Gajeel had returned to his dorm for only a few minutes before being driven insane by his roommates. He had hastily redirected his footsteps to outside, where he could take a nice, relaxing walk. Students weren't allowed to walk around campus past ten, so he slipped out of the fencing surrounding the college to enjoy his walk without interruptions.

      Unfortunately, he had just started his walk when an explosion shook the ground. He nearly lost his balance but steadied quickly, glancing around for an indication of where the disruption came from. He saw smoke curling into the dark sky down the road, and being who he was, he ran towards it.

   As he sprinted around the corner of a towering building of red brick, another explosion shook the streets and sent a figure flying into the wall beside him, sending up a cloud of dust and pebbles of debris.

      Shadow Script herself pulled free from the collapsing wall, shouting to the cloud of black smoke in front of her, "Blast you!! Stop hiding, or I'll —" she noticed Gajeel beside her and whipped around, "Solid Script —" but she broke off, startled. Then she turned away, leaping into the smoke with a shout of anger.

       Then Gajeel saw what she was attacking.

       It was a man in black, spines arching down his back and an evil grin on his face. He twirled a scythe in each hand, avoiding each of Shadow Script's attacks or blocking with his large weapons. Black visors covered his face, and scars could be seen blemishing every bit of exposed skin on his body.

     And Gajeel instantly recognized the villain: Slasher, a criminal who had been caught in prison seven years ago but escaped roughly two or three years ago.

     Suddenly, the whine of police sirens came screaming around the corner, but there was a cry from the smoke as Shadow Script tumbled out of the dusty cloud, her shoulder bleeding from a nasty gash. 

     Gajeel saw out of the corner of his eye Slasher dash from the smoke and vanish onto the nearby roof top. He could hear the shouts from the incoming cops, and glanced back at Shadow Script in time to see a boot rushing up to his face.

     Then everything went black.

Later....

      Gajeel sat bolt upright, realizing he was surrounded by the bustling of cars from down below. Further inspection proved that he was on a towering roof top above the loud sounds of the city.

     He leapt to his feet, his head pounding in the place where the boot had struck him. Then he noticed Shadow Script crouched calmly a few feet away, her eyes watching him closely through the slits in her mask.

     Feathers of many varieties were weaved through her hair, making it nearly impossible to tell if her hair was black, blue, or silver. Her mask darkened her eyes,  concealing most of the shape. She watched him with a guarded expression, as if unsure what to make of him. 

       Gajeel stepped back, debating whether or not to make a run for it, but she lunged forward, swiping out a foot so her boot caught on the back of his knee and he fell forward with a curse, catching himself on his hands and knees.

    He rolled to his feet, clenching his fists. Why had she kidnapped him? Did she know he was Blacksteel? How could she?

     Shadow Script circled him slowly, looking him up and down. "Name?"

     "Billy Bones."

     She caught him in the gut with a swift roundhouse kick, making him double over with a sharp inhale, "Real name."

      "Gajeel." He growled through gritted teeth, looking up at her, "Why haven't you killed me?"

     "Do you want to be killed?"

     "Not really."

     "Consider that the reason. And before you ask, I brought you here to avoid the police. You would've been taken in as a witness if it wasn't for me." She turned away from him, staring over the edge of the building at the city, "You can leav—" she broke off as she coughed hard, blood spilling down her lip. She leaned heavily against chimney stack beside her, taking quick breaths.

     Gajeel took a hesitant step forward, "You oka—"

    "I'm fine," she snapped, holding a hand over her stomach as blood ran down her lip, "Just... just leave."

    He slowly stepped back, turning away, glancing over his shoulder in time to see her slump against the chimney. He turned back around despite her snap of indignation at him, and crouched beside her, "You're bleeding and you're not anywhere close to fine. Do you have a bandage for that cut on your shoulder?"

      "No," she mumbled, pushing him away, "Scram. I'm fine." She struggled to her feet, giving him a defiant look, "Go away."

    He smirked at her, "No. What're you gonna do about it?" Her angry reply was lost in a bout of coughing that seized her, and he pulled her arm around his shoulder to help her stand. She snapped at him again, but this time sounded more weary than upset.

     "D'you have a safehouse around here anywhere?" Gajeel asked, "We can rest there until you feel better."

      "There is no 'we'," Shadow Script began heatedly, "I—"

      "You what? What're you gonna do, stand there and cough up blood until you die? Great plan, but I'd like to think mine is better. So do you have a safehouse?"

"No," she muttered grudgingly, "But just down the street there's a house with a family who is own vacation. They leave the top window on the left unlocked."

      "Good," Gajeel nodded, "Well go there then."