#the second Makarov said that I was like oh boy

[wispscribbles]

MW3 spoilers / MCD ‼️

[shotmrmiller]

neighbor ghoap deciding it’s time to quickly put their plan into action once they get a taste of reader’s own sounds through the walls.

Brought home some guy off tinder, and they were seething the whole time. They heard the door slam, noting that the guy had left, and your moans started again. This time they were different, real, which just made Simon start laughing.

no cuz johnny almost bit through the skin of his knuckles in fury.

see, he's the one that's nudging at simon about how he needs to have you, even if it's the once.

(it's not gonna be but what simon don't know won't kill him)

simon is a bit reluctant because he's not used to sharing. what's his is his. period.

but johnny's got a honey mouth. he can spin straw into gold.

it takes a couple of deep throat blowjobs, and a few nights of murmuring directly into simon's ear as he gets fucked into the mattress to make simon see (his) reason.

and then you've gone and brought someone home. some bawbag that sounds like a cow about to breathe it's last. he feels rage, white hot, deep in his chest. his blood is practically at a rolling boil under his skin.

the last time he felt this angry was when they had makarov in the plane.

he can't even hear your sweet little whimpers you usually let out when you masturbate.

johnny turns to simon, who's absentmindedly cleaning his gun on the table and tells him to get up.

"make sure tha' feartie doesnae come back when he leaves, aye?" he snarls.

simon tips his head wordlessly. he'll let johnny order him around, just this once. the scrunched skin of johnny's nose as he bares his teeth in aggression is adorable.

he racks the slide of the gun and places it down with an audible clack, grabs his leather jacket from the chair and shrugs it on.

"does he need to disappear?"

johnny makes a disgusted sound at the back of his throat. "i dinnae care! just make sure he goes and stays gone."

simon moves quick- light on his feet toward him and fists his hair cruelly, forcibly craning johnny's neck back to lock eyes with him.

down boy.

"watch the attitude, or i'll be fuckin' it outta ya 'n there won't be anyone tell tha' imbecile t'piss off, yeah?" simon's voice rumbles with his warning.

if johnny had ears, they'd be pinned flat to his head. "aye."

he gives a soft slap to johnny's cheek. "good. i'll be back," and is out the door in seconds.

-

the next day, johnny corners approaches you in the lift, and rubs the back of his neck, feigning discomfort.

he watches your eyes widen, mouth gape in sheer horror as he tells you that he got no sleep, some guy couldn't stop caterwauling like a cat in heat last night.

oh, you look like you're about to burst into tears. he can't help but unabashedly stare at you. that expression is moving all the blood in his head south.

please cry. he'd come in his pants if you did.

the lift pings and the moment is broken, so johnny wipes the drool from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and does that he's always done best.

use his honeyed tongue.

"grab a tea with me? i promise to not bite." he walks out and steps to the side, extending a hand towards you.

he notices your hesitance, so he amps up his charm. johnny's lips curl into a roguish smile, the blunt edges of his white teeth barely visible.

"please? jus' a tea. i'll pay." simon's always said he looks best while begging.

you must seem to think so too, because you're sliding your much smaller, softer hand in his- fingers grazing the rings that adorn his hand.

"atta lass. we'll take a cab."

-

a few days later, johnny has the tv running in the background as he cooks dinner, when he hears:

'a man crashed into the bay, possibly under the influence...'

you're all theirs, now.

only theirs.

[8-rae-rae-8]

Come back for me CH.2

A fic idea sent by an anon who I love ever much <3

Lost work count

Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Game: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009), Canon-Typical Violence, Violence, Blood, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Mild Blood, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Age Regression Little Simon "Ghost" Riley, Age Regression Caregiver John "Soap" MacTavish, Captain John "Soap" MacTavish, rewritten ending of 09, Age Regression/De-Aging, pet regression pet regression pup Gary "Roach" Sanderson, Little Space, Age Regression, Caregiver John Price (Call of Duty), Shepherd is the worst, Gun Violence, Face Slapping, Mocking, Men Crying, Crying, Gaz is dead already remember, i didnt forget him, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat

They'd been without contact for hours.

Ghost and Roach were too far to drive to find them. Now it was Price and Mactavish.

And dammit if they were going to let Shepherd kill them. They were the captains’ boys. It would be a death sentence.

So as the call screen loaded, their hearts were in their chests. Then there they were.

Their boys, but in worse condition then they were left off.

Wounds littering Roach's body. A slash across Ghost's thigh, and other minimal cuts. But Ghost was crying. Even with the shitty quality of their video, Soap could see it clearly.

Maskless Ghost was somehow more terrifying than his wounds. It wasn't by his own volition, Mactavish knew that. A sick taste was quick to appear in his mouth.

“Simon! Roach!?”

“Shepherd.”

The both of them spoke in unison. Worry to Soap's voice, while Price was angry about their new target. Shepherd put a target on his head from just being near the boys like this.

The scene was troubling.

Shepherd stood to the side, while Roach and Ghost were on their knees next to each other. Roach uses his weak body to shield part of Simon's.

Johnny’s eyes burned with anger, but didn't unleash it.

The way Simon took the protection from Roach, and had begun to curl in on himself said all he needed to know. His boy was too small to see extra anger.

“You'll see them again if you cooperate.” Shepherd demanded. To emphasize this point, he grabbed Simon by the hair on the side of his head. Pulling and tugging him with it.

“No- no-” Simon was quick to cry out as he was jerked to the side. His eyes squeezed.

“Shut up.” Shepherd hissed and pushed him back to how he was sitting before.

Simon choked back a cry, hiding his face behind Roach's head.

“Get yer filthy fookin’ hands off him!” Mactavish shouted to the screen, his hands shaking from their place on the table as he leaned forward.

There was no attempt of anything from Price. He looked almost proud that Soap was taking care of the boys, and Shepherd. He was capable and hardly held back, Price admired that about him.

“‘friad I can't, captain. I need you two to stop your chase. You're not getting Makarov. It's not in the cards.” Because Shepherd wanted him like a greedy bastard.

“I ahm not yer goddamn dog, Shepherd, ye can't take us off the bloody mission!” Mactavish hissed.

“Well it seems we have a dog here, maybe I'll just have to train him to get you first.”

Roach.

Soap's eyes widened a split second. Oh god, not the two of them regressing. Getting them back safe would be a nightmare without a single clear head.

And speaking of dog… Roach growled and barked up at Shepherd. As if he was trying to prove his strength.

“Down, Roach! Don't fight him.” Price stepped in, finally.

Surprisingly, Roach listened. His focus went to Simon instead. Simon who was fighting off sobs.

“See you've trained him already. It should be easy enough to fix his priorities then. Shepherd threatened.

“Don't you fookin' dare.” Johnny glared. Even though he'd never say Roach was his pup, he still would defend him at every turn.

“I won't, as long as you give up on Makarov.”

Negotiation was one of the few things Soap couldn't stand to deal with when it was with people like this. Assholes who just didn't back down.

“B-bubba…” Simon wearily muttered, his head picked up slightly to see him.

Johnny's heart caught in his chest. Tears glossing over his own eyes. His boy, he needed to save him.

“Deal.” Price seemed to speak for him.

With their boys at risk, it was a no brainer. A deal would save both boys' lives. Even if it gave up their target.

“Perfect.” Shepherd smirked.

That sick grin, Soap wished he could smack it off his face.

“You'll see them at base then.”

That was so far. Too far and he didn't want to wait. Thank god Nikolai was close with their plane.

[of-a-chaotic-mind]

Bravery Comes In Many Forms

Summary: Some new guy in the guild decides to pick a fight with Laxus in an attempt to win Reader from him. Gajeel gets in on the action when the guy decides to disrespect Reader.

TW/CW: Laxus Dreyar x Female!Reader. An unnamed new to the guild character is pretty rude and disrespectful. None that I can think of other than that.

Requested? Yes, a lovely Anon said, “Hey! if you don't mind can i get a Laxus x reader(preferably female but it can be gn) it can be anything angst, fluff, it really doesn't matter, THANKS SO MUCH”

Word Count: 1,300

A/N: So, I pulled a few prompts for this one bc I don’t really have any other ideas stored up lol, hope you don’t mind. I hope you enjoy the read! Love to all!

Prompts: “Where you from?” “Here and there.” “What do you do?” “This and that.” “You ever-” “Now and then.” “Boy you’re just full of information.”     Person A getting really annoyed with their tangled headphones and Person B just taking them off them and doing it for them.     “Do you need a hand?” “Does it look like I need your help?” “Do you really want me to answer that or would you like to maintain plausible deniability for later?” Dialogue prompts are bolded.

As I make my way into the Guild Hall, many of my new friends say hello or wave. I’m so happy that I’ve found Fairy Tail and was allowed to join. It’s only been a few weeks and I already feel at home. Everyone is so welcoming and kind and honestly, the rowdiest bunch of mages I’ve ever seen but that makes it fun and exciting.

I make my way over to the bar and take a seat on a stool next to a very handsome gentleman in a large coat with fur around the collar. I order a drink from Mira and then turn to him to strike up a friendly conversation, “Hey big guy, where you from?”

He gives me the side-eye before rolling his eyes, “Here and there.”

Sensing a challenge, I decide to play his game, “What do you do around here?”

“This and that,” comes another vague answer.

I’m determined to get more than just a short vague answer so I continue, “You ever-”

“Now and then,” he says before I can finish my question.

This draws a chuckle out of me, “Boy, you’re just full of information.” Mira drops off my drink and giggles at my comment before heading off to help another guild member.

He shrugs so I pull out my earbuds and decide to listen to music while I wait him out. Unfortunately, my earbuds are yet again tangled from being in my pocket. I’m thoroughly surprised I didn’t lose them on my last job. I huff as I struggle to get them untangled which draws the mysterious man’s attention toward me. He raises an eyebrow, “Do you need a hand?”

I tilt my head at him, “Oh now I get a full sentence,” I look back down at my earbuds and return to untangling them, “Does it look like I need your help?”

“Do you really want me to answer that or would you like to maintain plausible deniability for later?” he responds. I ignore him and continue my work but after a moment of my frustrated tugging at them, he gently pulls them from my hands, “You’re going to break them if you keep that up.” Seconds later, he has them completely untangled and neat. After handing them back to me he pulls out his own headphones and places them over his ears. I mumble a thanks and then put my earbuds in and press play on my music. Little did I know, I had just had my first interaction with Laxus Dreyar, one of the strongest members of the guild and Master Makarov’s grandson.

A few months pass by of small interactions with the lightning dragon slayer. During one of said interactions, I finally learn his name. He seemed shocked when I didn’t cower in fear. I’ve never be known to fear things that I probably should. Looking back, I wonder if that’s why he found an interest in me. I obviously respect him for the power that he holds but I never fear him.

One day, I'm sitting at one of the tables in the guild hall with my back turned to the table as I talk to Levy, with Gajeel at her side as always, about her most recent favorite book. Suddenly, someone takes a seat beside me, honestly too close for comfort. I scoot away from this newcomer, he had just joined the guild yesterday, in hope that he’ll get the hint and keep his distance. Before the guy can scoot closer, I hear and feel boots stomping on the table behind me before someone drops to sit on the table with their feet propped on the seat and their legs to either side of me.

Looking back, I find my best friend recently made boyfriend Laxus sitting there with a very pissed-off look on his face. However, he isn’t looking at me. He’s looking at the mage sitting beside me who has now squared up and seems rather annoyed. The annoyance is clear in his tone when he speaks up, “Hey pal, can’t you see I’m trying to make a move here. Back the fuck off.”

Now, even Levy and Gajeel are pissed at this man’s audacity. Gajeel looks like he’s about to iron club this guy into the next century. Levy seems to be barely holding him back. That being said, Laxus doesn’t need their help. He leans forward and throws his arm around my shoulders, “Moves have already been made here. Leave.”

“How about I fight you for her?” the, I have to say it, idiot challenges.

“Lax-,” I mumble placing a hand on his arm around my shoulders in hopes of halting him, “He doesn’t know what he’s getting into. He just joined yesterday.”

“You’re kidding me right?” Laxus grumbles, “You just joined yesterday and you’re already hitting up every woman you come across? I just saw you trying to hit on Cana and Mira said you hit on her this morning.”

The newbie shrugs, “What’s the point in joining a powerful guild if I don’t at least try to get a girlfriend out of the deal. Now, are you going to fight me or not?”

Levy and I visibly tense up at his rudeness. I stand, shrugging off Laxus’s arm as I do, “How about you fight me instead?”

“Tch, like you could take me in a fight. Sit back down girly the big boys are talking,” he answers. Now Laxus stands and, with Gajeel close behind, moves to stand between me and the newbie. Levy jumps up to my side to pull me away toward the bar before we get caught in the crossfire.

From our new seats at the bar with Mira and Cana, we can hear Gajeel say, “You just joined and you’ve already gone and pissed off not one but two Dragon Slayers.”

Laxus chuckles, “I’m willing to bet that if Natsu hears there’s a fight he’ll join. He also doesn’t appreciate rude assholes who objectify women.”

“Good point. So, do you really want to fight three Dragon Slayers?” Gajeel asks the newbie.

In an attempt to make himself seem bigger and stronger, the newbie straightens up and holds his head high, “Bring it.”

For a moment, it seems like Laxus is contemplating something. I know he can take this guy down with a single lightning strike but as he nudges Gajeel and says, “You take the first move,” I can tell he’s decided to let his best friend join in on the fun.

“I wonder if this guy realizes that those two could easily take him down in a good old fistfight,” Cana mumbles before taking a sip of her keg.

Mira laughs, “That’s true. They could just shove the guy and he’d be down for the count.” Levy and I are silent as we watch out boyfriends practically bat this guy around like a couple of cats with a ball of yarn. It doesn’t take long for this guy to drop to his knees and forfeit. Thankfully ending the fight before Natsu gets wind of it. As Laxus and Gajeel make their way over to us, leaving the guy to wallow in his defeat, they both have huge grins on their faces.

Gajeel drops onto a stool beside Levy, “I don’t think that guy is gonna be picking any more fights around here for a while.”

Laxus scoffs as he takes a seat beside me, “Good, the idiot needed to be put in his place.” We all laugh and order a round of drinks. Even though I could’ve fought that guy myself, it feels good to have someone to protect me.

I place my chin on Laxus’s shoulder and whisper in his ear, “Thank you, Sparky.”

He kisses my forehead, “Anytime, babe.”

Masterlists

More Laxus Dreyar Imagines

Taglist: @emiijemii @cursedwings2005 @willowtree42095

[matt0044]

Fairy Tail’s Female Cast and How It Has Consistently Surprised Me

The title alone should have your head cocked with a raised eyebrow. I mean, this is Fairy Tail where every female character has some form of cleavage and the most unflattering of camera angles (sans Wendy thankfully). How the hell would anybody expect anything aside from paper-thin Moe traits to get all hot and bothered over?

That’s what I thought at first myself. ;)

Now I’m not about to go on about how “revolutionary” Fairy Tail is with its female cast. I haven’t read every Manga published in a Shonen Magazine or seen every Anime based on them. I know my limits. That being said... I will go about how the series doesn’t nearly get enough credit when it comes to the girls.

One thing about the Fairy Tail Guild is that each member has some amount of personal baggage or another that lead them to Makarov and his ideals of family that go beyond blood. What might seem like a barebones archetype with only a few quirks like Gray’s stripping, Elfman’s sense of manhood or Makarov being a wise old coot are but seasonings to the entree. There’s always a reason why.

For the girls, I think what elevates them above what they could’ve been reduced to comes down to the fact that there’s plenty of them to go around amongst the ensemble cast. None of them are THE female character and even Team Natsu has the three boys outnumbered by the four girls.

It’s easy to see Lucy as the stereotypical Shonen Female Lead from being a buzzkill to the boys’ antics to not exactly being a heavy hitter in battle. She’s “useless” and “let’s her spirits do all the work.”

However, what makes her great is how much she wears her heart on her sleeve in a way different from Natsu. She’s the one that gets Fairy Tail to work together to take out the Thunder Palace. Her friendship with Cana is a highlight of the Tenrou Island Trials. Her friendship speeches rival that of Yu-Gi-Oh’s.

Then there’s her past. It’s easy to call her “useless” in the Phantom Lord arc but it’s her story at the end of the day. It’s about how Fairy Tail never turns their back on one of their own, even risking inter-guild conflicts. It doesn’t matter how much ass she can kick, she’s one of them. As Erza bluntly puts it, “You’d have to kill us first!”

Thus when she goes home, it’s not her surrendering but rather her giving an elaborate middle finger to her father. Dolling herself all up as the pampered princess she once was before tearing it all to shreds. It’s her returning the favor by making sure Jude understands that any attempts to take her back will bring him far more trouble than it’s worth with Fairy Tail’s solidarity.

Now some of her solo battles can end poorly and undermine her in the eyes of those looking for action. That said, may I remind you that her battle with Flare Corona was compromised by Asuka being held hostage and a flat out Nerfing when a spell was guaranteed to turn things around. Her battle with Minerva was a total washout but it’s not like Erza had it easy before tapping into her Second Origin.

The thing is that I get that one wanted Lucy to not come across as the Load and be “useful” in the sense of taking out an enemy one-on-one. Yet even Natsu never truly finished off the final boss all on his own. He’d always need some support be it from Jellal or Laxus’s magic. Hell, Erza loosened up the former for him and proceeded to make the Tower of Heaven self-detonate.

Bringing us back to Lucy, it shouldn’t be about “usefulness” or “usefulness.” It should be about what they add to the story overall. Yes, Battle Shonen are all about punching evil in the face until it dies but even Dragon Ball had more thematic depth to it among the power-ups and fart jokes.

On the note of Dragon Ball, I’d compared her to both Bulma and Krillin. Especially the latter character in being a relatively normal combatant among the superpowerful muscle-heads who could bench-press a planet. They might share the Jobber status but tends to have a down to Earth charm to him.

Onto the Fairy Queen herself: Erza Scarlet is the archetypal Scary Woman who’s admired and feared for not taking shit. Often this character will often have an arc where her lack of traditional femininity is addressed and “rectified.” Otherwise, it’s all about how she’s the only girl who can whip the boys into behaving themselves.

Yet she’s consistently shown to be Team Natsu’s Fred Jones, the one who makes the plans and calls the shots in their group. It’s not too dissimilar to Power Rangers: Time Force where Jenn, the Pink Ranger, was the commanding officer rather than Wes, the Rookie in Red.

Hell, when Makarov is down and out, the guild relies on both her along with Mirajane as acting leaders. Her arc isn’t about “softening up” so much as opening up to others and becoming far more approachable. It’s about letting others confront their own demons just as she’s needed to.

The Galuna Island arc shows the start of this with Gray having the balls to stand up to her and demanding that he finishes his personal beef with Lyon. Following this, the Phantom Lord arc has her taking a Jupiter Cannon blast in protecting Lucy as a fellow Guildmate. She becomes less of an untouchable figure and more of a part of the family.

Case in point, she starts crashing at Lucy’s house after Phantom’s first attack.

Even as a hardass, she’s shown to indulge in childish pillow fights and cake. To say nothing of her dreams of the stage where’s she’s not just a stiff but a total mess. She can be all of these and still take one hundred monsters in the Grand Magic Games. Call her overpowered but I still cheer for that moment every time.

Much of this comes from growing up as a slave and barely having a childhood. Even after leaving the Tower of Heaven, Jellal still hovers over her head in knowing that he’s still out there ala Seigram. Thus her “no brain cell” moments are her making up for what she never had with comedic moments like putting out a picnic on the way to an ancient library.

Her romance with Jellal is less her needing a man to “complete it.” Rather it’s their shared trauma and how they connect over their self-loathing over what they seemingly allowed. Erza passes on what seeing her would’ve-been funeral taught her to Jellal when he tries to kill himself with Nirvana: dying for your sins is the easy way out. It’s all about having true strength to move forth.

Thus we get my daughter, Wendy Marvell. Not gonna lie, I’m a bit biased in her favor. :P

Initially, she’s presented as a stereotypical Shojo protagonist: unsure of herself, sniveling and overly emotional. In their first encounter with the Oracion Seis, she has a near panic attack and kicking herself for not soldiering through it. However, what seems like a quirk turns out to be something more.

Like with Natsu and Gajeel, Wendy’s dragon disappeared. This is something she took hard, wandering around in tears before finding who she thought to be Jellal. Yet just when she thought she had somebody to fill the void, her “Jellal” dumps her at the phony Cait Shelter due to more pressing matters. And that’s before Cait Shelter turns out to have been Magical Projections, more friend who disappear after Nirvana’s been dealt with.

There’s a particular moment that hits hard when she begs to know what she did wrong. It felt like Grandiene leaving her all over again, something she blamed on herself. Was she unworthy of being a Dragon Slayer? Did Jellal not like her? Why? This struggle with abandonment issues ties in with her low sense of self-worth.

She’s quick to come down on herself for thing she couldn’t help and feels a constant need to prove herself as not a burden. When Raven Tail nullifies her Magic and forces her to miss day one of the Grand Magic Games, she sobs for letting others down even if nobody else blames her.

I legit always think, “Hey, it’s gonna be okay…” softly out of connection to the character. Sure, she’s a cute little girl ala the likes of Eri yet I feel a sense of, “I’d take a bullet for her” in a “I relate to her emotional turmoil too much” kind of feeling. She can handle herself but need the right encouragement.

I could go on about Mirajane Strauss’s literal inner demons and multi-faceted personality that ties into her Satan Soul Takeovers. Perhaps even Cana Abarona’s jaded drunk girl archetype has more weight to it when her reasons for joining the guild are revealed come the game changing Tenrou Island Arc.

However, that’s for another time. The point is that Fairy Tail didn’t have to give this much depth and relevance to their female cast. Yet again, I can’t say that other Battle Shonen don’t have good female characters. It’s that this series in particular gets a lot of shit despite the stuff about it that I legitimately loved.

It can be easy to see how skimpy a lot of the designs are and assume that it’s all they ever are at a cursory glance. Hell, I’ll admit that one gets mixed signals with the character’s story and the character’s... design. Lindsay Ellis’s take on Transformers included a good point on how Megan Fox’s character had a solid character arc yet would be remembered for how titillating the camera made her.

I don’t blame those being put off by the fanservice. It’s like alcohol for a lot of Anime fans, we all have our thresholds of tolerance for it as well as how it fits within the series. Yet I feel like we’re too quick to make sweeping assumptions in order to give a reason beyond, “Eh, not my cup of joe.”

[superfreakerz]

TDDUP 32

“Til Death Do Us Part”

Rated M for smut and heavy themes.

Reincarnation/Immortal AU

Summary: There are immortals and there are those who reincarnate, but it’s best to keep these things hidden. Lucy is attending college and meets Natsu, a boy with pink hair, a devilish smile, and a body that never ages.

Chapter 32

The New Semester

Lucy frowned as she got ready for the new semester. The rest of winter break went by in the blink of an eye. She had partied at Fairy Tail during New Years and even called her father to catch up and wish him a happy new year. Every day during the break was spent with Natsu and their friends, which made the new term that much harder.

Last quarter, she had every class with at least someone from their group. Now, she has absolutely none. Disappointed was an understatement when she received her schedule. She was devastated. She hated the thought of not seeing her friends in class, and she hated the thought of starting over even more.

"C'mon, Luce. Cheer up. It's not the end of the world if we don't have classes together," Natsu's voice rang out. He spent nearly every night at her apartment, it was rare when he was at his own place.

"Easy for you to say!" she shot back. "You at least have a friend in every class!"

"Friend? I only have Gray in all my classes. That's not a blessing, that's a curse! That's worse than immortality!"

Lucy only rolled her eyes. "Oh, whatever. Point is, I'm going to be all alone! I'll have to make new friends! And in case you don't remember, I suck at that!"

"What do you mean? You made friends with all of us!"

"That's only because Levy introduced us. And she was the one to come up to me when we first met. I can't make friends on my own! And let's not forget that our first meeting went horribly!"

Natsu smoothed a hand over the back of her head. "Quit worrying so much. You'll be fine, I promise. And even if you don't make friends, I already told you that I'll pick you up from class everyday so we can go to Fairy Tail together and meet up with the rest of the gang. It's not like we're going to stop being friends just because we're in different classes. You're stuck with us now that you know our secret."

Lucy laughed. "Oh, I don't need you to pick me up today. I'm going to meet with Aquarius after my classes. But I guess you're right."

"I always am! Now hurry up and finish getting ready."

Wanting to look nice on her first day of class, Lucy threw on a pair of light jeans and a white sweater. It was still winter, so she couldn't show off her body just yet.

"Alright, I'm heading out now!" she called out.

Natsu gave her a quick kiss, sending her off with a grin. "Have fun!"

Lucy was surprised she was relatively early to her first class, taking a seat in the back. This quarter, all three of her classes were squeezed into the same days, but luckily she only had classes Tuesday and Thursday. That left her with the rest of the week to do whatever she wanted. Her first class was English with a professor named Virgo. According to Makarov, she was also a reincarnation. Lucy hoped she would be able to talk to her about it.

Suddenly, the seat next to her was pulled out. Lucy turned to find a boy with dirty blonde hair sitting next to her, flashing her a dazzling smile. His eyes were dark, his lashes long. If Lucy were single, she was sure she would be swooning over the pretty boy.

"Nice to meet you," the boy said, taking her hand in his. "I'm Hibiki. What might your name be, beautiful?"

Lucy was taken aback by his brazenness, reminded of her first boyfriend. "I'm Lucy."

"Lucy. What a pretty name!"

"Uhh, thanks."

"So, Lucy, what year are you?"

"I'm a freshman."

Hibiki gasped. "Me too! It must be fate that we met today!"

Lucy nearly rolled her eyes. "Fate? This is English 101, everyone here is a freshman."

Before Hibiki could reply, someone cleared their throat at the front of the room, grabbing her attention. It was a woman, relatively short with a pink pixie cut. Her eyes were a jaded blue.

"I'm Virgo, your professor for this quarter."

Lucy leaned forward in her seat, eager to learn more about the fellow reincarnation.

Once class ended, Lucy quickly packed her things before heading to her next class. She wished she could have talked to Virgo about reincarnation, but there were too many people around, not to mention she had limited time to make it to her next class. Not that there was a need to rush. She had all quarter to talk to the fellow reincarnation.

During her walk across campus, Lucy was surprised to find that Hibiki was walking along with her.

"Umm, is there a reason you're going this way?" she asked, starting to get weirded out by the boy.

He arched his brow. "My class is this way."

"Oh, okay."

When Lucy made it to her next class, she stopped outside the door to glare at Hibiki, who had followed her all the way there.

"Okay, you're stalking me," she said, crossing her arms.

Hibiki laughed awkwardly. "I'm not, I swear! I have this class!"

"There's no way we're in the same class! Show me your schedule!" The boy handed her his schedule, which she glossed over quickly. "Wait, we share every class together! How the hell did that happen?"

"I told you it was fate!" Hibiki exclaimed, grabbing Lucy's hand. He went to place a kiss over it, but she snatched it away.

"I can't believe how similar you are to an old friend of mine," she said, rolling her eyes.

"This friend of yours must have been charming!"

She laughed, and in a voice laced with sarcasm she replied, "Big time. Well, if we're going to be in all the same classes together, we might as well be friends. But no funny business, alright? I have a boyfriend."

Hibiki held his chest in mock pain. "I should have known a girl as beautiful as yourself was taken."

The two walked to the back of the classroom, taking their seats.

"So, what are you majoring in?" Lucy asked. She wasn't used to making friends on her own, but with Hibiki's laidback and all too familiar personality, she found it easy to slide into a conversation.

"Computer science. What about you?"

"Creative writing."

Lucy was about to ask the boy where he was from when their professor stepped into the room. He was a tall and lanky man with black hair. Unlike Virgo, he was a bit older, a couple of wrinkles adorning his face around his mouth. He wore a dark green turtleneck and black slacks that accentuated his slender legs.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Sagittarius. I will be your World History professor. I assume everyone came prepared with their textbooks."

Lucy sweat dropped. It was only the first day of the quarter, she didn't have her textbook yet. As if sensing her dilemma, she felt Hibiki nudge her elbow that was resting on the desk before he slid his textbook between the two of them to share. She shot him a quick grin.

"Thanks," she whispered.

He returned the smile. "Don't mention it."

Class seemed to drag on forever, Sagittarius' emotionless voice doing nothing to help as he discussed the contents of the first chapter. While Lucy may not have been an immortal who lived through most of the world's events, she had still been around long enough to have been through a good chunk of them. That, along with taking the same classes every lifetime, made learning relatively easy.

Once class ended, Lucy and Hibiki walked to a small coffee shop that was on campus. They had thirty minutes before their next class, and considering it was the first day, they didn't have too much homework to do yet. Instead, they decided to chat over a cup of coffee, which Lucy insisted on paying for since Hibiki was nice enough to share his textbook and send pictures of the portions she would need for homework later.

Lucy found it strange just how similar Hibiki was to her first boyfriend. She figured that was why it was easy to open up to him. Already familiar with flirty playboys, his personality didn't scare her away. Instead, it made things easier.

"I guess making friends isn't so hard."

The two talked about everything, ranging from where they grew up to what they wanted to do after college. Lucy had to admit, it was fun making new friends.

When they headed to their last class for the day, they took seats in the back yet again. It didn't take long for their professor to stumble in the room. Lucy's eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets seeing how absolutely ripped the man was. It looked like his white button-up shirt was going to pop any second with how large his muscles were.

"Yo! I'm Taurus!" the man exclaimed. His eyes filtered around the room, hearts practically shining in them whenever they glazed over a girl. Lucy wondered how he was able to teach given his pervy attitude.

Yet, when he started to go over the math topics they were going to learn over the quarter, all playfulness disappeared from his voice, replaced with seriousness. Unlike with Sagittarius, Taurus was surprisingly good at keeping the class engaged, and despite how hard to believe it was, he managed to make math seem somewhat interesting. Time practically flew by. To make matters even better, Taurus dismissed them without assigning any homework.

Heading out of the classroom, Hibiki invited Lucy to hang out.

"Thanks, but I have an old professor I want to catch up with," Lucy said with a smile. She was proud of herself for having made a friend already, one that even wanted to hang out with her after school.

Hibiki's eyes widened. "Oh, is it your boyfriend? Are you dating your old professor?"

"What? No! My boyfriend goes to this school too, but he's not a professor. Just a student."

"Oh. I'd love to meet the man that stole your heart! He must be quite the specimen!"

Lucy laughed, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure you'll meet him someday considering he plans on picking me up from school everyday. Anyways, I have to go. I'll see you Thursday!"

Waving a quick goodbye to her new friend, Lucy headed towards Aquarius' office. It was clear that Aquarius knew about her reincarnation, so why didn't she ever say anything instead of giving cryptic clues? And how did she even know about it in the first place? Had she slipped up in any way? If that was the case, she needed to know to make sure not to repeat the mistake in the future.

Reaching the cranky professor's office, Lucy peered inside to find the woman glaring at her computer screen. She wasn't surprised that there weren't any students utilizing Aquarius' office hours. After all, she was terrifying.

Feeling irked that Aquarius had kept things hidden from her, Lucy strode inside the office without bothering to knock and planted her hands on her hips with a glare. The older woman glanced up at her, a scowl immediately gracing her face.

"What do you want, brat? I thought I was finally free of you," she remarked.

Lucy closed the door behind her, locking it. "How did you know about me?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes you do. Makarov already told me about you, along with the others. Why didn't you tell me?"

Aquarius sighed, the scowl on her face finally relenting. When she looked back up at Lucy, her features were softer, a rare expression on the woman's face.

"We wanted you to find out on your own," she finally answered. "I assume Makarov told you about Acnologia and the other immortals?"

Lucy nodded. "Yeah. He told me about how we're all being hunted by some psychopath."

"And how did you take it?"

"...Not well, I guess."

"That's why I decided it was best not to tell you."

"But why?" Lucy asked. "Obviously I would have liked to know that there are others like me! What does Acnologia have to do with anything!?"

Because I didn't want you to be paranoid," Aquarius answered. "Do you know how many reincarnations live in fear for the rest of their lives, over and over again all because they found out about Acnologia? We already have enough to worry about, it's better not to have the knowledge of yet another threat to us. Besides, I was also doing it for you and Pinkie."

"You mean Natsu? What does he have to do with it?"

"Well you're dating, aren't you? I didn't want you to get scared of him since he's an immortal and all."

Lucy choked on her saliva. "W-What? How did you know about that?"

Aquarius sighed, tired of having to explain things. "I know about all of the immortals enrolled at this school, even the ones that are in Fairy Tail's basement. Considering the past between reincarnations and immortals, we are given information about each immortal so that we can choose if we want to work here or not."

"So you really knew this whole time? How did you know about me?"

"I actually met you in your first life."

Lucy felt the wind getting knocked out of her with that revelation. Feeling dizzy, she took a seat across from Aquarius, resting her head in her hands.

"I don't remember you," she finally said, meeting the older woman's gaze.

"That's because you were just a baby at the time," Aquarius replied.

"How did you know about me then? You couldn't have possibly recognized me when I was just a baby."

"I was friends with your mom. You're strangely enough the spitting image of her- though you lack all of her grace. When I first saw you, I thought that you were her and that she was a reincarnation as well. Until I found out your name, then I remembered that she named her daughter Lucy. It wasn't too hard to put the pieces together after that, though I did do a bit of research on you as well just to be sure."

Lucy gave a sad smile remembering her first mother. "I can't believe you knew her."

"It was a shock to me too when I first saw you," Aquarius replied, her own lips tugging upwards into a smile. "She was a fine woman, which is why it's so surprising you turned out like that. It must be the fault of the rest of your parents." Lucy shot her a glare before Aquarius continued, "Anyways, it was my idea to keep you from the truth, so don't even think about getting mad at Scorpio and the others."

"Don't worry, I'm not mad anymore. Just a little surprised is all. I still can't believe there are so many others like me, and that there are so many near me too."

"Who are your teachers this quarter?"

"Virgo, Sagittarius, and Taurus."

"Ah. Did you know they're all reincarnations too?"

Lucy grinned cheek to cheek. "Wow! I heard Virgo was, but I didn't know Sagittarius and Taurus were too!"

Aquarius nodded. "If you want, you would probably be allowed to teach here if you wanted. All you have to do is turn in an application to Makarov. You'd be allowed to come here every lifetime if you choose to do so."

Lucy considered the option. Truthfully, she had no idea what the future had in store for her. Still, it was nice to have another option available to her. Especially since this one allowed her to stay near Natsu and the others.

After chatting with Aquarius for another hour, Lucy finally decided to head over to Fairy Tail where her friends were waiting for her. Sure enough, when she strode inside the pub, she found Levy and Natsu hunched over, dejected from the conversation that was taking place around them.

"Why do you two look so upset?" Lucy asked once she approached them.

The two lit up like Christmas trees at the sight of her.

"Finally!" Natsu exclaimed, grabbing her wrist and gesturing for her to sit down. "We've been waiting forever! It sucks not having classes together!"

"Weren't you the one telling me it wasn't a big deal?"

"Well I changed my mind! It sucks!"

Levy nodded with the boy. "I agree! I've been wanting to talk to you all day about your story! I finally finished it!"

"Already!?"

"Yeah! We've gotta talk about it!"

"Shouldn't you guys give her room to breathe?" Gray asked with a chuckle. Natsu and Levy were practically leeching onto the poor blonde. "Anyways, how was talking to Aquarius?"

Lucy smiled. "It was nice. She explained how she knew me and why she didn't tell me about it in the first place. Oh, she also told me that if I wanted to, I could probably teach at the university after graduation."

"Are you going to?" Erza asked.

"I don't know yet. There's a lot to think about. But since I'm still a freshman, I have plenty of time to mull it over."

Natsu stared at the blonde beside him. In truth, her teaching at the university sounded like a dream come true considering it meant she would stay in Magnolia. Then they could stay together forever, even in her next lives. Not wanting to come off too strong or pressure her in any way, the boy decided to keep his thoughts to himself for now.

He didn't know what the future entailed for the two of them. He knew that he wanted to be with Lucy for the rest of his infinite life, but that was a lot to ask of someone. He knew firsthand how long life could be, he didn't know if Lucy would feel tied down. After all, she lived in different countries, had different families, her life was forever changing while his stayed the same. Not to mention most of the time he was kept in the basement. What if she wanted to go on a date? What if she got tired of hanging out in his room? There was nothing he could do about it, and he wasn't sure the girl would want to put up with it. After all, who would?

Swallowing thickly, Natsu pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. It was like Lucy said, they had plenty of time to figure it out. But no matter how many times he repeated that thought in his head, the worries he had were only swept under a thin veil that threatened to fly away with the slightest gust of wind. And he was sure they were going to come back sooner or later.

[lookatyoustrawberrynerd]

Forgiven - Gajeel X Levy

WARNINGS: Light swearing

WORD COUNT: 1.9k

GENRE: fluff, slight angst

FANDOM: Fairy Tail

PAIRING: Gajeel x Levy

The guild hall was loud and rowdy as ever as Gajeel sat alone at the bar, drinking whatever the hell Mira had put in his mug. It didn't matter to him as long as it got him drunk.

"Getting a head start today are we?" Gajeel turned around and saw the small master of Fairy Tail climbing into the stool next to him.

Gajeel chuckled as he took another swig, "It's gonna take a lot more than this to get me drunk, old man."

"Oh I don't doubt it," Makarov replied. He signaled for Mira to pour him a drink, then promptly chugged it down as if it were nothing but water. "Your tolerance must be impeccable if this is what you're putting away this early in the morning."

Gajeel smirked, "years of practice."

The two men chuckled as they drank together, falling into a comfortable silence as the guild hall roared behind them.

A small pair of arms wrapped themselves around Gajeels shoulders as a kiss was planted on his cheek. Gajeel turned his head to face his bright eyed girlfriend Levy.

Gajeel couldn't help the smile that came to his face every time he saw her. "Hey short stack," He said as he gave her a quick peck on the lips.

Levy ignored the nickname, "Me and the guys are heading out on a job for a few days."

Gajeel grunted, "is anyone else going?"

Levy shook her head, "No, but the job isn't that dangerous. Just a simple escort mission for a Lord and his daughter."

"Still, I'd feel better if you took Lily with you," Levy puffed our her cheeks.

"I can h-"

"Trust me Lev, I know you're capable of kicking so serious ass, it's the other two I don't trust." Gajeel looked behind Levy at Jet and Droy stuffing their faces.

Levy sighed, "fine, you big baby."

"That's my girl." Gajeel leaned in to whisper in Levy's ear, "I'll make it up to you when you get back."

He couldn't help but laugh as his girlfriend turned bright red in front of him. "I-I gotta go now!" Levy gave Gajeel a chaste kiss on the lips. He watched her as she met the black exceed by the door.

"Hey," Gajeel called out to Jet and Droy before they could join them. They walked over to Gajeel who then grabbed them both by the wrist and pulled them in close. "If she comes back with a single scratch," he hissed, "I will put you two in a fucking coffin."

Jet and Droy both shivered as they nodded frantically. Gajeel let go of them and they practically ran out of the guild hall. Sighing, Gajeel turned back around to take a drink, already missing his girlfriend.

"I must say Gajeel," The master started, "when I first took you in, I never would have imagined you would have fallen for my little Levy."

A faint blush dusted over his cheeks, "Well," He didn't like thinking about his time before Fairy Tail, the person he was, but he couldn't help it as the memories came back, "I was a real piece of shit back then."

He didn't realize how hard he was gripping the handle of his mug until he let go of it, revealing dents in the shape of his fingers.

"Shit," he muttered as Mira came up to grab the mug from him, "I'll buy you a new one."

Mira just laughed it off, "No need Gajeel. If we had to replace every dented mug in this place, we'd go bankrupt!"

"Mira, could you give us a minute?" Makarov asked. Nodding, Mira walked into the back room, leaving the two men alone at the bar.

"I was wondering when you were gonna cut to the chase," Gajeel said.

"Yes, but I believe it is you with something to say, my boy." The two men sat there in silence for a few seconds before the master asked, "Can I see it?"

The box in Gajeels pocket suddenly felt like a weight dragging him down. In one fluid motion, he grabbed the box and slid it to the old man next to him, careful to not let anyone see it.

Makarov pulled back the lid to reveal a small iron ring. Intricate designs of swirls carved to look like vines and flowers decorated its sides, meeting in the middle to hold a heart shaped diamond.

"How did you know?" Gajeel asked.

"I know a lot of things, Gajeel. I just happened to catch you staring at it when you think no one is watching." Makarov said as he twisted the box around to look at the ring from all angles.

Gajeel nearly choked on his drink, "fuck," he muttered. The master chuckled and clapped Gajeel on the back.

"It's a beautiful ring Gajeel," he said, sliding the ring back to him. "You must love her a great deal."

Gajeel smiled softly, "Yeah," he looked at the ring and closed the lid with a sigh. "I don't deserve her."

"How so?"

"Are you serious?" Gajeel asked, but Makarov stayed silent. Softly, Gajeel said, "I hurt her."

Makaraov hummed in acknowledgement, "So that's it huh?" Memories flooded into Gajeels mind. Him attacking her that night, the way she screamed, her nearly lifeless body hanging from that god damned tree. Gajeel swallowed down the bile rising in his throat.

"I hurt her, Master. I hurt her and her friends and laughed about it, bragged about it. But the moment I joined the guild, she treated me like nothing had ever happened. I wasn't 'Black Steel Gajeel', I was just Gajeel Redfox. If I'm being honest, it kinda pissed me off."

The master hummed, "Really?"

"Yeah," he replied, "it pissed me off because I had no idea why she would even bother being nice to me. I wouldn't have been. But of course, she's just that wildly forgiving of other people. I didn't deserve her forgiveness, and that's why it pissed me off."

"You have long since been forgiven for your sins of the past, Gajeel" The master said. Gajeel whipped his head to face him.

"What?"

"Do you know why I chose to recruit you instead of the other members of Phantom Lord?" Makarov asked and Gajeel shook his head. There was no hint of sarcasm or condescension in his voice, just plain sincerity. "I picked you because not just because I wanted to help you find the right path, but because I knew that it was possible. I saw a light in you that had been clouded by Jose and his teachings. The things you did were deplorable, and you know that more than anyone, but answer me this. Would you have done the things you did that night if Jose hadn't ordered you to?"

No. He wouldn't have. He didn't even go as far as he was supposed to that night. Jose had ordered him to kill Levy, Jet, and Droy, but he refused.

Makarov continued on, "Ever since I took you in, you have done nothing but prove me right. You have shown that you are willing to fight for your family and that you're proud to be a fairy, and we're proud to have you."

Gajeel looked around the guild hall as he processed the masters words. He looked at the people he had met over the past several years, and he realized he was proud. He had made legitimate friends in a guild he once tried to destroy and fell in love with a girl he had almost killed.

All those nice thoughts however couldn't stop the doubt from creeping into his mind. "Even still, I can't provide for her. It took me months to work enough jobs to even buy the materials for that ring, and it's not like those jobs were easy."

"You and I both know she doesn't care about that."

"But I do master!" Gajeel slammed his fist on the bar a little louder than he wanted to. Some people looked their way for a moment but quickly resumed doing whatever it was they were doing. "She deserves the world, but I simply can't give it to her."

Makarov took another swig of his drink, "You're right. She does deserve the world. But she wants you," He stood up on the bar stool and made eye contact with the man across from him. "We all have our demons, Gajeel. We all have scars that will never fade, those voices in our heads that tell us to just give up and that we'll never be good enough. But you are lucky enough to have a family that will support you in every choice you make, and a woman who loves you with her entire heart.

"You will have to live with the things you have done for the rest of your life. You cannot go back and undo it no matter how much you wish you could. What you can do is live every day showing how much you've grown. You have atoned for your sins. Levy, Jet, and Droy have forgiven you. I have forgiven you. Now you must work to forgive yourself. And if you never do, that's okay. Just don't let it stop you from living your new life.

"Never forget Gajeel that you deserve happiness just as much as everyone else under this roof. If that means a future with Levy, then I will spend every remaining second I have left ensuring that future comes to pass, and every second after that protecting it. On my honor as the master of the Fairy Tail guild."

Gajeel didn't know at what point he had started crying. No one had ever told him that he deserved to be happy, but here was someone saying it as if it were the most obvious thing it the world.

"Master I-"

"Do you love her, Gajeel?" Makarov asked.

In that moment, Gajeel saw Levys face. Her bright smile, her eyes that always sparkled, her blue hair that reminded him of the sky, the way she puffed her cheeks whenever he teased her.

He remembered all their missions together, their time in the military, all the times they had nearly died; Tenrou Island, Tartaros, Alvarez, he had never felt fear the way he did when he was confessing to Levy as he was slowly dying, and the pure elation he felt when he finally saw her again.

He thought about what he wanted in the future, and in his mind he saw Levy in a white dress walking down the aisle. He saw with a hand on her rounded stomach. He saw her reading to their children and him singing to them. He saw them growing old and gray together. His heart swelled with emotions he had never felt before as he looked into the future.

Every day he wakes up to Levy lying next to him, and he always thinks that he'll never be able to fall for her more than he already has, and every day he is proven wrong.

Gajeel smiled as he wiped away a tear from his face, "more than anything."

Makarov returned his smile, "Then marry her Gajeel. You have my blessing. Make a family with her. Make a life that both of you can be proud of living. Make her as happy as she makes you." Makarov held out his hand and Gajeel took it in his.

"I promise I will," Another tear fell down his face, "Thank you master."

"You're welcome, my son."

[gruviafan-forever]

GRUVIA WEEK- DAY III

"DISCOVERY"

When Gray had reported the drone issues to Erza and Mr Dreyar, the agency was in fix about who could be going to this extent to know about one of their actor's personal lives.

"Looks like there are still some reporters who believe that photos stuff,"

Makarov said while rubbing his forehead.

"But Master didn't we announce it's just a hoax that should have calmed everyone down" Erza reasoned.

"That's not the case, Erza. It's more like these people are working to uncover Gray's secret and create some scandalous sensations" 

Makarov said and tried calling his grandson, Laxus Dreyar who works in the police department.

After informing Laxus, Makarov seemed to have calmed down. That's when Erza informed Gray's decision to unravel his marriage.

"It's high time. However, it's a good decision" Makarov said with a smile.

He knew how hard Gray has worked for these four years to shape his career.

"Let's hope it goes accordingly. Tell Mr Jason to come and meet me. He needs to prepare an article about this and publish it the very next day of the award function on Sorceress Weekly. Also, I need to talk with Gray tomorrow, do inform him, Erza" Makarov informed.

"Yes Master," Erza said with a smile.

#

NEXT MORNING 

Gray got ready for the upcoming event and told her he could come late at night so that they don't wait for him for dinner.

"Yes, Gray-sama. Today I was planning to take Yuki to the park so that she could play with kids of her age. But after what happened yesterday, I decided not to," Juvia said and was adjusting Gray's coat.

Gray began to ponder before he spoke again, "I know it's not right to keep her inside the house and deny her playing freedom. But the situation calls for it, we have to bear for a few more days, Juvia."

He said confidently and kissed her forehead.

It was still 9 AM and Yuki was still fast asleep. So the couple had time for themselves to enjoy their company.

"Sure Gray-sama. You take care. Don't go getting rigid suddenly. Be smiling and welcome your fans warmly. It's because of them you have gained this popularity, remember that Gray-sama."

Juvia lectured her husband like every time any event comes up.

"Yes, madam"

Gray rolled his eyes and smiled at the end. At times, she treated him like a child which he secretly liked.

"Good boy, now get going. I have a lot of chores to do today. If possible, can we go to the supermarket? They're few things which we need to purchase." Juvia consulted him.

Gray agreed and told them to be wary of their surroundings.

"Don't let Yuki wander off on her own. She's such a ball of energy. I know she is a bit difficult to control but look after her. I will take my leave, bye, wifey."

Gray leaned forward to kiss her lips and got one in return.

After bidding bye to her husband, Juvia got freshened up to kick start her day before her daughter woke up.

Soon Gray reached the mentioned location, he was escorted by his manager through the back exit.

"Good morning, Erza"

"Happy morning, Gray. How's Juvia and Yuki doing?"

"Oh, they are doing great. Did Mr Dreyar say anything about the issue?" Gray questioned her.

"Yeah… he wants to meet you after this event. So get ready for that."

Erza informed them and soon they reached the main cabin where every celebrity under the Fairy Tail banner was present.

They greeted each other before Gray went to his friend, Natsu Dragneel and his girlfriend, Lucy Heartfilia.

They bumped their fist and the first thing Natsu asked about was Yuki and Juvia.

Almost every single member of Fairy Tail knew about him so it was not a piece of surprise news for them.

"They are good. Juvia's been calling you two for dinner. Why don't you come by one day? And you too, Erza. Come with your boyfriend."

Gray teased the red-haired woman who had the courtesy to blush on hearing about her love interest.

"Sure, we will come by, once we get to enjoy some free time,"

Natsu said and Lucy nodded in agreement.

That's when Gajeel decided to enter their group. It had been three years since he joined Fairy Tail after his Phantom Band got disbanded.

It was Juvia who proposed Gajeel join this big agency. Gray had spoken about this to Mr Dreyar on his girlfriend's insistence.

Mr Dreyar readily agreed after seeing his performance, ever since, then, Gajeel had been performing for this agency. 

His popularity soared after his debut. Gajeel was very much grateful to both Gray and Juvia.

Gajeel had insisted Juvia continue being his lyricist but she denied it as the agency had appointed their best Lyricist, Levy McGarden to aid her best friend.

Juvia knew Gajeel was smitten by her and didn't have the heart to the third wheel behind them.

Moreover, things happened which made her quit the part-time job which she was doing.

"Yo guys, it's been a long since I saw you all in existence. How's everything going on?"

Gajeel greeted and began with the conversation.

Gray greeted him back and soon everyone started to discuss the event and its aftermath.

#

It had been a month since Gray and Juvia had levelled up their relationship.

Gray's first tv drama shooting has been wrapped up. In a few more episodes, the drama reaches its conclusion.

For now, Gray enjoyed his free time before the shooting for the next drama commences.

The last two days were hectic for both of them as the agency had ordered Gray to move out of that lodging apartment to other high society flats which they had arranged for him.

This move was taken to avoid fans and reporters gathering around his place and prevented them from invading his privacy.

Juvia was sad hearing this news as now she will be left alone in his apartment.

Even her best friend had moved out to give privacy to her and Gray, same was the case with Gray, Natsu had moved out a couple of months as soon as he signed up for his first tv series.

Juvia tried to remain bold and not to tear up but nothing could get past Gray's eyes.

"Juvia"

"Juvia"

Gray pouted, she was not paying attention to him and was just staring blankly at his shirt.

To remove her from trance, Gray hugged her from behind which startled her.

"Gray-sama"

"Oi!! What's with the long face? I have never seen you thinking like this. Are you perhaps trying to ditch me?" Gray teased her and kissed her neck.

Juvia turned around and hit his chest, "Don't joke like that. You know how much I love you. Stupid Gray"

Juvia sounded serious especially when he heard her calling him 'Gray'.

She never called him by name without a suffix. That's when he noticed she was crying.

Gray began to fidget and cupped her face, "Hey dear, what happened? Why are you crying?" He asked her worriedly.

Juvia began to wipe her tears off but it never stopped until she told him the reason.

"I feel we will stay apart, Gray-sama, emotionally too. I'm scared that I will be left all alone once again in my life. Of course, I'm being clingy on you but I couldn't help it."

She conveyed her feelings and hugged her lover tightly.

Gray felt happy that she opened up her fear. Even he didn't want to move away from her and from the morning was thinking of asking her to move in with me as his fiancee.

Yes, Gray wanted to marry her and have a lovely life with her. He knew from these 7 months of dating, that she was born for him and he for her.

He was going to propose to her tonight but it looks like the plan needs to be executed at the moment to make her feel assured of their relationship.

"Juvia, I.." 

Before Gray could say anything, Juvia fell unconscious in his arms. He tried to wake her up but it was futile.

He carried her to the bedroom and went out to call a doctor from a nearby clinic.

Once the doctor had come and checked her up, Gray felt relief that she was alright and nothing to worry about except...

"WHAT??" Gray shrieked.

"Yes, Mr Fullbuster. Your girlfriend is pregnant. Congratulations, once Juvia wakes up, give her the medicine and go and visit the gynaecologist, they will guide you from there."

The doctor left him after advising him how to take care of a pregnant woman.

Gray couldn't believe what was happening at the moment. He had mixtures of thoughts and emotions.

But predominantly, it was happiness. He is going to be a father, that too really soon. He was going to lead a happy life with his beloved.

Soon, he was going to have a family which he and Juvia were denied from starting, this brought him happy tears and thanked the Gods for such a second chance.

Now all he hoped for was Juvia to feel the same as him.

After 30 minutes, Juvia woke up from her sleep, the first thing she saw was Gray resting beside her.

Juvia smiled at him and ruffled his hairs and that's when she noticed the ring on her finger. 

She couldn't believe her eyes and closed her mouth with her palms to avoid shouting.

Slowly, Gray woke up and saw his girlfriend's surprised expression which brought a smile to his face.

"Well, calm down, Juvia" 

Hearing his voice, Juvia pulled him into a hug and shouted 'yes'.

Gray chuckled, " I didn't even ask you yet"

Juvia began rubbing her face against his and kissed his forehead,

"I will marry you, Gray-sama."

Gray kissed her lips, "I was actually planning to do it tonight after dinner but here, I'm asking you 'Will you marry me?' "

"1000 times Yes… I'm waiting to live my life with you, Gray-sama…"

"So do I, dear"

Gray kissed her again.

Once their adrenaline has calmed down, Gray slowly broke the news.

"You know what, I found out something. Can you take a guess?"

Gray asked her while squeezing her palms.

Juvia wondered what it could be and accepted her defeat. Now she was curious what this could be.

"We are going to be parents. You are pregnant, Juvia. You are gonna be mama and I'm gonna be papa."

He said with a big smile and kissed her palm.

Then, he told her everything from the moment she fainted to till doctors departure.

Juvia was shedding happy tears and caressing her flat tummy for now. She was going to be a mother, she was going to have her own family now which she longed for since her childhood.

"Are you happy, Gray-sama?"

She wanted to know his feelings.

"My happiness goes beyond this world. I'm happy that we are gonna start be a family together. Juvia, let's get married tomorrow."

Gray shared his piece of mind.

"Thank you for sharing the same feeling as mine, Gray-sama. I love you a lot." Juvia said earnestly.

The very next day, they got their marriage registered in an office. Gray casually informed the recent events of his life to friends and Mr Dreyar.

They were shell shocked yet wished them both happiness enough for their life ahead.

That's when Mr Dreyar had told him to hide this news from the public as Gray was still a budding artist and this could hamper this growth.

Juvia agreed and supported this decision and even convinced Gray to agree with this. It's after sorting out these issues they finally went to their new home.

[windmaedchen-fairytail]

Golden Death

“Ivan! Ughn.... please... help me.”

Aurelia’s whimpers came from the centre of the crater. A dark cloud wrapped around her ankles, pulling her towards a larger cloud behind her. Ivan knelt on the ground further to the side, out of exhaustion and subsiding fear but also in unexpected delight. Fear, for, while the demon was pulverized and dealt with, its demise brought an unexpected counter-attack. His shikigami shielded him from a direct hit, but Aurelia hadn't been so lucky. Out of magic and injured, she was unable to move and was desperately clinging to the ground, hoping her husband would rescue her.

And that was the delight. A chance for Ivan to rid himself of this woman. The guild members were busy elsewhere and the final life of the demon holding on to Aurelia would be gone in a few seconds, taking hers as it seems, with it. How easy it could be to hesitate, to come too late to rescue her.

"Just keep watch of the kid, woman", he’d usually tell her when she requested to team up. Every time she cried and attempted to pull at those heartstrings of his that aren't there. If ever he had loved her, those times are more than 10 years into the past. Even that may be putting things in a sentimental way. He always just regarded her to be an attractive woman and partner, and for some time that was an absolute delight to experience. And then she started the nagging, the jealousy, the attempts of control, the desperate clawing to keep him close, the insistence on marriage, her malicious deceit to get Laxus against his wishes - just everything about her turned into a pain to deal with. He had thought that, when she left with the boy to live with his father, it would be the end.

But she just couldn't let go. What a persistent and stupid woman. This wasn't the first time he thought of ways to get rid of her and while he had cursed this joint effort in the beginning, he now considers it a blessing to have been paired up with his wife one more time. This sudden turn of events was playing right into his hands.

Might anyone question the situation? Oh, yes, there might be some fellow guild members who will. Ivan was well aware of what was spoken about him behind his back. But could anyone possibly prove anything? No.

“Oh god, Ivan, please...”

Her begging brought Ivan’s mind back to reality. Aurelia was struggling to escape. Her entire legs were already gone in the mist of darkness and it kept engulfing her more. Ivan remained were he was. He slowly lifted his hands to use some of his shikigami torrents but instead of aiming to dispel the darkness at her legs, he missed purposefully. In partly faked exhaustion he leaned onto his hands and uttered a few breathless words.

“I am... sorry. I can't do anything.”

“No! No! Don't say that. I know you... have still magic left... darling, please.”

Ivan looked up and over to his wife again. The fear for her live carved deep lines of terror into her still young face. Pearls of sweat glittered on her brow and her tense fingers dug lines in to the ground. The dark cloud wrapped itself around her chest. It was very soon time. Ivan shrugged slightly and tilted his head a little.

“As said... I can't do anything. What a pity to loose you.”

Aurelia’s eyes widened as she realised he had no intention to help her. She held her breath, unable to swallow the knot in her throat. Tears of desperation started to run down her cheeks as she attempted to speak.

“No… please, darling… I--”

The lingering darkness crept around her face and put an end to her broken voice. For a moment the black cloud floated calmly, hiding the contours of its content. Then it started to pulsate around her and began to flow backwards into the small hole of the crater centre, dragging the body within along. When the darkness finally disappeared, it left behind the dried up, mummified remains of Aurelia Dreyar.

Ivan stared at her contorted body for a few moments before lowering his head. He didn’t expect that sight and all colour had left his face. She had been so beautiful in life and was now so ugly in death. Yet, that was it, he thought, and a faint smile drew the corners of his mouth up. That was it. She was gone forever.

When Ivan heard the cries of his guild mates approaching, his hand shot up instantly to comb through his hair, covering his face with his bend arm.

“IVAN! AURELIA! Are you all right?!”

It was young Gildarts who had called out to them. He was followed by a few other guys from the team and together they stumbled down the crater walls to join the older wizard. Ivan noticed that he was shaking a little and placed his hand onto the back of his neck. How soon would the accusations start? He felt Gildart’s hand on his shoulder.

“Are you ok? We saw the demon vanish but there was still--My god, what is that?!”

His sight had fallen onto the remains in the centre. With dread he recognised the clothing and golden hair to be that of his friend and fellow guild member, Aurelia Dreyar. There was a moment of shocked silence among all of them.

Finally Gildarts found the strength to speak.

“What on earth happened?”

Ivan kept his eyes on the floor in front of him. He furrowed his brows and opened his mouth slightly, as if searching for words. He couldn’t help glancing over to Aurelia’s body and he believed to see her face distort even more, nearly screaming back at him. It wasn’t his intention to turn away from the sight so suddenly and didn’t expect cold sweat on his neck. No matter, it should all work in his favour. It took Gildarts to step and kneel right in front of him, shaking him by the shoulders, to get Ivan’s attention.

“Ivan, come on! How did that happen?!”

Ivan stared back for a moment but remained silent. Anything he might say, would be used against him. He then avoided Gildart’s gaze and shifted his weight backwards, drawing up his knees and resting his forehead against them. Seeing as Ivan wasn’t going to communicate right now, Gildarts disregarded him with a scoff and left to join the others.

....

Somehow they ended up taking care of everything. They had Ivan walk back to town with them. They recovered Aurelia's body and returned it to Magnolia. They reported to Master Makarov to the best of their knowledge. Ivan himself only spoke to his father about the accident. He generally held back, in words and gestures, attempting to appear like a mourning husband. It worked. Nonetheless, he dutifully took care of administrative matters but was glad he did not have to organise much for the funeral.

Naturally, Ivan had to attended his wife’s funeral. He noticed the suspicion in the eyes of some people around him, especially of his own father. They probably imagined all sorts of fantastic things and in the end they were not even wrong! Yet, what possibly could they do? Nothing. The public version was that Aurelia had died on a job, by an enemy attack that Ivan was not able to prevent. That's the matter of fact. He has been accused of many things, but never of wilful homicide. Because, if he could have saved his wife easily, why ever would he choose not to do so? That is unfathomable.

For some time after the incident Ivan was riddled by a mixture of two feelings. On one side he enjoyed of forbidden delight at the death of his annoying wife. On the other, the haunting, contorted features of Aurelia Dreyar send chills down his spine when he was alone. Both subsided soon enough.

Now, 20 years later, he still felt relieved as the annoyance of that woman would bother him no longer. Yet, he had to admit, he did not find the same thrill, bliss and satisfaction of their early relationship in any other companion since.

Even though he felt no guilt, occasionally her dead face crept into his mind, reminding him — if even for a brief moment — what an eerie emotion fear can be.

[ignitedbynatsu]

We are Family

Pairing: Fairy Tail guild

Word Count; 2k

warnings: mention of blood, fighting, let me know if I missed something!

genre: fluff maybe? A little bit of angst? Neutral? (I really have no clue 🥲)

A/N: just a random though that popped up in my head once I finished watching Fairy Tail

summary: You are a feared S-class wizard of Fairy Tail that rarely anybody saw. You make your presences known when a hotheaded fire dragon slayer challenges you to fight him

👪👨‍👩‍👦👨‍👩‍👧👨‍👩‍👧‍👦👨‍👩‍👦‍👦👨‍👩‍👧‍👧👨‍👨‍👦👨‍👨‍👧👨‍👨‍👧‍👦👨‍👨‍👦‍👦👨‍👨‍👧‍👧👩‍👩‍👦👩‍👩‍👧👩‍👩‍👧‍👦👩‍👩‍👦‍👦👩‍👩‍👧‍👧👩‍👦👩‍👧👩‍👧‍👦👩‍👦‍👦👩‍👧‍👧👨‍👦👨‍👧👨‍👧‍👦👨‍👦‍👦👨‍👧‍👧

Laughing, drinking and occasionally fighting; those are the things that are characteristic for Fairy Tail. Today was not different. Natsu and Gray were squabbling once again while the others were encouraging them. There was never a quiet moment in the guild, but nobody seemed to care. Not even the dark figure that was always seated in the corner of the second floor.

Hardly anyone knew who she was when she joined the guild or what she even looked like. The only persons that have ever seen her are the S-class wizards and Makarov. 

“It’s been a while since (Y/N) has done a quest,” Erza said as she was munching on a cake while Mira-Jane was tapping some beer.

“Yeah, I haven’t seen her in quite some time.” She agreed.

“(Y/N)? Who’s that?” Lucy, who had overheard the conversation, asked.

“One of our S-class wizards” Erza replied simply. 

“How come I haven’t seen her? Is she here?” Lucy asked.

“She hasn’t left the guild in almost a year. She isn’t the type that likes to mingle” Mira-Jane said, making Erza chuckle.

“That’s putting it mildly,” The scarlet haired girl said.

“So where would you put her in the ranking of most powerful wizards in Fairy Tail?” Lucy questioned.

“I don’t know to be honest. Only the master and Gildarts have seen her powers before” Mira-Jane said. “She only goes out on very hard S-class missions but lately she hasn’t left very often”

“I wonder why,” Erza said as she finished her dessert.

Natsu and Gray ended their fight and sat beside Lucy. “Do you guys know anything about (Y/N)?” 

“Gildarts says she’s very powerful. I wonder if she’d want to fight me if she ever comes down from that second floor” Natsu said.

“She’s even more mysterious than Mystagon” Gray said.

“I got a great idea!” Natsu suddenly acclaimed as he shot up and went to the middle of the guild to stand on a table. “Oi! (Y/N)! Wanna fight?”

The usually rowdy guild went deadly silent. Everyone was looking at Natsu in shock. They knew Natsu often had extremely impulsive ideas, but it looked like he had a death wish as of right now.

“Hey, Flame Brain, what do you think you’re doing?” Gray asked Natsu but he quickly kept quiet when they heard a chair move over the floor.

“sure” They heard a soft voice say.

The whole guild hardly dared to breathe as the saw the girl walk down the stairs. Makarov was watching the girl intensely as if she could blow up any second.

“Yes! I’ve been waiting for this day, let’s go outside!” Natsu yelled enthusiastically, sprinting outside with the girl following behind in her own pace.

Everyone was looking at each other rather unsure whether they should follow the two or not, but Asuka quickly broke the tension by running outside with matching enthusiasm as Natsu.

Soon enough the whole guild was piled outside and watched as Natsu and (Y/N) were standing opposite of each other.

“Give me your best shot, Salamander” (Y/N) said

“You got it!” Natsu replied as he started the fight with his dragon roar. The girl easily dodged it making Natsu stunned for a second. He quickly followed his own attack with his fire fist but she was once again quick to dodge it.

“Oi! Stop dodging my attacks and fight back,” Natsu said frustrated.

“Alright” (Y/N) said as she quickly glanced at their master to check if it was okay to which he nodded. “roar of the blood dragon”

As the words left (Y/N)’s mouth, everyone was looking at her with an astonished look. They had five dragon slayers in their guild without ever knowing. 

“Did I hear her say blood dragon?” Wendy asked timidly as she cradled Carle in her arms.

“yes,” Their master answered “meet (Y/N), the child of the blood dragon Sanguisey”

“This is too much attention” (Y/N) mumbled as she awkwardly shifted her weight from her left foot to her right. 

She hesitantly made a move to go back inside the guild, but Natsu stopped “I’m not done yet”

(Y/N)’s eyes drifted to the beaten-up boy on the ground who was slowly getting back up. She regretted her decision of coming downstairs as she felt her magic surge through her body.

“I’m all fired up now” He grinned with Happy cheering from the sideline. The Fire Dragonslayer didn’t waste a moment as he came after the girl hit after hit. 

(Y/N) had a worried look in her eyes as she kept dodging every attack “Natsu, please stop. I don’t want to hurt you”

“Fight me!” He yelled back as he kept going.

Flashbacks came rushing in as (Y/N) pleaded for Natsu to stop but he didn’t listen. The blood dragon slayer could feel her magic losing control while she tried to contain it. It was hard, but she managed. That was until Natsu finally landed a hit.

“Yes! I did it!” Natsu yelled, “Aye sir!” Happy followed.

The two friends were celebrating while all the others watched (Y/N) silently. Her head was slightly bowed down and her body was trembling fiercely.

“Blood dragon blood control” (Y/N) mumbled viciously as she looked back at the cherry coloured hair boy who was now crumbling to the floor in pain. 

“Natsu!” Lucy yelled from the sideline as she made a move to go and help Natsu but Makarov stopped her.

“(Y/N)! That’s enough” He ordered the girl. (Y/N), who was not herself anymore, looked at the guild master with a crazy look in her eyes. Marakov plan was simple all he had to do was distract her while Erza sneaked up behind her to knock her out.

It wasn’t the first time she lost control and would most certainly not be the last. They always had to go through this procedure. One of the S-class members or Makarov would distract her while another one would sneak up behind her and knock her out. At that moment, it was the only way they knew how to get (Y/N) back.

Once Erza knocked the girl out, she caught her before she hit the ground and brought her back inside.

“you just had to go and overdo it again, didn’t you Natsu” Makarov sighed as the other guild members looked in shock at what just had happened.

Natsu, who was still on the ground and breathing heavily, couldn’t help but be amazed by (Y/N)’s powers “that was awesome!”

“Honestly, sometimes I wondered how many times you were dropped on your head when you were a kid” Gray scoffed at him.

“What was that?!” Natsu yelled at him. 

“That’s enough!” Makarov shut the two kibbling boys up. “Don’t you even think about challenging (Y/N) again.”

“But, gramps” the dragon slayer whined.

“I said no. She still does not have control over her past demons. Untill that, I don't want to see you fight her again” He said before disappearing back into the guild to check up on (Y/N).

“I wondered what happened to (Y/N)” Lucy said as she looked at how all the guild members slowly went back inside.

“We should go visit her in the medical wing later,” Natsu said as he was now sitting crisscrossed on the ground.

“Hold on Natsu, you aren’t planning things, are you? Master clearly told us not to” the blonde scolded him.

“Gramps says a lot of stuff and I hardly ever listen. Besides she’s part of Fairy Tail, so she’s part of our family. And family checks up on each other whenever someone’s sick.” Natsu dismissed her. “Let’s go, Happy”

“I don’t know, Natsu. She seems kind of dangerous” Happy hesitated as he sided with Lucy.

“Fine, then I’ll go by myself,” The said as he left his two friends behind, but it didn’t take long for them to follow behind him. They may be scared of her, but they most certainly didn���t want Natsu to go in there alone.

The three of them were spying on the medical room, waiting for Makarov to leave the room. “What are you guys up to now”

Lucy was about to shriek, but Natsu quickly covered her mouth as he glared daggers at Gray. “You almost blew our mission”

“What mission? If you want to talk to (Y/N) just go inside” Gray said.

“(Y/N) is not the problem, gramps is. He’ll think I’m up to something and kick me out” Natsu explained. “hush, here he comes” 

The four watched as Makarov left the room with a heavy sigh. Once he was out of sight the four sneaked inside. “What do you guys think you’re doing”

Once again Lucy wanted to shriek, but both Gray and Natsu quickly covered her mouth again so she wouldn’t wake up the sleeping (Y/N).

“I’m sorry” Lucy sheepishly said once the two boys uncovered her mouth.

“What do you want,” Erza asked again.

“We wanted to make sure (Y/N) was okay” Natsu replied as he looked at the resting girl.

“She is, now leave,” the older woman ordered.

“Hold up, why is everyone acting like she is some ticking time bomb” the fire dragon slayer complained.

“Where was your head during that fight? Didn’t you see how she lost control and basically stopped the blood in your body from flowing through your body?” Erza pointed out.

“Oh so that’s what happened,” He clicked his tongue as realisation struck him.

As Natsu kept trying to pursue Erza, (Y/N)’s eyes slowly opened. She blinked a couple of times to get a more clear look of everyone.

“Erza, Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Happy” She mumbled as she was a bit taken aback by how many people were there for her.

“Oh hey, you’re awake” Natsu grinned down at the girl.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to. Please forgive me. I’m so sorry” She quickly said as she sat up straight and bowed her head down.

“Whoah, it’s okay. I don’t blame you” He said.

“I’m sorry… I think it’s better if you all stay as far away from me as possible. I really am sorry for the pain I caused” She said as tears started to form in her eyes.

“What are you babbling on about. You’re part of our family. We don’t abandon our family when they need help. Jeez, one would think that you would know better since you’ve been here the longest and all” Natsu said.

“I’m sorry” (Y/N) once again apologized.

“Stop apologizing. Why don’t you start with why you're so reserved from everyone” Gray said.

“Well… You see… I was an assassin” She whispered the last part.

“I’m sorry you were a what?” Lucy asked cheerfully, but that soon vanished as the girl repeated herself but louder “an assassin”

“What?!” Lucy and Happy exclaimed as they looked in shock at the timid girl in front of them.

“Once Sanguisey left, I searched everywhere for him. As I was continuing my search I ran into some troublesome people. They promised me lots of things, and me being the naïve girl I was, of course, believed them. They eventually tortured and manipulated me into killing people. I was basically their killing puppet which is ironic considering I can basically make anyone my puppet with my magic. I stayed with them for almost 5 years. I killed more people than I can count, but I remember every face, every pleading pair of eyes. I remember all of them. I am a monster created by other humans.” She explained.

The room was quiet as they let the newfound information sink in “that’s not you”

(Y/N) looked up at Natsu as the words left his mouth “You’re a girl that was forced to grow up. I could see the excitement in you when I asked you to fight me. You just want to be a kid and have fun, but that got taken away from you.”

“You are no longer part of that group, you are a part of Fairy Tail. You are our family and we’ll do everything we can to protect you.” Gray added.

“You don’t have to put on a façade with us. We’ll help you overcome your inner demons and get you back to your old self” Erza finished.

“I’m sorry” (Y/N) apologized.

"What are you apologizing for?” Lucy asked.

“I didn’t mean to be such a burden” She replied quietly.

“You’re not. Everyone in this guild will do their best to help you. I can promise you that. We would never let a friend suffer on their own” Lucy smiled gently at her.

"Friend…” (Y/N) mumbled as she looked around the room. “Thank you… Everyone”

[jemmahazelnut]

Two broken hearts with matching sides - Chapter 3

Summary: Freed and Laxus were inseparable friends, they always spent their days together ever since they were children, so much so that they were considered indivisible. That’s why everyone was surprised when during the last year of high school, the two boys no longer spoke a word from one day to the next. That’s why everyone was surprised when Freed left for Germany and Laxus knew nothing about it. After three years the two will be forced to see each other again, and for a period to live under the same roof. [Freed/Laxus]

Link: AO3

Here you can find Chapter One, Chapter Two.

An intolerable situation

That had been a shit day, ever since he got out of bed. It had all started since he met Freed in the kitchen. Usually he never met the boy, it seemed that they both calculated their schedules in order to see each other as little as possible. But that morning Laxus had woken up late, and because of that he had had to have breakfast with Freed. It had only been three minutes, but it was more than enough to piss him off.

After that he had arrived late for class, and by mid-morning he had received an email from the office telling him that a wrong exam had been recorded. So, he had to waste half an hour of his time arguing with the old fool from the Student Administration Office, who didn't know how to use a computer.

Fortunately, there was a positive side, in the canteen he had crossed paths with Rufus and that boy had clearly flirted with him. Well, Rufus was a nice guy. Maybe he reminded him a little of Freed, but the biggest difference was that Rufus wasn't an asshole. They hadn’t dated yet, but he was convinced it wouldn't take long. That blond was obviously smitten with him.

And Laxus couldn't wait to date with him, maybe showing it in front of Freed, and showing him what he had lost. And since Freed and Rufus never got along in high school, it would’ve been even more fun. Good heavens, he felt like a teenager girl acting like that. Not that Freed cared about him.

In any case, the day wasn't over yet. No, he had come home and met Freed on the landing in front of the elevator. He too had just entered and the two were in front of the elevator. They didn't even say hello, they stared at each other for a moment and then looked away. Laxus pressed the button to call the elevator. If anyone left, Freed would. He wasn't going to go up the stairs just to avoid the asshole.

He didn't even have to argue anyway, Freed greeted him coldly and then took the stairs without even waiting for an answer from him. Laxus growled softly. Fuck. Rightly the asshole ran away, it was the only thing he could do in his life. The elevator arrived and Laxus got inside, more and more nervous. He couldn't wait for Freed to find another apartment and leave.

Halfway up the climb the lift stopped.

Fuck, as if it isn't already enough, he thought irritably. He pressed the button on his floor again, but nothing, the lift wouldn’t start at all. Irritated, he pressed the alarm, just hoping it wasn't Freed who heard him, but most likely the boy was still on the stairs. Fuck, that day was getting worse and worse.

Fortunately, after a few seconds the elevator started up again and Laxus went out shortly after to his own floor. He’d never take that damn thing again. Freed was standing in front of the open door to the apartment. The two still said nothing and entered the apartment.

“Hello guys!” exclaimed Bickslow sitting on the sofa.

“Hi,” Freed said and then went straight to his room and locked himself inside. Bickslow sighed heavily and turned to him, but Laxus only grunted a greeting. He was still mad at them for setting him up in an apartment with Freed. He knew they had done it with good intentions, but why the hell hadn't they at least talked about it with him before?

Maybe because you refused to do it, said a little voice in his head but he chased it away.

“Do you want to do a movie night tonight?” Bickslow asked “Evergreen makes popcorn, and we choose the movie.”

“I choose the film,” the girl retorted from the kitchen. Laxus hesitated, fearing that Freed was there too. He didn't really want to sit on the same couch with the boy. Bickslow seemed to read his mind because after a while he spoke.

“Freed has to study”.

“Ok then,” Laxus replied, ignoring Bickslow's disappointed expression. At least he had stopped bothering him to be with Freed. “But I choose the film,” he declared.

“Hey, I'm the one making the popcorn here, so I'm going to pick the movie,” Evergreen complained as she appeared at the living room door.

“Since most of the DVDs are mine, I choose,” Laxus retorted and looked over the pile of DVDs, but he quickly noticed that one was missing. “Where is ‘It’?” he asked.

“Oh, Freed and I watched it last night,” Bickslow said. “Maybe we had put it in the drawer,” he said quietly. Laxus opened the drawer slightly nervous.

“It's not there,” he blurted out. He didn't know why, but the idea of Freed touching his things bothered him. Maybe they had once exchanged everything without any problem, but those times were over, and the fault was the asshole. Irritated and without thinking he went to Freed's room, ignoring Bickslow who was hurrying to get up from the sofa saying that maybe he had taken it.

He knew it didn't make sense to get mad for something like that, but he wanted to vent all the frustration he'd built up throughout the day. Besides, any excuse would’ve been a good one to blame Freed.

Laxus knocked violently on the door of the roommate's room three times, then entered without waiting for an answer. Freed was changing his clothes and was wearing only boxers. Laxus paused for just a moment to look at his naked, muscular torso, and for a moment a flash of the past occurred to him.

“What the fuck, are you able to knock before you enter?” Freed growled.

“I knocked,” Laxus retorted.

“Very useless since you walked in before waiting for an answer,” Freed snapped.

“Maybe if you didn't take my things, I wouldn't have to go in like that,” Laxus said roughly.

“What the hell are you talking about,” Freed snapped grabbing his pants.

“It”.

“What?” Freed asked confused.

“It, the movie,” Laxus snapped annoyed and walked into the room approaching Freed's desk. The boy still had a lot of books, and judging by the bookmarks he was still reading two at the same time. He looked at the computer and noticed that the screen was frozen on a Word document full of writing and curious he read a few lines. Did Freed write?

“Get out of here” Freed snapped going in front of him and closing the computer with a dry gesture. The fact that he had only been wearing the pants in the meantime still distracted Laxus a bit. He didn't know if he was more inclined to slam him against the wall to kiss him or to beat him. In any case, it would’ve been satisfactory. “And maybe learn a little education towards your roommates.”

Laxus grinned. “But you’re a great roommate using other people's things,” he commented harshly.

“I thought it was Bicks...”.

“Really?” Laxus interrupted. “Because we both know that's not true. Or do I have to remind you how many times we saw it years ago?” he growled. It was enough to think about how different things were years ago to make him feel a strong melancholy, but he covered it with anger not to show it.

“It’s not in my room anyway,” Freed snapped, raising his tone. “Probably Bickslow has it. Now get out of here,” he ordered dryly. Laxus felt the nervousness rise even more. Why was he thinking about the past, and Freed hadn't even blinked at the memory? Because obviously the asshole never gave a shit about him.

“Don't use my stuff anymore,” he growled as he left the room.

“And you learn to control yourself, three years and you've only gotten worse,” Freed snapped and then slam the door and shut himself inside. Laxus was tempted to open it only to punch him, and blame him for how much Freed had gotten worse. He didn't just do it because Bickslow put a hand on his shoulder.

“I found the DVD. I had it”.

“Good,” Laxus grunted irritably. Soon after he went back to his room.

***

It all seemed normal. Laxus hadn't talked about it, he hadn't talked about it and to tell the truth there hadn't even been embarrassment. Freed didn’t know how to behave, he felt high every time the blonde turned to look at him, and every now and then it seemed to him that Laxus was staring at him more than he should. Maybe he had forgotten the kiss because of alcohol. Or maybe he didn't know how to behave.

But Freed didn't want to talk about it, if Laxus didn't remember and if it was just a drunk impulse, he didn't want to ruin their friendship. Freed turned to the TV. They were at the home of Makarov, Laxus' grandfather. Apparently, the old man had left them alone and the two were deciding what movie to see. He roused himself from his thoughts and forced himself to behave normally as usual.

“Tonight let's watch ‘It’” he decided taking the DVD. Laxus snorted loudly.

“We saw it last time, let's watch ‘Matrix’,” he retorted.

“You're just scared” Freed teased with a smirk but Laxus pushed him aside and took the science fiction DVD. That gesture reassured Freed, if Laxus had no problem touching him, it was just fine. It really all seemed as usual. Maybe the friend really didn't remember anything. Better this way, it would’ve been just a memory of Freed and that was enough.

“I'm not afraid,” Laxus snapped. “But we already saw it last time, it gets boring to see it again. We'll watch ‘Matrix’,” he decided.

“We've already seen that too,” Freed pointed out.

“So?” Laxus asked. Freed pulled the DVD from his hands and the blonde tried to get it back, but Freed stepped back and put it behind his back. Laxus advanced towards him but the boy ran away behind the sofa. “We both know I'll win,” the blond said.

“I don't think so, and then you decided last time,” Freed reminded him. Laxus apparently didn't care much. He walked over to Freed and pinned him against the back of the sofa, reached behind Freed's back to grab the DVD but he held it tight.

“Let go,” the blond told him.

“Absolutely not”.

“You're unbearable,” Laxus growled. Then he grinned dangerously and Freed arched an eyebrow. Against his every surprise, Laxus reached out to his hip and began to move his fingers. Freed immediately began to wriggle but to no avail and laughed at the tickle.

“Stop it, come on, stop it,” he pleaded with laughter. Laxus grinned and didn't listen to him, continuing to move his fingers sadistically. Freed climbed back onto the sofa but Laxus grabbed him by the waist to prevent him from escaping. The DVDs fell from Freed's hands and fell to the ground, but Laxus now wanted his revenge. Freed rolled over on the sofa and Laxus threw himself on top of him, straddled his stomach and lifted his shirt and continued to tickle him.

“Enough,” Freed said with tears in his eyes.

“So, let's watch ‘Matrix’?”

“Okay, but stop the fuck,” Freed said. Satisfied Laxus stopped his fingers and Freed panting looked over him. Oh fuck. Why the hell were they so close. Why had Laxus sat on him? Freed felt his face flush and noticed how Laxus' cheeks were warming too.

Soon after, the blond came down to him, took the DVD and put it in the DVD player. He sat back down next to Freed, and the boy didn't know what to do. He stared at the TV screen trying not to focus on his friend, at least until Laxus asked him if he wanted a beer.

“Beer?” Freed asked, turning surprised to his friend. Laxus shrugged.

“My grandfather isn't there. We can have fun and get drunk. It will be fun,” he said.

“Oh,” Freed said and then nodded. “Okay,” he said. Laxus went into the kitchen and Freed paused the movie, waiting for his friend to return. When Laxus returned, however, he didn't have a beer in his hand, but a bottle of vodka. He grinned and opened it.

“Will Makarov not notice?” Freed asked.

“With everything he drinks he certainly won't,” Laxus replied as he sat down on the sofa and opened it. Immediately afterwards he took a long drink and then passed it to Freed. He himself took it and drank, then grimaced.

Shortly after, the two decided to mix it with something else, and took what they found from the fridge. A few Schweppes and some small talk and during the film they drank more and more alcohol. They didn't finish the bottle, because they found themselves laughing at some bullshit before. Freed laughed at scenes in the film and Laxus followed him, although he might not understand why.

“Drinking is fun,” Freed said turning to Laxus, and the blonde nodded.

“Of course it is,” he laughed and then put his arm around Freed's shoulders. He felt himself blush and like the last time he drank, he felt agitated by that closeness. He couldn't handle it, not drunk. Even though he wasn't as drunk as the last time, but he was still tipsy and that lowered his defenses.

He leaned on his friend's shoulder and looked up, and felt his heart beat even more strongly when he saw that Laxus was watching him intently. They were silent for a couple of seconds before the blond lowered his head. Freed lifted his chin and their lips joined.

For Freed it was as if his body burned. They were kissing. A second time. And it was Laxus who had done it. He was drunk, true, but he had taken the first step. Freed clung to his shirt and Laxus tilted his head, parting his lips and forcing Freed to do the same.

They pulled apart to catch their breath and Laxus stretched out on the sofa, carrying Freed on top of him, who did nothing to rebel.

“We're drunk,” Freed murmured, without separating from him, but rather, positioning himself comfortably on his friend.

“It's fun to get drunk,” Laxus replied as he ran a hand through Freed's hair. Freed blushed but could only agree. If that became their new drunken pastime, then he was looking forward to drinking again.

Meanwhile, he bent over his friend again and joined their lips.

***

Two beers. He had only drunk two beers. It wasn't enough to make him drunk and he was sure Laxus wasn't drunk either. He had drunk less than him and was able to handle alcohol better. Not that Freed cared. As long as he was lying on his friend's bed with Laxus astride him, he wasn't interested in anything else.

Laxus's lips ran down his jaw until they reached his neck and Freed cocked his head to the side, giving him free access. When he heard his friend begin to suck and bite, he moaned loudly.

“Fuck,” he whispered. God, he wanted to let go and make him do whatever he wanted. He felt Laxus's hands go up under his shirt and Freed let him do it, while trembling with excitement. This time it wasn't the alcohol that stunned him, but Laxus's care, his hands, his mouth and... oh god. Laxus was tough.

Freed's eyes widened and looked down. He was really tough. Not that the situation was different for him. He felt his cheeks inflame and looked up, meeting his friend's. He too was red in the face and was panting slightly, looking intently at him. His hips pushed forward and Freed couldn't hold back another groan.

Shit.

He clung to Laxus's neck and began kissing him intensely again, while they rubbed each other to get both a little relief. Freed dared to pull up Laxus's shirt, running a hand over his bare back and was happily surprised not to feel any opposition.

In fact, Laxus was enjoying himself.

“Shit Freed,” Laxus moaned as he continued to push against him. That friction was driving him crazy, and Freed was afraid he’d come in his pants at any moment. Laxus, however, didn’t stop. “Freed... I can't take it anymore,” Laxus blew on his face.

“Me neither,” Freed admitted.

The two boys stopped, both panting and both with a problem in their pants. For a moment they were both undecided on what to do. Freed didn't want him to end up there. He wanted to continue, make out with Laxus and maybe do something more. And he thought Laxus wanted it too, since he wasn't moving from his position.

“I... I’ve tissues,” Freed stammered. Laxus looked at him for a moment confused and Freed took courage and reached out to reach his friend's belt. Cheeks ablaze he looked up, and Laxus gasped even more. “Can I?” Freed asked uncertainly.

“Oh god, yes,” Laxus replied quickly. Freed, satisfied and excited by the answer, took off his belt and opened his friend's pants. He swallowed nervously as he reached under his boxers and with the other hand took the packet of tissues on the bedside table, dropping the lamp and some CDs on the floor. But Laxus didn't seem to care.

The blond followed his example and the two gave each other pleasure on the bed, and then stayed there with their pants open and panting breaths.

At least until they heard that Makarov had returned. At that point they got up and fixed everything, throwing away the dirty tissues, and in a few seconds being fully sober and friends again. And again, neither of them dared to talk about it.

***

Final notes: Probably the DVDs will seem part of the Middle Ages or something like that, but consider that in Italy up to five/six years ago Netflix hadn’t yet arrived, so if this story is set between 2016 and 2018 it’s perfectly plausible, because it was not still so popular.

That said, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, even if Freed and Laxus still can't stand each other. Thanks to those who comment, it really means a lot to me.

[eryiss]

Summary: Freed has taken great joy in watching Laxus become not only a powerful mage, but a celebrity as well. As any dutiful husband would, he saw it his responsibility to make sure Laxus' new found fame didn't go to his head. And what better way to accomplish that than to splash him back to reality. [Fraxus One Shot]

I'm not sure where this idea came from, but it seemed fun and I don’t write canon-focused as much as I'd like to. This is just a fun little one shot, that I hope can put a smile on your faces.

You can read this under the cut, on Fanfiction, or on Archive of Our Own. Hope you enjoy it.

A Splash of Reality

Freed wasn't entirely sure how, but Laxus had become something of a celebrity.

It had started out during their stint working for Blue Pegasus, wherein Laxus had been forced to take an interview with Sorcerer Weekly. Master Bob had insisted on it, claiming that the guild was run on patrons as well as their jobs, and having the world-renowned Laxus Dreyar suddenly as a guildmember was big news and could stir up a lot of business. It was made an even bigger deal because of Laxus' previous aversion to anything to do with press. It was his first interview, and it had been incredibly successful.

From there, things had snowballed. Other interviewers suddenly saw Laxus as a viable target, and Bob forced Laxus to do the more high-profile ones. When Fairy Tail had returned, Laxus had been one of the main points of intrigue, partly because now he was a well-known media figure and Fairy Tail returning was big news, and party because of the rumours about Laxus taking over.

Once he had started, he hadn't seemed to stop. Not only did he do interviews, but he also done an advertisement for the creators of his cherished headphones, which had kickstarted his pseudo-career in modelling. Every interview now came with a photoshoot, and Freed was immeasurably amused about how, with every shoot he did, the amount of clothing Laxus wore seemed to be lessening and the poses became more focused on his physique. Apparently the magazines knew a body they could profit from when presented with one.

While Laxus did complain, Freed knew he was enjoying it all. The man, while private, did like attention, if only on his terms.

The amount of time the couple could spend together did lessen slightly, but Freed didn't mind that. It would be hypocritical if he did, given when they had gotten together it had been the same year he'd gained the reputation as the 'Pretty Boy with a heart of darkness', and he had topped the 'Wizard I'd Like To Date' list; something Laxus had yet to do, Freed thought smugly. Media was something a famous wizard had to deal with, and it was a lot more fun laughing at Laxus' awkwardness in interviews than it would be if he allowed himself to be angry at the late nights Laxus spent in a studio somewhere.

One such night, Freed found himself doing the dishes as Laxus returned home.

"Hey," Laxus greeted as he entered, immediately shucking off his coat. "You alright?"

"Perfectly well," Freed said with a smile, placing the sponge on the draining board and turning to greet his husband. "Did your meeting go well?"

"I guess so," Laxus shrugged. "They offered me the contract. Pretty good pay, lots of coverage, they seemed enthusiastic about it."

"I can't imagine why," Freed chuckled. "It's not as if you're the person everyone's taking about right now, and that everything you attribute your name to seems to explode in popularity. Oh wait, you're exactly that," Freed chuckled. "I expect they threw a party just because you considered it."

An underwear company had, a month prior, come to Laxus saying they wanted him to be the headliner for their new ad campaign. They had stated in no uncertain terms that they would do almost anything to have him as their lead model, and it wasn't hard to understand why. Laxus had done a photoshoot for Sorcerer Weekly where one of the pictures showed Laxus teasing his underwear, and it had been the year's most successful issue of the magazine. The company had openly grovelled to get Laxus to consider their offer, and Freed had found it hysterical. He remembered what it had been like when he'd gotten similar offers, and was thankful that he no longer had to deal with it.

"Are you considering taking it?" Freed asked as he turned back to the dishes.

"Not sure," Laxus said, walking behind Freed and pressing his lips against the man's crown, a silent greeting. "They're respectful, and they said I can pick a photographer I know which means I won't get stuck with a creep. But I'm a mage, y'know. It'd make me less credible if there were magazine and billboard with me nearly naked on them, right?"

Freed paused, and smiled. He had known Laxus most of his life and they'd been together for a good few years, so he could read the man well. The fact that he'd phrased his last statement as a question, rather than as fact, was telling. He wanted to do it, almost definitely would do it, but he just needed a push.

And unfortunately, Freed had a bit of a cruel side.

"You're absolutely right," Freed said, voice almost haughty in tone. He was grinning into the unclean dishes. "Not only would you seem a sell-out, it would also affect your guild work and your reputation. It would risk taking away the fear factor you bring to missions; you shouldn't do it."

There was a beat of silent, one that Freed relished, before Laxus spoke again.

"But there's good aspects to it," He stated, forcing a nonchalant tone. "I could get some more money for the guild, which it always needs. And it's not like it's uncommon for mages to do ad campaigns and get into modelling. I mean, Mira does it all the time and nobody questions how fucking scary she can be."

"I'll agree to that," Freed nodded slightly, looking to Laxus with a wicked grin. "If you agree that you're loving this."

This had been the unspoken aspect of Laxus' celebrity status. Before it had happened, the blonde had been ardent that he'd never get into the publicity side of mage work, and that the people who did weren't as respectable as those who didn't. He'd claimed he would never do an interview by choice, and that he would hate every moment of it if forced to do one. That might have been true at the start, but as he had gotten used to it, gotten more comfortable with it, and had created professional relationships with journalists and photographers, he'd clearly started to enjoy it. A lot. But he refused to admit it, another amusing part of the situation.

"You kidding me?" Laxus scoffed. "Wish they'd stop asking, then I'd go back to normal."

"If that's the case, I'll talk to Master Makarov and have him block all correspondence from the media," Freed offered, and smirked when Laxus' eyebrow twitched slight. "Just admit it Laxus, you've become a celebrity, and you're enjoying every second of it."

"No I'm not," He protested, collapsing into a chair at the dining table.

"Oh please," Freed chuckled. "There's a small voice in your head that is constantly celebrating every moment of this. The arrogant teenager who wanted to hog the spotlight," Freed smiled as Laxus blushed a little. "You remind me of me when I first got into the celebrity side of things."

"I ain't that bad," Laxus stated. "Nobody can be as bad as Freed Justine the Pretty Boy."

"You might be more subtle about it," Freed conceded. "But I know that if you hadn't made such a big deal about not being one of those people, you'd be just as bad as I was."

"So what if I'm enjoying it," Laxus huffed, looking away from Freed and ignoring the chuckle that got him. "It ain't like I'm doing anything wrong by liking it."

"Certainly not, you're a well renowned wizard and you have put a lot of effort into proving yourself capable and impressive. Your celebrity status just proves that it's not just magic you're proficient in, but also publicity, arguably something a lot harder to do," Freed said as he walked from the kitchen sink and towards Laxus. "But if you think I'm not going to take every opportunity to annoy you like you did when our roles were reversed, you are very naïve indeed."

Laxus chuckled slightly at that, and the minor amount of defensiveness dissipated. As a couple, they had always had a flirtatious, harmless tit-for-tat rivalry, and Freed was glad Laxus knew his teasing was a part of that.

"Guess I deserve that," Laxus conceded. "What are you planning to do then? Find an embarrassing picture of me and send it to every magazine you know?"

"I'd hardly do something so unoriginal," Freed chuckled, thinking back to when Laxus had done just that to Freed. The picture of Freed sleeping, leaning against his sword, hair a mess after a mission, drooling slightly, had been featured in every low-end gossip magazine for a week, something which Laxus and The Raijinshuu found great delight in.

"Then what?" Laxus probed, smirking. He was clearly thinking of the picture as well.

"I can hardly ruin the surprise for you," Freed chuckled. "But, overall, I simply intend to keep you humble. To make sure all the grovelling and worshipping doesn't go to your head."

"How d'you plan on doing that?"

"Well, this, for example."

Freed moved quickly. As he had walked from the kitchen sink, he had grabbed the sponge that lay on the draining board and hidden it behind his back, something that Laxus hadn't noticed. He speedily moved it above Laxus' head, wringing it out. A cold shower of dishwater dropped out of it, landing on the blonde's perfectly styled hair, and splashing onto his shoulders.

Laxus let out a loud and undignified squark, wide eyed as the water dripped down his face. He looked up at Freed with shock for a moment, before determination painted itself across his featured. Freed met the expression with a cocky smile.

"You'll regret that," Laxus stated plainly.

"I don't think so," Freed chuckled. "After such a lovely noise, I don't think anything you do could make me regret it."

Laxus strode to the kitchen sink, scooping his hand in and collecting a handful of the foam bubbles. He turned on his heel and looked to Freed, who had crossed his arms and looked at the bubbles with an unimpressed eyebrow quirk. Not put off, Laxus stepped forward and slowly stroked Freed's face over with his bubbly fist, covering the man's features. He chuckled as he stepped back, the bubbles clinging to Freed's face.

"Well I have had a taste of my own medicine," Freed said in a voice so sarcastic it was almost impressive. "And it is very bitt-"

Freed cut himself off, gaping slightly as realisation – and a glass full of water – hit him. He gaped slightly as the cup full of dishwater splashed cold against his face, part of it entering his mouth. He slowly spat the water out onto the floor, glaring at his husband as bubbles trickled down his face. Laxus loudly laughed at him.

"I see," Freed said, voice calm now. "It's war then, is it?"

"Guess so," Laxus shrugged, crossing his arms, and adopting the same stance Freed had used just a moment ago.

And so, the war broke out. Before Freed could get to the sink, Laxus had splashed another handful of bubbles and water in his direction, drenching his crisp shirt and sending a shudder through him. Freed quickly got his revenge, cupping his hands and doing the same. His attack had been more effective, and Laxus groaned at a large wet mark covered his designer clothing; designer clothing that looked indistinguishable from his other clothes, given that no designer could change his unique sense of style.

The impromptu water fight lasted for a short while, and was covered in a mixture of sounds ranging from cries of annoyance to loud and raucous laughter. Though their kitchen was something of a mess by the time the fight neared its end, neither man cared. They both faced a lot of pressure, and moments of ridiculous fun was something they both relished.

Particularly Freed, given that he was now holding Laxus by the hair, threatening to plunge his face down into the rest of the dishwater.

"You wouldn't," Laxus grunted, muscles flexing as he pushed up against Freed's grasp.

"We both know I would," Freed taunted. "Unless you concede, of course."

"Never," Laxus demanded.

"Well then, let me give you a taste of what you've got in stall," Freed laughed, and Laxus' eyes narrowed. "Tonight I had gravy with my dinner, so the water is not only cold and stagnant, but it's also got a delightful hint of soapy beef. The few specs of the dinner I didn't finish are still floating around, which I expect will make this interesting," Laxus curled his nose at that; he could already smell the mix of contrasting scents. He was fine not having a closer look. "And from your nasty sneak attack, I can say from experience that it has a disgusting taste."

"You won't push me in," Laxus huffed. "When it comes to arm strength, I win."

"Perhaps with another man, that would be true," Freed mused. "But as your husband, I know a weakness or two that I can exploit."

Freed's fingers grazed against Laxus' waist, and a tickling sensation flushed through the blonde. His eyes widened as he reaffirmed his grasp on the sides of the sink, because Freed had barely been trying to tickle him and he was now only an inch away from the water's surface. If Freed really wanted to do this, Laxus would be powerless.

"You have one last chance to admit I win," Freed chuckled, breath hitting Laxus' ear. "Or it's bath time."

"Go fuck yourself."

"Very well," Freed grinned. "Enjoy yourself, Mr Celebrity."

And with that, Freed's free hand attacked Laxus' weak spot, his muscles buckled, and his face was shoved into the disgusting water below him.

~~~

"You've made a decision then?" Freed asked.

He walked out of his bathroom wearing nothing but a robe, his hair a slight mess after a quick towel dry. After Laxus had been pushed into the sink, Freed had been declared the victor of their water fight, and the two had retreated to the shower to clean off. Laxus had left the bathroom before Freed, claiming he was going to call the underwear company and give them a definitive answer while Freed readied himself for sleep.

"Yeah, just got off the phone," Laxus said, smiling at Freed and shifting the covers so his husband could climb in. "Told them I'd do it, they seemed pretty happy about it."

"I imagine so," Freed chuckled. "I hope you don't become disillusioned by it all, because glamour shoots can be a tiresome bore. I'd certainly rather you endure it than me."

He climbed into the bed, automatically leaning against his husband and curling up around him. Laxus wrapped him in his arms without a second thought, smiling a little at the scent of Freed's distinctive shampoo. He nuzzled his nose into the man's hair for a moment, before resting his chin on the man's head.

He grinned to himself before speaking again.

"You were right, they really would have done anything to get me working with them," Laxus mused, seemingly out of nowhere. "I went to them with a pretty big demand, and they actually went with it. Kinda shocked."

"As I said, you're a big name," Freed shrugged, covering himself with the duvet. "What did you want from them?"

"Double the pay."

"They really were desperate," Freed chuckled. "What they offered before was generous anyway."

"Well, I guess they saw the perks of it," Laxus chuckled, and smiled a little wickedly. "I mean, when I say they doubled the pay, I might have been misleading. Because while they're paying twice as much, it's not just going to me."

"Then who is it going to?" Freed questioned.

"You, of course," Laxus smirked, and Freed froze in his arms. Laxus tightened his grip slightly. "You see, I told them just how much my stud of a team captain – who was the fantasy guy of the whole nation a couple years ago – wanted to get into modelling. How he missed the spotlight, and wanted to show off to the world. And when I told them in no uncertain terms that I wouldn't be doing anything without him, they seemed very happy to do what I wanted."

"You didn't," Freed said, voice hollow.

"Oh I did," Laxus chuckled. "So it looks like I'm not going to be the only celebrity living here from this point, huh?"

"You bastard," Freed grunted.

"Damn right I am," Laxus grinned, taking Freed's chin with his fingers and turning him so they were face to face. He smirked at the man, who was doing a mix of a glare and a pout. Laxus leant forward, kissing Freed with a victorious expression. "I guess I win after all, Pretty Boy."

[damnusillygoose]

Somebody is jealous( jellal’s edition)

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13786166/2/somebody-is-jealous

for erza’s edition:

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13786166/1/somebody-is-jealous

Thank you sapphireblue2007 for suggesting me to write jellal's version.

Disclaimer: these characters are rightfully owned by hiro sensei.

Somebody is Jealous (Jellal's edition)

Well, Jellal perceives himself as a very liberal and progressive person.

He wasn't a possessive person. No, not at all- Even in his relationship with Erza, he believed in giving ample space for growth and self-introspection to each other. He certainly didn't believe in getting jealous when one's partner gets some excessive attention from the opposite gender. Nope, not at all, he was a progressive person, wasn't he? He didn't want to smother her with suffocation. Jellal was aware of the fact that his woman was a strong person who didn't need anyone to save her. She was her own person and stood up for what she believed in. That's how he viewed relationships- a sweet added bonus to one's life, separate from a person's purpose in life.

Yet,

He felt horrified, as he realised, he was shamelessly contradicting his very own beliefs. His eyes twitched in mild irritation, well not exactly mild- only slight, that's how he soothed his not so jealous soul, as he watched the scene before him unfold.

His beloved was sitting comfortably on one of the chairs kept near the bar, eating her sweet dessert in contentment, oblivious to the lusty stares that eyed her glorious exposed thighs and cleavage. There were men hovering around her, drooling repugnantly.

Erza was a beautiful woman. It was an established fact. Not only did she win various beauty pageants, but she also attracted scores of men who simped after her and bolstered her as their 'waifu'!

Jellal was fucking replete with fury when he came to learn about this obnoxious verbiage. What a derogatory term! He opined. How dare they lust after Erza and claim her as their 'waifu'?! well, typically he was doing the same. But he was her partner and it's pretty healthy in a relationship to be intimately attracted to your partner! Yep, he reasoned with his conscience.

It was no secret that men secretly/openly lusted after females who were fairly popular. Given fairy tail's reputation, they were inglorious for being rambunctious all over the continent. This shouldn't come as a surprise to Jellal that Erza was kind of a national crush of Fiore. She even got disgusting offer letters from rich officials asking her to be their mistress. Every single person, be it a man or a woman, acknowledged her regal presence. Wherever they went, people were in awe of her. She was a beautiful woman, confident and sassy, along with a splendid personality. Who wouldn't be attracted to such an amazing person?

Analysing her fan following, he was sure of the fact that Erza must have dated some men in the past. However, He gasped in utter disbelief when he got to know that despite of the attention she received; she never laid her eyes on another man. They were reserved for him. Always.

He was her first man, the first man who held her hand, the first man who witnessed her vulnerable side, her first kiss, the one who took her virginity, the one she would like to start a family with and the only one who she would devote her heart to.

Forever.

That gave him a superior complex over all those degenerates who hated him for stealing their waifu.

Her devotion made him feel extremely fortunate, to get a woman who would choose him over everything else.

But that didn't mean that he couldn't get jealous.

'Oi chad, snap out from your murderous intent, will ya?'

'Laxus.'

'What happened? Why are you in such a bad mood?', Laxus raised his eyebrows in amusement. It was fun teasing Jellal especially when he was in a foul mood.

'Jelly-chan is jealous because other men in the party are eyeing Erza ravenously!', Meredy chimed in the scene, humming a tune under her breath almost nonchalantly.

Laxus let out a nasty cackle as he smashed his beer pint against the wooden table they currently occupied. Meredy joined in with her sniggers; annoying Jellal in his misery.

'Cheer up Jelly chan, if you brood so much, you will end up getting wrinkles quickly and look almost 20 years elder to Erza!'

'Stop calling me Jelly chan, Meredy!'

'Why? I think that name suits you a lot Jellal.'

Oh no.

The trio turned around to acknowledge the owner of this sardonic comment.

Erik approached the group with a wide smirk plastered on his face, much to Jellal's discontentment.

What a great timing. Now they will gang up to bully me.

'Say Jellal, want to murder those assholes? I could feel your malignity from the far end of the hall, reverberating louder than Gajeel's singing shit'

'I wouldn't go that far, they are just harmless flies'

Actually, he could.

'Then why are you getting so hot-headed over those harmless flies?', Meredy smiled knowingly.

'I am not.'

'oh boss! Stop lying with your pathetic ass!'

'I am not lying Erik!'

Erik scoffed at his reply. He didn't even try to hide it.

'Then what do you plan on doing chad boy? Just sit in a corner like a lost puppy and watch as those men eye your woman?', laxus joined in the conversation, adding oil to the fuming spark.

'I can't pause to throw a stone at every dog that barks. Plus, Erza is a strong woman. I shouldn't stick my nose where it isn't needed. I think she is capable of handling this herself.'

But actually, he was trying his best not to jump in the scene and take her away from those bastards but he didn't want to appear as a jealous freak who had no control over his irrational aspect.

'of course, she is Jellal', Meredy reasoned,' but a woman, no matter how strong she is, would love to be spoiled by her man and feel protected. That doesn't mean you are undermining her strength. It's called chivalry.'

'…'

'What about ramming some hot iron rods up in their assholes?', laxus had no chill at all.

'Laxus your speech is so vulgar', Jellal cringed.

'Not as vulgar as your mind, boss'

'Erik, listen up- '

'it's okay Jellal', Meredy patted his back sympathetically, 'You are always harsh on yourself. You don't have to berate yourself so much. Being jealous is a sign of affection after all.'

'Really?', he raised his eyebrows in suspicion.

'Well, when exercised in moderation. Don't become Juvia though.', Laxus grimaced in exasperation.

'I just-I can't handle those people who eye her like she is their personal property!'

'Oohoohoo, finally the lover boy is being honest!', laxus slapped his hand against jellal's back harshly.

Jellal ignored his remark and chose to focus upon what Erza was doing.

Erza, unfortunately, was already surrounded by random men drooling over her assets while he was busy merry making with his guild mates.

He was pissed. He was fucking pissed.

He clenched his fist in impuissance until his knuckles turned white. He let out a shaky breath, biting his lips, trying his best not to eradicate their existence by casting sema right at this moment

'Erza-sama, I know this beautiful villa by the country side that I can rent for you. Would you like to witness that scenic beauty? I can make the arrangement just for the two of us.'

'uh, no thank you. I am not interested, I am busy at the moment with my ongoing missions but I would certainly take-out time to visit this said place with my friends and my boyfriend', Erza exaggerated the last part to make this pathetic pervert clear of the fact that she wasn't interested in his offer.

'He doesn't need to know'

'When I said I won't go, I won't go. Please learn to respect a woman.'

She was already seething at this moment, ready to requip in her armour to beat the shit out of these perverts but she held herself back. This was an important party for her guild as many magic council officials appeared to discuss some important matters with master Makarov.

'Erza-sama!', another pervert chimed in, 'what about-!

'My honeyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!'

Erza felt a shiver travelling down her spine even before she could react from the horror of hearing his voice. She didn't need to see who this abhorrent creature was. She didn't even acknowledge him as a person. Ichiya had already latched himself around her leg giving it a wild sniff, trespassing all boundaries of her private space.

This is it. This was her limit.

She was shaking wild. Her fingers were itching from wrath as she tried to remove him from her. These men latched themselves upon her despite being firmly rejected by her. She was being polite and considerate of her guild. That's the only reason she somehow tolerated their creepy remarks. She desperately searched for familiar eyes through the crowd that was bustling from the onset of vibrant ebullience. She grew impatient by every single moment when she failed in her search to find them. That's when she felt a presence behind her. The eyes she was searching for were already looking down from their vantage but not at her. She followed his eyes to find them glued on Ichiya.

Jellal got hold of Ichiya's hand and ruthlessly broke him apart from Erza's legs, not caring for a single second where his poor ass landed.

'Ichiya-san, that's a unique way of greeting someone. It could very well qualify as harassment you know', Jellal hissed menacingly, walking in front of Erza to make a defensive guard around her.

Jellal was a master at hiding his emotions and maintaining a stoic demeanour but Erza could still look beyond that very well.

He appeared perfectly placid but he wasn't.

His eyes bellowed bloodlust. He was growling with belligerence.

He was not going to let these repulsive hands touch the body that he revered so much.

The rest of the crowd started to disperse, succumbing to the impingement Jellal displayed, while laxus, Meredy and Erik watched the scene in awe. That's the impact Jellal's presence wielded.

There was a limit to which this man could tolerate bullshit after all. This was Jellal, who was fiercely protective of the woman he loved.

Erza snickered to herself smugly seeing the crowd become frail upon his arrival. These were some spineless cowards who weren't even half the man her Jellal was.

Jellal blissfully ignored the crowd that was whispering his name with resentment, something along the lines of 'their waifu'

He looked at Erza, taking in a deep breath of relief as he put his hands over her shoulders securely.

'Well gentlemen, I just remembered that my boyfriend and I have some work to do, if you will excuse us.' Erza stood up from her chair and bowed her head signalling her departure as she grabbed hold of jellal's hands, leading them across the hall through the exit door. Jellal looked at his guild mates who were giving him smug smiles and thumbs ups.

After exiting the guild, Jellal let out a sigh as they strode further away from that crowd. He still was shaking, his hysteria urging him to go back and beat the shit out of those bastards. He tore his thoughts away from the former events and looked sideways at the enchanting woman walking by his side.

'This dress really looks nice on you.'

'Thank you, sweetheart', Erza smiled and turned her face to give him a chaste peck on his cheeks. 'But I think I will opt for a less revealing outfit next time for a formal party like this'

'Why?'

'tch, didn't you see for yourself what happened today?'

'Don't fret about those assholes, just wear what you want', he snaked his arm around her waist protectively to pull her closer to him.

Jellal rarely cursed, that meant he was infuriated right now.

'Jellal', she whispered lovingly, taking his face in her hands, 'look at me'

He locked his gaze with her, facing her completely. His arms gently fondled her waist, pulling her entirely towards himself.

She leaned into him, melting like butter.

'I love you Jellal.' She brought his face towards hers until their foreheads were touching each other, 'Thank you for helping me back then. I was really helpless'.

They closed their eyes and sighed in synchronisation. She felt his arms locking her into a tight embrace, clutching the fabric of her dress.

'I just…..couldn't help myself when I saw them degrading you like that.' He felt the weight of her hands shifting down towards his neck, near his sensitive spot which only she knew about, caressing it to calm him down.

'Thank you love, but don't over-exert yourself over this issue, this isn't worth your time and effort', she looked at him tenderly. Jellal was such a worrywart but she loved him the same.

'yeah…you are right', he leaned into her, nuzzling his nose with hers, her sweet scent taming his raging heartbeat down, 'I love you too'

It's almost been a year since they started dating and obviously they never hesitated to show their love to each other- verbally, physically or emotionally, but Erza would never get tired of Jellal saying 'I love you' to her. She had dreamed about it so long, she yearned about it ever since she realised her feelings for him, she would never take his confessions for granted. It still had the same impact on her as the first time he poured his heart out to her.

Such was their affection for each other-always raging against the odds.

The hooting of the owls could be heard in the depth of the night. A sudden breeze struck her form as she shivered from the lack of her clothing, she had worn a simple flowy dress, not deemed to be fit in a chilly weather.

'it's getting cold Erza', Jellal pointed out as he draped his coated over her shoulders, 'let's go home'.

She hummed lightly in solace as she felt his lips softly touch her forehead. She entwined her hand with his as they started treading towards the path that led to their small cottage, their personal heaven.

'Can you make me a strawberry smoothie with vanilla ice cream?', she asked him tentatively, testing her waters.

'I thought you wanted to curb your midnight snacking'

'But jelllaaaaaaaaaaaal!', she wailed in desperation, 'dealing with those perverts drained my energy!'

'I can always make a bowl of fruits oats for you.'

'Noooooooo! That's way too heathy!'

'Okay how about this?', he tried to reason with her, 'I'll make milk oats for you with honey and loads of freshly cut strawberries. Sounds like a good deal to me, what do you think?'

She thought about the offer for a moment. It did actually sound like a good deal. She knew she kind of gave in to her midnight sugar cravings. Milk oats were a heathier option.

She pouted and tried to act a little spoiled, 'only if you bribe me.'

'What a scandal! The great titania is asking for a bribe!', he nudged her shoulder playfully and she huffed in response to his actions, 'what are your demands?'

'You need to pepper me with as many kisses as I ask you for!'

' My, My, I was already planning on giving you a thousand kisses when we reach home, don't worry about that', he replied as he gave her a wink making her blush profusely.

If anyone heard them conversing in this manner, their eyeballs would pop out from their eye sockets. They were incredible mages, well versed with the ethics of professionalism. They completed their tasks seriously but when they were alone, it becomes a different story.

A/N: if you liked my story please leave a review and do check out my works as well.

Constructive criticism is appreciated.

Keep loving Jerza!

[fallen029]

Missing You

She'd been slinging drinks all day, dodging compliments left and right, all while plastering that same stupid smile on her face and it was just a stressful day, honestly, for Mirajane. No more so than usual, but for some reason, it felt extra strenuous as her sister, who'd been helping during busy shifts recently, had absconded off with Natsu and Happy, which left her and Kinana to be slammed all alone.

Which wasn't a problem. Not in the slightest. Nope. Mirajane worked with a smile on her face and kind words on her tongue as the drunks and rowdy guild members absolutely wrecked the place. Master Makarov and Erza were out, the former at a conference and the latter on an S-Class job, which meant there was no chance of either arriving back any time soon and that meant, for the past day or so, that they could all act like complete fools if they so wished.

And oh, at Fairy Tail, they always wished.

Mirajane wished for things too. A lot of things. But one thing in particular, that day, as she found her eyes lingering on the door in the few moments she had to take a breath, hoping and waiting. But each and every time, as her bated breath was shattered by disappointment, whenever it was opened, the thick guildhall doors revealed any number of members other than the exact one she wanted to see.

She did find a smile truly gracing her lips, however, when after all the hoopla the evening brought died down and the place started to clear out, her younger brother came to remark how he'd stick around till she and Kinana finished closing up.

"Always good to have a strong man to walk you home, huh?" he offered and Kinana giggled while Mira, not so sure on who would protect who out of the two of them, only let a hand grace his bicep thankfully.

Elfman helped Kinana clean up around the place, making idle chatter with the mostly agreeable woman, while Mirajane disappeared into Master Makarov's office to put away the jewels for the day. And though she was in something of a rush, hoping to get home to sink into her sheets before it got too late as, of course, she'd have to be right back at the bar, bright and early the next morning, least it not be opened properly, Mirajane still found herself falling into the Master's comfortable chair, her tired feet thankful for even the littlest of reprieves.

It had been a long few weeks. Not that anything truly had changed. Not really. She held things down at the bar and watched all her friends come, go, leave, return. She listed to their stories with bright eyes, interjecting with the silliest of thoughts, ponderings, causing mystification and awe with each conversation. She took breaks with Lucy and Plue, were the celestial mage around to accomadate this, and when she wasn't, either found herself making chatter with Levy or Laki. Once, before she left on her newest S-Class job, Mira and Erza talked idly for a good ten minutes, in a way they hadn't in what felt like years.

Things had been great.

But...something was missing.

Something always felt like it was missing in Mirajane's life. And wasn't it? Loss had followed her from birth till that moment, as she sat in the too old Master's chair who, honestly, she imagined some days, when he was coughing a bit too much, hobbling far too often, and just overall looked unwell, would more than likely be the next hole she'd never be able to fill. Though it was his scent, his presence, that encapsulated the entire back office, as Mira sank further into his desk chair, it was another Dreyar that she found her mind drifting towards.

It was just hard. Sometimes.

When he went out on jobs. Especially the long ones. It was the name of the game, especially with how high ranking he was, but…

She'd thought that she'd fallen asleep. Maybe she had. But it was the sound of the guild hall doors opening and closing, a sound that echoed through the mostly empty hall, that jolted her awake, as well as the sound of her boisterous younger brother calling out, "Bar's closed for the night."

There was a pause, though not a tense one, before a simple response of, "Yeah? Well I ain't here for the bar."

Mirajane shoved up then, at the voice, and though she was too tired to rush, she did make it back into the main part of the hall in time to catch the need of Elfman's reply.

"Then what," he questioned simply, "are you here for, Laxus?"

He didn't rightly answer, the blond slayer didn't. He wasn't the type to think that he had to do much of that, answering, to those who he deemed lower than himself. And oh, Elfman was way lower than him. Still, this wasn't quite the reason he fell silent as, instead of speaking to the man, his eyes had fallen away, off to the side where, from the darkened back hallway, Mirajane emerged, surprise etched into her features.

Noting his gaze, Elfman glanced that way too. When all he saw was his sister though, he laughed, slightly, before saying, "Hate to tell ya this, but Master's out. Conference. It was just Mirajane back there."

But it was never just Mirajane, to the man.

"Is that right?" he questioned back to Elfman who, simply, nodded. Snorting, Laxus looked away from Mira's captivating blue eyes, and instead shrugged his shoulders some. "My mistake."

"Well, I think he'll be back soon," Kinana offered from where she was now, wiping down the bar. "Laxus. Oh, I know! If you're too busy to come by the next few days, just to see when he gets in, you could write it down. Or tell it to one of us. I'm sure we'll remember to pass the message along. And if it's really serious, then-"

"It's personal," the slayer offered bluntly before, again, shrugging. "I'll handle speaking to Gramps on my own. Just got into town, passed by, saw the lights still all on, and thought I'd come in and say hello to the old geezer. Speak on a few things. But since you're all around- Say, what are you all doing here so late anyhow?"

"It's not so late," Kinana offered with a slight smile. "It's rather normal, for closing hours."

"Is it?"

Elfman though, who was sweeping, huffed some as he went back to it, "Real men know how to delegate. That's why my sister has me doing this. She's a real man."

Finally finished with sticking to the shadows, the woman in question walked further into the main hall as she said, "Elf, I think you and Kinana have done enough, honestly. Lisanna is supposed to come by in the morning to help me open up. Why don't you guys head out without me?"

"Us?" Elfman dropped his broom with a frown. "No way, sis. I'm walkin' ya both home. Of course I am. Why else would I have stayed? We'll wait for you."

"It's really no bother, Mira," Kinana tried to help. "I'm just finishing up back here and-"

"I still have to mop around the pool," Mira told them simply. "It's silly for you guys to stick around for that."

"Then it's silly for you to stick around for it," Elfman argued. "I'll mop around the pool! And do whatever else you need. And-"

"Elf-"

"Hey, Elfman, I just got in town, yeah?" Laxus, suddenly, was talking again, arms folded over his chest as he stared at the man quizzically. "So, man to man, can you tell me something?"

At the sound of that, the larger man puffed out his chest, turning from his sister to the slayer.

"Of course," he bellowed. "What's up, Laxus?"

"It's just," the blond began, "I'm a man. And when I get back in town, after not seein' my woman for awhile, the only thing I wanna do is get to her. You know?"

"I," Elfman declared, honestly not even really considering the question, "know."

"If my woman was a mage even, I mean, the second she got back from a long job," the man kept up, "I'd probably be trying to get to her as soon as possible."

"As soon as possible, yep. Checks out."

"So how is it," Laxus finally asked, "that I just got back in town, with the Thunder Legion, after almost a month away, and you're sticking around here, with your sister, having her hand out chores to ya, like you're a little boy, while your woman, Evergreen, is only blocks away, in an empty bed? Just don't make sense to me."

He seemed uncomfortable then, Elfman did, as his chest deflated some and he remarked, "Well...Ever and I aren't exactly-"

"You were all she talked about," Laxus went on. "Was missin' you somethin' fierce, she said, a few times. Couldn't wait to get back to her man, she insisted. But here you are, hanging around the hall, so late at night-"

"Ever… She usually is the one, you know, to, uh, initiate… Well, she lives in the dorms and-"

"And?" Laxus clicked his tongue with a shake of his head. "My woman did, I'd be sneakin' into that place every fuckin' night. To, you know, fuck. Like a man."

"Yeah," Elfman agreed as Mirajane's eyes widened and Kinana, blushing, busied herself with wiping down the bar. "To fuck."

"Just what I was thinkin', s'all." Again, the slayer shrugged, with a sigh. "I'd be climbin' up to my woman's window, knockin' on the glass, askin' if she would let me in."

"Really? That's...what a man would do?"

"Aye," Laxus decided with a nod. "I'd say it's what a...real man would do."

Elfman paused, standing there for a second in thought. Then, with a shake of his head, saying, "I got to walk my sister and Kinana home. A really real man keeps his word, after all."

"Oh." The slayer seemed rather remorseful over this, mimicking how down the big oaf looked before, with a snap of his fingers, he said, "Say, Kinana, you live in the dorms, huh? So, Elfman, if you walked her home, she could probably sneak ya in, right? Get you right to Ever's door where, you know, you knock and all that? Surprise her?"

"Could you?" When Elfman looked to Kinana, her cheeks were still rosy, but the woman nodded regardless. "That'd be great! That- Oh. Mirajane. I said I'd walk my sister home too."

"Well, I'm here." Laxus patted at his chest then. "And since you've had this whole conversation with me, what if I, as another man, do you the honor, huh? Walk your sister home?"

"Really?" Elfman tossed an arm in the air at the slayer's nod. "Alright! C'mon Kinana! Let's get outta here."

"Take a bottle of wine," Mirajane suggested as, recovering, she had something of a knowing smile on her face. But it wasn't meant for her brother. At all. "I'll talk to you tomorrow. Both of you."

They let them leave, Mirajane and Laxus did, watching as Kinana giggled and Elfman practically bounced with excitement, the pair leaving the hall together in record time. Mira and Laxus even waited a minute, just to be sure, just to be certain that finally, after so long, they were alone.

"Knock on many windows, mister?" she asked, "Knocking on doors in the middle of the night?"

"Fuck no. That's desperate shit."

"And my dragon's not desperate."

She was coming closer, as she spoke, while Laxus only shook his head.

"What's there to be desperate for?" he questioned as, the second she was in front of her, he reached for her, his jacket falling to the ground, but neither rightly caring to retrieve it. "When you're me? And got your very own demon, right there waiting for you at home?"

"You didn't always," she pointed out, but again, there was a shake of his soft, blond locks.

"What exists before me and you, huh, demon?" He was grinning, truly, not a brilliant one, but enough to bring a real one out from the woman as she stared up into his dark eyes. "Nothin' I'm interested in."

"You're gonna get my brother in trouble, you know," she thought to say. "Sneaking around the girls dorm."

"Erza'll just kick his ass right out," he assured the woman. "Make for an eventful evenin' for the guy, anyways."

"Was Evergreen even truly asking for him?"

"How should I know? When I spent every second I wasn't zeroed in on my job thinkin' about you?" One of his hands came up then, to tug her bangs down and Mirajane laughed, falling into his chest.

"I missed you," she whispered softly to the fabric of his shirt and the slayer didn't have that same, in complete control tone he seemed to take so often. "Laxus."

"I missed you too," he assured the woman. "Mirajane. I love you."

Giggling, she fell away from him some then, fighting the yawn that crept up her throat as she remarked, "I don't think we'll be doing much tonight, you know. I think it's very cute that you came all this way just to see me, but I'm so tired, I… I wish I could stay up, to do something with you, but-"

"I just wanna get you home, in bed," he told the man simply, "and fall asleep. Just so I can wake up next to you again. It's what I miss the most. When I'm away."

"Really?"

"Well," he offered and Mira found herself giggling into her palm, "one of the things."

"I want to do everything," she insisted though, "with you. Dragon. That I've missed."

"We will." He even nodded. "I'm plannin' on sticking around for a bit and we'll get to each and every thing on your list. I promise. But for tonight," and he was reaching then, to take her hand, drag her out of the place, mopping be damned, "I just want to be with you. Just next to you's enough. For now. Demon."

She snagged his coat on the way out, wishing to wrap it around her shoulders. The second they were outside, in the cool air, she found she was thankful for this, and snuggled into the garment as she locked up the thick guildhall doors.

"It will be nice," she mused as the slayer stood behind her, watching this. "I like your bed so much more than my own."

"Shouldda known. Wantin' me for my bed." He tsked some, as she was the one then, all finished up, to come snag his hand and drag him across the Fairy Tail grounds. "Sounds exactly like somethin' a demon would do."

"I want you for more than that, dragon," she assured him, but just as the man started to grin again, she said, "The jewels you bring in are a nice prize as well."

Grunting some, he held her hand tightly as they started off into the night together, headed back to his apartment for the first time in a good bit. To the woman, he remarked, "Anything good happen when I was gone?"

"No," Mira easily answered while smiling up at the man. "Nothing as good as you coming back."

[maybemarvelbaby]

The Hit Girl (II)

Part 1

A/N: Oh my gosh, thank you guys so much! I got so much support on my last chapter of THG, and it seems y’all are really excited for it. I even got someone asking for a tag list. Anyways.. thank you so much, Enjoy! <3

Taglist:

@viarogers 

Pairings: mentor!Natasha Romanoff x mentee!Reader; Peter Parker x Reader

Warnings: dark themes, death, loss of loved ones, violence, guns, just a pretty sad time for (Y/N)

Notice: You can message me to be on my tag list, and use the hashtag “#the hit girl series” if you want to give me feedback/ ideas. Please only use the hashtag for series related things, thank you, Enjoy! <3

The training that you had to endure was ruthless, difficult, yet still not as bad as the Red Room. In fact, you might even say that you enjoyed this training. You never truly wanted to kill any of the other girls, but something in their eyes told you if you didn’t, they wouldn’t hesitate to kill you. Except for one girl. 

•──────✧✦✧──────•

Her name was Nadia Makarov. She was only seven when you met her, you were seventeen. As the ‘queen’ of the Red Room, you granted her special protection against nearly every other girl, they knew if the killed her in a sparring match, then they would die at your hands in an even more brutal and painful way. You took the role of a big sister/ caretaker for Nadia, and it was clear that she loved you. No matter how much you would deny it, you did truly love her. It seemed the instructors of the Red Room had noticed the connection between you and Nadia, because one day, they put both of you in the ring. The match lasted nearly twenty-four hours. You did not want to kill Nadia, you physically couldn’t. You did nothing. Giving her every opportunity to kill you, but she refused. After several hours of you screaming at her to just kill you already, the instructors became fed up with you and the little girl’s shenanigans, so they brought in weapons. The two of you were given handguns and had 2 hours for one to die otherwise you would both be killed. By the time that there were two minutes left on the clock, Nadia stared you straight in the eyes, before lifting up her gun to your head. You smiled lightly, accepting your fate and closing your eyes. You were content with dying in the hands of your loved one.

Bang

One simple shot, but you didn’t feel a thing. Your knees slumped to the ground and you sat in the ring, your eyes squeezed shut, knowing what you would see if you opened them. Nadia had shot herself so you could live. You brought your own gun to your head and tried to pull the trigger, but your gun was empty. It was almost as if the instructors knew what Nadia would do and how you would react. You opened your eyes to see the pale, lifeless body of your little sister. Her wavy, brown hair caked with her own blood. You crawled over to her side and laid her head in your lap. Tears streamed out of your (e/c) eyes as they gazed upon her lifeless, sky blue ones. You knew that she would want you to live, so you vowed to yourself that her death was not in vain. You promised her, as she lay there, lifeless on the floor, that you would never lose a match because you couldn’t afford another loss like Nadia.

•──────✧✦✧──────•

“(Y/N), heads up. You’re next!” Natasha’s words knocked you from your thoughts, you felt your eyes stinging and hot, silent tears were streaming down your face. It seemed Natasha had noticed your expression because she jumped out of the sparring ring and rushed to where you sat straight up on the bench. “Everything okay, маленький (little one)?” She asked you asked she placed a hand on your shoulder. You flinched at the affectionate name that you once called your little sister, before coughing and wiping the tears from your eyes. You stood up and gazed at the woman with eyes void of any emotion.

“Yes, Miss Romanoff, I’m alright.” You responded to her concerns, not wanting to think about it anymore. She nodded in understanding and brought you to the ring where you were going to spar against Clint.

He smiled at you mischievously, “You know, you’ve beaten nearly everyone in the complex, so you know I’m not gonna go easy on you.” He stated, a confident smirk drawn on his face.

“I know.” You replied simply. Once Natasha queued the match to start, you had Clint pinned on the ground, both hands behind his back, your knee trapping his legs to the ground, and his face buried into the ground.

“I yield, I yield!” Clint yelled as you smirk lightly to yourself at your new win.

“I thought you weren’t going to go easy on me.” You teased him as you let go of his hands and helped him up.

“I wasn’t...” He scoffed rubbing a hand over his face in defeat.

“Better luck next time, old man.” You said, before jumping out of the ring. Natasha walked up to you and put an arm around your shoulder, muttering a good job to you and you made your way back to the bench to get a sip of water. You thanked her, excused yourself from training, and headed back to your room.

•──────✧✦✧──────•

You laughed lightly at the piece of paper that was stuck to your door.

Sapphire Shadow 

Kobalt Killer

Black Widow Jr.

Blue Widow

Tiny Mighty

And other names were scribbled onto the paper written in various blue inks. You knew the last one was Sam’s idea and you immediately crossed it out. You grabbed a pen and crossed out the ones you didn’t like, such as Black Widow Jr. and Tiny Mighty, while circling the ones you did like, Sapphire Shadow and Kobalt Killer being some of the ones do did enjoy. When you reached the end of the list, one name, in particular, stood out to you.

Nova Storm

You traced your fingers over the letters that were so delicately written on the page, you knew that only two people could have written that, Wanda or Natasha, simply by the neat handwriting. But you could tell exactly who wrote that name, it was Natasha.

The two simple words pulled at your heartstrings as you recalled the memories. 

“Hey, Supernova!” The pale-skinned girl called, “Be careful on your mission!”

“Don’t worry Stormie, I’ll come back to you.”

Hot tears streamed down you face for the second time and you fell on your bed. You lifted the paper to examine the words again, knowing exactly who you were going to be. You grabbed a small sheet of blank paper from off the desk that sat by your bed. In your best calligraphy, you wrote the name you decided on with a royal blue ink. When it was finished, you lined it up, directly under the nametag on your door that said ‘(Y/N) Chernov’. A soft smile left your lips as a single tear streamed down your face.

“You got a name, I see.” A voice sounded from behind you, “Nova Storm, I like it. Wonder who could’ve suggested it?”

You laughed at your mentor’s lighthearted sarcasm before surprising her with a tight hug and a quiet ‘thank you’. She hugged back hesitantly, before relaxing. This was the first time you had shown any emotion to her since two days ago when you got drunk because Thor said you couldn’t handle his Asgardian mead. 

You pulled away quickly and coughed to yourself, fixing your hair and ridding all emotions that may have been displayed on your face. “Thank you, Miss Romanoff. I like the name.” 

She smiled at you gently, “It’s no problem, маленький, I’m glad you like it. Now come on, Tony has someone you need to meet.” She said, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and guiding you down the hall. 

•──────✧✦✧──────•

The two of you soon entered the main living space and you saw Tony talking to a young boy that seemed to be about eighteen to nineteen years old, somewhere around your age. His honey-glazed, brown eyes noticed your arrival and he ran a hand through his curly brown locks.

“H-Hi... I’m uh... I’m Parker Peter... Peter Parker, sorry, my name is Peter Parker.” He stuttered, extending a hand. You gave away no emotion, even though you wanted to giggle at his flustered expression. 

“(Y/N) Chernov.” You stated plainly. Ignoring his outstretched hand and Natasha’s looks that practically screamed at you to ‘be nice’. Peter drew his hand back and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Ahh, (Y/N), I see you’ve met my little friend, Peter. You two are around the same age. I thought it would be nice if you had someone your age to talk to and show you what a normal teenager acts like.” Tony said, before grabbing your arm, pulling you towards him, and leaning down to whisper in your ear, “Listen girly, I’m quite fond of this kid, so I’d like it if he stayed in one piece.” You nodded in understanding and he smiled, letting go of your arm. 

“Oh, Tony, we have a name,” Natasha told her friend. Tony’s already smiling face lit up even more in excitement and the skin around his eyes crinkled. 

“F.R.I.D.A.Y.! Get all the Avengers in here now!!” He practically squealed at his AI.

“Yes, sir. All Avengers report to the main living room at this time please.” The robot responded. About two minutes later, you heard fast footsteps running across the floors. All of the Avengers stumbled into the room and looked at you with hopeful eyes. They had been waiting for almost a month for you to finally decide on a name. Excited faces examined you as you shifted nervously on your feet. You looked at Natasha pleadingly, and she understood, speaking up for you. 

“The day has finally come where (Y/N) has decided her name. Before I reveal it, I’m only gonna say this once, none of you better get upset because she didn’t pick your name. The name she chose has a special meaning to her, and she will share it’s origins when she is ready,” Natasha began, everyone nodded in agreement, “Her name is Nova Storm.”

You were immediately reminded of the memories that tied you to this name and you could feel the tears welling up in your eyes before you choked them back down. You caught Wanda’s gentle, loving gaze and knew she read your mind. A single tear slipped from her eye and she walked up to hug you comfortingly. 

“It’s perfect,” The young woman started, “She would have loved it.” You couldn’t hold back anymore and you hugged her back, tears streaming down your face as you buried your head into her shoulder with silent sobs. You two parted and you wiped the tear from your face. Natasha held you into a side hug.

“Let’s go Nova Storm!” Bucky yelled the rest of the Avengers began cheering. You smiled and they cheered louder, it was always a treat when you smiled. You didn’t do it often, but when you did, it made them feel like kids in the store whose parents just said that they could pick out a piece of candy.

•──────✧✦✧──────•

After everyone was dismissed, you plopped yourself onto the couch, kicking your legs up on the coffee table and closing your eyes. You felt the couch cushion beside you drop as someone’s weight was pressed upon it. You opened a single eye to see who sat beside you. I little swarm of butterflies tickled your stomach as you noticed Peter’s fluffy, brown curls.

“If you don’t mind me asking... um... uh... c-can I know the... uh... the importance of your name?” He asked quietly, a polite and nervous smile appearing on his lips. A single tear fell from your eyes and you laughed lightly at his nervousness. You didn’t know why you trusted the boy so much, but you did. You felt comfortable and nervous at the same time when he was around. And, before you knew it, you were telling him all about the things you and Nadia did together. The mini-adventures around the Red Room, Nadia helping you with ballet (she was a natural, and you were not), the bond you shared, even till her inevitable demise. 

Peter sat with you for hours, laughing at the fun parts, crying at the sad. He even opened up to you and told you all about his Uncle Ben and Aunt May. The two of you grew close and you could feel a bond beginning to form between the two of you. 

It scared you, to say the least, and as soon as you began to crave his touch, you excused yourself and locked yourself in your bedroom. You couldn't risk creating a bond only to lose the person again. No matter how much you wanted to stay and talk to Peter, you couldn’t let yourself get attached to him.

•──────✧✦✧──────•

It had been two weeks since your name was revealed, and it was the last time you had spoken with Peter. You avoided him in every way you could, ignoring his constant pleas, asking you what he did wrong. It broke your heart to see the boy so torn up about you, but you knew that if you got attached to him, he would be as good as dead. Something in your gut told you that not everyone in the Red Room died that day. Part of you knew that they were looking for you, and you had to keep everyone safe. 

You grew distant, not only to Peter but to everyone in the complex. You spent your days either locked in your room or training by yourself. Natasha noticed your strange behaviour and began to worry.

“(Y/N)... we need to talk.” She said one day, walking into your room without warning and closing the door behind her. Yet, you didn’t say a word. “You’ve been distant, маленький. Everyone is worried about you.” The tears began to well up in your eyes at the affectionate nickname. “Please, let me know what’s wrong.” Natasha’s sad expression and begging broke you.

“I-I’m sorry, Miss Romanoff... I’m... I can’t... I don’t want to lose any of you. I cannot have another Nadia...” You started, unable to keep the salty tears from running down your face, “They day she died, I was broken. She was the only person I ever loved and she’s gone. I had nothing.” You grew quiet and gazed at the woman’s face. A few tears had slipped from her eyes as well. She sat on the bed next to you and put a hand on your back.

“You know, I was like you. I used to have nothing, and then I got this family.” She began, rubbing slow circles over your back muscles, comforting you, “Everyone in this family has lost something, that’s what makes us so close. We are all there for each other, and we can be there for you too, you just have to let us in.”

For the first time since Nadia’s death, you bawled, burning hot tears streaming down your face, shaking sobs erupting from your body, hundred of ‘I’m sorry’s leaving your lips. Natasha hugged you comfortingly. You fell asleep in her embrace and she laid you back on your bed. 

“Sleep tight, маленький.”

•──────✧✦✧──────•

[i-am-the-hero-alfred-jones]

Fairy Tail’s Fairy Tale’s Chapter 1

((This is my contribution to the Fairy Tail big bang by @ft-ez-bb​ ! I hope you guys enjoy it! Please comment/reblog/ect. I’ll be putting up a new chapter every day until the 27th.))

WENDY'S BIRTHDAY

Wendy awoke with a smile on her face, and in her heart. After all, how could she not be happy? It was her birthday, and Chelia and Lyon had come all the way from Lamia Scale to spend it with her! Which brought up a troubling fact, her bed seemed a lot more empty than the night before. Where was Chelia? The house only had one guest room, and they had decided to give it to Lyon, since he was a boy. Wendy threw her legs over the edge of the bed and hummed in thought. Carla wasn't in her bed on the opposite side of the room either. Where was everyone? 

The crashing and bickering from downstairs quickly answered her question. "I'm an ice mage! We deal with cold, not heat! Did you honestly expect me to be good in the kitchen?!" "Oops! Lyon! I accidentally started another fire!" "Quiet! You'll wake the child!" At the smell of smoke, Wendy decided she should probably get down there. She walked into the kitchen to see all three bickering around the oven, Carla was in her human form. 

"Uhm. . . Is everything alright?" Wendy asked politely. The group turned around, looking slightly panicked. "Wendy!" Chelia raced over to hug her friend. Wendy laughed and happily hugged back. "Happy Birthday!" "Thank you!" "We tried to make you breakfast but. . . um. . ." Chelia glanced over at the charred, strangely shiny remains of what had been eggs. ". . . It didn't go well.  . . " Wendy just smiled, "It's okay, we can go out to breakfast." she assured. "Oh! I wanna give you your present!" Chelia eagerly pulled Wendy towards the living room. 

Carla turned to the ice mage disappointingly once the girls had gone. "Honestly, Lyon! You're an adult! And you can't even cook?" "I can cook just fine!" Lyon snapped. "Tell that to the frozen eggs." Carla countered, gesturing to the frozen pan. "Oh, forgive me!" Lyon replied, sarcastically, "Next time I'll just let the fire keep going and burn your house down." Carla sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, "I just hope the guild does better than you." Lyon had to laugh at that, "You think those fools remembered Wendy's birthday?" Carla gasped, "How dare you! The members of Fairy Tail utterly adore Wendy! They would never do anything to hurt her!" "Yeah, but they're idiots." Lyon stated. It wasn't an insult, it was a fact. ". . . Oh dear. . ." Carla murmured. Lyon had a point. ". . . They're definitely not the brightest . . . What if they did forget her birthday?" The exceed exclaimed, worriedly, "Oh! she'll be crushed! I can't let this happen. You have to stall her." Carla decided. Lyon was bewildered.

"Me?! What am I supposed to do?!" "Take her out to breakfast and open gifts. She received her gift from me last night and will no doubt want to show it to you. I'll go ahead to the guild and make sure she is not forgotten!" Carla shifted into her cat-like form and flew off without another word, leaving a very panicked Lyon in her wake. ". . . I am so screwed. . " he breathed.  ----- Carla was breathless by the time she arrived at the guild. She threw open the doors and glanced around worriedly. The wizards and witches of Fairy Tail were lazing around as if it were any ordinary Sunday afternoon. 

"No!" Carla shouted out loud. She put her head in her paws as the guild glanced towards her curiously. "What's wrong, Carla?" Happy asked, worriedly, as he approached. He didn't like it when Carla was sad. "You all forgot!" Carla wailed, looking back at the guild in misery. "We didn't forget nothing!" Natsu yelled angrily. He leaned towards his teammate, "Lucy, what'd we forget?" She sighed in reply. "Lyon was right . . ." Carla groaned. "Lyon?" Gray asked, "What are you talking to that jerk for?" "This is absolutely unacceptable!" Carla exclaimed, glaring at the guild, "Wendy is a part of your family! I cant' believe all of you would forget such an important day for her!" "What? Tuesday?" Gajeel asked from his place, with his arm around Levy. The woman stared up at the man she had chosen to be with in awe, ". . . It's Sunday Gajeel." The slayer scoffed and rolled his eyes, "Whatever. . ." "It's her birthday!" Carla exclaimed. "Who's birthday?" Jet asked. "Wendy's birthday you imbeciles!!!!" The guild fell silent at that. ". . . Oh shit . . . ."  "Didn't anyone remember?!" Carla exclaimed desperately. There was the sound of a throat clearing from the back of the room and everyone glanced over. "I thought this might happen and planned accordingly." Freed explained, smiling, "As you can see, I"ve provided both a gift and a banner." he gestured to the counter, where two presents and a rolled up banner sat, "The second gift is from Mystogan." he explained. Carla sighed, "At least one of you remembered. The rest of you better come up with something fast, because Wendy will be crushed if she learns you forgot her birthday." "I could put on a show for her?" Gajeel offered, rubbing the back of his neck. "No one wants that for they're birthday!" Natsu yelled from across the room. "Shut up Ash-for-brains, you wouldn't know talent if it bit you on the ass!" "I know it's not you!" ". . . Actually. . ." Carla mused, "A performance could work. . ." "Really?" Levy asked, surprised. "Really?" Gajeel asked, just as surprised. "Indeed, my present to Wendy was a book of Fairy Tales, and she was quite happy to receive it, Perhaps we could act out these stories in the form of a play, letting Wendy choose the cast and narrate." "That's a great idea, Carla!" Levy praised. Carla smiled, "Perfect! Now we have to get the stage and banner set up before she gets here." The guild members rushed to set everything up for their little sky dragon slayer.  --------  Wendy smiled as she entered the guild. Everyone was bustling about. Lyon chuckled at the view. "Never a dull moment around here." He lit up as he saw a beautiful figure from afar. "Oh, Wendy? Would you mind if I. . ." "You can go talk to Juvia." Wendy answered Lyon's question before he even finished it. "Thank you!" Lyon dashed off. The girls giggled as they heard Lyon get berated by his childhood friend. "Do you think he's ever going to give up on her?" Chelia asked, curiously. "Maybe after she marries Gray." Wendy joked. The girls laughed again. It was around this time Wendy finally spotted  her exceed, whom she approached curiously. 

"Carla, what's going on?" Carla gasped and whirled around at the voice. "Wendy! You're here!" the exceed paused for a long moment while the girls stared at her in confusion. Carla sighed and spoke louder, "Wendy's here!!!" The guild members whirled around to look at Wendy. They quickly took up the cry of "Happy Birthday!" Which Wendy beamed at. "Thanks so much everyone! I'm surprised you all remembered." The Fairy Tail guild fell completely silent for the second time in history, as everyone glanced away guiltily, while Wendy looked on in confusion. "Of course they remembered!" Chelia exclaimed, "They love you! So what'd you all get her?!" "Chelia, that's rude." Lyon scolded, lightly. "And you stealing my guild mate isn't?!" "This isn't about you, Gray!" The two returned to their bickering. "Our gift is a performance Wendy." Carla explained. "Really?!" Wendy lit up, but glanced around shyly, "Oh, I hope you didn't go through any trouble for me. . ." "Oh, hush, child." Carla scolded, "It was no trouble at all." 

Carla sat Wendy down at a table in front of the stage. "Did you bring the book I got you?" "Mm-hmm!" Wendy nodded and eagerly brought it out. "We are going to put on the Fairy Tales for you." Carla said, smiling as Wendy grew excited, "You may choose the story and who plays what part." "That sounds like so much fun!" Wendy cheered. "Then let's not dilly dally, let's get straight to it." Carla said. "Oh, there's so many stories- I don't even know where to start!" Wendy admitted, shyly. "Then let's start at the beginning." Carla suggested, "What's the first story?" "Um. . . Puss In Boots." Wendy said, turning pages to find the first story. "Who will play what part?" Carla asked. "Hmm. . . " Wendy thought for a long moment, "Well, Puss In Boots is about a clever cat that defeats an ogre and helps his master get a wife-Lily can do it!" "Lily can do what?" Pantherlily asked, looking up from his kiwi breakfast. "You can play Puss from Puss in Boots! Uh. . . if you want to. . ." Wendy added, shyly. Lily smiled, "I would love to." Gajeel stood. "Where are you going?" Levy asked. "No one's being my Lily's master but me!" he replied, sternly. Wendy giggled, "Okay. And Levy can be the princess! We need an ogre and a king!" "Makarov could be king." Mirajane suggested. The old man sighed, "I'm not as young as I used to be, but I'll give it a try." Mirajane gave her brother a look and he sighed, "I'll be the ogre." "Yay!" Wendy cheered. The group glanced over Wendy's shoulder and quickly re-read the story. "I can easily provide costumes." Erza assured, leading the group backstage  while Wendy began the first story. 

PUSS IN BOOTS 

Wendy began to narrate eagerly. "Once upon a time there was an old miller. When he died, he had three sons." Gajeel walked onto the stage. "To the first, he gave the mill." "Alright!" Gajeel said grinning. "That's not you." Wendy explained. ". . .Huh?" "That's your brother." Wendy told him. ". . .Oh. . ." She continued, "The second son got the donkey." "Not bad!" Gajeel grinned again. "That's also not you." Wendy informed him. "Then what did I get?!" Gajeel complained. "The cat." "The cat?! My brothers get a business and a donkey and I get a damn cat?!" Gajeel asked, angrily. "The cat is Lily." Wendy offered. "Best present ever!" Gajeel hugged his exceed happily.  

"But the miller's son had a problem. What was he to do with a cat? But the cat assured him that he would be fine." Wendy continued. Lily wormed his way out of Gajeel's grasp and turned to him, "Listen, all I need is a pair of boots and some hunting gear, and I'll make you rich." he promised. Gajeel looked skeptical, but shrugged, "I don't really believe you, but I'm desperate, so what the hell?"  "The cat got his boots and spent the next few months hunting to take care of his master." Wendy continued, "But every few weeks, the cat would go visit the king." Makarov sat in a  fine throne onstage. Lily walked up, holding a bowl of fruit up to him, "A gift from the Lord of. . . the Iron Hills." "Tell your master that I thank him for the gifts." Makarov replied. Lily bowed and both of them scurried offstage. 

"One day, when the cat knew the king was going to be out in the village, he brought his master to a lake." Wendy said. Gajeel followed Lily back out onto the stage. "I'm doing what?"  the slayer asked. "Strip and get in the lake." Lily gestured to a large barrel that was serving as their lake. "Why?!" Gajeel exclaimed. "Just trust me. I have a plan." Lily assured. Gajeel sighed and climbed into the barrel. They had decided to leave the stripping out, since there were children in the room.  

“While he was bathing, the king walked by with his daughter." Wendy continued. "Help! The Lord of the Iron Hills is drowning!!!" Lily exclaimed. Makarov rushed over and pulled Gajeel out of the 'lake'. "His clothes were stolen by a thief!" Lily explained. "You will have some of my robes then." Makarov said. Erza used her magic to give Gajeel fine clothes. "I remember you from the gifts your cat has given me. Now walk with me." Makarov walked offstage, Levy and Gajeel followed. 

"The cat ran ahead and told everyone he met to say that the land they were working on belonged to the Lord of the Iron Hills." Wendy continued, "And went to the nearest castle, which happened to be owned by an ogre." Elfman walked onstage and Lily walked up to him and bowed, "Dear Sir, I have been told that you can turn into anything." "I can!" Elfman confirmed, cockily. "Can you turn into a giant monster?" Lily asked. "Of course I can!" Elfman changed into a large creature and Lily yelped and hid behind the nearest object- which happened to be the barrel/lake. Elfman laughed as he changed back into a human. 

"Hmm. . . not bad." Lily admitted, creeping out from his hiding place, "But can you turn into something small, like a mouse?" "With ease!" Elfman flexed and Wendy turned to the guild, "When the ogre turned into a mouse- the cat ate him!" The duo raced offstage. "It was around this time that the king and miller's son arrived." Makarov and Gajeel walked back onstage. "So this is yours too?" "Indeed. My master is the best lord in all the land." Lily assured, standing by his dragon slayer's side. "If he's that great, he has my blessing to marry my daughter." Makarov assured, letting Levy step forward. Gajeel grinned as he leaned down to kiss her. "And they all lived happily ever after!" Wendy cheered. 

The guild clapped as the actors got off the stage. "You two can stop kissing now." Lily said with a small sigh as he watched the couple make out. "No thanks, I'm good." Gajeel only grinned as Levy gave him a light shove and looked over towards the book. "What's next?" she asked curiously. Wendy turned back to the book, "The Foolish Wishes." she read. "I know that story!" Levy smiled, "That would be perfect for Natsu and Lucy." "Huh?!" Lucy exclaimed. Wendy gasped and turned to the duo energetically, "Oh, please Lucy?! Please Natsu?!" Lucy sighed and smiled fondly "Oh, alright. . ." she stood and began reading the story. "Sure! If Gajeel can do it, I can do it!" Natsu grinned and used Lucy as an arm rest while he read. Once they were done, they headed backstage and Wendy began the second story. 

THE FOOLISH WISHES

"There was once a poor woodcutter . . . " Wendy began, at this Natsu walked onstage. "He was so sad he wanted to die." "SCREW YOU, HEAVENS!" Natsu yelled, angrily, "You've never given me anything!" "At this moment Jupiter appeared! Oh. . . but we didn't choose a Jupiter. . ." Wendy realized, sadly. "The heck is a Jupiter?" Natsu asked. "Jupiter is the god of thunder and lightning." Carla explained, "King of the Roman gods." 

"We have our own god of thunder~" Freed smirked over at his love teammate. Laxus slowly turned to look at the rune mage, "NO." "Come on, Laxus. You'd make her day." Evergreen pressed. "Yeah! Don't be an ass!" Bixlow said. "Ass!" "Ass! "Ass!" his babies repeated, flying around Laxus's head. The blonde sighed and glared ahead, "You three won't leave me alone until I do it, will you?" "No, we will not." "Nuh-uh." "We're just gonna keep annoying you!" "Annoying!" "Annoying! "Annoying!" "I'm also going to cut off your alcohol privileges until you do it." Mirajane chirped in. That did it. Laxus groaned and approached Wendy.  "I'll be your Jupiter- but only because I'm being forced into it." he shot a glare at his team as he climbed onto the stage. His voice was emotionless when he spoke. 

"I am Jupiter. God of thunder and lightning. Fear me." Natsu snickered at the lackluster performance, "That's all ya got? C'mon, man! Do some special effects or something!" Laxus was more than happy to strike Natsu with lightning. While the Salamander lay on the ground in pain, Wendy continued, "Jupiter promised the woodcutter three wishes!" "Alright, dumbass, listen up." Laxus grabbed Natsu by the scarf and yanked him into a standing position, "The first three wishes you make will come true, got it?" Natsu nodded, he opened his mouth to speak but Laxus quickly covered it, "So don't waste them on dumb shit." Laxus dropped Natsu onto the ground again and hopped off of the stage, grumbling bitterly as he returned to his seat. "With those words, Jupiter returned to the sky!" Wendy narrated, happily, "But the woodcutter raced home to his wife." 

Lucy walked in and set up a table and two chairs, before taking a seat at the table. Natsu raced over gleefully, "WE'RE GONNA BE RICH!!!!" he cheered. "What?" Lucy exclaimed, "How?!" "The woodcutter told his wife the story." Wendy narrated. "We have to be careful with our wishes, Natsu. We'll sleep on it and make the wishes tomorrow morning." Lucy suggested, "I'll go make dinner you start the fire." Natsu nodded, "I'm good at that." Natsu enthusiastically set the nearby barrel on fire (the one they had used as a lake in the last story) and put his feet up on the table. 

"Man this fire looks tasty." Natsu thought aloud, "I wish I had a sausage too!" Mirajane threw a sausage onstage and Natsu stared down at it, ". . . Oh no." "Natsu!! You idiot!!" Lucy yelled angrily, "We could've had gold, diamonds, jewels- And you wish for a sausage?!!" "It was an accident!" Natsu defended. 

"I can't believe i ever made friends with someone like you!" Lucy ranted on. "Hey! I said it was an accident!" Natsu was starting to grow angry. "This is the stupidest thing you've ever done! And you've done a lot of stupid things-" "I wish the sausage was stuck on your nose!!!" Natsu yelled angrily. Lucy gasped as she picked up the sausage and held it to her nose. "NATSU!!!!!!" 

"Oh no! We only have one wish now!" Natsu realized, ignoring his 'wife's' plight, "What should I use it for?!" "I have a sausage stuck on my nose!!!!" Lucy scolded. Natsu sighed, "I wish my wife didn't have a sausage on her nose. . ." he grumbled. The sausage fell to the ground. "And so the woodcutter and his wife learned a valuable lesson!" Wendy announced, proudly as the duo left the stage. "Man, Lucy, why do you always gotta mess things up?" "I messed it up? I think you read the wrong story pal-"