Everything he has done until this point has been worth it. No matter how reckless or stupid it was, it was still damn worth it. as he walked through the mass of the crowd, in chains, he felt the hatred of their stares. What he did was treason. He betrayed his own kind with what he had done. The him before would've scorn him too, but now he didn't care.

The people whispered about his doings all around him. The curiosity in their voices about his punishment, death? If he was given the chance to right his wrongs in order to save himself, he wouldn't take it. If all of Hell gave him the power to do it, he still wouldn't. That is how much he cares, yes, he cares and he damn wouldn't rewrite a second of the last one hundred years.

Her smile was worth it. God, her smile brightens everything around her, and in him. She did something to him that stirred emotions he hadn't felt before. She was and he should be killed on the spot for thinking that word. God. He should probably be thanking him for making such a beautiful creature. In another lifetime that would've sound like a pick up line, yet she really was though. He has seen her kind so he shouldn't have been affected, but there was something about her that left him breathless and in captivation.

He heard the creak of the old wooden doors and the crowd disappeared with a blink of an eye. He was alone with the two guards at each side. The only noise present were the clanging of the chains on wrist along with the shuffling of feet. He didn't bother to make conversation with them, completely pointless. They probably wouldn't hear it anyway. He is and forever will be a traitor to his kind, a speck of dirt on the ground.

They traveled farther below, he knew exactly where they were taking him. Within minutes, they reached the dingy, dark cell that presented itself as cringe worthy, he didn't even complain. They unlocked the chains that were secured tightly on his wrists then purposely shoved. It took him completely by surprise and landed face down in the dirt of the cell. One of them spit in his general direction while the other just laughed.

Both of them knew who he was, if they even tried to get away with what they just did, both would've been dead within the next second. There was a time when the two worshipped the man in front of them, he was one of the most ruthless and admired, now nothing.

"Serves him right, filthy traitor," one of them muttered. The closed the cell with a loud clang that rung in his ears causing him to wince.

He stayed there on the filthy floor waiting for the last of their footsteps to disappear. He sat with a frustrated sigh, with no sign of life, his only companion would be his measly thoughts until the council will see him.

He thought about his partners and how they must feel betrayed and hate him. They knew what he was doing and mostly turned a blind eye to it, but recently they have warned him about the council being suspicious. He didn't listen to them of course, not entirely caring what everyone thought.

"Kuro?"

His head snapped up, despite it being dark he could make the two figures in front of him.

"Juvia? Jellal?"

Juvia knelt down in front of him. He couldn't read the expression she held or just didn't want to while Jellal's lips were pressed into a firm line. Kurosawa suddenly remembered the quarrel they had before his previous visit. It nearly turned ugly if Juvia hadn't intervene, now here they were, on different sides of the bars.

"Juvia had been worried sick Kurogane. Juvia thought of the worst since you didn't come back. Juvia assumed.." Her words faltered, quiet sobs rose from her throat while her shoulders shook. Jellal put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Kurogane." Jellal finally met his eyes, "You knew for it to be forbidden yet you continued to see her. Why?"

Kurogane thought for a moment contemplating how he should explain it.

" I felt something for the first time. I thought it was hatred at first since they were are natural born enemy yet what I was feeling was... warm."

His partners grew silent as he continued.

"You guys can try to convince me what I did was wrong, I don't regret it."

Juvia had resided to sniffles and wiped a few stray tears from her cheeks," Kurogane these beings have been our enemies for centuries. Juvia doesn't understand how you could've even looked at them and not feel the urge to kill. Juvia must know what she is to you."

He knew she wasn't saying this out of jealousy, she was genuinely worried for him. Would she really understand what he was feeling in his heart? That she had awoken something in him, she broke down the walls that he built around his heart for thousands of years, with just a smile. Her beautiful smile so bright and angelic made him feel... did he dare say it?

Love. He was in love with her. Someone like him shouldn't feel love, it was seen as pathetic and sinful for his kind.

Kurogane.

The name was given to him by his master in his apprentice years.

"I love her."

Juvia gasped, Jellal sucked in a breath.

"Kurogane if the council heard you..."

"Like hell I'll tell them."

They stared at him questionably, him in love?

"What is it like Kuro to be in love? Juvia wants to know, Juvia has never felt it."

Kurogane leaned against the grimy wall and sighed once more. "We as demons are only meant to feel hatred, anger, lust, fear, unhappiness. In our lifespan the closest thing to love was lust, yet that still isn't close enough. Love. "A ghost of a smile appeared on his face," love is unexplainable yet iridescent. You don't only have a desire for them, you also feel like want to be around them all the time, to protect them. They bring these feelings out of you that you didn't know existed. It's confusing yet refreshing."

Jellal finally spoke, "Whatever this Love is, you definitely got it bad." Jellal and Juvia both shared amused glances.

Kurogane finally grinned,"Gihi, I don't care. If it's her, I don't give a fuck."

Juvia gave a heartfelt laugh," This angel must be something."

Kuro continued grinning knowing he didn't have to answer.

[][][]

They talked for a little bit more into the guards told him to go. Time flew by as they talked, then of them really caring of the bars that separated them. I didn't expect them to understand, but at least they forgave him. He wasn't part of the elite but he was still well-known and this was an embarrassment to the status. Being a demon you need class skill in a stick up your ass if you want to make it. His master was one of those. He was born a demon, so his master showed him some mercy. If he turned into one, his master would've treated him lower than dirt. Still The years were hell with him, he was basically treated like a slave coming at his every beck and call. It is known for their master to give their apprentice their name. Something to define them, a name that will live with them for the rest of their lives.

Kurogane.

He didn't like it yet he didn't hate it either. It's not like you can ask for something different, he would've gotten beaten.

'Gajeel...' His eyes snapped open, you looked around the cell. There was no one else in the cell but him. He must be going crazy hearing her voice.

'You see more like a Gajeel to me. I know down there they give you a name, but is it ok if I call you Gajeel?'

'Whatever shrimp.'

'Gajeel!'

'Gihi.'

He loved her hair. Blue like the sky, he yearned to touch the silkiness. Juvia's hair was blue too, but like the ocean. Every time he was on he would look up at the sky remembering her beautiful hair. When he first met her she was interesting. He was on a job when you came across her, it seemed like she belonged in that meadow. She looked so serene with herself sitting there with a stack of books. He could've killed her there on the spot looking so vulnerable. That was his intention walking towards her, she didn't notice his presence until he was leaning over her, his shadow consuming her.

She looked up at him and simply stared at him, not saying a single word just simply staring at him. He probably looked dangerous to her, he thought.

On earth they are given disguises to blend in with the human population. Some of his kind usually wear high-class closing to prove how worthy they were. Like he said, sticks up their asses.

He stuck with a simple pair of jeans and shirt with had heavy black combat boots. He wore fingerless gloves with metal bands stitch within it. Anyway, he sort of rebelled from the demon ways. Which is why he grew out of his hair, it digusted some of the society.

He felt a little uncomfortable since her eyes showed no fear. Didn't you know he was a demon? Surely she sensed it.

"Would you like to join me? "her eyes were calm, she patted the spot right next to her.

What did he do? He sat right next to her.

"I like coming here; it's pretty calm here and my favorite reading spot. I wish sometimes I can just stay here...forever."

At that moment, he knew she didn't care who he was, he enjoyed his company. He enjoyed hers.

Every chance he got he will meet up with her, talk with her. No one knew what they were doing, didn't want to talk about their people for their jobs. He would make her laugh, a sound he never heard before. A sound that he could see himself hear over and over again. There were moments that were precious and he wished he could touch her. A simple touch to tell him what he desperately needed to know. Thought it should've never happened.

[][][]

He was awoken by the banging on the bars. His vision, blurry from the sleep.

"Get up!" The door opened and the same two guards came inside.

He was grabbed roughly by them and was brought to his feet. They pushed him out of the cell, one of them brought his wrists up and the other put the chains back on tight. He smirked at Kurogane like he knew something.

"Just in case." He spoke slyly.

They led him away from the dingy cell. They walked in silence the whole way. He didn't try to escape them either. A pair of large wooden doors appeared in front of them.

The judgement room.

He will stand in front of the Elders for them to decide his punishment. His crimes were severe, severe enough to be put be put to death.

The doors opened filling the dim room behind with light. The doors closed behind them and torches were lit showing the hooded figures seated before him. The Elders, who led demon kind with their experience and wisdom. The guards secured his chains to the hook in front of the elders, he was past the point of no return.

"Kurogane, you have served us well here in the pits of hell and out there in the human world. You obeyed every law and were loyal to your people. Never once did you rebel against the master you were assigned to. You listened, you learned, you became one of the greatest known demons."

Kurogane didn't dare speak and let them have the power to manipulate his words. They can take away his pride, his status, his demonism, but what they couldn't take was his emotions. What he felt for her was irreplaceable.

"What you did was intolerable, treason. You interacted with an angel. Our enemy in this forsaken world, who we have fought with for the human souls for eons. In fact, you even have the decency to share intimacy with that filth."

Kurogane growled at the name he given her. It took him his very being not to break the chains and rip the bastard's throat. She wasn't filth, they are filth. He was definitely filth. She was perfect, pure, the light, an angel. He loved her for that, the very being of her.

"Kurogane…." A voice emitted itself from the shadows.

From the shadows appeared someone who he hasn't seen in decades, his former master. Since demons have been granted immortality, they age to a certain extent. Even though their youth is shown to the human eyes; their wisdom is revealed by the way a demon speaks, carries themselves, but mostly in their eyes.

Kurogane didn't speak but nodded his head in respect. Even though he has been working on his own, he still showed his respect to his master.

He stood behind the head elder's seat, his face stoic except for the evil gleam in his eye. He was probably here to help decide his punishment since he did practically raise him.

His title was known as the Phantom Lord, but his actual name was José. He was known to be one of the cruelest masters in hell. When it came the day for Kurogane to be assigned a master, none of them wanted him. Most masters choose a demonling by their beauty or extreme intelligence, which Kurogane had neither at the time. When José walked down the rows of demonlings, he stopped at Kurogane. He studied him for a moment before continuing on. The next day, he was assigned to José, along with two others. Juvia and Jellal. The three went through many hardships together under the eye of the Phantom Lord.

His master's chilling voice brought him back from his memories." Out of all my pupils, you were my favorite Kurogane. When I looked into your eyes, I saw something I have never seen before. Animalistic Instinct. Yours's was the most profound I have ever seen. It was something I had craved for eons to possess since I could remember. When I saw it in you, I knew you were to be my pupil. You were still raw and needed to be molded, the right way."

An ear-splitting grin plastered on his face. If Kurogane were human, he would've shivered at the insane look in his master's eyes.

"Jellal and Juvia were wonderful as well, but you I had high hopes for," his eye narrowed dangerously at his next words," Then you had to fall in love with an angel." He spat the words as if they were poison.

He walked up to where he was chained and circled him like a demon with a pure soul. Suddenly, he grabbed him by the throat, because of their astounding strength he lifted his body high in the air. Kurogane was still chained to the ground and the chains put a strain on his wrists. José's eyes were filled with a fury that wanted blood. The hand that held his throat, squeezed hard closing his airway. Demons didn't need air to breathe, it was more of a luxury. It didn't mean being suffocated didn't hurt.

"Do you know the embarrassment that you have made of me?!" His voice growled animalistic like.

His eyes turned the color of blood while he continued to squeeze the life of Kurogane's throat. Kurogane didn't do anything, he couldn't do anything.

"The status, the name I've made of myself gone. All my hard work done for, BECAUSE OF YOU! I should kill you right now!" He bared his teeth and a growl emitted from his throat.

"José."

José let go of his throat and Kurogane just dropped to the floor. He gasped for air and even spit out of blood from the hold. He looked up and his former master stared down at him. The look in his eyes, he wanted him dead. The tension was thick. Master and Pupil. Demon to Demon. Free to imprisoned.

José fixed the strands that fell into his face and brushed the nonexistent dirt off his cloak. He returned to standing behind the Head Elder's chair.

The Head Elder cleared his throat. "A kiss is a gesture that is shared between humans. Affection that they use for one another. We as demons do not feel the emotions of humans. It's against the morals created by Lucifer himself. Having José as your master must have at least taught you these morals."

José snorted at that. The elder gave him a look.

"For the crimes you have committed, we sentence you to live on earth the rest of your immortal life. You will be able to keep some of your demonic ability, but we will strip you of your general ones. The ability of healing, infinite self- endurance, and of course invulnerability. You should be lucky we're letting you keep some. After all, you are one of a kind."

Kurogane started feeling light headed, black spots started appearing in his vision. The last thing he saw was the sinister smiles on his master and elder's face. Then the darkness consumed him

[][][]

"Gajeel? Gajeel?"

He opened his eyes and was greeted by the bright heated sun warming his face. The wind tickled his hair and he actually felt the chill of it. It affected him how cold it felt causing him to shiver. He never really felt the weather like this before. It felt nice.

Realization hit him.

Did he really hear her voice?

"Gajeel!"

Her face appeared in his line of vision. It really was her with her soft wavy blue hair, warm chocolate eyes and her beautiful, adorable face.

"Gajeel, you shouldn't be sleep all day." She pouted.

'He became confused," Where am I?" He winced at how hoarse his voice sounded.

Levy smiled," In the meadow silly. Remember? We always came here because of how peaceful it is."

He sat up wincing since his back definitely did hurt now. He took a look around. Indeed, they were in the meadow where they first met.

He turned to her," Why are we here? I thought you would've been punished too for being with a demon."

Her eyes became glassy," I sensed you here on earth, but it felt different and I panicked. I went looking for you and I found you falling from the sky. I flew as fast I could before you could touch the ground. Luckily, I manage to save you; it was then I noticed that you were unconscious. I flew you to the only place I thought was safe. This meadow." She was looking at him anymore, afraid if she did her tears will fall.

"Levy…"

"You know I was almost exiled from the heavens and it scared me. Falling in love was common for us angels if it was with humans. I managed to do the unthinkable, I fell in love with you. I love you Gajeel and I don't regret it one bit." She whispered fiercely.

She grabbed him by the lapels of his coat and pressed her lips against his. He was surprised at her boldness but didn't complain. He responded to her lips, both fighting for dominance that ended up with her laying on the ground. Her chest was falling and rising in beat with his. Her flesh was flushed down to her collar bone. She was alluring him, the only woman who is able to pull at him. There was something in her eyes that cause his body to react. He stroked her collarbone, touching her angelic skin. She shivered at his calloused touch, her hands reached up to his face. Her fingers wrapped around the base of his neck pulling him towards her. This time the kiss gentle and sweet.

Their hearts and bodies became one, to them, they never felt the doubt about how right it felt.

"There are rare gifts that certain angels are blessed with."' Levy rested her head on Gajeel's chest as he played with the strands of her hair.

She continued," We angels go by absolute faith when it comes to deciding how good a human's heart is. However, I have the ability to look directly into your heart and hear what there is inside. When I found you, I had to show them. They were ready to destroy you for tainting me."

She felt him chuckle beneath her." The feelings you had for me were so beautiful, so beautiful it shocked everyone in heaven. It left them in confusion at how genuine they were."

She smiled at him and gave a soft laugh. The sun had set, giving them a beautiful scenario to watch. Levy felt the breeze on her naked body causing her to shiver.

"Come on," Gajeel said," we can't be laying here forever."

They dressed in silence, the only noise the rustling of their clothes.

"Levy, you never answered my question." Gajeel's eyes turned serious.

"They left us alone here after I showed them. They probably would've exiled me to live here on earth too, but if they didn't I would stay here anyway with you. I want to spend the rest of my immortal life her with you Gajeel."

Damn, this girl would always be the end of him. Yet wouldn't anyone else but her.

"I love you Levy." He kissed her again.

They once again lost themselves in their kiss only hearing the beating of their hearts, the rustling of the breeze, and the unknown footsteps approaching. Gajeel heard alarms in his head and broke the kiss. Levy looked at him with wide eyes, but he was focused on her safety. Gajeel pushed Levy behind him, he formed a metallic sword out of his right hand. A cloaked figure approached them from the shadows, it stopped a few feet away from them. It didn't say anything to pose as a threat, but Gajeel didn't let his guard down.

"Gajeel, huh? It suits you better than Kurogane." Gajeel immediately recognized the voice.

"Kurogane a revolution is upon us." The hood fell from at the abuse of the wind. Jellal's lips were in a thin line and his eyes held determination.

"I came as fast as I could. I barely escaped unscathed." His eyebrows drew together.

" Kuro, Juvia is in trouble."

Birth

Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.

Proverbs 10:12