AN: I am back! I didn't abandon you!

I hope you enjoy the chapter. I know it's a LOT of broships going on but we need this for character's development. I can't try to adapt every Gruvia moment or this will be 50 chapters long.

I will add more Gruvia from next chapter on, I promise! I needed to make a way for Juvia and Gajeel be worthy to go to the hidden city and I went full ballistic.

New relevant word: Winnow: "teleport"

#

To The Starts Who Listen – Part II

#

It took them weeks to travel from the Summer Court to the border of the Day Court with the Night Court. They were trying their best not to attract too much attention to themselves but Gajeel's wings were hard to hide so when going into large towns when needed to, Juvia usually went by herself, her hood over her hair.

Every once in a while, Juvia would have enough and they would rent a room in an inn and she would indulge herself with a long hot bath with nice smelling soap and a cozy bed. She would made Gajeel bathe as well, there was no way she would let him pass the opportunity to not smell like a rotten corpse.

Mostly, they would sleep under the stars, hunt and survive with only what they could get from the forests. And aside of missing a bed and honestly, smell horrid for such long periods of time (bathing in a river was nowhere as nice depending on where they were), and feel achy and exhausted, Juvia had never felt that happy before.

For the first time in her life, she made her own decision about her life.

Every morning before getting breakfast, Juvia and Gajeel would get up and practice their moves until the sun was up, then after breakfast, they would then walk or run for most of the day before finding a place to rest for the night.

Gajeel was a complete different being once they left. His words and actions felt lighter and almost soft. He kept telling her she would get them killed for the first few days and then stopped once they got into a routine.

She wasn't going to press; he would talk when he was ready. Or not at all. One could never know with Gajeel.

The night before they crossed the border, Gajeel explained their best bet was to fly over the mountains as it would be much easier to get there. They decided to go to a small coastal village and decide their next steps there. It was remote enough, enclosed by mountains.

Juvia's heart sang when they passed the wards that surrounded the Night Court. She was closer to him than she had been in months. The Cauldron would help her, she was sure of it.

It was almost night time when they finally arrived and landed on the small village. They observed for a while before walking into it. They were getting looks from everyone – such a small recluse place, they most likely didn't get visitors often but the few ships that would occasionally dock there.

They recognised Gajeel's wings instantly of course as Illyrians were part of the Night Court. They were instantly unsettled by it but Gajeel ignored the looks and they went straight to the only inn in town.

The older looking fae with short dark hair and green eyes, who seemed to own the place, looked at them with mistrust when they requested a room with two beds.

"Rare to see an Illyrian so far away from their land." She said to Gajeel. "Especially with one not of their kind."

"Call me open minded." Gajeel smiled viciously and there was a flash of fear in the female's eyes and Juvia stepped in.

"We are just looking for room and board for a few days." She told her. "We are not here to cause trouble. We pay well." Juvia gave the female a gold coin and she widened her green eyes, nodding. "We also would appreciate your discretion." Juvia added a second coin.

"I can try, but there's only so much I can be discreet about in a small village like this."

Juvia agreed. "Information, then." The other female raised an eyebrow. "How does one reach out to your High Lord?" The female narrowed her eyes, put a finger on top of the second coin and pushed it back to Juvia, her answer clear. "We mean no harm to none; we wish to ask for him to stay. Peacefully."

"Stay?"

"We have our reasons. Please."

"I'm sure you do." She sighed and Juvia must have sounded honest enough because the female took the second coin again. "I can send word to someone at... The Court, that a foreigner soldier needs an audience with the High Lord. I can't guarantee it will work."

"Thank you. Anything that can help." Juvia hesitated. "What gave away that I am a soldier?"

"I have been alive for 600 years, child. I have seen warriors in all sizes and shapes. I know when I see one. And you are wearing fighting leathers/" She picked a key from under the counter. "Room 4. No specific time for meals, just follow your noses. And you better not cause any trouble, I survived for 600 years and not because of luck."

Both Juvia and Gajeel nodded at the warning and went to find their room.

#

Three weeks passed and no one showed up to talk to Juvia about being granted or not an audience with the High Lord. She would ask Kera, the innkeeper, every day if she heard anything back and she always had the same answer.

After a week of being in town, people seemed to have gotten used to the big Illyrian and the blue haired fae quite well. The looks were starting to become less hostile, especially when Gajeel went hunting and brought back a boar so big there was a town celebration and Juvia helped rescue a fishing boat in trouble, using her water powers.

It was appealing, Juvia had to admit. Living in a small town, enjoying their life in peace after being used for so long by her uncle but every day she was apart from her mate, was torture. She could feel the uneasiness in her chest, she just wanted to be close to him, to keep him safe.

Gajeel didn't press on what Juvia's plan for the future seemed to be. He was waiting as much as she did and since this was her plan, he was following her cue.

She didn't know what to do, if she were honest to herself. She didn't want to move in case her request was granted and she was not there to accept it, but she also didn't want to not do anything about it.

No one could just walk into the secret city of Velaris. Its wards so strong it was never found or touched by war, Gajeel told her. Very few inside the Night Court itself knew about it, and even less had seen it. Outsiders were not allowed in. The only reason she knew about it was because Gajeel had heard from older Illyrians when he was a child during his training.

He had never been, of course, but he said what he heard could never exist, there was no way there was such a peaceful, beautiful and progressive city in Prynthian. The City of Starlight, they called it.

It did seem impossible, to have such a big secret, but Juvia hoped it was true and one day she would be able to see its beauty, hopefully with her Mate by her side.

Juvia and Gajeel were by the forest having their morning training session when they heard commotions and screams from the village. They didn't even need to glance at each other to start going at the direction of it; Juvia running, covering the ground and Gajeel flying to cover the skies.

They arrived at port and Juvia pushed her way towards a fishing boat, Gajeel landed next to her and they heard the story a female seemed to be repeating.

"...ships! I have never seen such big ships before." Gajeel looked and Juvia with a frown and she mirrored his action then looked back at the female. "We were lucky Elio seen them from so far away and we caught good wind and tide to get here as fast as possible."

"They had sails with a black dragon. It can only mean Acnologia is sending an attack on us!" The one Juvia assumed was Elio said, panicking. "The only way to get directly to the Night Court by sea is through our shores." Juvia looked around and the bay was surrounded by mountains and as far as Gajeel could see during his flights surrounding the area and the maps she had seen, the village would be the only way to go directly into the Night Court as there were paths to get out of the town.

If the King docked there, the Night Court and the rest of Prynthian could be invaded once Acnologia built his camps. The village was almost impregnable though land, Juvia and Gajeel flew to it. They never thought the King would straight up attack the Court in this manner. The other Courts had strong armies on their shores, but the Night Court had natural defence with its mountains around it. Except for this one little village, the weak link. Barely even in a map.

"How many ships?" Juvia asked loud enough her voice could be heard over the panicked whispers and then there was quiet and everyone was looking at her. "How many?" She pressed.

The young male seemed to fluster looking at Juvia. "I counted e-eight, my lady."

"How big were the ships?" Gajeel asked.

"Enough for a hundred fae. Each."

"How long before they get here?" Juvia asked that time.

"Two hours, if we are lucky and the wind doesn't help." The first female replied, voice trembling.

The former Summer Court members looked at each other for a few seconds. "Second Battle of Adriata Bay? The one with the Dawn ships?" Gajeel asked.

"It's all we got." Juvia nodded.

Gajeel turned around to the crowd. "Alright people." He screamed. "Everyone at the Village Hall now." When no one moved, he growled. "Did I fucking stutter? If you want to live, go to the Hall, now." He started barking orders and soon most people were going towards the big building.

Before following them, Juvia walked towards the beach and out her hands in the water and focused at the general direction Elio had pointed and after a few minutes, searching, she could feel them. Eight big ships and she could feel a lot of noise so they might be full and getting ready to attack.

Juvia gulped and took a deep breath before following the rest of the Village to the Village Hall, Gajeel at the door, waiting as everyone went inside.

"Are the numbers correct?" Gajeel asked when Juvia stopped by his side.

"Felt like it." Juvia sighed. "We can fight and do a huge damage if we plan this right." She hesitated. "If they get past us..."

"I know." Gajeel's eyes were dark. "They will kill everyone here after interrogating for information and then invade the country."

She nodded. "I guess we are all that stands between invasion and salvation."

Gajeel smirked. "Those fucking bastards in those ships have no idea what is going their way." Juvia chuckled. "Let's get this meeting over with so we can get ready. We are finally going to have some fun."

#

"Alright, listen up." Gajeel barked and the Hall went quiet. "Juvia confirmed eight ships coming this way." After living there for so long, everyone was aware of her powers and didn't question how she knew. "So, we have about an hour to prepare."

"We don't need people here who cannot fight." Juvia said, direct. "Families with children, injured or sick, will have to leave." Juvia looked around and found Kera's eyes on hers. They didn't have an official leader but the innkeeper seemed to be the closest to an authority figure. "Juvia assumes you have safe places to hide in case of a situation like this?" Kera hesitated but nodded. "We don't want to know where it is, it's safer this way. Those who cannot fight, should get the basics and leave for those places. Now."

Kera looked around and called two fae close to her and whispered something and a moment later, they were gone.

"Who here wants to fight?" Gajeel asked and most hands shot right up. Good, at least they would have some ground cover. "Who has any training?" Few hands stayed up in the air but it was better than nothing. Gajeel hummed in approval. "You who were trained to fight, will be the second line of defence. You will stay at the edge of where the town meets the beach and you will not let anyone pass. You will defend the rest of your people." The fae males and females nodded their understanding. "To the ones who want to fight, and never had any training, you are the third line of defence and you will be in the village and back, close to where the forest meets the mountain. If any of the enemies breach, the others will not have time to go after them, you will have to protect the village. One of you will be hidden as close as possible to where the ones who cannot fight and if we all fall, you will go with them to the next town and warn them."

"I know someone here knows about where the High Lord is. Velaris." Juvia said and clearly it was a shock for most fae in the room. "Someone must know how to get there or how to get close enough to ask for aid." No one moved; it was also known the reason why Juvia and Gajeel were in town was the fact she was looking for the High Lord. She rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I am not asking you to take me there, I am asking one of you to go ask for help. Gajeel and Juvia are very good but it's eight ships capable of holding a hundred soldiers each. Do you know why the ones who have training are the second line and the others are third? That is because the both of us" she pointed at herself and Gajeel "will be the first. We are about to go against eight ships and hopefully lower their numbers and get back to fight on land." She looked around. "So no, right now, we are not looking for a way to Velaris, we are looking for a way to stay alive and keep as many of you alive as well. Not to mention not to let them invade the country. We will need aid. If you can't get to Velaris, get to a neighbour village. We need numbers, swords, bow and arrows."

Kera looked at Juvia and Gajeel for a few moments, seeming to be pondering the risks of letting them know she most likely knew where Velaris was.

"We will go for aid." She said at last. "We cannot show you who we will send or to which direction."

"Doesn't matter." Gajeel was the one who replied. "As long as someone goes. Now you all know your duties: those who can't fight, leave. Those who will stay, gather all your weapons and if you have any sort of armour or fighting leathers, put those on and get to place. Go, go, go." He roared and the Hall was busy again, people going around to follow instructions. He was where he felt most comfortable: getting ready for a battle.

"Do you really think you can take down eight ships?" Kera asked.

Juvia hesitated; she didn't want others to hear so she whispered quietly so only the older fae would hear. "We have a plan that we used before and it worked with four ships. And we had an army at shore." Understanding passed through Kera's expression. "We will do our best, but prepare your people to flee if Gajeel and Juvia fall." Juvia looked around and the Hall was almost empty. "How long it will take to get to Velaris? Or where you are going to send for aid?"

"Six hours at full speed. I am sending our fastest." Kera told her, understanding Juvia needed to know how long they needed to fight.

"If we count reinforcements to be gathered and sent here at the same speed... At least another six to seven hours." Gajeel joined both females. "We need to hold on for at least twelve hours."

Gajeel scoffed. "Sure, why the fuck not? At least if we die, we go down fighting. Let's go Juvia, we need to put on our armour and fighting leathers."

"Will you leave, Kera-san?" Juvia asked.

"This has been my home for 300 years. No one is making me run and I know my way with a bow and arrow." She raised her chin and Juvia nodded in understanding. "If I don't get the opportunity later, thank you for at least try to help us. We wouldn't have known how to protect ourselves. Also, if you two hold on until reinforcements get here, the rest of your stay will be for free."

Juvia actually left out a loud laughter and Kera smiled.

#

An hour and a half later, Gajeel was holding Juvia as both of them were flying on top of the little armada. She looked up to him and nodded. He flew as low as he could behind the ship that was most behind and let her fall. Juvia crossed her arms and let water swallow her.

Once her head was above the water, she looked up and nodded at her cousin, who she could only see his blurred form at how high he was. She saw him move to the opposite side of the armada and she waited, counting to a hundred. They needed to coordinate the attack as much as possible.

At distance, she heard screams and a loud explosion and she knew it was time. Gajeel would be the decoy and Juvia would take out as many ships as quietly as possible.

She took a breath and summoned a wave of water that went over the first ship she behind of. She could see the boat falling sideways and the screams from the fae inside as the water got inside.

Immediately, Juvia swam and thanked the Cauldron for her nymph heritage – she had never met a High Fae as quick as she was in water. She was quick to evade the fallen soldier in the water who tried to catch her as a last resort. She could stay underwater for a while if needed.

She emerged close to the second boat and repeated the process she did with the first. Then a third. She could hear Gajeel wreaking havoc at the other side of the armada and she needed to take out as many ships as they could before they needed to return.

Summoning the waves and actually have the water follow her intended plan took so much of her energy as the waves were not small to do so much damage to ships that size.

Time for phase two.

Juvia used her powers to create a pillar of water to board the fourth ship. She could hear the confusion and panic of the soldiers inside: they could see three ships had sunk, but no enemy on sight and on the other site of the armada, Gajeel seemed to have had success with at least two boats and they seemed to be sinking.

One more. If Juvia could sink one more, they would be out of six ships instead of the original eight. That would make things easier to handle on land.

Juvia walked without hiding at all to the main deck, where no one seemed to think she was out of place until she started to summon spheres of water around everyone's heads, drowning them. She had to focus on all of them and she was starting to get exhausted. She, of course couldn't get them all so while trying to maintain the spheres, she had to have some hand-on-hand combat with a few of the soldiers and they were really well trained, Juvia noticed and filed that information for later.

Noticing most people on the fourth ship were dead, Juvia let out the signal for Gajeel, a long specific whistle they came up during the early days of the war as a way of look for help. A minute later, she looked up and Gajeel had his sword in hand and he was flying straight to the middle of the ship, intending to break it in half.

Juvia went to the front of the ship when impact happened and a few seconds later, Gajeel emerged from the water and Juvia heard the same whistle she had done earlier, come from her cousin.

Without a moment's hesitation, Juvia jumped from the top of the sinking ship and without even missing a beat, Juvia was caught by Gajeel, just before she hit the water.

Gajeel let out a loud cheer and when Juvia looked back over her shoulder, Juvia could see that only two ships remained afloat, even with Gajeel's attacks on them. They were trying to shoot arrows at both her and Gajeel. She hoped that would be enough for their forces on the ground to hold on until reinforcements arrived.

#

"We slowed them down." Gajeel explained to their forces on the ground. Juvia was sitting down, trying to gather energy for the battle to come. She would have lasted much longer if she didn't need to summon such big waves. She just needed a couple of hours to recharge but she didn't think she would get it. "Right now, I would imagine the first soldiers who didn't die or didn't manage to get on one of the two ships that are barely afloat, are swimming this way. I managed to break the ships enough to slow them down a lot. It gives us... an extra hour, maybe, before they arrive on land."

"You two... took out six ships." A male fae said in wonder. "That was..."

"Taking down ships and killing the enemy are two different things." Juvia explained. "They are fae, just like us. Fast, just like us. Resilient, just like us. They will be swimming here by instinct of survival and the ones on the boats will be ready for us." The others were looking at her. "We have the advantage over who is swimming as they are spending precious energy to get here – Gajeel and I can take them. Beware of the ones coming from the boats."

"How long until we reach out for reinforcements?" Gajeel asked Kera.

"If going on full speed? Halfway there, I hope."

"We are on our own until then." He nodded. "Is evacuation of those who cannot fight, complete?"

"Yes."

"Good. I hope you don't hold too much sentiment value to the buildings."

Kera raised her chin. "Our priority is our people."

Gajeel grinned. "That's what I want to hear. Everyone, go to your positions and rest up. Go puke, piss or shit if you are nervous. Now is the time for it. Once they are here, you have no time for such things. You'll hear a loud whistle coming from us when it's time." He looked around. "From that moment on, you are all soldiers and they" he pointed to the sea where the ships and the swimming fae were coming "are the enemy and they don't get to invade our country. We take the first and only stand right here, right now."

Everyone cheered and even Juvia smiled. Gajeel looked so good and in his element, commanding soldiers, even though they could barely be called an army as there were less than a hundred fae left to fight. He was so much more than a soldier but he was a damn good one.

Gajeel sat next to her, his wings tucked next to him and he sighed, finally showing how tired he was already. "Six down."

"Two to go." Juvia replied.

"Plus the swimmers."

"Do you think we will survive this?" She asked, casually.

He hummed, eyes closed, face up towards the sky, basking in the sun. "Absolutely not."

Juvia sighed. "Thought so." They stayed in silent for a while. "It would have been nice to see him one last time."

"You got to meet him, that's more than most of us will ever have." Gajeel told her.

"I am sorry I got you into this." She told him, eyes watering a little bit. "You would have been perfectly safe back in Summer."

Gajeel stayed in silence for a long time before speaking, opening his eyes and looking down to her. "The last couple of months since we left, have been the best ones of my life since being a young child, living with my mother." He said. "I always had someone telling me what to do, how to live. You asked me to come. No one ever asks me; I am always commanded to do something. I told you we were going to die, but I chose to be here and I accept it if this is the end. At least we had freedom, you were right about that part. We can be more."

Juvia had silent tears streaming down her cheeks. "Juvia also doesn't have any regrets and I agree, the past few months were the best ever since I lost my parents." She stopped for a second. "I love you." Gajeel froze. They never said those words before. "Just in case we don't have another opportunity."

He cleared his throat. "Me too. Just don't die before I do." He couldn't take it; she knew it was what he wanted to say.

"Juvia will do her best." Even though she wouldn't be able to take seeing him dying either.

#

Juvia and Gajeel were at the beach when the first swimmers arrived and Gajeel used his sword to kill as many as possible before they could even get to touch sand while Juvia drowned them as they got closer. She eyed the two approaching ships and once they were close enough and there were almost no swimmers coming their way, Juvia used her powers to move one of the ships to crash into the other. They need to slow them down.

"Leave the bodies." Gajeel told her before she could move the bodies away with. "We want them to fear us more than they do already."

"Sadistic bastard." Juvia shook her head.

"It's all about advantage. They need to fear to even get here, get near us. Seeing the bodies of their comrades will do that. That's when their spirit begins to break." He was looking at the next wave of swimmers and boats from the ships getting closer. "We won't be able to beat all of them."

"We leave the swimmers to the villagers. They will be weaker and more likely to be defeated by them." Juvia said.

With the plan in action, Juvia and Gajeel took care of as many as they could before the boats docked or got close enough and then their focus went to them.

Juvia had twin blades on her back and got them in hand, attacking them with swiftness and poise for something so brutal and bloodied. It had been a long time since she was in a real life or death battle but it all came back so naturally it felt she had never stopped doing that every day.

She could hear the villagers fighting behind them, Gajeel's raged roars and attacks, but she needed to focus on what was in front of her. What would keep her alive.

After a while, she got into a rhythm and time didn't exit anymore. She used her swords and powers, killing and maiming. She could feel blood going down her face after one of the enemies had nicked her there and she paid the female with a sword through her throat.

The sun was settling by the time Juvia stopped for more than a few seconds and there was a second wave coming from the boats soon.

"How are you feeling?" Gajeel screamed from a few meters away, they were still by the beach, getting as many as they could, he was holding his side and the only reason why she was not doing the same with her leg was because she wasn't sure she would let go and go back up.

"Fresh like a fucking daisy." Juvia shouted back.

Gajeel barked a laugh. "Looking like shit, though."

"You are not looking so great either, geezer."

"I am just ten years older, Juvia."

The second wave docked and they started to fight again, slaying, hitting, getting hit and just holding on for as long as they could. They couldn't think of the ones that slipped away, they had two other teams in charge of them. If they couldn't trust them to hold on, they wouldn't be able to win. Or at least slow them down and ruin their plans of invasion.

How long were they fighting for? Time was a blur and both her and Gajeel were being pushed back by the army, they were getting exhausted. At least back at the war there would be more people with them holding on the beach, they would retreat and rest then return. This time Juvia and Gajeel were it. If they fell before reinforcements were there, it was over.

Whatever King Acnologia had planned, though, had backfired the second the fishing boat saw them. With someone going to ask for assistance so early, the Night Court would send aid.

Juvia and Gajeel ended up backing together behind a building, waiting for the... fourth? Fifth wave? She didn't even know anymore – they were getting weaker and the enemy, stronger.

"I am reaching my limit." Juvia told her cousin, panting. "Maybe a few shots with my magic, definitely just a few minutes with my weapons."

"Yeah." Gajeel cleaned his brow with his bloodied arm. "We did what we could." He locked eyes with her. "No regrets."

"No regrets." Juvia nodded and she smiled at him before jumping out of their hiding place and going back to fighting.

She used her water powers to drown some of the enemy and then she was done, too exhausted to do anything else with it. She started to exclusively use her swords but the enemies kept coming and she knew she was almost done.

Juvia swung her swords, until she couldn't feel her arms anymore, until her legs were so heavy they wouldn't do what she wanted. She could see some familiar faces from the villagers who stayed to fight, their eyes open and unmoving. They fought bravely to defend their home.

She felt an arrow hit her shoulder, another hit her hip then her leg and she finally fell to her knees.

Looking up, she saw an enemy with a bow already docking the arrow that would likely be her end and she whispered, "Good luck", looked up at the rising moon and took her last breath.

But the shot never came. Confused, she looked to where her would-be-killer had stood just to see a wall of ice between them, the arrow infused in it. She understood, then, it had been caught just in time to save her life.

Blinking in surprise, she finally caught the smell she had been dreaming about for months now.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Her Mate, Gray Fullbuster, stood a few meters away from her, hands up and she was certain he had just saved her life with a wall of ice. "When I said we would see each other again, I never thought it would be here."

"You." She said in wonder and for a moment she thought she had died. Her body finally giving up, she fell backwards and was swiftly caught by him.

"What the fuck is happening?" He looked down at her body, assessing the injuries and arrows' locations and then looked back into her eyes. "We only got some information of a massive invasion, but the rest wasn't too clear."

"Eight ships from Acnologia. We sank six, fought whoever survived." She said, knowing her consciousness was going to fade soon and taking a moment to imprint in her memory how was to be held by him even for just a few minutes. His eyes widened at her words and all she could think was how warm he was. "Did you bring reinforcements?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "Did you say eight ships? You sank six?"

Juvia hummed in agreement; eyelids heavy. "Most villagers are safe, hidden in the mountains. Others are fighting. Juvia just needs to rest her eyes for a few minutes, she can go back to battle soon."

The last thing Juvia saw was Gray shaking his head in disbelief. "You rest, we got it from here."

#

The first thing Juvia noticed as she started to wake up was the loud noise or people moving and talking. Then the smell of herbs and medicines she would forever know after spending a lot of time in infirmaries.

Her eyes opened and she jumped to sit up and even though she felt pain on her shoulder, she looked around and after blinking a few times, she realised the Village Hall had been turned into a hospital for the time being.

They must have won, right? They wouldn't have a hospital set up if they had lost.

A young male fae noticed her, he was wearing white, had dark skin and deep blue eyes. He looked at her in shock. "You are awake."

"Can you tell me is my cousin is-" She tried but he had run somewhere and left her sitting on her cot. "-aaaand you are gone." Juvia sighed and slowly got up. Her muscles were sore, and she could feel where the arrows hit her in the end but her quick healing was kicking in and she could move without much trouble. She noticed all she was wearing were the remnants of her under clothes, she could only imagine the state of her hair and if her smell was any indication, she had more than just blood in her hair and, but she didn't care how she looked at the moment.

She started to look around for Gajeel, her heart beating fast, afraid she wasn't going to find him; or worse, find him with the dead. She finally reached the entrance and looked outside, blinking at the sunlight.

There were Night Court soldiers everyone, their dark blue leathers, and armours with 3 mountains and three stars shining above it.

Not one soldier from Acnologia on sight. "We did it?" She finally believed it. "We actually did it?"

"We barely made it in time. If we hadn't winnowed our strongest fighters when we did, the village would have been lost." The sweet voice came from her left and Juvia's heart sang in response to her Mate's voice. He was wearing armour himself with a cape and looking absolutely handsome. "But yeah, Acnologia didn't take the village nor did he invade Prynthian."

Juvia turned to him; eyes wide. "My cousin. Is he..."

"Alive and well. He woke up about an hour before you did, I was told, and he was eating breakfast last I heard and then he was to be taken into interrogation." Juvia's body tensed and Gray clearly noticed. "We are not torturing him, everyone involved in yesterday's events is being interviewed. You will too. Poor choice of words, apologies."

She hesitated but nodded. "Who will interview Juvia?"

Gray grinned. "Me." Oh, shit. "Do you want to eat something before we start? Something for the pain? Clothes?" He looked at her pointedly – her clothes were torn and showing a lot of her body.

"Honestly?" Juvia said tiredly, not even pretending to not be exhausted. "I Just want to get this over with, take a long hot bath, take a sleep potion and then sleep for three days. But that is not going to happen until we talk so I rather do that first and then if you don't want to arrest me after, I will go do just that."

He shrugged. "Be my guest." He hesitated for a second before taking his cloak and putting around her, to her surprise. "Just so you don't flash anyone else." Juvia controlled her wish to giggle, and she wondered where that came from: she never giggles, but she was still tired and drunk with her mate's scent from his cape around her so that was probably it. "Now if you follow me."

#

Juvia was taken to a barn at the outskirts of the village, and it all seemed friendly enough. Three chairs were inside, one was already occupied in the corner by an older looking female fae with blonde hair and golden eyes.

Gray waited until Juvia sat down and explained. "Gora" he pointed at the third fae "can feel a lie from a truth. It's her special power. It doesn't hurt, but if you lie, she will know. Understood?" Juvia nodded. "Great. Now, what happened yesterday?"

With as many details as she could remember, Juvia told him everything she could remember up until when he saved her. "...Juvia was certain she would die, then. But you save me. Thank you."

He looked at Gora and she must have nodded because he relaxed a little bit on his own chair.

"We have talked to most of the villagers now and they all have had the same story as you, which is good." Gray said with a frown, leaning back on the chair and crossing his arms. "It is always impressive to hear how you took four warships on your own. Your cousin took down another two. It makes me think when we fought, you were not even that serious. You were holding back."

"You were not trying to kill Juvia. They were." She shrugged. "We go above our limit when our lives are in danger."

He hummed in annoyance but continued his questioning. After a few questions, Juvia asked him: "How many villagers did we lose?" Gray was surprised with the question. "We started with a hundred and seven willing to fight. How many?"

"Twenty-three." He told her and Juvia looked away. "For an attack that big and what you had to work with, that is impressive."

"It's still twenty-three too many." She muttered and he nodded in agreement.

"What are you doing at the Night Court? Less than three months ago you were a loyal servant of the Summer Court."

Juvia tensed. She didn't want to tell him she was there for him, to be close to him. "We mean no harm, nor we are spies, if that's what you are concerned about." She didn't lie but didn't answer.

"That is not what I asked." He saw her deflection and wouldn't let go.

"A lot can change in three months." Juvia chose her words carefully. "Juvia will only tell why she is here directly to your High Lord." Gray raised a dark eyebrow. "Juvia would like to stay. Gajeel-kun too. We are soldiers from another Court, we need his approval, and he will decide if the reason is worthy." Gray narrowed his eyes. "We are not here to hurt anyone. Well, except the enemy army that tried to invade us."

He didn't even look at the other fae in the room, his eyes on Juvia's every movement and she knew it was not the moment, but she liked having his attention only on her, it was as if only both of them were in that barn – the things she could think of they could do if they were alone... He must have picked up a change in her scent because Juvia saw his pupils dilate a little and he breathed in a little deeper once, taking in her scent.

Gray got up from his chair, clearly pretending nothing had happened but Juvia knew better: she had an opening there.

"The High Lord will not be available for a while." He cleared his throat. "He is reinforcing our borders in case Acnologia tries again and warning the other Courts about danger."

Juvia smiled. "I am patient. For a lot of things." She shrugged and looked him from his feet up to his face and she all but licked her lips. She had dreamed of being this close to him, even closer, really. "I will be here when he is ready."

He looked so confused it was adorable. She would bet he didn't know what was happening with her subtle flirtation out of nowhere.

"If you see him before he warns the other Courts, could you ask him to leave Juvia and Gajeel's names out of it?"

"Why?" Gray asked, more curious than anything.

"Juvia would say the Summer Court has put a bounty on our heads by now so it would be better for everyone if they don't know where we are at the moment." She explained. "We didn't exactly ask if our uncle would give us leave to... go."

"You didn't tell him you were leaving?"

Juvia chuckled humourless. "We could have tried and most likely would end up in the dungeons for a couple of decades for our audacity. And that would have been the easy punishment." She looked up to him. "Our family dynamic is quite... singular."

He was studying her again and then he looked at the third fae sitting by her corner and she just nodded – Juvia was not lying. He shook his head in amazement.

"Well, shit." It was his answer. "I guess we are done here." He told Gora and she got up from her chair and left swiftly, leaving both Gray and Juvia alone, he was still looking at her as if he was trying to figure her out. "What changed in these past months that would make you leave?"

"Something big." She replied, carefully stepping closer to him.

"Something so big only the High Lord is allowed to know." He completed, one eyebrow raised.

"For the moment, yes." Juvia smirked, she took another step closer and his fresh scent almost made her knees buckle and then she took another step. "You might too, in the future, if you are lucky."

Amusement danced in his eyes and he stepped closer to her himself with two steps. "Oh? How would I earn the right to be lucky?"

"Juvia is sure you can come up with something." They were close enough Juvia put a hand on his chest and looked up to him. "Dinner would be nice." She smiled and started to walk towards the entrance, making sure to sway her hips as much as she could, and he followed.

He hesitated. "Is all this little flirtation real or you are just amusing yourself?" Gray asked after a moment.

Juvia giggled and looked over her shoulder. "Two things can be true at the same time." She undid his cape, without breaking eye contact and offered it back to him and he raised an eyebrow and she saw his eyes dart down her body and linger on just the right places and she saw his pupils dilate again. "Do you know if the inn is still standing? And its owner?"

"Yes to both, she is feeding the whole village and our soldiers at the moment." Gray nodded and took his cape from her hand. "Are you going to go take that bath and sleep for three days?" He was amused.

"Oh Cauldron, yes." She couldn't say anything else because she was all but tackled by her cousin in a mess of limbs and wings rolling on the ground. "Gajeel-kun!"

In a swift motion they were standing again. "I told you we were not going to die!" He was grinning.

"Oh, you absolutely did not." Juvia laughed and hit his arm, and he made a whole show of pretend she had injured him beyond repair. "We held on."

"We did." Gajeel was all but beaming, which was very unusual in a good way. He looked... happy, content. "Who is that?" He pointed his thumb back to where Gray stood, looking amused.

Juvia didn't want to speak too loudly so her mate couldn't hear her, so she barely whispered. "Mate." She found an angle his wings partially hid her and put a finger in front of her mouth in a 'keep quiet' motion. Juvia didn't want Gray to know yet.

"Gajeel-kun, please meet Gray Fullbuster." She said turning them around to face the other male. "He saved Juvia's life last night." She added. "And Gray-sama, this is Juvia's cousin, Gajeel Redfox."

Gajeel smirked, put his arm around Juvia's shoulder and offered the other his hand to Gray. "Well, very nice to meet you, mate." Juvia elbowed him hard on the stomach and that time she made sure it hurt. Never in his life Gajeel ever referred to anyone as mate, he did it to piss her off.

Gray frowned at the interaction but accepted the extended hand. "Likewise." He looked at Juvia. "You better get something to eat and go rest. I will talk to the High Lord to see if and when he can stop by."

"We are living at the only inn in town." Juvia supplied and before she left, she hesitated for a second. "Thank you again, for saving my life."

He nodded. "And thank you for risking it for a piece of my home."

Gajeel and Juvia walked away towards the inn, exhausted but content to be alive and have done their part. It was Gajeel who broke their amicable silence. "You were right, the bastard is handsome."

"Right?!" She all but squealed.

#

Turns out Kera was more than willing to keep her word about letting Juvia and Gajeel stay at her inn free of charge for however long they wanted. Juvia tried to say it wasn't necessary, but she was adamant. She even updated each of them to separate bigger rooms. Juvia was just happy to have a bathtub just for herself and a fire to heat up water.

After cleaning all the grime and blood from her body, Juvia fell into a dreamless sleep for almost twenty-four hours and when she woke up, she felt like a she had been reborn. Her body still ached a little but nothing she couldn't take it.

Everyone who had returned to town would randomly stop either Gajeel or Juvia to thank them for their bravery.

A few days after the battle, they were going to burn the bodies of the twenty-three dead and Juvia and Gajeel stood at the back, seeing the fire engulf the bodies. What surprised her was some villagers stopping by to thank them they were only losing twenty-three instead of a few hundred. It made Juvia want to cry, but both her and her cousin just nodded, eyes forward to the pyre as they had done it many times before.

There was still a heavy presence of the Night Court army at the village, and they seemed to be building an outpost there; Juvia guessed they didn't want to be caught that unprepared ever again.

She did not see Gray again, though. It appeared he had left the day after her interview, but Juvia was more hopeful than ever. At the very least he felt a little lust towards her and in her books, that was better than nothing. She could work with that.

Almost two weeks after the attack, Juvia and Gajeel had gathered a few of the fighters from that day and were training them with the basics of protecting themselves and it seemed they were more than happy to either refresh their memories with training or learn from scratch.

After returning from her morning practice with Gajeel, Juvia returned to the inn while Gajeel needed to talk to one of the villagers and he would join her soon. Once she arrived, the place was unusually empty, except for Kera.

"Good morning, Kera." Juvia smiled and they asked her daily question. "Any news for Juvia?"

"Actually, yes." The older female smirked. "The High Lord has finally agreed to meet you."

"He did?" Juvia was surprised, she thought she would never hear from him. Excitement bubbled inside her "Where? When?"

"How about here and now, child?" A male voice came from behind her, and Juvia froze. She slowly turned around and saw a short old male with white hair smile at her from a booth she had not notice until then, was occupied. He didn't look like a High Lord, wearing simple clothes and had a general happiness to see her. "Would you like to join me?" He pointed at the booth across from him. I am told you have been waiting to talk to me for ages."

Juvia turned to Kera, but she had made herself scarce and as if in a dream, Juvia dazedly walked towards the older male and bowed. "High Lord, what an honour."

He waved her off. "Call me Makarov." He pointed again at the booth. "Sit." She obeyed and waited while the older fae raised an eyebrow. "Usually, the one who asks for the audience speaks first."

"Apologies, I was caught off guard." Juvia cleared her throat and straightened her posture. "Juvia would formally like to request living in the Night Court." She finally said and she sae the High Lord frown in slight confusion.

"Summer Court got a bit too boring for you? I know you had quite an experience a couple of weeks ago, but that is not a daily occurrence."

Juvia hesitated. "The Summer Court is not home to my Mate."

That seemed to catch him by surprise. "Are you telling me your Mate is one of my subjects and that is why you have fled your home months ago?"

"Yes." Juvia nodded. "I need to be close to him, know he is safe. I am ready to Bargain with you to bear no arms while living here, to live a peaceful life. I don't want to bother anyone, not even him. I just... want to see him and care for him if he lets me."

"Why would I bound you to that?" Makarov was surprised with the proposal. "You and your cousin prevented the invasion of Acnologia almost on your own. I cannot bound such talent to a silly Bargain that will benefit no one." He waved her off.

"Please, don't make me go back to Summer." She whispered, almost terrified. She had seen her uncle in his worst, and she had no doubt she would see that side of him if she were to return. "Uncle will not be forgiving."

Something flashed in Makarov's eyes. "You have nothing to fear, child. You bled for my Court, you prevented so many lives to be taken, you took care of my people when I wasn't even aware of what was happening. You are part of my Court now, and you will forever hold my gratitude." The High Lord bowed his head. "Now." He clasped his hands together. "If you hadn't been a soldier, what do you think you would have been?"

Confused at the change of the conversation, Juvia asked. "Sorry?" He repeated the question and Juvia replied, amazed, and confused. "A baker, like mother and father."

"Hm." Makarov nodded. "That is nice. The world needs bakers. Are your parents..."

"Dead. Juvia was ten. It has been a long time."

"Yet you still want to be a baker." The High Lord said.

"Juvia tried for a while after the war. She reopened her parents' bakery, and it was quite enjoyable. Peaceful. But she had other duties to attend to, being a soldier and needing to leave in a moment's notice. It is still open, though, but a lovely family has it now. They have a good selection of food; Juvia stops by all the time." She stopped for a moment. "Used to stop by all the time. It reminded me of simpler times."

Makarov was looking at her with a calculating gaze, studying her and Juvia was certain his question had been a test somehow. "Who is your Mate?" He asked and Juvia hesitated. "If you haven't told him yourself, it's not my place to do it in your stead. This is your business, but I would like to be aware also if I know him."

Juvia snorted. "Oh, you do." She offered him a sad smile. "Gray Fullbuster."

"HA!" The High Lord hit the table with his hand. "I knew it!" He laughed. "He told me you two fought a couple of months ago when he and Natsu went to get Lucy so when you told me your Mate was in my Court and the timing, I had a feeling – it's not like Summer and Night meet all the time. Also, when he was telling me about your interview after the fight, he was acting off and sort of confused with something."

Juvia beamed. "Oh, Juvia was completely messing with his head during the interview."

"That's good. That boy needs to stop to take everything so seriously, he needs some controlled chaos around him." Makarov smiled. "I can see why the Cauldron saw it fit to Mate you two. Whoever is going to try to get his heart must have resolve in their own and to not give up easily." He smirked at her. "Seeing that you and your cousin held on an entire invasion almost by yourselves for about seven hours, I would imagine you don't."

"Not when it's worth it."

"He is."

"Then Juvia won't give up." She said, determined. "Which is why I would like to have the chance to go to Velaris, if you allow." She lowered her head in submission. "He won't be here often, if at all."

Makarov hummed in agreement. "As I said before, you are welcome to stay in my territory as long as you want; I see you as my subject now, but I can't let you go to the town unsupervised just yet. Don't get me wrong, I trust you as much as I can trust someone who comes from another Court initially, but Velaris is in a secret location for a reason." Juvia nodded, understanding but sad. "That being said, I can have someone to winnow you to town a few times a week and if I see you are integrating well, as you have done here, we can go from there."

Juvia's heart all but burst out of her chest with his words. She could be closer to her Gray-sama, at least a few times each week. "Thank you."

"You will bring no weapons, cause no commotion, return when your chaperone is ready to bring you back." Makarov warned her and she nodded. "I will trust you with that. I will Bargain with you about not revealing Velaris' location to anyone who is not a resident of Velaris and you are only allowed to fight to defend yourself or others. That it not optional."

"I agree." Juvia saw a little tattoo form on her right hand, the Bargain being accepted by both parties. "How about my cousin? Gajeel-kun?"

"I will talk to him next." Makarov said. "He should be back soon. I would like to meet with an Illyrian who was not raised neither in Illyria nor the Night Court."

Juvia smiled. "He is something." She hesitated. "He will try to sound tough and unfeeling, but he came all the way here with Juvia so she wouldn't be alone. He has a good heart, he just... forgets it sometimes. Juvia is good to remind him, don't worry."

Makarov nodded. "I will keep that in mind. Now, how would you like to see Velaris tomorrow?"

#

Juvia had nothing to wear. She had fighting leathers, her mended armour but nothing that would befit Velaris, if all the stories were true. She needed to buy new clothes. While running from Summer, Juvia couldn't afford to bring the few dresses she had worn to balls throughout the years, as she was usually escorting her uncle or cousins, she mostly had her armour on.

Gajeel entered her room and as usual just thought of it as his and lied down sprawled on her bed, his large wings taking most of the space.

"Can you believe we are going to Velaris?" Juvia was excited. "I might be able to see Gray-sama again."

"That is nice." Gajeel agreed and then after a moment, he said. "Juvia, I am not going to Velaris with you."

"What?" Juvia frowned. "Of course you are. The High Lord..."

"Didn't give me leave to go yet." Her cousin said. "Just you are going for now."

"But..." She was confused.

Gajeel sat down. "It's okay. Going there was your goal, not mine." He shrugged. "Mine was to make sure you did it. Also, you are not going to live there just yet. You will be back tomorrow evening and tell me all about it."

"And you are okay with that?" Juvia asked.

He was silent for a long moment. "The High Lord asked me what I would have been if I were not a soldier. I had no answer. I was always meant to be a soldier, I like being a soldier, I like to train people, to bark orders, to be in midst of battle, the thrill of it. And that is okay, we are all meant for different things in life." Gajeel snorted. "At least that's what the old one said. But he also said I need to know myself more, I never had the opportunity to do things of my own, for myself. Even coming here, I did it for you." Feeling guilty, Juvia opened her mouth, but he interrupted her. "I am glad I did, I have no regrets. I would have been miserable in Summer without you, and they would have finally broken me beyond repair if I had stayed." Juvia nodded in understanding. "Here I can... think. I can work with the other fae about how to protect this place, I can see what I am when I am by myself. What I can be. For fuck's sakes, I am even friendly with most people in town now. A few months ago, I would have glared at them so hard they would shit their pants." Juvia giggled at that. "I might even go to Illyria, there's a lot of resentment in me about that place to just let go. I need work Juvia and I can't have you being my emotional crutch forever. There are things I need to go through on my own."

"You have to go because that's what you need to do." Gajeel said with certainty. "And in a while, you will move there, and I will stay here for a little longer. When that day comes, you go with no regrets, and I will do the same. I am pretty sure you can just ask to come see me here and they will make it happen. When the High Lord and I think I am ready, I will go find you."

"To be as it has always been: Juvia and Gajeel against everyone." Juvia said jokingly and smiled – she understood he needed to work on himself and the past few months he had changed so much already, had faced a lot of his fears and old habits just by being free. She would not be the one to shackle him again. He would always be part of her life, but he needed to choose to.

He snorted. "As it has always been."

#

Juvia could barely sleep and she was awake and ready before the sun was even up, she went out for her usual practice in the morning, bathed herself – having water powers were the best thing when it came down to bathing – then put on her fighting leathers (sans armour) as she didn't have anything else to wear. Maybe in one of her trips to town she could purchase something less... intimidating. She hoped leaving her long blue hair mostly loose would soften her looks.

She gave most of her breakfast to her cousin while looking intently at the inn's door and he happily accepted it, he would eat like there would be no food the next day.

Finally, someone she hadn't seen before stepped inside the inn and Juvia's attention focused on the lovely fae who had arrived. She had short white hair, lovely blue eyes and was wearing a flowy blue dress.

"Good morning, Kera." She said to the innkeeper. "Long time."

"Good morning, Lisanna." Kera replied. "How is the family?"

"How do you think? Insane as usual." The younger female giggled. "I am here to pick up Juvia Lockser for the day?"

"Oh, I know. She has been waiting months for this." Kera pointed to where Juvia was not even bothering to hide the fact she was eavesdropping and was next to them in a blink of an eye. "This is her."

The white haired fae had a beautiful smile and just offered Juvia a hand after looking at her for a moment. "Hi! I'm Lisanna."

"Juvia." She took the hand.

"Well Juvia, have you winnowed before?" Juvia nodded.

"A few times, not too often."

"From what I hear, you will be doing that a lot for the foreseeable future." Lisanna was beaming. "I will be your main winnower, but things might change. Do you have any weapons on you?" She shook her head. "Great! Now, hold my hand and I will take you to your guide in Velaris."

Juvia looked over her shoulder and Gajeel just gave her a nod while still stuffing his face with breakfast. She smiled and took the other female's hand and they left for Velaris.

#

It was always a bit disconcerting to winnow, as Juvia needed a few moments to gather where she was. Well, she would have to get used to it if she were to go there every couple of days.

"Just take a breath, you will feel better in a minute." She heard Lisanna say. True to her word, Juvia felt better and looked around her, eyes going wide at the town around her. People were walking around, cafes and restaurants were full and the city was buzzing with life. "It looks even better at night time. We are not known as the City of Starlight for nothing."

"This place is... beautiful." Juvia didn't know where to look.

"Your guide will take you to the best spots, don't worry." Lisanna told her. "Come on."

Juvia was trying to take it all in and followed the other female for a few minutes until they arrived in what seemed to be a small park.

"Here's your guide, I think you already know each other?"

Juvia's heart stopped for a second. Would it be her Gray-sama? Before looking, she caught a sniff of the scent and smelled sunflowers, new books and- oh no.

She finally turned around and found her chaperone for the day and winced because in front of her stood Lucy Heartfilia, in all her blonde glory.

"Oh, we've met." Lucy smiled wolfishly. "Hello there."

Well, fuck.

#

Lisanna left, looking at both females in amusement. Lucy had her arms crossed under her breasts and had a raised eyebrow, looking entirely too amused. Juvia just stood there, frozen in place. She was doomed from the first moment, wasn't she?

"Maybe we should introduce ourselves without all the kidnapping thing happening?" Lucy suggested. "I am Lucy Heartfilia and you are...?"

She was not to cause any problems, the blue haired female kept thinking over and over. "Juvia Lockser." She said begrudgingly.

"Lovely to meet you." Lucy smiled. "Now... do you have anything you want to tell me?"

Juvia narrowed her teal eyes and thought for a moment on what to say. "Juvia is not sorry for carrying out her mission, even if that mission was to take you back to your father. Juvia was loyal to her Court and at the time, it didn't seem harmful to bring you back by any means necessary. I am not sorry for hitting you so you would lose consciousness as if you were awake, you would make too much noise and attract attention to both of us and it would have been dangerous." Lucy narrowed her hazel eyes. "I am not sorry for misleading your mate and Gray-sama away from your trail so the mission would be completed." Juvia raised her chin. "I helped when I could, how I could."

Lucy was studying her and then let out a bright smile. "That sounds about right. I just needed to hear you say it."

"Are you not... angry?" Juvia was confused.

"Oh, I was furious." Lucy stepped closer to Juvia and wrapped her arm around Juvia's, starting to lead her around Velaris. "But after Natsu won that barbaric duel my father suggested, by Day Court law, Natsu won me over so my father can't make me go back anymore. Everything worked out in the end, and I believe in second chances. You did what you had to do, and I respect that you don't cower from what happened or give me shitty excuses." They stopped in front of a store to look at the dresses on display. "Also, Natsu said you are the reason he arrived in time, so I thank you for that. Oh, that's a pretty dress, don't you think?"

Juvia was still trying to comprehend what the younger fae was saying but she looked at the mentioned dress and agreed. "Looks nice."

She seemed to think about it for a moment. "Hm, no. We can find something else that matches your complexion a little better."

"My complexion?" Juvia asked, confused.

"Aa your guide for the day, we are going to buy you some clothes. Don't get me wrong, the whole warrior thing you have going on is very hot – I know because I like my male wearing those as much as the next female, but I bet when you left Summer you didn't exactly bring a full wardrobe, did you?"

"Just the important things. Leathers, armour. Swords and daggers."

Lucy chuckled. "That was what was important then, we need to get you what is important now." They stopped walking for a moment. "We won't get anything you are not comfortable with. Just see today as... the first day of your new life. You must have wanted one to come here."

"I do." Juvia nodded.

"Then you can be whoever you can be and if by the end of day today you still want to wear your armour and leathers, so be it. Would you like to go to a shopping spree with me?"

Juvia actually smiled – she never went out shopping with another female but her mother when she was a child. Everything else she had worn were war related. "I would."

"Then let's get you ready for your new life."

#

Gajeel was lying on her bed when she finally arrived back at the inn just before nighttime, holding ten bags of different sizes, eyes wide.

Her cousin looked at her with amusement. "So... How was Velaris?"

"Juvia went shopping and she has to say: those people are more vicious than Acnologia's soldiers."

He let out a bark of laughter and after dropping all the bags on the floor, Juvia jumped in bed next to him.

"You will never believe who was my chaperone today?" She asked and it wasn't like they knew many people at the Night Court.

"Your mate?"

"Nope. Lucy Heartfilia." Juvia grinned.

The name finally came back to him after a moment. "Oh shit. Did she slap you?"

"No, Juvia is completely forgiven and... she is quite nice." Gajeel was impressed. "We stopped somewhere to eat; Juvia brought some dessert for you."

Without any further instruction, Gajeel jumped to find the dessert.

It was a good first day. Maybe she wasn't doomed after all.

#

AN: *hides from vegetables being thrown* I will get you more Gruvia soon! I need to set up some backstory first, I promise! I will get there!

And if you feel a little of Elphaba and Galinda with Juvia and Lucy at the end there, forgive me, I just watched Wicked but I thought it was a fun bit to add!

Gruvia is coming next week for more than a few moments, promise!

Thanks to everyone who commented! Much appreciated!

19/12/2024 ~ BonneyQ