Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
Revenge:
Lily's right eye twitched spasmodically as he stared down at the mess at the bottom of the shower. This was the third day in a row he'd had to deal with this problem, and he was getting fed up.
"Gajeel!" he yelled from inside the bathroom. "How many times must I tell you to pick your hair out of the drain after your shower?"
"Like you're one to talk," Gajeel responded, his voice equally loud, easily heard through the door.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"You know, with all your hairballs everywhere—clogging the drain, littering the floor..."
"I do not… how dare you insinuate… I am not a common housecat!" Lily spluttered at last.
The loud laughter that answered only served to annoy him further.
Grimacing, Lily reached down to pick up the wet strands of hair that lay on the shower drain before hurriedly flinging them into the trash receptacle. The Exceed could handle anything in the battlefield, from gaping wounds to dismembered limbs; but for some reason, he just couldn't stand clumps of hair—the way they clung to him when wet; the almost slimy feel to them; the way they blocked the dirty water from draining, allowing it to build up at the bottom of the shower. It made him shudder just thinking about it, and having to pick up his friend's portion in addition to his own was more than unfair.
When he had first moved in with Gajeel and discovered the man's annoying habit of leaving his ridiculously long strands of hair in the drain after showers, Lily had told the dragon slayer to clean it up. Gajeel had complied, and Lily had thought that was that—until the bad habit resurfaced only a few days later. But it had been early in their relationship yet, and he had thought he could condition Gajeel to drop his horrible tendency and take up a new, better practice.
A month in, with no results to show for his patience, Lily decided more drastic measures would need to be taken.
"As if I would ever do something so undignified," Lily muttered crossly as his thoughts returned to the recent insult, no longer bothering to shout; the other's heightened hearing probably made it unnecessary anyhow. With that in mind, he directed a few muttered curses Gajeel's way. The ensuing laughter from outside confirmed his suspicions.
Still muttering crossly, he turned on the water and pulled the curtain closed. As the water washed over him, he contemplated the best strategy for curing his friend of his unpleasant practice. He supposed they could always battle it out again like they had back in Edolas, allow their fists to do the talking, so to speak, like two proper warriors. He filed the idea away for further consideration.
After Lily got out of the shower, he was roped into brushing Gajeel's still damp hair. They took up their usual spots at the table and settled into their normal routine. Every few seconds, the dragon slayer would protest the unnecessary tugging that was being inflicted upon his poor scalp.
Lily was adamant, however, and showed no sympathy. "You're lucky I even agreed to do this. A common housecat wouldn't have to," he told Gajeel, yanking on the brush for emphasis.
Gajeel winced, but didn't voice any more complaints. He supposed he had suffered worse than a cat pulling on his hair. He nodded grudgingly, admitting it was a fair point. He might have thought differently if he had seen the glint in Lily's eyes at that time.
The remainder of the night was uneventful. When Gajeel decided to turn in for the night, Lily bid him good night. When the man disappeared into his bedroom, Lily sprang off his seat, landing lithely on padded paws in true feline fashion.
Carefully, he began going through all the junk accumulated in the apartment, searching for adequate materials for what he had in mind. Junk metal comprised most of the cluttered piles that were everywhere, but he persisted. It would be best if he could find what he wanted tonight; but if necessary, he would put it off until the next day, after he'd had a chance to run to the store.
After sifting through several cubbies of useless items, he was just about to give up when he finally found something suitable for his purpose. They were a bit dirty, but after he wiped away the coat of dust, they lost their lackluster quality to reveal the shine beneath. It would do.
Lily retreated to his room and climbed into bed. Lying down on the soft surface, he pulled the blanket up to his chin, prepared to rest until the appropriate time.
After several hours had passed from the time Gajeel and he had turned in for the night, Lily got out of bed and made his way outside. He turned down the hall and quietly slipped inside Gajeel's room. While his friend slept, Lily climbed up the bedpost and landed lightly on the mattress. He surveyed the man lying on his side for a moment.
Satisfied by the snores that indicated Gajeel was actually asleep, Lily commenced his revenge. He crept to the pillow where his friend's head rested and crawled over to the other side for better access. His night vision aided him in carrying out his mission, his paws moving with practiced precision. Lily froze when he felt Gajeel stirred, holding his breath until he was certain the dragon slayer was not about to wake.
When he assessed that the danger had passed, he resumed his task, being careful not to disturb the other. The process was taking more time than he had anticipated, but the end result would be well worth the sleep loss. If Gajeel's usual grooming habits were any indication, he wouldn't notice anything was wrong in the morning, and phase one of Lily's plan would have been a success.
Finishing touches complete, Lily allowed himself a moment to admire the finished product, simultaneously thanking the heavens Gajeel had slept like a rock the entire time. A large yawn told him it was long past the time for bed; complying, he returned to his large, comfortable bed for some much-deserved rest.
Lily could still feel the smile on his face as he drifted off to sleep.
The two companions entered the guild hall the next day to the usual ruckus. As they walked further into the building, however, a hush fell over the members, starting from those closest to the entrance and spreading further back with each step they took.
The silence was Gajeel's first hint that something was wrong. A silent Fairy Tail mage was usually a drunk and passed out Fairy Tail mage, but a quick scan around the bar told him no one appeared to be unconscious yet. The second hint came when the sniggering started, quietly at first, but pretty soon it seemed to fill every corner of the room. And it couldn't be just a coincidence that all this had occurred when he and Lily arrived.
Gajeel looked at the nearby tables, but every time he made eye contact with the other members, they quickly averted their eyes.
Suspicions aroused, Gajeel growled low in his throat, "Somebody want to tell me what the hell you're all snickering at?"
Gajeel's frown deepened as everyone suddenly became very interested in the whorls on the table or the floorboards at their feet. If only the loud ones were here—they would tell him what was going on. Unfortunately, they were nowhere to be seen.
From within the crowd, however, he spotted a head of blue hair winding its way between the tables. Crossing his arms, he glowered at the surrounding mages, trying to intimidate an answer from them while Wendy slowly edged her way to the front.
"Um… Gajeel?" She stood directly in front of him now, peering up at him shyly. She seemed her usual timid self, but apparently refused to back away.
"What is it?" he asked.
Wendy winced a little at the gruff tone, but continued nonetheless. She pointed a small finger up at him and asked, "Will you teach me how to braid my hair like that too?"
"What?" This was not what he had expected to hear.
"I-I'd like to learn how to braid my hair so I can put shiny ribbons in it like yours."
The room had become silent as the grave; wide-eyed stares became trained on the two dragon slayers in the front.
A long moment passed as he tried to determine if this was some sort of practical joke the girl had come up with. She looked earnest enough, with her bright brown eyes and timid smile, but he knew looks could be deceiving. She didn't look it, but the girl could do some serious damage if she put her mind to it. Who was to say she didn't also have a side that enjoyed messing with people? That had to be it. She was playing a joke on him, and everyone else was in on it, because the only other possibility was—
No. It couldn't be.
With mounting trepidation, Gajeel raised a hand slowly to the back of his head. Bringing the appendage down, it wasn't a mass of free strands that his fingers encountered, but ropes of them arranged in some sort of pattern. As his hand followed the trail downward, it eventually reached something different—a soft material knotted at the end. Pulling it out, Gajeel brought the material forward to examine.
Lying in his palm was a pink—pink—ribbon that most definitely did not belong there. The sight left him at a loss for words.
"Oh no, it's coming apart."
Wendy's lament pulled Gajeel out of his stupor. He grabbed the nearest chair, booted the person who was in it to the floor, and sat down. The table's other occupants quickly vacated the area, lest they got caught up in any potential retribution. With his back to the girl, he ordered her to undo the atrocity on his head.
"Why?" Wendy asked. "It must have taken a lot of time to do all of this."
He cringed, not wanting to think about what exactly all of this comprised. Who knew what other horrors had been inflicted upon his head without his knowing—it was best not to ask.
It was just as well that the rest of the guild remained quiet; he wasn't sure he could control himself if he heard any comments anyone might have felt it necessary to voice. Of course, that also meant that all ears were strained to catch his every word.
"I didn't do it," he said, shooting an accusatory glare at his cat.
"You're welcome," Lily said, not bothering to feign innocence—it wasn't as if he had any reason to hide the fact.
"It's so pretty! You did a great job, Lily!" Wendy exclaimed.
"Thank you," Lily replied, smirking as he felt his partner's irritation increase tenfold. He didn't say anything else, but was in fact a bit disappointed to see his hard work being slowly unwound by Wendy; however, she appeared just as saddened about it.
"Where did you learn to braid hair so well?" she asked.
Lily smiled in satisfaction as he saw Gajeel bristle in annoyance beside him. Turning his attention to the girl, he told her, "Back on Edolas, there was a young girl who would often have me fix her hair for her. I wasn't very good at first, but she was always very happy with the results, and I improved with practice."
Gajeel snorted.
"That's so sweet," Wendy sighed. Staring at Gajeel's long black locks somewhat enviously, she went on, "Will you help me with mine sometime too?"
"It would be my pleasure, Wendy," Lily replied.
"Oh, for the love of—" Gajeel got out of his seat, half-loosened pink ribbons trailing down his back as he stomped toward the exit, shooting death glares at anyone who dared to glance his way.
When the doors slammed behind him, everyone else let out a sigh of relief and immediately began discussing the latest incident involving the iron dragon slayer. Lily made the observation that apparently Gajeel and pink had a history together, as a few people recalled the time shortly following his initiation into Fairy Tail and the entire guild had borne witness to the image of him in a dress, courtesy of Mirajane; this led to an argument over which event was more embarrassing for the dragon slayer.
The rest of the day passed in typical Fairy Tail fashion.
