39Hello, everybody! As you can see, this is a two-person project, the persons being me and UniqueNeko! This is how it works: I'm going to be writing the odd numbered chapters, and she will be writing the even numbered ones, but it will all be on my profile. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy, and we will do our best! This is my first Fairy Tail piece, so bear with possible inconsistencies while I try to get caught up in the canon T-T
"Give it back, Gajeel! It's mine!"
"I don't see your name on it, shrimp! Besides, I found it, so it's mine!"
It was a dark and stormy night in Fiore, and the residents of the (in)famous Fairy Tail wizard's guild were quite restless. Even though a good amount of members had left for the night, the few that remained had been getting quite antsy for some reason or another, most notably two members: Levy Mcgarden, a book-lover and user of "solid script" magic, and Gajeel Redfox, the famous "Iron Dragon Slayer".
"Gajeel, for the last time, that is a bookmark and it belongs to me!" Levy snarled, repeatedly jumping for the object he had placed just out of her reach. "I lost it two weeks ago when we had that party!"
"Yeah, right," Gajeel smirked, holding the object above his head to keep it out of the blue-haired girl's reach. "it's a piece of strip metal, and since I found it, it's mine!"
"I don't understand, Gajeel; why would you want this stupid little piece when you have a whole pile over there!" Levy pointed to the large pile of scrap iron in the corner, which ranged from copper strips, screws, all the way to steel carriage bumpers.
Gajeel's smirked widened, and he let his unique laughter ring out across the building. "Gee hee hee! Because, little bookworm, it is the most deliciously enticing piece of metal I've ever laid my nose on." Gajeel looked back down at her. "If you keep looking at me like that, your face is going to freeze that way, shrimp!"
Sure enough, Levy's face was contorted in that annoyed, borderline-stoic look he always gave her when annoyed, but it quickly shifted back to an angry look. Levy's frown deepened, her eyes narrowing. "But it's mine, you idiot! Look, there are the letters "l", "r", and "m" on it. It's my initials!"
Gajeel's smirk faded as he caught the fancy letters' script etched on the steel, but returned quickly again. "I didn't know you had a middle name, short stack. Care to share with your best friend?" Much emphasis was put on those last two words.
"Rachel. My full name is Levy Rachel Mcgarden, and that bookmark belongs to me because my daddy gave it to me!" Levy cried again angrily. "And...and if you don't give it back, I'll get Natsu to kick your sorry ass again!"
That hit a sore spot with Gajeel. "That weakling's no match for me, shrimp."
A few meters away, the bar-mistress, a white-haired girl named Mirajane, had decided to pipe in. "Damn it, Gajeel, just give it up already. While I've never seen Levy use it before, I'm pretty sure she's telling the truth."
Levy's frown turned into a cocky smirk, and Gajeel growled in dissatisfaction. He knew it was hers, but enjoyed playing games with the the little bookworm, not that he would admit that to anyone. So, without hesitation, Gajeel promptly threw it in the air, where it landed in his mouth.
Levy's face contorted in horror as Gajeel chewed on her precious possession. Although many a normal mage would break their teeth on steel, Gajeel's magic allowed him, and pretty much required him, to eat metal on a daily basis. It allowed him to recharge more effectively than normal food and drink, and gave him a momentary boost.
Gajeel sighed as he felt the thin sheet metal hit the pit of his stomach. "That really hit the spot!"
Levy's eyes were now leaking tears. "I...I can't believe y-you...you ate one of the l-last things I could remember my parents by!" Finding no other way to release her rage, she brought her handbag over her head and smashed it into his unprotected face.
"Yowch!" Gajeel growled, his hands quickly moved to his face in agony. "Wait, Levy, don't be like that!" It was too late, she was already gone out the large door to the guild.
As if to add insult to injury to his already abused face, a glass beer mug flew through the air and struck him in the head, shattering. The culprit was Elfman, Mirajane's little brother, whose eyes were aglow with semi-drunken anger.
"That's so not manly, Gajeel, you jerk! Eating stuff that belongs to ladies is not manly!" He bellowed, storming over to him.
"You wanna take this outside, wierdo?" Gajeel leered, giving Elfman a push. Before a fight could start, Mira and Macao got between them.
"That's enough, both of you!" Mira said with rebuke, her eyes glaring sharply at Gajeel. "I know you haven't been here for as long as most of the members here, but why do you have to be so selfish?"
"Yeah, don't friends help each other?" Macao added.
"Whatever, it's not like it was hers or anything. Besides, she probably has a million like 'em back at home." Gajeel mumbled, his arms crossed, and...cheeks reddening?
Mira, being the flirty type she was, decided to give Gajeel a hard time for being so mean to Levy. "Oh, I get it, you're mean to her because you liiiiiike her..." Mira laughed, her hands on her hips.
Gajeel's eyes widened in shock, something that didn't happen very often. "No way in hell, Mira. I just like making fun of her 'cause she's short, and besides-"
Gajeel didn't even get to finish his statement, as a big lightning flash followed by a gigantic crash of thunder shook the whole building like an earthquake.
"Geez, it's getting nasty..." Gajeel muttered. "I should probably get out of here; I need to make sure Lily's okay back at home."
"No way, Gajeel; not until you apologize to Levy!" Wakaba yelled from a far away table, his big hair flopping around stupidly.
"She ran off, and besides, I'll just do it tomorrow. I don't know why you're so worked up, guys, it's just stupid book-"
Gajeel was interrupted a second time, not by nature, but by what sounded like a scream. It was a most definitely female, and nearby outside the guild.
"That's Levy, I'd recognize that anywhere!" Mira cried, heading for the door.
"Wait, Mira!" Macao and Gajeel ran after her, and were instantly greeted by needle-like rain and wrathy wind. The two finally caught up with Mira, who, along with a visibly distressed Levy, were standing over what looked like a human figure.
Macao gasped and Gajeel's eyes widened. It was a girl, no older than eighteen, dressed in jeans and a leather jacket with a torn, blue shirt. Her black hair was messy and covered in mud, and what appeared to be burns were sprinkled gratuitously across her face and body, but what Gajeel took notice of the most was her face, which was covered in what appeared to be metal piercings, some similar to his own.
Without hesitation, Gajeel put his ear near her chest. He detected a quiet but firm heartbeat; with his strong arms, he reached down and scooped her up, her light body limp in his arms.
"Stop goin' stupid-eyed and get her back, come on!" Gajeel growled to the seemingly frozen Mira, Macao, and Levy. They nodded and dashed off with him, running carefully as to not slip on the wet stone paths.
They crashed back into the guild, where they were greeted by Elfman, Wakaba, and Romeo, Macao's son.
"What the hell?" Elfman whispered as Gajeel began to take her up to the infirmary located upstairs.
"Is she breathing?" Mira asked as she hustled alongside Gajeel.
"Yeah, but barely...her heartbeat's real quiet." He answered gruffly, kicking the door open to the infirmary. There, he set her down on the one of the beds, and left to allow Mira to work her magic.
Gajeel closed the door behind him, only turn and be face-to-face with a very red-faced and damp Levy. "What's the update?"
"Don't know, Mira's doing something," He replied with a grunt. "why don't you go home and get some rest, bookworm. We'll let you see her in the morning if ya want."
Levy's face softened, but she still stood there, a somewhat confused expression on her face. "Why are you staying, then?"
Gajeel was so surprised by her question that he almost lost his balance. "Why do you care, shrimp? I helped bring her in, it should make sense that I'm going to help watch over her. What, you jealous?"
Without warning, Levy began to tear up again. She quickly dashed away, running out of the guild for the second time that night.
"Stupid Gajeel! I care...I care because you're special to me, okay?!" Levy thought angrily to herself as she fled to her apartment in Fairy Hills. "I hate him...I hate him!"
Gajeel took a seat on the floor near the door, rubbing his temples in frustration. He never understood women; even in his years of being friends with Juvia, he could never fully grasp why women were so dramatic about seemingly stupid things.
"It's short stack's fault for being so dramatic. I helped find her, so it's my duty to stay around for her. Besides..." Gajeel put a finger to his chin. "I'd like to ask her about her piercings...gee hee!"
Gajeel sat for at least another hour, nodding off once in a while. When Mirajane opened the door, he almost went through the ceiling.
"You scared the hell out of me." He growled.
"Sorry," Mira giggled. "if you're wondering, she's doing much better. She's breathing and her heartbeat is normal. I also patched up her burns and wounds."
Gajeel sighed in relief. "Good. I guess I can leave, then."
Mira nodded. "Okay, I was going to stay here and keep one eye on her, anyway." He turned to leave as Mira remembered something important. "Oh, and Gajeel..."
He turned. "Yeah?"
Mira sighed annoyingly. "Please promise me you'll apologize to Levy, and get her a new bookmark."
"Fine, fine..."
"And don't be a grump about it, be sincere!" Mira, without warning, got close to Gajeel's head. "I know you like her..." She whispered eerily in his ear.
"I heard ya, geez!" Gajeel muttered as he stalked out of the guild, his improved mood ruined.
While walking home, Gajeel couldn't help but think about the girl. "She was pretty cute, and the piercings were nice to boot. I wonder what her name is?"
As if by magic, he tripped on an unknown object. He snarled as he sat back up, but before he could kick it, he got a look at what it was. A purse.
"Geez, some bitch left her purse out here..." Gajeel growled as he picked up the sopping leather bag. He eyed it suspiciously until he saw a picture of the owner on the identification card on the handle. It was the same girl!
"Emily Darkling? Nice name...and definitely the same girl..." He turned and saw his apartment in the near distance.
"No use going back to the guild and bothering Mira again, I'll just give it to her tomorrow." Gajeel smirked to himself; he couldn't wait to tell Lily all about what happened.
Still...you got some guts, yelling at me like that, bookworm." Gajeel mused one last time before entering his home.
Like it? Please tell me and Neko what you thought? I tried to keep them in character, but probably failed :(
Anyway, we'll work extra hard on this story, and since two people will be working on it, it'll be twice as good. Thanks for reading :D
