Hello!
Here's part two of Phantom's surprise attack plus information on the characters!
Hope you'll like it :)
Lily xxx
Levy was seriously thinking to stop reading outside. Obviously, it was bad for her health. She had barely reed a couple of pages from her book before getting her attention caught by some noise. Luckily, she didn't have time to be completely absorbed in her book yet, otherwise, she wouldn't even be alive right now. Jumping out of her chair, she looked above her shoulder to notice that a sword just past centimeters from her head. She lost all her colours when she saw a man standing behind her, eyes as black as a night sky.
"What's..."
She stepped back but lost her balance. Her leg was still weak because of the wolfs' attack, and that not considering the fear that just made her loose all the straight she got in both of them. Stretching, the young woman managed to reach a rake, using it to barely block a second blow. Sadly, damaged as it was, she wouldn't be able to use the garden tool once more. She was about to scream, but no sound got the chance to leave her mouth before getting gagged by her attacker's hand, crushing her on the ground with all his weight.
"Oh no, little fairy! Don't think you can get any help. And you can be sure I wont be a coward like the other two".
Then he brought the blade of his sword closer to her throat. Tears flowed on the young woman's cheeks. Was she really gonna die without knowing was just happened? She closed her eyes, not wanting to look at her assassin in her last instant. Then a thud could be heard. She couldn't help herself from opening her eyes, meeting a red stare. She then understood her attacker was unconscious.
"Gajeel... she whispered to the one that, for the second time in barely three days, just saved her life".
He sais nothing, simply helping her to remove the unanimated body that was lying on her. How could he know she needed help? And why the hell did she needed help? What others? Too many questions where monopolising her mind. However, a feminine voice, obviously out of breath, interrupted her train of thoughts.
"Gajeel!" She heard the voice yell. "Juvia is so happy to see that Gajeel and Levy are fine!".
"They found you too?" Said Gajeel to his friend.
"Yes, there was also an attack on Juvia..."
"Okay. You promised you'd explain" interrupted Gray. "What's the deal with you two?"
Even though Levy stayed quiet, the look she was giving to the two visitors was clear enough: she was also dying to know.
"Juvia doesn't know how..."
"Just start with the beginning" suggested Gray.
"Why the hell his he here?" Complained Gajeel, pointing in Gray's direction.
"Gray helped Juvia to get out of danger" defended the young woman.
"Tsss", made Gajeel annoyed to see another person mixt into this mess. "We have to find a quiet spot", he added, entering without invitation Levy's house.
"Hey!" complained Levy to the young man's rudeness.
Juvia, way gentler than her long life friend, took Levy's hands in hers and asked.
"Could Levy allow us to calmly speak inside?"
"Of course" she said. "It's just that Gajeel is so...so..."
"Juvia understands that he's hard to figure out, but Gajeel has heart much bigger than it looks like".
Levy didn't answer. After all, despite his grumpy attitude and his ruff personality, the young man did save her life twice. And that not considering that he had brought her back home and tended to her wound... Decidedly, he was something else. Sighing, she followed Gray and Juvia in.
***
All four sat in the living room, except for Gajeel who had refused to stay put, looking at each other, waiting for someone to brake the ice.
"I don't want to spent all day here!" complained Gajeel, braking the silence.
"Well why don't you start, metal head" said Gray getting impatient. "You clearly know more about this than Levy and I!"
"Who are you calling metal head?"
"Gajeel! No!" Exclaimed Juvia, dragging her friend away from Gray to whom he was glaring at.
"Can somebody just tell us what's happening!" Exclaimed Levy who didn't want people fighting, especially in her house.
"Go ahead Juvia" growled Gajeel, crossing his arms on his chest.
The later sighed then started.
"The one who attacked us today are part of an organisation named Phantom."
"Phantom?" Repeated Gray. "What are they wanting from you?"
"Phantom works independently to fight against the kingdom's criminality for decades now. Until last week, Gajeel and Juvia where part of it".
"I don't understand" intervened Levy. "Why would they attack their former comrades?"
"We deserted, shrimp" cut her off Gajeel in an irritated tone. "We had a mission and we didn't accomplished it".
Gajeel saw the young woman's eyes grow after his last sentence.
"They're trying to kill you for that? I thought it was an organism for the good!"
"Phantom doesn't give second chances" grumbled Gajeel. "They are independent and only obey to their own rules".
"What kind of mission did you deserted to deserve such a terrible punishment?" Asked Gray, as shocked as Levy.
Gajeel's look met Juvia's. Then the young woman finally answered.
"We had to end someone's life" she said, her throat dry.
Another silence took place un the room.
"Did...did you have any other mission of that kind before?" Asked Levy with a shy voice.
"If you wanna know if we killed before, no we haven't" settled the black haired young man. "It was the first time in ten years they gave us an assassination order".
"Wait a minute... ten years?" asked Gray. "Are they really recruiting kids? Unless you're way older then what you look like..."
Juvia shook her head in negation.
"Juvia's parents, as for Gajeel'S, were already working for Phantom before our birth. We were nine years old during our first assisted missions" clarified the young woman.
"So why aren't they doing anything against this nonsense?" Levy tempered. "What kind of parent simply accept to see their child be sentenced to...
"They died a long time ago" Gajeel cut her off.
"We were barely walking when our parents where assigned the mission to protect a royal family" explained Juvia. "It was a bloodshed. The family didn't survive and a lot of Phantom members, our parents and our last leader included, lost their life..."
Even though they haven't really known their parents, sadness was visible on Juvia's face and even on Gajeel's if someone payed enough attention. Then, the explanations over Juvia left the house followed closely by Gray. Both of them were already far away when Levy turned to Gajeel who haven't move, his back on the wall. His look was pensive.
"What are you holding back?" She asked, slowly coming closer.
"Nothing"
"You're obviously bothered with something. And you're still here while Juvia and Gray already left".
"Bye" he said, walking to the door.
"Tell me what's wrong" she asked with a voice that seemed worried, standing before the doorstep.
Gajeel growled. He didn't appreciate at all the fact that she could read him this well. Most of the time, people didn't care or ignored him, but her... She was looking at him with that intense stare, without however being impatient. She was simply waiting for him to speak his mind out.
"What could you possibly do to fall under Phantom's radar" he let out after a moment.
"Me? But..."
"They weren't attacking you because of me or Juvia. They were also after you."
Her face lost all her colors. Clearly, she wasn't expecting to be a target of those attacks.
"Why?"
"That's what I'm asking you" said Gajeel, stating to get impatient.
"Did nothing wrong, I... It must be a mistake..."
"No it wasn't" he let out, clenching his teeth. "For God's sake shrimp! It's the second time an assassination is planed on you."
"What? I never was..."
She stopped short. The look Gajeel was wearing now. The way he tensed seeing her for the first time. The fact he knew she was about to get murdered... The words her assassin said to her... No she must be imagining things. She shook her head from side to side, trying to chase the idea she just had.
"You were our target" confirmed Gajeel, his words hitting her as brutally as if he had physically hit her.
She let herself collapse on the couch, looking blankly in front of her. As for Gajeel, anger took over him without really understanding why. A criminal wouldn't be in that state after learning about her sentence to death. A criminal would be nervous, angry, maybe having regrets. The shrimp showed none of that. She seemed sad, lost, shocked. Gajeel hit the table with his fist, laying his hands on the table while turning his back to her. How could that situation piss him off that much? Then, without hearing her come closer, he felt hands rapping around his chest, tears passing through his shirt in his back.
"I'm sorry" she whispered.
"What?"
"I don't know why Phantom's after me, but you... You and Juvia... you lost everything because of me..."
"We're not kids anymore" he growled. "We'll fend for ourselves like always".
His back was still to Levy, but he could now feel his shirt getting soaked by her tears.
"I want to speak to Phantom's leader" she decided.
Gajeel tensed.
"Are you out of your mind?" He tempered, forcing her to let him go. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! You wouldn't last more than two seconds before getting killed!"
"But you are from Phantom and..."
"I was about to kill you, shrimp! I was one second away of killing you!" he shouted. "Without Juvia, you would have been six feet under, killed by my own hand!"
Clearly, he hated the idea. But what could he do if he was so selfish he could kill someone without even knowing the motive, simply to ensure his own security? He expected her to get far from him, to be panicked, but rater, she said the last thing he was expecting.
"Thank you".
"Are you deaf of something? I just told you I almost murdered you!"
She denied his words, shaking her head.
"You risked your life, no you're still risking it, only because you chose to spare a stranger".
"Thank Juvia, not me" he let out, clenching a little more his fists still on the table, turning his back again to the young woman who, despite the fact she wasn't holding him anymore, was still close.
She made a forced laugh, showing she didn't believe a word he just said. He turned to her, dumbfounded. She returned his stare. He saw no fear in her hazel eyes.
"I don't have to know you a lot to understand how much you're stubborn" she said. "If you really wanted to kill me, I'm positive I wouldn't be here to discuss about it".
Could she really be right? Could she really understand him more than he did himself? No. She was an idiot. An idiot who believed in the wrong person. He was ruff, selfish. He was in the past and he would always be.