Surprisingly, Kita didn't wake them up the next morning. The entire group was exhausted, so no one moved til around noon. They group slowly got themselves together and made their way to the kitchens. They were munching on something the chefs had thrown together when Kita entered the room.

Kita cleared her throat and everyone quieted.

"My employer would like to reward you exterminating the vermin. He was quite impressed with your hard work, so he is hosting a ball tonight in celebration. The ball will begin at 7:00 promptly." Without anything more, Kita spun on her heel and left.

The group sat quiet, looks of confusion on their faces.

"A ball…" Lucy murmured, her mind immediately flashing back to the extravagant affairs at the Heartfilia mansion.

The entire group began talking at once.

"But what are we to wear?" Charle cried. "We brought nothing suited for that kind of setting!"

Erza had allowed an impish grin to creep across her face. "I may have just the thing…"

Lucy wasn't quite sure how it had happened, but in no time, she and the other girls were standing in ornate ball gowns Erza had pulled from her massive pile of luggage. They were quite a sight to see.

Lucy was again in her glittery light blue gown, outfit completed by black choker and a pair of silver slippers. Wendy was wearing a ruffled yellow number, with dainty off the shoulder sleeves and her hair half up. Charle had a cute little blue top with puffed sleeves and a yellow skirt. Lisanna looked resplendent in a magnificent blue gown with a white collar. Erza had even brought along a petite golden circlet that was currently nestled in Lisanna's fair locks. Erza herself was wearing the pink gown Lucy had seen before, but it looked less gaudy given the setting. Cancer was putting the finishing touches on Erza's hair, and Lisanna was helping Wendy with a little makeup.

There was a knock at the door. Erza hopped up and opened it to reveal the Natsu, Gray, and Happy in the outfits she had brought for them.

"We should be heading down soon," Lucy heard Gray state. "We wouldn't want to be late."

Lucy secured her keys to her gown and followed the others out the door. However, she froze dead in her tracks when she looked up.

It wasn't often that Gray wore…well, wore anything, but here he was in full dress clothes. He had on red pants with a blue cummerbund and an immaculate while shirt. The shirt, covered in small golden buttons, was complete with a set of gold-tasseled epaulets and a matching high collar. Lucy's heart dropped to her stomach and for just a few seconds, she couldn't breathe.

Gray's reaction to Lucy was very similar. Lucy always looked great, but this…this felt different. She wasn't simply pretty; she was gorgeous, stunning, glowing. Gray's jaw was slack and he couldn't bring himself to look away.

Lucy recovered first, shaking her head to clear it. "Hey," she murmured.

Gray jerked out of his trance. "Hey." He cleared his throat. "Shall we?" he asked, offering his arm.

Lucy took it with a smile, and the group took off. The girls were giggling at the exchange, but Natsu was fuming. Happy swore that Natsu's collar was even smoking a bit, not that he really cared. Charle had begrudgingly taken his arm as well, and Happy was exuberant.

The group entered the ballroom and was immediately swept into the festivities. There were people everywhere, in garb just as fancy as the mages'. Everyone was dancing and having a great time; even Kita could be seen breaking her usual stony façade with a smile. There were tables piled high with food, and an impressively large chocolate fountain at one end of the room. There was no time to enjoy those, however, as the girls were almost instantly whisked away to dance by charming men of all kinds. Lucy had been dancing for what felt like a small foreve before taking a break to find the one man who hadn't asked her to dance yet.

Lucy found Gray leaning against a wall, watching the fun around him. His eyes caught Lucy's and he grinned, striding towards her. Gray said something, but it was lost in the din of the party.

"What?" Lucy half-yelled up at him.

He bent down and put his head near hers. "Let's go outside for a bit to talk," he said, his breath tickling her ear. Lucy felt a shiver run down her spine and nodded. Gray took her hand and led her out onto a balcony overlooking the mansion's vast grounds.

Lucy was grateful for the break from the party. She took a deep breath of the cool air and leaned against the railing, smiling. "This is a pretty great way to end a mission."

"Yeah," Gray agreed. After a moment, Lucy felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to find the ice mage looking tense.

"Can I ask you something?" Gray said, his hand dropping and catching hers. Lucy's eyes widened, and she could feel butterflies doing loop-de-loops in her stomach.

Gray took a deep breath. "These last few months, something has been happening. To me. About you. You know I care for you, and will always be there for you, but lately...I don't quite know how, um, to tell you how much you, especially you, I mean, have come to mean to me and I just…." Lucy took Gray's other hand in hers and his voice trailed off. She looked up slowly meeting his steely eyes with her big brown ones. She stepped forward and planted her lips on his.

Gray relaxed into her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Her arms clasped around his neck, and in that moment, everything felt as if it was falling into place.

They broke apart a while later. Gray gave Lucy a shy smile. "I love you, is what I was trying to say earlier."

Lucy gazed at him. "You know, you were not what I ever thought I wanted." Gray looked somewhat crestfallen and looked away. Lucy put a hand on his face, forcing him to meet her eyes once more. "But you are everything I needed." She kissed him once more, and the rest of the world melted away.