. Revenge .
A smile danced across her face as Levy flipped the page of her book before pulling away to to deal with a customer who'd decided to stop in the store she was working at. She exchanged money and a few words for a few moments, then sat back to read again until someone came in or the shop closed for the evening.
It had been like this for a few weeks now. Since their return from Tenrou Island, the Grand Magic Games, and every other issue on the planet had calmed down, she'd taken to working a normal job rather than taking the many job offers that now flooded Fairy Tail's request board. She didn't feel like listening to Jet and Droy argue if she was being honest, and her job here was a hell of a lot more safe than running around fighting with monsters like she was sure Team Natsu did on a daily basis.
Besides. This job got her a lot of good books for free.
She'd contemplated every now and then whether or not asking Gajeel if she could assist him on one of his jobs, but had decided against it. She was sure the iron dragon slayer would be annoyed by her and claim that just because he'd helped her through the S-Class exams and what had happened after didn't mean he was going to get all friendly with her.
That didn't mean she hadn't tried of course. She'd joined him once or twice when he'd been in the guildhall drinking, providing a silent yet pleasant company that he hadn't seemed to mind when she pulled out her latest book to read. The second time she'd done it, Lily had come over to read with her, taking interest in the novel.
That had ended when Gray had shouted an insult at Natsu that had resulted in a full out brawl and Bisca getting furious at the ice-make mage for spitting out such words in front of her daughter.
Sighing, Levy stretched, glancing at the clock thoughtfully. Time to close down the shop. She hurried to clean up, grabbing her possessions and the keys to the building. Brushing her dress off and adjusting her headband, the solid-script mage stepped outside and turned to lock the door to the building behind her. Then she set off, heading in the direction of Fairy Hills.
It was decent outside despite the chill that had filled the air earlier in the day, not quite cold enough for the young woman to require a coat. She grinned to herself as she stuck the keys into her bag, opened her book, and began to read as she walked.
She'd been walking for a few minutes when a hand shot out and slammed the book out of her hands. It struck the ground with a loud slapping sound and Levy's head shot up just as a fist struck her jaw, sending her sprawling. Head spinning and vision blurred, Levy yelped, clutching her face with a shocked expression as she tried to figure out what had just happened.
A few men and a sneering pair of women stood above her, and the young mage hissed in pain when one of the women placed her foot on her back, driving the heel she wore down and gritting it roughly into her flesh. "Aw," she cooed, voice malicious. "The fairy bitch fell over...how mean of you."
The one who'd originally knocked her down grinned. "C'mon, admit it. It was hilarious." He threw his head back and laughed.
Furious tears filled Levy's eyes, but when she moved to scribble a word onto the ground, a foot slammed down on her arm. A shriek left her when a sharp snap came from it, and Levy gave a small sob.
Somehow, she recognized the snickering people around her. They were members of a lesser guild, one that hadn't been able to compete in the Grand Magic Games because they hadn't been strong enough to defeat the others to earn that right. Not that it mattered - people were always after Fairy Tail's mages anyways.
Gritting her teeth, Levy drew in air to scream, hoping it would attract at least one of the dragon slayers that might be out and about - particularly Natsu, as she knew he'd be hanging around Lucy's apartment, which wasn't all that far from where she was - but a painful kick to the face stopped that in its tracks.
Levy didn't remember much after that. It was all a blur for the most part, and the next thing she knew, she was waking up in an alleyway. She couldn't move. Pain radiated from every part of her. Groaning softly, Levy forced her head to move, glancing upwards at the sun that shined brightly down from between rooftops.
A hysterical giggle threatened to bubble from her lips. And she'd been nominated as a possible S-Class mage. As if!
Resting her head back against the wall, disappointed they'd actually dragged her out of the public view (at least then she would have gotten some help), she prepared to wait a long long time for someone to notice or come looking for her.
So it was a surprise when a few minutes later, a young boy came trotting down the alley. He was dressed poorly, though not too badly. Levy would have pegged his parents as one of the lesser merchants or perhaps he was an orphan. But he stopped when he realized the blue-haired woman was there, watching him, and stared at her with wide green eyes for a moment before asking hesitantly, "Are you okay?"
"No," Levy choked out. She spat blood on the ground, wincing as she tried to sit up more. Pain lanced up her spine, and she gasped softly. "I-I'm not."
He blinked, then gave a loud gasp of realization. "OH! You're the one- okay! I see now!" He beamed, then approached, kneeling beside her to look into her miserable dark eyes. "I'm gonna go get you some help, I'm sure one of the officials-"
"No," she protested. He stopped to listen, looking curious. She thought for a moment, then smiled faintly, rasping, "Fairy Tail. Red..." Her vision was tunneling, mixing with her confused thoughts, and before she knew it, she was out.
His piercing red eyes never left the door of the guildhall, a frown marring his face as he took a swig of his drink. He was more than aware of the cat watching him curiously from across the table they occupied. Well, from the table, as he was currently sitting on it. Finally, he spoke up. "What are you looking for?"
He grunted. "Shrimp hasn't shown up yet." The Exceed looked confused and he rolled his eyes before answering. "She shows up before going to that little job of hers."
Lily blinked, then shrugged, turning the page of the book he'd been reading. His companion recognized it as the one Levy had lent him. "Levy will show up eventually, Gajeel, maybe she was just running late and couldn't stop by."
"Nah," he growled. "She's always on time." Bored, he glanced over to where Salamander was trying to start a fight with Bunny Girl and her celestial spirits. She was giving him dirty looks, telling him no with a firm voice, but he wasn't listening. Finally, she lost her temper and nailed him in the face with a kick, successfully shutting the other dragon slayer up. Gray snickered, looking amused, but Gajeel only scowled. How stupid could they get? Couldn't they just shut up for once?
Suddenly, a new scent flooded his nose. He was used to the comings and goings of his guildmates, but this scent wasn't one he recognized. Suspicious, he rose to his feet, just as a startled looking Wendy noticed the child that had entered. "Oh!" the younger dragon slayer, who had been contently munching on something Mira had prepared for her, immediately hopped to her feet.
Gajeel interrupted before Wendy attracted too much attention. He hauled up the strange kid over his shoulder, shooting him a look that dared him to make too much noise, already noting the familiar smell about him as he grabbed Wendy by the collar of her dress and pulled her out of the guildhall. He might as well take the healer with him. For all he knew, she would be needed.
"G-Gajeel!" Wendy stammered, "What are you doing?"
He released her, glancing over his shoulder as he dropped the boy on his feet before turning his red eyes on him. "What are you doing in there, runt?"
The boy quivered, cringing under the sharp irritation in Gajeel's gaze. "Um," he stammered, "I-I was…"
"Spit it out," he retorted.
"Gajeel," Wendy protested, the small girl looking surprisingly fierce as she glared. He was distantly reminded of the bookworm. "You're scaring him."
The boy wrung his hands in front of him, dropping his gaze to the ground as he said nervously, "Th-there's this girl...sh-she, um, told me to...well, I think she told me to come here, b-but I wasn't sure...she just mentioned you guys," he paused to wave at the guildhall, "and the color red. I thought he might mean Miss Titania. "
Gajeel tensed as Wendy wondered aloud, "Red? I wonder...there's nobody by that name in our guild...is that even a name?"
"The girl," Gajeel barked out, making both younger ones jump. His mind was racing. No way that little word was a coincidence. Gajeel Redfox didn't let too many people become aware of his last name - on purpose, anyways, he was pretty sure most of the guild knew it by now. "Blue hair? Look like a shrimp?"
"Y-yes?" he stammered, looking bewildered at Gajeel's description of her height. "She was badly hurt," he added hastily. "I didn't see how badly, or who did it though...I think she'd been there a while-"
The thunderous look on the iron dragon slayer's face had him flinching back, near tears. "Where?" Gajeel growled. "Where did you leave her?"
"Err, near the canal," the boy said hurriedly. "She was in an alleyway, about five minutes from Magnolia's Finest. I c-can take you there if you want."
"Then move, runt," Gajeel snarled. He turned on Wendy, who stiffened, unused to being on the receiving end of one of his glares. "You. You're coming."
"Right," the young girl said faintly. "Then let's go."
Noise brought her back into awareness, and though she didn't want to, Levy forced herself to open her eyes again. Voices swirled around her in a confusing jumble of noise until one familiar one cut through it like a knife.
"Oi. Shrimp. Can you hear me?"
"G-Gajeel," she stammered, relief flooding her. Tears threatened to rise to her eyes as she forced herself to focus on the three before her. Gajeel's serious self was there, alongside a wide-eyed Wendy and a nervous looking child that she remembered speaking to earlier in the day. Gajeel's hands were surprisingly gentle as he helped her sit up properly, careful not jar her too much when he realized just how bad the injuries were.
Wendy pushed Gajeel out of the way, ignoring the iron dragon slayer's glower as she began to inspect Levy. "Hold on," she said softly, her smile gentle. "I'll heal you up as best as I can...you may have to go the infirmary for the lesser injuries, though. I'm not sure how much I'll be able to heal."
"Just get to work," Gajeel barked out, looking downright pissed off. He was - in a secretive manner - trying to scent out whoever had dared to touch the small solid-script mage, even going as far as to contemplate telling Makarov to see what the guildmaster would recommend doing.
Levy watched him for a moment, her dark eyes struggling to remain focused on him until Wendy had set to work. It only took moments for her to be able to see clearly again, and she shot the sky dragon slayer a grateful look as she shakily choked out, "Thanks."
Wendy gave her a reassuring smile. "Any time." She glanced over her shoulder. "Hey, uh...what's your name?"
"Kenai," the boy said softly.
"Kenai," Wendy repeated. "I'm going to need your help on something...we have to set her arm before I can heal it...will you help me?"
"Sure," Kenai said hesitantly. His gaze darted to Gajeel, who had wandered away to the end of the alleyway, still deep in thought...until Wendy began to set the arm, instructing Kenai to hold it there. The second Levy gave a cry of pain, he was back, towering over them with a deadly look until she hurried to rasp, "It's fine, Gajeel, they need to."
"Can't ya be nicer about it?" he said gruffly, looking annoyed. His jaw was clenched, a muscle ticking in it, and he'd crossed his arms tightly. "The fuck happened here anyways, Shorty?"
Levy's face changed from an irritable flushed pink to a ghostly white in an instant, though that might have been because Wendy was prodding gently at her ribs. "I was walking home," she explained stiffly, gritting her teeth. "To Fairy Hills. Some people showed up, simple as that. Don't," she pleaded when Gajeel turned on his heel, looking intent on kicking someone's ass. "Just don't. It's not that big of a deal. They got it out of their systems and won't bother Fairy Tail again, I'm sure."
"That's not the point, woman," Gajeel gritted out, scowling. Kenai eyed him nervously, and Levy had a sneaking suspicion that he'd scared the poor kid. The second she was sure she'd be alright enough to stand, she began the hard work of shoving herself to her feet, leaning heavily against the wall behind her despite Wendy's protests.
"You're gonna fall over, Shrimp," Gajeel commented, not looking totally happy about the fact that she was already trying to get up. Wendy didn't look very excited either, instead just glaring at her for doing so before she'd given the okay. Levy giggled to herself; Wendy had gotten used to being bossy when dealing with Fairy Tail members' injuries.
"I don't care," Levy said firmly. Though her face was one of determination, her eyes gleamed with misery. "I've already fallen down enough in the past few hours to not deserve half of what you guys have done for me…" And not just physically; unable to help herself, Levy had found herself remembering visions of malicious red eyes and a psychotic grin that belonged to a Gajeel that no longer existed. And she hated herself for it, because she knew more than anyone that the dragon slayer wasn't like that anymore.
"Don't say that, miss," Kenai protested, frowning, as if truly troubled by her words. Wendy hurried to nod her agreement. Gajeel said nothing, only gave her a dark look.
Levy bit her lip, shaking her head as she wrapped her arms around herself.
Just because they didn't seem to think so didn't mean she agreed with them.
It wasn't long before Levy was working again. Wendy had said she shouldn't, but the solid-script mage had ignored that. She needed to work to pay for her rent since she couldn't take jobs. Lucy had invited her on one with herself and Natsu (and that meant Happy, too), but Levy had declined, suspicious that someone had told her why she wasn't taking jobs.
Levy was pretty sure the guild knew something had happened, too, despite her attempts to convince Gajeel and Wendy not to tell them what had happened. She'd felt fine enough after going back to her dorm in Fairy Hills to change, there was no need in stirring up trouble. But, of course, she knew how powerful Natsu's sense of smell was and she had realized quickly that once he knew, everyone would know.
She sighed as she closed the door behind her. "Damn dragon slayers," she muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes. She turned the key so the lock clicked into place, then stepped back with a soft hum, her hands delving into her purse to reassuringly grip a small object that Wendy had gifted her.
"It's good for alerting you if enemies are approaching," Wendy had told her. "Um, Miss Porlyusica showed me how to do it last time she was here. You can only use it once though...it burns up. Literally. Make sure Natsu doesn't try to eat it though, it could be bad for him."
She was eternally grateful to the youngest dragon slayer. She was constantly checking in on her, making sure the solid-script mage was alright and that her injuries were still healing properly. As expected, she hadn't been able to completely heal all of Levy's wounds, only the major ones, but that had been alright.
Of course, it had really sucked when Jet and Droy had come back and seen the bandages she now supported, but whatever. She'd ignored them enough that they'd backed off. She felt a slight twinge of guilt. They were only trying to make sure she was okay, though she hadn't been happy with the way the first one they turned on was Gajeel…
Lost in thought as she walked beside the edge of the canal, she got the hell scared out of her when the small object Wendy had gifted her suddenly exploded with heat. Levy yelped, jerking it out of her purse and throwing it to the ground as it burned in a brilliant blue flame. Immediately on the defensive, the solid-script mage whirled around, ready to use her magic as quickly as she could.
Before she could even consider it, however, a blow landed from behind. She staggered forward, biting back a soft gasp of pain and instead chose to swear furiously under her breath as she whirled around. She recognized him immediately. This was one of the men from a few nights before. And right beside him was the woman with the heels, a dark grin upon her face.
"Look who came back," she drawled. Levy was relieved to see that it was just the two of them, though her relief was short-lived. Scowling, the solid-script mage readied herself to attack. She was sick of this. She wasn't some...plaything that made it so that they were allowed to beat her up every day of the week!
Suddenly, her feet were knocked out from under her. Levy gasped as she fell, hitting the ground hard, narrowly avoiding snapping her neck on the edge of the stones that separated the walkway from the canal. She hit her head hard as it was, and black spots dotted her vision. The breath driven from her lungs, she gasped for air, struggling to catch her breath and hold her head up for a few moments. But that time was enough for the man to snicker and kick the rest of her over into the water as his feminine companion giggled and mockingly waved.
Water rushed around her, and her already muddled thoughts grew dark, blurring when she managed to accidentally inhale water. She didn't move for a moment, bewildered, then managed to figure out where her limbs were. She surfaced, choking and coughing, gasping for air and coughing harder in the process. Thanking the heavens that she could swim, the blue-haired woman reached for the edge of the canal, grabbing it and trying to pull herself out of the canal.
A foot descended on her hand, grinding the heel in. "C'mon, fairy," the man slurred. It was then that Levy realized he was drunk. The woman, who was cackling behind him, looked flushed, tipsy even. "Isn't one of ya good with water?"
Gritting her teeth, Levy lost her temper. She could have used her magic at this point, but she doubted she would get enough damage in to truly get rid of the bothersome people. So, she did the next best thing.
She tilted her head back and simply wailed, "GAJEEL!"
Scowling, the man dunked her head under. Levy flailed desperately to free herself, unable to breathe. It seemed like forever, and she was preparing to accept her demise when suddenly she could surface. Levy shot up, gasping for air again, latching onto the side of the canal to peer over the edge.
A relieved grin appeared on her face when she saw the iron dragon slayer looming over the half-dead looking man and his terrified looking girlfriend. Gajeel's red eyes gleamed dangerously, and he gave a menacing smirk as he cracked his knuckles.
Exhausted, Levy rested her cheek on the stone she held onto. Thank goodness I saw him following me last night…
"You the fuckers that touched her?" he sneered, and the woman cringed, hiding behind the already battered body of the man before her. "You really think you could touch a Fairy Tail member and get away with it?" He gave a dark laugh, and Levy shuddered, remembering when he'd laughed in her face long, long ago.
"We're sorry," the woman pleaded. "W-we won't do it again."
Gajeel crossed his arms, and Levy had a feeling that he was showing off his muscles in an attempt to further intimidate them. And it appeared to be working, as the woman continued, squeaking, "We're...we're leaving M-Magnolia tonight."
"You better," Gajeel growled. "You don't and you'll have me to deal with. I see you around here again, and that head of yours will be rolling down the street. Especially if you touch Levy, you hear me?"
"Yes, sir," she said faintly. She fled, the half-conscious man dragging behind her.
Levy gave a faint smile and finally set to work on hauling herself out of the canal, grimacing at the fact that she was sopping wet. She yelped when she was lifted by the back of her T-shirt and set down on her feet, but gave Gajeel a grateful look. The iron dragon slayer didn't respond to it in his normal way. Instead, he gave her a piercing glare that made her want to crawl into a hole and die. "Thanks," she mumbled, looking down. She grimaced, examining a tear in her shirt. Oh, well. She'd have gotten rid of these soon anyways. They were too worn out for her liking, and Lucy wanted to go on a shopping trip soon.
Gajeel huffed. "You're supposed to fight back, woman. Not let 'em kick you around."
Levy's cheeks flushed. "I know," she admitted. "I couldn't move fast enough though…" She huffed. She really was useless. No wonder he'd wanted to help her in the S-Class exams. He could have won the title of an S-Class mage himself.
Rolling his eyes, he put his arm on her head, leaning down to stare into her eyes. Flushing, Levy blinked as he said gruffly, "I said I'd make ya big, didn't I? Can't do that if you keep shrinking 'cause you can't grow. You're already short enough as it is, don't make it even harder to see you. Should have just asked for help if you were having trouble."
The flush turned to one of anger, though she couldn't help the slight twinge of happiness at his words. "I thought if I asked you'd get all annoyed," she admitted. "I didn't think you'd be willing to help...I didn't even think they were going to come back! I was going to ask Erza if they bothered me again, but…"
He shut her up by ruffling her already messy hair. "I helped you last time, didn't I?"
"Yes," she sighed, "But-"
He rolled his eyes - again. The solid-script mage was beginning to get on his nerves with this matter, so he simply glared at her until she shut up. There. That was better. Grumbling, he lightly fisted a hand in her hair, making her wince when he lightly used his grip to shake her head a bit. Jerk! she wanted to shout at him. "Look, woman," he said gruffly. "Just ask me next time. Got it?"
"Yes," she sighed.
"Good," he answered.
That said, the iron dragon slayer pulled back. Suddenly, however, he smirked, and released her hair in favor of grabbing her chin. Levy irritably tried to smack his hand away, but he ignored it in favor of crushing his lips against hers. Almost as quickly as he'd done it, however, he was pulling back, once again towering over her petite form. Levy's lips parted in surprise and her face reddened. He snickered his signature laugh of "Gihihi!" and Levy scowled at that, kicking pathetically at his ankles in response to his laughter.
She got her revenge a few days later when the iron dragon slayer "happened to be in the area" and decided to walk her back to Fairy Hills after she had agreed to go on a job with him and Lily. They were making their way down the street when a familiar boy ran up, grinning up at Gajeel rather than cowering away as he had not too long ago. "Kenai!" Levy cried, beaming at him. She released her wary hold on Gajeel's arm (he'd sworn he'd heard someone following them and had tried to go after them, but Levy had realized it was just Juvia, trying to learn how to get closer to her precious Gray) and told Kenai, "I'm glad we ran into you. I wanted to thank you for getting Gajeel for me when I needed help."
Kenai grinned, though his cheeks flushed in delight at the praise. "It was nothing," he said shyly. "There was this, uh, girl with pretty green eyes that told me you needed help and where to go to find you."
Levy frowned in thought. But that disappeared when her eyes snapped wide in realization. "Did she have long blonde hair? And was about this height?" She dropped her hand to a height not that much shorter than herself. He nodded, and Levy beamed happily at this newly discovered information. Even after all of the trouble that had accompanied the Grand Magic Games, Mavis was still looking out for them. She opened her mouth to speak to Gajeel about it, but stopped when she realized he was staring at something. Following his gaze, she had to swallow back her laughter, taking in the small piercing on little Kenai's brow.
As if knowing what she'd seen, Kenai flushed. "He," he said, pointing at Gajeel, "Was cool. I, uh, kinda saw him fighting those people."
After thanking Kenai again and bidding him farewell, Levy turned a smug little smirk onto her companion. Gajeel noticed it and glared at her in a threatening way. "One word in front of Salamander or Bunny Girl," he growled, "And you won't have any books left."
Levy only giggled and winked before taking off at a dead run for the guildhall, plan already in place. Gajeel swore loudly and immediately chased after her, complaining about how fast she was for someone with legs as short as hers.
Forget telling Natsu or Lucy.
Mira was going to love this!
Just an idea I had one day while I was sitting in the audience of a dance recital for my younger sister. You can thank my lovely editor and friend for the title. She's really good at that. I'm currently in the process of writing a multi-chapter fanfic. Keep an eye out if interested! Hope you enjoyed! :)