A/N Whoah it feels so good to get this chapter up. Don't ask me why but I spent all night and day working on it. I just got really inspired out of nowhere. That's probably why I got to update so soon. Any way that you to EVERYONE who viewed, reviewed, and Favorited my story! It means so much to me! And to the random reader that wanted longer updates I hope this is long enough! Now I give you... Chapter 3: Friends and Missions
Levy awoke the next morning to the strips of bright sunlight forcing its way into the dark, gloomy room through the sides of her window curtain. Last night had been one of the toughest, emotional nights of her life. Every time she closed her eyes the scene from the park came flooding back to her mind. She kept seeing the hurt in Gajeel's eyes and the way his face dropped when she said that she was done waiting. All these images just made her want to run over to his house and tell him that she was ok with waiting, that she would wait forever if he needed it. Every time those urges came up, she had to literally force herself to stay in her room. Internally growling at the light Levy rolled over in her bed to face the wall. She wasn't in the mood to do anything today. All she wanted to do was lay in bed and read romance novels while eating all the ice cream her body can hold. She knew this was impossible though. If she didn't at least go the guild today her boys would come looking for her.
That thought made her smile. Her boys Jet and Droy have always been at her side. No matter how bad a situation got they always tried their hardest to look after her. If she was sad they tried to cheer her up with words of encouragement and jokes. If they were in trouble on a mission they tried their hardest to protect her, even if it ended up with her having to protect them. When she was sick, they made her the nastiest soup she's ever eaten, but at least they tried. They were loyal to her, even if it's a little too loyal. She was always able to count on them. That's way more than what Gajeel was trying to be. He didn't want to try for her. Bringing her mind back to Gajeel made her groan again. Why was he always on her mind? Peeking her eyes out from under her blanket Levy stared at the wall in front of her. The whole reason for telling Gajeel she was done was so that she can move on. Yet here she was lying in despair because of him. She rolled back around so she was facing the inside of her room. Her walls were completely covered with books and scrolls. Many of them didn't even fit in the bookcases she had and graced her floor messily. Her eyes moved from her collection of books to her alarm lacrima.
"12:22 PM" She read out loud. There were two things she could do at this moment. She could suck it up, get dressed and head to the guild or she could wallow in her self-pity over the newest Nicholas Sparks novel and ice cream. It wouldn't be that hard to get rid of the guys if she really wanted to. She could just tell them it was her time of the month, then watch them squirm away. That trick worked every time.
"But a mission would really help get my mind off things," Levy whispered to herself. It's true, if Levy could find a good translating job, then her mind will automatically shut off all other thoughts until the mission is complete. The question is whether or not she's willing to risk seeing him at the guild. Looking at the lacrima again Levy made her decision. Letting out a deep breath She moved off her bed, wrapping her blanket across her shoulders. She expertly walked around all the books lying on the ground dragging her blanket behind her until she reached her bathroom. Once she was in the bathroom Levy looked at her reflection in the mirror above her sink. Letting a completely disgusted look cover her features she examined herself more carefully. Her usually soft curls were now in a tangled heap on top of her head, She had mascara streaks all down her red and puffy cheeks, and Her usually pearly white teeth were filled with grime and gunk.
"Mavis I look like a disaster!" she said to her reflection. She pulled her blanket closer to her with one hand while the other grabbed her toothbrush. Starting her normal morning ritual Levy brushed her teeth thoroughly checking for any missed spots. When she was satisfied with her results Levy unwrapped her blanket, Folded it and placed it back on her bed. She did a few stretches loosening up her tight muscles until she heard them pop. Feeling a little bit better she walked back to her bathroom and started up a hot shower. When the bathroom filled with enough steam she dropped her clothes to the floor with a light thud and kicked them to the side. Stepping into the hot water, Levy automatically felt better. All the sweat and tears fell from her body. Her muscles relaxed against the heat. She started off shampooing her head, unknotting her messy hair with her fingers. Levy then grabbed her body wash and poured a generous amount on her hand. She then started to massage her body, cleaning herself with a soft hum. She stood in the shower feeling the warmth flow through her not wanting to get out. Until she heard a knocking at the door.
"I wonder who that could be" She giggled, turning off the water. She grabbed a couple of her freshly cleaned towels to wrap around her body and dry her hair. She carefully stepped out of the tub and into her room. She heard the knocking again, this time it was a little harder, and laughed.
'Man, these guys are relentless.' Opening the door, she smiled at her visitors. They smiled back at her, glad to see that she's ok.
"LEVY" they both screamed into the air, hugging their precious leader in between them. She coughed and asked them to put her down, but they refused. They just kept hugging and squeezing the life out of her. When they noticed that she was just in a towel though they dropped her immediately and backed off.
"Oh, sorry Lev, I guess we were just excited to see that you were ok." Jet said looking off to the side. Droy just stood there with a blush on his face looking down. Levy just laughed and moved from the doorway to let them into the room. Usually, boys weren't allowed into the Fairy Hills but Erza always seemed to make an exception for Jet and Droy. Levy always thought it was because Erza knew nothing would ever happen between the three of them. She didn't see her best friends as anything but her best friends, and the guys respected her too much to take advantage of her.
"Oh, it's ok, I was actually just to head to the guild to look for you guys. I was thinking maybe we could pick up a good translating job." Levy said to the boys they were now sitting on her bed.
"Just give me a minute to change" She grabbed some clothes and headed into the bathroom to change. Through the door, she heard mumbles of 'Oh Levy's so smart.' and 'Always thinking of good missions for us'. Levy just stood with her back against the door. A small smile gracing her lips. Yeah, Levy could always count on her boys.
Gajeel woke the next afternoon hating any and everything. He hated his room, he hated the fact that he was alone, and he hated just about every other thing. The sun was seeping into his room, blinding him before he got a chance to adjust his eyes from the darkness. He covered his face with the blanket yelling out a groan. He didn't want to get up, especially with the lack of sleep he had. Turning his body so that his broad back was facing the traitorous window Gajeel peaked on of his piercing eyes out of the blanket. He had two options today. He could stay home and drown himself in iron and booze, or he could get a mission and drown himself in work. Either way Gajeel was sure that he would be drowning in his own misery. No one would be stupid enough to stop him, fearing that he would send them to an early grave. The only people that might try are Lily and Juvia.
That thought made him feel a little bit better. Those two always tried to make him feel better. They even tried to help him put his life together whenever he felt like he was falling apart. Back in Phantom Lord, when he had nightmares about the people he killed, Juvia was there to calm him and tell him that it doesn't make him a monster. Of course, he didn't believe her, but it was satisfying to know there was at least one person who thought of him as a human being rather than a demon. On a mission, he knew that Lily always had his back. Ready to fight with him side by side if things ever got bad. He would trust his cat with his life. When he was sick Juvia would bombard him medicine while Lily made him the most disgusting soup he's ever eaten. That didn't matter to him though, what mattered was that they tried. What mattered was that were there for him. That was more than he could say about anyone out there. Anyone but Levy. The thought of her brought a sting in his heart. He couldn't get his mind off her, yet he was stubborn. He only wanted Levy to be happy, and he wouldn't try to force her to be miserable with him if she decided to be happier without him.
Gajeel rolled back around to look at his window. His eyes roamed around the room looking at all the trinkets and gadgets he tinkers with. There were a bunch of pieces on his metal desk, but most of the pieces of iron were lying aimlessly on the floor. Gajeel used to think he should get a bookshelf to line up all his random junk but soon decided against it. He looked away from the iron up to his alarm lacrima.
"Hum 12:22, I sure slept in late today." He said out loud. No, that it was surprising why he slept in late. His stomach automatically knotted when the images of last night came flooding back in his mind. Without a second thought, he jumped out of bed. He made his decision. Grabbing the nearest towel he could find, Gajeel left his room and trudged his way into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. After he turned on the shower, he walked up the sink and looked at himself in the mirror.
"Geez, I look like shit" His hair was covered in tangles from tossing and turning all night, His face was covered in sweat and dirt from beating up the defenseless tree, and his breath tasted of old alcohol. Looking at himself one more time, Gajeel grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste. He threw off the little bit of clothing he had and hopped in the shower. The hot water literally washed the stress right off him. He let in a deep relaxing sigh and let the water run all down his hair. His muscles unknotted and he slumped against the warmth. Stepping out of the stream of water Gajeel started brushing his teeth in no specific order. Once he felt all the gunk out of his mouth Gajeel threw the toothbrush back into the sink and started to wash his hair and body. After lathering his body, he rinsed it all off, massaging all his sore muscles. He was enjoying his nice shower until he heard a knocking at the bathroom door. He figured it was just Lily trying to use the bathroom.
"Ima' get out in a second Lil." He yelled from the bath tub. He didn't hear anything after that so he just turned off the water and grabbed his towel. Noticing he forgot a towel for his hair, he grabbed the towel on the door that they used for the guests. The second he opened the door, he was pushed back by someone clutching themselves to him.
"Juvia is so happy to see Gajeel!" Juvia screamed into his ear.
"My God woman get off me!" he yelled, pushing her off of him. Noticing that he was only in a towel Juvia blushed and bowed her head.
"Juvia is sorry, Juvia did not know that you were in a towel. Juvia will wait until Gajeel is fully clothed." Gajeel just scoffed and headed to his room. He normally would have chewed her head off for coming over without telling him, but he was kind of happy to see her. He figured Lily probably called her to come talk some sense into his thick skull. Sighing he looked back over to see Juvia looking at him, her eyes filled with something that he still wasn't used to seeing, compassion.
"It's ok... I was actually taking a shower so that I could go to the guild to get a mission" He said over his shoulder to Juvia. She simply hummed in understanding while Gajeel looked for something decent to wear.
"I… You should come with us." He said quietly, trying to act nonchalant about it. In reality, though he wanted to her to come. She was someone who could really help him figure things out with his shrimp. He soon regretted it when he heard a loud gasp coming from the door.
"Juvia would love to go on a mission with Gajeel and Lily!, Oh, it'll be so much fun! We can invite Gray-Sama and-"
"NO! We are not inviting the ice freak! Just let me get dressed and we can go pick out a good mission." He said, pushing her out the door closing it in the process. Through the door, he heard quiet muffles of
'Juvia has gotten Gajeel to invite her to a mission' and 'Good, maybe we can get him to cheer up.' Resting his back on the door, he let out a small genuine smile. Yeah, Gajeel knew they would always be there for him.
The walk to the guild was refreshing. It was a beautiful spring day in Magnolia. The trees were vibrantly green and the sky was a dazzling blue. There was a wonderful cool breeze that floated around Levy. She took a deep breath and lifted her arms in a stretch.
"Ahh! Isn't today such a nice day?" She said looking at the other two members of Shadow Gear. Jet was on her right looking up at the sky and Droy was on her left side, eating a piece of chicken. When they heard her question they both looked at her and smiled.
"Yeah, it's beautiful-" Droy started to say before he was cut off by Jet
"Just like you Levy!" Droy stared daggers at his best friend
"I was going to say that to Levy!"
"Well, too bad I said it first" Jet replied quickly. Levy just laughed at her friends that bickered behind her. Some things never change over time. To be honest Levy was kind of glad that her boys didn't change much. When she found out about the seven year skip her biggest fear was that the dynamic of shadow gear would change. Everything around her was so different and she didn't want her friends to be different too. She knew it was selfish of her. What she learned instead, was the even if the two boys matured and got older, they were still the same Jet and Droy that she grew up with. They still bickered like idiots and had the determination fit of a Fairy Tail member. That idea made her smile.
Soon the trio made it to the overly large building. From where they stood Shadow Gear could hear all the sounds inside. Instead of walking on in like always Levy hesitated.
'What if he's there? What if he shows up?' Levy replayed the image of his face, full of pain, in her head. She wasn't sure if she was ready to face Gajeel yet. She didn't know if he was willing to talk to her either. There were so many things that could happen he was there. So focused on her thoughts Levy didn't notice Droy leaned down to meet her eyes.
"Hey Lev, It'll be ok. I don't know what happened after you stormed off yesterday but if you're not ready to talk to him we'll make sure he stays away. We'll go in grab a mission and get out quicker than Jet can run a marathon. Okay?" Levy stared into the dark brown eyes in front of her. All she saw was sincerity and caring. She let out a little laugh and gave Droy a kiss on the cheek.
"Thanks, Droy that made me feel a little better… Let's go inside." Moving around him Levy walked past Jet and right into the guild. Droy stood stuck in the spot. He was grinning like an idiot, holding the spot where Levy kissed.
"Wow!" he whispered star struck. Jet just laughed at Droy's behavior hiding the fact that he's jealous and walked into the guild.
Gajeel just stood stuck in his place. Juvia behind him and Lily on his shoulder. His heart was twisting while his anger was boiling at what they just witnessed. They were just about to go up to the guild when they saw Levy and her lap dogs standing in the doorway. That was enough to keep him frozen in place so Gajeel decided he would wait until she goes in and then grab a mission and leave. That was until he saw Droy walk up to her and go down to eye level. He watched as the larger man said something serious to his shrimp. Then he watched her let out a small chuckle and give him a kiss on the cheek. Gajeel almost lost his cool when he saw her move in. It was like a slow motion movie. That didn't stop his anger from boiling up. He wanted to go over and rip his fucking head off. That guy didn't deserve a kiss from Levy. No matter how innocent. They were always hanging around her like pathetic vultures, just waiting for her to get upset so they could cheer her up. He hating them before the S-Class exams, but he hating them even more now. Especially after him and Levy developed their "Unique" relationship. He was about to march straight into the guild and give them both a piece of his mind when Juvia pulled him back.
"Juiva thinks it'll be better if she went in to pick out the mission" He just looked at the doors before grunting in agreement. He moved and sat down under a nearby tree. Gajeel watched as Juvia gave Lily a pleading look and then run into the guild. Lily hopped off his shoulder and sat right in front of his legs. For a while, they just looked at each other. Gajeel hasn't said anything to Lily all day. He would just grunt his responses when asked a question. Lily was getting tired of it.
"Look Gajeel, I'm sorry for what I said last night. I know it hit a nerve." Gajeel just sat there trying to think of what he could possibly say. He knew that Lily was just trying to help him. Even if what he said pissed him off to no end, but it was the truth and it was what Gajeel needed to hear. He looked up into the eyes of his partner.
"Don't apologize, ya did nothing wrong." Lily just hummed an ok and waited for their partner to return. During the wait, Gajeel took this time to think, to really think about what he was going to do. He decided to make a mental list of why he should and shouldn't be with his bookworm. On one hand, he loved Levy. There was no point in denying it anymore. The way he was ready to murder Droy over a kiss on the cheek was enough proof. So he couldn't use that as an excuse anymore. But on the other hand being with her is never going to work. No matter how much Love he had for her, she was too good. He would end up hurting her more than if he was just end their "relationship" now. But then on the first hand he could have the girl of his dreams, Levy would be his to hold and Love. Then there was the undeniable fact that he still had scars that he wasn't ready to show her. Being a relationship meant that he had to be completely open with her, and for him that was terrifying, even more than lightning was to Lily. Soon Juvia came out of the guild with a huge smile on her face and a mission in her hand.
"Juvia got the mission!"
The first thing Levy did when she entered the guild was look around for a certain Dragon Slayer. Once she saw that he wasn't there Levy physically and mentally relaxed. She waved hello to all her friends and walked straight to the request bored.
"Hum let's see, looking for someone to fight off a monster? No thank you. Looking for someone to stop Bandits? Not me. Looking for someone to babysit a royal child? Yeah right! Looking for someone to repair Damaged reservoir and catch the dark guild that destroyed it? Reward 50,000 Jewels and a spot in the annual singing festival." Levy laughed a little. That was such a weird reward.
'That would be a good mission for Gajeel.' Levy stopped that thought before it got any further. She promised herself that she wasn't going to spend this mission thinking about him. That's the whole reason she got out of bed. Taking another look at the request she let out an audible groan. Sometimes she was too nice. Grabbing the paper from the board she walked up to Fairy Tail's most beautiful demon, Mirajane Strauss.
"Oh, hey Levy!" She yelled from behind the bar. "I'm actually glad you're here I have something I have to give you," Mira said giving Levy her special smile reserved for her closest friends and family. This was interesting, Mira either only gave a present on your birthday or you a mission that she thought you would do well at. Since it wasn't her birthday Levy figured it was a good translation mission.
'That's probably why I didn't see any on the board' Levy thought. "Oh really? What is it?" She finally said out loud. "Oh, I have something to give you too." She said remembering the mission for Gajeel and handing Mira the piece of paper."Can you give this mission to Gajeel if he comes by, I think It'll be a really good one for him" Levy's voice lowered as she tried to hide the pain behind her words. She wasn't ready for the guild to know about the talk they had yesterday. Even though, she's sure that everyone already started talking about her outburst. Mira caught it and just gave the young girl a sympathetic smile.
"Sure thing Lev, I'll give him the mission. Speaking of missions One came in specifically for you from the Magnolia Library!" Mira said, holding up the piece of paper with the request written on it. Levy's eyes jumped as she reached up and snatched it out of the models hand. She read it carefully to make sure that it wasn't a joke
Request for Levy McGarden of Fairy Tail:
Please help translate a historical book in a mysterious language for a young man named Ian Rose. He is a very important donor to the library and promised to donate the translated version for the public. You will have a week to complete this mission. As payment, you will receive 30,000 Jewels along with 10 books of your choice.
Levy looked up to Mira with a huge smile on her face.
"WE'll take it!" she said smiling. While Levy was waiting for Mira to fix up the paperwork Juvia came and sat down next to Levy. They both looked at each other and smiled.
"Excuse me Mira but Juvia will like to take this mission for herself and Gajeel." Juvia suddenly said, holding up the request she saw earlier for the monster. Levy's eyes shot open.
'What? Was Gajeel taking a mission? With Juvia?' She looked over to Juvia. Levy figured it would make sense. Besides Lily, Juvia is the only person who Gajeel trusts. Why wouldn't they go on a mission together? Her heart started to sting with jealousy. She wished that he would go to her when he feels sad. As if reading her thoughts Juvia poked Levy on the shoulder.
"Hello Levy, if you're wondering Juvia and Lily are taking Gajeel on a mission to help him think. Lily said that he might have said something to upset Gajeel yesterday. Juvia thought it would be best for him to beat something up that wasn't himself. Juvia hopes that Levy understands and does not view Juvia as a Love Rival." Levy let her words sink in. Juvia is always so nice, no wonder Gajeel trusts her. Before Levy had the chance to tell Juvia that she doesn't think Juvia is a love rival Mira came back.
"You know Juiva, Levy just picked out a mission, she thought would be good for Gajeel," Mira said taking out the paper. "You should try this one instead" Juvias eyes Sparkled as she grabbed the paper. She looked up at Levy which was met with a bright smile. Saying nothing else she just ran out of the guild. The two girls just laughed and watched her retreating back.
"I think she wants it" Levy laughed. Mira let out a small giggle and went to put in the paperwork for Gajeel and Juvia's mission. Levy sat enjoying the sounds of her friends. This was going to be a good week. Not only did she get to spend every second in the library with an excuse, she got to do a challenging job, and she got free books at the end of it. She let the thoughts of her upcoming week calm and soothe her. Until she felt a tap on her shoulders. She turned around to see her teammates smiling up at her. Letting out a huge grin Levy help up the mission for them to read.
"I got the mission!"
A/N: I really hope you like this chapter! Please review and tell me what you think! I just love Shadow Gear and Juvia and Gajeel's friendship! I can write about them for dayssssssss
Chapter 4: Levy's Mission, Gajeel's Revelation.