The next morning was free of any activities so Levy headed out to the park to meet with Gajeel and Lily.
She brought along her satchel so she could carry her notebook and quill to take notes.
Her excitement was obvious by the extra bounce in her step as she walked through town.
"Good morning Miss~"
She stopped mid-step to turn towards the voice that called out to her.
There stood a man with a casual smile on his face as he maintained a decent distance from her.
She quickly assessed him.
He was about average height and had a lean but tone build, dark green eyes looked back at her and she took in his short, neatly kept white hair.
Levy stood speechless at seeing him, based on the expensive looking blazer and slacks he was wearing, it seemed out of place for him to be in such a small town.
As he came closer Levy could tell that the man was an Alpha from his heavy smoky scent and she could help but take a step back defensively as the strange Alpha approached her.
The Alpha stilled at seeing her reaction to his presence and stopped stayed a few feet away from her.
"Pardon me Miss for being so rude at our first meeting. My name is Jake and I am one of the participants in the Mate Hunt. I think it is with great luck that I found you this morning because I haven't been able to get you off my mind since I caught a glimpse of you last night at the introductions." Jake said in a silky voice as he smiled at Levy.
Levy was bewildered at the thought that someone as plain as her was sought out and she blushed lightly at the attention.
"U-uhm… it's nice to meet you… Jake was it? I'm Levy McGarden." Levy said timidly.
"The pleasure is all mine to meet a lovely Omega like yourself." Jake said with a slight bow.
"R-right. Well have a pleasant day." Levy said as she started to turn away.
"Wait?!" Levy jolted as she looked back at the Alpha.
"... If I could be so bold as to ask you for some of you time right now, I'd be honored. I would love to treat you to a cup of coffee or maybe a bite to eat." Jake said as he took a hopeful step towards Levy.
"O-oh! I-I-I'm sorry Jake but I already have plans with some friends this morning and I actually better be going since I'm running late." Levy said slightly panicked by the sudden invitation.
"Oh? That's too bad… perhaps I'll see you at tonight's gathering?"
"Well I'll be there so the chances of running into each other is high." Levy gave a small laugh as she waved goodbye and continued on her way quickly.
Jake gave an enthusiastic wave in return and continued until she was out of sight. As soon as he could no longer see her he stopped waving and jerked his arm back down angrily.
"Tch! I purposefully tracked her down to have her to myself and I ended up being shot down anyways! I'll have to bide my time to gain her trust. I'm fairly certain she arrived her alone so what friends could she possibly be talking about, the only person I've seen her converse with is that boorish Alpha from last night…" Jake thought sourly.
"No matter, it's only a small bump in the road." He thought to himself deviously as he allowed a wicked smile to spread on his face.
"It's only a matter of time before that Omega is all mine."
Gajeel stood at the base of the tree with Lily perched on his shoulder as they waited for Levy to arrive.
"Heh. I can't believe you agreed to see Levy." Lily said with an amused tone.
"Tch. I'm just fucking bored is all. Thought I'd be a good way to pass the time." Gajeel said as he began to get annoyed with his partner.
"…Still this is pretty unusual for you Gajeel."
"…"
"She… isn't afraid of me Lil'… Gajeel said softly.
Lily patted his shoulder in comfort.
Lily spied Levy coming into view so Lily decided to break Gajeel out of his funk before she got here. And the best way he knew how was to tease him.
"…You know Gajeel? This whole thing with Levy today seems like some sort of a date!"
"HAAAAA?!" Gajeel said irritably.
"Heh heh. Isn't it a date when a man and woman get together to learn more about each other? And watching us spare later…"
"Don't you DARE say it furbag!" Gajeel yelled as he tried to grab Lily but the feline quickly dodged and floated just out of reach from the blushing Slayer.
"Isn't sparing another way of courting by showing off in front of a potential… MATE." Lily said as he chuckled.
Gajeel leapt up and caught Lily and began shaking him as the Exceed only smirked back at him, none the wiser to Levy's arrival.
"I'll teach you to run your meddling mouth you flea infes-"
"Gajeel?"
Gajeel came to a dead stop and released Lily to which he flew to Levy to perch on her shoulder innocently.
"Gajeel slowly turned as he made eye contact with the blue haired woman.
"Good morning Miss Levy, I hope you are doing well this fine day?"
"Lily! Good morning! I'm very glad to see you again!" Levy gently reached over and gave Lily a scratch behind his ears to which he purred lightly.
Gajeel was once again dumbstruck at how well Levy adapted to the both of them.
"G-good morning to you as well Gajeel." Levy said a little bashfully.
Gajeel crossed his arms and looked away as he mumbled "…Mornin'…"
"Don't mind him, he's always grumpy."
Levy giggled lightly as she began to wave her hand in the air, immediately catching Gajeel's attention.
"I think I can help a little bit with that."
Lily was shocked that Gajeel came closer and stared as he reached out to where Levy's magic was gathering and watched as the word IRON manifested itself under Gajeel's palm.
Lily looked back at Levy and turned back to see Gajeel already chomping down on it as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
"That's impressive Levy. Script mages are a rarity."
Levy blushed at the compliment.
"Now it makes sense why Gajeel was so receptive to meeting with you today~" Lily joked.
Gajeel made a choking sound at the comment and glared at his partner.
"Haha. Well now that we're all here, why don't we have a chat?"
"Gihi~ Guess I don't have a choice since I took your bribe Shorty." Gajeel teased.
The three of them spent all morning talking about Dragon Slayers and even Exceeds, Levy eagerly jotted all the notes she possibly could down into her notebook. The conversation turned towards their lives as they became more and more comfortable around each other.
"I've been thinking, if it's not too much to ask that is… would you mind if I watched you perform some of your Dragon Slayer magic Gajeel?"
Caught off guard by the request and thinking back at Lily's comments earlier, Gajeel sucked in a small breath of air and accidently inhaled some of Levy's scent that was brimming with innocent excitement. Suddenly feeling an unexplainable itch, he got up quickly and looked away trying to look as nonchalant as an awkward person could manage.
Levy startled slightly at the sudden movement but stayed put with a light blush on her face at the thought of accidently offending her new friend.
"S-sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"Tch. No apologies needed Shorty. It was just unexpected is all…" Gajeel grumbled, still trying to reign in that itch, but it was quickly turning into a restlessness he didn't understand.
Lily broke the tension by transforming, turning Levy's attention towards him so his partner could take the chance to recompose himself.
"Wow Lily! Look at you, I never heard of Exceeds being able to wield magic in this way." Levy said as she began scribbling in her notebook details about the now muscular and large Exceed.
"Thank you Miss Levy."
Lily looked back and smirked at Gajeel who was now glaring at him.
"Now if you'll excuse us, we shall begin our sparing match. Be sure to stay here so you don't get hurt by my bumbling partner over there."
Levy giggled as Lily turned and quickly grabbed Gajeel by the shoulder and tossed him across the park.
Gajeel quickly regained his balance and landed with a loud thump.
"Gihi. You're in for a show now Shorty cause Lily just poked the Dragon." Gajeel said right before lunging towards Lily.
Levy watched in awe as the two duked it out and watched Gajeel intently, writing diligent notes about the affect Dragon Slayer magic had on Gajeel's body. After a few minutes she had stopped taking notes and was caught in a trance as she stared at Gajeel. She caught herself tracing his muscles and smiling as she took in his devilish expressions as he engrossed himself in the match. She slowly placed her hand over her heart and was surprised that it was beating so quickly.
"What's the matter with me?" Levy whispered as she kept her eyes on the match.
She had a sudden urge to purr and that's when it dawned on her.
"?! I'm so stupid! My Omega instincts think this is some sort of courting display! No wonder Gajeel acted so weird." Levy wailed at herself internally as she blushed.
"I need to calm down before my scent starts leaking out. Ugh! How embarrassing! I'm acting like a newly presented Omega. Get it together! You're just friends! There's no way an Alpha like Gajeel would EVER be interested in a plain Omega like me."
She took deep breaths to try and calm herself down. Slowly Levy calmed her heart but the embarrassment was there to stay.
Levy stopped writing notes altogether and focused on keeping calm as she watched Gajeel and Lily deliver a final blow to one another simultaneously that knocked both onto their backs. Ending the match in a draw.
"Gihi! That felt great! You got on hell of an uppercut Lily." Gajeel said as he sat up.
"Hmph, thanks but I'm positive your iron poles hurt ten times worse." Lily chuckled as he transformed into his smaller form.
"I think you were both wonderful!"
Gajeel watched as Levy walked over and picked up Lily to hold against her chest affectionately.
"Feh. It was nothing. Gihi~ you should see when we go all out!"
"The last thing we need is another repair bill for wrecking a town Gajeel!"
Suddenly a loud growl interrupted their banter.
"Why are you always hungry Gajeel?" Lily said with a sigh.
"Well since you two were kind enough to show me your skills, I think it's only fair that I treat you to lunch."
"Now you're talking Shrimp!" Gajeel said as he leapt up excitedly.
"The name's Levy not Shrimp! Levy said with a huff.
Gajeel sauntered over and placed his elbow on her head playfully and leaned into her personal space.
"Gihi~ Well how about Shorty then? Or Smallfry?" Gajeel said as he loomed over her.
Levy fumed at the jokes but then realized their proximity to one another and felt herself blush as she got a whiff of the Alpha's post exercise musk.
Gajeel at the same moment realized that he initiated physical contact with Levy and was just about to pull away and apologize when Levy beat him to action once again.
"Stupid Gajeel!" Levy said as she kicked him as hard as she could in the shin and pulled away from him.
"Ouch!" Gajeel said as he stood there watching Levy turn and walk away.
"Come on Lily! Let's go get something to eat!" Levy said dramatically as she walked away from Gajeel.
"S-sure." Lily looked up with an astonished expression at the only other person he ever saw, besides himself, put Gajeel in his place.
"Oh no. Oh no. OH NO! I really hope he didn't notice how nervous I was!" Levy panicked to herself.
Lily was silent as they walked away as he pondered over what just happened. He could feel Levy's heart beating quickly and glanced at the blushing woman's face. Looking back at Gajeel he smirked as he saw a dumbstruck expression on his face as they left him behind.
"Heh. Looks like these two just reminded themselves why they are in this town."
Gajeel stood there glued to the spot as he replayed the scene in his head.
The look of defiance on Levy's face as she challenged him sent a shiver down his spine as he could only gape at her retreating form.
After a few moments Levy's lingering scent hit him and his body felt like it was buzzing.
"It's sweeter than I remember and there was something hidden in there, excitement? Nah that can't be it, probably just her nerves at being cornered by an Alpha."
Gajeel started to follow the two at a distance to gage if he was still welcomed to join them for lunch. His eyebrows stayed furrowed as he continued to think about what was going on with him.
Levy and Lily walked to a quiet café where they were seated outside.
The waiter was a young Alpha that smiled happily at seeing Levy. Instantly acting flirtatious as he pulled out a chair for Levy and lingering a little too close as he handed her a menu.
Gajeel was watching from a distance and felt himself sour at the interaction.
"Tch. Get it together you idiot! Acting like a possessive Alpha for no reason! She's not my Omega." Gajeel growled to himself as he continued to watch.
"Now that you're settled, may I take your orders?"
"Do you mind giving us a few more minutes? We're waiting on one more person."
Gajeel perked up.
"Certainly, I'll be back as soon as you're ready Miss."
Levy then turned her gaze towards Gajeel and huffed impatiently before pointing to the empty chair across from her. Gajeel immediately walked over and sat down wordlessly as the two of them looked everywhere but at each other.
Lily held up a menu to his face to hide his smile at seeing Gajeel act so cautiously around Levy.
Levy's finally let out a heavy sigh that caught Gajeel's attention and they both looked at each other awkwardly.
Levy was about to speak when she was interrupted by Gajeel.
"Sorry."
"Huh?!"
"Tch. I said I'm sorry. Sorry for making you uncomfortable."
"…"
"Heh. I should be the one apologizing for kicking you and storming off."
They both stared at each other for a few moments before breaking with a soft laugh.
"Alright, let bygones be bygones. And I'll even throw in a gift to signify our peace talks." Levy joked as she created a small iron that Gajeel greedily took and devoured.
"Thanks! Now I'm ready to chow down!"
The waiter came back and was take aback at the unexpected sight of a large intimidating Alpha casually sitting with the petite Omega and feline.
Gajeel immediately scowled at seeing him and he unconsciously inched a bit closer to Levy without her noticing.
The waiter was just about to turn back and run but stopped as Levy called him over to his dismay and to Gajeel's distaste.
"We're ready to order!" Levy chirped to the poor young man.
His eyes quickly darted back to Gajeel but steeled his nerves to take their orders and immediately rushed off.
"Hmph. Serves him right for acting like such a love struck fool over the Shrimp." Gajeel thought to himself triumphantly.
Levy was too busy chatting away with the two of them to notice Gajeel's posturing and smiled none the wiser.
"Good grief, these two are unconsciously courting each other and causing mayhem. I hope they realize their chemistry soon… We're running out of time before the Hunt begins."