Beauty and the Beast (Gajevy Fanfic)

Chapter 8

As she walked towards her home, she let her mind drift, her eyes focused on the distant sky. She only realized once she got back to her home that she hadn't got her book back out since she left Gajeel. She sighed, her eyes lowering to the floor, a melancholy, thoughtful expression on her face. When she opened the door, she was greeted by her father, who embraced her in a tight hug, fussed over the scars on her cheek, and insisted she take the weight off her feet. He scolded her for walking through the woods alone, but Levy insisted that she hadn't been in any danger. Her father only rolled his eyes and muttered about youth today thinking they were invincible.

It was the very next day that Levy and her father received word that Jet had woken up. He was fine, other than being worried about Levy and Droy, and pissed off about the attack. Wendy, who'd brought the news, told Levy over a cup of tea, that Polyushka said that he should be able to come home in a week or so. Levy smiled happily at the news, but as they had been ever since the day before, her thoughts drifted back to Gajeel.

When Wendy left, Levy made up her mind to go looking for Gajeel. She packed her bag full of food and a couple of books, told her father she was going to spend the afternoon in the nearby meadow, and headed off into the forest. She wandered around for nearly two hours, looking for Gajeel, or his cave, or some sign of him, before she gave up and flopped onto the ground beside a small brook to have a snack and read some more of her book.

It was only once she stopped moving around and calling for Gajeel that she heard it; the soft sound of breathing. She huffed, scowling, and placed her book on her knees. "I know you're there, Gajeel! Come out." There wasn't any doubt in her mind as to who it was. Only Gajeel could have followed her so well and so silently.

After a long pause, in which Levy tapped her fingers impatiently against the spine of her book in a slightly pointed way, Gajeel stomped out of the trees and dropped into a sulky sitting position beside her. "How'd you know I was there?"

"I could hear you." Levy replied, smiling proudly.

Gajeel gave a small half smile. "Impressive." He grunted.

Levy beamed. "Here, I brought you some food." She said, digging round in her back and pulling out the wrapped sandwiches, fruit and other treats. "So you don't go getting hungry." She added with a wry smile. Gajeel all but snatched the food, tearing into it and barely chewing before swallowing. Levy flinched a little when his claws brushed her hand, but recovered and acted as if it hadn't happened. She let Gajeel eat in silence for a while, before she said. "Jet woke up today." She told him.

Gajeel looked up, swallowed the large mouthful of food he'd been chewing, then asked in an awkward voice "How is he?"

Levy could hear the guilt in his voice, though he hid it well, and she could see the worry in his eyes, worry that he'd hurt someone irreparably. "He's... a bit pissed." She admitted. She laughed lightly. "More pissed about this-" She said, raising her bandaged arm. "-than his own injuries."

Gajeel looked away from her quickly. "Sorry." He muttered in a voice so quiet that Levy almost didn't hear him.

As it was, she was convinced she'd heard him wrong. She knew he was sorry, she could see it in his expression, hear it in his voice, feel it emanating from him in palpable waves, but to actually have him say it, that was another thing entirely. She knew people like Gajeel, they had their pride, and it was almost more important than their lives. "Wh- what?" She asked.

Gajeel's shoulders rose self-consciously. "I'm s-sorry." He muttered.

Levy beamed, and, without even pausing to think about what she was doing, she hugged him. "Thank you." She murmured in reply. Gajeel just sat there, his wide eyes staring at nothing in particular as he tried to register what had just happened.

"You're... uh, welcome?" He offered, tentatively wrapping a single arm around Levy's thin form. He closed his eyes, feeling her warmth through his scales, and a smile almost managed to form on his face. Levy smiled cutely, and tightened her hold on Gajeel. She realized that it was rather pleasant, hugging him, despite the fact it wouldn't seem so, him having iron hard scales and all.

Finally she released him and settled back against her tree, picking up her book again and searching for the right page. She was just getting into it when she felt Gajeel lean over to peer at the book. "What's it about?" He asked.

"It's about this Prince of a large kingdom called Fiore that got cursed by an evil witch. On his sixteenth birthday he turned into a dragon, and everyone was afraid of him, so he flew away and found this Princess who'd been locked in a tower by her evil stepmother. He chased the stepmother off, and now they're having loads of adventures together. It's called The Cursed Prince." Levy explained. Upon seeing Gajeel's intrigued expression, she held the book out to him. "Do you want to read it?"

Gajeel sat back on his haunches and pulled a disinterested expression. "Nah. Don't like reading." Levy blinked and deflated, her shoulders slumping, looking highly disappointed. Gajeel immediately felt guilty. "Well, ah... um... I mean... I can't read." He corrected himself in an embarrassed mumble.

Levy looked up in surprise then laughed lightly. "Silly. How can you not like something if you've never tried it?" She asked. She patted the ground beside her. "Here, I'll teach you." She said cheerfully. Gajeel, looking highly embarrassed, but also a tad pleased, scooted closer to her. Levy began teaching Gajeel how to read.

Word count: 998