The streets of Crocus were bustling with the spectators who were buzzing with excitement over the Pandemonium match. The names Titania and Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail were on everyone's lips, praise and wonderment the only words that could be used to describe what had taken place. Never before had they witnessed such a feat, a Fairy Queen taking down one hundred monsters, and on only day three no less. Yes, Miss Erza Scarlet was on everyone's minds that day, but only one was actually headed her way.

The hooded man sidestepped careless citizens and attendees as he inconspicuously made his way through the cobblestone streets. He had managed to slip away for a mere moment, leaving Ultear and Meredy to continue their vigil over the mysterious Zeref-like presence. Jellal Fernandes had seen Titania's match himself, and he was once again thoroughly impressed with her. The red-haired beauty never ceased to amaze him, and his heart was overtaken by a pang of longing that was all too familiar to him. That fiance, damn me.

He had seen Erza leave the infirmary covered in bandages, walking stiffly back to the hotel. He knew for a fact her guildmates were out partying, celebrating her victory. Jellal wasn't stupid. As stoical as Erza was, he knew for a fact the deadly requip mage loved a good party. Especially if there was cake involved. So seeing her traveling back to her temporary residence on her own was worrisome. Jellal had just arrived at the hotel, and glancing up at what he knew was her window, he scaled the building.

He looked into the window and Jellal felt his heart overflow with fondness at the sight that awaited him. Erza Scarlet, the Mighty Titania, was passed out on her bed snoring like a bear, with her shoulder twisted at what looked to be an awfully uncomfortable angle. She hadn't even bothered to requip out of her dirty clothes, and her hair was plastered to one side of her face, the drool from her open mouth making it stick like glue. Jellal knew he was pushing his own boundaries by doing this. He had promised himself that he wouldn't let himself get more attached to her than he already was. But as he gently sat down beside her he knew he was smitten.

Jellal reached out for her face and wiped the hair away, tucking it behind her ear. Unfortunately for him, he forgot Erza was a light sleeper. Yet her eyes lacked any type of energy when she opened them, and Jellal knew she was still slightly lost to the throes of sleep. Her wide amber gaze hazily blinked up at him in adorable confusion, and Jellal now thought he knew the true definition of the term, 'puppy dog eyes.' "Jellal," she mumbled sleepily.

Jellal let himself abandon decorum for a brief window of time(Ultear would laugh) and whispered, "Hey sweetheart. Didn't mean to wake you up. Why are you sleeping in those dirty clothes?" Erza rolled over and mumbled something incoherent, testing her shoulder again as she moved. Jellal scooted closer to her and didn't bother to keep the smile out of his voice. "What's that? I'm not fluent in the language of sleep." For a moment she didn't answer him, and Jellal thought she was gone for good. Until she rolled back to face him, leaving him shocked by what he saw.

Her eyes were glassed over with pain and moisture, and Jellal was aware this was closest he had ever seen her come to tears since the Tower of Heaven. He also knew that this was as far as she would let herself go, and this was as much as she would ever reveal to anyone. Jellal was immensely grateful that, after all this time and all he had done, she still trusted him enough to let her guard down around him. 'You wanna maybe tell me what's wrong," he asked, smoothing her dirty hair over her forehead.

"Hurts," was all she whispered, but Jellal knew she was talking about her shoulder. He figured she had dislocated it and it had healed but was still causing her a great deal of pain. She looked up at him, eyes pleading as if she wanted him to do something, and since Erza hardly ever asked for anything Jellal would gladly do whatever she liked. "Here," he said, and got even closer to her. "Will you let me help you?"

For a heartbeat, he saw a flash of her famous stubbornness take hold, the attitude of hers that screamed: "I refuse to be coddled!" But as he saw her poorly concealed wince as she shifted her body, he knew the jig was up. She nodded tiredly, and Jellal knew that pulling out that incredible victory for Fairy Tail had taken every last bit of her strength. Jellal positioned his hands over shoulder blades, focusing on the injured area, and began to rub soothing circles across them.

Erza gave a little yelp of pain, but this soon dissolved into blissful sighs, and Jellal knew he had made the right move. She melted into his touch, and Jellal felt the knots leave her body. She whimpered only once more when he had hit not a place of injury, but of tension. Poor girl. Erza was a lot more stressed than she let on, and Jellal knew that oftentimes she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders. What he wouldn't give to take that from her.

When she'd finally softened like putty in his hands, he picked her up gently to carry her to the bathroom. He ran the tap water until it was nice and hot, talking quietly to Erza as the tub filled. Jellal gently stripped her of her filthy clothes, not embarrassed for himself or for Erza's sake. They had both seen every bit of the other, some situations more desirable than others. He placed her gently in the water and soaked her hair, secondly lathering it with soap that matched her scent, strawberries, and heather.

Jellal moved his fingers throughout her scalp, cleansing it of dirt and dust. Erza sometimes let loose tiny mewls of pleasure, Jellal even noting she sometimes sounded like a cat. "You didn't tell me you had magic fingers for hair too Jellal," she mumbled. Jellal felt his face turn color to the shade of Erza's hair. Magic fingers? Oh, Mavis that sounded wrong. But Jellal merely shook his head as he rinsed the soap out, proceeding to dry off her body as well.

When he finally placed her back in bed after changing her bandages and coaxing her to requip one last time into pajamas, she was already fast asleep, snoring away. He pulled a blanket over her and gently brushed his lips across her forehead. But just as he turned to leave, he heard her voice. "Jellal." He glanced back at her, and an expression of total peace graced her features. "Please stay safe," she whispered.

Jellal was absolutely floored at the worry in her eyes and the desperation. He worried for her so much. She was always trying to be strong, to do what was absolutely needed for Fairy Tail, that she forgot about herself. He couldn't always be there for her like he was today, and he wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed with her right now and take her in his arms. But he schooled his features, because he knew he would never be good enough for the wonder she was, and simply smiled. "Alright Erza," he whispered back and disappeared into what now was the late evening.

He met back up with Ultear and Meredy at the top of the southernmost statue to find them both crowded around Ultear's time orb. "I saw no sign of Zeref," he started. "I pray that the both of you will have had better luck." Both of his friends were silent for a while when Meredy suddenly burst out laughing. "Come on Jellal! Ultear and I aren't that stupid! We know what you were really doing."

Ultear laughed jovially. "Your fiance must be extremely jealous. We watched the whole thing," she said, gesturing to the orb. Jellal winced. "Ooooh, Jellal has such magic fingers! Who knew he was an expert in relaxation techniques? You should do one of us next," Meredy cackled. Ultear simply grinned, but sobered up quickly, gesturing to Meredy to do the same. "One of these days you'll both get your happy ending Jellal. You both deserve it." Jellal felt a flicker of hope, which was quickly hard pressed by doubt. "How do you know?" Ultear smiled gently.

"The future never lies Jellal."