Beneath the Surface (A GaLe story)

Strength

Hey guys! Yaaay, it's Gajeel's POV!! Thanks so much for the reads, you guys are absolutely amazing!!!

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-Gajeel’s POV-

 

I stood there staring at her small, squared back as she left the guild house.

‘Don’t follow me.’ The words echoed in my head, over and over, an endless droning loop. Why did I feel like she had punched me?

Something in my chest hurt. I clenched my fist, turning back towards the guild house. Fine, I thought to myself. If she wants to go by herself, fine. But I didn’t feel any better. I had an overwhelming urge to hit something.

“Can you move?” I made a low sound of warning, glaring at whoever dared to speak to me when I was so conflicted. To my surprise, no one was there. “Gajeel.”

I glanced down at the little black cat, who was busy packing a bag full of food and slinging his tiny sword over his shoulders. “Where are you going?” I asked, oddly glad for the momentary distraction.

“Where do you think?” he retorted with no expression. I felt my face form into a scowl. “To Levy, obviously.”

My eyes widened. First the shrimp, now my own cat? “Who said you could do that?” I said, my non-existent eyebrows furrowing.

He looked up calmly. “I don’t have to ask you for permission.” With that, he shouldered his pack and squeezed around me to get through the door, his little tail winding around aimlessly. Just before he left, he looked over his shoulder at me. “Someone has to be man enough.”

I blinked as the guild doors swung shut in my face. “Bu-but you’re a cat!!” I roared at the door. The guild house dissolved into silence. I heard one of the smaller guild members asking if I was crazy.

With a growl, I stormed out of the guild house. Wet droplets splashed around me, making a light ping every time they hit the metal on my skin. I sighed, but it came out more menacing than I intended, although everything I did seemed to come out that way. Fog crawled over me lethargically, and I stood still, staring at the sky.

‘Don’t follow me.’ Why did it bother me so much? Every time I blinked, I imagined the pipsqueak facing off against the guys who took out Juvia. That rain woman was crazy, but she was also ridiculously strong. Not anyone can survive in a guild like Phantom Lord.

So the shrimp wanted to be strong? I laughed alone to myself. The surrounding fog seemed to echo my small “gihee,” making me feel disorientated. I fell silent, glaring at the wispy white.

Strength, huh..?

On a day much like this one, in a much less complicated time, my father had told me about strength. I closed my eyes, trying to remember what he had said.

* ** ** ** *

-Little Gajeel’s POV-

 

“Gajeel,” Metallica’s gravelly voice wrapped around me like a blanket, a source of comfort in the neverending white.

“Metallica!” I sobbed, running towards the sound and grabbing onto the first thing I could find... Was that a claw? “I can’t see! What’s happening!”

“Man up!” he barked, startling me.

“Bu-but…” I started, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand.

“Gajeel, do you know what true strength is?” the metal dragon asked suddenly. I squinted out into the distance, trying to figure out where he was.

“It’s this!” I shouted, shooting metal out towards the vague outline I could barely see.

“Argh!” A giant hand came and pinned me down, cutting off my laugh. “Dang brat!”

“Got you that time!” I shouted, flailing under the claw.

I heard a sigh. “Gajeel, true strength isn’t that.”

“Are you saying I’m not strong! I’m strong enough to beat y--”

“Would you shut up!” he roared. I shut up. Last time he got angry, he caused an avalanche. “Good.”

He brought his head towards me so I could see him through the fog. “True strength isn’t having the power to beat people into submission, to overpower them with pure physical strength.”

“But you just called it physical strength!” I pointed out with a smirk.

“Shut up!” he snarled. “Just listen!”

He took a deep breath and started again. “True strength is having the power to protect the ones you love. That strength is even stronger than any fear, any lack in physical ability.”

I scoffed. “Yeah right, that’s just what weak people say.”

Metallica brought his head closer to me. I felt like his gaze was piercing into my core. “One day, you’ll learn how powerful it is… Love.”

I made fake throwing up noises even as my face grew red. “Ick, ick!”

He rolled his eyes. “I forgot that you were too much of a baby for this stuff,” he grumbled.

“What?!”

* ** ** ** *

-Gajeel’s POV-

 

I smiled, still staring at the fog surrounding me. I must look like a wierdo, but who cares? Not like anyone could see me in this fog, and even if they could, if they ridiculed me I could just pulverize them.

So that wasn’t real strength?

My thoughts went back to her words. ‘Don’t follow me.’ I was starting to get sick of her voice looping in my head. Why would she say that?

I tried and failed to ignore the little voice in my head that kept telling me she was trying to protect me. The idea made me want to laugh. That shy little girl, protecting the terrifying, oversized me?

She would get herself killed.

Not like it was my problem.

I squeezed my eyes shut, chanting the resolution. “Not my problem, not my problem, not my-- screw it.”

The crunch of my punching something in the fog made me wince inwardly. Oops. Hopefully that wasn’t important.

I wasted no time lingering at the scene of the crime, but instead tore off after her lingering scent.

She may have told me not to help, but she was not the boss of me. Protect me?! Yeah right.

I wasn’t worth it. She was the strong one. She always had been.

I ran blind, the image of her back walking away from me stuck in my mind like a thorn. To protect me? I’d only ever looked out for myself. You can’t survive any other way in a dark guild. You can’t survive any other way when you’re me.

I ran, her scent fading and coming back. I had to find her. I had to protect her.

I wasn’t worth it.

I wasn’t worthy of her.

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Gaaaajeeeel!!! You're adorable, and you need to stop tryng to atone for your past, GOSH. And there's a definite emphasis on the ADORABLE!! And I don't know about you guys, but Pantherlily is just freaking amazing. He's like, "Well, you're an idiot... so... BYE." You TELL EM, YOU ADORABLE KITTY-CAT, YOU!!

Okay, done with my little rant xD I hope you guys liked the chapter ^~^ I've got some cool stuff planned for next time!