Warnings: Minor description of (social) anxiety. While this chapter does contain the wedding and wedding night scene, there will not be any explicit or nonconsensual behavior.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or the plots/themes inspired by GoT.
Gajeel, leader of these undefeated warriors, appeared even more harsh than the rumors made him out to be, especially within his own camp. Rough and unyielding and large as he may be, Levy noticed him move like one of the great cats from the mountains- sure and steady; and always, always at the last possible moment. Despite his obvious skill in battle and spar, there was a lazy roll to his shoulders and gesture of his arms that spoke of the game they played; not the age-old advice of strike before the enemy could.
She snorted derisively at the memory of an elder council member had whispered frightened words of the Kurogane scalping his men for sport. No weapon at his side as he ducked the juvenile fist that soared for his cheek, laughing and roughly disheveling the child's wild hair once he glided back into his original spot closer to his opponent. There was a youthful charm that promised no injury but didn't undermine the possibilities in sinewy muscle. The rumors undercut this mountain of a man, there was a genuine grace and wit that flowed with every action he made.
Levy tilted her head and thought, this side of him was for his people and she was a stranger- of course he would be detached and blunt with someone not of his family. She hummed absentmindedly and cleared her throat to catch Lily's attention- the older man having been preoccupied with cheering on his tribe. "They do this often?"
A wide smile split his dark face when he turned to her, chuckling as a wave of hollers rose from the crowd before them. "Whenever spirit is up and they grow restless of one place."
"So, fairly often?," she asked wryly.
Lily's voice rumbled deep through his chest and set her further at ease. "Aye, we're an antsy lot." Levy had been surprised when Pantherlily spoke with her as if she were any man, but remained wary because, after all, if she said something that contradicted their world and he reported her behavior back to Gajeel, her valley would be in great trouble.
Gajeel's righthand sat beside her, explaining the intricate workings of their society between breaks to explain the game the tribe played. The others looked upon her differently, refusing to meet her eye, and no one spoke as softly with her as Lily did, and for that, she was eternally grateful. His baritone and patience soothed the dull ache for ivory halls and familiar hills- it hung like the Spring rain on her heart, heavy and dismal.
Levy couldn't put her finger on it, but there was something about him that made her believe him to have gone through the same loneliness she trudged through. There was always a knowing glint that settled deep in his irises and tried to convey some joke she ought to be privy to. What she did know of him was few and far between.
His full name was Pantherlily, an epithet to perfectly match his polite and gentle manner; he was a master swordsman, most trusted of Gajeel's men, and fluent in various languages. Levy counted her blessings on the evening stars that he knew her native tongue with every question she had and every hasty string of assurances he fed to her as they made their way around the encampment. He would only be her and Gajeel's go-between until she learned enough of their language to communicate with the Kurogane on her own.
A sense of foreboding curled like a sleepy serpent deep in her belly, Lily's encouragement was too gracious as even she could tell the language was awkward with her accent. They were the words of warriors, but she spoke them timidly, painstakingly slowly, and the syllables caught between the tip of her tongue and the back of her teeth. Where the muscle was light, easy, and fast with her language, it weighed heavily and lolled sickly with the tribe's language. An infinite amount of worry far more than what should be considered. She didn't expect to be spoken to too much- considering how the Kurogane acted around her.
That aside, it had been coached into her from a young age that she may have to marry for political reasons and that, above all, a wife is seen and not heard. Her mother would have fainted away should she have heard the words the old council fed her child. Lady McGarden would have raised her daughter to be poised, but loud- demanding the destiny Levy so deserved and wanted.
She shook her head of the thoughts and refocused on the quickly expanding spar several feet away from them. It had taken her aback when a woman, clothed in leather trousers like the male warriors and a top of thick hide that protected her, whereas most of men went without shirts. Her hair was long, set in thick a plait that swept to her hips- several beads and threads had been interwoven into her impressive mane. Three things caught Levy's attention all at once; when the young woman turned it was revealed that one side of her head had been shorn nearly all the way to her scalp, her hair was s startling shade of blue similar to Levy's own (if only a little darker), and the warm welcome the Kurogane presented to this woman.
He raised his fist and she grinned, the small metal hoop on her nose glittering happily as she repeated the gesture and bumped their forearms together.
The woman's skin was fair and her eyes were a blue- the shade apparent even from a distance. Levy wondered, skin that glowed so fair even beneath all of the paint and dirt surely belonged to a pure bloodline. Lily hadn't informed her of any other women joining the tribe in a similar fashion, but as the female warrior threw her arm daringly around the Kurogane's broad shoulders and tossed her head back to laugh, she began to think she had been deceived in at least being the only woman to the Kurogane. The leader of the tribe regarded the female warrior with an affection obvious in any language and Levy cursed her bull-headed ideas.
The great dragon Atlas had aimed for the sun and lit his wings to wildfire, Levy McGarden proclaimed the chance of a son and paved herself the path of second wife.
A sharp prick hit her heart and pride as the rough language of the tribe rolled easily off the woman's tongue with a surprisingly delicate tone. It took all of her effort to school her features and aimlessly prose her curiosity to Lily without raising suspicion. "That female warrior there, what's her name?"
"Juvia, they call her Ame."
Levy scrunched her nose and glanced at Lily confusedly. "'Rain'?"
A warm smile tugged at the older man's mouth, nodding with an affection she had started to become accustomed to. "Ah, very good, Lady McGarden."
She quirked her brow and glanced at her companion from the side of her eye. "I imagine there's a great tale behind such a title?"
He nodded solemnly and moved past the unspoken question that hung between them. "She's swift and strong, her movements always quiet and fluid- but loud and raging when she needs to be. And, as you can imagine, some of our people and enemies share a common trait of not being very fond of water."
Levy pressed her hands to her mouth, muffling the hearty laugh that slipped past her defenses. "That's terrible."
"She is his second, in battle that is." He waved a hand before himself and winked. "Elders aren't very useful in the fights of younger, faster men."
She eyed Lily, taking in his form- one that rivaled even Gajeel's. "I highly doubt that."
"Well, in any case, she is just as regarded by him. Gajeel will leave either myself or her in charge when he's required elsewhere and one or the other accompanies him."
"Does he travel much?"
Lily raised his eyebrows and smirked. "If it can be helped, Gajeel stays where he is truly needed, though not many well-bred ladies demand him at her doorstep to offer him a son."
Levy's cheeks pinked at his words and she ducked her head, watching Gajeel and Juvia from under her lashes. "If I had known the Kurogane had…," she paused to consider her words and cautiously worked around the foreign syllable, "-a wife. I would not have made such an offer- or a fool of myself."
A warm palm rested on her shoulder, the skin rough from years of fight and work, but no less comforting. "We do not take multiple companions. Our elders said the tribe descended from dragons themselves, taking shelter in the human form as their kind was hunted down for sport and valor." Levy twisted her mouth shyly as Lily's tone had grown darker and he nearly spat the last word out. "In the years since, some dragons gave up their lines and dragon blood to become fully human. It is told that the Kurogane and his family are some of the last to hold onto their ancestry, able to change into their original form at will. Superstitious legend or not, the tribe has respected the laws of dragons for centuries, living in their way as best we can. If you'll forgive the term, we live by the tradition of mates. One and lifelong, Levy.
"Gajeel will respect that whether you come from the stone halls or the heavy skin tents of our tribe." He squeezed her shoulder and winked when she finally met his eye. "As for Juvia, Gajeel's father found her on an expedition. A town had been scourged in the night not far from where the tribe was settled and when they had seen the pillars of smoke the next morning, they went searching."
Guilt wriggled into her belly, happily coiling around the sleepy serpent already content in her middle. Levy bit her lip and whispered, "How terrible. What happened?"
Lily sighed, a tight smile replacing the welcoming one from moments before. "They found Juvia, a little scraped up from where she had freed herself from the remains of her hiding spot, and then buried those that remained. The previous Kurogane, Metalicana, and his wife took her in. She and Gajeel were raised as siblings, with an unshakeable bond- as they are like-minded rather than opposing forces like most siblings tend to be." Pantherlily took a long drink from the juice that was common on their tables, carefully regarding her as she watched the tribe continue to wildly interact before he spoke up once more. "Do you know why his hair is so long?"
"N-no." Her lip caught between her teeth as she watched the group, Gajeel included, fight amongst each other. Levy had not given previous thought as to why the males grew their hair, in some cases, longer than the women.
She winced when a boy no older than fourteen had the long braid at his back sliced off and kicked into the dirt.
"It is the right of a warrior to grow his hair out as a symbol of pride and victory, it measures how long they have gone without losing a battle. If they lose, it is cut. Thus the cycle restarts." He gently chuckled at the bewildered light in her eyes as the young boy was pushed back into the cheering crowd. "Do not worry, they would not purposely harm someone so young. It's sort of their way of knocking too much arrogance out of the boys. If they think too much of themselves, they risk not only their lives in battle."
"Hm." Levy allowed her eyes to settle over the gruff man she would be forevermore tied to. "And…Has he ever lost?"
"No." It took all of her might not to return the wide smile the older warrior set upon her.
"Ah." She lifted the chalice set before her, sipping the foreign liquid and biting her tongue past the bitter taste. It would take a very long time for her to become accustomed to this land. Levy turned to her companion, meeting his eye directly. "Will the people of my valley be treated properly?"
Pantherlily did not miss the heavy gaze weighed to him, allowing a smirk to flicker in the corner of his mouth. "They will. We may not look it, but we are loyal and look after our own with a fierceness not lent to many. Your valley will be treated as equals and trusted."
Levy nodded her head, satisfied.
Her eyes once more drifted to the wild scene before her and, for the first time, she caught the eye of the Kurogane straight on.
Their wedding day was a feral affair with more of his customs than hers.
To be expected, as the ceremony was held in the tribe's territory, but it wasn't like anything she imagined as a child. Rather than charm and excitement and happiness, the event made her restless and she caught herself wishing for Lily to appear so there would be at least one person to talk to. Her husband sat statuesquely next to her, a crouched pillar of raw strength and danger as he took in the festivities with a pleased smirk quirking in the corner of his mouth. He did not try to speak with her, only dropping his eyes to her twice during the ceremony and the reception.
Something she was wholly ungrateful for- along with the lack of tradition in the Kurogane kissing his new bride.
Even still, Levy had hoped so shallow and naïvely- that if they could not love each other, at the very least she and this man could be friends. But it was obvious to her that he held little interest in his new bride no matter what optimistic jewels of a dive Lily gave her, she wasn't strong or rich beyond one's wildest dreams or from a lineage that offered her groom a throne one day or even an ethereal beautiful. All of these truths of her and her people only made her more confused as to why someone so powerful would anchor himself to someone as insignificant as she, even if she could bear him sons.
The silk pillow given to her as a place to sit felt like ice against her quivering shins.
These were not her people.
Not the ones she knew by name. Their language was not smooth and melodic, their dress was not proper, and she feared them, she realized. As they drank and cried with celebration and shoved each other around in jest. She felt like the crowd was pressing in- closer and closer to the platform she and the Kurogane occupied, unsatisfied until they were all pressed together. Her next breath left her in a whoosh of slight panic, her jerky movement catching not only the eyes of Pantherlily, but the stoic, bloody irises of her betrothed.
The celebration was still loud and alive when the moon rose low in the sky and Gajeel took her hand. His skin was coarse and unyielding to her own softer palm, the touch did not transcend or melt like she read of great lovers in her books. There was no instantaneous bond that reassured her or told her she had just been wrong. A warrior such as him was stronger than any stone wall or iron shield, of course anything he did would be far from gentle or caring. Stranger was branded into her palm.
He silently lead her to his horse, placing her on its wide back and letting what she could only determine to be a grunt of disapproval as she shook in his hold. Gajeel didn't try to speak with her or give her any token of comfort, he dropped his stark gaze in a sidelong look that left her feeling petulant. They left amongst the raucous chorus of chants she did not understand, but with the rough accents and gestures, she did not need to know their tongue to judge what the sentiments might be. The reality slammed into her and took with it what even breaths she had managed to draw, shaking and bending her spine. All the strength she thought she had, stolen in seconds and leaving behind the painful prick of tears.
As he raised the reins of his horse, a thickly corded arm pressed against her waist on both sides- keeping her from slipping, but caging her in all the same.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lily nod; to her, to him, to the horse maybe, she wasn't sure. Her world lodged in her throat for the seriousness of his expression- Lily couldn't assure as to what may or may not happen next. She was indebted to him, he had spent a lot of his time calming her and telling her how to act around his people when he could have been enjoying himself amongst them. Levy owed it to him to not mess up, to not anger their fierce leader.
They arrived at a tent glowing with golden light from the inside. It felt like a cage rather than a comfort.
Gajeel slid from the strong back of his horse, who merely tittered at his owner, and placed his wide hands over her waist, plucking her right off the horse's back. She tried not to think about how his hands completely covered the expanse of her ribcage as he left her at the side of the horse to enter the tent. Levy blinked back her tears and gazed up at the sky, silently watching as the clouds curled overhead. The animal snorted, stamping one foot to get her attention. She warily eyed the creature before setting her palm against his long nose- the horse acted as if he had gone too long without proper acknowledgment.
For the first time in months, a shy and relieved smile crawled to the corner of her mouth. Levy playfully puffed air on the horse's nose, causing the stallion to jerk its head in disgruntlement. The horse nipped at the wild ends of her hair before nuzzling the end of his snout into her hand.
A silence lapsed between them as the creature nuzzled the grass in search of something to eat. It was almost too much, for the first time what seemed like days, she could hear herself think and breathe without heavy drum beats or a foreign language hollered over her head. For the first time, she noticed the waves.
How they crashed mercilessly against the rocks, angry growls that slithered over the bare skin of her arms in the passing breeze.
Her heart leapt into her throat as a large hand clasped around her wrist and drew her hand from the horse's soft hide, Levy trained her eyes to the ground as the dragon lead her to his temporary lair. The room was wide, betraying and tricking her mind with promises of comfort in the blankets and pillows of earthy tones. It was nothing like the ivory stone and cold floors of her old home. Gajeel released her wrist from his hold, still not looking at her or saying anything. Levy watched as he kept his back to her, unlacing his leather armbands and tossing them to a table. The strong and tanned arms were scarred and pierced, forearms of a warlord.
Levy gulped, her throat constricting uncomfortably with the action. She willed her head to stay up, she was a lady and while her fate was no longer her own, it did not mean she would continue without a little say.
The metal bracelets placed over her upper arms slid away smoothly, the soft tinkling they made once nearly imperceptible over the crackling of the fire in the middle of the tent.. Her eyes trailed once more to her new husband. He paid her no mind, only grumbling as he took on the task of washing the lines of red paint away from his broad shoulders. The wide muscles of his back shadowed menacingly from the lights cast from flames. The struggle he kept up to reach over to his back almost served to make her laugh, such a serious and reserved man attempting to reach his shoulder blades with a tiny cloth was not something she had planned to see. Gajeel cursed and glowered at her from over his shoulder, making Levy instantly freeze in her spot, not daring to relax when the man before her started to speak.
She stayed her wide eyes on him and breathed unevenly- he growled in turn, huffing in irritation and closing the distance between them. Gajeel jerked her hand up with one of his and pressed the red smeared fabric into the palm of her hand. She could only blink owlishly as he began to speak again, drawing her eyebrows together and nervously stuttering.
"I-I don't understand. Just- Please stop, I d-don't understand."
The large man muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes and leading her to a backless chair he sat heavily on. He jerked her hand once more, splaying her hand and the cloth over his shoulder and ticking his head.
A whoosh of breath left her, one she hadn't been aware she'd been holding. "O-Oh. I- uh."
He didn't say anything more, stoically leaning forward and moving his long braid out of the way for her to clean the paint away. Levy did as she was instructed, only stepping away to retrieve the bowl of water after the cloth became too sullied to clean his skin further. She felt self-conscious as her hands rolled across the muscles of his back, he did not jump or shake with her touch as she had with his.
Of course he would not be nervous or scared of her, one of his legs weighed more than she did and he, undoubtedly, had not been a stranger to having a female occupy his living space. Lily had told her otherwise, but he was a leader and she would have been even more a fool to let the looks other females shot him go unnoticed.
The unbidden thought sent a chill through her, jolting her hand and dropping the cloth.
Would she be expected to allow her husband to wander? Letting him bring in however many women, however often, to their tent?
It soured her stomach to think she would not be given at least one courtesy. What kind of a lady would her parents think her now? The wife of a lord whom did as he pleased and held so little respect for his lady as to not even hide his endeavors?
Gajeel took the cloth and bowl from her, stealing her from her thoughts as he set the objects back to their place on a table. Without so much as a warning grunt or pointed look, he continued to take off the heavy belts tied at his waist for the ceremony.
Numbly, Levy noted the stray water droplets that rolled down in rivulets over his back.
She rubbed the thin sleeve of her gown and steeled herself, pulling it down and following it with the other. The misery pressing at her clenched teeth fought its way out in a small sound and served to alert the man before her. He whirled around in his spot and frowned as the dress began to dip in her seizing hands. Gajeel was before her in two wide strides, setting her sleeves back in place and catching her chin between two calloused fingers to make her look at him.
"No." His eyes narrowed at her, allowing his fingers to fall and drum gently against the skin just under her collarbone, near her heart. "Fear."
A/N: I've gotten a lot of questions about what's going to happen, what's going to be included, etc. So, here's a little run down to hopefully cover the wide scope of questions I got.
You do not have to follow the show or have read the books to understand this story. Especially since this chapter is probably the one that's going to be closest to what happens in the show. The story is merely inspired by the characters of Daenerys and Khal Drogo and will eventually have a plot all its own. This story is expressly just for Levy and Gajeel. While several characters will come into play in future characters, there won't be subplots or intertwining stories. As cool as it'd be to write that kind of thing, I don't have the experience or the time to attempt that kind of epic. lol
Updates will be slow in coming, as I'm putting my all into giving my best here and taking my time to ensure that I do.
If you have any further questions/concerns (this does not mean details/spoilers for who is going to show up or what's going to happen), feel free to contact me on tumblr, my username is pansariri.
As always, thank you for the kind and words and support.
Edit (1-15-2015): I stopped writing in October for those of you that are so unbothered by reading my profile. I got burnt out on it. To the guest that decided to leave me the review of 'chaaaaaapter333333333333' - I have many vile things to say to you. Writers are not machines you shove demands into and fic falls out. And psych, there is no chapter 3. This was done completely on purpose so I could ensure you especially would see this.