Chapter 21

Levy stared blankly ahead of her, her chin resting on her knees as her mind went over all the information she'd been told in the past hour. Her parents... were mob bosses. Her wonderful, happy, loving parents who took her to the beach every summer for the entirety of her seven years with them... they were mafia leaders. Her father was Don Leo McGarden, and he had been one of the most feared men in the region, ruling over Oak Town, before Phantom Lord occupied it. Her mother, Liza, had been one of the top-ranking leaders, before she married Leo. Levy came into the picture not long after their marriage.

They had never told Levy about the mafia. They'd wanted her to have a normal life, and they'd gone to great lengths to do such. They even tried to keep her a secret from the other families, as much as possible. Levy grew up blissfully unaware, just like they wanted. She had a normal life... at least until they were murdered.

Murdered. That word echoed in Levy's ears constantly. Her parents didn't drown from a riptide, like she'd been told. They were murdered. By Phantom Lord.

It happened shortly after Fairy Tail pushed them out of Magnolia. Phantom Lord had nowhere to go. They set their sights on Oak Town, but Leo McGarden crushed them during their first attempt to overtake the town. His forces were too strong, and he was a powerful leader. Phantom Lord had no choice but to retreat, regrouping in a tiny town between Magnolia and Oak Town. They wintered there, licked their wounds, and did reconnaissance. When summer came, they saw their chance. Leo and Liza took their daughter to Akane Beach every summer, and this summer would be no different. A plan was made to kill the entire family... Levy included.

It was a wonder that Levy was not killed. Levy had been left in the hotel room, sleeping peacefully, and her parents decided to go on a midnight walk on the beach. They asked the innkeeper, who was a dear family friend, to keep an eye on Levy. Shortly after, the innkeeper, Porlyuscia, heard shots fired. She investigated as silently as she could, only to discover her friends had been murdered. Concerned for Levy's safety, she took the sleeping girl and ran away to the next city. This saved her life, as the inn was later burned to the ground. Phantom Lord assumed her dead along with the remaining occupants of the inn, and they confirmed this when a young girl's body was discovered at the site, burnt beyond recognition.

They never stopped to think other families were there.

Porlyuscia became Levy's guardian after that, and she kept Leo and Liza's wishes to keep Levy unaware of the secret lived they lived. Levy was told her parents went for a midnight swim, and got pulled under by riptides. Porlyuscia took her to Magnolia and, with Don Metallicana's help, had her true identity erased. She became Grandeeny, and that was the name Levy knew her by as she was raised by the kind but odd older woman.

And that's how Levy came to be here. Blissfully unaware that she'd had anything but a normal life up to the point where she'd met Gajeel. She went through school, moved off to med-school, came back to care for Grandeeny until her final days... and then she just stayed in Magnolia. She had nowhere she wanted to go, she had a job, had responsibilities. So she stayed in Magnolia. She met Gajeel. Had she not saved him, perhaps she would have never been discovered. Phantom Lord wouldn't have gone into her apartment to set it ablaze. Wouldn't have found her pictures of her parents. Wouldn't have put two and two together. But she did, and they had... and she couldn't say she regretted it. If she regretted it, that meant she regretted having found the love of her life. And she didn't.

She would never regret it, til the day she died.

"Lev." Gajeel walked into the office, finding her in the same place he left her after telling her everything he knew. She was sitting on the couch in Metallicana's office. The office was the safest place for her right now, seeing as the bedroom was apparently easily broken into. Some of the don's guards were assigned to guard Levy in secret, and they were doing a good job seeing as even Gajeel couldn't tell where they were. He knew they were there, though, and that put him at ease. "You okay, Levy?" he knew she had a lot to process right now.

"I... it's a lot to take in but..." Levy trailed off, biting her lip for a long moment. She looked up at Gajeel with nervous eyes. "I... it doesn't change anything with... us... right?"

"Lev," he sighed softly and sat down on the couch next to her, pulling her into his arms for a strong embrace. "Not a thing." He swore to her. "Who your parents were has nothing to do with who you are now. You're still the woman I love. You're still my shrimp." He kissed her temple as she relaxed against him. "All this information means is that we know why Phantom Lord is targeting you. That's all I'm concerned with. I want to keep you safe, shrimp, and now that I know why they want you, I can protect you better." She said nothing, just relaxed in his arms, enjoying the silent comfort he offered. They were silent for a good while before she spoke again.

"What about that man? Lily? What's going to happen with him?"

"I don't know yet." Gajeel admitted. "He didn't try to hurt you, and he didn't fight back when we apprehended him. But he did sneak into the mansion."

"He said he wanted to offer his loyalty."

"Un. He's still saying that. Even when we told him he'd have to be part of our family to even be allowed near you. He said he would do what was required s'long as he can protect 'his lady.'" Gajeel scoffed a bit at that. He didn't know if he liked Lily calling her his lady. But he had to admire the man. He had guts, determination, and spirit. If he wasn't lying, if he really just wanted to protect Levy like he said, Gajeel wouldn't mind so much. He needed all the help he could get, if he was going to keep Levy safe, like he promised. Gajeel had the feeling the guy was telling the truth, too. He wondered, just as much as Levy wondered, what his father's decision would be for Lily.

Wow, 3 chapters in one day? I'm on a roll. Unfortunately, that's all for today, and probably for the coming week. Two papers, three tests, and a speech... yikes. Not fun for me, and I'm sorry for the inevitable delay in updates.

OMG the amount of reviews I got after posting 20 was insane! WOW THANKS GUYS THAT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME!

I'm like dying of happiness right now.

Once again, please tell me what you think. Just a short little chapter full of explanations. Hope it made sense hehe!

Thanks for reading!

-Everythingnerd12