Hello boys and girls. I'd like to tell a story.

You probably saw this one coming. I was in the middle of writing some smut when 416 came out. It was a critical hit right in the feels. In light of the recent chapter, a chapter that hit me right in the kokoro, I knew that I had to write about this. This is probably the defining moment in the Gruvia ship and one that may result in them finally being canon. So yeah, gotta do this.

Anyways, enjoy.

A Warm Hug

Ruins.

Ruins as far as the eye can see. Ruins covered in snow. Ruins of a town whose name has been lost to history. Forgotten. Silent. Cold. Broken. Dead. It was a shell of its former glory, much like himself.

In the days prior to Tartaros, Gray Fullbuster would have described himself as a man who knew who he was and how he felt. He didn't let much affect him. Cool and calculated, that's how he fought. It's how he's able to be the strongest mage he could be.

So it was hard to process how he was feeling these last couple of days. It was all too much for him: watching his guild blow up, seeing his father again, fighting him, embracing him as he disappeared, battling Mard Geer, the dragons.

He needed to get away from the guild. So he walked out.

His mind didn't want to process a destination. Gray wandered for days moving north, stopping only to eat and to rest. It started snowing the further north the ice mage traveled. That was okay. He was used to the cold. It took him about a week but he finally reached his destination. Funny how fate works. He found himself at the place it all started, his hometown.

Gray couldn't believe it. He was back home. Looking around, Gray tried to picture what it used to look like back when he was young but found that he couldn't.

How long has it been since he had been back here? Ten years maybe, plus the seven he lost after Tenrou? Gray thought that he had put this part of his life behind him. He was a proud member of Fairy Tail, looking forwards and not backwards. So why was he here?

Walking around the ruined town, he tried to imagine how his life had been if Deliora hadn't attacked. Would he have even become a mage? Would he have stayed here? Become a merchant or something? The thought was so foreign that it would have made him laugh if his mood was better.

In his meandering around, Gray came across an upright wooden cross. It was so out of place that he couldn't help but go towards it. He went to inspect it. There used to be writing etched into the board but time made it fade. He ran his finger across the board. He could feel the old etchings on it, Mika, Gray. This must have been the grave marker that his father had made who knows how many years ago.

Gray walked over to one of the broken houses. One of them had to be his old one but he couldn't tell which. The ice mage pulled two boards and some string. He tied the boards together the shape of a cross and planted it into the ground. Then he created a jagged piece of ice with his hand. The ice mage crudely scratched the words Silver and Mika into the board.

If you were to ask Gray why he had done this, he couldn't say. Perhaps it was to give them a place where he could reminisce about his parents. But he hardly had any left of his mother and the ones he had of his father he'd like to forget.

Gray found a place to sit and stared at the marker. How long, he couldn't tell you. It could have been seconds, minutes, hours. He was thinking about his next move. Tartaros had been defeated. His father was gone but he passed down his Devil Slayer magic. Fairy Tail was destroyed and many of its members were leaving. He didn't know what to do. Gray wanted to cry. He wanted to scream. But he couldn't do any of that. It was like there was nothing in him. It didn't make sense. He cried when he lost Ur and Urtear. So why couldn't he feel anything with the loss of his father?

Gray's ears pricked up when he heard footsteps in the snow. He would have ignored it however that person decided to break the silence.

Juvia had been following Gray for the last week. She was very concerned about him. He hadn't been himself lately. The fact that she could follow him for a week without him noticing was testimony that Gray was off his game.

Of course, there was another reason Juvia was following Gray. She had been racked with extreme amounts of guilt. Killing Gray's father left an indelible mark on her soul. The blue haired woman has done some bad things in her life but this was the worst. The water mage hurt the one person that she loved more than her own life. She would never be clean of that.

Juvia tried to think what she would say to Gray. She went through several scenarios in her head but none of them felt right. The blue haired woman decided to tell him straight out and let the chips fall where they may. He had every right to know and better to hear it from her than from someone else. If Gray yelled at her, struck her or worse, she would accept it. She deserved that. After she said her piece, Juvia planned to disappear, even though the thought made her heart shatter. She no longer had the right to love him any more

"Ummm...Gray-sama." A very familiar voice called out to him.

Gray was incensed that Juvia would follow him here. He didn't have the patience to deal with her now.

"Juvia." Gray's voice had an edge to it. "You followed me here?"

The water mage was acting very unusual. Normally, she would be acting exuberant, as if the greatest joy was just being around him. But now, Juvia wasn't looking him in the eye. Instead, she was looking at the ground.

"There's something ... Juvia wanted to tell you very badly." She sighed.

There's a part of Gray that was expecting Juvia to give him another confession. But the way she was acting, her head bowed and her hands clasped in front of her, told him that the news was going to be dire.

"The person who killed the necromancer controlling your father was Juvia." She finally hiccupped out what she had to say.

The statement hit Gray like an Erza punch. He could barely process it. His face contorted in a mix of anger and shock.

"You did..." Whether there was more to that statement, Gray didn't know because Juvia interrupted him.

"Juvia...no longer has the right to love Gray-sama." A sob escaped Juvia's lips. "Juvia was the one that...killed your father."

Gray could not believe what he was hearing. Juvia was admitting to killing his father? It felt like a bad joke. Lying. She had to be lying. But he already knew that she wouldn't lie...especially about this.

This was all happening way too fast. Seeing his father again, learning that he was brought back from the dead, being given Devil Slayer powers... Every second after this revelation felt like a stab in the gut. He couldn't take it. His teeth were clenched. He needed her to stop.

The ice mage didn't realize that he had stood up until he found himself walking towards Juvia. It was almost robotic when he grabbed her by the shawl with both hands. He couldn't stop shaking. His teeth were clenched so hard, he thought they might shatter. In his mind, he was thinking about his father and all he had to endure. He thought about how much pain his father must have felt fighting his own son, trying to make Gray hate him so that he finally achieve peace. He thought about Juvia and the awful choice she had to make.

Juvia didn't look at Gray as tears streamed down her face. She expected him to yell. She expected him to hit her. Anger, frustration, that she could handle.

What Juvia didn't expect was Gray leaning into her chest as a sob ripped from his throat.

Juvia chanced a look at her beloved. It was something she couldn't believe, even though she was looking at it. Gray was crying.

Gray felt his heart unloading. Tears that he couldn't cry when he first came here now poured out freely. And as he did, he held onto Juvia like an anchor, like he would drown if he didn't.

"Thank you." He cried into her chest. Why did he thank her? Was it because she told him the truth even though she thought it might hurt him? Because she did what he couldn't by giving his father peace? Because she always stood by him? Because she was letting him hold her for comfort? Maybe it was because of all these things. But right now, it didn't matter.

Juvia was stunned. She couldn't believe what was happening. This was not the reaction she expected from Gray. So stunned was the blue haired woman that she completely froze as Gray held on to her.

"I am sorry." He cried softly. He was sorry for many things. He was sorry for crying on her, sorry for forcing her into a position where she had to kill his father, a job that should have been his to do, sorry for being weak, sorry for being selfish by holding her for comfort.

Gray's legs collapsed from under him, taking Juvia with him. The two of them knelt in the snow as he continued to cry. "I'm so very sorry."

"Gray-sama." Juvia whispered, her own tears starting to fall. She finally returned the embrace, holding on to Gray and stroking his back to calm him. She could feel the cold snow on her exposed legs but she ignored it. Comforting Gray was more important.

"I'm sorry." He sniffled.

The way that Juvia held Gray as he cried brought back a memory he thought was lost. It felt like his mom when he was a kid. She'd hold him like this whenever he cried. When his mom hugged him, he felt warm and safe, like nothing could touch him. "You are so warm." Gray whispered. Juvia's hug felt the same as his mom's. He allowed himself this one indulgence and greedily accepted Juvia's warm hug.

The two of them stayed there for a while, uncaring of the cold and snow. It was only when their legs started to fall asleep when they decided to take shelter. Gray and Juvia looked around and found a building that was in good enough condition so they went there.

There was a couch in what was probably a living room. Juvia guided Gray to a couch. The two of them sat down. Gray's tears had subsided by now. The ice mage took this opportunity to lay down with his head in Juvia's lap. She stroked Gray's hair while the two of them stayed together in silence.

Juvia couldn't believe this change in events. One moment she was agonizing over telling Gray the truth about his father and now here they are with his head in her lap. This situation reminded her of number 436 of her 2,601 fantasies. They would be sitting on their shared couch just like this. Gray had just come home after a long mission. She would be here, nearly finished with his meal. The two of them would sit just like this. She'd be stroking his hair just like now. Maybe there would be some Gruvia kids running around, a boy and a girl. It would be the picture of family bliss.

But this wasn't a fantasy. Gray was hurting and Juvia took it upon herself to help him heal.

"Thank you for telling me." Gray said. "I imagine that it had to be difficult for you."

"Gray-sama deserved the truth." Juvia replied. "Even if it meant that Juvia would never see him again."

Gray sighed. Juvia must have thought the worst. Maybe she believed that he'd hurt her.

"You shouldn't have to have done that." The ice mage told her. "It was my job. I should have been the one to give my father peace. But I couldn't." He sniffled a bit. "I'm a bad son."

"Gray-sama shouldn't say that." The blue haired woman chastised him lightly. "He did what anyone would have done in the same situation."

The two of them were quiet again.

"How did you know that he was my father?" Gray asked.

Juvia sighed. "Father-sama contacted Juvia with some sort of telepathy." She revealed. "He told her about the situation and asked her to destroy the necromancer. Juvia didn't want to but he begged her to do it."

"I'm glad that someone was able to do it even if it wasn't me." The ice mage sighed. "My old man deserves peace. He deserves to be with my mom."

A sad smile crossed Juvia's face.

"Did he say anything else?" Gray asked.

Juvia hesitated in telling Gray that Silver asked her if she was his woman and that his last words to her were to take care of his son. The water mage decided to tell him everything. Gray didn't react to the revelation either positively or negatively.

"Before fighting him, I didn't remember much of my old man and my mom." He told Juvia. "But after everything settled down, I remembered something. I had to have been three or four years old at the time. It was snowing. My dad was teaching me how to make the perfect snowball. And then he clocked me with one in the head." Gray snorted.

Juvia chuckled a bit. "I bet that Gray-sama cried."

"Of course I cried and my dad tried everything to make me stop so mom wouldn't find out." Gray laughed. "But she did and she gave him an earful. Then my mom knelt down and hugged me until my tears dried up. She had warm hugs, just like you. And just like you, they were able to heal me."

Juvia blushed.

Gray stood up and popped the kinks in his neck. He turned to Juvia. "I'm sorry for unloading on you." The ice mage said.

Juvia shook her head. "Juvia is just glad that Gray-sama didn't bottle it in. Sometimes, it's good to let it all out. Gray-sama has done so much for Juvia. It's only fair that she return the favor."

A small smile crept along Gray's face. Afterwards, he turned around and walked out of the house with Juvia following behind. He returned to the grave marker and put his hand on it.

"My old man left me with his power." He said without looking at Juvia. "He's counting on me to finish what he started, to destroy Zeref and E.N.D. But in order to do that, I need to get stronger and master the Devil Slayer power within me."

Juvia walked up to Gray and grabbed his hand, intertwining their fingers. "Juvia will offer whatever help she can if Gray-sama desires it."

Gray turned to Juvia and smile. "Someone as strong as you will surely be able to help me master this power." He answered. "And it's not like I can stop you from coming anyways. So, yeah. Thanks for the help."

A steely resolve grew in the ice mage. "I will defeat E.N.D. at all costs." He stated before the marker.

"You will. Juvia believes it." She said.

With a final nod, Gray and Juvia left the grave of Silver and Mika Fullbuster, hand in hand. Renewed purpose welled in him. He didn't know how long he would be away from his nakama. But he wouldn't return until he had mastered the power given to him by his father. With Juvia's help, he would master the power that will put a stop to the tragedies left behind by Zeref and E.N.D.

It is said that human touch can heal a whole host of heart afflictions: loneliness, depression and even despair. Gray is able to testify to that fact. A warm hug from Juvia was able to mend his broken heart.

And that's the end of that chapter.

There was a part of me that wanted to put in a kiss but I thought better on it. This was probably not the best time for Gray as he still on the mend after dealing with his father. A kiss would be a bit too hasty. But I wanted to put in some hints towards a future relationship. So don't be surprised if the next chapter after the time skip will have Gray and Juvia return as boyfriend/girlfriend or even engaged. (Here's hoping).

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it and I'll be returning to my FT project.

Until next time,

A. Angel