With Great Power Comes Great Responsibilty

Chapter 57

For the next two weeks, Gray stayed in his dorm room, avoiding any activity or interaction that might spike his stress. He called in sick for classes and work, told his aunt he was too busy with everything to visit, and kept his distance from Lyon, who he wasn't exactly on speaking terms with these days. He didn't perform any hero work either. Lying and doing nothing went against everything he believed in, but Erza had convinced him it was for the best, and Natsu always assured him he had the hero business covered. So Gray did exactly what they said — kept calm, controlled his emotions, stayed relaxed, and avoided anything that might upset him.

But staying calm only slowed the transformation, not stopped it.

Three days after his last visit with Erza, he noticed more hair — or rather fur — growing on his arms and legs. His teeth sharpened into razor-like fangs. Worse, animalistic urges began invading his mind. He craved fresh meat nearly every hour. At night, the desire to stalk prey gripped him. Only through sheer willpower did he resist. But it terrified him to think of the day when his will might not be enough.

"Your boss has you on another late-night case again?" Aunt Ur asked over the phone, her voice light but probing, after Gray gave her yet another excuse for not visiting.

"Yeah, uh... Blue Tiger hasn't been showing himself much lately, and Mr. Redfox is suspicious. Thinks he might be up to something illegal, so they want me to check it out tonight."

"Gray, you wouldn't be lying to me, would you?"

"What? No," Gray squeaked.

"Yes, you are, you little fibber. You're just like your mother — lying always made her so guilty her voice would go high. What's really going on?"

"I... I can't talk about it."

"Why not?"

"It's private."

"Gray, are you in some kind of trouble?"

"No, Aunt Ur."

"Then why lie and keep secrets? Most people only do that when they're in trouble."

"Aunt Ur, I really can't explain it. Can't you just believe me when I say nothing's wrong?"

"I would if you hadn't tried to lie to me. I want answers, young man. Now."

Gray felt anxiety prickling under his skin as her voice grew stern. If he kept talking, his stress would spike — and that could accelerate the transformation.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Ur, but I gotta go."

"Gray Fullbuster, don't you dare hang up on me! If you do, I'm coming over there!"

Unfortunately, Gray had no choice but to hang up. He couldn't stay here if Aunt Ur was coming over—she'd notice the fur, the claws, the sharp teeth in an instant. He quickly grabbed his jacket, sunglasses, and gloves, then slipped out of his dorm room to find Erza. He needed to ask if he could stay at her place until the cure was ready. He was just about to call Natsu to tell him about the temporary living arrangement when he heard a sweet voice call out behind him.

"Gray!"

He froze. Turning slowly, he saw Juvia walking toward him. His stress spiked instantly. He couldn't be around her—not like this.

"Oh... Hi, Juvia," he stammered.

"There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you," she said, quickening her pace. "People told me you were either at work, taking late-night classes, or holed up in your dorm, but you weren't in any of those places. Anyway, I need to talk to you about something."

"Juvia, now's not really—"

"I'm so sorry about what happened with Lyon."

Gray blinked, confused.

"Excuse me?"

"I heard some students say that you and Lyon fought a few weeks ago. I was afraid this would happen."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, a while back Lyon was trying to convince me to give him another chance, but I told him I just couldn't go out with him. I let it slip that we'd briefly dated, and now he blames you for me turning him down. I'm so sorry—it's all my fault. I kept it a secret because I was worried it'd ruin your friendship, but it only made things worse."

Gray softened. "Hey, hey, it's not your fault that he can't handle rejection."

"But I shouldn't have led him on."

"You didn't. From the very beginning, you were honest with him about how you felt. You didn't do anything wrong."

"Then why do I feel like I did?"

"In my opinion, it's because you're kind, and kind people tend to blame themselves for everything. But I promise, whatever happens between me and Lyon, you're not to blame."

She smiled, a little comforted by his words.

"Why are you always so good to me?"

Gray blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Lyon was so angry when I told him the truth about us, and he's been taking it out on you. You're suffering the consequences of my actions. If I hadn't been so secretive or talked without thinking, you and Lyon wouldn't be so upset. You should be mad at me more than him. But you're not. You're still so nice and caring toward me. I don't understand why."

Juvia looked away, her gaze dropping to the ground. Gray could see the shame and guilt etched in her posture. How dare Lyon make her feel this way—like she was some manipulative flirt, when nothing could be further from the truth. In Gray's eyes, she was an angel, her only flaw perhaps being too selfless. Too selfless, and maybe too beautiful.

For a moment, he simply stared at her. The rising stress within him shifted into a different kind of fire—a growing desire. Desire for this gentle girl with her soft blue eyes, who had been nothing but kind to him. Without thinking, his gloved hand lifted, a finger brushing gently under her chin to tilt her face toward his.

Juvia's eyes widened, confusion flickering across her features. She wanted to question him, to ask what he was doing, but the words caught in her throat.

Gray's animalistic urges flared suddenly, pulling him closer, whispering insistently that he act on the desire swelling inside him. His lips hovered just centimeters from hers when a sharp car horn blared nearby, breaking the spell.

He snapped back, the desire crashing down into a wave of stress and fear. Stepping back hastily, he avoided her eyes.

"I... I'm sorry," he stammered. "I don't know what came over me."

"Gray, are you alright?" Juvia's voice was filled with concern. "You're trembling."

He looked down at his hands and saw they were shaking uncontrollably.

"Yes, and you're sweating like crazy. Are you getting sick? Take off your glasses—I want to see you."

"No!" Gray said, panic creeping into his voice. "No, I'm fine!"

"You don't look fine. You might be burning up."

"It's nothing. Really. I'm on my way to my aunt's now. If I'm sick, she'll take care of me."

"Do you want me to walk with you?"

"No, no, that's okay."

"Gray, I don't think you should be alone like this."

"Juvia, I appreciate it. But I've been through worse. Trust me."

"O... okay," she said reluctantly, still unconvinced. "Are you really sure you don't feel sick?"

"Positive."

Her intuition told her otherwise, but she didn't want to push him or seem intrusive. So she let him go—for now. That didn't mean she wouldn't check on him later.