"The Treasure Hunter"

. . .

He broke the contact, leaving me wanting oh so much more. I panted and looked up at him. He seemed to have recovered from whatever his episode was just moments before.

He smirked down at me as I licked my lips, relishing his flavor. "Too bad," he drawled. "I was hoping you were on the menu."

. . .

It was a good thing the door was there to support me, otherwise I don't think I would have been able to remain standing on my own power.

"But I guess sandwiches will have to make do for now." Gajeel stepped back and picked up the bag I had dropped. He walked into the room and placed them on the dresser before motioning for me to follow.

I sucked a deep breath down before I pushed myself off the door to follow him into the room. I set about pulling the sandwiches out and handed one to him. He grunted his thanks before I grabbed mine and sat cross-legged on the bed.

He leaned back against the dresser, slowly munching his food.

"So," I said between bites, "Did you find out anything good?"

He finished his sandwich quickly and turned around to sift through the bag for some more food. He pulled out a bag of chips and sat himself on the dresser as he started to snack on them. "Sure did. Turns out there's a local bar where a lot of the Sylph guys hang in the evening. We'll head there tonight to do some digging."

"Good thinking," I hummed as I finished my food. I held my wrapper up to Gajeel with pleading eyes.

He looked down at me with a cocky grin. "Need something?"

I pursed my lips and looked at the big bag of chips in his hands. "Please?"

"Well," he said coming close, "since you were so polite." He poured a handful of chips into the empty paper and I bounced back on the bed with a smile on my face.

"You're really adorable, you know that Levy?" he said with a grin.

I blushed before looking up into his eyes. "I feel comfortable being myself around you," I admitted.

"Whatchya mean?" He looked at me curiously. He brought one leg up onto the dresser so he could lean his arm against his elbow.

I sighed and finished the last of my chips before balling the wrapper up. I looked down at my hands before I finally gathered the courage to voice what was on my mind.

"I don't know, it's just that, everyone sees me as this small little bookworm and expects me to be a certain way. Sometimes I find myself acting that way just to meet people's expectations." I let out a heavy breath. "But that's not really who I am. I love books, don't get me wrong, but I have a fun side!" I looked at him with honest eyes. "You're the first person in a long time that has taken the time to really get to know me for me."

I shook my head from side to side before trying to plaster a smile on my face. "I'm sorry. I'm probably not making much sense. Just forget I said anything."

Gajeel turned his head to the side to gaze out the window. "You don't ever have to apologize for being honest with me." He pushed himself off the dresser before crossing the distance to sit next to me on the bed. He sat facing me and his weight depressed the mattress so that I had to keep myself from falling into him.

He took my hands in his before he spoke. "It's the same with me. When people look at me, they still expect the punk from Phantom Lord. Even people on the street expect me to be like that. So that's how I act, because it's easier to meet people's expectations than deal with the questions."

He sighed and brought my hands up to his face. "But you," he leaned into my touch before he continued, "You're the first person to see me for something else. Hell, after everything I'd done to you in the past, you were one of the first people to even try and get close to me."

The smallest amount of moisture leaked from one of his eyes and I brought my thumb up to wipe it away before tangling by hand in his hair. I leaned myself in close, so our foreheads were touching. "Everyone has a past. You were a different person back then. I just feel so grateful that you've given me the opportunity to get to know the real Gajeel."

He let out a shaky breath. "I hope I don't end up scaring you off like I do everyone else," he said with a sad smile.

I gripped the back of his neck firmly so he would look into my eyes. "No way is that ever going to happen. Gajeel, I—" but before I could finish the thought, his lips were on mine.

His kiss was soft and gentle, unlike the others I had experienced. It brought me back to the first time we kissed in the middle of the night. I let myself fall back on the bed and he followed without breaking contact, leaning beside me. One of his large hands gripped me gently behind my neck while the other snaked its way around my waist.

I found myself being flipped onto my stomach as Gajeel laid flat on the bed, pulling me with him. I was mostly on top of him at this point and I broke contact to look into his eyes.

His one hand stayed on the small of my back but his other moved to caress the side of my face. He brushed a lock of hair back behind my ear. I leaned into his touch while closing my eyes; adoring the feeling of comfort he was giving me. "Levy," he whispered quietly. I opened my eyes back up at his words. "Ever since Metalicana left, I've felt alone. For the first time in a long time, I don't feel as abandoned anymore. It's because of you."

I opened my mouth to speak but he put his finger to my lips gently. "I don't care how long it takes for you to realize your feelings. I'll be here when that day arrives."

"Realize my feelings?" His hands were caressing my cheek again and I leaned into his touch for the second time. I let out a deeply satisfied sigh. "What are my feelings? I don't really know. I'm so confused."

I thought back to all the times I spent with Gajeel. I felt so at ease with him. When I wasn't around him, all I did was hope for the times we would be together again. But things were moving so fast. I barely had time to process what was going on. I wondered if it was true emotion or if it was just a wave of lust that had swept us up. "That doesn't feel right, though. I've got to believe there is something more to this than the need to screw." I just hoped the same went for Gajeel and this wasn't just some big game.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to clear out the self-doubt. When I opened my eyes, he was still there, looking at me with such adoration. "It's got to be real. There's no way he could fake something like that."

"Gajeel I—" I didn't know quite what I was going to say, because I hadn't fully figured out how I felt. Something deep inside me wanted to say that I cared for him more than I had ever cared for anyone and that I wanted to be with him, always. But my mind stopped me. I had just admitted to falling for him yesterday. I was moving too fast and I was afraid of getting hurt.

He put his fingers back over my lips. "Shhh…" his voice trailed off. "You don't have to say anything. Not until you're ready." With those words, he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a tight embrace.

I lost track of time as we lay together, with me resting against his chest, and his arms wrapped fully around my small frame.

. . .

Several hours later found us getting ready to head to the local bar the Sylph members frequented. I took the opportunity to rinse off in the shower. Before exiting the small bathroom, I wrapped the hotel bathrobe around me tightly. It still smelled like Gajeel.

As I walked into the room, I moved to pick up my orange dress so I could put it back on. Gajeel eyed me before saying, "Got anything less bright? Don't want to stand out too much where we're going."

I cast my eyes down on my dress before frowning slightly. "Oh, let me see." I started to rummage through my bag, looking for something more subdued. I felt Gajeel's eyes on me before he walked over to me. He embraced me from behind, wrapping both his arms around my waist before whispering in my ear, "You know I love how you look, no matter what you're wearing."

I giggled as he playfully nipped at the side of my neck. I turned around in his arms and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "I know. Thanks, Gajeel." I turned back around to look through my bag again. "I think I have something a little darker that may work in here," I thought.

Gajeel's hand collided with my rear before he chuckled and said, "Anytime."

. . .

As we headed towards the bar that evening, I noticed the town become a little more run down with each step we took. I was glad I had Gajeel walking beside me. I looked up at him as he strode at my side. He was wearing his khakis tucked into his combat boots but he paired it with just a simple green v-neck tee. His hair was tied back and he was sporting his red bandana.

"Why aren't you wearing your jacket? I'm surprised to see you without metal on your clothing!" I chided him.

He grunted as he walked towards the door. "Don't want anyone to recognize me, if I can help it. That metal is usually a dead giveaway." He smirked. "Don't know too many other men who can pull off the iron look like me."

He gave me a sideways wink before we walked out the door.

I myself had found an outfit that was less—bubbly. I paired a skintight black t-shirt with a pair of skinny jeans. I still wore my red sandals but I forwent my bright blue bandana, since it was part of my signature look.

Gajeel's steps slowed behind me and before I realized, he was walking a few strides behind. I turned my head back to look at him before asking him what was the matter.

"Absolutely nothing," he sighed. "I just love seeing your ass in those jeans."

I grabbed my backside and turned around. My face was flaming red. "Gajeel!"

He took two long strides before he swept me up in his arms. I leaned back as his chest pushed into me. He brought his lips close to my ear before he whispered, "I'm not Gajeel anymore. No one needs to know our real names tonight."

He let me go and I stumbled a little to regain my balance. I straightened my top from where it had gotten scrunched and peeked up at him. He was scanning the area to see if anyone had seen us. Thankfully, this street was deserted.

"So then, what should I call you from now on," I said mischievously.

He let out his signature laugh. "Nothing at all. As far as everyone else is concerned, we've never met before."

I quirked an eyebrow as if asking him to explain. He continued, "We'll enter the bar separately. First you, then me. I want you to go sit at the bar. With how fine your ass is looking tonight, guaranteed guys are going to come up and chat with you. Try and see if you can find out anything."

"And what will you be doing, while I'm doing all the heavy lifting!" I pouted at him.

"I'm going to sit down in the back and listen. Chances are with how recent this theft is, someone's bound to be talking about it," he responded.

"So, what's our endgame?" I asked.

"I'll leave first. Watch for me as I exit. I'll wait outside in an alley. Once you leave, I'll follow behind you until we get to the hotel area and can be seen together."

I nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a good plan to me." I smiled up at him. "You know, you're a pretty good tactician."

"Thanks, Levy," he looked down at me with a smile of his own. "That really does mean a lot coming from you."

We walked for few more blocks before we finally reached our destination. The building was pretty run down. It almost looked like it had once been a converted warehouse of some sorts. It was a white corner building made of cinderblocks with two windows on either side of the entrance. Above the front door were the words "Troubled Times."

I looked back at Gajeel, as if to say, "Are you sure this is the place." He nodded his head before disappearing into the shadows. I turned back around to face the door and steeled my nerves. I took a deep breath as I pushed the door open.

I felt the eyes on me the instant I walked in. The entire place had a red glow to it, from the colored lights hanging from the ceiling. A long bar that ran against the back wall seemed to be the greatest attraction. A few tables and chairs were spread out throughout the rest of the room. Further in the back, I thought I saw a pool table with a few people around it.

The clientele was more or less what you would have expected to find in a place like this. There were definitely some town locals, just looking for a cheap drink. There were also your travelers, that looked like they had been on the road for a little too long. Most of the women were attached to a guy, but there were a few that were there with another friend, trying their best to flirt with some of the cuter patrons.

I spotted an open stool at the bar and walked up to claim it. Once I had settled myself, I waved the bartender over. He cocked an eyebrow at me before asking, "What'll it be?"

I was about to go on the automatic and order a fruity drink, but I quickly thought the better of it. I cleared my throat before asking for a beer. Within a minute, the bartender set a foaming mug in front of me. I took a sip and tried to hide my grimace.

"I really do hate beer. I don't understand how Cana can drink so much of it. There are very few good beers out there. The majority of them are pretty disgusting."

Movement at the entrance caught the corner of my eye. I saw Gajeel enter through the front door. He paused briefly, surveying the place and I felt his gaze pass over me. He surprised me by walking right up to where I was sitting.

He leaned over the bar next to me, "Oi! Bartender! I'll take a beer," he yelled. The bartender nodded and poured him the drink. Gajeel grunted his thanks before taking the beer back with him to a table in the back corner.

I did my best to keep looking forward, as if the whole situation didn't faze me. Just then, I felt a large hand press into my shoulder. I turned to see to whom it belonged and my gaze fell on a well-built man of average height. He had dark hair, styled into four spikes and sported some stubble on his chin. He was wearing a fur-trimmed jacket with a pair of dark green pants.

"Anyone sitting here?" he asked. I hadn't noticed that the stool beside me was empty.

"No, all yours," I replied.

"Thanks," he said as he sat down. He raised his right hand to waive down the bartender, and that's when I saw it: a green wristband with the Sylph Labyrinth guild mark.

"Bingo!" I thought. "I'll have to be careful though, I don't want to seem too interested. He may think something's up."

The bartender came over and my target ordered ale. Once he had his drink, he turned himself sideways on his seat so he could better look at me. I smiled shyly at him and he chuckled. "Name's Hiroshi, you?"

"Crap! I don't think I want to give away my real name in this situation, do I?"

"Lana," I replied evenly. "Sorry Lucy and Cana! Combining your names was the first thing I could think of!"

"So, Lana," he cocked an eyebrow of me before taking a swig of his ale, "What's a girl like you doing in a place like this?"

I rolled my eyes at the cheesy line. "Just passing through the town on my way to—Clover Town. I've got some relatives that way."

"But, why a place like this?" he narrowed his eyes at me.

"Crap! Does he suspect something?"

I giggled before saying, "Girl's gotta drink and I don't wanna blow all my jewel at some fancy restaurant up town to get the same buzz."

He leaned back and let out a genuine laugh. "I like your style, Lana."

"Good. He's falling for it."

"What about you, Hiroshi," I let his name drip off my tongue. "What brings you to a place like this?" I turned myself so I was facing him. I put my elbow up on the bar and rested my cheek on my hand before throwing him a playful look.

"Just finished a job in town," he said, slightly puffing his chest out.

"Really?" I said with interest. "Are you in a guild or something?"

"Sure am, sugar," he flashed me a cocky grin.

"This is too easy."

"That's so cool!" I gushed. "So," I inched closer to him so that my legs were between his now. "Tell me about this job of yours." I trailed a finger lightly down his jacket to play with the front zipper.

He followed my fingers down before looking up at me. "It was dangerous."

"Yeah?" I lowered my voice. "How so?"

"Well, my client was after this really rare item. But it wasn't exactly laying around for anyone to take, if you know what I mean."

I tried to play dumb so he would keep talking. I shook my head playfully and pouted my lips. "I don't know."

He chuckled, obviously thinking I was just some dumb girl. "Well sweetcheeks, let's just say the item had an owner. And so I had to be extra careful about retrieving it." He smirked into his drink before he took a swig.

"Wow!" I gasped, widening my eyes. "So, did you get it?"

"Not to worry, sugar. This guy always gets his prize." He put his drink down and grabbed my hand from where it was resting on his jacket. "Too bad I had to turn it over to my client. That piece of jewelry would have looked right at home on a dainty wrist like yours." His fingers started circling my wrist and I giggled before pulling my hand back.

"Whatcha' say you and me get out of here?" he cocked his eyebrow at me.

"I dunno…" I let my words trail off as I looked around the bar, trying to spot Gajeel. He was still sitting in the corner, slowly drinking his beer. Our eyes met for the briefest of seconds before I turned back to Hiroshi. "I promised a friend I would meet her here."

He wrapped his arm around one of my shoulders before saying, "I'm sure she'll understand if you had—better things to do," he smirked.

I blushed at his crude innuendo before trying to shake off his arm. "I really can't. I wouldn't want her to worry, and plus I promised I'd meet her here," I said, turning back to face the bar.

"Come on, guy. Can't you get the message?"

"Awe, sweetheart. Don't be like that." He moved to put his hand on my thigh, but before he got the chance, I heard a large hand smack down onto his shoulder.

"I think the lady said she's not interested." It was Gajeel's voice. I turned around to look up at him. He was standing just between us with his large hand splayed out roughly onto Hiroshi's shoulder.

The treasure hunter tried to buck Gajeel's hand off of him. "Look man," he turned to look at the intruder, "no one asked you, okay?"

Gajeel lifted his hand from the guy's shoulder and firmly grabbed onto my wrist. He threw some jewel down on the bar to cover both of our drinks before he said, "Come on, Lana, let's go." He started pulling me away from the bar.

"Do you even know this guy?" Hiroshi asked me.

I didn't know what to say. This wasn't the plan. Why was Gajeel acting this way? We had hit a home run with this guy in terms of information so why was he blowing our cover?

"I, uhh—" but before I could respond, Gajeel spoke up.

"I'm the friend she's meeting, let's go."

"Hey, wait a minute!" I heard Hiroshi shout before I was roughly pulled through the front door.

"Gajeel! That guy, I'm pretty sure he's the one that stole the bracelet! It was a job for a client through his guild," I explained quickly.

"I heard," he said, continuing to pull me alongside of him.

I wrenched my wrist free of his grasp and he turned around to try and grab me again. "Gajeel!" I yelled. "We can't afford to lose him."

"Hey!" That was Hiroshi's voice. I turned around to see he had come running out of the bar. I felt a whoosh as Gajeel strode past me. "You can't just—" but Hiroshi didn't have a chance to finish what he was going to say.

I turned to see Gajeel roughly throw him into the side of the bar. "The bracelet," he growled, "who'd you steal it for?"

"What?" Hiroshi looked around nervously. "I don't know what you're talking about man."

Gajeel grated his teeth before he pushed his forearm up to the hunter's neck. "One more time, who'd you steal the bracelet for?"

Hiroshi looked at me, "Lana, call off your dog would you?"

At hearing his words, Gajeel let the man drop to the ground before he planted a punch right on his jaw. Hiroshi fell to the floor, grasping his cheekbone. Gajeel squatted down and picked the man up by the scruff of his jacket. "Last chance before things get real serious. Who has the bracelet?"

"Alright man, alright. I'll tell you, just put me down." Gajeel let go of his jacket and both men stood. "No skin off my back, I already got paid anyways."

"Sometime today," Gajeel said through clenched teeth.

"All I know is the name of the client. Hono Proper. We good now?"

Gajeel turned around to look at me and I nodded. We could ask the old woman tomorrow if she recognized the name.

"So Lana-" Hiroshi drawled.

Gajeel's voice had an intense quiet to it as he spoke, "You better get the fuck out of here, man."

Hiroshi stuck his hands in his pockets and bristled before returning to the bar. "Assholes," I heard him mutter under his breath.

"Gajeel I—" but I wasn't able to finish my sentence, as I quickly found myself being dragged behind him. He was walking with such a speed that I was having trouble keeping up. "Gajeel, I'm going to fall. Slow down!"

But I shouldn't have said anything because I found myself being thrown over his shoulder again, as he continued to almost run back to the hotel.

"What the hell has gotten into him?" I wondered. I called his name over and over but it didn't seem to be of any use. I looked down and noticed the pavement had changed, signaling we were back in the safer area of town. His steps began to slow and I said his name, softly this time.

He slowly lowered me off my shoulder but his hands never left me. I looked around briefly, realizing that we were on the corner near the hotel, standing under a street light.

He pulled me into his arms and I returned the embrace. I squeezed him tightly before I tried to break the hold but he wouldn't let me go. "Gajeel," I said his name again softly. "What's the matter?"

He burrowed his nose into my hair before he quietly spoke, "I couldn't stand seeing you flirting with that asshole."

I pushed against his arms and he let me break the hold just enough so I could look up into his eyes. "Gajeel, you know I wasn't into him. I was just doing it to get the information we needed."

He pulled me close again. "I know that," he ground out. "But I still couldn't control myself. When you touched him, I just about nearly lost it."

I nuzzled myself further into his chest and breathed in his scent. "No one's going to keep me away from you. I'm your Shrimp, remember?" I said playfully.

He let out a heavy sigh before saying, "and you're okay with that?"

I pulled back to look up into his eyes, "Yeah, I am."

As his lips sealed over mine, I couldn't help the thought that crept through my brain, "I think I'm falling in love with this man."

END CHAPTER 10

Hello Darlings!

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukah! My gift to you: another chapter!

For those of you who were happy to have more plot, this chapter should make your day, as it does progress the plot along. And for those of you who are happy when the two are honest with their feelings, this chapter should make you downright giddy!

Big shout outs to all the reviewers who weighed in regarding cleaning solutions last chapter. I am going to try all your suggestions! I doubt my husband will mind. "It's all for science!"

Still not in the mood for Christmas. I haven't listened to one Christmas song all the way through yet this season lol. Oh well, there's always next year.

Also, I really hate beer. If I had to drink it, I'd also be grimacing. I know there are some microbreweries that make some good stuff but I dunno. There was one beer that I had way back that I liked, but my husband corrected me and said that was ale. What the hell do I know? *Shrugs shoulders*

Sorry I didn't get an update out last night. Hopefully this 4500-word chapter makes up for it. I realized the other day that this is chapter 10 and most of my chapters are roughly 10 pages long. Which means I've written like over 100 pages for this story! That's pretty cool. I eventually want to write a novel but I always thought, how could I ever write that much. The task doesn't seem so daunting now!

Sorry I don't have any sassy things to say today. This whole Christmas thing has me in a funk…lol.

LOVE YOU GUYS!

Musicera -thank god for proofreading. I totally spelled my username wrong on the first pass.

*All I wanted for Christmas was Fairy Tail. As of this morning, Santa and I are no longer on speaking terms.