Prompt: Levy is a slave in ancient Rome

Rating: T

Warning: Language, mental trauma

Free Me

Levy stared at her feet silently as she waited with the group of women in shackles. Men and women alike walked past the group, some stopping to look over one member or another. None looked at her. She was tiny, underfed, and frail-looking. Not suited to be a slave. But here she was... for sale.

This was not her first time in the market. She doubted it would be her last. Her owner was trying so desperately to either sell her or work her to death. He was a cruel man, who barely fed her and had her scrub his floors endlessly until her fingers bled. She hated him with a passion.

The day moved by slowly, the blazing sun shining down on her, making her dizzy from heat. That's why she thought he was a halucination at first, that man whose face she could never forget. He'd come to her group, spoken to the slavemaster, and she'd recognized his voice immediately as he asked if any of the females for sale were decent house workers. She had looked up then, certain she was crazy and that it surely could not be the man she thought it was. But it was. It was him! It was Gajeel... her childhood friend...

He looked so different yet the same. The last time she'd seen him was just before her family left Rome, two years ago. He'd been a Gladiator then, a famous one. Now he wore armor of the Emperor's guard. It suited him, suited his personality. He was a fighter, yes, but also a tactician, and this new job she just knew suited him wonderfully. As for his appearance, it hadn't changed much. He still was a heavily pierced man with rippling muscles and a cocky grin ever on his face. The biggest difference she saw was his hair. His black hair had been long and wild before, and now it was cut short and was somewhat spiky. It made him look older, more mature...

She wondered if he remembered her, if he even recognized her in her current state. The last time he saw her, after all, she had been wearing the finest clothes. Her father was a senator, a wealthy one, and his daughter had grown up without want. Now... through circumstance, she was a slave wearing rags and barely fed. Her beautiful long hair had been cut at her shoulders, and looked bedraggled. She knew she had dirt on her face and grime on her clothes. Surely he would not even recognize her.

She watched him cautiously as he moved down the line of shackled women. He looked each woman over with a bored expression until he came to Levy. Their eyes met, and she knew then that he'd recognized her before he'd even approached the slavemaster, that he had only approached because he recognized her. His eyes had a mischievous glint in them she'd not seen in years. It was a silent signal for her to play along.

"What about this one?" Gajeel asked the slavemaster as he pulled Levy from the group.

"M'lord, I would not recommend that one. She's a poor house worker, and a trouble maker." the man hired to sell her tried to dissuade Gajeel. Had it been anyone else he would have been trying eagerly to sell her off. But Gajeel was a high ranking official now. If he was sold a bad slave, he would be angry with the slavemaster, who would cease to have a head after that.

Gajeel ignored the man as he looked Levy over. Levy flushed and looked away, tears pricking her eyes as he opened her tunic to expose her body to his eyes. How humiliating, to have him see her like this, to have any man see her like this, really. He closed her clothing back up, retying her sash for her as he looked to the slavemaster.

"I find I have another use for her. She's quite underfed, but she will do." Gajeel said calmly. "Is she untouched?" The slavemaster stared at him in shock a moment before flipping through his papers.

"By our records, she is." the man said. "But that is just what her father has told my master."

"Hm." Gajeel looked back to Levy, taking her chin in his hand and making her meet his eye. She flinched as his thumb brushed over a light scar just under her eye. "She's barely alive, and she's scarred. Her only value is in her virginity and age. Reduce the price to this much, and I will take her." he tossed the slavemaster a coinpurse. The man weighed it in his palm before sighing.

"Very well, sir, she is yours. My master dislikes her anyways." he came over and unlocked her shackles, revealing her bruised wrists. She noticed Gajeel look at the bruising with a firm stare, but he said nothing else. He took her by the arm and led her away.

"C'mon, girlie. I got places to be." he said, keeping up his act until they were far, far away from the market. He finally slowed down and eased up his grip once they were on the outskirts of town, and he glanced down at the young woman. "That really you, Lev?" he asked softly. She looked up at him a moment before answering.

"It's really me... Gajeel." she said quietly, looking away from him as shame filled her. How he must pity her, a former senator's daughter turned slave. And here he was, a gladiator turned high-ranking soldier. How cruel could life be?

"Thank the gods, yer still alive." his words surprised her, his actions did more so. He pulled her into his arms and held her close, startling the young woman. "Fuck, Lev, I thought ya were dead. Yer whole family just vanished one night, and was never heard from again." he released her then, realizing they were still in public. "C'mon, let's get ya home so we can talk. Bet yer hungry, too." And like that he was once more leading her away.


"This is the most food I've had in months." Levy cried as she eagerly ate the food that was placed in front of her, trying so hard to ignore the look of pity she saw in Gajeel's eyes. "Thank you, thank you so much!" she got out around a mouthful of bread, tears still streaming down her face. She was hungry, so very hungry, now that she had food in front of her.

Earlier, she'd been in a point that she was so hungry she wasn't hungry, and she hadn't realized just how close to death she had been, and still was. It would take a very long time before she was back at her healthy weight, and that's only if Gajeel continued to feed her like this.

There was fear in the back of her mind that he only fed her like this now so that she would appease his curiosity easier. Or perhaps he truly pitied her. But what did he plan to do with her, now that she was his property?

Was he still the gentle soul under a tough exterior she remembered? Had the legion hardened him? Would he treat her well, put her to work in his house, make her pleasure him with her body? She had no idea, and that scared her. She couldn't trust anyone, after all, not even family, as it was her own father who betrayed her and sold her off...

"Eat this, Lev, it's better for ya." Gajeel put a plate of various meats in front of her, urging her to focus on protein rather than bread. She didn't need to be told twice, and she eagerly dug into the plate of meat, alternating with some fruit here and there. Gajeel just watched her all the while, taking her in.

She was so thin. She'd always been skinny, but she was mostly bones now. She'd been at death's door when he found her. She wouldn't survive another month with her current master, wouldn't make it to the next slave market. She was starved and overworked, and was barely standing on her own feet.

Her beautiful hair was dirty, her long locks having been cut at some point. She was barefoot, wore little more than rags, and she was covered in dirt and grime. She had dark bruises on her wrists from the shackles she'd been wearing for three days straight.

Gajeel had been looking for her and her family for years. His best friend vanished without a trace one night, and he'd never really gotten over it. He eventually realized he'd have better luck finding her if her had military ties, than if he stayed as a gladiator, so he joined the legion, worked his way up to captain of the emperor's personal guards.

He used his ties to search for her, for anyone like her, and had no luck until his assistant came to him that morning with news of a blue haired slave at the market. It was his last lead on her, his last hope... he was so glad he followed the lead.

He'd been... unprepared, to say the least. He had not expected it to truly be her... and he certainly didn't expect her to be near death when he found her. She was a senator's daughter, for crying out loud! How did she end up like this?!

He somehow kept his cool and managed to act like he was shopping for a slave for his home. When he approached her, he confirmed that it was her. He noticed the slavemaster try to dissuade him, and he didn't like that one bit, so he found a new reason to want to buy her, and it worked well enough. If his master asked, he could say she was sold as a sex slave, and there would be no questions asked. A man has needs.

The first thing he did upon getting her to his home was bathe her. Er, more like he got a servant to bathe her. She was scrubbed head to toe, revealing the beautiful, if not malnourished, woman beneath the grime. She was clothed in a nice clean tunic and promptly sat at a table to eat as much as she wanted.

"Thank you so much. I was so hungry." Levy's tears turned into grateful sobs as she finally sat back from the meal, tummy full of hot food. Gajeel's heart nearly broke at the sight of his once strong and fearless best friend who was now scared, scarred, and broken. He quickly pulled her into his arms and held her close as she sobbed into his chest.

"Levy, you will never go hungry on my watch. I swear it." he told her soothingly as he gently rubbed her back. He held her until her tears were nothing more than soft sniffles, letting her seek as much comfort from him as she wanted. He gave light glares to the nosy servants that came by to snoop under the guise of clearing the dishes.

"Better, Lev?" Gajeel asked softly when he noticed her sniffling had faded. She nodded against his chest silently. Gods, she'd forgotten how comforting it could be to be in his arms. Gajeel was always a brute, rude and crass, but he had a soft spot for girls, especially her... and he gave the best hugs. She felt so safe and protected in his arms... and she hadn't felt either of those feelings in years.

"Thank you." she said quietly as she slowly sat back, looking at the ground and refusing to meet his eyes. "I-I'm so sorry I got y-your tunic wet..." she whimpered almost fearfully, as if she was expecting him to be angry. Gajeel hated seeing her this way, and he hated it when she visibly flinched when he reached out and cupped her face with his hands. He tilted her head up for she would meet his eyes, and he gave her as gentle a smile as he could.

"Please don't be scared of me, Lev. Ya know I ain't gonna hurt ya." he soothed. Relief filled her eyes briefly before being instantly replaced with fear.

"I-I don't know that... a-and p-people lie..." she whimpered quietly, looking away from him again.

"Yer right. People lie." he agreed, watching her tense up at his words. "But... if ya remember correctly, I ain't a person. I'm a dragon." he smiled a bit, making her remember his days as a gladiator. Her small smile made him grin.

"Black Steel Gajeel, the infamous gladiator with the temper, eyes, and soul of a dragon." she mumbled softly with a tiny smile. Gajeel chuckled softly and ran his hand through her hair, pushing her cerulean locks away from her face.

"I ain't changed, Lev. I swear I ain't. Only thing that's changed is my profession and hair. That's it." he swore to her. She smiled at this before frowning and looking away sadly.

"B-but I've... changed." she said quietly.

"Ya had good reason to." Gajeel soothed. "You've been through a lot, Lev. Will you tell me what happened?"

"I..." she bit her lip, looking at him nervously. She had to remind herself... this was Gajeel. He wouldn't judge her, wouldn't hate her... cause he'd been through worse, and she knew it. Hell, he'd started off where she was now, a slave on the verge of death... "F-father was involved in a plot t-to kill the emperor."

Gajeel didn't know what she was gonna say, but he sure hadn't expected that! He forced himself to remain silent and listen to her tale, rather than voice his shock.

"H-He backed out the night of the planned attack, but he couldn't stay in Rome. We couldn't stay in Rome. The others, they would come for us, kill us all. So we fled that night." Levy told him quietly. "I... I knew nothing about the plot. Mother knew nothing. All we knew was father said we were all in danger. We trusted him, and fled with nothing but the clothes on our backs.

"Father, he wanted to go to Byzantium. He had connections there, and we would be safe there. We got to Ostia and... we left in such a hurry... father hadn't grabbed enough money for all three of us to board the boat." Levy sniffed softly, wiping away a few tears.

"He... Gajeel, he sold me. He didn't even tell me or mother that he was planning to... he just did it. Some men came... and they pulled me away from mother. I just remember her screaming for me while these scary men took me away." she was sobbing now, and Gajeel held her once more. "I was so scared." she cried into his chest, clinging to him for dear life.

"They... they took me to some manor outside of Rome. They worked the slaves there to death, Gajeel. I saw people die there." she sobbed. "They made me work for a year before they decided to try to sell me, but nobody ever bought me. The master would get angry every time I came back from the market. He would beat me and cut my rations in half until he wasn't even feeding me anymore."

"Shh..." Gajeel held her close, rubbing her back soothingly. "Yer safe now, Lev. Yer safe. I swear it." He let her cry it out and calm down, giving her as much time as she needed. Eventually he began to worry she'd fallen asleep, but then she let out a shaky sigh and snuggled into his chest.

"I missed you the most." her soft whisper came. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"I thought the same." Gajeel held her closer, burying his nose in her hair with a soft sigh. "I never stopped looking for you. I joined the Legion to try and find you."

"Y-you did?" she leaned back and looked up at him with wide eyes. He nodded firmly.

"It worked, too. I finally found you." he smiled lightly. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, making her blush prettily for him, much to his amusement. She was still pining for him, after all this time? He loved that.

"G-Gajeel... w-what's going to happen to me?" Levy asked timidly, feeling a pang of fear as she realized... she was still very much a slave. It didn't matter that her best friend was now her owner... it didn't take away from the fact that she was still a slave.

"Well... I wanted to give you a choice, Lev." Gajeel sighed with a wry grin. "Cause of a new tax law, I can't just free ya... otherwise I would in a heartbeat. Since I can't, I got a few options for ya."

"Options?"

"Un." he nodded. "First and foremost, yer gonna recover til yer healthy again. No objections." he said firmly. "After that... well, I'd very much like ta court ya, Lev. I had wanted to ask yer father the day yer family vanished, ya know."

"R-really?" Levy asked with wide eyes and a fierce blush. He nodded with a grin.

"Yer perfect for me, Levy. I wanted you for my wife. I still do." he told her sweetly. "Would... would you have accepted back then?"

"Gajeel... of course I would have." Levy assured him with a happy smile.

"Would you accept now?" he pressed, watching as she nervously bit her lip at that question.

"I... yes, I would love that b-but... do you really want a s-slave for a wife?"

"Yer not a slave anymore. If anything, yer a temporary indentured servant at worst, a bride to be at best." he told her soothingly. "I want you, Levy, for my wife. I have wanted that for three years now..."

"I... I want that too." Levy admitted with a soft cry, feeling tears in her eyes once more. She threw her arms around the big man, hugging him tightly as he returned her embrace. They held each other for a long moment, before Levy sat back, wiping her tears away with soft sniffles. "This... this isn't just a dream right?" she sniffed, her body shaking again as she started to fear this wasn't real. This wouldn't be the fist time she'd had such a wonderful... cruel dream...

"Oh, Levy..." Gajeel pulled her into his arms again and held her close. He knew exactly how she felt. He'd had similar cruel dreams of freedom and happiness when he was a slave, too, and he knew how terrifying it could be to think that everything good was just a dream. "I swear to ya, this is real. This is real. I'm here; you can feel me, feel my heart beat... I'm really here." he swore to her, taking her hand and placing it over his heart. Her shaking slowly died down as she focused on the steady beat of his heart, and Gajeel reached up to wipe her tears away with his thumbs. His heart ached for her, for he knew the kind of hell she'd been through. She didn't deserve it. He had, but she didn't.

"Do... do you really... want me?" her soft voice came again, and he met her eyes. She looked so scared and... "Do you really... want someone so... broken? I can't... can't even tell dreams from reality anymore. I'm... I'm..."

"You're strong." he finished for her, giving her a gentle smile as he cupped her face again. "Yer so strong, Levy. You've been through so much and yer still here, yer still my shrimp. Yea, yer hurt and ya need time to heal. But yer alive and yer strong." He pressed a soft, sweet kiss to her lips, deepening it as she kissed him back with a quiet sob. She gripped at his tunic like he was her lifeline, and he was in that moment. He was the only thing grounding her, keeping her sane. Even through her life as a slave, he kept her sane. Just the thought of him, of seeing him again... kept her going. And he was finally there. And he was kissing her. And he wanted to marry her. And it wasn't a dream.

And Levy could only cry as she realized her hell was over.


Soooo... I kind of got stuck at this point and had to find a way to wrap it up. I tried to make this longer, but it didn't work out very well. Sorry! Also this is technically the 3rd installment in this one-shot series, but I put it as the first chapter for... reasons. Sorry for the confusion, but trust me I have a good reason for it.

Anyways, welcome to my little side project while I'm working on Guns and Roses, everyone! This is where I am going to start posting all the little one shots that come into my head. Gajeel and Levy only, as that's what I specialize in. I may eventually add a few other pairings but I'm not sure for now.

Note: I am accepting requests/suggestions/prompts. If you want to see me write something, comment! I might not do it, be warned, but more often than not I will try, just to see if I can. But you have to COMMENT! And like and follow, too, or you won't see what I come up with.

Please try to keep suggestions/prompts reasonable, and make it easy to understand what you want. Please don't give me a paragraph or try to dictate what I write, cause that's not the point of suggestions.

Anyways, tell me what you think of this one, and comment if you wanna see anything particular. Keep an eye out for an update soon. I have a few of these saved up.

Check out "Guns and Roses" while you wait!

Anyways...

Thanks for reading!

-Everythingnerd12