Hey you guys~ Thank you for your reviews so far! I really, really appreciate it! So here you have chapter 7! Sorry it took so long. I hope you enjoy!


Chapter 7: Butterflies and Thorns

"I'm heading over to the guild. Ya coming?" I looked to my left at the road that led to Fairy Hills. I was surprised that Gajeel even knew that that was the way to my home. I then looked in the exact opposite direction to the outskirts of town, there where our sad excuse for a guildhall stood. "I guess so." I muttered, following the much taller Gajeel and his partner through town.

It was over… it was really over. I still couldn't quite believe it. On the one hand I was happy to be back in Magnolia; happy to see my friends again- to see Droy and Jet again. At the same time, I felt surprisingly sad. An uncomfortable heaviness spread throughout my stomach and I wondered whether I was going to be able to eat anything for the rest of the day. I had enjoyed my time in Hargeon more than I would have dreamed. It wasn't just the town though. It also wasn't the people, the reward or having saved Cathy. Yes, all of those things made the experience one I wasn't soon to forget but the one thing I had loved the most was spending time with Gajeel. Thinking back to the way I had first met him, it was almost hilarious that of all people, I was the one who yearned to be close to him. Normally I would never admit to something like that but my time in Hargeon had shown me that I was probably falling head over heels for the idiot. I didn't want something like that to happen… sort of… and although I kept trying to deny it, I knew that I felt strange every time I was around him.

Maybe it was just some form of admiration? He had saved my life on numerous occasions after all and I'd be lying if I didn't find his abilities pretty impressive. So was it that? Simple admiration?

I frowned. I watched the back of Gajeel's head, noting the way his long hair swayed with his movements. Maybe I was just extremely grateful for what he had done on Tenrou Island?

"So what are you going to do now Levy?" A voice that I had wasn't expecting spoke up and I directed my gaze at the ground to where the black cat was padding along without a care in the world. "I'll probably take some time off."

"Yeah since you worked so hard." Gajeel threw in sarcastically.

"What's the supposed to mean?" My eyes narrowed dangerously and in response Gajeel's mouth widened into a grin, "I was the one to cook for you every damn evening and morning and mind you, you eat like a freaking horse! I cleaned the hotel before we left! I did the damn washing! I got beaten to a pulp to save Cathy and what did you do? Okay sure you showed up at just the right moment but come on! You even ate all the cutlery at the hotel! Do you know how awkward that was to explain to the landlord?"

"Don't need to get all huffy about it." He put his hand on my head, ruffling through my hair, "Gee for a smallfry you sure as hell get angry."

"Well that's because you're infuriating!" Again I noticed my face heat up and eventually I was forced to avert my eyes to prevent my face from turning even redder. Why did he always have to look at me like that? It was almost unbearable to have him grin at me, never mind the way his eyes would always watch me carefully. Was that a dragon slayer thing? It was then that I had an idea. If anyone knew the answers to all the questions I had about dragon slayers and my stupid supposed feelings towards one of their kind, Lucy would! She was really close friends with Natsu right? I'm sure she knew all kinds of stuff about them! "Actually-," I changed the subject abruptly, "I think I might go and talk to Lucy for a while."

"Bunny-girl? Why would you wanna talk to that cheerleader?"

"Well because she's my friend." Gajeel grunted at that but didn't say anything. Eventually the three of us fell into a comfortable silence similar to the one we had settled on during our train ride home.

I guess things have gone back to normal…

And although that realization had a bitter-sweet taste to it, I decided that it was probably for the best…


Gajeel pushed the door open, marching into the guild with nothing short of confidence. I followed him a little more slowly, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darker light inside before continuing. I was surprised to find that the guild was rather empty. Cana was there, holding a jug filled to the brim with ale in her hand. She was sitting at a table with Macao, discussing something related to alcohol while Macao tried to change the subject seeing as Romeo was sitting at the table with them. Mira and Lisanna were at the bar, Lisanna obviously having taken to helping her sister around the guild a little. Warren was sitting with a few other members but… it was so quiet. Natsu wasn't anywhere to be seen and the absence of Juvia and Gray led me to assume that they were yet to return from their job. "Hey Levy!" Lucy was sitting at one of the round wooden tables, nursing a cup of tea while holding a book. I made my way over to her, shooting a glance at Gajeel before sitting down. He was sauntering over to the bar, no doubt to order a drink. "I am so glad you're back!" Lucy sighed dramatically, "I'm seconds away from losing my mind!"

"Why that?"

"Well Natsu isn't here because he's running after Gildarts again- what a surprise! Erza is off running some errands with Bisca and Gray isn't here yet! I've been totally bored out of my mind!" I eyed the book she had been reading, smiling when I recognized it. It was a romance novel about a girl that was madly in love with a painfully oblivious, good-looking student at a law school. "Well on a more positive note: how was your mission?"

"Oh it wasn't too bad."
"I'm surprised you didn't come running back after day one." She giggled and I joined in, knowing that she had said that because I was one of the first people in Fairy Tail to agree to go on a job with Gajeel. "He really isn't that bad. To be honest I kind of enjoyed my time there."

"Oh!" She cooed playfully, "So you and him hey?" A fire flared up behind my cheeks and I reflexively moved my hands to cover my them in a pathetic attempt to hide my blush. "Oh come on Lu-chan! It's not like that!" I blurted out. The playful look on Lucy's face vanished instantaneously, replaced by a look of realization. I had just dug my own grave.

"Wait…" Her brown eyes widened. She brushed her loose blond hair back over her shoulder before leaning closer to me to whisper, "You like him don't you?" Millions of excuses and explanations ran through my mind but each one sounded worse than the one before. I wanted to tell her that she had it all wrong. I wanted to laugh and say that there was no way I would fall for a brute like Gajeel I wanted to remind her of the way Gajeel had acted the first time we had met and that there was no way I would be able to develop feelings for him after that. I wanted to get up and run away, cry, change the subject, scream…

This was all his fault!

"What?" The word slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it and Lucy laughed a little, picking up on how distraught her question had made me. "Well?" Although those excuses were still buzzing around in the back of my mind, I knew that there was absolutely no point in denying something I was still trying to figure out myself. And hadn't I wanted to ask Lucy for advice anyway? "I don't really know." I finally admitted. Lucy looked around the guild, checking Gajeel to see if he could hear us before scooting closer. "How about we go for a walk?" I nodded, following my friend out of the guild, willing myself not to look in Gajeel's direction while we walked.

We ended up sitting in front of the chicken pen again on that same rock, watching the clumsy birds scurry across the floor, pecking and scratching at the floor zealously. Mira must have scattered some food for them across the floor of the pen not too long ago. "I'm guessing he's got good ears."

"Just like Natsu but not like Cobra." Lucy nodded, "So how about you start from the beginning?"

"I don't think there's much to say. I just feel really weird around him."

"What kind of weird?"

"The kind of weird where I say stupid things and trip over words. Every time he tries to spite me I fall for it like some mouse repeatedly getting trapped in some sick mouse trap."

"Well when did it start?"
"I'd say during the job. We were walking across Hargeon Festival looking for Cathy."

"Did you find her?" Lucy interjected and when I nodded, she grinned, "Oh wow I'm so glad!"

"Me too! She's so sweet!" I paused before coming back to the topic at hand again, "We were supposed to act natural and I accidentally took a hold of his arm. It felt like hundreds of butterflies were flying around my stomach."

"What did Gajeel do?"

"Oh you know… he was just being Gajeel. Nothing special." She nodded for me to continue and I did, "Well that's when I first started thinking about the fact that I might just like him. I mean, why else would I feel so flustered around him all of a sudden? Then we were invited to a ball hosted by the man who hired us. Gajeel was wearing a suit and we danced and stuff."

"So like back when Natsu and I were practicing for our ball?"

"Yeah… I guess it was like that. After we danced we still got something to eat and went home. We had to leave Lily there which was something Gajeel wasn't too happy about. He was ranting about it until we got home and I made him a snack. After that he went out onto the balcony and stayed there for what felt like hours. I didn't see him again that evening and I also didn't go check on him when he didn't come back in. I didn't want to intrude you know?" Again Lucy nodded, "I'm guessing he went to sleep sometime after I did."

"Well it does kind of sound like you might like him." Lucy concluded, "How much is a question that can only be answered in good time."

"You're probably right… but why him? Why on earth did it have to go and be Gajeel?!"

"Now that I think of it, who else if not Gajeel?" Her knowing smile put me on edge. What on earth was that supposed to mean? As if Gajeel and I were made to be together or something! The guy had assaulted me the first time we met and pinned me to a tree after vandalizing my stomach with icky black paint! How was that a fairy tale meeting? He was a brute who thought of nothing but fighting and strength. I was a bookwork who enjoyed a good read and learning as much as I could. I doubted that Gajeel had ever really picked up a book to read. "How about you just wait and see? You'll understand what I mean by that soon enough." Obviously my pondering had projected onto my face. Lucy was now looking up at the sky with a dreamy sort of expression, a gentle smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, anything."
"Why the hell are dragon slayers so damn weird?" She burst out laughing, bending forward a little. It took her quite some time to compose herself enough to talk again and by the time she had, I was smiling again. I loved seeing her laugh. She had been through so much, let alone during Phantom Lord's attack. It was nice to see that she was still able to laugh the way she did after all of that.

"You're asking me? I think I went and got the weirdest of them all!" Now I too started laughing, leaning into her shoulder a little while I did.

Well weren't we damned? Both of us were probably falling for dragon slayers…

"Do you think they even think of things like relationships?" I worded the question that had been bugging me ever since Gajeel had told me about Metalicana. "I don't know. I guess that all depends on what their dragon taught them." Lucy sounded subdued now, her jolly tone having vanished completely. I guess I wasn't the only one who was plagued by that question. "But somehow… I don't really think so."

The doors of the guild were swung open and Gajeel walked out, Pantherlily struggling to keep up to him, what with his stubby little legs, "Gajeel are you sure about this?" He asked his partner, sounding a little alarmed to me. The breeze picked up, whipping through my hair. Gajeel stopped, looking around before his eyes came to rest on me. I studied the look on his face for a moment before a fluttering object in his hand caught my attention. "You're taking another job?" I got up, forgetting all about Lucy for a moment.

"Yeah and?"

"Don't you think it's a little early to take another job?"

"He won't listen to me." Lily crossed his arms across his furry chest. He looked quite upset to me, "I keep telling him that he should at least take a short break; wait until tomorrow."

"C'mon as if the job in Hargeon was a-."

"Don't say it wasn't a challenge!" I interrupted him, my temper getting the better of me the way it so often did around Gajeel, "Because you know as well as I do that that was not the reason you took it!" Gajeel's eyes flicked to Pantherlily who looked slightly nervous all of a sudden. I guessed that Lily telling me about Gajeel's reasons behind taking the job wasn't something that Gajeel was very happy about. "We found the kid and I didn't get much of a fight out of it. Now I'm gonna go teach some weakling a lesson- no big deal." Something was wrong. The way he was talking… he never referred to a job as an excuse to hurt someone. That was something he would have said during his Phantom Lord days, not now… so why did he go and say it like that? Was there something upsetting him? Making him feel the need to let his frustration out on something, someone? What was this uneasy feeling I was having?

"Can we go now cat or are ya gonna keep complaining? If you don't wanna come, I can go on my own." And with that Gajeel began making his way across the open space in front of the guild, heading for the path that led down to the city. "I'm sorry about him…" Lily apologized briefly before trotting after Gajeel, no doubt on the verge of telling him off for his rudeness.

"What on earth was that all about?" Lucy asked me, watching Gajeel walk off, "Did something happen to upset him or why is he so funny?"

"I have no idea…"

All I knew was that I had an extremely bad feeling about this…


Two days passed and yet no-one heard anything from Gajeel or Pantherlily. Lucy and I had eventually asked Mira what kind of job Gajeel had taken. It was a job in a neighboring town. They were having trouble with a dark wizard. Some were referring to her as a witch that was casting dark spells on the civilians. "It shouldn't have been a challenge for Gajeel." Mira had said, "I gave him that one in particular because I thought that he'd be back within a few hours." To say the least, Mira was just as worried as I was it seems. Natsu had eventually returned to the guild with a big bruise on his forehead, muttering something about Gildarts being a bully. Juvia and Gray had returned a day after Gajeel had left.

"So what do we do?" I was sitting at a table with Erza, Gray, Natsu and Lucy, "I'd ask Jet to run over there and check but Droy and him still aren't back from their job."

"Aren't we worrying a little too much?" Gray asked the round but Natsu was quick to shake his head.

"I agree with Levy. There's something not right."

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked him, watching his face carefully. A deep frown had etched itself into his normally so carefree face.

"I can feel it… Besides, think about it: Mira said the job should have only taken Gajeel a few hours."

"So maybe they went sightseeing?" Gray added.

"He didn't even go sightseeing with me when I begged him to in Hargeon." I begged to differ and Gray nodded, seeming to see where we were going with this. "Is there any way we can contact him?" Erza chipped in and all of us started to throw in some suggestions.

"We could just scream really loud, maybe he'll hear us."
"Don't be an idiot flame for brains!" Gray growled.

"Well how about you come up with a better solution then you sick pervert?!" Natsu retorted, getting ready to stand up, as was Gray.

"Don't you think now is not the time to fight amongst yourselves?" Erza said calmly. It was the fact that she was so calm that got Natsu and Gray seated quietly within seconds. "Why don't we just ask Warren?" I suggested and everyone's faces seemed to light up.

"That's a brilliant idea!" Lucy cheered, "Hey Warren! Come over here a minute!" The telepathy wizard looked up from the table he was sitting at with Macao. "What can I help you with?" He got up, coming over to our little table with a curious look on his face. It wasn't often that Lucy would talk to Warren so I was suspecting that he knew there was something up. "Can you use your telepathy to contact Gajeel?" I asked him and he cocked his head to the side a little, signaling his confusion at my request. "Is something wrong?"

"Come on just do it!" Natsu urged him impatiently, "We think something's wrong so get a move on!"

"Okay, okay. Cool down." Gray grunted at the irony of what Warren had just said but Natsu was too worked up to care. I watched the fire in Natsu's eyes for a moment. He was really upset. I had heard about the legendary fight between Gajeel and Natsu from Lucy. Natsu had been furious at him for what he had done to the guildhall. He had sworn that he would never become friends with someone like Gajeel. Looking at Natsu now though, I couldn't help but wonder if Gajeel had become more important to him than he might have thought possible. Wasn't that the case with all of us? We had all had our apprehensions about him joining the guild but now, here everyone was, worried about him. Warren held his index and middle finger to his temple, closing his eyes and concentrating. The longer he tried, the more confused he looked. "It's not working."
"Then try harder!" Natsu croaked. Warren really did try harder but no matter how hard he tried, Gajeel didn't answer.

"Isn't Pantherlily with him?" Lucy asked us and we all nodded, "So try and contact him?"

"Good idea Luce!" Natsu grinned at her appreciatively and she smiled back.

"Alright I'll try that." Warren announced, closing his eyes again and using his magic to contact the Exceed. Neither of us heard the conversation between Lily and Warren but we could guess by the frown that spread across his face that there was something wrong. After about five minutes, Warren opened his eyes again. "And?" Again Natsu was the first to speak up, "What did he say?" Happy flew over to us, landing on the table. He had picked up on Natsu's urgency and was now looking at all of us worriedly. "Something went wrong." Warren finally spilt the beans. A tight knot was forming in my stomach and my heart started to beat a little faster. My legs bobbed up and down beneath the table and I pursed my lips. "What happened?" Erza asked calmly.

"They were there to find that witch and scare her off. It shouldn't have been a problem for them. Well that's what Pantherlily told me… They found her and started to fight her but something threw Gajeel off. Lily didn't want to tell me what though. The witch used that moment of discomposure to attack him and ever since then he's been unconscious. Lily's been trying to find a way to get him back to Fairy Tail but he can't stay in his full form long enough to do so."

"We'll go get him!" Natsu got up, clenching his hands into tight fists, "Are you ready Happy?"

"Aye!"

"Natsu be careful! That dark wizard is still around there somewhere." Erza instructed him and Natsu nodded, "He's over in the town to the west of Magnolia."

"I'll let Lily know that you're on your way. I'll tell him to meet you at the large council building in the center of town." Warren added and without further ado, Natsu sprinted out of the guild, closely followed by his exceed partner.

So… something had gone wrong after all…

"Are you okay?" A hand was placed on my shoulder and I zoned back in, only realizing then that I had been staring down at the tabletop. It was Lucy. She had scooted closer to me to comfort me, "You've gone all pale."

"I should have stopped him." I muttered, "I should have told him that it was reckless to go on another job immediately."

"You know he probably wouldn't have listened to you." Gray joined in in an attempt to ease my guilty conscience.

"Gray's right." Lucy agreed, rubbing my back comfortingly, "I'm sure Gajeel will be fine. The witch probably just put a sleeping spell on him so she could get away."

"I agree with Lucy." Erza chipped in, "Try to keep in mind that Gajeel is a dragon slayer. They tend to be quite hardy."

"I hope you're right." My voice was surprisingly hoarse. It hurt to talk so I resigned myself to sitting there, bathing in the comfort Lucy was giving me while worrying and waiting…

Soon the news had spread throughout the entire guild and everything had gone surprisingly quiet. Everyone just waited… that's all we could do.

Wait.


Sooo there you have it! What's going to happen to Gajeel? What kind of spell did that dark mage cast on him? Will Levy be able to help him this time?

Find out in the next chapter~

Reviews are appreciated! Until next time!

Thanks for reading!