disclaimer: i don't own fairy tail
title: give me some of you
summary: i want to be of use to you; use me.
dedication: to my most amazing supportive friend. cuz i gained 3 seconds :3 wow i can't do this backstroke thing
notes: hehe you'll see. this is mostly my ramblings about things and less about the actual story now haha. im actually writing this in the library since i have to go back to the pool for finals later on today therefore its not worth the long drive home haha wow so basic summary of this chapter because that summary up there is UTTER BS juvia meets gajeel. she talks about gray and stuff. laxus is like OH NOES MY BED and something is like YAH LET ME KILL YOU and erza is like CX LAXUS hahahah yup ENJOy!
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Juvia happily skipped off the carriage and into her mansion. Today had gone surprisingly well for her, and she was in a good mood.
Juvia then commissioned the body pillow maker with making a pillow of one of her better sketches of Gray. Once done, she returned to her room to find Kagura waiting for her in front of the door. "Hello, Kagura," she greeted her.
"Greetings, Miss Lockser. I am here to inform you that in an hour, your father will be back to escort you to welcome Lord Metalicana Redfox and his son Gajeel Redfox."
Juvia gaped in shock. She'd forgotten all about that! At once her mood fell. Pushing Kagura aside with a small apology, she ran into her room and began fussing around, looking for clothes, brushing her hair, and thinking about how she was going to get around this. For now, she'd have to pretend to go along with it. She needed Gajeel's cooperation too. She'd have to speak with him alone.
Quickly, she called her other maids and they helped her pick out clothing, get dressed, get made up, and style her hair. By the time her father arrived, she was completely ready to greet the nobles.
Her father and she proceeded to head outside to the gates, where they could watch for the elegant carriage that would mean the arrival of the Redfoxes. As they waited, Juvia gazed absentmindedly at the gardens.
They were truly beautiful, as expected of Lord Lockser and his wife's tastes. They were boisterous yet elegant; the couple had a taste in designing and beauty. The entire garden seemed like a painting. It was perfection in its mix of colors and scents. In addition, the duo had clearly thought about what flowers they would want, instead of leaving the poor gardener to figure out what exactly his masters wanted to have.
The herbalist and the perfume-makers both had a wide variety of herbs and flower to choose from, as well as small trees. The Locksers had thought in advance of what plants would be the most useful. In addition, they thought it wise that Juvia had some skill in these areas, and once she had turned old enough, she began brewing perfume and mixing herbs.
She was a good nurse, although she rarely had to use her own skills unless she had to patch herself up so that the doctors and herbalists would not report her trouble to her father. And even then, Juvia rarely got herself hurt. When she was tired, she also rarely needed to eat things to energize her – all she had to do was drink water. In that way, she was similar to a plant. It was almost amusing.
In any case, it was clear she had a slight affinity for water. Juvia enjoyed swimming a lot, anyways, and she got a lot of practice. She didn't have anyone to race, but it was fun floating in the pool by herself, as well as practicing her different strokes. Personally, she loved butterfly – its rhythm and grace enraptured her.
"Lord Redfox! Why, how do you do?" her father boomed, snapping her out of her reverie.
"Good, good. And you?" the metal studded man said back at the same tone of voice. Juvia had an urge to cover her ears. She looked up, ready to roll her eyes, when aforementioned eyes landed on her 'fiancé'. Ah. She blushed a deep red and scooted back several steps, waving her hands as if trying to tell her that it wasn't her idea at all. While the parents were busy exchanging pleasantries, Juvia meekly stepped up to Gajeel.
"So, ah, how's Levy?" Immediately after she said it, she gasped and covered her mouth. What an inappropriate question to ask!
But Gajeel only sighed, in a show of maturity. "Good, I guess. We're still tryna find a way to get around this whole thing. But ya know, she's not a noble so…" he let his dismal thought trail off into the air.
"Would it help if Juvia visited her? Since Gajeel does not have the brains to help her." Gajeel rolled his eyes and mussed up her hair. She pouted. It'd taken her hairdresser awhile to fix her hair, since she'd been out playing the whole morning.
"Maybe," he conceded. "I'll come over after lunch tomorrow to pick ya up. D'ya have anyone that we need ta talk to too?"
"W-Well," she shifted from foot to foot. She didn't know if she could call Gray hers yet… "There's someone Juvia wants Gajeel to meet, but Juvia doesn't know if…" she let Gajeel figure out the rest. Despite the bad jokes she cracked about his brains, Gajeel was relatively intelligent. He just didn't like the show it. His image in front of most was of a big brute. It was partly why he had so many conflicts with Natsu, who was just as, if more violently loud.
"Who is this guy you're talkin' about?" Gajeel asked, face ready for whoever new Juvia had set her eyes on.
Juvia looked up at Gajeel. "Well, he's not a noble, and he works at a shoe shop."
Gajeel raised an eyebrow. "So yer in the same situation as me."
"Yeah," Juvia nodded furiously.
"Whaddaya like about him?"
"He's very solemn and quiet all the time, but he has an inner strength too. He carries himself proudly, but he slouches. His eyes are pained but he has learned to push that aside…to move on. He's funny too, in a strange way. He's quiet and sarcastic, but it makes Juvia laugh. He has a nice family and he's skilled. And Gray's looks, they're–"
"–SO HIS NAME IS GRAY THANKS YOU CAN STOP RIGHT NOW," Gajeel cut her off. He knew that if he even let Juvia start on his looks, there would be no end. Besides, the parents were coming over.
"…how is Lady Lockser? Still feverish?" Lord Redfox inquired, unnaturally polite as compared to when he spoke to Gajeel.
"Yes; she became feverish perhaps a week ago, so I'm hoping that it will be over soon. And what of Lady Redfox?"
Lord Redfox rolled his eyes. "That crazy lady spends all her time in the house cooking and trying out new dishes. And she can cook about as well as Gajeel can sing. Not very good, mind you."
"Hey, old ma– um, Father, I can sing better than yer–uh, your old throat can," Gajeel boasted. "I can sing some right here, right now–"
"–NO!" all three of them sans Gajeel shouted. In varying tones of voice, the three individually apologized to him.
Gajeel merely shrugged. "Your loss."
They all shared a laugh.
Lord Lockser looked at the sky. "Oh my, we've wasted quite a bit of time out here. Let's go in and discuss the terms of the engagement."
Gajeel and Juvia looked at each other, gulped, then headed inside after the two lords.
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Laxus stretched his arms above his head. They'd both returned to their respective rooms after the lunch. He shifted on the bed, and it creaked.
His bed never creaked. He was a prince; his bed did not creak. He looked under it, but saw nothing. He only shrugged and shifted again.
The bed didn't creak again, so he let it go.
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The palace was said to have cream interiors, so he'd dressed all in tan today. He nearly cursed as he hit his head on the wooden boards beneath the bed. It creaked. He could only hope that Prince Laxus's bed usually creaked all the time. He didn't think so, but it was worth a try.
Quickly, he scrambled out from beneath the bed and clung to the side of the bed, holding his body horizontally. Laxus's head came back up and he sighed in relief, then dropped back beneath the bed. He just needed to wait until the time was right to strike. In his left hand, he held poison. In the right he held a dagger.
He anointed the dagger with the poison and waited in silence.
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Erza didn't for a second doubt Prince Laxus, but she had thought of him after Evergreen when writing her list, so it was time to test him. As she stopped outside his door, she heard his bed creak. Wait, the Prince's bed was…creaking? This was highly suspicious.
Although it was difficult to suspect a Crown Prince, she had to make sure he was not plotting anything, especially anything to do with the innocence (or complete lack of innocence) of her ally and friend Mirajane Strauss.
She barged in, to find Prince Laxus reclining on his bed, and a moving tan thing under it. Hastily, she backed out again. "I AM SORRY PRINCE LAXUS I WILL KNOCK NEXT TIME PLEASE FORGIVE ME."
She heard, "It's okay, just come in. What do you need, Erza?"
"You should be more formal," she scolded as she entered.
"Aw, c'mon. We've been friends since childhood." Erza scoffed. "Okay, there were a few breaks of friendship." Erza glared at him. "Fine, fine, Lady Scarlet."
She nodded approvingly. "I need to, ah, cross-examine you. Anything you conceded in the cross examination is binding, alright?"
"Did my grandfather set you up to this?"
"Um, ah, that's right, so respond with utmost honesty!"
"Seriously, that old man…subjecting me to questioning," Laxus muttered. "So, what's your first question?"
Underneath the bed, the tan thing stilled from his poison-applying and listened with eager interest. If he was of more use than the weird spy with the mole (…or was it tattoo? he couldn't remember) from the Faera court, then maybe he could gain the favor of King Silver.
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King Silver sat in his throne, musing over the new information. "Erza Scarlet, and Jellal Fernandes…what good would this information do me?" he thought. Could there be a way to use this information to bring down the court? There probably was, but it was still lost to him. There had to be more information so that there was a faster way to defeat the opposing country.
The strip of land was fertile. It was worth the little peasants he sent down to fight for it. It had an abundance of fruit trees along with strong, good, timber trees. It also had rich soil and large plains for animals to graze on. In total, it was as big as his estate.
However, one could not underestimate the size of his palace and all the nature surrounding it. His gardens were not built for beauty, but for use. They were filled with the most vicious plants that his herbalists had discovered contained the most precious grains of cures. His gardeners had to wear full body protection armor to even enter these gardens, but as long as they got the job done, Silver didn't care what happened to them.
Peasants were peasants after all. The only people on this earth who were not peasants were himself, and those useful to him. He could be extremely favorable to those he liked. In that way, Silver was a generous man with extreme mercurial temperament.
Rising from his throne, he ignored the protests of his guards (his strength was enough to defeat all of them; he could more than protect himself) and walked out of the regal double doors. He strode down the hallways and arrived at a heavily padlocked room. He didn't even bother to take out the key from where it was in his pocket. It had not seen daylight for five years, and he wasn't planning on taking it out.
He knew what was inside. He'd built it with his own hands, nail by nail, tear by tear. It housed treasures more precious than any of his crown jewels.
"Ur…" he murmured quietly. "What do I do? Everyone…is gone." He left his head hang and stared down at the ground. It was smooth white marble, the color of her skin.
One by one, the tears began to fall.