Gajevy Week 2017: Chapter 2—Levy of the Shinsengumi
Fanfiction by: Impracticaldemon
Summary: Some reincarnations are harder than others. Left behind in Kyoto at age five, Levy is a servant-girl in late Edo Japan (1864), at a time when girls are barely taught to write. When the Kyoto police raid the inn where she lives and works, how will she defend herself and her adopted family? Can she trust a certain black-haired, red-eyed police officer who seems to know magic when he sees it? Ch.2: A looked-for meeting and an unexpected proposal.
Prompt: Matching
Words: ~ 2850
Read on FF.net HERE | AO3 HERE
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 [here]
Chapter 2: A Second Home—Levy of the Shinsengumi
[I] - What Now?
Levy had fled in haste from the disaster of the Shinsengumi's raid on the Ikedaya Inn. Whether by Gajeel-san's design or just luck, most of the men at the back of the building had been called into the fight, and her escape hadn't been as difficult as she feared. Still, finding herself in hand-me-down boy's clothing (she usually slept in the short kimono and kept the hakama (1) handy), with no weapon and no money in the middle of Kyoto wasn't a tremendous improvement in her situation. Her small bag contained her one decent woman's kimono, a comb with two broken teeth, a tiny figurine that had been hers since she was a child, and whatever food she had been able to scoop up on her way out of the kitchen.
She'd eventually snatched a few hours' sleep on the outskirts of town, but she'd been awake before dawn as usual and that had given her quite some time to ponder her situation before there were too many people around for her to remain in one place without attracting attention. Gajeel-san had said that he would find her, but that seemed unlikely in a town the size of Kyoto. Moreover, why would he bother? Levy was smart enough to know that he had not been surprised by the magic writing, or by her real name, so obviously it had to do with those things, but since she didn't know her own background, that didn't help.
By late morning, she had somehow made her way toward the southwest of the city—toward the village of Mibu where the Shinsengumi were quartered. She hadn't asked her way, of course; for all she knew, the police were still looking for Aoi, the Ikeda family's blue-haired servant girl. And yet… maybe it was the nearly-empty streets, or the frightened faces, or the whispers, but she had known what direction to go and had gone there as if pulled by an invisible line. Now she stood in the shadows between two buildings—a small tea shop and a rather run-down tailor's—and watched the small flow of people on the street, and in particular the two armed men in blue haori (2) standing in front of the main gate to the Yagi estate where the Shinsengumi executive and other key officers were housed. Most of the rest of the Shinsengumi were housed next door on the Maekwa estate.
So far, the regular morning patrol had not been out, based on the whispers in the street. This left Levy uncertain what to do next. If she left for the countryside around Kyoto, she ran a very high risk of running into thieves and ruffians—bandit groups had become more problematic recently, especially on the two major routes between the Imperial Capital and the major cities of Osaka and Edo. (3) On the other hand, she was almost equally at risk here in the city, although the southern quarter was fairly well-patrolled by the Shinsengumi, which presented its own problems for a vagrant without any documents to attest to her name and city of residence.
Levy was used to being bored, however, and her patience was rewarded not too long after noon, when she saw a big figure with a mane of black hair come through the gate from the Shinsengumi headquarters. She saw him pause not far from the gate guards and pause, his head tilted almost like a wolf trying to catch a scent. The Shinsengumi nickname—the Wolves of Mibu—suited this man extraordinarily well, Levy thought. It was a little troubling to discover that she hadn't exaggerated either his size or his heavily-muscled build the night before.
A minute or two later, Gajeel-san abruptly turned and hurried off down a side-street. Cursing under her breath for having been caught flat-footed, Levy was about to leave the safety of the shadows when there was a soft sound behind her and then a large hand closed over her mouth.
"Don't move or cry out and I won't kill you. Just nod if you agree."
She recognized the deep, almost growling voice immediately. It shouldn't have been possible, but Gajeel-san was behind her, and he sounded perfectly capable of carrying out his threat. She nodded as quickly as she could, hampered by the arm around her head.
"Good choice. Now, put your arms out from your sides and turn slowly."
Again she complied, wide-eyed and frightened but not panicking or in tears the way that other girls she knew would be. As Keiko-san had always said, whoever she was, she was made of tough stuff. Tough or not, she found it difficult to repress a slight whimper as the man's presence hit her in full again. His black mane, imperfectly contained in its high black ponytail, seemed more wolf-like than ever, and his biceps were easily as big around as her legs—not that that was saying much, really. He wasn't wearing the Shinsengumi haori, so she presumed that he wasn't out on official business—had he come looking for her? That thought made her feel marginally better, but the glare in his terrifying, blood-red eyes kept her silent. Oddly enough, his next words seemed to echo her thoughts.
"What colour are my eyes, girl?"
Levy hesitated, but he'd asked and she didn't dare lie: "R-red, Gajeel-san."
The big man immediately frowned, but he closed his teeth on whatever he'd been about to say and nodded sharply.
"Hmm, yes. My fault. Don't use that name unless you're really sure we're alone, understand?"
"Yes? But—"
"I know, my fault, like I said. Most kids your age know better, but you're obviously clueless."
Stung, Levy had to press her lips together against a stinging retort; however, years as a servant had made her learn to watch her words. Gajeel-san smirked, obviously noticing her flash of irritation.
"You've still got a bit of the temper of the People, don't you? Still hasn't been beaten out of you quite yet."
Ignoring Levy's expression of unfeigned confusion—and curiosity—the Shinsengumi officer raked his eyes over her and then walked slowly around her, obviously looking her over. It made her flush uncomfortably; she had learned to avoid the eyes of men at the Ikedaya and she hoped that she hadn't made a mistake in coming to look for Gajeel-san.
"Gods, you're tiny, aren't you?"
Levy ground her teeth but refused to be baited. She was a little on the small side, but while she was maybe an inch or two shorter than most women, not many women reached five feet tall. In contrast, Gajeel-san had to be close to a foot taller than most men. She'd heard that foreigners tended to be taller than Japanese men, but she'd never imagined a man built like an oni. Between his red eyes and his size, he might even be one of the ogres or demons of the old tales. (4)
"You don't know your parents?"
"No, Gajeel-san. My father brought me to Kyoto twelve years ago, but he disappeared and I… I don't know his name."
"Mmm. And you know enough not to show people magic?"
"Hai."
"Is all your magic based on writing?"
Levy was surprised—the question presented a wider view of her strange ability than she had considered before.
"I… don't know? Maybe?"
Gajeel-san sighed deeply. Apparently the depth of her ignorance troubled him.
"Well, I'm too busy to get you to those who could help you—at least for a while, maybe quite a while. Truth is that the People tend to avoid places like Kyoto an' any of the bigger cities. Not that there aren't quite a few of us here but… well, we tend to be the misfits."
Once again, Levy was left to sift the meaning of the words from tone and nuance. She could only hope that Gajeel-san wouldn't abandon her without giving her more information.
After more than a minute of silence, Gajeel-san patted her roughly on the head. She flinched, but it didn't hurt. There was even a hint of kindness in the gesture, like a man taking pity on a stray kitten but without being entirely sure what to do with it.
"Well, I can do one of two things for you: I can spend a bit of time with you and teach you what I can so you can go looking for the nearest Hall—it's not too far, but it's not really close either; or you can stay with me until you're a bit better able to look after yourself. You can't stay on your own in Kyoto, cause eventually you'll give yourself away, an' means being killed one way or the other."
"What?!" Levy was proud that she kept the word under a shriek, but it wasn't exactly quiet either.
Gajeel-san looked at her sombrely.
"The humans'll kill you if they think you're a witch, an' even if they don't then the People'll eventually hunt you down for being too noticeable. They might even ask me to do the job, an' I'd have to obey."
Levy was appalled. These people, whoever or whatever they were, sounded like monsters. Of course, Gajeel-san looked like one.
"Why did you ask me about your eyes?" she asked, mostly to change the topic for a few moments.
"Cause most people wouldn't notice they're red."
"How?"
"Basic stuff, I can teach you that. Well, I'll have to, won't I?" Gajeel was frowning again, and Levy had the idea that he was regretting not having killed her out of hand in the first place. His next words reassured her slightly, however. "Look, I can't stay much longer. I think you're safer with me than going it alone, but it's your choice. You're not my direct kin—not at that size an' with blue hair—but you're obviously one of the People an' I'll help you if I can. So, what'll it be?"
Levy blinked at him. Both the words—the direct offer of help—and the suddenness had caught her off-guard. But the prospect of being alone in Kyoto—or worse, trying to find some kind of mythical people who knew where—was even more daunting.
"You mean I can stay with you—with the Shinsengumi?"
"Won't be easy. But you've made it twelve years as a servant, so you're tough. The blue hair and the script magic means you're probably really smart. People bring their relatives into the Shinsengumi all the time. Well, not all the time, but it does happen. I'll tell them you're a boy, kind of a second cousin of mine or something—they'll be okay with that. I'll say you're what—fifteen or so?—and they won't believe it 'cause you look about twelve, but everyone lies about their age if they run away from home to join the Wolves of Mibu."
"I'm seventeen," Levy protested.
"Yeah, but that's ridiculous so don't even bother. Think ya can learn to carry a blade? Make yourself useful as a page runnin' messages an' doing chores? Somethin' like that? Come on, kid, I'm tryin' ta give ya a break here."
Gajeel-san's accent got rougher when he wasn't paying attention, Levy noticed. And yet she still, somehow, wanted to trust him. He felt familiar and she had no idea why.
"Okay. You tell me what to do and say and I'll do my best."
"If you get caught out I'll be in deep shit along with you," Gajeel warned her. "The Shinsengumi rules are kind of inflexible that way."
"Oh." Levy hesitated—it would be poor repayment for her life if the man lost his job because she screwed up. Then she stiffened her spine. She wasn't going to mess up. "Don't worry, I won't make you lose your job."
Gajeel-san—or rather, Tani-san, since that was his Shinsengumi name—snorted and seemed to be laughing silently at her. He shook his head.
"You misunderstood, kid. If I screw up I have to commit seppuku—you know, cut my stomach open an' spill my guts? So don't screw up."
[II] - Joining Up
Vice Commander Hijikata glanced at Sub-Captain Tani's young cousin with a jaundiced eye. He wasn't unused to kids hoping for a chance at freedom coming to the Shinsengumi to get away from home. At the same time, this kid looked awfully frail for the toughest—and most hated—armed force in the city.
"Alright, Tani. Since it's you asking and the Commander would've been screwed yesterday without you. The kid'll have to billet with you and the Inspectors though."
"Arigatou gozaimasu, Fukuchō." (5) Gajeel bowed, and Levy did the same.
"Well, it's on you if he fucks up, but you know that." Hijikata-san exchanged a humourless smile with the sub-captain. He turned his gaze once more on Levy. "Okay, Yukimura, Tani says he's told you the rules, make sure you understand 'em, got that? And frankly, if you put one toe out of line I'll kick you out just to avoid having to kill you later. Got that?"
"Hai," said Levy, bowing again.
"Welcome to the Shinsengumi, then. Good luck—you'll need it."
Gajeel-san took this as a dismissal, bowed, and led his young "cousin" out of the room. He looked down at Levy.
"Good job, kid, you didn't get us killed."
Levy very much wanted to respond, but she'd been told not to speak unless absolutely necessary and to keep to one-word answers when possible. She settled for a very ironic bow. Gajeel-san laughed.
"You know, you look pretty cute dressed like that."
Levy glared at him. She was wearing a dark blue hakamashita and dark grey hakama, just like Gajeel-san. He'd cut her hair—meaning that it now came just past her shoulders instead of well past her waist—and it was tied up in a boy's pony-tail. Sadly—from a certain point of view—there hadn't been much need to bind up her breasts. Gajeel-san had even bought her a short-sword to wear, although she had strict instructions not to draw it under any circumstances. Apparently she held it like a girl, whatever that meant. Levy sighed, and momentarily forgot her orders.
"You mean I look like you," she muttered.
Gajeel-san tossed his head back and laughed.
"Yeah, we match. Give or take a couple of feet!"
Still laughing, he jerked his head in the direction of their room, and she followed him across the courtyard, wondering what on earth would happen next.
[END of CHAPTER 2]
A/Note: Please review if you have a moment or two! Even a few words can be very encouraging and let me know what you liked, or even what you didn't care for as much. Or feel free to send me a message here or on tumblr with your comments! Also, likes, and especially reblogs and notes on tumblr are much appreciated. Thank you for reading my story! \(^u^)/
Endnotes:
(1) Traditional loose trousers worn over a kimono or kimono shirt (hakamashita)
(2) Coat, generally styled to be worn over a kimono and usually open in the front (but held partly closed with ties or other more formal decoration). The Shinsengumi haori was designed to be easily recognized because of the light blue colour and the "mountain" design on the sleeves (white triangles).
(3) By design, the Shogun's government, the bakufu, left most roads in very poor repair. This made it difficult for citizens to move around much. However, the roads between Kyoto (the Imperial Capital), Osaka and Edo were kept repaired and were heavily travelled, making them prime targets for bandits (often ronin—masterless samurai trained in combat but unable to find "acceptable" work). Edo (present-day Tokyo) was the principal city of the Shogunate.
(4) "Old tales" are roughly equivalent to western folklore or fairy tales, but not exactly parallel. The term oni generally refers to a type of yōkai, a term that in turn refers to a wide variety of supernatural or mythical creatures; ogre is one of the most common translations of oni but not the only one (demon is also used, since oni typically have horns).
(5) “Thank you very much, Vice Commander!”
A special thank you to all those who answered my question last time about whether to write more of Gajeel of the Shinsengumi. Also, I expect that you will see other Fairy Tail mages in the future, as I expect at least a couple more chapters.
