Chapter 01: Home

The Take Over siblings lived in a house close to the forest but also nestled close to the town's walls. Mirajane had purchased it early on her career, when she and her family were still settling into the guild. It hadn't been easy, but the white-haired girl had been deadset on keeping her tiny family from disappearing into the guild's exuberant warmth.

The house was small and a tad shabby. Sometimes, when talking to her family, Mirajane sardonically called it the "Grand Residence." Everyone else, however, referred to it as "that damn house" because it had a cantankerous spell that dumped trespassers into the town's public fountain. Well aware of this, having been a recipient of said spell, Erza rapped on the front door, instead of her preferred method entering via second story window. She was tired and wounded from her latest mission and although she'd love to wash up, she was in no mood for a public bath.

(It had been a straightforward job in many ways. Hacking and slashing, ignoring all pain until she was the last one standing. But she was fighting against slavers and she never felt the usual satisfaction when dealing with those scumbugs, only a heavy ache at the back of her throat. As for the slaves, she did what she could, but it never felt like enough.)

The dorm had wonderful facilities, but she didn't think she could make it back without collapsing. There was no shame, none at all, in stopping by her rival's house for the enormous healing kit she knew the Take Over family had. (Lies, of course. But really, she was just so exhausted. She hoped Mirajane found some semblance of humanity in her heart not to mock her.) No one became as strong as they did without collecting scrapes, broken bones or internal injuries.

The door swung open and she was suddenly face to face, or more accurately, face to Elfman's chest. He had shot up in height the past few months and she had to tilt her head to meet his gaze. She liked Elfman, with his straightfoward and sincere personality. She even persuaded (bribed with trips to the zoo) him to teach her how to dance, ballroom style.

(It was the most obvious in Lisanna, but even Mirajane and Elfman behaved in a smooth, oddly aristocratic manner when they weren't trying to be belligerent or manly. She didn't know anything about their past, but it had been a good guess on her part when she asked Elfman to teach her how to dance. Mirajane had been furious when she found out, which made the lessons that much more enjoyable.)

Elfman blinked down at her, taking in her bloody and dirty state. (A small part of her bristled at the height difference; she wondered briefly how Mirajane dealt with it.) He opened the door wider, implicit permission to come in. "You can wash up in the bathroom. We'll treat your injuries in the kitchen afterwards."

"...Thank you." Elfman was unusually curt, but it was still better than meeting his older sister at the door.

After washing up, Erza wandered into the kitchen, where she found Lisanna at the kitchen counter, leaning unhappily against a giant first aid kit. She perched on a stool and as the white-haired girl began treating her injuries with a casual, practiced air, Erza tried to find out what was wrong. She didn't like to see the normally sunny girl frown.

"You and Elfman seem out of sorts. Is something wrong?"

"No, not really. Please don't worry about it." Lisanna gestured at her to roll up her sleeves.

"Has Natsu been bothering you?" Erza folded back her torn cuffs in a suitably onimous manner.

"No! No. Natsu's been great, especially since the last time you ... disciplined him."

"Then what is the problem?"

But Lisanna, to her credit, remained unfazed by Erza's impatient tone. A calculating look flitted across her face and then, almost reluctantly, "...Mirajane."

"Oh? ...I can't say I'm surprised." Erza straightened in her seat. Anything involving her rival was bound to be interesting and a little dangerous.

Lisanna snorted. "She's being stubborn as usu-"

The sound of people flying down the stairs interrupted her and the subject of their conversation burst into the kitchen, followed closely by Elfman, who was shouting at her.

"...You can't go alone, Mira! Aren't you even thinking?"

"I'm thinking, alright! I'm thinking my brother's a jer- what the hell is SHE doing here?" Mirajane skidded to a stop, glaring balefully at the redhead.

Erza kept still; considering her injuries, she was in no state for a fight. But even as she noted the frustration and weariness in her rival's clenched jaw, she felt her mouth turn down and her eyes narrow in automatic response to the other girl's hostility.

Elfman, sulkily leaning against the refrigerator, jumped in viciously. "We let her in. What, you're going to tell us who we can't invite now?"

"I- That's not what I meant and you know it. But you know what? We're done talking. I'm going and you're not."

Despite herself, Erza asked, "And where will you be going?" It was none of her business, but that's never stopped her before. And while she may not be in a state to start a brawl, she was certainly in the mood. Maybe she'd find out why her favorite members of this family were so upset.

"Stay out of this, you- "

...Maybe not.

"She wants to go to Straelen for the Einsatz Tournament." Lisanna intervened before her older sister could finish the insult.

(Straelen, from what Erza knew, was a large, prosperous city-state in the North. She didn't know much else, besides its freezing temperatures and surprisingly large population of powerful mages, organized by families rather than guilds. They kept to their own business, so the Mage Council didn't interfere. As for the tournament itself, it occurred every ten years, too infrequently to attract much attention.)

Elfman added with a meaningful grimace, "We have relatives there." Mirajane cast the two of them a furious look, but didn't say anything.

(Erza would never admit it, but one of the traits she admired in her rival was the girl's respect for her siblings. It would've been easy for Mirajane, as the oldest and strongest, to make them feel small, to intimidate them into silence or to bully them into obedience. But she never did.)

"And you can't go with her?" Erza asked. She didn't know why Lisanna and Elfman were willing to confide in her, especially in the presence of Mirajane, but she was always willing to listen.

Lisanna answered matter-of-factly, gently massaging ointment into Erza's scraped palms. "She won't be able to concentrate on the tournament and keep us safe at the same time."

"She thinks we'd be a liability," Elfman said bitterly.

This was a sore topic, judging from Mirajane's exasperated sigh. But before she could respond, Lisanna interrupted. "Stop it! We're getting nowhere, so I'm calling for a vote."

"I refuse. Both of you are obviously going to vote against me."

Erza was quietly fascinated by this glimpse of family dynamics. Mirajane was pouting and pacing while Elfman's sulky visage became triumphant at this turn of events. But Lisanna had a remarkably lighthearted expression, as if she already knew what was going to happen. Did Lisanna pull this trick often?

"Sorry, Sister. You know the rules. And don't try for any of the loopholes because we both know they won't work in this case. Elfman, what do you say?"

"Mirajane shouldn't go."

"Mira?"

"I'm going."

Elfman opened his mouth to argue, but Lisanna shushed him with a glance. She then flashed a quick smile at Erza, who felt a prickle of unease.

"And now it's my turn. Mira, unless you compromise, I'm going to vote against you. So please listen to me."

"Compromise? Quit joking around! I must've been out of my mind when I told you about the tournament in the first place." But Erza heard a familiar undercurrent of respect in her rival's furious voice. It took a lot of courage to face Mirajane so calmly.

"You told us because you know Elfman and I have a right to be involved. Now, listen."

Mirajane focused on Lisanna, but Elfman's victorious expression had melted into realization. His eyes darted swiftly to Erza, who stared back, secretly confused. Wasn't it a little too late to be embarassed that a guest was witnessing a family quarrel?

"You want to go. We don't want you to go alone. You refuse to let us come with you. The only solution is for someone else to go with you."

Lisanna took a nervous breath, but continued. "Erza goes with you."

What the hell? Why was Lisanna dragging her into this? She should have left the moment she saw that devious look flit across the younger girl's face. There was no way Mirajane would agree. She looked at her rival, not wanting to be the first to protest. But Mirajane just returned the stare, mouth pressed into a thin line and eyes dark with thought.

Then, with finality, "Agreed."

Lisanna relaxed and said graciously, "Thank you. Then I vote for you. You'll go and of course, Elfman and I will support you in every way."

Of course she could be gracious. She won. Elfman nodded in resignation while Mirajane looked... contemplative, which was terrifying.

Well, they might be used to Lisanna's clever solutions, but Erza wasn't. She spluttered as much as she ever did (which, she was proud to say, not that much), so that she ended up speaking a little less stoically than normal. "Lisanna, you can't just drag me into this. I don't even want to get involved." She diplomatically ignored Mirajane's snort of disbelief.

Elfman sighed and reluctantly handed her a neatly folded booklet from his pocket. "The prizes might be worth your time."

Skimming through the booklet, Erza was impressed. They had weapons, some actually quite decent. But still, to have to spend so much time with Mirajane... "Why not ask Kana to come with you? You get along with her very well."

"Of course I do. She's less annoying and she's more laid back. And she actually has a sense of humor. But... she's down South, helping a city find its very dangerous mascot."

Over the clatter of Elfman laying out food in front of her, Erza said, unamused, "...And yet you see no problems asking me?"

Before Mirajane could reply (probably with more insults, if her broad smirk was any indication), Lisanna jumped in. "Think of this as a job, Erza. We can discuss payment in more detail later, but at the very least, you'll want Mirajane to participate in the pair battle with you. I think you'll like the grand prize."

Flipping to the end of the booklet and letting Mirajane steal her food, Erza felt her jaw drop in shock. "The Purgatory Armor? It's been missing for years! How did the sponsors find it?"

(She'd been searching for this armor for a very long time. It was rumored to be incredibly strong, having been forged from the living skin of a very powerful demon. Of course, it was also rumored to curse the wearer in some way. That might've been true, considering her leads had all but disappeared, often under gruesome and unusual circumstances.)

Mirajane shrugged casually as she chewed on Erza's dinner roll. "One of the sponsors is a collector of pretty much everything expensive. He enjoys acquiring stuff at any cost, but doesn't care for it afterwards. He's pretty sick in the head."

Elfman chuckled at that, but then asked seriously, "So are you in, Erza?"

"...Yes. But we'll need to discuss our rules for traveling, what lines shouldn't be cross-"

"Oh, for - It's late, you're dead on your feet and I still have to wrap my head around the fact that I'll be spending an extended amount of time with you. Why do you have to be so intense all the time?" Mirajane waved Erza's fork in aggravation.

Her rival had been unusually docile so far, Erza thought wryly, so it wasn't surprising to see her finally snap. "That's exactly why we need rules. We irritate each other and while I don't know about you, I certainly don't do it on purpose."

Lisanna suddenly laughed, breaking the tension. "I kind of wish I could go, if only to see the two of you bicker. Erza, why don't you take it easy? Stay over tonight, you look exhausted. Elfman and I will take care of the details and get back to you."

Elfman chimed in. "You can take my bed."

Erza politely demurred, even though bed sounded like an excellent idea. "No, that's alright. I wouldn't want to trouble yo-"

"Just take the damn bed." Mirajane was never one for politeness.

Lisanna shook her head in fond exasperation and said diplomatically, "You don't understand how much of a favor you're doing us. Just think of this as our way of thanking you."

Since she put it that way... "If you say so. Then I'll turn in now, if you don't mind."

Mirajane rolled her eyes. "Of course we don't mind. You look horrible, so do us a favor and get going!"

Erza decided to let that comment pass. As she wearily headed upstairs, followed by a chorus of 'good nights' and quiet conversation, she couldn't help but feel a pang of envy. This must have been one of the reasons why Mirajane wanted to keep her family together so badly; to return home to warm smiles and good company was a luxury Erza wouldn't want to give up either, if she could have afforded it in the first place.

A/N: Reviews are appreciated, especially constructive criticism. Thanks for reading!

This is going to be a multi-chapter story. I have the plot worked out; it's just a matter of time and being able to write it out, which are the hardest for me to do. Wish me luck!