Author's Note: That's right, I did it, a Levy and Rogue fanfiction. Anyway, the idea came to me when I was looking through my iTunes at song titles. Yes, another fanfiction inspired by the Lostprophets. Bite me. Enough of my useless babbling - read on please. Oh, reviews sil vous plait? They make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.


THE LAST TRAIN HOME

CHAPTER 1


It was mid morning and the sky was already thick with clouds, but the weather seemed to have no effect on the sky kissed mage that bounded down emptying streets of Timberwood, a small town five days north of Magnolia Town. In her arms, the petite woman carried five massive tomes, each one thicker than her and weighing at least ten pounds a piece. How someone as tiny as her could carry such heavy books was the one mystery that nagged at the minds of any who saw her. The bluenette didn't seem to mind though, she was happy to have found more ancient books to add to her ever growing collection. That being said, Levy McGarden made her way to the small wooden hotel she was staying at, a sunny smile plastered on her lips as she hummed a cheerful tune. Her sandal clad feet clicked against the flagstone paths, still light despite the weight she carried in her arms.

A rumble of thunder in the distance caused her to stop momentarily. Her nose wasn't as sharp as a Dragonslayer's, but she could still smell the coming rain. Fear filled her stomach, not fear of the storm however; fear that if it started raining, the books she had traveled five days to find would be destroyed. Though they were given to her after the storeowner witnessed her love of the damned things, they were rare and finding another copy of any of them would be near impossible, not to mention expensive. Needless to say, the bluenette quickened her pace, nearly sprinting towards the hotel.

She had barely made it. No sooner than she made it under the large wooden balcony of the building's second floor, a torrential downpour had burst from the clouds like tears from a young child. The temperature dropped several degrees, chilling her for the remaining moment the petite mage spent outside. After managing to open the lodging's door with her small foot, Levy backed in, and closed it once more.

The inside was small and cozy with golden walls and a small living room like area by a massive fireplace. The smell of burning wood accompanied by a slight crackle and a wall of warmth greeted her. For a moment it reminded her of a house in one of her fairytales; a house like that belonged to a family of bears, or even one from a book about a boy and a dragon who must save the world.

"Miss, those are some big books. Do you need help?" The man behind the check-in counter asked. He was a rather large, robust man with a scraggly black beard that was peppered with specks of grey and white. His head was bald, shining dully in the blazing firelight. His deep brown eyes looked down at the mage with a gentle kindness that would put a grandmother to shame.

"No, thank you. I have it." Levy chirped as she slowly started up the stairs, the stack of books wobbling violently in her arms.

The man shook his head, smiling brightly at her; a small laugh shook his stomach.

Levy's room was right across from the top of the stairs. Carefully, she nudged the door open and stepped in. By now, her arms had begun to ache with the tremendous effort it took to carry the tomes; she set them in the far corner and looked around the room. It was small, the floor wooden and the walls the gold. Against the back wall, right below a paned window was a comfy bed with crisp white sheets and a thick green comforter. To the left of the bed was a small desk, covered with the rest of her books. Across the way sat a dresser, half open and its contents spilling everywhere. Tacked onto the back of the door was the work poster, the reward the largest thing on it.

Levy's initial reason for coming wasn't the books, it was a job. A well paying one at that. And all she had to do was translate the pages of a small, ancient book. It had been child's play for her, she had even been granted more money for her haste in the task. The reward that was originally five hundred thousand jewels had become five hundred and fifty thousand. The money wouldn't last long upon her return home; what wasn't to be spent on the last night at the hotel, her train ticket home, and that month's rent at Fairy Hills would be spent on none other than…books.

The fairy moved to grab a book off her desk, but found her feet tangled in a bight orange dress. Before she knew it, her small frame had connected with the floor, the force of the impact enough to drive the air from her lungs. Groaning, the petite mage stood and brushed off her slight blue sundress before straightening up her room. Cleaning didn't bother her; she was constantly picking up her books after a shelf grew too unstable to hold them. The mage was done in a matter of minutes.

Satisfied that the only thing she would have to worry about tripping over was her own two feet, she retrieved the book she was going for earlier and jumped onto the bed. Sighing contently, the bluenette propped her knees up and let the book rest against her thighs. Before long, she had become completely engrossed in the yellow tinted pages of her latest horror novel.


"Crap!" Levy exclaimed as she hurried down the street. She had stayed up too late, and as a result she had woken up late, fifteen minutes before her train left for that matter – and with the weight she was carrying it would take fifteen minutes to reach the station. For the first time in her life, she wished she hadn't bought so many books.

The train was just about to leave the station when she arrived. Luckily enough she was able to find a conductor and get her tiny butt on before it departed, leaving her to wait another day for the next one. Unfortunately, once she was on, she realized that all of the cars were full, except for one. In the back of the last car there was a cabin with a single person and a small Exceed in a ridiculous get up. She recognized the man, Rogue Cheney…a Dragonslayer of Sabertooth. The bluenette was turning to leave the car and see if there was one that she could have possibly missed when a voice stopped her.

"You can sit here…fairy."

Reluctantly, Levy entered the car and sat as close to the door as she could. She knew what Sabertooth was known for, being the strongest guild, and the strongest guild was full of arrogant assholes that could careless for the rest of the world, especially Fairy Tail. To say that the Solid Script mage was uncomfortable would be an understatement.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Rogue sighed, observing the fact that the petite woman was, quite literally, half way into the aisle.

She cast him a side ways glance, as if not believing it, but moved a smidge closer none the less. Something about the man reminded her of Gajeel - it could simply have been the crimson eyes and stark black hair.

"Fro thinks you're pretty." The Exceed suddenly spoke up, its unblinking eyes on the fairy mage.

Despite her efforts, Levy couldn't fight the blush that was creeping its way to her cheeks. Not very often did she receive compliments like that. Trying to avoid the nerve-racking gaze, she cast her eyes to the side and mumbled a 'thank you'. Her small hands instinctively wrapped around the bag that held her books, as if it would offer some kind of comfort, but it wasn't working. With a small sigh, she opened the bag and pulled out one of her smaller books, ironically one about dragons. It was one of the few books Lily snuck away from Gajeel for her, though when the Dragonslayer found out, he wasn't too happy. After all he didn't collect novels; all of his books were ancient and impossible to find. In fact the book she was looking at now was written in the ancient language.

She soon became aware of Rogue's gaze. Glancing up slightly, she saw that his eyebrows were raised and eyes wide with slight shock. His eyes weren't on her however, but on the cover of the book. The Exceed looked back and fourth, trying to figure out what was going on.

"That book…where did you get it?"

"Oh, a friend of mine got it for me." She replied lazily. It was essentially true; Lily had gotten the book for her.

"You can read the ancient language?"

Levy nodded, smiling slightly. "Yup."

The Dragonslayer titled his head slightly, studying her and the book she held. Frosch moved from her place behind her partner and plopped down beside the small fairy. Levy let her large brown eyes land on the Exceed who was smiling up at her, an innocent look upon her cute green face. For a moment, the bluenette couldn't help but think of Happy, he had the same large, round eyes - he was just as small, and just as cute.

Absent mindedly, the small fairy lifted the Exceed from her place on the seat and plopped green cat in her lap. Frosch, shocked by the sudden action, turned to look back at the woman, only to find her smiling brightly. It was a rare occurrence for the small creature, very few people, if any in Sabertooth would have done such a thing.

After all it, it was a guild based on strength; bonds like the ones found in Fairy Tail did not exist there.


Some hours later, the Solid Script mage woke. Her large brown eyes, still half closed from sleep, lazily scanned the small space she had been in for nearly five hours now. Rogue had nodded off, his black hair tined slightly with a purple hue as the last of the sun's rays slowly sank behind the horizon. The book she had been reading earlier was clutched tightly between his body and an arm that had been crossed over his chest. His mouth hung open slightly as his chest rose and fell with the steady movement of breathing. In her lap lay Frosch, curled into a tiny ball with her tail wrapped around her. Soft snores came from her small mouth and the fairy couldn't help but giggle at the sight.

Levy suddenly felt guilty. Her first thoughts were on the duo weren't exactly kind; she assumed that since they were from Sabertooth that they were horrible beings. From what she could see now, they weren't.

Her thoughts were interrupted as Rogue stirred, letting the book slid from his grasp as he sat up, rubbing his crimson eyes and yawning in a way that reminded her of a cat. Stifling a giggle, the bluenette retrieved her book form the floor and placed it inside her bag once more. The Dragonslayer regarded her curiously, watching her every movement as if he would need to remember it later.

The action didn't faze her, she often found Gajeel doing the same when he thought she wasn't looking.

"Where did you friend get that book?"

Meeting his deep garnet eyes, the small mage replied, "Gajeel."

Something lit in the man's eyes, but he didn't utter another word.

The train began slowing and outside the window, the familiar scene of Magnolia's train station flew by in a blur. Happy to be home, the fairy lifted the small Exceed from her lap and set her on the seat beside her. After adjusting her bag, she stood, stretching her cramped limps and sore joints.

Finally the train had come to a stop. As she stepped into the aisle, she noticed neither Sabertooth mage moved. They probably aren't getting off here.

Shrugging at the thought, the bluenette started down the aisle, only to be stopped by a hand closing around her wrist. Before she could comprehend what was happening, she was spun around, forced to face the Dragonslayer who had occupied the seat across form her. Looking into his eyes, Levy tried to find some kind of hint as to why he had stopped her, but found nothing.

However, she wasn't left without an answer.

Quickly, the Dragonslayer leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her cheek. Color rushed to the small fairy's face, the color clashing with her sky kissed locks as her deep chocolate eyes locked on Rouge's retreating back. Something bubbled inside of her, though she wasn't sure if it was shock, embarrassment, or hunger as she hadn't eaten anything since dinner the night before. Shaking her head as if the action would rid her mind of what just happened, Levy spun on her heels and climbed off the train, trying desperately to hid her still flushed face.


Author's Note: Since I've checked for Frosch's gender and found nothing confirming it, I used the pronoun 'she' as I think the cat looks like a girl. Anyway, yup. Don't kill me now, I beg you.

Well, due to the number of reviews asking for this to be updated, I decided I'd write another chapter, though it may take some time as it's not my top priority at the moment.