A/N: New chapter!

Ahhh… the latest chappie of FT… *fangirls* ehehehehehe…

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

Crap,crap, crap. Levy thought frantically, wiping her sweaty palms on her dress. If this was one of her books, she'd jump out the window like Double-Oh-Seven and run away without a scratch. But this was reality, so she stuck out her hand to shake. The lady across from her smiled, and shook firmly.

"Levy, right? So nice to meet you."

.:.:.:.

A few hours previous, Levy was dressing when her phone chimed.

A text from a number she didn't recognize popped up. She tapped on it, reading the message.

lily and i r coming to pick u up. we'll b there in 10. –redfox

"Huh." Levy mused, "That's weird. I don't remember giving him my number." He probably got it out of my file. Stalker.

Just as she finished tying her headband in place, she heard her intercom buzzed.

"Hello? Miss Levy?"

"Hi, Lily! I'll be down in a sec."

She headed down, and saw Lily leaning against a steel-gray car. "Hello."

"Good morning!"

"You look very nice today, Miss Levy."

Levy blushed. "You don't look too bad yourself. And please, just Levy."

As Lily opened the door, she saw Gajeel glowering in the passenger seat. "Get in. Meeting's at eleven."

"Good morning to you, too." Levy grumbled, annoyed. "It's only ten."

"You'll need a ton of time since it's your first time at the Guild."

"Guild?"

It turns out the "Guild" was Magnolia's City Hall. The Magnolian tycoons called it that because they always met there and it was like a club to them. Levy had seen pictures, but City Hall was stunning in a way those photos couldn't convey. The building was enormous, with tall medieval-esque brickwork and a huge bell sitting on top. The mayor's crest (a fairy with a pointed tail) was shown on a banner in front. (A/N: Like the guild building.) It was a stark contrast to the modern look of the MetaTech building.

Gajeel led them in and the party filed into a large meeting room already bustling with people. Levy recognized the mayor, Makarov Dreyer, and his two assistants, Mirajane Strauss and Cana Alberona. A few other groups were there, like a pair of white-haired people: one a hulking man, the other a smaller, thinner version of Mirajane. Then she spotted Lucy.

"Lu!"

"Levy!"

Levy breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, a familiar face in the crowd! She hugged the blonde. "Hey, Lu. And, um, you're Mr. Dragneel, right?" she addressed the pink-haired man standing next to her best friend. For some reason he was wearing a scarf over his suit.

"Yeah! And, umm… you're…" he scratched his head like a little kid, tilting it to the side. "Loofy?"

Levy sweat dropped. Lucy sighed and shook her head. "This is my friend, Levy, Levy McGarden, remember? Sorry Levy, he's not good with names."

"Ohhh! Right!" he stuck out his hand, and they shook. He grinned at her. "Nice to meetcha, Levy!"

Levy was charmed by his friendly demeanor, and she smiled back. If all business was like this, I'll get along just fine.

"I have to introduce you to the others!" Lucy pulled her away from the man. She led her to a shock of red hair in the back.

"This is Erza!" Levy gulped. Lucy just had to introduce her to the scariest character in the room, didn't she? Erza Scarlet, CEO of Magnolia Steel, a huge weapons plant. She was infamous for being harsh and very skilled with her own wares.

Levy gulped and held out her hand. "E-Erza Scarlet? It's n-nice to meet you." she said, trying to keep her voice from wavering.

"Levy, right?" Levy nodded. "So nice to meet you."

She shook firmly and released. Levy let out a breath of air. Well, that wasn't so hard.

"You're… just so cute…" and then she was pulled into a hug, nearly getting her skull smashed on the other woman's bulletproof vest. Lucy grinned.

As soon as her head wasn't spinning, she hightailed it back to Mr. Redfox and Lily. "Ow."

"Erza?"

"Yup."

Lily grinned. "Levy, can you tie a tie?"

"Yes, why?" she asked.

"Gajeel needs his tied and he refuses to let me do it." Lily placed his hands Mr. Redfox's shoulders.

"Lil! No!" the long haired man whined, and ducked away from the older man.

"Mr. Redfox. Let me help." she said sternly, and he scowled.

"…fine."

It was a simple thing, really, but for some reason it felt… intimate. But then it was over, and she smiled.

"I'm finished." Levy said, straightening it out one last time. "You can stop pouting like a child now."

"I-I'm not!" he exclaimed.

She raised an eyebrow. "Yes, you are."

"Not!"

"Are!"

"Break it up, love birds." Their squabble was interrupted by Mirajane.

"We're not-" they spluttered, redfaced.

And then the meeting began.

.:.:.:.

When they picked her up, Gajeel felt scruffy. His tie was loose, his shirt hanging out, and he hadn't bothered to tie his hair back, even though he had an elastic band in his pocket.

Why did he care? It was just the runt.

Ahhh well…Fuck it. He pulled his hair back and tucked in his shirt, but left his tie hanging around his neck. Those things made him think he had a noose around his neck.

And when she came out, his heart stuttered. What the fuck? It was just the shorty, for crying out loud.

She was wearing some kind of yellow dress. She looked nice. He banged his head against the dashboard. Stupid brain.

Gajeel heard Lily greet her, then open the door.

"Get in. Meeting's at eleven." he didn't look at her.

"Good morning to you, too." Levy grumbled, clearly annoyed. "It's only ten."

"You'll need a ton of time since it's your first time at the Guild."

"Guild?"

As Lily filled her in, he stared out the window.

The Guild was close to her apartment, and soon they were there. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her looking at the building in awe.

When they got inside, she bounced over to her friend… Bunny… Girl? Ah, fuck it. Yeah, Bunny Girl.

He followed her around with his eyes, watching as she got introduced to the pyro. She met Titania, and he winced when the older woman pulled her in for a hug. That woman was friggin' strong.

"Gajeel. Your tie's untied." Lily pointed out.

"And?"

"Let me knot it."

"No! You always do it too tight."

The shrimp chose that moment to come back to them. She was clutching her head.

Lily grinned cheekily. "Levy, can you tie a tie?"

"Yes, why?" she asked. Gajeel groaned internally.

"Gajeel needs his tied and he refuses to let me do it." Lily placed his hands Mr. Redfox's shoulders.

"Lil! No!" the long haired man whined, and ducked away from the older man.

"Mr. Redfox. Let me help." she said sternly, and he scowled. Dammit! Those eyes… She stared at him firmly

"…fine." Lily had done it for him countless times before, but this was different. Something had changed. Her fingers grazed his neck, and he shivered involuntarily.

"I'm finished." Levy said, straightening it out one last time. "You can stop acting like a child now."

And then the strange feeling was gone.

.:.:.:.

"Sit down, everyone!" Mirajane clapped her hands, and sat near the head of the table. "Let's begin."

"Welcome." All the people in the room sat, and the man at the head of the table stood. He was dressed sharply in a black suit and had thinning gray hair. Makarov Dreyar, Mayor of Magnolia. "As you all know, we are here to meet and discuss some important issues in Magnolia. But first, let's greet our newest addition, Levy McGarden." He smiled kindly at her. The tycoons whooped and patted Levy on the back as she blushed. "Now, status reports." he gestured to the white haired couple Levy had seen earlier.

The girl stood up. "Magnolian-"

"Names first, please. I'm sure Miss Levy here would like to learn them."

"Right. I'm Lisanna Strauss and this is my brother, Elfman." The girl smiled and waved at Levy. "We found there has been an increase in Magnolian forest fires. We have been doing our best to warn citizens, but a handful perished." she looked away, and her brother patted her on the back. "O-One of our animal shelters was too close to the fire and at least a dozen men and women died and more than a hundred animals di-didn't make it." She said, wiping her eyes.

"And I can assure you, I have contacted the fire department and they are on the lookout." Erza stood up, giving her warm look. "We are doing everything we can to stop these fires." Reaching across the table, she took Lisanna's hand.

"Thank you, Lisanna, Elfman, Erza." the mayor stood back up. "Now, Natsu?"

"Uh… Luce, take this one."

Sighing, Lucy stood and read off of her notepad.

"I'm Lucy, this is Natsu." Lucy motioned to the man sitting next to her. "Okays, as you all know, the Magnolia Cherry Blossom Festival is coming up, and Igneous Pyrotechnics is almost finished with the new fireworks for the holiday. We estimate it will be about a week before they're ready to be used." Lucy said, filling in for her boss.

"Thank you, Lucy. I look forward to seeing it." the mayor grinned, "Laxus?"

A scary looking blonde man stood up. he had a scar over one of his eyes and was wearing his suit jacket over his shoulders. Weird… Levy thought.

"Laxus. Ever, Bickslow, Fried." He pointed to the three people sitting around him. The green haired one smiled politely while the other man with the creepy eyes stuck out his tongue. "Nothing here." He shrugged, crossing his arms.

"Alright, then, Juvia, Gray?"

Two people stood up this time, one a blue haired woman with long, curly hair and a man with a small scar above his eye.

"This is Juvia, I'm Gray." The man said, "Ocean AC (A/N: Gray has an air-conditioning company) is booming. New houses equal more sales and with summer just around the corner, lots of people are looking to upgrade and refurbish." His voice was cold as ice.

"Drip Drop Water is doing well. Juvia found that sales are skyrocketing thanks to, again, the incoming summer." The woman bowed. "Juvia has nothing else to say."

"Thank you Juvia, Gray." The mayor gave her a smile and stood. "Cobra? Anything?"

A spiky haired man sitting in the corner shook his head. "Nope."

"Ah, then Miss Porlyusica. Do you have anything to add?"

"Humans are idiots." An older lady with a pink bun glowered at the mayor. At her side, a young girl with long blue hair squirmed in her seat. "Stop fidgeting, girl!" she barked.

"Thank you for that insight. Last but not least, Gajeel." He gestured to Levy's boss.

"Yeah, yeah." Rather than standing up, Mr. Redfox slouched lower in his seat. "With the new tech, business is booming. New items like the MetaWatch and the updated MetaLaps are providing more income. The sci guys down at the labs are working to create a better, faster, more innovative lacrima phone."

With that, the tycoons broke out into murmurs.

Gajeel went on, "Everyone in this room is eligible to have one ahead of the release date." He grinned. "For free."

"Woah!" Natsu (Levy didn't think of him as Mr. Dragneel anymore) pumped his fist. "Niiice!"

The people in the room grinned and exchanged glances.

"This'll revolutionize Fiore, maybe even change world." Mr. Redfox said, spreading out his arms. "Top that, Fire Breath!"

"Arrr!" Natsu charged at him, fists flying.

"Ah!" Levy put her hands to her mouth, eyes wide.

"Don't worry." Mirajane put her hand on Levy's shoulder. "It's always like this."

"B-but, won't they get hurt?" Levy asked worriedly.

"It'll be fine!" Lucy chimed in. "The bumps go away after a day or two. Besides, they're oddly considerate of each other."

"How is beating each other senseless considerate?!"

"Well, they try to avoid the face if the other one has meetings, although they'll never admit that." Lisanna said, holding up a finger. "Nice to meet you! I'm Lisanna, and this is my big sis Mira!"

"Nice to meet you." Levy said. These girls aren't so bad after all…

A crowd of girls gathered around Levy, all clamoring to greet her.

"Uh, Miss Levy." the blue haired girl that sat next to Porlyusica waved. "Hello! I-I'm Wendy."

"Juvia is pleased to meet you, Levy-san. Stay away from Juvia's Gray!"

"Yo! Cana, nice to meetcha."

"Hi, Levy! I'm Kinana, Cobra's PA!"

"Evergreen. Nice to meet you."

"Uh, thank you!" Levy said, flustered.

"Welcome to the Guild!"

A/N: It's taken me five chapters to get to this point… Hee. But anyways, thanks for all your support. It really motivates me to write. :)

Thanks to Circus Monster 2002, Kiri5920, Lexie and the anime, PreciousThing, virgo-sorelli, Bookmeister999, and Maviea for reviewing!

As always, thanks to my editors/betas/super awesome friends waterinacan and FairyTailLover2013!

Special shout out goes to Circus Monster 2002 for your really good suggestion. I would love to… when I get a chance.

Signing off,

Miss Quiet Writer