Chapter Four:
Gray folded his arms across his chest as he leaned back comfortably on the cushioned seat on the train. He stared out his window at the bland scenery of the train station grateful to not have a nauseated Natsu sharing their train car. Lucy sat across from him, scribbling in her journal—part of him was curious what exactly she wrote, but he was above sneaking into her house and reading her journal. Well, on most days he was above sneaking into her house and reading her journal and her novel.
"Are you still mad at me?" Gray asked.
Lucy glanced up from her journal and met his gaze. "About the kiss?"
Gray shrugged. "The kiss, the shopping experience, having to deal with Natsu and Juvia? I'm sure we're about to be the center of a lot of guild gossip thanks to the witnesses in the great hall. Any of the aforementioned options?"
"Well, we didn't have to spend so much of our money on clothes. I could have had Virgo dress us in fine clothing," Lucy explained. "I'm not a rich debutant anymore and I really don't like frivolous spending."
"I appreciate your thriftiness, but the celestial clothing that Virgo brings does not stay in our realm for long correct?"
Lucy nodded. "I suppose so."
"Then wouldn't it be embarrassing for you if a beautiful dress you wore in front of clients suddenly disappeared back into the celestial realm?" Gray thought back to all the times he had accidentally stripped when his nerves were raw or in the middle of a heated battle and that Lucy was often targeted by opponents to destroy her clothing. "You and I seem to end up wearing the least amount of clothes of anyone in our guild as it is."
"Cana doesn't wear much either," Lucy protested.
"Yeah, but that's by choice. I lose my clothes subconsciously and enemies always seem to want you naked." He used to be envious of the time Natsu and Hibiki had an eyeful of Lucy's endowed chest thanks to Gemini's imitation—Natsu kept mumbling about "jiggly" in his sleep on job requests. Then there was the time they had saved the Phoenix Priestess and Gray got an eyeful of his own when Lucy lost her towel. The image of her naked body was engraved in his mind for when he had his more interesting dreams. He certainly wouldn't mind a more leisurely look at Lucy. He pulled out his pocket watch to check the time. "I wonder what is taking the train so long to start heading out. We're ten minutes behind schedule."
"And as far as the gossip, it could be a good thing," Lucy said with a quick grin. "Maybe it will earn us a byline in Sorcerer Weekly! The powerhouse couple of the great Ice-Creator and Celestial Spirit Mage," she said raising her hand in the air to emphasize the imagined title.
"Still sore that you were ignored by that dweeb that came by the guild after you first joined, eh?" Gray figured that Sorcerer Weekly would practically kill to have an interview with any of the strongest members of Fairy Tail—particularly the ones that had been absent from the world for seven years and won the Grand Magical Tournament and saved the world from all the dragons. "Next time they'll be begging for an interview with the Beautiful, Talented, Much Beloved—Lucy Heartfilia!"
"You think I'm beautiful?" Lucy asked with a coy smile and a batting of her long eyelashes.
"I'm not blind. It's a fact that you're beautiful, not just my opinion," Gray retorted looking away from her and staring out his window again so that she wouldn't see his blush.
There was a knock on their train car door before it slid open with one of the attendants in her crisp white uniform bowing at them apologetically. "I'm very sorry Mister Fullbuster and Miss Heartfilia, but we are booked on this train and must ask you to share your car with some last minute riders."
"That's fine," Lucy said with a reassuring smile. She snapped shut her journal and moved to sit next to Gray on his benched seat. He didn't mind sharing with Lucy. Unlike Erza, she never jabbed him in the ribs with uncomfortable armor, or threatened to puke on him like Natsu, or try to poison him with love potions like Juvia. As a matter of fact, he found little reason to complain when sitting next to Lucy when she wore her short skirts and crossed her mile-long legs. He didn't mind at all. And the morning before sitting next to her at the bar in the guild hall had earned him a very satisfactory kiss.
The sound of arguing voices—one male and one female- were heard outside in the walkway of the passenger train. "This way, Miss McGarden and Mister Redfox," the attendant said gesturing the two into the half occupied train car.
"Levy and Gajeel?" Lucy asked Gray quietly. He shrugged, brushing his shoulder against hers in the process. His eyes strayed momentarily toward her prominent cleavage before he averted his gaze back out his window. He really didn't mind sitting next to Lucy.
The two mages in question entered the car, Levy first—who brightened considerably upon seeing Lucy. "Lucy! I had no idea that you'd be on this train too! And Gray! What a wonderful surprise! How is your book coming, Lucy?" she asked sitting directly across from Lucy and leaving the window seat vacant.
Lucy laughed softly. "Levy, it's no further than it was last night when you came over for dinner."
Gajeel entered the car next, holding a bag over his shoulder. He paused to put it in the overhead compartment before taking the empty window seat. He glanced at Lucy then Gray. "Where's the flame brain?"
Gray noticed Lucy's hands white-knuckled clutching the hemline of her skirt in a nervous gesture. "Natsu wasn't suited for the job request we're taking," Gray answered before Lucy could say something. "It requires a certain finesse that our destructive friend lacks."
"Oh?" Levy asked with interest. "What job is that?"
Lucy looked over at Gray with an arched brow. He cleared his throat. "We'll be helping with a wedding. I'm making ice sculptures and Lucy is providing the music and singing."
"You sing?" Gajeel asked tilting his head. "If I knew you could sing I might have you do more than dress up like a bunny as my backup dancer. I could have some background singing perhaps. Do they need a guitarist? You know I like singing with the acoustic guitar. And I'm wicked talented with the harmonica."
"Calm down, Gajeel. Everything isn't about you. We have our own job," Levy said casting the Iron Dragon Slayer a glare. Her expression melted into a serene one and she smiled at Lucy. "I didn't realize that you sing, Lucy."
"It's more that Lyra—one of my celestial spirits- sings. I don't really sing," Lucy admitted. "I can cheerlead and if Evergreen hadn't made us into statues at the Fairy Tail pageant you'd have been able to witness my talents! And I would have won and not come in as the runner up!"
"That's non-sense, Lucy. You sing beautifully," Gray said reaching out his hand and giving hers that was still gripping her hemline a reassuring squeeze. Of course, the only time he'd heard her sing was while he was lounging in her apartment or on overnight jobs and she was in the shower and he could over-hear her.
"But, the only time I sing is when I'm in the shower," Lucy murmured narrowing her eyes she turned to face him fully with her famous temper rearing its ugly head.
Gray shrugged casually and stared back out his window—the safest place to look. "You sing loudly when you're in the shower. It's hard to ignore even when in another room."
And instead of having a hit upside the head—which no doubt would be the treatment Natsu would have received—Gray received a quietly murmured, "Thanks."
"And I voted for you in the pageant," Gray admitted not looking at Lucy but staring out his window. He might as well get all the pretend boyfriend bonus points now that they had an audience. It didn't hurt that he was speaking the truth.
Lucy's cheeks burned crimson and she averted her eyes from him and directed her attention back to Levy. "What about you two? It's unusual to see you on jobs together," Lucy said addressing the pair across from them. She pulled out her metal nail file from her messenger bag and started to file her nails.
"Since I was gone for all those years with the rest of you, my team and I don't always mesh as well as we used to," Levy said pulling a book out of her shoulder bag and setting it upon her lap to read.
"You mean, they're completely useless fools that fawn over you instead of accomplishing anything," Gajeel muttered.
"I told you, Team Shadow Gear is a perfectly useful group. Jet and Droy work very hard," Levy defended.
"I assume this is what you two were arguing about in the hall?" Gray asked glancing over at them.
"We weren't arguing. I was simply speaking facts. Without you, Jet and Droy would fail in all their missions. If they had been stronger when we first crossed paths you and your team wouldn't have been pinned to the tree by me," Gajeel said as he started to drum his fingers absently on his thigh. "Lucy is tougher than those two by far and she's the weakest member of her team!"
Lucy clutched at her left side. "And you're the reason I don't have a spleen. You were a terribly cruel enemy."
"Lucy isn't weak, but her strengths lie in areas outside of the brute force that the rest of Team Natsu possesses," Gray defended. He didn't need the Iron Dragon Slayer disrespecting Lucy and making her doubt herself again. "She took out an entire dark guild single-handedly that was holding The Love and Lucky merchant's guild hostage."
"My perspective on life has improved since then." Gajeel's dark eyes fell upon Lucy's file. "Do you need that still?"
"Uh, I guess I'm done," Lucy said extending the file toward him. Gajeel snatched it out of her hand and started to eat the file. "What? Don't eat it!"
"Gajeel!" Levy said hitting her partner's chest hard.
"I get hungry when you get me worked up and anxious. And trains make me nauseated," he mumbled as he chewed the metal file. "I'll buy you a new one, Lucy."
"It's okay," Lucy said slowly. Gray looked to his side and their gazes met. She started to giggle. "I guess I should have known what you wanted it for," she added with a smile. "And for the record, Gajeel, I'm happy to call you my friend. So what's your job?" she asked directing the question to Levy.
"Archeological dig site, they need me to read the ancient inscriptions and they need Gajeel's help with establishing steel support to keep the tunnels from collapsing," Levy explained tucking a loose strand of her shoulder-length blue hair behind her ear. "It seemed like a good reason for us to partner up again."
"You two do make great partners," Lucy said with a wistful lilt to her voice that caused Levy to blush and Gajeel to finish eating her file with a big gulp that prominently displayed his Adam's apple.
"And so do we, Lucy," Gray said throwing his arm around Lucy's shoulders and squeezing her to him in a friendly hug. "And we didn't have to start out our relationship with bondage," he teased with a suggestive wiggle of his brows at Gajeel.
"Why you!" The Iron Dragon Slayer made to lunge across the aisle, only to be held back by Levy's grasp on his arm. "You started off your relationship with stripping! I've never seen a pair in Fairy Tail to show more skin than you two!"
"He has a good point-about the way we started off- not the bondage or stripping part. We've come a long way from enemies to partners. We work well together, but I need you to not insult Jet and Droy, okay?" Levy asked.
Gajeel settled back in his seat. "I guess they're okay. I just don't like how they both have such obvious crushes on you," Gajeel grumbled. He glanced at Lucy with a sudden smile. "So, now that I know you sing, how about we serenade these two with a good duet?"
"Huh?" Lucy asked with wide eyes. "No, that's okay," she protested holding up her hands in a placating manner. Gray still had his arm casually around her shoulders and he removed it to put both his hands behind his head.
"I think you should do it, Lucy. What about that song you wrote in your journal? Maybe Gajeel could help you write out the musical accompaniment," Gray suggested.
"You read my journal?" Lucy asked with deceptive calmness.
"Just a little part, you had it open on your desk one day and I didn't realize what it was. There's a nice song about gray skies and rainy days."
"I didn't know you write songs too, Lucy!" Levy exclaimed. "You're a novelist and a song writer?"
"Eh, not really?" Lucy said rubbing her arm nervously. It seemed that her anger toward Gray was forgotten in favor of her embarrassment.
"Why don't you show him that song about birds?" Gray suggested. He'd knew it was written inside the journal she'd just put away. He could see the red little book sticking out the top of her bag. Levy followed his gaze and as best friends often do, invited herself to take the book before Lucy could protest.
"Wow!" Levy exclaimed. She'd opened the thick book to where Lucy had left her bookmark on the last page she'd been writing. "Did you just write this?" she asked looking across the aisle at her friend. She shoved the book under Gajeel's nose and his eyes widened as he read.
"You guys!" Lucy cried reaching across for the book, but Gray wrapped his arms around her and kept her hands pinned to her side. "Gray!"
"This is good stuff, Lucy! I could easily set some chords to these words," Gajeel said without looking up from the page. "Where's that bird song?" he asked as he started to flip past the previous pages.
"That is my personal journal," Lucy said through clenched teeth. She struggled within Gray's grasp, so he retaliated the way he knew best. He started to tickle her ribs. "Gray!" she hissed between breathless laughter. "This is not funny!"
"No one said it was," Levy answered quickly. "Gray's right! These songs are great! The prose and diction are fantastic! You really are talented!"
Gajeel began to tap at his armrest. "Just reading the flow of the words puts a rhythm in my head."
Lucy relaxed and the back of her head knocked against Gray's chin. He freed one hand to rub his tender jaw, but kept the other secured around Lucy's side.
"This is going to be a long train ride," Lucy groaned
"Lu-chan, it's going to be fun!" Levy predicted. "Now, what's this rumor I heard about the two of you being an item? You didn't say any such thing last night over dinner."
"It's a new development," Lucy admitted.
Gray shrugged casually. "We've always been attracted to each other. Frankly, I'm surprised that we haven't hooked up earlier, but I think since this is the first calm stretch of inactivity where we aren't facing and endless stream of bad guys it finally happened."
"That's so sweet!" Levy cooed clasping her hands together and sitting on the edge of her seat with hearts practically coming out of her eyes. "Honestly, I thought you two would be great together a long time ago. I've seen the way Gray looks at you," Levy whispered loudly to Lucy. "And I always thought that some of that tension between Gray and Natsu was rather territorial when it regarded you."
"Jeez, the way you say it sounds like I'm a stalker," Gray folding his arms over his chest and slouching in his chair.
"Not a stalker, but protective," Gajeel reassured him.
"Pot meet kettle," Gray grumbled.
"So, Gajeel, where's Panther Lily?" Lucy asked. "I thought the Exceeds of you dragon slayers never left your side."
"Inside the bag," Gajeel answered pointing to the overhead luggage he'd stashed upon entering their train car. "No pets allowed, so it's best to keep him out of sight."
"Stop talking about me down there! I'm trying to sleep!" the duffle bag above their heads shouted.
"Sweet dreams!" Levy called. "We'll try to keep it down.
Gray and Lucy both sweat-dropped.
OoO
It had been a month since the events of the Grand Wizard Tournament and the resulting onslaught of the dragons and the sacrifice of Ultear. The Crime Sorciere Guild that he founded upon his release from prison was in shambles. Meredy had lost heart in their mission after Ultear's loss and Jellal couldn't stop thinking about Erza since she returned to his world. It didn't help that all their leads on dark guilds have been exhausted.
In Ultear's farewell letter she'd practically demanded that he stop wallowing in his past mistakes and allow himself happiness. Because denying his feelings was only hurting the person he loved most.
And so, Jellal Fernandes wearing the garments of the mysterious Mystogan was making his way to the Fairy Tail Guild in Fiore. Only a handful of Fairy Tail mages knew of Mystogan's true identity as the Prince of Edolas-but Jellal felt he could trust Erza's teammates and the dragon slayers. When he donned the Mystogan disguise at the Grand Wizard Tournament with Makarov's permission no one but his teammates in Fairy Tail and Crime Sorciere knew his true identity.
The five staffs strapped across his back caused a jingling sound with every step announcing his approach. Makarov would surely accept him into the guild-when he had been allowed to participate in the tournament the guild leader had said he had the same heart as the rest of a guild's members. Fairy Tail was known for being the home to those without family which is why it was such a close-knit guild. Those bonds made the guild stronger-as so many rival guilds that had dark tendencies discovered.
No one spoke to him as he continued through the streets of Fiore. No one stopped him from opening the doors to the Fairy Tail Guild Hall. And Master Makarov was standing near the bar with Mirajane staring straight at him without an ounce of surprise. Jellal kept his eyes forward and didn't allow himself to be unnerved by all the prying looks from the guild members present. The silence was almost unnerving.
"Master Makarov," Jellal nodded his hooded head in greeting.
"Mystogan," Makarov answered. He was small statured-a deceptive trait that was quickly squashed when it was revealed he could transform his body into any size desirable. And given the size of his son and grandson Jellal was fairly certain his normal size was that of a large man. Perhaps he retained the smaller size to conserve energy and keep those around him at ease?
"Master, may I speak with you in private?"
"Certainly, son. Come with me to my office," Makarov said leading the S-class wizard into a private area. The other members in the common area started talking and laughing again and Jellal felt his shoulders relax ever so slightly from their previous tense state.
"Master Makarov, I have a selfish request," Jellal started, but was interrupted when the elder guild master raised his hand for silence.
"You wish to join Fairy Tail. Is that correct, Mystogan?" Even in private the old man kept his true name unspoken. Jellal nodded. "You are already a member. I would not have allowed you to participate on Team B at the tournament if you were not a valued member of our guild." The master rubbed his bearded jaw thoughtfully. "However, your performance was decidedly lacking. And your disguise at the theme park-before Natsu and Gray destroyed it-was rather pathetic. And you're also responsible for the depressed state of one of my best mages. Did you know there has been a cheesecake shortage because of her throughout the kingdom?"
Once again words failed him in the presence of this seemingly benign old man. Jellal had prided himself on his way with words, but his time in penance with Crime Sorciere taught him the value of silence. He chose his words carefully. "The independent guild that I formed is no longer able to operate with the loss of one of our core members. I must continue to fight the evil in this world-I promised Erza I would live to serve penance for my terrible deeds."
"You should not forget that you were possessed by an evil spirit for a decade and yet you managed to overcome that hatred to save Erza and Natsu when it really counted. And in the years since your sanity has been restored you have done nothing but good admirable deeds."
Jellal swallowed hard past the lump in his throat. The master was praising him and not cursing him. He didn't feel worthy of the praise, but he would hope that one day he could accept it. "My life was hollow when Erza, you, and her friends vanished for all those years. I had never felt so happy as to when I had seen those Fairy Tail members return."
Makarov was suddenly the same height as Jellal and the old man gently cupped his hand on the latter's shoulder. "All right son, just tell me where you want your tattoo?"
Jellal laid the palm of his hand over his left chest above his heart. "As you have said I have the same heart as a Fairy Tail member I believe it appropriate to have the insignia engraved on that flesh."
"So be it," Makarov declared.
A red Fairy Tail Guild tattoo, like Erza's scarlet hair, appeared above Jellal's heart and seared the flesh in discomfort that he had never been more happy to earn. "Thank you, Master Makarov," Jellal whispered.
"Just don't go getting Fairy Tail into any more trouble than usual." The old man started to head outside with his right hand raised with the thumb and index fingers pointing up. "And Erza should be back in a day or two. Make sure you stick around."
Jellal rubbed his fingers absently over his new guild tattoo. In just a few hours he'd have to face Erza. He wouldn't mention the fake fiancé, but if she were to ask he had promised Meredy that he would tell Erza the truth.
A/N: I hope y'all enjoyed this latest chapter. I enjoyed writing it, especially involving the secondary couples in this chapter. Be so kind as to write a review!