Til the last drop

Fourteen

"Juvia?" Gray called out to her as he closed the door behind him. He poked his head into the room but found it empty. She didn't go out for a walk did she? He questioned himself before heading into the kitchen.

He took a seat on one of the chairs and rubbed his forehead. His whole conversation with Gajeel was not as helpful as he hoped. He was hoping to trick Gajeel to slip up about the truth regarding Juvia. Not once did Gajeel say anything about the subject instead he insisted on Gray running up to Juvia and declaring himself.

He wanted to do that but he wasn't ready. He isn't strong enough to protect her. The mage was meant to set out on a quest but instead he was stuck in such a difficult situation. He had the option to pack up their things and return to the guild hall but that would resolve nothing.

Feeling frustrated with himself, he got up and headed into their room. Juvia should be heading back now. He looked around the room hoping to find a letter from her but there was nothing except for the blue orb. Ever since he discovered this he couldn't help but be drawn towards it.

Will she be upset if he held it? She wasn't in here so he took the opportunity to hold it. The orb felt a bit warm which he noticed the first time he picked it up. It reminded him of the scarf that Juvia made him awhile back.

He was confused on what it was made of because it didn't crack when Juvia had dropped it and it wasn't heavy. His eyebrows scrunched in confusion before being interrupted by Gajeel.

"We need to find Juvia," Gajeel stated.

Gray looked at him confused before turning his attention to the orb. It glowed as the size of it decreased. The size of it has gone down about 2inches if he had to estimate. "It's magic?" He questioned turning to the dragonslayer, "I thought you left,"

The exceed was no where to be seen but Gajeel turned around and headed out the door. Sensing the urgency, Gray placed down the orb and chased after him. Was something wrong with Juvia? He wandered.

No. She was safe here with him in this village. Not many people knew about the location expect for team Natsu and Gajeel. He noticed the sky turn to a dark color as rain drops began to fall from the sky.

The single rain drop landed on his hand and he knew she wasn't alright:

She's crying.

He caught up towards Gajeel knowing that he will be able to locate her. Dragonslayers had a sharp senses such as hearing and smelling. It was the small things that made the Ice mage apperaicte his friends, "Juvia!" Gajeel called out catching the mage's attention.

Juvia was on the ground holding the seat of the bench as discomfort was shown throughout her body. Gray ran past Gajeel wanting to be the first one to hold her, "Juvia?" He exclaimed catching her attention. Her eyes sparkled as they met but he noticed a single tear drop escape as she let out a scream.

The rain began to grow strong and the sky darken. Gray reached her as he carried her from the ground, "Juvia what's wrong?" He questioned frantically, "Are you hurt? Theres no blood,"

Gajeel caught up to the two, "Juvia you need to stop crying," He stated firmly receiving a glare from his comrade.

"She can't control her pain," Gray shot back receiving an eyeroll from the dragonslayer. "We have to take her back to the cabin," Gray instructed. Gajeel nodded as the two began to walk back to the cabin. It was difficult to walk through the muddy path. Gray had watched his steps since he was carrying Juvia. He also took the moment to reassure that the pain will soon go away.

"J-Juvia needs to you the truth," She whimpered as she placed her hand onto his cheek. Gajeel took the opporuntity and left the two alone. He knew if he stayed Gray will not tell her what she needs to know, but he didn't want to wander to far incase either decide to fuck it up.

The ice mage turned his attention to Juvia, "Juvia we need to help you fi-,"

"L-Listen to me," She managed weakly. Her eyes expressed so many emotions that it shattered him to see her in so much discomfort. She took a deep breath not bothering to wipe away the tears that stained her cheeks, "Juvia doesn't have a lot of time to live,"

The mage froze as his grip on her tighten. He looked at her in disbelief—he couldn't lose her just when he finally decided to stop holding himself back. He felt his knees lose feeling bringing himself to the ground along with Juvia.

She caught herself but noticed he dropped her down lightly. Juvia felt the pain linger but it wasn't strong anymore. She got up on her knees and placed her hands on his cheeks, "Gray-sama, Juvia needs to tell you the whole thing and once she tells you. Don't blame yourself," She pleaded.

She pulled him in for a hug, "Juvia is cursed by Jose because she broke the oath that those in the element four must abide to,"

He felt numb throughout his body but the warmth from Juvia was still there despite his current state. He pulled away from their hug wanting to look at her, "Your lifespan is the orb—isn't it," He mumbled.

When it shrank in his hands, Gajeel had walked in on him and immediately knew Juvia wasn't safe. It all clicked together why he was drawn to it.

The orb is Juvia.

Juvia bit her lip but nodded to his question. Gajeel wouldn't had told him about it but she wonders how he discovered it.

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" His eyes landed on hers. He felt his eyes began to water at the sight of her. If he knew about it earlier, he would of done everything to make her happy. He was sitting still waiting for a response but she lingered quietly to herself.

Juvia gave him half smile, "Each curse is different. Once I tell Gray-sama what Juvia's curse is about—there's no way of removing it," She explained moving her hand away from his cheeks and placed it on his shoulder. She looked at him intently but noticed tears escaping from the corner of his eyes, "Gray-sama-"

He lowered his head not wanting Juvia to see him but it was too late, "Don't tell m-me," his voice broke as he pulled Juvia towards his body. He wiped away the tears with his sleeve before meeting her eyes again. After gathering himself, he placed a hand on her cheek and his eyes lingered on her lips.

The rain continued to pour on the two as they remained slient. Gajeel ,on the other hand, punched a tree as pantherlily overheard a bit of the conversation, "Maybe you should of stayed with them," He suggested looking at his partner.

"Lets stop Juvia before she makes it worse,"