Chapter 10
Bonbon Town and a Close Encounter
By the time Gray and Juvia returned with more sugar-covered wood, Levy had moved to the opposite side of the fire, giving Gajeel enough time to get his wayward emotions mostly under control. The ice mage glanced between the two of them, a dark brow raised in question. Gajeel studied the fire, trying his best to ignore both Gray as he glared and Levy as she sat all prim and proper on her gumdrop on the opposite side of the flames. His gaze constantly returned to the blushing mage and he forced himself to turn away before Gray could notice.
Thankfully, Juvia's constant attention-seeking antics kept the overprotective Fairy from prying too closely. It would do Gajeel no good severing what little trust the ice mage had in him, and kissing the darling of Fairy Tail would certainly cause a fight.
Once he and Levy were sufficiently dried off, the scent of oranges and spun sugar still lingering on their skin, the four mages bid goodbye to the grumpy inhabitants of what Levy called Gingerbreadville and resumed their journey. They followed the gingerbread men and women's directions and headed deeper into the forest towards the Capital.
They followed a winding river, its murky dark waters flowing thickly like molasses. The air was damp and heavy, clinging to their clothes and making the ends of Levy's hair curl around her ears.
He studied her as they walked. She stayed close to Juvia's side and the two girls walked with their heads huddled close together. They stayed several paces ahead, keeping the two men out of their giggled conversation. Occasionally, Levy would glance over her shoulder only to jerk forward again when Juvia nudged her in the side. Gajeel sighed, kicking a stone with his boot.
Why'd I have ta go and her all that?
But he had to tell her, to warn her about what was going to happen if he kept spending hours next to her side. He had to stop whatever was growing between them, whatever made her look at him with such trust and made him want to keep her safely tucked away by his side. He knew it had been the right thing to do, but he felt suffocated with the awkward tension flowing between them.
Yer gettin' way too involved…yer gonna have heartburn once ya wake up.
Too bad his heart refused to listen to his head.
Gajeel grunted, kicking another stone. He glanced at Levy from the corner of his eye. Her hair bounced with each step, her lovely smile aimed in Juvia's direction. A pang of jealousy filled his chest and he rubbed away the sting. Gray cleared his throat, giving Gajeel a sharp glance. The sting in Gajeel's chest disappeared.
That's better.
The distrustful look, the glares in his direction, Gajeel welcomed each one. It was normal, what always followed him no matter where he went. And it was exactly what would welcome him once he woke up from his crazy dream.
Gajeel took a deep breath, a biting retort on the tip of his tongue, and his nose quivered. He stopped on the pathway.
"What is it?" Gray asked, coming back to his side.
Gajeel frowned, sniffing the air. "Smoke."
Two girlish gasps echoed over the sound of the rushing river. Gajeel led the group and followed the stench around a bend of trees. A large clearing loomed in front of them. Dark houses dotted the landscape like tiny domes, each decorated with sprinkles or ribbons of frosting around the windows. Patches of burnt trees surrounded the entire village and holes broke through nearly half the candy houses. Gajeel heard Levy sigh.
"Natsu again," she muttered, moving to stand at his side as she glared at the destruction around them.
They silently made their way into the center of town. Small fires, each made with long, swirled sticks, lined the center pathway. Gajeel grabbed Levy by the arm when she drew too close to one of the fires.
"Ya want to get your dress singed?" He barked, checking over her white dress.
"But those are cinnamon sticks!" She grabbed his arm and pointed to the fire as if he had never seen one before.
"You get excited over the strangest things," he muttered, warming when Levy giggled.
Gray shoved through them, blocking Levy from view. "Is that Macao? What's he going?"
"What? Where?" Fire forgotten, Levy darted after her friend.
The ice mage smirked over his shoulder and followed Levy as she jogged to a vaguely familiar face standing in the center of a group of candy people. Gajeel growled and crossed his arms.
Juvia sidled up next to him. "Juvia wonders why Gajeel-kun is scowling so hard. Perhaps Gajeel-kun is–"
"I'm not scowling," he glared at his former teammate and hurried after the two mages, leaving Juvia and her laughter behind him.
"Gray-sama! Wait for Juvia!"
Gajeel winced and jerked to the side to avoid the love-crazy mage. Macao stood with his arms crossed, a group of tiny, chocolate covered people bouncing around him. The man glanced up as the group approached, an eyebrow raised when Juvia inched her way between Gray and Levy.
"What happened?" Levy asked, casting a worried glance at the tiny people around them.
Macao sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "They say that the Rat King and his minions passed by, burning everything."
Levy sighed and Gray muttered under his breath. The chocolate people bounced and squeaked. Gajeel crossed his arms and stood at the back of the group, flinching when a chocolate child tried to climb up his side.
"The people were preparing for an invasion from General Fly and General Gnat, but it seems as if they left with the Rat King."
Gajeel couldn't help himself. He snorted, drawing everyone's attention to him. He scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry, but Generals…what?"
Macao shrugged, "Dunno. They keep telling me," he gestured to the chattering chocolates, "that Natsu left with a person who could summon lightning and another who made them feel heavy and weak."
Gajeel frowned in confusion. Levy scurried to his side.
"Laxus and Gildarts," she whispered, standing on her toes to reach his ear. "They must be the Generals Gnat and Fly. This is exactly like my book!"
"So what do ya wanna do?" he whispered back.
"What?"
"I know ya wanna get yer book back, but you seem like ya want ta help here too. But on the other hand, if we stop Flame Brain then we can snag yer book and keep him from destroying another town."
Ah blast, now I sound all worried just like her!
Scratching his head, he glanced down at the tiny mage. Her eyes crinkled and a dimple formed near her mouth.
"Why Mr. Redfox, you're absolutely brilliant!"
Gajeel stood frozen in the road while Levy ran up to Juvia and explained their plan. His heart roared in his ears. His gaze trailed the mage, his hands itching to draw her close. Why did she use his last name? What did she think of the name? Would she like to change her last name to match? Gajeel bit his tongue, the question choking him.
Levy darted back to his side, jolting him from his sugar-addled stupor.
"Juvia says the Bonbon people are getting another shipment of materials from Paper Town."
"Eh?"
Get it together!
Levy giggled, "I know, it sounds ridiculous when you say it out loud. Anyway, she and Gray can hold the fort here while we go after Natsu."
"Ok," he muttered, his muddled brain refusing to cooperate.
Bonbon people surrounded them, piling sweets and chocolates into their arms. Levy chatted and thanked each person while Gajel stood mute by her side. He fumbled the chocolates.
"H-hey, so–"
He closed his mouth with a snap, his questions struggling to break free. His ears burned and his heart refused to return to its normal rhythm.
"What was that?"
"...nothing," he didn't trust himself to say anything more.
He quietly followed after Levy, allowing her to lead the way. Once they were well out of sight of the Bonbon village, they deposited the pounds of chocolate by the side of the road and resumed their journey. Gajeel shoved his hands into his coat pockets and charged down the road. Levy jogged to his side.
"What's the rush?" she panted, placing a hand on his arm to slow him down.
He flinched and took a step to the side. "No reason."
He stared at the forest around them, breathing deeply through his nose. The dark trees grew tall and thick and sprinkles of snow drifted through the hanging branches. He saw Levy shrug but didn't respond to her questioning glance. He needed to get his emotions under control before he said or did something completely idiotic.
He scratched his head furiously and kicked a pebble down the road. It clattered across the colored stones and plopped into a nearby candy bush. Levy hopped beside him, her hands clasped behind her back as she hummed and looked around them. Gajeel jerked forward, realizing at the last second that he was staring again.
They had been walking for nearly an hour when a deep laugh and a pulse of magic echoed through the thick forest. Birds squawked and few overhead. Gajeel reached out an arm to stop Levy from walking forward.
"What is it?" she whispered, pushing down his arm to look around the bend in the road.
"Dunno, but keep yer eyes open."
"I wasn't planning on sleeping, if that's what you're worried about."
He screeched to a halt, all uncomfortable emotions forgotten. His head slowly twisted until he was able to glare at the giggling mage next to him. Her mouth twitched and her face turned rosy. Her entire body shook.
"S-shhh-shh," she placed a quivering finger to her lips, more giggles than actual shushing.
His eyes actually hurt, he rolled them so hard. Gajeel resumed his slow trek down the road. A large tree stood straight and tall next to a wide bend in the road. Gajeel darted behind the tree, pulling the still giggling Levy behind him, and peeked around the red and white striped bark.
Two tall figures walked down the road, each dressed entirely in black. Long strings and bright buckles dangled from their clothing and clinked with every step they took. Two long, waving antennas waved around on the top of their heads. Gajeel bit back a smirk, finally understanding what the chocolate people meant.
"Ah, General's Fly and Gnat," Levy whispered at his side, wiping the last of her laughter from her eyes.
Gajeel jerked his head in the duo's direction. "Ya know them?"
Levy nodded. "Yes I do. Hello–!"
The air crackled and sparked. Gajeel clamped his hand over Levy's mouth, blocking her yelled greeting. The hairs on the back of his arms stood on end and Levy's hair floated straight into the air. Small bolts of lightning snaked across the ground and flowed towards the yellow-haired mage. The mage snapped his fingers and an enormous bolt of lighting cracked into the ground hear his feet. Gajeel felt Levy yelp behind the hand still blocking her mouth.
A loud chuckle followed the bolt of lightning. The air around them seemed to shimmer and warble.
"Hey, Shorty–"
Gajeel had just lowered his hand from Levy's mouth when a weight crashed onto his back. His knees buckled and he collapsed onto the ground. Levy dropped to her knees next to him, arms shaking as they tried and failed to keep her upright. She fell face first into the dirt. A loud growl of frustration came from the road. Gajeel strained to twist his head, managing to catch a glimpse of the younger mage as he collapsed onto the ground.
As quickly as it came, the pressure disappeared. Levy gasped on the ground next to him and Gajeel sucked in deep breaths, forcing himself not to cough and give away their position. Chuckles filled the air and Gajeel waited until the forest was silent once more before standing and helping Levy to her feet.
"So…ya still wanna say hi to those blokes?"
Levy shook her head, her blue hair tousled and mussed.
Gajeel nodded and peeked around the tree. "So how do we wanna do this? If we get the jump on them, I can take 'em–"
Levy shook her head before he even finished speaking. "I'm not sure. That's Laxus and Gildarts, some of the strongest in our guild. They became S-Class mages all the way back–"
"Oi!" he clamped a hand over his mouth, peeking around the tree to see if the other mages heard his shout, "have ya forgotten that I used ta be an S-Class mage too?"
Levy bit her bottom lip and refused to look him in the eye. She fiddled with a strand of her hair and rocked on her toes. Gajeel crossed his arms.
"What now?" he growled.
"It's just that…I know you used to be an S-Class mage for Phantom Lord, but…"
"...but what?"
"Fairy Tail is stronger than Phantom Lord?" she whispered, grimacing as she finally glanced up at him.
Gajeel huffed and glared at the tree next to them, her implication twisting in his gut. Levy scooted closer, patting his arm as if he were a pouting child. She gave him a tiny smile.
"Ya know," Gajeel sighed, relaxing his shoulders, "yer lucky yer so cute…if Natsu called me weak I woulda bashed him over the head."
Levy giggled, making Gajeel's lips twitch. With another sigh he peered around the tree. Laxus and Gildarts looked like tiny bugs walking down the road.
"So how do ya think we can get around?"
"How fast can you run?"
Levy placed a hand on his back and peeked around his waist.
Gajeel shrugged, ignoring the way Levy's warmth seeped into his jacket. "Fast enough, I guess."
"Good. How about we run as far as we can and I'll create a hole right under their feet. Once they drop into the ground, I'll create a few more holes to keep them occupied until we're out of sight."
"So we're just runnin' away? And what exactly is yer magic anyway?"
Levy raised a brow at him. "I thought we already discussed how we're not strong enough to take on both of them."
Gajeel snorted. "Fine. Need me ta give you a piggyback ride again?"
He smirked at the tiny mage, watching her adorable nose scrunch as she tried to think of a better plan.
Not so cheeky now, aren'tcha?
Finally, with a heavy sigh, she nodded and motioned for him to turn around.
Fighting back a chuckle, Gajeel obeyed and crouched low to the ground. He regretted his suggestion the moment Levy wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Her arms disappeared and Gajeel staggered.
"Hey, ya getting on or what?" he barked, trying to hide the way his heart hammered as if he had already been running for hours.
Levy played with a strand of her hair, her ears slowly turning a bright red.
"You promise not to tell anyone?" she asked, her glare telling him she wouldn't take no for an answer.
"Not a soul," he answered, lips twitching.
"Not even Lucy?"
"Why would I go and blab to her?"
She'd probably skin me alive if she knew…
Levy's slight weight hopped onto his back. Her arms wrapped around his neck, secure but not choking him. Her hair tickled his ear and he hoped she wouldn't notice the way they burned and turned red.
"...gonna tease me forever if she finds out…"
"What?" Gajeel croaked out before standing.
"Nothing. Let's get going!"
He stood to his full height, hopped a few times to get Levy situated comfortably against his back, and charged forward, managing to focus on the task at hand and not about how much he wanted to spin around and hold her in his arms.