Suffocate (Parole Part 5)

by Sketcher1994

The door crept open. A flash of spinning blue flew at the newcomer, the side of a foot seemingly colliding with his head. Juvia released an almost feline snarl as she dropped back to the floor. He had stopped that kick with his forearm. The blue blur that was Juvia continued throwing kicks, faster and faster. How long had it been since he had seen those terrifying legs in action?

AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!

Hey! This is the last instalment of the Parole series! Hope you enjoy it! It's certainly been fun writing it!

(Was very tempted to use "Knuckles" - someone who fights with their fists (and a cool red hedgehog) - but used "Muscles" - someone who's all muscles and no brain - instead. It was much more derogative and therefore more disarming. This is also my first real attempt at writing a fight scene that I have playing in my head...)

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The door crept open. A flash of spinning blue flew at the newcomer, the side of a foot seemingly colliding with the side of his head. Juvia released an almost feline snarl as she dropped back to the floor. The bastard had stopped that kick with his forearm, but he had not managed to stop himself smashing into the now wide-open door, splintering the wood. She threw a hooking kick at him, aiming for his precious lower spine. His arm snapped out again as he shoved himself out the remains to the door. A turning kick to his face, him blocking again, as he tried to finish righting himself. The blue blur that was Juvia continued throwing kicks, faster and faster as she warmed up. How long had it been since they had really fought? How long had it been since he had seen those terrifying legs in action?

"Think she can get him out the damn doorway?" Totomaru grumbled next to him, both of them still hidden in the shadows.

"Don't ya wanna watch her kick the crap out of him?" He snorted, shaking his head. He would rather the bastard was dead before he left. Shrimp was tucked under his damn bed, if he was lucky. That was where he had told her to stay the moment Totomaru had given the signal. "I'd argue she needs to think more about the fucking furniture, but she's either gonna have to brain him with one of those kicks or get him into the bathroom."

"I filled the bath?" The idiot shrugged. "I've already done half the work for her – why didn't she already have it done?"

"Ya can't fight inside." He stated, keeping his eyes on the fight.

"What?" Totomaru frowned.

"Ya can't fight inside with yer fire, so she'd figured it would have to be outside – she was planning on ending the bastard with those deadly legs of hers from the start." He explained, admiring another set of well-aimed kicks. He would not be surprised if those long, lean, strong legs of hers were part of her seduction too. "Did ya see the mess he made of her place?" Gajeel chuckled, beginning to shift towards the remains of the front door as Juvia landed a kick to the ribs on the left side of the guy's body, sending him soring towards the bathroom. He was pretty sure he had heard cracking when that kick landed. "Hurry up – we gotta find the boss." He grunted, slipping out the doorway as yet another door was destroyed.

They hurried silently down the stairs, checking every dark shadow and shape as they went. He had to be here. That bastard upstairs had had reinforced armguards – he had anticipated Juvia's kicks. Or maybe those were to protect from his punches? Was it really possible they still had the upper hand? No, Jose would have realised by now. Juvia was silent, like water sliding by, hissing like water rushing over rocks when the fight gets more intense. His fighting was more like the snarls and roars of a dragon – he was not 'quiet', especially when surrounded by shattering furniture in the more intense fights. A grunt of pain echoed down the stairs as they reached the front door. She had landed another kick.

"Let me get that for you."

He stood less than a meter from them, suddenly materialised from thin air, from shadow. Gajeel threw a punch, but Jose was already out the door, laughing. He had not changed. Taunting had been the bastard's favourite pastime. It would not have surprised Gajeel if he had used something like the reflection of the glass on the side panel next to the door to pull off that damn trick. He was going to end this, once and for all.

"Keep your head, muscles." Totomaru snorted, moving out the door in front of him. "So, Boss, you hired a hitman to kill us then?"

"A hitman? No, your replacement." Jose sneered, folding those long arms over his chest as if he would not even bloody need them. Bastard.

"My replacement? If I'd been there, I could have had that fire out in five minutes – he's an amateur." Totomaru chortled, slapping his thigh. "He's more like muscles here – he knocked my wife out and then left her to burn. She didn't really stand a chance." He continued, his voice suddenly much more serious.

"She should be glad her last hit-job wasn't to copy Gajeel – she would have been slowly beaten to death. The being burnt alive should have brought her back around, but she was thoroughly tied up by then. By kerosene-soaked ropes." Jose grinned, baring all those white teeth at them gleefully.

"She was your niece." Totomaru growled, flicking his makeshift lighter out from somewhere. Hopefully the bastard had his flameproof clothing on for this – it was fucking Jose Porla. There was no way this bastard was going down easy.

"My daughter, actually." Jose shrugged, still grinning at them. "I figured I'd try a little experiment, see what would happen if I had a lab create an embryo from my sister and myself, then have it implanted in my sister. We were twins, so I was curious as to the end product. She had my personality and her mother's… durability. She could put up with anything and, because of that, could learn to do just about anything. She learned quickly to enjoy people's screams, to enjoy killing. Aria was always the hardest for her to imitate. He was very good at either just outright crushing someone's skull or holding them up by the throat until they suffocated. My favourite was his palm-thrust to someone's chest. Leaves them completely winded, breathless, suffocating because he's hit them so hard, their lungs were puncture by their broken ribs."

"Ya're one sick bastard, ya know that?" Gajeel snarled, throwing another punch. Jose dodged, but he still felt the expensive cloth of his collar brush against his gloved fist. The old man was getting slow. Or he was getting better. Ten years in prison could definitely do that.

Gajeel jumped back as flames suddenly licked past the side of his head. Bastard! Was that supposed to be for him?! Shit… Was it possible that Totomaru had actually been taken back on by Jose? If he had the 'amateur' set the fire to give himself an alibi… He could have been informing on them this whole time. Juvia. The reinforced armbraces. Fuck. Glass rained down from above, leaving sharp glitter coating the two of them. He could not look up. He could not look away from Jose.

"Freeze!"

Shit.

"Heeey! Juvia's boy-toy made it out of the car! What took you so long!?" Totomaru snickered, flipping his lighter up in the air and catching it again. He was far too laidback right now. "Are you going to arrest him? Alone? You'd be best shooting him – he may look unarmed, but he's fast and he's got some nasty blades hidden in those clothes of his." A click sounded, sending out a blast of flames a meter long from that tiny-ass lighter before his words had died in the air.

"That was a new coat." Jose hissed as he shrugged off the burning garment. He had not worn flame-resistant clothing. "I'll make sure I get the insurance money from your little home burning down."

Gajeel swung another fist, barely catching Jose's sleeve. He followed with another three, catching Jose's shoulder. He shifted just in time to dodge another blast of flame, followed by a punch to the space Jose had just entered to avoid the flames. The idiot had actually entered Jose's range! Then again, everything was his range with those blades. He had not even gone on the defensive, never mind offensive yet. All he had done was dodge them.

"Gajeel, you're really letting yourself down! Totomaru here has landed two and you've only managed one." Jose listed, tutting. "I'm truly disappointed."

"I'm waiting for those knives of yers." Gajeel snorted. They were a hell of a lot less dangerous once he could damn well see them.

A scream sounded from above him, slicing through the air. He spun to look up at the flat and grunted, dropping to one knee as his right hand move to clutch at his left side. He felt the warm liquid beginning to soak into his green tank top as his shadow tripled in size, stark black against the bright light of the flames seemingly coming from his back. He growled, gritting his teeth as he rose back up to his feet.

"Officer Fullbuster, go help Juvia Lockser. She's on the second floor – just go in through the smashed doorway. She's up there fighting some big bastard while we fight Jose." He ordered, taking a deep breath and turning to glare back at Jose. "Parole Officer, Levy McGarden, is up there too."

Fullbuster swore and raced past the three of them, gun ready. Jose's grin became impossibly wider. Now he knew the shrimp was up there too. The bastard could use that against him, possibly kill her just to send him insane before ending him. The only way he could protect her now was stop the bastard from getting up those damn stairs.

He was going to do just that.

He launched another series of punches, ignoring the searing pain in his left side, deftly avoiding that unsheathed bloody, eight-inch blade. He threw a front kick at Jose's chest, catching him off-guard. Juvia was not the only one who could fucking kick. Jose stumbled back into the path of Totomaru's flames, snarling as skin blistered. Jose swiped at Gajeel, both blades suddenly in his hands. He narrowly dodged the glowing metal. Glowing? Fuck! Totomaru had hit the bastard's other knife! Gajeel hissed as he failed to completely miss the next swipe, the heat sealing the cut on his forearm as fast as it formed. He feinted a punch, catching Jose out with the following turning kick to his ribs.

"You're angry now, knowing your little woman got hurt." Jose laughed, cradling his broken ribs with a fowl-smelling arm, the flesh already cooked up by his shoulder blade. The fact that he could use that arm at all was irritatingly impressive.

"Don't talk to him." Totomaru bubbled, grinning like a kid in sweet shop. "This was just getting fun! Muscles will go in a huff if you're mean to him!" Bastard.

Gajeel took a breath, grudgingly grateful for Totomaru's interruption. He threw another punch as Jose glanced over his shoulder with a smirk at Totomaru. A burst of flame at that moment had Jose stepping straight into Gajeel's right hook. Jose dropped to the ground and rolled, getting out of the middle of them. He hissed as he got back up, the pain in his shoulder, ribs, and now face, clearly bothering him. Gajeel adjusted his gloves, letting his grin turn manic. It had been a fucking long time since he had had a fight like this. He rolled his shoulders, letting that old skin slip into place, fitting him as snuggly as his gloves. He strode up to Jose.

The bastard grinned.

"Welcome back, boy." Jose cackled, throwing his arms out, his right only making it halfway. "There's the old Gajeel I knew! Took you long enough!"

Gajeel cracked his neck, stepping within range of those deadly blades. Jose snorted and brought a blade to Gajeel's throat in the blink of an eye. Shame his wrist was caught in Gajeel's shattering grip. He squeezed, eliciting a whimper from Jose as the blade dropped from his trapped hand. The other blade swung for him and he splintered Jose's left wrist as he caught the slower right. Gajeel cackled, letting all his inherited impossibly sharp teeth show as he looked down at the now cowering Jose. He smashed his forehead down against Jose's and his former boss crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

"He really didn't want you back." Totomaru smirked. "Not the new stronger, faster you. Is the conscience back, or should I be worried you're going to punch my lights out for threatening your girl?" He chuckled, slapping Gajeel on the back.

Shrimp.

His old skin fell off as easily as it had returned. He raced for the stairs, followed by an almost lazy Totomaru who was still grinning happily back at their former boss. It did not matter if they had beat Jose, his new goon was still in his and Lil's damn flat! He stormed into the flat, surrounded by splintered wood, fist ready to punch. Juvia was breathing heavily, slumped next to the bathroom door, bruises already forming on the skin visible through the tears in her dress. He looked down at the unconscious thug being handcuffed by Fullbuster, a couple of nasty looking knuckle dusters thrown to one side. A sigh of relief escaped him as Shrimp's head popped up on the other side of Fullbuster. She was fine.

He slumped to the floor as his world turned back.

…

"You're an idiot."

"I heard ya scream." Gajeel grumbled from his hospital bed.

"The door turned into tiny pieces, followed a second later by the entire bed collapsing on top of me! Of course I screamed!" Levy exclaimed, completely exasperated with him. She had thought Jose's henchman had discovered where she was and just smashed through the bed to get to her… It had actually been that Juvia had landed another kick and accidently sent him flying into Gajeel's room. "You could have explained the situation to Gray from the start. Then you wouldn't have been so worried that you got yourself stabbed! You almost died!"

"Shrimp, it may have escaped yer notice, but that was a fight for our lives. Juvia doesn't fight that hard, not now… She only does it to protect others." He sighed, offering her an apologetic smile. "She was fighting for all our lives – if she'd failed, all four of us would be dead right now."

"And what if you and Totomaru had failed?!" Levy snapped, throwing her arms up in the air. She frowned as he flinched.

"If we'd failed, we'd both be dead and Jose would have gone upstairs to finish the three of you off… but at least there was two of us." Gajeel admitted, looking away from her.

"What happened?" She demanded, folding her arms across her chest.

Something had happened during that fight, other than him being stabbed and almost bleeding out. She was still angry with him for trying to fight while losing so much blood! And the idiot had ran up the stairs! Only to dropdown the second he saw them – he had had such a weak pulse, Gray had initially thought he was dead! The idiot! She glared at him expectantly, letting all her anger bubble to the surface.

"We won." He shrugged.

"I know, but you almost died." She spat. She could feel her stupid tears welling up again.

"But I didn't." He returned, his face an iron mask.

"Jose's right shoulder was cooked." She began, holding his crimson gaze. It was almost like being back in her stupid office, trying to work out if he really was just a psychopath. "He had blisters down that right arm and across his back. He had a cracked cheekbone, broken nose, six broken ribs on his left side, and an irreparable, shattered wrist. What happened?" She finished, her voice cold.

"Ask Tote." He grunted, turning his head to look out of the hospital window.

"Totomaru is currently in a cell, waiting to find out if there's going to be any charges against him. That's where you will be when you get out of this stupid hospital." She divulged, glaring at him.

"He won't talk." Gajeel sighed, his attention dropping to his restrained wrists. "I could break out of these." He admitted quietly. "I'm stronger than I used to be… I hadn't realised how much stronger."

"Ga-"

"But it wasn't just that." He continued, flexing the muscles in his arms. She watched as the muscles rippled under his skin, waiting for him to keep going. "If he'd approached me when I'd just got out, I'd have gone with him. I'd have let that old skin creep right back on, welcomed it." He confessed, turning his ungloved hands over, back and forward, studying them. "I could have changed sides last night – he was ready to welcome me into his arms if I wanted back." Gajeel admitted, his voice painfully soft as he spoke. "But I had something more than my life to fight for. I don't know if Juvia and Totomaru would have come with me if I'd changed sides… Totomaru had a blast last night – laughed his ass off the whole time. He was getting to play with his fire and kick the boss' ass." He mused, a small smile catching the corner of his mouth. "Juvia doesn't live to fight… and if she didn't have her current obsession with Fullbuster and trying to get close to his friends, she might have come without a second thought…"

"Gray was the one who beat her in a fight and talked her down." Levy nodded, taking hold of his hand. "Lucy and Erza have tried talking to her a few times when she's appeared in the same bar as all of us… She'll still not sure about our intentions, but you would think it would be us with reservations." She mused, squeezing his hand gently before running her thumb over the side of his. "She'll be fine…" She smiled back at him, only to realise he still was not looking at her. "Gajeel…?"

"…I hadn't realised how much I'd changed until last night." He stated, his crimson eyes fixed on their interlocked hands. "He knew I'd been holding back, refusing to let that old skin back on…for you." He pressed, squeezing her hand back at last. "I was trying to bury that monster."

"Because you are not that monster anymore." She chided, laying her other hand on his shoulder.

"I am." He silenced her with a single look before she could argue. She knew he was not that unfeeling monster anymore and he could not convince her otherwise. "I was… Last night- Last night, when I knew he wanted to hurt you, I let that skin back on. I welcomed it. And he was so fucking happy… He threw his arms out and fucking welcomed me back. I knew the only way I was going to win and protect you from him was to let that monster out of its cage. He was brutal, dangerous, fast… everything I'm not when I'm holding back." He gulped, fear mingled in with his resolve shimmering in his beautiful eyes. "But I am that monster. That monster is as much a part of me as my arm, Shrimp. It may have been created by Jose, but that monster is me." He continued, the fear in his eyes growing as a tear rolled down her cheek. She could not even wipe it away without letting go of him. She could not do that. "Thank you."

"What?" She blinked, startled by his sudden, inexplicable gratitude.

"Thanks, Shrimp." He smiled softly, glancing down at their intertwined hands. She suddenly had the feeling that he would have kissed the back of her hand, had his not been strapped to the bed. She internally swiped the thought away. Nonsense. "Ya didn't give up on me – ya even turned up at my damn flat when it could have gotten ya raped and killed." He snorted, shaking his head. "If it hadn't been for ya, I'd have still been that monster waiting for its master to come back for it."

"You couldn't be all that bad." She shrugged, hoping her face didn't light up like an electric fire.

"Ya can say that after that night?" He contented, frowning at her deeply.

"I can now." She nodded, gripping his hand tightly. "I fought too last night… It was me who smashed the second window." She admitted bashfully, trying to hold his gaze. "I was throw-"

"What do ya mean 'second window'…?" He demanded quietly, his eyes narrowing.

"Well, I heard the first one smash – Juvia told me that he'd realised where she was trying to get him and managed to get them away from the bathroom, but she dodged his punch and his fist collided with the window…" Levy babbled. She was in trouble. He was going to be angry with her.

"Shrimp."

"Well, she managed to land a kick and he came flying through your bedroom door and onto your bed… which was when I joined the fight." She trailed off, beaming apologetically as she rubbed the back of her neck with her left hand.

"And how did ya break a damn window?! Lil's gonna kill me!" Gajeel snapped, clenching his left fist.

"Em, well, I don't have a great punch or kick, so I was throwing everything I could get my hands on at him – I have a great aim!" She babbled, laughing nervously.

"Great aim?! Ya broke a window!" He exclaimed in disbelief.

"Juvia kicked him out the path of the cat…" She mumbled, hanging her head in shame. "Everything else landed?"

"Cat?" He groaned, scrunching his eyes. "Please don't tell me ya threw Lil's expensive bronze cat ornament out the window?"

"Yes…?" She squeaked. "It's ok? I got Gray to check it and we should get it back once all this mess gets cleared up." She nodded. She was in so much trouble.

…

"Well, it's a nice house." Lily nodded as he stood looking at the outside of his new home.

"The higher ups decided to reward you for all you've done…and to apologise for putting your life in danger." Levy explained as she got out of her car. "My friends helped move all your stuff in. Obviously, you will probably want to move things around yourself, but please just call and we'll rush over to do it – you're still healing."

"What about you?" Lily frowned, looking down at her.

"I- I may have lost my job, but I'll find something else. Maybe something with books, miles away from fights to the death." She laughed, handing him the keys. "Gajeel's right – my strength is my brain."

"I'm sure you'll find a job with books and danger." He chuckled, accepting the keys. "Is the coffee in the cupboard above the kettle?"

"Yes?" She frowned, trying not to pout at his comment.

"Good, I'll make us some." He grinned, heading in through the front door.

Levy followed him in and got herself settled on the sofa in the living room. If she went to help him make coffee, he would just growl at her. Like Gajeel had been doing for the past two days. She sighed, picking up a cushion to hold against herself. It had been a long couple of weeks, but at least the two of them were out of hospital now and Gajeel had not gone back to prison. She had no idea what she was going to do about her job, but that was a problem for another time. She had plenty of money saved up.

"How's our friend?" Lily inquired as he dropped down next to her elegantly. It never failed to astound her how silent and graceful such a large, muscular man could be. He was almost feline. "Miss Levy?"

"Oh, sorry!" She smiled, gratefully taking the steaming mug. "Grouchy."

"Are you calling me Grouchy or telling me Gajeel is?" He mused, taking a sip of his coffee before suddenly downing the whole mug. "It's been a long couple of weeks." He offered in explanation.

"Wasn't that hot?" Levy blinked, looking into her own mug.

"Yes, but much needed." He sighed, staring into the empty mug. "I hadn't realised how out of shape I was until that big bugger broke in." He admitted quietly. "And you and Juvia took him down?"

"Mostly Juvia…" She nodded, taking an almost burning sip of coffee.

"I've text Gajeel to ask if I can train with him once we're both up to it." He smiled, turning to look at her. "He took a knife to the stomach… I'm impressed he's still alive, never mind beat Jose."

"I've already told him off for that." Levy frowned, tightening her grip on the mug. "I guess we're all safe now, though… Jose's back in prison, along with his new henchman. We all made it out alive somehow. I can't really call him an idiot."

"No… He had that pretty well thought out. We would have been in trouble if even one of them had changed sides mid-fight." Lily admitted, resting a bandaged hand on top of her head.

"He says he was worried at one point that Totomaru had changed sides before that fight began, but that he was pretty sure he could trust Juvia to stay strong…" She explained, looking back up at him.

"She was the one Jose did the most damage to." Lily countered, watching her.

"No, she wasn't." Levy stated, holding his gaze. "He took a broken girl – who had cut herself off from emotion yet held onto her hatred of men – and pieced her back together into a killing machine. Since the warehouse, we've been working on undoing that damage, but Gray saved her life that night on the rooftop when he arrested her." She reasoned, taking another sip of coffee. "He took a boy who loved fire and turned him into an arsonist… He drained away the human part of him that would have stopped him from setting people on fire."

"Are you saying he did the most damage to Totomaru?" Lily interjected, clearly thinking over her words.

"He had Sol break people's minds, leaving them gagged, screaming messes while he buried them alive, unable to save themselves." Levy continued absently, taking yet another sip of coffee. "Aria, he took a poor, simple-minded boy and pointed him in the direction of someone he wanted dead. Most of the people Aria killed once he was locked up were accidents… He didn't know his own strength most of the time – he'd just been doing what he'd been told – and he had cried every time he had killed someone. He was just doing what he'd been taught, sometimes just trying to make his master happy, and people kept ending up dead."

"It's probably best the poor guy's been put out of his misery, I guess… I don't agree with needless killing, especially when it's someone who needed help, but he would have just kept killing until he couldn't take it anymore." Lily reasoned, taking the mug from her hands. "You're not ok."

"Gajeel… That night… He was the most terrifying thing I have ever seen…" She whispered, tears beginning to roll uncontrollably down her cheeks. "He did that. Jose, he created that monster." She sobbed as Lily wrapped his arms around her. "He took an innocent little boy, searching for his missing father, and turned him into a brutal, unfeeling monster."

"I know." Lily murmured, rocking them back and forward gently. She felt a drip land on top of her head. "I know."

…

"So, Lil' wants to start training once we're both fit again." Gajeel began the moment she stepped in through the door. "Think they'll let me see him again or would that be a parole violation, Miss Shrimp?" He teased, starting to walk up to her. He stopped as he saw her puffy face. "Shrimp? What happened?!" He demanded as he rushed to her side, taking her into his arms.

"Nothing." She smiled, clearly trying to act as if that were true.

"What ya upset about?" He asked a little less forcefully, cupping the side of her face.

"You almost died, Gajeel – I'm going to keep getting upset every now and then." She laughed, stretching up to kiss him.

"Well, I've got some good news for ya that might cheer ya up?" He grinned, kissing her back. "Ya just missed Fullbuster – he wanted to offer ya a job."

"A j-job?" She stammered, looking back up at him disbelievingly.

"Yeah, a job." He chuckled, nipping her nose. "A desk job. Ya're good at thinking and shit, ya know, working things out and putting pieces together quickly, so he was here to offer ya a job. I told him ya were at Lil's, but that I'd pass on the message."

"Wow…" She gulped. Could it really be that easy? She had lost her last job for getting herself too involved and not reporting in, putting multiple lives at risk…and she was being offered a job with the police?

"He promised me no fieldwork, but ya'd find a way to get out there anyway." Gajeel sighed, kissing her again.

"What about you?" Levy frowned, wrapping her arms around his neck. "What will you do?"

"Go back to work as if nothing happened." Gajeel shrugged, causing her to topple forward. "Either way, I ain't leaving yer damn side."

"I knew I'd win you over to the light eventually." She smirked, giggling as a spark of desire flickered through his crimson eyes.

"What if ya hadn't?" He returned, raising a sceptical studded eyebrow.

"Then I'd have had to change side halfway through that fight." She teased, kissing him passionately. "I didn't always love you, Gajeel – you used to be the monster in my nightmares, had me waking up screaming in terror in the middle of the night – but I couldn't love you anymore than I do right now. I'd do anything for you."

"I'd rather ya just called me back to ya." He murmured, holding her closer as a tear rolled down his cheek. "I'm finally home."