For Momo Cicerone.

He's never seen her cry before.

Except after the Grand Magic Games, but they try to push that horrid memory to the back of their minds, because it's not something they like to relive. And honestly, Lyon thinks that's the only time that Gray's ever made her cry, and it wasn't even his fault then.

Besides, he may kind of – sort of hate Gray, but when it comes right down to it, he really does trust the other ice mage, especially with Juvia's fragile heart. Lyon doesn't think Gray is superior to him or anything, and he's definitely not going to surrender the title of 'best student' to that prick, but if there's one thing he thinks Gray deserves, it's Juvia. And it's not that Lyon gave up on her – no, he would never – it's only that she clearly has no room in her heart for anyone other than her precious Gray-sama.

Besides, Gray seems to have a little sense as far as how to deal with someone who's more than head-over-heels in love – more like, infatuated – with him. He apologizes for occasionally being an idiot, and yeah, he needs a little help from that armored fairy, Erza, but at least he acknowledges her, even if it's not quite what she wants. So, when Lyon backs off from his fight to win her heart, he trusts Gray to treat Juvia right.

But he regrets giving his childhood friend that little speck of trust because it's ripped away and ground into the sidewalk when Juvia shows up on his doorstep in tears.

He isn't sure how to react at first; never once did he expect to see the blunette standing right outside his door – hair a mess, cheeks flushed, and whole body drenched with rain. So, he stands there dumbfounded, staring at the girl in front of him, not even bothering to invite her out of the storm – because he's just that perfect when it comes to dealing with someone he has a major crush on. His fingers tighten around the doorknob, and he swallows past the lump in his throat, urging himself to talk.

"Juvia–"

Oh, she's trying so hard to keep it all in, he can tell. Her lips tremble as hot tears spill over her eyes, running down her face and dripping from her chin, becoming one with the rain. One arm is wrapped around her stomach, hand clutching her own side with an iron grip, and he doesn't know it, but it's because she feels empty, like there's a gaping hole settling inside of her. Like her whole purpose for living was suddenly just stripped away, leaving her with nothing.

The other hand is pressed against the side of her face, fingers threading through her hair and gripping the silky locks tightly as though it'll help relieve some of the emotional pain. She peeks up at Lyon through thick lashes glistening with tears, her watery gaze meeting his for a brief moment before she looks away again, almost shyly. She's not doing anything more than a few muffled whimpers, soft noises that he can barely hear over the thrumming of rain against the ground.

Lyon tries again, but he's at a complete loss for words here. He doesn't know whether to ask her what's wrong – which he guesses will only serve to make her cry even more, if she's already in this state – or if he should just take her into his arms and try to offer what comfort he can. He stands in silence, staring at her with his eyebrows furrowed and mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water as he tries to think of what he can say – something, anything.

But she beats him to it.

"I-It hurts…Lyon-sama."

"What does?" He splutters out his words before she can even finish saying his name; he's completely clueless, really. Or maybe he's just really bad at reading the signs. He might be clever in battle, but he's hopeless in every way when it comes to someone he loves.

Juvia stares up at him as the tears quit brimming in her eyes; she sniffles quietly, wiping her nose with the back of her hand and letting out a heavy but shaky sigh as she tries to calm herself. In Lyon's company, everything will be okay, right? Because he's Lyon; he won't do anything to hurt her. He wouldn't even dream of it. He's there for her, forever and for always, and she knows it; that's why she's here.

She tries to assure herself of Lyon's kindness, but her gaze dulls with thoughts of Gray instead, and she's to her former teary state again. Her body quakes as both hands come to cover her face, her sobs muffled by her palms pressing to her mouth. Her head tilts back then, and she lets out a mournful wail as she nearly drops to the ground in defeat – dramatic as always, though Lyon knows enough about her to understand that her cry is probably not exaggerated; she wears her heart on her sleeve, her emotions always in plain sight and leaving her vulnerable, but she doesn't always share that pain with Gray.

And as horrible as it is, he's a little glad that she's showing a side of herself to him that Gray rarely sees – though he knows very well that it's just because she cares so much that she doesn't want to trouble him.

Lyon snaps out of his daze and lurches forward to catch the distraught girl in his arms before she can hit the ground on her knees, and he draws her in close. The rain soaks them both now that he's out of the protection of his house, and it's then that he realizes how cold it really is, even to him. She's shaking violently in his arms, shivering, and her skin has a cool bite beneath his hands.

Lyon's arms circle around her small, quivering frame, his chin resting on her shoulder as he tilts his head towards her. His voice can be heard above the light thunder, concern clearly evident in his tone as he speaks her name, her tangled, wet hair against his lips. "J-Juvia –"

She shakes her head, but makes no move to try to get away from him – and that, in itself, is enough for Lyon to know that whatever's happened must be more serious than he initially thought because, while he loves having this chance to hold her, he knows that she would never allow it if she were in her right mind. It's like she just doesn't care about how close they currently are, and should she have done this any other time, he would view it as a miniature victory.

Right now, however, he's just concerned – both for her, and for Gray. Vague information keeps him from understanding what exactly is bothering her.

"G…Gray-sama…" She chokes out the other ice-make mage's name in between sobs, and for a moment, the blood in Lyon's veins runs cold; what if something had happened to him? The way she's acting, and since he really never thought Gray would cause her such pain intentionally, he wonders if maybe it's simply that Gray is hurt, or something. After all, Juvia knows that they're both really close despite their dislike of each other, so it makes sense that she would come and tell him the news if something bad had become of Gray. But the thoughts of worry and borderline terror at the possibility of having lost the person he considered a brother disappear mere seconds later to be replaced with a much more bitter emotion. "…s-said h-hurtful things…to Juvia…"

Okay, far too much has happened in such a short time to let Lyon properly process all of this. The girl of his dreams shows up outside his door on a stormy evening, crying her eyes out, and then confesses that the person he trusted to make her happy is the reason for her sadness. As the reality of it all sinks in, he feels this urge to leave Juvia there, go find Gray, and beat the shit out of him. Juvia doesn't deserve to be sad like this – hell, no one does. And Lyon may be a little bit of a dumbass, and sure, he may be a prick most of the time, but he doesn't like to see people hurting – especially if they're close to him.

Or, if they're what he considers close.

He runs his hand up and down Juvia's back, fingers tracing her spine through her rain-soaked clothes. She doesn't complain, doesn't even flinch, and his heart aches.

"What did that bastard say to you?" Well, that was gentle. So much for Juvia not flinching away from him; she visibly winces upon hearing the harshness of his tone, the irritation just dripping from each word, and she shakes her head weakly, a little worried about prompting Lyon to confront Gray about this.

Sure, Gray's done something that's left her broken and feeling worthless, but that doesn't mean that she wants Lyon to black his eye, or something of the like. No, she doesn't want anything bad to come to Gray. Besides, if she wanted revenge, she'd take it upon herself to dish it out for the dark-haired ice mage. Juvia isn't that kind of person anyway, not anymore. Or was she even truly like that before?

Either way, this isn't the turn of events she wanted. She came to Lyon for comfort, for a shoulder to cry on; she doesn't want to take advantage of his willingness to be there for her, but she really had no idea what else to do. After seeing Erza explode with rage at Gray, Juvia found herself unwilling to speak to the redhead for the ease she needed.

Lyon doesn't let up, insistent on knowing what his prick of a rival did to leave Juvia in this state. He growls out her name, fingers grasping her chin and tilting her head back so he can meet her gaze, and though it causes icy claws to prick at his heart when he sees the red tinge around her eyes as tears roll and mingle with the rain, he persistently orders, "What did he say?"

Her teeth catch her bottom lip as she fights to keep her whimpers silent. She's trying – damn, she really is. Strands of her hair cling to her cheeks, tangles making a mess of the rich blue locks; Juvia's hands clutch at Lyon's shirt, little fists balled up at his chest. The most she can do is look pleadingly up at him, because her words don't extend past shaky mumbles of Gray's name – both with and without the honorific – and brief splutters about how bad 'it' hurts.

Lyon figures it's either because she's still in an overly emotional state or because the rain is pounding down on them both now, cold and unforgiving. With a heavy sigh, the ice-make mage decides it might be in both of their best interests to get out this storm – besides, she's undoubtedly going to end up sick by tomorrow already, by being exposed for so long in chilly winds and icy rain.

One of his strong arms slips beneath her while the other remains around her waist, and Lyon lifts her up into his grasp. Juvia doesn't squirm, doesn't ask him to put her down, doesn't even squeak. Her head lolls, resting against his shoulder. The blunette's fists tighten as he carries her into his house, out of the rain caused by the emotionally wounded water mage. Not once does she utter even the beginnings of a complaint at their contact.

He takes advantage of the silence between the two, trying to clear his mind of the urge to make Gray suffer and instead focus on trying to make her feel better. And he's not going to lie – he really does suck at consoling people. Add to the mix that the one he fell for at first sight is the one needing this comfort and the one who caused her pain is someone he borderline hates, and really, it's just a recipe for disaster.

His tone softens once they're out of the rain, the door shutting as his foot nudges it closed. He ignores the water pooling on the floor at his feet, focusing solely on Juvia instead – wanting nothing more than to make this anguish for her go away. Each step he takes is almost laborious, bare, wet feet slippery on a tile floor. He heads into the living room, the carpet soaking up the rainwater, and carefully places her on the sofa, fingers brushing her hair from her eyes and tucking a matted lock behind her ear.

Without the rain skewing his vision, he can clearly see her face – so beautiful, but so pained; her skin, patched with red and eyes, puffy and glistening with unshed tears even though she's already let out so much. Juvia blinks slowly up at him, her full lips pressing together in a near pout at his affectionate actions.

"You can't come here and not tell me what happened." Lyon doesn't know what kind of game he's playing; of course she can. She never needs to explain herself, not to him, but he can't hide the fact that he's really just nosy and looking for a reason to fight Gray, to punish him. "Listen, I have to know what that bastard did to you."

"…Please don't ask…" she whimpers, hiding her face behind her hands and peeking from behind her fingers when he speaks.

His heart twists in his chest, voice becoming more pleading. "Juvia, so help me, I will leave you alone right now and hunt him down on my own."

"I-It's really not that bad…"

"Not that bad!?" He doesn't fail to catch the way her eyelids droop as she tries to keep focus on him, how she shivers when he says something particularly harsh. He snatches her by the wrists, pulling her hands down towards her lap so he can meet her gaze intensely, instead of those brilliant blues being hidden by her fingers. "Juvia, can you see yourself right now!? Do you not realize how bad you're suffering!?"

"Lyon-sama…"

"Honestly, how can you still care so much about him when he did this to you!? You're hurting so much that it's paining me!" Rage is boiling within him now, like the dam has finally broken, letting his emotions spill out like rushing water. And, really, he feels bad that Juvia's going to have to deal with him like this, but he thinks it's a much-needed confrontation.

"…Lyon-sama."

Pressing a finger to her lips to silence her, he rants; it's a stupid thing for him to be doing when she's the one upset here, but he can't help it. This is stuff she needs to hear, and he'll never forgive himself if he doesn't take this chance while it's right here in front of him; he can't let this moment slip away. This is his time to shine, to show her that he's the kind of person she should be with.

Unfortunately, though, it seems like he's doing a better job of frightening her than calming her down.

Lyon's hands find her shoulders, gripping them both tightly and eliciting a small squeak of protest from the blunette – but once again, no struggles nor orders for him to let her go. He leans towards her face, eyes boring into his, and his fierce expression makes her tear up even more, but he doesn't let that faze him. No, he's going to speak now, and he's going to let her hear something he's never been able to say.

"Juvia, I love you." Wonderful way to start off a lecture to a girl who just got her heart broken; points for Lyon. "Never once did Gray appreciate you like I do; he's an insensitive prick, and probably gay." Let's put down the one she loves with harsh accusations; nothing wrong there, right? "But I'm not blaming you on that decision to fall for him because you've probably never experienced true love." Three in a row; damn, he's on a roll.

It strikes a nerve in her; she takes his words to heart, and it hurts, because she's known love before, and she's also known heartbreak. The blunette bites her lip before slamming a hand against his chest in an attempt to throw him off, tears flowing freely down her cheeks again. The rain picks up outside, pounding against the roof and windows. "Lyon-sama is so stupid!"

"Juvia-chan…"

And that's what got her to stop flailing in his grasp – the tone of his voice, the serious glimmer in his eyes. She sniffles, peeking up at him; silence falls over the two, excluding the rain, and she worries for a moment because she thinks he can probably hear how her heartbeat has picked up its pace with his call of her name, honorific included, something she'd asked him not to do a long time ago. But she doesn't care right now.

What is this that she's feeling right now? It's so familiar, she realizes, and she wants to push it back, because this is a sensation reserved for Gray, and Gray only. But Lyon's got her attention now. What exactly did he do differently this time?

"I still remember the way you looked at me when we first met."

"Eh?" Her lips part, eyes widened in absolute shock. What's with this, all of a sudden?

He chuckles, a light pink color dusting across his cheeks; the warmth in his gaze is just enough to let Juvia feel welcome, more at home. "I hadn't even said a word to you, and already, you were looking at me. I knew the moment I saw you that I was a goner."

Juvia squirms in his hold, squeezing her eyes shut and trying to refuse his words, to prevent him from worming his way into her heart with his kindness. She inwardly curses herself for giving him the wrong idea; really, she'd only been looking at him because he was talking to Gray – and he happened to catch her eye. He really did; it had been hard to look away from him those first few moments. This is bringing back memories, some that she doesn't really want to recall at the moment; she presses her small hands to his chest and mutters in protest.

"St-Stop it…" Her lips are trembling, but her tears are slowly in spite of herself.

Her words don't faze him; if anything, they encourage. One hand presses against her cheek, his thumb connecting with her bottom lip, and Juvia's face heats up at the contact; she tilts her head up to look at him, blinking once, stray droplets of rain sliding slowly down her skin.

"How often have you been told that you're beautiful?"

Is she supposed to answer that question? She tries to swallow past the lump in her throat that's making it impossible to speak.

"You deserve to hear those words every day. Did Gray ever do that for you? Tell you how gorgeous you are?" His tone is still firm, his eyes boring into hers. So much need glimmers within them, so much care. She chews on her bottom lip lightly, feeling mildly uncomfortable with these compliments of his, and when he lets out a defeated sigh, she feels his cool breath on her lips, and it's so…alluring, so sweet. He mumbles to her, his voice pained. "Juvia, I know you love Gray."

She blinks a few times as she tries to register his words, to understand what they mean when coming out of his mouth. She doesn't know why she finds it so strange for him to admit something like that to her. And yet, there's this weird sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach when he says the other ice mage's name, her heart dropping. Lyon notices the shift of her gaze as she looks away from him, and he curls his thumb where it rests on her bottom lip, catching her attention again.

"I don't know what kind of relationship you have with Gray," he begins, sweeping her tangled hair to the side and tucking a lock behind her ear, "but if he makes you cry like this, you need to ask yourself if it's worth it. You're a wonderful person, Juvia-chan, and you don't deserve to suffer like this."

She sniffles, clamping her teeth down on her bottom lip as she shakily breathes, "St-Stop, Lyon-sama…"

He offers her a quick smile, one that almost seems sad, yet it's reassuring, and her heart does this strange little fluttery dance that it's only ever done for Gray – and Bora, too, long before. "You need someone who'll treat you right, and if you ever decide it, I'll be that person to you. I may have backed off from trying to win you over before, but that doesn't mean I stopped loving you."

Would Gray ever say such things to her? Juvia, mildly flustered and still aching from her earlier encounter with Gray, looks away when her lips begin to tremble. Her eyebrows knit together as her teary gaze shifts to the ground and focuses on one of the puddles left behind when he brought her in out of the rain.

Lyon briefly wonders if he said something to upset her, but decides moments later that he doesn't care; he's gotten this off his mind. It's something that's needed to be said for a long time, something that he never had the chance to tell her because Gray would show up or she would shy away. A weight's lifted off his shoulders, but it's replaced with an anxious feeling that really shouldn't be present. He knows that she has no room in her heart for him, so he's not going to be surprised when she turns him down – because he's certain that she will.

He pulls away from her, his touch lingering on her skin. His hands rest in his lap, clasping together as his eyes flicker to the window behind the sofa, watching the sun peak out from behind the clouds that spill Juvia's tears. Juvia zones out, thinking of Gray, soaking in Lyon's words, wondering what to do next, and their silence is broken with a sneeze that shakes her whole body, her hands flying up to cover her mouth.

Lyon jumps at the unexpected noise, turning to look at Juvia, and she mutters a quiet apology. He stands up and leans over her, one hand resting on her head and ruffling her hair affectionately. His voice is playfully scolding as he says, "Now look, you've gone and gotten yourself sick."

"Juvia's sorry, Lyon-sama…" she mumbles, biting on her nail as she looks up at the white-haired man from beneath thick eyelashes, almost guiltily, though she knows that she has nothing to be sorry for. Getting sick isn't her fault, but she doesn't want to burden him with taking care of her.

"I'll get you something dry to wear," he says.

She shakes her head. "N-No, it's fine…"

"Really, it's not a problem." He nods, turning his back to her as his hands dart up into his own hair, ruffling it and scattering droplets of water to the ground. Her cheeks heat up just slightly as she watches the spikes of his hair fall, hanging down in a wet mess. "Can I get you anything? Tea, perhaps? It might help to warm you up."

"L-Lyon-sama doesn't have to go through the trouble…" Really, he's given her comfort, and that's all she wanted when she showed up for a visit – someone to talk to, to confide in, and though she didn't tell him any details, she's perfectly fine with that, because she's reassured now that someone actually does care about her.

But it's not her beloved Gray-sama. It's Lyon, and she may have rejected him before, but right now, she couldn't possibly get more thankful.

He looks over his shoulder at her, ignoring her refusal, instead simply asking, "Do you like honey in your tea or not?"

After giving it a moment of thought, Juvia nods, and Lyon leaves her alone in the living room to get a pot boiling. Juvia turns to stare out the window, studying the grey clouds hanging over the sky. She absentmindedly plays with a lock of her hair until Lyon returns only a few minutes later after shuffling through the clothes in his closet to find something suitable for her to wear, and he presents them to her with a soft smile.

She takes the clothes from him, confused at first, but once she realizes that he's offering to let her wear them, she tries to hand the neatly folded coat back to the ice mage and mumbles, "J-Juvia can't…"

"You have to, or you'll get even sicker. You aren't used to being cold, you know," he adds good-naturedly, hoping it'll help to boost her mood just a bit, but a frown pricks at the corners of her lips, and he mentally scolds himself as he looks away. "…Gray won't see you, if that's what you're worried about."

That's not on her mind at all, actually. Why does it make her heart swell that he'd point that out, though, just to make sure she's comfortable, when it clearly pains him to say that? "…Juvia can handle the cold. I don't need these." She makes another attempt to pass his coat and pants back, but he shakes his head in refusal.

"I'm not stupid. I can see you shaking." Lyon's hand lightly grips her wrist, and he gives her a gentle tug to pull her up to stand on her feet; Juvia pushes out her bottom lip to pout at him but doesn't say anything as he points towards the hallway. "First door on the right is the bathroom. There are towels in there to dry off. You need to change, Juvia. I don't want you to get any more sick."

She takes a few small steps in the direction he pointed, chewing on her lip. She's grateful for his kindness, really, but she doesn't want to give him the wrong idea, does she? No…she doesn't have to worry about that. She can trust Lyon – of that much, she's absolutely positive. Otherwise, she wouldn't have come here for a chance to vent.

Lyon takes the chance to change out of his own clothes once she's locked herself into the bathroom – what? He may be an ice mage, but he gets cold when his clothes are plastered to his skin with icy rain! – and busies himself with the tea after, making sure to sweeten it to the blunette's liking, little clanks ringing out in the air that drown out the quiet footsteps of the approaching water mage.

"Lyon-sama?"

He turns to look at Juvia when he hears her soft murmur of his name, and he immediately regrets the choice to lend her his clothes, because damn. Damn. He knew that she was drop-dead gorgeous before, but her long, slender legs fit perfectly in his gray-and-black patterned pants, and she's nuzzling into the faux fur lining the collar of the coat that hangs around her like a dress. It's cute, so damn cute, and he can feel warmth creeping up his neck the longer he studies her wearing that outfit he hasn't touched in years.

"Juvia should thank you." Despite being so conflicted, she's gazing up at him warmly, politely, her hands clasped behind her back. A few minutes in the bathroom had given her time to clean up, to calm herself down, and to try to clear her mind a little. Her cheeks have taken on a rosy color from thinking back to Lyon's kindness towards her before, and her eyes are still red and tired from crying so much before. But she couldn't look any more beautiful to him.

He nods, swallowing and turning back to the two cups of tea on the counter, trying to seem occupied with them though he'd already finished stirring in the honey. "Y-You're very welcome…"

"I-Is Lyon-sama alright?" she asks, clueless, but she doesn't step towards him, preferring this little distance away from him.

"Y-Yes! Of course." He hands her a cup of steaming tea, and she murmurs thanks to him as she brings it to her lips to test the temperature. "Where are your other clothes?"

Juvia's voice is still small and weak. She clutches the cup in both hands and holds it close to her chest as she blinks a few times to look up at him. "Juvia put them in the laundry basket. Will Lyon-sama please wash them, or at least get them dry before Juvia leaves?"

"Of course. I'll do it after I finish my tea." With his own cup in hand, Lyon makes his way back to the living room, motioning for her to follow him. It's brighter in there, he notices, the sun shining down through thinning clouds. He takes a seat on the opposite end of the couch from her.

Juvia brings her bare feet onto the sofa, knees against her chest as she takes small sips of tea, and Lyon only sighs, relieved to see that the blunette has calmed down a bit from her former hysteric state. His eyes linger on hers for a long moment before he turns to gaze out the window before quietly murmuring, "Looks like the rain's finally stopped."

She nods, her lips curving into a small smile as she shyly peeks over at him. "Yeah."

Lyon doesn't know that it was raining because of her. Ye, ye.

Thanka.

(:Mizune