Fandom: Fairy Tail

Ship Title: Gajevy/Gale

Rating: T

A.N.: I'm horrible at titles. I apologize.. basically a fanfiction where Gajeel has to take care of Levy when she's sick. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or it's characters, Hiro Mashima does.

It was another day at Fairy Tail and Gajeel decided to take the day off rather than go on a mission. Lily had decided to take an easy mission himself for some extra cash, so that left Gajeel to drink some ale at the guild hall and watch all the fairy's go crazy. As he came in, it was unusually quiet. It looked like Natsu's team (Gray, Erza, Lucy, and Wendy) had gone out on a mission leaving it a lot quieter than the usual, which Gajeel didn't mind honestly. It was nice for a change.

As he glanced over to the Shrimp's usual spot, where she was usually nose deep in a book, he noticed the seat empty. She must be on a mission, Gajeel thought.

He went to the bar and ordered his usual, which the demon lady gave to him with a smirk. "She's not on a mission if that's what you are wondering."

He glared at her then. She just smiled back with a knowing look. He heard the door open and close and didn't even bother to look, probably another fairy coming or going. He noticed the demon lady's face turned in to a frown and a worried look to her eyes. She walked away from the counter (which was very seldom) to whatever held her interest, not that he cared.

"Levy! You look sick! Are you okay?!"

His ears perked up then. He glanced behind him and could see the demon lady had her hand on the Shrimp's forehead. He could see she looked very pale, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were dazed over, but she still had a determined look to her face and was holding a stack of books. She swatted at the demon lady's with one hand. "I'm fine! I have stuff I need to study, and I can concentrate better here, so leave me be!"

"But you have a fever! You really should be in bed! You have been studying way too much and have not been concentrating on your health!"

"Mira, please, I'll be fine! If I feel really bad, I'll go home!"

"You promise?" the demon lady asked hands on her hips.

"I promise!"

He heard the demon lady sigh, "Fine.. but I'm getting you some medicine."

"Thank you Mira!"

The shrimp went to her usual spot and started setting the books out. He would never admit it in a million years, but he was worried about her. The demon lady went to her cabinet and poured some hot tea and some medicine and set them both in front of Gajeel. "What am I supposed to do with that?!" he grit out staring at her.

"I know you were listening. She needs it. I have a list of stuff I need to prepare for dinner tonight, so I don't have time to take it to her," she said sweetly, but he could see the evil glare she was giving him that if he didn't do it, she would kill him. He didn't want to take his chances. He grabbed the medicine and drink, and stalked towards the bookworm muttering, "damn, demon woman.."

As he walked over, he could see she was intently focused on reading something in one of her books. He set the cup down loudly along with the meds. She squeaked at that. "Demon lady told me you needed to take these." She glanced up at him, but went back to reading her book. "Just set it there, I'll get to it later."

He grabbed the book from her then. "What are you doing?!" she yelled at him as she jumped up to get the book back from him.

"Making you take your damn medicine!" he yelled right back, glaring at her.

She pouted at that, folding her arms across her chest. "Fine, I didn't need that book anyways.." She sat back down and grabbed another book.

"Dammit! WOMAN! Why won't you take your damn medicine?!" Gajeel shouted.

She glanced up at him, and then went back to reading, "It's because it makes me sleepy and I don't have time to sleep! I have to figure out what is wrong with this ruin! I'm running on a deadline!"

Gajeel didn't understand deadlines nor did he do anything with deadlines. If deadlines meant putting that before your wellbeing, then to hell with deadlines.

"Fine! Don't come crying to me when you are sent to the hospital!" he yelled at her before sauntering back to his usual spot on the bar bench. This woman was unbelievable.

"Did you get her to take the medicine?"

"Like hell I did. She won't listen to me!"

The demon lady smirked at that. "You and her both are too stubborn for your own good."

"I'm not stubborn!"

"Sure…" she said as she rolled her eyes and went to serve some other fairies.

He continued drinking his beer while throwing glances at the bookworm. As time went on, he could see she was really concentrating on her books, but she would throw her fingers to the bridge of her nose or her forehead rubbing it constantly. He saw her glance at the medicine, but shake her head as she continued reading her book. A couple of minutes later, she then started shivering, rubbing her arms. He could see the pin-pricks on her skin, like she was cold even though it was warm in the guild. That really worried him, because he knew she must be really sick to be getting like that. He then saw her get up and started putting her books away. Once she was done, she put her fingers to her forehead again like she had some sort of headache. She shook her head and grabbed her books. As she turned to face towards the door, he noticed her face looked even worse off than when she first came in. He got up then. He saw her legs start to wobble as he made a beeline for her. He got there right in time as she started to faint from the fever more than likely. He grabbed her shoulders before she could hit the ground. "Gajeel?" he heard her whisper, a confused dazed look on her face.

He put his hand on her forehead and pulled it back sharply. Her head was on fire. She had dropped her books in the process of her almost fainting and was about to pick them up before Gajeel stopped her. "Oh no you don't." He lifted her in his arms. She was as light as a feather. "But my books!"

"I'll get it later." She nodded in response as she closed her eyes and seemed to have passed out then because her body went limp.

The demon lady was already at his side with a worried look. "Thank you. Please take her to her room for me. Here are the keys to her room; she left it on the table. And make sure she takes this medicine for me." She gave him a plastic bag which he managed to grab from her while still holding the shrimp. He nodded and started to head towards the girl's dorms. "Oh, and our land lady is out of town. Don't you dare do anything to her or I will kill you!"

And he knew she would, and he wasn't even thinking of that honestly. He didn't take advantage of girls like that; that wasn't how he did things. "Yeah, yeah, I know," he said as he walked out of the guild holding the sleeping fairy.

It wasn't a very far walk luckily. When he got there, it was easy to spot which room was the shrimp's, with books piled on both sides of the doors. He managed to unlock it balancing the sleeping shrimp in his arms. As he walked in, and turned on the light, he blinked. There were books everywhere. There were probably more books in here than even the library. Luckily there was a small pathway to the various rooms. He managed to find her room pretty easily. He went over to her bed and set her down and was about leave until he remembered himself getting sick in the past, and his father making him strip his clothes off because if he didn't he'd get even more sick because of his sweat making him colder and not be able to control his body temperature. He glanced over at the Shrimp and could see her forehead furrowed like she was in pain and her outfit was socked through because of the fever. Shit..

Like hell he was going to do that, he thought as his face flushed as he headed out of her room. He went out of her dorm and yelled, trying to see if there was another girl in the building that could help him out, but he was met with complete silence. Fuck. He went back to her room. If he didn't, she might get even sicker and he didn't want that. He glanced around and found a baggy shirt that could easily be slipped on. He glanced at her dress. 'Stop thinking dirty thoughts. This isn't the place,' he thought to himself, but he still couldn't stop the flush from going to his cheeks. He untied her dress and pulled it over her head pretty easily. She had the cutest underwear, a pale pink strapless bra and panties. Dammit… he glanced the other way as he held her back to get the top on. He could feel heat radiating from her body and he was worried. For dragon slayers, this temperature wasn't an issue, but for mere humans, this could cause serious damage. He needed to get her temperature down and fast he thought as he managed to pull her arms through the top and set her on her pillow. He folded her sheets around her shoulders and noticed she was breathing heavy and sweet pouring down her face.

He went to her kitchen and filled a bowl with water and some ice cubes, got a hand towel, and a glass of water. He went back to her room and found the medicine he set aside when he put her on her bed. She needed to take the medicine and even though he didn't want to wake her, it needed to be done. He shook her shoulders gently, "Oy, Shrimp! Wake up!"

She blinked a confused look on her face, "Gajeel?"

All of a sudden her eyes shot up and she sat up right trying to get out of bed, "The ruins, decifer.."

"Woah, woah, you're not going anywhere missy," he said as he held her shoulders.

"But.."

"No buts!" he grabbed the medicine and cup. "Take it now or I will have to force it down your throat," he smirked wickedly. She grabbed it from him quickly and swallowed.

"Good," he pushed her gently back down on her pillow, "Now you aren't going anywhere. You're going to be sleeping until you get better."

"Gajeel, please, I really need to get the deciphering done."

He glared at her then. "I am going to stay here until you are asleep, so don't even think about it." She blushed in response and turned the other way.

"Fine.." she replied begrudgingly. He smirked in response. He waited until he could hear her breathing slow in response to sleep. It didn't take very long. He sat down on a chair by her bed and thought what to do next. His father always put a cold towel around his neck and forehead to help relieve the fever (which was funny if you think of dragon taking care of a human child). He grabbed the hand towel he found in the kitchen and set it in the bowel with ice water. He rung it out and started to pat her neck and her forehead. It didn't take very long for it become warm again, so he continued doing that for a couple of minutes. Her head had turned towards the ceiling rather than facing the other way in the process, and he could see the furrows on her forehead like she was still in pain from the fever. Her face was still very flushed. He put his hand on her forehead and noticed it had gone down slightly, but not enough. There were times when the fever would seem like it would go away, but then return even worse than before. He learned that the hard way when he was younger. He knew that if it did that with Shorty, she wouldn't be able to make it and he couldn't let that happen. So he kept up his vigil in applying the cool cloth to her neck and forehead. When the water got warm, he went and got some more cool water and ice. He didn't realize how long he had been there when he heard the demon lady come in. It must have been past 11 at night.

"How is she?" she asked as she came over to the end of the bed.

He didn't even look over at the demon lady, just kept his focus intent on the Shrimp. "Better than before, but this night is crucial. She needs to break this fever or it could get worse."

"Do I need to get Porlyusica?!" she asked concern evident in her voice.

"I think she will be fine, but I'll let you know if it comes to that."

"I can take over now. You should get your rest."

"No, I'm fine."

"Gajeel, really, you should get some sleep. It wouldn't help if you get sick too."

"Woman, I'm staying rather you like it or not!" he ground out.

She just sighed in response. "Fine. I brought some left overs for you from supper. I figured you haven't eaten, so at least eat, for Levy's sake. If you need anything I'm right down the hall. Don't be afraid to wake me."

He just nodded in response, keeping his focus on the Shrimp. He heard the door close and guessed she had left. He smelt the dinner, and his stomach growled in response. He grabbed the food and ate it quickly so he could continue looking after the shrimp. After another couple of hours had passed of him looking after Shorty, he was getting tired, he felt his eyes start to droop. He shook his head. He couldn't sleep! He had to stay awake! But his body was saying something different, before he realized it, sleep had claimed him.

"NOO!"

He heard Shorty's voice yell out and he jumped up, ready to attack anyone that was harming her. He blinked, realizing he had fallen asleep. Shit! He glanced around and didn't find anyone. He looked at her and could see her tossing and turning in her sleep. She must have been dreaming. He breathed a sigh of relief. At least it was a dream and not an enemy.

She bolted forward in bed, and he thought she was awake until he could see that her eyes were still closed. She must be still dreaming.

"Don't hurt him! Please!" She was reaching out her arms to thin air.

"Oy! Shrimp! You're dreaming!" he said as he grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her, but she didn't respond, so entranced in the fever dream (or nightmare perhaps).

"Gajeel! Don't die! Please!" His eyebrows shot up at this, she was dreaming of him? He wanted to know what she was dreaming.

Tears started to fall down her face then. He tried to shake her awake again. "I'm not dying Shorty! I'm right here! Wake up!"

She still couldn't hear him it seemed though. All of a sudden she held her head and let out a loud anguished cry. It cut at his heartstrings. He didn't know what she was dreaming, but he just wanted her to stop crying. He held her in his arms, rubbing her back telling her it will be okay. That it's just a dream. She continued to cry against his chest until he felt her go slack against his arms, seeming to fall back asleep again. He laid her down against her pillow and put his forehead against hers. "Get better, Shrimp. Please."

He went back to putting the cool damp towel on her forehead and neck, trying to get the fever down. He did that for who knows how long.

Levy squinted as her eyes tried to adjust to the sunlight coming in. Where was she? The last thing she remembered was being at the guild hall, looking over books of ruins. Wait! That's right! She had a deadline! She sat upright in bed, and realized a person was sleeping against the side of her bed. She looked down and saw Gajeel's mane of hair and his piercings gleaming in the sunlight. He was sitting on a chair, with his head on her bed and one hand holding a wet hand towel sound asleep. Gajeel?! What was he doing here?! That's right, she did go to the guild with a slight fever, but ignored it. Did he stay here all night to take care of her?! Her eyes went wide as she covered her mouth in shock. She then realized that she was wearing her night shirt rather than her dress. Did he change her outfit? Does that mean he saw her underw… Her face turned beat red. She noticed he started to stir and laid back down facing the other way, covering her face with the blanket. She was so embarrassed.

Gajeel woke up drowsily and opened his eyes, squinting. Damn, the sun was already out? He shot up and realized he fell asleep again! He glanced over at Shorty and noticed she was facing the other way, but he could see her blue locks peeking out along with an ear. The ear was bright red. Shit, did she still have a fever?! He put one hand on his forehead and reached around to feel her forehead but oddly hers was a lot cooler compared to yesterday. He breathed a sigh of relief. Her fever had finally gone down. He then listened and realized her breathing was more normal like she was awake rather than sleeping. He listened even more and could hear a fast heartbeat. So she was awake.

"Hey! Shrimp!" he said loudly.

She squeaked and jumped underneath the covers.

"I know you're awake!" he glared at her head of hair.

She slowly, turned to face him, only allowing her eyes and nose to peek out. "Um.. thanks for helping me yesterday. I'm sure I was a pain to deal with." She laughed slightly.

"Yeah, you were a pain the ass!" he said his arms folded on his chest, glaring at her.

"I'm sorry Gajeel," she said, as she looked like she was about to cry.

Dammit, he didn't want to make her cry. "I'll let it slide this one time, but you owe me!"

She glanced up at him then. "What do I owe you?"

He smirked and came within a couple of inches of her face causing her to blush. "You get to train with me so you won't ever get sick again."

He pulled back and noticed her eyes glare at him. "What kind of training are we talking about?"

He smirked as he started to walk out of her room, "Oh, you know the usual, weights, running, sparring."

He could feel her grimace in response. "But Gajeel! I can't do all that!"

He glanced back at her before he left. "You owe me remember!"

She pouted and crossed her arms across her chest. "Fine!"

"Gihihihihi! Get some rest Shrimp, you got some intense couple of days ahead of you!"

He didn't miss the heavy sigh she gave in return and just kept smirking as he left her dorm. This will be fun. This will be fun indeed, he thought to himself.

A.N. - I might or might not do a chapter 2 of this with Gajeel training her. If I get enough interest I will, but if not, I probably won't.