The Arrangement

Summary: She is the first in line to inherit the throne of a nation bordering on poverty. He is the son of a wealthy aristocrat with a mean streak and a pension for rebellion. Bound by duty to her country and a promise to his father- an arranged marriage ensues. [Gajevy]

"I'm afraid we're running out of options milady, even the most optimistic projections put us in a scenario where 40 percent of our food sources will be depleted within the next three years."

"We can try expanding our iron ore productions in the hope of increasing trade. But I'm afraid that without strong allegiances to other nations our chances of surviving are looking grim, and with this year's winter expected to be one of the toughest…"

He didn't need to finish for Levy to grasp just how much trouble they were in. Ever since they'd been hit with the black plague that had wiped out half the nation- her father included- things had taken a catastrophic turn for the worst. In the months following the plague the nation had banded together to repair what they could, but with the plague came fear and when all the traders in the world wouldn't touch their goods with a ten-foot pole, the people- her people - turned to her for resolve.

Her, the still grieving daughter who had overnight, been thrust from her peaceful world of literature to somehow navigate the heavy demands of the political sphere and aristocratic affairs.

"R-right, so I understand then that it's important for us to form strong allegiances with other nations" she tried her best to keep her voice from breaking at the end.

"Yes, milady"

"Uhm… so how should we best go about doing that?"

"Well, there's no simple way of putting this" replied one of her advisors, Wakaba, who'd been her father's childhood friend as well as trusted advisor.

"We're afraid that considering how severe the situation is, and that we really cannot afford to delay our response to this crisis any further…" added Macao, another one of her advisors.

"Yes, we've reviewed the logistics of a number of other possible responses but so far we've fallen short. And it's only after we've exhausted all other responses that we even began to think about taking more desperate measures"

"Go on," she urged them, not liking the way that they seemed to be skirting around the topic.

A collective sigh was released by the two of them before they finally made eye contact,

"We think that the best course of action would for an arranged marriage."

There was a long pause and it seemed as if all the oxygen had suddenly escaped from the room.

Levy took the time to process the gravity of what had just been proposed. Out of all the things… She hadn't seen that coming. A new economic plan, radical fiscal policies, quantitative easing measures, expansion into emerging markets – these were all things that she had been expecting – an arranged marriage! Not in a million years.

"Uh I guess I… I mean," she tried to regain her composure, "who do you propose that I marry?"

Marry, that was a loaded pill to swallow. All her life she had lived under the pretence that she would someday marry out of love. Her parents had, and she had become so acquainted with the topic in all her books. Daydreaming so many different scenarios about how it would all go down. She had entertained thoughts of meeting her prince charming at a ball or fancy state dinner, and sometimes it would be in a simpler setting and she would stumble upon him when she went to visit the market, disguised as someone other than herself. But, an arranged marriage…. Never in her wildest dreams.

"The Redfox heir"

"Gajeel, you know running away like this never helps," said his companion as they made their way down the choking sooty alleyways of London. Down the countless twists and away from the prim and proper part of the city he felt so out of place in.

He offered a mere grumble as way of reply before picking up his pace and charging through on his warpath to Fairy Tail. He needed to burn off some steam before he did something he'd regret, like tearing off the head of the next godforsaken noblemen who'd scoff at him from the top of their self-proclaimed pedestals. Besides, if Lily had a problem with his attitude, it's not like he had to tag along.

"Coming back with a bunch of bruises and cuts is just going to make things worst" said the man as he stalked behind him,

"I know that it's been tough for you Gajeel…"

"Don't give me that crap Lily." And really, he didn't need it. The pity or sympathy or whatever it was that had the other man keeping a sharp eye on him these past couple of months. He wasn't some fucking damsel in distress. He just needed to cool off and there was only one way he knew how to.

Fairy Tail as it had been oddly coined was a makeshift dwelling for the thriving black market. Located in the outskirts of the city, a world away from London prim and proper, it had become something of a sanctuary for people like him – not exactly runaway aristocratic heirs like himself - but the misfits and outsiders of the city.

It didn't take him long to reach the gigantic establishment, which to anyone else would look identical to the plethora of empty warehouses that littered this side of the city. Walking round to the side of the building he made his way in through the rusted metal door that served as the entrance to the place.

He'd almost forgotten just how rowdy it was inside. Inhaling deeply through his nose he welcomed the familiar smells. The scent of dated hardwood floors, the underlying tinge of blood, sweat and filth, but most prominently the unescapable smell of booze. It may as well have been the smell of home for him.

Stalking towards the bar, he easily maneuvered his way through the sea of bodies, the best thing about the place was that nobody but the barmaid paid him any mind.

"Oye, Gajeel!" Shouted the scantily clad women in greeting, "been awhile since I've seen the likes of yer sorry ass round 'ere"

"Alberona," he nodded his acknowledgement

"'ell you up for the usual ol' mate?" She said, jotting his order down in her notebook

"That and whatever Lily wants" he replies, sliding the pennies across the counter top which she immediately swooped up.

"Right then, that's one London dry for yerself' and I'll be sure to save somethin' fruity for yer friend over there," she said, turning her head in the direction of Lily who'd taken up to loitering in the back of the room.

He only scoffed at that, "happen to know where I can find Mira?"

"She's out back talking with the big cheese, but she'll be 'ere in a minute" said the girl as she aggressively scrubbed at the glassware, "why you lookin' to sign up for a match?"

He nodded and took a swig from his glass. The stuff was strong, burning the insides of his throat and if he hadn't been so acquainted with the taste he'd have thought that she'd been trying to poison him. Poison or not, it took the edge off, and for the first time in awhile he felt like he could finally breathe.

When the fuck had his life gotten so bloody complicated.

Sorry pa, but I guess I'm not the kind of man you thought I was, he grimaced to himself. Ever since his father had passed it seemed as though his tolerance for those aristocratic pricks just about reached its breaking point. Sure, it wasn't as if things had been peachy before, but then they'd always at least pretended to be polite to his face.

He'd grown up with the shame of being labelled a bastard, a mistake on his father's behalf that should have never been adopted, and most certainly fucking not paraded around high society like he was worthy of something other than the dirt on their boots. These very same people who had taught him that his mother was nothing but a dirty whore, who'd made her living as a prostitute in the back alleys, somehow snaking her way into his father's heart. And it was through him she had secured herself a sizeable fortune before the inevitability occurred- as those pricks would put it – and she was found face down in the gutter, cause of death; a drug overdose.

He'd only once dared to broach the subject with his father and from the haunted look on his face and unwillingness to even look him in his eyes – as if he was fucking ashamed of something – Gajeel knew that, for whatever those lying pieces of shit were worth, even they couldn't have come up an impressive and fucked up of a backstory as his own.

"Hey Gajeel," the light voice of the eldest Strauss sibling snapped him out of his thoughts, "what can I do for you today?"

"Lookin' to sign up for a match," he replied promptly, "you know who's in today?"

"Hmmm let's see," she said whilst flipping through her notebook, "well it looks like we've got a match with Mermaid Heel coming up in 10, Blue Pegasus isn't due till this evening and there's an opening against Sabertooth that's due to start in an hour"

"Sign me up to go against those Sabertooth punks"

"Right, well if I could just get you to sign here," she gestured over to a line on her notepad, before handing it to him, "participants are due to be in the arena 10 minutes prior to the match and all the usual rules apply."

He nodded his acknowledgement, looking forward to finally release all his pent up anger.

"Good luck Gajeel" she said as he stalked off towards the gym on the second floor.

A/N: This was a teensy bit short for my liking but I'm a little on the rusty side after a long hiatus. Expect future chapters to be longer, but let me know what you think about the premise thus far :D

~Zarlia