Gray thinks of himself as Cana's brother.

He thinks of the whole guild as his family but Cana and he are different. Their relationship seems more intimate than some of the other ones he has.

He never actively thinks about it but there are times when he'll catch himself on missions with Team Natsu, wondering if Cana is safe at the guild or on a dangerous job. He'll remind himself that she doesn't need him to worry about her, not when she's perfectly capable of taking care of herself.

But Gray finds himself inexplicably relieved whenever he returns to the guild and sees her happily chugging down beer, without a care in the world. Safe and sound.

Sometimes, he'll reminisce about the days when he and Cana were a team. Going on jobs with her. Defeating bandits and thieves together. Sleeping in the same room as her, only a few feet away. Travelling together, teasing each other for hours on end.

Gray thinks that was when he was closest to her. When they saw each other nearly every day and were constantly together. Before he joined Team Natsu.

They are still incredibly close but it's different. Imperceptible to the average person. Gray doubts Cana hasn't noticed the difference but neither of them has confronted it yet. He contemplates if they'll ever talk about it. There never seems to be an opportunity to do so.

•••

Gray scowls. "Get away from her."

The man's response is to sway closer to Gray until there are only a few inches between their faces. "Why are you poking your nose in my business, punk? She doesn't mind talking to me so why don't you just back off?" Gray can smell the alcohol on his breath.

Gray's lips curl downwards in disgust. He glances at Cana whose head is lying on the bar counter, looking much drunker than normal. Her eyelids are half-lidded and her pupils seem unfocused.

He continues to glare at the creep. "Do you seriously expect me to believe that? Fuck off."

The man narrows his eyes at Gray. He attempts to drape an arm around Cana who is too inebriated to move away from him but Gray harshly pushes him off of her.

"I'm telling you this for the last time, you bastard." Gray steps in between the man and Cana, shielding her from him. "Leave her alone before I make you."

The creep sends Gray a dirty look and begrudgingly walks away from them. Gray watches him stagger out of the bar before turning to Cana. She's still leaning on the bar counter and looks just as drunk as she did a few minutes ago.

Gray sighs. "Cana, let's get out of here. I'll take you to Fairy Hills."

She nods unsteadily and tries to get up but almost falls off her seat. Gray catches her and loops his arm around her shoulder, letting her lean entirely on him. She presses her head onto his shoulder.

Gray walks out of the bar, supporting her all the while. Once they reach Fairy Hills, he's practically carrying her but he doesn't mind. He opens the main door and walks Cana to her room which he knows is on the first floor. He's been here enough times to have memorised the way to her room.

They make it to her door and he asks Cana to give him her key. She shakily takes her key out from her bag before pressing it into his hand. He unlocks her door and turns the light on before he leads her inside.

Cana's room looks messier than the last time he saw it which was quite a while ago. They walk around the clothes on the floor and he deposits her onto her bed. She immediately stretches herself onto the bed and closes her eyes.

"You can't go to sleep yet, Cana. You need to put something better than booze into your body before you sleep." Gray finds a water bottle on a table and hands it to her. "Here, drink this."

Cana is able to drink half of the bottle before she gives it back to Gray. She blinks sleepily and lies back down. It only takes moments for her to drift off.

Gray puts the water bottle onto the side-table next to the bed before leaving her room. He walks out of Fairy Hills and heads to his apartment for the night.

•••

"Thanks for helping me out last night, Gray."

Gray quirks a smile. "It was no problem. Besides having to lug your body around."

"Shut up." Cana swats his arm half-heartedly. "But really, I appreciate your help." She looks into his eyes and Gray gets the feeling that she's thanking him for more than last night.

Perhaps that's why Gray says what he says next. Or maybe he's just tired of neither of them daring to confront the issue. Whatever the reason, Gray is immediately put on edge when he says, "What's a brother for?"

He freezes in his place and looks at Cana to gauge her reaction. He expects her to be confused or wary.

But when he searches her face, all he sees is a grin and a twinkle in her eye.

Cana smirks at him. "Sure, bro."

Maybe this isn't so complicated after all.