AN: Okay all, this is it. After more than two years we've finally hit the last chapter, and I'll be honest it feels bitter sweet to be posting this and saying goodbye to IKYSS. For those of you who want to know about continuations and other fics, there won't be a continuation, nor will there be another massive multichapter, but I fully intend to keep writing drabbles and one shots for Gruvia and I'll probably write a few fun drabbles for IKYSS at some point too.

Also my birthday is Tuesday, so any and all reviews are being counted as birthday presents.

A big big thank you to everyone who's stuck it out to this point. I really couldn't have done this without you all and I will never have enough words to express how grateful I am for the overwhelming response to this fic.

I will try to pop on and add review responses for anons who review this chapter at the end of it.

Chapter 28: It's a New Dawn, It's a New Day

"Psst."

Juvia furrowed her brow and buried her head deeper into the warmth beneath her, hoping whoever wanted her would go away.

"Look," Silver whispered. His voice was distant and came from somewhere on her left. "I think they finally sorted things out."

"Don't get your hopes too high, they could have passed out again," Ur whispered back.

Juvia pinched her brow together, and let out an annoyed little huff of breath. She felt exhausted and it must have still been early. Couldn't they let her sleep?

"I don't think so, they look pretty comfy."

"They're sleeping on the couch," Ur pointed out. "Not exactly romantic, especially since Gray has a bed."

"It might have been a bit crowded last night." There was a pause before Silver continued, his tone a little wary. "I think Mered spent the night."

"He's spent the night most of this week." Confusion laced through Ur's words.

Silver cleared his throat, and the room when quiet.

Juvia hummed in relief and snuggled closer to Gray, tightening her grip around him. A small smile tugged at her lips, as she remembered exactly where she was and who it was she was sleeping on.

"Oh!" Ur yelped.

Gray jolted at the sound.

"Ohhh, you mean-"

Gray shifted beneath Juvia, and groaned. He twisted towards their voices, and his own voice rose in a harsh whisper. "Can you two go gossip in the kitchen. Juvia's sleeping, and I'd like to be sleeping too."

Juvia groaned and stretched against him, letting her eyes flutter open. "It's fine." She yawned. "I'm already up."

Gray grunted and glowered at his parents.

"Don't take that tone of voice with me," Ur snapped, turning to glower back at Gray, but her annoyance didn't last long. Guilt flashed across her face, and pink dusted her cheeks. "Sorry for waking you though."

"It's okay." Juvia smiled at her and poked Gray lightly when he opened his mouth to protest. She smiled up at him, and he huffed.

"Whatever." Gray tugged her closer and settled back against the couch.

Silver beamed at them. "So... You two look pretty cozy. Anything we should know about?"

Gray shot Silver a dirty look out of the corner of his eye. "Seriously?"

"What? It's a simple question."

"I was just sleeping, like, two minutes ago."

Ur placed a hand on Silver's shoulder. "How bout we go put on some tea and coffee. Give these two a chance to wake up." Ur tugged Silver back towards the kitchen, and he relented with a sigh, but Juvia caught the small upward turn of his lips.

The second they were out of sight Gray scrubbed his hand over his face, and let out a muffled groan. "Gods the are fucking embarrassing."

Juvia giggled, and reached up to brush a stray lock out of his face. "I don't know, I could get used to it."

Gray pulled his hand down to study her. "You're gonna have to. If you thought they were bad with Lyon this is gonna be ten times worse. My dad's been waiting for me to get a girlfriend for years."

Juvia smirked and drew herself up over top of Gray, then leaned forward. The kiss was long and slow, and she let her fingers tangle in his hair. His hands came up and around her back pulling her down on top of him. When she finally pulled away he smiled. "Okay, if that's part of the deal, I could get used to it too."

Lyon woke to find Mered pressed against his back, and Mered's arms wound tight around his waist. He wanted to chuckle; he'd never pictured himself a the little spoon before. He twisted in Mered's grip, careful not to wake him, and smiled at the sight before him.

The light shone through the back window, and played over Mered's locks, turning them all the colours of a sunrise. Lyon reached out and swept the hair back behind Mered's ears and smiled.

The moment was serene.

His finger stroked along Mered's cheek, until Mered's nose scrunched up and he batted Lyon's hand away with a groan.

Lyon scoffed, so much for peaceful and serene. Even in his sleep Mered was still Mered. Lyon was tempted to reach back out and poke one of those baby cheeks of his.

Mered scrunched his brow up again, before turning away from Lyon and curling up in a ball on the other side of the bed. He clutched the blankets up around his head to shield him from the light.

Lyon smirked, someone clearly wasn't a morning person. He scooted across the bed and curled up around Mered, nuzzling into Mered's neck.

"Mfgh," Mered grumbled, then shrugged. "Get off, it's too early for you to be this touchy."

"I beg to differ," Lyon said, letting his fingers trace up and down Mered's side. He got his hand swatted for it, and Mered somehow managed to contort himself so he could glare at Lyon.

"I said stop. Some of us still want to sleep." With that Mered turned back around and curled up into an even tighter ball.

Lyon smirked as a wicked idea formed in his mind. He edged forward and peppered a few gentle kisses on Mered's neck, causing Mered to squirm. "Did I wear you out last night?"

Mered let out a huff of annoyance, and turned, rolling right over top of Lyon in the process. He was rewarded with a couple grunts and a jab or two in the side.

"Rude!" Lyon said as he shoved Mered off of him, and onto the other side of the bed.

"You started it."

"I was being loving and tender, you just rolled over me."

Mered rolled his eyes. "I was trying to sleep, and you wouldn't leave me alone. I don't care what they say in the movies, there's nothing romantic about someone touching your face while you're sleeping. It feels weird and annoying."

Lyon gaped in mock horror. "You take that back!"

"Like hell I will." Mered gave him a disgruntled look.

"Take it back or I'll tickle you," Lyon threatened.

Mered scowled back at him. "You tickle me and I'll punch you until you stop, I swear to God."

"So violent," Lyon eyed, him then smirked as his eyes wandered down Mered's exposed figure. "The sexiness makes up for it though."

Mered cringed. "Dude, no. I love you, but you're a mess. No wonder you spend hours in the bathroom."

"Excuse me?" This time Lyon actually felt offended. Mered was a little brat. He glowered at Mered and rolled out of the bed in a huff. "You're such an asshole."

Mered burst out laughing, and curled in on himself as he clutched his stomach.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up." Lyon snatched the towel hanging from his closet door and wrapped it around his waist. "I'm gonna go have a shower."

"Oh come on!" Mered lunged off the bed after him, he tripped over the sheets and practically barrelled into Lyon.

Lyon caught him around the waist and tried to ignore the trim lines of Mered's back muscles as his hands slid over them. "What are you doing? You could have killed yourself."

"Chasing after your stupid ass." Mered pulled himself upright against Lyon. "You know I'm just teasing you, stop being so extra and come back to bed."

"I am not being extra," Lyon huffed, and crossed his arms over his chest.

Mered rolled his eyes. "Suuure you're not." He tugged at Lyon's arm. "Come back to bed you dork, I want to sleep more."

"I don't see what you need me for, you were just complaining about how I was preventing you from sleeping."

"Yeah, and I'll probably complain some more and you'll keep being a pest, and eventually I'll find some way to shut you up, cause I'm awesome, and then we'll curl up and sleep for-"

A knock at the door cut Mered off.

They glanced at each other, and Mered pulled the sheets higher up his body.

"Yes?" Lyon called out.

"Just me," Juvia called back through the door. "We heard you to thumping about, so I thought I'd let you know breakfast is almost ready."

"And tell them the rest of us would like to be able to eat it, even if they don't." Gray hollered, though his voice was faint.

Lyon glared at the door, and Mered went bright red.

"Tell Gray to mind his own business. We'll be down shortly," Lyon said.

"Shortly as in?" Juvia left the question hanging and Lyon shook his head.

"As in as soon as we're dressed, and I've had a chance to do something with my hair."

"So basically, you'll want to start without us," Mered teased.

Lyon shot him a scathing look and he grinned back at Lyon like the cheeky devil he was.

"We'll be down in twenty. If Mered doesn't show though he's probably sleeping and you shouldn't worry about it."

"Right," Juvia said. He could hear the reproach in her voice. "Well we're serving in twenty then, so if it's cold when you get down that's on you."

"Noted," Mered said.

Footsteps padded down the hall and stairs.

Lyon glared at Mered before wrapping an arm around him and drawing him in for a quick kiss. "You're lucky you're cute."

As Lyon stepped into the kitchen, all eyes locked onto him, and he was met with a room full of knowing smiles. He stumbled to a halt, and Mered crashed into his back, almost knocking them both over.

"Dude, what the hell?" Mered hissed. He glared at Lyon then turned to the rest of the family and broke out into a blush. He inched himself behind Lyon, and proceeded to bury his face into Lyon's back.

Lyon could make out Mered's muffled groan, and he had to chuckle. His family was being rather embarrassing, but he knew they weren't judging. He patted Mered's hands, which had wrapped around Lyon's waist and were clutching his shirt. "Sorry dear, I thought I'd walked into a scene from the Stepford Wives." Lyon shot everyone a meaningful look.

All of them had the decency of looking sheepish, save for Gray, who'd been the only one not ogling Lyon. He'd been busy stuffing his plate full of food and was now sitting down at the kitchen table with Ultear and Juvia.

"I take it you two slept well?" Ur asked, trying to break the ice. She sent a sympathetic smile Mered's way, but Mered's face remained firmly planted in Lyon's back.

"Yep," Mered replied, his voice strained and unnaturally high pitched.

"Very well," Lyon said, he beamed at the room and strode forward, causing Mered to pitch forward behind him and then scurry to maintain his hiding space. Lyon could feel Mered's glare on his back. "Best sleep I've had in months."

Lyon plucked two plates filled with food off the counter and headed to the kitchen table.

"I doubt that." Gray muttered.

Lyon quirked an eyebrow at him. "And you? Did you get much sleep last night Gray? I didn't hear you come to bed."

Gray's ears went red. "I slept fine." His eyes darted to Juvia and their parents. "And given how well you were sleeping of course you wouldn't have heard me."

"Really? 'Cause you look like shit. I'd be surprised if you got any sleep at all."

Silver tried to cover a snort by faking a cough, and Juvia rolled her eyes.

"We slept fine, but we were up pretty late watching movies and your parents woke us up at the crack of dawn, so can't say there was much sleep to be had," Juvia said with a yawn. She downed the rest of her tea, and set the mug back down so she could refill it.

Ultear handed her the teapot, and managed to elbow Mered by accident as she tried to fold her arms back into place. "I think we need an upgrade."

"Definitely need an upgrade," Silver said as he tried to shift his seat closer to the table, only to find it was too tight to fit.

"We'll get one before March Break," Ur said. She took a bite of her food before she continued. "You two are coming back right?" She gestured to Lyon and Juvia.

"Definitely."

"I'd love to if it's not too much trouble," Juvia said.

"It's not," Gray said, before anyone else can reply. "I cleared it with my parents before buying you the ticket, but since Lyon's bed's gonna be occupied, you can stay in my room."

Juvia's eyes lit up. "Really?"

Gray shrugged, and averted his gaze, but his cheeks were pink. "I'll have to spend at least a few nights at the university cause of hockey games, so it makes sense. That couch is lousy to sleep on."

"But what about when you are home?" Mered asked, a gleaming smirk played on his lips.

Gray shot Mered a pointed look. "We'll share. It'll be better than trying to cram both of us onto that couch again."

"You're assuming you two will be sleeping together all week?" Lyon fixed Gray with an appraising look.

"We're dating, so yeah."

Lyon nearly choked on his food. He'd gathered things had been going well between them but that was news. He let out a hacking cough. "You are? Since when?"

Gray shrugged. "Last night."

"We talked," Juvia beamed, and bounced in her seat.

That would explain her excitement this morning. Not that Lyon didn't think Juvia was happy for him, but she was never keen on the details of his sex life, not that she wouldn't be getting them anyways. They had two days of driving ahead of them.

"Right. Talked." Mered used air quotes for talked and wore the same knowing smirk Lyon's parents had on early.

"Yes, talked," Gray said through gritted teeth. "And slept. That's it."

Mered pouted. "Well that's boring. I totally got you permission to bang in the dining room."

"Excuse me?" Ur scowled at all of them over her coffee cup. "Who exactly gave you permission?"

"No one," Lyon said, shooting a glare at Mered. "He was teasing and being a little pest."

Ur straighten, and eyed them all before nodding. "Okay good. Keep it that way. I don't care what you do in your rooms but the rest of us use this house too, and we eat on that table."

"Exactly. So, whatever you do, make sure you sanitize it afterwards." Silver said with a smile.

"Silver!" Ur glowered at him, which prompted the rest of the table to burst out into laughter.

As Lyon sat there at the overly packed table, surrounded by family and friends, laughing and cheering he took a moment to take it in. He was certain this was as good as life was gonna get, and he wanted to savour it.

3 Days Later

Juvia stood at the front door, with their bags as Lyon hugged his Mom for what had to be the fifth time in the last twenty minutes.

"Now, I know you're busy, but please call more. I've hated being so out of touch with you all these years," Ur insisted, tugging Lyon tighter to her.

Lyon placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "I will, I promise."

"I'll hold him to it," Juvia said.

"Better hold yourself to it as well," Silver said, eyeing her. "We expect update calls from you too."

"And what he means by that is he expects you to complain incessantly to him about me," Gray grumbled as he pushed his way passed his dad. He handed Juvia a large travel mug.

"Thanks," she said, taking it from him. A small smile played on her lips as she did. "And I doubt I'll have anything to complain about other than how much I'll miss you."

Gray snorted. "I doubt it."

Juvia rolled onto the balls of her feet, and leaned against Gray, one hand rested on his chest. "You shouldn't. I can be very resilient when I want to be."

"I think you mean stubborn," Gray teased. One of his arms wrapped around her waist to help her balance, as she placed a peck on his cheek. Gray blushed and kept his eyes averted from his family who were all watching with knowing smiles.

Mered hip checked them causing Gray to stumble and Juvia to cling to him to keep her balance. "If you keep talking like that you're gonna end up in the dog house, sooner rather than later." He sauntered past them and grabbed the handle for Lyon's suitcase, and smiled up at him. "Come on, I'll help you load the car." Mered glanced back over his shoulder to Juvia and shot her a cheeky grin. "Feel free to take your time."

Lyon rolled his eyes as Mered headed out the door, then turned back to Ur and gave her another tight hug. "I'm gonna miss you, but I promise to call more. We can even try Skyping sometime."

"I'd like that a lot." Ur let him go and stepped back so Ultear could hug him next.

"You better unblock me from all your Facebook pictures," Ultear grumbled. "I've missed years of your life."

"Yes, yes. I already said I would." Lyon pulled back as she ruffled his hair and scowled at her.

He turned to Silver, who chuckled.

"I'll let you go without any more nagging. Just call when you stop for the night, otherwise I'll never hear the end of it."

Lyon smirked and nodded, and stepped forward to hug Silver one last time. "Can do." He took a deep breath and looked over his family and the house one last time. "Guess I'll see you all in March."

"You will," Ur assured, with a smile.

Lyon nodded and turned to Gray. "I'll see you outside?"

Gray nodded back and Lyon took a deep breath then headed out the door to help Mered.

Juvia watched him go, and felt her own time growing short. It was weird to think of leaving his home; she'd only been here for two weeks but it felt like a life time. Long enough that it had started to feel like her own. She let her gaze drift over Lyon's family and clung tighter to Gray. She didn't want to have to say goodbye to them.

Sure, she knew she'd be back, but March was a long time away and there was a lot that could happen between now and then. She'd just found her place here and the thought of leaving it hurt.

Gray's hands rubbed her lower back, and she could see the concern in his eyes.

"I don't wanna go," Juvia admitted in a voice just above a whisper.

Gray smiled down at her. "I don't want you to go either, but you've got school and work, and so do I. It'll go by quick though, you'll see."

"Pfft," Silver scoffed. "School's overrated and you could easily get a job here. Heck I'll hire you right now, and you can have Gray's room while he's in Magnolia."

"Silver! Don't tease her about things like that," Ur scolded.

"Who said I was teasing?"

"She can't just drop out of school!"

"She can transfer."

Ur arched an eyebrow at Silver and huffed. She planted her hands on her hips and threw him another exasperated look. "The next semester starts next week. That's not enough time for her to transfer, at least let her get through the next one. Once summer is here you can concoct as many half baked plans as you'd like."

Juvia bit her lip and tried to fight the smile threatening to form. It was nice to know that she'd be welcome here if she wanted it. A part of her was tempted to look into it. "It's a sweet thought, but I'm happy at Margaret Collegiate. Besides, if I transferred it would still be to Magnolia, and I'd either have to commute every day or move in on campus, and without the scholarship it's a bit out of my price range."

Silver opened his mouth- no doubt to offer to help- but Gray cut him off.

"Well there's a few people talking about sharing an apartment off campus, which would be cheaper…." He trailed off as Juvia stared up at him wide-eyed. "Not saying you have to! Just uhhh-"

"We can talk about it some time."

"Yeah?"

Juvia nodded, not trusting her voice. She was pretty sure the only sound she'd make would be a high pitched squeal of delight, and that might have Gray reconsidering the offer. The fact that he'd already thought about all of this, despite them only having started dating three days ago wasn't lost on her.

Gray smiled at her, but it faltered a bit as he sighed. His hand gripped the handle on her luggage. "We should probably wrap this up, you guys have a long drive to go."

Juvia's heart dropped a little and she nodded and turned to his family. She hugged them one by one and exchanged goodbye's, and promised to call and Skype. With a final deep breath and one last look around the foyer Juvia left her new home behind, but knowing that she'd be back again in a few months.

Lyon couldn't keep the smile from his lips as the scenery flew by outside the window, and he and Juvia hummed along to their playlist. Normally they'd be singing, but he figured she was lost in thought. He certainly couldn't keep his own mind from wandering.

The last two weeks had been a whirlwind, and their drive up had felt like it happened years ago.

A highway sign caught his attention and announced that the were now leaving Magnolia. Lyon smirked. He remembered the anxiety he felt as they drove past the sign that first announce he was an hour away from home. He thought of all the planning that had gone into getting them that far. It was hard to believe that, at the time, his only hopes had been to get through the two weeks unscathed and maybe get through a date or two with Mered.

He wanted to laugh at how things had turned out. None of it had gone according to plan.

"It's Raining Men! Hallelujah!

It's Raining Men! Amen"

Juvia's phone sounded and Lyon glanced at the dashboard. They'd been driving for a little over an hour.

Juvia frowned at him; confusion mapped across her face.

"I'm gonna go out, I'm gonna let myself get,

Absolutely soaking wet!"

"You gonna answer that?"

Juvia continued to eye him as she dug around in her purse to pull out her phone, her ringtone continuing to go off as she did.

"It's Raining Men! Hallelujah!

It's Raining Men! Every Specimen!"

Juvia pulled her phone free and turned to see who was calling. She let out an ear piercing shriek, and promptly dropped it.

"Oh my God!"

"Tall, blonde, dark and lean

Rough and tough and strong and mean"

Lyon cackled and watched out of the corner of his eye as she scrambled to retrieve it. Her face was a brilliant shade of red. Definitely worth it.

"God bless Mother Nature, she's a single woman too

She took on to heaven-"

Juvia finally managed to answer her phone and held it up to her ear. "Hello." Her voice was shaky, and she was still wide-eyed.

There was a pause and then Juvia side eyed Lyon. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just, um, Lyon got into my phone again."

Lyon wasn't even trying to hide the shit eating grin on his face and he could hear Gray's laughter on the other end. It had actually been Gray's idea, and Lyon had jumped at the chance, even if it had meant taking a few pictures of Gray topless. Juvia's reaction was beyond worth it. Plus, now she at least had something to ogle when Gray was too busy.

"Wait you were in on this, too!" Juvia's voice was shrill and her whole face was red. There was a short pause, and she pouted. "I don't know! Lyon can be pretty sneaky with a camera when he wants to."

Her cheeks burned red and Lyon wondered exactly what Gray was telling her. He shook his head. Some things he was better off not knowing. He hit the off button for the car stereo so it would be easier for her to hear Gray, then focused back on the road.

He couldn't keep the smile off his face, as he took in the snowy landscape one last time. It was exciting, knowing he'd be back in only a few short months. And this time there was no dread, no worries. For the first time in a long time home felt like home. No secrets attached.

Anon Replies:

Anahideaway013: I'm so glad you love the story, and thank you for saying it's well written! :hearts: Unfortunately it was never really my plan to bring Daphne into IKYSS, she's a part of Gray's past and that's where I wanted to keep her.

Quietharmonies: Yay I'm glad! Boundaries are really important, and I think it's so important to show that even if someone has experience and wants to move forward doesn't mean that it has to happen. Healthy relationships are all about communication and respect, and this is something Lyon knows. He was pushed into coming out at school so he knows that feeling of regret when things are rushed then don't work out and he'd never want to do that to Mered. Also he's my baby so yes, love him! Hehe I feel like it's really hard not to slowly fall for Gray. He's not perfect, but he means well and is constantly trying to do better and be better. Yes! Juvia is finally learning to communicate and Mered has grown so much and is finally comfortable with his relationship and isn't gonna back down from what he wants or hold back either. *wipes tears*
It's hard to walk away from IKYSS but I'm so proud of what I've accomplished with it. I know it's sad to see it go, but the main story is ready to be closed off and finished, still as I said above, I'm sure I'll revisit the universe and write some drabbles to share with you all. :)

Anon Replies for Ch 28:

Guest 1: I know it's a bitter sweet feeling to have this story come to an end. It's been weird to be without it this past month, but it was time to wrap it up. As I said, I doubt I'm done with the world, so keep an eye out for future fics to get your fix. ;)

Kimberlouxxx: Two years has gone by really quickly, but it has indeed been two years. Almost two and a half by the time I'm getting to this reply and posting it for you. Thanks so much for all your lovely messages throughout, and I'm so glad you enjoyed the story!

Lana: I'm really thrilled that you've loved the story so much, and as I said I'll probably write drabbles in the world that will give little snippets towards the life they're leading now. As for a full fledged sequel, unfortunately I'm just not in a place to commit to that kind of project. My daughter will be born in three months and I really need to focus on her and my family.

Quietharmonies: I had an amazing birthday, thanks for asking. I can't tell you how much your support and enthusiasm has meant to me over all this time. I'm so glad the story lived up to expectations and that the ending felt right. Thank you so much for the well wishes and I hope our paths continue to cross and that you're doing well.