Chapter 82

"What took so long? I was starting to worry." Levy moved into his arms as quickly as she could, given her reduced speed and giant belly. Gajeel embraced her lightly, pressing a soft kiss to her temple. She'd been a little worry-wort lately, and Wendy had told him it was normal hormonal stuff. Levy was worried about giving birth, and this worry was reflecting onto other aspects of her life, particularly Gajeel.

"Something came up as I was leaving." Gajeel told her gently. "I'll tell you about it after dinner. I just want to relax for a bit first."

"Okay." Levy nodded, understanding. He'd been stressed with work lately, what with that serial killer still plaguing the family. The killings had slowed since the traitor was found, but it was clear the killer still had information on a few more suspects. Gajeel had told Levy he would be looking for ways to get information on more potential victims, since he was clearly still sticking around. The family was on high alert because of this, and Gajeel was busy trying to keep his family safe at all costs. "I made pasta. Is that okay?"

"Of course it is, shrimp." he smiled lightly at her. "I love yer cooking, no matter what ya make." He loved seeing her eyes light up happily at the praise. She smiled and left his arms to plate their food, waddling away as quickly as she could. Gajeel just watched with an amused grin, loving that little pregnancy waddle she had. She was at the tail end of her seventh month now, and they were getting closer and closer to meeting their little girl.

Lucy was about ready to pop, being a bit further along than Levy. It looked as if she might have to give birth in the mansion, seeing as the killer was still out and about. Wendy vowed to come to the mansion quickly should that happen. And Levy and Gajeel were starting to talk about birthing options. If that killer was still at large by the time she gave birth, they'd have no choice but to have a home birth, with Wendy seeing over it. Though... it seemed like Levy was leaning toward that option, anyways.

"The patient's I've done home births with were all far more relaxed than those that came to the hospital. It's a more comfortable setting, and allows for a more natural birthing experience." she'd told him once when they were talking about it. As long as mother and baby seemed to be healthy enough for it, a home birth was a great idea. Gajeel liked the idea, too. Levy would feel more comfortable here.

Dinner was a quiet affair. Gajeel was tired after working all day and dealing with the last-minute issue. Levy was content to just eat quietly, busying herself with her own thoughts. She was making a mental list of things they needed to get before the baby came. And she had plans to buy more things for the nursery, too. Their little girl would have the cutest room!

"Delicious like always, shrimp." Gajeel pressed a kiss to her lips after they finished, taking her plate from her and taking them to the kitchen. He came back to the table with a pint of chocolate ice cream and a spoon, grinning and handing it to his blushing wife.

"You're spoiling me, you know." Levy giggled, accepting the dessert. He just gave a soft chuckle and went back to the kitchen to wash their dishes while she enjoyed her treat. A few minutes later, he rejoined her at the table. He watched her eat her ice cream with a happy smile for a minute... and then he sighed softly as he decided now was as good a time as any to tell her what happened today.

"Levy... I'm gonna tell you what held me up tonight. But yer not gonna like it. I need ya to try and see it from my point of view, alright?" he started off cautiously, earning a curious look from his wife. She set her spoon down and nodded hesitantly. "Droy came to my office... he and Jet ran into who they think is the serial killer."

"W-what?" Levy asked in shock. "Are... are they okay?"

"As far as I know, they're both fine. But, Levy... he approached them with the intent to convince them to betray Fairy Tail." Gajeel told her seriously, taking a deep breath as he prepared to drop the bomb. "And Jet went with him."

Levy's eyes went wide at this information, and tears started to prick at her eyes as she realized the implications of his words. Jet went with the killer... and that labeled him as a traitor. And Fairy Tail killed traitors. She could see the remorse in Gajeel's eyes... and she knew he'd given the order to have Jet captured. He would be interrogated... and then it was up to Gajeel to decide his fate. But Levy knew... if Jet really betrayed them, Gajeel was going to kill him. There was nothing she could do to stop that or change Gajeel's mind.

Gajeel gently took her face in his hands as her tears started to fall. She didn't pull away like he half-expected. He wiped her tears away with his thumbs, giving her a sympathetic look. She knew exactly what would happen if Jet really turned out to be a traitor. But...

She wasn't begging him to spare Jet's life.

That spoke volumes to Gajeel. She either knew it was useless to try to save Jet... or she was starting to understand that killing traitors was for the best. Gajeel was fairly certain it was the latter. She was starting to understand that the family came first. Traitors were dangerous and should be destroyed... even if they were supposed friends.

"Levy... we still don't have all the information yet." Gajeel told her softly. "And please... please, don't get your hopes up with what I'm gonna tell you next." He pressed his forehead against hers, keeping her face in his hands. She just gave a slow nod, tears still slowly trickling down her face. "Droy thinks he's just trying to get information. If that's true, if there's proof that that's true... he's not a traitor." He told her softly, watching as hope began to fill her eyes. "Levy... don't get your hopes up. Please. I know it'll crush you enough if he turns out to be a traitor. Don't make it worse." he pleaded with her with a desperate whisper.

"But..." she whimpered, but paused. She knew he was right. As much as it pained her... she knew he was right. If she got her hopes up, she would only hurt more for it. She moved into her husband's arms with a quiet sob, feeling him embrace her firmly. She knew he hated being the one to tell her this... to tell her that one of her closest friends had likely betrayed the family... to tell her that it was very possible Jet would die... by his hands. She knew, deep down, he was only doing what needed to be done to protect the family. But hearing it still hurt horribly.

"Levy, I'm so sorry." Gajeel whispered into her hair as he held her close, trying to comfort her while she would still let him near her. "I'm so sorry. But you know what I have to do if he's guilty." He felt her nod against him with another sob. His heart ached for her. But this time, there was nothing he could do. His hands were tied. If Jet really was a traitor, he would die.

"Gajeel, please..." she sobbed into his chest. He tightened his hold on her. Here it was. The begging for Jet's life. He knew it would come soon enough.

"I'm not changing my decision, Levy." he told her firmly. But she shook her head against his chest. She pulled back and looked up at him with tear-filled eyes.

"N-no. I... G-Gajeel, if he's really betrayed us," she whimpered and looked away, "p-please let me do it." Her request had his eyes going wide in shock, and he could help but stare at her with an open mouth. She... wanted to be the one to take Jet's life, if it came down to it. "I-If he's a traitor, t-then I'm the one he betrayed the most. It's my right... r-right?"

"Oh, Levy, I could never do that to you." Gajeel breathed, pulling her back into his arms. "I'd prefer I do it, and you hate me, than to have you do something like that."

"I could never hate you." she cried, clinging tightly to him. "You're my husband, and I love you so, so much. No matter what. B-but Jet... he's my friend! If he's really a traitor, t-then he's betrayed me the most. Please, Gajeel..."

"Levy... I'll think about it." Gajeel sighed softly, rubbing her back soothingly. "But right now, we don't have any answers. Don't go making plans to do something like that yet. Okay?" he soothed, pressing a gentle kiss to her temple as he ran a hand through her hair. She'd really grown these past few years, and it showed. She knew how important the family was... knew that its safety was more important than her happiness... more important than her friend's life. She knew their laws... and she knew she was entitled to be the one to pull the trigger. She was willing to do it, too, despite the pain Gajeel knew it would cause her. He would let her, if it's what she truly wanted. It would be her final step to becoming a real mafia member. Blood would finally... truly be on her hands. Blood spilled for the family's sake...

"Just... relax, Levy. Try not to think about it too much. Please." Gajeel sighed softly. "Think about our little Emma. Please try not to get too stressed over this." he pleaded, placing his hand on her stomach. He needed her to focus on something positive, because he knew too much stress might send her into an early labor. The last thing he wanted was for anything to go wrong with her pregnancy. He wanted his wife and daughter to both be as healthy as possible.

"I'll t-try." she hiccuped against him, still clinging to him like he was her lifeline. Maybe he was. After all, he was now the only person she had full faith in that wouldn't betray her. And she found comfort in that. Her husband would never, ever betray her. "I'll try..."

So... sorry for not updating Monday. I barely managed to update today. And I've got some bad news guys. I had about five chapter written up already. Had is the keyword. I don't know what happened but there was some glitch and I lost most of my documents already uploaded to . I only had this one saved because I was using word to spell-check and grammar check it. Haha so now you know my secret. And unfortunately that means I have to rewrite everything I already had written.

Which means... another break. I'm so sorry guys. With school in the way it's gonna take me longer than usual to rewrite everything I had up. I'm so sorry guys!

But anyways, please tell me what you think of this chapter! I tried to make it a bit emotional. Probably failed.

Thanks for reading!

-Nerdy12