Hi all! Welcome to my second part of Fairy Tail Lives. I would recommend reading the first part if you have not already done so, however I don't think you'll be lost if you decide not to. I simply will be making mention of events in other parts of the series in these stories. Not sure if I've explained but most of my series will be simply to satisfy my wish for romantic conclusions for some of my favorite Fairy Tail characters. And even some of my less than favorite ones. I completely understand that it's not originally a romance based story so hints and such may be all we ever officially get. But that's the beauty of fan fiction, right? Heh. All stories in this series will be directly related to each other and as stated about my first "Fire Dragon's Friend", I added a couple of OCs to the group. (My longest of the series was inspired by a dream that started a plot bunny that I could not get rid of.) As with the last, this series is mostly going to take place after the Grand Magic Games and the fight with all of the Dragon's that came through the portal afterward. Although I am aware of some of what happens next I got a little burnt out on my Fairy Tail binges and so I have not watched anything that happens after the Celestial Spirits are rescued after their "rebellion" or whatever you want to call it. This story will have shorter chapters than the last and I'll be updating daily until it's done. Won't be very long to wait for completed posting. One of my favorite pairings is Gajeel and Levy. This one gave me so much trouble, I can't even tell you. I kept getting sooooo stuck on how I wanted this to play out. It isn't entirely ideal and I have a few parts that I'm not 100% pleased with the flow, but I couldn't figure out a rewrite on those sections that I liked any better. I hope you'll forgive me. I'm hoping that my editor and I found all the glaringly obvious grammar and spelling mistakes. No major action in this one as it's not my strong point. I guess you could label it as just a fluff piece to satisfy my need for a resolution! Love to all those who read and I'd love comments/reviews. I really hope you enjoy.
Correction: as I was looking at the chapter immediately after posting I noticed my page break didn't show up and it was confusing when point of perspective changed. I have since added in a line break and hope that clears up any confusion. I apologize for the oversight.
Correction 2: Ack! I completely forgot the disclaimer! I do not own Fairy Tail or any of the characters created by it's fantastic characters. If plots hold any similarities to other stories it is coincidence and unintentional. Only my ideas and my own OCs do I own.
Levy McGarden was a very petite, blue haired, hazel eyed, Solid Script Wizard of the Fairytail Wizard's guild, currently the strongest guild in Fiore. She was an incurable bookworm, intelligent and incredibly cheerful. Usually Levy could be found at the guild hall with a stack of books nearby as she read one, or four, more. Often there would be a certain Iron Dragon Slayer and his Exceed companion sitting nearby. She enjoyed the company of both the man and his feline partner.
Today Gajeel and Pantherlily were off on a job and Levy, instead of reading, was in a bit of a daze. She stared off into a kind of blankness. It was true that her general gaze was directed toward her best friend, Lucy & the Fire Dragon Slayer Natsu, aka Salamander.
Lucy and Natsu had announced to the guild that Natsu had recognized Lucy as his mate and that Lucy had accepted this almost a month ago. From what Lucy told her, they were both new to any type of romantic relationship and so were taking things slowly. They acknowledge that the bond of a Dragon and his mate was for life, but were taking steps as it seemed natural, rather than rushing headlong into more than they could immediately handle. Which Levy agreed was a wise decision. The whole situation had gotten her to thinking about Gajeel a bit more than she usually did and she wasn't sure what to do about her predicament.
Gajeel was tall, incredibly strong, handsome in a rough sort of way and had turned out to be a loyal and protective member of the guild. Their beginning acquaintance had not been pleasant in any way, shape or form. But Gajeel had tried to make up for the pain and fear he'd caused in the war with his former guild, Phantom Lord. His reliability had been complete once he joined Fairytail. He'd been a loyal member and after a while he was also a trusted and liked one.
She had tried to forgive him early on, but her fear of his attack on her and Team Shadowgear had stayed behind with her to make it difficult. However, when he'd saved her from the unjustified attack by Laxus, she'd begun to lose some of that fear. The rest of it quickly dissipated.
Gajeel wasn't the outgoing type that Fairytail usually attracted, but somehow he still fit. So eventually she'd come to even trust and care for the Iron Dragon Slayer. If she was honest with herself, she was also attracted to him. She'd tried multiple times to help him during battles, but he always sent her away from the worst danger. At first she'd assumed he thought she was weak, but eventually she came to hope that it was his way of showing he cared, by protecting her.
Levy saw him in her mind's eye. Long black hair that looked like it might be surprisingly soft if she dared to run her fingers through it. Red eyes that were scary until you got to know him. A rugged but attractive face. A ridiculously muscular frame. Piercings all over; 3 over each eye instead of eyebrows, 3 on each side of his nose, 2 below his lower lip and 3 in each ear, plus 4 in each of his forearms. And of course he towered over her.
She'd been fighting admitting to an attraction to Gajeel since they'd gone on the S-class trials and he'd volunteered to be her partner and help her attain S-class status. His appearance of having joined only to be able to fight strong members of the guild had angered her, until he'd come after her to protect her from the members of Grimoire Heart that had attacked her. That was the first time she'd really seemed to feel something more for him, and it had been growing since then. Lucy had been trying to get her to open up about her feelings, but she'd been too nervous to do it. She stayed by his side often, she assisted him when she could. He, in turn, seemed to like being near her, as well.
This wasn't to say that they didn't occasionally have moments of aggravation. He often belittled her team and she'd defend Jet and Droy loyally. She may not return the affections of her teammates, but she cared for them deeply as friends and wasn't going to let anyone insult them without coming to their defense. She had often set out to prove to Gajeel that she and her team were stronger than they might seem, and thoroughly capable wizards. There were times when his brute strength and fighting skills were not what was needed and she made sure he was aware of it, without being patronizing about it. His Exceed companion that looked like a bipedal black cat in his normal form, was much more accepting of the strengths of others if they didn't happen to be fighters, and even studied a bit himself.
Levy wanted to tell Gajeel that she liked him, but she was afraid of rejection. After all, while he seemed to care for her safety and spent time with her, he never said much to make her think he had romantic feelings towards her as well.
After the Grand Magic Games, when they attended the Grand Ball, he'd found her when she'd been off alone writing in her journal. She'd expressed her relief that he was still alive after the fierce battle with the Dragons brought through the Eclipse Portal from the past. He'd reprimanded her for thinking he'd be killed. After she'd expressed the fact that her worry had only been because such a dangerous battle could have gone badly for anyone, even a Dragon Slayer, he'd scoffed. "Mind your own business," he'd said. "Let me mind your business just a little," had been her reply with a little blush. It had been the first time that she'd put into words some of her sentiments about him. Once more he'd scoffed and said "That's what's annoying about you." She'd given him a bittersweet smile and started to cry, without realizing it. When he'd asked her what she was crying about she'd lied and said she didn't know and was sorry for crying.
She did know why she'd cried, though. She cried because even then he couldn't let her show her affection without saying something short and unkind. Even if he did care about her, he seemed determined to be tough and not show it. Yes, he'd danced with her later at the ball. Yes, he continued to pay her his silent attention and tease her in a friendly, for him, manner. But did that mean he liked her, too, or was it simply that she was one of the only people he'd be friendly and open with as mere comrades? Was his attachment to her merely guilt over their initial interactions and a sense that he should make it right by protecting her?
It made her a little sad thinking about it and she frowned slightly, still lost in her own thoughts, not really registering the world around her for a while. She wasn't sure how long she'd sat like that, and was snapped out of her reverie by a rough voice. "Oi! Shorty! Whatcha starin' at?"
She startled out of her thoughts to look up at the subject of them. "Uhhhh….nothing. Heh, just thinking." She looked down at her hands with the lightest of blushes, then grabbed one of her books and started reading it to cover her lapse.
"Uhn," came the grunted response as he sat on the opposite bench facing away from the table, elbows leaned back on the table watching the rest of the guild. He pulled a couple of iron nails from his pocket and began chewing on them. Within minutes the metal snack had been devoured.
Pantherlily came up to her and asked what she was reading today in his surprisingly deep voice for such a small creature. It certainly fit his battle form, a muscular humanoid form that was still definitely feline, in which he was a strong and capable warrior. One would never guess it to look at him now. She smiled at the Exceed and answered. "It is a history of Joya. I got to talking with Faye yesterday about some recipes for medicinal concoctions that are useful even if they aren't magically infused. We ended up somehow discussing her homeland and I realized that while I'm not completely ignorant of Joya history and culture, I don't know as much as I'd like. I like to know about the places my guildmates come from!" she smiled. "I've read the book Lucy brought back from Edolas on its history several times since then."
"Well, any time you'd like to discuss Edolas history, I'd be happy to oblige. I'm not the scholar you are, but I am quite knowledgeable about that subject," Pantherlily offered with a smile.
Levy returned his smile and suddenly remembered she'd had a treat for him in her bag. She pulled out a kiwi and offered it to the Exceed. "I thought you two might be returning today, so I brought your favorite, Lily!"
Lily thanked her and she asked him about their job, which he told her about with commentary here and there from Gajeel. It was nice to have them back, she admitted. Ah well, even if things didn't change, it was still pleasant, at least.
Gajeel listened with one ear and put in comments once in a while as Lily and Levy talked. Eventually their conversation ended, the Shrimp went back to her books and Lily went to talk with Erza about a new fighting style he was interested in trying to develop with her help. Gajeel simply stayed seated, watching the guild but paying little attention to anything but the calming scent of the bookworm seated behind him. She smelled of leather bound books, floral soap and slightly of ink. It was an unusual combination, but it was a scent he had a soft spot for.
After a while, Lily was done and it made sense to return home. They walked back to Gajeel's room at the men's dormitory for Fairytail, Gajeel silently, Lily not speaking for a few minutes either. Finally, about halfway there Lily decided to strike up conversation.
"For someone who was in such a hurry to finish that job and get back, you didn't say much when we returned," stated the black Exceed.
Gajeel just shot him a quick glare and kept walking.
"You know, you could try talking to her, sometime. An actual conversation," Lily teased.
"The Shrimp? What would she want to talk to me about? She's a scholar, I'm a fighter. Not a lot in common."
"Oh, I don't know. You could talk about how you want her to be your mate, or how she likes you," came Lily's reply with a sly grin.
"Are you off yer rocker? She'd never be interested in a guy like me. I pinned the woman and her teammates up to a tree the first time I saw her. That's hardly gonna foster fondness." He grunted a bit as he thought. "Besides, she's got her two fanboys."
"Don't be an idiot. You're not as dense as Natsu, are you?" asked Lily, obviously to rile him up.
"Of course I'm not!" Gajeel yelled.
"Then stop acting like it," reprimanded Lily. "Levy very obviously does not have romantic interest in those two, no matter how infatuated with her they may be. She was very much concerned about you during the Games. I thought she was going to suffocate me, at one point, between her nerves and her enthusiasm when you did well. She was not concerned on that same level for anyone else, even her best friend, Lucy," Lily stated matter-of-factly.
"Really?" Gajeel asked, trying to sound somewhat disinterested.
"Yes, really. Or I wouldn't have said it."
Gajeel thought for a bit. There were signs of affection from her, if he allowed himself to see them. She didn't stop his presence near her when they were in the guild hall. When they were on Tenrou Island and he had convinced her to run and tell the others about the intruders on Tenrou instead of staying to help him, she had conjured iron for him to eat and gain strength. The iron had been in the shape of the world "iron" as was typical with Solid Script Magic, and the hole in the center of the O had been a heart shape. There were lots of little times she'd stayed nearby to help him during fights, offered encouragement, or just smiled in a sweet way that was a little different than towards anyone else. And then there was their conversation after the Grand Magic Games and the subsequent dragon battle was over. If asking him if she could mind his business just a bit wasn't a sign that she at least cared a little, then he didn't know what was. But then he'd gone all short and ruined the moment. She said she didn't know why she'd cried then, but he wasn't sure that was the truth. After all, looking back he'd basically thrown her gesture away with his words. It wasn't what he'd wanted to say. It had just come out. He'd actually been pleased that she wanted to mind his business, but his macho complex had also been a little hurt by her concern that he'd have died during the dragon fight. The fact that he felt as though he had died, or maybe should have died, didn't help. Nor did it help that he was upset that not a single dragon slayer had defeated a dragon. Well, except Natsu when he destroyed the Eclipse Gate by smashing a dragon into it. But it wasn't without the help of the fire dragon, Atlas Flame.
Oh why was he always so short with her when it mattered, why did he always say dismissive things? She was so damned smart it intimidated him, even though she was physically weaker than many of the other members of the guild. That didn't really matter, though, because she made up for it with a determination that astonished him and a strength of spirit that put him to shame sometimes. Why couldn't he actually express to her these sentiments?
Levy's presence was invaluable to him, she helped calm his tendency towards rash and uncontrolled anger. There was something about her scent that filled his senses and made him just want to breathe it in forever. She challenged him with her intellect to not be just a brute, and he loved how she was constantly trying to prove she could get along without him. Sure, he saved her butt a lot, but her knowledge had been invaluable in a great many ways where his strength would not have helped and saved many of them. Most recently when she had devised a means to alter the spell used against Levy's best friend, Lucy. Bunny girl wouldn't have been a goner without Levy's arrival, due to the determination of Natsu to rescue the woman he'd only just realized was his mate, but she'd have been in a lot worse shape after the rescue.
As Pantherlily opened his mouth to speak again, Gajeel cut him off. "Enough, Lily. It's pointless, the Shrimp and I 'aint meant to be.
Pantherlily sighed but didn't speak anymore on the subject. He knew the Iron Dragon well enough by now to realize the conversation was done. For now.