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Chapter Text

MAGNOLIA UNIVERSITY

EST. 378

Founder: Mavis Vermillion

"Mistakes aren't made by locking your feelings away and holding back, they're made while wearing your heart on your sleeve"

The bluenette pressed her hand against the cool stone of the university signage, tracing her finger's over each letter as she began to bask in the enormity of her new surroundings. The road ahead of her was overwhelmed with the influx of students who arrived for the first day of term. In the near distance there were people hauling luggage towards dorms, closely followed by anxious family, those laughing and reuniting with friends from the previous year, and those… well she didn't quite know what to make of it, but it seemed like two boys were engaged in fiery hand-to-hand combat in the center of the main quads.

"Are you absolutely sure you don't want to change your mind, Levy? I still think we could find you somewhere closer to home" The meek woman was wringing her hands, looking in the direction of the two boys. They appeared to have attracted a bigger crowd now, with a number of people cheering them on, and some having even joined in.

"No mum I'm sure"

Levy swung the backpack across her shoulders and reached down to grab the remaining bags in the passenger-side door of the car. It had taken her two years to get the grades for Magnolia, an additional year to convince her parents to move across the country, and a grueling 2 weeks to make the road trip in time for orientation. Nothing was going to change her mind now.

"I'll be absolutely fine", she smiled, grabbing her mums' hands "This place has access to some of the oldest and most precious manuscripts in the country, just you wait, I'm going to be one of the greatest linguists and translators you've ever seen."

This seemed to relax the tension in her mother's hands slightly, but Levy knew that she, along with the rest of the family, thought that moving here was a bad idea.

A sharp whistle filled the air and Levy looked over to see the skirmish in the courtyard promptly break up. A woman with scarlet red hair appeared to have the instigators by the ear and was dragging them inside the main hall doors, much to their protest. The rest of the crowd quickly dispersed.

"Besides it looks like they are really making an effort to get combat the Fairy Tail and Fairy Hills reputation now"

Levy was of course referring to two of the main residences within Magnolia university. There were six in total, Fairy Tail, Fairy Hills, SaberTooth, PhantomLord, Blue Pegasus, and Lamia Scale. Until recently there had been a sixth residence Phantom Lord, but Levy heard a rumor that this was disbanded because the resident head was involved in an embezzlement scheme. Fairy Tail and Fairy Hills, more than any other were always making the local news due to students running wild, burning down dorms by accident, and causing general mayhem across Magnolia. The only reason students seemed to not get expelled was A: because Magnolia University founder Mavis Vermillion, also started the Fairy Tail and Hills residences; and B: so far no one had managed to get harmed in the crazy antics besides the members themselves. As long as the members paid off the damage and keep the crazy to a minimum, they seemed to be tolerated by the magnolia academic council.

Despite the reputation for housing women with 'fiery' and 'chaotic' personalities, Levy had elected to go to Fairy Hills. She liked the idea of an all-female dorm experience, and besides…

She was the least likely person in the world to get caught up in trouble.

(GAJEEL POV)

*knock knock*

Gajeel stirred, squinting open his eyes to see the alarm clock blinking 2:00PM. His head was still pounding from the night spent with Laxus on the town, and he hadn't made it back to the Phantom Lord dorms until 4AM.

"Fuck off" he grunted, throwing the pillow on his bed in the direction of the door, "I don't have to be downstairs for another 3 hours yet".

*knock knock*

Two knocks, no forced entry into the room?  He thought. Can't be Laxus or the rest of the boys, it must be Juvia

"Doors open" he barked, rolling himself over to face the door as the tall blue-haired woman made her way in.

He never really understood why him and Juvia got along. He wouldn't say they were friends, but he definitely enjoyed her company more than the other Phantom Lord girls. Today she was wearing a floor-length dark-blue dress, matching hat, and held an umbrella in her right hand, even though Gajeel could clearly see sunlight peaking in from under the curtains.

"Bit overdressed don't you think?"

"Juvia doesn't think so" she murmured back, taking a glance around his room and eyeing the number of empty beer cans, smoke trays, and dirty dishes, "At least I am dressed at all."

Gajeel scowled and grabbed the T-shirt hanging over the end of the bed. "Why you in here anyway, I thought you weren't coming back this year?"

"Plans have changed."

Gajeel raised his eyebrows. Since the incident with Jose last year, most of the old Phantom Lord members had left, not wanting to be associated with the rumor of suspected criminal activity. No one from the university had come by to kick them out of the building just yet, but if he had to count, only 1or 7 people remained. Gajeel was fine with this. If anything it proved who the weakest links were in the building. When the going got tough, almost everyone bailed.

"Well don't just take all day, tell me what's happening?"

Juvia reached into her pocket and pulled out a crumpled envelope, "Jose reached out to Juvia and wants us to finish the job this year. He has some instructions on what we need to do." she paused "He also said that if you do it right, he'll take time off your roster, but Juvia doesn't know what that means"

Grabbing the envelope, Gajeel quickly scanned the letter inside. Something like this was just what he needed.

"I think this year is going to be interesting Juvia"

(LEVY'S POV)

Finally getting to Fairy Hills, Levy walked to the end of the corridor and eventually found the door marked 376. She raised her hand towards the handle, but hesitated, realising she could hear a muffled female voice inside.

Roommates? I'm only supposed to have a room to myself she thought anxiously. Levy pulled out the stack of papers admin had given her to check if this was the right dorm. She couldn't understand how a mix up could have happened. Maybe the headmaster has rescinded her scholarship without her knowing and given her place to another student?

Before Levy could do anything else, the door swung open, and a striking blonde woman walked through, clutching a bundle of keys in one hand while speaking into the cell phone in her other. She was definitely taking advantage of the warm magnolia weather, wearing a blue and white mini-skirt combination with a plunging V-neck top that accentuated her generous chest size. Levy wished at this moment that she had dressed in anything this morning other than her old high school sweater and leggings.

Looking up, the girl suddenly registered Levy's presence and finished her phone call "Erza I'll have to call you back"

"I'm so sorry I must have the wrong room" Levy started,

"No not at all you must be Levy!" the girl exclaimed, breaking into a wide grin, "I'm Lucy, one of the Student Residents of Fairy Hills. This is definitely, your room, I just had to do a final inspection and make sure all the lights and locks works."

Levy felt the anxiety leave her body hearing this. Of course it was her room, it was so silly to think she would be kicked out of the program without anyone telling her. She followed Lucy into the dorm room and plopped her bags onto the bed. It was going to be amazing to finally have her own room and not have to share with her brothers and sisters. As much as she loved them, Levy was ready to have her own space that she could decorate as her own.

She took in the sight of the dorm room and started to make plans for where all her books and various posters could be stored. The one thing that caught her eye however were the thin iron bars against her window.

"Oh yes I should explain" Lucy chimed in, seeing Levy give the window a concerned look "Erza and Mirajine, the Fairy Hills self-appointed 'Guild masters', decided at the beginning of this year that we needed to get some extra security installed."

"Is there a reason for that? I always thought the Magnolia campus was really safe"

Lucy blushed a bright pink and waved her hands. "No no nothing like that. We just had a bit of an issue with… certain men trying to sneak into dorm rooms and staying the night" Lucy avoided Levy's gaze. "Unfortunately one of them got caught by Ezra one night trying to fit through an outside window, and the rest is history."

Levy was no detective but Lucy was clearly omitting certain details from this story, probably because she was somehow involved, but Levy felt she wouldn't press the matter just yet.

"Anyway I'll leave you to unpack! Don't forget that orientation week activities start at 6 at Tenroe Bar." Lucy picked up the large bundle of keys in her lap and made her way out of the room. Before closing the door she quickly added in a serious tone

"My advice, If I were you I'd wear clothing you wouldn't mind getting wet tonight"

Chapter Text

(Levys POV)

Levy quickly realised in her first couple of hours of being in Fairy Hills, that this was not going to be a quiet year. In between unpacking her clothes, she had made her way down the hall to the general common area and met some of the other girls that had moved into the dorm rooms around her.

"Cana is going to be your go-to woman if you are looking for a night of partying" Lucy had said, motioning to the brunette woman who was nursing a bottle of wine, and chatting to a couple of other students on the couch. "I haven't heard of anyone who has been able to outdrink her yet though, so don't let her pour you your drinks, she will get super competitive."

Levy had chuckled at this. She hadn't really ever had the opportunity to go out drinking while at home. She had a really large family, and any time not spent at work, school or social clubs were spent with them. She did want to try drinking at one point, but maybe Cana wasn't the best person to do this with for the first time.

"And this is Lisanna" Lucy continued, grabbing the shoulder of a short ash-haired woman "She's a first year like you, although she is a legacy student."

"Yeah my sister is Mirajane" Lisanna said giving a slight chuckle, "and you'll probably meet my brother Elfman later, he's in one the Fairy Tail dorms"

The three of them stayed and talked for a while longer, before running back to their rooms to change clothes before the Fairy Tail event at the main hall. Levy had chosen to put on her yellow bikini under her blue sweatshirt, keeping in mind the hint that Lucy had given her earlier about "wearing something she wouldn't mind getting wet".

There was not much information about what tonight's event would involve. If she had to guess it could be an introductory meet-and-greet so both Fairy Hills and Fairy Tail students could meet. At worst… she gulped, it could be a series of hazing rituals she may have to pass.

She met up with Lucy and Lisanna as they made their way to the main hall across campus. By the main doors, a giant sign had been erected, bearing the name 'FAIRY TAIL' with the line 'NEW STUDENTS WELCOME' directly below. Standing by the doors were also two young women. One Levy guessed was Mirajane. She was the spitting image of Lisanna, albeit a bit older, and was helping to hand out name badges and direct new students inside.

The other girl Levy realized was the scarlet redhead she had seen in the quad before, breaking up the fight of the two other boys. She was a sight to behold up close. She wore a halter neck grey and blue dress combination, with a large brown bag at her side. She thought she could make out a combat knife poking out of one of the seams.

Realizing that she was staring Levy looked away, however not quickly enough for the redhead to notice.

"So you must be Levy, I'm Erza one of the Fairy Hills student leaders"

"Hi! Yes, I'm Levy. I'm sorry I don't think we've met yet."

She gave a warm smile, "I have to admit I have the advantage; Lucy was talking to me about you just before. It's not very often we get someone with blue hair join Fairy Hills."

Levy blushed, instinctively touching the orange headband holding her blue locks in place. "I can change the colour if need be, its was a bit of an impulsive decision before leaving home and I didn't check if there was anything against it on campus…"

"No not at all Levy! It's different, and that's what Fairy Tail is all about. Everyone here brings something new and exciting to the table, whether it be hair colour, skills, or chaotic energy. On that…" she shifted to a more serious tone, "You haven't brought any weapons or drugs to tonight's event, have you?"

"No not at all!" Levy exclaimed. She patted her waist quickly to show she had nothing in her pockets other than her mobile phone and Fairy Hills entry pass.

Erza gave a light-hearted chuckle.

"That's alright, I didn't pick you as the type to bring anything like that here, I just have to ask everyone to make sure" She patted the bag on her hip "You would be blown away at the number of men who have tried to sneak in Leatherman's and knives in tonight. I'm starting to get a rather big collection actually".

Levy laughed weakly. What the hell am I getting myself into

Ticking her name off the list, Erza passed Levy her name badge and she made her way inside the hall. There were at least 60 students here already, with the vast majority seated at several tables scattered around the hall with a drink in hand. Levy spotted Cana sitting on the bar, clearly already in a drinking contest with one of the new students, and Lucy was over in the far corner feeding food to one of the cats that were wandering around.

Alright time to find Jet. Levy thought, scanning the room for the only other person she knew. Spotting the tall orange-haired boy, she made her way over to his table where he seemed to be in deep conversation.

"So I see you have already started to replace me with new friends hey?"

Jet looked with a wide smile and grabbed her hand to pull into the seat next to him.

"The woman of the hour is finally here, Droy I want you to meet Levy. She's my friend from high school I was telling you about."

Droy leaned over to give Levy a fist pump. His dark black hair was slicked back in a tight curl, and Levy could make out a lightning bolt that had been shaved into the right side. Well at least she wasn't the only one making bold hair choices.

"Jet and I are bunking together at the Fairy Tail dorms" he explained, "I'm a first-year Plant Sciences major, so don't be surprised if you hear that our dorm turns into a makeshift greenhouse. I didn't realise Jet had such a stunning girlfriend".

Levy felt her cheeks going red "No actually…."

"Nah its nothing like that" Jet interjected, "Although not for lack of trying. Levy is somehow immune to my gentlemanly charms."

He gave Levy a warm smile and she let out a silent sigh of relief. The subject had been a sore sport between them at the end of the previous year. If anyone had known them during senior year, It would have been a fair assumption to think that she and Jet were together. Levy was at every track meet for Jet to cheer him on, and he had always come by the library during her late night study sessions to bring food and make sure she was taking breaks to eat. It wasn't until the day that they found out that they were both accepted into Magnolia University, that he had pulled her aside and confessed his feelings. Feelings that she did not reciprocate, at least not in a romantic way. Thinking that she had lost her friend, Levy had given Jet some distance over the summer. It was only the week before that he had gotten back in contact and asked her if they could go back to the way thing were before. It probably wouldn't ever be the same, but Levy wanted to try.

"So do you two know what's supposed to happen tonight?" she said changing the subject.

Droy shook his head, "No idea. And anyone who does seems to know isn't letting on anything. Although if I have to guess, it has something to do with the announcement Makarov is about to make" He indicted his head towards the stage at the font.

The short man, who Levy recognised from the Magnolia website as Makarov Dreyar, the head of the Fairy Tail and Fairy Hills, had walked up onto centre stage, closely followed by Mirajine. He coughed once into the microphone, sending static waves through the hall. The conversation came to a sudden silence, and soon every pair of eyes were fixed on the greying man wearing the orange hat and suit combination.

"Welcome everyone" he spoke proudly, "to a new year at Magnolia university. It makes me happier than ever to see the new faces in our hall tonight, and those that have returned to join us for another year. The purpose of tonight is for you to meet new friends, learn more about Fairy Tail, maybe make some rivals" He chuckled waving his finger at the last point. "But as our returning students know, we at Fairy Tail have a more UNORTHODX way of getting you familiar with your new guild mates."

Levy found Lucys face in the crowd, and could see an excited smile curling at the corner of her lips. Sure enough, Erza, Mirajine, Cana and the other returning students she had met, were mirroring the same expressions.

"So that leads me into the main event of tonight. This year's S-Class challenge" Marorov said as the hall erupted into talking and cheering.

"Whats that?" Levy whispered to Jet. She was genuinely surprised she hadn't heard of this before, there was no mention of an S-Class challenge on the Magnolia University website, and not in anything she'd seen online.

"Maybe it's just a Fairy Tail thing?" Jet whispered back. He opened his mouth to continue explain, but Makarov raised his hand to silence the crowd.

"In years past, the S-Class challenge has been offered exclusively to our Fairy Tail and Hills residence members. Our first 'master', Mavis Vermillion, believed that the best way to make friends, and form strong bonds was for members to pair up, in teams of 3 or 4, and over the course of the year, complete various academic, physical, and mental challenges"

"Makarov you're leaving out the most important part"

"Ah yes, thanks Mirajane. There is of course an incentive for you to team up and try and complete the most tasks that you can." He flashed a wide grin, "The team that collects the most points by the end of the year will be the sole recipients of the S-Class scholarship. This means free accommodation at Fairy Tail or Fairy Hills for the remainder of your university time, unrestricted access to the second floor of the guild hall, and your first year of university PAID for."

Levy felt her jaw hit the floor. There was no way this could be real, it was too good of a deal. She swung around to Jet and Droy and grabbed both their shoulders.

"Droy I know we only just met, but we all HAVE to do this"

Droy laughed "I've got no other plans. I'm in".

"Same here!" Jet said, returning the wide grin on Levys face "with speed, botany, and brains between us, we'll be unstoppable"

Once again, Mararov was battling the intense energy of the guild hall to try and get everyone's attention. The short man had now climbed on top of the nearby bartop to try and get the extra height over the heads of the crowd.

"As I was saying…"

His voice was drowned out by the pink-haired boy Levy had seen fighting in the quad before.

"Just you wait I'll beat all of you! Especially you Gray!" He pointed towards the other boy involved in the fight. "I'm going to make you cry in front of everyone!"

"I'll make you cry before you even get a hit in Salamander"

They stepped towards each other, rolling up their sleeves respectively.

With a smack, Makarovs' cane swung down on the boys head,

"I wasn't done." he growled "There are a couple exceptions to the scholarship this year. As I said earlier, the scholarship USED to be exclusive to Fairy Tail. At the advice of the Magnolia Council, Fairy Tail needs to take more steps to distance ourselves from the chaotic behaviour we've let slide in the past" He shot a glare at Gray and the pink-haired boy.

"Therefore, this year moving forward, the winning team for the S-Class Scholarship must contain at least one member from one of the other resident halls on campus. For the first few weeks of course your team can just be Fairy Tail, while you all make new friends, but by April we will need your finalised team names and numbers"

Someone from another residence? Levy thought to herself. Well that'll be easy. She hadn't have any troubles making friends in the past, and Droy seemed very likable.

"What about the people from the old PhantomLord hall and Cait Shelter?" Lucy piped up "Can we include them while the students figure out where they are moving"

Makarov seemed to think on this a moment. "For the students from Cait Shelter, yes. Most of the students there have already transferred to other residences, I think we have a student coming to Fairy Hills actually. Now on PhantomLord." He paused. "The council is yet to make an official decision on what happens with the residence, since they believe the students should not be punished for the actions of Jose, their old guild master. Until we receive more advice on this, yes you are welcome to include those from PhantomLord."

"When do we start?" Cana yelled out.

"You start tonight. Mirajane do you want to explain the point system?"

Mirajane nodded, and pulled down on a large black sheet, revealing a notice board covered in flyers and brochures of different sizes and colours.

"This" she said gesturing to the many flyers, "is the S-Class task board. Each flyer contains information related to a challenge that has been set by Fairy Tail executives or the Magnolia council. Each one is colour coded based on how many points your team will receive for completing it. The easiest tasks will on printed on Green paper and will go all the way up to the hardest ones which will be printed on Silver paper. Some tasks could include deciphering a riddle or text, completing physical challenges, or scavenger hunts, but not every challenge will require your whole team, and may only request 1 or 2 people to complete so choose carefully."

She pointed to the largest blue poster in the center of the board, marked as AVERAGE TO CHALLENGING.

"Tonight, to get everyone on equal footing, you'll all be completing the same challenge called: Retrieve the Key"

From her pocket she withdraw a large brass silver key, with the Fairy Tail insignia tied onto a label around it.

"Earlier today, myself, Makarov, Erza, and some of the other Fairy Tail leadership team hid dozens of these keys in various water features around campus. As many of you know the campus has several ponds, fountains, and pools and other facilities. Each team is to retrieve on of these keys and bring them back to the guild hall to get their first points."

Levy found Lucy's eyes in the crowd again and gave her a grateful nod. At least she now knew why they would be getting wet tonight and now, she had the advantage of wearing swimmers.

"Now in terms of the points you receive on your keys, there are a couple of conditions" Mirajane continued, "Depending on the location of the key and how hard it is to reach, you will receive either more or less points. You will be able to tell how many points a key will give you based on what is written on the label. So depending on how quick you are, a team can choose to leave a key in pursuit of a more valuable one if they get there first. There is one key that is worth more than any of the others, but it will also be the hardest to find".

Levy could immediately see a problem with this challenge. As she glanced outside she could see that the sun had already set while they had been in the hall. Finding a key in a dark body of water would be next to impossible. Should I ask about it? Maybe it's part of the challenge?

As if she could read her mind, Mirajine reached behind the bar and presented a box filled with thick plastic sticks.

"Each team can take one light stick per person to aid them in finding the keys in the water. These have been modified to only provide light for approximately 45 seconds. So be strategic in how you use them, no one will receive extra points for being the first team back, it's all about the points of your key."

"What happens if you don't want to complete this one?" someone shouted out, "Like what if we don't want to get wet, how many points will we lose".

Mirajine seemed to twitch slightly. "you…don't like my challenge?" Her eyes began to swell with tears, causing Erza to leap onto the stage and take over the microphone.

"Of course no one tonight will be forced to complete tonight's challenge if they do not want to, feel unsafe to, or feel unwell. For the purpose of safety, this will be one of the few tasks that has no time limit, so you can complete over several days or months if you wish. No team will not receive negative points for withdrawing. However…" her eyes blazed competitively, "this is the only challenge that myself and Mirajaine will be abstaining from, so you might want to give yourselves the head start."

It was almost like the mood of the room changed entirely, and a cold breeze had swept through the hall. Between Mirajaines stifled sobs and Erza's glare, it was unlikely that anyone would be brave enough to sit this one out.

"Alright then." Makarov hesitantly interjected, "Everyone team up, even if you don't know anyone just find a buddies, make a team, record your names and team name at the front, grab your glow sticks, and off you go!"

(Gajeels POV)

Crouched comfortably in a nearby bush, Gajeel listened through his headphones to the muffled voice of mirajine explaining the S-Class challenge.

"Juvia wants to hear whats going on" his companion pouted, "How did you can access to this anyway?"

"Laxus is banging the she-devil from Fairy Hills." he grunted, "I told him to install a listening app on her phone earlier today, but its crap quality. Now shut up, I can't hear"

He remained silent for a couple minutes longer, before unplugging the headphones and quickly standing up.

"We have to go. They'll be starting to come out now"

"Well whats happening?"

Gajeel quickly recounted the conversation he had just overheard, as the two of them began to hurry away from the hall. The lack of direct moonlight would hide their presence for now, but they couldn't afford to be seen by anyone, especially Makarov.

"How come their guild gets to have all the fun." Juvia said once they had stopped, "I also don't understand what this has to do with us?"

"This challenge is how we infiltrate Fairy Tail, and then the university council." Gajeel said pulling off the bag around this shoulders, "Jose mentioned this in his letter. The first step is that we make sure that Phantom Lord gets disbanded, and that all of us that are left are absorbed in their guild. Only way to do that, is give them a reason to hate us."

From his bag he withdraw two cans of deep-purple spray paint, a bag of rope and some black ski masks. Quickly checking to make sure they weren't followed, he tossed Juvia one of the ski masks. "Put this on"

"Juvia likes Gajeel only as a friend " she said quickly "I don't want to be involved in weird kinks you have"

"Not for you" He smirked, "You couldn't handle what shit I'm into, but that's beside the point. We're going to use these to get the jump on one of the Fairy Tail teams tonight, tie them up, knock em out, and make sure that everything thinks Phantom Lord is responsible."

"Why would they absorb Phantom Lord into Fairy Tail if they think we are behind the attack"

"Because it sends a message to the council that our guild cant be left without a management team. And it gives Fairy Tail a bigger chance to rehailitate their image by taking in the people who were also victims of the attack, since we're also going to make it look like some PhantomLord students were attacked as well. Probably Totomaru, he's been pissing me off lately."

Juvia folded her arms. He half expected her to object to this, say that she wouldn't get involved in beating up students or risk getting expelled, but she stayed quiet. Hmm maybe there is more to you than I thought.

"Okay, well where are we doing this? I assume you want it done tonight"

Gajeel grabbed a dirty copy of a magnolia university map and held it towards her"You're the water science major, try and figure out where a key might be hidden that's remote from the rest of them. Must be somewhere on campus a team will venture out to, but not too common where people will see us get the jump on them"

"Just because I study water, doesn't mean I know where all the water features are on campus OR where they may have hidden keys" Juvia said gruffly, taking the map, "anyway what are you going to do?"

Gajeel grabbed a hair tie from his jacket pocket and pulled his hair into a tight ponytail, allowing for one of the ski masks to cover all his features. With a shake he slid off his black studded jacket and replaced it with the oversized blue jumper he had pulled from lost property that afternoon. With any luck, the clothes would disguise his build, and the fight would be over quickly enough before anyone could recognise him. The old-man is just too paranoid he thought, thinking back to Jose's letter, I could take any of those Fairy Tail twerps any day, but I guess the piercings would give me away.

Reaching back inside the bag a final time, Gajeel fished out the alternative clothing he picked out for Juvia and handed them over.

"I'm going to make sure we don't get caught"

(Levys POV)

"So team names?"

The inside of the hall had cleared out quickly following the end of the S-Class announcement. Levy had watched helplessly as the pink-haired boy, who she now learned was named 'Natsu', had grabbed Lucy by the wrist within the first 30 seconds and ran them out the door, closely followed by Gray and a brunette boy with glasses. Those remaining inside including herself Jet, and Droy, had pushed the furniture against the edges of the hall and had spread out on the floor with maps of the university.

"How about team MetalGear?" Droy suggested, "It's a classic game and it'll make it sounds like were super strong"

Jet nodded, "I like it, but I think it needs something extra. Levy you haven't played the game, what's something that's 'classic' for you".

"Shadow and Bone" Levy blurted out before she could stop herself, "sorry that's my favourite book. Maybe we could combine the name, maybe Team MetalBone or ShawdowGear?"

"That's the one!" Droy said, grabbing the sheet of paper in front of them and scribbling down the name, "We'll be Team ShadowGear, otherwise known as the winning team for this year's challenge. Well that's depending on how we start out tonight"

"That I'm working on" Levy pushed up her glasses and pulled closer some of the maps that were scattered in front of her. "The obvious choices for keys will be the pools and fountains, but they'll also be the easiest since you won't need to use the glow sticks to get them. So we ignore those ones. The next options are the pond outside of the administraion office, the moat that backs onto Lamia Scale, or the large outdoor pool owned by Sabertooth."

"And why aren't we going there?" asked Droy

"Again it's too easy. Plus we might get done for trespassing for Lamia Scale and Sabertooth and that's not how I want to start my year. That only leaves one choice for us, the Magnolia river."

"Surely they won't have put anything there since its free flowing water? Plus I thought they said that the keys are only being put on campus? Doesn't the river only run through the town?"

Levy smiled and pulled out one of the books in her hand titled Magnolia: A History. The page she had marked showed a map of the Magnolia campus from 85 years earlier. She placed this down next to the brochures they had of the current campus to show the comparison.

"So the river USED to run through the campus" she said dropping her voice to a whisper, "but over time, the landmarks have changed and the river has diverted to the town, like it is now. From what I can see here though, it's likely that a small reservoir or underground containment of water could still be located on the northwest side of the campus. Given that this map aligns with when Master Mavis was alive, I think it would be safe to say that the guild would know about it."

She quickly closed the book after noticing Cana staring at the three of them from across the room.

"Anyway if I'm wrong we can try the other places I mentioned, but If I had to put my money on where the key with the most points is, it'd be here."

"Well' I don't need any convincing, let's do it!" Jet said getting to his feet.

Soon after the three of them took off from the hall, being careful to make sure they weren't followed. They arrived roughly 15 minutes later at the site on the map Levy had marked out on the map. But to their immediate disappointment, there was nothing there. Nothing that resembled water anyway.

"I'm so sorry guys I must have been wrong" Levy said quietly, scanning her eyes over their location. All she could make out was the entrance to the forest, the university boundary fence, and some wild mushrooms growing by a thicket of bushes "I could have sworn it would be here." After a further 5 minutes of searching, she was ready to admit defeat, and began to pull out the map again to plot their new course. "Alright guys how about we try the admin pond…"

"Levy stop you were right!"

Jet and Levy spun around to see Droy on his knees, holding one of the mushrooms near the fence. He turned it over in his hands and was and examining it closely, "Do you know what these are? They are called psathyrella aquatica, they're a type of fungi that only grows near an active body of water, the soil must be super damp!"

"But we couldn't find anything Droy" Jet said sounding defeated, "the soil could just be wet after some heavy rainfall."

Without warning Droy stood up still holding the mushroom and jumped over the boundary fence, hurrying away into the bushes shouting "Follow me!"

Where the hell is he going? Levy thought following Droys lead and chasing after him, There's no path marked out here, we could get lost… but before she could finish her thought she saw where they were running to. The mushrooms that Droy had picked were now rapidly multiplying in number, and the ground below her started to squelch under the weight of her shoes from all the moisture in the ground. The fungi trail lead them down into to a small reservoir which revealed, as they had hoped, a body of untouched sparking water. Levy had to admit that it was slightly larger than she thought it would be. The length of the water catchment was roughly 3 swimming pools long, and without the overhead moonlight, it was difficult to see how deep it actually was. But that didn't matter, because they had found it, and they were the first.

Taking no time to celebrate the three of them quickly unloaded all their gear by the side of the water, stripped down to their swimmers, and each grabbed one of the glow sticks they had picked up on the way out of the hall.

"So how do we want to do this?" Levy asked, pushing an orange headband on to keep the hair out of her eyes, "Do we want each of us to have a turn going in, or one person goes down three times?"

"Let's have all of us go down." Jet said, "not fair for one person to get wet while the rest of us just watch while dry, we'll do it as a team" Stepping into the water, Jet cracked his glowstick, and started to shake it as the yellow light got brighter. "Each person can do a different area of the water, if we luck out, we'll find it tonight and return as heroes. If not, we can return another day when we don't need the glowsticks to see." Without another word he dove under the water and Levy and Droy watched as the bright light from his stick moved quickly under the base of the water. After 45 seconds, he emerged, shaking his head at the two of them. "Droy you're up"

Moving further along the water Droy dove in the water and with a splash, emerged just under a minute later with a massive smile on his face.

"Did you get it!" Levy exclaimed.

"No" he said panting, treading water where he was, "But I saw it, just as my light when out, or at least I think I did. It was sitting right above one of the rocks on this side" He tried to point in the general area, but Levy knew she wouldn't be able to get a better picture until she got in. Shivering quietly Levy waded into the water and swum out to where Droy was floating. He grabbed her arm and positioned her above where he pointed before, as she waited for her glowstick to start working.

"So just go straight down" he said, "And if you can't get it or if I was wrong, don't worry, but I have faith"

Levy nodded and with a final breath she swam straight down into the water, brandishing the glowstick in front of her. She was right about the water looking deceptively large, from her first glance it looked to be over 15 meters deep, with tall reeds poking out from the bottom of the water bed.

(40 seconds)

She scanned rapidly to find the area Droy was referring to. The key is above one of the rocks she thought. Well that's not very helpful, this side is completely covered in them.

(20 seconds)

Levy had started running the glowstick over the tops of nearby rocks to get better visibility and see if she accidentally knocked anything off. Even with the glowstick, she could barely see anything that was further than a meter in front of her. A couple of times she thought she might have found the key, but it just turned out to be another rock, stick, or in one case, a rather disgruntled crab.

(15 seconds)

I'm running out of time

Levy could feel her breath starting to escape her in small bubbles around her lips, as she circled back around the area she just searched to try again. There were too many places it could be. Even if they had another 10 glow sticks, they probably would still never find it.

As if on cue, the glowstick started to flicker, and she knew she must nearly be out of time. She spun around to have one more desperate look. She was so sure it was here. It had to be here.

And then she saw it. The shimmer of the large brass key, with the Fairy Tail label tied around the handle, sitting right in front of her.

(5 seconds)

In sheer shock Levy gasped, releasing the remainder of her air into bubbles which floated towards the surface. It was now or never.

She grabbed the key in her hand and with a kick off the floor she swam towards the surface with newfound energy. Surely this would be the most valuable key.

(0 seconds)

Levy broke the surface gasping as the light on the glowstick faded completely.

"Guys I found it!" she yelled, thrusting her right hand with the key towards the sky. She turned around to face them. But asides from their gear and discarded dry clothes, the boys were gone.

"Jet, Droy?" Levy said again, scanning the bank for them, "This isn't funny, where are you?"

"Levy RUN!"

She felt chills come over her body as she found the source of Jets voice in the trees. She hadn't heard him sound like this before, his voice was frantic. She squinted harder and could make out where he was in the distance. She could recognised Jets silhouette, but there was someone else with him. She could make out a large dark figure who seemed to have grabbed Jet by the neck. They were too tall to be Droy, and she was sure they hadn't been followed. Is that a student? She thought weakly

"Jet whats going on!" she shouted, feeling her voice tremble. She started to make her way towards the edge of the water, feeling all her insides twist at the feeling of something being wrong.

She watched helplessly as the unknown persons fist collided with the side of Jets face, and with a crash, he fell to the ground without moving. Levy screamed, and the figure continued to kick Jet on the side, despite his pleas for him to stop. This continued until Jet finally stopped yelling, and levy saw the figure spit onto the ground next to him. They turned, and Levy knew she was a sitting duck if she stayed where she was. Frantically she began to swim in the opposite direction, tears running down her face at the thought of Droy and Jets condition.

With a small splash, Levy didn't even register as the key slipped through her fingers and drifted back down into the water.

Chapter Text

(Gajeels POV)

"Well, Juvia I have to give you more credit"

Gajeel grinned as he watched the figures of two men from his hiding spot behind the cave. The first was pacing the waters edge, while the other hung back, seemingly to wring out his wet clothes.

He couldn't have planned this any better.

"We got lucky" Juvia murmured, "Besides they might not be the only ones to find this place so we need to hurry." She had taken ample precautions to ensure they weren't followed, but an uneasy feeling sat in the pit of her stomach

"Quit your yapping I know."

From his jacket pocket he pulled out a well-worn set of knuckle rings and slid them over his fingers. For a brief second, he thought he saw his eyes reflected in the metal. Time to get this done. Quickly. Before he could stand up though, he felt Juvia grab his sleeve, nearly causing the two of them to topple over.

"What the hell!" he hissed, yanking her arm away

"Don't be stupid" she said indicating to the rings, "even Juvia knows that those will make it much easier for them to find out who did this"

"Jose doesn't have to know. Besides, having bloodied knuckles will give me away more, so its better to use these."

Looking at her face he could tell she didn't agree, but her grip on his jacket seemed to reluctantly weaken.

"Now hang back" he continued "I can take the two of these twerps easily, and you need to make sure we don't get disturbed. Use your womanly charms or something."

"No need to be condescending." Juvia grumbled while going slightly red. "Now hold up your end and don't get caught"

Smirking, Gajeel pulled the black ski mask over his face and drew close to the ground, slowly making his way towards the unsuspecting duo below.

...

Gajeel panted as he chased after the blonde-haired Fairy Tail member. He had managed to knock out the other almost instantly, leaving him lying near the water's edge, but this one was faster. So far he had been able to evade him, sprinting in between the trees and changing directions at random.

Why aren't you running back towards the university? Gajeel thought, slowly trying to close the gap between them. He liked the chase, but he was slowly losing stamina, and until he caught him, they were vulnerable to getting caught.

"Levy RUN!"

Gajeel watched as the boy exited the trees once again, with his head snapped towards the water. Whether he intended it or not, the extra concentration he used to scan the surroundings caused his footing to slip, allowing Gajeel to close the precious seconds separating them.

Without losing momentum Gajeel slammed his fist against the boy's temple, letting his body crumble beneath him. This is the part I like. He smirked pushing him to the ground and kicking him hard in the shin. "You shouldn't make yourself such an easy target" he muttered to himself, but the sound of his own voice was drowned out by the boy's cries and spluttering. After a moment though he fell silent.

Knew I'd catch you, Gajeel thought, stepping back and spitting at the boy's feet. Now more importantly who were you calling out to…where's Levy?

Finishing his thought, he locked his eyes on the water. In the distance he could make out the splashing of a girl making her way towards the edge. At this rate there was no way he would get there in time.

"Rain Woman!" Gajeel roared "GRAB HER"

As if on cue he watched Juvia emerge from the trees, jump into the water below, and began to swim quickly towards the girl.

By the time he had made it to their location Juvia had caught her. They had made it out of the water, and Juvia struggled to hold on to her, as the blue-haired girl thrashed against her trying to get loose. From afar he could see that she was only in a yellow bikini, and her bared skin was red with scratches and nail marks.

"Who are you!" she screamed as he made his way towards them, "We are students at the university, we didn't do anything wrong! Don't touch me!"

Normally he would respond with something snarky, make a comment about how she was dressed, but there was something different about this. There was no doubt that she was scared, but her voice was defiant, not cracking or whining. Her body betrayed her though, he could see her legs compulsively shaking as if they would give out at any time. No time to play Gajeel

Clenching his fist a final time around the metal cuff, he drew his energy into a final strike and collided with the girls face. Her brown eyes rolled back almost instantly, and Juvia attempted to catch her as she fell to the ground.

"Gaj-"

"No names" he cut in, "She's out, but I don't want to take any chances'

"You didn't have to be so violent, especially to a girl"

"I took her out in one punch Juvia, you know me, that was taking it easy. Anyway give her to me to carry, we have to start stage 2 now."

Bending down Gajeel took a longer glance at the girl that was now unconscious. Like the others, he didn't recognise her. Must be a first year. He thought. Smirking he wrapped his fingers around the yellow ribbon in the blunettes hair.

I think I'll take a souvenir Levy

24 hours later

[LEVYS POV]

"Levy are you awake?"

With great difficulty, Levy opened her eye to try and adjust to what was happening.

It was cold, and she felt heavy. Do I have a blanket on me? How did I get back to the dorm?

"Levy it's Lucy, we're here. Mira go grab master, hurry."

Raising a hand to rub her eyes, Levy squinted as the blurry figure in front of her morphed into her friend from the day before. Behind her stood the Fairy Tail matriarchs Erza and Mira, with Cana asleep on a chair by her bedside.

"What are you guys doing?" Levy started feeling genuinely confused, "where am I?"

As her eyes began to adjust Levy began to notice the details in the room. The dull beeping of computers to the right of her. The bundle of her clothes on the floor. The smell of disinfect and hand sanitizer. The pain in her head.

I'm in the hospital

Levy raised her hand towards the source of the pain in her temple but was stopped by Lucy.

"Levy you can't touch it at the moment. The nurses only changed your dressings a little while ago."

"J-Jet? Droy? They were with me, where are they?" Levy could feel her heart racing, as her mind went into overdrive, trying to remember where they were, and what happened after leaving the guild hall.

"You've been in an accident Lev.." Mira started

"Oh just call it what it is Mira. This was no accident, don't insult her intelligence." Erza snapped, speaking in a level of ferocity that matched the colour of her hair. She took a step forward and found a place at the end of Levy's bed. She paused a moment, apparently trying to collect herself before speaking again.

"Levy last night you, Droy and Jet were victims of an attack. You are the only one awake so far, Droy is in recovery, and Jet is still in surgery."

"A-are they going to be okay?"

Erza nodded. "They'll pull through. We have you all in the best medical practice in Magnolia"

"Cana found you around 2AM" Lucy continued, "all of you. You were all bloodied, beat-up, and tied to one of the trees in the main quad with other phantom lord members. We think someone was trying to send a message."

Levy glanced over to Cana who now had one eye opened but continued to rest her head on the chair frame. Her eyes had heavy grey bags below them, as if she'd been awake for hours.

"I remember you were watching me last night." Levy said, "In the guild hall."

"Yeah" Cana responded hoarsely, "Truth be told I was trying to cheat at the challenge. I had a feeling you'd be brainy enough to figure out where the best keys were and I was going to try and follow along behind you. I should have been there faster. I wasn't even the first one to get to you."

It was at this point Levy finally took notice of the boy standing at the far end of the room. He was dressed in a heavy black ensemble with his hair hanging low below his shoulders. Despite the rapid chatter between everyone else, he seemed to be deeply immersed in his phone. Occasionally she could catch glints of the screen occasionally reflecting off the piercings running down his nose.

If he was a member of Fairy Tail, she didn't recognise him.

Realising she was staring; Levy quickly averted her gaze back to Lucy. The blonde had tears in eyes but was trying to hide it through quick wipes of her sleeve.

"Thankyou for being here" Levy whispered, "I knew you and I would be friends."

Lucy squeezed her hand and met Levy's eyes again with a smile.

"Levy, you're awake thank goodness"

Despite being of small stature, Makarov entered the room with a stream of knocked over hospital equipment and angry nurses left in his wake. For a small man he somehow managed to cause just as much chaos as the rest of Fairy Tail without intending to. Puffing, he hurried to the edge of Levys bed and took the seat vacated by Cana.

"First things first, how are you feeling? Can you remember anything at all? We need as many details as you can give us to get the deviants behind this"

The second half of this question earnt the man a swift head slap from Mira.

"She has just woken up, don't harass her"

"No its okay!" Levy waved her hands, "I can only remember fragments at the moment. Jet near the water, a shadowed figure, a flash of metal. I'm sorry I know that's not helpful."

Feeling frustrated, Levy scrunched up the bedsheets under her hand and felt tears beginning to well. She could tell she had the undivided attention of the room, and even the boy in the corner now seemed to be listening intently to what she was saying.

"Don't be discouraged Levy" Markarov placed his hand on her shoulder "You've been through a traumatic event, no one is expecting you to do anything other than get better and heal."

Levy sniffled, wiping her nose quickly on her sleeve. "I haven't asked yet, how did I get here? To the hospital I mean. The whole school didn't see me tied to the tree did they?"

Everyone went silent, and the unidentified boy took a step forward.

"I helped Cana bring you in early this morning." He said, sliding his phone back into his pocket, "Gajeel Redfox, I'm one of the remaining Phantom Lord members. Although I'm assuming now its former member."

Makarov nodded his head, turning back to Levy "We aren't going to take any chances, not with you kids having been hurt as bad as you were. The only way we deter this type of despicable activity is to put the Fairy Tail guild under immediate supervision, starting with the dissolution of Phatom Lord and transfer of all students into other residences. The suspected culprit, Laxus, has already been suspended pending expulsion. Gajeel has requested to come to Fairy Tail, which I have granted based on his help in retrieving you and notifying us of the incident."

"I still think it's very convenient you 'just happened' to be nearby and helped, despite never giving us a bar of your time in the past" Cana piped up, glaring over at Gajeel

"What can I say Cana" he responded, his lip curling into a smile "Lucky I was on my nightly walk. Maybe you need to stop being so prejudice towards Phantom Lord."

"Nonetheless" Makarov interjected, "all Phantom Lord members INCLUDING Gajeel will be subject to interviews by the university council, while we figure out exactly what happened last night."

He lowered his voice and leaned into Levys bedside "This is a personal failure on me that I allowed you three to be hurt while in Fairy Tail's care. I hope you can accept my deepest apologies and bear with me as we sort out this incident. Naturally I will call your parents and inform them of…"

"Oh no please don't do that" Levy interjected, much louder than she intended, "Sorry sir, but it took everything I had to get here in the first place. Please don't give them a reason to bring me home."

She pulled her fist to her chest and let a smile come across her face. "Everyone at Fairy Tail has been so lovely to me and its only been 24 hours. I have so much more to give sir."

In a move that surprised nearly everyone in the room, these words made Makarovs head fall back in loud messy tears "That's the Fairy Tail spirit" he wailed, "you'll fit in just fine here"

By this point the noise in the room had finally pushed the limits of what the nurses tolerated, with a short stocky woman ordering everyone out to let Levy rest

"Wait, can I quickly talk to you?"

Gajeel paused at her question, lingering behind as the rest of the room cleared out, much to the protests of Cana.

"Don't you need to sleep?" He asked while glancing at his phone. There were now 6 missed messages from Juvia. He'd have to deal with that in a second. He never expected to be in the girls' room for so long. But the drunkard had made it impossible for him to leave. She was already suspicious enough of him enough as it was.

"I just wanted to thank you. When I get well enough to leave I want to make it up to you"

He quickly glanced up, "oh, whatever its fine. Like I said I happened to be walking past. Anyone with a brain would have helped out."

Levy was taken aback by this. For someone who apparently helped of his own free-will and wanted to join Fairy Tail, he seemed to have little interest in getting to know them. Just like Cana said.

I don't want to be suspicious just because someone thinks I should be, but he isn't inspiring much confidence.

"So you're joining Fairy Tail?" she pressed.

"Suppose so." He grunted, "Gotta go somewhere."

Levy could tell he was uncomfortable, but she didn't want to push the matter any further. The morphine drip was starting to take its effect and she knew that within the next 5 minutes she'd be asleep again.

"Well, I mean it. Once we get better, I want to make it up to you. Besides you probably won't know that many people. We can all be new people together"

For the first time he flashed her a grin, chuckling and adjusting his jacket over his shoulders.

"Well I'll suppose I'll have to see how you feel about ex-Phantom Lord people when you get out. I'll see you around shorty."

Chapter Text

(Levy's POV)

In the two months following what was now dubbed "the Magnolia Fairy Tail Attack" Levy had learnt approximately 3 things about Gajeel Redfox:

1. He was a second-year ex-phantom-lord resident, now transferred into Fairy Tail

2. According to Lucy, Gajeel and Natsu knew each other as children, but ended their friendship on bad terms

3. Last year he lost a drinking bet against Cana and had to get a piercing in a place of her choice. Neither one is allowed to disclose where it is.

She couldn't be sure how true the last one was. For someone that Levy now saw rather often, she had to keep reminding herself that she, along with the rest of Fairy Tail, knew very little about him. He had returned to the hospital with Lucy and the rest of the Fairy Tail crowd a couple of times but chose to always stand towards the back on his phone. It turned out that the wound on her forehead wasn't too deep, with the nurses mainly wanting to monitor her concussion. All things considered, she felt grateful that she could hide most of the scarring beneath her headband and the wisps of her hair.

When she had been discharged just over a week later, Levy continued to see him floating around campus. Once or twice, she saw him talking with another blue-haired woman, who she later learned was named 'Juvia'. She had been the only other Phantom Lord resident to put Fairy Tail as their first preference for transfer, with everyone else going between Lamia Scale or Sabertooth. Levy was yet to meet Juvia in person, but Lucy had passed on that she was "very intense" and had been seen in a shouting match with Gajeel more than once. The jury was still out on if they were just friends or if it was anything more.

Droy and Jet took much longer to leave the hospital. Between the two of them they had collected several broken ribs, fractures, and bruises. The biggest concern originally was Jets' future as a runner, since the majority of his injuries were focused on his chest. In all the times she visited, he had come off as positive, always reinforcing that "it could have been much worse, I still have my legs!"

She knew he was just trying to make her feel better.

But now, 2 months later they were out, and the three of them wasted no time in trying to catch up with the rest of the guild on the S-Class Challenge. Levy earnt them 50 points by restacking books at the Public library, Droy scored 75 points by replanting vegetable seeds at the University greenhouse, and Jet had finished first in a Fairy Tail pie-eating competition, resulting in another 25 points. This aside though, the three had outspokenly decided to not do any challenges marked MODERATE (Pink) or above.

This made the response to Lucy at dinner much easier.

"Lev you sure you don't want to partner with Natsu and the rest of us for this one?" Lucy said sliding one of the flyers across the table. It was marked INTERMEDIATE (Purple) and had the title "Locate and Retrieve Fiore Black Currants. Location: Serene Cliffs.

"I think it's only marked INTERMEDIATE because it's out of town. The four of us were just going to take the train up on the weekend, and we thought It'd be perfect for you guys to join since Droy is so great with identifying plants and all. We could split the points?

Levy pretended to read over the sheet and then politely passed it back.

"No thanks Lucy, I don't we aren't quite ready for that yet"

"Lev…" she pressed

"No Lucy, I don't want to risk anything. The boys are still recovering, and I can't put them through something like that

"Then maybe you just need someone stronger on your team."

Levy and Lucy both turned their heads as Gajeel grabbed the chair across the table, and settled into it. Between his teeth sat an unlit cigarette, and the cuffs of his jacket sleeves were rolled up, showing off his arms.

"This is a private conversation Gajeel" Lucy snipped

"We're in a public dining hall, and almost everyone is shouting" he nodded in the direction of Natsu and Grey who were currently engaged in a yelling match over how to properly barbeque a fish.

"Anyway" he continued, "If you're worried about being jumped again, add me to your team. No ones beaten me yet."

"That's interesting because I remember Natsu told me about a time…"

"The Salamander had a shitty memory" he interrupted, scowling at the mention of the pink-head, "Last time we fought he didn't walk for days"

"This isn't exactly inspiring confidence in letting you join team ShadowGear." Levy said hoarsely, "You weren't there. It's only natural that we have to ease back into this."

Gajeel blinked, letting his chin rest on his hand.

"Okay I'm not even going to touch how you guys settled on "ShadowGear" as a name, but I'm dead serious. You add me in and no one else is going to fuck with you guys. Besides…" he smirked "You were the one who said they wanted to 'owe me one' at the hospital. Way I look at it, you help me and I'll help you."

"What about what Makarov mentioned?" Levy said thinking back to their conversation in the hospital. "Isn't there still an investigation going on with all ex-phantom-lord members?"

"Got cleared last week" he said keeping his eyes fixed on Levy, "Did my interviews with the council, Makarov and the rest of the old geezers in power, and they ALL agreed that I had nothing to do with it. All evidence pointed to Laxus like everyone thought"

"Convenient" Cana said loudly, walking by the table on her way back to the bar

At this, Gajeel stood back up, kicked the chair back under the table, and started to make his way towards the dining hall doors.

"Let me know what you decide Shorty but know this. If I join your team, we aren't going to be seen as weak"

"Absolutely not."

"Jet will you at least consider it!" She pleaded, putting down her bag on the grass to sit next to the two boys. It was a rare occasion for all three of them to have a break in the middle of their classes, and Levy knew she had to take the opportunity to bring up Gajeel's request.

"Levy we know absolutely nothing about him"

"Except that he's a dickhead" Droy chimed in, flipping a page of his textbook.

Levy thought back to the three things she knew about him. None of that information was going to help her argument now.

"Guys he's the one who found us and helped us get to the hospital, why would he bother to come and check on us if he didn't have some good intentions."

"Correction, he came to check up on YOU. We didn't even meet him until last week" Jet said back, "And, not that I'm keeping track, but I have watched him get into an argument with that Juvia girl 3 times now, fight Natsu 4 times, yell at Mirajane, and storm out of a Mechanical Engineering seminar."

Levy was struggling to see how she might win this argument. He did make good points, they didn't know him, he was suspicious, and he didn't seem to get on with anyone so far. But there was something he said during their dinner conversation that stuck with her.

"Guys I don't want to go the whole year with everyone thinking we are weak"

Droy looked up from his book and Jet uncrossed his arms to listen.

"Right now, people are just pitying us because of what happened. And let's face it, we are never going to win the S-Class Scholarship if we don't start doing harder requests. If we add him to the team not only do we look tough, but we might actually have a shot at winning."

The two of them looked at each other but eventually nodded.

"Can we try it for a couple of weeks and if he becomes insufferable, we kick him out?"

Levy smiled, "Of course"

(Gajeel's POV)

It'd just been over 24hours now since his talk with the bluenette at dinner and so far he'd heard nothing. In the morning he had spotted her walking across the quad to class, but she'd avoided looking at him.

I'm running out of time

He leaned back in his chair and pulled out a new cigarette to light. The Phantom-Lord yard had become something of a haven over the last 2 months. A space to escape from the constant energy of Fairy Tail. Without any students around the garden had gone to waste, with branches and weeds erupting from the flowerbeds and overtaking the cobbled pathway beneath him. Without the maintenance staff, he knew the place would be deserted the majority of the time. Which made the necessary talks with Juvia easier. Especially since he knew people were starting to get suspicious of their relationship.

"Heard anything from Jose in a while" she piped up

"No update. He's gone dark since the night we moved"

She shook her head, pacing the garden in front of them. She seemed to be doing this a lot recently.

"I don't like this. He told you he would be in contact by now. And Juvia thinks we are working on borrowed time until we eventually get caught."

"We're not going to get caught."

"Of course we are!" She kicked a weed beneath his feet, "First he tells us to push the blame on Laxus. Which was a terrible idea! And then he tells us to gain trust inside Fairy Tail with no further instructions."

"Stop overthinking it. You're the only one"

This was a lie. In truth, Gajeel hadn't stopped thinking about the attack since it happened. Laxus being painted as the sole perpetrator was an outcome he hadn't predicted, and he had no choice but to play it off to Juvia like it was Jose's instructions all along. He had expected to hear from Laxus by now at least. The two weren't exactly close, but they had caused enough shit together to be bonded to some degree. But nothing. Any day now he expected to have campus security at his door, saying that they found holes in Laxus's story and that he was the culprit.

The part about Jose didn't bother him as much. Having known the man as long as he had, Gajeel knew that Jose's instructions for a job like this generally came with a 3-month deadline. The open-ended instructions of "gain their trust" leaved room for him to get creative, and work out the best plan of infiltration.

"Any luck on your end?" He pressed, interrupting her pacing.

"Juvia is still trying the relationship route. Most of the men are either hyper-masculine or have the mental maturity of a child, but Gray Fullbuster looks like a good way in."

"Is the plan to annoy him into liking you? Because it doesn't look like he's taking the bait so far"

Juvia pouted, "No. I'll have you know that I convinced him to come along to Fantasia festival with me, so at least I'M making progress."

"I've planted the seed." He grunted, slouching further into the chair, "I'm trying to get into Levy's team, gain their trust by doing some challenges or other shit."

"You have got to be joking. Do you honestly think that spending that much time with them isn't going to jog their memories? You are just asking to be exposed!"

"No other way has presented itself. Besides, they look like total pushovers, I don't think it's going to be pretty hard."

They went back and forward on the topic for another couple of minutes, before Juvia resigned her arguments, leaving him alone as she went to an afternoon class. I should probably get going to he thought, glancing at the scrunched-up timetable in his pocket.

The sounds of steps stopped him though, and he made out the shape of blue hair making its way towards him.

"Back already Juvi-"

He cut himself short, realizing that the girl in front of him wasn't Juvia, but Levy. Her chest was heaving as if she'd been sprinting, and she rested her arm on the bench across from him. This is a good sign he thought, waiting for her to speak

"Okay Gajeel if this is going to happen I want to make some things clear"

"Nice to see you too shorty"

"That's the first one. If you are joining team ShadowGear, you're calling me by my name. No "shorty" no "idiots", no "shrimp", it's Levy or nothing."

He opened his mouth to interject but she continued.

"Second. We are serious about winning this thing. So, if you join, you take lead on the more advanced/dangerous requests, at least until we get up to speed. Third, No brawling while in the team. I know you have your issues with Natsu and the others, but I don't want the team getting a bad reputation"

"Last time I checked I think you need me more than I need you" he cut in as she took a moment to breath. "so, I'd slow down on all the conditions"

She grinned and walked forward to lean against his table. Against his will he felt his eyes float down to her chest but was surprised to see the blunette was nearly as flat as a board. Disappointing. Feeling himself about to snigger, he quickly met her eyes again.

"Last time 'I' checked" she started, "no other team has agreed to take you on because of your bubbly personality, and as you well know, Makarov said that every member has to be in a team by end of April as a condition of their stay in Fairy Tail. So If you are going to join us, it's as an equal, we aren't going to owe you anything."

"Anything else?" he breathed through gritted teeth

"Yes actually. We are all non-smokers" she said, reaching out and grabbing the pack on the table. "So if you do this on your own time, that's your business, but please don't do it around us. Do we have a deal?"

He leaned forward on the table to meet her, pulling out a hand to fill the gap between them,

"Yeah alright."

As Levy grabbed his hand to shake, he pulled her closer to him, nearly making her fall over.

"But the one thing I won't compromise on is the name shorty. I call em like I see em."

He watched as her cheeks went beet red and he knew he had succeeded in throwing her off-guard. She tried to wiggle out of his grip, but he kept his hand firmly locked around hers. For a second there he actually didn't mind the lecture, something attractive about a girl who isn't afraid to dish it out. But it was too soon for her to get that comfortable with him, and she needed to know it.

"Give me your number"

"W-What?" she stammered

"I need to know how to contact you guys if we're meeting up" he said finally releasing her hand and sliding his phone into it. "It's a big campus after all"

Her face was still bright red and he saw a flicker of anger shoot in her eyes as stepped back from him. A moment later she had punched in her digits and he successfully snatched back the cigarette pack from out of her grasp.

"Alright I'll see you tomorrow you Gajeel."

She made her way towards the edge of the courtyard, and he found himself watching her as she jogged away. Moving as quickly as she did when she same. He'd only had a handful of interactions with her now, and each one was resulting in him seeing new side of her personality. He'd seen her terrified, defeated, quippy, and now bold.

I wonder what other reactions I can get out of you

There were probably many words Gajeel could have used to describe the first meeting of the new and improved 'Team ShadowGear' but only one could come to mind: awkward

Levy had texted back the same afternoon, saying that the three of them were planning on a study night in the library. No requests to be done, just a chance for everyone to 'get to know each other'

Almost 2 hours into the evening Gajeel had been lucky to get more than a couple of words out of Jet and Droy. The two boys constantly chatted between themselves and Levy but would also periodically shoot side-glances towards him and avoid asking any direct question.

He could tell that Levy noticed the tension in the room, mainly by the fact that she wasn't hiding her discomfort very well. Her voice had gone up an octave and every response she gave was fast.

"So my mum called me again today for like the 3rd time this week" Droy laughed while slurping up the noodles in front of him, "She's already planning her first visit out here"

"Haha I know the feeling mine are doing the same" Levy said a little too quickly, "Gajeel did yours do that a lot when you first moved here?"

"Nope"

He felt a sharp kick from under the table and shot the bluenette a scowl.

"What I mean is" he started trying to mask the pain in his shin, "I was born in Magnolia. So, no need for any traveling"

"You're from here?" Jet piped up. "Why do you live on campus then? Seems like a waste of money if you have folks in town."

Gajeel felt a vein in his forehead twitch

"That's private"

He braced himself for another kick from Levy, but none came. The uncomfortable silence settled back in, and it was only another 5 minutes before Jet excused himself, muttering something about track practice. Droy followed soon after, and once again it was just him and her. He wasn't sure if she was purposefully ignoring him or not, but her head was now buried in a Linguistics 2.04 textbook, with a pair of red-rimmed glasses balanced on the edge of her nose as she scanned through the pages.

"Well I think that went rather well" he finally said, breaking the silence.

"Gajeel that was terrible" she didn't break eye contact with the page she was on as she spoke, "You aren't making an effort and they can tell."

The vein in his forehead twitched again.

"I'm here aren't I? Followed every one of your precious rules, but it takes 2 to tango, and those idiots aren't giving me anything to work with."

Levy placed a bookmark in the spine of the textbook and shut it abruptly.

"Look I get it if you aren't used to this dynamic. But we all really like each other, so you're going to have to meet us halfway. You don't need to tell us your life story, but some general interests would be nice."

That's it, Screw the plan, this isn't going to work

He went to open his mouth, ready to explode, ready to tell her where to shove it; but then his phone buzzed. Looking down he saw the name 'Jose' flash across the screen, and immediately all thoughts left. Kicking out his chair he hurried towards the door.

"Gotta go" he yelled over his shoulder

"Where are you going?" she said quickly

"Gotta deal with some stuff. Probably won't be back."

"Ah okay. It's all good, Jets coming back" her tone was slightly different than it was a second ago, but he didn't have time to deal with that now.

"Been a while Black Steel" said the raspy voice through the phone "I noticed I didn't have any messages from you in over two months, and I thought I'd better…check-in"

Gajeel leaned against the back of the Library exit, quickly scanning for anyone walking by.

"I thought you wouldn't want to hear from me until I had more information."

"Well that's the problem now, isn't it. Because I was under the impression that you were the more capable of the Phantom Lord riff-raff. Two months and not a word? Here I was thinking you must have been indoctrinating into the Fairy Tail cult of madness"

"I'm working on it."

"Well, that's all I wanted to hear." He paused for a moment, "Don't forget about your other responsibilities as well. I be sending you a letter in the next few days with an updated list of names. Remember that your rent doesn't get paid, unless I hear they've been paid a visit."

Gajeels fists tightened. He didn't mind the debt collector scare-tactic routine Jose made him do in the past. But things were different now. He had more eyes on him, less flexibility to move in and out of campus without detection like he used to.

"Okay," he grunted back. Not the day to fight this

"Excellent. Now last thing Black Steel. If you don't start getting me some actionable intel soon, the university must get an anonymous tip about who really did that attack. Even my patience has its limits."

So it was you behind the Laxus tip-off. he thought

"If you do that, then you lose all access. So really, threatening me isn't in your best interest."

"For now"

The line clicked and Gajeel shoved the phone back into his back pocket. He had officially reached the limit of how many people could make demands of him today. Time to head home. He patted his jeans for his room key, before realizing.

Left that in the library

He made his way back into the building, down the stairs towards the basement where the four of them had sat before. He'd only been gone 15 minutes but most of the lights were out now. Glancing at his phone he guessed they only had another couple of minutes before the librarians made the rounds to kick out all the remaining students.

He reached the door of the basement floor and pushed it open. He froze as he entered the room to Levy piercing scream.

Chapter Text

(Levy's POV)

She could feel her heartbeat pounding as her eyes adjusted to the sight of the figure in the doorframe. Everything in sight was blurring together and she felt the table fall away as she collapsed back into the chair in a fit of shakes.

"Go away!" she screamed, throwing a textbook over her shoulder at the doorway "Get BACK!"

"Levy its me"

Hearing her name seemed to penetrate through the ringing in her ears. She faltered in throwing the second book on the table and tried to focus on who was speaking. It was Gajeel.

He still had a hand on the doorknob but he had abruptly stopped walking into the room. The Linguistics textbook lay at his feet, probably after having hit him in the leg. His eyes were wide, but unblinking.

"I forgot my keys" he said slowly, and Levy looked behind her to see that it was in fact laying next the chair he had occupied only 15 minutes ago.

"What in the blazes is going on down here!" a voice rang out from up the stairs, and Levy could make out the sound of footsteps making their way towards them. Most likely the librarians. Still feeling her heartbeat pounding in her ear Levy turned away from the door, frantically trying to clean her face and wipe the tears with her jacket.

"We're all good here" she heard him say to the unknown voice

"I'll be the judge of that, I heard a girl screami-"

"I said we're good here. She fell and hurt herself, we'll be out in a moment."

The librarian grumbled for a moment and after a minute of hushed exchanges, slowly made their way back up the stairs. Silence fell on the room again as they heard the distant sound of the door closing from above. Now the only sounds were the faint involuntary hiccups from her, as she tried to slow her breathing.

"Why the hell are you crying?" he said in a tone slightly softer than what she expecting. She felt a hand rest on her shoulder and she recoiled, trying to keep her face out of sight. The adrenaline was still pumping but Levy could feel the embarrassment starting to settle in her stomach. Of all the people to walk back in, this wasn't the person she wanted seeing her like this.

"I-I don't know, I though-t you were someone else. Its fine y-you can go"

"So when you said Jet was meeting you, that was a lie?"

She hiccupped and wiped her nose again.

"I'm guessing this has to do with why you were running earlier when I saw you." She nodded her head.

"You aren't going to get attacked again."

Even though Levy had just managed to stop crying only moments ago. What he said sent her back into a fit of tear. She felt her palms going numb from how tightly she had them pressed against her forehead. Gajeel was now pacing the room, occasionally bending down to pick up one of the books she had sent flying before.

"You don't k-know that" she finally managed to splutter

"I do" he said, placing the books back at her feet "You guys were just victims of a dickhead trying to start trouble. He's expelled now anyway."

She felt his hand hover over her shoulder for a second time, but he seemed to second guess it. Instead, he picked up his keys, and slid his jacket up over his shoulders.

"Come on then"

"What do you m…"

He grabbed the back of her chair and kicked it around to face him. In his other hand he grabbed her coat and tossed it into her lap.

"If those idiots aren't coming then I'll walk you home"

They had been walking in silence now for about 10 minutes. Because he was so much taller than she was, his stride was longer, meaning that at all times he was at least 2 feet in front of her. Every few minutes she caught his eyes glancing back at her, and she thought maybe he was going to say something. But sure enough he would turn away, occasionally leading them down another path or across a road.

By Levy's guess they were off-campus now.

She wanted to speak up and remind him that they weren't going the right way to Fairy Hills, but she wanted to wait and see where they were going. They crossed another road, and in the near distance she could make out the lights of the shopping district. The markets from day trading were all packed up now, with collapsible chairs leaning against storefronts. Vendors were also now leaving now, with Levy spotting at least 3 people locking their shopfront doors.

They continued to make their way along the street until Levy caught the sight of a neon sign, a place she recognised.

"Hey Gajeel do you mind waiting? I'm going to check out that window quickly".

She darted across the road towards the dimly lit shop, and pressed her hands against the glass of the front display. A line of beautifully bound books sat only inches from her fingertips. At first glance she could tell she had some of them already, but there were 5 she didn't recognise. You already have enough books she thought to herself. But this was always a weak argument. She knew that come her next pay check she'd be back.

"Whats the deal?" he piped up. Levy almost jumped not hearing him walk up behind her.

"This is one of my favourite stores in Fiore. Its mainly a bookshop but they sell other vintage knick-knacks as well. I knew their main store was based in Magnolia, but I haven't had the time to come out and find where it is."

She pointed her finger to a row of mannequins on the far left.

"See the headbands they have displayed? This is where I get my stock. I think I have almost every single one now." She paused, "well, minus the one I lost"

"I don't really see the point of them." Gajeel said folding his arms and looking along the display, "I think they only work for chicks"

Without thinking Levy reached behind her head and undid the knot holding up the orange band in her hair. Leaning onto her toes she threw the fabric over Gajeels head and slid it under the wisps of black hair around his face.

"Oi shorty what the hell!"

"Just humour me" she laughed, finding the other piece of the fabric in his hair and tying it into a loose knot. It didn't go unnoticed to her that he allowed her to do this. Either frozen by the surprise of it, or just to get it over with quickly.

She stepped back and took in the sight of him. It was probably the first time she had seen his face properly. No shadows, no dirt, no messy strands of hair blocking his eyes. His statue overall didn't look nearly as impenetrable as she had remembered in the hospital. The reflection of the neon light added a warmness to to his eyes, and

He actually looks pretty good

To her surprise Gajeel leaned into the display to catch his reflection in a mirror, after 30 seconds of silence he pulled the band down from the top of his head, to rest at the top of his forehead.

"Not as bad as I expected" he muttered, "but definitely not my colour"

He untied the fabric and returned it to her hands.

"The jagged red and white one over there? That's more my style, much more manly"

It turned out that this minor detour was all that was needed to break the ice of last hours events. Levy chuckled and the two of continued making their way along the path, now side by side. Now nearly 11PM, most shops were closed, but occasionally Gajeel would turn his head, sniffing out whatever food joint happened to be nearby.

"Gajeel I didn't ask before but where are we going?"

"I needed a walk. Thought you did too" he turned her head towards her with an absent look "Do you want to go back?"

"No I'm okay."

"Why'd you pick this place anyway? It doesn't suit you"

Levy was puzzled by this. "What you mean magnolia? I wanted to study here, what do you mean it doesn't suit me?"

"It's a shithole in comparison to the other states. And don't get me wrong, but you look too delicate to get down and dirty with the rest of the idiots who go here"

"What is that supposed to mean!" Levy stopped walking and felt her hands form into fists at the waist. "Because I got attacked and you caught me crying in the library that makes me delicate?"

He continued walking a couple paces but stopped, realising he'd left her behind.

"No, I'm saying that when you're out walking, all people see is a short girl not paying attention to where she's going, and with no way to defend herself. If you want to stop being so afraid walking around here, make yourself someone TO be afraid of."

Levy was unsure how to respond to this. It was if he was trying to give her advice but picking all the wrong words.

"You know there's a lot more to me that you think" she said after thinking for another minute, walking back towards him. "and unfortunately as you pointed out, I don't have your height or general charisma to make people scared of me."

He smirked at this. "You don't need to look like me to make people scared or uncomfortable Shorty."

"Well I guess we'll never know"

Gajeel looked over his shoulder behind them, before nudging Levy to cross the road again. He led them down a narrow alleyway, which opened up to a small square of shops and outdoor seating. Picking the nearest bench, he sat down, and Levy watched his eyes trail up and down her.

"Alright then shorty. Let's play a game"

(Gajeel's POV)

"Okay rules are simple" He pulled the phone out of his pocket and opened up a timer, "Each of us has 5 minutes to make the other person uncomfortable or 'scared'. Complete creative freedom in how you do it"

The bluenette seemed to consider this. Her cheeks were still slightly red from crying not that long ago, and Gajeel could see her legs starting to shiver from the breeze that was passing through. All together he couldn't work out why he hadn't ditched her already. Loud, short, and emotional. Not my type.

But she was still here.

He was surprised she'd stayed out this long. He had half expected her to tell him off for going the wrong way well before they got to the shopping district. So now, in typical Phantom Lord fashion, it was time to test her limits and sabotage her attempts at getting too close.

"What's in it for me?"

"What do you want?"

She seemed to think on this for a moment. "I want you to admit in front of Natsu and the others that he is a better fighter than you."

"You have to be fucking joking"

She wagged her fingers in front of her nose "You said it could be anything I wanted."

"Fine" he grunted, "You'll regret making those the stakes then because when I win, you're going to get a piercing of my choice"

"I thought that bet between you and Cana was a joke"

"Why don't you think she likes me anymore. Do we have a deal?"

He held out his hand and she shook it firmly. "Deal"

"Alright" he stood up from the bench and paced around her, clicking the start on the timer. "Since I know you're going to lose, you can at least go first."

She spent the two minutes thinking. From her pockets she pulled a comically small notebook and began to scratch, what he guessed, was ideas of what to do.

"Okay, I have three questions for you."

His face fell slightly. He didn't know what he was expecting, but it was a bit mediocre to take the 'Truth or Dare' route.

"First one. How did you and Natsu know each other when you were younger"

"Same foster home."

She crossed a line off on the pad.

"Okay second, where exactly is that piercing that Cana made you get?"

Okay now we're talking

"You know she'll kill me if I tell you "He started, watching her face brighten. "Nice try, trying to get me on a technicality. But since we're such good friends and all…" he leaned over to whisper into her ear.

Her face didn't go scarlet like he was expecting, but her lip seemed to quiver upon hearing the location.

"Now you'll just have to take me on my word for that shorty. I'm not embarrassed to show you proof though"

"Not necessary," she said quickly, striking out another entry on her pad.

Gajeel smirked. Showed your cards too early, now I know that was your plan

"Last question. You never catch the shuttle on campus, and rumor is that you refuse to ride on public transport with classmates on field trips. Whys that?"

Fuck

She knew she had him. He could see from the glint in her eye that she'd been saving that. Tried to play it off like she was disappointed with his last answer, while all along…

"And you have to answer honestly" she pushed, a smile breaking through the corner of her face.

He thought about this. It would be so easy to lie. For gods' sake, his whole relationship with her was a lie. But she wasn't stupid. If she caught him now, who knows what she might ask later. And above all else, he refused to humiliate himself in front of Natsu and the rest of them. Just bite the bullet.

"Fine." He took a deep breath and met her eyes again, "The reason I can't do public transport of any kind is…I get motion sickness."

She blinked as if she hadn't heard him. "I'm sorry what?"

"Don't patronize me shrimp, I get motion sickness alright. I can't be on any moving object any longer than 5 minutes before hurling."

The silence between them following this was broken immediately by Levy's laughter. Her laugh was loud and unfeminine, it took over her whole body and her arms gripped her sides, almost as if to steady herself. He'd never seen someone laugh this way before. Her face was bright red and her smile was so wide he could make out the tiny imperfections in her teeth. She was—was she actually tearing up from laugher?

And it was all because of him.

He felt his mouth move to tell her off, but he felt a rare feeling swell in his chest. He was proud of herself, almost happy that he was to one to make her laugh like this.

"I was expecting you to admit to a DUI, an accident, something awful, but that…" she trailed off again, wiping the tears from her eyes "That was better than I expected."

Remember what you did

Gajeel pulled himself back into reality as Levy composed herself. He needed to get closer to her, to the whole ShadowGear team. But this was straying too far in the wrong direction. Time to get back on track

"Okay Shorty, my turn"

(Levy's POV)

Yeah I got him. No way I was ever going to scare him, but that definitely made him uncomfortable.

Levy took note of the minute and a half left on the timer, as she waited for Gajeel to get ready.

"So anything you want to ask me? I'm an open book."

He laughed, "No shorty I'm not doing questions." He started to walk towards her, prompting Levy to take a step back. When he didn't stop, she continued to shuffle away. Each time he seemed to come closer than what Levy considered appropriate personal space.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

It was almost like a schoolyard game. For every step forward, she took two back.

"Shorty I'm going to give you an out. Just admit you lose and the deals off"

"Not necessary"

"Well" he tilted his head so they were almost eye level, "We'll see about that"

He took another step forward and Levy found herself unable to move. He'd now closed the space between them, letting their bodies touch as he leaned her into the alley wall. She had been so focused on saving face that she hadn't even realized they had moved so far. His right arm rested on the wall just above her head, and Levy could feel the breath leaving his mouth and settling on her skin.

With his free hand, he reached around her neck, locating the knot of her hairband behind her ear, and gently pulled it, letting the fabric fall down onto her shoulders.

Levy felt herself catching her breath as each touch of his fingers send goosebumps down her arms. It wasn't as though someone hadn't done this with her before. But it had been a while. Maybe too long

"I mean you made a good point before. We barely know each other. Why don't we change that."

Levy's eyes widened as she watched Gajeel get even closer, tilting his head and moving till his lips were just under her ear. Whether she intended it or not, she arched the crook of her neck away from him, inviting more access. The goosebumps on her arm exploded across the rest of her body, and Levy felt the anticipation building between them. She knew she had to stop this, but her body was betraying her. Seconds passed without either of them moving, and suddenly something clicked.

This is what he wants. He's trying to see if I'll chicken out. He won't do it.

"Why'd you stop?" she jested, trying to mask the shaking in her voice.

"Shorty I'm not even close to stopping"

Gajeel grabbed both of her hands and pulled them above her head, holding them in place with one of his forearms as he leaned in again.

"I don't want to see those hands move."

Levy let out an audible gasp as his lips pressed hard against her neck. They were cold and unexpected but on impact he set her skin on fire, resigning Levy to do nothing but stand there and watch it happen. Each second he stayed on her neck her desire for more increased. One of his hands was now buried in her hair, and she could feel the tip of his tongue as it explored the surface of her skin. She knew she had to stop this. Regardless of saving face.

Pulling her hands out from under him, she found Gajeels shoulders and firmly pushed him away. Her body trembled as he broke away from her, but the breath finally returned to her body. Breathing fast, Levy crouched down to recover the orange hairband which now laid discarded by their feet. She couldn't look at him, not yet.

"Told you, you couldn't handle it," he said with a chuckle as the ticking of the timer promptly stopped. "Can't wait to pick out your new piercing."

Levy spun round, "You said it was off if I backed out."

He smirked, wiping away the moisture around his lips. "Well that's not very hardcore then, is it? I'll give you this though, you lasted longer than I thought."

The two of them made their way back to campus after this. The memories of her breakdown earlier in the night now seemed like a distant memory, now overtaken by the image of them in the alleyway.

When they reached Fairy Hills, Levy had turned to say goodbye, but Gajeel had already begun to walk away, throwing a hand over his shoulder in an absent-minded wave. No more words needed to be said. Regardless of his intentions, he hadn't pushed the library incident the entire time they were together. Even if all he'd done was entertain himself tonight, he still got her home.

Levy turned her key into the building, but paused in the entrance, hearing muffled voices out the front.

"This is the LAST time"

"You said that last time."

"Well, I mean it. Go before Erza sees you."

Almost like out of a film, Levy watched in quiet laughter as the infamous pink-headed loudmouth of Fairy Tail sprinted past the Fairy Hills entranceway wearing nothing but his shorts and scarf. The rest of his clothes flung over his shoulder as he ran his way down the hill. Knowing what was coming next, Levy opened the door again.

"Lucy he's gone, you can come in now"

Sheepishly the blonde emerged from the other side of the yard. Her hands firmly lodged deep in her pockets as she made her way through the door. Levy chuckled as her friend refused to meet her eyes.

"So I'm going to guess the bars on the window is because of you two isn't it?"

"We are not going to speak a word of this" Lucy cut in, grabbing Levy's arm and leading them up the stairs. "At least not tonight I'm too embarrassed. Anyway, why are you so late, it's almost midnight?"

Levy followed her friend upstairs, letting a small smile cross her face as she thought about the unexpected series of events that played out tonight. A second opinion from Lucy would probably set her mind at ease.

"We can talk about it tomorrow"