~Levy~
"Mm," I murmured, feeling something incredibly warm beside me. Still half asleep, I snuggled closer to the warmth, wrapping my hands around it. It smells good, I thought, inhaling the wonderful scent. It was like metal and soap, and something that I couldn't quite name. There was also something soft near my head, and kept tickling my neck.
The bed is so comfortable, I thought to myself, still clinging to the warmth beside me. Suddenly, my eyes snapped open. I was sleeping on the sofa.
My eyes fell on a bare, muscular chest, one that my arm was draped comfortably over. Moving my eyes slowly upward, they finally met two crimson ones, staring silently down at me.
"G-Gajeel!" I shrieked, pulling my arm back and rolling away from him—and straight into the floor. I hit the carpet in a tangle of blankets, cursing as I tried to free myself.
Laughing, Gajeel grabbed the blanket and gave it a hard tug, effectively rolling me out onto the floor and freeing me. "What the hell are you doin', Shrimp?" He asked.
I sat up, my face scorching as I avoided making eye contact with him. "I fell asleep on the sofa, so can you blame me for be a bit surprised when I woke up in the bed?" I snapped.
"Maybe," he shrugged, "but not enough to throw yourself in the floor like that." He snorted, a smirk pulling at the side of his mouth.
Grumbling, I got to my feet and adjusted the nightgown I had purchased in town when we had first arrived—having gone on the mission with no supplies, I'd had to buy some clothes.
"You looked uncomfortable last night on that stupid thing, so I moved you to the bed. You didn't seem to mind while you were asleep," he muttered, angrily, "considering you slept right up against me all night."
To that, I felt the blush on my face deepen. "Y-You could have at least put a shirt on or something."
He gave me a confused frown. "Why would I do that?"
I sighed in exasperation. "Never mind, let's just go get breakfast. I'd like to interview a few citizens this afternoon, so we should get going."
He nodded, getting out of bed and putting on his clothes. When he was finished, he turned and looked at me expectantly. "Aren't you going to change?" He asked.
"Not with you here!" I shoved him out of the room, locking the door. I grumbled angrily to myself as I got dressed, still embarrassed that I had practically been laying on top of Gajeel when I woke up. And he was practically naked!
"He probably thinks I'm a giant dork," I groaned, brushing out my hair and putting a red ribbon in it.
"Ready?" Gajeel asked once I finally joined him in the hallway.
"Yeah," I nodded.
Gajeel—and that extraordinary nose of his—found us somewhere to eat breakfast in no time, and we quickly ordered. As we ate, I thought about that strange dagger-like object the cloaked man had had the night before. He had been able to cut through my magic as if it weren't even there, so perhaps it was some sort of magic cancelling device. However, I had never seen or heard of anything like that before. There were handcuffs and ropes which could be used to restrain wizards and seal off their magic, but not weapons that could be used as a counter-attack to magic. If he can cancel our magic while using the different types that he can, we're in trouble.
"Did you see that old man this morning?" Gajeel asked, breaking the silence after we had paid for our food and made our way around the city to look for someone we could ask about the cloaked man.
"Now that you mention it, I didn't," I said, shaking my head. "He's the mayor, though, so he was probably busy."
He grunted, frowning about something.
"Why were you wondering?" I asked.
"I still get a weird feeling from him," he said. "Something's just not right with him. I don't think he told us everything he knew."
"We'll ask him about it this evening, then," I said, knowing better than to doubt his judgement in character. When Gajeel got a bad feeling about someone, he was usually right.
Again, he grunted in response and nodded. "So, who did you want to talk to?"
"The families of the people taken," I answered. "Maybe they can tell us more about the cloaked man." We started with the woman we had saved from him the night before. She had been released from the hospital with only a few injuries, and hugged us both in thanks when she greeted us at her front door.
"I can't tell you how thankful I am to you two," she cried, wiping tears from her eyes. "I was so scared when he came that I was going to die. When I woke up in the hospital, and they told me I had been rescued by two wizards from Fairy Tail, I was so happy."
"You're very welcome," I smiled. "I'm Levy, and this is Gajeel. We're both very glad that you're alright."
"While I'm so happy I got the chance to meet and thank you two, I am confused why you came to me."
"We wanted to ask you a few questions about last night, if that's alright," I told her.
She looked hesitant, but nodded and led us inside. "Would you like some tea?" She asked as we sat on her sofa.
"No, thanks," I said. "We won't be very long."
"Alright," she nodded. "What did you want to ask me?"
"Did you happen to get a look at the man's face? Or any other part of him that could help us identify him? Clothes perhaps, or a guild mark?"
"No," she sighed, shaking her head, "I'm sorry. It was dark when he broke into my shop, and the cloak hid his features even more. By the time we got into the light where I might have seen him, he had knocked me out already. I didn't wake back up until I was in the hospital."
"What kind of magic did he use when he broke into your shop?"
She frowned, obviously trying to remember. "I don't know. It was very strange, almost like he could make things appear out of thin air. He used fire to burn down my door, and then created something to knock me out. It was like a boulder when it crashed into me, but then again it wasn't."
"What do you mean?" I asked, intrigued.
"It was almost like…" she paused, considering the right words. "It was almost like words, but in the shape of a boulder."
Gajeel and I exchanged a look, both of us having the same thought. "Like this?" I asked, lifting my hand and writing "rock" in the hair, creating a small rock that fell into my palm.
The girl gasped, staring down at the small word. "That's it! That's like what he did, except it was bigger. I think the fire he used to knock down my door was similar, too."
"So, someone is using Solid Script magic to kidnap people," Gajeel muttered after we left the girl's home.
"It seems that way," I nodded, deep in thought. I had never seen another person use my type of word magic before. Solid Script was a difficult magic to master, considering every word could be used in so many different ways. It took a long time to work out how and when to use certain words, and each user had their own style.
"That explains what the old man thought was different types of magic," Gajeel said. "He was just using solid script to make the water and stuff, so it looked like he had multiple types of magic."
"We should continue visiting the families of the past victims," I said, wanting to make sure it was a solid script user doing the kidnappings. If it is, I'm even more eager to catch them. Even if they were using it for the wrong reasons, I would be lying if I said I didn't want to meet another solid script user.
~Gajeel~
We spent the rest of day interviewing the rest of the victims' families, getting the same answers from them as we had the first girl. They had been attacked by a solid script user.
"Everything alright, Shrimp?" I asked, looking down at her as we walked back to the old man's house. She had been quiet since our last interview, and looked deep in thought.
"What?" She looked up at me, obviously not hearing what I had said.
"I asked if everything was alright."
"Oh. Yeah, no, I'm fine," she said, returning to her deep-in-thought look as she fixed her eyes ahead of her. "Just thinking."
"I can see that," I sighed, patting her on the top of the head. "What are ya thinking about?"
"Well, all of the people kidnapped were young women. I can't figure out what a solid script user would want with them."
"Who knows," I shrugged, "maybe the magic has nothing to do with the kidnappings."
"That's true, I guess," she sighed. "I'm probably just thinking too much into things, since I'm a solid script wizard too."
"Maybe, but you can't get distracted on me yet, Shrimp," I told her, causing her to look up at me in confusion. "We still have one more interview to do, remember?"
She nodded. "Mayor Don."
Once we returned to the old man's house, we had William take us to him. He led us back to the old man's office.
"Mayor Don, sir," William said, knocking on the door, "Miss Levy and Mister Gajeel would like a word with you."
"Send them in," came the old man's voice from inside.
We sat on the sofa once inside, and the three of us were silent for a long time. "So," Mayor Don said, finally breaking the silence, "what can I do for you two? Have you come up with a new plan for capturing the cloaked dark wizard?"
"Perhaps," Levy nodded, "but we were hoping to ask you a few questions, first."
"I'm afraid I've told you all I know," he said. I could tell his smile was fake, and knew immediately that I had been right; he was definitely hiding something.
"We know you didn't tell us everything, old man," I growled. "And we're here to tell you that we're leavin' unless you come clean. And if you lie again, we're outta here."
"I really don't know—"
"Come on, Shrimp," I said, standing and heading for the door, Levy trailing behind me.
"Wait!" He gasped, leaving his desk and running after us.
"I already told ya," I snapped, opening the door to leave, "we ain't helping unless you tell us the truth."
"Please, you can't leave," he begged.
"Watch us," I said, continuing out the door. We were almost to the stairs before he shot in front of us, holding out his arms in a sad attempt at making a barrier.
"He—He forced me to do it!" He shouted as I shoved passed him.
I turned, frowning down at him. "What?"
"The man in the cloak," he sighed, "he threatened me, telling me to place a job request in Fairy Tail to lead you here. When I refused, he began kidnapping girls. He told me he wouldn't stop until I had placed the request and you had come."
"Me?" I asked, shocked. "Why me?"
"That I truly do not know," he said, shaking his head. "He gave me your description, and told me to turn away any other wizards but you. That was all he said, honestly."
"Do you know what he looks like, or what his name is?" Levy asked.
"I do not," he said, his eyes filled with guilt. "But please, you must stop him. I don't know if he's hurting the girls he takes, but I do know that it's my fault he's taking them. I also don't know why he wants you, but it can't be for anything good if he's willing to go to such great lengths. Please be careful."
"Yeah," I nodded.
"We'll get everyone back, safe and sound," Levy smiled, "we promise."
"Thank you," the mayor told her, tears filling his grey eyes.
"We need to finish preparing for tonight," Levy said, excusing us both.
"Yes, of course. If there is anything you need, please ask." He left us, returning to his office as we went to our guest room on the third floor.
"Damn," I growled, pacing the floor. "What the hell could this bastard want with me?"
"I don't know," Levy frowned. Her deep thinking face returned as she sorted through the possibilities. "Do you know any solid script users besides me?"
"No." I used to, but this can't be them. It'd be impossible. Once again, images of the past flashed across my memory, and I had to shake myself. This has nothing to do with that.
"Was his scent familiar to you?"
At that question, I frowned. "Now that I think about it, I can't remember what he smelled like. Almost as if he didn't have a scent, or at least not a strong one." I made a note to pay attention to that this time, perhaps it would help me figure out who was after me.
"The question is, what do they want with you," Levy pondered. "Do they want to kill you? Or perhaps they want to kidnap you too? Maybe they're just looking for a fight, like a rematch or something?"
"I don't know," I said.
"Until we figure out who they are, I guess we won't be able to figure out what their intentions are," she nodded. As she spoke, a loud crashing sound filled the room, and the outside wall blew apart.
"Levy!" I shouted, pulling her against me to shield her from most of the rubble that flew when the wall was destroyed.
"Solid Script: Wind!" Levy threw the spell at the rubble, blowing away dust and debris so we could see clearly.
The cloaked man flew into the room through the missing wall, landing only a few feet away from Levy and me. "Gajeel Redfox. It is finally time," the voice said. It sounded so familiar, but I couldn't figure out where I'd heard it.
"Who the hell are you?" I growled.
"No one you know," he said, lifting his hands as he came closer, "but I know you. My master sent me to capture you for him."
"Why?"
"That is of no concern to you right now. You are of use to my master, so come with me."
"To hell I would ever go with you," I snarled, transforming my arm into my Iron Dragon's Sword. "But you can surrender now and tell me who your master is. Although, I'm kinda hoping you don't, so I get to beat the shit outta ya."
"Such large talk for such a weak man," he taunted. "Solid Script: Tidal Wave!" The water appeared out of nowhere, moving too fast for either of us to dodge. It washed us completely out of the room and sent us tumbling out of the broken wall.
"Solid Script: Cotton!" Levy gasped as we fell, the word appearing just as we hit the ground to cushion our fall. "It's a good thing you made that cotton comment about the bed yesterday," she chuckled as I helped her to her feet.
"Solid Script: Acid!" The cloaked man threw the words from above, sending both of us rolling out of the way as it landed where we had been standing moments before. The word was green, and continued to ooze even after it hit the ground. Everywhere it touched seemed to melt away, so Levy and I quickly put distance between us and it.
"We shouldn't fight him in the city," Levy said, leading me along the path towards the mountains. "We can't risk anyone getting hurt."
"Solid Script: Spikes! Solid Script: Tornado!" The tornado picked up the word, whose letters were ominously pointed, and began spinning it, turning it into a deadly weapon.
"He's such a fast caster," Levy gasped.
"Iron Dragon's Roar!" I released the breath attack, dissolving his magic. "Maybe, but you're faster," I told her.
"Make this easier on yourself, Gajeel," the cloaked man sighed. "If you come willingly, I won't have to hurt you or your comrade."
I glanced at Levy, a growl tearing itself from my throat. "You aren't going to lay a finger on Levy."
"Levy?" He turned to her, chuckling. "What a pretty name for such a cute girl. No wonder Gajeel likes you. And you're a solid script wizard on top of it all, so that's probably quite nostalgic for him."
"Bastard!" I snarled, attacking him with my sword arm. How the hell does he know about that?!
"Nostalgic?" Levy asked.
"Oh, so he hasn't told you? Gajeel, how cruel. Leading the poor girl on, but not telling her what kind of monster you really are."
"Shut up! Iron Dragon's Roar!" He easily avoided my attack, which sloppy from my anger.
"Gajeel!" I looked at Levy when she called out to me, and met her determined gaze. "Keep your focus; don't let him get to you! Just ignore what he says and let's defeat him!"
I grinned, giving her a nod. "Right."
"Solid Script—"
"Iron Dragon's—"
"—Fire!" "—Roar!" The fire was caught in my breath attack, heating the iron shards until they were red hot and sending them flying at the cloaked man. It was too fast for him to dodge, and he was thrown back, rolling across the ground and landing in a pile of dust and debris.
"Solid Script: Chains!" Levy took the opportunity to restrain him, making sure to immobilize his arms so he couldn't cut himself free with that magic cancelling dagger.
"Now, let's take a look at this bastard's face," I growled, bending down and grabbing his hood. As I pulled it, the man disappeared into a puff of smoke, leaving behind only the smell of ink and paper. "What the—"
"Gajeel!" Levy suddenly ran into me, shoving me away from where the cloaked man had been.
"Shrimp, what was that fo—" The words died on my tongue when I turned to face her. The cloaked man was standing behind her now, a dark chuckle coming from him.
"Now you've killed two solid script wizards," he sneered.
I noticed then the small tip of a dagger sticking out of Levy's side, just as he ripped it from her, leaving her to bleed in the dirt before disappearing. She collapsed immediately, blood pooling around her at an alarming rate.
"Shrimp!" I was ripping off my shirt as I ran to her, and I wrapped it around her, hoping to slow down the bleeding. "Shrimp, stay with me," I instructed as her eyes drifted closed. "You have to stay awake."
"Are—Are you…alright?" She whispered, so much pain in her voice that it had me clenching my fists in fury. The next time I saw that cloaked bastard, I was going to rip him to pieces.
"Don't worry about me," I told her, lifting her as gently as I could and taking off in the direction of the hospital. "You just have to stay awake until we get to the hospital, alright?"
"S-Sorry," she wheezed. She coughed slightly and blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
I ran a little faster, panic replacing my anger. "Don't you dare die on me, Levy!"
She didn't answer. Her breathing had turned to shallow gasps, and she had taken to shivering as if she were cold. She had sagged completely against me by the time we reached the hospital, and I could barely hear her breathing anymore.
Doctors and nurses rushed her away, making me stay in the waiting room as they did so. As I stood there, covered in her blood, I could feel my entire world shattering.
Levy. Please, you can't die.