Fairy High
Chapter 1
A Brewing War
"Girls!" Mira huffed, clapping her hands together for emphasis. "This is supposed to be our showstopper! The big finale, the climax! I want to see it done right!"
Fairy High's cheerleading squad was trying to extricate themselves from a human dog pile on the gym mats. Consisting of ten members dressed in the pink red and white costumes of their school, they represented some of the most powerful women in the school.
"Maybe if Lucy didn't weigh so damn much!" Evergreen snorted.
"I am not heavy!" Lucy retorted. "It's Cana who's taking most of the weight and you don't hear her complaining!"
"No, it's fine," Cana assured them. Along with Evergreen and Bisca, she formed the bottom of the pyramid. "It only gets to be a burden if Levy fluffs her landing."
"It's not my fault if I miss!" Levy shouted. "I'm not throwing myself!" The small girl looked nervous, glancing over at Erza fearfully. It was the red head's prodigious strength that catapulted the smaller girl to the top of the pyramid on top of Lucy and Lisanna.
"It's true, I missed the mark," Erza agreed dispassionately. "It happens if Levy's weight changes. I won't miss again now that I've got the measure of it."
"I've gained weight?" Levy gasped.
"No. Eat more."
"Fine! Now, Wendy, Laki, Kinana! Don't just stand around like wooden dolls because you're not part of the pyramid! I want you giving it your all as well!" The three girls almost saluted. Mira wasn't known as the demon for no reason. You didn't give her cause to get angry with you. "Listen, we've got a month before the first match of the season and it's a big one! We are not going to let the vixens at Phantom High get the best of us. Are we?"
"No!" The girls chorused their assent.
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"Aaaargh!" Natsu roared with anger more than pain as the world span head over heels around him, the cold grass greeting him in a most unwelcome manner. In an instant he was on his feet, his red helmet thrown aside in anger. "What the hell was that, you asshole!?"
Laxus smirked, removing his helmet. "That was a perfectly legal block. You didn't duck in time."
"You could have taken my head off!"
"So? It's not like you use it for anything."
Coach Macao ran over blowing his whistle. "Break it up! Natsu, take five and cool your head!"
"You're only siding with him cuz he's the principal's grandson," Natsu hissed. The reaction from Laxus was instantaneous, anger flaring in his eyes as he rounded on Natsu.
"It ain't got anything to do with that! He's siding with me because I'm right!"
"I said break it up! Both of you, hit the showers. You're done for today!" Macao demanded. Both boys protested, but the coach was sick to the back teeth with it and forced them away. "Damn it, but they are my best two players."
"Less of that, coach!" Gray said cheerily. "You've still got me, this big lug," he gestured at Elfman, "and Jet's the best runner in the whole damn league!"
"Alright, Gray! I'm going to give you the chance to lead on this next play since you want it so much."
The two teams lined up again. Fried and Bixlow looked ready to defend Laxus' honour in his place. Let them, Gray thought. He had all the people he needed on this side. While both of them went down like pansies to any kind of tackle, Jet and Droy made an excellent catcher/thrower pair. Then again, Bixlow was probably the best thrower on the entire team. With Laxus as an enormously talented blitzer, they could make a much better combo. But Laxus wasn't here right now, Gray thought with a grin.
Gray's play worked and he could watch the cogwheels whirr in Fried's brain. An incredibly bright young man, there was no way that he hadn't come up with a stunning counter play already. A cunning outside play saw a point to Fried's side. Gray tensed. This was a battle for supremacy.
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The sea of students parted before them wordlessly. As two of the highest ranked cheerleaders and football stars, Natsu and Lucy might just be the power couple of Fairy High. And seeing the wrathful expression on Natsu's face made everyone move out of the way faster.
"That was bullshit!" He growled. "Laxus just thinks that he's better than everyone else!"
"By beating you fair and square?" Lucy asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes! No! God damn it, stop being so reasonable! Whose side are you on?"
"I'm sure you'll show him next time," Lucy said reassuringly.
"Damn straight! We've got a while to prepare for the first game of the season and I am not letting Phantom High get even a single touchdown! Those bastards are all just ghetto punks, anyway." Natsu frowned slightly. "Though, I have heard that they've got a new star player. Apparently he was an amateur boxer before switching over to football. He must be built like a tank."
Lucy smiled. "You sound excited."
"Of course, hihi! No point in playing if the other team aren't worth beating!" Natsu was grinning at the prospect.
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Jet's hand hovered over the chessboard with the precision of a hawk deciding which rabbit was the best choice.
"Move the rook," Droy advised. Jet's hand falteringly went to the piece.
"I wouldn't," Levy said, lazily flicking the page of the book she was reading without looking up. They were sitting in the library, the only place Levy cared to spend her lunch break. It was a bit hard for the trio, being both classified as the 'jocks' and the 'nerds' at different times. They were the only footballers and cheerleader that ever still got an occasional swirly.
Jet moved his hand over to his knight, jumping up to take a pawn near the backfield. Levy looked over briefly before moving her queen through the space vacated by the knight to take Jet's rook and place his king in check.
"Wow, Levy!" They gushed. "You're so smart!"
"No, it's not a big deal," she replied, waving away the praise.
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Perhaps the crowd had parted for Natsu and Lucy, but they scurried out of the way like frightened vermin as Laxus strode down the corridor, flanked by his little posse. Evergreen was trying to tell him about the progress the cheerleading squad had made for the match, but he didn't seem interested. He also didn't seem interested in Fried and Bixlow's exploits on the pitch, much to their dismay.
"Laxus, is something wrong?" Fried ventured cautiously.
"All of this training, just to beat Phantom High. They're nothing more than a bunch of street rats. Scum that'll never amount to anything. It's annoying." Phantom High basically existed within a large ghetto of poor housing and council estates. It had a high level of crime, both amongst the student body and the teachers. There were rumours of Headmaster Jose's sticky fingers being in a few scams.
"Doesn't Gray live fairly close to there?" Bixlow wondered lazily.
"On the outskirts," Fried agreed.
"Nothing compared to midget," Evergreen huffed haughtily. "She's right from the middle of the area."
Fried frowned slightly, noticing their current course. "Um… class is that way."
"Screw it," Laxus said lightly. "I'm skipping class. You guys with me?" And of course, they were.
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"Listen!" Mr Capricorn rapped, smacking the whiteboard. "I feel like none of you have been paying any attention. I don't care how excited you are for the upcoming game, you must study. Miss Heartphilia! Perform this derivation!"
"Uh… dy by dx equals… three x squared plus four?" She guessed. Capricorn confirmed that it was correct to a relieved sigh and wrote a much more complicated equation on the board.
"Mr Dragneel!"
"Uh... oh god.. dx by dy…"
"You have already failed!" Capricorn snapped. "It is always dy by dx! Miss Marvel, can you please make me feel like I have not failed you as a teacher?"
"dy/dx= 12x cubed + 4x squared - 2x + 6!" Wendy said quickly.
"Thank you! Now, please perform the exercises in the studybook quietly." The class fell into semi silence as they worked. Lucy kept pushing Natsu back as he tried to peek at her work. Eventually, Lisanna helped him from the other side. Behind them, Wendy and Romeo shyly helped each other through the problems. Behind them, there was a small wager pool going on as to which was going to ask the other out first.
"It's manly to ask out a girl. It has to be Romeo," Elfman declared.
"Tch. A little old fashioned big boy, but I doubt Wendy's got the nerve so I agree," Gray said with a severe nod.
"And you two have girlfriends?" Bisca asked archly. Both boys shut their mouths as Alzack giggled. "Seriously, you two are football stars; you could have your pick of any of the girls!"
"I'm not interested in being weighed down," Gray said a bit tetchily. Elfman looked a bit nervous. The girl he wanted had no eyes for him. Her stony gaze was fixated on Laxus' rising star.
"Mr Fullbuster!" Capricorn snapped. "I hear a lot of talking. Do I take it that you have answers you'd like graded?" There was a momentary panicked bluster and then the class returned to silence. Finally, the bell signalling the end of the day rang, and they were able to leave.
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Gray got off the bus and jumped behind a nearby wall with the precision of a ninja. Glaring over the top, he resolved to get to his house unmolested this time. He stalked down the road, using every tree for shelter. He glanced around. Okay, it was completely clear. He stepped out.
"Gray-sama!" Juvia cried, wrapping her arms around his bicep. Gah! How did she do that!? Juvia was one of Phantom High's cheerleaders, but you'd never guess by how many layers she wore normally. It was September, but she was wrapped up like it was the middle of January. "How was your day, Gray-sama?"
"Uh… fine," he groused. "Still getting ready to beat you guys up."
"While Juvia deeply wishes for Gray-sama's victory, I'm afraid that it isn't going to happen," she said with a confident smile. "You have yet to meet Gajeel-kun."
"He can't be all that," Gray replied dismissively.
"You have no idea. They call him a monster with no empathy. They say that he got kicked out of boxing for killing an opponent in the ring."
"Who is 'they'?"
"Well… they are rumours, but Gajeel-kun is not someone to meet in a dark alley. Juvia cares for Gray-sama too much to let that happen!" She squealed happily as she hugged his arm with all of her might. Gray yanked and pulled, but there was no escaping.
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Damn it, Levy swore bitterly. Why had she taken so many books from the library? Again. It wasn't like she didn't know how heavy they were. She kept readjusting the heavy burden within her arms. She also had the longest commute of any Fairy High student. After getting off of the bus she had to walk for almost an hour.
As she approached the dingy council estate that she lived in, she became more wary of passing lowlifes. The crime rate was distressingly high around here, and she was an obvious target. Today was not to be her lucky day. A young man in a hoodie let out a wolf whistle.
"Damn girl, you look fine in that uniform!" He said crudely. Levy ignored him and hurried on. He took offence to that and grabbed her arm. "Hey, I paid you a compliment, bitch."
"Please let me go," Levy asked as evenly as she could manage.
"And why should I?"
"The lady asked you politely," a new voice growled. The thug looked around and his face paled with abject terror. Levy barely dared to look at the newcomer, a tall boy with a multitude of piercings and piercing red eyes.
"I'm sorry, Gajeel!" The boy garbled and ran away at high speed. The boy, Gajeel apparently, snorted in amusement as he fled. Levy looked up at him and swallowed.
"Um… thank you," she said quietly. He was just so scary that she couldn't elevate her voice any more.
"No problem, Shorty. I just don't like punks picking on girls."
"My name is Le-"
"Why the fuck would I care about your name?" Gajeel ground out, looking down at her malevolently.
"Well, I recognize yours," Levy retorted, feeling her anger rise. "Gajeel Redfox. Phantom High's new star player. Though I'm surprised that you aren't wearing a jersey like the jocks at my school."
"Oh? That little cheerleader's uniform makes you a bright pink target in these parts; why would I want that kind of problem? Why would I want to wear team colours? They're nothing to do with me."
"But it's your team. Don't you care about your teammates?"
Gajeel chuckled. "No. I care more about yours. I look forward to fighting worthy opponents."
"It's a game, not a battle."
This time, Gajeel laughed out loud. "This is High School American Football, Shortstack! This isn't a sport; it's a religion in this country! A religion people are happy to see blood spilled over. It's not a game, it's a war. Careful where you're standing when the battle starts."
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"You really should put that out," Cana noted, watching the smoke rise lazily from the end of the cigarette. "It's not good for your health." Bacchus smile lopsidedly and stubbed it out in an ashtray.
"Better, princess?"
"I don't think that you can call me that while drinking shots!" She replied, matching that cocky grin. He chuckled in agreement,
"Why is it that I can only find another hard drinker from an entire different school district? At least one of my age."
"People seem to think that seventeen year olds shouldn't be drinking, I suppose. I, on the other hand think that this precious nectar should be shared out in liberal doses." She laughed dirtily and knocked back the shot, slamming the glass back down for Bacchus to refill.
"That's what I like about you Cana; you're wild. Tell me; why are you in the cheerleading squad? It doesn't seem to suit you. You're not the preppy sort."
She leaned forward, revealing her cleavage and whispered. "I'm complicated like that." Bacchus blushed slightly before grinning again. Definitely a wild one. "Any way, I want to know if you've heard anything about this new ringer of Phantom's. Are any of the rumours true?"
"Ah? I'm hurt, Cana. Here I thought you were after my stunning charm. Hrmph. You'd think that finding out about a death in the ring would be easy, but nothing's come to light. With the right people paid off, this sort of thing has a nasty habit of disappearing."
"A shame."
Bacchus downed another shot. "But, I have found out something. It may not be all Gajeel. I think they might be using his reputation as a smokescreen. I'd advise not letting your guard down before any of Phantom's players. I'm glad that your team is meeting them before us."
"Ah yes, the Cerberus team is a bit wet, I'd heard. Present company excepted, of course."
Bacchus laughed. "Yes, our team is a bit more full of puppies than hounds, but tell you what, it's our cheerleaders you wanna be scared of."
"Oh?"
"Since the merger between Cerberus and Mermaid High, we gained this scary lot of girls. Kagura's the worst. Far more wild than our boys, I'd wager."
"Present company excepted, of course," Cana purred. "But no matter, we'll take them on. Our squad's a perfect combo. A couple of powerhouses, a midget to hurl around and a tonne of beauties of all sorts. We can take them on."
"It'll certainly be wild. Now, how about we switch to a proper drink?" He asked, plucking a bottle of vodka from his shelf.
"I thought you'd never ask!"
A/N: So… yeah. Sorry, I just had this idea floating about and wanted to post it. It's basically Glee minus the music, if that makes any sense whatsoever. Girls always in cheerleading uniform, boys always in jerseys. Because clothing design is hard. If anyone's seen Leah Dizon's song Love you, that's basically the girl's uniform right there.
Trying not to make this too GaLe centric, but I just can't help myself. I am finding the potential dynamic of Canacchus interesting, though.
Basically, everyone is seventeen here. That doesn't make many changes, but Wendy is her Edolas grown up version and Romeo's basically like a black haired Natsu. Also, I guess Elfman and Lisanna are non-identical twins now, but details! Also it allows me to make Wendy bigger than my beloved tiny Levy-chan so I can hurl her around in routines!
Levy: Uh, thanks I guess…
Also, I'm English. My entire knowledge of American Football comes from Blood Bowl, so don't judge me too much for errors. It's kind of nice to give Jet and Droy roles beyond comic relief. I was gonna make Droy fat, but making him thrower to Jet's receiver makes a lot of sense.