Levy eyed herself in the mirror in her apartment in Fairy Hills, criticizing every detail to make sure she looked like she wanted to. She nodded firmly to herself, fixed her headband one last time, and then smirked.
A pink dress tied with black lace around her throat and down her chest. The lace lined the edges of the skirt, the part where it cut off into sleeveless slits for her arms. On each arm she wore a sleeve that had been tied on to match, her feet clad in black shoes, and a black headband in her hair. She nodded.
Surely this would do for whatever Gajeel had planned?
Her hazel eyes glowed as she checked the time and grabbed her purse.
She paused to contemplate.
To ask for an escort or to not… She struggled before furrowing her brow. Gajeel knew she would be there and it wasn't too far...it was a busy time and there were people everywhere on the way back to Fairy Tail's guildhall…
Alone it was. She'd just hurry.
Levy headed out, tugging her door shut and locking it behind her. Just in case, she told herself, even as she realized with a sinking stomach that she never used to lock her door. Elroy had entirely ruined everything for her.
Well...not everything.
He had seemed to give she and Gajeel the push they'd needed.
Levy left Fairy Hills, her legs moving quickly to push her to the guildhall. For the first time in a while, she didn't think to look around every corner, look over her thin shoulder and see if she was being followed. She didn't think anything of Elroy, looking forward to her date.
She was crossing the street, the guildhall a street over, when he struck.
One second she was reaching the curb of the street opposite, the next she could taste a metallic rustic tang in her mouth, her dazed hazel eyes trying to focus on the ground in front of her face. A groan escaped her and she tucked her arms beneath her to shove herself to her feet, but froze when someone's feet appeared in her line of vision.
"I'm sorry, Miss Levy," Elroy said earnestly as he crouched to peer at her. He ducked his head to look into her eyes, his own green gaze sorrowful. "I only wanted to hit you once...hard enough to knock you out, but I didn't manage it."
A chill ran down her spine. Levy sputtered words that she couldn't remember a moment later, trying to get a grip on her dizzy mind to figure out what to do. What was happening.
Elroy frowned when she didn't respond, but continued. "I've been trying to find you alone for weeks, but you've been avoiding me." He clicked his tongue, as if scolding her. "I tried approaching, but you always had someone with you to give me nasty words and looks. They turned you against me, Miss Levy."
Finally, Levy breathed, "I wasn't turned against you. You're psychotic."
He huffed. "I don't like that word. Don't use it."
"I don't like the way you're being an ass, but there's nothing I can do about that, now is there?"
Ignoring her biting remark, he patted her cheek. Levy wanted to vomit at his touch. "Miss Levy," he hummed, "I know you think you don't like me, that you've been fooled otherwise, but I can prove that I'm better for you. I'm much better than him." His gaze flickered with rage, his lip curling in disgust. Gajeel, she realized. He was talking about Gajeel. "Since they wouldn't let you give me a chance, I'll have to make a chance for me. You were supposed to be knocked out. I used a brick...I thought I hit you hard enough."
Levy's mouth felt dry like cotton as he gripped her wrist and hauled her upright. Her head spun, her vision bleary. She staggered, so busy on remaining upright that she barely noticed as he brushed her dress off with a loving look, or how fixed her headband and hair. Levy had thrown her arms out to remain upright.
Had she not been struck with a brick, she might have made a run for it. But to run seemed like a hideous idea when your head ached like someone was whamming on it like a drum. But she'd been hit, she realized. She'd been hit.
She was, despite the limited Council laws, allowed to use her magic against him.
She licked her lips. Levy drew it into her veins, dwelling in the feeling of the magic she'd loved for so long, and let it gathered expertly into her fingertips. Solid-script magic was a magic that was as free as Gray's ice-make.
She used it to blast him in the face with flames.
He screamed in surprise, and she threw herself backwards, staggering when dizziness swept through her. Her vision tunneled, but she turned and ran. Gajeel would be waiting there, she told herself. Someone would have-
A hand clamped on her wrist.
A scowling Elroy, face smeared with ash, dragged her, snarling, towards him. He clamped something metal onto her wrist and Levy flinched as her magic was drained right back out of her. "I didn't want to. I know you like your magic. But if you're going to do that with it...I'll forgive you this time. Just this time."
Levy felt sick.
Her arm flashed with pain every time he yanked her. Levy couldn't help but glare at the back of his head as Elroy led her down the street and turned a corner, moving quickly. He remained near the canal, and despite hating him and being somewhat terrified, she had to give Elroy credit. He certainly knew how to confuse a dragon slayer's nose.
Too bad he didn't notice her slyly ripping pieces of ribbon off her dress - she could get it fixed, after all. She dropped them every now and then, making sure to hastily wedge her heel in so they were crushed into the cobbled streets. He'd surely kill her if he found out. She grew terrified every time he looked her way as she did it.
She forced a smile to her lips as he looked back at her, checking. He beamed, delighted.
Make him think you're pleasant and willing and happy, she told herself. Keep him happy. Keep him happy and live.
Gajeel would come looking and soon. He was more aware of it all than anyone else and he had been expecting her. Hopefully, he would come looking soon.
She began to get nervous as he slowed, muttering to himself lowly enough that she couldn't hear what he was saying. Elroy looked over his shoulder. And then he furrowed his brow. Something in Levy's heart sank when he stepped back and scooped up a piece of ribbon she'd left behind. He studied it. Elroy turned it over in his hand, and then slowly looked to her with disappointment in his emerald eyes.
"Miss Levy," he said sadly, clicking his tongue.
Levy's head throbbed with pain, her heart with terror.
"Miss Levy," he repeated, voice soft and dark. "I know you are smarter than this."
Levy cast her mind for solutions and came up with only one - one that was risky, one that might not work at all, yet was one of very few options. Another slid into her thoughts to go alongside it and she decided she had no other choice until she could get the manacle of magic-sealing material off of her.
"I am," she said unevenly, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. She tasted blood. She barely noticed, taking note of how far she had between she and the canal. "I'm much smarter than this. You're right. Just as right about that as you are wrong about my boyfriend."
What the hell, they were close enough to getting to that point anyways.
Levy surged forward with outstretched arms, slamming her hands against Elroy's chest as hard as she could. He stumbled back, tripping on the curb and falling. Without hesitation, using precious seconds, Levy threw herself into the canal at her back. She would have preferred to throw him in, but sometimes it didn't work like that.
She surfaced, kicking. She heard Elroy shouting his outrage at her as she swam to the other side. She flinched as his feet pounded on cobbled streets, racing as fast as he could for the nearest bridge. Arms shaking, Levy hauled herself free of the water and then, shaking water from her eyes, tore off for the guildhall, gasping before pushing a scream out as loud as she could.
Levy was furious - furious that she couldn't draw on her magic, and no matter how much she clawed at the thick iron manacle, it wouldn't come off.
She rounded a street corner. The guildhall was in sight. So close, she thought. She could see the double doors. So close!
He hit her like she'd run into a solid wall. Levy went down with a shriek as Elory tackled her. She fought as hard as she could, raking her nails down his cheek and kicking with her legs. She screamed again, trying to get anyone out and to notice. This close to the guildhall, someone would notice...right?
Heaving for air, Elroy sneered at her and forced her down, pinning her wrists above her head. Sweat dripped from the tips of his hair. "Did you really think," he gasped, "I wouldn't know ways to get around?"
She spat at him, watching with satisfaction as her saliva spattered across his cheek. He wiped it off with a shoulder - and then froze. He rolled a second before a gust of wind buffeted a wall, shattering it.
Levy crawled away on her hands and knees, scraping her soft skin, but didn't notice as Wendy glared with her teeth bared. She looked like some kind of demonic angel to Levy. Her hair practically rose around her, Charle spitting mad on her shoulder.
She trilled, high-pitched and loud. A call for fellow dragon slayers, Levy realized, slumping against the ground with an exhausted groan. Her bruised wrist ached - so did her head. Elroy swore, shooting to his feet. He ducked to avoid a blow from Wendy when she fired off another Roar, and then fled.
Levy watched him go with a scowl and then heaved herself to her feet one final time. She staggered over to Wendy, not having the energy to so much as smile. "Thanks," she whispered.
Wendy wore no look of her usual kindness as she spat, "No problem."
Rubbing her manacled wrist, Levy murmured, "Gajeel?"
"He was following your scent," Wendy explained, finally beginning to relax. She looked up to the solid-script mage. "When you didn't show up on time, he went to check at Fairy Hills. I met him at the door. You were gone. So we went looking."
"Thank you," Levy said lowly. There was a tired, hollow feeling in her chest. She was tired - so tired. She wanted this to be over. She wanted all of this to be done-
Wendy lifted her head and trilled again, cutting Levy's thoughts off. "She's calling Gajeel," Charle explained, surprisingly gentle for once. Her dark eyes flickered. "He responded."
"Did he?"
Levy furrowed her brow. The words sounded like they'd come from someone else.
She opened her mouth to speak.
Her head sent a violent flash of pain through it and she knew nothing more.
And Elroy strikes, bastard that he is! Now we're stepping into some major upcoming events. ;)
And something that Bubbles is concerned about. Bubbles, you know what I'm talking about.
Thanks to reviewers (Typhlosion8, BUBBLES!, Dinoadge, random-anime-gurl, LittleMarshmallowAli, Shadow Spears, RandomAnimeNerd, Guest #1, NylliaDelta, and FtfanDessarai!) as well as those who favorited and followed!