ONE SHOT:
Levy watched with distress as Fairy Tail Team A rushed to the infirmary with an unconscious Lucy in their arms.
She had stood there, swaying on her feet as she and the rest of her nakama were forced to watch her best friend be slowly tortured.
"I'm...can't believe they did that..." she murmured, feeling sick to the bone. She could feel the anger radiating in palpable waves off of her friends, but she only felt fear.
She feared for her friends, who had to face Sabertooth and Raven Tail; the other Guilds' malicious intent was enough to make her feel nauseous.
At that moment, she had clashed stares with red eyes; Gajeel had turned to look straight at her.
Blinking back tears and swallowing that hard lump in her dry throat, she mustered up a faint grimace at the Dragon Slayer.
He seemed to look right through her fake smile, into the anxiety that bubbled underneath her pale, soft skin.
"Gajeel..." She muttered weakly, knowing her soft words could reach his heightened hearing.
At that moment, after the shock wore off, Fairy Tail B got up and began rushing to the infirmary, following their nakama.
Gajeel managed one tiny, grim nod in her direction, and strode off in a hard purposeful manner.
Unable to control herself, she found herself unconsciously scurrying through the bleachers, and rushing after her former S-class partner.
By the time she reached the infirmary, the doors were closed.
She could just as easily enter...but she was scared. What laid on the other side of that door? Was Lucy...alright?
Instead, she opted to lean her ear against the door, barely making out Master Makarov's voice.
"The game administration has ordered us to combine both of our teams together..."
Levy heard faint gasps inside the room.
"...So we must reorganize a new team with 5 members..."
She backed away from the door, shaking like a leaf.
"No no no no no..." she whispered frantically, her throat tight.
She wildly ran out of the infirmary, stumbling a few times in her haste.
As she ran outside, she was unaware of a certain black haired man who had stepped outside of Lucy's room, a deep frown on his face.
Levy's scent lingered in the hallway, but she wasn't there...
Wondering what the Shrimp was up to, he followed the sweet scent with a slight scowl on his face.
***
Back in Fairy Tail's lodging, Levy paced in her room.
She knew for a fact that Gajeel would be in this new Fairy Tail Team...and that he would accept!
"How could he do that?" she shouted out loud, kicking the wall with feeble force.
"Didn't he see what happened to Lu-chan? H-he can't go out!" she whispered fervently.
"I-I won't let him participate!" She declared, punching her fist into her palm.
"You and what army, Shrimp? Gihihihi."
The bluenette yelped, swirling around to come face to face with Gajeel, who was lounging on her window sill.
"Y-you! You can't just enter through my window!"
With a shrug, he hopped into her tiny room.
"Why not? Salamander does it to Bunny Chick all the time," he said indifferently.
Being reminded of Lucy, Levy grew pensive again.
"You can't go out," she said petulantly.
"Why not?"
"Why not? After what happened to Lu-chan, how could you participate?"
"I'm participating because of what happened to Lucy," he said somberly. When she refused to meet his gaze, he tilted her chin to see her hazel eyes.
"I would do the same for anyone in Fairy Tail. You too, Shrimp."
A tear slid easily down the corner of her left eye, running along her jaw line.
"How could they do that to her? She's so kind...and she really tried..." Levy sniffled. "And I can't stop thinking of how they just laughed at her pain." Her eyes began to blur with tears.
He pulled her to him in an awkward hug, softly rubbing at her shoulders.
"Come on Shorty. Now's not the time to be getting all depressed," he said gruffly.
"What time is it?" She asked through hiccups, rubbing her eyes.
Placing a firm hand on the top of her sky-kissed blue head, he bent down to her eye level, and gave her a wide grin, revealing his sharp canines.
"It's time to kick some ass. Gihihi," he chuckled.
She managed a small, shy smile back at him, her eyes already brightening.
"Wait! You have to promise me that you'll try your best and won't do something reckless and stupid, alright?" she asked firmly.
He straightened up and groaned, rubbing the back of his neck with reluctance.
"Shrimp, if it weren't for my stupidity and recklessness, I would be in a grave by now," he said frankly.
"Just promise me you'll be careful!" She pouted, holding up a small pinky finger daintily.
With a slight bit of hesitation, He intertwined his large pinky finger with her tiny one, and they shook on it.
"Good!" She beamed up at him. "Now...you need a memento of our promise..."
"Really, Shrimp?" he asked in an exasperated voice.
She ran over to her dresser and pulled out scrap pieces of cloth.
"This is from my old dress," she explained, holding up a long strip of cloth.
As he took it from her, she rambled on nervously.
"You can just put it in your pocket, or..." she trailed off as he wrapped it around his waist, over his black tunic.
"So when you see me out there, you can take a good look at this and not get so worked up," he gave her one of his rare, genuine smiles.
Levy began to feel heat rush up to her checks as she blinked rapidly, feeling flattered.
"Ano...you'll need something to match that with..." she said faintly, running back to her drawer.
She pulled out a twin strip of that cloth and slowly walked back to Gajeel.
"L-let me," she murmured timidly, going up on her tip toes.
He ducked slightly, lowering his head to hers. His eyes were trained on her face and under the intensity she began to wobble.
As quick as a flash, his hands reached out to hold her hips, securing her from tipping over.
With shaky hands, she pushed the black, spiky hair off of his forehead and began to tie the cloth around it. When she was done, she stumbled back, taking in his new look.
She appraised him with approving eyes, a slight smile on her face.
"Like what you see, Shorty?"
He seemed to waggle his eyebrows teasingly at her, but she couldn't tell for sure under the cloth.
She smiled largely, feeling a lot better after the horrendous events from that morning.
***
Levy watched proudly, as the new Team Fairy Tail came out into the Arena, in all their glory.
"I can't imagine them losing to anyone," Juvia said warmly, sitting next to Levy.
Levy didn't say anything, and just kept her eyes on a certain young Mage.
A determined, confident smile bloomed onto her face as she watched him take in his opponents with a hard, stony glare.
"Me neither," she murmured, scrutinizing his new clothes.
At that moment, he turned to look at her. She sat up straighter in her seat, that confident smile still on her face.
"Give them hell?" She whispered quietly, raising an eyebrow.
Hearing her, his fingers ghosted over the headband, and then back to his side.
His gave her a hard smile, and nodded.
AN: OH GOD DID ANYONE ELSE GET GOOSEBUMPS AT HOW UNBELIEVABLY EPIC THAT WAS WHEN THEY WALKED OUT INTO THE ARENA? They're so...badass! :3 Reeeevieeeewwww and tell me if you liked it! And what you thought of the new chapter! Me and my brother were discussing the last bit in that chapter...apparently that was talked about waaay back in another FT chapter? I don't know...Yeah...
Anyways, this was inspired by Gajeel's new clothes in the most recent chapter of Fairy Tail :)
ALSO! I might add another chapter to this, if there are more opportunities in this Arc (Which I'm sure there will be!) for GaLeā¦Like this new challenge? 2 people VS 2 people. Fairy Tail VS Sabertooth? Natsu and Gajeel VS Sting and Rogue? *Fingers crossed*
AND ONE MORE THING! I've started a DeviantArt account! Yipee! I have posted any doodles yet (too lazy to scan drawings), but I will soon! You guys should definitely check it out later (in a week or so) when I start posting Fairy Tail doodles. It's
Reviews are greatly appreciated! *Virtual hug*
