Oh my god, you guys are too smart for your own good!

Another person has figured out what's going on with Igneel, and a different person was ON POINT with Wendy.

I would leave names but then you would track down that review and know what's going on. And that's not fun!

So you guys will just have to wait!~~

But one person did mention about giving a hint, so here it is! AHEM!

That guy that Lucy saw in the hospital is NOT Gildarts, and he is connected with Igneel.

Technically that's two hints, but see if you can work it out from there!

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"We can't let anyone know... They'll kill her, they'll kill all of them!"

"I know... Oh god... This is so messed up..."

A rustle and a sigh.

A soft and warm hand touched her cheek, and she let out a small gurgle, turning her head to lean into the touch.

"I promise I'll watch over you," the voice from before whispered. "My little Wendy."

Wendy blinked and stared up at the white ceiling. That dream again...

She raised a hand and pressed her fingertips gently against her cheek, where she could still feel that gentle person's touch.

She turned her head slowly and stared at the small box of sapphire earings.

That voice... She heard it before.

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Lucy refused to look at the mirror, her fists clenched so tightly that her knuckles were white.

Only two days ago she was in this same uniform and in the same bathroom, but this time, she wanted nothing more than to rip off that uniform and shred it to pieces.

"Soo... You ready?"

Lucy blinked and turned her head to see Natsu in his own uniform, leaning on the side of the doorway. A hesitant smile played with his lips.

Lucy smiled and nodded slowly. "Yeah. I... I think..." She trailed off, a blush starting to appear on her cheeks.

Natsu, distracted by the blush which he thought made her look even more pretty, could only mutter, "think what?"

"I think... With you by my side... I can do it." She whispered.

Natsu froze. She had said it so quietly that it would have been inaudible to anyone else, but to Natsu, it was as clear as day.

"Y... Yeah?" He choked, his neck and ears suspiciously hot.

Lucy nodded frantically. "So... Please don't leave..."

Natsu reached out a hand and took her own, his thumb gently rubbing the back of her hand. "I won't. I promise."

Both of them were bright red as they trailed out of the bathroom, tightly gripping each other and not wanting to let go.

'What is going on?' Lucy said in her mind. 'I think I'm going crazy... Is my heart supposed to be beating this fast?'

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"Juvia is ashamed!"

"I'm ashamed too!"

"Lucy, we were assholes..."

"Damn straight. You guys are fucked up."

Lucy was bombarded by a mixture of different voices. Juvia was sobbing dramatically and almost strangling Lucy with her hug; Gray was frantically apologizing while he fumbled with his pants and slipped them off; Levy was whining and trying to capture her attention; Gajeel was sneering at everyone, his red eyes glinting.

"Wah - Juvia - choking - L-Levy-chan, it's okay! GRAY, KEEP YOUR BOXERS ON!" Lucy barked, finally making them go silent.

"She said put your clothes on, you stripper!" Natsu yelled furiously as he ripped his hand away from Lucy's and punched Gray in the jaw.

"Natsu, you bastard!"

Ignoring the two, Juvia was quietly sobbing as she was peeled away from Lucy by a disgruntled Gajeel.

"Quit your crying, woman!" Gajeel grumbled. "After school, you can tell her and Salamander about the thing."

Juvia immediately stopped crying and nodded. "Yes! Juvia promises!"

Lucy smiled, finally feeling herself relax that morning. Yes. She trusts her friends. They won't leave her.

A small grip of doubt squeezed her heart.

... Right?

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Levy was quiet.

Her eyes were distant and cloudy, it was as if she was physically there but mentally she was somewhere else.

She was thinking hard about the conversation she overheard between Igneel and Lisanna yesterday; Lisanna had left already so Levy couldn't interrogate her, and the blunette was hesitant to question her king.

But what were they so furiously arguing about? Igneel's voice had been angry, and then suddenly both of them became sorrowful and scared.

Levy wasn't called the brains of their group for nothing; aboviously both Lisanna and Igneel were hiding something. Someone was hurt, and it was a girl. Lisanna's presence at the castle could hurt that mystery girl even further.

Levy breathed out slowly. It didn't make any sense; Lisanna had been with them for two years until she and her siblings had become royalty because the orignal royal family died and they were the last of royal blood.

But Lisanna had only been thirteen when she left; what could have happened to such a young girl like her and Igneel?

Never before had Levy heard her highness sound so scared before; grief gripped his voice and it sounded like he was going to cry.

"Hey, guys..." Levy suddenly spoke.

Everyone grew quiet, their attention on the petite blunette.

"What is it, Shrimp?" Gajeel grunted, his eyes on the road as he drove.

"So... I..." Levy hesitated. "Nevermind."

"Is Levy okay?" Juvia asked in a concerned voice.

"Yeah, you can tell us," Gray said, leaning back in his seat, not noticing his missing clothes.

"Gray, shirt." Lucy said. "Levy-chan, are you sure?"

"Yeah... I'm sure," Levy reassured them.

It only added to her guilt; her wonderful friends cared about her so much, but she didn't even tell them her overheard conversation.

She'll tell them, she promised to herself. When she figures it all out, she'll tell them.

As Gajeel pulled into the school parking lot, all of them seemed to hold their breath.

Gray, in a fit of uncharacteristic compassion, reached over and grasped Juvia's hand. He squeezed it gently, and she squeezed back.

Lucy breathed in and out shakily, Natsu's warm arm around her shoulders comforting her.

They all climbed out, and Levy stared with a new found fear up at the school she had loved for nearly her entire life; but she was scared. Those awful things to Lucy had been something from a nightmare, and as much as Levy hated it, she didn't want to go to school. She didn't want to see the faces of her kind and smiling teachers, she didn't want to learn.

She wanted nothing to do with the once wonderful school that she thought was perfect, but in reality, lashed out and swallowed Lucy into a place of dispair and horror.

"Oi."

A heavy hand landed on her head, but the touch was gentle. Calloused fingers rested on her blue locks in a comforting way.

With wide eyes, Levy raised her chin to meet Gajeel's own piercing red gaze.

"Don't think about it," he said gruffly, although she could hear the kindness within his words. "I came back to this shit-hole for only one reason; to protect out friends."

And Levy was in awe, because for one second, she was staring at a guardian angel of some kind. She snorted lightly in her mind.

"Okay." She said softly.

Angel?

His much larger hand awkwardly grasped her smaller one, and both of their cheeks were furiously red as they trailed after the others.

He was no angel.

Levy's eyes roamed over her friends; Gray was letting Juvia cling to him for once, and Natsu seemed to be attached to Lucy by the hips. Both of the girls had their guardians, their protectors.

Levy looked up at Gajeel.

He was her dragon; she'd take that over angel any day.

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Huehue.

I love GaLe.

I do hope you enjoyed this chapter; it was more focused on Levy and her thoughts, since I thought more Levy development would be nice.

P.S. I wonder where Wendy got those earings from?

Thank you for reading, and please review!

Until next week!

Bye!