Notes
While I'm finishing up on Between and drawing up the story plan for a much larger title I'm working on, I've been putting this little beast together. It's pretty fluffy, and somewhat mature. Gajeel has a very potty mouth and wandering hands.
This is my humorous take on the idea of Dragon Slayer mates. I warn you, some parts of this are pure crack.
Metalicana had warned him when he was younger that Dragon Slayers were a rare and somewhat unpredictable bunch of mages. The magic he'd passed him would manifest in a lot of unique ways, although some were pretty common among them all; they all seemed to end up with enhanced senses. Physical strength was one bonus. Endurance. A little odder were the enlarged canines, slit-like pupils. But the little things that couldn't be predicted were the odd personality traits. Those ultimately depended on the individual. Gajeel for instance could have wound up far less personable than he was. Colder. Like the element he consumed. Metalicana told him that madness was always a distinct possibility as well. He was grateful that that hadn't happened. Yet, anyway. One look at Acnologia was all that was needed to understand how very wrong that could all go.
The short of it all, was that it was a variable pot luck of Dragon traits he might inherit. Anything and everything ranging from the useful to the bizarre. The more he practiced, the more Dragon stuff that would start to seep through. He knew all this and trained like a demon anyway. As much as the concept of turning into an actual Dragon might have worried the likes of Natsu or Wendy, it wasn't so terrifying a concept as to slow down his drive to become stronger. Dragons were incredibly powerful. He'd live with whatever happened. Let's put it that way.
Or that's what he figured anyway.
Some Dragon traits he could have done without.
"If you don't start trying to reign it in, Gajeel, you're going to start resembling Juvia," Pantherlily elbowed Gajeel sharply, forcing him to tear his eyes away from the script mage currently arguing with Freed over a book that had fallen into Makarov's possession and seemed to be up for grabs. Under normal circumstances there would have been a polite conversation and Levy would more than likely relinquish a claim on the item in favor of borrowing it at a later date. Not today, though. It appeared as though the green haired thundercunt had rolled out of bed on the wrong side that morning and whatever it was he'd said to the script mage, the bluenette was all but spewing flames. Gajeel found her sudden aggressiveness to be somewhat exhilarating; her small red cheeks puffing outward like some tiny animal trying to make itself bigger. That smouldering glare. Oh the glare!
The Dragon Slayer leaned a little further over the balcony. Getting a better view as Freed attempted to walk away, Levy being physically dragged with him; her small hands still clutching a corner of the book in question with a white-knuckle grip. Gajeel heard her yell "selfish prick" and almost choked on the laugh that had found itself lodged in his throat. People were silent and open mouthed as the usually rather sensible mediator, Levy McGarden, decided to assert her will with literal brute force and language foul enough that even Cana was sputtering her ale. It must have been the first time in Fairy Tail history. Even Gajeel would be willing to suggest that they maybe share the damn thing at this stage.
"Ain't my fault Shorty is down there making a ruckus, Lily. Look around. Everyone is staring at her," Gajeel smiled, wishing his partner would just drop it.
"But not everyone was staring at her before she started and will be staring long after she's stopped, Gajeel," Lily lowered his voice. " And with a stupid grin to top it off," The cat huffed, exasperated. "Would it not be better to just talk to her? Instead of this?" He waved his arms around. "Whatever this new form of stalking you've developed is."
The Dragon Slayer just scoffed. "It ain't stalking…"
"You're an idiot, Gajeel. I personally don't think I'm even remotely qualified to understand why you find yourself attracted to the woman you continually insult, but an altogether better question would be why after all of that she is attracted to you," Lily drawled and was momentarily taken aback with the look of confusion on Gajeel's face.
"Nahhhh…" Gajeel muttered but his face had paled. For all the secret yearnings and fantasies it never once occurred to him that the tiny script mage would ever reciprocate those wildly inappropriate feelings of his.
"You didn't realise?" The man looked at the Exceed, silent. "The woman practically petitions you to go on jobs with her on a weekly basis," There was more silence. "She got so distracted she fell in a pothole last week because you took your shirt off," Lily grew wary as Gajeel's face started drifting from one of confusion and disbelief, to outright horror.
"No way. You gotta be fucking kidding me?" He slammed his palm down on the table before snapping his head back toward the script mage just in time to see Freed disappear down a sinkhole that had appeared in the middle of the guild hall right under his feet. Levy left triumphant holding her prize and shouting "You don't even use this type of magic, anyway," into the hole as though it explained or justified any of this. Were once Gajeel's eyes would have wandered to the shape of her legs and the curve of her neck and shoulders, now they were examining her on a more critical level. The stance. The posture. The look of smugness on her face having beaten her foe. If was fucking true. Holy shitsticks.
Lily set aside his drink and moved Gajeel's out of the way, taking a seat directly in front of him on the table.
"Are you going to clue me in, or do I have try and guess what this new madness is about?" He asked. Gajeel didn't bother turning to him to reply. His words were cautious and more measured than usual.
"Lily, how have I seemed lately? Anything odd. Nicer? More rational. I'm looking for a word here…" Gajeel started twirling his hand as his mind searched for the term he was missing. "…diplomatic?"
Lily chuckled.
"You've started a total of five fights this week in the guild over literally nothing, Gajeel. So, no. Although you're certainly a lot more verbally competent these days," The Exceed mocked.
"You mean eloquent," Gajeel absently muttered. Then caught himself. "It's fucking true then," The skin on his cheeks had started turning a funny shade of pink. Lily absently realised this was as close to a blush as he'd ever seen on the iron eater's face.
The Dragon Slayer took his drink and downed it before taking the Exceed's and doing the same. Lily's right eyebrow rose questioningly before its match joined it in scrunched up irritation.
"That was my drink, Gajeel. Mine. I would have thought being raised by a creature known for its deep philosophical and physical understanding of the concept of possessions, you'd recognise what's yours and what isn't," Lily mocked him but the humour died in his eyes at the look of panic on the Dragon Slayer's face. "Did I…say something, Gajeel?"
The Dragon Slayer took a breath. The Exceed had struck a tender spot with that one. Gajeel was an idiot. How the hell do I explain this?
"Lily, you know how some couples start acting the fucking same after they start dating?" The Exceed's face was blank and Gajeel was nervous he wasn't going to be able to explain this right. "You know, before, you got two completely different people and then after you have this kinda singular fucking entity?"
Gajeel knew that Lily was highly intelligent. Even more so than him. The Exceed of course knew what he was talking about.
"Oh yes, I understand. And did you just use singular and entity in a sentence?" Gajeel growled and Lily dropped it with a smirk before forming a deep frown as he tried to work out why Gajeel would be bringing it up.
The Dragon Slayer spared another quick glance at Levy who as it turned out was also looking at him. There was a moment of supreme awkwardness as they both looked away sheepishly. Although, Lily noted an almost wolfish grin spreading across Gajeel's now slightly redder face before he realised he was smiling and clamped his mouth shut in a tight line so hard Lily wondered if he pulled a muscle in the process.
"Yeah, well, Dragon's do it too, Lily. Though, it's not with just feelings,"