Makarov had done it, he figured out the location of where Alexei's hideout was. It was ways out from Magnolia, so he needed to formulate how he'd deal with him; ignore or face head on. The older man just didn't want the younger kids involved, knowing they would be inexperienced and feared what might happen to them. And though he didn't want to bother his former underlings, he needed to. Even though he let Laxus know his intentions, the blonde wasn't entirely onboard. They had all moved on, and the chances of his old team coming back for one mission were slim to none.
—
"No, no! You're still not fighting together." Laxus said, stopping both Levy and Gajeel from attacking him.
He'd convinced Gajeel to train with him and Levy, hoping he'd join Juvia when it came to patrols; which hadn't happened. And not to Laxus' surprise, they fought terribly together. The idea that these two were dating and yet couldn't pull off a coordinated attack together was laughable.
"You need to come up with a good plan to overtake me. It's two on one, it shouldn't be that hard."
Levy crossed her arms, "You say that as if I've ever actually beaten you on my own."
"That's not an excuse, Levy. And you, Iron Giant, you've sucker punched me before, why can't you recreate that? There's two of you, and one of me. Try again."
The couple huffed, tired from training, but even more exhausted from the different tactics they'd already tried. They've tried defense, offense, surprise attacks, everything Levy could think of. Trying to formulate a new plan, Gajeel had a small idea that could throw Laxus off. It was a dirty tactic, but Levy had to admit that it'd work.
Laxus was in a ready position, waiting for his partial proteges to make the first strikes. From the stance he took, he'd go for mostly defense this time. Gajeel was known for attacking hard and fast, trying to overwhelm his opponent, and though Levy was a bit more tactical, she had a habit of getting lost in her head about what her opponent could do…or at least she did when she fought him. No matter how much they trained, Gajeel never took a tactical approach to fighting him, just wanting to brawl, and though she tried, Levy never fully took advantage of her size.
But this would change today.
Gajeel ran toward Laxus, throwing punches left and right, looking for weak spots while trying to dodge any hits from the blonde. Laxus agreed to not use his powers today, but from experience, he'd use it at some point. The raven haired boy managed to get one hit on Laxus' side, but it was a short lived win when Laxus swept Gajeel's legs from under him. But Laxus hadn't noticed Levy coming from behind him, and when he turned his head, all she did was open her hands and throw sand in his face.
"Pocket sand!" Levy felt ridiculous yelling this out, landing a few blows on Laxus in the process before he fell backward.
Once he rubbed most of the sand from his eyes, Laxus stood up, impressed, but a bit disappointed. "You finally beat me, but with an underhanded tactic? You really are children." He gave a small chuckle.
"Laxus, you're the one who told me that our enemies won't fight fair, so for once, I won't either." Levy said with a smile on her face.
"Gotta admit, it worked." Gajeel shrugged with a wide grin.
Laxus shot him a smirk back, "Wanna see how well it works a second time?"
The two teens shook their heads, already ready to end the session for the day.
It was a week into Summer vacation and Laxus had already trained with half of the teens in the house, either one on one or in a small group. They have all the time in the world now, so why not put in the work to get stronger, right? Wrong, the teens just wanted to relax and enjoy their break. The only person who enjoyed it aside from Laxus was Natsu, and only because he didn't have to hold back. Natsu always tried his best when it came to sparring, he never wanted to lose, but when it came to Laxus and Gildarts, losing was inevitable. The only people who could beat without effort were Droy, Laky, Jet, and some others; either with or without his powers, but then there was Gray, always ending in a draw or with one of them losing. They were pretty even for the most part. And now that Juvia was there, it made their draws a little one sided.
Gajeel had to admit, he didn't mind sparring and training with the rest of his friends; though he only ever sparred with Laxus. Jet and Droy always tried to talk Gajeel into sparring with them and even Gray offered to have a one on one sparring match, but he still felt uncomfortable with the idea. The only person who pushed him to spar was Laxus anyway, but it was mostly an excuse to beat him up, less about him getting stronger.
Levy herself really enjoyed training alongside her boyfriend. Despite them being lackluster as a fighting duo, in Laxus' opinion, she felt that she and Gajeel had grown even closer. They were both fascinated by the other's powers, and by seeing them in action, they felt a deeper connection…at least from Levy's perspective. She could finally be herself with him, her whole self, not hiding anything from him anymore; and she knew Gajeel enjoyed that.
As the couple walked through the halls, cooling down from their session, they chatted about what they could do the rest of the day. Of course, they could do just about anything, but Gajeel, crude as he could be, suggested they just make out the rest of the day. His suggestion was quietly shot down by Levy, chuckling as she rolled eyes. Though tempting, she wanted to do something more productive.
"If you don't wanna make out, what do you wanna do?" Gajeel asked, casually striding down the hall with his arms behind his head.
"I don't know, I could catch up on my reading, and you could always dedicate time to prep for senior year. I know you just barely passed your math exam Gajey."
"Shorty, you're the only person I know who'd ever study over Summer break."
As much as he disliked the idea of studying, he wasn't going to complain about spending time with his girlfriend, especially when she was reading. It was relaxing, having her read while he either stroked her hair or gently let his fingers dance across her skin. Levy liked it when he did that too, though she worried that Gajeel was bored the longer she read. Yet, he never disturbed her while she read, nor tried to pry about what it was, he learned his lesson the first time. Just the memory of him turning to steel was enough to make her laugh. But before they could actually decide on what to do, they both needed a shower.
They agreed that after they showered, they'd meet for a little snack in the kitchen and then they'd decide on what they wanted to do for the day.
"Gramps, any word from the old Thunder Legion members?" Laxus asked while unceremoniously entering his grandfather's office.
Makarov, looking up from his laptop, replied, "Yes and no. I have been in contact with each of the former members, but I haven't told them that we need their assistance."
He rolled his eyes, "You need to get to the point. I already know Freed'll say yes, not sure about the other two…"
"I know you're antsy about finding Alexei and taking him down, but things take time. There's no need to rush into this fight Laxus. Jose is gone, there's no imminent threat, relax."
Laxus just sighed, knowing his grandfather was more than right. "Yeah, okay. I'll relax."
"Don't let the whole world rest on your shoulders son, allow others to carry that burden with you. You always have me, and Gildarts to help you worry about the other students here."
Makarov had spent years trying to raise and guide his grandson to not just be a leader, but to be whatever everyone needed him to be; a brother, a friend, a mentor. But he also realized he never prioritized leaning on others for support, something every leader needed to do occasionally. Laxus had no issue delegating tasks to others, but wanting help was something else entirely. It was just another issue they needed to work out.
After her shower, feeling as refreshed as ever, Levy slipped into some of her favorite loungewear. She had on a heather grey hoodie, oversized of course, and matching sweatpants. Putting on a pair of comfy socks and slippers finished off the outfit when she left her room. Levy moseyed down to the kitchen wondering if Gajeel was already there, or if he was washing his hair. He'd always said that no matter what, he had to keep his hair kempt; and she had to admit, his hair was always shiny and soft, even better than Lucy's…and she's the one who's got money for upkeep. She passed by Gildarts on her way there, bottle in his hand already.
"Isn't it a bit early to be drinking Gildarts?"
He chuckled, "Never too early to day drink, 'specially when I have Mest buy me the good stuff."
"Now I see where Cana gets her attitude from." Levy kept walking toward the kitchen, thinking of the last time she and Cana had seen each other.
The last time she saw her was about two months before she and Gajeel even started dating. Levy had confided in Cana about her small crush, but she teased her about it, while being supportive.
"You finally over that thunder god?" Cana asked teasingly.
Levy nodded, "Yeah, I am. There's this guy at school…I think he really likes me, but you know…"
"Nah, I don't." Cana was a busty brunette who had guys fawning over her at almost every turn. Though she had no issue finding a man she really didn't care. She was a free spirit, flirting with anyone she pleased, but preferring to be single.
"Well, he's a mutant too. But he doesn't know the truth about me."
"Pffft, what, you think he'll stop liking you if he finds out you're just like him? That's kind of stupid."
Levy shook her head, "No, I don't want everyone else's secret to get-"
"Listen girly, it's not like everyone else here is being as careful as you. Natsu and Gray are dating, why can't you?"
"The thunder god, that's what."
"Ah, controlling women, a man's favorite past time. Levy, I think you should go for it. You're cute, and you can't keep doing everything Laxus wants you to do…do you think I did everything my old man wanted me to do growing up?"
"Cana…you met Gildarts three years ago…"
Cana laughed, "And? All I'm saying is, you need to channel that teenage rebellion once in a while."
A loud crash took Levy out of her memories, as well as a few shouts coming down the hallway. Small balls of fire shot past the doorway. Natsu.
"C'mon and fight me Gajeel! I'm all fired up now!" Natsu's voice boomed as more fire shot from his hands.
Gajeel ducked into the kitchen and onto the floor, "No way you pyromaniac! Train with Vanilla Ice or something!"
Natsu stood in the doorway, flames in his hands, "Oh hey Levy, didn't expect you to be here. You wanna train with me?"
"Heh, not really. Can we all train together later? Gajeel and I already had a long training session with Laxus, so we're pretty tired."
"Well, that sucks, I wanted to fight now. I'll go find Wendy, she's always up for helping me get stronger!" And he was off, running down the hall to find Wendy.
Levy kneeled next to her boyfriend with a smile. In all the commotion, she hadn't noticed what he was wearing. Gajeel had on a skin tight, tank top with the phrase, "I flexed and the sleeves fell off" and a pair of gray sweatpants and slides. She to admit, she did like it when he dressed like this, showing off his muscles. But Gajeel would let it go to his head if he heard her say it out loud. In his mind, having Levy verbalize what she liked about him physically felt like a one up on the other guys in her life.
Gajeel sighed and stood up, "I wish that idiot would take a no from me."
They both looked for snacks while trying to brainstorm what they wanted to do for the rest of the day. They found fruit and lunch meat in the fridge, giving them the idea of a makeshift charcuterie board. Levy picked out the best pieces of fruit, grapes, apple slices, and different berries from in the fridge. Gajeel used just about every kind of meat they had; salami, ham, turkey, and even one he didn't like, prosciutto. The couple were really enjoying their little project, focusing on making it pretty and trying to see what they could do after eating it. Watch television? Maybe, but Golden Kamuy had ended. Read? Yeah, no. Go outside? Levy didn't want to. Enjoy each other's company in silence? That's what it looked like.
Sitting in the lounge area, they shared their meat and fruit together, having the television on in the background, not caring about what was actually playing. Gajeel was in a bit of a cute mood, so he kept feeding Levy. Every berry, every grape, even the different meats; having her lips on his fingertips gave him a certain sense of pride. He had the privilege of being this intimate with her. Sure, they'd been dating for over six months, and known each other for longer than that, yet it still surprised him just how much he could do with his little Shrimp. The trust she had for him made it even better, of course in hindsight, knowing that she was mutant like him, it made sense as to why she was so kind to him. And her kindness led to this very moment, from all the good and the bad, he'd have it no other way.
After they were done, they put on a random movie and cuddled. Levy's head was laid on Gajeel's chest, listening to his heart while feeling how solid his chest was. One of Gajeel's hands gently rested on her back while the other was behind his head. Neither of them minded this outcome, it was pretty quiet too, so they could even fall asleep if they wanted.
"Mmm, hey Shrimp, can we start making out now?" Gajeel asked, only half joking.
The blunette smiled, "Only if you don't mind my breath tasting like prosciutto."
"Bleh, why'd ya have ta remind me? Ugh, I'll put up with it, now come here."
He used the hand on her back to bring her up closer to him. It started with small pecks on the lips that escalated a little further. Yeah, Gajeel could get over the taste of prosciutto for the moment. Just then a deafening alarm went off in the mansion. Gajeel yelled, asking Levy what it was, and she told him it was a security alarm.
There were a couple of different alarms the mansion's security system had; thefts in town, fire alarms, specific alarms for drills, and many others. But this meant there was an uninvited guest on the property. The sound suddenly stopped as Makorov's voice played over the speakers. Saying he would speak to the trespassers, and there was nothing to worry about. Something like this never actually happened, so everyone was on edge.
Makarov went outside to meet whoever had come unannounced. He saw two teenage boys on the lawn and walked to them. He didn't know them, but considering their age, the older man could only guess they went to school with his children.
"What can I do for you boys?" he asked, a smile on his face, yet stern in his tone.
"Nothin' really, me and my bro just wanted to see Gajeel."