Well here it is.
Thought i'd give it a go, after watching... a fair few episodes and as i'm sure as many are, have fallen in love with Erza; she's just so amazing and the more I watched, the more I really got the overwhelming urge to write this and so... ta-da!
It's going to be AU, as those who might read will soon very well know, so it's that's not your thing, sorry, I will try and keep things as close to the story as possible, but at the same time, keeping it how I had it imagined in my head. though will it be a story?
It might just be a bunch of one shots that are all linked together, but are still AU, if that at all makes sense, or it might just be a story with plot if I get round to tightening the details up a bit more... i'm confusing myself now.
Anyway, moving on, I have decided to pair her with my second favourite character: Mirajane. Who can resist that adorable face, and it nearly ended me when she cried for Lisanna-that was hard to watch; but yes, I think these two have the best chemistry as Natsu is just a brother, as is Gray and Jellal is merely a childhood crush borne from the need to feel secure in a very bad situation and I call bull on them having such a bond after ten years; even one as intrinsically linked as their's seems to be, (I fail to see how he knew she was getting the crap beat out of her by Azuma), people change and are no longer what others remember, these two as a pairing just make no sense to me. Perhaps if they had both escaped then the chance might have been there, but after so long... it's just too much, so I'm sorry Jerza shippers but this is one person who is not aboard the cruise.
Feel free to disagree but that is just how I think.
There might be at the start, Erza will seem OOC, hopefully that gets a bit better as the chapter goes on, and I will try and keep her as best to her character as possible, but it will be with the elements of what i'm going with for this; as it is I can't stand characters who I enjoy butchered by just being so far out of place, they might as well belong in another show, and so it'll be varied in this.
Anyway, I shall leave it here, hope those who read enjoy and I might do a follow up to this, (Spoiler, in which Mira promises payback,) or I might just move on to the next part... I don't know.
Happy reading.
PS: my grammar isn't the best, and I have no Beta; I have tried to go over everything, checking it three times and so If there is still things wrong then I apologise.
The doors to the guild building burst open and those inside all turned to see Fairy Tail's main team enter, having finally returned from their latest mission; Gray gave a smile to Levy who was sitting closest and had looked to see them pass, she returned his gesture before getting back to her book leaving him and the others to carry on further into the main section.
"Welcome home you guys,"
The dark haired man moved to the bar, greeted by Mira who welcomed them back with a smile, leaving Wendy and Juvia to take the table in the middle still chatting happily to themselves; normally if it were any other female, the blue-haired water mage would have been distant and uninterested in getting to know them, having deemed them all potential rivals for her beloved's affections, despite having been told time and time again that no other woman felt anything other than brotherly love towards the ice maker, she still wouldn't listen and so to save arguments they left her to it.
In fact, the only person she was nice to of the same gender was Wendy because in her eyes, the sky Dragonslayer was far too young to think of romance to try to make any sort of move on her man, something the young girl found gross when she learned of the reason why the ex-Phantom Lord member was the least hostile to her only.
"So how was the mission?"
Gray gave a heavy sigh as he took a seat on one of the stools dotted along the bar, "Long,"
The white-haired woman hummed sympathetically, he wasn't wrong, when it came to taking the job, the time limit said roughly about a week, they had been away for almost three and so whoever it was they were up against must have been tougher than they thought.
"Did you manage to catch the guy?"
The ice wielder nodded, still looking tired. "Of course. It wasn't that he was powerful, just a tricky little bugger to find and once he realised we were on to him, he took to the ground and didn't emerge until we reached the next town."
Mira's brow cocked at that, "The next town?" she asked her tone questioning which he picked up on and nodded again, before going into more detail.
"It seemed the reason why he was so hard to find, was because he had the ability to create holes underground, and so, it wasn't until he made it to the next town before us, did we find out."
"Bet that must have sucked."
Both turned to find Cana sitting next to them. It surprised neither to see the brunette clutching a bottle of whiskey, as she stared at him.
"Was annoying as hell that's for dam sure," wincing as he moved, the muscles in his back protested after having been used so strenuously and wanted nothing than to go home, shower and sleep for the next ten years.
"So, how did you manage to find he was ahead of you if you couldn't find him to begin with?" Mira spoke this time, as he turned back to her, she let her eyes wander the hall and to her puzzlement and growing consternation, could only spy four of the seven members of the guilds top team, she turned her gaze back to him, her confusion must have been evident as he exhaled and went to reply, but the sounds of a loud boom coming from just beyond the doors earned a low groan and gave her the answer at the same time.
All eyes once more focused on the large double doors that had again been closed, all having a pretty good guess on just what was on the other side and were now simply waiting. Still staring, multiple expressions could be seen from each of the people scattered about: Gray was rubbing his head, having had enough of the exploits for more than he wished and so was quickly drinking the water that had placed in front of him, ready to make a break for it. Seated at the table, Wendy was eyeing the door with trepidation on her face, beside her, Charle was waiting with annoyance as Juvia was barely bothered and instead was staring at her darling who was now shirtless but had yet to know it. Cana merely grunted and returned to her drink as in front of her, Mira was also waiting tentatively as she knew just what was coming and had reached for a pen and paper, ready to send a note to the carpenters, inwardly despairing at just how much their monthly bills were keeping the businesses of Fiore safely afloat.
Another boom could be heard, much closer this time and as they all braced themselves; the likes of Macao and Droy having moved themselves away from the line of fire, just as they heard it.
"DRAGON FIRE…. CANONBALLLLL!"
Bafflement was rife all around, until the meaning became clear not five seconds later; the guild's foundations trembled as the roof to the hall blew apart and those that did, watched as a human-sized fireball containing their resident pyro burst through; speeding towards the ground, his body spun rapidly as he-true to his yells- cannonballed his way into their midst. Halfway down, he started to move, uncurling his body, he spread his arms in a parody of wings, using them to stem his deceleration and it seemed to be working, for he landed cleanly on his feet, a large, smug grin plastered to his face.
Standing proudly in the middle of his newly created destruction, his trademark cackle could be heard clearly as the others could only look on in exasperation.
"Well, didn't see that one coming," Wendy muttered as she stared at the pink haired boy still laughing madly, Gray scoffed and was about say something when his vision was suddenly blacked out by Cana, the card mage having been the recipient of his shirt was now throwing it back at him, a scowl on her face as he hurriedly yanked it off his head and pulled it back on, much to Juvia's distress.
"HAHAHAHA! How was that for an entrance!"
He spun on his feet, hands in the air and was cheering wildly; no doubt having won something as Cana simply shrugged and went back to her booze. The others watched as Natsu continued to hop from one foot to the other, still waving his arms wildly.
"What the heck is he doing?" Gray muttered, still not being able to figure the fire-breathing moron out, as the barmaid shrugged lightly.
"It's still hard to tell. You never know what's going on inside that head of his." The ice maker snorted the obvious as they kept their gazes in the middle.
"Take that! You plant loving loser!"
No sooner had he said the words, a collective gasp went through the hall; Wendy let out a small 'eep' and lifted her hands to her mouth, teeth worrying her nails as she waited for the comeback, Gray's eyes widened but then narrowed as he knew now he wasn't going to make it out in time and so simply relaxed in his chair, Cana, by the divine miracle only she could pull off, was now fast asleep and snorted, clutching her bottle like it was a teddy bear and Mira gripped the pen rather tightly in her left hand, fingers nearly ripping the pad in her right. Did she just hear that right?
Unawares of what his words have instilled, Natsu continues to jump and hop, still reveling in his victory.
"Ah-hah… hahahah! I win! I win! I—URK!"
His victory mantra was forcibly cut off when his body was squashed from above; falling face first into the floor, his teeth snapped shut, earning a mild whimper of pain muffled by the ground. Eyeing his now defeated form, it wasn't long before their attention's turned to the smug looking red-head who was standing upon his back; having jumped from the hole in the roof, Erza came to flatten the pink-haired Dragonslayer as she stood tall upon his prone figure, using his body as a platform for what could only be, the true victory that was under no doubt, hers alone.
Arms folded over her chest, she let her gaze fall to the enemy under her boots, smile turning ever more satisfactory as he whimpered once more, the noise sounding feeble; to anyone else that might have garnered the poor boy some pity, but not with the red-head, who only took it as a sign of further capitulation on his part.
"Not this time, cinderblock… I win."
The last two words brokered no argument from anyone else who remained quiet as she lorded her win over the fire user, who had now begun to flail madly; his arms waving any and all ways arms physically could but to no avail, her body was like steel and he could push her off. They took in the sight for a couple of more minutes, by which the red-head had taken to crouching down and was now heckling the conquered boy.
"Has it been like this for long?" Mira asked as she eyed the ruckus before them, Gray simply watched as Natsu did his best to swipe the hands and fingers now pinching and pulling his cheeks, failing to slap her away much to her amusement as she moved to poking his sides and exhaled before nodding.
"Pretty much since day two… the only reason it wasn't from the start was because both were too sick from the train journey to even try landing a punch."
Mira clucked her tongue sympathetically. Not that she could truly know what that was like, having given up taking missions despite the many offers from those in the guild and even from the team in front of her; but judging from past experience and having witnessed their fights right here in the hall first hand, she had a decent understanding and her pity for the rest grew exponentially.
"All fights aside, Erza found your man," she was rewarded with a single nod, "Though once we got closer, Natsu picked up the trail just as easily, but if we hadn't of been in those woods at the time, we would have been even longer than now."
A loud smash had them turning to see a large human-shaped crater in the farthest wall, with Natsu having managed to turn himself over, used his feet to kick Erza from him and launch her body away from his and through the stone wall.
Quickly jumping to his feet, his grin never wavered as he waited and sure enough, a moment later, a flash of red saw his entire head turning as Erza had launched herself and punched the side of his temple. The unspoken response created the fallout that came next as both attacked each other with a vigor that could only be found within two highly powerful mages.
"I knew this day would come!" Natsu yelled as he threw himself forwards, eyes wide his focus solely on the woman in front of him.
"This is the day I finally beat you, Erza! Now take it like a man and admit defeat!"
Said woman merely jeered dismissively and allowed him to get as close as she dared, before kneeing him in the chin, laughing as he fell back.
"Are you sure it's fire you swallow? Because all I hear coming from your mouth at the moment is a lot of hot air."
Her statement was met with a punch to the stomach; stumbling backwards Natsu saw her falter as the green flag and pressed on as soon their scuffle turned all out and soon those sitting had to run and take cover from the myriad of chairs, tables, and even a portrait or two as they rolled across the wooden floor doing their best to beat each other into submission. It never failed to baffle the take-over mage at just how opposing Erza could be to herself at times; like now for instance, as she continued to watch the scene playing out, her blue orbs hovering over how Erza was pulling the pink-haired boys head back by wrenching his hair, only to get bucked off and sent flying over a table that had miraculously escaped their first breakout: one minute she could be so serious, especially when it came to missions and capturing those that needed to be caught, when it came to justice there really was no better advocate for it than the red-head, and yet here she was when it's all said and done rolling on the floor and giving in to Natsu's childish goading.
A second hole was born, this time it was the pink-haired mages turn to be smashed through the stone as one heavy blow to the gut with a haphazardly swung chair saw him clean off his feet and out the other side where he seemed to linger, throwing the chair to the side and adding yet another repair to the bill, both Gray and Mira watched as Erza made her way to the bar, leaning on the side when she reached them.
"Mira," the she-demon smiled amusedly at her greeting, "Erza."
"Can you go one day without blasting each other through something solid and cost worthy?"
Brown eyes found un-amused dark blue as her brow arched and she gifted him a dry stare. "Says his rival,"
She tilted her body and placed both elbows back as she leaned against the side of the counter, staring at the wreckage she had half caused with an eye of indifference.
"Besides, given how things normally turn out, shouldn't you be glad of the break from fighting him all the time,"
The ice maker was quiet for a moment, processing her words and coming up with the wrong conclusion. "Wait! Are you saying I couldn't beat the little hot head?"
"Gray, I'm sure that's not what she meant at all… isn't that right, Erza." Despite the glare sent her way, it seemed the other woman was completely oblivious to her underlying meaning and his own rapidly growing ire, as she shrugged and looked away again.
"I don't know… perhaps Natsu's thinking you're not worthy of being his rival any longer, not if he's picking fights with me after all,"
She paused for a minute, still not comprehending the two sets of blistering stares heating her back. "Say, when was the last time you actually had a battle with him?"
Her tone was purposefully innocent and questioning, as she turned her head and stared almost challengingly at the raven-haired man who took it as the dare it was. Mira closed her eyes, fighting the growl that was building in the back of her throat at Erza's baiting.
Gray leapt from his stool, all traces of tiredness gone, and so was his clothes, earning a delighted gasp from the blue-haired water mage now having returned to their booth with Wendy, as he clenched his fist tightly.
"I'll show you who's the strongest. I'm gonna beat that bubble-gum headed flame brain so bad, he'll forget all about fighting you from now on."
"Oh yeah!"
Natsu, at long last, finally made his appearance. re-emerging from the rubble, his gaze was trained on the pair at the bar, having heard everything Gray declared, his eyes gleamed at the prospect of another battle.
"Big words from a guy who can't even win in a fight with his own clothes." He stood a few feet from them, arm darting out, he pointed his finger at the other man.
"I'll fight you, and I'll knock those ice-cubes clogging up that head of yours," before he lifted his other arm and pointed at his previous opponent.
"I'll also bury you back in the ground you love so much!" before crouching into a fighting stance, "Come at me!"
Silence reigned over the hall, both Erza and Gray keeping their gazes on the younger mage who had daringly issued the fight to them both. Across the floor and having only just sat back down, both Juvia and Wendy were once again preparing to evacuate and move to safer pastures; back at the bar, Cana had yet to wake up and Mira was desperately trying to dissuade the inevitable.
"Master won't be pleased. You know how he gets, don't sink to his level… seriously, don't—oh, for Mavis sake!"
Her words fell on deaf and dumb ears and could only watch disapprovingly as with a silent glance, both Gray and Erza took off. Charging across the floor, they headed straight for the fire thrower who was near bouncing with anticipation; arms lifted, the flames he was so well known for began to surround his fists as he readied himself. Not to be outdone, Gray too prepared himself, his right growing cold as did the air around it and soon his entire fist was encased as at his side, the redheads left began to glow green.
Those who hadn't already before, now had dived for whatever cover was left around the hall as the three neared each other; hearts raced furiously as Mira noticing that Cana as still out cold, leaned over and grabbed the back of her jacket, hauling her over the bar just in case and placed her on the floor, before getting back to spectating albeit reluctantly as an image of the building imploding around them flashed to the forefront and not for the first time, wondered why they had decided to form a team.
"Get ready you two, cause here it comes." Natsu inhaled deeply as they were only feet from him, the flames simmering in his stomach surging up to his throat and the pair could feel the heat emanating from him, but that wasn't going to stop them.
Nothing was and nothing could.
Finally, they were within reaching distance of each other, and all those around could only pray as simultaneously their fists drew back, each wearing the biggest grins despite the pain that was certain to follow.
"Fire Dragon…"
"What the hell do you little brats think you are doing!?"
Just like that, the fight died before it began. Those waiting looked to the second floor to find Master Makarov standing atop the banister, his face a picture of thunder as he glared down at the three who were startled from their concentration at the sound of his voice; Gray's fist found the face of Natsu's, whose own in turn, connected with Erza's and hers made contact with ice mage in a triangular knockout, resulting in the trio hitting the floor in a no-win match.
"Master."
The diminutive man tilted his head to find Mirajane smiling brightly at him; the sight of her cheerful face never failed to make him smile, as he did so now and gave her a small nod in return, it wasn't too last however as noise of complaint had him looking back to find Natsu having leaped back to his feet, an angry blue mark from where the ice maker had hit him crossing his cheek. Rubbing his injured face, the younger wizard began raging at the Master.
"Hey, gramps! What's the big idea! I was about to beat these two and you had to go ruin it with your shouting!"
A loud snort halted his rampage and the fire mage turned back to glower at the others now clambering to their feet. Gray dusted himself off, though it was pointless seeing as he was without his shirt, and laughed at the silently scowling fire breather.
"In your dreams you little pyro. I was going to make mince of you, and you know it," a sharp bonk to his head saw Erza shaking hers; brown eyes dancing with mirth as she gazed at the sulking duo.
"Yes, because out of all the fights we've had in the past, you've both really managed to defeat me haven't you."
Their words started up yet another argument and Makarov's furious face darkened even further once he realised he had lost their attention.
"HEY!"
Immediately silence fell throughout the hall, as the small but deeply esteemed man took the time to gaze around the now thoroughly battered guild hall, and the three below winced as they saw his eye twitch. It was slow, his assessment, almost like he was dragging the situation they had found themselves in out, but due to their respect of him they endured the awkwardness; even Natsu had stopped raging. Finally, his gaze returned to them.
"You three."
It was amazing how quickly they went from brazen to bashful, as Erza turned her gaze to the ground, Gray meanwhile was whistling and not looking anywhere up and Natsu was rubbing the back of his head, but still had his cheerful grin.
"Aw come on gramp's, it was just a bit of fun."
Makarov stomped his feet on the surface, exasperated beyond belief at the boys' overwhelming carefree attitude, before turning to glare back at them, lifting his right hand, it was only when they noticed the stack of papers clenched tightly within and withered even further under his fierce stare.
"Complaints already?"
It was Wendy who spoke up, from her place behind one of the large tables where she and Juvia had taken refuge, she gazed up with a frown; Makarov turned to gaze at the guilds youngest member before giving her a nod.
"Exactly, young lady, it seems goodwill can only go so far, not when miscreants such as yourselves are on the job."
She went to reply, but a hand had her turning to see Juvia shaking her head. She sighed but shrugged and focused back on the scene playing out in front of them. She didn't wish to get in trouble, and seeing as it was the usual, was content to keep it that way, as Makarov gazed at the guilty party, silently wondering why it was always these three, before beginning. As he pointed at Gray.
"Fullbuster, I have a letter here depicting the public indecency you inflicted upon the poor villagers,"
Gray looked abashed for a few seconds, before lifting a hand lackadaisically, "To be fair, gramp's, those people were quite old— "
"Old age has nothing to do with it, you fool! You wandered into the middle of a purifying ceremony…without anything on!"
Hearing him speak of Gray's absolute nudeness, brought an all-out blush over Juvia's face, as she desperately tried to picture the image: his confident strides among all those adoring faces, simply thinking it in her head brought tears to her eyes. Wendy and Charle both turned at the sound of a loud crash, and lowered their heads at the now stargazed water mage, lying flat out on the floor.
"Juvia?"
"His Adonis body, in such a state of pure holiness… my beloved is now twice blessed…" the sky Dragonslayer was deeply confused, but what was new when it came to the older woman's fanatical crush on the ice maker and so with a shrug to her exceed partner, who merely gave a flippant sniff, left her to her thoughts, ones growing more uncensored with each word the master yelled.
"You, Natsu, scared an entire group of children, upon offering to save their cat from a tree." below him, said boy stomped his feet angrily.
"Oh, come on! I got it down didn't I," at the side of him, Erza cocked her head, a devious smirk on her lips as she replied to his childish response.
"The cat wasn't stuck in the first place, it would have come down on its own, you setting the tree alight was just wasteful and destructive."
It seemed though her statement didn't appeal to the master at all, for he soon turned his attentions to her, "Don't you start preaching, you're in just as much trouble, if not worse."
She snapped her head around, eyes narrowed she gazed up at him, "Me? What did I do?"
He laughed. Belly chuckles reverberated around the hall, as she pulled her neck back and crossed her arms; it was a perfectly reasonable question, didn't have to be rude about it. They all waited, (couldn't really do anything else), until the small man finally stopped laughing, wiping his eyes, he lifted his head to gaze back at the unimpressed looking redhead.
"Thanks for that kid, didn't know I needed it," before the jovial smile fell and his scowl returned full force. "You wish to know what you did wrong? How about eating the leaves from the sacred grove of serenity, does that ring any bells?"
A gasp saw Mira covering her mouth before she set her stern gaze upon her sometimes rival. "Erza you didn't?"
But the sheepish, if not entirely guilty look now plastered over the redheads face told them all… she did. Kicking the floor with her boot, her eyes catch sight of movement to her right, and looks to find her part-time enemy shaking her head, an equal mix of judgement and disappointment crossing her fair features. The expression is one that greatly annoys the other woman, and she frowns deeply at the barmaid.
"So, do you have anything to say for yourself," pulling her gaze away from the white-haired mage, Erza looks back to the master who arches his brow expectantly and she knew she really shouldn't have; when it came to missions, normally she's the most level-headed one, but those dam leaves smelled so tempting.
"…I didn't think anyone was watching."
The rest of the hall groan at the response, there was a momentary beat of silence, which was broken by Cana, who staggered to her feet; having finally woken up and groggily glanced around. Her eyes landed upon the newcomers, before eyeing the carnage and finally, to the master who she had spied because of his hideous orange outfit. It didn't take her long to work it all out, despite her booze-addled mind, and smiled smugly at them, before reaching behind her to grab another bottle. Pulling the stopper out, she paused long enough to ask the woman at her side what she had missed, before proceeding to suck on the top like a babies' bottle and focused on the action playing out.
"That's not an excuse to strip an entire branch bare. Do you know how revered those leaves are? Just how much the people of that town worshipped that tree?" he stopped, a wrinkled hand reaching up to rub his brow; the sight flooded her with shame and she lowered her head again. She wasn't Natsu, she didn't think with her stomach.
Makarov looked down to his children and saw the looks of remorse on their faces, and his frustration wavered; they were good kids, he knew that and out of them all, none worked harder than the group and the rest of their team so knew it was time to give them some slack.
He sighed, shoulders deflating before a rugged laugh left his lips. The sound bounced around the large room until eventually, great booming belly chuckles bounced from wall to wall. Those down below looked at each other bewildered.
"Err… master?"
At the sound of his title, Makarov's laughter slowly pulled back until at least there were only a few labored titters and he turned back to Mirajane who was eyeing him warily.
"Yes, Mirajane,"
"Are you alright?" he gazed at her for a couple of seconds, before nodding; his wide smile did little to ease her worries. Had they finally done it? Had they caused so much damage that they broke the Masters' sanity?
"Never better my dear. I'm just picturing it now," he cut off at that, a small pensive look crossing his face before it morphed once more into amusement and he turned back to her.
"Can you picture it? Erza sitting under a tree eating its leaves… it just… boggles the mind. It happens, but it's so dam funny!" and started laughing again. The rest, upon realising that the master was no longer angry all started to relax, as Wendy let out a small giggle and turned to Juvia.
"Now that I think about it, I guess it is kinda funny to imagine it." The blue-haired mage simply nodded but held a smile of her own.
"Juvia can't say she has ever thought about it before… but finds it very funny now."
One by one each of the members starts to laugh, joining in with Makarov who has returned to laughing his head off, leaving the woman in question to stew underneath him, fully aware of the what's going on around her.
"Hmm," she turned to the pair beside her, having fully jumped on board the laughter going around, her eyes narrowed in peevish annoyance at the near howling cackles the pink-haired boy is heaving, before speaking.
"I don't see why you of all people find this funny. You do exactly the same thing?"
She waited until he was almost coherent enough to reply, as he shook his head and pointed at her, glee fully fixed on his face.
"I eat fire, that's cool to look at; you, eat plants, that makes you a deer." Much to her increasing ire, he then turned around to face the others and without hesitation, yelled at the top of his voice.
"ERZA'S A DEER!"
Before his vision went black. Everyone watched as the redhead launched herself at the back of the crowing fire breather, her face a portrait of manic indignation and swung her fist as hard as she could into the back of his head. Natsu went down, but a single punch wasn't enough to completely finish him off, so she followed up her attack by jumping on his back and laying all her weight, ensuring he wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. Not to say she was calling herself fat, but she was rather difficult to move should she wish it, and so smiled, pleased with her work as she watched him resume his flailing, face still planted firmly to the wooden boards underneath him.
Seeing how worked up she was getting, Makarov finally decided to ease up; lifting his hand, it was a few minutes before the laughing died down completely and gazed around the now happy faces, feeling a lot better himself.
"But at the end of the day, the bad guy has been caught, the job has been done and all of you have returned safely; that's what really matters here, so these…"
He held up the fist containing the letters, and like he always did when disregarding official missives—especially when it came to his adored guild and his family—the words were soon a pile of shrivelling ash.
"Don't mean a dam thing!"
Another cheer went around the hall as he turned to the three at the bottom, eyeing the sight before him as Gray was tilting his body as far as he could in order to avoid grabbing arms, with Erza trying futilely from her place on Natsu's back to reach for him; her efforts just a fingertip away making her more annoyed with each passing failure. Sensing the redhead still displeased, he knew it was time to move on and so with a leap, jumped. Landing on the bar next to Mira, he faced the front to where the others had followed his movements.
"Alright, shows over, time to do what we do best—asides from destroying things," his last words were aimed at the trio in the corner, who smiled sheepishly; Natsu having enough room to lift his head and smile, before it was firmly pushed back down and Makarov looked away back to the others who seemed to be waiting for his final words.
He gazed out over the room, another small smile creeping over his lips before he threw up his hand.
"PARTY!"
A cheer greater than before ripped the air and soon everyone was enjoying themselves as opposed to the hiding they had been moments before, Gray gave a small smile as he glanced around the hall now full of festivity, as soon he was dragged over to the seats Wendy had once more reclaimed for the third time, accosted by Juvia no sooner as he had sat down much to his alarm. Erza too, was staring out over the hordes of smiling faces, despite it having been at her own expense, she couldn't help the small grin from spreading over her own lips at just how happy everyone seemed to be now, and couldn't help but marvel at just how close Master seemed to bring them all with just a few words.
Their happiness was her happiness,
Her family.
"Get off me, will ya!"
Well, almost everyone's happiness.
She found herself dislodged from her body pillow and pushed on the floor, as Natsu lifted himself to his knees and soon their eyes met as he glared at her crabbily.
"I'm going to beat the ever loving crap out of you,"
Her glare deepened and he watched as her fists clenched tightly, "Bring it on, ash for brains."
There was a moments standstill, despite the revelry going on around them neither heard it as all their focus was directly on the other; eventually Natsu made the first move, as she knew he would and so got ready to lift her feet and kick him back when the interruption came in the form of a tiny blue, feline.
"Natsuuuuu!"
The pink haired boy reared back a little, as Happy, his partner in crime flew between them; the tiny cat's face was like his namesake and sporting a huge joyful look of glee as both stared at the large fish he hefted between them.
"Look at the size of this fish. Lucy made sure to get the biggest one at the stall."
Erza eyed the food item in question, to her it looked less of a fish and more a small shark, how the hell did he manage to carry that from the markets? It seemed she wasn't the only one thinking it, as the fire-breather grinned hugely at his friend's treat.
"Wow Happy, Lucy must have been feeling generous. Normally she only ever insults you," the anthropomorphic cat sighed and nodded in sad acknowledgement, but it quickly vanished as he gazed at his soon to be supper lovingly.
"That's some catch, did you bring it back by yourself? You getting stronger there, buddy."
Happy grinned at the compliment, making Natsu laugh until he was disrupted by Erza, as she picked herself up off the floor, dusting her clothes down and turned to meet his gaze again; the pink-haired boy frowned at her look of smugness and felt wariness growing in his gut.
"Oh, I don't know about that," she spoke, words low and near simpering, she gazed at the fish in the cats' paws then back to Natsu who was now scowling heavily, before her lips curled upwards.
"I'd say he was simply well prepared. After all, he does do a lot of 'heavy lifting' on a daily basis so a fish three times his size would be nothing really."
The male wizard saw how her eyes darted from the large fish to him, eyes roaming his body, the gleam in her brown eyes flickering wickedly and then it clicked.
"You calling me a Trout!"
Not the line of thought she were aiming for, but what the hell, she could work with it and so shrugged, ignoring his immediate rage. "You did call me a deer; I think turnabout is only fair… don't you think?"
She laughed at his cry of outrage and braced herself for his comeback which looked to be physical, as he crouched low to pounce, but was stopped once more as Happy, who had been nibbling on the food in his arms, turned back to him.
"Oh, yeah, I forgot. Natsu, Lucy bought you some food as well."
At the prospect of his own meal, all traces of irritation fell from his face, and he stood back up, turning to his exceed friend, Erza rolled her eyes at his singular focus and knew it was over.
"Really? What kind—no, it doesn't matter, food is food and it is mine… Happy, LET'S GO!"
The redhead watched as Natsu grabbed hold of the exceeds tail and turned around, rushing to the door, completely oblivious to the fact of the cats' frantic yells as he desperately clutched his fish that was near slipping from his paws.
"NATSU MY FISH…. NATSU WAIT!... IT'S GONNA FALL!" his cries slowly dimmed until finally disappearing altogether and all she could do was wish Lucy the best of luck. Turning, she slowly made her way back to the bar, all the talk of food was making her hungry for something that wasn't decidedly green or of the foliage type and sat down on the closest seat. She didn't have to wait very long, as soon she was greeted by a flash of white hair and smiled as Mirajane stood in front of her.
"Erza,"
She nodded her head, blue eyes lowered to the empty spot in front of the other woman,
"The usual I take it?"
"If you wouldn't mind."
Mira smiled knowingly and moved to fetch the desired item, leaving the redhead alone again before taking to inspecting Cana, who had, on downing her second bottle, promptly fallen back into slumber and was draped halfway over the counter from where she had attempted to climb back over and decided to give up where she was. It wasn't long after that the sound of footsteps had her turning back, and she smiled once more as Mira lowered the plate down in front of her.
"You have my gratitude as always,"
Mira hummed before gazing at the plateful of Victoria sponge, complete with a vanilla sugar cream coating she had slaved over that very morning, honestly, it was rather lucky that she still had it lying about, as it had been intended for Romeo, but the young boy had been taken sick and so not wishing to waste such good work, had left it in the kitchens, it was just by a stroke of luck the team had returned that day and so knew it would find a better home with the woman sitting in front of her.
She lifted her gaze, only for it to narrow upon spying the absolute look of rabid adoration practically glowing from the other woman's eyes and was quick to interject before Erza could start eating.
"I only made one, and I have no more ingredients until the next shipment, so if you wish it to last, you better eat a lot more slowly."
That put a halt to whatever actions Erza was planning next and Mira's grin widened upon seeing the starlit gleam dim as she now stared at the cake with a lot more caution; still watching, the she-demon laughed as her eyes were met with those of the redheads, now looking sullen.
"You are a mean person, Mirajane." She fell silent for a moment, eyes having fallen back to her food which she now looked hesitant to take a bite off.
"When is the next shipment did you say,"
The white-haired mage's grin turned positively evil. "I didn't,"
That seemed to hurt more than any one of Natsu or Gray's punches; a small whimper left her mouth and she sucked her lips inwards in a bid to stem the noise and let the fork drop back to the surface. Her head followed next, with her stare now morose as she gazed at the cake she wanted to very much to devour, but knew she couldn't for fear of not stopping. A small coo could be heard, and dainty fingers combed through her hair.
"How could this happen?"
The redhead's voice sounded so feeble that it tugged on the barmaid's heart and she clucked her tongue in sympathy, fingers still running through scarlet locks.
"Bad weather the past week has forced a number of ships to delay coming to Hargeon's port,"
"And the roads?" a slow shake of her head gave Erza the answer she didn't want. "Flash floods cut off a number of trade routes,"
"This is unacceptable!" once more Mira hummed, compassion lacing her tone. "I know, but what can you do,"
Her statement was met with silence, and she knew that to be a bad thing, fingers that ran through hair soothingly suddenly turned sharp, and she dug them into the woman's scalp. Not too much to hurt, but just enough for her not to get any funny ideas.
"I know, but what can you do…"
This time, her repeated statement was left open, as she waited, head slightly tilted… just waiting, until finally…
"Nothing."
The reply was muffled and full of despondency, but it was one she was satisfied with and smiled widely despite Erza not being able to see it and let her fingers resume their stroking motions. They stayed that way for a few more minutes, before the sound of Wakaba calling the barmaid cut her ministrations short, she peered at the sad looking woman still gazing at the uneaten cake longingly and gave her a small pat on the shoulder.
"Don't worry, the days will go faster than you think,"
"Each day will be hell."
Rolling her eyes at the dramatics, Mira then left her to it, proceeding to get back to her work as Erza continued to suffer, and surrounded by so many happy people, she suddenly wasn't so supportive of their jovial moods. Minutes passed, but for the redhead, it might have been days as her gaze kept firm upon the cake still untouched and looking as though a star had fallen from the sky; a vanilla tasting star with a spongy filling she wasn't allowed to eat.
Oh, the torture.
But no, she didn't have to endure this, she was smart, she could still taste heaven and have enough cake left to get her through this turbulent time, lifting her head she scanned the floor until her eyes came upon the one person she knew, would help her for sure.
"Gray!"
Across the hall, and pushed as close to the side as he could get, (unfortunately, still not far enough), Gray heard his name being called and lifted his head to spot Erza waving him over, relief flooded his pores and he turned back to Juvia, who had been creeping steadily closer and had been pressing against him. Throwing her a fake look of remorse, he placed both hands on either side of the booth.
"Sorry, but Erza needs me," as he threw himself out and nearly caused an ice path in his haste to escape, leaving the water mage to mumble half protests and stare after him sadly, despite having taken up his attention for almost an hour, it was never enough.
"You called?"
She smirked amused at his barely hidden look of gratefulness, before nodding firmly and once he had gotten closer, turned back to the bar.
"I need your help with a very important and delicate endeavour,"
A dark brow quirked at her slightly serious statement and he nodded, moving closer until he could see what was in front of her and stopped his face immediately crinkling in disgust.
"Is that Vanilla?"
She nodded, much to his revulsion and was about to turn back around; he'd take a molesting from Juvia any time over the horrid stench of that scent and was about to move but found himself pulled back harshly.
"Dam it Erza, you know I can't stand that smell."
Again she nodded. "I know, which is precisely why it's your help I need, like hell I trust anyone else with something this delicious. I need someone who won't be tempted by this delectable delicacy and try to steal it from under my nose."
He couldn't help the chuckle that left his lips at that, out of all the things she could have said, that had to be the most inaccurate, as he leaned against the side.
"I seriously doubt anyone will be foolish to try steal your cake. I think most are still too scarred from when you felled the right side of the guild by yourself after learning Chickentiger had taken the last one."
Despite the fallout that caused, and the many jobs she had to take to pay for the rebuild, it had been a good day and he was right; people never again even acknowledged there was cake within the building unless it was requested, spare or she had given permission for them to have it, and so nodded.
"Poor girl… haven't seen her since."
"Yeah, I think she left like, an hour after that happened."
The air between them fell quiet, as they tried to recall what the girl in question looked like, but nothing was forthcoming which led Erza to move on; no point dwelling on what wasn't important, as she spun in her seat and looked back to him.
"Right, well I need you to cut this for me."
His normally tan face drained of color upon realizing what she meant, and shook his head earnestly, "No way,"
"Don't be a baby." She shoved the knife in his direction, not at all caring which side she gave him as he held his hands up in protest.
"I'm being serious,"
"Well so am I,"
They fell silent again, neither one wanting to give in as he stared at her defiantly and her own gaze piercing for him having dared to express free will. It was another few seconds before he spoke.
"Well, why can't you do it?"
She pulled her outstretched arm back and he watched with some worry at how she seemed to be flippantly handling the sharp object as her face fell once more.
"Because. Mira told me some rather distressing news, and for the meantime, I must limit what I have… now help me cut this cake!"
She thrust the knife back in his direction, he eyed her sceptically, normally when someone received bad news, cake was one of the ways to help… or so he had heard, but he had long since stopped wondering what went on in the minds of his friends as it was just a headache he could happily go without, so with another glance at her fully determined face, he sighed and took the knife.
"How much,"
"Just a slice. The rest then needs to be kept in a secure vault, which only you shall know the code to."
"…Yeah, I'm not doing that,"
"Then a kitchen cupboard will suffice."
Rolling his eyes, he swiped the knife and took a step closer, face winkling the nearer he got and gingerly bent down, placing the blade carefully he began to push down, only to stop when he noticed something.
"Will you back up a bit?"
Erza frowned but relented and stepped back from where she was leaning against his back, arms crossed she blew out her cheeks.
"Just making sure you get the angles straight."
"It's a cake, can't you just be happy?"
A non-committed mumble was his response as he shook his head and continued his task, face still pinched he went as fast as he could, aware of the eyes on his back he did his best to make sure it was to her standards before throwing the knife down and turned around, letting her step closer for inspection.
She stared at the finished work, head tilting both sides before she sniffed and nodded.
"I am pleased with this."
Having had enough for one night, the ice maker waved his hand and made for the doors, only getting halfway when his spine started to tingle, and it was only with the months of honing this particular skill that he knew the exact cause, and so quickened his pace.
"Gray, my love… wait for Juvia."
That did it. Erza watched from her spot as the dark haired man bolted out the doors, with the water woman hot on his heels; watching as the doors slowly closed over, she couldn't help the small chuckle that left her, before turning back to her cake, mood gaining more bounce she picked up her fork ready to be alone with her love once more, only to stop as she realised something very important.
There was no strawberry sauce.
Well, that just wouldn't do, how could she compliment the spongy goodness without the sauce to smother it so? Lifting her head, she looked to see if Mira was about; the barmaid never too far from her base of operations, she figured she had to be around somewhere, but to her displeasure she saw no sight of the other woman and so casting her gaze back to the cake, that, despite its sugary coating, was looking rather dry now and so stood.
She'd have to go look for her.
Leaving her food, she knew no one was going to be stupid enough to go near it, not if they wished for a fitful sleep that night, she set off in her search, moving to the end where Levy sat; the bookworm having taken claim of the seats closest to the stairs.
So focused on her book, it wasn't until s shadow dimmed her light tat Levy looked up to see Erza standing in front of her.
"Erza."
She greeted the smaller woman with a nod. "You haven't seen Mirajane about have you?"
Levy frowned for a second, eyes leaving the page of her book and scoured the room, but just like herself she too couldn't see anything of the barmaid and pursed her lips before looking back to her.
"Nope, sorry Erza."
"Dam it,"
Head cocking at the small outburst, Levy kept her gaze on the redhead. "Anything wrong?"
"Just a small matter of some strawberry sauce for my cake."
"Ah."
Silence fell between them, as Levy looked on, now slightly stuck on what to say, as Erza lowered her head; in hindsight, the subject seemed trivial, especially to someone like Levy who wasn't the biggest fan of sweet stuff… perhaps she should have gotten her to hide the rest of the cake?
Shaking her head, she knew she had gotten off track; but now she really wanted the strawberry sauce and nothing else would do, still standing in front of her, Levy wasn't sure what to say that would help and quite honestly was starting to worry a little when finally, Erza nodded to herself.
"I shall just have to go find some."
It was simple really. She'd just go to the storeroom in the kitchens and look for the sauce herself, it wasn't a problem she really shouldn't bother others with anyway and so with a final nod towards the woman still watching, she turned and made her way behind the bar.
"Wait, Erza… I don't think you're allowed back there,"
But she was already gone. Levy watched the small door swing slightly, idly wondering if she should go follow her, but thought better of it and got back to her book. She tried to tell her, now it was her own problem.
Stood in the middle of the designated kitchen area, Erza frowned. Eyes scanned each part of the room, in every corner looking for some kind of clue that would reveal to her the location of the much-desired sauce. Thinking her next move, she decided an active step was needed and so the only way she was going to get her sauce, was if she looked for it herself.
Ten minutes later, and the discovery of an even smaller room hidden at the back, Erza was stuck. Having thought she had hit the promised land, she began her search of the many bottles littering the shelves; as she scoured the labels, she could have sworn that some of the stuff in that room had been there since the time of the first master, and so wisely left them alone for fear of exploding and kept on perusing the shelves, unaware she was being watched.
The fourth shelf down and she was starting to get annoyed. With each failure brought a glare darker than the last and it wasn't until she dropped the half used tabasco sauce did she finally snap.
"How bloody hard is it to find Strawberry sauce!"
Her supposed rhetorical question was met with a loud slam, and she quickly spun on her heel, ready to face whatever was behind her, only to drop her guard as she came upon the sight of the illusive barmaid.
A decidedly unimpressed barmaid.
"Erza,"
"Mirajane."
Neither said anything after the acknowledgement, the redhead having turned her head slightly, only glancing back to find the other woman staring at her with a scrutinizing regard, before giving her a smile.
"What are you doing?"
Erza paused in her response, she wasn't sure how long Mira had been standing behind her upon her small outburst, before making herself known, and so didn't really with to possibly repeat herself; she was never a fan of having to say things twice, but the way the woman was staring expectantly, she knew she would have to.
"I was looking for some Strawberry sauce… I didn't have any to go with my cake."
The explanation itself was a harmless one, and so with that, all said, Mira should have not still been staring at her like she was a tiny mouse huddled in the corner, but that was the feeling the redhead was slowly starting to get and she did not like it one bit. Also, the faint twinges slowly building in her gut was alerting her to take note of the situation at hand.
"Oh? So you decided to come searching,"
They were a very broad set of words; ranging from a question, to a statement and then finally, a trap. Objects that Erza had years of experience dealing with and successfully escaping from, and it was with that the skills that had been carefully moulded and honed to their zenith, were lifting the little red flag, waving it madly and urging her to choose her next words carefully. She might have made it through all those previous traps with ease, but the voice of caution was telling her this was one snare she wasn't going to make it out of without casualty.
And now standing across from one of the toughest creatures she had ever known, with all certainty of little survival, she cursed herself for having walked so willingly into its clutches.
Hoisted by her own petard. Oh, how foolish she had been.
But she was a fighter, and they never quit, as she steeled herself and gave the other woman a curt nod, eyes locked with hers and body tensed. It seemed though, her wariness was telling, for the white-haired woman's lips curled upwards and in the light, Erza swore she saw a glimpse of fang.
"Here?"
A nod.
"In the Kitchen?"
Another, albeit slightly slower nod, Erza kept her gaze focused solely on the woman in front, never for a second daring to blink, as Mira paused for a moment, glancing to the floor, expression pensive as the redhead watched and waited; wondering what might have been running through the barmaid's head, just as she lifted her gaze back to meet hers and Erza knew whatever came next, she wasn't going to like.
"The kitchen. The one place in the entire guild, that no one is allowed to enter."
There it was, the scarlet-haired mage closed her eyes, feeling her gut sink and shoulders sag. How could she have forgotten? Everyone knew that the kitchens had become a taboo area ever since Cana had managed to find her way to the cellar and had gone AWOL for a week; if it hadn't of been for the take-over mage who noticed a drastic drop in the number of spirits then chances were she wouldn't have been found until the room was sucked dry, after that it was practically tenet within the guild that no person save those behind the bar were allowed entry and since Mira was the only woman who manned said bar, it became hers alone with no one wishing to test that rule.
The rule she had now just broken.
She was so dead.
Mind working furiously, in a frantic bid to go over what her next choices could be, she dropped her gaze and absently made the second greatest mistake of her life since stepping foot through the kitchen door, as seconds later, a hand slid under her chin and she found her head lifted, coming face to face with chilly azure orbs.
Mira was quiet as she contemplated the prey in her grasp. It had been a long time since she had seen Erza make a grievous judgment of error when it came to the rules, and though it wasn't an official guild regulation, it might as well have been as, really, who was ever going to get on her bad side?
Underneath her fingers she could feel the tension emanating from the redhead, almost willing to bet she was working herself into a frenzy of anxiousness at the thought of trespassing and what would the consequence of that be; closing her eyes, she pictured the near-panicked state the taller woman descended into when she knew she had done wrong, and that was an image that had her fighting the smile threatening to break out.
Slowly opening her eyes, Erza's breath froze in her lungs at the sight of the gentle blue flashing wickedly, slim fingers that not half an hour before, ran so relaxingly through her hair in a bid to cheer her up, were now inflexible in their hold on her face, as a languid smile finally did cross the barmaid's lips, and was enough to make the redhead panicky as hell.
"Do you think, that just because you were gone for three weeks, that it's alright for you to just do as you please?"
"Mira, I'm sorry, I completely forgot and I— "
"Be quiet!"
Her voice ceased to exist and she wilted a little underneath the stony glare. Unsure of what to do, the redhead simply allowed herself to be manhandled, figuring that was the best tactic to take when dealing with such a formidable creature, and hopefully her 'purposefully humble' plan would garner enough pity to warrant her safe escape.
That was until a throaty chuckle cut that firmly at the stem and she looked to find Mira slowly shaking her head, eyes still alight with anticipation and glee.
"Don't think that by being meek, it will help you get out of here unscathed," she caught a glimpse of surprise within the brown orbs, but it was gone as soon as it appeared, replaced by a look of crabbiness which served to further her amusement.
"No one comes into my kitchen without my say so; not even the Master… are you higher than the master Erza?"
She leaned in a tiny bit closer, hand still firmly—but not too tightly—keeping her head still, watched for the redhead's reaction, knowing how much she hated being compared to the head of the guild, despite her own worthy achievements, there was no one Erza respected greater.
As predicted, the other woman's face went from blank to annoyed in the blink of an eye, brown eyes narrowed as she scowled and went to speak, but not willing to let her have any say, Mira darted forwards. Erza's eyes widened when soft lips brushed against her own, body frozen, it took the redhead a good few seconds to break out of her reverie, by then Mira had slowly pulled back, hand still cupping her chin, she gazed into questioning eyes, almost chocolate coloured with the right light, and smiled warmly.
"I've missed you."
A pause, before Erza, slowly returned her smile, one just as bright before moving forwards, an arm slid around Mira's back before she found herself pulled closer and Erza leaned down, slanting her lips back over the other woman's. pressing herself closer, Mira lifted her arm and wound it around Erza's neck, the other, finding purchase gripping the taller mages shirt as they continued to kiss, never breaking away until finally air became a bit of a need and reluctantly they pulled back.
A low hum of appreciation turned into a moan as Erza, feeling a lot more eager now, buried her face within the crook of Mira's shoulder, mouth pressing kisses up and down her neck as the she-demon tilted her head a little sideways allowing her more access; feeling this, Erza smiled into her skin, and before Mira could ask why, a small cry left her lips at the feel of teeth gently biting down, nibbling on the junction between her shoulder and neck as her hands fisted the red-heads shirt tighter. Two pointedly sharp canines deliberately sucked and marked the pure flesh underneath as the take-over mages breath wavered and soon found her back pressed against the door.
Erza, feeling the woman relax in her hands, pressed her advantage; knowing this was the best and only way she was going to get out of whatever Mira had in mind, crowded the smaller woman until she was trapped between the door and her body, moving her leg so it fitted between the she-demons and gently pressed it up.
She was rewarded with a stifled whimper, before resuming her ministrations against the canvas of white skin on show; using her teeth to worry the marble-like surface, and doing her best to map out the picture she had in her head. The air was filled with steadily labored breathes as Mira shifted her body, subtly pressing down on the thigh wedged in the middle of her own as one hand now held tight to Erza's forearm; vaguely and lost in the back of her pleasurably hazed mind, the small part that was her sensibility was chiding her that all this was a ruse. A ploy the other woman was engaging to try to distract her from the fact she had broken her rule and was now doing her best to avoid repercussion. Her other hand slowly lifted until she found the scarlet silken locks and slowly threaded her fingers along her scalp, hand clenching, her fingers twisted and gripped the locks hard, earning a small grunt from the taller woman who had in turn, bitten down a little harder.
Oh, she knew very well what Erza was trying to pull, this wasn't the first time an incident occurred where the redhead had tried to use wiles to distract her; Mira was far from ignorant, but that was to say she wasn't averse to how the other woman went about her deception and so was content to get as much from it as she could.
Let the woman think she was winning. Let her think she had been successful. It would just make her downfall all the sweeter at the end.
Turning her head, Mira tugged the hair forcing Erza to lift up, before capturing her lips as she pushed her tongue and licked along the seam of her lips in an unspoken command the redhead was all too happy to grant and opened her mouth slightly, enough for Mira to push inside; as they grappled for dominance. The air around them was beginning to heat up, and Erza, feeling herself starting to get higher off the bliss, let her hand drift downwards grabbing a fistful of Mira's dress and began to pull it up.
"Ah,"
Breaking the kiss, the white-haired woman grabbed the hand inching closer up her leg and shook her head, the denial caused Erza to pull back, semi-devastation plastered on her face, the look of which caused Mira to giggle as she tugged the locks playfully.
"Not in the guild, you know that."
A low groan left the taller woman's throat and she let her head drop to the woman's shoulder, Mira knew how she felt, it was true she had missed Erza dearly, three weeks were far too long; as much as she knew they could handle themselves, she couldn't help the slight worry she held for them, as she did with all those who left on quests. But she had a bit more of a vested interest with the guilds, top team that extended beyond friendship and so as soon as she saw them coming through the doors that afternoon, she couldn't stop the relief from washing over her.
Leaning over, she lifted Erza's head and placed a tender kiss on her lips, one that held all the affection she had been saving during their time apart and the redhead found herself leaning in closer, melting like she always did when surrounded by such addictive sights and smells, and there was none more vice worthy than the woman in front of her.
Much sooner than the redhead would have liked, Mira pulled back, eyes taking her expression and smiled.
"It won't be for long," she whispered, still keeping her head close. "You're not the only one who's been just as eager for your return you know."
"Then…" Erza moved until she was in front of the white-haired woman, blocking her in, "Why don't we just stay here for a few more minutes," but paused at the decidedly scathing look she was getting.
"A few minutes? Excuse me, but I hope it'll last a lot longer than a few minutes."
Her words caused a blush to form across Erza's nose, a first the take-over mage had seen all afternoon and she nodded quickly, scratching her cheek in slight embarrassment.
"Of-of course, it would! I mean, I'm not that desperate and—oh, crap! I mean that wasn't what I meant… shit!"
The sound of laughter had her hanging her head, body deflating she didn't make another sound, as Mira did her best to cover the giggles and pushed herself away from the door. She knew perfectly that wasn't what the redhead meant, but she did so love to see her so flushed and stuttering that she just let her carry on.
She reached out and let her hands linger on the slim waist, waiting until the other woman slowly lifted her head, feeling the eyes on her and knowing that Mira was waiting, Erza did as silently asked, staring back at her, if not a little grumpily as the sight made Mira pull on her lips once more.
"I know," she gave the sides a gentle squeeze before carrying on, "I was just teasing you, I'm sorry."
The taller woman stared silently for a moment, simply staring at her before finally her face morphed into mild irritation and she exhaled.
"You're mean,"
That did make her laugh. "Well, I'm not called the demon for being cute and cuddly,"
Erza made a small noise and arched a brow, a lazy smirk on her face, "As far as everyone else knows… but I know the truth,"
Mira pursed her lips as she took a step back, "And if you wish to ever to feel this cute and cuddliness again, you'd be wise not to tell."
But they both knew Erza would never talk and with that they both knew they had to leave; waiting as the redhead turned, she pulled open the door and took a step out, waiting as Mira followed and snapped the door closed behind her, they slowly moved to the entrance and before the taller woman could make her way back out, a hand on her shoulder halted her movements.
She looked back to find Mira smiling again, but it wasn't a nice smile… it was far too wide and instantly Erza went back on guard.
"Mira…"
"Did you think I didn't know what you were trying to pull?"
Brows dipped as the scarlet haired woman did her best to fake confusion, "What are you talking abo— "but the slow shaking of the demon's head cut off whatever she was going to say. She wasn't fooling anyone and so exhaled in defeat.
"Alright. Do your worst."
A devious chuckle had her looking back up to see the white-haired woman smirking as she stepped closer, "Oh, believe me, my worst would leave you a shaking mess on the floor, unable to even crawl back to your room. But that's for later, no…"
Leaning over to the counter, she snagged something off the side and Erza watched in silence as a cloth was pressed into her hands.
"What?"
"You're helping me with the bar,"
Well, that was new. Hand clutching the material, it was only after the look of confusion seemed like it was hurting her, that Mira elaborated.
"You couldn't have just come through the doors like a normal person."
Hand falling to her side, Erza pulled a face and went to defend herself, "That was Natsu's fault… you saw that,"
Mira gave a slow nod she could acknowledge that, but that was a different matter. "Jumping in after him, wasn't; you could have ignored his childish actions but instead you gave in and now over half the hall is wrecked."
Dam it! Why did she have to use everything against her? Erza knew it was pointless to even try saying anything and so gave in.
"Fine… I'll help."
Mira made a noise of satisfaction, her beaming smile returning; not that it did anything to help the redhead's now sullen mood as she frowned. Mira stepped to the side and made her way to the other room.
"Come on then, and make sure you're quick on your feet. You're going to need to be."
At that, it was only than Erza realised the noise coming from the other side and her brows arched as the smaller woman inched the door open to hear the explosion of noise.
"What the hell."
Once again Mira gifted her with a devious smirk, she was alright with what came next, having had years of doing this on a daily basis, for the woman standing and looking lost, however, it was going to suck.
"Buck up, newbie… it's happy hour."
The hand holding the towel clenched to unimaginable strengths. Eyes closed, Erza could almost hear Natsu laughing and silently vowed to put him so far underground, he'd come out the other end of Fiore by the time she was done.
She hated him so much.