CHAPTER 9

Levy stared up at the two children with at least as much surprise as they were showing her. Black Steel Gajeel was looking after kids?!

Not at all sure how to react, she didn't react in time when the boy snarled darkly at her, flashing a set of fangs that weren't vampiric at all, and ignite his fists on fire, "What'd you do to Gajeel?" He demanded, "You'd better get away from him now!"

"Wait!" She exclaimed hastily, "It's not what you think!"

"Well then what is it?!" The girl behind him demanded furiously, pulling out a couple of talismans that looked vaguely familiar, and Levy nearly groaned at the sight of three more behind them. The eldest of which looked particularly fearsome.

She was saved from having to answer when Gajeel groaned deliriously, and she pressed her wrist to his mouth, "Easy you big lug." She soothed, "You've got more to live for than I realized."

She flinched a little as his fangs fastened around her and sank into her veins. She hoped and prayed that he didn't accidentally drain her dry before he regained his coherency.

It was a hope she didn't have to worry about for long though. Mere moments after he began feeding his eyes popped open. He stared at her in muted wonder as he pressed her wrist closer, shifting his grip as his tongue swept along the sensitive skin, catching any stray drops that fell, and Levy had to repress a shiver at the sensation.

Not long after he pulled away entirely, licking her wrist clean and healing the wound he'd caused, "Why?"

Levy jolted a little at the confused looking rumble and smiled a little, "You needed it."

"I coulda drained you dry." He pointed out and she nodded.

"True." She agreed, "But I felt I could take a chance on your honor."

He snorted and turned to see the children standing there. A tired smirk worked its way over his face, "You brats makin' things difficult?"

"I believe they're trying to protect you from me." Levy smiled and held her hands up, "I promise I have no ill intentions. Gajeel helped me out by taking out the alpha of the werewolf pack here. It seemed the least I could do was make sure he didn't die in the effort."

"Never mind explainin'." Gajeel grunted and stared at them, "Grab me a couple blood packs, an' bring some juice and food."

"You eat?" Levy asked in surprise and was favored with a dry look.

"You just gave blood shrimp." He drawled, "You need t' replenish that or I won't be the only one collapsin'."

"We have some stew in the kitchen." The eldest said and offered Gajeel a bow that confused Levy, "I hope you don't mind Lord Gajeel. I took the liberty after my sister explained the situation."

Gajeel flashed her a grin, "Just Gajeel missy. I ain't a lord anything. And I appreciate it." He glanced between her and Lucy, "I'm guessing everything was explained Miss Strauss?"

"Mira." Mirajane smirked, "And yes it was. Don't worry. I figured out what Lucy was not long after they met Lisanna. When nothing happened I figured she wasn't going to do anything."

She nudged Lisanna, "Why don't you and Lucy go get that food?"

Lisanna nodded as she and Lucy set out to get the supplies Gajeel requested.

Levy blinked at the gathered people and then turned towards Gajeel, "you seem to have quite a number of children under your care." She said in amusement, "A demon, half-demon siblings and then... the blonde little girl, she's a necromancer isn't she?"

Gajeel sat up, giving the light mage a wary look. It was true she had spoken up for the werewolves and even helped him by giving him blood, but he was still going to exercise caution when it came to his fledglings.

The Strauss siblings weren't part of his little coven, but they lived in his territory and harmed no one so a certain level of protection went to them as well.

"Don't worry, it's strange to see so many different kinds of people gathered in one place, but it's unfortunately not completely out of the ordinary," Levy gave Gajeel a faint smile, "I won't tell anyone." She promised.

Levy gave Natsu a curious look, unsure what kind of demon he was. He gave her a bold, and almost rude look by his bland, unflinching stare.

Until Lucy returned and a mischievous smile worked on his face and he snagged the blood bags from his mistress, who complained that he was going to pop them all over the carpet like last time.

He stuck his tongue out at Lucy in response and then flopped down next to Gajeel and made a big show of carefully passing over the pouch.

When Lisanna returned with the stew and drink for Levy, Mirajane smiled and gathered her siblings to her side, "We're going to head back home now. Thank you for taking care of the werewolves Gajeel,ma'am."

She nodded towards Gajeel, but lingered at the door as her eyes fell on Levy.

Gajeel gave her another nod to show it was okay, and the Strauss siblings left without another word on the subject. They just gave a cheerful goodbye.

Lucy planted herself territorially on Gajeel's otherside so the vampire found himself wedged between the two children who were both staring Levy down.

"What kinda mage are ya anyway shrimp?" Gajeel decided to ask.

"Oh!" Levy smiled at him, "I'm a light aligned witch that specializes in script and language!"

Natsu let out a soft hiss of displeasure of the admittance, his eyes shooting worryingly to Lucy. The last witch from a light guild they ran into was Karen Lilica and she had been cruel to Lucy.

Granted Bob was kind, but Natsu had learned to be wary around light guild members. They didn't tend to be very flexible in regards to what they liked.

Levy met the boys eyes and sipped at her stew, a small smile curling over her lips, "You don't like light guild members I take it? Being a demon, a vampire and a necromancer, I really don't blame you."

"I promise I'm not here to hurt you though," Levy smiled and took a sip of the juice, but could tell she wasn't going to get anywhere with the stubborn children.

"I know that," Gajeel grabbed Natsu in a rough hold and laughed, giving the little demon a shake as he squirmed and protested the treatment, "Just ignore the runt. He's trying to be all rough and scary."

"I'm trying to protect you and Lucy, get off stupid metal freak!" Natsu protested hotly and Levy laughed at the exchange.

"It's okay Gajeel, I appreciate the food and drink, but you should really focus on recovering," Levy snapped her fingertips, a sparkle of her magic appearing between her digits and coalescing into a small square of paper.

She set it down on their coffee table and stood up, "If you need something a little fresher than one of those bags, give me a call."

"I'll still be in the area for a while," Levy smiled at Gajeel and headed to the door, "Bye squirts."

With that, Levy departed from the apartment, leaving Gajeel alone with two squirming kids and the scent of Levy and her blood still lingering in the air behind her.

-::-

Lucy watched Gajeel twirling the card Levy had given him around again and rolled her eyes at him, "Why don't you just call her?"

Gajeel blinked a little and stared at where she was slapping Natsu away from her pancakes, "What?"

"Call her up." She huffed like it was the most obvious thing in the world and he was being dense, "You obviously like her. So give her a call already."

Gajeel raised an eyebrow and wondered idly if his goddaughter had started feeling some of the side effects of being a necromancer, or if it was just her being thirteen.

"What makes ya think I like her?" He challenged with a smirk, settling heavily on his elbows to stare at her, and this time caught her eye roll.

"You mean aside from the fact you keep twirling that card of hers around?" She asked as she took a bite, "You haven't been hunting since you tasted her blood. You just keep eating that donated stuff and you normally hate that."

Gajeel had to concede she had a point. He just wasn't interested in hunting. Admittedly he hadn't really been up to hunting much. It had taken a couple of days of rest and feeding for him to flush even most of the silver from his system, but that had been three days ago.

"I thought you'd be encouraging me to get as far away from her as possible." He tried and was rewarded with twin snorts of derision as Natsu consoled his failure to steal Lucy's pancakes by swiping the last of the bacon.

"As if you couldn't take her." Natsu scoffed, "Besides, if she was gonna tattle to her guild she would've done it by now."

Gajeel rolled his eyes at that and made a mental note to cover strategy in more depth, "Yeah, yeah runts. I'll think about it. In the meantime, scat. You're gonna be late."

The reminder prompted them to devour the rest of their food and rush to grab their things. Mirajane had generously offered to take the youngsters to the zoo for their homeschool lessons and supervise a sleepover afterwards, something he would have to thank her for. The kids had been plastered to his sides for the last week, making sure he didn't have so much as an atom of silver in his body, and as much as he loved them he was feeling a little smothered.

Especially since he had some business to take care of.

He glanced at the card and resolutely tucked it away in a pocket. He didn't have time to think about Levy right now. He had something even stickier, and unprecedented, to deal with.

He grabbed his sunglasses and shrugged on his jacket before making his way to the, relatively, neutral café he'd been asked to go to. He glanced around a moment before prowling over to the highly nervous pair of werewolves sitting there.

"Thank you for coming." Alzack greeted in a reasonably even tone given his instincts were probably screaming at him to either fight or run like hell, "We were hoping you would."

"Your note was too intriguing not to." Gajeel grunted, "Ain't every day a werewolf, much less a mated pair, petitions to live in vampire territory."

"It's not every day a vampire elder doesn't kill a werewolf on sight." Alzack countered.

Gajeel inclined his head, "Fair point." He agreed, "So how come you wanna settle here?"

The pair glanced warily at each other before Bisca sighed, "We ain't real welcome in pack circles right now." She replied softly, "I was born wolf so I know better'n Alzack does what turning your back on your pack means. Even though it was the right choice, and the elders absolved us of wrongdoing, a lot of the other cubs don't view it that way."

Alzack met Gajeel's eyes steadily, "And even if they did, I can't bring myself to follow something I can't respect. And I have very little respect for the packs as a whole."

"You could always start your own up." Gajeel pointed out, "Like you were talkin' about at the warehouse."

Alzack nodded, "We could yes." He agreed, "But I'm freshly turned and Bisca's only just hit adulthood by werewolf standards. We have no name, no resources, nothing. If we venture out on our own the way things are..."

Gajeel nodded, seeing the problem, "You ain't got a prayer of carvin' your own territory out young as you are, so you need to find an alpha you can respect, but there ain't one around." He cocked his head, "You know I won't make any kind of alpha for you."

Alzack nodded, "We're aware. Even now my instincts are howling that you're more likely to drain us dry than help us, but you had more mercy in you than our old Alpha did. If I was going to take my chances anywhere, it would be here under your eye than out there."

Gajeel blew a breath through his fangs and sighed, "You turn anyone outside of a life or death emergency and I'll kill you." He told them firmly, "I don't want a bunch of furballs runnin' around Magnolia. Your own fledglings are fine. Until you learn to control yourselves during the moon you'll be confined to an area outside of town. I own some property out that way with a house. You can fix it up. I'll talk to that script mage about settin' up a barrier for ya so you don't get out when you're changed."

He eyed them beadily, "And absolutely no one joins your little pack without my say so. In exchange, you help defend my territory when I'm not here. That includes my fledglings and the family of half demons living here. Otherwise you do whatever the hell you want. Agreed?"

Alzack nodded speechlessly, not having really expected this insane idea to work. Let alone work so spectacularly. The restrictions were perfectly reasonable, and he hadn't missed the underlying threat if they harmed anyone on the vampire's protection list he'd kill them. It seemed like a small price to pay for what they were getting.

Gajeel was a better alpha than he thought.

Bisca grabbed at Alzack's hands, a happy smile lighting her face, "Yes! Yes of course. Thank you Black Steel, this is more than we could have hoped for."

"Please give our regards to the script mage who helped us, she was very kind and gave us time to escape. It's good to hear she also survived the encounter," The she-wolf smiled in relief.

Gajeel nodded, pleased to have reached an easy and reasonable agreement with the wolves. He would of course have to keep an eye on them to make sure his rules were being abided, but he would also have to make sure that this would work for them all long term.

Ignoring the voice that sounded so much like Lucy, Gajeel couldn't help but note that this gave him the perfect excuse to call Levy.

He chatted with the wolves for a bit longer before they outlined a contract they both agreed on. Soon after the couple left and Gajeel remained sitting alone with his thoughts churning.

His fangs were aching, wanting desperately to sink into the soft flesh of a tender throat.

He hadn't been entirely truthful with Lucy this morning. Yes, he didn't have a need to hunt, but that still meant his body was used to the hunt. And there was a target it wanted very badly despite the lack of hunger.

Levy's blood had been so delightful and satisfying, Gajeel had wanted to taste just a little more of her. That and her sweet smile..? Goodness it was marvelous.

Furthermore Levy was actually extremely fun and clever. She was such a sharp girl and unflappable under pressure, Gajeel could think of no one better to handle his fledglings than her.

Before he realized what he was doing, he was pulling out that small slip of paper and jabbing in the numbers on his phone. It was up against his ear and ringing, and as his brain finally caught up to his actions Gajeel began to lose confidence.

-::-

Levy looked up from her book as her phone rang, and blinked curiously at the unknown caller ID before picking it up with a slightly wary, "Hello?"

She was braced to hang up immediately if it was another telemarketer interrupting her reading time, possibly after casting a mild hex on them to always have an itchy butt when they called her. However, what greeted her wasn't a falsely cheerful sales pitch. Instead it was near silence.

Confused since she could clearly hear people in the background and the sounds of dishes clattering and birds singing she frowned a little, "Hello?" She said a little more forcefully, "Who is this?"

"Er…" A gravely voice she immediately recognized grunted uncertainly, and a broad smile replaced Levy's small frown.

"Gajeel?" She beamed, "How are you feeling?"

"Erm…" Gajeel fumbled on the other end, "I'm fine." He managed at last, sounding a little irritated, but Levy doubted that was aimed at her.

She giggled a little at how utterly adorable his awkwardness on the phone was and settled back into her chair, "So what has you calling me up?" She prodded, "Need a little more blood or something?"

"Yeah." He replied and she couldn't quite stifle her snickers as he muttered a variety of swears in multiple languages, "Are you laughing at me shrimp?" He demanded and she lost the battle against her laughter.

"Yep!" She replied cheerfully, "I never would've imagined a vampire elder could be so awkward on the phone. Though I liked your swearing. I didn't know some of those."

She grinned at the snort on the other side, "Alright, ya caught me shrimp. I ain't real good at this part. I do wanna see you again though. And not just for your blood."

Levy raised an eyebrow, intrigued by that, and tried to ignore her excited heart, "Oh? What else did you have in mind?"

"Aside from the fact I got that mated pair of werewolves livin' in my territory now?" He drawled, causing her to nearly drop her phone in shock, "I wanted to take you out. Partly as a thank you, but mostly 'cause I wanted to see you again." She could almost hear his smile, "You're a pert little pain in the ass, but I like that in a woman."

Levy couldn't help but hide a grin at the way he grudgingly admitted to liking her a little. She bit her bottom lip, considering what he was asking of her and couldn't quite smother her soft giggle.

"What's so funny?" he asked, sounding petulant and just a little grumpy over the phone. Levy smiled, not wanting him to think she was laughing at him when he reached out to her. No doubt it was already very difficult for him to do that on his own.

"Nothing, it's just I wouldn't have expected you to reach out to me," she admitted, "But I'm glad. I was hoping you would."

"You were?" Gajeel's voice asked haltingly, and Levy closed her book, her heart thumping with nerves she couldn't quite place.

She and a vampire? Was it something that could be done?

She wondered what could actually stop them if they pursued what he was quietly dropping the hints for. It wasn't the end of the world if she went on a date with a vampire.

Gajeel was surly, but he seemed nice and Levy had seen a softer side of him when he spoke to his fledglings. He wasn't entirely endearing all the time, but she knew she was enough of a pain in his butt that if he wasn't interested then she wouldn't have gotten a call back from him.

Regardless, she was curious about the elder vampire who held his own kind at arms length and hated to play games of supernatural politics.

She could respect a vampire that was open enough to allow werewolves into his home and share his land when they had no where to go.

"Of course, you're pretty interesting," Levy hummed, "After all not many vampires are dumb enough to bite down an entire chunk of silver to scrape by a win. It was kind of brave the lengths you go to protect your charges."

Gajeel grunted on the other line, and Levy wasn't sure if he was embarrassed or offended. She smiled, "so where shall I meet you?" She asked, "You've promised some werewolves a cushy little nest riiight?"

"Yeah." Gajeel replied, a hint of relief coloring his voice, "You know where the old windmill in town is? The one by the forest?"

"You set them up in a windmill?" Levy asked in surprise.

"Heh. Ain't much of a windmill anymore. I converted it about fifty years ago. It needs some repair, but it's still in decent enough shape."

Levy smiled, "I'm sure it's lovely." She replied, deciding not to tease him about being a self-admitted master craftsman for now, and glanced at the time, "I can be there in half an hour."

"Perfect." He rumbled, "Mira's got the runts today and tomorrow so I'm free."

He paused just long enough for that to sink in, "See ya soon shrimp."

Levy stared at her phone in shock, a shiver of excitement coursing through her at the implications. Damn the man! He was trying to wind her up! No doubt in retaliation for her earlier comment. But she would be lying if she said she wasn't interested in what he was offering.

She shook her head and got up to get ready. One step at a time. First she'd see if she actually liked him beyond the vampiric attraction. If she did... well... that was between them and no one else.

She grinned at the idea as she double checked she was presentable enough for a potential date, grabbed her keys, and headed out. She tried very hard not to think about the direction her afternoon and evening might go in.

She wasn't very successful.

-::-

Gajeel refused to admit he was nervous. Nerves wasn't something he did. He could count the number of times he was anxious on one hand, and he didn't want to say this was one of them.

He was standing outside of the windmill, staring up at the bones of the building he had renovated long ago. It was a quaint little building, with moss and vines crawling up the walls. One of the first territories he had built and it was some of his best work.

Levy would be arriving soon, and Gajeel was excited to see the tasty little witch again. She was clever and that sharp tongue of hers made him look forward to her arrival all the more.

Gajeel didn't know what the evening and night held for him, but judging by their earlier conversation, there seemed to stand a good chance of something a little warmer between himself and the witch.

Luckily he didn't have to wait long and listen to his thoughts spiraling out of control when Levy arrived. She jogged up to him, her whole arm waving over her head as she ran up beside the windmill.

"Ya made it," Gajeel noted, his pleasure over her quick appearance making itself known in his eyes. He gave her a warm look despite how his muscular arms and broad shoulders cut a rather intimidating light over him.

Levy didn't seem bothered by it, instead smiling up at the handsome vampire.

"Of course I did, where else would I go?" she teased. "Did you miss me already?"

Gajeel felt heat start to rise in his cheeks, but he flashed her a smirk, refusing to be outdone, "Mebbe." He allowed and leaned close to her, "What would you do if I did?" He purred seductively, "Hm?"

He pulled back as his nose informed him that they were no longer alone and looked up to see Alzack and Bisca trotting up behind Levy.

"Miss Levy!" Bisca exclaimed happily, "I'm glad ta see Gajeel got ahold of ya!" She beamed happily, "Can ya believe he's letting us stay here?!"

"It was certainly a surprise to me." Levy smiled, "I'm happy for you all though. Maybe others will start to follow your example..."

"That ain't likely." Gajeel snorted, crossing his arms, "I'm only allowin' it because they showed more sense than the rest of their old pack." He glanced at Alzack, and Levy had to wonder just what his story was that he resonated so strongly with the recently turned werewolf.

She didn't ask though as Alzack stepped forward, looking around their new home curiously, "This is going to be our new home?" He asked, not quite warily, but with enough uncertainty Gajeel flashed him a toothy grin.

"Lemme show ya around." He replied and led them over to the building, "I bought her off the old miller a while back after business died off and he couldn't keep the place up." He patted the side, "Took me a while, but I fixed 'er up real nice."

He gave them a tour of the property, part of him quite pleased that the old place would see some use finally. He'd planned on moving into it but one thing had led to another and it was more practical for him and the brats to live at his townhouse in town instead. As much as Natsu probably could've used the space to run around, Lucy needed the human contact being in town brought.

"This is amazing." Alzack commented with wide eyes as he took in the converted home. It was cozy without being crowded, and had more than enough space for their family to grow, "I thought you said it needed fixing up?"

Gajeel shrugged, "There's some chores left to do." He replied, "I was aiming to make this place self-sufficient, but never got to it. It'll be on you to do the garden and landscaping and keep the place up. If you don't know how to do somethin' I'll teach you, but I expect you to take good care of this place."

Alzack relaxed and smiled, "That's more than acceptable." He agreed, "Would you object if Bisca and I set up a shooting range?" He ducked his head a little submissively at Gajeel's raised eyebrow, "We're both sharpshooters." He explained.

"He's more than that." Bisca bragged, "Honey here was aiming for the championship when him an' his sire collided." She shrugged a bit, "I just like shootin', and I've got an eye for it."

Gajeel hummed contemplatively and considered the pair thoughtfully. They'd really stuck their necks out for this, and hadn't objected to a single one of his conditions yet. Maybe it was time to repay the trust a little? He was leery of it, a headshot still had the potential to be fatal to him, and four hundred years of caution had kept him alive so far.

But these were good fledglings. They weren't like most of their attack first and ask questions later kin.

He was still torn when Levy stepped up with a small, knowing, smile, "Perhaps I can help ease your mind?" She suggested softly and pulled out a magic pen, "A personal barrier to protect you from stray shots until you three get to know each other better?"

Alzack and Bisca's eyes both widened, "I... we would never!" He spluttered in horror, "He's helping us out so much!"

Levy nodded with a smile, "Yes, but don't forget he's an Elder." She chided gently, "You don't get to be a vampire elder without being cautious of everything. And werewolves and vampires have been in a low key war for centuries. It's a perfectly natural thought for him to have."

The pair looked at each other and Alzack's shoulders drooped, "Of course you're right. I didn't think of that. Real trust will take time."

"It ain't nothing against you." Gajeel told the fledglings, and looked at Levy, "But it'd ease my mind if you can do that."

"Easily!" Levy agreed and took his wrist. In moments a purple-black ribbon of script curled around his wrist and vanished, "There. It'll take a little time to charge, but once it does it will shield you against one shot a day."

Gajeel nodded, pleased with the gift, "You can set up your range." He told the pair, "Now, let's get this place warded so you can settle in."

The warding and preparations for the wolves new house was a process that took a surprisingly short amount of time. Levy had brought many of the preparations with her so there wasn't a need to wait for them to settle or take shape.

Gajeel had also expedited the process because the new home looked as if it were already fully stocked for the wolves. For a man who insisted he was fine without a coven, he certainly made sure his tenants would have all that they needed.

So by the time they were done, they still had a large portion of the day left to get to know one another. Levy was hoping to take advantage of that.

It was common knowledge that vampires held a natural allure. Whether it was the velvety darkness of their magic or to lure their prey in, Levy was curious to find out what Gajeel was like under all that.

Because what she had seen so far she found she rather liked.

Gajeel found himself standing next to Levy, glancing down at the witch who was side eyeing him real hard.

Her smile brightened on him and to his surprise she reached out boldly and collected his wrist in her hands. They were tiny compared to his, and he couldn't help but marvel a little at the delicate digits curling against his skin. They were so small compared to his, and it sent an irrational surge of protective instincts surging through him.

"Trust is a curious thing," Levy commented, her lips curling up, "and an important thing, especially to a vampire as old as you are."

"So?" He grunted, not seeing where her point was in the observation.

Levy's smile seemed to widen and she looked up at him through long lashes that made something in his chest tighten. Her smile was becoming sharper around the corners and that sent an inquisitive flag up.

"You barely know me but you trust that I'll cast a protective ward on you to shield a bullet from a sharpshooting werewolf," Levy pointed out with a startling clarity that left Gajeel's bottom jaw dropping just slightly open.

Because that was right.

And under normal circumstances, it wasn't a risk an Elder would have taken. Especially not concerning a light guild member and a pair of werewolves.

Except these weren't normal circumstances, and he very well knew it.

He chuckled a little and crossed his arms as he looked out over the view of Magnolia, "Normally you'd be right." He conceded and looked down at her, "But this ain't normal."

Levy raised an eyebrow at that, "How so?"

He returned the gesture, "Just how many white mages you think would parley with a bunch o' mangy furballs instead of just wadin' in flinging silver around without any regard to guilt or innocence?" He asked her, a bit more acidly than he meant, but white mages had often been as much of a thorn in his side as werewolves and covens.

He looked back out over the town, "But you didn't do that. You gave 'em a chance. Even if only these two took it, you still offered it to everyone. I haven't seen that kind of consideration since Anna Heartfilia saved my hide when I was turned."

Levy's jaw dropped. She'd heard of Anna Heartfilia. Everyone had. Even among white magic circles she was a legend. The only necromancer in history who sacrificed herself for the sake of others. She'd had no idea Gajeel had actually known her though. Her eyes widened as the realizations slammed into her one after another. Vampires were drawn to covens the way wolves were to packs. Even if Gajeel had hated his sire it should've been impossible for him to resist the lure. But he had. He had because he'd formed his own coven immediately after he was turned.

One that had included Anna.

She felt so stupid. No wonder he was reputed to be close to the Heartfilia family. A family who had just been wiped out save for their young daughter. A daughter he was now raising. Gajeel hadn't avoided covens at all! His had simply been wiped out, but with a legacy to cling to he'd never lost his way or sought to form another one.

And if her own behavior had reminded him so strongly of Anna that he would make the connection... well that would explain much. Not all of it perhaps, but a lot.

She blinked to find him watching her again, his expression inscrutable, and smiled up at him, "I'm honored you think so highly of me." She told him sincerely, "I've never believed that things are even half as black and white as some would have us believe."

"Unique stance for someone in a light guild," Gajeel noted, not releasing her from his steady gaze. Levy didn't look bothered by it though, her attention turning instead towards the city.

"I suppose it is," Levy admitted, "my guild and team don't really understand why I do that. It's gotten me in trouble more than once."

"Both with the guild, and my jobs," Levy clarified at his questioning glance, "but I think it's worth it in the long run. I was born into my magic, and I could have just as easily been born into a different kind."

"One day I might even be bitten by a werewolf myself, or a vampire," Levy said easily, "Its likely to happen considering what My job is. And if it does, I hope that I'd run into a hunter that would be willing to give me a chance to prove myself."

"I would hope no one wanted to kill me just because of what I am," Levy sighed, the sound so soft that Gajeel could barely hear the weight behind it.

He understood the gravity of her fears. After all, he lived it. Once upon a time he had been a metallurgist, one that dealt in magical metals constructed into weapons that were often used against vampires and werewolves.

He hadn't been a part of a guild really then, although he supposed at the time he could have been considered light aligned.

He sold his wares and lived his life, until the day he was turned and the very weapons he had constructed were often pointed at him.

If it weren't for Anna and the others, Gajeel was certain he wouldn't have survived past his fledgling stages.

"Everyone has their own story right?" Levy stepped to the side and began to walk down the trail, Gajeel following after, "I love stories."

"That so?" Gajeel asked, cocking his head towards her and slipping off his sunglasses as the sun began to sink over the trees finally.

"And what's your story shrimp?" He asked.

Levy flashed him a wicked grin that spelled trouble, "Maybe I'll tell you on our second date." She eyed him challengingly, "Assuming you can impress me on our first one."

A sharp, approving, grin curled around his lips at the challenge, "Careful shrimp... you're playing with fire. I might burn ya."

She lifted her chin, her grin shifting into a smirk, "I'm a big girl Gajeel. And I don't think burning me is on your mind."

Gajeel burst into laughter at that and leaned over, "Not yet." He agreed and held out his hand, "Wouldn't be proper."

Levy's heart fluttered at the promise of 'not yet' and she slipped her hand into his, curious what a four hundred year old vampire in a courting mood would come up with.