Author's note: In some fit of insanity or perhaps an indication of masochistic tendencies, I decided to participate in a ship/pairing week. I'd had a Gajeel/Levy plot bunny hanging around, so Gajevy Week it was!

Since disclaimers seem to be all the rage, and just in case it wasn't readily apparent, I do not own Fairy Tail.

Prompt: Matching

No one in Fairy Tail—hell, no one in Fiore—was surprised when Levy McGarden began volunteering at the local library in Magnolia. Truth be told, she would've loved a part-time job either there or at Book Land, but being a Fairy Tail mage came with a rather irregular schedule, between jobs with her team and miscellaneous villains bent on world domination or destruction. But volunteering worked just fine for her, enabling her to spend time surrounded by her much-loved books as well as giving back to the community that had been so supportive of their guild.

Occasionally Levy would assist patrons at the front desk or enter new books into their classification system and meticulously apply call numbers to the spines, but most days were spent sorting and shelving books—recently returned, newly acquired, and of course, those that had been plunked down randomly somewhere inside the library. Never mind the carts in almost every room of the building for books needing reshelving (and labeled as such).

Some librarians or library aides found this task tedious and boring. Levy, however, loved it.

She'd found a quiet corner not far from the circulation desk, and there she spread out the books, organizing them by call number and placing them on the cart. Once the cart was full, she'd go shelve them, and lather, rinse, repeat.

While she sorted, she couldn't resist skimming through each book, though she didn't read them from start to finish, of course. She just scanned them—with the assistance of her Gale-Force reading glasses—making note of books she wanted to check out for herself and gleaning little tidbits of knowledge.

With one of their own working at the library, many Fairy Tail mages popped in and out more routinely to see Levy. Sometimes simply to chat and socialize, but often to get assistance from their resident bookworm. She'd push her red reading glasses atop her head and do her best to help her guild mates, as quickly and quietly as possible. She was under no illusions about the destructive capabilities of Fairy Tail, and Levy wanted none of that within the hallowed walls of a library. She was still embarrassed for even being present for the damage done to the Magic Library tower.

Some guild members she was stricter with than others. Natsu had been banned long before Levy began volunteering, but she made certain it was enforced. She had no desire for him to get "all fired up" around all those books. Gray too had been banned prior to her tenure, and she suspected it was related to his rather unfortunate habit of indecent exposure, no matter the location. Cana had recently been barred from the premises after she spilled one of her myriad alcoholic beverages not only on some library books, but also another library patron. Juvia—after an incident involving Gray, a perceived "love rival," and a minor flood—was also politely asked not to return. Ever.

Erza was allowed, but with the understanding that if she threatened another person at sword point, she'd join her guild mates in their permanent ban. Gajeel was under a similar edict—if he nibbled on any more carts or shelving, he would no longer be welcome, much to Levy's dismay. In an attempt to prevent this, she often provided him with a little solid script snack whenever he came by.

Unsurprisingly, Wendy and Lucy were frequent visitors to the library and posed no threat of destruction to it or its books. Surprisingly, Laxus and the Raijinshū were oddly respectful of the premises, as were the Strauss siblings—though more often than not you could hear Elfman's "manly!" echo throughout the building, immediately followed by a "Shhhhhh!" from librarians and his siblings (or Evergreen) alike.

On this particular day, Laxus and Bickslow were researching something for an upcoming job. Or rather, Laxus was, and Bickslow was intermittently helping him and pestering Levy. In the span of an hour, he'd already upended her meticulously sorted book cart, added an extra fifteen books to her table after proclaiming that they were close but not quite right for what Laxus needed, and his babies had nearly knocked over more than one Magnolia senior citizen.

She was ready to tear her hair out. I'm sorely tempted to solid script up some rope and hog-tie his ass until Laxus is done. Gods, please let him finish soon.

She picked up the most recent book Bickslow had deposited on the table, noted the bar code, and was about to skim it when she nearly swallowed her own tongue upon seeing the title.

Tantric Sex and You: Achieving Nirvana in the Bedroom.

She felt the heat rise in her cheeks and knew she must be as red as her glasses. Placing the book on the "to be shelved" cart without so much as a second glance, she then turned to glare at Bickslow.

"Grow up, Bickslow. Isn't Laxus done yet?" she asked, not bothering to hide her irritation.

He shrugged, tongue lolling out of his mouth in his signature goofy grin. "Not a fan of nirvana, hmm?"

Levy ignored him and returned to her task, her flush abating after a couple innocuous, albeit boring, books. When she grabbed the next on the pile, the title caught her eye. A History of Tattoos, Piercings, and Body Modification. Her lips curved up slightly as she thought of her favorite dragon slayer. Though technically nothing more than friends at the moment, she hoped eventually they'd be something more.

Speed-reading through it courtesy of her Gale-Force glasses, she was surprised by the number of images of tattoos, piercings, and other body decorations in the text. When she reached a section about certain…below the belt piercings, she felt the flush return to her face.

It was impossible not to notice Gajeel's facial piercings, but…

Does he have matching piercings elsewhere?

The book slipped out of her suddenly sweaty hands and bounced a little ways from her chair. To her dismay, Bickslow oh so helpfully retrieved it. He regarded the cover and then angled his head to—she could only assume, given the visor—look at her.

"What's got ya all hot and bothered there, Levy-chan? Surely a sweet girl like you wouldn't be thinking anything naughty…" He trailed off and smirked as his babies floated around him chiming in, "Naughty! Naughty!"

She was saved from answering by Laxus's arrival. The blond jerked his chin toward the entrance, indicating that they were leaving.

"Arigatō, Levy. Hopefully this idiot hasn't been keeping you from your work."

She shook her head, unwilling to give Bickslow any further openings, and Laxus gave a quick wave over his shoulder as he headed out the door.

Bickslow tossed the book he held to her. "See ya around, Shortstuff. Try not to drool on any books…" He cackled as he followed Laxus.

Levy sank back into her chair, stuck the offending book into its appropriate spot on the reshelving cart, and tried to put the whole concept out of her mind.

Still, later that night as she lay in bed, willing sleep to come, she couldn't stop her mind from revisiting her earlier question.

Does he have matching piercings elsewhere?

Author's note #2: Just a reminder/FYI, as this is a multichapter fic, which will be completed by the end of Gajevy Week, the chapters are connected and should be read in order.