Fairy Tail: Journeyman

Chapter 12: Rumors

There was a high-pitched squeal as the kettle whistled from the kitchen, the cabinet drawers clattering as Levy grabbed the mugs and bags for the tea.

I didn't make a sound, holding my knees to my chest on the couch as I wrapped myself in the cream blanket that Levy had fetched from my room.

There was a numbness now that pervaded the silence. The kind that comes from feeling the need to cry even when there are no tears left.

"Here."

A warmth reached out to me as Levy shoved a brightly colored mug into my hands, the smell of peppermint invading my nose.

The couch shifted slightly as Levy found a seat next to me.

The silence continued as she waited for me to speak, but I couldn't find the words, or rather there weren't any.

"So...you want to tell me what's going on?" Levy's eyes were stern, but the concern that lived there still showed.

My lip quivered. "I...I don't know how." I stared into my mug, my reflection blinking back at me. I didn't want to keep this from her any longer, really but... "It's like I'm caught in the middle of a story that doesn't have a beginning. Like you sit down and opened a book just to realize that the first few chapters are just...gone. So, you scour the library, opening every book on every shelf just to come up short so at the end of it all you're still just... stuck."

I sighed.

"Then just start from the middle."

I lifted my head up from my mug to look at Levy, the light hitting her hair in just the right way to make it glow.

"If your story doesn't have a beginning then you just start from where you can." She smiled softly. "I've found that for most stories, even if you don't get to start right at the beginning, you'll pick up all the missing pieces eventually. But to do that, you actually have to keep reading."

I chuckled, fresh tears burning at the corners of my eyes. "Yea...I guess you're right."

I wiped my face with the back of my left hand, before straightening my shoulders.

Levy had always been there for me, and there was no reason for me not to rely on her now. Especially considering that when it came to topics off the beaten path, she was definitely the girl to turn to.

"Have you ever heard of a..." I paused, recalling Loke's last words to me, "journeyman gate?"

Levy's brow crinkled lightly before she brought a hand up to her chin in contemplation.

"Hmmm...I'm sorry but no. I can't say I've read a thing about it." She lifted up an apologetic smile. "And trust me I've scoured the public library backwards and forwards numerous times. Benefits of being a librarian."

My face fell in dejection.

"Why? What is it?"

I groaned, wishing I had answers for her, or rather any answers at all. But in the end, there was only one thing it could be.

"It's the next chapter of the story."

Levy's eyes sparkled with a comforting encouragement. "Well, knowing you it's sure to be a page turner!"

I chuckled nervously, thumbing the rim of my mug. "Not according to my editor."

Giggles echoed throughout the living room as we let it air out the heaviness of the room. As the chuckles stopped, I stared once more back into my mug.

'I'll find it, Loke. I promise.'

As much as I insisted that I would be fine on my own for the remaining few hours of my medical watch, Levy refused to leave me alone. She admonished me, clearly stating that she could no longer trust that I knew what was best for my health considering I had told her I was fine when I was in actuality a wobbling mess when she arrived. Not that I could even remotely explain all the gory details of that.