#i think we can all hold hands and agree that makarov takes the ‘most evil character’ cake

[eenochian]

the way this fandom treats characters is astounding. like y’all do realize that every single character is shitty, right? literally every last one. your blorbo is not an exception. no, “but my fave—” no exceptions. literally the only character that i can’t think of any issues with off the top of my head is farah.

[fallen029]

Together

She was singing, under her breath, but given the state of the hall currently, he could hear her perfectly, there from behind the bar. Laxus was halfheartedly pitching in to help out his poor wife, wiping down mugs and the bar area to speeding along closing up the place that night while she sat at one of the tables, alone and going over the books. Mirajane was better than him at it, figuring out the money situation they found themselves in every quarter. Everyone pegged the woman for dim, but he knew better.

Oh, he knew way better.

Mira was very busy in her calculations then, though her soft singing might point to otherwise. She couldn't even hear herself, Laxus was certain, as she nodded her head along with not the beat of her own words, but rather the ones her headphones supplied. She wrote out her equations in the air, with her magic pen, and seemed complete absorbed in her own world. It was just as well; they needed to get home and get some sleep. It was difficult work, running the guildhall. Mirajane had always thought, once Master Makarov retired, she'd get something of a break. A younger, competent master would hardly need to rely on assistance so heavily from his bar staff and she could go back to only doing her base job.

This was foiled, however, when around the same time that Makarov passed on the title to his grandson, she agreed to a marriage proposal from the same man. Now Mirajane wasn't helping her ailing Master wrangle in his unruly guildhall, but rather supporting her husband and the new image for the hall he wished to craft. And while she did feel a craving at times, for something other than what she'd chosen, Mirajane didn't know what she'd do without them; the long hours, the tedious work, and the unlimited amount of time she and the slayer seemed to spend together.

When she was young, envisioning her future, it involved lots of vanquishing of evil and bandaging up wounds in the downtime. Then she grew and, falling away from that, imagined many seedy bars and her acoustic as her only companion. Now she had a mixture, maybe, in the same bar as ever, not licking her own wounds, but rather taping up those of the others up in the infirmary, while keeping books for her husband's business.

Maybe one day she'd regret it, she knew most people eventually grew resentful of whatever path they chose, but as she yawned through allocating jewels that night, there were few places she would rather be. Out on a job, in the wilderness, hunting out evil, or with a stranger in a strange place after a night of strumming and preforming for even more strangers, those two things might have appealed to her at one point in time, but now…

Things change. Everything always had a way of falling right into place. It could feel mundane, at times, now that she and Laxus both were completely separate from any sort of fast lifestyle. They were behind the scenes people now, fully, and it was kind of...nice.

Laxus thought that Mirajane looked nice, that night, nodding her head along as she sang, so lost in herself that she didn't even feel his gaze. This worked in the man's favor as, eventually, he found himself placing the mug he'd only just grabbed back down, none the cleaner, but also no longer his focus. As he walked around the bar, it was with one destination in mind, and Laxus had to smile some, when his wife jumped just from his touch.

"Dragon," she complained a bit, tugging off one of her magic headphones, frowning a bit at the man. "You startled me."

But he only smiled in return before moving to hold his hand out instead. When Mirajane raised her eye brow, he only insisted with a nod.

"Take," he told her, "my hand. And take off your other headphone, huh? But don't put them away. Turn them up."

Mira made a face at him, hesitant as she asked, "Is this a trap?"

"Would I trick you? Demon?"

"I dunno." Still, she moved to do as he asked before getting to her feet with hardly anymore thought. "But I don't wanna give you the chance."

"If I'm ever tricking you, demon," he assured her, holding tightly the second her palm graced his own, "then it'll definitely be for your benefit."

"I," she hummed with a grin, "cannot make the same assurance."

He knew.

The bar had almost an eerie atmosphere, in the late evenings and early mornings. When it was all but empty and only a few light sources remained, many long shadows were cast and an echo could be heard with every sound. This was true then, in every regard, as Mirajane had left her headphones up, on the table, playing louder now, but seemingly very much so as there were no other sounds to be heard in the hall, giving off an extra eldritch effect. But for the two people in it, one who was raised in it and the other who somehow managed to spend more time in it than he, this was home.

"Dance with me."

Laxus said this as he moved to grab her other hand and Mirajane couldn't help it; she laughed. Openly and with a bright smile. Pulling away slightly, she shook her head.

"Are you joking?" she asked. "This was the trick? Make me think-"

"I told you," he growled, just a bit, equally as playful, "it's not a trick."

"Dragon-"

"Dance with me." And the song changed, almost...magically then, to something softer, and when he reached for her other hand this time, she allowed herself to be pulled along. Grinning at this, Laxus insisted, "C'mon, demon."

She liked it, when he smiled, but she especially liked when he was being so soft and sincere. For all these things to be happening all at once felt confusing and fugue, almost, but welcoming, and she had to hide her own grin in his shirt as they awkwardly took steps together.

It was...weird, because they'd only danced together a handful of times, the most recent being at their wedding, and Laxus was never the best at it. She always had to force him. And while she appreciated the effort in those moments, there was something so much sweeter, in him initiating.

Things fell together though, as they both seemed to relax in it, and he led her through the empty bar, being cautious of the tables and chairs around. As her head rested on his shoulder, Laxus felt lost in the feeling for a bit, but something was still keeping his wife for doing the same.

"Why did you wanna dance, Lax?" she asked, lifting her head a bit, but he only stared on, out at the hall before them for a second, but sighing down into her eyes.

"I dunno." He spoke honestly, his smile real and true. "I just saw you sitting there and I… I hate that you don't get to do this anymore."

"Dance?"

"Have fun. Or that we don't. Together." He sighed some, shoulders slumping a bit as one of his hands untangled from his and moved lower then, to wrap around her waist and pull her close. His lips took a downward turn then as he said, "Running a guild is just more work that I always thought. And I'd hoped you'd have some more freedom, once I took over, but-"

"Dragon, I love being here."

"I know you love the hall," he complained some. "But that doesn't-"

"I don't love the hall." She stopped them, moving along with him, and they were just staring at one another then as Mirajane considered her words. Frowning some, she corrected, "I mean, of course I do. I love the hall."

"Then-"

"But it's not why I love being here. Not anymore. Something's changed." And she moved then, to place both of her hands in the center of his chest, pushing just enough to make the man take a step back before holding firm. With glowing eyes, she insisted, "I love being here because of you, now. More than I ever have before. When I used to do all those extra things for Master, before, it was because I pitied him and cared too much to watch him stumble. But this...this is so much deeper than that. When we're here together, for long hours, when we struggle together, to get the money together or deal with whatever stupid sanction the council's put down on us… It reminds me of my parents."

She looked away then, smiling, but Laxus remained silent, gently rubbing at her back with the hand that had been rested on her waist. Eventually, she blinked away her thoughtful tears before continuing.

"They worked hard, every single day of their lives," she told him as the man only nodded, having heard as much from her and her siblings over the years. "Until the day they died. Whether it was tilling the land or dealing with the animals, and I just… We're in this together, Laxus. All of this. Every second of it. And it means so much more to me, now, somehow, than it did before."

A moment passed before her head was resting against his chest once more and they moved once more, in tandem, to the soft echoing song broadcast through her headphones.

Softly now, Mira murmured against the fabric of his shirt, "But this is nice. Dancing. Dragon."

He chuckled, bowing his head to brush his lips against the soft white locks of his wife. Reaching a hand up, he took the band down from her bangs, smiling at how much nicer they looked, hanging over her eyes. "Yeah, demon," he agreed with a far more content sigh now as she only looked bemused. "It is."

The song ended though, rather abruptly changing to something far more upbeat. When

Mira moved away from him, no doubt to fix this problem, the man was quick to shake his head.

"No, demon," he insisted with a shake of his head before beginning to bounce on his feet a bit, maybe in rhythm, but also maybe missing it by a few counts. As Mira looked on, quite distressed at what was now unfolding, Laxus only assured her, "I can keep up."

"Oh, dragon, no," she tsked as he shook his arms as well, looking so awkward and dorky and out of his element. "You can't."

"Mira-"

"But it's okay." Moving to be the one to grab his hands now, she was quick to pull him along, falling far easier into the lively beat than he had. "I'll help you."

Always.

Nodding, Laxus allowed this because, yeah. Everything was much better when they struggled together. It meant, after all, as he allowed himself to laugh openly at how clumsy he felt, even with the demon's help, that they got to celebrate together.

It's all either one of them ever wanted.

.

This is left over from Miraxus Week. I didn’t finish it then, but here it is now. 

[jd-the-anime-fan]

A Different Tail Chapter 4: Mission, Infiltrate the Everlue Mansion

Fanfiction.net

It was now Lucy's second day as a member of Fairy Tail, the blonde had just arrived at the guild hall after making plans to go on a mission with Lisanna, Natsu and Happy. After their successful rescue of Macao, Makarov had been informed and despite his attitude previously, he was thankful for Macao's safe return, and decided not to extend Natsu's restrictions, hence the reason for their plans. A whistle drew Lucy's attention as she entered the building, turning to its source, she saw it was Natsu sitting down with the other members of their group.

"Are you ready?" Lisanna asked once Lucy made her way over to the table, with the blonde givng an eager nod in response. Since the rescue yesterday wasn't an official mission, the one they would select from the bulletin board where mission posters were hung up would be Lucy's first on behalf of the guild, "We figured that since it's your first time, we'd let you pick the mission." Lisanna explained.

"Yeah," Natsu spoke up, "Maybe pick a retrieval mission that pays really well." Lucy gave him a knowing smirk since the fire mage was clearly alluding to something.

The celestial wizard scanned the various requests, ranging from mundane tasks such as package deliveries and fruit picking to more dangerous missions more often than not involving the capture of a small-time crook or low-risk monster extermination. After a few minutes of her unyielding thoughtful expression, Natsu finally spoke up, "See any that you like?"

"Any suggestions?" The blonde asked in response, hoping her more experienced comrade could pick out something suitable for them to go on or in all likelihood the request he'd not-so-subtly mentioned.

"The bottom left." The Dragon Slayer responded.

Lucy looked to where her friend indicated, needless to say her eyes nearly bulged out of her head once she saw the size of the reward, two-hundred thousand jewels. Once split four ways, it would cover a good portion of the rent on her apartment. "Please help," Lucy read from the mission description, just to see what kind of job would prompt such a reward, "The Duke of Shirotsume town, Everlue holds possession of the book Daybreak, an obscure work of author Kemu Zaleon. Everlue is a corrupt and evil man, the book must be destroyed at all costs! Client, Kaby Melon." Lucy grinned at this, the job sounded too easy for the amount of money being offered, however she noticed a section just underneath the description, "P.S. Everlue is pervert currently looking to hire a blonde maid…" The celestial wizard stopped reading at that, now her eagerness to go on the job had greatly diminished as well as a possible reason for why Natsu had suggested it.

Lisanna cast a slightly disapproving look at Natsu before she decided to add on, "We don't have to go on it if you don't want to."

"It's fine," Lucy sighed in exasperation, "If he tries anything, I'll just have to summon one of my spirits, besides even if the reward is split four ways it's still good for something as simple as burning a book."

Though Lisanna seemed to have her reservations concerning Lucy's involvement, she didn't voice them out of respect for her only female teammate wanting to go. As the four turned around, they were met by another group, a trio to be exact, two quite tall men and a petite, blue-haired woman, "Hi Lisanna." The woman greeted in a familiar tone.

"Hey Levy, Jet, Droy." The youngest Strauss greeted, "You guys are going to take a mission?" She inquired curiously.

"That's right, we were thinking of taking the Daybreak job." Levy explained, though she took a brief look at the board, noticing it was no longer there, the fact that the four in front of her had stiffened and finally, at the poster in Lucy's hand, "That's it isn't it?" The blue-haired woman asked, clearly referencing the sheet of paper.

"Yeah…" Lucy said awkwardly, though she felt guilty upon seeing Levy's disappointed expression, "You can have it if you want." She stated, holding it out for Levy to take, her fellow guild member giving her a thankful look though as she reached for the parchment it was quickly snatched away by a certain Dragon Slayer.

"No way, Droy here owes me a favour, and it's time for him to pay up." Natsu stated, the black-haired man of the trio appeared confused before his eyes widened in realisation.

"Really?! You're using that now? It's been months!" He stated incredulously.

"And what did you say when we agreed you owed me one?" Natsu retorted.

Droy huffed at that before he began his repetition of what he had apparently said, "I'm really sorry I tried to use her for my own benefits, ask for anything, anything at all and I'll do it within reason. You only made me say it about a hundred times."

"Exactly." Natsu said as he waved the mission poster triumphantly, "Pleasure doing business with you. And… sorry Levy, Jet." He apologised.

"No hard feelings Natsu." Levy assured the fire user, allowing him to depart with Happy in tow.

"Lucy, I'll catch up with Natsu, can you let Cana know we're going on a job?" Lisanna asked, the blonde nodded, allowing the youngest Strauss to go on her merry way, casting an apologetic look to the trio opposite them.

"So you're the famous the Lucy?" The petite woman asked, causing Lucy to do a double take.

"Famous?" The blonde questioned.

"Well yeah, word travels fast, according to Mira you beached a yacht in Hargeon and before we arrived at the guild from a mission yesterday you and a few others went out and successfully rescued Macao." Jet stated, "Stuff like that is bound to make a new recruit well-known."

"I guess you're right," The blonde chuckled sheepishly, "And sorry about the mission."

"No worries," Levy responded, "I just wanted to take that mission because books are sort of my specialty."

"Oh, do you like to read?" The blonde asked, the blue-haired woman nodded eagerly and the celestial wizard could tell from the hopeful look she had that the same question was being addressed towards her, "I'm actually in the process of writing a novel."

"Really?!" Levy asked enthusiastically, "Can I read it?"

Despite the flattery, Lucy was unsure. Even though she was an aspiring novelist, her self-confidence in her writing wasn't the greatest, "Actually, I'm not sure, if I want anyone to read it…"

"Why not?" Jet questioned, "What's the point in writing something no one's going to read?"

"It's fine Jet." Levy assured her friend, "If you change your mind, just let me know, I'm no expert but I could help editing if you need it. If not, just ask if you need us to show you the ropes."

"Thanks!" The blonde said appreciatively, "I might just take you up on that offer." With that, Lucy made her way over to Cana, the brunette had a frothy mug of beer in one hand with a thick leather-bound book on the bar next to her.

"I didn't realise you were an archivist?" Lucy questioned, gaining the older woman's attention.

"I'm not normally, Mira is usually the one who keeps the records, but she's away on a few simple errand jobs around Magnolia, so I'm left to look after the books." Cana explained, "So, you going on a mission with Natsu and Lis?"

"Yeah," Lucy answered, "Though I'm not sure how much use I'll be if things get rough." She continued somewhat regretfully as she remembered she hardly did anything against the Vulcan from the rescue.

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure Taurus is actually pretty strong, it's not his fault Natsu is a dumbass." Her senior Fairy Tail mage grinned at her, lightening the blonde's spirit. She noticed Gray strutting around in his boxers, whether he was oblivious to it or just didn't care Lucy couldn't be sure. Meanwhile, Loke had two different women from yesterday at either side of him, one of them was drawn to Gray's aloof stride, until Loke whispered something in her ear that caused her to giggle and turn her attention away from the ice mage and back to Loke. Lucy rolled her eyes at the display but didn't think much of it.

"Are those two girls part of the guild?" Lucy asked.

"Nope, just Loke's latest arm candy." The card mage replied, "It's kind of an unspoken rule among the Fairy Tail girls Loke is willing to date that you don't accept any offers of from him no matter what. He's persistent, and though he's a good guy at heart, it's unlikely he'll give up without a fight and believe me, some of us have gladly obliged him, sometimes on more than one occasion." After sharing a chuckle, Lucy bid her friend farewell to meet up with Natsu and Lisanna, soon enough the four were on their way to Shirotsume town via train from Magnolia's station.

"I'm never getting on another train again." Natsu stated, the green colouration as a result of his motion sickness still needing to disappear.

"You always say that." Happy retorted, "And you know, we wouldn't have needed to do it if Lucy had a way to fly."

"Are you insinuating this is my fault?" Lucy asked the cat in comical disbelief.

"Food," The fire user drooled, interrupting the two after getting a whiff of the cooking from the nearby café, "You guys want to come with?" He asked his female companions.

"Thanks Natsu, but I think I'll take a look around, I've only ever passed through Shirotsume Town on missions so I've never gotten a good enough view of the place." Lisanna said.

"I'm not really that hungry, I think I'll go with Lisanna." Lucy stated, the Dragon Slayer seemed mildly disappointed, but he didn't voice any protests as the two women walked off and left him alone with Happy.

Lisanna and Lucy spent most of their time together admiring the sights that Shirotsume Town's shopping plaza had to offer, window shopping and in general walking around, "So what was up between Droy and Natsu this morning?" Lucy asked her fellow guild mate in hopes she could shed some light on the subject that had prompted Droy's reaction.

Lisanna chuckled in amusement, "The thing is, Jet and Droy are both head over heels for Levy, as a result they're involved in a rivalry that she seems completely oblivious to." The youngest Strauss explained, "Once, Droy attempted to get Levy jealous and he thought trying to date me would be the best way to do that."

"Trying?" Lucy prompted with an amused smirk.

"Natsu and I are childhood friends, probably his closest behind Happy, when he caught wind of what Droy was going to do… well let's just say Natsu called him out on his bluff. For a month after, Elfman and Natsu kept singling him out whenever there was a brawl involving them." Lisanna answered, causing Lucy to snicker, "The worst part is, Droy apparently ran at least part of his plan through with Levy from a 'what if' stand point afterwards and she said to both him and Jet that she would just be happy for them."

"Aw, the poor guys." Lucy said, though even she had to admit that the situation was somewhat comical.

After that the two fell into a content silence, sitting down on a bench together, "Hey Lucy, you know how I mentioned I knew only a little bit about celestial magic back in Hargeon?" Lisanna asked, at the blonde's nod, the youngest Strauss continued, "How do celestial wizards… ally themselves with spirits?"

"That's pretty simple," The blonde began, "We just summon the spirit from its key and we arrange times and dates for when they're free, if you want I can show you tomorrow morning? I still need to arrange a contract with a silver key spirit I got in Hargeon, bring along Natsu and Happy if you want."

"I'd like that," Lisanna smiled, "And speaking of those two, we should probably get back to them before they rack up a huge food bill." Lucy nodded in agreement, however she stopped in her tracks as she noticed Lisanna looking at a particular outfit on display in a costume shop, one that could help out quite a bit for their mission.

"You mind if we head in and buy that?"

Meanwhile, at the café where Natsu and Happy were situated, the duo was tearing into their food, meat for Natsu and fish for Happy. Though their messy eating habits were garnering much disgust from their fellow patrons, the only reason they hadn't been kicked out by the owner was due to the sheer amount of food the two had ordered.

"Hi boys~" A pair of familiar voices to the two spoke up in coy tones, the duo turned to see both Lucy and Lisanna taking matching cute poses, winking at them and dressed in maid outfits. Lisanna had changed her hair colour so it was platinum-blonde and held in a medium-height ponytail. Upon seeing their shocked expressions, the two women burst out laughing.

"You were right, they do look hilarious when they're surprised!" Lucy managed to get out through her giggle-fit.

"Told you." Lisanna said even with her own laughter.

"Are you guys wearing that for the mission?" Happy questioned.

"Yeah," Lisanna answered, "We figured it would be easier to infiltrate the mansion if there were two blonde maids offering their services," She explained and with a grin continued, "Plus we just wanted to mess with you guys." The two chuckled as they were able to see the comedy of the situation.

After paying the bill, the group departed and were now approaching an elaborate mansion, Natsu giving an impressed whistle at the sight of it. As they got closer, the four noticed an tall, elderly man in a business suit, "Are you the Fairy Tail mages?" He asked as they stopped in front of the stone archway that was the entrance to the property, after revealing their guild marks, he greeted them properly, "I'm the client, Kaby Melon, please come inside." Lucy was briefly pensive as they entered the home, silently swearing that Kaby's name was familiar to her somehow, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

The group sat down opposite to Kaby, "Now to tell you about the job, as the request explained, I want you to find the book Daybreak in Duke Everlue's possession and then destroy it."

"Can I ask why sir?" Lucy asked as it was odd there would be such a reward for a simple task like this.

"What does it matter if it's for two-hundred thousand jewel?" Natsu questioned in confusion.

"Actually," Kaby interrupted, "The reward has been raised to two million." The massive leap in what the reward would pay naturally invoked a comical reaction from all four members of the group.

"All of the fish I could buy…" Happy drooled and given Natsu's rather similar reaction, it was easy to tell they were having practically the same daydream. Meanwhile Lucy was thinking of how many times her rent could be paid if she counted in the expenses of other basic necessities.

Lisanna was the first to break out of the avarice-induced stupor as well as her own visions of opening a small petting zoo with her take of the money, "If that's the case, we could split it four ways, five-hundred thousand each!" The take-over mage's statement calling her teammates back to reality.

"Apologies, I thought you already knew." Kaby stated, gaining the full attention of the four, "I raised the reward… because it would mean that much to me to see that book in ashes." The Fairy Tail wizards noticing that the old man who had greeted them so kindly had tensed up in rage, "However," He continued, relaxing, "You must understand that other wizards came before you, I don't know how, but Everlue had them killed and covered their deaths up. I completely understand if you wish to back out now."

The four looked between each other in apprehension until Natsu spoke up, "Let's do it and if we can, we'll kill two birds with one stone and bring this Everlue guy in." The Dragon Slayer's statement bolstered the other group member's resolve.

"Thank you, and please, be safe." Kaby thanked, as soon as the group exited the house after setting off, Kaby muttered to himself, "Daybreak, it must be destroyed at all costs."

Lisanna and Lucy approached the thick steel gates of Everlue's mansion that looked more like they belonged on a bank vault rather than a gateway to a mansion, with Natsu and Happy concealed in the bushes nearby. Though unlike Kaby's residence it rose high and was shaded pink, making it look garish in comparison to the rest of Shirotsume Town. Seeing there was nothing outside that could be used to contact the residence from the gates, Lucy called out, "Excuse me, we heard you were looking to hire maids?" There was a brief pause until there was a cracking sound, the cobblestones on the street had begun cracking with a small mound forming as if something was pushing upwards. Eventually, something large did burst from the earth and came back down to the ground with a loud thud.

What had emerged was a stocky, muscular woman also clad in a maid outfit who rose nearly twice as big as the two women. The woman looked human enough, but her size alone spoke volumes about either some remarkably good genes or she wasn't necessarily human, "I presume you're here to see the master about the ad in the papers?" The newcomer spoke up a very deep voice.

"Yes, that would be us, may we please see the master?" Lisanna asked in a sweet tone, right on cue another mound developed underneath the cobbles. From it emerged a rotund man dressed in a business suit with a large yellow button on it, he seemed to be balding yet kept the hairs still left on it in such a style that it barely covered up his baldness, though a rather disgusting feature about the duke was the fact that he had somehow styled his nose hairs into a pseudo-moustache.

"Did somebody say master?" Everlue declared, clearly his way of making an entrance, "Now let's take a look at you two." He said and despite his beady eyes boring into the two creepily, both Lucy and Lisanna managed to maintain their composure. That is until Everlue said something that neither of the two women expected to hear, "Thanks but I think I'll pass, both of you are too ugly." Naturally, the statement caused the two to go into a state of disbelief but that wasn't the end of it as Everlue continued, "You see a man like me has very high standards to uphold." Snapping his fingers, four more maids appeared from the earth, each even more hideous than the last.

"Yeah, now get lost." The first maid said as she hoisted the two women up effortlessly in their state of shock and quite literally throwing them into the bushes. Thankfully, Natsu caught Lisanna and Happy was able to grab Lucy before she hit the ground.

"I can't believe it!" Lucy shouted angrily after she broke out of her shock, "That old bastard wouldn't know beauty if it hit him like a truck full of cement!" She ranted whilst Lisanna just sat curled up against a tree and sulking. The youngest Strauss wasn't particularly vain but still being called ugly stung.

"Looks like it's time for Plan B." Natsu said, causing Lisanna to look up, "We tried the easy way, now we get in the hard way."

"Yeah, that jerk is going to pay for this!" Lucy stated with determination, little did the two realise that hidden in the treetops was a crystal ball, projecting the image of the group of wizards to Everlue himself.

"So we have another group of wizards," He stated, "It seems these are from Fairy Tail, no matter, that first group of wizards couldn't get through my defences and neither will these, Vanish Brothers prepare yourselves."

The group's next plan was for Lisanna to turn into a dove, flew up to the roof and chirped to let her teammates know the coast was clear. Happy flew Natsu and then Lucy up to the roof, where the fire user set to work melting the glass on a window pane, unlocking it after reaching through the damaged glass. After entering the mansion, the group were forced to search practically every room, though none that they searched even contained a bookshelf or any books. Eventually they worked their way down to a foyer with a gold statue of Everlue, there was a set of double doors the four pushed them open and into a giant library.

"Who knew Everlue was such a bookworm?" Lucy muttered, the four split up to search for their intended target. It took a while after sifting through several tomes that they had to restrain themselves from reading as they aligned with their interests.

"Guys, I found it!" Lisanna stated, after searching for quite a while and desperately attempting to resist reading any books that aligned with their interests, her fellow guild mates regrouping with her on the floor. It was clearly identifiable due to the yellow cover of the book and the big black letters spelling out Daybreak on the front.

"Awesome, let's light it up!" Natsu stated eagerly.

"Wait a minute," Lucy said as she saw the name of the author, "Of course! It said the author's name was Kemu Zaleon, an anagram for Zekua Melon, a famous author and wizard. I thought I'd read every one of his novels, could this be one that wasn't released to the public?" She asked as she held the book.

"Something's fishy," Natsu said, "Not literally Happy." He said as he noticed the blue cat's hopeful look, "If this is a unique book by some big-shot author, why would Kaby want it to be destroyed?"

Before the group could speculate, Everlue's voice resounded throughout the room, "So Daybreak is what you pilfering wizards were after boyoyo?" He emerged from the ground, "I don't know why you would want such a book, it's barely good enough for kindling." Lucy was confused as to why the duke would speak that way about a book written by such an author.

"Then I suppose you won't mind if we take it?" Lucy asked, though her tone indicated they would do so regardless of Everlue's answer.

"It may be a repugnant piece of literature, but it's still mine you won't have it!" The corrupt politician said indignantly.

"Can I at least read it first?" Lucy asked, she didn't wait for an answer as she flipped the tome open.

"You're seriously reading that now!" The other four occupants of the room shouted comically, Everlue however reverted to an aggressive state of mind.

"A man like me will not be underestimated, least of all by a group of lowly wizards. Come forth, Vanish Brothers!" The corrupt politician exclaimed, two book cases split apart to reveal a hidden hallway, standing at the entrance to which was a pair of men.

"You called upon us sir." The shortest of the two with his hair tied back into a braided ponytail said.

"Allow us to show these Fairy Tail punks who's in charge around here." The tallest of the two added.

"They're from the Southern Wolves guild, they're mercenaries!" Happy exclaimed as he recognized the insignia the two bore.

"Boyoyo, the Southern Wolves are always hungry for fresh meat, say your prayers thieves!" Everlue stated.

"Guys, I don't know what it is but I think that there's some kind of secret hidden in the book." Lucy said.

"Alright, you guys leave these two to me." Natsu answered, igniting his fists as a demonstration to his enemies that he was not to be taken lightly, leaving his companions to exit the room.

"Give me back my book!" Everlue roared as he disappeared down the same hole he popped out of.

"A fire mage?" The shortest of the two Vanish Brothers said in an amused, condescending tone, "We are trained to deal with your kind, you don't stand a chance!" He continued, with that the opposing parties leapt towards each other.

As Lisanna, Lucy and Happy exited the library, they were greeted to the sight of the five maids from before in front of the Everlue statue, "Intruder alert Miss Virgo!" The four smaller maids shouted in unison, despite the fact that she was holding Daybreak, Lucy made one step forward. However, Lisanna put her arm out in front of her, "Lucy, you need to find the secret of that book, I'll handle this, Happy go with her." The take-over user stated.

"Are you going to be okay?" Lucy asked with slight worry in her tone, her friend simply gave her a reassuring smile, convincing Lucy and Happy to depart. The white-haired mage turned back to her opponents.

The largest of the maids spoke up, "Under master Everlue's orders, we are to retrieve his stolen property, any and all intruders shall be exterminated!"

[fallen029]

Solace.4

No one in the guild had been in a good mood in days. They couldn't even be happy about their victory, Natsu couldn't even show his excitement over, once again, protecting the guildhall, because Mirajane was still hurt. Mirajane was dying. And how could you be happy with that sort of casualty?

But as all people, the members of Fairy Tail were no different. Grief came in waves and though they weren't in any way over what had happened, they were resilient and eventually found themselves having fun again. Laughing again. Not that they weren't very conscious of the fact that up above them, in the infirmary, Mira was hardly hanging to life. No, they didn't forget that. There just wasn't anything they could do about it.

The one that got over the situation the fastest was, of course, Natsu. Even he knew though better than to act out too much down in the guildhall. So most of his time was spent away from it. He, Happy, and Lucy even took a small job, once, that only lasted a day, just to stay away. Lucy thought it was best to keep Natsu far away, as she didn't think he was a very good person to have around should Mirajane take a worse turn. She just picture him being murdered by an enraged Laxus and that just did not go well with her.

At the moment, however, she and Natsu were at the guild, seated at a table, talking softly to one another for once. He was asking about how much she needed to cover the rest of her rent that month. She was explaining that if they just too another small job and went as just her, him, and Happy, she'd have enough and then some. While she was doing that though, Gray came over to sit next to them.

And that wouldn't have been note worthy, had he not sat on the box of cookies that Natsu had picked up for Lucy. And she was fine with it, only told him that it was clearly an accident when he tried to apologize.

Natsu, however, took it as a slight towards him for some reason and accused him of doing it on purpose. So that quickly escalated into the two of them getting into a fist fight. It had been so long, after all, since they'd had a good one and they could hardly help themselves.

It really wouldn't have been that big of a deal, as Elfman wasn't there to be offended, and Lisanna only sat at a table with Bickslow and watched with disinterest. And Makarov, who was up on the top of the bar, only shook his head and shut his eyes once more. Yet other than Lucy, no one moved to stop them, as Erza wasn't around to help.

But it was the sound of heavy footsteps coming down the stairs to the second floor, the distinct thud of thick soled boots against the wood, that made most everyone's breath catch. Except for Natsu and Gray. They were more focused on one another, honestly.

Still, Lucy heard it. And at the sight of him, Laxus, there looking quite disheveled as he hadn't had a shower in a good few days, much less a decent night's sleep, her breath caught and she took a step back. If Natsu and Gray wanted to be killed, that was their deal.

Suddenly though, Makarov's eyes were opened and Lisanna's head was lifted, but neither moved to stop Laxus as he came closer, over to where Natsu was still wrestling with his friend/nemesis.

And no one breathed then, the only sound those thick boots on the wooden floor intermingled with Natsu cheering for himself as he finally pinned Gray to the ground. He didn't realize, however, that Gray had caught onto what was going on and was just trying to get away from him and the situation as fast as he could. Even Juvia, who was standing off to the side, ready to cheer her man on only moments before, didn't raise a hand to stop Laxus.

"Dragneel."

The name had been spewed before, at times, by the nastiest of fiends, the dirtiest of crooks, and the darkest of evil villains. But the growl in Laxus' cadence, the deep side of his tone, and the overall feeling of disgust that came from it topped all of those.

Finally, Natsu remembered where he was and, at the sound of his name, froze, allowing Gray to finally escape his hold and rush away, not wanting to be drug down with the Salamander. No way he wanted Fullbuster to crawl through his lips the same was Natsu's last name had.

And Natsu only stared at him, too shocked to speak, as he hadn't really seen Laxus since the whole thing happened. Though he was an idiot, he knew how he'd feel if someone was having a good time while Lucy or Lisanna were hurt. After Lisanna 'died' that time, it took him weeks to recover, if not months.

Even the time that Lucy had been too sick to go to the Sakura Festival, he had a hard time watching everyone sit around and play bingo and have a good time. He got it. He really did. It was hard to watch your best friend or girlfriend go through something horrible. It really was. To see them miss out. To…to lose them.

But that did not mean that he was ready to get his butt kicked either.

"L-Laxus," he stuttered uncharacteristically as he got to his feet. "I's only-"

And then there was a hand between them. Laxus'. He was holding his hand out, towards Natsu. The Salamander only stood there for a moment, glancing at it before back to Laxus' void face. And everyone waited for the blow up. For Laxus to do something to him.

But when Natsu took the other man's hand, all he got was a strong grip and a slight shake of it. Then he and Laxus were just staring at each other and through those same lips that had been growling only moments before came a few words.

"Thank you," were the first two. Then, "For saving Mira."

And Natsu didn't know what to do or say. Just as quickly the moment was over and Laxus was letting his hand go and turning to walk away. Natsu could only watch along with everyone else as Laxus headed over to where Lisanna was sitting. He only leaned down to whisper something in her ear, something very soft, to which she only nodded, too shocked still at what she had seen to speak. Then Laxus was patting her gently on the head and heading right out of the guildhall.

"What'd he say?" Bickslow asked Lisanna and Lucy went to lay a hand on Natsu's shoulder, no doubt glad that he hadn't been killed before his time. "Lissy?"

"Lissy?" his babies, who'd been hanging around her as always, repeated. "What'd he say?"

"That he had to go out," she whispered, still just staring at Natsu, who had clearly been sweating it there for a minute and was glad to find that he was, yes, still alive. "And would be back. If I needed him, try his apartment."

Bickslow's tongue was in his mouth as it had been for the past few days.

"You think we should go check on him?"

She turned then to glance at the guildhall doors. Then, slowly, she shook her head and got to her feet.

"No," she sighed. "He's fine. I'm going to go sit with Mira though, okay?"

"You want me-"

"No." She grinned slightly, sadly, before leaning down to kiss his cheek. "I want to be alone with my sister, huh? And tell Elf when he gets here that he can come up. That Laxus is gone."

"'kay," the seith agreed as his dolls completely ignored him and headed after their mother. Lisanna only let Pappa and Peppe land on her hand, carrying Pippi in her arms, as the other two followed along, apparently not caring if they came along or not.

He figured they brought her the same comfort they had given his as a child.

"Close one," Gray was saying then as he too headed over to Natsu. The guy only took to sniffing the hand that Laxus had shook.

"What are you doing?" Lucy asked her boyfriend, making a face. "Natsu?"

"Making sure that was Laxus," he said, still sniffing. "Smelled like him, but-"

"Just consider yourself lucky," Carla, who was coming over with Happy, said as the blue Exceed came to rest in the pink locks of his best friend. "Very, very lucky."

"Hey, little buddy," Natsu said. "Why didn't you come to my aid, huh?"

"It was one or both of us, I figured," Happy told him. "Besides, you had Lucy to defend you."

Natsu glanced at his girlfriend before saying, "Yeah, sure."

"I can hear you," she complained.

Then Natsu only grinned and went back over to take his seat once more. And Juvia was hanging off Gray while Carla only went back over to where Wendy was sitting with Romeo. And it would have been a normal day, had everyone not noticed the very plain sight of it only being Kinana behind the bar and the fact that Bickslow, who was around for once, was not only without his babies, but also only resting with his head against the table.

Eventually, Freed came to join him, but neither friend spoke to the other. They only sat there in, not so much grief for Mira, but for their boss. Because yeah, Bickslow liked Mira, and he loved Lisanna, but Laxus…

They'd completely lose him, both men were certain, should things not turn out well. And the way they were panning out, there was very slim chance of any miracles happening.

After seeing the near apocalyptic handshake of the Salamander and Thunder God, it was pretty clear to both of them that the end was near. Very, very near.

The wind had a sharp chill to it as the woman stepped off the train and out onto the platform. She honestly wasn't looking for anyone as she walked at a fast clip passed the other travelers, never glancing long at their faces. In one hand was clasped a single sack, while the other fell to her side. She honestly didn't even notice the man until he stepped directly in her path.

"Laxus," she greeted, as if in shock. "I did not think that you would meet me at the station. I-"

"I had to get out," he grumbled, looking off. His arms were bare as he wore his usual sleeveless shirt, but usually his heavy coat would accompany it. For once it wasn't swinging off his shoulders and the woman knew that it must have been left behind, back where it'd been all that time, in the infirmary with the man's girlfriend. "Stopped by my place, saw the time, and came here."

She only nodded slightly as he turned and began to walk away, expecting her to fall in step. Of course she did, heading right behind.

"Did you get it?" he finally asked after they'd been walking for a few minutes and were some way away from the train station.

"I did," she agreed, nodding her head. "It is what is in this sack."

"I assumed."

"It was not easy to locate. There was a small village on the mountain, just as you said, where I was able to buy it off some locals."

"Whatever works." Then he paused. "Did it run you all the jewels I gave you for it?"

"About those," she said slowly before bowing her head. "I cannot accept them. I used my own-"

"Damn it," he growled at her. "How much did it cost you? I-"

"It is not about who spends the most on her, Laxus. Who buys the cure. It is just her getting better."

'You-"

"I am doing this as not only a nicety towards you, but also Mirajane," she told him. "I… We might not always have been close, but I want her well just as much as you do. All of us in Fairy Tail would do anything to protect one another. Especially Mira. She is the most loyal of any of us. And you are going through enough right now. So accept me not only finding it, but buying it as a token, yes? And do not think of it again."

He took to grumbling then, shifting his hands into his pockets, eventually getting out a, "Whatever," before falling silent again.

Laxus had stopped at his apartment before going down to the train station. While he was there, he'd taken a quick shower because, honestly, he would be the first to admit that he needed it. Then he kinda muddled around, just staring at one point when he found Mira had left him a covered plate of cookies, no doubt from the batch she'd snuck into his duffle bag and probably placed when she and Lisanna had snuck in and gone snooping. It made his chest hurt and his eyes sting, but eventually he'd found it in himself to head into the bedroom.

And it was obvious to him in there that Mira had been in since he'd been gone. His bed was made, which only happened when she was around, and when he opened the drawer where he kept that ring hidden, he saw that things had been disturbed. Usually she was better at covering up her probing, but she'd no doubt gotten over excited upon finding the exact ring she'd been asking for since, oh, forever.

He felt cheated. Out of everything.

Taking the little black box out of the drawer, he went to sit down on the bed and just held it for awhile, stroking it, before eventually finding himself opening it to stare down at the ring. And then he was picking it up and slipping it into his pocket. He didn't know why. He just did it.

And when he pulled back his sheets, he found that Mira hadn't changed them before making the bed. She did that sometimes. Washed and changed his sheets without asking first. That was more due to the fact that he never did it himself and would never bring it up.

But as they were still the same ones, when he laid down on Mira's half of the bed, he could smell her. She got the right side of the bed usually. Even though he liked that side better, he gave it to her because, well, she was his demon and that was his only option, really.

He'd probably never be able to sleep on that side of the bed again, no matter what. He'd been conditioned otherwise.

At the moment though, he was walking down the road, closing in on the guildhall, and he only thought about one thing. That sack in the hands of the other Fairy Tail member. And she seemed just as determined as him.

It had been Wendy who'd mentioned that she'd heard of such a thing. It was some sort of herb that was only grown on a specific mountain range, far from where they were. When she mentioned it in Laxus presence one day, Porlyusica immediately shushed her and told her that the mountain was a near death mission and that its effects had never been proven to revive someone from a comatose state. Only rumors.

So Laxus, who knew he could never leave Mira's side, went to one person and only one person. Not Freed or Bickslow or Evergreen. No. He trusted them with his life, fine, but there was only one person he truly thought could pull off the mission.

And she accepted. Even after he explained the risks. The danger. And she refused to allow anyone to come with her.

"They would only slow me down," she said. "And Mira would hate herself, should anything happen to anyone because of her. You know that."

So he let her go alone. They spoke of it to no one else. He only supplied her with an overabundant amount of jewels, not knowing if she would be able to locate it raw or have to buy it off someone. It was a crapshoot to begin with, but he'd throw as much money at it as need be. Whatever got him his girlfriend back.

"Here's to hoping," the woman with him whispered as they made it to the guildhall gates. He only went through them, keeping his head down. The second they entered, it was not him who was greeted, but rather her.

"Erza!" Natsu was happy to see the scarlet haired mage, but upon seeing who she was with, he was hesitant to run up and greet her. "Where ya been?"

She only ignored him, even Lucy who called out to her as well, and let Laxus lead her up the stairs to the infirmary. The only ones in there were Lisanna, who was at her sister's bedside with Bickslow's dolls floating over head, and Porlyusica, who seemed shocked for a moment to see both of them.

"Great," she grumbled. "More of you."

When Erza took to explaining to her what they came bearing, the healing mage was even less ecstatic and took to critiquing them for their lack of respect to her wishes. Laxus only went over to Lisanna, who was holding her sister's hand while staring at her, never once looking up.

He only laid a hand on her head though, stroking the similar locks to his girlfriend until the girl looked up at him. He wouldn't look at her though. Only reached into his pocket with his other hand and pulled out the ring. Then he laid it on the bed next to Mirajane, remembering not only all the times that she mentioned that ring, but also all the times she'd gone over that moment.

"I want you to propose to me at the guild," she'd say sometimes. Though it was quickly followed up with, "No, at a restaurant!"

Then there was her usual, "Let's just elope. Won't that shock everyone?"

She'd always come right back out of that though because, honestly, Mirajane loved attention. And that would be dramatic, fine, but she'd miss out on that being the center of attention for a day thing.

"I dunno, Mirajane," he told her one day as they relaxed in the large bathtub at her house. She was resting back against him, all those damn bubbles she liked all around, as he mostly focused on not running the moment by getting too horny. He had a feeling that Mira just wouldn't take to that in that moment. He was normally pretty spot on with his feelings too. "About having a wedding and all. I ain't much of a suit wearer."

"What are you talking about?" She'd dunked her hair under water earlier, getting it all wet, and it made her look different. Less familiar than when her bangs were up. But she felt nice even still, resting against his chest. "You look great in a suit."

"You kiddin', woman? I look great in everything."

"That's what I'm saying," she agreed. "And I've only dreamed about this moment forever, Laxus."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Hmmm."

"You've never thought about your wedding?"

"Before you," he told her softly, "I never planned on getting married."

"Well," she said. "That is not a ringing endorsement of faithfulness, but I thank you for your honesty."

"You kidding, demon? Ain't a man with big enough balls to cheat on Satan."

And she had giggled and he had only grinned. But it was more than that. What woman would even come close to Mira? He'd had his fair share and didn't need to shop around any longer. He'd found his and wasn't letting her go any time soon.

That was why, as he laid the ring next to her and Lisanna let go of her sister's hand before moving to grab the one he had on top of her head instead, he just let her. Because taking Mira meant taking her siblings too. Even the annoying, unmanly one.

Lisanna was expecting him to pull away, but he only squeezed her hand slightly, never looking at her. With a sniffle, she kept down her tears because he hated weakness, and just sat there, watching her with him, both ignoring Porlyusica as she grumbled about having to prepare the herb for Mira and Erza, who came to stare down at her past rival as well.

"You gotta wake up, Mira," they heard from behind them suddenly. Glancing behind them, no one was shocked to see Elfman coming up the stairs. He'd gone home to rest, but was back and apparently hydrated, as there were fresh tears in his eyes once again. "You're too much of a man not too!"

And as Erza was traded for Elfman when she decided it was a family moment and left, Laxus only held his tongue. He even, as a show of good faith, patted Elfman on the back when he took to full on sobbing and Lisanna had to get up to comfort him.

But he was right. Mira did have to wake up. The only other choice was her leaving Laxus with those two all alone and, well, that just wasn't acceptable.

Previous Chapter

Full Story