Hello again! I managed to find some time to upload this! Thank you so much to Cirque and Violet Shadow Kurayami for my first and second review on this story. You pushed me to upload this chapter faster. Also, thank you to all of you who follow or favorite this story! It means a lot! Hope you like this chapter and I'll do my best to upload the next one as soon as I can.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Next chapter I might own something. Gihi!

Last chapter:

"Levy!" "Get away!" "Move!" "Come on, Levy-chan!" she heard the shouts from all her friends from Fairy Tail but still her body didn't move. She brought her hands up to prepare for the attack.

"Move, you idiot!" she heard Gajeel's rough voice, filled with worry and some crazy part inside her smiled.

I'll make you proud, Gajeel.

"Four!" Bacchus' voice reverberated with battle lust and just a second after, his attack landed.

Nobody saw her grinning.

"Move, you idiot!" Gajeel shouted to the top of his lungs when he saw that she hadn't stand up and that Bacchus was descending on her rapidly. His hands were on the railing now, crushing it between his fingers from rage and worry.

The attack landed and Levy didn't move away from it.

The earth in the arena cracked into a pattern similar to that of a spider web, with its center being the place where Bacchus landed and where Levy had been. The noise was deafening, even for people without dragon-slayer senses, and a big cloud of dust rose up from the ground.

Sand, dirt and debris were falling all around the battle ground, denying anyone to see where the two competitors were or whether they were still standing. Everyone in the stadium remained silent for a moment, holding their breaths to see what had happened.

"That was a massive attack from Bacchus!" the announcer's voice was the sound that broke through the silence. Murmurs started to be heard in the audience. "Who'll be still standing after that encounter?" the announcer cheered.

Fuck… Levy, just… fuck!

Gajeel was madly searching with his enhanced eyesight for any sign of Levy. He tried, as he did before, to strain his hearing to find her heartbeat or her breathing but there was so much noise this time and the falling debris was interfering with his senses. The only thing he could pick up was the scent of her blood.

Fuck

"Ladies and gentlemen! It seems like someone is coming out from the dust screen!" the announcer said in excitement. "Who could it be?"

Gajeel saw as a shadow started to walk towards a clearing in the arena. It was standing straight, but limping a bit and was dragging something with its right hand.

No… please, no.

Bacchus emerged from the cloud of dust and in his right hand was carrying the limp body of Levy, holding her by the back of her tank top. He tossed her in front of him and she rolled a little bit before stopping. She was completely immobile.

"Levy…" Gajeel's small voice showed all the worry he was feeling inside him. He tightened his grip on the railing. He heard Juvia and Mirajane gasped and voiced out a low "No…" as they brought their hands to hover over their mouths.

Bacchus raised his hands in victory and the crowd started to cheer. "It seems that Bacchus is the one that's still standing!" the announcer exclaimed.

Levy's body didn't even move an inch, and Gajeel was finding it hard to hear her heartbeat or breathing. His own heart was beating rapidly in his chest, thundering at his ears, making it harder to concentrate on Levy. Her body was covered in cuts and bruises; sweat, dirt and blood stained the whiteness of her skin.

"Oi... I think I overdid it a little bit... Ya should get some medic here or some shit…" Bacchus voice sounded carefree and he used his pinky finger to scratch his inner ear to emphasize how little did he worry about Levy's wellbeing.

Gajeel's murderous ideas returned full force but he pushed them away as concern took hold of his mind. Levy needed medical assistance.

Where's the kiddo?

He turned to look at Team Fairy Tail A and found who he was looking for. Wendy was about to jump off into the arena in a rush, but suddenly, she was stopped by Natsu grabbing the back of her dress.

"Natsu! Let me go! I need to help Levy-san!" Wendy said and tried to get out of his grip.

"Natsu! Come on! Levy needs help now!" Lucy complained in a high pitch tone, showing how worried she was about her friend.

"Salamander!" Gajeel roared at the fire dragon slayer, red eyes showing concern, anger and despair.

"Calm down. The battle ain't over yet, Metal head" Natsu said in a steady voice. His serious gaze stayed focus on Levy.

"What-?" Gajeel's voice returned to normal and he looked back to the fighting pit.

"It seems like contestant Levy McGarden cannot continue. Therefore, the winner of the match is-" the announcer was about to claim the victory to Quatro Cerberus when Yajima-san stopped him, indicating that something was happening in the fighting arena.

"Wait…" a small voice was heard. Even when it sounded weak, it owned power and strength and everyone quieted down to hear it.

Then, Gajeel saw as Levy started to move and propped her torso up on her elbows. Her voice kept repeating "Wait…" and everyone stared at her.

Bacchus looked down at her in incredibility. Levy was now on her hands and knees and she kept picking herself up, slowly, steady, but she eventually got to her feet. She was panting heavily and her eyes were shadowed by her hair.

"This is amazing ladies and gentlemen! It seems that Levy McGarden wants to keep up fighting! But will she be able to turn this fight around?!" the announcer sounded impressed.

"Stay down, little fairy" Bacchus voice was serious and devoid of the previous amusement.

What the fuck is wrong with this girl? She can barely breathe. What is she doing standing up? Why?

"Seems like… it's going to take you… more than… four hits… to take me down…" Levy managed to say between deep breaths. Bacchus stared wide-eyed at her.

Then, she raised her head up and grinned at Bacchus, challenging him.

That was all Bacchus needed for his self-control to snap. In an instant, he was one step away from Levy and with an amazing speed, he attacked her with his palm-strikes.

Right side. Left side. Chest.

And with that, Levy flew backwards, slamming against the wall, creating a dent in the surface from the impact and falling down to the ground like a ragdoll.

Just stay down, little fairy.

"Levy McGarden is down again! Bacchus is showing no mercy on the little mage" the announcer voiced it out through the loudspeaker.

She started to move again. She got to her hands and knees one more time and seemed to keep trying to stand up once again.

Da fuck is wrong with her?! Why does she keep getting up? Why doesn't she just give up? Doesn't she realize she'll die if she keeps standing up? Why is she so into winning this match?!...

Bacchus mind was racing with a lot of questions as he stared at the Fairy Tail mage in amazement.

He wanted to know the answer to all of these doubts, but he couldn't find his voice to say them out loud. The crowd had fallen into silence once again as they stared at the little fairy pushing herself up from the floor. Finally, Bacchus' mouth opened, but just one word came out of it.

"Why?" He sounded confused, amazed and a little scared.

"Levy McGarden is down again! Bacchus is showing no mercy on the little mage" Fairy Tail mages in the audience heard the judge's voice through the audio lacrymas. They saw how Levy collided with the wall and how she was now struggling to prop herself up again.

"Master! We should do something! Can't you stop the fight?! She can't continue like this!" Romeo asked Makarov in concern, pulling at his arm to draw his attention. Tears were pricking his eyelids as he felt frustration boiling in his chest. Natsu had taught him to use his magic to protect his nakama, and here he was, just staring as Bacchus beat the crap out of Levy. He couldn't stand it anymore.

The master didn't say anything. He didn't even look back at Romeo. He kept his gaze firm on Levy and his mouth shut tight in a thin line.

"Dad!" Romeo then turned to his father, Macao. "We need to do something!" Macao just looked down to his son with concern in his eyes, but didn't say anything. He seemed to be looking for the right words to comfort the young mage, but couldn't find them.

Romeo turned around and saw the expression of the rest of the Fairy Tail mages in the audience. Worry, concern, anger, frustration, all these emotions were almost tangible in all of them. They were all suffering inside from watching Levy's fight, but neither said anything nor tried to stop the fight.

Romeo's anger increased. Why aren't they doing anything!? If they are so worried about Levy, we should be stopping the fight right now! What is wrong with all of you!?

He was about to scream at them, when Jet and Droy suddenly stepped on the railing at either side of Makarov. All of Fairy Tail mages turned their eyes to them as the two mages straightened their posture. Shadow Gear males then nodded at each other, took a deep breath and placed their hands to cup their mouths for their voices to be louder.

Yes! They are going to stop the fight! Romeo thought.

Boy, to say that he was surprised by what they shouted would be an understatement.

"… more than... four hits… to take me down…" Gajeel couldn't believe Levy was taunting Bacchus at this point.

Shorty, what are you doing?!

He winced with each hit Bacchus landed on Levy's delicate body and he felt his heart sank down to the deepest part of his gut when she fell to the ground once again after colliding with the wall. He tightened his grip on the railing once more and he was now just holding small pieces of debris and dust in his hands.

But when Levy started to pick herself up once again, he felt like he couldn't take it anymore. Gajeel couldn't stand one more second there, just watching as she endured the pain. He just couldn't.

He closed his eyes and decided to get into the fighting pit and stop the fight. He didn't care about the points, or even if that got him expelled from the rest of the tournament. He just wanted to hold Levy in his arms and protect her from any more harm.

Gajeel's eyes opened and glowed with his resolve. He put his feet over the railing, propping himself up to jump off into the battle ground, when a battle form Lily held him by his shoulders, stopping his movement.

"Stop." Lily's voice was serious and definitive, leaving no place for arguments. That didn't stop Gajeel from arguing.

"Let go, Lily" he growled, silently stating that he would fight seriously with the Exceed if he dared to stop him from helping Levy out.

Then, he felt a tight grip on his right arm. Juvia had wrapped her arms around his, trying to keep him from jumping off the railing. He looked at her with wide eyes.

"Gajeel-kun, have faith in Levy-chan" she looked him straight into his eyes and he could see the uneasiness she felt at that moment by the situation. After all, Levy was also a good friend of Juvia, so it was to be expected for the water mage to worry about the solid script mage's wellbeing. What surprised Gajeel was that Juvia's words seemed to be betraying what she was feeling.

He could tell that she was also dying to go in and help Levy. Then, why was she saying such things? 'Have faith in Levy'? Of course, he had faith in Levy! That was out of the question here. All he wanted at that moment was to protect her! Because he knew that if she kept fighting, she'll only get hurt even! She wouldn't be able to defend herself from another attack and then that bastard-

Wait. 'She wouldn't be able to defend herself'? When did he start to doubt Levy's abilities? Sure, she was small and delicate, but she wasn't stupid. If she was trying to keep on fighting, she must still have a strategy to snatch the victory for Fairy Tail.

Just then, he noticed that no one was cheering for her. All the 'Go, Levy' chants had died out a while ago and the only shouts he managed to distinguish were discouraging ones "Just give up, fairy!" "Ain't nothing you can do little one!" "You're weak! Learn to accept that!"

His blood started to boil. Not just because of the insults the crowd threw out, but because he knew that if he had jumped off the railing, he would have been worse than the crowd. By stopping the fight and holding Levy protectively in his arms, he would have been practically screaming at her that she wasn't capable of winning this. That she was weak. And small. And unable to stand on her own.

It's a pain in the ass that random people try to tell you what you can and cannot do, but it is entirely different that your friends and family are the ones that tell you that. It's soul shattering. Gajeel knew this very well.

He understood then that his instinct to protect her almost did more damage to her than Bacchus' attacks. He understood now why Juvia wanted him to have faith in Levy.

Because right now, the only one that seemed to have faith in Levy was Levy herself.

"I… " Gajeel stammered once realization hit him. His posture relaxed and he pulled away from the railing.

Then, all of them looked up and saw Jet and Droy standing on the railing on the other side of the arena, where the rest of Fairy Tail mages were.

What are they doing?

Romeo stared at the backs of Jet and Droy as they took a deep breath.

Yes, they are going to call off the fight

He was surprised by what happened next.

"YOU CAN DO IT, LEVY! STAND UP!"

"WE BELIEVE IN YOU!"

"SHOW HIM HOW STRONG TEAM SHADOW GEAR IS!"

"SHOW THE WORLD WHAT FAIRY TAIL IS MADE OF!"

Jet and Droy shouted at the top of their lungs, causing their voices to echo all around the arena. They started to chant "GO, LEVY, GO!" with more energy than at the beginning of the match and soon after all Fairy Tail mages joined them in their cheering.

Romeo was taken aback by this.

Why are they doing this!? Why aren't they stopping the fight?! Don't they care about what could happen to Levy?!

Then, Romeo noticed that Jet and Droy were crying their hearts out during their chants. He noticed that they weren't the only ones crying and that's when he understood why they were doing this.

It pained Jet and Droy to see Levy getting hurt, that was as clear as water. But if she didn't want to give up yet, they would endure that pain for her. They wouldn't lose hope on her; they didn't lose it for 7 years and they weren't going to lose it now.

Romeo let tears streamed down his face and joined the chanting. He looked at Team Fairy Tail A and B and saw them cheering as loudly as them at Levy.

Yes, Levy was in bad shape and seemed like she wouldn't be able to stand up straight one more time. But if she wasn't giving up yet, Fairy Tail wasn't giving up on her either. They'll believe in her as long as she needed them to.

Thanks, guys. I'll make you proud. Levy thought and smiled after hearing Jet and Droy's voices.

Bacchus heard all the ruckus from the audience and was surprised by all the support they were showing to the solid script mage in front of him.

"That's why…" Levy said in a low, steady voice, bringing herself up to one knee. Her voice was clear enough to catch Bacchus' attention as she continued "That's why I won't give up… for them… for my nakama… for my team…" she dug her fist into the ground and propped herself up a little bit more.

"I don't get it. You'll only get yourself hurt" Bacchus sounded really confused.

More cheers from the audience could be heard.

"Go, Levy!" Yes, Cana.

"Do it Levy-chan!" Thanks, Lucy.

"Don't give up, Levy!" I won't, Erza.

"They waited for me… for 7 years they waited for me and suffered" Levy was now on both feet, knees bent down a little bit, back arched forward and head hung down a little bit. "If they survived that, I can take a little bit of pain for them, to restore the pride Fairy Tail had once." She straightened her posture and raised her head to look Bacchus straight in the eye.

There was a loud cheer from the audience as she looked at him defiantly.

"We believe in you, Levy!" Thanks, Lily

"Fight for your nakama!" I will, Natsu

"You can do it, Shorty!" Thank you Gajeel for trusting me.

Levy's face was covered in injuries as well. A trail of blood ran from her hairline, over her right eye and down to her chin, dripping little droplets of blood that stained her tank top. But she looked fierce.

Bacchus shivered a little bit, sensing the strength of her resolve.

"You cannot win" Bacchus' voice tried to sound threatening, but it quivered a little bit.

"That's where you are wrong" Levy's voice was strong and definitive. "You lost this match the moment I stood up."

I'm the worst for cutting this chapter here, but if I didn't do it like that, this chapter was going to be enormous. Thanks again to those who have follow, favorite and/or review! You're the best. And so are the rest of you shy people that like to read the story. I encourage you to click follow so you won't miss the next update.

So, just to calm you down: this story HAS an ending and it's already written down. It's only a matter of time until I finish uploading the chapters but don't worry that I'll be going on hiatus or something.

Thanks again and hope you enjoyed the chapter!

WTF(Where'sTheFood)