Okay. 8 months and 5 (ish? I don't know, higher math has made me unable to arithmetic) chapters later, here's the back-backstory, not to be confused with the backstory, the stuff with Natsu and Juvia, which I still haven't actually decided how or if I'll do, and – you know what, I'll stop talking (typing?) now and just get on with it.

Also fair warning this is almost 3k words.


Levy swallowed, hard. He eyes flicked back and forth between Juvia's tense form, and Gajeel's sad one. Suddenly she felt as though she shouldn't be here anymore. Dark? Angry? Sure, he was private and seemed to be hiding things, but…

Her mind worked busily, remembering the hints and clues to Gajeel's past that had been dropped ever since he arrived, as the silence stretched longer. Eventually Lily broke the silence.

"I don't know much about the later parts, but… if we're dredging up the past… I could give some of the very early story."

Still quiet, Gajeel nodded slightly. Relieved, Juvia turned to the older man, immediately perking up "Come to think of it, Juvia didn't that Lily and Gajeel were related till he got here."

Lily chuckled a bit at her sudden change of mood before settling back against the cabinets. "Well, like I told Lucy, the short version is that his dad and I served together, came back, got married to twins, and ran a gym together. Long version… Well, let's see. Might as well start from the beginning."

"I grew up in the states, just like Gajeel and Natsu. When I graduated high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I ended up enlisting in the army, hoping that I could discover what I really wanted to do while I was there. I was packed off to boot camp for training before shipping out.

Training was hell for a lot of guys – but I loved it. I felt better than I had in years. Everyone else thought I was crazy, except for one guy – he was even crazier than I was. He was constantly arguing with the officers about why we were doing this or that. I couldn't understand why he was even there. Then one day I ended up getting paired with him for hand-to-hand combat exercises. I figured that he would just skate through and neither of us would get anything out of it."

Lily shook his head, chuckling. "Boy, was I wrong."

"Alright, boys! Muster up!" bellowed their training officer. He walked down the line of men. "Today's evening exercise is hand-to-hand combat. Pair up and try to beat the shit out of each other. You have 2 hours."

With that, he strode back to the barracks. As everyone paired off, Lily ended up across from the only one left – the guy who was constantly arguing with the officers. Lily eyed the other man dubiously. Even after getting the regulation buzz cut, the guy didn't look like the rest – there were what looked like piercing holes in his ears, brows, and nose, and his eyes were a strange color of red. Normally Lily would have figured it to be colored contacts, but he doubted that. With a sigh, he shrugged and held out his hand. The other man seemed surprised, but shook it. The two of them face off on the mats, ready to start.

When the whistle blew, Lily immediately realized he had underestimated the guy when he narrowly blocked a high kick to the face. Pushing the leg back, he swung his fist towards the other man's stomach in a hook, only for his own attack to be blocked.

For all that he didn't seem to take anything seriously, the guy was fierce when it came to actual combat. The two of them fought nonstop for the entire exercise, constantly punching and kicking to try to bring each other down. They both had crazy endurance – refused to stop for breaks, kept going even after the end was called. The officers let them fight. No one wanted to get in the middle of that.

As the sun slipped below the horizon, they grew more and more tired. Their endless reserves of energy were finally running out. The two of them collapsed to ground, wheezing. Looking up at the darkened sky, Lily wiped sweat from his face. "I guess we'll have to continue this later."

The other man smirked at him, swiping at his own face with the shoulder of his t-shirt. "You bet."

Silence reigned for a time while they caught their breaths. Finally, Lily asked the question that had been bothering him for a while.

"Why are you here, man? You don't want to take the orders, you seem to hate authority… but you love to fight. You could do much better as a pro fighter or something."

The other man stared at the sky for a moment before responding. "To be honest… I'm not sure why I'm here. I've been in a lot of trouble in the past. Never thought about the future or any of that. When I graduated, I suddenly realized that I had… nothing. No real skills, no plans, no nothing. Not even any dreams. All I had was a love of fighting and a bunch of anger.

My girlfriend, Leah, was the one who suggested I enlist. Told me she thought I could use the discipline, and it might help me find my path.

And here I am."

They were both silent for a while as Lily turned it over in his head. Something suddenly stuck out to him.

"Wait… you're a new grad too?"

The other guy turned and stared at him. "You too?"

They looked at each other for a heartbeat.

Then burst out laughing.

"No way! You look like you're at least mid twenties."

"Yeah? Well you look at least 30, dude."

Eventually they ran out of breath, and just sat together under the stars.

"So… girlfriend huh?" Lily smirked at him.

The other man blushed, the tips of his ears turning red. "Shaddup!"

Lily raised his hands in a peace gesture. "Nothin' wrong with it. I think it's good that you've got something you want to work for." He smiled sadly.

"I'm sure you'll find someone too, dude. Actually…" he blushed again. "Nevermind."

Lily cocked an eyebrow. "Spill."

"Well…" the other man fidgeted. "I think… after we get back from our tour… I think I'm gonna propose to her."

For a moment, the darker man could only stare at him in shock. Then, he couldn't stop the giant grin from stretching across his face. "Congratulations!"

He muttered an embarrassed thanks.

Lily looked back up at the sky. "I guess that means we just have to make sure to get through this in one piece, then. You for your girl…"

"…and you so you can find someone worth fighting for." The other guy finished.

Lily stuck out his hand. "Lily Pantera."

The other man took it, smirking. "Metallicana Redfox."

Lily sighed. "A few weeks later, we were deployed. A lot of stuff happened… but throughout it all, we watched each other's backs. After we came back home, Metallicana left the army to go find his sweetheart. I was the best man at their wedding – and, coincidentally, fell in love with the maid of honor."

He chuckled. "Shagotte was Leah's twin sister. The two of them were constantly together. So, when Metallicana and I opened a gym together in their hometown, Boston, Shagotte and Leah helped manage it. Just after Gajeel was born, we got married."

He slumped. "6 years later… the gym was doing well, Gajeel was growing up strong… Even Shagotte and I were expecting."

Levy was so wrapped up in the story that she jumped when a large presence thumped down on the stool next to her. Still listening, she turned to look. She did a double take – Gajeel's face seemed shadowed and rough, sharp crags and lines of sadness and tension etched into his skin. He was backwards with his back against the bar, slumped in his seat, staring at nothing in particular on the ground.

Hesitant, Levy reached out and laid a hand on his arm. The touch seemed to snap him out of his daze, at least. She started to pull back when he shifted, but he lightly caught her hand with his own to stop her from withdrawing. She blushed slightly and squeezed his hand, which dwarfed her own, turning back to Lily as they threaded their fingers together.

Lily smiled slightly, having seen the entire silent exchange, before continuing, sorrow etched deep into his face and weighing heavily at his limbs. Even now, the memories stung.

"One day, Shagotte and Leah were shopping at a nearby mall after they had finished the books for the day. They had picked up Gajeel from kindergarten and brought him with them. Metallicana and I were supposed to meet up with them.

They were waiting for us in the food court when some – some social activist freak set off a bomb in one of the restaurant stalls. Trying to make a point or something useless like that. The three of them were trapped under falling debris."

He swallowed, hard. "It was a mess. The entire place was leveled, and a good amount of it had collapsed into the basement. People were working for hours to find the people who were trapped.

By the time they were found in the rubble, Shagotte was unconscious. The blast had driven a chunk of stone into her stomach. The shock from losing the baby and her sister at once… she fell into a coma. Gajeel had lost his voice from screaming for help. Leah…" His voice cracked. "Leah was stabbed by a broken pipe when she pushed Gajeel out of the way. She was dead."

Levy looked down, biting her lip as tears threatened to spill. Gajeel stood, carefully extricated his hand from hers and left, the front door slamming shut behind him.

"Gajeel… it broke him. He was trapped in the rubble with the mother who died saving him and the aunt who was critically injured for hours. After they were pulled out of the rubble… he and his dad were practically ghosts. I wasn't much better. As soon as Shagotte was settled in the hospital's coma ward, they both just… vanished. There one day, gone the next. Being there held too many painful memories for them.

I heard from them occasionally. They were nomads for a while, drifting across the country. About a year later, they settled down in LA. After that… well, all I'll say is that Metallicana disappeared out of nowhere about 7 years ago, when Gajeel was 17.

Shagotte never fully recovered. Even after she woke up, months later, she was weaker, more fragile. After she died, 9 years ago… I couldn't bear to leave Boston. I sold the gym. Used my GI bill to take classes on business management. After I got the degree, I moved here to open the café.

When I heard about Metallicana's disappearance, I invited Gajeel to come live with me. I knew he could take care of himself, but… he never forgave himself for what happened to his mother. In his mind, it was his fault that she was dead instead of him. I was worried that without someone to hold him down, he would lose control. Do something really stupid.

Anyway, a few months ago I got a message from him, asking if I knew of anywhere he might be able to get a job around here. Claimed he was tired of LA."

He shook his head, smiling, running his hands over the bar top. "I hadn't seen in him in 18 years, but I told him to come run the bar with me. It was his aunt's dream to open a café. Might as well have 2 of her last relatives run it together."


By the time Lily finished, Levy was struggling to hold back tears. She knew that Lily had opened his shop as a result of his wife's death, but she had no idea that there was so much in his history. And Gajeel… she glanced towards the door through which he had disappeared. No one deserved to bear that sort of burden.

They sat in silence for a long time, reflecting… and just unwilling to breach the atmosphere.

After warring with herself for a while, Levy quietly slipped off her bar stool, making a beeline for the door. She wasn't really sure what she was doing anymore. She was moving on instinct, ignoring her normal, rational thought.

Behind her, Lily watched her go with a sad smile.


Gajeel stood outside in the alley beside the shop, back pressed against the brick wall. He knew he shouldn't have left like that, but… even now, after all these years, just the mention of that day in the mall was enough to swamp him with guilt. His mom had been meant to live – yet she was buried and he was alive. He stared into the shadows engulfing his spot, wishing that somehow he could just melt into them and disappear. Thinking about it hurt in so many ways. It was his fault that they had lost Leah – even Shagotte and her child were his fault. How could be so stupid as to think he had any chance with the blue fairy? It was his fault that the two men closest to them had lost their loves. He didn't deserve to love anyone after what had happened.

A small hand came to rest on his arm, pulling his from his morose thoughts. Surprised, he looked up to the hand's owner – the tiny, blue haired angel that had already captured all of his attention.

"Gajeel."

He braced himself, waiting for it to come – the pity, the empty consolations, the false empathy, the pitiful attempts to make him feel better. He hated it all.

Levy hesitated. He was tense, almost like he was wary of comfort.

"It's not your fault."

He felt… bitter. How could anyone possibly look at what had happened, and seriously think that?

She sighed lightly, worry creasing her brow. Throwing caution to the wind, she slid her small hand down his arm lightly and slipped it into his own large one, continuing softly.

"Listen.

Mothers do what they do out of love. Do you really think that they see their children as, as things? Obligations? Creatures to be raised, grudgingly, until they're old enough to be tossed out on their own, leaving the parents to their former lifestyle?

Families aren't like that. Mothers aren't like that. They endure the pain, the sadness, and the hardship that come with children for the sake of some of the best moments in their lives. They do their best to support their child as it grows, helping it become the person it's meant to be. They fiercely protect their children, guarding them from harm and hardship whenever possible.

Not out of duty, but out of love."

Stepping away from the wall, she stood in front of him, forcing him to look at her. She wanted – no, needed – him to understand.

"When disaster strikes, a mother's first instinct isn't to run, to find shelter. It isn't even to make sure that other people are safe.

It's to throw their entire being into protecting their child – like a mama bear protecting her cub. No mother would be happy to live longer than their child. If they can do anything to help their cub… they will."

Watching him carefully, his eyes hidden behind hair that she itched to brush away, she added, softly, "Just like yours did."

Slowly, he let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He refused to consider that it wasn't his fault, yet… somehow, her words resonated with something deep inside him. Unthinking, he wrapped his free arm around her waist and pulled her small frame towards him. He buried his face in her hair, allowing a few tears to leak out of the corners of his eyes.

"Thanks, Shrimp."

She smiled against his chest. The relief, the hope, in his voice made the irritating nickname into an endearment.

"Any time, Gajeel."


There we go. Very similar to the original. Like I warned, no you aren't crazy if you're getting déjà vu here.

Anyway, I'd warn about not posting much because of finals, buuuuuuuut I never write as regularly or often as I should anyway so it's a moot point

Lemme know whatchu think o3o (Edit: Oh god I need to sleep)