Nest Egg - PaintedZecora

Disclaimer: Fairy Tail is the property of Hiro Mashima

Levy let herself into her apartment, leaving a sloppy trail of clothes from the door to her living room. Her feet dragged sluggishly across the carpet, and she could barely keep her eyes open as she gradually stripped down to a snug tank top and panties.

Humming softly to herself, she activated the television lacrima and switched to the news. As the coverage switched to the live broadcast of a magic tournament, she raised both arms above her head in a long, luxurious stretch. She winced, hearing several joints click.

It had been a long day, and she felt deserving of a good rest. And with that thought in mind, she flopped onto the couch.

Crack!

The Script mage's eyes flew wide open, and she hurriedly rolled off the couch and onto the floor. Yanked off the comforter that covered the seats, and stared at the off white egg that she'd sat on. Luckily, it was encased in a sandwich bag so the yolk didn't ruin her furniture. Her body trembled in anger, and not for the first time that day did she feel like torching someone.

"I'm not in the mood for games right now, so whoever the hell keeps leaving these around, come out now or I'll gas the place!" Her hands were at the ready; the gases she could script ranged from life-preserving oxygen to the deadly carbon monoxide, as well as several others.

"It's me, Shorty." Gajeel stepped out from a shadowy recess of a small spare room.

"G-Gajeel?" Levy stammered, lowering her arms. "What are you doing here?"

"It's not what it looks like. I ain't trying to mess with you or nothing. Was just getting rid of these."

Levy placed her hands on her hips. "You've booby trapped my apartment with eggs? Why would you do such a thing?"

"Look, I'll just leave you-"

"And are you responsible for all these as well?" She grabbed her purse and upended it on her couch. Over a dozen eggs tumbled onto the soft cushions.

Gajeel paled. "So you did notice em.."

The tiny mage snorted. "Kind of hard not to miss. I got worried when my clients kept finding them in their chairs, or stepping on them. I thought someone was trying to sabotage me all day!"

"Eh...guess I went overboard, Shrimp." For the first time she could remember, the iron dragon slayer looked abashed. The expression didn't look good on the normally proud man. He refused to meet her eyes, and her irritation faded as she realized he might have a legitimate reason behind his odd behavior.

"Gajeel...look at me..."

"I can't," he muttered.

She frowned. "Why not?"

His eyes darted to her, moved south, and a look of pure evil crossed his face. "Kittens...really?"

Confused, she followed his gaze.

"Fuck!"

She yanked the comforter off the couch and wrapped it around her waist as an astonished Gajeel looked on. "I didn't know you curse," he couldn't help teasing, his red eyes gleaming with mirth.

Levy flushed, inwardly bemoaning the fact that he'd seen her in the frilly pink cat patterned underwear Erza had forced her to buy. "I wouldn't be laughing if I were you," she warned tripping over the edge of the blanket as she retreated to her room. "You still have a lot of explaining to do."

. . .

He told her everything.

While she sat on the couch with Pantherlily on her lap(she'd changed into a pair of shorts) he recounted his conversation with Metalicana. To her credit, not once did she interrupt; her hazel eyes flashed with barely contained interest.

"And then he said that some day I'd find a...a special woman who'd want to hatch eggs for me. A woman I like a lot." He finished awkwardly.

Gajeel eyed her closely, sweating buckets as she turned an astonishing shade of pink and tightened her grip on the poor exceed. Was she angry? Embarrassed? She had no idea the power she held over him at that precise moment. Metaphorically speaking, his heart was in her hands, and with the state he was in she could easily crush it with her next words.

"You...like me?" She squeaked.

He opened his mouth to double back on his words;to hide away the feelings that budded inside him ever since the day he almost lost her to two Grimoire Heart mages. He'd realized then that it was a lot more than just helping out a person he hurt in the past.

The little bookworm had inexplicably wriggled her way into his heart.

"Yeah." He finally croaked, and immediately felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He braced himself for the resounding sting of rejection like the one he knew she'd already dealt her two team mates. What could she ever see in him?

He was completely unprepared when she flew into him, Pantherlily crushed between their bodies as she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest.

"Shorty?" He seized up, unused to being embraced, let alone touched by another person.

"I like you too..." She looked up at him and smiled. His heart melted.

"Help...can't...breathe..." Pantherlily rasped.

"But why can't you sit on it?" He asked, watching as she lined the bottom of a ten gallon aquarium-the make shift nesting box- with straw. For some reason the image of Levy sitting on an egg appealed to his draconic side. It was a week since they'd revealed their true feelings to each other, and so far, little had changed between them. Which suited Gajeel just fine. He liked his bookworm's company as it was. They weren't boyfriend and girlfriend, and neither were they even dating. But they had grown close.

"For the dozenth time, I'd break it," she replied, readjusting her headband as it began to come undone. "You saw what happened to the one egg you actually managed to get me to sit on."

"That was different," he protested."You practically threw yourself on top of it. It had no chance."

Levy groaned. "It doesn't matter. It wouldn't have worked out anyways. Eggs you buy from the store never hatch. Surely you knew that?"

The blank look he gave her in return was answer enough.

"A hen will lay eggs whether or not she's mated with a rooster,"she explained. "Eggs from unmated hens are usually the kind that are sold for consumption. Since they aren't fertilized, they won't hatch."

Gajeel tilted his head to the side. "But why do they lay eggs that can't hatch? Sounds like a waste of time to me."

Levy sighed. "I don't know...humans produce eggs as well. In fact, we're born with all the eggs we'll ever have."

"Really." He sounded impressed.

"Yes, and just like hens, we...sort of...get rid of our unfertilized eggs. Each month," she reddened, seeing the grin spread across his face.

"Psh, I knew that Short Stack. You're doing it right now." He tapped his nose.

"GAJEEL!"

After she recovered from her brief mortification, Levy set up a lamp over the fish tank.

"There,"she said, proud of her handiwork. "Now all we need is a fertilized egg. Perhaps there's a farm somewhere around that we can-"

"Already taken care of," Gajeel interrupted, rummaging in his travel bag. "Found this while doing a job."

"Oh? You have an egg? What kind is it?" Levy paled as he brought out a large, green egg with orange stripes. It was as big as her head.

"Dunno, just found it lying around in the forest."

"You stole it from its nest?"

"Relax, Shorty. The other eggs were smashed...if I hadn't taken it, something else would've."

"If you don't know what it is...um, did you see what its mother looked like?"

"Nah, couldn't be bothered to stick around that long. Nest was abandoned."

"Well...at least we have an egg..." And if we're really lucky it'll hatch into something that won't eat us.

Gajeel looked apprehensively at the makeshift incubator. "I don't think it'll like it in there."

"It's an egg," she reminded him. "It's not like it can see where it is."

"I still think it's better off if you sit on it." He grumbled. "Lisanna sat on Happy's egg when she and Natsu were raising it."

Levy's eyes narrowed. "Then maybe you're better off asking Lisanna for help instead."

"I ain't asking that Flame Brain's girl for nothing,"he growled. "I asked you. 'Cause you're the only one I trust."

The Script mage blushed at his admission. "Are you sure this isn't about Natsu being able to hatch an egg before you?"

"Not anymore,"he answered with certainty. He met her eyes, and she felt as if he were peering right into her soul.

Levy glanced at the egg in Gajeel's arms. "I have an idea. I won't sit on it, but I think we'll both like it."

"So how do you feel?" He asked anxiously, hovering close.

"I'm all right. Stop worrying."she smiled, hugging the egg closer to her stomach. "It's not like I'm pregnant."

The dragon slayer sputtered, then glanced pointedly away from her, his face red. But he couldn't look away for long, and he found himself slowly turning his head to gaze thoughtfully at the blue haired mage.

She was clad in only a sports bra and shorts, with a blanket thrown over herself to preserve her modesty. The egg was nestled between her crossed legs, pressing right against her bare stomach. Her arms wrapped loosely around it. Levy leaned against the back of the futon and closed her eyes, relaxing even as her body heat kept the egg warm.

She had been like this for the past few days, while he was out on an assignment set by Master Makarov. She wished Lucy were around, but her closest girl friend had taken it upon herself to go on a training journey with her Celestial Spirits. She wouldn't be back for ages. It had been boring at first, but then she realized she could pass the time by reading or watching television. Still, neither was as good as the company of her favorite dragon slayer. He'd been reluctant to leave in the first place, but now that he was back, he seemed more determined than ever to make up for it.

The futon dipped as Gajeel sat on the edge. She briefly wondered if the egg would hatch at all; who knew how long it had been sitting unattended in its nest before the dragon slayer happened by it. Still, she was willing to try for Gajeel's sake. He had done so much for her in the past...

"Just tell me when you're tired and we'll switch," Gajeel interrupted her thoughts.

Levy cracked an eye open. "Oh? I thought it was the female's job to keep the egg warm." She teased.

The dragon slayer snorted. "It don't work like that, Shrimp. It's like you said-we're doin this together."

Levy nodded, inwardly relieved. She was glad he had offered to help; despite her willingness to care for the egg, she would have been disappointed if he'd expected her to do all the work. When he wanted to, Gajeel could be very committed.

"Maybe in a few hours. In the meantime, you should get out for a bit, and visit the guild. I'm sure Jet and Droy will want to know what I've been up to all day."

He grunted. "Oh yeah. I forgot about your lap dogs." She winced.

"Be nice..."

Gajeel grimaced. "I don't do nice, Shrimplet." He hid a grin as she fell silent, processing his words. It didn't take long.

"What on Earth Land is a shrimplet?"

"A really tiny, little shrimp. That's my new nickname for ya."

She swung at him with a cushion, and he dodged out of the way. "You...you big meanie!" She yelled across the room as he sauntered towards the door.

"Didn't ya hear what I said, little girl? I don't do nice, gihihihihi!" He cackled over his shoulder before leaving.

Levy crossed her arms and pouted. "Shrimplet,"she sniffed. "And I thought it couldn't get any worse than Shrimp." She leaned back and closed her eyes, enjoying the peace and quiet.

But he's not so bad, she though, falling into a peaceful doze. He's definitely changed for the better...

. . .

"She's hatching your WHAT?" The lap dogs barked in unison.

Gajeel looked from one to the other, then let the biggest, widest, shit-eating grin spread across his face. "Ya heard me, Thing 1 and Thing 2. Little Levy is carrying MY egg."

"H-how is that possible?" Thing 2 cried, his many chins wobbling in indignation.

"I'm a dragon slayer," Gajeel replied bluntly. "We can do a lot of things."

"Bastard! What did you do to Levy?" growled Thing 1. His hand curved into a fist.

"Tch. I didn't do nothin that she didn't like." Both their faces turned red, and the dragon slayer quickly added. "Although, the egg was pretty big..."

Thing 1 let out a strangled cry, his face blanching as Gajeel's words elicited some disturbing imagery. "You...you craven monster...Levy!"

"What can I say? It takes after its Dad."

The two idiots were making such a scene that almost the entire guild was watching their exchange. And judging by the look of thunder on Erza's face, he needed to wrap this up fast.

"Heh. Relax, the Shrimp's all right." He crossed his arms and resisted the urge to laugh in their faces.

"Where is she?" Thing 2 demanded.

"I've got her tucked up nice and snug in bed. In fact, I really should be getting back to her and Junior..."

"LEVY!"

Even before he finished, the ever faithful lap dogs tore out of the guild, screaming their team mate's name as they went. The dragon slayer cursed under his breath, realizing they were probably headed straight for her apartment. Still, the look on their faces was worth the chewing out Levy was sure to give him the minute he got back.

Ten minutes later...

Who was he kidding? It wasn't even worth the fear-inducing death glare she sent him through the wreckage of her front door when he arrived. The lap dogs were curled up on either side of her on the futon, sniveling tearfully as they fussed over her. Wusses, he thought in disgust. He was surprised they weren't licking her feet in worship.

Levy pointed at the broken door. "You're fixing that." The tiny mage said impassively as her team mates started wailing about the "terrible things that nasty, evil, no-good, sadistic dragon slayer" had done to their "sweet, innocent, team mate."

They stayed all night.

I was definitely on crack when I started this story.