"Gajeel-san?"

If not for Gajeel's heightened senses, he wouldn't have head the soft whisper of his name. Sitting up in the old hotel bed, he glanced at the doorway, and despite his sleep blurred vision, was able to make out the silhouette of Fairy Tail's youngest Dragon Slayer standing there, awkwardly tugging at the hem of her nightshirt with the still sleeping Clara tucked under her arm. Gajeel yawned, running a hand through his hair as he looked at the small girl.

"Sup squirt? Ya need somethin'?" His voice was rough and gravelly from sleep, having been woken up by Wendy.

"N-not really, I just, umm…" The small Slayer fidgeted in the doorway. Gajeel's vision finally cleared enough that he could see her red rimmed eyes, wet tracks of tears still present on her face, and his gaze softened.

"... Ya have a bad dream?" A pause, then a nod from the girl. "Ya wanna stay here tonight?" Another pause, then another nod. Gajeel scooted over to make room for the girl on the bed, and Wendy was quick to join him placing Clara Next to Pantherliliy's sleeping form. Wendy curled into the bed, pressing her face against the hard muscle of Gajeel's chest and sniffled, fresh tears leaking from her eyes and Gajeel swore his heart broke. He gather the small girl in his arms and held her tight, stroking her soft blue hair and shushing her gently, a rare show of gentleness.

Wendy sobbed softly against him, letting the older Dragon Slayer comfort her. Gajeel could pick up Wendy's soft whimpers of her former Gaurdian's name, and his heart shattered even more for the girl. She'd been a lot younger than he or the Salamander had been when the dragons vanished. The poor kid had been all alone at such a young age…. his hold on her tightened, and he rocked her gently.

Soon enough, Wendy's tear's slowed to a stop, but she continued to cling to Gajeel. Thankfully, he seemed in no hurry to let her go.

"Feelin' better?"

"Kinda….." Wendy sniffled. "...I….. I really miss her….." She mumbled finally, and Gajeel sighed softly.

"I know squirt, I know….."

"Do you miss Metalicana?"

Gajeel paused. He glanced at the girl, who was looking at him with large, watery eyes. He wiped the last remnants of her tears away gently.

"Yeah… I miss 'im. Ain't much I can do though, he'll come back if he wants to." He shrugged. Wendy looked down. He could tell she was still troubled, and he held her closer.

"For th' record kid, I ain't goin' anywhere anytime soon… I know I'm a mean lookin' sonovabi-" He was quick to censor himself. "A mean lookin' guy, but I ain't gonna hurt ya. Yer a good kid, I ain't lettin' ya feel alone anymore."

There was a pause, before Wendy hugged Gajeel tightly, beaming happily. Gajeel grinned, laughing slightly as he heard her soft "Thank you."

"No problem… Now, let's get some sleep, alright squirt?"

"Okay…. Goodnight, Gajeel-san…"

"Night."

When Lucy peeked in to ask Gajeel if he'd seen Wendy the next morning, she had to hold back a squeal at the sight. Gajeel was half propped up in bed, asleep, with Wendy asleep against his chest. Lucy was quick to get a few pictures to show the rest of the girls later.

When Lucy proclaimed it'd be funny if Natsu married Gajeel to "Round out the dragon slayer family", he was just confused.