The Duchess - Gruvia

Chapter 12

After the incident at the river and later at the cave, Juvia started to fall ill with a nasty flu and was bedridden for a week with fever, coughing and an occasional throwing up. The doctor said that it was a mix between the Duchess being from another land and not used to the cold plus the river incident really made the process go faster. Gray stood by her side whenever he wasn't dealing with the Duchy issues and it worried him how pale, shivering and hot she was, but after the first three days, she became much better and he could breathe again.

When the week was over and the doctor cleared her to get up from the bed, Gray still insisted that she rested, but she would venture around with a maid and Gajeel not too far behind when Gray would leave their bedroom. Once he was informed about Juvia's escapades, he went to find her and met her mid walk and confronted her.

"You need to rest! Go back to bed." He told his wife.

"Juvia is fine. Being bedridden will make her feel worse rather than better." The blunette sighed and when Gray tried to persuade her, she shook her head. "Please, Gray-sama. Just for a few moments so Juvia can stretch her legs; if she feels bad, Juvia will return to bed. Please."

He couldn't very well deny her when she had those big eyes turned at him. With a sigh, Gray nodded after a moment, but instead of walking away, the Duke shrugged off his coat and put it around her. "At least put the right clothing for roaming around the corridors." He scolded her gently. "Next time, please don't wander around only with your robe as cover; wear a warm coat at least, you are recovering."

Juvia smiled and put a hand on his cheek. "Juvia will; now would you like to walk with me for a little while?"

Gray nodded and offered her his arm, which she took gladly, and they walked around the floor for a few minutes before he convinced her to return to bed to rest and this time she agreed.

In one of her walks, Juvia found a room filled with old paintings people seemed to forget about and even if the room was dusty and most of them were covered and the Duchess had to cover her nose and mouth every time uncovering them and she sneezed a lot, but, it was nice to see her husband's predecessors and distant cousins, those which Gray never even heard about, but they sent their portraits either way so the Duke could remember them.

Gajeel would stay outside, saying that he didn't do too well with confined spaces with breakable goods around and Juvia agreed. Her maid, though, would stay by the door, covering her mouth and staring daggers at the Duchess, who should be resting, not going through hundreds of old paintings covered in dust.

During the third day she started looking over the paintings of great- great- great- great- great- great-grandfathers of her husband, she found a much smaller one – compared to the others – covered with paper. Curious, she grabbed it and tore the paper apart and what she saw made her breath get caught on her throat.

#

"You look much better tonight." Gray commented eyeing his wife when he exited the small bath chamber wearing his sleeping clothes and a robe. She was wearing her usual nightgown and sitting on the edge of the bed, smiling widely at her husband. The truth was that she had been feeling better for a while, those past few days were more of a way for her to get her strength back.

"Juvia has something for you." The Duchess got up from the bed and grabbed his hands, pulling him towards the place she was sitting before and even confused, Gray let her do it.

"What is it?" He asked, watching her go to the other side of the bed, kneeling to get something underneath it. "Juvia?"

"Here it is." His wife said, getting up holding a large package covered with a sheet and the Duke frowned when she gave it to him, but prevented him of uncovering it. "Juvia found this earlier this afternoon." The Duchess put a hand over his and squeezed tightly. "Juvia wanted to give you something like you gave her Honey and she had no idea what, but when she saw this... This is something that you should have, that you should see every day."