Chapter 23
Gajeel watched the silent battle of wills between his uncle and Levy, unable to do anything but glare in Acnologia's direction. His chest swelled with pride at the glower his princess delivered on her own, but she shouldn't have to involve herself with his sea witch of an uncle. Who knew what kind of magic the maniac concocted in the few sun cycles Gajeel had been away?
Gajeel watched helplessly as Levy and Lucy exited the room. Levy leaned and whispered something into Lucy's ear, but he was too far away to hear the quiet conversation. Another servant led his uncle down the narrow passageway, thankfully in the opposite direction as Levy. Acnologia smirked and clasped his hands behind his back. He followed after the servant, their casual conversation drifting back towards him.
A guard Gajeel didn't recognize moved in front of the door. His hand gripped his weapon tightly and his eyes seemed to watch every breath Gajeel took. With a sigh that had the guard standing straighter at his post, Gajeel meandered down the passageway. He stared at the stones beneath his feet, hoping the rocks would somehow help clear the muddy whirlpool in his mind.
How did Acnologia get here? He's planning something, I know it…but what?
Effectively cut off from the only people who would know the answers, Gajeel wandered about the cool interior of the castle. Servants bustled through the narrow passageways and into various rooms of the castle. They spared him no more than a fleeting glance and Gajeel missed Levy's easy conversations.
Eventually, Gajeel found himself at the front of the castle. He stared at the two long staircases leading up to the upper section of the castle. Would Levy be in her room? Would she even be able to talk with him? Her father made it clear that she wasn't to be disturbed until the banquet, but perhaps Gajeel could sneak into her room. She would know what to do, how to figure out Acnologia's plans and how the merman was planning on backing out of their deal.
Gajeel casually looked around the room and had taken only a few steps when voices sounded from the narrow passageway to his left. Levy's favorite guards, Jet and Droy, stepped out of the passageway, their steps hurried. The dark haired guard met his gaze and halted in his steps. He nudged Jet next to him and the two of them stared across the large room at him. Gajeel looked around helplessly, wishing Levy were there to interpret the humans' strange behavior.
"Hey, did ya hear, Jet?" Gajeel startled at Droy's unnaturally loud voice. "Apparently they finished the laundry just yesterday!"
Jet quickly answered, his voice wooden and stiff. "Really? Then does that mean there's extra servant uniforms in the laundry room down this hallway and to the left?"
The two guards walked across the room, making sure to stay more than an entire tail length from him. They peeked at him while they walked, still continuing their loud conversation.
"Must be. Sure would help someone if they were wanting to walk around with the servants. I hear some of them are going onto a ship for that fancy dinner tonight, too."
They paused at the end of the room. Gajeel raised a brow, seeing how they stopped to stare at him. He slowly pointed to himself, then the hallway they had just exited.
Droy nodded quickly, then winced when Jet jabbed him in the side with his elbow. Turning on their heels, they hustled out of the room. Shaking his head at the strange ways of humans, Gajeel hurried down the instructed hallway and found an open room blocker on the right. A crisp, clean scent came from the room. He peeked around the opening, taking a few moments to study the room.
A stout female with curly black hair and a few young fries bustled around the room. The dark-haired female, most likely their leader, glanced up with a frown.
"Can I help you?"
The other females stopped their work to stare. Face warming, Gajeel hurried into the room. He gave her a shaking smile and, seeing as she had several shirts in front of her, held out his arm and pointed to a small tear in the dirty sleeve. The female sighed, rolled her eyes, and snapped her fingers.
One of the bustling females seemed to spring out of thin air next to his side. Gajeel jumped, earning a sea of laughter from the humans in the room. The female chuckled and handed him an armful of human clothes.
"You can change over there," she said, pointing to a wooden partition similar to the one in Levy's room.
Gajeel stepped behind the barrier and quickly replaced his dirty clothes with the fresh, clean uniform the female handed him. After giving the lead female a nod of thanks, he hurried from the room.
If they're getting ready for a feast, maybe I could sneak aboard with the other humans working in the kitchen.
He sniffed the air and followed his nose to where the scent of human food was the strongest. The large kitchen was a sea of activity, even busier than the laundry room he had just left. A short male wearing a tall, white head covering immediately put Gajeel to work.
It was hard to understand the humans in the clamor of the kitchen. It took all of his concentration to follow the directions shouted his way; carry the pots and pans, fetch water, peel at-oes but not the pots. All the while each glance out the window showed the sun slowly lowering in the sky.
"Gather round, everyone!"
Gajeel jumped in his seat, at-oes rolling from his lap and onto the floor. He stood in a line with the rest of the kitchen helpers and copied their hands behind their back posture.
Chef Yajima, as he insisted everyone call him, walked up and down the line of servants. His tall head covering barely came to Gajeel's chin.
"The king is hosting a grand feast for the man who saved the princess's life. I need volunteers to go to the ship they will be boarding and serve them."
Several servants raised their hands and Gajeel quickly followed suit. The chef called on many of the volunteers, but hesitated when he stood in front of Gajeel. Gajeel kept his hands raised, ignoring the trickle of liquid rolling down his back.
"Not quite the talker, which might pose a problem…but you're strong and we need someone to carry things for us." The man tapped his chin for what seemed like an entire sun cycle. "Go get changed, you might be useful. Make sure to keep those clothes clean and tidy! You represent the royal kitchen staff, after all!"
After changing into yet another pair of human clothes, these ones a deep, dark black and finer than the white cloth he was wearing before, Gajeel followed the other selected servants to the stables. They loaded up into a wooden contraption and rolled down the roads away from the castle. Gajeel checked the sun, three hand lengths away from the edge of the ocean, and closed his eyes. He crossed his arms and pressed them against his churning stomach. Thankfully, the humans conversed amongst themselves and paid him or his heaving stomach any attention.
The creaking and rolling of the wooden contraption lulled him into a dull, fretful doze. He wondered how he would get aboard the ship the human king mentioned. He wondered if Captain Erza would even allow him on the ship. He wondered how he could possibly hide on the ship without Acnologia spotting him before he and Levy were able to come up with a plan.
A bump in the road startled him awake. The servants quieted as the wooden contraption moved them closer to the docks. Ships bobbed in the waves, their long pieces of fabric rolled up tightly against the sea breeze. The wooden platforms lay empty, most of the humans settled in their homes for the sundown, but a small gathering schooled around a large, brightly colored ship. Golden words swirled on the sides and sailors ran back and forth along the top.
"Well, hop to it! The princess will be here in less than an hour!"
Gajeel joined the rest of the male servants and placed supplies on strange, flat wooden planks that raised into the air next to the boat. He stared at the contraption for a moment, but a bark from one of the sailors made him hurry after the rest of the servants on top of the ship. From his position on deck, he watched the contraption turn and pivot until it hovered directly above the ship. It lowered the supplies until they were within easy reach of the humans.
Gajeel shook his head at the contraption, wondering how humans managed to live in a world that wasn't surrounded by water.
"You there!"
Gajeel and the other males jumped, dropping the supplies in their hands. A tall female with bright red hair stomped across the ship towards them. A pink haired male ran next to her, panting heavily.
"Wait, Captain, maybe we should–"
"Are you Gavel?"
Gajeel blinked at the female, thankfully seeing that the other humans were just as confused as he was.
The female sighed and turned to the male next to her. "What was the name again? Gavel? Gaggle?"
"I think it's Gajeel, Captain Erza," answered the male human, scratching his pink hair as he stared at the white paper in his hand.
Gajeel tilted his head and stepped forward. The captain crossed her arms, giving him a look that made him feel like a simple sardine.
"You're Gavel?"
"...Gajeel, Capt'n."
"Gajeel?"
His lips twitched, but he managed to keep a straight face while he nodded. It took all of his newfound human speaking skills to follow the captain's long rant.
"Very well. Hmm, she did say you'd be the quiet type," the captain murmured before shaking herself. "Well, no matter. I have orders to let you help man the ship while we are at sea, but you better do your job correctly or I'll toss you into the ocean. The princess and her guest will be arriving soon, so make your way below deck and listen for directions. I have a change of clothes for you…can't do your job properly in those fancy duds, now can you?"
She smiled, the area around her eyes crinkling. Her smile made her look younger than he originally thought, but she held herself with such a commanding presence that even the merking would be impressed.
Gajeel gave the captain a quick nod and hurried to follow her orders. He glanced over his shoulder, seeing the captain yelling at both the pink haired male and another dark haired sailor. The ship rocked suddenly in the water, reminding Gajeel of his current task. He stomped down the stairs into the bowels of the ship, easily spotting a folded set of clothes sitting on top of a large piece of wooden furniture.
Sailors ran back and forth in the large area. Shouts filled the air. With no partition for him to change behind, Gajeel found an unoccupied corner and hurried to put on the clothes. He immediately recognized them as the black pants and white shirt he wore on his first sun cycle being a human.
Properly changed and with nothing else to do but wait, Gajeel settled himself onto a square wooden container and crossed his arms. He leaned his head against the wall of the ship and closed his eyes, praying to the Seven Seas that the queasiness in his stomach was nothing more than a small bout of land-sickness.