Hi everyone! I would like to introduce a new story to you all. This work is a collaboration between Chartruese and I. Most of what you'll find in here is her grand idea put into my words. I'm very much hoping you like it. Without further ado: our story.

Chapter 1

The smell of blood was still strong in the air when Levy heard the knock on the front door.

She hobbled towards it, afraid it might be Lee, desperately hoping it wasn't.

Her ankle hurt like hell as she tried to raise herself up to see through the peep hole in the door. It took a moment to manage, but the flash of green hair and business attire of black slacks, white button-up, and black suit jacket had her quickly moving to open the door.

She felt the tears coming back up as she pulled the door open and the man on the other side immediately pulled her close.

"Levy! What's wrong?" He asked.

"I'd say it has something to do with the softball on her ankle." Another male voice said and Levy tensed up.

Freed didn't seem startled, so she risked a glance at the speaker.

He was a tall, heavily muscled blond man.

In fact, he terrified her with that first sight.

Scar on his face, tattoo peeking out of the sleeveless shirt he wore, gaudy spiked headphones propped on his head pushed back from his ears.

"Hey, don't be mean." A woman's voice. "What is that smell?"

Levy felt Freed shift and found herself picked up against him.

"Let's get that looked at and then you can tell me why you called me while I was working."

"Working? But...you said you were hanging out. I'm sorry." Levy balled herself up. "Please don't get in trouble over me."

"Calm down little blue, Freed ain't going to get in any trouble." Another, different, male voice.

This man was leaner than the other, but maybe an inch taller than Freed. He walked through the front door with the other two as Freed carried her to the only clean chair in the room.

The one Levy had already been sitting in waiting on her cousin.

"Who..." She trailed off as she watched the woman march into the kitchen as if she owned the place.

Her nice, clean shoes were getting blood on the bottom as she walked towards the cabinets.

Levy cried out when she felt Freed press on her swollen ankle.

"Laxus, do you think you can see if this is broken, I can't quite tell with how swollen it is." Freed spoke to one of his friends.

The bigger man came towards her and knelt.

"Damn, looks like a horror movie in here." The leaner man said.

She took in his attire as she tried to not cry over the pressing on her ankle.

Baggy pants, but more in a harem style than hanging down his ass style. She couldn't tell if they were dingy gray or just bought gray, but they did okay with his dark blue long sleeved tunic style shirt. The fact that his shirt had a hood was actually amusing to her somehow. Especially since he wore a metallic gray beanie hat over what seemed to be dark blue dyed hair. He had an odd facial tattoo that she couldn't quite identify.

"Doesn't seem broken, but we might have to take her to the hospital to really check." The blond said.

From first glance, he seemed scary, but right now he just seemed concerned.

His purple tank and black jeans seemed very punk for such a big man, yet he pulled it off. He wore combat style boots and she could see that the headphones were plugged into a pocket device.

"No...no hospitals." She said.

"Levy, it could be serious." Freed said.

The woman opened and closed some drawers and Levy finally looked up at her as she was pulling one of the kitchen towels from the drawer she'd found.

She wrapped it around what looked like a bag of ice before heading back into the living room and handing it to Laxus.

The big man unwrapped the towel to rewrap it so that he could tie the cold press to her ankle.

"Levy, what happened?" Freed asked.

"I'm sorry, it's nothing. I shouldn't have bothered you." Levy said.

"Who hit you?" The woman asked.

Levy looked up at her. She was serious, not beating around the bush.

"I..." She started.

"Was it Lee?" Freed asked.

Levy immediately started to shake her head, but they must have all saw the look on her face anyway.

Her cousin looked angry. For the first time in over a decade, she saw the look of pure hatred on his normally aristocratic face.

Last time she'd seen him angry like this was when he'd filed charges against her mother for neglecting her.

Freed had been nineteen at the time, going into law after getting his degree early, and she'd been seven, never having been to school because of her mother. He had been coming for her seventh birthday and called her school to arrange for him to take her to lunch nearby. Her school had responded with 'that's not a child in our care' basically and so he'd called the other two schools in her district, the only other two for a hundred miles.

Neither had known who she was. So he'd come to talk to her mother and see if she was just being home schooled. He'd found Levy sitting in the yard with nothing around her, drawing in dirt like a child. Her cousin had figured out her situation based solely on the bruises and ratty clothes and hair that hadn't been brushed in months.

He'd filed charges of neglect against her mother and won and then filed to be given custody of her since he was of legal age to raise her.

It was the best time of her life.

Freed had cleaned her up, bought a condo in a very nice building in Magnolia to move into instead of his older apartment which had technically still qualified but he insisted the new one was better. He hadn't put her in school though, instead favoring to home school her himself.

He had taught her to read, write, do math, science, everything. And when she showed aptitude for magic, he'd had her tested by professionals. When it was revealed that she had a similar magic to his, he had spent months learning exactly how hers worked in order to teach her how to use it.

She owed everything to Freed. He didn't have to do any of that, yet he did, because he cared.

"Levy?" She felt the gentle hand on her arm and jolted. Freed pulled back. "Please talk to me."

"I'm sorry." She cried.

"It's alright. We'll make this better." He said with a smile.

"It's nothing the Thunder Legion can't fix." The dark haired man said.

Levy frowned at him.

"Legion?"

Freed nodded. "Lev, this is my team. Five years ago, when you moved out, I joined a Magic Guild called Fairy Tail. They've been wonderful in helping me with jobs using my magic and my degree for the better." He put his hand on the shoulder of the blond. "This is our leader, Laxus Dreyar, a Lightning Dragon." He motioned to the woman. "Evergreen is a wizard who can turn others to stone as her major skill." He waved at the other man. "Bickslow can raise the dead and take control of people's souls."

She looked at the other man in fear.

"No worries love, I don't do it to friends unless needed." He grinned.

Freed sighed. "So you don't have to worry with us. We'll take care of things." He looked at her again, eye to eye. "Now, tell me what happened."

She clenched her fists before loosening again and looking at the floor.

"I...I must have done something wrong this morning. He's not normally like this. I broke a glass and things just happened. But I cleaned it up and thought things were okay again. And then while I was reading he just snapped. I don't know what it was I did, but he..." Her eyes started watering again and she reached to wipe at them.

She just couldn't speak for a moment. It was Evergreen who actually sat beside her on the seat, making a tight fit and pulled her close.

"It'll be okay." The woman said.

Levy nodded as she cried. "He killed them Freed." She could barely speak.

"Them?" Laxus frowned.

Freed clenched his fists as he stood up. "Her cats. I'd wager that's where all the blood came from. A bit from her of course, from those cuts on her hands, but mostly her cats."

"Fuck." Laxus growled out.

Levy felt Evergreen's arm tighten around her.

"You'll come back to my place, yes?" Freed asked her.

Levy started to speak, to deny.

"Sweetheart, let's put it this way," Bickslow moved in front of her field of sight, pinned as she was to Evergreen. "Either you move back in with Freed, or you'll be rooming with Ever, me, or Laxus. Take your pick."

Freed frowned at him before looking back at Levy in time to see her nod.

"There's a good girl." Laxus nodded. "Now, how much of this stuff is yours?" He asked.

"I...most of it."

"Everything? All right." Bickslow nodded.

She watched Laxus and Freed take out their phones and start taking pictures of the 'horror' set around her.

Laxus held her hand in his much larger one as he took pictures of the numerous bandages that didn't even cover the cuts she'd gotten from Lee shoving her hands into the broken glass that morning. Some weren't even really closed up and he wiped the welled up blood off on his pants.

Evergreen just held her close as Bickslow headed back out the front door.

"Where is he going?' She finally asked Freed as Laxus went to take pictures of the rest of the tiny house she shared with her boyfriend.

"Laxus? To see the rest of this mess. Bickslow is going to get boxes." Evergreen said. "We passed a moving store down the road, so it won't be too long."

She stared at her cousin. "Is that shelf all of the books you have?" Freed asked.

She glanced at the one beside the couch and nodded.

Lee had sold most of her books from when she'd moved out of Freed's condo for spending money. Said keeping books was pointless and wasted space.

She had already been sucked into the lease on the house four years ago so she couldn't leave, and she was too scared of being hit by that time to argue over his collection of beer mugs and various movies and such junk.

Freed came to kneel in front of her and took her injured hands gently. "Why did you stay? Why didn't you call me sooner?"

"I...it's never been this bad." She said.

"The first time he laid hands on you was a time too many." Evergreen said.

"You're a brilliant Script wizard Levy, you know how to defend yourself." Freed said.

He went to brush his thumbs over her wrists in the same gesture he'd done back when he'd first brought her to a new, scary place in the city. She watched his face fill with anger again when he looked down at what his thumb hit on her right wrist.

"Is that..." Evergreen frowned.

"He put this on you?" Freed had never snarled like that to her and she shook at the sound. "I'm sorry Lev. I'm so sorry."

She stared down at the engraved band around her wrist.

A Sealing band. It blocked all magic and this one was not removable. No smith would touch it because it symbolized her ability to use magic and outside of cities like Magnolia, magic wasn't commonly used.

"We'll get it removed back home." Freed said.

"But, no one will do it." Levy said quietly.

"Gajeel can take it off." Evergreen said. "Gladly."

"No, it can't be removed. It's too close to me for tools and magic doesn't work." Levy said. "I'm already used to not using magic, it doesn't bother me."

Freed stood up and paced away. "That's not the point Levy. If you go any longer, your magic is going to make you sick. It probably already is, isn't it?"

She looked down.

"I...took care of them." Laxus said as he came back into the main room.

Levy looked up at him. "They..."

He held out a small box that used to hold tissues, but now held ashes. "Sorry, I can't do much else for them, but when we get back to Magnolia, Ever can do something for you with her pottery supplies."

Levy just stared at the box until it fully sank in that the ashes in that box were her two cats.

"I...how?" She couldn't take it and he finally set it on the table.

"Lightning." Laxus said. "I can create it and control it and it burns hotter than crematory fires when steady."

Evergreen held her close. "We'll make something nice for them." Levy looked up to see the woman actually had tears in her eyes.

That was the moment when everything just kind of fell into being real.

Kit and Kabo were dead and ashes now. Lee had really shoved her hands into a pile of glass that morning and then beaten her three hours later before leaving. She really had dug out her old phone for calling Freed. He had come for her, again.

Levy couldn't stop crying even as she heard Bickslow coming back into the house with boxes.

"Bickslow, pack all her books and a few sets of clean clothes. Laxus, anything you can scent the might be older than her moving in here, pack." Evergreen said from above Levy's head on her shoulder. "Freed, call a donation company, resource agency, whatever. Donate everything she doesn't want to them. Clean this place out. And once you're done calling them, find your connections to clear her name from this entire business."

Levy was grateful the other woman had taken charge as she couldn't stop crying anymore.

After almost half an hour, Evergreen urged her up.

"Come on Levy, let's get those cuts properly cleaned up and I'll get the pack freshened."

Levy just went along with her.

xx

Evergreen carefully wrapped the towel back around Levy's ankle, noting that the swelling had already gone down but still making a note to take her to see Wendy the moment they got back to the Guild.

It would be best to get her situated in the Fairy Tail Dorm where she and Mira and Erza could care for her.

In fact, most of the guild women probably would get involved the moment they saw her.

But first would be Wendy, then Gajeel to get that repulsive band off her wrist.

She could hardly believe it was on there so tightly. It was as if it was a second layer of skin on her.

Once Levy was done crying, she just passed out.

Evergreen carefully pulled Freed's suit jacket on her to keep her warm and urged them all to stay quiet as they packed the books and Bickslow grabbed a backpack full of clothes.

She watched Laxus and Bickslow take the two things out to the car.

Getting back to the train station wasn't going to take long with the rented car, but it would be a bit cramped in the backseat with her there. And she wouldn't get the front seat like she wanted.

It was just not roomy enough to have Laxus back there.

Once Levy was soundly asleep, Evergreen looked up at Freed coming back inside.

"Done. I've gotten everything sorted for her. Had to throw my weight around again." He grinned, the first pleasant look on his face since they'd shown up at the door.

At first, Evergreen had questioned why they were going to be stopping at this town on the way back instead of taking the car straight back to Clover. Now she knew and was pleased they'd stopped.

It was ten minutes longer before a truck showed up with a local donations logo on it.

She hushed them all and Freed explained the situation to the three men who'd come with the truck.

Their looks of pity and sorrow were evident and Ever watched over them all like a hawk, ensuring the seat Levy sat in went out last.

She carefully shook the girl awake when it came time to move it.

"Hmm?" Levy mumbled as she sat up and rubbed at her eyes.

"They need the chair Levy." She said gently.

It was strange to be so gentle, considering she normally dealt with brash men and Freed.

Freed was his own classification. Able, intelligent, sometimes childish too, but he could get down and dirty with the other boys just as easily. He was by no means a prissy boy just because he wore a suit half the time.

It just happened that this was one of those missions that required him to dress the part.

His Rune wizard status wasn't needed in the field this time, but in the court.

Bickslow came to help Levy up and two of the other men came to take it.

As the truck was driving away, she heard another vehicle pulling up. She moved towards the door as she heard a door slam.

"Fucking bitch better not have left."

Evergreen was not impressed in the least by just his tone of voice.

Seeing the man was even less impressive.

He was barely taller than she was without the heels on. He dressed in beat up punk clothes that even their resident grunge wizard wouldn't have touched. Gajeel wouldn't be caught dead wearing anything that ragged. And the man wore some pretty beat up clothes.

His brown hair was oily, he wasn't exactly handsome.

In honesty, she couldn't see what Levy had seen in him.

His personality was obviously shit.

He must have put on one damn good act to fool someone related to Freed.

Freed had touted his cousin's skills for months to the point that even she was tired of it. So she knew Levy must have been talented and smart.

He came up short when he saw Evergreen in the doorway.

Inside the house, by Bickslow, she could see Levy shaking. Her partner did his best to stop her from shaking, even going so far as to pick her up. Which was probably for the best because of her ankle anyway.

"Who the fuck are you?" Lee snapped at her.

Evergreen leveled a cold gaze at him.

"A friend of Levy's." She said just as coldly.

"Cunt has no friends."

Evergreen wasn't prepared for Freed to push past her. Nor for her partner to punch the man in the face.

Of Laxus she might have expected it, but not him. He was the cultured one most of the time.

Lee went down, but shot right back up.

"What the fuck?" Levy's Ex exclaimed. "And who the hell are you?"

He obviously wasn't all that bright.

"Her cousin."

"You've got no business in my house." Lee snapped. "I'm calling the cops."

"Already on it." Laxus held up the handheld phone that he had been using earlier to take pictures.

"Get out of my house." Lee shouted at them.

"Freed." Evergreen warned.

He clenched his fists, but took a step back.

If he did anything more, he knew he could be the one with charges pressed against him. As it stood, he was still liable for something. He knew the exact details, but she'd helped him with enough cases to know that he could be in trouble.

Lee started to push into the house past her and she stepped back.

As soon as he saw that they'd not only cleaned up the blood from him killing Levy's cats, but cleaned the place out, he got even more pissed.

He started to turn for her and she leveled another glare at him.

"Hit me and I'll make sure you don't ever move again." She said.

Instead, he turned towards Levy and Evergreen felt actual anger that the girl was so scared she gripped Bickslow's tunic hard enough to open cleaned cuts and make blood seep into the proper bandages she'd gotten from their kit in the car. Were she not injured, her knuckles would be white.

The look of fear as Lee stepped towards her was evident. Bickslow raised a brow at him. "Want my boot in your ass?" He didn't even sound amused like he normally did.

The man seemed to pale as he realized that the weakest here physically was protected by the four strongest.

He didn't even look in Laxus' direction as Freed came to stand in the doorway. Laxus was busy typing on his phone.

"Get out." Lee snapped again.

"Soon as the police are here." Evergreen said.

The little man looked at Laxus typing and took a single step forward. Instantly the static in the room centered on him and she watched his hair stand on end. It wasn't pretty.

"Don't even think about threatening me little shit. You might have put a Seal on Levy, but just try me." Laxus glared at him as he leaned on the wall to finish his text.

"You're..."

"All wizards." Evergreen smiled coldly. "Maybe next time you'll get away with this. If Levy weren't so timid, we'd have been on your doorstep earlier."

They stood like that for almost five minutes until the police showed up. She let Freed handle the words and went to care for Levy again with Bickslow.