A/N: My first attempt at an AU. I don't know something about Shrek's rude, stand-offish attitude just reminded me of Gajeel and all of a sudden this was born. It's just a silly idea, so I might rewrite it or add to it later, but for now tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I don't own any Fairy Tail characters and a lot of this story line and dialog was borrowed from Shrek, so the credit goes to DreamWorks for that.

Somewhere in a land far far away stood a steep, jagged rock of a mountain secluded from the rest of the world. A constant array of storm clouds surrounded this mountain, effectively making it seem as though night never left. The only source of true light came from the large, gloomy castle placed atop it. This castle was enclosed in a pool of molten lava where a fierce, vicious dragon lurked in anticipation of the next fool who attempted to enter her territory. Deep within the confines of the castle awaited a beautiful young princess who dreamed of the day her prince charming would heroically rescue her so they could fall deeply in love and live happily ever after.

This all sounded like a Fairy Tale, but for Princess Levy it was all more of a nightmare or an extreme inconvenience at the least.

It's not that Levy was lazy. She knew that just because she was a princess didn't mean that she should get everything handed to her, but being stuck in a tower for nearly ten years was really starting to wear on her patience.

In reality Levy probably could have escaped the tower on her own. Being stuck in the same place for that long gives a person time to observe their surroundings and Levy knew that castle like the back of her hand. She knew everything from the undamaged areas of the castle to the sleeping schedule of the dragon she shared it with and that would be enough really. Levy had read enough adventure novels to know what to do after that and she'd be lying if she said she hadn't thought up an escape plan more than a dozen times. However, her situation wasn't quite that simple.

Living in a land that despised and shunned magic, Levy wouldn't be any better off out in the real world, or the palace she called home for that matter, than she would be stuck in her tower. Perhaps during the light of day she could pull off being normal, but by night she was a regular freak, an outcast, and a danger to those around her.

Levy was cursed with the power of words by a witch when she was just a little girl and now she was forced to live out her days in the tower until her true love rescued her and broke the spell with a kiss. That's why she patiently waited alone day after day and today was no different.

Levy sat on her bed reading a book on ancient languages. She had probably read it before, but it wasn't as if she could just stop by a local book fair to purchase new reading material. She had to make do with what was given to her and Levy had always been fascinated by the art of languages so she didn't mind much.

She wasn't really expecting anything out of the ordinary that day, but was pleasantly surprised when she heard foreign noises coming from the castle. The dragon, surprisingly, didn't usually make much noise on an ordinary day so hearing unfamiliar bangs and clashes could only mean one thing. Another knight had come to rescue her.

Over the years, knights from all over had come to the tower in an attempt to save her. Unfortunately, none had yet succeeded. Most of them ended up retreating like cowards, but the more unlucky of the few were currently burnt remains floating in the moat of scorching lava.

Levy sincerely hoped that this time wouldn't be as unsuccessful as the rest. She knew that it was pretty likely that her escape from the dreary castle would not be today, but as she lay down on her bed and closed her eyes a speck of hope still remained inside her.

She honestly expected the noises to die down eventually and her day to go on again like usual. What she did not expect was for a large man in half of a suit of armor to come crashing through her bedroom wall, cursing the whole way.

Her eyes popped open in surprise for just a moment to make sure she wasn't dreaming. And when she caught sight of the man picking himself off the ground hope swelled inside her. Levy didn't think she had ever been this excited in her whole life. This could very well be the day she met her true love and escaped this dreadful tower for good!

With this knowledge Levy laid back down and prepared herself. If this truly was the Prince Charming she'd been dreaming about ever since she was a little girl then surely he would make a grand romantic gesture. Perhaps he would gently sweep her off her feet and awaken her with a kiss. That's how she always imagined the moment happening anyway.

Instead of receiving a kiss, however, she was awoken by rough, gloved hands violently shaking her shoulders and a gruff voice.

"Oi, Princess! Wake the hell up! Shit, she better not be dead."

Levy's eyes shot open in slight confusion and irritation. "What-"

"Are you Princess Levy?"

Levy sat up and looked at the man. She couldn't see him very well with his helmet on, but if he was brave enough to slay the dragon and come rescue her than surely he must be the man from the prophecy right? Yes, of course it was him. This was the moment she had been waiting for.

Levy smiled brightly up at him. "I am and I have been awaiting your arrival for quite some time, brave knight."

"Uh right. That's nice and all, but we really need to get the hell out of here." The knight turned from her bedside and started heading back the way he came in.

"Wait!" Levy stood up and shouted, confused. "Sir Knight, this is our first meeting. Shouldn't it be a little more….romantic?"

The knight rolled his eyes at her. Though she couldn't see the act, she could tell he was becoming annoyed by his tone of voice.

"Listen Shrimp, we don't have time for stupid shit like that."

Levy still wasn't moving. Did he just call her a shrimp? She was a princess for goodness sake! People couldn't just treat her that way! Least of all her knight in shining armor who she'd been waiting half her life for. This couldn't be right. Maybe she was dreaming after all…

Her thoughts were interrupted as the man roughly grabbed her wrist and started pulling her.

"Come on. You wanna get out of here or not?"

"Hey wait! What are you doing? Shouldn't you be sweeping me off my feet so we can ride off into the sunset together on your valiant steed?" Levy asked panicked.

She couldn't see him very well, but she knew he was looking at her like she was crazy. Levy lowered her voice and looked away, a bit embarrassed now at what she said. "Or something along those lines..."

The knight snorted at her. "Damn, you must have been planning this for a hell of a long time."

"Well yeah I've-"But she didn't get to finish her sentence, because her "noble" knight decided to rudely burst through her bedroom door at that moment and rush down the castle stairs with her in tow.

"Oh come on!" Levy half- yelled, exasperated. "We have to savor this moment! We'll remember it for the rest of our lives! Can't you recite a poem or sing me a song or something? Anything?" She was panting by the end of her rant.

He stopped running and looked at her. Perhaps she had finally gotten through to him!

"Yeah, that's not happening."

Levy sighed. Of course not. "Well can I at least know the name of my champion?"

He paused for a moment then replied.

"Gajeel."

Levy smiled at him. Gajeel huh? Well, it sure was a strange name, but Levy kind of like it.

"Sir Gajeel, please take this favor as a token of my gratitude." She said pleasantly as she handed him an embroidered handkerchief.

"Uh… thanks?"

Gajeel took the handkerchief and looked at it strangely before quickly wiping his face under the helmet with it and turning to chuck it into a nearby pit of lava.

Levy was about to scold him for throwing away her gift, but never got the chance, because at that moment a loud roar echoed throughout the palace. Levy shrieked, now even more upset than before.

"You didn't slay the dragon?!"

A/N: As always thanks for reading! I might add another chapter or part to this, but I'm not sure. It kind of depends on the feedback I get. I do have some ideas, though, for the future if I continue with this story including Pantherlily. As the male lead's talking animal partner I think you can guess what role I'd have for him, but don't worry Lily's definitely staying a cat/exceed.