AN: This is a short chapter… Feel free to skip if you have a hard time with loss.
The next chapter will be covering a fight.

==[o0o]==

Small Feet

Gajeel stormed down the cave tunnel, his eyes scanning in the gloom whilst Pantherlily walked beside him, staying in his small exceed form to preserve his magic. The Iron Dragon Slayer was furious with Natsu, but he had a job to do, unfortunately his mind was still scattered amongst the clouds. So much had happened and yet nothing at the same time. He had allowed Levy to do whatever she was doing, whenever he interfered she began to grow agitated, trying to push him away, and yet she was trying to bring him closer to her.

Growling inwardly he ran his hand through his hair before punching the cave wall, shaking the fragile roof.

Lily made no comment, knowing it was best not to say a word in the situation. Even a sigh would set off the stormy individual. Perhaps a fight would elevate his stress and then he could be somewhat tolerable.

"Ya've got to be shittin' me…"

Lily looked to where Gajeel was grumbling towards and couldn't understand the problem, sniffing the air he managed to pick up no smells. Whilst his nose was nowhere near the same level as the dragon slayers, it still worked better than the humans.

"Isn't this a good thing?"

"NO! I wanted to fuckin' fight! Fuck." Gajeel growled, punching a large stalagmite, shattering it into rubble ahead of the pair.

"…"

"Fuck sake. C'mon cat."

Sighing loudly Lily folded his arms, unimpressed with Gajeel's attitude. "Gajeel, I realise you wanted to fight, but honestly."

"Don't fuckin' lecture me!"

"I'm not lecturing."

"Tsk"

Gajeel sat on a raised piece of ground, his legs folded whilst his hands rested on his knees, staring angrily at several exits, trying to smell anyone of interest.

"I'm sure whoever passes the first test are going to be thrilled to see your happy face." Pantherlily had his small arms folded with one eye looking at his nakama's miserable face with the other closed. A grin sat on his feline features.

"Hmph."

A large explosion ruptured the roof of a distant tunnel.

"Was that…?"

"Yep… Brats got a lot stronger…"

Gajeel was fed up waiting, it felt as if the fights were going on forever and he was missing out on it. His skin was crawling for a fight and he couldn't participate. It was supposed to be a luxury to not have to battle in the first round but it felt more like torture, his only opponent in the training had been Lily and a few stray bandits all small fry with no challenge. He needed to relieve his stress and right now he wanted to punch something.

Sighing loudly Gajeel threw his body backwards and landed with a hard thud on the raised ground, grunting as his back made contact with the very solid soil. Closing his eyes he felt his brain relax slightly as Levy's face began to smile at him, washing her emotions over him. The way her face lit up with learning something new, or the way she was always excited talking to anyone and finding out how they were. He snorted, she was easily entertained some days.

His mind switched back to all of the horrors that happened in the past, wishing he could forget. "It won't be over so easily… I'm sorry…" Her sweet little voice rang through his ears, Weevy… How adorable her hair fell, and her virgin dress. Was she a true figment of his imagination? Or was she truly conjured as he lost his sanity on the verge of death? He subconsciously began to rub the scars that still littered his arms where the scales had messily returned into his body. On his right forearm almost a whole hands width of solid scars sat hidden behind his black band, hiding the more serious of scars.

"What if it goes wrong?" Gajeel mumbled, hoping that no-one would answer.

"Do you believe it would fail?"

"I... I don't think the nightmare is over"

"It'll only stay a nightmare if you let it."

"But it'll kill us if this doesn't work - Did I tell yah about Weev"

"…?" Lily sat silently watching the tunnel exit as a massive explosion erupted from the hillside in a barrage of lightning and red demonic energy blast followed immediately by an enormous fiery blast.

"Fuckin' hell…!" Gajeel shot up, grabbing Lily by the scruff dodging the raining rocks and leaves that tore through the tree tops. Satisfied with the lack of magical destruction being aimed in his and Lily's direction he sat himself back down on a log, allowing Lily to make himself comfortable on Gajeel's knee.

"What were you saying Gajeel? Before all of that…"

"Nothin' just forget about it. "

Lily paused, listening to the birds resuming their chorus, "I can never truly sympathise with you Gajeel, I will never know the loss like you and Levy…" He paused looking up at Gajeel's darkened face, "I can only say that I will continue to be there for the both of you, whatever happens. I don't have the words to help you two grieve, for I know you are both still hurting. But beating yourself up about it isn't going to help Gajeel. I won't say any more but I want you to know that it's ok."

Gajeel bit his lower lip refusing to make a noise, eventually he broke, "Did she tell yah what we agreed to name him?"

"It was a boy?"

Gajeel nodded slowly, his eyes forced closed as he remembered, "She was further gone than anyone realised… Dragon bitc- Porlyusica… He was… The size of my fist…" He held up his clenched fist looking at his hand imagining it to be his son. Lily raised his paw and very slowly held it against the dragon slayers side, looking towards the fist.

"He had… Such black hair…"

Pantherlily bit his tongue, how could he say anything? All he could do is listen that is the best method to deal with a grieving parent. Not to say that you're devastated, not to say endless poems, or to send endless white flowers or cards, no... These will remind the parents of what they have lost. Hiding them away in a room so they never have to be looked at… All you can do is wait for them to slowly recover and be willing to talk about it. Or to be the shoulder for them to cry on, or to yell at. To just listen to them. No one has the same experience and that in Lily's opinion was the hardest thing for him to deal with. He had no grounds to help his nakama, making him feel helpless watching them tearing themselves apart. However in his heart he felt some positivity come from the two parents… They were willing to try once more.

"We named him after yah…"

Lily's red eyes lit up on hearing this, his feline eyes locked onto Gajeel's own teary pair, his tail waving slowly before wrapping around Gajeel's lower back, giving him more of a hug.

"Levy… She wanted to name him after people we love… So… We called him, Hayden Pantherlily Redfox… Hayden was her father's name, she found it written in her oldest nursery rhyme books…"

"…Thank you…" Lily had no idea what to say, they named their first born after him? "His name is beautiful… It means a lot that you thought of me."

"Fuck… I'm here to fight… not to cry..." Gajeel wiped his eyes rather too aggressively, flinging of his headband into a nearby bush grunting in obvious frustration.

"I-I'm gonna take a piss Lil'"

Lily merely nodded, allowing his nakama to recollect his thoughts. In front of him he witnessed the first of few winners begin to leave the tunnels, making their way towards him.

==[o0o]==

Even the smallest of feet have the power to leave everlasting footprints upon this world.