Chapter 6

The new sun shone calmly over the silent beach. Gajeel rested his head against the sand, letting the soothing waves wash over his tail. The sky turned a rainbowfish of color from the rising sun, the breeze fresh and clear. Pieces of wood and debris littered the beach surrounding them, the only testament to the raging storm that consumed the sky mere hours before.

With a low moan Gajeel adjusted his aching tail and brushed a strand of hair from Le-vee's cheek with the back of his hand. His palms ached, the pieces of wood embedded into his skin pulling with every movement. He bit his lip and ignored the pain, more concerned at the coldness still lingering on his human's skin.

The storm pulled them from the familiar patch of ocean and Gajeel struggled to find a stretch of land large enough to let his human rest comfortably. By the time he found the large beach and pulled her onto the dry sand, his human's lips had taken on the same color of her hair and her every breath rattled and rasped. Nothing like the healthy glow and laughter from the sundown before.

A wave washed up the steep sand dune where he lay, covering his tail with much needed water. Gajeel placed a hand on Le-vee's leg and carefully pushed it away from the rising tide. Her strange coverings only just became dry and while the water was comfortable to him, warm even, he didn't want to risk his human being exposed anymore than she suffered. Eyeing the water a final time, Gajeel took her hand in his and rubbed her skin, grateful that the rising sun would soon warm the sands beneath them.

The sun continued its slow ascent over the ocean, but his human remained deathly still.

"Please...please wake up," he whispered, tracing her smooth ear with his fingers. He took a handful of warm sand and held it against her cold cheek.

Her eyes fluttered restlessly behind her closed lids. Gajeel brushed off the grains of sand, wincing when a piece of wood pulled in his skin, but continued to stroke her face and watch her like a hawkfish. Her chest heaved and her eyes flew open.

Gajeel startled, rising to a sitting position as she tilted to the side and retched into the sand. Gajeel's hands flailed for a moment before he gently patted her back. Her coughing slowly eased and he hesitantly pushed her shoulders to lay her on her back onto the sand.

She tilted her head, blue hair falling into her face. He tucked it behind her ear, fingers lingering to trace the edge. She took several deep breaths as the two of them simply stared at one another. She seemed to watch his every movement and Gajeel found himself mesmerized by her deep, brown eyes. He trailed the back of his fingers against her cheek, tracing the rising color finally blooming on her skin. The silence lengthened and Gajeel cleared his throat, mouth moving to copy the typical human greeting.

"Hullo," he said softly, allowing all the relief of seeing her awake show in his smile.

The human blinked and the pink in her cheeks darkened. "Hello. Thank…"

Her words cut off as another cough racked through her body. Gajeel shifted on the sand and lifted her by the shoulders. He rubbed her back and after a moment her coughing ceased. She cleared her throat and looked back at him.

"Thank you. I was in a bad spot back there."

Gajeel swallowed, still rubbing her back. He knew the proper response to her first statement. Wendy practiced with him many times, but having an actual human stare at him with the same wide-eyed wonder he felt made everything he studied float from his mind. He settled for a small smile and a nod of his head. He scratched his ear, his hand freezing when he felt the thin fins. He glanced at his human and watched her draw her legs up. She coughed again, but went back to staring at him as soon as her breathing became clear. Gajeel swallowed and scratched his arm.

I hope she isn't afraid of me.

It had been dark when she first met him. He watched her study his tail, but had she seen the fins on his arms? His sharp teeth that were much different than hers? He saw her eyes dart around his face and to his tail and he curled it around himself. He picked out the wood in his hands, mind sorting through all the lessons Wendy had taught him.

The human placed her hands on the sand and scooted closer. "No really, thank you for saving me."

Oh! Good, I know those words…

Gajeel licked his lips and took a deep breath. "Are you be…" his mouth worked around several words and he scrunched his eyes. "Living? Are you be living?"

Wait, no...that doesn't sound right...what was it again?'

The human tilted her head, grains of sand falling from her hair. "Do you mean…'are you alright?'"

Her words were slow and tilted strangely, but he easily recognized the phrase she used. He nodded quickly, the tightness in his chest easing.

"Yes! Are you be…" he shook his head, "Are you alright? No hurting?" He looked up and down her small body, using the new sun to spot any injuries he might have missed during the sundown.

His human laughed, a high, bubbly sound that reminded him of a young dolphin. "I'm alright. My chest just hurts a bit," she placed a hand over her heart and rubbed, "but it's getting better now that I am breathing easier."

It was more human words than he had ever heard at once, but her clear, slow way of speaking allowed him to understand each one. Her gestures made it easy for him to follow the unfamiliar conversation, but responding was a completely different matter.

"What was your name again?"

His internal struggle came to a bubbling halt.

Ok, that one's easy.

"My name be Gajeel." He said quickly, trying to make up for his hesitation earlier.

"Gajeel," she repeated with a wide smile that took his breath away.

It wasn't quite right. She somehow missed the growl in the middle, but hearing his name come from the voice of a beautiful human made his face feel strangely warm.

"What...what be your name? Again?" He asked, clearing his throat.

"My name is Levy." She answered.

He tilted his head at the slight emphasis she put on her words. "Is? Ah...my name is Gajeel?"

"Yes, perfect!" Levy nodded against her folded legs and gave him another blinding smile.

He smiled in return, not even caring about his sharp teeth.

It's so much easier learning to speak human from an actual human!

"Where do you live?" Levy wrapped her arms around the part of her legs that bent, her hands dangling to the appendages at the end. Gajeel scratched his head, looking to the ocean.

"I be living...far...below." His brow furrowed as he pointed at the deep blue ocean. "There...far below there. Me thinking."

"That's amazing! I've always wanted to meet-" Her voice grew stronger and excitement lit her eyes. More words came, faster than before. Gajeel stared at Levy's mouth, trying to catch any of the words she used, but they didn't seem to be slowing.

Gajeel chuckled, letting his human chatter away. Her hand moved to her head and Gajeel stared at her legs, marveling at the way they were bent. He reached out a hand and gently poked the bent part of her leg.

It was hard beneath his finger and seemed to move in the same way as the bend in his arm, but smoother and more round. He placed his palm on the bend and moved her leg gently to the side. It wobbled and his lips twitched, marveling at the way it moved right above the bottom appendage. Levy's words slowed and finally came to a halt. Gajeel jerked his hand away and folded them next to his tail. He risked a glance to Levy's face, wondering if he had somehow offended her.

She stared at him, the tips of her mouth lifting. "You've never seen legs before?"

Gajeel blinked and looked at her mouth. Her words were...somewhat familiar. Levy bit her lip and made a surprised noise in the back of her throat.

"Oh! Um...have you seen," she pointed to her eyes, then her legs. "legs before?"

He still didn't know what this before was, but he finally understood her other words. He shook his head and poked the bent part of her leg again. She giggled and gently moved his hand away. Jerking his head up, he saw Levy smiling at him and holding up a finger.

"Knee…" she said, lowering her legs and pointing to the part that bent.

"Neet."

Levy shook her head and slowly moved her mouth to say the word again. He copied her mouth movements, smiling to himself when he finally said it right. They moved lower down her leg, Levy pointing and saying the different parts.

It was more complicated than he imagined. A shin was different from the calf, which he also was fairly certain Wendy said was a type of animal. Ankle made his tongue tumble and twist in his mouth, but he was relieved to finally learn the word foot.

Although why humans need two different words when talking about one or two of them is beyond me.

When they moved on to her toes, Gajeel couldn't help but think they were the cutest things he had ever seen. So short and fat and tipped with a similar type of nail as her fingers. He hadn't seen them the previous sundown, but if he remembered correctly her entire foot had been covered in a black foot-covering. He picked up her foot and tilted it in front of his face, listening to Levy describe the difference between her big toe and little toe.

Easy enough to remember.

Gajeel smiled to himself and placed her foot on his tail. He wiggled her middle toe with a finger and startled when her leg jerked. His eyes shot to her and Levy cleared her throat, scratching a red ear. With a mental shrug, Gajeel resumed his study of her toes and continued to wiggle them between his fingers, fascinated at the way they bent.

Her leg jerked again and she barked a quick laugh before clamping a hand over her mouth. She stared at him wide-eyed and Gajeel felt his mouth pull into a feral grin.

"Gihee," Gajeel smirked at her, laughing harder when she glared at him.

"No, don't you even think about it, you big oaf. I'll have you know that-"

Ah well, too bad I can't understand what she's sayin' when she talks that fast.

He pretended to nod thoughtfully at her tirade and brushed his fingers on the bottom of her foot. Her angry words choked off in a strangled laugh. Elated at his new discovery, Gajeel pinned her leg under his arm and continued to wiggle her toes and touch the bottom of her foot while she thrashed in vain in the sand, her words hardly understandable between her laughter.

"No! Stop it, you dummy! It tickles! Would you let go!"

She leaned forward, shoulders shaking with laughter, and weakly pushed on his arm. Her fingers grazed his fins, sending a shiver up his spine. They both froze and slowly turned to stare at each other.

A strange squeak came from Levy's mouth. Her hands jerked back to her lap and she looked down, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. She glanced at his arm again before staring at the sand. Gajeel dropped her leg with a small sigh.

Well, she did let me touch her legs...it's only fair.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to touch your...fins? I didn't mean to-"

Gajeel placed a finger against her lips and gave her a grin. As gently as he could, he picked up her hand and placed it on his lower arm where his narrow fins started. She looked at him from beneath her tangled hair and he ran his fingers from the thin fins near his wrists to the thicker ones directly under his shoulders. He nodded to her and jerked his chin to his arm.

"Can touch. No mad."

She bit her lip, which did nothing to hide her wide smile, and scooted forward in the sand. A wave washed up, covering his tail where he sat. Levy's foots...feet...lay in the water, but her eyes remained intent on his arm as she gently trailed her fingers along the light gray fins.

Gajeel cleared his throat, resisting the urge to squirm as Levy's fingers tickled his skin. "Good for…"

He wasn't sure of the human word, so he moved his arms in what he hoped looked like swimming. Levy's mouth dropped into an 'o' shape, her attention straying to his ears.

"These ones too?" His shoulders hunched as she touched the fins along the edges of his ears. Gajeel nodded his head, scratching an itch her fingers left behind.

"What about this one?"

Something cold and tingly touched his back, as if a dozen, tiny crabs climbed up and down his skin. Gajeel yelped and twisted in the sand, scratching furiously at his back fin. His tail flung sand into the air and he turned, a human apology on his lips. His eyes froze on Levy, the gleam in her turning on alarm whistles in his mind.

"Did that...tickle?" She asked, moving slowly toward his back.

Gajeel swallowed, not understanding what she said but body tensing at her predatory look.

At last, he was able to use the easiest word in the human language. "...no."

"Oh, but I think it did." Levy chuckled, her eyes gleaming as brightly as her smile.

Her body lurched forward, but Gajeel was ready. Pushing backwards with his hands, he entered the rising surf, making sure to keep his tail between him and the scheming human. It took her a few precious seconds to get her feet under her in the loose sand and by the time she splashed into the water, he was already waist-deep in the waves. Water splashed up his neck and entered his mouth, cooling off his sun-warmed skin. Levy paused, water up to her knees, and placed her hands on her sides.

Gajeel raised his chin, glaring at his human. "It no...tickle."

"Then why are you swimming away, huh?"

She used her foot to splash water on him and rushed deeper into the waves. With a hearty laugh, he launched backwards, flicking his tail fins and drenching her in water. They moved deeper and deeper into the waves, until Levy's legs were completely covered and Gajeel finally had enough room to swim correctly. He looped around Levy, splashing her with his tail and ducking under the waves when she leaned forward to aim at him.

"Hey, no fair!"

He wasn't sure what the human phrase meant, but it must have been a good thing if Levy's loud laughter was any indication. Eventually Levy resorted to throwing wet sand, which sank in the water and coated his hair. Slowly twisting his body to face Levy, he lowered his head into the water until only his eyes were visible above the surface. He gave a low growl, flashing his teeth in a wide smile. Levy raised her hands.

"Now hold on, I'm sorry-" Her human phrases of apology were interrupted by bouts of laughter.

Gajeel snorted and grinned, slowly moving his tail to propel him forward. "You no sorry."

Levy nodded her head, sloshing backward in the deep water. "Yes, yes I am. Truly sorry, soooo very sorry."

Quicker than he expected from her, Levy reached under the water and threw another handful of sand in his direction. It landed with a soft plop directly in front of him. With a squeal, Levy turned and tried to run for the shore, Gajeel right on her tail. A wave washed over his face and knocked into Levy. She fell forward, head completely covered in water. The wave cleared and Levy sat up, flinging wet hair from her face and sputtering loudly. Gajeel hurried to her side, another wave crashing over them.

Blinking against the water to clear the bubbles from his vision, Gajeel quickly grabbed Levy under the arms and pulled her up to the surface. She coughed heavily, and wrapped her arms around his neck, sea water dripping from her face.

"No breathe," he said, pushing the hair from her eyes.

He waited until he heard her deep inhale before pulling the both of them under the waves. Kicking his tail to position them closer to the sandy bottom, Gajeel used one arm to push against the sand. He kicked heavily, fighting against the current from the waves.

Just need to get to deeper water, where it's calmer.

A heavy tap on his shoulder drew his attention. With a beat of his tail, he resurfaced, wincing slightly at Levy's screech near his ear.

"Wait, where are we...gah," Levy coughed and sputtered, a wave washing over their heads.

Gajeel chuckled, adjusting her hold. "I tell you...no breathe."

"Yeah, ok…" Levy glared at him before taking another deep breath.

Ignoring the adorable way her cheeks puffed, Gajeel sank back under the water and kicked his tail as hard as he could. Levy's eyes were scrunched shut, but Gajeel made sure to move his tail as far as he could, just in case she happened to be watching.

After resurfacing once more to give Levy much needed air, Gajeel decided they were far enough away from shore to safely avoid the huge waves. He floated in the water, turning in a small circle to study the dark blue ocean around them. The dark water loomed under them and Levy's legs moved in short, jerky motions.

"We're fine, totally fine. Just floating around in the middle of the ocean, abandoning the only land in sight. Just a normal day for a merman, no problem here…"

Levy mumbled incoherently in his ear. Her arms slipped lower along his shoulders and he adjusted his hold, trying to keep her out of the water as much as possible. His tail curled, his bottom fins briefly touching the bottom of her foot. With an ear-piercing scream, Levy squeezed his neck and her feet scraped his sides as she scurried up his body like the monkey in a book Wendy once showed him.

"What was that!? Something touched my foot!"

Grunting from the impact, and body lowering into the water from Levy's flailing, Gajeel took her arms and gently pried her death grip away from his shoulders.

"Wait! What are you doing? I can't swim out here by myself!" Her feet kicked through the water as if she could latch onto him with her toes. Gajeel chuckled despite himself.

"Safe with me." He said, ducking under her arms into the water.

"Where'd you go!? What are you doing!?"

The water did little to muffle the panic in her voice. Gajeel rolled his eyes and lengthened his body until it was parallel to the water. Relaxing every muscle, he slowly rose back to the surface. He pushed Levy's legs until she was facing away from him and positioned his body underneath hers. Gajeel rested his head on the water, letting his body float with the smooth waves. Levy's body tensed on top of his with every movement, making him sink under the water.

He rubbed her arms, adjusting them until they were folded against her chest. "Safe...be easy," he murmured into her ear, closing his eyes against the sunlight.

"O...ok," he heard her whisper.

It took several moments for her to relax, first her body against his, then her legs until they floated and waved in the water. Gajeel waved his tail slowly to keep them afloat, allowing the gentle water to cradle them in its warm embrace. The back of Levy's head rested under his chin, enveloping him in her scent of sunshine and salt. He sighed heavily and tilted his head, savoring the feeling of floating completely free. Levy shifted slightly, making his eyes jerk open with a sudden realization.

I'm swimming...with a human!

He breathed slowly, hoping Levy wouldn't feel the way his heart began to pound in his chest.