gajeel said.

"Oh really Gajeel." Levy chuckled. "You didn't even notice that she was in love. We had to point it out to you."

"Fair point. Still I'd like to know who he is."

"Maybe Lily knows something." Chelia suggested.

"Yes! Of course!" Gajeel said. "I'll talk to him about it after today's meeting with the fish heads of state. I'm sure he knows all about it."

Yes Panther Lily did know about it. He knew exactly who Juvia was in love with and it was by no means a merman like her family suspected. No she had given her heart to a human. The human Prince Gray. From the very instant their lips touched to share that first kiss, Juvia had been unable to stop thinking about him. For a time she did try to forget him, knowing full well that these feelings could get her into a lot of trouble, but in the end it was no use. The love of a mermaid was just too great and eventually her longing got the better of her, and she decided that she had to see him again.

After doing a little exploring and asking around, she finally discovered where the young prince lived. His castle lay just off the west coast and Juvia would swim much nearer to the shore than any of the others ventured to do, taking a place by the rocks in a shallow end. Here she would sit and watch Gray, who thought himself quite alone in the bright moonlight. She saw him many times of an evening, on that balcony or sailing in a pleasant boat, with music playing and flags waving. She would peep out from among the green rushes, and if the wind caught her long silvery-white veil, those who saw it believed it to be a swan, spreading out its wings. On many a night, too, when the fishermen, with their torches, were out at sea, she would hear them relate so many good things about the doings of the young prince, that she was glad she had saved his life when he had been tossed about half-dead on the waves. And she remembered how she had held him in her arms and how he had kissed her so passionately yet he knew nothing of all this.

"I wish I could speak to him." She sighed, watching him on the balcony like she did every evening.

"Juvia this is crazy!" Panther Lily told her. "If your brother ever found out about this-"

"I know, I know." She said. "But you should hear what the sailors say about him Lily. They say that he's honest and kind and courageous. He treats servants and commoners like they're equals. He loves the sea and he feels lonely, just like me."

"I haven't heard all that but I have heard that he's supposed to marry."

"And I've heard that he wants to marry for love."

"And what makes you think he'd love you?"

"Well he kissed me."

"In a delusional state. He probably doesn't even remember you. Or think of you for that matter. As far as he's concerned, you're just a fever dream."

But Panther Lily was wrong. Gray had not forgotten her. He had not forgotten the girl who had saved him. He had not forgotten the enchanting voice or the lovely eyes. In fact it was all he could think about. Since his rescue, he hadn't been the same. He longed to find that girl. He longed to hear her sing again and to once again gaze into those eyes. He spent his days searching for her to no avail and his nights dreaming about her. Nothing else could dominate his thoughts.

"Where did she go?" He wondered one night as he looked out over the sea. "Where can she be? When will she come again?"

"With all due respect sire." Lahar said to him. "You've been scouring the sea for weeks and you've seen no trace of this mystery maiden."

"I vowed to find her and I will." Gray insisted. "That voice, I can't get it out of my head. There's no one else who could have a voice like hers. It haunts my dreams and makes me feel like I'm flying."

"You can't obsess over this forever. You need to focus on more important things. Like choosing a bride. I have arranged countless meetings with numerous eligible young ladies and you've turned them all down. Don't forget, I promised your dying father that you would marry."

"Yes, you promised him that I would marry but you didn't promise him that I would marry just anyone."

"These ladies are not just 'anyone'. What about the Baron's daughter? She would have made a suitable bride."

"Suitable bride?" Gray said aghast. "Her bad breath almost strangled me. Not to mention she was ill-tempered and she had the manners of a pig."

"What about the young duchess? She smelled of lilacs, had hair finer than silk and flawless skin."

"She also had a cold gaze and a bird brain."

"Don't you think you're being a little too picky?"

"Lahar I know you mean well and I don't mean to be difficult but these women you set me up with couldn't make any man happy. They're all these painted, powdered, pampered, puffs. And they're hardly noble, take them out of their fancy clothes and manor houses, and what have you've got? Whiny women."

"Well what exactly are you looking for in a bride?"

"I don't know."

He walked away from the balcony and entered his bed chamber, glancing at a small painted portrait of himself as a young boy, walking on the beach with his father and mother, the former king and queen of Verdenshav. How beautiful his mother was and how gentle too, she was said to be the most beautiful woman in the whole kingdom and that she had the most loving heart. His father on the other hand was said to be most courageous and noble, with a slight rebellious streak that his son had inherited. Summer was the best time of the year for all of them because that's when they would go sailing or swimming or have a picnic on the beach. Other times they would race the little prince's toy boats when the shore was calm or go about collecting seashells. But his favorite had to be when they would get in a row boat and float together in a very special lagoon in the evening where they could catch fireflies and feed the birds, listen to the frogs and the nightingales. They were such wonderful parents.

They were such a wonderful couple too. Gray had been young when his mother passed from her illness but he could remember how in love she and his father were. Whenever they were in the same room they couldn't take their eyes off each other and they were constantly wrapped up in each other's arms. They were always surprising each other with little surprises and special evenings. The love between King Silver and Queen Mika was like straight out of a fairy tale except that it was real and more meaningful.

"Do you remember when my father first met my mother?" Gray asked Lahar.

"I was young." He said. "But I remember. I was training to be a page at the time, it was your father's eighteenth birthday, and your grandparents wanted to make the occasion extra special. So they arranged a concert in his honor and your mother happened to be the kingdom's most prized opera singer. "

"My father said that nothing in this world could have been more beautiful then seeing my mother sing for him that first time."

"Yes, I can recall the love sick grin on his face as he was watching her." Lahar chuckled. "And when the concert was over, he asked her to dance and he was such a nervous wreck that he tripped over himself."

"And everyone laughed at him, didn't they?"

"They tried to hide it but yes. Everyone laughed."

"Everyone except Mother. She didn't laugh, she just took his hand and led him through the dance with a gentle gaze. That's when my father knew that she was the one." Gray said. "I'm looking for a girl who's like that. Who wouldn't mock me and laugh at me behind my back like all those other shallow women do. A girl who's like the glimmer of the sunlight on the sea and the swell of endless music. Who has the heart of an angel and a voice as warm as Summer sky. A girl who's like the one that saved my life. She's the one I want to marry."

"But your highness you don't know anything about her."

"Her eyes alone told me everything I need to know."

"You could at the very least give other prospects a chance."

"I have and they're all the same."

"Not the princess of Lazan City. Her father says that she's a heavenly maid. Kind and sweet-natured. She wishes to marry for love as you do. It would be a perfect match."

"I'd like to meet her but I doubt anything could happen between us because I don't know if I can stop thinking about that girl."

"Then I have a little proposition for you. Now as you know the Magnolia Nation always celebrates the Summer Solstice with festivals and balls. Invite the princess of Lazan City and her father to spend the Summer with us at your family's Summer Palace in the Magnolia Nation and on the night of the Solstice we'll host a ball and a contest."

"A contest?"

"Yes, a contest where countless, eligible young ladies will sing for you. What better way for you to find this maiden? You said so yourself, there was no one else with a voice like hers."

"Alright." Gray said thinking it over. "I'll do it. But I make no promises."

"As you wish milord. I'll write to the sultan immediately."

When Lahar left to make the arrangements, Gray returned to the balcony and looked out at the ocean again. He could sense her laughter in the ripple of the waves against the shoreline He could see her smiling in the moonlight as it settles on the sand. He could feel her waiting just beyond the pale horizon. Strange as dream yet real as the sea. Make no mistake, he would find her.