AN: Chapter 4
Hi everyone! So as a thank you for being so patient with me, I decided to post up one new chapter for all of my current stories! Yay! I would like to apologize for not posting anything in forever… my life has been quite crazy. Work has been the main reason why I stopped writing. During the month of July, it was just 3 out of 6 people working and myself and one other coworker were working literally 7 days in a row the whole month of July… it was not fun at all. And I so badly just wanted to stay home and write but I had to do what I had to do. I finally managed to survive to my week long vacation and decided it was time to update everything! Unfortunately this is a short chapter but it's a start! (For some reason, the page breaker lines aren't showing up so hopefully FF will fix it soon!)
Please excuse any mistakes or something that doesn't make any sense, I wrote this many years ago and I had to go back and edit everything…. Which was a bitch to do because the storyline was so all over the place lol but I think I fixed it up and read over it as I went so hopefully I got everything! Enjoy!
Dragonfly: I promise the later chapters will be more exciting and filled with better interactions between Gajevy!
The king was still in the war room when Levy returned to him. Gajeel was standing behind her when they entered the room, Juvia a step behind the large man. Her father looked past Levy, straight to Gajeel, his expression cautious. "So...?"
"He is not a dragon slayer… he just uses special iron magic, allowing him to change his form into iron weapons. He actually has asked to join the guard as one of my personal body guards. That is his reasoning for returning. He saved me, and it would be my deepest wish for this, father." Levy said.
Gajeel looked down to her. 'I WHAT?' He thought to himself, his crimson eyes rounded. Part of him wanted to shout it out, but he knew what Levy was doing. This was going to be the only way her father would allow him and Juvia to live.
The king thought for a long while in silence as he looked over Gajeel and Juvia. After some time, a cough left the kings throat before speaking. "Well... you did save Levy. I don't entirely trust you… but my daughter does. Therefore, I must trust you." Gajeel scoffed at the king's words. "Although, I have one request of you before you can become part of the royal guard. You must journey with my daughter throughout the land to complete her three trials for her to take the crown and thrown. Do this, keep her safe and return her alive. If you should complete this task, you will become second in command and you will have wealth beyond your imagination. You, my daughter, Rogue, and your companion shall leave in the morning."
Both Levy and Gajeel responded in unison. "WHAT?!" Levy took a step forward.
"Father you made no mention of this before! Why must we leave so early? It was my understanding that I had another month to prepare-" Levy started.
"With that wretched dragon slayer Laxus running around, we need to take extra precautions to keep you safe. I was going to wait a little while longer before sending you out to complete the trials, but now it seems like fate has another plan for you. Levy... you must do this sooner rather than later. Your mother and I aren't as young as we used to be, and we need you to be ready to take your place as the next ruler of the kingdom."
Hazel eyes cast down at her feet as her fists clenched tightly. "I understand."
The king turned his attention back to Gajeel who stood still behind Levy. "So, Gajeel Redfox, do you accept my offer? Or shall I prepare for a hanging?"
Gajeel glanced back at his friend, receiving a simple nod. His head turned back around with a smile that spread wildly across his face. He brought his hands together and cracked his knuckles loudly. "Sounds like fun to me. I can't wait to get started."
The next morning…
The king walked his daughter down the marble stairs in front of the castle, his hands behind his back as he spoke. "I have the servants preparing the horses as we speak. Starting now, you are my daughters personal body guard and I expect you to uphold your end of our bargain, Redfox. I shall have the Captain accompany you three as well. I need someone I know and trust to keep an eye on you."
Gajeel rolled his eyes slightly. 'Great, not only do I have to watch the Shrimp, but now I'm going to be stuck with my brother...'
The king and his daughter stopped just at the end of the marble stairs as Gajeel continued to walk past them to Juvia who was a small distance away near the horses getting ready by the servants. Levy stepped towards her father. "Must I leave right now father? What are the chances of the dragon slayer returning to attack?" The king smiled slightly as his daughter. He reached behind her head and lighted up the hood of her poncho, lightly placing it over her pulled back hair. His hands fell to her shoulder as he looked her over with a smile. As a father, he was proud of his one and only daughter going forth to compete in the trials that await her.
"My dearest Levy... I'm only doing this for your safety. It pains me as well to see you leave so soon...but you must. Your mother and I couldn't be happier as parents… but as rulers of the kingdom… we have a duty as well. We cannot have you linger here any longer so long as we know that Laxus and possibly other dragon slayers are out there looking to over throw us and take control of the kingdom. We need you to stay safe and with these three… I believe they can do just that. Keep you safe." His hand came up to the girl's cheek, rubbing it lightly with his thumb. "But as your father I also fear for you."
Levy smiled as she wrapped her arms around the king, hugging him tightly. "I'll return as fast as I can."
Her father looked up at Gajeel who had his arms across his chest. "Redfox—"
Gajeel walked back over to the king and Levy. He stood behind her, towering over her with his large form. "If it means my life, I will keep her safe. You don't need to keep reminding me of my duty, and you don't need to worry about her safety. So long as I am beside her, nothing will ill will fall upon her." Levy's face grew warm as she blushed at his words.
The older man nodded at Gajeel who then turned and made his way back to the horses he was helping getting ready. Old and tired eyes looked back to his daughter, his hands gripping her shoulders with warning in his voice. "I must warn you Levy, you will have to go through all of these trials alone and they… can be quite dangerous. I don't know what all the trials have in store… the different tribes change the tests with each new leader. So please, be careful."
Levy smiled as she responded. "Don't worry father. I will be. You always seem to forget that I can take care of myself. I'm not just a princess, I'm also a princess that has magic."
The king laughed at her, petting her on her head. "I know. It's just that, you're my little girl. You always will be." Levy hugged her father tight once more before leaving his arms to make her way to the other three and the horses. Hazel eyes looked to Rogue, Gajeel and Juvia as they set their saddle bags on the back of the horses. Everything around the girl seemed to be moving in slow motion as she turned her head to look back at the castle one last time. Her eyes landing on her father last as he stood in silence. She wasn't sure when she was going to be able to return or how long these trials would take… but she knew she was going to be in good hands along her journey.
The hooded girl stopped beside her horse, checking the small saddle bag that was placed onto its back to make sure she had what she needed for the long journey ahead of her. She didn't notice the large, dark haired body guard come up beside her, eyeing what was in her bag. His voice made the girl jump slightly in place.
"Do you really need those books and glasses?" He asked.
Levy shot a glance up to the man. "These books have spells I am practicing and those glasses are my Gale Force glasses… they might come in handy, so I just packed them, ok? I don't know anything about the trials and what is going to happen, so I need to be prepared." With a smirk Gajeel stood up straight.
"Whatever you need, Shrimp. Who am I to judge or say anything?" His crimson orbs looked to the horse then back to the short girl. "Would you like help getting up?"
"My name is Levy, and do you see me wearing a dress?" Levy said with a snap in her tone.
The large man looked Levy over. He wasn't sure what she was wearing underneath the poncho, but he could tell the top she had put on formed into a skirt that went down to her hips. To his disappointment, she was also wearing dark leggings underneath with red boots running up to her knees. He chuckled slightly as he raised a studded brow. "No."
Levy placed her foot into the stirrup and took hold of the saddle horn and cantle with her hands, pulling herself up into the saddle on her own. She smiled as she took hold of the reins and looked down at the man standing next to her still. "See? I'm a big girl and can get up onto a horse myself. Thank you."
Rogue finished packing up his saddle bags and looked over in their direction. "Don't worry princess... Gaje will be nicer by the days end." He smiled at Levy who smiled back. His eyes caught the glimpse of Gajeels' scowl from his nickname for his little brother, making his lips curl up into a smile.
Gajeel made his way over to his horse and mounted up himself, his head turning back to check on the others. Juvia had mounted up the same time Levy did without any issues, Rogue however, was having difficulties. He watched as his brother struggled to get up into the saddle with his injuries still healing. Gajeel waited another minute before asking if Rogue needed any assistance. The captain smiled weakly and waved a hand at his brother, dismissing his concern. His older brother had pride and wasn't going to let a something simple as mounting a horse stop him. Once he finally made it up onto his steed, he let out a long breath. It was apparent his wounds were giving him issues already, but Rogue wasn't about to make it into a big deal. He's always been like that. Gajeel looked to the rest of the group. "Everyone ready to go?" With nods of agreement from Levy and Juvia, Gajeel was first to leave, followed by Levy, Juvia, and Rogue. The king watched as his daughter began to fade in the distance, his heart aching as he watched his child start off on her journey.
It was late into the afternoon as the small company continued the dirt path surrounded by a heavily treed forest around them. They hadn't stopped for anything the whole ride, and only Rogue and Levy had been carrying on a conversation. Gajeel took notice of Levy falling back and letting Juvia move in front of her so she could talk with the captain. Both the dark-haired man and Juvia said nothing as they silently scanned their surroundings, ready for anything to happen. Solid blue eyes caught the larger man glancing back repeatedly towards Levy as he surveyed the woods. She could tell he was on edge the whole time and knew he was stealing glances back at the princess whenever he was able.
"Perhaps, Black Steel, you should simply talk to your friend?" The blue haired woman said softly so that only Gajeel could hear.
"I don't want to get closer to her than I already am. I'm just makin' sure nothing is going to come up from behind us and attack my idiot brother and the shrimp." He tried to make his statement convincing enough that the rain woman would drop the subject. Gajeel knew she could see right through anything he said that wasn't truthful.
"We should find a good place to make camp." Rogue called ahead to Gajeel. He waited a minute for Gajeel to respond but noticed he was being completely ignored. The captain excused himself from Levy and trotted his horse up alongside Gajeels'. He spoke more sternly. "Gajeel I'm being serious. The woods are not safe at night. We should find a place to make camp now. Besides, I'm sure we all are tired from the ride, it would be best for us to take this opportunity before it gets dark and make camp."
Gajeels' eyes darted to his brothers'. "You think I don't know that!? I know what can happen in the woods! I've been sleeping outside for the past eleven years!"
Rogues' eyes narrowed as he snapped back at his younger brother. "Well whose fault is that now? I didn't tell you to run away! You could have stayed with me under our roof!" Rogue argued back.
"Will you two please stop fighting? You two don't need to start bickering now. We have a long journey ahead of us." The blue haired princess pushed her horse forward to get closer to the quarreling brothers. Juvia moved her horse to the back behind Gajeel, allowing Levy to ride up to the other side of the large man. "Rogue is right, we should really make camp somewhere soon." Levy said.
Frustrated crimson orbs snapped in her direction. "And you! Don't think for one second that I'm going to treat you like a spoiled little princess and drop whatever I'm doing to satisfy your needs and wants! I'm only here to protect you. Who's to say I'm not looking for a safe place right now!"
"I'm not a spoiled brat you know!" Levy shouted back. "And you don't need to take your frustrations out on me when I haven't done anything to you this whole time! I never asked you to treat me as a princess, I just want you to treat me as a friend! God Gajeel, you're such an idiot!" The small girl kicked her steed in the sides and galloped down the darkening path, leaving Gajeel and the others speechless for a moment.
Rogue sighed and shook his head as he watched his brother groan and rub his face with his hand. He knew what he did was unfair to Levy, but he couldn't stop his anger from attacking anyone who spoke to him.
"That's some temper you have there, brother. Yelling at the princess like that over nothing. Honestly… what happened to you to make you so cold towards her? you two used to be best friends." Rogue said as he looked at Gajeel disappointedly.
The dark-haired man tried to get his older brother off his case quickly, he didn't want to talk about the subject further. "You think that wasn't something a spoiled brat would do?! She didn't want to hear what I had to say so she ran off ahead..." Gajeel said as he narrowed his eyes in guilt.
"Should someone go after her?" Juvia chimed in.
"I'll go." Rogue said, getting ready to ride ahead. "You two find a place around here to sleep."
Before the captain could motion his horse to go forward, Gajeel grabbed Rogues' reins. "I'll get her back here. You and Rain woman find a place." He let go of the reins and nudged his black steed forward, following the trail Levy had taken.
Rogue sighed at his brother as he rode off into the distance in search of Levy. He looked over at Juvia. "Would you call that a spoiled brat or just frustration?"
Juvia looked at Rogue blankly as they stopped their horses and dismounted. "I would say a young girl confused by her long-lost friend, and troubled with the new obstacles that now stand in her path. My bet is that she is trying to reform the bond they once had as kids, but the other one is proving it difficult."
Rogue unsaddled his horse and took off its bridle, letting the horse free roam and graze. "I hope those two don't fight the whole way throughout this trip."
Juvia unsaddled her horse as well. "I don't think it is what he wants either. While we were together, he would always talk about a good friend back home, and about how his older brother was all he had growing up, that is, until he met her. He would train himself everyday with his master. He wanted to be stronger for the both of you. On our way back, we got word of Laxus and his Thunder Legion heading for your home. That's how we got there in time to help you both." She paused and looked over Rogue's body as she noticed his wincing and heavy breathing. "How are your wounds holding up?"
Rogue tried to put on a smile as he put a hand to his arm, gripping it lightly. "I'll survive. I just wish I could have my younger brother back. The one who would smile at me every time we'd meet. Now it's like I'm staring into a cold, dark, empty shell. He seems to be angry all the time now, or at least seems to have an attitude at every turn. He's so hard to read now." He laughs a bit. "Maybe it's just because I haven't seen him in years."
"Blood ties are the strongest bond anyone has ever known. Give him some time to warm up to you. You can't expect one to change their ways overnight." Juvia said as she started to make camp for them all. Rogue smiled slightly, taking the words Juvia said to heart.
AN: sorry for such a short chapter again, but it's something! I'm hoping to be able to post monthly because now that everyone is quitting at my job… I might have to work some overtime again so not sure when I'll be able to get the next chapter done. Thank you all again for being so patient and for reading and reviewing! You all are the best!